csw report

• Update: Eskinder Nega found Guilty in Ethiopia

  UPDATE

  Eskinder Nega was found guilty of encouraging "terrorist" acts and conspiring with rebels in Ethiopia's High Court on 27 June.

  Eskinder was initially arrested on 14 September 2011 and charged under Ethiopia's anti-terrorism law after he wrote an article in which he criticised the manner in which the government used the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation of 2009 to stifle freedom of expression by persecuting those who expressed views contrary to those of the government. Charges against him also stem from accusations that he incited violence through his articles on the Arab Spring and his analysis of the political situation in the country.

  Ethiopia's anti-terrorism law has been used disproportionately to target journalists and human rights defenders and equates the free expression of views and peaceful dissent with "terrorism."

  The verdict is the most recent attempt by the government to completely stifle the activities of human rights activists and journalists by criminalising free expression and peaceful dissent.