Article 37
Right of Access to Justice
1. Everyone has the right to bring a justiciable matter to, and to obtain a decision
or judgment by, a court of law or any other competent body with judicial
power.
2. The decision or judgment referred to under sub-Article 1 of this Article may
also be sought by:
(a) Any association representing the Collective or individual interest of its
members;
or
(b) Any group or person who is a member of, or represents a group with
similar interests.
Article 38
The Right to Vote and to be Elected
1. Every Ethiopian national, without any discrimination based on colour, race,
nation, nationality, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion or other
status, has the following rights:
(a) To take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly and through freely
chosen representatives;
(b) On the attainment of 18 years of age, to vote in accordance with law;
(c) To vote and to be elected at periodic elections to any office at any level of
government; elections shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be
held by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the
electors.
2. The right of everyone to be a member of his own will in a political
organization, labour union, trade organization, or employers’ or professional
association shall be respected if he or she meets the special and general
requirements stipulated by such organization.
3. Elections to positions of responsibility with any of the organizations referred
to under sub-Article 2 of this Article shall be conducted in a free and
democratic manner.
4. The provisions of sub-Articles 2 and 3 of this Article shall apply to civic
organizations which significantly affect the public interest.
Article 39
Rights of Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples
1. Every Nation, Nationality and People in Ethiopia has an unconditional right to
self-determination, including the right to secession.
2. Every Nation, Nationality and People in Ethiopia has the right to speak, to
write and to develop its own language; to express, to develop and to promote
its culture; and to preserve its history.
3. Every Nation, Nationality and People in Ethiopia has the right to a full
measure of self-government which includes the right to establish institutions
of government in the territory that it inhabits and to equitable representation in
state and Federal governments.