ADDIS ABABA- A high level delegation led by Deputy Attorney General Dr. Gedion Timotheos accompanied by Ambassador Zenebe Kebede, Ethiopia’s Permanent Representative to the UN Office at Geneva and other International Organizations in Switzerland conferred with Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The delegation briefed the High Commissioner on the various reforms that have been undertaken in the last one year in Ethiopia. The delegation emphasized that improving the human rights situation in the country is a priority for the government and these comprehensive reforms aim not only at addressing the challenges surrounding the promotion and protection of human rights but also ensure their compatibility with international human rights instruments, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed.
The delegation also briefed the High Commissioner on the ongoing reforms in Ethiopia and recounted measures taken by the Government since Dr. Abiy Ahmed has assumed power emphasizing those critical measures including the widening of political and democratic space, the release of political prisoners, journalists and bloggers, the return of all oppositions who were in exile, the revision of civil society and other laws and the normalization of relations with Eritrea.
Bachelet, on her part, thanked the delegation for the briefing and said she is encouraged by these reforms. She also thanked the Government for allowing access to special procedures who requested to visit Ethiopia and expressed the readiness of her Office to continue to support the efforts of the Government in the promotion and protection of human rights in Ethiopia.
At the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review held for the third time, governments praised Ethiopia for the promotion and protection of human rights. It is to be noted that the country did not live up to the recommendations given at the first round in 2009, reviewed in 2014.
The Ethiopian Herald, May 17/2019
BY STAFF REPORTER
