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#OromoProtests: International Community Alarmed as Ethiopia Crisis Worsens
DW NEWS:NGO highlights plight of Oromo in Ethiopia
Human Rights Watch says security forces are continuing to persecute members of Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo. Hundreds have allegedly been killed in recent protests over a government plan to expand the capital Addis Ababa into Oromo land.
The Oromo people see the government’s violence as part of a systematic attempt to oppress and marginalise them. As Amnesty International (AI) states in its report ‘Because I am Oromo’: “thousands of Oromo people have been subjected to unlawful killings, torture and enforced disappearance.” People without any political affiliation are arrested on suspicion that they do not support the government – “between 2011 and 2014, at least 5,000 Oromos have been arrested”. Amnesty asserts that recent regime violence was “the latest and bloodiest in a long pattern of suppression”. This description of government intimidation and brutality will sound familiar to most Ethiopians.’http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/02/19/ethiopia-unity-in-opposition/
ETHIOPIA: FURTHER INFORMATION: DETAINED OROMO PROTESTERS MUST BE RELEASED
By Amnesty International, 17 February 2016, Index number: AFR 25/3437/2016
The Ethiopian authorities arbitrarily arrested and detained a number of peaceful protesters including journalists and opposition party leaders in recent brutal crackdown on protesters in the Oromia Region. Those detained remain at risk of torture and other illtreatment and should immediately and unconditionally be released. Amnesty International considers the peaceful protesters arrested to be prisoners of conscience detained solely for peacefully exercising their right to peaceful assembly. They continue to be at risk of torture and other ill-treatment.
Read more at:-https://oromianeconomist.wordpress.com/2016/02/18/ai-urgent-action-detained-oromo-protesters-must-be-released/
“Every social injustice is not only cruel, but causes economic waste and generational loss. Equality, free expression, justice, peace, and freedom are key for the generation’s continuation and for changing the world.”
n a letter written to the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry [equivalent to the Minister of Foreign Affairs], U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken (both from the State of Minnesota) requested Sec. Kerry for a full review of the situation in Ethiopia in order for the U.S. Congress to take “immediate actions” to protect innocent Oromo civilians in Ethiopia. The full 2-page letter is attached below.
News Fulton County (#OromoProtests Global Rally) : Oromians in SA protest in Pretoria over killings at home. Demonstrators say government scheme to expand capital Addis Ababa endangers farmers
European Parliament resolution on the situation in Ethiopia (2016/2520(RSP)). European Union strongly condemns the mass killings in Oromia. January 19, 2016
Appeal of Oromo Student’s Union (OSU) to International Community
February 10, 2016, Finfinne (Addis Ababa), Ethiopia
To:
Multinational organizations (UN, EU, AU, and others)
Countries supporting the Ethiopian regime in the name of development, peace and security, education, science and technology (USA, European countries, Canada, Australia, and others)
Human rights organizations (Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa, and others)
Oromo political organizations
Oromo studies Association (OSA)
Oromo community organizations all over the world and all other concerned bodies
We members of Oromo Student’s Union (OSU) appeal to the international community that we are currently living under difficult conditions. It is evident that the Ethiopian regime is committing genocidal crime on the Oromo people in general and the Oromo students in particular by deploying its military and police force and terrorizing us for peacefully protesting demanding our rights asking the legitimate and rightful questions of our people. Our questions are the questions of our people. Our demands are the demands of our people. Our demands can be divided into two major categories:
Basic human rights must be respected. While the Oromo constitute the majority of the Ethiopian population, Oromia constitute the largest territory, and the region is the economic backbone of Ethiopia, the Oromo people have been marginalized in every arena. Over the past 24 years the Oromo people do not have proportional power and economic share in the country and have been ruled under the EPRDF which in essence is maneuvered and completely controlled by the TPLF party. Since the mass base of the TPLF/EPRDF is the minority Tigrean population, it has been in constant conflict with the Oromo people in Oromia. The Oromo people are ruled under the barrel of the gun being constantly killed, arrested, tortured, students dismissed from schools, civilians kidnapped and disappeared, are forced to leave their country and become refugees in several countries around the globe. Therefore we demand that the basic human and democratic rights of the Oromo people be respected and a system based on equality, justice, democracy, and a government based on the needs of our people be established.
Master Plan must be stopped. Starting from 2014 we protested against the so called Master Plan of the TPLF/EPRDF regime, a plan which incorporates several Oromian towns into the capital Finfinne (Addis Ababa), evicts Oromo farmers from their ancestral land, eradicates Oromo culture, language and identity, planned to sell Oromo land and plunder Oromia’s natural resources, divide the map of Oromia into two, and causes pollution and environmental degradation. We presented our appeal in writing several times requesting that the Master plan be stopped. Instead of answering our request to stop the Master plan, the regime announced another plan to incorporate major Oromian towns which is another plan to incorporate the entire of Oromia under the jurisdiction of the federal government which on the other hand is controlled by the TPLF. When our requests fell into deaf ears we protested peacefully. The answer to our peaceful protest has been brutal killings, beatings, mass arrests, kidnappings and disappearances, inhuman torture by the regime’s so called Agazi troops. In addition to some 80+ people who were killed in 2014, more than 200 peaceful citizens, mostly students have been killed since November 2015. Thousands others have been wounded. Countless others have been jailed and are under severe torture. Read More:- Oromo Student Union appeal to International Community Feb 2016 (1)
UNDSS internal memo regarding the situation in West Arsi formerly known as East Shewa. 16 Feb. 2016
UNDSS: CLASHES IN EAST SHEWAS – WEST ARSI / OROMIYA
At least two protesters and five police officers were killed in the latest clashes in East Shewa, Oromiya.
First reports of protests date back from 8 February in the village of Amaro. Yesterday, a UN road mission was blocked by heavy clashes in Aje. In nearby Loke Kecha a bridge was destroyed and in Siraro a court office was damaged.
The town of Shashamane on the main road is tense and people fear violent protests could spread to their town.
The cancellation of the Addis Ababa Masterplan has not removed the underlying grievances that lead to the protests in Oromiya between November 2015 and Jan 2016. The volatility continues and one event or overreaction of police officers can trigger chains of retribution by angry protesters.
We currently recommend to avoid any private road travel any further south than Langano Lake. For official UN road missions please check situation with local counterparts. However, when planning road missions bear in mind that reliable real time situational information is not available. Police will usually block roads to protest sites and you should know the return time or nearest safe havens for your road trip when you are blocked from continuing your travel.
Oromo Protests have spread to southern Oromia since last week to “stop the leeching tycoon and monopolist Alamoudi,” according to the protesters. Al Amoudi is a famous monopolist of many businesses in Oromia – including gold mining, cement factory (Derba query), tanneries and farms. Al Amoudi is one of the richest persons in Africa and the world, according to the U.S.-based Forbes magazine.
