CPJ protest to Ethiopia, the world’s fourth biggest jailer of journalists
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply troubled by the continued detention of at least 13 journalists who were arrested in a crackdown on the private press following antigovernment protests in early November. These editors and publishers from the private, Amharic-language press, who were identified on a government “wanted” list publicized on state-owned media, have been detained without charge and denied bail. The journalists were jailed along with dozens of opposition and civil society leaders. Your Excellency has threatened to charge these detainees with treason, which is punishable by death in Ethiopia.Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply troubled by the continued detention of at least 13 journalists who were arrested in a crackdown on the private press following antigovernment protests in early November. These editors and publishers from the private, Amharic-language press, who were identified on a government “wanted” list publicized on state-owned media, have been detained without charge and denied bail. The journalists were jailed along with dozens of opposition and civil society leaders. Your Excellency has threatened to charge these detainees with treason, which is punishable by death in Ethiopia.
Two more journalists jailed on old charges
New York, December 12, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is outraged that two more journalists have been jailed on criminal charges that have been revived since a crackdown on the press in November. The convictions last week relating to articles published up to seven years ago bring the number of journalists now behind bars in…
Jailed journalist sentenced to eight months in prison
New York, December 7, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the eight-month jail sentence for criminal libel handed down by the Federal High Court to a journalist already in prison as part of Ethiopia’s ongoing crackdown on the independent media. On Tuesday, the court convicted Wosonseged Gebrekidan, former editor of the Amharic-language weekly Ethiop, of…
A freed’ journalist is sent back to jail
New York, December 5, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is outraged by news that Eritrean journalist Dawit Isaac was returned to jail just two days after being released in mid-November. Isaac is one of 15 Eritrean journalists who have been jailed incommunicado and without charge or forced into extended military service following a September 2001…
Two more journalists detained as police raid newspapers and local journalists’ association
New York, November 28, 2005— Ethiopian authorities have arrested another two journalists bringing the number detained since political unrest erupted four weeks ago to at least 12. Sources told the Committee to Protect Journalists that Serkalem Fassil, publisher of the Amharic-language weeklies Menilik, Asqual and Satanaw, and her husband Iskinder Nega who is also a…
Two more Ethiopian journalists detained in growing crackdown
New York, November 14, 2005—Ethiopian authorities have detained another two editors, bringing the number of journalists arrested since political unrest erupted two weeks ago to eight. Sources told CPJ that security forces arrested Andualem Ayle of the private, Amharic-language weekly Ethiop, and Nardos Meaza of the private, Amharic-language weekly Satanaw, sometime last week.