Jaffer Mohamed Kukay, a Somali journalist who is now a refugee in Djibouti (file photo) : Five Somali journalists have been killed and dozens more have left Mogadishu, this year, after receiving death threats NAIROBI, 10 June 2009 (IRIN) - At least five Somali journalists have been killed and dozens more have left the capital, Mogadishu, this year, after receiving death threats - creating the spectre that some, if not all, independent media may close down due to lack of staff. There are 11 independent radio stations and two TV stations in the city. "We are in a very difficult and dangerous situation. We are being forced to choose between reporting on what is happening and our lives," Hamdi Kadiye, an executive member of the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUJOS), told IRIN. The killing on 7 June of the Radio Shabelle director Mukhtar Mohamed Hirabe has added to pressure on journalists in the capital. "All we do is cover the story. We don’t side with any group, but the fighting groups want to silence us to make sure no one
hears or sees the suffering they are causing," she added. She said many journalists had left because "they no longer felt they could carry out their duties". She admitted that Somalia's story may be lost in the process, but said: "You cannot ask someone to continue when you know their life is in serious danger." Since late 2006, when Ethiopian troops backing the Transitional Federal Government ousted the Union of Islamic Courts, dozens of Somali journalists have been killed, five of them this year alone, or forced into exile due to the ongoing fighting in the capital. Ali Sheikh Yassin, deputy chairman of the Mogadishu-based Elman Human Rights Organisation (EHRO), told IRIN that journalists were in even "more danger now than at any time in the past". He said harassment and intimidation of journalists had increased this year. "We get reports of journalists getting anonymous calls and SMSs [text messages] threatening them." ..more..http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportId=84783
No comments:
Post a Comment