Regulating Inter-Ethnic Induced Hate Speech in Ethiopia

Abstract

Freedom of expression is not absolute right and may be restricted for the sake of protecting other fundamental human rights in accordance with law. Online social Media is unlike print media, tend to be unregulated and provide services being manipulated all over the world. Hate speech should not be hided under the protective umbrella of freedom of speech or expression. There must have a clear demarcation between free speech and hate speech. Accordingly, the main objective of the article is to examine international legal instruments, Ethiopian legal frameworks and institutional setting which regulate hate speech. In order to achieve the intended aims, the study employed doctrinal legal research on which legal analysis of the principal legislations. In so doing, the result of findings identified a lot of legal vacuums with regards to hate speech. Further, the existing FDRE proclamation No.1185/2020 provides responsibilities of service provider institutions to suppress and prevent dissemination of hate speech; however, the practical enforcement of hate speech legislation in Ethiopia suffers challenges inter-alia: absence of uniform definition, contents and scope of hate speech, anonymity, jurisdiction etc. Finally, the study used OSCOLA rule of reference in this article.