Bertukan denied access to lawyer

Despite international protest and condemnation, the opposition leader, Bertukan Mideksa is still in prison and cut off from her lawyer.

Birtukan Mideksa’s lawyer, Tesfaye Derese who went to Kaliti yesterday morning to see her was told to go back. He wasn’t given any explanation.

The lawyer who was able to see Bertukan for the first time on January 31 told local papers that the first two days of her stay in jail, Bertukan was locked up in a small room of 1.50mx2m.But she was later moved to a wider and cleaner room.

But by denying access to her lawyer, the authorities are making it hard for the appeal process to continue.

So far, demands of Bertukan’s release and enable for her family and lawyer to visit her without hindrance fell on deaf ears