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Ethiopia: Freed Swedish journalists say faced mock execution in Ethiopia

Sunday 16 September 2012 - 10:11:55 | News |

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Two Swedish journalists pardoned by Ethiopia after spending 11 months in jail for aiding a rebel group said on Friday they had been subjected to a mock execution, and accused the country of using anti-terrorism laws to stifle journalism.

Reporter Martin Schibbye and photographer Johan Persson were arrested in July 2011 after entering the country from neighbouring Somalia with fighters from the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) rebel group.

Ethiopia: Official: Ethiopia's Ruling Party Names New Leader

Sunday 16 September 2012 - 10:03:26 | News |

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By KIRUBEL TADESSE, Associated Press

Ethiopia's ruling party on Saturday named as its leader acting Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, who took over after the death last month of longtime leader Meles Zenawi, an official said at the end of a congress of party bosses.

As chairman of the Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front, or EPRDF, Hailemariam, 47, will almost certainly be confirmed as the country's prime minister in an upcoming official ceremony. Bereket Simon, Ethiopia's communications minister, said Hailemariam would be sworn in soon. It remains unclear exactly when, but Bereket said this might happen early next month.

Ethiopia: Hailemariam would become the Premier with three Deputy Prime Ministers

Wednesday 12 September 2012 - 10:01:22 | News |

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By awrambatimes,

Coming under pressure from different corners and mainly from the international community, TPLF had no choice left but to cave in to their demands including to the ones that are coming from its surrogate groups and various sections of the society. There are rumors that a final deal has been reached to an arrangement in which Hailemariam Desalegn would become the PM and there would be three Deputy Prime Ministers (DPM’s).

Accordingly, Girma Birru of OPDO is mentioned as the frontrunner for the DPM position in charge of economic affairs and all the ministries in this sector report to him. They include ministries of industry, trade, finance and economic development, agriculture, mines, transport, information and communication technology, science and technology, and energy and water development. Demeke Mekonnen of ANDM is likely to take the DPM position with social sector portfolio with the ministries such as education, health, social and labor, women, youth and children, culture and tourism, civil service and justice reporting to him.

Ethiopia: Swedish journalists freed by Ethiopia in secret location

Wednesday 12 September 2012 - 09:58:17 | News |

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By AFP

Kjell Persson, the father of Johan Persson, told Swedish news agency TT that his son and Martin Schibbye had left Addis Ababa overnight but were now resting in private before returning home.

"I have been in contact with Johan this morning," Persson said, refusing to disclose where his son was.

"They'll rest up for a few days first ... then there will be a press conference at [Stockholm airport] Arlanda and we'll be there too," he said.

Swedish media said the remarks suggested that the pair were not yet in the Scandinavian country.

A statement from the journalists' spokesperson said they needed time to recuperate after their ordeal.

Ethiopia: EPRDF to meet Sept 16 to choose Meles' successor

Wednesday 12 September 2012 - 09:54:43 | News |

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Report

Ethiopia’s ruling coalition will meet on Sept. 16 to select its chairman, who will replace the late Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, as the party’s chief and probably succeed him as the Horn of Africa nation’s leader.

It’s “highly likely” the party chairman will become prime minister, State Minister for Communications Shimeles Kemal said by phone today from the capital, Addis Ababa. Meles, Ethiopia’s leader of 21 years who oversaw one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies, died on Aug. 20 from an infection contracted while recuperating from an undisclosed illness. Hailemariam Desalegn, Meles’s deputy, took over in an acting capacity the next day.

Ethiopia: Why I support Obama for re-election

Wednesday 12 September 2012 - 09:45:28 | News |

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By Alemayehu G Mariam

Did I enthusiastically support presidential candidate Barack Obama in 2008? Absolutely! Do I agree with everything he has done over the past four years as president? No! Has he carried out all of the promises he made in 2008? No! Am I disappointed in President Obama in 2012? Yes! But so are millions of Americans who supported him in 2008. So are tens of millions of other people throughout the world who saw his election as history making and wished him well.

