We must all act to prevent mass killing and civil war in Ethiopia

The Oromia Human Rights Group[1] calls on all Oromo, all the oppressed people and peoples in Ethiopia and their friends across the world to protest about the increasing danger of massive communal violence in Ethiopia.

We ask you to request international help to stop this lethal and destructive unrest and to persuade PM Abiy Ahmed to release political prisoners, negotiate with opposition political parties and take part in a National Dialogue.

An election, with opposition party offices closed and their members imprisoned would be absurd and could legitimise Abiy Ahmed’s rule for another five years.

Please contact local and national media and all of your political representatives. Show them the evidence of abuses, such as OSG Report 55 or other up-to-date reports. Ask politicians for their help to bring abuses to public attention and for your host government to take action.

The letter requests support for the release of political prisoners, a National Dialogue and postponement of the elections scheduled for 5 June. In doing so, the letter describes the current chaos and insecurity in Ethiopia including two most recent reports: Slaughtering of Oromos in Amhara Region and a detailed report by eye witnesses in West Wallega, released on 27 April, describing bodies being left in fields and on streets, prisoners taken for summary execution, during the two and a half years since P.M. Abiy Ahmed came to power. 

Please select and use the appropriate template letter for  [Australia | Canada | UK | USA] to write to your political representatives. For UN Security Council Members and Ambassadors to Ethiopia, use this template letter and see below[2] to find their addresses. These letters are deliberately worded in a moderate way, without using words such as genocide or ethnic cleansing. It is more likely to be effective without these words.

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[1] The Oromia Human Rights Group is a consortium consisting of the Oromia Support Group, Oromo Menschenrechts und Hilfsorganisation, Human Rights League for the Horn of Africa and Advocacy for Oromia

[2] To find current UN Security Council members: https://www.un.org/securitycouncil/content/current-members; | To find ambassadors to Ethiopia: https://www.embassypages.com/ethiopia