State of emergency has led to the arrest of at least 774 people in Addis Ababa and around 300 in Dire Dawa, as disclosed by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC). The EHRC report indicates that a majority of the detainees are ethnic Tigrayans. However, the number of detainees in Addis Ababa could exceed 1000 as some sub-cities did not provide information at the time of reporting.
On November 2, 2022, the Ethiopian House of People’s Representatives declared a state of emergency, granting authorities the power to arrest individuals suspected of colluding with designated terrorist groups, namely the TPLF and OLA.
According to the EHRC, some individuals were detained based on intelligence, while the majority were arrested based on tips from informants. Detainees have claimed that they were arrested solely because of their Tigrayan ethnicity. However, authorities refute these allegations, stating that the ethnic composition of the two organizations gives the appearance of ethnically based arrests.
The EHRC has expressed concern about the conditions of the detainees, stating that the implementation of the state of emergency has not adhered to human rights principles of necessity, proportionality, and freedom from discrimination.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) and Amnesty International have also raised concerns. As reported by Addis Standard, the UNHCR has stated that many of those detained have not been informed of the reasons for their detention, have not been brought before a court or tribunal to review the reasons for their detention, and have not been formally charged.
Amnesty International has echoed these concerns, stating that Tigrayans are subjected to arbitrary mass detentions, with many being held without charges and without access to legal representation, as reported by Addis Standard.
