REPORT ON

COUNTRY
REPORT
2020/09

APRIL
2020
CITIZENSHIP
LAW: ETHIOPIA

AUTHORED BY
ZECHARIAS FASSIL
© Zecharias Fassil, 2020
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Global Citizenship Observatory (GLOBALCIT)

Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies
in collaboration with
Edinburgh University Law School

Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

RSCAS/GLOBALCIT-CR 2020/9
April 2020

© Zecharias Fassil, 2020

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GLOBALCIT

GLOBALCIT is the successor of EUDO CITIZENSHIP, which has been the key reference for the study
of citizenship and the franchise between 2009 and 2017. With the geographic expansion of the
Observatory’s scope the new name reflects our worldwide coverage.
GLOBALCIT provides the most comprehensive source of information on the acquisition and loss of
citizenship in Europe for policy makers, NGOs and academic researchers. Its website hosts a number of
databases on domestic and international legal norms, naturalisation statistics, citizenship and electoral
rights indicators, a comprehensive bibliography and glossary, a forum with scholarly debates on current
citizenship trends, media news on matters of citizenship policy and various other resources for research
and policy-making.
Research for the 2019 GLOBALCIT Reports has been supported by the European University Institute’s
Global Governance Programme, and the British Academy Research Project CITMODES (co-directed
by the EUI and the University of Edinburgh).
The financial support from these projects is gratefully acknowledged.
For more information see: www.globalcit.eu
 Report on Citizenship Law
Ethiopia

Zecharias Fassil 1

1. Introduction

This work provides a description of the law of citizenship in Ethiopia under the previous and
current legal regimes. A citizenship law was among the very first written laws in Ethiopia’s
modern legal system. It has gone through different regimes and the confederation and secession
of Eritrea have contributed vital ingredients to its shape. Descent-based citizenship and the
prohibition of dual citizenship have remained unchanged through all the regimes from the time
of the Emperor to the present. Intermediate solutions recognising the rights and benefits of
foreigners of Ethiopian origin and explicitly allowing refugees to make use of naturalisation
have brought new colour to the picture of citizenship law in Ethiopia. Naturalisation processes
used to be strict, but with emergence of demanding situations they have evolved to be less
strict. Contrary to the fact that the citizenship law is one of Ethiopia’s oldest laws, its subject
matter is far from complex. However, limited literature exists on it and this has created gaps in
terms of legal literacy both for the institutions entrusted with enforcing the law and its
beneficiaries. As can be seen from the case law, there is a lack of comprehensive awareness of
this special law. In greater detail, the enforcement of this law is left in the hands of
administrative bodies but the absence of an administrative procedural code in Ethiopia and a
slow transition to a national ID system have negatively impacted citizenship rights. This work
contributes to the limited literature on citizenship law in Ethiopia by suggesting areas for
improvement, both at the policy level in terms of adopting the Convention on the Reduction of
Statelessness and at the level of administrative measures.
Ethiopia took the lead regarding citizenship law in Africa by having the first written
citizenship law. This may be attributed to the fact that Ethiopia and has had a strong local
governance structure and dealings with other countries for millennia, keeping its national
identity intact. Ethiopian political society began to take shape in the time of the Axumite
kingdom.2 Ever since then Ethiopia has managed to keep its territorial and political
sovereignty, which has helped it to successfully survive aggression and colonisation attempts.
It has never been colonised by European powers, with the brief exception of occupation by
Italy.

1
The author is a senior fellow of the African Good Governance Network (AGGN) and Research Fellow at African
Institute for Crime, Governance and Policy Research (AFRCGPR). He is highly indebted for the opportunity
extended to him by the EUI and for the reviewing of the draft of this paper. The standard disclaimer applies.
2
The demarcation of the time of the commencement of modern Ethiopia is debated among historians. However,
there is wide consensus on Ethiopia’s early history of civilization, with the governance and administration of
citizens.

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 Zecharias Fassil

Ethiopian emperors were well aware of the fact that maintaining the political identity
of the people is key to administration, governance, international relations and independence.
This is evident from the fact that when Haile Selassie was crowned emperor of Ethiopia on 2
November 1930, one of the very first laws he promogulated was the 1930 citizenship law. This
preceded the emperor’s constitution, which was promulgated in 1931, providing an insight into
the due regard Ethiopian leaders give to citizenship law.
Citizenship is one of the strongest bonds between a natural person and any given state.
It confers rights and duties on the citizen. This has been underlined by many authors, and in
most instances, it is the ABC of citizenship law. There is a biblical reference to the benefits of
citizenship from the year 60 A.D.3
Granting citizenship and laying down the rules relating to it are sovereign acts of each
state. Therefore, definitions of how citizenship is acquired and lost are state sovereign choices.
However, it is worth noting that globally there are similarities between the relevant laws of
different countries. For instance, according to the body of knowledge on citizenship law that
developed by the European University Institute (EUI) Global Citizenship project, there are 27
ways of acquiring citizenship and 15 ways of losing it.4 Each country’s law can have pecuilar
features.
In general terms, citizenship laws are based on two basic concepts: ius soli (literally,
the law or right of the soil), whereby citizenship is earned through being born in a given
country; and ius sanguinis (the law or right of blood), where citizenship is earned through
descent from parents who themselves are or were citizens.
As most writers in this field agree, citizenship is a concept that involves three cardinal
considerations, namely conferring legal status on individuals, enabling individuals to be
political agents, and membership of a community and identity.5
One striking feature of citizenship law in Ethiopia is that, unlike other public laws, it
has not undergone recurring revisions or amendments. As will be seen in the following
sections, the first citizenship law in Ethiopia continued to be enforced through three regimes.
However, like any other law it is not amendment-proof given social dynamics and the impacts
of globalisation and political and economic integration. The 1930 law was replaced in 2003.

2. Defining Citizenship

This paper uses the terms citizenship and nationality interchangeably as they both refer to the
same thing in the Ethiopian context. In social sciences, there are many definitions of
citizenship/nationality. However, as this is legal research, the paper uses a legal definition
without needing to refer to other definitions. Accordingly, International Court of Justice (ICJ)

3
Acts 22: 25-28 “Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, ‘Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a
Roman, and uncondemned?’ When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, ‘Take
heed what thou doest: for this man is a Roman.’ Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, ‘Tell me, art
thou a Roman?’ He said, ‘Yea.’ Source: KJV Bible.
4
See databases on modes of acquisition and loss of citizenship at http://globalcit.eu/acquisition-citizenship/ and
http://globalcit.eu/loss-of-citizenship/.
5
See Cohen 1999; Kymlicka and Norman 2000; Carens 2000 and also,
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/citizenship/
2 RSCAS/GLOBALCIT-CR 2020/9- © 2020 Author(s)
 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

case law gives a comprehensive legal definition of the term. In the 1955 Nottebohm case,
nationality is defined as follows:
According to the practice of States, to arbitral and judicial decisions and to the opinion
of writers, nationality is a legal bond having as its basis a social fact of attachment, a
genuine connection of existence, interest and sentiments, together with the existence of
reciprocal rights and duties.6
In this definition, the defining elements of citizenship are a legal bond, a genuine connection
of existence and reciprocal rights and duties. Similarly, a definition by an Ethiopian jurist who
wrote the first article on nationality law in Ethiopia, Fasil Nahum, is that it is "the relationship
of allegiance, protection and identification which an individual has with a state. Nationality is
a status that results from both act and intent and usually entails participation in the functions
of the state.”7 This is the definition adopted in this paper.
Ius soli and ius sanguinis have become the principles with which many states determine
nationality. Even though their theoretical classification is easy, their practical application is not
as easy as one might assume. Some states use a compromise between the two, some adhere to
one of them, and in a considerable number of nation states both principles are applicable. In
this complex scenario, marriage is one of the determining variables.
The complexity of nationality law has caught the attention of states. In 1930 there was
a Hague Convention on conflict of nationality laws. This convention aspired to uniformity.
Historian jurists like Fasil Nahum have stated that this convention served as a foundation for
Ethiopia’s 1930 nationality law,8 which helps explain the content and shape of the imperial
nationality law.

