Swedish journalists jailed

Two Swedish journalists are considering a legal appeal after an Ethiopian court on Tuesday sentenced them to 11 years in prison for supporting terrorism and entering the country illegally.

The court had found reporter Martin Schibbye and photographer Johan Persson guilty of the charges last week.

They were arrested in July after entering Ethiopia's Ogaden Province from Somalia with members of the outlawed Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF).

Schibbye and Persson admit entering the country illegally but deny supporting terrorism.

Authorities had also charged them with receiving weapons training.

Angry reaction

Last week's guilty verdict was slammed in Sweden, where Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said the two journalists were innocent and should be let free.

The convictions also provoked anger and accusations in the Swedish media that the case was politically motivated.

Rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have criticized the trial, and the Swedish Union of Journalists has called for Schibbye and Persson's release.

Outside court in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, defense lawyer Abebe Balcha noted the judges had originally planned to hand down longer sentences of more than 14 years, but that the sentence had been reduced because of the "reputation of the defendants."

Schibbye and Persson say they met ONLF leaders in London and Nairobi before travelling to Ethiopia as part of a journalistic investigation into the activities of Swedish oil firm Lundin Oil.

The ONLF has been fighting for independence of Ethiopia's southeastern Ogaden region since 1984.

Auhtor: Zulfikar Abbany (AFP, dpa, Reuters)
Editor: Andreas Illmer