In a letter dated Sept. 22, 2008, U.S. Senator Feingold wrote Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice:
I appreciated State’s prompt response to the question I posed on the Department’s compliance with the Foreign Assistance Act at the hearing. However, I am disappointed that despite acknowledging security forces in Chad and Ethiopia are reported to have committed abuses, the response asserted without any reservation or justification that there is not a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights in these countries. This claim contradicts the State Department’s own annual country reports.
In Ethiopia, the State Department’s annual reports over the last decade all document persistent human rights abuses by the security forces, including unlawful killings, beatings, abuse and torture, especially targeting members of the political opposition. In addition, the State Department’s Country Reports on
Human Rights Practices for 2007 specifically cites “the use of excessive force by security services in an internal conflict and counter-insurgency operations.” This is a reference to the Ethiopian military’s operations in the Ogaden region, where available reporting alleges that they have subjected civilians to executions, torture and rape.
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