Ethiopian police 'stop Teddy Afro album launch'

His management said police officers stormed the hotel and stopped the musicians’ sound team from setting up. Afro, whose real name is Tewodros Kassahun, said the police officers’ demand for a permit to launch his album was absurd because the hotel was permitted to host such events.

Since Sunday, a number of activists have openly shared their thoughts on the issue by accusing the Ethiopian authorities of gagging the artist and in the process infringing on freedom of expression.

“What the regime is doing to Teddy Afro by repeatedly cancelling his shows is unfair and unjust,” Jawar Mohammed, a popular Ethiopian activist and director of Oromia Media Network, said on social media.

“It should be condemned by all as this is smothering freedom of expression and an attack on art no matter who the target is. This regime hates and fears art and artists more than any section of society. It has killed, jailed and exiled two generations of Oromo artists since they took office.”

Afro has previously had a number run-ins with authorities because of his songs, which are critical of the Ethiopian government and in alignment with opposition politics. In 2014, a group of individuals succeeded in stopping a beer company from sponsoring his tour over an alleged politically insensitive comment in an unpublished weekly magazine.

In 2008, Afro was arrested and charged for a hit-and-run incident, taken to jail and held for almost two years. The artist has denied committing the crime. Late last month, he was denied a permit by the mayor's office to hold a New Year’s Eve concert in the Ethiopian capital.

The Ethiopian authorities are known for censoring opposing political views, whether journalistic or in the arts. In June this year, the Ethiopian government arrested and charged seven Oromo artists with terrorism for producing and uploading politically charged songs on YouTube.

Despite efforts to keep Afro from performing, the singer remains one Ethiopia’s most popular musicians. The 15-track Ethiopia is the fastest-selling album in the country’s history and debuted at No 1 on Billboard’s World Albums chart after its release in May 2017.