10 March 2004
Addis Ababa — Ethiopia's controversial new draft press law is "shrouded in almost total secrecy", thereby undermining open government, press freedom groups said on Wednesday. The government, they said, was not being transparent since it had failed to involve local media and the country at large in the drafting of the bill.
In a joint statement, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the International Press Institute (IPI) said wider participation in drafting the bill was vital for a "democratic and open society".
The government spokesman, Zemedkun Tekle, told IRIN that three sessions - two organised by the government and one by the Ethiopian publishers' forum - had debated the new law. "We have stressed time and time again that we were ready to discuss this issue," he told IRIN.
"A lot of input has gone into this, and it has been an open and democratic debate. Not everybody's view will be incorporated into the bill, but we have incorporated a lot of ideas outside of the government, from the private press and civil society, into the draft," he added.
The criticism comes as disputes over the Ethiopian Free Press Journalists' Association (EFJA) continued to strain the already frosty relations between the private press and the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front. Government officials say the private press is unprofessional, but some newspapers argue that the government is overly oppressive.
Information Minister Bereket Simon is expected to submit the new press bill to the Council of Ministers this month. It will then go before parliament.
The IFJ said it should be made public before becoming law. "The failure to allow public comment will undermine the credibility of the process and weaken the law," IFJ General Secretary Aidan White said in the statement. "In this case, more than most, it is vital to have open government," he added.
According to critics, the press bill contains draconian provisions prescribing heavy punishments for minor offences. The IPI said it allows the government to restrict access to foreign magazines and newspapers and impose a state-run press council to oversee the media. "The entire process for the passage of the bill now appears shrouded in almost total secrecy," Johann Fritz, the director of the IPI, said in the statement.
"The Ethiopian government appears determined to push the law through without additional comment. It suggests that many of the law's discriminatory sections have been retained. The Ethiopian government should show good faith and publish the amended law for further comment before going ahead," he concluded.
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