After taking office, he released thousands of political prisoners and initiated a number of major reforms to downsize state-owned enterprises and encourage privatization. Following a summit in 2018, Abiy received the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in resolving the 20-year-old border conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea.[4]Ethnic factionalism and violence continued in other parts of the country, however, eventually becoming a crisis during his tenure; his government was criticized as increasingly authoritarian in the years after he received the prize.[5][6] Hostility between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and the federal government increased after the 2020 election in the Tigray Region, which the government called illegal. In November 2020, the Tigray War began between the Ethiopian and Tigray governments and their respective military and paramilitary allies. The war caused civilian casualties and displaced thousands of people.[7]
After serving for one year, Abiy was reinstated as an ODP central-committee member. In late 2016, he was appointed deputy president of the Oromia Region while serving in the House of People's Representatives. Abiy became head of the ODP Secretariat and the Oromia Housing and Urban Development Office, and was elected to the executive committee of the EPRDF in early 2018. The 2016 Oromo protests led ODP party leader Lemma Megersa to support the call for reform in the ODP from Ethiopians abroad. In mid-February 2018, the party invited opposition-party members to Ethiopia to survey the democratic system in Oromia and Ethiopia at large.[11]
The ruling EPRDF elected Abiy chair and, in turn, prime minister. The party elected him on March 20, 2018, after an in-depth review of the executive committee's performance and renewal program. Shiferaw Shigute, a head officer of the EPRDF, announced at a press conference that the council's meeting was successful; "heated debates were entertained and agreements reached to [widen] internal democracy within the party, tackling unprincipled networks and antidemocratic attitudes." Shiferaw said that Abiy's election was "democratic and transparent", with "all members [casting] their votes confidently." The meeting was held to prevent the distrust and skepticism which the party had faced with past leadership.[11]
According to the secretary, there were no secret negotiations about the appointment; the party's rules and norms were respected. Shiferaw said that the withdrawal of Demeke Mekonnen had no direct correlation with the election, and a future reshuffle based on an evaluation by the EPRDF cabinet would be possible.[11]
On April 2, 2018, Abiy was sworn in as prime minister of Ethiopia in the House of Federation and promised to "build peaceful diplomatic relations with Eritrea, to work for inclusive development, combatting corruption in the democratic environment." He pledged to work with women and youth and end the civil unrest which began in 2016.[11]
Domestic policy
Abiy's government released many political prisoners jailed by former EPRDF rulers, including activist Kinfe Michael Debebe, Ginbot 7 leader Andargachew Tsige and his colleague Berhanu Nega, and Oromo dissident and public intellectual Jawar Mohammed. Most of the remaining detainees were journalists from the US-based ESAT and OMN satellite television networks.[12][13] On May 30, 2018, Abiy's surprise meeting with Andargachew (released after four years on death row) was called "unprecedented and previously unimaginable". He had been apprehended at Sana'a International Airport in Yemen in 2014 and extradited to Ethiopia.[14]
The government amended the country's "draconian" anti-terrorism law that day, which was widely perceived as a tool of political repression. Abiy hinted at abolishing the law, which had "led to the detention and persecution of thousands in the East African country."[15] On June 1, 2018, he announced the end of the state of emergency which had been imposed two years before; it was lifted on June 4.[16] Abiy countered criticism of his government's release of convicted "terrorists", which (according to the opposition) is a label the EPRDF gives to the opposition. He said that policies which sanctioned arbitrary detention and torture were extra-constitutional acts of terror aimed at suppressing opposition.[17] Three hundred four prisoners (289 convicted of terrorism charges) were pardoned on June 15. According to the Ethiopian attorney general, three Kenyan prisoners were pardoned and released after a bilateral agreement was signed between Ethiopia and Kenya to strengthen relations. By that time, one thousand prisoners had been pardoned.[18]
According to the pro-government website Tigrai Online, the maintenance of a state of emergency was vital and Abiy was "doing too much too fast".[19][undue weight? – discuss] Other critics expressed concern that the release of thousands of political prisoners would reduce faith in Ethiopia's criminal-justice system if they constituted a danger.[20] On June 13, the TPLF executive committee denounced the handover of Badme due to the Algiers Agreement and criticized the privatization of state-owned enterprises; the committee said that the ruling coalition failed to account for a fundamental leadership deficit.[21][22]
Abune Merkorios, the fourth patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, returned to Ethiopia on August 1, 2018, after being exiled to the United States in 1991 and was warmly received at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Addis Ababa. Abiy said that "the return of the Abune Merkorios is a joyous moment for all Ethiopians. The church has shown in deeds the fall of a wall of division that had split the church."[23]
Transparency
