Ethiopian Journal of Human Rights
Journal / Ethiopian Journal of Human Rights / Submissions

 

The Ethiopian Journal of Human Rights (EJHR) is a multidisciplinary journal published by the Center for Human Rights, Addis Ababa University (CHR,AAU). The following are the EJHR Editorial Rules approved by the Academic Commission of the CHR AAU.

1. Content and Objectives of the EJHR
1.1. The EJHR publishes solicited and unsolicited research articles, reviews, commentaries, major conference proceedings, decisions of courts/tribunals, opinions, notes, reflections, etc. that have bearing on human rights and are based on original substantive data or inventive research methods
1.2. The objectives of the EJHR shall include promotion of knowledge and dialogue on issues of human rights as multidisciplinary subject as well as promotion of human rights values including, but not limited to, understanding, tolerance, and participation.

2. Publication Host and Frequency of the EJHR
2.1. The EJHR shall be hosted, owned, overseen and published by the CHR-Addis Ababa University system.
2.2. The EJHR shall be published at least once a year.
2.3. In addition to the regular volume, additional/special thematic issues of the EJHR may be issued as required. In such cases, the additional/special issues shall be issues of the same volume, being identified by consecutive numbers.

3. Form of Manuscript
3.1. A manuscript can be a research article, commentary, review, or other scholarly writing.
3.2. A manuscript may be emailed to the Editor-in-Chief in soft copy in MS Word format. Exceptionally, it may be submitted in hard copy, which shall be typed.
3.3. The manuscript shall have:
3.3.1. Title Page – This contains the full title of the manuscript followed by the author’s name with an asterisk. As the footnote, there shall be an asterisk and a note, briefly describing the author’s present work/educational status, affiliation, etc.
3.3.2. Abstract: this part, appearing at the beginning of the manuscript, features a brief summary of the research article which enlightens on the paper’s purpose and arguments.
3.3.3. Introduction or Background Information – This part briefly describes the subject matter of the manuscript..
3.3.4. Statement of Objectives: this section offers information on what the author anticipates to achieve from the research article.
3.3.5. Description of Methods: informs how the author intends to undertake the research, the methods used to gather data (surveys, interviews etc.), why such methods are chosen, and what the limitations of any such use are.
3.3.6. Text – This part contains discussions, analyses, arguments, etc. and may be divided into parts, sections and sub-sections, depending on the author’s approach to the subject matter.
3.3.7. Conclusion - This reflects the author’s synoptic opinion on the subject matter, and may include suggestions, proposals, affirmation,
recommendations, etc.
3.3.8. Notes and References – They have to follow the house style of the EJHR, which is available at the library and is also provided to authors/assessors upon request.

4. Submission
4.1. A manuscript shall be accompanied with a declaration that it has not been submitted for publication elsewhere.
4.2. Upon submission of a manuscript, the Editor-in-Chief shall acknowledge its receipt within three weeks.
4.3. As soon as a manuscript is received, the Editor-in-Chief shall enter the name and address of the author, title of manuscript, date of receipt. For tracking the progress of the journal from submission, peer review to final publication.

5. Distribution and Assigning Reviewers
5.1. Upon receiving manuscripts, the Editor-in-Chief of the journal assesses the suitability of the manuscript received to the journal’s scope in order to make the decision whether to send it for peer review.
5.2. During this initial assessment and review process, editorial board members check whether the manuscript was prepared according to the basic requirements and style guideline of the journal.
5.3. Where the style of a manuscript is not in conformity with the style of the EJHR, the Editor-in-Chief shall return it to the author with suggestions for its improvement. The author shall be given ten days to improve the manuscript as to style and return it to the Editor-in-Chief.
5.4. Where the manuscript is a research article, the Editor-in-Chief shall refer it, in soft copy, to two reviewers with due regard to anonymity.
5.5. The Editor-in-Chief shall adhere to the principle of “first come first served” in distribution and review of a submission.

