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Oromia: Athletic nation Report: Oromo Olympian Tirunesh Dibaba Wins Women’s 2017 Bank of America Chicago Marathon at a time of 2: 18:30. US’s Galen Rupp wins the Men’s. October 9, 2017

Posted by OromianEconomist in Athleteics, Athletic nation, Oromo women, Uncategorized.
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Odaa OromoooromianeconomistOromo Olympian Tirunesh Dibaba win the 2017 Women's Chicago Marathon

Oromo Olympian Tirunesh Dibaba Wins 2017 Bank of America Chicago Marathon

Three-time Olympic gold medalist Tirunesh Dibaba has won the women’s field of the 2017 Bank of America Chicago Marathon.

Dibaba beat out defending champion Florence Kiplagat, keeping her from winning her third consecutive Chicago Marathon.

“This is my third marathon and I’m very happy to have won here,” Dibaba said after her win. “I worked very hard for this.”

Dibaba recorded her fastest marathon earlier this year in London, coming across the finish line at two hours, 17 minutes 56 seconds. She is currently the third fastest woman running distances longer than 42 kilometers.

Dibaba picked up three gold medals and three bronze medals from the last four Summer Olympic Games.

https://twitter.com/skinnergj/status/917234805460234242

 

Africa News: Aside her gold medal, Dibaba will walk away with $100,000 prize money. The second and third candidates get $75,000 and $50,000 respectively.

UNPO: Urgency of Addressing the Plight of Women Belonging to Vulnerable Groups in Ethiopia Highlighted at UNPO EP Conference March 24, 2017

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Urgency of Addressing the Plight of Women Belonging to Vulnerable Groups in Ethiopia Highlighted at UNPO EP Conference


After welcoming speakers and participants from across the globe, the conference’s host, MEP Liliana Rodrigues, opened the event by expressing that the responsibility to stop the atrocities in Ethiopia belongs to us all: “We are here to help break the silence.” Dr Shigut Geleta, of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), reminded the audience that large donors, such as the European Union and the United States, continue to provide substantial aid to Ethiopia despite the country’s heinous human rights record. Dr Geleta emphasised that this aid has been crucial in maintaining the ruling coalition’s stranglehold on political power in Ethiopia.

Continuing off of this point, Mr Denboba Natie, an executive committee member of the Sidama National Liberation Front, raised the question of how marginalised communities can make their struggle known when internationally sponsored funds are flowing into the authoritarian regime, contributing to their repression. For a moment of reflection, Mr Natie asked the entire conference to stand in silence to honour the pain and sacrifices of these subjugated peoples and of the women and girls who have been victims of gender-based and sexual trauma in Ethiopia. UNPO Secretary General Marino Busdachin made reference to the array of issues affecting these regions, such as land-grabbing, eviction, poverty and extrajudicial killings, ultimately declaring that “enough is enough.”

To open the first panel, a statement by Graham Peebles, freelance writer and director of The Create Trust, was read by moderator and UNPO Programme Officer Julie Duval. Mr Peebles’ statement drew attention to a number of worrying issues in Ethiopia – the lack of independent media sources, the stifling of any political dissent, the routine sexual abuse and rape of imprisoned women – all of which contribute to the precarious condition of human rights for marginalised populations. Ms Ajo Agwa of the Gambella People’s Liberation Movement and the Gambella Women’s Association gave a poignant overview of the ongoing violence in her region, where public schools and medical clinics are looted, children are abducted and civilians are massacred by assailants clad in military uniforms under the guise of enforcing protection along the border with South Sudan.

The testimony of Ms Dinknesh Dheressa, Chairwoman of the International Oromo Women’s Organization, highlighted the extreme level of state violence in Oromiya, where government security forces have repeatedly “used live ammunition to disperse protests.”