2.1. The impact of international law on Ethiopia’s citizenship law

Ethiopia was one of the few African states able to participate in the formation of the United
Nations. In addition, Ethiopia voted in favour of the UN General Assembly resolution adopting
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948 – one of the few African states
able to do so.
The adoption of the UDHR by Ethiopia and its active participation in the ratification
and adoption of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the
International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural rights (ICESCR), the Convention on
the Rights of the Child (CRC), the African Human and Peoples’ Rights Charter and the African
Charter on Rights and Welfare of the Child reinforced the alignment of rules in its nationality
law.9

6
The decision is available at https://www.icj-cij.org/files/case-related/18/018-19550406-JUD-01-00-EN.pdf.
see page 23, last paragraph. Last accessed 18 February 2020.
7
Fasil Nahum, Ethiopian Nationality Law and Practice, Ethiopian Journal of Law, VOL VIII-No.1, pp 168-183,
https://journals.co.za/docserver/fulltext/jel/8/1/344.pdf?expires=1575962782&id=id&accname=guest&checksu
m=A4FB4D1BE62E90EFC62C49459219F659
8
Fasil, 169.
9
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ratified by Ethiopia on 11 June 1993, International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, ratified by Ethiopia on 11 June 1993, Convention on the
Rights of the Child, adopted by Ethiopia on 14 May 1991. Source: Office of High Commissioner for Human
Rights, UN treaty data base, available at
https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/TreatyBodyExternal/Treaty.aspx?CountryID=59&Lang=EN, last
accessed 15 March 2020; The African Charter on Human & Peoples’ Rights, ratified by Ethiopia on 15/06/1998.

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 Zecharias Fassil

The right to nationality is recognised in international human rights documents. For instance,
Article 15 of the UDHR provides that
Everyone has the right to a nationality; and no one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his/her
nationality nor denied the right to change his/her nationality.
Likewise, a related wording is found in the ICCPR which stipulates that “every child has the
right to acquire a nationality.” Moreover, Article 7 of the CRC states that “The child shall be
registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to
acquire a nationality and as far as possible the right to know and be cared for by his or her
parents” (emphasis added).
Moreover, Article 9(4) of the current Ethiopian constitution states that “All
international agreements ratified by Ethiopia are an integral part of the law of the land.” In
addition article 13(2) provides that “the fundamental rights and freedoms specified in this
chapter shall be interpreted in a manner conforming to the principles of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, International Covenants on Human Rights and international
instruments adopted by Ethiopia.”
As can be seen, at least in contemporary Ethiopia, the impact of the UDHR and
international human rights bills have visible effects in shaping the legal norms on human rights,
one of which is the right to nationality. This gives the legal basis for the observation of
applicable international laws in Ethiopia.

3. The 1930 Nationality Law

The 1930 nationality law was adopted partly because Emperor Haile Selassie had a keen
interest in modernisation and partly because there was concern in the international legal arena
in 1930 about conflicts of nationality law among sovereign states. The Emperor issued this
law, which was first drafted in French, following the Hague Convention on Conflict of
Nationality laws. It was a legal transplant from the European countries as the emperor had very
close diplomatic ties with Europeans. Analysis of the letter and spirit of the law suggests that
much inspiration came from European laws and it was most likely based on the Swiss model.10
This first nationality law in Ethiopia and perhaps in Africa contained 18 articles. It was
published in the Berhanena Selam newspaper, Vol. 6, No. 30 (24 July 1930). Berhanena Selam
was the official newspaper where laws were issued before the Negarit Gazette was established.
Nationality is an important element in governance and administration. Reflecting the
monarchical spirit of the time, people in Ethiopia were considered subjects. A cursory look at
the law shows that the emperor was regarded as conferring rights on the people under his rule.
For instance, Articles 1 and 2 provided that “Any person born in Ethiopia or abroad, whose
father or mother is Ethiopian, is an Ethiopian subject” and “A lawful marriage of an Ethiopian
subject with a foreign woman confers Ethiopian nationality upon her.” In these two articles,
the law does not say ‘Ethiopian national’ but ‘subject.’ The avoidance of the term ‘national’
and the use of the term ‘subject’ in this law, subsequent legislation and the 1931 constitution

Source: https://au.int/sites/default/files/treaties/36390-sl-african_charter_on_human_and_peoples_rights_2.pdf,
last accessed on 15 March 2020.
10
On the impacts of foreign laws, see John H. Beckstrom, Transplantation of Legal systems: an early report on
reception of Western Laws in Ethiopia, The American Journal of Comparative Law, Vol. 21, No. 3 (Summer
1973), pp. 557-583, published by the American Society of Comparative Law.
4 RSCAS/GLOBALCIT-CR 2020/9- © 2020 Author(s)
 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

was to show that the king was superior and had many rights and the people were just subjects
of his reign. This attitude is reflected in the preamble to the constitution.11
By stating that “any person born in Ethiopia or abroad, whose father or mother is
Ethiopian, is an Ethiopian subject,”12 Article 1 of the 1930 Ethiopian nationality law
established that nationality was based on descent, by ius sanguinis.
At first sight the law appears to be gender neutral. However, later articles undermine
this. The law gives guidelines to determine the nationality of children born from a marriage
between Ethiopians and foreigners. The rule is that a child born from a lawful mixed marriage
follows the nationality of the father. A child born outside a lawful marriage with an Ethiopian
father and a foreign mother, if requested to, has to prove that the child does not have the original
nationality of the mother. When the father is a foreigner and the mother is Ethiopian, the child
is allowed to maintain the Ethiopian nationality of the mother as long as he/she lives in Ethiopia
and can prove he/she has divested him/herself of the paternal nationality.13
The law also stipulated rules on the nationality of children legitimised by a lawful
marriage between Ethiopians and foreigners.
If the lawful marriage according to the national law of the foreign father is posterior to
the birth of the child issued from his relations with an Ethiopian woman, the child
legitimated through this subsequent marriage follows the nationality of his foreign
father only on condition that the national law of the latter confers upon him the foreign
nationality with all inhering rights. Otherwise the child preserves his Ethiopian
nationality.14
The legitimation, without subsequent lawful marriage between the foreign father and
the Ethiopian mother, of the child issued from the relation outside marriage deprives
the child of his Ethiopian nationality only if the legitimation, made in accordance with
the forms of law of the foreign father, confers upon the child thus legitimated the
nationality of his father with all inhering rights.15
Article 2 of the law reads that “a lawful marriage of an Ethiopian subject with a foreign woman
confers the Ethiopian nationality upon her.” An a contrario reading of this tells us that the law
did not allow a foreigner married to an Ethiopian woman to automatically obtain Ethiopian
nationality.
In the subsequent articles, this nationality law laid down rules on the ways of acquiring
and losing nationality rights. Articles 2-5 stipulated rules on nationality in the case of marriage
between an Ethiopian subject and a foreign national. They provided that Ethiopian subjects
that legally marry women of foreign nationality can confer Ethiopian nationality on them.16
However, if an Ethiopian woman married a foreign man, she could be deprived of her
Ethiopian nationality if her marriage with the foreigner conferred the nationality of her husband

11
For example, Article 6 of the 1931 constitution states that “In the Ethiopian Empire supreme power rests in
the hands of the Emperor.” Moreover, the preamble to the 1955 constitution states that “We granted to Our
faithful subjects and proclaimed a Constitution for the Empire of Ethiopia.”
12
Article 1 of the 1930 Ethiopian Nationality law.
13
Article 7.
14
Article 8.
15
Article 9.
16
It shall be considered a lawful marriage where the Ethiopian Subject marries with religious or customary civil
marriage practiced in Ethiopia and the marriage takes place in Ethiopia, or an Ethiopian subject marries a
foreign woman in a foreign country according to the foreign country marriage practice. See article 3(a &b) of
the 1930 Nationality Proclamation.

