Reuters
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Somalia's judges and lawyers at the vanguard of
judicial reforms need protection from al-Qaeda-linked militants, the New
York-based Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday after deadly bomb attacks
targeted law courts in Mogadishu at the weekend.
The al-Shabaab rebel group, which has waged a six-year
insurgency to impose its strict interpretation of Islamic law, or sharia, on
Somalia, killed about 30 people on Sunday in a wave of suicide bombings and
shootings aimed at the courts.
The rights groups described the attacks as a "war
crime".
Somalia's new government has made reforming the judiciary
and imposing the rule of law a priority in its campaign to shake off the
country's "failed state" tag.
But the government's control of the nation does not extend
far beyond major urban centres.
"The current focus on judicial reform in Somalia is
critical," Leslie Lefkow, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch,
said in a statement. "Crucial to these reforms is ensuring that judges and
lawyers have the protection they require to do their jobs."
The rights group did not spell out who should provide the
protection but the Somali government relies heavily on African peacekeeping
forces for security.
Among those killed were two prominent lawyers who had
represented a woman who faced criminal charges after she alleged she had been
raped by government forces, the rights group said. The case drew international
condemnation and Luul Ali Osman's conviction in February was overturned on
appeal.
Disregard for civilian life
It was not clear if Mohamed Mohamud Afrah, the head of the
Somali Lawyers Association, and Abdikarin Hassan Gorod, who also represented a
journalist who interviewed Osman, had been deliberately targeted.
"Afrah and Gorod were humanitarian advocates. They were
serving victims," said Mohamed Ibrahim who heads the National Union of
Somali Journalists.
In Sunday's attacks, at least one car bomb exploded and
several suicide bombers blew themselves up at Mogadishu's law courts. Gunmen
also stormed the court compound. Shortly after that, a car bomb hit a Turkish
aid convoy near the airport.
"Al-Shabaab's attacks on a courthouse and aid workers'
convoy show utter disregard for civilian life," said Lefkow. "The
laws of war protect all civilians and civilian buildings from attack, and
courthouses are no exception."
It is not the first time Human Rights Watch has accused al
Shabaab of war crimes. The group said in 2011 that all sides in Somalia's
conflicts - the insurgents, government troops and African peacekeeping soldiers
- had indiscriminately killed civilians and were guilty of flouting
international laws of war.
Somalia's prime minister said on Monday foreign militants
had been involved in the attacks.