Gobeze Sisay, an Ethiopian Journalist who was held incommunicado for well over a week has been released, APA learned on Tuesday.
Government authorities gave no explanation as to why Gobeze was detained incommunicado while his arrest has been a talk of the street in Ethiopia.
Sisay was taken from his residence by plainclothes Federal police officers on May 1st.
It is unclear why he was detained and held incommunicado without appearing in court within 48 hours.
It has become customary for security authorities within Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration to arbitrarily arrest journalists and hold them incommunicado for some time.
Tamrat Negera, journalist and founder of Terara Network media, was taken from his home in the same manner in December, held incommunicado for several weeks, and later transferred to a prison in the Oromia region of Ethiopia.
For some observers, the arbitrary arrest of activists and journalists is a way of setting an agenda for activists and politicians in the opposition so that the government could divert attention from other issues that could trigger discontent and resistance.
Rule of law and protecting the security and rights of citizens continue to be one of the most notable weaknesses of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration.
MG/abj/APA