Researchers from the Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS) have interviewed more than 24 key actors in the justice sector at the federal and state levels.

They included current and former senior justice officials at the FGS, as well as the former chief justice and former attorney general.

HIPS researchers also traveled to the capitals of all federal member states and conducted key informant interviews with state justice ministers, senior judges and experts. They also interviewed constitutional and legal experts. With a qualitative approach for this research to gain a deeper understanding of the complexity of the justice system from current and past practitioners, and to improve the policy recommendations of the report.

The study found that Federalizing the justice system is one of the thorniest problems facing the country, which traces its current form back to the dictatorship years of Siyad Barre. Legal plurality and confusion reign, as states — and in some cases districts — use their own justice models and interpret penal codes as they see fit.

The study says; Corruption is also a chronic problem at all levels. Citizens are forced to pay to access basic justice as well as to appeal to higher courts. Many citizens instead take their cases to al-Shabaab courts for what they see as a fair, fast and, above all, enforceable judgments. Decisions by statutory courts are routinely ignored as they lack the capacity to enforce their rulings.

Officials who work in the justice sector are inadequately compensated and are sometimes not paid for months. Many resort to corruption as a means to make ends meet.

Despite the poor wages, justice officials are also exposed to severe security threats as they remain largely unprotected by state and federal authorities. In many cases, they are warned against issuing an adverse decision, and, in some cases, brute force is used to free suspects or change decisions.

In the absence of effective and reliable statutory courts, an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism is rapidly growing across the country. By some estimates, more than 80% of all civil and criminal cases in Somalia are settled through a traditional Xeer system, which is seen as effective, fast and compliant with Shariah law. However, ADR mechanisms often lack strong enforcement capabilities and rely on the moral authority of traditional elders. Yet ADR is gaining ground, often at the expense of statutory courts, because it is successful in de-escalating conflicts and creating a win-win situation.

A new leadership at the federal ministry of justice, the office of the attorney general and the supreme court has introduced a raft of new reforms aimed at expanding access to justice and fighting corruption within the federal justice bench and in government institutions.

Additional capacity is dedicated to fighting organized crime such as human trafficking and illegal fishing. Gender-based violence (GBV) is also prioritized under a special prosecutor. However, persistent underfunding and lack of specialized expertise such as forensic scientists and criminologists are hampering reform efforts.

To overhaul the country’s broken justice system, Somalia’s federal and state leaders would need to come together and agree on a modality and finding common ground in order to establish an inclusive and independent Judicial Services Commission and Constitutional Court. The report said

The Jowhar Agreement of 2018 provides a foundation, but was set aside as political tensions between the center and the periphery intensified. A return to that framework would be vital to rebuilding a viable, competent and effective justice system.