Ambo University closed after riots

The main campus of the Ambo University has been closed following riots by students protesting a government plan to expand the area of the capital, Addis Ababa, into Oromia, Ethiopia Observer has learned.Teaching has been suspended at the campus, where the protests began, and the Monday and Tuesday morning riots led to the destruction of property around the university. Anti-riot police were deployed at the campus to deal with the unruly students. Following the riots, a special senate meeting was held yesterday, and the President of the university advised students to start class next Monday.
The Ambo University Campus in Guder has also been also closed as part of the student’s protests spreading throughout the Oromia region. There are reports of injuries and arrests in a number of colleges and universities in the region; and local police have publicly acknowledged that three students have died so far.
The Ethiopian government statement blamed the protests on “baseless rumours” being spread about the “integrated development master plan” for the capital.
Human Rights Watch on its part said that the government should ensure that the use of excessive force by its security personnel stops immediately. “It should then support an independent and impartial inquiry into the conduct of security forces in the current protests – and last year’s as well. Those responsible for serious abuses should be fairly prosecuted. This would be the best way for the Ethiopian government to show its concern about the deaths and injuries inflicted on the students, that it does not condone the use of live ammunition against peaceful protesters, and that those who break the law are appropriately punished,” it says.