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By Ezekiel Gebissa & Jawar Mohammed, Horn Arguments, November 17, 2017
The Oromo Protest, approaching its fourth year, is now an established historical fact as an Oromia-wide, yearlong resistance movement involving the entire Oromo population. Despite frustrating obstacles to the attainment of its broad goals, the resistance has had many successes. It has rocked an entrenched authoritarian political system to its roots, nibbling down the Ethiopian federal government to paralysis and compelling the Oromia regional government to embrace the demands of the Oromo people. It has exposed the inequities of an economic system purported to be on an inexorable trajectory of growth and broad-based benefits for all citizens. The Ethiopian military, the third largest in Africa, deployed extensively to put down the resistance, was shown to be impotent against unarmed but determined protestors. In sum, the Oromo Protest, an epochal event in Ethiopia’s history, has occasioned the rise of an emergent Oromo nation and a resurgent Oromo nationalism.
In the last half century, the goals of Oromo nationalists have always been the same as the political demands of other Ethiopians. But when the Oromo raise them, they invariably evoke a rhetorical question: “What do the Oromo really want?” This is not an honest query but a mischievous scheme designed to marginalize the Oromo nation, disparage Oromo political demands, and criminalize the Oromo nationalist movement. It is a ploy employed by Ethiopia’s powerholders to make the Oromo the perpetual outsider and cast the Oromo national movement into a subversive nationalism.
Within the framework of this ploy, Oromo nationalism is consistently labeled as a separatist movement that injects discord into domestic politics and threatens the stability of the existing state system in the Horn. In scholarly literature, Oromo nationalists are depicted as disciples of Eritrean secessionists whose objective is the dismemberment of the Ethiopian state. In Ethiopian popular consciousness, Oromo nationalists came to represent a relic of the era of liberation movements who, unlike the levelheaded “democrats” of our time, want to tear down the state, subvert democracy, thwart development and disrupt peace. Simply put, Oromo nationalism was rendered a genie that should be kept inside the bottle.
The eminent British anthropologist Paul Baxter observed this phenomenon nearly forty years ago. In a definitive article published 1978, “Ethiopia’s Unacknowledged Problem: The Oromo,” he wrote:
The efflorescence of feelings of common nationhood and of aspirations for self-determination among the Oromo has not been much commented upon. Yet the problem of the Oromo people has been a major and central one in the Ethiopian Empire ever since it was created by Minilik in the last two decades of the nineteenth century. If the Oromo people only obtain a portion of the freedoms which they seek then the balance of political power in Ethiopia will be completely altered. If the Oromo act with unity they must necessarily constitute a powerful force.
For the next four decades, even though both the Oromo nation and Oromo nationalism continued to play a critical role in matters of war and peace, in the formation and fall of regimes, and in the quest for equality and justice, the Oromo question remained Ethiopia’s unacknowledged problem that must be confined the periphery of Ethiopian politics.
Ethiopia’s Unacknowledged Problem
The contemporary Oromo struggle emerged during the revolutionary fervor of the late 1960s as a movement against national and class oppression. During this time, the impoverished, overtaxed and landless Oromo peasants Bale presented their grievances in an armed rebellion, the Bale Rebellion, which lasted several years. Oromo elite who served in the imperial regime as civilian and military officials, realizing that their place was always subordinate to the dominant Amhara, started to join the nationalist camp. In 1963, their dissatisfaction coalesced into an organized movement with the establishment of the Mecha Tulama Self-help Association (MTA).
By the late 1960s, the Bale rebellion had been quelled and the MTA had been outlawed by the imperial government. In response, Oromo nationalists founded a political organization named the Ethiopian National Liberation Front (ENLF) in 1971. Led by Hajji Hussien Sorra, one of the leaders of Bale rebellion, the ENLF’s declared objective was to overthrow Haile Sellassi’s “feudal regime” and to create a “progressive republic” based on a decentralized union comprised of autonomous regions. Specifically, it supported land distribution to peasants, freedom of the press, release of political prisoners and the right to organize political parties and professional associations. Put succinctly, the focus of the Oromo nationalists during this period was on the restoration of human dignity for an Oromo and respect for the identity of the nation.
In the 1970s, the Ethiopian Student Movement (ESM) became the locus of opposition political activities against the imperial government. Oromo nationalists were not just members of the ESM unions but also served in various leadership roles. In these capacities, they participated in the articulation of the two major political questions, encapsulated in the motto of “land to the tiller” and “the question of nationalities,” that have since shaped Ethiopian politics. These same political demands that animated the ESM also galvanized Oromo nationalists.
The twin questions of land and identity culminated in the Ethiopian Revolution of 1974. During the early phases of the revolution, Oromo nationalists gave critical support to the Derg government for issuing the Land Nationalization Proclamation of 1975 and introducing various measures to allow cultural expressions of the various nationalities of Ethiopia. Many Oromo nationalists became leaders of the various political parties of the time including the All Ethiopia Socialist Union or Me’ison (Haile Fida) and the Revolutionary Struggle of Ethiopia’s Oppressed or Eche’at (Baro Tumsa) and the League of the Proletariat or Wez Liig (Senay Likki). Once the Derg consolidated its power, it made any talk of the nationalities question a treasonable crime. Oromo nationalists in urban centers were subsequently imprisoned, tortured and killed. Oromo farmers in the eastern region were labelled collaborators of the Said Barre regime, rounded up indiscriminately and summarily executed.
In the aftermath of this unparalleled brutality, some Oromo nationalists joined the armed struggle in the Chercher highlands in the East. At the same time, Oromo nationalist intellectuals framed Oromo nationalist goals in terms of freedom from the Amhara nafxanya class who had oppressed and persecuted Oromo peasants and from the descendants of the nafxanya in urban areas who kept Oromo professionals in perpetual second class status. As Leenco Lata, a leading leader of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) put it in a recent interview on ESAT, “framing the Oromo national question as a colonial question was necessary because Oromoness itself was threatened with extinction by the assimilationist policies of the imperial regime.” The political program that was sketched in the context of a worldview shaped by the prevailing realities of the time culminated in the regime change of 1991.
In the 1990s, the Oromo struggle began to move away from the guerilla movement posture it had for decade to a mass movement on Ethiopia’s national political stage. Within the framework of the language-based federal structure, the use of the Oromo language as the working language in Oromia and the use of Latin script in writing in Afaan Oromo, the Oromo people gradually overcame the cultural domination of the era of assimilation and came to realize that they have a common destiny as a unified nation. This sense of unity was reinforced by protest songs, resistance literature, cultural performances and a public display of new symbols of national pride. The annual Irreecha festival, celebrated in Bishoftu from the early 1990s onwards, became a manifestation an Oromo cultural renaissance and a nationalist struggle that had entered a more mature stage of political evolution.
By 2000, Oromo cultural consciousness, resulting from cultural renaissance and mounting deprivation caused by the barefaced exploitation of the Woyyane era, began to coalesce as an organized collective action. The forest fire of 2000 in Bale and opposition to the relocation of the capital of Oromia from Addis Ababa to Adama in 2003 prefigured a more powerful and resilient civic action that erupted a decade later in 2014. This was the university student-led protests opposing the planned implementation of the now infamous Addis Ababa and Surrounding Oromia Special Region Integrated Development Master Plan.
Since 2014, despite ebbs and flows, the Oromo protest has continued to this day. Even though this epochal phenomenon has yet to achieve its goals, it has incontrovertibly changed the face of Ethiopian politics permanently. With the Oromo People’s Democratic Organization (OPDO) ending its quarter century long drama of dissimulation and promoting the longstanding agenda of Oromo nationalist movement, Oromo nationalism become the leitmotif of politics in Oromia and in Ethiopia. As such, the fate of the Ethiopian polity is now inextricably linked with answering the Oromo demands for freedom, equality and justice. Ethiopia’s unacknowledged problem has been acknowledged as Ethiopia’s political problem that can no longer be externalized or pushed to the periphery.
Oromo Protest, an Oromo Renaissance
The Oromo Protest, the current stage of the long Oromo struggle, is characterized by fast, aggressive, sharp-paced resistance actions that took advantage of technology, artistic expressions and the ingenuity of organizers. Tech-savvy activists creatively employed new communication technologies—especially social media via the Internet—for the mobilization of collective action and the subsequent creation, organization, and implementation of tactical moves in pursuit of strategic goals. They were able to use the Internet to initiate and organize a broad spectrum of activities, including consumer boycotts, public protests, stay-at-home strikes, and demonstrations.
In addition to organizing and implementing collective actions on the ground in Oromia, social media technologies were used to coordinate transnational actions between activists in the diaspora and their counterparts at home. The technologies were used in promoting a sense of community and collective identity among Oromo society, creating less-confined political spaces, establishing connections with other social movements, and publicizing the Oromo cause to gain support from the global community.
One of the internal characteristics of the Oromo protests is the activists’ devotion to planning and execution of sophisticated civil actions. The activists created symbols, notably the crossed hands over the head, and employed new methods, tactics and actions which were quickly adopted by protestors in major cities, towns and villages across Oromia. Though Oromia-wide in scope, the network of activists who organized and led the protests remained invisible to the regime’s security apparatus. Unable to pin-down the organization and leadership of the protests, the regime resorted to a dragnet approach which landed leading Oromo political leaders in jail and hundreds of thousands of ordinary Oromo in concentration camps. Thousands more were forced into exile while thousands more were summarily executed by security forces acting with impunity.
Their sacrifices are not in vain. The Oromo Protest has ended the era of secretly-conceived, elite-directed and vertically-implemented bad policies. Confronting the regime with waves of demonstrations and insisting to have a voice in their government, the protestors have impressed on the current and future powerholders the true meaning of the principle of popular sovereignty. Streaming into the streets for nearly a year in the face of a heavily armed military that has no qualms raining bullets on unarmed citizens, the Oromo protesters have shown the futility of the use of brute force against a conscious and determined citizenry. Demanding respect for the constitution, the federal arrangement, and the rule of law, the protestors have defended the gains of the Oromo national movement.
Until the Oromo Protest, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) managed to remain in power by dividing the Oromo people into supporters of the “good” OPDO who are pro-peace, pro-democracy and pro-development “patriots” and of the “evil” OLF who are anti-peace, anti-democracy and anti-development “terrorists.” These dichotomies have now dissolved. The political rhetoric of the current OPDO leaders is indistinguishable from those of an OLF nationalist whom they have despised for a quarter century. Oromia government officials and diaspora-based activists now speak with one voice about the future. This signifies the convergence of Oromo interests and an emerging consensus in addressing the longstanding and current demands the Oromo people.
The apparent unity purpose among Oromo political forces is one of the enduring legacies of the Oromo Protest. Oromo demands are no longer the pawn of the competing positions enunciated in political programs. Through the slogans, chants, placards, speeches, songs and other forms of expression, the Oromo protestors have re-articulated the longstanding Oromo quest for self-determination. At this stage of the struggle, the Oromo people demand positive liberty, the freedom to exercise democratic rights, constitutional rule, respect for human rights and the right to live in peace. They also demand negative liberty or freedom from violence, authoritarian rule, deprivation, arbitrary detention, torture and murder by security forces.
Rearticulated as such it is clear that the longstanding demands of the Oromo people for self-determination are not antagonistic to the demands of all peoples in Ethiopia. They are not only the same demands as other peoples of Ethiopia but also consistent with the rights that are enumerated in the Ethiopian constitution and in notable international human rights declarations and convents such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). By expressing Oromo demands so clearly and unambiguously, the Oromo protestors have rendered ineffective the TPLF’s tactic of presenting Oromo demands as a plot designed to dismember and destroy the Ethiopian state.
The Oromo Protest’s immediate impact is on the Oromia government leaders. At least three cases exemplify the new leaders’ transformation. First, when Lemma Megersa, President of the Oromia region, decided to stay away from the Irreecha celebrations of 2017, he showed a rare political acumen of exercising leadership by refraining from acting impulsively. Second, during the celebrations at Lake Arsadi, Burayuu and in other places all over Oromia, the Oromia police acted in the best police tradition that the force’s mission is “to protect and serve.” Third, after the Liyu Police of the Somali region engineered the forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of Oromo from the Somali region, the regional government quickly organized a relief effort to attend to the needs of the displaced. The senior leader of the OPDO, Abba Duulaa Gammada, realizing that his seat of power wasn’t matched by the authority to effect change, resigned in protest. In recent weeks, the new leaders have foiled the plot to instigate conflict between the Amhara and Oromo people and helped diffuse public fear of an impending inter-ethnic conflict by holding a solidarity conference in with the people of the people of the Amhara region.
It is true that the current OPDO leaders were forced by the resilience and determination of the Oromo Protest to respond to popular demands. Regardless, they made the right decision in choosing to heed the people’s voice, embrace the protestors’ vision and desist from doing more harm. Beyond these overall adjustments, the specific actions they made since the Ireecha festival of 2017 are important not just in resolving existing problems but also in terms of their implications for the future. A leader avoiding an opportunity to bask in limelight is a first in Ethiopia. A police force exercising restraint not to shoot at protestors sets a precedent that will be a model of police behavior in the future. A high level official giving up power rather than continue to be a hatchet man presages a new era in Ethiopian politics. The ‘reformed’ OPDO is an unmistakable example of the institutionalization Oromo nationalism.
The Oromo Protest has also reshaped Oromo nationalism forcing its intellectual leaders to reckon the many lost opportunities, strategic blunders, and self-destructive initiatives that have obviated progress toward self-determination. There is now an emerging Oromo nationalism that is pragmatic and is oriented towards solving the problems of everyday life. It is nationalism that is not and cannot be depicted as destructive, dystopian and iconoclastic. It is nationalism that is rational and has a responsible approach to nation-building. No longer the pariah in Ethiopian politics, the new generation of Oromo nationalists is now a positive force for desirable change and for devising workable solutions for Ethiopia’s future.
The Oromo Protest has shown that the force that poses a threat to the unity of Ethiopians is not the Oromo demand for self-determination, which in fact is the ultimate exercise of democratic rights, but a government that is committed to perpetuating a single group’s domination of the state by pitting against each other the various nations and nationalities in the country. The solution to the country’s ills cannot be achieved by denying the right to choose one’s ethnonational identity. The future of unity lies in the construction of a genuine multinational federation based on equality, justice, human dignity and constitutional rule. This is the Oromo alternative vision to a workable social contract for a future of peace and prosperity.
The Oromo Alternative
Nearly forty years after Paul Baxter bemoaned Oromo political marginalization and lack of unity among them, in 2012, the eminent University of Chicago sociologist, the late Donald Levine, expressed optimism about the role of the Oromo in Ethiopia in an article entitled “the Oromo vision could electrify Ethiopia.” He writes:
Oromo leaders could promote wider understanding of the democratic ethos of the remarkable political Gada system and invite themselves more robustly into the Ethiopian center, with a vigorous campaign to reform democratic procedures, protect human rights, and guarantee civil liberties for ALL Ethiopians. Such a role would be in keeping with the expansive project of the Oromo people and their most salient traditional virtues.”
The Oromo vision that Levine proposed for Ethiopia is precisely the vision that the Oromo Protest has put forth. It is a vision of a freedom, equality, justice and dignity in a participatory democracy. What makes it so compelling is that it is shaped by Oromo indigenous knowledge traditions rather by transplanted ideologies or borrowed experiences that have thus far proven to produce only failed experiments and false starts for positive change. The Oromo vision reaffirms Oromo democratic ethos, notions of inclusive economic development, principles of peace-maintenance and respect for human rights rather than by opposition to the now defunct Ethiopian colonialism. As such, it offers a refreshing alternative to the current one-party dictatorship and holds out a realistic hope for attaining a peaceful, prosperous and democratic Ethiopia.
In addition, Oromo nationalism is no longer an urban-centered movement led by a handful of elites but a broad-based social movement involving Oromos from all walks of life. Protests occurred in all of the twenty-one zones of Oromia and in over 200 cities and numerous villages. The absence of a distinct class of elite leaders did not result in chaos and the reign of unruliness in Oromia during the protests. Despite the effort to fan inter-ethnic suspicion and instigate conflict, the protest exercised great restraint not to let emotions run high and create a circumstance where non-Oromo citizens in Oromia could be harmed. By acting responsibly, the protestors have shown that Oromo nationalism isn’t a negative nationalism that poses a threat to non-Oromo or to Ethiopia’s unity but a movement rooted in the Oromo tradition of social inclusiveness, tolerance and willingness to relate to non-Oromo on the basis of common humanity.
These are positive reasons as to why non-Oromo Ethiopians should find a more reliable, stable, and enduring partner in Oromo leaders to create people-based solidarity against domination. Because of the new realities in Ethiopia, solidarity is now possible on the basis of broadly shared democratic, cultural and geographic values. The majority of Ethiopians are members of a national community of the badly governed. The risk of not having solidarity is too grave and the penalty of refusing to forge one too high. That imposes the moral imperative of seeking solidarity based not on ill-defined uniformity or uncritical acceptance of the other but on common ground and common purpose, and mutual acceptance of each other’s differences, and a willingness to tolerate each other’s excesses. It is solidarity for a more positive future which envisions a shared commitment to the ideals of democracy, human rights, government accountability and transparency and other ideas of both positive and negative freedoms.
Even governments who have interest in the Horn of Africa region should find in the Oromo a more credible and better alternative to the incumbent regime to stabilize the region. This is not to suggest that the Oromo cause should be subservient to the needs of the rest of the world, but a simple statement that the Oromo peoples’ quest for fundamental human rights, rooted in its own heritage and traditional values, is not antithetical to international principles that have avoided conflict and sustained peace in the world. Oromo nationalist leaders realize that the Oromo cause is more attainable if it is aligned with the needs of the international community.
Fascist Ethiopia ‘s regime has been conducting mass killings in Awaday, Oromia. Fascist Ethiopia’s regime forces killed several Oromo children in Awaday, Oromia, 1 July 2016.
18 years old young Oromo woman Sabrina Abdalla was shot by fascist Agazi of the TPLF Ethiopia’s regime on 20 June 2016 in Chalanqo, East Hararge, Oromia. She has died at upon arrival at Harar hospital. She was shot in a small hut she uses to sell tea and coffee.
Body of Sabrina Abdalla (18 years), the 10th grade Oromo female student who was gunned down in the night of 20 June 2016 byfascist Ethiopia’s regime soldiers in Chalanqo, East Hararge, Oromia.
June 28 /29 2016: #Oromo protests in Oromia (finfinnee, Hanna Furi) as the regime engaged in destroying residential houses for land grabs.
This is not just a political slight of hand. This is downright tragic. This is simply brutal. This is an act of state terror. This is bureaucracy deployed to disrupt life and terrorize poor citizens. This is a heartless exposure of people to a miserable death on the streets in these dark rainy days. You can’t call out women and children to a meeting and yet demolish their houses in their absence. We say NO to this in the strongest possible terms! NO! to a continued infliction of unnecessary suffering to poor people! Tsegaye Ararssa.
(Nairobi) – Ethiopian security forces have killed more than 400 protesters and others, and arrested tens of thousands more during widespread protests in the Oromia region since November 2015. The Ethiopian government should urgently support a credible, independent investigation into the killings, arbitrary arrests, and other abuses.
The 61-page report. “‘Such a Brutal Crackdown’: Killings and Arrests in Response to Ethiopia’s Oromo Protests,” details the Ethiopian government’s use of excessive and unnecessary lethal force and mass arrests, mistreatment in detention, and restrictions on access to information to quash the protest movement. Human Rights Watch interviews in Ethiopia and abroad with more than 125 protesters, bystanders, and victims of abuse documented serious violations of the rights to free expression and peaceful assembly by security forces against protesters and others from the beginning of the protests in November 2015 through May 2016.
Ethiopian security forces have killed more than 400 protesters and others, and arrested tens of thousands more during widespread protests in the Oromia region since November 2015.
“Ethiopian security forces have fired on and killed hundreds of students, farmers, and other peaceful protesters with blatant disregard for human life,” said Leslie Lefkow, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The government should immediately free those wrongfully detained, support a credible, independent investigation, and hold security force members accountable for abuses.”
Human Rights Watch found that security forces used live ammunition for crowd control repeatedly, killing one or more protesters at many of the hundreds of protests over several months. Human Rights Watch and other organizations have identified more than 300 of those killed by name and, in some cases, with photos.
Partial list of Oromos mainly students that have been killed by Ethiopian regime police, security agents, Special and armed force during peaceful demonstration of last three months (updated stand. March. 2016)
Partial list of Oromos mainly students that have been killed by Ethiopian regime police, security agents, Special and armed force during peaceful demonstration of last three months (updated stand. March. 2016)
ABC News: Right Group:Oromia: #OromoProtests: Ethiopia’s security forces carrying out serious rights abuses, killings and rapes in clashes with protesters in Oromia
Sabboonan Oromoo Barataa Tarreessaa Safaraamooraa Yunivarsiitii Mattuu keessatti Ajjeefame. Oromo national Tarreessaa Safaraa, Engineering student at Mattu University murdered by TPLF/ Ethiopian Security agents on 23rd October 2015
Ethiopian Government Paramilitary Commits Torture and Rape in Oromia
The following is a statement from the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA).
HRLHA Urgent Action October 12, 2015
Harassments and intimidations through arbitrary arrests, beatings, torture and rapes were committed in Ada’a Berga district Western Showa Zone of Oromia Regional State against young Oromo nationals on September 24 and 25, 2015. More than 30 young Oromos were picked up from their homes at night by an Oromia paramilitary force. According to HRLHA informants in Ada’a Berga, the major targets of this most recent District Administration officials-sponsored violence were mostly young Oromos working in the Dangote Cement Factory and university students who were there to visit their families in the summer break. HRLHA informants from the area confirmed that this particular operation against young Oromo nationals in Ada’a Barga was led by the local government official obbo Tolera Anbasse. In this incident more than 30 young Oromos (16-25 ages) were arrested; more than 20 were severely beaten by the Oromia Paramilitary and confined in the Ada’a Barga district Police station for three days in violation of the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Article 19 (3) “Persons arrested have the right to be brought before a court within 48 hours of their arrest. Such time shall not include the time reasonably required for the journey from the place of arrest to the court. On appearing before a court, they have the right to be given prompt and specific explanation of the reasons for their arrest due to the alleged crime committed”. Although it has been difficult to identify everyone by their names, HRLHA informants have confirmed that the following were among the arrestees:
All arrestees were accused of what the police referred to as “instigating the public against the government.”
When the arrestees were brought to court, one man explained to the court that he had been beaten severely in front of his family members and his wife and his sister age 16 were raped by one of the paramilitary members.
The arrestees showed their scarred backs to the court to indicate the torture inflicted on them by the Paramilitary. Even though the court released all the arrestees on bail the police refused the court order and took them to jail.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) expresses its deep concern over the safety and well-being of these arrested Oromo nationals and urge the Oromia Regional State Government to make sure that the bail conditions granted by the court are respected and release the arrestees unconditionally. HRLHA also urges the Oromia Regional State and the Ethiopian government to bring the torturers and rapists Ethiopian government paramilitary members to justice.
Naannawa Shagar aanaa Sululta Magaalaa Caancoo keessatti saamicha lafaa fi qotee bulaa humnaan qe’ee irraa buqqiduun daran hammaachuu irraan kan ka’e diddaan uummataa jabaate. Yeroo ammaa kana Wayyaanee fi dabballoonni ishee qotee bulaa lafa irraa buqqisuun saamicha gaggeessaa kan jirtu yoo ta’u uummanni magaala Caancoo diddaa jabaa dhageessisaa jira.
Diddaa uummataa kana dura dhaabbachuuf yeroo hedduu maqaa wal gahii jedhuun uummataa fi hojjattootta mootummaa yaamuun sossobuuf yaalaa kan turte yoo tahu walgahii isheen yaamte irratti hojjattoonni dhalootaan Oromoo tahanii fi uummanni magaalaa Caancoo diddaa jabaa waan dhageessisaniif diddaa kana dura dhaabbachuu hin dndeenye. Kana waan taheef ammas diddaa uummataa kana dhaamsuuf dabballootuma waliin saamicha gaggeessaa turan yeroodhaaf jettee mana hidhaa aanaa Sulultaa magaala Caancootti guuraa jirti.
Haaluma kanaan fakkeessidhaaf lafa saamtanii jirtu sababa jedhuu dabballootuma idhee itti gaafatamaainvestment kan tahe nama Salamoon Debebe jedhamuu fi mahandisoota magaala Caancoo nama sadi yeroodhaaf sagalee fi didaa uummataa dhaamsuuf jettee mana hidhaatti kan darbatte.
Darajjee Goobanaa, Oromo national and 3rd year student at Bule Hora University is murdered by fascist TPLF Ethiopia (Agazi) forces: Barataa Waggaa 3ffaa Yuuniversitii Bulee Horaa Kan Ta’e Sabboontichi Darajjee Goobanaa Rasaasa Poolisoota Wayyaaneen Wareegame.
Barataa Darajjee Goobanaan godina Wallaggaa Horroo Guduruu aanaa Jaardagaa Jaartee jedhamutti kan dhalatee guddate ta’uu fi amal qabeessaa fi qaroo ilma Oromoo akka ta’e barattooti Yuuniverstii Bulee Horaa dubbatu.
Peoples Most under Threat: The Oromo, Anuak, Afars & Somali (Ogaden) and other Indigenous People are Facing Genocide in Ethiopia, the Latest Annual Report Released on 18th May 2015 by Rights Group Reveals May 21, 2015
Yakka waraana mootummaan EPRDF/TPLFn uummata Oromoo fi barattoota Oromoo irratti fudhateen jiraattotii fi hojjettooti hostala Naqamtee haalaan kan gaddan yeroo ta’u Oromoonni adduunyaa irratti bakka hunda faca’anii jiran gochaa hammeenya wayyaanee kaan akka balaaleffatanii fi hirkoo baratootaaf akka ta’an Qeerroo dhaammata.
Gama biraan Haaluma kanaan walqabatee Yuunibarsiitiin Wallaggaa fi Magaalaan Neqemtee rafama guddaa keessa jirti, Mootummaan Wayyaanee lubbuu ilmaan Oromoo fi nageenya uummata Oromoof bakka tokko illee hin qabnee fi tarkaanfii gara jabinaa Oromoo irratti fudhachuun beekamu guyyaa har’aa caamsa 20/2015 immoo Magaalaa Neqemtee keessatti dabballota, fi
kaadiroota isaa waliin hiriira duula filannoo gaggeessa jira. Uummatni Oromoo magaalaa Neqemtee fi yuunibarsiitii wallaggaa humna waraanaa guddaan eegamaa jiruu, Barattootni Yuunivarsiitii Wallaggaa guyyaa hardhaa barnoota dhaabani jiru.
Armed TPLF (Agazi) forces that have camped in and occupied University of Wallagga in Naqamtee City have been engaged in terrorizing and torturing students and civilians in the city. It has been learnt that on 19th May 2015 the Agazi forces shot at and wounded 2 university students.
6 Oromo Students of Three Universities Abducted by TPLF Led Government Forces
Qeerroo Report, May 17, 2015: As the fake 2015 so called Ethiopian election approaches, the TPLF led Ethiopian government has intensified arresting, harassing, and abduction of Oromo nationals, especially Oromo students of universities and higher educational institutions. Accordingly, the following Oromo students of Adama University, Eastern Shoa zone of Oromia regional state have been abducted by the terrorist “intelligence” forces of the Ethiopian regime and their whereabouts are unknown. Read Full; Qeerroo Report, May 17 2015http://qeerroo.org/2015/05/17/6-oromo-students-of-three-universities-abducted-by-tplf-led-government-forces/
5 Oromo students from Adama University have been kidnapped by TPLF (Agazi) security forces. Kidnapping, torturing and violence against Oromo students and civilians is continued all over universities and entire Oromia. See the following table for few latest lists in Afaan Oromo.
Barataan Oromoo maqaan isaa Rabbirraa Biloo jedhamu Kiibxata Caamsaa 04, 2015 Univarsity Wallo, Kampasii Dassee keessaatti fannifamee ajjeefame. Barataan Oromoo kun barataa Health Science waggaa 1ffaa yoo tahu, barataa dadeettii fi namuusa qabeessa akka turee fi gaafa Wiixataa barumsaa isaa barachaa oolee gara naannoo sa’aa 1:00w.b. irraa eegalee akka baheen eessa buuteen isaa waan dhabameef hiriyooti isaa qaama Poolisii mooraa Univarsitichaatti gabasanis yerodhan tarkaanfiin akka hin fudhatamnee fi reeffi barataa Oromoo kanaa dirree kubbaa miillaa Universitichaa keessaatti gaafa Kiibxataa Caamasaa 04, 2015 fannifamee akka argame ibsaniiru. Yeroo reeffi barataa Oromoo kanaa argameetti qaami isaa walqixxaatee akka turee fi mallattoon biraa fuula isaa tahe afaan isaa irratti akka hin argamne hiriyooti isaa ifa godhanii jiru.Duuti barataa Rabbirraa Biloo rakkoo fi miidhaa barattoota Oromoo irraan bulchiinsi Univarsity Walloo fi mootummaan abbaa irree Wayyaanee geessisaa jiraniin kan wal-qabatee tahuu fi akkaataa du’a barataa Oromoo kanaa barattooti Oromoo Univarsity akka seeraan qoratamu bulchiinsa univaristichaa gaafatanis qaami bulichiinsa Univarsitichaa sun qormaati akkasii kan geggeeffamu Hospitaala Maqaleetti yookan immoo Hospitaal Miniliktti jechuudhaan ajjeechaan lammii Oromoo kanaa osoo seeraan hin qulqullaahin gara matii isaatti akka ergame ifa taheera. Barataan Oromoo kun bakki dhaloota isaa godina Shaggar Dhiyaa, aanaa Gindabaratti ta’uun beekameera.Mooraan Kampasii Dassee dallaa tokkollee kan hin qabne ta’uu isaa fi kana barattooti yeroo adda addaa qaama bulchiinsa Univarsitichaatti iyyatanis hawaasi nannichaayyu dalla isiniif taha jechuudhaan mooraa Univarsituchaatti dallaa ijjaaruu akka didan maddeen oduu kana ibsanii jiru.Barattooti Oromoo Univarsity Walloo yaaddoo barumsa isaanii nagaan barachuu fi wabii jireenyaa dhabuu qaban yeroo ibsan, barataan Oromoo mooraa san keessatti akka lammii lammaffaa fi yakkamaatti kan ilaalamuu fi gaaffii mirgaas tahe kan bulchiinsa Univarsity wajjin wal qabatee kamiyyuu yoo gaafatan tarkaanfiin isaan irratti fudhatamu isa dhumaa fi keessa deebii ykn ilaalcha tokko kan hin kennamneef tahuu ibsanii; gaaffii guumii aadaa fi afaan Oromoo hundeessuuf bulchiinsa Univarsitychaaf yeroo dheeraaf dhiyeessanillee hanga har’aatti deebii osoo hin argatiin jiraachuu isaa fi warreen gaaffii mirgaa akkasii dhiyeessan illee tarkaanfiin barumsa irraa hari’uu akka irratti fudhatamu akka akeekkachiifaman beekameera.
Humni Tika fi Loltuun Feederaala Wayyaanee Barattoota Oromoo Yuuniversitii Wallaggaa Hedduu Reebuu Saamaa Jira, Barattoota Afur Reebichaan Gara Malee Miidhe.
Oromo students in University Wallaggaa have been tortured and robbed their belongings by TPLF (Agazi) forces operating in the campus. Among students who have been severely attacked by Agazi are:
Abarraa Ayyalaa fi kanneen biroo maqaan hin qaqqabin dararama jiraachuun maddeen keenya gabaasan. http://qeerroo.org/2015/05/15/humni-tika-fi-loltuun-feederaala-wayyaanee-barattoota-oromoo-yuuniversitii-wallaggaa-hedduu-reebuu-saamaa-jira-barattoota-afur-reebichaan-gara-malee-miidhe/
More than 50 Oromo students arrested by Ethiopia’s tyrannic TPLF regime in Ambo, Oromia; 20 being tortured
The statement from the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA):-Ethiopia: The Endless Violence against Oromo Nationals ContinuesFear of Torture | HRLHA Urgent Action For Immediate Release May 7, 2015 Harassment and intimidation through arbitrary arrests, kidnappings and disappearances have continued unabated in Ambo and the surrounding areas against Oromo youth and intellectuals since the crackdown of last year (April 2014), when more than 79 Oromos, mostly youth, were killed by members of the federal security force. According to HRLHA correspondents in Ambo, the major targets of this most recent government-sponsored violence were Ambo University and high schools Oromo students in Ambo town. In this incident, which started on April 20, 2015, more than 50 university and high school students were arrested; more than 20 were severely beaten by the security force and taken to the Ambo General Hospital for treatment. Although it has been difficult to identify everyone by their names, HRLHA correspondents have confirmed that the following were among the arrestees: Those who were badly beaten and are being hospitalized in the Ambo General Hospital: According to HRLHA reporters, the arrests were made to clear out supporters and members of the other political organizations running for the 5th General Election to be held May 24, 2015. The EPRDF, led by the late Meles Zenawi, claimed victory in the General Elections of 1995, 2000, 2005 and 2010. The TPLF/EPRDF government of Ethiopia has started a campaign of intimidation against its opponents. Extrajudicial arrests and imprisonments, particularly in the regional state of Oromia, the most populous region in the country, began late October 2014. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) expresses its deep concern over the safety and well-being of these Oromo nationals who have been arrested without any court warrant, and are being held at police stations and unknown detention centers. The Ethiopian government has a well documented record of gross and flagrant violations of human rights, including the torturing of its own citizens, who were suspected of supporting, sympathizing with and/or being members of the opposition political organizations. There have been credible reports of physical and psychological abuses committed against individuals in Ethiopia’s official prisons and other secret detention centers. HRLHA calls upon governments of the West, all local, regional and international human rights agencies to join hands and demand the immediate halt to such extrajudicial actions against one’s own citizens, and the unconditional release of the detainees. RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to the Ethiopian Government and its officials as swiftly as possible, written in English, Ahmaric, or your own language. The following are suggested: – Indicate your concern about citizens being tortured in different detention centers, including the infamous Ma’ikelawi Central Investigation Office; and calling for their immediate and unconditional release; – Urge the Ethiopian authorities to ensure that detainees will be treated in accordance with the regional and international standards on the treatment of prisoners, and that their whereabouts be disclosed, and – Make sure the coming May 24, 2015 election is fair and free. Read full statement from the following links: The Endless Violence against Oromo Nationals Continues, HRLHA Report, 7th May 2015
Ethiopia: Kidnapped And Disappearance of Oromo Civilians
Oromia Support Group Australia Appeal for Urgent Action: To: Committee on Enforced Disappearances and Committee against Torture Human Rights Treaties Division (HRTD) Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Palais Wilson – 52, rue des Pâquis CH-1201 Geneva (Switzerland) Ethiopia: Kidnapped and disappearance of Oromo civilians Magarsa Mashsha And Urgessa Damana: Oromia Support Group Australia Inc. (OSGA) expresses its deep concern regarding the kidnapping a nd disappear an ce of two Oromo civilians by the Ethiopian security forces. Mr Magarsa Mashasha Ayansa was kidnapped and diapere d on April 23rd, 7pm local tim e while Urgessa Damana was on May 4th, 2015. Mr Magarsa, community health worker, a student of Ambo University is the local area resident. He was kidnapped by Ethiopian security forces from the country’s central city Fifinna (Addis Ababa) – Bole area – while he was on a trip for his personal business. In a similar situation, Mr Urgessa Damana a former Rift Valley University Student and resident of Ambo town also captured on 4th of May 2015 by Ethiopian security forces. Since then the whereabouts of theses Oromo civilians remained unknown. OSGA believes that th e Ethiopian government conduct violated the fundamental rights. The right to freedom from torture and the UN Body of Principles for the Protection of All Per sons under Any Form of Detention and Imprisonment including the UN Standard Minimum Treatment of Prisoners is entirely denied. We are concerned that this pattern will continue to worsen. We respectfully believe that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) – Human Rights Treaties Division (HRTD) has a duty to use its diplomatic relationships with the reciprocal expectation of protecting human rights and legitimate democratic governance. These accusations reveal serious violations of human rights and legal process, and without external accountability, many vulnerable people will suffer in the country. We, therefore, urge you to: 1. Request the Ethiopian Government to reveal the whereabouts of these two Oromo civilians and immediate and unconditional release of them including all political prisoners under their captivity. 2. Request to investigate, amongst other things, actions taken by the Ethiopian Government security forces in the state of Oromia and the suffering of Oromo civilians in hundreds of official and hidden torture chambers. 3. Raise this case with the international community and other relevant United Nation bodies. Stress the righ t to remedy, restitution, compensation, non-repetition, and punishment of the perpetrators, in line with the UN Guidelines on the right to treat. We denounce the attacks on peoples who are exercising their fundamental and democratic rights. Thanks for considering of OSGA appeal Oromia Support Group Australia Read More:- osga-appeal-for-urgent-action-on-the-disapperances-of-mr-magarsa-and-urgessa-may-8th-2015-photo-include
Oromo national Urgeessaa Dammanaa, student from Rift Valley University, kidnapped by fascist TPLF Ethiopian security forces on 4th May 2015 and his whereabouts is not known.
Oromoo Hidhuu fi Ajjeessuu Araada Kan Godhate Mootummaan Abbaa Irree Wayyaanee, Sabboonticha Oromoo Barataa Urgeessaa Daammanaa Caamsaa 4 Bara 2015 Edda Ukkaamsee Har’aa Ukkaamsee Eessa Buuteen Isaa Hin Beekamne.
Gabaasa Qeerroo Finfinnee,Caamsaa 4,2015Caamsaa 04,2015 Mootummaan Abbaa Irree EPRDF/TPLF yakka tokko malee ilmaan Oromoo sabboontota ta’an ukkamsaa jira haala kanaan guyyaa har’aa sabboonaan Qeerroo Oromoo kan ta’ee barataa Urgeessaa Dammanaa Kumsaa humnoota tikaa mootummaa EPRDF/TPLF magaalaa Finfinnee keessatti ukkanfame. Barataa Yuunivarsiitii Rift Valley kan ture, Sabboonaan Qeerroon Oromoo Urgeessaa Daammanaa yakka tokko illee utuu hin qabaatiin daa’imummaa isaa irraa eegaluun Oromummaan yakkamee manneen hidhaa biyyattii garaagaraa keessatti hidhamuun dararamaa kan ture,fi bara 2011 Mana hidhaa Maa’ikalaawwii, fi Qaalliittii Waggaa tokkoo oliif badii tokko malee hidhamee dararamaa kan turee fi yeroo garaagaratti mana hidhaa lixaa Shaggar magaalaa Amboottis hidhama kan ture yoo ta’uu, Guyyaa har’aa kanas badii tokkoo malee FDG Qeerroo Bilisummaa Oromoo gaggeessa jiru qinddeessiteetta jechuun yeroo dheeraa erga hordofamaa ture, ammas humnoota tikaa mootummaa Wayyaanee EPRDF/TPLF’n guyyaa hardhaa ukkanfamee eessa buuteen isaa hin beekamne. Sabboonaan Qeerroon barataan Oromoo kun FDG Qeerroon Bilisummaa Oromoo biyyattii keessatti qindeessee gaggeessa jiru keessa harka qabda sabaabaa jedhuun nannoo dhaloota isaa Godina Lixaa Shaggar Magaalaa Amboo kolleejjii Rifti Valley Amboo utuu barachaa jiruu yeroo sochii Warraaqsaa FDG bara darbee Ebla 2014 Qeerroon barattootni fi uummatni Oromoo sirna bittaa Wayyaanee balaaleffachuun mormii guddaa gaggeessa turanitti FDG kana qindeessuu keessa harka qabda jechuun naannoo dhaloota isaa magaalaa Amboo irraa baqachiifame ,barnoota isaas akkatti baratuu dhabuun haala baay’ee rakkisaa ta’ee keessatti gara magaalaa Dirree Dawaatti barnoota isaa itti fufuuf akkuma Koolleejjii Rift Valley Damee Dirree Dawaatti galmaa’ee barnoota eegaletti hordoffiin humnoota tikaa fi dabballoota Wayyaanee itti jabaachuun akka barnoota isaa itti fufee barachuu hin dandeenye dhorkatame akkatti baratuu dhabuun gara magaalaa Finfinneetti deebi’uun hojiilee wardiyummaa fi hojiiwwaan humnaa garaagaraa hojjechuun utuu of jiraachisuu guyyaa hardhaa humnoota tikaa mootummaa EPRDF/TPLF’n ukkanfamee eessa buuteen isaa dhabamee jira. Ilmaan Oromoo biyya abbaa isaanii keessa jiraachuu dadhabuun Mootummaan Wayyaanee diina itti ta’uun mirga namummaa fi dimookiraasii mulqamnee guyyaa irraa gara guyyaatti ilmaan Oromoo ukkaanfamaa jiraaniif dhaabbileen mirga namummaa addunyaa fi mootummootni gamtooman uummata Oromoof dirmachuu qabu, ilmaan Oromoo biyyoota garaagaraa keessa jirtan dhaabilee Idil-Addunyaa mirgoota namummaa kabachiisan hundatti akka uummata keenyaaf iyyaannu Qeerroon bilisuumma Oromoo dhaamsa dabarsa.
11 years old Oromo child from Galamsoo town, Eastern Oromia was tortured and murdered by fascist TPLF security forces. Mootumma abba irree wayyaannen muca daa’ima waggan isa 11 ta’e wajjira poolisii magaala galamsoo keessatti ati ABO dhaf basaasta haati kee eessa jirti, mal hojjetti jedhanii utuu reebanii lubbuun isa darbite.Source: Social networks, 4 May 2015.
Ogeessa Fayyaa fi Barataa Yuuniverstii Amboo Kan Ta’e Sabboonaa Magarsaa Mashashaa Ayyaanaa Humnoota Tika Wayyaaneen Ukkaamfame.
The Ethiopian Government is Responsible for the Inhuman Treatments against Ethiopian Refugees and Asylum Seekers around the World
HRLHA Press Release
25th April 2015
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa has been greatly saddened by the cold-blooded killing of 30 Christian Ethiopian refugees and asylum seekers in the past week in Libya by a group called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria/ ISIS. The HRLHA also highly concerned about thousands of Ethiopian refugees and asylum seekers living in different parts of Yemen were victimized due to the political crises in Yemen and hundreds have suffered in South Africa because of the unprecedented actions taken by a gang opposing refugees and asylum seekers in the country. The suppressive policy of the EPRDF/TPLF government has forced millions of Ethiopians to flee their country in the past twenty-four years. The mass influx of Ethiopian citizens into neighboring countries every year has been due to the EPRDF/TPLF policy of denying its citizens their socioeconomic and political rights. They have also fled out of fear of political persecution and detention. It has been repeatedly reported by human rights organizations, humanitarian and other non – governmental organizations that Ethiopia is producing a large number of refugees, estimated at over two hundred fifty thousand every year.
The HRLHA calls upon the Ethiopian government to unconditionally release the detained citizens and allow those who have been injured during the clash with police to get medical treatment.In connection with the incident that took place in Libya, on April 22, 2015 tens of thousands of Ethiopians marched on government- organized rallies against the killing of Ethiopian Christians in Libya. However, with the demonstrators’ angry expressions were directed at the authorities, the police used tear gas against them and hundreds of people were beaten on the street and arrested. On the 23rd and 24th of April 2015 others were picked up from their homes and taken to unknown destinations according to the HRLHA reporter in Addis Ababa.
Recommendations:
The Ethiopian government must stop political suppression in the country and respect the human rights treaties it signed and ratified
The Ethiopian Government must provide the necessary lifesaving help to those Ethiopians stuck in crises in the asylum countries of Yemen, South Africa and others.
The EPRDF/TPLF government must release journalists, opposition political party members, and others held in Ethiopian prisons and respect their right to exercise their basic and fundamental rights enshrined in the constitution of Ethiopia and international standard of human rights instruments.
Ethiopia: Police must stop the use of excessive force against demonstrators
April 27, 2015
PUBLIC STATEMENT April 22, 2015 AI Index: AFR 25/1515/2015Amnesty International calls on the Ethiopian authorities to ensure that police refrain from excessive use of force in policing demonstrations, after police violently dispersed mass protests in Addis Ababa yesterday. The Ethiopian authorities must respect the rights of demonstrators to exercise their rights to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly.Video footage and photographs posted online show police beating protestors who appear to be offering no resistance, and tear gas being used against the crowd. A journalist in Addis Ababa told Amnesty International that 48 people had been seriously injured and admitted to different hospitals, and that many others sustained minor injuries. Two photos show wounded people being treated at hospital. Hundreds of others are reported to have been arrested.The protests started on Tuesday following circulation of a video showing the killing of around 30 people believed to be Ethiopians by the armed group ISIS in Libya. Two of the named victims have been identified as coming from Cherkos, Addis Ababa. Hundreds of relatives and friends were gathered outside their family homes before spilling on to the streets towards Meskel Square. Many protestors in the photographs and video footages posted online are shown holding pictures of the two men.Protests resumed on Wednesday morning, with thousands gathering in Meskel Square where a mass rally had been organized as part of the official three days of mourning announced by the government. Around 100,000 people took part in the demonstrations, which were initially targeted against the killings by ISIS, but later turned into anger towards the government, including its inability to protect Ethiopian citizens and more general calls for political reform. According to reports the police began to disperse the gathered crowd by force after some demonstrators shouted slogans during the rally, and as the situation escalated there were clashes between protesters and police.In a statement on Wednesday evening, Communications Minister Redwan Hussein accused the opposition Semayawi (Blue) Party of trying to manipulate the demonstrations for their own political interests and of inciting the public to violence, which the party has denied. The minister said that seven police officers had been injured and hospitalized, but made no mention of injuries or arrests among the protestors. Eight members of the Semayawi Party were arrested, including three candidates in the upcoming general elections on 24 May 2015. They are Woyneshet Molla, Tena Tayewu, Ermias Siyum, Daniel Tesfaye, Tewodros Assefa, Eskinder Tilahun, Mastewal Fekadu and Yidnekachewu Addis. At least one other party member was hospitalized after beaten on the head by police.The Ethiopian authorities have an obligation to facilitate people’s exercise of their right to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly. If there is a legitimate reason for which it is necessary to disperse an assembly, police must avoid the use of force where at all possible or, where that is not practicable, must restrict any such force to the minimum necessary. Law enforcement officials may use force only when strictly necessary and to the extent required for the performance of their duty.The authorities in Ethiopia must ensure that there is an effective and impartial investigation into the use of force by police against protestors during the demonstrations and ensure that any police found to have used unnecessary or excessive force are subject to disciplinary and criminal sanctions as appropriate. Arbitrary or abusive use of force should be prosecuted as a criminal offence.Amnesty International urges the Ethiopian authorities to ensure that in policing demonstrations in the future, the police comply with international law and standards on the use of force by law enforcement officials. With general elections a month away on 24 May, the Ethiopian authorities should commit to facilitating the right of protestors to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
This is part and parcel of the TPLF Ethiopian government’s ongoing genocidal crimes against Oromo people. Kurnasoo Abdulmaalik Yuunis (in picture) is Oromo national residing in Eastern Oromia, Dire Dawa city. He was attacked and severely beaten on 28 March 2015 by TPLF (Woyane) killing forces in the area while he visited the police station to search for the whereabouts of his kidnapped brother and close friends.
Oromo: HRLHA Plea for Release of Detained Peaceful Protestors
February 8, 2015 By Stefania Butoi Varga, Human Rights Brief, Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law*
From March to April 2014, members of Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo, engaged in peaceful protests in opposition to the Ethiopian government’s implementation of the “Integrated Regional Development Plan” (Master Plan). The Oromo believe that the Master Plan violates Articles 39 and 47 in the Ethiopian Constitution, by altering administrative boundaries around the city of Addis Ababa, the Oromia State’s and the federal government’s capital. The Oromo fear they will be excluded from the development plans and that this will lead to the expropriation of their farmlands. In response to these protests, the Ethiopian government has detained or imprisoned thousands of Oromo nationals. In a January 2005 appeal, the Human Rights League of the Hornof Africa (HRLHA) claimed that the Ethiopian government is breaching the State’s Constitution and several international treaties by depriving the Oromo prisoners of their liberty. Amnesty International reports that some protestors have also been victims of “enforced disappearance, repeated torture, and unlawful state killings as part of the government’s incessant attempts to crush dissent.” Under the Ethiopian Constitution, citizens possess the rights to liberty and due process, including the right not to be illegally detained. Article 17 forbids deprivation of liberty, arrest, or detention, except in accordance with the law. Further, Article 19 provides that a person has the right to be arraigned within forty-eight hours of his or her arrest. However, according to the HRLHA, a group of at least twenty-six Oromo prisoners were illegally detained for over ninety-nine days following the protests. The HRHLA claims that these detentions were illegal because the prisoners were arrested without warrants, and because they did not appear before a judge within forty-eight hours of their arrest. The Ethiopian authorities’ actions also disregard the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which requires that no one be subject to arbitrary arrest, and that those arrested be promptly brought before a judge. Ethiopia signed and ratified the ICCPR in 1993, and is thus bound to uphold the treaty. Additionally, the Ethiopian Constitution deems torture and unusual punishment illegal and inhumane. According to Article 18, every citizen has the right not to be exposed to cruel, inhuman, or degrading behavior. Amnesty International reports that certain non-violent Oromo protestors suffered exactly this treatment, including a teacher who was stabbed in the eye with a bayonet for refusing to teach government propaganda to his students, and a young girl who had hot coals poured onto her stomach because her torturers believed her father was a political dissident. Amnesty International further recounts other instances of prisoners being tortured through electric shock, burnings, and rape. If these reports are an accurate account of the government’s actions, the Ethiopian authorities are not only acting contrary to their constitution, but also contrary to the United Nations Convention Against Torture (CAT). According to Article 2 of the CAT, a State Member must actively prevent torture in its territory, without exception. In addition, an order from a high public authority cannot be used as justification if torture is indeed used. Ethiopia ratified the CAT in 1994, and is thus obligated to uphold and protect its principles. The HRLHA pleads that the Ethiopian government release imprisoned Oromo protesters. This would ensure that the intrinsic human rights of the Oromo people, guaranteed by the Ethiopian Constitution and several international treaties ratified by Ethiopia would finally be upheld. Furthermore, it would restore peace to and diminish the fear among other Oromo people who have abandoned their normal routines in the wake of government pressure, and have fled Ethiopia or have gone into hiding. *The Human Rights Brief is a student-run publication at American University Washington College of Law (WCL). Founded in 1994 as a publication of the school’s Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, the publication has approximately 4,000 subscribers in over 130 countries.
Ethiopia:- TPLF’s Leaders Arrogance and Contempt – Inviting Further Bloodshed and Loss of Lives – HRLHA Statement
The following is a statement from the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA). ———————- February 23, 2015 Since the downfall of the military government of Ethiopia in 1991, the political and socioeconomic lives of the country have totally been controlled by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front/TPLF leaders and business institutions. As soon as the TPLF controlled Addis Ababa, the capital city, in 1991, the first step it took was to create People’s Democratic Organizations (PDOs) in the name of different nations and nationalities in the country. With the help of these PDOs, the TPLF managed to control the whole country in a short period of time from corner to corner. The next step that the TPLF took was to weaken and/or eliminate all independent opposition political organizations existing in the country, including those with whom it formed the Ethiopian Transitional Government in 1991. Just to pretend that it was democratizing the country, the TPLF signed seven international human rights documents from 1991 to 2014. These include the “Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment”. Despite this, it is known that the TPLF has tortured many of its own citizens ever since it assumed power, and has continued to the present day. The TPLF Government adopted a new constitution in 1995; and, based on this Constitution, it formed new federal states. The new Ethiopian Constitution is full of spurious democratic sentiments and human rights terms meant to inspire the people of Ethiopia and the world community. The TPLF’s pretentious promise to march towards democracy enabled it to receive praises from people inside and outside, including donor countries and organizations. The TPLF government managed somehow to maintain a façade of credibility with western governments, including those of U.S.A. and the UK. In reality, the TPLF security forces were engaged in intensive killings, abductions, disappearances of a large number of Oromo, Ogaden, Sidama peoples and others whom the TPLF suspected of being members, supporters or sympathizers of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), Ogadenian National Liberation Front (ONLF), and Sidama People’s Liberation Front (SPLF). TPLF – from high officials down to ordinary level cadres in the various regional states – engaged in enriching themselves and their family members by looting and embezzling public wealth and properties; raping young women in the occupied areas of the nations and nationalities in Ethiopia; and committing many other forms of corruptions. After securing enough wealth for themselves, the TPLF government officials, cadres and members declared, in 2004, an investment policy that resulted in the eviction of indigenous peoples from their lands and all types of livelihoods. Since 2006, thousands of Oromo, Gambela, and Benishangul nationals and others have been forcefully evicted from their lands without consultation or compensation. Those who attempted to oppose or resist were murdered and/or jailed by the TPLF1. The TPLF government then cheaply leased their lands, for terms as long as 50 years, to international investors and wealthy Middle East and Asian countries, including Saudi Arabia2. The TPLF government has done all this against its own Constitution, particularly article 40 (3)3, which states that “The right to ownership of rural and urban land, as well as of all natural resources, is exclusively vested in the State and in the peoples of Ethiopia. Land is a common property of the Nations, Nationalities and Peoples of Ethiopia and shall not be subject to sale or to other means of exchange”. These acts were also against the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 17 (1 & 2)4, which says, “1. Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others. 2. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.” In order to facilitate further corruption and embezzlement, the money paid for the leases as long as 50 years were received in cash. For example, the Indian agro investor Karaturi explained to a Guardian newspaper’s reporter that the TPLF government officials asked him to pay in cash in order to get the land, which he called “green gold”5. These gross human rights violations by the TPLF leaders against the Oromos, Gambelas, and Benishanguls have been condemned by many civic organizations, including Amnesty International, the Human Rights Watch, the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa, the Oakland Institute and others. The giving away of Oromo land in the name of investment also includes Addis Ababa, the capital city situated at the center of Oromia Regional State. 30,000 Oromos were evicted by the TPLF/EPRDF Government from their lands and livelihoods in the areas around the Capital City and suburbs, and their lands were given to the TPLF officials, members and loyal cadres over the past 24 years. In order to grab more lands around Addis Abba, the TPLF government prepared a plan called “the Addis Ababa Integrated Master Plan,” a plan that aimed at annexing about 36 towns and surrounding villages into Addis Ababa. This Master Plan was first challenged by the Oromo People’s Democracy Organization/OPDO in March 2014. The challenge was first supported by Oromo students in different universities, colleges and high schools in Oromia, and then spread to Oromo farmers, Oromo intellectuals in all corners of Oromia Regional State and to Oromo nationals living in different parts of the world. The Oromo nationals staged peaceful protests all over Oromia Regional State. In connection with this Addis Ababa Integrated Master Plan, which had the risk of evicting more than two million farmers from around the capital city, about seventy Oromo students from among the peaceful protestors were brutalized by the special TPLF Agizi snipers and more than five thousand Oromos from all walks of life were taken to prisons in different parts of Oromia Regional State. The inhuman military actions and crackdowns by the TPLF government against peaceful protestors were condemned by different international media, such as the BBC6, human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International and the HRLHA7. The government admitted that it killed nine of them8. The unrest that started in central Oromia suddenly escalated to such a high level that the TPLF leaders suspended the expansion plan for a while. However, recently, without the slightest regret and sense of remorse over the massacres committed against peaceful protestors of Oromo Nationals by his government in May and April 2014, the TPLF’s co-founder, top official and the current Prime Minister’s (Hailemariam Dessalegn’s) special advisor, Mr. Abay Tsehaye, vowed in public that anyone who attempts to oppose the implementation of the so-called Addis Ababa Master Plan would be dealt with harshly. In his speech, he confirmed that the TPLF government is determined to continue with the master plan, no matter what happened in the past or what may come in the future. In a manner that Abay Tsehaye was reiterating that the annexations of towns and cities in central Oromia into the capital Addis Ababa will go ahead as planned regardless of the absence of consultations and consent of the local people and/or the officials of the targeted towns and cities. Besides displaying his extreme arrogance and contempt for the Oromo Nation, Mr. Abay Tsehaye’s speech was in direct breach of constitutional provisions of both federal and regional states. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) would like to express its deep concern that this TPLFs leader’s speech not only encourages violence against the country’s own citizens, but also invites further bloodshed and losses of lives; it leaves no room at all for dialogue, consultation and consent – norms which are at the core of a genuine democracy. This is still happening despite the killing of more than seventy Oromo youth and the arrest and incarceration of thousands of others as a result of violent and deadly responses by armed forces of the TPLF and the government to peaceful demonstrators in May and April 2014. Conclusion: The HRLHA believes that the gross human rights violations committed by the TPLF government in the past 24 years against Oromo, Ogaden, Gambela, Sidama and others were pre-planned and intentional all the times that they have happened. The TPLF killed, tortured, and kidnapped and disappeared thousands of Oromo nationals, Ogaden and other nationals simply because of their resources and ethnic backgrounds. The recent research conducted by Amnesty International under the title “Because I am Oromo”: SWEEPING REPRESSION IN THE OROMIA REGION OF ETHIOPIA’9 confirms that peoples in Ethiopia who belong to other ethnic groups have been the victims of the TPLF. The TPLF inhuman actions against the citizens are clearly a genocide, a crime against humanity10 and an ethnic cleansing, which breach domestic and international laws, and all international treaties the government of Ethiopia signed and ratified. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa wants to hold the TPLF government accountable, as a group and as individuals, for the crimes they have committed and are committing against Oromos and others. The HRLHA calls on all human rights families, non-governmental civic organizations, HRLHA members, supporters and sympathizers to stand beside the HRLHA and provide moral, professional and financial help to bring the dictatorial TPLF government and officials to international justice. ——————- * The HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. It works to defend fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It also works on raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and those of others. It encourages respect for laws and due process. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies. ——————- We Fight for Human Rights! HRLHA Head Office February 23, 2015 ——————- 1. Genocide Watch, http://www.genocidewatch.org/ethiopia.html; The Oakland Institute, Engineering Ethnic Conflict,http://www.oaklandinstitute.org/sites/oaklandinstitute.org/files/Report_EngineeringEthnicConflict.pdf 2. Saudi Company Leases Ethiopian Land for Rice Export, http://www.pri.org/stories/2011-12-27/saudi-company-leases-ethiopian-land-rice-export 3. Proclamation No. 1/1995 Proclamation of the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopiahttp://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/research/Proclamation%20no.1-1995.pdf 4. UDHR, http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/ 6. Ethiopia protest: Ambo students killed in Oromia state; BBC; http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27251331 7. Ambo Under Siege; HRLHA; http://www.humanrightsleague.org/?p=14287; and Region-Wide, Heavy-Handed Crackdown on Peaceful Protesters; HRLHA; Http://Www.Humanrightsleague.Org/?P=14668 8. BBC TV Reported 9. Ethiopia: ‘Because I Am Oromo’: Sweeping Repression In The Oromia Region Of Ethiopia,https://www.amnesty.org/En/documents/Afr25/006/2014/En/ 10. Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Articles 6&7, http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/InternationalCriminalCourt.aspx
http://gadaa.com/oduu/26561/2015/02/24/ethiopia-tplfs-leaders-arrogance-and-contempt-inviting-further-bloodshed-and-loss-of-lives-hrlha-statement/ Oromo Political Prisoners The young man whose photo you see below is Nimona Chali. He was the Chairman of Gumii Aaadaaf Afaan Oromo (GAAO) and a second year engineering student at Haromaya University. He was arrested from the university campus right after #OromoProtests started last year and he is being kept incommunicado in a dark room at the notorious Ma’ikelawi prison. He has not been charged with any crime nine months after his arrest. Nimona Chali had spent three years as a political prisoner prior to going to Haromaya University. He was born and raised in Ambo, a city known for its proud tradition of resistance against tyranny of Ethiopia.
Two Oromo Farmers in Salale Brutally Murdered; Their Bodies Dragged and Put on Pubic Display for Resisting Oppression Against Tigrean Habesha Rulers [Viewer Discretion Advised: Graphic Photo]
January 6, 2015 Since the March-April 2014 crackdowns against the peaceful Oromo protesters who have protested against the Ethiopian Federal Government’s plan of annexation of 36 small Oromia towns to the capital city of Addis Ababa under the pretext of the “Addis Ababa Integrated Plan”, thousands of Oromo nationals from all walks of life from all corners of Oromia regional state including Wollo Oromo’s in Amhara regional state have been detained or imprisoned. Some have disappeared and many have been murdered by a special commando group called “the Agiazi force”. The “The Agiazi” force is still chasing down and arresting Oromo nationals who participated in the March-April, 2014 peaceful protests. Fearing the persecution of the Ethiopian government, hundreds of students did not return to the universities, colleges and high schools; most of them have left for the neighboring states of Somaliland and Puntiland of Somalia where they remain at high risk for their safety. Wollo Oromos who are living in Ahmara regional state of Oromia special Zone are also among the victims of the EPRDF government. Hundreds of Wollo Oromos have been detained because of their connection with the peaceful protests of March-April 2014. The EPRDF government has detained many Oromo nationals in Wollo Oromia special Zone under the pretext of being members or supporters of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), as prisoners’ voices from Dessie/Wollo prison have revealed. From among the many Oromos who were picked from different districts and places from Wollo Oromia special Zone in Amhara regional state in April 2014, the HRLHA reporter in the area has received a document which shows that 26 Oromo prisoners pleaded to the South Wollo High Court that they were illegally detained first in Kamise town military camp for 36 days, Kombolcha town Police Station for 27 Days, and Dessie city higher 5 Police Station for 10 days- places where they were severely tortured and then transferred to Dessie Prison in July 2014. According to the document, they were picked up from three different districts and different places by federal police and severely beaten and tortured at different military camps and police stations and their belongings including cash and mobile telephones were taken by their torturers. In their appeal letter to the South Wollo high court they demanded Full document in1-Ethiopia-HRLHA-2015
Godina Dhiha Oromiyaa Magaalaa Gimbii Keessaitti Dhaddachi Maana Murtii Godina Wallagga Dhihaa Galmee Hidhamtoota Oromoo 32 Cufe.
Gabaasa Qeerroo Gimbii Muddee (December) 30,2014 Muddee 26 fi Muddee 27/2014 Godina Dhiha Oromiyaa magaalaa Gimbiitti Dhaddachi Mana Murtii Godina Wallagga Dhihaa galmee hidhamtoota Oromoo Oromummaan yakkamanii hidhamanii himatamaa jiran ilaaluun ilmaan Oromoo 32 bilisaan gadi lakkisee galmee hidhamtootaa cufee jira.Mootummaan abbaa irree Wayyaanee sobaan Ilmaan Oromoo yakkee balleessa malee hanga barbaade erga hidhatti ukkamsee booda, galmee sobaan qindeessee ittin ilmaan Oromoo hidhee dararaa ture turtii je’oota hedduu fi waggootan lakka’amuu booda bilisan gadi lakkisuun haamilee fi sammuu ilmaan Oromoo erga torture godhee booda gatii kan hin qabne ta’uun beekamadha. Ilmaan Oromoo jumlaan ukkanfamanii manneen hidhaa Wayyaanee garaagaraa keessatti argaman hundi Oromoo ta’anii dhalachuu fi ani Oromoodha, mirgi keenyaa sarbamuu hin qabu waan jedhanii dubbatan qofaaf yakkamaa ta’an malee balleessa kan hin qabne ta’uun beekamadha. Kanaafuu manneen murtii Oromiyaa dhugaa jiru hubachuun tarkaanfii sirrii fi seeraa warreen fudhachaa jirtan galatni keessan bilisummaa haa ta’uu jechaa ilmaan Oromoo manneen murtii Wayyaanee garaagaraa keessa jirtan waan dhugaa hojjettaniif midhaan fedhe iyyuu yoo isin irra ga’ee uummatni Oromoo cufti dugda keessan duuba jiraachuu hubachuun dhugaa Uummata keessanii fi haqa uummata Oromoo afaan qawween dabsamaa jiru akka dura dhaabbattan amma illee waamicha keenya dabarsina. Maqaa fi galmee himata ilmaan Oromoo irra bilisaan gadi lakkifaman kan isin qaqqabsifnu ta’uu ni hubachifna!!
ETHIOPIA: Outbreak of Deadly Disease in Jail, Denial of Graduation of University Students
HRLHA – URGENT ACTION December 10, 2014 The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) would like to express its deep concern over the outbreak of a deadly disease at Gimbi Jail in Western Wollega, as a result of which one inmate has already died and sixty (60) others infected. HRLHA strongly believes that the very poor sanitation in the jail, absence of basic necessities, and denial of treatment after catching the illness have contributed to Mr. Yaikob Nigaru’s death. HRLHA fears that those who have already caught the disease might be facing the same fate. It is well documented that particularly inmates deemed “political prisoners” are deliberately subjected to unfriendly and unhealthy environments and, after getting sick as a result, are not allowed access to treatment until they approach or reach the stage of coma, which is when recoveries are very unlikely. HRLHA considers it one way of the systematic eliminations of alleged and/or perceived political dissidents. Mr. Ya’kob Nigatu was one of the 224 Oromo Nationals (139 from Gimbi in Western Wollaga, 80 from Ambo, and 5 from Ma’ikellawi in Addis Ababa/Finfinne) who were charged by the Federal Government on the 10th of November, 2014 for allegedly committing acts of terrorism in relation to the April/May, 2014 peaceful protests by Oromo students in different parts of the regional state of Oromia. HRLHA has learnt that five of the 224 Oromo defendants, who were held at the infamous Ma’ikelawi Criminal Investigation for about six months, were subjected to harassments and intimidations through isolations and confinements, with no visitations by relatives and friends, no access to a lawyer, and no open court appearance until when they were eventually taken to court to be given the charges. Those five Oromo nationals, who were transferred to Kilinto Jail right after receiving the alleged terrorism charges, were:
Ababe Urgessa Fakkansa (a student from Haromaya University),
Magarsa Warqu Fayyisa (a student from Haromaya University),
Addunya Kesso (a student from Adama University),
Bilisumma Dammana (a student from Adama University),
Tashale Baqala Garba (a student from Jimma University), and
Lejjisa Alamayyo Soressa (a student from Jimma University).
Besides the outbreak of a deadly disease witnessed at Gimbi Jail, and the likelihood of the same situations to occur particularly at highly populated and crowded jails, Kilinto is known to be one of the very notorious substandard prisons in the country. Such facts taken into consideration, HRLHA would like to express its deep concern over the safety of those young Oromo prisoners. HRLHA has also received reports that 29 Oromo nationals, who have been attending the Addis Ababa/Finfinne University, have been denied proofs of graduations (degrees and/or diplomas) and, as a result, prevented from graduating after completing their studies for allegedly taking part in the April/May peaceful protests of Oromo students and other nationals against the newly drafted and introduced Finfinne Master Plan. The 29 Oromo students were first detained along with 23 other Oromo students of the same university, following the protests, and released on bails ranging between $1000.00 and $4000.00 Birr. Upon re-admission back to the University, they were all (52 of them) forced to appear before the disciplinary committee of the University, where they were asked to confess that their involvement in the peaceful demonstrations was wrong and that they should apologize to the Government and the public. According to reports from HRLHA’s correspondents, it was the students’ refusal to confess and apologize that has resulted in their prevention from graduating, despite their fulfillment of all the academic requirements. HRLHA describes the University’s becoming a political weapon as shameful, and the restrictions imposed on Oromo students as a pure act of racism aimed at partisan political gains. Of the 29 Oromo students who have become victims of the University’s non-academic action, HRLHA has obtained names of the following nine students:
Jirra Birhanu
Jilo Kemee
Mangistu Daadhii
Taddasaa Gonfaa
Lammeessa Mararaa
Ganna Jamal
Nuguse Gammadaa
Dajanee Daggafaa
Gaddisaa Dabaree
BACKGROUNDS: The human rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) has reported (May 1st and 13th, 2014, urgent actions, www.humanrightleague.org) on the heavy-handed crackdown of the Ethiopian Federal Government’s Agazi Special Squad and the resultant extra-judicial killings of 34 (thirty-four) Oromo nationals; and the arrests and detentions of hundreds of others. Besides, Amnesty International in its most recent report on Ethiopia – “Because I am Oromo – Sweeping repression in the Oromia region of Ethiopia” – has exposed how Oromo nationals have been regularly subjected to arbitrary arrest, prolonged detention without charge, enforced disappearance, repeated torture and unlawful state killings as part of the government’s incessant attempts to crush dissent. Also, the provisions in Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism law have been criticized by local, regional, and international human rights agencies such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International as violating most of the fundamental rights guaranteed in the Ethiopian Constitution, other legal documents and international human rights standards that the Country has ratified. Given Ethiopia’s proven track record of mistreating and/or torturing suspected members and supporters of opposition political organizations, HRLHA calls upon the world communities, human rights, humanitarian, and diplomatic agencies so that they monitor using all means available how those young prisoners are treated in Ethiopian jails. Please direct your concerns to:His Excellency, Mr. Haila Mariam Dessalegn, Prime Minister of Ethiopia P.O.Box – 1031 Addis Ababa Telephone – +251 155 20 44; +251 111 32 41 Fax – +251 155 20 30 , +251 15520 Office of the President of Oromia Regional State Telephone – 0115510455 Office of the Ministry of Justice of Ethiopia PO Box 1370, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Fax: +251 11 5517775; +251 11 5520874 Email: ministry-justice@telecom.net.etUNESCO Headquarters, Paris. 7 place de Fontenoy 75352 Paris 07 SP France 1 rue Miollis 75732 Paris Cedex 15 France General phone: +33 (0)1 45 68 10 00 www.unesco.orgUnited Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO)- Africa Department 7 place Fontenoy,75352 Paris 07 SP France General phone: +33 (0)1 45 68 10 00 Website: http://www.unesco.org/new/en/africa-department/UNESCO AFRICA RIGIONAL OFFICE MR. JOSEPH NGU Director, UNESCO Office in Abuja Mail: j.ngu@unesco.org Tel: +251 11 5445284 Fax: +251 11 5514936 Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights United Nations Office at Geneva – 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland Fax: + 41 22 917 9022 (particularly for urgent matters) E-mail: tb-petitions@ohchr.org (this e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) Office of the UNHCR Telephone: 41 22 739 8111 Fax: 41 22 739 7377 Po Box: 2500 Geneva, Switzerland. African Commission on Human and Peoples‘ Rights (ACHPR) 48 Kairaba Avenue, P.O.Box 673, Banjul, The Gambia. Tel: (220) 4392 962 , 4372070, 4377721 – 23 Fax: (220) 4390 764 E-mail: achpr@achpr.org Council of Europe, Commissioner for Human Rights, F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, FRANCE + 33 (0)3 88 41 34 21, + 33 (0)3 90 21 50 53 Email (C/O): pressunit@coe.intU.S. Department of State Laura Hruby, Ethiopia Desk Officer U.S. State Department Email: HrubyLP@state.gov Tel: (202) 647-6473 Amnesty International – London Claire Beston, Claire Beston” Claire.Beston@amnesty.org Human Rights Watch Felix Horne, “Felix Horne” hornef@hrw.org.
Waaqeffannaa (Amantii Oromoo), the traditional faith system of the Oromo people, is one version of the monotheistic African Traditional Religion (ATR), where the followers of this faith system do believe in only one Supreme Being. African traditional religion is a term referring to a variety of religious practices of the only ONE African religion, which Oromo believers call Waaqeffannaa (believe in Waaqa, the supreme Being), an indigenous faith system to the continent of Africa. Even though there are different ways of practicing this religion with varieties of rituals, in truth, the different versions of the African religion have got the following commonalities: – Believe in and celebrate a Supreme Being, or a Creator, which is referred to by a myriad of names in various languages as Waaqeffataa Oromo do often say: Waaqa maqaa dhibbaa = God with hundreds of names and Waaqa Afaan dhibbaa = God with hundreds of languages; thus in Afaan Oromoo (in Oromo language) the name of God is Waaqa/Rabbii or Waaqa tokkicha (one god) or Waaqa guraachaa (black God, where black is the symbol for holiness and for the unknown) = the holy God = the black universe (the unknown), whom we should celebrate and love with all our concentration and energy. http://gadaa.com/oduu/11044/2011/09/19/waaqeffannaa-the-african-traditional-faith-system/
Oromo student Rabbirraa Kusha Bayeechaa from Ambo University, Waliso Branch, Accounting 1st year student was abducted by Fascist TPLF Agazi forces on 20th November and being tortured at jail in Waliisoo/Ejersa.
Sadaasa 21,2014 Gabaasa Qeerroo
Barattooti Oromoo Sababaa Gaaffii Mirgaa Kaastan Jedhuun Hidhamuu fi Dararamuun Irraa Hin Dhaabbanne,yeroo ammaa kanas mootummaan EPRDf Wayyaaneen dargaggoota Oromoo irratti duula banteen barataa Rabbirraa Kushaa Bayeechaa sababaa sochii warraaqsaa deemu duubaan jirta jedhuun Ambo college Waliso branch keessaa accounting wagga 1ffaa kan baratu yakka tokkoon malee Sadaasa 20,2014 mana hidhaa magaalaa Waliisoo/Ejerrsa jedhamutti darbamuun ilmaan Oromoo naannichatti Oromummaan yakkamanii hidhaman waliin dararaan guuddaa irraan gahaa jira. Barataa Rabbirraa Kushaa bakki dhaloota isaa godina Kibba Lixa Shaggar aanaa Iluu ganda Bilii jedhamutti kan dhalate yeroo ta’u.Yeroo dheeraaf sababaa Oromummaan yakkamaa akka turee fi yaada itti amanu dubbatee baafachuu dorkamaa turuun gabaasi nu gahe addeessa.
Ethiopia: The Violence Against Oromo Nationals Must Be Stopped, HRLHA
The following is a statement of the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA). ————-
Ethiopia: The Endless Violence against Oromo Nationals Must be Halted
Fear of Torture, HRLHA Press Release November 16, 2014 Harassment and intimidation through arbitrary arrests, indefinite detentions without trial, kidnappings and disappearances have continued unabated in Ambo and the surrounding areas against peaceful protestors since the crackdowns of April 2014, in which more than 36 Oromos were killed by members of the federal security force. According to HRLHA correspondents in Ambo, the major target areas of this most recent government-sponsored violence includes Ambo town and the villages of Mida Qagni district in eastern Shewa zone, approximately 25km south of Ambo town. More than 20 Oromos, students, teachers and farmers from different villages were arrested beginning November 11, 2014, until the time of the compilation of this press release. According to HRLHA reporters, the arrests were made following the protest by the people of the area against the sales of their farmland by the federal Government of Ethiopia to the investors. Although it has been difficult to identify everyone by their names, HRLHA correspondents have confirmed that the following were among the arrested: 1- Kitata Regassa – age 70 – Wenni Village, Farmer 2- Tolessa Teshome – age 15 – Balami High School, 10th grade student 3- Dirre Masho – age 15 – Balami High School, 9th grade student 4- Tarku Bulsho – age 15 – Balami High School, 10th grade student 5- Yalew Banti – Balami High School, Teacher 6- Biyansa Ibbaa – age 15 – Balami High School, 10th grade student 7- Tesfay Biyensa – age 15 – Balami High School, 10th grade student 8- Mangistu Mosisaa – Balami, Businessman On the other hand, in order to “clear and smoothen” the road to the victory of the election, which is to be held in the coming May 2015, the TPLF/EPRDF government of Ethiopia has started the campaigns of intimidation against whom it suspects are members of the other political organizations running for the election. Extrajudicial arrests and imprisonments, particularly in the regional state of Oromia, the most populous region in the country, has begun starting from the end of October 2014. In this most recent wave of arrests and imprisonments that has been going on since the 30th of October 2014, and has touched almost all corners of Oromia, hundreds of Oromos from all walks of life have been apprehended and sent to prison. According to information obtained from the HRLHA reporters, many Oromos from Wollega, Jimmaa and Illu-Ababora Zones, Western Oromia Regional State, Bale and Borana Southern Oromia Regional State were arrested for being members of the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC), the organization operating peacefully in Oromia Regional State. These members of the opposition political organization were accused with terrorism acts, and disseminating false and hateful information against the present government of Ethiopia. Among the detainees, three members Oromo Federalist Congress – Mr. Ahjeb Shek Mohamed, Mr. Mohamed Amin Kalfa and Mr. Naziv Jemal from Jima Zone were sentenced with two years and six months in prison and the fates of the rest detainees are yet unknown. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) expresses its deep concern over the safety and well-being of these Oromo nationals who have been arrested without any court warrant and are being held at Mida Qagni police station and other at unknown detention centers. The Ethiopian government has a well-documented record of gross and flagrant violations of human rights, including the torturing of its own citizens who were suspected of supporting, sympathizing with and/or being members of the opposition political organizations. There have been credible reports of physical and psychological abuses committed against individuals in Ethiopian official prisons and other secret detention centers. HRLHA calls upon governments of the West, all local, regional and international human rights agencies to join hands and demand the immediate halt of such kinds of extra-judicial actions against one’s own citizens, and release the detainees without any preconditions.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to the Ethiopian Government and its concerned officials as swiftly as possible, in English, Ahmaric, or your own language
Your concern regarding the apprehension and fear of torture of the citizens who are being held in different detention centers including the infamous Ma’ikelawi Central Investigation Office; and calling for their immediate and unconditional release;
Urging the Ethiopian authorities to ensure that these detainees would be treated in accordance with the regional and international standards on the treatment of prisoners, and to disclose the whereabouts of the detainees; and
To stop grabbing Oromo land without negotiation with the owners and compensation
Make sure the coming 2015 election is fair and free
Send Your Concerns to:
His Excellency: Mr. Haila Mariam Dessalegn – Prime Minister of Ethiopia
Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission: Hearing on the Human Rights Dilemmas in Ethiopia Testimony of Felix Horne, Human Rights Watch Researcher, Africa Division
NOVEMBER 17, 2014
Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, thank you for providing me the opportunity to speak today about the human rights situation in Ethiopia.The other panelists have articulated some of the critical issues that are facing Ethiopia ahead of the May 2015 elections. I would like to elaborate on human rights concerns associated with Ethiopia’s many development challenges.Ethiopia is the one of the largest recipients of development assistance in the world, including more than $800 million in 2014 from the US government. Many of Ethiopia’s 94 million people live in extreme poverty, and poverty reduction is rightly one of both the US and Ethiopian government’s core goals. Improving economic and human development is fundamental to ensuring that Ethiopians are able to enjoy their rights to health care, education, shelter, food and water, and Ethiopia’s government, civil society, international donors and private investors all have important roles contributing to the realization of these rights.But sustainable development also requires a commitment to the full range of human rights, not just higher incomes, access to education and health care, but the ability for people to express their views freely, participate in public policy decision-making, join associations of their choice, have recourse to a fair and accessible justice system, and live free of abuse and discrimination. Moreover, development that is not rooted in respect for human rights can be counter-productive, associated with abusive practices and further impoverishment of people already living in situations of extreme poverty. In Ethiopia, over the past few years Human Rights Watch has documented disturbing cases where international donors providing development assistance are turning a blind eye to government practices that fail to respect the rights of all beneficiaries. Instead of improving life in local communities, these projects are proving harmful to them. And given the repression of independent voices, media and associations, there are no realistic mechanisms for many local communities to express their views to their government. Instead, those who object or critique the government’s approach to development projects face the prospect of intimidation, harassment and even serious abuse. In 2011 in Ethiopia’s western region, Gambella, Human Rights Watch documented such abuses during the implementation of the first year of the government’s “villagization” program. Gambella is a region populated by indigenous groups who have suffered from political marginalization and lack of development for decades. In theory the villagization program aimed to address some of these concerns. This program required all indigenous households in the region to move from their widely separated homes into larger villages – ostensibly to provide improved basic services including much-needed schools, health clinics and roads. I was in Gambella for several weeks in 2011 and travelled to 16 different villages in five different districts. I met with people who had not yet moved from their homes and others who had been resettled. I interviewed dozens of people who said they did not wish to move but were forced by the government, by police, and by Ethiopia’s army if necessary. People described widespread human rights violations, including forced displacement, arbitrary arrest and detention, beatings, and rape and other sexual violence. Thousands of villagers fled into neighboring countries where they became refugees. At the same time, in the new villages, many of the promised services were not available and the food security situation was dire. The villagization program has also been implemented in other marginalized regions in Ethiopia. These regions are the same areas where government is leasing large pieces of land to foreign investors, often from India, China and the Gulf states, without meaningful consultation with local communities, without any compensation being paid to local communities, and with no benefits for local communities other than low-paying labor jobs on the plantations. In the Omo valley in southern Ethiopia, Human Rights Watch found that the combination of sugar and cotton plantations and hydroelectric development is causing the displacement of up to 200,000 indigenous people from their lands. Massive amounts of water are being used for these projects which will have devastating impacts for Lake Turkana across the border in Kenya and the 300,000 indigenous people who live in the vicinity of the lake and depend upon it. The displacement of communities in the Omo valley is well underway. As in Gambella, communities in the Omo valley told Human Rights Watch about coercion, beatings, arrests and threats from military and police to force people to move to new settlements. Human Rights Watch also found politically motivated abuse in development programs. In 2010, we documented discrimination and “political capture” in the distribution of the benefits of development programs especially prior to the 2010 elections. Opposition party supporters and others who did not support the ruling party were denied access to some of resources provided by donor-funded programs, including food aid, micro credit, seeds, fertilizers, and other critical agricultural inputs needed for food security, and even employment opportunities. Schools, funded as part of education programs by the US and other development partners, were used to indoctrinate school children in ruling party ideology and teachers were required to report youth perceived to support the opposition to the local authorities. These government practices, many of which continue today, show the intense pressure put on Ethiopian citizens to support the ruling party, and the way in which development aid is manipulated to discriminate against certain communities. All of these cases have several common features. First, the Ethiopian government routinely denies the allegations without investigation, claiming they are politically motivated, while simultaneously restricting access for independent media and investigators. Second, these programs are directly and indirectly funded by Western donors, who seem unwilling to acknowledge, much less address human rights concerns in Ethiopia. Monitoring and evaluation of these programs for human rights abuses is inadequate. Even when donors carry out assessments to look into the allegations, as has happened in Gambella, they are not conducted rigorously and do not ensure victims of abuses can speak freely and safely. In the current environment in Ethiopia, it is essential for anyone seeking to investigate human rights violations to go to locations where victims can speak openly, to understand the dynamics of the local communities, and recognize the depths of the fear they are experiencing. All of these problems are exacerbated by the ongoing government crackdown on the media and civil society. The independent press has been ravaged since the 2010 election, with the vast majority of journalists terrified to report anything that is remotely critical of the government. In October I was in a country neighboring Ethiopia where over 30 journalists have fled in the past few months alone. I spoke to many of them: their papers were closed, their families were threatened, and many had been charged under repressive laws merely because they criticized and questioned the Ethiopian government’s policies on development and other issues. I spoke with someone who was forced to seek asylum abroad because he had questioned in writing whether the development of Africa’s largest dam on the Nile River was the best use of money in a country where poverty is pervasive. As for Ethiopian civil society, it has been decimated by another law, the Charities and Societies Proclamation. It has made obtaining foreign funding nearly impossible for groups working on human rights, good governance, and advocacy. Leading members of the human rights movement have been forced to flee abroad. Some people take to the streets to peacefully protest. Throughout 2014 there were various protests throughout Ethiopia. In many of these protests, including during the student protests in the Oromia region in April and May of this year, the security forces used excessive force, including the use of live ammunition against the students. We don’t even know how many Oromo students are still detained because the government publicizes no information, there is no comprehensive human rights monitoring and reporting, and family members are terrified of reporting the cases. Members of the Muslim community who organized protests in 2012 against what they saw as government interference in religious affairs have also paid an enormous price for those demonstrations, with many beaten or arrested and most of the protest organizers now imprisoned on terrorism charges. Finally, bringing about change through the ballot box is not really an option. Given that 99.6 percent of the parliamentary seats in the 2010 election went to the ruling party and that the political space has shrunk dramatically since then, there is little in the way of a viable opposition that can raise questions about government policy, including development plans, or other sensitive topics. This situation leaves Ethiopians no real means to express concerns over the policies and development strategies imposed by the government. They either accept it, they face threats and imprisonment for speaking out, or they flee their country as thousands have done. The refugee communities in countries neighboring Ethiopia are full of individuals who have tried to raise concerns in all of these ways, and are now in exile. To conclude, we all recognize that Ethiopia needs and requires development. The problem is how development is being undertaken. Development projects need to respect the rights of the local communities and improve their quality of life, regardless of ethnicity or political perspective. The United States and Ethiopia’s other major partners can and should play a leading role in supporting sustainable, rights-respecting development. The US should not accept arguments that protecting human rights is in contradiction to development goals and implementation. In 2014, the appropriations bill required the US to scrutinize and suspend funding for development programs in Ethiopia that might contribute to forced evictions in Ethiopia, including in Gambella and Omo. This was an important signal that the abuses taking place were unacceptable, and this should be maintained in the upcoming FY15 appropriations bill, whether it is a stand-alone bill or a continuing resolution. As one of Ethiopia’s key partners and supporters of Ethiopia’s development, the US needs to do more to ensure it is rigorously monitoring and consistently responding to human rights abuses in Ethiopia, both bilaterally and multilaterally. The US should be pressing the Ethiopian government to ensure that there is genuine consultation on development initiatives with affected communities, that more robust monitoring is put in place to monitor for potential abuses within programs, and that independent civil society, both domestic and foreign, are able to monitor and report on rights abuses. Respect for human rights is first and foremost a concern of all Ethiopians, but it is also central to all US interests in Ethiopia, from security to good governance to sustainable development.
