Concern mounts over Dr. Berhanu Nega's condition
EthioMedia/New School
June 30, 2006
ADDIS ABABA - Concern is mounting over the worsening health condition of Dr. Berhanu Nega, the country's first democratically-elected mayor of Addis Ababa now in prison along with other prominent Kinijit leaders and journalists. Though Berhanu was admitted to Police Hospital in Addis, he was discharged after 20 days without proper examination conducted as the hospital had no cardiologist. The New School has more:
On Friday, June 9, Ethiopian political prisoner and New School alumnus Dr. Berhanu Nega was placed in an Ethiopian police hospital after he continually experienced shortness of breath. Doctors there believe he might have suffered a mild heart attack and suggested he see a cardiologist. The police hospital has no staff cardiologist and is unable to perform a complete examination. Nega is awaiting permission from prison officials to consult an outside doctor. His condition is worsening and requires immediate attention.
Nega was arrested on November 1, 2005, and was imprisoned with several prominent members of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy, Ethiopia’s leading opposition party. The arrests followed protests over irregularities in the Ethiopian elections, which resulted in more than 80 people being killed and hundreds wounded. Nega and his political allies are today held on charges of treason - an offense punishable by death under Ethiopian law.
Four months ago, Dr. Nega, a political prisoner in his native Ethiopia, was moved to a rat-infested cell with other leaders of the democratic movement. Dr. Nega has high blood pressure and, two years ago, was diagnosed with a serious case of cardiomyopathy. Recently, doctors warned that Nega’s prison conditions would exacerbate his heart condition. His wife and children, American citizens, worry that Ethiopia does not have the medical expertise and technology to diagnose or treat his condition.
“My brother has never committed any crime,” said Hiwot Nega, his sister, who lives in New York. “He needs to see an expert immediately and the best treatment would be here in the United States.”
After completing his PhD at The New School for Social Research in 1991, Nega joined the economics faculty at Bucknell University. Nega, along with his wife and two children, returned to Ethiopia in 1994, where he taught at the University of Addis Ababa. In 2005, he was the first elected mayor of Addis Ababa in the country’s history. He has served as president of the Ethiopian Economic Association, founded and directed the Ethiopian Economic Policy Research Institute, and consulted for the U.N. Economic Commission for Africa.
In May 2006, Nega received the Graduate Faculty Distinguished Alumni Award from The New School for Social Research.
(Source: New School's Weekly Observer)
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June 30, 2006
ADDIS ABABA - Concern is mounting over the worsening health condition of Dr. Berhanu Nega, the country's first democratically-elected mayor of Addis Ababa now in prison along with other prominent Kinijit leaders and journalists. Though Berhanu was admitted to Police Hospital in Addis, he was discharged after 20 days without proper examination conducted as the hospital had no cardiologist. The New School has more:
On Friday, June 9, Ethiopian political prisoner and New School alumnus Dr. Berhanu Nega was placed in an Ethiopian police hospital after he continually experienced shortness of breath. Doctors there believe he might have suffered a mild heart attack and suggested he see a cardiologist. The police hospital has no staff cardiologist and is unable to perform a complete examination. Nega is awaiting permission from prison officials to consult an outside doctor. His condition is worsening and requires immediate attention.
Nega was arrested on November 1, 2005, and was imprisoned with several prominent members of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy, Ethiopia’s leading opposition party. The arrests followed protests over irregularities in the Ethiopian elections, which resulted in more than 80 people being killed and hundreds wounded. Nega and his political allies are today held on charges of treason - an offense punishable by death under Ethiopian law.
Four months ago, Dr. Nega, a political prisoner in his native Ethiopia, was moved to a rat-infested cell with other leaders of the democratic movement. Dr. Nega has high blood pressure and, two years ago, was diagnosed with a serious case of cardiomyopathy. Recently, doctors warned that Nega’s prison conditions would exacerbate his heart condition. His wife and children, American citizens, worry that Ethiopia does not have the medical expertise and technology to diagnose or treat his condition.
“My brother has never committed any crime,” said Hiwot Nega, his sister, who lives in New York. “He needs to see an expert immediately and the best treatment would be here in the United States.”
In May 2006, Nega received the Graduate Faculty Distinguished Alumni Award from The New School for Social Research.
(Source: New School's Weekly Observer)
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