Abiy has called for exiled journalists, particularly from ESAT, to return to Ethiopia;[24][25][26][27][28][29][30] ESAT had called for the genocide of Ethiopian Tigrayans.[31][32][33] By March 21, 2019, Abiy had only given one press conference[34] and refused questions from journalists.[35][36][37]
According to Human Rights Watch, the Committee to Protect Journalists and Amnesty International, the Abiy government has arrested opposition journalists and closed media outlets except for ESAT.[38][39][40][41][42][43] His government suspended the press license of Reuters's correspondent, and issued a written warning to correspondents from the BBC and Deutsche Welle for what it called a "violation of the rules of media broadcasting".[44][45][46] At the UNESCO World Press Prize ceremony on May 3, 2019, Abiy said that he would establish a "truly democratic political order and transform the media landscape" while avoiding misinformation.[47]
Ethiopia's freedom of the press declined in 2021, when 46 journalists were reportedly detained or repressed by the government. Journalist Gobez Sisay disappeared in 2022.[48]
In June 2018, Abiy announced the reform of state-owned enterprises in a number of economic sectors, such as telecommunications, energy, and transportation. He hoped to end unemployment through privatization and increasing foreign direct investment.[49] State monopolies include Ethiopian Airlines and Ethio Telecom, of interest to private investors with shares sold from the aviation, electricity, and logistics sectors.[50]
Ethiopian Airlines, Africa's largest and most profitable carrier, was offered for purchase by domestic and foreign investors; maintaining the majority of shares, the government planned to privatize it.[51] State-owned enterprises in less critical sectors, including railway operators, sugar farms, industrial parks, hotels and manufacturing firms, may be fully privatized.[52] The move was seen as a pragmatic measure after a poor fiscal year resulting in $3.2 billion in foreign reserves, less than two months' worth of imports.[49]
In June 2018, Abiy initiated a stock exchange;[53][failed verification] until 2015, Ethiopia had the fastest economic growth of any country without a stock exchange.[54] In June 2020, the finance minister drafted a bill to create a stock-market economy which was passed on December 22 of that year.[55]
Security reforms
Abiy spoke to Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) senior commanders in June 2018 about reforming the military, effectively limiting their role in politics. Amnesty International asked and other international human-rights groups asked Ethiopia to dissolve the regional paramilitary force known as the Liyyu force.[56]
Abiy hoped to move the Ethiopian Navy into active duty so the landlocked country could join other naval forces, saying on state television: "We should build our naval-force capacity in the future."[57] He reshuffled the armed forces on June 7, 2018, replacing Chief of Staff Samora Yunis with Lieutenant General Se'are Mekonnen, National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) director Getachew Assefa with General Adem Mohammed, and National Security Advisor and former army chief Abadula Gemeda with Sebhat Nega. A chief co-founder of the TPLF, Sebhat had announced his retirement the previous month.[58]
Internet shutdowns
Internet shutdowns have increased under Abiy. Supporters defend the shutdowns as useful tool to control information, but opponents have criticized them as punitive. According to Human Rights Watch and NetBlocks, politically-motivated shutdowns have been increasing in severity despite Ethiopia's recent reliance on rapid digitalization and cellular internet connectivity. Internet shutdowns were "frequently deployed" in 2020, and Access Now called them a "go-to tool for authorities to muzzle unrest and activism."[citation needed] Abiy has said that his government would shut down the Internet as needed: "It's neither water nor air".[59][60]
On October 16, 2018, Abiy reduced his cabinet from 28 to 20 ministers during a parliamentary session. Half were women, which was unprecedented. His new cabinet contained Sahle-Work Zewde as the first female president, Aisha Mohammed Musa as Minister of Defense and Muferiat Kamil as Minister of Peace, with oversight of intelligence and security agencies. Writer and activist Billene Seyoum was the first press secretary of the Office of the Prime Minister.
Party reform
The EPRDF administration consisted of four parties, most represented by ethnic groups: the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the Oromo People Democratic Organization (OPDO), the Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM), and the Southern Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement (SEPDM). On November 21, 2019, Abiy formed the Prosperity Party by merging the following parties:
the Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Party (BGPDP)
Abiy said that the "Prosperity Party is committed to strengthening and applying a true federal system which recognizes the diversity and contributions of all Ethiopians".[61]
Foreign policy
During the 2017 Saudi Arabian purge, Abiy released about 1,000 Ethiopian prisoners after a request by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and discussed bilateral, regional, and global issues affecting both countries during a two-day visit.[62] Detainees included billionaire Mohammed Hussein Al-Amoudi. In June 2018, Abiy met Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in Cairo; he also met with South Sudanese president Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar in Addis Ababa to facilitate peace talks. Ethiopia played a role in the regional IGAD's work for peace in South Sudan.[63]
Djibouti and port agreement
Ethiopian cargo ship in the Port of Djibouti. In 2018, Ethiopia signed an agreement with Djibouti to access the port.
