Fighting for Freedom of Speech in Ethiopia

Charlayne Hunter-Gault relates the travails of married journalists Serkalem Fasil and Eskinder Nega.
By: Charlayne Hunter-Gault

Crying onstage in front of a crowd is not my thing, but a few days ago, as I stood next to Serkalem Fasil, I couldn't hold back my tears. It was a bittersweet moment because Fasil had just received the prestigious PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award on behalf of her husband, Eskinder Nega.

He faces life in prison on charges of terrorism and incitement to violent revolt after writing an article discussing the implications of the Arab Spring uprising for democracy in Ethiopia. And Nega is not alone in being on the receiving end of an ongoing government crackdown on independent journalists in Ethiopia, many of whom are also being silenced by arrests and imprisonment. Many have fled the country to keep hope (and themselves) alive. 

As the emcee for the evening, I was scheduled to make brief remarks and close the evening, but instead I was moved to ask the indulgence of the audience of some 500 writers, editors and publishers. Then I poured out my heart, so full, since this was the first time I had seen Fasil since 2007, when I visited her in Kality Prison, just outside of Addis Ababa.

Kality is where she and her husband, Nega, were then serving time for what the government called terrorism but which was, in fact, an instance in which independent journalists were doing their job reporting the news as honestly as they could. In this case they were reporting on the government's crackdown on opposition parties in the 2005 parliamentary election in which some 200 opposition supporters were killed, followed by mass arrests of journalists and others not aligned with the government.

Nega was not alone in his criticism of the Ethiopian government. The European Union accused the government of vote rigging, and the Carter Center (on whose board I serve) cited postelection irregularities. I had gone to Addis with two members of the Committee to Protect Journalists, on whose board I also serve, to encourage the government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi not only to spare the journalists' lives -- since the charge of terrorism carried the death penalty -- but also to ask for their release altogether. 

 But in the short term, we wanted at least permission to visit them and take reading materials, which up to that point they had been denied. We got that permission, and when we arrived at the prison, we were escorted into a tiny, dusty room, where the guards soon produced several prisoners, including Nega and Fasil.

A few years later, when I was asked to accept another press-freedom award from the International Women's Media Foundation on Fasil's behalf, I wrote about my first impressions of her that day in 2007:She was such a tiny little thing, her head gracefully covered with a scarf, at that point her pregnancy barely showing because of the full, floor-length dress she was wearing. At first she seemed a little reserved, if not perplexed. At the same time, she had an air of calm about her and moved with a slow grace so at odds with her wretched surroundings. 

But in no time, my two colleagues and I had established a rapport, and while Serkalem spoke mostly in Amharic, Ethiopia's native tongue, as her words came pouring out, the fragility disappeared and before my eyes, she was transformed into a woman determined to stand by her principles and to stand up for what she believed: that if she were guilty of anything, it was of standing for the freedom for her colleagues to speak truth to power. She didn't believe she belonged in prison, but she was prepared to stay and fight, as long as it took, as much as it might take out of her and her unborn child.

I wanted to see where Fasil was usually confined, but I was told by the guard that it was off-limits -- a prohibition that I could not accept. I had no intention of coming that far and not seeing the conditions in which she, especially, was being kept. And so I just started walking alongside Fasil down a rocky, dusty path, talking to her in words that I knew she couldn't understand but that she pretended to, instinctively aware of what I was attempting.

Then Fasil saw Nega, whom she had not seen since their imprisonment, other than in the room where we had just met. And as I later recalled: It was a moment too tender to describe as he reached for her tiny, but expanding tummy, and I quickly turned away to give them an all too fleeting moment, soon interrupted by a guard calling to Eskinder. Serkalem was silent as we walked on, past children in rags playing on the enclosed dark and dusty prison yard in the women's area. Soon, we entered a long, dark rectangular room, sparse and stark, with rows of bunk beds and little else. 

There were 60 women in the room, in addition to the rats that crawled over their beds at night. Fasil walked slowly to the very end of the room where she introduced me to several of the prisoners. They promised me they would take care of her. That included sharing the cooked beans, rice and potatoes they had in pots under their bed -- for who knows long -- brought by family members to make up for the paltry meals served in the prison.

Despite the caring sentiments of the other prisoners, Fasil rarely had the kind of nutritious food she needed in her condition. Five months into her pregnancy, she had not seen a doctor, and later, her baby was born prematurely and severely underweight.

On this occasion, as I was leaving, I fought back the tears that five years later I would shed at the PEN dinner. But I determined to do all I could to get her and her husband and the others out of that prison. They served a year and six months before they were released. But despite the ever-present threat of still another imprisonment, they continued to speak truth to power, insisting that, in Fasil's words last week, "to create the country we want, someone has to sacrifice."

And so it is that Nega is back in prison, his newspaper shut down since 2007, except for a presence online, and facing the death penalty. A newspaper editor who printed his verbatim statement in court, questioning the independence of the judiciary and fairness of the proceeding, was given a suspended four-month sentence and fined the equivalent of $113. And it has fallen to Fasil to use her words now to keep Nega's message and hope alive.

As a mother, I was keen to know about their son. Fasil told me through an interpreter that today he is strong. I asked his name, and she told me with the kind of smile that brings more moisture back to my eyes, "His name is Nafkot, which means 'longing.' " It is time for me to return to Ethiopia and try to see the prime minister, to plead yet again for the journalists' freedom and for their right to free expression. 

And maybe, just maybe, in the interim, when Prime Minister Zenawi attends a G-8 Summit Food Security at Camp David on May 19, American officials can weigh in, too, on the importance not only of strategic partnerships but also of freedom of speech in a democracy. 

Charlayne Hunter-Gault, a regular contributor to The Root, is the author of To the Mountaintop: My Journey Through the Civil Rights Movement, published by Roaring Brook Press and the New York Times Co. 

Ethiopia: Second Indian Flower Farm to Sprout in Debre Brehan

 By Allafrica.com

A new Indian company, Esimo Flower & Agro Industries Plc, is investing 100 million dollars to start planting flowers in July 2012 at a 71ht farm it acquired in Debre Brehan, 130km northeast of Addis Abeba, in Amhara Regional State.

The farm, located three kilometres from the town, has finalised the land levelling and constructed a fence as well as a pack house, where harvested flowers are to be processed for export, according to Sanjaye Bangali, owner and general manager of Esimo. This was confirmed by Mayor Getaneh Zeke of Debre Berhan. The company was initially registered in 2009 with an investment capital of 10 million dollars. The company has increased its capital to drill water wells and build warehouses and greenhouses, it says. The farm is dealing with Israeli, Indian, and Palestinian companies to get the greenhouse supplies for 15 dollars a square metre.

Bangali plans to produce cut flowers, fruit, and vegetables for the European, Russian, and Middle Eastern markets. The farm is set to become the second flower farm in Debre Brehan after ASK Flowers and Greens Plc, run by Shahab Khan, another Indian investor. ASK was the first flower investment in Amhara, established in 2007 with an investment capital of 16 million Br.

Esimo plans to grow 75,000 rose plants on one hectare, which would enable a harvest of 80,000 to 90,000 stems in the first phase of production, covering 15ht. In the second phase of production, in the second year, the plan is to increase its harvest to 90,000 or 100,000, according to Bangali. Producing flowers is a high-risk and highly profitable investment, and Bengali thinks his company has a good opportunity to succeed within a few years.

