French journalist Antoine Galindo, imprisoned for a week in Ethiopia, was released on Friday March 1, and is on his way to France, his employer, the specialized publication
Africa Intelligence
, announced to AFP .
“I'm fine, I'm in good health”
and
“I was well treated
,” despite difficult detention conditions, Antoine Galindo told an AFP journalist before his departure.
The Ethiopian authorities accused him of
“conspiring to create chaos”
in the country, his employer revealed.
Antoine Galindo was brought before a judge on Saturday who extended his detention until March 1, according to Africa Intelligence.
The publication denounced
“false accusations”
which
“are not based on any tangible element”
and called for the
“immediate release”
of its journalist.
“A serious attack on press freedom”
Antoine Galindo, 36, head of the East Africa section, arrived in Ethiopia on February 13 to cover the African Union (AU) Summit in Addis Ababa, headquarters of the pan-African organization.
“Antoine Galindo, a journalist known to the Ethiopian Media Authority (EMA)”
, the media supervisory body in Ethiopia,
“had a visa authorizing him to carry out his journalistic activity”
, underlined Africa Intelligence, which criticizes an
“unjustified arrest”
constituting
“a serious attack on freedom of the press”
.
Antoine Galindo resided in Ethiopia between 2013 and 2017, four years during which he was the correspondent for several international media.