Still Support President Obama

Despite lingering disappointments, I support the reelection of President Obama because he represents my values. As President Bill Clinton put it in his speech at the Democratic Convention last week, there are two choices in the 2012 presidential election:

Ethiopia: Ethiopia gives Meles Zenawi state funeral

Sunday 02 September 2012 - 21:18:48 | News |

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By KIRUBEL TADESSE, Associated Press

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Thousands of mourners gathered near a public square in Ethiopia's capital on Sunday to pay their final respects to Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who was praised for lifting many out of poverty but vilified by some for restricting freedoms.

Meles, who ruled for 21 years, died Aug. 20 of an undisclosed illness in a Belgian hospital. He was 57. During his rule Ethiopia was a strong U.S. ally on counter-terrorism issues, particularly in Somalia, and some saw him as Africa's intellectual leader in efforts to fight poverty.

Ethiopia: Regarding the drama due to the death of the tyrant

Sunday 02 September 2012 - 21:11:59 | News |

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By Yilma Bekele
I am hoping this is the last discussion about our emotional response regarding the disappearance then death of Ato Meles Zenawi. As controversial and in your face individual he was alive his death has brought drama, division and ugliness to our life. The person is refusing to go away in silence and dignity. I am very much conflicted about his going away. First and foremost I want to make it clear that I am definitely not sad at all. It is not because I am inhuman or lack empathy. Far from that, I consider myself caring and always concerned about others.

Ethiopia: A Farewell to Meles Zenawi

Monday 27 August 2012 - 20:09:30 | News |

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By ALEMAYEHU G MARIAM,

For over two hundred seventy five weeks, without missing a single week, I have written long expository commentaries on the deeds and misdeeds of the man who has been at the helm of power in Ethiopia for over two decades. Meles Zenawi has now passed on. The cause of his death remains a closely guarded state secret.

There is little I can say about what Meles has done or not done in death that I have not said in life. But his death saddens me, because as John Donne said, “Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind. Death comes equally to us all, and makes us all equal when it comes.” As a committed human rights advocate, even the death of a tyrant diminishes me because I am involved in the cause of humanity– justice, fairness, equality, dignity, benevolence, compassion, forgiveness, honesty, integrity and magnanimity.

Ethiopia: Detention of Temesgen Desalegn signals of Meles-era crackdown, Amnesty International

Saturday 25 August 2012 - 18:31:44 | News |

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Amnesty International,

The detention yesterday of the editor of one of Ethiopia’s last independent publications is a worrying signal that the government intends to carry on targeting dissent, Amnesty International said today.

Temesgen Desalegn, editor of Feteh newspaper, faces a number of criminal charges based on articles he has written or published criticizing the government and calling on Ethiopia’s youth to peacefully protest against government repression.

Ethiopia: Meles: The man who tried to make dictatorship acceptable

Saturday 25 August 2012 - 17:55:53 | News |

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The Economist:

What will follow one of Africa’s most successful strongmen?

THE death of Meles Zenawi, Ethiopia’s prime minister, on August 20th reveals much about the country he created. Details of his ill health remained a secret until the end. A short broadcast on state television, late by a day, informed Ethiopians that their “visionary leader” of the past 21 years was gone. He died of an unspecified “sudden infection” somewhere abroad. No further information was given. In the two months since the prime minister’s last public appearance the only Ethiopian newspaper that reported his illness was pulped, its office closed, and its editor arrested. Further details of Mr Meles’s death surfaced only when an EU official confirmed that he died in a Brussels hospital.

Ethiopia: U.S. aid to Ethiopia helping neither us nor Ethiopians

Friday 24 August 2012 - 10:23:36 | News |

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CNN

Yesterday, the body of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi arrived in Ethiopia from Brussels. No one is sure yet how he died, but that’s part of the secrecy which shrouded his authoritarian rule.

The story matters to America because Ethiopia’s dictator was an ally in the fight against Al Qaeda inSomalia. Thanks to that allegiance, the US looked the other way on things like how the Zenawi regime jailed opposition leaders and journalists, and led Ethiopia to a ranking of 174 out of 187 countries in the Human Development Index, which measures human rights.

