III 

Calendar No. 226 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 168 

Supporting respect for human rights and encouraging inclusive governance 

in Ethiopia. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 17, 2017 

Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. DURBIN, 

Mr. CORNYN, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. COONS, Mr. GARDNER, Mr. BOOKER, 

Mr. BROWN, Mr. FRANKEN, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. WARNER, Ms. CANTWELL, Mrs. MURRAY, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, 

Mr. CASEY, and Ms. KLOBUCHAR) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

SEPTEMBER 19, 2017 

Reported by Mr. CORKER, with an amendment and an amendment to the 

preamble 

[Strike out all after the resolving clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[Strike the preamble and insert the part printed in italic] 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting respect for human rights and encouraging 

inclusive governance in Ethiopia. 

Whereas the first pillar of the 2012 United States Strategy 

Toward Sub-Saharan Africa is to strengthen democratic 

institutions, and the United States Agency for International Development Democracy, Human Rights, and 

Governance Strategy states that strong democratic instiVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:33 Sep 20, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR168.RS SR168

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tutions, respect for human rights, and participatory, accountable governance are crucial elements for improving 

people’s lives in a sustainable way; 

Whereas the third pillar of the 2012 United States Strategy 

Toward Sub-Saharan Africa is to advance peace and security, including supporting security sector reform; 

Whereas democratic space in Ethiopia has steadily diminished since the general elections of 2005; 

Whereas elections were held in 2015 in which the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front and its 

affiliates claimed 100 percent of parliamentary seats; 

Whereas the 2016 Department of State Human Rights Report on Ethiopia cited serious human rights violations, 

including arbitrary arrests, killings, rape, and torture 

committed by security forces as well as increased restrictions on freedom of expression and freedom of association, politically motivated trials, harassment, intimidation, and arrest of opposition members and journalists; 

Whereas the Government of Ethiopia has repeatedly abused 

laws such as the 2009 Anti-Terrorism Proclamation to 

limit press freedom, silence independent journalists, and 

persecute members of the political opposition; 

Whereas laws such as the 2009 Charities and Societies Proclamation have been used to restrict the operation of civil 

society and nongovernmental organizations in Ethiopia 

across a range of purposes, particularly those investigating alleged violations of human rights by governmental authorities; 

Whereas the case of the ‘‘Zone 9 Bloggers’’, whose arrest and 

detention in 2014 and subsequent trials on terrorism 

charges brought international attention to the restrictions 


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•SRES 168 RS 

on press freedom in Ethiopia, is indicative of the coercive 

environment in which journalists continue to operate; 

Whereas the arrest, detention, and demeaning treatment of 

hundreds of dissidents, including leaders of legally registered opposition parties such as Bekele Gerba, arrested 

in December 2015, and Merera Gudina, arrested in November 2016, of the Oromo Federalist Congress, Yonatan 

Tesfaye Regassa, arrested in December 2015, of the 

Semayawi Party (the Blue Party), and the arrest and 

sentencing of Okello Akway Ochalla, former governor of 

the Gambella region, are indicative of repressive political 

conditions that prevail in the country; 

Whereas the Ethiopian Human Rights Council reported last 

year at least 102 protestor deaths from November 2015 

to February 2016 across 9 administrative zones, Human 

Rights Watch reports that Ethiopian security forces have 

killed at least 500 peaceful protestors, and Amnesty 

International reported that more than 800 protesters 

have been killed since November 2015 and that number 

is likely higher; 

Whereas, on October 9, 2016, the Government of Ethiopia 

imposed a far-reaching, six-month state of emergency 

that restricted a broad range of actions, including blocking mobile Internet access and social media communications, undermining freedoms of association, expression, 

and peaceful assembly, which led to the arrest of over 

26,000 persons, and which was extended by four months 

on March 30, 2017; 

Whereas, on October 10, 2016, the United Nations Special 

Rapporteur on freedom of peaceful assembly and of association and the United Nations Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances and on extrajudicial, 


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•SRES 168 RS 

summary or arbitrary executions publicly called on the 

Government of Ethiopia to allow an international commission of inquiry to investigate the protests and the violence used against peaceful demonstrators; 

Whereas former detainees report torture, lack of rations, and 

other forms of serious abuse in detention facilities; 

Whereas state-sponsored violence against citizens exercising 

their rights to peaceful assembly in Oromia and elsewhere in the country, and the abuse of laws to stifle journalistic and political freedoms, stand in direct contrast to 

democratic principles and in violation of Ethiopia’s constitution; 

Whereas serious abuses have been and continue to be committed in the Somali regional state by Ethiopian federal 

and regional security forces, some of which may constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity; 

