Ethiopia: Kangaroo Justice for Two Swedish Journalists

Alemayehu G. Mariam Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye in Kangaroo Court  The old adage is that “ignorance of the law is no excuse.” Could it be said equally that arrogance excuses ignorance of the law? Dictator-in-chief Meles Zenawi recently proclaimed the guilt of freelance Swedish journalists Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye on charges of “terrorism” while…

Ethiopia: The Diplomacy of Defending Dictatorship

Alemayehu G. Mariam “It is time to stop hating Ethiopia.” In November 2006, in her farewell cable to her replacement Donald Yamamoto and the Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Fraser, former Acting U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia Vicky Huddleston warned: “It is time to stop hating Ethiopia.” In November 2007, in a N.Y. Times op-ed piece, Huddleston…