Ethiopia’s Former Prime Minister Fikreselassie Passes Away at 75

ADDIS ABEBA – Former Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Fikreselassie Wogderess, has died on Saturday. He was 75.

Fikresellassie served as first Prime Minister of the Derg regime, which ruled Ethiopia from 1974 to 1991, for three years.

He died in Yerer Hospital in Addis Abeba where he was receiving medical treatment for heart complications, according to a state news agency. The funeral date and place have yet to be announced.

Born In Addis Abeba, he first joined the Ethiopian Air Force as a cadet in 1963, and also received training in the United States before the 1974 Ethiopian Revolution.

Fikresellassie served in various government posts before he became the second-ranking member of the 15-member Politburo of the ruling Marxist-Leninist Workers Party of Ethiopia.

He was indicted on charges of crime against humanity by the government along with 22 other former leaders following the downfall of the Derg and after serving 20 years in prison..

He was sentenced to death in 2008, But his sentence was reduced to life imprisonment three years after and then paroled in October 2011 along with 16 other senior officials of the Derg.

The former prime minister published two books, entitled “Egna Ena Abyoitu” [which means ‘Us and The Revolution’] title, that recounts the history of the Derg and his life and role in the party.

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Featured Image: The former Prime Minister [Center] is seen on on February 23, 1989 in Tokyo, Japan. [Photo File/Getty Images]