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Ethiopia
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices –
1999
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
February 23, 2000
Ethiopia
continued its transition from a unitary to a federal system of
government. Prime Minister Meles Zenawi leads the Government of the
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (GFDRE), which was elected in
1995 to replace a transitional government established in the aftermath
of a long and brutal civil war. Most opposition groups boycotted the
elections. Candidates affiliated with the dominant party within the
transitional government, the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary
Democratic Front (EPRDF), won a landslide victory in national and
regional elections. Although observers judged the elections to be
generally free and fair, they cited irregularities. Officials
affiliated with the dominant coalition, the EPRDF, control the
Government, and the principal faction within the EPRDF remains Prime
Minister Meles’ Tigray Peoples’ Liberation Front (TPLF). Federal
regions, largely organized along ethnic lines, increasingly are
autonomous and have a large degree of local control over fiscal and
political issues. However, the relationship between the central
Government and local officials and among various judiciaries lacks
consistent coordination and occasionally actions are taken at the local
level that conflict with stated federal policy. A long history of
highly centralized authority, great poverty, civil conflict, and
unfamiliarity with democratic concepts combine to complicate the
implementation of federalism. The federal Government’s ability to
protect constitutional rights at the local level is limited and uneven.
Local administrative, police, and judicial systems remain weak
throughout the country. The judiciary is weak and overburdened, but
continued to show signs of independence.
Military forces that had
been assigned to help police and local militia in the Gambella and
Benishangul-Gomuz regions establish order, control banditry, and
curtail rebel activities were redeployed to areas bordering Eritrea.
Without the military’s assistance, these areas once again have
experienced a breakdown in law and order. There was increased internal
military presence in some parts of the Somali region and Oromiya. Armed
conflict between the military forces of Ethiopia and Eritrea along
contested border areas resumed in February. In addition, military
forces conducted an increased number of low-level operations against
the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), the Somalia-based Al’Ittihad
terrorist organization, and elements of the Ogaden National Liberation
Front (ONLF) both in the country and in southern Somalia and northern
Kenya. The national police organization is subordinate to the Ministry
of Justice. Some local officials and members of the security forces
committed human rights abuses.
The economy is based on
smallholder agriculture, with more than 85 percent of the estimated
population of 61.7 million living in rural areas under very basic
conditions. Agriculture accounts for approximately 80 percent of total
employment. Per capita gross national product (GNP) is estimated at
$130 per year. Real GNP growth was 2 to 3 percent. Total exports
declined 18 percent to $494 million. The decline was due to a drop in
the export value of coffee. Coffee accounted for 70 percent of the
value of 1998 exports and 60 percent of 1999 exports. The conflict with
Eritrea has led to increased military spending. Military spending
during the year was estimated to be $350 million. The Government
continued to implement an economic reform program designed to stabilize
the country’s financial position, promote private sector participation
in the economy, and attract foreign investment. In December the customs
authority introduced a 10 percent surtax on most imports to raise funds
for the war effort.
The Government’s human
rights record generally was poor; although there were improvements in a
few areas, serious problems remain. Security forces committed a number
of extrajudicial killings. In November security forces killed up to 10
persons in Sodo while suppressing widespread riots and demonstrations
in protest of the imposition of a new language as a medium of
instruction in schools. Security forces at times beat and mistreated
detainees, and arbitrarily arrested and detained citizens. Prison
conditions are poor, and prolonged pretrial detention remains a
problem. The Government continued to detain persons suspected of
sympathizing with or being involved with the OLF. The Government
continued to detain and deport without due process Eritreans and
Ethiopians of Eritrean origin. Since the outbreak of the border
conflict in May 1998, more than 67,000 such persons have left Ethiopia
for Eritrea; the vast majority were deported, although a small number
left voluntarily. Another 1,200 male Eritreans and Ethiopians of
Eritrean origin are being held in internment camps. Although prompted
by national security considerations, the expulsions and detentions
raised fundamental concerns regarding arbitrary arrest and detention,
forced exile, the forcible separation of families, and nationality
issues, as well as the hardships and financial losses suffered by those
who were detained or expelled. The judiciary lacks sufficient trained
staff and funds, which limits its ability to provide citizens the full
protection provided for in the Constitution. The Government continued
to train additional civil and criminal judges and assigned them to
regional courts. The Supreme Court reduced the number of judges
required to hear a simple civil proceeding from three to one, thereby
speeding up the provision of justice. The Government infringes on
citizen’s privacy rights, and the law regarding search warrants is
widely ignored.
The Government restricts
freedom of the press and continued to detain or imprison members of the
press; however, fewer journalists were detained than in previous years.
At year’s end, eight journalists remained in detention, three of whom
where charged with alleged involvement with terrorist activities.
Approximately 45 journalists obtained bail during the year but still
are subject to trial. Most were accused or convicted of inciting ethnic
hatred, committing libel, or publishing false information in violation
of the 1992 Press Law. Nevertheless, the private press is active and
flourishing. Although the Government has not banned formally any
newspaper or publication, the publication of some journals remains
suspended due to the detention of editorial staff, and journalists
continued to practice self-censorship. The Government at times
restricted freedom of assembly. Despite Ministry of Education
assurances to the contrary, the independent Ethiopian Teachers’
Association (ETA) was not permitted to organize seminars in the
regions. The Government limits freedom of association; however, the
nongovernmental organization (NGO) registration process, which is slow
and tedious, continued to improve. The Ethiopian Human Rights Council
(EHRCO) was registered after a 7-year effort, and the organization won
a suit against the Government for blocking its bank accounts; however,
the Government continues to refuse the registration of some NGO’s. The
Human Rights League (HRL), which was founded in 1997 by prominent Oromo
civic leaders, has not been permitted to register, and its office
records and equipment, confiscated by the Government in 1998, have not
been returned. In June ETA secretary general Dr. Taye Woldesemayat was
convicted and sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for treason. Four
codefendants were given prison sentences ranging from 8 to 13 years.
The sentences were much more severe than expected.
While in general the
Government respects freedom of religion, on occasion local authorities
infringed on this right. The Government restricted freedom of movement.
In August Eritreans residing in Ethiopia and those Ethiopians of
Eritrean origin who voted in the 1993 referendum on Eritrean
independence were required to register with the SIRAA and issued
6-month residence permits. There were reports of the forced return of
Djiboutian Afars who were not permitted to register as refugees. The
border conflict with Eritrea, along with drought conditions in some
areas, have displaced a large number of persons internally.
Violence and societal
discrimination against women, and abuse of children remained problems,
and female genital mutilation (FGM) is widespread. The National
Committee on Traditional Practices in Ethiopia (NCTPE) reported in
September 1998 that FGM occurs in 72.7 percent of the female
population, down from 90 percent in 1990. The Government supports
efforts to eliminate FGM and other harmful traditional practices;
however, such practices are widespread. The exploitation of children
for economic and sexual purposes remained a problem. There are
approximately 150,000 street children in urban areas, and their number
is growing daily. Societal discrimination against disabled persons was
a problem. Discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities
persists. Child labor was a pervasive problem. Forced labor was also a
problem, and there were some reports of trafficking in persons.
The Government’s Special
Prosecutor’s Office (SPO) continued conducting the trials of persons
accused of committing crimes under the brutal Marxist regime (1974-91)
of Colonel Mengistu Haile Mariam. Charges have been brought against
5,198 persons. All have been indicted and arraigned, and the testimony
of victims continues to be heard in open court. However, more than half
of those accused are not in custody and were charged in absentia. Most
SPO detainees have been held in custody for 7 or 8 years awaiting trial
and judgment.
After extensive public
consultations the House of People’s Representatives (HPR) in October
passed enabling legislation to meet the constitutional requirement to
create a human rights commission and office of the ombudsman. The
commission has full powers to receive and investigate all complaints of
human rights violations made against any person. Neither entity was
operational by year’s end.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
The security forces committed
a number of extrajudicial killings. In June a youth attending the
funeral of All Amhara People’s Organization (AAPO) founder Dr. Asrat
Woldeyes was shot and killed by an undercover security officer who
subsequently was arrested and charged for the crime. There were reports
that in August security forces fired on a group of Somalis who were
protesting the military’s occupation of a Somali border town, killing
two persons. There also were unconfirmed reports of extrajudicial
killings by Government security forces from Oromiya and the Somali
region.
Actions taken by the
Government as part of the border conflict resulted in some civilian
deaths. In February an Ethiopian plane bombed the Eritrean village of
Laili Deda, killing at least five Eritrean civilians and wounding
several others. There were reports that in April Ethiopian forces
shelled the border town of Adi Keyih, killing at least eight Eritrean
civilians and wounding dozens of others.
The Government announced a
no-fly zone along its northern border soon after its military conflict
with Eritrea began in May 1998. In August air defense forces shot down
an unarmed civilian Learjet en route to South Africa from Italy when it
violated the no-fly zone, killing two European nationals.
In November student
protests against the arrest of two teachers who criticized new
textbooks in the Welayita speaking sections of the Southern Nations,
Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region State (SNNPRS) led to widespread
demonstrations and riots (see Sections 1.d. and 5). Special police
units called in to suppress the riot killed up to 10 persons and
wounded many others.
In March a 70-year old man
accused of involvement with OLF terrorist activities died in prison
(see Section 1.c.). In June Kebede Desta, a defendant charged along
with 127 others for genocide (see Section 1.d.), died in prison of
multiple chronic illnesses. Also in June, ETA acting secretary general
Shimelis Zewidie died the same month of tuberculosis. Many
international labor observers and ETA officials claim that Shimelis
Zewdie’s medical condition was exacerbated by a 75-day detention in
late 1998.
The Government provided
financial support to a coalition of Eritrean opposition groups based in
Sudan, which laid landmines in Eritrea that resulted in several
civilian deaths.
The outbreak of hostilities
with Eritrea has led to Eritrean support of armed opposition groups
that have been attempting to overthrow the Ethiopian Government. This
has led to an increase during the year in armed attacks within
Ethiopian territory by these groups operating mostly out of Somalia and
Kenya. These attacks took the form of landmine incidents and
hit-and-run attacks by guerrillas armed with small arms and grenades.
