ችግራችን አለመነጋገራችን!

Abraha desta

ከተወሰኑ የኢትዮዽያ ፖለቲካ ተንታኞችና ጋዜጠኞች ጋር የመነጋገር ዕድል አጋጥሞኝ ነበር። እነኚህ ሰዎች በፖለቲካ አቋማቸው ምክንያት (ወይም ብዬ አስባለሁ) ከሀገር እንዲወጡ የተደረጉ ናቸው፤ ለምሳሌ መስፍን ነጋሽ (Mesfin Negash)።

ከነ መስፍን ጋር የኢትዮዽያ ፖለቲካ በተመለከተ ከጓደኞቼ ጋር ሁነን ሓሳብ ለሓሳብ ተለዋውጠናል። የነሱ የፖለቲካ ሓሳብና ትንታኔ ካዳመጥኩ በኋላ ግራ ገባኝ፤ ልዩነታችን ምን ላይ መሆኑ መለየት አቃተኛ። እነሱ (መስፍንና ሌሎቹ) የሚናገሩት ነገር የኔ ሓሳብ ነው (አብዛኛው የትግራይ ህዝብም የሚጋራው ይመስለኛል)።

በኋላ ግን አንድ ነገር ገባኝ፤ የተለያየ ቋንቋ የምንናገር፣ በተለያየ ባህል ያደግን ዜጎች ብንሆንም ሓሳባችንና የፖለቲካ አመለካከታችን ይመሳሰላል። ሓሳብችን በተለያየ ቋንቋ እንናገረዋለን፤ በተለያየ ባህል እንገልፀዋለን።

ግን አንግባባም። ተመሳሳይ ሓሳብ እያራመድን ለምን አንግባባም? አንድ በመሃከላችን ቁሞ የጋረደን ግንብ አለ። ይህ አደገኛ ግንብ እርስበርስ የመጠራጠር መንፈስ ነው። እርስበርሳችን አንተማመንም። ለምን አንተማመንም? ተመሳሳይ ሓሳብና አቋም እንዳለን አናውቅም። ለምን አናውቅም? ሓሳብ ለሓሳብ አልተለዋወጥንም። ለምን አልተለዋወጥንም? አልተነጋገርንም። ለምን አልተነጋገርንም? አልተገናኘንም። ለምን አልተገናኘንም? ተለያይተን ስለምናድግና ስለምንኖር፤ የየራሳችን ቋንቋና ባህል ይዘን።

ለምን ተለያየን? ብሄር መሰረት ያደረገ ፖለቲካ ተከተልን። ለምን ብሄር መሰረት ያደረገ ፖለቲካ ተከተልን? የፖለቲካ መሪዎቻችን ፈለጉት። ለምን ፈለጉት? ህዝቦችን ለመከፋፈል። ለምን መከፋፈል አስፈለገ? ለመግዛት። እንዴት? ህዝብ (በብሄር ወይ ሀይማኖት) ከተከፋፈለ ህብረት አይኖረውም። ህብረት ከሌለው አንድነት የለውም። አንድነት ከሌለው ጨቋኝ ስርዓት ከስልጣን ለማውረድ ዓቅም አይኖረውም። ህዝብ ዓቅም ከሌለው ገዢዎች እንደፈለጉት በስልጣን መቆየት ይችላሉ።

ጉርሻ አንድ፦
የተለያየ ቋንቋና ባህል ይዞ ማደግ በራሱ ችግር አይደለም። ችግሩ ያለው የራሳችን ባህልና እድገት ብቻ የምናውቅ ከሆነ የሌሎች ኢትዮዽያውያን ወገኖች ባህልና ቋንቋ ትክክለኛነትና ሙሉነት እንጠራጠራለን። ምክንያቱም በአንድ ባህል ብቻ ስናድግ የአስተሳሰብ አድማሳችንም በዛው ልክ ጠባብ ይሆናል። ስለሌሎች ሙሉ ግንዛቤ ከሌለን የራሳችን ብቻ ትክክል መስሎ ይታየናል። ሌሎችም እንዲሁ፤ ባስተዳደጋችን ምክንያት የምናይበት መነፅር ጠባሏ።

እንደዉጤቱም ወደ አላስፈላጊ ፍክክር እንገባለን። ፍክክሩ በፖለቲከኞች ፍላጎትና ቅስቀሳ መሰረት ፖለቲካዊ መልክ ይይዛል። ከዛ እንጋጫለን። ተበታትነን እንቀራለን።

(በትላልቅ ከተሞች የሚያድጉ ወጣቶች በገጠር ከሚያድጉ ወጣቶች የተሻለ የአንድነት መንፈስ የሚያንፀባርቁበት ምክንያት በከተሞች የብዙ የተለያዩ ህዝቦች ባህል እያዩና እየተገነዘቡ ስለሚያድጉ ነው።)

ጉርሻ ሁለት፦
ገዢዎች ህዝብን የሚከፋፍሉ ለራሳቸው የስልጣን ጥቅም ሲሉ ነው። ህዝብን የመከፋፈል ፖለቲካዊ ስትራተጂ ከኢህአዴግ በፊትም ሲሰራበት የነበረ ነው። ገዢዎች ሊያጠፉ ይችላሉ። ፖለቲከኞች ሲያጠፉም ሲያለሙም ራሳቸው እንጂ ህዝብን ሊወክሉ አይችሉም። እርግጥ ነው ፖለቲከኞች ለፖለቲካዊ ድጋፍ ሲባል የተወሰነ የህብረተሰብ ክፍል እንደሚወክሉ ሊለፍፉ ይችላሉ። ግን ትክክል አይደለም። አንድ ባለስልጣን ከሰረቀ መጠየቅ ያለበት ራሱ እንጂ ‘እወክለዋለሁ’ የሚለውን ህዝብ አይደለም።

ልብ እንበል፤ ህዝብ ከህዝብ ጋር ሲጣላ የሚጠቀሙት ገዢዎች ናቸው። ህዝቡ ደግሞ ተጎጂ። በስልጣን ፍክክር ምክንያት ፖለቲከኞች ሲጣሉ ህዝቡ በንቃት መከታተል ይኖርበታል። ምክንያቱም ‘ሁለት ዝሆኖች ሲጣሉ የሚጎዳው ሳሩ ነው’ ይባል የለ።

ግጭት ያለ ነው። ግጭት መቀነስ እንጂ ማስወገድ አንችልም። ምክንያቱም ተፈጥራዊ ባህሪያችን ነው። ነገር ግን ለጋራ ጥቅማችን ስንል ግጭትን ትተን መስማማትን እንምረጥ። ይህ ማድረግ የምንችለው ደግሞ በህዝቦች መካከል መግባባት እንዲኖር የመወያያ መድረክ በመክፈት ነው።

ችግራችን ተነጋግረን መግባባት አለመቻላችን ነው።

(ይቺ ‘ፀረሽብር ሕግ’ ደግሞ አስታወስኳት። ‘ተነጋገረ’ ብለው ደግሞ …. በሉ ሳቄ መጣ …! በቃ ቻው።)

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ሰላማዊ ትግልን የሚገድብ ህገወጥ መመሪያ ተግባራዊ ሆነ

የአዲስ አበባ መስተዳድር ካቢኔ በተለይ የአንድነት ፓርቲን ህዝባዊ ንቅናቄ ለማፈን የሚያስችል አዲስ የሰላማዊ ሰልፍና የሕዝባዊ የፖለቲካ ስብሰባ መመሪያ በማዘጋጀት በህገወጥ መንገድ ተግባራዊ ማስደረጉ ታወቀ፡፡

ካቢኔው ያፀደቀው አዲሱ መመሪያ አንድነት ፓርቲ በመላ ሀገሪቱ እያደረገ ያለውን ስኬታማ ህዝባዊ ንቅናቄ ግምት ውስጥ የከተተ እንደሆነ ማንነታቸው እንዲገለፅባቸው ያልፈለጉ የአዲስ አበባ ፖሊስ ኮሚሽን ከፍተኛ ኃላፊ ለአንድነት ፓርቲ አመራሮች ገልፀዋል፡፡ የፖሊስ ኮሚሽን ኃላፊው እንደሚሉት ነሃሴ 10 ቀን 2005 ዓ.ም በአዲስ አበባ ካቢኔ የፀደቀውና ለኮሚሽኑ የተላከው መመሪያ ከሕዝብ ፊርማ ለማሰባሰብ፣በራሪ ወረቀት ለመበተን፣ በማይክራፎን ለመቀስቀስና ፖስተር ለመለጠፍ ውስብስብና የተለያዩ አካላትን ፍቃድ ማግኘትን የግድ የሚል ነው፡፡ ሃላፊው “መመሪያው በተለይ የአንድነት ፓርቲ እንቅስቃሴ በአዲስ አበባ ውጤታማ እንይሆን በችኮላ ተግባራዊ የተደረገ ነው፡፡” በማለት ጨምረው አስረድተዋል፡፡

የመመሪያው አወጣጥ ህገወጥነት እንደተጠበቀ ሆኖ መመሪያው በነጋሪት ጋዜጣ ታትሞ ሳይወጣና ለሚመለከታቸው ባለድርሻ አካላትም ሳይሰራጭ፤ የአዲስ አበባ ፓሊስ ኮሚሽን ህገወጡን መመሪያ እንዲያስፈፅም ከአዲስ አበባ መስተዳድር ከንቲባ ጽ/ቤት ትእዛዝ መተላለፉ በኢትዮጵያ የህግ የበላይነት እንዳበቃለት የሚያሳይ ነው፡፡

የመመሪያው ህገወጥነት አሳሳቢ በመሆኑ የአንድነት ፓርቲ ሊቀመንንበር ዶ/ር ነጋሶ ጊዳዳ እና የፓርቲው ዋና ፀሀፊ አቶ አስራት ጣሴ ከአዲስ አበባ ፓሊስ ኮሚሽን ኮሚሽነር ግርማ ካሳና ከኮሚሽኑ 3 ከፍተኛ ሀላፊዎች ጋር ባደረጉት ውይይት ህገወጡን መመሪያ ፖሊስ ኮሚሽኑ እንዲያስፈፅም መታዘዙን አረጋግጠዋል፡፡

“መመሪያው በ1983 ዓ.ም ከወጣው (አዋጅ ቁጥር 3/1983 ዓ.ም ስለ ሰላማዊ ሰልፍና ሕዝባዊ የፖለቲካ ስብሰባ ሥርዓት የወጣ አዋጅ ገጽ 12) አዋጅ ጋር የሚጣረስ ነው፣ በአዋጁ የአዲስ አበባ መስተዳድር የራሱን መመሪያ ማውጣት እንደሚችልም የሚገልፅ ነጥብ የለም፡፡ ” በሚል የአንድነት ፓርቲ አመራሮች የአዲስ አበባ መስተዳድር ከንቲባ ጽ/ቤት ሃላፊዎችን ቢጠይቁም የከንቲባ ጽ/ቤት ሀላፊ አቶ አሰግድ ጌታቸው “ለሰኞ ተመካክረን ምላሽ እንደጣችኋለን” የሚል ምላሽ ሰጥተዋቸዋል፡፡

