Somali Human Rights Defenders Network

SOHRIDEN stands for the promotion, respect and protection of human rights as well as defending the human rights defenders.

[António Guterres @antonioguterres]

Soon, world leaders will gather here at the @UN General Assembly to find solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges.

This is my last #UNGA as Secretary-General and my message is clear: We need international dialogue, cooperation and collective action — now more than ever.

I will not give up the fight for a better world for everyone.

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

Human rights education is a powerful foundation for building societies that can resist hatred, violence, discrimination, and division. It equips people with the knowledge and values needed to respect dignity, embrace diversity, and resolve differences peacefully. In times of crisis and uncertainty, human rights education is not a luxury but it is an essential necessity for every society.#Education

[Volker Türk @volker_turk]

Human rights education strengthens our collective immunity against hatred, violence, discrimination, and polarization. It is a necessity for every society, especially in turbulent times.

At @UN_HRC, I called on states to make it a priority: https://t.co/x7TFRGEw6j

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

The leaders of the Somali government and the opposition, especially these days, some government representatives and senior officers or MPs are competing only to come up with hate speech in meetings and conferences. Don’t they know that nothing but bad consequences can come out of it? Insults and hatred speeches that you are delivering continuously addressing towards an individual or a particular political group, or a specific clan are not politics, rather, what you are calling for are outright criminal acts.#Somalis

[António Guterres @antonioguterres]

Hate speech can incite violence, drive conflict & contribute to the perpetration of atrocity crimes.

We have seen it happen before.

We see it happening now.

We cannot let it continue.

Let’s raise our collective voice & end the tragic cycles of fear, hatred, & violence.

[António Guterres @antonioguterres]

People around the world continue to pay a steep price for cooperating with the @UN on human rights, facing persistent intimidation & reprisals. 

This is unacceptable.

We must protect brave human rights defenders who engage with the UN & ensure accountability for violations & abuses.

My full report: https://t.co/vEo477SUn0

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

Anyone who has suffered injustice, whose home has been unlawfully demolished, and whose land has been taken — SOHRIDEN is ready to stand with you and support you in seeking justice.
Please send your complaint to the email address shown in the image below: [email protected].

Qof kasta oo la dulmay, gurigiisiina si xaq-darro ah looga dumiyey, dhulkiisiina laga qaatay — SOHRIDEN waa kuu diyaarsan tahay, wayna ku garab taagan tahay si aad u hesho caddaalad.

Cabashadaada kusoo hagaaji emailka sawirka hoose ku qoran:
[email protected]

@HassanSMohamud @M_Farmaajo @HamzaAbdiBarre @HESharifShAhmed
@UN @EU_in_Somalia @US2SOMALIA @NLinSomalia @NorwayInSomalia @UKinSomalia @SwedeninSomalia @Chris_Politis @antonioguterres @DutchMFA @HenkJanBakker3 @UNHumanRights @_AfricanUnion
@HassanAKhaire @AAbdishakur @PresidentMadobe @HESaidADeni @AJEnglish @amnesty @hrw @CommissionerHR @EURightsAgency @Europarl_EN @volker_turk @UNHumanRights @HRCP87 @humanrights1st @QatarEmbassySO @PI_AfricaHub @ProtectionInt

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

SOHRIDEN expresses serious concern over
the electoral commission's decision to remove the Towfiq Organization from the list of organization groups which are participating in the re-run Galmudug election. #ElectoralCommission
The decision also raises serious concerns regarding the procedural integrity of the electoral process, recalling the shortcomings that characterized the previous South West State and Galmudug State elections conducted by the Commission, following which the Supreme Court intervened and the Galmudug election was ordered to be repeated.

