By Ztruth
Introduction
Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and international bodies like the United Nations, claim to champion justice, impartiality, and the protection of the oppressed. Yet, when it comes to the genocide of the Amhara people in Ethiopia—one of the most egregious and prolonged ethnic persecutions of the modern era—their response has been alarmingly muted. This glaring discrepancy in global attention and action— especially when compared to the mobilization around the Ukraine war and the Gaza conflict— exposes an uncomfortable and dangerous double standard in the international community’s approach to human rights.
The Unacknowledged Genocide of the Amhara People
For over three decades, the Amhara community in Ethiopia has been systematically targeted, persecuted, and decimated. Between 1991 and 2007, more than 2.4 million Amharas vanished, their fate largely ignored by international organizations. In the last six years, the genocide has reached even more catastrophic levels, with over one million Amharas killed and countless others suffering unspeakable atrocities.
• Targeted Drone and Artillery Attacks: Civilian areas, schools, hospitals, and homes have been bombed in a deliberate effort to destroy the Amhara community. These strikes are not collateral damage—they are part of a calculated strategy of extermination.
• Mass Displacement: Over 3.5 million Amharas have been displaced from Oromia by government forces and the Oromo Prosperity Party, with an additional 500,000 displaced from Addis Ababa and surrounding areas. Their homes have been demolished, and their properties looted.
• Destruction of Livelihoods: Farmers have had their crops burned, their livestock slaughtered, and their homes razed. The damage to the agricultural sector is not just a humanitarian crisis; it is an existential assault on the Amhara community’s survival.
• Humanitarian Aid Denied: Despite the scale of the devastation, humanitarian aid to the Amhara regions remains insufficient, poorly coordinated, and delayed. There is no rush to provide aid, no coordinated international effort to alleviate their suffering.
The numbers are staggering. Yet, the international response has been shocking in its absence. How is it possible that such a scale of suffering has gone virtually unnoticed by the global community, especially when compared to other ongoing crises?
A Stark Double Standard: Why Ukraine and Gaza, But Not Amhara?
The contrast between the attention given to Ukraine and Gaza and the glaring silence on the Amhara genocide could not be starker. The war in Ukraine has dominated international headlines since its inception, with world leaders rushing to provide aid, impose sanctions, and send military support. The Gaza conflict, too, receives an outpouring of advocacy and humanitarian intervention, with countless global demonstrations calling for an end to the suffering of Palestinians.
But what of the Amhara genocide?
1. Media and Advocacy Bias: The media and human rights organizations devoted extensive coverage to conflicts that align with broader geopolitical interests or receive widespread public support. Ukraine’s geopolitical significance to the West, and the international support for Gaza, have made these crises central to global discourse. Meanwhile, the genocide of the Amhara people—despite its scale and brutality—remains largely invisible, with little to no coverage in international media outlets.
2. Humanitarian Assistance: International aid pours into Ukraine and Gaza, with governments and humanitarian organizations scrambling to deliver supplies, medical care, and financial support. In contrast, Amhara regions are denied such urgent intervention. Even when aid is sent, it is often delayed, inadequate, or routed away from the most affected populations, leaving millions without the help they so desperately need.
3. Geopolitical Favoritism: Ethiopia is a key partner for global powers, particularly in the Horn of Africa, which often results in political calculations trumping human rights considerations. The reluctance to hold Ethiopian authorities accountable for genocide reflects a wider geopolitical interest in maintaining stability in the region, even at the expense of thousands of innocent lives.
4. The UN and International Inaction: While the United Nations has imposed sanctions on Russia and addressed the situation in Gaza with resolutions, it has been conspicuously
silent on the ongoing genocide in Ethiopia. The UN’s failure to intervene, hold Ethiopia accountable, or even issue strong statements on the Amhara crisis is emblematic of a deeper systemic failure in global governance—a failure to prioritize human rights when the interests of powerful states are at stake.
Why Does the International Community Ignore the Amhara Crisis?
The inaction of human rights organizations and global bodies can be boiled down to two primary reasons:
1. Political and Economic Interests: Ethiopia, as a key player in African geopolitics, plays a vital role in the global fight against terrorism, migration control, and regional stability. This strategic importance has shielded its government from international scrutiny, even as it perpetrates genocide on its own people.
2. Ethnic and Regional Bias: The Amhara genocide does not fit neatly into the global narrative that often drives international responses. It does not involve foreign powers, nor does it align with the political interests of major Western countries. This lack of alignment has allowed international bodies to overlook the suffering of the Amhara people, perpetuating a cycle of neglect.
A Call for Global Action: Amhara Lives Matter Too
The time has come for the international community to confront its hypocrisy and act on behalf of the Amhara people with the same urgency and passion shown for Ukraine and Gaza. The genocide unfolding in Ethiopia is no less horrific, no less worthy of attention, and no less deserving of intervention.
The Amhara genocide is not a “local” or “isolated” issue—it is a global human rights crisis that demands immediate action:
1. Immediate Humanitarian Aid: International organizations must provide swift and direct humanitarian aid to Amhara regions, ensuring it reaches those most affected by the violence, displacement, and destruction.
2. Accountability for Perpetrators: There must be a global push to hold the Ethiopian government and its affiliates accountable for the genocide. War crimes tribunals must be established to investigate and prosecute those responsible for targeting civilians and perpetuating this cycle of violence.
3. International Advocacy and Media Coverage: The global media must give the Amhara genocide the attention it deserves. Human rights organizations should amplify the voices of Amhara victims and ensure that their suffering is not buried beneath the weight of geopolitical concerns.
4. End Geopolitical Apathy: Governments around the world must abandon the double standard and prioritize the protection of human rights over political and economic interests. This requires a fundamental shift in how international organizations engage with human rights issues globally.
Conclusion: Justice for the Amhara is Long Overdue
The genocide of the Amhara people in Ethiopia is a clear example of how the international community selectively chooses when to act on human rights issues. As the world rallies to support Ukraine and Gaza, we cannot ignore the suffering of millions in Ethiopia. The Amhara people, like all others, deserve justice, humanitarian aid, and an end to their persecution.
The failure to act is not only an abdication of moral responsibility—it is a betrayal of the very principles that human rights organizations and the global community purport to uphold. The world must wake up to the crisis in Ethiopia, amplify the voices of the Amhara, and take action to stop this ongoing genocide before it is too late.
The time to act is now. The world cannot afford another forgotten genocide.
Editor’s note : Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com
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It is the opposite of what is happening today in Ethiopia.