The European Parliament,

–  having regard to its previous resolutions on the serious human rights violations and to its previous resolutions on the situation in Ethiopia, in particular that of 15 November 2006 on Ethiopia, that of 7 July 2005 on human rights in Ethiopia, that of 13 October 2005 on the situation in Ethiopia and that of 15 December 2005 on the situation in Ethiopia and the new border conflict,

–  having regard to the General Assembly’s of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 10 December 1948,

–  having regard to having regard to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which is binding and applied without exception,

–  having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas thirty-eight opposition activists were convicted by an Ethiopian court in a trial stemming from violent unrest that followed disputed elections in 2005,

B.  whereas after the May 2005 parliamentary and regional elections Ethiopia faced the political crises marred by violence and hundreds of thousands citizens took part in demonstrations complaining of fraud and vote-rigging by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's government in the 2005 polls,

C.  whereas the Ethiopian government has regularly accused the CUD of fomenting violence and plotting its overthrow since elections in May 2005, which the opposition alleges were riddled with fraud,

D.  whereas the Inquiry Commission was set up to investigate into the incidents occurred aftermath of may 15th, 2005 Ethiopian general election, and whereas the members of the Commission of Inquiry have been pressured by the Ethiopian Government to alter the findings and three of them, including the chairman and vice-chairman, have left the country after refusing government orders to alter the final report findings,

E.  whereas following the demonstrations in June and November 2005 the Inquiry Commission listed out the names of 193 people who are killed and 760 civilians injured with a confirmation of over 20,000 arrest in various prisons through out the country,

F.  whereas after an international outcry, most of the 30,000 prisoners were released, but others, including the 38 found guilty, remained in jail on charges that included also genocide,

G.  whereas persons remain regularly in detention without charge and warrant, and lengthy pretrial detention continues; whereas the citizens' privacy rights and laws regarding search warrants are often ignored by police,

H.  whereas Ethiopia is a country that depending on international aid, mainly because of lack of political stability and good governance,

1.  Remains concerned and deplores the guilty verdict and conviction for the breaching Ethiopia's constitution of the 38 senior opposition figures of the Coalition for Union and Democracy (CUD), human rights defenders, development activists, journalist and elected parliamentarians, who have been imprisoned since November 2005;

2.  Condemns this politically driven and unjust guilty verdict that clearly demonstrates that the judicial process has been controlled and managed by the ruling party in Ethiopia;

3.  Calls the Ethiopian government to release all political prisoners without delay and unconditionally, what will prevent further deterioration of the situation in Ethiopia and so the genuine political negotiations could pave the way for a democratic and peaceful transition;

4.  Deplores any unlawful acts of the police and security forces who have harassed, arbitrarily and illegally detained, tortured, and in some cases, killed members of the political opposition, demonstrators, and suspected insurgents;

5.  Deplores all restrictions of freedom of the press and any arrest, detention and harassment of journalists for publishing articles critical of the government; calls the Ethiopian government to respect the freedom of the press and the freedom of assembly, particularly for members of opposition groups;

6.  Calls on the Ethiopian authorities to refrain from acts of intimidation and harassment against members of the independent Ethiopian Teachers Association in pursuit of their professional obligations;

7.  Strongly condemns the widespread http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Female_genital_cutting, economic and sexual exploitation of children, persisting forced labor, particularly among children and human trafficking;

8.  Calls on the Government of Ethiopia to respect the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the African Union Charter of Human and Peoples' Rights, including the right to peaceful assembly, freedom of opinion and to guarantee the independence of the judiciary system;

9.  Calls on international community, representatives of governments and international organizations that stand for the respect of human rights and the rule of law to put pressure on the Ethiopian government to ensure the establishment of the legal and institutional basis for the respect of human rights and prevalence of the rule of law;

10.  Asks the Commission and the Council to closely monitor the human rights situation in Ethiopia;

11.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Heads of State and Government of the Member States, the Ethiopian Government, the Secretary General of the United Nations and the African Union Executive Council, Commission and Pan-African Parliament.