VIRGINIA BEACH Va.
Freed from a prison in Ethiopia, Yacob Hailemariam is home in Virginia but said he will risk arrest again in his homeland to promote democratic rule.
“There is a chance we could go back to prison, but what are you going to do?” he asked. “We have made promises to the people, and we can’t renege on those promises.”
In August, Hailemariam was among three dozen dissidents released after their arrests in 2005. None had been charged in court.
Ethiopia freed the opposition leaders following international condemnation and strong pressure from the United States. Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, the target of the dissidents, announced the pardons.
While the opposition won an unprecedented number of parliamentary seats in the 2005 vote, it did not win enough to topple Meles. The opposition claimed the voting was rigged, and European Union observers said it was marred by irregularities.
Hailemariam, 63, was a former U.N. special envoy and a former professor at Norfolk State University.
