TPLF/EPRDF Makes a Mockery of Judges’ Decision to Release Semayawi Youth by Over-riding Court Verdict

July 1, 2015

SMNE Press Release | Washington, DC

Not only are Ethiopian elections a farce—reconfirmed by recent regime claims of a 100% victory in the May 24, 2015 national elections—but so is the independence of the judicial system. This mockery of justice was shown when police re-arrested four young members of the Semayawi opposition party [Blue Party} after they were released from court. This happened not once, but three times, despite the fact they had already been freed each time by the court. They remain in jail as of today.

Weynishet Molla, Ermias Tsegaye, Daniel Tesfaye and Bethlehem Akalewerk had been arrested, jailed and beaten on April 22, 2015 after being charged with creating violence and disturbing the rally the EPRDF had called in response to the ISIS killing of 30 Ethiopians in Libya. Following their fourth arrest and jailing for the same incident, a security agent revealed that “someone at the top” of the ruling party opposed their release.

The three courageous, fair-minded judges who sat on the bench in this case, attempted to carry out their duty according to the law on the books. However, it is another example of how judicial outcomes are manipulated to serve the interests of the ethnic-based Tigrayan Peoples’ Liberation Front (TPLF), which controls the coalition government of the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF).

Weynishet, Ermias, Daniel and Bethlehem had been arrested, jailed and beaten on April 22, 2015 after being identified as leaders among those rallying that day. During the rally, numerous demonstrators strongly condemned the EPRDF, believing the ethnic-apartheid system, its brutal repression, and the related lack of opportunity for the majority were the underlying reasons so many Ethiopians put their lives at risk, hoping for a better life outside the country. Those murdered were among those in harm’s way. Fearing that this blame and discontent could grow in intensity during the rally, the TPLF/EPRDF prepared for a possible backlash. They devised a plan to identify and crackdown on the most outspoken anti-government participants.

Allegedly, the regime recruited many of the homeless or jobless persons on the streets to assist them in targeting opponents of the regime by paying them money to identify those demonstrators who displayed anti-government behavior or rhetoric. They supplied them with ink markers in three different colors to literally write on the clothes of these targeted demonstrators. The most outspoken, powerful, or influential leaders were to be marked with the color red, while followers and supporters were to be marked in black and less outspoken protestors in another color. The police were thereby alerted to those blaming the regime. These demonstrators were then stopped, harassed, interrogated and often arrested.

During this process, regime intelligence officials also collected the names, addresses and phone numbers of approximately 658 people. Many Semayawi Party members as well as others were arrested, jailed and beaten. They are in different jails throughout Addis Ababa and have been charged in different courts. Weynishet, Ermias, Daniel and Bethlehem were said to be among those arrested and beaten.

The case of these four was heard in court on Monday, June 15, 2015. The three judges on the bench decided they should be released, saying that the prosecutor was not able to give evidence of a crime or explain the reasons for the charges made against this group. One of them, Ermias, was able to bring a witness who gave him an alibi that he was not present in the place where he was accused. He was released.

The court said that since Weynishet, Daniel and Bethlehem were not able to give an alibi, the court would convict them with the crime of disturbing the rally, with the penalty of six months in prison; however, since they had already been in prison since late April, the court counted the two months in lieu of further time and ordered their release. On their way home, the police arrested them again and put them in jail. They had to appear in court again that same day; however, the same judges refused to hear the case, saying they had already judged them and nothing more would be done. They were again released and went to their homes.

On June 23, 2015, the police came to their homes and again arrested them. They were jailed and brought back to court that day. The judges asked why they were brought back to court and the police said they had new evidence against them pertaining to the original case. The court again rejected the basis and released them, but as soon as they left the building, the police re-arrested them again and threw them back into jail.

On June 25, 2015, all four of them were again brought them back to the same court. The judges once again refused to accept the new evidence on the same charge despite pressure from the police. They told the police they had already decided on this case and that the file was closed. The police claimed they had new evidence against them related to the charges and this was the reason they wanted to charge them again for the same crime. Again the judges stated, “We have decided on the charges; sentencing is done and we are not going to see this same case again.” They were released for the fourth time. Again, the police ignored the court’s decision and took the young people back to the 6th Police Station where they now remain.

According to reports we received, the police indicated that “someone from the top” wanted these young people jailed for six months or longer. We also later learned that the “new evidence” they claimed to have consisted of comments made by one or more of the four when they were rearrested for baseless reasons on June 23rd. Supposedly, they told the police: “No government lasts forever and when this one goes, we will get you” [like you are doing to us now].
Justice does not exist in Ethiopia and this is an example of it. The judges, who attempted to carry out the rule of law in a just manner, were undermined at every point by an upside-down judicial system that confers impunity based on ethnicity, loyalty to the TPLF/EPRDF and subservient compliance. Conversely, this is a politicized system where someone at the top can control the outcome to serve their own interests—regardless of the law or either the innocence or guilt of the accused.

