Partnership with a Dictatorship guarantees neither security nor stability in Ethiopia

• Post 1991 Millitaryre-1991 Millitary

• Ethiopia’s Economic Fallacy
• TPLF Business Empire
• የወ

April 21, 2015

Patriotic Ginbot 7 Movement Press Release

Patriotic Ginbot 7 Movement for Unity and Democracy is deeply saddened by the completely reckless remarks made by Wendy Sherman, US Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs. The recent remark made by Wendy Sherman in Addis Ababa is uncharacteristic of the US State Department, and it totally contradicts the Department’s annual human rights report on Ethiopia. The remark was thoughtless, misguided and as the statement issued by Freedom House aptly put it, it is woefully ignorant and counter-productive.

The most recent US Department of State Human Rights Report on Ethiopia describes the state of human right in Ethiopia in the following two unambiguous statements:

• The most significant human rights problems included: restrictions on freedom of expression and association, including through arrests; detention; politically motivated trials; harassment; and intimidation of opposition members and journalists, as well as continued restrictions on print media;
• Other human rights problems included arbitrary killings; allegations of torture, beating, abuse, and mistreatment of detainees by security forces; reports of harsh and, at times, life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest and detention; detention without charge and lengthy pretrial detention; a weak, overburdened judiciary subject to political influence

Moreover, during the 2000 election, in the Hadia zone of South Ethiopia; heavily armed government commando forces massacred innocent people who peacefully chanted – “No ballot box stealing”. In the aftermath of the 2005 election, the TPLF regime’s Special Forces killed more than 200 innocent people and threw to jail leaders of a party that won the election. Between 2005 and 2010, the Ethiopian parliament passed three bills (Media, NGO and Anti-Terrorism bills) that criminalize dissent and the free expression of ideas, and in the meantime, the regime made it sure that no viable opposition party exists in Ethiopia. As a result, the incumbent EPRDF party won 99.6% of the seats in a 547 seat parliament in an election that reminded us a typical Soviet era socialist election.

At the beginning of 2015, the Ethiopian Election Board banned two prominent opposition political parties, and it also barred some party leaders from participating in the 2015 parliamentary election.

The State Department Annual reports, the experience of the 2000, 2005 and 2010 elections and what the TPLF regime has been doing in the run up for the 2015 election point to one vivid truth- there is no democracy in Ethiopia and the regime in Ethiopia is an out and out neo – totalitarian regime. It’s sad and it is also a clear gesture of irresponsibly when a high ranking US government official makes a public statement stating that Ethiopia is a democracy, utterly ignoring US Department’s own annual human reports and in total disregard to all these evidences of gross human rights violations and lack of political space for a meaningful and genuinely competitive, free and fair elections in Ethiopia.

Patriotic Ginbot 7 is a political movement that came into being as a direct result of injustice, gross abuse of human rights, and corruption in the present day Ethiopia under the chokes hold of a minority dictatorial regime. Patriotic Ginbot 7 leaders, members and supporters are true soldiers of justice, freedom, and democracy, and firm believers in inclusive economic development. All leaders and members of the Patriotic Ginbot 7 movement are model citizens in the community they live here in the US, Canada, Europe and Australia who not just vehemently denounce terrorism, but also willing and eager to fight all forms of terrorism alongside their respective governments. We oppose and fight terrorism because terrorists are against our core values of justice, freedom, human dignity, and democracy.

Patriotic Ginbot 7 strongly believes that democratic elections are the only sources of political power, but it also believes that all elections are not democratic. Democratic elections are participatory, fair, free, and contested where the outcomes of the election are decided by the free will of the electorate. Ethiopia under the TPLF/EPRDF regime has never had a fair and free election, and all election results were decided before a single vote is casted.

The electoral process, elections and the regime that controls elections through an election board, which is not free from the political control of the regime, have proved time and again not to be free and utterly undemocratic. It is after acknowledging this undemocratic nature and the abysmal track record of the TPLF regime during past elections that the Carter Center and the EU decided to not send election monitors to Ethiopia. In addition, many governments and credible international organizations such as Human Rights Watch (HRW), Freedom House, Amnesty International and Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) have concluded that the preconditions for a fair and free election are nonexistent in Ethiopia.

If Ethiopia was a democracy as stated by Madam Wendy Sherman, the entire Ethiopian opposition and Patriotic Ginbot 7 in particular would have participated in the election and happily accept the verdict of the people. In fact, we are primarily in the struggle to make sure that the Ethiopian people are the only sources of political power at all levels of government, and they exercise this power through no other way but through fair and free electoral process.

Patriotic Ginbot 7 would like to point out that all third party elements including the United States government that have the leverage and influence on the TPLF/EPRDF regime need to use their power and energy to push the TPLF regime to accept a meaningful and genuinely free, fair and an all-inclusive election than warning an already embattled opposition and, in the process, emboldening a neo-totalitarian minority regime in Ethiopia.

As clearly reported by the US Department of State Annual Human Right Reports and many other organizations; the economic and political disenfranchisement of the majority of the people, the mass detentions in many parts of the country, the gross violations of human rights, the torture and the arbitrary killings of citizens, the blatant domination of political power and economic resources by a minority group at the expense of the majority have pushed the Ethiopian people over the limit. Patriotic Ginbot 7 strongly believes these are acute problems that need immediate solution. History has repeatedly showed us that trading justice, freedom and democracy for growth and stability leads to popular resistance and which may lead to insecurity and instability.

Ethiopia’s geopolitical location, large population size, and both its ethnic and religious diversity makes it a strategically placed country in the Horn of Africa. A democratic Ethiopia that ensures justice, equality and freedom to all of its diverse ethnic groups and all citizens can be a critical force for the greater good in the Horn of Africa and in the African continent at large. Unfortunately, a minority dictatorship that enjoys the blessing of the great democracies of the world has robed Ethiopia of its potential.

