A/HRC/44/49/Add.1 23. During his meeting with the Attorney General’s Office, the Special Rapporteur was pleased to learn that the Government saw the opening up of media space as a main achievement of the reforms in Ethiopia in recent months. The Prime Minister began his tenure by releasing all journalists from detention, lifting bans on television programmes, and launching a process of revising the draft media law with public consultations. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the decision to reform the Proclamation on Freedom of the Mass Media and Access to Information and the Government’s recognition of the importance of the media in promoting freedom of opinion and expression. Specifically, the Special Rapporteur welcomes the fact that the draft law provides for the establishment of the Ethiopian Media Authority as an autonomous federal government agency, the liberalization of ownership by obliging broadcasters to make programmes accessible to vulnerable groups, and the removal of criminal defamation provisions. 24. The Special Rapporteur hopes that the reform of the Proclamation on Freedom of the Mass Media and Access to Information will have similar benefits for the development of civic space as the successful reform of civil society legislation did. In particular, the Special Rapporteur encourages the creation of the Ethiopian Media Authority in a similar manner to the creation of the Agency for Civil Society Organizations, which appears to have a significant degree of autonomy from the Government and appoints civil society experts to its board. 25. While the Special Rapporteur praises the intention of the authorities to remove criminal liability provisions for defamation in the new media proclamation, he is concerned that the draft text continues to carry civil penalties of up to Br 300,000 (about $9,500). Under article 12 of the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression in Africa, of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, States should ensure that defamation sanctions are never so severe as to inhibit the right to freedom of expression, including by others. The risk of penalty for legitimate expression will always be a disproportionate and excessively punitive measure in response to defamation charges. In part, this is due to the chilling effect felt by journalists, artists, activists and social media users, whose freedom of expression is stifled by fear of imprisonment. Furthermore, States may only interfere with individuals’ right to freedom of expression by articulating a transparent, easily accessible and non-arbitrary legal standard. The Special Rapporteur urges the Government, when drafting the provisions on civil liability for defamation, to consider the chilling effect that sanctions can have on freedom of expression. The Special Rapporteur also asks that the Government continue to hold public forums and consultations that allow for journalists and other media stakeholders to give their inputs on the upcoming new law. 3. New anti-terrorism proclamation 26. The most recent law to undergo the reform process is the Proclamation to Prevent and Control Terrorism, passed in January 2020. The previous proclamation gave the National Intelligence and Security Services the authority to intercept or conduct surveillance of the telephone, Internet and electronic or similar communications of a person suspected of terrorism. It also allowed for punishment from 15 years to life in prison or even the death penalty. These provisions not only resulted in the arbitrary arrest, detention and prosecution of politicians, human rights defenders, journalists and activists exercising legitimate forms of expression, but also created fear that criticizing the Government would lead to the implementation of these harsh penalties. The Special Rapporteur had raised concerns at the broad definition and broad scope of application of the offence of terrorism in the previous anti-terrorism proclamation. 10 Trials conducted under the previous antiterrorism proclamation reportedly had a number of due process concerns, such as lengthy pre-charge detentions, barriers to legal counsel, and absence of judicial independence. The broad interception and surveillance power afforded to the National Intelligence and Security Services created a chilling effect on anyone seeking to exercise the right to freedom of expression. 27. In this context, the Special Rapporteur welcomes the repeal of this legislation and the passage of a new law. The Special Rapporteur notes with satisfaction that the new 10 8 See https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile ?gId=18909. See also A/HRC/WG.6/33/ETH/3, para. 14.