For the first time in 50 years, Ethiopian authorities have granted amnesty to hundreds of convicted prisoners and commuted the sentences of several others.
A total of 237 prisoners were freed and 26, including 11 death-row convicts, had their sentences reduced, the official news agency reported on Tuesday.
"The prisoners were provided with the clemency and reduction of prison terms as they have repented and shown good discipline while they were in prison," the Ethiopian News Agency quoted President Girma Wolde-Giorgis as saying when he announced the clemency on the occasion of the country's new year celebrations. Convicted rapists and those jailed for corruption were not included in the amnesty.
Some 111 opposition leaders, journalists and aid workers, arrested last November for allegedly attempting to overthrow the government, were not among those freed, despite repeated demands by the international community that they be released. Amnesty International has described the 111 as "prisoners of conscience".
Their trial on treason and attempted genocide charges connected to the violent protests that followed the general elections in May 2005 will resume on 5 October. Opposition parties accused the government, which retained power, of rigging the polls.
lw/mw
A total of 237 prisoners were freed and 26, including 11 death-row convicts, had their sentences reduced, the official news agency reported on Tuesday.
"The prisoners were provided with the clemency and reduction of prison terms as they have repented and shown good discipline while they were in prison," the Ethiopian News Agency quoted President Girma Wolde-Giorgis as saying when he announced the clemency on the occasion of the country's new year celebrations. Convicted rapists and those jailed for corruption were not included in the amnesty.
Some 111 opposition leaders, journalists and aid workers, arrested last November for allegedly attempting to overthrow the government, were not among those freed, despite repeated demands by the international community that they be released. Amnesty International has described the 111 as "prisoners of conscience".
Their trial on treason and attempted genocide charges connected to the violent protests that followed the general elections in May 2005 will resume on 5 October. Opposition parties accused the government, which retained power, of rigging the polls.
lw/mw
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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