Somaliland court under fire over Hubaal convictions
The decision by a Somaliland court to convict the manager and editor of independent newspaper Hubaal has received widespread criticism from journalists, media groups and politicians who say the court failed to follow due process.
On Wednesday (July 3rd), Hubaal editor Hassan Hussein Kefkef was sentenced to two years in jail, while the paper’s manager Mohamed Ahmed Jama Aloley received a one-year sentence. Both men were also ordered to pay a 2,000,000-shilling ($300) fine each, Marodi Jeh Regional Court Judge Osman Ibrahim Dahir told Sabahi.
The two newsmen were found guilty of reporting false news, slandering top Somaliland officials, and falsely accusing employees of the Ethiopian consulate of smuggling alcohol into the region, he said.
After an uproar over the convictions, Marodi Jeh Appeals Court Chairman Abdirashid Mohamed Duran released the defendants from the Hargeisa Central Prison on bail Thursday pending their appeal in court, according to a statement by an ad-hoc group representing managers of independent news outlets in Somaliland. The court date for the appeal case has yet to be determined.
“The newspaper was waiting for the government to hear the case about the April 24th attack on its headquarters in which the manager [Aloley] was injured; to be shutdown, jailed and sentenced instead is unfortunate,” the group said Wednesday.
“The procedure of this case indicates that the law was disregarded, and the sentence is far from being just,” their statement read.
Widespread criticism over Hubaal arrests, convictions
The circumstances surrounding the arrest of the Hubaal journalists and their subsequent convictions have raised serious concerns among human right activists and media groups that say the case is politically motivated and aims to intimidate independent media professionals across Somaliland.
Hubaal has covered issues such as corruption and irregular procurement procedures by officials in the regional administration, and the controversy over oil exploration in the region. The paper also regularly reported on the dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia — with which Somaliland has a close relationship — over the construction of a dam on the Nile River.
“This is an unexpected ruling and the court has only had two hearings about this case … we see it as an unjust sentence,” said Mohamud Abdirahman Nur, the lawyer defending the reporters.
“This ruling will lead to similar sentences to silence reporters and [prevent] freedom of speech in general,” Nur told Sabahi.
Echoing the same sentiment, Somaliland Justice and Welfare Party presidential candidate Jamal Ali Hussein also called the court sentence unjust.
The Somaliland Journalist Association also issued a statement Wednesday calling upon local and international free speech activists to intervene.
“The conviction of the Hubaal journalists is not only an effort to silence the newspaper, but a message to the entire Somaliland press that authorities will abuse the courts to punish their critics,” said Tom Rhodes, the Committee to Protect Journalists’ East Africa consultant. “Authorities should act quickly to overturn this unjust verdict and release Mohamed Ahmed and Hussein Hassan.”
“Even though we welcome the journalists’ release on bail, we are calling for a full return of their freedom and lifting of the ban on their newspaper,” Human Rights Centre Director Guled Ahmed told Sabahi.
The Somaliland government should uphold its laws and safeguard the freedom of the press, which is constitutionally guaranteed, he added.
By: Barkhad Dahir
Source: sabahionline