Ethiopia: Concern over genocide commission

PRESS RELEASE

Ethiopia: concerns about a Commission of Investigation attempting to
cover up State involvement in acts of genocide

For the attention of the Press
Geneva, April 27th, 2004

Following its press release on April 13th, 2004, the World
Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) again wishes to highlight the
ongoing crimes against humanity and acts of genocide being
perpetrated by the Ethiopian Armed Forces and "highlander" militias
against the Anuak (or Anywaa) indigenous ethnic group in rural areas
of Gambella, Ethiopia. It has been estimated that during the period
spanning December 13th, 2003 to March 31st, 2004, the total number of
persons killed had reached 1'137, and the killings have reportedly
continued since then. The massive targeting of a specific ethnic
group, with the clear intent of destroying a part or the entirety of
the group, bears all the hallmarks of acts of genocide and crimes
against humanity.

Although OMCT welcomes the steps that have been taken in order to
form a Commission of Investigation - which was established following
a ruling by the Ethiopian Parliament on April 12th, 2004 - serious
doubts as to its impartiality and effectiveness have been raised by
local and international NGOs.

It is believed that both the selection of the Commissioners, and the
restricted scope of the investigation that they are tasked with
carrying out, will ensure that this Commission of Investigation is
ineffective and that impunity will reign. The neutrality of its
Chairperson, Ato Kemal Bediri, who is the Minister of Justice and the
Chairman of the National Election Board, has been seriously
questioned by local NGOs, as he is accountable for many of the
violations that have been taking place, according to our sources.
They claim that the chairperson will attempt to cover up the
involvement of the Ethiopian Armed Forces in the ongoing atrocities
that are being perpetrated against the Anuak people.

The scope of the investigation is allegedly going to be limited so as
not to cover the period during which the Ethiopian Armed Forces
intervened in the Gambella region. During this period, which lasted
from mid-December to some time in late January, according to our
sources, the worst atrocities were committed, including massacres of
hundreds of civilians, the bombardment and destruction of villages,
leading to thousands of refugees fleeing to the Pochalla refugee camp
in Southern Sudan. The investigation will also reportedly not involve
the refugees in Pochalla or those in the Ifo refugee camp in Kenya.
In addition, the few Anuak persons who remain in Gambella town are
allegedly being threatened in order to ensure that they do not
implicate the Ethiopian military in the various acts of genocide in
the region. There are therefore significant concerns that this
Commission will not be impartial or effective, raising the obvious
need for an independent international investigation into these acts
of genocide and crimes against humanity.

The International Secretariat of OMCT condemns the widespread and
targeted killing of civilians, mass rapes, burning of homes and crops
and other acts being perpetrated against the Anuak people, and calls
on the
Ethiopian Government to take all measures necessary to ensure that
these are halted immediately, and to invite a United Nations
independent investigation team to the Gambella region, in order for
them to carry out
an unrestricted investigation into these atrocities. OMCT calls upon
the United Nations to send a top-level investigation team to the
region, as a matter of utmost urgency, as the nature of the situation
requires immediate action.

It is essential that this international investigation is unrestricted
in terms of its mandate, its timeframe, the geographical areas it is
able to access, including the refugee camps in Pochalla and Ifo, and
that it is allowed to investigate any and all allegations of acts of
genocide and crimes against humanity.

OMCT issued a press release on April 13th, 2004 concerning the
attempted elimination of the Anuak people, which provides further
details on the situation and is attached, for your reference.

For more information contact Michael Anthony at: [email protected] or +
41 22 809 49 39

Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture (OMCT)
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)
Organización Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT)
8 rue du Vieux-Billard
Case postale 21
CH-1211 Geneve 8
Suisse/Switzerland
Tel. : 0041 22 809 49 39
Fax : 0041 22 809 49 29
E-mail : [email protected]
http://www.omct.org