The Legislative Interpretation of the Constitutional Right of Freedom of Expression in Ethiopia

Hanan Marelign Zeleke, Getachew Assefa Woldemariam, Andrew Botterell — Wed, 22 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

It is doubtful that many of the legislative restrictions on freedom of expression in Ethiopia
would go happily with the values and aspirations of the Constitution. The Ethiopian
legislature often enacts laws that limit the right to freedom of expression and often does so
with the alleged claims of protecting and promoting other policy objectives and interests.
This article examines the justifications given by the legislature in cases involving freedom of
expression in Ethiopia with the requirements of legality, legitimacy, and proportionality
developed elsewhere through constitutional and international human rights jurisprudence.
Although the Ethiopian legal regime on freedom of expression is now changing as new laws
are introduced, there has been little change regarding limits on freedom of expression in the
various pieces of legislation enacted so far. The article argues that the Ethiopian legislature
has yet to subscribe to the legitimate grounds of limitation of freedom of expression and to
comply with constitutional and international standards. The finding and analysis of the
paper reveals that the legislature frequently limits freedom of expression beyond what the
Constitution permits. This suggests the need for further legislative reforms concerning the
limits of freedom of expression in those laws under consideration. To this end, it is
suggested that the adoption of a proportionality analysis will result in a better legislative
and judicial interpretation of laws.

Participatory Decision-Making in Resource Allocation in Areas Exposed to Floriculture Industry in Ethiopia: A Socio – Legal Analysis of the Case of Sululta Area in Oromia Regional State

Alemnesh Tsehay Kassa — Wed, 24 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This paper explores the factors affecting smallholder farmers’ participatory decision
making in land and water resource allocation. It employed a grounded theory research
design and utilized data collected through Key Informant Interviews (KIIs), Focus Group
Discussions (FGDs), non-participant observation, and document analyses. The factors
affecting smallholder farmers’ participatory decision-making include legal and practical
gaps such as asymmetric governance and regulatory disparities, complex and divergent
interests of stakeholders, social exclusion, communal land tenure insecurity, a deficit in
smallholder farmers' structural representation, and disenfranchisement stemming from
privatization. It further finds the consequences of non-participatory decision-making such as
restricted access to resources and conflicts, environmental degradation, and diminished
trust in government. The paper urges legal reforms to enhance participatory decision
making, recommends a decision-making model that incorporates smallholder farmers, and
recommends the need for structural representation of smallholder farmers’ effective
participatory decision-making in resource allocation.

Haramaya Law Review

The Legislative Interpretation of the Constitutional Right of Freedom of Expression in Ethiopia

Participatory Decision-Making in Resource Allocation in Areas Exposed to Floriculture Industry in Ethiopia: A Socio – Legal Analysis of the Case of Sululta Area in Oromia Regional State