When you live in a country like the
United States of America it is easy to take for granted your basic rights and
freedom, in this case I am referring to the freedom of speech as well as
freedom of the press. We look to our news sources and journalists to keep us up
to date and informed on matters from politics to entertainment. After the way
that 2020 unfolded with the influx of people taking to social media in order to
distract from beings in the house and away from others, many individuals have
found their places on the internet, right or wrong. When governmental entities
have control over what media outlets report to the masses, it can bring about
one-sided news that makes the government look better or takes the heat off of
them in the event of wrong-doings on their part. I mean think about it why
would the government approve for journalists to put out information that made
them look bad or to tell truths that they did not intend for everyday people to
learn in order to keep them compliant. I will be examining the press restraints
and issues in Ethiopia amid their transition in governmental systems.
In June of 2020 Haacaaluu Hundeessaa was pronounced dead which
sparked protests in Oromia the country. Hundeessaa was an iconic Oromo musician
as well as beloved activist. His music and voice inspired young people to
peacefully fight for the change that they wanted in their country. The protests
that arose after learning that the musician was deceased, were encountered with
live ammunition being fired at them. Soon after large numbers of people were
swept up and arrested, the last numbers at the time indicated that more than
7,000 people had been detained and more than 300 deaths since the beginning of
the protests. Due to a lack of space they started housing detainees in schools
that were empty as a result of Covid-19. Within the first of those to be
arrested there was Jawar Mohammed and Bekele Gerba who were both advocates who
had worked to get the past Prime Minister dismantled and get the current Prime
Minister Abiy Ahmed in the position. The following day the Oronia Media Network
(OMN) was ransacked and closed by the police; Mohammed was actually the
Executive Director for the network in the United States. The OMN is a popular
alternative for millions in Afaan Oromo, which is spoken by about half of the
population in Ethiopia, the OMN is run by journalists abroad and it serves as
an to the government-control information sources in the country. After Abiy was
elected Mohammed moved back to Ethiopia. With one fail swoop the government of
Ethiopia was able to take down one of the largest non-government over media
sources that sought to properly inform the people of Ethiopia of the injustices
within the country. Soon after the story was being shared and distorted by
English language media sources such as, The Washington Post, The
Associated Press and well as others as a conflict resulting from “racial
tension” and that the protestors were “violent mobs” that were out vandalizing
the city.
Just a few months later in August of this year we heard of four Ethiopians journalists that were arrested with charges against them for incitement. The journalists were detained from their homes without warrants, with no regard for their rights. The four journalists all at one point worked for Amhara Satellite Radio and Television (ASRAT), which is a privately owned media outlet in Ethiopia. When the men went to court on August 7th of 2020, they found the police were bringing charges against them for journalistic reporting that they aired between November of 2019 to June of 2020. The police claimed that because they reported about how the Amhara people, the second largest ethnic group in Ethiopia, are oppressed and that the government of Ethiopia is incapable of protecting them adequately. Bear in mind that this is not the first time that journalists of ASRAT have been illegally detained, it happened earlier this year in June.
Based on the two different stories
that I analyzed I see the trend of the Ethiopian government finding fault
in media outlets that they cannot control rather than making necessary changes.
I believe that it is more so of the issue that these journalists are speaking
the truth and making the people aware of the faults of the government, thus
pushing the government to make changes that they are not yet willing to make.
For the people of Ethiopia, we have seen them take to social media while at
protests or sharing personal experiences with the brutal police force with
protesting. I also found it interesting that even when detaining journalists,
they were not concerned with following proper legal guidelines, as though their
actions and behaviors would not be reported by another source. I think that
perhaps there should be a taskforce for each race of the people in Ethiopia so
that the government can do right by its people.
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