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Motion for a resolution - B9-0437/2022Motion for a resolution
B9-0437/2022

MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the recent humanitarian and human rights situation in Tigray, Ethiopia, notably that of children

4.10.2022 - (2022/2858(RSP))

with request for inclusion in the agenda for a debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law
pursuant to Rule 144 of the Rules of Procedure

Pedro Marques, Andrea Cozzolino, Maria Arena
on behalf of the S&D Group

See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B9-0429/2022

Procedure : 2022/2858(RSP)
Document stages in plenary
Document selected :  
B9-0437/2022
Texts tabled :
B9-0437/2022
Debates :
Votes :
Texts adopted :

B9‑0437/2022

European Parliament resolution on the recent humanitarian and human rights situation in Tigray, Ethiopia, notably that of children

(2022/2858(RSP))

The European Parliament,

  having regard to its resolution of 7 October 2021 on the humanitarian situation in Tigray,

  having regard to its resolution of 26 November 2020 on the situation in Ethiopia,

  having regard to the statement of 9 January 2022 by the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security (VP/HR) Josep Borrell on the latest developments in Tigray,

  having regard to the statement of 25 June 2021 by the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security (VP/HR) Josep Borrell and the Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič on the killing of three humanitarian workers in Tigray,

  having regard to the joint statement of 24 June 2021 by the VP/HR and Commissioner Lenarčič on the airstrike in the Tigray region,

  having regard to the declaration of 4 October 2021 by the VP/HR on behalf of the European Union on the decision to expel seven United Nations officials,

  having regard to the joint statement of 10 June 2021 by the EU and the US following the roundtable on the humanitarian emergency in Tigray,

  having regard to the conclusions of the EU Foreign Affairs Council of 12 July 2021 on Ethiopia,

  having regard to Resolution 47/13 of the UN Human Rights Council of 13 July 2021 entitled ‘Situation of human rights in the Tigray region of Ethiopia’,

  having regard to Resolution 2417 of the UN Security Council of 24 May 2018 condemning the starving of civilians as a method of warfare and the unlawful denial of humanitarian access to civilian populations,

  having regard to the remarks of 26 August 2021 by UN Secretary-General António Guterres to the UN Security Council meeting on Ethiopia,

  having regard to the statement of 13 September 2021 by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet,

  having regard to the statement of 17 September 2021 by US President Joe Biden on the Executive Order regarding the crisis in Ethiopia,

  having regard to the statement of 30 September 2021 by the UN Secretary-General António Guterres following the expulsion of seven UN officials from Ethiopia,

  having regard to the report of 19 September 2022 by the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia,

  having regard to the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia adopted on 8 December 1994, and in particular the provisions of Chapter Three on fundamental rights and freedoms, human rights and democratic rights,

  having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

  having regard to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights,

  having regard to the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

  having regard to the Geneva Convention of 1949 relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War and its additional protocols of 1977 and 2005,

  having regard to the UN Refugee Convention of 1951 and to its 1967 Protocol,

  having regard to Resolution 2286 of the UN Security Council of 3 May 2016 on the protection of the wounded and sick, medical personnel and humanitarian personnel in armed conflict,

  having regard to Resolution 47/13 of the UN Human Rights Council of 13 July 2021 on the situation of human rights in the Tigray region of Ethiopia,

  having regard to the resolution of 12 May 2021 of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the fact-finding mission to the Tigray region of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia,

  having regard to the Cotonou Agreement,

  having regard to the resolution of 11 March 2021 of the Joint Parliamentary Assembly of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) and the EU on democracy and the respect for constitutions in EU and ACP countries,

  having regard to the Amnesty International report of 10 August 2021 entitled ‘“I don’t know if they realised I was a person”: Rape and other sexual violence in the conflict in Tigray, Ethiopia’,

  having regard to the Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch report of 6 April 2022 entitled ‘“We will erase you from this land”: Crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing in Ethiopia’s Western Tigray Zone’,

  having regard to the Tigray Emergency Food Security Assessment of the World Food Programme (WFP), of August 2022,

  having regard to Rule 132(2) and (4) of its Rules of Procedure,

 

