Anfragebeantwortung zu Äthiopien: Informationen zur Lage von Journalist·innen bzw. Fotograf·innen [a-12069-3]

9. Februar 2023

Die internationale Menschenrechtsorganisation Human Rights Watch (HRW) erwähnt in ihrem Jahresbericht vom Jänner 2023 (Berichtszeitrum 2022), dass die äthiopischen Behörden mehrere Journalist·innen verhaftet und mehrere Wochen lang ohne Anklage festgehalten hätten, obwohl Gerichte ihre Freilassung angeordnet hätten. Im November 2021 hätten die Behörden die Journalisten Dessu Dulla und Bikila Amenu vom Oromia News Network verhaftet, die über die Konflikte in Tigray und Oromia berichtet hätten (siehe auch: RSF, 3. Juni 2022). Dessu und Bikilia seien ohne formelle Anklage festgehalten worden, bis die Staatsanwaltschaft im April 2022 wegen Verstößen gegen die Verfassung Anklage gegen sie erhoben und die Todesstrafe gefordert habe. Sowohl Dessu als auch Bikila seien Mitte November 2022 freigelassen worden. Journalist·innen und Einzelpersonen, die eine kritische oder von der Regierung abweichende Meinung vertraten, seien bedroht, verhaftet und des Landes verwiesen worden. Im Mai 2022 hätten die Sicherheitskräfte Solomon Shumye verhaftet, einen in Addis Abeba ansässigen Talkshow-Moderator, der sich kritisch über die Regierung und den Krieg in Nordäthiopien geäußert habe. Solomon sei einer von 19 Journalist·innen, darunter Gobeze Sisay (Gründer des YouTube-Kanals The Voice of Amhara) und Meaza Mohammed (Gründerin des YouTube-Kanals Roha TV), die zwischen dem 19. Mai und Anfang Juli 2022 im Rahmen einer breit angelegten Razzia der Regierung verhaftet worden seien (siehe auch: CPJ, 3. Juni 2022 und RSF, 24. Mai 2022). Allein in der Region Amhara seien dabei über 4.500 Menschen festgenommen worden. Gobeze und Meaza seien anschließend freigelassen und im September 2022 von den Behörden erneut verhaftet worden. Die Bundesbehörden hätten zudem das Internet und die Telekommunikation in Tigray seit Juni 2021 abgeschaltet und in den von Unsicherheit betroffenen Teilen von Oromia sporadisch die Kommunikationsdienste unterbrochen, was die Echtzeitberichterstattung behindert habe. (HRW, 12. Jänner 2023).

Die NGOs Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) und Reporter ohne Grenzen (Reporters Sans Frontières/Reporters Without Borders, RSF), die sich für Pressefreiheit und Journalist·innen einsetzen, berichten ebenso über die Verhaftung und Festhaltung von Journalist·innen in Äthiopien:

Im Dezember 2022 sei Meskerem Abera, die Gründerin von Ethio Nikat Media in Addis Abeba wegen Aufhetzung zur Gewalt, Verbreitung von Falschinformationen und Diffamierung des Militärs verhaftet worden. Sie sei bereits im Mai 2022 unter ähnlichen Beschuldigungen verhaftet worden. Die Polizei werfe Meskerem vor, Informationen verbreitet zu haben, die zu Gewalt in der südlichen Gurage-Zone geführt hätten, und zu versuchen, die jüngsten Proteste in Addis Abeba zu rechtfertigen (CPJ, 20. Dezember 2022). CPJ berichtet zudem über mehrere Festnahmen von Journalist·innen, darunter eines Redakteurs des Amara Media Center wegen Verbreitung von Falschinformationen (CPJ, 20. September 2022), zweier Journalist·innen wegen des Verdachts von Verbindungen zur Volksbefreiungsfront von Tigray (Tigray People’s Liberation Front, TPLF) (CPJ, 12. September 2022), eines Redakteurs eines privaten Magazins wegen der Weitergabe von Militärgeheimnissen und der Verbreitung von ungenauen, hasserfüllten oder subversiven Informationen, die die Öffentlichkeit demoralisieren sollen (CPJ, 1. August 2022a), sowie zweier weiterer Journalisten von Ethio Forum in Addis Abeba im Juni 2022. Die beiden Journalisten seien innerhalb der vergangenen beiden Jahre bereits mehrmals verhaftet worden (CPJ, 6. Juli 2022). Mitte Dezember 2021 berichtet CPJ über die Verhaftung von mindestens 14 Journalist·innen (darunter Teklehaimanot Girmai, Mekonnen Yibrah, Amir Aman Kirayo, Thomas Engida, Addisu Muluneh, Eyasped Tesfaye, Temerat Negara, Meaza Mohammed) seit Verkündung des Ausnahmezustandes am 2. November 2021 (CPJ, 15. Dezember 2021). Teklehaimanot Girmai und Mekonnen Yibrah seien zuvor Reporter des tigray-sprachigen Radioprogramms der staatlichen Ethiopia Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) gewesen, bis sie im August 2021 entlassen worden seien. Amir Aman Kiyaro, ein Video-Reporter von Associated Press, und der Kameramann Thomas Engida seien in Addis Abeba am 28. November 2021 verhaftet worden, nachdem sie Mitglieder der Oromo Liberation Army (die mit der TPLF verbündet sei und von den Behörden als terroristische Organisation eingestuft werde) interviewt hätten (CPJ, 15. Dezember 2021; siehe RSF, 16. Dezember 2021 und RSF, 29. März 2022). Die beiden Reporter seien CPJ zufolge vier Monate lang ohne Anklage festgehalten worden und am 1. April 2022 freigelassen worden (CPJ, 1. April 2022).