6. Review
6.1. After the basic and preliminary check by the editor, each manuscript undergoes a blind peer review by researchers with a relevant area of expertise and knowledge.
6.2. A research article shall be considered by one internal reviewer and one external reviewer who are conversant with the subject matter of the submission.
6.3. In the absence of an internal assessor, the research article may be referred to two external assessors.
6.4. A reviewer shall consider the article’s suitability for publication based on its:
6.4.1. Significance for realizing the objectives of the EJHR (Paragraph 1.2);
6.4.2. Logical rigor, critical insight, and soundness of judgment;
6.4.3. Correctness of grammar and usage;
6.4.4. Conformity with scholarly conventions of presentation;
6.4.5. Other relevant criteria as might be set by the Editorial Board from time to time;
6.5. Each reviewer shall submit his/her considered views and comments in writing to the Editor-in-Chief within six to eight weeks. Each reviewer shall provide the following decisions: accept with major revision; accept with minor revision; accept with no changes; reject.
6.6. Where a manuscript has been assessed favorably by both reviewers (with no changes), the Editor-in-Chief shall submit the same to the Board for
endorsement.
6.7. Where one of the reviewers favorably assesses a manuscript and the other rejects its publication, the Editor-in-Chief shall still submit the manuscript to the Board for decision.
6.8. Where any of the reviewers assesses a manuscript subject to major or minor comments, the Editor-in-Chief shall submit the manuscript to the author, and once the comments are complied with, to the Board for endorsement.
6.9. Where both reviewers are of the opinion that the manuscript is not fit for publication, the Editor-in-Chief shall return it with their comments of rejection to the author. The author may appeal to the Board.
6.10. The Editor-in-Chief shall inform the author about the status of his/her article assessed by reviewers within seven days.

7. The Editorial Board
7.1. The Board shall be composed of distinguished personalities contributing to the promotion and protection of human rights.
7.2. The Board shall include the Head of the CHRAAU and the Editor-in-Chief of the EJHR.
7.3. The members shall be nominated by the Editor-in-Chief and approved by the Academic Commission of the CHR AAU.
7.4. The Board shall elect its own chairperson.
7.5. Without prejudice to other provisions of these Editorial Rules, the Board shall convene whenever the Editor-in-Chief or the Chairperson of the Board or any three of its members call a meeting.
7.6. There shall be a quorum where four members of the Board are present at the meeting.
7.7. The Board shall:
7.7.1. Approve a research article favorably assessed by two reviewers or assessed subject to minor and major comments which are subsequently
addressed by the author - unless it detects exceptionally grave substantive defects in such manuscript;
7.7.2. Deliberate and decide on the suitability of publishing a manuscript rejected by either of the reviewers. In such cases, each member of the Board shall present his/her considered views and comments at the Board’s meeting stating reasons for the acceptance or rejection and/or improvement;
7.8. The decisions of the Board shall, in principle, be made by consensus. Where there is no consensus, the decision shall be made by a majority vote of the members present at the meeting. In case of a tie, the Chairperson of the Board shall have a casting vote.
7.9. The decision of the Board regarding an article under this paragraph shall be entered in the checklist and communicated to the author through the Editor-in- Chief within five days.
7.10. Where the Board decides to return an article to the author under this Article for improvement, the Editor-in-Chief shall follow the procedures
indicated under Article 6 of these Editorial Rules.

8. Proofs
The Editor-in-Chief shall distribute the proofs to the members of the Editorial Committee who shall be responsible for correcting the printing errors, provided however, that if the author of the article is an academic staff member of the CHRAAU, s/he shall alone be responsible for correcting the printing errors.