Durable peace, stability, and prosperity could only come only by democratizing Ethiopia, where a genuinely pluralist democratic order is established, the basic human rights, political liberties of all citizens are respected, and the equality and freedom of all ethnic and religious groups are guaranteed and protected. It is high time that the US and other democracies that have been supporting the minority regime recognize the grim socio economic realities, deep rooted fault lines along political, religious and ethnic divides that have been created by the current minority dictatorial regime in Ethiopia. Unless these conditions are addressed in an all-inclusive political process by all stakeholders, peace, stability and prosperity in the Horn of Africa will remain unattainable.

We believe the relationship between Ethiopia and western democracies has to be reconstituted on the basis of shared values of democracy, justice, and promotion of mutual interests. The Horn of Africa is a volatile region characterized by political instability, and it is no secret that the TPLF regime is the major source of instability in the region. To secure peace and stability and deny terrorism safe haven in the Horn of Africa; Europe, the United, and other democratic countries need a strong democratic partner in the Horn of Africa.

The struggle for justice, liberty and democracy in Ethiopia shall prevail!!

”ያዋረደን፣ በአይ ሲስ ቢላዋ ያሳረደን ህወሓት ነው” – ዶ/ር ብርሃኑ ነጋ

• 1 MillitarTPLFBusiness የመከላከ
• ያ

April 24, 2015

የአርበኞች ግንቦት 7 የአንድነትና ዲሞክራሲ ንቅናቄ ሊቀመንበር ዶ/ር ብርሃኑ ነጋ ለኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ያቀረቡት አስቸኳይ ጥሪ-

የተከበራችሁ ወገኖቼ፤ ከሰላሳ በላይ የሆኑ ወገኖቻችን አይ ሲስ በተሰኘ ህሊና ቢስ፣ ፀረ-ሰው እና ፀረ-ስልጣኔ ቡድን በሊቢያ በአሰቃቂ ሁኔታ የመገደላቸው መርዶ ከትናንት ወዲያ ሚያዝያ 11 ቀን 2007 ዓም ደርሶን ኢትዮጵያዊያን በያለንበት በመሪር ሀዘን ውስጥ ነን። ዛሬ “እግዜር ያጥናህ” ወይም “እግዜር ያጥናሽ” የሚባል ሰው የለም። ሁላችንም ሀዘንተኞች ነን። ካጣናቸው ቁጥራቸው በብዙ እጥፍ የሚበልጥ ወገኖቻችን አሁንም በአራዶች መዳፍ ውስጥ መሆናቸው ሀዘናችን እጅግ የበረታ ያደረገዋል። ቁጥራቸው በትክክል የማይታወቅ ሆኖም በሺህ የሚገመቱ ኢትዮጵያዊያን ዛሬም ሊቢያ ውስጥ ናቸው። በመቶ ሺህ የሚቆጠሩ ኢትዮጵያዊያን አሁንም ደቡብ አፍሪቃ ውስጥ ናቸው። ሌሎች በመቶ ሺህ የሚቆጠሩ ወገኖቻችን ደግሞ በየመን ከሰማይም ከምድርም በቦንብና በጥይት እየተማገዱ ነው።

ለምንድነው ኢትዮጵያዊያን እንዲህ እሳት ውስጥ ለመማገድ የምንደፍረው？ መልሱ ግልጽ ነው። አገር ውስጥ ተስፋ የለም፤ ወያኔዎች ተስፋችንን አጨለሙት። ከሳዉዲ በመከራ የተመለሱ ወንድሞቻችን ናቸው በሊቢያ በኩል ለመሰደድ ሲሞክሩ በአይ ሲስ ተይዘው የታረዱት። ወያኔዎች አገራችንና ክብራችን ዘረፉን። ወያኔዎች ስብዕናችንን ገፈፉን።

የዘመኑ ጥቂት የህወሓት ቱጃሮች ፎቆችን እየገነቡ በነሱ መጥገብ እኛ እንድናገሳላቸው ይፈልጋሉ። የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ መራቡ፣ መታረዙ፣ መደህየቱ እውነት ነው፤ ሆኖም ግን “ተራብኩ”፣ “ታረዝኩ”፣ “ደኸየሁ” ብሎ መናገር አይችልም። እውነት መናገር ያስቀጣል፣ ያስወነጅላል። በፍርደ ገምድል ችሎት እውነት መናገር “ሽብርተኛ” ያስብላል። እስር ቤቶችን የተሞሉት ለእውነት፣ ለፍትህ፣ ለነፃናትና ለእኩልነት በቆሙ ሰዎች አይደለምን？

በአይ ሲስ ያሳረደን ማነው？ መልሱ ለኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ግልጽ ነው። ያዋረደን፣ በአይ ሲስ ቢላዋ ያሳረደን ህወሓት ነው። እንደ አገርና እንደ ሕዝብ የደረሰብን ውርደት የትም ብንሄድ የምናመልጠው አልሆነም። በአገር ውስጥ የደረሰብንን ውርደት ለማምለጥ ስንሰደድ ውርደት ተከትሎን ይመጣል።

ወገኖቼ፤ ለኛ ለኢትዮጵያዊያን ከኢትዮጵያ የተሻለች አገር ሊኖረን አይችልም። ዛሬ የመሸሻ ጊዜ አይደለም። አገራችንን ከወያኔ ነጥቀን፤ በአገራችን ኮርተን በሰላም መኖር እንሻለን። ይህ መብታችን ነው። አገራችን የኛ ነች። አገራችን የጥቂት ወያኔዎች መፈንጫ አይደለችም።

