Victory for Journalism: Somalia court frees detained journalist, says journalism not a crime

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Victory for Journalism: Somalia court frees detained journalist, says journalism not a crime

MOGADISHU – The Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) welcomes the decision of the Banadir Regional Court judge to release journalist Mohamed Ibrahim Bulbul, SJS Secretary of Information and Human Rights, who endured 56 days of incommunicado deten

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SJS Secretary of Information and Human Rights, Mohamed Bulbul (second from left) and his defense lawyers pose for a group photo after court announced his freedom on Wednesday 11 October 2023. | PHOTO Credit/SJS.

MOGADISHU – The Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) welcomes the decision of the Banadir Regional Court judge to release journalist Mohamed Ibrahim Bulbul, SJS Secretary of Information and Human Rights, who endured 56 days of incommunicado detention.

Bulbul was subjected to an unlawful detention and physical abuse on 17 August 2023 due to his fearless reporting on purported corruption involving Somali police officers participating in a training supported by the European Union training mission (EUCAP). These revelations were originally aired by Kaab TV.

The momentous decision was announced during the second hearing of the case on today, 11 October, by Judge Zakariye Abubakar Ahmed of the Banadir Regional Court. Accompanied by his legal team, Bulbul, who had been transported from the hospital where he stayed since Saturday 7 October, attended the hearing.

At the outset of the hearing, the prosecutor requested a delay, expressing dissatisfaction with a prior decision by the same court. This earlier decision on 25 September, had dismissed the use of the penal code to target journalists, emphasizing that journalism is not a crime. In response, Bulbul’s defense lawyers vividly portrayed the violations against him, including physical abuse, incommunicado detention, deprivation of adequate sustenance, restricted access to family and legal counsel. The lawyers further underscored the motives behind Bulbul’s detention as retribution for his courageous exposé of police corruption, a corrosive issue that Somalia urgently needs to confront.

Following a brief recess, the judge rendered his verdict, proclaiming Bulbul’s innocence and granting him freedom. The judge unequivocally declared that Bulbul’s detention had been unlawful.

During the hearing on 25 September, the judge had already dismissed all seven charges brought by the Office of the Attorney General. These charges were grounded in an outdated Somali penal code, which had historically been wielded to silence and intimidate journalists.

Regrettably, despite the brief reunion with his family, Bulbul has returned to the hospital where doctors have commenced a more extensive diagnosis and treatment to address the infections he contracted while in detention.

"We celebrate and welcome today’s decision by the Banadir Regional Court to grant our colleague Mohamed Bulbul’s freedom and announce that his 56 days of detention was unlawful. Bulbul should not have been detained in the first place; however, in order to ensure accountability, we call on the Court to allow our colleague to seek justice and remedy for the violations against his rights, including physical and mental torture, incommunicado detention, deprivation of adequate food and water, and access to family and lawyers, which resulted in the deterioration of his health,” said SJS Secretary-General, Abdalle Ahmed Mumin.

"We are now focusing on the health of Mohamed Bulbul as our main priority as he returns to the hospital for further medical treatment, and we hope for his immediate recovery,” added Mumin.

SJS extends heartfelt gratitude to its partners, friends, defense lawyers and supporters, both local and international, for their unwavering solidarity and support for our colleague. This victory is a testament to the resilience of press freedom, and together, we will persist in advocating for press freedom and human rights, vital pillars of any democracy.

(Source: Statement released by SJS)