The Refugee Protection Legal Framework in Ethiopia

Introduction

• Ethiopia has ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention, and its 1967 Protocol as well as the 1969 OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa. Ethiopia is also signatory to various international and regional human rights instruments that has also bearing on refugees. International instruments ratified by Ethiopia are considered as integral part of the law of the land.
• The first comprehensive national legislation governing refugees in Ethiopia was promulgated in 2004 and it has been in effect until the promulgation of new Refugees Proclamation. Whilst this Proclamation was aligned with the 1951 Refugee Convention, it only provided a general reference to the rights of refugees set out in the Refugee Convention without stipulating necessary details for implementation.
• The Refugees Proclamation was approved by the House of Peoples’ Representatives on 17 January 2019.
• The Refugees Proclamation employs the terms “refugee”, “asylum-seeker” and “recognized refugee”. While the former refers to person(s), who fulfil the refugee criteria under the Refugees Proclamation that is drawn from the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1969 OAU Convention, the latter two terms reflect the status of a person in the cycle of asylum as the one, who has applied and is in the process to acquire refugee status, and a person, whose refugee status has been already determined, respectively.
• Most of the rights and entitlements provided under the Proclamation are equally guaranteed for both recognized refugees and asylum seekers.

General Principles and Criteria

• The definition of ‘refugee’, the ‘exclusion clause’ and the provisions concerning ‘Cancellation and Revocation of Refugee Status’ as well as ‘Cessation of Refugee Status’, under the Refugees Proclamation are drawn in line with the 1951 Convention and other international standards. The definition of refugees also incorporates the broader refugee criteria provided by the 1969 OAU Convention and it protects refugees originating from countries afflicted with, inter alia, conflict and violence.
• Moreover, the provision concerning non-refoulement in the Refugee Proclamation is generally in compliance with the international standard set out in the 1951 Convention.
• While the provision on expulsion under the new Refugee Proclamation is retained from the 2004 Refugee Proclamation. Whilst this article is generally in alignment with Article 32 of the 1951 Refugee Convention having a due process clause, it omits procedural safeguards, including appeal and the right to be represented before a competent authority. Due to national security considerations raised by the Government, the Article is drafted as a means to permit the affected refugee to present his case before the head of RRS.
• The new Refugees Proclamation also provides for the Unity of the Family, including measures to facilitate family reunification within Ethiopia.

Procedures for Refugee Status Determination

• The Refugees Proclamation provides that any person who is at the frontier or within Ethiopia, and who wishes to remain within the country as a refugee shall apply to the nearest RRS office or a police station within thirty days.
• RRS is required to examine and provide a written decision on the application within six months period of time of registering the application
• The Proclamation provides a mechanism in which asylum-seekers who are aggrieved by the decision of the RRS could appeal to an Appeal Hearing Council and then to the Federal Supreme Court.
• The decision of the Appeal Hearing Council is to be final on a question of fact, whereas is possible to further take the appeal to the Federal Supreme Court on a question of law.
• This part also provides for a process and criteria related to the recognition and termination of group recognition of refugees through which the majority of the refugee population in Ethiopia is recognized.

Rights and Obligations of Refugees

• In addition to the rights that refugees can claim pursuant to the Ethiopian Constitution and International Treaties that Ethiopia is a party to, the refugee proclamation provides a list of right that refugees are entitled to. This includes the right to remain in Ethiopia, identity cards and travel documents, work, health and education.
• The right to work provision in the new Refugees Proclamation covers the right to engage in wage earning employment, self-employment and liberal professions.
• As per the provisions of the proclamation, refugees are entitled to access the above types of employments in line with the most favorable treatment accorded to foreign nationals. Foreign nationals of Ethiopian origin receive the most favorable treatment in Ethiopia with regards to the right to work. This includes, inter alia, the right to be employed without a work and investment permits and the right engage in businesses that are prohibited for foreign nationals.
• However, the Directives issues by RRS in December 2019 provides that refugees will have the right to access the abovementioned employment rights in the same circumstances with ordinary foreign nationals.
• Yet, when refugees are working in the projects jointly designed by the international community and the Government of Ethiopia to benefit both refugee and host communities, in which case refugees shall be treated in the same circumstances as Ethiopian nationals engaged in the same project.
• The Refugees Proclamation also provides that refugees and asylum-seekers, who are married to Ethiopian nationals, or who have one or more child in possession of Ethiopian nationality are exempted from any restrictive measures in accessing employment.
• Residency permits, renewable every five years, may be issued to refugees and asylum-seekers engaged in such joint projects.
• The new Refugee Proclamation also includes a provision providing for the freedom of movement of the refugees, while RRS may designate places or areas within which refugee and asylum-seekers may live and facilitate their movement.
• The right to Acquisitions and Transfer of Property Article is also recognized under the Refugees Proclamation. More progressively, the Proclamation also allows asylum-seekers to bring personal items to the country free of tariff at the time of admission and to take their property or assets with them during repatriation or relocation to third countries.
• The new Refugees Proclamation also contains provisions on the right to access to justice, driver qualifications and certification licenses, access to telecommunication services, access to banking and financial services, rationing, vital events registration and certification, as well as fiscal charges.
• Refugees can use identification documents issued by RRS to access the socio-economic services stipulated in these provisions in the new Refugees Proclamation.
• As regards fiscal charges, the Refugee Proclamation stipulates that duties, charges or taxes, of any description whatsoever may not be imposed on refugees higher than imposed on nationals in the same circumstances.
• Protection of persons with specific needs such as children, women, and persons with disabilities, older persons is provided for within the new Refugee Proclamation.
• Durable solutions, including voluntary repatriation, local integration and naturalization, are outlined in the Refugees Proclamation.