News highlights: Mandate of UN Special Rapporteur on Eritrea extended, Greek abandonment results in homelessness of refugees, LNA invites Egyptian military to intervene in Libya
In this week’s news highlights: Mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on Eritrea extended by one year; Eritrea says peace deal with Ethiopia insufficient; Petition launched to urge UN to prevent starvation in Eritrea; FGM banned in Sudan amidst political reform; Tensions mount as Ethiopia starts to fill up controversial dam reservoir; Measures in Greece threathen to force thousands of refugees into homelessness; German states to take in refugee families; EU’s proposal for externalized asylum centers to feature in migration pact; EU’s far reaching surveillance apparatus for foreigners; EU to cooperate more with Africa to curb human trafficking; Libya’s LNA invites Egyptian military intervention; More displacement and COVID-19 in Libya; and COVID-19 is fuelling global hunger.
Hachalu Hundessa: Ethiopia’s ghost of the past, the present and the future
On June 29th prominent Oromo singer and activist Hachalu Hundessa was murdered by gunmen in the capital of Ethiopia. Hachalu Hundessa’s life, death and the events following his death are deeply tied to the path Ethiopia is taking as a nation. The remnants of the former dictatorial regime, ethnic tensions, in/out group politics, regional versus national power and the power and abuse of state actors delineate the character and struggle of politics in Africa’s second most populous country. When Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali was elected in 2018 he opened up the political system towards more inclusion for ethnic groups and regional authorities. Powerful political opponents counter these new narratives of inclusiveness with their own narratives of ethnic/regional autonomy and self-rule. The response of Abiy Ahmed’s government after Hachalu Hundessa’s death are illustrative of botched responses that undermine Ahmed’s path towards an inclusive government.
In this week’s news highlights: Violence in Ethiopia claims 116 lives, Pope Francis calls migrant detention centers in Libya “concentration camps”, 52 migrants and refugees forced to stay in animal cages on ship
In this week’s news highlights: 116 people killed and opposition arrested in Ethiopia amid protests; 30 Eritrean Christians arrested at a wedding; COVID-19 restrictions fuel radicalization in Kenya; 3000 Congolese refugees entered in Uganda through temporary border opening exception; Eritrean road project only benefits multinational’s interests, states article; Call for eyewitness accounts of Sawa military school in Eritrea; Pope Francis calls Libyan detention centers for migrants “concentration camps”; Foreign involvement in Libya at “unprecedented levels”; Italian Senate renews mission in Libya; Ocean Viking finally allowed to disembark; 52 migrants and refugees not allowed off animal cargo ship; EC announces monitoring system against illegal pushbacks; EU handbook for family reunification announced; Greece advised to roll back criminalization of NGOs; Law expert explains how the EU criminalized humanitarian help of refugees; And Eritrean refugees experience isolation and uncertainty in Europe.