Sexual violence in the Tigray War

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Protestor holding sign in support of women in Tigray

Sexual violence in the Tigray War[1] included, according to the United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, claims of rape in Mekelle, people forced to rape family members, "sex in exchange for basic commodities", and "increases in the demand for emergency contraception and testing for sexually transmitted infections".[2] As of March 2021, the number of rape victims ranged from a minimum estimate of 512–516 rapes registered with hospitals[3][4] to 10,000 rapes according to British parliamentarian Helen Hayes.[5] Several claims were made that the rape was systematic, constituting rape as a weapon of war.[6][7][4]

Background[]

The Tigray War commenced in November 2020 in the context of political conflict between the federal government of Ethiopia and the government of the Tigray Region,[8] with the Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) participating on the side of the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF).[9]

Claims of intent[]

According to nine doctors in Ethiopia and one in a Sudanese refugee camp interviewed by CNN, sexual violence in the Tigray War constituted rape as a weapon of war. The women treated by the doctors stated that the ENDF, EDF and Amhara soldiers who raped them described Tigrayans as having no history and culture, that the intent was to "ethnically cleans[e] Tigray", to "Amharise" them or remove their Tigrayan identity and "blood line". One of the doctors, Tedros Tefera, stated, "Practically this has been a genocide".[7] In March 2021, The Daily Telegraph argued that testimonies supported the rape as a weapon of war interpretation, stating that "Survivors, doctors, aid workers and experts speaking to the Telegraph all pointed to rape being systematically used as a weapon of war by Ethopian and Eritrean forces".[4] Reasons for the rape that were stated to the victims included the aim of "cleansing Tigrayan blood".[10]

In a speech to assembled Ethiopian ambassadors in January 2019, Abiy Ahmed made a prescient remark regarding the sexual violence in the Tigray War. Alluding to the role of soldiers during the battle of Adua in 1896 and later, during the Eritrean war, Abiy said: “This hasn’t been researched, but it’s obvious. From the battle of Adwa during the time of Menelik, to the later wars, many people from central Ethiopia – Oromos, Amharas – have been going to Tigray to fight. They were there for the war with Eritrea, and there’s been a military presence in Tigray for the 30 years since. So, if you’re wondering what the proportion of Oromo in Tigray is, leave it for DNA to find out. [Hilarity in the audience] It’s probably wrong to say this, but: those who went to Adwa, to fight, didn’t just go and come back. Each of them had about 10 kids.” [Loud laughter of the audience and applause].[11] Jan Nyssen and colleagues consider this as “an open acknowledgement, even an endorsement, of military tactics and strategy that holds, as its central pillar, the use of rape in war”.[12]

Weyni Abraha from Yikono, a Tigrayan women's right group, viewed the sexual violence during the Tigray War as a deliberate pattern of rape as a weapon of war, stating, in February 2021, "This is being done purposely to break the morale of the people, threaten them and make them give up the fight."[6] In March 2021, doctors interviewed by CNN stated that the rape victims' testimonies pointed to a deliberate plan of rape to change Tigrayan identity. Tedros Tefera, one of the doctors, stated, "Practically this has been a genocide."[7]

The Daily Telegraph found evidence for the rape as a weapon of war interpretation in late March 2021, stating that "Survivors, doctors, aid workers and experts speaking to the Telegraph all pointed to rape being systematically used as a weapon of war by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces".[4]

In April 2021, Mark Lowcock, the head of OCHA, told the United Nations Security Council that "sexual violence is being used as a weapon of war in Ethiopia's Tigray region, where girls as young as eight are being targeted and some women have reported being gang-raped over several days."[13]

January 2021[]

Europe External Programme with Africa (EEPA) reported on 4 January 2021 that large numbers of women had been sexually abused and raped individually or in acts of gang rape. EEPA stated that many women in Mekelle, the capital of Tigray Region, requested emergency contraceptive pills, and that women had been kidnapped by security forces and their places of detention were unknown.[14]

