Geneva — United Nations human rights chief Volker Türk is calling on warring parties in northern Ethiopia to lay down their arms, warning that human rights violations and abuses amid hostilities continue to endanger reconciliation efforts.
"I urge the parties to the conflict to halt ongoing hostilities and to resolve differences through peaceful means," Türk said in a statement issued Friday to coincide with the release of a U.N. report updating the human rights situation across Ethiopia between January 2023 and January 2024.
"It is essential that the authorities take all feasible steps to protect civilians, prevent further violations, and ensure there are full investigations to bring those responsible to justice," he said.
The report finds the human rights situation in the northern Tigray region has improved significantly following a November 2022 Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, while violent conflict has led to a serious deterioration of human rights in the regions of Amhara and Oromia.
"The situation in Amhara and Oromia regions remains worrying, with ongoing fighting between government forces against Amhara militia and Fano and the Oromia Liberation Army respectively," Liz Throssell, U.N. human rights spokesperson, told journalists in Geneva.
The report cites a litany of human rights violations and abuses committed by government security forces and armed groups, including arbitrary arrests and detentions, followed by killings of civilians, torture, enforced disappearances, and attacks on civilian property.
It also says at least 1,351 civilians were killed in Ethiopia last year in attacks reportedly carried out by government forces, Eritrean troops, anti-government militias, and some unknown actors.
The report documents 594 incidents of human rights violations and abuses affecting 8,253 victims, "a 56 percent increase compared with 2022." It adds that, "State actors were reportedly responsible for some 70 percent of the violations, while non-state actors accounted for some 22 percent."
Declining violations in Tigray
In Ethiopia's most-northern region, Tigray, the report describes a general decrease in human rights violations and abuses. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, or OHCHR, recorded 44 civilian deaths in 2023 compared to 303 in 2022 in the context of the Tigray conflict. This, the report says, shows "a positive trend, despite the concerns of the presence of the EDF [Ethiopian Defense Forces] and alleged violations attributed to them."
Throssell, however, noted that it is "absolutely clear that [Tigray] still remains volatile."
"There are still conflicts taking place in Tigray. So, we are not saying that things are perfect there. Far from it. But the update is trying to take an overall picture, a nuanced picture of what is happening there, and there is concern," she said. "Obviously humanitarian concerns continue in Tigray and other parts of Ethiopia."
The report criticizes Ethiopia's August 2023 state of emergency declaration for the neighboring region of Amhara, which "has resulted in actions by security forces in violation of Ethiopia's international human rights obligations."
It also decries the continued presence of the Eritrean Defense Forces in parts of Tigray and the continued violations committed by those forces, which "represent a serious impediment to the peace process."
Türk welcomed the June 3rd expiration of the state of emergency, which authorities had extended repeatedly.
"I urge the authorities to release immediately those detained under the former state of emergency. ... Those who have not been charged should also be released immediately," he said. "I also call on the authorities to lift the restrictions on movements and resume regular law enforcement operations to protect people."
Transitional justice policy
Ethiopia's Federal Council of Ministers, the country's executive branch, which also includes the president and Council of State, approved its transitional justice policy in April and launched its implementation on May 9. The update acknowledges the Ethiopian government's efforts to promote transitional justice and prevent violence against women and children, as well as its openness to engage in dialogue to resolve the fighting in the Amhara region.
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However, authors of the OHCHR report say that "the human rights violations and abuses documented during the reporting period undermine the efforts by the government of Ethiopia to foster peace and accountability."
They point out that "quick and effective political and accountability steps are needed to halt the violations and abuses which are further endangering reconciliation and peace in the country."
They urge the government to make a "sustained commitment" to develop the transitional justice policy and national dialogue in an atmosphere "that allows people to freely participate."
The Ethiopian government, which has received the report, has yet to respond.
