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/

በህወሓት ላይ የሚቀርቡ ተቃውሞዎች ሁሉ ወደ እምቢተኝነት ይደጉ！

March 12, 2015 | Filed underG7 Editorial,Slider Post | Posted by admin

የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ በአለፉት 23 ዓመታት በህወሓት ዘረኛ አገዛዝ የደረሰበት ስቃይ እንዲቀንስ፤ ገዢዎቹ ከጫንቃው እንዲወዱ፤ ህወሓትን አውርዶ የሚፈልጋቸው መሪዎችን በነፃነት እንዲመርጥ ሲጠይቅና አቤቱታ ሲያሰማ ቆይቷል። በ1997 ዓ.ም. የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ምኞት የሚሳካ መስሎ የታየ የነበረ ቢሆንም በአገዛዙ አረመኔዓዊ እርምጃ ተሰናክሏል። ከጥቂት ዓመታት ወዲህ “ድምፃችን ይሰማ” የሚሉ አቤታዎች ከተለያዩ የኅብረተሰብ ክፍሎች መምጣት ጀምሯል – “ድምፃችን ይሰማ ሙስሊሞች”፣ “ድምፃችን ይሰማ ኦርቶዶክሶች”፣ “ድምፃችን ይሰማ መምህራን”፣ “ድምፃችን ይሰማ ተማሪዎች”፣ … ወዘተ። በተለይ ሙስሊም ወገኖቻችን በተደራጀ መንገድ “ድምፃችን ይሰማ” እያሉ ሲወተውቱ ሦስት ተከታታይ ዓመታት አልፈዋል። ወገኖቻችን “ድምፃችን ይሰማ” በማለታቸው ተደብድበዋል፣ ታስረዋል፣ ተገድለዋል።
አቤቱታ የሚሰማ ጆሮ የሌለው አገዛዝ ሲገጥም ምን ይደረጋል？ ለአቤቱታ አቅራቢው ያለው ምርጫ ከሁለት አንድ ነው። ወይ አቤቱታን እርግፍ አድርጎ ጥሎ በደልን ተቀብሎ “እህህ !” እያሉ መኖር፤ አሊያም “በቃኝ፣ እንቢ አልገዛም” ማለት፤ ሦስተኛ ምርጫ የለም።

አቤቱታ ሰሚ ሲያጣ እና ሕዝብ መሮት “እንቢኝ፣ አልገዛም” ሲል ነው ሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝነት ተቀሰቀሰ የሚባለው። ሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝነት ብዙ መልኮችና ቅርጾች ቢኖሩትም ዋነኛዎቹ መገለጫዎች ሁለት ናቸው። አገዛዙ ሕዝብ እንዲያደርግ የሚፈልገውን አለማድረግ እና/ወይም አገዛዙ ሕዝብ እንዲያደርግ የማይፈልገውን ማድረግ።

ለምሳሌ፣ አገዛዙ ሹማምንቱ እንዲከበሩ፣ ሕዝብ እንዲታዘዝላቸው ይፈልጋል፤ እንቢ ያለ ሕዝብ ግን የአገዛዙን ሹማምንት ይንቃል፣ በየደረሱት ያዋርዳቸዋል፣ “አልታዘዛችሁም” ይላቸዋል። ማንኛውም መንግስት የዳኝነት ሥርዓቱ እንዲከበርለት ይፈልጋል፤ በደል የመረረው ሕዝብ ግን የአምባገነኖች ችሎት ውሳኔ አይቀበልም፤ ዳኞችንም ዳኝነትንም አያከብርም። ሕዝብ የመንግሥትን ግብር በወቅቱ እንዲከፍል የማንኛውም መንግሥት ፍላጎት ነው። በመንግሥት ያመረረ ሕዝብ ግን ግብር አይከፍልም፤ መክፈል ግድ ከሆነበትም አዘግይቶ፣ አስለፍቶ ነው። የመረረው ሕዝብ ምሬቱን መፃፍ በሌለበት ቦታ ይጽፋል። በደል የበዛበት ሕዝብ “ዝም በል” ሲሉት ይናገራል፤ “ተናገር” ሲሉት ዝም ይላል።

አገራችን ኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ የሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝተኝነት እርምጃዎች ጅምሮች እየታዩ ነው። በአማራ ክልል፣ ሕዝብ በሹማምንት ላይ የራሱን እርምጃ መውሰድ ጀምሯል። ሕዝብ ራሱ የፓሊስንም የፍርድ ቤትንም ሥራ ተክቶ እየሠራ ነው። ይህ መበረታታት ያለበት ትልቅ እርምጃ ነው። እንደዚሁም ሁሉ በተለይ ወጣቶች ብሶቶቻቸውን በብር ኖቶች ላይ ጽፈው ገበያው እንዲያዘዋውራቸው እያደረጉ ነው። ይህም “የወረቀት ገንዘብን ለተሠራበት ዓላማ ብቻ ተጠቀሙ” የሚለውን ህግ በመጣስ ለቅስቀሳ ሥራ መጠቀም በመሆኑ የሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝነት አካል ነው። በሚቀጥሉት ጥቂት ወራት ውስጥ በርካታ የወረቀት ገንዘቦች በምሬት መግለጫነት ይውላሉ ተብሎ ይገመታል።

በተጓዳኝ በርካታ አማራጭ ስልቶች ሥራ ላይ መዋል ይኖርባቸዋል። ለምሳሌ፣ ተቀማጭ ገንዘብን ከህወሓት ባንኮች ማውጣት በቀላሉ ተግባራዊ ሊደረግ የሚችል ስልት ነው። በውጋጋን ባንክ ተጀምሮ ወደ አንበሳ ኢንተርናሽናል ከዚያም ወደ ንግድ ባንክ ማሸጋገር ይቻላል።
በወገኖቻችን ላይ የግፍ ፍርድ የሚያስፈርዱ አቃቢያነ ህግ እና የግፍ ብይኖችን የሚሰጡ ዳኞች በቸልታ ሊታለፉ አይገባም። በእስር ቤቶችም በወገኖቻችን ላይ ሰቆቃ እየፈፀሙ ያሉ ጨካኞች ከሰላማዊ ሕዝብ ጋር ተደባልቀው ሰላማዊ ሕይወት እንዲመሩ ሊፈቀድላቸው አይገባም። እነዚህ ሁሉ ሊወገዙ፣ ሊገለሉ፣ በየደረሱበት ሊዋረዱ ይገባል።