Whereas to date, the Government of Ethiopia has held no one 

accountable for any of the aforementioned abuses; and 

Whereas, during President Barack Obama’s historic visit to 

Addis Ababa in July 2015, Prime Minister Hailemariam 

Desalegn expressed his government’s commitment to 

deepen the democratic process and work towards the respect of human rights and improving governance, and 

noted the need to step up efforts to strengthen institutions, but the Government of Ethiopia has failed to take 

concrete actions to follow through with this commitment: 

Now, therefore, be it 

Whereas the United States and Ethiopia have closely partnered 

in areas of mutual interest, including security, development, and humanitarian aid; 


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•SRES 168 RS 

Whereas democratic space in Ethiopia has steadily diminished 

since the general elections of 2005 and has ranked in the 

bottom tier of Freedom House annual global rankings 

since 2011, dropping further in 2017; 

Whereas elections were held in 2015 in which the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front and its affiliates claimed 100 percent of parliamentary seats; 

Whereas the 2016 Department of State Human Rights Report 

on Ethiopia cited serious human rights violations, including arbitrary arrests, killings, rape, and torture committed 

by security forces as well as increased restrictions on freedom of expression and freedom of association, politically 

motivated trials, harassment, intimidation, and arrest of 

opposition members and journalists; 

Whereas the Government of Ethiopia has repeatedly abused 

laws such as the 2009 Anti-Terrorism Proclamation to 

limit press freedom, silence independent journalists, and 

persecute members of the political opposition; 

Whereas laws such as the 2009 Charities and Societies Proclamation have been used to restrict the operation of civil society and nongovernmental organizations in Ethiopia 

across a range of purposes, particularly those investigating 

alleged violations of human rights by governmental authorities; 

Whereas the case of the ‘‘Zone 9 Bloggers’’, whose arrest and 

detention in 2014 and subsequent trials on terrorism 

charges brought international attention to the restrictions 

on press freedom in Ethiopia, is indicative of the coercive 

environment for civil society, including journalists; 

Whereas the arrest, detention, and demeaning treatment of 

hundreds of dissidents, including leaders of legally regVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:33 Sep 20, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR168.RS SR168

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•SRES 168 RS 

istered opposition parties such as Bekele Gerba, arrested in 

December 2015, and Merera Gudina, arrested in November 

2016, of the Oromo Federalist Congress, Yonatan Tesfaye 

Regassa, arrested in December 2015, of the Semayawi 

Party (the Blue Party), and the arrest and sentencing of 

Okello Akway Ochalla, former governor of the Gambella region, are indicative of repressive political conditions that 

prevail in the country; 

Whereas the Ethiopian Human Rights Council reported last 

year at least 102 protestor deaths from November 2015 to 

February 2016 across 9 administrative zones, Human 

Rights Watch reports that Ethiopian security forces have 

killed at least 500 peaceful protestors, and Amnesty International reported that more than 800 protesters have been 

killed since November 2015 and that number is likely higher; 

Whereas the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission also conducted an investigation into the deaths and injuries that 

occurred during the protest period and submitted the report with its recommendations to the House of Peoples 

Representatives, but the full text of the report has not yet 

been made public; 

Whereas, on October 9, 2016, the Government of Ethiopia imposed a far-reaching, six-month State of Emergency that 

restricted a broad range of actions, including blocking mobile Internet access and social media communications, undermining freedoms of association, expression, and peaceful assembly, which led to the arrest of over 26,000 persons, and which was extended by four months on March 

30, 2017; 

Whereas the Government of Ethiopia lifted the State of Emergency after ten months, but, according to Human Rights 


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•SRES 168 RS 

Watch ‘‘thousands remain in detention without charge, 

none of the protesters’ underlying grievances have been addressed, and politically motivated trials of key opposition 

leaders, artists, journalists, and others continue’’; 

Whereas, on October 10, 2016, the United Nations Special 

Rapporteur on freedom of peaceful assembly and of association and the United Nations Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances and on extrajudicial, 

summary or arbitrary executions publicly called on the 

Government of Ethiopia to allow an international commission of inquiry to investigate the protests and the violence 

used against peaceful demonstrators; 

Whereas the Government of Ethiopia has acknowledged that its 

people have legitimate grievances and expressed its willingness to address a number of issues including lack of 

basic social services, poor governance, and corruption, and 

some of those engaged in corrupt practices were removed 

from office and prosecuted; 

Whereas former detainees report torture, lack of rations, and 

other forms of serious abuse in detention facilities; 

Whereas state-sponsored violence against citizens exercising 

their rights to peaceful assembly in Oromia and elsewhere 

in the country, and the abuse of laws to stifle journalistic 

and political freedoms, stand in direct contrast to democratic principles and in violation of Ethiopia’s constitution; 

Whereas the 2007 counter-insurgency operations, declared by 

then President Meles Zenawi in response to violent attacks 

by the Ogaden National Liberation Front in the Somali 

region of Ethiopia, continues today and have reportedly 

consisted of serious abuses by Ethiopian Federal and reVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:33 Sep 20, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR168.RS SR168

