National Union of Somali Journalists

1980 – 2008: Nasteh Dahir Farah

“From Allah We Came and to Him is our Eventual Return”

Brutal Assassination of Nasteh Dahir Farah

Nasteh Dahir Farah (in Somali language: Nasteex Daahir Faarax) was assassinated by two men armed with pistols in Fanole village of Kismayo district on Saturday, 7^th June 2008. He was returning home, when killers, who were following him, called his name and as he turned, the hooded attackers started shooting him at chest and stomach, leaving him dead.

Bullets mutilated his stomach and chesty, according to his wife and doctor. Assailants escaped from the spot while the neighbours were quickening to take him to the hospital.

Approximately 10 minutes after when he was admitted to hospital, medical staff declared Nasteh Dahir Farah dead due to blood loss. So far the killers were not identified and no arrests were made for this gutless attack. Kismayo is the third main city of Somalia. It is controlled by clan militias and armed groups loyal to the Union of Islamic Courts.

Clan leaders in Kismayo have history of persecuting individuals that commit murderous acts by promptly indentifying killers and handing over criminals to the family of the victim. But these punished crimes are only for personal/tribal killings, not politically-motivated killings. Journalist Hassan Kafi Hared was killed in January 2008 with Aid workers; no one was arrested or caught for this killing. Despite mourning, local journalists have doubts about elders’ power of indentifying and persecuting killers of Nasteh Dahir Farah because of being targeted killing that relates to his journalistic work.

Funeral of Nasteh Dahir Farah

Hundreds of well-wishers of family members, journalists, intellectuals, clan elders, politicians, civil society members and religious leaders turned out to pay their last respect for the renowned journalist. They took his body on Sunday morning from his home to the graveyard. All speakers at funeral ceremony called for punishment of the killers.

They spoke about late journalist’s performance and his personal & professional neutrality of the armed political conflict, which he for all times based his news reports. The media in Kismayo was shut down for the bereavement of Nasteh Dahir Farah.

Family of Nasteh Dahir Farah

Nasteh Dahir Farah, who was born on 18 October 1980 in Abudwak district, left wife and son. Nasteh’s wife Idil Abdi Ahmed is six months pregnant. His son Mohammed-Deq Nasteh Dahir Farah is 10-month old. Nasteh’s father died in Abudwak in February 2008. His mother Asili Farah Nur lives in Abudwak with Nasteh’s brothers and sisters of more than 15.

Professional Information

Nasteh Dahir Farah studied in Beled-Hawo district of Gedo region in Southwest Somalia. He was a career media professional having risen through the ranks from trainee reporter, to editor-in-chief, and to become the Vice President of the National Union of Somali Journalists.

He was trained on the dynamics of newsgathering, processing and dissemination. He took courses on editing, essentials of journalism, human rights reporting, ethics of journalism, safety of journalists in hostile environment, press freedom monitoring and media regulations.

He was at the forefront in a number of Media activities. He was equipped with hands-on skills. Before joining BBC Somali Service as their correspondent in Kismayo, he was the editor-in-chief of Jubba FM in Kismayo. He freelanced for several foreign news agencies. Before Jubba FM, he was stringer for several regional radio stations.

Role of Nasteh Dahir Farah in the National Union of Somali Journalists

As one of the founding members of the union, Nasteh Dahir Farah held numerous posts in the union. In 2004, he was elected to be the head of Southeast Branch of the union. He was in charge of the affairs of over 60 journalists in Lower and Upper Jubba regions. He was founding person of Jubba Independent Journalists Association (JIJA), a region association based in Kismayu.

In 2005, Nasteh Dahir Farah was elected as Vice President of the National Union of Somali Journalists at its General Assembly in Mogadishu. He was devoted to ensure safety and press freedom of member journalists of the union while ensuring that journalists follow ethical rules of journalism which steer their service delivery. As he was in the national leadership of the union, he was actively involved in efforts of improving terms and working conditions of journalists. He was one of 25 journalists who were trained as press freedom protectors. He assisted various investigations of attacks against media freedom.

Nasteh Dahir Farah led numerous media activities by arranging competence and professional enhancement based training for media professionals. He was always dedicated to develop relations between media employees and media owners, especially in Kismayo, Baidoa and Mogadishu. He was actively involved in formulating the union’s foreign partnership programs. He campaigned for assistance to families of killed journalists and the last case he worked on was assistance provided to the widow and children of murdered journalist Hassan Kafi Hared.

Additionally, in the years that he was in top leadership of the national union, he helped the union in strategic planning, administration, membership management, networking and programs interfacing within larger media community.