OLLAA has received a credible report from the family of Mumme Bushra about his extrajudicial killing at the hands of Ethiopian security forces on February 8, 2022.
According to his family, at the time of his death, Mumme Bushra was 25 years old and the father of two young children. He lived in Goro Gutu district, in the East Hararghe zone, and was the sole provider for his family, and supported them by running a local Khat shop.
Mr. Mumme’s family reports that he was a known Oromo nationalist and supporter of Jawar Mohammed, the leader of the political party the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC). Jawar Mohammed was imprisoned after the assassination of Hachalu Hundessa in June 2020, alongside several other prominent Oromo politicians. Jawar was released from prison in January 2022 after the Attorney General dropped the terrorism charges that had been laid against him.
After Jawar Mohammed was arrested, Mr. Mumme reportedly faced continuous harassment and threats of arrest from Ethiopian security forces because of his support of Jawar Mohammed and identity as an Oromo nationalist. Eight months before his death, he had been forced to flee to Dire Dawa due to their harassment, although he returned to his home in Goro Gutu district following Jawar Mohammed’s release from prison.
On the morning of February 8, 2022, Mumme Bushra was at his home with his family when Ethiopian security forces and members of an Oromia militia entered his compound. According to our source, one member of the Ethiopian security forces called out, “Your Jawar is released but he cannot stop us from doing anything. You have no place to go,” before opening fire, killing Mr. Mumme in front of his family.
According to our source, Mr. Mumme was the sole provider for his family, who have now been left without support or the ability to feed themselves.
International law :
In the African Charter of Human Rights, an international convention binding for Ethiopia, Article 4 protects the rights to life, and forbids any arbitrary or extrajudicial killings. Mumme Bushra was executed in broad daylight in front of his house by Ethiopian security forces and outside the bounds of the legal system, which is then a violation of such a right. Multiple other treaties also protect the right of life, including Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which insists on the inherent right to life.
Moreover, Article 2 of the African Charter on Human Rights forbids any kind of discrimination, even one did on political beliefs. Mumme Bushra was targeted and, eventually, killed by Ethiopian security forces for his identification as an Oromo nationalist, contrary to the interdiction of the Charter. This demonstrates that the Ethiopian government’s disrespect the Charter in order to persecute those who have different and opposing views, and thus violates international obligations.