On 21 January 2021, the United Nations Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, brought attention to sexual violence in the Tigray War. She expressed "great concern" at claims of rape in Mekelle, people forced to rape family members, "sex in exchange for basic commodities", and "increases in the demand for emergency contraception and testing for sexually transmitted infections". Patten expressed appreciation of investigations and reports made by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission and willingness of United Nations agencies to support Ethiopian authorities in "prevent[ing] and respond[ing] to possible violations".[2]

A refugee from the Tigray War, interviewed by Reuters as reported on 23 January 2021, stated that she had been raped at gunpoint. The rapist was dressed in an ENDF uniform and stated that a condom was unnecessary. Aid workers and doctors described multiple reports of rape by Amhara and EDF security forces in towns including , Wukro, Adigrat and Mekelle.[15]

EEPA reported a doctor's statement that EDF and ENDF soldiers shot people who witnessed or tried to help women who were victims of rape in Aksum. Adwa and Aksum residents stopped reacting to women crying for help as a result.[16]

On 25 January, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) reported "an alarming increase in reports of sexual violations and abuses in Tigray Region, including rape cases," mostly by "men in uniform".[17]

On 30 January 2021, in a speech made by Debretsion Gebremichael, the deposed leader of the Tigray Region, elected in September 2020 and deposed in the war, stated that "Mothers and daughters [were] being raped side by side", attributing the rapes to "the enemies".[18]

EEPA stated on 1 February 2021 reported that six young girls raped by the ENDF in Mekelle were threatened not to report the rape or seek medical care. According to EEPA, the ENDF soldiers justified the rape on the grounds that "[the girls]' father is Dr. Debretsion and [the soldiers father]' is Dr. Abiy. We are not all the same." Women in a mill house were raped in kebele 17 of Mekelle after ENDF soldiers scared away the men; and 18 and 20-year-old women were raped in the Ayder area of Mekelle, according to EEPA.[16]

February 2021[]

On 15 February, BBC News reported a doctor and a women's rights activist together having registered 200 girls under the age of 18 testifying as rape victims at Mekelle health centres and hospitals. An 18-year old schoolgirl interviewed by BBC News described how she had survived a rape attempt, but the assaulter shot her hand three times, forcing a doctor to amputate it when she later arrived at a hospital in Mekelle.[6]

On 28 February, 11[19] women studying at the Ayder Referral Hospital in Mekelle were raped by the ENDF while en route from the library to their dormitories. They were treated in the hospital after the event.[20]

March 2021[]

As of early March, Adigrat hospital had registered 170 women treated for sexual violence, with a trend towards a worsening rate of incidents.[19]

Individual incidents reported in early March include a 15-year-old raped by the ENDF in Shire in front of forced witnesses including her brother; a woman in (north of Adigrat) who was gang-raped twice and unable to walk when she arrived at a hospital; women in the outer parts of Mekelle were kidnapped for several weeks by soldiers, serving as forced domestic workers and sex slaves; a woman in outer Mekelle was raped nightly by the ENDF for a week before obtaining medical treatment.[19]

One incident included six women gang-raped by the EDF for 10 days. One of the six women stated to Channel 4 that the Eritrean soldiers joked, took photos, "injected her with a drug, tied her to a rock, stripped, stabbed and [repeatedly raped] her." Another woman's vagina was "stuffed with nails, stones and plastic."[10]

The rapes included men being forced to rape family members.[3]

Numbers[]

In late March 2021, the total number of rapes recorded for the Tigray War at five medical facilities in Mekelle, Adigrat, Wukro, Shire and Aksum was 512–516.[3][4] Wafaa Said, a United Nations aid coordinator, expected the true number of rapes to be much higher because most medical facilities had were not functioning and because of stigma associated with rape.[3] A doctor at a Mekelle hospital said that each rape victim typically reported 20 other women having been raped with her, who would not report the rape to any hospital.[4]

British parliamentarian Helen Hayes stated on 25 March 2021 that 10,000 women had been raped in the Tigray War.[5]

By mid-April 2021, Dr Fasika Amdeselassie, the top public health official in the Transitional Government of Tigray, stated that at least 829 cases of sexual assault had been reported at five active hospitals since the conflict in Tigray began and that the reported cases were likely to be "the tip of the iceberg".[21]

Comments on the legitimacy of sexual violence[]

On 21 March 2021, during the Tigray War, Ethiopian prime minister Abiy Ahmed suggested that sexual violence in the war was less serious than military actions, stating, "The women in Tigray? These women have only been penetrated by men, whereas our soldiers were penetrated by a knife."[22] Physical geographer Jan Nyssen described Abiy's earlier, January 2019 statement on rape during war, as "prescient". In his January 2019 statement as transcribed by Nyssen, Abiy said, "So, if you're wondering what the proportion of Oromo in Tigray is, leave it for DNA to find out. [Hilarity in the audience] It's probably wrong to say this, but: those who went to Adwa, to fight, didn't just go and come back. Each of them had about 10 kids. [Loud laughter of the audience and applause]."[22] An unnamed Ethiopian general was quoted by Nyssen as stating during early 2021 that, in the context of the Tigray War, rape during wartime was "expected", but should not happen in the presence of federal police or administrative officials.[22] Peace researcher Alex de Waal interpreted the comments as Abiy "jok[ing] about" gang rape.[23]

Investigations[]

On 31 January 2021, Filsan Abdullahi, the federal Ethiopian (MoWCY), stated in response to Debretsion Gebremichael's reference to sexual violence during the Tigray War that the federal government "had a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of sexual violence".[24] A task force from MoWCY, together with the Adanech Abiebie and defence personnel, was set up to investigate sexual violence in the Tigray War.[25] The task force arrived in Mekelle on 1 February to interview victims, collect medical evidence and aid the victims.[26] On 11 February, Filsan confirmed that the task force had "established [that] rape [had] taken place conclusively and without a doubt". She stated that police were processing the "data in terms of numbers", making no statement about attribution. Agence France Presse (AFP) stated that many women had attributed the rapes to the EDF.[27]

Sehin Teferra, a feminist who co-founded Setaweet, described the minister's acknowledgement of rape occurring in the Tigray War as "a big thing". She stated that the rape was "happening on a large scale" and that Setaweet was aware of the rapes by the EDF from firsthand reports. She stated that some families in Tigray were shaving their daughters' heads and dressing the daughters in boys' clothes in the hope of protecting them from rape. She called for the authorities to also pay attention to sexual violence in the Metekel conflict.[27]

References[]

