Viewpoint: How Ethiopia is undermining the African Union
Ethiopia took the lead in creating Africa's continental organisation, the African Union (AU), but Ethiopia analyst Alex de Waal argues that its actions are now jeopardising the body's founding principles.
Shortly before three former African heads of state arrived in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, to seek a peaceful resolution to the conflict in the northern Tigray region, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered what he called the “final phase of our rule of law operations”.
This was a remarkable rebuff.
Former Presidents Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, Joachim Chissano of Mozambique and Kgalema Motlanthe of South Africa met Mr Abiy on Friday, but were told that the Ethiopian government would continue its military operations.
Mr Abiy also said that they could not meet any representatives of the group Ethiopia is fighting in Tigray, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which the prime minister has dismissed as a “criminal clique”.
Citing the Charter of the United Nations in a statement earlier in the week, the prime minister insisted that the federal government was engaged in a domestic law-enforcement operation and the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign nation applied.
But Nigerian legal expert Chidi Odinkalu argues that Ethiopia is using the charter to escalate a war, the opposite of its pacific intent, saying that the “audacity of this position is disconcerting”.
He points out that the conflict is already internationalised, because Eritrea is entangled and refugees are crossing into Sudan.
Also, the United Nations has adopted principles to prevent states abusing the doctrine of non-interference to give themselves impunity to commit atrocities.
Since 1981, conflict resolution has been a duty and a right. Since 2005, states have had the responsibility to protect civilians in conflict.
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