The arrest and detention of Kjetil Tronvoll, a highly regarded and engaged scholar with a particular expertise on Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa, will have a chilling effect on freedom of expression and academic inquiry.
Since the assassination of Haacaaluu Hundeessa, the Ethiopian state has returned to its default position - a police state - where security forces arrest critical opponents of the PM, weaponizing the rule of law and the court system, and deploying Orwellian doublespeak to confuse the masses. This incident highlights just how emboldened and intolerant this neo-Neftegna regime has become. It is intended to send the message that the state no longer cares about public opinion (domestic or international) and that it would not tolerate anyone second-guessing the PM's pastoral decision.
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