"We are planning to buy the seedling for 0.52 dollars and sell the flowers with prices ranging between 0.71 dollars and 1.1 dollars, depending on the stem of the plant," he said. The construction, which includes the drilling of the water wells and building of the warehouses, flower stores, and staff offices, was done by Kifle Bisrat Building Contractor.

For the farm, the amount of water required for the first phase of production is 900 cubic metres for the total production. "We have already drilled a 200 metre-deep water well with 22, 000 dollars but could not find the water, which is why we are drilling again and have been seeing hints of it," Sanjaye told Fortune. In order to sufficiently use the amount of water and to modernise the system, the company plans to use drip irrigation.

"We are dealing with two companies: Neta Fim, an Indian company working in the field of irrigation and landscaping; and Jain Irrigation Inc, an Israel manufacturer of drip irrigation products," he said. The company foresees growing roses that are bred locally and are similar to Ecuadorian and Colombian breeds, according to Bangali. Ethiopia has a stable year-round temperature and strong sun, and the region is  acknowledged as one of the best growing areas, according to an expert from the Ethiopian Horticulture Producers & Exporters Association (EHPEA).

Debre Brehan, whose elevation is 2,840 metres above sea level, has an ideal climate to grow beautiful flowers, according to the expert. However, he says that there has not been much promotion for the town as a flower growing area.

The farm will start producing flowers after setting up its drip irrigation system, Bengali told Fortune. Revenues from flower exports have grown from 27.9 million dollars in 2002/03, when the Association was formed, to 178.3 million dollars in 2010/11, making flowers the third-largest export earner in the economy, following coffee and khat. 

Source: http://allafrica.com/stories/201205150518.html

የኢትዮጵያ ህዝብ አርበኞች ግንባር በወያኔ ልዩ ሀይል ላይ ጉዳት አደረሰ

 By www.ecadforum.com

በሚያዝያ 28 – 2004 ዓ.ም የኢትዮጵያ ህዝብ አርበኞች ግንባር በሰሜን ጎንደር፣ ሰሮቃ ልዩ ስሙ እምቡጉዳድ በሚባል ስፍራ ከወያኔው ልዩ ሀይል ጋር ባካሄደው አውደ ውጊያ ዘጠኝ ወያኔ ገድሎ ሶስት ያቆሰለ ሲሆን እንቅስቃሴውን በአካባቢው በማስፋፋት ህዝቡን የሚቀሰቅሱ በራሪ ወረቀቶችን አሰራጭቷል።

የተበተኑት ወረቀቶች ከያዙት መልእክቶች ውስጥ፦

• በዋልድባ ገዳምና በተለያዩ የሀይማኖት ተከታዮች ላይ ለከት የለሽ ጥቃት በሚሰነዝረው ወያኔ ላይ ተነስ!
• ኢትዮጵያዊነት መንፈስና ስሜትን ለማጥፋት በሚባዝነው ጎጠኛ ላይ ተነስ!
• ዲሞክራሲያዊ መብትህን ገፎ ለስደት በዳረገህ ኢ-ፍትህአዊ አገዛዝ ላይ ተነስ!
• አገሬውን እንደ ግዑዝ ከቦታ ቦታ በሚያሰድደው ጠባብ ላይ ተነስ!
• የሀገሪቱን ሀብት ጥቅልሎ በመያዝና በመበዝበር ህዝቡን በከፍተኛ የኑሮ ውድነት ችግር እንዲሰቃይ በዳረገው የጸረ-አንድነት ቡድን ላይ ታጠቅ!

ተነስ! ታጠቅ!

አንድነት ሀይል ነው!

የኢህአግ ፖለቲካ መምሪያ

ይህ በዚህ እንዳለ… የኢትዮጵያ ህዝብ አርበኞች ግንባር በግንቦት 5 – 2004 ዓ.ም በርካታ ምልምሎችን አሰልጥኖ አንዳስመረቀ ለማወቅ ተችሏል። ከሰልጣኞቹ መካክል ሴቶችም የሚገኙበት ሲሆን ስልጠናውን በብቃት ተከታተለው ጨርሰዋል።

ከአልቃይዳና ከአልሸባብ ጋር ግንኙነት አላቸው የተባሉ ተጠርጣሪዎች ተከሰሱ

 By Ethiopian Reporter

በሕዝብ ተወካዮች ምክር ቤት በአሸባሪነት በተፈረጀው አልቃይዳና ራሱን አልሽባብ በማለት ከሚጠራው አሸባሪ ቡድን ጋር ግንኙነት አላቸው በሚል ተጠርጥረው በቁጥጥር ሥር ውለው በነበሩ አሥር ግለሰቦች ላይ የፌዴራል ዓቃቤ ሕግ ትናንትና ክስ መሠረተባቸው፡፡ በፌዴራል ከፍተኛ ፍርድ ቤት 15ኛ ወንጀል ችሎት (ልደታ) ክስ የተመሠረተባቸው ተጠርጣሪዎች አንድ ኬንያዊና ዘጠኝ ኢትዮጵያውያን ሲሆኑ፣ ስድስቱ ኢትዮጵያውያን ክሱ የተመሠረተባቸው በሌሉበት ነው፡፡

ተጠርጣሪዎቹ ሐሰን ጃርሶ (የሚስጥር ስም አልሞሀጂሪን ናዚህአልሙ አቡሀ ሚልኪ አልቡራኒ) ኬንያዊ፣ መሐመድ ሀሽም (የሚስጥር ስም አብዱሰላም) ባሌ ዞን ሮቤ፣ ዑመር ሙሳ ኢሣቅ ባሌ ዞን ጉሮ ወረዳ እና አብዲ ሽኩር ዳውድ በማረሚያ ቤት ሆነው የተከሰሱ ሲሆኑ፣ የሱፍ ሐሰን፣ መሐመድ ሻፊ፣ አብዱራህማን ሁሴን፣ አብዱልለጢፍ አብዱራህማን፣ ከድር ሙስጠፋ፣ አብዲሳ ኡሲንና አብደላ ሁሴን የተባሉት ደግሞ በሌሉበት የተከሰሱ ናቸው፡፡

የዓቃቤ ሕግ የክስ ሰነድ እንደሚያስረዳው፣ ተጠርጣሪዎቹ የፖለቲካ፣ የሃይማኖት ወይም የርዕዮተ ዓለም (አይዲዎሎጂ) ዓላማን ለማራመድ በማሰብ፣ በመንግሥት ላይ ተፅዕኖ ለማድረስ ኅብረተሰቡን አስፈራርተዋል፡፡ በሕዝብ ተወካዮች ምክር ቤት በአሸባሪነት ከተፈረጀው አልቃይዳና ራሱን አልሽባብ በማለት ከሚጠራው ቡድን ጋር አባል በመሆን የአገሪቱን መሠረታዊ ፖለቲካ ወይም ሕዝባዊ ተቋማትን ለማናጋትና ለማፈራረስ ተንቀሳቅሰዋል፡፡

