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ETHIOPIA-RELEASE-PRISONERS
Ethiopia releases an unprecedented 8,875 prisoners as a goodwill New Year
gesture
ADDIS ABABA, Sept 11, 2018 (BSS/Xinhua) – The Ethiopian government
announced on Tuesday it has released an unprecedented 8,875 prisoners as part
of a goodwill Ethiopian New Year gesture.
The Ethiopian New Year, or Enkutatash in Amharic language, falls on
September 11 (or September 12 during a leap year), as the East African nation
uses calendar that counts its year seven to eight years behind the Gregorian
calendar. Presently the country is celebrating the arrival of 2011, which
commenced on September 11.
The prisoners were released from prisons located in Amhara, Oromia,
Benishangul Gumuz and Gambella regional states and are part of the Ethiopian
government strategy of fostering peace and reconciliation in the country,
reported state media outlet Ethiopia Broadcasting Corporation (EBC).
The released prisoners are expected to re-join their families and re-
integrate into the wider society, with the hope they become productive and
law abiding citizens of Ethiopia.
The mass prisoner releases have included members of various rebel groups
who had been jailed on offences ranging from membership in previously banned
organizations to committing high treason.
The mass prisoner releases timed to coincide with the Ethiopian New Year
2011 are part of the Ethiopian government’s call for unity and peace among
the country’s estimated 100 million population.
In a televised statement at the eve of Ethiopian New Year, Ethiopian
President Mulatu Teshome, urged Ethiopians to uphold unity and abstain from
destructive acts during the 2011 Ethiopian New Year.
Noting the release of thousands of prisoners, return of various high-
profile Ethiopian opposition figures, activists and government critics from
exile after agreements with the Ethiopian government during the past four
months period, Teshome also called for building the nation together.
The Ethiopian 2011 comes as Ethiopia is seeming to come out of almost
three years of political turmoil following the coming of Prime Minister Abiy
Ahmed to the east African country’s leadership. Ahmed assumed office in
April. Ahmed, in his New Year eve remarks to the Ethiopian people, also
echoed the president’s message, saying that “Ethiopia is a country we share,
and we have to work for peaceful co-existence and prosperity.”
BSS/XINHUA/FI/ 1644 hrs