Mr Garad Mursal, Director of the African Rights Monitor, stated that “civilians in Ogaden, Oromiya, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella and Sidama have been subjected to mass murder, torture and rape” by the Ethiopian government and their allies. Mr Mursal explained that due to the famine and the cholera epidemic in the Ogaden region, entire villages of Somalis are being wiped out and yet the Ethiopian government continues to prioritise economic development over fundamental human rights. Following Mr Mursal’s speech, a clip of Mr Peebles’ short documentary entitled Ogaden: Ethiopia’s Hidden Shame was shown in which Somali women give first-hand accounts of the sexual violence and torture they endured at the hands of Ethiopian security forces.

The second panel focussed more exclusively on women’s rights and sexual violence. Mrs Rodrigues reminded the audience that Ethiopia is hardly a unique case when it comes to sexual abuse and rape being used as a weapon of war. She called for accountability measures to be enacted by the Ethiopian government to guarantee that the perpetrators of these crimes are brought to justice, but also to provide physical and psychological care for victims of sexual trauma. Significantly, Mrs Rodrigues emphasised that there must be liability where foreign aid is concerned, and she urged the European Union to put Ethiopia at the top of its agenda.

MEP Julie Ward (S&D) succinctly but powerfully intoned that “The root cause of violence against women and girls is inequality.” In considering the effects of how widespread sexual violence has contributed to the devastation of marginalised communities in Ethiopia, Ms Ward stressed that as a war tactic, mass rape is constitutive of genocide and ethnic cleansing. She further declared it “absolutely wrong that EU aid money should be in any way complicit in these human rights violations and crimes of sexual violence”.

Oromo medical doctor Dr Baro Keno Deressa reiterated Ms Ward’s statements about rape being used as a tool of war in Ethiopia, where sexual violence is used strategically to terrorise and ultimately destroy marginalised communities. He maintained that “it is a violation of human rights when women are not given the right to plan their own families”. Moreover, women from these regions are deliberately excluded from the women’s empowerment programmes touted by the Ethiopian government as a model of their progress. Both Dr Deressa and Ms Mariam Ali, an activist currently studying at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, asserted that rape has become institutionalised in Ethiopia.

In closing the second panel, Ms Ali provided a summary of facts about the situation in the Ogaden region, including that the Ethiopian army’s blockade has kept independent journalists and medical officials from entering the region. The population is being starved by a “man-made famine”, and Ms Ali affirms that women are subjected to near-constant rape and torture. Ms Ali ended her speech by addressing these brutal human rights violations with a Somali proverb, “Dhiiga kuma dhaqaaqo?” which translates to “Does your blood not move?”

Mrs Rodrigues and Ms Duval gave the final remarks, addressing both the general human rights situation in Ethiopia and the particular burden born by women from marginalised regions. Mrs Rodrigues underlined once again that action must be taken to see that international funds are solely being used in a fashion that supports human rights and ensures women’s rights. Overall, the conference provided a distinct opportunity for representatives of marginalised groups in the regions of Oromiya, Ogaden, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella and Sidama to speak directly to Members of the European Parliament and recount their experiences to a wider audience of human rights activists and civil society actors. A fruitful exchange of views following the official programme brought this important event to a close and allowed representatives from the media, academia, political decision-makers, as well as representatives of civil society and diplomatic missions to engage in a lively discussion.

 

Click here to find the conference declaration and here to find more photos of the event

Oromia (Finfinnee): Ni Dandeenya:Tokkummaa Artiistoota Dubartoota Oromoo November 8, 2015

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???????????Tokkumaa Artiistoo Dubartoota Oromoo

Historic Reunion of the Raayyaa Oromo with the Rest of the Oromo NationTokkumaa Artiistoo Dubartoota Oromoo1Tokkumaa Artiistoo Dubartoota Oromoo2Tokkumaa Artiistoo Dubartoota Oromoo3Tokkumaa Artiistoo Dubartoota Oromoo4Tokkumaa Artiistoo Dubartoota Oromoo5Tokkumaa Artiistoo Dubartoota Oromoo 31 Onkoloolessa 31 bara 2015 @Finfinnee, Oromoota Raayyaa waliin