የአንድነት ፓርቲ አመራሮች ዛሬ ከሰአት ብሔራዊ ምርጫ ቦርድ ስለመመሪያው የሚያውቀው ነገር እንዳለ በቦርዱ ጽ/ቤት በአካል ተኝተው ጥያቄ ቢያቀርቡም የቦርዱ ዋና ፀሀፊ አቶ ነጋ “ምርጫ ቦርድ እንዲህ አይነት መመሪያ ስለመውጣቱ የሚያውቀው ነገር የለም” የሚል ምላሽ ሰጥተዋል፡፡

አንድነት ፓርቲ “የሚሊዮኖች ድምፅ ለነፃነት” በሚል መሪ ቃል በመላው ሀገሪቱ እያካሄደ ላለው ህዝባዊ ንቅናቄ ከህዝብ ፊርማ ሲያሰባስቡ፣በራሪ ወረቀት ሲበትኑና የመኪና ላይ ቅስቀሳ ሲያካሂዱ ከ72 በላይ የሚሆኑ አባላቱ በአዲስ አበባ ህገወጥ እስር ተፈፅሞባቸው እንደነበር ይታወሳል፡፡

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የሕወሐት ባለስልጣናት የአሜሪካ ቆይታ፤ የከዱ አሉ

ከኢየሩሳሌም አርአያ

August 29, 2013

በአባይ ወልዱ የሚመራውና ሰባት ከፍተኛ የሕወሐት ባለስልጣናት የተካተቱበት ቡድን በአሜሪካ አራት ከተሞች ባካሄደው ስብሰባ በተለይ በላስቬጋስ ጠንካራ ተቃውሞ እንደገጠመው በስፍራው የተገኙ ምንጮች አስታወቁ። ቡድኑ በዋሽንግተን ኢትዮጲያ ኤምባሲ በጀመረውና በመቀጠል በላስቬጋስ፣ ሲያትልና ካሊፎርኒያ ከተሞች ባካሄደው ስብሰባ “አላማ” አድርጎ የያዛቸው ጉዳዮች እንደነበሩ የጠቆሙት ምንጮች፣ እነሱም፥ “የመለስ ፋውንዴሽን፣ የአባይ ግድብና የ40/60 የቤቶች ግንባታ.” ሲሆኑ፣ ለነዚህ ማስፈፀሚያ “ገንዘብ አዋጡ” የሚለው ዋናው ግብ እንደነበር አስረድተዋል። በተለይ ደግሞ « በትግራይ ተወላጁ ዘንድ ሕወሐት የለም፣ ተከፋፍሏል፣ ተዳክሟል፣ ፓርቲው ሰው የለውም፤» የሚለውን እራሱ ቡድኑ በማንሳት ለገዛ ጥያቄው መልስ ሲሰጥ « ሕወሐት አሁንም ሃይል አለው፤ አልተዳከመም» በማለት አድራጊ- ፈጣሪ በመሆን ስልጣኑን በበላይነት ተቆጣጥሮ እንደያዘና ቡድኑ የመጣውም “አይዟችሁ” ለማለት እንደሆነ መገለፁን በቅርብ የተከታተሉት ምንጮች አስታውቀዋል። ቡድኑ በተጨማሪም ፥ « ልማት አልምተናል፤ ትግራይ እየለማ ነው፤ ህዝቡን ተጠቃሚ እያደረገነው ነው» ከማለቱ ባሻገር « በትግራይ ተወላጁ ላይ አደጋ ተደቅኗል፤ የሙስሊሙ፣ የትምክህተኞችና የሽብርተኞች አደገኛ እንቅስቃሴ እያንዣበበ መሆኑን፣…የተደቀነብህን አደጋ ከጎናችን ሆነህ ተከላከል፤ ያለበለዚያ ግን ሊያጠፉህ ነው፤» ሲሉ መናገራቸውን የገለፁት ምንጮች አክለውም፣ « አባላት የሆናችሁ ተወደደም ተጠላ መሬትና መኖሪያ ቤት እንሰጣችኋለን፤ ለዚህም ከእኛ ጎን መሰለፍ አለባችሁ» በማለት ሊሸነግሉ መሞከራቸውን ጠቁመዋል።

ከዋሽንግተን ስብሰባ (ለሁለት ተከፍሎ ነው የተካሄደው) በኋላ ወደ ሶስቱ ከተሞች ተከፋፍለው እንደሄዱ ሲታወቅ፥ ሲያትል አቶ ብርሃነ ማረት፣ እንዲሁም ላስቬስጋስ አባይ ወልዱና ተክለወይኒ አሰፋ መሄዳቸው ታውቋል። በተለይ በላስቬጋስ ጠንካራ ተቃውሞ የገጠማቸው እነአባይ ስብሰባው ከቀኑ 2፡00 ሰዓት ይጀመራል ተብሎ ከአራት ሰዓት በኋላ ዘግይቶ አመሻሽ ላይ መጀመሩን ምንጮች ገልፀዋል። ስብሰባው ሲጀመር ከላይ የተገለፁትን ጉዳዮች ያደመጠው ተሰብሳቢ ተከታዮቹን ጥያቄ አቀረበ፤ « ዴሞክራሲ አለ ትላላችሁ፣ ነገር ግን ዴሞክራሲ የለም፤ በሃሳብ የሚቃወማችሁን ታስራላችሁ፣ ታንገላታላችሁ፣ የሰብአዊ መብት ረገጣ ታካሂዳላችሁ፤ ከእናንተ የተለየ ሃሳብ ያለውን ትፈራላችሁ፤ ለምንድነው ይህን ሁሉ የምታደርጉት?….በማ.ረ.ት.(ማህበር ረድኤት ትግራይ) በትግራይ ሕዝብ ስም የምትሰበስቡትን ገንዘብ ለአራጣ ብድር እና ለፖለቲካ መጠቀሚያ በመሳሪያነት እያዋላችሁት ነው። ለምን?….ትእምት (ኤፈርት) ማነው ባለቤቱ?..በማን ነው የሚመራው?..ማነው የሚቆጣጠረው?..ለመሆኑ ኦዲት ተደርጎ ያውቃል ወይ?..እነማናቸው እየተጠቀሙበት ያለው?» የሚሉት ዋና ዋናዎቹ ጥያቄዎች እንደነበሩ ምንጮቹ የጠቆሙ ሲሆን፣ አባይ ወልዱ « እኔ አልመልስም፣ ተ/ወይኒ መልስ ይስጥበት» ቢሉም ነገር ግን ግልፅና አግባብ ያለው ምላሽ ከመስጠት ይልቅ ወደ ማመናጨቅና ቁጣ ያመሩት ተ/ወይኒ በዚህ ድርጊታቸው በርካታ ተሰብሳቢዎችን እንዳሳዘኑ አስረድተዋል። በዚህ የተበሳጨው ተሰብሳቢ « ጥያቄያችን አልተመለሰም» በማለቱና ሁከትና ያለመደማመጥ በማየሉ ስብሰባው እንዲቋረጥ መደረጉን የጠቆሙት ምንጮች፣ የጥያቄና ተቃውሞው መብዛት ያስደነገጣቸው ባለስልጣናቱ የመረጡት ማምለጫ በላስቬጋስ ተወካያቸው በሆነውና መድረክ ሲመራ በነበረው አቶ ተወልደ በኩል፥ « አዳራሹን የተከራየንበት ሰአት አብቅቷል፤ ስለዚህም ስብሰባው አብቅቷል » በማለት በአስቂኝ ሰበብ መቋረጡን አያይዘው ገልፀዋል። እነአባይ ከአዳራሹ ሲወጡ ቀድሞ ውጭ ሆኖ ይጠብቃቸው በነበረው ተሰብሳቢ ውግዘትና ስድብ እንደደረሰባቸው ያስታወቁት ምንጮች « ሌባ..ሌባ…ሙሰኞች..» የሚሉ ተቃውሞዎች ጎላ ብለው እንደተሰሙ አመልክተዋል።

ስብሰባዎቹን የታዘቡ ወገኖች በሰጡት አስተያየት እንዲህ ብለዋል፤ « በአንድ በኩል ልማት እያካሄድን ነው፤ እያሉና ገንዘብ እየጠየቁ በሌላ በኩል “ትግራዋይ አደጋ ተደቅኖብሃል፣ ከጎናችን ሆነህ ተከላከል፤” ማለት እርስ በርሱ የሚጋጭና ድጋፍ የማግኛ የፖለቲካ የፖለቲካ ቁማር ነው። ያልተጠየቁትን የፓርቲውን ህልውና (ስለ ሕወሐት) አንስቶ መነገሩም አስገራሚና አጠያያቂ ነው።» ሲሉ ትዝብታቸውን የጀመሩት እነዚህ ወገኖች በማያያዝም፥ « እነዚህ ሰባት ባለስልጣናት ወደ አሜሪካ የመጡት ከነዘመዶቻቸው፣ ጋሻ ጃግሬዎቻቸው ሲሆን፣ ባለስልጣናቱ የመንግስት ወኪሎች እንደመሆናቸው – በማን ገንዝብ ነው የሚንቀሳቀሱት?..የሚለው መጠየቅ አለበት። በሕዝብ ገንዝብ እየተንፈላሰሱ እንደሆነ ግልፅ ነው። የትግራይ ተወላጁን ብቻ ለይተው ስብሰባ የሚጠሩት ለምንድነው?…በእርግጥ ስላሰቡለት ነው?…የሚሉት ሲፈተሹ .መልሱ በጭራሽ አይደለም ነው። አላማቸውና ትኩረት የሰጡት የትግራይ ተወላጁን እየተንከባከቡት እንደሆነና ተጠቃሚ መሆኑን ለማሳየት በመፈለግ፣ እግረ-መንገዳቸውን ከቀሪው ኢትዮጲያዊ ወገኑ ጋር በመነጠል..ድጋፍ ለማግኘትና በውስጣቸው የተፈጠረውን ቀውስ በዚህ በኩል ቀዳዳውን ለመድፈን የሚደረግ የስልጣን እድሜ ማራዘሚያ ስልት ነው። ..ደግሞስ ሕወሐት “አጋር” ከሚላቸው ብ.አ.ዴ.ን፣ ኦ.ህ.ዴ.ድ.፣ ደቡብ ሕዝቦች ተለይቶ፣ በሕዝብ ገንዘብ ስብሰባ የሚጠራበትና ያሻውን የሚያደርግበት አግባብ ምንድነው?..የሚለው ከዚህ ጋር መታየት ያለብት ነው። ፖለቲካዊ ፍጆታና ማንአለብኝነት በፓርቲው በመነገሱ እንደሆነ ደግሞ ግልፅ ነው።» ብለዋል።

ይህ በእንዲህ እንዳለ፥ አሜሪካ ከመጡት ሰባት የሕወሐት ባለስልጣናት መካከል- ማለትም አባይ ወልዱ፣ ብርሃነ ኪ/ማሪያም፣ ተ/ወይኒ አሰፋና ዳንኤል አሰፋ በዋነኛነት ሲጠቀሱ፣ ከሰባቱ ሶስቱ ስብሰባውን ሳያካሂዱ ከቡድኑ ተገንጥለው በአሜሪካ መቅረታቸውን ምንጮች አረጋግጠዋል። ቤተሰቦቻቸውን ይዘው (ልጆቻቸውን ጭምር) በመምጣት አሜሪካ ጥገኝነት ጠይቀው መቅረትን የመረጡት ባለስልጣናት ውስጥ የሕወሐት ማ/ኮሚቴ አባላት እንዳሉ ያረጋገጡት ምንጮች በቅርቡ ዝርዝሩን ይፋ እንደሚያደርጉ አስታውቀዋል።

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Finland’s envoy exposes “the dark side” of Ethiopia’s regime

by Keffyalew Gebremedhin – The Ethiopia Observatory

At the end of his four-year duty tour in Ethiopia as Finland’s Ambassador, Mr. Leo Olasvirta made some observations in his August 14, 2013 article, which appears on the Finnish Foreign Ministry webpage (in Finnish), highlighting Ethiopia’s contributions to the stability of the surrounding troubled Horn of Africa countries.

