Addis Ababa - Ethiopia has freed 3 858 people seized in a round-up during anti-government clashes that killed at least 42 people earlier this month, state media said on Tuesday.

The latest release brings to 8 293 the number of people freed from jail after the crackdown by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's government on protests over a disputed May 15 election.

"Those who have been released from detention are those who were found not to have been involved in the rioting," the state-owned Ethiopian Herald newspaper quoted police as saying on Tuesday.

The government has not said how many people in total have been arrested, but human rights activists and diplomatic sources believe several thousand are still in jail.

Most opposition leaders and several editors of privately-owned newspapers remain in jail. Meles said last week they would be charged with treason for inciting insurrection.

Press watchdog Reporters Without Borders appealed on Tuesday for the journalists to be freed and asked UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan for "urgent mediation" in Ethiopia.

"As long as it does not advocate murder or hatred, Ethiopia's privately-owned press has an absolute right to express its views without having to face extravagant charges," the group said in a statement.

"We appeal to the judicial authorities to release the detained journalists at once."

Ethiopian officials were not immediately available for comment.

The latest unrest in Ethiopia followed the deaths of 36 people in June in similar protests over the election.

The Ethiopian parliament voted on Monday to appoint an independent commission to investigate whether security forces used excessive force to quell the violence that has fuelled fears for the stability of the Horn of Africa's dominant power.

Published on the Web by IOL on 2005-11-16 00:41:13