Unlawful Detention of Amharans & more –24th Aug 2023

Salaam salaam from BA! This is the Rorshok Ethiopia Update from the 24th of August twenty twenty-three A quick summary of what's going down in Ethiopia.

Ever since clashes escalated between Fano - an ethno-nationalist Amhara youth militia - and the government in the Amhara region, there have been numerous allegations that the federal government has been detaining ethnic Amharas in some parts of the country, especially in the capital Addis Ababa. The Human Rights Commission took note of these allegations and urged the executive to stop detaining ethnic Amharas unlawfully. The Command Post, established to enforce the state of emergency, responded to these allegations by saying that it has only detained twenty-three individuals lawfully—and even revealed their names— because they were suspected of committing certain crimes. It added that it will take measures against officers who detain ethnic Amharas unlawfully. Some residents of Addis say that their relatives have been detained arbitrarily. There are reports that some detainees have been granted bail by a court but the police have refused to release them.

In relation to the clashes, the government had decided to ban motorcycles in the capital, fearing Fano sympathizers would use them to commit certain crimes easily. The Addis Ababa Transport Bureau revealed on Sunday the 20th that starting from Monday the 21st, motorcycles can be used but with restrictions. Only one person, the rider, is allowed on the motorcycle, and the use of helmets is mandatory.

Shocking revelations as Human Rights Watch reported this week that Saudi Arabia forces have killed hundreds of Ethiopians throughout the past few years trying to cross the border from Yemen to Saudi. Saudi Arabia has been largely dismissive when asked about the report and some officials even denied it. Ethiopia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it will investigate in collaboration with the Saudi government to see if what was said in the report is actually true, urging people to refrain from making 'unnecessary speculations'. The report said the killings were widespread and systematic, and the organization says it put together the report after going through plenty of evidence - witnesses, satellite images, and photos.

Southern Ethiopia, which is the product of a very recent referendum, held its meeting to establish the region and settle details on Friday the 18th. The region’s council is comprised of the council members of the zones that merged to create the region. During the assembly, members of the council approved the draft of the regional constitution. A tentative regional flag was also revealed. Presenters said the flag will represent the thirty-two ethnicities that live within this region. The assembly also voted for the region's first president - former Gamo zone governor Tilahun Kebede. The forty-four-year-old Tilahun has worked in various government positions. The busy week for the assembly also included works to restructure former zones and districts.

On the other hand, the standalone region The Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's region, from which zones drifted away to form the new Southern Ethiopia region held an emergency meeting. Council members changed the region’s name to Central Ethiopia, voted on a draft amendment to its constitution, decided where government offices would be seated, and reshuffled officials. Former federal police commissioner Endashaw Tasew was voted as the new president of the region.

Still in this part of the country there was controversy in the Sidama region. It all began when the Prosperity Party decided to investigate officials in relation to finance, project execution, and rampant diversion of fertilizers. The regional office of the party said that Tsegaye Tuke, mayor of the region's capital Hawassa, one of the officials being investigated -, walked out of a meeting regarding the investigation. Subsequently, The Prosperity Party's Sidama region office said that the party had decided to relieve the mayor from his post citing incompetence and inefficiency as reasons. Aside from removing Tsegaye, the party said it will take legal measures against him. Tsegaye took to social media in which he denied the party's allegations saying that he has been a victim of concerted threats and attacks. He called for neutral third parties to investigate the regional government.

Speaking of Hawassa, the Sidama region's peace and security bureau revealed a new law that will requiere the installation of security cameras in all businesses in the city. The law was announced at a meeting with business owners on Wednesday the 23rd. All business owners are required to install surveillance cameras in a month. The bureau said that those who don’t will either be imprisoned or fined. The bureau's head cited two reasons for this new law - to curtail robberies that are being carried out on motorcycles and to control transactions in fake bank notes.

On Friday the 18th, the United Arab Emirates' (or UAE) president Sheikh Mohammed Bin-Zayed Al-Nahyan went over to Addis for a work trip. Prime Minister Abiy welcomed the president when he arrived. This was Sheikh Mohammed's first-ever trip to Addis as president but he had been in the capital in twenty eighteen when he was prince of Abu Dhabi. On the day of his arrival, the president and his delegates sat down with PM Abiy and other top government officials to discuss bilateral issues. Numerous government organs signed agreements with the UAE including the National Bank, Ministry of Finance, Customs Commission, and more. President Sheikh Mohammed returned to his country the next day.

Since we mentioned the capital city, The Addis Ababa University became the first ever self-governing university in the country last month. The university held a press conference on Tuesday the 22nd in which the university's president announced that starting from the upcoming academic year, it will no longer be admitting students based on the national entrance exam placement system and instead will administer its own exam. The university has also introduced something new yet a bit controversial. The institutuion has announced that it will admit a percentage of students not based on their results but through paying a new set tuition fee. Many took to social media to criticize this decision fearing that the university would become a school only for the rich. The president said these concerns are misguided because even for the students who will pay, there are certain academic requirements they must fulfill.

And to close this edition, some sports news. The nineteenth World Athletics Championship is being held in Budapest, Hungary. The women's ten-thousand-meter finals were held on Saturday the 19th and Ethiopian athletes came in first, second, and third. The athletes said in their post-race interview that the win was the result of teamwork and the people's sustained support. When the race was nearing its end, Sifan Hassen, an Ethiopian representing the Netherlands was leading but stumbled at the last minute. The Dutch Athletics Federation suspected that there was foul play and complained to the organizers but to no avail. Ethiopia's victory was ascertained.

The men's ten thousand meters wasn't as successful but Ethiopia still went away with a prize as seasoned runner Solomon Barega got a bronze medal. Although he finished third, Solomon couldn't help but express his disappointment as he expected gold. He apologized and vowed to return and improve results for the Olympics next year. Ethiopia won two more medals, both silver, in the women's fifteen hundred meters and men's three thousand on Tuesday the 22nd. Ethiopia currently sits third in the medals leaderboard right behind the US and Spain but the country might finish higher given that the Marathon races for both men and women will be held this weekend. Ethiopian athletes are huge favorites for the Marathon. The World Athletics Championship began last week on Saturday the 19th and will end this Sunday the 27th.

That’s it for this week! Thanks for joining us!

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