By GEDAM AFEWORK
Ethiopian authorities on Saturday arrested Hanamariam Teshome, a female Ethiopian journalist and correspondent for The East African Daily.
According to her family’s and neighbors, Ms. Hanamariam was taken from her home by three police officers on Saturday at around 6 pm local time and was driven to an undisclosed location.
When asked by her family where she was being taken, the security forces declined to provide a response.
Ms. Hanamariam, a 2023 graduate with a degree in Journalism and Ethiopian Literature, has been contributing to the East African Daily since January 2024.
Her work has focused on socio-political issues within Ethiopia, providing critical insights into the country’s governance and human rights violations.
Recently, she published an investigative piece highlighting Ethiopia’s refusal to pay wages to UN peacekeepers deployed in Sudan, a report that may have drawn the ire of authorities.
The East African Daily condemns her detention and urges the Ethiopian government to disclose her whereabouts and ensure her immediate release.
“This alarming incident is yet another example of the shrinking space for press freedom in Ethiopia” said Sumur Gebremichael, Co-founder and deputy Editor-in-Chief of the East African Daily.
“We appeal to the international community and human rights organizations to hold the Ethiopian government accountable and demand transparency regarding her detention”
The targeting of journalists for their work is a grave violation of press freedom and the right to free expression.
Ms. Hanamariam’s arrest underscores the risks faced by journalists working to shed light on critical issues in Ethiopia.
“The East African Daily stands in solidarity with our detained colleague and vows to continue advocating for her release and the protection of press freedom” Mr. Sumur added.
Ethiopia went from being listed at 110th in the world according to the Reporters Without Borders Freedom Index in 2019, to 141st in 2024.
The steep slide is the result of the shutdowns of private media outlets, the mass arrests, physical and sexual abuse of media workers across the country, and the constant hostility towards our colleagues that has forced many to leave the industry or flee the country.
According to reports, the number of media workers and journalists who have been detained in Ethiopia since 2019 has surpassed 200.