Ethiopia: Watchdog condemns arrest of newspaper editor

August 28, 2008 (PARIS) — Paris based Reporters without borders (RSF) condemned the arrest of Amare Aregawi, a well known Editor of the big circulation weekly reporter Newspaper.

The watch dog said police arrested Amare Aregawi last Friday in Addis Ababa and then illegally transferred him to a prison in Gondar town, some 750 kilometers (470miles) away north of the capital, in connection with a liable case brought by the Gondar based Dashin brewery.

“The Ethiopian government reminds the press about the law so often that it is hard to understand how it allows prosecutors to violet it so openly” Reporters without borders said.

“Amare’s unjustified arrest exposes the unfairness of legislation that allows journalists to be imprisoned for defamation” it added.

Ethiopia last month adopted a controversial press law that raised a big protest by media and concerned groups.

According to the newly endorsed press law, defamation cases were supposed to be tried in the place the alleged offence took place.

“As the reporter newspaper headquarters is legally registered in Addis Ababa, the case should be tried in the capital” it said adding “There are no grounds for taking Amare to such a remote location.”

Amare was bailed out yesterday after the judge orders his case to be tried In Addis, where the paper is duly registered.

The brewery company sued the newspaper for libel.

Journalists who were present during the arrest told Reporters without borders that the police was also looking for Deputy Editor Eshete Aseffa and Teshome Neku, a reporter who originally wrote the article last month.

Government officials yet didn’t comment on the report.

Ethiopia was only removed from Reporters without Border’s blacklist of Media offenders in May after having been listed in the “an enemy of the internet” list along with Zimbabwe.

(ST)