#Dargagoo Oromo Yoonas Jedhama Guyya Lama Dura Magalaa Jimma Nannoo Xaana Jedhamuti Miseensi Homa Waranaa Weyanee Fodda Cabse Seenudhan Akko Isa Xiyitii Tokkon Isammo Xiyitii 32 Itti Roobse Ajjesee. Dargagoon Kuni Eega Ji’oota Shan Dura Harmeen Isa Boqatte Booda Obbolessa Isa Kan Hangafa Fi Akko Isa Wajjiin Jiraata Ture. Miseensi Hooma Warana Wayyanee Bombi fi Mesha Waranaa Qabate Lubbu Dargagoo Oromo Kana Haala Sukkanessa Ta’een Dabrse Jira..Akkoon Mucaas Battalummati Boqatani. #BecauseIAmOromo. Sadaasa 15 bara 2014.
The genocidal TPLF (Ethiopian) Agazi troops by invading an Oromo family home in Jimma murdered Oromo youth Yoonas and his grand mum. The killers shot unarmed innocent boy 32 times and his grand mum 2 times. #BecauseIAmOromo. 15th November 2016
Intensifying Mass Arrest, Torture, and Killing will Only Inflame Struggle of for Freedom
Statement of Qeerroo Bilisummaa on Continued Arrest and Conviction of Oromo Students from Various Zones of Oromia
November 16, 2014
It is to be recalled that tens of thousands of Oromo nationals in general and Oromo students in particular have been arrested and severely tortured by the TPLF-led Ethiopian regime over the last few months in connection to a series of Oromo student protests which broke out in large scale and spread out throughout Oromia beginning the month of April, 2014. These protests, organized and led by the National Youth Movement for Freedom and Democracy (aka Qeerroo Bilisummaa), are just one incident in a series of continued struggle of the Oromo nation for freedom, democracy, and justice over the last 23 or so years. Hundreds have been gunned down by live bullets by the so called Agazi troops of the regime in the months of April and May, 2014. In addition to those who have been shot and killed during the protests, many have lost their lives in prison cells unable to stand the brutal torture. Many others have simply disappeared. Qeerroo Bilisummaa believes that those who disappeared have been killed and their bodies hidden – a practice repeatedly perpetrated on the Oromo prisoners by this regime. On July 7, 2014 Qeerroo Bilisummaa has compiled a list of 61 Oromos killed and 903 others rounded up and thrown into jail during the April/May Oromo student protests of universities, colleges, high schools, middle schools and other educational institutions. Our evidence indicates that all those who have been arrested have undergone through intense interrogation which involved severe and brutal torture. Many have lost their lives due to the severe torture. For example, a 2nd year Computer Science Oromo student of Haromaya University, Aslan (Nuradin) Hasan, was killed as a result of extended torture in prison on June 04, 2014. On the same day a 10th grade student, Dawit Wakjira, was arrested and beaten to death in Anfillo district, Qellem Wollega zone. Again on the same day a young high school teacher, Magarsa Abdissa, was beaten and killed in Gulliso Prison, West Wollega zone. The fact that these three young Oromos are known and reported to have been beaten to death on the same day, from different parts of Oromia, is a testimony that prisons in the empire are not safe places under this regime. It has to be noted that many other killings that occurred in the prison cells remained hidden as it is extremely difficult and risky to compile reports of such brutal killings under tight security machinery of the regime. The arrests and tortures have continued non-stop. More and more are being arrested before those who are in jail are released or brought to court. Many of those who survived the torture will remain incarcerated, without any charge, until they confess the accusations brought against them. On many other prisoners, concocted charges and false witnesses have been prepared and they are brought to the kangaroo court of the regime to pass a long time sentence on them so as to legitimize their prison term. Everybody who pays close attention to how the judicial system of the regime operates knows for sure that the so called “court” of the regime is just a place where a fictitious drama is performed. Qeerroo Bilisummaa believes no justice is expected from the so called “court” of the current Ethiopian regime at any level. In this brief statement the data collection team of Qeerroo Bilisummaa has compiled a list of 183 Oromos, from 6 different zones of Oromia, mainly students, on which the regime has finalized its trumped up charges in order to pass a “guilty” verdict on these young innocent Oromo students and others and sentence them to several years of prison. The main content of the charges brought against them is “having connection with the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF)” and “participating on the public protest against the government”. These Oromo students and other Oromo individuals are in addition to several hundreds of prisoners Qeerroo has reported in the last few months and our reports indicate that they are going under severe torture and they are denied food, health care, closing and basic needs to sustain their lives. Qeerroo Bilisummaa strongly demands that the Ethiopian regime drop all charges against these Oromo nationals and tens of thousands others and release them immediately and unconditionally. We would like to reiterate that we the Oromo youth Qeerroo will not sit and be silent when part of our body is bleeding. The Ethiopian regime should realize that intensifying arrest, torture and killing will only inflame the struggle of the Oromo people for their right. More oppression doesn’t lead to submission. It rather breeds more dissenting voices. We are certain that eventually the Oromo and other oppressed nations and nationalities will bring down this criminal regime and justice and freedom will prevail. Read Full Statement:- Continued Arrest and Conviction of Oromo Students from Various Zones of Oromia
OMN: Interview with Amnesty International Researcher Claire Beston – Part 2
OMN reported land grabs, mass arrests, killings and evictions by TPLF Agazi and Liyu Police at Mida Qenyi (Central Oromia, Ambo) and at Saweyna & Beelto in Bale, Southern Oromia.
Ethiopia’s federal court in Dire Dawa has handed down 1-5 years prison sentence against 16 Oromo students arrested during #OromoProtests. Below is these list of students:
According to a report obtained by HRLHA from its local reporters in eastern Oromia, the border clash that has been going on since November 1, 2014 around the Qumbi, Midhaga Lolaa, and Mayuu Muluqee districts between Oromo and Ogadenia nationals, has already resulted in the deaths of seven Oromos, and the displacement of about 15,000 others. Large numbers of cattle and other valuable possessions are also reported to have been looted from Oromos by the invaders. . The HRLHA reporter in the eastern Hararge Zone confirmed that this violence came from federal armed forces (the Federal Liyou/Special Police) from the Ogadenia side; the Oromos were simply defending themselves against this aggression- though without much success because the people were fully disarmed by the federal government force prior to the clash starting. Read the detail @ http://www.humanrightsleague.org/?p=15215
Mass killings is being conducted by Liyu Police against Oromo people in Eastern (Harargee) and Southern (Bale) Oromia. OMN News Sources, 7th November 2014.
Mass evictions of Oromo families from their ancestral homes in Buraayyuu (Central Oromia, near Finfinnee), OMN reports, 30 October 2014. Listen to the following OMN, Afaan Oromo News.
Seenaa Abdissa:- Twenty Years Later After the Adoption of the Constitution, Jailed, Abducted and Killed #BecauseIAmOromo
The following short note, but thought provoking and moving paragraph – adopted for the Oromo case from Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have A Dream” speech, is from Seenaa Abdissa’s Facebook. The time to end the injustice on the Oromo people is now; this generation must not run away from this injustice and pass on the duty of fighting against this injustice to the next generation. This generation must face the enemy and defeat it by all nonviolent means necessary. Qeerroo, stand up! ——————– by Seenaa Abdissa “Twenty years ago, when Ethiopians adopted a federal constitution after deposing the cruel dictator Mengistu Hailemariam, this momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Oromo who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity. But twenty years later, the Oromo still is not free. Twenty years later, the life of the Oromo is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. Twenty years later, the Oromo lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. Twenty years later, the Oromo is still languished in the corners of Ethiopian prisons of Maikelawi, Kaliti, Zway and Kilinto and finds himself an exile in his own land and abroad. And so we’ve come here today to dramatize a shameful condition. #BecauseIAmOromo!!!”
Groups at risk of arbitrary arrest in Oromia
‘BECAUSE I AM OROMO’SWEEPING REPRESSION IN THE OROMIA REGION OF ETHIOPIAEthiopia has “ruthlessly targeted” and tortured its largest national group for perceived opposition to the government, Amnesty International said in a damning report on Tuesday.Thousands of people from the Oromo have been “regularly subjected to arbitrary arrest, prolonged detention without charge, enforced disappearance, repeated torture and unlawful state killings,” said the report, based on over 200 testimonies.”Dozens of actual or suspected dissenters have been killed.”At least 5 000 Oromos have been arrested since 2011 often for the “most tenuous of reasons”, for their opposition – real or simply assumed – to the government, the report added.Former detainees, who have fled the country and were interviewed by Amnesty in neighbouring Kenya, Somaliland and Uganda, described torture “including beatings, electric shocks, mock execution, burning with heated metal or molten plastic and rape, including gang rape,” the report said.One young girl said hot coals were dropped on her stomach because her father was suspected of supporting the OLF, while a teacher described how he was stabbed in the eye with a bayonet after he refused to teach “propaganda about the ruling party” to students.‘Relentless crackdown’Those arrested included peaceful protesters, opposition party members and even Oromos “expressing their Oromo cultural heritage,” Amnesty said.Family members of suspects have also been arrested, some taken when they asked about a relative who had disappeared, and had then been detained themselves without charge for months or even years.”The Ethiopian government’s relentless crackdown on real or imagined dissent among the Oromo is sweeping in its scale and often shocking in its brutality,” Amnesty researcher Claire Beston said.”This is apparently intended to warn, control or silence all signs of ‘political disobedience’ in the region,” she added, describing how those she interviewed bore the signs of torture, including scars and burns, as well as missing fingers, ears and teeth.Amnesty International’s report titled, “‘Because I Am Oromo’: A Sweeping Repression in Oromia …” can be accessed here.
Photo courtesy of: Gadaa.com@flickr
According to a report published by Amnesty International on Tuesday October 28, based on the testimony of over 200 people, the Ethiopian government is guilty of widespread human rights violations in the Oromia region. Anyone who is suspected of being a dissident risks arrest and torture, and even family members of those arrested have been targeted on the basis of sharing, or even having inherited their relative’s point of view.Below is an article published by Amnesty International:
Thousands of members of Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo, are being ruthlessly targeted by the state based solely on their perceived opposition to the government, said Amnesty International in a new report released today. “Because I am Oromo” – Sweeping repression in the Oromia region of Ethiopia exposes how Oromos have been regularly subjected to arbitrary arrest, prolonged detention without charge, enforced disappearance, repeated torture and unlawful state killings as part of the government’s incessant attempts to crush dissent. “The Ethiopian government’s relentless crackdown on real or imagined dissent among the Oromo is sweeping in its scale and often shocking in its brutality,” said Claire Beston, Amnesty International’s Ethiopia researcher. “This is apparently intended to warn, control or silence all signs of ‘political disobedience’ in the region.” More than 200 testimonies gathered by Amnesty International reveal how the Ethiopian government’s general hostility to dissent has led to widespread human rights violations in Oromia, where the authorities anticipate a high level of opposition. Any signs of perceived dissent in the region are sought out and suppressed, frequently pre-emptively and often brutally. At least 5,000 ethnic Oromos have been arrested between 2011 and 2014 based on their actual or suspected peaceful opposition to the government. These include peaceful protesters, students, members of opposition political parties and people expressing their Oromo cultural heritage. In addition to these groups, people from all walks of life – farmers, teachers, medical professionals, civil servants, singers, businesspeople, and countless others – are regularly arrested in Oromia based only on the suspicion that they don’t support the government. Many are accused of ‘inciting’ others against the government. Family members of suspects have also been targeted by association – based only on the suspicion they shared or ‘inherited’ their relative’s views – or are arrested in place of their wanted relative. Many of those arrested have been detained without charge for months or even years and subjected to repeated torture. Throughout the region, hundreds of people are detained in unofficial detention in military camps. Many are denied access to lawyers and family members. Dozens of actual or suspected dissenters have been killed. The majority of those targeted are accused of supporting the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) – the armed group in the region. However, the allegation is frequently unproven as many detainees are never charged or tried. Often it is merely a pretext to silence critical voices and justify repression. “People are arrested for the most tenuous of reasons: organizing a student cultural group, because their father had previously been suspected of supporting the OLF or because they delivered the baby of the wife of a suspected OLF member. Frequently, it’s because they refused to join the ruling party,” said Claire Beston. In April and May 2014, events in Oromia received some international attention when security forces fired live ammunition during a series of protests and beat hundreds of peaceful protesters and bystanders. Dozens were killed and thousands were arrested. “These incidents were far from being unprecedented in Oromia – they were merely the latest and bloodiest in a long pattern of suppression. However, much of the time, the situation in Oromia goes unreported,” said Claire Beston. Amnesty International’s report documents regular use of torture against actual or suspected Oromo dissenters in police stations, prisons, military camps and in their own homes. A teacher told how he had been stabbed in the eye with a bayonet during torture in detention because he refused to teach propaganda about the ruling party to his students. A young girl said she had hot coals poured on her stomach while she was detained in a military camp because her father was suspected of supporting the OLF. A student was tied in contorted positions and suspended from the wall by one wrist because a business plan he prepared for a university competition was deemed to be underpinned by political motivations. Former detainees repeatedly told of methods of torture including beatings, electric shocks, mock execution, burning with heated metal or molten plastic and rape, including gang rape. Although the majority of former detainees interviewed said they never went to court, many alleged they were tortured to extract a confession. “We interviewed former detainees with missing fingers, ears and teeth, damaged eyes and scars on every part of their body due to beating, burning and stabbing – all of which they said were the result of torture,” said Claire Beston. Detainees are subject to miserable conditions, including severe overcrowding, underground cells, being made to sleep on the ground and minimal food. Many are never permitted to leave their cells, except for interrogation and, in some cases, aside from once or twice a day to use the toilet. Some said their hands or legs were bound in chains for months at a time. As Ethiopia heads towards general elections in 2015, it is likely that the government’s efforts to suppress dissent, including through the use of arbitrary arrest and detention and other violations, will continue unabated and may even increase. “The Ethiopian government must end the shameful targeting of thousands of Oromos based only on their actual or suspected political opinion. It must cease its use of detention without charge, torture and ill-treatment, incommunicado detention, enforced disappearance and unlawful killings to muzzle actual or suspected dissent,” said Claire Beston. Interviewees repeatedly told Amnesty International that there was no point trying to complain or seek justice in cases of enforced disappearance, torture, possible killings or other violations. Some were arrested when they did ask about a relative’s fate or whereabouts. Amnesty International believes there is an urgent need for intervention by regional and international human rights bodies to conduct independent investigations into these allegations of human rights violations in Oromia.
FILE – Ethiopian migrants, all members of the Oromo community of Ethiopia living in Malta, protest against the Ethiopian regime.
Amnesty International has issued a new report claiming that the Ethiopian government is systematically repressing the country’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo. Amnesty International says Ethiopia’s ethnic Oromo are subject to arbitrary arrest, detentions without access to lawyers, repeated torture and even targeted killings to crush dissident. Claire Beston is the Ethiopia researcher for Amnesty International. She says the East African country is hostile to any kind of dissent but particularly fears the Oromo for a number of reasons. “Including the numerical size of the Oromo because they’re the largest ethnic group; a strong sense of national identity amongst the Oromo; and also kind of history of perceived anti-government sentiment,” said Beston. Oromia is the largest state within Ethiopia and about 35% of the population is considered to be ethnically Oromo. Oromo students protested in April and May against the capital city’s restructuring plan – which they said would dilute Oromo culture through annexing traditional Oromo land surrounding Addis Ababa. The rare protests led to violence. Several dozen people were killed and hundreds arrested. Peaceful Oromo Muslim protests in 2012 and 2013 were also crushed with force and mass arrests. Beston says Oromo students and protestors are not the only ones who are at risk in Ethiopia. “We’re talking about hundreds of people from ordinary people from all walks of life including teachers and mid-wives, and even government employees, singers and a range of other professions who’re all arrested just on the suspicion that they don’t support the government,” said Beston. Amnesty International has not been allowed into Ethiopia since 2011. Researchers based the report’s findings on several hundred interviews with Oromo refugees outside Ethiopia and telephone and email conversations with Oromo inside the country. Many of the respondents said they had been detained in prisons, police stations, military camps or unofficial detention centers where they were subjected to repeated torture. Amnesty has concluded at least 5,000 Oromo have been arrested and detained since 2011, many for weeks or months without being charged. The report says they are usually accused of supporting or being members in the outlawed armed group, the Oromo Liberation Front. The OLF has been fighting for self-determination for more than 40 years. The report claims this is just a pretext for silencing dissent. In response to Amnesty, the government – through the state-run Oromia Justice Bureau – says there is no clear evidence of violations as claimed by Amnesty and calls the allegations “untrue and far from the reality”. Beston says repression throughout the country, and particularly against the Oromo, is likely to increase as the May 2015 elections approach.
Oromo demonstrators protest in London earlier this year following the killing of student protesters in Oromia state by Ethiopian security forces. Photograph: Peter Marshall/Demotix/Corbis
Ethiopia has “ruthlessly targeted” and tortured its largest ethnic group owing to a perceived opposition to the government, Amnesty International has said. Thousands of people from the Oromo ethnic group have been “regularly subjected to arbitrary arrest, prolonged detention without charge, enforced disappearance, repeated torture and unlawful state killings,” according to a damning report based on more than 200 testimonies. “Dozens of actual or suspected dissenters have been killed.” At least 5,000 Oromos have been arrested since 2011 often for the “most tenuous of reasons”, for their opposition – real or simply assumed – to the government, the report added. Many are accused of supporting the rebel Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). Former detainees who have fled the country and were interviewed by Amnesty in neighbouring Kenya, Somaliland and Uganda described torture “including beatings, electric shocks, mock execution, burning with heated metal or molten plastic and rape, including gang-rape”, the report added. One young girl said hot coals had been dropped on her stomach because her father was suspected of supporting the OLF, while a teacher described how he was stabbed in the eye with a bayonet after he refused to teach “propaganda about the ruling party” to students. There was no immediate response from the government, which has previously dismissed such reports and denied any accusation of torture or arbitrary arrests. “The Ethiopian government’s relentless crackdown on real or imagined dissent among the Oromo is sweeping in its scale and often shocking in its brutality,” the Amnesty researcher Claire Beston said. “This is apparently intended to warn, control or silence all signs of ‘political disobedience’ in the region,” she added, describing how those she interviewed bore the signs of torture, including scars and burns, as well as missing fingers, ears and teeth. With nearly 27 million people, Oromia is the most populated of the country’s federal states and has its own language, Oromo, which is distinct from Ethiopia’s official Amharic language. Some of those who spoke to Amnesty said people had been arrested for organising a student cultural group. Another said she was arrested because she delivered the baby of the wife of a suspected OLF member. “Frequently, it’s because they refused to join the ruling party,” Beston added, warning that many were fearful attacks would increase before general elections slated for May 2015. In April and May, security forces shot dead student protesters in Oromia. At the time, the government said eight had been killed, but groups including Human Rights Watch said the toll was believed to be far higher. Amnesty said “dozens” had been killed in the protests.
Many Oromo people flee Ethiopia to take refuge in neighbouring states
Thousands of Oromo people had been subjected to unlawful killings, torture and enforced disappearance, it said. Dozens had also been killed in a “relentless crackdown on real or imagined dissent”, Amnesty added. Ethiopia’s government denied the allegations and accused Amnesty of trying to tarnish its image. It has designated the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), which says it is fighting for the rights of the Oromo people, a terrorist organisation. ‘Missing fingers’At least 5,000 Oromos have been arrested since 2011 “based on their actual or suspected peaceful opposition to the government”, Amnesty said in a report entitled Because I am Oromo – Sweeping repression in the Oromia region of Ethiopia. Former detainees who had fled the country described torture, “including beatings, electric shocks, mock execution, burning with heated metal or molten plastic and rape, including gang rape”, it added. Amnesty said other cases of torture it had recorded included:
A young girl having hot coals poured on her stomach while being held in a military camp because her father was suspected of supporting the OLF
A teacher being stabbed in the eye with a bayonet while in detention because he had refused to teach propaganda about the ruling party to his students
A student being tied in contorted positions and suspended from the wall by one wrist because a business plan he had prepared for a university competition was seen to be political
It compiled the report after testimonies from 200 people who were exiled in countries like Kenya and Uganda, Amnesty said. “We interviewed former detainees with missing fingers, ears and teeth, damaged eyes and scars on every part of their body due to beating, burning and stabbing – all of which they said were the result of torture,” said Claire Beston, Amnesty Ethiopia researcher. Ethiopian government spokesman Redwan Hussein dismissed Amnesty’s report. “It [Amnesty] has been hell-bent on tarnishing Ethiopia’s image again and again,” he told AFP news agency. Ethiopia is ruled by a coalition of ethnic groups. However, the OLF says the government is dominated by the minority Tigray group and it wants self-determination for the Oromo people.
Former detainees describe beatings, electric shocks, and gang rape, according to Amnesty International report
Al jazeera, October 28, 2014
Ethiopia has “ruthlessly targeted” and tortured thousands of people belonging to its largest ethnic group for perceived opposition to the government, rights group Amnesty International said in a report released Tuesday. The report, based on over 200 testimonies, said at least 5,000 members of the Oromo ethnic group, which has a distinct language and accounts for over 30 percent of the country’s population, had been arrested between 2011 and 2014 for their “actual or suspected peaceful opposition to the government.” “The Ethiopian government’s relentless crackdown on real or imagined dissent among the Oromo is sweeping in its scale and often shocking in its brutality,” said Amnesty International researcher Claire Beston. The rights group said those arrested included students and civil servants. They were detained based on their expression of cultural heritage such as wearing clothes in colors considered to be symbols of Oromo resistance – red and green – or alleged chanting of political slogans. Oromo, the largest state in Ethiopia, has long had a difficult relationship with the central government in Addis Ababa. A movement has been growing there for independence. And the government has outlawed a secessionist group, the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), which has fought for self-determination for over 40 years. Since 1992, the OLF has waged a low-level armed struggle against the Ethiopian government, which has accused the group of carrying out a series of bombings throughout the country. Amnesty said that the majority of Oromo people targeted are accused of supporting the OLF, but that the “allegation is frequently unproven” and that it is “merely a pretext to silence critical voices and justify repression.” “The report tends to confirm the claims that diaspora-based Oromo activists have been making for some time now,” Michael Woldemariam, a professor of international relations and political science at Boston University, told Al Jazeera. “What it does do, however, is provide a wealth of detail and empirical material that lends credibility to claims we have heard before.”
Missing fingers, ears, teeth
Former detainees – who fled the country and were interviewed by Amnesty in neighboring Kenya, Somaliland and Uganda – described torture, “including beatings, electric shocks, mock execution, burning with heated metal or molten plastic, and rape, including gang rape,” Amnesty said. Although the majority of former detainees interviewed said they never went to court, many alleged they were tortured to extract a confession. “We interviewed former detainees with missing fingers, ears and teeth, damaged eyes and scars on every part of their body due to beating, burning and stabbing – all of which they said were the result of torture,” said Beston. Redwan Hussein, Ethiopia’s government spokesman, “categorically denied” the report’s findings. He accused Amnesty of having an ulterior agenda and of repeating old allegations. “It (Amnesty) has been hell-bent on tarnishing Ethiopia’s image again and again,” he told Agence France-Press. The report also documented protests that erupted in April and May over a plan to expand the capital Addis Abba into Oromia territory. It said that protests were met with “unnecessary and excessive force,” which included “firing live ammunition on peaceful protestors” and “beating hundreds of peaceful protesters and bystanders,” resulting in “dozens of deaths and scores of injuries.” Oromo singers, writers and poets have been arrested for allegedly criticizing the government or inciting people through their work. Amnesty said they, along with student groups, protesters and people promoting Oromo culture, are treated with hostility because of their “perceived potential to act as a conduit or catalyst for further dissent.” Al Jazeera and wire services. Philip J. Victor contributed to this report.
Ethiopia illegally detains 5000 Oromos in the Past four years: Amnesty, 27 October 2014
The Ethiopian Government, led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) is engaged in systematic destruction of the Oromo social fabric. It is committing, at times, acts of genocide against the Oromo People for forcibly suppress their demand for self-determination (photo: Hundreds of detained and shaved Oromo students at a certain concentration camp).
Thousands of Ethiopians have been tortured by the country’s brutal security forces while Britain funnelled almost £1billion in aid to the country’s government, a damning report has revealed. Human rights group Amnesty International said more than 5,000 Ethiopians had been arrested, raped and ‘disappeared’ in a state-sanctioned campaign to crack down on political dissent over the past three years. At the same time, the Department for International Development gave Ethiopia £882.9million. The east African country is the second largest recipient of British aid after Pakistan. It pocketed £261.5million in 2012/13 and £284.4million in 2013 – and is due to get another £337million this year. David Cameron wrote to the Ethiopian prime minister earlier this month after a British man was sentenced to death without access to lawyers. The British ambassador in Addis Ababa has been allowed to meet Andargachew Tsige only once, seven weeks after he was arrested. His wife, Yemi Hailemariam, said she fears that Mr Tsige will face the same brutal treatment described in the Amnesty report. Its dossier of ‘sweeping repression in the Oromo region of Ethiopia’ was based on 240 testimonies and interviews with 176 refugees from the country’s majority Oromo ethnic group, reported the Times newspaper today. Women were gang raped by groups of prison guards, and men told how they had bottles of water ‘suspended from their genitalia’. The report says: ‘One man interviewed by Amnesty said his brother had had to have 70 per cent of his penis removed after release from detention as a result of being subjected to this treatment.’
More than 5,000 citizens were tortured, raped and burnt by Ethiopia’s security forces in a state-sanctioned campaign to suppress political dissent, a rights group claimed yesterday, while Britain gave almost £1 billion in aid. An Amnesty International report said that thousands of victims, including women and children, faced arbitrary arrest, forced disappearance, “repeated torture and unlawful state killings” in the past three years. http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/politics/article4250755.ece
Does British aid to Africa help the powerful more than the poor?
‘Sadly, anyone familiar with Ethiopia will not be surprised. With a long record of suppressing dissent, its government is one of the most authoritarian in Africa. Yet Ethiopia also benefits handsomely from British aid, receiving £329 million last year, making it the biggest recipient of UK development assistance in Africa – and the second biggest in the world.’
Does British aid to Africa help the powerful more than the poor? As Ethiopia’s regime is accused of atrocities, David Blair asks whether British aid might – inadvertently and indirectly – be subsidising repression? British aid to Ethiopia amounted to £329m last year. Ethiopia’s security forces have carried out terrible atrocities during a brutal campaign against rebels from the Oromo Liberation Front. So reports Amnesty International in a horrifying investigation which concludes that at least 5,000 people from the Oromo ethnic group have suffered torture, abduction or worse in the last three years alone. Sadly, anyone familiar with Ethiopia will not be surprised. With a long record of suppressing dissent, its government is one of the most authoritarian in Africa. Yet Ethiopia also benefits handsomely from British aid, receiving £329 million last year, making it the biggest recipient of UK development assistance in Africa – and the second biggest in the world. You could put these facts together and reach the headline conclusion: “British aid bankrolls terrible regime”. But the Department for International Development (DFID) would point out that things are not quite so simple. First of all, Ethiopia is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a national income per capita of less than £300. At least 25 million Ethiopians live in absolute poverty, defined as an income of less than 60p per day. Should you refrain from helping these people just because, through no fault of their own, they happen to live under a repressive government? Second, no British aid goes to Ethiopia’s security forces. Instead, our money is spent on, for example, training nurses and midwives, sending children to primary school and ensuring that more villages have clean water. If an Ethiopian military unit carries out an atrocity in the Ogaden region, would it really help matters if Britain stopped funding a project to give safe water to a village in Tigray? This is a serious argument and there are no easy answers. But DFID’s case also has two key flaws. First, when outside donors spend large sums in a poor country, they change the way the relevant government allocates its own resources. Put simply, if rich foreigners are prepared to pick up a big share of the bill for useful things like health and education, then the government could, for example, take the opportunity to spend a lot more on its horrible security forces. The great risk attached to aid is that you give national administrations more freedom to spend their money on what they think is important. That’s fine if the government concerned has the welfare of its people at heart. I put the point delicately: this is not universally true in Africa. In Ethiopia, there must be a real possibility that the government has bought more weapons for its appalling security force than would otherwise have been possible if DFID had not been covering a share of the bill for health, education, water, sanitation and so forth. The danger is that, inadvertently and indirectly, we could be subsidising Ethiopia’s campaign of repression. The second problem concerns the political setting in which aid is spent. Ethiopia is an authoritarian state with a dominant ruling party that holds 499 of the 547 seats in parliament. In this context, any outsider who invests large sums in Ethiopia will probably end up strengthening the regime’s grip on power, whether intentionally or not. Every time a school is built or a hospital opened, the ruling party will claim the credit. And if the party in question has a long history of crushing it opponents with an iron fist – which is certainly true in Ethiopia – then the donors could find themselves underwriting this system of repression, albeit indirectly. None of this suggests that Britain should cut off aid to Ethiopia tomorrow or that all our money is necessarily wasted. My only purpose is to show that the law of unintended consequences works more perniciously in the field of international development than just about any other. There are real dilemmas – and aid can end up helping the powerful more than the poor. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/…/Does-British-aid-to-Africa-hel…
Amnesty Says Ethiopia Detains 5,000 Oromos Illegally Since 2011
By William Davison
Bloomberg, Oct 27, 2014,
Ethiopia’s government illegally detained at least 5,000 members of the country’s most populous ethnic group, the Oromo, over the past four years as it seeks to crush political dissent, Amnesty International said. Victims include politicians, students, singers and civil servants, sometimes only for wearing Oromo traditional dress, or for holding influential positions within the community, the London-based advocacy group said in a report today. Most people were detained without charge, some for years, with many tortured and dozens killed, it said. “The Ethiopian government’s relentless crackdown on real or imagined dissent among the Oromo is sweeping in its scale and often shocking in its brutality,” Claire Beston, the group’s Ethiopia researcher, said in a statement. “This is apparently intended to warn, control or silence all signs of ‘political disobedience’ in the region.” The Oromo make up 34 percent of Ethiopia’s 96.6 million population, according to the CIA World Factbook. Most of the ethnic group lives in the central Oromia Regional State, which surroundsAddis Ababa, the capital. Thousands of Oromo have been arrested at protests, including demonstrations this year against what was seen as a plan to annex Oromo land by expanding Addis Ababa’s city limits. Muslims demonstrating about alleged government interference in religious affairs were also detained in 2012 and 2013, Amnesty said in the report, titled: ‘Because I am Oromo’ – Sweeping Repression in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-27/amnesty-says-ethiopia-detains-5-000-oromos-illegally-since-2011.html
ETHIOPIA: A Minor Gets Prison Terms for Alleged Instigation
HRLHA – URGENT ACTION October 14, 2014 The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) strongly condemns the sentencing of Abde Jemal, a fourteen-year old minor, in adults’ court to four years in prison and $700.00 Birr fine for allegedly inciting people to political violence. According to HRLHA’s correspondents, Abde Jemal was arrested by the security agents while tending his parents’ cattle out in the field. HRLHA has learnt that Abde Jemal was severely beaten up (in other words, physically tortured) following his arrest by members of the security force in order to coerce him into confessing in court to the alleged crime. To begin with, this was allowed to happen despite the provisions of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1990, to which Ethiopia is a signatory, and which clearly states under Article 37(a) that State Parties shall ensure that “No child shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”; and additionally guarantees under article 40, sub-article 2(a) that every child alleged as or accused of having infringed the penal law should … “Not be compelled to give testimony or to confess guilt.” HRLHA has also learnt through its correspondents that Abde Jemal, after being sentenced to four years in jail on the 2nd of September, 2014, in criminal charge file #06055 in the Bilo Nopha District Court, in the western Illu Abbabor Province of the Regional State of Oromia, was soon sent to Bishar, the provincial grand prison in Mettu, where adult offenders of all kinds of common crimes including murder are held. Being born to a poor family, Abde Jemal assumed the responsibilities of supporting his parents and himself at this very young age. In the first place, it is undoubtedly abnormal and unusual to accuse a child of Abde Jemal’s age for inciting or being part of a POLITICAL violence. What is more, the Ethiopian Criminal Code, Chapter IV, sub-section I, under “Ordinary Measures”, states that, “In all cases where a crime provided by the criminal law or the Law of Petty Offences has been committed by a young person between the ages of nine and fifteen years (Art. 53), the court shall order one of the following measures …”: admitting to a curative institution (Art. 158), supervised education (Art. 159), reprimand; censure (Art. 160), school or home arrest (Art. 161), and other similar and light conditional sanctions and measures that facilitate the reforming, rehabilitation and reintegration of the young offender. The Criminal Code also provides, particularly under sub articles 162 and 168 in the same chapter, that the court shall order the admission of young offenders “… into a special institution for the correction and rehabilitation of the young criminals …” and “When the criminal was sent to a corrective institution, he shall be transferred to a detention institution if his conduct or the danger he constitutes renders such a measure necessary, or when has attained the age of eighteen years and the sentence passed on him is for a term extending beyond his majority.” Besides, the above mentioned UN Convention, under article 40, provides that “States Parties recognize the right of every child alleged as, accused of, or recognized as having infringed the penal law to be treated in a manner consistent with the promotion of the child’s sense of dignity and worth, and which takes into account the child’s age and the desirability of promoting the child’s reintegration and the child’s assuming a constructive role in society”. These all provisions inarguably show that minor offenders of Abde Jemal’s age deserve none of what have been imposed on him, including sending him to adults’ jail such as Bishari. Also, the UN Declaration of the Rights of the Child, another international document that Ethiopia has ratified, states that the child shall in all circumstances be among the first to receive protection and relief, and that the child shall be protected from practices which may foster racial, religious and any other form of discrimination. In spite of these all, according to HRLHA’s belief, Minor Abde Jemal has been subjected to all forms of discrimination – racial and political in particular, and was not given any of the protections he is entitled to as a child or a minor. By allowing such extra-judicial impositions to happen to its own citizen, a minor in this case, the Ethiopian Government is inviting the questioning of the credibility of its own justice system, and its adherence to international documents it has signed and ratified. Therefore, HRLHA calls up on the Ethiopian Government to unconditionally reverse all that have been imposed on Abde Jemal and other minors like him, if any, in adults’ criminal court, and ensure that the Minor gets fair trial in an appropriate judicial setting, in case he has really committed a crime. We also request that the Ethiopian Government honours all international documents that it has signed and that apply to children’s rights. HRLHA also calls up on regional and international diplomatic, democratic, and human rights agencies to challenge the Ethiopian TPLF/EPRDF Government in this regard; and join HRLHA in its demand for a fair treatment for Minor Abde Jemal. RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to the Ethiopian Government and its concerned officials as swiftly as possible, in English, Ahmaric, or your own language:
Expressing your concerns over the absence of fair and appropriate delivery of justice, and the political biases impacting on the overall justice system,
Urging the concerned government offices and authorities of Ethiopia to ensure that Minor Abde Jemal would get a fair trial in appropriate court and based on the proper provisions of the criminal code as well as the constitution of the country,
Urging the Ethiopian Government to abide by all international instruments that it has ratified
Requesting diplomatic agencies in Ethiopia that are accredited to your respective countries that they play their parts in putting pressure on the Ethiopian Government so that it treats its citizens equally and fairly, regardless of their racial, religious, and/or political backgrounds.
Kindly send your appeals to:
His Excellency Haila Mariam Dessalegn, Prime Minister of Ethiopia,
Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights,
United Nations Office at Geneva 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland Fax: + 41 22 917 9022, (Particularly for urgent matters) E-mail: tb-petitions@ohchr.org Office of the UNHCR, Telephone: 41 22 739 8111 Fax: 41 22 739 7377 Po Box: 2500, Geneva, Switzerland.
African Commission on Human and Peoples‘ Rights (ACHPR)
48 Kairaba Avenue, P.O.Box 673, Banjul, The Gambia. Tel: (220) 4392 962, 4372070, 4377721 – 23 Fax: (220) 4390 764 E-mail: achpr@achpr.org Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights
Ethiopia: Systemic human rights concerns demand action by both Ethiopia and the Human Rights Council
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT AI Index: AFR 25/005/2014 22 September 2014 Systemic human rights concerns demand action by both Ethiopia and the Human Rights CouncilHuman Rights Council adopts Universal Periodic Review outcome on Ethiopia With elections coming up in May 2015, urgent and concrete steps are needed to reduce violations of civil and political rights in Ethiopia.� Considering the scale of violations associated with general elections in 2005 and 2010, Amnesty International is deeply concerned that Ethiopia has rejected more than 20 key recommendations on freedom of expression and association relevant to the free participation in the elections and the monitoring and reporting on these. These include in particular recommendations to amend the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation, which continues to be used to silence critical voices and stifle dissent, and recommendations to remove severe restrictions on NGO funding in the Charities and Societies Proclamation.� The independent journalists and bloggers arrested just days before Ethiopia’s review by the UPR Working Group in May 2014 have since been charged with terrorism offences. Four opposition party members were arrested in July on terror accusations, and, in August, the publishers of five magazines and one newspaper were reported to be facing similar charges. While Amnesty International welcomes Ethiopia’s statement of ‘zero tolerance’ for torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and its commitment to adopt preventative measures,� it is concerned by its rejection of recommendations to investigate and prosecute all alleged cases of torture and other ill-treatment and to ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.� The organization continues to receive frequent reports of the use of torture and other ill-treatment against perceived dissenters, political opposition party supporters, and suspected supporters of armed insurgent groups, including in the Oromia region. Amnesty International urges Ethiopia to demonstrate its commitment to strengthening cooperation with the Special Procedures by inviting the Special Rapporteur on Torture to visit the country.� Unfettered access by independent monitors to all places of detention is essential to reduce the risk of torture. Ethiopia’s refusal to ratify the Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance is also deeply concerning in light of regular reports of individuals being held incommunicado in arbitrary detention without charge or trial and without their families being informed of their detention – often amounting to enforced disappearances.� Ethiopia’s UPR has highlighted the scale of serious human rights concerns in the country. Amnesty International urges the Human Rights Council to ensure more sustained attention to the situation in Ethiopia beyond this review. Background The UN Human Rights Council adopted the outcome of the Universal Periodic Review of Ethiopia on 19 September 2014 during its 27th session. Prior to the adoption of the review outcome, Amnesty International delivered the oral statement above. Amnesty International had earlier submitted information on the situation of human rights in Ethiopia:http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AFR25/004/2013/en/95f2e891-accc-408d-b1c4-75f20c83eceb/afr250042013en.pdf Public Document International Secretariat, Amnesty International, 1 Easton St., London WC1X 0DW, UKhttp://www.amnesty.org Document in PDFhttp://qeerroo.org/2014/09/24/ethiopia-systemic-human-rights-concerns-demand-action-by-both-ethiopia-and-the-human-rights-council/
The UN Human Rights Council adopted the outcome of the UPR of Ethiopia
Statement from HRLHA September 21, 2014 The UN Human Rights Council adopted the outcome of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Ethiopia on September 19, 2014. On that date, Ethiopia was given 252 recommendations by the UN Human Rights Council member States[1] to improve human rights infringements in the country, based on the general human rights situation assessment made to Ethiopia on May 2014 at UPR. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa welcomes the adoption of the outcome of the UPR on Ethiopia and appreciates the majority of the UN Human Rights Council member states’ recognition that one of their members, Ethiopia, has committed gross human rights abuses in its own country contrary to its responsibility to protect and promote human rights globally. Most of the Recommendations the Ethiopian Government received on September 19, 2014 were similar to the 2009 recommendations that were given to the same country during the first round of UPR human rights situation assessment in Ethiopia[2]. This proves that the human rights situation in Ethiopia continues to deteriorate. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa also welcomes the Ethiopian government for its courage of admitting its wrongdoings and acknowledged most of the recommendations and promise to work further for their improvements. The HRLHA looks forward the Government of Ethiopia to shows its commitment to fulfil its promises, and not to put them aside until the next UPR comes in four years (2019) However, the government of Ethiopia failed again to accept the recommendations not to use the anti-terrorism proclamation it adopted in 2009 to suppress fundamental freedoms of expression, assembly and demonstrations. The country also rejected the recommendation of the member states to permit a special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association to travel to Ethiopia to advise the Government. Today, thousands of people are languishing in prison because they formed their own political organizations or supported different political groups other than EPRDF. Thousands were indiscriminately brutalized in Oromia, Ogadenia, Gambela, Benshangul and other regions because they demanded their fundamental rights to peaceful assembly, demonstration and expression. These and other human rights atrocities in Ethiopia were reported by national and international human rights organizations, and international mass media, including foreign governments and NGOs. The Government of Ethiopia has repeatedly denied all these credible reports and continued with its systematic ethnic cleansing. The HRLHA appreciates the UN Human Rights Council members who have provided valuable recommendations that have exposed the atrocity of the Ethiopian Government against defenceless civilians and the HRLHA urges them to put pressure on the government of Ethiopia to accept those recommendations it has rejected and put them into practice. Finally, the HRLHA strongly supports the recommendations made by UN Human Rights Council member states and urges the Ethiopian Government to reverse its rejection of some recommendations, including:
Ratifying the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC),
Ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, OPCAT,
Permitting the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association to travel to Ethiopia to advise the Government;
Improving conditions in detention facilities by training personnel to investigate and prosecute all alleged cases of torture, and ratify OPCAT,
Repealing the Charities and Societies Proclamation in order to promote the development of an independent civil society “Allowing Ethiopia’s population to operate freely”
Removing vague provisions in the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation that can be used to criminalize the exercise of the right to freedom of expression and association and ensure that criminal prosecutions do not limit the freedom of expression of civil society, opposition politicians and independent media ;and use this opportunity to improve its human rights record.
UN experts urge Ethiopia to stop using anti-terrorism legislation to curb human rights GENEVA (18 September 2014) – A group of United Nations human rights experts* today urged the Government of Ethiopia to stop misusing anti-terrorism legislation to curb freedoms of expression and association in the country, amid reports that people continue to be detained arbitrarily. The experts’ call comes on the eve of the consideration by Ethiopia of a series of recommendations made earlier this year by members of the Human Rights Council in a process known as the Universal Periodic Review which applies equally to all 193 UN Members States. These recommendations are aimed at improving the protection and promotion of human rights in the country, including in the context of counter-terrorism measures. “Two years after we first raised the alarm, we are still receiving numerous reports on how the anti-terrorism law is being used to target journalists, bloggers, human rights defenders and opposition politicians in Ethiopia,” the experts said. “Torture and inhuman treatment in detention are gross violations of fundamental human rights.” “Confronting terrorism is important, but it has to be done in adherence to international human rights to be effective,” the independent experts stressed. “Anti-terrorism provisions need to be clearly defined in Ethiopian criminal law, and they must not be abused.” The experts have repeatedly highlighted issues such as unfair trials, with defendants often having no access to a lawyer. “The right to a fair trial, the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to freedom of association continue to be violated by the application of the anti-terrorism law,” they warned. “We call upon the Government of Ethiopia to free all persons detained arbitrarily under the pretext of countering terrorism,” the experts said. “Let journalists, human rights defenders, political opponents and religious leaders carry out their legitimate work without fear of intimidation and incarceration.” The human rights experts reiterated their call on the Ethiopian authorities to respect individuals’ fundamental rights and to apply anti-terrorism legislation cautiously and in accordance with Ethiopia’s international human rights obligations. “We also urge the Government of Ethiopia to respond positively to the outstanding request to visit by the Special Rapporteurs on freedom of peaceful assembly and association, on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and on the situation of human rights defenders,” they concluded. ENDS (*) The experts: Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Ben Emmerson; Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai; Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, David Kaye; Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Michel Forst; Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Gabriela Knaul; Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Juan Méndez. Special Procedures is the largest body of independent experts in the United Nations Human Rights system. Special Procedures is the general name of the independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms of the Human Rights Council that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Currently, there are 38 thematic mandates and 14 mandates related to countries and territories, with 73 mandate holders. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity. Read @ http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=15056&LangID=E
The Ethiopian government has been demolishing the homes of Oromo farmers in order to implement its “Integrated Master Plan”, meant to integrate Addis Ababa with the surrounding towns of the minority’s home region. According to residents of the town of Legetafo at least two people were shot by government forces as they tried to prevent the destruction of their homes. http://unpo.org/article/17521Below is an article published by the The Nation:
Yehun and Miriam have little hope for the future. “We didn’t do anything and they destroyed our house,” Miriam told me. “We are appealing to the mayor, but there have been no answers. The government does not know where we live now, so it is not possible for them to compensate us even if they wanted.” Like the other residents of Legetafo—a small, rural town about twenty kilometers from Addis Ababa—Yehun and Miriam are subsistence farmers. Or rather, they were, before government bulldozers demolished their home and the authorities confiscated their land. The government demolished fifteen houses in Legetafo in July [2014]. The farmers in the community stood in the streets, attempting to prevent the demolitions, but the protests were met with swift and harsh government repression. Many other Oromo families on the outskirts of Ethiopia’s bustling capital are now wondering whether their communities could be next. These homes were demolished in order to implement what’s being called Ethiopia’s “Integrated Master Plan.” The IMP has been heralded by its advocates as a bold modernization plan for the “Capital of Africa.” The plan intends to integrate Addis Ababa with the surrounding towns in Oromia, one of the largest states in Ethiopia and home to the Oromo ethnic group—which, with about a third of the country’s population, is its largest single ethnic community. While the plan’s proponents consider the territorial expansion of the capital to be another example of what US Secretary of State John Kerry has called the country’s “terrific efforts” toward development, others argue that the plan favors a narrow group of ethnic elites while repressing the citizens of Oromia. “At least two people were shot and injured,” according to Miriam, a 28-year-old Legetafo farmer whose home was demolished that day. “The situation is very upsetting. We asked to get our property before the demolition, but they refused. Some people were shot. Many were beaten and arrested. My husband was beaten repeatedly with a stick by the police while in jail.” Yehun, a 20-year-old farmer from the town, said the community was given no warning about the demolitions. “I didn’t even have time to change my clothes,” he said sheepishly. Yehun and his family walked twenty kilometers barefoot to Sendafa, where his extended family could take them in. Opponents of the plan have been met with fierce repression. “The Integrated Master Plan is a threat to Oromia as a nation and as a people,” Fasil stated, leaning forward in a scuffed hotel armchair. Reading from notes scribbled on a sheet of loose-leaf notebook paper, the hardened student activist continued: “The plan would take away territory from Oromia,” depriving the region of tax revenue and political representation, “and is a cultural threat to the Oromo people living there.” A small scar above his eye, deafness in one ear and a lingering gastrointestinal disease picked up in prison testify to Fasil’s commitment to the cause. His injuries come courtesy of the police brutality he encountered during the four-year prison sentence he served after he was arrested for protesting for Oromo rights in high school and, more recently, against the IMP at Addis Ababa University. Fasil is just one of the estimated thousands of students who were detained during university protests against the IMP. Though Fasil was beaten, electrocuted and harassed while he was imprisoned last May, he considers himself lucky. “We know that sixty-two students were killed and 125 are still missing,” he confided in a low voice. The students ground their protests in Ethiopia’s federal Constitution. “We are merely asking that the government abide by the Constitution,” Fasil explained, arguing that the plan violates at least eight constitutional provisions. In particular, the students claim that the plan violates Article 49(5), which protects “the special interest of the State of Oromia in Addis Ababa” and gives the district the right to resist federal incursions into “administrative matters.” Moreover, the plan presents a tangible threat to the people living in Oromia. Fasil and other student protesters claimed that the IMP “would allow the city to expand to a size that would completely cut off West Oromia from East Oromia.” When the plan is fully implemented, an estimated 2 million farmers will be displaced. “These farmers will have no other opportunities,” Fasil told me. “We have seen this before when the city grew. When they lose their land, the farmers will become day laborers or beggars.” The controversy highlights the disruptive and often violent processes that can accompany economic growth. “What is development, after all?” Fasil asked me. Ethiopia’s growth statistics are some of the most impressive in the region. Backed by aid from the US government, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), the country’s ruling coalition, is committed to modernizing agricultural production and upgrading the country’s economy. Yet there is a lack of consensus about which processes should be considered developmental. Oromo activists allege that their community has borne a disproportionate share of the costs of development. Advocates like Fasil argue that the “development” programs of the EPRDF are simply a means of marginalizing the Oromo people to consolidate political power within the ruling coalition. “Ethiopia has a federalism based on identity and language,” explained an Ethiopian political science professor who works on human rights. Nine distinct regions are divided along ethnic lines and are theoretically granted significant autonomy from the central government under the 1994 Constitution. In practice, however, the regions are highly dependent on the central government for revenue transfers and food security, development and health programs. Since the inception of Ethiopia’s ethno-regional federalism, the Oromo have been resistant to incorporation in the broader Ethiopian state and suspicious of the intentions of the Tigray ethnic group, which dominates the EPRDF. As the 2015 elections approach, the Integrated Master Plan may provide a significant source of political mobilization. “The IMP is part of a broader conflict in Ethiopia over identity, power and political freedoms,” said the professor, who requested anonymity. Standing in Gullele Botanic Park in May, Secretary of State Kerry was effusive about the partnership between the United States and Ethiopia, praising the Ethiopian government’s “terrific support in efforts not just with our development challenges and the challenges of Ethiopia itself, but also…the challenges of leadership on the continent and beyond.” Kerry’s rhetoric is matched by a significant amount of US financial support. In 2013, Washington allocated more than $619 million in foreign assistance to Ethiopia, making it one of the largest recipients of US aid on the continent. According to USAID, Ethiopia is “the linchpin to stability in the Horn of Africa and the Global War on Terrorism.” Kerry asserted that “the United States could be a vital catalyst in this continent’s continued transformation.” Yet if “transformation” entails land seizures, home demolitions and political repression, then it’s worth questioning just what kind of development American taxpayers are subsidizing. The American people must wrestle with the implications of “development assistance” programs and the thin line between modernization and marginalization in countries like Ethiopia. Though the US government has occasionally expressed concern about the oppressive tendencies of the Ethiopian regime, few demands for reform have accompanied aid. For the EPRDF, the process of expanding Addis Ababa is integral to the modernization of Ethiopia and the opportunities inherent to development. For the Oromo people, the Integrated Master Plan is a political and cultural threat. For the residents of Legetafo, the demolition of their homes demonstrates the uncertainty of life in a rapidly changing country.
Ethiopia: A Generation at Risk, Plight of Oromo Students Fulbaana/September 7, 2014 ————————– The following is an Urgent Action statement from the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA). ————————– HRLHA Urgent Action FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 06, 2014 The human rights abuses against Oromo students in different universities have continued unabated over the past six months – more than a hundred Oromo students were extra-judicially wounded or killed, while thousands were jailed by a special squad: the “Agazi” force. This harsh crackdown against the Oromo students, which resulted in deaths, arrests, detentions and disappearances, happened following peaceful protests by the Oromo students and the Oromo people in April-May 2014 against the so-called “Integrated Master Plan of Addis Ababa.” This plan was targeted at the annexation of many small towns of Oromia to the capital Addis Ababa. It would have meant the eviction of around six million Oromos from their lands and long-time livelihoods without being consulted or giving consent. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) has repeatedly expressed its deep concern about such human rights violations against the Oromo nation by the EPRDF government(1). The HRLHA reporter in Addis Ababa confirmed that, in connection with the April-May, 2014 peaceful protests, among the many students picked from different universities and other places in the regional State of Oromia and detained in Maikelawi/”the Ethiopian Guantanamo bay Detention camp,” the following nine students and another four, Abdi Kamal, TofiK Kamal and Abdusamad – businessmen from Eastern Hararge Dirre Dawa town, and Chaltu Duguma (F), an employee of Wellega University, are in critical condition due to the continuous severe torture inflicted upon them in the past five months. The current ongoing arrests and detention of Oromo students started when the students were forced to attend a “political training” said to be a government plan to indoctrinate the students with the political agenda of EPRDF for two weeks before the regular classes started in mid-September 2014. Before the training started, students demanded that the government release the students who were imprisoned during the peaceful protests of April-May 2014. Instead of giving a positive answer to the students’ legitimate questions, the federal government deployed its military forces to Ambo and Wellega University campuses to silence their voices; many students were severely beaten, and hundreds were taken to prison from August 20-29, 2014. Through the brutality of the federal government’s military “Agazi,” students from Ambo University, Hinaafu Lammaa, Kuma Fayisa, Tarreessaa Waaqummaa Mulugeta, Sukkaaraa Cimidi, Leensa Hailu Bedhane (F) and Elizabeth Legesse (lost her two teeth) were among those harshly beaten in their dormitories, and then thrown outside naked in the open air. The HRLHA reporter documented the following names among hundreds of students taken to different detention centers from both Ambo and Wellega Universities on August 28 and 29, 2014. Among many Wellaga University students, those who were severely beaten on 28/08/2014 – Markos Taye, Ganati Desta and Mosisa Fufa – were first taken to Nekemte Hospital and later transferred to Tikur Anbasa, a hospital in the capital city, more than 300km away, for further treatment. They remain there in critical condition. The most recent report (Sept. 3, 2014) received by HRLHA from Ambo town indicates that more than 250 students released from Senkele detention center have been taken back to their villages so that their parents or guardians can sign documents stating that their children are responsible for the conflict created between the students and the federal military. The parents of the students rejected the attempt of the government to make their children guilty by supporting, instead, the demands of the students “Free our friends, bring the killers of the students to court.” By killing, torturing and detaining nonviolent protesters, the government of Ethiopia is breaching: 1. The 1995 constitution of the Ethiopia, Articles 29 and 30, which grant basic democratic rights to all Ethiopian citizens(2). 2. All international and regional human rights instruments that Ethiopia signed, and the UN Human Rights council 19th(3) and 25th(4) sessions resolutions that call upon states, with regard to peaceful protests, to promote and protect all human rights and to prevent all human rights violations during peaceful protests. Therefore, the HRLHA calls upon the Ethiopian Government to refrain from systematically eliminating the young generation of Oromo nationals and respect all international human rights standards, and all civil and political rights of citizens it has signed in particular. HRLHA also calls upon governments of the West, all local, regional and international human rights agencies to join hands and demand an immediate halt to such kinds of extra-judicial actions against one’s own citizens. Detainees should be released without any preconditions and the murderers should brought to justice. RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to the Ethiopian Government and its appropriate government ministries and/or officials as swiftly as possible, both in English and Ahmaric, or in your own language: – Expressing concerns regarding the apprehension and possible torture of citizens who are being held in different detention centers, including the infamous Ma’ikelawi Central Investigation Office, and calling for their immediate and unconditional release; – Request that the government refrain from detaining, harassing, discriminating against Oromo Nationals; – Urging the Ethiopian authorities to ensure that detainees are treated in accordance with the regional and international standards regarding the treatment of prisoners; – Also send your concerns to diplomatic representatives in Ethiopia who are accredited to your country. —– (1) http://humanrightsleague.com/2014/05/ethiopia-ambo-under-siege-daily-activitiesparalyzed– hrlha-urgent-action/ (2) Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia 1995,http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/text.jsp?file_id=193667 (3) http://blog.unwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/Protection-of-Human-Rights-in-the-context-of-Peaceful– Protests1.pdf (4) http://blog.unwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/Peaceful-Protest-Resolution-2014.pdf
Oral statement, Human Rights Council, 19 June 2014
August 27, 2014 Fleeing from abuse in Ethiopia and seeking refuge in Kenya, Djibouti, Somaliland, South Africa and Egypt, 187 refugees have described in detail, during hour-long interviews how they and their close families were persecuted.[1] Nearly all reported arbitrary detention of relatives and 126 were themselves detained. Over half of those interviewed (95 – 51%) had been tortured, which amounted to 75% of former detainees. Rarely do refugee populations report experiencing torture to this extent. Rape was reported by 25% of women/girl refugees (21 of 85). Just over half of women/girl refugees who had been detained (41) were raped in detention, almost always repeatedly and by more than one officer, and sometimes by up to eight at a time. Refugees reported 87 disappearances in detention, of whom 69 were first degree relatives – parents, children, siblings or spouses. Extra-judicial killings of those whom refugees were able to name – friends, neighbours, relatives or co-detainees – were reported of 372 individuals, 84 of whom were first degree relatives. There are more than 250,000 Oromo refugees in the world. If only one tenth of that number has experienced the intensity of abuse meted out to the interviewees in Africa, hundreds of thousands of detentions without trial, at least 50,000 political killings, over 11,000 disappearances and over 6000 cases of rape by members of the security forces can be assumed to have taken place in Ethiopia since 1992. While Ethiopia has enjoyed favoured aid status and millions of it population have remained dependent on food aid, its oppressive policies have stifled pluralism and denied more than a fraction of democratic space to opposition groups. It has one of the most sophisticated security and surveillance systems in Africa and maintains a large, well-equipped army and air-force. Despite ongoing food-dependency, more than one million hectares of arable land has been leased to foreign investors growing for foreign markets while hundreds of thousands of local farmers have been evicted from their land. [1] http://www.oromo.org/osg/Report_46.pdf;http://www.oromo.org/osg/pr47.pdf; http://www.oromo.org/OSG/pr_48.pdf;http://www.oromo.org/OSG/pr_49.pdf; 26 Oromo refugees were interviewed by OSG in Cairo, 20-29 May 2013. Report is in preparation.
Oromia: Enhanced Master Plan to Continue Committing the Crimes of GenocideThe actions taken were aimed at destroying Oromo farmers or at rendering them extinct. ~Ermias Legesse, Ethiopia’s exiled EPRDF MinisterAugust 30, 2014 (Oromo Press) — The announcement of the implementation of the Addis Ababa Master Plan (AAMP) was just an extension of an attempt by EPRDF government at legalizing its plans of ridding the Oromo people from in and around Finfinne by grabbing Oromo land for its party leaders and real estate developers from the Tigrean community. The act of destroying Oromo farmers by taking away their only means of survival—the land—precedes the current master plan by decades. Ermias Legesse, exiled EPRDF Deputy Minister of Communication Affairs, acknowledged his own complicity in the destruction of 150,000[1] Oromo farmers in the Oromia region immediately adjacent to Finfinne. He testifies that high-level TPLF/EPRDF officials are responsible for planning and coordinating massive land-grab campaigns without any consideration of the people atop the land. Ermia’s testimony is important because it contains both the actus reus and dolus specials of the mass evictions[2]:Once while in a meeting in 1998 (2006, Gregorian),the Ethiopian Prime Minster Meles Zenawi , we (ERPDF wings) used to go to his office every week, said. Meles led the general party work in Addis Ababa. We went to his office to set the direction/goal for the year. When a question about how should we continue leading was asked, Meles said something that many people may not believe. ‘Whether we like it or not nationality agenda is dead in Addis Ababa.’ He spoke this word for word. ‘A nationality question in Addis Ababa is the a minority agenda.’ If anyone were to be held accountable for the crimes, everyone of us have a share in it according to our ranks, but mainly Abay Tsehaye is responsible. The actions taken were aimed at destroying Oromo farmers or at rendering them extinct. 29 rural counties were destroyed in this way. In each county there are more or less about 1000 families. About 5000 people live in each Kebele (ganda) and if you multiply 5000 by 30, then the whereabouts of 150,000 farmers is unknown.Zenawi’s statement “the question of nationality is a dead agenda in Addis Ababa” implies that the Prime Minister planned the genocide of the Oromo in and around Finfinne and others EPRDF officials followed suit with the plan in a more aggressive and formal fashion.Announcement of the Addis Ababa Master Plan and Massacres and Mass DetentionsAAMP was secretly in the making for at least three years before its official announcement in April 2014.[3] The government promoted on local semi-independent and state controlled media the sinister plan that already evicted 2 million Oromo farmers and aims at evicting 8-10 million and at dividing Oromia into east and west Oromia as a benevolent development plan meant to extend social and economic services to surrounding Oromia’s towns and rural districts. Notwithstanding the logical contradiction of claiming to connect Oromia towns and rural aanaalee (districts) to “economic and social” benefits by depopulating the area itself, the plan was met with strong peaceful opposition across universities, schools and high schools in Oromia. Starting with the Ambo massacre that claimed the lives of 47 people in one day[4], Ethiopia’s army and police killed over 200 Oromo students, jailed over 2000 students, maimed and disappeared countless others over a five-month period from April-August 2014.
Update Naqamte Indoctrination Conference (27 August 2014): After heated debate over the Addis Ababa Master Plan yesterday, federal police raided dormitories last night taking away hundreds of students to unknown detention center. Hospital sources confirm three students have been admitted to emergency room. Similar arrest and disappearances are being reported from other universities and meeting venues as well. Update on other campuses will follow.Although the cadres have been trying to discuss the three themes prepared for for the conference, the issue surrounding the Addis Ababa Master Plan continues to dominate the discussion. The tension has worsened following claim by cadres that the controversial Master Plan has been cancelled. Students have demanded that the alleged cancellation shall be made official and public. #OromoProtests, #FreeOromoStudents, Jawar Mohamed
ETHIOPIA: Relentless government violence on Oromo students and nationals continues, says human rights organization Posted: Hagayya/August 27, 2014 · Gadaa.com ————————- The following is a press release from the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA). ————————- August 27, 2014 While fresh arrests and detentions, kidnappings and disappearances of Oromo nationals have continued in different parts of the regional state of Oromia following the April-May crackdown of peaceful demonstrators, court rulings over the cases of some of the earlier detainees by courts of the regional state are being rejected by political agents of the governing TPLF/EPRDF Party. The renewed violence by government forces against Oromo nationals started particularly following what was termed as “Lenjii Siyaasaa” (literally meaning “political training”) that has targeted Oromo Students of higher educational institutions and has been going on in the past two weeks in different parts of Oromia. Although the agendum for the “Political Training” was said to be “the unity of the country,” it instead has become an opportunity of carrying out further screenings and arrests of students, as around 100 more students have so far been arrested from Ambo University campuses alone and sent to a remote, isolated military camp called Sanqalle, leaving families and friends in fear in regards to the safety and well-being of the students in particular, not to mention the disruption of their studies. The arrests were made following the students’ protest of their confinement into the campuses during this so call “Political Trianing,” and the demand that the killers of their fellow students be brought to justice prior to discussing “unity.” Also, five students of Wallaga University, from among those who were gathered for the same purpose of “Political Training,” were kidnapped on the 22nd of August 2014, and taken away in a vehicle with plate number 4866 ET; and their whereabouts are not known since then. HRLHA correspondents have also traced another fresh arrests and detentions of around 100 Oromo nationals in a small town called Elemo, Doranni District in the Illu Abba Borra Zone. It took place on the 14th of August 2014; and Waqtole Garbe, Sisay Amana, Tiiqii Supha, Ittana Daggafa, Badiru Basha, Kamal Zaalii, Rashiid Abdu, Zetuna Waaqoo, Daggafa Tolee, Adam Ligdii, Indush Mangistu, Dibbeessa Libaan, and Ofete Jifar were a few among those detainees in Elemo Prison. More worrisome and frustrating is agents of the federal government’s interference with regional and local judicial systems. More than one hundred students and other Oromo nationals, from among the thousands who were detained following the April-May nationwide protest, have been granted bails in local courts of the regional government of Oromia. These include 64 detainees in Dembi Dollo/Qellem, 10 in Ambo, 40 in Sibu-Sire and Digga District. But, all the court decisions were overruled by political officials representing the federal government. The Dembi Dollo/Qellem detainees in particular were granted bails four times, only to be turned down by political officials all the four rounds. On the other hand, there have been some cases in which prison terms ranging from six months to a year-and-half were imposed on the Oromo detainees, not in courts, but by those representatives of the federal government. Also, some independent lawyers complain that they were threatened by officials from the ruling party; and, as a result, refraining from representing the Oromo detainees. Usual as it has been in the past fifteen or so years, this case of interfering with and disobeying court rulings indicates that the case of these most recent Oromo detainees is purely political. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) calls upon the Ethiopian Government to refrain from harassing and intimidating students through such extra-judicial means as killings, arrests and detentions, and denials of justice after detention; and instead, facilitate conducive teaching-learning environments. HRLHA also calls upon the Ethiopian Government to unconditionally release the detained Oromo students and other nationals; and, as requested by their fellow students, bring to justice the killers of innocent and peaceful protestors during the April-May crackdown. BACKGROUNDS: The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) has reported (May 1st and 13th, 2014, urgent actions, HumanRightsLeague.com) on the heavy-handed crackdown of the Ethiopian Federal Government’s Agazi Special Squad and the resultant extra-judicial killings of 34 (thirty-four) Oromo nationals; and the arrests and detentions of hundreds of others. Although the brutalities of the armed squad and the resultant fatalities happened to be very high in Ambo Town, the peaceful protests by Oromo students of different universities and faculties have been taking place in April and May in various towns and cities of Oromia, including Diredawa and Adama in eastern Oromia, as well as Jimma, Mettu, Naqamte, Gimbi, and Dambidollo in western Oromia. The Oromo students of universities and colleges in different parts of the regional state of Oromia took to the streets for peaceful demonstrations in protest to the decision passed by the Federal EPRDF/TPLF-led Government to expand the city of Finfinnee/Addis Ababa by uprooting and displacing hundreds of thousands of Oromos from all sorts of livelihoods, and annexing about 36 surrounding towns of Oromia, the ultimate goal of which is claimed to be redrawing the map of the Oromia Region. The federal annexation plan, which was termed as “The Integrated Development Master Plan,” is said to be covering the towns of Dukem, Gelan, Legetafo, Sendafa, Sululta, Burayu, Holeta, Sebeta, and others, stretching the boundary of Finfinne/Addis Ababa to about 1.1-million hectares – an area of 20 times its current size. – HumanRightsLeague.com: http://www.humanrightsleague.com/
3rd year Water Engineering student Alamayyoo Sooressaa of Jimma University was kidnapped 4 months ago by Agazi (TPLF) forces. He is being tortured in Ma’ikkelawi with the rests of Oromo students held there. #FreeOromoStudents, 25th August 2014.
#FreeOromoStudents #OromoProtests, posted 25th August 2014
More than 200 university students gathered at Ambo University for political indoctrination by government cadres have been arrested.
The students are being kept at Sankalle Police Training Camp and have been subjected to severe beatings for opposing the indoctrination. #OromoProtests, 25th August 2014.
5th year Law student Iskandar (Obsaa) Abdulkadir of Haromaya University kidnapped by Agazi (TPLF) forces. Iskandar (Obsaa) Abdulkadir was kidnapped from Somaliland and sent to Ethiopia through extraordinary rendition. Obsa reportedly took refuge in the neighboring country following the student protest in May.
24 August 2014.
ODUU BAYEE NAMA NASIISTUU FI GADDISTUU BARAATAA SEERA WAGAA 5ffaa tii. WAYAANEN QIINDEESSA FDG UNIVESITII HAROMAYAA JECHUU DHAN ISSAA KANA SEERAF DEHESSUF YALAA TURAAN.YEROO HANGAA TOKKO BOODA ISKANDAR ABDULKADIR YKN OBSA ABDULQADIR TO’ANAA MOTUMMA WAYAANEE JALAA OLUU ISSAA MIRKKANAWEE. ISKANDAR YKN OBSA ABDULKADIR JECHUUN BARATOOTA WAGAA KANA ABOOKKATUMMAN EBIIFAMUU KESSA TOKKO TUREE GARUU OROMUMMATUU ISSA DORKKEE.OBSA YKN ISKANDAR PREZINDANTII BARAATOTAA UNIVERSIITII HAROMAYAA KAN TUREE. #oromoprotests #freeoromostudents
3rd year law student Waaqumaa Dhaabaa and high school student named Dereje from Ambo (Oromo nationals) were kidnapped by TPLF (Agazi) forces on 19th August 2014 and their whereabouts is not known. Ambo residents are being terrorized b Agazi forces#OromoProtests.
For details listen the following OMN.
Sad News (12th August 2014): Oromo youth (student) named Biqila Balaay, who was wounded by Agazi in Ambo during the #OromoProtests has passed away on 11 August 2014 at Tikur Anbassa Hospital.
Oduu Gaddaa amma nu qaqqabe!!Mormii Maaster Pilaanii Finfinneetiin wal qabatee sochii adeemsifamaa tureen Naannoo Ambootti Rasaasaan kan miidhamanii yaalamaa turan keessaa tokko kan ta’e Dargaggoo Biqilaa Balaay hospitaala Xuqur Ambassaa keessatti guyyoota hedduuf osoo daddeebi’ee yaalamuu miidhamni kun “Infection” itti ta’ee kaleessa galgala du’aan Addunyaa kana irraa Wareegameera. Reeffi isaa Hospitaala Miniilik keessatti erga sakatta’amee booda Galgala kana gara bakka dhaloota isaa Horroo Guduruu Wallaggaa Magaalaa Kombolchaatti gaggeeffameera. Sirni Awwaalcha isaa guyyaa borii magaalaa Kombolchaa keessatti ni raawwata!!!Biyyeen sitti haa salphatu!!!
Oduu Gaddisiisaa fi Seenaa Gabaabaa Gooticha Barataa Biqilaa Balaay Toleeraa
Gootichi Barataa Biqilaa Balaay Abbaa isaa Obbo Balaay Troleeraa fi Haadha isaa Aadde Siccaalee Mul’ataa Abdataa irraa Godina Horroo Guduruu Wallaggaa aanaa Habaaboo Guduruu ganda Caalaa Fooqaa keessatti bara 1991 A.L.Otti dhalate. Dhalatees Hiriyyoota isaa waliin taphachuu, Seenaa baruuf tattaafachuu fi barsiisuu kan jaallatu sabboonaa qaroo ilma Oromooti. Barataa Biqilaan guddatee barnootaaf akka gahetti bara 1999 AL.Otti mana barumsaa sadarkaa 1ffaa Caalaa Fooqaa seenuudhaan kuitaa 1ffaadhaa hanga 8ffaatti barate. Barnoota isaa sadarkaa lammaffaa mana barnootaa sadrkaa lammaffaa Kombolchaa seenuudhaan kutaa 9ffaa fi 10ffaa barate. Barnoota isaa Cinaatti ilmaan Oromoo sabboonummaa barsiisaa gama kallattii garaa garaadhaan QBO keessatti qooda olaanaa fudhachaa kan ture bara 2009 AL.Otti kutaa 10ffaa akka xumureen Koollejjii Horroo Guduruu magaala Fincaa’aa seenuun bara 2011 A.L.Otti muummee Veternarydhaan eebbifame. Barataa Biqilaa Balaay dhiibbaa mootummaan wayyaanee ilmaan Oromoo irraan geessu argaa bira kan hin dabarre QBO keessatti qooda fudhachaa kan as gahe Fincila diddaa garbummaa bara 2014 dhimma naannawa lafa Finfinnee qabatee dhoheen magaala Amboo keessatti hiriira barattootnii fi Uummatni gamtaan gaafa Ebla 25, 2014 gaggeessan keessatti qooda fudhachuun rasaasa mootummaa wayyaaneedhaan sa’a 12:29 PM irratti mataa rukkutame. Rukkutamees waldhaansaaf gara Hospitaala Xiqur Ambasaa guyyaa sana kan fudhatame yoommuu tahu maallaqa hedduu dhangalaasuudhaanis waldhaansa olaanaa irra ture. Waldhaansi olaanaan taasifamus rukkuttaa bakka hamaa rukkutamee fi waldhaansa taasisfameen qorichi kennamaafii ture mataa isaa keessaa rasaasa baasuuf yaalii godhamaa ture summii itti tahuun gaafa hagayya 11 bara 2014 Addunyaa kana irraa du’aan boqoteera.Qabsaa’aan ni kufa! Qabsoon itti fufa!Qeerroo Bilisummaa Hagayya 15, 2014
Sad News (4th August 2014):Teacher named Wakjira Barsisa, who was wounded in Gimbi during the #OromoProtests has passed away at Tikur Anbassa Hospital.In related news, the following 11 students have been released from Maekalwi prison after being detained and subjected to torture for the last three months. 1. Falmataa Bayecha 2. Mo’ibul Misganuu 3. Bekele Gonfa 4. Nimonaa Gonfa 5. Ebisaa Dhabasa 6.Ratta Dajash 7. Araarsaa Leggesse 8. Ashanafi ( Jaarraa ) Marga 9. Barisso Jamal 10. Abu ( Guyyo) Galma * 11. Alii Shadoo** Abu (#10) is a 14 years old , while Alii ( #11) is 15 years old. They were both 9th grade students at the time of their arrest.
Oromo star artists, Haacaaluu Hundeesa and Jaamboo Joote were arrested today in Finfinnee, but finally left the country. They are on their way to Washington Dulles International Airport. This is typical Woyaane tactic to chase away Oromo figures. Seif Nebelbaal News, 4th August 2014.
Mass killing’s in Ambo conducted by fascist Woyane (TPLF) army, Agazi.
Testimony of a youngman whose friend was murdered by Ethiopian securitymen during protest against the government decision to annex farming areas into Addis Ababa – which is believed to evict farmers from their ancestral homeland (https://wordpress.com/read/post/id/9822596/204/
Ethiopia’s Compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child Report for the Pre-Sessional Working Group of the Committee on the Rights of the Child Submitted by The Advocates for Human Rights, a non-governmental organization in special consultative status with ECOSOC and The International Oromo Youth Association, a non-governmental diaspora youth organization 69th Session of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, Geneva 22–26 September 2014http://www.theadvocatesforhumanrights.org/uploads/tahr_ioya_crc_loi_submission_july_1_2014.pdf
(The Advocates for Human Rights, Adoolessa/July 26, 2014, Finfinne Tribune, Gadaa.com ) – The Advocates for Human Rights, in collaboration with the International Oromo Youth Association, submitted a report for the Pre-Sessional Working Group of the Committee on the Rights of the Child. This report identifies numerous violations of the rights of children in Ethiopia, particularly with respect to the rights of the child to equality, life, liberty, security, privacy, freedom of expression and association, family, basic health and welfare, education, and leisure and cultural activities. Unless otherwise noted in the report, these violations occur without distinction based on the ethnic group of the child. In some cases, however, children belonging to the Oromo ethnic group—the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia—face discrimination or other rights violations unique to their ethnicity. The Advocates has worked extensively with members of the Ethiopian diaspora for purposes of documenting human rights conditions in Ethiopia. Since 2004, The Advocates has documented reports from members of the Oromo ethnic group living in diaspora in the United States of human rights abuses they and their friends and family experienced in Ethiopia.The Ethiopian Government has adopted strict constraints on civil society; Government monitoring and intimidation, as well as fear of reprisals, impede human rights monitoring and journalism in the country. In spite of this, The Advocates has documented the continued discrimination against the Oromo and other ethnic groups. In recent months, the Ethiopian Government has also violated the right to life of Oromo children and youth by using excessive force in response to peaceful protests, including violence, killing, mass detentions, and forced expulsions.Further, the Government fails to protect children from abuse in the family and from harmful traditional practices such as FGM. Perpetrators of physical and sexual violence against children enjoy impunity. The Government also fails to promote and protect rights of many children with disabilities. The Government’s “villagization” program places the health of children in rural areas at risk and impedes their right to an adequate standard of living. Children in Ethiopia continue to be denied access to primary education, especially in rural areas, and child domestic labor remains a serious concern.- Details: The Advocates for Human Rights and the International Oromo Youth Association report to the Committee on the Rights of the Child- Source: The Advocates for Human Rights
Oromo mother angry over murdered son
Yeshi, mother of man shot dead in April in Ambo By Hewete HaileselassieBBC Africa, Ethiopia
“Yeshi” is still trying to come to terms with the trauma of discovering the body of her son being carried through the streets of the Ethiopian city of Ambo.
A rickshaw driver in his 20s, he had been caught up in deadly protests between the police and students in the city in April. They were demonstrating about plans to extend the administrative control of the capital, Addis Ababa, into Oromia state.
Oromia is the country’s largest region and completely surrounds Addis Ababa – and some people feared they would be forced off their land and lose their regional and cultural identity if the plans went ahead.
Anger over ‘violent crackdown’ at protest in Ethiopia
BBC News, 28 July 2014
A plan by the Ethiopian government to expand the capital’s administrative control into neighbouring states has sparked months of student protests.
Security forces have been accused of cracking down on demonstrators in the region of Oromia. The government says 17 people died in the violence, but human rights groups say that number is much higher. The BBC’s Emmanuel Igunza has gained rare access to the town of Ambo where the protests took place.
Four Oromo students of Madda Walaabuu University have been abducted by TPLF/Agazi forces while with their family in Western Oromia (Wallagga, Gidaami). Their where about is yet unknown.
Barattooti Oromoo Yuuniversitii Madda Walaabuu 4 Boqonnaa Yeroo Gannaaf Gara Maatii Isaanii Wallagga, Gidaamii Itti Galan Tika Wayyaaneen Qabamuun Bakka Buuteen Isaanii DhabameGabaasa Qeerroo Qellem, Gidaamii – Adoolessa (July) 26, 2014Mootummaan wayyaanee barattoota boqonnaa yeroo gannaaf maatii galan maatii irraa irraa ugguruudhaan qabee mana hidhaatti galchaa akka jirtu gabasi nu gahe addeessa. Har’a gabaasni Qeerroo Qellem Giddamii irraa nu dhaqqabe kan ibsu barattoota madda Walaabuu Yuuniversitii irraa galan aanaa Gidaamii ganda Giraay Sonqaa jedhamu irraa basaasaa wayyaanee aanaa kaan irratti ilmaan Oromoo dabarsee diinaf saaxilun kennaa jiruun saaxilamanii humna waraana Wayyaanetti kennamuudhaan Adoolessa gaafa 18/2014 qabamanii hidhamanii jiru. Basaasaan wayyaanee maqaan isaa Waaqgaarii Qan’aa kan jedhamu jiraataa aanaa Gidaamii ganda Giraay Sonqaa jiraataa kan ture amma garuu ganda Afteer Saanboo jedhamutti teessoo jireenya isaa kan jijjiirrate maqaa qindeessitoota FDG, Miseensa ABO, Alabaa ABO fannisuutiin, uummata kakaasuu fi ijaaruun duras aanaa kana keessatti isaan kun warra duraati jechuudhan yuuniversitii irratti hojii kana hojjetaa akka turan jedhee diinaaf kennee kan jiru gabaasni nu gahe ibsa, ijoollotni kuni maqaan isaanii akka arman gadii kan taheedha:1. Gammadaa Birhaanee 2. Solomoon Taaddasaa 3. Mallasaa Taaffasaa 4. Amaanu’eel Facaasaakan jedhamaniidha, namootni maatii akka tahanii fi amma gara itti hidhamanillee kan hin beekmne tahuu isaa Qeerroon gabaasee Qellem Wallaggaa Gidaamii irraa nuuf gabaasee jira.
