Ethiopia’s Civil Society Getting Squeezed

WASHINGTON — 

From an internet shutdown to convictions of journalists and opposition members, Ethiopia’s civil society has felt like it's under attack in recent weeks.

FILE - People walk past the Federal High Court building in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Nov. 1, 2011. Observers say Ethiopian courts frequently use the country's anti-terrorism laws to restrict activities of government critics.

On May 24, Getachew Shiferaw, editor of the news website Negere Ethiopia, was convicted of “inciting violence” because of a private Facebook conversation. The Ethiopian Federal Court initially charged Shiferaw under the country's anti-terrorism law, but later charged him under the criminal code and sentenced him to time served since his arrest in 2015.

On May 25, a court sentenced Ethiopian opposition spokesman Yonatan Tesfaye to six-and-a-half years in prison on charges that he encouraged terrorism with comments on Facebook. Yeshiwas Assefa, newly elected president of the Semayawi (Blue) Party, called the verdict "disappointing and embarrassing."

"Yonatan is sentenced to six years and six months just because of what he wrote on Facebook as something that encourages terrorism. He was expressing his thoughts freely. This is what we fear would bring people to protest in our country," he told VOA.

The following day, May 26, two men, Tufa Melka and Kedir Bedasso, were charged with terrorism for their role in a stampede that occurred in October 2016 at a cultural festival in the Oromia region. The men are accused of yelling things into the microphone that led to chaos and the death of 55 people.

Gemeda Wariyo, a protester who grabbed the microphone and admitted to chanting “down, down Woyane” is in exile now and wasn’t mentioned in the court documents. “Woyane” is a colloquial term used to describe the ruling party in Ethiopia.

“I took the microphone in a peaceful protest,” he told VOA Amharic. “I was the one who protested and I don’t know the men blamed for grabbing the microphone.”

FILE - Ethiopian men read newspapers and drink coffee at a cafe in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Oct. 10, 2016. The Ethiopian government temporarily cut off internet access nationwide in early June, saying it was necessary to prevent students from cheating on final exams.

And in early June, the government cut off internet access nationwide, stating that the measure was needed to prevent high school students from cheating on final exams by sharing answers on social media.

In a press conference, Communications Minister Negeri Lencho denied the move was to control free communication.

"The only reason is to help our students to concentrate on the exams because we know we are fighting poverty,” he said.

As of June 8, internet access including social media sites was restored, according to published reports.

‘Under assault’

In a new report, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, an international think tank, concluded that the targeting of civil society and restrictions on free speech fit a pattern in Ethiopia. Over the past two decades the space for political opposition has been steadily constricted and civil liberties taken away, the report said.

Two laws in particular, the Charities and Societies Proclamation and the Anti-terrorism Proclamation, both passed in 2009, have given the government wide latitude to imprison opposition members and journalists and shut down groups advocating for human rights, Carnegie found.

Saskia Brechenmacher, an associate fellow at the Carnegie Endowment who worked on the report, said anti-terrorism laws have been used across Africa to stifle dissent.

“Those laws have become very effective tools, especially in moments of crisis as we are seeing right now,” she said. “Ahead of elections or during moments of sustained protests, [they are used] to target selectively, particularly activists and journalists that are seen as particularly threatening."

FILE - Security personnel take action against protesters in Bishoftu town in Ethiopia's Oromia region, Oct. 2, 2016. Critics say that ahead of elections or during moments of sustained protests the Ethiopian government has been known to resort to a self-serving interpretation of the country's anti-terrorism laws to stifle dissent, selectively targeting activists and journalists.

Brechenmacher said Ethiopia also cracks down on civil society groups through a provision in the charities law, which prevents organizations from receiving more than 10 percent of their funding from abroad.

“Many organizations had to switch their mandate and activities and turn more toward developmental and civil liberties because they couldn’t carry out the kind of work they had been doing before," she said.