In response the Government conducted military incursions into Somalia
and around Kenya against these armed opposition groups. Some civilians
and combatants were killed as a result of these attacks and in
confrontations between government forces and the guerrillas, although
the total number of deaths could not be confirmed.
In 1997 the federal High
Court in Addis Ababa began the arraignment and prosecution of 5,198
persons formally charged with genocide and other war crimes, including
extrajudicial killings, under the previous regime. Of the 5,198 persons
charged, 2,246 were in detention, while the remaining 2,952 were
charged in absentia. At year’s end, witnesses still were being heard
and evidence taken in the ongoing trials. In November the federal High
Court handed down a death sentence in absentia to Getachew Tebeka, a
former district governor and army lieutenant. Terba was convicted of
ordering the detention, torture, and execution of five alleged
opponents of the Derg Government, and is the first SPO defendant to
receive the death penalty.
According to U.N.
officials, Eritrean forces planted more than 50,000 landmines in the
Badme area during their occupation of the territory. At least 10
civilians were killed by landmine explosions while attempting to return
to their homes in the area.
In August and November,
landmines derailed railroad engines pulling passenger trains outside
Dira Dawa, killing at least four persons and injuring several others.
Observers believe that the landmines were set by the radical Islamic
group Al’Ittihad.
Banditry remained a serious
problem in parts of the country. Bandits, often heavily armed, killed
civilians, police, and soldiers during robberies and attempted
robberies. Most evidence suggests that their motives primarily were
economic.
There were unconfirmed
reports that in November Eritrean forces killed 17 Ethiopian Afar
civilians during a cross border attack. b. Disappearance
There were no confirmed
reports of disappearances perpetrated by the Government, although both
domestic and international human rights groups claim that there were
many politically motivated disappearances.
In 1997 the federal High
Court in Addis Ababa began the arraignment and prosecution of 5,198
persons charged with genocide and other war crimes under the previous
regime, including the disappearance of 14,209 persons (see Section
1.a.).
In January a foreign aid
worker was kidnaped in the Somali region by unknown persons and taken
to Somalia where he was released unharmed. In April unknown gunmen
reportedly kidnaped three persons, including a foreign aid worker, in
the Ogaden region.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution prohibits
the use of torture and mistreatment; however, there were credible
reports that security officials sometimes beat or mistreated detainees.
Government media published occasional reports of officials who were
jailed or dismissed for abuse of authority and violations of human
rights.
In November police injured
many persons and killed up to 10 others while suppressing riots in the
SNNPRS (see Sections 1.a., 1.d. and 5).
There was an increase
during the year in armed attacks within Ethiopian territory by
Eritrean-supported opposition groups operating mostly out of Somalia
and Kenya (see Section 1.a.). These attacks have taken the form of
landmine incidents and hit-and-run attacks by guerrillas armed with
small arms weapons and grenades.
Prison conditions are poor
and overcrowding remains a serious problem. Prisoners often are
allocated fewer than 21.5 square feet of sleeping space in a room that
may contain up to 200 persons. Prison food is inadequate, and many
prisoners have food delivered to them every day by family members or
use their own funds to purchase food from local vendors. Prison
conditions are unsanitary, and access to medical care is not reliable.
Prisoners typically are permitted daily access to prison yards, which
often include working farms, mechanical shops, and rudimentary
libraries. Visitors are permitted. Prison letters all must be written
in Amharic, making outside contact difficult for non-Amharic speakers;
however, this restriction is not enforced. Female prisoners are housed
separately from men, and rape does not appear to be a problem.
Several prisoners and detainees died during the year due to illness and disease (see Sections 1.a. and 1.d.).
In May six detainees
suspected of involvement in terrorist activities staged a 10-day hunger
strike to protest the prison policy of keeping them in handcuffs 24
hours a day (see Section 1.d.). Another 3-day prison wide hunger strike
in protest of prolonged court proceedings took place in Kaliti prison
in June.
The army used military
camps located near Zewaye Goba in Bale zone, Oromiya for the temporary
detention and interrogation of OLF fighters and alleged supporters.
In June approximately 1,200
internees of Eritrean origin and 172 prisoners of war were moved from
the Bilate detention camp to the Dedesa internment camp in western
Oromiya. The new camp is in an area less prone to malaria. In July
approximately 350 Eritrean prisoners of war (POW’s) were moved from the
Tigray region to the Dedesa internment camp.
The Government permits
independent monitoring of prison conditions and police stations by the
ICRC and by diplomatic missions. The ICRC, in general, had access to
federal and regional prisons, civilian detention facilities, and police
stations throughout the country; however, after a July visit, the
Government refused to allow the ICRC access to the Central
Investigation Division (CID) detention facility in Addis Ababa, which
holds upwards of 200 persons whose cases are under investigation.
Furthermore, the ICRC was unable to gain access to police stations in
Addis Ababa where ethnic Eritreans are believed to be detained. The
ICRC had restricted access to military detention facilities in the east
and the southeast, where suspected OLF fighters are held.
The Government generally
permitted the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) access to
detention facilities holding Eritrean POW’s. The ICRC also regularly
visited civilian Eritrean nationals and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin
being detained on national security grounds. However, in February the
Government instructed ICRC staff to leave the Tigray region. In April
ICRC staff were permitted to visit POW’s held in Tigray; however, the
ICRC was not permitted to resume its program in Tigray until August.
Government authorities
permitted diplomats to visit prominent detainees held by the SPO for
alleged involvement in war crimes and terrorist activities. These
detainees include former Derg housing ministry official and governor of
Sidamo, Abera Yemane-Ab, 1968 Olympic marathon winner Mamo Wolde, and
former Addis Ababa University President Dr. Alemayehu Tefera. ETA
secretary general Dr. Taye Woldesemayat, now serving a 15-year sentence
for plotting violent insurrection, also is permitted visitors from the
diplomatic community.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The Constitution and both the
criminal and civil codes prohibit arbitrary arrest and detention;
however, the Government does not always respect these rights in
practice.
Under the Criminal
Procedure Code, any person detained must be charged and informed of the
charges within 48 hours and, in most cases, be offered release on bail.
Those persons believed to have committed serious offenses may be
detained for 15 days while police conduct an investigation, and for
additional 15-day periods while the investigation continues. Some
offenses, such as murder and treason, are not bailable. In practice,
and especially in the outlying regions, authorities regularly detain
persons without a warrant, do not charge them within 48 hours, and–if
persons are released on bail–never recall them to court. Thousands of
criminal suspects remained in detention without charge, most of whom
were accused of involvement in OLF terrorist activities. Often these
lengthy detentions are due to the severe shortage and limited training
of judges, prosecutors, and attorneys.
Federal and regional
authorities arrested and detained persons without charge or trial for
activities allegedly in support of armed opposition groups. The vast
majority of these incidents took place in the Oromiya and Somali
regional states. More than 7,500 persons allegedly associated with
armed opposition groups remain in detention. Most detainees were
accused of participating in armed actions by the OLF or the ONLF. In
typical cases, security forces arrested and held these persons
incommunicado for several days or weeks before eventually releasing
them. The closed trial of 65 Oromos suspected of involvement in OLF
terrorist acts continued. In March one of the Oromo defendants who was
70 years of age died while in jail. In April three other defendants
were granted bail. Six of the defendants staged a 10-day hunger strike
in May to protest the prison policy of keeping them in handcuffs 24
hours a day.
Thirty-one AAPO officials
and supporters, most detained since 1994, were convicted on treason
charges in March. They were convicted of inciting an armed uprising and
promoting civil war. Four of the individuals, an elderly defendant, two
women, and a youth, received 4-year sentences and were released for
time served. The remaining 27 received sentences ranging from 5 to 20
years.
In response to attacks by
armed opposition groups operating out of Somalia and Kenya (see
Sections 1.a. and 1.c.), the Ethiopian military has conducted
operations in and around the areas bordering Somalia and Kenya. These
operations have resulted in the capture and detention of hundreds of
opposition fighters and their suspected supporters on both sides of
these borders during the year.
A total of nine journalists
were detained during the year, of whom, two remained in prison at
year’s end because they could not meet bail requirements (see Sections
1.e. and 2.a.). In April Samson Seyoum, the former editor in chief of
two now defunct weekly independent newspapers who had been detained
since December 1995, was sentenced to 4 1/2 years’ imprisonment on
charges of incitement to war and attempting to spread Islamic
fundamentalism (see Section 2.a.). In May another editor in chief was
sentenced to 1 year and 1 month in prison for libel but was released in
July for time served (see Section 2.a.).
In December 1997, the
trials began of three of the five journalists and editors associated
with the opposition newspaper Urjii, who were arrested in October and
November 1997 for violating the press law and for alleged involvement
in OLF terrorist activists. The arrests of the journalists occurred
without warrants, and the detainees were held incommunicado for up to a
month. One of the detainees, charged only with violating the press law,
was released on bail in December 1998; his trial was pending at year’s
end. The fifth detainee was convicted of violating the press law and
sentenced to a year in prison, but five other charges still are pending
against him (see Section 2.a.).
In December the Government
arrested up to 26 Nuer tribal political activists associated with the
Gambella People’s Democratic Congress (GPDC) (see Sections 3 and 5).
Some of the activists were arrested for inciting Nuer students in
November to demonstrate for the use of the Nuer language in school (see
Section 2.b.), while others were arrested on suspicion of supporting
the OLF. All of the activists remained in detention at year’s end.
On November 6, police
arrested two teachers in Sodo in the SNNPRS for objecting to the use of
a new language in student textbooks (see Section 5). Student
demonstrations against the arrests led to widespread week-long
demonstrations and riots. Special police units brought in to suppress
the demonstrations killed up to 10 persons, injured hundreds and
arrested up to 1,000 others (see Sections 1.a, 1.c., and 5). A former
Young Men’s Christian Association camp in Sodo was used as a temporary
detention facility for hundreds of demonstrators. At year’s end,
between 70 and 120 persons remained in detention in prisons in the Sodo
area, including several elders from the Welayita community.
