IV 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 128 

Supporting respect for human rights and encouraging inclusive governance 

in Ethiopia. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 15, 2017 

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself, Ms. BASS, Mr. COFFMAN, Ms. KELLY

of Illinois, Mr. VEASEY, and Mr. ELLISON) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting respect for human rights and encouraging 

inclusive governance in Ethiopia. 

Whereas the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia has 

been an ally of the United States and a partner in the 

War on Terrorism, as well as a contributor to international peacekeeping; 

Whereas the first pillar of the United States Strategy Toward 

Sub-Saharan Africa, announced in 2012, is to strengthen 

democratic institutions, and the Democracy, Human 

Rights, and Governance Strategy of the United States 

Agency for International Development states that ‘‘strong 

democratic institutions, respect for human rights, and 

participatory, accountable governance are crucial elements for improving people’s lives in a sustainable way’’; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•HRES 128 IH 

Whereas the third pillar of the 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 party 

claimed 100 percent of parliamentary seats; 

Whereas the 2016 Department of State Country Report on 

Human Rights Practices for Ethiopia cited serious 

human rights violations, including arbitrary arrests, 

killings, and torture committed by security forces, restrictions on freedom of expression and freedom of association, politically motivated trials, harassment, and intimidation of opposition members and journalists; 

Whereas the Ethiopian Human Rights Council reported 102 

deaths by April 2016 and Human Rights Watch subsequently reported that the Ethiopian security forces had 

killed between 500 and 800 peaceful protestors in the 

Oromia and Amhara regions by November 2016, and the 

number is likely higher; 

Whereas state-sponsored violence against those exercising 

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

principles and violate the constitution of Ethiopia; 

Whereas since protests started in Oromia in 2015, the Ethiopian government has charged more than 150 students, 

opposition leaders, and activists at the Federal High 

Court under the 2009 Anti-Terrorism Proclamation 

(ATP) and repeatedly has abused such law to limit the 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•HRES 128 IH 

freedom of the press, silence independent journalists, and 

persecute members of the political opposition, including 

by— 

(1) charging 20 university students in March 2016 

under the criminal code for protesting in front of the 

United States Embassy in Addis Ababa, based only on a 

video of their protest and a list of demands; 

(2) arresting Merera Gudina, Chairman of the 

Oromo Federalist Congress in December 2016 to be investigated under the ATP after he held meetings with 

European Union officials in Brussels; 

(3) charging Yonatan Tesfaye Regassa, the former 

head of public relations for the opposition Semayawi 

Party (the Blue Party), with ‘‘planning, preparation, conspiracy, incitement and attempt’’ of a terrorist act, citing 

Facebook posts by Regassa about the protests as evidence; and 

(4) arresting Getachew Shiferaw (the editor-in-chief 

of the online newspaper ‘‘Negere Ethiopia’’), Fikadu 

Mirkana, (a news editor and reporter with the public 

‘‘Oromia Radio and TV’’), and blogger Zelalem 

Workagenehu (with an independent diaspora blog) under 

charges of conspiring to overthrow the government and 

supporting terrorism under the ATP; 

Whereas, on April 25, 2016, the Federal High Court sentenced the former governor of the Gambella region, 

Okello Akway Ochalla, to nine years imprisonment, and 

the trial of Ochalla and his co-defendants was marred by 

violations of fair trial guarantees and included the use of 

witness testimonies in exchange for non-prosecution 

under the ATP; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•HRES 128 IH 

Whereas in August 2015, eighteen Ethiopian Muslim leaders 

received prison sentences ranging from seven to 22 years 

in prison for peacefully protesting against government interference in the religious affairs of the Islamic community, some of whom were later pardoned; 

Whereas criminal courts in Ethiopia are weak, overburdened, 

subject to political influence, accept the use of forced confessions, and allow detainees to be held for months without charge; 

Whereas serious concerns have been raised regarding prison 

conditions in Ethiopia, including overcrowding, poor sanitation, lack of access to potable water, excessive use of 

solitary confinement, the use of rape and torture, withholding access to medical treatment, and denial of access 

to proper legal counsel or to visitors; 

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

society organizations in Ethiopia, especially those investigating alleged violations of human rights by governmental authorities; 

Whereas in June 2016, the Government of Ethiopia announced that it closed down more than 200 nongovernmental organizations within a nine-month period from 

2015 to 2016 for failing to comply with the restrictive 

provisions of the 2009 Charities and Societies Proclamation; 

Whereas the development strategy of the Government of 

Ethiopia has targeted the relocation of more than 

1,500,000 people, including indigenous Anuaks in the 

Gambella region, from their ancestral lands for largeVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:53 Feb 16, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR128.IH HR128

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
5 

•HRES 128 IH 

scale land development under the ‘‘villagization’’ program; 

Whereas the case of the ‘‘Zone 9 Bloggers’’, whose arrest, detention, and trials on terrorism charges brought international attention to the restrictions on the freedom of 

the press in Ethiopia, is indicative of the coercive environment in which Ethiopian journalists operate; 

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

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

that restricts a broad range of actions, including blocking 

mobile Internet access and social media communication, 

undermining freedoms of association, expression, and 

peaceful assembly, which led to the arrest of over 22,000 

persons according to Ethiopian Government accounts, 

and codifying such tactics as arbitrary detention; 