Brechenmacher said these restrictions represent an abrupt reversal for a country that was becoming more open prior to the crackdowns that followed the 2005 elections.

“Ethiopia showcases what a dramatic effect this could have on independent civil society and the amount of information that is available in a country," she said. "And also it really testifies the extent to which this does not really address the grievances that citizens have vis-a-vis the government and therefore those grievances will find another outlet.” Read more here

Ethiopia launches online visa service to attract tourists

ADDIS ABABA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia's immigration authorities and Ethiopian Airlines have launched an e-visa service for international visitors, the airline announced on Tuesday.

The newly introduced online visa application and issuance, effective from June 12, helps international visitors with their online vias application process on a single web page, where applicants apply, pay and secure their entry visa online, Ethiopian Airlines said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

Once the online application is approved, applicants will receive an email authorizing them to travel to Ethiopia and they will get their passport stamped with the visa upon arrival in Addis Ababa.

"Ethiopia, the oldest independent civilization in Africa and the world, is endowed with historical places, natural beauty, colorful and diverse cultural activities and various endemic wild animals which are of great interest to international tourists," said Tewolde GebreMariam, Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO.

"This project is part of a new national initiative to transform the tourism sector in the country. The full commencement of the Online Visa application and issuance system will promote tourism, trade and investment to the country," he said.

Additional to the web page where applicants apply online, https://www.evisa.gov.et/#/home, the Ethiopian Immigration and Nationality Affairs office in partnership with Ethiopian Airlines has set up separate counters to undertake visas processes of travelers. Read more here

5 Ethiopian Multi-Millionaires You Should Know - Forbes

A few Ethiopians have built multi-million and billion dollar empires in industries as diverse as agriculture, food, construction, energy and distribution and earned multi-million dollar fortunes to boot. Their names don’t ring with the African public, and you’ve probably never heard about them before, but they are very successful — and very wealthy. Meet 5 Ethiopian entrepreneurs, who own businesses with annual revenues of $50 million or more.

Mulatu Teshome speaks after being sworn in as Ethiopia's new president in Addis Ababa on October 7, 2013. Ethiopia's parliament elected Mulatu Teshome to be the country's new president today, for a six-year term in a largely symbolic and ceremonial post. Photo credit:  ASMARE/AFP/Getty Images

Belayneh Kindie

Source: Agricultural Commodities

Belayneh Kindie Import And Export (BKIEA), the eponymous company Belayneh founded and runs, is the largest agricultural commodities trading company in Ethiopia. He founded the company in 2005 to primarily export oil seeds and subsequently expanded into other commodities such as sesame seeds and nuts. Its commodities trading business has revenues of a little over $60 million in 2016. The company also has a thriving transportation business that boasts a fleet of more than 100 dry & fuel cargo trucks. BKIEA also owns hotels in Ethiopia and a port handling service company.

Tewodros Ashenafi

Source: Oil

Ashenafi is the chairman and co-owner of Ambo Mineral Water, Ethiopia’s bestselling naturally-carbonated bottled mineral water, along with beverage giant SABMiller. He is also the founder and CEO of oil exploration firm SouthWest Energy, one the largest oil and gas acreage holders in East Africa. SouthWest has a leading acreage position in the Jijiga Basin, Ethiopia’s largest proven hydrocarbon-bearing sedimentary basin, covering an area of approximately 350,000 km² and in the eastern region of Ethiopia bordering Somaliland.

Buzuayehu T. Bizenu

Source: Diversified

Bizenu is the chairman and controlling shareholder of East African Holding, a leading industrial conglomerate in Ethiopia that operates in a variety of sectors such as manufacturing of Fast Moving Consumer Goods, tea processing, printing and packaging, transport, real estate, cement production and coal mining.

