ETHIOPIA PRESS FREEDOM WEB
Metadata
- ETHIOPIA PRESS FREEDOM WEB
- April 2, 2022
- Content Type Package
- Language English
- Transcript/Script FOR USAGM SHARE ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: ETHIOPIA PRESS FREEDOM HEADLINE: Case Against AP Journalist Reflects Dire Conditions for Ethiopia’s Media TEASER: Journalist Amir Aman Kiyaro is released from jail but his arrest shows the pressure Ethiopia’s media are under PUBLISHED AT: Friday, 04/01/2022 at BYLINE: Salem Solomon DATELINE: WASHINGTON VIDEO EDITOR: Salem Solomon PRODUCER: SCRIPT EDITORS: JJ, MPage VIDEO SOURCE (S): News Agencies, Reuters, AFP, Skype PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB__ TV X RADIO X TRT: VID APPROVED BY: TYPE: TVPKG/RADIO EDITOR NOTES: For VOA Press Freedom. For final review and questions, email Salem Solomon at: salemsolomon@voanews.com. Salem will produce video.)) ((INTRO)) [[ The case of a journalist for The Associated Press accused of abetting a government-designated terrorist group for reporting on rebels, highlights Ethiopia’s decline in media freedom, advocates say. VOA’s Salem Solomon has the story]] ((Video - Still images of Amir from AP)) ((NARRATOR)) Amir Aman Kiyaro is back home with his family after a four-month ordeal in an Ethiopian prison. But the video journalist for The Associated Press could still face jail if convicted of violating anti-terrorism and wartime state of emergency laws. ((Video - Reuters - cuts to wide shots of the federal court in Ethiopia Reuters - 2022-01-09T235020Z_4_LVA33X1IJTYWAZ92ID3I9BHEXRKD_RTRWNEC_0_D100-2133WD-ETHIOPIA-SWEDISH-JOURNALISTS-DEC-27-CLIP1)) First arrested in November, Amir is accused of illegally communicating with members of a group the government designated as a terrorist organization. ((Video - Reuters- MMD-VD_20211104_WAR_ETH_EthiopiaConflict_9R23WC_en)) Under a state of emergency that was in place until February, journalists could be penalized for interviewing members of armed groups including the Oromo Liberation Army. ((Video - Reuters - 2022-02-04T045030Z_1_LVA007FWV672F_RTRWNEC_0_0342-ETHIOPIA-CONFLICT-TIMELINE-CLIP2)) Amir and a freelancer, Thomas Engida, were detained but never charged, the AP says. [[Radio Track: Ian Phillips, vice president of international news at The Associated Press, says the case shows how journalism is being criminalized and reporters harassed in the country. He emphasized that Amir was on a legitimate reporting trip and committed no crime.]] ((Ian Phillips, International News Vice President, The Associated Press)) ((in English, male voice)) ((Mandatory cg: Skype)) “The crackdown on the media that this case represents, there is no true accusation that can be leveled against Amir. He is a respected, balanced journalist who has covered both sides of the conflict. He's been picked up and this is an arbitrary detention.” [[Radio Track: Zecharias Zelalem, a Canada-based Ethiopian journalist whose work has appeared in Al Jazeera, said arrests like this drove him to sign an open letter calling on the government to respect media rights. He said 46 journalists were detained in 2021, making Ethiopia one of the worst jailers of journalists in Africa.]] ((Video - Reuters - 2022-02-04T045030Z_1_LVA008FWV672F_RTRWNEC_0_0342-ETHIOPIA-CONFLICT-TIMELINE-CLIP3)) ((NARRATOR)) With a shrinking space for reporting, several Ethiopian journalists called on the government to respect media rights. ((Video – AFP - MMD-VD_20211104_WAR_ETH_EthiopiaConflict_9R23WC_en.mp4 )) In 2021 alone, their open letter says, 46 journalists were detained, making Ethiopia one of the worst jailers of journalists in Africa. ((Zecharias Zelalem, Journalist)) ((In English, male voice)) ((Mandatory cg: Skype)) “The general optimism that we had a couple of years ago with the much-heralded reform, with the promises that journalists would be able to operate unperturbed, this has not panned out. The promises and the pledges did not materialize. And unfortunately for journalists, the situation is starting to mirror what we saw in 2009 when Ethiopia passed its infamous anti-terror proclamation, which was used to round up journalists en masse. So, we had to speak up about a very very dire situation that our colleagues on the ground in Ethiopia are facing.” ((Video - AFP - AFP-TV_20210818_POL_ETH_PoliticsOromia_9C92F9_en.mp4)) ((NARRATOR)) With little coverage of daily life in rebel-controlled regions like Oromia, the work of reporters like Amir is vital, says Zecharias. ((Zecharias Zelalem, Journalist)) ((Mandatory cg: Skype)) “Very few journalists have been able to gain access to areas under the control of the OLF to see what life has been like for hundreds of thousands if not millions of people in these areas, much of which have been subjected to internet and phone outages. We don't have an accurate picture of it.” ((Video – AFP - AFP-TV_20210711_POL_ETH_ElectionConflict_9EL7MM_en)) ((NARRATOR)) Amir’s lawyer Tadele Gebremedhin says his client has been ordered to not leave the country until the case is investigated. He is accused of working with foreign media outlets and “spoiling the country’s development plans” through negative reporting. VOA reached out to the office of the prime minister, the communication ministry and the attorney general’s office requesting comment but received no response. ((NARRATOR)) Phillips says it's important to shine a light on cases like this. ((Ian Phillips, International News Vice President at The Associated Press)) ((Mandatory cg: Skype)) “We will continue to cover the story of journalists who are unjustly held. This is not acceptable behavior. These are arbitrary detentions. If there is proof of something, then that evidence has to be surfaced and has to go through a proper trial process, something that is extremely important to us at the AP and to our news organizations.” ((Video - Reuters - 2020-05-13T073209Z_5_LVA00153FAQMF_RTRWNEC_0_1212-ETHIOPIA-UNREST-CLIP1)) ((NARRATOR)) For now, Amir is free, but the risk of arrest for those in media is ever present. ((Salem Solomon, VOA News, Washington))
- NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
- Network VOA
- Location (dateline) WASHINGTON
- Embargo Date April 1, 2022 22:25 EDT
- Byline Salem Solomon
- Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English