ወገኔ፤ ዛሬ ሚያዝያ 13 ቀን 2007 ዓም በአርበኖች ግንቦት 7 ስም የማደርግልህ ጥሪ አድምጠኝ። በሀይማኖት፣ በብሔር፣ በጾታ ልዩነት ሳታደርግ ዛሬ በአንድነት እንደተሳህ አንድነትህን እንደጠበቅህ ቀጥል። አንድነትህን ለመሸርሸር ወያኔ የማይፈነቅለው ድንጋይ አይኖርም፤ ለወያኔ ዱለታ ጆሮህን አትስጥ። የወያኔ አገዛዝ እንዲያበቃ በአንድነት ተነስ። ዛሬ የጀመርከው ትግል እዳር ሳይደርስ እረፍት የለንም።

አርበኞች ግንቦት 7፣ ከትግራይ፣ ከኦሮሚያ፣ ከአፋር፣ ከኦጋዴን፣ ከጋምቤላ፣ ከቤሻንጉል ድርጅቶች ጋር በመጣመር የአገር አድን ኃይል የመገንባት ሥራውን እያጠናቀቀ ነው። እኛ ልጆችህ በብሔርም ሆነ በሀይማኖት ሳንከፋፈል፤ ከትግራይ እስከ ኦጋዴን፤ ከአፋር እስከ ጋምቤላ ሁሉንም የኢትዮጵያ ማኅበረሰብ ባካተተ ስብስብ ውስጥ አብረን ህወሓትን እየታገልን ነው። ይህ ትግል ግን የአንተ የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ትግል ነው። የትግሉም የአገሪቷም ባለቤት አንተ ነህ። ስለሆነም ተነስ！ “እንቢኝ” በል። ዘርፈ ብዙ የትግል ስልቶችን በመጠቀም ወያኔን አዳክም። የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ሆይ！ በትግልህ ፍሬ የአገርህ ባለቤት ሁን።

የመከላከያና የፓሊስ ሠራዊት አባላት ሆይ！እናንተ የሕዝብ አካላት ናችሁ። የደረሰብንን ብሔራዊ ውርደት እያያችሁ፤ እሮሮዓችን እየሰማችሁ በሕዝብ ላይ መተኮስ በራሳችሁ ጭንቅላት ላይ መተኮስ ማለት መሆኑን ለደቂቃ እንኳን አትዘንጉ። ይልቁኑ ዛሬውኑ ነፃነትና ፍትህ ከጠማው ወገናችሁ ጎን ቁሙ።

የኢትዮጵያ ወጣቶች፤ የወጣትነት የፈጠራ ችሎቻችሁ መፈተኛው አሁን ነው። ለእያንዳንዱ ጥቃቅን ጉዳይ መመሪያ እስኪሰጣችሁ አትጠብቁ። እያሰላችሁ፣ እያጠናችሁ፣ እያደባችሁ፣ ወያኔን ታገሉ።

የታፈረች፣ የተከበረችና የበለፀገች ኢትዮጵያን እውን እናደርጋለን።

ብርሀኑ ነጋ

የአርበኞች ግንቦት 7: የአንድነትና ዲሞክራሲ ንቅናቄ ሊቀመንበር

ሚያዝያ 13 ቀን 2007 ዓም

Statement of Patriotic Ginbot 7 on Fellow Ethiopians who were Victims of barbarians

• April 20, 2015

It is with deep distress that the people of Ethiopia have heard the barbaric killing of twenty eight fellow Ethiopians in Libya on April 19, 2015 by the barbaric and medieval cowards of ISIS. This group, who belong to the darkest of dark ages, and takes pleasure of its barbarism, has killed desperate, defenseless Ethiopian migrants who have no other objective other than seeking a better life outside of their country. By so doing, the barbaric and criminal beasts have demonstrated beyond the shadow of a doubt that they have a serious quarrel with humanity itself, not to mention the fact that they don’t even know what prophet Mohammad, in whose name they kill, has said about Ethiopia and Ethiopians in the wholly book and the story of the Fist Hegira.

Patriotic Ginbot 7 for Unity and Democracy Condemns this heinous crime on our fellow citizens and calls on all Ethiopians to condemn it in no uncertain and clear terms and put up a united fight against this barbaric group in all ways and means we can.

We also take this opportunity to reiterate the fact that the barbaric terrorism perpetrated by this group which calls itself ISIS, has nothing to do with the religion of Islam as what it does is against the teachings of Islamic. Our country Ethiopia is holy to both Moslems and Christians. Moslems and Christians in in Ethiopia live and have lived as a family harmonisly , exemplary tolerance and respect of one another’s religions. As Ethiopians, we will keep priding ourselves of this exemplary unity between Moslems and Christians and consider it as pivotal feature for our survival as a country in bad and good times for over millennia.

The tragedy that has befallen on our fellow country and people over the last week has not been only the murder of our fellow Ethiopians in Libya. In South Africa fellow Ethiopians were also murdered in cold blood and burned with fire alive. During the same week we have also heard the drowning of a ship in the Mediterranean Sea that we believe has carried large number of Ethiopians who perished along with 700 other people. In Yemen thousands of Ethiopians are living in the middle of the hell of war.

Ethiopians who flee injustice and economic hardship in their country are facing humiliation, death and hopelessness in a way that we have rarely seen in our history. There is no question that the source of all these hardship is the corrupt dictatorship of the TPLF that is ruling Ethiopia with iron fist and with callous disregard for the welfare of Ethiopians. We, as an organization of democracy and justice, believe that the removal of this regime from power is the only way to reverse this tragedy that we are subjected to live in. For Ethiopians, there is no place better than Ethiopia and we are determined to make it one.

