The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC), in collaboration with the Inter-Religious Council of Ethiopia (IRCE), held an awareness-raising forum on June 11, 2026, in Addis Ababa. The forum aimed to enhance the awareness of religious leaders regarding the EHRC’s mandate and responsibilities as well as human rights monitoring principles, data collection methods, and early-warning systems.
Representatives from the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, the Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council, the Ethiopian Catholic Church, the Evangelical Churches Fellowship of Ethiopia and the Ethiopian Seventh-day Adventist Church attended the forum.
Participants discussed human rights monitoring, early warning systems, the role of religious institutions in protecting and promoting human rights and how religious institutions can coordinate with the EHRC to address threats of human rights violations and resolve related issues.
Furthermore, the forum created conditions to operationalize the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on February 26, 2026, in Jimma City, which focuses on cooperation between the EHRC and the Inter-Religious Council of Ethiopia regarding human rights protection and peacebuilding.
Haji Mesud Adem, Deputy Secretary-General of the IRCE, stated that the responsibility of protecting human rights belongs to everyone and reaffirmed the Council’s readiness to collaborate with the EHRC to improve the human rights situation in the country.
Dr. Mizanie Abate, Deputy Chief Commissioner of the EHRC, emphasized the significant role that religious institutions play in upholding human rights and stated the need for continued collaboration on human rights awareness-raising, education, and early warning systems.