Ethiopian opposition party leader arrested

An opposition leader in Ethiopia has been arrested in Addis Ababa, his party, the Ethiopian Citizens for Justice has reported.

Chane Kabede, who is the party leader for the Ethiopian Citizens for Justice party was arrested on Sunday, September 24, although reasons for his arrest have remained unclear.

The party’s Legal and organizational affairs representative Seyoum Mengesha told AFP that Kabede was arrested at a cafe in Addis Ababa after security officers had searched his office and home without finding him.

“So far, we do not know why he was arrested, but rumours had it that it may be linked to the recent violence in the Amhara region in the country,” Mengesha told AFP.

His arrest came a month after Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared a six-month state of emergency in Amhara after chaos erupted between the armed forces and a local militia, Fano.

Human rights activists in the country have accused the government of using the state of emergency in the Amhara region to arrest, intimidate, and kill residents in the region.

Mengesha disclosed that the arrest of the opposition party leader was unconstitutional since the officers did not have an arrest warrant during the arrest.

At the same time, he alleged that the officers who searched Kabede’s offices and residence did not have valid search warrants.

He also criticized the government for detaining the opposition party politician for more than 48 hours without presenting him in court, saying they were violating Kabede’s rights as per the Ethiopian constitution.

Although the government has reported that the militia fighters have been driven out of major towns in Amhara, fighting is still going on in the region.