9. The Editor-in-Chief
The Editor-in-Chief of the EJHR shall:
9.1. Be appointed by the Head of the CHR-AAU upon recommendation by the Academic Commission of the same;
9.2. Be a fulltime academic staff of CHR-AAU unless the Academic Commission decides otherwise;
9.3. Convene the Board within three weeks of the return of manuscripts by reviewers;
9.4. Send copies of manuscripts to members of the Board three weeks ahead of the meeting of the Board;
9.5. Be the Secretary of the Board and shall keep all records relevant to his/her task;
9.6. Prepare the agenda for the meetings of the Board;
9.7. Implement the Board’s decisions;
9.8. Proactively engage in providing new ideas and suggestions to improve the standards of the journal;
9.9. Encourage the submission of quality articles and publication of peer reviewed research outputs;
9.10. Edit publishable manuscripts or cause them to be edited;
9.11. Chair the meetings of the Editorial Committee and coordinate the activities of its members;
9.12. Follow up the preparation of manuscripts for the printers and the process of printing;
9.13. Select letters and cause them edited with the cooperation of the author;
9.14. Without prejudice to Article 6.3 of these Editorial Rules, cause the formulation of specific criteria to be employed in the assessment of manuscripts and send the same to assessors;
9.15. Cause, taking anonymity into account, the inclusion in alphabetical order of the list of names of assessors of manuscripts in every issue of the EJHR;
9.16. May, in consultation with the Head of the CHRAAU, appoint Deputy Editor(s), who shall work with and assist the Editor-in-Chief in discharging
responsibilities under this paragraph.
9.17. May assign associate article, review, and opinion editors;
9.18. Send feedbacks on articles to authors who shall be given ten working days to improve the manuscript in light of the comments/suggestions of reviewers; and
9.19. Employ assistant editors from amongst the best students of the Center who shall assist in proof-reading publishable materials.
9.20. In consultation with the Head of the CHRAAU, accept for publication or reject any submission other than research articles.

10. The Editorial Committee
10.1. The Committee shall be composed of the Editor-in-Chief, , the Editors, the Reviews/Opinion Editor, and the Managing Editor, who shall, except the Editor-in- Chief, be appointed by the Academic Commission upon the recommendation of the Editor-in-Chief.
10.2. It shall consider manuscripts and other items pertaining to the preparation of the EJHR.
10.3. A member of the Committee shall serve for a term of two years, but s/he may be reappointed for another term.
10.4. The Editors shall be responsible for editing articles.
10.5. The Reviews/Opinion Editor shall be responsible for soliciting and editing reviews/opinions.
10.6. The Managing Editor shall be the Secretary of the Committee and shall be responsible for keeping all records pertaining to the EJHR. S/he also shall assist the Editor-in-Chief in following up the preparation of manuscripts for the printers and the process of printing.
10.7. The members of the Committee may attend the Board’s meeting and express their views on the suitability of an article but may not vote.
10.8. Members of the Editorial Committee shall be collectively responsible for soliciting manuscripts and ensuring the regular publication of the EJHR.
10.9. It shall be the duty of the Committee to ensure that guidelines and directives of the Board regarding the organization of the Patrons of the EJHR are duly implemented.

11. Copyright
11.1. The CHRAAU shall have copyright over manuscripts appearing in the EJHR.
11.2. Nonetheless, authors shall have the right to reprint their manuscripts elsewhere with the permission of the CHRAAU.
11.3. The Editor-in-Chief shall ensure that authors are given an opportunity to realize the copyright policy of the CHRAAU in respect of manuscripts appearing in the EJHR.

12. Complementary Copies
12.1. The author of a published manuscript is entitled to receive two complimentary copies of the EJHR free of charge.
12.2. The following shall also receive complimentary copies of the EJHR free of charge:
• Head of the CHRAAU, 10 Copies
• Members of the Editorial Board and the Editorial Committee, 1 copy each;
• The Resource Center/Library of the CHRAAU, 10 copies;
• Institute of Ethiopian Studies, 3 copies;
• The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, 10 copies;
• The House of Peoples Representatives, 5 copies;
• National Library, 5 copies;
• Partner schools, centers, and institutes, 1 copy each;
• Reviewers, 1 copy each; and
12.3 The Editorial Board may identify other stakeholders who shall receive copies of the EJHR.

13. Miscellaneous
13.1. These Editorial Rules may be amended by the Academic Commission of the CHRAAU.
13.2. These Rules shall come into force on the 1st of August 2011. Academic Commission Center for Human Rights, College of Law and Governance Studies Addis Ababa University