Tweet chats happen when a group of people all tweet about the same topic using a specific hashtag (#). #Kality tweet chat took place on Thursday, December 19th at 11 am ET in New York and Washington, DC.
Tadias Magazine
News Update
Friday, December 20th, 2013
New York (TADIAS) — On Thursday, December 19th, one of the most popular trending conversations on Twitter was taking place under the hashtag #Kality. The Tweet chat, hosted by the International Women’s Media Foundation (@IWMF) and the Media Legal Defense Initiative (@MLDI), was intended to bring exposure to the declining state of press freedom in Ethiopia and the status of independent journalists languishing at the infamous Kality prison. According to hashtracking.com, #kality was used over 1500 times within a 14 hour period and may have been seen by as many as 6 million Twitter users.
Below are some of the tweets:
How can #Ethiopia's govt be taken seriously on genuine threats of terror when their convicted terrorists are journalists? @DrTedros #kality
— africa @pressfreedom (@africamedia_CPJ) December 19, 2013
#Kality A destination for Ethiopian journalist who dare to write the truth #Ethiopia
— Habesha Girl (@GirlHabesha) December 19, 2013
#kality – God willing, that place one day will be turned to school once political prisoners are set free.
— Abesha Think Tank ® (@AbeshaT) December 19, 2013
Journalists should not be jailed for reporting the news or expressing their views #Kality
— Karin Karlekar (@karinkarlekar) December 19, 2013
Dear @DrTedros please follow #Kality Hashtag so that you and your gov't mercy will be upon the journalist and political prisoners #Ethiopia
— Edom K. Gelan (@Edomka) December 19, 2013
development aint happen by suppressing freedom of expression #kality…..free Reyot Alemu
— yohannes gebremichae (@amstkilo) December 19, 2013
R @Soli_GM: Article 29 of constitution granted freedom of expression, respect the constitution & free all journalists in #Kality. #Ethiopia
— Safe World for Women (@safeworld4women) December 20, 2013
As Africans, we know that exposing the truth about what is happening in our nations will get us in real peril… but else can we do? #Kality
— Olivia Mbala-Nkanga (@LiviMateso) December 20, 2013
#Ethiopia re-defining #Terrorism: it's done wen u attack the wrong doing of z gov't by a massive destruction weapon called a #Pen #Kality"
— Munira ★ (@falsafathabesh) December 19, 2013
#Kality የነፃነት ጀግኖች ለጊዜው የተጠለሉባትና መስዋዕትነት እየከፈሉባት ያሉበት ታሪካዊ ቦታ #Ethiopia, #Kality
— Yenetsanet Gohe (@YenetsanetGohe) December 19, 2013
ጋዜጠኞች ጋዜጠኞች እንጂ አጎብዳጆች እንዲሆኑ አንፈልግም! ማሰር፣ ማሰደድና ማስፈራራት ይቁም! #Kality #Ethiopia
— Jomanex Kassaye (@jomanex) December 19, 2013
@DrTedros hello sir.Could you please follow #kality Hashtag? very interesting issues that the gov't ought to adress are being raised.
Thanks
— maedi (@maedi8) December 19, 2013
#Kality : a place where common crimes, rape, terrorism, murder, corruption, #freedom, Patriotism and Journalism treated same way. #Ethiopia
— Abenezer Germande (@Abenezer2003) December 19, 2013
#EPRDF if you are not powered by corruption let #PressFreedom Flourish! Free them all #Kality #Ethiopia
— Jomanex Kassaye (@jomanex) December 19, 2013
Massive respect to all prisoners of conscience as they are fighting for our freedom. #Ethiopia #Kality #FreedomOfExpression
— Abel (@Abelo24) December 19, 2013
Kudos to Reeyot and other brave and imprisoned journos in #Ethiopia – making a difference in the fight for press freedom worldwide. #kality
— Gwen Lister (@GwenLister1) December 19, 2013
#Zone9 has been added to #Kality map. ZONE9 is where the Information and Security Ministries smash dissent #Ethiopia pic.twitter.com/rHi8lRdN6A
— Matthew P-F (@mattpfunk) December 19, 2013
inevitably freedom will overwhelm Ethiopia! Eskinder Nega. Journalist. #Kality.