Ethiopia announced its intention to hold a stake in the Port of Djibouti, a gateway for trade, in May 2018. Djibouti had been seeking foreign investors due to the termination of Dubai's state-owned DP World concession and failure to have a contract for six years.[64] The government announced that it would hold a 19-percent stake in Berbera Port, located in the unrecognized Republic of Somaliland, as part of a joint venture with DP World.[65] Two days later, Sudan agreed to give Port Sudan to Ethiopia. The Ethio-Djibouti agreement allowed Djibouti to become a stakeholder in state-owned Ethiopian firms such as Ethio Telecom and Ethiopian Airlines[66] after Abiy and Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta agreed to build an Ethiopian logistics facility at Lamu Port, part of the Lamu Port and Lamu-Southern Sudan-Ethiopia Transport Corridor (LAPSSET) project.[67]
Abiy (right) with Eritrean president Isaias Afewerki in 2019
Abiy has worked to end the Eritrean–Ethiopian border conflict; his government announced in June 2018 that it would hand over the disputed town of Badme to Eritrea, end hostilities between the countries, and comply with the 2000 Algiers Agreement. Both countries were in a frozen conflict described as "no war, no peace", with tens of thousands of deaths. BBC Tigrinya editor Samuel Gebrehiwot said that "change could be on the cards, but few imagined it could happen this quickly".[68][69]
On 20 June 2018, Eritrean president Isaias Afewerki sent a high-level delegation to Addis Ababa to implement a peace agreement in accordance with the Algiers Agreement. On 26 June, Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh Mohammed visited Addis Ababa for the first time in over two decades.[70] Abiy was the first Ethiopian leader to meet his counterpart, Eritrean president Isaias Afewerk, in over two decades at the 8 July 2018 Eritrea–Ethiopia summit in Asmara. He ended the bilateral tension by signing a joint declaration of peace and friendship ensuring direct telecommunications, road, and aviation links using Massawa and Asseb.[71] Abiy received the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize.
Some Eritrean critics asked why only one party to a minor peace agreement should receive the Nobel Peace Prize.[72] In July 2020, the Eritrean Ministry of Information said: "Two years after the signing of the Peace Agreement, Ethiopian troops continue to be present in our sovereign territories. Trade and economic ties of both countries have not resumed to the desired extent or scale."[73] Anonymous Ethiopian officials alleged that Abiy and Isaias secretly conspired against Tigray.[74]
14 January 2022 Sentinel-2 Level-2A image of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam
The controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has been under construction since 2011. On 4 July 2018, a diplomatic meeting was held in Ethiopia to discuss the facilitation of foreign relations with Egypt and other Arab countries and coordinating with the private sector to serve Egyptian strategic interests. Abiy pledged that the dam would not affect Egypt's share of Nile water agreed in the 1959 convention, reversing previous government decisions.[75] Egypt feared that the water flow would decrease by 2019, and the UN predicted that Egypt would lose its water supply by 2025. Abiy downplayed Egypt's concern, saying that "no force can stop the dam's completion".[76] In a January 2022 letter, he called on Sudan and Egypt to "nurture towards building peace, cooperation, mutual co-existence and development of all our people without harming one another. If there is a need to go to war, we could get millions readied."[77][78]
The June 2020 murder of activist and singer Hachalu Hundessa sparked violence in Addis Ababa and other Ethiopian cities; Abiy hinted, without obvious suspects or a motive for the killing, that Hundessa may have been murdered by Egyptian security agents acting on orders from Cairo.[79] An Egyptian diplomat said that Egypt "has nothing to do with current tensions in Ethiopia".[80] In a Time magazine article, Ian Bremmer wrote that Abiy "may just be looking for a scapegoat that can unite Ethiopians against a perceived common enemy".[79]
The number of ethnic clashes has increased during Abiy's premiership. The first conflict was the Gedeo–West Gurji, which displaced 1.4 million people; the year's highest violence-related displacement, it was caused by a shortage of food, farmland, and livestock supplements.[81]Awol Allo said that when Abiy came to power in 2018, two irreconcilable future visions were created.[82] Abiy undertook reforms, and the liberation was suspected of worsening the relationship with the Tigray People's Liberation Front.[83]
On 22 June 2019, factions of the Amhara Region's security forces attempted a coup d'état against the regional government during which regional president Ambachew Mekonnen was assassinated.[84] A bodyguard siding with nationalist factions assassinated Ethiopian National Defense Force general-staff chief Se'are Mekonnen and his aide, Major General Gizae Aberra.[84] The Prime Minister's office accused regional security-forces chief Asaminew Tsige of leading the plot,[85] and Tsige was shot dead by police near Bahir Dar on 24 June.[86]
Fighting in the Metekel Zone of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region, which began in June 2019, reportedly involved Gumuz militias.[87] The Gumuz have allegedly formed militias such as Buadin and the Gumuz Liberation Front which have staged attacks.[88][89] According to Amnesty International, the 22–23 December 2020 attacks were made by the Gumuz against Amhara, the Oromo and Shinasha (whom Gumuz nationalists viewed as "settlers").[90]
In October 2019, Ethiopian activist and media owner Jawar Mohammed said that police attempted to force his security detail to leave his home in Addis Ababa so they could detain him during the night of 23 October at the behest of Abiy. The previous day, Abiy gave a speech in Parliament accusing "media owners who don't have Ethiopian passports" of "playing it both ways" (a reference to Jawar); "if this is going to undermine the peace and existence of Ethiopia ... we will take measures."[91][92]
The murder of Oromo singer Hachalu Hundessa led to serious unrest in Oromia, Addis Ababa and Jimma from 30 June to 2 July 2020. According to initial police reports, the riots led to the deaths of at least 239 people.[93]
