MOGADISHU, Somalia 24 August 2023 – The Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) expresses its concern over the escalating surge of threats and acts of violence flagrantly targeting journalists and media stations who are exposing government corruption and insecurity by the Somali police officers and the national intelligence personnel, all too often escaping accountability for their actions.
Since the past Thursday, police officers at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Mogadishu have held Mohamed Ibrahim Osman Bulbul, SJS’s Secretary of Information and Human Rights, incommunicado. His unlawful detention is linked to his investigative news story, broadcasted by Kaab TV on 16 August, uncovering the alleged embezzlement of stipends allocated for Somali police officers attending a training seminar funded by the European Union Capacity Building Mission (EUCAP Somalia). On 19 August, Bulbul made a brief appearance before the Banadir Regional Court, resulting in an extension of his police custody by an additional seven days.
On Monday, 21 August, SJS received a call by police officers from the criminal investigation department (CID) demanding access to Bulbul’s phone and laptop logins. They also demanded details about the sources of Bulbul’s investigative news story. The Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) firmly refused to comply with these unusual and unlawful demands.
Despite multiple efforts made by SJS to establish contact with both EUCAP Somalia and the European Union Delegation in Somalia, our attempts to communicate via email seeking clarification regarding our colleague’s detention have unfortunately yielded no response up to this point.
On Wednesday 23 August, police officers apprehended two journalists from Five Somali TV, Zakariye Mohamed Salad (reporter) and Mohamed Dulmi-diid (cameraman). The journalists were on assignment to report on the aftermath of coordinated Al-Shabaab attacks that had unfolded in various neighborhoods of Mogadishu overnight on Tuesday. According to Fua’d Haji Abdiweli, Director of Five Somali TV, the two journalists were dispatched to conduct interviews at 8:00 AM on Wednesday. However, under orders from the Kaxda police station commander, they were detained for a span of three hours, during which their equipment was seized. Following this detention, they were released around mid-day without any formal charges being brought against them. Regrettably, the journalists were compelled to abandon their news story.
On 15 August, Galmudug police officers in Dhuusamareeb detained journalist Abdifatah Yusuf Beereed while in the midst of interviewing police officers who had expressed grievances about the non-payment of salaries spanning several months. The police commissioner of Dhusamareb, Nur Elmi Mohamed, headed a team of officers that escorted Beereed away from the city center. During his time in custody, which lasted until 16 August, Beereed told SJS that he was held at the police cell during the night and the following day when he was freed without any charge. However, his release came about solely after the footage from his interviews was erased and his camera equipment returned afterwards.
On the night of 12 August, armed men affiliated to former Barawe district commissioner Liban Abukar Osman fired several gunshots at the premises of Radio Barawe, a community-owned local radio station that speaks for the marginalized Bravanese community, according to Radio Barawe reporting at the time. The Radio’s director, Osman Aweys Bahar who was in the studio at the time of the incident told SJS that the shooting came days after the radio covered an allegation of torture resulting in the death of a local resident at the hands of the police. As a result, Radio Barawe director fled the city and is currently seeking safety in another location. This response followed a disturbing pattern, as SJS previously documented two raids targeting Radio Barawe and the subsequent detention of its journalists in 2020 and 2021 by Southwest State authorities in Barawe. These actions were motivated by an apparent attempt to halt the radio station’s unique programming in the Chimwimini, a local dialect spoken by the ethnic Baravanese community.
“We express grave concern about the ongoing incommunicado detention of our colleague, the SJS Secretary of Information and Human Rights, Mohamed Ibrahim Bulbul. We are demanding for his unreserved and prompt freedom,” SJS Secretary-General, Abdalle Ahmed Mumin said “We vehemently demand that the Somali police officers desist from perpetuating ongoing threats against our colleague. Moreover, we implore the police authorities to initiate a thorough investigation into those implicated in the corruption allegations reported – not the journalist who uncovered it,” Mumin further emphasized.
“The focus is squarely on EUCAP Somalia and the entire EU Delegation in Somalia. Our colleague’s unlawful detention cannot be ignored, and silence is not a solution. We urge both EUCAP Somalia and the EU Delegation in Somalia to step forward, address the situation, and provide a clear account of their involvement in the detention of Bulbul, who dared to uncover allegations of corruption,” Mr. Mumin added.
“The perilous environment surrounding Radio Barawe and the ordeal faced by its director, Osman Aweys Bahar, must come to an immediate halt. Those who target journalists and media entities that speak for the minority rights should know that their actions are not just breaching constitutional rights; they are perpetrating blatant human rights violations,” added SJS Secretary-General Abdalle Ahmed Mumin.