Somaliland: Female singers face criminal charges for traveling to Mogadishu

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Thursday May 21, 2020 - 11:36:26 in Latest News by Super Admin
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    Somaliland: Female singers face criminal charges for traveling to Mogadishu

    HARGEISA, Somaliland - (Horn Observer) Somaliland authorities arrested female singers Hamda Yousuf Ibrahim and Barwaaqo Mohamed Hashi in April and face criminal charges only for traveling to Mogadishu, Somalia's capital, Human Rights Centre Soma

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Logo of Somaliland based Human Rights Center. Photo courtesy
HARGEISA, Somaliland - (Horn Observer) Somaliland authorities arrested female singers Hamda Yousuf Ibrahim and Barwaaqo Mohamed Hashi in April and face criminal charges only for traveling to Mogadishu, Somalia's capital, Human Rights Centre Somaliland in Hargeisa said in a statement.

Both singers were arrested upon returning from Mogadishu, in April and were charged with anti-national activity of a citizen abroad (article 212 of the Penal Code) and corruption of a citizen by foreigners (article 189), The Human rights watchdog said.

"We are startled by the government's intolerance towards musicians and restrictions imposed on musicians who perform art across the region of Horn of Africa where many speak the Somali language. The charges are merely persecution with no legal basis," says Yassmin Omar Haji Mohamoud, the chairperson of the Human Rights Centre.


"We call on the government to respect the constitution and international human rights conventions,” she added.

Whereas  the authorities arrested Abdiwahaab Osman Omar, a Borama based activist for a Facebook post critical to the government without charges.

Human Rights Centre is concerned with the criminalization of arts and  called on the government to drop the charges and release the two singers and activist Abdiwahaab.


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