The TPLF conducted regional elections, winning all contested seats in the regional parliament.[106] In response, Abiy redirected funding from the top level of the Tigray regional government to weaken the party.[107]
The Ethiopian government announced on 28 November 2020 that they had captured the Tigray capital of Mekelle, completing their "rule of law operations".[108] However, reports of guerrilla-style conflict with the TPLF continues.[109][110]
According to the United Nations, about 2.3 million children are cut off from humanitarian aid. The Ethiopian government has strictly controlled access to the Tigray region since the start of the conflict, and the UN has expressed frustration that talks with the government have yet to enable humanitarian access. UNICEF said that the aid consists of "food, including ready-to-use therapeutic food for the treatment of child malnutrition, medicines, water, fuel and other essentials that are running low".[111][112][113][114][115]
On 23 November, an Agence France-Presse reporter visited the western Tigray town of Humera and noted that officials had taken over administration of conquered portions of Western Tigray from the Amhara Region.[116] Refugees interviewed by AFP said that the pro-TPLF troops used the Hitsats refugee camp as a base for several weeks in November 2020, killing several refugees who wanted to leave the camp to get food; in one incident, nine young Eritrean men were killed in revenge for losing a battle against the EDF.[117] On 18 December 2020, thefts by Amhara forces were reported by the Europe External Programme with Africa which included 500 dairy cows and hundreds of calves.[118]
In a victory speech[119][120][121][122][123][124] delivered to the federal parliament[125] on 30 November 2020, Abiy said: "Related to civilian damage, maximum caution was taken in just three weeks of fighting, in any district, Humera, Adi Goshu, Axum, Edaga Hamus. The defence forces never killed a single civilian in a single town. No soldier from any country could display better competence."[126] On 21 March 2021, during a parliamentary session in which Abiy was questioned about sexual violence in the Tigray War, he said: "The women in Tigray? These women have only been penetrated by men, whereas a knife penetrated our soldiers".[127]
The image of a Nobel Peace Prize winner has been re-assessed by international media as reports of atrocities emerge.[128] In December 2021, Declan Walsh reported in The New York Times that Abiy and Isaias had been secretly planning the Tigray War before Abiy received the Nobel Prize to settle their scores with the TPLF.[129]
^"One year on, tough times loom for Ethiopia's Abiy Ahmed". Yahoo! News. 31 March 2019. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019. ... Abiy has touted his moves to improve media freedom – following in the footsteps of Hailemariam, who released several prominent jailed journalists – but instability threatens this progress.
^Roth, Kenneth (19 December 2018). Ethiopia: Events of 2018. Human Rights Watch. Archived from the original on 19 March 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2019. After years of widespread protests against government policies, and brutal security force repression, the human rights landscape transformed in 2018 after Abiy Ahmed became prime minister in April. The government lifted the state of emergency in June and released thousands of political prisoners from detention, including journalists and key opposition leaders such as Eskinder Nega and Merera Gudina. The government lifted restrictions on access to the internet, admitted that security forces relied on torture, committed to legal reforms of repressive laws, and introduced numerous other reforms, paving the way for improved respect for human rights... Parliament lifted the ban on three opposition groups, Ginbot 7, Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), an Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) in June. The government had used the prescription as a pretext for brutal crackdowns on opposition members, activists, and journalists suspected of affiliation with the groups. Many members of these and other groups are now returning to Ethiopia from exile...
With the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) controlling 100 percent of the seats in parliament, the institutional and legal impediments for sustained political space remain a challenge. Accountability for years of abuses, including torture and extrajudicial killings, and opening the space for political parties and civil society remain significant challenges for the new administration. There are indications that the reform process may ultimately be hindered by a lack of independent institutions to carry forward changes...
Ethiopia released journalists who had been wrongfully detained or convicted on politically motivated charges, including prominent writers such as Eskinder Nega and Woubshet Taye, after more than six years in jail. The federal Attorney General's Office dropped all pending charges against bloggers, journalists, and diaspora-based media organizations, including the Zone 9 bloggers, Ethiopian Satellite Television (ESAT), and Oromia Media Network (OMN), which had previously faced charges of violence-inciting for criticizing the government...
OMN and ESAT television stations reopened in Addis Ababa in June, following calls by Prime Minister Abiy for diaspora-based television stations to return. Additionally, the government lifted obstructions to access more than 250 websites. The restriction on access to the internet and mobile applications introduced during the 2015 protests was also lifted.((cite book)): |website= ignored (help)
^Latif Dahir, Abdi (14 December 2018). "For the first time in decades, there are no Ethiopian journalists in prison". Quartz Africa. Archived from the original on 21 March 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2019. ...Abiy Ahmed, who took over in April also released thousands of political prisoners and journalists and dismissed charges against diaspora-based media outlets. Those released included prominent journalists Eskinder Nega, Darsema Sori, and Khalid Mohammed, who were held for years on charges ranging from treason to inciting extremist ideology and planning to overthrow the government.
