On Friday, the Ethiopian government announced an amnesty for a group of senior politicians imprisoned in the country, considering it “a prelude to a permanent solution to Ethiopia’s problems in a peaceful and national way,” which was welcomed by the United Nations.
Among the most prominent among those included in the pardon decision is Jawhar Muhammad, whom his supporters describe as an “icon of the Oromo youth revolution”, who was arrested in July 2020. The decision to pardon also included Sabbah Nga, founder of the Tigray Liberation Front, who was arrested in January 2021 after a search operation he conducted The army after taking control of the city of Mekele, the capital of Tigray province.
The list of those covered by the amnesty decision announced by the state-run Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation includes Bekele Gerba, a senior leader of the Oromo Federal Congress, who was accused with him and Jawhar Muhammad in September 2020 of “terrorist crimes” that the authorities said were linked to the bloody protests that took place in June of the same year. After the assassination of a famous Oromo folk singer.
Other names include figures from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, such as Kidosan Nega, Abi Weldu, former Ethiopian ambassador to Sudan Abady Zemo, and Molo Gebrezhabber.
The Government Communications Office said – in a statement on Friday – that this step “aims at achieving a better political environment,” considering the amnesty “one of the moral obligations required to achieve successful national reconciliation.”
The statement indicated that the decision “aims to pave the way for a lasting solution to Ethiopia’s problems in a peaceful and national manner,” adding that it “expects those affected by the amnesty decision to make better political and social contributions to their country and people.”
For his part, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was quick to welcome the release of many detainees, calling on the Ethiopian parties “to build on this step by agreeing to a permanent ceasefire, concluding a truce and initiating a national dialogue and reconciliation.”
Guterres stressed – in a press statement – the need to embark on a “track of national dialogue and comprehensive and credible reconciliation.”
“Any solution that disrupts the country’s unity, violates its sovereignty and endangers its territorial integrity will be unacceptable,” he said, stressing that he expects “a significant improvement in humanitarian aid access to all affected areas as a result of the year-long conflict,” referring to a recent conversation he had with the Ethiopian Prime Minister. Abi Ahmed in this regard.
The pardon decision comes after Abiy Ahmed issued a statement calling for “national reconciliation” to coincide with Ethiopia’s celebration of Orthodox Christmas.
Ahmed said that his government “will follow four principles in dealing with crises and conflicts.”
He explained that these principles are “achieving and consolidating political and peaceful victory, easing tensions, achieving comprehensive justice, and the rule of law,” stressing that “the government’s first option is to solve problems in a civilized and peaceful manner, because it reduces human and material damage.”
The United Nations has repeatedly complained in recent months about the blockade imposed on the Tigray region, which has prevented humanitarian aid from reaching its 6 million people.
For its part, the Tigray Liberation Front, which has ruled Ethiopia for nearly three decades, has taken up arms since the prime minister sent the federal army to Tigray in November 2020 after accusing it of attacking army bases.
Oromia is home to Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group and the political stronghold of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, and has a long history of rebellion born out of grievances of political marginalization and rights abuses by the security services.
Last August, the Oromo Liberation Army – the main rebel group in the Oromo ethnic group – announced an alliance with the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, the party that dominated the Ethiopian political scene for nearly three decades, before Abi Ahmed took power in 2018.