Patriotic Ginbot 7 calls on Ethiopians to once and for all end this tragedy by fully engaging in the struggle everywhere, in places where we live and work , contribute towards an organized resistance to the TPLF brutal rule. We call on all Ethiopians from all walks of life , including Ethiopians of every religion and ethnic group to come together, join hands and struggle in unison to remove this regime. We can never forget that the TPLF is the source of this unending tragic life of our people.

Eternal peace for those who lost their lives by barbarians!

በግፍ ሕይወታቸውን ያጡ ወገኖቻችንን በተመለከተ የአርበኖች ግንቦት 7 መግለጫ

April 20, 2015

ሀያ ስምንት ኢትዮጵያዊያን ወገኖቻችን አይ ሲስ በተሰኘ ህሊና ቢስ፣ ፀረ-ሰው እና ፀረ-ስልጣኔ ቡድን በሊቢያ በአሰቃቂ ሁኔታ የመገደላቸው መርዶ ዛሬ ሚያዝያ 11 ቀን 2007 ዓ.ም. ለመላው የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ደርሷል። ይህ አሰቃቂ መርዶ ልብን የሚሰብር ነው። አይ ሲስ በጥንት በጭለማ ዘመን እንኳን ባልነበረ ጭካኔ ራሳቸውን መከላከል የማይችሉ ሰዎችን በማረድ የሚደሰት፤ በሰው ዘር ሁሉ ላይ የመጣ አውሬ መሆኑን ነብዩ መሐመድ አትድረሱባቸው ያሏቸውንም ኢትዮጵያዊያንን ጭምር በማረድ አረጋገጧል። ይህ አሰቃቂ ተግባር ምንም ዓይነት አመክኖ ሊቀርብለት የማይችል አረመኔዓዊ የሽብር ጥቃት ነው።

አርበኞች ግንቦት 7：የአንድነትና የዲሞክራሲ ንቅናቄ በወገኖቻችን ላይ በደረሰው አሰቃቂ ግድያ የተሰማውን ጥልቅ ሀዘን ይገልፃል፤ ለሟች ቤተሰቦችና ለመላው የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ መጽናናትን ይመኛል። ኢትዮጵያዊያን ሁሉ አይ ሲስን በጥብቅ እንዲያወግዙ፤ በአመቻቸው መንገዶች ሁሉ እንዲታገሉት አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 ያሳስባል።

በዚህ አጋጣሚ የአይሲስን የሽብር ተግባራት ከእስልምና እምነት ጋር ማያያዝ ፈጽሞ ትክክል እንዳልሆነ፤ ብዙሃን ሙስሊሞች የአይሲስና መሰል ቡድኖችን አካሄድ የሚቃመው መሆኑን አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 ማስገንዘብ ይሻል። ኢትዮጵያዊያን ሙስሊሞች ከክርስቲያን ወገኖቻቸው ጋር ተዋደውና ተፋቅረው የኖሩና እየኖሩ ያሉ ሲሆን የሁለቱ ሀይማኖቶች ተከታዮች ተደጋግፎ መኖር ለሀገራችን ህልውና ወሳኝ ጉዳይ መሆኑ የአርበኞች ግንቦት 7 እምነት ነው።

በያዝነው ሣምንት በወገኖቻችን ላይ እልቂት ሲደርስ የሊቢያ ብቸኛ ክስተት አይደለም። በደቡብ አፍሪቃ ወገኖታችን ከነሕይወታቸው በእሳት ተቃጥለው ተገድለዋል፤ በስለት ተዘልዝለዋል፤ ንብረታቸውን ተዘርፈዋል። በዛሬው ዕለት 700 ዜጎች የሜዲተራኒያን ባህር በጀልባዎች ሲሻገሩ መስመጣቸው ተሰምቷል። በየመን ደግሞ በርካታ ወገኖታችን በጦርነት እሳት ውስጥ እየተማገዱ ናቸው።

ኢትዮጵያዊያን በአገራችን የሰፈነውን የነፃነት እጦት፣ የፍትህ መጓደልና የኑሮ መክበድ ሸሽተን በሄድነት አገር ሁሉ የሚጠብቀን አሰቃቂ ሞትና ውርደት ሆኗል። ኢትዮጵያ ለኑሮ ያልተመቸችን በህወሓት አገዛዝ ብሉሽነት መሆኑ ጥርጥር የለውም። ይህንን ብልሹ አገዛዝ አስወግደን በምንወዳት አገራችን ተከብረን መኖር እንችላለን። ለኢትዮጵያዊያን ከኢትዮጵያ የተሻለ አገር የለም።

አርበኖች ግንቦት 7： የኢትዮጵያዊያን መከራ እንዲያበቃ ስደት ይብቃ ይላል። እያንዳንዱ ኢትዮጵያዊ እንደዝንባሌውና እንደችሎታው በሕዝባዊ አመጽ አሊያም የሥራ ቦታውና መኖርያው ሳይለቅ በሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝነት በተደራጀ መንገድ የህወሓትን አገዛዝን ይታገል። በሕዝባዊ አመጽና በሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝነት የህወሓት ፋሽስቶችን አስወግደን በአገራችን በነፃነትና በክብር እንድንኖር ሀይማኖትም ሆነ የዘር ሀረግ ሳይለየን በጋራ እንታገል የሚል ጥሪ ያቀርባል።

ዘላለማዊ ክብርና እረፍት ለግፍ ሕይወታቸውን ላጡ ወገኖቻችን

Category: Editorial, Press Release

Freedom House 2015 Report: Ethiopia’s Status NOT FREE

March 14, 2015 | Filed underHuman Rights,Press Freedom | Posted by admin

Freedom in the World : Ethiopia

Overview:

In 2014 the Ethiopian government continued to suppress free speech and associational rights, shattering hopes for meaningful reform under Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn. Government harassment and arrest of prominent opposition and media members continued, including the April arrest of nine journalists who were charged under Ethiopia’s controversial antiterrorism law. In April and May, massive protests in Oromia Regional State broke out following the announcement of the planned expansion of Addis Ababa into Oromia. At least 17 people died after the military fired on unarmed protesters.