Al Amoudi’s companies are criticized for failing to share profits with indigenous communities they work around (especially, in the gold mining in Guji Zone and the Derba cement query in Shawaa), and for failing to give back to the community in general; other business owners in Oromia, especially local small-business owners, also accuse Al Amoudi’s companies for receiving preferential treatments from the government and for engaging in predatory business practices to monopolize sectors of the economy. No where is this predatory practice evident than the dairy business; Oromo smallholding dairy farmers in Shawaa, especially those around Finfinne/Addis, were recently attacked in a vicious way by falsely propagating, through state-owned and government-affiliated media, that the milk from these smallholding dairy farmers causes cancer – this was done, in part, to promote Al Amoudi’s dairy company, Shola Milk, and also to drive the Oromo smallholding farmers out of their land through bankruptcy. Oromo Protesters say such abusive and predatory business practices must stop.
The government is also blamed for evicting thousands of Oromos, without compensations, to make land available to Al Amoudi’s companies whenever they request for it – especially in the gold mining region in Guji and the Derba query in Shawaa. In addition, Al Amoudi’s companies are said to have no regard for the environment; for instance, the leather/tannery and flower/horticulture companies in Oromia release toxic cancer-causing chemicals without any environmental treatment.
In many ways, Al Amoudi epitomizes what’s wrong with the current federal arrangement of Oromia in Ethipia, according to the Oromo Protesters; Al Amoudi is given the green light to “develop” in Oromia by the Federal Government in Addis Ababa – which itself is controlled by Tigrean elites of the TPLF/EPRDF ruling party; in many, if not all, cases, the business arrangements between the Tigrean-headed Federal Government and Al Amoudi are not transparent to the Federal Regional State authorities of Oromia.
The following is a report on the ongoing Oromo Protests against the “leeching tycoon and monopolist Alamoudi” in the gold-rich Guji Zone of Oromia; the protests have been staged since the mid of last week (starting around February 4, 2016, according to media reports). The government, as usual, relied on brute force to respond to the protests; the latest report says at least 1 Oromo person was killed, and 3 Oromo persons were critically wounded by the government’s special force, Agazi. Read more at:-
#OromoProtests: February 5, 2016 Oromo Protests continues in various districts of Guji Zone against Medroc Exploitation. Farmers from various villages march to the town chanting ” Okkote is our land, Al Amudin is our enemy”. Okkote is one of the mineral deposit sites that is to be given to Medroc/ Al Amudin.
Ummanni Godina Gujii mormii saamicha albuudaa jabeessee itti fufee jira. Kan agartan kun yeroo ummanni baadiyyaa dhaadannoodhaan gara magaalaa bayaa jiruudha.
Okkoteen lafa teenya Alaamuddin diina keenya
Lagi Dambi lafa teenya, Alamuddin diina keenya” jechaa deemaa jiran.
On February 5, 2016 fascist TPLF security forces and Agazi were terrorizing people of Ginici (Ginichi) town in fear of protests; every corners was under military siege.
Suuraan armaa gadii kun kan magaalaa Gincii kan Shawaa Lixaa keessatti argamu irraati . Guraandhala 5 bara 2016 humni waraanaa fi agaazii egumsaa cimaa magaalicha keessatti gochaaoole; humni dbalataas ergamee jira.
#OromoProtests in Girawaa (Doguu town), E. Hararghe, Oromia, 5 February 2016Oromoonni Harargee Bahaa, aanaa Gurawaa, magaalaa Doguu dabablloota OPDO qaanessan. Akka dabablleen OPDO olola jalqabdeen ummanni walgahii dhiitanii bahan; dargaggoo fi baratoota magaalaa wajjiin waliti makamuunis mormii qaban dhagesisan.Ummati Oromoo jajjaboo kunneen walgahii gaafa Guraandhala 4 bara 2016 DhDUOn waamte irratti diddaa fi mormii isaanii mul’isuun ololli fi sobni OPDO akka fashalu godhan.
#OromoProtests, (3 February 2016, Gujii, Oromia)
#OromoProtests in Sabbaa Boruu district of Guji zone, Oromia. In addition to the national agenda, protesters are marching exploitation of minerals by Al Amudin without no benefit to locals.
#OromoProtests ,Nuunnuu Qumba, Waamaa Adaree, East Wallaggaa, Oromia.
3rd February 2013
Last evening around 11 PM local time,Agazi soldiers raided a wedding in Adare town, Nunu Qumba District in East Wallaga and attacked youngsters who were partying during weeding. They told them not to sing particular song. Clash erupted Agazi soldirs shot one young man who is in critical condition and villagers destroyed vehicles that brought the Agazi’s. Tense situation remains in the town as farmers have closed all roads leading to the town.You might recall the news about Agazi raiding a wedding in Arjo Gudetu near Naqamte wounding three people one of whom died later. Similarly in Elu ababor, they shot Fitsum Abate on the eve of his wedding for playing music to entertian his groomsmen. Groom survived the headshot but reportedly blinded.
The person who was shot in Adare town, Nunu Qumba district of East Walaga has been identified as Desalegn Fikadu. Currently the Agazi is terrorizing people forcing residents to vacate the town seeking refuge in neighboring rural villages.
Amajii 27/2016
Arsii Bahaa magaala Asallaatti mootummaan wayyaanee Qeerroo dargaggoota lama ilmaan isaa ajajuun barattoota lama kana irratti gocha suukkanneessaa raawwatee kan jiru Qeerroon kan gabaaseedha.
Akka Qeerroon gabaasetti barattootni Yuunivarsitii Asallaa Amajji 21,2016 halkan 5:00tti barattoota lama: Isaanis
1.Kamaal Abubaker barataa saayinsii fayyaa waggaa3ffaa fi dhalataa harargee bahaa naannoo Dadarii kan tahee fi
2Tasfaayee Tashoomee barataa saayinsii fayyaa waggaa 1ffaa fi dhalataa Arsii Bahaa naannoo Boqojjii kan ta’an namoonni 4 ol tahan hucuu civil uffachuudhaan eeggatanii yeroo ijoolleen kun lamaan mana fincaanii seenan achi keessatti cuubeen waraananiinii gatanii erga deemanii booda barattoonni kun hospitaala seenuun yaalamaa jiru.
Wallaggaa lixaatti manneen barnoota sadarkaa 1ffaa irraa kaasee hanga qophaayinaatti cufamee jiraachuun Qeerroon gabaasee jira.
Maddeen oduu Qeerroo irraa akka hubannutti wallagga lixaa Aanaa Boojjii Birmajjii magaalaa Biilaa mana barumsaa sadarkaa lammaffaa Biilaatti barattoonni Amajji 22,2016 sa’a3 irratti Fincila Xumura Gabrummaa (FXG) kaasuun ni yaadatama. Yerooma sana irraa kaasuun wayyaaneen humna ishee gara barattootaatti ergiteen barattootni barumsa dhaabuun gabaafamee ture. Guyyaa kanaa kaasuun barattootni mana barumsaa akka hin deebine yoo tahu akka walii galaatti godinicha keessatti barattootni barumsa dhaabuu irratti argamu..
Magaalaa Najjootti barattoonni man barumsaa sad.2ffaa Amajji 25,2016 FXG haaressuuf gara mana barumsaatti wal gahanii turan, barattootni hunduu hirmaanna barumsaa dhaabuudhaan yaadaa fi ejjennoo tokkoon FXG itti fufna malee barumsa hin barannu jechunis barumsi hanga har’aa hin gaggeeffamin jira.
