Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 610: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he has received a report on the May 2005 general election in Ethiopia; and if he will report on same. [25598/05]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Ethiopia's third general election was held on 15 May 2005. International observers were present, including an EU Election Observation Mission, EOM, with Irish participation, including of course the Deputy himself. Polling day itself passed off peacefully. The turnout of Ethiopia's 26 million registered voters was estimated at approximately 90%. The organisation and execution of the ballot exceeded the expectations of most election observers, although some shortcomings were identified. The Deputy will recall that he, together with Senator Fergal Browne, reported positively on both its transparency and completeness.

However, the post-election period was marred by the slowness of the counting process, a ban on public demonstrations in Addis Ababa and complaints of irregularities by both the opposition and the governing Ethiopian People's Democratic Front, EPRDF, party. This led to increased tensions in Addis Ababa and serious violence on 8 June 2005, in which up to 40 people were killed. Over 4,000 people were detained, all but 58 of whom have now been released. The Embassy of Ireland in Addis Ababa, in collaboration with other EU partners, played an active role in securing the release of detainees. In response to international pressure, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has agreed to hold an independent inquiry into the killings.

In response to some 380 complaints of irregularities, the National Election Board of Ethiopia, NEBE, and the main political parties also agreed a complaints investigations process. This review took over two months and led to election re-runs in 31 constituencies, all of which were won by the governing EPRDF. Both the EOM and the Carter centre have said that the complaints investigation process did not provide an effective remedy.

The official results announced by the NEBE on 5 September 2005 declared the governing EPRDF the winner, with 327 out of 545 seats filled. Parties affiliated to the EPRDF won a further 44 seats. The main opposition parties, the Coalition for Unity and Democracy, CUD, and the United Ethiopian Democratic Front, UEDF, gained 109 and 52 seats respectively, while other small opposition parties and independent candidates won a further 13 seats. The 174 seats won by the opposition and an independent are a major increase on the 19 seats which they held in the last parliament.

The main opposition parties have rejected the results of the election as flawed and have threatened to boycott the new parliament, which is due to convene on 10 October 2005. They have also alleged that intimidation and human rights abuses of their leaders and supporters are continuing. The Ethiopian government has indicated that it will not hold any dialogue with opposition parties unless they accept the official election results and pursue disputes through the courts.

The final report and recommendations of the EOM are due to be issued in the coming days. In its interim statements, the mission has commended the open and competitive nature of pre-election campaigning, but drew attention to deficiencies and irregularities in vote tabulation, aspects of the complaints process, some re-runs, and in the August 2005 elections in Somali region.

The EU and the international community have been actively involved in trying to help Ethiopia resolve the current political crisis. The EU condemned the violence, called for an independent investigation into the deaths on 8 June, and urged the Ethiopian Government to exercise the utmost restraint and to act in accordance with the principles of international law and respect for human rights. It has also urged the Government and opposition parties to faithfully implement their joint agreement on the elections complaints procedure and their common commitment to non-violence. The Minister of State, Deputy Conor Lenihan, made these points to the Ethiopian chargé d'affaires in a meeting on 10 June 2005. I expect that the Union will comment further in response to the EOM's final report.