African Union deceitfully condoning Ethiopia massacre

A festival turned tragic on Sunday following a confrontation between Ethiopian police and the ethnic Oromo people. Tension ensued when the Oromo people who were attending Irrecha festival to thank Waaqa (God) for the blessings and mercies, also demanded for equal rights in the country with over 96 million people.  

The crowd chanted ‘we need freedom’ while displaying crossed wrists, a popular gesture of dissent against Ethiopian government’s alleged oppression.

The festival that was hosted in Bishoftu in the Oromia region was punctuated by anti-oppression catchphrases leading to police deadly intervention.

The Ethiopian security forces fired rubber bullets and tear gas, creating a stampede that led to the death of over 250 Oromo people while over 300 people sustained serious injuries including gunshot wounds. A number of people ended up falling in deep pits.

Human Rights Watch estimates that more than 400 people have been killed by the government forces since 2014 when Oromos first protested against Ethiopian government’s planned expansion of the capital, a move which was seen to threaten Oromo’s farm lands.  Even though the government deferred the plan, Oromos and other dissenting communities have remained marginalised.

In the wake of this turmoil, African Union leaders as well as world leaders have remained silent over the endless bloodbath that is now threatening peace in Eastern Africa.

“The trend of silence is worrying many people in Africa. It’s like massacre is now the new norm in the continent,” Ethiopian Human Activist (name withheld due to security reasons) lamented.

African Union has recently acquired the most effective weapon against International Criminal Court (ICC), and that is, “threat to withdraw” from Rome Statute that established ICC. Interestingly, this tool is very effective since it’s been used and proven to shield African leaders from international justice systems.

On September 23, 2016, United Nations Security Council (UNSC) was forced to consider highly advanced enticing exercise for African Union (AU) to reconsider its call for mass withdrawal from International Criminal Court (ICC) membership. Of course, as usual, AU got its way and the world had its say, and the impunity grew bigger.

“AU efforts to undermine the only permanent criminal court for victims of atrocities are fundamentally at odds with the AU’s rejection of impunity, and with its decision to make 2016 as the AU’s year of human rights,” said Stella Ndirangu of the Kenya section of International Commission of Jurists. “The AU’s commitment to justice cannot be reconciled with protecting African and other leaders from accountability for mass atrocities before the ICC.”

Ironically, Article 4 of the Constitutive Act of the AU expressly rejects and condemns impunity which on the other hand remains entrenched within African governments. The AU has also identified justice as one of its “shared values,” and 2016 as the “African Year of Human Rights with Particular Focus on the Rights of Women.”

International Justice systems consider Ethiopian government’s alleged massacre as crime against humanity that is prosecutable at the International Criminal Court, but there is no doubt that African Union will defend a regime which tolerates no dissent.

In January 2016, African Union forged a legwarmer negotiation team known as Open-Ended Committee on the ICC to develop a “comprehensive strategy” that includes withdrawal from the ICC. The Open-Ended Committee was given the mandate to identify areas which United Nations Security Council had to comply in and with, and they included a demand for immunity for sitting Heads Of State and other senior officials from prosecution before the ICC.

“Probably this explains height of impunity and government’s induced massacres that go unpunished in the continent,” Ethiopian Human Activist (name withheld due to security reasons).  

According to Open-Ended Committee, the ICC has unfairly been targeting African leaders who according to AU, are very innocent.