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Dismay at three-year jail sentence for Somaliland newspaper editor
January 23, 2011 · 27 Comments
Somalilandpress- Reporters Without Borders is “dismayed” by the three-year jail sentence and fine of 6 million Somaliland shillings (around 1,000 dollars) that a court in Hargeisa, the capital of the breakaway northwestern territory of Somaliland, passed yesterday on Mohamud Abdi Jama (Huto), the editor of the independent newspaper Waheen, for allegedly libelling local officials.
“This sentence has all the hallmarks of summary and punitive justice,” Reporters Without Borders said. “The court should have first established whether or not anyone was defamed and, if they were, a more measured and just penalty should have been imposed. Imprisonment is clearly disproportionate for defamation. We urge the courts to reverse this decision on appeal.”
Judge Ali Sudi Diriye found Jama guilty of defaming Somaliland’s chief of police and the head of the territory’s power company (Somaliland Electricity Agency) by publishing “false and misleading reports” about alleged nepotism within these institutions.
Jama was incarcerated in Hargeisa’s main prison immediately after the trial. His lawyer said he would appeal.
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By Abdiqani
Tags: Huto, Jailed, Jornalist, Somaliland, Wahen newspaper
Readers Comments (27)
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Justice system is idependent of any political interference in Somaliland. If the judge percieved according to the evidence provided that press laws were broken or preached, he had right to judge as he fit the law required. His only option for the defendent is now to submit strong case for an appeal. Press individuals must realize they can't hide behind press freedom as means to do whatever they wish. Anybody breaks the law should be dealt with first by the police to apprehend them and independent judiciary to decide their case. There is shared responsibility, and the some of the media doesn't seem to understand their responsibilites sometimes. They think news is about inciting people by divulging unfounded stories or allegations.
It is also improtant to realize that the president is not ordering these arrests nor involved in their apprehension like the previous government. Somaliland Government should endevour to improve the justice system and close loope holes that exist which undermind trust in the judiciary system.
Very cheep response. What you see is the tip of the iceberg. Only an amoral moron would defend such a system.
Today, world wide, media made up or completely fabicated lies, intended to damage ones name individually or group are commonly widespread through out the world. Normally, the newspapers that report such pre-empty articles, are very rich and willing to pay any amount of money to the people complaining against them. If the Somaliland media report similar baseless articles, are so rich to pay such a huge amount of money?. They should go to the jail, if they loose the final verdict, for reporting name damaging articles falsely.
Musa
If you break the law then you get what you deserve. If you can't do the time dont do the crime.
I agree with the 3 impartial comments by Abdi, Musa and Nimco respectively. It's no secret
that certain Media and their staff reporters are shamefuly irresponsible in the news they edit
which turns out to be false and baseless. Unfortunately the previous Udub Regimes specially
the tenure Of President Rayaale a lot of nonsenses from the Media and certain so called chiefs
were always bad mouthing certain areas etc. It would seem the Current administration's 3 branches
are very mindful for the good and bad and will not put up with the bad practices of certain unwarranted
smears of the media exactly the same way any good governance will not put up with any
diabolic reporting nonsenses by the Media or else.
The Somaliland judiciary should undergo changes to improve the adjudication functionalities
to meet the challenges of justices and it's hoped the Govt. and the law makers will do the right
things to address this issue.
Somaliland justice is under attack,,, even though i am not a lawyer but simply know the editor has not committed a criminal case but if exists Tort case (sevelian case).
referring to current ports minster that is former information minister somaliland justice system is total broken.
Not only the Somaliland justice is to blame…the whole country has problems everywhere
and this new Govt. is trying it's utmost all out war to combat the countries complicated
and complex problems. Why decry crocodile tears instead of looking at the countries
problems from a more broader perspective approaches iwm.
Cheers.
how about if the new government is part of the problem,, where ministries and director generals are violating the law,, there is a wide spread illegal contracts given by families and government official relatives,, civilian arrested made because of insulting government officials,, iwm,, the president should wake up and examine his staff now doubt they gonna put him very bad place.
This Govt. has been in power only 6 months. It inherited imperfect rule from the previous
Govt. It's very open and transparent than any Govt. we have known. It's always engaging
all the cross sections of the SL clans, setting up committees to come up with real solutions
to any given problem(s). The SL country has 3 branches of Govt. 3 political parties and the Media.
to govern the country together and the president expects good team work from all the
ranks and files to serve the country and the public. Instead of getting wild it's wise to identify
the problem and route through the proper channel..surely without getting mad crazy and
inciting unrest the least you could do is to channel through your tribal chiefs etc. If you think
the officials did not do the right. The worst thing is to take the law into your hands and act foolishly.
Cheers.
people voted for this government to make changes and do not follow the footsteps of previous adminstration. loopholes in somaliland's justice is undeniable, coming to this late incident since it is not criminal case punitive damages would be more appropriate and that is compensating the victim, or licence suspension for banning them for certain period. but unfortunately jail term sentencing took place because of two reasons.. first:- government intervention for the case, and second:- unqualified judges are running the court system.
i agree with you one issue and that is the worst thing is to take the law into your hands and act foolishly.
If u commit a crime you should face the punishment I'm not saying he deserves what he got but if he really did what the court said he did it should be an example for others to think twice before they break the law. that goes for elected officials and pubic servant no one is immune or above the law.
It could have been much better to put heavy fine on this editor instead of jail time. Because, it has become a habit for some of Somaliland media, to write something absolutely untrue against the current and previous government, and the news media that this editor is part of is one of, those who have written some articles that can be seen dangerous to Somaliland securities. These kind of false reporters or the media group has to face the music sometimes. Somaliland is yet unrecognized Country with a lot of enemies,if our own media do not control themselves, the enemy within or without will take any kind of negative reporting to another level. Which Somaliland do not need for now.