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•SRES 168 RS 

gional security forces that may in some cases constitute 

war crimes and crimes against humanity; 

Whereas, to date, the Government of Ethiopia has so limited 

access and reporting from the Somali region such that no 

independent verification can be made as to the reports of 

gross human rights violations and the conduct of security 

forces and militants there; 

Whereas, to date, despite the acknowledgement by the Government of Ethiopia of misgovernance and security force 

abuses as well as a stated commitment to hold accountable 

those responsible for such abuses, the Government of Ethiopia has failed to hold anyone accountable for these 

crimes; and 

Whereas, despite the July 2015 visit of President Barack 

Obama to Addis Ababa, during which Prime Minister 

Hailemariam Desalegn expressed his government’s commitment to deepen the democratic process and work towards the respect of human rights and improving governance and noted the need to step up efforts to strengthen institutions, the Government of Ethiopia has failed to take 

clear, consistent and sustainable actions to follow through 

with this commitment: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) condemns— 

3 (A) killings of peaceful protesters and ex4 cessive use of force by Ethiopian security 

5 forces; 

6 (B) arrest and detention of journalists, 

7 students, activists and political leaders who exVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:33 Sep 20, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\SR168.RS SR168

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1 ercise their constitutional rights to freedom of 

2 assembly and expression through peaceful pro3 tests; and 

4 (C) abuse of the Anti-Terrorism Proclama5 tion to stifle political and civil dissent and jour6 nalistic freedoms; 

7 (2) urges protesters in Ethiopia to refrain from 

8 violence, and to refrain from encouraging or accept9 ing any and all violence in demonstrations; 

10 (3) calls on the Government of Ethiopia to— 

11 (A) fully lift the state of emergency; 

12 (B) end the practice of excessive force by 

13 security forces; 

14 (C) grant the United Nations High Com15 missioner for Human Rights and United Na16 tions Special Rapporteurs full access to conduct 

17 a comprehensive independent examination of 

18 the state of human rights in Ethiopia; 

19 (D) conduct a full, credible, and trans20 parent investigation into the killings and in21 stances of excessive use of force that took place 

22 as a result of protests in the Oromia and Am23 hara regions and hold security forces account24 able for wrongdoing through public proceedings, 


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•SRES 168 RS 

1 and to publicly release the findings through a 

2 written report; 

3 (E) release all dissidents, members of the 

4 political opposition, activists, and journalists 

5 who have been jailed, including those arrested 

6 for reporting about the protests, for exercising 

7 constitutional rights; 

8 (F) respect the right to freedom of peace9 ful assembly and guarantee freedom of the 

10 press and mass media in keeping with Articles 

11 30 and 29 of the Ethiopian constitution; 

12 (G) engage in open and transparent con13 sultations relative to its development strategy, 

14 especially those strategies that could result in 

15 people’s displacement from land, offering those 

16 displaced from their land the right to seek rem17 edy or redress in courts and providing a trans18 parent means to access justice for those dis19 placed; and 

20 (H) repeal proclamations that— 

21 (i) can be used as a political tool to 

22 harass individuals or organizations that en23 gage in peaceful political dissent or advo24 cate for greater political freedoms; or 


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•SRES 168 RS 

1 (ii) prohibit or otherwise limit funding 

2 for civil society organizations working on, 

3 supporting, or advocating for respect for 

4 constitutional rights, the rule of law, and 

5 protection of human rights; 

6 (4) calls on the Secretary of State to share with 

7 Congress the results of a review of security assist8 ance to Ethiopia in light of these developments and 

9 to improve transparency with respect to the pur10 poses of such assistance to the people of Ethiopia; 

11 (5) calls on the Administrator of the United 

12 States Agency for International Development to im13 mediately lead efforts to develop a comprehensive 

14 strategy to support improved democracy and govern15 ance in Ethiopia; 

16 (6) calls on the Secretary of State, in conjunc17 tion with the Administrator of the United States 

18 Agency for International Development, to improve 

19 oversight and accountability of United States assist20 ance to Ethiopia pursuant to expectations estab21 lished in the President’s 2012 Strategy Toward Sub22 Saharan Africa; 

23 (7) calls on the President to apply appropriate 

24 sanctions on foreign persons or entities responsible 

25 for extrajudicial killings, torture, or other gross vioVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:33 Sep 20, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\SR168.RS SR168

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1 lations of internationally recognized human rights 

2 committed against any nationals in Ethiopia as pro3 vided for in the Global Magnitsky Human Rights 

4 Accountability Act (subtitle F of title XII of Public 

5 Law 114–328); and 

6 (8) stands by the people of Ethiopia, and sup7 ports their peaceful efforts to increase democratic 

