EXECUTIVE SUMMARY – April 23, 2018

PDF – Ethiopia is a federal republic. The ruling Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), a coalition of four ethnically based parties, controls the government. In the 2015 general elections the EPRDF and affiliated parties won all 547 House of People’s Representatives (parliament) seats to remain in power for a fifth consecutive five-year term. In 2015 parliament elected Hailemariam Desalegn to his first full mandate as prime minister. Hailemariam assumed that office in 2012 after the death of his predecessor. Government restrictions severely limited independent observation of the general election vote. A mission from the African Union, the sole international institution or organization permitted to observe the voting, called the elections “calm, peaceful, and credible.” Some nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) reported an environment conducive to a free and fair election was not in place prior to the election. There were reports of unfair government tactics, including intimidation of opposition candidates and supporters, and violence before and after the election that resulted in at least six deaths. Continue reading →

United Nations Human Rights Chief to conduct follow-up visit to Ethiopia and African Union (22-25 April)

High Commissioner Zeid last visited Ethiopia in May 2017, when he met the then Prime Minister and other high-ranking Ethiopian officials and civil society members to discuss the human rights situation in the country and the work of the UN Human Rights East Africa Regional Office

GENEVA, Switzerland, April 23, 2018 (APO Group) — UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein on Sunday begins his second official visit to Ethiopia, at the invitation of the Government. During his visit, he will also take part in a high-level dialogue between the African Union and the UN Human Rights Office. Continue reading →