Fundamental Rights & Freedoms

All legislative, executive and judicial organs of the State at all levels of government shall have a responsibility and obligation to respect and enforce the provisions in this Chapter.

The fundamental rights and liberties contained in this Chapter shall be interpreted in conformity with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, international human rights covenants, humanitarian conventions and with the principles of other relevant international instruments which Ethiopia has accepted or ratified.

Everyone has the inviolable and inalienable right to life, liberty and the security of the person.

No person shall be deprived of his or her life except for grave crimes defined by law.

All persons have the right to protection from bodily harm.

1. No one can be deprived of his or her liberty except in accordance with procedures established by law.

2. No person may be subject to arbitrary arrest and no person may be detained without trial or conviction.

1. No person shall be subject to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

2. No one shall be held in slavery or servitude. Trafficking in human beings for whatever purpose is prohibited.

3. No one shall be required to perform forced or compulsory labor.

4. For the purpose of this Article, the term “forced or compulsory labor” shall not include:

(a) Any work to be done in the ordinary course of detention imposed according to the law or during conditional release from such detention.

(b) Any service of a military character, or in the case of conscientious objectors, service exacted in lieu of compulsory military service.

(c) Any service exacted in case of an emergency or a calamity threatening the life or well-being of the community.

(d) Any obligation to perform economic and social work incurred through voluntary community service.

 

1. All persons arrested have the right to be informed promptly, in a language that they understand, the particulars of the charges and the reasons for their arrest.

2. All persons arrested have the right to be informed promptly, in a language that they understand, that they have the right to remain silent and to be notified that any statement they make or evidence they give may be used against them in court.

3. All persons arrested have the right to appear before a court of law and to be given a full explanation of the reasons for their arrest within 48 hours of their arrest excluding the time reasonably necessary for the journey from the place of the arrest to the court.

4. All persons have the right to petition the court for a writ of habeas corpus, a right no court can deny, where the arresting officer or agency fails to bring them before a court of law and provide the reasons for their arrest; the court may, where the interest of justice requires, order the arrested person to remain in custody no longer than the time strictly required in order to carry out the necessary investigation aimed at establishing the facts. In determining the time necessary for investigation, the court shall take into account whether the responsible authorities are carrying out the investigation with deliberate speed in order to guarantee the arrested person’s right to a speedy trial.

5. All persons shall not be compelled to make confessions or admission which could be used in evidence against them. Statements obtained under coercion shall not be admitted as evidence.

6. All persons arrested have the right to be released on bail. The Court may, in exceptional cases as prescribed by law, deny bail or demand adequate guarantee for the conditional release of the arrested person.

1. All persons in custody, including sentenced prisoners, have the right to conditions which respect human dignity.

2. All persons shall have the opportunity to communicate with, and to be visited by, their spouses or partners, relatives and friends, religious counselors, lawyers and medical practitioners.

No person shall be tried or punished twice for an offense in which he has been finally convicted or acquitted in accordance with criminal law and procedure.

1. All persons have a right to respect due to human beings and to the protection of their reputation and honor.

2. All persons have the right to the free development of their personality compatible with the rights of other citizens.

3. Everyone has the right everywhere to the recognition of his status as a person.

All persons are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to the equal protection of the law. The law shall guarantee to the persons equal and effective protection without discrimination on grounds of race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, wealth, birth or other status.

1. All persons have a right to privacy. The right shall include the right not to be subjected to searches of their homes, persons or property, or the seizure of their personal possessions.

2. All persons have the right to the inviolability of their letters, post and communications by means of telephone, telecommunications and electronic devices.

1. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right shall include the freedom to hold or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and the freedom, either individually or in fellowship with others, in public and private, to religion worship, observance and teaching.

2. Consistent with Article 90 sub-Article 2, believers may organize institutions of religious education and administration in order to propagate and establish their faith.

3. No one shall be prohibited or constrained through coercion in the free choice of their beliefs.

4. Parents and guardians, on the basis of their beliefs, have the right to provide religious and moral education to their children.

1. There shall be no period of limitation on persons charged with crimes against humanity as provided by international conventions ratified by Ethiopia and other laws of Ethiopia. The legislature or any other organ of state shall have no power to pardon or give amnesty with regard to such offenses - inhuman punishment, forcible disappearances, summary executions, acts of genocide. Crimes against humanity shall not be subject to amnesty or pardon by any act of government.

2. Consistent with the above provision, the head of state may commute the punishment of those convicted of the crimes in sub-Article 1 from the death penalty into life imprisonment.

1. Everyone has the right to hold opinions without interference.

2. Everyone has the right to freedom of expression without any interference. This right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any media of his or her choice.

1. Every person has the right to assemble and to demonstrate together with others peaceably and unarmed, and to petition. Reasonable procedures may be prescribed in the interest of public convenience relating to the location of open-air meeting and the route of movement of demonstrators or when such a meeting or a demonstration is in progress, for the protection of public morality and peace, and democratic rights.

