by Goth Mohamed Goth
We all know that unspeakable crimes against humanity were committed in Somaliland starting from the year 1984 -1988 those crimes were committed under Barre’s 21-year regime, by which government forces tortured, summarily executed, raped, and even launched aerial bombing raids on civilian populations all across Somaliland.
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Jose Pablo Baraybar on October 2nd, 2012
CJA client Aziz Deria at Badkha 2 gravesite with relatives of missing persons in the 1984 massacre. |
On this day 3rd of June (1988) one of the worst massacres took place in Somaliland after the mass arrest of a large number of the civilian population who were detained for no reason and were later summarily executed by forces loyal to Sayid Barre forces without even been given the chance to prove their innocence in a court of law hence designating the day to honor the victims of that massacre day.
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| genocide victims |
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| genocide victims |
While the educated and wealthy Somalilanders were being apprehended for no reason, tortured, sentenced to long imprisonments, and, sadly, some of them were being executed, the majority of Somalilanders, who lived in the countryside, were treated a way that our nation had never seen before.
Their wives and daughters were subjected to random rape, torture, looting of their livestock; extortionate tactics were employed, in order to extract as much wealth as possible, before they were forced to face their fate. Surely, no one of us should forget and steal the privilege of the victims of Mohamed Hashi Gani, Aamusane, Jehaad and so many others.
If the raping of our populations, devastation of our property, killing of our people and violations of all the articles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human rates are not a Crime committed against humanity, then what shall we call it? I leave the answer of this question to you, dear audience and readers.
In response to cries for redress, the Somaliland government established a War Crimes Investigation Commission (WCIC) to investigate human rights abuses committed by the Barre regime and to support the prosecution of alleged war criminals.
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| CJA client Aziz Deria at Badkha 2 gravesite with relatives of missing persons in the 1984 massacre. Photo from the CJA website |
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| Lab analysis by the light of our headlamps.- Photo Credit: Franco Mora |
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| Clearing the site. |
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| Students beginning the exhumation. |
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| The site prior to clearing. |
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| Found the grave. |
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| Grave two starts to emerge...
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| Students beginning the exhumation. |
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| CJA client Aziz Deria talking to families that attended the site providing
information of their missing relatives that may be buried there |
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| Bottom of the first Mass grave, one of the last Victims. (Photo by Derek O'Neill) |
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| ARRIVAL: Here is the team in Hargeisa. Over the next month they will be blogging about their experiences. |
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Sign marking the mass grave - Photo credit: Leslie Naranjo
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