Ethiopia's crackdown 'a threat to democracy'

(Nov 31, 2011, Yahoo! US )--A spate of arrests and terrorism charges leveled against opposition politicians and journalists in Ethiopia this year raises fears of a government slide away from democracy, analysts warn.

"The sheer numbers of arrests and prosecutions this year indicate a systematic crackdown, a systematic dismantling of the last few independent voices," said Amnesty International's Ethiopia researcher Claire Beston.

"The democratic process has been made a mockery by the events this year," she added.

In November, 24 people were charged with terrorism and three journalists fled the country, citing fear of prosecution or imprisonment.

Local media also reported in November that an Ethiopian man called on his compatriots to fight for freedom, before torching himself to death. "This is indicative of the desperation that people are starting to feel in Ethiopia," Beston added.

The case follows several mass arrests: over 150 opposition members and journalists have been jailed since January, the worst crackdown since the country's bloody 2005 elections, according to rights groups. Scores, including two Swedish journalists arrested after entering illegally into Ethiopia, are charged with terrorism. Read more from Yahoo! US »

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