The crowd of people who gathered in-front of Downing street which is opposite the office and the residence of the British PM carried slogans like : One SMS , 8 Months in prison , No human rights in Somaliland
Nadra Mohamed Jama has been in detention without charge for 8 weeks before she was sentenced to 8 months prison in Mid Feb. This Somaliland women , dubbed as the SMS lady has been charged and imprisoned for allegedly sending offensive text messages to minister Hirsi Haji Ali of the Somaliland presidency.
The imprisonment of Nadra has been seen by the Somaliland people as human rights abuse and breach of her rights and the case sets precedence for other similar abuses against Somaliland women in the future. Most think that this action by the authorities does not help Somaliland democratization processes and its commitment to freedom of speech. Activists have demanded that the minister in question should show tolerance and restraint and that the public should not keep silent about the injustice against this lady.
The demonstrators called upon the British government to use its influence on Somaliland authorities to release Miss Nadra M . Jama from prison .
Somaliland needs to respect human rights and vulnerable women should be protected against the power abusers among the government officials.
By : Mohammed Ahmed Ali ( Medeshi )
I don't understand why this people are demonstrating at 10 Downing Street. Why they did not make this useless effort at office of the Somaliland representative, instead of 10 Downing street.
ReplyDeleteThis people do not understand what exactly they want to achieve this.
Ali you need check your sources mate!..these are photoshoped pictures of the anti-khad demonstrations held in London.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure of that , but then assuming that these pictures were fake , do we have to accept a Somaliland woman goes to 8 months jail for sending a text message to a minister. I remember in the early seventies when I was at high school in Sheikh when Landers were imprisoned for yawning ( Hamaansi - in Somali ) . The authorities serving the dictatorship at that time have based their convictions on " that any one that has yawned in public was insulting president Barre ( Nick named Afweyne - the big mouthed ) " ... We have paid in blood and money to achieve freedom of speech , freedom to travel , freedom to education , freedom to express ourselves, freedom for Somaliland people and more and more ...Do we have to abandon that now ..or should we start the struggle from the bottom again ..?
Deleteplease read the following press release issued by local human rights organization based in Hargeisa and operating there:
ReplyDeleteThe Horn Africa Human Rights Watch Committee better known widely as HornWatch says it has withdrawn its human rights campaign for Ms. Nadra Jama, after the HornWatch ascertained that she is not entitled from our organization human rights support because we believe that the massages she had sent to the others are violation human rights.
According to the Spokesperson of HornWatch Mr. Suleiman Ismail Bulale, the about-turn by his organization follows access to the SMS messages the lady sent to the several government officials including the vice president, the presidency minister and interior minister among others, the content of the SMS massages sent by Nadra are against the Islamic faith, and individual rights of the receivers of her text massages.
"We have pulled back from our human rights support we have providing her as prisoner of consience" Says Bulaleh
As per the HornWatch accessed (from Simcard provider) the messages send by Ms. Nadra to government top leaders and ministers, the campaign for her immediate release had to cease.
In a press statement the Horn Africa Human Rights Watchdog based in Hargeisa says that the SMS massage which Nadra M Jama sent to the minister and other top country's leaders stretch from late of December 2012 to early January 2013 are of an obscene nature apart from being anti-Islamic and uncultured.
Despite recanting support for Ms. Nadra's release, Mr. Bulale informs that his body shall continue to push for a fair hearing and access to visits by her (SMS lady) relatives and lawyers.
i think she guilt she hs not rights to insult public officer with insults against Islam faith,the rigths to get every one fair trail she get fair trail i think the court not take appropriate judgemnt becuase 8 month is not enough women like her
ReplyDelete