Ethiopian MPs approve lifting of the state of emergency
Ethiopia’s Parliament on Tuesday approved the lifting of a state of emergency imposed last year, signalling further freedoms for the public, including movement of people.
The House of People’s Representatives, the Lower House of the Ethiopian Federal Parliamentary Assembly, approved a proposal to lift the state of emergency following their recall from recess.
The state of emergency had allowed the government wide-ranging powers meant to respond to the then expanding surge of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.
Authorities also limited communication services and were accused of detaining suspects longer than the laws allowed.
On Monday, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government had called parliamentarians for an emergency meeting scheduled for Tuesday, cutting short the legislators’ February recess.
Ethiopian MPs usually take a break in February and between July and the end of September.
