Donors demand full probe into post-election deaths

Western donors have pressured the Ethiopian government to fully investigate the deaths of at least 36 people reportedly shot dead by police during post-election violence in mid-June. In a statement on Wednesday, they also called for the release of prisoners who were rounded up during and after the protests over the 15 May polls, 3,000 of whom have been released so far. The donors urged rival political parties to abide by a truce they signed after the violence flared up: "For these agreements to succeed, all sides must maintain a commitment to non-violence and full participation in the investigation process." They also expressed their interest in the results of the government’s investigation into the clashes on 8 June and said it must bear the major burden of maintaining order. "The government has the primary responsibility for ensuring that the rule of law is upheld in Ethiopia and that such a tragic loss of life is not repeated," the donors said. Police announced last week that they had released 2,665 detainees from the Ziway detention camp and on Wednesday said they had freed an additional 400 people. The National Election Board (NEB) has suggested that the delayed election results, now scheduled to be confirmed on 8 July, could be further postponed, depending on investigations into allegations of fraud and vote-rigging lodged by political parties. "Up to now the board hasn’t decided to change the date, but after the assessment it might," Mekonnen Wondiu, acting registrar at the NEB, said. "The board has said that it will announce the results on that day – whether it is 100 constituencies or 300 constituencies." The donors asked political parties to be patient and wait for the results of the investigations. "All sides need to put the interests of Ethiopia first or the democratic progress this country has made in recent years could be lost," they cautioned. "Whatever the outcome of the current electoral process, we trust Ethiopians will adapt to the reality of a multi-party state and embrace new habits for overcoming political differences." US Ambassador Aurelia Brazeal and French Ambassador Stéphane Gompertz, the chair and deputy chair of the 21-nation Ambassadors Donors Group, signed the statement.