VOA journalist's trial opens in Somalia

Text by: Sébastien Duhamel

The trial of Mukhtar Mohamed Atosh is scheduled to start on Monday, April 27. This VOA Somali journalist was arrested on April 20 in Baidoa, in the southwestern state, while he was covering a rape case against a 14-year-old girl and when he reported intimidation by the authorities.

Publicity

Mukhtar Mohamed Atosh was released on bail on April 22, two days after his arrest in Baidoa. But this VOA Somali journalist is still the subject of a trial which therefore opens this Monday, April 27. He is prosecuted on four counts, namely "offense against the authorities by means of harmful information", "intimidation of the public", "false alert to the authorities" and "publication of false, exaggerated or biased information disturbing public order ".

The Somali National Union of Journalists (Nusoj) denounces these lawsuits. "  This case has become a big problem because it involves a journalist, who was asked not to talk about the rape, as well as the hospital, which has been ordered not to disclose any information. The charges against Mukhtar are very serious. And if they are detained, he could be sentenced to up to three and a half years in prison,  ”regrets Omar Faruk Osman, general secretary of the union.

The Union of Journalists believes that Mukthar Mohamed Atosh has been arrested for his journalistic work. She therefore called for a halt to the prosecution and the intimidation on the part of the judicial authority. Other organizations have also joined their voices, such as the Somali Journalists Union (SJS) and the International Press Institute  (IPI based in Vienna). The latter denounces in particular "  an arbitrary arrest  ". More generally, this case would be symptomatic of a worrying situation at the national level.

Journalist Mukhtar Mohamed Atosh released on bail #Somalia https://t.co/MVftg5aCsv pic.twitter.com/rVNn1l6fZG

Freedom of the oppressed press

"  There is a problem with press freedom in Somalia, attacks on journalists are increasing day by day. It is a fact, even if we have made progress over the past year in terms of cooperation with the authorities,  ”deplores Omar Faruk Osman. Until recently, at least four journalists were reportedly briefly detained while covering news related to the coronavirus.

The secretary general of Nusoj cites the examples of several colleagues prosecuted in Mogadishu or elsewhere in the country, and all of them worried about charges under the Criminal Code. He considers this treatment to be unacceptable: "  We believe that all accusations of error or defamation, freedom of expression and complaints of offenses should be treated in civil matters and not as criminal cases.  "

For its part, the IPI claims that "  the authoritarian approach of the Somali government to stifle the independent media and attack critical journalists is an affront to press freedom  ". In its 2020 press freedom ranking , the NGO Reporter Without Borders ranks Somalia 163rd out of 180 countries.

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• Somalia
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• Freedom of press