Abebe gellaw biography samples

I came to the UK in 1998 as an asylum seeker. I'd been a journalist in Addis Ababa, but under the rule of the Tigray People's Liberation Front, which was trying to divide Ethiopia along ethnic lines, life was increasingly difficult.

Decide to become a journalist in Ethiopia and you may as well decide to serve in a war zone.

Abebe gellaw biography samples pdf

There is no freedom of expression, and journalists are victimised and threatened. Today, 90% of Ethiopian reporters are in exile. The remaining 10% are in and out of jail. Fortunately, I am not easily intimidated.

Abebe gellaw biography samples

Freedom of expression is a God-given right.

In 1993, I was studying politics and international relations at Addis Ababa University. When 42 academics were fired for speaking out against the government's ethnic policies, I joined a protest.

I went into hiding, but was found and imprisoned. I was crammed into a small cell with 100 others. I was handcuffed. There was no food, no sanitation, no space to lie down and sleep.

After two month