December 26, 2009
Ethiopian Freedom Journey: From Unitary through Federation and Liberation to Political Union
Ethiopian Freedom Journey: From Unitary through Federation and Liberation to Political Union
Fayyis Oromia
Ethiopia (Cushland) with its “glorious” history of more than 5,000 years is now in its deep political crises. Its futurity seems to be uncertain. Its people of different nations and nationalities are suffering from the sequel of both economical and political crises. The present incumbent regime is on taking different measures out of desperation. It marginalizes and persecutes specially the biggest nation of the region, Oromo nation; it oppresses and tyrannizes almost all citizens and nationalities, who do demand and struggle for their individual and collective freedom. All the hitherto regimes in the region called Ethiopia used to rule with force by suppressing any dissent voice at gun point. It seems the current regime is the worst and the fascist one, which the empire ever had.
Now almost all pro-freedom and pro-democracy forces in the empire are trying to get rid of this fascist regime. What is lacking above all is the appropriate cooperation and coordination of the opposition groups (both “peaceful” and armed groups) to bring together their resources and use them effectively and efficiently against the tyrants. The main hindrance for such cooperation is the lack of a common purpose and common view they need to have for the freedom journey. To my understanding till now, only AFD and G-7 seem to comprehend the route of the journey to freedom and democracy. Both of them put the journey to be accomplished in two phases: first the fight for freedom from Weyane’ fascists, and then secondly to forge the basic essential democratic institutions necessary to realize democracy in which all parties and their programs can be judged by public verdict.
Here, I will try to help in making the freedom journey clear and plausible for all the stakeholders, who want to yet consolidate the necessary only ONE and all inclusive alliance against the fascists and their ethnic-apartheid. Leaving the hitherto move of all Cush nations during their last political evolution for historians, I would like to concentrate only on the recent past political conditions, on the present status quo and on the future possibilities. My choice of this topic now is inspired by the currently published collection of articles on the website Gadaa.com under the title: ‘The Bergen Meeting Revisited‘, just to re-stimulate a political discourse among the Oromo polity and with Ethiopian politicians to further “explore a new political alternative for Oromo Ethiopians”. The collection can be read under: http://www.cmi.no/publications/file/336 ... -oromo.pdf
In the article written by Obbo Daawud Ibsaa in that collection, the following assertion of him attracted my attention:
“… The new World Order has made sovereignty and territorial integrity less absolute. We saw nations determining their affair and forming new states. The right to self-determination, which used to apply only to countries under colonial rule, is now recognized as a universal right of all nations and peoples. Consequently the map of the world is being redrawn. On the contrary, with the formation of unions like the EU, state sovereignty has become more symbolic than real. Countries joining such Unions voluntarily sign treaties that undermine their sovereignty to avail their people of social and economic benefits from a large pie. We are encouraged by both trends. The increased recognition of the right of nations to self-determination gives us hope that if our genuine appeal for peace is rejected and met with violence rather than being reciprocated, as has been many times in the past, we have the right and the will to decide our fate. The trend towards cooperation is also encouraging to us because it opens new doors and creates more opportunities for our people to work with others to build a more prosperous, harmonious, stable and peaceful region…”
I think taking these two trends in to consideration, we all nations in the region called Ethiopia or Horn or Cushland should try to have one common cause and common route of journey towards the END goal of the common cause. I personally can drive from the above assertion that the common cause is to build a more prosperous, harmonious, stable and peaceful region. The feasible route to this common cause is moving from the status quo (from the unitary and very oppressive “revolutionary centralism” of Weyane), first to a true Kilil federation in which all nations in the region can have their genuine autonomy or self-administration, then secondly to achieve the necessary INDEPENDENCE of each nation to give their public verdict per referendum in a sense of self-determination so that all nations will consciously decide for the Union of Liberated Nations of the region to realize the beneficial common vision mentioned above.
In short, this will be a move from the hitherto unitary of the empire through self-administarion of nations (a kilil federation) and through self-determination of nations (a national liberation) to the END, i.e to a Union of Liberated Nations. When we look at the East African Community (EAC) member states (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda) struggling to forge a custom union, a common market and a monetary union to forge at the end a political union for common benefit, then we can only ask ourselves logically that, why should we not use the advantage of the already present custom union, common market and monetary union in the region called Ethiopia just to build a similar and optimal political union of our region on the grave of the enslaving hitherto political Ethiopian empire system.
