Meles Zenawi

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Rumors abound about the health and whereabouts of Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. (AFP/Simon Maina)

Where is Meles Zenawi? Ethiopians don’t know.

If you search for the name of Ethiopia’s prime minister, Meles Zenawi, on Twitter these days, you’ll see a flurry of incongruent postings: Meles is hospitalized in critical condition; he’s fine and returning to work; he died two weeks ago; he’s on holiday. Journalists for international news outlets have tried to sort out fact from…

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Copies of Feteh are shown on TV alongside a picture of Feteh Chief Editor Temesghen Desalegn. (ESAT)

Ethiopian weekly blocked for reporting on Meles’ health

Nairobi, July 23, 2012–Ethiopian authorities blocked the publication of a prominent independent newspaper over the weekend in connection with its stories on the health of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, according to local journalists.

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From left: Eskinder, Abebe Gellaw, Mesfin, Abiye, Fasil, and Abebe Belew.

Ethiopia sentences Eskinder, 5 others on terror charges

Nairobi, July 13, 2012–An Ethiopian court today handed down heavy prison sentences to six journalists convicted on vague terrorism charges, local journalists and news reports said. Award-winning blogger Eskinder Nega got an 18-year term; the others live in exile and were sentenced in absentia.

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High-tech censorship on the rise in East Africa

Ethiopia has always been a country at the cutting edge of Internet censorship in Africa. In the wake of violence after the 2005 elections, when other states were only beginning to recognize the potential for online reporters to bypass traditional pressures, Meles Zenawi’s regime was already blocking major news sites and blog hosts such as…

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The success of a U.S. partnership with Ethiopia on food security depends in large part on a free press in the Horn of Africa nation, a senator argued yesterday. Above, Obama and Meles at the G8 summit in 2010. (White House)

US senator condemns Ethiopia’s persecution of the press

On Wednesday, the same day the White House announced a strategic plan committing the United States to elevating its efforts in “challenging leaders whose actions threaten the credibility of democratic processes” in sub-Saharan Africa, a senior member of the U.S. Congress challenged the erosion of press freedom in a key U.S. strategic partner in the…

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CPJ and Africa Media Initiative meet Ethiopian minister

Addis Ababa, June 11, 2012–The Committee to Protect Journalists and the Africa Media Initiative (AMI) called for the release of journalists being held under Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism laws and requested a review of those laws as they affect freedom of speech.

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Police try to restrain Ethiopian demonstrators protesting near the G8 Summit at Camp David over the weekend. (AP/Timothy Jacobsen)

Members of Congress urge Meles to end repression

Two members of the U.S. Congress, a Republican and a Democrat, have publicly voiced indignation at Ethiopia’s persecution of journalists under the leadership of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, with both declaring that stability and security are enhanced by press freedom.

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Obama should raise press freedom in Africa food talks

New York, May 16, 2012–President Obama should acknowledge the role that independent news reporting plays in assessing agricultural challenges and facilitating the response to famine, the Committee to Protect Journalists stated in a letter to the White House. Ethiopia in particular downplays the extent of food crises and undermines the ability of donor nations and aid groups to help by denying journalists access to sensitive areas and censoring independent coverage.

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The directive from Berhanena Selam, in Amharic. (CPJ)

In Ethiopia, new printing directive equals pre-censorship

New York, May 9, 2012–Ethiopia’s main, state-owned printing company has directed newspaper publishers to censor any content that may draw government prosecution under the country’s anti-terrorism law or face cancellation of their printing contracts, according to local journalists and news reports.

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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)

Blogger fights terror charges as Ethiopian leader praised

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…

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