The government of Ethiopia on Saturday pardoned 576 inmates
including prominent opposition leader Andargachew Tsige.Andargachew
Tsige was sentenced to death in absentia in 2009 over his role in the
opposition group Ginbot 7, leading to his arrest in Yemen and
extradition to Ethiopia five years later.
Attorney General Berhanu Tsegaye on Saturday said Tsige has been
pardoned “under special circumstances” along with 575 other inmates.
Andargachew Tsige with British citizenship served as
secretary-general of the anti-government group, Ginbot 7 -which has been
branded as a terrorist organization by the government in Addis Ababa.
The release is the latest in a series of pardons after two and half
years of unrest mainly in Oromia and Amhara, the country’s largest
ethnic group
The decisions were made with the “intention of widening political space,” the Attorney General told reporters.
Thousands of prisoners, including several senior opposition leaders,
have been freed since January having been slapped with a variety of
charges such as terrorism or incitement to topple the government.
Among the pardoned are those whose charges brought against them and
individuals granted amnesty in a special circumstance by the board of
pardon and approved by the president.
The decision was made as the individuals have demonstrated remorse,
the Attorney General said, adding it is also aimed at broadening the
political space.
Among those who were pardoned on Saturday, 18 were female.
Ginbot 7 is among five groups Addis Ababa has blacklisted under
anti-terror legislation, alongside the secessionist groups Oromo
Liberation Front and the Ogaden National Liberation Front, as well as al
Qaeda and Somalia’s al Shabaab.