Andrew grew up in various parts of Africa — Nigeria, Kenya and Egypt — before moving back to England to start a career as a journalist. He covered village fêtes for Somerset's Chard & Ilminster News, crime and car crashes for Wolverhampton's Express & Star and technology for the Financial Times. He has since worked as a journalist in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and Khartoum, Sudan. He blogs and posts pictures at Meskel Square.
Latest posts by Andrew Heavens
Ethiopian ‘aid for arms’ story sparks storm
The BBC sparked a storm this week with a story claiming millions of dollars sent to help starving people in Ethiopia's 1980s famine were used to buy arms by rebels.
Ethiopia: Bloggers defend Ethiopian Airlines after crash
Ethiopia-based bloggers rushed to defend the safety record of the country's national airline on Monday after one of its planes crashed near Beirut, with all 90 people on board feared dead.
Ethiopia: Cultures collide in Ethiopian blogosphere
What happens when cultures collide? One of the best places to find out is the Ethiopian blogosphere, with its writers spread across the Ethiopian Diaspora, from China, through Europe to the United States of America.
Ethiopian bloggers defend charged pop star
Ethiopian bloggers rushed to the defence of their country's top pop singer Teddy Afro, after he appeared in court charged with the hit-and-run killing of a youth in capital Addis Ababa. Many writers were convinced Afro was being framed by Ethiopian authorities who, they said, resented the singer's huge popularity and veiled anti-government lyrics.
Online Obama campaign splits Ethiopian bloggers
Diaspora Ethiopians have been flexing their political muscles in the U.S., organising websites, rallies and email campaigns to persuade their compatriots to support Barack Obama's presidential run. Many Ethiopians bloggers rallied to the cause, pledging cash and votes for the Democratic candidate whose father came from Kenya, a country that neighbours Ethiopia. But others raised questions about the campaign, asking whether it was right to expect Ethiopian-Americans to vote en masse for any candidate.
Expat Ethiopians reflect on the sounds and smells of home
The ties that bind expatriate Ethiopians to their home country dominated the Ethiopian blogosphere over the past few weeks. Ethiopians living in the US, Europe and Asia came up with a series of emotional posts, exploring childhood memories, local food, music and the broader subject of national identity.
Ethiopian bloggers first to report shock guilty verdict
Ethiopian bloggers were among the first to report on a court's shock decision to convict 38 opposition politicians of a range of serious charges including "outrages against the constitution" earlier this week.
Ethiopian bloggers pay tribute to jet crash reporter
Ethiopian bloggers have flooded the internet with tributes to Associated Press reporter Anthony Mitchell who was one of 114 people killed when Kenyan Airways flight KQ507 crashed in southern Cameroon early on Saturday May 5. Anthony worked as a journalist in Ethiopia for five years and led the reporting of violence that broke out after the country’s controversial national elections in May 2005.
Ethiopian blog blockage sparks free speech debate
Web watchdog the OpenNet Initiative this week confirmed that the Ethiopian government has been blocking scores of anti-government websites and millions of blogs hosted by Google’s Blogger service. Ethiopian bloggers responded to the news with a string of defiant posts, vowing to continue writing and beat the blockages.
Ethiopian bloggers turn undercover court reporters
Ethiopia's bloggers turned undercover court reporters over the past weeks, giving daily commentary on a controversial trial of more than 100 opposition politicians, campaigners and journalists. Leading opposition figures were...
Ethiopian bloggers fear for future in Somalia
The Ethiopian invasion of Somalia is ending freedom of speech in Somalia. That was the blunt conclusion of undercover Ethiopian blogger Seminawork in his post Somali media under attack, as...
Bloggers warn of insurgency after Ethio-Somali war
Ethiopian and Somali government troops drove Islamist forces out of their last stronghold in Somalia yesterday, just eight days after the start of a major military offensive. The apparently easy...
Somali-Ethiopia conflict looms over Ethiopian blogosphere
War and rumours of war dominated the Ethiopian blogosphere this week as reports came in of bloody clashes between Ethiopian and Islamist troops in northern Somalia. Accounts of the conflict...
Ethiopia's bloggers disappear again
The bulk of Ethiopia's bloggers disappeared from Ethiopian computer screens for the second time in seven months this week. All sites hosted by the popular Blogspot platform stalled when internet...
Ethiopian bloggers take on female genital mutilation
The highly sensitive subject of female genital mutilation dominated much of the Ethiopian blogosphere over the past week. The sudden interest was sparked by news that an Ethiopian man had...
Ethiopian blogger scoops mainstream media
The story broke at 12.42 pm. An Ethiopian human rights activist, another unnamed Ethiopian and two senior officials from the European Commission had been arrested that morning close to Ethiopia's...
Ethiopia's bloggers emerge refreshed after rainy season
Ethiopia's bloggers emerged refreshed from their long rainy season with a series of dazzling posts on everything from Somalia to stolen secondhand books. For once there was no unifying theme...
Ethiopian bloggers rally to save controversial bill
Ethiopia’s diaspora bloggers are flexing their political muscles in a bid to save a controversial bill they claim has been blocked in the US Congress. The highly-politicised groups of Ethiopian...
Ethiopia's bloggers remember two prisoners
Tributes to two imprisoned men stood out from Ethiopia's blogosphere over the past fortnight. ET Wonqette of the blog Weichegud ET Politics came up with a heart-rending portrait of Ato...
DRC: Election results fragmented
The Head Heeb analyses the partial results from the Democratic Republic of Congo's National Assembly election which took place alongside the better-publicised presidential poll. It's already clear that the incoming...
Ethiopia: Floods and conflict take their toll
Tobian Thinktank asks why Ethiopia's army is bothering with its military manoeuvres in Somalia while foreign troops are having to come into Ethiopia to help flood victims. We've people and...
