BDU-JL Vol 1 No 1

193 Pages·2014·4.32 MB·English

የባህር ዳር ዩኒቨርሲቲ የህግ መጽሔት
Bahir Dar University Journal of Law

ቅጽ ፩ ቁጥር. ፩
ግንቦት ፪ሺ፪
Vol. 1 No. 1 May 2010

In This Issue በዚህ እትም

Facts and Figurers about the Law School
Articles
Case Comments
Case Reports
_________________

ስለ ህግ ት/በት መግለጫ
ጥናታዊ ጽሁፎች
የፍርድ ትችቶች
ምርጥ ፍርዶች

በባህር ዳር ዩንቨርሲቲ ህግ ት/በት በዓመት ሁለት ጊዘ የሚታተም የሕግ መጽሔት
A bi-annual law journal published by the Bahir Dar University School of Law

በ፪ሺ፪ ዓ.ም.ተ መ
Established in 2010
የባህር ዳር ዩኒቨርሲቲ የህግ መጽሔት
Bahir Dar University Journal of Law

ቅጽ ፩ ቁጥር. ፩
ግንቦት ፪ሺ፪
Vol. 1 No. 1 May 2010

In This Issue በዚህ እትም

Facts and Figurers about the Law School
Articles
Case Comments
Case Reports
_________________

ስለ ህግ ት/በት መግለጫ
ጥናታዊ ጽሁፎች
የፍርድ ትችቶች
ምርጥ ፍርዶች

በባህር ዳር ዩንቨርሲቲ ህግ ት/በት በዓመት ሁለት ጊዘ የሚታተም የሕግ መጽሔት
A bi-annual law journal published by the Bahir Dar University School of Law

በ፪ሺ፪ ዓ.ም.ተ መ
Established in 2010
የ ባህር ዳር ዩኒ ቨርሲቲ ህግ መጽሔት
Bahir Dar University Journal of Law

ቅጽ ፩ ቁጥር. ፩
ግንቦት ፪ሺ፪
Vol. 1 No. 1 May 2010

Advisory Board Members

Worku Yaze, ……...Chairman
(Lecturer, Director of Law School, BDU)
Tilahun Teshome ….Member
(Professor, Dean, Faculty of Law, AAU)
Jack Van Doren )………...Member
(Professor, School of Law, BDU
Tsegaye Regassa ( )…………Member
Asst. Professor, ECSC, AAU
Yeneneh Simegn ( .Member
President of Amhara Regional State Supreme Court)…

Editor-in-Chief

Kokebe Wolde

Editorial Committee Members

Belayneh Admasu
Ermias Ayalew
Muluneh Worku
Tessema Simachew

External Reviewers of Articles Featuring in this Issue

Abebe Abebayehu
(LLB, LLM, LLM, Senior Attorney, WTO Accession Plus Project)
Benyam Tafesse
(LLB, LLM, Lecturer in Law, BDU)
Marissa Jacobus
(Economic Adviser, WTO Accession Plus Project)
Molla Ababu
(LLB, LLM, Lecturer in Law, BDU)
Tsegaye Regassa
(LLB, LLM, PhD Candidate)

ii
Message from the Editorial Committee

Finally, after many plannings, ups and downs, the dream of the Law
School has come true. The young and vibrant Law School has got its
first law journal, The Bahir Dar University Journal of Law, published
by its own staff. On this momentous occasion, the Editorial Committee
congratulates the staff and administration of the Law School. We all
hope that this will move the Law School one step further in the direction
of achieving its stated objectives of becoming a centre of excellence in
legal scholarship and promoting the cause of justice.

The Editorial Committee would like to thank those people who laboured
at the formative stage of the Journal and made it possible. In particular
the Editorial Committee would like to extend its gratitude to the
Director’s Office of the Law School for the always collaborative gesture
and assistance in the course of planning the launching of the Journal
and preparation of this issue of the Journal. The Editorial Committee
also appreciates the cooperation and effort of the external reviewers of
articles featuring in this issue, who were more than willing to help the
Journal. Special thank should also go to H/gabriel Gedecho, a member
of our faculty, for extending unreserved helping hands in the editorial
work.

The Editorial Committee calls upon members of the academia,
practitioners, judges and members of the legal profession in general to
submit contributions on various legal issues pertaining to Ethiopian laws
and institutions. The Journal welcomes research articles, comments on
cases which standout for any reason, reflections on current legal issues
and book reviews. (Submission guidelines are appended at the end page
of this issue)

The views expressed in this journal do not reflect the views of the
Editorial Committee or the position of the Law School.

