Ethiopia wants to turn a notorious prison into a museum. But some fear the abuses will continue
JOHANNESBURG - One cellblock in the Ma'ekelawi prison in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, is known as the Dark House. Its chilly, dank cells are underground, including four pitch-black cells too narrow for inmates to sit or stretch their arms or legs.
It has a second nickname: Siberia.
Ma'ekelawi is one of Ethiopia's most notorious prisons, where dissidents, journalists, bloggers and protesters have been held for speaking out. According to a 2013 Human Rights Watch report, political prisoners and others have been tortured in Ma'ekelawi through beatings, prolonged stress positions and exposure to severe cold.
The government has always denied the allegations. But on
