UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

60th session General Debate Item 2

Joint Statement on the human rights situation in Ethiopia

Mr. Chair, I am making this statement on behalf of a group of countries.

As a member of the Human Rights Council, we look forward to continuing to engage constructively with Ethiopia. We welcome Ethiopia’s constructive engagement with the 4th cycle of the UPR, and look forward to supporting the implementation of its recommendations.

We remain concerned about the challenging human rights situation in Ethiopia, including constraints on the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association less than a year before the elections in 2026. We regret the closure of civic space in Ethiopia, including recent intimidation and suspension of civil society organisations as well as intimidation of independent media and journalists, and call for transparent investigations into these events. In this context, and following the recent amendments to legislation regarding media and against money laundering, we take note of the concerns expressed by civil society on the proposed amendments to the civil society law.

We encourage the Government to constructively cooperate with the UN and other protection actors and respect their independence. We continue to be alarmed by the high number of human rights violations and abuses by both state and non-state actors as recorded by the Office of the High Commissioner in the report published in 2024. We are gravely concerned by the significant increase in grave violations against children, including the killing and maiming of children, sexual violence against children and the abduction of children, as documented in the 2025 report of the Secretary General on Children and armed conflict. We call on the Government of Ethiopia and all other actors to take concrete action to end ongoing human rights violations and abuses in areas of conflict, including in Amhara, Oromia, and Tigray.

Killings and injuries of civilians, torture, ill-treatment, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and detentions, attacks on civic infrastructure as well as extreme levels of sexual and gender-based violence by different actors must stop. We urge the authorities to uphold human rights across the country, ensure justice and accountability for all victims and survivors, and adopt a victim and survivor-centred approach. We further encourage all parties to refrain from further violations and abuses and to engage in peaceful dialogue and negotiations to restore peace. We are concerned by the lack of progress with the Transitional Justice process, and recall that implementing credible transitional justice and accountability processes is not only crucial for the victims and survivors, but also to ensuring lasting peace and reconciliation in the country.

We call on Ethiopia to demonstrate its commitment by ensuring a comprehensive, victimcentred and inclusive approach to transitional justice and to take immediate decisive steps to ensure accountability for all human rights violations and abuses. To achieve these objectives, we stress the importance of ensuring meaningful consultation with victims, women, youth, minorities and civil society. We call on the Government to implement the recommendations of the 2023 joint report of OHCHR and the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC), and to adopt and implement the draft Transitional Justice laws in a manner fully consistent with international human rights standards, the African Union Transitional Justice Policy and relevant UN standards.

We underline the role of the Ethiopian Commission of Human Rights, whose independence is of paramount importance to fully support the implementation of the Transitional Justice process – but also for human rights monitoring and reporting. Furthermore, we emphasize the important roles of the Transitional Justice Prosecutor’s Office, The National Commission for Truth and Social Cohesion and the Vetting Commission set up under the Transitional Justice Code. We encourage the Government of Ethiopia to take advantage to the fullest extent of the technical assistance available in the Office of the High Commissioner in the country, and encourage the Office to continue to monitor the situation and keep this Council informed. Thank you