CAT/C/67/D/775/2016
moment in time. It does not establish that the ill-treatment was inflicted upon him by the
Ethiopian authorities. Nor does the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder establish that
the complainant was subjected to ill-treatment.
6.2
The State party reiterates that the complainant was able to remain safely in Ethiopia
for six years after his alleged detention and torture in 2006 and 2007 and that he left
Ethiopia in 2011 several times but chose to return to it. In view of those circumstances,
there is no reason to conclude that the complainant would run a risk of being tortured in
Ethiopia.
6.3
While the complainant mentions several political activities that he has recently
engaged in in Switzerland, these activities do not in and of themselves justify a wellfounded fear of persecution in Ethiopia. The State party reiterates that the complainant has
not demonstrated “particularly exposed political activities” justifying a finding that he may
have attracted the attention of the Ethiopian authorities and be perceived as a concrete
danger for the current regime. The letter provided by the Ethiopian Human Rights and
Democracy Task Force is a letter of convenience and does not, even considered in
conjunction with the photographs, demonstrate an “exposed” type of political engagement.
The complainant’s alleged participation in meetings of Ginbot 7 on 7 and 18 June 2017 and
in the ESAT annual party on 4 November 2017 do not rise to the level of exposed political
engagement. The ESAT and Kanal K radio programmes were relatively short and featured
a large number of interviews with various individuals. The complainant did not distinguish
himself from the other individuals interviewed on ESAT, and it is unlikely that he would
have attracted the interest of the Ethiopian authorities as a result of this appearance. It is
also unlikely that the Ethiopian authorities would have been aware of the Kanal K
programme, which was broadcast on a local Swiss radio station. In addition, the
complainant did not provide proof that he was interviewed during the Kanal K programme.
6.4
The complainant is not visible on the video recording of the conference held at the
Ambassador’s residence on 10 May 2017. It is therefore not certain that he participated in
that event. He has not submitted any evidence that he was identified by the police in
Geneva, or by the security personnel of the Embassy.
6.5
The new letter regarding membership issued by Ginbot 7 appears to be a letter of
convenience and does not prove that the complainant is a member of Ginbot 7. Falsified
documents of this nature are often produced. Furthermore, the date when the complainant
joined the party is not stated in the letter, nor are his activities within the party described in
detail. The new letter also differs significantly from the letter issued by Ginbot 7 on 20
November 2011 in several important respects, namely, the logo, the designation of the party
and the email address.
6.6
The police report dated 28 January 2019 only indicates that the Geneva police are
aware of the complainant’s identity. It does not demonstrate that the Ethiopian authorities
are aware of the same. Similarly, the video recording provided by the complainant does not
provide evidence of his allegations.
6.7
Even if the Ethiopian authorities were aware of the complainant’s identity, recent
political developments in the country signal that, if returned there, the complainant would
not face treatment contrary to article 3 of the Convention. Since taking office in April 2018,
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has led or announced reforms in many areas, including the
treatment of dissidents. The Government of Ethiopia has called upon exiled dissidents to
return to Ethiopia and participate in the political process, and dissidents, former rebels and
journalists have been returning to Ethiopia since April 2018. A well-known example is
Feyisa Lilesa, who had applied for asylum in the United States after engaging in political
protests at the Olympic Games of 2016, in Brazil. On 21 October 2018, he returned to
Ethiopia and was welcomed at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of that country,
among other people. Since the end of the state of emergency in June 2018 and the
reinstatement of access to Internet sites, radio stations and television channels that are
critical of the Government, the political space in Ethiopia has opened up. In June 2018, the
Government authorized access to 264 websites that had previously been blocked, including
the ESAT website, which is run from the United States.
10