ተከሳሾቹ ከ2000 ዓ.ም. መጨረሻ ጀምሮ ዋህቢያን እንደ ሽፋን በመጠቀም ጅሀድ ለመጀመር ሥልጠና በመውሰድና የጦር መሣርያ፣ የፈንጅና የከባድ መሣርያ አጠቃቀም ልምምድ በማድረግ፣ “የሙጂሀዲኖችና የአልሸባብ ንቅናቄ ካምፖች አስተዳደር” የሚል ፎረም በማዘጋጀት አባላትን መመልመላቸውን የዓቃቤ ሕግ ክስ ያስረዳል፡፡

የሃይማኖት ጦርነት ለማወጅ ሎጂስቲክና የሥልጠና ቦታ ለማዘጋጀት ገንዘብ እንዴት እንደሚገኝና የጦር መሣርያ ከጥቁር ገበያ እንዴት ማግኘት እንደሚችሉ፣ በውጭ አገር ከሚገኙ የአልቃይዳ አመራሮች ጋር በኢሜል ግንኙነት በማድረግ አመራር ይቀበሉ እንደነበርም በክሱ ተጠቅሷል፡፡

አንደኛ ተከሳሽና የኬንያ ዜጋ የሆነው ሐሰን ጃርሶ በ2001 ዓ.ም. ኬንያ ናይሮቢ ሳቢት በተባለ ሰው ተመልምሎ፣ “ሶማሊያ ውስጥ የሚገኙ የጅሀድ ወንድሞቻችንን ማገዝ አለብን” በማለት ከሌሎች ግብረ አበሮቹ ጋር ከተወያየ በኋላ፣ የጅሀድ እንቅስቃሴ ለማድረግ ወደ ሞቃዲሾና አዲወይን በመሄድ ከአልቃይዳ ታጣቂዎች ጋር መቀላቀሉን ክሱ ያብራራል፡፡

ተጠርጣሪው ሶማሊያ ውስጥ ከአልቃይዳ ታጣቂዎች ጋር በመቀላቀል ጋዛ በሚባል ማሠልጠኛ ውስጥ ከሚገኘውና ዜግነቱ ናይጄሪያዊ ከሆነው አካሽ ከሚባል የአልቃይዳ አመራር ጋር ከተገናኘ በኋላ፣ ከሌሎች አገሮች ከመጡ አሸባሪዎች ጋር በመሆን ለሦስት ወራት ልዩ ወታደራዊ ሥልጠና የወሰደና ውጊያ የተማረ መሆኑም በክሱ ተዘርዝሯል፡፡

በ2003 ዓ.ም. መጨረሻ የሽግግር መንግሥቱን ለመጠበቅ በሞቃዲሾ ከሚገኙ ከኡጋንዳና ከቡሩንዲ ከተላኩ የሰላም አስከባሪዎች ጋር ውጊያ ማድረጉም በክሱ ተካቷል፡፡

ተጠርጣሪው ሐሰተኛ የሆነ የኢትዮጵያ መታወቂያ አሠርቶ ወደ ኢትዮጵያ ከገባ በኋላ፣ ከመሐመድ ቃሲም (ሁለተኛ ተከሳሽ) እና ከዑመር ሙሳ (ከሦስተኛ ተከሳሽ) ጋር በመገናኘት፣ ኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ ያለውን የጅሀድ እንቅስቃሴ ሁኔታ ሪፖርት ሲያደርግ መቆየቱም በክሱ ተጠቁሟል፡፡ አብዛኛዎቹ ተጠርጣሪዎችም ሞቃዲሾ በመሄድ የአልሸባብን ትምህርት የወሰዱ መሆናቸው ተገልጿል፡፡

በአጠቃላይ አንደኛ ተከሳሽ የአሸባሪውን ቡድን የሎጂስቲክስና የገንዘብ አሰባሰብ፣ የሥልጠና አመቻችና የጅሀድ እንቅስቃሴው በማስተባበርና በመምራት፣ ሁለተኛው ተከሳሽ ሰብሳቢና አመራር በመሆን፣ ሦስተኛው ተከሳሽ በውጭ አገር ያሉ የአሸባሪው ቡድን አባላት ተወካይ በመሆን፣ ስድስተኛው ተከሳሽ ደግሞ የሽብር ቡድኑ ሐሳብ አመንጪና ዕቅድ አውጭ በመሆን፣ ሁሉም በማስተባበሩና የቡድኑ የገቢ ምንጭ አመቻች በመሆን ሲንቀሳቀሱ የነበሩ መሆናቸውን የዓቃቤ ሕግ ክስ ያብራራል፡፡

ተጠርጣሪዎቹ የሽብርተኝነት ወንጀል ለመፈጸም ከግብረ አበራቸው ሻህ አረቡ ሳይድ ከሚባል ግለሰብ በኢትዮጵያ ንግድ ባንክ አንዋር ንዑስ ቅርንጫፍና በተለያዩ ባንኮች ከአሸባሪ ቡድኑ ገንዘብ ሲላክላቸውና ሲቀበሉ እንደነበር በክሱ ተጠቅሶ፣ ሕግን በመጣስ ከሶማሊያ ወደ ኢትዮጵያ ግዛት በመግባትና በመውጣት ወንጀል መከሰሳቸው በችሎት ላይ ተነግሯል፡፡ ከአንድ እስከ አምስተኛ ያሉት ተጠርጣሪዎች በጠበቃቸው አማካይነት ክሱን የተቃወሙ በመሆኑ፣ ፍርድ ቤቱ ተቃውሞውን መርምሮ ብይን ለመስጠት ለነገ ቀጠሮ ሰጥቷል፡፡   

ከ400 በላይ የፖለቲካ እስረኞች ፍትህ አጥተው በመንገላታት ላይ ናቸው

ኢሳት ዜና:-

 ከቃልቲና እና ከቂልንጦ ማረሚያ ቤቶች ለኢሳት በተላከው ስም ዝርዝር ላይ ለመመልከት እንደሚቻለው ፣ በሁለቱ እስር ቤቶች ብቻ በመለስ መንግስት የሀሰት ክስ ተከሰው ፍትህ አጥተው የሚሰቃዩ 401 ሰዎች አሉ። 

አብዛኞቹ የታሰሩት ከግንቦት7 እና ከኦነግ ጋር በተያያዘ ነው። በብሄር ተዋጽኦም አብዛኞቹ አስረኞች የኦሮሞና የአማራ ተወላጆች ናቸው። በአቶ አንዱአለም መዝገብ 24፣ በአቶ በቀለ ገርባ 9፣ በጄ/ል ተፈራ ማሞ 46፣ በአቶ ተሻለ በኬ ፣ 69፣ በአቶ አል አህመድ ሰኢድ 33፣ በአቶ አሸናፊ አዱኛ 22፣ በአቶ ጌትነት ገመቹ 20፣ በአቶ ደጃሳ ወርቁ፣ 22 እና በአቶ ደበላ ጣፋ 35 እስረኞች ለአብነት ያክል ተጠቅሰዋል።

ከእነዚህ መካከል 217 እስረኞች ከእድሜልክ እስከ 15 አመታት የተፈረደባቸው ሲሆን፣ 184ቱ ደግሞ እስካሁን ፍርድ አላገኙም። አብዛኞቹ እስረኞች የመገናኛ ብዙሀንንና አለማቀፉ ማህበረሰብ የማያውቃቸው ናቸው። የመለስ መንግስት ለስልጣኑ የሚያሰጋውን ሁሉ ለእስር በመዳረጉ ዘወትር በአለማቀፍ ድርጅቶች ይወቀሳል። ኢሳት በድረገጹ የፖለቲካ እስረኞችን ስም ዝርዝር ይፋ ያደርጋል።

