Somali TV journalist detained for reporting suspected police corruption
Mohamed-Bulbul
Eastern Africa Editors Society is concerned about the rise of Media freedom violations in Somalia. This has been noted from media monitoring our organisation conducts and we would like to bring the concerns to your attention.
In the month of August, our media monitoring team picked up two instances that were a risk to the freedom of the media in Somalia. One was the banning of social media platforms, TikTok, Telegram and a betting app saying they were being used by terrorists to spread propaganda. This puts the freedom of the media at risk as they can be targeted using such allegations to stop spreading news using their preferred platforms. This came at a time Kenya their neighbours were also facing a similar challenge and wanted to ban TikTok on moral grounds.
This was however resolved by Kenya’s President Dr William Ruto having a meeting with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, where they agreed to regulate and moderate content on the platform. It also opened a door where they agreed on content creators using the platform to get paid.
The second violation was reports of the detention of a TV journalist by the police. Kaab TV editor Mohamed Ibrahim Bulbul, who is also information and human rights secretary at the Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS), was attending a class at the university on 17 August when four armed plainclothes policemen came and took him away in an unmarked car.
The previous day, Bulbul had reported on the air that senior Somali police officers who had participated in a capacity-building training seminar organised and funded by the European Union (EUCAP Somalia) were suspected of misusing funds in connection with the seminar.
After sustaining injuries to the chest and a shoulder while being taken from the university to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in Mogadishu, Bulbul was detained for two days in a cell with no mattress and without being given enough food and water, and was interrogated without a lawyer being present.
He was taken before a Banaadir regional court judge on 19 August and was transferred to a cell in the CID centre in the Mogadishu suburb of Sheelare on 22 August. Neither his lawyer nor his family has been allowed to visit him since then.
Three other Somali journalists have been arrested in the past two weeks. Channel Five Somali TV reporter Zakariye Mohamed Salad and cameraman Mohamed Dulmi-diid were covering the consequences of the previous day’s Al-Shabaab attacks on 23 August when they were arrested by the Mogadishu police and held for three hours.
Goobjoog TV reporter Abdifatah Yusuf Beereed was arrested in Dhuusamareeb, the capital of the central state of Galmudug, on 15 August while interviewing members of the regional police about their salaries. He was released without any charge after being held overnight.
Eastern Africa Editors Society vehemently denounce the recent arrest of journalists in Somalia. Such an act is a blatant disregard for media freedom and impedes the ability of journalists to report on critical issues. The government must release Bulbul immediately and allow journalists to operate freely without any fear of retaliation. It is imperative that the media is able to function without censorship or intimidation, as this is crucial for providing the public with accurate and unbiased information.
By Muhia Robert