Association in Djibouti

Despite constitutional protections, civil society organisations and activists in Djibouti experience frequent violations of their right to associate freely. In December 2015, the head of the Ligue Djiboutienne des Droits de l’Homme (LDDH), the last remaining human rights organisation in Djibouti, was publicly harassed and beaten by the chief of police. A few days later, he was shot and critically injured in the throat by security forces. Despite the severity of his injuries, he was ordered to leave hospital after only 8 days. Other LDDH members were arrested and unlawfully detained; and the organisation’s offices were raided by police officers, who seized computer equipment and archives. It is not only human rights groups that have had their freedom of association violated in Djibouti. In 2014 for instance, individual teachers were targeted because of their union activities. Activists have also been prevented from travelling and had their passports confiscated.