#Humanrights #Ethiopia One of the activities that human rights council (Ethiopia) conducting is to monitor the human rights situation in #Ethiopia and recommending possible actions for improvement. The following press release was announced on February 22 on #TheRightoftheAccusedtobePresumedInnocent on the leaders of Muslim community which are still standing trial at Ethiopian #highcourt. #PressRelease The Right of the Accused to be Presumed Innocent Is Being Trampled! On the night of February 5, 2013 the Ethiopian Radio and Television Agency (ERTA) has broadcasted a documentary film produced by the Federal Police in collaboration with the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS). This documentary carries the title ‘Jihadawi Harekat’, the main objective of the whole episode being to prove to the public that the Leaders of the Muslim Committee that are now standing trial at the Federal High Court are criminals. The film depicts these accused leaders and organizers of a terrorist group responsible for a conspiracy in terrorism and Jihad comparing them with the Boko Haram of Nigeria and Al Shabaab of Somalia and Al Qaeda. Despite the allegation that NISS has ample evidence over the years of its follow up and investigation of their criminal activities the only evidence that was being shown in the film is a self incriminating testimony of the suspects. This documentary film was produced by the Federal Police and the Intelligence service, institutions that are supposed to provide evidence to the Federal Prosecutors at the Ministry of Justice which at the moment has charged these suspects over terrorism at the Federal High Court. It is worth noting that these institutions are tramping upon the constitutional rights of citizens whom they are supposed to protect. The act violetes the constitutional right of the accused to be presumed innocent until proven guilty since the suspects have pleaded not guilty on the charges in a court of law. By painting these suspects as criminals, before the court passes such a judgment, within the wider public, the documentary also creates immense psychological pressure on their witnesses who might be scared to come out and testify for people already declared as terrorists. More importantly, the two institutions of the Federal Police and NISS have gone beyond their constitutional mandate and jeopardized the independence and integrity of the court by the double standard prosecution they inflicted upon the accused. On the one hand these institutions work along the Federal prosecutor by investigating and providing evidence to the case for which the court alone has the power to accept or reject before it passes its decision. On the other hand the institutions have made out their case outside the court of law by painting the same accused people that have been charged upon terrorism in a court of law as criminals within the wider public. This act does tramp on the their right to claim and presume themselves as innocent until proven guilty, a verdict only the court can give. The documentary film is also likely to create bias and undue influence on the judges, and might adversely affect the outcome of the case. This documentary will also put the court at the risk of loosing its trust and confidence by the public which has been pushed to making its mind over the criminality of the accused by a state media. As such the act of the Federal Police and the Ethiopian Intelligence and Security Service has also transgressed upon the integrity and independence of the court whose decision can only pronounce the accused as terrorists as charged. Link for download https://docs.google/file/d/0B0a4Sy8DldHgWUQxSDFPOWM2NHc/edit?usp=sharing
Posted on: Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:35:03 +0000
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