#OromoProtests 26 January 2016: Oromo political prisoners are on a hunger strike in Ma’ekelawi
According to media reports, Bekele Gerba, other imprisoned leaders of the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC), and other Oromo political prisoners are on a hunger strike in Ma’ekelawi, the notorious prison in Addis Ababa. The report said the political prisoners started their strike on Friday, January 22, 2016, and have vowed to continue the strike until their demands are met. Some of their demands, which they have communicated to the prison’s officials, include:
1) access to legal counsels and visitations by family as guaranteed by the Constitution and internationally accepted rights of prisoners;
2) cessation of torture of political prisoners in Ma’ekelawi;
3) access to proper medical care for all political prisoners.
It has not been possible to verify how many political prisoners are taking part in the strike. However, it has been confirmed that the following leaders of OFC are part of it: Bekele Gerba, Dejene Tafa, Desta Dinka, Addisu Bulala and others. Since November 2015, thousands of Oromos have been taken to Ma’ekelawi in connection with the ongoing Oromo Protests against the lack of adequate self-rule for Oromia (of which the Master Plan is an example), and the decades-old marginalization of the Oromo people in the political, economic, social, linguistic and cultural spheres in Ethiopia as a whole. In addition to those thousands arrested in prisons and concentration camps across Oromia and Ethiopia, more than 160 Oromo persons were killed, and thousands of Oromo persons have been wounded by the Ethiopian Federal armed forces – including tens of Oromo children.
It is to be remembered that the Ethiopian government brought Bekele Gerba, Dejene Tafa, Addisu Bulala and others to a federal court in central Addis Ababa on January 22, 2016 (listen to the report in Amharic below) – this date is the same date on which the hunger strike reportedly began; many human rights organizations, such as the Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, accuse the Ethiopian government of using draconian laws to prosecute peaceful and legitimate political dissidents in biased courts to silence voices critical of the government’s violations of human rights and unjust policies.
#OromoProtests Support Group in Switzerland organized a successful rally at the UN Office in Geneva on January 25, 2016.
The rally was attended by Oromo peace activists in Switzerland as well as other Ethiopian Nationals concerned about the deteriorating human rights violations in Oromia and across Ethiopia. The Ethiopian government’s response to the peaceful Oromo Protests has so far been violent, which has negatively contributed to the increasingly unstable political and security conditions in Ethiopia in the fragile Horn of African region. In an attempt to calm the peaceful Oromo Protests through military means, the Ethiopian government has, over the last two months alone, gunned down more than 160 Oromo persons who took part or had been suspected of taking part in the Oromo Protests, which have been staged in Oromia since April 2014, and quite intensely since mid November 2015, against the lack of adequate self-rule for Oromia (of which the Master Plan is an example), and the decades-old marginalization of the Oromo people in the political, economic, social, linguistic and cultural spheres in Ethiopia as a whole. At least 17 of those killed and wounded are Oromo children.
The following are some photos from the Geneva solidarity rally (reported byOromiaTimes.org).
In East Walaga, Digga district, Arjo Gudetu village, Agazi soldiers have fired on protesters wounding the following people last night
1) Gamachu Alamu Tasama, shot on his back
2) Zerihun Jiregna Bayana, shot on his stomach
3) Birhanu Kebede Sando, shot on his leg
These victims are currently being treated at Naqamte Hospital. Two of them are in critical condition.
https://www.oromiamedia.org/2016/01/24/omn-gabaasa-oolmaa-oromiyaa-ama-23-2016/Oromo youth and families in Gincii (Ginchi) conveyed their remembrance to Aschalew Worku Bayi. #OromoProtests, 24 January 2016.A commemoration of Aschalew Worku Bayi who was killed in Ginchi on 13 December 2015 and his remembrance service took place on 24 January 2016 at the presence of tens of thousands of people near Cillimo.Amajii 24 bara 2016 ummanni Oromoo Aanaa Giincii yaadannoo sabboonaa Oromoo Aschaaloo Warquu Bayii geggeessan. Aschaaloon Mudde 13 bara 2015 humna Wayyaaneen Gincitti wareegame. Amajii 24 bara 2016 wayita siidaan yaadannoo isaaf dhaabbate eebbifametti ummati hedduun argamuun yaadannoo kana irratti mallattoo diddaa Oromoo agarsiisaa oolan.
The PAFD extends its most sincere gratitude to the EU Parliament in general and to those who were the sponsors of the Ethiopian resolution, including members from the Socialists and Democrats (S&D), the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) and Greens/European Free Alliance (G/EFA) of the EU parliamentary groups in particular.
The resolution the European Parliament has adopted on 21 January 2016 offers great support to the millions oppressed in all parts of Ethiopia and gives them courage for a better democratic and just future.The multitude of committed genocides and unfolding atrocities in Oromia, Ogaden, Gambella, Sidama, Omo, Benishangul and other parts in Ethiopia will continue, unless the international community takes some urgent practical measures to stop them. The Ethiopian government has often ignored international calls for remedy of its human rights violations, knowing that there would be no follow up or significant repercussions. In 2007, for example, the UN called for an urgent investigation into the Ogaden war crimes and crimes against humanity. However, the Ethiopian government embarked on an all-out campaign of extermination and collective punishment of civilians in the region and the international community looked the other way. Similarly, the killings in Gambella and Sidama, as well as those in Finfinnee (Addis Ababa) were also condemned by the international community, while the regime shrugged its shoulders and continued its massacres and curtailment of all democratic rights, while being rewarded with more money under the pretext of development.
History has shown that development at the expenses of democratic rights has ended in disasters and grave consequences. The Ethiopian situation is much more complex than other areas which aggravates the matter further because of unresolved historical injustices.
The PAFD calls upon the UN, AU and EU to follow up to their own resolutions and send independent commissions of inquiry to look into the massive human rights allegations that have been and are being perpetrated by the Ethiopian government against the civilian population and take appropriate measures to stop any further acts. All types of Ethiopian security forces must immediately withdraw from Oromia, Ogaden, Gambela and other areas into their barracks.
The PAFD calls upon all peoples in Ethiopia to stand together and act in unison against the atrocities committed by the regime, in order to regain their denied rights to democracy and true self-determination.
Issued by The Peoples Alliance for Freedom and Democracy (PAFD)
January 23, 2016
OFFICE OF PRESIDIUM
Breaking news: there has been reports of heavy gun fire exchange in Waddessaa area near Ambo since yesterday
January 23, 2016
(Oromia Press) — There has been reports of heavy gunfire exchange in Waddessaa area near Ambo since yesterday. Particularly localities such as Haro-Xirro, Wadessa-Galan, Xulle are said to be like war zones. Civilians have been trying to escape the fighting. Residents in nearby districts confirm Agazi special forces have been moving into the area in tens of cars since the night before yesterday. It is not clear who they are fighting or firing at as network in the area is down. Source claim the clash might have been caused when the army tried to disarm local government militia suspected of being disloyal. The conflict is said to have been intensified today and heavy casualties are feared. The military has prevented ambulances that tried to reach the area from nearby towns.
