This is the whole section about ONLF on the US Justice Department’s Section of Opposition groups in Ethiopia.
Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) is a separatist group of ethnic Somali nationalists based and operating in eastern Ethiopia, in the Somali regional state.16 ONLF was formed after the defeat of Somalia in 1978.17 In the early nineties, the group joined the political process in Ethiopia and performed well in regional parliamentary elections.18 After winning the regional parliamentary elections, ONLF called for a referendum on self-determination in 1994. However, the referendum was rejected by the central government in Addis Ababa, and ONLF was forced out of office by the federal security forces.19 The group launched an armed insurgency and since the mid-1990s the armed wing of the ONLF, the Ogaden National Liberation Army (ONLA), has been engaged in conflicts against the Ethiopian army (the Ethiopian Defence Force) in the region.20
In 2007, the armed conflict between ONLF and the Ethiopian army escalated, when ONLF attacked an oilfield located in Abole in the Somali regional state, killing 74 workers.21 The following years were marked by numerous human rights violations including, forced displacement, disappearances and torture. These violations were reported to have been committed by the Ethiopian troops stationed in the Somali regional state.
In
2011, ONLF was designated as a terrorist organisation by the government under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation (ATP).23 Thus, any alleged ONLF activities or support would lead to arrest and persecution by the authorities.24
A report by the Human Rights Watch (HRW) published in July 2018 noted that the frequency of attacks by ONLF had decreased greatly in recent years.25 Similarly, a report published by Danish Immigration Service (DIS) in September 2018 stated that ONLF has politically and militarily been diminished.26
2.1 Development since 2018
2.1.1 Political development
In July 2018, the Government of Ethiopia removed ONLF from its list of terrorist organisations.27 Three months later, in October 2018, the government and ONLF signed a peace agreement in Asmara, bringing an end to a 34-year long insurgency in the Somali regional state.28
In August 2018, the Somali regional state’s president Abdi Mohammed Omar, also known as Abdi llley, was arrested and replaced by Mustafa Omer, an exiled activist and former UN worker.29 Mustafa Omer was later endorsed by ONLF’s leadership.30
The Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed invited opposition leaders to return to the country and resume political activities. The major opposition parties, including ONLF, welcomed the request.31 In November 2018, the Ethiopian Airline flew large numbers of uniformed ONLF members from Eritrea to Jigjig, the capital of the Somali regional state.32 In December 2018, the leadership of ONLF had returned to Ethiopia.33
According to ONLF’s twitter account, the group opened an office in Addis Ababa in July 2019.34 This observation was confirmed by the interviewed sources in December 2019 and January 2020.35 One source elaborated that members of ONLF have regular and open meetings throughout the region. Also, their leadership appears in public and meets regularly with government officials in the region.36
In April 2019, the regional government and ONLF signed an agreement to disarm and reintegrate members of the ONLF into the state’s security forces and civil service.37 The interviewed academic researcher who has been based in the region during 2019 has personally witnessed the disarmament of some ONLF.