The Electoral Commission appears to have continued favoring the Federal Government, while the Towfiq Organization has consistently insisted on adherence to the law. Its exclusion from the list of legitimate participating organizations therefore raises serious questions about equal treatment, procedural fairness, and respect for the applicable electoral framework.
In response, the Towfiq Organization issued a statement clarifying its political position: it remains ready to participate in the election. They maintained that they had already submitted the list of candidates specifically, the same list used in the previous election, which are contrary to the commission's claims. The Towfiq Organization has called upon the President to intervene in this legal dispute, given his role as the guardian of the constitution . To date, no response has been made.
@HassanSMohamud @M_Farmaajo @HamzaAbdiBarre @HESharifShAhmed
Therefore, the federal government should think twice and resolve this dispute through dialogue and avoid further exacerbating the situation.
Countries interested in Somalia should counsel the Federal Government, pointing out that its current approach is undemocratic; an election conducted in this manner will lack legitimacy and will only aggravate the country's situation. International bodies @UN @EU_in_Somalia @US2SOMALIA @NLinSomalia @NorwayInSomalia @UKinSomalia
@SwedeninSomalia @Chris_Politis @antonioguterres @DutchMFA @HenkJanBakker3 @UNHumanRights @_AfricanUnion and all other nations actively working toward a solution for Somalia, should advise the Federal Government against law worsening the crisis and should exert pressure on all parties to reach a resolution. Furthermore, the Federal Government's allies should urge it to abandon its power manic and instead pursue an inclusive, legally grounded electoral process.” @HassanAKhaire @AAbdishakur @PresidentMadobe @HESaidADeni @AJEnglish @amnesty @hrw @CommissionerHR @EURightsAgency @Europarl_EN @volker_turk @UNHumanRights @HRCP87 @humanrights1st @QatarEmbassySO @PI_AfricaHub @ProtectionInt

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

“لن يرتفع صوت الباطل إلا إذا غفل أهل الحق عن حقهم.”
“Falsehood will never prevail unless the people of truth become heedless of their rights.”

“Codka baadilku ma sara maro , haddii aysan dadka XAQA leh ay ka gaabiyin XAQOODA.”. Ama:-

“Baadilku ma awoodayto, haddii aysan dadka XAQA leh aysan ka aamusaan oo aysan dayacin XAQOODA.”

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

SOHRIDEN wishes to make the following clear to the Somali people:
Your right to choose those who represent you is not a gift, is not a favor, or permission granted by an institution or politician. It is a political right protected by law. #SomalaElection
The Somali people have the right to know what is happening, who is responsible, and what the law requires.
Electoral transparency is not a privilege or a favor granted to citizens. It is a fundamental pillar of democratic accountability, public confidence, and the legitimacy of the electoral process.

Article 18(3) of Somalia’s National Elections Law establishes a 90-day requirement for determining the electoral date before polling.#NIEBC
Yet the current Hirshabelle timetable announced on 1st September 2026 schedules polling for 30 September 2026 (only 29 days later).
SOHRIDEN is not issuing a judicial verdict.
We are asking a simple legal question. A question that cannot simply be ignored. The law is the foundation and the compliance is mandatory.#Somalia

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

The Somali Human Rights Defenders Network (SOHRIDEN) strongly condemns the reported Turkish Bayraktar AKINCI drone strike on the residence of General Mahad Abdirahman, former Commander of the Custodial Corps, in Doolow, Gedo.

Targeting a residential compound, reportedly injuring General Mahad and his wife and potentially affecting civilians, is deeply alarming.
Military capabilities provided to Somalia to fight Al-Shabaab must never be diverted toward domestic political disputes or used against political opponents.
Political disputes belong at the dialogue table—not on the battlefield.

SOHRIDEN calls for an immediate, impartial and transparent investigation into the reported Turkish Bayraktar AKINCI drone strike in Doolow, Gedo.

If civilians were harmed or a residential home was deliberately targeted, those responsible must be held accountable in accordance with Somali law and international human rights and humanitarian standards.@UN_HRC

Somalia cannot build peace by turning military power against its own people.
Dialogue, constitutionalism and the rule of law must prevail over force.

The international community must take seriously the reported use of a Turkish Bayraktar AKINCI drone in an alleged attack on a residential compound in Doolow, Gedo.@amnesty @hrw

Weapons and military technology transferred to Somalia for counter-terrorism operations carry a fundamental responsibility: they must not be misused in political or internal disputes.

