Crimes against humanity committed in violence occurred following death of artist Hachalu: EHRC

Addis Ababa, January 1, 2020 (FBC) -The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has released report of its investigation into human rights abuses committed following the death of artist Hachalu Hundessa on June 29th, 2020.

According to the report, crimes against humanity were committed by individuals and groups in the violence that occurred in Oromia regional state following the death of the artist.

The Commission visited over 40 different localities in the regional state as part of its investigation into human rights abuses committed there between June 29 -July 2,2020.

In its 59 page report released today, the EHRC stated that 123 people died and more than 500 were injured in the attacks that also displaced thousands from their homes.

The Commission said “the findings show that the attacks meet the elements of a crime against humanity with large numbers of people, organized in groups, having selected their victims on the basis of their ethnicity or religion when conducting a widespread and systematic attack in several different areas over the three days.”

In the report, the Commission also questioned the proportionality of force employed by security forces during the violence.

“While it is understandable that security forces had the challenging task of restoring order in the face of such widespread violence, the proportionality of the force employed in some contexts is highly questionable,” it said.

In some instances, security forces employed disproportionate force in their attempt to restore order amidst widespread violence, the Commission said.

And as a result, passersby, bystanders, young people, elderly people stepping in to mediate, and even police officers lost their lives from gunshot wounds despite having no participation in the unrest, it noted.