8 space and to exercise the rights guaranteed by the 

9 Ethiopian constitution. 

10 That the Senate— 

11 (1) condemns— 

12 (A) killings of peaceful protesters and exces13 sive use of force by Ethiopian security forces; 

14 (B) arrest and detention of journalists, stu15 dents, activists and political leaders who exercise 

16 their constitutional rights to freedom of assembly 

17 and expression through peaceful protests; and 

18 (C) abuse of the Anti-Terrorism Proclama19 tion to stifle political and civil dissent and jour20 nalistic freedoms; 

21 (2) urges protesters in Ethiopia to refrain from 

22 violence, and to reject any and all violence in dem23 onstrations; 

24 (3) calls on the Government of Ethiopia to— 


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1 (A) use the opportunity to address broad 

2 and persistent concerns expressed across large 

3 swathes of the citizenry, which history has noted 

4 will, if neglected or ignored, only increase ten5 sion and diminish the prospect of capitalizing 

6 on much economic progress and significant de7 velopment opportunities that remain for Ethi8 opia; 

9 (B) end the practice of excessive force by se10 curity forces, enforce professional discipline, and 

11 hold accountable security forces responsible for 

12 such abuses; 

13 (C) grant the United Nations High Com14 missioner for Human Rights and United Na15 tions Special Rapporteurs access to conduct a 

16 comprehensive and independent examination of 

17 the state of human rights in Ethiopia, and work 

18 with them to improve human rights conditions; 

19 (D) conduct a full, credible, and trans20 parent investigation into the killings, detentions, 

21 and instances of excessive use of force that took 

22 place in response to protests in the Oromia and 

23 Amhara regions and hold accountable security 

24 forces accused of such actions through public proVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:33 Sep 20, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\SR168.RS SR168

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•SRES 168 RS 

1 ceedings, and to publicly release written findings 

2 from such investigation; 

3 (E) release from incarceration all dis4 sidents, members of the political opposition, ac5 tivists, and journalists who have been jailed, in6 cluding those arrested for reporting about the 

7 protests, for exercising constitutional rights; 

8 (F) respect the right to freedom of peaceful 

9 assembly and guarantee freedom of the press and 

10 mass media in keeping with Articles 30 and 29 

11 of the Ethiopian constitution; 

12 (G) engage in open and transparent con13 sultations relative to its development strategy, es14 pecially those strategies that could result in peo15 ple’s displacement from land, offering those dis16 placed from their land the right to seek remedy 

17 or redress in courts and providing a transparent 

18 means to access justice for those displaced; and 

19 (H) cease the use of proclamations that— 

20 (i) are used to harass individuals or 

21 organizations that engage in peaceful polit22 ical dissent or advocate for greater political 

23 freedoms; and 

24 (ii) prohibit or otherwise limit funding 

25 for civil society organizations working on, 


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•SRES 168 RS 

1 supporting, or advocating for respect for 

2 constitutional rights, the rule of law, and 

3 protection of human rights; 

4 (4) calls on the Secretary of State to— 

5 (A) share the recently concluded interagency 

6 review of United States security assistance with 

7 the relevant congressional committees of jurisdic8 tion, as well as a description of current objectives 

9 and criteria that advance critical regional secu10 rity objectives while mitigating the threat of as11 sistance being misused in the context of domestic 

12 developments or any other purpose other than the 

13 intended use; 

14 (B) engage with the Government of Ethi15 opia in strengthening the bilateral Working 

16 Group on Democracy, Governance and Human 

17 Rights and provide support for the effective and 

18 meaningful implementation of Ethiopia’s Na19 tional Human Rights Action Plan; 

20 (5) calls on the Administrator of the United 

21 States Agency for International Development to lead 

22 efforts to develop a comprehensive strategy to support 

23 improved democracy and governance in Ethiopia; 

24 (6) calls on the Secretary of State, in conjunc25 tion with the Administrator of the United States 


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1 Agency for International Development, to improve 

2 oversight and accountability of United States assist3 ance to Ethiopia and to ensure such assistance rein4 forces long-term goals for improved governance; 

5 (7) calls on the President to apply appropriate 

6 sanctions on foreign persons or entities responsible for 

7 extrajudicial killings, torture, or other gross violations 

8 of internationally recognized human rights committed 

9 against any nationals in Ethiopia as provided for in 

10 the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability 

11 Act (subtitle F of title XII of Public Law 114–328); 

12 and 

13 (8) stands by the people of Ethiopia, and sup14 ports their peaceful efforts to increase democratic 

15 space and to exercise the rights guaranteed by the 

16 Ethiopian constitution. 


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Calendar No. 226 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 168 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting respect for human rights and 

encouraging inclusive governance in Ethiopia. 

SEPTEMBER 19, 2017 

Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the 

preamble 


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