I wanted to bring this up last week—but got caught up in the excitement/frenzy of the Sudan peace agreements…will President Omar al-Bashir make concessions or press forward as expected with double-speak? It remains to be seen…

Last week Amnesty released a report on prisoners of conscience in Ethiopia. The statement calls on the government to release opposition members, human rights activists, students and journalists who are on trial for treason.  They are charged with “outrages against the Constitution” and armed conspiracy. Almost all charges carry death sentences. Reuters South Africa has a story on the treason trial. Seventy-six individuals were expected to appear in court last Tuesday.

“This very worrying trial has major implications for human rights, media freedom and democratization in Ethiopia. It will be a crucial test of the independence and impartiality of the Ethiopian judiciary.”  said Kolawole Olaniyan, Director of Amnesty International’s Africa Programme.

If you’re familiar with the opposition party in Ethiopia–Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), there’s a heartfelt open-letter to Ms. Birtukan Mideska, the CUD vice president and one of the defendants on trial, posted by blogger Weichegud ET Politics last Friday. It draws a similarity between Birtukan and Rosa Parks at the height of the civil rights movement. She has often been called ”a voice of freedom for all Ethiopians.” CarpeDiem Ethiopia has also reprinted Birtukan’s letters from Kaliti prison to U.S. Ambassador Vicki Huddleston.

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