The UN Security Council [official website] expressed [press release] regret on Friday regarding postponed elections in Somalia. The council called on [AP report] all parties to implement the 2016 electoral calendar without delay. The parliamentary elections, planned to take place sometime between late September and early October, were originally scheduled to take place in August. The parliamentary elections were delayed because additional preparation is needed and an electoral college of approximately 14,000 people is planned to participate. The council emphasized [UN News Centre report] that the electoral process this year is a stepping stone to universal suffrage elections in 2020 and urged the government to ensure a credible and transparent electoral process.

Somalia has been in turmoil for years due to issues of poverty, hunger and war. In November, UN Assistant Secretary-General for human rights called on [JURIST report] Somalia’s international partners to increase their aid to the country in order for the government to maintain its gains in protecting its citizens’ human rights. In October, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon praised [JURIST report] the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by the government of Somalia and encouraged the US to follow suit. Last June, the UN Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Somalia urged [JURIST report] the government to continue working to increase human rights protections. Last April, Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported [JURIST report] that Somali government officials evicted thousands of displaced people from Mogadishu in March 2015. Last February, Somalia’s Prime minister appealed [JURIST report] to the US government and US banks to resume allowing money transfers to Somalia, a crucial service for many in the war-torn country.