iii
Law School Full Time Staff
No Name of Instructor Sex Qualification
1. Addisu Damtie M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
2. Alebachew Birhanu M LLB, LLM -Lecturer
3. Amdebrihan Ayalew M LLB, LLM Candidate
4. Belayneh Admasu M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
5. Benyam Tafese M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
6. Elias Hizkeal M LLB-Gradu. Asst II
7. Ermias Ayalew M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
8. Gizachew Silesh M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
9. Hailie Guesh M LLB-Gradu. Asst II
10. H/gabriel Gedecho M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
11. Henok Bogale M LLB-Gradu. Asst II
12. H/Mariam Yohannes M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
13. Prof. Jack Van Doren M Professor
14. Jennifer Ward F Assistant Professor
15. Kokebie Wolde M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
16. Melkamu Aboma M LLB-Gradu. Asst II
17. Molla Ababu M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
18. Muluneh Worku M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
19. Nega Ewunete M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
20. Temesgen Sisay M LLB-Asst. Lecturer
21. Tessema Simachew M LLB-Asst. Lecturer
22. Tilahun Weldie M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
23. Tilahun Yazie M LLB-Asst. Lecturer
24. Worku Yaze M LLB, LLM- Lecturer
25. Addissie Shiferaw M LLB, LLM Candidate
26. Balew Mersha M LLB, LLM, PhD Candidate
27. Belayneh Ketsela M LLB, LLM Candidate
28. Firehiwot Wujira F LLB, LLM Candidate
29. Mekdes Tadele F LLB, LLM, PhD Candidate
30. Mizanie Abate M LLB, LLM, PhD Candidate
31. Nega Mirete M LLB, LLM Candidate
32. Selamawit Bogale F LLB, LLM Candidate
33. Yonas Tesfa M LLB, LLM, PhD Candidate
34. Zelalem Demelash M LLB, LLM Candidate
35. Amanu Mekonen M BA, MA - Lecturer
36. Mihretie Walle M BED, MA- Lecturer
37. Yelfign Ayenew F BA, MA - Lecturer
38. Yohannes Mersha M BA, MA - Lecturer

Part Timers
1. Gashaw Zewdu M LLM
2. Dessie Seyoum M LLM
3. Geremew G/Tsadik M LLM
4. Yeneneh Simegn M LLM
iv
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Bahir Dar University Journal of Law
ቅጽ ፩ ቁጥር. ፩
ግንቦት ፪ሺ፪
Vol. 1 No. 1 May 2010
Content
Facts and Figures about the Law School ………………………………………………........1
Worku Yaze, Director of Law School
Articles
Comparative Relevance of the Ethiopian Federal System to other African Polities of the
Horn: First Thoughts on the Possibility of “Exporting” Multi-ethnic Federalism ……...…..5
Tsegaye Regassa
Some Problems Related with Reservations to International Treaties:
Focus on Human Rights Treaties ……………………………………………………..…... 49
Molla Ababu
The Impact of the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS
Agreement) on the Realization of the Right to Food…………………………………….. ..97
Tilahun Welde
Transitional Justice through Prosecution: The Ethiopian Red-Terror Trial in Retrospect....127
Alebachew Birhanu
Case Comments
Deck Carriage under the Maritime Code of Ethiopia: A Comment on the Decision of the
Addis Ababa High Court in Girma Kebede v. Ethiopian Shipping Lines Case…………. ..157
H/gabriel Gedecho
Issue Framing and Allocating Burdens of Proof in Civil Cases: A Comment on Ato Gebru
G/Meskel v. Priest G/Medhin Reda Case……………………………………………………..... 163
Worku Yaze
Selected Court Cases (Written in Amharic Language)
KK Blanket Factory workers association V. KK Textile Industry, Federal Supreme
Court Cassation Division, File No. 18180, 29 July 1997 E.C..................................... 177
St. Joseph School V. Girma Mersha, Federal Supreme Court Cassation Division, File No.
22130, 29 February 1998 E.C......................................................................................183
Hamerework St. Marry Church V. Deacon Mihret Birhan and others Federal Supreme
Court Cassation Division, File No. 18419, 4 May 1998 E.C......................................187
v
Some Facts and Figures about the Law School

Worku Yaze Wodage

I’m writing this brief ‘tips’ about our Law School on the occasion of
the inauguration of the publication of the Bahir Dar University Journal of
Law. I’m very much pleased to see the birth of the Journal today as I feel that
it has been overdue. I feel very much honored and privileged to see such a
beginning which undoubtedly will open an additional avenue for more
scholarly and intellectual activities in this country.
On this occasion, I have to congratulate and thank all the members of
the Research and Publications Unit of the School, and especially Ato Kokebe
Wolde, for making our dreams a reality and for opening this remarkable path.
I believe that this beginning will provide an opportunity for the staff and other
members of the legal profession to do meaningful intellectual contributions
for the betterment of the legal system and for the improvement of the quality
of legal education of the country.
I hope it will not be amiss if I take some space jotting down some facts
about the Law School of Bahir Dar University on this special and historical
occasion.
The School is too young originally founded as a program in 1997
within the then Faculty of Business and Economics to offer diploma courses
in law in the Continuing Education Program. Later in 2001, it was established
as Department of Law and started to offer law courses in diploma and degree
programs for regular, extension and summer students. Subsequently, in 2004,
following its better performance within the university and with a dramatic
increase of its staff and student population, it attained a Faculty status.
Following the re-designing process within the University, the Faculty is again
re-named as School of Law in July 2009.
Within this short span of time, this young Law School has contributed
a lot to the justice sector. It has trained, educated and graduated a mass of
regular students drawn from all over the country in its regular Advanced
Diploma and Degree programs. It has given trainings to a lot of people living
in and around Bahir Dar under its diploma and degree extension programs. It
has also given training to many people working in the various justice
institutions of the various regional states in the country in its Diploma
Summer and Distance (with Face-to-Face component) programs. Most of the
legal professionals that are currently working in the justice institutions in the

 Lecturer in Law and Director of Law School, BDU.
Some Facts and Figures about the Law School 2

Amhara, Afar, Benishangul/Gumuz and Gambela Regional states are, without
any exaggeration, graduates of the Law Faculty of Bahir Dar University.