Guyyaa Seenaa Qabeessa: Historic Reunion of the Raayyaa Oromo with the Rest of the Oromo Nation

“Ani amma waggaa 45 ergaan dhaladhee Oromoo gurran dhaga’a malee takkaa argee hin beeku” Durbartii Rayyaa

Onkoloolessa 31 bara 2015,Sambata duraa darbee, Oromootni Finfinnee sirna howwaan galma Walga’ii Finfinnee jedhamu Caffee Tumaati argamuti walga’aniiru. Sababiin guddaan walitti nu qabee ammoo Gumaata eebba kilippii fi wallee haaraa Saliha Sami mata duree “Ni Dandeenya” jedhuun akkasumaas Qophii haadha Siqqee fi Sirna Ateetee Dubartootaa Artiistoota Oromootiin dawwachuuf ture. Anaafi Oromoota hedduuf garuu Oromoo fi Oromummaa dagaage arguun kayyoo keenya jalqabaati jedheen amana dhiyeenya kana Oromoon waliif owwachuu jalqabuun isaa bakka walgeetti Oromoon jira jedhame hundumaati namni fedhiidhaan hirmaachaa jira waan hedduu nama gammachiisuufi onnee nama keessatti horuudha. Guyyaa kanaas taateewwan ajaa’ibsiisoon adda addaa rawaatamanii jiru isaaniis yeroo hundumaa waltajjii hedduu irratti artiistoota dhiiraa qofaa argina turree guyyaa kana garuu artiistoota dubartoota qofaan tajaajila bashananaa guutuu argatanii galuun bayyee nama gammachiisa. Inni lammaffaa Oromoota Rayyaa takkaa ija keenyaan arginee hin beekne kudhanii ol Artiisti Saalihaan kiloomeetirii hedduu qaxaamuranii akka dhufaan taasisuudhan qaama sagantaa kana akka ta’aa gochuuniis waan dinqiidha. Sagantaa kana irratti haasawaa durbartiin Rayyaa tokko dubattee ana ajaa’ibe akkana jette “Ijjolee biyya keenyaa akkam ooltaan nuyii eegaa Oromoon hin jira jechuu gurraan dhaga’aa turre malee Obboleyyaan keenya jiraachuu ija keenyaan hin arginee amma eegaa isiin jallannee jira obboleeyyan keenya wajjin waliitti makamuu fi sirba Oromoos akkanatti dhaga’uun, Ani amma waggaa 45 ergaan dhaladhee Oromoo gurran dhaga’a malee takkaa argee hin beeku” hedduu ana ajaa’ibe ummata sanyii, qomoo fi dhiiga tokkoo biyya tokko keessa jiraachaa waggaa 45 oliif jiraachuu ummata kana ijaan argee hin beekne dinqiidha hundumti keenya of haa gaafannumee?
Sadaffaan sirni kabaajaa fi badhaasa durbartoota Oromoo gama hundaan shoora oolanaa taphataniis taasifamee waan ajaa’ibaati.
Durbartoota fakkeenyummaa cimaa taasisaan keessaa badhaasa fi kabajaa kan argataan keessaa isheen jalqabaa Artiistii Saalihaa Saamiidha kan ishee badhaasee koree dhimma kanaaf dhabbate yoo ta’uu waancaa urjii shan ofirraa qabu argattee jirti. Kana malees durbartootni kannen akka
Adde Makiyaa Ammayyuu dubartii Oromoo dinagdeen fakkeenyuummaa qabdu
Haadha Warraa Artiisti Doktoor Alii Birraa Aaddee Lillii fi
Haadha Warraa Artiisti Zaarihun Wadajoo Addee Olaantuu Artiistoota Oromoo kabajamoo kana kununsanii guyyaa har’aan ga’uu isaaniitiif
Haadha Caayaa dubartii Oromoo jabiinaa fi sabboonummaa guddaan ijjoleeshee barsiisuudhaan
Artiisti Haalloo Dawwee Umuurii ishee guutuu artii Oromoo keessatti dabarsuu isheetiif
Ayyoo Guddatuu Kabajaa ishee aadaa Oromoof qabduufi fakkeenya bareedina Oromoo waan taateef
Adde Fardoosaa Huccuu Aadaa Oromoo bifa ammayyaan dizaayinii gochuudhaan addunyaaf beeksisuudhaan
Dubree Lallistuu Toofik kitaaba Afaan Oromoo Imala Jireenyaa jedhu barreesuufi fakkeenya barreesituu Hogbarruu Oromoo ta’uudhaan
Artiist Hawwii/Caaltuu Eelaa Kabajaa fi tumsa isheen guddina aartii Oromoof gumaachiteen
Akkasumaas Kadhimamaa PHD Tafaarii Nigusee, Rayyaa Biiraa fi TV OBS tumsa isaan sagantaa kanaaf qabaniif badhaasa addaa argataniiru.
Sagantaa kana irrattis sirni siqqee walharkaa fuudhuu Artiisti Halloo Dawwee fi Artiisti Salihaa Saamii gidduutti taasifameera kuniis aartii Oromoo labata dhufuuti dabarsuu fi guddina inni amma agarsiisaa jiru kana jajjabeesuu hikkaa jedhu qaba.
Waan hundumaafuu Oromootni Finfinneefi Nannawaa ishee jirtaan tumsaa fi birmannaa artii keessan irratti taasisaa jirtaan olaanaa ta’uu fi akka layyoo kan hin ilaalamne ta’uu hubachuudhaan akkuma ammaleefanne bakka sagantaan Oromoo jira jedhame hundumaati argamne gumaacha lammummaa ba’uun dirqamaan jedha ammas kana malees yeroo akkanatti baanee hirmaannu diina garaan akka gubatuus hin dagatiinan dhamsa kooti.
Horaa Bulaa
Gammadaa Olaanaa
Rabador Art Promotion irraa