(July 22, 2014) – According to sources, the following Oromo political prisoners, who were arrested in connection with #OromoProtests over a month ago, had been transferred to the notorious Maekelawi prison recently. Before they were brought to Maekelawi, they had been apparently kept at the headquarters of the Ethiopian National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) – where they were subjected to severe torture. Their ordeal was so severe that many of them were carried on stretchers into their new prison cells at Maekelawi. One prisoner, who was there at Maekalawi before them, apparently said to his visiting families: “I thought I had the worst torture until I saw the latest Oromo students.’ In particular, a female student Chaltu Dhuguma from Wallaggaa University, has contracted a breast infection from injuries she had sustained at the NISS headquarters. Although these Oromos have been in detention since early May 2014, they have not been brought before a court, or charged. They have been denied the right to attorney, and family visits are restricted. Jimmaa University 1. Falmata Barecha 2. Ebisa Daba 3. Lenjisa Alemayehu 4. Gamachu Bekele Wallaggaa University 5. Mo’ibuli Misganu 6. Bekele Gonfa 7. Ratta Dinberu 8. Chaltuu Dhuguma Adama University 9. Adugna Keesso 10. Bilisumma Damene Haromaya University 11. Nimonaa Chali 12. Abebe Urgeessa 13. Bilisumma Gonfa 14. Magarsa Bekele 15. Jara (Ashenafi) Marga 16. Ararsa Legesse Farmers from Wallaggaa 17. Aga Bekana 18. Dereje Businessmen from Jimmaa 19. Mohammed Chali 20. Ahmed Abagaro 21. Hussien Abagaro Borana 22. Galma Guyo 23. Korme Udesso 24. Roba Salaha 25. Aliyi Qellam Wallaggaa Farmers 26. Shariif Usumaan 27. Daani’el Akkumaa 28. Aliyyii Tarfaa Farmers from Jimmaa 29. Shiek Mohaammed Abbaa Garoo 30. Hassan Abdala Farmers from East Wallaggaa 31. Afrika Kebede Farmers from Western Shawaa 32. Tamire Chala From Dire Dawa 33. Abdusemed Mohammed 34. Tofik Abdalla 35. Bariso Jamal 36. Abdii Kamal
Addunya Keesso was a 4th year engineering student at Adama Science and Technology University in Adama, Oromia, Ethiopia. He was dismissed from the university after government officials accused him of playing a leadership role in the peaceful student protest against the infamous Addis Ababa City Master Plan which many believe will result in the eviction of millions of Oromos from their ancestral land. On may 29 Addunya Keesso and two other ASTU students (Bilisumma Daammana and Mekonnen Kebede) were abducted from Franko neighborhood in Adama and taken to Ma’ikelawi prison in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where political prisoners are routinely tortured. Sources say Addunya Keesso has been tortured and has not been taken to court. It is to be recalled peaceful protesters were attacked by Ethiopia’s Federal Police and Agazi army since last April and scores of high school and college students have been killed and thousands detained in towns and villages across the Oromia region of Ethiopia. #FreeAddunyaaKeesso#FreeOromoStudents, 22nd July 2014
Oromo national, Bilisummaa Daammanaa, Final year Adama University student is being tortured in Fascist TPLF Ma’ikelawi torture chamber. #FreeOromoStudent. 20th July 2014. Bilisummaa Daammanaa jedhama.Barataa Yuuniversitii Saayinsii fi Teeknoloojii Adamaatti bara kana kan eebbifamu ture garuu,yuuniversitii irras ari’amuun,Gaaffii mirga Abbaa Biyyumaan wal qabatee,badii tokko malee yeroo amma kana mana hidhaa Wayyanee ma’akkalawwitti dararamaa jira! Gabaasa Qeerroo Adoolessa 19,2014 Finfinnee Barataa sabboonticha Bilisummaa Daammanaa jedhamu mooraa Adaamaa Yuuniversitii irraa kan baratuu fi baree baranaa kan xumuruun eebbifamu yoo tahu Ebla 29/2014 guyyaa FDG mooraa Yuuniversitii Adaamatti tokkummaa barattoota Oromoo moorichaan mootummaa Wayyaanee dura dhaabbachuudhaan gaggeessaniin tikoota Wayyaaneen hiriyoottan sabboontota Oromoo nama 40 ol tahan waliin qabamanii torbanoota lamaa oliif bakka buuteen isaanii dhabamee ture irraa kaasee bakka tursan tursanii gara mana hidhaa Maa’ikelaawwii keessatti sabboonaa beekamaa fi itti gaafatamaa dargaggoota ykn Qeerroo Yuuniversitii Adaamaa kan tahe,akkasuma dursaa maadhewwan mooraa fi magaalaa Adaamaa kan tahe Addnuyaa Keessoo waliin rakkina guddaa fi gocha suukkanneessaa waraana Wayyaaneetiin mana hidhaa Maa’ikelaawwii keessatti irratti raawwachaa tureera. Ammas gara jabinaan waan dhala namaa irratti hin raawwanne barataa Bilisummaa Daammanaa jedhamu kana irratti ammas irratti raawwacha jiru du’aa fi jireenya gidduutti argamuu isaa gabaasi qeerroo addeessa. http://qeerroo.org/2014/07/20/mana-hidhaa-maaikelaawwii-keessatti-barataa-sabboonaa-bilisummaa-daammanaa-reebichaan-rakkina-hamaa-keessa-jira/
Oromo national Walabummaa Dabale, 4th year Engineering student at Adama University is in TPLF Torture Chamber. He is the author of the above book in Afaan Oromo titled ‘Faana Imaanaa’.
Walabummaa Dabalee Barataa Yuuniversitii Saayinsii fi Teeknoloojii Adaamaatti barataa Injineeringii waggaa 4ffaa ture.yeroo ammaa kana mana hidhaa mootummaa Wayyanee keessatti dararamaa jirachuun isaa ni beekama.#FreeOromoStudents
High school student #Samuel Ittaana from Gimbii, Oromia was shot by fascist Ethiopia’s federal police (Agazi) while taking part in a peaceful demonstration during #Oromoptotests. #FreeOromoStudents
The above picture is some of the thousands Oromo student youths kidnapped by fascist TPLF (Agazi) forces and sent to its torture camp in Afar state. They are forced to shave and skin heads. The TPLF falsely claimed that they are ‘Godana Tadaadar’ (homeless, street residents). #OromoProtests #FreeOromoStudents 13th July 2014
Suuraan amma olii kun kan mootumaan Ethiopia ykn TPLF, dargagoota egeree boruu ta’an baraachiidhaan, barnoota isaanii irraa arii’uudhaan, qabeenyaa ykn qe’ee isanii irraa ariitee ergaa jettee booda asi deebitee maqaa itti baasitee ‘Ye Godaana Tadadari’ jechuun, dhiiraaf durba otuu hin jennee kan kumaatamatti lakkawaman mataa irraa aaduudhaan gara nanoo Afar keesatti ergitee jirtii. Kunis kan ta’ee filannoo itti aanuu rakkina amma tokko dhufuu danda’u irra hiridhisa kan jedhuu irra kan ka’ee karoorafatanii ta’uu isa beekamee.Dargagoota sodaa irra qaban kuma afurii ta’uun isanii beekamee. #OromoProtests
MORE THAN 3000 SHAVED HEADED OROMO STUDENTS WERE SENT TO AFAR CONCENTRATION CAMP
Following massive crock-down on Oromo students throughout Oromia, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Front (EPRDF) regime moved thousands of Oromo students who participated in peaceful protests to various concentration camps. Besides putting those students in extremely dangerous detention centers, the detainees are usually exposed to various kinds of corporal punishments. According to Ethiopian Review report, among Oromo students who were arbitrarily arrested following massive arrest that took place in May this year, around 3000 of them were put to a massive head shaving ritual. The EPRDF regime practiced this kind of cruelty and act of barbarism against Oromo nationalists since it came to power 23 years ago. Prominent Oromo singer and nationalist Ilfinesh Qano is one of those who went through this ugly and inhumane practice of detainees handling. Reports show that more than 30,000 Oromos were rounded up and put in different camps following the demonstration that took place in Ambo, Addis Ababa, Robe, Nakamte and other Oromia cities and villages.
Humnootni tikaa sirna wayyaanee barataa Mootii Mootummaa ukkaamsanii fudhatan namoota shan oggaa ta’an, isaan keessaa tokko kana dura magaalaa Ambootti tika wayyaanee kan turee fi yeroo ammaa Adaamaadhaa kan hojjetu nama maqaan isaa Tasfaayee jedhamu ta’uunis barameera. Barataa Mootii Mootummaa Abdii barreessaa kitaaba “Qaroo Dhiiga Boosse” jedhamuu oggaa ta’u, sabboonummaa Oromummaa nama qabu akka ta’es kanneen isa beekan ibsaniiru. Mootummaan wayyaanee akkuma ilmaan Oromoo hedduu ukkaamsee nyaataa turee fi jiru barataa Mootii Mootummaa Abdii irrattis yakka fakkaataa raawwachuun isaa hin oolu kan jedhan hiriyootni isaa, ilmaan Oromoo biyya ambaatti argaman dararaa fi lubbuu ijoollee Oromoo hidhaa keessatti argamanii hambisuuf kanneen mirga dhala namaaf falmanitti iyyachuufii jabeessanii akka itti fufan dhaamsa dabarsaniiru.
Maqaan isaa Waaqjiraa Biraasa jedhama hojiin isaa barsiisaa yoo ta’u sababa sochii /mormii barattoota Oromootiin miidhaan irea gahee hospital Xuqur Anbassaa keessatti argama. Oromo national and teacher Waaqjiraa Biraasaa is in life and death situation after being tortured by Agazi/TPLF. At the time of this posting he is in Xiqur Ambassa (Black Lion Hospital), Finfinnee. #OromoProtests. #FreeOromoStudents. 13th July 2014. 31 Oromo students, under 16 year old teenagers are being tortured by Agazi (TPLF) in jail at Ambo. The National Youth Movement for freedom and Democracy listed (in its 10th July 2014 publication) their names which is in Afaan Oromo as follows:-Dararamni Oromoo mana hidhaa Wayyaanee keessaa umurii hin filatu Dargaggoonni maqaan isaanii armaa gadi xuqame guyyaa 23/08/2006 (A.L.E) irraa eegalee sababa tokko malee jumulaan walitti qabamanii shakkiidhaan hidhamuu irraan kan ka’e ma/mu/ol/Go/ Sh/Lixaatti akka dhihaatanii fi himannaan dhiyaate waan hin jirreef jedhee ajajaan akka gadi lakkisaman murteesse. Haa ta’u malee ajajni mana murtii kun hojii irra ooluu irra umurii daa’imummaan mana hidhaa keessatti dararamaa jirra jechuun ma/mu/waliigalaa Oromiyaatti ol iyyatanii hanga yoonaatti deebii hin arganne. Isaanis;
Shibirree Mokonnon G/Yesus Umuriin waggaa 15
Misgaanaa Oolgaa Dawoo umuriin waggaa 16
Alamituu Fayyeraa Baayisaa umuriin waggaa 16
Haaluma wal fakkaataan namoonni armaa gadii ammoo qabamanii mana qajeelcha poolisaa godinaa irraa gara mana sirreessaa Go/Sh/Lixaatti darbuun himannaa fi murtii tokko malee dararamaa jirani. Sababa kana irraa ka’uun dhimma isaanii hordofachuu akka hin dandeenye ibsachuun nama dhimma isaanii hordofuuf bakka buufachuun ma/mu/walii gala Oromiyaatti iyyatanii hanga yoonaatti deebii sirnaa akka hin arganne maddeen mirkaneessu. Isaan kunis;
A Summary of Oromos Killed, Beaten and Detained by the TPLF Armed Forces during the 2014 Oromo Protest Against The Addis Ababa (Finfinne) Master Plan Compiled by: National Youth Movement for Freedom and Democracy (NYMFD) aka Qeerroo Bilisummaa
July 05, 2014
Background
It is a well-documented and established fact that the Oromo people in general and Oromo students and youth in particular have been in constant and continuous protest ever since the current TPLF led Ethiopian government came to power. The current protest which started late April 2014 on a large scale in all universities and colleges in Oromia and also spread to several high schools and middle schools begun as opposition to the so called “Integrated Developmental Master Plan” or simply “the Master Plan”. The “Master Plan” was a starter of the protest, not a major cause. The major cause of the youth revolt is opposition to the unjust rule of the Ethiopian regime in general. The main issue is that there is no justice, freedom and democracy in the country. The said Master Plan in particular, would expand the current limits of the capital, Addis Ababa, or “Finfinne” as the Oromos prefer to call it, by 20 folds stretching to tens of Oromian towns surrounding the capital. The Plan is set to legalize eviction of an estimated 2 million Oromo farmers from their ancestral land and sell it to national and transnational investors. For the Oromo, an already oppressed and marginalised nation in that country, the incorporation of those Oromian cities into the capital Addis Ababa means once more a complete eradication of their identity, culture, and language. The official language will eventually be changed to Amharic. Essentially, it is a new form of subjugation and colonization. It was the Oromo university students who saw this danger, realized its far-reaching consequences and lit the torch of protest which eventually engulfed the whole Oromia regional state.For the minority TPLF led Ethiopian regime, who has been already selling large area of land surrounding Addis Ababa even without the existence of the Master Plan, meeting the demands of the protesting Oromo students means losing 1.1 million of hectares of land which the regime planned to sell for a large sum of money. Therefore, the demand of the students and the Oromo people at large is not acceptable to the regime. It has therefore decided to squash the protest with its forces armed to the teeth. The regime ordered its troops to fire live ammunition to defenceless Oromo students at several places: Ambo, Gudar, Robe (Bale), Nekemte, Jimma, Haromaya, Adama, Najjo, Gulliso, Anfillo (Kellem Wollega), Gimbi, Bule Hora (University), to mention a few. Because the government denied access to any independent journalists it is hard to know exactly how many have been killed and how many have been detained and beaten. Simply put, it is too large of a number over a large area of land to enumerate. Children as young as 11 years old have been killed. The number of Oromos killed in Oromia during the current protest is believed to be in hundreds. Tens of thousands have been jailed and an unknown number have been abducted and disappeared. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa, who has been constantly reporting the human rights abuses of the regime through informants from several parts of Oromia for over a decade, estimates the number of Oromos detained since April 2014 as high as 50, 000In this report we present a list of 61 Oromos that are killed and 903 others that are detained and beaten (or beaten and then detained) during and after the Oromo students protest which begun in April 2014 and which we managed to collect and compile. The information we obtain so far indicates those detained are still in jail and still under torture. Figure 1 below shows the number of Oromos killed from different zones of Oromia included in this report. Figure 2 shows the number of Oromos detained and reportedly facing torture. It has to be noted that this number is only a small fraction of the widespread killings and arrest of Oromos carried out by the regime in Oromia regional state since April 2014 to date. Our Data Collection Team is operating in the region under tight and risky security conditions not to consider lack of logistic, financial and man power to carry the data collection over the vast region of Oromia.
June 29, 2014 Dear Sir/Madam: We are reaching out to you as the Board of Officers of the International Oromo Youth Association (IOYA) whose nation is in turmoil back in Oromia, Ethiopia. Recently, Oromo students have been protesting against the new Addis Ababa “Integrated Master Plan” which aims at incorporating smaller towns surrounding Addis Ababa for the convenience of vacating land for investors by displacing millions of Oromo farmers. As a political move, this will essentially result in the displacement of the indigenous peoples and their families. Oromo farmers will be dispossessed of their land and their survival both economic and cultural terms will be threatened. The Oromos strongly believe that this plan will expose their natural environment to risk, threaten their economic means of livelihood (subsistence farming), and violate their constitutional rights. The Ethiopian government is executing its political agenda of progressive marginalization of the Oromo people from matters that concern them both in the Addis Ababa city and the wider Oromia region. The master plan is an unconstitutional change of the territorial expansion over which the city administration has a jurisdiction. The government justifies the move in the name of enhancing the development of the city and facilitating economic growth. The justification is merely a tactical move masked for the governments continued abuse of human rights of the Oromo people. While the Oromos understand that Addis Ababa itself is an Oromo city that serves as the capital of the federal government, they also consider this move as an encroachment on the jurisdiction and borders of the state of Oromia. The protesters peacefully demonstrated against this move. University students and residents have been in opposition to the plan, but their struggle has been met by a brutal repression in the hands of the military police (famously known as the Agazi). It has been reported that shootings, arrests, and imprisonments are becoming rampant. It is also reported that the death toll is increasing by the hour. Recently, sources indicate that over 80 people have been shot dead, others severally injured and thousands arrested. In addition, Oromo students have been protesting peacefully for over three weeks now, despite mass killings and arrests by Ethiopian security forces. University and high school students from more than ten universities have been engaging in the Oromo protests. The peaceful rally has now spread across the whole country and is expected to continue until the Ethiopian government refrains from incorporating over 36 surrounding smaller towns into Addis Ababa. It is stated to be displacing an estimate of 6.6 million people and violating constitutional rights of regional states. As an organization subscribing to broader democratic engagement of the Oromo youth, we oppose the brutal violence that the Ethiopian government is meting out on innocent, unarmed young students who are peacefully protesting. As leaders of the Oromo community, we support and stand in solidarity with Oromo protests in Ethiopia. The human rights volitions being carried out by the Ethiopian government against innocent students are unacceptable. Continuous assaults, tortures, and killings of innocent civilians must be stopped. We urge you to join us in denouncing these inhumane and cruel activities carried out by the Ethiopian government. We believe it is imperative that the international community raise its voice and take action to stop the ongoing atrocities that are wreaking havoc to families and communities in the Oromia region. We urgently request that such actions be taken in an attempt to pressure the Ethiopian government to stop terrorizing and killing peaceful protesters:
The US government and other International organizations should condemn the Ethiopian government’s brutal action taken on unarmed innocent civilians. Furthermore, we demand over 30,000 innocent protesters to be released from prisons, as they will be subjected to torture and ill treatment.
The Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) is currently terrorizing its own electorates/nation. Under the law of R2P in the UN constitution, the international community is obliged to protect a nation that is being terrorized by its own government and EPRDF should be taken accountable.
We demand Ethiopia to be expelled from any regional and international cooperation including and not limited to AU and UN for its previous and current human rights violations. The International community should stop providing support in the name of AID and development to Ethiopia as it is violating the fundamental and basic needs of its nation.
The Ethiopian government should be stopped on immediate effect; its forceful displacement of the indigenous peoples across Ethiopia is unjust and unconstitutional. We ask the United States, European Union, and the United Nations to stand in solidarity with peaceful student protesters who are condemning such injustice.
The onus is on the international community to act in favor of the innocent and civilian populace that is seeking its fundamental right. Punitive actions towards this government should be taken for cracking down on freedom of expression and other democratic rights being expressed by its citizens.
We believe it is in the interest of our common humanity to take responsibility, to pay attention to this problem, to witness the plight of the voiceless victims, and to raise concerns to the Ethiopian government so it can desist from its brutal acts of repression. We count on your solidarity to help the Oromo youth be spared from arbitrary arrest, incarceration, and shootings. Yours Respectfully, International Oromo Youth Associationhttp://ayyaantuu.com/horn-of-africa-news/oromia/oromoprotests-ioya-appeal/https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=E31gqU_fbpMAbdi Kamal Mussa is Oromo political prisoner kept in Dire Dawa. He graduated from Dire Dawa Universityin 2013 and was working at Ethiopian Commercial Bank, Jigjiga branch. He was arrested in May 2014 on bogus accusation of providing financial support to the student protesters. He is languishing in the gulag without any charge and legal representation. #OrmoProtests #FreeOromoStudents
Maqaan isaa Alamaayyoo Dassaalee Kumii ( miidiyaa hawaasaa barruu fuula duraa ykn facebook kana irratti Sabom Alekso Desale) jedhama. Dhalatee kan guddate godina Wallagga Bahaa aanaa Kiiramuutti. Barnoota sadarkaa ol’aanaa kan hordofes Naqamtee Kolleejjii ASK jedhamutti. Magaala Naqamtee yeroo turetti gama sochii jabeenya qaamaatiinis gurbaa sadarkaa guddaarra ga’edha. Si’ana oguma barsiisummaa ittiin leenji’een hawaasa leenji’eef tajaajiluuf Godina Addaa Saba Oromoo kan taate Kamisee, aanaa Dawwee Haarawaatti argama. Saabom Alamaayyoon yeroo hojii idilee isaarraa ba’utti boqonnaa malee dargaggoota magaalaa Booraatti argaman sochii jabeenya qaamaa fi gorsa naamusaa kennuufiin nama jaalalaa fi kabajaa guddaa argateerudha. Hawaasa oromoo magaala Booraa (magaala guddoo aanaa Dawwee Haarawaa) fudhatama argachuun sabboonaa kanaa kan isaan yaaddesse jala adeemtotni wayyaanee aanichaaf amanamoodha jedhaman hinaaffaa fi sodaa guddaa keessa waan isaan galcheef, haal duree tokko malee Oromummaa isaa qofaan yakkuudhaan Waxabajji 20, 2014 guyyaa keessaa naannoo sa’a 4:00 harka,ijaa fi miila isaa xaxuudhaan: ati ABO waliin hidhata qabda, haasawaa ABO’n wal qabatu yoo haasofte malee uummanni akkamiin akkas si sifeeffate, Hiriyoota kee si waliin ABO deeggaran eeri…fi gaaffilee inni sammuu keessaa hin qabneen jaanjessanii eeyyama tokko malee mana jireenya isaa erga sakatta’anii booda mana hidhaatti darbataniiru. Wanti guddaan akka namummaatti nama gaddisiisu garuu ilmi namaa yakka tokko malee, biyya namni jiru keessatti guyyaadhaan dirree irratti ija raramee yommuu dhiittaan mirga namoomaa daangaa darbe akkanaa irratti raawwatamu birmataan tokkollee dhibuu isaati. Namoonni sobaan balaaloo hammanaa irratti xaxanis kanneen akka Habtaamuu Calqaa (hojjetaa mana maree aanichaa) fi Jamaal ( itti gaafatamaa mana maree aanaa Dawwee Haarawaa) ta’uutu bira gahame. Yeroo ammaa kanatti bakkuuteen isaas akka dhabame hiriyyootni isaa soorata geessuuf barbaadan hadheessanii dubbataa kan jiran yommuu ta’u, maatiin isaas eessa buutee ilma isaanii dhabanii burjaaja’aa jiru. #OromoProtests
The following are photographs and backgrounds of 5 students abducted from Madda Walabu University. #OromoProtests
Jeylan Ahmed Mohammed West Hararghe, Abro Disttict, Haji Musa Vilage, Tourism Management majorn Class 2014
Diribe Kumarra Taasisaa, Kellem Wollega, Laloo Qilee District, Bilee Buubaa Village, Class 2014
Haile Dhaba Danboba, South west Shewa Dawoo District, Busaa 01 kebele, Economics, Class 2014,
Leenco Fixa Soboqa South West Shewa, Sadeen Soddoo District. Tolee Dalotaa Village, Water Engineering major 2nd year
Twenty Ethiopia state journalists dismissed, in hiding
“If they cannot indoctrinate you into their thinking, they fire you,” said one former staff member of the state-run Oromia Radio and Television Organization (ORTO), who was dismissed from work last month after six years of service. “Now we are in hiding since we fear they will find excuses to arrest us soon,” the journalist, who asked not to be identified for fear of reprisal, told CPJ.
On June 25, 20 journalists from the state broadcaster in Oromia, the largest state in terms of area and population in Ethiopia, were denied entry to their station’s headquarters, according to news reports. No letters of termination or explanations were presented, local journalists told CPJ; ORTO’s management simply said the dismissals were orders given by the government. “Apparently this has become common practice when firing state employees in connection with politics,” U.S.-based Ethiopian researcher Jawar Mohammed said in an email to CPJ. “The government seems to want to leave no documented trace.” Read more @http://www.cpj.org/blog/2014/07/twenty-ethiopia-state-journalists-dismissed-in-hid.php
STATE FIRES 20 JOURNALISTS FOR “NARROW POLITICAL VIEWS”
Reporters Without Borders condemns last week’s politically-motivated dismissal of 20 journalists from Oromia Radio and Television Organization (ORTO), the main state-owned broadcaster in Oromia, Ethiopia’s largest regional State.The 20 journalists were denied entry to ORTO headquarter on 25 June and were effectively dismissed without any explanations other than their alleged “narrow political views,” an assessment the management reached at the end of a workshop for journalists and regional government officials that included discussions on the controversial Master Plan of Addis that many activists believe is aimed at incorporating parts of Oromia into the federal city of Addis Ababa.The journalists had reportedly expressed their disagreement with the violence used by the police in May to disperse student protests against the plan, resulting in many deaths.It is not yet clear whether the journalists may also be subjected to other administrative or judicial proceedings.“How can you fire journalists for their political views?” said Cléa Kahn-Sriber, the head of the Reporters Without Borders Africa desk. “The government must provide proper reasons for such a dismissal. Does it mean that Ethiopia has officially criminalized political opinion ?“In our view, this development must be seen as an attempt by the authorities to marginalize and supress all potential critiques ahead of the national elections scheduled for 2015 in Ethiopia. These journalists must be allowed to return to work and must not be subjected to any threats or obstruction.”Ethiopia is ranked 143rd out of 180 countries in the 2014 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.http://www.siitube.com/articles/state-broadcaster-fires-20-journalists-for-“narrow-political-views”_293.html
Up to 20 journalists reportedly fired from Ethiopian broadcaster
Ethiopian state broadcaster’s alleged dismissal of reporters prompts questions over press freedom.
Ethiopia’s state-run Oromia Radio and Television Organization (ORTO) allegedly sacked(link is external) up to 20 journalists on June 25. Neither the station nor the government has given reasons for the reported firings, but Reporters Without Borders said(link is external) ORTO management found the reporters had “narrow political views”.
#OromoProtests- (Vancouver Canada, 26th June 2014) Amnesty International Human Right against torture awarness public forum. Discussing forum on Oromo students tortured & killed by Ethiopian government because of questioning their constitutional rights.
52 students called before the disciplinary committee of Finfinnee (Addis Ababa) University
The TPLF listed the following students from Finfinnee ( Addis Ababa) University to be Punnished for being in peaceful Oromo students rally:
18 journalists of Oromia Radio and Television Organization (ORTO) have been fired
18 journalists of Oromia Radio and Television Organization (ORTO) have been fired. The journalists say they received no prior notice and learned of their fate this morning when security prevented them from entering the station’s compound located in Adama. Members of the management informed the journalists that they cannot help them as decision terminate their employment and the list of names came from the federal government. This firing follows a 20 day reindoctrination seminar given to journalists and reporters of the ORTO and workers of the region’s communication bureau.Main agenda’s for the seminar were the ongoing #OromoProtests and the upcoming election. Speakers at the seminar included Bereket Simon, Waldu Yemasel ( Director of Fana broadcasting), Abreham Nuguse Woldehana and Zelalem Jemaneh.http://www.siitube.com/articles/17-journalists-of-oromia-radio-and-television-organization-orto-have-been-fired_253.html
On June 25, when 18 journalists from Ethiopia’s state-run Oromia Radio and Television Organization (ORTO) arrived to start their scheduled shifts, they learned their employment had been terminated “with orders from the higher ups.” The quiet dismissal of some 10 percent of the station’s journalists underscores the country’s further descent into total media blackout. The firing of dissenting journalists is hardly surprising; the ruling party controls almost all television and radio stations in the country. Most diaspora-based critical blogs and websites are blocked. Dubbed one of the enemies of the press, Ethiopia currently imprisons at least 17 journalists and bloggers. On April 26, only days before US Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit to the capital, Addis Ababa, authorities arrested six bloggers and three journalists on charges of working with foreign rights groups and plotting to incite violence using social media. Reports on the immediate cause of the latest purge itself are mixed. But several activist blogs noted that a handful of the dismissed journalists have been irate over the government’s decision not to cover the recent Oromo student protests. An Ethiopia-based journalist, who asked not to be named due to fear of repercussions, said the 18 reporters were let go after weeks of an indoctrination campaign in the name of “gimgama” (reevaluation) failed to quiet the journalists. The campaign began earlier this month when a meeting was called in Adama, where ORTO is headquartered, to “reindoctrinate” the journalists there into what is sometimes mockingly called “developmental journalism,” which tows government lines on politics and human rights. The journalists reportedly voiced grievances about decisions to ignore widespread civic upheavals while devoting much of the network’s coverage to stories about lackluster state development. Still, although unprecedented, the biggest tragedy is not the termination of these journalists’ positions. Ethiopia already jails more journalists than any other African nation except neighboring Eritrea. The real tragedy is that the Oromo, Ethiopia’s single largest constituency (nearly half of Ethiopia’s 92 million people) lack a single independent media outlet on any platform. The reports of the firings come on the heels of months of anti-government protests by students around the country’s largest state, Oromia. Starting in mid-April, students at various colleges around the country took to the streets to protest what they saw as unconstitutional encroachment by federal authorities on the sovereignty of the state of Oromia, which according to a proposed plan would annex a large chunk of its territory to the federal capital—which is also supposed to double as Oromia’s capital. Authorities fear that an increasingly assertive Oromo nationalism is threatening to spin out of state control, and see journalists as the spear of a generation coming of age since the current Ethiopian regime came to power in 1991. To the surprise of many, the first reports of opposition to the city’s plan came from ORTO’s flagship television network, the TV Oromiyaa (TVO). A week before the protests began, in a rare sign of dissent, journalist Bira Legesse, one of those fired this week, ran a short segment where party members criticized the so-called Addis Ababa master plan. Authorities saw the coverage as a tacit approval for public displeasure with the plan and, therefore, an indirect rebuke of the hastily put-together campaign to sell the merits of the master plan to an already skeptical audience. But once the protests began, culminating in the killings of more than a dozen students in clashes with the police and the detentions and maimings of hundreds of protesters, TVO went mute, aside from reading out approved police bulletins. This did not sit well with the journalists, leading to the indoctrination campaign which, according to one participant, ended without any resolution. – See more at:http://www.cjr.org/behind_the_news/ethiopia_cans_18_journalists.php#sthash.ewAVFyXB.dpuf Dhaabbanni Raadiyoofi Televiziyoonii Oromiyaa kaleessa jechuun Roobii 25/6/2014 gaazexeessitoota Oromoo ta’an 18 balleessaa tokko malee hojiirraa dhaabuusaa gabaafame.Dhaabbinni Woyyaaneen maqaa Oromootiin Adaamatti banatte-Dhaabbanni Raadiyoofi Televiziyoonii Oromiyaa ilmaan Oromoo 18 kaleessaa kaasee baleessaafi sababa tokko malee hojiirraa dhaabee jira. Odeeffannoo hanga ammaa qabnuun maqaan gaazexeessitootaa 18 nu gahee jira. 1. Birraa Laggasaa-dubbisaa oduu afaan Oromoo 2. Abdisaa Fufaa-qopheessaa qophii dokumentarii 3. Olaansaa Waaqumaa-qopheessaa qophii barnootaa 4. Obsee Kaasahun-oduu dubbistuuf dhiheessituu qophii bohaartii 5. Abdii Gadaa-qopheessaa qophii dargaggootaa 6. Baqqalaa Atoomaa-reppoortera afaan Oromoofi English 7. Zallaqaa Oljiraa-qopheessaafi repportera 8. Kabbaboo Ibsaa-qopheessaa oduufi sagantaa afaan Oromoo 9. Ayyaanaa Cimdeessaa-qopheessaa qophii gola Oromiyaa 10. Yusuuf Warqasaa-qopheessaa qophiilee afaan, aadaafi tuurizimii 11. Izqeel Argaw- qopheessaa qophii barnootaa 12. Margaa Angaasuu-qopheessaa qophii ispoortii 13. Zallaqaa Oljiraa-qopheessaa qophii ‘haloo doktaraa’ 14. Xilahun Magarsaa – rippoortara website dhaabbata sanii 15. Liisaanewok Moges- qopheessaa sagantaa Afaan Oromoofi Amaaraa 16. Addis Tegeny- rippoortara afaan Amaaraa 17. Hamzaa Hussien- ripportara Afaan Oromoofi English 18.Bosonaa Dheeressaa-qopheessaafi gulaala oduu afaan Oromoo
#OromoProtests: U.S. Senators Say Ethiopian Govt’s Respect of All Ethnic Groups’ Human Rights Must Be Central to the U.S.-Ethiopia Relationship
Photos: Sen. Amy Klobuchar (L) and Sen. Al Franken (R) of Minnesota Two more U.S. Senators, Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Sen. Al Franken of Minnesota, wrote a letter to the U.S. Secretary of State, Mr. John Kerry, to express concerns about the Ethiopian government’s human rights violations, particularly the Ethiopian government’s recent acts of violence against Oromo peaceful demonstrators in Oromia. In the letter, the U.S. Senators urged the U.S. State Department to make the “respect for the rule of law and human rights in Ethiopian government’s treatment of all ethnic groups” central to the U.S.-Ethiopia relationship. It’s to be noted that U.S. Senators from the State of Washington, Sen. Maria Cantwell and Sen. Patty Murray, also wrote a letter earlier in June – expressing their concern about the Ethiopian government’s acts of violence against Oromo peaceful demonstrators. http://qeerroo.org/2014/06/24/oromoprotests-u-s-senators-say-ethiopian-govts-respect-of-all-ethnic-groups-human-rights-must-be-central-to-the-u-s-ethiopia-relationship/
HRLHA on Ethiopia: Gross Violations of Human Rights and an Intractable Conflict
The following is a report presented by Mr. Garoma B. Wakessa, Executive Director of the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA), at the 26th Session of United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Palais des Nations, on June 19, 2014.http://gadaa.net/FinfinneTribune/2014/06/hrlha-on-ethiopia-gross-violations-of-human-rights-and-an-intractable-conflict/——————– Ethiopia: Gross Violations of Human Rights and an Intractable ConflictIntroduction: It is common in democratic countries around the world for people to express their grievances/ dissatisfaction and complaints against their governments by peaceful demonstrations and assemblies. When such nonviolent civil rallies take place, it should always be the state’s responsibility to respect and guard their citizens’ freedom to peacefully assemble and demonstrate. These responsibilities should apply even during times of political protests, when a state’s own power is questioned, challenged, or perhaps undermined by assemblies of citizens practicing in nonviolent resistance. If a government responds to peaceful protests improperly, a peaceful protest might lead to a violent protest- that could then become an intractable conflict. Government agents, most of all the police, must respect the local and international standards of democratic rights of the citizens during peaceful assemblies or demonstrations. – Read the Full Reporthttp://gadaa.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/HRLHA_June2014.pdf
UNPO Condemns Recent Crackdown of Oromo Student Protests by Ethiopian Government
Following last month’s violent answer of the Ethiopian armed forces against peaceful protesters in Oromia, UNPO expresses its support to the victims’ families. Urgent attention from the international community to the situation of the Oromo people in Ethiopia is required. Over the course of the month of May, students in Oromia have been facing harsh repression by Ethiopia’s authorities. The peaceful student protests against the government’s planned education reforms, were met by excessive violence, causing the death of approximately 30 students and teachers. Reportedly, the youngest victim was only 11 years old. Ever since, international outrage spread, and in many cities solidarity protests were held. The Ethiopian Government has denied any responsibility, and is exercising a strict control over the local media. By staging the protests, the students wanted to express their concern about the government’s project to expand the municipal boundaries of the capital city, Addis Ababa. This would imply that the Oromo students’ communities, currently under regional jurisdiction, would no longer be managed by the Oromia Regional State. In addition, the reform would include the displacement of Oromo farmers and residents. Considering their vulnerable status in Ethiopian society, this would make the situation for Oromo individuals even worse than it already is. The discrepancy between the nature of the protests and the Ethiopian authorities’ reaction is extremely alarming, and gives further evidence of the human rights abuses to which the Oromo community is systematically subjected in Ethiopia. The Oromo suffer from severe discrimination, not only in terms of freedom of expression, as was the case in these recent events, but also in terms of basic human rights, cultural expression, socio-economic conditions and political representation. Housing development in Ethiopia regularly happens at the expense of Oromo farmers, who are forced to give up their lands, with insufficient or no financial compensation in return. These acts of forced removal or land grabbing are mostly achieved through violent attacks and killings. Over the past few years, many reports stated that Oromo individuals had been killed by the Ethiopian Special Police Forces, including women and children. According to a recent report published in 2013 by Human Rights Watch, numerous Oromo political prisoners were tortured and executed in secret prisons in Oromia and Ethiopia. UNPO strongly condemns the crackdown on the Oromo community and urges that those responsible are held accountable. UNPO furthermore calls on the Ethiopian government to stop violating the fundamental human rights of its citizens, and to respect and abide by the international conventions it signed and ratified. http://www.unpo.org/article/17246 – See more at:http://www.unpo.org/article/17246#sthash.Op7f2o5F.dpuf Oromo youth Galanaa Nadhaa murdered by TPLF/Agazi. Waxabajjii 23/2014 Sirni Awwalcha Gooticha Sabboonaa Oromoo dargaggoo Galanaa Nadhaa guyyaa har’a ganda dhaloota isaa Godina Lixa Shawaa Aanaa Tokkee Kuttaayee ganda qonnaan bulaa Tokkee Konbolchaatti bakka uummaanni Oromoo Godinotaa fi aanaawwaaan garaagaraa irra irraatti argamanitti gaggeeffama jira. keessattuu uummaanni aanaawwaan kanneen akka Aanaa Amboo, Gudar, Xiiqur Incinnii, Tokkee kuttaayee, Calliyaa Geedoo, Midaa Qanyii ,Shanaan, Finfinnee, fi bakkota hedduu irra uummaatni Oromoo tilmaamaan 3000 olitti lakka’amu irratti argamuun gaddaa guddaa sabboonaa Oromoo kana ibsachuun Dhaadannoo, eessaan dhaqxu sabboonaa Oromoo isa bilisummaa keenyaaf falmuu, Goota Oromoo mucaa dandeetii fi sabboonummaan nama boonsuu Galaanaa Nadhaa jechuun uummaanni haal;a ulfataa ta’een gaddee, jira. Qeerroowwan sabboontotni Oromoo sirna awwaalchaa kanarratti argamuun gumaan ilmaan Oromoo hin haftu, gumaa Galaanaa Nadhaa ni baasna, qabsoo goototni ilmaan Oromoo irraatti wareegamaan galmaan ga’uuf kutannoon qabsoofnaa, Wareegama ilmaan isheetiin Oromiyaan ni bilisoomti, Mootummaan wayyaanee EPRDF/TPLF/OPDO’n seeraatti dhiyaachuu qabu jechuun yeroo amma kanatti dhaadannoo dhageesisaa jiru. ummaanni Fardeen fe’atee dhaadannoo akkam jabaa ta’ee fi dheekkamsaan guutame dhageesisaa jira, kanneen kaan garaftuudhaan of reebuun hanga of dhiigsanitti gaddaa guddaa isanitti dhaga’amee fi roorroo garbummaa uummata irraa jiru ibsacha jiru.http://qeerroo.org/2014/06/23/sirni-awwalcha-sabboonaa-dargaggoo-oromoo-galaanaa-nadhaa-haala-hoaa-taeen-gaggeeffamaa-jira/ Galaanaan Nadhaa abbaa isaa obbo Nadhaa cawwaaqaa fi haadha isaa aadde Geexee Haacaaluu irraa godina lixa shawaatti bara 1972 ALH tti dhalate.Umuriin isaa wayita barnootaaf gahu mana barumsa baabbichaa sadarkaa lammaffaatti kuyaa tokkoo hanga sadii barate.kutaa 4 hanga 8 mana barumsaa tokkeetti barachuun qabxii gaarii fidee mana barumsaa Amboo sadarkaa lammaffaatti barnoota isaa kutaa saglaffaa itti fufe.Galaanaan nama sabboonummaa orommummaa qabuu fi qalqixxummaa dhala namaatti nama amanu ture.Galaannaan rakkina saba oromoof furmaanni qabsoo gochuu qofa jedhee amana.kanaafis gummaacha isarraa eegamu bahaa ture.bara 1992 yeroo bosonni baalee gubate barattoota oromoo adda dureen mormii dhageessisan keessaa tokko ture.mormii inni dhageessiseefis diinni qabee mana hidhaatti dararaa hangana hin jedhamne irraan gahe.haa ta’uu garuu Galaanaan nama doorsisa diinaaf jilbeeffatu hin turre.Jireenyi isaa qabsoo ture.Bara 1994 yeroo FDG oromiyaa keesssa deemaa ture Galaanaan ammas qooda lammummaa bahu irraa of hin qusanne.ammas diinni qabee mana hidhaa galche..Galaanaan bara kutaa 12 qorame ture mana hidhaa taa’ee.qabxii olaanaa fiduun yunivarsiitii maqaleetti ramadame.Achitti balaa dhibee waggaa kudha tokkof isa gidirseef saaxilame. kunis gochaa ilmaan tigireeti.Galaanaan waggaa kudha tokkoof erga dhukkubsatee booda sanbata darbe addunyaa kanarraa du’aan boqote.sirni awwaalcha isaa guyyaa har’aa bakka uummanni oromoo bal’aan argametti har’aa magaala tokkee bataskaana mikaa’el jedhamutti raawwatame.qabsaa’aan kufus qabsoon itti fufa!!!! IUOf!!!!!!!!!. ‘My name is Hambaasan Gudisaa. I was born in Gincii, West Showa, Oromia, Ethiopia. I was a third year student (Afaan Oromo major) at Addis Ababa University. I am the author of ‘AMARTII IMAANAA,’ a recent book written in Afaan Oromo. I was abducted from the university library by Ethiopian security forces on Thursday, June 19, 2014. Only my abductors know where I am or even whether I am dead or alive. There are thousands of young Oromos like me. Remember us in your prayers!’ #OromoProtests
Oromo Geologist Takilu Bulcha kidnapped by TPLF/Agazi security forces and his where about is unknown
Maqaan isaa Takiluu Bulchaa jedhama. Maqaa addaa Bokkaa jedhamuun beekama. Bakki dhaloota isaa Magaalaa Najjooti. Yuunivarsiitii FINFINNEE kiiloo 4 Muummee Geology/Earth Science kan seene ALI tti bara 1992 ture. Haa ta’u malee Gidiraama Wayyaaneen irraan ga’aa turteen barumsa isaa addaan kutee Jooraa turee waggaa Muraasaafis mana hidhaa Qaallittii keessa turee erga ba’ee booda, bara 2003 ALItti Mooraatti deebi’ee. Bara 2005 ALItti Eebbifamee ba’uudhaan Ji’a 3 project Gibe III keessa erga hojjetee booda, deebi’ee Ministeera Albuudaa Kan Magaalaa Finfinnee Naannoo Magganaanyaa Shoolaatti argamu keessa dorgomee gale. Kanaan booda Achi keessa naannoo ji’a 6tiif dalageera. Osoo kanaan jiruu Fiildiitiif ergamee Naannoo uummata Kibbaa keessa Ji’a 3′f dalagaa turee Gara Finfinneetti akkuma deebi’een Guyyaa 2 erga bulee booda dhabamsiisani. Hiriyaa fi maatiin issa iraa akka baree innii galuu dhabnan itii bilbilaa isaas yaalaanii dadhabuu issani nu ibsaan. Hiriyyoota isa waliin hojjetani ijoollee Habashaa tokko gaafatanii akka inni dalagaarra hin jirre tahuu issa baraan.Gaafa June 04-2014 iraa jalqabee ykn san duraas tahuu mala kan dhabamuu issa bekkamee duubaa yaa oromoo.
2.Kiflee Jigsaa-Ogeessa fayyaati, namni kuni humna waraana wayyaanee mana jireenya isaa cabsanii mana isaa keessatti erga reebanii booda gara manahidhaatti geessan.
3.Mitikuu Ittaana-Qote Bulaa
4.Isaayyas Bulchaa-Qote Bulaa
5.Taammiruu Tarfaa-Qote Bulaa
6.Yoohannis Aseffaa-Qote Bulaa
7.Kumarraa Waaqjiraa-Qote Bulaa
8.Birhaanuu Tarfaaa-Qote Bulaa
9.Malkaanuu Geetachoo-Qote Bulaa
10.Galahuun Leencaa
11.Tasfaayee Fiqaduu-Barsiisaa
12.Abiyoot Ayyaanaa-Qote Bulaa
13.Asheetuu Dhinaa-Qote Bulaa
14.Dabalaa Waaqjiraa-Qote Bulaa
15.Lammaa Dureessaa-Qote Bulaa
16.Charuu Tashoomee-Barataa
17.Addisuu Iddoosaa-Barataa
18.Maaruu Baajisaa-Qote Bulaa
19.Nagaash Gonjjoraa-Qote Bulaa
20.Misgaanuu Wandimmuu
21.Zelaale Dingataa-Qote Bulaa
22.Masfin Ofgaa-Qote Bulaa
23.Nagaasaa Yaadasaa-Qote Bulaa
24.Boshaa Baqqaabil-Qote Bulaa
25.Dawit Mitikkuu-Barataa
26.Ayyanaa Ittafaa-Qote Bulaa
Isaan kana keessaa gariin isaanii torbeewwan lamaa ol mana hidhaa keessatti humna waraana Wayyaaneetiin dararfmaa akka jiran Qeerroon gabaasee jira, gariin isaanii Waxabajjii 19,2014 akka qabaman addeessa.
#Oromoprotests+ 20 June 2014 8 senior year Oromo students suspended for a year from Ambo University. They are accused of being leaders of #OromoProtests. Below is list of these students and a sample letter posted on campus notifying students about the decision. 1.Bikila Galmessa 2.Morka Keneni 3.Awal Mohammed 4.Usma’il Mitiku 5.Fayisa Bekele 6.Yonas Alemu Ragassa 7.Hundessaa Abara 8.Tamirat Aga
OPINIONS
Aftenbladet
The farmers from the Oromo people around the capital Addis Ababa in Ethiopia losing livelihood and their culture when the government is now giving their land to foreign companies that want to invest in industry and other sectors, writes Badilu Abanesha.
Stop the plunder of the Oromo people
Badilu Abanesha , Oromo Association of South Rogaland
Published: Jun 13. 2014 3:19 p.m.Updated: Jun 13. 2014 3:28 p.m.
Millions of Oromo farmers in Ethiopia are being displaced without receiving compensation for the land they lose.Protests are brutally faced with violence, torture and murder.
Oromo are being deprived of their land and their ability to survive financially, and their culture is threatened. This happens at the boundaries of the capital Addis Ababa is substantially extended. Large areas are being given to foreign companies to establish manufacturing and service sectors at the farmers’ fields and orchards. The traditional inhabitants are losing their own food and are left to fend for themselves. If the government plan is completed, approx. 6.6 million people being driven from their homes without compensation.
Over 100 killed
There have been peaceful protests against these plans all over Oromia.Students at ten universities and large groups of people have protested against the plans, but their peaceful struggle has been met by brutal military police. There have been reports of shooting, detention and torture. Death toll rises with every passing day. Via various sources it has emerged that over 100 people have been shot and killed, while others are badly injured and thousands have been arrested. Oromo students have protested peacefully for over a month now, despite the killings and arrests by Ethiopian security forces. Oromo are Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group with over a third of the country’s population. They have traditionally been oppressed by Amhara and tigreanere, which has been the dominant, state income and country’s leading ethnic groups in Ethiopia.
Stop remittances
The Norwegian people, the Norwegian government and other international organizations should condemn the Ethiopian government’s brutal attack on unarmed innocent civilians. We demand that the detainees will not be subjected to torture and ill-treatment. We require all innocent protesters arrested are released from prison immediately. The Ethiopian government should immediately stop its movement by the original people from their own lands throughout Ethiopia. We also believe that financial transfers to management in Ethiopia must be stopped while of government does not respect the fundamental and basic rights of its own people. We worry about really what is happening in Ethiopia. It is difficult when we are not physically able to take part in their fight against injustice. Therefore, we have a great desire to pass on their plea for help to the outside world. Our hearts bleed, and we have awakened the people so they can see what is happening and help the injustices and massacres stopped. See @http://www.aftenbladet.no/meninger/Stopp-plyndringen-av-oromofolket-3441527.html#.U5-PjdJDvyv
#OromoProtests– Gindbarat, Kachis town invaded by Agazi/TPLF fascist forces (the above picture) Agazi/ TPLF armed forces killed three unarmed high school 912th grade) Oromo students on Thursday morning 12th June 2014 in Kachisi town ( Gindebert district, W. Shawa, Oromia) located 120 km from Ambo. The names of the three students killed: 1. Damee Balchaa Baanee 2. Caalaa Margaa 3. Baqqalaa Tarrafaa Oromo people of Gindaberete Protesting the shootings and killings of unarmed school students Waraannii Wayyaanee Aanaa Gindabarat irra qubsiifamee jiru, uummaata sivilii irratti waraana banuun barattoota Oromoo kutaa 12ffaa Sadii ajjeese. Waxabajjii 12/2014 Waraannii Mootummaa Wayyaanee Godina Lixaa Shawaa aanaa Gindabarat Magaalaa Kaachiis irra qubatee jiru eda galgala sa;aatii 1:00 irratti waraana banuun barattoota Oromoo kutaa 12ffaa Sadii (3) ajjeese jira. Mootummaan Wayyaanee duula dugugginsa sanyii genocide uummaata Oromoo irraatti banee jiru jabeessuun itti fufee, Wayyaaneen humna waraanaa of harkaa qabu uummata Oromoo irratti bobbaasuun yeroo amma kanatti uummata sivilii irratti waraana banuun dhukaasee ajjeesa jira,
Addaatti barattoota Oromoo adamsee rasaasaan reebee ajjeessuu itti fufee jira, haala kanaan barattootni Oromoo kutaa 12ffaa bara kana xummuran sadii(3) kan barattootni 1ffaa barataa Damee Balchaa Baanee, fi 2ffaa barataa Caalaa Margaa fi 3ffaa barataa Baqqalaa Tarrafaa kanneen jedhamaan Ilmaan Oromoo mana ba’anii nagaan galuu dadhabanii rasaasa loltuu wayyaaneetiin reebamanii ajjefamanidha. galgala edaa kana waraana loltuun wayyaanee ilmaan Oromoo nagaa irratti baneen yeroo amma barattootni Oromoo kun wareegamanii jiru,dhukaasnii meeshaa waraanaa Magaalaa Kaachiisi dirree waraanaa guddaa fakkeessa bulee, Tarkaanfii Gara jabinaa kanatti aaruun halkanuma edaa erga barattootni aajjeefamanii booda halkan keessa sa:aatii naannoo sa”a 6:00tti waraanaa wayyaanee fi Poolisota dhalootaan Oromoo ta’an kan aanaa Gindabarat magaalaa kaachiis keessatti argamanii fi Waraanaa wayyaanee gidduutti waldhabdeen guddaan dhalatee boombiin waajira poolisaa Magaalaa kaachiisii irratti dhoowofamuun poolisootnii fi waraannii wayyaanee madeeffamuun ibsame jira. gamaa lamaan irraa iyyuu hangi ajjeeffamee fi madeeffamee ammaf kan adda hin baafamne ta’uu maddeen keenya nuuf ibsan. Tarkaanfii Suukkaneessa galgala edaa wayyaaneen uummata sivilii irratti waraana banuun fudhateen balleessa tokko malee barattootni Oromoo nagaan qurumsa biyyooleessaa kutaa 12ffaa bara kana fudhatan 3 ajjeefamuun uummata daran kan aarsee waanta’eef, uummaanni nuti reeffaa iyyuu hin barbaadnu, wayyaaneen waliitti qabdee nu haa fixxuu malee ilmaan keenya irratti duuna jechuun yeroo ammaa kanatti uummaanni Aanaa Gindabart Magaalaa kaachisii fi Abunaa Gindabarat FDG guddaa gaggeessa jira, daandiin konkolaataa Abunaa Gindabarat irraan gara magaalaa Kaachisiitti dabarsuu uummataan cufamee jira, fincila guddaatu gaggeeffama jira. Wayee barataa Damee Baalchaa kalleessa (11/6/2014) ajjeefamee VOA Afaan Oromoo akkas jedhe: Dameen barataa kutaa 12ffati duraan walga’i ummataa magalaa kaachis kessatti akkas jedhe gaafate”Waa’e danga oromiyaatif kan falmuu barata qofaa?”jedhe ergasi barbaadama ture kana irra ka’udhan qormaata akka hin hojjanne dhorkinan barattonnis DAMEE malee hin qoramnu jedhan, kanan booda itti dhaadacha admiishin kardi kennafi guyya kalessa ‘form’ guute gale. Galgala ibsan badee jennaani shamaa bitatee osoo galuu namichi Caala (hidhata gandaa) Kilashidhaan suuqi jala dhokate ajjese. kannen biroo sadii midhan cimaan kan irra ga’edha, kunis kan ta’e poolisi oromiya waliin ta’uun namichi Shambel Gizu jedhamudhani. Barataa Caala Marga du’aafi jirenya giddu jira. Baratan maqan isaa hin beekamne rukutame hospitala seene achi poolisin fudhee achi buuten isaa dhabameera.Ummanni qarshii 8000 walitti qabuudhan reeffa damee gara hospitala tti qorannoof ergeera. Injifannoon Uummata Oromoof!!http://gadaa.net/FinfinneTribune/2014/06/ibsa-abo-ajjeechaa-ilmaan-oromoo-irratti-dhoksaan-hammarreessa-keessatti-barootaan-raawwatamaa-ture-ifa-bahe/
#OromoProtests- 11th & 12th June 2014 , Deeggaa, Illuu Abbaa Booraa, western Oromia, Lalisaa Sanaagaa High School and Sanaagaa Wuchaalee Primary & Middle Secondary School
on 11th June 2014, 5 school children were heavily beaten by Agazi/ TPLF forces. These students were taken to Beddallee hospital. on 12th June 2014 the rests of students from these schools were put in a lorry by Agazi forces and taken to unknown place. Waxabajjii 11 Bara 2014, Godina Iluu Abbaa Booraa Aanaa Deeggaa Mana Barumsaa sadarkaa 2ffaa Lalisaa Sanaagaa fi Sadarkaa 1ffaa fi Giddu Galeessa Sanaagaa Wucaalee irraa barattootin humna goolessituu ergamtoota wayyaanee wajjin walitti bu’iinsa uumameen barattootin 5 reebicha hamaa irra gaheen Yaalaaf gara Hosptaala Baddalleetti ergamuu gabaasuun keenya ni yaadatama. Oolaan guyyaa har’aa akkuma suuraa kana irraa argtanu konkolaataa fe’isaa mooraa Mana Barumsaa keessaa dhaabanii Ilmaan Oromoo akka meeshaati walitti guuranii fe’uun gara hin beekamnetti fuudhanii adeemaniiru jedhu maddeen keenya. Maatiin ijoollota kanaa dhaamsa nuu birmadhaa dabarfataniiru.
At Jaardagaa Jaartee, Horroo Guduruu Wallaggaa, Aliiboo town, Western Oromia, 11 Oromo nationals have been dismissed from their jobs an the allegations that they were involved in opposing the TPLF tyrannic rules.
Huseen Said, Political Science student, Haromaya University, attacked by TPLF forces. Waxabajjii 11,2014 Gabaasa Qeerroo Hidhaa fi ajjechaa mootummaa Wayyaanee jalaa dheessee gara Bosaassootti socho’aa kan ture barataan Oromoo tokko rasaasaan rukutamuun isaa gabaafame. Oduun Qeerroo dhaqqqabe akka hubachiisutti Yunversitii Haramaayaatti barataa Saayinsii Polotikaa kan ture barataa Huseen Sa’id Haajii jedhamu FDG barattoota Oromoo Yunversitichaan geggeeffamu keessaa harka qabda jedhamee hordoffii hidhaa fi ajjechaa mootummaa Wayyaanee jalaa baqatee gara Bosaassoo Puntlanditti osoo socho’aa jiruu, tikootni Wayyaanee isa hordofuun barataan kun kellaa magaalaa Qardhuu jedhamutti loltoota Puntlandiin akka rukutamu taasisanii jiran. Barataa Huseen Sa’id Haajii yeroo ammaa kana gargaarsaa fi waldhaansa ga’aa tokkoon maleetti Hospitaala Bosaassoo ciisee kan jiru oggaa ta’u, bakki dhaloota isaas Godina Baalee Ona Agaarfaa irraa ta’uun gabaafameera. See @http://qeerroo.org/2014/06/12/yunversitii-haramaayaatti-barataa-saayinsii-polotikaa-kan-tae-barataan-huseen-said-haajii-loltoota-wayyaaneen-rukutame-hosptala-gale/
Ethiopia’s Police State: The Silencing of Opponents, Journalists and Students Detained
By Paul O’Keeffe June 11, 2014 (Global Research) — Detention under spurious charges in Ethiopia is nothing new. With the second highest rate of imprisoned journalists in Africa[1] and arbitrary detention for anyone who openly objects to the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) regime’s despotic iron fist, the Western backed government in Addis Ababa is a dab hand at silencing its critics. Eskinder Nega and Reeyot Alemu are just two of the country’s more famous examples of journalists thrown in prison for daring to call the EPRFD out on their reckless disregard for human rights. This April the regime made headlines again for jailing six[2] bloggers and three more journalists on trumped up charges of inciting violence through their journalistic work. Repeated calls for due legal process for the detainees from human rights organisations and politicians, such as John Kerry, have fallen on deaf ears as they languish in uncertainty awaiting trial. This zero-tolerance approach to questioning of government repression is central to the EPRDF’s attempts to control its national and international image and doesn’t show much signs of letting up. Stepping up their counter-dissent efforts the regime just this week detained another journalist Elias Gebru – the editor-in-chief of the independent news magazine Enku. Gebru’s magazine is accused of inciting student protests[3] which rocked Oromia state at the end of April. The magazine published a column which discussed the building of a monument[4] outside Addis Ababa honouring the massacre of Oromos by Emperor Melinik in the 19th century. The regime has tried to tie the column with protests against its plans to bring parts of Oromia state under Addis Ababa’s jurisdiction. The protests, which kicked off at Ambo University and spread to other parts of the state, resulted in estimates[5] of up to 47 people being shot dead by security forces. Ethiopia has a history of student protest movements setting the wheels of change in motion. From student opposition to imperialism in the 1960s and 1970s to the early politicisation of Meles Zenawi at the University Students’ Union of Addis Ababa. The world over things begin to change when people stand up, say enough and mobilise. Ethiopia is no different. Similar to its treatment of journalists Ethiopia also has a history of jailing students and attempting to eradicate their voices. In light of such heavy handed approaches to dissent the recent protests which started at Ambo University are a telling sign of the level discontent felt by the Oromo – the country’s largest Ethnic group. Long oppressed by the Tigrayan dominated EPRDF, the Oromo people may have just started a movement which has potential ramifications for a government bent on maintaining its grip over the ethnically diverse country of 90 million plus people. Students and universities are agents of change and the EPRDF regime knows this very well. The deadly backlash from government forces against the student protesters in Oromia in April resulted in dozens[6] of protesters reportedly being shot dead in the streets of Ambo and other towns in Oromia state. Since the protests began scores more have been arbitrarily detained or vanished without a trace from campuses and towns around the state. One student leader, Deratu Abdeta (a student at Dire Dawa University) is currently unlawfully detained in the notorious Maekelawi prison for fear she may encourage other students to protest. She is a considered at high risk of being tortured. In addition to Ms. Abdeta many other students are suspected of being unlawfully detained around the country. On May 27th 13 students were abducted from Haramaya University by the security forces. The fate of 12 of the students is unknown but one student, Alsan Hassan, has reportedly committed suicide by cutting his own throat all the way to the bones at the back of his neck after somehow managing to inflict bruises all over his body and gouging out his own eye. His tragic death became known when a local police officer called his family to identify the body and told them to pay 10,000 Birr ($500) to transport his body from Menelik hospital in Addis Ababa to Dire Dawa town in Oromo state. Four of the other students have been named as Lencho Fita Hordofa, Ararsaa Lagasaa, Jaaraa Margaa, and Walabummaa Goshee. Detaining journalists and students without fair judicial recourse may serve the EPRDF regime’s short term goal of eradicating its critics. However, the reprehensible silencing of opponents is one sure sign of a regime fearful of losing its vice-like grip. Ironically the government itself has its own roots in student led protests in the 1970s. No doubt it is well aware that universities pose one of the greatest threats to its determination to maintain power at all costs. Countless reports of spies monitoring student and teacher activities on campus, rigid curriculum control and micro-managing just who gets to study what are symptoms of this. The vociferous clamp-down on student protesters is another symptom and just the regime’s latest attempt to keep Ethiopia in a violent headlock. The regime would do well to remember that stress positions cause cramps and headlocks can be broken. It can try to suppress the truth but it can’t try forever. Paul O’Keeffe is a Doctoral Fellow at Sapienza University of Rome. His research focuses on Ethiopia’s developing higher education system. [1] http://www.cpj.org/2014/05/ethiopia-holds-editor-in-chief-without-charge.php[2] http://allafrica.com/stories/201404290650.html[3] http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/poverty-matters/2014/may/22/ethiopia-crackdown-student-protest-education[4] http://www.war-memorial.net/Aanolee-Martyrs-memorial-monument-and-cultural-center-1.367 [5] http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-27251331 [6] http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/05/05/ethiopia-brutal-crackdown-protests Source: Global Research Read @ http://ayyaantuu.com/horn-of-africa-news/ethiopias-police-state-the-silencing-of-opponents-journalists-and-students-detained/#OromoProtests- 15 Oromo students were kidnapped on 9th June 2014 by TPLF/Agazi forces from Madda Walaabuu University, Oromia. Their where about is unknown (see their details as follows:
Barattootni Oromoo Yuunivarsiitii Madda walaabuu 15 tika mootummaa wayyaaneen halkan ukkaamsamuun bakka buuteen isaanii dhabame
Mass Grave of Oromos Executed by Govt Discovered in Eastern Oromia Posted: Waxabajjii/June 10, 2014 · Finfinne Tribune | Gadaa.com According to sources, a confrontation between residents and Ethiopian government officials broke out on June 9, 2014, over a mass grave discovered at the former Hameressa military garrison near Harar city, eastern Oromia. The mass grave is believed to contain remains of political prisoners executed during both the Dergue era and the early reigns of the current TPLF regime. Among those who were executed and buried in the location was Mustafa Harowe, a famous Oromo singer who was killed around early 1980′s for his revolutionary songs. Thousands more Oromo political prisoners were kept at this location in early 1990′s – with many of them never to be seen again.
The mass grave was discovered while the Ethiopian government was clearing the camp with bulldozers to make it available to Turkish investors. Upon the discovery of the remains, the government tried to quietly remove them from the site. However, workers secretly alerted residents in nearby villages; upon the spread of the news, many turned up en mass to block the removal of the remains and demanded construction a memorial statue on the site instead. The protests is still continuing with elders camping on the site while awaiting a response from government. In addition to the remains, belongings of the dead individuals as well as ropes tied in hangman’s noose were discovered at the site. See @ http://gadaa.net/FinfinneTribune/2014/06/mass-grave-of-oromos-executed-by-govt-discovered-in-eastern-oromia/ ——————— Lafeen ilmaan Oromoo bara 1980moota keessa mootummaa Darguutin, baroota 1990moota keessa ammoo Wayyaaneen dhoksaan kaampii waraanaa Hammarreessaa keessatti ajjeefamanii argame. Ilmaan Oromoo mooraa san keessatti hidhamanii booda ajjeefaman keessa wallisaan beekamaan Musxafaa Harawwee isa tokko. Musxafaa Harawwee wallee qabsoo inni baasaa tureef jecha qabamee yeroo dheeraaf erga hiraarfamee booda toora bara ~1991 keessa ajjeefame. Hiraar Musxafaarra geessifamaa ture keessa tokko aara wallee isaatirraa qaban garsiisuuf muka afaanitti dhiibuun a’oo isaa cabsuun ni yaadatama. Baroota 1990moota keessas Oromoonni kumaatamaan tilmaamaman warra amma aangorra jiru kanaan achitti hidhamanii, hedduun isaanii achumaan dhabamuun yaadannoo yeroo dhihooti. Haqxi dukkana halkaniitiin ajjeesanii lafa jalatti awwaalan kunoo har’a rabbi as baase. Dhugaan Oromoo tun kan amma as bahe, mootummaa kaampii waraanaa kana diiguun warra lafa isaa warra Turkiitiif kennuuf osoo qopheessuuf yaaluti. Lafee warra dhumee akkuma arganiin dhoksaan achirra gara biraatti dabarsuuf osoo yaalanii hojjattonni ummata naannotti iccitii san himan. Ummanniis dafee wal-dammaqsuun bakka sanitti argamuun ekeraan nama keenyaa akka achii hin kaafamneefi siidaan yaadannoo akka jaaramu gaafachaa jiran. Hamma feetes turtu dhugaan Oromoo awwaalamtee hin haftu.
#OromoProtests- 8th June 2014- Confrontation between residents and government officials is reported over mass grave discovered at the former Hameressa military garrison near Harar city. The mass grave is believed to contain remains of political prisoners executed during the Dargue era and the early reigns of TPLF. Among those who were executed and buried in the location is Mustafa Harowe, a famous Oromo singer who was killed in 1982? for his revolutionary songs. Thousands of more of political prisoners were kept at this location in early 1990s, with many of them never to be seen again.The mass grave was discovered while the government was clearing the camp with bulldozers to make it available to Turkish investors. Upon discovery of the remains, the government tried to quietly remove it from the site. However, workers secretly alerted residents in nearby villages who spread the news and turned up en mass to block the removal of the remains and demanding construction of memorial statue on the site. The protests is still continuing with elders camping on site while awaiting response from government.
#OromoPprotest at Hameressa military camp where mass grave was discovered on Sunday 8th June 214. Three people were injured when federal police attempted to forcefully remove residents who have camped on the location to protect the remains and demand conversion of the location into memorial site.
#OromOProtests (10 June 2014) – TPLF’s repressive action against our Oromo in East Oromia resulting in 3 people been injured. The regime wants to give away to foreigners a hallowed ground where mass grave is just been discovered. May be the regime is worried about possible unearthing and identification of remains of its own victims from 1990s.
After deciding that we wanted to leave Ethiopia, we had return to Ambo to pack our bags and say goodbye to our friends. Packing our bags turned out to be the easy part.When we arrived back in Ambo, the destruction was still apparent, although the cleanup had already started. The burned cars were pulled to the side of the road. The debris from the damaged buildings was already being cleared. The problem, however, was that the courthouse was one of the buildings that was burned. How do they plan on having trials for those hundreds of people we saw in jail, we wondered. We wanted to tell all our friends why we were leaving, but how could we say it? Maybe we should say, “It’s not OK for the police to hunt down young people and shoot them in the back.” Or maybe we should say, “It’s not OK for us to have to cower in our home, listening to gunshots all day long.” Or maybe we should say, “It’s not OK for the government to conduct mass arrests of people who are simply voicing their opinion.” Since the communication style in Oromia is BEYOND non-direct, with people afraid to really say what they mean, we knew exactly what to tell people:”We are leaving Ambo because we don’t agree with the situation,” we repeated to every friend we encountered. Everyone knew EXACTLY what we were talking about.We told our friend, a town employee, we were leaving, and he said, “Yes, there are still 500 federal police in town, two weeks after the protests ended.”We told a neighbor we were leaving, and he said, “Now there is peace in Ambo. Peace on the surface. But who knows what is underneath?”We told a teacher at the high school we were leaving, and she was wearing all black. “Maal taate? (What happened)” we asked. One of her 10th grade students was killed during the protests.We told the local store owner we were leaving, and she said, in an abnormally direct way, “When there is a problem, your government comes in like a helicopter to get you out. Meanwhile, our government is killing its own people.”After a traditional bunna (coffee) ceremony, and several meals with some of our favorite friends, we were the proud owners of multiple new Ethiopian outfits, given as parting gifts so we would ‘never forget Ethiopia.’How could we forget?We still don’t know exactly who died during the protests and the aftermath. It’s not like there is an obituary in the newspaper or something. But questions persist in our minds every day:
Our two young, dead neighbors remain faceless in our minds…was it the tall one with the spiky hair?
Students from the high school were killed…had any of the victims been participants of our HIV/soccer program?
What about that good-looking bus boy that is always chewing khat and causing trouble…is he alive? in jail?
How many people were killed? How many arrested?
If we knew the exact number of people killed or arrested, would it actually help the situation in any way?
I was at a fundraiser today. The majority of it was in Afaan Oromo, a language I’m trying to learn, but still very far from understanding. Still, I was tempted to decline when a woman in my row moved over to sit next to me and offered to translate for me. I kind of like to try to listen and pick out what I can. If I had turned her down, I would have missed the emotion conveyed in her translation. Her tone told me what I hadn’t figured out yet (though I should have known) – the son was going to die…a double injustice since the real-life plot not only includes the loss of ancestral lands, but also the lack of freedom to protest that loss, and death or imprisonment for those who dare to do so anyway. It was more of a skit, really. A powerful skit, regardless of acting ability, because the story is so powerful. A story of a family of three. Just one son, supported in his schooling by what his family was able to produce on their farm. The land was key. His parents had not been able to get an education. With the land, now he could. Yet when an investor came asking the government official if land was available, he was told, yes, there is much land that is ‘not being used.’ When the investor was brought to see the land in question, it was as if the farmer was invisible. The deal was made right there between the investor and a local intermediary while the farmer continued to plough his field. Then their son came home from school saying he was going out to march with other students to protest what was happening to the land – to all of the farmers in the area – the mom cautioned him to be safe, the government can not be trusted, she said. My translator began to cry in earnest. … I remembered once when I had to act out a similar scene. I’m not a big fan of role-plays, so I was going along with the activity, but holding back quite a bit. A group of us were given roles to act out a lesser known bit of Canadian history when indigenous children were forcibly removed from their villages and their families and taken to residential schools to be ‘educated,’ as well as assimilated, often abused, even experimented upon. Often, they never returned. Almost always, those who did return spoke of their lost childhood and traumatic memories. I was an Anishinabe mother in the role-play. In real life at the time, I had left my only child, a two year old boy, home for two weeks with his dad so I could participate in this delegation, mostly to learn more about the Anishinabe history in general and one community’s struggle in particular. Though the experience was meaningful, that day I was starting to wonder if two weeks was too long to be away from my son. One person had come to the delegation with me, Jared, a young man in his twenties. I knew him well in the sense that we were part of the same intentional living community. We had eaten together, worshipped together, sat in consensus decision-making meetings together, sang, cooked, and worshipped together over the previous three years. He was given the role of my son. Jared and I stood in the circle area with a few other people who had roles as part of the Anishinabe village. I was just going through the motions of the role-play, not really into it. Wishing I enjoyed that kind of thing more. Then they came for Jared. In that moment when they snatched him away, I cried out and reached out for him but he was gone and I was left sobbing. Somehow it had become real. Five years later, I still hear comments about how real my heartbreak felt to everyone in the room. … As the woman next to me struggled to speak through her tears, we watched the skit draw to its inevitable close. The security forces blocked the path of the unarmed protesters. The protesters held their ground. The security forces escalated the situation by firing at the students. The only child of the farmer and his wife was gunned down. His parent actors bitterly mourned his loss. He too is gone. It’s hard to clap after that. Hard to will one’s hands to applaud the actors when you’re thinking of the families that have gone through similar situations so recently. Many Oromo students are gone. Some known to be killed, some disappeared, arrested or abducted without releasing names. Many die in detention centers and prisons. Yes many students are gone. Some may return from imprisonment with accounts of mistreatment and suffering, with harrowing stories of other students locked up years ago, still in prison with no trial, no real charges and very little hope. Others will not return. One of those is Alsan Hassan, abducted May 27 from his university after participating in a hunger strike. On June 1, his family was notified of his death. They were told he killed himself, a story commonly invented by the authorities to cover up the real cause of death: torture. His parents came to retrieve their son. His body was severely disfigured from the abuses he had suffered. Still they could not simply take him home. They were charged an exorbitant price and had to return home, borrow money just to secure the release of his body and finally make journey home to bury him. The thought of Alsan and the other sons and daughters lost to their families – that is why the woman translating for me (and I) couldn’t keep from crying, however predictable the plot of the skit. I was sitting next to my six year old son. Her 11-or-so year old son was on the other side of her. We can’t help but hear these stories not only as fellow human beings, but as mothers. We translate, we write, we do whatever we can from the other side of the world in the hopes that we will inform and inspire enough people to bring an end to the unjust imprisonment of dissenting young voices. See @ http://amyvansteenwyk.tumblr.com/post/88273995454/gone To read more about Alsan: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1398441760444684&set=a.1389352578020269.1073741828.100008366190440&type=1&theater For more on the Oromo Protests: http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/news/2014/06/06/community-voices-oromoprotests-perspective
(OPride) — A 21-year old Oromo student, Nuredin Hasen, who was abducted from Haromaya University late last month and held incommunicado at undisclosed location, died earlier this month from a brutal torture he endured while in police custody, family sources said.
Members of the federal and Oromia state police nubbed Hassen (who is also known by Alsan Hassen) and 12 other students on May 27 in a renewed crackdown on Oromo students. Friends were not told the reason for the arrests nor where the detainees were taken.
Born and raised in Bakko Tibbe district of West Shawa zone, Alsan, who lost both of his parents at a young age, was raised by his grandmother.
The harrowing circumstances of his death should shock everyone’s conscience. But it also underscores the inhumane and cruel treatment of Oromo activists by Ethiopian security forces.
According to family sources, on June 1, a police officer in Dire Dawa called his counterpart at West Shewa Zone Police Bureau in Ambo and informed him that Alsan “killed himself” while in prison. The officer requested the local police to tell Alsan’s family to pick up his body from Menelik Hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital. The West Shewa zone police relayed the message to the district police station in Bakko Tibbe and the latter delivered the message to Alsan’s family. Three family members then rushed to the capital to collect the corpse of a bright young man they had sent off, far from home, so that he can get a decent shot at college education.
Upon arrival, the hospital staff told the family to search for his body from among 30 to 40 corpse’s kept in a large room. According to our sources, what they saw next was beyond the realm of anyone’s imagination. The details are too gruesome to even describe.
They found their beloved son badly tortured, his face disfigured and barely recognizable. His throat was slit leaving only the muscles and bones at the back of his neck connecting his head to the rest of the body. There were large cuts along his eyelids, right below the eyebrows as if someone had tried to remove his eyes. There were multiple wounds all over his face and head. Both of his arms were broken between his wrists and his elbows. It appeared as if the federal forces employed all forms of inhumane torture tactics, leaving parts of his body severely damaged and disjointed. The family could not grasp the cruelty of the mutilation carried upon an innocent college student.
Their ordeal to recover Alsan’s body did not end there either. Once the body was identified, the federal police officer who brought the body from Harar told the family to pay 10,000 birr (roughly $500) to cover the cost of transportation the government incurred. They were informed that the body will not be released unless the money is paid in full.
The family did not have the money, nor were they prepared for the unexpected tragedy. After friends and relatives raised the requested sum to cover his torturers costs, Alsan’s body was transported to Bakko Tibbe, where he was laid to rest on June 2. There was little doubt that Alsan was murdered while in detention, but in police state Ethiopia, the family may never even know the full details of what happened to their son, much less seek justice. In an increasingly repressive Ethiopian state, being an Oromo itself is in essence becoming a crime. To say the gruesome circumstances surrounding Alsan’s death is heart-wrenching is a gross understatement. But Alsan’s story is not atypical. It epitomizes the sheer brutality that many Oromo activists endure in Ethiopia today. On June 6, another Oromo political prisoner, Nimona Tilahun passed away in police custody. Tilahun, a graduate of Addis Ababa University and former high school teacher, was initially arrested in 2004 along with members of the Macha Tulama Association during widespread protests opposing the relocation of Oromia’s seat to Adama. He was released after a year of incarceration and returned to complete his studies, according to reports by Canada-based Radio Afurra Biyya. Born in 1986, Tilahun was re-arrested in 2011 from his teaching job in Shano, a town in north Shewa about 80kms from Addis Ababa. He was briefly held at Maekelawi prison, known for torturing inmates and denying legal counsel to prisoners. And later transferred between Kaliti, Kilinto and Zuway where he was continuously tortured over the last three years. Tilahun was denied medical treatment despite being terminally ill. His death this week at Black Lion Hospital is the third such known case in the last two years. On August 23, 2013, a former UNHCR recognized refugee, engineer Tesfahun Chemeda also died under suspicious circumstances, after being refused medical treatment. In January, a former parliamentary candidate with the opposition Oromo People’s Congress from Calanqo, Ahmed Nejash, died of torture while in custody. These are the few names and stories that have been reported. Ethiopia holds an estimated 20 to 30 thousand Oromo political prisoners. Many have been there for more than two decades, and for some of them not even family members know if they are still alive. While Alsan, Chemeda, Nejash and Tilahun’s stories offer a glimpse of the brutality behind Ethiopia’s gulags, it is important to remember thousands more face similar heinous abuses everyday. Since Oromo students began protesting against Addis Ababa’s unconstitutional expansion in April, according to eyewitnesses, more than a 100 people have been killed, hundreds wounded and many more unlawfully detained. While a relative calm has returned to university campuses, small-scale peaceful protests continue in many parts of Oromia. Reports are emerging that mass arrests and extrajudicial killings of university students are far more widespread than previously reported. Last month, dozens of students at Jimma, Madawalabu, Adama and Wallaggauniversities were indefinitely dismissed from their education. In addition, an unknown number of students from all Oromia-based colleges are in hiding fearing for their safety if they returned to the schools. Given the Horn of Africa nation’s tight-grip on free press and restrictions on human rights monitoring, in the short run, the Ethiopian security forces will continue to commit egregious crimes with impunity. But the status quo is increasingly tenable. For every Alsan and Tilahun they murder, many more will be at the ready to fight for the cause on which they were martyred. As long repression continues unabated, the struggle for justice and freedom will only be intensified. No amount of torture and inhumane treatment can extinguish the fire that has been sparked. Written by Amane Badhasso, the president of International Oromo Youth Association, and a political science and legal studies major at Hamline University &. Badhatu Ayana, an Oromo rights activist.
See @http://www.opride.com/oromsis/news/3758-the-torture-and-brutal-murder-of-alsan-hassen-by-ethiopian-police ….DUBBADHU QAALLIITTI!!! dubbadhu qaallitti abaaramtuu lafaa yoo dubbachuu baatte xuriinsaa sitti hafaa ajjeechaa Niimoonaa akkaataa du’a isaa si qofaatu beeka jalqabaaf dhuma isaa dubbadhu qaallitti Oromoon si hin dhiisu maal jedhe Niimoonaan yeroo qofaa ciisu? yeroo kophaa ciisee dukkana daawwatu hunduu dabaree dhaan yeroo gadi dhiittu yeroo midhaan dhabee mar’ummaan wal rige yeroo bishaan dhabee qoonqoon itti goge yeroo madaa irratti madaa dabalate yeroo lammiif jecha waanjoo guddaa baate atis akka isaanii garaa itti jabaattee? Moo,bakka keenya buutee jabaadhu ittiin jette? dhiitichaaf kaballaa ciniinatee obsee iccitii keessa isaa yeroo diina dhokse maal jedhe Niimoonaan waa’ee miidhama isaa afaan keen itti himi si eegu maatiin saa dubbadhu qaallitti ol kaasi sagalee namni beeku hin jiru yoo waaqaaf si malee uummata isaaf jedhee rakkoo hunda obsee iji imimmaan didee yeroo dhiiga cobse Niimoonaan maal jedhe dhaamsa maal dabarse? dubbadhu Qaallitti himi waan dhageesse!! sirna awwaalchaa Niimoonaa Tilaahuun Imaanaa!!! Nimoonaa Xilaahuun Imaanaa (1986-2014). Oromo National, Banking and Finance Graduate of Finfinne University (AAU) & Teacher. Tortured and murdered by TPLF while in jail.http://qeerroo.org/2014/06/07/sbo-waxabajjii-08-bara-2014-oduu-ibsa-abo-waxabajjii-15-guyyaa-hundeeffama-sbo-waggaa-26ffaa-ilaachisee-dhaamsota-baga-ittiin-isin-gahee-fi-qophiilee-biroo-of-keessatti-hammatee-jira/
#OromoProtetsts– Gabaasa godina wallagga lixaa magaalaa Gimbii irraa
Four Oromo elders from Gimbi town of Oromia are being tortured in TPLF’s jail (Report received 6th June 2014).
