Aaron Berhane
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- 3:01 (minutes:seconds) / 2.8 Mb
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Aaron Berhane was born in Asmara, Eritrea, in 1969. One of the first graduates of the University of Asmara's Journalism and Mass Communication program, he was co-founder and editor in chief of Setit, the largest independent newspaper in Eritrea, until the paper was closed down by the government in September 2001 during a sweep when many journalists were imprisoned without charge. Aaron lived in hiding for more than three months before escaping to Sudan. Through the UNHCR, International PEN helped him to find political asylum in Canada. Since finding refuge in Canada he has been awarded a Human Rights Watch Hellman / Hammett grant. In October 2003 he was selected for a prestigious Donner / CJFE Journalist at Risk Fellowship at Massey College. Berhane was awarded the PEN-Lecturer-in-Residence position at George Brown College in Toronto in 2005.