Journalists Dismiss as ‘Travesty of Justice' Conviction of Swedish Reporters on Terror Charges in Ethiopia

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today called for the reversal of the ruling by a court in Ethiopia which found Swedish reporters, Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye, guilty of "supporting a terrorist organisation and illegally entering Ethiopia". The pair, who was arrested in July while reporting on a project to exploit oil and its impact on the regional environment, faces up to 15 years in prison.

"We are outraged by this ruling which amounts to a travesty of justice," said IFJ President, Jim Boumelha. "Journalists' contacts with organisations do not in any way represent support for whatever causes they defend. This verdict will not only severely undermine press freedom in Ethiopia but also adversely impact on the country's good standing and we look to the higher court to set it aside and order the journalists' release."

Media reports say that the judge in the case of the two reporters accepted that they were "esteemed journalists" but held that "They have not been able to prove that they did not support terrorism."

The IFJ voiced its grave concern over this finding which shifts the burden of proof from prosecution to the accused, noting that the standards of due process have been affected by a clear bias against the two reporters.

Today's verdict has been widely criticised by journalists' organisations in Africa and beyond. The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) accused the Ethiopian authorities of engaging in a campaign of intimidation to suppress independent reporting on the country's affairs.

"This is a political verdict intended to deter journalists from covering events in a major conflict zone," EFJ President Arne König said.  "We call on the Ethiopian authorities to respect the freedom of the press and release these two journalists who were clearly in the country for genuine journalistic reasons. We also call on the government to act to ensure that all journalists in Ethiopia are free to do their jobs and not suppressed through legal actions designed to silence critical voices."

The Eastern Africa Journalists' Association (EAJA) has also condemned the ruling, calling on the Ethiopian Government to release the two reporters and to respect the right of journalists, including foreign reporters, to report independently on Ethiopian matters.

"Our Swedish colleagues, Schibbye and Persson, cannot conceivably be considered terrorists or supporters of a terrorist group," said EAJA General Secretary, Omar Faruk Osman. "They have suffered enough in detention and we call for their immediate release."

For more information, please contact IFJ on + 32 2 235 22 07

The IFJ represents more than 600.000 journalists in 131 countries