http://https://vimeo.com/144997339

Related:-

https://oromianeconomist.wordpress.com/2015/10/20/oromia-artist-saliha-sami-releases-raya-music-sanggawwee-raayyaagumaayyee-in-afan-oromo-the-national-language-of-raya-azebo/

https://www.facebook.com/gammadaa.olaanaa?pnref=story

The In-Between: Book Signing and Panel Discussion with Seenaa G-D Jimjimo February 20, 2015

Posted by OromianEconomist in African Literature, Oromiyaa, Oromo, Oromo Literature, Oromo women, Oromummaa, Seenaa G-D Jimjimo, The In-Between.
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Book Signing and Panel Discussion with Seenaa G-D Jimjimo

ayyaantuu.com

 

jimjimoTitle: The In-Between
Author: Seenaa Jimjimo
On February 23, 2015 at  5:30pm-7:30pm CST
Venue:  THE ART MART, 422 E. Monroe St., Springfield, IL, 62702, Phone: 217-744-3301

February 20, 2015 (Illinois Times) — iOut of Africa Heritage Center (OOAHC), an art gallery featuring an eclectic mix of hand-crafted African sculptures, paintings, books, and crafts created by local African-American artists, is pleased to announce that visiting author and University of Illinois Chicago graduate. Ms. Jimijimo will be conducting a book signing and cultural discussion regarding the relationships, American experience, and cultural divide between African’s and African American’s from an African-Oromo woman’s point of view.

The book signing/panel discussion will be held February 23, 2015 starting promptly at 5:30pm-7:30pm CST. In The Art Mart located at 422 E. Monroe Street Springfield, Illinois 62702.

