The Misery Machine - The Case of Heaven Awot

Starting point is 00:00:00 When the average person is asked to picture a modern-day war-torn country, what do you think is the first thing they picture in their heads? Groups of people shooting at each other, bombings and destroyed buildings. There's one aspect of war that many might fail to consider it first. That is crimes of opportunity. One of the most horrifying cases we've seen this year involved the little girl and her uncle who didn't just have evil intentions involving her, but wanted a whole village to see exactly what he did.

Starting point is 00:00:28 What's even worse than that is not not only was he able to avoid prosecution for a while, he along with many other people were trying to hunt down this little girl's mother simply for seeking justice for her. Kevin AWAT was a seven-year-old girl living in Ethiopia. She is sometimes referred to as Favin, but the general meaning is still the same. Radiance, light, and blessing. Although the date of her birth is unclear, it's been reported that she was born in September of 2016. Heaven also had a sister who was about four years younger than her. Her mother,

Starting point is 00:01:06 Abecule she had to work, she often left her daughter in the care of relatives. When Abeculash would come home after her shifts, Heaven scurried to give her mother a big hug. It was the highlight of her day. During her short life, Heaven became very familiar with the concept of war and its consequences on everyday people. Tegray region of Ethiopian. Ethiopia was the center of military conflict. On one side was the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, which was essentially the federal government. The other was the Tigray People's Liberation Front, which has been described as an ethnic

Starting point is 00:01:43 nationalist paramilitary group and officially classified as a terrorist organization by multiple countries up until 2023 and has been connected to several human rights violations. The conflict was the product of complex tensions going as far back to the 1990s and arguably even further than that. It lasted from 2020 to 2022 with a rebellion in 2023 and further political conflict to this day. As is the case with many other civil wars, the conflict led to destruction in Ethiopia, especially in the Amhara and Tigray regions in the north. Both factions accused the other of war crimes, blockades, famine, and civilian deaths in the thousands. A third of the population had to relocate. It's reported that humanitarian aid was limited to certain parts of Ethiopia,

Starting point is 00:02:29 and there still isn't an exact number of casualties from this period. This is obviously a very oversimplified version of a very complicated period of recent history. We bring it up because it does become relevant in the more recent coverage of Heaven's story. For better or worse, Heaven's story is often told through the lens of the conflict's aftermath in an effort to understand why things happened the way they did. Heaven was among many displaced from their homes. Her father, who was a man of Tigray ethnicity, was imprisoned by the federal government. As far as we can tell, the reason as to why was never reported. He may have been

Starting point is 00:03:04 actively part of the liberation front or he may have just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Following his release and reportedly feeling unsafe in Amhara, he fled to Tigray. Doing so, he left his family behind, and Becky Alesh found herself a single mother to two young girls. Aside from his absence in his family's life, we don't know much else about Heaven's father. You don't know his name, his age, what he looks like, or what he did for a living. In the grand scheme of things, Heaven's father is a minor figure in today's case. Still, it's hard not to imagine how Heaven's story could have been different if her family had remained intact. While living in the city of Bahir Dar, Heaven and her mother became acquainted with their landlord Getnet Baye.

Starting point is 00:03:48 Abeculash and Heaven were related to Getnet's 15-year-old wife, so the mother felt like they were in a safe environment. there was no indication that Gettnet was a dangerous individual. On August 1st, 2023, a Beculeche went to work and left her daughters in the care of Gettnett's wife, who was their aunt. Heaven excused herself to use the bathroom, and she never came back. The aunt knew something was wrong and went searching for her niece. Maybe she got lost or distracted or went looking for something. No one could have predicted what happened to heaven during the period she was missing. Getnet Baya had lured heaven away to an isolated place where he essayed her.

Starting point is 00:04:30 He forced sand down her throat so she couldn't scream. By the time it was over, Heaven's muscles were severely damaged from the inside. We will spare you some of the more terrible details, but purely to highlight how evil this man was, it should be noted that his attack on heaven was so brutal that her spine had partially fallen out of her. The dirt and sand turned into a cement-like paste in her mouth. To cover up his crime, Gettnett strangled heaven.

