TheInternational Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) was established by theUN Human Rights Council in December 2021.[1] The mandate of the commission is to investigate allegations of violations and abuses ofinternational human rights law,humanitarian law andrefugee law in Ethiopia committed since 3 November 2020 by all parties to the conflict.[2] The Commission comprises three human rights experts and is appointed for a renewable one-year term. In October 2022 at the Human Rights Council's 51st session, the Commission's mandate was extended to December 2023.[1]
On 3 November 2021, the report of thejoint investigation undertaken by theUN High Commissioner for Human Rights and theEthiopian Human Rights Commission indicated that serious human rights violations had continued to be committed by all parties in a number of regions of Ethiopia since the end of the period under investigation, that is after the unilateral ceasefire declared by the Ethiopian government on 28 June 2021; hence the need for further investigations.[3]
On 17 December 2021, theUnited Nations Human Rights Council reacted to that report by adopting resolution S-33/1. The resolution established the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) with the aim of complementing the work of the joint investigative team.[4] ICHREE's mandate includes conducting an impartial investigation into allegations of violations and abuses ofinternational human rights law,humanitarian law andrefugee law in Ethiopia committed since 3 November 2020 by all parties to the conflict, providing guidance ontransitional justice, and making recommendations to the Government of Ethiopia while engaging with all relevant stakeholders.[4]
The Ethiopian federal government twice madeUnited Nations General Assembly proposals to stop funding ICHREE.[5]
In October 2022, the Human Rights Council renewed the mandate of ICHREE to continue to monitor and document crimes under international law and human rights violations.[6][7]
During a session of the Human Rights Council in late 2023, ICHREE members requested the HRC to extend ICHREE's mandate, stating that theEritrean Defence Forces continued to rape and enslave women in Tigray, and that extrajudicial executions and mass detentions were ongoing inAmhara Region. ICHREE memberSteven R. Ratner stated, "There is a very real and imminent risk that the situation will deteriorate further, and it is incumbent upon the international community to ensure that investigations persist so human rights violations can be addressed, and the worst tragedies averted." AnEU diplomat stated that the EU had agreed to led the mandate expire. As of 4 October 2023[update], the mandate was expected to expire, as no proposal to extend the mandate had been made by the required deadline.[8]
ICHREE is composed by three experts. As of December 2022, the members wereMohamed Chande Othman (Chair),Steven R. Ratner andRadhika Coomaraswamy. Former members areKaari Betty Murungi (Chair) andFatou Bensouda.[9]
On 19 September 2022, ICHREE submitted a report with its initial findings to the Human Rights Council.[10] According to the report, there were grounds to believe thatextrajudicial killings,sexual violence andstarvation of the civilian population as a method of warfare had been committed in Ethiopia since 3 November 2020.[11][12]
In attributing likely criminal responsibility to the different parties in the conflict, the September 2022 report "found reasonable grounds to believe that the Federal Government (of Ethiopia) and its allies had committedcrimes against humanity" and that the Ethiopian government and its allies had usedfamine as a weapon of war.[13] The report attributed serious human rights abuses to the Tigrayan forces, some of which were likelywar crimes.[13]
Ethiopia'sUN ambassador,Taye Atske Selassie, said that the report was "incoherent and sketchy" and was intended to increase political pressures against his government.[14]
At the March 2023 52nd Session of theHuman Rights Council, the chair of the ICHREE said that it welcomed theEthiopia–Tigray peace agreement and hoped that a green paper titled "Policy Options for Transitional Justice" would contribute to the processes oftransitional justice. The chair stated that the ICHREE was continuing to investigate war crimes and human rights violations by all parties, including Eritrean forces. The chair stated that the ICHREE had requested access for its investigation team to Ethiopian territory several times and had been refused. The chair stated that the ICHREE was in contact with theEthiopian Human Rights Commission and the East Africa RegionOffice of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights for "cooperation and information sharing".[15]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding missing information.(January 2024) |
ICHREE published a 21-page report in September 2023[16] and an 84-page more detailed report in October 2023.[17]
| Background |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timeline | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Impact | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Peace process | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Groups |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| Human rights |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