Die tigrayanischen Behörden hätten CPJ zufolge im Mai und Juni 2022 fünf Mitarbeiter·innen von Tigrai TV (Teshome Temalew, Misgena Seyoum, Haben Halefom, Hailemichael Gesesse, and Dawit Meknonnen) verhaftet und der „feindlichen Kollaboration“ mit der äthiopischen Bundesregierung beschuldigt (CPJ, 20. Juli 2022). Haben, Misgena und Teshome seien im Dezember 2022 und Jänner 2023 freigesprochen worden. Die Verfahren der beiden anderen Personen seien auf Februar 2023 verschoben worden (CPJ, 17. Jänner 2023).

CPJ habe die Verhaftung von mindestens 63 Journalist·innen und Medienschaffenden seit dem 4. November 2020 dokumentiert, von denen mindestens acht mit Stand 1. August 2022 – zum Zeitpunkt der Veröffentlichung des CPJ-Artikels - weiterhin inhaftiert gewesen seien. Das CPJ habe Verhaftungen in der Hauptstadt Addis Abeba, in den Bundesstaaten Oromia, Amhara, Afar und Somali sowie in jüngerer Zeit (vor August 2022) im von Rebellen kontrollierten Bundesstaat Tigray dokumentiert. Tigray habe während des gesamten Krieges unter einer Telekommunikationssperre gelitten, was es erschwere, Berichten zur Festhaltung weiterer Journalist·innen nachzugehen. Die meisten Verhaftungen würden CPJ zufolge nach einem ähnlichen Schema ablaufen: Die Behörden nähmen Journalist·innen oder Medienmitarbeiter·innen fest und würden diese vor Gericht bringen, wo sie um weitere Zeit für die Durchführung von Ermittlungen bitten würden. Nur in sehr wenigen der dokumentierten Fälle hätten diese Verfahren zu einer formellen Anklage geführt. Wenn die Gerichte schließlich Kaution gewähren würden, lege die Polizei häufig Berufung ein, wodurch sich die Freilassung der Journalist·innen verzögere. Freigelassene Journalist·innen hätten dem CPJ berichtet, dass sie auch nach ihrer Freilassung von der Einschränkung ihrer Bankkonten und ihrer Bewegungsfreiheit betroffen gewesen seien (CPJ, 1. August 2022b).

Es konnten keine weiteren Informationen speziell zur Lage von Fotograf·innen gefunden werden.

 

 

 