ከዚሁ ጋር በተያያዘ ምናልባትም በሰኔ ወር ውስጥ የአውሮፓ ህብረት አንድ ጉባኤ ለማዘጋጀት እንዳቀደ ለማወቅ ተችሎአል። የኢሳት ታማኝ የዲፐሎማቲክ ምንጮች እንደሚሉት ህብረቱ በአለም ደረጃ ታዋቂ ከሆኑት እና ብዙ የማግባቢያ ( ሎቢ) ስራ ከሚሰራላቸው ጋዜጠኛ እስክንድር ነጋን ከመሳሰሉት እስረኞች በስተቀር፣ በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ ስለሚገኙ እስረኞች መረጃ የለውም። 

በሰኔው ጉባኤ የእስረኞችን ስም ዝርዝርና ፎቶ በጉባኤ አዳራሹ ውስጥ ለማስቀመጥ እንቅስቃሴ መጀመሩን ለማወቅ ተችሎአል።

በበለደ ወይን የኢትዮጵያ ወታደሮች ተገደሉ

ኢሳት ዜና:- ግንቦት ፯ (ሰባት) ቀን ፳፻፬ ዓ/ም

በሶማሊያ በበለደወይን አካባቢ በመንገድ ላይ የተጠመደ ፈንጂ ፈንድቶ በኢትዮጵያ ወታደሮች ላይ ጉዳት ማድረሱን መረጃዎች አመልክተዋል።

 ፍንዳታው የተከሰተው የኢትዮጵያ ወታደራዊ ተሽከርካሪ፣ ወደ ምስራቅ የአገሪቱ ክፍል ለማምራት ጉዞ ሲጀምር ነው። ምንም እንኳ የሟቾች ቁጥር ባይገለጠም፣ የኢትዮጵያ ወታደሮች በወሰዱት የአጸፋ እርምጃ ሁለት ሲቪሎችን መግደላቸው ታውቋል። 

እስካሁን ድረስ ጥቃቱን ማን እንዳደረሰው አልታወቀም። የኢትዮጵያ ወታደሮች አካባቢውን አጥረው ፍተሻ መጀመራቸው ታውቋል።

የኢትዮጵያ እስልምና ጉዳዮች ጽ/ቤት ፕሬዝዳንት መንግሥት ለደህንነታቸው ከለላ ሰጣቸው

ኢሳት ዜና:-

የኢትዮጵያ እስልምና ጉዳዮች ጽ/ቤት (መጅሊስ) ፕሬዝዳንት ሸህ አህመዲን ሸህ አብድላሂ ጩሌ የኢህአዴግ መንግሥት ለደህንነታቸው ሲል ባመቻቸላቸው ቤት ውስጥ መኖር መጀመራቸውን ውስጥ አዋቂ ምንጮች አስታወቁ፡፡

የአዲስ አበባ እና አካባቢው ሙስሊም ማህበረሰብ በአወሊያና ሌሎች መስኪዶች የመጅሊስ ይፍረስና የኢህአዴግ መንግሥት በላያችን ላይ በሥልጠና በግድ የሚጭነውን የአሕባሽ አስተምህሮ  ያንሳልን ሲሉ የተጠናከረ ጥያቄ ማንሳት ከጀመሩ ካለፉት አራት ወራት ጀምሮ መጅሊሱ የሰጣቸውን ፒያሳ በኒ መስጂድ ገባ ብሎ የሚገኘውን መኖሪያ ቤታቸውን ለቀው ወጥተዋል ብለዋል፡፡

በአሁኑ ጊዜ የኢትዮጵያ እስልምና ጉዳዮች ጽ/ቤት ፕሬዝዳንት ሸህ አህመዲን ሸህ አብድላሂ ጩሌ መንግሥት ደህንነታቸው የሚጠበቅበት ቤት ጦር ኃይሎች ቶታል አካባቢ ቀደም ሲል የትምህርት ሚንስትር የነበሩት ወ/ሮ ገነት ዘውዴ ይኖሩበት የነበረውን በአምስት መቶ ካሬ ሜትር ላይ ተንጣሎ የሚገኘውን ቪላ ቤት ከሰጣቸወ በሁዋላ በደህንነት ሰዎች 24 ሰአት ሙሉ እየተጠበቁ  ናቸው ።

ከኢህአዴግ መንግሥት ጋር ሚሥጥራዊ ሥምምነት በማድረግ በህዝበ ሙስሊሙ ላይ የአሕባሽን አስተምህሮ  በግድ በሥልጠና እንዲሰጥ የተባበሩት ሸህ አህመዲን ሸህ አብድላሂ በመጪው ሁለት ወራት ውስጥ ሥልጣናቸውን ይለቃሉ ቢባልም የሙስሊሙ ማህበረሰብ ያካሂደዋል የተባለው ምርጫ በቀበሌና በዑላማዎች ምክር ቤት ስለሚካሄድ ተመልሰው የመመረጥ አሊያም ደጋፊዎቻቸው ቦታውን እንደሚይዙ በመንግሥት ቃል ተገብቶላቸው ሲሉ ለጉዳዩ ቅርበት ያላቸው ሰዎች ገልጸዋል፡፡

በአቡነ ጳውሎስ አማካይነት የቅዱስ ሲኖዶስ ስብሰባ ለቀናት እየታመሰ ነው

ኢሳት ዜና:- ግንቦት ፮ (ስድስት) ቀን ፳፻፬ ዓ/ም

ድረ-ገጹ የስብሰባ ምንጮቹን በመጥቀስ እንደዘገበው፤ችግሩ የተጀመረው ገና ጉባኤ  አዘጋጅ ኮሚቴው ዝርዝር የመወያያ አጀንዳዎቹን ለምልአተ ጉባኤው ሲያቀርብ ነው። ኮሚቴው ካቀረባቸው 20 አጀንዳዎች ውስጥ ርእሰ-መንበሩ አቡነ ጳውሎስ በተራ ቁጥር 18 ላይ በሰሜን አሜሪካ በስደት ከሚገኙ አባቶች ጋራ የተጀመረው ዕርቅ ጉዳይ በአጀንዳነት መያዙን ይቃወማሉ።

የ እርቁ ጉዳይ ጉዳዩ የሚመለከታቸውን አካላትም፦ “ፖሊቲከኞች ናቸው” በሚልም በዕርቀ- ሰላሙ ሂደት መቀጠል ላይ እንደማያምኑበት ይናገራሉ። አቡነ ጳውሎስ በዚህ ሳያቆሙም ከመንበረ ፓትርያርኩ ተወክለው ከሄዱት ልኡካን መካከል አንዱን አባል በስም በመጥቀስ ፦“ወደኋላ ቀርተው ከእነርሱ ጋራ ነገር ሲሸርቡብኝ ነበር” በማለት ወቀሳ ይሰነዝራሉ፡፡

