NEW YORK (AP) — An imprisoned Ethiopian journalist and blogger who could face the death penalty for advocating peaceful protests in his Horn of Africa homeland was honored Tuesday with PEN America’s “Freedom to Write” award.
Eskinder Nega was arrested in 2011 under Ethiopia’s sweeping anti-terrorism laws, which PEN says criminalize any reporting deemed to “encourage” or “provide moral support” to groups and causes the government deems “terrorists.”
Nega is still in jail after a judge in Addis Ababa found him guilty Jan. 23 on terror charges. He could face the death penalty at sentencing.
Ethiopia has arrested close to 200 people, among them journalists and opposition politicians and members, under last year’s anti-terrorism proclamation.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, more journalists have fled Ethiopia than any other country in the world over the past decade.
Nega was honored at PEN/America’s annual gala dinner Tuesday at the American Museum of Natural History, with some 500 PEN members and supporters in attendance.
PEN/America granted him the year’s PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award.
Forty-six women and men have received the award since 1987; 33 of the 37 honorees who were in prison at the time they were honored were subsequently released.
Accepting the award was his wife, Serkalem Fasil, a free expression advocate in her own right, who served 17 months in prison for treason starting in 2005 and gave birth to their child behind bars. She won the International Women’s Media Foundation Courage in Journalism Award in 2007.
“The Ethiopian writer Eskinder Nega is that bravest and most admirable of writers, one who picked up his pen to write things that he knew would surely put him at grave risk,” said Peter Godwin, president of PEN American Center. “Yet he did so nonetheless. And indeed he fell victim to exactly the measures he was highlighting, Ethiopia’s draconian `anti terrorism’ laws that criminalize critical commentary.”
Nega has been publishing articles critical of the government since 1993, when he opened his first newspaper, Ethiopis, which was soon shut down by authorities.
He was the general manager of Serkalem Publishing House, which published the newspapers Asqual, Satenaw, and Menelik, all of which are now banned in Ethiopia.
Nega has also been a columnist for the monthly magazine Change and the U.S.-based news forum EthioMedia, which are also banned in Ethiopia.
He has been detained at least seven times under Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, including in 2005, when he and his wife Serkalem were imprisoned for 17 months on treason charges for their critical reporting on the government’s violent crackdown of protests following disputed elections, and briefly in February 2011 for “attempts to incite Egyptian and Tunisian-like protests in Ethiopia” after he published articles on the Arab uprisings.
Nega has been denied a license to practice journalism since 2005, yet he has continued to publish columns critical of the government’s human rights record and calling for an end to political repression and corruption.
Nega was again arrested Sept. 14, 2011, after he published a column questioning the government’s claim that a number of journalists it had detained were suspected terrorists, and for criticizing the arrest of well-known Ethiopian actor and government critic Debebe Eshetu on terror charges earlier that week.
Shortly after his arrest, Nega was charged with affiliation with the banned political party Ginbot 7, which the Ethiopian government considers a terrorist organization. On Nov. 10, Nega was charged and further accused of plotting with and receiving weapons and explosives from neighboring Eritrea to carry out terrorist attacks in Ethiopia. State television portrayed Nega and other political prisoners as “spies for foreign forces.”
He is being held in Maekelawi Prison in Addis Ababa, where detainees are reportedly often tortured.
7 thoughts on “PEN honors jailed Ethiopian journalist Eskinder Nega”
Eskinder Nega is a winner. He is a winner whether in prison or outside. the ethno-fascist woyane mafia coud do nothing about this.
Esknider Nega will remain a champion of peaceful struggle. He possesses the most lethal weapon the meles/woyane fear.
Meles/woyane are becoming an embarassment even to their staunch supporters and funders, because of their atrocities on journalists like Eskinder Nega.
Free Eskinder Nega. the call for his freedom will continue. the meles/woyane should be ashamed of themselves , if they have a human nature.
All i can say is God bless our journalist Ethiopian warriors. they are paying dear price for my freedom..
Congra our beloved hero Eskinder the Ethiopian peoples are with you and you are on the right side of the history unlike your accusers in the wrong side it is only a matter of time to prove them while they are blinded with arrogance after staying 20 years in this great nation which is tooooooo big for their caliber to manage except using their armed power as a silencing machine (Thives)
In all dictatorships one way of controlling the people is the media. The media is the most important machine for them next to the army and the secret service. If journalist do not agree with the government the leaders are quick to destroy them. Of-they are not going to say they put them in jail because they were telling the truth. They find all kinds of excuses. The TPLF dictators will not stay in power for ever.
History is not in their favor. Dictators fall and they fall miserably.
Eskinder you made your mother proud, you made your country men and women proud you were not afraid of the fascists who can kill you. Your country will never forget you.
God bless our poor country we all love, the mother of freedom. She is occupied by her enemies that grew up in an environment of denial, hate and betrayal. We love our country.
we are proud of Eskender,u are ethiopian hero !!!Truth makes u free soon.
I thank all who participated on the May Day Celebration in NYC. We could not go to the hedge fund managers as we supposed to do hopefully we will do it next year. On the eve of the May Day Celebration in Village I was with Sam and told the packed crowd that Ethiopian farmers and indigenous people need their support to stop Land Grab !!!
Unfortunately we could not join Serkalem Fassil at Metropolitan Museum as Tadesse suggested because of the coincidence of May Day Rally. I will forward this note to her that Eskinder Nega is her husband, a father and a Brave Son of Ethiopia who challenged Woyane as well as the rest of us to stand for freedom of expression and assembly no matter what. He paid dearly for that and that was reconginzed by the PEN Award his wife received on his behalf.
If Eskinder Nega stand tall facing his tormentors on face how comes those of us from distance “Woyanene Eneferalene ” ? Let us be a fraction of Eskinder Nega if we can not match his courage !!! Annuak in Gambella, Muslims in Addis Ababa, Muslims in Arsi and Waldeba Monastery surrounding Ethiopians in Gonder are revolting. It is time to stand with them right in front of Woyane’s Mission in NYC. We will be there soon !!!!
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/occupy-wall-street-day-protests-start-slow-york-city-article-1.1070441
Thanks,
Tedla Asfaw
Eskinder Nega and his wife Serkalm Fasil are, truly in the very sense of the word, patriotic and militant Ethiopians that personify the spirit of our for fathers.There is no doubt in my mind Birtukan Eskinder,and Serkalem and the many who are in jail are positive roll models for the rising generation of Ethiopians. Both husband and wife continue to oppose the regime’s repressive and racist policies,and both paid dearly for voicing their opinion. I am happy to see Eskinder becoming recipient of the ‘press freedom award’ from Pen America. I wish he was here in person to receive this award. Unfortunately, a t the present, he is languishing in TPLF dungeon. Until ,we in the diaspora,with amnesty international and rights group press to win the release of all Ethiopian journalists, I wish Eskinder and his courageous wife Serkalme, and their family members peace and prosperity.We in the diaspora must do our utmost press hard the TPLF regime to yield to our demands.
Release all political prisoners now!
Jail belongs to the criminals and perpetrators of fraud and not to journalists.
Ethiopia will be free soon!