Resolution on the Situation in Ethiopia
We, participants of the Forum on the Participation of NGOs in the 47th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights in Banjul, The Gambia,
Considering the provisions of the Constitutive Act of the African Union as well as those of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and other regional and international human rights instruments to which Ethiopia is a state party;
Recalling the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the 1998 United Nations (UN) Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders), the 1999 Grand Bay Declaration and Plan of Action, the 2003 Kigali Declaration and all the legal instruments which guarantee the right of defenders of human rights;
Further considering Ethiopia’s Constitution which guarantees amongst other rights, freedom of assembly, association and expression and recalling its obligations under the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders;
Deeply concerned by the ongoing harassment, intimidation, arbitrary arrests and prosecution of human rights defenders ever since the contested elections of 2005;
Deeply concerned by the highly restrictive Charities and Societies Proclamation, which was passed by the Ethiopian Parliament in January 2009 which undermines the activities of human rights defenders in the country and thwart the effective functioning of human rights organisations in the country;
Deploring the restrictions, both legislative and administrative, imposed on the private media by the Ethiopian authorities and an increase in the cases of harassment of private media journalists and censorship in governmental media;
Expressing concern for the recently passed Anti-Terrorism Proclamation notably its broad definition of terrorism, terrorist acts and the sweeping powers it gives to the police and the lack of judicial oversight mechanisms that risk to criminalise peaceful political protests as well as further restrict freedom of expression;
Deeply concerned that the Charities and Societies Proclamation and the Anti-Terrorism legislation are imposing a chilling effect on human rights activities and are silencing human rights defenders;
Noting that harassment and intimidation of human rights defenders undermines efforts to bring ongoing human rights violations, notably in the run up to the general elections on 23 May 2010, to the attention of the international community and risks to undermine the fairness and freeness of the elections;
Hereby call on the ACHPR to take all necessary measures to pass a resolution:
1. Encouraging the Ethiopian authorities to repeal the Charities and Societies Proclamation or to significantly amend it, notably provisions under article 2 defining Ethiopian Charities and Resident Charities, and Article 14 that excludes organisations receiving more than 10% of their funding from foreign sources from working in areas including human rights in order to ensure an enabling environment for human rights organisations;
2. Calling on the Ethiopian authorities to amend the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation to ensure that it complies with the country’s national, regional and international human rights responsibilities;
3. Calling on the Ethiopian authorities to end all practices which threaten freedom of expression and prevent human rights defenders and particularly journalists from pursuing their legitimate work;
4. Calling on the Ethiopian government to recognize the importance of the participation of civil society organisations in particular human rights defenders in all state party reporting processes to international and regional human rights bodies;
5. Calling on the Ethiopian authorities to carry out prompt, impartial, effective and independent investigations into all cases of human rights violations, both past and present, particularly those affecting human rights defenders and most notably the human rights abuses which took place in the aftermath of the general elections 2005;
6. Calling on the Ethiopian government to recognise and officially accredit local independent civil society organisations to observe the general elections on 23 May 2010;
7. Encouraging the Ethiopian authorities to allow for independent and unimpeded access by national and international human rights groups and the media to regions of particular concern;
8. Calling on African Union member States to support initiatives by HRDs in Ethiopia aimed at strengthening their position, notably through join initiatives and networks;
9. Recommending to AU member States that all forthcoming assistance to the Ethiopian government from the African Union, notably given its key position, should ensure human rights accountability.
Done in Banjul, May 10th, 2010