In his elaboration, he attributes this to Ethiopia’s  strength, especially its active role in promoting peace and good neighborly policy. This has become necessary with aim of avoiding escalating situations in neighboring countries that “could jeopardize  the country’s economy and prosperity.”

Regarding the poor record of the regime in human rights, Ambassador Olasvirta was upfront in stating, “Ethiopia does not have respect for human rights nor does the state have a democratic model”, although the country is relatively safe and stable. In other words, he cites as an example the fact that this far Ethiopia has not experienced a major terrorist attack, at a time when Islamic fundamentalists are trying to draw the region into their sphere.

On the other hand, the ambassador notes that Ethiopia’s major challenge is “the authoritarian regime and its democratic deficit.” He refers to this as “Ethiopia’s dark side.”

To amplify what he meant by that, he pointed out  human rights violations that occur from time to time, with the arrests of activists and journalists. He links this to the open-ended anti-terrorism law, empowering the state to violate at will the human rights of its citizens. He says, “The Anti-terrorism law is formulated in such a way that a mere opinion, or contact with suspected individuals could trigger an investigation and the consequent criminality.”

Furthermore, Ambassador Leo Olasvirta observes, “Rough governance is justified by concerns about external and internal threats.” The fact is that, these are means they use “to justify strengthening the regime’s powers.”

As far as the economy is concerned, the ambassador believes that “the regime has chosen a game of chance”, promising the country that it would become middle-income. In the meantime, it urges and expects, he says, people “to be obedient and self-sacrificing”, as they await future rewards.

What this has done to the country’s reality is that, the ambassador opines, with political and economic power concentrated in the regime, people are “feeling excluded, while under the surface their rebelliousness smoldering.”

In turning his attention to the frauds perpetrated in the 2010 election, in which he recalls the ruling party took 99.6 percent of the votes, Ambassador Olasvirta says, “In the 2010 elections, the House got only one opposition representative; and in the local elections in 2013, again the dominant party received almost one hundred percent of the vote.”

His concern now is that the next election, for which there is not “enough time for democratic reforms, because of which the pressure is increasing.”

As far as Finland is concerned, he says, “Finland has had bilateral talks clearly emphasizing the need for poverty reduction, promotion of human rights, good governance, the information society, the rights of civil societies, peace and security, as well as the importance of land registration and eliminating discrimination against minorities.”

In 2013, Finland’s bilateral aid to Ethiopia is about 15.7 million euros. The next bilateral cooperation cycle between the two countries covers the period from 2013-2016.

In terms of Ethiopia-Finland trade, to date it is limited to a paltry five million euros. The hope for the future is Ethiopia possibly being interested in Finnish cargo equipment, as it is engaged in expansion of Ethiopian Airlines cargo services.

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የኢህአዴግ ስውር ሴራ በባሌ ሮቤ ከተማ ተጋለጠ!!! አንድነት ለዴሞክራሲና ለፍትሕ ፓርቲ (አንድነት)

                            የኢህአዴግ ስውር ሴራ በባሌ ሮቤ ከተማ ተጋለጠ!!!

                       ሐገሪቷን የሚያስተዳድራት ማነው? የባሌ ሮቤ ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ ለምን ተደናቀፈ?

