Ethiopia:Dr Berhanu Nega New Year message

Ginbot 7 Movement for Justice, Freedom and Democracy Chairman, Dr Berhanu Nega New Year message to the Ethiopian people.

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Ethiopia: Tsegaye Gebre-Medhin Memorial Prize launched

Addis Journal
ADDIS ABABA (Addis Journal) — A new prize named after the acclaimed Ethiopian playwright and poet Tsegaye Gebre-Medhin was launched in Addis at the National Theater on Monday, September 7. Established by the playwright’s family members and friends, the Institute of the Language Studies of Addis Ababa University Poet Laureate Tsegaye Gebre-Medhin Memorial Prize is intended to encourage literature and theater arts students to study hard, pursue senior honors and contribute to the art world.

The prize intended to be an annual event would be given to the best contribution by a student member. Berhanu Asfaw from the Department of Ethiopian Languages and Literature and Tegegnto Sinshaw from the Theaters Arts Department were winners of the first prize. Certificates were handed to the winners by Institute of Language Studies Dean, Dr. Gessese Tadesse and chair of the Theater Arts Department, Belayneh Abune, who both talked about the contribution and legacy of Tsegaye to each of their respective departments. Belayneh talked about Tsegaye’s contribution to the theater arts department
Dr. Gessese talked about the plan to broaden up the Memorial Prize through administrating trust funds that, among others, would provide scholarships to students. As way of remembering one of the country’s greatest poets and playwrights, a group of volunteers led by Dr. Heran Serke-Berhan had begun a permanent annual Tsegaye Gebre-Medhin Theater Festival. Involving Abate Mekuria who previously produced and directed ten of Tsegaye’s productions in Ethiopia and abroad, excerpts of the playwright’s works, Ha Hu Besedest Wer (ABC in Six Months), Inat Alem Tenu, “Othello” and “Theodros” were presented on the occasion as part of the festival celebrations. Abate who in his younger years studied at London’s Opera House has produced numerous stage plays, including “Kitet Wede Adwa Zemecha” which required the participation of 4,000 people. Audiences were thrilled with his re-productions of Tsegaye’s plays for which he spent no less than three months. His studio, Mekuaria Studio designed the settings and provided the costumes. It was highly successful. Tadesse Mesfin’s illustration for one of the plays was found and used for the occasion.
On the occasion it was also announced that four of Tsegaye’s plays, Theodros, Petros Yachin Seat, Zeray Be Rome Adeababy and Minilik (a historical play about King Menelik that was never staged) would be published by the Addis Ababa University Press shortly. The announcement was greeted warmly. Tsegaye was born in Boda, a village near Ambo, on 1934.He wrote his first play at Ambo Elementary School where one of his audiences were Emperor HaileSelassie. After doing high school at Wingate and college at the Addis Ababa Commercial College, he has studied theater at the Royal Court Theater in London and Comédie Française in Paris for two years. Exploring elements of power, justice, love, and death in his tragedies, Tsegaye achieved widespread and lasting recognition for his work.

Ethiopia:Media watchdog groups react to Ethiopia's efforts to stop NTV Report on Rebels

By Mohamed Keita/Africa Research Associate
Ethiopia pushes Kenyan TV to drop report on rebels
Last week, the Ethiopian government tried to force private Kenyan broadcaster Nation Television (NTV) to drop a four-part exclusive report on separatist rebels in southern Ethiopia. NTV aired the first two parts of "Inside Rebel Territory: Rag-Tag Fighters of the Oromo Liberation Front," which led Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya to accuse the Nation Media Group of giving a platform to a terrorist organization, the daily Nation reported. The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), whose Web site is among several authorities block in Ethiopia, is fighting for greater autonomy for the Oromos, the largest ethnic group in the south of the vast Horn of Africa nation.

"Clearly, officials at the Ethiopian Embassy did not want NTV to air this program. We repeatedly explained to them that this is not possible," Linus Kaikai, NTV's managing editor of broadcast news told me today. The Kenyan Foreign Affairs Ministry was also involved in attempting to get the station to drop the story, he said. "No demands have been agreed to," Kaikai added, saying that the final two parts will air tonight and Tuesday. The Ethiopian administration, whose leaders were once guerilla fighters allied with the OLF, has sought to censor international media outlets' coverage of rebel groups. In 2008, authorities accused Qatar-based satellite network Al-Jazeera of "direct and indirect assistance to terrorist organizations" after the station aired an exclusive report on the separatist Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), in southeastern Ethiopia. Al-Jazeera continued to air the program. In 2007, Ethiopian authorities detained three New York Times journalists for five days for reporting on the ONLF. Local independent journalists who have reported on rebel groups have landed in prison on various criminal charges, including publication or distribution of "false news likely to incite violence" or "membership in a terrorist organization." In one case, three journalists, Garuma Bekele, Tesfaye Deressa, and Solomon Nemera of the defunct Oromo-language weekly Urji, spent four years in prison over an article challenging official claims about the killing of three alleged OLF members by government forces. Numerous state-employed journalists perceived to have sympathies for the OLF have also been thrown into prison on spurious accusations, including former Ethiopian Television News Director Dhabessa Wakjira. On top of all that, Ethiopia recently enacted draconian anti-terror legislation, which criminalizes any reporting the government deems favorable to groups and causes it labels as "terrorist." In other words, reporting the activities or statements of such groups could be interpreted as glorifying or aiding their causes. An Ethiopian reporter, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of government reprisal, told me there was no public government reaction to the NTV controversy, and most local media did not report it. Another one said independent coverage of such stories was difficult without a public statement from the government. "You cannot initiate [such] stories if there's no government reaction, else you run the risk of being labeled as someone who's promoting their movement," he said.

Ethiopia:EPRDF deported 15 U.S. students

ethioguardian.com

By David Arnold The federal government of Ethiopia deported 15 American studentswho were teaching English in small, rural communities in eastern Harargheregion of Oromiya for several weeks. They had been volunteering in several communities not far from theOgaden and an off-limits region of Ethiopia where government forces arebattling Ogaden National Liberation Front rebel forces. The trip was organizedby Learning Enterprises International in Stanford, California. This was thethird year the project had been in operation.

Police performed a synchronized dawn raid of homes in Haramaya,Awwadaay, Qobboo and Dadar on July 9, questioned them for the day, confiscatingtheir cell phones and cameras and taking them to Addis. According tosources, at various times police accused the students of taking photographs, ofasking questions about the disputed 2005 national elections and the coming 2010elections, and of being in the country with improper visas. Community residentsasking about the reason for the detentions were later told the students had theH1N1 virus. The students were detained for two days and were not allowed tocontact their families or the U.S. embassy. Embassy officials were unable tosee them until shortly before federal officials put them on a plane anddeported them on July 11.One of the students was held several extra days. Anembassy spokesman said they have raised serious concerns about the handling ofthis case with the Government of Ethiopia, specifically regarding the refusalby Ethiopian security forces to permit these American citizens to contact theembassy. The embassy will continue discussions with the Ethiopian Government onthe exact nature of the events. State Minister for Government Communications Shimelis Kemal toldVOA’s Eskinder Firew only that the students were involved in inappropriateactivity “contrary to their mission.” None were charged with any violations ofthe law.