በአገዛዙ መንግሥታዊ መዋቅር ውስጥ የሚገኙ ወገኖቻችን በሥራቸው ላይ መለገም ተቀባይነት ያለው በጎ ተግባር እንደሆነ ሰፊ ግንዛቤ ሊያገኝ ይገባል። ከአምባገነን ሥርዓት ጋር መተባበር እኩይ ተግባር ሲሆን አምባገነን ሥርዓትን ከውስጥ መቦርቦር ደግሞ የሚበረታታ ሰናይ ሥራ ነው።

ለወያኔ አገዛዝ ግብር መክፈል የምናቆምበት ሰዓትም ተቃርቧል። በራሳችን ገንዘብ ገዳዮቻችን እንዲሰለጥኑብን መፍቀድ የለብንም። ስለሆነም “ግብር አንከፍልም”፤ “መዋጮዎቻችሁ አይመለከቱንም” የምንልበት ቀን ቀርቧል።
በፋይዳ የለሽ ምርጫ የሀገር ሀብት ሲመዘበር ማየት አንሻም። በአግባቡ ለማይቆጠር ድምፃችን አንድም ደቂቃ የምናባክንበት ምክንያት የለምና ሁላችንም የምርጫ ካርዶቻችንን ቀዳደን ቁርጭራጮቹን በየመንገዱ ልንበትናቸው ይገባል።
እነዚህን እነዚህን የመሳሰሉ ናቸው የሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝነት የመጀመሪያ ደረጃዎች። እነዚህን እያደረግን በምስጢር መደራጀታችንን እንቀጥል። ከጥቂት በኋላ አምባገነኑን ሥርዓት የሚያንበረክክ ኃይል እንፈጥራለን። ጥቃት ቢደርስ የሚመክት ኃይል የተደራጀ በመሆኑም ሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝነትና ሕዝባዊ አመጽ ተቀናጅተው እንዲሄዱ ይደረጋል።

አርበኞች ግንቦት 7：የአንድነትና ዲሞክራሲ ንቅናቄ ሕዝባዊ እምቢተኝነትንና ሕዝባዊ አመጽን አቀናጅቶ ለመምራት የተዘጋጀ፤ ለዚህ የሚያበቃው ድርጅታዊ አቅም እየገነባ ያለ ድርጅት ነው። አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 “እንሰባሰብ በወያኔ ላይ የምናቀርባቸው ተቃውሞዎች በሙሉ ወደ እምቢተኝነት ከፍ እናድርጋቸው” ይላል።

ድል ለኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ！！！

አሁንም ደግመን እንነግራችኋለን

March 1, 2015 | Filed underአማርኛ | Posted by admin

ኢትዮጵያችን እግዚአብሔርንና ሰውን በማይፈሩ ጨካኞች እጅ ወድቃ የመከራ አገር ከሆነች ከሁለት አስርተ ዓመታት በላይ ተቆጥረዋል። በህዝባችን ላይ የተመዘዘው የመከራ ሰይፍም ወደ ሰገባው የሚመለስ አልሆነም። እንዲያውም በህዝባችን ላይ ሲዘንብ የቆየው የመከራ መንፈስ እንደገና ታድሶ ገና “ልክ እናስገባችኋለን” የሚል የጣዕረ ሞት ድምፅ ከህወሃት መንደር እየተሰማ ነው።

አባይ ፀሃይ የሚባለው ወላዋይና አደር ባይ ግለሰብ በህዝቡ ላይ ሲፈፅመው በኖረው ወንጀል ገና የረካ አይመስልም። ሌላ ግዲያ፤ ሌላ ስደት፤ ሌላ የላቀ መከራ ለኢትዮጵያዊያን ደግሶላቸዋል። አባይ ፀሃይ ለአዲስ አበባ ከተማ ልቀት እርሱ ብቻ አሳቢ፤ እርሱ ብቻ ተቆርቋሪ ሁኖ ራሱን ሹሟል።የአዲስ አበባም ሆነ በአካባቢው የሚኖረው ኗሪ ህዝብ ግን አባይ ፀሃይን የሚያውቁት በእኩይ ተግባሩ እንጂ በደግ ተግባሩ እንዳለሆነ እኛ ልናስታውሰው እንወዳለን። በዚህ ግለሰብ አማካሪነት የተጀመረው ኗሪውን ህዝብ የማፈናቀል፤ ቤተሰብን የመበተን፤ የህዝቡን አብሮነት የማፍረስ ተግባር ገና ተጠናክሮ እንደሚቀጥል “ገና ልክ እናስገባችኋለን” በሚል መፈክር ሥር እንደሚቀጥል ታቅዷል። አዲስ አበባን በማስፋፋት ሰበብ ብዙ ገበሬዎች ከኖሩበት መንደር ያለምንም ካሳ ተፈናቅለው የሌላ ሎሌ እንዲሆኑ መደረጉ የሚረሳ አይደለም። ይሄን የአንድን ህዝብ ማንነት የማጥፋት ድርጊትን የተቃወሙ ብዙ ወጣቶች በሞት እና በእሥራት እንደተቀጡም አረሳነውም። ትላንት የፈሰሰው ደም ሳይደርቅ፤ የፈሰሰው እንባ ሳይታበስ፤የተበተነው ሳይሰበሰብ፤ የተሰበረው ሳይጠገን እንደገና ለሌላ ዙር ጥፋት እየተዘጋጁ እንደሆነ ነግረውናል።