                       ከአንድነት ለዲሞክራሲና ለፍትህ ፓርቲ (አንድነት) የተሰጠ ማብራሪያ

የሚሊየኖች ድምፅ ለነፃነት ንቅናቄ በአራቱም የኢትዮጵያ ማዕዘናት የነፃነት ድምፅ ማስተጋባት ከጀመረ እንሆ ዛሬ ስልሳ ሰባተኛ(67) ቀኑን ይዟል፡፡ ፓርቲያችን በእዚህ ታላቅ ሕዝባዊ የነፃነት ንቅናቄ መሪር የሆነ ውድ ዋጋ እየከፈለ ድምፅ አልባ ለሆኑት ሚሊዮኖች ኢትዮጵያውያን ድምፅ በመሆኑ ታላቅ ደስታ ይሰማዋል፡፡
ላለፋት ስምንት ዓመታት ሰቆቃ እና ግፍ በገዢዎቻችን ሲፈፀምበት የኖረው የገጠሩም ሆነ የከተማው ታላቁ ህዝባችን ‹አንድነት ፓርቲአችን አስትንፋሳችን› በማለት አንድነት ፓርቲ ባመቻቸለት ህዝባዊ ስብሰባዎች እና ሠላማዊ ሠልፎች በነቂስ በመውጣት የታፈነ ብሶቱን በግልፅ በአደባባይ ላይ በማሰማቱ ኢህአዴግ እና ህዝቡ ዛሬም ድረስ ተለያይተው እንዳሉ አንድነት ፓርቲ በማያወላዳ ሁኔታ በሚሊዮኖች ድምፅ ንቅናቄ በህዝባችን መሀል በመገኘት አረጋግጧል፡፡
ኢህአዴግ የቀረው በውሸት እና በሴራ የተሞላ የቅጥፈት ፕሮፖጋንዳ ብቻ መሆኑን ይበልጥ ያረጋገጠልን የባሌ ዞን አስተዳደር እና የሮቤ ከተማ አስተዳደር ያዘጋጁት በሀገር ሽማግሌዎች ስም የተቀነባበረው የእናደራድራችሁ አሳፋሪ ድራማ ለኦሆዴድም ሆነ ለኢህአዴግ ታላቅ ውድቀት ነው፡፡
አንድነት ፓርቲ በባሌ ሮቤ ከተማ ሠላማዊ ሰልፍ ለማድረግ ህጉ በሚያዘው መሰረት ነሐሴ 13/2005 የሰላማዊ ሰልፍ ማሳወቂያ ደብዳቤ ለከተማዋ አስተዳደር አስገባ፡፡ ጉዳዩን የሚከታተሉት የፓርቲው ተወካዮች ደብዳቤው ከገባ ከ48 ሠዓት በኋላ ወደ መደበኛ ቅስቀሳቸው መግባት እንደሚችሉ ህጉ እንደሚፈቅድላቸው የተረዱት የፓርቲያችን ትንታግ ታጋዮች ጊዜ ሳያባክኑ የተዘጋጀውን የቅስቀሳ በራሪ ወረቀት በከተማ ውስጥ ማሰራጨት ጀመሩ፡፡
ሁኔታውን በቅርብ ሲከታተሉት የነበሩት የፌደራል መንግስት እና የክልሉ መንግስት ከሮቤ ከተማ አስተዳደር ጋር በመቀናጀት አንድነት ፓርቲ ላይ ያጠመዱት ሴራ ለመተግበር የከተማው ከንቲባ አቶ አብዱል ላጥፍ ነሓሴ 13/2005 ለገባላቸው የፓርቲው ደብዳቤ መልስ ያሉትን ነሓሴ 13/2005 ቀን እንደ ተፃፈ ተደርጎ ፓርቲው አላማ ያሉትን ዘርዝረው ነሓሴ 17/2005 ዓ.ም ደብዳቤ ለፓርቲው ተወካዮች ሰጡ፡፡ የተባሉትን ሰበቦች እና ምክንያቶችን በሙሉ አሟልቶ ፓርቲው የእዚያኑ ዕለት በደብዳቤ ምላሽ ቢሰጥም የከተማው አስተዳደር ባለስልጣኖች ከንቲባውም ጭምር ቢሮአቸውን ዘግተው ጠፉ፡፡ መዝገብቤትም ለማስገባት የተደረገው ጥረት በመዝገብ ቤት ሰራተኞች እምቢ ባይነት ሳይሳካ ቀረ፡፡ የአምባ ገነኑን የኢህአድግ ባለስልጣኖችን ነውረኛ ስራ ቀድሞ የሚያውቀው የአንድነት ፓርቲ የተዘጋጀውን ደብዳቤ በሪኮማንዴ በፓስታ ቤት በኩል አንዲደርሳቸው በማድረግ ምንም መፈናፈኛ ሰበብ እንዳያገኙ አደረገ፡፡ ግራ የገባቸው የከተማው አስተዳዳሪዎች ተሰባስበው ከላይ በተሰጣቸው ትእዛዝ መሰረት አንድነትን የማጥቅያ ሌላ ሴራ ተጠቅመው መጥታችሁ የሰላማዊ ሰልፍ ማሳወቂያውን ቅፅ ሙሉ በማለት ለተወካዮቻችን ጥሪ አደረጉ፡፡ የፓርቲው ተወካዮች ስራቸውን እየሰሩ ቅፁን የሚሞሉ እና የሚፈርሙ አባላትን በመመደብ ተወካይ ብቻ ወደ ወስተዳድሩ ፅ/ቤት ላኩ፡፡ የጠበቃቸው ግን የተቀናጀ ሴራ ነው፡፡ አንድነት ፓርቲን በህግ የሚያስጠይቅ እንዲሁም ያዘጋጁትን የሀይል ርምጃ ህጋዊ የሚያደርግ፤ ደብዳቤ ካስገባን 48 ሰዓታት ባነሰ ጊዜ ሰልፍ እወጣለሁ ብሎ ፓርቲው ነሓሴ 17/2005 ደብዳቤ እንዳስገባ ተደርጎ ይህንኑ ቀን የጠቀሰ ቅፅ አዘጋጅተው የአንድነትን ተወካዮች አንዲፈርሙ ተጠየቁ፡፡ ቀድሞውኑ ሴራው የገባው የአንድነት ፓርቲ ከፍተኛ አመራር በሰጠው መመርያ መሰረት ቅፁ ላይ የምንፈርመው ደብዳቤአችንን ያስገባንበትን ነሐሴ 13/2005 ቀን ከጠቀሰ ብቻ ነው በማለት የአንድነት ተወካዮች አንፈርምም አሉ፡፡
አንድነት ፓርቲን በጉልበትም በህግም ለማኮላሸት ኢህአድግ ያዘጋጀውን ሴራ በጥበብ ማክሸፍ ተቻለ፡፡ ኢህአዴግ ለሌላ ሴራ ማቀንቀኑን ወድያውኑ ተያያዘው፡፡
የፓርቲው ቀስቃሽ ቡድን በ50.000 የሚገመት በራሪ ወረቀት መበተኑን እና ከ5.000 በላይ ፖስተር በእለቱ በመለጠፍ የፓርቲውን መልእክት ለታፈነው የሮቤ ከተማ ህዝብ አደረሰ፡፡ በሁለት መኪና መጠነኛ ቅስቀሳ ካደረገ ከ 1፡00 ሰዓት በኋላ መኪናዎቹ ከነቀስቃሽ ቡድኑ ከነሀሴ 18/2005 እስከ እሁድ ነሀሴ 19/2005 ድረስ በታጣቂዎች ከቆሙበት አንዳይንቀሳቀሱ ታገቱ፡፡ የትራፊክ ፖሊሶችም መኪናዎቻችንን በማገት ያለቆቻቸውን ትዕዛዝ ተግባራዊ አደረጉ፡፡ በዚህ መሀል ነው በሽማግሌ ስም ያደራጃቸውን 15 የሚሆኑ የኦህዴድ ካድሬዎች ‹‹ነገ የሚከሰተው ደም መፋሰስ አሳስቦን ነው የመጣነው እናወያያችሁ›› በማለት ከምሽቱ 1፡30 ባረፍንበተ ሆቴል ተሰባስበው የመጡት፡፡ ለሀገር ሽማግሌ ክብር የሚሰጠው አንድነት ፓርቲ ሽማግሌዎች የተላኩበትን ዝርዝር መልእክት ካዳመጠ በኋላ የእሁዱን ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ በምንም ተአምር እንደማንሰርዘው፤ ይልቁንም የከተማው መስተዳድር ለፖሊስ የሀይል እርምጃ ውሰዱ ብሎ ያስተላለፈውን መመሪያ እንዲስብና ህገመንግስቱን እንዲያከብር ሽማግሌዎቹ ምክራቸውን ለገዢው ፓርቲ ባለ ስልጣኖች እንዲለግሱ መልእክት በመንገር ውይይቱ ከምሽቱ 3፡00 ሰዓት ተጠናቀቀ፡፡ በኢህአድግ የተለመደ ቀመር የቅስቀሳ ጊዜያችንን በጉልበት እና በማስመሰል ለመስረቅ የተደረገውን የተለመደ ቅንብር አንድነት ፓርቲ ቀድሞ የሚያውቀው ጉዳይ በመሆኑ ሁለት ተደራዳሪዎችን ብቻ በመመደቡ ሌላው ግብረኃይል ሳይዘናጋ የቅስቀሳ ወረቀቱን በማሰራጨቱ ኢህአዴግ ያሰበውን አንድነትን የመነጠል ሴራ ሳይሳካለት ቀርቷል፡፡
እነዚያው የሀገር ሽማግሌዎች የተባሉ ግለሰቦች ‹‹መስተዳድሩ አሁን ሊያነጋግራችሁ ዝግጁ ነው፡፡ ቢሮ ድረስ ኑ እና ተወያዩ›› በማለት በሰላማዊ ሰልፉ ቀን እሁድ ከጥዋቱ 1፡00 ሰዓት እኛን ቀጥረውን በሰዓቱ ስንደርስ የኦሆዴድ ባለስልጣኖች ግን የጠዋቱ የቅስቀሳ ስዓታችንን ለመስረቅ ከጠዋቱ 1፡40 በሁለት ኮብራ መኪና እና ታርጋ በሌላት በአንድ መኪና በደህንነት ባለ ስልጣኖች ታጅበው መጡ፡፡
ውይይቱ በዞኑ ም/አስተዳዳሪ አቶ ሰሎሞን አወያይነት የከተማው ከንቲባ፣ የኦሆዴድ ተጠሪ የኮምኒኬሽን ሀላፊ ሌሎችም ከ15 ያላነሱ ባለ ስልጣኖች እንዲሁም በርካታ የሀገር ሽማግሌዎች በተገኙበት ሦስት የመንግስት ካሜራዎች ተጠምደው ውይይቱ ተጀመረ፡፡
የሽማግሌ ካባ የለበሱት የኦሆዴድ ካድሬ የሆኑት የሀገር ሽማግሌዎች ተወካይ ነኝ ያሉት ግለሰብ ውይይቱን በንግግር ሲጀምሩ ‹‹እናንተ የነፍጠኛን ስርዓት ልታመጡብን ነው፡፡ እኛን ሳታነጋግሩ ሳንፈቅድላችሁ ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ ለማድረግ እንዴት አሰባችሁ? አሁንም ይህንን ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ አታደርጓትም፡፡ የሮቤ ህዝብ እኛን ዎክሎናል መንግስት እንኳን ቢፈቅድላችሁ እኛ ሽማግሌዎች አይደረግም ብለናል አቁሙ›› በማለት የተጫኑትን ዉሳኔ በሚደንቅ ሁኔታ አስተላለፉ፡፡ በእዚያው መድረክ የኢህአዴግ/ኦህዴድ ማንነት እና ጭንብል ለዓለም ህዝብ ተጋለጠ፡፡ አንድነት ፓርቲም ይህንን ከላይ እስከታች ባሉ ባለስልጣኖች የተቀነባበረውን ድራማ በካሜራ ቀርፆ ያስቀረ በመሆኑ በእጃችን የሚገኘውን የውይይቱን ይዘት የያዘውን ቨድዮ እንድትመለከቱ በአክብሮት እየጋበዝን አንድነት ፓርቲ የኢህአዴግን እውነተኛ ገፅታ በመረጃ ማጋለጡን አጠናክሮ ዛሬም ነገም ይቀጥላል፡፡
በሮቤ ከተማ ለቅስቀሳ የተላከው ቡድን በመስተዳድሩ ባለስልጣናት ትእዛዝ ከምሽቱ 4፡00 ስዓት አልጋ ከያዙበት ታይታኒክ ሆቴል በግፍ ተባረው፤ የያዙትን ቦርሳ እንኳን ከመኝታ ክፍላችው ሳያወጡ በግፍ አውላላ ሜዳ ላይ ወንጀል እንዲፈፀምባቻው የከተማው መስተዳድር የፍፀመውን መንግስታዊ ውንብድና ፓርቲአችን በዝምታ የሚያልፈው ጉዳይ አይደለም፡፡ የመኪና ሹፊሮቻችንን በውድቅት ሌሊት ጭንብል ባጠለቁ ከ 20 በላይ ታጣቂዎችን በማሰማራት በማስወረር በጉልበት ክፍላቸው ውስጥ በመግባት ስለተፈፀመው ወንጀል አንድነት ፓርቲ በህግ የሚጠይቅ ሲሆን ታላቁ የሮቤ ከተማ ነዋሪ ህዝብ መብቱን ለማስከበር ያደረገውን ትንቅንቅ አንድነት ፓርቲ ከልብ ያደንቃል፡፡ ምስጋናውንም በእዚህ አጋጣሚ ያቀርባል፡፡
ድል ለታፈነው የኢትዮጵያ ህዝብ!!!
                                              አንድነት ለዴሞክራሲና ለፍትህ ፓርቲ
                                                        ነሐሴ 21 ቀን 2005 ዓ.ም
                                                                   አዲስ አባባ

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መንግሥት ለተፈጠረው ችግር በአስቸኳይ ማስተካከያ እንዲያደርግ እንጠይቃለን! ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ

August 28, 2013

ነሃሴ 21/2ዐዐ5 ዓ/ም.
ከሰማያዊ ፓርቲ የተሰጠ መግለጫ

ፓርቲያችን ሰማያዊ በህገ መንግሥቱ በተደነገገው ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ የማድረግ መብቱን ተጠቅሞ ለመንግሥት ጥያቄዎችን በማቅረብ ግንቦት 25/2ዐዐ5 ዓ/ም. ታላቅ ህዝባዊ ተቃውሞ ሰልፍ በተሳካ ሁኔታ አድርጓል፡፡

መንግሥት ላቀረብናቸው ጥያቄዎች በሦስት ወር ውስጥ መልስ የማይሠጥ ከሆነ በተጠናከረና በተደራጀ መልኩ ጥያቄያችንን በድጋሚ በህዝባዊ ተቃውሞ ሰልፍ እንደምናቀርብ በግንቦት 25/2ዐዐ5 ዓ/ም. በተደረገው ሠልፍ ላይ ለህዝብ ቃል በገባነው መሠረት ነሃሴ 26/2ዐዐ5 ዓ/ም. በድጋሚ ሰልፍ ጠርተን አስፈላጊውን ዝግጅት እያደረግን መሆኑን ለህዝብ በልዩ ልዩ መገናኛ ዘዴዎች ገልፀናል፡፡

ከዚህ በተጨማሪም ለሰልፉ በሰላም መጠናቀቅ አስፈላጊው ትብብር እንዲደረግልን አዋጁ በሚጠይቀው መሠረት ለአዲስ አበባ መስተዳድር ስብሰባና ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ ማሰወቂያ ክፍል ጉዳዩን እንዲያውቀው አድርገናል፡፡

ይሁን እንጂ ፓርቲያችን ህዝባዊ ተቃውሞ ሰልፍ በጠራበት ግዜና ቦታ ላይ በሌላ አካል ሰልፉ መጠራቱን በትናንትናው ዕለት ነሀሴ 20 ቀን 2005 ዓ.ም በመንግሥት ቴሌቪዥን ዜና ሰምተናል፡፡ በተጨማሪም ለመንግሥት መዋቅር ዜጐች በዚህ ሰልፍ እንዲወጡ በግድ እንዲፈርሙ እየተደረገ መሆኑን ከአዲስ አበባ ኑዋሪዎች አረጋግጠናል፡፡

ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ አስፈላጊውን የህግ ቅድመ ሁኔታ አሟልቶ ነሐሴ 26/2ዐዐ5 ዓ/ም. በመስቀል አደባባይ የጠራውን ተቃውሞ ሰልፍ ለህዝብ ያሳወቀና አስፈላጊውን ዝግጅት ያጠናቀቀ በመሆኑ ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ ሰልፍ በጠራበት ቀንና ሠዓት በሌሎች አካላት የተጠራው ሰልፍ ከመረጃ እጥረት ከሆነ እንዲሠረዝ እየጠየቅን ይህ ካልሆነ ግን ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ በህጋዊ መብቱ የሚያደርገውን የተቃውሞ ሰልፍ ሆን ብሎ ለመረበሽና አቅጣጫውን ለማስቀየስና በዜጐች መካከል ግጭት ለመፍጠር የታቀደ ስለሆነ ለሚፈጠረው ችግር ተጠያቂ መንግሥት መሆኑን የኢትዮጵያ ህዝብና የሚመለከታቸው አካላት እንዲያውቁት በአፅንዖት እንገልፃለን፡፡

በመጨረሻም መንግስት ዜጐችን ያለፈቃዳቸው በማስፈረም ተገደው ሰልፍ እንዲወጡ ማድረግ ህገ ወጥ ስለሆነ፣ በአስቸኳይ እንዲያቆም እንጠይቃለን፡

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Corruption in the Ethiopian JUST US Sector by Alemayehu G. Mariam

For the past several months, I have been commenting on the findings of the World Bank’s “Diagnosing Corruption in Ethiopia”, a 448-page report covering eight sectors (health, education, rural water supply, justice, construction, land, telecommunications and mining). In this my sixth commentary, I focus on “corruption in the justice sector”. The other five commentaries are available at my blog site.

