It has been over eight months since Ethiopian security forces arrested opposition leader Professor Merera Gudina upon his return to the country following his participation in a hearing at the European parliament about the crisis in his home country. He was arrested on the basis of rendering support to terrorism and attempting to “disrupt constitutional order.” Endangered Scholars Worldwide has followed Gudina's case and made inquiries in an attempt to have him released and charges against him dropped.
Gudina is the chair of the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) and an associate professor of political science at Addis Ababa University. For more than four decades, he has fought for democracy and human rights. He was unjustly imprisoned for eight years during the communist Dergue regime.
We at Endangered Scholars Worldwide consider Gudina’s arbitrary and continued imprisonment part of a power play against Oromo activists and dissidents. Gudina’s detention is a flagrant and unjust violation of the freedom, security, and safety of a scholar—arrested without cause, held for weeks in solitary confinement without access to a lawyer, and subjected to physical mistreatment and psychological abuse.
ESW asks for letters, emails, and faxes respectfully urging authorities in Ethiopia to investigate the situation, to lift any charges or convictions related to his peaceful exercise of protected human rights, and to ensure his well-being while in custody and that his case is addressed in a manner consistent with internationally recognized standards of due process, fair trial, and detention in accordance with Ethiopia’s obligations under international law.
Please send appeals to the following:
Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
P.O. Box 393
Addis Ababa
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
Email: mfa.addis@telecom.net.et
Mr. Getachew Ambaye Ministry of Justice P.O. Box 1370
Addis Ababa
Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 5517775 / 5520874
Email: ministry-justice@telecom.net.et