Statement by 15 Civil Society Organizations on the Murder of the Iconic Artist Hachalu Hundessa

Statement by 15 Civil Society Organizations on the Murder of the Iconic Artist Hachalu Hundessa

We, the undersigned civil society organizations, are deeply saddened by the barbarous murder of Hachalu Hundessa — the young, energetic, and creative artist loved and respected by Ethiopia’s young generation. He was a voice of his generation that protested decades of brutality and repression under the TPLF-led government.

Hachalu’s murder yesterday, June 29, 2020, is a barbarous act. It defies human conscience, degrades and saddens each and every Ethiopian at home and abroad. We unequivocally condemn this barbarous and treacherous act. It is, therefore, with extreme sadness that we express our condolences to his family, his friends and to the Ethiopian people. We stand in solidarity with grieving Ethiopians, especially the Oromo people.

We don’t know the real motive of this atrocious act but it is certainly suspect because of its timing; it took place in the middle of multi-faceted crises that the country is engulfed with — dealing with a global pandemic and engaged in tough negotiations with Egypt and the Sudan on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). It certainly is not out of the realm possibilities that it might have been timed to aggravate ethnic and religious polarization and weaken the government. (It was just one day after 217 of our members held a virtual meeting and signed a communique` unequivocally supporting the positions of the Ethiopian government on the GERD, exposing and condemning Egypt’s long-standing intransigence, and urging the United Nations Security Council “to refer any question related to the GERD back to the African Union, which has the legitimate remit and mandate to resolve such disputes.” We mention this because of our concern that this murder may be directly or indirectly linked to Egypt’s long-standing efforts to weaken our government, destabilize the country, and disrupt the filling of the GERD as scheduled.)

Two of the most important responsibilities of any government are to protect and ensure the safety and security of its citizens and to defend the country from external enemies. We therefore urge the Ethiopian government to pay particular attention to these responsibilities and to take action to immediately investigate and bring the perpetrators of this heinous murder.

We also urge the Ethiopian people stand firm together, stand with the Ethiopian government in fighting lawlessness, and demand accountability for Hachalu’s murder.

Long live Ethiopia!