After the whole process went in the wrong direction – in our side, the opposition, especially my party – we tried to kind of resolve things through negotiation and discussion. But you know, we are not successful basically because of the unwillingness of the governing party. And so they wanted to resolve the challenge and the problem we had through violence. And you know, it was sad. And it was frustrating because the experience we had during the campaign and during the election day – you know, it was such a huge kind of achievement in terms of public opinion.
In a way, the public impressed that we can have political change without violence, you know, just through political debate and through ballot box. And it was such a stride in terms of political culture and in terms of public opinion. But you know, in a way, the way that our government wanted to handle the issues through violent means – you know, it was in a way, which leads the people or community to regression rather than, you know, toward some kind of development in terms of political culture as well. So after some months basically the security forces instigated some kind of violent clashes with our supporters and protesters.
And then of course the regime wanted to hold us accountable for that loss of life and property destruction. And we were charged with all types of crimes, starting from treason and an attempt to overthrow government through unconstitutional means and even genocide and all those things were incorporated in the charge. So not only us, the political party leaders, but you know, our supporters and our party members in tens of thousands were imprisoned all over the country. And especially those people who are not that known in the community and probably in the international circle as well – they were subjected to, you know, torture and maltreatment in a very bad prison condition. It was sad. But you know, after 21 months you know, we were pardoned, in a way.
Of course we were sentenced into life imprisonment by the court. The funny thing about the court process was, you know, all evidence brought before the court was the statements, you know, we gave as a press statement. And the things we said, you know, in the debate and in the campaign – you know, all these things were assumed and taken as a very normal and legal activities, which is in the realm of our right as citizens and as a political group. But you know, after our arrest and after our imprisonment that was the things, which were brought to attest that we are criminals. And it was a laughable process. And in a way it undermines the institution, the judiciary itself.
You know, or people would not assume that, you know, the judiciary we’re having is an institution which finds out the real truth and which implements the laws of the country and which renders real justice. So it was a very frustrating process. But the bad thing, more than our plight and the political prisoners, the whole political space was changed entirely. And the space for the political opposition, the space for civil society and the space for the private press was dramatically narrowed down. And in fact, this time around the government became very blunt about it. And you know, before 2005 – even in 2005, you know, the regime kind of portray itself as a cherisher of, you know, the ideas of liberty and rule of law and everything.
But this time around, you know, the regime, you know, is conveying a message saying that liberal democracy is not for Ethiopia. You know, we are against neoliberals and you know, all those things. Actually the prime minister of the country’s becoming very prominent in articulating some bankruptcy in liberal democracy or neoliberals and all those things. So the – you know, they promulgated series of laws which curtails the space for the opposition, for the press, for the civil society, as I already said. And there is a very interesting promulgation, which is a new development in our legal process, which is a law against terror.
And basically what this law is serving as like, you know, they try – they used it to criminalize dissent, dissent in any form you know, dissent formulated by a journalist or a political person or even a citizen. Actually as the result of this, hundreds of people are still behind bars. And so 2005 and the things happened in the aftermath – you know, it affected the political process and the political space in a very bad way.
Birtukan Midekssa is a former federal judge and leader of the pro-democracy opposition movement in Ethiopia.
Hailed as the Aung San Suu Kyi of her country, she was sentenced to life in prison in 2005 after her party, the Coalition for Unity and Democracy, won an unprecedented number of seats in parliamentary elections. After eighteen months in prison, she was pardoned in 2007 following a series of high-level negotiations. Upon her release, she founded the Unity for Democracy and Justice Party (UDJ) and was elected its first chairperson. In 2008, she was rearrested for allegedly having violated the terms of her pardon and remained in prison for almost two more years. In 2010, she was shortlisted for the European Parliament’s 2010 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.
Prior to entering politics, Ms. Midekssa served as a defense attorney and federal judge, rendering numerous court decisions in support of the rule of law and in defense of fundamental constitutional liberties. She drew the ire of the Ethiopian government when she presided as a judge in a high profile corruption case involving the former defense minister, Siye Abraha. Ms. Midekssa released Abraha for lack of evidence, but the government immediately rearrested him and sent him to jail for seven years. The government’s contempt for the rule of law helped motivate Birtukan Midekssa to become active in politics.
She was selected as a Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow for 2011-2012 at the National Endowment for Democracy and as a Scholar at Risk Fellow at the W.E.B. DuBois Institute at Harvard University for 2012 – 2013.
The Ethiopian economy is based primarily on agriculture, with a growing services sector and one of the largest GDP growth rates in Africa in recent years. Main industries include food processing and textiles, and the most important export goods are coffee and gold. While unemployment is high and the country has one of the lowest GDP per capita rates in the world, the current government has instituted economic reforms and begun a process of privatization of state enterprises.
Until 1974, Ethiopia was a monarchy, ruled by a dynasty that traced its roots to the 2nd century B.C. Unlike most of the African continent, Ethiopia was never colonized by a European power and has long been recognized as a sovereign country.
The downfall of the monarchy led to the establishment of a socialist government under Mengistu Haile Mariam. The Mengistu regime received significant aid from the Soviet Union and its allies during the Cold War. Ethiopia suffered a series of internal and external conflicts, calamitous droughts, massive famines, and refugee crises during the 1970s and 1980s. The Mengistu regime was a harsh dictatorship with little tolerance for dissent. Human Rights Watch estimates that at least 10,000 people died under what has been called the “Red Terror,” although the exact number is unknown.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, opposition groups united to form the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). They ousted the Mengistu regime in May 1991. A new constitution and political reforms led to the first multiparty elections in 1995. Over time, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and the EPRDF tightened their grip on power by promoting ethnic federalism through which power is given to regional and ethnically based authorities. The 2005 elections were deeply troubled, with violence and widespread accusations of fraud. A number of prominent opposition leaders were accused of inciting violence and held as political prisoners for calling a general strike and boycotting the new parliament.
The flawed 2010 elections resulted in an EPRDF landslide, with only 2 seats going to the opposition. A crackdown on opposition parties, civil society, and the media prior to the elections further limited political space in the country. Since the death of Meles Zenawi in 2012, Hailemariam Desalegn has served as prime minister.
Freedom House describes Ethiopia as “not free,” with both the civil liberties and political rights given a rating of 6, with 1 regarded as most free and 7 as least free.