“I had already heard rumours that the government was keen on reining in the press, especially producers of digital content. By April 29th, the state-run Ethiopian Media Authority announced that it had filed criminal cases against at least 25 media outlets. “CPJ has documented a drastic decline in press freedom in Ethiopia over the last three years,” said Angela Quintal, head of the Committee to Protect Journalists’ (CPJ) Africa programme. Numerous journalists have been arrested and detained without trial or for prolonged pre-charge periods.”The pressure has made Ethiopian journalists contemplate quitting their jobs or fleeing to neighbouring countries. “The government had wanted to shut us down for over a year due to our coverage of corruption and other issues that state media typically ignores,” Tazebew said.

Source: Ethiopian News May 31, 2022 16:56 UTC