The International
Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today condemned the violent knife attack on Hassan Bulhan Ali, Director of Radio Abudwaq station in Central Somalia, who was stabbed
five times on Saturday and is in a critical condition.
"We are concerned
about the escalation of violence against journalists in Somalia," said Gabriel Baglo,
Director of the IFJ Africa Office. "The situation is simply unacceptable and
the government must make it a priority to ensure that those who perpetrated
these crimes are arrested and brought to justice in order to prevent more attacks."
According to the
National union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), IFJ affiliate, Hassan Bulhan Ali was attacked by
a man wielding a knife who stabbed him five times during a tribal
reconciliation meeting in Abudwaq, on Saturday, February 6, 2009. The attacker, who fled the scene shortly
after the incident, accused Bulhan of filing biased reports against his clan.
Bulhan is said to
be in a very critical condition in Galkayo hospital.
The IFJ calls on
the new Somali Government to work with the clans leaders to do everything
possible in order to apprehend the attacker and to ensure that he is brought to
justice. The Somali government must take drastic measures to deter attacks on journalists
who are victims of violence committed by criminal groups bent on stifling open
debate and the development of independent journalism in Somalia.
Last week, Said
Tahliil Ahmed, Director of the HornAfrik radio and television station in the
Somali Capital Mogadishu was gunned down in the Bakare market.
The IFJ supports
the NUSOJ's call for the establishment of accountability and rule of law in Somalia
to remove impunity for perpetrators of attacks on journalists.
For more
information contact the IFJ at + 221 33 867 95 87
The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 123 countries worldwide