Quellen: (Zugriff auf alle Quellen am 9. Februar 2023)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopia uses emergency law to ramp up arrests of journalists, 15. Dezember 2021
https://cpj.org/2021/12/ethiopia-uses-emergency-law-to-ramp-up-arrests-of-journalists/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: CPJ welcomes release of Ethiopian journalists Amir Aman Kiyaro and Thomas Engida after 4 months in detention, 1. April 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/04/cpj-welcomes-release-of-ethiopian-journalists-amir-aman-kiyaro-and-thomas-engida-after-4-months-in-detention/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopia detains journalists Bekalu Alamrew and Meaza Mohammed in ongoing media crackdown, 3. Juni 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/06/ethiopia-detains-journalists-bekalu-alamrew-and-meaza-mohammed-in-ongoing-media-crackdown/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopian journalist Abebe Bayu detained 1 day after colleague Yayesew Shimelis arrested, 6. Juli 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/07/ethiopian-journalist-abebe-bayu-detained-1-day-after-colleague-yayesew-shimelis-arrested/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Tigrayan authorities in Ethiopia detain 5 Tigrai TV journalists, 20. Juli 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/07/tigrayan-authorities-in-ethiopia-detain-5-tigrai-tv-journalists/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopian journalist Temesgen Desalegn denied bail, ordered to remain in detention, 1. August 2022a
https://cpj.org/2022/08/ethiopian-journalist-temesgen-desalegn-denied-bail-ordered-to-remain-in-detention/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Journalists face growing hostility as Ethiopia’s civil war persists, 1. August 2022b
https://cpj.org/2022/08/journalists-face-growing-hostility-as-ethiopias-civil-war-persists/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopian authorities detain journalists Gobeze Sisay and Meaza Mohammed, 12. September 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/09/ethiopian-authorities-detain-journalists-gobeze-sisay-and-meaza-mohammed/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopian journalist Abay Zewdu remains detained after court grants bail, 20. September 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/09/ethiopian-journalist-abay-zewdu-remains-detained-after-court-grants-bail/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopia must release journalist Meskerem Abera after second detention this year, 20. Dezember 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/12/ethiopia-must-release-journalist-meskerem-abera-after-second-detention-this-year/

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Authorities in Tigray release 3 journalists, 2 others remain in detention, 17. Jänner 2023
https://cpj.org/2023/01/authorities-in-tigray-release-3-journalists-2-others-remain-in-detention/

·      HRW – Human Rights Watch: World Report 2023 - Ethiopia, 12. Jänner 2023
https://www.ecoi.net/de/dokument/2085413.html

·      RSF - Reporters Sans Frontières/Reporters Without Borders: More reporters arrested in renewed crackdown in Ethiopia, 16. Dezember 2021
https://rsf.org/en/more-reporters-arrested-renewed-crackdown-ethiopia

·      RSF - Reporters Sans Frontières/Reporters Without Borders: Two Ethiopian journalists, held arbitrarily for four months, due to appear in court, 29. März 2022
https://rsf.org/en/two-ethiopian-journalists-held-arbitrarily-four-months-due-appear-court

·      RSF - Reporters Sans Frontières/Reporters Without Borders: Wave of arrests of media workers in Ethiopia, 24. Mai 2022
https://rsf.org/en/wave-arrests-media-workers-ethiopia

·      RSF - Reporters Sans Frontières/Reporters Without Borders: Eighteen journalists arrested in Ethiopia, two facing possible death sentence, 3. Juni 2022
https://rsf.org/en/eighteen-journalists-arrested-ethiopia-two-facing-possible-death-sentence

 

 

Anhang: Quellenbeschreibungen und Informationen aus ausgewählten Quellen

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopia uses emergency law to ramp up arrests of journalists, 15. Dezember 2021
https://cpj.org/2021/12/ethiopia-uses-emergency-law-to-ramp-up-arrests-of-journalists/

„Teklehaimanot Girmai and Mekonnen Yibrah, who had both worked as reporters for the Tigrinya-language radio service of the state-owned Ethiopia Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) until their dismissal in August. […]

Three other journalists were detained on November 28, according to The Associated Press (AP) and local state media reports, but their arrests were not made public until yesterday. The three were named as Amir Aman Kirayo, a freelance video journalist accredited with the AP, cameraperson Thomas Engida and Addisu Muluneh, a reporter with the state affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporation. The AP said that Amir was arrested after a reporting trip; while CPJ continues to investigate the specific circumstances surrounding the arrests of Thomas and Addisu.

