Britain accused of abandoning activist on Ethiopiaโs death row
The family of a British citizen kidnapped and rendered to Ethiopia in June has called on the British government to secure his release as soon as possible.
LONDON โ Andargachew โAndyโ Tsege, a father of three from London, was travelling to Eritrea in June this year when he was seized during a stopover in Yemen. Two weeks later, Ethiopian officials admitted to the UK government that Mr Tsege was in their custody.
British consular staff were denied access to Mr Tsege over 50 days after his initial capture, and his family still do not know where is being held. Last month, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn dismissed concerns about Mr Tsegeโs concerns and whereabouts.
Mr Tsege, who is a prominent member of an Ethiopian opposition group, faces a death sentence imposed in absentia, and his arrest comes amid a crackdown on political activists and journalists ahead of elections in Ethiopia next year. In a heavily-edited video aired recently on Ethiopian state TV, Mr Tsege ap
peared thin and exhausted, and was presented as having โconfessedโ to various charges.
Torture in prisons in Ethiopia is common; a 2013 Human Rights Watch report on the notorious Maekelawi Police Station documented serious human rights abuses, unlawful interrogation tactics, and poor detention conditions.
Speaking to The Times in anย interviewย published today,ย Mr Tsegeโs partner Yemi Haile Mariamย said: โWhere is the outrage that a Brit has been held for this many days? He is a British national sentenced to execution in absentia.โ
Maya Foa, head of the death penalty team at Reprieve,ย said: โAndy Tsege has been subject to kidnapping, torture, and secret detention, all for the โcrimeโ of his political beliefs. He had to endure 50 days of detention and torture before UK officials were even permitted to see him this week. Even now, his family in London have no idea where he is being held, and in what conditions. This is an unacceptable state of affairs; the UK government should be using its close ties to Ethiopia to call unequivocally for his release.โ
Source: www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/politics/article4179022.ece
