Groups want UN to block Ethiopia from ending probe

Civil society and human rights groups have called on the UN to block efforts by the Ethiopian government to end an independent probe into crimes allegedly committed during a brutal civil war in the country’s north.

The more than 60 organisations include Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.

In a letter written to the UN Human Rights Council member states, the organisations said they were alarmed by plans by Addis Ababa to present a resolution that seeks to cut short a UN- mandated inquiry.

Ethiopia has resisted the UN’s International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) since its inception in 2021 calling it politically motivated and had previously attempted to cut its funding.

Last month, the country’s Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen urged the African Union to support Ethiopia’s bid to terminate what he called the commission’s “unwarranted mandate”.

The civil society and rights organisations called this push by Addis Ababa “unprecedented” and one that could set “a dangerous precedent” about avoiding international scrutiny.

The ICHREE work is needed to ensure justice and accountability particularly as trust in domestic institutions is eroded and authorities continue to harass human rights defenders, the organisations say.

Ethiopia’s civil war was marked by accusations of grave rights violations including killing of unarmed civilians and use of rape as a weapon, some of which according to the UN could amount to war crimes.

All warring parties have been accused of the crimes.

A landmark peace deal was signed in November between the government and fighters from Tigray region and helped a return of relative peace and normality to northern Ethiopia.

But there is still little to no signs of holding perpetrators accountable for alleged abuses.