ይሁንና አቡነ ጳውሎስ በሰሜን አሜሪካው የዕርቅ አጀንዳ ላይ ስለሰነዘሩት ተቃውሞ ሐሳባቸውን የሰጡ በርካታ  አባቶች÷ “በእኛ ዘመን ቤተ ክርስቲያን ለሁለት ተከፍላ አትቀርም! ለቀጣዩ ትውልድ ለሁለት የተከፈለች ቤተ ክርስቲያን ማስረከብ አንሻም፤ የዕርቅ ሂደቱ መቀጠሉ ግድ ነው፤ በእግራችንም ቢኾን እዚያው ሄደን እናሳካዋለን”በማለት ከፓትርያርኩ ጋር  ጠንካራ ምልልሶችን  ጋራ ተለዋውጠዋል፡፡

በአንጻሩፓትርያርኩ በዕርግና እና በሞተ ዕረፍት የተለዩ አባቶችን በመቁጠር ተጨማሪ ኤጲስ ቆጶሳት መሾም እንዳለባቸው ከምልዓተ-ጉባኤው ተለይተው ከዚህ ቀደም የያዙትን አቋም በ ሲኖዶሱ ስብሰባ በድጋሚ አንጸባርቀዋል። ሲኖዶሱ ግን ይህንም ሃሳባቸውን አልተቀበላቸውም።

አቡነ ጳውሎስ ያለማሳለስ እየተሟገቱበት ያለውንና በብዙዎች ዘንድ “የፓትርያርኩ አዳዲስ የዓላማና ጥቅም ወዳጆች ማፍሪያ ነው” የሚባለውን የተጨማሪ ኤጴስ ቆጶሳት ሹመት ጉዳይ፦ “ለጊዜው ያለነው እንበቃለን፤ ከተጀመረው ዕርቅ አንጻር ወቅቱን የጠበቀ አይደለም፤ የዕርቁን ሂደት ያደናቅፋል፤ ያለውንም ችግር ያባብሳል” በሚል ነው ብዙሀኑ ብፁዓን ሊቃነ ጳጳሳት ሀሳቡን ውድቅ ያረጉት፡፡

በመካከል የወዲያውንም የወዲሁንም ሐሳብ በመዳኘት ለመሸምገል የሞከሩ ብፁዓን አባቶች የነበሩ ቢኾንም ፤ምልአተ ጉባኤው መግባባት ላይ ሳይደርስ ለምሳ ለእረፍት ተበትኗል። ከቀትር በኋላ ቅዱስ ሲኖዶሱ ወደ አጀንዳው በመግባት መወያየቱን እንደሚቀጥል  ብዙዎቹ  ተስፋ ቢያደርጉም፤ አቡነ ጳውሎስ በፈፀሙት ተግባር የሲኖዶሱ ስብሰባ እስመቋረጥ ደርሷል።

ለስብሰባው ምክንያት ዋነኛው ምክንያት ብፁአን ሊቃነ-ጳጳሳቱ ከምሳ መልስ ወደ አዳራሹ ሲገቡ በየጠረጴዛቸው ላይ “ዜና-ቤተ-ክርስቲያን”የተሰኘውን ጋዜጣ ያገኛሉ። ጋዜጣውን ከርዕሱ ጀምሮ ወደ ውስጥ ሲመለከቱትም የአቡነ-ጳውሎስን ሀሳቦች ከማንጸባረቅ አልፎ ብዙሀኑን በተለይም የአቡነ-ጳውሎስን ሀሳብ እና አቅጣጫ የሚቃወሙትን ጳጳሳት በሚያሸማቅቁ ጽሁፎች የተሞላ ሆነው ያገኙታል።

በዚህን ጊዜ የቅዱስ ሲኒዶሱ አባላት ጋዜጣው ከይዘቱ በተጨማሪ በስብሰባ መካከል እንዲሰራጭ መደረጉ ብጹአን አባቶችን ለማሸማቀቅ  እንደሆነ ተናግረዋል። እንደ ደጄ ሰላም ዘገባ፤ የጋዜጣው  ርእሰ አንቀጽና ዘገባዎች አባጳውሎስ በስብሰባው እንዲያዙላቸው የሚፈልጓቸውን አጀንዳዎች ከአባጳውሎስ “የፓትርያርክነት ዐምባገነንነት” ፍላጎት አንጻር የማብራራት ግብዝነት የሚታይበት ነው።ይህንን ተከትሎ አባጳውሎስን ከፓትርያርክነት ማዕርጋቸው ሊያወርዷቸው በሚችሉ የቃለ መሐላ ጥሰትና የታማኝነት መታጣት ጉዳዮች ዙሪያ ጠንካራ ውይይት ተጀመረ።

ይሁንና ይህ ውይይት መጀመሩ ያስቆጣቸው የአባጳውሎስ ግብረ በላዎች ከትናንት በስቲያ ምሽት እና ትናንት ቀን ላይ በአባቶች ማረፊያ ቤት እየተዘዋወሩ በማስፈራራት፤ የ አባቶችን ጽናትና አንድነት ለማላላት ሞከሩ። በዚህ ተግባር ውስጥ እጅጋየሁ በየነ፣ ኀይለ ጊዮርጊስ ጥላሁንና ለጊዜው ስማቸው ያልተጠቀሱ ግለሰቦች እንደሚገኙበት ድረ-ገጹ አመልክቷል። ባለፈው ዓመት በተካሄደው የቅዱስ ሲኖዶስ ስብሰባ ላይ የአቡነ-ጳውሎስን ሀሳብ የተቃወሙ ሊቃነ-ጳጳሳት በሌሊት የማረፊያ ቤታቸው በር ተሰብሮ የድብደባ ሙከራ እንደተደረገባቸው መዘገቡ ይታወሳል።

አለመግባባቶቹ እየተካረሩ እና ወደ መጥፎ አዝማሚያ  እያመሩ መሆናቸውን ያስተዋሉ አንድ አባትም  በቀጥታ አቡነ-ጳውሎስን፦“ከእርስዎ ጋራ መነጋገር አልቻልንም፤ ወደ አጀንዳ ሳንገባ በየቀኑ ከእርስዎ ጋራ ንትርክ ሰልችቶናል፤ ሦስተኛ አካል ይግባ፤ መንግሥት ይግባና ይዳኘን ” እስከማለት ይደርሳሉ፡፡ ይኹንና  የስብሰባው ምንጮች እንዳሉት፤ይህ ሐሳብ ወዲያው ነበር ተቃውሞ የገጠመው፡፡

“አሁን ጎራ ለይቷል፤ በአንድ በኩል ቅዱስነትዎ ብቻዎን፤በሌላ በኩል የቅዱስ ሲኖዶስ አባላት በሙሉ። ይህ የሚያሳየው እርስዎ ፤ ለአብዛኛው የቅዱስ ሲኖዶስ አባላት ድምጽ ተገዥ አለመሆንዎን ነው፤” በማለት አቡነ-ጳውሎስን የነቀፉ አንድ  ሌላ ብፁዕ አባት፤ “ሦስተኛ ወገን የሚባል አካል አይገባም፤ አያስፈልገንም። ቅዱስ ሲኖዶስ ሕግ አውጭ፣ ሕግ ተርጓሚ፣ ሕግ አስፈጻሚ ነው፤ ስለዚህ አጀንዳዎቹን አጽድቆ መወያየቱን መቀጠል ይኖርበታል፤” በማለት አንገብጋቢ የኾኑ አጀንዳዎችን በመለየት ዘርዝረዋል፡፡

