Freedom of Expression in the Context of Developmental State: The Case of Ethiopia
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Date
2015-11
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Both policy-makers and scholars have turned their attention to the Developmental State model as
a means for alleviating poverty in developing countries. Both theoretical analysis and the
empirical track record of the East Asian Development States point to the model‟s ability to
achieve growth and development in a very short period of time. However, these Developmental
States were not “right-friendly”. Particularly, their treatment of civil and political rights
including freedom of expression has been criticized for not being in conformity with
international standards they subscribed to. The constitutional democracy that Ethiopia has
introduced through the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Constitution has provided the
ideals of democracy. Thus, democratic process is a precondition to every activity of the
government. Consequently, Ethiopia has pledged to adopt Democratic Developmental State
rather than the mainstream Developmental State. The paper attempts to explore the status of
freedom of expression in line with the recent political and legal history after the Developmental
State model is introduced in Ethiopia. Given the history of gross and systematic human rights
violation in Ethiopia, the adoption of the Developmental State model is feared for having a
negative effect on the status of freedom of expression in the country. The paper argues that most
of the signs are indicative of the materialization of this fear. And, given its diversity and
plurality, Ethiopia cannot afford to delay the full application of freedom of expression
indefinitely. The adoption of the Developmental State model was necessitated by the urgency
and intensity of the need to address the country‟s chronic poverty. However, without building
democracy and its necessary components, including the freedom of expression, the development
cannot be sustainable
Key words
Developmental state, freedom of expression, revolutionary democracy, civil and political rights,
socio-economic rights, instrument to development, Ethiopia
Description
Keywords
Developmental state, freedom of expression, revolutionary democracy, civil and political rights, socio-economic rights, instrument to development, Ethiopia