Starting point is 00:05:01 She was so small he only needed to use one hand in his fingertips. He subsequently doused her with a bucket of bleach to wash the blood from her and cut her with a razor. He left her on the front doorsteps under a balcony to make it look like she had fallen. It was a place he knew where she would be seen by not just her family, but by the neighbors as well. In an interview with Eoha Media, Heaven's mother, Abecula, shared the following. You can only see her spinal cord. Her uterus is gone. She bled.

Starting point is 00:05:34 He suffocated her. He used his five fingers to strangle her by the throat. His five fingers were found on her throat. She bled a lot. He used a bucket to wash her body. After he washed her, he opened the door. Where does he leave her? On the edge of our house where the kids play.

Starting point is 00:05:53 The person who discovered Heaven was not a passing bystander, nor was it Heaven's aunt. It was actually Heaven's three-year-old sister who found her. Heaven was rushed to the Amin General Hospital and was pronounced dead on arrival. Becky Lesh was held back from seeing her daughter due to the horrifying state that she was in. She called out Heaven's name, hoping in vain for a response. She said everyone was in tears, doctors, nurses, janitorial staff, and even the security guards. It was clear to the medical professionals that heaven did not just fall from a balcony. The internal injuries were just too severe to come from a fall and fell more in line with a violent essay.

Starting point is 00:06:35 The bruises and marks on her neck were very clearly from strangulation. Gettnett's wife tried to console a grieving mother, and Gett himself had the nerve to make himself present. His wife cried with the beculesh, but he was unemotional. No tears, no words of condolences, no offer. to help her through this difficult time, nothing at all. Gatnet tried to sell the idea that heaven fell from the balcony. By the time of Becky Elish saw heaven for herself, she knew that was impossible. Remember, she was a nurse at the time, so she was no stranger to injuries, no matter how severe. Just like the doctors, she knew that her daughter had been assaulted and disposed

Starting point is 00:07:14 of like an object. She believed whoever attacked Heaven wanted to leave her someplace where she would be found. They wanted her mother and potentially others to see what was done to her. It didn't take long for police to suspect Gettnet, as he was unaccounted for during the time Heaven initially went missing. He was arrested by authorities, but escaped a short time later. The police station he was held in was populated with detained members of Amharam militias. The militias organized a break into free their allies and Gettn escaped in the chaos. During this time, he threatened a Bekilesh and her younger daughter with deadly force. They moved around to evade him and eventually had to go into hiding.

Starting point is 00:07:55 Abeculish had to leave her nursing job and many further jobs after that out of fear of being found. As most of our viewers are in the U.S., and if you are, you might have a hard time comprehending this, because here, a man who brutally murdered a child in escaped prison would be priority number one for sure. Someone capable of this would certainly strike again. However, despite the severe charges against him and the potential danger he posed to other children in the community, Gettnett was not a high priority for local law enforcement.

Starting point is 00:08:28 Abeculish made every attempt to get her fears taken seriously, but it took roughly a month for Gettnet to be returned to police custody. Even after this, Abeculash had to look over her shoulder since his family took it upon themselves to continue threatening her. Following a trial by the High Court of Bahir Dar, Gettnet was sentenced to 25 years in prison without the possibility of parole. The public was outraged, believing the punishment was much too light for such a horrific crime. The Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association were very vocal in their disappointment. They released a public statement, which was later quoted by international outlets. The murder by itself should have been enough to sentence him to life imprisonment or to death. It's especially sickening and outrageous when such a horrendous crime,

Starting point is 00:09:14 committed against children. However, the High Court in Bihir Dar still thought only 25 years was enough punishment for his crimes because they, and I quote, concluded that the child died as a result of the defendant's violence and strangulation when he rewned her because she was too young to withstand the pressure. Now how that quote is supposed to justify Gettnet receiving such a light sentences beyond me. Gogi Tesfai, who is Ethiopia's Minister of Women, Children, Children, and Youth, added her voice to the chorus. She offered her condolences in a post on Facebook and promised to pursue further litigation

Starting point is 00:09:48 against Gettnett Beah. Her post translated from Imharic reads, In order to protect children's rights and safety in our country, the Minister of Women in Social Affairs is working in coordination with the relevant authorities to save children who are vulnerable due to social problems that are happening in different areas, especially by establishing a system of action