fighters, and also observed some of the reintegration initiatives. As an example, the source mentioned that former combatants were given financial aid as means to reintegrate them into civil society. Asked about the number of disarmed ONLF fighters, the researcher noted that there are no official figures to confirm the amount of fighters who had been disarmed.38 According to Al Jazeera, 2,000 fighters have been disarmed whereas the Ethiopian news outlet, Fana Broadcasting Cooperation (FBC), reported that 1,740 fighters have been disarmed.39
According to an article published in the Economist in October 2019, the ONLF leadership has announced to participate in the 2020 national elections in Ethiopia.40 This information was confirmed by both of the interviewed sources.41 ONLF had during a recent congress discussed strategies for the upcoming national election, and made the necessary registration with the National Electoral Board.42 The electoral lists for the Somali regional state are considered to be ready by same source.43
2.1.2 Liyu Police
The Ethiopian authorities created The Liyu (“special” in Amharic) police in 2007 due to the escalation of the armed conflict between ONLF and the government. By 2008, the Liyu police had become a prominent counter-insurgency unit in the Somali regional state.44 In 2017, HRW reported on extrajudicial killings, torture, rape, and violence as well as attacks against local communities committed by the Liyu police.45
In August 2018, the former Chief of Liyu Police Abdirahman Abdullahi Burale, also known as Abdirahman Lagagole, fled the country in connection with the arrest of former president of the Somali regional state.46
The Liyu police have undergone reforms and its leadership has been replaced. Moreover, the Liyu police are no longer engaged in warfare in the Somali regional state. The activities of the Liyu police are well monitored by its new leadership, and significant progress has been made.47 Members of the Liyu police are undergoing a large retraining programme to ensure their operations comply with human rights standards. Also, new soldiers have been recruited to join the Liyu police force, including former ONLF fighters. Some former members of ONLF’s intelligence have returned and taken on senior positions in the Liyu police. However, a few key senior Liyu police and intelligence officials, including some of those implicated in abuse in the past, remain and are given promotions.
In
May 2019, the Somali regional state announced the establishment of a Human Rights Commission.49 This information was also captured in the Economist’s article from October 2019. The article further stated that ONLF will be part of the commission, which aims to investigate committed human rights violations and monitor the current situation in the region.50 In addition, the academic researcher interviewed in December 2019 mentioned that a joint committee, consisting of representatives of the Somali regional state and ONLF, has been established to oversee reconciliation efforts and initiatives dealing with the past.51
2.1.3 Jail Ogaden
Jail Ogaden was a regional detention facility administered in part by the Liyu police in Somali regional state where people suspected of supporting the ONLF were detained.52 HRW which has consistently documented human rights violations in the region described the conditions in Jail Ogaden as being inhuman, especially for persons suspected of terrorism under the ATP. In July 2018, many prisoners were released, and in August 2018 the prison was closed.53 A year later, HRW reported that some of those responsible for the abuses in Jail Ogaden are in prison and facing justice while others have fled the region.54
2.1.4 Treatment of members/persons affiliated with the ONLF
The UK Home Office states in its report from August 2019 that members or persons affiliated with ONLF ”...have historically been exposed to surveillance, harassment, arrest, torture and ill-treatment, including during the most recent State of Emergency (February-June 2018). This treatment also sometimes extended to supporters and family members or those perceived to be affiliated with [...] ONLF...”.55
According to Landinfo, members or persons affiliated with ONLF are no longer considered to be at risk of persecution by the authorities – neither in Addis Ababa nor in the Somali region state.56 The sources interviewed advised to have no knowledge about ill-treatment of members or persons affiliated with ONLF.57 Generally speaking, it is possible to display political flags publicly, express political association and use social media without reservations.58 One source stated that senior ONLF members have been able to move freely in Addis Ababa.59
Persons who were imprisoned for being related to ONLF have been released.60 However, one source mentioned the possibility of few detainees remaining in prison. Nevertheless, the same source stressed that all high-profile prisoners have been released from detention facilities in the Somali region state and those under the administration of federal government.
source consulted by the Swedish Migration Agency in May 2019 described the general security situation in the Somali region state to be ‘okay’ but the source worried about the situation at the border with Somalia that was less well guarded.62 A recent returnee interviewed by the Economist in October 2019 narrated the current situation in the Somali region state as being the safest place in Ethiopia.63
Members and persons affiliated with ONLF who left the region for neighbouring countries have returned.64 Moreover, returnees have been welcomed back and treated positively by their communities, government and security forces.65 However, the situation in the rural areas seems to be different. The academic researcher explained that there have been examples where local administration have discriminated against former ONLF members in various ways, including access to basic services. Furthermore, the source argued that this is not a widespread phenomenon, and some of these incidents had also been motivated by personal revenge issues.
but I see where he’s coming from. Quick question though if you were a geeljire living in Hawd would you claim Ethiopian-Somali or full Somalilander.
