Deputy Chairman of the opposition Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC), Bekele still faces an uncertain future because of the serious 'criminal' charges that the state prosecutor has lodged against
him and his comrades, most of whom are in prison.
According to Addis Standard, a federal high court "acquitted five of the 22 defendants, reduced the terrorism charge against Bekele Gerba to criminal charges, and ordered the remaining 16 to defend the terrorism charges brought by the federal prosecutors."Bekele's release on bail has been met with mixed reactions by his family, and his daughter, Boontu Bekele, was quoted by Addis Standard as saying:
“We are relieved that the Supreme court granted my father the bail, but we are at the same time worried that he is facing serious criminal charges; we are even more worried because we know all the charges against him were politically motivated."
According to Addis Standard, Bekele Gerba, who was detained on Dec. 23 2015 for the second time since 2011, during which he was sentenced to eight years in prison suspected of allegedly belonging to the banned Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). He spent almost four of the eight years before he was freed in April 2015. In a May 2015 interview with Addis Standard, Bekele Gerba, known for his outspoken criticism of widespread injustices in Ethiopia, said prison was “not a place one appreciates to be. But I think it is also the other way of life as an Ethiopian; unfortunately it has become the fate of many of our people.”
Bekele Gerba will return to the federal high court 4th criminal bench on Monday Nov. 06 to begin defending the criminal charges against him. Currently, more than three dozens of the OFC leadership and rank and file members are in jail, including the party’s chairman Dr. Merera Gudina,
who is facing multiple criminal charges,
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