ANDARGACHEW TSIGE, an exiled Ethiopian opposition leader with British
nationality, could be facing the death penalty after apparently being
arrested and sent back to his country of origin while on a trip to the Gulf.
While transiting in Yemen on June 23rd, during a journey from Dubai to
Eritrea, Andargachew mysteriously ended up on a plane to Ethiopia. It is
believed that he was detained by Yemeni officials and handed over to members
of Ethiopia's security apparatus.
Andargachew was charged by the Ethiopian authorities with terrorism and
sentenced, in absentia, to death, at two separate trials between 2009 and
2012. Following post-election protests in 2005 he had fled the country and
been granted asylum in Britain, where he created Ginbot 7, a leading
opposition movement.
Now in the hands of the state which had legally prepared for his execution,
his family are concerned about Andargachew's safety. "The British embassy
has still not been granted consular access," says his wife, Yemisrach
Hailemariam, who lives in London. "We are deeply concerned he is being
tortured and they will wait for his wounds to be healed before anyone can
see him."
There are concerns that Yemen's government did not follow the correct
procedures for extradition. It is believed that Andargachew was arrested and
flown to Addis Ababa without British officials being formally alerted.
According to Anand Doobay, an extradition expert at Peters & Peters, a law
firm, under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations the British embassy
should have been notified that one of its citizens was being detained and
given the chance to visit him. "Sometimes there is no legal extradition
process and then there is a risk that rendition can take place following
informal contact between police forces," he says.
In recent years Ethiopia has conducted several extraditions with varying
degrees of legality. Recently Okello Okuway, a Norwegian national, was
arrested in South Sudan and extradited to Ethiopia. In June he was brought
to court and faces terrorism charges. Prior to that Kenya detained and
extradited two Ethiopian members of the Oromo ethnic group accused of having
links to Oromo rebels, who were then sentenced to life in prison. One of
them died in 2013 serving his term. Kenya also detained and sent a Canadian
passport holder back to Ethiopia, where he faces terrorism charges for
alleged links rebels from the Ogaden region. Human Rights Watch states that
various other political refugees have been sent back from neighbouring
countries.
"The region has always been dangerous for political activists," says Jawar
Mohammed, an Ethiopian political commentator based in America. "However, in
the past kidnapping or assassinations were carried out by the Ethiopian
security. Now such action is being undertaken by security services of the
neighboring countries. This makes it extremely dangerous." He believes that
Yemeni officials may have been eager to take a knock at the government of
Eritrea, Andargachew's destination, because of the ongoing conflict between
Yemen and Eritrea over the Hanish islands in the Red Sea.
Now that Andargachew is on Ethiopian soil, where he is considered a
terrorist, his fate remains uncertain. His wife has called on the British
government to step up their efforts. "If the British government allows
Ethiopia to get away with kidnapping its citizen in international territory
and stands by as they continue to torture, detain, and potentially execute
my husband, then it sets a very bad precedent for the security of any Brit
travelling abroad," she says. British diplomats say they are demanding
access to Andargachew, so far without success.