We saw what an african police state looked like when I was in Ethiopia last month.

Ethiopia: In Ethiopia, Feteh editor jailed during trial

Friday 24 August 2012 - 10:19:42 | News |

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New York, August 23, 2012-Ethiopian authorities must immediately release Temesghen Desalegn, editor of the leading weekly Feteh, who was ordered jailed today pending his trial on defamation, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

The High Court judge deemed Temesghen a flight risk during his trial, which resumes on September 3, according to local journalists. Police summoned the journalist for questioning on August 1 and told him they were charging him over his articles published in seven editions of the weekly Feteh that were critical of the administration of the late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, local journalists said. Mastewal Publishing and Advertising PLC, the company that publishes Feteh, has also been charged, the same sources said.

Ethiopia: Requiem for a Reprobate: Ethiopian Tyrant Should Not Be Lionized

Thursday 23 August 2012 - 10:03:49 | News |

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By Thor Halvorssen and Alex Gladstein,With the dust beginning to settle on yesterday’s death of Meles Zenawi—ruler of Ethiopia since 1991—Western leaders have been quick to lavish praise on his legacy. A darling of the national security and international development industries, Zenawi was applauded for cooperating with the U.S. government on counter-terrorism and for spurring economic growth in Ethiopia—an impoverished, land-locked African nation of 85 million people. In truth, democratic leaders who praise Zenawi do a huge injustice to the struggle for human rights and individual dignity in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia: Is Ethiopia’s new leader in place for long?

Wednesday 22 August 2012 - 09:43:07 | News |

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ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — The death of Ethiopia’s prime minister pushed his relatively unknown successor, Hailemariam Desalegn, into the spotlight on Tuesday, and he may be merely a placeholder or might hang on to become Ethiopia’s next long-time leader.

Ethiopia’s communication minister said government policy would remain consistent under Hailemariam, the former deputy prime minister and foreign minister who is now acting prime minister pending his swearing-in before an emergency session of parliament. The ruling party controls 546 of the 547 seats of parliament, all but ensuring Hailemariam’s ascension to prime minister.

Ethiopia: Ethiopia's prime minister dies abroad age 57

Tuesday 21 August 2012 - 09:36:37 | News |

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Today, the state owned television confirmed the death of Ethiopia’s long time dictator Meles Zenawi. The state owned tv issued a statement saying that Prime Minister Zenawi suddenly passed away last night while recovering in a hospital overseas for the past two months but died of a sudden infection at 11:40. The state spokesman, Bereke Simnon, told AFP that Meles had been recuperating well, but suddenly something happened and he had to be rushed to the ICU [intensive care unit] and they couldn't keep him alive. Bereket also added that deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn would be the acting prime minister.

Ethiopia: Muslim protests in Ethiopia reach point of no return

Monday 20 August 2012 - 13:38:22 | News |

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(OPride) -- After eight months of staging sporadic protests in the capital, Addis Ababa, on Sunday, the Ethiopian Muslim protesters stepped the ante, hitting a crescendo. As hundreds of thousands flocked to Addis Ababa Stadium to celebrate the end of Ramadan, massive protests were reported across the country.

The Eid day protests catapulted the movement into a new and uncharted territory. “Sunday’s Eid prayer proved to be a day of reckoning,” wrote Dimsachen Yisema, the protesters de facto spokesperson, hinting at the specter of the Arab Spring that toppled several undemocratic regimes. “All [the protesters] share the grievances caused by the government’s unconstitutional interference in their religious affairs, and to demand their voices to be heard."

Large numbers of enthusiastic protesters turned out in Jimma, Dessie, Robe and Adama towns’ chanting, “let our voices be heard, free our representatives” and calling out the state-run Ethiopian television for its smear campaigns.

Ethiopia: [Breaking News] Abune Paulos dies at the age of 76

Thursday 16 August 2012 - 10:18:16 | News |

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Awramba Times (Addis Ababa) – Reliable sources from the patriarch office in Addis Ababa told Awramba Times that Abune Paulos, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church has died at the age of 77 at Balcha hospital.

