U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meets Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles
Zenawi at a conference in London in February. Western governments are
hesitant to press Ethiopia on human rights abuses. (AP/Jason Reed)
Last week in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, while Prime
Minister Meles Zenawi was making a speech about Africa's growth potential
at an African Union forum,
a journalist who his administration has locked away since September
on bogus terrorism charges was presenting his defense before a judge. Eskinder
Nega has been one of the most outspoken critics of Meles' domestic
leadership over the past two decades and has suffered imprisonment,
intimidation, and censorship for it.
The veteran, dissident blogger has been jailed at least
seven times by Meles's government over the past two decades. He isn't alone. Including
Eskinder, there are five journalists imprisoned
on politicized terrorism charges in Ethiopia. The threat of prison has induced
many independent journalists to flee the country -- the highest
number of exiled journalists in the world, according to CPJ research. Eskinder is facing a life sentence if convicted on terrorism
charges for allegedly supporting a banned opposition party, Ginbot 7. Ethiopia's antiterrorism
law criminalizes reporting or publication of information the
government deems favorable to groups designated as terrorists, which include
opposition movements such as Ginbot 7.
The tiny, drab courtroom in Lideta High Court where Eskinder
appeared Wednesday was one of the smallest in the building, eyewitnesses told
me -- a purposeful move to allow only 25 or 30 people to attend. Still, Eskinder's
supporters managed to cram into the room and noticed a more gaunt, pale
colleague whose sharp black suit and tie hid little of his deteriorating
condition. A three-judge panel listened as Eskinder described himself
as a prisoner
of conscience and rejected accusations that he had conspired to overthrow
the government through publishing "inciting" articles and interviews to local
and international media houses. "I wrote about human rights and democracy and
used my right to free expression to fulfill my duties as a concerned citizen," Eskinder
told the three judges. According to those in the courtroom, Eskinder went on to
say he would accept any torture and imprisonment imposed by the state as "part
of the price for fulfilling my duties." He said the final judgment of the court
is "being eagerly and curiously awaited by the public and history."
One of the last columns Eskinder wrote
before his arrest
hinted at the fact that freedom from political tyranny was only a matter of
time, citing the Arab Spring in North Africa as an example. Many local
journalists suspect it was his repeated call for social change that incurred
his arrest and led government spokesman Shimelis Kemal to accuse Eskinder and
others in an Agence
France-Presse interview of plotting "a series of terrorist acts that would
likely wreak havoc." But Eskinder, in his defense, insisted that he has always
wanted political change through peaceful, democratic means since change through
war would only lead to further dictatorship.Eskinder's wife, also an accomplished
journalist who was jailed after the disputed 2005 elections, told Voice
of America that Eskinder had been pleased with his defense but discouraged
at having to battle the terrorist label. "He's a journalist, not a member of a
political party," Serkalem Fasil told the U.S. government-backed broadcaster. Local
journalists told me that VOA, one of the few stations reporting on the trial,
was blocked the day after Eskinder's hearing.
Fellow journalists and rights activists across the globe
have organized a petition calling
for the release of Eskinder; signees include the heads of the U.S. National
Press Club, the Open Society Foundations, Human Rights Watch, and the Committee
to Protect Journalists. But will all this local and international support for a
press freedom advocate be enough to sway policy? Ethiopia is viewed as a
strategic partner for the West in combating
terrorism and instability in the Horn of Africa, so Western governments are unlikely
to press Meles on human rights abuses.
As Eskinder made an impassioned plea for his innocence, Meles
Zenawi was honored across town as the AU
trade meeting's special guest, a "leading advocate of the development state
in promoting effective inclusive growth in Africa" and a champion of "development
effectiveness." But can you really be crowned a "champion of development" if
you lock up all your critics? Ethiopians and the international community will
never be able to truly determine whether the prime minister is an "advocate of
the development state" if only yes-men and blind supporters are allowed to
speak of his achievements.
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