[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 93 (Wednesday, June 26, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E979-E980]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     ETHIOPIA AFTER MELES: THE FUTURE OF DEMOCRACY AND HUMAN RIGHTS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 26, 2013

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, last week, the Subcommittee on 
Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International 
Organizations, which I chair, held a hearing that examined the human 
rights and governance situation in Ethiopia, and the status of U.S. 
relations with Ethiopia. Given Ethiopia's important cooperation in 
opposing Islamic militants in Somalia, as well as its cooperation in 
other counter-terrorism and peacekeeping efforts, the administration 
has been reluctant to seriously hold the Ethiopian government to 
account for persistent, egregious human rights violations, including 
the inability of the opposition political parties to function, 
restrictions on civil society organizations and journalists that 
prevent them from operating freely and forced removals of citizens from 
their lands.
   According to the USAID's Assistant Administrator for Africa Earl 
Gast, ``USAID believes that open channels of communication with the 
Ethiopian government create opportunities to influence democracy, 
rights, and governance issues.'' However, Amnesty International 
testified last week that ``[s]ince 2005 the human rights situation in 
the country has deteriorated still further, with significantly 
increased restrictions placed on freedom of expression, association and 
other rights. Sadly the Ethiopian authorities have not acted in a 
vacuum during this period. The United States and others in the 
international community have failed to raise concerns over the 
government's systematic violation of human rights and flouting of its 
international obligations. The failure to speak out and press for 
change has emboldened the government and also allowed Ethiopia to set a 
dangerous example for other governments in the region to emulate. It is 
critical that the United States and other members of the international 
community press the Ethiopian authorities to address human rights 
concerns and repeal and reform key legislation and policies.''
   Amnesty International also noted in its testimony today that ``[f]or 
Ethiopians held in detention, conditions continue to be extremely 
harsh. Torture is regularly reported to take place during interrogation 
in the initial stages of detention, often before the detainees have 
access to their families or to legal representatives. Prisoners have 
been slapped, suspended from the walls and ceiling by their wrists, 
beaten with various objects, denied sleep, electrocuted, and had 
weights suspended from their genitalia. Solitary confinement for 
extended periods is often reported. Within prison facilities, 
sanitation was often reported to be poor. Amnesty International has 
received reports of medical resources being withheld, and reports of 
deaths in custody. Food and water is often in short supply, and is 
supplemented by visiting family members where access is permitted.''
   Ethiopia is Africa's second most populous country, after Nigeria, 
and the United States considers its government to be an important 
development and regional security partner. Ethiopia plays a key 
leadership role in the region, hosts the African Union (AU) 
headquarters, and is a major troop contributor to U.N. peacekeeping 
operations.
   According to the State Department, the three pillars of the 
bilateral relationship with Ethiopia are economic growth and 
development; democracy, governance, and human rights; and regional 
peace and security. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, 
Human Rights, and Labor Karen Hanrahan stated in an October 2012 speech 
that ``advancing democracy and human rights is one of our highest 
priorities in our engagement with Ethiopia.'' Nevertheless, it has been 
difficult to get cooperation from the current and previous 
administrations in confronting the

[[Page E980]]

Government of Ethiopia on its shortcomings in observing democratic 
principles and human rights in that country.
   In June 2005, following a contentious election in which then-Prime 
Minister Meles Zenawi and his party seemed to suffer unexpected losses 
in the legislature, demonstrators, led by college students, took to the 
streets to protest a delayed release of election results. The 
government's reaction was to deploy snipers who shot and killed 
protesters and to jail hundreds of others. An increasingly violent 
response to protests took place in November of that year. The death 
toll resulting from both protests was 193, but the numbers arrested has 
never been confirmed.
   In the summer of 2005, I travelled to Ethiopia to assess the 
situation and met with Prime Minister Meles, members of his government, 
political opposition leaders, including one of our witnesses today--
Berhanu Nega--civil society representatives, the religious community 
and the diplomatic community. What I found was a government leader who 
was arrogant in his certainty that he could arrest his political 
opposition whenever he wanted. I also found a political opposition 
convinced that they had won a majority in the legislative elections 
that year.
   Unfortunately, the government's view won the day. Mr. Nega and other 
political leaders and human rights officials were arrested and held in 
jail for more than a year on charges that had to continually be changed 
due to the repeated failure to convict them. Some of them who managed 
to be released from jail, found themselves forced to live outside their 
home country, such as Mr. Nega.
   The political space for opposition parties continues to be 
constricted. The imprisonment and prosecution of political leaders has 
dissolved parties and caused reformulations that also weren't able to 
continue. Mr. Nega founded Ginbot 7, a new political party in Ethiopia, 
but two years ago, it was declared a terrorist organization by the 
Meles government, and not only was it unable to operate openly, but 
Ethiopian journalists were prevented from reporting on the party or its 
statements.
   Similarly, the Government of Ethiopia, according to the State 
Department's human rights report, continued to imprison more than 400 
opposition leaders, activists, and local journalists by the end of 
2012, many on vague national security-related charges.
   As of 2011, the Ethiopian government had completed long-term cheap 
land leases on more than 3.6 million hectares (equivalent to the size 
of the Netherlands), mainly to large-scale foreign agricultural 
investors, and an additional 2.1 million hectares of land has since 
been made available for such leases to foreigners. An estimated 1.5 
million Ethiopians in four regions have been displaced, many of them 
subject to a supposedly voluntary program known as ``villagization.'' 
Others displaced due to these land leases or because of major dam 
projects now reside in refugee camps in Kenya.
   Despite an unacceptable political and human rights environment in 
Ethiopia, we hold out hope that the post-Meles government may yet 
change the direction the government has taken for so long. Earlier this 
month, thousands of Ethiopians protested political repression in the 
capital city of Addis Ababa. Under the late Prime Minister Meles, such 
a show of defiance likely would have been met with official violence 
and mass arrests, but the government of current Prime Minister 
Hailemariam Desalegn did not react in that way. This is an encouraging 
sign that the current Ethiopian government may consider changing its 
course and allowing its citizens to effectively express themselves--
including at the ballot box.
   Our witnesses last week included the former U.S. ambassador to 
Ethiopia, the U.S. official in charge of our significant aid portfolio 
to Ethiopia, the former elected mayor of Addis Ababa, a member of the 
first U.S. delegation to meet with the current government and a 
longtime Ethiopian activist on human rights issues.

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