In March 1997, the SPO
formally charged 128 defendants with politically motivated genocide
dating back to the 1976 ” red terror.” In December 1998, the SPO began
presenting prosecution testimony in the case of former Addis Ababa
University President Alemayehu Tefera, imprisoned since 1993, although
the charges on which he originally had been detained were dropped the
same year. His petition to separate his case from the 127 other
defendants was denied (see Section 1.a.). The court also started
hearing testimony in December 1998 on the case of former Olympic
marathon champion Mamo Wolde, who was charged with genocide for the
state-sponsored killing of 14 teenagers during the prior regime. Wolde
has been detained since 1992. In June the trial of ETA secretary
general Dr. Taye Woldesemayet concluded with a conviction for treason
and alleged involvement in an underground terrorist organization. He
was sentenced to 15 years in jail. In handing down the sentence the
court referenced two alleged terrorist acts that had been dropped from
the list of charges against Dr. Woldesemayet during the trial. Four
other SPO defendants also were convicted and given sentences ranging
from 8 to 13 years. The sentences were much more severe than expected.
In June another SPO defendant, Kebede Desta, died in prison of multiple
chronic illnesses, and ETA acting secretary general Shimelis Zewidie
died the same month of tuberculosis (see Sections 1.a. and 1.c.).
Opposition groups allege
that some of the persons detained by the SPO, as well as some others,
are held for political reasons. The Government denies that it holds
persons for political reasons.
In February 39 Eritrean
exchange students held in Bilate detention camp since July 1998 were
released and flown by chartered aircraft to Asmara, Eritrea.
Civilian residents of
Eritrean origin have been detained since the outbreak of hostilities
between Ethiopia and Eritrea. The Government justified these detentions
on grounds of security. Approximately 1,200 civilian residents of
Eritrean origin remained detained in internment camps at year’s end.
There were credible reports that hundreds of others were held in police
stations for months prior to being deported. The ICRC was not granted
access to detainees allegedly held in police stations. A total of 512
Eritrean POW’s captured in fighting between Ethiopia and Eritrea
remained detained at year’s end. Beginning in April, authorities began
releasing Eritrean detainees if they could obtain visas to a country
other than Eritrea. Approximately 90 detainees have left Ethiopia,
mostly to other African countries, particularly Uganda and Malawi. In
early August, 25 Eritrean detainees obtained fraudulent travel
documents and left Ethiopia to Malawi on a scheduled airline flight.
They were detained in Malawi where they refused an offer of transit to
Eritrea. The Malawian authorities then forcibly returned the former
detainees to Ethiopia. One former detainee was killed and at least six
were wounded in a confrontation with Malawi authorities (see Section
2.d.).
Exile is illegal, and the
Constitution provides that citizens shall not be deprived of their
nationality against their wills; however, since the outbreak of
conflict with Eritrea in May 1998, the Government has detained and
deported more than 67,000 Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin
on national security grounds. Some of the deportees were voluntary
returnees who had requested return to Eritrea; however, the vast
majority were deported forcibly. Deportation orders originated from the
Security, Immigration, and Refugee Affairs Authority in Addis Ababa.
The Government’s actions raised serious issues of due process since
there were no preliminary hearings to determine the merits of the
deportations, no right to counsel was provided to detainees, and
detainees only had a very circumscribed opportunity to register
protests. In addition, the issue of the nationality of Eritrean-origin
Ethiopians has not been settled yet. Heads of households were taken
without warning, detained, and often deported via overland routes
within 48 hours. Remaining family members were given arbitrary
deadlines to sell property and sometimes were subjected to departure
taxes based on estimated annual income and unpaid balances on
government bank loans. The ICRC monitored most border crossings until
September when government notification to the ICRC ceased. Since
September 4,000 Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin were
deported, reportedly without provision for their safety, hygiene,
sanitation, or food. Some of these deportees were hospitalized upon
reaching Eritrea. In August all Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean
origin over 18 years of age who had taken part in the 1993 referendum
on Eritrean independence were required to register with the Security,
Immigration, and Refugee Affairs Authority (SIRAA) and complete
residence application forms. After registration, applicants received
identity cards and residence permits valid for 6 months (see Section
2.d.).
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The Constitution provides for
an independent judiciary; however, the judiciary is weak and
overburdened. Although the federal and regional courts continued to
show signs of judicial independence, in practice severe shortages of
adequately trained personnel in many regions, as well as serious
financial constraints, combined to deny many citizens the full
protections provided for in the Constitution.
Consistent with the
Constitution, the Government continued to decentralize and restructure
the judiciary along federal lines with the establishment of courts at
the district, zonal, and regional levels. The federal High Court and
federal Supreme Court hear and adjudicate original and appeal cases
involving federal law, transregional issues, and national security. The
regional judiciary is increasingly autonomous, with district (woreda),
zonal, high, and supreme courts mirroring the structure of the federal
judiciary. The Government has delegated some of the war crimes trials
to the supreme courts in the regions where the crimes allegedly were
committed.
The Constitution provides
legal standing to some preexisting religious and customary courts and
gives federal and regional legislatures the authority to recognize
other courts. By law, both parties to a dispute must agree before a
customary or religious court may hear a case. Shari’a (Islamic) courts
may hear religious and family cases involving Muslims. In addition,
some traditional courts still function. Although not sanctioned by law,
these courts resolve disputes for the majority of citizens who live in
rural areas and who generally have little access to formal judicial
systems.
The outbreak of hostilities
between Ethiopia and Eritrea adversely impacted the military justice
system. Most foreign assistance to train officers and noncommissioned
officers was suspended at the same time that the rapid expansion of the
military greatly increased the need for trained military lawyers and
judges. The military’s involvement in the detention of opposition
fighters and their suspected supporters has constrained further its
badly overburdened justice system.
The Constitution provides
that persons arrested have the right to be released on bail. In most
cases, bail is set between approximately $125 (1,000 birr) and
approximately $1,250 (10,000 birr). At year’s end, two journalists were
being held in prison, since they could not meet these bail
requirements. Certain offenses such as capital crimes are not bailable.
Authorities detained
hundreds of persons without charge for supposed involvement with the
OLF and the ONLF (see Section 1.d.). Such cases often reflect arbitrary
actions on the part of local officials but also result from an
overburdened and cumbersome judicial system marked by a shortage of
trained and competent prosecutors and judges.
Regional offices of the
federal Ministry of Justice monitor local judicial developments, but
the federal judicial presence in the regions is limited. Anecdotal
evidence suggests that some local officials interpret decentralization
to mean that they no longer are accountable to any higher authority,
even within their own regions. For example, local government officials
throughout the country ignored instructions from the National Electoral
Board (NEB) on the acceptance of candidate endorsement signatures from
opposition party candidates.
To remedy the severe lack
of experienced staff in the judicial system, the Government continued
to identify and train lower court judges and prosecutors, although
officials acknowledge that the pay scale offered must be increased
significantly to attract the required numbers of competent
professionals. Senior government officials charged with judicial
oversight estimate that the creation of a truly independent and skilled
judicial apparatus would take decades. The Government has welcomed
foreign financial and technical assistance to accelerate this process.
Pending passage by regional
legislatures of laws particular to their region, all judges are guided
exclusively by the federal procedural and substantive codes.
According to the
Constitution, accused persons have the right to a public trial by an
ordinary court of law within a reasonable time after having been
charged. Accused persons have the right to be represented by legal
counsel of their choice. However, in practice, lengthy pretrial
detention was common, closed proceedings occurred, and at times,
detainees were allowed little or no contact with their legal counsel.
The Public Defender’s Office provides legal counsel to indigent
defendants, although its scope remains severely limited, especially
with respect to SPO trials. The law does not allow the defense access
to prosecutorial evidence before the trial.
The SPO was established in
1992 to create a historical record of the abuses committed during the
Mengistu Government and to bring to justice those criminally
responsible for human rights violations. The federal High Court has
considered the cases of 2,658 defendants accused of genocide, war
crimes, and aggravated homicide. Trials began in 1994 and continue;
however, the process is subject to frequent and lengthy adjournments.
Court appointed attorneys, sometimes with inadequate skills and
experience, represent many of the defendants, following claims that
they could not afford an adequate defense. Of the 5,198 defendants, the
Government is trying 2,952 in absentia, including former dictator
Colonel Mengistu Haile Mariam, who returned to exile in Zimbabwe after
a brief visit during the year to South Africa for medical treatment.
All the defendants in custody appeared before the court during the year
with many defendants charged and tried collectively in each instance.
Most cases still were in progress at year’s end. No SPO defendant has
been released on bail, although 33 defendants have been released for
lack of evidence. A number of defendants have been convicted, including
Lieutenant Getachew Tekeba, who was sentenced to death in absentia (see
Section 1.a.), and Colonel Zeleke Zerihun, who received a 15-year
sentence for genocide and crimes against humanity. In July the Minister
of Agriculture of the prior regime, Dr. Geremew Debele, received an
8-year sentence on charges related to abusing employees of the central
slaughterhouse. The court cleared him of murder charges. He was
released for time served but his political rights reportedly are
limited for the next 3 years.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home or Correspondence
The law requires judicial search warrants; however, they seldom are obtained outside of Addis Ababa in practice.
There were credible but
unconfirmed reports that in certain rural areas local officials used
threats of land redistribution to enforce support for the ruling
coalition. There also were credible reports that teachers and other
government workers have had their employment terminated if they were
not of the dominant ethnic group in their region (see Section 5).
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution and the 1992
Press Law provide for the freedom of free speech and of the press;
however, the Government used legal and other mechanisms to restrict
these rights in practice. The Government continued to prosecute
journalists and editors for publishing articles that violated the Press
Law, and some journalists practiced self-censorship. Nonetheless, the
private press was very active and often published articles extremely
critical of the Government.
The Government uses
provisions of the Press Law concerning publishing false information,
inciting ethnic hatred, and libel to justify the arrest of journalists.
The number of journalists in prison dropped from 15 at the beginning of
the year to 8 at year’s end: a total of 9 journalists were detained
during the year, including 2 who remained in detention at year’s end.
Most of the journalists detained were accused of violating the Press
Law.
