Somaliland Jails two Pakistanis over Shiite missionary

Hiiraan Online
Wednesday January 13, 2016

HARGEISA (HOL) – A court in the northern Somalia breakaway region of Somaliland has convicted two Pakistani nationals of ‘spreading’ Shiite doctrine in the region and sentenced each one year in prison.

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The development comes one day after Somalilad’s president Ahmed Silanyo has condemned the attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran, calling it a ‘flagrant’ violation of the international laws. Somalia's government has also cut ties with Iran, accusing it of threatening its security and 'spreading' Shiite doctrine in the country.

According the court’s papers, the two men Mohamed Rasa and Hashim Makera entered the region under pretext of business trades and instead started a ‘covert’ Shiite missionary to ‘convert’ local to the Shiite doctrine.

The two defendants were also fined 3 million Somaliland shillings ($150) as the men would face deportation after completing their jail terms.

Abdirashid Mohamed Hersi, the judge of the magistrate court said the men were jailed under the 314th Somaliland penal code for religious threats and violating the immigration law issued in 1995.

However, the deputy prosecutor general appealed the court’s ruling and objected to its decision, saying that the court’s was too ‘lenient’ towards the duo who he said may easily purchase their sentences to ‘resume’ their ‘missionary’ project in Somaliland.

“They were plotting a major religious invasion that could have even threatened our security, thus compassion should be insupportable at this point.” said Abdirahman Mohamud at the court’s hearing.

It’s unclear if the two defendants had access to legal representatives for their court hearing.

No comment could be reached from the Pakistani government on the development as the Southeast Asian country has no diplomatic relations with the breakaway Somaliland enclave.

Somaliland, a peaceful enclave in northern Somalia has declared a unilateral independence from the rest of Somalia in 1991. Despite employing its own independent government, currency and army, no country has so far recognized it as an independent state.

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