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ETHIOPIA: TREASON TRIAL OF ELECTIONS PROTESTERS BEGINS February 26, 2006
Apunyu Bonny
(SomaliNet) The 129 lawmakers, journalists and human rights activists on treason charges had their trials start on Friday 25th in Ethiopia. JURIST reported Saturday.
Ethiopia’s May 2005 elect! ions attracted enormous demonstrations and violence in which the 129 defendants were arrested after street protests in July and November .
Ironically, Ethiopia’s opposition Coalition of Unity and Democracy (CUD) claims that Prime Minister Meles Zenawi “stole†the election by rigging the vote and intimidating witnesses. All but three of the defendants refused to enter a plea, and 38 defendants were charged in absentia.
Federal Court Judge, Mr. Adil Ahmed in January, 2006 ordered the case to proceed when a group of the 129 defendants challenged the court’s jurisdiction. Mean while, the opposition members have also been barred from meeting with their defense lawyers and appeared without them in court before the trial began.
According to Ethiopian law, the sentence for treason is death.