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 Zecharias Fassil

on her. If it did not, she kept her Ethiopian nationality.17 Article 4 of the law can be regarded
as discriminatory. The deprivation of nationality appears to be automatic as long as the
marriage conferred the nationality of the woman’s husband.
A striking detail of this nationality law is that under Article 10 it provides that the
adoption of an Ethiopian child by foreign nationals does not change the adopted child's original
nationality. This is striking for two reasons. One is that the law purported to give protection
against statelessness and the other is that it envisioned the legal regime of adoption long before
family law was adopted in the Ethiopian legal regime. It is surprising that the law did not
provide rules on the acquisition of Ethiopian nationality in the case of a foreign child adopted
by an Ethiopian.
Article 11 provides the conditions whereby the loss of Ethiopian nationality could
occur. These were when an Ethiopian woman marries a foreign national and adopts her
husband’s nationality and when an Ethiopian changes his nationality and acquires foreign
nationality.
Citizenship by naturalisation for foreigners to acquire Ethiopian nationality was also
provided for by this law in five of its articles. The cumulative conditions that need to be fulfilled
are that the foreigner should have the age of majority, have lived in Ethiopia for at least 5 years,
be earning a living, be proficient in the Amharic language, and be free of a criminal or sinful
record.18 Here, it is worth noting that, according to a translation provided by Refworld, ‘sin’ is
translated as breaking common law. The author has referred to early texts translated into
English by Fasil Nahum.
It can certainly be said that the criteria for naturalisation were strict, especially the
requirement for proficiency in the working language of Amharic and the fact that there was no
exception to these requirements. This could be due to the conservative nature of the monarch.
After going through the evaluation procedure naturalisation was conferred by a decree.19
Moreover, the effects of naturalisation were not transferable to a legitimate wife. ‘Legitimate
wife’ refers to a legitimate religious or civil marriage either in Ethiopia or abroad.20
This strict approach, however, was relaxed four years after the nationality law was
adopted. It was amended to allow granting of citizenship to foreigners who were deemed to be
useful or if there was special reason to grant Ethiopian nationality irrespective of the formal
requirements stipulated in the law.21
Another part of the law provided readmission to Ethiopian nationality by affirming that
Ethiopians who have acquired a foreign nationality may always obtain the benefit of Ethiopian
nationality when they return to reside in the country and apply for readmission. Similarly, an

17
Article 4 reads “A lawful marriage contracted abroad of an Ethiopian woman with a foreigner deprives her of
the Ethiopian nationality if her marriage with the foreigner gives her the nationality of her husband; otherwise
she keeps her Ethiopian nationality. In case when the woman, losing her Ethiopian nationality, is the proprietor
of real estate the administration of her property shall be settled in conformity with the law given to that effect by
the Imperial Ethiopian government.”
18
Article 12.
19
Article 15 reads “The naturalisation shall be conferred by decree and the new Ethiopian subject shall take an
oath of allegiance to the Empire before the commission.” Art 16 states “The naturalisation thus conferred does
not extend its effects to the legitimate wife of the naturalised man, unless she applies personally for this benefit.
20
See Articles 3 and 4.
21
Proclamation Amending the Nationality law of Hamle 15,1922 (Ethiopian Calendar). The amendment reads
"The Imperial Ethiopian Government may Grant Ethiopian Nationality to a foreign applicant if he is deemed to
be useful to the country or if there are some special reasons for granting him Ethiopian Nationality,
notwithstanding non-compliance with Article 12 (sub-arts. (b) and (d) of the aforesaid Nationality Law. Date
Meskerem 25, 1926 Ethiopian Calendar).
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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

Ethiopian woman who had lost her Ethiopian nationality by virtue of marriage with a foreigner,
following the dissolution of the marriage either by divorce, separation or death, was entitled to
apply for readmission provided she returned to reside in Ethiopia.
An important piece of legislation on nationality law during the time of the Emperor
worth taking note of is Imperial order No. 6 of 1952, an order to provide for the Federal
Incorporation and Inclusion of the Territory of Eritrea within Our Empire. Following the
defeat of Italy in the Second World War, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a
resolution providing that Eritrea (formerly an Italian colony) would be constituted as an
autonomous unit federated with Ethiopia under the sovereignty of the Ethiopian Crown.22
Section 9 of the Imperial Order adopted two years later reads:
All Inhabitants of the territory of Eritrea except persons in possession of foreign
nationality are hereby declared to be subjects of our empire and Ethiopian nationals.
All inhabitants born in the territory of Eritrea and having at least one indigenous parent
or grandparent are also declared to be subjects of our empire; however, if such a person
is in possession of foreign nationality, he is hereby permitted to renounce within six
months of the date thereof the nationality granted above and retain such foreign
nationality, but if he does not so renounce he shall thereupon lose such foreign
nationality.
Further on in this work we shall be looking at how the unhealthy relationship between Ethiopia
and Eritrea has complicated, and legal and political actions on nationality have negatively
affected, the nationality rights of persons who by accident of birth happened to be in these
countries.
The above-mentioned decree is a perfect example showing that nationality was
conferred by force on an Italian with Eritrean origin if the person wished to live in the province
of Eritrea. Such a person could not maintain his/her Italian nationality.
It is interesting to note that from the time of the Emperor up to 2000 the case of Eritrea
was an important key concern in Ethiopian nationality law. Eritreans and Eritrea were a
constant variable in Ethiopia’s nationality law equation.
In a nutshell, as law mirrors the social and political development of any society, given
the fact that modernisation efforts were being made by the Emperor and as there was no prior
experience of nationality law in the country, Africa’s first nationality can be praised for its
succinct description of modes of acquiring, losing and regaining nationality. Without
discounting these strengths, the law can be criticised for cutting through issues like gender
equality. However, at the time it was promulgated, the positive contribution of the law
outweighed its limitations.

22
UN General Assembly, Resolution 390 A (V) of 2 December 1950, available at
https://undocs.org/en/A/RES/390(V).

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 Zecharias Fassil

4. Nationality law in the period 1974-1991 (People's Democratic

Republic of Ethiopia, PDRE)

The second phase in the development and emergence of nationality law in Ethiopia includes
attempts made by the legal regime during the Dergue military government that overthrew the
monarchy. The political ideology practised during the Dergue regime (1974-1991) was
socialism.23
In stark contrast with the Emperor’s assimilationist policy, the Dergue rolled out the
principle of self-determination of nationality whereby the development of a nation’s language
and culture were the prime focus.24 The concept of self-determination in Ethiopia began during
this regime but it did not have the same content and scope as it is practised nowadays.
Article 2 of the Constitution of the People’s Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (PDRE)
adopted in 1987 provided that, while the PDRE was a unitary state, it should ensure the
“equality of nationalities, combat chauvinism and narrow nationalism and strengthen the unity
of the working people of all nationalities”, as well as “the realisation of regional autonomy”
and “the equality, development and respectability of the languages of the nationalities.” Article
59 stipulated that “The Ethiopian people’s Democratic Republic is a Unitary State comprising
administrative and autonomous regions.”25
Among other policy guidelines, the PDRE constitution in its part two on citizenship,
freedoms, rights and duties provided rules that define citizenship and citizenship rights. Article
31 (1) stated that “Any person with both or one parent of Ethiopian citizenship is an Ethiopian.”
It also indicated that a foreign national and a person with statelessness can acquire Ethiopian
nationality as stated under Article 31(3). However, it provided that the particulars to this effect
shall be determined by law. Moreover, Article 32 (1) posited that the state shall “protect the
rights and benefits of Ethiopian nationals residing abroad.”
In line with the ideological position of the PDRE government, the constitution also
established specific provisions for granting asylum to members of liberation movements.
Article 33 states “The people’s Democratic Republic of Ethiopia shall grant asylum to
foreigners persecuted for their struggle in national liberation and anti-racist movements and for
the cause of peace and democracy.”
The PDRE constitution also accorded protection to foreigners in Ethiopia. Article 34 (1
& 2) read together read: “Citizens of other countries and stateless persons within the territory
of the People’s Democratic Republic of Ethiopia shall have freedom, rights and duties
determined by law. The state may not extradite a citizen of another country or a stateless person
except as stipulated by international agreement.”
Even though Article 31 (2 & 3) stated that the details of nationality law would be
determined by subsequent legislation, the Dergue regime was not in a position to manage to
issue a law to that effect. Therefore, for the 17 years of its rule the gap was filled by the
Emperor’s nationality law. The 1930 law was in full application. The researcher posits that,
unlike in the time of the Emperor when many foreigners were naturalised in Ethiopia, owing

23
In an attempt to have a strong alliance with the USSR, the motto of the government was ህብረተሰባዊነት, which
literally equates with socialism.
24
The legal system of the Emperor was mostly seen as a feudalist tool. Therefore, the Dergue regime purported
to react against the diversities reflected in the nation.
25
Proclamation No 1 of the 1987 constitution of the People’s Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Negarit Gazetta
Vol 47. No. 1. 12 September 1987, Addis Ababa.
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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

to the repressive military rule many Ethiopians were forced to flee the country, live in foreign
lands and naturalised as foreign citizens.