Despite nascent signs of an opening with Eritrea, formal dialogues remain frozen between the two countries. The Ethiopian-Eritrean border remains highly militarized, though no major border clashes were reported in 2014.

Sporadic violence resumed in Ethiopia’s Ogaden region after talks failed in 2013 between the government and the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), a separatist group that has fought for independence since 1991. In January 2014, two ONLF negotiators dispatched to Nairobi for a third round of talks were abducted and allegedly turned over to Ethiopian authorities by Kenyan police. The kidnappings effectively ended the talks.

Ethiopia ranked 32 out of 52 countries surveyed in the Ibrahim Index of African Governance, below the continental average and among the bottom in East Africa. The country’s modest gains in the index are due to its improvement in human development indicators, but its ranking is held back by low scores in the “Participation and Human Rights” category.
Political Rights and Civil Liberties:

Political Rights: 7 / 40 [Key]

A. Electoral Process: 1 / 12

Ethiopia’s bicameral parliament is made up of a 108-seat upper house, the House of Federation, and a 547-seat lower house, the House of People’s Representatives. The lower house is filled through popular elections, while the upper chamber is selected by the state legislatures; members of both houses serve five-year terms. The lower house selects the prime minister, who holds most executive power, and the president, a largely ceremonial figure who serves up to two six-year terms. Hailemariam has served as prime minister since September 2012, and Mulatu Teshome as president since October 2013.

The 2010 parliamentary and regional elections were tightly controlled by the ruling coalition party Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), with reports of voters being threatened with losing their jobs, homes, or government services if they failed to turn out for the EPRDF. Opposition party meetings were broken up, and candidates were threatened and detained. Opposition-aligned parties saw their 160-seat presence in parliament virtually disappear, with the EPRDF and its allies taking all but 2 of the 547 seats in the lower house. The next elections are scheduled for 2015.

B. Political Pluralism and Participation: 2 / 16

Shorn of their representation in parliament and under pressure by the authorities, opponents of the EPRDF find it difficult to operate. In July 2014, opposition members—two from Unity for Democracy Party, one from the Arena Tigray Party, and one from the Blue Party—were arrested without charges and held without access to legal representation. The Ethiopian government denies the arrests were related to 2015 elections, but the detainments follow the government’s pattern of suppressing political dissent prior to popular votes.

A series of December 2014 rallies by a coalition of opposition parties saw nearly 100 people arrested, including the chairman of the Semayawi Party. Witnesses report that police beat protesters, though nearly all those arrested were released on bail within a week.

Political parties in Ethiopia are often ethnically based. The EPRDF coalition is comprised of four political parties and represents several ethnic groups. The government tends to favor Tigrayan ethnic interests in economic and political matters, and the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front dominates the EPRDF. While the 1995 constitution grants the right of secession to ethnically based states, the government acquired powers in 2003 to intervene in states’ affairs on issues of public security. Secessionist movements in Oromia and the Ogaden have largely failed after being put down by the military.

C. Functioning of Government: 4 / 12

Ethiopia’s governance institutions are dominated by the EPRDF, which controlled the succession process following the death of longtime Prime Minister Meles Zenawi in 2012.

Corruption remains a significant problem in Ethiopia. EPRDF officials reportedly receive preferential access to credit, land leases, and jobs. Petty corruption extends to lower-level officials, who solicit bribes in return for processing documents. In 2013, the government attempted to demonstrate its commitment to fighting corruption after the release of a World Bank study that detailed corruption in the country. As part of the effort, the Federal Ethics & Anti-Corruption Commission made a string of high-profile arrests of prominent government officials and businessmen throughout 2013 and 2014. The Federal High Court sentenced many corrupt officials in 2014, including in one case a $2,500 fine and 16 years in prison. Despite cursory legislative improvements, however, enforcement of corruption-related laws remains lax in practice and Ethiopia is still considered “highly corrupt,” ranked 110 out of 175 countries and territories by Transparency International’s 2014 Corruption Perceptions Index.

Civil Liberties: 11 / 40

D. Freedom of Expression and Belief: 3 / 16

Ethiopia’s media are dominated by state-owned broadcasters and government-oriented newspapers. Privately owned papers tend to steer clear of political issues and have low circulation. A 2008 media law criminalizes defamation and allows prosecutors to seize material before publication in the name of national security.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Ethiopia holds at least 17 journalists behind bars—the second-highest number of jailed journalists in Africa as of December 2014, after Eritrea. Restrictions are particularly tight on journalists perceived to be sympathetic to protests by the Muslim community, and journalists attempting to cover them are routinely detained or arrested. Those reporting on opposition activities also face harassment and the threat of prosecution under Ethiopia’s sweeping 2009 Antiterrorism Proclamation. At least 14 journalists have been convicted under Ethiopia’s antiterror law since 2011, and none convicted have been released.

In April 2014, police arrested nine journalists—six associated with the Zone9 blogging collective and three freelancers—and charged them with terror-related offenses. Their trial has been postponed 13 times and was closed to the public until recently; their defense lawyer claims the defendants were forced to sign false confessions while in prison.

In June, the government fired 18 people from a state-run, Oromia-based broadcaster, silencing the outlet’s reporting on Oromo protests. In August, the government charged six Addis Ababa–based publications with terrorism offenses, effectively shuttering some of the last independent news outlets inside Ethiopia. In October, three publication owners were convicted in absentia after they fled the country. The same month, Temesgen Desalegn, former editor of the weekly Feteh, was convicted under Ethiopia’s criminal code on defamation and incitement charges and sentenced to three years in prison.

