“Such a Brutal Crackdown”

Gudina was detained for three weeks. Another student, describing the same
incident, said, “They were beating us like animals…They asked us to walk on our
knees and my knees are still hurting.” 62
Kadir, a student at Rift Valley University in Waliso, described security forces storming the
classrooms:
Students would run in all directions, it was like a war zone. One student
was shot and killed while trying to run away. On 10 separate occasions they
came into the classroom. Sometimes they would try to prevent us from
leaving the classroom to protest, other times they would come and arrest
students at random. 63
Arrests of influential community leaders, opposition leaders, government officials and
artists
In the days and weeks following the protests, security officials arrested scores of
individuals deemed to be influential or prominent in their communities, or those with a
history of past problems with the government or security forces. Within schools, these
individuals included student association leaders, cultural club leaders, older students,
and prominent teachers. Artists, opposition political party supporters, individuals with
perceived family ties with the OLF, business owners, people involved in promoting Oromo
art and culture, and even influential local government officials were also arrested. 64
Several OPDO officials in woreda governments told Human Rights Watch that the lists of
those targeted were often compiled by local security officials, administration officers, and
even school administrators. 65
62 Human Rights Watch interview with #59, location withheld, April 2016.
63 Human Rights Watch interview with #71, location withheld, April 2016.
64 Human Rights Watch and other organizations have frequently documented this pattern of mass arrests in Oromia during
politically sensitive times such as elections or protests. See Human Rights Watch, “Suppressing Dissent: Human Rights
Abuses and Political Repression in Ethiopia’s Oromia Region,” Vol. 17, No. 7 (A), May 10, 2005,
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2005/05/09/suppressing-dissent-0; and Amnesty International, “Because I am Oromo’,
Sweeping Repression in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia,” October 10, 2014,
https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/4000/afr250062014en.pdf (accessed May 19, 2016).
65 Human Rights Watch interviews with #78, #101, location withheld, April 2016.
“SUCH A BRUTAL CRACKDOWN” 32