AP did not elaborate on the nature of Amir’s trip, but said that all three are accused of breaching the country’s state of emergency and anti-terrorism laws. State media reports alleged that the three were arrested after interviewing members of the Shene, a term used by officials to refer to the rebel Oromo Liberation Army group which was designated a terrorist organisation earlier this year and is allied with the TPLF. “ (CPJ, 16. Dezember 2021)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: CPJ welcomes release of Ethiopian journalists Amir Aman Kiyaro and Thomas Engida after 4 months in detention, 1. April 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/04/cpj-welcomes-release-of-ethiopian-journalists-amir-aman-kiyaro-and-thomas-engida-after-4-months-in-detention/

“Nairobi, April 1, 2022 — In response to the release of Ethiopian freelance journalists Amir Aman Kiyaro and Thomas Engida from detention on Friday, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement welcoming their release:

‘It is a great relief that Ethiopian journalists Amir Aman Kiyaro and Thomas Engida are home with their families, after four months of arbitrary detention during which they were not charged with any crime,’ said CPJ’s sub-Saharan Africa representative, Muthoki Mumo. ‘The journalists should never have spent a single day behind bars, and authorities should bring this ordeal to a close by dropping any pending investigations into their work and guaranteeing that they can do their jobs freely and safely.”” (CPJ, 1. April 2022)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopian journalist Abebe Bayu detained 1 day after colleague Yayesew Shimelis arrested, 6. Juli 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/07/ethiopian-journalist-abebe-bayu-detained-1-day-after-colleague-yayesew-shimelis-arrested/

„At about 10 p.m. on June 29, men in civilian clothes who identified themselves as security personnel arrested Abebe at his home in Addis Ababa, the capital, according to two people familiar with his case who spoke to CPJ on condition of anonymity, citing safety concerns, and reports by the privately owned media outlets Addis Standard and Asham TV. Abebe, a reporter and analyst with the YouTube-based outlet Ethio Forum, was arrested one day after Yayesew Shimelis, the outlet’s administrator, was similarly detained by plainclothes security personnel, as CPJ reported at the time.“ (CPJ, 6. Juli 2022)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Tigrayan authorities in Ethiopia detain 5 Tigrai TV journalists, 20. Juli 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/07/tigrayan-authorities-in-ethiopia-detain-5-tigrai-tv-journalists/

„Regional authorities in the state of Tigray, who are at war with the federal Ethiopian government, in recent months detained Tigrai TV employees Teshome Temalew, Misgena Seyoum, Haben Halefom, Hailemichael Gesesse, and Dawit Meknonnen, according to multiple media reports, Issac Welday, a former senior manager with the broadcaster who spoke with CPJ by phone from Addis Ababa, and a person familiar with their detention, who asked not to be named for fear of retaliation.“ (CPJ, 20. Juli 2022)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopian journalist Temesgen Desalegn denied bail, ordered to remain in detention, 1. August 2022a
https://cpj.org/2022/08/ethiopian-journalist-temesgen-desalegn-denied-bail-ordered-to-remain-in-detention/

„Authorities detained Temesgen on May 26 and charged him with disclosing military secrets, a crime which carries up to five years in prison for convictions, and disseminating inaccurate, hateful, or subversive information meant to demoralize the public, which carries a prison term of up to 10 years, as CPJ documented at the time. If a court rules that he had disseminated false information with the intent to cause a mutiny, he could face life in prison.“ (CPJ, 1. August 2022a)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Journalists face growing hostility as Ethiopia’s civil war persists, 1. August 2022b
https://cpj.org/2022/08/journalists-face-growing-hostility-as-ethiopias-civil-war-persists/

„CPJ has documented the arrest of at least 63 journalists and media workers since November 4, 2020, at least eight of whom remain detained as of August 1, 2022. All the detentions that CPJ has documented so far have been in Addis Ababa, the capital; Oromia, Amhara, Afar, and Somali states; and more recently in rebel-held Tigray state, which has been under a telecommunications blackout for most of this war, making it difficult to researchreports that even more journalists are held there. Most detentions follow a similar script: authorities arrest a journalist or media worker and present them in court requesting more and more time to hold them for investigations. These proceedings have resulted in formal charges in very few of the cases documented by CPJ. When the courts eventually grant bail, police frequently mount appeals that delay the journalists’ releases. […]

Freed journalists have told CPJ of restrictions on their bank accounts and movements even after their release. These detentions have a ripple effect on the broader media community. In 2021, Awlo Media Center shut down after its staff were arrested in mid-2021. CPJ also spoke to four previously detained journalists who said they were no longer working in journalism. Self-censorship becomes an inevitable by-product in an environment of fear, eroding the diversity within public discourse and undermining the public’s right to know. […]

