Sign Up You agree to receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. It’s hard to get accurate statistics on the prevalence of rape in Puntland or in Somalia in general, but anecdotally, the law appears to have had little impact. Another major hurdle to prosecuting rapists is that most judges are more used to nonstatutory laws than the official legal system. For Puntland this means Shariah law and customary law, which are often employed alongside formal law. Our Constitution states that when formal law such as the Sexual Offenses Act does exist — and when a case is heard in a formal court, as opposed to an informal traditional court — only the formal law should be used.

Source: New York Times January 30, 2018 06:52 UTC