Due to the risks of operating inside the country, many Ethiopian journalists work in exile. CPJ says Ethiopia drove 30 journalists into exile in 2014, a sharp increase over both 2012 and 2013. Authorities use high-tech jamming equipment to filter and block news websites seen as pro-opposition. According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), since 2010 the Ethiopian government has developed a robust and sophisticated internet and mobile framework to monitor journalists and opposition groups, block access to unwanted websites or critical television and radio programs, and collect evidence for prosecutions in politically motivated trials.

The constitution guarantees religious freedom, but the government has increasingly harassed the Muslim community, which has grown to rival the Ethiopian Orthodox Church as the country’s largest religious group. Muslim groups accuse the government of trying to impose the beliefs of an obscure Islamic sect, Al-Ahbash, at the expense of the dominant Sufi-influenced strain of Islam. A series of protests against perceived government interference in religious affairs since 2012 have ended in a number of deaths and more than 1,000 arrests.

Academic freedom is often restricted in Ethiopia. The government has accused universities of being pro-opposition and prohibits political activities on campuses. There are reports of students being pressured into joining the EPRDF in order to secure employment or places at universities; professors are similarly pressured in order to ensure favorable positions or promotions. The Ministry of Education closely monitors and regulates official curricula, and the research, speech, and assembly of both professors and students are frequently restricted. In 2014, the Scholars at Risk network catalogued three incidents in academia, including the jailing or firing of professors who expressed antigovernment opinions.

The presence of the EPRDF at all levels of society—directly and, increasingly, electronically—inhibits free private discussion. Many people are wary of speaking against the government. The EPRDF maintains a network of paid informants, and opposition politicians have accused the government of tapping their phones.

E. Associational and Organizational Rights: 0 / 12

Freedoms of assembly and association are guaranteed by the constitution but limited in practice. Organizers of large public meetings must request permission from the authorities 48 hours in advance. Applications by opposition groups are routinely denied and, in cases when approved, organizers are subject to government meddling to move dates or locations. Since 2011, ongoing peaceful demonstrations held by members of the Muslim community have been met with violent responses from security forces. Protesters allege government interference in religious affairs and politically motivated selection of members of the Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council. Though momentum has slowed, protests continue.

After the government announced an expansion of Addis Ababa’s city limits into the Oromia Regional State in April 2014, thousands of Ethiopians took to the streets. Witnesses reported that police fired on peaceful protesters, killing at least 17—most of whom were students in nearby universities—and detained hundreds.

The 2009 Charities and Societies Proclamation restricts the activities of foreign nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) by prohibiting work on political and human rights issues. Foreign NGOs are defined as groups receiving more than 10 percent of their funding from abroad, a classification that includes most domestic organizations as well. The law also limits the amount of money any NGO can spend on “administration,” a controversial category that the government has declared includes activities such as teacher or health worker training, further restricting NGO operations even on strictly development projects. NGOs have struggled to maintain operations as a result of the law.

Trade union rights are tightly restricted. Neither civil servants nor teachers have collective bargaining rights. All unions must be registered, and the government retains the authority to cancel registration. Two-thirds of union members belong to organizations affiliated with the Confederation of Ethiopian Trade Unions, which is under government influence. Independent unions face harassment, and trade union leaders are regularly imprisoned. There has not been a legal strike since 1993.

F. Rule of Law: 3 / 16

The judiciary is officially independent, but its judgments rarely deviate from government policy. The 2009 antiterrorism law gives great discretion to security forces, allowing the detention of suspects for up to four months without charge. After August 2013 demonstrations to protest the government’s crackdown on Muslims, 29 demonstration leaders were charged under the antiterrorism law with conspiracy and attempting to establish an Islamic state; their trial remains ongoing. Trial proceedings have been closed to the public, media, and the individuals’ families. According to HRW, some defendants claimed that their access to legal counsel has been restricted.

Conditions in Ethiopia’s prisons are harsh, and detainees frequently report abuse. A 2013 HRW report documented human rights violations in Addis Ababa’s Maekelawi police station, including verbal and physical abuse, denial of basic needs, and torture.

Yemen’s June 2014 arrest and extradition of British citizen Andargachew Tsige to Ethiopia at the government’s request has sparked outrage from human rights groups. Andargachew is the secretary-general of banned opposition group Ginbot 7 and was sentenced to death in absentia in 2009 and again in 2012 for allegedly plotting to kill government officials. Reports suggest that police have denied the British Embassy consular access.

Domestic NGOs say that Ethiopia held as many as 400 political prisoners in 2012, though estimates vary significantly. Nuredine “Aslan” Hasan, a student belonging to the Oromo ethnic group, died in prison in 2014; conflicting reports about the cause of his death—including torture—have not been verified.

The federal government generally has strong control and direction over the military, though forces such as the Liyu Police in the Ogaden territory sometimes operate independently.

Repression of the Oromo and ethnic Somalis, and government attempts to coopt their parties into subsidiaries of the EPRDF, have fueled nationalism in both the Oromia and Ogaden regions. Persistent claims that government troops in the Ogaden area have committed war crimes are difficult to verify, as independent media are barred from the region. The government’s announcement of its intention to expand Addis Ababa’s city limits into the Oromia Regional State exacerbates tensions over historical marginalization of Oromia; according to activists, the expansion will displace two million Oromo farmers.

Same-sex sexual activity is prohibited by law and punishable by up to 15 years’ imprisonment.

G. Personal Autonomy and Individual Rights: 5 / 16

While Ethiopia’s constitution establishes freedom of movement, insecurity—particularly in eastern Ethiopia—prevents unrestricted movement into affected sites.

