Calling For Determination of Genocide or Crimes Against Humanity in Ethiopia

As your constituent, I would first of all like to thank you for your continued engagement to promote peace & human rights across the world, including in Ethiopia. In this regard, I am writing to you today to express my disappointment at the removal of the amendment “Determination of Potential Genocide or Crimes Against Humanity in Ethiopia” introduced by HE Congressman Tom Malinowski from H.R. 4350 NDAA for FY 2022 & call on you to lead a bill that calls on the State Department to make the determination of genocide in Tigray &take actions that will prevent further mass atrocities on the Tigrayan ethnic minoirity in Ethiopia. As I have indicated in my previous letters to you, the war on Tigray, which started on the 4th of November 2020, has been characterized by acts that bear all the hallmarks of genocide. These acts, seen individually & collectively, reveal a systematic effort to annhilate the Tigrayan people that has been preceded & is accompanied by discrimination, hate speech, othering, & criminalization of ethnic identity. Recognizing the ongoing violations as genocide would be essential in addressing ongoing violations of international humanitarian & human rights laws. Tigray is currently undergoing a catastrophic humanitarian crisis which was deliberately orchestrated by the systematic destruction of Tigray’s economy, infrastructures & livelihood, with a specific focus on destruction of the agricultural system & also healthcare sector. The genocidal intent of this is further evidenced by the ongoing siege & blockade of essential services & medications by the Ethiopian government. This is causing immense suffering & death. As noted by Secretary Blinken as early as March 2021, there has been a large-scale ethnic cleansing in Western Tigray. This designation has been confirmed by satellite images, bodies at the end of Tekeze river, mass graves & smuggled out videos. In addition denial of medical care to those in need, especially in the aftermath of the bombing of a market in Togoga, Central Tigray, in June, fit the definition of genocide. Experts in conflict-related war, gender, women & reproductive health have also noted that specific acts of the sexual violence against Tigrayan women, including those intended to render women infertile reveal that the sexual violence perpetrated on Tigrayan girls & women qualifies as “genocidal rape”. The escalation of genocidal rhetoric coupled with the intensification of mass arrests & violations against Tigrayans has also prompted warnings of genocide by the Adviser of SG on Prevention of Genocide & other academics. The world has, simply, failed to prevent another genocide despite all the commitments to never fail again. However, it is not too late to stop the ongoing atrocities. It is for these reasons that a determination of genocide by the US government will have immediate real-world impact in terms of saving countless lives & is a matter of great urgency.