Starting point is 00:10:07 to prevent violence against children and to enable them to get the right and comprehensive services to ensure that children's issues are being recorded. The child case management digital system and cooperation with UNICEF is being made to strengthen the coordination works by extending to Kubele, which means a ward or neighborhood. On behalf of our ministry and myself, I would like to express our condolences for the horrible inhuman crime that happened regarding the child heaven who was brutally murdered recently. Although the case has been decided, we would like to express that we will work with the

Starting point is 00:10:40 judicial authorities and follow up the case. Outrage spread like wildfire as Heaven's story was told. Her name reached international outlets and platforms. She is, by far, our most requested case outside of the U.S. and the UK. Even Cardi B shared one of three change.org petitions. At the time, 200,000 people signed their names to the petition. There are over 300,000 signatures today. Of the other two petitions, one has over 10,000 signatures, and the other over 20,000.

Starting point is 00:11:15 All three are still open to this day in accepting signatures. The petitions not only demanded a harsher sentence for Getnet, but also protection for Heaven's mother. Despite the trial's conclusion, Abeke-Lesh was still being threatened by Heaven's aunt and Getnet's family. As Heaven's story spread through petitions, so did word about the light sentence her murderer received. People in the thousands called for a much harsher sentence. Many even wanted to see getting it executed. These frustrations only grew when he tried to appeal his sentence. This case was said to be adjourned until October of 2024, but there haven't been any

Starting point is 00:11:52 update since August as far as we could find. It should be noted that Ethiopia's legal system allows for the death penalty if the court see fit. The last person to be executed in Ethiopia was a military major who was convicted for assassinating the former head of security. Major made a formal appeal for clemency to the courts in an attempt to reduce his sentence. His wish was not granted and he was given the death penalty. It was never reported how he died, but per Ethiopian law, he likely faced a firing squad.

Starting point is 00:12:21 Many Ethiopian humanitarians and activists argued that Heaven's mixed ethnicity played a part in her victimhood. They theorized that Gettnet believed Heaven to be lesser than or disposable because of her heritage. Gettnet still maintains his innocence, so we cannot know for sure if this was a fact. at the end of the day, evil is evil, no matter what the motive is. The Ethiopian government was openly criticized due to their inaction in Heaven's case, as well as for the spike in violence against women and girls following the conflict. An editorial piece by Ethiopian magazine, Audis Standard, called it the cycle of silence. They, among many other organizations, called for change when it comes to cases similar to Heaven,

Starting point is 00:13:03 stating, what is perhaps most alarming is the apparent inaction of the Ethiopian government, in addressing these heinous crimes. Despite widespread documentation by international organizations, human rights groups, and the media, there has been conspicuous lack of effort to investigate, prosecute, and punish those responsible. As a society, we have now reached the level where the impunity enjoyed by perpetrators

Starting point is 00:13:26 is not only perpetuating the cycle of sexual violence, but also sending a dangerous message that such crimes are tolerable in times of war and can be expanded outside the context of war without the fear of accountability. This editorial also highlighted a common factor in many true crime cases, one that we often recognize but don't always register immediately. It was a Beculeche's efforts and not those of local law enforcement or government that put

Starting point is 00:13:51 heaven's story out there. There have been a countless number of cases where family and friends turn to the media or to true crime creators when they believe investigators have neglected their loved ones. While it can sometimes spur law enforcement to increase their efforts, there are times where nothing changes and all continues as usual. For Heaven, it's the latter, even after all the public outrage. If not for her mother's resilience and endurance, the wider world may have never known Heaven A. Watt's name. It took until the trial's initial conclusion for the media to publish her story, the Bekulesh's efforts were definitely worthwhile. Members of the Ethiopian Women Lawyers

Starting point is 00:14:31 Association organized a candlelight vigil at Groove Garden Walk, a public garden space and mescal Square in Addis Ababa. A crowd in the hundreds came to mourn heaven, but they were forced to leave. As they arrived in droves, federal law enforcement forced them away from the area, claiming that the crowd was not allowed to be there. But a determined group found another spot to hold their vigil. A video of the vigil was uploaded to TikTok by Bethlehem Tedessa, username Sparkalish. She said in the caption, Yesterday, we gathered at Groove Garden Walk for a candle vigil for heaven. A moment meant to honor her memory and raise our voices against gender-based violence. Hundreds came, only to be turned away at the door, told it was canceled, but some of us stayed, determined to do

