Human rights in Somaliland

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Human rights in Somaliland are protected by Chapter one, Part three of the Constitution of Somaliland. Somaliland is an unrecognised sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, internationally considered [1] [2] to be part of Somalia.

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Amnesty International criticizes the persistence of the death penalty and cases of controversial detentions and trials in Somaliland. [3]

In January 2007, the editor and several journalists of the Haatuf newspaper were arrested because they had "defamed" the president's family with their corruption allegations. Under pressure from Somalilander expats and local media, the government released the journalists after 86 days in custody. [4] Other journalists dealing with corruption were also victims of intimidation. [5]

Asylum seekers from the Ethiopian regions of Somali and Oromia, who are suspected of supporting the separatist Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) or the Oromo Liberation Front, have been repatriated to Ethiopia at the request of the Ethiopian government. According to human rights organizations, these people are at risk of arbitrary detention and torture. [6] However, this order was not carried out.

As of 2009, Freedom House names the following human rights problems in Somaliland: corruption, interference and harassment of journalists, banning non-Islamic proselytizing, banning public demonstrations, lack of due process and prolonged detention before trial, weak judiciary and female genital mutilation. [7]

Women's rights

In 2016, an estimated 98 percent of girls[ vague ] experienced female genital mutilation (FGM), [8] and in 2020, the Somaliland Demographic and Health Survey reported a similar statistic, that 98 percent of women aged 15-49 had experienced FGM. [9] [10]

After activism from the Minister of Employment, Social Affairs & Family (MESAF), President Muse Bihi Abdi approved the signing of the Somaliland National Anti-FGM Policy on 18 September 2024. [11]

Freedom of expression

It is forbidden in Somaliland to promote the unity of Somaliland with Somalia, [12] or to wear the flag of Somalia. [13]

References

  1. ↑ "Issue 270". Archived from the original on 21 March 2016. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  2. ↑ "The Transitional Federal Charter of the Somali Republic" (PDF). University of Pretoria. 1 February 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 March 2009. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
  3. ↑ "2006 Annual Report – Somalia" (in German). Amnesty International. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  4. ↑ "Somaliland journalists freed after 86 days". afrol News. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  5. ↑ HRW 2009 (S. 37–39)
  6. ↑ "Somalia: Human Rights Challenges: Somaliland Facing Elections". Amnesty International. 17 March 2009. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  7. ↑ "Freedom in the World 2010 - Somaliland". Freedom House. Archived from the original on 18 November 2011. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  8. ↑ Quasem, Himaya (2016-02-06). "'The worst pain I'd ever felt': women in Somaliland on FGM – in pictures". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2025-12-26.
  9. ↑ "LOOKING BEYOND NUMBERS: Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) Study Report 2021 - Somaliland". UNFPA Somalia. Archived from the original on 2024-09-05. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
  10. ↑ "In Somalia, health workers, girls and women are experts in preventing female genital mutilation". www.who.int. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
  11. ↑ Hanne, Julia (2024-11-06). "A historic breakthrough: Somaliland signs national anti female genital mutilation policy". Options. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
  12. ↑ "Somaliland: Prosecutions Threaten Free Expression". Human Rights Watch. 8 May 2018. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  13. ↑ "Somaliland's Horn Stars band arrested over Somali flag". BBC News. 28 September 2015.


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