Human rights fee says atrocities in Ethiopia proceed and urges Human Rights Council to resume its mandate.
UN-appointed investigators have warned that extra atrocities had been prone to be carried out in Ethiopia and referred to as for continued scrutiny of Addis Ababa’s human rights file as their work faces termination amid robust African-led opposition.
Thousands of folks died in a two-year battle between the federal government and regional forces from Tigray, which formally got here to an finish in November final yr. Both sides accused one another of atrocities, together with massacres, rape and arbitrary detentions, however every denied duty for systemic abuses.
The International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia, composed of three unbiased consultants, mentioned earlier this week in a report that battle crimes and crimes towards humanity had been nonetheless being dedicated in Ethiopia.
Its two-year mandate is up for renewal in the continuing Human Rights Council session in Geneva though up to now no request has been submitted amid what diplomats describe as robust opposition, largely from African states.
Ethiopia, which has denied committing widespread abuses, has strongly opposed the probe and tried to chop its work brief.
Mohamed Chande Othman, chair of the Commission, informed the 47-member council it could be “premature” to finish its work and urged it to resume, referring to persevering with violations in the area of Ahmara.
“Failure to do so would not only be an abdication of the Council’s responsibility, it would send a devastating message to the victims and survivors of this conflict,” he mentioned on Thursday.
He mentioned it was hoped that the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (CoHA), signed in Pretoria in November 2022, “would pave the way for an end to one of the deadliest conflicts of the 21st century”, which has “devastated communities throughout northern Ethiopia.
“This has not proved to be the case. Not only has the CoHA failed to bring about any comprehensive peace, but atrocities are ongoing, and conflict, violence, and instability are now near-national in dimension,” mentioned Othman, including their newest report confirms that Eritrean troops and Amhara militias continued to commit atrocities towards civilians in Tigray.
He criticised Ethiopia’s method to justice as “deeply flawed”, saying there had been no credible proof of reputable investigations or trials of its troopers whom it accuses of attacking civilians.
Othman additionally mentioned the fee was significantly involved concerning the security of minority Irob and Kunama communities dwelling close to the Eritrean border and an absence of reforms in Ethiopia.
Ethiopia’s authorities and its armed forces have repeatedly denied that their troopers dedicated widespread crimes and have promised to research complaints of particular person abuses.
Ethiopia’s ambassador Tsegab Kebebew mentioned the Commission had “grossly mischaracterised the positive and widely acclaimed political developments in Ethiopia”. He didn’t straight handle the opposite criticisms.
Ivory Coast envoy Konan François Kouame mentioned that it thought-about the work of the UN Commission as now being terminated and urged the council to as an alternative help Ethiopian-led measures.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/9/21/un-investigators-warn-of-risk-of-future-atrocities-in-ethiopia?traffic_source=rss
