The World Press Day is observed all over the world that has become more repressive to press freedom and this is no where more true than in Ethiopia where a repressive regime headed by Meles Zenawi has stepped up the violence against free journalists.

Meles Zenawi called the free press as a whole the gutter press and called on people not to read the news papers. He recently went further to state that the journalists are in a "ghetto" as if the whole world does not know that he had banned the whole free press, put dozens of journalists in jail, imprisoned many others, accused most of them of committing or conspiring to commit genocide and treason. A seven months pregnant journalist is one of those jailed in the notorious Kaliti prison and facing the genocide and treason charges that could bring the death sentence. The journalists are "guilty" of doing their job, pursuing their profession with diligence, of reporting the truth. Many other journalists have been forced into exile.

The Meles Zenawi regime is identified as one of the worst predators of the free press. Today in Ethiopia, the media and the press are under the full control of the ruling party. A repressive press law is in place enabling the regime to take arbitrary measures against journalists. A new draft of the press law is even harsher and has been condemned by many. Journalists in prison, condemned and awaiting condemnation, journalists fleeing the country, the free press muzzled and the field left only for the newspapers directly or secretly owned by the ruling party—this is the reality in Ethiopia.

SOCEPP once again calls upon those foreign governments that are giving the repressive regime political and financial support to stop aiding and abetting a regime that so glaringly and violently tramples on press freedom and the rights of journalists.