Talking about corruption in the Ethiopian “justice sector” is like talking about truth in Orwell’s 1984 Ministry of Truth (“Minitrue”).  The purpose of Minitrue is to create and maintain the illusion that the Party is absolute, all knowing, all-powerful and infallible. The purpose of the Ministry of Justice in Ethiopia is to create the illusion that the ruling regime under the command and control of the Tigrean People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) masquerading as the Ethiopian People’s Democratic Front (EPDRF) is absolute, all knowing, all-powerful and infallible.

I have long caricatured the “justice sector” of the TPLF/EPDRF as a kangaroo justice system founded on a sham, corrupt and whimsical legal process. What passes off as a “justice system” in Ethiopia is little more than a marketplace where “justice” is bought and sold in a monopoly controlled by one man supported by a few nameless, faceless and clueless men who skulk in the shadows of power. It is a justice system in which universal principles of law and justice are disregarded, subverted, perverted and mocked. It is a system where the poor, the marginalized, the audacious journalists, dissidents, opposition and civic society leaders are legally lynched despite the criticism and bootless cries of the international community. It is a system in which regime leaders, their families, friends and cronies are above the law and spell justice “JUST US”.

My first critique of the TPLF/EPDRF “justice system” appeared in 2006 when I wrote a 32-page analysis titled, “Keystone Cops, Prosecutors and Judges in a Police State.” It was written in the first year of what has become my long day’s journey into the dark night of advocacy against human rights violations in Ethiopia and Africa. The piece was intended to be a critical analysis of the trial of the so-called Kality defendants consisting of some 130 or so major opposition leaders, human rights advocates, civic society activists, journalists and others in the aftermath of the 2005 election. I tried to demonstrate that the show trial of those defendants was little more than a third-rate theatrical production staged to dupe the international community. I also tried to show how a dysfunctional and bankrupt judicial system was used to destroy political opposition and dissent. I described the “judicial proceedings” of the Kality defendants as “an elaborate hoax, a make-believe tribunal complete with hand-picked judges, trumped up charges, witless prosecutors, no procedures and predetermined outcomes set up to produce only one thing: a  monumental miscarriage of justice.”

A glossy “diagnosis” of corruption in the Ethiopian justice sector

The WB’s “diagnosis” of corruption in “Ethiopia’s justice sector” is based on “interviews of 60 individuals” including “federal judges and prosecutors”, police, private attorneys, etc. in the capital and at another location. No ordinary citizens were included in the interview panel or the smaller focus groups. The study is intended to “explore the incidence of corruption in Ethiopia’s justice sector (including not only the courts but also several other organizations).” The “justice sector” includes, among others, “courts, police, prosecutors, administrative agencies with quasi-judicial powers, and public and private attorneys, prisons, and those in the executive and legislative branches responsible for enacting the laws and regulations governing their operations”.

The report begins with unusual disclaimers and apologia. The author proclaims that “this report begins from an agnostic standpoint—attempting only to document reality in Ethiopia’s justice sector and to compare it… with the situation elsewhere in African and other countries…” It is not clear what she means by “an agnostic standpoint”, but her analysis is frontloaded with servilely apologetic language manifestly intended not to offend or appear to point an accusatory finger at the ruling regime in Ethiopia. The report appears to have been written with some trepidation; perhaps the author was afraid of a backlash (tongue-lash) from the regime. The author timorously tiptoes around well-established and notorious facts about corruption in the regime’s justice sector. In light of the many disclaimers, reservations and contingencies in the report, it is obvious that the author does not want to call a spade a spade, so she calls the spade a bucket. But corruption by any disclaimer is still corruption; and Ethiopia’s justice sectors reeks of corruption.

The author claims an examination of  “corruption in the justice sector is important because it undermines the peaceful resolution of conflicts, the control of corruption in other sectors, the strengthening of the normative framework underlying private and public actions (the rule of law), and the creation of a predictable environment for public and private transactions.” According to the study, corruption in the Ethiopian justice sector “takes one of two forms: (a) political interference with the independent actions of courts or other sector agencies, or (b) payment or solicitation of bribes or other considerations to alter a decision or action.” The study claims the “most common form of corruption involves bribes solicited by or offered to police to ignore a criminal offense, not make an arrest, or not bring witnesses or suspects to court (which can cause a provisional adjournment of the case). Traffic police are the worst offenders.” Another “common form of corruption” involves “payment of court staff to misplace case files or evidence” (a practice that has nearly disappeared because of new judicial policies on archive management introduced under a Canadian International Development Agency program”.

The author provides a catalogue of corrupt practices which she claims are disputed by various respondents in her study but include “(a) sales of judgments or other judicial actions in civil disputes; (b) lawyers’ solicitation of “bribes” that never reached the bench; (c) prosecutors’ misuse of their own powers, in response to bribes or political directives, to advance or paralyze a case; and (d) the corrupt actions of various officials entrusted with enforcement of judgments, especially in civil cases.” She attributes the divergence in viewpoints to a “likely gap between perceptions and reality [which] are partly a function of the persistent lack of transparency in personnel policies.”

What is remarkable about the WB “justice sector” study is the fact that the author, by focusing on the “most common form of corruption” (i.e. petty police, particularly traffic police, corruption), fails to critically probe grand corruption involving party officials and regime leaders and their cronies who routinely subvert the justice system through political interference and pressure to protect their political and economic interests. She circumvents serious inquiry into grand corruption in the “justice sector” by providing catalogues of “potential forms of criminal and civil corruption” and “corruption risks”. She appears averse to investigating high-level corruption that occurs in the process of judicial appointment of handpicked party loyalists and hacks, laws written to aid certain elites in society, or in the debasement and corruption of the integrity and independence of the judiciary. She ignores the type of justice corruption that occurs in “state capture” where economic elites develop cozy relationships with political and judicial officials through whom they obtain favorable judicial decisions to advance their own advantage. For instance, on the issue of political interference in the judicial process, the author demonstrates her “agnosticism” by reporting that “the one who came closest eventually admitted that ‘there was some [political interference], but it was very rare.’” Other responses ranged from ‘a moderate amount’ (limited to the bad apples) to the extreme of holding that ‘every civil judgment is sold.’”

Curiously, the author points an accusatory finger at petty corruption as the “most common form of corruption” distracting attention from the systemic and structural corruption in the justice sector. The importance of petty corruption must not be understated because of the serious impact it has on the lives and livelihoods of ordinary citizens interacting with police, prosecutorial and other petty judicial officials. There is ample anecdotal evidence of petty corruption in which ordinary Ethiopian citizens and businesspersons are “shaken down” by traffic cops or minor functionaries in the judicial or state bureaucracy seeking small bribes. However, though petty corruption may be easier to detect, the real focus should be on grand corruption which is systemic, structural and difficult to detect and nearly impossible to punish. Structural and systemic corruption in the legal institutions, rules, and norms and those who are practitioners in the system create, maintain and sustain a culture of corruption in the justice sector, which the author appears to overlook.

Justice corruption is primarily a systemic failure of judicial institutions, lack of political will and capacity to manage judicial resources, maintain integrity of institutions. The author makes abstract references to the usual catalogue of corruption variables but does not seek to gather data to illuminate the scope, breadth and gravity of the problem of political interference and lack of accountability in the justice system. Grand corruption in the justice sector stems from the fact that political officials have wide authority over judicial officials (from appointment to management of judicial functions); and political officials have little accountability and incentive to maintain the integrity of the justice sector. There are few functional formal systems of control in the relationship between the judicial and political processes in Ethiopia. If there ever were control systems, they have been broken for a long time making it nearly impossible to administer fairly the laws while maintaining accountability in the form of a robust reporting system and transparency in the form of robust management practices. Such institutional decay has promoted the growth of a culture of corruption in the justice sector and continues to undermine not only the broad adjudicatory role of justice sector institutions but also public confidence in the integrity of the justice system itself.

Justice sector in a police state?

Justice in a dictatorship is to justice as military music is to music. No reasonable person would consider martial law (military rule) to produce justice.  By definition dictatorship — a form of government in which absolute power is concentrated in the hands of a dictator or a small clique — is the quintessential definition of injustice. Any form of government that operates in flagrant disregard of the rule of law is inherently corrupt.

I have on previous occasions tried to expose such corruption in Ethiopia’s “justice sector” with anecdotal evidence of arbitrary administration of justice or denial of fair trial to those accused of  “terrorism”, “treason” and even “corruption”, opposition leaders, human rights advocates, journalists, etc. In the kinder and gentler police state that Ethiopia has become, any petty “law enforcement” official of the regime has the power to arrest and jail an innocent citizen. As I argued in my February 2012 commentary, “The Prototype African Police State”, a local police chief in Addis Ababa felt so arrogantly secure in his arbitrary powers that he threatened to arrest a Voice of America reporter stationed in Washington, D.C. simply because that reporter asked him for his full name during a telephone interview.  “I don’t care if you live in Washington or in Heaven. I don’t give a damn! But I will arrest you and take you. You should know that!!”, barked the impudent police chief Zemedkun. If a flaky policeman can exercise such absolute power, is it unreasonable to imagine those at the apex of power have the power to do anything they want with impunity. The regime in Ethiopia is the petri dish of corruption and living proof  that power corrupts and an absolute power corrupts absolutely.

In my view, denial of due process (fair trial) is the highest form of corruption imaginable in the “justice sector” because it results in the arbitrary deprivation of a person’s life, liberty and property. Could anyone (other than those politically connected) really expect to get a fair trial in the regime’s kangaroo courts or fair treatment in the pre-trial process?