^Bieber, Florian; Tadesse Goshu, Wondemagegn (15 January 2019). "Don't Let Ethiopia Become the Next Yugoslavia". Foreign Policy. Graham Holdings Company. Archived from the original on 21 March 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2019. The process of liberalizing a political system in an ethnically polarized society is dangerous. During the liberalizing moment, newfound freedom of speech can easily focus on finding culprits, singling out particular groups, and bringing up repressed grievances. Furthermore, there is less tradition to distinguish fact from rumour, and thus fearmongering rhetoric can travel quickly and with fewer checks than in established pluralist environments. This is mostly due to social media but also because of a lack of reliable institutions and structures to turn to in a country where institutions have been decimated by years of authoritarian rule.
^"Why ESAT and Messay Mekonen called for genocide on the people of Tigray?". Horn Affairs. 15 November 2016. Archived from the original on 11 October 2019. Retrieved 29 July 2019. Mr. Messay Mekonon has called a genocide attack to such civil population, which are the indigenous people of Tigray-Ethiopia in his satellite TV called ESAT on 4 September 2016
^"ESAT Radio and Television: The Voice of Genocide". Horn Affairs. 23 August 2017. Archived from the original on 11 October 2019. Retrieved 29 July 2019. ESAT television, in a public address made to the people of Gondar, on August 06, 2016, ESAT journalist Mesay Mekonnen broadcast that "the difficulty that we (Ethiopians) are facing now is not between the oppressor government/regime and the oppressed people, as other countries are facing. What we Ethiopians are now facing is a small minority ethnic group, representing five percent of the Ethiopian population, who wants to rule Ethiopia subjugating others and the subjugated peoples. And the solution for what we are facing at this time is "drying the water so as to catch (kill) the fish."
^"ESAT TV, stop your hate propaganda against the people of Tigrai". Tigrai Online. 27 January 2013. Archived from the original on 11 October 2019. Retrieved 29 July 2019. ESAT's main objective is to provide thinly veiled poisonous hate propaganda against the people of Tigrai. Financed by the traditional enemies of Ethiopia this divisive and very dangerous media outlet has been pumping out thousands of articles, cyber TV programs, and radio programs. The majority of those programs are designed to create a permanent discord between the general Ethiopian population and the people of Tigrai.
^"Press freedom in Ethiopia has blossomed. Will it last?". The Economist. 16 March 2019. Archived from the original on 21 March 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2019. Two tests of the new opening loom. The first is the willingness of state media to give equal time to the prime minister and his opponents in the elections next year. Another will be the openness of Abiy himself to scrutiny: he has given only one press conference and few interviews.
^"Ethiopians are going wild for Abiy Ahmed". The Economist. 18 August 2018. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2019. Ethiopia's state media behave slavishly towards the prime minister, obsessively covering his appearances and seldom airing critical views. Mr Abiy himself never gives interviews and has yet to hold a press conference. Non-state outlets complain that they are no longer invited to official press briefings.
^"Nobel peace prize winner Abiy Ahmed embroiled in media row". The Guardian. 8 December 2019. Archived from the original on 12 December 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2020. Senior officials of the Norwegian Nobel Institute have said the 2019 winner's refusal to attend any event where he could be asked questions publicly is "highly problematic". Olav Njølstad, the secretary of the Nobel committee, said it would "very much have wanted Abiy to engage with the press during his stay in Oslo". "We strongly believe that freedom of expression and a free and independent press is vital components of peace … Moreover, some former Nobel peace prize laureates have received the prize in recognition of their efforts in favour of these very rights and freedoms," he said. Nobel peace prize laureates traditionally hold a news conference a day before the official ceremony, but Abiy has told the Norwegian Nobel committee he does not intend to do so.
^"Record number of journalists jailed worldwide". Committee to Protect Journalists. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020. Countries where the number of jailed journalists rose significantly include Belarus, where mass protests have ensued over the disputed re-election of the long-time president, and Ethiopia, where political unrest has degenerated into armed conflict.
^"Dawit Kebede imprisoned". Committee to Protect Journalists. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020. The office of the federal attorney general did not respond to a December 2020 email requesting comment on Dawit's arrest. When CPJ reached him via messaging app, Federal Police spokesperson Jeylan Abdi said he did not know about Dawit's case and referred CPJ to the prime minister's office for comment. CPJ emailed that office on December 3 and did not receive any response.
^"Ethiopia suspends Reuters in-country correspondent's licence". Ahram online. Archived from the original on 1 December 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2020. Ethiopian Broadcasting Authority (EBA) has suspended the press license of Reuters correspondent in the country Giulia Paravicini, for an unspecified amount of time after a warning letter was issued to the correspondent.The Authority said that the decision has been due to the "false and biased" reporting by the news agency's correspondent on Ethiopia's current affairs and coverage of the fighting in the Tigray region, which "misleads the world and causes international pressure to mount on Ethiopia." The Authority has also issued a warning letter to the correspondents of both BBC and Deutsche Welle for what it described as "violation of the rules of media broadcasting."