Five journalists of the
Oromo-oriented private weekly ” Urjii” , arrested in October and
December 1997, are among the group of 65 Oromos indicted for
involvement in OLF terrorist activities (see Section 1.d.). Three of
these journalists remain in prison and also are on trial for press law
violations. In March the acting editor in chief of Urjii, Alemu
Tolossa, was released after paying bail of approximately $125 (1,000
birr). Former Urjii publisher and secretary general of the Human Rights
League, Garoma Bekele, was convicted on one count of violating the
press law and, in May, was sentenced to 1-year’s imprisonment. Five
other Press Law charges are pending against him.
Two journalists detained
for violating the Press Law remain in jail because they cannot meet
bail (see Section 1.e.). Approximately 45 journalists who obtained bail
still are subject to trial for violations of the Press Law.
In April Samson Seyoum,
former editor in chief of Agere and Tequami, now defunct weekly
independent newspapers, was sentenced to 4 1/2 years’ imprisonment on
charges of incitement to war and attempting to spread Islamic
fundamentalism. This is the longest sentence handed down to any
journalist in the country. Seyoum had been detained since December
1995. In August the court released Samson Seyoum pending appeal of his
conviction. In May Fisseha Alemu, editor in chief of the newspaper
Tarik, was sentenced to 1 year and 1 month in prison for libel. In July
he was released for time served.
In December the editor in
chief of the Amharic-language newspaper Tobia was given a 6-month
suspended sentence for publishing an article allegedly inciting ethnic
animosities against Tigrayans.
In May and June, three
newspaper editors, Abonesh Aberra and Sisay Agena of Ethop, and Dawit
Taye, former editor in chief of Aemero, both independent weekly
newspapers, were found not guilty and acquitted of Press Law
violations. The charges related to news reports and editorials on the
assassination attempt against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Addis
Ababa in June 1996 that were critical of Ethiopian security.
However, despite the
overhanging threat of legal action, the private press is still very
active. Many private newspapers continue to publish false information,
unsubstantiated stories, and harsh antigovernment articles without any
official sanction. The Government has not banned any newspaper or
publication. The office of the government spokesperson was created in
1998 as a temporary entity responsible for distributing press releases
on the border conflict with Eritrea to the Ethiopian news agency,
foreign news agencies, foreign embassies, and international
organizations. The Government continued to bar some private newspapers
and news organizations from attending government briefings and press
conferences, and most government officials still refuse to meet with
private journalists.
The Ethiopian Free Press
Journalist’s Association (EFPJA), which consists of 80 members from the
private press, has been trying for 5 years to gain Ministry of Justice
approval for its registration as a professional association, without
success (see Section 2.b.).
Although most independent
newspapers have supported the Government’s position on the conflict
with Eritrea, the private press remained confrontational and continued
to publish articles extremely critical of the Government and continued
to report on human rights abuses.
According to the
Constitution, citizens generally are free to discuss publicly any topic
they choose; however, on occasion the Government restricted this right
in practice. The Government opposed the activities and operations of
groups critical of the Government such as the ETA and the HRL (see
Sections 2.b. and 4), and arrested two teachers who criticized a new
government education policy (see Sections 1.d. and Section 5).
Nevertheless, several groups critical of the Government held press
conferences and public meetings without retribution. For example, in
June EHRCO held a news conference that was covered by both government
and private news media, and in November Parliament invited opposition
political parties to appear on a political panel with EPRDF leadership,
during which opposition criticism of government policy was reported on
national radio and television.
Because of a high
illiteracy rate and extreme poverty, only about 1 percent of citizens
regularly read any newspaper or magazine. While the literacy rate for
persons over 10 years of age in Addis Ababa is 82.5 percent, the
overall literacy rate is only 23.4 percent. Furthermore, private
newspapers are not circulated widely outside the capital and, as a
result, citizens outside of Addis Ababa have extremely limited access
to the print media.
There are 27 independent
Amharic language weekly newspapers and 6 independent English language
weekly newspapers with an estimated total circulation of 144,000. There
are 5 EPRDF coalition party newspapers, published in Amharic, Tigrigna,
and Oromiffa languages, with a total circulation of 120,000.
Nearly all private
newspapers as well as state newspapers are printed at one of the
state-owned printing presses, but there were no reports of problems
printing any newspapers or magazines. The Ministry of Information and
Culture requires that newspapers show a bank balance of approximately
$1,250 (10,000 birr) at the time of their annual registration for a
license. In December the Ministry reportedly ordered 12 newspapers,
including 4 weekly independent political newspaper, to close when they
were unable to show sufficient bank assets.
While much of the private
press continues to lack professionalism in its reporting, some print
media are developing into more responsible publications. Others
actually are opposition newsletters that often purvey unsubstantiated
criticism of the Government. Several are tied to distinct ethnic
groups, especially the Amharas and Oromos, but severely criticize the
Government for being ethnocentric. Newspapers critical of government
leaders and their policies are available widely in the capital but
scarce elsewhere.
Foreign journalists
continued to operate freely and often wrote articles critical of
government policies. They or their local affiliates were granted
greater access to government officials than were local independent
journalists. A number of foreign journalists were allowed to go to the
war front under restricted circumstances. About 10 Ethiopian affiliates
of foreign news agencies also were permitted to go to the war front in
February and August to visit liberated areas and Eritrean prisoners of
war. Local journalists representing privately owned newspapers were
denied access to the war front.
Radio remains the most
influential medium for reaching citizens, especially those who live in
rural areas. The Press Law allows for private radio stations, but there
only are two nongovernmental radio stations in operation: Radio Fana, a
station controlled by the ruling EPRDF coalition, and the Tigray
People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) radio, which broadcasts in the
Tigrigna language from Mekele. The Government operates the sole
television station, and news is controlled tightly. However, there are
no restrictions on access to international news broadcasts. Ownership
of private satellite receiving dishes and the importation of facsimile
machines and modems are permitted. Internet access is unrestricted.
During the year, the Government issued regulations providing for the
licensing of private Internet service providers; however, no private
Internet service providers were operating at year’s end. Private
satellite transmission uplinks are not allowed, even for international
organizations.
In June the Government
issued a broadcast proclamation creating a broadcasting authority to
review applications for private radio and television licenses; however,
there were delays in promulgating the proclamation and establishing the
authority. The broadcast proclamation prohibits political parties and
religious organizations from owning stations; foreign ownership also is
prohibited.
The official media,
including broadcast, wire service, and print media, legally are
autonomous and responsible for their own management and partial revenue
generation, although they continue to receive government subsidies.
Government reporters practice self-censorship, but at times questioned
official policies. The Government’s press and information department
acts as an official spokesperson and implemented the 1996 Information
Policy, which guides contacts among the Government, the press, and the
public.
Academic freedom is
respected; however, in general, political activity is not encouraged on
university campuses. The Ministry of Education has approved the charter
for the country’s first private university, Unity College. This 4-year
college is to offer a complete bachelor’s degree program, including a
major in journalism. Despite government assurances that Addis Ababa
University would not be affected by the conflict with Eritrea, in 1998
the institution dismissed nine Ethiopian academics of Eritrean origin.
In addition, in 1998 the authorities detained approximately 82 Eritrean
exchange students early in the hostilities. Most of the students were
released in 1998, and in February the last 39 students were released
and returned to Eritrea (see Section 1.d.).
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for
the right of peaceful assembly; however, on occasion the Government
restricted this right in practice. Organizers of large public meetings
or demonstrations must notify the Government in advance and obtain a
permit. While there were no reports that any permits were denied, there
were long unexplained delays in issuing permits, which hindered the
ability of groups to organize events. EHRCO and some opposition
political parties reported that they had difficulties renting halls
from local government officials. The ETA was not permitted to organize
seminars in the regions, despite Ministry of Education assurances in
1998 that it would be allowed to do so.
In January the Coalition of
Ethiopian Opposition Political Organizations held a rally in Addis
Ababa to announce its political agenda. The rally was attended by fewer
than 3,000 persons. The organizers stated that they were unable to
organize properly for the event because local authorities did not
approve their permit for the rally until the day before the event was
to occur. Both the government and private press covered the rally.
In November student
demonstrations against the arrest of two teachers who criticized new
textbooks in the Welayita speaking sections of the Southern Nations,
Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region State (SNNPRS) led to widespread
demonstrations and riots during which police killed up to 10 persons,
injured hundreds, and arrested and detained as many as 1,000 others
(see Sections 1.a., 1.c. 1.d. and 5).
In November Nuer students
in the Gambella region demonstrated for the use of the Nuer language in
schools (see Section 5). In December the Government arrested up to 26
Nuer tribal political activists and leaders associated with the GPDC on
charges of inciting the Nuer students to demonstrate (see Sections 1.d.
and 5.).
The Constitution provides
for freedom of association and the right to engage in unrestricted
peaceful political activity; however, the Government limits this right
in practice. The Government changed its procedures for registration of
NGO’s in 1996, and the NGO registration process has improved
significantly over previous years; however, a number of policy issues
regarding NGO’s remain unresolved, and the NGO registration process
still is extremely slow. Primary registration rests with the Ministry
of Justice. EHRCO was granted registration as an NGO in June, after a
7-year effort. However, the Ethiopian Free Press Journalist’s
Association (EFPJA), which consists of 80 members from the private
press, has been trying for 5 years to gain Ministry of Justice approval
for its registration as a professional association, without success.
The Ministry of Justice recognizes the Ethiopia Journalists’
Association (EJA), which represents journalists working for
government-owned media.
Authorities closed the
offices of the HRL in April 1998, on the grounds that some HRL board
members wished to use the organization as a front for the OLF. Board
members denied any connection to the OLF. The HRL had been operating
without a license, but it had fulfilled the prerequisites for licensing
and had been waiting for over a year to get a license (see Section 4).
The government investigation of the HRL was ongoing at year’s end, and
the contents of its office, confiscated by the Government in 1998, have
not been returned.
