Mushamami Mamo, 30, was born and raised in West Arsi Zone, Adaba District. A young man with aspirations and father to two children finds himself imprisoned, struggling to survive.
Mushamami was among the Qeerroo’s (an Oromo nationalist social movement) who led the protests around Adaba district. These protests were widely known to have taken place from 2014 onwards until 2018 when the government in power was forced to step down due to the growing protest throughout the country. For this reason, he was arrested several times. Currently, he has been under arrest since September 13th, 2022. According to a close friend who spoke to OLLAA staff, Mushamami has experienced heinous torture in the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) camp. Due to this torture, his leg has suffered a serious injury and couldn’t get the necessary treatment. According to the correspondent, it’s difficult to express what Mushamami is experiencing due to the torture in the prison. According to a close friend, he barely walks due to the injury he sustained and is still recovering. The security forces tortured him using different materials including a police baton.
Mushamami was not given the opportunity to stand trial and defend himself. He neither has a legal attorney who represents him before the court. Because of the politically sensitive nature of the issue, attorneys typically drop cases which involve a person to the OLA due to serious government follow-up.
According to article 19(3) of the FDRE Constitution, arrested persons have the right to be brought before a court within 48 hours of their arrest. Further, article 21(1) of the Constitution stipulates that all persons held in custody and persons imprisoned upon conviction and sentencing have the right to treatment respecting their human dignity. However, the Ethiopian security forces and police administration of Adaba have arbitrarily arrested and tortured innocent civilians in violation of the country’s constitution.
International Law
Several human rights instruments, including the UDHR, ICCPR, and ACHPR, to which Ethiopia is a signatory, recognize the fundamental human rights of an individual to liberty, freedom from arbitrary arrest, and the right to treatment with human dignity when under arrest. However, Mushamami was detained without cause and was subjected to horrendous treatment in jail. These practices are flagrant violations of both the Ethiopian Constitution and international human rights treaties.
In accordance with its own Constitution and as a signatory to the aforementioned human rights agreements, OLLAA calls on the Ethiopian government to uphold the human dignity of its prisoners and free Mushamami, who is being held without being charged.