አባይ ፀሃይ “ልክ እናስገባችኋለን” ሲል የተማመነው ጠመንጃ ያነገተውን ኢትዮጵያዊ ወታደር እንጂ ህዝብን እንዳልሆነ እናውቃለን። ወታደር አገሩን መጠበቅ፤ ህዝቡንም ከጥፋት መታደግ፤ አጠቃላይ የአገሪቷን ህግም ማስከበር ዋናው ተልዕኮው ነበር። የአገራችን ወታደሮች ግን ዋናውን ተልእኳቸውን ትተው ኢትዮጵያን እንደ አገር እንዳትቀጥል የሚያደርጉ ቡድኖችን እድሜያቸውን ለማራዘም እየሰሩ እንደሆነ እያየን ነው።በአገራችን ጠመንጃ የታጠቁ ኃይሎች መከላከያ ኃይል አባላት፤ የፖሊስ አባላት፤ የፌዴራል ፖሊስ አባላት እና በአገራችን ታሪክ በነፍሰ ገዳይነቱ የሚታወቀው አግዓዚ የተባለው ክፍለ ጦር አባላት እና የአገር ውስጥ ደህንነት አባላት የህወሃትን ዕድሜ ለማራዘም ከልብ የመነጨ ፍላጎት አላቸው ብለን አናምንም። እነዚህ ኃይሎች የወጡበትን ጎጆ፤ ነገ ዞሮ መግቢያ የሚሆናቸውን ማህበረሰብ ወደውና ፈቅደው ያፈርሳሉ ብለን ለማሰብ ይቸግረናል።በሌላ በኩል ደግሞ ድርጊታቸው ብዙዎችን እያስከፋ እንደሆነም እናውቃለን።

አሁንም ደግመን ደጋግመን በኢትዮጵያችን ጠመንጃ ላነገቱ ኃይሎች መልዕክት መላካችንን አናቋርጥም። ጠመንጃውን ያነገቱ ኃይሎች ካነገቱት ጠመንጃ የተለዩ ናቸው። እነዚህ ኃይሎች ስሜት አሏቸው፤ ፍላጎት አሏቸው፤ ማሰብ የሚችል አዕምሮም እንዳሏቸውም የሚካድ አይደለም።የሚያዝንና የሚደሰት ስሜት፤ ለመኖር ፍላጎት፤ በጎውን ከክፉ ለመለየት የሚያስችል አዕምሮ ያሏቸው ስለሆነ ፈፅሞ እስከ ሚመሽ ድረስ መልዕክታችንን ከመስደድ አናቆምም። መልዕክታችንም አጭርና ግልፅ ነው። በዚያች አገር ውስጥ ጠመንጃ የታጠቀው ኃይል ጋር ጠላትነት የለንም።በእኛ እምነት መከላከያ ኃይል፤ ፖሊስ እና የደህንነት ሠራተኞች ጠላቶቻችን አይደሉም። እኛ ጠላት የምንለው ጠመንጃ የታጠቀውን ድሃ እና ከርታታ ኢትዮጵያዊ ሳይሆን ይህን ኃይል በገዛ ወገኑ ላይ ሰይፉን እንዲመዝ እና የንፁሃንን ደም እንዲያፈስ የሚያደርገውን ኃይል ነው።የአገሪቷ መከላከያ ኃይል አሁን ባለበት ሁኔታ ለተሻለ ውጤት የሚያበቃው አማራጭ ስለሌለው ሂሊናው እየወቀሰውም ቢሆን የገዛ ወገኑን ደም እያፈሰሰ ለመቆየት የተገደደ ይመስላል። ይህን ማለታችን የድርጊቱን መፈፀም ትክክል ነው እያልን አይደለም። በማንኛውም መለኪያ የንፁህ ሰውን ደም ማፍሰስ ትክክል አይደለም። በሰማይ በእግዚአብሄር ፊት የሚያስጠይቅ፤ በምድር በሰው ዘንድም የሚያስወቅስ ክፉ ተግባር መሆኑን ሳንናገር አናልፍም።

እስከ ዛሬ የተሻለ መረጃ ስለሌለኝ፤ የተሻለ አማራጭ ስላጣሁ፤ የተሻለን መንገድ ለመፈለግ ሁኔታው ስላልፈቀደልኝ ከሂሊናየ ውጪ ሁኜ ለመኖር ተገድጄአለሁ የሚለው ምክንያት አሁን አብቅቷል። አሁን መረጃ አለ፤ ኢትዮጵያን እንደ አገር እንድትቀጥል ለማስቻል የተሻለ አማራጭም አሁን ተዘጋጅቷል። መረጃና አማራጭ መንገድ ካለ ደግሞ ከሂሊና ጋር ታርቆ እንደ ሰው ለመኖር ሁኔታው የተመቸ ሁኗል።

የኢትዮጵያ መከላከያ ኃይል፤ የፖሊስ ሠራዊት አባላት፤የአገር ውስጥ የደህንነት ኃይሎች ሆይ ስሙን !

ህወሃቶች እናንተን ተገን አድርገው የገዛ ወገኖቻችሁን “ልክ እናስገባለን” ማለታቸውን ሰምታችኋል የሚል ግምት አለን። ልክ ማስገባት ማለት-ከሥራ ማባረር፤ከትውልድ ሥፍራ ማፈናቀል፤ እስር ቤት መጨመር፤ ለስደት መዳረግ እና መግደል ማለት ነው። የአባይ ፀሃይ ልክ ማስገባት ይሄን ይመስላል።ይሄን የምትፈፅሙት ደግሞ ጠመንጃ ያነገታችሁ ኃይሎች ትሆናላችሁ። ወገኖቻችሁ በህወሃቶች እጅ እንባቸውን በመዳፋቸው ሲያፍሱ ኑረዋል።በህወሃት አገዛዝ ሥር ያለች አገራችሁ ከውዳቂ አገራት ተርታ ገብታለች፤ ከዓለም አስር ፍፁም ድሃ አገሮች መካከል አንዷ ሁናለች።የአገራችሁ ወጣቶች ሞትን ፊት ለፊታቸው እያዩ ተሰደው የዓዞና የበርሃ ዕራት ሁነው ቀርተዋል። ከዚህ የተረፉትም የዓረብ መጫወቻ ሁነዋል። ይህ ሁሉ መከራ ህወሃት በተባለው ክፉ ዘረኛና ቂመኛ ቡድን ይፈፀማል። አሁን ይሄን በቃ ለማለት ግዜው ነው። ከእንግዲህ ወዲያ ታዝዤ ነው፤ ለእንጀራ ብየ ነው፤ ልጆቼን ላሳድግ ብየ ነው፤ አማራጭ አጥቼ ነው፤ የሚሉ ምክንያቶች ሚዛን የሚያነሱ ባለመሆናቸው ተቀባይነት የላቸውም።

