Somalilandpress
Mo Guled | February 17, 2011 | Somaliland |
The news that the editor of the Somaliland based Waheen newspaper, Abdi Jama, was fined six million Somaliland shillings on top of a three year criminal sentence by a court of law in Hargeisa has infuriated many in the Somali media professions.
Mr. Jama was charged and convicted of a libelous act against a public official and while this seems excessive, it was what the Court in the capital of Somaliland, Hargeisa, saw fitting for this so called crime.
There is absolutely no question about the importance of a free and independent press in all civilised and democratic societies as it brings untold benefits that censorship can never match. Freedom of the press and expression are basic Human rights and they are, despite not sometimes been enshrined in law, among the most important Somali traditions as a result of the people’s oral tradition and heritatge. Freedom of the press and hence expression, as Somaliland has witnessed, has brought peace, stability and socio-economic development that is absent and sought after in most parts of the developing world. Freedom of expression has facilitated two very successful elections in Somaliland and has contributed to raising the voices of the most marginalised in the country.
The physical evidence of the successes of free press are evident in the skylines and suburban areas of Somaliland’s major cities such as Hargeisa, Borama and Burao as it has, through its presence, inspired confidence in foreign investors and global NGO’s who have decided to invest and base their operations their.
A free press is more important now than ever before in Somaliland as they are needed to play a key scrutiny role in the absence of robust opposition Political Parties which all appear to be poorly governed and organised. Despite all these high minded arguments, what is usually forgotten is the most simplest but most imperative reason for the existence of free Press and this is the fact that it builds a bridge between the people and their usually wealthy, out of touch political ruling elites.
Freedom of speech which an uncesnored press promotes has been among the most defining and consistent right promoted by all international constitutions. The French philosopher Voltaire, as far back as 1770, wrote a letter to a Monsieur L’abbe informing him that despite despising what he writes he would give his life to defend his right to write it. However, would Voltaire have been so brave to offer his own life in defence of a journalist or writer who engaged in irresponsible journalism which at best was speculative and at worst, an out right lie? I doubt it very much.
The arrest of the editor of Waheen Newspaper has been a great shock for Somaliland society and an embarrassment for the ruling Kulmiye Party who accussed the last UDUB administration of press intimidation and censorship. The majority of the media coverage on this issue concentrated on the Freedom of the expression exercised by the editor, Abdi Jama and failed to address the damaging consequences of potentially poor, biased and irresponsible journalism.
The argument here is not that, Abdi Jama, engaged in it as the Court in Hargeisa felt, but that we must address it anyway to raise awareness of its devastiting impact to the media industry and individual lives caught up in it.
http://somalilandpress.com/responsible-journalism-key-to-national-stability-and-professional-integrity-20208
No comments:
Post a Comment