Nowadays, even the “multi-national” parties like G-7 and UDJ have started to stress the importance of fighting first for freedom from Weyane fascism and tyranny as a precondition for the lasting multi-national democracy. The only thing such parties still need to digest is the very importance of national freedom parallel to the citizens’ individual freedom they do seem to fight for. If they do this, then they are almost on the same track and with the similar wave length to the opinion of Obbo Daawud, which I quoted above, i.e there will be no discord between the pro-democracy “multi-national” parties like G-7 and the national freedom fighters like OLF. I also don’t see any reason why other factions of OLF and other Oromo liberation movements should oppose such a move of Obbo Daawud’s group. This will be the very good base for building the very essential all inclusive TIBIBIR (alliance) against fascist Weyane. Then, it will not be difficult to coordinate overtly or covertly the opposition democratic federalists like MEDREK at home with such new TIBIBIR in Diaspora and with those moving underground to fight against the fascist regime in Ethiopia.
So I would like to recommend that all pro-freedom and pro-democracy forces do agree on the political route, i.e from the hitherto imperial unitary through a true federation and through a national liberation to a union of liberated nations as described above. This innovative move can even attract in the future nations like Eritrea, Djibouti, Somaliland, Puntland and Somalia to join the regional union. Let’s have this common vision and common route as we now start a new European year, and I wish good luck and victory for all of us in this journey for our national freedom, regional union and multi-national democracy in our common home, the Horn.
Happy new year!
Galatoomaa!
Fayyis Oromia
Ethiopia (Cushland) with its “glorious” history of more than 5,000 years is now in its deep political crises. Its futurity seems to be uncertain. Its people of different nations and nationalities are suffering from the sequel of both economical and political crises. The present incumbent regime is on taking different measures out of desperation. It marginalizes and persecutes specially the biggest nation of the region, Oromo nation; it oppresses and tyrannizes almost all citizens and nationalities, who do demand and struggle for their individual and collective freedom. All the hitherto regimes in the region called Ethiopia used to rule with force by suppressing any dissent voice at gun point. It seems the current regime is the worst and the fascist one, which the empire ever had.Now almost all pro-freedom and pro-democracy forces in the empire are trying to get rid of this fascist regime. What is lacking above all is the appropriate cooperation and coordination of the opposition groups (both “peaceful” and armed groups) to bring together their resources and use them effectively and efficiently against the tyrants. The main hindrance for such cooperation is the lack of a common purpose and common view they need to have for the freedom journey. To my understanding till now, only AFD and G-7 seem to comprehend the route of the journey to freedom and democracy. Both of them put the journey to be accomplished in two phases: first the fight for freedom from Weyane’ fascists, and then secondly to forge the basic essential democratic institutions necessary to realize democracy in which all parties and their programs can be judged by public verdict.
Here, I will try to help in making the freedom journey clear and plausible for all the stakeholders, who want to yet consolidate the necessary only ONE and all inclusive alliance against the fascists and their ethnic-apartheid. Leaving the hitherto move of all Cush nations during their last political evolution for historians, I would like to concentrate only on the recent past political conditions, on the present status quo and on the future possibilities. My choice of this topic now is inspired by the currently published collection of articles on the website Gadaa.com under the title: ‘The Bergen Meeting Revisited‘, just to re-stimulate a political discourse among the Oromo polity and with Ethiopian politicians to further “explore a new political alternative for Oromo Ethiopians”. The collection can be read under: http://www.cmi.no/
In the article written by Obbo Daawud Ibsaa in that collection, the following assertion of him attracted my attention:
“… The new World Order has made sovereignty and territorial integrity less absolute. We saw nations determining their affair and forming new states. The right to self-determination, which used to apply only to countries under colonial rule, is now recognized as a universal right of all nations and peoples. Consequently the map of the world is being redrawn. On the contrary, with the formation of unions like the EU, state sovereignty has become more symbolic than real. Countries joining such Unions voluntarily sign treaties that undermine their sovereignty to avail their people of social and economic benefits from a large pie. We are encouraged by both trends. The increased recognition of the right of nations to self-determination gives us hope that if our genuine appeal for peace is rejected and met with violence rather than being reciprocated, as has been many times in the past, we have the right and the will to decide our fate. The trend towards cooperation is also encouraging to us because it opens new doors and creates more opportunities for our people to work with others to build a more prosperous, harmonious, stable and peaceful region…”
I think taking these two trends in to consideration, we all nations in the region called Ethiopia or Horn or Cushland should try to have one common cause and common route of journey towards the END goal of the common cause. I personally can drive from the above assertion that the common cause is to build a more prosperous, harmonious, stable and peaceful region. The feasible route to this common cause is moving from the status quo (from the unitary and very oppressive “revolutionary centralism” of Weyane), first to a true Kilil federation in which all nations in the region can have their genuine autonomy or self-administration, then secondly to achieve the necessary INDEPENDENCE of each nation to give their public verdict per referendum in a sense of self-determination so that all nations will consciously decide for the Union of Liberated Nations of the region to realize the beneficial common vision mentioned above.
