Bahir Dar University Journal of Law

Trade Unionism in the Ethiopian Industrial Zones

2025-05-29T15:40:09+02:00

Freedom of association of workers is expressly recognized as a human
right in national, regional, and international human rights instruments.
International Labour Organization (ILO) instruments, most notably
Convention 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to
Organize and Convention 98 on the Right to Organize and Collective
Bargaining, expressly recognize workers' freedom of association.
Though Ethiopia recognizes freedom of association of workers, the
country's trade unionism movement is quite restricted in practice. This
study explored the trend of workers unionization in Bahir Dar Industrial
Zone. To attain the goals of the study, normative and empirical data
were generated through evaluation of legal documents, relevant
literature review, and sustained conversations with workers, union
leaders, and management of undertakings operating in the study area.
The data were analyzed using descriptive and thematic data analysis
techniques. The findings of the study reveal that the majority of workers
in Bahir Dar Industrial Zone are not unionized due to the resistance of
employers to allow workers to organize. Even the established unions fail
to sufficiently protect the interests of their members due to
inaccessibility of facilities, absence of cooperation on the part of
employers, undue influence by employers against leaders of employees, limited collaboration among member workers, and low commitment on
the part of union leaders. Based on such findings, the authors provide
possible recommendations.

Challenges and Opportunities of Consumer Protection in the WTO Legal Framework

2025-05-30T10:22:16+02:00

Consumer protection is a key aspect of modern economies that
safeguards consumer rights against unfair practices and unsafe
products, especially in the context of global business interactions. The
World Trade Organization (WTO), widely charged with such
responsibilities, has been criticized for being overly producer-centered.
This paper examines such challenges of the consumer protection
regulatory framework of the WTO, particularly targeting consumer
protection provisions such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT), the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT),
and the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS). In
light of the examinations of these provisions, the paper critically
assesses Ethiopia’s legal and institutional capacity to implement these
rules, considering its limited resources and infrastructure. Through
qualitative analysis and an exploratory review of literature, and
Ethiopia’s trade-related laws, the paper found out that while the WTO
offers some consumer protection mechanisms, they are often vague and
impose stringent procedural requirements, which are difficult to fulfill
for developing countries like Ethiopia. Finally, the paper concludes by
offering policy recommendations for Ethiopia, emphasizing the need for
a stronger legal and institutional framework, enhanced technical
expertise, and effective dispute resolution mechanisms to ensure that trade liberalization benefits do not come at the expense of consumer
welfare.

A Comparative Analysis of Bank Security in A Letter of Credit Transactions

2025-05-30T10:32:50+02:00

This article examines the security of banks using bills of lading as
collateral in letter of credit transactions with a focus on proprietary and
contractual rights. The exploration employs doctrinal tools of
comparative analysis. Juxtaposing the features of English and Ethiopian
laws, the investigation unraveled issues, such as proprietary and
contractual rights, banks’ ability to claim delivery or sue carriers, and
the legal consequences of these issues. The evidences from the
comparative analysis show that the English law clearly sanctions
prejudicial legal consequences on banks whereas the Ethiopian law
leaves outcomes ambiguous. Further, the exploration reveals that the
validity of security interest may be challenged if goods are delivered
before the bill reaches the bank. Yet this is treated as spent under
Ethiopian law, in contrast to the case law under English law. Both
jurisdictions require the transferor to hold title, potentially invalidating
the bank’s security if the seller lacks title. Besides, the English law
considers the intention of parties in transferring title via bills, while
Ethiopian law lack such clarity. The financing bank’s temporary release
of the bill of lading in return for trust receipts further undermines its
security under both legal systems. Finally, pledging bills of lading as
collateral may leave banks as unsecured creditors, questioning the
perceived reliability of this security mechanism.

Towards Addressing the Challenges of Holding or Postponing Elections during Emergencies

2025-05-30T10:57:12+02:00

This article explores the potential role of election emergency laws in
effectively holding or postponing elections during emergencies within
the electoral system of Ethiopia. Inspired by the legal and political
challenges that arose due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on
the eagerly anticipated 2020 election, the article essentially examines
three key incidents: (1) how the federal government postponed the
election through constitutional interpretation, despite opposition from
politicians and scholars advocating for other alternatives within and
outside the Constitution; (2) how the Tigray Regional Government, one
of the federating units, held regional elections during emergencies in
defiance of the federal government’s decision to postpone the election;
and (3) how the federal government later conducted national and
regional elections while the pandemic was still ongoing. Findings from
doctrinal examinations reveal that the decisions to hold or postpone
elections during emergencies were driven by political interests and
operationalized under the regular election laws and institutional
frameworks, rather than by clear and specific laws and authorities to
determine who should decide on holding or postponing elections and
how to conduct elections during emergencies. This has attracted several
legal questions and political tensions. Thus, based on experiences from
other countries, the article proposes an amendment to the Constitution to incorporate holdover clauses and Proclamation No. 1162/2019 to
include a provision that could address election emergencies and
empower electoral bodies to manage the holding or postponement of
elections during emergencies.

Minimum Wage, Human Rights, and State Responsibility

2025-06-07T14:43:09+02:00

Minimum wage is one of the major subjects of concern and debate for international institutions and national stakeholders. The primary objective behind the debate and concern over this subject is about protecting workers from poverty and exploitation. More than 90% of ILO member countries have set a minimum wage for their workers. However, the notion of minimum wage is not without controversies. Some developing States are reluctant to set a minimum wage and a few even argue against it stating that it would push away foreign direct investment (FDI) which has become a principal driving force behind job creation in these countries. On the other hand, the protagonists of minimum wage argue that minimum wage is a fundamental labor right which ensures adequate life for workers.

While Ethiopia has not set a minimum wage for its private sector workers, it adopted a legislative framework in 2019 to set up a Wage Board which would determine minimum wages. Nevertheless, the State is not realizing the envisaged activities of the Wage Board which are expected to lead to a minimum wage regime. This, among other factors, is due to the fear that setting a minimum wage would adversely affect flow of FDI, job creation, and the country’s post war economy. Ethiopia is a party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights where various rights including the right to a decent way of life, food, clothing, and housing are recognized as fundamental human rights. The paper raises the question as whether Ethiopia, by ignoring the question for a minimum wage law for private sector workers, is violating its obligations under international human rights law. The paper further tries to answer this question by looking into the nature of economic, social, and cultural rights and analyzing States’ obligations under human rights instruments. In doing so, it employed a doctrinal approach to define the notion of minimum wage and to delineate the debate around the concept. It then analyzes the stance of the Ethiopian government on the issue mainly from official speeches and commentaries that are publicly available in line with international human rights law and provide recommendations.

Death Penalty in Theories and Ideologies of Criminal Justice

2025-05-30T10:52:32+02:00

Death penalty is one of the most contentious subject of ethical,
ideological and policy debate in criminal jurisprudence. This debate is
largely reflected in the varying positions taken by schools of thought
and ideological camps over the causes of crimes and purpose of
criminal punishment. Two theoretical schools of thought namely, the
classical and the positivist schools, and three political ideologies
predominate the scholarly debate thereby including criminal justice
polices and laws of different countries over the ages. This paper aims
to briefly examine the Ethiopian criminal law on death penalty in light
of the dominant theories and ideologies of criminal justice. While the
existence of death penalty in Ethiopia is against the classical as well as
positivist school, the legal limitations on the imposition and execution
of death penalty exhibit a mixture of classical and positivist schools. On
the ideological dimension, the Ethiopian criminal law blends
conservative and liberal ideology.