Human rights must not end up being a “secondary consideration” as the new Somali government focusses on securing and stabilizing the country.

That’s what Kirsten Young, the Chief of Human Rights for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) told members of the Security Council in her brief on the situation in the country.

Journalists, human rights defenders and political leaders have been killed, arrested and harassed, a report by her office on freedom of expression in Somalia has found.

However, it also noted the country’s progress in making government more accountable and widening the political space for Somalis to air their views.

Speaking to Jocelyne Sambira, Ms Young deplored the so-called “security exception” that is often invoked to supress human rights.

Duration: 6’27’’