ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA (Addis Journal) — A correspondent for the Amharic service of the Voice of America, Meleskachew Amha, has been arrested in connection with printing and studio equipments belonging to Addis Broadcasting PLC, owned by Dr. Berhanu Nega and others.
The Amharic weekly, Addis Admass, reported today that Meleskachew and other four people were detained on Wednesday for allegedly “trying to transfer duty-free imported goods to a third party.”
Meleskachew and the other four suspects who appeared before court yesterday were denied bail, according to Addis Admass. The court granted police twelve more days to conduct further investigation, as per the latter’s request.
The Addis Broadcasting PLC had established its headquarters in Kechene Medanhialem but has gone unoperational for a number of years as it was denied broadcasting licenses and most of the shareholders disbanded after the 2005 election.
Meleskachew has been manger of the PLC for three months.
Dr. Berhanu Nega now leads an opposition party, Ginbot 7,which the government has designated as a terrorist organization.
2 thoughts on “VOA correspondent in Ethiopia arrested”
ayeeeee ETHIOPIA yeweyane mechawecha honesheeeeee i’m very sad God Beless Ethiopia
Departments
No Job Division Name & Rank Ethnic Group
1 Armed Forces Chief-of-Staff General Smora Yenus Tigre
2 Armed Forces Head of Training Lt.General Tadesse Worde Tigre
3 Head of Logistics Lt.General Gezae Abera Tigre
4 Head of Intelligence Br. General Gebre Dela Tigre
5 Armed Forces Head of Campaign Major General Gebreegzher Tigre
6 Armed Forces Head of Engineering Lt.General Berhane Negash Tigre
7 Chief of the Air Force Chief of the Air Force Tigre
Heads of the Nation’s four Military Commands
No Job Division Name & Rank Ethnic Group
1 Central Command General Abebaw Tadesse Agew
2 Northern Command Lt.General Saere Mekonene Tigre
3 South Eastern Command Lt.General Abraha Wolde Tigre
4 Western Command Br. General Seyoum Hagos Tigre
Army Divisional Commanders
Central Command
No Job Division Name & Rank Ethnic Group
1 31st Army Division Colonel Tsegaye Marx Tigre
2 33rd Army Division Colonel Kidane Tigre
3 35th Army Division Colonel Misganaw Alemu Tigre
4 24th Army Division Colonel Work Aynu Tigre
5 22nd Army Division Colonel Dikul Tigre
6 8th Mechanized Division Colonel Jamal Mohammed Tigre
Northern Command
No Job Division Name & Rank Ethnic Group
1 14st Army Division Colonel Wodi Antiru Tigre
2 21st Army Division Colonel Gueshi Gebre Tigre
3 11th Army Division Colonel Workidu Tigre
4 25th Army Division Colonel Tesfay Sahiel Tigre
5 22nd Army Division Colonel Teklay Klashin Tigre
6 4th Mechanized Division Colonel Hinsaw Giorgis Tigre
South Eastern Command
No Job Division Name & Rank Ethnic Group
1 19st Army Division Colonel Wodi Guaae Tigre
2 44st Army Division Colonel Zewdu Tefera Tigre
3 13th Army Division Colonel Sherifo Tigre
4 12th Army Division Colonel Mulugeta Berhe Tigre
5 32nd Army Division Colonel Abraha Tselim Tigre
6 6th Mechanized Division Colonel G/Medhin Fekede Tigre
Western Command
No Job Division Name & Rank Ethnic Group
1 23rd Army Division Colonel Wolde Belalom Tigre
2 43rd Army Division Colonel Wodi Abate Tigre
3 26th Army Division Colonel Mebrahtu Tigre
4 7th Mechanized Division Colonel Gebre Mariam Tigre
Commanders in Different Defense Departments
No Job Division Name & Rank Ethnic Group
1 Agazi Commando Division B.General Mohammed Esha Tigre
2 Addis Ababa & Surrounding Area Guard Colonel Zenebe Amare Tigre
3 Palace Guard Colonel Gerensay Tigre
4 Banking Guard Colonel Hawaz Woldu Tigre
5 Engineering College Colonel Halefom Eggigu Tigre
6 Military Health Science B.General Tesfay Gidey Tigre
7 Mulugeta Buli Technical College Colonel Meleya Amare Tigre
8 Resource Management College Colonel Letay Tigre
9 Siftana Command College B.General Moges Haile Tigre
10 Blaten Military Training Center Colonel Salih Berihu Tigre
11 Wourso Military Training Center Colonel Negash Heluf Tigre
12 Awash Arba Military Training Center Colonel Muze Tigre
13 Birr Valley Military Training Center Colonel Negassie Shikortet Tigre
14 Defense Administration Department B.General Mehari Zewde Tigre
15 Defense Aviation B.General Kinfe Dagnew Tigre
16 Defense Research and Study B.General Halefom Chento Tigre
17 Defense Justice Department Colonel Askale Tigre
18 Secretary of the Chief-of-Staff Colonel Tsehaye Manjus Tigre
19 Indoctrination Center B.General Akale Asaye Amhara
20 Communications Department Colonel Sebbhat Tigre
21 Foreign Relations Department Colonel Hassene Tigre
22 Special Forces Coordination Department B.General Fisseha Manjus Tigre
23 Operations Department Colonel Wodi Tewk Tigre
24 Planning, Readiness and Programming Department Colonel Teklay Ashebir Tigre
25 Defense Industries Coordination Department Colonel Wodi Negash Tigre
26 Defense Finance Department Colonel Zewdu Tigre
27 Defense Purchasing Department Colonel Gedey Tigre
28 Defense Budget Department Ato/Mr. Berhane Tigre
One of the most common and great truths of our time is that freedom requires international vigilance. The free people of the world cannot enjoy the full benefit of being free when the freedom of 80 million Ethiopians is egregiously violated by a regime that enjoys the full support of the free world. In Ethiopia, the TPLF regime has tossed out freedom and democracy at the crossroads. The problem in Ethiopia is not just the absence of democracy. The Ethiopian people suffer from persistent, systematic, and widespread human right violation. The TPLF regime continues to suppress dissenting opinions and maintains political control over the legal system. Arbitrary detentions, torture, ill-treatment of prisoners, and severe restrictions on freedom of expression are the most common types of abuses that the Ethiopian people face daily.
It is a sign of immense problem when a tiny minority of the population monopolizes power in a country of 80 million people. It is in deed, a clear indication of national crisis when a minority ethnic group that accounts for only 6% of the population occupies 100% of the top military posts in the Army and the Air Force. Ginbot 7 takes this opportunity to remind the world that the major explanation of ethnic manipulation of politics in Ethiopia is to be sought not in the character of the Ethiopian public that is the subject of manipulation, but in the character of those [TPLF] who seek to dominate the public through such manipulation, and the structures of domination they have devised.
Ginbot 7 strongly believes that political instability in the Horn of Africa is a threat to world peace, and the Horn of Africa will never be stable as long as the largest country in the region [Ethiopia] is ruled by a ruthless dictator whose political and economic policies alienate 94% of the population from the national decision making process. The TPLF regime has pushed the Ethiopian people far over the limit and has left them with only one option; and that option is the devil’s alternative. Ginbot 7 believes that putting hope in the heart of the Ethiopian people and helping them defeat the enemies of democracy is a very important step that takes the world one step closer to peace, and most importantly, it is one big step in the process of building the largest democracy in Africa.
Ginbot 7 Movement for Justice, Freedom and Democracy, http://www.ginbot7.org, Copyright © 2008