March 6, 2001

 UPDATE ON ILLEGAL DETENTION AND DISAPPEARANCE

 1. SEVEN years since he was jailed in Gondar by the EPRDF, ABA AMHAYESUS (a monk) is still languishing in the overcrowded central prison of Gondar town. He was jailed following the Adebabye Iyesus church massacre (September 7/1993) in which the EPRDF killed 18 people and wounded 17 others. The young monk was jailed on the unproven (and false) charge of inciting people to violence while subsequently there have been allegations that he was also a secret member of an opposition organization. Aba Amhayesus has not been condemned by any court of law and is still suffering in the Gondar prison.

2. Berhanu Ijigu, a journalist with the former LUBAR newspaper was detained in mid 1994 by the security police in Addis Abeba and has disappeared since. The government had allegedly accused him of being a member of the opposition EPRP but security officials have now started to deny that Berhanu had ever been in custody.

 These and other prisoners of conscience should not be forgotten.

Write protest letters asking for their release to prime Minister Meles Zenawi,box 1031,Addis Abeba,fax no. 251-1-552020)

 SOCEPP