ሀሳባቸውም በብዙሀኑ ዘንድ ተቀባይነት አግኝቷል። በእኚህ አባት ሐሳብ መሠረት ቅዱስ ሲኖዶሱ ይህን ማድረግ ካልቻለ ፤፦ “ሁሉም ሊቃነ ጳጳሳት  ስብሰባውን አቋርጠው ወደየ አህጉረ ስብከታቸው በመመለስ ለየምዕመኖቻቸው የ አቡነ-ጳውሎስን እንቢታ እንደሚያስረዱ አቋማቸውን በግልጽ ያሳውቃሉ። 

፤” ሌላ ሊቀ-ጳጳስ በዚሁ ላይ አክለው፦ “ስብሰባውን ማቋረጥ ብቻ ሳይኾን ይህ ምልአተ- ጉባኤ የሚለያየው ስለ ኹኔታው ለሚዲያ መግለጫ በመስጠት ጭምር ነው” ማለታቸው ተዘግቧል የስብሰባው ምንጮች እንዳሉት ፓትርያርኩ፦መንግሥት አካል ጣልቃ ገብቶ ያነጋግረን”በማለት አቡነ ፋኑኤል የሰነዘሩትን  ሐሳብ እንደሚቀበሉት ቢግልጹም፤ “ከዚህ በፊት ተደብድበን ምን የመጣ ነገር አለ፤ በሃይማኖት፣ በአስተዳደር ጉዳይ ሲኖዶሱ የመወሰን ሙሉ ሥልጣን አለው፤” በሚል የብዙሀኑ  ተቃውሞ ሐሳቡ ተቀባይነት ሳያገኝ ቀርቷል፡፡

በመጨረሻም ከፓትርያርኩ በቀር የምልአተ- ጉባኤው አባላት “ስብሰባውን አናቋርጥም፤ ወደየ ሀገረ ስብከታችንም አንሄድም፤ ሌላ ሰብሳቢ መርጠን ውይይታችንን  እንቀጥላለን” በሚል ውሳኔ ተበትነዋል። በዚህም መሰረት የሲኖዶሱ ስብሰባ በዛሬው ዕለትም ቀጥሎ ውሏል።

______________________________________________________________________________

 By Prof. Alemayehu G. Mariam 

White House spokesman Jay Carney announced last week that President Obama has invited the presidents of Ghana, Tanzania, Benin and Meles Zenawi to attend the G8 Summit (the forum for the governments of eight of the world’s largest economies) for a discussion of food security on May 19 at Camp David (Presidential retreat) in Maryland. The U.S. has been handing out food aid to the African continent for decades.

Now President Obama says there is another looming “food crises” in Africa. Oxfam says, “All signs point to a drought becoming a catastrophe if nothing is done soon.” The U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has issued appeals for an extra $70 million to aid some 800,000 households in the drought-hit Sahel region in West Africa. Ethiopia and Somalia are expected to be ground zero for the anticipated famine.

 According to the April 25, 2012 report of the USAID-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), southern Ethiopia will most likely experience famine: “The anticipated below-average rains will have significant negative impact on crop production, pasture regeneration, and the replenishment of water resources throughout the region, with the most severe and immediate impactin belg-dependent areas of southern Ethiopia.” Over the past couple or so years, I have written over one-half dozen commentaries on famine and food shortages in Ethiopia. (See links below.)

The Hunger Word Games in Ethiopia

Ethiopian governments  over the past four decades have blamed food shortages and famines on everything except their own indifference, incompetence and negligence. Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974 pretended there was no famine until “The Hidden Famine” by Jonathan Dimbleby was aired to a shocked and angry Ethiopian public. Former socialist junta leader Mengistu was arrogantly dismissive of the 1984-85 famine in which an estimated one million people perished. Mengistu would contemptuously respond to reporters by challenging them, “What famine?”

Zenawi is more clever than his predecessors. He plays public relations and semantic games with famine in the country. He will use any word, except the “F” word, to describe the chronic and massive food shortages in the country. For Zenawi there is “no famine in Ethiopia”, only “spot shortages,” “severe malnutrition”, “food insecurity”, “food crisis”, “serious drought” and so on. “Food shortages” are not the result of poor agricultural planning and practices, official incompetence, massive corruption, criminal negligence, etc., but are caused by “drought conditions,” “erratic rains” “damaged or delayed crops”, “deforestation”, “soil erosion,” “overgrazing” and other ecological factors.

 In January 2012, Zenawi once again denied famine in Ethiopia in a CNN interview: “Ethiopia is facing a major famine. How can you justify spending on a military operation in another country when your own people are starving?” Zenawi responded, “There is no famine in Ethiopia as all humanitarian organizations will tell you. There is a serious drought, but we are able to keep our people fed….”The international poverty mongers/pimps (PMPs) have invented a “scientific” classification system for “food shortages” behind which Zenawi has been able to hide the true magnitude and severity of the problem in the country. 

The euphemisms of the PMPs avoid the “F” word altogether regardless of the extremity of the food shortage. For the PMPs the conditions fall into one of the following categories: “Acute Food Insecurity, Stressed, Crisis, Emergency and Catastrophe.” It is “scientifically” impossible to have famine in Africa! So the conspiracy of silence goes on to keep famine in Ethiopia hidden by clever use of masking euphemisms.

Zenawi and his top lieutenants have been promising to end “food shortages caused by drought” in a very short time. In 2009, Simon Mechale, head of the country’s “Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Agency”, proudly declared: “Ethiopia will soon fully ensure its food security.” 

For several years now, Zenawi has been advertising his “Productive Safety Net Programme” as the mechanism to end the “cycle of dependence on food aid” by bridging “production deficits and protecting household and community assets”.  In October 2011 Zenawi told his party faithful: “We have devised a plan which will enable us to produce surplus and be able to feed ourselves by 2015 without the need for food aid.” Zenawi’s “plan to produce surplus” is by “leasing” out millions of hectares of the country’s prime agricultural land to so-called international investors (land grabbers) whose only aim is to raise crops for export.  Ethiopia will produce food to feed other nations while Ethiopians starve. 

Zenawi has adamantly opposed private ownership of land, which by all expert accounts is the single most important factor in ensuring food security in any nation. Yet last year, food inflation in Ethiopia remained at 47.4  percent. Food has been used as a political weapon in Ethiopia.  Hunger has been the new weapon of choice to generate support for Zenawi’s regime and to decimate his political rivals. Zenawi has been pretty successful in crushing the hearts, minds and spirits of the people by keeping their stomachs empty.  Those who oppose Zenawi’s regime are not only denied humanitarian food and relief aid, they are also victimized through a system of evictions, denial of land or reduction in plot size as well as denial of access to loans, fertilizers, seeds, etc. 

In the case of the people of Gambella in western Ethiopia, entire communities have been forced off the land to make way for Indian “investors” in violation of international conventions that protect the rights of indigenous peoples. Human Rights Watch, among other organizations, has raised serious concerns over the misuse of humanitarian food aid: “The Ethiopian government is routinely using access to aid as a weapon to control people and crush dissent. If you don’t play the ruling party’s game, you get shut out. Without effective, independent monitoring, international aid will continue to be abused to consolidate a repressive single-party state.” In 2009, U.S. State Department promised to investigate allegations that “$850 million in food and anti-poverty aid from the U.S. is being distributed on the basis of political favoritism by the current prime minister’s party.” No report has been issued.