^"Ethiopia Expels Crisis Group Senior Analyst". International Crisis Group. 22 November 2020. Archived from the original on 10 December 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020. On 20 November, immigration officials in Addis Ababa summoned Crisis Group's Ethiopia Senior Analyst William Davison and informed him he would need to leave the country immediately. He flew to the UK in the early hours of 21 November. Ethiopian authorities have yet to offer a formal reason for the decision. In an earlier tweet, an official in the Prime Minister's office said Mr Davison's work permit had been revoked, citing alleged labour law breaches. Crisis Group has been transparent and truthful in all representations it has made regarding Mr Davison's employment. Ultimately, there is little doubt that the reason for his deportation relates to the current tense situation in the country and the authorities' increasing sensitivity to points of view that do not hew to its line. It is noteworthy that around the time Mr Davison was expelled, authorities also warned the news agency Reuters' Ethiopia correspondent and the BBC and Deutsche Welle stations. Mr. Davison's expulsion comes at a difficult and painful moment for Ethiopia. On 4 November, Africa's second-most populous country plunged into a serious conflict between federal troops and security forces from the Tigray region, one of Ethiopia's ten states. The conflict has already cost hundreds of lives and sent tens of thousands of refugees into neighbouring Sudan. Crisis Group and its analysts do not take sides. Their responsibility is to present as faithfully as possible the viewpoints of the relevant parties; their mandate is to prevent and resolve deadly conflicts; their duty is to the civilians caught in their midst. Accordingly, and from the outset, Crisis Group has sought to explain the perspectives of the federal authorities and of the Tigrayan leadership, pressed for an end to hostilities, and kept urging the parties to explore a negotiated solution and resolve their differences through political means.
^"Ethiopia: Opposition Figures Held Without Charge". Human Rights Watch. 15 August 2020. Archived from the original on 12 December 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2020. Ethiopian authorities have been detaining dozens of opposition members and journalists for prolonged periods and often without charge since late June 2020, raising serious rights concerns.
^"ከኢህአዴግ ስራ አስፈፃሚ ኮሚቴ የተሰጠ መግለጫ ግንቦት 28 ቀን 2010" [Statement of the EPRDF Central Committee, 27 Ginbot 2010]. Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (in Amharic). 5 June 2018. Archived from the original on 13 June 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
^"Ethiopia pushes its privatization agenda". Euromoney. 1 October 2018. Archived from the original on 11 October 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2019. The government will seek the full or partial sale of railway projects, hotels, and sugar and other manufacturing industries.
^"Ethiopia: 'We are in our homeland, the invaders are attacking us,' says Tigray's Gebremichael". France 24. 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020. As fighting continues "in many parts" of Ethiopia's Tigra, according to the United Nations, Tigray's regional president Debretsion Gebremichael told FRANCE 24 that the northern region would continue fighting as long as federal "invaders" are on Tigrayan soil. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced military operations in the northern region of Tigray a month ago, saying they targeted the leaders of its ruling party, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF). Gebremichael believes neighbouring Eritrea is playing a key role in the conflict. "They already have 16 divisions in Tigray. They are fighting on the side of the federal army... They have a united front against us. Wherever you go, they are there." "We are in our homeland, the invaders are attacking us, by air or by artillery fire." Gebremichael also claimed that Eritrean forces had taken part in mass lootings, a report denied by both Eritrea and Ethiopia. "They have taken laboratory equipment, computers, books. They have gone to one factory of medicine," Gebremichael told FRANCE 24's, Nicolas Germain. The month-long conflict has claimed thousands of lives, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG), and tens of thousands of refugees have streamed across the border into Sudan. The UN has been warning of a possible humanitarian catastrophe within Tigray, though a communications blackout has made it difficult to assess conditions on the ground.
^"Exclusive: U.S. says reports of Eritrean troops in Ethiopia's Tigray are 'credible'". Reuters. 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 11 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020. The United States believes reports of Eritrean military involvement in the conflict in Ethiopia's Tigray region are "credible," a State Department spokesperson told Reuters on Thursday, despite denials by both nations. The spokesperson called on any Eritrean soldiers there to pull out. "We are aware of credible reports of Eritrean military involvement in Tigray and view this as a grave development. We urge that any such troops be withdrawn immediately," the spokesperson said. Reuters was first to report on Tuesday that the U.S. government believed Eritrean soldiers had crossed into Ethiopian territory, effectively helping Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government battle a rebellious northern force.
^"Ethiopia says U.N. team shot at in Tigray after defying checkpoints". Reuters. 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 17 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020. Two diplomatic sources told Reuters the U.N. team encountered uniformed Eritrean troops, though both Ethiopia and Eritrea have denied any incursion over the border by President Isaias Afwerki's military. Abiy and Afwerki signed a peace pact ending two decades of hostilities in 2018 and now regard the TPLF as a mutual foe.
^"Fleeing Ethiopians Tell of Ethnic Massacres in Tigray War". The New York Times. 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 9 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020. Adding to the deadly mix are the involvement of rival ethnic militia groups. One of them is the Fano, a militia from the Amhara ethnic group. Along with Amhara regional government security forces, Fano took part in the intervention in Tigray, Mr. Davison said. While Fano is a term loosely used to refer to young Amhara militias or protesters, Mr. Davison added that it is also "the name given to youthful Amhara vigilante groups that become more active during times when there is perceived to be insecurity that is not being managed by the authorities."
