Aisha’s rapists caught by DNA: can science change Somali justice system?

Wednesday May 22, 2019

A court ruling in Somalia this month that relied on DNA evidence to convict three men of the brutal rape of a young Somali girl could change the future course of criminal justice in the country.

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A three-judge bench sitting in Garowe, Puntland, on 12 May sentenced three men to death for the rape and murder of 12-year-old Aisha Ilyas Adan.

Aisha was gang-raped, strangled and left for dead in a market in Galkayo in February.

It was the first time in Somalia that forensic evidence based on DNA samples was used as the basis for a criminal conviction. Such cases would normally rely on witness statements.

The DNA samples were taken by the Bureau of Forensic Science of Garowe, which was opened in 2017 with support from the Swedish government and the UN’s Population Fund, UNFPA.

Prosecutors told the court that DNA samples were taken from the crime scene and matched with those from the accused men.

However, the defence lawyer for the three men, Mustafa Mohamed Jama, told Radio Ergo that he would be making an appeal against the conviction on the grounds that the forensic evidence used in court was untrustworthy as the process had not been transparent.

“We did not have confidence in the DNA tests when we were there and we made it clear,” Jama told Radio Ergo.

“We had put forward a request to have the DNA investigators sworn in [in court], but they were not even identified. The test was done in Kenya and it is one of the most corrupt countries in the world.”

The Bureau of Forensic Science of Garowe has technical capacity to collect DNA samples but has to send them abroad for analysis.

With huge interest in this case amid public demands on social media for justice for Aisha, the court sat at Nugal regional administration headquarters to allow members of the public to attend the hearing.

Naimo Muse, a journalist and human rights campaigner, said the outcome would serve as a strong deterrent to rape and sexual violence against women and showed the Somali courts in a positive light.

“As the justice system was facing strong criticism, this was a chance for them to clear themselves and show their good work. This also sent a strong message to other suspects in custody for similar offences who can see those convicted of the same offence facing harsh punishment without mercy,” Naimo said.

Abdiweli Said Haji, a lawyer with Puntland Human Rights Defenders, said public participation in court rooms increased transparency and public confidence in the justice system.

The court ruled that the three convicted men would face a government firing squad in a public place.

On 2 March, a court in Garowe sentenced five young men to death for gang-raping a teenage girl. Less than three weeks later, on 19 March, the court of appeal reduced the men’s sentences to jail terms of between 15 and 20 years.

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