Ethiopia’s former Marxist leader, Mengistu Haile Mariam, has been sentenced to die by the country’s Supreme Court which heard his petition for leniency and rejected it. The court acted on a request by the prosecution to toughen the sentence of life impris
An army lieutenant colonel who ruled Ethiopia from 1977, Mengistu launched a crackdown on his opponents known as the Red Terror. Tens of thousands were killed or disappeared during this time. Mengistu and his top aides were also accused of the murders of former Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie, whom they overthrew in 1974, and Orthodox Patriarch Abuna Tefelows.
Supreme Court Judge Desta Gebru, in rejecting leniency this week, said: ”All defendants are guilty of genocide, murder and illegal confiscation and detainment of innocent people. As a result, they will be handed out the most severe punishment in Ethiopian law.”
Sentenced to death along with Mengistu were Legesse Afsaw, known as ”the butcher of Tigre,” former vice-president Fisseha Desta and former prime minister Fikresellassie Wogderes. Meanwhile, Zimbabwe continues to rule out the former leader’s extradition, saying, ”Comrade Mengistu remains a special guest.”
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