5. The development of the law from 1991 to the present

The Dergue regime was oppressive and suppressive in many regards, and this resulted in the
formation of rebel groups. The Tigrayan Peoples' Liberation Front (TPLF) was the most
important of these. It developed into a coalition of forces called the Ethiopian Peoples'
Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and after 17 years of struggle it managed to displace
the Dergue government in 1991.
In the same year, the EPRDF formed a transitional government26 based on a transitional
charter that was effective from 1991 to 1995. Although the charter managed to establish a road
map for governance, and most importantly it adopted the UN Charter on Human Rights, it did
not contain articles pertaining to nationality issues.
In its Article 9 (g) the Charter gave the council of representatives the power to establish
a council of Constitutional Commission (CC).27 Consequently, in August 1992 Proclamation
number 24/1992, “A Proclamation to Provide for the Establishment of the Constitutional
Commission” was issued in Negarit Gazeta, Year 51, No.20. The CC composition comprised
29 members with equal votes: 7 members of the COR, 7 members of political organisations, 3
members from trade unions, 3 members from the Chamber of Commerce, 2 members from the
Ethiopian Lawyers Association, 2 members from the Ethiopian Teachers’ Association, 2
members from the Ethiopian Health Professionals’ Association and 3 women representatives
(Article 7). The Chairman of the CC’s Executive Committee was the late Ato Kifle Wadajo.

5.1. The secession of Eritrea

In 1952 the United Nations made a federation of Ethiopia and Eritrea under two different
governments.28 Ten years later in 1962, Ethiopia annexed Eritrea. This sparked an
independence struggle which lasted for 30 years. The insurrection in Eritrea was one of the
factors that caused the downfall of the Dergue. When the Dergue fell in 1991, Eritrea
unilaterally declared its independence from Ethiopia.
A succinct historical summary of the secession of Eritrea from Ethiopia in 1993 notes
as follows:
Eritrean and Ethiopian government representatives discussed Eritrea’s relationship to
Ethiopia during talks in Addis Ababa on July 1-5, 1991. The government agreed to
recognise the right of the Eritreans to hold a referendum regarding their status. The UN
General Assembly established the United Nations Observer Mission to Verify the
Referendum in Eritrea (UNOVER), which consisted of some 110 election monitors, on

26
A copy of the charter can be accessed at https://chilot.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/the-transitional-period-
charter-of-ethiopia.pdf. Last accessed on 18 February 2020.
27
Under Article 7 of the charter, the council of representatives exercised a legislative function. It was composed
of representatives of national liberation movements, other political organisations and prominent individuals, with
a total of no more than 87 members.
28
See, University of Central Arkansas, Political Science, 16. Ethiopia/ Eritrea (1950-1993), available at
https://uca.edu/politicalscience/dadm-project/sub-saharan-africa-region/ethiopiaeritrea-1950-1993/, last
accessed on 28 February 2020.

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 Zecharias Fassil

December 16, 1992. Isaias Afwerki was elected president of Eritrea by the National
Assembly on March 21, 1993. The referendum on Eritrean independence from Ethiopia
was held on April 23-25, 1993, and 99.8 percent of Eritreans voted for independence.29
Until the emergence of South Sudan, Eritrea was the youngest African nation. In
practice, the secession split one country into two (Ethiopia and Eritrea). Under international
law, individuals who had the nationality of a predecessor state should have the right to the
nationality of at least one of the successor states. However, as Manby rightly argues, this rule
has not always been respected in African national laws. Indeed, manipulation of the transitional
rules on citizenship applied at independence or on division of a state has often been at the heart
of efforts to deny people nationality.30 The issue of Eritrea and Ethiopia was not an easy case
when it came to the treatment of each other’s nationals. At times, some politically motivated
treatments were too harsh, especially in the deportation/expulsion scenario that followed the
war in 1998-2000 (see below). The converse is true when there is relative peace between these
two nations as their peoples share common cultural, language and historical ties. At least at the
de facto level, preferential treatment was given to Eritrean refugees as Eritreans were the first
refugees to enjoy the benefits of the ‘out of the camp’ policy in Ethiopia.

5.2. The drafting of the 1995 Constitution

As indicated above, a constitutional committee was assigned to draft the new Ethiopian
constitution after the secession of Eritrea. After passing through deliberation at lower- and
high-level meetings, the constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE)
was promulgated in 1995. This constitution, which is still in force with no amendment
whatsoever, has articles on nationality. In an attempt to fully understand the underpinning
intentions and justification of the letter and spirit of its provisions, the researcher has consulted
the minutes of the constitutional drafting committee.31
While discussing the provisions, the drafters of the constitution duly stressed that the
acquisition of nationality derives from birth to Ethiopia parents. Therefore, they kept the
existing descent-based framework for citizenship law. There is no indication whatsoever that
they considered introducing an element of ius soli. One of the important issues raised in their
deliberations was the inclusion of dual nationality, especially for children born to Ethiopian
nationals living abroad in a country that applies ius soli. As dual nationality was not included
in the previous legal regimes, however, including it in the constitution was not seen as a viable
option as the decent-based rule was already in place.32
Some of the drafters opined that naturalisation should be included in the constitution,
and justified it as follows: “as Ethiopia is part of the international community, foreigners who
come to Ethiopia, if they wish to get Ethiopian nationality a permissive rule needs to be
included.” However, some considered that an indication that subsidiary legislation would
govern naturalisation would suffice. Accordingly, the wording “particulars shall be determined
by law” was thought to be enough.33

29
Ibid.
30
Bronwen Manby, Citizenship in Law in Africa - A Comparative Study, Open Society Foundations, 3rd edition,
2016, pp 11-12.
31
Minutes of the Constitutional Committee, Compilation Volume 2. የኢትዮጵያ ህገመንግስት ጉባዔ፣ ቃለጉባኤ
ጥራዝ 2 (000026) Page 10-14, Library of Ethiopian Justice and Legal System Research Institute ( JLSRI), 1994.
32
Ibid.
33
Ibid P. 13-14.
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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

An intriguing issue raised by the drafters of the constitution was “when the constitution
states that a person born to an Ethiopian parent is an Ethiopian, is this a matter of choice or
obligation?” A consensus was reached among the drafters that for a child born to parents with
mixed nationalities nationality is a matter of choice not an obligation. This reaffirmed that
children born to Ethiopian parents in the US or another ius soli jurisdiction are not under an
obligation to be Ethiopian but it is their individual choice to claim the nationality they want,
even if dual nationality is not an option. Furthermore, some members invited a legal
professional to elaborate on the dual nationality issue but the archive does not include anything
further on this.
With the adoption of the federal democratic form of government, in 1995 the FDRE
constitution had the most progressive human rights norms. As Adem argues, the relevance
accorded to human rights is reflected from the outset in the preamble to the FDRE Constitution,
which strongly affirms “the full respect for individual and people’s fundamental rights.”34
Unusually among African constitutions, the 1995 constitution explicitly provides for the right
to a nationality in its text.35
The archives of the committee do not record a justification for including such a
constitutional provision, although as constitutional drafting takes some lessons from preceding
constitutions, the inspiration might have come from there. Another possibility is that if the
constitution is to champion itself as vehemently adamant about human rights, stating
nationality rights is systematically meaningful as nationality provides access to a wide range
of human and democratic rights.

5.3. The Ethiopian-Eritrean war, 1998-2000

The Ethiopian-Eritrean war that broke out in 1998-2000 had tremendous implications for
citizenship law and in many ways can be seen as a linchpin for the shape and content of recent
nationality law.
Apart from the constitutional guidance on the issuance of a special law on nationality,
the secession of Eritrea and the aftermath of the subsequent war was the prime guiding force
behind the existing nationality law. The reason is that the war raised the very sensitive issue of
who is Ethiopian or Eritrean. As there was no clear law, decisions on nationality were based
on participation in the referendum and the situation was painful for tens of thousands of people
who had lived for long in and were forced to be deported from Ethiopia and Eritrea.36
The following is an extract from a Human Rights Watch document which backs up the
above reasoning in greater detail:37
Ethiopian authorities launched a vast campaign to round up and expel people of Eritrean origin
from Ethiopia in June 1998. Most had been born in Ethiopia when Eritrea was still held to be
a part of that country – and had no other recognised citizenship other than Ethiopian. Most
adults had spent all or most of their working lives in Ethiopia, outside of Eritrea. Ethiopian
authorities in June 1998 announced the planned expulsion of residents who posed a security
risk to the state, to include members of Eritrean political and community organisations, and

34
Adem Kassie, Human rights Under the Ethiopian Constitution: Descriptive Overview, Mizan Law review
Vol. 5 No 1 (2011).
35
Bronwen Manby, Citizenship in Law in Africa - A Comparative Study, Open Society Foundations, 3rd edition,
2016, p 4.
36
See, Human Rights Watch: The Horn of African War: Mass expulsion and the Nationality Issue, January
2003 https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/ethioerit0103.pdf
37
Ibid.