Seena Godano-Dulla Jimjimo was born in Adaba in Bale Zone. From a very young age, she felt grieved over the injustices she saw perpetrated against Oromo, particularly against Oromo-Arsi women. Wanting to help, she studied political science, public administration, and public health at University of Illinois in Chicago as well as in Springfield. While there she was Senator at Large and treasurer for the African Student Organization. Ms. Seenaa is a dedicated human right activist. She is most proud of founding the Danboboodu Scholarship Foundation, dedicated to educating women in Africa.

“While the purpose of OOAHC is to highlight unknown or relatively-known African-American artists, individuals from all social and cultural backgrounds are invited and welcome to join in the efforts to bridge cultural divides while celebrating the arts. “We are honored and fortunate to have such a dynamic accomplished visiting young author being part of the artistic partnering and community outreach initiative” says Williamson.

Anyone interested in joining our artisan initiatives or attending any workshop/class should email Lynn Williamson at outofafricahertiate@yahoo.com . For more information about the Out of Africa Heritage Center, please visit the website at http://www.outofafricaheritage.org, or call 678.851.8888. The Out of Africa Heritage Center is a member of the Springfield Business Chamber of Commerce and a proud addition to the downtown Springfield business and artisan community.

Source: Illinois Times


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Finance Girls’ Education in Africa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEun0p-jWYE  [click on the link, embedding is disabled to view her]

My name is Seenaa Jimjimo. I  established Danboobiduu Foundation  in 2014 to promote education in a community where girls are often neglected to take part in the decision making process. In rural parts of Oromia such as Bucha-Rayya, young girls are recruited and many times sent to labor at very young ages. Those who managed to stay in school will more than likely drop out at some point before they graduate from secondary school. As we know all too well, girls’ education is not only important for themselves but for the whole family and the entire community. Danboobiduu’s Foundation mission is to promote and finance girls’ education and to provide an after-school program where girls are taught a life sustaining skills.

For more information Visit
http://abdiinfo.com/main/dfoundation

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Danboobduus-Foundation/546240112185076

 

Source: gofundme 

 

http://ayyaantuu.com/horn-of-africa-news/oromia/book-signing-and-panel-discussion-with-seenaa-g-d-jimjimo/

UNPO: Getting United, Bold, Loud and Active Key to Uncover the Suffering of Minority Women and Misuse of EU Funds in Ethiopia. #Oromia. #Ogaden. #Africa February 6, 2015

Posted by OromianEconomist in Africa, Ogaden, Oromia, Oromo.
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Getting United, Bold, Loud and Active Key to Uncover the Suffering of Minority Women and Misuse of EU Funds in Ethiopia

On 4 February 2015, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) in cooperation with the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), hosted by Ana Gomes MEP (S&D) and Julie Ward MEP (S&D) at the European Parliament in Brussels, welcomed a number of international guests to speak about the serious issues facing minority groups in Ethiopia, particularly ethnic minority women. At the event titled ‘Minority Women’s Rights: An Ethiopian Inferno?’, participants spoke about the systematic persecution of Ogaden and Oromo ethnic groups in Ethiopia by the ruling regime; combining expert analysis and personal accounts to not only share views, but also help plot a course of action.

 

In his introduction UNPO Secretary General, Marino Busdachin, raised the hypocritical stance of the western world towards Ethiopian governance and the Ethiopian people – a theme that would run through the course of the discussions that followed. By outlining the huge amount of aid that Ethiopia receives – over $3 billion per year on average – Mr Busdachin questioned the motives of the European Union (EU). Aid constitutes over half of the total budget of the Ethiopian government (with the EU being the second largest single contributor), yet there is no transparency in the use of this aid and no safeguards or effective conditions attached to money in order to ensure its proper usage. To this end Mr Busdachin concluded by saying that the 15 May upcoming elections in Ethiopia are an opportunity for the EU to change its relationship with Ethiopia, encourage democratic opposition to the regime and wake up to its responsibilities outside of Europe.