In 2011, U.S. Census Bureau made the frightening prediction that Ethiopia’s population by 2050 will more than triple to 278 million. Ethiopia’s chronic “food insecurity” is expected to get increasingly worse culminating in a “Malthusian catastrophe” (where disease, starvation, war, etc. will reduce the population to the level of food production) in the foreseeable future. Zenawi’s regime has failed to implement a national family planning program which will avert such a catastrophe.

Famine in Ethiopia is Ninety Percent Man-Made

In 2011, Wolfgang Fengler, a lead economist for the World Bank, in a refreshingly honest moment  for an international banker said, “The famine in the Horn of Africa is a result of artificially high prices for food and civil conflict than natural and environmental causes. This crisis is manmade. Droughts have occurred over and again, but you need bad policymaking for that to lead to a famine.” In other words, it is bad and poor governance that is at the core of the famine problem in Ethiopia, not drought or other environmental causes.   

Penny Lawrence, Oxfam’s international director, after visiting Ethiopia observed: “Drought does not need to mean hunger and destitution. If communities have irrigation for crops, grain stores, and wells to harvest rains then they can survive despite what the elements throw at them.” Martin Plaut, BBC World Service News Africa editor explains that the “current [Ethiopian food] crisis is in part the result of policies designed to keep farmers on the land, which belongs to the state and cannot be sold.” So the obvious questions are: Why does a regime that has rejected socialism and is presumably committed to a free market economy insist on complete state ownership of land? Why is there not an adequate system of irrigation for crops, grain storages and wells to harvest rains throughout the country? Does Zenawi really have a food security policy for the country?

The Hunger Games at Camp David

After four decades at the humanitarian food aid trough, it is unlikely that Ethiopia will achieve food security even in the distant future. President Obama is rightly concerned over the “food shortages” in the Horn and the Sahel in the coming year. Last month, the United States pledged to provide  nearly $200 million in additional humanitarian aid to the Horn in anticipation of “poor rains and drought”. In 2011, the U.S. provided over $1.1 billion in humanitarian aid to Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.

On May 19, President Obama and the G8 leaders will have to face some tough  questions: What is the  moral hazard of endlessly supplying food relief to the Horn countries? Why should the world continue to help a country that leases millions of hectares of the most fertile land in the country and become the breadbasket for India and the Middle East while its people are starving? Why should the world provide food aid to a country when the ruling regime weaponizes the aid to decimate opposition, crush the democratic aspirations of the people and flagrantly violate human rights? Does aiding dictators who use food aid for political purposes end famine and food shortages in Africa?

The G8 leaders can talk about “food shortages” until the cows come home, but the answer to famine in Ethiopia and in the Horn is not never ending handouts to starving populations and free lunches to panhandling dictators. Handouts create a moral hazard of negative dependency by recipients which incapacitates them from fending for themselves. Zenawi and the other African dictators have no incentive to address the “food shortage” issue because they are absolutely and positively sure that the U.S. and other G8 countries will ALWAYS deliver humanitarian food aid to their starving populations year after year. As a world leader, the U.S. has a moral obligation to provide humanitarian food aid to famine victims; but it also has the moral responsibility of leveraging the billions in handouts (development aid, loans from the multilateral institutions and budget support payments) to dictators to promote democracy, human rights and rule of law in Africa.

In May 2010, Zenawi’s party won 99.6 percent of the seats in parliament. Despite two decades of one-party domination, Zenawi has not been able to do much to address the structural problem of food insecurity in the country. But he has been blowing his horn about bogus stratospheric economic growth. Ethiopians suffer from chronic food shortages and famine because they lack a political  framework that can deal effectively with the problem. The Indian economics Nobel laureate Amartya Sen argued that the best way to avert famines is by institutionalizing democracy and strengthening human rights: “No famine has ever taken place in the history of the world in a functioning democracy” because democratic governments “have to win elections and face public criticism, and have strong incentive to undertake measures to avert famines and other catastrophes.” Famines are kept hidden from public view by jailing opposition leaders, journalists and civic society advocates who could sound the alarm over an impending famine.

What Should the U.S. Do for Ethiopia?

All the U.S. needs to do for Ethiopia is practice what it preaches. In 2009 in Accra, Ghana President Obama preached:

Development depends on good governance. History offers a clear verdict: Governments that respect the will of their own people, that govern by consent and not coercion, are more prosperous, they are more stable, and more successful than governments that do not. No country is going to create wealth if its leaders exploit the economy to enrich themselves. No person wants to live in a society where the rule of law gives way to the rule of brutality and bribery.

 That is not democracy, that is tyranny. And now is the time for that style of governance to end…. In the 21st century, capable, reliable, and transparent institutions are the key to success — strong parliaments; honest police forces; independent judges; an independent press; a vibrant private sector; a civil society. Those are the things that give life to democracy, because that is what matters in people’s everyday lives…. History is on the side of these brave Africans, not with those who use coups or change constitutions to stay in power. Africa doesn’t need strongmen, it needs strong institutions. With better governance, I have no doubt that Africa holds the promise of a broader base of prosperity…. Listening to Zenawi plead for more aid before the G8 to deal with the looming  “food crises” (but “no famine”) is like listening to the man who killed his parents and asked for leniency from the court because he is an orphan. Now that’s a chutzpah!

Amharic translations of recent commentaries by the author may be found at:
http://www.ecadforum.com/Amharic/archives/category/al-mariam-amharic
http://ethioforum.org/?cat=24
Previous commentaries by the author are available at:
http://open.salon.com/blog/almariam/  and
www.huffingtonpost.com/alemayehu-g-mariam/
Author’s prior commnetaries  on famine in Ethiopia:
The “Silently” Creeping Famine:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alemayehu-g-mariam/ethiopias-silently-creepi_b_418068.html
What Should the World Do To Save Starving Ethiopians? http://open.salon.com/blog/almariam/2011/08/28/what_should_the_world_do_to_save_starving_ethiopians
Why are Ethiopians Starving Again in 2011?   http://open.salon.com/blog/almariam/2011/08/20/why_are_ethiopians_starving_again_in_2011
“Famine and the Noiseome Beast”   http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/11124
Ethiopia: Apocalypse Now or in 40 Years?  http://open.salon.com/blog/almariam/2011/07/10/ethiopia_apocalypse_now_or_in_40_years
Ethiopia: Starve the Beast, Feed the People! http://open.salon.com/blog/almariam/2011/08/14/ethiopia_starve_the_beast_not_the_people
Ethiopia: Meles Zenawi and the Weaponization of Famine http://open.salon.com/blog/almariam/2011/08/07/ethiopia_meles_zenawi_and_the_weaponization_of_famine

World Report 2012 - Ethiopia

Events of 2011

Ethiopian authorities continued to severely restrict basic rights of freedom of expression, association, and assembly. Hundreds of Ethiopians in 2011 were arbitrarily arrested and detained and remain at risk of torture and ill-treatment.

