Ethiopian Women’s Human Rights Alliance (EWHRA) Submits Human Rights Report on Ethiopia to the United Nation’s

Ethiopian Women’s Human Rights Alliance For Immediate Release September 19, 2013 Contact Information: Email: voiceofethiopianwomen@gmail.com Ethiopian Women’s Human Rights Alliance (EWHRA) Submits Human Rights Report on Ethiopia to the United Nation’s Universal Periodic Review Grassroots organization details human rights violations committed by the Ethiopian government and outlines recommendations to bring Ethiopia into compliance with international law. New York, New York—Ethiopian Women’s Human Rights Alliance (EWHRA) released a report today submitted to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), a United Nations (UN) mechanism aimed at reviewing the human rights record of UN member countries. EWHRA’s report details the egregious violation of human rights committed by the Ethiopian government in contravention of its obligations under numerous international human rights treaties. While the Ethiopian government continues to violate international standards with regard to myriad fundamental human rights, in its report, EWHRA concentrates primarily on the following issues: freedom of expression, freedom of association and political rights, freedom of religion, persecution of ethnic groups and forced displacement of indigenous people from ancestral lands and freedom from arbitrary arrests and detentions. “EWHRA is pleased that we were asked to participate in this extremely important review of the Ethiopian government’s abhorrent record on human rights. EWHRA’s goal is ensuring that the voices of the eighty million women, children and men suffering under the current regime are heard and that those responsible for violating internationally recognized rights are held accountable,” said a representative of the grassroots organization. In addition to outlining the violations of human rights committed by the regime, the report also provides specific recommendations, aimed at ameliorating the current situation in Ethiopia. The recommendations are consistent with Ethiopia’s obligations under various human rights agreements to which the country is a signatory. The Ethiopian government was initially reviewed under the UPR mechanism in 2009, where EWHRA also contributed to that review process by submitting a report of their findings. The United Nations is expected to review the Ethiopian government’s record on human rights in April 2014. For more information regarding the report please contact the Ethiopian Women’s Human Rights Alliance at the following email address: voice of ethiopian women@gmail.com The Ethiopian Women’s Human Rights Alliance (EWHRA) was formed in January 2009 to address the ongoing and egregious human rights violations in Ethiopia. Outraged at the massive rights abuses and concerned by draconian laws passed by the Ethiopian Parliament designed to silence all types of dissent and clampdown on any civil society activity, a multi-generational group of women came together to form a common platform. The goal of the organization is to mobilize against human right abuses in Ethiopia through a range of activities including advocacy, policy change, letter writing campaigns and engaging international organizations. This grassroots movement relies on the effort and commitment of long time Ethiopian activists and community organizers, friends of Ethiopians, and partner organizations concerned about justice.