I agree with some of your impressions, the government must understand its responsibility in controlling the media, within the last ten years, media particularly, newspaer report whateven they want or any baseless information and violate the law. is media above the law? the answer is no. somaliland justce system must be independent and the government must implement the law controlling media .
thanks to the government in arresting those media personels reporting false case
Dear Mohamed, please differentiate between civil law suit and the government involvement of this particular case. The government has nothing to do with this case. There are two individuals who complain about this so-called editor who has no credentials to be one. He use to be a cameraman for Somaliland Space Channel and his journalism is homegrown that needs to be refined and disciplined. If anyone believe I am defending this government, let all of you know that I am more close to this editor than the government, but believe the law has to be respected and our media has to refrain from attaching people without.
We all know very few of the current journalist are equipped with the knowledge of journalism, but we accept them and they should always be honest to what they are reporting. Media is the fourth authority internationally, but there are limites.
Noted tks..I was only responding to the bloggers comments sharing opinions about
how the Govt. is coping with the countries national/international affairs.
Cheers.
Waaheen did what they did for publicity and didn't even care that they were inciting unrest in the country and they should pay the prize whatever that means.
Allow me to state clearly that the methodical jailings and spurious charges against journalist in Somaliland convey to the world our unpreparedness to begin contemplative debates about national consciousness and diplomacy. It clearly sends a message that we are narrow-minded society whereas we are not, the current Somaliland system is acting as unitelligent and dull as the former Sland sytem.
If we are to be liberated from ourselves and chain of bad governance, we must allow our society to have journalists who can write and publish discourse which is both critical and affirming of our current structures of governance.
Saeed Furaa
Freelance Journalist
Look we can talk anything MR. Freelance journalist. Allowing journalists to publish critical discourse containing discriminating false accusations to certain parts of the Somaliland tribal societies on a tug of war is by law unacceptable if you can understand what that means!. No body big or small is above the law including the Media. It's become a common ground habitual practice for those in this case and others to continue engaging discriminatory news which can only cause discourses of hostilites between the SL clan
framework structure. You know what I mean.
Cheers.
You are confused my friend, read the articles on waaheen and supporting websites, the hints of tribalism in their discourse, being critical of government is essential to any free press, but baseless accusations and MURQAAN journalism is totally unacceptable for hijacking the press and misleading the people.
If you have facts then expose corruption but don't make it up for the sake of publicity, Haatuf and Jamhuuriya are critical on policies of the new government they don't face any charges why ? because they are respectable papers thats why
Mohamed it's not about talking or writing anything!, it's about freedom of speech which is a basic human right that helps preserve peace and order inside Sland.
Freedom to express opinions and views (with responsibility) promotes creativity and paves the way for progress. Newspaper editors including those in Somaliland, hardly have to be told about the importance of press freedom. Nor do they need to be lectured on the virtues of peace, I think that's a critical point that one needs to understand.
As I've indicated in one of my earlier articles, in Somaliland, time for physical violence is long gone and if we are truly going to emerge as a nation of fighters! I think the fighting mustn’t be in the battlefield where blood is the price but the battlefield must be a paper and a pen. Obviously the battlefield must be intellectual exchanges through writing and this is the legacy that I intent to leave behind
Honestly, am seeing signs of despotism when the goverment of Sland targets the free press and interfering and jailing journalists who are doing their job. The current sytem in Sland is just following the previous jailing and silencing journalists.
It looks Somaliland's new authority is sending signals to all media group that they shouldn't report anything against them or face the quensequences. The man they put in jail did say that the judge didn't even considered the defendant's foundings and what let him to report. This is a cangroo court and the man should be let go otherwhise this could hugely damage Somaliland. It's fine to apply the law but applying it in a wrong way and coming up your own judge is not fair. The judge should be independant from the the government and the accuse and in this case it's clear the judge is from the administration. Three years for what? reporting someone or an administration mistakes very funny. When he come out of jail, he will have more cause to go even far.
Many people confuse between freedom of speech and defamation. When Universal TV was suspended in Somaliland that was wrong, because the government banned it. That was restriction of freedom of speech.
But when some editor misuse his position to defame people, then he has to personally answer that in a court of law and face the consequencies. The government is not involved in this case.
Thank you MR. Ali Dheere for saying it all. The above folks only care to represent certain camp
interests and care a damn of other certain interests. for example if their group does whatever bad
is jewel gold but any jolly jewel gold outside their camp interests is junk that's their mentality. Damn it all.
Cheers.
And MR. ALI allow me to correct your first part. When the Universal TV was suspended in Somaliland that was right not wrong because it broadcast anti-somaliland slogan materials which when
the SL info. Minister warned to stop went on unabated and defiant which finally led the min.to take
the appropriate legal action. I have already agreed to your second part where the Govt. was not
involved in this case.
Cheers.
If the Editor has provable evidence,then it is wrong to convict him.If not he deserves what he gets.
SOMALILAND SHOULD GIVE FREEDOM TO PRESS WE SHOULD NOT BE LIKE THE OLD SOMALIA AND WE SHOULD NOT FORGET WHAT OUR BROTHERS "SNM" DEID FOR THAT WAS "FREEDOM" FREEDOM TO EVERY ONE IN SOMALILAND EVERY ONE TO THE PRESS AND TO THE OUR WOMEN LIKE YOYR MAMMA AND MY MAMMA YOUR SITERS AND MY SISTERS EVERY ONE OF THEM AND EVEN YOU NEED "FREEDOM"
I LOVE SNM VERY MUCH AND IAM VERY THANKS FULL TO THEM THAT THEY GAVE US FREEDOM THAT IS WHAT IS TODAY SOMALILAND "FREEDOM"