Following Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn's sudden resignation on Thursday, Ethiopian authorities announced a six-month country-wide state of emergency (SOE), effective yesterday. This order, the country's second in two years, imposes draconian restrictions on freedom of speech and assembly, while granting extended powers to the country's already powerful security services.
This decision is counterproductive to the government's stated goals of political reform and inclusive governance. It undercuts Ethiopia's security by emboldening those who believe that violence is the only way to achieve fundamental political reform in Ethiopia, but it also negates the national and international goodwill generated by the country's unprecedented recent release of hundreds of high-profile political prisoners.
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