Abune Paulos was born in Adwa in November 03,1935. His birth name was Gebre Medhin Wolde Yohannes. His family was long associated with the Abba Garima Monastery near the town of Adwa, and he entered the monastery as a young boy as a deacon trainee, eventually taking monastic orders and being ordained a priest. Then known as Abba Gebre Medhin, he continued his education at the Theological College of the Holy Trinity in Addis Ababa under the patronage of Patriarch Abune Tewophilos. He was sent to study at the St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in the United States, and afterwards joined the doctoral program at the Princeton Theological Seminary.

Ethiopia: Prominent Muslims Detained in Crackdown

Thursday 16 August 2012 - 10:12:02 | News |

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HRW

(Nairobi, August 15, 2012) – The Ethiopian government should immediately release 17 prominent Muslim leaders arrested as part of a brutal crackdown on peaceful Muslim protesters in Addis Ababa, Human Rights Watch said today. A court is expected to rule during the week of August 13, 2012, on whether to bring charges against the detainees who have been held for almost three weeks in a notorious prison without access to lawyers.

Since July 13, Ethiopian police and security services have harassed, assaulted, and arbitrarily arrested hundreds of Muslims at Addis Ababa’s Awalia and Anwar mosques who were protesting government interference in religious affairs, Human Rights Watch said. Many have been released but at least 17 prominent members of the community arrested between July 19 and 21 remain in detention. A number of protesters who have been released told Human Rights Watch that they were mistreated in custody.

Ethiopia: Ethiopian premier’s absence draws attention, speculation

Tuesday 14 August 2012 - 10:06:27 | News |

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By Ioannis Gatsiounis - Special to The Washington Times

Where in the world is Ethiopia’s prime minister?

The question is not a geographical brain teaser but a concerned query about the well-being of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who has not been seen in public for two months, and about Ethiopia’s commitment to U.S. counterterrorism efforts in neighboring Somalia.

Ethiopian officials say Mr. Meles, 57, is recovering from an undisclosed illness, but he has not been seen or heard from since he attended the Group of 20 summit in Mexico in mid-June.

In his absence, the government has continued to brook little dissent from the media, activists and members of opposition parties. It also has announced that Ethiopian troops will remain in Somalia to help defeat al-Shabab, the al Qaeda-linked Islamist militant group that has ruled large areas of the Horn of Africa nation.

EthioGuardian.com ETG

Ethiopia: Freed Swedish journalists say faced mock execution in Ethiopia

Ethiopia: Official: Ethiopia's Ruling Party Names New Leader

Ethiopia: Hailemariam would become the Premier with three Deputy Prime Ministers

Ethiopia: Swedish journalists freed by Ethiopia in secret location

Ethiopia: EPRDF to meet Sept 16 to choose Meles' successor

Ethiopia: Why I support Obama for re-election

Ethiopia: Ethiopia gives Meles Zenawi state funeral

Ethiopia: Regarding the drama due to the death of the tyrant

Ethiopia: A Farewell to Meles Zenawi

Ethiopia: Detention of Temesgen Desalegn signals of Meles-era crackdown, Amnesty International

Ethiopia: Meles: The man who tried to make dictatorship acceptable

Ethiopia: U.S. aid to Ethiopia helping neither us nor Ethiopians

Ethiopia: In Ethiopia, Feteh editor jailed during trial

Ethiopia: Requiem for a Reprobate: Ethiopian Tyrant Should Not Be Lionized

Ethiopia: Is Ethiopia’s new leader in place for long?

Ethiopia: Ethiopia's prime minister dies abroad age 57

Ethiopia: Muslim protests in Ethiopia reach point of no return

Ethiopia: [Breaking News] Abune Paulos dies at the age of 76

Ethiopia: Prominent Muslims Detained in Crackdown

Ethiopia: Ethiopian premier’s absence draws attention, speculation

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Ethiopia: Inducing TPLF to relinquish power-PART – I

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