Private business opportunities are limited by rigid state control of economic life and the prevalence of state-owned enterprises. All land must be leased from the state. The government has evicted indigenous groups from various areas to make way for projects such as hydroelectric dams. It has also leased large tracts of land to foreign governments and investors for agricultural development in opaque deals that have displaced thousands of Ethiopians. Up to 70,000 people have been forced to move from the western Gambella region, although the government denies the resettlement plans are connected to land investments. Similar evictions have taken place in Lower Omo Valley, where government-run sugar plantations have put thousands of pastoralists at risk by diverting their water supplies. Journalists and international organizations have persistently alleged that the government withholds development assistance from villages perceived as being unfriendly to the ruling party.

Women are relatively well represented in parliament, holding 28 percent of seats and three ministerial posts. Legislation protects women’s rights, but these rights are routinely violated in practice. Enforcement of the law against rape and domestic abuse is patchy, and cases routinely stall in the courts. Female genital mutilation and forced child marriage are technically illegal, though there has been little effort to prosecute perpetrators. In December 2012, the government made progress against forced child labor, passing a National Action Plan to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor and updating its list of problematic occupations for children.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)
X = Score Received
Y = Best Possible Score
Z = Change from Previous Year

source: https://freedomhouse.org/report/

የእሥርና እንግልት መበራከት የነጻነት ትግሉን ያጠናክራል እንጅ አያዳፍነውም!

• April 16, 2015

በተለያየ ጊዜና ቦታ የሚኖሩ አንባገነን ገዥዎች በሙሉ ከሚመሳሰሉባቸው ባህሪያት አንዱ በሥልጣናቸው የሚመጣባቸውን ተቃወሚ ለማጥፋት በቁጥጥራቸው ሥር የሚገኘውን ማንኛውንም ዓይነት ሃይልና ጉልበት ከመጠቀም ወደ ኋላ የማይሉ መሆናቸው ነው።

የሌላውን አገር ትተን በአገራችን የታየውን የቅርብ ጊዜ ትውስታ ብቻ ብንመለከት ለወያኔ መፈጠርና ለድል መብቃት ምክንያት የሆነው ደርግ ለሥልጣኑ የሚያሰጉት የመሠሉትን ሁሉ መንጥሮ ለመጣል ከጅምላ እስርና ግርፋት እስከ ጎዳና የሽብር እርምጃ ብዙ ጉዳቶችን አድርሶአል ። አውሮጳና አሜሪካ ድረስ ተጉዘው ትምህርታቸውን ካጠናቀቁ ቦኋላ ለአገራቸው ባላቸው ፍቅር የመልካም አስተዳደር ጉድለት በምድራችን ያስፈነውን ድህነትና ሃላቀርነት ከሥር መሠረቱ ለመቀየር ተስፋ ሰንገው ራዕይ ሰንቀው የተመለሱ በርካታ ወጣቶች ሳይቀሩ የሥልጣን ተቀናቃኝ ተደርገው እንደቅጠል እንዲረግፉ ተደርገዋል።

ከደርግ እስር፡ ግርፋትና ግዲያ አምልጠው መሳሪያ በማንሳት ደደቢት በረሃ የተሰባሰቡት የዛሬ ገዥዎቻችንና ነባር አባላቱ ምን ያህል ሠላማዊ ሕዝብ ህወሃትን ትደግፋላችሁ እየተባሉ እንደታሠሩ፤ እንደተገረፉ፤ እንደተገደሉና የቁም ስቅላቸውን እንዳዩ አሁን አሁን በምቾት ብዛት ዘንግተውት ካልሆነ በቀር ያኔ ትግል ላይ በነበሩበት ዘመን ነጋ ጠባ ሲያራግቡት የነበረ ጉዳይ ነው። በለስ ቀንቶአቸው የመንግሥት ሥልጣን ከተቆጣጠሩ ቦኋላም በተለይ በመጀመያዎቹ የድል አመታት ታስረው ሰቆቃ የተፈጸመባቸውን በቴለቪዥን መስኮት እያቀረቡ ብሶት ከማናዘዝ አልፈው የሟቾችን አስከሬን እያስቆፈሩ በማውጣት አለም ጉድ እስኪል ዘመድ አዝማድ ተሰባስቦ በእንባ እንዲራጭ አድርገዋል ። ይህንን ድርጊታቸውን የተመለከተ በርካታ ህዝብ ከአሁን ቦኋላ በአገራችን ምድር የሥልጣን ዕድሜ ለማራዘም ሲባል የሚታሠር፤ የሚገረፍ ሰቆቃ የሚፈጸምበትና ለሞት ወይም ለስደት የሚዳረግ አንድም ዜጋ አይኖርም ሲል ተስፋ አደርጎ ነበር።

ደርግ እስከነ ወንጀሉ ወደ ታሪክ ትቢያነት ከተቀየረ ቦኋላ ላለፉት 24 አመታት በዓይናችን እየተመለከትነው ያለው ገሃዱ እውነታ ግን፣ ሕዝብ ተስፋ ያደረገውና የጠበቀው ሳይሆን ግልባጩ ሆኖ በሌላ ዙር የአምባገነንነት የሃይል እርምጃ ሥር ቁም ስቅሉን እያዬ ነው። ድህረ ምርጫ 97 በአዲስ አበባና በሌሎች ትላልቅ ከተሞች አጋዚ በተባለ ልዩ ቅልብ ጦር የተፈጸመው የጅምላ ጭፍጨፋ ፤ በጋምቤላ አኝዋኮች ላይ የደረሰው አሳዛኝ የዘር እልቂት፤ በኦጋዴን ሱማሌዎች ላይ ላለፉት አመታት በተከታታይ እየደረሰ ያለው ሰቆቃ፤ በሠላም ከሚኖሩበት የደቡብ ክልል አማርኛ ተናጋሪዎችን ለማፈናቀል የተወሰደው የሃይል እርምጃ ያስከተለው መጠነ ሰፊ ጉዳት ፤ አንድን የህብረተሰብ ክፍል ከተቃዋሚ ፖለቲካ ድርጅት ጋር በመፈረጅ በኦሮሚኛ ተናጋሪዎች ላይ የወረደው እስርና እንግልት ብዛት፤ በየማጉሪያው ተወርውረው ያሉት ጋዜጤኞችና የሰብአዊ መብት ተከራካሪዎች፤ የፖለቲካ ድርጅቶች አባላት ፤ ደጋፊዎችና መሪዎች ብዛት ወያኔ ከደርግ ያልተናነሰ እንዳውም በአንዳንድ መልኩ የባሰ አምባገነን ሆኖ መውጣቱን የሚያረጋግጡ፣ ማስረጃዎች ናቸው።

