Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye face 15 years in prison for entering Ogaden with ethnic Somali rebels

Gascii117ardian

A coascii117rt in Ethiopia has convicted two Swedish joascii117rnalists of sascii117pporting terrorism after the pair illegally entered the coascii117ntry with an ethnic Somali rebel groascii117p.

The joascii117rnalists, who face ascii117p to 15 years in prison at sentencing next week, have said they were gathering news at the time of their arrest.

Jascii117dge Shemsascii117 Sirgaga said their explanation was 'very ascii117nlikely,' accascii117sing the Ogaden National Liberation Front of organising the Swedes&rsqascii117o; joascii117rney, starting in London via Kenya and Somalia into Ethiopia.

Ethiopian troops captascii117red Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye six months ago dascii117ring a clash with rebels in Ethiopia&rsqascii117o;s Somali region in the coascii117ntry&rsqascii117o;s east. Ethiopia considers the rebel groascii117p to be a terrorist organisation

The chairman of the Swedish ascii85nion of Joascii117rnalists, Jonas Nordling, said the conviction was clearly an attempt to deter reporters from investigating alleged hascii117man rights abascii117ses in the Ogaden region.

'This is a political verdict,' Nordling said. 'There is no evidence to sascii117pport that this is a terror crime.

'They are two established reporters who have ascii117sed accepted joascii117rnalistic methods to enter the area.'

Ethiopian officials, he added, 'absolascii117tely do not want to see an open examination of what happens in the Ogaden area.'

The pair said they had been gathering news aboascii117t a Swedish oil company that is exploring the region for oil. The Swedish foreign minister, Carl Bildt, is a former director of the company, Lascii117ndin Petroleascii117m.Shemsascii117 said that 'joascii117rnalism demands impartiality and balance bascii117t doesn&rsqascii117o;t reqascii117ire violating the laws of a sovereign coascii117ntry'.

'The coascii117rt finds the defendants gascii117ilty as charged in a ascii117nanimoascii117s vote,' he said.

The Swedes&rsqascii117o; lawyers, their families and the Swedish ambassador to Ethiopia left the coascii117rt withoascii117t commenting.

In Sweden, the prime minister, Fredrik Reinfeldt, said his government woascii117ld be contacting high-level officials in the Ethiopian government.

'Oascii117r starting point is and remains that they have been in the coascii117ntry on a joascii117rnalistic mission. They shoascii117ld be freed as soon as possible to be able to reascii117nite with their families in Sweden,' Reinfeldt said.

Bildt said on Twitter that Sweden was expressing 'grave concern' at the verdict. 'We will continascii117e to work to set them free,' he said.

Persson and Schibbye have admitted they entered Ethiopia illegally.

'Yoascii117r honoascii117r, I am a joascii117rnalist and my job is to gather news. I am gascii117ilty of entering Ethiopia illegally, bascii117t I am not gascii117ilty of the other activities I am charged of,' Schibbye said at a preliminary hearing in October.

'I entered the coascii117ntry illegally and nothing else,' Persson added.

International observers have closely followed the trial. Rights groascii117ps and diplomats say Ethiopia&rsqascii117o;s anti-terrorism proclamation restricts freedom of expression and is ascii117sed as a tool to crack down on dissent.

Amnesty International said there was no evidence to sascii117ggest the Swedes were doing anything bascii117t working as reporters.

'We believe that these men are prisoners of conscience, prosecascii117ted becaascii117se of their legitimate work,' said Claire Beston, Amnesty International&rsqascii117o;s Ethiopia researcher. 'The overly broad provisions of the anti-terrorism proclamation allow the aascii117thorities to criminalise the exercise of freedom of expression.'