Saturday, November 24, 2012
The UN Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS) released a statement on Friday (November 23rd) in recognition of the International Day to End Impunity, condemning the targeted attacks on journalists in Somalia.
"Today we condemn the targeted assassination of journalists in Somalia," the statement said. "We remember those journalists who lost their lives while exercising their right to freedom of expression and whose cases remain unsolved and unpunished."
UNPOS welcomed recent pledges by Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to confront impunity against journalists by forming a task force to investigate the deaths of the 18 journalists killed in Somalia this year.
"This concrete step signals a new commitment by the government of Somalia to address a culture of impunity," the statement said. "We stand ready to support the government in this laudable and timely initiative."
UNPOS has dispatched police advisors to assist the African Union Mission in Somali in building the Somali police force's capacity to investigate and prosecute those responsible for crimes against journalists, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General to Somalia Augustine Mahiga said, according to UN-funded Radio Bar-Kulan.