Detention by government forces in Chobi, West Shewa (29 May 2025)
- Ref
- OHRM-2025-0499
- Date of incident
- Zone
- West Shewa
Youngsters are taken unwillingly from their homes, market stalls, the roadside, places of recreation or school and bundled away to kebele or district police stations, warehouses or other detention centres where they may be held for a few weeks so that parents have the opportunity to buy the teenagers’ freedom, sometimes for several hundred thousand birr. ‘Even families without eligible children to give to the regime aren’t spared, facing compulsory payments of 30,000 – 50,000 birr.’ Those who manage to secure their child’s freedom often report being made to supply up to three other children in their stead.
Source: Oromia Support Group, OSG Report 70 (2025-06-24), p.11. https://oromiasupport.org/wp-content/uploads/simple-file-list/OSG-Report-70-24-June-2025.pdf