The Deteriorating Human Rights Situation of Oromos in Metekel Zone, Benishangul Region of Ethiopia

Introduction and Background 

Metekel is one of the three Benishangul Gumuz zones. This zone is characterized by the diversity of its inhabitants. It is home to Oromo, Shinasha, Gumuz, Amhara, Berta and other ethnic groups. The Oromo community constitutes a significant portion of the zone. Specifically, the Oromos widely live in the Debate and Wembera districts.  

Due to the exclusionary nature of the constitution of the region, Oromos are neither politically represented nor receive education in their mother tongue, Afan Oromo. The region’s constitution recognizes only five ethnic groups (Gumuz, Mao, Shinasha, Berta and Komo) as the owners of the region while others only retain the status of residents. On the other hand, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) Constitution gives high regard for the rights of nations, nationalities and peoples. Nations, nationalities and peoples of Ethiopia have the right to self-determination, including the right to secession. Contrary to this stipulation, the Oromo community in the Metekel zone is subjected to marginalization as well as to systematic and gross human rights violations. Further, since war broke out in the northern part of the country,  various armed groups, including governmental forces, have begun operating in the region. Among others,  the Gumuz Liberation Front (GLF), the Fanno militia (the Amhara extremist armed groups), the members of the National Defense Forces (ENDF) and the regional security forces operate openly in the region. More importantly, the fact that the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) project is located in the Benishangul Gumuz makes the region a highly securitized one. 

As the Oromo community is a minority within Benishangul Gumuz, the atrocities in the area are not reported to media sources nor do they receive attention in the international community or press. The limited information on the community’s suffering is not much known to even their Oromo compatriots. It is against this backdrop that OLLAA started to investigate the human rights situation in the Metekel zone of Benishangul Gumuz, in particular, regarding the suffering of the Oromo community living as a minority in the region.  

Methodology and Scope 

The report used a qualitative investigative approach with data obtained from both primary and secondary sources. Interviews were conducted with two residents of the Metekel zone. Compilations of victim lists from residents  were also utilized. Further, secondary sources, including reports by international organizations, media, and other sources, were consulted. The report identifies incidents of human rights violations, extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detentions and destruction of property perpetrated against the Oromo population in the region. Due to the security concerns and the difficulty of the situation in terms of accessibility, OLLAA was not able to interview more informants. The views of both the regional and federal governments are also not included due to the risks such interviews would pose to data collectors.

While the report aims to expose the gruesome suffering of the Oromo civilians in the Metekel zone at the hands of multiple actors, OLLAA wants to clearly state that the report itself has limitations. First, due to security reasons, OLLAA staff could not gain access to the site in order to observe and interview the victims and to investigate the situation systematically. Second, neither the domestic nor international media report on the suffering of the Oromo community in the region; even secondary sources about the human right violations in Metekel zone are few, due to the fact that the domestic media are biased against the Oromo. In short, the objective of this report is to bring the situation in the Metekel zone to the attention of the government, other human rights organizations and media sources in the hope that they will be moved to conduct further investigations.  

International Legal Framework

Ethiopia is party to many international instruments that guarantee the protection of human rights. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) obliges state parties to ensure the protection of the right to life, liberty, the freedom of movement, and the right to property regardless of a person’s background. This Covenant imposes the duty to respect, protect, and fulfill these rights. The Convention Against Torture (CAT), to which Ethiopia is also party, guarantees the protection of persons from torture and inhumane and degrading treatment. Ethiopia is also party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) that guarantees, among other things, the right to practice and develop one’s own language and culture, health rights, the right to education, and an adequate standard of living. Additionally, Ethiopia is party to the Convention on Elimination of All forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) that recognize the rights of women and children respectively. At the regional level, Ethiopia has ratified the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. This charter recognizes all the three generations of human rights.

Extrajudicial Killing 

According to residents, the situation in the zone is very complex in terms of the actors involved and the types of rights abuses.  Benishangul Gumuz region security forces, Amhara regional state special force, Fanno militia, and the federal security forces are among the perpetrators of human rights violations in the zone. A source sent to OLLAA a partial list of victims of extrajudicial killings since 2021. Recently the Amahara forces started operating in the region. The killing targets members of the Oromo communities. According to one of the residents, the Amhara elites claim that the entire zone belongs to Amhara and they want it reclaimed and included under the Amhara Regional Administration. For this to happen, the elites want to clear Oromos and members of other ethnic groups from the area. The informant also confirmed that Fanno maintains a military base in the region. This armed group claims territories in several regions. Recently, the armed groups have claimed that significant portions of lands from Western and Northern Oromia were previously their land and thus, they mean to claim this land that they are killing the residents in the area.  

Furthermore, the Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister and Head of Foreign Affairs, Demeke Mokonen, officially stated that the government should arm the Amhara community living in Metekel and Wallaga zones for the purpose of defense from Gumuz and Oromo people. As mentioned above, the Metekel attack is part of this plan. In a video circulating on social media, one of the members of Fanno is recorded saying,  “If they kill one Amhara, we will kill 100 of Oromo and Gumuz”.  Since then, many  people have been killed. OLA claimed, “On 15 March 2022, Birhane Ragasa, a pregnant Oromo woman and mother of seven, was brutally murdered by having her throat cut with a knife in another round of Stone Age savagery which is becoming a signature accompanying atrocities being committed by Amhara regional forces in Debate district. One of the informants sent us the names of 71 civilians who were killed by one of the above-mentioned forces within the last two years.