በርካታ የትግራይ ወጣቶች ግንባር ቀደም የህይወት መስዕዋትነት የከፈሉበት የእኩልነትና የፍትህ ትግል በጥቂት የህወሃት መሪዎችና የሥልጣን ጥቅም ተካፋዮቻቸው ተቀልብሶ ዜጎች ለነጻነታቸውና ለክብራቸው ሲሉ ወደ ሌላ ዙር ጦርነት እየተገፉ ባለበት በአሁኑ ሰዓት በርካታ ቁጥር ያላቸው ወጣቶችና ጎልማሶች ተቃዋሚን ትደግፋላችሁ በሚል ጭፍን ውንጀላ ወደ ተለያየ የማጎሪያ ካምፖችና እስር ቤቶች እየተጋዙ ስቃይ እየተፈጸመባቸው መሆኑን ማየትና መስማት ከማሳዘን አልፎ የሚያስቆጭ ተግባር ሆኖአል ።

ሥልጣን በሰላማዊና ህጋዊ መንገድ በምርጫ የሚያዝበትን ሥርዓት በአገራችን ለማስጀመር በአገር ውስጥና ከአገር ውጭ የሚንቀሳቀሱትን ሃይሎች የሚደግፉትን ለማሸማቀቅ በሽብርተኝነት ለመወንጀል የተደረገው ሙከራ ያልተሳካለት ወያኔ በምንም ማባበያ አልበገር ያሉትን በሺዎች የሚቆጠሩ አገር ወዳድ ዜጎችን በግንቦት 7 ሥም የዕድሜ ልክ ዕስራት ፈርዶባቸው በየዕስር ቤቱ እያማቀቃቸው ነው። ከቅርብ ጊዜ ወዲህ ደግሞ አርበኞች ግንቦት 7ን ልትቀላቀሉ ነው በሚል ጥርጣሬና ስጋት ብዙዎችን ከድንበር አካባቢ እያገዘ ወደ ማጎሪያ ሥፍራው በማጓጓዝ የተለያዩ ድብደባና ማሰቃየት እየፈጸመባቸው ነው።

አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 ከራሳቸው የግልጥቅም የአገርንና የወገንን ክብርና ነጻነት አስቀድመው ሲንቀሳቀሱ በወያኔ እጅ ለወደቁትና በየእስር ቤቱ ተወርውረው የተለያየ አካላዊና መንፈሳዊ ሲቃይ እየደረሰባቸው ላሉ ወገኖቻችንን በሙሉ ከፍተኛ አክብሮት አለው። እነዚህ ወገኖቻችን የዚህ ወይም የዚያ ተቃዋሚ ፖለቲካ ድርጅት አባል ናቸው ሳይል ከአምባገነናዊ አገዛዝ እራሳቸውንና ወገናቸውን ለማላቀቅ ሲንቀሳቀሱ ለከፈሉትና በመክፈል ላይ ላሉት መስዕዋትነት ባለውለታነታቸው አጥንቱ ድረስ ዘልቆ እንደሚሰማው በይፋ መግለጽ ይወዳል። የእስርና እንግልት መበራከት የነጻነት ትግሉን እንዲፏፏም ያደርገዋል እንጂ እንደማያደናቅፈው ለአፍታም የማይጠራጠረው ንቅናቄያችን አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 አገራችንን ከፋሽስቱ የወያኔ አገዛዝ ለማላቀቅና ፍትህ እኩልነትና ነጻነት የሰፈነበት የበለጸገች አገር ለመመሥረት የጀመረውን ትግል አጠናክሮ በመቀጠል የወያኔ ሰለባ የሆኑትን ጀግኖቻችንን እንደሚታደግ በልበ ሙሉነት ያረጋግጣል።

በቃሊት፡ በዝዋይ፣ በቂሊንጡ፣ በሸዋ ሮቢት፣ በማዕከላዊና በትክክል በማይታወቁ ተለያዩ የወያኔ ማሰቃያና ማጎሪያ ቦታዎች በመሰቃየት ላይ ያላችሁ ሁሉ አረዓያነታችሁና ዋጋ እየከፈላችሁለት ያለው የነጻነት ትግል ከዳር እስኪደርስና አሳሪዎቻችሁና ገራፊዎቻችሁ ህግ ፊት ቀርበው የሥራቸውን ዋጋ እስኪያገኙ ለአፍታም ቢሆን እንደማናንቀላፍ ቃል እንገባለን።

በእሥርና በመንገላታት እየከፈላችሁት ያላችሁት መሰዕዋትነት የነጻነት ትግሉን ወያኔ እንደተመኘው ማዳከም ሳይሆን፣ እያጠናከረ መሄዱን ልናረጋግጥላችሁ እንወዳለን።

ድል ለኢትዮጵያ ህዝብ!!