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Opposition media find their voices again in Ethiopia

The government of Ethiopia looks set to welcome back opposition media which had been shut out of the cyber space for some remarkable length of time

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The government of Ethiopia looks set to welcome back opposition media which had been shut out of the cyber space for some remarkable length of time.

A senior Ethiopian official says the country has opened access to 264 blocked websites and TV broadcasters.

Fitsum Arega, who is the prime minister’s chief of staff, said in his tweet that “freedom of expression is a foundational right” and “essential for engaged and responsible” citizens. He added that “only a free market of ideas will lead to the truth”.

Freedom of expression is a foundational right that other rights depend on. #Ethiopia has opened access to 264 blocked websites/bloggers/ ESAT and OMN. A free flow of information is essential for engaged & responsible citizenry. Only a free market of ideas will lead to the truth.

Among the broadcasters allowed back on air are the US-based Ethiopian Satellite Television (ESAT) and Oromo Media Network (OMN). Both TV stations were charged in absentia for inciting violence and promoting terror, but the charges were dropped a few weeks ago.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed took office in April with a pledge to open up the airwaves, even calling on foreign-based opposition TV broadcasters to open offices in Ethiopia.

One broadcaster – the US-based OMN station – has sent a team to establish a office in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa.

Ethiopia has been accused of blocking foreign-based TV and radio broadcasts, websites and blogposts from being accessed in the country for many years by different human rights and press freedom groups.

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Politics

Equatorial Guinea bans sex in govt offices after tapes leak

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Following the release of private recordings on social media that seemed to show a senior finance ministry official having sex with multiple women in a variety of locations, including his office, Equatorial Guinea on Tuesday announced a crackdown on sex in government offices.

The administration claimed that because the recordings had damaged the reputation of the small Central African nation, it was taking action.

Since the videos first surfaced last week, the controversy has been rocking the government of Equatorial Guinea, which has had the same president for decades.

Hundreds of amateur films were discovered at the finance official’s residence during a raid related to a corruption inquiry, according to local media sources.

According to local media, the women in the films seemed to be family members and the spouses of other influential government officials.

According to a government statement, Vice President Nguema Obiang Mangue issued fresh directives on Tuesday to stop ministry and court workers from committing crimes at work.

These included increased security and the installation of security cameras in every workplace.

“The executive is taking this decision following the videos of a sexual nature that have gone viral on social media in recent days and that denigrate the country’s image,” the state information agency said in the statement.

According to the statement, the measures were decided upon in emergency sessions with the attorney general, the Supreme Court, and other parties.

It stated that individuals featured in the sex tapes would be suspended without being given their identities, and those in charge of guarding the buildings where the videos were purportedly shot would receive reprimands for their negligence.

The longest-serving president in history, Teodoro Obiang, has led Equatorial Guinea, a country of around 1.7 million inhabitants on the west coast of Central Africa, for 45 years.

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Chad threatens to leave international security force

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Mahamat Idriss Deby, the temporary president of Chad, has threatened to withdraw the Central African nation from a multinational security force, claiming that the force has not been successful in combating rebel groups in the Lake Chad region.

During his tour of the area, which includes parts of western Chad, Nigeria, Niger, and Cameroon, Deby made the declaration on Sunday. In late October, suspected Boko Haram militants attacked Chad, killing about 40 soldiers.

Deby declared that an operation against the invaders had begun and that he was thinking of leaving the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), which is composed of troops from the nations that border Lake Chad.

 

Although disagreements and a lack of coordination have made the joint force’s job more difficult, Chad’s withdrawal would be a significant setback because its military is one of the most reputable in the area.

Deby cited “the lack of joint efforts against the common enemy, which is unfortunately always observed on the ground. This force – created to pool efforts and intelligence – seems to be in a slump.”

Insurgencies have frequently attacked the Lake Chad region, notably Boko Haram, which began in northeast Nigeria in 2009 and expanded to the west of Chad, and Islamic State terrorists in West Africa.

Moreso, an estimated 910,000 people have crossed into Chad since the onset of the crisis in Sudan, of which 222,743 are Chadian returnees as of the end of September 2024.

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