“I mourn the death of our youngsters,” says the Rev. Teka Obsa Fogi of dozens of casualties witnessed since April 25 among peacefully protesting students throughout Oromia Regional State by security force shootings and beatings.* Pr. Fogi is pastor of Oromo Resurrection Evangelical Church (“OREC”) in Kensington, Maryland, a worshiping community of the Metro D.C. Synod with direct ties to the region, one of nine ethnically-based states of Ethiopia. “OREC and all Oromo churches are praying for our young students, their parents and those the government wants to dispossess of their land,” he says. “Please pray with us.” Protests, which began at universities in large towns throughout Oromia then spread to smaller communities in the region, erupted over the release in April of the proposed Addis Ababa Integrated Development Master Plan. The “Master Plan” outlines substantial municipal expansion of Addis Ababa to include more than 15 communities in Oromia according to Human Rights Watch, an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights.* “The problem is, if this ‘Master Plan’ is put into action, many Oromo farmers will be uprooted from the land they get their living from. They were tilling this land for generations. Compensation, if the government gives any, will only help them for a while,” Pr. Fogi anticipates, “and after that, they will be homeless.” An Ethiopian government statement on May 1 blamed protests by “anti-peace forces” on “baseless rumours” being spread about the “integrated development master plan” for the capital and acknowledged a limited number of protest-related deaths as reported by BBC News.** This report is one of few from traditional news sources available on the current situation. Indirectly emphasizing the challenge of telling this story, the United Nations human rights chief in a May 2 news release “condemned the crackdown on journalists in Ethiopia and the increasing restrictions on freedom of opinion and expression.”*** “The situation of family members and friends of Oromo members of our congregations and community is very fragile, and communications are very difficult and sensitive,” said the Rev. Michael D. Wilker, senior pastor of Lutheran Church of the Reformation in D.C. The congregation did respond to Pr. Fogi’s request for prayer during worship services May 11. “We trust that God hears us when we cry in pain and shout for justice. May God’s creativity, compassion and courage be with the Oromo people and all the residents of Ethiopia,” added Pr. Wilker. The Rev. Kathy Hlatshwayo, interim pastor of Oromo Evangelical Lutheran Church in D.C., was one of several local Lutheran pastors in attendance at an Oromo rally near the White House and State Department on May 9 to draw attention to the situation and protest the human rights violations. “We ask your prayers,” she said, “for the Oromo people, especially mothers and fathers whose children have been killed, the region of Oromia, Ethiopia, and those in diaspora and our congregations.” The Rev. Philip C. Hirsch, Assistant to the Bishop of the Metro D.C. Synod who also attended the rally, shares the following: God of mercy and of justice: We pray together with our Oromo sisters and brothers in Lutheran congregations in our synod for those who have suffered recent violence in Ethiopia. We pray for the students who were attacked, arrested or killed while protesting. We especially lift up to you the mothers, fathers and community members of the victims. Grant them peace. Grant them justice. In Christ’s holy name we pray, Amen.
Ambo story – shocking human right violations against Oromo people
In a recent interview with a local media, Mr Abdulaziz Mohammed – the Vice President of Oromia Region stated that “No one is arrested and we don’t have any information about the arrest.” The Vice President’s single statement says two contrasting ideas at a time – denying the arrest allegations and ignorant about the arrest. In the first place it is a shame for the Vice President to deny the reality on the ground – where more than 49 people were killed and 800 people have been arrested, tortured and imprisoned. These atrocities are in response to a series of demonstrations or protests by the Oromo people who demand the government to stop removing farmers from their ancestral homeland in the name of ‘development’. The demonstration at the initial stage was peaceful and in order before the government’s heavily armed security forces and the military started shooting and killing people. The harsh environment for the media in Ethiopia has made it absolutely difficult to get information about the depth of human right violations in Ethiopia. I was furious with the government’s intent to belittle the recent killings and human right abuses in many parts of Oromia – Ambo, Bale Robe, Adama, Bushoftu, Nekemte, Guder, Haromaya, Bulle Hora, Dire Dawa and many small towns in Western Oromia. I decided to visit the communities that have gone through these abuses and met with different people in a very cautious and careful way. I made my first visit to Ambo – where the arrests and torturing are still taking place. I talked with mothers who have lost their children, and young men who have been beaten and tortured, and people who have survived dreadful bullet hits and bodily injury. Ambo stories are dreadful and shocking!
“My name is E.B. I am 18 years of age. I dropped out of grade 5 – to help my poor parents to make some income and buy food. I live in Ambo town – where I do a labor job. I joined Ambo University Student’s protest about the government’s decision to take away farmers land around Addis Ababa. The first day was peaceful. But on the third day of the protest – the morning of 30th April 2014 the government security men started shooting demonstrators. It was unbelievable and shocking to see the soldiers shooting at unarmed people. We started dispersing to save our lives. Everyone was running except some of the young men who were trying to turn and shout at the shooters. I was running when a young man before me fell into the ground. I stopped to help him. I kneeled down beside him and lifted him up from his head – his eyes were blinking too fast. He was bleeding from his head. He was hit by a bullet in the back of his head. While I was trying to help him, I felt a sharp sting in my back. I felt watered-down my lower chest. I left the dead young man there and I tried to run a few meters. I looked my bottom chest and saw that air was getting out through the bullet wound. The bullet hit me in the back and went through my lower chest. I was staggering and fell into the ground. I didn’t recognized what happened since then – before I regained my consciousness two days later in a local hospital. The room where I was lying was full of people who were wounded by bullets.”
E.B. was hit by three bullets in his back. His friends lifted him from where he fell and took him to hospital. One of the bullets went through his lower chest and two more remained in his belly. He had to go through operation – where the two bullets were removed with his infected pancreas. His parents covered the cost of his medication from their meager income – his father as a clinic security guard and his mother as a cook.
“The doctor told me that I shouldn’t do any labor job and be careful with my injury. He told me that as my pancreas has been removed, there is less likely to recover from any future wounds even if I am not even sure whether I am going to fully recover and survive the present injury. Oooops it is painful – can’t sleep comfortably. I am worried about my future as I still continue to depend on my parents since this young age or…?” Tear gushing down from his eyes…this shouldn’t have happened to me. We were protesting peacefully… we don’t deserve bullets in return!”
http://oromo1refrendum.wordpress.com/2014/05/19/ambo-story-shocking-human-right-violations-against-oromo-people/ #OromoProtests- Fascist TPLF/Agazi’s genocidal crime against humanity. 10th grade student Dawit Waqjira shot and killed by TPLF/ Agazi on 3rd June 2014, Qellem Wallaggaa, Anifillo, Western Oromia. Ajjeefamuun Barataa Oromoo Daangaa Dhabe! Barataan Kutaa 10ffaa Daawwit Waaqjira Wallagga Anifilloo Keessatti Waraana Wayyaaneen Rukutamee Wareeganuun Gabaafame Posted: Waxabajjii/June 4, 2014 · Gadaa.com (Qeerroo.org – Waxabajjii 03, 2014 – Dambi Doolloo) – Gabaasa Qeerroo Qellem Wallaggaa Anfilloo Waxabajjii 03/2014 galgala keessaa sa’a 3:40 irratti.Mootummaan wayyaanee humna agaazii oromiyaa keessa tamsaasuudhaan gaaffii tokko malee nama oromummaa isaaf dhaabbatu rasaasaan rukuchiisaa jira.Gabaasni kun akka addeessutti kaleessa Waxabajjii 02/2014 barataa kutaa kurnaffaa qormaata biyyoolessaa fudhatee gale sabboonummaa isaatiin kan ka’e yakka tokkollee kan hin goone humna waraana agaaziitiin qabamee bosona seensisuudhaan reebicha hamma du’aatti irratti raawwatan,erga reebanii miidhanii booda sadarka du’a isaa beekuudhaan rasaasaan rukutani. Barataa Oromoo wareega qaalii kafale kana bosona keessatti reebanii erga hamma du’aatti deemsisanii booda galgala daandiitti baasaniiti rasaasaan akka rukutan kan ijaan argan ni dubbatu. Barataan kun maqaan isaa Daawwit Waaqjira jedhama.Guyya har’aa sirni awwaalcha isaa kan gaggeeffame yoo tahu humni waraana agaazii wayyaanee jedhamu kun uummata naannessee marsuudhaan hamma reeffi mucaa awaalamee xumuramutti akka waan rukuttaadhaaf qophiin jiruutti bakka qabachuudhaan gandi Ashii jedhamtu dirree waraanaa fakkaattee ooltee jirti jedhu maddi gabaasa Qeerroo Anfiilloo! Kana malees ganama Waxabajjii 03,2014 dargaggoon Addisuu Aagaa jedhamu magaalaa Laaloo Qilee keessa Motorbike qabatee osoo nagaan deemaa jiruu poolisoonni Oromiyaan reebamee Hosptala Ayiraa gullisoo galee akka jiru gabaasi naannicha irraa nu gahe addeessa. – Qeerroo.org: http://qeerroo.org/2014/06/04/ajjeefamuun-barataa-oromoo-daangaa-dhabe-barataan-kutaa-10ffaa-daawwit-waaqjira-wallagga-anifilloo-keessatti-waraana-wayyaaneen-rukutamee-wareeganuun-gabaafame/ #OromoProtests-Genocidal TPLF’s crime against humanity. Oduu Gaddaa ( Very sad News), 4th June 2014 Teacher Magarsa Abdisa tortured and died at military detention at Ayiraa detention center, Western Oromia.
Magarsaa Abdiisaa Mana Hidhaa Wayyaanee Wallagga Baha Ayiraa Keessatti Reebicha Loltoota Wayyaanee Irraan Wareegame
Mootummaan Wayyaanee ajjeechaa ilmaan Oromoo irratti geessitu jabeessuun kan itti fufte Godina Wallaggaa lixaa magaala Guulisoo keessatti barsiisaa BLLTO kan tahe barsiisaa Magarsaa Abdiisaa jedhamu kan dhalootaan Wallaggaa bahaa aanaa Jiddaa kan tahe reebichaa loltoota Wayyaanee irraan kan ka’e wareegame. Barsiisaa Magarsaa Abdiisaa sabboonummaan dhalatee kan guddate miindaa mootummaa Wayyaanee nyaatnee Uummata Oromoof hojjenna malee bitamna miti jechuun ejjennoo jabaa qabatee ilmaan Oromoo keessumattuu daraggootaa fi barattoota barsiisaa kan ture yoommuu tahu mootummaan Wayyaanee gaaffii abbaa biyyummaa gaafatamaa dhufeen wal qabatee mana hidhaatti kan ukkaamse yoommuu tahu reebicha addaa irraan gahuun Lubbuu isaa dabarsanii jiran. Uummatni Oromoo maal eegna?? Kana booda Uummatni martuu mirga isaaf ka’uun dirqama akka tahu waamicha jabaa dabarsina. Ajjeechaa mootummaan wayyaanee gaggeessaa jirus daran balaaleffanna. Qeerroon wareegama barbaachisaa baasee Uummata Oromoo bilisa baasuuf jabaatee kan hojjetu tahuus mirkansa. #OromoProtests-Genocidal TPLF’s crime against humanity. Oduu Gaddaa ( Very sad News), 2nd June 2014 Aslan Hasan, one of the 10 Oromo students kidnapped on May 29, 2014 from Haromaya University has died while in military detention center in Harar city. Apparently he collapsed during one of the torture sessions, then was taken to Tikur Anbessa Hospital in the capital, where he died on June 1, 2014. The regime told his families that the student committed suicide. Aslan was a 2nd year engineering student at the University. He was born in Bakko and attended high school in Burayu. His body has been taken to Gudar. Barataa Nuraddin(Alsan) Hasan dhalootaan magaalaa BAAKKOO’tti dhalate. Barnoota isaa sadarkaa 1ffaa achuma magaalaa Baakkootti xumure. Barnoota isaa sadarkaa lammaffaaf qophaa’naa obboleessa isaa bira taa’ee magaalaa BURAAYYUU tti xumure. Bara 2005(2013) yuuniversiitii Haramayaa saayinsii Injiinariing(Engineering science) jalattii muummee ‘Electirical Computer Engineering’ filachuun barataan sabboonaaf garraamiin kun haala hoo’aaf milkaayina qabuun barnoota isaa hordofaa utuu jiruu, humni mootummaa abba hirree wayyaaneen guyyaa gaafa 29/05/2014 mooraa guddicha YUUNIVERSIITII HARAMAYAA keessaa bakka GADA-JAHE(IOT CUMPUS) jedhamuun beekamu, Gamoo H lakk-doormii 26 (H-26) duulli mootummaa wayyaanee saroota OPDO waliin doormiitti itti seenan, hiriyoota isaa faana qayyabachaa utuu jiruu, qabame. Barataan sabboonaan Nuraddin(Alsan) Hasan guyyaa gaafa qabamee kaasee hanga guyyaa kaleessaatti (01/06/2014) barattoota kakaaste hidhata dhaaba alaa waliin qabda jechuun barataa barumsa qofaaf maatii isaa irraa adda bahee barnoota isaa hordofaa jiru, magaalaa Hararitti guyyoota sadii guutuu fannisanii reeban. Erga inni of dadhabees, sobdee akka nuti si dhiifnuuf malee hin miidhamne ittiin jechuun, utuu reebanii lubbuun isaa dabarte. Gocha hammeenyaa hagana ga’u raawwatanii, hidhamaan of ajjeeseera, gara hospitaalaa haa deemu, haa qoratamu. Jechuun reeffa isaa gara hospitaala XIQUR AMBASSAA geessan. Obboleessa isaa SULXAAN HASAN, waamuun obboleessikee mana adabaatti of-ajjeese gara finfinneetti kottuu reeffa fuudhi, jechuun maatii isaatti bilbilan. Yeroo ammaa kana reeffi barataa kanaa magaala GUDAR ga’uu isaa ergaan bilbilaa nu ga’eera. “Lubbuukeef Jannatan Hawwa” itttiin jedhaa! Maddi oduu peejii “kuusaa Dhiiga Oromoo” ti peejicha ‘like’ haa goonu press ‘like’ link on Kuusaa Dhiiga Oromoo’s page. RAKKOO AMBOO KEESSA JIRU!#OromoProtests- 2nd June 2014 Akkuuma beekamu FDG FI WAA’EEN MASTEER PLANII erga jalqabe kaase Magalatii keessatti saba Oromoo irratti kan rawwatama jiru mutumma kamiyyun kan rawwatama ture waliin hin madalamu jechudhan gabasaan magala Amboo irra nu qaqabee jira! Waan Nama gadisiisu keessa Barataa yunviristi tokko kan guyya finciilli itti jalqabee rasaasan rukutamee hanga ammatti bakka warri Ogumma fayya itti barataan(Mana reeffa)keessa keessa tursuun Jimaata darbee halkaan keessa sa’ati 10 irratti gara dhalotasa Arsii geeffame!Maqaassa fi waan jiru qulqulleesine isiin geenya! Kana irra kan ka’e Baratoon guyyaa kaleessa irra egalaani nyaata lagachuun barumsaa fi qormaata dhabuun isanii yaddoo gudda Bulchinsa yunv.Ambootti ta’e jira! Kan biraan Barataa Afaan oromoo kan ta’e fi bara kana kan eebbiifamu Kitaaba wagga sadii kaase kan barreessa turee manxase gabaa irra olchuuf jedhe waliin kan qabamee lafa buteensa kan dhabame ture yeroo amma yoo kitaaba kee kana gubuuf gabaa irra olchuu baatte murtii du’a sitti murteesiina jedhanii yoo itti himanille hanga du’atti Ani qopha’a dha malee waan isiin jettaan kana naaf hin liqimsanu jechuunsa beekame! Mani murtii yeroo amma kana waraana wayyaane wajjiin uummaata fi baraatootta miilla isaani kateenan hidhamaan konkoolata guuddatti fe’uudhan garaan keessa ciibsani mana murtiiti deedebissa jiraachun isanii beekame jira! Magaala Amboo keessa Bishaani erga bade ji’a sadii kan ta’e yommu ta’u Ibsa halkaan dhamsuun Mana nama cabsuun sakata’aa yoo ijoollee Shamaraan jiratee Abbaa fi Hadha isaan qabani eerga hidhanii dirqisiisani akka gudeedan bira ga’amee jira!yeroo amma kana seerri fi Motumaan kan keessa hin jirreef humna waraana fi tika wayyaaneen akka rakkacha jirtuu bekameera! FDG itti fuuffa malee kan hin dhabaanne ta’u isa beekisisaniru! Ijjifannoon Uummaata Oromoof!!!
May 29, 2014 (Jen and Josh in Ethiopia) — After the protests and violence in Ambo, we fled to the capital city of Addis Ababa and stayed at a little hotel called Yilma. Immediately, we started telling everyone about what happened in Ambo. We called and texted our friends, we talked to anyone at the hotel that would listen, and we posted things on Facebook. If we tell everyone about the protesters in Ambo being imprisoned and killed, surely it will stop, we reasoned.The next day, two strange men – one tall with dark skin, the other short with lighter skin – struck up a conversation with us in the hotel restaurant.“We’re from Minnesota, here to visit our family in Wollega,” they said. “Oh, we’re from St. Paul!” we replied, excited. “Oh, we’re from St. Paul, too!” they said, pulling out a fake-looking Minnesota driver’s license.The address said Worthington, not St. Paul.“How long have you lived in St. Paul?’ we asked. “Yes.” the tall man said, nervously. “I mean…how long have you lived in St. Paul?” we said, slower. “Just 2 weeks.” “And you’re already back in Ethiopia. And you just drove through Ambo, past all the protests and the police, to visit your family in Wollega?” we asked, thinking about the single paved road that heads west through Ambo. “Yes.” he replied. “You must be very brave,” we said, thinking about how the road was closed due to the violence. “Why?” he asked, baiting us with a stoic face.We froze, afraid to speak further. At that moment, after 20 months in Ethiopia, we finally understood why so many people in Oromia are afraid of spies. When we first arrived in Ambo, people thought WE were C.I.A. spies, which we found amusing…spies who couldn’t even speak the language? If we had beenspies, we certainly weren’t very good at our job. But now, the tables were turned.The two men began following us around the hotel area, sitting next to us whenever possible, walking slowly past our table, then returning slowly past our table – sometimes up to 10 times per hour. A different man followed us to a restaurant about a mile from the hotel, then sat at the closest table to ours, rudely joining a young couple’s romantic dinner.For the next three days, we stopped telling people about the protests and the imprisonments and the killings in Ambo. We were afraid that the two men would be listening. We were afraid that someone was monitoring our communications on the government-controlled cell phone service and the government-controlled internet. Were we just paranoid? Were we really being monitored? Maybe we had just integrated too much, to the point where we had become Oromo, afraid of government spies and afraid of speaking out and being put in jail. While being ferenji (foreigners) gave us some level of protection, thoughts of the Swedish journaliststhrown into an Ethiopian jail in 2011 lingered in the backs of our minds. The journalists “were only doing their jobs, and human rights group Amnesty International said the journalists had been prosecuted for doing legitimate work.” Did we seem just as suspicious to the government as those Swedish journalists? We didn’t want to find out.Peace Corps gave all the volunteers strict instructions NOT to blog or post on Facebook about the protests or killings across Oromia. It is just too dangerous to say anything about the Ethiopian government, they pointed out.That’s when we decided to leave Ethiopia. For us, staying in Ambo, not ruffling any feathers, was not an option. How could we go back and pretend that our neighbors, students, and and fellow residents didn’t die or didn’t end up in prison? http://jenandjoshinethiopia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/ambo-protests-spying-spy.htmlhttp://etefa.wordpress.com/2014/05/29/ambo-protests-spying-the-spy/
Breaking News: Amma Galgala Kana Barattooti Oromoo Yuuniversitii Haromaayaa 10 Doormii Keessaa Lolotoota Wayyaaneen Ukkaamfaman.
Walabummaa Goshee kan inni baratu Economics waggaa 2ffa bakki dhalootaa godina shawaa lixaa Ambo,
Irranaa Kabbadaa kan inni baratu agricultural wagga 2ffaa bakki dhalootaa godina Shawaa lixaa Ambo
Sanyii Yaalii kan inni baratu economics waggaa 3ffaa bakki dhalootaa godina Shawaa lixaa AMBO
Biqila Toleeraa kan inni baratu veternari Medecine waggaa 6ffaa bakki dhaloota godina kibba lixa Shawaa AMBO
Raggaasaa kan inni baratu waggaa lammaaffaa water engenering bakki dhalootaa Godina Shawa lixati 10.maqaan nu hin geenye.Ammaaf maqaan hin baramne.
In picture: student Leencoo Fiixaa
#OromoProtests-
Oromo Students Abducted From Haromaya University on May 28 Ten Oromo students were abducted from Haromaya University by Ethiopian (TPLF/Agazi) security forces on Wednesday, 28th May 2014. Their where abouts is unknown. Among the abductees are: 1. Lencho Fita Hordofa, 3rd year in the Department of Agriculture. He was born in the district of Dawo, South Shewa Zone of Oromia state 2. Ararsaa Lagasaa, 4th year student in the Department of Water Engineering. He was born and raised in the Tolee distrit of South Shewa Zone 3. Jaaraa Margaa, 4th year student in the Department of Water Engineering. He was born and raised in Sabata, South Shewa Zone 4. Alsan Hasan, 2nd year student in the Department of Electrical Engineering. He was born and raised in Ambo, West Shewa Zone 5. Walabummaa Goshee, 2nd year student in the Department of Economics. He was born and raised in Ambo, West Shewa Zone.
6. Irranaa Kabbadaa, 2nd year student in the Department of Agriculture. He was born and raised in Ambo, West Shoa Zone.
7. Sanyii Yaalii, 3rd year student in the Department of Economics. He was born and raised in Ambo, West Shoa zone.
8. Biqila Toleeraa, 6th year medical student, Department of Veterinary Medicine. He was raised in Ambo, South West Shoa zone.
9. Raggaasaa, 2nd year student in the Department of Water Engineering. He was raised in Ambo, West Shoa zone.
The names of the 10th student is not identified at this time. Shown in the photograph is Lencho Fita Hordofa, one of the ten kidnapped.
Submission from the HRLHA 26th Regular Session of the Human Rights Council (10 – 27 June 2014)
May 27, 2014Submission from the HRLHA 26th Regular Session of the Human Rights Council (10 – 27 June 2014)
Item 3:Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development
(Country- Ethiopia) HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge human rights abuses suffered by the peoples of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and organization. It is also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It focuses on the observances as well as the due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies. Executive Summary This report covers mainly the gross human right violations in Ethiopia that have happened in the past twenty- three years in general, and the current human rights crisis in the Regional State of Oromia in Ethiopia in particular. The EPRDF/TPLF Government has committed gross human rights violations against the people of Ethiopia since it came to power in 1991 after toppling the dictatorial Dergue regime, contrary to the constitution of Ethiopia (1995) and international human rights treaties it has signed and rectified. It has continued to suppress the freedom expression, political and civil rights and, as a result, has sent dozen of journalists, bloggers, and hundreds of leaders and members of opposition political parties to jail. In violations of the right to protest and demonstrations, peaceful demonstrators have been shot at and killed, kidnapped and disappeared; hundreds have been arrested in mass and detained. A good case in point is the most recent very violent attack against unarmed and peaceful protestors of Oromo students of universities, colleges, and high schools in the regional state of Oromia. Methodology The information in this report is mainly based on HRLHA’s reports on human rights violations in Ethiopia as well as reports from other sources such as various international human rights organizations and civil society groups, and the US State Department annual country report of 2013. Violations of Fundamental Rights The current EPRDF government claims that the basic and fundamental rights of the citizens are respected in Ethiopia, and that the country is heading towards democracy. However, on the contrary, the basic and fundamental rights of citizens enshrined in the Ethiopian Constitution of 1995, under Chapter three (fundamental rights and freedoms, articles 13-28 and democratic rights ,articles 29-44)[1] which guarantees civil liberty and life in peace and harmony has been extremely violated. In the above articles are included individuals and common rights, such as equality before the law, freedom of speech and expression, freedom of association and peaceful assembly, freedom to practice religion. All are highlighted on paper only for the political consumption. In other words they are used as a cover-up for the gross violations of human rights.. Democratic Rights After the first global expression of rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which all human beings are inherently entitled, has been adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. The international, regional and national documents were created to enforce the promotion of the rights enshrined in the declaration. Peaceful assembly (Article 20(1)) in the UDHR, while often characterized by marches, rallies and mass demonstration, which obviously involves the presence of a number of individuals in the public places, has been echoed in international law, regional standards, and national constitutions throughout the world. It becomes customary that in different parts of the world people are expressing their grievances/ dissatisfactions and complaints against their governments by peaceful demonstrations and assemblies. When such nonviolent and peaceful civil rallies are taking, place it should always be the state’s responsibility to respect and guard their citizens’ freedom of peaceful assembly and demonstration. These responsibilities also should apply even during times of political protest, when a state’s power is questioned, challenged, or perhaps undermined by assemblies of citizens practicing in nonviolent resistance. The 1995 Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, articles 29 and 30 also grant these democratic rights to the Ethiopian citizens without distinction[2]. The Right of Thought, Opinion and Expression, The Right of Assembly, Demonstration and Petition are the rights of Ethiopian citizens through which they can express their opinions and dissatisfactions with the performances and activities of their government However, in the past two decades the current Ethiopian government proved that peaceful assemblies and demonstrations, expression of thoughts are not tolerated. Since the current government came to power in 1991, thousands of citizens who held political agenda different from the ruling party’s were systematically jailed, abducted or killed. Those who criticized the government of Ethiopia including journalists, bloggers, universities and high school students and teachers who took to streets to demand their rights peacefully were beaten, arrested and detained or killed. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa has been reporting in different ways on the systematic human rights violations by the Ethiopian government and its security agents against peaceful demonstrators. These include the recent case of Oromo students from different universities and colleges. The Oromo students were discriminately targeted particularly in the past six years[3]. The current political crises in Oromia regional state of Ethiopia is the continuation of the above facts. Peaceful protests against the so called the Master plan of Addis Ababa, which is likely to cause the estimated eviction of around 6 million Oromo peasants around the area and planed to be sold to the wealthy non-Oromos, should not be considered as a criminal activity. Instead it should be tolerated and be considered as one of the ways that the citizens can express their thoughts and concerns on the development plan of the government in which they were not consulted and did not give their consent. The Addis Ababa Expansion-related protests quickly spread around universities, colleges and high schools all over Oromia. And in response, contrary to the provisions in the constitution of the land and international basic and fundamental rights of the citizens, the Ethiopian government launched a brutal crackdown against peacefully demonstrating Oromo students in order to freeze the peaceful demand of the protestors. As a result of this brutal crackdown by special squads, more than 36 students were killed, hundreds wounded and thousands of others arrested and thrown into detentions. The protest against the expansion of Addis Ababa was not limited to students only, but also involved city dwellers, farmers and workers in Oromia. The most affected area was the Ambo Town and its surroundings where 16 University and high school students were killed, including the eight (8) year old boy. The Ethiopian Government’s atrocities that targeted the Oromo nation during the nationwide protest from April 24 to May 24, 2014 have been condemned by worldwide human rights organizations, public media, and other civic organizations.. The Human Rights Watch[4], Amnesty International[5], Oromia Suport Group[6], Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa[7], The guardian[8], BBC[9] , CNN[10] and The Create Trust[11] are among the organizations which condemn and reported the crime against humanity taken against the Oromo nation by Ethiopian armed force. The Ethiopian Government has repeatedly implemented various excessive forces to dissolve peaceful protests in violations of international treaties it has signed and ratified. The responses to legal, constitutional and peaceful protests should not include actions that violate human rights, such as arbitrary arrests and detentions, even guns or other violence. HRLH believes many atrocities, that were not reported on due to the tight controls, restrictions, and censorships on all local and international media, are taking place. The Ethiopian Government does not have any justification for the illegality of the protests for taking such brutal action against peaceful and unarmed students and other protestors. An illegal protest may happen if the protest becomes violent or is in violation of the state’s laws of public order and civility. Even if some peaceful protests include deliberate acts of civil disobedience, in which case it is permissible for states to make individual arrests of law offenders. However, as recognized by an HRC panel discussion on the matter (A/HRC 19/40)[12], the increasing use of criminal law against protest participants may ultimately contradict the states’ responsibility to uphold the right to peaceful assembly. In this situation the Ethiopian Government clearly violated the right to legal peaceful protest. Recommendation:
The Ethiopian Government first of all must respect and implement the rights of citizens enshrined in the constitution of the country (1995) and enforce the Ethiopian penal code of 2004
Ethiopia must avoid an excessive force in response to Oromo protests
The Ethiopian Government must abide by all international human rights instruments to which the country is a signatory
The Ethiopian Government must allow a fully independent, civilian-led investigation into the death of Oromo students and civilians including gross human rights violation in Oromia.
Ironically, as we sat at home, listening to gunshots all day long, John Kerry was visiting Ethiopia, a mere 2 hours away in Addis Ababa, to encourage democratic development. Around 3pm, while the sounds of the protests were far on the east side of town, we heard gunshots so close to our house that we both ducked reflexively. An hour later, we talked to a young man who said, numbly, “I carried their bodies from their compound to the clinic.” Our two young neighbors – university students – had been hunted down by the federal police and killed in their home while the protest was on the opposite side of town. Another friend told us about 2 students who were shot and killed by the federal police in front of a primary school…again, far away from the protest. Wednesday night, we slept fitfully, listening to the sounds of the federal police coming around our neighborhood. They were yelling over a bullhorn in Amharic, which we didn’t understand, but was later translated for us: “Stay inside your compound tonight and tomorrow.” Thursday, the bus station was closed and there weren’t any cars on the roads. That morning, a Peace Corps driver finally came to get us, looking terrified as he pulled up quickly to our house. We had to stop at the police station to get permission to leave town. While waiting at the station, we saw at least 50 people brought into the station at gunpoint, some from the backs of military trucks and many from a bus. Inside the police compound, there were hundreds of demonstrators overflowing the capacity of the prison, many of them visibly beaten and injured. After the U.S. Embassy requested our release, we headed out of town. The entire east side of town, starting from the bus station, was damaged. A bank, hotel, café, and many cars were damaged or burned. Our driver swerved to avoid the charred remains of vehicles sitting in the middle of the street. We couldn’t help but shed tears at the sight of our beloved, damaged town. – Read more @http://jenandjoshinethiopia.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/ambo-protests-personal-account.html?spref=tw
Ethiopia: Worrisome Situations in Detention Centres Where #OromoProtests Protesters Imprisoned; an HRLHA Urgent Action
Posted: Caamsaa/May 24, 2014 · Gadaa.com
The following is a statement from the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA).
———————— May 24, 2014 For Immediate Release While kidnappings and/or extra-judicial arrests and detentions have continued particularly around academic institutions in different parts of the regional state of Oromia in Ethiopia, disturbing and worrisome reports are coming out of detention centres where the Oromo students arrested in the past two weeks are being held. According to HRLHA correspondents in Nakamte, Wollega Province in western Oromia, there have been cases of tortures of varying levels as well as detainees being taken away in the middle of the night to unknown destinations for unknown reasons. Fifty (50) detainees, including thirteen females, were taken away at one time alone; and their whereabouts were not known. In relation to tortures, the reports indicate that some of the detainees are isolated from others and held in separate rooms handcuffed and legs tied together with their hands on the their backs. There were ten students subjected to this particular situation, among whom were Std. Tesfaye Tuffa (male) and Std. Bontu Hailu (female). Although not confirmed at this point, there were also eight students who were screened out in order to be transferred to a detention or investigation office at the federal level; and these include: 1. Chalaa Fekaduu Gashe (high school student), 2. Chalaa Fekaduu Raajoo (high school student), 3. Nimoonaa Kebede (Wollega University 5th year law student), 4. Moi Bon Misganuu (Wollega University, student), 5. Abdii Gaddisaa (high school student), 6. Abel Dagim (high school student), 7. Qalbessa Getachew (high school student), 8. Mulgeta Gemechu (high school student), 9. Edosa Namara Dheressa, Civil Engineering, Wallaga University In the meantime, reports indicate that kidnappings and/or extra-judicial arrests and detentions have continued in different parts of the regional state of Oromia, particularly in Hararge/Haromaya, West Showa, and West Wollega, all in relation to the protests that have been going on in the Regional State of Oromia in opposition to the newly introduced master plan to expand the Capital City of Addis Ababa/Finfinne in all directions by displacing the local Oromo residents. The following are among the hundreds of the most recent cases of kidnappings, arrests and detentions: 1) Edosa Namara Deressa – Wollega University (Civil Engineering) 2) Walabuma Dabale -Adama University, West Showa, 3) Ebisa Dale -Adama University 4) Ganamo Kurke -Adama University 5) Liban Taressa – Adama University 6) Adam Godana -Adama University 7) Bodana (last name not obtained) – Adama University Name of other detainees arrested May 15-17, 2014: The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) is highly concerned about the life-threatening situations in the detention centres where those young Oromos were held, and the safety and wellbeing of those who were taken to unknown destinations. Therefore, HRLHA calls upon the Ethiopian Government to abide by all international human rights instruments that it has signed, and refrain from subjecting the young detainees to such harsh situations. It also calls upon all local, regional, and international human rights organizations including UN Human Rights Council, humanitarian, and diplomatic agencies to put pressure on the Ethiopian Government so that it: 1. Unconditionally releases the Oromo students who were detained in the past two and three weeks simply because the attempted to exercise some of their fundamental rights in a peaceful and absolutely non-violent manner. 2. Stop killing, arresting and abducting Oromo nationals 3. To form an independent committee from civilians for investigation and Prosecution of the killing and torturing crimes. – HRLHAhttp://humanrightsleague.com/2014/05/ethiopia-worrisome-situations-in-detention-centres-hrlha-urgent-action/
Since 25th April, students have demonstrated throughout the Oromia Regional State, protesting against the government’s sinister sounding ‘Integrated Development Master Plan’. The Oromo people constitute Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group — around 27 million people — almost a third of the population. They have been marginalised and discriminated against since the 19th century when Empress Taytu Betul (wife of Menelikk II) chose the site of Addis Ababa for the capital. As the city grew Oromos were evicted from their land and forced onto the margins — socially, economically and politically: “time and again, Oromo farmers were removed from their land under the guise of development without adequate compensation.”[Geeska Africa]. Like tyrants everywhere, the paranoid EPRDF is hostile to all forms of dissent no matter the source; however they react with greater levels of brutality to dissenting voices in Oromia than perhaps anywhere else in the country, and “scores of Oromos are regularly arrested based on their actual or suspected opposition to the government.” [Amnesty International (AI)] The proposed ‘master plan’ would substantially expand the boundaries of Addis Ababa into areas of Oromia surrounding the capital. “Protestors claim they merely wanted to raise questions about the plan — but were answered with violence and intimidation.” [BBC] They rightly feel smallholder farmers and other groups living on government land (all land in Ethiopia is government owned) would once again be threatened, leading to large scale evictions to make way for land leasing or land sales, as has happened elsewhere in the country. In addition many Oromos see the proposed expansion as a broader threat to their regional and cultural identity and say the scheme is “in violation of the Constitutionally-guaranteed protection of the ‘special interests’ of the Oromia state.” [AI] Constitutional guarantees that mean nothing to the members of the ruling party, or a politically controlled judiciary. Killing, beating, intimidating University campuses have formed the beating heart of the protest movement that has now spread throughout the region. On Tuesday 29th April around 25,000 people, “including residents of Ambo town in central Oromia, participated in a city wide demonstration, in the largest show of opposition to the government’s plans to date.” [Revolution News] Somewhat predictably, security forces, consisting of the federal police and military Special Forces known as the ‘Agazi’, have “responded by shooting at and beating peaceful protesters in Ambo, Nekemte, Jimma, and other towns with unconfirmed reports from witnesses of dozens of casualties.” [Human Rights Watch (HRW)] A witness told Amnesty International that on the third day of protest in Guder town, near Ambo, the security forces were waiting for the protesters and opened fire when they arrived. “She said five people were killed in front of her. A source in Robe town, the location of Madawalabu University, reported that 11 bodies had been seen in a hospital in the town. Another witness said they had seen five bodies in Ambo [80 miles west of Addis Ababa] hospital.” Whilst the government says that “at least nine students have died” during the protests, “a witness told the BBC that 47 were killed by the security forces” — a misleading term for government thugs, who are killing, beating and intimidating innocent civilians: Amnesty reports that children as young as 11 years of age were among the dead. In addition to killing peaceful protesters, large numbers have been beaten up during and after protests, resulting in scores of injuries, and hundreds or “several thousands”, according to the main Oromia opposition party, the Oromo Federalist Congress (AFC), have been arbitrarily arrested and are being detained incommunicado. Given the regime’s history those imprisoned face a very real risk of torture. In many cases the arrests took place after the protesters had dispersed. “Security forces have conducted house to house searches in many locations in the region, [looking] for students and others who may have been involved. New arrests continue to be reported,” [AI] and squads of government thugs are reportedly beating local residents in a crude attempt at intimidation. Amnesty reports the case of a father whose son was shot dead during a protest, being ‘severely beaten’ by security forces, who told the bereaved parent “he should have taught his son some discipline.” The Oromia community has often been the target of government aggression, and recent events are reminiscent of January 2004, when several Oromia students at Addis Ababa University were shot and killed when protesting for the right to stage an Oromo cultural event on campus. Many more were wounded and 494 [Oromo Support Group (OSG)] were arrested and detained without charge or trial. HRW reported how “police ordered both male and female students to run and crawl barefoot, bare-kneed, and bare-armed over sharp gravel for three-and-half hours; they were also forced to carry each other over the gravel.” The Police, HRW goes on to say, “have repeatedly employed similar methods of torture and yet are rarely held accountable for their excesses.” The recent level of extreme violence displayed by the State is not unusual and takes place throughout Ethiopia; what is new is the response of the people. Anger at the security forces criminality has fuelled further demonstrations in Oromo as friends and family of those murdered have added their voices to the growing protest movement. This righteous stand against government brutality and injustice is heartening for the country and should be supported with condemnation and pressure from international donors and the UN more broadly. Those arrested during protests must be immediately released and investigations into killings by security personnel instigated as a matter of utmost urgency. Tools of control The government’s heavy-handed reaction to the Oromo protests is but the latest example of the regime’s ruthless response to criticism of its policies. Political opposition parties, when tolerated at all have been totally marginalised, dissenting independent voices are quickly silenced and a general atmosphere of fear is all pervading. Despite freedom of expression being a constitutional right virtually all media outlets are either government owned or controlled; “blogs and Internet pages critical of the Ethiopian government are regularly blocked and independent radio stations, particularly those broadcasting in Amharic and Afan Oromo, are routinely jammed.” [HRW] The EPRDF has created “one of the most repressive media environments in the world.” Reinforcing this condition, “the government on April 25th and 26th arbitrarily arrested nine bloggers and journalists in Addis Ababa. They remain in detention without charge.” [Ibid] International human rights groups (whose activities have been severely restricted by the stifling Charities and Societies Proclamation of 2009) as well as foreign journalists are not welcome, and reporters “who have attempted to reach the current demonstrations have been turned away or detained,” [Ibid] making it difficult to confirm exact numbers of those killed by government security personnel. The UN Human Rights Council recently reviewed Ethiopia’s human rights record under the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). Since the first review in 2009 the human rights condition has greatly deteriorated. The EPRDF rules the country through fear and intimidation, they have introduced ambiguous, universally condemned legislation to control and intimidate: the Charities and Societies Proclamation (CSO law) and the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation specifically. Laws of repression that together have made independent media and civil society completely ineffective. Freedom of assembly – another constitutional right – is not allowed, (or as can be seen with the Oromo protests) is dealt with in the harshest manner possible; the Internet and telecommunications are controlled and monitored by the government and phone records/recordings are easily obtained by security personnel. Arbitrary arrests and false Imprisonment of anyone criticizing the government is routine as is the use of torture on those incarcerated. In the Ogaden region the regime is committing gross human rights abuses constituting crimes against humanity and in Gambella and the Lower Omo Valley large numbers of indigenous people have been forcibly moved into government camps (Villagization Programme), as land is sold for pennies to international companies. In short, human rights are completely ignored by the Government in Ethiopia. As the people begin to come together and protest, international pressure should be applied on the regime to observe the rule of law and uphold the people’s fundamental human rights. Read more @http://www.counterpunch.org/
#OromoProtest- Barbaric Attack On peaceful and unarmed Oromo Students and civilians by TPLF/Agazi forces at Madda Waalabuu University, Bale Soutrhern Oromia, 21 May 2014.
IOYA Appeal Letter
Dear Sir, Madam, We are reaching out to you as the Board of officers of the International Oromo Youth Association (IOYA) whose nation is in turmoil back in Oromia, Ethiopia. Recently, Oromo students have been protesting against the new Addis Ababa “Integrated Master Plan” which aims at incorporating smaller towns surrounding Addis Ababa for the convenience of vacating land for investors by displacing millions of Oromo farmers. As a political move, this will essentially result in the displacement of the indigenous peoples and their families. Oromo farmers will be dispossessed of their land and their survival both economic and cultural terms will be threatened. The Oromos strongly believe that this plan will expose their natural environment to risk, threaten their economic means of livelihood (subsistence farming), and violate their constitutional rights. The Ethiopian government is executing its political agenda of progressive marginalization of the Oromo people from matters that concern them both in the Addis Ababa city and the wider Oromia region. The master plan is an unconstitutional change of the territorial expansion over which the city administration has a jurisdiction. The government justifies the move in the name of enhancing the development of the city and facilitating economic growth. The justification is merely a tactical move masked for the governments continued abuse of human rights of the Oromo people. While the Oromos understand that Addis Ababa itself is an Oromo city that serves as the capital of the federal government, they also consider this move as an encroachment on the jurisdiction and borders of the state of Oromia. The protesters peacefully demonstrated against this move. University students and residents have been in opposition to the plan, but their struggle has been met by a brutal repression in the hands of the military police (famously known as the Agazi). It has been reported that shootings, arrests, and imprisonments are becoming rampant. It is also reported that the death toll is increasing by the hour. Recently, sources indicate that over 80 people have been shot dead, others severally injured and thousands arrested. In addition, Oromo students have been protesting peacefully for over three weeks now, despite mass killings and arrests by Ethiopian security forces. University and high school students from more than ten universities have been engaging in the Oromo protests. The peaceful rally has now spread across the whole country and is expected to continue until the Ethiopian government refrains from incorporating over 36 surrounding smaller towns into Addis Ababa. It is stated to be displacing an estimate of 6.6 million people and violating constitutional rights of regional states. As an organization subscribing to broader democratic engagement of the Oromo youth, we oppose the brutal violence that the Ethiopian government is meting out on innocent, unarmed young students who are peacefully protesting. As leaders of the Oromo community, we support and stand in solidarity with Oromo protests in Ethiopia. The human rights violations being carried out by the Ethiopian government against innocent students are unacceptable. Continuous assaults, tortures, and killings of innocent civilians must be stopped. We urge you to join us in denouncing these inhumane and cruel activities carried out by the Ethiopian government. We believe it is imperative that the international community raise its voice and take action to stop the ongoing atrocities that are wreaking havoc to families and communities in the Oromia region. We urgently request that such actions be taken in an attempt to pressure the Ethiopian government to stop terrorizing and killing peaceful protesters:
The US government and other International organizations should condemn the Ethiopian government’s brutal action taken on unarmed innocent civilians. Furthermore, we demand over 30,000 innocent protesters to be released from prisons, as they will be subjected to torture and ill treatment.
The Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) is currently terrorizing its own electorates/nation. Under the law of R2P in the UN constitution, the international community is obliged to protect a nation that is being terrorized by its own government and EPRDF should be taken accountable.
We demand Ethiopia to be expelled from any regional and international cooperation including and not limited to AU and UN for its previous and current human rights violations. The International community should stop providing support in the name of AID and development to Ethiopia as it is violating the fundamental and basic needs of its nation.
The Ethiopian government should be stopped on immediate effect; its forceful displacement of the indigenous peoples across Ethiopia is unjust and unconstitutional. We ask the United States, European Union, and the United Nations to stand in solidarity with peaceful student protesters who are condemning such injustice.
The onus is on the international community to act in favor of the innocent and civilian populace that is seeking its fundamental right. Punitive actions towards this government should be taken for cracking down on freedom of expression and other democratic rights being expressed by its citizens.
We believe it is in the interest of our common humanity to take responsibility, to pay attention to this problem, to witness the plight of the voiceless victims, and to raise concerns to the Ethiopian government so it can desist from its brutal acts of repression. We count on your solidarity to help the Oromo youth be spared from arbitrary arrest, incarceration, and shootings. Yours Respectfully, International Oromo Youth Association http://ayyaantuu.com/horn-of-africa-news/ioya-appeal-letter/https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=biinZe1Edeo
Gambella Nilotes Army Condemns Killing Oromos for Their Land
Press Release 15th May 2014, Gambella “Ethiopian Government Must Stop Killing Oromos for their Land”
Gambella Nilotes United Movement/Army (GNUM/A) condemns the mass killing perpetuated by the TPLF-Led Ethiopian government’s security forces against the Oromo University students and other innocent civilians which occurred in many parts of Oromia Region particularly in Ambo Zone since last two weeks. The students were peacefully demonstrating their constitutional right for the Oromo farmers who were/are forcefully and illegally evicted from their ancestral land around Finfine (Addis Ababa) due to new Addis Ababa Integrated Master Plan imposed upon them. As our sources confirm the killings continue in Nekemte town and other areas of which unconfirmed number of innocent Oromos are being massacred. Many are arrested and many more disappeared from their homes as the protest demonstrations continue. It should be known that the proposed Master Plan by the TPLF – Led government of Ethiopia did not consider the interest and participation of the Oromo people to ensure that it would not cause eviction of people and land grabbing. The plan affirms the continuation of land grabbing policy designed to displaced poor rural people of Gambella, Ogaden, Benisgangul Gumuz, Afar, South Omo and other parts of the country. The Master plan will evict million of Oromo farmers from their ancestral land and make them landless, an act which denies their traditional land ownership rights around Addis Ababa. It must be condemned at all might for it is undemocratic and barbaric. It follows the mode of Menelik who built the country on slave trade economy in raiding slaves and plundering resources of the subjects, in exchange for weapons from European colonisers to build his hegemony, of which the Oromos, Gambellans, Ogadenians, Beneshagul/Gumuz people, Afar, south western nations and nationalities, and others were the victims. The wounds inflicted by the Menelik in the past are still open and bleeding, and it is immoral for the TPLF- Led government to scratch the wounds inflicted by their ancestors against Oromos without remorse. For this reason we call upon all the Oromos to unite. Whatever differences may exist, Oromos must unite as one body and seek solidarity from other oppressed people who are fighting for their freedom. The TPLF – Led Ethiopian government is racist beyond any doubt, and it is a failed state that believes in enforcing its racist policies at gun point. The unity and moral we have are more than the weapons they put their belief. We shall prevail. It must not be allowed to sell out Oromo land to foreign investors or to settle their own people in Oromos’ land while Oromos are evicted. Currently other Ethiopian are not entitled to own large land for their business unless those coming from northern part of the country. The land taken from all the oppressed people elsewhere in the country including the Oromos should be categorized as stolen property, in which day has come, actually it is very near to claim it back from all TPLF members and supporters. We encourage all Oromo people to continue with their demonstration not to allow any inch of Oromo land to Addis Ababa Master Plan. We call upon all the Oromo people throughout the world to strengthen their solidarity in support to those who are sacrificing their lives in the country for the freedom of Oromos. Gambella Nilotes United Movement/Army (GNUM/A) is also calling upon all people of Gambella and other South Western Nilotes to stand together with Oromo people who are suffering under brutal Ethiopian government. We call upon the international community, international human rights organizations and other concerned bodies to condemn the ongoing human rights abuses and atrocities perpetrated by the TPLF/EPRDF regime against the Oromo innocent civilians who are demanding their constitutional rights from the government. We are also calling upon the United Nations, EU, AU, and all other humanitarian organizations operating in Ethiopia to closely monitor the political and military action against the innocent civilian in Oromia region. At last we call upon the TPLF/EPRDF government to stop killing of the Oromos; to release our brothers kept in various prisons in the country under inhumanly conditions; to recognize the communal land rights and ownership in accord with the UN provisions; to respect Article 39 provision in the constitution and recognizes territorial integrity to stop extinction measures; to respect our independence development and foreign policies to ensure our freedom and prosperity in our territories. In conclusion the Gambella Nilotes United Movement/Army (GNUM/A) will continue its struggle for all people of Gambella and other oppressed Ethiopian to ensure freedom, justice, security and prosperity are brought to the oppressed. “Freedom and Justice for All Oppressed People of Oromo”“Unite We Must to Fight for the Rights and Justice of IndigenousSouth Western Nilotic and Omotic Peoples of Ethiopia”GAMBELLA NILOTES UNITED MOVEMENT/ARMYCENTRAL COMMITTEEOur contact:gambellagnuma@yahoo.comORgambellagnuma@gmail.comhttp://ayyaantuu.com/horn-of-africa-news/gambella-nilotes-army-condemns-killing-oromos-for-their-land/ Barattoota Oromoo kan Yuuiversitoota garagaraat osoo karaa nagaan hiriira bahani dhimma abba biyummaa isaanii falmata jiranuu lubbuun isaanii waraana mootummaa Wayyaanen darbite keessaa seenaa gabaabaa barattuu Tigist Maammoo Simaa isiniif qooda. Tigist Abbaa ishee Obbo Maammoo Simaa fi Haadha ishee Aaddee Ayeetuu Maammoo irraa bara 1992 akka lakkoofsa Oromootti Biyya Oromiyaa Godina Kibba lixa Shawaa Aanaa sadeen Sooddoo Ganda Saaririti jedhamutti dhalattee. Mana barnoota sadarkaa 1ffaa kan barattee 1-8 mana barnoota Calalaqa kan jedhamu miilan deemsa sa’a lama deemte barattee.sadarkaa 2ffaa 9-12 mana barnoota Harbuu Cululleetti baratte.
#OromoProtetsts- Tigist Mammo, Oromo student at Madda Waalabu University, murdered by TPLF/ Agazi forces.http://maddawalaabuupress.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/seenaa-gabaabaa-gootittii-oromoo.html?spref=fb#OromoProtests- Peaceful Oromo students and civilians were attacked and wounded by Agazi in Nekemte, Western Oromia. Denied medical help. Agazi forced them out from hospital. Medical workers at Nekemte hospital were attacked by Agazi for giving medical services to wounded students and civilians. 20th May 2014
ODUU GADDISISSA!! Godina Wallagga lixaa aanaa Gimbii ganda waloo yesuusitti dhalata barataa Gammachiis Dabalaa umuriin 16 yoo ta’u barataa kutaa 9ti. Jireenyasaa keessatti cilee gubee gara magaalaa gimbii geessee ittin barataa maatii saas gargaara . Akkuma amalasaa cilee fuudhee guyyaa gaafa 02/09/2006 akka lakk habasha ganama gara magaalaa gimbii utuu deemuu loltuun wayyaanee naannoo gafaree bakkaa addaa mana indaaqqoo jedhamutti duukaa buutee ariun rasaasaan miilla isaa dhoofte. gaafuma sana hospitaala adventisti Gimbii ciise. Ta’us carraa fayyuu hin arganne guyyaa gaafa 12/09/2006tti lubbuunsaa darbite kichuutu hudhaatti cite ayiiiiiiiiiiii yaa oromoo lakkii ka’iiiiii uuuuuuuuuuuuuu —————————————SAD NEWS!! In west wallagaa in the town of Gimbi in the neighborhood of Waloo-yesuus. There was a 16 year old grade 9 student named Gammachiis Dabalaa. In his life time he used to burn firewood to make charcoal so he can support his family as well as paying for his education. Like his day to day duty, while he went to fetch woods and burn for charcoal on his way to Gimbi town in the morning on 02/09/2006(E.C) he was shot on his foot by a woyanee(TPLF) soldier. Since that day this young boy was spending his time in the Adventist Hosptal in the Gimbi town. Due to lack of quick recovery he passed away on 12/09/2006. May his soul rest in peace!!!!!!!!
#OromoProtests- Victim of TPLF/Agazi, in Western Oromia, Gimbi, Wallagga, 21st May 2014.
#OromoProtests – Victim of genocidal TPLF/Agazi. Photo of Milishu Melese who was killed by Agazi by a car yesterday in Adama. Family members say he was previously a political prisoner for 8 years ( 3 at
Maekelawi and 5 in Kaliti).He was ran over by car in broad daylight on 16th May 2014 along his
friend Bilisumma Lammi.
#OromoProtests- Photo of Oromo student Bilisumma Lammi of Rift Valley University college who was killed by by Agazi on 16th May 2014 with his friend in Adama.
OromoProtests– TPLF/Agazi’s crime against humanity. Wounded Oromo students from Wolega university in Nekemte hospital as of 17th May 2014
Dimokraasiin Biyya Ethiopia jedhamtu keessatti kunoo kana fakkaata!!! Hospitalli Naqamtee dhiiga Ilmaan Oromootiin guutameera!!! Saffisaan Oromiyaa guddisuun Qaroo Ilmaan Oromoo Abdii buroo kan ta’an itti duuluu, ajjeesuu, hidhuu, tumuu, mana barumsarraa’ari uu, doorsisuu, fi k.kn f.f taniin oromia nuuf guddifuun lallabaa jiran
Ethiopia: Ambo under Siege, Daily Activities Paralyzed
HRLHA Urgent ActionFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 13 May, 2014. The brutal attempts of crackdown against Oromo protesters by the Agazi Special Squad continuing unabated in different parts of the regional state of Oromia, reports coming from Ambo in central Oromia indicate that the town and its surrounding has come under virtual seizure by the Agazi Federal Armed Force, daily movements and activities becoming almost impossible. According to information obtained by HRLHA (this morning) form its correspondents, the Agazi Special Squad has been deployed in Ambo Town and its surrounding in much larger number than before and engaged in indiscriminately kidnapping the local people from along the streets and throwing them into detention centres in the area. There are also reports of widespread rapes being committed against female detainees. Although the protests against the plan to annex some central small towns of Oromia into the Capital Addis Ababa/Finfinne have been involving Oromos from all walks of life, age and gender, the prime targets have been the youth, university, college, and high school students in particular. Since the protest started in different parts of the regional state of Oromia two weeks ago, more than 50,000 (fifty thousand) Oromos have been arrested and detained from Ambo, Gudar, Tikur Inchini, Ginda-Barat, Gedo, and Bakko-Tibe towns in West Showa Zone of Central Oromia alone, Apart from along the streets in cities and towns, especially students are being picked up even from dormitories and classrooms on universities and college campuses. Reports add that there have been around twenty(40) extra-judicial killings so far that have resulted from brutal actions against unarmed and peaceful protesters by armed forces. Ever since the violence against Oromo protesters started two weeks ago, and following the release of its first urgent action over the incidents, the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) has been monitoring the situation through its correspondents in the region; and has been able to obtain some of the names of the Oromos (students and others) who have so far been killed, kidnapped or arrested, and detained or disappeared. There are also cases of beatings and wounds or injuries inflicted on some of the protesters by the heavy-handed federal armed force. The names are listed below:
Partial List of arrested Students from Addis Ababa University May 11, 2014
1
Abebe gadafa
12
Lataa Olani
2
Alamayo Taye
13
Melaku Girma
3
Gaddisaa dabalee
14
Mulata Eliyas
4
Gamada Dhidhita
15
Nigusie Gammada
5
Gudata Wakne
16
Nigusie Yoosef
6
Guddina
17
Sisay Safara
7
Indalu Yigezu
18
Taye Teshome
8
Jabessa ekele
19
Teshome Ararsa
9
Jamal Usman
20
Waqo Roba
10
Jilo Kamew
21
Yaatanii Utukan
11
Kebede Guddata
May 11, 2014 Arrestees from different universities in Oromia
No
Name
Department
Institute Name
1
Abebe Taddese
Political Science
Addis Ababa University
2
Chala Dirriba
Dirre Dawa University
3
Lencho
Electrical & Computer Engineering
Adama University
4
Fawaz Ahmed Usman
Mechanical Engneering
Adama University
5
Obsa Jawar
Management
Adama University
Partial list of Oromos killed by Agazi Armed Force of the Federal Government
NAME
SEX
Birth Place
Occupation
Academic institution
Place of execution
1
Ababa Kumsa
M
student
Wallaga
2
Abdii Kamaal
M
student and Krate Trainer
Gudar
Gudar
3
Abdiisaa Guutuu
M
9 years old teenager
–
Gudar
4
Abdiisaa Fiixee
Bussinessman
Gudar
5
Abdisa Nagasa
M
student
Wallaga
6
Alamnee Bayisa Tashoomee
M
9th grade
Ambo
Ambo
7
Alamayyoo Hirphasaa
M
9th grade
Ambo
Ambo
8
Alemaayyoo Urgeessaa
M
Farmer
Gudar
Gudar
9
Baayisaa Soorii
M
10
Biikkolee Dinqaa
M
11
Biqilaa Belay
M
Merchant
–
Ambo
12
Bultii Yaadasaa
M
Jibaat
Techinical student
Shanaan
13
Darejjee
M
Kebele Milisha
–
Ijaajjii
14
Falmata Bayecha
M
Medicine 5th year
Jimma
Jimma
15
Galana Adaba
M
Governance 3rdyear
Jimma
Jimma
16
Getachew Darajie
M
Governence 3rdyear
Jimmaa
Jimma
17
Geetahuun Jiraataa
M
Junior Secondary school
Gudar
Gudar
18
Geetuu Urgeessaa
M
student
Ambo
19
Gexe Tafari
F
student
Wollega
20
Gurmuu Damxoo
M
Junior Secondary school
Gudar
Gudar
21
Gosomsaa Baayisaa
M
Farmer
–
Ambo
22
Haacaaluu Jaagamaa
M
Jibaat
Shanaan
23
Husen Umar
M
Uni student
Jimmaa
Jimma
24
Indaalee Dessaalenyi
M
Ambo
Diplom holder, Bajaji driver
Ambo
Ambo, 01 Kebele
25
Indaalee Lammeessaa
M
9th grade student
Ambo
Ambo
26
Isra’el Habtamu
M
Uni student
Jimma
Jimma
27
Kebbedee Boranaa
M
Ambo
28
Kumalaa Guddisa
M
Tikur Incini
10th grade
Gudar
Gudar
29
Maammush Gaaddiisaa
M
Busssinessman
–
Gudar
30
Mammush Guutuu
M
11 years old teenager
–
Gudar
31
Naasir Tamaam
M
Driver
Gudar
32
Nagaasaa Lameessaa
M
Farmer oromo elder of 80 years old
Ambo
33
Olmaan Biinagdee
M
Ganjii Gooree
Farmer, 75 years Oromo elder
–
Ambo
34
Taddasee Gashuu
M
Waddeessaa,
Ambo Liibaan Machaa J.S.SchoolAmboAmbo35Tashome DawitM Uni studentWallaga 36Zabana BarasaM Governance 3rdyearJimmaJimma
Partial list of injured or wounded protestors
NAME
sex
Occupation
Academic institution
Region
Date
1
Abrhaam Suufaa
M
12th grade student
Ambo
Ambo
2
Balaayi Kuusaa
M
Midaa Qanyii
Ambo
01.05.2014
3
Baayisaa Obsaa
M
Midaa Qanyii
Ambo
01.05.2014
4
Baqalee Itichaa
M
5
Bitamaa Baayisaa
M
7th grade
Ambo
Ambo
6
Darrasaa Ayyaanaa
M
Midaa Qanyii
Ambo
01.05.2014
7
Geetuu warquu
Ambo
8
Gonfaa Mul’isaa
M
Bajajii driver
Ambo
9
Kasaahun Aseffaa
M
Ambo
10
Miidhaksaa ijiguu
M
Bussinesman
Ambo
11
Misgaanaa Mammuyyee
Ambo
12
Roobee Beenyaa
M
Ambo
13
Shallamaa Caalasaaa
M
High School student
Midaa Qanyii
Ambo
14
Shantamaa Qanaa’aa
M
Ambo
15
Sintaayoo Mirreessaa
F
5th grade student
Addis ketema, Ambo
16
Taaddalaa Tsagaayee
M
9th grade student
Ambo High School
Ambo
17
Warquu ijjiguu
M
Bussinesman
–
Ambo
18
Zarihuun Urgeessaa
M
Ambo
Partial list of indiscriminately arrested or kidnapped and detained protestors
Below is the list of some of the estimated 50,000 Oromos picked up and detained from different towns in West Showa Z0ne:
Name
Sex
Occupation
Place arrested
1
Ababaa Moosisaa
M
Tikur Incini
2
Alamayyoo Irreessoo
M
Was ONC Elected member of Oromia regional in 2005
Ambo
3
Ashannaafii Buusaa
M
12th grade student
Ambo
4
Agidoo Waqjiraa
M
Midaa Qanyii high school
Ambo
5
Ayyaantuu Dagaagaa
F
Merchant of cultural dresses
Ambo
6
Baqqaluu Gidaada
F
Ambo
7
Baayiluu Mallasaa
M
Gudar School
Gudar
8
Bilisee Indaaluu
F
High school student
Midaa Qanyii
9
Biraanuu Addunyaa
M
High school student
Tikur Incini
10
Burgudee Araarsaa
F
Highschool student
Ambo
11
Caalchisaa Aanaa
M
Preacher
Midaa Qanyii
12
Caalaa Baayisaa
M
With his 5-family member
Ambo
13
Camadaa Jaalataa
M
Farmer
Midaa Qanyii
14
Dagguu Takkaa
M
Elementary J.S. School, 8th grade
Addis Ketama-Ambo
15
Dammee Taddasaa
F
Ambo
16
Dararaa Galataa
M
High school Student
Midaa Qanyii
17
Darrasaa Guutataa
M
Farmer
Midaa Qanyii
18
Dawuti Raggaasaa
M
9th grade student
Liiban Maccaa Ambo
19
Dheeressaa Tarfaa
M
Bussinessman
Gudar
20
Dhibbaa Tutishaa
M
Assistant driver
Ambo
21
Gadaa
M
Ambo uni student
Ambo
22
Gechoo Dandanaa
M
High school student
Midaa Qanyii
23
Getaachoo dandanaa
M
Businessman
Gudar
24
Goobanaa Abarraa
M
High school student
Midaa Qanyii
25
Goobanaa Tolasaa
M
Tikur Incinni
26
Gonfaa Dhaabaa
M
Bussinessman
Ambo
27
Gudinaa Abarraa
M
High school student
Midaa Qanyii
28
Iddeessaa Magarsaa
M
Chairperson for Waqqeffata for Ambo area
Amboo
29
Lachiisaa Fufaa
M
Tikur Incinni
30
Lateeraa shallamoo
M
Tikur Incinni
31
Mallasaa Kabbadaa
M
Bussinessman
Ambo
32
Mootummaa Tasfaayee
M
Tikur Incinni
33
Nagarii Dhaabaa
M
Ambo
34
Qanaa’aa Chuuchee
M
Employee of KFO
Ambo
35
Salamoon Dhaabaa
M
11th grade student
Ambo
36
Shallamaa caalaa
M
Gudar
37
Shallamaa Caalasaaa
M
High School Student
Midaa Qanyii
38
Shallamaa Diroo
High School Student
Midaa Qanyii
39
Taaddasaa Misgaanaa
M
Tikur Incinni
40
Taamiruu Caalsisaa
M
Tikur Incinni
41
Tammiree Caalaa
Employee of youth and Sport commission
Caliyaa Geedoo
42
Tamasgeen Abarraa
M
Bussinessman
Ambo
43
Tasfayee Daksiisaa
M
High School Student
Midaa Qanyii
44
Tolaa Geeddafaa
M
High School Student
Midaa qanyii
45
Wabii Xilaahuun
M
Ambo university 3rd year
Ambo
HRLHA calls up on the Ethiopian Government to:
Immediately stop the racial and discriminatory violence against Oromos, and bring the culprits toJustice
Unconditionally release the detained Oromo students and facilitate the resumption of normal classes;
Reverse the decision of the plan and present it for discussion and consultations to the concerned Oromo People, and obtain their consents;
Compensate all loses and damages that resulted from the brutal actions of its armed forces.
HRLHA also calls up on regional and international diplomatic, democratic, and human rights agencies to challenge the Ethiopian TPLF/EPRDF government on its persistent brutal, dictatorial, and suppressive actions against innocent and unarmed civilians who are attempting to exercise some of their “said-to-have-been-granted” democratic rights.
Caamsaa 14,2014 Gara Jabeenya Wayyaanee TPLFn Magaalli Naqamte Akkasitti Oolte. TPLF’s cruelty Against Oromo students and civilians at Nekemte, Wolega university, 14 May 2014. 6 innocent people murdered.
DOCUMENT – ETHIOPIA: AUTHORITIES MUST PROVIDE JUSTICE FOR SCORES OF PROTESTERS KILLED, INJURED AND ARRESTED IN OROMIA
AMNESTY INTERNATIONALPUBLIC STATEMENT13 May 2014AI Index: AFR 25/002/2014
ETHIOPIA: AUTHORITIES MUST PROVIDE JUSTICE FOR SCORES OF PROTESTERS KILLED, INJURED AND ARRESTED IN OROMIA
Amnesty International condemns the use of excessive force by security forces against peaceful protesters in a number of locations across the Oromia region during the last two weeks, which has resulted in the deaths and injuries of dozens of people including students and children. Many hundreds of protesters are reported to have been arbitrarily arrested, and are being detained incommunicado and without charge. Detainees are at risk of torture. The Ethiopian government must immediately instruct the security forces to cease using deadly force against peaceful protesters, and to release any person who has been arrested solely because of their involvement in peaceful protests. These incidents must be urgently and properly investigated, and suspected perpetrators should be prosecuted in effective trial proceedings. Since late April, protests have taken place in many universities and towns across the Oromia region over the ‘Addis Ababa Integrated Development Master Plan’ – a plan from the central government to expand the capital, Addis Ababa, into parts of Oromia – the region which surrounds the city. The government says the master plan for expansion would bring city services to remote areas. However, the protesters, and many other Oromos, the ethnic group that makes up the significant majority of the population of Oromia regional state, fear that the move will be detrimental to the interests of Oromo farmers, and will lead to large scale evictions to make way for land leasing or sale. Many Oromos also consider the move to be in violation of the Constitutionally-guaranteed protection of the ‘special interests’ of the Oromia state. Numerous reports from witnesses, local residents and other sources indicate that the security forces have responded with excessive force against peaceful protesters. Forces comprised of the federal police and military special forces known as ‘Agazi’, have fired live ammunition at unarmed protesters in a number of locations including in Wallega and Madawalabu universities and Ambo and Guder towns, resulting in deaths in each location. One witness told Amnesty International that on the third day of protest in Guder town, near Ambo, the security forces were waiting for the protesters and opened fire when they arrived. She said five people were killed in front of her. A source in Robe town, the location of Madawalabu University, told Amnesty International that 11 bodies had been seen in a hospital in the town. Another witness said they had seen five bodies in Ambo hospital. There are major restrictions on independent journalism and human rights monitoring organizations in Ethiopia as well as on exchange of information. Because of these restrictions, in conjunction with the number of incidents that occurred in the last two weeks, it is not possible to establish the exact number of those who have been killed. The government acknowledged that three students had died at Madawalabu University, and five persons had died in Ambo town, but did not state the cause of death. Numbers of deaths reported by witnesses and residents within Oromia are significantly higher. Investigations into these incidents must include the establishment of comprehensive numbers of people killed and injured in all incidents. According to eye-witness reports received by Amnesty International, of those who were killed some people, including students and children, died instantly during protests, while some died subsequently in hospitals as a result of their injuries. Children as young as 11 years old were among the dead. Students and teachers constitute the majority of those killed and injured. Protesters were also reportedly beaten up during and after protests, resulting in scores of injuries in locations including Ambo, Jimma, Nekempte, Wallega, Dembi Dollo, Robe town, Madawalabu, and Haromaya. Hundreds of people have been arrested across many locations. The main Oromo opposition party, the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) which has been collecting information from its members throughout the region, believes those arrested may total several thousand. Witnesses told Amnesty International that in many cases the arrests took place after the protesters had dispersed. Security forces have conducted house to house searches in many locations in the region, for students and others who may have been involved. New arrests continue to be reported. A small number of people have been released, but most of those arrested remain in incommunicado detention, in many cases in unknown locations. The OFC also reports that two of its members were arrested in Ambo because they had spoken to a Voice of America reporter about events in the town. Hundreds of those arrested have been taken to unofficial places of detention including Senkele police training camp. One local resident, whose nephew was shot dead during the Ambo protests, told Amnesty International that detainees in Senkele have been prevented from seeing their families or receiving food from them. Military camps in Oromia have regularly been used to detain thousands of actual or perceived government opponents. Detention in military camps is almost always arbitrary – detainees are not charged or taken to a court for the duration of their detention, which in some cases has lasted for many years. In the majority of cases, detainees in military camps have no access to lawyers or to their families for the duration of their detention. Amnesty International has received countless reports of torture being widespread in military camps. The organization fears that the recent detainees are at serious risk of torture and other ill-treatment. There is a very high security force presence in towns across the region in recent days, including in university campuses. Witnesses in several locations say that classes have been suspended in the universities. Amnesty International has heard from other locations, where classes have continued or resumed, that attendance registers are being taken for every class, with serious repercussions threatened for those not present. Amnesty International has also received several reports that in a number of locations throughout the region local residents are being beaten and in some cases, arrested by the police, ostensibly to intimidate them against taking part in further protests. Police are also threatening parents to control their children. One witness told Amnesty International that one man who went to collect his son’s body, who had been shot dead during a protest, was severely beaten by security forces telling him he should have taught his son some discipline. The OFC says the response of the security forces has fuelled further protests as the colleagues, parents and community members of those killed and injured have joined in further protests against the brutality of the security forces. In some locations anger at the actions of the security forces has resulted in burning of cars and damage to property. The Ethiopian authorities regularly suppress peaceful protests, which has often included the use of excessive force against protesters. The Oromos have long felt discriminated against by successive governments. The current government is hostile to all dissent. However, this hostility often manifests most fiercely in the Oromia region, where signs of dissent are looked for and suppressed even more brutally than in other parts of the country. Scores of Oromos are regularly arrested based on their actual or suspected opposition to the government. The recent events are highly reminiscent of events in 2004 when months of protests broke out across the Oromia region and in Addis Ababa by college and school students demonstrating against a federal government decision to transfer the regional state capital from Addis Ababa to Adama (also known as Nazret), a town 100 kilometres south-east of Addis Ababa. The transfer was perceived to be against Oromo interests. Police used live ammunition in some incidents to disperse demonstrators, killing several students and wounding many others, which led to further protests. Hundreds of students were arrested and detained for periods ranging from several days to several months, without charge or trial. Many were severely beaten when police dispersed protests or in detention. Subsequently hundreds were expelled or suspended from university and many suffered long-term repercussions such as repeated arrest based on the residual suspicion of holding dissenting opinions. The events of the last two weeks in Oromia demonstrate that there has been no improvement in Ethiopia’s policing practices in the last decade, and that very serious concerns remain about the willingness of the Ethiopian security forces to use excessive force against peaceful protesters. These events also show that major restrictions remain on the ability of peaceful protesters to express grievances or make political points in Ethiopia. The environment for peaceful protest, freedom of expression and political participation has worsened over the last decade. The recent events in Oromia fall at a time when the local population and interested parties internationally, are starting to look towards the general elections in May 2015. The aftermath of the disputed 2005 elections also saw excessive use of force against peaceful protesters during widespread demonstrations against the alleged rigging of the election by the ruling EPRDF party. Security forces opened fire on protesters in Addis Ababa resulting in the deaths of more than 180 people. The recent events bode very ill for the run up to the 2015 elections, still a year away. Unless substantial reforms are urgently initiated, Amnesty International is concerned that the run up to the elections will be characterised by further serious violations of human rights. Amnesty International urges the Ethiopian authorities to immediately and publicly instruct the security forces to cease using excessive force against peaceful protesters in Oromia. While some of the recent protests in Oromia are reported to have seen incidents of violence, including destruction of property, the use of force, including lethal force, by security forces must comply with human rights standards at all times in order to protect the right to life. Amnesty International urges that any police response to further protests must comply with international requirements of necessity and proportionality in the use of force, in line with the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials. These principles state that law enforcement may use only such force as is necessary and proportionate to maintain public order, and may only intentionally use lethal force if strictly necessary to protect human life. Thorough investigations which are credible and impartial must urgently take place into allegations of excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, and the torture of protesters and other members of local communities in Oromia, and where admissible evidence of crimes is found, suspected perpetrators should be prosecuted in effective trial proceedings that meet international standards. All persons arrested solely because of their participation in peaceful protests must be immediately and unconditionally released. Amnesty International urges that no-one suffers any violation or denial of their human rights as a result of their involvement in peaceful protests including any suspension or termination of their education. Finally, Amnesty International urges the Ethiopian government to respect all Ethiopians’ right to peacefully protest, as guaranteed under the Ethiopian Constitution and in accordance with Ethiopia’s international legal obligations, including under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The government should immediately remove all restrictions on free and open political participation, including restrictions on the independent media, civil society and political opposition parties.
Press Release from the Oromia Support Group (OSG) on the Oromo demonstrators arrested, beaten and shot dead by the Ethiopian Agazi Security Forces
Posted: Caamsaa/May 9, 2014 · Gadaa.com
Press Release from the Oromia Support Group-UK 7 May 2014 60 Westminster Rd Malvern, Worcs WR14 4ES UK Tel +44 (0)1684 573722 Email: osg@talktalk.net Demonstrators arrested, beaten and shot dead At least 16 peaceful student demonstrators were shot dead by the Agazi, Ethiopia’s riot police, between 28 April and 1 May. Protests against the planned extension of Addis Ababa city administration, which would evict thousands of farmers and split Oromia Region in two, were met with live ammunition and indiscriminate beating. Several killings were in Ambo, where 27,000 reportedly took to the streets, but demonstrations were also met with violence in Guder, Adama, Dire Dawa, Robe, Jimma, Metu, Nekemt, Gimbi and Dembi Dollo – high schools and universities in central, east and west Oromia Region. Sources claimed 25-50 were killed. At least seven were confirmed dead in Ambo alone. Many were badly injured and hundreds were taken from streets and university campuses to places of detention, where protestors and opposition party supporters are routinely tortured and raped. Names of confirmed dead, injured or detained are given overleaf. Those killed include Endale Desalegn (Temesgen), and Tasfaye Gashe, both ninth grade students in Ambo. Individuals in the UK are requested to write to their MPs, requesting them to ask the Minister for Africa, Mark Simmonds, and the Minister for International Development, Lynne Featherstone, what the British Government intends to do in response to this latest episode of killing and detaining peaceful demonstrators. Killed: Ababa Kumsa – Wallega Abdi Kamal – Guder Junior Secondary School Abdisa Nagasa – Wallega Endale Desalegn (or Temesgen) – Ambo High School Falmata Bayecha – Jimma 5th yr Medicine Galana Adaba – Jimma 3rd yr Governance Getachew Daraje – Jimma 3rd yr Governence Getahun Jirata – Guder Junior Secondary School Gexe Tafari – Wallega Gurmu Damxoo – Guder Junior Secondary School Hussen Umar – Jimma Israel Habtamu – Jimma Kumala Guddisa – Guder Junior Secondary School Tadesse Gashee – Ambo Liban Macha Junior Secondary School Tashome Dawit – Wallega Zabana Barasa – Jimma 3rd yr Governance (or Oromo Folklore) Injured: Balay Kusa – Mida Qanyi School – W Showa Bayisa Obsa – Mida Qanyi School – W Showa Dararsa Ayana – Mida Qanyi School – W Showa Adama University students detained and beaten: Abrahm Makonin Ararso Abenzari Hagaye Yohannis Abdala Hussen Julio Amnu’el Burka Danka Andu’alam Telahun Alemayo Ayantu Jalta Misha Bilisuma Lamii Agaa Bonsa Badhadha Bati Bultu Wadaju Bultum Chala Galan Dabiso Datamo Fayera Shif Dane Abo Bushira Dani’el Admasu Tamsgen Didaa Ahmed Ibroo Duni Hussen Walbu Ebisa Malka Nuruu Etihafa Tuffa Soraa Fantale Faru Qarsuu Fayisa Girma Biranu Gada Dinqa Bayisa Humin’esa Miliki Fanta Ibraham Musa Awal Ifabas Burisho Nuruu Iliyas Ishetu Ibsa Lami Marga Gabru Lelisa Ayansa Marga Marga Tuffa kiltu Magris Banta Sodaa Muktar Jeyilan Sa’ed Musxafa Kadir Siraj Nuho Gudata Irre Odaa Damis Bonjaa Shibiru Tariku Falke Sidise Jara Tashome Bakele Sabbatichal Tadalu Mamo Bacha Takalinyi Ketama Baharu Tayee Tafara Agaa Tullu Bonus Tura Welbuma Ragasa Qalbesa
Security Forces Fire On, Beat Students Protesting Plan to Expand Capital Boundaries
(Nairobi) – Ethiopian security forces should cease using excessive force against students peacefully protesting plans to extend the boundaries of the capital, Addis Ababa. The authorities should immediately release students and others arbitrarily arrested during the protests and investigate and hold accountable security officials who are responsible for abuses.On May 6, 2014, the government will appear before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva for the country’s Universal Periodic Review of its human rights record.“Students have concerns about the fate of farmers and others on land the government wants to move inside Addis Ababa,” said Leslie Lefkow, deputy Africa director. “Rather than having its security forces attack peaceful protesters, the government should sit down and discuss the students’ grievances.”Since April 25, students have demonstrated throughout Oromia Regional State to protest the government’s plan to substantially expand the municipal boundaries of Addis Ababa, which the students feel would threaten communities currently under regional jurisdiction. Security forces have responded by shooting at and beating peaceful protesters in Ambo, Nekemte, Jimma, and other towns with unconfirmed reports from witnesses of dozens of casualties.Protests began at universities in Ambo and other large towns throughout Oromia, and spread to smaller communities throughout the region. Witnesses said security forces fired live ammunition at peaceful protesters in Ambo on April 30. Official government statements put the number of dead in Ambo at eight, but various credible local sources put the death toll much higher. Since the events in Ambo, the security forces have allegedly used excessive force against protesters throughout the region, resulting in further casualties. Ethiopian authorities have said there has been widespread looting and destruction of property during the protests.The protests erupted over the release in April of the proposed Addis Ababa Integrated Development Master Plan, which outlines plans for Addis Ababa’s municipal expansion. Under the proposed plan, Addis Ababa’s municipal boundary would be expanded substantially to include more than 15 communities in Oromia. This land would fall under the jurisdiction of the Addis Ababa City Administration and would no longer be managed by Oromia Regional State. Demonstrators have expressed concern about the displacement of Oromo farmers and residents on the affected land.|Ethiopia is experiencing an economic boom and the government has ambitious plans for further economic growth. This boom has resulted in a growing middle class in Addis Ababa and an increased demand for residential, commercial, and industrial properties. There has not been meaningful consultation with impacted communities during the early stages of this expansion into the surrounding countryside, raising concerns about the risk of inadequate compensation and due process protections to displaced farmers and residents. Oromia is the largest of Ethiopia’s nine regions and is inhabited largely by ethnic Oromos. The Oromos are Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group and have historically felt marginalized and discriminated against by successive Ethiopian governments. The city of Addis Ababa is surrounded on all sides by the Oromia region. Given very tight restrictions on independent media and human rights monitoring in Ethiopia, it is difficult to corroborate the government crackdown in Oromia. There is little independent media in Oromia to monitor these events, and foreign journalists who have attempted to reach demonstrations have been turned away or detained. Ethiopia has one of the most repressive media environments in the world. Numerous journalists are in prison, independent media outlets are regularly closed down, and many journalists have fled the country. Underscoring the repressive situation, the government on April 25 and 26 arbitrarily arrestednine bloggers and journalists in Addis Ababa. They remain in detention without charge. In addition, the Charities and Societies Proclamation, enacted in 2009, has severely curtailed the ability of independent human rights organizations to investigate and report on human rights abuses like the recent events in Oromia. “The government should not be able to escape accountability for abuses in Oromo because it has muzzled the media and human rights groups,” Lefkow said. Since Ethiopia’s last Universal Periodic Review in 2009 its human rights record has taken a significant downturn, with the authorities showing increasing intolerance of any criticism of the government and further restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression and association. The recent crackdown in Oromia highlights the risks protesters face and the inability of the media and human rights groups to report on important events. Ethiopian authorities should abide by the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, which provide that all security forces shall, as far as possible, apply nonviolent means before resorting to force. Whenever the lawful use of force is unavoidable, the authorities must use restraint and act in proportion to the seriousness of the offense. Law enforcement officials should not use firearms against people “except in self-defense or defense of others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury.” “Ethiopia’s heavy handed reaction to the Oromo protests is the latest example of the government’s ruthless response to any criticism of its policies,” Lefkow said. “UN member countries should tell Ethiopia that responding with excessive force against protesters is unacceptable and needs to stop.”
