putting up a fight
and journalists freed
Hi there,
I’m back to meditating again, yay. It seems to be the one foolproof way to keep me tethered to sanity.
Other measures might include cutting down on the frequency of Sifter, especially once I start sending out updates on Sifter: Elections. I’m still figuring that out, but you’ll be the first to know when I do.
My name is Maya Misikir, and I’m a freelance reporter based in Addis Abeba. I write Sifter, this newsletter where I send out the week’s top 5 human rights stories in Ethiopia.
Now, to the news.
Civic space: pushback that’s working
The opposition to proposed amendments to Ethiopia’s civil society law has been fierce. The human rights gains from the time of Ethiopia’s legal reform (starting 2018) are being reversed through ‘repressive provisions’ said Amnesty International in a report published last Monday.
Here’s an excerpt from the report:
In June 2025, Amnesty International obtained a 14-page draft amendment proclamation from reliable sources.
The contents of the unofficial draft law are consistent with those of another document tabled by the Ministry of Justice at a meeting in June, where it communicated the draft changes to selected members of civil society.
Last Tuesday, a representative from the Ethiopian Ministry of Justice (which is leading the amendment process) explained that the draft law that had been causing such serious concern was not an ‘accurate one’. And that it should be disregarded.
During a discussion forum organized for media representatives, officials from the Authority for Civil Society Organisations (the civil society regulatory body), the Ministry of Justice and the Ethiopian Media Authority justified the rationale behind the latest draft of the CSO law.
So what does this latest draft say that’s different? Instead of outrightly prohibiting local civil society from receiving funding from international donors (or foreigners) for election-related work, it says that the civic actors need to get a support letter from the regulatory body first.
What do legal experts say about this? That there are no clear standards for what the regulatory body is assessing when it gives out these ‘letters of support’. So there’s a wide discretionary power that could be abused. There is also no recourse should the regulatory body take its sweet time in giving out these support letters.
What else?
There has been a slight change to the board composition in this latest draft. The initial amended draft (that the Ministry of Justice has now disowned) cut board members from 11 down to 7.
The numbers have stayed the same. So, have the allocation of four seats, which are being proposed to be for government representatives.
So, where is the change? Instead of cutting all 4 seats currently assigned for representatives of women, youth, and people with disabilities, this latest one squishes them all into one, for ‘vulnerable people’. Interestingly, this representative is also appointed by the Ministry of Justice.
That leaves 2 remaining seats: one for an independent professional with knowledge of the sector (appointed by the Ministry of Justice yet again).
And finally, the last seat goes to a representative from civil society (cutting it down from 4!).
How do the authorities justify this change?
Eleven is a lot of board members, and convening them has been a hassle. This has created issues in the implementation of the law (also an overarching justification for the amendment of the law).
Legal experts are not convinced, though. This gives the government a majority of seats on the board. Decisions will be passed with no resistance.
The amendments will continue to undergo more consultations, as promised by the state minister of justice, and hopefully, some of the feedback from the session will be considered. I’ll keep you posted.
There are more details on this latest draft, so if you are looking for something specific I haven’t mentioned here, reply to this email and let me know. I also have the latest draft (in Amharic), if you’re interested.
The report on Amnesty International, which looks at the time of legal reform in 2018, where 15 major laws were changed, ranging from full repeal to amendment, here.
Press freedom: journalists released
Last week’s updates included the disappearance of two journalists in Addis Abeba.
Yonas Amare, a journalist working for The Reporter, and Abdulsemed Mohammed, who works for Ahadu Radio, were released last Friday, ‘after 12 days in captivity’.
Nobody knew of their whereabouts during this time, and a story on The Reporter says that they have, ‘yet to ascertain whether Yonas or Abdulsemed were harmed during the ordeal’.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), in a statement released last Wednesday, also mentioned the arrest of journalist Khadar Mohamed Ismael in Ethiopia’s Somali region earlier in the month.
Here’s an excerpt of the statement:
On August 5, police in Ethiopia’s Somali Regional State arrested Khadar, a reporter with the state-owned Somali Regional Television (SRTV). He remains behind bars without formal charges
The update on The Reporter, here, and the report from CPJ, here.
Politics: an opposition jailed
I wrote an update on Yohannes Tessema, a member of the opposition Boro Democratic Party, earlier in March when he was arrested.
He was arrested despite having immunity as an elected member in Ethiopia’s Benishangul-Gumuz regional state council.
Last week, he was sentenced to ‘five years and 10 months rigorous imprisonment’, according to a story on Addis Standard.
Here’s an excerpt on his earlier arrest:
After filing a complaint regarding the Benishangul-Gumuz Regional Constitution amendment, his parliamentary immunity was revoked and he was arrested on charges of “terrorism and attempting to overthrow the constitutional order by force.”
So, was he sentenced on charges of terrorism? No. The sentencing was based on a ‘previously discontinued land lease’.
Two more party leaders were arrested following his sentencing, adds the story.
The full story, on Addis Standard, here.
Security: we don’t know her (XLVII)
This is another long-overdue update on the security in Ethiopia’s Amhara region. The Ethiopian Red Cross Society says one of its staff members was killed while on duty in the region’s North Gondar Zone.
Here’s an excerpt from a story from Addis Standard:
[Honelegn Fantahun] was abducted on 14 August while carrying out humanitarian operations near Cheneqe, 15 km from Debark town.
“Despite surviving cruel beatings and harassment, his life was brutally taken on August 15, 2025,”..
The full story, here.
To look back at what else has happened over the past two years of active fighting between the region’s informal militia, the Fano, and the federal government, check out the compiled list of updates.
Migration: what are the alternatives?
There was a time when being a civil servant in Ethiopia was ‘socially respected and economically rewarding’. Nowadays, the choice for young people increasingly seems to be migration, according to a story on The Conversation.
Here’s an excerpt:
In some parts of the country, a culture of migration has taken root, with migration perceived as a quick and effective way to earn income and generate broader benefits for both migrants and their families.
Within these communities, having a family member abroad is increasingly regarded as a symbol of social status.
The solution isn’t just creating more jobs at home, but also legal pathways to make the migration safer, says the author.
The full story, which looks into the complicated rules for migrating legally, and the drivers of migration, including conflict, here.
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