To terrorize the public at large, Ethiopian security forces killed a young man and displayed his dead body in the middle of town from early in the morning until the evening.
Kemal K, 22, was born and raised in the Merti district’s East Arsi Zone. Government security forces targeted Kemal, according to a witness who talked with OLLAA, because they suspected him of having ties to OLA combatants. Kemal spent much of his time in hiding, but the government’s forces discovered his trail in 2023, prompting him to flee. They tracked him down to the East Arsi Zone in Abomsa Town.
Despite his valiant efforts to flee, the forces surrounded him and shot him from behind. The bullet passed through his head and exited between his eyes. They killed Kemal, who was unarmed, in the presence of witnesses. Kemal was not married and did not have any children; he had his whole future ahead of him, but the Ethiopian security forces cut short his dreams.
After such a terrible deed, the security forces compelled a local man to load the body onto his cart and bring it to the town’s main square, in front of Ethio-Telecom. They refused to permit anyone to approach the corpse. Those who attempted to do so were also targeted.
To make things worse, Saturdays like this one are a noted market day in the area. On such days, people from all walks of life, including children and the elderly, march to the market from every corner of town. Even people from rural areas come to buy and sell their crops, clothing, fruits, vegetables, etc. It was next to this bustling community site that Ethiopia’s security forces unceremoniously dumped Kemal’s body.
This horrific deed will undoubtedly traumatize this community, eroding its values. It will encourage further inhumane behavior, possibly inciting the community to commit similar acts of violence as an act of revenge.
The message from the security forces is that anybody who works with or supports OLA fighters will eventually end up just like him.
International Law
The right to life has been acknowledged as a fundamental human right by a host of international human rights conventions to which Ethiopia is a party, including the UDHR, ICCPR and ACHPR, and the FDRE Constitution. However, the security forces extrajudicially murdered Kemal without following due process of the law.
Furthermore, these conventions stipulate that no one shall be subjected to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. The security forces displaying a dead body on the street forced just such treatment onto the public.