Henok Ghebru

Extra Bio Info:

Henok Ghebru is detained for his religious belief. 

In January 2005, police authorities detained Ghebru for not having a government ID after the government had stripped Jehovah's Witnesses of their citizenship and identification documents in the 1990s. When authorities pressured him to serve in the army, Ghebru conscientiously objected to serving in the military based on his religious conviction as a Jehovah's Witness. Authorities confined him in Wi'a, a prison known for extreme heat in the day and cold at night. 

During detention, prison guards beat Ghebru and interrogated him harshly. Authorities transferred him to Mai Serwa prison and subjected him to forced labor, which caused him to develop severe back pain and another medical condition. Prison authorities refused him access to medical care or assistance from family or friends for 7 years until finally permitting an alleviating surgery. Ghebru was never formally charged, and authorities denied him a trial and access to legal representation.

Ghebru's father, an elder, was imprisoned four times and sentenced to death. Most of Ghebru's other family members were also arrested during a large crackdown on Jehovah's Witnesses in 2014.