 

Mr Busdachin then passed the floor to Julie Ward MEP who spoke of her political concerns surrounding the use of aid funds in the Ethiopian regime’s policy of systematic violence used against Ethiopian minorities, particularly women. Ms Ward said that the violence in Ethiopia is “causing a fractured society” and causing sections of this society to crumble like a house of cards. She said that the use of violence in any country makes minority women particularly vulnerable as the combination of deeply rooted discrimination and use of physical force in a socio-political mean that minority women lose their power to influence and improve society. Like Mr Busdachin before her, she attacked the EU’s role in providing funds to Ethiopia while turning a blind eye to how these funds are being used on the ground. Ms Ward concluded powerfully by admitting that “silence is complicity; silence is guilt”, if the EU does not speak out then it is complicit too.

 

 

Ana Gomes MEP then extrapolated on the points made by Ms Ward by talking about the inherent lack of transparency in the Ethiopian governance structure. Drawing on her personal experiences of visiting Addis Ababa, Ms Gomes talked about the Ethiopian regime’s ability to use politically correct language and let the international community hear what they want to hear. The EU in turn has used Ethiopia as an exemplary case study of what aid promotion can achieve. This reciprocal denial between the regime and the EU means that it has become very hard to actually discover the true situation in the country. Restriction on freedom of expression and the freedom of the media particularly distressed Ms Gomes, who underlined that the EU needs to support brave journalists and activists on the ground, who in turn can reveal much of the truth that is hidden by organisations, media outlets and political parties supportive of the Ethiopian government. She finished by stating that the Ethiopian diaspora also has a responsibility; they are in a position to know part of the true situation in Ethiopia but not be constrained by restrictions on their freedom of expression. Ms Gomes called on all Ethiopian ethnic minority diaspora to unite, forgoing any current disagreements and finding the right platform from where to voice their concerns and ideas.

 

 

The first panel Divide and Conquer – State Sanctioned Repression in Ethiopia was opened by Mr Abdullahi Mohamed of the African Rights Monitor, who gave an account of Ethiopia’s non-compliance with several international human rights conventions. Mr Mohamed described how the Ethiopian regime has signed many international human rights conventions but continuously fails to follow through with any of the recommendations made by international actors regulating convention implementation. Among these are examples of Ethiopian unwillingness to submit mandatory reports – the 2011 Ethiopian state review requested by the Committee on Civil and Political Rights was 17 years late – and the regular denial of access to minority regions to UN monitoring groups and special rapporteurs. Mr Mohamed also highlighted the pressing need for Ethiopia to allow access to minority regions such as Ogaden for international humanitarian organisations whose continued absence from the area is causing serious humanitarian crises.

 

The next speaker was Mr Abdullahi Hussein, former head of the Ethiopian state media, who had managed to smuggle over 100 hours of footage to Sweden when he fled his home country, appalled by the brutal crimes committed by the regime he had worked for. He presented his findings from the footage and personal accounts of what he experienced. His moving story recounted how he progressed in the governance structure of Ethiopia and became increasingly exposed to military fear tactics and persecution in minority areas such as the Ogaden region. He spoke of media dominance by the regime and the smokescreen that is created to prevent the outside world learning of serious persecutions that take place, especially with regard to sexual violence used against women in the infamous Prison Ogaden.

 

The floor was then given to Mr Ato Abebe Bogale, Vice-Chairman of the Ethiopian political opposition movement Ginbot 7, who expressed his exasperation that despite the myriad human rights reports and empty words of foreign powers, no concrete action is being taken. He stressed the extent to which systematic persecution of political opposition, minority groups and women has permeated throughout all levels of governance in Ethiopia and is a pandemic that needs to be stopped. He called on the EU to stop focusing on the apparent economic improvements that are being made in the country and to consider the human cost of achieving positive growth figures saying, “for the sake of humanity and for the betterment of Ethiopia and Africa, please stop helping the dictatorship within the country”. Mr Bogale’s speech was followed by Ms Dorothée Cambou, PhD candidate at the Free University of Brussels (VUB) specialising in the rights of indigenous groups. Ms Cambou contextualised the actions of the Ethiopian government within its national, regional and international legal obligations, and emphasised the land rights of indigenous peoples in relation to development projects.