Oromo: Ethiopia Uses Force Against Peaceful Student Protesters
The Ethiopian government has used excessive force against students peacefully protesting the Government’s plans to expand the municipal boundaries of Addis Ababa, which would threaten the communities currently under regional jurisdiction, and would no longer be managed by Oromia Regional State. Demonstrators have expressed concern about the displacement of Oromo farmers and residents on the affected land. Below is an article published by Human Rights Watch: Ethiopian security forces should cease using excessive force against students peacefully protesting plans to extend the boundaries of the capital, Addis Ababa. The authorities should immediately release students and others arbitrarily arrested during the protests and investigate and hold accountable security officials who are responsible for abuses. On May 6, 2014, the government will appear before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva for the country’s Universal Periodic Review of its human rights record. “Students have concerns about the fate of farmers and others on land the government wants to move inside Addis Ababa,” said Leslie Lefkow, deputy Africa director. “Rather than having its security forces attack peaceful protesters, the government should sit down and discuss the students’ grievances.” Since April 25 [2014], students have demonstrated throughout Oromia Regional State to protest the government’s plan to substantially expand the municipal boundaries of Addis Ababa, which the students feel would threaten communities currently under regional jurisdiction. Security forces have responded by shooting at and beating peaceful protesters in Ambo, Nekemte, Jimma, and other towns with unconfirmed reports from witnesses of dozens of casualties. Protests began at universities in Ambo and other large towns throughout Oromia, and spread to smaller communities throughout the region. Witnesses said security forces fired live ammunition at peaceful protesters in Ambo on April 30 [2014]. Official government statements put the number of dead in Ambo at eight, but various credible local sources put the death toll much higher. Since the events in Ambo, the security forces have allegedly used excessive force against protesters throughout the region, resulting in further casualties. Ethiopian authorities have said there has been widespread looting and destruction of property during the protests. The protests erupted over the release in April of the proposed Addis Ababa Integrated Development Master Plan, which outlines plans for Addis Ababa’s municipal expansion. Under the proposed plan, Addis Ababa’s municipal boundary would be expanded substantially to include more than 15 communities in Oromia. This land would fall under the jurisdiction of the Addis Ababa City Administration and would no longer be managed by Oromia Regional State. Demonstrators have expressed concern about the displacement of Oromo farmers and residents on the affected land. Ethiopia is experiencing an economic boom and the government has ambitious plans for further economic growth. This boom has resulted in a growing middle class in Addis Ababa and an increased demand for residential, commercial, and industrial properties. There has not been meaningful consultation with impacted communities during the early stages of this expansion into the surrounding countryside, raising concerns about the risk of inadequate compensation and due process protections to displaced farmers and residents. Oromia is the largest of Ethiopia’s nine regions and is inhabited largely by ethnic Oromos. The Oromos are Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group and have historically felt marginalized and discriminated against by successive Ethiopian governments. The city of Addis Ababa is surrounded on all sides by the Oromia region. Given very tight restrictions on independent media and human rights monitoring in Ethiopia, it is difficult to corroborate the government crackdown in Oromia. There is little independent media in Oromia to monitor these events, and foreign journalists who have attempted to reach demonstrations have been turned away or detained. Ethiopia has one of the most repressive media environments in the world. Numerous journalists are in prison, independent media outlets are regularly closed down, and many journalists have fled the country. Underscoring the repressive situation, the government on April 25 [2014] and 26 [2014] arbitrarily arrested nine bloggers and journalists in Addis Ababa. They remain in detention without charge. In addition, the Charities and Societies Proclamation, enacted in 2009, has severely curtailed the ability of independent human rights organizations to investigate and report on human rights abuses like the recent events in Oromia. “The government should not be able to escape accountability for abuses in Oromo because it has muzzled the media and human rights groups,” Lefkow said. Since Ethiopia’s last Universal Periodic Review in 2009 its human rights record has taken a significant downturn, with the authorities showing increasing intolerance of any criticism of the government and further restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression and association. The recent crackdown in Oromia highlights the risks protesters face and the inability of the media and human rights groups to report on important events. Ethiopian authorities should abide by the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, which provide that all security forces shall, as far as possible, apply nonviolent means before resorting to force. Whenever the lawful use of force is unavoidable, the authorities must use restraint and act in proportion to the seriousness of the offense. Law enforcement officials should not use firearms against people “except in self-defense or defense of others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury.” “Ethiopia’s heavy handed reaction to the Oromo protests is the latest example of the government’s ruthless response to any criticism of its policies,” Lefkow said. “UN member countries should tell Ethiopia that responding with excessive force against protesters is unacceptable and needs to stop.” See more at: http://www.unpo.org/article/17121#sthash.fL16bpV8.dpuf
HRLHA Urgent Action
May 1, 2014
The human rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) would like to express its deepest concern over the widespread brutalities of the Ethiopian Government in handling protests in different parts of the regional state of Oromia by peaceful demonstrators. In a heavy-handed crackdown being carried out by the federal armed squad called Agazi, which is infamously known for its cruelty against innocent civilians particularly during such public protests, 16 (sixteen) Oromo students have so far been shot dead in the town of Ambo alone and scores of others have been wounded, according to HRLHA correspondents in the area. The victims of the brutal attacks were not only from Federal Police brutality in Ambo town among those who were out protesting in the streets, but also among those who stayed behind on university campuses. Hundreds of others have also been arrested, loaded on police trucks, and taken to unknown destinations.
Although the brutalities of the armed squad and the resultant fatalities happened to be very high in Ambo Town, the peaceful protests by Oromo students of different universities and faculties have been taking place in the past couple of days in various towns and cities of Oromia including Diredawa and Adama in eatern Oromia, as well as Jimma, Mettu, Naqamte, Gimbi, and Dambidollo in western Oromia.
The Oromo students in all those and other universities took to the streets for peaceful demonstrations in protest to the recently made decision by the Federal EPRDF/TPLF- led Government to expand the city of Finfinnee/Addis Ababa by uprooting and displacing hundreds of thousands of Oromos from all sorts of livelihoods, and annexing about 36 surrounding towns of Oromia, the ultimate goal of which is claimed to be re- drawing the map of the Oromia Region. The federal annexation plan, which was termed as “The Integrated Development Master Plan”, is said to be covering the towns of Dukem, Gelan, Legetafo, Sendafa, Sululta, Burayu, Holeta, Sebeta, and others, stretching the boundary of Finfinne/Addis Ababa to about 1.1million hectares – an area of 20 times its current size.
The Oromo protesters claim that the decision was in violation of both the regional and federal constitutions that guarantee the ownership, special interests and benefits of the Oromo Nation over Finfinne/Addis Ababa. Similar unlawful and unconstitutional action taken at different times in the past fifteen and twenty years have already resulted in the dispossessions of lands and displacements of hundreds of thousands of Oromos farmers and business owners from around the city of Finfinne, forcing them into unemployment and day labourer.
The HRLHA has been able to obtain the names of the following students from among those who have been shot dead, wounded, and/or arrested and taken away:
No Name Gender University & Department
1 Falmata Bayecha M Jimma, Medicine 5th year 2 Galana Ababa M Jimma, Governance 3rd year 3 Zabana Barasa M Jimma, Oromo Folklore 3rd year 4 Getacho Darajje M Jimma, Governance 3rd year 5 Isra’el Habtamu M Jimma 6 Husen Umar M Jimma 7 Ababa Kumsa M Wallagga 8 Abdisa Nagasa M Wallagga 9 Tashome Dawit M Wallagga 10 Gexe Tafari F Wallagga
By so doing, the Ethiopian Government violates the property rights of peoples, which is clearly described both in local and international agreements including the Ethiopia constitution of 1995 article 40(3). While strongly condemning the brutality of the Ethiopian Government against its own people, specifically the youth, HRLHA would like to once again express its deep concerns regarding the whereabouts as well as safety of the students who have been taken into custody in relation to this protest.
HRLHA calls up on the Ethiopian Government to immediately stop shooting at and killed unarmed peaceful protestors who are attempting to exercise some of their fundamental rights and freedom of expression; and unconditionally release the detained students. We also request that the Ethiopian Government bring to justice the security agents who have committed criminal offences against own citizens by violating domestic and international human rights norms. HRLHA also calls up on regional and international diplomatic, democratic, and human rights agencies to challenge the Ethiopian TPLF/EPRDF government on its persistent brutal, dictatorial, and suppressive actions against innocent and unarmed civilians.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to the Ethiopian Government and its concerned officials as swiftly as possible, in English, Ahmaric, or your own language expressing:
Your concerns over at the apprehension hundreds of students, and fear of torture of the citizens who are being held in Ma’ikelawi Central Investigation Office and other detention centers since February, 2011 to present at different times, and calling for their immediate and unconditional release;
Urging the authorities of Ethiopia to ensure that these detainees are treated in accordance with regional and international standards on the treatment of prisoners,
Urging the Ethiopian Government to disclose whereabouts of the detainees and,
Your concerns to diplomatic representatives of Ethiopia accredited to your respective countries,
Send Your Concerns to
His Excellency: Mr. Haila Mariam Dessalegn – Prime Minister of Ethiopia P.O.Box – 1031 Addis Ababa Telephone – +251 155 20 44; +251 111 32 41 Fax – +251 155 20 30 , +251 15520
Office of Oromiya National Regional State President Office Telephone – 0115510455
• Office of the Ministry of Justice of Ethiopia PO Box 1370, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Fax: +251 11 5517775; +251 11 5520874 Email: ministry- justice@telecom.net.et
UNESCO Headquarters Paris. 7, place de Fontenoy 75352 Paris 07 SP France 1, rue Miollis 75732 Paris Cedex 15 France General phone: +33 (0)1 45 68 10 00 http://www.unesco.org
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO)- Africa Department 7 place Fontenoy,75352 Paris 07 SP France General phone: +33 (0)1 45 68 10 00 Website:http://www.unesco.org/new/en/africa-department/
UNESCO AFRICA RIGIONAL OFFICE MR.JOSEPH NGU Director
UNESCO Office in Abuja Mail: j.ngu(at)unesco.org Tel: +251 11 5445284 Fax: +251 11 5514936
Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights United Nations Office at Geneva 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland Fax: + 41 22 917 9022 (particularly for urgent matters) E-mail: tb-petitions@ohchr.org this e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Office of the UNHCR Telephone: 41 22 739 8111 Fax: 41 22 739 7377 Po Box: 2500 Geneva, Switzerland
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) 48 Kairaba Avenue, P.O.Box 673, Banjul, The Gambia. Tel: (220) 4392 962 , 4372070, 4377721 – 23 Fax: (220) 4390 764 E-mail: achpr@achpr.org
Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights
Council of Europe F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, FRANCE + 33 (0)3 88 41 34 21 + 33 (0)3 90 21 50 53 Contact us by email
U.S. Department of State Laura Hruby
Ethiopia Desk Officer U.S. State Department HrubyLP@state.gov Tel: (202) 647-6473
Amnesty International – London Claire Beston Claire Beston” <claire.beston@amnesty.org>,
Human Rights Watch Felix Hor “Felix Horne” <hornef@hrw.org>
Mekonnen Hirphaa, Civil Engineering student killed at Madda Walabuu University, Robe.
Since Ethiopia’s Tigrean Peoples Liberation Front apartheid army massacred over 52 people and injured as many on April 30th in Ambo town, confirmed killings have spiraled to 85, including 5 students killed, in Dambi Dollo town in Western Oromia today. Eyewitnesses told Oromo Press, 1 female student and 4 others were gunned down in Dambi Dollo on May 6 during a peaceful protest against the Addis Ababa Master Plan, which aims to evict 10 million Oromo farmers from Finfinne and surrounding towns and villages. Students were chanting, “Oromia will not be sold,” when they were indiscriminately fired on by Ethiopia’s army. 30 students are reported injured from live ammunition and excessive tear gas application.
Kumala Gudisa Bali, who was shot in Ambo, on April 30th and transported to Finfinne (Addis Ababa) for hospitalization, also died today at Black Lion Hospital.
Kumala Gudisa Bali, 1 of 52 massacred in Ambo
Many of students who were killed were shot multiple times on the head, neck and on the chest proving the brutality of the ethnically-pure Tigirean Agazi military unit. Other brutal methods of killings include hurling grenades into a crowd of students in soccer fields–one person died this way and 70 were injured this way at Haromaya University. Some members of the federal police gauged out eyes of some Oromos under arrest uttering ethno-racial slurs and “you will never see again.”
In a related breaking news from Fiche town, in north central Oromia, schools are shut down and surrounded by TPLF Ethiopia’s army. Witnesses saw at least 50 people, including students, teachers and residents being loaded and whisked away in military convoys. The students at Fiche were not even protesting when the army falsely told them that they were there to detonate a bomb and an explosive buried in the school compounds.
Ethiopia’s TPLF government is disarming Oromia regional police and replacing them with the more loyal and ethnically-pure TPLF soldiers and federal police. Oromia Times confirmed the imprisonment of “4 Oromia police commanders for refusal to order the use of lethal forces” against civilians and students. The Oromo police commanders were Lieutenants: Tadesse Legesse Gemechu, Habtamu Ragassa, Ayana Milkessa, and Alemu Kitessa Sanyi.
As many reporters, including BBC’s Mary Harper rightly observe: “it is very, very difficult for information to come out showing just how the authorities there are very repressive.”
Even human rights organizations with better resources, including Human Rights Watch, have been unable to get the exact numbers of students and civilians killed, injured and imprisoned in Oromia over the last 13 days. The general consensus, however, is that excessive force is being used by Ethiopia’s army to respond to peaceful student protesters demanding an end to ethnic-cleansing under the guise of urban development and city expansion.
The following is a statement from the International Oromo Youth Association (IOYA).
——————— May 1, 2014 Oromo students in Ethiopia are currently facing assault, imprisonment, and death due to the mass protests in Universities against the “Integrated Development Master Plan, “also known as the, “Addis Master Plan” The proposed plan aims to expand the current territory of Ethiopia’s capital by evicting and displacing thousands, if not millions of Oromo peasants from their lands. Student protestors are opposing the eviction of peasants from their lands and illegal expansion at the expense of indigenous people. Students at multiple universities including Jimma, Wollo, Haramaya, Ambo, Wollega, Metu, Bolu Hora, Adama, Maddawalabu and Dire Dawa University campuses continue to express their concerns through ongoing peaceful protests. On April 29, 2014, an estimated 25,000 people in Ambo marched in the streets of Oromia in opposition to the government’s plan. In an attempt to intimidate and deter further protests, Ethiopian security forces responded with gunfire and killed several students, leaving many others injured. To date, the numbers of deaths are still rising and Security forces are sent into various cities to silence further protests. The current crackdown on innocent students is no surprise to the international community. The Ethiopian government has been silencing dissenting voices by violently intimidating, killing, and torturing those who dare question or oppose its policies. Local reports indicate that the protests will continue so long as the Ethiopian government ignores the basic constitutional and free speech rights of the Oromo people. The atrocities and dehumanization of Oromo students must be stopped. Ethiopia continues to devalue basic human rights of the Oromo people and we cannot affirm their policies by staying silent. Our organization as a collective will be making a campaign video to raise awareness about the issue unfolding in the Oromia Region. We are asking for other communities to follow in solidarity and demand their respective communities to condemn atrocities being committed against students in Oromia. IOYA calls upon all Oromo and all human rights organizations to write letters to the international community and publicly stand in solidarity with the protesters right to condemn land eviction, displacement and disregard for regional constitutional rights. Sincerely, International Oromo Youth Association Website: www.ioya.org
Massacre of Peaceful Demonstrators- Perpetual Habit of TPLF RegimeOLF Press Release The level of repression and exploitation exacted by the successive regimes of Ethiopia on the subject peoples under their rule in general and the Oromo people in particular has been so unbearable that the people are in constant revolt. It has also been the case that, instead of providing peaceful resolution to a demand peacefully raised, the successive regimes have opted to violently suppress by daylight massacre, detention and torture, looting, evicting and forcing them to leave the country. Hundreds of students have been dismissed from their learning institutions. This revolt, spearheaded by the Oromo youth in general and the students in particular, has currently transformed into an Oromia wide total popular uprising.The response of the regime has, however, remained the same except this time adding the fashionable camouflage pretext of terrorism and heightened intensity of the repression. This has been the case in Ambo,MaddaWalabou,DambiDoolloo,Naqamte,Geedoo,HorrooGuduruu,BaaleeandCiroo in Oromia;andMaqaleeinTigray aswellGojjam in Amhara region, by the direct order fromtheTigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF) leaders in the last 22 years.Tens of peaceful demonstrators, including children under the age of 10,have been massacred in Ambo,MaddaWalabou yesterday April 30, 2014. Hand grenades have been deliberately thrown on student demonstrators in AmboandHaramaya Universities causing several death and serious wounds.Morehave been detained. Indiscriminate severe beating, including elderly, women and children by Federal Police and militia, is widespread.TheOLF condemnsthe perpetration of these atrocities and holds, the Prime Minister of the regime, the army, federal police and security chiefs, directly responsible for these crimes selectively targeting the Oromo, who peacefully presented their legitimate demands.TheOLF renews its call on the Oromo nationals who are serving in the armed forces of this regime not only to refrain from partaking in this crime against their parents, siblings and children; but also to resist and stand in defense of their kin and kith and other civilians.We call upon the Oromo people both inside and outside the country, to realize that wehave been pushed to the limit. The only way out of this and to redeem the agony visited upon us for the past is to fight back in unison. We specially call upon you in the Diaspora to act on behalf of your brethren, who are under siege, and urge the nations who host you to discharge their responsibility as government anda community of human beings towards thelong suffering Oromo and otherpeoples under the criminalTPLF regime.We urge again and again that the international community, human rights and organizations and governments for democracy to use their influence and do all they can to stop the ongoing atrocity against the Oromo people. Failure to act immediately will be tantamount to condoning.Victory to the Oromo People!Oromo Liberation Front May 01,2014ABO:HumnaWaraanaanHiriiraNagaaUkkaamsuunIttiFufaGochaaMootummaaWayyaaneWagga 22tiIbsaABOirraakennameHacuuccaa fisaaminsisirnootaabbootiiirreesirnootadarabeenItophiyaabitanbifa addaaddaangaggeeffamuummatootaItophiyaaadddattiammooummataOromooirraanmiidhaandhaqqabsiisesadarkaa hinobsamnedhaqqabuuirraaummatniOromoogaaffiimirgaa fidimokraasiikaasuudhaanwaggootadheeraafqabsoottijira.QabsoonummatniOromoosirnabittootaairrattiadeemsisaaturee fijirukunis har’a sadarkaa olaanaattitarkaanfateeguutuuOromiyaakeessattigarafincilaummataattijijjiiramee argama.Haa tahumaleemootummootniItophiyaagaaffiiummatniOromookaraanagaadhiheeffatu dhaga’anii furmaataittigochuuirrahumnaanukkaamsuu kanfilatantahuundhugaairra deddeebi’ee mul’ate dha.QabsoohaqaaummatniOromooittijiruufdeebisabarbaachisukeennuuirra “farranagaa, farramisoomaa,shororkeessota fikkfjechuunjumulaanajjeesuu,hidhuu,tumuu fibiyyaabaqachiisuuntarkaanfiileemootummootniItophiyaafudhataaturanii fijirani dha.Yeroo ammaa kanabarattootnii fidargaggootniOromooakkasumasummtniOromiyaaguutuukeessattigaaffiimirgaakaasuunhiriira nagaaadeemsisaajirankeessattideebiinargataajiranakkumaadeeffatamegaaffiibarattootaaofittifudhatuundeebiikennuuirrahaalasuukanneessanajjeechaa,reebicha fihidhaatahaajira.TarkaanfiiajajahogganootasirnaWayyaaneenhumnawaraanaaamanamaasirnichaanilmaanii fiummataOromooirrattifudhatamaajiruunlammiiwwanOromoo kanijoolleenumrii10nigadiikeessattiargamanAmboo,MaddaWalaabuu fibakkootabiroottikudhanootaanajjeefamaniijiran.Amboo fi UniversityHaromayaakeessattiboombiileedargaggotaa fiummataharkaqullaairratidhoosuungaraajabinaanlubbuundhabamsiifamaajira.Hedduun manahidhaattigatamaniiru.Jaarsaa fijaartii,guddaa fixiqqaaosoo hinjennereebichiummataOromoobakkayyuuttiirragahaajirusukanneessaa dha.TarkaanfiifudhatamaajirukunisittifufaajjeechaabarattootaOromoogaaffiimirgaakaasuuirraa Ambo,DambiDoolloo,Naqamte,Geedoo,HorrooGuduruu,Baalee,Ciroo fiOromiyaanalattisTigrayMaqalee fiGojjamkeessattiajjeefamaa fijumulaanmanneenbarnootaakeessaa ari’amaa turanii ti.ABOn gaaffiihaqaaummatnikaasaajiruufdeebiigahaakennuuirratarkaanfiisuukanneessaamootummaaWayyaaneenfudhatamaa kanjirujabeesseebalaaleffata. Tarkaanfiigarajabinaahumnaaddaawaraanaa,poolisaFederaalaa fihidhattootaanfudhatamaajiru kanaajajuu firaawwachiisuukeessattikanneenqoodaqaban,MuummichiMinistaraasirnichaa,ajajaanhumnawaraanaa figaafatamaantikaamootummaaWayyaaneegaafatamootahuu hubachiisa.Kanatti dabalees ABOnilmaanOromoohumnawaraanaa fipoolisaakeessattiargaman kanajjeefamaa,hidhamaa fitumamaajiranabbootii,haawwanii fiobboleewwanisaaniitahuuhubatuuntarkaanfiihammeenyaa fidiinummaa fudhatamaajiru kanakeessattiakkaqooda hinfudhanneqofaosoo hintaaneakka duradhaabbatanirra deebi’eewaamicha dhiheessaaf.Ummatni Oromookeessaa fi alajiruammaanboodagidaarattidhiibameefilmaatadhorkamee kanmayiiirraagahuuhubateeharkaawalqabateemirgaisaafalmatuu figumaakanneenwaggaa 22darbanajjeefamaabahanii fiammasgaraalaafinamaleejumulaanajjeefamaajiraniiseeraanistahekaraa danda’amu hundaanakkafalamtuwaamichakeenyacimsineedabarsina.Addattikanneen alajirtansagaleeummata kanadhageessisuufakkasochootani fidirqamasabummaakeessanbaatan waamichagooana.Hawaasni addunyaa, dhaabbattootni mirga namoomaaf dhaabbatanii fi jaarmayootni mirga dimokraasiif falman hundis tarkaanfii mootummaan abbaa irree ummata fayyaaleyyii gaaffii mirgaa fi dimokraasii kaasan irratti fudhataa jiru farra dimokraasii tahuu hubatuun gochaa isaa hatattamaan akka dhaabuuf dhiibbaa barbaachisu akka godhan ABOn hubachiisa. Gochaa kana callisanii ilaaluun gochaa kana eebbisuu keessaa qooda fudhatuu tahuu ABO deddeebisee hubachisa.Injifannoo Ummata Oromoof!Adda Bilisumma Oromoo!
OLF Statement | Ibsa ABO: Massacre of Peaceful Demonstrators- Perpetual Habit of TPLF Regime
Partial lists of Oromo students of Adama University kidnapped by Agazi and the whereabouts are not know: As of 3rd May 2014 The total number of Oromo students and residents of Adama city reached over 100. Barattoota University Adaamaa Kaleessa Guyyaa 5/1/2014 Mana Hidhaatti Guuran Keessaa Kan Ammaaf Maqaa Isaanii Arganne Armaan Gaditti Laalaa… 1.ebisa maliika Nuruu 2.Musxafa kadir siraji 3.bulitu wadaju bulitum 4.bilisuma lamii agaa 5.ifabas burisho Nuruu 6.tullu bonus tura 7.tayee tafara agaa 8.fanitale faru qarisuu 9.didaa ahimad ibiroo 10.odaa damis bonjaa 11.calla galan dabiso 12.marga tuffa qiliixu 13.shibiru tariku falqaa 14.dani’eli adimasu tamsigen 15.etihafa tuffa soraa 16.bonsa badhadha bati 17.fayisa girma biramu 18.dane aboo bushira 19.nuho gudata irre 20.abidal hussen julio 21.walbum ragasa qalibesa 22.lami marga gabiru 23.lelisa aynisa marga 24.humin’esa miliki falta 25.magris banita sodaa 26.gada dinqa bayisa 27.tashom baqal sabbatical 28.abirahmi makonin ararisu 29.takalinyi katam baharu 30.abenzari hagaye yuhanis 31.amnu’el buriqa daniq 32.duni hussen walbu 33.andu’alami xilahun almayo 34.ayantu jalta mishap 35.sidise Jara 36.iliyas ishetu Ibisa 37.tadalu mamo baca 38.ibrahami musan awal 39.muktar jeyilan sa’edi 40.datamo fayer shifa#Oromoprotests the following students have been arrested Monday 12th May 2014 morning at Adama University. 1) Fawaz Ahmad Usman.Mechanical, Engineering, 3rd yr 2) Obsa Juwar, Management 2nd yr 3) Lencho (las name unidentified) Electrical and Computer Engineering, 2nd yr.
Their classmates are unable to locate where they were taken after being arrested 36 Oromo Students Arrested by TPLF Ethiopian Regime As Part of Ongoing Violent Crash of the #OromoProtests FDG Posted: Caamsaa/May 12, 2014 · www.gadaa.com Breaking News reaching our desk: an estimated 36 Oromo students have been arrested by the TPLF Ethiopian regime in Haro Limu (Eastern Wallaggaa, Oromia) over the last week. These arrests are in addition to the several hundred others being carried out across Oromia by the TPLF Ethiopian regime to crash the ongoing Oromo Students #OromoProtests FDG Movement.
The Oromo Students #OromoProtests FDG Movement opposes the implementation of the Addis Ababa Master “Genocide” Plan, and demands the institutionalization of the Special Interests of the State of Oromiyaa over Finfinnee as per the Constitution. In addition, as the TPLF Ethiopian regime has resorted to violence to resolve the demands of #OromoProtests FDG, the Movement seeks justice for the slain Oromos and release of those arrested by the TPLF regime.
Godina Iluu Abbaa Booraa, Aanaa Beddellee Magaala BEDDELLEE keessatti mootummaan wayyaanee yeroo ammaa kana barattoota Oromoo baay’ee isaanii badii tokko malee hidhuu fi reebuu itti fufee jira. Guyyaa gaafa kamisa, 01/05/2014 barattoota qabanii hanga ammaatti maatin wal argaa dhorkamani jiran keessa kannen maqaa jaraa bira geenye kan armaan gadiiti. 1. Barataa MANSUUR KAMAAL kutaa 10ffaa Mana barumsaa Ingibii sadarka 2ffaa magaala Beddele ira 2. Barataa MUJAAHID JAMAAL kutaa 12 ffaa mana barumsaa S/2ffaa fi Qophaa’ina magaalaa Beddele irraa 3. Barataa KAMAAL kan jedhamu maqa abba isaa kan nu qaqqabne yo ta’u, kutaa 10ffaa Mana barumsaa Ingibii sadarka 2ffaa magaala Beddele irraa kan baratudha. Kanneen biroo yeroo maqaa isaanii argannu sinii ibsina. QABSOON ITTI FUFA. Qerroo Magaala Beddellee irraa! Post nuf godha. #OromoProtests #OromoProtests This is horrible! Yesterday (7th May 2014) night (local time reference) two young males are reportedly found dead, Nekemte town, one around the area knows as mirtizer and the other around board. According to an eye witness regarding the later body: today early morning, on the newly constructed cobble stone road taking from board down towards celeleki, in front of Bethel KG school, a body watched by very few people and with no ID card was taken by police who said nothing but drive their car towards where they came from, pocket road towards kuteba! #OromoProtests8th May 201- The following students have been arrested and remain in jail in Galamso (W. Hararge) due to the protest that took place few days ago. They are kept at the ‘karchale’.
#OromoProtests: Over the last several days we have been hearing from observers and officers that Oromia police ( both regular and special) has been disarmed, particular in areas where protest took place. This decision seems to have come following the decision by Oromia police not disperse protesters at Madda Walabu University. Since then Federal police and Agazi forces did not only take over security response but also have been seen in many cities using vehicles marked Oromia Police (Poolisii Oromiyaa). More over, Oromia police commanders are not included in the ‘ Emergency Command Post’ created to suppress and contain the protest. The so called Command Post was first established at regional level now extend to all zones. Representatives of Oromia Police are not found in any of these command posts. The security slot in these Commands are filled with federal police commanders, intelligence officers and military personnel ( More in this soon).
Also note that almost all cases of clashes and use of lethal force happened where federal police/ Agazi special military contingent was deployed. The two pictures show Oromia Police monitoring protest without violence. The other picture show federal police riding in Oromia Police vehicle with heavy machine gun mounted. #OromoProtests– picture of Darartu Abdata, student and head Oromo Students Cultural Association at Dire Dawa University who has been isolated from the rest of the student population and kept incommunicado. Its feared she might subjected to torture and other harm. #OromoProtests Oromo student Wabii Tilahun, 2nd year Afan Oromo student at Ambo University kidnapped by Agazi, his where about is not known.Micaan Kun Wabii Xilahn Jedhama Barata Afan Oromoo Waggaa 2 ffaa Godina Wallagaa Baha Aana limmuu dhufee Umatii Magaala Kana Osoo Ijaa Keessaa Ilaaluu kitabaa isaa 700 Maxxaanfmee Osoo Hin Gurguramiin Hafe Hidha hin hiikamnee jedhuu Waliin Fudhanii Deemaan Hospital Mana Hidha Amboo Keessaa Akkaa Hin Jirreee Biraa Geenyee Jirraa. Essaa Akkaa Busaan ni Wallaallee!!!!! Iyii iyaa dabarsii yaa Ilmaan Oromoo!!! Magarsaa Worku, Oromo student of Haromaya University, kidnapped by Agazi #OromoProtests- OBALAYAAN KOO AKKA GARII HUBADHAA DUBISSAA ! INNII KUNI BARAATAA UNIVERSITY HAROO MAYA DHA TII MAQAAN ISSAA MAGARSSA WORKUU DHAA. GAFAA MORMII DIDAA GARBRUMMAA JALQAABEE SAN ISSAA KANATUU XALAAYAA GAFII HAYYAMAA HIRIRAA BAHUU KAN BARESSEE WAJIRALEE DHIMAA LALCHIFTUU HUNDAA KAN AKKA MOTUMMAA FEDERAL FI MANA CAFEE OROMIYAA FI WAJIRALEE BAHA OROMIYAA POLIS KOMISHIONERA FI WARA ILALCHIISSUU HUNDAA HARKKA ISSAN GALCHEE KAN GAFATEE TAHUU ISSA ISSIINII IBSAA.DUBAA ARAA BARATOOTAA SII FINCILSSISE JECHUU DHAN MIRGA BARATOOTAAF WAAN FALMATEE JECHUU DHAA MOTUUMAAN WAYANEE FARA NAGAYA BORESSITUU JECHUU DHAAN QABANII MANA HIDHAA SHINILE YKN KARSHALE DHIMAA WARA SIYASSA ITII MANA DUKKANA DACHII JALAA GALCHANII KOOBAA ISSA GUYAA MAY 10/2014 GANAMAA MAGALA DIRE DAWATII HIDHAMEE.MAGARSSA WORKU ARAA MANA HIDHA DACHII JALAA SHINELE DIRE DAWA ITII HIDHAA JIRAA.FREE MAGARSSA WORK .NO FREEDOM OF SPEECH IN ETHIOPIA
#OromoProtests this is Ababa Tilahun, a 2nd yr statistics student who was injured during an explosion at Haromaya University. Doctors at Hiwot Fana Hospital complain that police harassment and interference is hindering provision of proper medical aid to students.Kun Abbabaa Xilaahun, barataa waggaa istaatistiksii waggaa lammafati. Bombii magaalaa Haroomaayatti dhoo’een madaaye. Doktoroonni Hospitaala Hiwoot Faanaa doorsisni poolisootaan nurra gahaa jiru tajaajila fayyaa bifa tasgabbayeen kennuu nu hanqise jedhuun komatu.
Its killings, imprisonment, and all illegal acts of atrocities immediately,
Respect the constitution of the land (article 49/5) and terminate the so called “Integrated Development Addis Ababa Master Plan.”
Respect the rule of law and bring those who committed extrajudicial killings to court
Release all political prisoners, journalists and prisoners of conscience without any prerequisite.
All concerned NGOs are also kindly requested to come to the assistance of the people that become victims of the current siution in the country. 02 May 2014 Addis Ababa Seal: http://ethiomedia.com/16file/4559.html
Statements on the Massacre of Oromo youth by TPLF regime in Ethiopia
(OPride) — Ethiopia is gripped by widespread student demonstrations, which has so far left at least 47 people dead, several injured and hundreds arrested, according to locals. In a statement on April 30, the government put the death toll at 11. About 70 students were seriously wounded in a separate bomb blast at Haramaya University in eastern Oromia on April 29, the statement added. The protests began last month after ethnic Oromo students voiced concerns over a plan by Addis Ababa’s municipal authorities, which aims to expand the city’s borders deep into Oromia state annexing a handful of surrounding towns and villages. Ethiopia’s brutal federal special forces, known as Liyyu police, responded to nonviolent protests harshly, including with live bullets fired at close range at unarmed students. The government’s brutal crackdown swelled the ranks of demonstrators as defiant students turned out around the country expressing their outrage. Ethiopia maintains a tight grip on the free flow of information; journalists are often detained under flimsy charges. Given the difficulty of getting any information out of the country, it is very difficult to fully grasp the extent, prevalence, and background of the latest standoff. Here are ten basic questionsabout the protests:
Who are the Oromo?
The Oromo are Ethiopia’s single largest ethnic group, constituting close to 40 percent of the country’s 94 million population. Despite their numerical majority, the Oromo have historically faced economic, social and political marginalization in Ethiopia. Theoretically, this changed in 1991, when Ethiopia’s ruling party deposed Mengistu Hailemariam’s communist regime. The transitional government set up by a coalition of rebel groups endorsed ethnic federalism as a compromise solution for the country’s traumatic history. The charter, which established the new government, divided the country into nine linguistic-based states, including Oromia — the Oromo homeland. Covering an area of almost 32 percent of the country, Oromia is Ethiopia’s largest state both in terms of landmass and population. Endowed with natural resources, it is sometimes dubbed as “Ethiopia’s breadbasket .” Want to know more? Here is a handy guide: http://www.gadaa.com/thepeople.html
What are the Oromo students protesting exactly?
In a nutshell, the protesters oppose the mass eviction of poor farmers that are bound to follow the territorial expansion of Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. Addis Ababa is a busy city that’s been rapidly expanding over the last decade — dispossessing and rendering many a poor farmer into beggars and daily laborers. Last month, in an apparent effort to improve the city’s global competitiveness and accommodate its growing middle-class, city officials unveiled what they call an “Integrated Development Master Plan,” which would guide the city’s growth over the next 25 years. But Ethiopia’s constitution places Addis Ababa in a peculiar position where it is at once a federal city and a regional capital for Oromia. While the city’s horizontal growth has always been contentious, this is the first attempt to alter its territorial boundaries.The actions by the authorities raise several disturbing questions. First, how does a jurisdiction annex another constitutionally created jurisdiction without any due process? What does this say about the sanctity of Ethiopia’s federalism? What arrangements were made to mitigate the mass eviction of poor farmers that accompanied previous expansions? Oromo students say the “master plan” is meant to de-Oromonize the city and push Oromo people further into the margins. But there’s also a long history behind it.
The Oromo, original inhabitants of the land, have social, economic and historical ties to the city. Addis Ababa, which they call Finfinne, was conquered through invasion in 19th century. Since its founding, the city grew by leaps and bounds. But the expansion came at the expense of local farmers whose livelihoods and culture was uprooted in the process. At the time of its founding, the city grew “haphazardly ” around the imperial palace, residences of other government officials and churches. Later, population and economic growth invited uncontrolled development of high-income, residential areas — still almost without any formal planning. While the encroaching forces of urbanization pushed out many Oromo farmers to surrounding towns and villages, those who remained behind were forced to learn a new language and embrace a city that did not value their existence. The city’s rulers then sought to erase the historical and cultural values of its indigenous people, including through the changing of original Oromo names.
Ethnic Oromo students at various universities around the country sparked the protests. It has now spread to high school and middle schools in the Oromia region. A handful of those killed in the last few days have been identified. Media is a state monopoly in Ethiopia. There is not a single independent media organization — in any platform — covering the state of Oromia. For this and other reasons, we may never know the identity of many of these victims. But thanks to social media, gruesome photographs of some students who sustained severe wounds from beating and gunshots have been circulating around social media. Here are few names and images (view these at your own discretion):http://gadaa.com/oduu/25751/2014/05/02/in-review-photos-from-the-oromoprotests-against-the-addis-ababa-master-plan-and-for-the-rights-of-oromiyaa-over-finfinne
Are the protests related to the recent arrest of bloggers and journalists?
Yes and no. Yes, the struggle for justice and freedom in Ethiopia is intractably intertwined as our common humanity. So long as the ruling party maintains its tight grip on power, the destiny of Ethiopia’s poor — of all shades and political persuasions — is one and the same. Oromo students are being killed and harassed for voicing their concerns. Ethiopian bloggers and journalists are jailed for speaking out against an ever-deepening authoritarianism. As the Martin Luther King once said, regardless of our ethnic and political differences, “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” This is much closer to home. No, technically because the bloggers were not part of the protests opposing Addis Ababa’s expansion. But we would go on a limb to suggest that they would have been the first to show a moral support and chime in on social media. Their past conducts suggest as much.
But the government says the plan is still open to public consultations
NAIROBI (HAN) March 31. 2016. Public Diplomacy & Regional Security News- “I prefer death to detention at Maekelawi,” prominent opposition leader Bekele Gerba has told a court after enduring appalling conditions in one of the chambers of hell at the notorious Maekelawi Prison in the Ethiopian capital.
The prison cell is sardine-packed: 30 prisoners in a 10×10 meter area. Because it is too crowded, respiration coupled with body heat drips back onto the prisoners from the ceiling. No need to divulge details of the hell-on-earth place called “Maekelawi” prison, where prominent political prisoners from the recent protests in Oromia are being held.
The horrible conditions led Bekele and other top OFC leaders to lauch a hunger strike, and on the fifth day on Sunday, when most of them were in critical health conditions, a small change was introduced: the number of occupants in Bekele’s cell was cut down to 17. Better than before but still brutal.
According to OFC Deputy chairperson, Mulatu Gemechu, prominent Oromo individuals who are at Maekelawi are Bekele Gerba, Dejene Taffa, Desta Dinka, Gurmesa Ayano, Addisu Bulala, Dereje Merga and Alemu Abdisa
This small area was so crowded not only with the human occupants but also personal belongings as well as sanitation goodies for the occupants who are not allowed to get air except very short timeouts at dawn and dusk.
Political prisoners suffer not only for torture or life in extremely appalling prison conditions. They are also handed lengthy appointments so that they would break down psychologically. The court has adjourned the prisoners case for another 28 days.
In another development, Mulatu said an unprecedented crackdown on Oromo people was in full swing throughout Oromia, and the mass arrests came in despite Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn’s recent speech sounded promising for the suffering majority. However, on the ground, a brutal massive crackdown is under way as the following list shows:
1. Shashemene, Western Arsi – Close to 1200 people have been taken away as prisoners and no one knows their whereabouts.
2. Chiro, Western Hararghe – Between 800 to 1000 people were hauled away by nine trucks. No one knows their whereabouts.
3. Gujji Zone – 150 people taken away.
4. Ambo, Western Shoa – 103 people taken away
5. Gimbi, Western Wellega – 60 people were arrested and taken to an unknown destination.
6. Qelem, Wellega – 54 people taken away.
7. Horo Gudru, Wellega – 39 people were taken away in one night.
8. Burayu (near Addis) – Two individuals taken away to an unknown destination.
Though Ethiopia is hemmoraging from the political crisis, the government is trying to use the prevalent “drought and famine” as a cover to wipe out dissent in Oromia and beyond.
The 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index clearly shows that corruption remains a blight around the world. But 2015 was also a year when people again took to the streets to protest corruption. People across the globe sent a strong signal to those in power: it is time to tackle grand corruption.
José Ugaz, Chair, Transparency International
Ethiopia is listed among the countries in the world where corruption highly prevails. According to Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index, Ethiopia ranks 103 out of 168 countries and territories included in this year’s index.This doesn’t come as a surprise to many as Ethiopia has been for two decades under the control of a bunch of corrupt officials who are deafening us with the ‘11% economic growth’ mantra while millions of Ethiopians are starving to death.These corrupt officials are killing, torturing and imprisoning citizens in hundreds and thousands because they challenged their corrupt attitudes and their endless greed for wealth and power.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn confers with President Barack Obama
“Badessa” was a third-year engineering student in western Ethiopia in April 2014 when he and most of his classmates joined a protest over the potential displacement of ethnic Oromo farmers like his family because of the government’s plan to expand the capital, Addis Ababa, into the farmland.
The night of the first protests he was arrested and taken to an unmarked detention center. Each night he heard his fellow students screaming in agony as one by one they were tortured by interrogators. “I still hear the screams,” he told me later. Eventually his turn came to be interrogated. “What kind of country is it when I voice concern that my family could lose their farm for a government project and I am arrested, tortured, and now living as a refugee?”
Since mid-November, large-scale protests have again swept through Oromia, Ethiopia’s largest region, and the response from security forces has again been brutal. They have killed countless students and farmers, and arrested opposition politicians and countless others. On January 12, the government announced it was cancelling the master plan, but that hasn’t stopped the protests and the resultant crackdown.
Although the protest was initially about the potential for displacement, it has become about so much more. Despite being the biggest ethnic group in Ethiopia, Oromos have often felt marginalized by successive governments and feel unable to voice concerns over government policy. Oromos who express dissent are often arrested and tortured or otherwise mistreated in detention, accused of belonging to the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), a group that has long been mostly inactive and that the government designated a terrorist organization.
The government is doing all it can to make sure that the news of these protests doesn’t circulate within the country or reach the rest of the world. Ethiopia’s allies, including governments in the region and the African Union, have largely stood by as Ethiopia has steadily strangled the ability of ordinary Ethiopians to access information and peacefully express their views, whether in print or in public demonstrations. But they should be worried about what is happening in Oromia right now, as Ethiopia — Africa’s second most-populous country and a key security ally of the US — grapples with this escalating crisis.
This may prove to be the biggest political event to hit Ethiopia since the controversial 2005 elections resulted in a crackdown on protesters in which security forces killed almost 200 people and arrested tens of thousands .
Although the government focuses its efforts on economic development and on promoting a narrative of economic success, for many farmers in Oromia and elsewhere economic development comes at a devastating cost. As one Oromo student told me “All we hear about is development. The new foreign-owned farms and roads is what the world knows, but that just benefits the government. For us [Oromos] it means we lose our land and then we can’t sustain ourselves anymore.”
It has become almost impossible for journalists and human rights monitors to get information about what is happening, especially in smaller towns and rural areas outside Addis Ababa.
Ethiopia is one of the most restrictive environments for independent investigation, reporting, and access to information, earning the country a top-10 spot in the global ranking of jailers of journalists. For the past decade, the government has limited access to information by regularly threatening, imprisoning, and prosecuting individual activists, bloggers, and journalists and sending a clear public message that the media must self-censor and that dissent or criticism of government policy will not be tolerated.
Independent media have dwindled—more than 70 journalists have fled the country since 2010 and five of the last independent publications closed down before the May elections. Meanwhile the state-run media parrot the government line, in this case claiming that the Oromo protesters are linked to “terrorist groups” and “anti-peace elements” who are “aiming to create havoc and chaos.”
Very few international journalists are based in Ethiopia. Those who have attempted to cover events on the ground since the protests began have braved threats and arrest, but these are a few lone voices.
Given restrictions on local and international media, you might think that ordinary citizens, local activists, and nongovernmental organizations would fill the gaps and document the events in Oromia. But Ethiopia’s human rights activists and independent groups have been crushed by draconian legislation and threats, and even ordinary people are often terrified to speak out. People who dare to speak to international media outlets or independent groups have been arrested. The government taps phone lines and uses European-made spyware to target journalists and opposition members outside the country.
Since the protests began, the restrictions have become even harsher. Authorities have arrested people, including health workers, for posting photos and videos or messages of support on social media. The state-run telecom network has also been cut in some areas, making it much more difficult to get information out from hotspots.
Radio and satellite television outlets based outside Ethiopia, including some diaspora stations, play a key role disseminating information about the protests within Oromia, as they also did in 2014 during the last round of protests. Last year numerous people were arrested in Oromia during the protests merely for watching the diaspora-run Oromia Media Network (OMN).
The government has frequently jammed foreign stations in the past, violating international regulations in the process. When the government is unable to jam it puts pressure on the satellite companies themselves. Throughout the protests government agents have reportedly been destroying satellite dishes.
Yet despite the clear efforts to muzzle voices, information is coming out. Some protesters are losing their fear of expressing dissent and are speaking openly about the challenges they are facing. Social media plays a key role in disseminating information as people share photos and videos of rallies, of bloodied protesters, and of expressions of peaceful resistance in the face of security forces using excessive force.
In the coming days and weeks Ethiopia’s friends and partners should condemn the use of excessive force by security forces that is causing tragic and unnecessary deaths. But they should also be clear that Ethiopia needs to ensure access to information and stop disrupting telecommunications and targeting social media users. The world needs to know what is happening in Oromia—and Ethiopians have a right to know what is happening in their country.
Felix Horne is the Ethiopia researcher at Human Rights Watch.
The Afar were denied their fundamental right to vote for and elect their representatives and leaders. They are no exception in today’s Ethiopia. That is they have to fight together with the rest of the Ethiopians to dismantle this apartheid regime that has denied them their basic civil and democratic rights.
PRESS RELEASE
Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Front (ARDUF)
Over the past one quarter century of its rule the TPLF mafia group has created a number of puppet organizations to represent various national groups in Ethiopia particularly in the so called backward regions of Somali, Ben Shangul, Gambela and Afar. But none is loyal to its masters in Mekele than the Afar regional leaders in Samara, as the regional capital is now known, none is glued as an appendix to TPLF than APDPA or ADE as it is known locally.
This particular relation between TPLF and ADE has its own reasons. Some are historical others are due to the fact that the Afar region occupies in long range strategy of the TPLF. This “QADE” mafia gang originally was part of TPLF itself. They brought them or assigned them into the power by TPLF to make the Afar politically unpredictable, economically weak and infrastructurally underdeveloped, and to impose Tigray ethnic hegemonic control forcibly over the Afar people. The three regional leaders who came with TPLF are Ismail Ali Sirro, Awal Seyoum and Mohamed Anbatta are still in power in the Afar region. One as President, one as Security Official and the third as speaker of the regional Parliament. The longest serving region leader Ismail Ali Sirro is already elected to the National House of Representatives. So by definition he is not liable any more to be President of the Afar region.
The current Executive Committee of the ruling Party (ADNP) has disgracefully failed to elect a new President for the region due to the deep political division and corruption caused by the outgoing puppet President Ismail Ali Sirro who claims that the Afar will be at each other’s throat if he quits. The fact is that the rampant corruption, bad governance, maladministration, discrimination and tribalism policies planted by TPLF in the puppet officials of the Afar region is going to put the Afar region into violent chaos and anarchy, but not because Ismail Ali Sirro is replaced. The Executive Committee left for Mekele as they do every time, they are not able to settle their differences. Every Afar official in Samara has his own lord in Mekele with whom he shares the money he pockets from his corrupt practices. The three puppets are afraid not to be accountable for their crimes, but one day they will have to face the reality. They want to make sure that their cronies are placed in their places. Recently, over a hundred innocent people are arbitrarily and unlawfully arrested in the Afar region because they protested against those practices.
Constitutionally, all federal regional states are equally accountable to the Federal Constitution, while the Afar Regional State is accountable to the Tigrai Regional State and it ruled from Mekele directly. Afar people have no say in deciding their own destiny. It is a fact that, corruption, famine, insecurity and instability which are currently facing the Afar is directly linked to the climate of unethical, unskilled and inexperienced leadership inability of the so called Afar Democratic National Party (ADNP). While the whole Ethiopia and probably the world is worried about the hunger and starvation which killing both the livestock and human beings in the Afar region, the regional officials are in standoff as they were not able to elect the Executive Committee.
They are waiting an arbiter from Mekele to arrive. The Afar were denied their fundamental right to vote for and elect their representatives and leaders. They are no exception in today’s Ethiopia. That is they have to fight together with the rest of the Ethiopians to dismantle this apartheid regime that has denied them their basic civil and democratic rights.
Victory to the Ethiopian people!
Victory to the heroic ARDUF/UGUUGUMO
Military Command Centre (MCC)
Information Desk
Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Front (ARDUF)
Exposed: Forced evictions in Ethiopia – what the UK government tried to cover up.
Survival International, 3 September 2015
The UK government has tried to suppress evidence of gross human rights violations in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley, such as the forced resettlement of the Bodi and other tribes.
The U.K. government tried to suppress evidence of gross human rights abuses in Ethiopia to appease the government there, a new investigation by Survival International, the global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, has revealed.
The U.K. authorities refused to release the missions’ reports under the Freedom of Information Act, saying their disclosure would significantly prejudice international relations. But Survival then appealed to the European Commission, which has released them.
The reports reveal:
– That the Ethiopian government has not obtained the consent of tribes of the Lower Omo to their resettlement;
– It has pressured and threatened them into leaving their lands – in some cases in fear for their lives;
– One tribal group told the donors, “before you come back next year, the government will come to kill and finish us”;
The reports of two donors missions to the Lower Omo Valley reveal that land grabs deny the tribes access to the river banks they need for cultivation.
– That land grabs associated with large scale plantations deny the tribes access to ancestral grazing and farming lands on which they depend for survival, and to the river banks they need for cultivation;
– On the conditions in one resettlement site the report states, “Their situation during our visit was deplorable; the absence of sanitation means the villagers are suffering from diseases such as bloody diarrhoea, malaria and unspecified headaches … Despite the dire circumstances in [name redacted], residents say the Government does not allow this impoverished and vulnerable group to move
out”;
– Donor guidelines designed to ensure that resettlement complies with international law have been routinely ignored.
Survival International has been urging the international donors to freeze further aid to the Lower Omo Valley until the human rights abuses are stopped, but virtually no action has been taken. The U.K.’s 2014-15 aid budget to Ethiopia exceeds £360 million.
Survival’s Africa campaigner Elizabeth Hunter said today, “It took DFID almost two years to investigate allegations of serious human rights violations in the Lower Omo. The reports it desperately tried to prevent the British public from reading show just how far it will go to cover up gross human rights abuses carried out by a regime which receives hundreds of millions of pounds of UK taxpayers’ money. While entire tribes are subjected to violence, the destruction of their homes and livelihoods, and the theft of their land on a staggering scale, the UK government turns a blind eye in the name of political and economic expediency.”
Background:
Around 200,000 tribal people live in the Lower Omo. Many have suffered from brutal repression, forced relocation, and prejudice from a government that views them as “backward” and in need of “modernization.” One expert has warned that the loss of their land and resources will lead to a “humanitarian catastrophe,” and one of the mission reports warns that the influx of more than 500,000 workers into the area is “likely to significantly increase the risk of conflict.”
Survival has received reports that the Kwegu are starving following the construction of the Gibe III dam.
The central findings of the donor missions were covered up in a letter to the Ethiopian government, published in February 2015. The letter sanitised the reports’ conclusions to the extent that the Ethiopian press was able to claim that the donor missions had “found no evidence of people being forced to move for either resettlement for agricultural development projects in the areas they visited,” and that it “found none of the problems claimed by Survival International or Human Rights Watch and others …”
In March 2015, Survival received disturbing reports that many of the small Kwegu tribe are starving as a result of the destruction of their forest and the death of their river following the construction of the Gibe III dam and associated irrigation schemes.
– Download the full reports of the donors’ visits to South Omo and Bench Maji in the Lower Omo Valley
Prepare for another bigger and bitter resistance- Jawar Mohammed
Mr Hayelom is saying the Addis Ababa Master Killer will be endorsed this coming year. He must be joking. The Oromia government should not even think about this unless its prepared for another even bigger and bitter resistance. We shall prepare for an all out confrontation should they move forward with this plan that is aimed to uprooting 2 million Oromo farmers from their ancestral homeland.
———–
Tigrichi Hayaloom Xaawiyee jedhan Master Pilaannin Finfinnee bara kana hojirra akka oolu dhaadataa jira. Bulchiinsi Oromiyaa karoora qonnaan bultoota miliyoona lama qe’eerraa buqqaasee dhabamsiisuuf baafame kana ammas irra deebi’een raggaasisa jedhee yaadnaan balaaf of saaxilaa jira. Oromooni hundi bakka jiranii tokkummaafi murannoon karoora kana dura dhaabbachuuf of qopheessuu qabna.
Due to lack of rain, food crisis and famine people are dying in Ethiopia. Mainstream medias are not reporting. In the absence of free press, the TPLF/ Ethiopian government is hiding the tragedy going on. Children, women and men are dying in rural areas of Eastern and Southern Oromia, Afar state, Ogaden and southern nations. Animals are being perished due to persistent drought. The TPLF/Ethiopian government has also engaged in intensive land grabs and evictions in unaffected (food surplus) areas and intensified the destructions of food security system. In central Oromia (Burrayyuu, Sululta, Bishoftu, etc) and Western Oromia (Ilu Abbaa boraa and Wallaggaa) families in thousands become homeless and destitute because of land grabs both in urban and rural areas. Citizens are reporting the crisis and crying for help and no help is received yet both from the government and international humanitarian aid. Social media and Oromia Media network are reporting in Afaan Oromoo.
Aug. 5: Hunger is once again threatening vast swathes of Africa because of drought and high food prices. The United Nations has estimated that 14 million are at risk and at the heart of the looming catastrophe is Ethiopia, where over 10 million are in need of emergency food aid. ITN’s Martin Geissler reports.
In Tyrannic fascist TPLF Ethiopia war, poverty and famine were not only in the past but also very true in this very moment, right now. It has spatial variations as rulers and time changes. In 1960’s and 1970’s (Hailse Sellasie Regime) Wollo and Afar regions were the mainly affected. As documented in Wikpedia:-
In 1973, a famine in Wollo killed an estimated 40,000 to 80,000, mostly of the marginalized Afar herders and Oromo tenant farmers, who suffered from the widespread confiscation of land by the wealthy classes and government of Emperor Haile Selassie. Despite attempts to suppress news of this famine, leaked reports contributed to the undermining of the government’s legitimacy and served as a rallying point for dissidents, who complained that the wealthy classes and the Ethiopian government had ignored both the famine and the people who had died.[12 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1983%E2%80%9385_famine_in_Ethiopia
In 1980’s Tigray was severely affected but not the only.
Five Ethiopian provinces—Gojjam, Eritrea, Hararghe, Tigray, and Wollo—all received record low rainfalls in the mid-1980s.[17] In the south, a separate and simultaneous cause was the government’s response to Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) insurgency. In 1984, President Mengistu Haile Mariam announced that 46% of the Ethiopian Gross National Product would be allocated to military spending, creating the largest standing army in sub-Saharan Africa; the allocation for health in the government budget fell from 6% in 1973–4 to 3% by 1990–1.[18]
Although a UN estimate of one million deaths is often quoted for the 1983–5 famine, this figure has been challenged by famine scholar Alex de Waal. In a major study, de Waal criticized the United Nations for being “remarkably cavalier” about the numbers of people who died, with the UN’s one-million figure having “absolutely no scientific basis whatsoever,” a fact which represents “a trivialization and dehumanization of human misery.”[19]
Nevertheless, the magnitude of the disaster has been well documented: in addition to hundreds of thousands of deaths, millions were made destitute.[20] Media activity in the West, along with the size of the crisis, led to the Do They Know It’s Christmas? charity single and the July 1985 concert Live Aid, which elevated the international profile of the famine and helped secure international aid. In the early to mid-1980s there were famines in two distinct regions of the country, resulting in several studies of one famine that try to extrapolate to the other or less cautious writers referring to a single widespread famine. The famine in the southeast of the country was brought about by the Derg’s counterinsurgency efforts against the OLF. However, most media referring to “the Ethiopian famine” of the 1980s refers to the severe famine in 1983-5 centered on Tigray and northern Wollo, which further affected Eritrea, Begemder and northern Shewa.[21] Living standards had been declining in these government-held regions since 1977, a “direct consequence” of Derg agricultural policies.[22] A further major contributing factor to the famine were the Ethiopian government’s enforced resettlement programs, utilized as part of its counter-insurgency campaign. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1983%E2%80%9385_famine_in_Ethiopia
Since 1991 as rocky Tigray has been prospering through political favoritism, nepoltism and resource transfer from green Oromia and the south that have been subjected to underdevelopment, exploitation, land grabbing, evictions, genocidal mass killings and famine. It is not Ethiopia that has been growing fast and rising, it is rocky Tigray at the expenses of the suffering Oromia and the south. What the TPLF propaganda machine shows to the world is rosy pictures of its business empire that serves only the Tigray, genocidal cliques and new colonizer from the region. During the Obama visit, what the president was shown were Coffee ceremony in government office, Lucy’s skeleton, Fafa factory near Finfinnee, Ethiopian Air Line’s Boeing plane, Abyssinian women and their cultural dances and the Chinese built African Union building in Finfinnee.
Realities in Ethiopia that Obama have not seen:-
Systematic genocidal killings, mass eviction going on against Oromo people in Burrayyuu (Central Oromia, near Fifinnee) and in Bishoftuu (Central Oromia). Thousands have been become homeless and destitute as their homes have been destroyed by Agazi (TPLF) fascist forces that has targeted Oromo for land grabs in its genocidal (Addis Ababa) master plan:-
The following pictures are children, women and adults that has been exposed to famine in Eastern Oromia at the time Obama Africa/ Ethiopia visit. Thousands are exposed to famine and dying but help is reaching them. The pictures are on social media. The main stream media, TPLF and Obama are in Ethiopia’s fast growth hype, democratically elected government and war on terror. No one of them are talking war on politically caused famine.
Suuraaleen armaan gadii kun daa’imman dabalatee namoon kumaatamaan lakaawamani Godina Hargee Lixaa keessatti beelaaf saaxilaman jirachuu kan mul’isu dha. Ogeessonni fayyaa balaa beelaa hammaataa jiru kana dormannoof yoo waywaatanis haga ammaa dhageetti hin arganne. Gargaarsa tokko illee argachaa hin jiran.
OLF Statement on President Obama’s Planned Visit to Ethiopia
Obama’s Planned Visit to Ethiopia is Incompatible with Claims of Democratic Principles of the U.S. Government
Statement from the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF)
OLF Statement
The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) strongly opposes the planned visit to Ethiopia of the U.S. President Barack Obama on the end of July 2015. As Ethiopia is one of the most brutal regimes of the world, OLF believes that such a visit will result in strengthening the dictatorial minority regime, will boost the regime’s confidence to strengthen its ruthless human rights violations, will give a green light to the regime to continue its repression, economic exploitation, and marginalization of various nations and nationalities of the country under its usual pretense of democracy. OLF also believes that a lasting national and security interest of the U.S. is better protected not by blessing and supporting such a well-known ruthless regime, but by being on the side of the people, supporting the struggle of the peoples of the country for freedom, democracy and justice by using its leverage through exerting the necessary pressure on the regime on power.
In 1991, when the dictatorial military regime of Mengistu Hailemariam was overthrown by the combined struggle of the oppressed peoples of Ethiopia and a Transitional Government was about to be established, a commitment given from the U.S. government to the Ethiopian people was an assurance of “no democracy, no cooperation.” It was the then U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Herman Cohen, who gave such assurance in public. However, the TPLF/EPRDF group, which took over the government not only by using the military upper hand it had, but also using the blessing of the U.S. official Herman Cohen, demonstrated its anti-democratic nature in practice in a matter of less than one year. Several organizations which struggle for the right of their people, including the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), opposed the tyrannical and authoritarian practices of the TPLF/EPRDF party as the dominant force and left the then Transitional Government of Ethiopia.
Today, 24 years have passed under the totalitarian TPLF/EPRDF regime erected and protected by the West, mainly the United States of America. It is impossible to enumerate the widespread political repression, economic exploitation, and monopoly of a minority regime in all sectors political, economic and social life. Among many other reports, the repeated reports of human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa, and including the Country Report U.S. State Department all shed light to the atrocities of the current Ethiopian regime committed on the peoples of the country, mainly on the Oromo people. Nonetheless, it has to be noted that all these and many other reports show only a small fraction of the repression and brutalities perpetrated by the regime. Most of the political killings, barbaric acts of torture, politically charged arrests, abductions and disappearances carried out by the regime are hidden and remain unreported. The OLF has ample evidence that most acts of ruthlessness committed on the Oromo nationals in several parts of Oromia are not reported at all.
Overall, although some knowingly or unknowingly deny or diminish the repressive nature of the current Ethiopian regime, the truth is that the basic democratic and human rights and freedom of peoples of the country is denied in Ethiopia. While Ethiopia has never seen democratic election in its history, the undemocratic and fake nature of so called “election” carried by the current regime has no parallel even in the Ethiopian standard. Over the last 24 years, the Ethiopian people have been forced to “elect” the TPLF/EPRDF party under the barrel of the gun. The 2015 so called “election” is a clear evidence that, for the people of the country, let alone electing whoever they want, any suspicion about electing the opposition parties the government conveniently put in the election drama has been a crime subjecting citizens to severe punishment. While the so called election drama and its result in which the TPLF/EPRDF declared 100% victory are officially over, as we speak, thousands of Oromo and other nationals are being hunted down and thrown into jail for suspicion of “electing” the few opposition who didn’t even win a single seat in the parliament.
If the U.S.’s claims of strengthening democratic process were true, what is expected of President Obama at the moment was not to plan an official visit to Ethiopia, but to use his leverage to put pressure on the minority Woyane (TPLF) regime to stop terrorizing its citizens, and hold democratic election by openly condemning the process and rejecting the results of the current sham election. It is disturbing that, to the contrary, the U.S. government, looking at the temporary benefit it may or may not get from alliance with the brutal regime and ignoring the suffering of the peoples of the country, is encouraging the regime towards committing more crimes and rewarding the regime for the endless atrocities it has already committed. This is not what is expected of a country which claims to be democratic and acts as the “police” of our planet.
It is to be recalled that, the U.S. Under Secretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman, appeared in Finfinnee (Addis Ababa) on one of the days leading to the regime’s “election” drama of 2015, and endorsed the election by suggesting that “Ethiopia had made great strides toward an open and inclusive electoral process.” She went on saying that the U.S. hopes the then upcoming election would be “free, fair, inclusive, and peaceful.” Her endorsement and blessing of the so called “election” as an official U.S. position came at a time when the regime was completing its preparation to run a sham election marred with harassment, arrests, intimidation, and several schemes of vote rigging. The irresponsible blessing and approval by Wendy Sherman of an election which is universally well-known to be full of fraud was condemned by many human rights and other international organizations. Clearly, the endorsement and blessing of this U.S. official has bolstered the confidence of the government to continue its crackdown on dissenting voices, blatantly harass the entire public, and finally, committed naked election fraud and now shamelessly declared 100% victory. The current planned visit of President Obama has no benefit to the peoples of Ethiopia or the region. To the contrary, it is another endorsement and blessing of an election which is very well known by the Ethiopian people and the entire world to be bogus.
The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) earnestly appeals to the U.S. government to reconsider its position and cancel the planned visit to Ethiopia of President Barack Obama. The OLF would like to reiterate that, although such a visit of a U.S. President could temporarily seem to reinforce the confidence of the brutal regime on power, it will never reverse or pull back the struggle the oppressed peoples of the country are waging to gain their freedom. The history of the struggle of the peoples of the region confirms that no external force can reverse the just fight of people against dictators. Sooner or later, brutal regimes will disappear like a dust. It is only a matter of time.
Victory to the Oromo People!
Oromo Liberation Front
July 4, 2015
Daaw’annaan Obaamaa Gara Itoophiyaatti Saganteeffame Imaammata Sirna Dimokraasii Faallessa
Ibsa Adda Bilisummaa Oromoo
ABOn daaw’annaan Prezidant Obaamaan dhuma baatii Adoolessaa 2015-tti Itophiyaatti adeemsisuuf karoorfate, abbootii irree kan jajjabeessu, bittootni hacuuccaa fi saaminsa ummatoota irratti gaggeessan akka itti fufaniif kan hamilchiisu waan taheef jabeessee morma. Bara 1991 Itoophiyaa keessatti oggaa mootummaan Abbaa Irree Dargii qabsoo ummatootaan aangoo irraa darbamee Mootummaan Cehumsaa kan yeroo hundeeffamu waadaan U.S. irraa dhagahamaa ture yoo sirni dimokiraatawaan mirkanaawe malee gargaarsi gama Ameerikaa irraa hin jiraatu (“No dimokraasii, no cooperation,”) kan jedhu ture. Waadaa U.S. kana ifatti kan dubbatan I/A Gaafatamaa Haajaa Alaa U.S. oggasii Herman J. Cohen turan.
We spoke today with Ms. Veta Byrd-Perez of WhenAndWhereIEnter.org about the on-going struggle of African women in Latin America, and with Dr. Fido Ebba about the Oromo people in East Africa all in the context of what continues to be misrepresentations of White supremacist symbolism and violence.
From the start of Christianity introduction to Ethiopia, the North Western Cushitic Agaw people was suffering from multidimensional socio-economic prospective (such as religion, politics, social, economic, culture and language) for over 1600 years. With the rising and expansion of Christianity in the fourth century, the majority of Agaw were forced to accept Christianity following the conversion of the two Agaw king brothers, Aezana and saezana and received Christian name as Aberha and Atsibeha. Those who resisted and adhered to their original and former belief (Judaism and paganism) fled from North to South and South-East direction along Tekeze River and settled in Gondar and around Gondar and Lasta and gradually to North Shewa, Jemma and Abay rivers and beyond. The Agaw population who resisted for centuries long the state religion after conversion of majority had been divided into smaller enclaves (Awi, Kementy, Himita, Blen, Alien/Falasha and more others)…
“We all witnessed the brutality and nihilism of the horrific attacks by Pakistani Taliban and Boko Haram on schoolchildren, the assassinations of Charlie Hebdo journalists, and numerous outrages and killings carried out by ISIL. The rise of ISIL was in part a consequence of, and illustrated the dangers of, atrocities committed by the government of Syria and failures of inclusive governance in Iraq. Meanwhile, governments in China, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Russia, and Saudi Arabia, among others, continued to stifle free and open media and the development of civil society through the imprisonment of journalists, bloggers, and non-violent critics. In Thailand, the military overthrew a democratically-elected government, repealed the constitution, and severely limited civil liberties; subsequent efforts by the military government to rewrite the country’s constitution and recast its political intuitions raised concerns about lack of inclusivity in the process. In the face of all this, the human aspiration for political liberty and honest, non-abusive governance remained strong.” – Secretary’s Preface
Ethiopia is a federal republic. The ruling Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), a coalition of four ethnically based parties, controls the government. In 2012, following the death of former prime minister Meles Zenawi, parliament elected Hailemariam Desalegn as his successor. In national parliamentary elections in 2010, the EPRDF and affiliated parties won 545 of 547 seats to remain in power for a fourth consecutive five-year term. Although the relatively few international officials allowed to observe the elections concluded technical aspects of the vote were handled competently, some also noted an environment conducive to free and fair elections was not in place prior to the election. Authorities generally maintained control over the security forces, although Somali Region Special Police and local militias sometimes acted independently.
Other human rights problems included alleged arbitrary killings; alleged torture, beating, abuse, and mistreatment of detainees by security forces; reports of harsh and at times life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest and detention; detention without charge and lengthy pretrial detention; a weak, overburdened judiciary subject to political influence; infringement on citizens’ privacy rights, including illegal searches; alleged abuses in the implementation of the government’s “villagization” program; restrictions on academic freedom; restrictions on freedom of assembly, association, and movement; alleged interference in religious affairs; limits on citizens’ ability to change their government; police, administrative, and judicial corruption; violence and societal discrimination against women and abuse of children; female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C); trafficking in persons; societal discrimination against persons with disabilities; clashes between ethnic minorities; discrimination against persons based on their sexual orientation and against persons with HIV/AIDS; limits on worker rights; forced labor; and child labor, including forced child labor.
Impunity was a problem. The government, with some reported exceptions, generally did not take steps to prosecute or otherwise punish officials who committed abuses other than corruption.
Factions of the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), an ethnically based, violent, and fragmented separatist group operating in the Somali Region, were responsible for abuses.
Section 1. Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from:Share
a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life
Members of the security forces reportedly committed killings.
On April 30, a peaceful student protest in Ambo, west of Addis Ababa, escalated into violence and resulted in the deaths of at least eight persons. Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported that “witnesses said security forces fired live ammunition at peaceful protesters.”
There were no new developments in the credible allegations detainees died in detention as a result of arrests during the August 2013 Eid al-Fitr celebrations.
Scattered fighting continued between government forces–primarily regional government-backed militias–and elements of the ONLF. Clashes between ethnic groups resulted in injury and death.
On October 13, gunmen reportedly killed more than 40 security forces in Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region (SNNPR), according to local press and NGOs in the town of Gambella. According to reports, the clash occurred between a group of ethnic Majanger and Ethiopian national and local security forces.
b. Disappearance
Unlike in previous years, there were fewer credible reports of disappearances of civilians after clashes between security forces and rebel groups.
There were no developments in determining the whereabouts of 12 residents of Alamata town detained in January 2013 by security forces following protests against government plans to demolish illegal housing units.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The constitution and law prohibit such practices; however, there were reports security officials tortured and otherwise abused detainees.
In April, two journalists/bloggers affiliated with the Zone 9 activist group accused police of beating and mistreating them. One journalist reported police beat him across the face, while another stated police beat the undersides of his feet (see section 2.a.). The Federal High Court regularly sought explanations from prison officials on allegations of mistreatment.
Sources widely believed police investigators often used physical abuse to extract confessions in Maekelawi, the central police investigation headquarters in Addis Ababa. HRW reported abuses, including torture, occurred at Maekelawi. In an October 2013 report, the HRW described beatings, stress positions, the hanging of detainees by their wrists from the ceiling, prolonged handcuffing, pouring of water over detainees, verbal threats, and solitary confinement at the facility. Authorities continued to restrict access by diplomats and NGOs to Maekelawi, although some NGOs reported limited access.
In 2010 the UN Committee Against Torture reported it was “deeply concerned” about “numerous, ongoing, and consistent allegations” concerning “the routine use of torture” by police, prison officers, and other members of the security forces–including the military–against political dissidents and opposition party members, students, alleged terrorists, and alleged supporters of violent separatist groups such as the ONLF and the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). The committee reported such acts frequently occurred with the participation of, at the instigation of, or with the consent of commanding officers in police stations, detention centers, federal prisons, military bases, and unofficial or secret places of detention. Some reports of such abuses continued during the year. Based primarily on interviews with Oromo refugees in Uganda, Somaliland, and Kenya, Amnesty International (AI), which had been denied access to Ethiopia since 2011, reported thousands of ethnic Oromos, whom the government accused of terrorism, were arbitrarily arrested and in some cases tortured.
Prison and Detention Center Conditions
Prison and pretrial detention center conditions remained harsh and in some cases life threatening. There were reports that authorities beat and tortured prisoners. Medical attention following beatings reportedly was insufficient in some cases.
Physical Conditions: In 2012 there were 111,640 persons in prison, of whom approximately 2,500 were women and nearly 600 were children incarcerated with their mothers. Authorities sometimes incarcerated juveniles with adults. Male and female prisoners generally were separated.
Severe overcrowding was common, especially in prison sleeping quarters. The government provided approximately nine birr ($0.45) per prisoner per day for food, water, and health care, although this amount varied across the country. Many prisoners supplemented this amount with daily food deliveries from family members or by purchasing food from local vendors, although there were reports officials prevented some prisoners from receiving supplemental food from their families. Medical care was unreliable in federal prisons and almost nonexistent in regional prisons. Prisoners had only limited access to potable water, as did many in the country. Also water shortages caused unhygienic conditions, and most prisons lacked appropriate sanitary facilities. Many prisoners had serious health problems in detention but received little or no treatment. Information released by the Ministry of Health in 2012 stated nearly 62 percent of inmates in jails across the country suffered from mental health problems as a result of solitary confinement, overcrowding, and lack of adequate health-care facilities and services.
The country had six federal and 120 regional prisons. A local NGO ran model prisons in Adama and Mekele, with significantly better conditions than those found in other prisons. There also were many unofficial detention centers throughout the country, including in Dedessa, Bir Sheleko, Tolay, Hormat, Blate, Tatek, Jijiga, Holeta, and Senkele. Most were located at military camps.
Pretrial detention often occurred in police station detention facilities, where conditions varied widely. Reports regarding pretrial detention in police stations indicated poor hygiene and police abuse of detainees.
Administration: Due to the lack of transparency regarding incarceration, it was difficult to determine if recordkeeping was adequate. Authorities did not employ alternative sentencing for nonviolent offenders. Prisons did not have ombudspersons to respond to complaints. Legal aid clinics existed in some prisons for the benefit of prisoners. Authorities allowed the submission by detainees of complaints to judicial authorities without censorship. Courts sometimes declined to hear such complaints. The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) and the Federal Police Commission sometimes investigated allegations of abuse, although there were reports detainees’ discussions with them were not carried out in private, which could inhibit their ability to speak freely.
The law permits prisoners to have visitors, although in some cases police did not allow pretrial detainees access to visitors (including family members and legal counsel). For example, the attorney for Arena Tigray party leader Abraha Desta detained in early July had been able to visit his client only once in a 28-day period. Family members of prisoners charged with terrorist activity alleged blocked access to the prisoners. There were also reports authorities denied those charged with terrorist activity visits with their lawyers or with representatives of the political parties to which they belonged. Prison officials continued to limit the number of individuals permitted to visit journalist Reyot Alemu.
Prisoners generally were permitted religious observance, but this varied by prison, and even by section within a prison, at the discretion of prison management. There were some allegations authorities denied detainees adequate locations in which to pray. Prisoners could voice complaints about prison conditions or treatment to the presiding judge during their trials.
Independent Monitoring: During the year the International Committee of the Red Cross visited prisons throughout the country. The government did not permit access to prisons by international human rights organizations.
Regional authorities allowed government and NGO representatives to meet regularly with prisoners without third parties present. Civil society representatives and family members were reportedly denied access to prisoners by prison officials, including access to individuals detained in undisclosed locations. The government-established EHRC, which is funded by parliament and subject to parliamentary review, monitored federal and regional detention centers and interviewed prison officials and prisoners in response to allegations of widespread human rights abuses. A local NGO continued to have access to various prison and detention facilities around the country.
Improvements: Some government and prison authorities cooperated with NGO efforts to improve prison conditions. Reports indicated some prison conditions, including the treatment of prisoners, improved upon completion of an NGO-sponsored local legal aid clinic in 2013, although specific data was not available.
d. Arbitrary Arrest or Detention
Although the constitution and law prohibit arbitrary arrest and detention, the government often ignored these provisions. There were many reports of arbitrary arrest and detention by police and security forces throughout the country.
Civilians, international NGOs, and other aid organizations operating in the Somali Region reported government security forces and local militias committed abuses such as arbitrary arrest.
Role of the Police and Security Apparatus
The Federal Police reports to the Ministry of Federal Affairs, which is subject to parliamentary oversight. The oversight was loose. Each of the country’s nine regions has a state or special police force that reports to the regional civilian authorities. Local militias operated across the country in loose coordination with regional and federal police and the military, with the degree of coordination varying by region. In many cases these militias functioned as extensions of the ruling party.
Security forces were effective, but impunity remained a serious problem. The mechanisms used to investigate abuses by federal police were not known. There continued to be reports of abuse, including killings, by the Somali Region Special Police. The government rarely publicly disclosed the results of investigations into abuses by local security forces, such as arbitrary detention and beatings of civilians.
The government continued to support human rights training for police and army personnel. In 2013-14 the EHRC conducted training sessions for 1,622 police officers and 577 prison police on basic human rights concepts as well as rights of detained individuals as provided in the National Human Rights Action Plan. The government continued to accept assistance from certain NGOs and the EHRC to improve and professionalize its human rights training and curriculum by including more material on the constitution and international human rights treaties and conventions.
Arrest Procedures and Treatment of Detainees
Although the constitution and law require that detainees be brought to court and charged within 48 hours of arrest, authorities did not always respect this requirement. With a warrant, persons suspected of serious offenses may be detained for 14 days without charge and for additional 14-day periods if an investigation continues. Under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation (ATP), police may request to hold persons without charge for 28-day periods, up to a maximum of four months, while an investigation is conducted. The law prohibits detention in any facility other than an official detention center; however, local militias and other formal and informal law enforcement entities used dozens of unofficial local detention centers.
A functioning bail system was in place. Bail was not available for persons charged with terrorism, murder, treason, and corruption. In most cases authorities set bail between 500 and 10,000 birr ($25 and $500), which most citizens could not afford. The government provided public defenders for detainees unable to afford private legal counsel, but only when their cases went to court. There were reports that while some detainees were in pretrial detention, authorities allowed them little or no contact with legal counsel, did not provide full information on their health status, and did not allow family visits.
Arbitrary Arrest: Authorities regularly detained persons without warrants. For example, on April 30, security officials in Addis Ababa detained Zekarias Yemanebirhan, Addis Ababa chairman of the opposition political party Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ), and Nebiyu Hailu, a journalist for UDJ’sFinote Netsanet newspaper, for allegedly violating zoning restrictions while mobilizing supporters in advance of a UDJ protest. On May 12, authorities released both without charge.
Pretrial Detention: Some detainees reported being held for several years without charge and without trial. Information on the percentage of the detainee population in pretrial detention and the average length of time held was not available. Trial delays were most often caused by lengthy legal procedures, the large numbers of detainees, judicial inefficiency, and staffing shortages.
Amnesty: On September 11, in keeping with a long-standing tradition of issuing pardons at the Ethiopian New Year, the federal government pardoned 995 prisoners. Regional governments also pardoned persons. For example, in 2013 the SNNPR regional government pardoned 1,984 prisoners, the Oromia regional government pardoned 2,604, and the Amhara regional government pardoned 2,084.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The law provides for an independent judiciary. Although the civil courts operated with a large degree of independence, the criminal courts remained weak, overburdened, and subject to political influence. The constitution recognizes both religious and traditional or customary courts.
Trial Procedures
By law accused persons have the right to a fair public trial by a court of law within a “reasonable time,” a presumption of innocence, the right to be represented by legal counsel of their choice, and the right to appeal. The law provides defendants the right not to self-incriminate. The law gives defendants the right to present witnesses and evidence in their defense, cross-examine prosecution witnesses, and access government-held evidence. The government did not always allow defendants to access evidence it held. The court system does not use jury trials. Judicial inefficiency and lack of qualified staff often resulted in serious delays in trial proceedings and made the application of the law unpredictable. The government continued to train lower-court judges and prosecutors on effective judicial administration. Defendants were often unaware of the specific charges against them until the commencement of their trials; this also caused defense attorneys to be unprepared to provide an adequate defense.
The Public Defender’s Office provided legal counsel to indigent defendants, although its scope and quality of service remained limited due to the shortage of attorneys. Numerous free legal aid clinics around the country, based primarily at universities, provided advice to clients. In certain areas of the country, the law allows volunteers, such as law students and professors, to represent clients in court on a pro bono basis.
On February 3, the Federal High Court re-opened to the public the trial of 19 Muslims identified with July 2012 protests. The trial proceedings were previously closed for alleged national security and witness safety concerns.
Many citizens residing in rural areas generally had little access to formal judicial systems and relied on traditional mechanisms for resolving conflict. By law all parties to a dispute must agree to use a traditional or religious court before such a court may hear a case, and either party may appeal to a regular court at any time. Sharia (Islamic law) courts may hear religious and family cases involving Muslims. Sharia courts received some funding from the government and adjudicated the majority of cases in the Somali and Afar regions, which are predominantly Muslim. In addition other traditional systems of justice, such as councils of elders, continued to function. Some women stated they lacked access to free and fair hearings in the traditional court system because they were excluded by custom from participation in councils of elders and because of strong gender discrimination in rural areas.
The Access to Justice and Legal Awareness (AJLA) project, at Haramaya University, began in June 2013. The AJLA provided previously unavailable legal redress and protection for the neediest populations across East/West Hararghe Zones in Oromia and the Harari Region. By the end of the year, 128,357 vulnerable persons (73,905 women and 54,452 men) had benefited from these previously nonexistent legal services.
Political Prisoners and Detainees
Estimates by human rights groups and diplomatic missions regarding the number of political prisoners varied widely. The government did not permit access to prisoners by international human rights organizations. There were NGO reports of individuals held in unofficial detention centers throughout the country, particularly in military barracks, but also in private offices and homes.
All of the journalists, opposition members, and activists previously convicted and jailed under the ATP remained in prison.
In February the Federal Court of First Instance in Addis Ababa convicted Asrat Tassay, a prominent member of the UDJ, of contempt of court after he wrote in an opinion piece, “We should not expect justice from [Ethiopian] courts.” The judge sentenced Asrat to five months’ imprisonment but immediately suspended the sentence, opting for a two-year probationary period instead.
On July 9, police detained four opposition political-party leaders in Addis Ababa and the northern city of Mekelle in separate operations. Police reportedly did not bring Habtamu Ayalew, Daniel Shibeshi, Yeshiways Assefa, and Abraha Desta before a judge within 48 hours of their detention, as required by law. The group’s defense attorney and other political party leaders alleged police denied them access to the detainees. Police had not brought formal charges against the four defendants by year’s end.
In 2012 the government asked the Federal High Court to freeze the assets of Eskinder Nega and Andualem Arage, both convicted of terrorism and treason, while investigating whether their assets were used in conjunction with commission of the crimes for which they were convicted. The Federal High Court had not issued a decision by year’s end.
Civil Judicial Procedures and Remedies
The law provides citizens the right to appeal human rights violations in civil court. No such cases were filed during the year.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence
The law requires authorities to obtain judicial warrants to search private property; police, however, often ignored the law, and there were no reports of courts excluding evidence obtained without warrants.
There were reports throughout the year police carried out nighttime raids of Muslims’ homes in Addis Ababa to collect evidence against persons they alleged to be terrorists. The government claimed the police had warrants.