The systemic corruption in the “justice sector” is that the law of the land is ignored, disregarded and perverted at the whim and fancy of those in power. For instance, the presumption of innocence (Eth. Const. Art. 20(3)) is openly flouted. The late leader of the regime used to routinely and publicly talk about the guilt of opposition leaders, journalists and others standing trial without so much of an awareness of the suspects’ right to a presumption of innocence or appreciation of the risk of prejudicial pretrial publicity emanating from such inflammatory statements which are prohibited under the Constitution and other international human rights regimes (e.g. Article 11 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 14(2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and Article 7(b) of the  African Charter on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR)). In 2011, the late leader of the regime proclaimed the guilt of freelance Swedish journalists Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye on charges of “terrorism” while they were being tried and he was visiting Norway. He emphatically declared the duo “are, at the very least, messenger boys of a terrorist organization. They are not journalists.” Persson and Schibbye were “convicted” and sentenced to long prison terms.

Show trials by publicity and demonization are another hallmark of the regime’s justice system. Following the 2005 election, the late leader of the regime publicly declared that “The CUD (Kinijit) opposition leaders are engaged in insurrection — that is an act of treason under Ethiopian law. They will be charged and they will appear in court.” They were charged, appeared in “court” and were convicted. In December 2008, the late leader railroaded Birtukan Midekssa, the first female political party leader in Ethiopian history, without so much as a hearing let alone a trial. He sent her straight from the street into solitary confinement and later declared: “There will never be an agreement with anybody to release Birtukan. Ever. Full stop. That’s a dead issue.” In making this statement, the late leader proclaimed to the world that he is the law and the ultimate source of justice in Ethiopia. His words trump the country’s Constitution!

In 2009, one of the top leaders of the regime labeled 40 defendants awaiting trial as “desperadoes” who planned to “assassinate high ranking government officials and destroying telecommunication services and electricity utilities and create conducive conditions for large scale chaos and havoc.” They were all “convicted” and given long prison sentences.

Violations of the constitutional rights of those accused of crimes by the regime are rampant. Article 20 (2) provides, “Any person in custody or a convicted prisoner shall have the right to communicate with and be visited by spouse(s), close relatives and friends, medical attendants, religious and legal counselors.” Internationally celebrated Ethiopian journalists including Reeyot Alemu, Woubshet Taye and many others were denied access to legal counsel for months. Ethiopian Muslim activists who demanded an end to religious interference were jailed on “terrorism” charges were also denied access to counsel.  They were mistreated and abused in pretrial detention. Scores of journalists, opposition members and activists arrested and prosecuted (persecuted) under the so-called anti-terrorism proclamation were also denied counsel and speedy trials and have languished in prison for long periods. Suspects are interrogated without the presence of counsel and coerced confessions extracted. Yet, Article 19 (5) provides, “Everyone shall have the right not to be forced to make any confessions or admissions of any evidence that may be brought against him during the trial.”

Article 19 (1) provides, “Anyone arrested on criminal charges shall have the right to be informed promptly and in detail… the nature and cause of the charge against him… Article 20 (2) provides, “Everyone charged with an offence shall be adequately informed in writing of the charges brought against him. Recently, the regime arrested members of its officialdom and their cronies on suspicion of corruption and kept the suspects in detention for months without informing them “promptly and in detail the charges against them”. Although the regime’s “top anti-corruption official” claimed that the corruption “suspects have been under surveillance for two years”, on their first court appearance, the prosecutors requested a 14-day continuance to gather more evidence! There is no judicial system in the world where suspects are arrested of committing crimes after being investigated for 2 years and then the prosecution asks for endless continuances to gather additional evidence.

Injustice impersonating justice

The 2012  U.S. State Department Human Rights report concluded, “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 WB could have done a much better job of “diagnosing corruption” in Ethiopia’s “justice sector”. Candidly speaking, any deficiency in the report should not reflect exclusively on the World Bank or its consultants but on Ethiopians, particularly the Ethiopian intelligentsia, who do not seem find it worth their time or effort to read, challenge and supplement such reports. It seems few, very few, Ethiopian scholars and analysts take the time and effort to locate, study and critically analyze such important studies done by international institutions and other private research institutions.

I doubt the WB justice sector study will be of much value to policy makers, scholars or the casual reader. Having said that, the burden is on Ethiopian scholars in Ethiopia and abroad to work collaboratively and carefully document corruption in Ethiopia’s justice and other sectors. No study of Ethiopia’s justice sector is worthy of the title if it does not rigorously evaluate the factors that are at the core of corruption in the “justice sector” – absence of the rule of law, lack of independence of the judiciary,  absence of due process, lack of impartiality and neutrality in the judicial process, the culture of corruption and impunity and the lack of accountability, transparency and confidence in the legal system. Such a study is the principal responsibility of Ethiopians, not the World Bank or its consultants. On the other hand, when the sword of justice is beaten into a sledgehammer of injustice, it is the supreme duty of ordinary citizens to expose it!

Professor Alemayehu G. Mariam teaches political science at California State University, San Bernardino and is a practicing defense lawyer.

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OLF Statement on Eng. Tesfahun Chemeda’s Death in the Notorious TPLF/EPRDF Prison of Qaallittii

Eng. Tesfahun Chemeda, the Latest Victim of TPLF Pogrom Extermination Campaign Against the Oromo People

OLF Statement on the death of Engineer Tesfahun Chemeda who died in the notorious TPLF/EPRDF prison of Qaallittii yesterday.

Short Biography
Engineer Tesfahun was born in 1976 from his father Mr. Chemeda Gurmessa and his mother Mrs. Giddinesh Benya at Harbu village, Guduru district, eastern Wallaga, western Oromia. He was lucky enough to get the slim chance of going to school for his likes under the occupation. He completed his school starting at Looyaa, then Fincha’aa and at Shambo in 1996. His remarkably high score enabled him to join the university in Finfinne (Addis Abeba) where he graduated with BSc in Civil Engineering in 2001. Subsequently:

1. Sept. 2004–Jan 2005 – he worked as unit manager for the maintenance of Arsi-Bale road project run by Oromia Rural Road Maintenance Authority and Ethio-Italian Company.
2. Worked at Degele-Birbirsa RR50 project in Salle-Nonno District in extreme South-west of Ilu-Abba-Bore Zone
3. Worked on four simultaneous road projects for settlements; Kone-Chawwaqaa, Baddallee-Kolosirri, Gachi-Chate and Yanfa-Ballattii
4. Worked as a project manager for Chawwaqa district head office construction in Ilu-Harari.
5. Oct. 2001–July 2003 site engineer for Siree-Nunu-Arjo Rural Road of Wallaga district.

Because of the policy of persecution and surveillance imposed on him, like any educated and entrepreneurial Oromo class as per TPLF’s standing policy, he decided to flee to Kenya for his safety. He sought protection from the UNHCR office in Nairobi explaining his position, and got accepted and recognized as a refugee. However, for unknown reasons, he and his colleague in skill and refugee life, Mesfin Abebe Abdisa, were arrested and eventually handed over to the Ethiopian authorities by the Kenyan counterpart on April 27, 2007, due to the agreement between the two countries.

Ethiopia, being a member of the Joint Anti-Terrorism Task Force (JATT), formed under the auspices U.S. that includes Uganda and Kenya as well, continues to abduct Oromo refugees from the neighbouring countries where they sought UN protection, under the pretext of anti-terrorism. The two innocent victims Tesfahun and Mesfin were handed over to the Ethiopian authorities who took them handcuffed and blindfolded at 2:00AM local time on May 12, 2007, purportedly to have them investigated for terrorism at the JATT Main Investigation Branch in Finfinne (Addis Abeba).

From Apr. 27 to May 12, 2007, before handing them over, they were interrogated at the Kenyan National Bureau of Investigation near Tirm Valley by American agents and Kenyan Anti-Terror Police Unit. The Kenyan officer Mr Francis, who led the investigation, concluded the innocence of these two victims and requested the Kenyan authority to immediately let them free. However, another Kenyan CID agent Ms. Lelian, who is suspected of having close connection with the Ethiopian agents, opposed the decision and facilitated the handing over of these two innocent victims.

Once in the hands of the Ethiopian agents, they were taken to the notorious dark Central Investigation compound, known as Ma’ikelawii, where they were interrogated under severe torture for a year and a quarter.

Engineer Tesfahun was then presented before a court of magistrates of all Tigrian nationals in Jul. 2008, who passed the life sentence on him on March 31, 2010. The two were subsequently moved from the maximum security prison to an unknown destination for the pretext of planning to escape. They were taken for further torture in another underground location by a squad directly commanded by the late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. It was only since last three months that they were returned to Qallitti main prison. The beating was so severe that the engineer repeatedly requested and needed medical treatment which he was of course denied and eventually succumbed to the torture impact yesterday Aug. 24, 2013. He became the latest victim of the vicious systematic genocide against the Oromo.

Regarding the fate of these two engineers, the OLF strongly believes that the way Kenyan authorities have been handing over innocent Oromo refugees to the anti-Oromo Ethiopian criminal regime is against the relevant international conventions. We strongly request the Kenyan government to desist from this practice of the last 22 years of handing over innocent Oromo victims who seek refuge in their country. The Kenyan government cannot avoid sharing the responsibility of such murders of innocent people who they hand over to the notorious regime that is well known for its anti Oromo campaign.

The OLF extends its heartfelt condolence to the family relatives and friends of Engineer Tefahun and calls on the Oromo people to double the struggle for freedom as the only way to be free of such persecutions.

Victory to the Oromo People!

Oromo Liberation Front
August 25, 2013

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Oromo activist, Tesfahun Chemeda, dies in prison while serving life sentence

by Mohammed Ademo 

(OPride) – Engineer Tesfahun Chemeda, a fierce Oromo rights advocate and former UNHCR recognized refugee, died yesterday of undisclosed cause at Kaliti prison, where he was serving a life sentence under concocted charges of plotting to overthrow government, reports said. He was 37.

Chemeda was nabbed along with a close friend Mesfin Abebe in 2007 from Nairobi, where they lived as refugees since 2005, by Kenyan anti-terrorism police and was later deported to Ethiopia, according to Oromia Support Group (OSG), a UK-based human rights organization.

“The two men were picked up in a restaurant by Kenyan anti-terrorist police on 27 April 2007 and taken to Kamukunji police station, where they were held overnight before being transferred to Giriri police station,” OSG wrote in 2010 press release.

The duo were subsequently visited by UNHCR officials and members of the FBI – stationed in Kenya as part of the U.S.-led joint counter-terrorism task force for the Horn of Africa – who assured them that “they would not be deported,” according to OSG reports and activists who were advocating for their release at the time.

U.S.-led anti-terror task force in the Horn of Africa - See more at: http://cnsnews.com/news/article/us-forces-train-kenyan-navy-enhance-counter-terror-abilities#sthash.iR32lvPm.dpuf

“I had an opportunity to meet with Kenyan anti-terrorism head, inspector Francis Wanjiru, and an FBI agent,” wrote Raajii Gudeta, 31, in an email to OPride from Edmonton, Canada where he now lives. “Both the FBI and Kenyan official told me that they [Chemeda and Abebe] were not terrorists. We don’t have any business with them but the Ethiopia government need them badly.”

On May 9, 2007, during a court hearing, Kenyan officials told a local judge the two were already “sent back to Ethiopia to face terrorism charges,” citing a doctored “Laissez Passer from the Ethiopian embassy, dated 1 May, which had obviously been backdated as that day was a public holiday,” according to OSG.