SOHRIDEN urges the Somali authorities, Turkey and relevant international partners to ensure transparency, accountability and protection of civilians . @volker_turk
Somalia needs political dialogue but not militarized politics.
@US2SOMALIA @UKinSomalia @EU_in_Somalia @SwedeninSomalia @_AfricanUnion @UNTMIS_ @TC_MogadisuBE @GermanyinSOM @ItalyinSomalia @NLinSomalia @aussom_
@DutchMFA @Chris_Politis @MFATurkiye

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

Haddii Dulmiga (xadgudubka) loo qaybiyo Boqol Juz,  sagaashan iyo sagaal juz xamer bay taalaa maanta, juzka soo harayna adduunkoo dhan buu kusoo dawaafaa maalintii  , markuu habeen soo galo waxuu usoo hoydaa oo seexdaa Xamer”.

“If oppression of (human rights violations) were divided into 100 chapters, 99 Chapters would be found in Mogadishu in the day time , and the remaining ONE Chapter would travel around the entire world during the day, and when night falls, it would return to spend and sleep in Mogadishu.”       

لو قُسِّم الظلم (انتهاكات حقوق الإنسان) إلى مئة جزء، لكان تسعة وتسعون جزءًا منه موجودًا في مقديشو  يوميا،  أما الجزء المتبقي، يطوف أنحاء العالم خلال النهار، وعندما يحلّ الليل، يعود الي مقديشو ويرقد ليقضي ليلته فيها.            

DULMIGA HA ka AAMUSIN  YUUSAN CODKAAGA  kaa LUMIN!N XAQAADA
Ma tahay dhibane xadgudub xuquuqda aadanaha?
SOHRIDEN way ku dhageysanaysaa.
La wadaag kiiskaaga, caddeymahaaga, iyo waxa lagugu sameeyay.
Diiwaangeli maanta, si caddaalad loo raadiyo berri. Email: [email protected]

DO NOT REMAIN SILENT ABOUT INJUSTICE and DO NOT LET YOUR VOICE BE LOST! DEFEND YOUR RIGHTS.
Are you a victim of human rights violations?
SOHRIDEN is listening to you.
Share your case, your evidence, and what was done to you.
Document it today , so that justice can be pursued tomorrow.  
Email: [email protected]

لا تصمت عن الظلم ، ولا تدع صوتك يضيع! دافع عن حقوقك. هل أنت ضحية لانتهاكات حقوق الإنسان؟
SOHRIDEN تستمع إليك.
شارك قضيتك وأدلتك وما تعرّضت له من انتهاكات.
وثّق قضيتك اليوم … حتى نتمكن من السعي إلى العدالة غدًا. Email: [email protected]

@HassanSMohamud @HamzaAbdiBarre
@HESharifShAhmed @HassanAKhaire @antonioguterres @M_Farmaajo @AAbdishakur @PresidentMadobe @HESaidADeni @US2SOMALIA @UKinSomalia @CharlesKingFCDO @JennyChapman @QatarEmbassySO @TC_MogadisuBE @UNSomalia @UNSOM @EU_in_Somalia @francescaDM_EU @MFATurkiye @ChineseSomalia @UNDPSomalia @_AfricanUnion @DutchMFA @NLinSomalia @Chris_Politis @HenkJanBakker3 @SweMFA @UN_HRC @hrw @amnesty @UNTMIS_ @SwedeninSomalia @AsstSecStateAF @US_SrAdvisorAF @SenateForeign @AJEnglish @USAfricaCommand @NorwayMFA @ProtectionInt @PI_AfricaHub @antonioguterres @CommissionerHR @EURightsAgency @Europarl_EN @volker_turk @UNHumanRights @HRCP87 @humanrights1st

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

SOHRIDEN is preparing a systematic initiative to document and investigate forced evictions and related abuses, working with affected communities and preserving evidence from demolished and affected areas. Plus its routine and continuous investigation, documentation , monitoring and advocacy of all kinds of abuses and human rights violation

Human Rights organizations do not exist to make government look good. They exist to make government accountable to the people whose rights are legally and constitutionally obliged to protect.