Journalists have faced physical attacks. In February 2021, men thought to be intelligence personnel raided the home of freelancer Lucy Kassa and warned her about reporting on the conflict. A group of four unidentified men abducted and assaulted online journalist Abebe Bayu in June 2021. In 2021, CPJ documented the first killing of an Ethiopian journalist – Sisay Fida – in connection with their work since 1998. Sisay’s death was attributed by authorities to the Oromo Liberation Army, an insurgent group allied with the TPLF. CPJ continues to investigate the motive behind the killing of a second journalist, Dawit Kebede Araya, who was shot in Mekelle, Tigray, in January 2021, at a time when the city was in the hands of federal authorities.“ (CPJ, 1. August 2022b)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopian authorities detain journalists Gobeze Sisay and Meaza Mohammed, 12. September 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/09/ethiopian-authorities-detain-journalists-gobeze-sisay-and-meaza-mohammed/

„About 8 a.m. Wednesday, September 7, federal police officers arrested Gobeze, editor and founder of privately owned YouTube-based broadcaster The Voice of Amhara, from his home in the capital, Addis Ababa, according to news reports, his brother Kedir Sisay, and one of his lawyers, Henok Aklilu, who both spoke to CPJ by phone. At around 5 p.m. that day, police officers arrested Meaza, founder and chief editor of privately owned YouTube-based news channel Roha TV, while she was shopping, according to news reports, her husband Robel Gebeyehu and Henok, also one of her lawyers, who both spoke to CPJ by phone. […]

On Thursday, September 8, authorities brought both Gobeze and Meaza before the Federal First Instance Court, Lideta branch, in Addis Ababa, according to Henok. However, citing time constraints, the court adjourned their case until Friday, September 9, when authorities did not file formal charges but said they were holding the two journalists on suspicion of having links with the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, a rebel group at war with the federal government, and attempting to terrorize the public by disseminating information that supports the rebel group through various media platforms, according to a court document reviewed by CPJ.“ (CPJ, 12. September 2022)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopian journalist Abay Zewdu remains detained after court grants bail, 20. September 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/09/ethiopian-journalist-abay-zewdu-remains-detained-after-court-grants-bail/

„Authorities in Ethiopia should immediately and unconditionally release Abay Zewdu, chief editor of privately owned satellite and YouTube-based broadcaster Amara Media Center (AMC), and cease detaining journalists without charge, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Tuesday. […] On September 13, authorities brought Abay before the Federal First Instance Court, Lideta branch, in Addis Ababa, according to Zoma. Police told the court that Abay was held on suspicion of disseminating false information and organizing students from the Amhara ethnic group to commit violence, according to a court document reviewed by CPJ.“ (CPJ, 20. September 2022)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Ethiopia must release journalist Meskerem Abera after second detention this year, 20. Dezember 2022
https://cpj.org/2022/12/ethiopia-must-release-journalist-meskerem-abera-after-second-detention-this-year/

„Federal police detained Meskerem, the founder and editor of private YouTube-based media outlet Ethio Nikat Media, in the capital Addis Ababa on December 13, her husband, Fitsum Gebremichael, told CPJ by phone. On December 15, a federal high court extended her detention by 14 days for police to investigate allegations that she incited violence, disseminated misinformation, and defamed the military through Ethio Nikat Media and social media platforms. She is due back in court on December 29, Fitsum said. Meskerem was held for weeks following her arrest in May in relation to a similar accusation, but was never formally charged. […] Police accuse Meskerem of disseminating information that led to violence in the southern Gurage Zone, and attempting to justify recent protests in Addis Ababa, the court document reviewed by CPJ said. They also accuse her of encouraging the creation of vigilante groups; calling on members of the public to go on strike and block roads; and defaming the Ethiopian national defense forces. The document did not cite specific videos or posts.“ (CPJ, 20. Dezember 2022)

·      CPJ - Committee to Protect Journalists: Authorities in Tigray release 3 journalists, 2 others remain in detention, 17. Jänner 2023
https://cpj.org/2023/01/authorities-in-tigray-release-3-journalists-2-others-remain-in-detention/

„Authorities arrested five Tigrai TV employees—Hailemichael and Dawit, along with Haben Halefom, Misgena Seyoum, and Teshome Temalew—in May and June 2022, and accused them of “collaboration with the enemy,” amid a civil war between the federal government and Tigray forces, as CPJ documented at the time. The High Court in the Tigrayan capital of Mekelle acquitted and released Haben on December 5, 2022, and acquitted and released Misgena and Teshome on January 11, according to those news reports. On January 12, the court adjourned Hailemichael’s case to February 23, and Dawit’s case to February 25, during which state witnesses are expected to make statements, those news reports said.“ (CPJ, 17. Jänner 2023)