Amajjii 19,2016 , Barattooti kun yeroo jalqabaaf 24 ka ta’an yoo ta’u,amma barattoota shan kan himataa jiru yeroo ta’u, adeemsi heeraa fi Seeraa kan hin eegamneefi maqaa Oromoo fi ABOtiin yakkamanii murna bicuu TPLF Tigiraayin humatamaa jiru. Barattooti kun amma mana yaalaa dhirkamuun,baay’ee kan miidhaman yoo ta’e illee haamileen oromummaa isaanii mana hidhaa maa’ikelaawwi fi Qilinxootiin utuu hin cabin mana Murtii Wayyaanee kanatti sodaa tokko malee uffata aadaa Oromoo uffatanii dhiyaatan
Himatamtoota Wayyaanee kana keessaa Barataa Magarsaa Warquu dhukkubaa fi dararaa irratti raawwatameen baay’ee hubamee kan jiru yeroo ta’u, Afaan Wayyaanee abbaa alangaa ka ifiin jettu himata irratti dhiyeessite gocha isaanii akka hin taane ibsaniiru.
Rage in Miesso following the killing of 6 peaceful protesters on 17 January 2016. has erupted in Asabot town West Hararge. #OromoProtests also in Asabot town West Hararge. Farmers from the region have moved to the city condemning the killing in neighboring Miesso town.
The 6 people killed in Miesso has been identified as:
1) Yasino Abdala Ali
2) Abdella Hassan
3) Mussa Hassan
4) Abdulhakiim
5) Ahmad
6) The six person has been badly disfigured as he was hit with grenade and hard to conclusively identify at this time.
The attack was perpetuated by TPLF’s mercenary in Somali region, the notorious Liyu Police. On Friday TPLF’s chief os intelligence for the Eastern region warned administrators of the two Hararge provinces that he will deploy Liyu police if they cannot stop the ongoing protest. As promised following yesterday’s march of farmers on Miesso town, 7 truck loads of Liyu police entered Western Hararge. This morning they invaded Miesso attacking peaceful protesters. You might recall that Liyu police attacked protesters last week in East Hararge as well.
The United States is increasingly concerned by the continued stifling of independent voices in Ethiopia, including the detention of Oromo political party leaders. These arrests have a chilling effect on much needed public consultations to resolve legitimate political grievances in Oromia.
We support the Government of Ethiopia’s December commitment to public consultation with affected communities. For these consultations to be meaningful, all interested parties must be able to express their views freely.
We reaffirm our call on the Ethiopian Government to refrain from silencing dissent and to protect the constitutionally enshrined rights of all citizens, including the right to gather peacefully, to write, and to speak freely as voices of a diverse nation. We call for the release of those imprisoned for exercising their rights, such as political party leaders and journalists.
#OromoProtests: Ethiopian Protesters Use Social Media to Bring Attention to Deadly Government Crackdown on Dissent – Atlanta Blackstar, 9 January 2016 https://shar.es/16IaqD
#OromoProtests January 10, 2016, Al Jazeera English: Holonkomi, Oromia (Ethiopia) – Security forces have killed at least 140 people during a crackdown on anti-government demonstrations in Ethiopia in recent weeks, activists and rights groups say.
The merciless fascist TPLF forces destroyed students dormitories at Madda Walabu University 9 and 10 January 2016, in the night. Soldiers have also taken away hundreds of students on the night to unknown places.
EU called emergency meeting for Monday to discuss the unrest in Ethiopia & the dire case of the Oromo people
January 7, 2016
Breaking news! Sources from European External Action Service (EU Foreign and Security Policy Branch) has indicate that European Union will convene a meeting to discuss Ethiopia with regard to ongoing #OromoProtests on January 11 (Monday) 2016. Representatives from all 28 EU member countries will attend the meeting. Fascist TPLF juntas representatives have not been invited to the meeting.Gamtaan Awurooppaa(European Union) walgahii hatantamaa waa’ee dhimma Oromoo irratti guyyaa wiixataa, 01/11/2016 waamuu beeksise!Waa’ee Oromoo irratti walgahii akkasii waamuun yeroo jalqabaa ta’us, Gamtaan Awurooppaa gochaan duguuggaa sanyii mootummaan woyyaanee ummata oromoo irraatti gaggeessaaru akka daraan isaan yaaddesseefi falmitootni mirga dhala namaa kan Akka Amnesty International walgahicha irraa qooda akka fudhatan beekameera.INJIFANNOON UMMATA OROMOOF! Falmattu malee Adunyaan dantaa kee hin qabdu..
#OromoProtests, Participants of study seminar from USA and other Philipino friends show solidarity with Oromo Student protest going on in Ethiopia here in Manila. ‘Injustice any where is injustice every where.’ 7 January, 2016.
China Town Manila, Philippines. Credit: Asefa M.Wakjira, Green Movement through social network.
#OromoProtests, Asabot ( West Hararage) Jan 7, 2016.
A 4th year Food Science Oromo student at Wallaggaa University, Horaa Banti Irranaa, was arrested on Monday January 4, 2016 by Agazi from campus. His body was found in Hadiyya on January 6, 2016. He was taken to Nekemte hospital for autopsy then his body was sent to his birth place which is Gachi, near Baddalle in Ilu Abbaabooraa.
Maqaan isaa Horaa Bantii Irranaa Yunivarsitii Wallaggaatti barataa Food Science waggaa 4ffaa tureeyyuu. Gaafa Amajjii 4 bara 2016 mooraa irraa poolisootaan fuudhamee guyyaa Amajii 6 bara 2016 ajjeefamee laga keessatti reeffi isaa gatamee argame. Horaan dhaloonni isaa Godina Ilu Abbaa boor magaala Gachii ti.Reeffi isaas garas geeffamaa jira.
Daraje Tsegaye Kitaba, Oromo teenager, kidnapped by TPLF (Agazi) forces on 26 December 2015. His whereabout is unknown. He is from Central Oromia (Xiqur incinni).
Mucaan kun Muddee 26 bara 2015 agaaziin ukaafame hangaa har’aati gara inni jiru hin beekamu. Maqaan isaa Daraje Tsegaye kitaba jedhama. Lixa shawwaa, annaa xuqur incinnii irraati.
OromoProtests: 5 January 2016 in Awaday, E Hararge, Oromia students at all levels ( elementary to preparatory) have have walked out of school informing school administrators they will not return until the military leaves school compounds, arrested students are released, those who killed students brought to justice. Students who come out of town have returned to their villages.
Amajjii 5 Bara 2015, Awwadaayii, Hargee Bahaatti Barattoonni sadarkaa hundaatu ( elemantarii hamma piripaaratorii) barnoota dhaabuun gara maatii isaanii deemanii jiran. Hamma waraanni mooraa mannaan barnootaafi araddaalee keessa bahuu, gaafiin ummataa deebi’uu, warri hidhame hiikkamuufi warri nama ajjeese seeraan gaafatamuu hin dachaanu jechuun bulchiinsita manneen barnoota hubachiisaanii jiran.
#OromoProtests, Masalaa town, West Hararghe, Oromia. 5 January 2016.
#OromoProtests continues, on 3rd January 2016 at Ambo University Waliso Campus.
