CAT/C/67/D/775/2016
during the former interview. 2 In any case, the complainant presented a detailed, consistent
and credible account of his political activities in Ethiopia and of his arrest, detention and
subsequent persecution. He also provided evidence demonstrating that he had a sufficiently
high profile as a result of political activities carried out in Switzerland, to attract the
attention of the Ethiopian authorities.
3.8
While the Swiss authorities drew adverse inferences from the fact that the
complainant had remained in Ethiopia after his release from prison and had travelled to
Thailand several times for business purposes, those circumstances do not negatively affect
his credibility concerning his imprisonment and persecution. The complainant remained in
Ethiopia because he was politically active and wanted to see changes occur in his homeland.
He stated several times during his asylum interviews that he had not wanted to leave
Ethiopia, despite having encountered problems with the authorities on several occasions.
He only left Ethiopia after the arrest of his supervisor, fearing future persecution.
3.9
Contrary to the finding of the State Secretariat for Migration, the complainant did
not make vague statements about the source of his problems in Ethiopia. He clearly stated
that, in 2005, he had participated in protests against the Government by throwing stones at
police officers and setting cars on fire. He also stated that he felt that the Government was
responsible for his parents’ death. Although he had been a sympathizer of the opposition
since his mother’s death in 1991, his active fight against the regime had only begun in 2005.
3.10 While the Swiss authorities considered that the complainant had not adequately
described the organization and structure of the Kinijit party, the complainant explained in a
statement to the Federal Administrative Court that he had not understood the question asked
on that point during his asylum interview. The complainant had, however, provided to the
interviewer some information about the origins and goals of the party, as well as the names
of party leaders.
3.11 Although the Swiss authorities considered that it was not credible that the
complainant lacked contacts within Ginbot 7, he had stated twice that his having been in
contact only with his supervisor in Ginbot 7 and never having met the other members of his
group was standard practice within Ginbot 7, which has a hierarchical structure.
3.12 Finally, the State Secretariat for Migration erroneously considered that the
complainant had provided contradictory statements regarding the reason for his departure.
Although the complainant had alternately stated during the screening interview that he had
left Ethiopia because his supervisor and his friend had been imprisoned, he was in fact
referring to the same person.
3.13 Several non-governmental organizations have reported that the Ethiopian authorities
have declared Ginbot 7 to be a terrorist organization and that members of dissident groups
are surveilled and targeted by the authorities. 3 According to the Department of State of the
United States, many leaders of the opposition party have been mistreated while in custody. 4
LandInfo states in a report that, in 2009, many members of Ginbot 7 were arrested under an
antiterrorism law and that five of them were sentenced to death.5 The complainant asserts
that, on 30 June 2014, the Secretary-General of Ginbot 7, Mr. Tsege, was detained in
Yemen and extradited to Ethiopia, where he was drugged and tortured by agents of the
Ethiopian secret service.6 The situation in Ethiopia has become increasingly unstable since
August 2016, when at least 100 people were killed during political protests. These reports
2
3
4
5
6
4
The complainant cites European Court of Human Rights, M.A. v. Switzerland, Application No.
52589/13, Judgment, 18 November 2014, para. 60.
The complainant cites, inter alia, Amnesty International, “Dismantling dissent: intensified crackdown
on free speech in Ethiopia” (December 2011); and Freedom House, “Ethiopia, Freedom of the Press
2016”, September 2016.
The complainant cites United States Department of State, “2009 country reports on human rights
practices: Ethiopia”, 11 March 2010.
The complainant cites LandInfo, Country of Origin Information Centre, “Ethiopia: the Ginbot 7
party” (August 2012), p. 8.
The complainant cites, inter alia, BBC News, “Ethiopia PM Hailemariam defends Andargachew
Tsige arrest”, 11 July 2014.