Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Ethiopia has been a priority country for Ireland’s aid programme since 1994. Through the programme, we have made a significant contribution to development and the fight against poverty and hunger in Ethiopia. In the past decade, the country has recorded remarkable improvements in human development as measured by the UN Human Development Index. This progress is an example of the success of international development assistance when delivered in partnership with a developing country Government. It is our strong position that positive development results and respect for human rights must go hand in hand, and we are working with the Government to build good governance, and the institutions which can protect the rights of all citizens, including the most vulnerable.

The Government monitors the human rights situation in Ethiopia through our Embassy in Addis Ababa and in cooperation with our EU partners. Through the Embassy, I am aware of the situation of the individuals referred to by the Deputy, which has also be the subject of a recent report from Amnesty International. The people involved were arrested in 2011 and, following a trial, imprisoned in late 2012. I understand that several months ago they were moved from Ziway prison south of Addis Ababa, to Kaliti prison on the outskirts of the capital city, reportedly after a doctor in Ziway referred the two men for hospital treatment. However, since the transfer, the men have apparently been denied access to a hospital.

Oromia is one of the nine regions in Ethiopia, accounting for approximately 35% of the total population of the country. Officials from my Department have on previous occasions met with representatives from the Oromo people in Ireland to discuss the concerns of the Oromo people which centre on boundary disputes with the central Government and the displacement of Oromo communities.

Our Ambassador in Addis Ababa has raised the situation of the two political opposition leaders with the International Committee of the Red Cross, which investigates such cases on a confidential basis. He and other European Union Ambassadors met recently with the Prime Minister of Ethiopia and urged him to invite the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and other Cruel, Inhumane or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, to Ethiopia to examine these and other cases. At the same meeting, the Irish Ambassador encouraged the Prime Minister to sign and ratify the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. The Convention grants diplomats rights of access, subject to terms, to their citizens in detention.

We will continue to work in cooperation with our EU partners to raise human rights issues with the Ethiopian Government and to improve the situation on the ground through our engagement with Government, NGOs and local communities and through our development assistance programme.