Inside Ethiopia - A talk with the journalist Amir Aman Kiyaro

With around 110 million inhabitants Ethiopia is the second most populated country in Africa and one of the continent's political heavyweights. Although large parts of the population live in poverty Ethiopia was internationally recognized as a model of hopeful development in Africa thanks to its dynamic economic growth. But today Ethiopia has increasingly become a factor of insecurity. Wars in Tigray and the Amhara region serious human rights violations and numerous political conflicts in other parts of the country and with neighbor states are contributing to this situation of instability.

Amir Aman Kiyaro has been reporting for more than three years as a freelance journalist for the Associated Press (AP) on the armed conflicts in Ethiopia's Tigray region. After interviewing fighters of the rebel liberation army he and his cameraman were accused of ‘terrorism’ ‘collaboration with Ethiopia's enemies’. They remained in custody for four months and became targets of hate comments and death threats on social media. With the support of the Hamburg Foundation for the Politically Persecuted (Hamburger Stiftung für politisch Verfolgte) Amir Aman Kiyaro and his family came to Hamburg in May 2024.

Dr. Gerrit Kurtz is a researcher in the Research Division on Africa and the Middle East at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP). His field of study is the Horn of Africa. His latest publication talks about “The Narrow Limits of Ethiopia’s National Dialogue” initiated by the local government. Dr Kurtz had just returned from a two-week research-stay in Ethiopia.

Together with Amir Aman Kiyaro and Dr. Gerrit Kurtz we will discuss the latest developments of the conflict and the current political situation in Ethiopia focusing on the consequences for the population and the press workers. We will take a closer look at the country's perspectives and talk about the possible role of Europe and Germany in its future.

Registration: www.fes.de/lnk/5fk

Host or Publisher Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung e.V.