Ethiopian Bloggers and Journalists Charged with Terrorism

A group of Ethiopian bloggers and journalists detained for nearly three months have been charged with terrorism for having links to an
outlawed group and planning attacks, a judge said on Friday.

The seven members of the blogging collective Zone Nine and three journalists were arrested in April,
prompting an outcry from rights groups who said the case was an assault on press freedom.

The group is accused of planning attacks in Ethiopia and working in collusion with the US-based opposition group Ginbot 7, labelled by Ethiopian authorities as a terrorist organisation.
"They took training in how to make explosives and planned to train others," judge Tareke Alemayehu
told the court.
The Zone Nine website, proclaiming "We blog because we care!" features mostly social and political commentary, often critical of the government.
The judge said the group's work was a cover for "clandestine" activities and accused it of plotting "to destabilise the nation".

Nine of the accused – one is charged in absentia – smiled and waved to friends and family as they entered the packed courtroom.

The lawyer for eight of the suspects dismissed the charges. "We don't believe that there is any credible substance," Amaha Mekonnen said.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) condemned the decision, accusing Ethiopia of making a "mockery of its own judicial system", according to deputy Africa director, Leslie Lefkow.
"Hiding behind an abusive anti-terrorism law to prosecute bloggers and journalists for doing their jobs is an affront to the Ethiopian constitution," she said. HRW accuses Ethiopia of using the anti-terrorism laws to silence dissent and jail critics.

Several journalists have been jailed under the law, including two Swedish journalists sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2012. They were pardoned after serving 15 months.
The dissident blogger Eskinder Nega is currently serving an 18-year sentence for having links with Ginbot 7, which calls for the violent overthrow of the ruling party.

The trial for the bloggers and journalists is expected to resume on 4 August.

Courtesy:
The Guardian

Boko Haram Gets Funding From Outside Nigeria —Ethiopian Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Hailemariam Desalegn, on Wednesday, observed that funding for terror organisations operating in Africa, such as Boko Haram in Nigeria and Al-Shabab in East Africa, come from outside the continent.

Speaking at a joint press conference with President Goodluck Jonathan in State House, Abuja, to round off his two-day visit to the country, he also said the resort to suicide bombing by terrorists was an indication that the war on terror was succeeding.

The Ethiopian leader noted that the East African region had been fighting terrorism for the past 10 years, while stressing the need for cooperation by leaders of worst hit countries in the effort to drive the process of the war on terror on the African continent.

'You know terrorism is not African agenda only. There has been terror attack in Boston, United States and many parts of the globe. So, it is not something that is new to Nigeria, Ethiopia and other African countries. It is a global phenomenon and you see that there was terror attack in Iraq recently and is expanding.

'We have to see it as a global phenomenon that has to be tackled together in unison. It should not be left to this or that region or this or that country. We have to bear in mind the genesis of this terrorism,' he said.

Desalegn said Nigeria and Ethiopia had reached an agreement on the fight against terror with the countries' chiefs of staff working on the modalities adding that 'we are working as one with Kenya to fight this terrorism and the chiefs of staff are in Nairobi, discussing how to fight this issue as we speak.'

In his remarks, President Jonathan observed that Ethiopia had a longer history of terrorism than Nigeria, adding that the country had a lot to learn from the East African country's experience.

The two leaders commended the exchange of high level visits between their countries and resolved to maintain this in order to promote and deepen mutual understanding and cooperation.

Courtesy:
The Nigerian Voice