The Government requires
political parties to register with the NEB. Parties that do not
participate in two consecutive national elections are subject to
deregistration. Registered political parties also must receive
permission from regional governments to open local offices. The
opposition AAPO complained that the Oromiya regional government has
refused its application to open branch offices in the region. There are
58 organized political parties. Of these, eight are national parties,
and the remainder operate only in limited areas. In June a European
diplomat received an official reprimand from the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs for inviting a registered political party to meet with the
international donor working group to discuss preparations for elections
in 2000 (see Section 3).
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution provides for
freedom of religion; however, while the Government generally respects
freedom of religion in practice, on occasion local authorities
infringed on this right.
The Government requires
that religious groups be registered. Religious institutions, like
NGO’s, are registered with the Ministry of Justice and must renew their
registration every year. Unlike NGO’s, religious groups are not subject
to a rigorous registration process. Two religious organizations
reportedly have refused to comply with the government requirement that
they register, without consequence. Under current law, a religious
organization that undertakes development activities must register its
development wing separately as an NGO. The Government does not issue
work visas to foreign religious workers unless they are attached to the
development wing of a religious organizations. Religious groups are not
accorded duty-free status, but they are given free government land for
churches, schools, hospitals, and cemeteries. Religious groups, like
private individuals or businesses, must apply to regional and local
governments for land allocation. An interfaith effort is underway to
promote revision of the law, since it affects the duty-free status of
religious groups.
In March Jehovah’s
Witnesses received a letter of apology from a court in Tigray for
actions taken in 1998 by local officials to disrupt a religious service
and the temporary detention of some 50 believers. There are more than
3,000 members of Jehovah’s Witnesses in the country. When the
Government began deporting Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin
in 1998, it decided that members of Jehovah’s Witnesses of Eritrean
origin, who might face religious persecution in Eritrea, were not to be
subject to deportation. Approximately 100 members of Jehovah’s
Witnesses from Eritrea were permitted to remain in the county despite
their Eritrean nationality.
There was a credible report
that local officials extorted medical supplies from a clinic operated
by a religious organization for sale on the black market. The officials
threatened to cancel the NGO registration of the clinic if they did not
cooperate.
Evangelical leaders have
complained of strict regulations on the importation of bibles, as well
as heavy customs duty on bibles and other religious articles; however,
bibles and religious articles are subject to the same customs duty as
are all imported books and most imported items.
There were some instances
of conflict among religious groups, most noticeably between Orthodox
Christians on the one hand, and evangelicals and Pentecostals on the
other. While some Pentecostals and evangelicals complained in past
years that the police failed to protect them adequately during
instances of interreligious conflict, there were no complaints of
inadequate police protection during the year. In most interreligious
disputes, the Government maintains neutrality and tries to be an
impartial arbitrator. Some religious leaders have requested the
establishment of a federal institution to deal with religious groups.
The Government considered the request, but had taken no action to
establish such a federal institution by year’s end.
The Constitution requires
the separation of church and state. The Government has interpreted this
constitutional provision to mean that religious instruction is not
permitted in schools, whether they are public or private schools.
Catholic, Orthodox, evangelical and Muslim-owned and operated schools
are not permitted to teach religion as a course of study. Most private
schools teach a morals course as part of the school’s curriculum, and
the Government Education Bureau in Addis Ababa has complained that such
courses are not free of religious influence. Churches are permitted to
have Sunday schools, the Koran is taught at mosques, and public schools
permit the formation of clubs, including those of a religious nature.
Muslim leaders complained
that public school authorities sometimes interfered with their free
practice of Islam. Certain public school teachers in the SNNPRS, Addis
Ababa, and in the Amhara region objected to Muslim schoolgirls covering
their heads with scarves while at school. In February a school in
Woldea in the Amhara region closed for 3 weeks when Muslim girls
insisted on wearing their headscarves to class. In April Muslim leaders
complained that Addis Ababa University refused to serve food
appropriate for the Muslim Eid feast to Muslim students. When three
Muslim students complained, the university expelled them.
Protestant groups
occasionally complained that local officials discriminate against them
when seeking land for churches and cemeteries. Evangelical leaders
complain that because they are perceived as ” newcomers” they remain at
a disadvantage compared with the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the
Supreme Islamic Council when it comes to the allocation of land.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The Constitution provides for
freedom of movement, including the right of domestic and foreign
travel, emigration, and repatriation; however, the Government
restricted these rights in practice. In principle, citizens can freely
change their residence or workplace; however, since the outbreak of the
border conflict with Eritrea in May 1998, Eritreans and Ethiopian
citizens of Eritrean origin were subjected to detention and deportation
to Eritrea. By year’s end, more than 67,000 such persons had been
compelled to leave or had left Ethiopia for Eritrea; the vast majority
were deported, although a small number left the country voluntarily to
join family members who were deported(see Section 1.d.). It is
estimated that more than 200,000 Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean
origin remain in Ethiopia. In August the Government decreed that all
Eritreans, 18 years of age and above residing in Ethiopia who either
had taken part in the 1993 referendum on the independence of Eritrea
from Ethiopia or who had been granted Eritrean citizenship, had to
register as aliens with the SIRAA immediately. Those registering would
be issued an identity card and given a 6-month residence permit;
however, this permit does not permit individuals access to hospitals or
other public services. The Ethiopian passports of residents of Eritrean
origin routinely were confiscated or restricted in use for a single
exit and no reentry.
Beginning in April, the
Government adopted a policy of releasing those Eritrean detainees from
the Bilate and Dedesa internment camps who could obtain visas to a
country other than Eritrea. Approximately 90 detainees took advantage
of this opportunity, with most going to African countries, particularly
Uganda and Malawi. In August 25 detainees obtained fraudulent Malawian
visas and traveled to Malawi with government-issued laissez-passers.
They were returned forcibly to Ethiopia after refusing an offer to
travel to Eritrea. One former detainee died and at least six others
were wounded in a confrontation with Malawi police. The Government
reportedly reacted to this incident by deciding not to permit detainees
to depart for countries in Africa.
The law requires citizens
and residents to obtain an exit visa before departing the country.
Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin have been able to obtain
exit visas but often are not permitted to return to the country.
In Addis Ababa and western
Gondar in the Amhara region there are very small concentrations of
Ethiopian Jews (Falashas) and those who claim that their ancestors were
forced to convert from Judaism to Ethiopian Orthodoxy (Feles Mora).
Approximately 3,000 Feles Mora migrated voluntarily from the western
Amhara region to Addis Ababa in 1991 at the time of ” Operation
Solomon,” when a large number of Falashas were airlifted to Israel. The
Feles Mora also seek to immigrate to Israel. The number of Feles Mora
in the country is approximately 9,000. Israeli officials evaluate the
Feles Mora immigration claims on a case-by-case basis and estimate that
approximately 20 percent of the Feles Mora eventually may be eligible
to immigrate under Israel’s law of return. In June the Israeli
Government announced that 3,500 Falashas requesting citizenship would
be airlifted from Quara, Ethiopia to Israel, and in July 6 Israeli
officials went to Gondar to process applications. All the eligible
Falashas in Quara left for Israel by year’s end.
As a result of the border
dispute with Eritrea, approximately 343,000 persons have been displaced
internally. The Government has presented relief and rehabilitation
proposals for these internally displaced persons to bilateral donors
and NGO’s.
The law includes provisions
for the granting of refugee and asylee status in accordance with the
provisions of the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of
Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. The Government generally treats asylum
seekers fairly and cooperates with the UNHCR and other humanitarian
organizations in assisting refugees and returning citizens. However,
there were reports of the forced return of Djiboutian Afars who were
not permitted to register as refugees.
Ethiopia hosts 261,661
refugees; most are from Somalia and Sudan. The Government, in
cooperation with UNHCR, continues to provide first asylum to refugees
from Sudan and Somalia. Along the border of northwest Somalia 195,345
Somali refugees were settled in eight camps, down from 600,000 in 1996.
Along the Sudanese border 58,600 Sudanese refugees were settled in four
refugee camps around Gambella and Asossa at year’s end. Approximately
80 percent of the Sudanese refugees are women and children. There are
approximately 1,500 Djiboutian Afar asylum-seekers remaining in the
country, down from a high of 18,000 when Djiboutian Afars first entered
the country in 1993. These asylum seekers have requested but never were
granted formal registration by the Ethiopian Agency for Refugee and
Resettlement Affairs (ARRA). Negotiations began in 1997 between the
Government and the UNHCR concerning their status and were ongoing at
year’s end. ARRA conducted an informal registration of Djiboutian Afars
in May without UNHCR involvement.
In June Kenya repatriated
1,388 Ethiopians from refugee camps. In October the Government began
repatriating 4,700 Kenyans from the Moyale refugee camp; however,
approximately 550 Kenyan refugees were turned away at the Kenyan border
due to a lack of proper identification and were returned to the camp.
They had not been repatriated by year’s end. During the year the UNHCR
repatriated approximately 15,000 Somalian refugees to northwest
Somalia.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change their Government
Citizens exercised the right
to vote for a national government for the first time in 1995; however,
most opposition groups boycotted the election, claiming that the
Government impeded their ability to participate in the political
process, and those who participated complained of harassment. The
boycott was one of the factors that led to an overwhelming victory by
the better-funded and better-organized EPRDF over candidates of the
relatively weak and poorly organized opposition parties and independent
candidates. Nevertheless, observers organized by foreign donor
governments, the Organization of African Unity (OAU), and a coalition
of domestic NGO’s judged the elections to be generally free and fair,
although they cited numerous irregularities.
The Constitution requires
that elections to the national legislative body, the HPR, be held every
5 years; the next elections are scheduled for May 2000. Seventeen
opposition political parties are expected to contest the election,
including the AAPO, the Southern Ethiopia People’s Democratic
Coalition, and the Oromo National Congress. In August all registered
political parties were invited to a meeting sponsored by Africa
Initiative for a Democratic World Order and the Addis Ababa University
student association to discuss the ground rules for the elections. In
November the Government initiated a dialog with opposition parties to
discuss preparations for the election. Government officials stated that
they would accept election monitoring by the OAU, local U.N. staff, and
domestic NGO’s, but that they would not invite international observers.
