MOGADISHU, Aug. 25 (Xinhua) -- A two-day meeting that brought together people from different parts of Somali society ended in Mogadishu, the country's capital, on Thursday, with a call for more to be done to expand Somalia's civic space and human rights advocacy.
The UN-backed meeting attended by ministers, academics, civil society organizations, journalists, and members of parliament agreed on a need to strengthen collaboration between civil society and state institutions, especially the parliament.
"The participants also called for an open space that allows freedom of expression, recognizing civil society and media as crucial to Somalia's ongoing reconstruction and democratization," the delegates said in a joint statement issued on Thursday evening.
Somali State Minister for Women and Human Rights Development Amina Hassan Ali said civil society organizations are key since they are in touch with the people even in areas that can not be accessed by government officials.
"These community-based organizations are active on the ground and if they are not empowered, our impact as a government will not be felt," Hassan said, noting that the organizations are well positioned to interact with grassroots communities, identify the community needs, and complement government efforts.
In addition to expanding the country's civic space, participants also discussed ways to empower civil society organizations (CSOs) to become active in their communities, speak out on critical human rights concerns, and be able to amplify their voices collectively on advancing human rights in Somalia.
Kirsten Young, chief of the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia's Human Rights and Protection Group, stressed the important role of CSOs in representing citizens and presenting issues that concern the public to authorities.
She particularly highlighted civil society's collaboration with the federal parliament to enact human rights legislation on topics such as juvenile justice, disability rights, and child rights.
"What is interesting that we have seen in the last few weeks, is that the parliament has been holding hearings on issues that citizens have brought to the parliament - issues of concern for them," said Young.
The participants also discussed other issues including women's political participation. ■