— African HornET (@African_HornET) December 19, 2013
All prisoners of conscious in #Kality are accused as terrorist by the regime but their biggest crime is saying/writing the truth #Ethiopia
— Zerayacob Getachew (@Zeray_g) December 19, 2013
Powerful messages coming through hashtag #Kality. Follow, tweet and speak up for those unlawfully jailed.
— ማሂሾዬ (@Mahlet_S) December 19, 2013
gov should know most of our heros were once prisoners #kality
— Arade Tariku (@arade_t) December 19, 2013
#Kality – a place where political prisoners are Jailed & tortured. #Ethiopia
— Häq | ሐቅ (@Afri_Kawi) December 19, 2013
Citizens are expected to criticize their leaders and the journalist to report, they don't belong in #Kality for reporting the fact #Ethiopia
— nazrawi (@nazrawi1) December 19, 2013
One tng is for sure at z end z truth will win & press freedom will flourish in Ethiopia #kality
— sam T (@sammyhabesha) December 19, 2013
Based on http://t.co/KTn6UKrkbF 's stats, our hashtag was used over 1500 times in the past 14 hours #Kality. Logging off to rest our eyes
— MLDI – Media Defence (@MLDI) December 19, 2013
Ethiopia's jailed journalists and political prisoners are Nelson #Mandela's children – #FreeEskinder #ReeyotAlemu #Kality
— Fasiledes (@Fasiledesfasil) December 19, 2013
We need our freedom of expression just as we need food if not more..its our inherent right.poorness doesn't justify suprression #Kality #Eth
— maedi (@maedi8) December 19, 2013
Journalists shouldn't fear government. It should be the other way round. #Accountability #Kality #Ethiopia
— Fasil (@Susenyos) December 19, 2013
@TeBeyo @MartinSchibbye was only one in #Kality tweetchat who could give a personal account of conditions there. We aksed him to share those
— Peter Noorlander (@PeterNoorlander) December 19, 2013
ፈራን፣ ፍቅር ፈራን። ጭቆናን ወደድን። #Kality
— eli as (@EliasMekonen) December 19, 2013
Opposing the #Ethiopia|n Govt, speaking out against it can land you @ #Kality.
— Häq | ሐቅ (@Afri_Kawi) December 19, 2013
#Eth is z only country which use z word "terrorist" 4 z journalist & activists.#Kality
— assaye degu (@assayedegu) December 19, 2013
ነገሮች በዚህ ሁኔታ ከቀጠሉ ማተሚያ ቤቶች ቃሊቲ ውስጥ ቢሮ ስለመክፈት ማሰብ እንዳለባቸው መምከር ስህተት የሚሆን አይመስለኝም #Kality
— Amar Al amin (@AmarAlamin) December 19, 2013
@AbeshaT where do you intend to transfer all #Kality prisoners? and what's the point? you got some beef with the location of #Kality?:)
— Dagmawi Walelign (@DagmawiWalelign) December 19, 2013
Where is the home of freedom seekers and truth diggers? #kality #Ethiopia
— Fisseha (@tinesese) December 19, 2013
@martinschibbye
This is a map of #kality. Overcrowded, hot, dusty, lack of water, full of rats and fleas and… http://t.co/0WQVPbpKGK
— daniel mekonen (@kiakorma) December 19, 2013
@DagmawiWalelign Others criminals will be jailed at other places. And #Kality will be transformed to a school. That's what I mean. Gebah!
— Abesha Think Tank ® (@AbeshaT) December 19, 2013
@MLDI @TeBeyo It's not about their views. There are still many journos writing similar views in Ethiopia now. Abide by the law #Kality
— Dagmawi Walelign (@DagmawiWalelign) December 19, 2013
ጋዜጠኞችን የሚፈራ ሌባ መንግስት ነው #Ethiopia #Kality
— Abel (@Abelo24) December 19, 2013
ጋዜጠኛ የሱፍ ጌታቸው እንደሌሎች ታሳሪ ጋዜጠኞች ትኩረት ሊሰጠው ይገባል free yesuf getachew #kality #Ethiopia @fisseha505 f @zerecon z @Soli_GM so @faantish
— abdurehim (@abdurehimderesa) December 19, 2013
@MLDI there's been an estimated 1013 tweets this hour! #kality GREAT!
