The UN Human Rights Committee has issued a report on the case of Daher Ahmed Farah. Targeted by an international arrest warrant, the opponent is president of the MRD party, which was dissolved by the Djiboutian government in 2009. Residing in Belgium, Daher Ahmed Farah had referred the case to the committee in 2017. The latter found that Djibouti had violated his rights.
“DAF is back”, reacted to the MRD. The Human Rights Committee found that the dissolution of the party was interference in freedom of association and that the authorities had repeatedly violated the freedoms of Daher Ahmed Farah and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Djibouti is a signatory.
The UN experts therefore called for the rehabilitation of the MRD so that the opponent could return to the country, continue his political activity freely and receive compensation. Djibouti has 180 days to explain the status of the implementation of this decision.
DAF said it was “satisfied” after this report “with the international dimension”. Under house arrest more than twenty times and arrested six times according to his entourage, the opponent has lost nothing of his commitment. “As long as nothing changes in Djibouti, I will continue,” he said. For him, the ideal would be “to return quickly and be a candidate for the presidential election in April.
His lawyer describes “a relief after a long process. Mr. Zacharia Abdillahi, believes that “the conclusions are binding on Djibouti,” but he does not hide his pessimism about their implementation. “The government is relentless because it is afraid of its political influence,” said Mr. Abdillahi.
And indeed, Djibouti does not intend to apply these conclusions. According to Daoud Houmed, spokesman for the majority, “Djibouti is a sovereign state, its judiciary is independent. Nobody will impose anything on us,” he said. For him, the rights of the head of the MRD have been respected and he has exhausted all avenues of appeal.