• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Democracy Chronicles

Towards better democracy everywhere.

  • AMERICAN DEMOCRACY
  • WORLD DEMOCRACY
  • POLITICAL ART
  • more
    • election technology
    • money politics
    • political dissidents
    • THIRD PARTY
      • third party central
      • green party
      • justice party
      • libertarian party
    • voting methods
  • DC INFO
    • author central
    • about
    • advertise with DC
    • contact
    • privacy policy
You are here: Home / Democracy News Headlines / International Democracy / Gates Open on Ethiopia’s Infamous Maekelawi Jail

Gates Open on Ethiopia’s Infamous Maekelawi Jail

September 8, 2019 by DC Editors Leave a Comment

FacebookLinkedInPinTweet
Gates Open on Ethiopia’s Infamous Maekelawi Jail
Abiy Ahmed Ethiopian Prime Minister – Image Source

From Human Rights Watch

Today, Maekelawi, the infamous police station in the heart of Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, was opened for the first time to the public. For years, Maekelawi has been synonymous with abuse and repression. It stopped being operational last year soon after Ethiopia’s prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, took office.

Many of those detained in Maekelawi were political prisoners – arrested for their perceived political views or journalism work. The fate of those sent to Maekelawi – except for the more high-profile detainees – was largely unknown to the outside world. Opening up its gates and offering the public a glimpse of its brutal reality may help some former detainees deal with the trauma they endured.

During research on abuses in Maekelawi for a 2013 report, I spoke to Badessa (not his real name), a 22-year-old ethnic Oromo whose life was turned upside down when one day the authorities snatched him from his university dorm and drove him hundreds of kilometers to Addis Ababa.

Get full story here.

FacebookLinkedInPinTweet

Filed Under: International Democracy Tagged With: Africa, Ethiopia

Some highlighted Democracy Chronicles topics

Africa American Corruption American Local Elections American State Elections Asia Capitalism and Big Business Celebrity Politics China Democracy Charity Democracy Protests Democrats Dictatorships Education Election History Election Methods Election Security Election Transparency Europe Internet and Democracy Journalism and Free Speech Middle East Minority Voting Rights Money Politics New York City and State Elections Political Artwork Political Dissidents Political Lobbying Redistricting Republicans Russia Socialism and Labor Social Media and Democracy South America Spying and Privacy Supreme Court Third Party Voter Access Voter ID Voter Registration Voter Suppression Voter Turnout Voting Technology Women Voting Rights Worldwide Worldwide Corruption

About DC Editors

We are your source for news on the all important effort to establish and strengthen democracy across the globe. Our international team with dozens of independent authors are your gateway into the raging struggle for free and fair elections on every continent with a focus on election reform in the United States. See our Facebook Page and also follow us on Twitter @demchron.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

democracy chronicles newsletter

american democracy around the web

  • CPJ, partners call on British PM to push for...
    Source: Committee to Protect Journalists Published on: 5 hours ago
  • “As Trump Prosecutions Move Forward, Threats...
    Source: Election Law Blog Published on: 6 hours ago
  • “Misinformation research is buckling under GO...
    Source: Election Law Blog Published on: 10 hours ago
  • “Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Flirts With the Libert...
    Source: Election Law Blog Published on: 10 hours ago
  • “In North Carolina, Republicans Seek More Con...
    Source: Election Law Blog Published on: 11 hours ago