ICERAS

The Committee against Torture today concluded its consideration of the second periodic report of Ethiopia, with Committee Experts welcoming constitutional protections for persons deprived of liberty and raising questions about authorities’ alleged human rights violations in Tigray and reported abuses of refugees from Eritrea.

Sébastien Touze, Committee Expert and Country Rapporteur for the report of Ethiopia, said protections for persons deprived of liberty were inscribed in the Constitution, and the Committee welcomed this.  However, several detainees were reportedly not immediately informed in a language that they understood of the reasons for their detention.  There were also reported concerns about detainees’ access to lawyers and interpreters, and about delays in hearing cases.  How would the Government ensure that constitutional guarantees were implemented effectively?

Mr. Touze addressed the conflict in Tigray, saying that since November 2020, the Amhara authorities had been engaged in what some civil society organizations described as “ethnic cleansing” in western Tigray, driving Tigrayans from the region with the acquiescence and possible involvement of Ethiopian federal forces.  They had allegedly committed unlawful killings, sexual violence, arbitrary detention on a massive scale, looting, forcible transfers, and blocked access to humanitarian assistance.   What measures had been taken to prevent and suppress this “ethnic cleansing”, and to protect and assist internally displaced persons?

Todd Buchwald, Committee Expert and Country Rapporteur for the report of Ethiopia, said there had been widespread reports of abuses against refugees from Eritrea.  The presence of Tigrayan Special Forces and Ethiopian National Defence Forces in Shimelba refugee camp, which housed Eritrean refugees, had led to the displacement of thousands of refugees, the disappearance of hundreds, and the destruction of the camp.  Several Eritrean women and girls were reportedly raped by Tigrayan militias as they escaped from the camps in December 2020.  What measures were in place to prevent the recurrence of such violations and provide redress?

Introducing the report, Alemante Agidew Wondimeneh, State Minister, Legal Division, Ministry of Justice of Ethiopia and head of delegation, said the conflict in the northern part of the country had led to an unimaginable scale of violations of fundamental rights.  In November 2020, forces of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front attacked and killed State personnel, and took control of the Ethiopian National Defence Forces’ Northern Command in the Tigray region.  In response, the Government had to use force to repel the threat posed against the sovereignty and integrity of the nation. READMORE