publishing information about candidates, particularly in relation to the
opposition group Ginbot 7.
231.
The Complainants also refer to violations leading up to the June
2021 election in Ethiopia, including allegations of killings during an antigovernment protest in Tigray.
232.
On the other hand, while citing various legislations and other
mechanisms to give effect to the right to participate in governance and
hold elections in Ethiopia, the Respondent State argues that the
Constitution guarantees the right of every individual to vote, be elected,
and form or join a political organization, establishing a multi-party
democracy. According to the Respondent State, during the 2015 national
elections, there was an effective multi-party democracy through the
disbursement of funds to political parties, free airtime, and media
coverage for their election campaigns with a significant amount of radio,
television, and print media space.
233.
The Respondent State also alludes to the 2018 political reforms
and other reforms, actions taken to appease opposition parties, and
formerly banned political parties who had fled the country. They also cite
the March 2019 Code of Conduct signed by 107 Ethiopian political
parties, including the ruling party, to guide their operations and political
activities.
234.
In Constitutional Rights Project v. Nigeria, the Commission
held that “to participate freely in government entails, among other things,
the right to vote for the representative of one's choice. An inevitable
corollary of this right is that the results of free expression of the will of the
voters are respected; otherwise, the right to vote freely is meaningless.”78
235.
In the same vein, the Commission, in its Guidelines on Access to
Information and Elections in Africa, stated that: “For elections to be
free, fair and credible, the electorate must have access to information at
all stages of the electoral process. Without access to accurate, credible,
and reliable information about a broad range of issues before, during, and
after elections, it is impossible for citizens to meaningfully exercise their
right to vote as envisaged by Article 13 of the African Charter.”79.
78 Communication No. 102/93 - Constitutional Rights Project v. Nigeria (1998), African Commission on
Human and People’s Rights, Para. 50.
79 Paragraph 4, Preface of the Guidelines on Access to Information and Elections in Africa.
~ 46 ~
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