Earlier the week, there had been widespread demonstrations by the country’s Oromo people, the largest ethnic group, over the perceived slow pace of prisoner releases promised in January. The strike was lifted on Wednesday with the prisoner releases. Opposition figures in Ethiopia’s extensive diaspora claimed the government had capitulated in the face of popular pressure. Desalegn became prime minister in 2012, succeeding Meles Zenawi, the architect of Ethiopia’s recent economic boom. Following a party executive council meeting, the government announced in January a plan to start releasing political prisoners in effort to broaden the political consensus.

Source: Ethiopian News February 15, 2018 13:18 UTC