Falls Church, Virginia (06/20/2022) – On June 18th, a video began circulating on social media which showed Ethiopian security forces extrajudicially executing at least 30 unarmed men. Based on reports that came out following the publication of this video, OLLAA can confirm that these horrific crimes took place in the Dewa Chafa woreda of the Wollo Oromia Special zone, Amhara region, this past December. Although the identity of the victims has not been confirmed, it appears to be related to the series of violent attacks perpetrated against Oromo civilians after the withdrawal of the TPLF from the zone late last year. Following the spread of the video online, the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) issued a statement claiming they had mentioned this incident in a previous report (a 112-page report published exclusively in Amharic which examined allegations of human rights abuses committed in the Afar and Amhara regions from September-December 2021), and calling for a criminal investigation.
On June 19th, it was reported that over 200 Amhara civilians had been killed in Tole village, located in the West Wollega zone of the Oromia region, although, at this time, it is unclear who perpetrated this attack. The Ethiopian federal government and the Oromia regional government have claimed that the OLA is responsible for this attack, while the OLA has issued a statement denying these allegations, claiming that the attack was committed by the “Gaachana Sirna”, a militia it says was formed by the Oromia regional state, and calling for an independent investigation. Following this attack, Daniel Bekele, the head of the EHRC, posted a tweet claiming that the OLA had perpetrated the attack, but arguing that, “All law enforcement operation[s] should exercise maximum caution to avoid direct or indirect targeting of civilians.”
As an organization devoted to the protection of human rights throughout Ethiopia, and particularly in Oromia and the Wollo Oromia Special zone, OLLAA condemns all attacks against civilians in the country, no matter the perpetrator. It seems clear to OLLAA that more must be done to raise awareness to attacks committed against civilians of all ethnicities across Ethiopia and to ensure that perpetrators are held accountable. While the Ethiopian government, as the primary duty bearer under international law, has a duty to ensure that independent investigations are launched into allegations of human rights violations committed against civilians, we are gravely concerned that the Ethiopian government has consistently failed to do so, particularly in cases where the perpetrators of such attacks may be State agents. We therefore call on the international community to consider launching independent and effective investigations into the above attacks, as well as all allegations of human rights abuses committed against Ethiopian civilians throughout the country.
OLLAA is an umbrella organization that represents Oromo communities around the world.