Efforts by members of the Oromo community in Kenya, Kenyan Human Rights Commission, and the UNHCR to prevent their refoulement went to no avail, according to Sori Fengor, 43, of Minnesota, who knew and lived with Chemeda at the time. Chemeda and Abebe were held incommunicado until December 2008 when they were formally charged in Ethiopian court.

“The last time I saw Chemeda was on May 10 2007 at Muthaiga police station,” wrote Gudeta, who worked as a Community Development Officer for the International Rescue Committee at the time. “After I dropped off food and water for them, Tesfahun saw me crying and grabbed a copy of the Daily Nation newspaper and slapped me saying, ‘we will be handed over to the Woyane [Ethiopian] regime, forget about us and focus on organizing the Oromo youth so that the Oromo struggle can reach its final destination.’”

Chemeda was accused of being an activist with the outlawed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), an organization formed in 1973 to fight for self-determination of Oromo people in Ethiopia. A three-judge panel at Ethiopia’s federal court latersentenced Chemeda to life in prison without parole in April 2011.

Fifteen other Oromo co-defendants received stiff prison terms while Abebe was sentenced to death. The Oromo are Ethiopia's single largest ethnic group, comprising more than 40 percent of the country's population. There are an estimated 20 to 30,000 Oromo political prisoners in Ethiopia.

Chemeda was born in at Harbu village, Guduru district, eastern Wallaga in the Oromia region, Ethiopia. He attended Fincha’aa and Shambu High Schools before joining Addis Ababa University's School of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Following his graduation in 2001 from Addis Ababa University, Chemeda, a civil engineer, worked on various rural road mantainance projects for Oromia Roads Authority.

Chemeda left his job and sought asylum in Kenya sometime in early 2005 following harassment and intimidation at the hands of Ethiopian security and the road transport administration officials, his acquaintances said.

Early Saturday afternoon when the news of Chemeda’s death broke on social media, activists changed their profile pictures to his photo and wrote to express their grief and condolences. Many remembered Chemeda as a humble, soft-spoken rational thinker, and strategic leader.

Other acquaintances reached by OPride remembered Chemeda for his relentless advocacy and commitment to Oromo people’s freedom. Many Oromo refugees in Kenya knew him between 2005 and 2007 through his role in the now defunct East African Oromo Students’ Association and efforts to organize Oromo refugees in Kenya.

Chemeda’s involvement in Oromo student activism dates back to early 2000. “I went to Menelik Hospital with Chemeda to collect the corpse of Simee Tarafa, an Oromo student who was mysteriously killed in 2001 while attending Mekelle University in Ethiopia’s Tigray region,” recalled Geresu Tufa.

“Before that I worked closely with Chemeda in a 12-member Oromo students committee set up to organize a nationwide campaign to extinguish a forest fire in Bale and Borana regions.”  Chemeda, who represted Oromo students from the technology department, was instrumental in signing up over 3000 volunteers and some 480 students that were dispatched to put out the forest fire, according to Tufa. The government's failure to extinguish the forest fires and refusal to allow student volunteers to go to the sites of fire led to an Oromia-wide high school students protest in which scores were arrested, killed, and wounded.
Chemeda has been in solitary confinement at Kaliti prison for nearly two years after he was transferred there from Ziway, according to family sources. Early reports about the circumstances of his death are unclear. Some suggest that Ethiopian officials murdered him because they could not break his spirit even after years of torture.

Others say authorities are unofficially claiming that he committed suicide. Chemeda’s sister, the only visitor he had seen for years, was denied the body on Saturday pending “further medical examination,” according to Gudeta. She had seen him earlier this week and reported no changes in his attitude or demeanor.

The OLF in a press release on Sunday said Chemeda was subjected to years severe torture which led to his eventual death. "The beating was so severe that the engineer repeatedly requested and needed medical treatment which he was of course denied and eventually succumbed to the torture impact yesterday Aug. 24, 2013," the statement said.

It also called on the Kenyan government to observe intenational refugee protection standards and "desist from...handing over innocent Oromo victims who seek refuge" in that country to Ethiopian authorities.

In an open letter addressed to Mark Simmonds, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Africa), OSG Chairman Dr. Trevor Truman noted, "This is not the first time young Oromo men have been killed in detention. For example, Alemayehu Garba, partially paralysed with polio, was shot dead with 18 others in Kaliti prison in November 2005." 

Update: Chemeda's body was released to the family from Menelik II hospital on Sunday Aug. 25, 2013. He will be buried at the place of his birth on Monday, according to family sources.

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ትንሽ ስለ ‘መለሲ-ዝም’: ከኢህአዴጎች የምስማማበት ነጥብ

Abraha Desta

ሳስበው ሳስበው ስለ ‘መለሲዝም’ ሰበካ የተጀመረ ይመስለኛል። በመለስ ማመናቸው ችግር የለብኝም። ግን መለስ ፈጣሪያቸው መሆኑ እየነገሩን ነው። ብዙ ነገሮች በሱ ስም እየተሰየሙ ናቸው። እነሱ እንደሚነግሩን ከሆነ የኢህአዴግ ፖሊሲ የመለስ ነው፣ መለስ ወታደራዊ መሃንዲሳቸው ነበር፣ መለስ አንቀሳቃሽ ሞተራቸው ነበር፣ የኢህአዴግ ሓሳብና ተግባር የመነጨው ከመለስ ነበር፣ ባጠቃላይ መለስ ሁለመናቸው ነበር።

ለዚህም ነው የኢህአዴግ አባላት አውቀውም ሳያውቁም መለስ የተናገረውን እንደ ፓሮት የሚደግሙት። በራሳቸው ማየት ሳይችሉ መለስ በመራቸው ይጓዛሉ። ለዚህም ነው መለስ ያወጣውን ፖሊሲ መተግበር የማይችሉ። ፖሊሲው መተግበር ያልቻሉበት መንገድ ማየት ስለሚሳናቸው ፖሊሲው ጥሩ መሆኑ ተናዘው ችግሩ ያለው ግን አፈፃፀሙ ላይ መሆኑ ይለፍፋሉ።

ግን አንድ ትክክል ወይ ጥሩ የሆነ ፖሊሲ እንዴት ላይፈፀም ይችላል? ፖሊሲ’ኮ አፈፃፀም ነው። ፖሊሲ ከህልም የሚለይበት ዋነኛው መስፈርት ስለሚፈፀም ነው። ስለዚህ አንድ ፖሊሲ አፈፃፀም ላይ ችግር ካጋጠመው ፖሊሲው ትክክል አይደለም ማለት ነው። ግን የመለስ ልጆች ‘ፖሊሲው ስህተት ነው’ ብለው የማጋለጥ ዓቅሙና ድፍረቱስ አላቸው? አይመስለኝም። ምክንያቱም ፖሊሲው የመለስ ነው። ፖሊሲው ስህተት እንደሆነ መናገር ማለት መለስ እንደሚሳሳት መመስከር ነው። መለስ ደግሞ ፈጣሪያቸው ነው። ለዚህም ነው ከነ ስህተቱ ‘የመለስ ሌጋሲ ወይ ራእይ’ እያሉ የመለስን የተሳሳተ የፖለቲካና የኢኮኖሚ አቅጣጫ ለማስቀጠል የሚባዝኑ።

ከኢህአዴግ አባላት የምስማማበት ነጥብ አለኝ፤ መለስ ሁለመናቸው ነው። እሱ የተናገረውን ያደርጋሉ፣ ይፈፅማሉ። ከነሱ ጋር የምስማማበት ነጥብ ይሄ ነው። ይሄንን ነጥብ ትርጓሜ እንስጠው።

የኢህአዴግ አባላት (እነሱ ራሳቸው እንደሚነግሩን) መለስ የፖለቲካና ኢኮኖሚ ዕይታ ምንጫቸው ነው። አዎ! ነው። ይህ ማለት አባላቱ ምን መስራት እንዳለባቸውና እንደሌለባቸው መለስ ይነግራቸው ነበር ማለት ነው። እነሱም ‘የታላቁ ባለራእይ መሪ’ ትእዛዞች ተቀብለው ይተገብሩ ነበር ማለት ነው።

የመለስና የአባላቱ ግንኙነት እንዲህ ከነበረ መለስ dictate ያደርጋቸው ነበር ማለት ነው። በእንግሊዝኛው አጠራር ሌሎችን dictate የሚያደርግ መሪ Dictator ይባላል። ስለዚህ ከተግባራዊ ትርጓሜው ተነስተን መለስን ስንገልፀው Dictator ነበር ማለት ነው። “Dictator’ ወደ አማርኛ ስንመልሰው ‘አምባገነን’ (ብትግርኛ ‘ዉልቀ መላኺ’) የሚል ትርጓሜ ይይዛል። ስለዚህ ‘ሁሉም ወይም አብዛኞቹ የፓርቲው ስራዎች የመለስ ነበሩ’ በሚል ከተስማማን ‘መለስ አምባገነን ነበር’ በሚልም መስማማት ይኖርብናል።

እኔ ‘መለስ አምባገነን ነበር’ ሲል ‘የሁሉንም አድራጊ እሱ ነበር’ እያልኩኝ ነው። እናንተም በራሳቹሁ ሚድያና አንደበት ተመሳሳይ ነገር እየነገራችሁን ነው። ስለዚህ ሓሳባችን አንድ ነው። ተስማምተናል። በመለስ ስራና ስያሜ ላይ ልዩነት የለንም።

(ስለ መለስ ላለመፃፍ ዕቅድ የነበረኝ ቢሆንም የመንግስት ሚድያዎች ግን ስለሱ እያስታወሱ አስቸገሩኝ)

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ዜና ከፍቼ፤ በፍቼ የአንድነት ቢሮ በመንግስት ሃይሎች ተሰበረ:: ወጣቱ ሰባሪዎችን አሳፍሮ አባሯል::

የአንድነት ፓርቲ የቅስቀሳ ቡድን መኪናና በባጃጆችን በመጠቀም የተቀናጀ ቅስቀሳ በማድረግ ላይ ይገኛል፡፡ የፍቼ ከተማ የኢህአዴግ ካድሬዎችና የመንግስት ሹመኞች ህዝቡ ለነገው ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ እንዳይወጣ ቤት ለቤት በመሄድ በማስፈራራት ላይ ቢገኙም ህዝቡ በነገው የተቃውሞ ሰልፍ ብሶቱን ለመግለፅ ተዘጋጅቷል፡፡

ዘግይቶ በደረሰን ዜና በፍቼ ከተማ የሚገኘውን የአንድነት ፓርቲ ጽ/ቤት የመንግስት የደህንነት ሀይሎች ሰብረው በመግባት በቢሮው ውስት ያሉትን አባላት ቢያባርሩም የፍቼ ከተማ ወጣቶች፣ የአንድነት ፓርቲ አመራሮችና አባላት ጽ/ቤታቸውን መልሰው ተቆጣጥረውታል፡፡