In short, this will be a move from the hitherto unitary of the empire through self-administarion of nations (a kilil federation) and through self-determination of nations (a national liberation) to the END, i.e to a Union of Liberated Nations. When we look at the East African Community (EAC) member states (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda) struggling to forge a custom union, a common market and a monetary union to forge at the end a political union for common benefit, then we can only ask ourselves logically that, why should we not use the advantage of the already present custom union, common market and monetary union in the region called Ethiopia just to build a similar and optimal political union of our region on the grave of the enslaving hitherto political Ethiopian empire system.
Nowadays, even the “multi-national” parties like G-7 and UDJ have started to stress the importance of fighting first for freedom from Weyane fascism and tyranny as a precondition for the lasting multi-national democracy. The only thing such parties still need to digest is the very importance of national freedom parallel to the citizens’ individual freedom they do seem to fight for. If they do this, then they are almost on the same track and with the similar wave length to the opinion of Obbo Daawud, which I quoted above, i.e there will be no discord between the pro-democracy “multi-national” parties like G-7 and the national freedom fighters like OLF. I also don’t see any reason why other factions of OLF and other Oromo liberation movements should oppose such a move of Obbo Daawud’s group. This will be the very good base for building the very essential all inclusive TIBIBIR (alliance) against fascist Weyane. Then, it will not be difficult to coordinate overtly or covertly the opposition democratic federalists like MEDREK at home with such new TIBIBIR in Diaspora and with those moving underground to fight against the fascist regime in Ethiopia.
So I would like to recommend that all pro-freedom and pro-democracy forces do agree on the political route, i.e from the hitherto imperial unitary through a true federation and through a national liberation to a union of liberated nations as described above. This innovative move can even attract in the future nations like Eritrea, Djibouti, Somaliland, Puntland and Somalia to join the regional union. Let’s have this common vision and common route as we now start a new European year, and I wish good luck and victory for all of us in this journey for our national freedom, regional union and multi-national democracy in our common home, the Horn.
Happy new year!
Galatoomaa!
December 22, 2009
Welcome to Yemen - or Maybe Not (HRW Report on Refugees in Yemen)
For the tens of thousands of African refugees fleeing to Yemen each year, the journey across the Gulf of Aden can be heartbreakingly difficult and dangerous - and then things often only get worse. As the overcrowded boats approach shore, smugglers sometimes force passengers in the water, and some drown. Many who survive undergo a final indignity at the hands of Yemen's two-tier immigration system.
The vast majority of African refugees fleeing to Yemen come from Somalia and Ethiopia. To its credit, Yemen welcomes Somalis fleeing the decades of conflict in their country. But Ethiopians and others risk being arrested and illegally forced to return home, possibly to face persecution. "We are escaping from danger in our country," an Ethiopian refugee told Human Rights Watch. "We are the same as other refugees, and yet we are not treated that way."
A new report from Human Rights Watch documents the harsh treatment of refugees traveling to Yemen and calls on the Yemeni government to stop systematically arresting Ethiopian asylum seekers and forcibly returning them home. The 53-page report also calls on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to put more pressure on the Yemeni government to meet its obligations toward all asylum seekers and refugees.
"The Yemeni government's mistreatment of Ethiopian asylum seekers is bad enough," said Gerry Simpson, refugee researcher and advocate at Human Rights Watch. "What makes it so much worse is that many of the victims have been beaten or even seen their loved ones killed during the crossing. When they go to Yemen they are traumatized and need help, not more abuse."
More than 100,000 people have arrived by boat along Yemen's coast during the past two years. Most are fleeing war or persecution at home or are in search of work. Smugglers take them from either the Somali port city of Bosasso or the town of Obock in Djibouti. The smugglers, especially those operating out of Bosasso, often treat their passengers with astonishing brutality. The report documents cases of passengers being beaten and raped. Some were thrown overboard miles from shore.
Once the vessels sail within sight of the Yemeni coast, it is not uncommon for the smugglers to force their passengers into the water. "As the boat came close to Yemen they started beating the people to get them off the boat," a Somali man told Human Rights Watch. "[The smuggler] had said everyone should go, but the people did not go because they are afraid. They caught my little girl and dropped her into the sea. She was 3 years old. I fought with the man, and he hit me with a stick and I lost some of my teeth. After that they started pushing all of us into the sea. They dropped all of my children into the sea - five of them. The 3-year-old girl died."
