The case of anti-poverty activists Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demissie was today not heard again as one of the three Judges in Ethiopia’s High Court was absent due to ill health. The case hearing is now postponed until November 30th, leaving Daniel and Netsanet in jail for at least another 8 days, as they were refused bail.

“Given that in April a senior judge said there was no case to answer, and that both men have been imprisoned for over 2 years, they should have been granted bail in the circumstances.’ said Kumi Naidoo, Secretary General of CIVICUS and Chair of Global Call Against Poverty sitting in the Addis Ababa court this morning. ‘Ethiopia is being deprived of the two people most committed to its progress, and in the context their skills and participation are very much needed.”

After more than 2 years of imprisonment Daniel and Netsanet, both coordinators of the Global Call to Action against Poverty in Ethiopia, are the last two accused in the high profile Ethiopian treason trial that originally charged 131 politicians, journalists, organisations and civil society leaders. They were due to hear the final verdict this morning at 9am GMT in Addis Ababa. They face charges of conspiracy to overthrow the government, specifically, “outrage against the constitution and constitutional order”.

Fellow GCAP campaigners in over 110 countries have been calling for their immediate release and sent messages of solidarity to the men. Amnesty International has declared both men prisoners of conscience.

Women’s empowerment has been getting a boost in a small village in the Amhara region of Ethiopia. The village of Awra Amba (”Top of the Hill”) was founded by 20 Muslim and Christian peasants in the 1980s and now has 400 residents and a growing fan club.

According to a piece in the Christian Science Monitor, the village is an experiment in egalitarianism in an otherwise traditional society, a community where education is emphasized, women are given three months maternity leave from work responsibilities, and men join the women in cooking and weaving, traditionally female activities. Awra Amba’s vision of women’s empowerment, the third UN Millennium Development Goal, has attracted increasing attention internationally:

I have great news for you today. We’ve just received word that Starbucks and Ethiopia have finalized an agreement that ends their trademark dispute and brings both sides together in partnership to help Ethiopian farmers. This agreement has the potential to give these farmers a fair share of the profits for their world-renowned coffees, and it’s what Oxfam has been pushing for since November.

More than 96,000 of our supporters around the world helped make this happen. Your emails, faxes, phone calls, postcards, and even in-person visits to Starbucks added strength to the call of Ethiopian farmers and brought global attention to this issue.