Temesgen Desalegn

Temesgen Desalegn (Amharic: ተመስገን ደሳለኝ) is an Ethiopian journalist. As editor of the independent weekly newspaper Feteh, Desalegn went to court many times and was imprisoned from 2014–2017[1] as a result of his criticism of the national government, drawing protests on his behalf from the international press freedom groups Committee to Protect Journalists[2] and Article 19[3] and from Amnesty International.[4]

Temesgen Desalegn
ተመስገን ደሳለኝ
NationalityEthiopian
OccupationJournalist
OrganizationFeteh

Journalism

Desalegn was the chief editor of Feteh, which was created in 2008[2] until its closure by Ethiopian authorities in 2012.[5] In 2013 he wrote in the Ethiopian Review in support of fellow journalist Eskinder Nega and criticised the Ethiopian court system as "Meles Zenawi's kangaroo court".[6]

2008–2011

According to the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), between 2008 and July 2011, the Ethiopian government filed 41 lawsuits against Desalegn.[2]

2012

On 4 May 2012, Desalegn was found guilty of contempt of court after Feteh published the full text of a courtroom statement by independent journalist Eskinder Nega, who was on trial for terrorism charges. In the statement, Nega asserted his innocence and criticized the charges against him. Desalegn was given a suspended four-month prison term and a 2,000 birr (US$113) fine. CPJ protested the sentence, calling it an example of "growing severity of censorship in Ethiopia".[7]

In July 2012, Feteh was closed by government order, and 30,000 copies of the paper were seized. A prosecutor stated that the paper's coverage had been found to be "detrimental to the country’s national security".[5]

On 10 August, Desalegn learned through a radio broadcast that he was being charged under three articles of Ethiopia's Criminal Code: Article 613, "defamation and calumny"; Article 486, "inciting the public through false rumours"; and Article 238, "outrages against the Constitution or the Constitutional Order", a capital offense. The charges were in response to articles published in August 2011, February 2012, and March 2012, in which Feteh had reported on youth protests against the government. The UK-based anti-censorship organization Article 19 issued a statement in support of Desalegn and called for the charges to be dropped.[3]

On 23 August, three days after the death of long-time prime minister Meles Zenawi, Desalegn was arrested on defamation charges as part of a general crackdown on government critics.[8] According to Amnesty International, he was the first journalist to be arrested since Zenawi's death. The organization described the arrest as "a worrying signal that the government intends to carry on targeting dissent", stating that Desalegn appeared to have been arrested "for exercising his right to freedom of expression in advocating for peaceful protests to take place, among other criticisms of the government".[4] CPJ also called for Desalegn's release, stating, "Temesghen is not a criminal for expressing his constitutional right to freedom of expression."[8]

The government dropped the charges against him without comment on 29 August, and he was released from prison.[9] The charges against Temesgen's publisher were also dropped, but Temsegen stated it was uncertain when Feteh would be able to restart publishing.[10]

In October 2012, Feteh and opposition party newspaper Finote Netsanet reported that the state-owned printer had refused to continue printing their papers, and that independent printers had canceled their contracts. Temesgen stated that one printer had stated it had been ordered by the Ministry of Justice to no longer print Feteh. The newspaper was unable to print copies for several weeks.[11]

2017–2018

Desalegn was freed after three years of imprisonment in mid-October 2017.[1] On 25 March 2018, he was arrested again and held in a 5-metre by 8-metre room with around 200 other detainees.[12] He was then admitted to hospital due to severe back pain.[12]

References
  1. "Journalist Temesgen Desalegn denied entry to US". Ethiopia Observer. 2018-02-01. Archived from the original on 2018-08-31. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
  2. Tom Rhodes (20 July 2011). "Ethiopia: Terrorists? A Look At Two Jailed Local Journalists". Committee to Protect Journalists. Archived from the original on 24 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  3. "Ethiopia: Charges against Feteh Newspaper editor Temesgen Desalegn must be dropped". Article 19. 10 August 2012. Archived from the original on 24 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  4. "Ethiopia: Detention of editor signals continuation of Meles-era crackdown". Amnesty International. 23 August 2012. Archived from the original on 24 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  5. Mohammed Ademo (13 August 2012). "Media restrictions tighten in Ethiopia". Columbia Journalism Review. Archived from the original on 24 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  6. Desalegn, Temesgen (2013-04-08). "Ethiopia: Right in Prison, Wrong on the Throne". Ethiopian Review. Archived from the original on 2018-08-31. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
  7. "Ethiopian paper fined for coverage of Eskinder Nega trial". Committee to Protect Journalists. 4 May 2012. Archived from the original on 24 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  8. "In Ethiopia, "Feteh" editor jailed during trial". International Freedom of Expression Exchange. 23 August 2012. Archived from the original on 24 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  9. "Ethiopia drops charges against editor". News24. 29 August 2012. Archived from the original on 16 October 2012. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
  10. Marthe Van Der Wolf (29 August 2012). "Ethiopia Releases Journalist, Drops Charges". Voice of America. Archived from the original on 16 October 2012. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
  11. "Independent papers say gov't banned them, won't let printer publish their papers". The Washington Post. Associated Press. 8 October 2012. Archived from the original on 16 October 2012. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
  12. Fasil, Mahlet (2018-03-30). "News: Journalist Temesgen Desalegn admitted to hospital, others kept in "inhuman condition"". Addis Standard. Archived from the original on 2018-08-31. Retrieved 2018-08-31.
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