Martin Karl Schibbye (; born October 17, 1980) is a Swedish

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

and former editor. After an assignment in the conflict-ridden Ogaden region of

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the Er ...

he was sentenced to eleven years in prison for terrorist crimes on December 27, 2011, but was later pardoned and released on 10 September 2012. He was held at the notorious Kaliti Prison.

Career

Schibbye became editor of Sweden's Revolutionary Communist Youth magazine '' Rebell'' in his twenties. After military service in

Strängnäs Strängnäs is a locality and the seat of Strängnäs Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 15,363 inhabitants in 2020. It is located by Lake Mälaren and is the episcopal see of the Diocese of Strängnäs, one of the thirteen dioceses ...

00-01, he graduated with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four ye ...

in political science and an

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. ...

in economic history and a

in journalism. Today he is a freelance journalist. He has worked as a

foreign correspondent A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locat ...

for several

newspapers A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sport ...

, including ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ...

'', '' Amelia'' and ''

Proletären ) , logo = Proletären.PNG , image = Proletären font page 10092021.jpg , caption = Front page of 10 September 2021. , type = Weekly newspaper , owner = Communist Par ...

''. He has worked in several different countries, including

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , religi ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at ...

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in ...

, Syria,

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East J ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...

. He has been the editor of the quarterly '' Iraksolidaritet'' and the monthly magazine ''

Folket i Bild/Kulturfront ''Folket i Bild/Kulturfront'' (meaning ''Images of the People/Culture Front'' in English) is a Swedish magazine for reports, art, literature, debate and culture. It is published by the organization of the same name. The magazine is based in Stockh ...

''. Recently he worked for the magazine '' Filter''.

Arrested and sentenced for terrorist crimes in Ethiopia

On July 1, 2011 Schibbye was arrested along with the Swedish photographer

Johan Persson Johan Persson may refer to: * Johan Persson (photographer) (born 1982), Swedish photographer * Johan Persson (footballer) (born 1984), Swedish footballer * Johan Persson (ice hockey) (born 1990), Swedish ice hockey player * Johan Abram Persson (1 ...

in Ethiopia suspected of terrorist crimes after they illegally entered the

Ogaden Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled ''Ogadēn''; so, Ogaadeen, am, ውጋዴ/ውጋዴን) is one of the historical names given to the modern Somali Region, the territory comprising the eastern portion of Ethiopia formerly part of the Harar ...

region from

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constitut ...

in the company of

ONLF The Ogaden National Liberation Front (abbreviated ONLF, so, Jabhadda Wadaniga Xoreynta Ogaadeeniya; ar, الجبهة الوطنية لتحرير أوجادين) is a social and political movement, founded in 1984 to campaign for the right to ...

guerrillas. Schibbye and Persson were sentenced to 11 years in jail on 27 December 2011. The evidence submitted during the trial included film produced by the Ethiopian authorities, based both on material recorded by Schibbye and Persson and on interviews made under duress by the authorities.

Reporters Without Borders Reporters Without Borders (RWB; french: Reporters sans frontières; RSF) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organization with the stated aim of safeguarding the right to freedom of information. It describes its advocacy as found ...

voiced disapproval of the way the Ethiopian judicial system was handling the case and warned of the danger of serious diplomatic repercussions of the jail sentences: "Every meeting between Ethiopian officials and their European or western counterparts will henceforth be affected by this case."Two Swedish journalists sentenced to 11 years in prison
27 December 2011 On 10 September 2012 they were pardoned and released. Schibbye returned to Sweden on 14 September 2012 and subsequently held a

press conference A press conference or news conference is a media event in which notable individuals or organizations invite journalists to hear them speak and ask questions. Press conferences are often held by politicians, corporations, non-governmental or ...

together with

, telling about their time in Ethiopia. Schibbye published a book in 2013, "438 dagar" (''438 Days''), detailing his experience.

Awards

Schibbye was awarded the 2011 Robespierre Prize of SEK 10,000 by the Jan Myrdal Society for his journalism, specifically his coverage of Iraq. He received the 2012 Freelance Award, the 2012

Anna Politkovskaya Anna Stepanovna Politkovskaya (;, ; uk, Ганна Степанівна Політковська , 30 August 1958 – 7 October 2006) was a Russian journalist and human rights activist, who reported on political events in Russia, in parti ...

Memorial Award, and Reporters Without Borders’ 2013 Press Freedom Prize. His book with Johan Persson, "438 dagar", was shortlisted for the 2013

August Prize The August Prize ( sv, Augustpriset) is an annual Swedish literary prize awarded each year since 1989 by the Swedish Publishers' Association. The prize is awarded to the best Swedish book of the year, in three categories. Prize In the years 1989- ...

in the non-fiction category.

References

External links

Martin Schibbyes website
*, an interview with Martin Schibbye at ''

Democracy Now! ''Democracy Now!'' is an hour-long American TV, radio, and Internet news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman (who also acts as the show's executive producer), Juan González (journalist), Juan González, and Nermeen Shaikh. The show, whi ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Schibbye, Martin 1980 births Swedish editors Swedish journalists Swedish communists Living people Swedish people imprisoned abroad