Barattoonni Amboo Universitii, Kampaasii Walisoo mormii fi gadda obboleewwan isaanii kan wayyaaneen dhumaniis nyaata lagachuun yaadatan.
#OromoProtests, students in Shashamene Say No to the Master Plan and the Mass Murder, 2nd January 2016
The main road connecting Finfinnee with Eastern Region ( Harar, Dire Dawa, Jigjiga) has been closed at various villages near Hirna. 2nd January 2016, #OromoProtests
Daandin Finfinnee irraa baha biyyatti geessuu naannawa Hirnaatti araddaalee hedduu keessatti bifa kanaan cufamee jira, Amajjii 2, bara 2016
OromoProtests 2nd round continues January 1, 2016: Fichee (Salaalee), Shambuu, Dire Dawa city (LegaHarre High school), Sibuu Siree, Rift Valley University Gulale Campus, Burka Dhimtu ( East Hararge), Gimbi
Hanna Doja, Oromo child, 7 years old, 1st grade student in Kombolcha town, Horroo Guduruu, Oromia. Attacked by fascist Ethiopian regime forces ((Agazi) on 31st December 2015.
The Agazi are armed recruits from rural Tigray, TPLF’s rocky homeland. The Agazi are uneducated fascist forces trained from young age to hate, attack and kill people of non Tigray nationalities
Read more on Reports on OromoProtests in Nov./Dec. 2015 at:-
About 200 members of Minnesota’s Oromo community rallied at the State Capitol on Monday to protest treatment at the hands of the Ethiopian government.
The protest was in response to a crackdown on Oromo protestors in Ethiopia, who have opposed government plans to evict farmers from their land to expand Addis Abba, Ethiopia’s capital city.
Hundreds of Oromo — the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia — have been killed by the Ethiopian government since last November, protestors say, and thousands more have been imprisoned for opposing the government.
More recently, march organizers said, the Oromian region of the East African nation has been under martial law.
To put pressure on the Ethiopian government, protestors called for the United States to withhold aid to the Ethiopian government until the violence stops.
“We’re frankly upset over our government not caring enough to stop this,” said Najat Hamza, a community activist and member of Oromo Womens Organization of Minnesota. “We always felt the United States stands for human rights and in this instance their not.”
This was the fourth time Minnesota’s Oromo community. Monday’s march coincided with others nationwide, said Urgo Shanka, one of the event’s organizers and a youth coordinator with the Oromo Womens Organization.
Aadland is a University of Minnesota student on assignment for the Star Tribune.
The resources are scarce in comparison to our never ending wants andEconomics is concerned with the ‘rational’ management of these resources that have alternate uses to maximise the gains at both micro-macro level.
There are several economic models that have been developed that have distinct characteristics and unique features. Adam Smith’s Capitalist model, the one where the market forces of demand and supply move freely to determine the Equilibrium level represents an ideal system of want origin and its satisfaction in the perfect sense. Any extension of demand will shift the Equilibrium price upwards and this in turn, will motivate the ‘rational’ producers to supply more to the market at the increased price to maximise their profits. This will eventually stabilise the price and eventually Equilibrium will be restored in the market. How simple is that! This model seems stable and logical in every sense, doesn’t it?
#Oromoprotests this mother is a 7 month pregnant and has 6 kids, lives in the West Arsi zone ofthe #Oromia state in #Ethiopia. When the Tigreans led security forces came to her home searching for her husband, she came out of her home and falled, kneeled down to his legs and begged him, not to kill her and her kids. Other militias went to her home to search for her husband and couldn’t find him. She kept begging them in #AfaanOromoo and #Sidamalanguages, as she doesn’t speak Amharic. The militias don’t speak either of these languages. Finally, they have mercilessly killed her firing five bullets to her. It is a very painfully to see such a tragedy, and her kids are now orphans. That’s how #democracy is being built in #Ethiopia by#TpLF. #ያማል
Ethiopia: Civil society calls upon Human Rights Council to investigate government crackdown on Oromo protest
Front Line Defenders, 24 February 2016
To Permanent Representatives of
Members and Observer States of the
UN Human Rights Council
Geneva, 24 February 2016
RE: Addressing restrictions on freedom of assembly and civil society in Ethiopia
Your Excellency,
The undersigned civil society organizations (CSOs) write to express our serious concerns about the Ethiopian Government’s grave restrictions on fundamental human rights, exemplified by the recent crackdown on largely peaceful protests in the Oromia region. As the UN Human Rights Council (UN HRC) prepares to release its landmark recommendations for the proper management of assemblies, we urge your delegation to address the rapidly deteriorating environment for independent dissent and violations of the right to freedom of assembly in Ethiopia at the upcoming 31st UN HRC Session.
Since December 2015, Ethiopian security forces have routinely used excessive and unnecessary lethal force to disperse and suppress peaceful protests in the Oromia region. The protesters, who have been advocating against the dispossession of land without adequate compensation under the government’s Integrated Development Master Plan, have been subjected to widespread rights violations. According to international and national human rights groups, at least 150 demonstrators, including scores of children and university students, have been killed during the protests. It is also widely reported that hundreds of people have suffered bullet wounds and beatings by the police and military.
The authorities have also arbitrarily arrested thousands of people throughout Oromia for participating in or supporting the protests. Many of those detained are being held without charge and without access to family members or legal representation. Numerous human rights activists, journalists and opposition political party leaders and supporters have been arbitrarily arrested and detained in Oromia. Among those arrested and still in detention are Bekele Gerba (Deputy Chair, Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC)), Dejene Tufa (Deputy General Secretary, OFC), Getachew Shiferaw (Editor-in-Chief of the online newspaper Negere Ethiopia), Yonathan Teressa (a human rights defender) and Fikadu Mirkana (reporter with the state-owned Oromia Radio and TV).
The government also continues to misuse the abusive 2009 Anti-Terrorism Proclamation to silence independent reporting and support of the protest movement. Specifically, on January 22, 2016, opposition leader Bekele Gerba and 21 other individuals were arraigned at the Federal First Instance Court, Arada Branch, which granted the prosecutor’s request for 28 days remand to police custody under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation.
Moreover, weeks earlier, on December 15, 2015, the government publically described the protesters as “an organised and armed terrorist force” in a cynical and disturbing attempt to conflate their legitimate exercise of fundamental civil liberties with acts of terrorism. We remain deeply concerned that this description of the mostly peaceful protesters has also contributed to greater use of excessive force by security personnel.
Prominent human rights experts and groups, including the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, have repeatedly condemned the deliberate misuse of the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation’s overbroad and vague provisions to target journalists and activists. The law permits up to four months of pre-trial detention and prescribes draconian prison sentences for a wide range of activities protected under international human rights law. Dozens of human rights defenders as well as journalists, bloggers, peaceful demonstrators and opposition party members have been subjected to harassment and politically motivated prosecution under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation, making Ethiopia one of the leading jailers of journalists in the world.
