US seeks Ethiopian accountability to secure aid

January 28, 2014

Washington, DC – Is United States policy towards
Ethiopia shifting? 

For years Ethiopians, social justice groups, human rights
organizations and civic groups have been calling on donor countries to demand
greater accountability from the Government of Ethiopia for funds received,
citing the lack of political space, endemic injustice, the repression of basic
freedoms and widespread human rights crimes; however, now, the people of
Ethiopia have reason to expect that the climate of impunity is changing. 

The United States House Appropriations Committee has
included stringent new requirements of accountability from the Government of
Ethiopia in a section of the new 2014 bill that directly addresses
Ethiopia. (Please refer to the sub-section of the bill below.) It
links the release of U.S. funds designated for Ethiopian military and police
forces to Ethiopia’s implementation of corrective policies that would address
the declining state of human and democratic rights in the country, including in
the Somali Region of Ethiopia where access to the area must be given to human
rights and humanitarian organizations. New steps are also to be required that
would document actions taken by the government “to investigate and
prosecute members of the Ethiopian military and police who have been credibly
alleged to have violated human rights.” This is commendable because it
is the accountability we have been calling for since the investigations
following the Gambella massacre. The names are there
but what has always been missing is the impartial judicial system.

The law also prohibits funds appropriated to Ethiopia
under the headings, “Development Assistance” and “Economic Support
Fund” that are available for the lower Omo
Valley and the Gambella region to be used directly or
indirectly in the forced evictions of the people. Rather, it is to be used
to “support initiatives of local communities to improve their
livelihoods” and requires that these initiatives “be subject to prior
consultation with affected communities.”

Additionally, it requires the Secretary of the
Treasury “to instruct the United States executive director of each
international financial institution, like USAID (United States Agency for
International Development), the World Bank and the IMF (International Monetary
Fund), to oppose financing for any activities that directly or indirectly
involve forced evictions in Ethiopia.” This means in any area of the
country. Finally the people of Ethiopia have been heard. The United
States’ decision, as the largest donor to Ethiopia, will make a difference;
hopefully, other donor countries will follow. 

If this had been a jury hearing, the burden of proof
would have been established. We want to thank those on the House Appropriations
Committee for including this in the bill. We also want to thank those in
the House and Senate who are responsible for passing this section of the bill,
finally pressuring the Government of Ethiopia to be more accountable for its
use of U.S. taxpayer funds and more accountable to its own citizens.

Others within the U.S. House, like Congressman
Christopher Smith, the chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa, should also be
lauded for his continued work which is still in process. Reportedly, that bill
will call for democratic reforms in Ethiopia and is a result of the House
Sub-committee hearing on Ethiopia last June.

 We also want to recognize the work of many
different organizations and individuals who have contributed to this outcome
through advocacy, research, investigation, documentation, appeals, legal
actions, organizing and networking. Such efforts take commitment, resources,
perseverance and time, but eventually these efforts can become the leverage
necessary for meaningful changes in Ethiopia, like have been accomplished
after years of work in countries like South Africa, Chile, and Ghana.

This should encourage Ethiopians and those fighting for reforms
in Ethiopia to do more and to not give up. Even with this new law in place,
individuals, communities and organizations—both Ethiopian and non-Ethiopian—are
critically needed to monitor the situation on the ground; otherwise, compliance
may only be rhetoric or on paper. We are hopeful other countries will follow
suit.

We know donor countries have a history of aligning with
Ethiopia, despite its democratic failings, because it has been the most stable
country in a neighborhood of failing and failed states; however,
overlooking its deficiencies has weakened its prospects for sustainable
stability, increasing the risk that simmering tensions and ethnic divisions
within the country could erupt into ethnic violence that could destabilize the
entire region. On the other hand, due to Ethiopia’s strategic position in
the Horn of Africa and its central importance to Africa, a more democratic
Ethiopia could offer much to the continent as well as to global partners.
Internal corrections will move the country in the right direction.  

Over the coming year or more leading up to the next
election in Ethiopia, Ethiopians must be working hard to press for the opening
up of greater political space, the implementation of meaningful reforms and
engaging in more dialogue across lines of isolation and alienation. This means
that reconciliation efforts must come to the forefront. It is a time for
truth-tellers, reconcilers and agents of change. This cannot be left in the
hands of a few. Yes, Ethiopians should be grateful to those supporting the
passage of this bill and for those advocates of freedom, justice and human
rights in the world who have helped us and continue to do so; however, ultimately,
with God’s help, we Ethiopians must free ourselves.  

For those within the TPLF/EPRDF- led government who may
not initially be pleased with this new bill or the one being advanced by the
House, we encourage you to think forward to an Ethiopia that has a place for
both “our children” and “your children” only because meaningful reforms were
implemented. Come to your senses. Let us implement it with genuine diligence.
We the people will do our share. We urge you to do the same.

The freedom we envision in a New Ethiopia is not only for
those living under oppression, but it is also for those who are doing the
oppressing for “no one is free until all are free.” If meaningful reforms
are to happen, we must start talking with each other rather than about each
other, even if we disagree. Let us start the discussions with the
following critical issues which have kept our country in shackles:

1.      Release political
prisoners and journalists

2.      Repeal the
Anti-terrorism law

3.      Repeal the
Societies and Charities Proclamation

4.      Open up political
space and restore basic freedoms such as of expression, association and
religion

5.      Re-establish an
independent media and judiciary

No society is at peace until the basic rights of all of
the people are observed; not given to only a few based on someone’s favored
ethnicity, gender, political viewpoint, religion or other distinction, but
given equally because we are all human beings, given life, dignity and value by
our Creator God. The New Ethiopia has to start in the hearts, souls and minds
of the people, not only of the oppressed, but also of the oppressor. This new
bill requiring more justice for all people in Ethiopia is a gift to all of
us!  Let us use this God-given opportunity for the common good of the
Ethiopian people of today and tomorrow!          

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A copy of the sub-section of the House Appropriations
Bill (2014):

AFRICA (p. 1294)

SEC. 7042.

(d) ETHIOPIA.—Funds appropriated by this Act that are
available for assistance for Ethiopian military and police forces shall not be
made available unless the Secretary of State—

(A) certifies to the Committees
on Appropriations that the Government of Ethiopia is implementing policies to—

(i) protect judicial
independence; freedom of expression, association, assembly, and religion; the
right of political opposition parties, civil society organizations, and
journalists to operate without harassment or interference; and due process of
law; and (ii) permit access to human rights and humanitarian organizations to
the Somali region of Ethiopia; and (B) submits a report to the Committees on
Appropriations on the types and amounts of United States training and equipment
proposed to be provided to the Ethiopian military and police including steps to
ensure that such assistance is not provided to military or police personnel or
units that have violated human rights, and steps taken by the Government of
Ethiopia to investigate and prosecute members of the Ethiopian military and
police who have been credibly alleged to have violated such rights.

 (2) The restriction in paragraph (1) shall not apply
to IMET assistance, assistance to Ethiopian military efforts in support of
international peacekeeping operations, countering regional terrorism, border
security, and for assistance to the Ethiopian Defense Command and Staff
College.

(3) Funds appropriated by this Act under the headings
‘‘Development Assistance’’ and ‘‘Economic Support Fund’’ that are available for
assistance in the lower Omo and Gambella
regions of Ethiopia shall—
(A) not be used to support activities that directly or indirectly involve
forced evictions; (B) support initiatives of local communities to improve their
livelihoods; and (C) be subject to prior consultation with affected
populations.

(4) The Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the
United States executive director of each international financial institution to
oppose financing for any activities that directly or indirectly involve forced
evictions in Ethiopia