  1. whereas, on August 24, the conflict in Tigray reignited with fighting between government forces and their allies and Tigrayan rebels led by the Tigray People's Liberation Front in northern Ethiopia breaking a five-month ceasefire;

 

  1. whereas, on September 11, the Tigray People's Liberation Front announced that they were prepared for dialogues led by the African Union to end the conflict; whereas, on September 14, the Ethiopian government had also signalled its commitment to an African Union-led peace process;

 

  1. whereas on September 14, ten people were killed and more than a dozen others were injured when two drone attacks hit a neighbourhood in the capital of Tigray;

 

  1. whereas, on September 20,  Eritrean troops reportedly started an offensive in the northern Ethiopian region, and intense fighting took place in several areas along the border; whereas this marks a conflict escalation and a setback to efforts for peace restoration;

 

  1. whereas the UN International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia published a report, on September 19, concluding that there are reasonable grounds to believe that parties to the conflict have committed war crimes and violations and abuses of human rights;

 

  1. whereas, according to the May 2022 Hunger Hotspots report of the World Food Programme, Ethiopia is one of the six countries reported at risk for starvation and more specifically in the Tigray region where a starvation crisis has prevailed since the beginning of the conflict;

 

  1. whereas, according to an emergency assessment by the World Food Programme published in August 2022, 5.2 million people (90% of the population) are deemed “food insecure”, 2.4 million being considered “severely food insecure”, 29% of children under five are suffering from global acute malnutrition, and more than half of pregnant or breastfeeding woman are also malnourished;

 

  1. whereas hundreds of thousands of Tigrayan civilians have been removed by force from their homes by the government and security forces from the neighbouring Amhara region, using threats, illegal killings, sexual assault, mass arbitrary detention, pillage, forcible transfer, and the denial of humanitarian aid;

 

  1. whereas, according to international human rights organisations, the organized, forcible displacement of the Tigrayan population and the repopulation of Western Tigray by Amhara regional authorities constitute a campaign of ‘ethnic cleansing’;

 

  1. whereas since the start of the conflict in Tigray in November 2020, access to real-time information has been severely hindered by government-imposed restrictions, including cutting of communications and preventing reporting on events in Tigray, as well as in the Afar and Amhara regions where the conflict has expanded;

 

  1. whereas Tigray also continues to face restrictions on basic services such as banking, which has been cut off by the Ethiopian administration, with 6 million people denied access to their own money;

 

  1. whereas, since June 2021, Ethiopian authorities have effectively surrounded Tigray, blocking food, medical supplies and fuel from entering the region, while maintaining a blanket shutdown of basic services;

 

  1. whereas, according to the Tigray Health Bureau, the percentage of children in Tigray receiving routine vaccines has plummeted due to supply shortages caused by the blockade imposed by Ethiopian forces; whereas deadly diseases such as measles, tetanus and whooping cough are on the rise;

 

  1. whereas, in November 2021, the Ethiopian authorities blocked roads into the Tigray region and only allowed limited humanitarian access; whereas, according to international human rights organisations, health facilities were destroyed and sacked, making it impossible for victims of sexual assault to receive medical care;

 

  1. whereas rape and other sexual violence against women and girls continue to be widely used by Ethiopian, Eritrean and Amhara regional armed forces in addition to death threats, the use of ethnic slurs, and capture in conditions of sexual slavery;

 

  1. whereas government forces and officials have harassed and threatened humanitarian organisations and national health providers which support survivors of sexual violence;

 

  1. whereas many women, as well as underage girls, are reportedly being forced to resort to prostitution to overcome the food crisis and the impossibility to access their bank savings;

 

  1. whereas Ethiopia is a signatory to the Cotonou Agreement, Article 96 of which stipulates that respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms is an essential element of ACP-EU cooperation;