Every person has the right to freedom of association for any cause or purpose. Associations which undertake acts that lawlessly subvert the rule of law and constitutional rule are prohibited.

1. Every Ethiopian citizen or any other person legally in Ethiopia has the right to freedom of movement anywhere within the national territory; to choose freely his place of residence anywhere in the national territory, and to leave the country.

1. No Ethiopian citizen shall be deprived of his or her Ethiopian citizenship. Marriage of an Ethiopian male or female citizen to a foreigner shall not annul Ethiopian citizenship.

2. Every Ethiopian citizen has the right to the enjoyment of the rights of Ethiopian citizenship prescribed by law and to their enforcement by the state.

3. All Ethiopian citizens have the right to change their citizenship.

4. Ethiopian citizenship may be conferred upon foreigners in accordance with procedures established by law consistent with the obligations Ethiopia has assumed under interna6tional declarations and treaties ratified by Ethiopia.

1. Men and women, who have attained marriageable age as defined by law, have the right to marry and to found a family without any limitation of race, nationality or religion. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution. Laws shall be enacted to protect the interests and rights of children at the time of divorce.

2. Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.

3. The family is the natural and fundamental unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

4. Laws and specific procedures may be enacted recognizing the validity of marriage concluded under systems of religious or cultural laws.

5. The Constitutions shall not preclude the adjudication of personal or family disputes by religious or cultural laws if all parties to the dispute agree. The law shall specify the procedures.

1. Women have the right to equality with men in the enjoyment and protection of rights provided for by this Constitution.

2. Women are entitled to equality with men in marriage as prescribed by this Constitution .

3. In recognition of the history of inequality and discrimination suffered by women in Ethiopia women are entitled to remedial and affirmative measures. The purpose of such measures shall be to enable women to compete and participate on the basis of equality with men in political, economic and social life, and to gain access to opportunities and positions in public and private institutions.

4. Women have the right to protection by the state from harmful customs. Laws, customs and practices that oppress women or cause bodily or mental harm to them are prohibited.

1. Every child has the right:

(a) To life.

(b) To a name and nationality.

(c) To know, and be cared for, by his or her parents or legal guardians.

(D) Not to be subject to exploitative labor practices, neither to be required nor permitted to perform work which is hazardous or harmful to his or her education, health or well-being.

(e) To be free of corporal punishment or cruel and inhumane treatment in schools and other institutions responsible for the care of children.

2. In all actions concerning children undertaken by public and private institutions of social welfare, courts of law, administrative authorities of legislative bodies, the primary consideration shall be the best interests of the child.

3. Juvenile offenders, juveniles admitted to corrective or rehabilitative institutions, juveniles who become wards of the State, or juveniles in public or private orphanages, shall be kept separately from adults.

4. Children born out of wedlock shall have the same status and rights as children born of wedlock.

5. The State shall accord special protection to orphans and shall encourage the establishment of special institutions to promote their adoption. It shall also support institutions that provide for the for their welfare, upbringing and education.

1. Every person has the right to bring justifiable disputes to and to obtain a decision or judgment by, a court of law or, where appropriate, by another body with judicial power.

2. The decision or judgment referred to under sub-Article of this Article may also be sought by:

(a) An association acting in the interest of its member.

(b) A person who is a member of a representative of a group of persons with shared interest.

 

1. Every citizen has the right and the opportunity without any discrimination based on race, color sex language religion, political or other opinion:

(a) To take part in the conduct of public affairs directly or through freely chosen representatives.

(b) To vote and to be elected to any office at all levels of government. Elections shall be by universal suffrage and secret ballot in order to ensure the free expression of the will of the electorate.

(c) Any Ethiopian citizen who has reached the age of eighteen shall have the legal right to vote.

1. Every Ethiopian citizen has the right to engage freely in economic activity and to pursue livelihood anywhere in the national territory.

2. Every Ethiopian citizen has the right to choose his or her means of livelihood, occupation and profession.

3. Every Ethiopian citizen has the right to equal access to publicly funded social services.

4. The State has the obligation to allocate increasing resources to provide public health, education and other social services.

5. The State shall allocate, within means, resources to provide rehabilitation and assistance to the physically and mentally disabled, the aged and to children who are left without parents or guardians.

6. The State shall pursue policies which aim to expand job opportunities for the unemployed and indigent and shall accordingly undertake programs and public works projects.

7. The State shall undertake all measures necessary to increase opportunities for citizens to find gainful employment.

8. Farmers and pastoralists have the right to receive fair prices for their products the would lead to improvement in their conditions of life and to enable them to obtain equitable share of the national wealth commensurate with their contribution. This objective shall guide the State in the formulation of policies of economic and social development and projects.

1. The peoples of Ethiopia as a whole, and each nation, nationality, and people have the right to improved living standard and to sustainable development.

2. All persons have the right to participate in national development and, in particular, to be consulted in respect to projects affecting their community.

3. All international agreements to which Ethiopia is a party or relations that Ethiopia establishes and conducts with foreign countries shall ensure the country’s right to sustainable development.

1. All persons have the right to a clean and healthy environment.