STORY: Somali youths discuss their role in traditional

dispute resolution mechanisms

SOURCE: UNSOM PUBLIC INFORMATION

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CREDIT REQUIRED: UNSOM PUBLIC INFORMATION

LANGUAGE: SOMALI NATURAL SOUND

DATELINE: 12/AUGUST/2017, BAIDOA, SOMALIA

SHOT LIST:

1. Wide shot, youths in Baidoa attend a forum on youth and justice in Somalia

3. Med shot, youths attending the forum

4. Close up shot, a youth at the forum

5. Med shot, youths attending the forum

6. Close up shot, a youth at the forum

7. Wide shot, youths attending the forum

9. Wide shot, Amanda Felipe, Judicial Affairs Adviser, Joint Justice Correction Section
at UNSOM talking to the youth at the forum

10. Med shot, youths attending the forum

11. Med shot, youths attending the forum

12. Wide shot, youths listening

13. SOUNDBITE: (SOMALI) MOHAMED ALI HASSAN, SOMALI WOMEN

DEVELOPMENT CENTER OFFICIAL

Indeed, I am very happy to attend the one-day meeting on youth and justice system
in Somalia. A good number of youth participated in the forum. They [the youth] have
benefited from the forum which focused on justice, law, traditional elders,
traditional justice system and the formal justice system. We have also learnt the
importance of formal and traditional justice system and how it affects the youth.

14. Med shot, youths listening

15. Close up shot, youths listening

16. Med shot, youths attending the forum

17. Wide shot, Amanda Felipe, Judicial Affairs Adviser, Joint Justice Correction
Section at UNSOM talking to the youth at the forum

18. SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) AMANDA FELIPE, UNSOM JUDICIAL AFFAIRS ADVISER,

JOINT JUSTICE AND CORRECTION SECTION

Today, we are celebrating International youth day. We organized the forum on

youth and justice in Somalia and invited the youth in Baidoa. Somalias population
mostly comprise the youth, so the youth have a huge potential in contributing to
changes in the justice system. The youth we invited shared their views on how they
can make positive change in the formal and informal justice system and what they
can do to put whatever they said into action. This has been a successful forum and
we are hoping that we will continue to hold more events so that the youth can have
a voice in society.

STORY

Somali youths discuss their role in traditional dispute resolution mechanisms

Baidoa, 13 August 2017 - The involvement of young people in conflict prevention,

social justice and sustainable peace in Somalia featured prominently in a youth
forum conducted on the sidelines of the International Youth Day celebrations in
Baidoa, the administrative capital of South West state.

Organized by the UNSOM Rule of Law and Security Institutions Group, the forum
brought together youth, civil society organizations, the UN and other experts on
Somalias justice system.
The forum offered participants a platform to exchange views on that system and
how young people can be agents of change in their communities. A similar forum
was also held in the Jubbaland state capital of Kismaayo.

The youth have benefited from the forum, which focused on the traditional justice
system and the formal justice system. We have also learnt the importance of formal
and traditional justice system to the youth, said Mohamed Ali Hassan of the Somali
Women Development Center, a non-governmental organization dealing in legal
issues.

Some of the speakers at the forum noted that the potential of young Somalis to
resolve conflicts has not been fully tapped within the traditional justice system,
which remains a popular mechanism for settling disputes in the country.

Somalias population mostly consists of the youth, and they have a huge potential
in contributing to changes in the justice system, explained Amanda Felipe, an
UNSOM Judicial Affairs Advisor in the Joint Justice and Correction Section.

The traditional justice system plays a key role in solving conflicts and maintaining
peace within Somali communities on account of its accessibility and perceived
legitimacy. However, many youths feel the traditional justice system has not
protected their rights and ensured equality of treatment.

The formal justice system does not represent a viable alternative for young Somalis
because it is perceived as being too weak in most parts of Somalia.

The youth we invited shared their views on how they can make positive change in
the formal and informal justice systems and what they can do to put whatever they
said into action, remarked Ms. Felipe at the conclusion of the forum.

The forum succeeded in encouraging youth to engage more effectively in legal

matters, identify discriminatory practices, and advocate for fair access to and
treatment by both justice systems.

END