አሁን አስተማማኝ አማራጭ አለ። የኢትዮጵያ ውረደት ያንገበገበን፤ የህዝባችን ጉስቁልና ያስቆጨን ወገኖች የአያቶቻችንን ጋሻና ጦር አንስተን ለግዳጅ ተዘጋጅተናል። ከመቸውም ግዜ በተሻለ ህዝባዊ መሠረት ላይ የቆመ ድርጅት መሥርተን ንቅናቄ ጀምረናል። ትግላችን ኢትዮጵያዊያን ከተዘፈቁበት ጭለማ ወደ ብርሃን የሚያሻግር ነው። ትግላችን ህወሃት የጫነውን የዘረኝነት ቀንበር የሚሰብር ነው። ትግላችን ህወሃት የዘረጋውን የዝርፊያ መረብ የሚበጣጥስ ነው። ትግላችን ህዝቡን በሙሉ የተጫኑ ጥቂት መንደርተኞች ሥፍራቸውን እንዲይዙ ማድረግ ነው።ትግላችን ጎጠኛ አስተሳሰብን አምክኖ ብሄራዊ ስሜትንና ውህደትን የሚፈጥር ነው። ትግላችን ዜጎች በዜግነታቸው ብቻ በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ በማንኛውም ሥፍራ ያለ ፍርሃት የሚኖሩበትን ሁኔታ የሚፈጥር ነው። ትግላችን አብዛኛው ህዝብ በመረጠው መንግስት የሚተዳደርበት፤ ይህም መንግስት ህዝቡን ፈርቶና አክብሮ የሚሠራበት ሁኔታ የሚፈጥር ነው። ትግላችን የአገሪቷ መከላከያ ኃይል አገሩንና ህዝቡን የሚጠብቅ እንጂ የገዛ ወገኑን ደም በከንቱ የሚያፈስበት ሁኔታ እንዲያበቃ የሚያደርግ ነው።ጠመንጃውን ያንገትከው ኃይል የቀረበልህ አማራጭ መሥመር ይሄ ነው።

ደግመን እንነግርሃለን አሁን አማራጭ መንገድ አለህ። በገዛ ወገኖችህ ላይ ስይፍህን ለመምዘዝ እምቢ የማትል ከሆነና አሁንም በዚያው በጭለማ መንገድ መሄድን ከመርጥክ መጨረሻህ መልካም አይሆንም። እኛ እንድሆንን ተነስተናል። ከመንገዳችን የሚያቆመን ምዳራዊ ኃይል አይኖርም።የቃየል ልጆች ሲያጠፉን እንዲያው ዝም ብለን የምንጠፋ አይደለንም።ከእኛ ዘንድ እውነት አለ፤ ከእኛ ዘንድ የነፃነት ብርሃን አለ፤ ከእኛ ዘንድ የፍትህ ዘንግ አለ፤ከእኛ ዘንድ የእኩልነት ሚዛን አለ፤ ከእኛ ዘንድ እግዚአብሄር አለ።ይሄን ሁሉ ይዘን እናሸንፋለን እንጂ አንሸነፍም።የምናሸንፈው ለበቀል እንዳይደለ አሁንም እንነግራችኋለን። የምናሸንፈው በክፉው ላይ መልካሙን ዘር በመዝራት ነው።በጭቆና ላይ ነፃነትን፤ በአድልዎ ላይ ፍትህን፤ በህግ አልባነት ላይ የህግ የበላይነትን፤ በጎጠኛ አስተሳሰብ ላይ ብሄራዊ አስተሳሰብን ማስረፅ ስንችል ነው አሸንፈናል የምንለው። የጎሰኛነትን አጥር አፍርሰን የኢትዮጵያዊነት ስሜት ማስረፅ ስንችል ነው አሸንፈናል የምንለው። እኛ ስናሸነፍ የሚሆነው ይሄው ነው። ከእኛ ዘንድ የበቀል ስሜት የለም። ከእኛ ዘንድ ያለው ሁሉም ከህግ በታች ሁኖ ህግና ፍትህ እንዲነግሱ የሚያስችል ብርቱ ፍላጎት ነው።

ስለዚህ ጠመንጃ ያነገታችሁ ኃይሎች እኛ ከቆምንለት ቅዱስ ዓላማ ጋር እንድትተባበሩ እንጠራችኋለን።ኑና የጭለማ ኃይሎችን ምሽግ አፍርሰን የብርሃን ልጆችን አምባ አብረን እንሥራ። ኑና አብረን የወገኖቻችንን እምባ እናብስ። ኑና በግፍ ያለፍርድ የታሠሩትን እናስፈታ ።ኑና የጭቆናን ቀንበር አብረን እንስበር። ኑና አብረን አገራችንን ከፍ ከፍ እናድርጋት።

ድል ለኢትዮጵያ ህዝብ !

የአድዋ ድልን እያከበርን ለዛሬ ነፃነታች ቃል እንግባ！

March 5, 2015 | Filed underG7 Editorial,Slider Post | Posted by admin

መቶ አስራ ዘጠነኛውን የአድዋ ድል በዓል እየዘከርን እንገኛለን። እንደዛሬው ሁሉ ያኔም ቀደምቶቻችን በርካታ የውስጥና የውጭ ችግሮች ነበሩባቸው። እንደዛሬው ሁሉ ያኔም በመካከላቸው የሀሳብና የጥቅም ልዩነቶች ነበሩ። ያም ሆኖ ግን ቀደምቶቻችን በአገር ነፃነት ጉዳይ ላይ ሰፋ ያለ መግባባት ላይ መድረስ በመቻላቸው በዘመናዊ የጦር መሣሪያዎችና ድርጅት የተጠናከረውን የአውሮፓ ጦር በጥቁር የጦር አዛዦችና ተዋጊዎች መመከት ቻሉ። ከአድዋ በፊት አፍሪቃ በተለይም ኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ አውሮፓዊያን የተሸነፉባቸው ተናጠል አውደ ውጊያዎች ነበሩ፤ ጦርነትን ሲሸነፉ ግን አድዋ የመጀሪያው ነው። በዚህም ምክንያት ነው የአድዋ ድል የአፍሪቃውያን ከዚያም አልፎ የጥቁር ሕዝቦች ሁሉ ድል ተደርጎ የሚወሰደው።