Whereas serious abuses have been and continue to be committed in the Somali regional state by federal and regional security forces, some of which may constitute war 

crimes and crimes against humanity; 

Whereas there has been no credible independent investigation 

into any of the abuses mentioned herein and no indication that anyone has been held to account for these 

abuses; and 

Whereas during President Barack Obama’s historic visit to 

Addis Ababa in July 2015, Prime Minister Hailemariam 

Desalegn expressed the commitment of his government to 

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

the need to step up efforts to strengthen institutions: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
6 

•HRES 128 IH 

1 (1) condemns— 

2 (A) the killing of peaceful protesters and 

3 excessive use of force by Ethiopian security 

4 forces; 

5 (B) the arrest and detention of journalists, 

6 students, activists, and political leaders who ex7 ercise their constitutional rights to freedom of 

8 assembly and expression through peaceful pro9 tests; and 

10 (C) the abuse of the Anti-Terrorism Proc11 lamation to stifle political and civil dissent and 

12 journalistic freedoms; 

13 (2) urges protesters in Ethiopia to refrain from 

14 violence and to refrain from encouragement or ac15 ceptance of violence in demonstrations; 

16 (3) urges all armed factions to cease their con17 flict with the Government of Ethiopia and engage in 

18 peaceful negotiations directly and through inter19 national intermediaries; 

20 (4) calls on the Government of Ethiopia to— 

21 (A) lift the state of emergency; 

22 (B) end the use of excessive force by secu23 rity forces; 

24 (C) conduct a full, credible, and trans25 parent investigation into the killings and inVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:53 Feb 16, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR128.IH HR128

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
7 

•HRES 128 IH 

1 stances of excessive use of force that took place 

2 as a result of protests in the Oromia and Am3 hara regions and hold security forces account4 able for wrongdoing through public proceedings; 

5 (D) release dissidents, activists, and jour6 nalists who have been imprisoned, including 

7 those arrested for reporting about the protests, 

8 for exercising constitutional rights; 

9 (E) respect the right to freedom of peace10 ful assembly and guarantee the freedom of the 

11 press and mass media, in keeping with Articles 

12 30 and 29 of the Ethiopian constitution; 

13 (F) engage in open and transparent con14 sultations with citizens regarding its develop15 ment strategy, especially those strategies that 

16 could result in the displacement of people from 

17 their land; 

18 (G) allow a rapporteur appointed by the 

19 United Nations to conduct an independent ex20 amination of the state of human rights in Ethi21 opia; 

22 (H) address the grievances brought for23 ward by representatives of registered opposition 

24 parties; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
8 

•HRES 128 IH 

1 (I) hold accountable those responsible for 

2 killing, torturing, and detaining innocent civil3 ians who exercised their constitutional rights; 

4 (J) repeal proclamations that— 

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

6 harass or prohibit funding for civil society 

7 organizations that investigate human 

8 rights violations, engage in peaceful polit9 ical dissent, or advocate for greater polit10 ical freedoms; 

11 (ii) prohibit or otherwise limit those 

12 displaced from their land from seeking 

13 remedy or redress in courts, or do not pro14 vide a transparent, accessible means to ac15 cess justice for those so displaced; 

16 (iii) allow for the arrest and detention 

17 of peaceful protesters and political oppo18 nents who legally exercise their rights to 

19 freedom of expression and association; and 

20 (iv) prohibit or otherwise limit peace21 ful nonprofit operations in Ethiopia; and 

22 (K) investigate the circumstances sur23 rounding the September 3, 2016, shootings and 

24 fire at Qilinto Prison, the deaths of persons in 

25 attendance at the annual Irreecha festivities at 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
9 

•HRES 128 IH 

1 Lake Hora near Bishoftu on October 2, 2016, 

2 and the ongoing killings of civilians over several 

3 years in the Somali Regional State by federal 

4 and regional police, and publically release a re5 port on such investigations in an expedient 

6 manner; 

7 (5) calls on the Secretary of State to conduct 

8 a review of security assistance to Ethiopia in light 

9 of recent developments and to improve transparency 

10 with respect to the purposes of such assistance to 

11 the people of Ethiopia; 

12 (6) calls on the Administrator of the United 

13 States Agency for International Development to im14 mediately lead efforts to develop a comprehensive 

15 strategy to support improved democracy and govern16 ance in Ethiopia; 

17 (7) calls on the Secretary of State, in conjunc18 tion with the Administrator of the United States 

19 Agency for International Development, to improve 

20 oversight and accountability of United States assist21 ance to Ethiopia, pursuant to the expectations estab22 lished in the United States Strategy Toward Sub23 Saharan Africa; 

24 (8) calls on the Secretary of State, in coopera25 tion with the Secretary of the Treasury, to apply apVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:53 Feb 16, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR128.IH HR128

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
10 

•HRES 128 IH 

1 propriate sanctions on foreign persons or entities re2 sponsible for extrajudicial killings, torture, or other 

3 gross violations of internationally recognized human 

4 rights committed against any nationals in Ethiopia 

5 as provided for in the Global Magnitsky Human 

6 Rights Accountability Act; and 

7 (9) stands by the people of Ethiopia and sup8 ports their peaceful efforts to increase democratic 

9 space and to exercise the rights guaranteed by the 

10 Ethiopian constitution. 

Æ 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS