ተቀናቃኝ ቡድኖችና ፖለቲካ

BY ፕሮፌሰር መስፍን ወ/ማርያም
ተመስገን ደሳለኝ በተቀናቃኝ ቡድኖች ላይ አዲስ የመነጋገሪያ ርእስ ከፍቶአል (ግንቦት 3፣ 2004)፤ ጉዳዩ በጣም አንገብጋቢና በጣም ወቅታዊ ነው፤ እንደተለመደው አንብበን ችላ የምንለው ጉዳይ አይደለም፤ ሁላችንም በተቻለን መጠን እውነትን ይዘን ያለ ይሉኝታና ያለፍርሃት በራሳችን ላይ እንዝመትና እውነትን ይዘን እንነሣ።

በ1997 መኢአድ፣ ኢዴፓ፣ ኢዴሊና ቀስተ ደመና የሚባሉት የፖለቲካ ፓርቲዎች አንድ ሆነው ቅንጅትን ፈጠሩ፤ ነገር ግን የመኢአድን ከአቶ ኃይሉ ሻውል፣ ኢዴፓን ከአቶ ልደቱ ህልውና ለመለየት በፍፁም የማይቻል ሆነ፤ ስለዚህም የቅንጅትን ህልውና ፈተና ውስጥ ከተቱትና ተበታተነ፤ እስካሁን ድረስ ህልውናውን ከሕዝብ ህልውና ጋር አስተሳስሮ የቆየ የፖለቲካ ፓርቲ በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ የለም፤ በገዢው ወንበር ላይ በጠመንጃ ኃይል ከወጡ በኋላ ጉልበትና ሀብት ሁሉም በጄ ሁሉም በደጄ ብለው ኢሰፓና ወያኔ/ኢሕአዴግ ሎሌዎቻቸውን ሰብስበው ፓርቲ ቢሉ ዋጋ እንደሌለው አይተናል፤ ደርግ በጉልበት ስልጣን በመያዙና ስልጣንን ጉልበት ብቻ በማድረጉ እንደተጠላ ተፍረክርኮ አይዞህ የሚለው ሳያገኝ ወድቆ ተበታተነ፤ ወያኔ/ኢሕአዴግ እንደገና በጉልበት ኢሰፓን ተካ፤ ሥልጣንን ጉልበት ብቻ አድርጎም እየገዛ ነው፤ በኢሰፓ ዘመን ተቀናቃኝ የፖለቲካ ፓርቲዎች በስምም በተግባርም አልነበሩም፤ በወያኔ/ኢህአዴግ ዘመን የፖለቲካ ፓርቲዎች በስም ተፈልፍለው በተግባር ተለጉመው በመኖና ባለመኖር መሀከል እያጣጣሩ አሉ፤ ያውም ምርጫ ቦርድ መልካም ፈቃዱ ሲሆን!

ለይስሙላ የተቋቋሙት ፓርቲዎች በምርጫ ጊዜ ትንሽ የተፈቀደላቸውን ያህል አባላት አስመርጠው በብሔራዊ ምክር ቤት (ፓርላማ) ያስቀምጣሉ፤ የተከበሩት አባላትም ቤትና ደመወዝ ያገኛሉ፤ የመጨረሻው ዓላማቸውም ይኸው ነው፤ የፖለቲካ ፓርቲዎች በስም ተሰይመው፣ ህልውናቸውን በአንድ ወይ በሁለት ሰዎች ስም ያስከብራሉ።

በወያኔ/ኢሕአዴግ ዘመን አንድ የተለመደ አጉል ፈሊጥ አለ፤ በሆነ ባልሆነው ወያኔ/ኢሕአዴግን መውቀር ያስመሰግናል፤ በአንጻሩ በተቀናቃኝ ቡድኖች ወይ በመሪዎቻቸው ላይ ትችት ማቅረብ እንደክህደትና ከኢትዮጵያዊነት መስመር እንደመውጣት ይታያል፤ ይህ በተደጋጋሚ የታየ ነው፤ በቅንጅት መሪዎች መሀከል የነበረውን የስልጣን ሽኩቻ በአሜሪካ ድምጽ ራዲዮ ስናገር በመጀመሪያ የራዲዮው ጠያቂ የነበረችው አነጋገሬን አልወደደችውም፤ የግል ስሜትዋን ለመግለጽ ከጥቂት ደቂቃዎች በኋላ እንደገና ደውላ ተገቢ ያልሆነ ጥያቄ ጠየቀችኝ፤ ወሬው ከተላለፈ በኋላም ብዙ ሰዎች እየደወሉ ለብቻቸው ብታነጋግራቸውና ብትመክራቸው ይሻል ነበር በማለት የወቀሳ ትችት አቀረቡልኝ፤ እነዚህ ሰዎች የማከብራቸውና ሀሳባቸውን የማልንቅባቸው ናቸው፤ ለሁሉም የመለስሁላቸው እነሱ ለእኔ የሰነዘሩትን ምክር አንደኛ እኛ ሳናስብበትና ተግባራዊ ሳናደርገው ቀረን ብለው መገመታቸው የሚያሳዝን መሆኑን ነበር፤ ሁለተኛ ሁለትና ሶስት ወራት በማይሞላ ጊዜ ውስጥ በተዋናውያኑ በራሳቸው እውነቱ ገሀድ እንደሚወጣ ነግሬአቸው ነበር፤ እኔ የሥልጣን ጥሙን ሽኩቻ በማንሣቴ ለጠብ በር የከፈትሁ የመሰላቸው ሰዎች በቅንጅት ውስጥ የነበረውን ትግል የማያውቁ ናቸው፣ ገና ቀደም ብዬ ሌላው ሁሉ ካቃተኝ በኋላ የስልጣን ሽኩቻው ቅንጅትን እየጎዳው እንደሆነ ስለተረዳሁ ለቅንጅት ሊቀ መንበር ለኃይሉ ሻውል ደብዳቤ ጽፌ ከምክር ቤት መሰናበቴን አሳወቅሁ፤ ከቅንጅት ምክር ቤት ስወጣ በይፋ በአደባባይ ሳልናገር መቅረቴ ስሕተት ነው፤ መናገር ነበረብኝ፤ ግን ያው በኋላ ከብዙ ሰዎች የሰማሁት ወቀሳ በእኔም ውስጥ ስለነበረ ይሉኝታ ይዞኝ ተሳሳትሁ፤ ከቃሊቲ ከወጣን በኋላ በህንድ አገር ሀኪም ቤት ማጅራቴን በመጋዝ ለመተርተር ስዘጋጅ ድንገት ሳልነቃ ብቀር እውነት ተዳፍኖ እንዳይቀር በማለት ምስክርነቴን ሰጠሁ፤ በዚያን ጊዜ እኔ የነበርሁበትን ሁኔታ በትንሹም ቢሆን ለመገመት ከተቻለ ለእውነት በእውነት ከመመስከር ሌላ ዓላማ እንደማይኖረኝ ለመረዳት እንዴት እንዳስቸገረ እስከዛሬ አልገባኝም፤ ጥርጣሬያችንና አለመተማመናችን ድንበር የለውም ማለት ነው።

ከዚያ በኋላ ብዙ መጽሐፎች ተጽፈዋል፤ ገብረ ክርስቶስ ኃይለ ሥላሴ፣ ልደቱ አያሌው፣ ደበበ እሸቱ፣ አንተነህ ሙሉጌታ (የመጽሐፉን ርእስ አበላሽቶት ብዙ ሰዎች አላነበቡትም እንጂ በጣም ጥሩ መጽሐፍ) መስፍን ወልደማርያምም ጽፈዋል፤ አሁን ደግሞ ሲሳይ አጌና (ከውጭ እንደጋዜጠኛ ይሁን ወይስ የውስጥ መስሎ አላውቅም፤ ነገር ግን በራድዮ ሲናገር እንደሰማሁት ብርሃኑ ነጋን ከእውነቱ ሊያርቀው በጣም ሲሞክር እውነቱን ይደፈጥጣል)፤ ለማናቸውም ታዛቢዎች ተናገሩት አልተናገሩት በኃይሉ ሻውል፣ በብርሃኑና በልደቱ መሀከል የነበረውን ግልጽ የሆነ ሥርዓት ያጣ ፉክክር ማንም ሊክደው ወይም ሊያድበሰብሰውና ሊያልፈው አይችልም፤ ለምን ቅንጅት ፈራረሰ? አንዳንዶቻችን ክብራችንን አንጥፈን ለማስታረቅ ሞክረናል፤ አንድ ምሳሌ ለመስጠት በቀጠሮ ሄደን አቶ ገብረጻድቅ፣ አቶ ይልማ ይፍሩና እኔ ከአቶ ኃይሉ ሻውል አጥር ውጭ ለእኩል ሰዓት ያህል መኪና ውስጥ ቆይተን ሳይሆንልን ተመልሰናል፤ በኋላም አሜሪካ ሆኖ በነጭ ወረቀት ከሕግ ውጭ የሆነ የሹም-ሽር ሲያደርግ ሀሳቡን ለማስለወጥ አሜሪካ ስልክ ደውዬ ለማነጋገር ብሞክር እኔንም ባላንጣው አደረገኝ፤ ተፎካካሪዎቹን ለማቀራረብ፣ ለማስታረቅና ወደአብሮ መሰለፍ ለማምጣት በተደረገው ጥረት የተሳተፉትን ሁሉ ተፎካካሪዎቹ በጥላቻ ይመለከቱአቸው ጀመሩ።

በልደቱ የተጀመረው የቅንጅት መገነጣጠል፣ በብርሃኑ ነጋና በኃይሉ ሻውል ቀጥሎ ብርቱካን የምትመራው አንድነት ብቻውን ቀረ፤ በአንድነትም ውስጥ ገና ከመጀመሪያው ጠቅላላ ጉባኤ ጀምሮ ብርቱካን በመመረጥዋ ቅር ያላቸው አባሎች አኩርፈው ችግር ተፈጥሮ ነበር፤ ብርቱካን ስትታሰር ኤንጂነር ግዛቸው ሽፈራው በጉጉት ሲጠብቀው የነበረውን ወንበር አገኘና የአምባገነንነት አገዛዙን በግምባር ቀደምትነት ከዶር. ኃይሉ አርአያና ከአቶ ዓሥራት ጣሴ ጋር ጀመረ፤ ሁሉም ቢያንስ ከሁለት ሺህ ብር በላይ የወር ደመወዝ ያገኙ ነበር፤ እንዲሁም የጽሕፈት ቤቱ ሠራተኞች ሁሉ በጥሩ ደመወዝ ተሰንገው የተያዙ ነበሩ፤ እነዚህ ናቸው ሎሌዎች አይደለንም የሚሉት፤ ከበስተጀርባቸውም የብሔራዊ ምክር ቤት ገብተው ሌሎቹ ቃሊቲ በነበሩበት ጊዜ ደመወዝ ሲበሉ የነበሩ ናቸው፤ ያንን የደመወዝ ወንበር እንደያዙ ለመቀጠል የተመኙ የአንድነት የሥራ አስፈፃሚ ኮሚቴና የምክር ቤት አባላት ነበሩ፤ ግዛቸው እነዚህን ሁሉ ሎሌዎች አሰልፎ ስሙ ወደምግባሩ መራውና የማይበገር አንባ-ገነን ሆነ፤ ከመጀመሪያዎቹ አወዛጋቢ ጉዳዮች መሀከል አባላት በጽሕፈት ቤቱ አዳራሽ ያለፈቃድ እንዳይሰበሰቡ፣ ግዛቸው፣ ኃይሉ አርአያና ዓሥራት ባልፈቀዱት ጉዳይ መወያየት መከልከሉን፣ በነፃነት አባልነታቸውን ለመወጣት የሚፈልጉትንና ከሎሌነት ያፈነገጡትን ሰዎች ለማስወንጀል ማስፈራራት ነበሩ፤ ከውጭም ድጋፍ ነበራቸው፤ የቅንጅት የድጋፍ ኮሚቴ በአሜሪካ ሊቀመንበር ነኝ የሚል አክሎግ ልመንህ የሚባል የማስፈራሪያ ደብዳቤ ጽፎልን እኔ መልስ ሰጥቸውአለሁ፤ ሌሎች አንገብጋቢ ጉዳዮች ዋና ጸሐፊው አቶ ዓሥራት ጣሴ አንደኛ አንዲት ጸሐፊ የነበረች የአንድነት አባልን ያለማስጠንቀቂያና ካሣ፣ ሁለተኛ አንዲት የጽዳት ሠራተኛን እንዲሁም ያለምንም ማስጠንቀቂያና ካሣ ከሥራ ማስወጣቱ ናቸው፤ በነዚህ ምክንያቶች አንድነት ለሁለት ተከፈለ፤ ግዛቸው መርጠው ወንበሩ ላይ ያስቀመጡትን ሰዎች አባርሮ በዶር. ነጋሶ ጊዳዳ፣ በአቶ ስዬ አብርሃና በአቶ ገብሩ ዓሥራት ድጋፍ መሰላሉን ሊወጣ ተመኘ፤ መሰላሉ ወደቀ።

ዛሬ ቅንጅትን ሰባብረው ግልገል የሥልጣን ፈረሶችን የፈጠሩት ሁሉ በሦስት ምክንያቶች ኮስሰዋል፤ አንደኛ ሰውን መግዣ ገንዘብ እያነሰ ነው፤ ሁለተኛ አባሎችም የተሻለ ንቃትና ትምህርት እያገኙ ሎሌነትን እምቢ እያሉ ነው፤ ሦስተኛ የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ የአዲሶቹን መኳንንት የኤንጂነር ግዛቸውን፣ የዶር. ኃይሉ አርአያንና የአቶ ዓሥራት ጣሴን ‹‹በታላላቅ›› ሰዎች ጥላ ስር ሆነው ለመሽሎክ ያቀዱት አልተሳካላቸውም፤ መማር የሚችሉት ሊማሩ ሄዱ፤ የማይችሉት ቀሩ።

Ethiopian Government, Muslims Clash about Ideology

By Peter Heinlein,,VOA

ADDIS ABABA - Unofficial committees within Ethiopia's 30-million strong Muslim community are organizing demonstrations to protest what they say is government interference in Islamic affairs. Tensions are rising as the government tries to preempt what it sees as the rise of a hardline strain of Islam.

Worshippers arriving for Friday prayers at Addis Ababa's Awalia mosque found a notice posted at the entrance, which read: "They managed to get in through the back door before. Let's make sure it doesn't happen again."  The notice was signed by a mosque committee opposed to what it says has been a quiet government takeover of Ethiopia's Islamic Affairs Supreme Council.  The committee is demanding elections for new council members, to be held in the city's mosques.  They rejected a suggestion that the vote be held in neighborhood government halls called kebeles.

Standing at the entrance to the mosque, Ibrahim Hassan who teaches computer science at the Awalia Mission School, says holding the election in kebele halls would open the door to mischief. "It should be inside the mosques, not in the kebeles because if it carried out in the kebeles there will be corruption, or some of the government authorities may participate.  That is not fair.  It is related to religion.  There must not be interference of government in such tasks," he said.

Awalia mosque has been at the center of protests against what many Muslims see as government efforts to ban the teachings of the conservative Salafist sect of Islam.  The Islamic Supreme Council recently fired several teachers at the Awalia mission school and shut down an Arabic language teaching center.  Teacher Ibrahim accuses the council of trying to indoctrinate Ethiopian Muslims into the little known al-Abhash sect that preaches non-violence, as opposed to the more militant Salafist brand of Islam.

"They think that the committee may be terrorists," he said. "They consider us terrorists, but it represents all the Muslim communities.  They said that [some] Salafists are members of al-Qaida, but in Ethiopia all of the Muslims are not members of al-Qaida, they are simply regular Muslims."

Prime Minister Meles Zenawi last month signaled a crackdown on those he accused of “peddling ideologies of intolerance."  In a speech to parliament, he said a few Salafis had formed clandestine al-Qaida cells in the southern part of the country. Days later, four protesters were killed and many others injured in the southern state, Oromia when they tried to prevent police from arresting a Muslim cleric accused of promoting a radical ideology.

Last week, five men, including one Kenyan national, were arraigned in Addis Ababa's federal court on charges of operating an al-Qaida cell out of a mosque in Oromia. In another incident this month, Ethiopian authorities expelled two Arab men said to have been visiting from an unnamed Middle Eastern country.  The two were detained after making what police called “inflammatory statements” and distributing materials at Addis Ababa's main Anwar mosque.

And last Friday, dozens of young men were reported to have stood outside Anwar mosque with tape over their mouths in a silent protest.  Young men standing at the entrance to Awalia mosque at last Friday's prayers said another big demonstration is planned for this week.

More than half of Ethiopia's roughly 90 million people are Christian, while an estimated 35 percent are Muslim.  The Horn of Africa nation has long prided itself on its religious tolerance.

Opposition criticises Ethiopia-Sudan extradition agreement

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle. Sudane Tribune

May 21, 2012 (ADDIS ABABA) - Ethiopia’s biggest coalition of opposition parties, the Forum for Democratic Dialogue in Ethiopia (Medrek), has condemned a judicial agreement signed between Ethiopia and Sudan.

Last Wednesday, the two East African neighbours signed an agreement on the extradition of criminals intending to jointly battle crime, to enhance regional peace and promote justice in general. Ethiopian opposition politicians, however, doubt the new agreement is meant to only fight criminals and argue could have another hidden agenda.

Merara Gudina, the Medrek chairman and member of the Oromo People’s Congress (OPC), told Sudan Tribune on Monday that the convicts exchange agreement between Khartoum and Addis Ababa could be a special arrangement to prosecute political refugees. According to Gudina, the fresh judiciary accord is a cover to hand over exiled opposition politicians.

“In countries like Ethiopia where there is a dictatorial rule, being an opposition member is considered as being a criminal”, the opposition official told Sudan Tribune. He further said the agreement, if sued to target political refugees, will eventually ruin ties of the two people and would leave a “dark spot” on the history of the two countries.

A considerable number of Ethiopian opposition members sought refuge in Sudan after the 2005 election when post-election violence led to the killing of over 200 street protesters and to the arrest of hundreds of supporters and dozens of opposition figures. Earlier this year, an exiled Ethiopian human rights group, the Berlin-based Solidarity Committee for Ethiopian Political Prisoners (SOCEPP), accused the Sudanese government of further intensifying a crackdown against Ethiopian political refugees.

The group then alleged that Sudanese police have raided houses and rounded up dozens of Ethiopians in Omdurman and many parts of the capital, Khartoum, for forcible deportation. Last year, SCOEPP similarly accused Sudanese authorities of deporting former Ethiopian opposition politician, Andualem Alemayo, from Khartoum’s Kober prison, after he entered the country from neighbouring Eritrea.

The group has repeatedly urged the Khartoum government to refrain from forcibly deporting Ethiopian political refugees arguing they would risk prosecution back home by the government in Addis Ababa. The latest accord between Sudan and Ethiopia comes following another security agreement signed last December between the two countries not to harbour rebel figures or host each other’s rebel forces in their territory – an agreement aimed to enhance border security of the two countries and cripple any attempt of subversive and military activities of rebel groups on both sides.

(ST)

ወደ ኢትዮጵያ ሄደው ዘመዶቻቸውን ለመጠየቅ የፈለጉ ኢትዮጵያውያን ቪዛ እየተከለከሉ ነው

ኢሳት ዜና:- ግንቦት ፲፫ (አስራ ሦስት) ቀን ፳፻፬ ዓ/ም

ወደ  ኢትዮጵያ ሄደው ዘመዶቻቸውን ለመጠየቅ የፈለጉ በርካታ ኢትዮጵያውያን፦”የግንቦት 7 አባላት ናችሁ” እየተባሉ በየ አገራቱ ባሉት የኢትዮጵያ ኤምባሲዎች እየተከለከሉ ነው። በቤልጂዬም የምትኖር እና ስሟን መግለጽ ያልፈለገች አንዲት ኢትዮጵያዊ ሰሞኑን ወደ አገሯ አቅንታ ዘመዶቿን ለመጠየቅ ብትፈልግም፤በብራሰልስ የሚገኘው የኢትዮጵያ ኤምባሲ ፦”የግንቦት ሰባት አባል  ስለሆንሽ ቪዛ አንሰጥሽም” በማለት ከልክሏታል።

ኤምባሲው  ለአክቲቪስቷ የግንቦት ሰባት አባልነት የጠቀሰውና ያቀረበው ማስረጃ  በተለያዩ ጊዜያት ኢትዮጵያውያን ባካሄዷቸው የተቃውሞ ሰልፎች ላይ መሳተፏን ነው። እንዲሁም  በፍራንክፈርት፣ በዋሽንግተን ዲሲ እና በሌሎች የ አውሮፓ እና የአሜሪካ ከተሞች የሚኖሩ በርካታ ኢትዮጵያውያን ወደ አገር ቤት ለመሄድ ፈልገው ከየኤምባሲዎች  ተመሣሳይ ምላሽ ተሰጥቷቸው ቪዛ መከልከላቸውን ተናግረዋል።

የአቶ መለስ መንግስት ፦”የተቃውሞ ሰልፍ ማድረግ ህገ-መንግስታዊ መብት ነው” የሚል ህገ መንግስት ያረቀቀና ያጸደቀ ቢሆንም፤በተግባር እየተከተለ ያለው አገዛዝ፦”ንጉስ አይከሰስ፤ሰማይ አይታረስ” በሚል ያረጀ ብሂል የሚመራ  እንደሆነ ብዙዎች ይስማማሉ። ፕሮፌሰር መስፍን ወልደማርያም፦”የ ኢትዮጵያ ህገ-መንግስት የተፃፈበትን ወረቀት ያህል ዋጋ አላወጣም”ማለታቸው አይዘነጋም።

The Ethiopian Engima

Ben Rawlence, Senior Researcher, Africa Division, Human Rights Watch   

Mariam was painfully thin. Several of her 13 children peered out from behind her with hollow eyes. "I am trying to save my children. We are not living. We are subhuman," she told me. Food aid was available in her village in Southern Ethiopia. But not for her children. Her husband belonged to the wrong political party. The same month I was interviewing this desperate mother in 2009, President Obama was telling Ghana's parliament that: "Africa doesn't need strongmen, it needs strong institutions."

 Meanwhile, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, one of Africa's longest serving strongmen, was using food aid as a weapon against opposition supporters, locking up opponents and journalists, and shutting down media and civil society organizations that reported on Ethiopia's slide into authoritarianism. In 2010, his party unsurprisingly won over 99 percent of the seats in parliament. On May 19, President Obama will welcome Prime Minister Zenawi to the G-8 summit at Camp David to discuss food security in Africa along with the democratically elected leaders of Benin, Ghana, and Tanzania. 

The invitation to Meles demonstrates that whatever the Obama administration has learned from the Arab Spring, it doesn't apply to Africa. It should. Cosseting autocratic regimes rarely ends well for anybody. Mariam wanted me to tell the world that their aid dollars were being misused. In a 2010 report, "Development without Freedom," we did. Yet the Ethiopian enigma is curious: the more repressive Ethiopia gets, the more aid it receives from Western governments. Why does a country with a human rights record rivaling those of repressive Sudan, Uzbekistan, or Zimbabwe enjoy such solid support in the U.S. and Europe? 

Since the 2010 elections Meles's government has detained dozens, and possibly hundreds, of opposition members, perceived opposition supporters, and others. No one knows exactly how many people have been arrested because no independent organizations have access to all of Ethiopia's known and secret detention facilities, where torture and ill treatment are common. There are few Ethiopian human rights groups to investigate the detentions because in 2009 Ethiopia passed a law on non-governmental organizations that strangled most local human rights groups by cutting off foreign funding. And the government has regularly detained and deported journalists who try to access the embattled Ogaden region, successfully cutting off news of the situation.

Of course Ethiopia is a reliable partner on counter-terrorism and regional security and perceived to be an oasis of stability amid Eritrea, Sudan, and Somalia. Ethiopia has held terrorism suspects from Somalia and Kenya for interrogation and hosts a U.S. drone base for operations in Somalia. Ethiopia intervened in Somalia in 2006 to oust the militant Union of Islamic Courts and deployed peacekeepers in the contested region of Abyei between Sudan and South Sudan. 

But the security partnership is not the only reason. Ethiopia appears to be making strong progress on meeting development goals, and donor partners such as the World Bank are anxious to sustain their "investments." Yet the proportion of the population requiring food aid remains stubbornly high and the numbers of Ethiopians fleeing the country due to repression or in search of economic opportunities they can't find at home are exploding. 

As long as Ethiopia appears to be making progress toward the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals, donors seem to care little about how that progress is achieved. Ethiopia even used some foreign-funded development programs to cement the ruling party's grip on power. As Mariam and many other people we interviewed told Human Rights Watch the ruling party discriminates against anyone it perceives as an opponent: access to donor-funded government services, food aid, housing, employment, promotions, educational opportunities, and land have all been used to encourage support for the ruling party. 

The government is pursuing controversial resettlement programs, indirectly supported by foreign assistance, forcing people to leave their ancestral lands and in some cases leaving them worse off. It has also expropriated vast tracts of land and forced resettlement of indigenous communities in the Omo valley, a UNESCO World Heritage site, to make way for state-run sugar plantations. Meanwhile the government has steadily whittled away what's left of the independent media. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, more journalists have fled Ethiopia in the last decade than any other nation. 

This month, PEN American Center awarded its prestigious Freedom to Write award to Eskinder Nega, who is fast becoming Ethiopia's best-known journalist. Eskinder is in jail for the seventh time, but this time he is charged under a 2009 counterterrorism law that, so far, has primarily been used to target opposition leaders and journalists. Fifteen other journalists and opposition members have already been convicted (or charged) under the law, including two Swedish journalists who attempted to report on abuses in the Ogaden region.

Before Zenawi's government deported me for reporting on the politicization of aid, Eskinder Nega told me that he thought President Obama's Ghana speech heralded a new era for democratic governance in Africa. If Eskinder was right then, instead of inviting undemocratic leaders like Zenawi to Camp David, the Obama administration would review its approach to Ethiopia and call on the government to reverse its assault on human rights and democracy. But I fear that when Eskinder hears of the visit in his cell in Kaliti prison, he will know that his faith in President Obama's words was wrong.

Ben Rawlence is a Senior Researcher in the Africa Division at Human Rights Watch.

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Ethiopia G-8 Summit , G-8 Summit Obama , Meles Zenawi , Meles Zenawi G-8 Summit , Obama G-8 Summit , Ethiopia G-8 Summit Obama Zenawi , G-8 Summit , World News

How Meles Rules Ethiopia

By Richard Dowden

Meles Zenawi is the cleverest and most engaging Prime Minister in Africa – at least when he talks to visiting outsiders. When he speaks to his fellow Ethiopians, he is severe and dogmatic. But he entertains western visitors with humour and irony, deploying a diffident, self-deprecating style which cleverly conceals an absolute determination to control his country and its destiny, free of outside interference.

 He was one of four African presidents to be invited to the Camp David G8 meeting last weekend. The aid donors love Meles. He is well-informed, highly numerate and focused. And he delivers. Ethiopia will get closer to the Millennium Development Goals than most African countries. The Ethiopian state has existed for centuries and it has a bureaucracy to run it. So the aid flows like a river, nearly $4 billion a year. And Meles is the United States’ policeman in the region with troops in Somalia and Sudan. 

He also enjoys a simmering enmity with his former ally, now the bad boy of the region, President Isias Afwerke of Eritrea. “It’s Mubarak syndrome,” a worried US diplomat told me. “We only talked to Mubarak about Egypt’s role in the region, never about what was happening inside Egypt. It’s the same with Ethiopia.”

In the 2005 election when the opposition won the capital, Addis Ababa, and claimed to have won nationally, the government arrested its leaders and tried them for treason. Some were imprisoned, others fled into exile. Now with 99.6% of the vote, the ruling Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) has created a virtual one party state. In an interview last week Meles told me he did not know of a single village in the whole country that voted for the opposition.

This is subtle totalitarianism, dubbed ‘Authoritarian Developmentalism’ by some. If you do what the government says, you get assistance – land, water, services. If you don’t, you get nothing. The basic principles of political freedom enshrined in the constitution are frequently undermined by subtle edicts from government departments. Press freedom is clearly spelt out and recently a minor ruling stated that printers must take responsibility for everything they publish and can refuse to print anything the government might consider illegal. Hardly a devastating blow to press freedom you might think until you discover that the only presses in Ethiopia capable of printing newspapers are government-owned.

Meles’ remarkable achievement since he took power in 1991 has been to attract foreign companies to Ethiopia through a policy of low taxes and a free hand. Growth has been between 8 and 11 percent over the past eight years thanks to the private sector (both western and eastern.) The economy has doubled over the last five years. Meles is rushing to develop the country as fast as he can. Using the Chinese model he has attracted foreign investors to develop agriculture and manufacturing. As he told me: “The criticism we had in the past was that we were crazy Marxists. Now we are accused of selling the family spoons to foreigners. It’s a balance.”

Meles has leased more than 4 million hectares of land to foreign or domestic companies to grow food or flowers. And to provide them with water and power he has built dams which he says are environmentally much better than power stations since they are built in gorges with little water loss through evaporation. But it is not a completely free market solution. There are government monopolies in banking and telecoms. Nor will the government give people title deeds. All land is state owned. Meles has made it clear he will keep it that way.

“Have we created a perfect democratic system? No it’s a work in progress. Are we running as fast as our legs will carry us? Yes. And it’s not just Addis but also the most remote areas. Unlike previous governments we have really created a stable country in a very turbulent neighbourhood. Our writ runs in every village. That never happened in the history of Ethiopia. The state was distant, irrelevant.”

He fiercely defends his policies, in the face of Western NGO criticism, that this development is environmentally unsound and indigenous people have been removed forcibly from their land. He insists that in every case they were consulted, dismissing a report by the Oakland Institute in the US which said people had been forcibly removed as “bullshit”. When I suggest that pastoralists should be allowed to continue their nomadic way of life, he says I am a romantic westerner. But he adds that it is their right to continue their way of life.

It is the same with the politics. Having taken power by force in 1991 and coming from a minority, Meles created a safety valve by writing into the constitution the right of every “nation” in Ethiopia to declare independence. Whenever there are local political problem he re-asserts that right to leave but it is unlikely the clause will ever be put to the test through a referendum.

The current trouble spot is the southern region of Gambela where land has been given to agricultural businesses. Meles is defensive about reports of recent forced removals. “We are making sure that the Gambela people are settled and have land and that young people can go to farms not as guards but as farmers,” he said, assuring me that the people who have been moved were consulted. Only when all those in the region who want to work have jobs will other workers be recruited from other parts of Ethiopia.

Is the Meles plan for rapid, state directed capitalism working? At the recent World Economic Forum meeting in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa earlier this month, criticism came, not from western NGOs , but from China, Ethiopia’s closest ally. Gao Xiqing of the China Investment Forum, warned Meles: “Do not necessarily do what we did”. Policies of “sheer economic growth” should be avoided, he said. “We now suffer pollution and an unequal distribution of wealth and opportunities… You have a clean sheet of paper here. Try to write something beautiful.”

Has any Chinese official ever publically criticised an African leader in such terms before? And some foreign investors are not happy either. They have driven Ethiopia’s growth but now the government and Ethiopian firms are desperate for a greater slice of the profits. Flower and horticultural companies have been suddenly ordered by the government to only use Ethiopian companies for packing their produce, transporting it to Addis Ababa airport from where only the state-owned Ethiopian Airlines must be hired to fly it to Europe. As the distraught owner of one of the biggest flower farms told me last week: “Ethiopia does not have such companies yet”. But if they refuse, their licences will be withdrawn. It appears that having lured foreign businesses into Ethiopia, the government is now tying them down and taking their profits.

Meles is caught in a bind, under pressure on several fronts with problems that economic growth may not solve. Inflation is coming down but has been running at almost 50 percent. Everyone I spoke with in Ethiopia said that the cost of living was the highest they had ever known. There is real hardship among the poor as the staple grain in Ethiopia, teff, has quadrupled in price recently. The universities are pouring out graduates but there are few jobs. One recent graduate I spoke with said she was one of about 10 out of more than 100 in her class who had a job. The government’s hope is that it can grow the economy even faster.

 It is promising mining as the next bonanza and Meles hinted last week that oil has been discovered. But this is the scenario he may soon be facing: a mass of urban poor hurt by the price rise of the staple food and large numbers of educated but unemployed urban youth. Sounds familiar? The Arab Spring was watched closely by Ethiopians. And, it appears Meles senses it is coming. He told the World Economic Forum meeting: “The going is going to get tough so Ethiopia needs a tough leader, a leader prepared to say no. You can’t please everyone.”

Richard Dowden is Director of the Royal African Society and author of Africa; altered states, ordinary mircles.

Source: http://www.awrambatimes.com/?p=899

DuPont to invest $3 million in Ethiopia; sponsor EIU's Global Food Security Index

Ellen Kullman, chair and chief executive officer, DuPont, announced two key efforts that would support collaborative world hunger initiatives. It will invest more than $3 million over the next three years to help smallholder farmers in Ethiopia to achieve food security; and is sponsoring an innovative Global Food Security Index being developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) to measure the drivers of food security across 105 countries.

The index will be published this summer and will be a unique resource for those working to improve food security across the private and public sectors. This interactive benchmark tool will be publicly available, so governments, universities, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and others can access the relevant data to help tailor local solutions regarding food security.

Kullman made both announcements at the Advancing Food and Nutrition Security at the 2012 G8 Summit, hosted by The Chicago Council on Global Affairs in collaboration with the World Economic Forum. Building on DuPont's substantial commitment to Africa

DuPont intends to forge a strategic alliance with the government of Ethiopia and the Agriculture Transformation Agency to directly benefit the productivity of smallholder farmers in the nation, thereby improving their ability to produce nutritious food for their families and communities.

"Based on our work with smallholder farmers and African families, we understand that local solutions, local acceptance and community collaborations are critical to improving food security in Africa and around the world," Kullman said. "DuPont will commit additional local resources, including recruiting local talent to run our research and operations in Sub-Saharan countries like Ethiopia, Kenya and South Africa, and ensure the solutions we develop are economically, socially and environmentally sustainable."

DuPont has operations in 35 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and employs more than 500 people on the continent through its businesses. Kullman said the commitment to grow DuPont's presence on the continent will result in investment to grow these businesses in Africa to more than $1 billion in revenue in the next decade.

DuPont's commitment to grow its business in Africa and explore collaborations in the region is in support of Grow Africa and the G8's New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition.

Supporting local solutions in Ethiopia
Kullman also highlighted a specific emphasis in Ethiopia in DuPont's collaboration and expansion efforts: " She announced a pilot project between DuPont and the Earth Institute of Columbia University to create a rapid soil information system to aid Ethiopian farmers with an effective way to diagnose soil constraints in the field and receive recommendations to improve crop yields. DuPont will invest $1 million over three years for the pilot project

" DuPont's Crop Protection business will work to develop a sulfonylurea weed control offering for wheat to improve productivity, bring novel insect control solutions for cotton and vegetables, and train farmers on the responsible use of crop protection products Looking ahead, Kullman said DuPont is exploring a collaboration opportunity with USAID to upgrade agronomic practices and inputs of smallholder Ethiopian maize farmers and increase the profitability of their farms " DuPont also will invest $2 million to expand seed production and storage facilities in Ethiopia

Bringing new tools to focus global efforts
The Global Food Security Index will be released in July 2012 and will take into account underlying factors such as the affordability, accessibility, availability, nutritional value and safety of food to measure food security and assess vulnerabilities country by country. The index is distinct because it uses 25 indicators and adjusts for food price fluctuations to actively reassess the risks countries face over time.

"We need a clear metric that enables us to see, transparently and objectively, what we're up against," Kullman said. "Governments, private and public sector entities need a common language to discuss the root cause of hunger so they can make better informed decisions that drive sustainable action at a local level. We are pleased to support the Economist Intelligence Unit in developing this one-of-a-kind tool for promoting collaboration, generating insights and stimulating action to feed the world's growing population."

The index supports the continued execution of the Millennium Development Goals and the L'Aquila Food Security Initiative by providing a way to gauge the success of investments in a region and to hone future projects to address exact food security drivers in a particular country. 

Source:  http://www.fnbnews.com/article/detnews.asp?articleid=31922&sectionid=1

Why are the Tigrean Ruling Elites in Power for so long?

By Ture Hirbe (Ph.D.)

The Tigrean ruling elites are in power for two decades now, and it looks as if they will be staying in power for more years to come. How do we explain their longevity in power? They represent a minority constituency in the country (six percent of the total population). Almost everything is going wrong for most people in that country, except for few people associated with them. About 14 million people live on food aid.

Inflation rate is going up everyday making life miserable even for the middle income families. Mothers are feeding their children in shifts. Despite all these negative facts on the ground they ruled the country for twenty years, and they still expect, and even think entitled, to rule more years to come. One may wonder how on earth they stayed so long in power. What has kept them, and is still keeping them in power for so long despite all these ills and wrong policies? 

Many political pundits and commentators give two most important reasons for their stay in power, and these include: (1) the opposition is too divided making it easy for them to divide and rule; (2) the West is behind the Tigrean ruling elites providing them financial, political and moral support for their own selfish national interests. Indeed, the above mentioned reasons are among the factors contributing for the longevity of TPLF junta, but these factors are not the determinant ones. According to my understanding, the Tigrean elites are in power for so long because of their political capability to maintain power. 

They have a leader who is capable of combining Marxist theoretical model with Machiavellian state crafts and apply it without hesitation. They plan all of their political moves and act very fast and decisively. The following points illustrate their smart and effective political moves that kept and keeping them in power.

The TPLF dismantled state structure and state machinery of previous regime. The Ethiopian state structure and state machinery of previous regime were completely smashed and completely destroyed.  This is a typical Marxist-Leninist theory translated into practice. It was a radical and fundamental transformation of the society. According to Marxist teaching social revolutions to be successful there should be a transfer of state power from one class to another. 

In Ethiopian case, a complete transfer of power took place from one dominant ethnic group to another emerging dominant ethnic group. A radical transfer of state power took place from then ruling Amhara ruling ethnic elites to Tigrean ruling elites. A Tigrean ethnic group emerged as undisputed dominant ruling ethnic group in Ethiopia. The Tigrean elites had no intention to share power from the very beginning; they needed a full-fledged dominance and reap the benefits. Indeed, they are reaping the benefits in full gear.

The Tigrean elites used both force and cooptation methods to conquer other regions. From the very beginning they understood that they cannot rule by only using force, and needed collaborators from other ethnic groups. They recruited dependable opportunists from major ethnic groups. They created forged “ethnic political organizations” (OPDO, ANDEM, etc…). These fake ethnic political organizations have served the Tigrean ruling elites very well and they are still serving them with dedication and devotion. 

They totally controlled the economy of the country. They understood early on that the economy is the foundation to maintain political power. The Marxist teaching that the economic structure is the basis of superstructure was well pursued. They appeared to adhere to the principles of free market economy in order to hoodwink the Western donors. They successfully built TPLF Business Empire under the umbrella of EFFORT. Besides, the Tigrean ethinocrats allied themselves with the Saudi Business Magnet and the two together now control about 90% percent of the total production and distribution of the private sector.

 TPLF, a single ethnic political organization in power, controls a 100% government employment. Anyone contrary to the Tigrean interest, risks his/her job. A full acceptance of the Tigrean domination is expected from all government employees. Moreover, in Ethiopia land is owned by TPLF. They are the victors and the land of the vanquished belongs to them. It is “a victor takes all philosophy.” The Tigrean elites can give you a plot of land, can willy-nilly evict the farmers and sell it to “foreign investors”; they can give it as a gift to neighboring states to buy favors; and they can extend the borders of Tigrean region to any direction of other Ethiopian regions, particularly, to Gondar.

 The Tigrean elites are the masters of their destiny; they achieved more than what they have fought for; it is no more a tiny republic they toiled to establish in a barren tip of the country. Now they control a huge country with the immense and untapped resources.The TPLF junta conducted and is conducting smart and very effective foreign policy. They took advantage of current international security concerns and are wisely using it in their favor. 

The US and its allies are bent to fight “global terrorism” and have formed anti-terrorism global coalition. TPLF leaders didn’t miss the golden opportunity and have joined the coalition from the very beginning. Anybody confronting their rule at home is condemned as a terrorist and being sent to jail. Their Western allies know what is going on in Ethiopia, but they have to keep quiet and give blind eyes to all wrong doings in order not to upset their unwavering ally in the Horn of Africa. 

