Report reveals Ethiopian government is stripping Tigrayans’ ethnic identity

On November 4, 2020, fighting in Ethiopia’s northern region of Tigray broke out between the federal and regional governments. As this armed conflict continues to plague the region, a staggering one million people have become displaced (CAFOD, 2021).

In an even more worrying development in this crisis, Tigrayans are now reportedly being forcibly stripped of their ethnic identities (Anna, 2021).

Why did the conflict start?

In 2018, Ethiopia’s current Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, came into power after almost 30 years of rule by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (T.P.L.F). Since then, the Prime Minister has been pushing for the unification of the country. His tactics for doing so have been to restrict the independence of self-governing regions, and subsequently increase the power of the federal government. There has since been ongoing unrest between the federal government and the opposition (Walsh & Dahir, 2020).

The November clash was claimed to be a direct response from the federal authorities to a T.P.L.F attack on a government army base. This served as the catalyst for the now continued human rights abuses in the region, including violence, killings, and sexual abuse (Walsh & Dahir, 2020).

Ethnic cleansing

Having already suffered unimaginable traumas, new evidence shows that Tigrayans are now having their ethnicity removed against their will (Anna, 2021).

Earlier this month, refugees from separate communities have all confirmed that the federal forces are issuing identity cards to Tigrayans written in a language not their own, a clear indication of the Adiy’s government’s attempt to erase all traces of Tigrayan ethnicity (Anna, 2021).

For some, this is further confirmation of the federal government’s attempt at ethnic cleansing in Ethiopia (Anna, 2021).

Signs of peace?

Whilst reports from the federal government are claiming that normality is returning to the region, accounts of murdered Tigrayan bodies strewn on the ground say otherwise (Anna, 2021).

According to United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) spokesperson, James Elder, “there is not end in sight” (UNICEF, 2021). Fighting in the Northern Ethiopian region continues, and innocent civilians continue to be victims of inhumane acts. Tigrayans, young and old, are walking hundreds of miles in search of safety, hospitals are being looted, and children are being gang-raped (UNICEF, 2021).

It seems that it will be some time before the country has any type of peace restored, let alone even begins to recover from the atrocities which are still being committed against them every day.