Centre for Applied Human Rights
Kaltun Sh. Hassan
Somaliland, CAHR, Autumn 2012
I am working as a human rights defender in Somaliland, and serve in a number of positions advocating for and working in human rights. I am one of the most prominent and active human right defenders in Somaliland, with a strong and well-integrated personality unyielding to pressures and striving forward despite all odds. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in business administration and I will graduate with my second degree in Global Studies and International Relations in 2013.
I was born in 1978 and I started my human rights activities in 1997 at the age of 19. I believed that unless there is a conscious effort by Somali women to act immediately and upgrade their economic and social status, political participation and legal situation, it might be more difficult to reverse the negative trends affecting women. I have since been committed to improve the status of women in Somaliland in the political, economic and social aspects.
However, I have experienced that human rights work can cause grievance to those doing it, as one of my daughters was abducted and violated because of my human rights involvement.
I have seen that there is a barrier in social and cultural perception towards women when they want to have access to the justice system, since most traditional leaders intervene and deal with women’s legal cases rather than having the legal system deal with them. For instance, customary laws and practices remain discriminatory against women on issues of property inheritance, as well as institutionalized violence against women e.g. wife battering, rape, and female genital mutilation. I want to see that all the Somaliland people will respect the rights of women.
Unless there is a conscious effort by Somali women to act immediately and upgrade their economic and social status, political participation and legal situation, it might be more difficult to reverse the negative trends affecting women.
I am currently the chairperson of Nagaad Network, the strongest women’s organisation network in Somaliland; the focal point of G16 human right defenders network in Somalia, Puntland and Somaliland; the Somaliland focal point of the Strategic Inititive for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA), a network based in Sudan and Uganda. The main organisation whom I work with is Women's Action for Advocacy and Progress Organization (WAAPO). The main goal of WAAPO is improving the social and legal rights knowledge on women’s rights, increasing the number of women in decision making positions, eradication of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV)/violence against women (VAW) and improving women’s livelihood in Somaliland.
My human rights work involves investigation, documentation, and monitoring of human rights violations; providing counseling and psychosocial support to survivors of human rights violations; conducting community conversation meetings; awareness raising; holding press conferences; and doing press releases on women’s rights, as well as advocating the development of policies such as the Gender Policy, the Violence Against Women Act, family law, the SGBV Act and gender budgeting.
I have practical experience in supporting civil society organisations to increase the voice and accountability for human rights. I have also experience in networking and building partnerships with local government ministries and departments, donor agencies, civil society and the private sector.