አንድነት ፓርቲ በአካባቢው የመንግስት ባለስልጣናት እየተወሰደ ያለውን ህገወጥ እርምጃ አውግዞ የፍቼና የአካባቢው ህብረተሰብ በነገው ዕለት በነቂስ በመውጣት የታፈነ ድምፁን እንዲያሰማ ጥሪውን አስተላልፏል፡፡#Millionsofvoicesforfreedom #Ethiopia #UDJ

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ዜና ከባሌ ሮቤ – አራት የአንድነት ፓርቲ ተወካዮች ለውይይት ተጠርተው ታገተው ተለቀቁ

የአንድነት ፓርቲ የቅስቀሳ ቡድን አባላት የሚደርስባቸውን ጫና ተቋቁመው በባሌ ሮቤ የተሳካ ቅስቀሳ በመስራት ላይ ይገኛሉ፡፡ የቅስቀሳ ቡድኑ አባላት

“የህዝቡ አቀባበል መንግስት የሚያደርስብንን ጫና ተቋቁመን ስራችንን እንድናከናውን ረድቶናል”

ብለዋል፡፡
በባሌ ሮቤ ከንቲባ ጽ/ቤት አራት የአንድነት ፓርቲ ተወካዮች ለውይይት ተጠርተው ታግተው የነበሩ ሲሆን እነዚሁ የአንድነት ፓርቲ ተወካዮችና የቅስቀሳ ብድን አባላት አሁን የተለቀቁ ቢሆንም በሁለት መኪኖች የተጀመረውን ቅስቀሳ ፖሊሶችና ደህንነቶች በማወክ ላይ እንደሚገኙ ከስፍራው የደረሰን መረጃ አመላክቷል፡፡

በተያያዘ ዜና ታግተው የነበሩትን የአንድነት ፓርቲ ተወካዮች ጉዳይ ለመከታተል ወደ ከንቲባው ጽ/ቤት ያመራው የፍኖተ ነፃነት ጋዜጣ ባልደረባ ያሬድ አማረ በጥበቃ ሰራተኞች ተዋክቦ እንዲወጣ የተደረገ ሲሆን እሱን በኮንትራት አሳፍሮ የወሰደው የባጃጅ ሹፌር ግን እስከአሁን በህገወጥ መንገድ ታስሮ ያገኛል፡፡ #Millionsofvoicesforfreedom #Ethiopia #UDJ

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Ethiopia: When a Traditional Past Collides with an Irrigated Future By William Davison

Are the government's large-scale developments in southern Ethiopia forcing local populations to move with the times or just move out the way?

KANGATON, Southern Ethiopia - A short stroll away from the bloated Omo River in Ethiopia's far south, a new type of settlement is forming on the outskirts of Kangaton, a frontier town occupied by Nyangatom people and highland migrants.

The empty domes are traditionally built: bent sticks lashed together with strips of bark and insulated with straw. But instead of the typical handful of huts ringed by protective thorn bushes, hundreds of new homes are clustered on the desolate plain.

This is a site in the Ethiopian government's villagisationprogramme, part of an attempt to effect radical economic and social change in the Lower Omo Valley, an isolated swathe of spectacular ethnic diversity.

Agro-pastoralists such as the Nyangatom, Mursi and Hamer are being encouraged to abandon their wandering, keep smaller and more productive herds of animals, and grow sorghum and maize on irrigated plots with which officials promise to provide them on the banks of the Omo.

The grass is greener

The government, now rapidly expanding its reach into territory only incorporated into the state a little over a century ago, says it will provide the services increasingly available to millions of other Ethiopians: roads, schools, health posts, courts and police stations. But critics, such as academic David Turton, argue that this state-building is more akin to colonial exploitation than an enlightened approach to the development of marginalised people.

Longoko Loktoy, a member of the Nyangatom people, says all he knows is herding, as he carves a twig to clean his teeth, occasionally glancing behind to check the movements of his sheep and goats. But, he adds, "our educated boys under the government structure" have told him life in the resettlement site will be better.

Longoko says his family straddles two worlds, with some of the children from his two wives receiving education in regional cities and others raising animals in the Omo. In line with his "educated boys", he says security and services will improve in the commune, but wants to retain the option to move to high land or to the Kibish River when the Omoruns low.

"I don't think the government will tell us not to move", he says, a Kalashnikov slung over his shoulder. Nearby, boys hunt doves by firing metal-tipped arrows from wooden bows, while women, their necks swaddled in a broad rainbow of beads, begin a long trudge back from the Omo with jerry-cans perched on their heads.

Longoko is unaware of plans for the under-construction upstream Gibe III hydropower dam to control the flow of theOmo River, ending the annual flood that leaves behind fertile soil for locals to cultivate on when waters recede. The regulated flow will be used for the country's largest irrigation project: 175,000 hectares of government sugar plantations, some of which will occupy Nyangatom territory.

"Even though this area is known as backwards in terms of civilisation, it will become an example of rapid development", was how former Prime Minister Meles Zenawi announced the scheme in 2011, heralding the final integration of the people of the Lower Omo into the Ethiopian state.

“We are from the sovereign”

In 1896, Emperor Menelik II led Ethiopian fighters to a famous victory over invading imperial Italian forces at the Battle of Adwa – the key moment in the ancient kingdom's successful resistance to European colonialism. A year later, it was Menelik's turn to expand further, as he sent his generals out to conquer more of the lowlands to the east, west and south. An account of the subjugation of the Lower Omo area was provided by Russian cavalryman Alexander Bulatovich, who Menelik, an Orthodox Christian like many Ethiopian rulers, invited to accompany his general, Ras Wolda Giorgis, on the offensive.

The invading highlanders faced little resistance as they marched from the recently-conquered Oromo kingdom ofKaffa, a place Ethiopians claim to be the birth of coffee, according to an account of the trip translated by Richard Seltzer in Ethiopia Through Russian Eyes by Alexander Bulatovich.

“If you don’t surrender voluntarily, we will shoot at you with the fire of our guns, we will take your livestock, your women and children. We are not Guchumba (vagrants). We are from the sovereign of the Amhara (Abyssinians)Menelik”, the Ras told local chieftains when he arrived in an area slightly to the south of Nyangatom territory where the Omo flows into its final destination, Lake Turkana, which mostly lies in Kenya.

“A civilising mission”

Anthropologist David Turton from the African Studies Centre at Oxford University has been visiting the Omo valley and particularly the Mursi people since the 1960s. He sees the current approach of the ruling party to development and state-building in the south, with its "civilising mission" and "racist overtones", as similar to that of previous regimes, going back to Menelik.

Schemes imposed from the centre that force people off their land are bound to create resistance, he believes, although direct, violent forms of protest are inconceivable given the overwhelming power of the state. In the past, there was space for people like the Mursi to move out of the way of the state. Today, he says, they know this is impossible.

“They know that they are practically finished”, he explains. “Their way of life, their livelihood, their culture, their identity, their values, their religious beliefs – all this is being rubbished by a government which sees them as ‘backwards’ and uncivilised. No human being could fail to feel threatened by this, physically and morally.”

At the core of Turton's dismay are the accumulated findings of research on ‘development-forced displacement’. This shows, he says, that people who are forced to move to make way for large-scale development projects always end up worse off than they were before, unless concerted efforts are made to prevent this.

"Ideally the government would have taken them into its confidence from the start, given them full information well in advance, fully consulted them about its plans, included them in the decision-making, and provided proper compensation for the loss of their land and livelihoods" he says.

But instead, Turton claims, none of this has happened, and the result will be increased poverty among the many ethnicities that populate the Omo valley. That was the fate of Oromo and Afar pastoralists when Emperor Haile Selassie applied a similar top-down method to Ethiopia's first major river basin development on the Awash River in the 1960s, he explains.

For the greater good?

Marking a departure from the past, the ruling Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) argues that since it seized power in 1991, it has empowered rather than oppressed the over 80 ethnic groups that live in the Horn of Africa nation. This is done through an innovative system of ethnic-based federalism that enshrines the right of each group to govern itself and protect its language and culture. Critics, however, counter that centralisedpolicymaking and the de facto one-party system that maintains political control denies autonomy for regional actors. This tension can be seen in attitudes to nomadic people: while Ethiopia's 1994 constitution guarantees pastoralists the right to grazing land and not to be displaced, previously in 1991, the EPRDF adopted a policy "to settle nomads in settled agriculture", according to a Human Rights Watchreport from that year.

In the official narrative, sugar plantations and the new communes in the Omo are consistent with ethnic federalism, as they will reduce poverty and bring some trappings of modernity to minority groups.

"In the previous backwards and biased government policy, there wasn’t a systematic plan and no meaningful work was done for the pastoralist areas”, Meles said in his 2011 speech. “Now we have started working on big infrastructural development."

This stance is reinforced by pro-government media such as the Walta Information Center, which, in a recent article, presented the projects as unanimously welcomed by local people. “We had no strength when we have been living scattered. Now we have got more power. We are learning. We are drinking clean water”, Walta quotes Duge Tati, a local in Village One, as saying. Another villager was said to aspire to own a car.

However, reports from advocacy groups such as Human Rights Watch and Survival International present a starkly opposing view on recent development in Omo. They contain countless accounts from locals detailing how they've been coerced and beaten into accepting policies that steal their land and ruin their livelihoods.

They are a-changing

The Nyangatom have historically been so peripheral to Ethiopia's highland heart that in 1987 the Kenyan government bombed them with helicopter gunships in the Kibish area after a particularly murderous bout of ethnic clashes. Colonel Mengistu Haile Mariam, Ethiopia’s nationalist military dictator at the time, allegedly assented to the operation.

Today, officials from Kangaton, the administrative capital, have to take a boat across the Omo to attend meetings with regional bosses. Despite this isolation, the impact of missionaries, traders and government is displayed in aspirations for services and technology, and the adoption of non-traditional dress and cuisine – at least among some people living in or near Kangaton.

Lore Kakuta is a Nyangatom who became a Christian after attending school run by missionaries. He is also the security and administration chief for the Nyangatom-area government. Wearing a replica Ethiopian national football team shirt and a head torch bought in Dubai, he sketches out the plans for irrigated agriculture and a shift to cows that produce more milk.

Lore is uncertain about how much Nyangatom land will be lost to sugar plantations. And he is clueless about the hundreds of thousands of migrant workers that it is said will soon be attracted to the area, and the impact they could have on his people's welfare and their constitutionally-guaranteed rights. Nyangatom culture is strong enough to withstand any influx, he says, weakly.

As a meal of goat stew mopped up with flat bread from the Tigrayan highlands is served, he explains how the traditional culture has changed already, mainly due to the influence of missionaries. So for Lore, the imminent transformation is nothing to worry about.

"There is not anything that is going to have a negative effect", he says, now garbed in a billowing traditional robe after dusk inside his compound. "We are teaching people to modernise."

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