Ato Ketema Kebede

Source: Diversified

Kebede is the founder of KK PLC, an Ethiopian company that manufactures blankets primarily to export across Africa and North America. The company also owns an acrylic yarn dyeing plant, and is also engaged in the import and distribution of heavy-duty machineries and equipment for mining, construction, road making and quarrying. The company is also one of the largest exporters of Ethiopian coffee, cereals and spices.

Akiko Seyoum Ambaye

Source: Construction

Akiko Ambaye, one of Ethiopia’s most prominent female business leaders, is the founder of Orchid Business Group (OBG), an Ethiopian construction company engaged in road construction, the supply of construction materials, rental services of construction machinery and haulage. Read more here

Ethiopia Trash Landslide Victims Receive Compensation

The city of Addis Ababa is distributing more than $4 million to victims of a huge garbage landslide that killed more than 100 people on March 13.

Hundreds more were injured or otherwise affected by the disaster at the Koshe landfill on the outskirts of Ethiopia's capital.

The city raised the money through a combination of private and government donations.

One Koshe resident, Ersemo Balbamo, lost three of his children and all of his property, but, he sounded content with his compensation.

"The city administration is fulfilling the promise they made to the public and I would like to thank them for that," he told VOA's Amharic service on Monday. "We are discussing what is left to do and we are presenting our situation in a report form so that we can fix what needs to be fixed. They are accepting our questions and fixing the issues we have so I don't have any complaints."

Another resident, Mesfin Esubalew, was less satisfied, complaining about a lack of water and electricity at a site where the government has relocated some of the survivors.

"We only have two bono [water-pumping stations] for 100 people," he told VOA. "We have 10 holes that serve as our bathroom for 100 people."

FILE - Rescuers work at the scene of a garbage landslide, on the outskirts of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, March 12, 2017. A cause still has not been determined.

No cause determined

Many people live in cardboard and plastic shelters at Koshe, while others climb through the giant mounds of trash each day, looking for items they can use or sell.

Authorities have yet to determine what caused the landslide. Some of the victims complained that distribution of the donations has been hampered by unnecessary bureaucratic delays, causing the displacement of families.

The city administration put the death toll from the landslide at 115, although the victims' families say the number was probably higher.

"There were large efforts to make sure that there aren't bodies still buried under [the trash]," said the head of Addis Ababa's Labor and Social Affairs Bureau, Ephrem Gizaw, on Monday.

Read more here

Ethiopia denies emergency food aid will run out within weeks

BBC – Ethiopia has denied suggestions by UN officials that it will run out of emergency food aid for millions of people by the end of this month.

The UN’s World Food Programme said 7.8 million people affected by drought would be left without food assistance.

But Ethiopian officials put the number of those affected at 1.7 million and said they would receive new help either from donors or the government.Ethiopia has been struggling following successive failed rains.

Famine has been declared in South Sudan, and there have been warnings of famine in north-east Nigeria, Yemen and Somalia.

Ethiopia’s commissioner for disaster risk management Mitiku Kassa said: “It’s true that in some areas food will run out by the end of the month but this will only affect around 1.7 million people.

“We expect the donor community to step in to fill that gap and we are hopeful. But if they fail to do that, we will have to use some of our development budget to provide emergency assistance to our people.”

Earlier reports suggested that the Ethiopian government did not have the funds to cope by itself, although analysts have acknowledged it has got better at coping with droughts than in previous years.

The government allocated $381m (£300m) extra over the last two years, but aid experts have questioned whether this can be sustained for a third year.

Ethiopia is in a “dire situation”, according to John Aylieff of the World Food Programme.

“We’ve got food running out nationally at the end of June,” he told reporters on Friday.

“That means the 7.8 million people who are in need of humanitarian food assistance in Ethiopia will see that distribution cut abruptly at the end of June.”

His words were echoed by John Graham, of Save the Children

He told AFP news agency: “After [the food runs out], we don’t know what is going to happen. And without that basic food then you will have problem falling into severe malnutrition because people are not getting any food.

“These children become severely malnourished and that’s where you have a very dangerous situation. Read more here