Opposition political party leaders reported suspicions of telephone tapping and other electronic eavesdropping, and they alleged government agents attempted to lure them into illegal acts by calling and pretending to be representatives of groups–designated by the parliament as terrorist organizations–interested in making financial donations.
The government reportedly used a widespread system of paid informants to report on the activities of particular individuals. Opposition members reported ruling party operatives and militia members made intimidating and unwelcome visits to their homes and offices.
Security forces continued to detain family members of persons sought for questioning by the government.
The national and regional governments continued to put in place “villagization” plans in the Afar, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella, SNNPR, and Somali regions. These plans involved the relocation by regional governments of scattered rural populations from arid or semiarid lands vulnerable to recurring droughts into designated clusters. The stated purposes of villagization were to improve the provision of government services (i.e., health care, education, and clean water), protect vulnerable communities from natural disasters and attacks, and change environmentally destructive patterns of shifting cultivation. Some observers alleged the purpose was to enable the large-scale leasing of land for commercial agriculture. The government described the villagization program as strictly voluntary.
International donors reported assessments from more than 18 visits to villagization sites since 2011 did not corroborate allegations of systematic human rights violations in this program. They found problems such as delays in establishing promised infrastructure. Communities and individual families appeared to have agreed to move based on assurances from authorities of food aid, health and education services, and land, although in some instances communities moved before adequate basic services such as water pumps and shelter were in place in the new locations. International human rights organizations, however, continued to express concern regarding the villagization process. A 2013 report by the Oakland Institute claimed the military forcibly relocated communities and committed human rights violations in the Omo Valley. The report noted that during a 2012 assessment in the South Omo Valley, donor representatives heard testimony from community members of human rights abuses.
Section 2. Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:Share
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The constitution and law provide for freedom of speech and press; however, authorities arrested, detained, charged, and prosecuted journalists and other persons whom they perceived as critical of the government. Some journalists, editors, and publishers fled the country, fearing probable detention. At year’s end at least 16 journalists remained in detention; of these, 10 were arrested and charged during the year, and all but one were denied bail and remain detained; four journalists and publishers were charged, tried, and convicted in absentia.
Freedom of Speech: Authorities arrested and harassed persons for criticizing the government. NGOs reported cases of torture of individuals critical of the government. The government attempted to impede criticism through various forms of intimidation, including detention of journalists and opposition activists and monitoring and interference in the activities of political opposition groups. The authorities pressed charges against several journalists, bloggers, and independently run publications. Some persons feared authorities would retaliate against them for discussing security force abuses.
Press Freedoms: The government continued to take action to close independent newspapers. On August 4, the Ministry of Justice issued a statement accusing independently run publications Enqu, Fact, Addis Guday, Lomi, Jano, and Afro Times of “repeated acts of incitement” intended “to cause a violent overthrow of the constitutional order.” In most cases articles cited as examples of incitement were mainly critical of government action. Some called for protests of such actions but rarely, if ever, for violent action. One week after issuing the initial statement, the government began pressing criminal charges against the publications and their staff. On October 7, the Federal Court tried and sentenced, in absentia, the managers of Addis Guday, Lomi, and Factmagazines. The managers were charged with inciting violent revolts, printing and distributing unfounded rumors, and conspiring to abolish unlawfully the constitutional system of the country. Their sentences ranged from three years and three months to three years and 11 months.
The remaining 18 independent newspapers had a combined weekly circulation in Addis Ababa of more than 144,000. Most newspapers were printed on a weekly or biweekly basis, with the exception of the state-owned Amharic and English dailies and the privately run Daily Monitor.
The government controlled the only television station that broadcast nationally, which, along with radio, was the primary source of news for much of the population. Six private FM radio stations broadcast in the capital, one private radio station broadcast in the northern Tigray Region, and at least 19 community radio stations broadcast in the regions. State-run Ethiopian Radio had the largest broadcast range in the country, followed by Fana Radio, which was affiliated with the ruling party.
Government-controlled media closely reflected the views of the government and the ruling EPRDF. The government periodically jammed foreign broadcasts. The law prohibits political and religious organizations and foreigners from owning broadcast stations.
Violence and Harassment: The government continued to arrest, harass, and prosecute journalists. This included the continuing prosecution of three persons associated with the defunct Muslim Affairs magazine under the antiterrorism proclamation. There were also allegations some journalists were tortured in Maekelawi prison.
On April 25-26, police detained six bloggers affiliated with the Zone 9 activist group and three independent journalists in Addis Ababa and Ambo, a town west of the capital. Police subsequently searched the detainees’ homes and seized personal property, including laptops, and prohibited family members and supporters from visiting them in detention. The Federal High Court charged the group under the ATP in July and denied the defendants bail. The trial continued at year’s end.
On October 27, a court sentenced Temesgen Desalegn to three years in jail for “provocation and dissemination of inaccurate information.” In 2012 the authorities initiated court proceedings against Desalegn, former editor in chief of the defunct Feteh newspaper.
Censorship or Content Restrictions: Government harassment caused journalists to avoid reporting on sensitive topics. Many private newspapers reported informal editorial control by the government through article placement requests and calls from government officials concerning articles perceived as critical of the government. Private sector and government journalists routinely practiced self-censorship.
Libel Laws/National Security: The government used the ATP to suppress criticism. Journalists feared covering five groups designated by parliament in 2011 as terrorist organizations (Ginbot 7, the ONLF, the OLF, al-Qaida, and al-Shabaab), citing ambiguity on whether reporting on these groups might be punishable under the law. Several journalists, both local and foreign correspondents, reported an increase in self-censorship.
The government used libel laws to suppress criticism.
On February 11, police temporarily detained Daniel Tefera, the former UDJ organization affairs head, for questioning in relation to allegations of defamation following Tefera’s involvement in the writing of a former parliamentarian’s biography. Police did not file formal charges.
On January 28, the Sidama Zone High Court in the southwestern city of Hawassa (Awassa) acquitted the editor in chief, managing editor, and publisher of the newspaper Ethio-Mihdar on defamation charges. Officials from Hawassa University had filed the charges against the Amharic-language weekly in response to a June 2013 article reporting allegations of corruption by university employees. According to media reports, the judge said the defendants “did the right thing by exposing faulty practices committed by public institutions.”
Internet Freedom
The state-owned Ethio Telecom was the only internet service provider in the country. The government restricted access to the internet and blocked several websites, including blogs, opposition websites, and websites of Ginbot 7, the OLF, and the ONLF. The government also temporarily blocked news sites such as al-Jazeera. Websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Yahoo! were inaccessible at times. Several news blogs and websites run by opposition diaspora groups were not accessible. These included Addis Neger, Nazret, Ethiopian Review, CyberEthiopia, Quatero Amharic Magazine, Tensae Ethiopia, and the Ethiopian Media Forum. Authorities took steps to block access to Virtual Private Network providers that let users circumvent government screening of internet browsing and e-mail. Authorities monitored telephone calls, text messages, and e-mails. There were reports such surveillance resulted in arrests. According to the International Telecommunication Union, approximately 1.9 percent of individuals used the internet in 2013.
In 2013 Citizen Lab, a Canadian research center at the University of Toronto, identified 25 countries, including Ethiopia, that host servers linked to FinFisher surveillance software. According to the report, “FinFisher has gained notoriety because it has been used in targeted attacks against human rights campaigners and opposition activists in countries with questionable human rights records.” A “FinSpy” campaign in the country allegedly “used pictures of Ginbot 7, an Ethiopian opposition group, as bait to infect users.”
Academic Freedom and Cultural Events
The government restricted academic freedom, including through decisions on student enrollment, teachers’ appointments, and curriculums. Authorities frequently restricted speech, expression, and assembly on university and high school campuses.
The ruling party, via the Ministry of Education, continued to give preference to students loyal to the party in assignments to postgraduate programs. Some university staff members commented priority for employment after graduation in all fields was given to students who joined the party.
Authorities limited teachers’ ability to deviate from official lesson plans. Numerous anecdotal reports suggested non-EPRDF members were more likely to be transferred to undesirable posts and bypassed for promotions. There were unspecified reports of teachers not affiliated with the EPRDF being summarily dismissed for failure to attend party meetings. There continued to be a lack of transparency in academic staffing decisions, with numerous complaints from individuals in the academic community alleging bias based on party membership, ethnicity, or religion.
According to multiple credible sources, teachers and high school students in grade 10 and above were required to attend training on the concepts of revolutionary democracy and EPRDF party ideology. In August the Ministry of Education announced a requirement that the 116,000 new and 250,000 existing university students attend mandatory government policy training.
A separate Ministry of Education directive prohibits private universities from offering degree programs in law and teacher education. The directive also requires public universities to align their curriculum offerings with the ministry’s policy of a 70/30 ratio between science and social science academic programs. As a result the number of students studying social sciences and the humanities at public institutions continued to decrease; private universities focused heavily on the social sciences.
Reports indicated a pattern of surveillance and arbitrary arrests of Oromo University students based on suspicion of holding dissenting opinions or participation in peaceful demonstrations. A 2014 AI report indicated students were also expelled or suspended as a result of such suspicions.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
Freedom of Assembly
The constitution and law provide for freedom of assembly; however, the government did not always respect this right. Organizers of large public meetings or demonstrations must notify the government 48 hours in advance and obtain a permit. Authorities may not refuse to grant a permit but may require the event be held at a different time or place for reasons of public safety or freedom of movement. If authorities determine an event should be held at another time or place, the law requires organizers be notified in writing within 12 hours of the time of submission of their request.
The government denied some requests by opposition political parties to hold protests but permitted other requests for demonstrations. According to the Addis Ababa City Administration, during the year political parties made 22 requests to conduct peaceful demonstrations, of which the city administration granted 13 of the requests and rejected nine. Organizers in most cases alleged government interference, and authorities required several of the protests to move to different dates or locations from those the organizers requested. Protest organizers alleged the government’s claims of needing to move the protests based on public safety concerns were not credible. During April and May, demonstrations occurred on university campuses throughout the Oromia Region against a draft development plan for Addis Ababa that would expand the capital city into towns previously controlled by the surrounding Oromia Region. There were reports of security forces beating and killing protesters at these demonstrations.
Local government officials, almost all of whom were affiliated with the EPRDF, controlled access to municipal halls, and there were many complaints from opposition parties local officials denied or otherwise obstructed the scheduling of opposition parties’ use of halls for lawful political rallies. There were numerous credible reports owners of hotels and other large facilities cited unspecified internal rules forbidding political parties from utilizing their spaces for gatherings.
Regional governments, including the Addis Ababa regional administration, were reluctant to grant permits or provide security for large meetings.
The government arrested persons in relation to opposition demonstrations. For example, on January 30, police temporarily detained Semayawi Party members as the party announced plans to hold a demonstration on February 2 in Gondar, as well as UDJ members as they announced plans for a public rally in April.
In January according to media reports, government officials in the northern city of Adigrat temporarily detained two members of opposition political party Arena Tigray and then beat other party members as Arena Tigray announced plans to hold a party conference on January 26. Arena Tigray member Asgeda Gebreselassie was reportedly admitted to a hospital with injuries caused by government officials.
In March police temporarily detained UDJ members meeting in a private home in the southern town of Wolaita Sodo and accused them of holding an illegal meeting. Police reportedly destroyed the detainees’ cell phones by dipping them in chemicals.
On July 18, police detained 14 persons, primarily Muslim worshippers, and two Semayawi Party members following protests at the Anwar Mosque. After nearly one month, the detainees, some of whom reportedly suffered injuries during clashes with police, were released on bail.
Freedom of Association
Although the law provides for freedom of association and the right to engage in unrestricted peaceful political activity, the government limited this right.
A report of the UN special rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association stated, “The enforcement of these [the CSO law] provisions has a devastating impact on individuals’ ability to form and operate associations effectively.”
The CSO law bans anonymous donations to NGOs. All potential donors were therefore aware their names would be public knowledge. The same was true concerning all donations made to political parties.
International NGOs seeking to operate in the country had to submit an application via Ethiopian embassies abroad, which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs then submitted to the Charities and Societies Agency.
d. Freedom of Movement, Internally Displaced Persons, Protection of Refugees, and Stateless Persons
Although the law provides for freedom of internal movement, foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation, the government restricted some of these rights.
The government cooperated with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other humanitarian organizations in providing protection and assistance to internally displaced persons (IDPs), refugees, returning refugees, asylum seekers, stateless persons, and other persons of concern; however, at times authorities or armed groups limited the ability of humanitarian organizations to operate in areas of insecurity, such as on the country’s borders.
Humanitarian organizations reported 32 incidents that impeded humanitarian work in the first half of the year, compared with 36 such incidents during the same period in 2013. The majority of these cases were in the Somali Region. The incidents included hostility toward and violence against humanitarian personnel, theft of assets, interference with the implementation of humanitarian programs, and restrictions on importation of personnel and goods into the country for humanitarian work. This data referred broadly to humanitarian work and was not limited to activities focusing on IDPs or refugees.
Access to Nogob (formerly Fik) Zone in the Somali Region improved during the year. Authorities permitted several government-led, multi-agency missions including UN and NGO representatives to visit the area. Access to other parts of the Somali Region, particularly those bordering Somalia, worsened due to security concerns stemming from reports of an increase in al-Shabaab terrorists operating in these areas. In several cases NGOs delayed travel to program sites and could not assess needs. Following credible information about a possible terrorist threat against international staff, UN agencies temporarily withdrew some of their international staff from Dollo Ado in June but began to return them in August. Attacks on vehicles carrying humanitarian personnel, assault on humanitarian staff members, and harassment, including arbitrary detention, reportedly continued.
In-country Movement: The government continued to relax but did not completely remove restrictions on the movement of persons into and within the Somali Region, continuing to argue that ONLF and al-Shabaab terrorists from neighboring Somalia posed a security threat (see section 2.d., Internally Displaced Persons). Security concerns forced a temporary halt of deliveries of food and medicine in the limited areas affected by fighting. The government continued a policy that allowed refugees to live outside of a camp. According to the Administration for Returnees and Refugee Affairs (ARRA), which managed the out-of-camp program, as of August there were2,993 individuals living outside the camps (2,806 in Addis Ababa and surrounding areas and 187 from Shire), compared with 3,412 in 2012. Prior to this policy, the government gave such permission primarily to attend higher-education institutions, undergo medical treatment, or avoid security threats at the camps.
Foreign Travel: A 2013 ban on unskilled workers travelling to the Middle East for employment continued in effect at year’s end. The ban did not affect citizens travelling for investment or business reasons. The government stated it issued the ban to prevent harassment, intimidation, and trauma suffered by those working abroad, particularly in the Middle East, as domestic employees.
On March 21, National Intelligence and Security Service officials at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa prevented Yilekal Getnet, chairman of the political opposition Semayawi Party, from travelling abroad for an exchange program sponsored by a foreign government.
Exile: Several citizens sought political asylum in other countries or remained abroad in self-imposed exile.
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimated there were 426,736 IDPs in the country as of June, an increase of 51,091 from June 2013. According to the IOM, an estimated 71.4 percent of all IDPs were considered “protracted” IDPs, for whom durable solutions (return to home areas, local integration, and resettlement in other parts of the country) were not possible at the time. This was due to lack of resolution of conflicts, lack of political decisions or resources to support local integration, or undesirability of resettlement to other areas of the country.
Categories and totals of IDPs experiencing protracted displacement included victims of interclan and cross-border conflict (304,707), flooding (1,477), and volcanic eruptions (1,800). Seventy-two percent of the IDPs (308,770) resided in Somali Region; 10.3 percent (44,094) were in Oromia; 9.7 percent (41,489) in Gambella; 1.1 percent (4,580) in Harar; 0.6 percent (2,501) in SNNPR; and 5.9 percent (25,302) were in Afar Region.
Significant populations of IDPs experiencing protracted displacement included an estimated 3,500 households displaced in July 2013 in East Hararghe Zone, 1,310 households displaced in February 2013 in West Hararghe Zone, and nearly 2,000 households displaced in 2008 and 2009 in the border town of Moyale. Approximately 12,000 IDPs remained in the Gambella Region after fleeing conflicts that occurred in 2009.
Conflicts and natural disasters contributed to a rise in the number of IDPs. Conflict in the SNNPR’s South Omo Valley displaced 300 households. In March, following violence between Guji and Borena communities in the Oromia Region, approximately 120 persons were killed and another 30,700 persons displaced. In April conflict arose between Afar and Somali populations around Siti Zone, reportedly leading to the displacement of 900 households and the destruction of homes and other local infrastructure. In mid-September at least 600 households were displaced in Majang Zone of Gambella due to intercommunal violence between ethnic Majang and highlanders. In addition, storms caused flooding, which led to displacements in Afar, Gambella, SNNPR, and Somali Regions.
Following a change in Saudi Arabia’s foreign labor legislation, between mid-November 2013 and mid-March, Saudi Arabia unexpectedly deported 163,018 Ethiopian migrants. At the peak of the operation in November and December 2013, approximately 7,000 Ethiopians returned from Saudi Arabia per day. Humanitarian organizations worked with the government to provide medical care, water, food, and transportation for the returnees. The government collaborated with the Saudi Arabian government to ensure proper delivery and protection of the returnees’ possessions. As of mid-March, 94 percent of the returnees had received postarrival assistance. The government also assigned a significant number of personnel to coordinate the return operation and posted full-time staff at the transit sites set up with the help of the international community.
The government, through the Disaster Risk Management Food Security Sector (DRMFSS), continued to play an active role in delivering humanitarian assistance to IDPs. Federal and local DRMFSS officials collaborated with the IOM and its partners in monitoring IDP populations. In addition the Somali Regional State-level Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Bureau, in collaboration with the IOM and other international actors, set up a Durable Solutions Working Group to seek sustainable solutions for the protracted IDP caseload in the Somali Region.
Protection of Refugees
Access to Asylum: The law provides for the granting of asylum or refugee status, and the government has established a system for providing protection to refugees.
According to the UNHCR, by late December the country hosted 644,168 refugees. The majority of refugees were from South Sudan (248,580) and Somalia (244,066), with others coming from Eritrea (111,321), Sudan (35,606), and other countries (4,595), particularly Kenya.
The UNHCR, the ARRA, and humanitarian agencies continued to care for Sudanese arrivals fleeing from conflict in Sudan’s Blue Nile State. The government also extended support to South Sudanese asylum seekers from South Sudan’s Jonglei and Upper Nile states. As of December more than 193,960 individuals had sought refuge in Ethiopia due to the political conflict that erupted in South Sudan in December 2013.
Eritrean asylum seekers continued to arrive in the country. This included a large number of unaccompanied minors. Many Eritreans who arrived in the country regularly departed for secondary migration through Egypt and Sudan to go to Israel, Europe, and other final destinations.
Employment: The government did not grant refugees work permits.
Access to Basic Services: The UNHCR and the ARRA, with support from NGOs, provided refugees in camps with basic services including health, education, water, sanitation, and hygiene. For those outside of camps, there were no reports of discrimination in access to public services.
Durable Solutions: The government granted refugee status to asylum seekers from Eritrea, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan. The government welcomed refugees to settle permanently in the country but did not offer a path to citizenship or facilitate integration. It permitted Eritrean refugees to live outside refugee camps provided they sustained themselves financially. The government provided some support for Eritreans who were pursuing higher education. As of December, 6,553 refugees had departed the country for resettlement.
Section 3. Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their GovernmentShare
The constitution and law provide citizens the ability to change their government peacefully. The ruling party’s electoral advantages, however, limited this ability.
Elections and Political Participation
Recent Elections: In August 2012, following the death of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, the ruling EPRDF elected Hailemariam Desalegn to take Meles’s place as chairman of the party and subsequently nominated him for the post of prime minister. In September 2012 parliament elected Hailemariam as prime minister.
In the 2010 national parliamentary elections, the EPRDF and affiliated parties won 545 of 547 seats to remain in power for a fourth consecutive five-year term. Government restrictions severely limited independent observation of the vote. Although the relatively few international officials allowed to observe the elections concluded technical aspects of the vote were handled competently, some also noted the lack of an environment conducive to free and fair elections prior to election day. Several laws, regulations, and procedures implemented since the 2005 national elections created a clear advantage for the EPRDF throughout the electoral process. There was ample evidence unfair government tactics, including intimidation of opposition candidates and supporters, enlarged the EPRDF victory. In addition voter education was limited to information about technical voting procedures and was provided by the National Electoral Board just days before voting began.
The African Union, whose observers arrived one week before the vote, deemed the elections to be free and fair. The EU, some of whose observers arrived a few months before the vote, concluded the elections fell short of international standards for transparency and failed to provide a level playing field for opposition parties. The EU observed a “climate of apprehension and insecurity,” noting the volume and consistency of complaints of harassment and intimidation by opposition parties was “a matter of concern” and had to be taken into consideration “in the overall assessment of the electoral process.”
The EPRDF demonstrated its continued dominance in nationwide elections for local and city council positions held in 2013. EPRDF-affiliated parties won all but five of approximately 3.6 million seats; 33 opposition parties boycotted the elections.
Political Parties and Political Participation: Political parties were predominantly ethnically based. The government, controlled by the ruling EPRDF, restricted media freedom and arrested opposition members. Constituent parties of the EPRDF conferred advantages upon their members; the parties directly owned many businesses and were broadly perceived to award jobs and business contracts to loyal supporters. Several opposition political parties reported difficulty in renting homes or buildings in which to open offices, citing visits by EPRDF members to the landlords to persuade or threaten them not to rent property to these parties.
There were reports authorities terminated the employment of teachers and other government workers if they belonged to opposition political parties. According to Oromo opposition groups, the Oromia regional government continued to threaten to dismiss opposition party members, particularly teachers, from their jobs. Government officials alleged many members of legitimate Oromo opposition parties were secretly OLF members and more broadly that members of many opposition parties had ties to Ginbot 7. At the university level, members of Medrek and its constituent parties were able to teach. There were reports unemployed youths not affiliated with the ruling coalition sometimes had trouble receiving the “support letters” from their kebeles (neighborhoods or wards) necessary to get jobs.
Registered political parties must receive permission from regional governments to open and occupy local offices.
Participation of Women and Minorities: No laws or cultural or traditional practices prevented women or minorities from voting or participating in political life on the same basis as men or nonminority citizens, although women were significantly underrepresented in both elected and appointed positions. The Tigray Regional Council included the highest proportion of women nationwide, at 48.5 percent.
The government’s policy of ethnic federalism led to the creation of individual constituencies to provide for representation of all major ethnic groups in the House of People’s Representatives. There were more than 80 ethnic groups, and small groups lacked representation in the legislature. There were 24 nationality groups in six regional states (Tigray, Amhara, Beneshangul-Gumuz, the SNNPR, Gambella, and Harar) that did not have a sufficient population to qualify for constituency seats based on the 2007 census; however, in the 2010 elections, individuals from these nationality groups competed for 24 special seats in the House of People’s Representatives. Additionally these 24 nationality groups have one seat each in the House of Federation.
Women held three of the 22 federal government ministerial positions, including one of three deputy prime minister positions and 152 of 547 seats in the national parliament.
Section 4. Corruption and Lack of Transparency in GovernmentShare
The law provides criminal penalties for corruption by officials. Despite the government’s prosecution of numerous officials for corruption, some officials continued to engage in corrupt practices. Corruption, especially the solicitation of bribes, remained a problem among low-level bureaucrats. Police and judicial corruption also continued to be problems. Some government officials appeared to manipulate the privatization process, and state- and party-owned businesses received preferential access to land leases and credit.
Corruption: The Ministry of Justice has primary responsibility for combating corruption, largely through the Federal Ethics and Anticorruption Commission (FEACC).
The FEACC continued criminal proceedings against the director general of the Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority, his deputy, and other government officials and private business leaders for alleged corrupt practices. On January 10, Yaregal Ayesheshum, former president of the Benishangul Gumuz Regional State, was sentenced to seven years in prison and fined 20,000 birr ($1,000) for “abuse of power” and corruption.
Financial Disclosure: The law requires all government officials and employees to register their wealth and personal property officially. The president and prime minister registered their assets. By June approximately 80,000 government officials had registered their assets as required by law (the 2010 Asset Disclosure and Registration Proclamation).
The FEACC held financial disclosure records. According to law any person seeking access to these records may do so by making a request in writing, although access to information on family assets may be restricted unless the FEACC deems the disclosure necessary. The law includes financial and criminal sanctions for noncompliance.
Public Access to Information: The law provides for public access to government information, but access was largely restricted. The law includes a sufficiently narrow list of exceptions outlining the grounds for nondisclosure. Responses generally must be made within 30 days of a written request, and fees may not exceed the actual cost of responding to the request. The law includes mechanisms for punishing officials for noncompliance, as well as appeal mechanisms for review of disclosure denials. Information on the number of disclosures or denials during the year was not available.
The government publishes laws and regulations in the national gazette prior to their taking effect. The Government Communications Affairs Office managed contacts between the government, the press, and the public; the private press reported the government rarely responded to its queries.
Section 5. Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human RightsShare
A few domestic human rights groups operated but with significant government restrictions. The government was generally distrustful and wary of domestic human rights groups and international observers. State-controlled media were critical of international human rights groups such as HRW.
The CSO law prohibits charities, societies, and associations (NGOs or CSOs) that receive more than 10 percent of their funding from foreign sources from engaging in activities that advance human and democratic rights or promote equality of nations, nationalities, peoples, genders, and religions; the rights of children and persons with disabilities; conflict resolution or reconciliation; or the efficiency of justice and law enforcement services. The law severely curtailed civil society’s ability to raise questions of good governance, human rights, corruption, and transparency, and forced many local and international NGOs working on good governance and human rights to either close or cease advocacy. In 2012 the UN high commissioner for human rights expressed concern that civil society space “has rapidly shrunk” since the CSO law’s enactment. By year’s end approximately 3,056 NGOs had registered under the CSO law. Of these, however, only four groups were actively engaged in human rights-based advocacy.
Some human rights defender organizations continued to register either as local charities, meaning they could not raise more than 10 percent of their funds from foreign donors but could act in the specified areas, or as resident charities, which allowed foreign donations above 10 percent but prohibited advocacy activities in those areas.
One of several sets of the law’s implementing regulations, commonly known as the 70/30 rule, caps administrative spending at 30 percent of an organization’s operating budget. The regulations define training of teachers, agricultural and health extension workers, and other government officials as an “administrative” cost, contending the training does not directly affect beneficiaries, thus limiting the number of training programs that can be provided by development assistance partners who prefer to employ train-the-trainer models to reach more persons. The government addressed application of this regulation on a case-by-case basis. A Civil Society Sector Working Group, cochaired by the Ministry of Federal Affairs, three civil society organizations, and representatives of the donor community, convened periodically to monitor and discuss challenges that arose as the law was implemented.
The government denied most NGOs access to federal prisons, police stations, and undisclosed places of detention. The government permitted a local NGO, one of four organizations granted an exemption enabling them to raise unlimited funds from foreign sources and to engage in human rights advocacy, to visit prisoners. Some NGOs played a positive role in improving prisoners’ chances for clemency.
Due to security concerns, authorities limited access of human rights organizations, the media, humanitarian agencies, and diplomatic missions to conflict-affected areas, although it continued to ease such restrictions. Humanitarian access in the Somali Region in particular continued to improve; however, due to security concerns, some restrictions remained. The government lacked a clear policy on NGO access to sensitive areas, leading regional government officials and military officials frequently to refer requests for access to the federal government. Officials required journalists to register before entering conflict regions. There were isolated reports of regional police or local militias blocking NGOs’ access to particular locations on particular days, citing security concerns. Some government agencies limited project activities for security reasons.
Some persons feared authorities would retaliate against them if they met with NGOs and foreign government officials who were investigating allegations of abuse.
The United Nations or Other International Bodies: Requests to visit the country from the UN special rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment remained unanswered.
Government Human Rights Bodies: The EHRC investigated human rights complaints and produced annual and thematic reports. The commission operated 112 legal aid centers in collaboration with 22 universities and two civil society organizations, the Ethiopian Women Lawyers’ Association and the Ethiopian Christian Lawyers Fellowship. The commission also signed cooperative agreements with Axum, Wolayta, Debre Berhan, and Jijiga universities.
The EHRC reported to parliament that in 2013-14 it had accepted 1,037 human rights-related grievances and completed investigations into 134 cases (13 percent of the total). In addition the EHRC claimed to have provided counseling services to 463 individuals, resolved 107 cases through negotiation, and referred 306 grievances (30 percent of the total) to the relevant government offices.
The Office of the Ombudsman has authority to receive and investigate complaints with respect to administrative mismanagement by executive branch offices. From September 2011 to September 2012, the office received 2,094 complaints. Of these, the ombudsman opened investigations into 784, and the office reported it resolved the remaining cases through alternative means. The majority of complaints dealt with social security, labor, housing, and property disputes. The Office of the Ombudsman did not compile nationwide statistics.
Section 6. Discrimination, Societal Abuses, and Trafficking in PersonsShare
The constitution provides all persons equal protection without discrimination based on race, nation, nationality or other social origin, color, gender, language, religion, political or other opinion, property, birth, or status, but the government did not fully promote and protect these rights. The constitution does not address discrimination based on disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
Women
Rape and Domestic Violence: The law criminalizes rape and provides for penalties of five to 20 years’ imprisonment, depending on the severity of the case; the law does not expressly address spousal rape. The government did not fully enforce the law, partially due to widespread underreporting. Recent statistics on the number of abusers prosecuted, convicted, or punished were not available.
Domestic violence is illegal, but government enforcement of laws against rape and domestic violence was inconsistent.
Domestic violence, including spousal abuse, was a pervasive social problem. Depending on the severity of damage inflicted, legal penalties range from small fines to imprisonment for up to 10 to 15 years.
Although women had recourse to the police and the courts, societal norms and limited infrastructure prevented many women from seeking legal redress, particularly in rural areas. The government prosecuted offenders on a limited scale.
Domestic violence and rape cases often were delayed significantly and given low priority. In the context of gender-based violence, significant gender gaps in the justice system remained, due to poor documentation and inadequate investigation. Gender-based violence against women and girls was underreported due to cultural acceptance, shame, fear, or a victim’s ignorance of legal protections.
“Child friendly” benches hear cases involving violence against children and women. Police officers were required to receive domestic violence training from domestic NGOs and the Ministry of Women, Children, and Youth Affairs. There was a commissioner for women and children’s affairs in the EHRC.
Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C): FGM/C is illegal, but the government did not actively enforce this prohibition or punish those who practiced it. The government strategy for combatting this practice was focused on community education rather than punitive measures, which had been seen to drive the practice underground in other countries (see section 6, Children).
Other Harmful Traditional Practices: The most prevalent harmful traditional practices other than FGM/C included uvula cutting, tonsil scraping, milk tooth extraction, early marriage, and marriage by abduction.
Marriage by abduction is illegal, although it continued in some regions despite the government’s attempts to combat the practice. A 2009 Population Council study of seven regions found that 2.6 percent of married female youth reported their marriages occurred through abduction. Of that number, the study found the rate to be 12.9 percent in the SNNPR, 4.4 percent in Oromia, 3 percent in Afar, and less than 1percent in Beneshangul Gumuz. The study did not include the Gambella or Somali Regions. Forced sexual relationships accompanied most marriages by abduction, and women often experienced physical abuse during the abduction. Abductions led to conflicts among families, communities, and ethnic groups. In cases of marriage by abduction, the perpetrator did not face punishment if the victim agreed to marry the perpetrator.
Sexual Harassment: Sexual harassment was widespread. The penal code prescribes penalties of 18 to 24 months’ imprisonment, but authorities generally did not enforce harassment laws.
Reproductive Rights: Individuals and couples have the right to decide freely and responsibly the number, spacing, and timing of children; to have the information and means to do so free from discrimination, coercion, and violence; and the right to attain the highest standard of reproductive health. The government fully supported reproductive rights and worked actively to ensure equitable access to reproductive health services throughout the country. Orthodox and Muslim church leadership actively promoted use of health services, including family planning if desired, to ensure healthy families. A “mini” Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) was conducted during the year to measure progress in contraceptive prevalence, total fertility rate, maternal health, and nutrition. The mini-DHS indicated a modern contraceptive prevalence of 40 percent nationwide among married women, up from 27 percent three years prior. The mini-DHS also showed delivery with a skilled birth attendant had risen from 10 to 16 percent. Modeling completed by the government with support from the Gates Foundation and UN agencies indicated the number of women dying during pregnancy and childbirth had dropped from 676 deaths per 100,000 live births to an estimated 420 deaths per 100,000 live births, indicating the country had met its UN Millennium Development Goal target of reducing maternal mortality by 70 percent since 1990. Abortion is illegal but with numerous exceptions. The incidence of illegal, unsafe abortions had declined since legislation changed, which accounted in part for the drop in maternal mortality. All maternal and child health services were provided free of charge in the public sector; however, challenges persisted in accessing quality services in more remote areas of the country due to transportation problems.
Discrimination: Discrimination against women was a problem and was most acute in rural areas, where an estimated 85 percent of the population lived. The law contains discriminatory regulations, such as the recognition of the husband as the legal head of the family and the sole guardian of children more than five years old. Courts generally did not consider domestic violence by itself a justification for granting a divorce. Irrespective of the number of years a marriage existed, the number of children raised, and joint property, the law entitled women to only three months’ financial support if a relationship ended. There was limited legal recognition of common-law marriage. A common-law husband had no obligation to provide financial assistance to his family, and consequently women and children sometimes faced abandonment. Traditional courts continued to apply customary law in economic and social relationships.
According to the constitution, all land belongs to the government. Both men and women have land-use rights, which they may pass on as an inheritance. Land law varies among regions. All federal and regional land laws empower women to access government land. Inheritance laws also enable widowed women to inherit joint property they acquired during marriage.
In urban areas women had fewer employment opportunities than men, and the jobs available did not generally provide equal pay for equal work. Women’s access to gainful employment, credit, and the opportunity to own or manage a business was further limited by their generally lower level of education and training and by traditional attitudes.
The Ministry of Education reported female participation in undergraduate and postgraduate programs rose to 172,237 women in 2012-13 from 144,286 women in 2011-12, continuing the trend of increasing female participation in higher education.
Children
Birth registration: Citizenship is derived from one’s parents. The law requires all children to be registered at birth. Children born in hospitals were registered while most children born outside of hospitals were not. The overwhelming majority of children, particularly in rural areas, were born at home.
Education: As a policy primary education was universal and tuition-free; however, there were not enough schools to accommodate the country’s youth, particularly in rural areas. The cost of school supplies was prohibitive for many families, and there was no legislation to enforce compulsory primary education. The number of students enrolled in schools expanded faster than trained teachers could be deployed. Orchestrating government, NGO, and donor resources, the government had opened 5,322 new primary schools and 715 new secondary schools since 2009.
Child Abuse: Child abuse was widespread. The African Report on Child Wellbeing 2013, published by the African Child Policy Forum, found the government had increased punishment for sexual violence against children. “Child friendly” benches heard cases involving violence against children and women. There was a commissioner for women and children’s affairs in the EHRC.
Early and Forced Marriage: The law sets the legal marriage age for girls and boys at 18; however, authorities did not enforce this law uniformly, and rural families sometimes were unaware of this provision. In several regions it was customary for older men to marry girls, although this traditional practice continued to face greater scrutiny and criticism. The government strategy to address underage marriage was focused on education and mediation rather than punishment of offenders.
According to the 2011 DHS, the median age of first marriage among women surveyed between the ages of 20 and 49 was 17.1 years. The age of first marriage appeared to be rising. In 2005 the median age of marriage for women surveyed between ages 20 and 24 was 16.5 years, and while 39 percent of women between 45 and 49 reported being married by age 15, only 8 percent of girls and young women between 15 and 19 years of age reported being or having been married.
In the Amhara and Tigray regions, girls were married as early as age seven. Child marriage was most prevalent in the Amhara Region, where the median first marriage age was 15.1 years, according to the 2011 DHS, compared with 14.7 years in 2005. Regional governments in Amhara and, to a lesser extent, Tigray offered programs to educate girls and young women on problems associated with early marriage.
Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C): FGM/C is illegal, but the government did not actively enforce this prohibition or punish those who practiced it. The majority of girls in the country had undergone some form of FGM/C, although the results of the 2009 Population Council survey suggested its prevalence had declined. Of female respondents ages 21 to 24, 66 percent reported they were subjected to FGM/C, compared with 56 percent of those ages 15 to 17. Of the seven regions surveyed, the study found the rates to be highest in Afar (90.3 percent), Oromia (77.4 percent), and the SNNPR (74.6 percent).
FGM/C was much less common in urban areas, where 15 percent of the population lived. Girls typically experienced clitoridectomies seven days after birth (consisting of an excision of the clitoris, often with partial labial excision) and infibulation (the most extreme and dangerous form of FGM/C) at the onset of puberty. The penal code criminalizes the practice of clitoridectomy, with imprisonment of at least three months or a fine of at least 500 birr ($25). Infibulation of the genitals is punishable with imprisonment of five to 10 years. No criminal charges, however, had ever been brought for FGM/C. The government’s strategy was to discourage the practice of FGM/C through education in public schools, the Health Extension Program, and broader mass media campaigns rather than prosecute offenders. International bilateral donors and private organizations were active in community education efforts to reduce the prevalence of FGM/C, following the government’s lead of sensitization rather than legal enforcement.
Other Harmful Traditional Practices: Societal abuse of young girls continued to be a problem. Other harmful practices included early marriage, marriage by abduction, and food and work prohibitions, uvula cutting, tonsil scraping, and milk tooth extraction.
Sexual Exploitation of Children: The minimum age for consensual sex is 18 years, but authorities did not enforce this law. The law provides for three to 15 years in prison for sexual intercourse with a minor. The law provides for one year in prison and a fine of 10,000 birr ($500) for trafficking in indecent material displaying sexual intercourse by minors. The law prohibits profiting from the prostitution of minors and inducing minors to engage in prostitution; however, commercial sexual exploitation of children continued, particularly in urban areas. Girls as young as age 11 reportedly were recruited to work in brothels. Customers often sought these girls because they believed them to be free of sexually transmitted diseases. Young girls were trafficked from rural to urban areas. They also were exploited as prostitutes in hotels, bars, resort towns, and rural truck stops. Reports indicated family members forced some young girls into prostitution.
Infanticide or Infanticide of Children with Disabilities: Ritual and superstition-based infanticide continued in remote tribal areas, particularly South Omo. Local governments worked to educate communities against the practice.
Displaced Children: According to a 2010 report by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, approximately 150,000 children lived on the streets, of whom 60,000 were in the capital. The ministry’s report stated families’ inability to support children due to parental illness or insufficient household income exacerbated the problem. These children begged, sometimes as part of a gang, or worked in the informal sector.
A 2010 Population Council Young Adult Survey found that 82.3 percent of boys who lived or worked on the streets had been to or had enrolled in school, 26.4 percent had lost one parent, and 47.2 percent had lost both parents. Among these boys, 72 percent worked for pay at some point in their lives. Government and privately run orphanages were unable to handle the number of street children.
Institutionalized Children: There were an estimated 4.5 million orphans in the country in 2012, according to statistics published by the UN Children’s Fund. The vast majority lived with extended family members. Government orphanages were overcrowded, and conditions were often unsanitary. Due to severe resource constraints, hospitals and orphanages often overlooked or neglected abandoned infants. Institutionalized children did not receive adequate health care.
International Child Abductions: The country is not a party to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. For country-specific information see the Department of State’s website at travel.state.gov/content/childabduction/english/country/ethiopia.html.
Anti-Semitism
The Jewish community numbered approximately 2,000 persons. There were no reports of anti-Semitic acts.
The constitution does not mandate equal rights for persons with disabilities. The law prohibits discrimination against persons with physical and mental disabilities in employment and mandates access to buildings. It is illegal for deaf persons to drive.
The law prohibits employment discrimination based on disability. It also makes employers responsible for providing appropriate working or training conditions and materials to persons with disabilities. The law specifically recognizes the additional burden on women with disabilities. The government took limited measures to enforce the law, for example, by assigning interpreters for hearing-impaired civil service employees (see section 7.d.).
The law mandates building accessibility and accessible toilet facilities for persons with physical disabilities, although specific regulations that define the accessibility standards were not adopted. Buildings and toilet facilities were usually not accessible. Landlords are required to give persons with disabilities preference for ground-floor apartments, and this was respected.
Women with disabilities were more disadvantaged than men with disabilities in education and employment. The 2010 Population Council Young Adult Survey found young persons with disabilities were less likely to have ever attended school than young persons without disabilities. The survey indicated girls with disabilities were less likely than boys with disabilities to be in school; 23 percent of girls with disabilities were in school, compared with 48 percent of girls without disabilities and 55 percent of boys without disabilities. Overall, 47.8 percent of young persons with disabilities surveyed reported not going to school due to their disability. Girls with disabilities also were much more likely to suffer physical and sexual abuse than girls without disabilities. Of sexually experienced girls with disabilities, 33 percent reported having experienced forced sex. According to the same survey, approximately 6 percent of boys with disabilities had been beaten in the three months prior to the survey, compared with 2 percent of boys without disabilities.
There were several schools for hearing and visually impaired persons and several training centers for children and young persons with intellectual disabilities. There was a network of prosthetic and orthopedic centers in five of the nine regional states.
The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs worked on disability-related problems. The CSO law continued to affect negatively several domestic associations, such as the Ethiopian National Association of the Blind, the Ethiopian National Association of the Deaf, and the Ethiopian National Association of the Physically Handicapped, as it did other civil society organizations.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
The country has more than 80 ethnic groups, of which the Oromo, at approximately 35 percent of the population, is the largest. The federal system drew boundaries approximately along major ethnic group lines. Most political parties remained primarily ethnically based.
Clashes between ethnic groups resulted in injury and death. For example, in late April and May, demonstrations on university campuses throughout the Oromia Region broke out following reports that a draft development plan for Addis Ababa would expand the capital city into towns previously controlled by the surrounding Oromia regional officials. On April 30, a peaceful student protest in Ambo, west of Addis Ababa, escalated into violence and resulted in the deaths of at least eight persons. HRW reported that “witnesses said security forces fired live ammunition at peaceful protesters.”
Authorities in the western region of Benishangul-Gumuz forcibly evicted as many as 8,000 ethnic Amhara residents from their homes; some of those evicted alleged police beat and harassed them because of their ethnicity. The regional president publicly stated the evictions were a mistake and called on the evictees to return. Government officials also stated that victims would be compensated for lost property and any injuries sustained. Authorities dismissed several local officials from their government positions because of their alleged involvement in the evictions and charged some of the officials with criminal offenses.
Acts of Violence, Discrimination, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
Consensual same-sex sexual activity is illegal and punishable with three to 15 years’ imprisonment under the law. No law prohibits discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals. There were some reports of violence against LGBT individuals; reporting was limited due to fear of retribution, discrimination, or stigmatization. There are no hate crime laws or other criminal justice mechanisms to aid in the investigation of abuses against LGBT persons. Persons did not identify themselves as LGBT persons due to severe societal stigma and the illegality of consensual same-sex sexual activity. Activists in the LGBT community stated they were followed and at times feared for their safety.
The AIDS Resource Center in Addis Ababa reported the majority of self-identified gay and lesbian callers, most of whom were male, requested assistance in changing their behavior to avoid discrimination. Many gay men reported anxiety, confusion, identity crises, depression, self-ostracism, religious conflict, and suicide attempts.
HIV and AIDS Social Stigma
Societal stigma and discrimination against persons living with or affected by HIV/AIDS continued in the areas of education, employment, and community integration. Persons living with or affected by HIV/AIDS reported difficulty accessing services. Despite the abundance of anecdotal information, there were no statistics on the scale of the problem.
Section 7. Worker Rights
a. Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining
The constitution and law provide workers, except for civil servants and certain categories of workers primarily in the public sector, with the right to form and join unions, conduct legal strikes, and bargain collectively, although other provisions and laws severely restrict or excessively regulate these rights. The law specifically prohibits managerial employees, teachers, health-care workers, judges, prosecutors, security service workers, domestic workers, and seasonal and part-time agricultural workers from organizing unions.
A minimum of 10 workers is required to form a union. While the law provides all unions with the right to register, the government may refuse to register trade unions that do not meet its registration requirements and unilaterally cancel the registration of a union. Workers may not join more than one trade union per employment. The law stipulates a trade union organization may not act in an overtly political manner. The law allows administrative authorities to appeal to the courts to cancel union registration for engaging in prohibited activities, such as political action. While the law prohibits antiunion discrimination by employers and provides for reinstatement for workers fired for union activity, it does not prevent an employer from creating or supporting a workers’ organization for the purpose of controlling it.
Other laws and regulations that explicitly or potentially infringe upon workers’ rights to associate freely and to organize include the CSO law, Council of Ministers Regulation No. 168/2009 on Charities and Societies to reinforce the CSO law, and Proclamation No. 652/2009 on Antiterrorism. The International Labor Organization (ILO) Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations noted the CSO law gives the government power to interfere in the right of workers to organize, including through the registration, internal administration, and dissolution of organizations, and that the Antiterrorism Proclamation could become a means of punishing the peaceful exercise of freedom of expression and the right to organize.
While the law recognizes the right of collective bargaining, this right was severely restricted. Negotiations aimed at amending or replacing a collective agreement must be completed within three months of its expiration; otherwise the provisions on wages and other benefits cease to apply. Civil servants, including public school teachers, have the right to establish and join professional associations but are not allowed to negotiate for better wages or working conditions. Furthermore, the arbitration procedures in the public sector are more restrictive than those in the private sector. The law does not provide for effective and adequate sanctions against acts of interference by other agents in their establishment, functioning, or administration of either the workers’ or employers’ organizations.
Although the constitution and law provide workers with the right to strike to protect their interests, the law contains detailed provisions prescribing excessively complex and time-consuming formalities that make legal strike actions difficult to carry out. The law requires aggrieved workers to attempt reconciliation with employers before striking and includes a lengthy dispute settlement process. These provisions apply equally to an employer’s right to lock workers out. Two-thirds of the workers concerned must support a strike for it to be authorized. If a case has not already been referred to a court or labor relations board, workers retain the right to strike without resorting to either of these options, provided they give at least 10 days’ notice to the other party and the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs and make efforts at reconciliation.
The law also prohibits strikes by workers who provide essential services, including air transport and urban bus service workers, electric power suppliers, gas station personnel, hospital and pharmacy personnel, firefighters, telecommunications personnel, and urban sanitary workers. The list of essential services exceeds the ILO definition of essential services. The law prohibits retribution against strikers, but also provides for excessive civil or penal sanctions against unions and workers involved in unauthorized strike actions. Unions may be dissolved for carrying out strikes in “essential services.”
The informal labor sector, including domestic workers, is not unionized and is not protected by labor laws. Lack of adequate staffing prevented the government from effectively enforcing applicable laws for those sectors protected by law. Court procedures were subject to lengthy delays and appeals.
Freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining were not respected. Although the government permits unions, the government established and controlled the major trade unions. As it had for more than four years, the government continued to use its authority to refuse to register the National Teachers’ Association (NTA) on the grounds a national teachers’ association already existed and that the NTA’s registration application was not submitted in accordance with the CSO law. According to the Education International report to the ILO in 2011, government security agents subjected members of the NTA to surveillance and harassment, with the goal of intimidating teachers into abandoning the NTA and forcing them to give up their long-standing demand for the formation of an independent union. In March the ILO’s Committee on Freedom of Association expressed its concern with regard to serious violations of the NTA’s trade union rights, including continuous interference in its internal organization that prevented it from functioning normally, as well as interference by way of threats, dismissals, arrests, detentions, and mistreatment of NTA members. In May 2013 the ILO mission made a working visit and signed the Joint Statement with the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, according to which the government was ready and committed to register the NTA in accordance with the CSO Law. The committee continued to urge the government to register the NTA without delay and to undertake civil service reform to protect fully the right of civil servants to establish and join organizations of their own choosing. During the year the ILO experts committee reported the government was “ready and committed” to register the NTA under the Charities and Societies Proclamation.
While the government allowed citizens to exercise the right of collective bargaining freely, representatives negotiated wages only at the plant level. It was common for employers to refuse to bargain. Unions in the formal industrial sector made some efforts to enforce labor regulations.
Despite the law prohibiting antiunion discrimination, unions reported employers fired union activists. There were reports most Chinese employers generally did not allow workers to form unions and often transferred or fired union leaders, and intimidated and pressured members to leave unions. Lawsuits alleging unlawful dismissal often take years to resolve because of case backlogs in the courts. Employers found guilty of antiunion discrimination were required to reinstate workers fired for union activities and generally did so. While the law prohibits retribution against strikers, most workers were not convinced the government would enforce this protection. Labor officials reported that high unemployment and long delays in the hearing of labor cases made some workers afraid to participate in strikes or other labor actions. Antiunion activities occurred but were rarely reported.
b. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The law prohibits most forms of forced or compulsory labor, including by children, but it also permits courts to order forced labor as a punitive measure. The government did not effectively enforce the forced labor prohibition, and forced labor occurred. Both adults and children were forced to engage in street vending, begging, traditional weaving, or agricultural work. Children also worked in forced domestic labor. Situations of debt bondage also occurred in traditional weaving, pottery making, cattle herding, and other agricultural activities, mostly in rural areas.
c. Prohibition of Child Labor and Minimum Age for Employment
By law the minimum age for wage or salary employment is 14 years. The minimum age provisions, however, only apply to contractual labor and do not apply to self-employed children or children who perform unpaid work. Special provisions cover children between the ages of 14 and 18, including the prohibition of hazardous or night work. The law defines hazardous work as work in factories or involving machinery with moving parts or any work that could jeopardize a child’s health. Prohibited work sectors include passenger transport, work in electric generation plants, underground work, street cleaning, and many other sectors. The law expressly excludes children under age 16 attending vocational schools from legal protection with regard to the prohibition on young workers performing hazardous work. The law does not permit children between the ages of 14 and 18 to work more than seven hours per day, between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., on public holidays or rest days, or on overtime.
The government did not effectively enforce these laws. The lack of labor inspectors and controls prevented the government from enforcing the law. The resources for inspections and the implementation of penalties were extremely limited. Despite the introduction of labor inspector training at Gondar University in 2011, insufficient numbers of labor inspectors and inspections resulted in lax enforcement of occupational safety and health measures and in increased numbers of children working in prohibited work sectors, particularly construction. The National Action Plan to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor was signed at the end of 2012.
While primary education is tuition-free, it is not compulsory, and net school enrollment was low, particularly in rural areas. To underscore the importance of attending school, joint NGO and government-led community-based awareness raising activities targeted communities where children were heavily engaged in agricultural work. The government invested in modernizing agricultural practices and constructing schools to combat the problem of child labor in agricultural sectors.
Child labor remained a serious problem. In both rural and urban areas, children often began working at young ages. Child labor was particularly pervasive in subsistence agricultural production, traditional weaving, fishing, and domestic work. A growing number of children worked in construction. Children in rural areas, especially boys, engaged in activities such as cattle herding, petty trading, plowing, harvesting, and weeding, while other children, mostly girls, collected firewood and fetched water. Children worked in the production of gold. In small-scale gold mining, they dug their own mining pits and carried heavy loads of water. Children in urban areas, including orphans, worked in domestic service, often working long hours, which prevented many from attending school regularly. They also worked in manufacturing, shining shoes, making clothes, as porters, directing customers to taxis, parking, public transport, petty trading, and occasionally herding animals. Some children worked long hours in dangerous environments for little or no wages and without occupational safety protection. Child laborers often faced physical, sexual, and emotional abuse at the hands of their employers.
d. Discrimination with Respect to Employment or Occupation
The law prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, marital status, religion, political affiliation, pregnancy, socioeconomic status, and disability. The law specifically recognizes the additional burden on women with disabilities (see section 6.) Sexual orientation, gender identity, and HIV-positive status are not specifically protected. The government took limited measures to enforce the law.
Discrimination in employment and occupation occurred with respect to women, who had fewer employment opportunities than men, and the jobs available did not provide equal pay for equal work.
Discrimination against migrant workers also occurred (see section 7.e.).
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
There is no national minimum wage. Some government institutions and public enterprises set their own minimum wages. Public sector employees, the largest group of wage earners, earned a monthly minimum wage of approximately 420 birr ($21). The official estimate for the poverty income level was 315 birr ($15.75) per month.
Only a small percentage of the population, concentrated in urban areas, was involved in wage-labor employment. Wages in the informal sector generally were below subsistence levels.
The law provides for a 48-hour maximum legal workweek with a 24-hour rest period, premium pay for overtime, and prohibition of excessive compulsory overtime. The country has 13 paid public holidays per year. The law entitles employees in public enterprises and government financial institutions to overtime pay; civil servants receive compensatory time off for overtime work. The government, industries, and unions negotiated occupational safety and health standards. Workers specifically excluded by law from unionizing, including domestic workers and seasonal and part-time agricultural workers, generally did not benefit from health and safety regulations in the workplace.
The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs’ inspection department was responsible for enforcement of workplace standards. In 2013 the country had 291 labor inspectors, down from 380. According to the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, the decrease was the result of high turnover and limited financial resources. Due to lack of resources, the labor inspectors did not enforce standards effectively. The ministry’s severely limited administrative capacity; lack of an effective mechanism for receiving, investigating, and tracking allegations of violations; and lack of detailed, sector-specific health and safety guidelines hampered effective enforcement of these standards. In addition penalties were not sufficient to deter violations.
Compensation, benefits, and working conditions of seasonal agricultural workers were far below those of unionized permanent agricultural employees. The government did little to enforce the law. Most employees in the formal sector worked a 39-hour workweek. Many foreign, migrant, and informal sector workers worked more than 48 hours per week.
Workers have the right to remove themselves from dangerous situations without jeopardizing their employment. Despite this law most workers feared losing their jobs if they were to do so. Hazardous working conditions existed in the agricultural sector, which was the primary base of the country’s economy. There were also reports of hazardous and exploitative working conditions in the construction and fledgling industrial sectors.
Ethiopian Regime Destruction of Somalia communities along the Somali Border
ONLF Press Release
May 31, 2015
The Special killing squads of the Ethiopian Regional Administration in Ogaden called the Liyu police, which is funded, trained and armed by the Ethiopian government has committed genocide in the villages near Shilaabo district of Ogaden along the Somali border, killing hundreds of civilians and burning several villages. Among the dead are more than 50 women, children and the elderly, who were wantonly cut into pieces. The epicentres of these massacres were the villages of Lababaar, Xaadh Xaadh, Xindhowreed, and other villages towards the Barmagoog and the Somali border near the Gal-Mudug region. The killings started on the May 26 and are still on going.
The Liyu police, which routinely conducts these heinous massacres in other Ogaden villages, went to Lababaar and demanded money from livestock at the village well. The people, who had no money, told the Liyu police commanders that they could not afford the exorbitant prices levied against them. The Liyu Police leader ordered the beheading of several elders. The people resisted and several members of the community were summarily executed. Then the Liyu police started spraying the remaining civilians with bullets.
The people decided to resist and then, the Liyu police started attacking all the villages in the area and shooting every one on sight, specially targeting women and children who are defenceless.
These communities, who reside on both sides of the border, are now a target for the Liyu police. The Ethiopian regular army closed the border crossings between Somalia and the Ogaden and is assisting the Liyu police with ammunition and medical support, while cornering and killing the wounded and escaping civilians to Somalia in order to obliterate any evidence.
ONLF condemns the Ethiopian government in the strongest term possible for unleashing these Gestapo-like killing squads on the Somali people in the region and calls the international community to send a fact-finding mission to the Ogaden to investigate the current incidence and the general conduct of the Liyu police in the Ogaden. The Ogaden is closed to international independent media and no independent local media is allowed.
ONLF informs the Somali people in Somalia that the Liyu Police is an Ethiopian regime created army that is being used to suppress all Somalis in Ogaden and is not the army of any Somali clan in Ogaden. Therefore, they shall hold the Ethiopian regime responsible for this catastrophe.
Finally, ONLF calls all Somalis in Ogaden and Neighbouring Somalia to unite against the Ethiopian regime that is responsible for the current malaise in the Horn of Africa and avoid the clan animosities being kindled and sponsored by the Ethiopian regime.
A week of clashes with Ethiopian paramilitary unit in Somalia leaves 35 dead
Mail & Guardian, 1st June 2015
Ethiopia has been in quite some cross-border controversy lately; two weeks ago its security forces entered and took over a Kenya police station.
In this handout pictured released by the African Union-United Nations Information Support Team, Ethiopian soldiers ready themselves. (Photo via AFP).
FOR the second time in two weeks, Ethiopians security forces are being accused of unauthorised or heavy-handed action in neighbouring countries.
In the latest incident at least 35 people, most of them civilians, have been killed in a week of clashes in villages near Somalia’s border with Ethiopia, officials and traditional elders said Sunday.
The sources said the clashes involved Somali clan militia and members of the Liyu police, an Ethiopian paramilitary unit operating in Ethiopia’s ethnic Somali region.
“The Liyu Police Unit launched an attack on innocent civilians. They are attacking villagers and killing people who keep livestock,” Hussein Weheliye Irfo, the governor of the Galgadud region in central Somalia, told reporters.
He said the Somali government was aware of the clashes and also called for the intervention of Ethiopia’s government and the African Union force in Somalia, AMISOM.
On May 18, Kenya security forces were put on high alert after about 50 heavily-armed Ethiopian soldiers and police officers crossed the border and reportedly took over a police station.
According to Kenya’s leading newspaper Daily Nation, police said the incident at Illeret Police Station in North Horr came just a week after surveyors had completed demarcating the Kenya-Ethiopia border.
The Ethiopians disembarked and took strategic positions around the police station.
They inspected the area and took photos of the area, which is 16 kilometres from the border.
“Their intention is not clear,” read a brief from Kenya’s Inspector-General of Police Joseph Boinnet’s office in Nairobi.
Week of Galgadud fighting
Speaking on the Galgadud incidents, sources in the region said fighting started a week ago and escalated on Friday.
“It is effecting a vast area and the casualties are very high, 35 dead bodies have been counted so far,” Mohamed Garane, a traditional elder in Guricel district where the wounded are hospitalised, said by telephone.
Another elder in the region, Daud Moalim Ise, said the Liyu force had used “excessive force” and said up to 45 had been killed.
“We have received around 29 wounded, most of them civilians. Many others are unable to reach here,” added Ali Omar, director of the main hospital in Guricel district. “Among them are women and children with severe gunshot wounds.
It was not apparently clear what sparked the clashes, which are separate from ongoing battles between African Union troops and Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Shabaab insurgents in the far south of the country. Several sources said the fighting may surround allegations that a Liyu police member had raped a local woman.
VOA: Mr. Elias Hadero, Hadiya National & Medrek Candidate in Southern Region, Claims Vote Rigging.
VOA: Mr. Elias Hadero, a Hadiya National and a Regional Parliament candidate of the Ethiopian Social Democracy-Southern Ethiopian People’s Democratic Union (a Medrek party), explains the vote rigging in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Region. http://gadaa.net/FinfinneTribune/2015/05/voa-mr-elias-hadero-hadiya-national-medrek-candidate-in-southern-region-claims-vote-rigging/
No Democracy in Ethiopia. No fair and free election in Ethiopia. Caamsaa 24/2015 Mooraan Yuunibarsiitii Jimmaa, Mattuu, Wallaggaa, Amboo, fi Dirree Dawaa addatti humni waraanaa guddaan itti seenee jira.
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
-George Orwell, Animal Farm
“The very common way that the EPRDF and its agents try to shift the public attention from lack of human and democratic rights and the daylight looting of the country’s resources, is by referring to the ‘impressive’ economic development registered in their rule. If they are talking about the only region that they are exclusively devoted to developing, then, they are absolutely right.”
In TPLF /Tigray dominated minority tyrannic regime of Orwellian social and development policy, all nations and nationalities in theory are equal in Ethiopia, but in reality Tigray is more equal than others. This is not a development process.
According to UNDP report, while more than 45% of children in Tigray have achieved Net Lower Secondary Enrollment, the statistics for Oromia is only 16.9%, very huge inequality variations. The report indicated that while Human development Index (HDI) of Tigray is the highest (above national average), states such as Oromia, Afar, Ogaden and Amhara have the lowest HDIs, below the national HDI of 0.461. These are the outcomes of Tigray only, exclusionist, social, economic and development policies of the ruling regime. UNDP is not exposing the Tigray only growth and development strategy but we can read from its data and graphs.
As the TPLF has been engaged (https://oromiaeconomist.wordpress.com/2014/10/30/amnesty-internationals-report-because-i-am-oromo-a-sweeping-repression-in-oromia/) in destabilizing, robbing and massive evictions of people from their ancestral home and land grabs in Oromia, by all sorts of engagement, resource and soil transfers, it has conducting massive subsidized development in its Tigray home. In other studies, BBC Magazine in its 20th April 2015 publication under the title ‘ Turning Ethiopia’s desert green,’reports: ” A generation ago Ethiopia’s Tigray province was stricken by a famine that shocked the world. Today, as Chris Haslam reports, local people are using ancient techniques to turn part of the desert green. In the pink-streaked twilight, a river of humanity is flowing across Tigray’s dusty Hawzien plain. This cracked and desiccated landscape, in Ethiopia’s far north, occupies a dark corner of the global collective memory. Thirty years ago, not far from here, the BBC’s Michael Buerk first alerted us to a biblical famine he described as “the closest thing to hell on earth”. Then Bob Geldof wrote Do They Know It’s Christmas? – a curious question to ask of perhaps the world’s most devoutly Christian people – and thereafter the name Tigray became synonymous with refugees, Western aid and misery. The Tigrayan people were depicted as exemplars of passive suffering, dependent on the goodwill of the rest of the planet just to get through the day without dying. But here, outside the village of Abr’ha Weatsbaha, I’m seeing a different version. From all directions, streams of people are trickling into that human river.” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-32348749.
Martin Plaut’s analysis which is based on world banks report is also interesting and important to refer here which is as follows:-
The World Bank has just published an authoritative study of poverty reduction in Ethiopia. The fall in overall poverty has been dramatic and is to be greatly welcomed. But who has really benefited?
This is the basic finding:
In 2000 Ethiopia had one of the highest poverty rates in the world, with 56% of the population living on less than US$1.25 PPP a day. Ethiopian households experienced a decade of remarkable progress in wellbeing since then and by the start of this decade less than 30% of the population was counted as poor.
There are of course many ways of answering the question – “who benefited” – were they men or women, urban or rural people. All these approaches are valid.
The Ethnic Dimension
But in Ethiopia, where Ethic Federalism has been the primary driver of government policy one cannot ignore the ethnic dimension.
Here this graph is particularly telling:
Tigray first
The answer is clear: it is the people of Tigray, whose party, the TPLF led the fight against the Mengistu regime and took power in 1991, who benefited most. What is also striking is that the Oromo (who are the largest ethnic group) hardly benefited at all.
This is what the World Bank says about this: “Poverty reduction has been faster in those regions in which poverty was higher and as a result the proportion of the population living beneath the national poverty line has converged to around one in 3 in all regions in 2011.”
The World Bank does little to explain just why Tigray has done (relatively) so well, but it does point to the importance of infrastructure investment and the building of roads. It also points to this fact: “Poverty rates increase by 7% with every 10 kilometers from a market town. As outlined above, farmers that are more remote are less likely to use agricultural inputs, and are less likely to see poverty reduction from the gains in agricultural growth that are made. The generally positive impact of improvements in infrastructure and access to basic services such as education complements the evidence for Ethiopia that suggests investing in roads reduces poverty.”
Not surprisingly, the TPLF under Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and beyond concentrated their investment on their home region – Tigray. The results are plain to see. https://martinplaut.wordpress.com/2015/01/23/ethiopias-poverty-reduction-who-benefits/
In its 2014 National Human Development Report, which has been written on the theme of “Accelerating Inclusive Growth for Sustainable Human Development in Ethiopia,” UNDP indicates that 25 million Ethiopians currently remain trapped in poverty and vulnerability. This and many Ethiopians just above the poverty line are vulnerable to shocks and food insecurity. Maternal health care has lagged well behind other health statistics and the availability of effective health care is inconsistent across the country. UNDP’s educational indicators suggest ongoing problems with the quality of education, as shown by retention rates and educational performance markers. UNDP says, perhaps most worrying from the standpoint of inclusive growth are the high rates of un- and underemployment in both urban and rural areas, especially as large numbers of productive jobs for the poor and near-poor are needed under current and projected labour market trends. Economic growth over the past decade has generally meant an increase in productivity and output levels in some parts of the economy, but these have been accompanied by increasing severity of poverty. The absolute number of the poor is roughly the same as 15 years ago and a significant proportion of the population hovers just above the poverty line and is vulnerable to shocks. Moreover, the severity of poverty 2 increased from 2.7 per cent in 1999/2000 to 3.1 per cent in 2010/11 (MoFED, 2013b). The prevalence of vulnerabilities and food insecurity are on the rise.
According to UNDP report, during the last three years (2010/11-2012/13), inflation was in double digits. The inflation rate, which was 18 per cent in 2010/11, increased to 33.7 per cent in 2011/12, declined to 13.5 per cent in 2012/13 and fell further to 8.1 per cent in December 2013. Other studies demonstrate that inflation figures have always been in double digits including 2013 and 2014 and at present.
Further, UNDP says with a Human Development Index (HDI) of 0.435 in 2013, the country is still classified as a “low human development” country, based on UNDP’s Human Development Index. Even though Ethiopia is one of the 10 countries globally that has attained the largest absolute gains in its HDI over the last several years, in the most recent Human Development Report (2014) Ethiopia ranks 173rd out of 187 countries. Thus, its Human Development Index (HDI) has not moved appreciably during the past decade, when compared with other developing countries that have registered similar growth rates. Looking at the HDI values of Seychelles, Tunisia and Algeria, which are in the high HDI bracket, and the other 12 African countries, which are in the medium HDI bracket, the major reasons why Ethiopia is still in the low HDI bracket are low education performance (particularly low mean years of schooling) and low GNI per capita. The minimum mean years of schooling and GNI per capita for medium HDI countries were 3.5 years and US$3,000, respectively in contrast to Ethiopia’s mean years of schooling of 2.6 years and GNI per capita of US$1,300. The inequality-adjusted Human Development index (IHDI), which is basically the HDI discounted for inequalities, is also computed for Ethiopia. Between 2005 and 2013, the IHDI increased from 0.349 to 0.459 indicating an average human development loss of 0.5 per cent per annum due to inequalities in health, access to education and income. According to (UNDP 2014), Ethiopia’s IHDI for 2013 was 0.307 in contrast to HDI of 0.435 indicating an overall human development loss of 29.4 per cent.
With regard to regional disparities in HDI values, while Tigray is significantly above national average, the four states of Afar, Somali, Amhara and Oromia have the lowest HDIs, below the national HDI of 0.461.
The outcome of the development strategy of Tigray only when mathematically averaged to the whole regions cannot hide TPLF’s Apartheid policy on Oromia and the rest as it is only the development focus for 5% of the 94 million population. Thus, Tigray is rich but Ethiopia is poor. Ethiopia is rich and fast growing only for development tourists those who lodge in Finfinne and tour to Tigray to take a sample and conclude the result for the whole states.
With regard to regional disparities in HDI values, while Tigray is significantly above national average, the four states of Afar, Somali, Amhara and Oromia have the lowest HDIs, below the national HDI of 0.461.
Another social indicator which demonstrates that Tigray is more equal than others is health services. UNDP’s report confirms that there are wide inequalities in the immunization status of children in Ethiopia. Children of educated women, rich households, and Finfinnee (Addis Ababa) and Tigray State have higher chances of being fully immunized. Children from the richest and middle income households are less likely to have no immunization at all (by 74 per cent and 57 per cent respectively) compared with those from the poorest households. Children from SNNPR, Oromiya and Amhara are 3.82, 7.00 and 3.65 times less likely to be fully immunized compared with those from Tigray, which has the second highest proportion of fully immunized children. According to UNDP, a report by Save the Children (2014) also raises concerns about equity in health services citing how immunization coverage is different among different income groups, and between urban and rural areas. According to the report, children from richest households are twice as likely to be immunized compared to those from the poorest households and children in urban areas are twice as likely to be immunized as those in rural areas. Based on revised data from the National Water Sanitation and Health Inventory, national potable water supply coverage increased from 58 per cent to 68.4 per cent between 2009/10 and 2012/13, reflecting an increase in both rural and urban coverage. Even though many health outcomes have improved significantly over the last decade, Ethiopia is still lagging behind on some measures. For example, Ethiopia has still higher than expected shares of malnutrition compared with countries at the same income level. What is especially striking about Ethiopia’s health data is the exceptionally high level of maternal mortality, given Ethiopia’s income level.
UNDP argues that that development can be inclusive and reduce poverty only if all people contribute to creating opportunities, share the benefits of development and participate in decision making.
Ethiopia at a Glance (UNDP Report Data)
Population: 85.8 million (2013)
GDP: US$46.6 billion (2013)
GDP per capita: US$550 (2013)
Annual Average Br/US$ exchange rate: 18.3 (2012/13)
Life expectancy at birth (years): 62.2 (2013)
Primary school gross enrolment rate (%): 95.3 (2012/13)
Births attended by skilled health professional (%): 23.1 (2012//13)
Contraceptive prevalence rate (%): 28.6 (2011)
Literacy rate (% of both sexes aged 15 and above): 46.7 (2011)
Unemployment rate (urban) (%): 16.5 (2012/13)
Unemployment rate among urban youth (15-29) (%): 23.3 (2011/12)
Areas further than 5 km from all-weather roads (%): 45.8 (2012/13)
Mobile phone subscribers (million): 23.8 (2012/13)
When we are condemning J-Zuma and his fellow Zwelithini‘s statement, we must not skip the fundamental question of “why are citizens running away from their countries in Africa? Why Zimbabweans, Nigerian, Mozambicans etc. are so many in South Africa? What Malian, Senegalese, Eritreans… are doing on the Mediterranean Sea? What Ethiopian, Eritreans… are looking for in Libya on their way to cross the sea? And Why African Leaders and institutions are silence on these questions? Close to 2000 migrants died crossing the Mediterranean to Europe this year only, many times more than during the same period in 2014…
Many in our continent, many of our leaders and institutions know the answers to these questions. Unfortunately, there are no actions being taken to resolve them; there are not even any honest acknowledgements of the problem; rather we are served with empty diplomatic statements everyday with no decisive action for change. We are turning around and the situation is getting worse.
Within a week, Ethiopians were hit with a quadruple whammy. On April 19, the Libyan branch of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) released a shocking video purporting to show the killings and beheadings of Ethiopian Christians attempting to cross to Europe through Libya. This came only days after an anti-immigrant mob in South Africa killed at least three Ethiopian immigrants and wounded many others. Al Jazeera America reported that thousands of Ethiopian nationals were stranded in war-torn Yemen. And in the town of Robe in Oromia and its surroundings alone, scores of people were reportedly grieving over the loss of family members at sea aboard a fateful Europe-bound boat that sank April 19 off the coast of Libya with close to 900 aboard.
These tragedies may have temporarily united Ethiopians of all faiths and ethnic backgrounds. But they have also raised questions about what kind of desperation drove these migrants to leave their country and risk journeys through sun-scorched deserts and via chancy boats.
The crisis comes at a time when Ethiopia’s economic transformation in the last decade is being hailed as nothing short of a miracle, with some comparing it to the feat achieved by the Asian “tigers” in the 1970s. Why would thousands of young men and women flee their country, whose economy is the fastest growing in Africa andwhose democracy is supposedly blossoming? And when will the exodus end?
After the spate of sad news, government spokesman Redwan Hussein said the tragedy “will be a warning to people who wish to risk and travel to Europe through the dangerous route.” Warned or not, many youths simply do not see their dreams for a better life realized in Ethiopia. Observers cite massive poverty, rising costs of living, fast-climbing youth unemployment, lack of economic opportunities for the less politically connected, the economy’s overreliance on the service sector and the requirement of party membership as a condition for employment as the drivers behind the exodus.
A 2012 study by the London-based International Growth Center noted (PDF) widespread urban unemployment amid growing youth landlessness and insignificant job creation in rural areas. “There have been significant increases in educational attainment. However, there has not been as much job creation to provide employment opportunities to the newly educated job seekers,” the report said.
One of the few ISIL victims identified thus far was expelled from Saudi Arabia in 2013. (Saudi deported more than 100,000 Ethiopian domestic workers during a visa crackdown.) A friend, who worked as a technician for the state-run Ethiopian Electricity Agency, joined him on this fateful trek to Libya. At least a handful of the victims who have been identified thus far were said to be college graduates.
Given the depth of poverty, Ethiopia’s much-celebrated economic growth is nowhere close to accommodating the country’s young and expanding population, one of the largest youth cohorts in Africa. Government remainsthe main employer in Ethiopia after agriculture and commerce. However, as Human Rights Watch noted in 2011, “access to seeds, fertilizers, tools and loans … public sector jobs, educational opportunities and even food assistance” is often contingent on support for the ruling party.
Still, unemployment and lack of economic opportunities are not the only reasons for the excessive outward migration. These conditions are compounded by the fact that youths, ever more censored and denied access to the Internet and alternative sources of information, simply do not trust the government enough to heed Hussein’s warnings. Furthermore, the vast majority of Ethiopian migrants are political refugees fleeing persecution. There are nearly 7,000 registered Ethiopian refugees in Yemen, Kenya has more than 20,000, and Egypt and Somalia have nearly 3,000 each, according to the United Nations refugee agency.
As long as Ethiopia focuses on security, the door is left wide open for further exodus and potential social unrest from an increasingly despondent populace.
Ethiopians will head to the polls in a few weeks. Typically, elections are occasions to make important choices and vent anger at the incumbent. But on May 24, Ethiopians will be able to do neither. In the last decade, authorities have systematically closed the political space through a series of anti-terrorism, press and civil society laws. Ethiopia’s ruling party, now in power for close to 24 years, won the last four elections. The government has systematically weakened the opposition and does not tolerate any form of dissent.
The heightened crackdown on freedom of expression has earned Ethiopia the distinction of being the world’sfourth-most-censored country and the second leading jailer of journalists in Africa, behind only its archrival, Eritrea, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
There is little hope that the 2015 elections would be fundamentally different from the 2010 polls, in which the ruling party won all but two of the 547 seats in the rubber-stamp national parliament. The ruling party maintains a monopoly over the media. Authorities have shown little interest in opening up the political space for a more robust electoral contest. This was exemplified by the exclusion of key opposition parties from the race, continuing repression of those running and Leenco Lata’s recent failed attempt to return home to pursue peaceful political struggle after two decades of exile. (Lata is the founder of the outlawed Oromo Liberation Front, fighting since 1973 for the rights of the Oromo, Ethiopia’s marginalized majority population, and the president of the Oromo Democratic Front.)
A few faces from the fragmented and embittered opposition maybe elected to parliament in next month’s lackluster elections. But far from healing Ethiopia’s gashing wounds, the vote is likely to ratchet up tensions. In fact, a sea of youth, many too young to vote, breaking police barriers to join opposition rallies bespeaks not of a country ready for elections but one ripe for a revolution with unpredictable consequences.
Despite these mounting challenges, Ethiopia’s relative stability — compared with its deeply troubled neighbors Somalia, South Sudan, Eritrea and Djibouti — is beyond contention. Even looking further afield, across the Red Sea, where Yemen is unraveling, one finds few examples of relative stability. This dynamic and Ethiopia’s role in the “war on terrorism” explains Washington’s and other donors’ failure to push Ethiopia toward political liberalization.
However, Ethiopia’s modicum of stability is illusory and bought at a hefty price: erosion of political freedoms, gross human rights violations and ever-growing discontent. This bodes ill for a country split by religious, ethnic and political cleavages. While at loggerheads with each other, Ethiopia’s two largest ethnic groups — the Oromo (40 percent) and the Amhara (30 percent) — are increasingly incensed by continuing domination by Tigreans (6 percent).
Ethiopian Muslims (a third of the country’s population of 94 million) have been staging protests throughout the country since 2011. Christian-Muslim relations, historically cordial, are being tested by religious-inspired violence and religious revivalism around the world. Ethiopia faces rising pressures to choose among three paths fraught with risks: the distasteful status quo; increased devolution of power, which risks balkanization; and more centralization, which promises even further resistance and turmoil.
It is unlikely that the soul searching from recent tragedies will prompt the authorities to make a course adjustment. If the country’s history of missed opportunities for all-inclusive political and economic transformation is any guide, Ethiopians might be in for a spate of more sad news. As long as the answer to these questions focuses on security, the door is left wide open for further exodus and potential social unrest from an increasingly despondent populace.
*Hassen Hussein is an assistant professor at St. Mary’s University of Minnesota.
OROMO LIBERATION FRONT (OLF) AND OTHER PROMINENT OPPOSITION POLITICAL GROUPS AND SOME CIVIC SOCITIES OF ETHIOPIA HELD A CONFERNCE IN EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
On 23 of April 2015, a high level conference entitled ‘Cartoon Democracy – Authoritarian Rule and Elections in Ethiopia’ was held in European Parliament, Brussels, Belgium. The conference was organised by some members of European Parliament from different Party Groups and member states and UNPO. The conference was unique in a sense it is standing against the established mind set-ups and traditional working system of politics in the Ethiopia Empire. It managed to assemble a diversified gathering that includes various opposition leaders, journalists, international experts, politicians and human rights advocators. The conference was aimed at consulting and coordinating various voices on the ever worsening political landscape in Ethiopia.
This Conference which was held a week after the US official Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman praised Ethiopia as a democracy, suggesting Ethiopia made great strides toward an open and inclusive electoral process. Despite the US official already endorsed the outcome of Ethiopia’s traditional National election, on the other side the Atlantic Ocean, the Europeans are showing a firm stand against endorsing Sham and ceremonial election. The keynote speaker of the conference clearly indicated that assisting Authoritarian one party rule might lead the country to formidable civil conflict. The current prevalent inter- and intra-regional armed conflict, popular uprising, desperate repressive acts of the regime against civilians, rampant corruption, mismanagement, Hunger, population growth, Environmental degradation, displacement of peoples as a result of land grabbing, high rate of the expansion of pandemic diseases, government-instigated ethnic conflicts as an instrument of divide-and-rule, etc. are all indicative for Ethiopian regime’s authoritarian nature and lack of democracy in the country. Read More:-Report of EU conference 23042015 Brussels
United in Opposing Ethiopian Cartoon Democracy: European Parliament Conference Offers Platform for Dialogue ahead of 24 May Election
Overall, there seemed to be a strong agreement among the speakers on two main points: firstly, that any real democratic change and cessation of ongoing human rights abuses in Ethiopia can only be achieved through joint action involving all ethnic and political opposition movements; and secondly, that the EU and other major donors must hold the Ethiopian government accountable for its actions, by conditioning and better overseeing the flow of funds, thus ensuring that foreign aid is not being misused to perpetrate human rights violations and oppress the people it is supposed to serve. Following this successful conference, UNPO, together with its partners, will continue to work towards ensuring the Ethiopian peoples’ voices are better heard on the international stage, and encourage different ethnic and political groups to put their differences aside and work together towards positive change in Ethiopia.
‘Colonial laws and practices have not imposed themselves on the independent Africa; the real and biggest problem has been the unwillingness of the current African leadership to change and/ or repeal the many unjust colonial laws. If anything, colonial laws and practices have either at worst been maintained to protect whites and the black African elite interests or at best been adapted to suit the needs of the African leadership, needs of ruling tribes or clans or nations at the expense of all others….If there is anything that Africa should learn from the latest xenophobic attacks in South Africa, it is that the continent has yet to command its independence and seriously address tribal prejudice and stereotypes. Governments continue to show little or no interest in respecting people and dealing with simmering internal social injustices. African independence has perpetually shown no empathy towards any black communities carrying a different social identification from those wielding authority. Historically, we have struggled with accommodating internal diversity.
The starting point towards correcting one’s mistakes is owning them. Africa needs to stop hiding behind colonialism and accept most of the problems we face today are our internal creation and only we can make the necessary changes required. Africans can conveniently blame colonialism all they want but the majority of conflicts between nations and communities show more internal prejudice and less external intervention as the cause.’
If there is anything that Africa should learn from the latest xenophobic attacks in South Africa, it is that the continent has yet to command its independence and seriously address tribal prejudice and stereotypes. Governments continue to show little or no interest in respecting people and dealing with simmering internal social injustices. African independence has perpetually shown no empathy towards any black communities carrying a different social identification from those wielding authority. Historically, we have struggled with accommodating internal diversity.
“Under Secretary Sherman’s comments today were woefully ignorant and counter-productive,” said Daniel Calingaert, executive vice president of Freedom House. “Ethiopia remains one of the most undemocratic countries in Africa. By calling these elections credible, Sherman has tacitly endorsed the Ethiopian government’s complete disregard for the democratic rights of its citizens. This will only bolster the government’s confidence to continue its crackdown on dissenting voices.”
In response to today’s comments by Under Secretary for Political Affairs, Wendy Sherman, in which she referred to Ethiopia as a democracy and the country’s upcoming elections free, fair, and credible, Freedom House issued the following statement:
“Under Secretary Sherman’s comments today were woefully ignorant and counter-productive,” said Daniel Calingaert, executive vice president of Freedom House. “Ethiopia remains one of the most undemocratic countries in Africa. By calling these elections credible, Sherman has tacitly endorsed the Ethiopian government’s complete disregard for the democratic rights of its citizens. This will only bolster the government’s confidence to continue its crackdown on dissenting voices.”
