Synopsis
This collection analyses the approach taken by the current government of Ethiopia to deal with the massive human rights violations that took place from 1974 to 1991 under the Derg.
How was an autocratic emperor replaced by a totalitarian dictator?
An unexpected popular upsurge in February 1974 made the ancien regime of Emperor Haile Selassie buckle. The Derg, a group of army officers led by an obscure and ruthless major Mengistu Hailemariam, seized power by military coup in September 1974 and removed the Emperor.
What was the 'red terror'?
The callous executions of members of the old regime initiated a cult of violence. The Derg were united by the shedding of blood. Search and destroy campaigns against militants led on to the full-blown 'red terror' in which thousands of the regime's opponents were brutally murdered in the streets.
In what way was 'transitional justice' administered?
The main officials were found guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity by the Ethiopian Federal High Court and sentenced to life imprisonment. Some of the minor officialshad already been sentenced to death, whilst President Mugabe has given Mengistu Hailemariam sanctuary in Zimbabwe.
KJETIL TRONVOLL is Professor in Human Rights, Peace and Conflict Studies at the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights, University of Oslo; CHARLES SCHAEFER is Associate Professor of African History, Valparaiso University; GIRMACHEW ALEMU ANEME is a Research Fellow at the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights, University of Oslo.
About the Authors
CHARLES SCHAEFER is Senior Research Professor of History at Valparaiso University, Indiana. Additionally, he taught in the Department of History at Addis Ababa University. He has written many articles on Ethiopia and co-edited The Ethiopian Red Terror Trials: Transitional Justice Challenged (James Currey, 2009).
GIRMACHEW ALEMU ANEME is a Research Fellow at the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights, University of Oslo.
KJETIL TRONVOLL is Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies at Bjørknes University College, Director of Oslo Analytica policy research and advisory company, and a former Professor of Human Rights at the University of Oslo. His books include, with Daniel R. Mekonnen, The African Garrison State: Human Rights & Political Development in Eritrea (2017).
Bahru Zewde is Emeritus Professor of History at Addis Ababa University and founding Fellow and Vice President of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences. He has authored many books and articles, notably A History of Modern Ethiopia, 1855-1974, Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century and The Quest for Socialist Utopia, finalist for the Bethwell A. Ogot Book Prize, 2015.
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