The NUSOJ has documented 79 cases of sexual and gender-based violence against women journalists in Somalia between 2023 and 2025.
The report points at sexual harassment as one of the most widespread forms of abuse in the Somali media that can include unwanted physical contact, as well as requests for sexual favours from male colleagues in exchange for job security or career advancement. These behaviours make workplaces hostile and unsafe for women journalists.
Other forms of abuse include exclusion of women from editorial decision-making processes and gender pay gaps, with female media professionals often receiving lower wages than their male colleagues, or being forced to endure abuse to keep their jobs.
But the risks don't end there. The increasing use of artificial intelligence, often by anonymous online attackers, as a tool to undermine the credibility of women journalists is concerning.
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Women journalists are often subjected to deepfakes and sexually explicit messages, and their pictures are stolen and manipulated into pornographic images. Some attackers also use AI-based voice cloning to recreate women's voices and produce fake recordings, or create fake profiles to spread false information about them in order to damage their credibility. Many women reduce their social media presence for fear of online threats and physical intimidation escalating into in-person attacks or stalking.
One journalist reported facing sexual abuse and death threats as a consequence of her reporting on corruption involving local authorities. She then noticed strangers loitering near her home and has not returned to journalism since.
The report points at a number of cases of abuse and sexual harassment that go unrecorded because the victims fear retaliation and consequences at work. Threats of dismissal and a sense of hopelessness fuel a culture of silence, allowing the perpetrators to act in full impunity.
"Somalia cannot claim to defend media freedom while women journalists live with threats, harassment and humiliation as part of their daily reality. This report lays bare a pattern of violence that has been tolerated for far too long [...]," said Omar Faruk Osman, NUSOJ Secretary General.
IFJ General secretary Anthony Bellanger added, "Documenting cases of gender-based violence is key to combat impunity. Silence only fuels the cycle of abuse. We call on media outlets in Somalia to implement adequate measures to enable journalists to report all forms of harassment safely and without fear of retaliation. Protecting these journalists is a fundamental duty; failing to do so would result in the loss of powerful voices that strengthen democracy and freedom of expression in the country."
The IFJ has adopted internal policies on sexual harassment and calls on all its affiliates to implement similar rules where they don't exist to eradicate the culture of impunity surrounding violence against women.
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