ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — Ethiopian government prosecutors yesterday asked for the death penalty for a former Norfolk State University professor and 37 other politicians and activists. They have been accused of inciting violence in an attempt to overthrow the government.
The court is expected to issue a sentence on July 16. The accused, who have chosen not to defend themselves, did not speak during yesterday’s session but will have a chance to do so during next week’s court session.
“They have not shown any sign of regret in the court, and they have not [accepted] the sovereignty of the court,” prosecutor Abraham Tetemke said during yesterday’s court session. “Therefore we request that they should be punished with capital punishment.”
Yacob Hailemariam, 63, began teaching at NSU about 20 years ago before taking early retirement to return to his native Ethiopia to run for parliament in its May 2005 election. The former business law professor was imprisoned in October 2005 after winning election to parliament as a pro-democracy opposition candidate.
Contacted by phone at her Virginia Beach home, Hailemariam’s daughter said yesterday she was shocked.
“It’s very upsetting,” said Seyenie Yacob, who had visited her father in an Ethiopian prison this year.
She said she had no means to contact her father yesterday. “We will have to wait until next Monday when the judges are going to say what they are going to do with the [sentencing] recommendation.
In a previous interview with The Times-Dispatch, Seyenie Yacob expressed confidence that other governments would persuade the Ethiopian government to drop its charges. That remains her hope.
“We’re hoping [the sentencing recommendation] will show to the international community how serious this is and maybe there’s something the international community can do, including the U.S. government.”
The prosecution said they felt the maximum penalty was appropriate for the leaders, who were part of a group of more than 100 people jailed for allegedly inciting violence after Ethiopia’s controversial May 2005 elections. Although there is a death row in Ethiopia, no one has been executed in at least eight years.
“They have attempted an outrage against the constitution and the constitutional order, and attempted to disintegrate the nation,” Tetemke said. “They have created violence and many people lost their lives. . . . This criminal act has caused a serious social crisis.”
After court adjourned, family members of the accused shuffled out silently, some wiping away tears.
Mulatu Teklu, 67, walked dazedly out of court after he learned that his youngest son, 32-year-old Yenene Mulatu, could die for his actions.
“I’m very sorry,” he said, shaking his head. “I’m very sorry.”
Others were more optimistic. Asrat Tassie, a former defendant and opposition politician who was among 25 defendants released from jail in April, said he was sure there would be a pardon.
In Washington, a State Department spokesman stopped short of criticizing yesterday’s recommendation.
“We call on the Ethiopian government and high court to take action in making a final sentencing determination, which is consistent with the greater objectives of bolstering the rule of law and promoting much-needed reconciliation,” said the spokesman, Sean McCormack.
Hailemariam is well-known in the international law community. He was lead prosecutor for the United Nations’ International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, which was created in 1995 to try those responsible for the killing of 800,000 people during ethnic massacres in 1994.
Norfolk State students have held rallies and created a Free Yacob Web site at www.freeyacob.com.
Times-Dispatch staff writer Lawrence Latané III contributed to this report.
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