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Ethiopia to Keep State of Emergency Over Protests for Sake of Public Order

© AP PhotoIn this photo taken on Sunday, Oct. 2, 2016, Ethiopian soldiers try to stop protesters in Bishoftu, Ethiopia
In this photo taken on Sunday, Oct. 2, 2016, Ethiopian soldiers try to stop protesters in Bishoftu, Ethiopia - Sputnik International
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Ethiopia imposed state of emergency in the country by concerns related to public order.

Members of the Ethiopian army patrol. (File) - Sputnik International
Africa
Ethiopia Turns Down UN Offer to Send Observers to Probe Protester Deaths
MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Ethiopian Information Minister Getachew Reda justified on Monday the imposed state of emergency in the country by concerns related to public order.

"For the sake of maintaining public order the government believes that [the] temporary suspension of certain expression rights is warranted," Reda said, as quoted by the BBC.

​An anti-government protest during a religious festival in the town of Bishoftu, Oromia region, on Sunday caused a deadly stampede, with over 50 people being killed. The demonstrations over the recent months have been caused by the plans of the government to integrate parts of Oromia into the country's capital Addis Ababa administrative boundaries, which sparked fears of unfair farmland confiscations and informal settlement marginalization.

Protests have been ongoing in Addis Ababa, as well as in the Oromia and Amhara regions in response to the stampede. Protesters blamed the stampede on security forces firing bullets and tear gas into the crowd, while the government denied the allegations.

The state of emergency, imposed due to the protests, is set to last for six months and involve banning protests.

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