·      HRW – Human Rights Watch: World Report 2023 - Ethiopia, 12. Jänner 2023
https://www.ecoi.net/de/dokument/2085413.html

„Authorities arrested several journalists, holding them without charge for several weeks despite court orders for their release. In November 2021, authorities arrested Oromia News Network journalists Dessu Dulla and Bikila Amenu, who covered the conflicts in Tigray and Oromia. Dessu and Bikilia were held without formal charges until April, when prosecutors charged them with offenses against the constitution and sought the death penalty. Authorities released both Dessu and Bikila in mid-November.

Journalists and individuals offering a critical or different narrative to that of the federal government faced threats, arrests, and expulsion. In May, security forces arrested Solomon Shumye, an Addis Ababa-based talk show host who has been critical of the government and the war in northern Ethiopia. Solomon was among 19 journalists, including Gobeze Sisay and Meaza Mohammed, detained between May 19 and early July as part of broader government crackdown in which over 4,500 people were arrested in the Amhara region alone. Gobeze and Meaza were both subsequently released, and then rearrested by authorities in September.

In May, federal authorities withdrew the accreditation of Tom Gardner, The Economist’s Addis Ababa correspondent, and expelled him from the country.“ (HRW, 12. Jänner 2023)

On September 6, security forces broke up a peace conference organized by a group of 35 local civil society organizations in Addis Ababa. The event was later held online, and the group subsequently issued a joint statement calling for peace. Two days later, a federal official intimidated the group to get them to retract their statement.

Federal authorities maintained their internet and telecommunications shutdown in Tigray since June 2021, and sporadically cut services in parts of Oromia facing insecurity, hampering real-time reporting.“ (HRW, 12. Jänner 2023)

·      RSF – Reporters Sans Frontières: More reporters arrested in renewed crackdown in Ethiopia, 16. Dezember 2021
https://www.ecoi.net/de/dokument/2065477.html

„Arrests of more journalists in recent weeks for their coverage of the 13-month-old civil war have confirmed the disastrous setback for press freedom seen in Ethiopia in 2021, says Reporters Without Borders (RSF), calling on the authorities to free detained journalists and end the harassment and restrictions to which they are being subjected. Amir Aman Kiyaro, a freelance video reporter who works for the Associated Press news agency, was arrested in the capital, Addis Ababa, on his return from a reporting trip on 28 November. According to the police, he is accused of “serving the purposes” of a terrorist group by interviewing some of its members. Two other journalists, Thomas Engida and Addisu Mulneh, were arrested at the same time on similar charges

Thousands of civilians have been killed and millions displaced in the civil war that began in November 2020, in which federal government forces are now fighting a coalition of armed groups from the Tigray and Oromia regions. The federal authorities declared a nationwide state of emergency last month, banning any information about troop movements and tolls of dead and wounded in clashes other those that provided by the authorities themselves. ‘This new wave of arrests has once again highlighted the government’s growing crackdown on journalists and their readiness to silence anyone who does not toe the official reporting line,’ said Arnaud Froger, the head of RSF’s Africa desk. ‘We call for the release of all detained reporters and we ask the Ethiopian authorities to stop criminalising journalism in their country.’“ (RSF, 16. Dezember 2021)

·      RSF – Reporters Sans Frontières: Two Ethiopian journalists, held arbitrarily for four months, due to appear in court, 29. März 2022
https://www.ecoi.net/de/dokument/2070486.html

„With two journalists said to have ‘promoted terrorism’ due to appear before an Addis Ababa court today, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Ethiopian authorities to free all arbitrarily detained journalists and to stop bringing baseless accusations against them with the aim of deterring them from covering the 17-month-old civil war. Amir Aman Kiyaro, an accredited Associated Press video reporter, and freelancer Thomas Engida have been held arbitrarily for the past four months without any formal charge although the police accused them of ‘promoting terrorism’ when they were arrested in Addis Ababa on 28 November after interviewing members of what the authorities regard as a terrorist group. […] The civil war that broke out in November 2020 between Ethiopian federal troops and rebels from the Tigray region has displaced several hundred thousand civilians and killed many others, although the exact death toll is hard to assess. It has also resulted in a clampdown on the media without precedent since Abiy Ahmed became prime minister 2018.“ (RSF, 29. März 2022)