^"I saw people dying on the road': Tigray's traumatised war refugees". The Guardian. 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 2 December 2020. Retrieved 15 December 2020. Refugees in the camp reel off accounts of horror they either witnessed themselves or heard from others. In a makeshift ward in a room near the back of the camp, some show wounds they say were caused by knife and machete attacks by Fano militia.
^"Millions of children in Tigray remain out of reach, despite access agreement – UNICEF". UNICEF. 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 17 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020. Some 2.3 million children in Tigray, Ethiopia, remain cut off from humanitarian assistance amid continuing violence since the beginning of November.We are extremely concerned that the longer access to them is delayed, the worse their situation will become as supplies of food, including ready-to-use therapeutic food for the treatment of child malnutrition, medicines, water, fuel, and other essentials run low. Protecting these children, many of whom are refugees and internally displaced, and providing them with humanitarian aid must be a priority.Together with our humanitarian partners, we stand ready to provide lifesaving humanitarian support, including treatment for malnourished children, critical vaccines, emergency medicines, and water and sanitation supplies. We have already provided some supplies to a number of partners in Tigray, but this is not enough. We need to be able to provide support at scale in Tigray and to have full access to determine the scale of children's needs.We call for urgent, sustained, unconditional, and impartial humanitarian access to all families in need wherever they are.We also urge authorities to allow the free movement of civilians wishing to seek safety elsewhere. This includes those requesting to cross the border to seek international protection.Meeting the critical needs of children and women must not be delayed any longer.
^"UN 'frustration' at lack of access to Tigray". Yahoo! News. 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020. "It's somewhat frustrating to say that we have not been able to go in, we have not been able to reach people that we know are in need," said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric. "Days wasted by a lack of agreement or a lack of green light for us is just one more day of suffering for the people who need help." At the request of the United States and European members, the Security Council held an informal, closed-door video conference on Monday on the humanitarian situation in Tigray. "We need full, safe, unhindered access for humanitarian workers. We have information that refugee camps will run out of food by the end of this week," said Germany's UN ambassador Christoph Heusgen after the meeting. "We have information that refugees are prevented from fleeing to Sudan... There are also reports that Eritrean soldiers appear to control some movement of refugees in the Eritrean border region. Again, all this must stop." According to diplomats, China and African members of the Security Council – South Africa, Niger, and Tunisia – opposed the publication of a statement on Tigray requested by Germany, Estonia, and the Dominican Republic. Abiy has resisted calls for mediation to end the conflict, which has left thousands dead, according to the International Crisis Group think tank, and has driven 50,000 refugees into Sudan.
^"More than two million children in Ethiopia's Tigray region cut off from humanitarian aid, UN says". CNN. 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 31 October 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2020. The United Nations has warned that millions of children are still cut off from aid in Ethiopia's conflict-riven Tigray region, despite promises made by the federal government earlier this month to allow humanitarian agencies access. Some 2.3 million minors are struggling to get basic humanitarian assistance like treatment for malnourishment, critical vaccines, emergency medicines, and water and sanitation supplies, UNICEF, the UN agency responsible for children, said Tuesday. "We are extremely concerned that the longer access to them is delayed, the worse their situation will become as supplies of food, including ready-to-use therapeutic food for the treatment of child malnutrition, medicines, water, fuel and other essentials run low," UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore said in a statement.
^"Ethiopia: EU suspends budget support over Tigray conflict". Deutsche Welle. 16 December 2020. Archived from the original on 17 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020. Aid access:- The UN Security Council on Monday held an informal meeting on the humanitarian situation in Ethiopia's Tigray region, where the majority of humanitarian organizations are not allowed to enter. A humanitarian crisis is unfolding on such a scale that organizations are afraid of what they will find once allowed in.
^De Waal, Alex (March 2021). "We Can No Longer Deny the Atrocities in Ethiopia". Boston Review. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021. Western leaders prefer to see peace in Africa as the work of inspirational individuals. In some cases, this is warranted. In Abiy's case, it was premature, to say the least.
^Green, Andrew (4 December 2020). "Abiy's Victory Claims Ring Hollow as Fighting Continues in Ethiopia's Tigray Region". World Politics Review. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021. At the same time, Abiy is trying to shore up his popular support in the rest of Ethiopia. And though his quick declaration of victory appeared premature to outside observers, it seemed designed to rally his supporters and serve as a warning to other restive ethnic factions that might have been feeling emboldened to take on his administration
^Unger, Luke (12 December 2020). "Ethiopian Military Say They Now Control Tigray Capital". OWP. The Organisation for World Peace. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021. It seems that Prime Minister Ahmed's victory speech is worryingly premature. Not for the legitimacy of the current Ethiopian government, but for the thousands of refugees caught in the crossfire. It remains likely that this conflict will develop into guerrilla warfare by the TPLF, potentially drawing the conflict out for several months, if not years. Within this Guerrilla conflict, civilians will inevitably be caught in the crossfire as fighting will likely be most prominent in civilian areas. Before further potential violence ensues, both the TPLF and Ethiopian government should recognize that the protection of civilians in this conflict is paramount and employ necessary measures to ensure civilian safety, including stopping indiscriminate bombardments, and putting military facilities near civilian areas and targeting civilian facilities. Both sides should also grant unobstructed access to humanitarian organizations that can provide aid and supplies for those in need and restore communication channels to ensure transparency by both groups.
