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Getahun Tsegaye
Staff Reporter
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – The Amhara Fano People’s Organization (AFPO) has voiced its concern regarding the use of the term “Western Tigray” in the U.S. State Department’s 2024 Human Rights Practices report on Ethiopia. In a statement released on Thursday, AFPO argued that this terminology lacks historical legitimacy and could reinforce what it calls unconstitutional territorial claims.
AFPO asserts that the term “Western Tigray” was introduced by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) in 1991. The organization claims that over nearly three decades, the TPLF forcibly annexed historically Amhara-administered areas such as Wolkayt, Tegede, and Telemt into the Tigray region. According to the statement, these areas have deep historical, cultural, and administrative ties to the Gonder and Wollo regions, not to Tigray.
AFPO citing a declassified U.S. diplomatic cable from May 16, 1979, it said that the publication by the Public Library of U.S. Diplomacy, the cable reportedly identifies Shere, not Wolkayt or Tegede, as the area historically known as Western Tigray.
AFPO has called on the U.S. State Department to stop using the term “Western Tigray” in official communications. It urged the State Department to adopt neutral and historically grounded terminology, such as “Wolkayt–Tegede–Setit–Humera” and “Raya” which AFPO believes this terminology more accurately reflects the identities and heritage of the local populations.
In its response, AFPO also said that the State Department report mischaracterized Fano as a “militia.” It explained that in the Ethiopian context, militias are state-organized and state-armed entities. AFPO described Fano as a non-state, community-based, and self-organized movement rooted in the historical and cultural identity of the Amhara people.
AFPO further affirmed its commitment to international law and said it’s ready to cooperate fully with independent investigations regarding the reports of unlawful killings and other human rights violations.
In addition, the organization addressed the kidnapping of humanitarian aid workers. It strongly condemned all acts of violence against humanitarian personnel and acknowledged the severity of the humanitarian crisis in the Amhara region, highlighting the essential role of aid organizations. AFPO also claimed that it guarantees the safety and operational freedom of humanitarian actors in territories it administers.
The organization concluded by urging the Ethiopian government to lift restrictions on media and human rights organizations, which would allow for independent verification and reporting.
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