Justice Abroad’s Michael Polak Joins Legal Team Representing Secretary General of Somali Journalists Syndicate Abdalle Mumin on Trial on 15 January 2023 After Speaking up for Press Freedom

JUSTICE ABROAD

“Here When You Need Us”

International law barrister Michael Polak has joined the legal team supporting the Secretary General of Somali Journalists Syndicate Abdalle Mumin as he goes to trial on 15 January 2023 for a public statement in support of press freedom in Somalia.

The targeted prosecution of Mr Mumin comes after the Somalian media fraternity held a press conference at the SJS Headquarters in Mogadishu on 10 October 2022, where they expressed their concern about a new government directive that banned what was termed “Spreading Al-Shabab propaganda”. The media advocacy groups expressed concerns that they were not consulted in the drafting of these provisions and that the directive would be used to restrict legitimate freedom of expression and press freedom in the country. Somalian journalists have a long history of being facing repression and attacks from both government and non-government actors. On 11 October 2022, Mr Mumin was arrested at the airport and detained for leading this press conferences and detained at a unknown location and Michael Polak made submissions to the United Nation’s Group on Arbitrary Detention, that his detention was unlawful.  According to Mr Mumin, he was held at the notorious underground detention run by Somalia’s national intelligence agency (NISA) for two days before he was transferred to another detention run by the Somali police in Mogadishu’s KM4 area for 6 days before the Banadir Regional Court gave him a bail on 16 October only to be re-arrested on 18 October. Mr. Mumin got a second bail on 22 October. He is currently facing travel restriction and ban on his freedom of expression.

The prosecution in this case comes after on 15 November 2022 representatives from the Ministry of Information, who were acting on behalf of the Deputy Minister of Information attended the SJS offices and demanded that Mr Mumin cease all media freedom advocacy and sign a written document to confirm this, and that the SJS and other Somalian free press advocacy groups must retract their previous statement which raised concerns on the Ministry of Information and that the media advocates should publish an apology letter to the Ministry of Information and another joint statement that named the Deputy Minister's involvement in the case.

When Mr Mumin refused these demands, an official at the Ministry of Information told several media advocates that the Deputy Minister will punish Abdalle Mumin for being the "only outspoken media leader" and called on the media freedom organisation to stop supporting Mumin. Following this, they commenced criminal proceedings against him under provisions that cannot be properly applied to him and in breach of Article 18 of the Somalian Constitution which protects freedom of expression and opinion and Article 23 which protects freedom of trade, occupation, and profession and international law protecting free speech and the press.  The proceedings are being used as means to shut down free expression advocacy in Somalia and to warn the press that they face criminal sanctions for carrying out their roles as was confirmed by the prosecution Farhan Hussein in the preliminary hearing on 4 January 2023 when Mr Mumin appeared before Banadir Regional Court and Mr Hassan stated ‘This court must silence him to send a signal to other journalists’.

Michael Polak is working with the defence team including Ali Halane and Abdirahman H. Omar and stated the following:

‘In this case the government demanded that Mr Mumin’s to stop his vital media freedom work and then has brought this case against him because he refused to do so. As the prosecution confirmed directly at trial, these serious criminal proceedings are being used to silence Mr Mumin and are aimed at having a chilling effect on reporting in Somalia.  I am pleased to represent Mr Mumin, with his experienced legal team, and we will take this case outside of the Somalian courts system, to the African Court on Human Rights and United Nations bodies, if Mr Mumin cannot get justice in Somalia.’

Amnesty International Human Rights Watch sent a letter to the Attorney General of the Federal Republic of Somalia on 12 December 2022 which can be read here.

For any questions in relation to this press release please contact Justice Abroad by email at contact@JusticeAbroad.co.uk or phone on +44 (0)203 488 2316.

Notes to Editors

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