(By Kirubel Tadesse- Capital)
Former prosecutor Shimelis Kemal has been appointed State Minister of the newly established Government Communications Office, Capital has learned.
Shimelis, 47, has served as deputy chief prosecutor at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) from 2005-2007. He is well known as for prosecuting the former Coalition for Unity and Democracy Party (CUDP) leaders, and members alongside some civil society organization representatives and journalists. The court later found the defendants guilty and sentenced most of them to life. Government pardons had followed on the eve of Ethiopian millennium celebrations, almost 18 months ago, to free them.
Addis Ababa University law graduate Shimelis will now work under Bereket Simon, who was recently sworn in as minister for the Government Communication Office. It was the Council of Ministers on December 19 last year that had issued a regulation establishing the office.
This Regulation 158/2008 also transferred the dissolved Ministry of Information’s rights and obligations to the new office, empowered to provide leadership in government communications. The office will also act as government spokesperson and is responsible for issuing permits to foreign correspondents stationed here in Ethiopia.
Also transferring some other responsibilities to Minister Bereket and State Minister Shimelis, Parliament early last week has approved key positions.
Bereket is appointed as Chairman of the Board of the Ethiopian Radio and Television Agency. State Minister Shimelis who has worked as an editor in local private press now chairs the Board of the Ethiopian Press Agency.
Shimelis had worked as an editor in two Amharic newspapers, Reporter and Nishan, for three years.
Netsanet Asfaw retains the chairmanship of the board of Ethiopian News Agency.
The parliament approved the appointments of the chairpersons of the two agencies with 277 votes for, 28 votes against, and with 32 abstentions. Before taking a month long recess beginning today, the house also approved two committees responsible to nominate commissioners of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission and the Ombudsman. The current commissioners’ terms will expire after five months.
Last Thursday in its 25th regular meeting, parliament endorsed the members of the two committees, both chaired by Speaker of the House, Ambassador Teshome Toga.
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