ዛሬ ግን እኛ ያኔ የነበሩት አያትና ቅድመ አያቶቻችን እደረሱበት የመግባባት ደረጃ ላይ መድረስ ባለመቻላችን አገር በቀሉን ቅኝ ገዢ – ህወሓትን – ከኢትዮጵያዊያን ጫንቃ ላይ ማውረድ አቅቶን አገራችንና ሕዝቧን ከባዕድ በባሰ ሁኔታ እያዋረደ በመግዛት ላይ ይገኛል።
ያኔ ለሀገሩ፣ ለነፃነቱና ለክብሩ ቀናዒ የሆነው ኢትዮጵያዊ ራሱን ወታደር አድርጎ በየጎበዝ አለቃው አዝማችነት በጠላት ላይ ዘምቶ ድልን ተቀዳጅቷል። ዛሬ ግን ቁጥሩ ቀላል ያልሆነ የመከላከያ ሠራዊት አባል ለህወሓት አዛዦች ሎሌነት አድሮ የራሱን ወገን ይፈጃል። ያኔ በአገዛዙ ላይ ብሶት የነበረው እንኳን ሳይቀር ብሶቱን ችሎ ለሀገር ሉዓላውነትና ክብር ሲል ተዋድቋል። ዛሬ ግን ቁጥራቸው ቀላል ያልሆኑ ወገኖቻችን የኢትዮጵያን ዘላቂ ጥቅም ከብሶቶቻቸው በላይ አሻግረው መመልከት ተስኗቸዋል።

ዛሬ 119ኛውን የአድዋ ድል በዓል አያቶቻችንን በማድነቅ ብቻ ልናሳልፈው አይገባም። የአያቶቻችንን ገድል ስናከብር ዛሬ የምንገኝበትን ሁኔታ መመዘን ይገባናል። ራሳችንን ከእነሱ ጋር በማስተያየት እንደምን ያለን ውለታ መላሽ ያልሆንን የልጅ ልጆች መሆናችንን መመዘን እና ራሳችንን መውቀስ ይገባናል። የሚሳዝነው ዛሬ ራሱን ከሚወቅሰው በላይ አያቶቹን የሚወቅስ መብዛቱ ነው። እነሱ ችግሮችን ተሻግረው የምንኮራበትን ድል አቀዳጅተውን አልፈዋል። እኛ ግን እነሱ ያቆዩልንን ድል እንኳን ማስጠበቅ አልቻልንም። ከአድዋ ድል አንድ መቶ አስራ ዘጠኝ ዓመታት በኋላ አገራችንን ለህወሓት የአገር ውስጥ ቅኝ አገዛዝ ማስረከባችን ሊያመንና ሊያንገበግበን ሲገባ ድሮ ሊደረጉ ሲችሉ አልተደረጉም በምንላቸው ነገሮች ላይ እየተከራከርን ግዜያችንን እናጠፋለን።

አርበኞች ግንቦት 7： የአንድነትና ዲሞክራሲ ንቅናቄ ታላቁን የአድዋን ድል ለአጎናፀፉን ቀደምቶቻችን ያለንን ክብር መግለጽ ያለብን ዛሬ አገራችን ከህወሓት የአገር ውስጥ ቅኝ አገዛዝ ነፃ ለማውጣት በምንገባው ቃል ኪዳን ነው ብሎ ያምናል። አገራችንን በቅኝ ግዛትነት እያስገዛን የቀደምቶቻችንን ድል መዘከር ለእኛ ለልጆቻቸዉ የሚያሳፍር ተግባር ነው ብሎ ያምናል። አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 የኢትዮጵያ የመከላከያ ሠራዊት አገር በቀል ቅኝ ገዥ በሆነው ሕወሓት እየተመራ የኢትዮጵያን ሕዝብ የማዳከሙን ተግባር በአስቸኳይ ማቆም ይኖርበታል ብሎ ያምናል። ስለሆነም የመከላከያ ሠራዊት አባላት ልባችሁንም ክንዳችሁንም ከኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ጋር አድርጉ። ቀደምት አባቶቻችን አድዋ ላይ ድል የነሱት ቅኝ ገዥ ዛሬ ቀለሙን ለውጦ “ህወሓት” ተሰኝቶ ያንተ አዛዥ ሆኗል። መሣሪያህን በህወሓት አዛዦችህ ላይ የምታዞርበት ወቅት አሁን ነው። ንቃ፤ ተነስ！

አገርን ለጠላት አስረክቦ በቀደምት ጀግኖች ታሪክ መኩራት አሳፋሪ ነው። አባቶቻችን በነፃነት ያቆዩልን አገር የህወሓት መፈንጫ ሆና ማየት የሚያሸማቅቅ ነው። የጀግኖች አያቶቻችን የልጅ ልጆች መሆናችንን የምናስመሰክረው አገራችንን ከህወሓት አገዛዝ ነፃ ስናወጣና የዜጎቿ መብቶች የተከበሩባት ፍትህና እኩልነት የሰፈኑባት ዲሞክራሲያዊት ኢትዮጵያን ስንመሠርት ነው። የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ለዚህ ታላቅ ዓላማ ይነሳ ሲል አርበኖች ግንቦት 7 ጥሪ ያስተላልፋል።

አርበኞች ግንቦት 7： የአድዋ ድልን እያከበርን ዛሬ ነፃነታችንን ለማስከር ለመታገል ቃል እንግባ ይላል።

ድል ለኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ！

Ethiopia: Amnesty International Report 2014/15

March 5, 2015 | Filed underHuman Rights | Posted by admin

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
Head of state: Mulatu Teshome Wirtu
Head of government: Hailemariam Desalegn

Freedom of expression continued to be subject to serious restrictions. The government was hostile to suggestions of dissent, and often made pre-emptive arrests to prevent dissent from manifesting. Independent media publications were subject to further attack. Peaceful protesters, journalists, and members of opposition political parties were arbitrarily arrested. The Charities and Societies Proclamation continued to obstruct the work of human rights organizations. Arbitrary detention and torture and other ill-treatment were widespread, often used as part of a system for silencing actual or suspected dissent.

Background

Economic growth continued apace, along with significant foreign investment including in the agriculture, construction and manufacturing sectors, large-scale development projects such as hydroelectric dam building and plantations, and widespread land-leasing, often to foreign companies.