— Addis Standard (@addisstandard) December 19, 2013
@DagmawiWalelign How many papers are closed in #Ethiopia? Reporting the truth is not breaking z law it is called journalism. #Kality
— Abenezer Germande (@Abenezer2003) December 19, 2013
Thank you @TweetChat, for making the #Kality tweet chat promoting #PressFreedom in #Ethiopia a success.
— IWMF (@IWMF) December 19, 2013
My respect 2 @IWMF @pen_int @MLDI @safeworld4women @freedomnoworg @pressfreedom & @Kalityfonden 4 #kality chat! Journalism is not Terrorism!
— KirubelAlmazTeshome (@kiruskyy) December 19, 2013
@DagmawiWalelign @TeBeyo argument against is that they are not terrorists. #ReeyotAlemu, #EskinderNega should not be in #Kality prison
— MLDI – Media Defence (@MLDI) December 19, 2013
"I was made, by the law, a criminal not bcz of what i had done, but bcz of what i stood for" #Kality #Ethiopia #EskindirNega #ReeyotAlemu
— Abelo d. (@abelo_d) December 19, 2013
RT @MLDI you've all been wonderful there's been an estimated 1013 tweets this hour! #kality
— Freedom Now (@freedomnoworg) December 19, 2013
RT @IWMF RT @martinschibbye It’s not us that are fighting for their freedom, but the imprisoned journalists in #kality fighting for ours
— Nani Jansen (@NaniMLDI) December 19, 2013
thank you thank you thank you for massive show of supprot for #EskinderNega and #ReeyotAlemu! #kality
— MLDI – Media Defence (@MLDI) December 19, 2013
Don't forget. It’s not us that are fighting for their freedom, but rather the imprisoned journalists in #kality, who are fighting for ours.
— Martin Schibbye (@martinschibbye) December 19, 2013
Thank you to @martinschibbye for your account of what is happening in #Kality. Thank you for fighting for the truth.
— Olivia Mbala-Nkanga (@LiviMateso) December 19, 2013
True stories neither destroyed nor created by jailing truth tellers. Free #ReeeyotAlemu #EskendirNega #Kality
— Michael Degife ሚኲ (@asfaw_michael) December 19, 2013
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International Women’s Media Foundation
Christiane Amanpour, IWMF Board of Directors
Ethiopian journalists Reeyot Alemu and Eskinder Nega have been locked up in Ethiopia’s Kality prison since 2011 – simply for being journalists trying to hold their government accountable for its actions. Although they have been honored with numerous prestigious journalism awards, the Ethiopian authorities continue to insist that Reeyot Alemu and Eskinder Nega are terrorists. There is no doubt that their arrests and convictions were politically motivated and that their rights as journalists, who are constitutionally protected by freedom of the press, have been violated.
Last year, we had the honor of hosting the 2012 Courage in Journalism Award for the International Women’s Media Foundation. It was a moving, even glittering event. But there was one striking absence. Journalist Reeyot Alemu could not come to New York to receive her award because she is languishing in an Ethiopian prison.
Read more at IWMF.
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Related:
CPJ: Eritrea, Ethiopia, Egypt Among Worst Journalist Jailers (VOA News)
“Write for Rights” Campaign Launched for Journalist Eskinder Nega (Video)
International Rights Group Appeals for Release of Reporter Jailed for 18 Years (AP)
Ethiopia: A Lifeline to the World — Wire Interview With Birtukan Mideksa
Taking Eskinder Nega & Reeyot Alemu’s Case to African Court on Human Rights (TADIAS)
CPJ Special Report on the Obama Administration’s War on the Press (CPJ)
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