Addis Abeba – The Ethiopian Human Rights Council (EHRCO) revealed this week that its efforts to investigate alleged human rights violations in Ethiopia have been severely impeded by obstruction from governmental authorities. In a statement released yesterday, the Council outlined the systematic and growing barriers it has faced in trying to investigate reported rights violations through on-site monitoring and interviews. However, the Council has faced silence, rejections, or outright refusal to accept letters of request from police, security, and detention authorities. While some engagement has occurred, such as the Oromia Attorney General Office recently granting prison access, EHRCO says overall restrictions on information sharing and permission for its work remain the norm. The statement concludes by urging the federal and regional governments to refrain from impeding EHRCO’s operations and to contribute to ensuring respect for human rights by enabling the independent monitoring and fact-finding role of the Ethiopian Human Rights Council.

Source: Ethiopian News December 08, 2023 10:14 UTC