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 Zecharias Fassil

former or current members of the Eritrean liberation front. The Ethiopian authorities moved
almost immediately to carry out arrests and to expel Eritreans and those of Eritrean origin in a
manner that became increasingly indiscriminate over time. No meaningful steps were made to
determine “risk” on a case-by-case basis – or to distinguish between those who had formally
assumed Eritrean nationality and Ethiopian nationals distinguished only by their Eritrean
origin.
The first wave of arrests and deportations began on June 12, 1998, targeting people of Eritrean
origin in Ethiopia who were prominent in business, politics or community organisations. In
conjunction with this campaign, the Ethiopian government revoked business licenses and
ordered the freezing of assets of thousands of individuals of Eritrean origin. Those with bank
accounts were informed that their accounts had been frozen and were inaccessible. The
government provided no avenue for affected individuals to challenge these actions. The main
targets of the deportation campaign after June 1998 were tens of thousands of ordinary people
who were deported and dispossessed on the sole basis of their national origin. In a June 18
broadcast, Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin had already put members of the
Eritrean-Ethiopian community on notice that their citizenship was to be put to the test. “[I]f the
Eritreans are innocent citizens and if they appeal in unity, if they condemn the
aggression...[and] raise their voices together with the [Ethiopian] people for the achievement
of peace, they will not be under threat.”
As can be seen, the action of the government was politically motivated and based on a non-
existent criterion for determining the citizenship of Eritreans to justify its actions. This brought
criticism of the Ethiopian government from human rights groups and the international
community.
The fact that a more progressive constitution existed in Ethiopia did not inhibit the right
of nationality from being violated. This could be due to the fact that the legislators were not
proactive enough to issue the necessary secondary legislation to give effect to the aspirations
of the constitution.
Eritrea took a step-by-step approach to expelling Ethiopians in Eritrea. The expulsions
from both countries resulted in not only violations related to citizenship rights but most
importantly to individual stories of human rights abuses and violations ranging from limiting
freedom of movement to the violation of the right to life.

5.4. The Ethiopian-Eritrean Claims Commission

Following the ceasefire in 2000, an Ethiopian-Eritrean Claims Commission was established to
rule on the claims of each state. Both countries justified their actions and also demanded redress
for damage sustained. The Ethiopian government defended its expulsion and denationalisation
of Eritreans by arguing that persons who had participated in the referendum on Eritrean
independence in 1993 were no longer Ethiopians and had lost Ethiopian nationality. The
counter-argument raised by Eritrea was that this was not a tenable argument as there was no
Eritrea as such in the time that the referendum took place. On this core issue, the Claims
Commission stated
Nationality is ultimately a legal status. Taking into account the unusual transitional
circumstances associated with the creation of the new State of Eritrea and both Parties’
conduct before and after the 1993 Referendum, the Commission concludes that those
who qualified to participate in the Referendum in fact acquired dual nationality. They
became citizens of the new State of Eritrea pursuant to Eritrea’s Proclamation No.

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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

21/1/1992, but at the same time Ethiopia continued to regard them as its own
nationals.38
The Commission said that the outbreak of the war did not in itself suspend this dual nationality
but placed these dual nationals “in an unusual and potentially difficult position.”39 The
Commission determined that in two categories of cases, Ethiopia’s action in denying its
nationality to the dual nationals had been arbitrary and unlawful.40
These findings of the commission and the criticism from the international community
had minimal effects and the government of Ethiopia tried to justify the expulsion by arguing
that there had been a threat to national security – which was not a palatable argument as there
were other foreigners in the country. Likewise, the decision of the border commission was not
enforced as the Ethiopian government at that time adopted a fuzzy stance of accepting the
decision in principle but not taking action. Instead a no-war-no-peace policy was adopted with
strict military border control.

5.5. The 2003 nationality proclamation

One could assume that a constitution which gave due regard to nationality would warrant
immediate legislation to give effect to its provisions. However, the FDRE government
promulgated the law on nationality in 2003, which is eight years after the coming into effect of
the constitution. During this time, the nationality law promulgated in 1930 was in force as it
was the only source of law that guided citizens and authorities on nationality matters and,
legalistically speaking, a non-repealed law is applicable until it is repealed. Although an
attempt has been made to look for the background of the drafting procedure and explanatory
notes on the law before it was adopted by the parliament of Ethiopia, no information has been
found.

6. Current Citizenship Regime

The 1995 Constitution

The FDRE constitution gives important guidelines on the nationality law regime existing in
Ethiopia. Articles 6, 33 and 36 embody the guidelines. For ease of reference here are the
wordings of the FDRE constitution on nationality:
Article 6 Nationality
1. Any person with one or both parents of Ethiopian citizenship is an Ethiopian.
2. Foreigners may acquire Ethiopian citizenship.
3. Particulars relating to citizenship shall be determined by law.
Article 33 Rights of Nationality
1. No Ethiopian of either sex shall lose his/her Ethiopian citizenship against his/her
will.

38
Manby 3rd Edition p 30.
39
Ibid.
40
Ibid

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 Zecharias Fassil

2. Every Ethiopian shall be entitled to the rights, protections, and benefits deriving, in
accordance with the law, from Ethiopian citizenship. Marriage of an Ethiopian citizen
of either sex to a foreign citizen shall not result in the loss of Ethiopian citizenship.
3. Ethiopians shall have the right to change their citizenship.
4. Ethiopian citizenship may be granted to foreigners in accordance with laws and
procedures enacted in a manner not inconsistent with international agreements ratified
by Ethiopia.
Article 36 The Rights of the Child
(b) [Every child has] the right to a name and nationality.

The 2003 nationality law

A quick comparison between the 1930 and 2003 laws reveals that the 2003 Proclamation
removed the gender discrimination that was in the 1930 law. It amended that an Ethiopian
national of either sex may pass nationality to his or her spouse, and also simply stated that “any
person shall be an Ethiopian national by descent where both or either of his parents is
Ethiopian.” The proclamation also eased restrictions on naturalisation and provided that “all
Ethiopian nationals shall have equal rights and obligations of citizenship regardless of the
manner in which nationality is acquired.”

Regulation
The relevant regulation in this regard is the Council of Ministers regulation to provide for the
definition of power, duty and organisation structure of the Immigration, Nationality and Vital
Events Agency 449/2019.
In the context of the Ethiopian legal system, regulations provide implementation rules for
primary legislation and proclamations. This regulation, however, focuses on the powers and
functions of the agency but does not give clear guidance to further elaborate the substantive
rights enshrined in the nationality proclamation.

6.1. Modes of acquisition of Ethiopian citizenship

Proclamation No. 378/2003 on Ethiopian Nationality provides for nationality to be acquired
primarily on the basis of descent. It also includes provisions on acquisition after birth based on
adoption, marriage and naturalisation.

Nationality by Descent
The Proclamation on Ethiopian Nationality of 2003 indicates the following regarding the
acquisition of Ethiopian nationality by descent and the conditions to be fulfilled:
3. Acquisition by Descent
- Any person shall be an Ethiopian national by descent where both or either of his
parent is Ethiopian.

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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

- An infant who is found abandoned in Ethiopia shall, unless proved to have a foreign
nationality, be deemed to have been born to an Ethiopian parent and shall acquire
Ethiopian nationality.
The proclamation thus affirms the previous rule that the law of blood (jus-sanguinis) is the
dominant way of acquiring Ethiopian citizenship. No general rights to acquire citizenship
through birth in the territory (ius soli) are applicable in the case of Ethiopia. However,
protection against statelessness is provided for foundlings for the first time.

Adoption
Unlike the 1930 nationality law, the 2003 proclamation provides for the possibility of
citizenship acquisition through adoption. The proclamation provides that “any child adopted
by an Ethiopian national may acquire Ethiopian nationality by law” ( article 7). For this to
take place the following clear guidelines are provided.
• The adopted child shall not have attained the age of majority.
• The child must live in Ethiopia together with his/her adopting parents.
• If one of the adopting parents is a foreigner, the foreigner parent shall express his
consent in written form.
If the child has a previous nationality this must be revoked.

Marriage
The acquisition of citizenship through marriage is practised in line with Article 6 of the
nationality proclamation, which states “a foreign national who is married to an Ethiopian
national may acquire Ethiopian nationality by law….” The procedure to do so requires the
following cumulative conditions to be fulfilled:
The marriage needs to be conducted in accordance with Ethiopian law or the law of any other
country.
• There must be a total lapse of two years since the conclusion of the marriage.
• People must live in Ethiopia for a total of two years preceding the submission of the
application.
• People must also fulfil the conditions stated in Article 5, sub articles 1, 7 and 8 of the
proclamation on naturalisation requirements.
Even if the concluded marriage is dissolved by divorce or death, the acquired nationality shall
remain intact in law, yet the person is free to change.