In June a European diplomat received an official reprimand from the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs for inviting a registered political party
to meet with the international donor working group to discuss
preparations for the year 2000 elections. The Government stated that it
would make efforts to level the playing field for non-EPRDF political
parties, particularly in regard to access to mass media and the ability
to open offices. The Government addressed one primary complaint of
opposition parties by establishing an election time-table for
nominating party candidates and for campaign activities that is much
longer than the time-table used in the 1995 elections. In December the
HPR struck down the election law that required civil servants to resign
from their posts if they wished to run for elections.
The NEB is investigating
abuses of election laws related to candidate registration for the 2000
election in the SNNPRS and in the Gambella region. There were credible
reports the local officials throughout the country ignored NEB
instructions on the acceptance of candidate endorsement signatures from
opposition party candidates. In December the Government arrested up to
26 Nuer tribal political activists associated with the GPDC on charges
of inciting Nuer students in November to demonstrate for the use of the
Nuer language in schools (see Sections 1.d. and 5.). The GPDC claimed
that charges were without merit and that the Government was attempting
to interfere with the political process for the 2000 elections. The NEB
sent investigators to the region, but had not issued a report by year’s
end. Political participation remains closed to a number of
organizations that have not renounced violence and do not accept the
Government as a legitimate authority. These groups include Medhin, the
Coalition of Ethiopian Democratic Forces, the Ethiopian People’s
Revolutionary Party, the Oromo Liberation Front, some elements of the
Ogaden National Liberation Front, and several smaller Somali groups.
The AAPO complained that the Oromiya regional government refused its
application to open branch offices in the region (see Section 2.b.).
Neither law nor practice
restricts the participation of women in politics; however, while
women’s status and political participation are greater than ever, women
are underrepresented in national politics, the Council of Ministers,
and among the leadership of all political organizations. Only 1 of the
15 members of the Council of Ministers is a woman; 2 other women hold
ministerial rank; and a number of others hold senior positions. There
only are 15 women among the 545 members of the HPR, and only 8 of 115
members in the upper house, the House of Federation, are women,
including the speaker. Among the 23 judges on the federal High Court, 6
are women, and there are 2 women on the Supreme Court.
The government policy of
ethnic federalism led to the creation of individual constituencies to
help ensure representation in the HPR of all major ethnic groups;
however, small ethnic groups were not represented in the legislature.
There are 23 nationality groups in 6 of the region states that do not
have a sufficient population to qualify for constituency seats, and as
a result, the Government determined that individuals from these
nationality groups would compete in 2000 for 23 special seats in
addition to the 545-seat HPR.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
Human rights organizations
include EHRCO, the HRL, the Ethiopian Women’s Lawyers Association, the
Inter-Africa Group, the National Committee on Traditional Practices,
the Peace and Development Committee, the Society for the Advancement of
Human Rights Education, Enwayay, the Center for Local Capacity Building
and Studies, African Initiatives for a Democratic World Order, and
Hundee. These and numerous other groups primarily are engaged in civic
and human rights education, legal assistance, and trial monitoring. The
Research Center for Civil and Human Rights was registered in January,
having applied in 1997. In June EHRCO, which monitors human rights,
received legal status as an NGO after a 7-year effort, after winning a
suit in January against the Government for blocking its bank accounts.
The HRL, founded by prominent Oromo civic leaders in 1997, still is
being investigated by the Government for its alleged ties to the OLF.
Authorities closed the offices of the HRL in April 1998 and confiscated
the contents of its offices, which have not been returned (see Section
2.b.). In October the Ministry of Justice decertified the Ethiopian
Congress for Democracy, reportedly for financial irregularities.
In March 160 domestic and
international NGO’s signed a code of conduct and formed a code
observance committee. The code details standards of conduct for
numerous areas including moral and ethical integrity, transparency and
accountability, good governance, gender equity, and environmental
consciousness. The code observance committee, composed of five members
elected by the NGO general assembly and two representatives from civil
society at large, hears and decides matters in all instances involving
a violation or breach of the code.
The ICRC conducts regular
visits to detention centers and prisons throughout the country;
however, since July the Government has denied it access to the Central
Investigation Department of the Addis Ababa police. In addition, the
ICRC was unable to gain access to police stations in Addis Ababa where
ethnic Eritreans are believed to be detained (see Section 1.c.). Until
September the ICRC escorted ethnic Eritrean deportees during their
several mile walk across ” no man’s land” –the distance from the
deportation bus stops at the Ethiopian border into Eritrea. However, in
September the Government ceased to inform the ICRC of deportations (see
Section 2.d.) The ICRC was given access to Eritrean POW’s in camps
along the border with Eritrea and in other regions; however, in
February the Government asked the ICRC to leave the Tigray region for
several months (see Section 2.d.). In 1998 the Government invited the
ICRC, international NGO’s, and foreign diplomats to visit centers where
detained Eritreans were gathered prior to deportation, and permitted
diplomats to visit ethnic Eritrean detainees in Bilate prison camp. In
April diplomats visited Bilate prison camp.
The Government is required
under the Constitution to establish a human rights commission and
office of the ombudsman. An international conference on the subject was
held in 1998, followed by extensive public hearings during the year
attended by NGO’s, opposition groups, and a wide variety of members of
civic society. The HPR passed enabling legislation in October. The
office of the ombudsman is expected to have the authority to receive
and investigate complaints with respect to misadministration by
executive branch offices. Neither entity was operational by year’s end.
The Government continues to
encourage international human rights groups and foreign diplomats to
observe the war crimes trials that began in 1994. Officials of the
Federal Security Authority generally have been responsive to requests
for information from the diplomatic community. Several international
human rights groups visited the country during the year.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution states that
all persons are equal before the law. The law provides that all persons
should have equal and effective protection without discrimination on
grounds of race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other
opinion, national or social origin, wealth, birth, or other status.
However, the Government has not yet fully put into place mechanisms for
the effective enforcement of these protections.
Women
Culturally-based abuses
including wife beating and marital rape are pervasive social problems.
While women have recourse to the police and the courts, societal norms
and limited infrastructure inhibit many women from seeking legal
redress, especially in remote areas. Social practices obstruct
investigations into rape and the prosecution of the rapist, and many
women are not aware of their rights under the law. There are only an
estimated 20 rape convictions a year and rape sentences typically are
much lighter than the 10 to 15 years prescribed by law.
The Constitution provides
for the equality of women; however, these provisions often are not
applied in practice. Furthermore, these provisions often are in
conflict with the 1960 Civil Code and the 1957 Penal Code, both of
which still are in force. The 1960 Civil Code is based on a monarchical
constitution that treated women as if they were children or disabled.
Discriminatory regulations in the civil code include recognizing the
husband as the legal head of the family and designating him as the sole
guardian of children over 5 years old. Family Arbitration Councils, and
not the courts, have the legal power to dissolve marriages. Domestic
violence is not considered a serious justification under the law to
obtain a divorce. There is only limited juridical recognition of
common-law marriage. Irrespective of the number of years the marriage
has existed, the number of children raised and the joint property, the
woman is entitled to only 3 months’ financial support should the
relationship end. However, a husband has no obligation to provide
financial assistance to his family and, as a result, women and children
sometimes are abandoned when there is a problem in the marriage. All
land belongs to the State; however, land reforms enacted in March 1997
stipulate that women may obtain government leases to land.
Discrimination is most acute in rural areas, where 85 percent of the
population lives. In urban areas, women have fewer employment
opportunities than men do, and the jobs available do not provide equal
pay for equal work. As a result of changes in the Labor Law in 1998,
thousands of women traveled to the Middle East as industrial and
domestic workers. There were credible reports that female workers were
abused, and even killed, in these positions (see Section 6.f).
Although illegal, the
abduction of women and girls as a form of marriage still is widely
practiced in Oromiya regions and the SNNPRS. Forced sexual
relationships often accompany most marriages by abduction, and women
often are abused physically during the abduction. Abductions have led
to conflicts between families, communities, and ethnic groups.
To enhance the status of
women, the Government formally adopted a National Program of Action in
1997. The program seeks to expand educational and work opportunities
for women, improve women’s access to health care, and educate women
about certain unhealthy traditional practices such as early marriage.
There have been few improvements in the status of women since the
inception of this program; however, girls reportedly attended school in
greater numbers in some regions, and according to a study done by the
National Committee on Harmful Traditional Practices (NCTPE), certain
harmful traditional practices such as early marriage and marriage by
abduction appeared to be on the decline.
In December 1998, the
Ministry of Justice completed a draft Family Law with the purpose of
bringing discriminatory elements of the 1960 Civil Code into accord
with the Constitution. The draft was sent to the Council of Ministers
and the House of Representatives. The House of Representatives
organized six forums during the year with participants from all sectors
and regions of the country to discuss the law and the various issues
still in need of reform. The draft bill still was under discussion at
year’s end.
The Ministry of Justice
also completed a revision of the 1957 Penal Code and a national debate
on the revisions began. Critical issues affecting women and children
include the penalties for rape, domestic violence, and child
molestation. However, regardless of changes to the Penal Code,
tradition and culture often prevail over civil and criminal law, and in
practice women do not enjoy equal status with men. For example, the
harmful traditional practice of abduction as a form of marriage already
is illegal under the penal code but still is widely practiced in many
rural areas.
Children
The Government has encouraged
efforts by domestic and international NGO’s that focus on children’s
social, health, and legal issues. For example, local officials provided
transportation and free facilities to NGO outreach activities. However,
the Government has limited ability to provide improved health care and
basic education. Despite efforts by the Government to increase the
number of schools, including the construction of 303 new schools during
the year, there are not enough schools to accommodate the country’s
youth. Nationwide, only 52 percent of male primary age children and 31
percent of female primary age children attend school, and many do so in
shifts. However, government reports show that over 40 percent of the
children who attend school leave the system before they reach grade two
of primary school. The chance of their relapsing to illiteracy is high.
The overall literacy rate is approximately 23 percent; however, only 17
percent of women are literate compared with 26 percent of men. Only 10
percent of males and 7 percent of females attend secondary school. In
1998 only 23,712 males and 8,484 females earned a school-leaving
certificate, a prerequisite to attend college. There is space in
institutions of higher education for only a small percentage of these
graduates.