 

 

The first speaker on the second panel Victims of Politics – Women in Ogaden and Oromia was Ms Juweria Bixi Ali who, on behalf of young Ogaden women in Ethiopia, spoke of the vulnerability that minority women in Ethiopia experience being the targets of the dictatorship’s attempts to break the will of ethnic minorities in the country. She spoke passionately about the horrors that minority women experience at the hands of military personnel who are specifically trained how to rape and abuse women in order to “shame the men and disgrace the women”. Ms Ali described how the military use tactics of sexual violence and orchestrated starvation against women in particular in order to instil the maximum amount of fear in a people.

 

 

Following Ms Ali was Mr Graham Peebles, a freelance journalist who had visited the Ogaden and surrounding regions on a number of occasions. He spoke of many of the interviews that he had conducted with both the victims and confessed perpetrators of these crimes. He spoke of how orchestrated rape and fear tactics have become a norm in Ethiopia, and the horrors that he spoke of are by no means isolated cases. He described that no woman, particularly those of targeted ethnic groups, is safe from the state sponsored persecution. He concluded with yet another plea to the EU to eliminate their hypocritical practices of providing financial support to this regime and questioned how donor countries around the world could have a clear conscience when supporting such blatant criminality.

 

The floor was then passed to Dr Baro Keno Deressa who gave a chilling account of the medical issues that occur from regular use of rape against women. He described how rape that is used for extracting information, political terror and as a reward for soldiers does not only undermine the social standing of women but can cause terrible, untreatable medical conditions that victims have to live with for the rest of their lives, including HIV transmission and genital deformation. He also outlined that the rape tactics used by the Ethiopian government against Oromo women are destroying the traditional social fabric of the Oromo people, creating a large gap in gender equality in a people that are traditionally egalitarian and have a long and proud history of democratic values.

 

The final speaker of the panel was Dr Badal Hassan, representative of the ONLF, who called on the Ethiopian regime to remove all suffering and oppression that his people face and allow them to pursue their right to self-determination. He summarised the main facts surrounding the persecution of the Ogaden and Oromo peoples: tens of thousands of civilian executions, tortures, rapes and forced migration. He also spoke of the persecutions that Ethiopia conducts against Ogaden and Oromo people who have fled to neighbouring countries making this an international issue rather than a domestic problem. He concluded by calling on all Ethiopians, regardless of ethnicity or religion, to unite and raise their collective voices against oppression.

 

Ms Ana Gomes MEP closed the panel discussion by reaffirming her commitment to take the issues that had been raised to the relevant parliamentary committees and push for promises to be made and firm action to be taken. Although she said it may be a slow process, she urged everyone present, especially the Ethiopian diaspora to “get united, bold, loud and active”, assuring that there are politicians like herself and Ms Julie Ward who will listen, and in time, will make others listen too.

 

UNPO is fully committed to work towards raising the issues of human rights and democracy in Ethiopia with all relevant international stakeholders and demand concrete action to address the persecution of innocent civilians; be they Ogadeni, Oromo, or from any other ethnic group. The 4 February conference at the European Parliament was an important first step in the right direction, but much more remains to be done to overcome the silent complicity of Western donors in relation to the Ethiopian inferno.

Read more at:

http://unpo.org/article/17931

#Oromo TV:Jaarmayaa Dubartoota Oromoo Minisootaa ijaaruuf February 5, 2015

Posted by OromianEconomist in Oromo, Oromo women, Oromummaa.
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