If they make it to land, non-Somalis who are caught by security forces typically have no meaningful opportunity to claim asylum. Most often, they are imprisoned and put on a fast track toward deportation. It is not known how many asylum seekers have been arrested and deported in this way. Neither UNHCR nor anyone else has regular access to people in immigration detention. Ethiopian embassy officials in the Yemeni capital, San'a, interview people awaiting deportation to Ethiopia, and there are disturbing indications that those officials have coerced asylum seekers into agreeing to return home.
The Ethiopian asylum seekers who manage to negotiate the obstacles in their path and reach a UNHCR office without being arrested are able to apply for refugee status. If UNHCR recognizes them as refugees the government will not arrest and deport them. But they still face discriminatory government policies that relegate them to a kind of second-tier refugee status. And their problems are not over.
The Yemeni government does not issue official identification documents to non-Somali refugees. That bars them from claiming rights and services to which they should be entitled. Ethiopian refugees also suffer harassment and violence, fueled in part by the perception that the government will not protect them. In many cases, Yemeni police officers have refused to investigate or arrest Yemenis responsible for serious crimes against Ethiopian refugees. Human Rights Watch documented numerous cases of assault, sexual harassment, and murder of Ethiopian refugees that went unpunished.
The Human Rights Watch report acknowledges that UNHCR has a difficult job in Yemen, and notes that there are serious practical limits to its ability to influence Yemeni government policy. Still, the report concludes, the refugee agency has not done enough to pressure Yemeni authorities to protect the rights of non-Somali refugees and asylum seekers.
Human Rights WatchDecember 21, 2009
Ecological Crimes in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia (Appeal Letter of UOSE/TBOA to UN Secretary General Ban K-Moon)
UNION OF OROMO STUDENTS IN EUROPE
Dambruggestraat 109, 2060 Antwerp, Belgium
Tel: 
+32(0)32972427
E-mail: uosetboa@gmail.com
His Excellency Mr. Ban K-Moon
Secretary-General
United Nations Office of the Secretary General
885 Second Avenue New York, NY 10017
Date: 14 Dec 2009
Subject: Ecological Crimes in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia
“The selection of Prime Minster Meles Zenawi to lead the African delegates in Copenhagen for Global conference on climate change should not mask the despotic nature of Meles and his regime.”
Dear Secretary General,
This letter is written on behalf of the Union of Oromo Students in Europe (UOSE) to bring to your attention to the unprecedented damage and destruction of environment being carried out in Oromiya, Ethiopia. Union of Oromo Students in Europe, based in Germany as of 1974 is a multi disciplinary and non-profit organization established to promote the struggle of Oromo nation’s towards the realization of self determination in Ethiopia. I believe environmental destruction in Oromiya is not only the concern of Oromo but also the human nature as a whole, as far as the effect of environment is universal.
The Oromo make up a significant portion of the population occupying the Horn of Africa. They are the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia. Oromiya is rich in nature, strategically important (as a seat of African Union and UNECA) and most populous regional state in Ethiopia. It forms the backbone of the Ethiopian economy and produces more than 65 percent of Ethiopian government revenues, yet its share of the budget allocation is the smallest in comparison to the size of its population. Its people are currently facing a crippling famine and their resources are facing arbitrary destruction. The Oromo people have no voice in the political affairs of their own state which is totally controlled by the ruling Tigrean People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and the fake ethnic-based organizations it has formed ‘Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Forces’ (EPRDF). According to the Ex-Ethiopian President and other sources, currently there are more than 30,000 Oromo political prisoners without any charge.
The executive committee of UOSE is interested in informing your Excellency about the intentional, repeated and destructive policies of the ruling Tigrean peoples Liberation Front and their disreputable cohorts. Mr Zenawi has no respect for fundamental human rights and has one of the worst environmental records in the history of Ethiopia. In the Oromia region, Mr Zenawi is committing the worst environmental crimes by dumping toxic industrial waste into the rich, well balanced ecosystem on which the region’s poor livelihood is entirely depends. These actions, your Excellency, are despicable and should be revealed to the international community and condemned in the strongest possible terms.
Emboldened by the silence of international community about its human rights records, the Ethiopian government has repeatedly embarked on the systematic and catastrophic environmental destruction of Oromia and other states in southern Ethiopia. The government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has been pursuing environmentally-unfriendly policies since it seized power in Ethiopia in 1991. With total disregard for the long-term environmental consequences and under the guise of a free market economy, the government has been awarding contracts to investors undertaking unregulated mining and mechanized farming in ecologically sensitive and vulnerable areas. Mr Zenawi’s eco-destructive investment and industrial policy of inequitable, unjust land use has badly affected the Oromia region and made them vulnerable to the slightest change in climate.
