Mekelle፡29 May 2024 (Tigray Herald)
The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has called on all parties to the conflict in Amhara and Oromia regions to declare a “ceasefire without precondition”. In a detailed report on the violations in the country in 2024, EHRC urged all the parties to refrain from violating international human rights and humanitarian laws and attacks on civilians, and ensure accountability. It also called on the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to initiate criminal investigations into all the perpetrators of violations of international human rights and humanitarian laws in the context of the armed clashes in Amhara and Oromia, and file charges, and release all detainees who have not been formally charged. Extra-judicial killings, death and injury of civilians, mass, arbitrary and prolonged detentions, forced disappearances and abductions by government security forces, armed groups and unidentified actors, have continued to be a major concern, the report said.
2) The Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority announced last Friday that it had granted licences to domestic private airlines to operate regular passenger and cargo services. So far, private airline operators in the country have been solely engaged in providing chartered flights. The Authority noted that the move was aimed at enhancing the aviation industry and ensuring secure and reliable air transport services. The Authority also pointed out that the domestic private airlines would increase the connectivity among regions and support the tourism industry, by making destinations more accessible. For several decades, domestic passenger and cargo services have been solely controlled by the national carrier, the Ethiopian Airlines, Africa’s biggest airline. There are half a dozen domestic private airlines operating in the Horn of African country.
3) The government is continuing the mass repatriation of Ethiopian “illegal” migrants from Saudi Arabia. On Monday, the national committee set up to lead the process, repatriated 1,186 Ethiopians, who were trapped in various detention camps under difficult conditions in the Gulf country. The committee has managed to repatriate more than 31,700 migrants from the country in a process that started in mid-April, with at least three flights a week. A similar repatriation from Oman was ongoing.
4) The Confederation of Ethiopian Trade Unions (CETU) and the Ethiopian Employers’ Confederation on Monday called on the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to set a minimum wage for workers. In a statement, CETU said the Ethiopian Employers’ Confederation also supported the call for a minimum wage, citing the difficult conditions of workers because of high inflation. The government should set the minimum wage to ensure Ethiopians continue to export their commodities to European markets, in line with the new European Union’s (EU) Due Diligence directive. On May 24, the EU Council adopted the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, which requires large companies to ensure environmental and human rights in their value chains.
5) One person was killed in running battles between the supporters and opponents of the government of Eritrea in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Monday night, i24 News reported. The report said at least five more people were wounded in the violence, with three of them seriously. According to the report, Tel Aviv Police detained more than 20 people. The two opposing groups threw stones at each other before police dispersed them, the report stated. Over 170 people were wounded in a similar violence between the two groups of Eritreans in Tel Aviv in September 2023. Since last year, Eritrean cultural festivals organised abroad by the regime’s supporters, have been scenes of violence between opposing groups.
Source፡wazemaradio
