https://addisstandard.com/olf-regains-access-to-its-finfinne-hq-after-four-years-forced-closure/

#Ethiopia: #OLF regains access to its #Finfinne HQ after four-year forced closure

The #Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) has regained access to its headquarters in Finfinne (Addis Abeba) after more than four years of forced closure.

The handover was conducted in the presence of representatives from the Addis Abeba Branch of the Joint Council of Political Parties. OLF thanked the National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) and the Joint Council for facilitating the return, calling it “a significant step forward.”

The party had been locked out of its headquarters since August 2020, following a police raid and the controversial removal of its leadership. This came amid a broader crackdown on OLF leaders, including the house arrest of Chairman Dawud Ibssa after the assassination of prominent Oromo artist Hachalu Hundessa. Several senior members of the party were also detained in defiance of court orders, leaving the party politically paralyzed at the time of their release last year.

OLF Public Relations Officer Lemmi Gemmechu to Addis Standard that while the office had been inaccessible, the party never relinquished its claim. Although the party regained access to its HQ, more than 200 of its offices nationwide remained closed.

“The reopening of our offices is tied to a fundamental democratic right, the right to assembly,” Lemmi said.