Attacks on political opposition and dissent persisted throughout 2011, with mass arrests of ethnic Oromo, including members of the Oromo political opposition in March, and a wider crackdown with arrests of journalists and opposition politicians from June to September 2011.

The restrictive Anti-Terrorism Proclamation (adopted in 2009) has been used to justify arrests of both journalists and members of the political opposition. In June 2011 the Ethiopian House of Federations officially proscribed two armed groups – the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) and the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and one opposition party, Ginbot 7 – labeling them terrorist organizations.

Political Repression, Pretrial Detention, and Torture

In March 2011, authorities arrested more than 200 members and supporters of registered Oromo opposition parties – the Oromo Federal Democratic Movement (OFDM) and the Oromo People's Congress (OPC) – during mass roundups. Those arbitrarily arrested and detained included former members of parliament, long-serving party officials, and candidates in the 2010 regional and parliamentary elections. They were publicly accused of being involved with the banned OLF; at least 89 have been charged with a variety of offenses, some relating to terrorism.

On August 27 Bekele Gerba, deputy chairman of OFDM; Olbana Lelisa, a spokesman for OPC; and seven other opposition party members were arrested on charges of involvement with the OLF. They were held in pre-trial detention at the Federal Police Crime Investigation Department, also known as Maekelawi, where torture is reportedly common. At least 20 other ethnic Oromo were arrested in this same sweep.

On September 8 popular actor Debebe Eshetu was arrested and accused of belonging to the banned opposition party Ginbot 7. The following week, on September 14, Andualem Aragie, vice-chairman of the opposition party Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ), two other active members of UDJ, and the general secretary of another opposition party, the Ethiopian National Democratic Party (ENDF), were arrested in Addis Ababa, the capital, on similar accusations.

Human Rights Watch continues to receive credible reports of arbitrary detention and serious abuses of civilians alleged to be members or supporters of ONLF. These civilians were being held in detention facilities in Ethiopia's Somali region.

Long-term pre-trial detention without charge, often without access to counsel, is common, notably under the Anti-Terror law, which allows police to request additional investigation periods of 28 days each from a court before filing charges, for up to four months. Human Rights Watch is aware of at least 29 opposition party members, journalists, and an actor who at this writing were currently held in remand detention under the Anti-Terror law.

No independent domestic or international organization has access to all of Ethiopia's detention facilities; it is impossible to determine the number of political prisoners and others arbitrarily detained or their condition.

Freedom of Expression and Association

What little remains of the private independent media and foreign media faced further attacks and restrictions during 2011. Self-censorship is rampant. Journalists working for the few remaining "independent" domestic newspapers have faced regular harassment and threats. Several journalists were arbitrarily arrested and detained in 2011.

On June 19 and 21 respectively Woubshet Taye of Awramba Times and Reeyot Alemu of Feteh, journalists for two newspapers often critical of the government, were arrested, along with seven other individuals, including two ENDP members, and accused of conspiring to commit terrorist acts. After almost three months of detention, without access to their lawyers, the two were charged on September 6 of several counts of terrorism. Charges were also leveled against Elias Kifle, editor of the online Ethiopian Review, in absentia. One ENDP member, Zerihun Gebre-Egzabiher, was also charged.

On September 14, 2011, veteran journalist Eskinder Nega was arrested on charges of involvement with Ginbot 7. Eskinder, like Elias Kifle, was among the 121 opposition party members, journalists, and human rights activists arrested following the 2005 elections, and accused of treason and other related crimes, and among the 76 who were later convicted. He has faced ongoing harassment since his release and has been repeatedly denied a license to practice journalism.

Journalists working for foreign media have not been spared from these attacks. In September 2011 the Ethiopian correspondent of the Kenyan Daily Nation, Argaw Ashine, was forced to flee the country after he was named in an unedited WikiLeaks United States diplomatic cable regarding planned attacks, by the governmental Communication Affairs Office (GCAO), on journalists from the Addis Neger newspaper. The GCAO and Federal Police summoned Argaw for questioning regarding his sources within the GCAO. Addis Neger editors and journalists were forced to close their newspaper and flee the country in November 2009 after threats of arrest under the Anti-Terror law.

Independent reporting on the conflict-affected areas of the Somali region remains severely restricted. On July 1, 2011, two Swedish journalists who had entered Ethiopia in order to report on the situation were arrested. They were held without charge for two months in Jijiga and Addis Ababa before being charged on September 6 with terrorism. Their trial continued at this writing.

Restrictions on Human Rights Reporting

The restrictive Charities and Societies Proclamation, adopted in 2009, which prohibits organizations receiving more than 10 percent of their funding from abroad from carrying out human rights and governance work, continues to severely hamper basic rights monitoring and reporting activities. Two former leading rights organizations, the Ethiopian Women's Lawyers Association (EWLA) and the Human Rights Council (HRCO, formerly EHRCO), have had to slash their budgets, staff, and operations. Their bank accounts, which the government arbitrarily froze in December 2009, remain frozen.

The government-affiliated Ethiopian Human Rights Commission lacks independence and is not yet compliant with the Paris Principles, which the United Nations General Assembly adopted in 1993 and which promote the independence of national human rights institutions. On August 27, 2011, an Amnesty International delegation to Ethiopia was ordered to leave the country following a series of meetings with members of the political opposition; two of these members were arrested after their meeting with Amnesty International.

Discrimination in Government Services

In October 2010 Human Rights Watch published Development without Freedom: How Aid Underwrites Repression in Ethiopia, a report which documented discrimination in the administration of foreign donor-funded government services, including agricultural assistance, food-for-work programs, educational training opportunities, and civil-service reform programs. The report also showed how donor-funded facilities, such as schools and teacher training colleges, underwrite the indoctrination of civil servants and school children in political propaganda. 

Human Rights Watch's research suggested that donors in the Development Assistance Group (DAG), including the US, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union, were aware of such allegations, but were taking insufficient steps to investigate the misuse of their aid money. DAG denied that aid was politicized, citing as evidence a UK Department for International Development-led report, "The Aid Management and Utilization Study," which concluded that existing monitoring mechanisms would not detect politicization if it were occurring.

 That report also promised a second phase, a field investigation, which it said was crucial to establishing whether or not politicization was occurring on a broad scale. In April 2011 DAG told Human Rights Watch that this second phase, the field investigation, had been cancelled. A 2009 US diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks said that the US embassy in Ethiopia was "keenly aware that foreign assistance ... is vulnerable to politicization," but that monitoring the problem, "risks putting the assistance programs themselves in jeopardy from a ruling party that has become confident that its vast patronage system is largely invulnerable."

Key International Actors

International donor assistance continues to pour into Ethiopia, one of the world's largest recipients of aid, but this has not resulted in greater international influence in ensuring government compliance with its human rights obligations. Conversely, donors appear to be reluctant to criticize the Ethiopian government's human rights record so as not to endanger the continuity of their assistance programs.

Nonetheless, government spending remains hugely reliant (between 30 and 40 percent) on foreign assistance, and donors retain significant leverage that they could use to greater effect to insist on basic measures, such as the repeal or amendment of the Charities and Societies Proclamation and the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation, admission of UN special rapporteurs on human rights, the release of political prisoners, and better monitoring of foreign-funded programs to make sure they are not being used to bolster the ruling party.