Naturalisation
The specific legal term for a foreigner becoming a citizen of another country is naturalisation.
Unlike citizenship through birth, naturalisation has numerous criteria such as social, economic,
language, political and legal requirements which foreign nationals needs to fulfil. In the FDRE
nationality law, “any foreigner may acquire Ethiopian nationality by law in accordance with
the provisions of article 5-12 of this proclamation.”

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 Zecharias Fassil

The FDRE Nationality Proclamation states that a foreigner who fulfils the following
requirements can acquire Ethiopian nationality following a formal letter of application. He/she
must
• have attained majority age and be legally capable under Ethiopian law
• have been domiciled in Ethiopia for a total of four years
• be able to communicate in any of the languages of nations/nationalities in the country
• have sufficient and lawful sources of income
• be a person of good character
• have no record of criminal convictions
• be able to be released from a previous nationality
• be able to take the oath of allegiance stated under article 12.41

In addition to regular naturalisation procedures, the law provides for naturalisation in

“special cases” with reduced formal requirements. This seems to be initiated by the government
or the state, allowing citizenship as a way of giving special recognition to foreigners who have
made an astounding contribution to the country. This is a very common practice in many
jurisdictions. In Ethiopia, “a foreigner who has made an outstanding contribution in the
interest of Ethiopia may be conferred with Ethiopian nationality by law irrespective of the
conditions stated under …” (Article 8).
It should be noted, however, that as dual nationality is not allowed in Ethiopia, the
option of taking this nationality lies in the hands of the ‘awardee.’ However, the law is silent
on whether this award can be claimed after remaining dormant for some time or if there is a
specific time period for reacting to the conferring of nationality.
The 2003 nationality law of Ethiopia should be praised as it has eased the burden of
language proficiency for naturalisation. The 1930 nationality law contained the condition that
a person who wishes to be naturalised with Ethiopian nationality must “know [the] Amharic
language perfectly, speaking and writing it fluently.” Under the 2003 Proclamation, the ability
to “communicate in any one of the languages of the nations/nationalities of the country”
suffices.42
With regard to refugees, the Ethiopian law has now made some new room for
naturalisation with the integration of protracted refugees who have lived in Ethiopia for 20
years, as in Pledge no. 6 of the New York Declaration 201643 and Article 41 of Refugee
Proclamation 1110/2019.44 Nationality for a stronger reason can be part and parcel of local
integration. Article 42 of the new refugee proclamation affirms that a refugee may apply for
naturalisation as in the nationality law.45

41
Article 5 of Proclamation 378/2003.
42
Article 5/3.
43
Administration for Refugee and Returnees Affairs (ARRA), Roadmap for the implementation of the Federal
Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Government Pledges and for the practical application of the CRRF, 2018, p 7,
Local Integration Pledge.
44
Refugee Protection Proclamation no. 1110/2019.
45
Ibid.
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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

6.2. Modes of loss of Ethiopian citizenship

The Proclamation provides that deprivation of Ethiopian nationality is not permitted.
Therefore, Ethiopian nationality can only be lost on the basis of voluntary renunciation or, in
a procedure the law deems to be voluntary, on acquisition of another nationality. Dual
nationality is not permitted.

Loss on acquisition of another nationality

In line with the intentions of the UDHR, Ethiopia recognises the right of individuals to change
nationality and specifies that “any national has the right to change his Ethiopian nationality”
(Article 16).46
The loss of Ethiopian nationality on the acquisition of another nationality is considered
voluntary renunciation of Ethiopian nationality: “… any Ethiopian who voluntarily acquires
another nationality shall be deemed to have voluntarily renounced his Ethiopian nationality”
(Article 20 (1)).
Article 20 (4) provides that “A person who retains another nationality in addition to
Ethiopian nationality shall be considered solely an Ethiopian national until the loss of his
Ethiopian nationality pursuant to Sub-Articles (2) or (3) of this Article.”
One inbuilt caveat of the law is that the loss of Ethiopian nationality does not have
implications for spouses and/or children: “a person’s loss of Ethiopian nationality shall have
no effect on the nationality of his spouses and children” (Article 21).

Renunciation
Article 19 (1) states that “any Ethiopian who has acquired or has been guaranteed the
acquisition of the nationality of another state shall have the right to renounce his Ethiopian
nationality.” This article tells us that renunciation has to be operational after securing another
nationality. The Ethiopian law provides additional safeguarding conditions on renouncing
Ethiopian nationality. Article 19 (4) a & b states that:
An Ethiopian who has declared his intension to renounce his nationality may not be released
until:
a) he has discharged his outstanding national obligations;
b) if he has been accused of or convicted of a crime, he has been acquitted or served
the penalty.

No involuntary deprivation
Ethiopian Law embodies strong protection against involuntary deprivation of citizenship. This
is constitutionally recognised. Article 33 (1) of the FDRE Constitution provides that “no
Ethiopian national shall be deprived of his/her Ethiopian nationality against his/her will.” This
statement should be read in conjunction with Article 17 of the nationality proclamation: “No
Ethiopian may be deprived of his nationality by the decision of any government authority unless
he loses his Ethiopian nationality under article 19 or 20 of this proclamation.” One can
conclude that the Ethiopian law has no room for involuntary deprivation of citizenship. This is

46
Article 16 of Proclamation 378/2003.

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 Zecharias Fassil

a hugely commendable side of the law in times in which the world is shocked by problems of
statelessness.

Reacquisition
The conditions for readmission to Ethiopian nationality include renunciation of a foreign
nationality. The current law on readmission reads:
Article 22. Re-Admission to Ethiopian Nationality
1/ A person who was an Ethiopian national and who has acquired foreign nationality
by law shall be readmitted to Ethiopian nationality if he:
a) returns to domicile in Ethiopia;
b) renounces his foreign nationality; and
c) applies to the Authority for re-admission.
In practice, however, readmission is not that common and as in a very recent case, it can be
problematic. The case of a political activist is very important. Activist Jawar Mohammed, a
foreigner of Ethiopian origin, has been living in the US and has American citizenship. He has
been a figurehead in leading the youths of Oromia as a resistance force against the government,
which in effect brought about the coming into power of a new leadership. The activist decided
to join a political party, the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC). He joined the political party
by claiming that he has renounced his American citizenship and has started living in Ethiopia.
There is, however, an unsettled debate about him reacquiring his Ethiopian nationality. The
political party argues that Jawar Mohammed is an Ethiopian national.47
The words of the law seem to be clear. However, there is a lack of practical knowledge,
or what can be called an untried provision. The activist claims he has renounced his foreign
nationality and has applied for re-admission and he argues that he has re-acquired his Ethiopian
nationality. In this conviction Mr. Jawar Ahmed has taken a political party ID card from OFC
and has been observed to participate in party activities. Much of the debate now revolves
around a legal issue of whether applying for readmission as under the article amounts to
reacquiring his Ethiopian nationality or whether the Agency for Immigration, Nationality and
Vital Events needs to give a positive response affirming the readmission decision.48
Puzzled with this lack of clarity, the National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) has
asked the Agency for Immigration, Vital Events and Nationality in writing if Mr. Jawar has
been readmitted to Ethiopian Nationality.49

6.3. Dual nationality

Ethiopia has never recognised dual nationality. The 1930 Nationality Law, the 1995
Constitution and the 2003 Proclamation on Ethiopian Nationality all provide that when an

47
See, https://www.ezega.com/News/NewsDetails/7711/Jawar-Mohammed-is-Ethiopian-per-Proclamation-378-
2003-OFC-Claims, last accessed 15 March 2020.
48
See the narratives at http://addisstandard.com/news-ofc-says-jawar-mohammed-is-ethiopian-as-electoral-
board-demands-citizenship-proof-for-2nd-time/, last accessed 15 March 2020.
49
See https://www.africanews.com/2020/02/12/ethiopia-s-electoral-body-seeks-verification-of-activist-jawar-s-
citizenship//, last accessed 15 March 2020 and http://citizenshiprightsafrica.org/ethiopia-vote-agency-queries-
key-opposition-leaders-citizenship/, last accessed 15 March 2020.
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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

Ethiopian acquires another nationality he or she automatically loses his or her Ethiopian
nationality and that a person naturalising must renounce their existing nationality.
Dual nationality was debated and justification by legal experts was sought by the
constitutional drafting committee.50 It appears that the lack of justification to support dual
nationality is the possible reason for the drafters not including it.51 However, despite being
unconfirmed there are alleged cases of people having two passports with some of them alleged
to even be government office holders. There is currently a debate on the pros and cons of
allowing dual citizenship in Ethiopia.52
The withdrawal of citizenship from birth is only allowed in Ethiopian law in the case
that a person acquires another citizenship. This leaves open the question of whether this means
that the rule is also applicable if Ethiopian nationality is acquired through naturalisation,
marriage or adoption. However, as the constitution does not make a distinction between
nationality from birth and acquired nationality, it is strongly argued that this would apply to
both. However, to not leave matters open for contention it would be important to make a clear
statement.

