Police raid on news outlet sparks concern over press freedom in Ethiopia

Concerns over press freedom in Ethiopia have been reignited following police raids on the offices of Addis Standard, a privately owned news outlet, and the home of one of its employees.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, in a statement on Tuesday, raised the alarm over the actions, which included the detention of three staff members and the confiscation of electronic equipment.

According to Addis Standard’s publisher and founder, Tsedale Lemma, six plainclothes officers conducted the raid on April 17, taking the newsroom and human resources managers to the Federal Police Crime Investigation Unit for questioning.

The statement noted that officers also raided the home of the outlet’s IT manager earlier that morning, allegedly assaulting him in front of his family before taking him into custody.

All three were released the same day without charges.

Authorities cited suspicions that the outlet was preparing a documentary that could incite violence; an allegation Tsedale denied, saying the outlet does not produce documentaries.

The police, who claimed to have warrants but did not present them, seized a range of devices including laptops, mobile phones, data storage units, and external processing equipment.

Staff were instructed not to speak publicly about the incident.

However, the publisher handed over the passwords for the seized devices, prompting further concern about how the data might be used.

“We cannot guarantee the integrity of any messages or emails sent from the compromised devices,” the publisher, JAKENN Publishing PLC, stated.

Police indicated that the devices could be returned sometime the following week, according to Tsedale.

When contacted, federal police spokesperson Jeylan Abdi, said he could not comment on a matter “currently pending in court” but provided no further details.

Addis Standard staff who visited police headquarters on April 22 reported that they were not informed of any official court proceedings.

CPJ’s Africa Programme Coordinator, Muthoki Mumo, described the raid as part of a broader effort to stifle independent journalism in the country.

“The confiscation of the outlet’s equipment raises grave concerns about potential misuse of sensitive data,” she said, urging authorities to end the investigation and return the seized items.

Ethiopia’s Ministry of Justice and government spokesperson, Legesse Tulu, did not respond to requests for comment.