unitex@rubbs.fidonet.org (unitex) (08/12/89)
AMNESTY CONDEMNS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN ETHIOPIA (Reuter Library Report, August 2, 324 words, DATELINE: LONDON) "Methods of torture include beating on the soles of the feet, electric shocks and submersion in water," the London-based organisation said in a report on Ethiopia. It said several thousand suspected opponents of President Mengistu Haile Mariam were in prison, including about 180 detained after an abortive coup in May. "Amnesty International is calling on the Ethiopian authorities to either release the detainees or formally charge and try them," it said. It also said many "prisoners of conscience" had been held for years without charge or trial, including three grandsons of former Emperor Haile Selassie, detained for 15 years. The organisation defines prisoners of conscience as those jailed for their political opinions, religious beliefs or ethnic origin. "The hopes for steady progress through the 1980s in the protection of human rights in Ethiopia on the basis of the efforts of the U.N. and others, and through legal and constitutional developments, have not been fulfilled," it said. "There have been few indications that the government is willing to discuss human rights issues or commit itself to remedying abuses." Amnesty said it had reports of torture, extra-judicial execution of civilians in areas of armed conflict and "disappearances" of political prisoners. Rebels in the northern Ethiopian province of Eritrea have been fighting for independence for 28 years and Amnesty said a state of emergency declared in the area last year empowered military courts to try civilians accused of political offences. "The Ethiopian government had not made any attempt to reply to criticisms of its human rights record except to adopt the tactics of either "silence or evasion'," it said. "Amnesty International is appealing for the release of prisoners of conscience, for a full and impartial review of the cases of other political prisoners and for the ratification of international and regional human rights treaties." * Origin: UNITEX --> Toward a United Species (1:107/501) --- Patt Haring | UNITEX : United Nations patth@sci.ccny.cuny.edu | Information patth@ccnysci.BITNET | Transfer Exchange