Starting point is 00:15:17 what we came for. Dressed in black, with hearts heavy with grief, we were met with disrespect, laughter, loud music, and attempts to silence our pain. But we did not leave defeated. We found a quiet place, a space to mourn, to cry, and to unite. In our tears, we found strength, and in our unity, we built a community that will not be silenced. We formed a WhatsApp group, a space where our voices can be heard, where our pain is acknowledged, and where our fight for justice will continue. We are structuring something strong and resilient, a community of women who will stand together, who will not stop until justice is served, we are here. It's hard to talk about Heaven without discussing the part social media played in her story,

Starting point is 00:16:06 especially TikTok. While Heaven's story shocked and sat in many online, others were openly skeptical. They found the mass media coverage overshadowed the Ethiopian government's mistreatment of the Amhara people. These critics believed in a coordinated media plot hell-bent on diverting the tension from other current events. Moda Karanio is a social media content creator and activist focusing on Ethiopian politics. He followed and covered the Civil War in Tigray in its aftermath.

Starting point is 00:16:34 When he learned of Heaven's case, he used his platform to say his peace, but rather than express his sympathy for the 7-year-old girl in her family, he chose to do the opposite. Because Heaven was born to a father of Tigray ethnicity, Moda said that she deserved what happened to her. Furthermore, he said her mother deserved a similar fate for marrying a man from Tigray ethnicity. It's reported that Moda was already a polarizing incendiary figure for his community. For some in his audience and some watching from afar, these remarks were too much.

Starting point is 00:17:08 His profile and content was mass reported by TikTok users, which eventually got the attention of moderators. Aside from third-party re-uploads, Moda's content about heaven and her mother have been removed, including his public apology. It's reported that another content creator in this space made similar remarks, but unlike Moda, he lived in Ethiopia. It's reported he was attacked in the street allegedly for what he said about heaven. He also apologized for his statements. Take this second story with a grain of salt because this content creator was unnamed in the articles that mentioned him and his attack. However, it does capture the public consensus about heaven. She was innocent and utterly undeserving of her fate.

Starting point is 00:17:48 Some TikTok pages created and spread misinformation about Heaven's case. Much of this content was AI generated. TikTok's content policy has rules against certain AI content. One of these rules is the prohibition of AI-generated likenesses of people under the age of 18. Given the platform's algorithm, the misinformation and AI likeness of Heaven were spread across TikTok, which only encouraged content replication. Some have been removed, but others still exist on the creator's profiles. More recently, in early March of 2025, the Institute for Strategic Dialogue released their findings

Starting point is 00:18:28 from a small-scale study about TikTok's moderation of Amharic posts and comments. It turns out it was easy to bypass the auto-hate speech moderation. All you had to do was make posts in this language. Amharic is a low-resource language, meaning that there are limited resources for engines like auto mods to learn from. So in this case, this means that despite similar content being flagged when it was written in a European-based language, TikTok's auto-moderation didn't consistently flag inflammatory Amharic posts and comments. It was reported that some of these comments had English translations alongside them, but the existence of the Amharic text alone was enough of a shield

Starting point is 00:19:07 to keep them online. This method to bypass automods was used against many Ethiopian activists who told Heaven's story. They faced threats to their lives and safety, similar to the vitriol directed to her mother. Following the backlash from these findings, TikTok announced an advisory council than Amharic-speaking Ethiopian professor among its members.

Starting point is 00:19:27 While these were more than short anecdotes in Heaven's story, TikTok users supported Heaven across the board. Ethiopian equal rights activist Jordan Bezzeba, one of the many victims of the Vitriolic Imharic comments and uploads, was credited with starting the hashtag, justice for heaven. They received tons of traffic. People mourned, remembered, and shared their thoughts together. So you mean to tell me that that man is going to be receiving a 25-year prison sentence for brutally unaliving and essaying that seven-year-old girl? Wow, man. I want to talk to you