  1. ^ "'Disturbing' rape allegations in Ethiopia's Tigray conflict: UN'". Al Jazeera English. 2021-01-22. Archived from the original on 2021-02-13.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Patten, Pramila (2021-01-21). "United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Ms. Pramila Patten, urges all parties to prohibit the use of sexual violence and cease hostilities in the Tigray region of Ethiopia". United Nations. Archived from the original on 2021-01-31. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Men forced to rape family members in Ethiopia's Tigray region, says UN". The Irish Times. 2021-03-28. Archived from the original on 2021-03-28. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Kassa, Lucy; Pujol-Mazzini, Anna (2021-03-27). "'We're here to make you HIV positive': Hundreds of women rush to Tigray hospitals as soldiers use rape as weapon of war". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2021-03-27. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Hayes, Helen; Cleverly, James (2021-03-25). "Conflict in Tigray Region of Ethiopia – Volume 691: debated on Thursday 25 March 2021". Hansard. Archived from the original on 2021-03-28. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Ethiopia's Tigray crisis: 'I lost my hand when a soldier tried to rape me'". BBC News. 2021-02-15. Archived from the original on 2021-02-16. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b c Feleke, Bethlehem; Mackintosh, Eliza; Mezzofiore, Gianluca (2020-03-20). "'Practically this has been a genocide' – Doctors say rape is being used as a weapon of war in Ethiopia's conflict". CNN. Archived from the original on 2021-03-20. Retrieved 2021-03-20.
  8. ^ Endeshaw, Dawit; Parvicini, Giulia (2020-11-04). "Ethiopia sends army into Tigray region, heavy fighting reported". Thomson Reuters. Archived from the original on 2021-02-01. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  9. ^ Lewis, David; Stewart, Phil (2020-12-08). "Exclusive: U.S. thinks Eritrea has joined Ethiopian war, diplomats say". Thomson Reuters. Archived from the original on 2021-02-01. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b Patta, Debora (2021-03-25). "Reports of executions and mass-rape emerge from the obscured war in Ethiopia's Tigray region". CBS News. Archived from the original on 2021-03-28. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  11. ^ Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation, 19 January 2019, starting 35:45 ጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር ዶ/ር አብይ አህመድ ከአምባሳደሮች ጋር ያደረጉት ንግግር የመጨረሻ ክፍል
  12. ^ Jan Nyssen and several colleagues that co-authored but preferred to remain anonymous, 19 June 2021, World Peace Foundation: From Apologies to Atrocities: How to make sense of leadership statements in Ethiopia
  13. ^ Nichols, Michelle. "Sexual violence being used as weapon of war in Ethiopia's Tigray, U.N. says". Reuters. Reuters. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  14. ^ "Situation Report EEPA HORN No. 45 – 4 January 2021" (PDF). Europe External Programme with Africa. 2021-01-04. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-01-12. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  15. ^ Georgy, Michael (2021-01-23). "'Choose – I kill you or rape you': abuse accusations surge in Ethiopia's war". Thomson Reuters. Archived from the original on 2021-02-01. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b "Situation Report EEPA HORN No. 73 – 1 February 2021" (PDF). Europe External Programme with Africa. 2021-01-31. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-01-31. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  17. ^ "Ethiopia – Tigray Region Humanitarian Update – Situation Report Last updated: 25 Jan 2021". United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. 2021-01-25. Archived from the original on 2021-02-03. Retrieved 2021-02-03.
  18. ^ Gebremichael, Debretsion; Plaut, Martin (2021-01-31). "Dr. Debretsion Gebremichael's Statement, 30 January 2021". . Archived from the original on 2021-01-31. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  19. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Situation Report EEPA HORN No. 100 – 10 March 2021" (PDF). Europe External Programme with Africa. 2021-03-10. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-03-10. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  20. ^ "Situation Report EEPA HORN No. 95 – 02 March 2021" (PDF). Europe External Programme with Africa. 2021-03-01. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-03-01. Retrieved 2021-03-02.
  21. ^ Houreld, Katharine. "Health official alleges 'sexual slavery' in Tigray". Reuters. Reuters. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  22. ^ Jump up to: a b c Nyssen, Jan; others (2021-07-19). "From Apologies to Atrocities: How to make sense of leadership statements in Ethiopia". World Peace Foundation. Archived from the original on 2021-06-15. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
  23. ^ de Waal, Alex (2021-07-19). "July 2021 Employee of the Month: Abiy Ahmed". World Peace Foundation. Archived from the original on 2021-07-21. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
  24. ^ "Removed leader of Ethiopia's Tigray promises 'resistance': Audio". Al Jazeera English. 2021-01-31. Archived from the original on 2021-01-31. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  25. ^ "Joint taskforce established to investigate raised concern over violence against women in Tigray". Fana Broadcasting Corporate. 2021-01-31. Archived from the original on 2021-02-04. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  26. ^ "Task force starts investigating alleged sexual violence in Tigray". Fana Broadcasting Corporate. 2021-02-03. Archived from the original on 2021-02-04. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
  27. ^ Jump up to: a b "Ethiopia confirms reports of rape in Tigray war". The Guardian (Nigeria). AFP. 2020-02-12. Archived from the original on 2021-02-13. Retrieved 2021-02-13.
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