The Somaliland government severely restricted reporting and free expression on issues deemed controversial or overly critical of the authorities.There was a significant number of arbitrary arrests of journalists and temporary closure of media outlets. On February 10, the regional court in Hargeisa suspended the Foore newspaper for one year and fined the editor, Abdirashid Abdiwahab Ibrahim, 3 million Somaliland shillings (US$300). The newspaper was accused of spreading misinformation after it reported on the building of a new presidential palace in Hargeisa. The ban on Foore was lifted in August.
The government also arbitrarily arrested perceived government critics. On January 12, poet Abdirahman Ibrahim Adan (known as "Abdirahman Abees") was arbitrarily arrested and charged with “insulting the police” after he highlighted various due process abuses in Somaliland. He was acquitted and released on February 25.
Key International Actors
International support and attention focused on building Somalia’s security sector, improving relations between federal and state authorities, and regional electoral processes. Attention to ensuring accountability for abuses remained minimal.
Following the December 2018 police violence in Baidoa, key international partners—the European Union, the United Kingdom and Germany—temporarily suspended support to police in the South West State.
After the Somali government expelled special representative of the secretary-general Haysom, the UN suspended its monthly reporting on human rights issues.
The US military increasingly conducted airstrikes in Somalia and joint military operations against Al-Shabab. Media and NGOs documented several civilian casualties. In April, AFRICOM acknowledged two civilian casualties in an April 2018 strike, citing internal reporting errors.
In August, six UN Security Council member states blocked a bid by Kenya to impose additional counterterrorism sanctions on Al-Shabab that could have jeopardized the delivery of humanitarian aid.
International donors supported the establishment of a new civilian court and prison complex in Mogadishu. At time of writing, the court’s mandate remained unclear, and no juvenile facilities set up.
The competition between UAE and Qatar over political and economic dominance in Somalia continued to exacerbate intra-Somalia tensions, both between Mogadishu and federal states, and with Somaliland.
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