Starting point is 00:20:07 about a seven-year-old girl named Heaven who was actually assaulted, mutilated, and killed in Ethiopia. My heart is with Heaven's family and Heaven's mom who has been seeking justice for her daughter and shedding light on the violence being experienced by women and girls. In Ethiopia, one in three women experience physical, emotional, or sexual violence, and 65% of women have experienced female mutilation. It's the lack of legal ramifications and comprehensive protections for women and a culture that continues to emboldened men to violate the rights of women that has failed heaven. In the short term, you can support heaven by,

Starting point is 00:20:42 signing on to petitions that are being circulated that advocate for a review of the current sentencing that's being given to her assailant. But as we all know, finding justice for heaven is just the beginning of seeking protections and equality for women and girls. What a heaven? Fethella heaven. Fethelehaven. You know, I'm not a shan,

Starting point is 00:21:02 you have a baby, you know, at tasn't zinnam. And not you, not do you, Lachom, Liddle, you,

Starting point is 00:21:10 Lid, Lach, Heaven's case. Heaven's case also gave Ethiopian women and news outlets a chance to speak out with their own experiences with essay, especially within the context of civil war in its aftermath. Not to say they haven't tried before, but Heaven's case brought more eyes to the conflicts in Ethiopia. With a wider audience, there was a greater chance to be heard. Heaven's death destroyed a Beculasch, but she had to carry on for her younger daughter. She continued to speak on behalf of Heaven after the trial's conclusion. She said she was no stranger to this kind of violence against women and girls as a former health care worker.

Starting point is 00:22:01 She told reporters, I know there are so many heavens, adding, I can't sleep or forget about it. It's very hard. To make it worse, I can't forget about how she suffered. People say to me, can you not forget about it. It's very hard. You can only understand if it happened to you. It's not like other feelings. The death of a child is very hard. She has never been sick. I lost my daughter suddenly. It wasn't even God. It was in a horrifying way. She had no guilt. She had no sin. I used to be so excited to get home to her. She used to wait for me by the door. Mommy, she said. and ran to hug me. When it was winter, I used to just open the door and enter. She would drop.

Starting point is 00:22:46 I asked her what happened. Mommy, I want to hug you, she used to say. What's happiness other than this? My daughter is dead. Even after I've buried her, I still can't believe it. I still believe she's coming back. It's very hard. By the end of 2024, however, the media consciousness moved on. Abeculeesh has retreated from the public eye. There isn't much information about her now, next to nothing about Heaven's father. He never spoke to the media about his daughter's murder. It's possible he's still in hiding, but we will likely never know for sure.

Starting point is 00:23:21 Heaven's sister would be about five years old today. She may remember vividly how she found her sister's body. She also may not remember it at all, just the effect that it had on her mother and her family. Or maybe she's somewhere in between. Perhaps she'll speak to the media herself when she's older. We wish her and her mother nothing but peace. Gettnett's wife, who is Heaven's aunt, defended him publicly,

Starting point is 00:23:47 even allowing herself to be interviewed on camera. She believes his side of the story that Heaven had died from a fall and not from a violent attack. As of 2024, her loyalty to him remains strong as ever, despite public opinion being overwhelmingly against the both of them. Two songs were written and produced in Heaven's memory. The first by Zane Outlander simply titled Heaven Awat. The second was by Wings music band called Galawa. Zane Outlander was featured in an article for Rolling Hype,

Starting point is 00:24:19 a hip-hop and R&B culture and news platform. He said in the article, When I wrote Heaven Awat, it wasn't just about creating a song. It was about honoring a life cut short and giving a voice to those who can no longer speak for themselves. I wanted people to feel her story and take action, and I'm grateful that the song had such an impact. The Wings Music Band is a subset of the Ethiopian organization Wings Education and Media.

Starting point is 00:24:43 The organization focuses on providing accessible education, creating safe spaces for children to express themselves and uplifting women and children's rights. Ethiopian's Minister of Women has served as a speaker for some of their past events. Or recently, the Wings Music Band got to perform for public servants and elected officials on International Women's Day. As of the date of this recording in April of 2025, there are still tensions in Ethiopia's Tigray region. The neighboring country of Eritrea, which supported the Ethiopian federal government during the Civil War,

Starting point is 00:25:17 may soon become Ethiopia's rival in a new war. Now, should this come to pass, Tigray would again be a battlefield as the nations tried to stake their claims on it. Many children could potentially watch their families break apart, just as Heavens did.

The Misery Machine - The Case of Heaven Awot

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