Press watchdog urges John Kerry to discuss press freedom

Addis Ababa – An international press freedom group is calling on U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to speak out on behalf of press freedom when he meets with leaders in Africa this week.

Kerry’s visit — to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for the 21st African Union (AU) summit May 24-25 — comes at a time of great turmoil in Ethiopia for journalists, according to a letter from the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists.

“Today, with seven journalists behind bars, Ethiopia trails only Eritrea as Africa’s worst jailers of the press. Among the imprisoned journalists are award-winning columnists Eskinder Nega and Reeyot Alemu, both of whom were targeted under the country’s sweeping anti-terrorism law,” Joel Simon, the group’s Executive Director, said in the May 16 letter.

In response, “The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has expressed grave alarm at Ethiopia’s persecution of journalists and peaceful activists,” writes Martin Schibbye, a Swedish journalist who was detained in Ethiopia for 14 months under the country’s antiterror laws and held at Kaliti Prison with Eskinder Nega in the Wall Street Journal May 15.

“In April the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention also weighed in, declaring Mr. Nega’s detention illegal under international law and calling for his immediate release,” he adds. “But these admonitions have so far not convinced Ethiopian authorities to change course.”

And just last week, an Ethiopian court rejected an appeal and upheld the 18-year prison sentence for Nega, the Sudan Tribune reported, That means he will probably end up serving the full term unless someone intervenes.

“Your clear voice on these issues would particularly resonate in Ethiopia, where a systematic crackdown on independent journalists, dissidents, human rights groups, and political freedoms has continued unabated,” Simon said in the letter to Kerry.

According to his schedule, the secretary of state is scheduled to meet with senior Ethiopian officials to discuss a variety of issues. He will also meet with the seventy-five heads of state from Africa expected to attend this year’s African Union Summit.

“Mr. Kerry has an important opportunity this month to convey that very message to his counterparts in Addis Ababa,” Schibbye writes. “Mr. Nega and his colleagues deserve nothing less.”

Source: Digital Journal