A voluntary mediation committee has announced that they started mediation efforts to bring the Somaliland government and opposition together following the deadly protests in the country last week. The voluntary committee stated they had received confidence from the two sides and were determined to continue until political agreement is reached.
The chairman of the committee Adam Baradho who made the announcement said the government has eventually accepted to pay compensation for those who died on 11th August protests that resulted in the death of 7 unarmed civilians, according to the opposition statement. However, the government said the death number was 5 people. The volunteer mediation committee also did not disclose how many deaths the government has agreed to compensate for.
The statement comes days after the government and the opposition accused each other of taking responsibility for those who died in the protests. Initially, the families who lost their loved ones refused to bury the bodies and stored them in mortuary fridges until the government agreed to compensate.
On Monday, the opposition parties told their supporters that the protests will continue after a state funeral held for those who died in the protests. It’s unclear if the voluntary mediation committee could persuade the opposition to stop their next protests.