There are no effective avenues to pursue accountability for abuses given the lack of independence of the judiciary and legislative constraints. During the May 2015 General Elections, the ruling EPRDF party won all 547 seats in the Ethiopian Parliament. In addition, domestic civil society organizations are severely hindered by one of the most restrictive NGO laws in the world. Specifically, under the 2009 Charities and Societies Proclamation, the vast majority of Ethiopian organizations have been forced to stop working on human rights and governance issues, a matter of great concern that has been repeatedly raised including at Ethiopia’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR).
This restrictive environment means that there are few avenues available for accountability and independent dissent in the country. It is essential that the UN Human Rights Council takes a strong position urging the Ethiopian Government to immediately end its systematic campaign to suppress peaceful protests and legitimate human rights activism.
Amid a growing chorus of concern, a number of intergovernmental bodies, including the European Parliament, have called on the Ethiopian government to immediately cease its political intimidation and persecution of peaceful protesters and human rights defenders. Recently, on 21 January, four UN Special Rapporteurs and the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances issued a joint statementcondemning the ongoing crackdown and further called on the Ethiopian Government to “immediately release protesters who seem to have been arrested for exercising their rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and expression, to reveal the whereabouts of those reportedly disappeared and to carry out an independent, transparent investigation into the security forces’ response to the protest.”
During the upcoming 31st session of the Human Rights Council, we urge your delegation to make joint or individual statements (for example during the high-level segment, in interactive dialogue with the High Commissioner, and under other relevant agenda items), reinforcing and building upon the concerns of these and other international bodies.
Specifically, we respectfully request your delegation to press Ethiopia to:
immediately cease the use of excessive and unnecessary lethal force by security forces against protesters in Oromia Region of Ethiopia and elsewhere in Ethiopia;
immediately and unconditionally release journalists, human rights defenders, political opposition leaders and members as well as protesters arbitrarily detained during and in the aftermath of the protests;
urgently establish a thorough, independent, impartial and transparent investigation into all of the deaths resulting from alleged excessive use of force by the security forces, and other violations of human rights in the context of the protests;
ensure that those responsible for human rights violations are prosecuted in proceedings which comply with international law and standards on fair trial and without resort to the death penalty;
and fully comply with its international legal obligations and commitments including under the, ICCPR, African Charter and its own Constitution.
Sincerely,
Article 19
Association for Human Rights in Ethiopia (AHRE)
CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation
Civil Rights Defenders
Defend Defenders (East and Horn of Africa Human Right Defenders Project)
Oromo Protests: Why Ethiopia’s Largest Ethnic Group is Demonstrating
(Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2016) — Since the Ethiopian government announced plans to expand the territory of the capital Addis Ababa in April 2014, the country’s largest region, Oromia, has been racked with protests that have led to hundreds of deaths.
Oromia, which completely surrounds the capital of the Horn of Africa country, is home to the Oromo ethnic group. Oromos constitute the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia, yet members of the community claim to havesuffered systematic discrimination and oppression at the hands of Ethiopia’s federal government.
Newsweek explains who the Oromo are, why they are protesting and how the Ethiopian government is responding.
Who are the Oromos?
More than one in three Ethiopians hails from the Oromo ethnic group: Oromos constituted more than 25 million of the total 74 million population at the last census in 2007 (the population of Ethiopia has since grown to almost 100 million). The Oromo have their own language and culture distinct from the Amharic language, which is employed as Ethiopia’s official dialect.
The Oromo have been subject to human rights violations and discrimination under three successive regimes in Ethiopia, according to a 2009 report by U.S.-based Advocates for Human Rights group: the Abyssinian Empire under Haile Selassie, dissolved in 1974; the Marxist Derg military junta that seized power in 1974 and ruled until 1991; and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, established in 1991 and existing until the present.
Oromo language was sidelined and not taught in schools for much of the 20th century and Oromo activists were often tortured or disappeared. A 2009 report by the United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) stated that 594 extra-judicial killings and 43 disappearances of Oromos were recorded between 2005 and 2008 by an Oromo activist group. The ethnic group have clashed with the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), in power since 1991; an Amnesty International report in October 2014 stated that at least 5,000 Oromos were arrested between 2011 and 2014 on the basis of opposition to the government.
Why have Oromos protested against the Addis Ababa master plan?
According to the Ethiopian government, the Addis Ababa Integrated Master Plan proposed to expand the capital’s territory in order to bring better services and greater economic opportunities to the rural areas surrounding Addis. For the Oromos, however, the plan constituted an attempted land grab that could result in the forced eviction of Oromo farmers and the loss of valuable arable land in a country regularly plagued by drought.
Protests began in Oromia immediately after the plan was announced—at least nine students were killed in April and May 2014, according to the government, although eyewitnesses said the total was at least 47. The most recent round of protests began in November 2015 and have spread across the entirety of the vast Oromia region. Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported in January that at least 140 protesters had been killed in demonstrations after heavy-handed crackdowns by security forces.
The Ethiopian government announced later in January that it was abandoning the Addis expansion plans after the Oromo People’s Democratic Organization (OPDO)—the ruling party in Oromia and a member of the governing EPRDF coalition—dropped its support for the scheme. Yet despite that, the crackdown has continued: HRW’s latest update on February 22 cited claims from activists that more than 200 protesters had been killed, with security forces allegedly firing on peaceful protesters and thousands detained without trial.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, pictured addressing a U.N. summit in New York, September 25, 2015, has vowed to crack down on “destructive forces” the government says are hijacking Oromo protests.ANDREW KELLY/REUTERS
How have the government responded to Oromo protests?
The EPRDF has come down hard on protesters, claiming that “destructive forces”—including groups designated as terrorist organizations by the Ethiopian government—are hijacking the protests for their own means. Hailemariam Desalegn, the Ethiopian prime minister, said in December 2015 that protesters had burned down government properties and killed security forces, and that “merciless legitimate action” would be taken against those causing disorder.
In a statement sent to Newsweek on February 23, the Ethiopian embassy in London said that the claims made in HRW’s February report were based on “malicious statements, false accusations and unsubstantiated allegations from opposition propaganda materials.” The embassy claimed that the Addis expansion plans were dropped after “extensive public consultations” and an investigation into killings and destruction of property was underway.
Are Oromos seeking secession from Ethiopia?
One of the designated terrorist organizations accused of involvement in the protests by the Ethiopian government is the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). The group wasestablished in 1973 to campaign for the Oromo’s right to self-determination. The OLF is now based out of Washington, D.C. and any accusations of its involvement in the Oromo protests is a means of “criminalizing protesters,” according to Etana Habte, Ethiopian author and PhD candidate at SOAS University of London. “I don’t believe the OLF has very significant influence on this protest,” says Habte. “[Claims the OLF is involved] have not any relevance or grain of truth within itself. Oromo protests are fundamentally peaceful and it carries a legitimate question.”
Habte claims that what the Oromo are seeking is self-determination, not secession.Article 39 of Ethiopia’s 1994 constitution affords “every nation, nationality or people in Ethiopia” the “unrestricted right to self-determination up to secession.” What the Oromo are asking for, says Habte, is a greater say in how their region is governed. “Oromos understand Oromia as their own territory where they have an absolute and constitutional right to self-rule,” says Habte. “The Oromo protests don’t ask for anything more than [what is provided by] the constitution.”
