November 29, 2007
Posted January 10, 2008
Abdiqani Hassan Farah, Jamhuuriya and Radio Las Anod
Mohammed Shakale, Freelance
IMPRISONED
Two journalists were arrested November 26 in separate incidents in Las Anod by Somaliland armed forces. The Las Anod governor, Ali Sanuule, ordered the arrest of Radio Las Anod and Jamhuuriya reporter Abdiqani Hassan Farah, according to local journalists and the National Union of Somali Journalists. Freelance journalist Mohammed Shakale visited Hassan at the Las Anod Central Prison on November 26 and was subsequently arrested without charges. Both journalists were released after two days from the Las Anod Central Prison.
The Somaliland security forces beat the journalists, Hassan told CPJ. Shakale was beaten so badly he was sent to a hospital to receive treatment after his release, Hassan said. All of Hassan’s equipment, including a laptop and camera, were confiscated by the security forces during the arrest and were not returned after his release.
Hassan told CPJ he suspected his imprisonment was related to an article he wrote for the daily Jamhuuriya about the arrest of an influential tribal elder. The elder had publicly denounced Somaliland’s claim over the disputed Las Anod region in a major tribal conference held in Bo’ame on November 17, local journalists reported.