When government institutions violate rights, or fail to prevent violations, the institutions established to protect citizens must not become spectators, silent partners or instruments for legitimizing those abuses.

Human Rights must be documented, investigated , defended and enforced.
When an ordinary Somali citizens are abused by power, who actually stands beside them?”
Every demolished home has a story.
Every victim has evidence.
Every violation deserves accountability.
Human rights must reach the victim and not remain inside conference rooms and meetings with those in power who failed to protect and donors.
This is not a political campaign.
It is a human rights accountability initiative

Pls submit your complaint through our online complaint mechanism :-
email: [email protected]

@HassanSMohamud @HamzaAbdiBarre
@HESharifShAhmed @HassanAKhaire @antonioguterres @M_Farmaajo @AAbdishakur @PresidentMadobe @HESaidADeni @US2SOMALIA @UKinSomalia @CharlesKingFCDO @JennyChapman @QatarEmbassySO @TC_MogadisuBE @UNSomalia @UNSOM @EU_in_Somalia @francescaDM_EU @MFATurkiye @ChineseSomalia @UNDPSomalia @_AfricanUnion @DutchMFA @NLinSomalia @MPDrAbib @SweMFA @UN_HRC @hrw @amnesty @UNTMIS_ @AsstSecStateAF @DeputySecState @US_SrAdvisorAF @SenateForeign @AJEnglish @USAfricaCommand @NorwayMFA @ProtectionInt @PI_AfricaHub @antonioguterres @CommissionerHR @EURightsAgency @Europarl_EN @volker_turk @UNHumanRights @HRCP87 @humanrights1st @HumanR

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

The Somali Human Rights Defenders Network (SOHRIDEN) is preparing to publicly release a series of independent investigative and human rights accountability reports examining serious allegations and documented concerns involving Somalia’s public institutions, including corruption, abuse of authority, institutional negligence, unlawful land dispossession, violations of due process, custodial failures and other human rights violations.
These investigations are being undertaken through documentary review, legal and constitutional analysis, field monitoring, evidence assessment and verification. Our approach is evidence-based, impartial and grounded in the principles of accountability, transparency and the rule of law.
No public institution is beyond scrutiny. No public office is a shield against accountability.
SOHRIDEN respectfully urge president @HassanSMohamud to critically review the competence, performance, and accountability of the ministers entrusted with serving the Somali people. SOHRIDEN will independently continue monitoring government institutions and presenting the public with verified facts, documented evidence, and credible findings. Our commitment is to transparency, justice, accountability, and the public interest. No minister, ministry, or public institution should be above scrutiny.

The Ministry of Justice and Constitution Affairs (MOJAC) is currently in the final stage of verification and investigation , with findings undergoing legal analyses prior to publication.

Upon completion of this process, MOJACA accountability report will be formally released and its findings will be placed in the public domain. MOJCA is the beginning not the end. Other in-line institutions and ministries will follow.

SOHRIDEN will progressively publish verified findings and make them available to the Somali public, national oversight institutions, civil society, international partners, diplomatic missions and donors.

We emphasize that verification comes before publication. Every allegation must be examined against available evidence and applicable law. Where violations, corruption or institutional failures are substantiated, they will be documented and reported without fear or favour.

Public office carries public responsibility. Public authority is accountable.

Documentation is underway.
Verification is ongoing and in progress.
There will be Accountability and finally
The public will know.

@HassanSMohamud @US2SOMALIA @UKinSomalia @UNHumanRights @amnesty @UNGeneva @AJEnglish @CharlesKingFCDO @JennyChapman @QatarEmbassySO @TC_MogadisuBE @UNSomalia @UNSOM @EU_in_Somalia @francescaDM_EU @MFATurkiye @ChineseSomalia @UNDPSomalia @_AfricanUnion @DutchMFA  @NLinSomalia @SweMFA @UN_HRC @hrw @amnesty @UNTMIS_   @AsstSecStateAF @DeputySecState @US_SrAdvisorAF  @SenateForeign @AJEnglish  @USAfricaCommand @NorwayMFA  @ProtectionInt @PI_AfricaHub @antonioguterres
@CommissionerHR @EURightsAgency @Europarl_EN @volker_turk @UNHumanRights @HRCP87 @humanrights1st @Human