The Ethiopian government may have backed off its planned capital expansion after deadly protests last fall, but ethnic Oromo in Minnesota say violence and arrests continue. Here, people mourn the death of an alleged protester shot dead by Ethiopian forces. Zacharias Abubeker | AFP | Getty Images 2015
On Thursday, members of the community — around 40,000 Oromo people live in the state — came together for a daylong forum in Minneapolis to discuss the human rights violations in the East African nation.
In the last few months, clashes between state security forces and students in the Oromo region of Ethiopia have been deadly. Activists say more than 200 people have been killed, but Human Rights Watch said it couldn’t verify the number. And it’s unclear how many Oromos, the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia, have been arrested and imprisoned.
Teshite Wako Doualy Xaykaothao | MPR News
Teshite Wako, president of Oromo Community of Minnesota, said Oromo people are being targeted.
“By the name of development, and investments in the country, Oromos are evicted from their land, and students started to protest against that, and the response they got was to be killed,” Wako said.
Ethiopia’s prime minister said he regretted the loss of life during November’s demonstrations, and since then the government has ceased its plan to develop beyond the capital. However, daily killings and arrests have continued, said Wako.
“It’s an urgent matter that we need to pay attention to,” he said. “We would like, really, for genocide not to happen in our country. We are not against developments, investments, but what we are against is developments and investments that marginalize our people.”
Among those featured at the forum was Anuradha Mittal, executive director of The Oakland Institute, who spoke about human rights violations that her California nonprofit has been reporting about in Ethiopia since 2007.
Anuradha Mittal Doualy Xaykaothao | MPR News
“What is horrifying is a very systematic violation of human rights toward all communities that are not in political power,” she said. “This is based on so-called development schemes, which will result in the renaissance state of Africa, grand highways, the largest dam. But all of those schemes are being carried out through land-grabbing, taking away farmlands of communities without their consent, without compensation.”
Mittal added that when people protest, as young students apparently attempted to in November, there’s violence.
“They’ve been tortured, they’ve been intimidated, arrested, there’s no rule of law,” Mittal said. “There’s a complete misuse of the anti-terrorism law, which has become a tool to lock up people (and) not have them face charges for years. It is shameful for us to keep quiet.”
When President Barack Obama visited Ethiopia last year, he reportedly discussed greater business developments with officials, as well as human rights in the state. But Oromo Minnesotans say that’s not enough and many are urging Obama to help the Oromo before he leaves office.
From: The Union of the Oromo Gadaa Councils
Re: Announcing Resolutions of the Union of the Oromo Gadaa Councils
Date: February 24, 2016
The Union of the Oromo Gadaa Councils, Alarmed by of the recent disturbances in the Oromia Regional State, Cognizant of the need to find solutions to the causes of the disturbances, Deeply disturbed that the lives of our compatriots were lost and properties damaged in connection with the unrest and disturbance of the peace in Oromia, Having deliberated on the matter as representatives all Gadaa Councils sitting together in Finfinnee on February 23-24, 2016, we
Call for the immediate cessation of the ongoing conflict; financial compensation to be paid for loss of life in accordance with Gadaa tradition; and release of all those imprisoned without any charge against them,
Request the government to address the demands of the people immediately,
Encourage our people to continue to present their demands peacefully; we plead for everyone to refrain from damaging property while doing so,
Demand an immediate halt to the practice of evicting farmers from their land without their consent and without adequate compensation. We call upon the government to look into the damage created by past mistakes and ensure that the victims are made whole,
Announce that the Union of the Oromo Gadaa Councils is ready to discuss and seek solutions to the crisis that has now disrupted the peace of our country,
Have decided that the upcoming Irreecha (Thanksgiving holiday of the Oromo people) festival be celebrated in the City of Finfinnee,
Have resolved to create an independent source of income for the Councils in order to strengthen the Gadaa system,
Have resolved that henceforth the Spring Irreecha festival be celebrated at Tullu Bossettii, Bossettii District, East Shawa and a week later at Tullu Sirree, Iluu Galaan District, East Shawa,
Call upon people with no affiliation with the Gadaa councils who are now interfering in Gadaa affairs to refrain from engaging in Gadaa-related acts for which they have no representation; and strongly urge government and media agencies not to extend any assistance to anyone who do not have the authority of the Gadaa Councils,
Demand that Oromo cultural centers and sacred sites be respected and the sites be legally-protected with issuance of title deeds; and declare that the Union of the Oromo Gadaa Councils is prepared to work with the appropriate agencies to implement this resolution,
Resolve to strengthen Waaqeffanaa, the Oromo traditional religion, in accordance with the Gadaa System, the religion’s original tenets and the Oromo moral system of safuu,
Resolve to do our part to protect our natural resources everywhere in our regional state.
The Union of the Oromo Gadaa Councils Agreed upon in Finfinnee February 24, 2016 Gadaa Will Flourish in Peace Developing a Self-Sufficient Nation
Human Rights Watch says security forces are continuing to persecute members of Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo. Hundreds have allegedly been killed in recent protests over a government plan to expand the capital Addis Ababa into Oromo land.
Ethiopia: Govt Accused of Bloody Crackdown On Protesters
By All Africa and Al Jazzera, 22 February 2016
Ethiopian security forces are carrying out a brutal crackdown on peaceful protests in the country’s Oromia region and thousands of people are being held without charge, a human rights group has said.
The demonstrations began in November due to a government plan to expand the boundaries of Addis Ababa into Oromia, which surrounds the capital, raising fears among Oromo people that their farms would be expropriated.
Addis Ababa, which has accused the protesters of having links with “terror groups”, dropped the plan on January 12 and announced the situation in Oromia was largely under control.
The New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW), however, said the protests were continuing.
Ethiopia’s information minister, Getachew Reda, told Al Jazeera that he had not yet read the report and so could not comment on it.
HRW noted that researchers were unable to determine how many people have been killed or arrested because access to Oromia is restricted.
“[Ethiopian] activists allege that more than 200 people have been killed since November 12, 2015,” the rights group said.
In a previous document at the beginning of January, HRW reported at least 140 killings.
“Flooding Oromia with federal security forces shows the authorities’ broad disregard for peaceful protest by students, farmers, and other dissenters,” Leslie Lefkow, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch, said on Monday.
“The government needs to rein in the security forces, free anyone being held wrongfully, and hold accountable soldiers and police who used excessive force,” Lefkow added.
The rights group called on the Ethiopian government to end excessive use of force by its security forces, free everyone detained arbitrarily, and conduct an independent investigation into killings and other security force abuses.
The Oromos are the largest ethnic group in the horn of Africa country.
Ethiopia: Oromo protests will continue unless government ceases ‘killings and torture’
Human Rights Watch Reports Daily Killings As Ethiopian Government Continues Oromia Crackdown
By Manny Otiko, The Atlanta Black Star, February 23, 2016
Photo: Women mourn during the funeral ceremony of a primary school teacher who family members said was shot dead by military forces during protests in Oromia, Ethiopia in December 2015. (Reuters)
The Ethiopian government is reportedly continuing its crackdown on the Oromo people.