No	Name	Sex	No	Name	Ssex
1.	Jira Bayu Gerba	M	36	Mitiku Taye Jena	M
2	Fekdu Bayu Gerba	M	37	Mitiku Temesgen Bese	M
3	Belay Jira Bayu	M	38	Habtamu Yadata Bira	M
4	Azale Lammessa Shifera	F	39	Gurmesa Negeri Wakjira	M
5	Mengire Dereje Merera	F	40	Fayera Agaa Kitil	M
6	Tarekgn Gemuchu Teso	M	41	Takele Mangeha Dhuguma	M
7	Temesgen Bayu Gerba	M	42	Tariku Dame Galan	M
8	Nemo Ayane Seyido	M	43	Abiye Tegegn Worku	M
9	Fayisa Hordofe Jiraata	M	44	Etefa Akesa Tufa	M
10	Belachew Wayesa Ayana	M	45	Rude Gilo	F
11	Fekede Godo Iticha	M	46	Jira Debelo Hirpha	M
12	Sewagegn Zarihun	M	47	Teshome Nikus Duresa	M
13	Babo Sewagegn Zerihun	M	48	Warqu Wakjira Nikus	M
14	Wakgari Guta Teso	M	49	Lamesa Waktole Wonber	M
15	Jemere Fekede Alene	M	50	Jamere Babe Amsalu	F
16	Samuel Gnete Bereda	M	51	Duresa Abetu Elfeta	M
17	Biranu Beyene Tufa	M	52	Enkuwanesh  Besizo	F
18	Regasa Negeri Kesesa	M	53	Asefa Tesema	M
19	Abe Gemechu Garbi	M	54	Abebe Lata Oda	M
20	Jira Getachew Ayana	M	55	Birane Regasa Fayisa	F
21	Dereje Gerba Abdi	M	56	Jonse Amsalu Amente	M
22	Gebule Debelo Hirpha	M	57	Alemayehu Amsalu	M
23	Mamo Kenate Gaga	M	58	Morka Ayana	M
24	Sidise Haile Kenate	F	59	Melaku Hundasa Gemechu	M
25	Dame Roba Siyum	F	60	Tilahun Beyene Abebe	M
26	Birtukan Ayana Siyum	F	61	Dhinsa Gobena Dibaba	M
27	Desalegn Asaye Akesa	M	62	Kefiyalew Abebe Tinba	M
28	Siranesh Asaye Akesa	F	63	Bayia Tadele Geneti	M
29	Kusa Gemechu Kedida	M	64	Adugna Shone Kebede	M
30	Olani Moti Debelo	M	65	Bekele Bidu	M
31	Guder Meshesha Enjifa	M	66	Babe Amanu Abetu	M
32	Abi Tamiru Tegegn	M	67	Abebe Siyum Tasisa	M
33	Abi Haile Deresa	M	68	Adugna Gobena	M
34	Kitila Ferede	M	69	Abebe Beyene Sefu	M
35	Agide Taye Gena	M	70	Waktole Hailu	M
			71	Ethiopia Siyum Tasisa	M

Arbitrary Detention 

Furthermore, the sources also shared with OLLAA that arbitrary arrest is common. Regional security forces arrest people after checking their ID. According to one informant, recently over 42 people were arbitrarily detained solely due to their ethnicity. Among the detainees were women, children, people of advanced age and businessmen. A 70-year-old woman was among the detainees. The businessmen were targeted simply for their money and Oromo ethnicity.  One of the businessmen  had already suffered seven of these arrests, while his son had been subjected to arbitrary detention nine times. The detainees are held in federal military camps, some for long periods of time, without criminal charges being brought against them. In some cases, the regional security forces accuse them of having relatives who are members of Oromo Liberation Army. People are subsequently removed from camps and killed in the jungle.  Furthermore, abduction and forced disappearances are also reported in the zone. OLA claimed twelve Oromo civilians were abducted by the Fanno and Amhara special forces operating in the region from Debate district.

 The informants confirmed to OLLAA the arbitrary detention of the following people in the Metekel Zone:

• Arega Wakjira
• Kaba Nagasa
• Desalegn Kaba
• Jira Tolera
• Jira Waktole
• Gonfa Wakjira
• Ayane Wakjira
• Waqete Ababe
• Biratu Admasu
• Genti Dejas
• Balushe Rabo

Property Destruction 

The Oromo community living in the Metekel zone have lost their properties as well. Amhara Fanno and Amhara special forces were seen burning the farmer’s house in Debate district of Metekel zone. On January 1 2023,  many houses burned to ashes by the same forces as seen from the video. Sources also reported the destruction of houses and looting of properties by Eritrean forces deployed to the area in support of the Ethiopian government forces. 

Conclusion and Recommendations

• The federal government needs to respect and fulfill its international human rights duties.
• The Benishangul Gumuz regional government needs to hold human rights violators accountable for their brutal actions.
• The international community needs to give appropriate attention to the situation in Benishangul Gumuz region.
• Media outlets need to cover the situation in Metekel in their reports.