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 reso-
lution; 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 inter-
national 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 ele-
ments for improving people’s lives in a sustainable way’’; 
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Whereas the third pillar of the United States Strategy To-
ward Sub-Saharan Africa is to advance peace and secu-
rity, including supporting security sector reform; 
Whereas democratic space in Ethiopia has steadily dimin-
ished since the general elections of 2005; 
Whereas elections were held in 2015 in which the ruling Ethi-
opian 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, restric-
tions on freedom of expression and freedom of associa-
tion, politically motivated trials, harassment, and intimi-
dation of opposition members and journalists; 
Whereas the Ethiopian Human Rights Council reported 102 
deaths by April 2016 and Human Rights Watch subse-
quently 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 else-
where in the country, and the abuse of laws to stifle jour-
nalistic freedoms stand in direct contrast to democratic 
principles and violate the constitution of Ethiopia; 
Whereas since protests started in Oromia in 2015, the Ethio-
pian 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 
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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 in-
vestigated 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, con-
spiracy, incitement and attempt’’ of a terrorist act, citing 
Facebook posts by Regassa about the protests as evi-
dence; 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 sen-
tenced 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; 
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Whereas in August 2015, eighteen Ethiopian Muslim leaders 
received prison sentences ranging from seven to 22 years 
in prison for peacefully protesting against government in-
terference in the religious affairs of the Islamic commu-
nity, some of whom were later pardoned; 
Whereas criminal courts in Ethiopia are weak, overburdened, 
subject to political influence, accept the use of forced con-
fessions, and allow detainees to be held for months with-
out charge; 
Whereas serious concerns have been raised regarding prison 
conditions in Ethiopia, including overcrowding, poor sani-
tation, lack of access to potable water, excessive use of 
solitary confinement, the use of rape and torture, with-
holding access to medical treatment, and denial of access 
to proper legal counsel or to visitors; 
Whereas laws such as the 2009 Charities and Societies Proc-
lamation have been used to restrict the operation of civil 
society organizations in Ethiopia, especially those inves-
tigating alleged violations of human rights by govern-
mental authorities; 
Whereas in June 2016, the Government of Ethiopia an-
nounced that it closed down more than 200 nongovern-
mental organizations within a nine-month period from 
2015 to 2016 for failing to comply with the restrictive 
provisions of the 2009 Charities and Societies Proclama-
tion; 
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 large- 
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scale land development under the ‘‘villagization’’ pro-
gram; 
Whereas the case of the ‘‘Zone 9 Bloggers’’, whose arrest, de-
tention, and trials on terrorism charges brought inter-
national attention to the restrictions on the freedom of 
the press in Ethiopia, is indicative of the coercive envi-
ronment 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 com-
mitted in the Somali regional state by federal and re-
gional 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 indica-
tion 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 improv-
ing governance and respect for human rights, and noted 
the need to step up efforts to strengthen institutions: 
Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
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(1) condemns— 
(A) the killing of peaceful protesters and 
excessive use of force by Ethiopian security 
forces; 
(B) the arrest and detention of journalists, 
students, activists, and political leaders who ex-
ercise their constitutional rights to freedom of 
assembly and expression through peaceful pro-
tests; and 
(C) the abuse of the Anti-Terrorism Proc-
lamation to stifle political and civil dissent and 
journalistic freedoms; 
(2) urges protesters in Ethiopia to refrain from 
violence and to refrain from encouragement or ac-
ceptance of violence in demonstrations; 
(3) urges all armed factions to cease their con-
flict with the Government of Ethiopia and engage in 
peaceful negotiations directly and through inter-
national intermediaries; 
(4) calls on the Government of Ethiopia to— 
(A) lift the state of emergency; 
(B) end the use of excessive force by secu-
rity forces; 
(C) conduct a full, credible, and trans-
parent investigation into the killings and in-
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stances of excessive use of force that took place 
as a result of protests in the Oromia and Am-
hara regions and hold security forces account-
able for wrongdoing through public proceedings; 
(D) release dissidents, activists, and jour-
nalists who have been imprisoned, including 
those arrested for reporting about the protests, 
for exercising constitutional rights; 
(E) respect the right to freedom of peace-
ful assembly and guarantee the freedom of the 
press and mass media, in keeping with Articles 
30 and 29 of the Ethiopian constitution; 
(F) engage in open and transparent con-
sultations with citizens regarding its develop-
ment strategy, especially those strategies that 
could result in the displacement of people from 
their land; 
(G) allow a rapporteur appointed by the 
United Nations to conduct an independent ex-
amination of the state of human rights in Ethi-
opia; 
(H) address the grievances brought for-
ward by representatives of registered opposition 
parties; 
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(I) hold accountable those responsible for 
killing, torturing, and detaining innocent civil-
ians who exercised their constitutional rights; 
(J) repeal proclamations that— 
(i) can be used as a political tool to 
harass or prohibit funding for civil society 
organizations 
that 
investigate 
human 
rights violations, engage in peaceful polit-
ical dissent, or advocate for greater polit-
ical freedoms; 
(ii) prohibit or otherwise limit those 
displaced from their land from seeking 
remedy or redress in courts, or do not pro-
vide a transparent, accessible means to ac-
cess justice for those so displaced; 
(iii) allow for the arrest and detention 
of peaceful protesters and political oppo-
nents who legally exercise their rights to 
freedom of expression and association; and 
(iv) prohibit or otherwise limit peace-
ful nonprofit operations in Ethiopia; and 
(K) investigate the circumstances sur-
rounding the September 3, 2016, shootings and 
fire at Qilinto Prison, the deaths of persons in 
attendance at the annual Irreecha festivities at 
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Lake Hora near Bishoftu on October 2, 2016, 
and the ongoing killings of civilians over several 
years in the Somali Regional State by federal 
and regional police, and publically release a re-
port on such investigations in an expedient 
manner; 
(5) calls on the Secretary of State to conduct 
a review of security assistance to Ethiopia in light 
of recent developments and to improve transparency 
with respect to the purposes of such assistance to 
the people of Ethiopia; 
(6) calls on the Administrator of the United 
States Agency for International Development to im-
mediately lead efforts to develop a comprehensive 
strategy to support improved democracy and govern-
ance in Ethiopia; 
(7) calls on the Secretary of State, in conjunc-
tion with the Administrator of the United States 
Agency for International Development, to improve 
oversight and accountability of United States assist-
ance to Ethiopia, pursuant to the expectations estab-
lished in the United States Strategy Toward Sub- 
Saharan Africa; 
(8) calls on the Secretary of State, in coopera-
tion with the Secretary of the Treasury, to apply ap-
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