A year after it was proposed, the House of People’s Representatives (HPR) have passed an anti-terrorism draft bill to amend the anti-terrorism law which has been heavily criticized by various right groups.
Implemented for more than a decade, the latest bill is expected to bring the controversial legislation to an end.
In its 8th regular session, the House on Thursday, briefly discussed on the reports of the Law, Justice and Democracy Standing Committee to whom the draft bill was referred to the previous year.
In its report, the standing committee said the revised proclamation would help Ethiopia to avert and control terrorism, defend the country from threats of terrorism, on top of sustaining peace and security.
It was also noted that the revised bill would enable to bridge the gaps in the preceding anti-terrorism proclamation No.652/2001, by which government security forces were accused of misusing the law to silence opposition.
Drafted by the Office of the Attorney General, MPs have endorsed the bill with a majority vote and one abstention.
In a related development, the House has deliberated on five draft bills and referred them to the pertinent Standing Committees for further foresight.
Among the referred draft bills, the agreement signed between Ethiopia and Qatar on promotion and reciprocal protection of investment, public projects administration and management system and protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and on the Rights of Older Peoples in Africa is included.
Moreover, the House has reviewed and referred ‘the Marrakesh Treaty to facilitate access to published works for visually impaired and print disabled’ to a relevant Standing Committee.