Background:
Since coming into power in the early 1990s, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) has dominated politics through a combination of political cooptation and harassment. The country experienced a degree of democratization through the early 2000’s, culminating in the most competitive elections in the county’s history in 2005. Since these elections, the EPRDF has restricted political pluralism and used draconian legislation to crack down on the political opposition, civil society organizations, and independent media. In the 2010, EPRDF and its allies won 546 out of 547 parliamentary seats.
Freedom House is an independent watchdog organization that supports democratic change, monitors the status of freedom around the world, and advocates for democracy and human rights.
U.S Department of State Endorsing of Upcoming Elections: Denial and Disrespect
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA)
HRLHA Statement:
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) strongly opposes to the position that the U.S State Department has taken in regards to the upcoming Ethiopian election and the overall democratization process in the country in the past twenty-four years; and describes the comments by the Under Secretary of State as a sign of disrespect for ordinary citizens of Ethiopia and disregard for the human miseries that hundreds of thousands of Ethiopian have gone through under the EPRDF/TPLF-led government.
The HRLHA has no doubt at all that the U.S Government in general and U.S Department of State in particular, with the biggest and highly staffed of all Western embassies in Ethiopia, are very well aware of the political realities that have been prevailing in the country over the past two decades. An excellent proof is the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices that is issued annually by the US Department of State itself. Suppressions and denials of fundamental human rights in Ethiopia under the EPRDF/TPLF Government were being reported on by various human rights and humanitarian as well as government and diplomatic agencies; and, based on the facts revealed in such reports, the Ethiopian Government has repeatedly been ranked as the worst both at the regional and global levels.
In a country that has witnessed the highest number of political incarceration in its history, where unarmed students and other civilians were gunned down in hundreds simply because they attempted to exercise some of their fundamental rights, in “one of the ten most censored countries” where the existence of independent media has become impossible and, as a result, press freedom has been curtailed completely, where all sorts of socio-economic rights have been tied to political sympathy and supports, it would be an insult and disrespect to its ordinary citizens, and a disregard for the precious lives of innocent people that have been taken away by brutal hands to say that such a country is a democracy, and that the upcoming elections would be free and fair while intimidations and harassments of opposition candidates, as well as potential voters, were taking place out in the field even while the Under Secretary of State was making the comments. While encouraging the most repressive government and governing party towards becoming more dictatorial, the Under-Secretary of State’s comments discourage and undermine the sacrifices that the Ethiopian peoples have paid and are still paying to realize their century-old dream of building free and democratic country.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) requests that the Under Secretary of State retract the wrong comments and apologize to the Ethiopian peoples. It also urges the U.S State Department to recognize and acknowledge the realities in Ethiopia and use the close ties that exists between the two governments to put pressure on the ruling EPRDF/TPLF party so that it allows the implementation of a genuine democracy.
‘According to ICIJ, which studied 7,200 World Bank financed projects between 2004 and 2013, at least 3.4 million people have lost their land or their jobs because of them and there’s little follow up on how these residents fare after they have been relocated. In some cases, World Bank funding may have funded forced relocations that turned violent: two former Ethiopian officials told ICIJ that funds diverted from a $2 billion health and education initiative have gone toward mass evictions in western Ethiopia where soldiers raped and beat locals.
Of the studied World Bank projects, which range from dams to schools and oil pipelines, more than 400 caused the displacement of locals. This happened mostly in Asia and Africa: 2.72 million have been displaced in China, India and Vietnam, and almost 100,000 in Ethiopia.’
The investigation’s key findings include:
Over the last decade, projects funded by the World Bank have physically or economically displaced an estimated 3.4 million people, forcing them from their homes, taking their land or damaging their livelihoods.
The World Bank has regularly failed to live up to its own policies for protecting people harmed by projects it finances.
The World Bank and its private-sector lending arm, the International Finance Corp., have financed governments and companies accused of human rights violations such as rape, murder and torture. In some cases the lenders have continued to bankroll these borrowers after evidence of abuses emerged.
Ethiopian authorities diverted millions of dollars from a World Bank-supported project to fund a violent campaign of mass evictions, according to former officials who carried out the forced resettlement program.
From 2009 to 2013, World Bank Group lenders pumped $50 billion into projects graded the highest risk for “irreversible or unprecedented” social or environmental impacts — more than twice as much as the previous five-year span.
A team of more than 50 journalists from 21 countries spent 11 months documenting the bank’s failure to protect people moved aside in the name of progress.
Ethiopians talk of violent intimidation as their land is earmarked for foreign investors
David Smith, Guardian Africa network, 14 April 2015
New report gives damning indictment of the government’s mandatory resettlement policy carried out in a political climate of torture, oppression and silencing. Breaking the Silence
Ethiopia has long faced criticism for forcibly relocating tens of thousands of people from their ancestral homes.
The human cost of Ethiopia’s “villagisation” programme is laid bare by damning first person testimony published on Tuesday. The east African country has long faced criticism for forcibly relocating tens of thousands of people from their ancestral homes to make way forlarge scale commercial agriculture, often benefiting foreign investors. Those moved to purpose-built communes are allegedlyno longer able to farm or access education, healthcare and other basic services.
The victims of land grabbing and displacement are given a rare voice in We Say the Land is Not Yours: Breaking the Silence against Forced Displacement in Ethiopia, a report from the California-based thinktank the Oakland Institute. Some of the interviewees still live in Ethiopia, while others have sought political asylum abroad, and all remain anonymous for their own safety.
‘My village refused to move so they forced us with gunshots’
“My village refused to move,” says one, from the community of Gambella. “So they forced us with gunshots. Even though they intimidated us, we did not move – this is our land, how do we move? They wanted our land because our land is the most fertile and has access to water. So the land was promised to a national investor. “Last year, we had to move. The promises of food and other social services made by the government have not been fulfilled. The government gets money from donors but it is not transferred to the communities.” The land grab is not only for agriculture, the interviewee claims, but the community has also seen minerals and gold being mined and exported. “We have no power to resist. We need support. In the villages, they promised us tractors to help us cultivate. If money is given to the government for this purpose, we don’t know how it is used. “The government receives money from donors, but they fill their pockets and farmers die of hunger. The Saudi Star rice paddy in Gambella. The government wants to voluntarily resettle 200,000 people in the region over the next three years.
Opposition will not be tolerated
Opposition to the scheme is not tolerated, according to the witness. “People are intimidated – we are forced to say positive things about villagisation, but really we refuse to accept the programme. If you challenge, the government calls you the mastermind of conflict. “One of the government officials was opposed to the government. They wanted to put him in prison. He escaped and is now in Kenya, living as a political refugee.”
Agriculture makes up nearly half the GDP of Ethiopia, where four in five people live in rural areas. But since the mid-2000s, the government has awarded millions of hectares of land to foreign investors. The commune development programme, which aims to move 1.5 million rural families from their land to new “model” villages across the country, has faced allegations of violent evictions, political coercion, intimidation, imprisonment, rapes, beatings and disappearances. A witness from Benishangul laments: “This is not development. Investors are destroying our lands and environment. There is no school, [no] food security, and they destroy wild fruits. Bamboo is the life of people. It is used for food, for cattle, for our beds, homes, firewood, everything. But the investors destroy it. They destroy our forests. “This is not the way for development. They do not cultivate the land for the people. They grow sorghum, maize, sesame, but all is exported, leaving none for the people.” In response to the report’s allegations, a spokesperson for the Ethiopian embassy in London has denied that the country engages in land-grabbing, saying: “As our economic track record clearly shows, the vast majority of Ethiopians have benefitted from the growth and sustainable development programme under implementation.”
‘The government dictates’
Another interviewee, from South Omo, says mandatory resettlement has stoked conflict among different ethnic groups. “There was no open consultation between the community and the government. If there was a common agreement based on joint consultations, perhaps the community might accept. But, the government dictates. “We are scared that the highlanders will come and destroy our way of life, culture, and pasture land. What will we do? The government says we can keep two to three cattle, but this is a challenge. Our life is based on cattle, and we cannot change overnight. I keep cows, oxen, sheep, goats – where do we go? “The investors take land in the Omo Valley. They clear all land, choose the best place where trees are, leaving the area open. They say it is for development, but they are clearing the forests. I wonder how to reconcile development with forest destruction.” Such accounts threaten to dent the image of Ethiopia, a darling of the development community that has enjoyed double digit economic growth for the best part of a decade. The government has been criticised for brooking little opposition, clamping down on civil society activism and jailing more journalists than any country in Africa, except its neighbour Eritrea.
‘Basic human rights are not being upheld’
A government employee told the researchers: “I want the world to know that the government system at the federal level does not give attention to the local community. “There are three dynamics that linger in my mind that explain today’s Ethiopia: villagisation, violent conflict, and investment. They are intertwined and interrelated. It is hard for outsiders to know what leads to what. When people are free, they talk. When they are afraid of repercussion, they stop.” Critics have claimed that British aid to Ethiopia’s promotion of basic services programme were being used by the Ethiopian government to help fund the villagisation programme. But last month the Department for International Development announced that it was ending the contributions because of Ethiopia’s “growing success”.
Ethiopia: UK Company Takes License to Produce Largest Gold and Silver Reserve in Ethiopia
The mining of gold and silver will support our national economy A United Kingdom company, KEFI Minerals Ethiopia Limited, has discovered the largest gold and silver ore reserve, and took a license from the Ministry of Mines yesterday at the Ministry. Minister of Mines Tolosa Shagi said that the type of licensing given to the company is large-scale mining in western Welega Zone. After exploring for the last 8 to 9 years in the area and fulfilling the required regulations, the Ministry has provided them with license to carry out mining in Ethiopia. http://www.directorstalk.com/ethiopia-uk-company-takes-license-to-produce-largest-gold-and-silver-reserve-in-ethiopia/ As a result more than 1600 Oromo families from Western Oromia (West Wallaggaa) are being dispossessed and evicted from their ancestral land.
While the majority of the population is getting poorer and poorer every year, a minority of the population, especially those loyal to the ruling party, are becoming millionaires overnight. The exaggerated economic development rhetoric of EPRDF is unsubstantiated for it is not based on facts and is against what is happening on the ground. It is simply a means to cover up the unspeakable atrocities they are inflicting up on the people. The inflation that we, ordinary people, are suffering from is mainly their own making. Because of inflation, an item which used to cost one Birr a year ago now costs one birr and 40 cents. This shows that the value of one Birr is approximately 72 cents. http://allafrica.com/stories/201504071221.html
Ethiopia: Why EPRDF’s Growth Rhetoric Is Faulty
Eidmon Tesfaye*
OPINION, allafrica.com
By and large, Ethiopia recorded 17 years of economic stagnation under the leadership of the Dergue, a military government. For example, in 1990/91, the growth rate of the Ethiopian gross domestic product (GDP) was negative 3.2pc, whereas cyclical unemployment was about 12pc, the rate of inflation was about 21pc, and the country’s budget was at a deficit of 29pc of GDP. For the last five years, Ethiopia has gathered momentum by recording steady economic growth. Along with this growth, however, the country has seen an accelerated, double-digit increase in the price of goods and services. The very common way that the EPRDF and its agents try to shift the public attention from lack of human and democratic rights and the daylight looting of the country’s resources, is by referring to the ‘impressive’ economic development registered in their rule. If they are talking about the only region that they are exclusively devoted to developing, then, they are absolutely right.
The reality in other regions of the country, however, speaks quite the opposite. Even if we believe the double digit economic growth that the EPRDF claims to have registered in the last five years, it all will be dwarfed by the sky high rate of inflation, the second highest in Africa – the first being Zimbabwe which is actually experiencing a currency collapse. Thus, inflation has remained a scourge of the Ethiopian economy. Stated in simple words, Ethiopia, at this juncture, is faced with an overheating economy. With the global soaring prices of oil, wheat, corn, and minerals, this condition cannot be regarded as unique to the Ethiopian situation. What makes the Ethiopian case a special one is that Ethiopia is a low-income country. The increase in the Consumer Price Index (the main gauge of inflation), has become very detrimental to the low-income groups and retirees who live with fixed incomes. The risk of inflationary pressure is reducing the purchasing power of the Ethiopian Birr. Because of inflation, an item which used to cost one Birr a year ago now costs one birr and 40 cents. This shows that the value of one Birr is approximately 72 cents. As it stands, financial liberalisation is not an option. Financial intermediaries may accelerate inflation if the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) relaxes its financial and monetary policies that regulate them to maintain the statutory liquidity requirement of demand and time deposits. In addition, an increase in money supply could accelerate inflation if the central bank substantially reduces the discount rate or buys existing government bonds from investors. The discount rate is the interest rate charged by the NBE when member banks borrow from it. Ethiopian banks overuse their reserve facilities to boost their credit portfolio. The excess reserve in Ethiopia was due to more savings. The demand for bank credit rose sharply to finance large scale investment projects by the public enterprises and the rapidly expanding private sector. Substantial negative real interest rates and commercial banks’ excess reserves facilitated the rapid expansion of credit. The link between money supply and other determinants of growth is not an automatic process. However, if we abide by the principles of the transmission mechanism, we might argue that the increase in money supply in Ethiopia might have contributed to an increase in investment. However, the problem of inflation in the Ethiopian economic environment cannot be tackled without addressing the large budget deficit.
More signs are appearing to suggest that what the EPRDF says regarding the economic development is incredible. For instance, recently, the Ministry of Finance & Development (MoFED) blamed the Central Statistics Agency (CSA) for its inefficiency in providing accurate data. This accusation is long overdue. An agency which cannot determine the size of population can never be trusted to give us the accurate measure of a relatively complicated matter – growth. At the time when the price of everything was doubling and tripling within a year, the inflation rate instead of being 200pc or 300pc or even more, the same statistics agency reported a much lower inflation rate. This rate is the basic component in calculating the economic development. In order to determine the change in growth, the value of domestic production has to be discounted at the current rate of inflation. If the rate of inflation assumed in discounting is far less than the actual rate, a country will, wrongly, be considered to have registered a higher rate than the actual. This is how, against World Bank and IMF predictions and the economic reality of the world, which is slowly hitting the third world, the authorities are telling us the country will register double digit growth again. While the majority of the population is getting poorer and poorer every year, a minority of the population, especially those loyal to the ruling party, are becoming millionaires overnight. The exaggerated economic development rhetoric of EPRDF is unsubstantiated for it is not based on facts and is against what is happening on the ground. It is simply a means to cover up the unspeakable atrocities they are inflicting up on the people. The inflation that we, ordinary people, are suffering from is mainly their own making. EPRDF companies and their affiliates, of course, have hugely benefitted from the manipulation and exploitation of the very thing that made our life worse and worse, inflation. So this talk of double digit economic development is simply a joke and a bluff. If Ethiopia is to achieve long-term sustainable growth, its developmental process has to be rooted in the Ethiopian system of thought and its people-centered approach, rather than depending on the Western capitalist or Chinese models of industrialisation by invitation to gain various forms of external assistance. Since agriculture is the backbone of the Ethiopian economy, its sustainable development model must be one of self-sufficiency to feed its own people instead of producing environmentally insensitive horticultural products to amass foreign currency.
Contrary to expectations, given the resources and techniques of production, the Ethiopian agricultural sector seems to have exhausted its productivity growth. To improve productivity under these conditions would require substantial investment in research and development. For example, since deforestation, desertification, increase in population, shortage of water, and air-related disease are to a large extent the symptoms of poverty, the poor need to be organised to formulate and implement their own development strategies and ensure that their basic needs are fulfilled. If policymaking is to be based on land security and adhering to environmentally-sensitive, cooperative systems, it is reasonable to assume that Ethiopia would not only achieve growth and equity (with full employment and modest inflation) but could also empower the Ethiopian people to fully participate in the design and management of long-lasting development paradigms. *Eidmon Tesfaye He Is an Expert With Master’s Degree in Agricultural Economics & Rural Development (aerd); He Can Be Contacted Via:Edimondrdae@gmail.com Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/201504071221.html
In Ethiopia they live like animals, relentlessly persecuted, hunted down like games, killed at will and incarcerated en masse. No mercy is shown even to women and children. They are the Oromos — the largest ethnic group, the most marginalised in Ethiopia and arguably one among the most oppressed people in our planet. Despite their numerical majority, the Oromos, much like the Palestinians, are facing xenophobic oppression.
Amnesty International’s report on the state of existence of the Oromos, published last year, has been damning. It painted a chilling picture of the brutality unleashed by Ethiopian government on the hapless community to which the country’s President, Mulatu Teshome, belongs. The rights group, based in London, said: “At least 5,000 Oromos have been arrested based on their actual or suspected peaceful opposition to the government”. And most of them have been “subjected to treatment amounting to torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”.
Amnesty researcher Claire Beston has been scathing. She said, “The Ethiopian government’s relentless crackdown on real or imagined dissent among the Oromo is sweeping in its scale and often shocking in its brutality. This is apparently intended to warn, control or silence all signs of ‘political disobedience’ in the region”. Beston, in her report, said in no uncertain terms that she saw “signs of torture, including scars and burns, as well as missing fingers, ears and teeth” on those Oromos she interviewed.
The scenario in the country is perhaps far more terrifying. The United States, in its 2013 Human Rights Report, has pointed out that at least 70,000 persons, including some 2,500 women and nearly 600 children are incarcerated with their mothers, in severely overcrowded six federal and 120 regional prisons. “There also were many unofficial detention centres throughout the country, including in Dedessa, Bir Sheleko, Tolay, Hormat, Blate, Tatek, Jijiga, Holeta, and Senkele,” the report added further.
Plurality, respect for basic democratic values and tolerance for dissent have never been the fortes for which Ethiopia is known in the world. It is for reasons on the contrary the country has already earned a massive notoriety internationally. Corruptions are rampant and behind the façade of development the government in Ethiopia is infamous for selling out the country to the western world and foreign corporations and, of course, for its blatant violation of basic human rights.
What defines Ethiopia today is the greed and corruption of its politicians, especially those in power. The brazenness with which the government is trying to sell out Omo Valley to foreign corporation is a shame and a heinous crime. Twice the size of France and UNESCO World Heritage Site, Omo Valley is known as the ‘cradle of mankind’ which, according to ancient-origins.net, has the world’s largest alkaline lake as well as the world’s largest permanent desert lake.
The Ecologist says, Lake Turkana in Omo Valley was a prehistoric centre for early hominids. Some 20,000 fossil specimens have been collected from the Turkana Basin. Anthropological digs have led to the discovery of important fossilised remains, most notably, the skeleton of the Turkana Boy, (or Nariokotome Boy). Finding Turkana Boy was one of the most spectacular discoveries in palaeoanthropology. His reconstruction comes from the almost perfectly preserved skeleton found in 1984 at Nariokotome near Lake Turkana.
Discovery of the fossilised Turkana Boy, aged between seven and fifteen who lived approximately 1.6 million years ago was a milestone in the study of our origin and ancestry. Yet, to the corrupt, shameless and avaricious Ethiopian government it is of no significance. And neither is the welfare of the indigenous people of the valley who are believed to be the living descendants of the early hominids.
Alas! Ethiopian government wants to sell out this important archaeological treasure trove to foreign corporations where they want to develop sugar, cotton and biofuel plantations. A shameless land grab is underway in Omo Valley where hundreds of more fossilised skeletons of our forefathers are expected to be found and retrieved.
Misrule, human rights violations, hubris, arrogance and corruption plagues Ethiopia. Continuous demagoguery against the Oromos has made Ethiopia sit atop a huge mound of gun powder waiting for a spark to explode. The Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), the armed wing of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) is getting ready for yet another armed struggle to overthrow the present political dispensation in power.
And given the history of insurgency in Ethiopia the country today seems to be heading fast towards a fresh bout of armed insurrection.
A low intensity struggle has already started as the Oromos are no more in mood to take the oppression, they are in no mood to suffer in silence their marginalisation. The ethnic fire the Ethiopian government has been stoking is gradually turning into an inferno.
We know human stupidity is endless and that of Ethiopia is infinite and dark. It cannot achieve growth and progress keeping its people delegitimised and aggrieved. The oppressed and tortured shall one day erupt to claim what legitimately belongs to them as well.
The author is the Opinion Editor of Times of Oman. All the views and opinions expressed in the article are solely those of the author and do not reflect those of Times of Oman. He can be reached at opinioneditor@timesofoman.com
A major UK- and World Bank-funded development programme in Ethiopia may have contributed to the violent resettlement of a minority ethnic group, a leaked report reveals. The UK’s Department for International Development was the primary funder of a World Bank-run development project aimed at improving health, education and public services in Ethiopia, contributing more than £388m of UK taxpayer funds to the project. However, a scathing draft report of the World Bank’s internal watchdog said that due to inadequate oversight, bad audit practices, and a failure to follow its own rules, the Bank has allowed operational links to form between its programme and the Ethiopian government’s controversial resettlement programme. Multiple human rights groups operating in the region have criticised the Ethiopian government’s programme for violently driving tens of thousands of indigenous people, predominantly from the minority Anuak Christian ethnic group, from their homes in order to make way for commercial agriculture projects – allegations the Ethiopian government denies. Many of those resettled remain in poor conditions lacking even basic facilities in refugee camps in South Sudan. The leaked World Bank report, obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and seen by the Guardian, rejected claims from the Bank’s management that no link existed between their programme and villagisation. According to the report, weak audit controls meant bank funds – which included over £300m from the UK’s Department for International Development – could have been diverted to implement villagisation. The report did not itself examine whether the resettlement programme had involved human rights abuses, saying such questions were outside its remit. However, the watchdog highlighted a series of failures in the planning and implementation of the programme, including a major oversight in its failure to undertake full risk-assessments as required by bank protocol. Crucially for the Anuak people, the bank did not apply required safeguards to protect indigenous groups. Anuradha Mittal, the founder of the Oakland Institute, a California-based development NGO which is active in the region, said DfID was an active participant in the programme, and should share responsibility for its failings. “Along with the World Bank and other donors, DfID support constitutes not only financial support but a nod of approval for the Ethiopian regime to bring about ‘economic development’ for the few at the expense of basic human rights and livelihoods of its economically and politically most marginalised ethnic groups,” she said. Mittal was also critical of the World Bank panel’s draft findings, falling short of directly implicating the World Bank and its fellow donors in the resettlement programme. “It is quite stunning that the panel does not think that the World Bank is responsible for villagisation-related widespread abuses in Ethiopia resulting in destruction of livelihoods, forced displacement of Anuaks from their fertile lands and forests.” Disclosure of the draft report’s findings come as the UK government faces increasing scrutiny over its involvement in villagisation. DfID is the project’s largest donor and in March ministers will face a judicial review over whether the UK’s contributions indirectly funded the resettlement programme. The case has been brought by a farmer from the Gambela region who claims he was violently evicted from his land. Responding to the report’s findings, David Pred of Inclusive Development International – the NGO which filed the original complaint on the Anuak group’s behalf – said: “The Bank has enabled the forcible transfer of tens of thousands of indigenous people from their ancestral lands. “The Bank today just doesn’t want to see human rights violations, much less accept that it bears some responsibility when it finances those violations.” A World Bank spokesman declined to answer the Guardian’s questions about the report. “As is standard procedure, World Bank staff cannot comment on the results of the inspection panel’s investigation until the executive board of the World Bank Group has had the opportunity to review the panel’s report over the coming weeks.” In previous statements the bank’s management said there was no evidence of widespread abuses or evictions. Asked about the findings, a DfID spokesman said: “We do not comment on leaked reports. “Britain’s support to the Promotion of Basic Services Programme is specifically for the provision of essential services like healthcare, schooling and clean water, and we have no evidence that UK funds have been diverted for other purposes.” http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/20/ethiopia-human-rights-groups-development-programme-world-bank-villagisation
“…The sustained and bloody campaign of Minilik resulted in the cutting of limps of men of all ages, breasts of women of the Arssi Oromos, which many Oromo Anthropologists, historians and the elderly equate it to the genocide committed against the Armenians by the Ottman Turks Empire during the First World War, in which over a million Armenians were killed.”
The Ethiopian Empire Formation And Its consequences On The Oromo And Beyond
By Bakkalcho Barii
With the help of the then three colonial powers, Minilik, the Abyssinian king managed to break and conquer the Oromo Country and beyond in the last two decades of the nineteenth century. Following this war of conquest, the invading Abyssinian colonial army not only committed genocide on the entire Oromo, Walita, Sidama, and other people, but also, committed cultural, historical, social,and economic genocides in this new frontiers by imposing Abyssinian culture, language, way of life, administrations, and religion. These crimes were committed by presenting anything Abyssinian as superior to the languages, cultures, system of governance of the new colonies, as Europeans did practice when they conquered vast territories in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Thanks to their heroes and heroines, the Oromo and the Southern people begun the journey of re-claiming what istheirs and re-writing their own history. Like other Empires in history, the Ethiopian Empire shall collapse by the subjected people, on which it has been built on, and that processes of de-colonization and the wheel of freedom is marching forward with full gear so that those subject nations shall claim their due place among the free nations of the world. The late P.T.W Baxter spent much of his time studying mainly the Boran and the Arssi Oromos. Paul Baxter documented and wrote many research books and articles on the Oromo way of life, their Gada system of governance and their experiences under the Ethiopian empire after the Minlik colonial army managed to conquer much of the Oromo land and the Southern nations by default and with the help of the then European Colonial powers, the French, the British and the Italians.
In his research article titled “Ethiopia’s Unacknowledged Problem: The Oromo” (July 1978) wrote the following; “Each of the Oromo peoples has a distinctive history but all shared comparable experiences; ……….perhaps I may select a few observed by myself in Arssi to illustrate some common types of Oromo experience under Abyssinian rule. …… The Arssi and the Oromo Country beyond were finally subjugated by Shoan gun power in 1887 after six different annual campaigns which R.H Kofi Darkwa, the Ghanaian historian of Menilek reign, summarizes as “perhaps the most sustained and the most bloody war which Menilek undertook.”
The above description of the sustained and bloody campaign of Minilik resulted in the cutting of limps of men of all ages, breasts of women of the Arssi Oromos, which many Oromo Anthropologists, historians and the elderly equate it to the genocide committed against the Armenians by the Ottman Turks Empire during the First World War, in which over a million Armenians were killed.
Paul Baxter and John Hinnant, who both studied the Arssi, the Boran and the Guji Oromos in the 1960s, summarized the experiences of those Oromos under conquest as the following: “The Arssi described their conquest by Abyssinians as the commencement of an era of miseries, since which life has not run as God intended it but out of true”. “The Boran likewise divided their history into two eras, before and after, the first of which was good and the second bad” to describe what colonization has brought upon them.
Similarly, John Hinnant described the experiences of the Guji Oromos as tending “to blame all social problems on their incorporation into the Ethiopian empire.” The above feelings and humiliation expressed and felt by the Boran, the Arssi and the Guji Oromos are the same as the feelings and humiliation felt by the Oromos of the Wollo, the Rayya, the Karayu, the Ittu, the Leqa, the Mecha, and the Tulama.
One would always ask how successive Abyssinians regimes managed to rule over the Southern nations, including the Oromo’s (currently known as the subjects or colonies), who constitute more than two-third of the entire populations of the Ethiopian Empire for so long?
The precise answer to the above question was given by Paul Baxter in his article “Ethiopia’s Unacknowledged Problem: The Oromo, in which he says “ The absolute political domination and cultural dominance of the Amhara ( now the Tigres), has resulted in the public presentation of Ethiopia as a state with a much more unitary culture than , in fact, it has. Even scholars have come to accept Ethiopia at the evaluation of its own sophisticated and charming elite.”
The current Tigrian elites copied their Amhara elite’s, their predecessors, in presenting their Empire as a unitary and at peace with itself while waging unprecedented war of genocide on the Oromo people and other nations. They (both the Amhara & Tigre elites) hired foreign PR companies, influential individuals, and lobbyists in Western capitals and political corridors to maintain their marginalization of the Oromos and the Southern people, and present their Empire at peace with itself at the expense and misery of the subject people.
Of all the Abyssinian regimes, the current TPLF regime can only be equated with that of Minilik rule because TPLF rulers, like Minilik openly declared the entire Oromo people as the enemy of the state, and placed them in open concentration camps, in parallel with what the Nazi Germany inflicted on the Jewish communities of Europe during the Second World War.
The question many Oromos and friends of Oromos raise is Why is it the current rulers of the Empire (the TPLF), and their unprecedented scale of human rights violations and abuses on the Oromos is different from the past three regimes of the Empire rulers?
Unlike the past three regimes, who rose from the Amahric speaking Abyssinians, the TPLF originates from a minority Tigre region, which comprises only about five percent of the current Ethiopian Empire population, and was junior partners or foot-soldiers with the invading Minilik army during a war of conquest and expansion of the Abyssinian Empire towards the south.
Secondly, the TPLF rose from a century old power struggle with its close kin, the Amharas, who defeated the Tigre king Yohannes IV. In other words, the TPLF came to power not only to rule over the Empire but also to avenge their century old wounds against their kin, the Amharas. Thirdly, TPLF’s cleverly learnt the shortcomings of the Amaharas rulers over the colonies and, for the first time in the history of the Empire forcefully accepted the existence of independent nations like the Oromo’s, and allowed some form of self-rule and the use of their languages in office and schools.
However, when it comes to responding to the democratic and justice demands of the Oromo for total liberation from alien rulers, TPLF created satellite organizations who speak the languages of the indigenous population and used them as a Trojan horses to kidnap, harass, kill, displace and jail thousands of innocent Oromo for only demanding their country Oromia be free, and it is only the Oromos as owners and custodians of their Country Oromia, who shall decide their future relationships with neighbouring countries, including the Abyssinian themselves. According to official reports by Amnesty International, Oromia Support Group and other local human rights bodies, currently there are close to 45,000 innocent Oromo prisoners of conscience in different TPLF concentration camps.
Finally, the event of the September the 11th, 2001, in which thousands of innocent American lives were lost by a global terrorist organization called Al-Qaida. This horrific incident played well in the hands of TPLF rulers and exploited to receive billions of dollars and military aid in the name of fighting Islamic extremism in the region, but in actual facts to crash its opponents by bullying and invading neighbouring countries of the region with the tacit support of the Western powers.
The late TPLF ruler, Meles Zenawi loudly and clearly declared on many occasions that, TPLF conquered the Empire’s power by the barrel of guns, and, therefore, it can only be forced out of power by those who can use the same tactics. This reminded me of that famous saying “Power never gives up by will” but only by force.
The current minority regime of the TPLF hell-bent on not only committing unprecedented human rights atrocities against the Oromos and other nations in the South, its determinations to displace millions of Oromo from their ancestral land and selling those lands at the lowest bid to its foreign backers, destroy their forests by clearing in the name of development, and expose current and future generations of Oromos and the southern nations to environmental genocide shall have huge implications for the years to come.
The challenge for the Oromos and the people of the South is that the old guards, who conquered and built the Ethiopian Empire are so desperate and furious for losing the Empire to their junior partners, and making everything they can to re-claim their lost glory in the name of united Ethiopia, one vote and individual democratic rights slogans. These old guards of the Empire are barking and pulling their hair inside and outside of the country to undo the symbolic self-rule that is currently in-place that successive Oromo generations earned by much blood and sacrifice.
As one of my favourite young broadcaster, journalist and poet Abdi Fixe recently put on his comment regarding the fire that destroyed the Taitu Hotel in Finfinnee, “ where were these people who were so enraged by the burning of a hotel, for which the cause of the fire is not known yet, and silent when the TPLF Agazi militia murdered over seventy Oromo University students at Ambo and other Universities across Oromia for peacefully demonstrating against the expansion of Finfinnee? Where were these people when TPLF Agazi army carried out mass murder on the people of the Gambella, Sidama? Where were these people when TPLF deliberately burned Forests across all over Oromia?
In fact, they were cheering and clapping from the side when and every time TPLF carries-out their dirty work and some of them even could not hide their hatred towards the Oromos, the Gambellas, the Sidamas, and went on air and different social Medias in support of TPLF’s dirty deeds against the Oromo and the South. For Oromo and Southern compatriots in the Diasporas, keep it up the pressure on TPLF’s backers not to fund and support this in-humane and autocratic regime by coordinating your resources and hiring PR groups, lobbyists on behalf of your people back in the Empire, by collecting facts and figures of human rights violations that were committed and going to be committed, and expose them to governments and agencies in the West not to support this brutal regime diplomatically, financially and militarily.
Describing why the Oromo demand for statehood has not received news coverage in the West, despite the problem of the Oromo has been a major and central one in the Ethiopian Empire ever since it was created by Minilk in the last two decades of the 19th Century, Paul Baxter attributes the failings of the Western media for failing to cover this major issue due to two major factors: The first factor was all “the difficulties the Ethiopian Empire has been enduring were the conflicts in the north and eastern frontiers ( with Eritrea and Somalia), which were fairly reported due to their accessibility to foreign reporters, coupled with the interests of the Great Powers and their satellites have been involved”. “The second factor for the under-coverage or total absence of covering the Oromo and the Ethiopian Empire conflicts was the absolute political domination and cultural dominance of the Amhara has resulted in the public presentation of Ethiopia as a state with a much more unitary culture than, in fact, it has. Even some Western and “African Scholars” have come to accept Ethiopia at the evaluation of its own sophisticated and charming elite.” There is one last myth or propaganda both the Abyssinian camps are using as a last resort to foil the total liberation of Oromos and the Southern people, including the Ogadenian Somali brothers, who have similar aspirations being free from Abyssinian domination. This last myth or propaganda currently waged and used by both Abyssinian camps are puffing out “is if Oromia shall become independent, their neighbouring Nations such as Sidama, Walita, Kambata, Hadiya, Harari & Somali will be dominated or even cease to exist as a people.
This is a complete myth used as a last resort to delay the inevitable liberation of Oromia and other nations indicated above. We Oromos, have lived peacefully and protected these nations to maintain their way of life, languages, culture, religious practices, and we have been living with these nations for thousands of years. Imagine if these nations were bordering either the Amhara or Tigre Abyssinians? Their fate would have very similar to the Wollo Oromos who were forced to be Amharized and the Rayya Oromos, who were forced to abandon their language and history to be Tigre speaking people. Above all, we Oromos share common way of life and share closer kinship with our neighbours unlike what the Empire rulers try to portray.
One last message to my Oromo and the Southern compatriots to support their political and media organizations to shed lights and expose the chronic human rights violations perpetrated by successive Abyssinian regimes, so that their people back home shall rise and get rid-off them once and for all for peace to reign in that part of Africa. Strengthening and empowering Oromo Media Organizations will fill this void and the under-reporting of Oromo and the southern people conflicts with the Ethiopian Empire.
Let me quote the late P.T.W. Baxter and conclude my message:
“……But the efflorescence of feelings of common nationhood and aspirations for self-determination among the cluster of peoples who speak Oromo has not been much commented upon. Yet the problem of the Oromo people as has been a major and central one in the Ethiopian Empire ever since it was created by Minilik in the last two decades of the nineteenth century. If the Oromo people only obtain a portion of the freedoms which they seek then the balance of political power in Ethiopia will be completely altered. If the Oromo act with unity they must necessarily constitute a powerful force. ………..If an honest and free election was held ( an Unlikely event) and the people voted by ethnic blocks, as experience of elections elsewhere in Africa suggests that they well might do, then around half the votes would be cast by Oromo for the Oromo…”
May Waqaa Bless our forefathers, fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters who paid the ultimate price for the dignity of the Oromo People and the southern nations.
Bakkalcho Barii
This article is originally published in ayyaantuu.com
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa released an appeal that describes the crackdown on the Oromo community, which has been particularly significant in the last 10 months, after the protests, held in March and April 2014, against the annexation of some Oromo towns to the territory of Addis Ababa. The organization highlighted in particular, the situation of a group of 26 prisoners, who have been illegally detained, beaten, tortured and deprived of their few belongings.
Below is the Appeal from the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa, also available in .pdf format:
Since the March-April 2014 crackdowns against the peaceful Oromo protesters who have protested against the Ethiopian Federal Government’s plan of annexation of 36 small Oromia towns to the capital city of Addis Ababa under the pretext of the “Addis Ababa Integrated Plan”, thousands of Oromo nationals from all walks of life from all corners of Oromia regional state including Wollo Oromo’s in Amhara regional state have been detained or imprisoned. Some have disappeared and many have been murdered by a special commando group called “the Agiazi force”. The “The Agiazi” force is still chasing down and arresting Oromo nationals who participated in the March-April, 2014 peaceful protests. Fearing the persecution of the Ethiopian government, hundreds of students did not return to the universities, colleges and high schools; most of them have left for the neighboring states of Somaliland and Puntiland of Somalia where they remain at high risk for their safety. Wollo Oromos who are living in Ahmara regional state of Oromia special Zone are also among the victims of the EPRDF government. Hundreds of Wollo Oromos have been detained because of their connection with the peaceful protests of March-April 2014. The EPRDF government has detained many Oromo nationals in Wollo Oromia special Zone under the pretext of being members or supporters of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), as prisoners’ voices from Dessie/Wollo prison have revealed.
From among the many Oromos who were picked from different districts and places from Wollo Oromia special Zone in Amhara regional state in April 2014, the HRLHA reporter in the area has received a document which shows that 26 Oromo prisoners pleaded to the South Wollo High Court that they were illegally detained first in Kamise town military camp for 36 days, Kombolcha town Police Station for 27 Days, and Dessie city higher 5 Police Station for 10 days- places where they were severely tortured and then transferred to Dessie Prison in July 2014. According to the document, they were picked up from three different districts and different places by federal police and severely beaten and tortured at different military camps and police stations and their belongings including cash and mobile telephones were taken by their torturers. In their appeal letter to the South Wollo high court they demanded
1. Justice and release from the prison because they had been arrested without court warrant and didn’t appear in front of the court for more than eight months- which violates the Ethiopian constitution.
2. The return of their belongings, including 1000 – 5000 Eth Birr and their mobile phones. […]
The Ethiopian Government for the past 23 years has continually breached:
1. the 1995 Constitution of Ethiopia Articles 14-19 by arresting citizens without court warrant, used torture and inhumane degrading treatments and deprived citizens of their livelihoods and generally discriminated against Oromo nationals
2. international treaties it has signed and ratified
2.1. CAT –Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhumane or Degrading Treatments or Punishment (1994)
2.2. CCPR – International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1991)
2.3. CESCR – International Covenants on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1991) and
2.4. CERD – International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1976)
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) strongly condemns the irresponsible actions of the Ethiopian Government and its agents for their inhumane treatments of citizens. The government should be held accountable for failing its duty and responsibility to protect and promote human rights in its territory.
The HRLHA calls upon regional and international donor States and Organizations to take measurable steps against the Ethiopian TPLF/EPRDF government for its persistent brutal, dictatorial, and suppressive actions against innocent and unarmed civilians.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to the Ethiopian Government and its concerned officials as swiftly as possible, in English, Amharic, or your own language expressing:
– for the immediate and unconditional release of prisoners illegally detained and pay compensation
– urging the Ethiopian authorities to ensure that these detainees would be treated in accordance with the regional and international standards on the treatment of prisoners,
For further information on the detainees and on where to address the concerns, please see the attachedfile.
The Ethiopian Government land owner¬ship right has created it easier for flower growers to get land easily. Abiy Mezgebu, 28 has lost his piece of land because of the government influence and pressure. The government paid him a small amount of money – “I had to take the small amount of money that the government offered me and they threatened me to take away my land if I would refuse to take the offer,” says Abiy. Now Abiy is a laborer in the Menagesha Farms. He has lost his land – his means of living for ages.
Aduna Workneh, father of five, lives across bunches of flower farms near Addis Ababa. Officials from the government and flower farms came and talked to him in person. They told me I will benefit better if I take the offer from the government and leave my land. Initially, I refused the offer – because they money would feed my family for a few years, but my land will feed till the ages of my grandchildren and even beyond.” However, Aduna was forced to take the offer and he is now a landless man. He is not sure about his future.
These flower farms benefit us nothing; at least they were expected to provides employment opportunity, says Aduna. Only a few members of our community got employed; as for the majority are not from this area. Showing across the valley, Aduna says – this whole valley was covered by indigenous trees – now is cut down and green houses have been constructed on them. We were able to collect firewood from leftovers and foliage in the forest – the flower farms have taken away everything from us.
This is a teenage girl working in Dugda Flower Farm. This was owned by her father in Dugda area…and taken away by the Ethiopian governemnt and given to a TPLF affiliate businessman…now she works as a labourer in this farm being paid under half a dollar a day…
The Ethiopian Government land owner¬ship right has created it easier for flower growers to get land easily. Abiy Mezgebu, 28 has lost his piece of land because of the government influence and pressure. The government paid him a small amount of money – “I had to take the small amount of money that the government offered me and they threatened me to take away my land if I would refuse to take the offer,” says Abiy. Now Abiy is a laborer in the Menagesha Farms. He has lost his land – his means of living for ages.
Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web and founder of the Web Foundation, has called for the Internet to be recognised as a basic human right. Sir Tim noted that in our increasingly unequal world, the Web has the potential to be a great equalizer, but only “if we hardwire the rights to privacy, freedom of expression, affordable access and net neutrality into the rules of the game.”
In order to reverse this slide and leverage the power of technology to fight inequality, the Web Foundation is calling on policymakers to:
Accelerate progress towards universal access by increasing access to affordable Internet and ensuring that everyone can use the Web all of the time, safely, freely and privately.
Level the playing field by preventing price discrimination in Internet traffic, and treating the Internet like any other public utility.
Invest in high-quality public education for all to ensure that technological progress doesn’t leave some groups behind.
Promote participation in democracy and protect freedom of opinion by reversing the erosion of press freedom and civil liberties, using the Web to increase government transparency, and protecting the freedoms of speech, association, and privacy.
Create opportunities for women and poor and marginalised groups by investing more in ICTs to overcome key barriers in health, education, agriculture and gender equity.
ETHIOPIA, The Gambia and Sudan are some of the most repressive places in Africa for online freedom, a new report by watchdog organisation Freedom House indicates, while South Africa and Kenya are the among the most free for internet users in the continent.
But the 12 African countries surveyed show a worrying trend – the majority are becoming more repressive compared to last year. Just South Africa – the best ranked – Kenya, Uganda and Malawi have maintained the same score as last year; Nigeria, Angola, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Sudan and Ethiopia have deteriorated. Zambia and The Gambia are new entrants on the list this year.
The negative trajectory in internet freedom is mirrored around the world – the report states that in 36 of the 65 countries surveyed, internet freedom scores have become worse, as governments become increasingly nervous about their national security, and more sophisticated in surveillance and control.
“Very few countries registered any gains in internet freedom, and the improvements that were recorded largely reflected less vigorous application of existing internet controls compared with the previous year, rather than genuinely new and positive steps taken [by governments],” the report states.
Although most African countries do not explicitly censor content much, there has been an increasingly harsh manner in which users are targeted for the things they say online – in some countries, Freedom House reports, “the penalties for online expression are worse than those for similar actions offline”.
A higher score means a more repressive environment. Source: Freedom House
In July 2013, for example, the Gambian government passed amendments to the Information and Communication Act that specifically criminalised the use of the internet to criticise, impersonate, or spread false news about public officials. Anyone found guilty could face up to 15 years in prison, fines of roughly $100,000, or both—significantly harsher punishments than what the criminal code prescribes for the equivalent offenses offline.
The report reveals that breaches in cybersecurity are also eroding freedom, as government critics and human rights organisations are subject to increasingly sophisticated and personalised malware attacks, documented in 32 of the 65 countries examined.
Low internet penetration, state monopoly
Ethiopia comes out as the worst place in Africa for internet freedom. In the first place, lack of telecoms infrastructure, government monopoly and oppressive regulation means that internet penetration is just 2%, one of the lowest in Africa.
A law enacted in November 2013 gives the Information Network Security Agency (INSA) carte blanche to inspect private online activities without oversight. Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, and CNN were inaccessible for 12 hours in July 2013, while the number of permanently blocked webpages also increased.
In the Gambia, as well as setting out punitive new laws, internet cafe registration regulations were tightened in September 2013, requiring operators to provide thorough details for a license, as well as mandating the physical layout of cafes and the signs that must be displayed.
In Nigeria too, cybercafés have to keep a log of their customers – although the mobile revolution means that these attempts at controlling internet use will become increasingly irrelevant.
But if you can’t control access, then persecution and punishment becomes the next measure – and African governments show remarkable sophistication here.
In Ethiopia, the government launched high-tech surveillance malware against several online journalists in the Ethiopian diaspora and dissidents in exile; six bloggers of the prominent Zone9 blogging collective were arrested in April 2014 on charges of terrorism.
This year shows a more repressive environment than last year in many countries. Source: Freedom House
The same was observed in Angola, where “insider sources” affirmed that a German company had assisted the Angolan military intelligence in installing a sophisticated communications monitoring system on a military base, the report states. Further evidence, as of November 2013, found that at least one major ISP hosts a spyware system directly on its server.
In Rwanda, a growing number of independent online news outlets and opposition blogs were intermittently inaccessible in Rwanda in the past year. The Law Relating to the Interception of Communications enacted in October authorised high-ranking security officials to monitor email and telephone conversations of individuals considered potential threats to “public security”.
In Sudan, a localised internet service disruption in June and a nationwide blackout in September corresponded with large anti-government protests; the blackouts were reportedly directed by the government.
Even in the countries ranked as relatively free, harassment and intimidation of journalists and bloggers – and even ordinary citizens – is a widespread form of internet control. In Malawi online journalists are “periodically detained and prosecuted for articles posted on news websites”.
Most recently, Justice Mponda, a correspondent for the online publication Malawi Voice, was arrested in November 2013 for allegedly “intimidating the royal family” in an investigative story about former President Banda’s connection to the theft of millions of Malawian kwacha from government coffers in a scandal known as “Cashgate.” He was later acquitted.
Mugabe’s digital ‘death’
But it’s Zimbabwe that has had some of the most bizarre persecutions. An editor at the Sunday Mail state newspaper, Edmund Kudakwashe Kudzayi, was arrested in June on accusations of running the Baba Jukwa Facebook account, an activist page of over half a million followers harshly critical of the government. In July, the government took down the facebook page, and Kudzayi’s case remains unresolved.
It gets crazier – in January 2014, teenage Facebook user Gumisai Manduwa was arrested for allegedly insulting the president after he posted on his Facebook page that President Mugabe “had died and was being preserved in a freezer.” Manduwa was released on bail two days after his arrest. His case remains on the court’s docket as of mid-2014.
And another court case, this one against 21-year old Shantel Rusike is still being dragged through the magistrate courts in Bulawayo as of mid-2014.
Rusike was arrested on December 24, 2012 and held for four days after she was reported to the police for sending an image depicting President Mugabe “in a nude state” via WhatsApp on her mobile phone. Rusike faces charges of “causing hatred, contempt or ridicule of the president”.
Ethiopia
2013 2014
Internet Freedom Status Not Free Not Free
Obstacles to Access (0-25) 22 23
Limits on Content (0-35) 28 28
Violations of User Rights (0-40) 29 29
TOTAL* (0-100) 79 80
* 0=most free, 100=least free
Population: 89.2 million
Internet Penetration 2013: 2 percent
Social Media/ICT Apps Blocked: Yes
Political/Social Content Blocked: Yes
Bloggers/ICT Users Arrested: Yes
Press Freedom 2014 Status: Not Free Key Developments: May 2013 – May 2014
• Telecom services worsened, characterized by frequently dropped phone calls, prolonged internet service interruptions, and slow response times to service failures (see Obstacles to Access).
• Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, and CNN were inaccessible for 12 hours in July 2013, while the
number of permanently blocked webpages also increased (see Limits on Content).
• A law enacted in November 2013 gives the Information Network Security Agency (INSA)
carte blanche to inspect private online activities without oversight (see Violations of User
Rights).
• The government launched sophisticated surveillance malware against several online journalists
in the Ethiopian diaspora and dissidents in exile (see Violations of User Rights).
• Six bloggers of the prominent Zone9 blogging collective were arrested in April 2014 on
charges of terrorism (see Violations of User Rights).
Introduction
Ethiopia continues to have one of the lowest rates of internet and mobile phone connectivity in the world, as meager infrastructure, government monopoly over the telecommunications sector, and obstructive telecom policies have significantly hindered the growth of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the country. Coupled with highly repressive laws and tactics aimed at restricting freedom of expression and access to information, internet freedom in Ethiopia is consistently rated the worst in sub-Saharan Africa and among the worst in the world.
Despite the country’s extremely poor telecommunications services and a largely disconnected population, Ethiopia is also known as one of the first African countries to censor the internet, beginning in 2006 with opposition blogs.1. Since then, internet censorship has become pervasive and systematic through the use of highly sophisticated tools that block and filter internet content and monitor user activity. The majority of blocked websites feature critical news and opposition viewpoints run by individuals and organizations based mostly in the diaspora. Surveillance of mobile phone and internet networks is systematic and widespread, enabled by Chinese-made technology that allows for the interception of SMS text messages, recording of phone calls, and centralized monitoring of online activities. The government also employs commentators and trolls to proactively manipulate the online news and information landscape.
During the report’s coverage period, internet freedom in Ethiopia worsened due to increasing restrictions on access to social media and communications tools, such as Storify, and the temporary blocking of Facebook and Twitter in July 2013. A new law passed in November 2013 gave the Information Network Security Agency (INSA) carte blanche to track private online communications and investigate electronic devices without oversight. In addition, a number of diaspora journalists and exiled dissidents were targeted with surveillance malware, demonstrating a growing level of sophistication in the government’s effort to silence critical voices that extends beyond the country’s borders.
In 2014, the Ethiopian authorities increased their crackdown against bloggers and online journalists, using the country’s harsh laws to prosecute individuals for their online activities and quash dissent. Most alarmingly, six bloggers from the critical Zone9 blogging collective and three journalists associated with Zone9 were arrested in late April 2014 on charges of terrorism, which, under the Telecom Fraud Offenses Law and anti-terrorism proclamation, can entail a sentence of up to 20 years in prison if the bloggers are found guilty. The Zone9 case was repeatedly stalled by the courts throughout 2014, leaving the bloggers in pre-trial detention for over six months as of late-2014. Meanwhile, two online radio journalists were arrested and detained for a week without charges in August 2013, and the prominent dissident blogger, Eskinder Nega, and award-winning journalist, Reeyot Alemu, continue to serve lengthy prison sentences, despite international pressure for their release. The overall crackdown has had a major chilling effect on internet freedom and freedom of expression in the country, leading to increasing levels of self-censorship among online journalists, bloggers, and ordinary users alike.
Obstacles to Access
In 2013 and 2014, access to ICTs in Ethiopia remained extremely limited, hampered by slow speeds and the state’s tight grip on the telecom sector. According to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), internet penetration stood at a mere 1.9 percent in 2013, up from 1.5 percent in 2012. Only 0.25 percent of the population had access to fixed-broadband internet, increasing from 0.01 percent in 2012.Ethiopians had more access to mobile phone services, with mobile phone penetration rates increasing from 22 percent in 2012 to 27 percent in 2013 though such access rates still lag behind a regional average of 80 percent. Meanwhile, less than 5 percent of the population has a mobile-broadband subscription. Radio remains the principal mass medium through which most Ethiopians stay informed. While access to the internet via mobile phones increased slightly in the last year, prohibitively expensive mobile data packages still posed a significant financial obstacle for the majority of the population in Ethiopia, where per capita income in 2013 stood at US$470.8 Ethiopia’s telecom market is very unsaturated due to monopolistic control, providing customers with few options at arbitrary prices. Prices are set by the state-controlled Ethio Telecom and kept artificially high. As of mid-2014, monthly packages cost between ETB 200 and 3,000 (US$10 to $150) for 1 to 30 GB of 3G mobile services.
The computer remains the most practical option for going online, though in 2014, personal computers are still prohibitively expensive. The combined cost of purchasing a computer, initiating an internet connection, and paying usage charges makes internet access beyond the reach of most Ethiopians. Consequently, only 2 percent of Ethiopian households had internet access in their homes in 2013. The majority of internet users rely on cybercafes to log online, leading to a growth of
cybercafes in recent years, particularly in large cities. A typical internet user in Addis Ababa pays between ETB 5 and 7 (US$0.25 to $0.35) for an hour of access. Because of the scarcity of internet cafes outside urban areas, however, rates in rural cybercafes are more expensive.
For the few Ethiopians who can access the internet, connection speeds are known to be painstakingly slow. For years, logging into an email account and opening a single message could take as long as six minutes at a standard cybercafe with broadband in the capital city.12 According to May 2014 data from Akamai’s “State of the Internet” report, Ethiopia has an average connection speed of 1.2 Mbps (compared to a global average of 3.9 Mbps). Meanwhile, Ethiopia’s broadband adoption (characterized by connection speeds greater than 4 Mbps) is less than 3 percent,14 while the country’s narrowband adoption (connection speed below 256 Kbps) is about 20 percent among those with access. Numerous users reported that internet and text messaging speeds were extremely slow during the coverage period, with services completely unavailable at times. Frequent electricity outages are also a contributing factor to poor telecom services. Despite reports of massive investments from Chinese telecom companies in recent years,17 Ethiopia’s telecommunications infrastructure is among the least developed in Africa and is almost entirely absent from rural areas, where about 85 percent of the population resides. The country is connected to the international internet via satellite, a fiber-optic cable that passes through Sudan and connects to its international gateway, and the SEACOM cable that connects through Djibouti to an international undersea cable. In an effort to expand connectivity, the government has reportedly installed several
thousand kilometers of fiber-optic cable throughout the country over the past few years. Construction of the East African Submarine Cable System (EASSy) was completed and launched in July 2010, but its effects on Ethiopia have yet to be seen as of mid-2014. The space for independent initiatives in the ICT sector, entrepreneurial or otherwise, is extremely
limited, with state-owned Ethio Telecom holding a firm monopoly over internet and mobile phone services in the country. Consequently, all connections to the international internet are completely centralized via Ethio Telecom, enabling the government to cut off the internet at will. As a result, the internet research company Renesys classified Ethiopia “as being at severe risk of Internet disconnection,” alongside Syria, Uzbekistan, and Yemen in a February 2014 assessment. During the coverage period, one Renesys report found that 40 percent of Ethiopia’s networks were down for a few hours on July 18, 2013 as a result of a disruption on the SEACOM network, though the exact reason for the disruption was unknown. In September 2013, a number of cybercafe owners in Ethiopia reported an increasing trend of unpredictable internet connections and speeds beginning in June that resulted in a significant decline in business, with internet connections reported as unavailable for up to 15 days in a month. Mobile phone networks—also completely centralized under Ethio Telecom—are similarly vulnerable to service disruptions and shutdowns by the government, which often occur during politically sensitive times. During the coverage period, there were frequent reports of dropped cell phone and landline calls, complete network blackouts in many parts of the country, and overlapping voices in calls. The latter phenomenon led people to suspect government engagement in a widespread eavesdropping scheme (see “Violations of User Rights” for details on surveillance). Meanwhile, cybercafes are subject to onerous requirements under the 2002 Telecommunications
(Amendment) Proclamation, which requires cybercafe owners to obtain an operating license with Ethio Telecom via a murky process that can take months. During the coverage period, Ethio Telecom began enforcing its licensing requirements more strictly in response to the increasing spread of cybercafes, reportedly penalizing Muslim cafe owners more harshly. Violations of the stringent requirements, such as a prohibition on providing Voice-over-IP (VoIP) services, entail criminal liability. Despite repeated international pressure to liberalize telecommunications in Ethiopia, the government
has not eased its grip on the sector. In June 2013, the prime minister publicly affirmed that the government would maintain a monopoly over the country’s telecoms. In the meantime, China has emerged as a key investor and contractor in Ethiopia’s telecommunications industry, and in July 2013, the government signed a US$1.6 billion agreement with the Chinese telecom companies,
Zhongxing Telecommunication Corporation (ZTE) and Huawei, to upgrade its broadband network to 4G in Addis Ababa and expand 3G across the country. The networks built by the Chinese firms have been criticized for their high costs and poor service, though the partnership has enabled Ethiopia’s authoritarian leaders to maintain their hold over the telecom sector. Furthermore, the contracts have led to increasing fears that the Chinese may also be assisting the authorities in developing more robust internet and mobile phone censorship and surveillance capacities.
The Ethiopian Broadcasting Authority (EBA) and the Ethiopian Telecommunications Agency (ETA) are the primary regulatory bodies overseeing the telecommunications sector. These two organizations were established as autonomous federal agencies, but both are highly controlled government bodies. Limits on Content
During the coverage period, over a hundred websites remained inaccessible in Ethiopia, with a greater number of online tools and services targeted for blocking. A June 2014 report affirmed the government’s efforts to recruit and train progovernment citizens to attack politically objectionable content online.
The Ethiopian government imposes nationwide, politically motivated internet blocking and filtering that tends to tighten ahead of sensitive political events. The majority of blocked websites are those that feature opposition or critical content run by individuals or organizations based in the country or the diaspora. The government’s approach to internet filtering generally entails hindering access to a list of specific internet protocol (IP) addresses or domain names at the level of the Ethio Telecom-controlled international gateway. A more sophisticated strategy of blocking websites based on a keyword in the URL path, known as deep-packet inspection (DPI), was detected in May 2012 when the Tor network—an online tool that enables users to browse anonymously—was blocked. In January 2014, an independent test conducted by a researcher based in the country found 120 unique URLs that were inaccessible in the country, 62 of which were Ethiopian news websites, 14 of which were political party websites, of which were blogs, and 7 of which were television and online
radio websites. During the test, some websites opened at the first attempt but were inaccessible when refreshed. The test also found that select tools and services on Google’s Android operating system on smart phones were inaccessible at irregular intervals but for unclear reasons. A separate test on over 1,400 URLs between July and August 2013 by the OpenNet Initiative in partnership withHuman Rights Watch similarly found 62 websites blocked altogether and numerous others intermittently inaccessible. International news outlets were increasingly targeted for censorship. Al Arabiya, a Saudi Arabia-based media outlet, and both of Al Jazeera’s Arabic and English websites were intermittently blocked during the coverage period. In July 2013, websites belonging to Yahoo and CNN were reportedly inaccessible for about 12 hours. Facebook and Twitter were also targets of the short-term July 2013 blocking. There was no evident impetus or reason for the short-term blocking, and other major services such as Gmail and new outlets such as the New York Times remained accessible. Nevertheless, the incident further increased worries over reports of government plans to block popular social media tools completely. Facebook and Twitter platforms were otherwise generally accessible, although some individual Facebook groups belonging to opposition individuals remained blocked altogether, particularly when accessed via the unencrypted (http://) URL pathway. Meanwhile, the social media curation tool Storify—first blocked in July 201241—remained blocked during the coverage period, while the URL shortening tool Bit.ly was inexplicably blocked in late 2013.
In the past few years, the authorities have become more sophisticated in their censorship techniques, electing to block select webpages as opposed to entire websites. Critical online news articles are usually targeted, such as an August 2012 Forbes article titled, “Requiem for a Reprobate Ethiopian Tyrant Should Not Be Lionized,” which was blocked for criticizing the local and global praise of the former prime minister’s debatable economic growth achievements; the article remained blocked as of June 2014.44 A July 2013 YouTube video of the anti government Muslim protests that occurred from 2012-13 was also blocked as of late 2013.
International blog-hosting platforms such as Blogspot have been frequently blocked since the disputed parliamentary elections of 2005, during which the opposition used online communication tools to organize and disseminate information that was critical of the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front. In 2007, the government instituted a blanket block on the domainnames of two popular blog-hosting websites, Blogspot and Nazret, though the authorities have
since become more sophisticated in their censorship techniques, now blocking select pages such as the Zone9 independent blog hosted on Blogspot, as opposed to the entire blogging platform. Nazret, however, remained completely blocked as of June 2014. Circumvention strategies have also been targeted, with the term “proxy” yielding no search results on Google, according to an independent source. Meanwhile, the terms “sex” or “porn” are still searchable.
In addition to increasing blocks of online content, politically objectionable content is often targeted for removal, often by way of threats from security officials who personally seek out users and bloggers to instruct them to take down certain content, particularly critical content on Facebook. The growing practice suggests that at least some voices within Ethiopia’s small online community are being closely monitored. Some restrictions are also placed on mobile phones, such as the requirement for a text message to obtain prior approval from Ethio Telecom if it is to be sent to more than ten recipients. A bulk text message sent without prior approval is automatically blocked. There are no procedures for determining which websites are blocked or why, which precludes any avenues for appeal. There are no published lists of blocked websites or publicly available criteria for how such decisions are made, and users are met with an error message when trying to access
blocked content. This lack of transparency is exacerbated by the government’s continued denial of its censorship efforts. Meanwhile, the decision-making process does not appear to be controlled by a single entity, as various government bodies—including the Information Network Security Agency (INSA), Ethio Telecom, and the ministry of ICT—seem to be implementing their own lists, contributing to a phenomenon of inconsistent blocking. Lack of adequate funding is a significant challenge for independent online media in Ethiopia, as fear of government pressure dissuades local businesses from advertising with politically critical websites. Local newspapers and web outlets receive their news and information from regime critics and opposition organizations in the diaspora. While the domestic Ethiopian blogosphere has been expanding, most blogging activity on Ethiopian issues still originates in the diaspora. Few Ethiopian journalists work for both the domestic print media and overseas online outlets due to the threat of repercussions. Increasing repression against journalists and bloggers has had a major chilling effect on expression online, particularly following the arrest of the Zone9 bloggers in April 2014 (see “Violations of User Rights”). Fear of pervasive surveillance has led to widespread self-censorship, and many bloggers publish anonymously to avoid reprisals. Notably, users on social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter seem to practice a lower degree of self-censorship, which may be due to poor awareness of privacy settings, or the perception that posts on social media are anonymous or more secure. Despite extremely low levels of internet access, the authorities employ progovernment commentators and trolls to proactively manipulate the online news and information landscape. Acrimonious exchanges between commentators on apologist websites and an array of diaspora critics and opposition figures have become common in online political debates. There was a noticeable increase in the number of progovernment commentators during the coverage period, as confirmed in a June 2014 report by the Ethiopian Satellite Television Service (ESAT) that detailed the government’s efforts to recruit and train progovernment citizens to attack politically objectionable content online. According to the ESAT report, hundreds of bloggers who report directly to government officials had been trained on how to post progovernment comments and criticize antigovernment articles on social media platforms. As the country prepares for the upcoming 2015 National Election, the state media has stepped up its campaign against the press in general and the use of social media in particular, claiming that foreign agents and terrorists are using social media to destabilize the country. Consequently, many civil society groups based in the country are wary of mobilizing against the government, and calls for protest come mostly from the Ethiopian diaspora rather than from local activists who fear the government’s violent crackdowns against protest movements. Nevertheless, over the past few years, Facebook has become one of the most popular mediums through which Ethiopians share and consume information. Social media services have also become significant platforms for political deliberation and social justice campaigns. For example, in September 2013, a group of young Ethiopian bloggers and activists based in Addis Ababa launched a Facebook and Twitter campaign on the occasion of Ethiopia’s New Year celebration to share their vision of a better Ethiopia, using the hashtag #EthiopianDream.52 In November 2013, Ethiopians responded to the Saudi government’s crackdown on undocumented Ethiopian immigrants in Saudi Arabia by organizing the online campaign, #SomeoneTellSaudiArabia, to protest the abusive treatment of Ethiopian immigrants. Netizen activism was particularly pronounced and widespread following the arrest of six Zone9 bloggers and three journalists for their alleged affiliation with the Zone9 collective (see “Violations of User Rights”). Ethiopian bloggers and social media users flocked online to spread the #FreeZone-9Bloggers hashtag in a campaign that quickly swept across the social media sphere and garnered
widespread support from around the world. Within five days, the #FreeZone9Bloggers hashtag had been tweeted more than 8,000 times. Unfortunately, the international campaign elicited no response from the government, and the imprisoned bloggers and journalists are still awaiting trial on charges of terrorism as of late-2014.
Violations of User Rights
During the coverage period, the Ethiopian government’s already limited space for online expression continued to deteriorate alongside its poor treatment of journalists. A new proclamation passed in November 2013 empowered INSA with sweeping surveillance capabilities without judicial oversight. Sophisticated malware was launched against online radio journalists and dissidents in exile, while repression against bloggers and ICT users in the country increased notably. Six bloggers of the critical Zone9 blogging collective were arrested for their alleged terrorist activities. The 1995 Ethiopian constitution guarantees freedom of expression, freedom of the press, and access to information, while also prohibiting censorship. These constitutional guarantees are affirmed in the 2008 Mass Media and Freedom of Information Proclamation, known as the press law, which also provides certain protections for media workers, such as prohibiting the pre-trial detention of journalists. Nevertheless, the press law also includes problematic provisions that contradict constitutional protections and restrict free expression. For example, media outlets are required to obtain licenses to operate through an onerous registration process that applies to all outlets, regardless of size, though it is uncertain whether the press law’s broad language encompasses online media. Penalties for violating the registration requirement and other restrictions on content, such as defamation, involve high fines and up to two and three years in prison, respectively.
In September 2012, the government codified specific restrictions on various telecommunications activities through the passage of the Telecom Fraud Offences law, which revised a 1996 law that had placed bans on certain communication applications, such as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)60— including Skype and Google Voice—call back services, and internet-based fax services. Under the new law, the penalties under the preexisting ban were toughened, increasing the fine and maximum prison sentence from five to eight years for offending service providers, and penalizing users with
three months to two years in prison. The law also added the requirement for all individuals to register their telecommunications equipment—including smart phones—with the government, which security officials typically enforce by confiscating ICT equipment when a registration permit cannot be furnished at security checkpoints, according to sources in the country.
Most alarmingly, the Telecom Fraud Offences law extended the violations and penalties defined in the 2009 Anti-Terrorism Proclamation and 2004 Criminal Code to electronic communications, which are broadly defined yet explicitly include both mobile phone and internet services. The anti-terrorism legislation prescribes prison sentences of up to 20 years for the publication of statements that can be understood as a direct or indirect encouragement of terrorism, vaguely defined.64 Meanwhile, the criminal code holds any “author, originator or publisher” criminally liable for content allegedly linked to offenses such as treason, espionage, or incitement, which carries with it the penalty of up to life imprisonment or death. The criminal code also penalizes the publication of a “false rumor” with up to three years in prison. In 2014, the Ethiopian authorities increased their crackdown against bloggers and online journalists, using the country’s harsh laws to prosecute individuals for their online activities and silence dissent. Most alarmingly, six bloggers from the critical Zone9 blogging collective and three journalists associated with Zone9 were arrested in late April 2014 on charges of terrorism. They were accused of “working with foreign organizations that claim to be human rights activists… and receiving finance to
incite public violence through social media,” though the arrests had occurred just days following Zone9’s Facebook post announcing plans to resume its activism. The blogging collective had been inactive for seven months as a result of “a considerable amount of surveillance and harassment” the bloggers had suffered at the hands of security agents for their writings and social media activism. Despite widespread international condemnation of the Zone9 arrests, the detainees were denied bail in August and remained in jail as of fall 2014, awaiting trial. Meanwhile, the well-known dissident journalist and blogger Eskinder Nega is still carrying out an 18-year prison sentence handed down in July 2012 under the anti-terrorism law. Numerous other journalists and media outlets—both online and print—were targeted for arrest and prosecutions during the coverage period, including Darsema Sori and Khalid Mohammed who were arrested in August 2013 for their work with the online radio station, Radio Bilal, which is known for its extensive coverage of the 2012-13 anti government protests organized by Ethiopian Muslims.
They were released after being held for a week without charges,71 but the arrests were in keeping with the government’s concerted efforts to silence the protests. Given the high degree of online repression in Ethiopia, some political commentators use proxy servers and anonymizing tools to hide their identities when publishing online and to circumvent filtering, though the ability to communicate anonymously has become more difficult. The Tor Network anonymizing tool was blocked in May 2012, confirming that the government has deployed deep-packet inspection technology, and Google searches of the term “proxy” mysteriously yield no results. Anonymity is further compromised by strict SIM card registration requirements. Upon purchase of a SIM card through Ethio Telecom or an authorized reseller, individuals must provide their full name, address, government-issued identification number, and a passport-sized photograph. Ethio Telecom’s database of SIM registrants enables the government to cut-off the SIM cards belonging to targeted individuals and to restrict those individuals from registering for new SIM cards. Internet subscribers are also required to register their personal details, including their home address, with the government. In 2013, an inside informant leaked worrying details of potential draft legislation that seeks to mandate real-name registration for all internet users in Ethiopia, though there are no further
details of this development as of mid-2014. Government surveillance of online and mobile phone communications is pervasive in Ethiopia, and evidence has emerged in recent years that reveal the scale of such practices. According to 2014
Human Rights Watch research, there are strong indications that the government has deployed a centralized monitoring system from the Chinese telecommunications firm ZTE, known as ZXMT, to monitor phone lines and various types of communications, including mobile phone networks and the internet.73 Known for its use by repressive regimes in Libya and Iran, ZXMT enables deep-packet inspection (DPI) of internet traffic across the Ethio Telecom network and has the ability to intercept emails and web chats. Another ZTE technology, known as ZSmart, is a customer management database installed at Ethio Telecom that provides the government with full access to user information and the ability to intercept SMS text messages and record phone conversations. ZSmart also allows security officials to locate targeted individuals through real-time geolocation tracking of mobile phones. While the extent to which the government has made use of the full range of ZTE’s sophisticated surveillance systems is unclear, the authorities frequently present intercepted emails and phone calls as evidence during trials against journalists and bloggers or during interrogations as a scare tactic. In November 2013, a new Cyber Security Law expanded the surveillance powers of the Information Network Security Agency (INSA)—the government body established in 2011 to preside overcurity of the country’s critical communications infrastructure. According to reports, the law states that “social media outlets, blogs and other internet related media have great capabilities to instigate war, to damage the country’s image and create havoc in the economic atmosphere of the country”—
setting the logic for expanding INSA’s duties to include developing offensive cyber capabilities and ICT tools. The proclamation also empowers INSA to investigate computers, networks, internet, radio, television, and social media platforms “for any possible damage to the country’s social, economic, political and psychological well being.” INSA reportedly uses sophisticated spyware, such as the commercial toolkit FinFisher—a device that can secretly monitor computers by turning on webcams, record everything a user types with a key logger, and intercept Skype calls—to target dissidents and supposed threats. A leaked document confirmed that the UK-based company, Gamma International, had provided Ethio Telecom with the FinFisher surveillance toolkit at some point between April and July 2012.80 In addition, research conducted by Citizen Lab in March 2013 worryingly found evidence of an Ethio Telecom-initiated inSpy campaign launched against users that employed pictures of the exiled prodemocracy group, Ginbot 7, as bait. There has been an increasing trend of exiled dissidents targeted with surveillance malware in the past few years. In April 2013, Tadesse Kersmo, a senior member of Ginbot-7 living in exile in the United Kingdom since 2009, came across the above-mentioned Citizen Lab FinSpy report and noticed that one of the spyware campaign’s bait was a picture of himself. He contacted Citizen Lab to have his computer examined and found that FinSpy had been active on his computer over two days in June 2012. The spyware may have transmitted any or all of Kersmo’s emails, chats, Skype calls, files, and web searches to a server based in Ethiopia, which could have provided the authorities with names of contacts, colleagues, and family members still living in the country. In February 2014, Privacy International filed a criminal complaint to the UK’s National Cyber Crime Unit on Kersmo’s behalf, urging them to investigate the potential unlawful interception of communications.
In the same month, the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed a similar suit in the United States on behalf of another Ethiopian dissident (and American citizen) identified publicly under the pseudonym Mr. Kidane. Kidane’s computer had also been found infected with the FinSpy malware sometime between late October 2012 and March 2013, which had secretly recorded dozens of his Skype calls, copied emails he had sent, and logged a web search conducted by his son on the history of sports medicine for a school research project.86 The FinSpy IP address was linked to a server belonging to
Ethio Telecom. Recent Citizen Lab research published in February 2014 uncovered the use of Remote Control System
(RCS) spyware against two employees of the diaspora-run independent satellite television, radio, and online news media outlet, Ethiopian Satellite Television Service (ESAT), based in Alexandria, VA.87 Made by the Italian company Hacking Team, RCS spyware is advertised as “offensive technology” sold exclusively to law enforcement and intelligence agencies around the world, and has the ability to steal files and passwords, and intercept Skype calls/chats. 88 While Hacking Team claims that they do not deal with “repressive regimes,” the RCS virus sent via sophisticated bait to the two ESAT employees made it clear that the attack was targeted, and researchers have strong suspicions of the Ethiopian government’s involvement.
While the government’s stronghold over the Ethiopian ICT sector enables it to proactively monitor users, its access to user activity and information is less direct at cybercafes. For a period following the 2005 elections, cybercafe owners were required to keep a register of their clients, but the requirement has not been enforced since mid-2010.91 Nevertheless, some cybercafe operators revealed that they are required to report any “unusual behavior” to security officials, and officials often visit cybercafes (sometimes in plainclothes) to ask questions about specific users or monitor user activity themselves.
Government security agents frequently harass and intimidate bloggers, online journalists, and ordinary users for their online activities. Independent bloggers are often summoned by the authorities to be warned against discussing certain topics online, while activists claim that they are consistently threatened by state security agents for their online activism. Bloggers from Zone9, for example, reported suffering a considerable amount of harassment for their work, leading them to go silent for several months. Shortly after the blog announced on Facebook that it was resuming activities in April 2014, six Zone9 bloggers were arrested and sent to a federal detention center in Addis Ababa where the torture of detainees is reportedly common. The active Gmail accounts belonging to several of the Zone9 bloggers94 while in detention suggests that they may have been forced give their passwords to security officials against their will.
Read more @ https://freedomhouse.org/sites/default/files/FOTN_2014_Full_Report_compressedv2_0.pdf
ETHIOPIA: ‘BECAUSE I AM OROMO’: SWEEPING REPRESSION IN THE OROMIA REGION OF ETHIOPIA
His Excellency Mr Ban Ki-Moon
United Nations Secretary-General
Office of the Secretary General of United Nations
885 Second Avenue
United Nations Headquarters
Room DHL-1B-154
New York, NY 10017
Fax +1 212-963-4879
Your Excellency
I write on behalf of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) to bring to your kind attention the plight of the Oromo people and to ask you to request the Security Council of the United Nations to treat the matter as a priority, to condemn the lawless atrocities by the Ethiopian regime, adopt appropriate actions to bring perpetrators to account, and safeguard the wellbeing of the Oromo and other peoples in Ethiopia.
In the land of their birth, the Oromo, who constitute the single largest national group in Ethiopia, are denied the most basic democratic right to organize freely and legally and express their political opinion. We do not know any country in the world, expect Ethiopia, where 35 million Oromo people are denied the right to have their own newspapers, to elect their own leaders and support an organization of their choice. Today, it is a serious crime, even punishable by death, to support independent Oromo organizations, such as the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), internationally recognized organization, which jointly ruled Ethiopia with the TPLF in 1991/92. Supporters of the OLF and other independent organizations are harassed, detained for years without charge and their property confiscated without due process. Your Excellency, there is no doubt that the OLF enjoys support from the majority of the Oromo population. The current Ethiopian regime is dominated and controlled by the ruling Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). The TPLF represents less than seven percent of the population of Ethiopia. The TPLF, which fears the Oromo numerical voting power in any free and fair election, has directed multi-faceted attack on the Oromo political organizations, cultural institutions, educational establishments, the press and the killings of Oromo men and women, young and old, truly reaching a very dangerous proportion. This has to stop before it is too late. Today in Ethiopia all independent Oromo organizations are crippled and our people’s legal newspapers and magazines closed down. Even the Matcha and Tulama Association, a civic association, which was established in 1963 was closed down, its leaders detained and its property confiscated. We believe the TPLF dominated Ethiopian government deliberately targets the Oromo for persecution. This has been well documented by several human rights organizations, including the Ethiopian Human Rights League, European Parliament, Human Rights Watch/Africa, and Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa, Oromia Support Group and the State Department Annual Human Rights Report. The very recent 156 page Amnesty International October 2014 report clearly demonstrates that the TPLF dominated Ethiopian regime deliberately targets the Oromo population for persecution. This attack on the Oromo must be stopped before it is too late.
The Amnesty International, AI, report contains graphic accounts of arassment, intimidation, arbitrary and indefinite detention in formal and secret detention centres, extra-judicial killings and disappearances of innocent civilians on mere suspicion of individuals for sympathies with the Oromo Liberation Front. Collective punishment sometimes punishing entire neighbourhoods and penalising a close relative in place of a suspect, and mutilation and rape in detention are also common place in Oromia.
Peaceful demonstrators are wantonly beaten, tortured and mutilated, and many suspects indefinitely disappeared. The AI report is thoroughly detailed and it is based on information gathered in real time from real victims past and present, and from close family and friends of victims and from observers on the ground. The report provides specific cases that constitute crimes against humanity and violation of international law against arbitrary and cruel punishment. Whilst the report brings forth the regime’s
arbitrary and lawless behaviour, it must be said that it only scratches the surface, as the reality is even much worse.
There is no question that details unearthed by AI constitute extra-judicial killings and violations of international law. If disputed, the facts can be verified but the regime has to agree and guarantee another neutral investigation. The fact remains that the Oromo people and indeed all the different population groups in Ethiopia are undergoing a harrowing experience under abject misrule with no respite. What is happening in Ethiopia that AI report brought forth is a denial of basic freedoms including freedom to organise, freedom of expression, freedom to life and personal security, the freedom to be judged and the freedom to take part in decisions over ones affairs. As experience somewhere showed such lawlessness by governing elites lead to complete breakdowns and increased violence leading to even worse mass suffering and deaths and engulfing ever wider areas within the country and beyond. On experience of similar tragedies elsewhere including Somalia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, the behaviour of the current Ethiopian regime constitute a clear and present threat to international peace and security, which should not be ignored.
Your Excellency, my people were brought under Ethiopian domination through violent conquest during the Scramble for Africa and made part of the expanded Empire of Ethiopia. My organisation was forced to resort to armed resistance to regain Oromo people’s national rights only after the previous imperial regime adopted violent repression to Oromo attempts at peaceful processes to regain their basic human and democratic rights. The military dictatorship that replaced the imperial regime in 1974 initially raised hopes for a democratic alternative but soon snuffed the life out of any such hopes by instituting an intolerant one party dictatorship that respected no law, trampled elementary democratic practices and denied our people’s right to determine its destiny. The violation of basic human rights by that regime was also well documented by AI and many other human rights organisations.
My organization the OLF and the core of the present regime the Tigrean People’s Liberation Front, TPLF, were during the Marxist military regime on the same side opposing and exposing the lawlessness and excesses of that regime, and they solemnly committed themselves to institute a democratic future for all the oppressed peoples in Ethiopia. They also agreed to recognise their respective peoples’ rights to decide their own affairs and to freely determine their future destiny. They were partners also in organising a transitional programme enshrined in a charter which guaranteed basic liberties for the individual and self-determination of peoples including the Oromo.
According to the transitional programme, all peoples in Ethiopia would govern their affairs and participate in central government on equal basis. The process meant to guarantee equality and a level playing field for all parties with stake in the process. Unfortunately, within less than two years of the transitional exercise, the TPLF and its stalking-horse the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front, EPRDF, systematically drove all autonomous organisations out of the transitional process and ever since running a one party dictatorship. While opposition parties are registered in name, in an echo of practices in eastern European countries during the Cold War, their members face constant intimidation, harassment and repression and their political activities severely curbed. Similarly, the regime in Ethiopia does not tolerate any criticism of its arbitrary actions, not even a peaceful demonstration by the affected people. The peaceful protests in Oromia at the beginning of the current year 2014 was triggered by the regime’s arbitrary plans to extend the city limits of Addis Ababa against the wishes of the Oromo people, when, as witnessed, the regime unleashing severe repression firing live ammunition on peaceful demonstrators killing many, and detention, torture and disappearance of many more.
Your Excellency, there are undeniable changes from the era of the imperial rule and the Marxist military regime when the very name Oromo and Oromia were outlawed. However, mere facade of federal framework on paper that the current regime boasts does not amount to a real change. The trampling of basic human and democratic rights and the denial of our people’s right to decide their own affairs is fraught with further resentment and resistance. As the saying goes, a stitch in time saves nine. That is why we call on Your Excellency to bring the ever deteriorating situation in Ethiopia to the attention of the Security Council asking them to adopt measures that impress on the TPLF/EPRDF regime to uphold basic freedoms including freedom of expression, organisation, peaceful demonstration, and respect for the national rights of the Oromo people.
It will be recalled that the regime in Ethiopia has on several occasions during the past two decades organised sham elections to justify its misrule. However, far from giving it legitimacy, the charade has only deepened the mistrust and scorn of the Oromo and all other peoples and political players in Ethiopia. Regardless, the regime is again busy to run a similar election in 2015. The result is of course simple to predict. In view of the total obliteration of any meaningful competitors, the TPLF/EPRDF will retain power and the status quo will be maintained. This is an opportunity for the Security Council to
act to prevent maintenance of the status quo, which would speed a slide down the treacherous trail trekked in the past by similar tyrannical regimes in Sierra Leone, Somalia, Liberia and Syria with ruinous consequences. Your kind and swift action is much appreciated.
More @ https://oromianeconomist.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/appeal-letteer-to-un-general-secretary-mr-ban-ki-moon-12-11-2014.pdf
International Human Rights Day marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on December 10, 1948. Crafted in the shadow of the horrors of the Holocaust and World War II, the Declaration gave the world the vision it needed to stand up to fear and the blueprint it craved to build a safer and more just world. Its single premise is: “Recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world.”
Human Rights Day Message:United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein’s message for Human Rights Day 10 December 2014.