6.3.1. Foreign nationals of Ethiopian origin

Ethiopia has not followed the trend in African and global citizenship laws towards greater
tolerance of dual nationality. It remains the case, as noted above, that a person naturalising as
Ethiopian must renounce a former nationality, while an Ethiopian who acquires another
nationality automatically loses Ethiopian nationality.
In place of permitting the possibility of dual nationality for the large Ethiopian diaspora,
a law was adopted creating an intermediate status for people of Ethiopian origin. In this regard,
Ghana and Ethiopia have taken the lead in devising such a mechanism for members of their
diasporas. This goes hand in hand either in addition to or instead of creating a right to dual
nationality.53
Proclamation No. 270/2002 is entitled a Proclamation to Provide Foreign Nationals of
Ethiopian Origin with Certain Rights to Be Exercised in Their Country of Origin. This
proclamation applies to foreign nationals of Ethiopian Origin other than persons who forfeited
Ethiopian nationality and acquired Eritrean nationality who had been Ethiopian nationals
before acquiring a foreign nationality, or at least one of whose parents or grandparents or great
grandparents was an Ethiopian national (Article 2(1)) (emphasis added). From the wording of
the law one can see how the Ethiopian-Eritrean relationship is an important factor in Ethiopian
citizenship law. This reaffirms the justification mentioned about the issuance of the 2003
nationality law.
In a subsequent regulation issued implementing the 2003 nationality law,54 a foreign
national of Ethiopian origin is defined as “a foreign national other than a person who forfeited

50
Supra note 24.
51
Ibid.
52
Ethiopian Press Agency, How Can Ethiopia Accommodate Dual Citizenship in Upcoming Elections?
https://www.press.et/english/?p=2963#, last accessed 16 March 2020.
53
Bronwen Manby, Citizenship Law in Africa: A Comparative study, OSI, 2016 p 101- Rights of the African
Diaspora.
54
Council of Ministers Regulation to provide for the definition of power, duty and organisation structure of the
Immigration, Nationality and Vital Events Agency 449/2019.

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 Zecharias Fassil

Ethiopian nationality or at least one of his parents or grandparents or great grandparents was
an Ethiopian national.”55
Foreign nationals of Ethiopian origin have the following rights: once the person secures
the identification card stating he/she is a foreign national of Ethiopian origin she/he is not
required to have an entry visa or residence permit to live in Ethiopia, has the right to be
employed with no need for a work permit with the exception of the defence, security and
foreign affairs sectors and in political establishments, is covered by an applicable pension
scheme, can own immovable property, can be regarded as a domestic investor and enjoys
economic, social and administrative services.56
This intermediate status is the closest version of dual nationality minus participation in
political affairs. The government seem to have chosen this mechanism to strengthen economic
and social ties.
The following cases illustrate the practical application of the privileges for foreigners
of Ethiopian origin.
In the case of Million Asheanfi Vs. Elsabeth Tadesse, the couple had been living in
England and had been naturalised to UK citizenship and their children had UK citizenship.
However, a plea for divorce was instituted at the first instance court in Ethiopia. Considering
the fact that the case concerned a private international law matter, the lower court deferred the
case to the higher court. The higher court ruled that as the case has more relationship to the
UK, as the marriage was concluded in the UK and their citizenship is of a foreign country, the
case needed to be heard in the UK. The plaintiff, however requested for it to be heard in
Ethiopia as it mainly concerned an immovable property located in Ethiopia and this was the
core issue in the effect of the divorce. Therefore, the cassation bench in file number 155950
ruled that the decision of the high court constituted an error of law and the court needed to
revisit the case as it has national jurisdiction on the case.57 This case provides important insight
into how nationality issues can blur the perspective on the main cause of action. The judges in
the two tiers of the judiciary differed over whether the matter was a foreign case. This problem
could have occurred because of a lack of comprehensive awareness of nationality law.
In Sophia Ponatiyos vs Midregenet Cooperative House Building PLC, federal cassation
court case number 111618, the plaintiff moved out of Addis Ababa and started living in the
USA. In the process she later changed her Ethiopian nationality and became a US citizen.
Before she moved to the US, she had entered a cooperative house development project and had
a share of a plot of land. The cooperative, cognisant of the fact that she was no longer in
Ethiopia, issued a requirement for her to produce her Addis Ababa city dweller ID. This was
practically impossible for her or for her agent. As this document was not produced, the
cooperative attempted to remove her from the housing project by decision of its arbitration
committee. This plaintiff alleged that this action constituted a fundamental error of law as the
mere requirement to provide a city dweller ID could not be a ground for removing her from
membership and property ownership. Instead, she had an ID that stated she was a foreign
national of Ethiopian origin and submitted a copy to the PLC. Therefore, the cassation bench
of the federal supreme court of Ethiopia ruled that this case constituted a fundamental error of
law.
It can be concluded that the IDs issued in this regard safeguarded the interests of these
Ethiopian-origin foreign nationals. The legal conflicts arise from perceptions that the

55
Regulation Number 449/2019, Article 2(5).
56
Proclamation 270/2002, Article 5.
57
Cassation bench is a specialised bench under the Federal Supreme court of Ethiopia.
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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

constitution rules that foreign nationals cannot own immovable property. Litigants who are not
aware of the proclamation that increases the rights of the Ethiopian diaspora tend to assume
the diaspora has no legal protection of immovable properties.
However, this privilege is not an absolute one. In another case a person claimed he was
a foreign national of Ethiopian origin and he based his claim on a statement that his grandfather
was Ethiopian. However, as he could not produce evidence to that end he could not enforce his
alleged right to an immovable property.

6.4. Statelessness
An expert on comparative citizenship law in Africa, Bronwen Manby, argues that the Ethiopian
citizenship law does not comply with the constitution as it does not provide a right to nationality
for a child born in the country who would otherwise be stateless.58
Ethiopian law does provide some safeguards against statelessness for those who are
recognised as Ethiopian nationals. Article 33 of the Constitution provides that “No Ethiopian
national shall be deprived of his or her Ethiopian nationality against his or her will.” Under the
current nationality proclamation, renunciation of Ethiopian nationality is only allowed when
acquisition of a foreign nationality is established. In the words of the law, “Any Ethiopian who
has acquired or has been guaranteed the acquisition of the nationality of another state shall
have the right to renounce his Ethiopian nationality.”59 An additional striking feature of
Ethiopian nationality law is that all citizens have equal rights, regardless of how their
nationality was obtained.60
However, it is important to notice that there are still cases of people born in Ethiopia to
stateless parents or parents of unknown nationality or parents who cannot transmit their
nationality to their children. The Ethiopian nationality law is silent on governing these cases as
it lags behind in providing protection against statelessness to children who do not acquire the
nationality of a parent at birth, as is required by obligations under the African Charter on the
Rights and Welfare of the Child.61 It is also important to note that Ethiopia has not yet ratified
the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.

7. Institutions for implementing nationality law in Ethiopia

The implementation of nationality law requires the involvement of different stakeholders. In

the context of Ethiopia, the primary stakeholders are the Nationality Affairs Committee, the
Ministry of Peace, the Immigration Nationality and vital Events Agency, kebeles and courts.
The 2003 nationality law establishes the Security, Immigration and Refugee Affairs
Authority as custodian of the law.62 However, in an attempt to assist the work of the authority,
a Nationality Affairs committee was established. This committee has the power and duty to

58
Bronwen Manby, Citizenship Law in Africa: A Comparative study, OSI, 3rd edition, 2016 p 45, at
https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/uploads/d5d1d086-1a0d-4088-b679-003e09e9c125/citizenship-law-
africa-third-edition-20160129.pdf, last accessed 16 March 2020.
59
Article 19(1).
60
Article 18.
61
Ethiopia acceded to the ACRWC on 2 October 2002. See the status list at the website of the African Union:
https://au.int/en/treaties.
62
Proclamation 378/2003 - 2(5) & 24.

