Ethiopia lessons in repression: violations of academic problems, HRW

social, economic, cultural and political trends, acting as a watchtower, able to foresee, anticipate and provide early
warning, thereby playing a preventative role.” 260
Institutional autonomy encompasses many different elements. One important protector of institutional
autonomy is a system, such as tenure, whereby educators are protected from politically motivated administrative
meddling. The example of Ethiopian academics is instructive here. Lacking the protections of tenure, several
were summarily dismissed from their positions due to their political and union activities, and the threat continues
to this day to chill the activity of other academics. The Ethiopian government’s use of administrative appraisals
and two-year contracts for university faculty perpetuates uncertainty and decreases institutional autonomy, to the
detriment of academic freedom. Another, more obvious attack on institutional autonomy is the presence of
security personnel, especially when armed, in educational institutions. Particularly in the case of university
campuses that are self-enclosed or physically separated from their surroundings, the intrusion of armed troops
intimidates both teachers and students and is a serious breach of institutional autonomy. It was precisely this sort
of aggressive violation of academic freedom and institutional autonomy on the campus of Addis Ababa
University that set off student protests and led to the government’s lethal reaction. In Ethiopia, as in too many
other countries, academic freedom is often one of the first casualties of government repression.
Excessive Use of Force and Arbitrary Arrests in Repressing Demonstrations
All governments have a universally recognized obligation to ensure that their citizens are free from extralegal
or arbitrary killings. Article 6 of the ICCPR guarantees every human being the inherent right to life and
states that “[t]his right shall be protected by law. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life.” The Human
Rights Committee, which monitors the compliance of all state parties with the ICCPR, has held that the state not
only has a duty to protect its citizens from such violations, but also to investigate violations when they occur and
to bring the perpetrators to justice. 261 The U.N. Economic and Social Council in 1989 adopted the Principles on
the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-Legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions. Principle 9 states:
[There] shall be a thorough, prompt and impartial investigation of all suspected cases of extralegal,
arbitrary and summary executions, including cases where complaints by relatives and other
reliable reports suggest unnatural deaths. Governments shall maintain investigative offices and
procedures to undertake such inquiries. The purpose of the investigation shall be to determine the
cause, manner and time of death, the person responsible, and any pattern or practice which may
have brought about that death. 262
The use of force by law enforcement officers is strictly governed. Article 3 of the U.N. Code of Conduct
for Law Enforcement Officials, states that force may only be used “when strictly necessary to the extent required
for the performance of their duty.” 263 Furthermore, the U.N. Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by
Law Enforcement Officials requires that law enforcement officials shall not use firearms:
Except in self-defense or defense of others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury,
to prevent the perpetration of a particularly serious crime involving grave threat to life, to arrest a
person presenting such a danger and resisting their authority, or to prevent his or her escape and
only when less extreme means are insufficient to achieve these objectives. In any event,
260 The UNESCO World Conference on Higher Education adopted the World Declaration on Higher Education in the 21 st
Century: Vision and Action, in Paris on October 9, 1998. Representatives of over 180 countries were present, as well as
representatives of the academic community, including teachers, students, and other stakeholders in higher education.
261 See Report of the Human Rights Committee, 37 U.N. GAOR Supp. (no.40), annex V, general comment 7(16), para.1
(1982), U.N. Doc. A/37/40 (1982).
262 Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-Legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions, adopted by
the Economic and Social Council, May 24, 1989, reprinted in Commission on Human Rights, Economic and Social Council,
“Report by the special rapporteur S. Amos Wako, pursuant to the Economic and Social Council resolution 1988/38,”
E/CN.4/1990/22, January 23, 1990.
263 UN General Assembly Resolution 34/169, December 17, 1979.
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January 2003, Vol. 15,No. 2 (A)