Djibouti denounces "baseless allegations" contained in EU parliament's resolution

Djibouti's Foreign Affairs Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssouf has denounced what he termed as "baseless allegations" contained in a resolution adopted by the European Union (EU) parliament on May 12, 2016.

In a statement issued in Djibouti on Sunday, Youssouf said the discussion in EU parliament was based on "false information spread by foreign media and on social media networks by people with ill motives and who are hostile to the unity of Djiboutian people as well as their values of peace, tolerance and solidarity."

The minister said this was part of a campaign of misinformation carried out by individuals who do not hesitate to tarnish the image of their country "in their desperate attempts to seek for credibility as they seek asylum in European nations."

The resolution by the EU parliament highlighted various cases of rape committed by soldiers in northern Djibouti while remaining silent on circumstances under which the events took place, the minister said.

It further highlighted various cases of torture of opposition leaders while they were in detention, and that they were ill treated.

"The lies in the allegations are easy to point out because none of those who contributed to the resolution were able to identify any of the torture victims," Djibouti's foreign minister said.

Youssouf said the Djiboutian government reserved the right to prosecute those behind this campaign of misinformation which, according to him, has no other objective other than misleading the national and international community on the situation in the country.

In the resolution adopted on May 12, the EU parliament expressed concern over "the death of democracy in Djibouti and denounced incidents of rape committed by soldiers against civilians." Enditem