In a democratic country, once a judge makes a ruling on a case, it can be challenged only by appealing to a higher court, but once the verdict is decided in the highest court, it cannot be changed. How different is this abuse of the judicial system in Ethiopia where the obstruction of justice has become blatant and shameless; showing how little concern there is for accountability. Donor countries should condemn the TPLF/EPRDF rather than reward them by overlooking the corruption of the legal process. Neither should they arbitrarily pick and choose who [which countries or leaders] they confront based on self interest; remaining silent when it is an ally and displaying outrage only when it is a more unfriendly country. It is wrong and becomes a threat to world peace as people become increasingly desperate under tyranny of this kind.

These judges stood up for what was right in an environment where it is not commonly done. Ethiopians who love their country are also within the ranks of the police, security system, the military and the TPLF/EPRDF. At some time they may also be sickened in their hearts and souls by this injustice. We strongly believe people can change and that we the people of Ethiopia, with God’s help, can build a better society for all of us. A few power holders at the top are now in charge of our future because Ethiopia has become a place where justice does not exist.

Outsiders expound on Ethiopia as being a successful model of development and economic growth; but in truth, much of it is a sham. Where it does exist, most Ethiopians are shoved aside from its benefits which are instead bestowed on the basis of ethnicity and TPLF/EPRDF party links. Even foreign corporations must toe the line with the TPLF/EPRDF if they want sustainable businesses within Ethiopia.

Where can the regime go from here? Can the TPLF/EPRDF win by a greater majority at the next election? How can you top 100% of the vote? One small group of people within one ethnic group dominates everything, a recipe for disaster. Sooner or later, if these shortcomings continue to be ignored rather than addressed, its collapse may be harder and all of us will suffer all the more for it—not only Ethiopians.

The world is already dealing with the symptoms of Ethiopia’s deterioration in terms of the floods of refugees. Why are they leaving? Everything is going wrong in the country—from the lack of democratic institutions, the rigged election, lack of any political space, the repression of freedom and rights, the rising numbers of political prisoners, the rigid control of the flow of information, the limitations on economic growth when monopolized and corrupted by the ethnic-based ruling party, and now, another example of the miscarriage of justice in the courts at the whim of someone at the top of the TPLF/EPRDF. This is a scenario that could explode if not handled properly, not only by Ethiopian power-holders and the people, but also by donor countries.

The arrest of these young Ethiopians began with the national outcry of our people, grief-stricken following the brutal beheadings of their fellow-people in Libya. They joined tens of thousands of others who were outraged by the killings, believing the regime was responsible for driving the young from the country. Weynishet, Ermias, Daniel and Bethlehem were rounded up for saying the truth out loud—that the injustice and ethnic-apartheid system of the TPLF/ERPDF was largely to blame for the death of these thirty Ethiopians at the hands of ISIS by making them vulnerable to dangers they would otherwise never face. Even uncivilized societies know the meaning of government and justice more than this dictatorial regime that still unashamedly claims themselves to be a government of the people.

This is the so-called democratic Ethiopia that US President Barack Obama will be visiting at the end of July. This is the Ethiopia that former US State Department Deputy Wendy Sherman portrayed as a democratic country that was getting better and better with each election. This is the Ethiopia being portrayed as a model for Africa. It is time to speak the truth—Ethiopia is critically ill and if its illness is ignored, denied or not carefully treated and contained; it could spread beyond its borders. The TPLF/EPRDF is in the business of pretending, but pretending is to no one’s advantage, including theirs. It will only make recovery all the harder or its implosion, all the more devastating and far-reaching.

May God help Ethiopians have the will and courage to face the challenges ahead, for the sake of all of us.

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For more information, contact Mr. Obang Metho, Executive Director of the SMNE. Email: Obang@solidaritymovement.org

source:https://ethiobergen.wordpress.com/2015/07/01/219/

Restricted Online Media in Ethiopia – Crawling to Death of Expression

by Simegnish (Lily) Mengesha | Center for International Media Assistance

Ethiopia’s 2005 election was the most contested ever and the government alleged journalists and editors were part of a conspiracy to overthrow the government. This left the free press, which was slowly expanding for the first time since the ruling party took power in 1991, under attack. The government started taking repressive measures against freedom of expression and association.

I joined the media sector during this time, when access to information was growing more restrictive. More than half of print publications were closed; journalists were getting harassed and prosecuted. Most websites with Ethiopian content operated by the diaspora population started getting blocked. The government also jammed satellite radio and television stations. Right after the 2005 election, the government also blocked text messaging on mobile phones, a state of affairs that continued until 2007.

The majority of the websites blocked were those publishing critical articles and views on the Ethiopian government. Most of these websites, such as Nazret.com, ethiomedia.com, and ethiopianreview.com, operate from outside the country and we had no direct access to them. Even international media, such as Al Jazeera’s website, were blocked. Reports from human right organizations were totally inaccessible. Some of us who knew how to get around these restrictions depended on proxy websites to access these sites. We would also ask people with unrestricted access to Internet—like those working in embassies and international NGOs, to print out documents we could not access.

