Ethiopia: Education under attack- kidnapped Amhara students by Oromo Militias
Posted: 29 Mar 2020, 08:18
4 months elapsed since Oromo militias; OPDO and QEERROO (OLF) kidnapped 17 Ahmara students (including 13 girls) from Dembi Dolo University in Western Oromiya region, but the Oromo Federal Government says nothing.
Many civilians and innocent citizens from Ahmara and other ethnic groups are reported to be missing or killed in Oromiya region, yet another case of ethnic based abduction on top of the yet not found Amhara students of Dembi Dolo University. Information and reports from Oromo community shows that they are held hostages by the Oromo militias. The kidnapped girls and boys are victims not just of an act of violence but of a way of thinking. Calls for search for the kidnapped students have so far been without result.
Amnesty International has spoken to several families of the missing students who expressed mounting desperation and helplessness as their children remain unaccounted for. We haven’t heard Abiy and Jawar didn’t say a word about the kidnaped Amhara students. Systematic disappearances are continuously increasing in Oromistan where students and innocent citizens being kidnapped and killed by Oromo terrorists from OPDO and QEERROO (OLF)
An attack on education can take many forms. Students have been blocked from accessing their schools. Students and teachers at all levels of education have been deliberately or indiscriminately killed, maimed, or traumatized. Schools and universities have been destroyed or damaged. Students and their families have been targeted, attacked, killed and displaced because of their ethnicity and religion.
Between 2015 and 2018, there were reported cases of attacks on students from particular ethnic groups or from Somali (Ogaden), Tigray, Wolayta and other communities in government universities in Oromiya and Amhara regions. The Oromiya and Amhara security forces and militias were behind these attacks against students from other communities. Attacks on schools, universities, their students and Staff are attacks on children’s right to an education – and on their futures.
A child’s right to education cannot be safeguarded in conflict zones without education itself being protected. Education can be a life-saver. Schools and Universities should provide a safe space where children can be protected from threats and crises. It is also a critical step to breaking the cycle of crisis and reduces the likelihood of future conflicts.
Many civilians and innocent citizens from Ahmara and other ethnic groups are reported to be missing or killed in Oromiya region, yet another case of ethnic based abduction on top of the yet not found Amhara students of Dembi Dolo University. Information and reports from Oromo community shows that they are held hostages by the Oromo militias. The kidnapped girls and boys are victims not just of an act of violence but of a way of thinking. Calls for search for the kidnapped students have so far been without result.
Amnesty International has spoken to several families of the missing students who expressed mounting desperation and helplessness as their children remain unaccounted for. We haven’t heard Abiy and Jawar didn’t say a word about the kidnaped Amhara students. Systematic disappearances are continuously increasing in Oromistan where students and innocent citizens being kidnapped and killed by Oromo terrorists from OPDO and QEERROO (OLF)
An attack on education can take many forms. Students have been blocked from accessing their schools. Students and teachers at all levels of education have been deliberately or indiscriminately killed, maimed, or traumatized. Schools and universities have been destroyed or damaged. Students and their families have been targeted, attacked, killed and displaced because of their ethnicity and religion.
Between 2015 and 2018, there were reported cases of attacks on students from particular ethnic groups or from Somali (Ogaden), Tigray, Wolayta and other communities in government universities in Oromiya and Amhara regions. The Oromiya and Amhara security forces and militias were behind these attacks against students from other communities. Attacks on schools, universities, their students and Staff are attacks on children’s right to an education – and on their futures.
A child’s right to education cannot be safeguarded in conflict zones without education itself being protected. Education can be a life-saver. Schools and Universities should provide a safe space where children can be protected from threats and crises. It is also a critical step to breaking the cycle of crisis and reduces the likelihood of future conflicts.