The government used multiple channels and methods to enforce political control on the population, including politicizing access to job and education opportunities and development assistance, and high levels of physical and technological surveillance.

The politicization of the investigative branch of the police and of the judiciary meant that it was not possible to receive a fair hearing in politically motivated trials.

Federal and regional security services were responsible for violations throughout the country, including arbitrary arrests, the use of excessive force, torture and extrajudicial executions. They operated with near-total impunity.

Armed opposition groups remained in several parts of the country or in neighbouring countries, although in most cases with small numbers of fighters and low levels of activity.

Access to some parts of the Somali region continued to be severely restricted. There were continuing reports of serious violations of human rights, including arbitrary arrests and extrajudicial executions. There were also multiple allegations of the rape of women and girls by members of the security services.

Excessive use of force ‒ extrajudicial executions

In April and May, protests took place across Oromia region against a proposed “Integrated Master Plan” to expand the capital Addis Ababa into Oromia regional territory. The government said the plan would bring services to remote areas, but many Oromo people feared it would damage the interests of Oromo farmers and lead to large-scale displacement.

Security services, comprising federal police and military special forces, responded with excessive force, firing live ammunition at protesters in Ambo and Guder towns and Wallega and Madawalabu universities, resulting in the deaths of at least 30 people, including children. Hundreds of people were beaten by security service agents during and after the protests, including protesters, bystanders, and parents of protesters for failing to “control” their children, resulting in scores of injuries.

Thousands of people were arbitrarily arrested. Large numbers were detained without charge for several months, and some were held incommunicado. Hundreds were held in unofficial places of detention, including Senkele police training camp. Some detainees were transferred to Maikelawi federal police detention centre in Addis Ababa. Over 100 people continued to be detained in Kelem Wallega, Jimma and Ambo by security service agents after courts ordered their release on bail or unconditionally.

Many of those arrested were released after varying detention periods, between May and October, but others were denied bail, or remained in detention without charge. Others, including students and members of the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) opposition political party, were prosecuted and convicted in rapid trials on various charges relating to the protests.

Freedom of expression, arbitrary arrests and detentions

2014 saw another onslaught on freedom of expression and suggestions of dissent, including further targeting of the independent media and arrests of opposition political party members and peaceful protesters. Several attempts by opposition political parties to stage demonstrations were obstructed by the authorities. The Anti-Terrorism Proclamation continued to be used to silence dissidents. Opposition party members were increasingly targeted ahead of the 2015 general election.

In late April, six bloggers of the Zone 9 collective and three independent journalists associated with the group were arrested in Addis Ababa, two days after the group announced the resumption of activities, which had been suspended due to significant harassment. For nearly three months, all nine were held in the underground section of Maikelawi, denied access to family members and other visitors, and with severely restricted access to lawyers.

In July, they were charged with terrorism offences, along with another Zone 9 member charged in their absence. The charge sheet cited among their alleged crimes the use of “Security in a Box” – a selection of open-source software and materials created to assist human rights defenders, particularly those working in repressive environments.

Six of the group said they were forced to sign confessions. Three complained in remand hearings that they had been tortured, but the court did not investigate their complaints. The trial continued at the end of 2014.

Early in 2014, a “study” conducted by the national Press Agency and Ethiopian News Agency and published in the government-run Addis Zemen newspaper targeted seven independent publications, alleging that they had printed several articles which “promoted terrorism”, denied economic growth, belittled the legacy of former Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, and committed other “transgressions”. In August, the government announced that it was bringing charges against several of the publications, causing over 20 journalists to flee the country. In October, the owners of three of the publications were sentenced in their absence to over three years’ imprisonment each for allegedly inciting the public to overthrow the government and publishing unfounded rumours.

The OFC opposition party reported that between 350 and 500 of its members were arrested between May and July, including party leadership. The arrests started in the context of the “Master Plan” protests, but continued for several months. Many of those arrested were detained arbitrarily and incommunicado. OFC members were among over 200 people arrested in Oromia in mid-September, and further party members were arrested in October.

On 8 July, Habtamu Ayalew and Daniel Shebeshi, of the Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ) Party, and Yeshewas Asefa of the Semayawi Party were arrested in Addis Ababa. Abraha Desta of the Arena Tigray Party, and a lecturer at Mekele University, was arrested in Tigray, and was transferred to Addis Ababa. They were detained in Maikelawi and initially denied access to lawyers and family. In late October, they were charged under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation. Yeshewas Asefa complained in court that he had been tortured in detention.

The Semayawi Party reported numerous arrests of its members, including seven women arrested in March during a run to mark International Women’s Day in Addis Ababa, along with three men, also members of the party. They had been chanting slogans including “We need freedom! Free political prisoners!” They were released without charge after 10 days. In late April, 20 members of the party were arrested while promoting a demonstration in Addis Ababa. They were released after 11 days.

In early September, Befekadu Abebe and Getahun Beyene, party officials in Arba Minch city, were arrested along with three party members. Befekadu Abebe and Getahun Beyene were transferred to Maikelawi detention centre in Addis Ababa. In the initial stages of detention, they were reportedly denied access to lawyers and family members. In late October, party member Agbaw Setegn, was arrested in Gondar, and was also transferred to Maikelawi, and held incommunicado without access to lawyers or family.

On 27 October, editor Temesgen Desalegn was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for “defamation” and “inciting the public through false rumours”, in the now-defunct publication Feteh, after a trial that had lasted more than two years. The publisher of Feteh was also convicted in their absence.

People were detained arbitrarily without charge for long periods in the initial stages, or throughout the duration, of their detention including numerous people arrested for peaceful opposition to the government or their imputed political opinion. Arbitrary detention took place in official and unofficial detention centres, including Maikelawi. Many detainees were held incommunicado, and many were denied access to lawyers and family members.

Numerous prisoners of conscience, imprisoned in previous years based solely on their peaceful exercise of their freedom of expression and opinion, including journalists and opposition political party members, remained in detention. These included some convicted in unfair trials, some whose trials continued, and some who continued to be detained without charge.

Access to detention centres for monitoring and documenting the treatment of detainees continued to be severely restricted.

