Society Passport pains: Ethnic names, extra scrutiny, passports denied
August 10, 2024
Bias and bureaucracy collide at ICS, as immigration hurdles trip up citizens
Nathan Tadesse, a 24-year-old entrepreneur from Addis Ababa, never imagined that his pursuit of an Ethiopian passport would morph into a battle against deep-seated prejudice. After earning his degree from Adama Science and Technology University, Nathan found himself mired in a bureaucratic quagmire, one he says reveals a far-reaching bias within the nation’s immigration services.
Nathan’s journey into Ethiopia’s bureaucratic labyrinth began over seven months ago. It was on LinkedIn that Nathan first aired his grievances, recounting a harrowing encounter with the Ethiopian Immigration and Citizenship Services (ICS). He says what should have been a routine process to secure his passport became a drawn-out process.
His ordeal began on December 12, 2024 – the day he was finally scheduled to have his photo and fingerprints taken—a full six months after he first applied. After months of anticipation, he finally arrived at the ICS office, hoping to complete the routine steps. But what awaited him was anything but routine.
“I expected the usual formalities, a straightforward process,” Nathan recounted. “Instead, I encountered discrimination at its worst.” According to Nathan, the discrimination began almost as soon as he set foot inside the ICS compound. What followed left many, including Nathan, stunned.
After enduring a lengthy queue, he says an employee began instructing everyone to have their birth certificates ready. What came next, however, was even more unsettling: the same employee loudly directed anyone with Tigrayan parents to move to the other side of a wall, berating them as they did so—a move that Nathan described as “shameful.”
“Seeing others around me confused and disgusted, I realized I hadn’t misheard,” Nathan said.
Recounting his experience, Nathan claims he was subjected to an invasive line of questioning when his turn finally came. He says he was grilled about his birthplace, as well as the origins of his parents and grandparents—before being sent to the infamous Bureau No. 07. His documents were stamped with a note: “to be verified,”—a phrase that has come to symbolize an insidious form of discrimination.
“Just because my grandparents were from Tigray, I was sent to the Bureau,” Nathan said. There, he submitted a litany of documents—his birth certificate, his parents’ Ids, his school certificates, university degree, and letters from previous employers. Yet, despite providing ample proof of his Ethiopian citizenship, it was deemed insufficient.
“At the ICS, none of this seems to matter,” Nathan said, his frustration evident. “They demanded identification from an uncle or aunt born in Tigray, even though my relatives were born and raised in Addis Ababa and have no ties to government institutions.”
Unable to produce the requested documents, Nathan’s passport application was stonewalled. Now, over seven months later, he plans to take a legal action, hiring a lawyer to represent him in court.
“I’ve already hired a lawyer to take the matter to court and fight for my birth right,” he said. But Nathan’s battle is not confined to the courtroom; he plans to leverage media and public platforms to challenge what he describes as “an unjust and outdated practices” of the ICS.
In another instance, a mother and daughter, who wished to remain anonymous, detailed biases within the service. The daughter, of mixed Amhara and Oromo descent, and her mother went to the ICS to renew their passports. However, they encountered blatant bias.
When their turn finally arrived after a day and a half of waiting, she described how the officer at the desk simply checked their names, seemingly trying to identify their ethnic background. “What happened next was astonishing, to say the least,” the 44-year-old mother recounted.
“At first, the officer refused to provide the service after seeing my name and realizing I am of Amhara origin. Then, upon discovering that my daughter is of Oromo descent, he said, ‘I wouldn’t have served you if it weren’t for her,’” she explained.
These stories are not isolated incidents. Similar experiences echo through countless other accounts, prompting human rights organizations to raise alarms.
A report released by Human Rights First Ethiopia (HRFE) supports these claims, highlighting the systemic discrimination faced by passport applicants. The report, based on interviews with ICS customers as well as several Tigrayans, paints a grim picture of the hurdles these individuals encounter—obstacles that HRFE attributes to a discriminatory immigration framework.
Applicants with Tigrayan-sounding names, the report says, are routinely funneled to Bureau No. 07, where they are met by Tigrinya-speaking employees and face additional scrutiny.
Yet, even here, the treatment is often harsh. It’s a place where many are left waiting for hours, at times, some reduced to tears by the process.
The report also underscores that the bias extends beyond Tigrayans, affecting individuals of Eritrean descent as well. One such case, cited in the report, involves a 30-year-old man, referred to as “Gebrekirstos” for his protection. Despite his position as an employee of the Ethiopian Ministry of Justice, Gebrekirstos found himself denied a passport on the basis of an alleged Eritrean heritage.
“After months of waiting and completing the online application, I was told I didn’t need an Ethiopian passport because I was Eritrean,” the report reads. “It was both shocking and infuriating, especially for someone like me, working within the Ministry of Justice.”
The report exposes a troubling pattern of inconsistent and often arbitrary decision-making within the ICS. Individuals often find themselves subjected to additional demands for documentation—requirements that others are not asked to meet—leading to prolonged delays and mounting frustration.
For instance, Adey Letebirhan, a 70-year-old Addis Ababa resident, has called the capital home for over four decades. Eager to visit her children and grandchildren in London, Adey found herself entangled in red tape when the ICS demanded the Kebele ID of her long-deceased parents, a demand that left her distraught.
“As a result of being born in Tigray and having a Tigrayan-sounding name, they were unjustly denied a passport, a common issue affecting many Tigrayan descent,” reads the report. Her story is far from unique, reflecting a broader pattern of discrimination detailed in the report.
The report underscores a disturbing lack of transparency and consistency within ICS procedures, which disproportionately affect Tigrayans. Yet, the impact isn’t confined to them alone; those with names resembling Tigrigna—whether they are from Somali, Oromo, or Amhara communities—have also faced similar barriers.
According to the report, while the issue is particularly severe for Tigrayans, it also extends to people of Somali origin as well.
In an interview with The Reporter, one individual, who asked to remain anonymous, shared his experience of mistreatment at the ICS. He speculated that the heightened scrutiny might be tied to “national security” concerns, particularly in the aftermath of the conflict between the federal government and Tigrayan forces.
“Though they treated me unfairly because I’m Tigrayan, I could understand their concern. But the way they handled it was wrong,” he said. He claims he was also sent to Bureau No. 7, where he had to provide his educational documents for verification just because his father was born in Tigray—a place he has never even visited.
He urged the ICS to “rethink how they treat and respect their customers’ rights.”
In response to these allegations, Mulugeta Taddess, director of the Directorate for Accreditation, Registration, and Issuance of Documents at the ICS, strongly refuted claims of discriminatory practices. He insisted that ICS follows consistent and well-defined procedures applicable to all applicants, irrespective of ethnicity.
According to Mulugeta, when “controversial documents” are submitted, the ICS conducts thorough investigations, beyond standard procedure. He asserted that this practice is applied across all ethnic groups and regions, especially those with close ties to neighboring countries, such as Gambella, Somali, and Tigray regions.
“These investigations are not targeted,” Mulugeta told The Reporter. He said: “Additional scrutiny is routine due to overlapping languages, religions, and lifestyles.”
During the Tigray conflict, additional scrutiny was necessary due to heightened security concerns, leading to a temporary halt in passport processing by orders from higher authorities, according to the Director. He explained that the high demand from the Tigray and Somali regions prompted this halt.
Mulugeta maintained that his office has never engaged in discriminatory practices against Tigrayans or any other group.
As controversy swirls around ICS’s practices and handling of passport applications, the Human Rights First Ethiopia report concludes with a call for immediate reform, urging authorities to address these disparities and ensure a more just and inclusive immigration system that respects the rights of all citizens.