1. Birtukan Mideksa is an Ethiopian politician and former judge who has served as chairwoman of the National Election Board of Ethiopia from 2018 to 2023.
16 Facts About Birtukan Mideksa
1. 2.
Birtukan Mideksa was the founder and leader of the opposition Unity for Democracy and Justice party from 2008 to 2010.
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On 26 June 2023, Birtukan announced that she would resign from her post as NEBE chairperson effective on 7 August.
4.
Birtukan Mideksa attended Miazia 23 missionary elementary school and later the Yekatit 12 secondary school known as Etege Menen School.
5.
Birtukan Mideksa is the mother of a daughter named Haale Mideksa who was born in 2005.
6.
Birtukan Mideksa set the defendant free on bail, and was surprised minutes later when federal authorities arrested Siye while he was walking out of the court accompanied by his family and friends.
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Birtukan Mideksa then resigned from the federal court and started an independent Law firm.
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Birtukan Mideksa worked as a lawyer from late 2003 to 2005.
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Birtukan Mideksa decided to join a political party to help bring about change, including recognition of the rule of law, and full respect for the implementation of the constitution.
10.
Birtukan Mideksa joined the Rainbow Ethiopia: Movement for Democracy and Social Justice Party, and later Coalition for Unity and Democracy.
11.
Birtukan Mideksa was pardoned in 2007 after lengthy negotiations and after she, along with other leaders of the opposition, spent 18 months in prison.
12.
Birtukan Mideksa later founded the Unity for Democracy and Justice with the same principles that guided CUD.
13.
Birtukan Mideksa was elected to be a chairwoman of the UDJ, which has the goal of bringing about change in Ethiopia by peaceful means.
14.
In December 2009, Amnesty International categorized Birtukan Mideksa's imprisonment as "unjust and politically motivated" The organization launched an international campaign demanding her release, challenging the Ethiopian government's claim that her incarceration was a legal matter.
15.
In 2011, Birtukan Mideksa resigned from politics and went to the US, to study at Harvard.
16.
Birtukan Mideksa announced her resignation from this position on 26 June 2023 through her Facebook page; she submitted her resignation to Speaker of the House of People's Representatives on 12 June and will continue to serve as NEBE chairperson until 7 August.