Implications of the Anti-Terrorism Law of Ethiopia on Freedom of Expression and the Media

Tsegaye, Molaligne (2016) Implications of the Anti-Terrorism Law of Ethiopia on Freedom of Expression and the Media. Masters thesis, Addis Ababa University.

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Abstract

With the coming into power of the Transitional Government of Ethiopia in 1991, freedom of expression and free press had gained a relatively free space for the first time in the history of the country. However, this promising environment entered its gloomy age especially after the 2005 election and the coming into force of the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation in 2009. This thesis explores the implications of the ATP on freedom of expression and media freedom and thereby evaluates the share of the Proclamation to this down-spiral in the Ethiopian media landscape. By doing so, the paper tries to analyze the Ethiopian context of balancing state security and FOE as manifested in the ATP. The paper argues that with some of its broadly crafted provisions and a questionable mechanism of proscribing terrorist organizations, the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation goes beyond the acceptable limits in restricting freedom of expression and media freedom. In reaching to this assessment, the paper employs the tests of ‘legality’ and ‘precision’, ‘legitimate aim’, and ‘necessity’, standards developed by international human rights jurisprudence, to evaluate the appropriateness or otherwise of restrictions on human rights. Findings show that the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation have a large share to the shrinking media environment in Ethiopia. According to finding of this paper, since the introduction of the Proclamation, the media in general and the private press in particular is experiencing difficulties. Journalists are facing threats, intimidation and detentions. They are repeatedly being charged for crimes of terrorism. The scary nature of some of its provisions and the way the law is being enforced have resulted to a heightened form of self-censorship among journalists—to the level that they do not discharge their proper journalistic activities. The law is also being used to stifle critical voices against the government. Therefore, the problematic areas of the law should be amended to avoid the law’s ill-effects on freedom of expression and media freedom.

Item Type:	Thesis (Masters)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Terrorism, freedom of expression, media freedom, human rights, political dissent, encouragement of terrorism
Subjects:	K Law > K Law (General)
Divisions:	Africana
Depositing User:	Emmanuel Ndorimana
Date Deposited:	26 Jun 2018 10:23
Last Modified:	26 Jun 2018 10:23
URI:	http://thesisbank.jhia.ac.ke/id/eprint/4535

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