In observing Human Rights Day, its important to highlight the horrific going on in 2014 in our world. The following document is the summary of horrific repression going on against Oromo people by tyrannic Ethiopian regime:
In June more protests erupted just outside Addis Ababa in opposition to what is considered a discriminatory plan by the city council to expand the capital and displace many of the ethnic Oromos who live at its edges. The government often makes blanket accusations against critics based on their ethnicity. At least 5,000 ethnic Oromos have been arrested between 2011 and 2014 based on their actual or suspected opposition to the government, according to an October 2014 Amnesty International report.
The EPRDF has portrayed itself as a vanguard party, charged with a sacred duty to articulate the “developmental state”. Its dictum is “You are either with or against us.” It has evolved a rich rhetoric for those who oppose it by labelling them “anti-development” or “neoliberal”. In the meantime, the state’s command economy depends on dollars from “neoliberal” donors. It took $3 billion in external assistance in 2012, according to the World Bank, more than any other country in Africa.
In the run-up to the May 2015 general election, will the EPRDF allow the opposition to compete? Will the opposition participate or boycott the polls? Such queries are beside the point: the struggle for democracy in Ethiopia was lost long ago. The next election will be another EPRDF landslide, in keeping with the history of the current ruling party and its revolutionary roots. http://unpo.org/article/17759
Oromo: Only One Opposition MP Left in Ethiopian Parliament
In the Ethiopian Parliament, out of 548 MPs, only one is not part of the government coalition. Many other opposition party members, including leaders of the Oromo People’s Congress Party and of the Unity for Democracy and Justice Party, have been imprisoned, joining over 30,000 political prisoners in the country. The ruling party has progressively eliminated any opposition through abuse of anti-terror laws and banning NGOs, which are mainly funded from abroad.
Few political rights exist in Ethiopia and even fewer voices criticise the government.
The right to remain silent is one liberty not denied to critics of the Ethiopian government. Most other political entitlements have vanished. This explains the puzzle of Ethiopia’s invisible political opposition: it is so battered and brutalised, tattered and torn, that what is left of its pieces may never fit together again.
The current government is mostly to blame. It came to power in 1991 after it toppled the communist military junta led by despot Mengistu Haile Mariam. The victorious coalition of ethnic militias promised a new dispensation, based on the concept of “ethnic federalism”.
But nearly a quarter of a century later, Ethiopia remains a de facto one-party state. As countless analysts have noted, including successive European Union election observation missions, there is no separation between the government bureaucracy and the ruling Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). No political space is allowed to dissenting voices.
Most critics are behind bars, the first and main reason for the absence of a political opposition in Africa’s oldest independent nation.
Of the 547 members of Parliament (MPs), only one is from an opposition party. Girma Seif Maru of the Unity for Democracy and Justice party (UDJ) is the lonely MP–window dressing whom the government allowed to win a seat in the last general election in 2010. But large swathes of the UDJ are in prison.
Other opposition party members, including Bekele Gerba, a leader of the Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement, and Olbana Lelisa of the Oromo People’s Congress Party, were imprisoned days after meeting with representatives from Amnesty International in 2011.
Andualem Arage, the UDJ’s vice-chairman, and another UDJ leader, Natnael Mekonnen, were put behind bars for debating the 2011 Arab spring rebellions. So was outspoken journalist Eskinder Nega, who posed questions about the possibility of a similar Ethiopian movement in his online pieces. In June 2012 Mr Andualem was sentenced to 75 years in prison, while Messrs Eskinder and Natnael got off lighter with 18 each.
They are just three of the thousands of government critics silenced in the slammer. Barely a month goes by without news of fresh arrests and detentions. In July, four more leaders of the UDJ, Arena Tigray and Semayawi (“Blue”) opposition parties were detained. In addition, Andargachew Tsige, an Ethiopian opposition leader and British citizen, was arrested in Yemen and extradited to Addis Ababa, the capital, in July. He is facing the death penalty for allegedly plotting a coup in 2009.
In July 2013, thousands of people took to the streets of Addis Ababa demanding the release of some of Ethiopia’s estimated 30,000-40,000 political prisoners, according to Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The protestors also called for the repeal of a draconian anti-terror law that has been exploited to target legitimate opposition members. Crackdowns and arrests followed, including the detention of 40 UDJ activists who had distributed flyers encouraging people to protest.
The second reason for the opposition’s muffled voice is fear: a decade or more of repression has taken its toll. The government spies on dissidents in the diaspora and uses its control of food aid to literally starve the opposition at home, according to Human Rights Watch. Yet, Ethiopia’s citizens seem to passively accept each new transgression of their rights. They are just too scared to fight back.
A brief emancipatory moment swept Ethiopia in 2005. The ruling EPRDF, under the leadership of the late Meles Zenawi, allowed the forerunner of the UDJ, the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), a degree of freedom to campaign in the general elections that year. In polls that appeared relatively free, 174 opposition MPs were elected.
But the CUD disputed the results and protests erupted in the capital. Police killed nearly 200 unarmed protestors and arrested 40,000 CUD members and sympathisers in a nationwide clampdown, according to media reports. The memory of that brutality still casts a long shadow. Since then, the government has given no quarter.
This is the third factor explaining Ethiopia’s invisible opposition: the government controls every aspect of daily life. In 2010 Human Rights Watch documented the strategic use of food aid, agricultural inputs such as seeds and fertilisers, access to microcredit, teacher training and even university admissions to encourage support for the ruling party.
It worked. In the 2008 local election the ruling party won 99% of the votes and 3m local government seats. In the 2010 general election, the debacle of 2005 was avoided and voting was peaceful. The EPRDF took 99.6% of the parliamentary slots, leaving the UDJ with the one decorative seat.
The final squeeze on the political opposition and any form of dissent has been the use of repressive laws. The 2009 anti-terror law has a sweeping definition of terrorism. Another 2009 law bans NGOs that engage in human rights or advocacy activities from receiving more than 10% of their funds from abroad. It also requires all NGOs to re-register with a new government agency. This legislation closed down Ethiopia’s critical organisations and made hundreds of activists redundant.
As long-time Ethiopia observer, René Lefort, commented in July in an article on the Open Democracy website: “When the political space is impermeable, the inevitable internal conflicts can only overflow into the ethnic and/or religious sphere.”
They have. The government has been jostling for the last two years with the Muslim community that objected to government attempts to interfere in the appointments of the Islamic council. Every Friday, peaceful protests are held at mosques in Addis Ababa. Every Friday security forces shut them down and jail religious leaders, as reported in the media and acknowledged implicitly by government statements.
In June more protests erupted just outside Addis Ababa in opposition to what is considered a discriminatory plan by the city council to expand the capital and displace many of the ethnic Oromos who live at its edges. The government often makes blanket accusations against critics based on their ethnicity. At least 5,000 ethnic Oromos have been arrested between 2011 and 2014 based on their actual or suspected opposition to the government, according to an October 2014 Amnesty International report.
The EPRDF has portrayed itself as a vanguard party, charged with a sacred duty to articulate the “developmental state”. Its dictum is “You are either with or against us.” It has evolved a rich rhetoric for those who oppose it by labelling them “anti-development” or “neoliberal”. In the meantime, the state’s command economy depends on dollars from “neoliberal” donors. It took $3 billion in external assistance in 2012, according to the World Bank, more than any other country in Africa.
In the run-up to the May 2015 general election, will the EPRDF allow the opposition to compete? Will the opposition participate or boycott the polls? Such queries are beside the point: the struggle for democracy in Ethiopia was lost long ago. The next election will be another EPRDF landslide, in keeping with the history of the current ruling party and its revolutionary roots.
Why Resist the Master Plan? A Constitutional Legal Exploration
Tsegaye R. Ararssa
When the Ethiopian government announced its readiness to implement its “Integrated Regional Development Plan” (the “Master Plan” for short) in the middle of April 2014, it provoked an immediate reaction from university students across the National Regional State of Oromia. Through the instrumentality of its security forces (such as the Federal and State Police, the Army, and the Special Forces), the Ethiopian government responded with brutal repression of the protests. In a series of campus-based and street protests that barely lasted for two weeks, over a hundred innocent Oromos are killed and thousands are jailed. To date, sporadic and spontaneous protest demonstrations continue to erupt in various parts of Oromia. Fuelled by anger triggered by the reckless words and utter disdain expressed in the course of a televised discussion between the Addis Ababa City Administration and the mayors and other executive heads of the surrounding towns over the Master Plan, and informed by history of killing, mutilation, dispossession, and political marginalization (all of which continue unabated), the protests were more a spontaneous reaction than a planned resistance.
Ignored by the state and local government, lied on by the national propaganda machine, neglected by international media and NGOs (with few exceptions), the students continue to resist. Diaspora Oromo communities, in a gesture of solidarity, voiced the plights of the students at home, and they took the occasion to ‘witness’ the violence once more. The non-Oromo Ethio-political elite, which always finds it difficult to speak out on atrocities perpetrated on Oromos, rather characteristically, is still struggling with itself on how to express anger at the mass killings without siding with the cause of the Oromo. (Basking on the nation-wide challenge to the regime as a fertile political moment, they sought to make gestures of solidarity in the hope that they won’t be left out in the event that the tide gets traction thereby leading to the eventual crumbling of the regime.) But very few groups came out in public and condemn this state-orchestrated terror. To be fair, they did well in voicing the plight of the six bloggers and three journalists arrested in the weeks following the start of the unrest. And that is to be appreciated. But the contrast was nothing less than disheartening to those who expected more than gestures of solidarity and had hoped that Oromo lives and rights would be valued as any other lives and rights in Ethiopia.
In this piece, I seek to make a close reading of the constitutional-legal frame within which to situate the master Plan. Accordingly, first, I seek to explore the constitutional-legal context within which the Master Plan should be considered and analysed. Next, I will present a summary of four major constitutional-legal arguments against the Master Plan.
2. Constitutional Context
The point of departure is the assumption that—the important debate about legitimacy aside—the constitution is ‘the supreme law of the land’ against which the validity of all laws, decisions, and practices is measured (art. 9). According to the constitution, the Ethiopian state is federal in structure (arts 1 and 50-52). Ethiopia is a ‘nation of nations’ (Fasil 1997) that can be considered a multinational federation. In the language of the constitution, ‘Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ are the locus of sovereignty (art 8) and have the right to self-determination (art-39). As sovereign entities, they are the ‘building blocks’ that have a co-equal share in the founding of the contemporary Ethiopian polity. As subjects with the right to self-determination, they have, inter alia, the right to a ‘full measure of self-government’ (art 39(3)). Accordingly, most of these ‘nations,’ based on the four-fold criteria of settlement pattern, language, identity, and consent of the people concerned’ (art 46(1)), have established the nine states that constitute federal Ethiopia (art. 47), one of which is the state of Oromia (art.47(1)4))).
Addis Ababa (which Oromos call Finfinne) is designated as the “capital city of the federal” government (art 49(1)) whose ethnically diverse people have a right to self-government (art 49(2)) that is ultimately responsible to the federal government (art 49(3)). Being an Oromo city (albeit the constitution talks only about its ‘location’ in Oromia), it is also the capital city of the state of Oromia. This was stated in both the old and revised constitutions of Oromia (i.e. Art 6 of the 1995 constitution and Art 6 of the revised 2001 Constitution as amended in 2005). Owing to its being an Oromo city, the constitution clearly recognizes Oromia’s ‘special interest in Addis Ababa’ particularly in relation to social services, natural resources, and joint administrative matters (art 49(5)).
The articulation of the content of this special interest has been a matter of quiet controversy between the two governments on the one hand and between the Oromia government and the federal government on the other. The law envisaged to come to effect in order to articulate it was never made. Oromia’s request for the law fell on deaf ears. Oromia’s formal request for interpretation from the constitutional interpreter (the House of Federation cum Council of Constitutional Inquiry) was rejected by the latter on the ground that they do not give ‘advisory opinion’ in the absence of ‘case and controversy’. In the meantime, the formal and informal land-grabbing continued to spread into the neighbouring towns and districts. There being no formal institution that regulates inter-governmental relations—and the federal government being indifferent to the concerns of Oromia and the city government virtually absent from the scene since 2005—the matter became increasingly irritating to the Oromia officials. Frustrated, in 2009, the legislature of Oromia, the Caffee, established a ‘Special Zone’ of towns and districts that surround the city of Addis Ababa. This, they hoped, would give them a focused mode of operation in relation to the specific problems of these towns that are hard hit by the spill over effect of Addis Ababa’s problems (such as wanton destruction of the forest, environmental pollution due to emissions from factories and flower farms, illegal constructions and settlements, all of which was buttressed by absence of governance and corruption).
The boundary of the city was long agreed to be the boundary of the city as circumscribed in 1992 (as per Proclamation No.7/1992 which identified the city as one of the 14 Regions). According to the constitution, the boundaries of states is subject to review either through referendum organized in relation to self-determination (art 39), or through a formal constitutional amendment process (art 105(2)). To date, no such referendum was held[1] nor was there any attempt to amend the constitution.[2]
3. Four Legal Arguments against the Master Plan:
The whole thrust of this piece is to argue that the Master Plan is legally indefensible. Contrary to what government lawyers claim (arguing that the plan is part of constitutional mandate to create one ‘economic’ and ‘political’ community),[3] the plan violates the letter and the spirit of the constitution on many levels. In this section, I present four arguments that indicate that the plan is unconstitutional. As I do so, I will touch upon the content, process, and consequence of the plan and its political implications.
3.1. Argument from Federalism
The plan violates the principle of federalism. In particular, it violates the principle of comity and mutual respect (art 50(8)) and the proper mode of managing intergovernmental relations pertaining to cities. This seems to emanate from a fundamental misunderstanding of federalism. In an unending turn of irony, the government is blaming the Oromo public for misunderstanding the ‘true goal’ of federalism. This misunderstanding is also compounded by the belief held among many that Addis Ababa belongs to the federal government. It also stems from mistaking the federation for a decentralized unitary system. Nothing typifies this more than the heavy reliance on the Master Plans of cities in a unitary country, namely Paris and Lyon of France.[4]
As indicated above, the Master Plan also wrongly conceives Addis Ababa as a federal territory when what it actually is, is the seat of the federal government. In other words, it is wrongly thought that Addis Ababa is the territory of the federal government. In reality, Addis Ababa is not a federal capital territory. It is an Oromo city which serves as the capital city of both the federal government and the government of Oromia.[5] That this has not been clearly spelt out in the constitution has caused an immense sense of insecurity and agitation among Oromos for a long time. The fact that the constitution speaks about it in terms of its ‘location in Oromia’ makes the issue of ownership ambiguous thereby reinforcing the sense of insecurity among Oromos. The ambiguity has also caused the confusion as to who the host is and who the guest is.
As a self-governing city ultimately accountable to the federal government, Addis Ababa is governed through its own city charter (which, legally, is expected to be revised every ten years). The city’s charter defines the powers and responsibilities of the different organs of the city government (the council, the Mayor and the Executive (the Cabinet/the Bureau Heads, and the General Managers), and the Municipality Court. It also defines the powers and responsibilities of the sub-cities (alias Kifle-Ketema) and districts (Kebeles). The city’s territorial limit is defined and the competence/jurisdiction of the city government has been clearly established. The boundary of the city ends at the outer limits of the ten Kifle-Ketemas.
As one of the nine constituent states of the Ethiopian federation, it has its own jurisdiction over its own bounded territory, with its own government that operates (ideally) in accordance with its own constitution. The powers of the states (exclusive and shared as concurrent) are clearly defined in the federal constitution (arts 51-52). The Constitution of Oromia is the supreme law of the territory of Oromia (art 9). Caffee Oromia is the legislature and the supreme political organ in the parliamentary system of government that the state has adopted for itself (art. 50(3) of FDRE and art 46 of the Oromia Constitution). As such, theCaffee is responsible for making any decision (legislative, financial, and political) over matters in its territory within its jurisdictional competence. Needless to say, it does not involve in the administration of the city of Addis Ababa—although one expression of its special interest is its involvement in joint administration of the city.[6]
Imposing a Master Plan designed by the Federal Government[7] on the towns of Oromia and incorporating these towns into Addis Ababa violates the principle of federalism. Ideally, if the city seeks to coordinate its development with the adjacent territories and townships, then it initiates a formal intergovernmental coordination of city development. It can invite the government of the State of Oromia to make a similar effort to raise the level of development of the surrounding cities so that necessary linkages are created in accordance with agreed terms of reference and agreed set of logistical and financial responsibilities. A joint inter-governmental body that oversees the legality, political propriety, financial efficiency, and administrative effectiveness of the project is established. This body could be an ad hoc bilateral inter-governmental relations (IGR) body or it could be a permanent and multilateral body that manages the intergovernmental relations under a pre-existing set of principles and rules. In Ethiopia, the latter framework does not exist. The Master Plan under discussion now is prepared entirely by the Addis Ababa City government, to be run by a project team of the city overseen by a Board of senior officials of the two governments. That it is the city officials that train the Oromia officials about the implementation of the plan betrays the truth about who is in charge of the plan. The fact that some of the Oromia mayors raised questions about the need to consult the government and people of Oromia regarding the matter, even at this late stage, is another indication of how the task is an exclusively Addis Ababa business that is conducted at the expense of the excluded Oromia.
The fact that the plan speaks of incorporating 36 towns and 17 Woredas of Oromia to make them part of the Greater Addis Ababa territory is also a blatant attempt at modifying the territory of the state of Oromia unilaterally. This act of altering boundaries cannot normally happen without a formal constitutional amendment or through the self-determination act that is overseen by the house of federation under article 39(1) & (4) cum arts 62 of the Federal Constitution. Moreover, by subsuming these towns and Woredas of Oromia under Addis Ababa administration, the plan submerges and liquidates the long-demanded special interest of Oromia in the city. Instead of answering the question, this plan now makes the special interest irrelevant by further peripheralizing the state of Oromia from matters concerning the city or the wider country.
In short, the Master Plan is constitutionally indefensible because it: a) violates the principle of federal comity (mutual respect of the different orders of government); b) usurps the power/jurisdiction of the state of Oromia; c) alters the boundary of Oromia by incorporating 36 towns and 17 Woredas of the regional state of Oromia into Addis Ababa and subordinating their jurisdiction under the city government; and d) eliminates the special interest of Oromia and makes the question irrelevant.
3.2. The Master Plan violates the Procedure for Constitutional Amendment
In altering the boundaries of the state of Oromia and the city administration of Addis Ababa, the plan delves into measures that necessitate constitutional amendment. According to the constitution (arts 46-47), states are formed on the basis of settlement pattern, language, identity, and consent of the people concerned. In theory, this act of carving the constituent units is completed when the constitution was adopted in 1995. Presumably, it is based on these criteria that the units were established. The imperative of self-determination allows the possibility of forming a new unit in the federation and/or a separate state (outside of the federation). But when that happens, that effects a constitutional amendment. In order to change the boundaries of existing states, like the one that the Master Plan is forcing upon the State of Oromia, however, one needs to initiate a constitutional amendment in which one either changes the criteria of unit formation or just injects a clause that takes note of the boundaries of the concerned states in article 46-47. To do so without such an amendment or through an act of self-determination will challenge the integrity of the constitution. This Master Plan, by incorporating the new towns and woredas into Addis Ababa, alters too much without a formal constitutional amendment and as such is unconstitutional. This by passing of procedures of amendment will ultimately affect the integrity of the constitution and the order thereof. But in an ‘authoritarian constitutional system’ in which the text of the constitution is invoked more to legitimize sinister political goals than to advance just ideals, subverting the constitutional ideals through other laws and/or policies does not come as a surprise.
3.3. The Master Plan Violates Human Rights
More importantly, the Master Plan leads to the violation of individual rights of Oromo farmers, the collective rights of Oromos qua Oromos, and the rights of the State of Oromia. To begin with, the Master Plan violates the rights of Oromo farmers to socio-economic benefits. Accordingly, the Oromo farmers’ “right to obtain land without payment and the protection against eviction from their possession” (under art 40(6)) will be violated by the evictions that this Master Plan entails. Similarly, their right to livelihood, adequate living standard, chosen work, or generally, access to economic facilities (e.g. land) and social opportunities (including mother-tongue education) will be at risk in the event that this master Plan is implemented. All these rights, one notes, are elaborately stated in art 41 of the FDRE constitution. The right of these farmers to participate in the design of development plans (arts 89(6)), is also affected by the master Plan. Moreover, the cultural rights of Oromos under art 41(9) such as preservation of historical and cultural legacies will be compromised in a city that has historically neglected and/or actively denigrated the Oromo culture and identity. Depending on the aim and content of the Master Plan (which is not clear so far in spite of the insistence of the officials to the contrary), the right of Oromo farmers to a “clean and healthy environment” (under art 44(1) cum art 92(1)) may be adversely affected. The right of displaced persons or those “whose livelihoods have been adversely affected as a result of programs” to “commensurate monetary or alternative means of compensation, including relocation with adequate state assistance” will be violated. This is because past experience shows that the state neither paid compensation nor provided relocation funds. The token of ‘compensation’ investors paid was neither adequate nor voluntary. If experience is something to go by, there is hardly a reason for anyone to expect that the displacements that come about because of the implementation of this plan will be any different. The fact that the “right to administrative justice” and the right to remedies is not explicitly recognized in the constitution compounds the problems that might arise in the event that the Master Plan is implemented.[8]
The second category of rights that the Master Plan violates pertains to the collective right of Oromos. If land is jointly owned by the “Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples” and the State (as per art. 40(3) cum 40(6)), the Master Plan defies the right of the Oromos as Oromos to their land. In addition, the right of Oromo communities to development (art 43) and environment (art 44) in their own state will be violated. Moreover, as a matter of state policy objectives, the constitution also considers ‘peoples’ right to participation in policy formulation (art 90(6)) and to “consultation and expression of views” (art 92(3)). The fact that the process so far lacked participation of the public makes it evident that these rights of the Oromo are already violated and/or are exposed to violation. The Master Plan also continues the decades-long neglect of the special interest of the State of Oromia. In fact, it renders it irrelevant.
The principle of direct democracy in art 8 (3) demands that citizens not only engage in consultation but also protest government policies when they disagree with them. The students’ and the peoples’ protest should not have been met with killings, shootings, and arrests and detentions. The junior Oromo officials’ objection to the Master Plan in the training sessions shouldn’t have been met with reprisals. That the protest to resist the implementation of the Master Plan has led to arbitrary killings, injuries, arrests, and detentions implicates it not only in a blatant defiance of peoples’ voices but also in a gross violation of human rights of Oromo citizens.
3.4. The Master Plan Ignores State Duty to ensure Good Governance
Transparency and accountability are the epitome of good governance. The Ethiopian government officials make a frequent use of the term to justify almost any measure they take. In fact, most of their policies are justified in the name of enhancing development and ensuring good governance.[9] Constitutionally speaking, the state has the obligation to conduct its affairs in a transparent and accountable manner. Thus, according to article 12 of (both the FDRE and Oromia) constitution, “the conduct of government shall be transparent (1). Any public official or an elected representative is accountable for any failure in official duties (2).”That is to say that, first, the conduct of government (i.e., its deliberations, decisions, and actions) is done openly before a watching public. Policies, laws, programs, and measures adopted by state are expected to be made available to the public. To ensure accountability, the officials are expected to listen to the peoples’ views, be responsive to the public’s demands, and take responsibility for such policies, laws, programs, and measures (especially if they have adverse consequences for the people).
The Master Plan’s design is shrouded in secrecy. To date, despite all efforts, I could not trace the authoritative version of the Master Plan document that also explains the goals and objectives, the rationales, the enabling/disabling legal environment, etc. Nor could I find a person who is in possession of the document. My attempt to make a close reading of the Master Plan and to make a comprehensive content-context-process analysis is compromised because of the unavailability of the document.[10] The process was thus hardly transparent.
To date, the government did not assume responsibility for the adverse consequences that flew from the Master Plan. After brutal repression of the protest by the security forces, the officials have been trying to persuade the public about the “supreme importance” of the plan and to demand that people should not listen to the distraction by “some external forces seeking to make political gains” out of this unrest, forces that want to disrupt “our development”. The government officials repeatedly suggested that the Oromo public are misinformed and agitated by ‘others’. They are thus conducting a series of meetings “to correct the public’s misunderstanding of the matter.” No measure is taken to bring to justice the security forces that went on a rampage of shooting. Not even a commission of inquiry is instituted. No government official expressed regret[11] or apology for the death of innocent students, children and other protestors. No government official came out to make any statement showing a willingness to rethink the Master Plan. This refusal to take responsibility and to be accountable to the public may exacerbate the tension impacting negatively on the peace and stability of the country in general. While that does not come as a surprise to people constantly living in an overly securitized state, to legal professionals, the absence of any gesture in the direction of ensuring accountability suggests the need for us to consider international tribunals before which the officials should be held accountable personally as individuals and collectively as a government.
4. Conclusion
In this piece, an attempt is made to make a close reading of the constitutional frame within which to analyse the Master Plan fiasco and the deadly consequences that emerged therefrom. By showing how the plan is against the principle of federal comity and by demonstrating its incompatibility with the federal structure of the contemporary state; by showing how the Plan destabilizes the integrity of the constitutional order by neglecting the procedural rules for constitutional amendment; through identifying the human rights (individual and collective) that the Master Plan will put at risk; and by discussing how the design and implementation of the plan is shrouded in secrecy and the consequent defiance of the constitutional principle of transparency and accountability, an attempt is made to present an argument that the plan is constitutionally-legally indefensible. It is important to note that the invocation of development as an overarching goal does not justify the inappropriateness of the plan or the massive violation of the rights of the displaced farmers and of the protestors that held demonstrations to resist the implementation of the master plan. In a ‘constitutional’ order that supposedly recognizes the importance of the voice and votes of the peoples of Ethiopia (let alone in one where they are sovereign), to protest a policy would be a mere exercise of a right, one that helps to overcome the democratic deficits of a representative government, not a condition that will render a citizen an enemy to be eliminated by all means necessary (including murder and torture by Special Forces of the Ethiopian army).
The announcement of the Master Plan has led to another round of killing and arrests of the Oromo youth. Ethiopian jails are beefed up yet more. Oromia is subjected to a continued state terror. Ethiopia is fast becoming a concentration camp of Oromos. But Oromo national resistance is also taking a national scale and continuing to haunt Ethiopia once more. Coming back in resilience, Oromo nationalism refuses to die, defies the repression, and returns to the Ethiopian scene once more.
The protest has brought to light several other questions that were simmering underground. The demand for legal articulation and enforcement of Oromia’s special interest in Addis Ababa was raised. The long-held demand to make Afaan Oromo a co-equal working language of the Federal government was also raised. The call for the demolition of the statue of Emperor Menelik II, the demand to bring Tewodros Kassahun (Tedy Afro) to justice for his controversial claim that Menelik’s war of conquest was “a Holy war made to unite the country”, the demand to see those who denigrated the Oromo people and abused the Oromo athletes in the All-Ethiopian Sports tournament in Bahr Dar brought to justice, and other demands were aired in the course of these protests. The fact that these and other issues are expressed with this intensity and rage should spell out to the government that Ethiopia has yet to adequately respond to “the question of nationalities” especially to the question of the Oromos. As ever, in its response to the protests, Ethiopia demonstrated that it did not know how to handle peoples’ demand politically. Of course it does know how to handle it militarily. But then, one needs to ask: when will these men in the uniform (the soldiers) face and bow to the men in robes (the judges)? When will the men in suits (the politicians) face and bow to the men in robes (the judges)? When will the law (with all its limitations and its embeddedness in politics) take precedence over politics as policing? Only time will tell.
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References
* Fasil Nahum, Constitution for a Nation of Nations. Trenton: Red Sea Press, 1997.
* Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) Constitution, Negarit Gazetta, Proclamation No. 1/1995,1995.
* The Constitution of the State of Oromia, Magalata Oromiya Labsii Lakk.1/1995.
* The Revised Constitution of the State of Oromia, 2001 (as amended in 2005).
[1] The closest we came was when the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD) was rumoured to want to hold a referendum about the identity of the city (politically aimed to delink it from Oromia) in the wake of its electoral success in 2005.
[2] No constitutional amendment was considered so far save the one (in 2004/5) pertaining to Parliament’s power to postpone the year of census whenever it coincides with election year.
[3] In a televised interview of a lawyer (named Tesfaye Neway) in May 2014, it was argued that the ultimate goal of the federalism is to build one economic and political community. (Seehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKsseT1KtJw, accessed on 3 June 2014). The preamble of the constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) indicates, among other things, that the nations, nationalities, and peoples of Ethiopia, exercising their right to self-determination, have agreed to build one political community based on rule of law, peace, democracy and socio-economic development in the context of the right to equality and non-discrimination. Note that self-determination is the organizing principle that is constitutive of the polity and its foundational principles identified above. The Preamble also talks about the need to build ‘one economic community’ that can enhance mutually supportive relations to effect respect for human rights and to pursue collective interest. These provisos of the preamble are conveniently used by government officials to claim that the overarching goal of the federal dispensation is to consolidate political unity and to create one big market that is indifferent to ethno-national diversity and the federal structure that seeks to respond to the challenge of diversity. This is a misreading of the constitution. This is aside from the putative argument one can make by insisting on the cardinal principle of constitutional interpretation: preambles are not part of the constitution. As such, the principles therein cannot be invoked as legally binding rules. At best, they can only serve as a framework of understanding the constitution.
[4] A government power point prepared for training purposes in June 2013 indicates that the foreign experience shows the same trend in Western Europe, in some regions in China (i.e., Hong Kong, Macau, and Hunan) and some cities in Africa such as Greater Lagos, Greater Johannesburg, and Greater Cairo.
[5] From 1991-2003, Addis Ababa was the capital city of Oromia. In 2004, the Federal Government forced the government of Oromia out of Addis Ababa and the government was relocated to Adama. In the wake of the 2005 election, the Federal Government decided that the Oromia Government relocate again to Addis Ababa. From 2005 to date, Addis Ababa serves as the capital city of Oromia. The constitutional provision relating to the capital city of the State of Oromia has been amended twice.
[6] Article 49 (5) of the constitution reads as follows: “The special interest of the State of Oromia in Addis Ababa, regarding the provision of social services or the utilization of natural resources and other similar matters, as well as joint administrative matters arising from the location of Addis Ababa within the state of Oromia, shall be respected. Particulars shall be determined by law.”
[7] Contrary to this, a series of interviews by the political leaders (e.g. Kumaa Dammaqsaa, Abba Dulaa Gammadaa, Muktar Kadir, Abdulaziz Mohammed, etc) and the architect involved in the design, Matheos Asfaw, insist that the Master Plan is a joint project designed by the two governments. Even if that is the case, how can one ignore the asymmetry of power between the two? We should also note that this new raft of interviews was given to quell the unrest and dampen the resistance staged by the Oromo public.
[8] Not, however, that there is the general right of access to justice under Article 37 of the Federal Constitution and its State equivalent.
[9] Even the massive constitutional revisions of the National Regional States between 2001 and 2002 were justified on these two grounds. Of course the political motivation for this is rooted in the splinter that happened within the Tigray Peoples’ Liberation Front (TPLF), during which time the ‘Splinter Group’ exploited the absence of the principle of separation of powers in the State Constitutions to easily bring some of the States Presidents to their sides. Between 1995 and 2001, the State presidents were also chairmen of the State Legislatures. At the time, there was no office of the Speaker. The result was that whoever has managed to woo the presidents to her/his side will have taken the state. And some of the members of the Splinter did in deed manage to woo Presidents Abate Kisho of the SNNPRS and Kumaa Damaqsaa of Oromia to their side.
[10] Even for the purpose of this analysis, I had to depend on a set of Power Point presentations prepared in June 2013 to help facilitate a training conducted on the Master Plan. The slides are available with the author.
[11] Abbaa Duulaa Gammadaa came close to expressing regret in radio interview he gave to the Voice of America (VOA), Amharic service.
Read orginal article @ Gulele Post, June 4, 2014, titled “Why Resist the Master Plan?: A Constitutional Legal Exploration”, authored by Tsegaye Regassa Ararssa (LL.B, LL.M), former lecturer at Ethiopian Civil Service University and Addis Ababa University, is currently a PhD Candidate at the University of Melbourne Law School.
Oromia Support Group
According to HRLHA reporters, the arrests were made to clear out supporters and members of the other political organizations running for the 5th General Election to be held May 24, 2015. The EPRDF, led by the late Meles Zenawi, claimed victory in the General Elections of 1995, 2000, 2005 and 2010. The TPLF/EPRDF government of Ethiopia has started a campaign of intimidation against its opponents. Extrajudicial arrests and imprisonments, particularly in the regional state of Oromia, the most populous region in the country, began late October 2014. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) expresses its deep concern over the safety and well-being of these Oromo nationals who have been arrested without any court warrant, and are being held at police stations and unknown detention centers. The Ethiopian government has a well documented record of gross and flagrant violations of human rights, including the torturing of its own citizens, who were suspected of supporting, sympathizing with and/or being members of the opposition political organizations. There have been credible reports of physical and psychological abuses committed against individuals in Ethiopia’s official prisons and other secret detention centers. HRLHA calls upon governments of the West, all local, regional and international human rights agencies to join hands and demand the immediate halt to such extrajudicial actions against one’s own citizens, and the unconditional release of the detainees. RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to the Ethiopian Government and its officials as swiftly as possible, written in English, Ahmaric, or your own language. The following are suggested: – Indicate your concern about citizens being tortured in different detention centers, including the infamous Ma’ikelawi Central Investigation Office; and calling for their immediate and unconditional release; – Urge the Ethiopian authorities to ensure that detainees will be treated in accordance with the regional and international standards on the treatment of prisoners, and that their whereabouts be disclosed, and – Make sure the coming May 24, 2015 election is fair and free. Read full statement from the following links: 
Magaalaa Qassoo Keessatti Gaaffii Mirgaa Kaasuun Poolisoota Wayyaanee Waliin Wal Qabaa Jiru. Wallaggaa, aanaa Waamaa Hagaloo magalaa Qassoo keessatti Bitootessa 10 bara 2015 Humna uumata Oromoo FDG gaggeessaa jiruu fi ergamtoota Wayyaanee jidduutti walitti bu’iinsi guddaan uumameen magaalli Qassoo dirree falmaa ta’uu Qeerroon naannicha irraa gabaasa. Gaaffii uumannii fi qonnaan bultooti naannichaa gaafataniin wal qabatee guyyaa har’aa hiriirri magaalaa kanatti ta’ee fi dhadatnooleen uumataa kan isaan rifaasise poolisoonni Wayyaanee uumata nagaa qabanii hidhuu fi hiraarsuu itti fufanii jiru. Haaluma kanaan sabboontota armaa gadii kana magaalaa Qasoo keessaa waraanni Wayyaanee guyyaa har’aa qabee akka hidhee jiru qeerroon gabaasa. 1. Qajeelaa Raggaasaa 2. Boodanaa Baqqalaa 3. Misgaanuu Raggaasaa 4. Danjaa Dhangi’aa 5. Dhugaasaa Abdiisaa 6. Booboo Addunyaa 7. Misgaanuu Addunyaa fi kanneen biroon mana hidhaatti argamu Oduu dhuma wal fakkaatuun lubi waldaa makaana yesuus darabaaWaggaarii Ayyaanaa jedhamu mootummaan akka kufuuf Waaqayyoon kadhatte jedhamee achi buuteen isaa kan dhabamedha. 
February 23, 2015 Since the downfall of the military government of Ethiopia in 1991, the political and socioeconomic lives of the country have totally been controlled by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front/TPLF leaders and business institutions. As soon as the TPLF controlled Addis Ababa, the capital city, in 1991, the first step it took was to create People’s Democratic Organizations (PDOs) in the name of different nations and nationalities in the country. With the help of these PDOs, the TPLF managed to control the whole country in a short period of time from corner to corner. The next step that the TPLF took was to weaken and/or eliminate all independent opposition political organizations existing in the country, including those with whom it formed the Ethiopian Transitional Government in 1991. Just to pretend that it was democratizing the country, the TPLF signed seven international human rights documents from 1991 to 2014. These include the “Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment”. Despite this, it is known that the TPLF has tortured many of its own citizens ever since it assumed power, and has continued to the present day. The TPLF Government adopted a new constitution in 1995; and, based on this Constitution, it formed new federal states. The new Ethiopian Constitution is full of spurious democratic sentiments and human rights terms meant to inspire the people of Ethiopia and the world community. The TPLF’s pretentious promise to march towards democracy enabled it to receive praises from people inside and outside, including donor countries and organizations. The TPLF government managed somehow to maintain a façade of credibility with western governments, including those of U.S.A. and the UK. In reality, the TPLF security forces were engaged in intensive killings, abductions, disappearances of a large number of Oromo, Ogaden, Sidama peoples and others whom the TPLF suspected of being members, supporters or sympathizers of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), Ogadenian National Liberation Front (ONLF), and Sidama People’s Liberation Front (SPLF). TPLF – from high officials down to ordinary level cadres in the various regional states – engaged in enriching themselves and their family members by looting and embezzling public wealth and properties; raping young women in the occupied areas of the nations and nationalities in Ethiopia; and committing many other forms of corruptions. After securing enough wealth for themselves, the TPLF government officials, cadres and members declared, in 2004, an investment policy that resulted in the eviction of indigenous peoples from their lands and all types of livelihoods. Since 2006, thousands of Oromo, Gambela, and Benishangul nationals and others have been forcefully evicted from their lands without consultation or compensation. Those who attempted to oppose or resist were murdered and/or jailed by the TPLF1. The TPLF government then cheaply leased their lands, for terms as long as 50 years, to international investors and wealthy Middle East and Asian countries, including Saudi Arabia2. The TPLF government has done all this against its own Constitution, particularly article 40 (3)3, which states that “The right to ownership of rural and urban land, as well as of all natural resources, is exclusively vested in the State and in the peoples of Ethiopia. Land is a common property of the Nations, Nationalities and Peoples of Ethiopia and shall not be subject to sale or to other means of exchange”. These acts were also against the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 17 (1 & 2)4, which says, “1. Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others. 2. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.” In order to facilitate further corruption and embezzlement, the money paid for the leases as long as 50 years were received in cash. For example, the Indian agro investor Karaturi explained to a Guardian newspaper’s reporter that the TPLF government officials asked him to pay in cash in order to get the land, which he called “green gold”5. These gross human rights violations by the TPLF leaders against the Oromos, Gambelas, and Benishanguls have been condemned by many civic organizations, including Amnesty International, the Human Rights Watch, the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa, the Oakland Institute and others. The giving away of Oromo land in the name of investment also includes Addis Ababa, the capital city situated at the center of Oromia Regional State. 30,000 Oromos were evicted by the TPLF/EPRDF Government from their lands and livelihoods in the areas around the Capital City and suburbs, and their lands were given to the TPLF officials, members and loyal cadres over the past 24 years. In order to grab more lands around Addis Abba, the TPLF government prepared a plan called “the Addis Ababa Integrated Master Plan,” a plan that aimed at annexing about 36 towns and surrounding villages into Addis Ababa. This Master Plan was first challenged by the Oromo People’s Democracy Organization/OPDO in March 2014. The challenge was first supported by Oromo students in different universities, colleges and high schools in Oromia, and then spread to Oromo farmers, Oromo intellectuals in all corners of Oromia Regional State and to Oromo nationals living in different parts of the world. The Oromo nationals staged peaceful protests all over Oromia Regional State. In connection with this Addis Ababa Integrated Master Plan, which had the risk of evicting more than two million farmers from around the capital city, about seventy Oromo students from among the peaceful protestors were brutalized by the special TPLF Agizi snipers and more than five thousand Oromos from all walks of life were taken to prisons in different parts of Oromia Regional State. The inhuman military actions and crackdowns by the TPLF government against peaceful protestors were condemned by different international media, such as the BBC6, human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International and the HRLHA7. The government admitted that it killed nine of them8. The unrest that started in central Oromia suddenly escalated to such a high level that the TPLF leaders suspended the expansion plan for a while. 
However, recently, without the slightest regret and sense of remorse over the massacres committed against peaceful protestors of Oromo Nationals by his government in May and April 2014, the TPLF’s co-founder, top official and the current Prime Minister’s (Hailemariam Dessalegn’s) special advisor, Mr. Abay Tsehaye, vowed in public that anyone who attempts to oppose the implementation of the so-called Addis Ababa Master Plan would be dealt with harshly. In his speech, he confirmed that the TPLF government is determined to continue with the master plan, no matter what happened in the past or what may come in the future. In a manner that Abay Tsehaye was reiterating that the annexations of towns and cities in central Oromia into the capital Addis Ababa will go ahead as planned regardless of the absence of consultations and consent of the local people and/or the officials of the targeted towns and cities. Besides displaying his extreme arrogance and contempt for the Oromo Nation, Mr. Abay Tsehaye’s speech was in direct breach of constitutional provisions of both federal and regional states. 
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) would like to express its deep concern that this TPLFs leader’s speech not only encourages violence against the country’s own citizens, but also invites further bloodshed and losses of lives; it leaves no room at all for dialogue, consultation and consent – norms which are at the core of a genuine democracy. This is still happening despite the killing of more than seventy Oromo youth and the arrest and incarceration of thousands of others as a result of violent and deadly responses by armed forces of the TPLF and the government to peaceful demonstrators in May and April 2014. Conclusion: The HRLHA believes that the gross human rights violations committed by the TPLF government in the past 24 years against Oromo, Ogaden, Gambela, Sidama and others were pre-planned and intentional all the times that they have happened. The TPLF killed, tortured, and kidnapped and disappeared thousands of Oromo nationals, Ogaden and other nationals simply because of their resources and ethnic backgrounds. The recent research conducted by Amnesty International under the title “Because I am Oromo”: SWEEPING REPRESSION IN THE OROMIA REGION OF ETHIOPIA’9 confirms that peoples in Ethiopia who belong to other ethnic groups have been the victims of the TPLF. The TPLF inhuman actions against the citizens are clearly a genocide, a crime against humanity10 and an ethnic cleansing, which breach domestic and international laws, and all international treaties the government of Ethiopia signed and ratified. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa wants to hold the TPLF government accountable, as a group and as individuals, for the crimes they have committed and are committing against Oromos and others. The HRLHA calls on all human rights families, non-governmental civic organizations, HRLHA members, supporters and sympathizers to stand beside the HRLHA and provide moral, professional and financial help to bring the dictatorial TPLF government and officials to international justice. ——————- * The HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. It works to defend fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It also works on raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and those of others. It encourages respect for laws and due process. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies. ——————- We Fight for Human Rights! HRLHA Head Office February 23, 2015 ——————- 1. Genocide Watch, 
![Two Oromo Farmers in Salale Brutally Murdered; Their Bodies Dragged and Put on Pubic Display for Resisting Oppression Against Tigrean Habesha Rulers [Viewer Discretion Advised: Graphic Photo]](https://i1.wp.com/finfinnetribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Oromo-in-Salale-Murdered-Dragged-and-Displayed-2015.jpg?resize=950%2C713)
![Two Oromo Farmers in Salale Brutally Murdered; Their Bodies Dragged and Put on Pubic Display for Resisting Oppression Against Tigrean Habesha Rulers [Viewer Discretion Advised: Graphic Photo]](https://i0.wp.com/finfinnetribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Oromo-in-Salale-Murdered-Dragged-and-Displayed-2015-3.jpg)
Dargaggoonni aanaa kanaa naamusa filannoo jeequuf warra qophaya jiran waan taheef jedhamee barattootas tahee dargaggoota hundaafuu kaardiin filannoo dhorkamuu Qeerroon gabaasaa jira. Akkasuma aanama kana keessa ganda Baabboo jedhamu keesstti dargaggootaan qarshii 3, 3 fidaa waraqaa eenyummaa baafadhaa isaan booda filannoof kaardii isiniif laanna jedhame tole jechuun dargaggoonni qarshii jedhame kana kennan, horiin isaan irraa fuudhames gara darbe dargaggoonni kaardiis fudhachuu hin dandeenye qarshii keenya deebisa Wayyaanee silaafuu hattuudha jechuudhaan daraggoonni Oromoo guyyaa kaleessaa FDG kaasanii jiru. Haala kanaan namootni 6 dargaggoota kan qindeessu filannoon aka hin gaggeeffamneef dargaggoota ijaaraa kan jiraniidha jedhamuun ganda Baabboo irraa konkolaataa poolisiin galgala sa’a 12 booda waajjira poolisii aanichaatti gaaffeman, namootni kun maqaan isaanii: 1. Mikaa’el Hirkisa-ogeessa fayyaa Looniiti 2. Nuuraddiin Muusaa-Daldalaa 3. Amad Horaa-Qonnaan Bulaa 4. Shaful Boshoraa-Barataa 5. Iddoosaa Raagaa-Qonnaan Bulaa 6. Shuumaa Lammeessaa-Qonnaan Bulaa Namootni kun amma waajjira poolisii aanaa Jimmaa Horroo keessa jiru, maqaan ittiin yakkaman tokko namusa filannoo kan jeeqan, kana gochuufis uummata fi dargaggoota ijaarsa irratti kan argaman jedhamuun. Suuraaleen kun barattoota qabamanii fi loltoota sirncha muldhisa. 
Since the March-April 2014 crackdowns against the peaceful Oromo protesters who have protested against the Ethiopian Federal Government’s plan of annexation of 36 small Oromia towns to the capital city of Addis Ababa under the pretext of the “Addis Ababa Integrated Plan”, thousands of Oromo nationals from all walks of life from all corners of Oromia regional state including Wollo Oromo’s in Amhara regional state have been detained or imprisoned. Some have disappeared and many have been murdered by a special commando group called “the Agiazi force”. The “The Agiazi” force is still chasing down and arresting Oromo nationals who participated in the March-April, 2014 peaceful protests. Fearing the persecution of the Ethiopian government, hundreds of students did not return to the universities, colleges and high schools; most of them have left for the neighboring states of Somaliland and Puntiland of Somalia where they remain at high risk for their safety. Wollo Oromos who are living in Ahmara regional state of Oromia special Zone are also among the victims of the EPRDF government. Hundreds of Wollo Oromos have been detained because of their connection with the peaceful protests of March-April 2014. The EPRDF government has detained many Oromo nationals in Wollo Oromia special Zone under the pretext of being members or supporters of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), as prisoners’ voices from Dessie/Wollo prison have revealed. From among the many Oromos who were picked from different districts and places from Wollo Oromia special Zone in Amhara regional state in April 2014, the HRLHA reporter in the area has received a document which shows that 26 Oromo prisoners pleaded to the South Wollo High Court that they were illegally detained first in Kamise town military camp for 36 days, Kombolcha town Police Station for 27 Days, and Dessie city higher 5 Police Station for 10 days- places where they were severely tortured and then transferred to Dessie Prison in July 2014. According to the document, they were picked up from three different districts and different places by federal police and severely beaten and tortured at different military camps and police stations and their belongings including cash and mobile telephones were taken by their torturers. In their appeal letter to the South Wollo high court they demanded Full document in
ETHIOPIA: Relentless government violence on Oromo students and nationals continues, says human rights organization Posted: Hagayya/August 27, 2014 · Gadaa.com ————————- The following is a press release from the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA). ————————- August 27, 2014 While fresh arrests and detentions, kidnappings and disappearances of Oromo nationals have continued in different parts of the regional state of Oromia following the April-May crackdown of peaceful demonstrators, court rulings over the cases of some of the earlier detainees by courts of the regional state are being rejected by political agents of the governing TPLF/EPRDF Party. The renewed violence by government forces against Oromo nationals started particularly following what was termed as “Lenjii Siyaasaa” (literally meaning “political training”) that has targeted Oromo Students of higher educational institutions and has been going on in the past two weeks in different parts of Oromia. Although the agendum for the “Political Training” was said to be “the unity of the country,” it instead has become an opportunity of carrying out further screenings and arrests of students, as around 100 more students have so far been arrested from Ambo University campuses alone and sent to a remote, isolated military camp called Sanqalle, leaving families and friends in fear in regards to the safety and well-being of the students in particular, not to mention the disruption of their studies. The arrests were made following the students’ protest of their confinement into the campuses during this so call “Political Trianing,” and the demand that the killers of their fellow students be brought to justice prior to discussing “unity.” Also, five students of Wallaga University, from among those who were gathered for the same purpose of “Political Training,” were kidnapped on the 22nd of August 2014, and taken away in a vehicle with plate number 4866 ET; and their whereabouts are not known since then. HRLHA correspondents have also traced another fresh arrests and detentions of around 100 Oromo nationals in a small town called Elemo, Doranni District in the Illu Abba Borra Zone. It took place on the 14th of August 2014; and Waqtole Garbe, Sisay Amana, Tiiqii Supha, Ittana Daggafa, Badiru Basha, Kamal Zaalii, Rashiid Abdu, Zetuna Waaqoo, Daggafa Tolee, Adam Ligdii, Indush Mangistu, Dibbeessa Libaan, and Ofete Jifar were a few among those detainees in Elemo Prison. More worrisome and frustrating is agents of the federal government’s interference with regional and local judicial systems. More than one hundred students and other Oromo nationals, from among the thousands who were detained following the April-May nationwide protest, have been granted bails in local courts of the regional government of Oromia. These include 64 detainees in Dembi Dollo/Qellem, 10 in Ambo, 40 in Sibu-Sire and Digga District. But, all the court decisions were overruled by political officials representing the federal government. The Dembi Dollo/Qellem detainees in particular were granted bails four times, only to be turned down by political officials all the four rounds. On the other hand, there have been some cases in which prison terms ranging from six months to a year-and-half were imposed on the Oromo detainees, not in courts, but by those representatives of the federal government. Also, some independent lawyers complain that they were threatened by officials from the ruling party; and, as a result, refraining from representing the Oromo detainees. Usual as it has been in the past fifteen or so years, this case of interfering with and disobeying court rulings indicates that the case of these most recent Oromo detainees is purely political. The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) calls upon the Ethiopian Government to refrain from harassing and intimidating students through such extra-judicial means as killings, arrests and detentions, and denials of justice after detention; and instead, facilitate conducive teaching-learning environments. HRLHA also calls upon the Ethiopian Government to unconditionally release the detained Oromo students and other nationals; and, as requested by their fellow students, bring to justice the killers of innocent and peaceful protestors during the April-May crackdown. BACKGROUNDS: The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) has reported (May 1st and 13th, 2014, urgent actions, HumanRightsLeague.com) on the heavy-handed crackdown of the Ethiopian Federal Government’s Agazi Special Squad and the resultant extra-judicial killings of 34 (thirty-four) Oromo nationals; and the arrests and detentions of hundreds of others. Although the brutalities of the armed squad and the resultant fatalities happened to be very high in Ambo Town, the peaceful protests by Oromo students of different universities and faculties have been taking place in April and May in various towns and cities of Oromia, including Diredawa and Adama in eastern Oromia, as well as Jimma, Mettu, Naqamte, Gimbi, and Dambidollo in western Oromia. The Oromo students of universities and colleges in different parts of the regional state of Oromia took to the streets for peaceful demonstrations in protest to the decision passed by the Federal EPRDF/TPLF-led Government to expand the city of Finfinnee/Addis Ababa by uprooting and displacing hundreds of thousands of Oromos from all sorts of livelihoods, and annexing about 36 surrounding towns of Oromia, the ultimate goal of which is claimed to be redrawing the map of the Oromia Region. The federal annexation plan, which was termed as “The Integrated Development Master Plan,” is said to be covering the towns of Dukem, Gelan, Legetafo, Sendafa, Sululta, Burayu, Holeta, Sebeta, and others, stretching the boundary of Finfinne/Addis Ababa to about 1.1-million hectares – an area of 20 times its current size. – HumanRightsLeague.com: 
31 Oromo students, under 16 year old teenagers are being tortured by Agazi (TPLF) in jail at Ambo. The National Youth Movement for freedom and Democracy listed (in its 10th July 2014 publication) their names which is in Afaan Oromo as follows:- Dararamni Oromoo mana hidhaa Wayyaanee keessaa umurii hin filatu Dargaggoonni maqaan isaanii armaa gadi xuqame guyyaa 23/08/2006 (A.L.E) irraa eegalee sababa tokko malee jumulaan walitti qabamanii shakkiidhaan hidhamuu irraan kan ka’e ma/mu/ol/Go/ Sh/Lixaatti akka dhihaatanii fi himannaan dhiyaate waan hin jirreef jedhee ajajaan akka gadi lakkisaman murteesse. Haa ta’u malee ajajni mana murtii kun hojii irra ooluu irra umurii daa’imummaan mana hidhaa keessatti dararamaa jirra jechuun ma/mu/waliigalaa Oromiyaatti ol iyyatanii hanga yoonaatti deebii hin arganne. Isaanis;
June 29, 2014 Dear Sir/Madam: We are reaching out to you as the Board of Officers of the International Oromo Youth Association (IOYA) whose nation is in turmoil back in Oromia, Ethiopia. Recently, Oromo students have been protesting against the new Addis Ababa “Integrated Master Plan” which aims at incorporating smaller towns surrounding Addis Ababa for the convenience of vacating land for investors by displacing millions of Oromo farmers. As a political move, this will essentially result in the displacement of the indigenous peoples and their families. Oromo farmers will be dispossessed of their land and their survival both economic and cultural terms will be threatened. The Oromos strongly believe that this plan will expose their natural environment to risk, threaten their economic means of livelihood (subsistence farming), and violate their constitutional rights. The Ethiopian government is executing its political agenda of progressive marginalization of the Oromo people from matters that concern them both in the Addis Ababa city and the wider Oromia region. The master plan is an unconstitutional change of the territorial expansion over which the city administration has a jurisdiction. The government justifies the move in the name of enhancing the development of the city and facilitating economic growth. The justification is merely a tactical move masked for the governments continued abuse of human rights of the Oromo people. While the Oromos understand that Addis Ababa itself is an Oromo city that serves as the capital of the federal government, they also consider this move as an encroachment on the jurisdiction and borders of the state of Oromia. The protesters peacefully demonstrated against this move. University students and residents have been in opposition to the plan, but their struggle has been met by a brutal repression in the hands of the military police (famously known as the Agazi). It has been reported that shootings, arrests, and imprisonments are becoming rampant. It is also reported that the death toll is increasing by the hour. Recently, sources indicate that over 80 people have been shot dead, others severally injured and thousands arrested. In addition, Oromo students have been protesting peacefully for over three weeks now, despite mass killings and arrests by Ethiopian security forces. University and high school students from more than ten universities have been engaging in the Oromo protests. The peaceful rally has now spread across the whole country and is expected to continue until the Ethiopian government refrains from incorporating over 36 surrounding smaller towns into Addis Ababa. It is stated to be displacing an estimate of 6.6 million people and violating constitutional rights of regional states. As an organization subscribing to broader democratic engagement of the Oromo youth, we oppose the brutal violence that the Ethiopian government is meting out on innocent, unarmed young students who are peacefully protesting. As leaders of the Oromo community, we support and stand in solidarity with Oromo protests in Ethiopia. The human rights volitions being carried out by the Ethiopian government against innocent students are unacceptable. Continuous assaults, tortures, and killings of innocent civilians must be stopped. We urge you to join us in denouncing these inhumane and cruel activities carried out by the Ethiopian government. We believe it is imperative that the international community raise its voice and take action to stop the ongoing atrocities that are wreaking havoc to families and communities in the Oromia region. We urgently request that such actions be taken in an attempt to pressure the Ethiopian government to stop terrorizing and killing peaceful protesters:
Abdi Kamal Mussa is Oromo political prisoner kept in Dire Dawa. He graduated from Dire Dawa Universityin 2013 and was working at Ethiopian Commercial Bank, Jigjiga branch. He was arrested in May 2014 on bogus accusation of providing financial support to the student protesters. He is languishing in the gulag without any charge and legal representation. #OrmoProtests #FreeOromoStudents 
Photos: Sen. Amy Klobuchar (L) and Sen. Al Franken (R) of Minnesota Two more U.S. Senators, Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Sen. Al Franken of Minnesota, wrote a letter to the U.S. Secretary of State, Mr. John Kerry, to express concerns about the Ethiopian government’s human rights violations, particularly the Ethiopian government’s recent acts of violence against Oromo peaceful demonstrators in Oromia. In the letter, the U.S. Senators urged the U.S. State Department to make the “respect for the rule of law and human rights in Ethiopian government’s treatment of all ethnic groups” central to the U.S.-Ethiopia relationship. It’s to be noted that U.S. Senators from the State of Washington, Sen. Maria Cantwell and Sen. Patty Murray, 
Following last month’s violent answer of the Ethiopian armed forces against peaceful protesters in Oromia, UNPO expresses its support to the victims’ families. Urgent attention from the international community to the situation of the Oromo people in Ethiopia is required. Over the course of the month of May, students in Oromia have been facing harsh repression by Ethiopia’s authorities. The peaceful student protests against the government’s planned education reforms, were met by excessive violence, causing the death of approximately 30 students and teachers. Reportedly, the youngest victim was only 11 years old. Ever since, international outrage spread, and in many cities solidarity protests were held. The Ethiopian Government has denied any responsibility, and is exercising a strict control over the local media. By staging the protests, the students wanted to express their concern about the government’s project to expand the municipal boundaries of the capital city, Addis Ababa. This would imply that the Oromo students’ communities, currently under regional jurisdiction, would no longer be managed by the Oromia Regional State. In addition, the reform would include the displacement of Oromo farmers and residents. Considering their vulnerable status in Ethiopian society, this would make the situation for Oromo individuals even worse than it already is. The discrepancy between the nature of the protests and the Ethiopian authorities’ reaction is extremely alarming, and gives further evidence of the human rights abuses to which the Oromo community is systematically subjected in Ethiopia. The Oromo suffer from severe discrimination, not only in terms of freedom of expression, as was the case in these recent events, but also in terms of basic human rights, cultural expression, socio-economic conditions and political representation. Housing development in Ethiopia regularly happens at the expense of Oromo farmers, who are forced to give up their lands, with insufficient or no financial compensation in return. These acts of forced removal or land grabbing are mostly achieved through violent attacks and killings. Over the past few years, many reports stated that Oromo individuals had been killed by the Ethiopian Special Police Forces, including women and children. According to a recent 
Oromo youth Galanaa Nadhaa murdered by TPLF/Agazi. Waxabajjii 23/2014 Sirni Awwalcha Gooticha Sabboonaa Oromoo dargaggoo Galanaa Nadhaa guyyaa har’a ganda dhaloota isaa Godina Lixa Shawaa Aanaa Tokkee Kuttaayee ganda qonnaan bulaa Tokkee Konbolchaatti bakka uummaanni Oromoo Godinotaa fi aan
Galaanaan Nadhaa abbaa isaa obbo Nadhaa cawwaaqaa fi haadha isaa aadde Geexee Haacaaluu irraa godina lixa shawaatti bara 1972 ALH tti dhalate.Umuriin isaa wayita barnootaaf gahu mana barumsa baabbichaa sadarkaa lammaffaatti kuyaa tokkoo hanga sadii barate.kutaa 4 hanga 8 mana barumsaa tokkeetti barachuun qabxii gaarii fidee mana barumsaa Amboo sadarkaa lammaffaatti barnoota isaa kutaa saglaffaa itti fufe.Galaanaan nama sabboonummaa orommummaa qabuu fi qalqixxummaa dhala namaatti nama amanu ture.Galaannaan rakkina saba oromoof furmaanni qabsoo gochuu qofa jedhee amana.kanaafis gummaacha isarraa eegamu bahaa ture.bara 1992 yeroo bosonni baalee gubate barattoota oromoo adda dureen mormii dhageessisan keessaa tokko ture.mormii inni dhageessiseefis diinni qabee mana hidhaatti dararaa hangana hin jedhamne irraan gahe.haa ta’uu garuu Galaanaan nama doorsisa diinaaf jilbeeffatu hin turre.Jireenyi isaa qabsoo ture.Bara 1994 yeroo FDG oromiyaa keesssa deemaa ture Galaanaan ammas qooda lammummaa bahu irraa of hin qusanne.ammas diinni qabee mana hidhaa galche..Galaanaan bara kutaa 12 qorame ture mana hidhaa taa’ee.qabxii olaanaa fiduun yunivarsiitii maqaleetti ramadame.Achitti balaa dhibee waggaa kudha tokkof isa gidirseef saaxilame. kunis gochaa ilmaan tigireeti.Galaanaan waggaa kudha tokkoof erga dhukkubsatee booda sanbata darbe addunyaa kanarraa du’aan boqote.sirni awwaalcha isaa guyyaa har’aa bakka uummanni oromoo bal’aan argametti har’aa magaala tokkee bataskaana mikaa’el jedhamutti raawwatame.qabsaa’aan kufus qabsoon itti fufa!!!! IUOf!!!!!!!!!. ‘My name is Hambaasan Gudisaa. I was born in Gincii, West Showa, Oromia, Ethiopia. I was a third year student (Afaan Oromo major) at Addis Ab
Six/Seven TPLF/Agazi armed men against two unarmed Oromo youth. Humni diinaa biyya keenya humnaan qabattee jirtu, kunoo haala kanaan, gara-jabina daangaa hin qabneen, amma nyaattee-dhugdu ol-fuutee ijoollee keenyatti buufatti. Innumtuu tokko yookaan lama miti; shan, jahaa fi torbaa taatee. see @
Still, I was tempted to decline when a woman in my row moved over to sit next to me and offered to translate for me. I kind of like to try to listen and pick out what I can. If I had turned her down, I would have missed the emotion conveyed in her translation. Her tone told me what I hadn’t figured out yet (though I should have known) – the son was going to die…a double injustice since the real-life plot not only includes the loss of ancestral lands, but also the lack of freedom to protest that loss, and death or imprisonment for those who dare to do so anyway. It was more of a skit, really. A powerful skit, regardless of acting ability, because the story is so powerful. A story of a family of three. Just one son, supported in his schooling by what his family was able to produce on their farm. The land was key. His parents had not been able to get an education. With the land, now he could. Yet when an investor came asking the government official if land was available, he was told, yes, there is much land that is ‘not being used.’ When the investor was brought to see the land in question, it was as if the farmer was invisible. The deal was made right there between the investor and a local intermediary while the farmer continued to plough his field. Then their son came home from school saying he was going out to march with other students to protest what was happening to the land – to all of the farmers in the area – the mom cautioned him to be safe, the government can not be trusted, she said. My translator began to cry in earnest. … I remembered once when I had to act out a similar scene. I’m not a big fan of role-plays, so I was going along with the activity, but holding back quite a bit. A group of us were given roles to act out a lesser known bit of Canadian history when indigenous children were forcibly removed from their villages and their families and taken to residential schools to be ‘educated,’ as well as assimilated, often abused, even experimented upon. Often, they never returned. 
Almost always, those who did return spoke of their lost childhood and traumatic memories. I was an Anishinabe mother in the role-play. In real life at the time, I had left my only child, a two year old boy, home for two weeks with his dad so I could participate in this delegation, mostly to learn more about the Anishinabe history in general and one community’s struggle in particular. Though the experience was meaningful, that day I was starting to wonder if two weeks was too long to be away from my son. One person had come to the delegation with me, Jared, a young man in his twenties. I knew him well in the sense that we were part of the same intentional living community. We had eaten together, worshipped together, sat in consensus decision-making meetings together, sang, cooked, and worshipped together over the previous three years. He was given the role of my son. Jared and I stood in the circle area with a few other people who had roles as part of the Anishinabe village. I was just going through the motions of the role-play, not really into it. Wishing I enjoyed that kind of thing more. Then they came for Jared. In that moment when they snatched him away, I cried out and reached out for him but he was gone and I was left sobbing. Somehow it had become real. Five years later, I still hear comments about how real my heartbreak felt to everyone in the room. … As the woman next to me struggled to speak through her tears, we watched the skit draw to its inevitable close. The security forces blocked the path of the unarmed protesters. The protesters held their ground. The security forces escalated the situation by firing at the students. The only child of the farmer and his wife was gunned down. His parent actors bitterly mourned his loss. He too is gone. It’s hard to clap after that. Hard to will one’s hands to applaud the actors when you’re thinking of the families that have gone through similar situations so recently. Many Oromo students are gone. Some known to be killed, some disappeared, arrested or abducted without releasing names. Many die in detention centers and prisons. Yes many students are gone. Some may return from imprisonment with accounts of mistreatment and suffering, with harrowing stories of other students locked up years ago, still in prison with no trial, no real charges and very little hope. Others will not return. One of those is Alsan Hassan, abducted May 27 from his university after participating in a hunger strike. 
On June 1, his family was notified of his death. They were told he killed himself, a story commonly invented by the authorities to cover up the real cause of death: torture. His parents came to retrieve their son. His body was severely disfigured from the abuses he had suffered. Still they could not simply take him home. They were charged an exorbitant price and had to return home, borrow money just to secure the release of his body and finally make journey home to bury him. The thought of Alsan and the other sons and daughters lost to their families – that is why the woman translating for me (and I) couldn’t keep from crying, however predictable the plot of the skit. I was sitting next to my six year old son. Her 11-or-so year old son was on the other side of her. We can’t help but hear these stories not only as fellow human beings, but as mothers. We translate, we write, we do whatever we can from the other side of the world in the hopes that we will inform and inspire enough people to bring an end to the unjust imprisonment of dissenting young voices. See @ 
Nimoonaa Xilaahuun Imaanaa (1986-2014). Oromo National, Banking and Finance Graduate of Finfinne University (AAU) & Teacher. Tortured and murdered by TPLF while in jail.
Aslan Hasan, one of the 10 Oromo students kidnapped on May 29, 2014 from Haromaya University has died while in military detention center in Harar city. Apparently he collapsed during one of the torture sessions, then was taken to Tikur Anbessa Hospital in the capital, where he died on June 1, 2014. The regime told his families that the student committed suicide. Aslan was a 2nd year engineering student at the University. He was born in Bakko and attended high school in Burayu. His body has been taken to Gudar. Barataa Nuraddin(Alsan) Hasan dhalootaan magaalaa BAAKKOO’tti dhalate. Barnoota isaa sadarkaa 1ffaa achuma magaalaa Baakkootti xumure. Barnoota isaa sadarkaa lammaffaaf qophaa’naa obboleessa isaa bira taa’ee magaalaa BURAAYYUU tti xumure. Bara 2005(2013) yuuniversiitii Haramayaa saayinsii Injiinariing(Engineering science) jalattii muummee ‘Electirical Computer Engineering’ filachuun barataan sabboonaaf garraamiin kun haala hoo’aaf milkaayina qabuun barnoota isaa hordofaa utuu jiruu, humni mootummaa abba hirree wayyaaneen guyyaa gaafa 29/05/2014 mooraa guddicha YUUNIVERSIITII HARAMAYAA keessaa bakka GADA-JAHE(IOT CUMPUS) jedhamuun beekamu, Gamoo H lakk-doormii 26 (H-26) duulli mootummaa wayyaanee saroota OPDO waliin doormiitti itti seenan, hiriyoota isaa faana qayyabachaa utuu jiruu, qabame. Barataan sabboonaan Nuraddin(Alsan) Hasan guyyaa gaafa qabamee kaasee hanga guyyaa kaleessaatti (01/06/2014) barattoota kakaaste hidhata dhaaba alaa waliin qabda jechuun barataa barumsa qofaaf maatii isaa irraa adda bahee barnoota isaa hordofaa jiru, magaalaa Hararitti guyyoota sadii guutuu fannisanii reeban. Erga inni of dadhabees, sobdee akka nuti si dhiifnuuf malee hin miidhamne ittiin jechuun, utuu reebanii lubbuun isaa dabarte. Gocha hammeenyaa hagana ga’u raawwatanii, hidhamaan of ajjeeseera, gara hospitaalaa haa deemu, haa qoratamu. Jechuun reeffa isaa gara hospitaala XIQUR AMBASSAA geessan. Obboleessa isaa SULXAAN HASAN, waamuun obboleessikee mana adabaatti of-ajjeese gara finfinneetti kottuu reeffa fuudhi, jechuun maatii isaatti bilbilan. Yeroo ammaa kana reeffi barataa kanaa magaala GUDAR ga’uu isaa ergaan bilbilaa nu ga’eera. “Lubbuukeef Jannatan Hawwa” itttiin jedhaa! Maddi oduu peejii “kuusaa Dhiiga Oromoo” ti peejicha ‘like’ haa goonu press ‘like’ link on Kuusaa Dhiiga Oromoo’s page. RAKKOO AMBOO KEESSA JIRU!#OromoProtests- 2nd June 2014 Akkuuma beekamu FDG FI WAA’EEN MASTEER PLANII erga jalqabe kaase Magalatii keessatti saba Oromoo irratti kan rawwatama jiru mutumma kamiyyun kan rawwatama ture waliin hin madalamu jechudhan gabasaan magala Amboo irra nu qaqabee jira! Waan Nama gadisiisu keessa Barataa yunviristi tokko kan guyya finciilli itti jalqabee rasaasan rukutamee hanga ammatti bakka warri Ogumma fayya itti barataan(Mana reeffa)keessa keessa tursuun Jimaata darbee halkaan keess
(RAB, Waxibajjii 1, 2014) Mootummaan Woyyaanee Hegeree Biyyaa akkasitti karaatti hambisaa jira! Dargaggoo Nimoonaa Xilaahun bara 2007 yunversiitii Finfinneetii eebbifamee godina Kaaba shawaa mana barumsaa Shanootti barsiisaa ta’ee yeroo ramadame akkuma dargaggoo Oromoo kaanii innis ummata isa guddisee, barsiisee kanaan isa ga’e tajaajiluuf hawwii guutuudhaan ture kan inni hojii barsiisummaa eegale. Akkuma dargaggeessa kamii iyyuu mana dhaabee ijoollee godhatee jireenya gaggeessuuf abjuun isaa bara dheeraa waan bakka ga’aa dhufe itti fakkaate. Waxibajjii 26, 2008 namni mul’ataa kun hojii barsiisummaa jalqabee reefuu baatii muraasa hojechuu isaati. Guyyuma kana akkuma guyyoota kaanii hiriyyoota isaa wojjin utuu mana barumsaa inni barsiisuu galaa jiruu konkolaataan lakkoofsa gabatee ishee 3-F taate dingata dhuuftee fundura isaa dhaabbate. Konkolaataan kun kan Poolisii Federaalaati. Konkolaataa kana keessaa namootni uffata sivilii uffatan utaalanii bu’uudhaan balleessaa tokko malee barsiisaa Nimoonaa ukkamsanii fuudhanii sokkani. Dargaggoo Nimoonaa utuu gara wojjira poolisii anichaatti illee hingeeffamiin dabarfamee iddoo hinbeekamnetti geeffamuu isaa namootni yeroo sana ijaan argan himaniiru. Haalli kun kan isaan yaadesse Oromootni baayyeen dhaabbileen mirga dhala namaa tiksan addunyaa dhiimma kana duukaa bu’anii lubbuu dargagoo Nimoonaa akka baraaraniif waamicha godhanii turan. Woggaa tokko, waggaa lamaa, sadii … woggootiin 6 nilakkaa’aman……… Mootummaan Woyyaanee ilmaan Oromoo, keesummaa immoo hegeree biyyaa kan ta’an dargagoota Oromoo hamilee cabsuuf tooftaa inni itti gargaaramu keessa inni tokkoo dargaggoota oromoo sammuu cimaa qaban ukkamsee mana hidhaa buusee, achitti torchii godhee, namummaatii isaan baasee gaafa isaan qarqara boollaa irra ga’an gadi darbachuu yookanis mana hidhaa keessatti ajjeesee reeffa isaanii baasuudha. Dargaggoo Nimoonaas carradhuma kanatu isa argate. Woggootii ja’aan darbaniif Manneetii hidhaa Mayikelaawwii, Qaallittii, Qiliinxoo, akkasumas Ziwaaytti gidiraa ilmoon namaa arguu hinqabne baayee arge. Kana irraa kan ka’es dhukkuba irra bu’e. Dhukkuba isaa kanaafis yeroo dheeraa fuundura woldhaansa haakimaa argachuun irra ture hinargatiin hafe. Bulchiinsi mana hidhaa Lubbuu dargaggoo kanaa baraaruuf gargaarsi woldhaansaa hakimaa olaanaan akka isa barbaachisu yoo beeke illee yeroo dheeraadhaaf irratti ilaaleera. Dhuma irratti guyyaa muraasa fuudura waardiyyoota poolisii federaalaa afuriin marfamee eegamaa hospitaala Xiqur Anbessaa akka seenu yoo godham iyyuu dhukkubni isaa waan baayyee irra tureef, yeroo itti gargaarsa argatutti waan hinargatiin hafeef hakiimotni kana booda waan baayee gargaaruu akka hindandeenye dubbataniiru. Umrii waggaa digdamootaa keessatti kan argamu dargaggoo xobbeen abdii borii amma guyyaa du’a isaatii eegachaa jirra jedhamee iddi himamee guyyaa yartuu boda gaafa Waxabajjii 5 bara 2014 wareegame. –
While kidnappings and/or extra-judicial arrests and detentions have continued particularly around academic institutions in different parts of the regional state of Oromia in Ethiopia, disturbing and worrisome reports are coming out of detention centres where the Oromo students arrested in the past two weeks are being held. According to HRLHA correspondents in Nakamte, Wollega Province in western Oromia, there have been cases of tortures of varying levels as well as detainees being taken away in the middle of the night to unknown destinations for unknown reasons. Fifty (50) detainees, including thirteen females, were taken away at one time alone; and their whereabouts were not known. In relation to tortures, the reports indicate that some of the detainees are isolated from others and held in separate rooms handcuffed and legs tied together with their hands on the their backs. There were ten students subjected to this particular situation, among whom were Std. Tesfaye Tuffa (male) and Std. Bontu Hailu (female). Although not confirmed at this point, there were also eight students who were screened out in order to be transferred to a detention or investigation office at the federal level; and these include: 1. Chalaa Fekaduu Gashe (high school student), 2. Chalaa Fekaduu Raajoo (high school student), 3. Nimoonaa Kebede (Wollega University 5th year law student), 4. Moi Bon Misganuu (Wollega University, student), 5. Abdii Gaddisaa (high school student), 6. Abel Dagim (high school student), 7. Qalbessa Getachew (high school student), 8. Mulgeta Gemechu (high school student), 9. Edosa Namara Dheressa, Civil Engineering, Wallaga University In the meantime, reports indicate that kidnappings and/or extra-judicial arrests and detentions have continued in different parts of the regional state of Oromia, particularly in Hararge/Haromaya, West Showa, and West Wollega, all in relation to the protests that have been going on in the Regional State of Oromia in opposition to the newly introduced master plan to expand the Capital City of Addis Ababa/Finfinne in all directions by displacing the local Oromo residents. The following are among the hundreds of the most recent cases of kidnappings, arrests and detentions: 1) Edosa Namara Deressa – Wollega University (Civil Engineering) 2) Walabuma Dabale -Adama University, West Showa, 3) Ebisa Dale -Adama University 4) Ganamo Kurke -Adama University 5) Liban Taressa – Adama University 6) Adam Godana -Adama University 7) Bodana (last name not obtained) – Adama University Name of other detainees arrested May 15-17, 2014: 
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) is highly concerned about the life-threatening situations in the detention centres where those young Oromos were held, and the safety and wellbeing of those who were taken to unknown destinations. Therefore, HRLHA calls upon the Ethiopian Government to abide by all international human rights instruments that it has signed, and refrain from subjecting the young detainees to such harsh situations. It also calls upon all local, regional, and international human rights organizations including UN Human Rights Council, humanitarian, and diplomatic agencies to put pressure on the Ethiopian Government so that it: 1. Unconditionally releases the Oromo students who were detained in the past two and three weeks simply because the attempted to exercise some of their fundamental rights in a peaceful and absolutely non-violent manner. 2. Stop killing, arresting and abducting Oromo nationals 3. To form an independent committee from civilians for investigation and Prosecution of the killing and torturing crimes. – HRLHA
Press Release 15th May 2014, Gambella “Ethiopian Government Must Stop Killing Oromos for their Land”
Barattoota Oromoo kan Yuuiversitoota garagaraat osoo karaa nagaan hiriira bahani dhimma 
#OromoProtests- Peaceful Oromo students and civilians were attacked and wounded by Agazi in Nekemte, Western Oromia. Denied medical help. Agazi forced them out from hospital. Medical workers at Nekemte hospital were attacked by Agazi for giving medical services to wounded students and civilians. 20th May 2014
Sources claimed 25-50 were killed. At least seven were confirmed dead in Ambo alone. Many were badly injured and hundreds were taken from streets and university campuses to places of detention, where protestors and opposition party supporters are routinely tortured and raped. Names of confirmed dead, injured or detained are given overleaf. Those killed include Endale Desalegn (Temesgen), and Tasfaye Gashe, both ninth grade students in Ambo. Individuals in the UK are requested to write to their MPs, requesting them to ask the Minister for Africa, Mark Simmonds, and the Minister for International Development, Lynne Featherstone, what the British Government intends to do in response to this latest episode of killing and detaining peaceful demonstrators. Killed: Ababa Kumsa – Wallega Abdi Kamal – Guder Junior Secondary School Abdisa Nagasa – Wallega Endale Desalegn (or Temesgen) – Ambo High School Falmata Bayecha – Jimma 5th yr Medicine Galana Adaba – Jimma 3rd yr Governance Getachew Daraje – Jimma 3rd yr Governence Getahun Jirata – Guder Junior Secondary School Gexe Tafari – Wallega Gurmu Damxoo – Guder Junior Secondary School Hussen Umar – Jimma Israel Habtamu – Jimma Kumala Guddisa – Guder Junior Secondary School Tadesse Gashee – Ambo Liban Macha Junior Secondary School Tashome Dawit – Wallega Zabana Barasa – Jimma 3rd yr Governance (or Oromo Folklore) Injured: Balay Kusa – Mida Qanyi School – W Showa Bayisa Obsa – Mida Qanyi School – W Showa Dararsa Ayana – Mida Qanyi School – W Showa Adama University students detained and beaten: Abrahm Makonin Ararso Abenzari Hagaye Yohannis Abdala Hussen Julio Amnu’el Burka Danka Andu’alam Telahun Alemayo Ayantu Jalta Misha Bilisuma Lamii Agaa Bonsa Badhadha Bati Bultu Wadaju Bultum Chala Galan Dabiso Datamo Fayera Shif Dane Abo Bushira Dani’el Admasu Tamsgen Didaa Ahmed Ibroo Duni Hussen Walbu Ebisa Malka Nuruu Etihafa Tuffa Soraa Fantale Faru Qarsuu Fayisa Girma Biranu Gada Dinqa Bayisa Humin’esa Miliki Fanta Ibraham Musa Awal Ifabas Burisho Nuruu Iliyas Ishetu Ibsa Lami Marga Gabru Lelisa Ayansa Marga Marga Tuffa kiltu Magris Banta Sodaa Muktar Jeyilan Sa’ed Musxafa Kadir Siraj Nuho Gudata Irre Odaa Damis Bonjaa Shibiru Tariku Falke Sidise Jara Tashome Bakele Sabbatichal Tadalu Mamo Bacha Takalinyi Ketama Baharu Tayee Tafara Agaa Tullu Bonus Tura Welbuma Ragasa Qalbesa
The Ethiopian government has used excessive force against students peacefully protesting the Government’s plans to expand the municipal boundaries of Addis Ababa, which would threaten the communities currently under regional jurisdiction, and would no longer be managed by Oromia Regional State. Demonstrators have expressed concern about the displacement of Oromo farmers and residents on the affected land. Below is an article published by 
#OromoProtests Oromo student Wabii Tilahun, 2nd year Afan Oromo student at Ambo University kidnapped by Agazi, his where about is not known.Micaan Kun Wabii Xilahn Jedhama Barata Afan Oromoo Waggaa 2 ffaa Godina Wallagaa Baha Aana limmuu dhufee Umatii Magaala Kana Osoo Ijaa Keessaa Ilaaluu kitabaa isaa 700 Maxxaanfmee Osoo Hin Gurguramiin Hafe Hidha hin hiikamnee jedhuu Waliin Fudhanii Deemaan Hospital Mana Hidha Amboo Keessaa Akkaa Hin Jirreee Biraa Geenyee Jirraa. Essaa Akkaa Busaan ni Wallaallee!!!!! Iyii iyaa dabarsii yaa Ilmaan Oromoo!!! 
Magarsaa Worku, Oromo student of Haromaya University, kidnapped by Agazi #OromoProtests- OBALAYAAN KOO AKKA GARII HUBADHAA DUBISSAA ! INNII KUNI BARAATAA UNIVERSITY HAROO MAYA DHA TII MAQAAN ISSAA MAGARSSA WORKUU DHAA. GAFAA MORMII DIDAA GARBRUMMAA JALQAABEE SAN ISSAA KANATUU XALAAYAA GAFII HAYYAMAA HIRIRAA BAHUU KAN BARESSEE WAJIRALEE DHIMAA LALCHIFTUU HUNDAA KAN AKKA MOTUMMAA FEDERAL FI MANA CAFEE OROMIYAA FI WAJIRALEE BAHA OROMIYAA POLIS KOMISHIONERA FI WARA ILALCHIISSUU HUNDAA HAR
Addis fortune
በኦሮሚያ ክልል ፊንፊኔ ዙሪያ ልዩ ዞን በረህ አለልቱ ምርጫ ክልል ገዋሳ 02 ምርጫ ጣቢያ በአንድ ለአምስት የተደራጁ ‹ካድሬዎች› መራጮቹን እያዋከቡ መሆኑን መራጮች ተናግረዋል፡፡ በምርጫ ክልሉ ለተወካዮች ም/ቤት የሰማያዊ ፓርቲ ተወዳዳሪ አቶ አበበ አካሉ ጉዳዩን እያጣሩ መሆናቸውን አስታውቀዋል፡፡ለመምረጥ የሚመጡት እየተፈተሹ እና ስልክ ይዘው እንዳይገቡ እየተደረገ ነው 
Oromian Economist 