On 29 December 2009, Birtukan Mideksa, the leader of Ethiopia’s Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ) party, marked one year in prison. The 36-year-old lawyer and former judge was initially imprisoned between 2005 and 2007 following her role as an opposition politician in the disputed and violent elections of May 2005. She was then re-arrested in 2008 after talking to journalists about the terms of her release and publicly denying that she had apologised for her actions during the election period in order to be pardoned. At a press conference on 11 December, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi stated, “There will never be an agreement with anybody to release Birtukan. Ever. Full stop. That’s a dead issue.”
NEWS
Opposition leader marks first year of life sentence
On 29 December 2009, Birtukan Mideksa, the leader of Ethiopia’s Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ) party, marked one year in prison. The 36-year-old lawyer and former judge was initially imprisoned between 2005 and 2007 following her role as an opposition politician in the disputed and violent elections of May 2005. She was then re-arrested […]
04 Jan 10
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At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.
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At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.
But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.
If you believe in a future where voices aren’t silenced, help us protect it.
At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.
But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.
If you believe in a future where voices aren’t silenced, help us protect it.
At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.
But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.
If you believe in a future where voices aren’t silenced, help us protect it.
At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.
But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.
If you believe in a future where voices aren’t silenced, help us protect it.
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