Five additional Child
Protection Units (CPU’s) were created in Addis Ababa’s police stations
to protect the rights of children by assisting them when they become
victims of crime. There are a total of 10 CPU’s, which are staffed by
members of an NGO. Some police officers underwent training on
procedures for handling cases of child abuse and juvenile delinquency.
Nevertheless, there is a clear need for reform of the juvenile justice
system. The Federal Supreme Court has assigned only three judges to sit
on one bench to hear all cases of juvenile offenses. There is a large
backlog of juvenile cases and accused children often remain in
detention with adults until their cases are heard. There is only one
juvenile remand home with a capacity of 150 for children under age 15,
and the juveniles who cannot be accommodated at the juvenile remand
home are incarcerated with adults.
Societal abuse of young
girls continues to be a problem. The majority of girls undergo some
form of female genital mutilation (FGM), which is widely condemned by
international health experts as damaging to both physical and
psychological health. The NCTPE conducted a survey that was published
in 1998, which indicated that 72.7 percent of the female population had
undergone FGM, down from an estimated 90 percent of the female
population in 1990. Clitoridectomies typically are performed 7 days
after birth and consist of an excision of the labia. Infibulation, the
most extreme and dangerous form of FGM, is performed at any time
between the age of 8 and the onset of puberty. The law does not
specifically prohibit FGM, although it is discouraged officially, and
the Government has been very supportive of the NCTPE. The Government
also is working to discourage the practice of FGM through education in
public schools.
Other harmful traditional
practices surveyed by the NCTPE included uvulectomy, milk-teeth
extraction, early marriage, marriage by abduction, and food and work
prohibitions. The Constitution defines the age of consent as 15 for
females and 18 for males. Nevertheless, early childhood marriage is
common in rural areas, with girls as young as age 9 subjected to
arranged marriages. In the Afar region of the east, young girls
continue to be married to much older men, but this traditional practice
is coming under greater scrutiny and criticism. The Tigray Women’s
Association also has had an impact in changing societal attitudes
toward early marriage. Pregnancy at an early age often leads to
obstetric fistulae resulting in lifelong misery due to total and
permanent incontinence. Treatment is available at only one hospital in
Addis Ababa that performs over 1,000 fistula operations a year. It
estimates that for every successful operation performed, 10 other young
women need the treatment. The maternal mortality rate is extremely high
due, in part, to food taboos for pregnant women, poverty, early
marriage, and birth complications related to FGM, especially
infibulation.
UNICEF estimates that there
are approximately 150,000 street children in the urban areas, of which
100,000 reside in Addis Ababa. These children beg, sometimes as part of
a gang, or work in the informal sector in order to survive (see Section
6.d.). Government and privately run orphanages are unable to handle the
number of street children, and older children often abuse younger
children. Due to severe resource constraints, abandoned infants often
are overlooked or neglected at hospitals and orphanages. There are a
few credible reports that children are maimed or blinded by their ”
handlers” in order to raise their earnings from begging.
Child prostitution
continues to be a problem. In 1996, a National Steering Committee
Against Sexual Exploitation of Children was formed and is chaired by
the Children, Youth, and Family Affairs Department of the Ministry of
Labor and Social Affairs. In October the committee reported that child
prostitution is on the increase especially in major urban centers of
the country. NGO’s report that girls as young as age 11 are recruited
to work in houses of prostitution where they are kept ignorant of the
risks of HIV infection. There have been many press reports of the
large-scale employment of children, especially underage girls, as hotel
workers, barmaids, and prostitutes in resort towns and truckstops south
of Addis Ababa. In past years, there were reports that poor rural
families sold their young teenage daughters to hotel and bar owners on
the main truck routes; however, there were no reports of such activity
during the year. Social workers note that young girls are prized
because their clients believe that they are free of sexually
transmitted diseases. The unwanted babies of these young girls usually
are abandoned at hospitals, police stations, welfare clinics, and
adoption agencies. There were numerous anecdotal accounts of young
girls going to the Middle East to work as house servants and nannies,
some of whom were abused, including sexually. (see also Section 6.c.,
6.d., and 6.f.). Factors aggravating the problem of child prostitution
are pervasive poverty, migration to urban centers, and limited
educational and job opportunities.
Child labor is pervasive,
and child laborers sometimes are subjected to abuse, including neglect,
and among children working as domestic servants, sexual abuse and rape
(see Section 6.d.).
It is the policy of the
Ministry of Defense not to permit persons under the age of 18 to join
the armed forces, and the Government made efforts to enforce this
policy; however, there were reports that some children under the age of
18 were recruited into the military. There were reports that local
officials have been given military ” recruitment quotas” to fill and
that, as a result, they are recruiting students who are 18 years of age
or older. If young boys demonstrated that they are under 18, they are
exempted; however, in rural areas children often do not have birth
certificates. There is also evidence that persons under the age of 18
were able to obtain documentation to overstate their age and join the
armed forces. There is evidence that children as young as age 14 are
permitted to join local militias with the consent of village leaders.
This reportedly is part of an effort to keep children in local areas
despite limited educational or employment opportunities.
People with Disabilities
The Constitution stipulates
that the State shall allocate resources to provide rehabilitation and
assistance to the physically and mentally disabled; however, limited
government resources restrict action in these areas. The Government has
not yet put into place mechanisms to enforce a 1994 law mandating equal
rights for the disabled. The Government does not mandate access to
buildings or government services for the disabled, and persons with
minor disabilities sometimes complain of job discrimination. According
to one NGO report, only 500 of the approximately 700,000 visually
impaired persons in the country have access to employment
opportunities. There are numerous domestic NGO’s that work with the
disabled. For example, the Amhara Development Association operates a
project to provide vocational training to disabled war veterans in
Bahir Dar. The Tigray Development Association has established a similar
center in Mekele. A 1994 census determined that there were 989,000
disabled persons in the country; however, observers believe that number
has grown and is significantly higher.
Religious Minorities
Despite the generally broad
level of societal tolerance for established faiths, there were
instances of open conflict among religious groups in past years, most
noticeably between Ethiopian Orthodox Christians on the one hand, and
Pentecostals and evangelicals on the other, and there continued to be
pockets of interreligious tension and criticism during the year. Newer
faiths such as Jehovah’s Witnesses and Pentecostals have encountered
overt opposition from the public. Muslims and Orthodox Christians
complain about proselytization by Pentecostals and Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Ethiopian Orthodox leaders complain that sometimes Protestants fail to
respect Orthodox holy days and Orthodox customs. Muslims complain that
some Pentecostal preachers disparage Islam in their services. There
were complaints by Muslim leaders that the Ethiopian Orthodox Church’s
desire to ” show supremacy” sometimes caused irritation in the
country’s various regions.
Protestant and Pentecostal
leaders complained that, on occasion, Orthodox or evangelical adherents
interrupted Protestant and Pentecostal religious meetings and attempted
to prevent the construction of Protestant churches in predominately
Orthodox or evangelical areas.
In February a Seventh-Day
Adventist minister rented a room in a building in Bahir Dir and
conducted a religious service. Local Ethiopian Orthodox Church members
gathered outside the building and threw stones. There were no reported
injuries.
In April two Muslim
communities attempted to construct new mosques but abandoned the
construction when local Orthodox Church members caused damage to the
construction sites and beat one Muslim who tried to prevent their
actions.
Nevertheless, in most
sections of the country Orthodox Christians and Muslims participate in
each other’s religious observances, and there is tolerance for
intermarriage and conversion in certain areas, most notably in Welo, as
well as in urban areas throughout the country. In the capital, Addis
Ababa, persons of different faiths often live side-by-side. Most urban
areas reflect a mixture of all religious denominations. Longstanding
evangelical Protestant denominations, particularly the Mekane Yesus
Church and Kale Hiwot Churches, provide social services such as health
care and education to nonmembers as well as to members. Mekane Yesus
and Kale Hiwot leaders reported improved relations with the Ethiopian
Orthodox Church during the year.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
There are more than 80 ethnic
groups. Although many of these groups have influenced the political and
cultural life of the country, Amharas and Tigrayans from the northern
highlands have played a dominant role. Some ethnic groups such as the
Oromos, the largest single group, were subjugated during the 19th
century. In an attempt to address ethnic concerns, the Government has
established a federal system with political boundaries drawn roughly
along major ethnic lines. With federalism regional states have much
greater control over their affairs. In Oromiya, for example, the
regional government required that all primary schools adopt Oromiffa as
the language of instruction. This has drawn protests from groups that
reside in Oromiya whose mother tongue is not Oromiffa and who believe
that their children are now at a disadvantage. There are credible
reports that teachers and other government workers have had their
employment terminated if they are not of the dominant ethnic group in
the region.
In May local administrators
in the SNNPRS informed elementary and high school teachers that new
textbooks would be used in the North Omo Zone, which merged four
closely related languages spoken in the zone: Welayita, Gamo, Goffa,
and Dawro. Neither local communities nor teachers had been consulted
before the decision was made to introduce the new textbooks.
Representatives of the elders committee of the Welayita ethnic group
complained to local and federal officials about the loss of the
Welayita language as a means of instruction and requested that the
Welayita be granted zonal status within the SNNPRS, but the officials
denied their request. The Welayita ethnic group has a larger population
than four federal region states, but only controls 7 of the 22
districts in the North Omo zone. When the school year began, students
boycotted classes in protest of the new textbooks, and in November
police arrested two teachers for objecting to the new language (see
Section 1.d.). The arrests led to widespread demonstrations and rioting
in the city of Sodo during which police killed up to 10 persons,
injured hundreds, and arrested and detained as many as 1,000 others
(see Sections 1.a., 1.c. and 1.d.). Schools remained closed until
December, approximately 100 special police remained in Sodo at year’s
end, and approximately 100 teachers were transferred from the area
because of their opposition to the new language.
There has been a long
history of tension between the Nuer and Anuak tribal groups. In
November Nuer students in the Gambella region demonstrated for the use
of the Nuer language in schools: the Amharic language is the medium of
instruction in schools in the Gambella region. In December the
Government arrested up to 26 Nuer tribal political activists associated
with the GPDC on charges of inciting the Nuer students to demonstrate
(see Section 1.d.). The GPDC accused the Anuak tribe, whose political
organization, the Gambella People’s Democratic Party, is an EPRDF
affiliate, of interfering with their political activities prior to the
May 2000 elections (see Section 5).
