Sudanese Journalists’ Syndicate Calls for Release of Member Detained in Ethiopia

Moatinoon
The Sudanese Journalists’ Syndicate has called on Ethiopian authorities to immediately release union council member and journalist Haitham Osman, who it said was detained in Addis Ababa along with two other people and taken to an undisclosed location last Friday.

In an urgent statement issued on Tuesday, September 29, the union said Osman and his two companions were detained on a street near their home in the Ethiopian capital. It said authorities had not disclosed the reasons for their arrest or revealed where they were being held.

The Syndicate expressed "grave concern" over the safety of Osman and his two companions, calling on Ethiopian authorities to disclose the reasons for their detention and their whereabouts, allow them to communicate with their families and lawyers, and ensure their safety and legal rights.

It also called on Ethiopian authorities to assume full responsibility for Osman’s safety and release him immediately.

The Syndicate said Osman is a journalist who moved to Ethiopia in search of safety because of the war in Sudan, and said he had not committed any offence warranting his detention.

It called on the Sudanese Embassy in Ethiopia to intervene with the relevant authorities to help secure Osman’s release and provide him with legal protection.

The Syndicate also urged press-freedom and journalist-protection organisations, human rights and humanitarian groups, as well as regional and international bodies, to intervene urgently and pressure Ethiopian authorities to release Osman and ensure that journalists are not subjected to arbitrary detention.

The Syndicate pointed to Ethiopia’s obligations as a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, citing Article 19, which protects freedom of opinion and expression.

It also referred to Ethiopia’s obligations under international instruments concerning the protection of journalists, as well as Article 29 of Ethiopia’s 1995 Constitution, which addresses freedom of expression and freedom of the press.

The Syndicate said that the detention of journalists without publicly stated reasons, as described in its statement, constitutes a violation of press freedom and fundamental rights, and called for urgent solidarity and action over Osman’s case and that of his two companions.

The Syndicate statement did not identify the Ethiopian authority responsible for the detention, nor did it include a response from Ethiopian authorities regarding the reasons for Osman’s detention or his whereabouts.