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

SOHRIDEN supports the principle underlying the Supreme Court’s Galmudug decision: electoral power must derive from a process that complies with the constitution, electoral law and fundamental democratic standards.
We welcome respect for the ruling by the President and call upon all political actors to do the same.
At the same time, we strongly reject any attempt to intimidate, threaten, remove or politically punish judges simply because their decisions are not liked.
Somalia needs strong institutions but not obedient institutions. It needs independent judges and not politically dependent judges. It needs elections governed by law but not elections governed by power.
And it needs political leaders who understand that accepting an adverse judicial decision is not weakness but strength.
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s acceptance of the Supreme Court ruling should be welcomed as an opportunity to establish a stronger democratic precedent.
Today the judgment may seem inconvenience to one political constituency but tomorrow a different judgment may be favorable to them.
SOHRIDEN calls to all somali institutions that the principle must remain the same and no government should obey courts only when it wins.
Respect for judicial decisions is meaningful precisely when the decision is politically difficult.

@HassanSMohamud @US2SOMALIA @UKinSomalia @UNHumanRights @amnesty @UNGeneva @AJEnglish @CharlesKingFCDO @JennyChapman @QatarEmbassySO @TC_MogadisuBE @UNSomalia @UNSOM @EU_in_Somalia @francescaDM_EU @MFATurkiye @ChineseSomalia @UNDPSomalia @_AfricanUnion @DutchMFA  @NLinSomalia @SweMFA @UN_HRC @hrw @amnesty @UNTMIS_   @AsstSecStateAF @DeputySecState @US_SrAdvisorAF  @SenateForeign @AJEnglish  @USAfricaCommand @NorwayMFA  @ProtectionInt @PI_AfricaHub @antonioguterres
@CommissionerHR @EURightsAgency @Europarl_EN @volker_turk @UNHumanRights @HRCP87 @humanrights1st @Human

[SMS Somali TV @SMSSomaliTV1]

#Somalia’s Supreme Court has ordered the #Galmudug election to be held again following a #lawsuit filed by Sheikh Shaakir.

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

There is no peace without justice. Justice is not a legalistic administrative norm in fragile governments and post-conflict transitions as currently done in the Somali federal and state governance architecture. It is the bedrock of social trust, legitimate governance, human dignity and peaceful coexistence.
Peace is fragile, volatile and ultimately superficial where residents experience systemic discrimination, persistent impunity, the arbitrary exercise of authority, institutionalized corruption or unequal treatment before the law.

In Somalia, the move from decades of conflict to a permanent constitutional order, demands an understanding that state legitimacy is closely related to the uncompromised administration of justice.
If one looks to ground reality in Mogadadishu specifically , you will immediately notice that land acquisition and the plight of the vulnerable.
High-sounding frameworks and constitutional clauses may speak of government and rights, but the lived reality of ordinary Somalis is a sad story of dispossession.
Today it is an unceasing flood of predatory land grabs in urban centers and rural peripheries. The land is the object of a ruthless war between corrupt governments, compromised ministries and cut-throat merchants, who with absolute impunity seize ancestral lands and dislodge defenseless families.
Old moms and helpless children cry out in the dust of their razed homes, day and night, their voices echoing through the streets of greed. Yet the halls of power remain deaf to their plight.

This land grab is not only an economic crime, but a basic moral failure.
Ministries that were meant to serve the public good have become clearing houses for elite enrichment. It is the business elites and the crooked politicians who conspire to rob the widows, orphans and marginalized populations of their only shelter and livelihood for concrete high-rises and speculative wealth.

Looking with the lenses of Universal Norms and Human Rights Standards, Somali Government is not even aware of that
Justice is seen as a universal condition for the development of human beings in different theological, moral and international law systems. In the Islamic legal tradition (Sharia) which is a core pillar of the Somali provisional constitution, principles of Alcadaala  (justice), shura (consultation) and amanah (trust) prohibit tyranny, favoritism and abuse of public office.