Torture and other ill-treatment

Torture took place in local police stations, Maikelawi federal police station, federal and regional prisons and military camps.

Torture methods reported included: beating with sticks, rubber batons, gun butts and other objects; burning; tying in stress positions; electric shocks; and forced prolonged physical exercise. Some detention conditions amounted to torture, including detaining people underground without light, shackled and in prolonged solitary confinement.

Torture typically took place in the early stages of detention, in conjunction with the interrogation of the detainee. Torture was used to force detainees to confess, to sign incriminating evidence and to incriminate others. Those subjected to torture included prisoners of conscience, who were arrested for their perceived or actual expression of dissent.

Defendants in several trials complained in court that they were tortured or otherwise ill-treated in detention. The courts failed to order investigations into the complaints.

In several cases, prisoners of conscience were denied access to adequate medical care.

Oromia region

Ethnic Oromos continued to suffer many violations of human rights in efforts to suppress potential dissent in the region.

Large numbers of Oromo people continued to be arrested or remained in detention after arrests in previous years, based on their peaceful expression of dissent, or in numerous cases, based only on their suspected opposition to the government. Arrests were arbitrary, often made pre-emptively and without evidence of a crime. Many were detained without charge or trial, and large numbers were detained in unofficial places of detention, particularly in military camps throughout the region. There was no accountability for enforced disappearances or extrajudicial executions during 2014 or in previous years.

In the aftermath of the “Master Plan” protests, increased levels of arrests of actual or suspected dissenters continued. Large numbers of arrests were reported, including several hundred in early October in Hurumu and Yayu Woredas districts in Illubabor province, of high-school students, farmers and other residents.

There were further reports of arrests of students asking about the fate of their classmates arrested during the “Master Plan” protests, demanding their release and justice for those killed, including 27 reported to have been arrested in Wallega University in late November.

Refugees and asylum-seekers

Forcible returns

Ethiopian government agents were active in many countries, some of which cooperated with the Ethiopian authorities in forcibly returning people wanted by the government.

In January, two representatives of the rebel Ogaden National Liberation Front were abducted and forcibly returned to Ethiopia from Nairobi, Kenya. They were in Nairobi to participate in further peace talks between the group and the government.

On 23 June, UK national Andargachew Tsige, Secretary General of the outlawed Ginbot 7 movement, was rendered from Yemen to Ethiopia. On 8 July, a broadcast was aired on state-run ETV showing Tsige looking haggard and exhausted. By the end of the year, he was still detained incommunicado at an undisclosed location, with no access to lawyers or family. The UK government continued to be denied consular access, except for two meetings with the Ambassador, to one of which Andargachew Tsige was brought hooded, and they were not permitted to talk privately.

In March, former Gambella regional governor Okello Akway, who has Norwegian citizenship, was forcibly returned to Ethiopia from South Sudan. In June, he was charged with terrorism offences along with several other people, in connection with Gambella opposition movements in exile.

