Caalaa Haayiluu: The Guy in the Next Cell | A Radio Documentary in Swedish about an Oromo Prisoner of Conscience in Ethiopia’s Prison

The following is a 49-minute radio documentary in Swedish by journalist Martin Schibbye for Sveriges Radio; Martin Schibbye was unlawfully imprisoned in Ethiopia’s notorious prison – Maikelawi – in early 2010’s. Next to his prison’s cell was Caalaa Haayiluu, an Oromo poet and prisoner of conscience – Caalaa Haayiluu was one of the estimated 30,000 Oromo prisoners of conscience; these prisoners are tortured and harassed for being Oromo as Amnesty International reported last year. Oromo is the biggest ethno-national group in Ethiopia, but the Ethiopian government is controlled by a minority hegemonic group hailing from North Ethiopia – the Ethiopian state’s/government’s policy is to eradicate anything of Oromo (through genocide and ethnocide), and replace it with the minority group’s national identities (with the ultimate goal of dispossessing the Oromo nation of its ancestral land and natural resources) — for this reason, poets – such as Caalaa Haayiluu – who write in the Oromo language (Afan Oromo) or those individuals who practice Oromo culture (Aadaa Oromo) or the Oromo religion (Amantaa Oromo), or study Oromo history (Seenaa Oromo) – are targeted for torture and harassment by the Ethiopian government. Caalaa’s crime is nothing but writing in Afan Oromo, the language the Ethiopian government wants to relegate to the regional level for a slow extinction, then replacement by the language from North Ethiopia.

(Source: Sveriges Radio)

Translated from Swedish using Google’s Translate service (the contextual meaning can be lost during this computerized translation.)

The Guy in the Next Cell (Sveriges Radio)

The poet Caalaa sat in the cell next to journalist Martin Schibbye at the police station in Addis Ababa [Finfinne]. He was tortured daily. Later, Caalaa, fleeing for his life, ended up alone in a wintry Hälsingland.

During Martin Schibbye and Johan Persson’s time in a cell at the police station in Addis Ababa [Finfinne], they could, some days, see how the prisoners were taken up in the exercise yard of an underground part of the station. The prisoners squinted against the bright light and were in poor conditions. At night, you could hear the screams from neighboring cells.

One of them shouting was Caalaa Haayiluu Abaataa, a young poet from the Oromo nation – imprisoned and tortured for his dissident poems. Martin threw a package Ethiopian “Nyala” cigarettes to him on one occasion and communicated through hand signals when the guards did not see them.

When Martin became free, he never thought he would see Caalaa again. But in December 2012, he received a friend request onFacebook from a refugee camp in Sudan. It was Caalaa – who had fled to the Sudan.

The situation in the camp was terrible, his friends had been killed by Ethiopian security forces and gangs of traffickers operating in the camps. He feared for his life and felt he fled from bad to worse.

“I am coming to Sweden,” he writes to Martin suddenly on a spring day in May. He has been accepted as a refugee en route to Sweden, and he will take a course in Swedish Migration Board director and then fly to Sweden. When he lands at the airport, he meets Martin up and has since followed Caalaa’s life as a quota refugee in Färila in Hälsingland. Now begins his real challenge.

The documentary “The Guy in the Next Cell,” is made by Martin Schibbye.

Grabben i cellen bredvid (Sveriges Radio)

Poeten Caalaa satt i cellen bredvid journalisten Martin Schibbye på polisstationen i Addis Abeba. Han torteras dagligen. Caalaa flyr för sitt liv och hamnar ensam i ett vintrigt Hälsingland.

Under Martin Schibbye och Johan Perssons tid i en cell på polisstationen i Addis Abeba kunde de en del dagar se hur fångar togs upp på rastgården från en underjordisk del av polisstationen. Fångarna kisade mot det starka ljuset och var i dåligt skick. På nätterna hörde man skrik från granncellerna.

En av dem som skrek var Caalaa Haayiluu Abaataa, en ung poet från Oromofolket som fängslats och torterades för sina regimkritiska dikter. Martin kastade ett paket etiopiska “Nyala”-cigaretter till honom vid ett tillfälle och kommunicerade via handsignaler när vakterna inte såg dem.

När Martin blev fri trodde han aldrig att han skulle se Caalaa igen. Men i december 2012 fick han en vänförfrågan på Facebook från ett flyktingläger i Sudan. Det var Caalaa som hade flytt.

Situationen i lägret var fruktansvärd, vänner till honom hade dödats av etiopisk säkerhetstjänst och ligor med människohandlare opererade i lägren. Han fruktade för sitt liv och kände att han flytt ur askan i elden.

”I am coming to Sweden” skriver han plötsligt till Martin en vårdag i maj. Han har blivit antagen som kvotflykting och han kommer att gå en kurs i Migrationsverkets regi för att därefter flyga till Sverige. När han landar på Arlanda möter Martin upp honom och har sedan följt Caalaas liv som kvotflykting i Färila i Hälsingland. Nu börjar hans verkliga utmaning.

Dokumentären Grabben i cellen bredvid är gjord av Martin Schibbye.

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