Islamic jurisprudence specifically prohibits the unauthorized taking over of people’s land (Dhul-Dhac). Legitimacy of administration in Somalia should thus be measured not in terms of political rhetoric, clan-based power-sharing formulas or religious claims but by the extent to which public authorities respect equality, accountability and the rule of law. No officer or organization can invoke a particular identity, clan allegiance or religious mandate to excuse itself from the basic demands of justice.

From an international human rights perspective, equality before the law, non-discrimination, due process, accountability and access to justice are fundamental rights which are non-negotiable.
Public institutions are there to serve the Somali people in their entirety, not to prop up narrow political interests, personal networks, clientelist clan alliances or privileged economic elites

@US2SOMALIA @UKinSomalia @CharlesKingFCDO @JennyChapman @QatarEmbassySO @TC_MogadisuBE @UNSomalia @UNSOM @EU_in_Somalia @francescaDM_EU @MFATurkiye
@HESharifShAhmed @HassanAKhaire @M_Farmaajo @AAbdishakur @PresidentMadobe @HESaidADeni @MohamedHRoble @Aynte @DrGuled
@ChineseSomalia @UNDPSomalia @_AfricanUnion @DutchMFA @NLinSomalia @MPDrAbib @SweMFA @UN_HRC @hrw @amnesty @UNTMIS_ @AsstSecStateAF @DeputySecState @US_SrAdvisorAF @SenateForeign @AJEnglish @USAfricaCommand @NorwayMFA @ProtectionInt @PI_AfricaHub @antonioguterres
@CommissionerHR @EURightsAgency @Europarl_EN @volker_turk @UNHumanRights @HRCP87 @humanrights1st @HumanR

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

SOHRIDEN’s legal research portrays the emerging crisis in Somalia as a complex collapse of governance, constitutionalism, human rights and public accountability, which goes beyond the usual security issues. The recent happenings are not disconnected happenings but intertwined expressions of structural instability driven by one-sided electoral processes, pending constitutional conflicts, arbitrary limitations on civic participation, forced evictions and its new waves of dispossessions, and the deliberate systematic violations of state power. But this all-pervasive institutional erosion has deepened political polarization and shattered public trust, making it clear that elections alone cannot deliver democratic legitimacy without sustained constitutional fidelity, political inclusiveness, transparent institutions, and systemic respect for fundamental rights.
@US2SOMALIA @UKinSomalia @CharlesKingFCDO @JennyChapman @QatarEmbassySO @TC_MogadisuBE @UNSomalia @UNSOM @EU_in_Somalia @francescaDM_EU @MFATurkiye @ChineseSomalia @UNDPSomalia @_AfricanUnion @DutchMFA @NLinSomalia @MPDrAbib @SweMFA @UN_HRC @hrw @amnesty @UNTMIS_ @AsstSecStateAF @DeputySecState @US_SrAdvisorAF @SenateForeign @AJEnglish @USAfricaCommand @NorwayMFA @ProtectionInt @PI_AfricaHub @antonioguterres
@CommissionerHR @EURightsAgency @Europarl_EN @volker_turk @UNHumanRights @HRCP87 @humanrights1st @HumanR

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

Yes, absolutely. Somalia is widely considered by political scientists to be the classic textbook case proving this exact premise.
Despite having one of the highest levels of social homogeneity in Sub-Saharan Africa, social cohesion alone failed to prevent state collapse and internal conflict.

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

To victims and witnesses hope you would know that your voice matters. We encourage safe, responsible reporting of alleged violations. Every report will be handled with confidentiality, professionalism, and respect for the dignity and security of those involved.

[Somali Human Rights Defenders Network @sohriden]

SOHRIDEN formally notifies all public institutions that respect for human rights and the rule of law is not optional but it is a constitutional and international obligation.

Our nationwide of mapping human rights violations initiative will monitor alleged violations wherever they occur, including abuses of power, arbitrary actions by public authorities, intimidation, restrictions on civic space, and concerns arising from unilateral electoral processes.

Every violation leaves evidence. Every victim deserves to be heard. Every institution will ultimately be judged by its respect for human rights.