^Chatterjee, Pallavi (15 January 2021). "Premature laurels, precarious commitment: The unfortunate trend of Nobel Peace Prize laureates who violate peace itself". Human Rights Pulse. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021. It is unfortunate that the mainstay of political leaders is to balance out multiple, often conflicting, interests of different, often conflicting, stakeholders. Even well-intentioned individuals can find their hands tied due to a lack of institutional support. The contention remains, however, that rewarding them far too quickly and simply for formal—not substantive—commitment to ideals of peace, justice, and security is an ineffective means of deterring them from future actions that might, unfortunately, result in a deviation from such ideals. Similarly, awarding the representative of a particular regime simply to express rejection of another remains an unjustified, premature move—unless the future actions of the present regime reliably demonstrate their commitment to achievable, measurable, and sustainable solutions towards peace, justice, and security in the first place. This cannot be said to be the case for recent laureates and nominees.
^Gebrekirstos Gebremeskel (18 December 2020). "The war on Tigray: A multi-pronged assault driven by genocidal undercurrents". Ethiopia Insight. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021. In the run-up to the selection of Abiy, Tigrayans were tired of accusations, and when Abiy came to power, they thought they would be spared. That is why he was well-received in Tigray. They started to heave a collective sigh of relief, but that was premature. The reverse happened. Anti-Tigrayan propaganda and rhetoric grew and became normalized in media and official forums. The TPLF, or shadowy forces tied to it, were blamed for almost every violent incident and problem the country faced, helping to allow Amhara and Oromo rivals to keep focused on a common enemy, and casting suspicion on Tigrayans as a whole
^Davies, Guy (25 October 2020). "Ethiopian prime minister compared to Mandela now ruling with an iron fist". abc News. Archived from the original on 21 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021. For a moment, Abiy's premiership appeared to be new dawn over one of the world's poorest countries. But within weeks of accepting the Nobel Peace Prize, Abiy already was deploying the language of a very different leader -- saying that Ethiopia was "readied" for war with Egypt over an ongoing dispute over the Nile dam. Citing "domestic concerns," he refused to take questions publicly after the award. Very quickly, it became clear at home that Abiy's intentions were quite different from his international image. "In terms of the Nobel itself, it is very difficult to think of a political leader who was awarded the prize that conducted himself in the same manner," Allo said. "[It is] now very clear that all accolades and praises showered on him, including by myself, were premature."
^"Ethiopia PM Ahmed Abiy admits Eritrea forces in Tigray". BBC News Africa. British Broadcasting Corporation. 23 March 2021. Archived from the original on 23 March 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021. At the end of November, Mr Abiy had told parliament that "not a single civilian was killed" during the conflict. The defence forces never killed a single civilian in a single town
^"Ethiopia's PM relishes victory, but Tigrayan leader says war not over". Screenocean. Imagen Enterprise Video Platform. Reuters. 30 November 2020. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021. We were on target, 99 percent. There was no collateral damage on 99 percent of the operation. We never fired on uncertainties - for example, during nights, because, what if children die, they are ours - the enemy assumed we use drones only for firing because they didn't know the capacity of the special forces and the air force. But we used drones in 90 percent of the cases to monitor their movements." MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (Amharic) ETHIOPIAN PRIME MINISTER, ABIY AHMED, SAYING: "The defence forces never killed a single person in a single town. No soldier from any country could display better competence. We have disciplined heroic soldiers. There was a lot of campaigning saying that we would demolish Mekelle. Mekelle is ours, built with our resources. How can we destroy it? No one got in harm's way in the Mekelle operation. The special forces conducted a special surgery in Mekelle." ABIY AT PODIUM MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT SEATED (SOUNDBITE) (Amharic) ETHIOPIAN PRIME MINISTER, ABIY AHMED, SAYING: "We didn't fire a single rocket in the Tigray region. We have double what they have in terms of numbers. On whom do we fire rockets? A rocket travels kilometres out of your sight before it falls somewhere. You can't be sure what it does to whom. But our pilots, they go and come back, loaded with their bombs, if they think there's a risk on civilians - because they can decide, we can also make decisions by watching with drones - we won't do it. But it can be dangerous when it comes to rockets. Even though we had a higher number of them we didn't use them because it is our country. We are not a junta.
^Akinwotu, Emmanuel. "Scale of Tigray horror adds to pressure on Ethiopian leader". The Guardian. No. 28 March 2021. Guardian News & Media Limited. Archived from the original on 28 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021. Earlier this month, MSF said most of the more than 100 health facilities it had visited across Tigray had been looted, vandalised and destroyed in a deliberate and widespread attack on healthcare. What Abiy has insisted was a military operation against 'criminals' has instead emerged as a bitter conflict waged against millions of civilians, with mass attacks and sexual violence driven by ethnic and historic regional divisions. The military campaign against the TPLF, whom Abiy accused of attacking federal military camps and aiming to destabilise the country, has quickly recast the image of one of Africa's youngest leaders who was awarded the Nobel peace prize for ending the long conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
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