Freemuse calls for the dropping of all charges against Somaliland singers
UPDATE After public pressure, singers Hamda Yousuf Ibrahim and Barwaaqo Mohamed Hashi have been released from police detention. However, the charges against them still stand. “The arrest and detention of Hamda Yousuf Ibrahim and Barwaaqo Mohamed Hashi have shown a severe breach of the artists’ right to freedom of artistic expression. Freemuse welcomes their release from detention, but calls for the unequivocal dropping of all charges,” says Dr Srirak Plipat, Freemuse Executive Director. Singers Hamda Yousuf Ibrahim and Barwaaqo Mohamed Hashi from the Somaliland band Horn Stars have been returned to detention after initial release by the Regional Court of Hargeisa, reports Human Rights Centre Somaliland. According to Online Caasimada , the artists and Barwaago’s husband Salah Arab were initially arrested in their homes in Hargeisa by the local authorities in April this year. The band had previously performed in the national day celebration of Somalia in Mo