With a population of more than 90 million, Ethiopia is ranked as having one of the lowest Internet and mobile phone penetration rates in Africa. The government kept the Internet and mobile technologies under strict control in order to closely monitor the information accessed. Access to these services depends solely on the only state-owned telecommunication operator, Ethio Telecom.

It was when Ethiopia was suffocating under such narrow information access that social media became the new media platform worldwide. Within the available space, social media in the past few years has gained in popularity. In addition to helping Ethiopians contact and connect with long-lost acquaintances, friends, and next-of-kin relatives, social media allowed people to share information that had previously been confined to low circulation newspapers without any Internet presence. In particular, Facebook and Twitter gained popularity.

The country’s Facebook users as of April 2014 stood at 2.4 million, less than three percent of the population, but crucially more than Ethiopia’s dialup, 3G, and broadband subscribers combined. Facebook became the place where people with access to Internet would go to discuss current issues, express their distress over social services, discuss their economic dissatisfactions, or share their political frustrations.

The government turned its suspicious eyes to the new media platform as it started noticing like-minded people forming discussion groups on Facebook. Debates were forming and awareness creation pages were popping up.

The advent and increasing popularity of social media began to face strict control. The usual page blocking just wasn’t enough. Instead, individuals in social media circles who had large followings would be censored and told to limit criticism of the government. Those who refused to tone down their writing would be subjected to intimidation and harassment, or even arrest on terrorism charges.

The arrest of six bloggers and three journalists on April 25, 2014, was a low point for the restricted online access in the country. The mass arrest was followed by shocking police accusations saying they found the journalists and bloggers trying to incite violence using social media. Later in July, a formal charge was brought against them: they are suspected of “acts of terror” connecting them to organizations the Ethiopian government has categorized as terrorist organizations.

These charges were made under the anti-terrorism law which Ethiopia ratified and began implementing in 2009. The law made it easy for police not to require court warrants for surveillance or searches, and to access private communications over the Internet. The Ethiopian government gets technological support for surveillance from some foreign companies.

During their interrogations, the journalists and bloggers listened to their phone conversations recorded by police over the previous two years. Their email exchanges, social media posts, and blog articles are used as the base of their charges.

This scared the rest of the quickly expanding social media community. A number of active and critical Facebook and Twitter users based in Ethiopia deactivated their accounts; some others stopped their activism and chose to simply observe from behind. Those who refused to stop their activism but couldn’t stand the harassment had to flee into exile. Exchanging emails, sending messages, or conducting conversations over the phone became difficult. People don’t feel safe and are aware that all communication mediums are under surveillance.

When it comes to social media, the government chooses not to block any of them, but rather to scare away critical voices. To fill this space, it trained its own cadres on how to use social media and turn it into their own propaganda. These newly trained social media users are inserted among social groups to promote government views and divert any discussions critical of the government.

Such a restrictive media environment under controlled telecom service and high surveillance left freedom of expression—guaranteed by the country’s constitution and international agreements that Ethiopia signed—to crawl to death.

Source: www.cima.ned.org

Ethiopian Government Uses Cyber-Attacks to Restrict Media Houses

Thehill.com reported during second week of March 2015 stating that the Ethiopian government is using cyber attacks to try to stop news from reaching to its citizens.

Researchers of the University of Toronto discovered attempts by the Ethiopian government to hack the computers of journalists based at US who are working with Ethiopian Satellite Television (ESAT).

Ethiopian journalists who left their home country after being subjected to criminal charges and government threats are running an independent news outlet.

During November and December of 2014, researchers say that digital attackers tried to place spyware on the computers of two employees of ESAT in Washington, D.C. The software would have allowed the hackers to steal files and passwords and also capture all calls in Skype and instant messages.

The cyberattackers tried to penetrate the computers with a fake email with an enclosed Microsoft Word Document containing the malicious spyware.

Citizen Lab analysed the attacks thoroughly and suggested that attacks were conducted with a spyware known as Remote Control System (RCS) sold by an Italian Hacking Team which sells hacking and surveillance technology.

This spyware was supposedly used in December 2013 in trying to infect systems of ESAT employees. If the spyware is installed successfully on the computer of the target, it would allow the government to control the software access to activity on the PC or phone including files, email, typed passwords on the device, contact lists, audio and video from the gadget's microphone and camera.

Citizen Lab also discovered that the spyware which was used in attacking ESAT seems to have been updated recently in December 2014.

The Ethiopian government did not directly answer questions about usage of products of Hacking Team for the purpose of spying.

Washingtonpost.com published news during second week of March 2015 quoting a statement of Tesfaye Wolde Ambassador of Ethiopia in Washington as "Ethiopia acts according to its own laws and with the laws of nations."

Washingtonpost.com published news during second week of March 2015 quoting Eric Rabe, Spokesperson of the company, as saying "Hacking Team investigates the allegations of the abuse. If we find that an agency is misusing our technology, we can take many actions and even withdraw our support from the system."

» SPAMfighter News - 01-04-2015

Source: www.spamfighter.com