Source: https://www.amnesty.org/

ምርጫ ለኢትዮጵያ ወታደርና ፓሊስ: – ለህወሓት ባርነት ወይስ ለኢትዮጵያ ነፃነት

February 26, 2015 | Filed underG7 Editorial,Slider Post | Posted by admin

የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ለውትድርና ከፍተኛ ክብር አለው። ውትድርና ከሙያና ሥራ በላይ የነፃነትና የክብር መገለጫ፤ ሀገርን ከባዕድ ወረራ መከላከያ ጋሻ ነው ብሎ ያምናል። የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ህግና ሥርዓት አክባሪ በመሆኑ ለፓሊስም ከፍተኛ አክብሮት አለው። የፓሊስ ሥራ ወንጀልን መከላከልና ወንጀለኞችን ወደ ፍርድ ማቅረብ መሆኑ በኢትዮጵያ ባህል የተከበረ ቦታና እውቅና አለው።
በህወሓት የአገዛዝ ዘመን ግን ይህ እየተቀየረ ነው። የህወሓት አዛዦች እየመሩት ያለው የኢትዮጵያ ጦር ሠራዊት ሀገርን ከባዕድ ጠላት ከመከላከል ጋር ምንም ዝምድና በሌላቸው ሁለት አበይት ተግባራት ላይ ተጠምዷል። በህወሓት አዛዦች የሚመራው ሠራዊት ዋነኛ ተግባር ለሰብዓዊ መብቶቻቸው መከበር እና ለፍትህ መስፈን የሚታገሉ ዜጎችን ማጥቃት ሆኗል። የጦሩ ሁለተኛው አቢይ ተግባር ደግሞ ለአዛዦች የግል ጥቅም ማካበቻ ገቢዎችን በሚያስገኙ ሥራ ላይ መሠማራት ነው።
የኢትዮጵያ የመከላከያ ሠራዊት ኢትዮጵያዊያንን ማጥቂያ ሠራዊት መሆኑ ሲቪሉን ሕዝብ ብቻ ሳይሆን የሠራዊቱንም አባላትን ጭምር ለህሊና ወቀሳ የዳረገ ጉዳይ ነው። ሆኖም ግን ይህ በህሊና ወቀሳ ብቻ ሊታለፍ የማይችል ወንጀል ነው። ሠራዊቱ በህወሓት እየታዘዘ የሚዘምተው በገዛ ራሱ ልጆች፣ እህቶች፣ ወንድሞችና ወላጆች፤ በገዛ ራሱ ጥቅሞች እና በገዛ ራሱ ላይ መሆኑ መገንዘብ ይኖርበታል። በገዛ ራሱ ጥቅሞች ላይ የሚዘምት አንድም ህሊና የሌለው አሊያም ነፃነት የተነፈገው ሰው ብቻ ነው። በሌላ በኩል ደግሞ ሠራዊቱ እየተራበና እየታረዘ አለቆቹ የታላላቅ ህንፃዎች ባለቤቶች፣ ባለፋብሪካዎች፣ የባንክና የኢንሹራንስ ኩባንያዎች ባለአክሲኖች የሚሆኑበት ሥርዓት ከዳር ሆኖ የሚመለከት መሆኑ የሚገርም ነው። ሠራዊቱ ቤተሰቦቹን መመገብ አቅቶት እያለ የአዛዦቹ ልጆች ለሽርሽር ዓለምን ይዞራሉ። እንዴት ነው ሠራዊቱ እየደኸየና እየሞተ አዛዦቹ እየከበሩ የሚሄዱት？ ይህ አዋራጅ ሁኔታ እንዲያበቃ መታገል የሠራዊቱ ግንባር ቀደም ኃላፊነት ነው። ሠራዊቱ ወይ ባርነትን አሜን ብሎ መቀበል አለበት አለበዚያም እሱም እንደነሱ ሰው መሆኑን ማሳየት መቻል አለበት። በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ የህወሓት አገዛዝ ወድቆ የሕዝብ ይሁንታ ያገኘ መንግሥት መመሥረቱ በከፍተኛ ሁኔታ ከሚጠቅማቸው የኅብረተብ ክፍሎች ግንባር ቀደሙ የመከላከያ ሠራዊት አባላት ናቸው። በዚህም ምክንያት የሠራዊቱ አባላት ለሥርዓቱ መውደቅ በግልጽም በስውርም መታገል የዜግነት ብቻ ሳይሆን አዕምሮ ያለው ሰው ሆነው በመፈጠራቸው የተቀበሉት ግዴታ ነው።
ፓሊስን በተመለከተም ሁኔታው ተመሳሳይ ነው። ህወሓት የኢትዮጵያን ሕዝብ አፍኖ ለመግዛት የቻለው በዋኛነት የፓሊስን ኃይል ለአፈናው ተግባር የሚጠቀም በመሆኑ ነው። የተቃውሞ ድምጾች በተሰሙ ቁጥር የኢትዮጵያ ፓሊስ በወገኖቹ ላይ የሚያወርደው ዱላ የሚዘገንን ሆኗል። ሰላማዊ ሰልፈኞችን በጥይት መግደልና ማቁሰል፤ አረጋዊያንን፣ ሴቶችንና ሕፃናትን መግደል፣ ማቁሰል፣ መደብደብ በዚህ ተግባር የተሠማሩ ፓሊሶችን በቡድንም በግልም በህግ የሚያስጠይቅ ከባድ ወንጀል ነው። በህወሃት እየተመራ ያለው የኢትዮጵያ ፓሊስ ተግባራት ተበዳዮችን ብቻ ሳይሆን ራሱ ፓሊስንም ጭምር አንገት የሚያስደፋ ተግባር ነው። ለመሆኑ አንድ ተራ የኢትዮጵያ ፓሊስ ባልደረባ ከህወሓት አገዛዝ ምን ተጠቀመ？ መልሱ “ምንም” የሚል ነው። ይልቁንስ በህወሓት የአገዛዝ ዘመን ፓሊስ የተናቀና የተዋረደ ሥራ ሆነ። በህወሓት አገዛዝ ፓሊስ እንደሰለጠነ አዳኝ ውሻ “ያዝ” ሲሉት የሚነክስ፣ የሚያደማ፣ የሚቦጭቅ ሆኗል። ይህ ለፓሊስ፣ ወንጀልም ውርደትም ነው። በህወሓት አገዛዝ መገርሰስ እና በምትኩ የህግ የበላይነት የሰፈነበት ሥርዓት መስፈን ፓሊስ ከሁሉ በላይ ተጠቃሚ ነው፤ ሰብዓዊ ክብሩን ያረጋግጥለታልና።
ዛሬ በኢትዮጵያችን ውስጥ የታዘዙትን የሚፈጽሙ የጦርና የፓሊስ ሠራዊት አባላት ስላሉ ነው የህወሓት ሹማምንት ልባቸው ያበጠው። ለማስረጃ ያህል ሰሞኑን የህወሓቱ ሹም አባይ ፀሐዬ የአዲስ አበባ ዙሪያ ገበሬዎች በግዴታ መነሳታቸው የሚቃወሙትን ዜጎችን ሁሉ ”ልክ እናስገባቸዋለን” ብሎ በሸንጎ የዛተው የታዘዘውን የሚፈጽም የጦርና የፓሊስ ሠራዊት መኖሩን ተማምኖ ነው። እስከ መቼ የኢትዮጵያ ጦር ሠራዊትና ፓሊስ ሕዝብን ማስፈራሪያ መሣሪያ ይሆናል？
አርበኞች ግንቦት 7： የአንድነትና ዲሞክራሲ ንቅናቄ የኢትዮጵያ የመከላከያና የፓሊስ ሠራዊት አባላት ለራሳቸው እና ለወገናቸው የሚበጀው ሥርዓት የቱ እንደሆነ ያውቃሉ ብሎ ያምናል። በዚህም ምክንያት ስብዕናቸውን እያዋረደ እና እያደኸያቸው ያለውን የህወሓት አገዛዝን ከኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ጋር በመሆን ይፋለሙታል ብሎ ያምናል። ይህ ውሳኔ ግን ሠራዊቱ በጅምላ ሳይሆን እያንዳንዱ የሠራዊቱ አባል በግሉ የሚወስደው ውሳኔ እንደሆነ አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 ይገነዘባል።
በዚህም መሠረት ተደጋጋሚ ጥሪ እየተደረገለት፤ ጥሪውንም እየሰማ ከህወሓት ጋር ወግኖ ሕዝብን መውጋት የቀጠለ የሠራዊቱ አባል ላደረሰው ጥፋት በግል መጠየቁ የማይቀር መሆኑ ሊገነዘብ ይገባል። በእያንዳንዳንዱ የጦርና ፓሊስ ሠራዊት ባልደረባ ፊት የቀረበው ምርጫ “ለህወሓት ባርነት ታድራለህ ወይስ ራስህንና ሀገርን ነፃ ታወጣለህ” የሚል ነው።
ራስህንና ሀገርህን ነፃ ለማውጣት የመረጥክ የሠራዊቱና የፓሊስ ባልደረባ አሁኑኑ ሕዝባዊ ትግሉን ተቀላቀል። እስከዛሬ የበደልከውን ሕዝብ ለመካስ ምቹ ሁኔታ አለህ። በግልጽ የነፃነት ኃይሎችን እንድትቀላቀል፤ አሊያም አለህበት ሆነህ በውስጥ አርበኝነት እንድትደራጅና ተግባራዊ ሥራ እንድትጀምር መንገዱ ተመቻችቶልሃል።
ድል ለኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ！！！