Somali radio journalist shot dead in Mogadishu

USPA News - A female radio journalist was killed late Sunday evening when she was shot by unidentified gunmen in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, local authorities said Monday. It makes her the third media worker to be killed in the country so far this year.

Rahma Abdulkadir, who worked as a correspondent for Abduwaq radio, was ambushed late Sunday evening by at least two men armed with pistols. She was shot several times and was pronounced dead at the scene, which is located in the Yaqshid district of Mogadishu, the country`s capital. UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia, Augustine Mahiga, said he was shocked and saddened by the murder. "I condemn this hideous attack in the strongest terms and send my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Rahma Abdulkadir," he said. Mahiga explained that Somalia continues to be one of the most dangerous places in the world for journalists to operate, calling on the recently-formed Independent Task Force on Human Rights and law enforcement bodies to ensure that the perpetrators are swiftly brought to justice. "This negative picture needs to change," Mahiga underlined, adding that journalists are being killed with impunity. Somalia has been affected by conflict for more than two decades, although it has recently made some significant political gains. It marked a political watershed last August when it swore in the first formal parliament and ended a nine-year transition period, followed by the appointments of a new president and a new prime minister. Last month, Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon launched the Independent Task Force to end the culture of impunity on human rights abuses in the country. "Somalia has moved to a new era where freedom of expression is guaranteed in the provisional constitution and the Government has committed to safeguarding human rights, and, in particular, the protection of vulnerable groups, including journalists. I call on the assailants to stop this senseless violence," added Mahiga, who is also head of the UN Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS). Abdulkadir is the third media professional to be killed in Somalia so far this year, and her death comes just a week after a freelance journalist was among ten people killed in a suicide car bombing in Mogadishu. At least 18 media workers were killed in direct or indirect attacks in Somalia last year.