Assessment of UN Committee of Experts 2nd Report on Ethiopia – Dr. Aklog Birara

According to Ethiopian Forum and other Ethiopia social media sources, the  UN Human /rights Council has decided to investigate war crimes, crimes of rape, ethnic cleansing and genocie perpetrated by the Abiy regime in the Amhara region. I welcome this development.

I know dedicated and competent Ethiopian Amhara who care deeply about atrocities inflicted on Amhara by the current and previous regimes have been working diligently over the past few years. They have visited UN offices in Geneva in the same way a few of us had done a few years ago without much success.

These cumulative efforts have begun to bear fruit, at last. We still have a long way to go.

You too can help push the momentum by speaking out and urging the UN in general and the High Commissioner for Human Rights to do the right thing and by funding efforts for formal ICC investigation towards accountability.

Accountability matters

The human tragedy in the Tigray region inflicting human suffering and pain on the Tigrean population, especially girls and  women, is being repeated on Amhara as well as on Afar, Gamo,Gurage and Oromo civilians.

Just recently, members of Abiy’s army in Gondar arrested a 12-year old girl (child), tied, raped her and then killed her in broad day light.  They then demanded ransom before they would release the body to her parents.

This is gruesome and savage. Such occurrences have become the norm rather than the exception under the watch of Abiy Ahmed. Rape, extra judicial killing of innocent civlians, pillaging of properties, destruction of social and economic infrastructure are normalized.

The UN year-long investigation  resulting in a massive report covers atrocities in the Afar, Amhara and Oromia regions. This latest report gives a more complete picture of human tragedy in Ethiopia.

The Abiy regime will be ill-advised to reject independent expert investigation of  recent atrocities in the Amhara region. Rejection would mean fear that the truth will be revealed.

In the age of internet technology, you cannot hide facts on the ground.