The expansion of the
military from a low of 60,000 personnel in April 1998 to approximately
325,000 to 350,000 personnel at year’s end has aided greatly in the
goal of bringing other ethnic groups into the military. By most
accounts, the military is an ethnically diverse organization with very
little friction between the various groups represented, at least in the
lower ranks. At the higher ranks the officer cadre is much less
ethnically diverse. Promotions awarded in July to major general,
brigadier general, and colonel were heavily weighted towards the Tigray
ethnic group, although some Amharas and one notable Oromo were included
on the promotion list. Persons from the west, south and east
conspicuously were absent from the senior officer promotion lists.
Section 6 Worker rights
a. The Right of Association
Only a small percentage of
the population is involved in wage labor employment, which is
concentrated largely in urban areas. Approximately 85 percent of the
work force live in the countryside and are engaged in subsistence
farming.
The Constitution provides
most workers with the right to form and join unions and engage in
collective bargaining, but the 1993 Labor Proclamation specifically
excluded teachers and civil servants, including judges, prosecutors,
and security services, from organizing as a union. Only 300,000 workers
are unionized. The 1993 Labor Proclamation also decreed that workers
who provide ” essential services” are not allowed to strike. Essential
services are defined broadly to include air transport services,
railways, bus service, postal, police and fire services, banking,
telecommunications, and medical services.
The ETA formerly had a
membership of 120,000; however, that number has decreased significantly
due to government intimidation and restrictions on ETA activities. In
1992 Dr. Taye Woldesemayat was elected chairman of the ETA. Soon
thereafter the ETA executive committee issued demands to protect
teachers’ rights and improve working conditions and questioned aspects
of the Government’s education policies. There are credible reports that
the Government began to harass the ETA leadership at all levels
beginning in 1993 and that such harassment continued during the year.
In March 1996, Kebede Desta, chairman of the retired teachers union,
was arrested and died in jail in March. In May 1996, Dr. Taye, upon his
return from Europe, was arrested and charged with being the leader of a
clandestine political organization. In May 1997, Assefa Maru, an ETA
executive committee member, was killed by police. In August 1998, the
Government sealed the ETA executive offices, detained ETA leaders, and
transferred the assets of the ETA over to an ETA faction supportive of
the Government’s educational policies. In June Dr. Taye was sentenced
to 15 years in prison (see Section 1.d.).
There is no requirement
that unions belong to the Confederation of Ethiopian Trade Unions
(CETU), which was established in 1993, decertified in December 1994
because of internal management and political disputes, and officially
reestablished and recertified in April 1997. CETU includes all nine
federations organized by industrial and service sectors rather than by
region. In September the Banking and Insurance Workers Federation
(BIWF) rejoined CETU when four of the five core unions in the BIWF
voted to join CETU.
The Labor Law stipulates
that a trade organization may not act in an overtly political manner.
The Labor Law explicitly gives workers the right to strike to protect
their interests, but it also sets forth restrictive procedures that
apply before a legal strike may take place. These apply equally to an
employer’s right to lock out workers. Strikes must be supported by a
majority of the workers affected. The Labor Law prohibits retribution
against strikers but labor leaders state that most workers are not
convinced that the Government would enforce this protection. Both sides
must make efforts at reconciliation, provide at least 10 days’ notice
to the Government, include the reasons for the action, and in cases
already before a court or labor board, the party must provide at least
a 30-day warning. If an agreement between unions and management cannot
be reached, the Minister of Labor may refer the case to arbitration by
a Labor Relations Board (LRB). The Government has established LRB’s at
the national level and in some regions. The Minister of Labor and
Social Affairs appoints each LRB chairman, and the four board members
include two each from trade unions and employer groups. Some efforts to
enforce these regulations are made within the formal industrial sector.
There were no strikes during the year. Labor officials have stated that
in view of high unemployment and the inattention courts have given to
labor cases, workers are afraid to participate in strikes or other
labor actions.
Independent unions and those belonging to CETU are free to affiliate with and participate in international labor bodies.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Collective bargaining is
protected under the Labor Law and under the Constitution and is
practiced freely throughout the country. Collective bargaining
agreements concluded between 1975 and the promulgation of the 1993
Labor Law remain in force. Labor experts estimate that more than 90
percent of unionized workers are covered by collective bargaining
agreements. Wages are negotiated at the plant level. The law prohibits
antiunion discrimination by employers against union members and
organizers. There are grievance procedures for hearings on allegations
of discrimination brought by individuals or unions. Employers found
guilty of antiunion discrimination are required to reinstate workers
fired for union activities. Labor leaders point to a number of court
cases that are 3 or 4 years old in which workers have been terminated
for union activities as examples of inattention by the courts to worker
rights. Seasonal and parttime agricultural workers are not organized
even on state-owned plantations. Seasonal workers’ compensation,
benefits, and working conditions are far below those of unionized
permanent plantation employees.
There are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The Criminal Code, which
applies to persons over the age of 15 specifically prohibits forced
labor; however, forced labor can be used by court order as a punitive
measure. Forced or compulsory labor by children is illegal; while there
were reports in past years that young girls reportedly were sold or
forced into prostitution, there were no such reports during the year
(see Sections 5 and 6.f.). There also were numerous anecdotal accounts
of young persons, especially girls, traveling to the Middle East to
work as house servants and nannies, some of whom were abused, including
sexually (see Section 6.f.). The Constitution proscribes slavery, which
was abolished officially in 1942, and involuntary servitude. There were
no reports of slavery within the country.
d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment
Under the Labor Law, the
minimum age for wage or salary employment is 14 years; special
provisions cover children between the ages of 14 and 18, including the
prohibition of night work or hazardous work.
Children may not work more
than 7 hours per day; work between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.;
work on public holidays or rest days; or perform overtime work. While
the Government has made some effort to enforce these regulations within
the formal industrial sector, social welfare activists, civic
organizers, government officials, and entrepreneurs agree that child
labor is pervasive throughout the country, especially in the informal
sector. In urban areas, children in large numbers can be seen working
in a variety of jobs, including shining shoes, hustling passengers into
cabs, working as porters, selling lottery tickets, and herding animals.
Child domestic workers are common. Child laborers often are abused. A
research study published during the year reported that the prevalence
of child abuse among urban child laborers is 70 percent, compared with
24.5 percent among non-economically active children from the same urban
district. The study concluded that physical and emotional abuse were
twice as common among child workers compared with non-workers, sexual
abuse was five times as common, and neglect was eight times as common.
Among child workers surveyed, rapes occurred exclusively among child
domestics. A second research study of child labor sponsored by CETU’s
National Federation of Farm, Plantation, Fishery, and Agro-industry
Trade Unions and published during the year focused on rural locations.
The study reported that 30 percent of the workers on state farms
surveyed were between the ages of 7 and 14. Child workers typically
worked 6 days a week, received no benefits, and earned less than $10
(80 birr) a month. At one plantation 75 percent of the children worked
12-hour days. There also is evidence that children as young as age 14
are permitted to join local militias with the consent of village
leaders. This reportedly is part of an effort to keep children in local
areas despite limited educational or employment opportunities (see
Section 5). The Government maintains that most economically active
children are engaged in family-based, nonexploitative child work that
is part of the socialization process and maintains that there is not a
child labor problem.
Forced or compulsory labor
by children is illegal, and, unlike in past years, there were no
reports that it happened.(see Sections 5, 6.c. and 6.f.).
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
In 1995 the Government
established a minimum wage of approximately $15 (120 birr) per month
for all wage earners in both the private and public sectors. In
addition, each industry and service sector has established its own
minimum wage. For example, public sector employees, the largest group
of wage earners, earn a minimum wage of approximately $22 (175 birr)
per month; employees in the banking and insurance sector have a minimum
wage of $25 (200 birr) per month. According to the statistics reported
by the Office of the Study of Wages and Other Remuneration, these wages
are insufficient to provide a decent standard of living for a worker
and family. Consequently, most families must have at least two wage
earners to survive, and that is one of the reasons children leave
school early.
The legal workweek, as
stipulated in the Labor Law, is 48 hours, consisting of 6 days of 8
hours each, with a 24-hour rest period. However, in practice, most
employees work a 40-hour workweek consisting of 5 days of 8 hours each.
The Government, industry,
and unions negotiate to set occupational health and safety standards.
However, the Inspection Department of the Ministry of Labor and Social
Affairs enforces these standards ineffectively, due to a lack of human
and financial resources. Workers have the right to remove themselves
from dangerous situations without jeopardy to continued employment;
however, most workers fear losing their jobs if they were to do so.
f. Trafficking in Persons
The law prohibits trafficking
in persons; however, there were numerous anecdotal accounts of young
girls traveling to the Middle East to work as house servants and
nannies, some of whom are abused, including sexually. There reportedly
is a network of persons based in the tourism and import-export sectors
who are involved heavily in soliciting potential clients, recruiting
young girls, arranging travel, and fabricating counterfeit work
permits, travel documents, and birth certificates (see Sections 5 and
6.c.).
Although illegal, the
abduction of women and girls as a form of marriage still is widely
practiced in Oromiya regions and the SNNPRS (see Section 5).
As a result of a change in
the Labor Law the Government no longer acts as an employment agency for
workers going abroad. Private entities now arrange for overseas work
and as a result, the number of women being sent to Middle Eastern
countries as domestic or industrial workers increased significantly.
Lebanon is the most popular destination. There were credible reports
that hundreds of the approximately 15,000 Ethiopian domestic workers in
Lebanon were subjected to abusive conditions, including sexual
exploitation. In September and October, pictures appeared in the local
press of workers returning bruised and beaten. There were also reports
that Ethiopian domestic workers were abused in other Middle Eastern
countries.
The Government began
revising the Federal Civil and Penal Codes to increase the penalties
for traffickers. Training programs were implemented for police officers
on the criminal aspects of trafficking.
[end of document]
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