However, as smart as they are, the Tigrean elites are starting doing mistakes as all dictators before them. Their leaders and cadres have developed a sense of invincibility testing all venues that will bring them more power and more money. They are evicting thousands of poor families from their land and selling them for cheap prices to foreign investors. Particularly, the crime they are committing against innocent people in Gambella region is attracting worldwide attention and strong local resistance.

 They also started messing with the Muslim Religion. That might be the fatal mistake they have ever done. The Muslims do not hesitate for a second to give their lives for their religion. They are not cowards as others when it comes to their religion. These two mistakes might cost the Tigrean elites their power. Unfortunately enough, there is no any credible opposition force ready to take advantage of the situation.

 Ethiopian opposition forces are more of talks and less of actions; and they are only good at calling hundreds of aimless meetings. As TPLF is the only well-organized ethnic political organization and led by politically astute leader, the Tigrean elites might survive the current turmoil and remain in power for more years to come.

--
The writer, Dr. Ture Hirbe, can be reached for comments at turehirbe@gmail.com 

Source:  http://ethiomedia.com/2012_report/3809.html

Ethiopia: Presence of Ethiopia Contradicts Goal of G-8 Talks

By Office of Rep. Chris Smith (press release), United States House Of Representatives (Washington, DC), 18 May 2012

Washington, DC — Friday the G-8 leaders will begin a summit at Camp David, MD, with discussions focusing on the global economic recovery and food security in the developing world, with President Obama having invited the leaders of Benin, Ethiopia, Ghana and Tanzania to discuss food security, but the presence of Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi is causing growing concern because of the land grab issue in his country and unaddressed human rights abuses there.

"Several years ago, I introduced legislation to sanction the Ethiopian government for the killing of peaceful protesters in 2005 and its broader violations of human rights," said Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health and Human Rights. "Not only do human rights violations continue in Ethiopia, but the government has now added the element of displacing their own people in favor of foreign interests farming Ethiopian land instead of their own citizens. Having Ethiopia at the table to discuss food security is counter-productive based on their land policies.

"The only way the inclusion of Ethiopia at the G-8 summit makes sense is if this forum provides an occasion to have a serious discussion with Meles about his unacceptable treatment of Ethiopian citizens, including policies that have made more of his people's food insecure," Smith said.

According to recent human rights reports, the Ethiopian government is forcibly relocating 70,000 people from the Gambella region in the southwestern part of the country to make land available for foreign investment in agriculture. Those displaced Ethiopians now face a lack of food, new farmland or available health and education services for their families. An estimated 5,000 Anuak people has been forced to flee to Kenya and 8,000 Anuak are now refugees in South Sudan.

Previous State Department human rights reports have consistently cited Ethiopia for such human rights violations as unlawful killings, torture and other abuse of detainees, arbitrary arrest and detention, illegal searches and the use of excessive force by security services in counterinsurgency operations. The new State Department human rights report will be released shortly and is not expected to indicate a reduction of human rights violations in Ethiopia.

The Ethiopian Federal High Court on January 19, 2012, convicted three Ethiopian journalists, an opposition leader, and a fifth person under an anti-terrorism law that one human rights organization claims violates free expression and due process rights. The ruling comes one month after two Swedish journalists were sentenced to 11 years in prison on charges of "rendering support to terrorism," based on their having illegally entered Ethiopia to investigate and report on abuses in the country's Ogaden area.

 Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/201205190461.html

G-8 Summit: Police in riot gear contain Ethiopian activists protesting in Maryland

THURMONT, Md. (AP), May 19, 2012 - 07:35 am

Protesters march near the G-8-Summit at Camp David in downtown Thurmont, Md on Saturday, May 19, 2012. (AP Photo/Timothy Jacobsen) 

Dozens of police officers in riot gear contained more than 200 Ethiopian activists who jammed a small Maryland town's square Saturday to protest their prime minister's involvement in a global economic summit at nearby Camp David. Continue reading.

Authorities reported no arrests during the three-hour demonstration that shut down the intersection of two state highways through the center of town. The commotion drew scores of spectators, many using cameras to document their town's latest role in world affairs.

The flag-waving Ethiopian immigrants, mainly residents of the Baltimore-Washington area, were protesting the rule of Meles Zenawi, who was invited along with the heads of Benin, Ghana and Tanzania to discuss food security with leaders of the Group of Eight leading industrial nations. On Friday, President Barack Obama announced $3 billion in private-sector pledges to help boost agriculture and food production in Africa.

The United States is a major contributor of aid to Ethiopia, whose longtime leader has been accused of restricting freedoms and news media. Some in Ethiopia see him as a dictator. "Shame on you!" chanted the protesters, many waving their country's red, green and yellow flag. Some held a banner reading, "Zenawi: brutal dictator, pathological liar, mass murderer." 

Police restricted demonstrators to Thurmont, a town of 6,200 several miles from the presidential retreat. Demonstrator Woni Hailesilassi, a 33-year-old cab driver from Falls Church, Va., said he and four companions tried to drive their car to Camp David but were turned away after 25 minutes of police questioning.

"We need for the people to understand who is the president," he said, referring to Zenawi. "We know him very well. We want to show that to the world." Local resident Cheryl Magers watched the demonstration from the front steps of Thurmont Barber & Styling, across the street from barricades.

"This is quite a commotion," she said. "And it's going to be a part of history. That's why we're here." A few doors down, Christina Spain sold $15 t-shirts reading, "I survived G-8 Summit 2012," from a sidewalk table. She said she and her boyfriend had 84 of the shirts printed overnight to sell as souvenirs.

"This is not going to happen again," she said.

Police said there were no arrests or other problems with the protesters. "Everybody got to come and demonstrate peacefully. There were no issues and that's what we were hoping for," said Frederick County Sheriff's Office Cpl. Jason West, a spokesman for a combined local and state police force.

A handful of demonstrators from Occupy movements in Baltimore, Washington and New Haven, Conn., joined in. Occupy Baltimore member Richard Ochs said many others from the group went to Chicago to join demonstrations against a meeting there of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, starting Sunday.

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