A letter written by 20 members of the US Congress to @mikepompeo expressed "serious concerns about the recent unrest in Ethiopia."
"An unstable Ethiopia with violence, ethnic division,and politically motivated prosecutions will be a less reliable partner for the United States." pic.twitter.com/I7Hj8epDJm
“We are deeply concerned at violent events in Ethiopia this week where a prominent singer and activist from Oromia Region, Hachalu Hundessa, was shot and killed in the capital, Addis Ababa on Monday.
The killing of Hundessa sparked protests across the country, including in the capital and in Oromia Region. While some of the protests were peaceful, a number were violent from the outset. According to information we have received, roads were reported to be blocked in most parts of Oromia Region and buildings vandalised and burnt, while there was gunfire and bomb explosions in Addis Ababa.
The authorities responded to the spread of the protests by shutting down the Internet in Oromia Region, as well as in Addis Ababa, making it extremely difficult to verify reports about the number of people killed and injured. According to the Government, around 50 people were killed, while media sources indicated some 80 people had died, including three members of the security forces.
We note with concern that the protests following Hundessa’s killing have increasingly taken on an ethnic undertone. We therefore call on all, including young people, to stop carrying out ethnically-motivated attacks and to stop inciting to violence, acts that only serve to exacerbate underlying tensions.
We also urge the security forces to exercise restraint when managing protests and to refrain from using unnecessary or disproportionate force.
Thirty-five people were reported to have been arrested by security forces on Tuesday evening during a protest over the location of Hundessa’s funeral. According to the police, the protesters, who wanted the singer to be buried in Addis Ababa, unsuccessfully tried to prevent his body being taken to his hometown of Ambo. His funeral went ahead in Ambo on Thursday.
The shutting down of Internet services is of particular concern as it disproportionately restricts the enjoyment of the right to freedom of expression, including freedom to seek, receive and impart information and risks further exacerbating tensions. We urge the authorities to restore Internet access without further delay.
The authorities have announced that suspects in Hachalu Hundessa’s murder have been arrested. It is essential that there is a prompt, thorough, independent, impartial and transparent investigation into his death to ensure those responsible are held accountable. The victims and their families have the right to justice, the truth and reparations.
We also stand ready to provide support to the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission in its investigation of potential human rights violations during these violent events.”
As a citizen, my view is that the Ministry of Peace has become too weak and putative to deliver what its name promises. This was seen and proved during ministerial meet, chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister during discussion on the Covid-19 State of Emergency implementation.
Already the office of the Attorney General had a bad start with its first occupant Abiy Ahmed appointee leaving the post to become ambassador to Australia—not a reward for a job reportedly mishandled. Likewise, the new AG assumes her task is dispensing justice, but not what the nation’s law says.
This showed the country is not ready to move forward from its decades of human rights quagmire, in the face of the AG Adanech Abebe’s reaction to the advice and suggestion the nation’s Human Rights Commissioner offered on his office’s Facebook.
The AG reacted on 25 May, among others, tweeting: “ኮሚሽኑ የሚያወጣቸው መግለጫዎች ተገቢነት የላቸውም።”
All that the Commissioner had done, consistent with his responsibilities, to issue a statement that this ministerial committee members found annoying. All that the Commission did was emphasising the need for full respect for the human rights of citizens, in accordance with core principles Ethiopia has accepted. Unfortunately, the police spend their days mistreating citizens, clubbing them around town or in prisons!
It appears we all are in post-Abiy Ahmed’s 2018 promise that now is being sarcastically referred on the social media as the Abiy Ahmed “አሻግራችኋለሁ” pledge!
For our own sakes, we need to move forward, show respect to each other. Only then can our human rights be respected and our country’s progress begins!
But human rights violations did not end with the ouster of the Derg in 1991. The Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) which took over leadership in 1991 also carried out serious violations—such as arbitrary detentions, torture, rape and enforced disappearances.
Again, in what seems like a repeat of history, Ethiopian youth were angry at systemic human rights repression and economic and political marginalization. They took to the streets and protested in vast numbers and in a sustained manner until there was a change of Ethiopian leadership in early 2018. This paved the way for the appointment of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and a new Ethiopian leadership.
Legal/Human Rights Analysis of the Declaration of State of Emergency in Ethiopia in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic
7 May 2020
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Legal/Human Rights Analysis of the Declaration of State of Emergency in Ethiopia in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic (7 May 2020)
On 8 April 2020, the Ethiopian Government declared a national state of emergency to combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Federal House of Peoples’ Representatives approved the state of emergency proclamation on 10 April 2020. The Council of Ministers has subsequently issued the Regulation to implement the state of emergency. EHRC recognizes the public health emergency needs for the issuance of the State of Emergency Proclamation and Regulation by the Ethiopian Government which is also consistent with the principle of legality that any such emergency powers should be officially declared and exercised in accordance with the law.
On the other hand, a study by EHRC has identified some provisions of the Emergency Regulation which are inconsistent with the Constitution and international human rights standards and need to be considered for review and possible amendment with a view to ensuring their full compatibility with the Constitution and international human rights standards.
Click on the link below to download Amharic and English versions of the full analysis outlining key human rights concerns arising from the State of Emergency Proclamation and Regulation as well as EHRC’s recommendations.
Note:
In response to EHRC’s analysis and recommendations, the Office of Federal Attorney General explained that the state of emergency was proclaimed in accordance with Article 93 of the FDRE Constitution and in a manner that does not impinge on the rights and freedoms that are not subject derogations under Article 93 (4) (c) and human rights treaties ratified by Ethiopia and based solely on measures that are meant to prevent and control the spread of the pandemic. Furthermore, it stated that the primary purpose of the emergency measures is not to restrict rights, but to “protect the right to life which is the mother of all rights and to prevent the infringement of many other fundamental human rights that would otherwise occur if [government] failed to take these actions.”
The government is once more employing repressive tactics to try and stamp out a rebellion, but they may be having the opposite effect
After he was accused of being an insurgent, prisoner Gammachu Garomsa was reportedly beaten to death by Ethiopian security forces and his body thrown into the bush at Yubdo Kebele in Oromia.
The district government said he was shot dead as he attempted to escape, though a photo of him sitting with his hands tied around his back and surrounded by Oromia regional police carrying sticks found its way onto social media.
Ijara Taddese, in his mid-twenties and a father of one, said he was assaulted with sticks and wires after being taken to a detention camp in Dembi Dollo in western Oromia. “Three soldiers forced me to lie on the ground with my back and two of them stepped on my hands and the other poured water on my mouth and nose from a full jerry can that holds 20 liters.” he told Ethiopia Insight. “That almost killed me.”
"When they [government officials] first came they told us an investor was coming and we would develop the land alongside one another. They didn't say the land would be taken away from us entirely. I don't understand why the government took the land."
Farmer Gemechu Garbaba
His wife adds:
"Since the land was taken away from us we are impoverished. Nothing has gone right for us, since these investors came."
Africa succumbs to colonial-style land grab
Channel 4 News, 7 January 2012
