Amnesty International on Friday called on the Ethiopian government to “unconditionally release” dozens of health workers arrested during a nationwide strike over low wages and poor working conditions.
The appeal came after Ethiopian police confirmed the detention of 47 individuals, accusing them of “organising an illegal strike,” “creating chaos in the health sector,” and “endangering patients’ lives,” according to state broadcaster EBC.
Health workers across Ethiopia have been on strike since May 12, demanding better pay in a country where even specialist doctors reportedly earn as little as $80 per month, Amnesty said.
The human rights organization reported that 20 of those detained are being held at police headquarters in Addis Ababa, including Dr. Mahlet Guuesh, who recently spoke out in an interview with the BBC.
Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty’s regional director for East and Southern Africa, condemned the arrests as “shameful and deeply troubling.”
“Amnesty International calls on the Ethiopian government to cease its crackdown on healthcare workers lawfully exercising their right to peaceful assembly, and to release all those arbitrarily detained for speaking out for their rights,” Chagutah said in a statement.
The Ethiopian Ministry of Health had earlier declared the strike illegal, warning on May 15 that “the government’s patience in resolving the issue with an open mind has its limits.”
A doctor working at a hospital in Addis Ababa, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP that around 90 percent of services had been disrupted by the strike. Another health worker emphasized the strike was not politically motivated but driven by unbearable living conditions.
“We have no political goals; we are on strike simply because we cannot survive and live in the current conditions,” the worker said.
Ethiopia, a nation of roughly 130 million people, faces significant economic challenges. According to the World Bank, one in three Ethiopians lives below the poverty line, surviving on less than $2.15 a day.
