Wave of arrests of journalists in Ethiopia
A view of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (photo illustration).
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Text by: RFI Follow
1 min
They are at least 16 in detention, unheard of since the coming to power of Abiy Ahmed in 2018 who, at the time, was hailed for his liberalization of the media landscape.
Since the Tigray war, the government has gradually sought to control the media.
The country recently fell to 114th place in the Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.
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With our correspondent in Addis Ababa,
Noé Hochet-Bodin
The United States speaks of a worrying shrinking of freedom of expression and independent media in Ethiopia.
There are now sixteen Ethiopian journalists behind bars, twelve of whom have been arrested since last week.
A series of arrests which coincides with a purge of nationalist forces in the Amhara region, whose Ethiopian authorities claim to have apprehended around 4,500 members.
The government
of Abiy Ahmed
had also warned last week: "
measures will be taken against individuals guilty of creating chaos, including those who present themselves as journalists or media professionals
", could we read in a press release
.
In short, some of the journalists arrested are therefore accused of supporting regionalist forces.
The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission is very alarmed by these arbitrary detentions, "
whose repercussions go beyond freedom of expression
", declared the institution.
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Ethiopia
Media
Human rights