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 Zecharias Fassil

examine applications to obtain nationality by law, examine evidence submitted by a person for
rebutting his presumed renunciation of Ethiopian nationality and ascertain conditions for re-
admission to Ethiopian nationality.63
Following the ongoing reform initiatives in Ethiopia, a new law defining the powers
and duties of the executive organs has been issued: proclamation no. 1097/2018.64 This
arrangement has now made the Ministry of Peace the highest echelon governing nationality
and immigration. According to article 13 (k) of the proclamation, the Ministry of Peace has the
power and duty to lead and follow up citizenship, national identification card, immigration,
passport and vital event registration issuance functions. In practice, however, the Immigration,
Nationality and Vital Events Agency is the special institution established by council of
ministers regulation number 449/2019 to discharge the duties pertaining to immigration,
nationality and vital events.
This agency, as its name indicates, has three major areas of engagement. Here, its role
and function with regard to nationality matters is highlighted. According to Article 5 of the
regulation, the agency has the power and duty to provide and revoke Ethiopian nationality for
foreigners in accordance with the law.65
This article is delicate about what is meant by revoking the Ethiopian nationality of
foreigners. For one thing, the nationality law, i.e. the proclamation, states there is no
involuntary loss of Ethiopian nationality. And once a foreigner has Ethiopian nationality he is
no longer a foreigner as Ethiopian law does not allow dual nationality. Therefore, “in
accordance with the law” seems to be a guideline to reconcile the conflict.
The agency has the power and duty to provide service to foreign nationals of Ethiopian
origin. The other nationality-related service of the agency is the preparation, publication and
provision of national identity cards.
The other important institutions regarding nationality matters in Ethiopia are kebele
offices. These are the lowest level of decentralised administration structure. Among other
things they undertake vital event registrations and issue kebele IDs for dwellers in the
locality/administrative unit, and the ID needs to state the holder’s nationality and if this is
Ethiopian the holder must provide evidence. This will automatically entitle him to many rights.
These grass-root-level institutions are key players in nationality matters. There have alleged to
have been cases where Eritreans and Somali citizens managed to corruptly obtain this ID.66
The cause of this gap is partly the lack of a centralised registration system for vital events.
Last but not least, Ethiopian courts have an irreplaceable role in nationality matters as
they interpret the laws and rule on disagreements between an individual and the state. However,
the lack of an administrative procedural code in the Ethiopian legal system has heavily
impacted the rights of individuals and has been an added burden on the courts.

63
Proclamation 378/2003 Article 23.
64
Article 13(k) of Proclamation 1097/2018.
65
Regulation number 449/2019, Article 3.
66
Although there are not specific data on this point, the allegations among community members were strong
enough.
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 Report on Citizenship Law: Ethiopia

8. Groups at risk of statelessness

In Ethiopia, accessing a kebele ID is key to many services. However, this is not under the direct
control of the federal government. Among other things, this can enhance the risk of
statelessness, especially when a certain group is marginalised. The law is clear in that there is
no different legal effect between being an Ethiopian by descent and by naturalisation. The
descendants of an Ethiopian are legally presumed to be Ethiopians if they have not obtained
foreign nationality. However, there are groups of Rastafarians and people of Greek, Armenian
and Lebanese origin who face difficulties in getting Kebele IDs and have risked being deprived
of their lands by local authorities.67 This is due to a lack of awareness of the citizenship law
and relevant legal norms. Particularly Rastafarians in Shasmene have expressed discontent on
these matters. The lack of an ID has inhibited them from accessing social services and their
mobility is highly limited.68
The lack of an administrative procedural law in the country has opened the flood gates
to cases on the rights of these minority groups and citizens at large. In one instance, a
Rastafarian, pleaded the federal Parliament for a remedy to the obstacles set by local
governments.69 If a kebele administrator refuses to issue an ID to a person who is born to
Ethiopian parents but has no means to prove if s/he is Ethiopian or not, it is evident that the
lack of a kebele ID can limit the person’s mobility in the country or lead to the risk of traveling
with no document stating his/her identity, especially in times when each region prefers to first
benefit the dwellers of the region.70
Another problematic scenario is that if a person from a bordering Ethiopian town comes
to Addis Ababa with a kebele ID that states s/he is a national of Ethiopia and asks the
Immigration Authority for a passport the passport officer raises the question of whether the
person is really Ethiopian. There have been many complaints in this regard. These acts are ultra
vires and compromise the rights of citizens.
The unprecedented number of internally displaced persons (IDPs)71 in Ethiopia is also
a case in point showing how citizenship rights have been challenged and those affected have
had their citizenship doubted. They have been ill treated by host communities as if they were
refugees from neighbouring countries.72

67
For instance, they only began getting legal recognition of their status with an ID in 2017.
68
These are based on observations by the researcher at different times.
69
Even though there have been very recent actions by the government to issue residence permits and IDs and
identify them as foreigners of Ethiopian origin. See DW, why Ethiopia’s Rastafarian Community Keeps
Dwindling at https://www.dw.com/en/why-ethiopias-rastafari-community-keeps-dwindling/a-50339635, last
accessed on 16 March 2020. Rastafarians are highly uncertain about their land and attached properties as locals
are illegally compromising their land. Irritated by the lack of active response from the local governments in
Shashemne, representatives of the Rastafarian community have tried their best to reach the federal government
representatives, including the Parliament, to seek apt remedies.
70
As ethnicity is one of the elements in the ID description, the de facto rule is that accessing some benefits is
reserved for locals.
71
There are 1,642,458 IDPs in Ethiopia. Source: IOM Ethiopia publishes the first ever National Displacement
report, date of publication 25/10/2019, at https://www.iom.int/news/iom-ethiopia-publishes-first-ever-national-
displacement-report, last accessed on 20 December 2019.
72
These complaints have been heard multiple times by media outlets, with IDPs stressing the lack of immediate
support from the government.

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 Zecharias Fassil

9. Conclusion

Ethiopia has adopted a federal form of governance and under Article 51(17) of the Constitution
the federal government has the power to determine matters related to nationality.
As has been succinctly put by the International Crisis Group, the government in power
has centralised the state into a Federal Democratic Republic and also redefined citizenship,
politics and identity on ethnic grounds.73 This has had many different effects on citizenship
protection as enshrined under Article 14(1) of the nationality proclamation. The re-definition
of citizenship has impacted the feelings and identity of many Ethiopians. In the strictest sense
of the term, citizenship does not fully live up to experience.
Even though the FDRE constitution has given the federal government the power to
enact laws on citizenship, in practice the regional governments are the ones which can define
citizenship rights. Basic social services require the presentation of IDs, and there are rules
based on the ethnic federalism which only directly channel particular benefits to locals who are
born in the locality and speak its specified language.
The lack of a centralised ID registration system and the high reluctance of local
governments in some cases to issue an Ethiopian ID might cause a prudent passport case worker
to consider the possibility of not serving a non-Ethiopian. For the service user, a kebele ID and
birth certificate are the conclusive evidence of nationality to obtain a passport.
In sum, in present-day Ethiopia’s political arrangements regional identity and
citizenship are often in conflict rather than complimenting each other as the country is now in
unionist and federalist tension.
There are now attempts to establish a national ID system.74 The Kebele IDs are paper-
based documentation references which in most cases cannot be traced due to filling problems
and old archives. At a time when an election is approaching, accessing a kebele ID will be
troublesome and people can have more than one kebele ID. Therefore, the Ethiopian
government needs to revamp the ID registration and renewal system.
After the case of the Jawar Mohammed incident, there is a keen interest among the legal
community and stakeholders alike to stay abreast of nationality law in Ethiopia. This signals
that a legal training and continuing education programme for legal professionals needs to
incorporate citizenship law in its curriculum. To help with this endeavour, a compilation and
analysis of case law is the way to go.

73
International Crisis Group, Ethiopia: Ethnic Federalism and Its Discontents, published 4 September 2019 at
https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/horn-africa/ethiopia/ethiopia-ethnic-federalism-and-its-discontents, last
visited on 18 December 2019.
74
Addis Ababa is said to have begun issuing digital identification cards last year. See
https://ethio.news/2019/02/23/addis-to-start-issue-digital-identification-card-next-week/ published on 23
February 2019, last accessed on 16 March 2020; APA NEWS, France to provide €40m for Ethiopia's digital ID
project, published on 26 July 2019 at http://apanews.net/en/news/france-to-provide-40m-for-ethiopias-digital-id-
project/, last accessed on 16 March 2020.
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REPORT
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