 

  1. Strongly condemns the killings of civilians by all the belligerent parties and the continued use of rape and sexual violence;

 

  1. Demands the immediate cessation of hostilities and violations and abuses of international human rights and humanitarian law by all parties to the conflict; calls for an immediate return to a ceasefire;

 

  1. Calls on the warring parties to respect international humanitarian and human rights law and to take all necessary measures to ensure the protection of civilians and civilian objects, particularly from shelling and from aerial bombardments, including by supporting the deployment of an African Union-led international peacekeeping force with a robust mandate;

 

  1. Strongly condemns and calls for an end to the use of starvation by the Ethiopian Federal Government and its allies as a method of warfare; recalls that the widespread denial and obstruction of access to basic services, food, healthcare, and humanitarian assistance amounts to the crimes against humanity of persecution and inhumane acts;

 

  1. Calls on all authorities concerned to allow and facilitate immediate, full, safe and sustained humanitarian access and relief to Tigray, ensuring that humanitarian agencies are able to operate without impediment;

 

  1. Calls on Ethiopian authorities to ensure that internally displaced persons and refugees have the right to safely return to their homes or places of residence, on a voluntary basis, and to set up a fair, accessible and independent mechanism to provide compensation for losses or damage to housing, property and land; urges the EU and its Member States to assist and support the organisation and monitoring of returns;

 

  1. Calls on Ethiopian authorities to promptly release everyone arbitrarily detained in Western Tigray, to provide all detainees food and medical care, and to allow international humanitarian agencies access to detention sites;

 

  1. Calls on the warring parties to ensure free access to the press and to allow journalists to carry out their work safely;

 

  1. Calls on Ethiopian authorities to immediately restore basic services in Tigray, including banking and electricity, to end the blockade on critical supplies, including food, fuel and medicines, and to lift restrictions on telecommunications and internet access;

 

  1. Calls on the warring parties to commit to and engage in an African Union-led peace process, including representatives from all the affected areas, to bring an end to the conflict; calls on all belligerent parties to come to the negotiating table without preconditions; urges the EU and its Member States to fully engage with the peace process in order to ensure its credible progression;

 

  1. Calls on all parties to the conflict to investigate and bring to justice members of its forces who have committed serious violations of international human rights law and humanitarian law during the ongoing conflict, notably those suspected of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity, including rape, sexual slavery, torture and persecution; urges the EU and its Member States to support domestic accountability initiatives in Ethiopia based on clear, transparent, effective and measurable benchmarks that ensure independent and impartial justice for victims;

 

  1. Supports the UN International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia and its mandate, as set out in Human Rights Council Resolution S-33/1; urges the EU and its Member States to support the allocation of adequate funding by the United Nations to the UN International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia;

 

  1. Calls on all concerned authorities to facilitate access for and cooperate with investigations by the UN International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia and the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Commission of Inquiry into abuses carried out by all sides in Tigray and the neighbouring regions;

 

  1. Calls on the United Nations Security Council and the African Union Peace and Security Council to put the human rights situation in Ethiopia on their agenda and take action aimed at restoring peace, stability and security in the region; urges the EU and its Member States to press the United Nations Security Council to this effect;

 

  1. Recalls the necessity for the Ethiopian Government to sign and ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court;

 

  1. Suggests the adoption of sanctions by the EU, under the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Mechanism, should be considered to protect human rights and to ensure that perpetrators of human rights abuses are held accountable;

 

  1. Suggests the use of sanctions by the European Commission against members of the Government of Ethiopia, the Government of Eritrea and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and others responsible for actions prolonging the conflict should be considered if the humanitarian situation does not significantly improve in a short period of time;

 

  1. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the European External Action Service, the Federal Government and House of Federation of Ethiopia, the Tigrayan authorities, the Government of the Republic of the Sudan, the Government of the State of Eritrea, the governments of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the African Union and its member states, the Pan-African Parliament, and the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.
Last updated: 4 October 2022
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