According to the New York-based Human Rights Watch, about 200 protesters have been killed in the latest government operation. Oromia, home to the Oromo people, is Ethiopia’s largest region. Demonstrations in the region broke out when the government attempted to clear a forest for an investment project. Protests escalated when the government decided to expand the borders of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital, to incorporate surrounding towns in Oromia, according to The International Business Times.
Government forces have used heavy-handed tactics to squash the protests, including rounding up and detaining protesters, torture and even extra-judicial killings, according to The Atlanta Blackstar. Many of the early protests were led by students, but that has not stopped the violence from security forces.
“They walked into the compound and shot three students at point-blank range,” said a 17-year-old student in a Human Rights Watch report. “They were hit in the face and were dead.”
The IBT said there are almost daily reports of killings.
“Things have become considerably more violent in the last few days,” said Felix Horne, Horn of Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. “The government needs to back down and stop the brutal crackdown.”
It’s difficult to get accurate information about what’s going on because Ethiopia does not have a free media. Human Rights Watch says it is relying on information leaking out via social media posts. The foreign-based Oromo Media Network is also reporting on the situation. However, its signals have been jammed by the Ethiopian government. Government forces have also reportedly smashed OMN satellites and jailed people who have shown their broadcasts.
However, the Ethiopian government denies there is a problem and dismissed Human Rights Watch’s latest report.
Getachew Reda, Ethiopia’s communications minister, told the BBC the report was an “absolute lie” and questioned how Human Rights Watch could report on the situation from New York. He also blamed the latest violence on armed gangs “who are trying to stir up emotions in the public.”
According to The IBT, the European Parliament passed a January resolution condemning the government’s crackdown on largely peaceful protesters. However, the U.S. government has not criticized the Ethiopian government, and has called for dialogue. According to The IBT, Ethiopia received $580 million in aid from the U.S. in 2012. Additionally, The Washington Post reported that the U.S. government uses Ethiopian bases to fly drone missions against terrorists groups in Somalia.
Leslie Lefkow, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch, said countries that donate money to Ethiopia should pressure the government to stop the killing.
“Ethiopia’s donor countries have responded tepidly, if at all, to the killing of scores of protesters in Oromia,” said Lefkow. “They should stop ignoring or downplaying this shocking brutality and call on the government to support an independent investigation into the killings and other abuses.”
Gurraandhala 23,2016 Ummati waanjoo gabrummaa baachuuf dhiitichaa abbaa irree damdamachuun nufisiisee lubbuusaa aarsaa gochuun diinasaa kan ta’e Shorokeessitoota Waayyaaneet bol’a qotuufsochii rog hundaan godhaa jiru jabeessuun har’a baha Wallaggaa bakkeewwaan hedduutti diinasaa hudhee kan dhaabe ta’uu bakkeewwan Leeqaa Dullachaa,Bonayyaa Boshee,Habashaa Sanbataa,Naqamte (Kibba Waachaa,Bordii,Dargee fi Mana barumsaa Qassoo) kan magaalaa Naqamteetti argaman keessatti mormiin dhiittaa namoomaa of irraa fonqolchuu ittu fifeera
Guyyaa Har’aa Amajjii 29,2016 Godina Wallaggaa aanaa Gidaamii fi Jimmaa Horroo akkasumas ganda Burii jedhamu keessatti FXH haala jabaa ta’een gaggeeffamaa oole,Warraanni Wayyaanee haala kanatti rifates jiraattotaa fi barattoota qabee hidhuu fi gidirsuu itti haa fufu malee uummanni naannichaa jabinaan loltoota Wayyaanee of irraa dhorkaa oolanii jiru jedha Qeerroon.
Barattotni magaalaa Naqaamteef jiraattonni magaalatti gabrummaa of irraa fonqolchuuf wayiita carraqanitti dhamsuuf humna waraanaa
Biraanee Fiqruu Mul’isaa jedhamti dhimma mormii MP fi FDG Oromiyaa keessattin deemamaa jiruun walqabatee godina kibba lixa Shaggar aanaa Daawootti mana hidhaa aanichatti dararamaa jirti.Kan hidhamte gaafa guyyaa 27,12,2015ti ture ergasi beellama si’aa 2irratti gaafatan yoo ta’u yeroo lachuu guyyaa 9 sagaal irratti gaafatani turan. Ammas hanga 28/1/2016tti tursisan kan akkas rawwachisa jiru immo bulchinsaa aanaa kan ta’e obboo Fayyisaa Dhaabaa jedhamu, wajjirri poolisii aanaa fi mannii murtii anichaas hojii seeraa dhisaani hojii siyaasa dalagaa jiran.
John Kirby
Dhumaa jaarraa 19ffaatti, yeroo gabrummaa Impaayera Ixoophiyaa jalatti kufe irraa eegalee,biyya abbaa isaa Oromiyaa irratti: bilisummaa,nagaa fi gammachuun jiraatuuf mirga seeraanis ta’e uumaan qabu sarbamee ummatni Oromoo inimmaan osoo irraa hin qoorre hanga har’aa jiraataa jira. Bara Minilik Oromiyaa weeraree ummata Oromoo miliyoona shan fixe; hedduu ammo harkaa fi harma muree fafeesse, Oromoon miliyoonni shan gadi hafee kanneen dhumaniif inimaan buusee kan dhiise qofa osoo hin taane, inimmaan isaa guyyaa tokko gabroomfataa dhiqee Oromiyaa keessaa akka baasu osuma inimmaan buusuu illee raagaa tureera. “Guyyaa itti diinni biyya keenya irraa buqqa’ee ilmaan keenya nagayaa fi gammachuun keessa jiraatan ni dhufa” jechuun kan Roobaa Bultum raage, Minilik ummata Oromoo miliyoona shanii, kan harki 70 dardaraa fi shamarrani eerga fixee booda. Kan yeroo san Roobaa Bultum raage, ummata Oromoo shanyi duguuginsa irraa hafaniif ;akeeka ittiin qajeelfaman, hawwii fi abdii bilisummaa ta’ee hanga har’aatti itti fufee jira.
Amajjii 13/2016 Warraasii FXG Gootota Qeerroo Barattoota Oromoo Yuunibarsiitii Jimmaa Haalaan Jabachuun Mooraa Main Campus keessatti haalaan itti fufe, Waraannii Wayyaanee Dhukaasaa guddaa barattoota Oromoo Yuunibarsiitii Jimmaa irratti Banuun Mooraa Yuunibarsiitii Jimmaa dirree Waraanaa fakkeesse jira,
Oromiyaa guututti FXG Amajii 1, 2016 irraa kaasee baadiyaa fi magaalaa, dhaabbata barnootaa fi amantaallee dabalachuun itti fufeera.
Dargaggoon Fiqaaduu Shuumataa Waaqtolaa baatii Sadaasa 2015 keessa FDG Wallagga magaalaa Madiitti gaggeeffame keessatti hirmaachuun dhadatnoo mirga namoomaa fi mirgoota saba Oromoo kaasu dhageessisuun barattootatti onnee horee nama turedha, dhadatnoo isaan booda suuraaleen inni gaafas ka’e marsaalee hedduu keessatti faca’uun Oromoota biyya alaa fi keessa jiran qalbii hortee akka ture beekama.
