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Somalia

Monthly Updates

December 2022

Anti-government protests have resulted in multiple fatalities in Las Anod, Somaliland (a region of Somalia which claims independence). The demonstrations, which lasted several days, began on 29 December after the assassination of a local political figure by unidentified assailants. The city saw a heavy presence of Somaliland’s security forces, who fired live ammunition as they attempted to break up the demonstrations. Around 21 people were shot dead by security forces. The leader of Puntland (a Somali state that has also claimed independence), President Said Abdullahi Deni, has released a statement regarding the events in Las Anod. He accuses the Somaliland army of committing brutal attacks on civilians. Puntland has also deployed troops to the area of Las Anod. 

November 2022
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After announcing in August 2022 its intention to launch a “total war” against the militant group Al-Shabaab, Somalia’s new government has tightened restrictions on freedom of expression in the country. On 7 November its Ministry of Religious Affairs banned the use of the name ‘al-Shabaab’ and prohibited scholars from “having dealings” with the group. The ban comes less than a month after a vaguely-worded government directive banning “the dissemination of extremist and terrorist ideology”, which local media organisations criticised for being unduly restrictive of freedom of expression and the press. One of these critics, the Secretary General of the Somali Journalists Syndicate, was arrested on security charges shortly after speaking out. The Deputy Information Minister revealed last month that the government had launched a cyber operation in which it had closed more than 40 social media accounts in the space of 48 hours.   

October 2022
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On 1 October Somaliland’s Guurti, the upper chamber of the self-governing region’s legislature, voted to extend President Muse Bihi Abdi’s term by two years. It came a month after the postponement of the presidential election from 13 November 2022 to July 2023, which pushed it beyond the end of the President’s current term, which expires in December 2022. The two-year term extension is longer than was required by the election postponement and raises questions about when the election will take place. While such term extensions are common, the Center for Policy Analysis, a think tank, has assessed it be unconstitutional and warns it may destabilize the country – in August 2022, tensions between the political opposition and government over the election calendar, which both sides regard as critical to their political fortunes, broke out into deadly opposition protests. The extension was rejected by the opposition, who have threatened not to recognize Bihi’s government.

September 2022

The Somaliland National Electoral Commission (SLNEC) announced on 24 September that the self-governing region’s presidential election, scheduled for 13 November 2022, was to be postponed to July 2023 due to time, financial and technical constraints. This pushes the election date beyond the end of President Muse Bihi Abdi’s current term, which expires in December 2022. The postponement comes shortly after deadly protests last month broke out over opposition suspicions that President Abdi intended to delay the presidential election - both the government and opposition regard the electoral calendar as critical to their political fortunes. Election delays are a feature of Somaliland politics but the political tensions building around the election date have led commentators to warn of the destabilizing potential of this delay.  

Explore past monthly updates

GSoD Indices Data 2012-2021

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Basic Information

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Population Tooltip
16 359 500
System of government
Parliamentary system
Head of government
Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre (since 2022)
Head of government party
Union for Peace and Development Party (UPD)
Electoral system for lower or single chamber
No direct elections
Women in lower or single chamber
19.7%
Women in upper chamber
25.9%
Last legislative election
2022
Head of state
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) date
06/05/2021
Latest Universal Periodic Review (UPR) percentage of recommendations supported
90.11%
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Human Rights Treaties

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State Party State party
Signatory Signatory
No Action No action
United Nations Human Right Treaties
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
State Party
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
State Party
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
State Party
Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women
No Action
Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment
State Party
Convention on the Rights of the Child
State Party
International Convention on Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families
No Action
International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance 
No Action
International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
State Party
International Labour Organisation Treaties
Forced Labour Convention
State Party
Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention
State Party
Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention
State Party
Equal Remuneration Convention
No Action
Abolition of Forced Labour Convention
State Party
Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention
State Party
Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment
No Action
Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
State Party
Regional Treaties
African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights
State Party
Arab Charter on Human Rights
No Action
in
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Attributes Over Time

Representative government neutral Representative Government
Sep 2022
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2023
Representative government neutral Fundamental rights
Sep 2022
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2023
Representative government neutral Checks on government
Sep 2022
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2023
Representative government neutral Impartial administration
Sep 2022
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2023
Representative government neutral Participatory engagement
Sep 2022
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb 2023

GSoD Indices

Regime type
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