New York, October 23, 2008—An Ethiopian editor is facing criminal charges today because she accidentally misidentified a judge in a high-profile trial, according to local journalists. Two other journalists have been in police custody since Monday because of the same story. [Picture: EthiopiaZare, Read also in Amharic] …
While covering this month’s resumption of the trial of Ethiopian pop musician Tewodros Kassahun, jailed since April over a fatal car accident in 2006, Enbilta’s October 3 edition mistakenly identified the judge overseeing the case as Judge Mohamed Amin Sani, Editor-in-Chief Tsion Girma told CPJ. The paper did not publish a correction, but used the right name in the subsequent edition, which is Judge Mohamed Umer, she said.
Launched in January 2008, Enbilta is one of a handful of independent media outlets authorities have allowed to operate in the country since a crackdown on critical media and political dissidents in the aftermath of disputed elections in 2005. That year, Kassahun’s popular song, “Jah Yasteseryal,” was a popular anthem of antigovernment protesters.
“This is nothing but a flimsy pretext to crack down on a critical paper,” said CPJ Africa Program Coordinator Tom Rhodes. “We call on Ethiopian authorities to release Habte Tadesse and Atenafu Alemayehu immediately and drop these bogus charges against Tsion Girma.”
Ethiopian Federal High Court Abraha Tetemke today charged Girma of Enbilta, an Amharic-language weekly, with “inciting the public through false rumors,” under Article 486 of Ethiopia’s penal code, she told CPJ. Girma, Deputy Editor Habte Tadesse, and editor Atenafu Alemayehu were arrested on Wednesday morning after reporting to police for questioning, according to local journalists. She was released today on bail of 2,000 birr (US$200) and ordered to court for trial on Monday. Tadesse and Alemayehu are still being held.
Girma was the second journalist to face criminal charges this year over coverage of the popular singer’s trial. Editor Mesfin Negash of the leading weekly Addis Neger was sentenced to a one-month suspended prison term for publishing an interview of the singer’s lawyer that was critical of the former judge overseeing the trial.
Ethiopian authorities routinely use police detentions, threats, and legal and administrative restraints to censor coverage of sensitive topics. In 2007, CPJ named Ethiopia the world’s worst backslider on press freedom.
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October 24th, 2008 at 4:14 am
PLS DO NOT TALK TOO MUCH SHIT ABOUT ONE AZMARI TEDDY FERI.
HERE IS WHAT YOU GONNA DO SOON KILLLLL HIM IN THE MIDLE OF
4 KILLO OR SHUT UP AND GIVE HIM FREEDOM TO FIGHT BACK TIGRAIANS.
I AM SO SAD ABOUT THIS AZMARI WHY ETHIOPIA IS TALKING 2 YEARS FOR AZMARI? DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND YOU MAKE US SICK WITH YOUR NONSENS. SHOOT HIM AND AFTER 3 DAYS BLA BLA EVERY BODY WILL FORGET HIM. BASSSSSSSTA.
who cares about azmary ecxcept his gangister the WOROBLA AND WALFARES IN THE WEST. SHIT I WISH I CAN HAVE THE CHANCE TO SHOOT HIM 666 X in his azzzzzzzz then every talkatives will understand what realy mean woyane.
October 24th, 2008 at 9:35 am
So called Gorad, Korit ..
You are the most outrageous woyane who does nothing better than saying ‘kill him …..’. You love killing because you are a murderer woyane. Nothing satisfies you than seeing someone better than you killed. Teddy has everyone’s support because he is one in a million who cares about Ethiopia and Ethiopians. He is not like you ‘Hodam’. There is a saying ..’Jib bebelabet yichohal’ that is you. You are the tail of Meles who has a big horn ’seytan’. Go and wash is feet or …………
October 24th, 2008 at 10:21 am
To: EMF
Can you reconsider not to post negativity? It would have been much better to use intellectual criosity and convice one another instead of cursing each other. No body will benefit by talking nonsense stuff. Whenever I read comments, I read insulting between agazi and others. In my opinion, this does not take us anywhere.
October 24th, 2008 at 11:29 am
The woyanne racists do not care about other Ethiopians because their supreme leader Meles Zenawi has raped their mind and converted them into simple killing and robbing creatures. For the woyannes there is no Ethiopia and humanity except their supreme ethnic leader Meles Zenawi. The woyannes are sleeping in golden beds while millions of Ethiopians are on the verge of dying as a result of their ethnic policies which are discriminating Ethiopians not belonging to their ethnic group. All woyannes are ready to sacrifice themselves for their supreme ethnic leader Meles Zenawi. Ethiopians must unite and respond in kind for it is only through force that Woyannes will be forced to leave Ethiopia.
The indifference of many Ethiopians concerning the injustices being committed against Teddy Afro and others is just emboldening the woyanne herds to commit more atrocities. The woyannes would knock at the door of all Ethiopian they perceive as their enemies and kill or imprison them. Meles Zenawi has brainwashed and trained the farmers of his ethnic homeland to use them as a nazi era killers as witnessed by his agazi forces who are on the killing rampage.
October 24th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
Please do your best by ignoring woyane’s cadres. I don’t remember the name of the person who said in this web site “If you respond for these woyane cadres, that means they are smarter than you”. They are doing purposly. Just let them talk what ever they want. Through open mouth you can see empty brain. “betekefete af bado ras yetayale”
October 24th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
አዲሱ የወያኔ ረቂቅ አዋጅ ስራ ላይ መዋል ጀመረ ማለት ነው:: ፈጣን እድገት…
October 24th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
agazi አንተ ድዳም ፍልጥ መሆንህን አዉቃለሁ:: ክፍት አፍ ጭንቅላት ባዶ::
October 24th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
leave him alone this son of bich Agazii .He traying to change the main topice.we now who is woyane means .we dont have to be a stranger.The man up here he called him self AGAZII ..he is beach ass woyane.Dont worry about him i wiil give him cover…scary ass old arogant poor buchla woyane…why you buffering ashit just talk and walk like a man on my face.damn ass fogg. .we stand for the truth , aint no homo ,sniching beaching like woyane …actually i dont want attack transversal woyane /haif a man half a women / like this kerkeroo lawzii weyane . He allready got ato meless cheek[female] hormon hiden 4 killo and talking shit on poor people ,like this homo guy [Agazi] hiden some where posting un professional statmenets every day . you can f..yr self …like meles bandawii as he did last time.
October 25th, 2008 at 2:30 am
Agazi
አንተ የሸርሙጣ ልጅ ቀን አለው ቁላህን ቁርጠን አፍ ውስጥ የምንወትፍበት,,,,,,,,,ውሻ አንበጣ በሊታ,,
October 26th, 2008 at 12:21 am
Tigray people are united against meles. he doesn’t repesent us tigrain. meles must go. We tigrain want peace with ethiopian and eritrean. We tigrain are sandwich between these two
people. Tigrain for TPDM( Tigrain People Democaratic movement)
VIDEO: Tigray fighters (TPDM) music concert from a liberated area
http://www.eastafro.com/Post/2008/10/23/video-tigray-fighters-tpdm-band-concert-from-a-liberated-area/
October 26th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Biqila i think AGAZI is giving you hard time. i can feel it the way you act.
he is so smart than you. atlist he knows haw to get you mad.
and be cool try to control your OLD NERVE. if not?…………….