POLITICS & POWER/ON THE LINE n°1362 - 28/09/2013 Hailu Shawel against Norway in Ethiopia A real estate dispute has pitted the Norwegian embassy in Addis Ababa against the famous Ethiopian opponent Hailu Shawel during the last few months, concerning a building it rented from him in July 2004. At the time, it was leased for 15 years, but the Norwegian Embassy wished to leave in 2009 and called for the suspension of the lease, as is allowed under the terms of a clause in their rental agreement. But the chancellery did not find another building that suited its purposes and the two parties agreed, by oral agreement, to extend the lease for an indefinite period. In February, Hailu Shawel wrote to the Norwegian Embassy to inform it that he wanted to sell the property and asked it to quickly find other premises. However, the embassy refused, basing its reasoning on the original contract which it deemed still valid, giving it the right to stay there until 2019. The case has become deadlocked, despite the intervention of the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in favour of the opponent. Hailu Shawel is stuck because he cannot take legal proceedings against the embassy because it has diplomatic immunity.
Posted on: Sat, 28 Sep 2013 22:06:36 +0000
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