Somali government officials improve proficiency in human rights and civilian safeguarding
Sunday September 10, 2023
A five-day training course has been successfully completed by the African Union (AU) Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), aimed at enhancing the skills of Somali public officers in human rights and civilian protection.
Kismayo, a port city in southern Somalia, hosted the training, which provided 21 officers from Jubaland State ministries and civil society organizations with the necessary knowledge to protect and promote human rights in their respective regions.
Gloria Jaase, the civilian sector coordinator and protection officer at ATMIS, expressed her hope that the participants would disseminate this knowledge to different sectors of society, generating a large number of trainers, according to a statement issued in Mogadishu, the Somali capital, on Friday evening.
Jaase emphasized that one of the AU mission’s primary mandates is to promote and ensure the protection of human rights in their operations and the operations of their counterparts.
These participants will form a team that will be deployed to different parts of Jubaland, where they will train locals and various interest groups on human rights and civilian protection.
The training provided by ATMIS focused on enhancing the participants’ understanding of international human rights law principles such as human rights frameworks, children’s rights, women’s rights, and the protection of internally displaced people.
Since its engagement in Somalia, ATMIS has remained steadfast in its commitment to promoting and protecting human rights in the country, while also strengthening the capacity of the Somali Security Forces and the local community in compliance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 2628 (2022).
According to Ayan Mohamed Hassan, a member of Jubaland civil society, this training will enhance her knowledge and capacity to monitor and document human rights violations in the community.
She stated, “This workshop is vital as it has educated me on individual rights, enabling me to understand our fundamental rights. Once we are enlightened, we will also know the best practices for respecting the rights of others.”