Admission Advanced
classification Diploma Diploma Degree Year
M F T M F T M F T
Extension 104 5 109 1994
51 4 55 1995
103 12 115 1996
24 4 28 1997
94 15 109 1998
118 42 160 1999
10+3 56 16 72 32 3 35 2000
`` 35 13 48 103 14 117 2001
Sub total 494 82 576 135 17 152
Regular 29 2 31 1996
107 6 113 1997
34 5 39 1998
123 37 160 1999
141 36 177 2000
150 43 193 2001
Sub total 136 8 144 448 121 569
Distance/Summer 96 2 98 1996
74 0 74 1997
244 77 321 1998
163 148 311 1999
155 99 2254 2000
Sub total 732 326 1058
Grand Total 1226 408 1634 136 8 144 495 125 620

Table 1. Number of graduates of the School since establishment. Compiled by Atakilt Alemu.

The School has young, very energetic and ambitious academic staff,
some of whom have rich experience in the legal practice. There is an
exemplary harmonious relationship between the academic staff and law
students. Conducting interactive classes as per the university’s schedule and
other extraordinary arrangements is a well established practice. Most
instructors give individual and group assignments and usually send their
regular and extension students to the nearby justice institutions with a view to
enable them acquire the necessary skill and knowledge. The School often
Bahir Dar University Journal of Law 3

encourages students to participate in national and international moot court
competitions. So far, our students have exhibited good performance in the
various national and international Moot court competitions. There is also a
well established Law Students’ Union which is playing crucial roles in
supporting the teaching-learning process and related activities.
The Law School is well known in its community services. With a
generous support from Action Aid Ethiopia (Northern Branch at Bahir Dar)
it has given free legal aid service to a number of needy persons in and around
Bahir Dar. Women, people with disability, people living with HIV/AIDS and
generally those who couldn’t afford hiring their own lawyer or paying for
legal advice have benefited much from the Free Legal Aid Center of the Law
School. The School, in collaboration with Action Aid Ethiopia and Amhara
Mass Media Agency has given continuous legal awareness to the public at
large through Radio program. Furthermore, the School working in
collaboration with Amhara Regional State Ethics and Anti-Corruption
Commission, with Amhara Development Association (ADA) and with Action
Professionals’ Association for the People (APAP) and the Law Students’
Union (LSU) has given trainings on various issues related to corruption,
budget, gender and human rights to the wider community living in the urban
and rural areas of the Amhara Region.
The Law School has built a good culture of working in partnership
with many governmental and non-governmental institutions. Apart from its
close ties to the Justice Bureaus, Supreme Courts, Police Commissions and
Prison Commissions of some regional states, especially of the Amhara
Regional State, it has well established relationships with FDRE Human Rights
Commission, FDRE Institution of the Ombudsman, FDRE Justice and Legal
System Research Institute, and Amhara National Regional State Women’s
Affairs Bureau. In partnership with and with financial support of the FDRE
Institution of the Ombudsman, Amhara Regional State Justice Bureau,
Amhara National Regional State Women’s Affairs Bureau and Action Aid
Ethiopia (Northern Branch), it has conducted various research works on
various themes.
The Law School is a beneficiary of Nuffic /NPT-Ethiopia/ Project.
With a grant from the Netherlands Government, it has upgraded a substantial
number of its staff qualification from LLB degree to LLM degree; and, it has
acquired a lot of valuable and up-to-date law books from Europe through a
selfless engagement and commitment of Professor Leonard F.M. Besselink of
Utrecht University, the Netherlands.
Some Facts and Figures about the Law School 4

I should not fail to mention the contribution of Professor Dagne
Yisihak and others in the USA to the Law School (and also to the Faculty of
Business and Economics). Besides the books donation, Professor Dagne has
visited us a number of times and keeps on encouraging and supporting the
School. He has promised to extend his support to the Law School’s Masters
Program and to create some institutional link with other universities.
Currently, the Law School has 38 academic and more than 10 support
staff. It runs undergraduate Regular, Extension, Summer, Distance (with Face
–to- Face component) LLB Programs, and Regular and Extension BA
Programs in Good Governance and Development studies. There are about 718
regular, 324 extension, 125 summer and 256 Distance (with Face –to- Face
component) undergraduate students making a total of 1423 students. It has
also started to offer trainings in masters’ degree programs in Gender and
Development studies and in Environmental and Natural Resources Law. There
are 10 and 7, respectively, postgraduate students in these programs. The
School is making necessary preparations to launch another LLM program in
Criminal Justice.