Mr Zenawi is thus directly responsible for the following environmental crimes:
* Lake Koka and the Akaki River were poisoned to the level of claiming human life and damaging the ecosystem. A scientist from the University of Durham, U.K., has analysed water sample from Lake Koka, and determined that the lake is severely polluted with “… some of the most toxic molecules known to man.”
* Lake Hara Maya was dried up by the same denominator set by Mr. Meles
* There are ample evidences that the fires were deliberately set by squads of the Tigrean regime with the wicked pretext that the forest is an obstacle to the efficiency of its force against guerrilla fighters of Oromo liberation struggle.
* A poorly planned and unsustainable mining venture plus an environmentally-unfriendly flower industry in the Oromia region.
* In Laga Dambi primary gold exploitation by Medroc Ethiopia Company, the utilisation of Potassium cyanide by the company to dissociate the primary gold from its mother rock severely affected down the stream the life of the local people by creating toxic chemical complex.
Under Prime Minister Zenawi’s regime, beyond the significant massacre, extra-judicial killings, disappearances, illegal arrests, confiscation of property and detention for a long period and torture; Ethiopia, especially the Oromia region is facing an ecological catastrophe: deforestation, recurrent drought, and desertification. In the light of the above mentioned facts, UNDP and other environmental organizations have reported on the alarming state of ecological degradation in Ethiopia. After almost two decades of Zenawi’s rule, in 2009 over ten million Ethiopians are exposed to hunger and malnutrition.
We are living in a truly peculiar era when the promotion of harmony between societies and forging a similar relationship between man and nature has become glaringly intertwined. Neither of these two interlocking challenges can any longer be addressed separately. And they should not. Prime Minister Zenawi’s regime has failed to serve as an agency for addressing these challenges. The regimes’ highest priority is to indefinitely remaining in power by any means possible. His regime tries to achieve this priority by engaging in the directly opposite practice of exacerbating an inter-communal scramble over ever diminishing resources, which occasionally leads to violence.
We anticipate a positive outcome from COP15 UN Climate Change Conference on which brilliant leaders and representatives of nations around the world, international organizations, and prominent individuals will assemble on the summit. We believe the global win-win consensus will be reached on to achieve the main objective of making this planet a better place for the us to live in by reducing green house gas emissions and averting the immense implications that climate change impacts.
But, Union of Oromo Students in Europe is in opposition to the unjust representation of the African continent by Mr Zenawi at the Climate Summit. He has no moral high ground to represent the continent. We believe that the choice of Mr Zenawi as African negotiating team leader is disgusting and a joke against the serious problem of Africa. The representation is wrong, ill-informed and morally repugnant, since his environmental unfriendly policies are the cause of the immeasurable environmental degradation taking place in Ethiopia in general and at a politically motivated faster rate in the Oromia region.
This dictator from Addis Ababa has no respect for basic and fundamental human rights and has one of the worst environmental records in the history of Ethiopia; accordingly he has no moral authority to stand behind a podium at the conference as a champion of climate change for the people of Africa. His representation will encourage dictatorship; kill environmental and human right championship.
Accordingly we appeal that:
1) UN led investigation team be formed and discover the responsible actors for the environmental destruction in Ethiopia in general and Oromiya in particular
2) Meles be denied of the COP 15 podium
3) All political prisoners be freed from years of inhuman detention camps and prisons
4) Unless otherwise a national reconciliation and fair state institution are installed, the coming Ethiopian election be regarded null and void
5) Urge the United Nations, United States, the World Bank, the International Monitory Fund, the European Union, the United Kingdom and others to stop supporting Mr. Zenawi dictatorial regime. We further urge you to petition the International Criminal Court to initiate charges against Mr. Zenawi and his regime for genocide, Crimes against humanity and Environmental destruction
6) In case it happens, any supports given to Ethiopia should pass through the strict possible scrutiny.
Thank you very much in advance for your attention and action.
With Kindest regards
Hunde Dhugassa,
President, Union of Oromo Students in Europe
(LL.M Fellow, Faculty of Law, Gent University
CC:
His Excellency Barack Obama
President of United States of America
The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
NW Washington, DC 20500
His Excellency José Manuel Barroso
President, the European commission
1049 Brussels, Belgium
His Excellency Wen Jiabao
Premier of People’s Republic of China
C/O Øregårds Allé 25, 2900 Hellerup
Copenhagen, Denmark
His Excellency Dmitry Medvedev
President of the Russian Federation
C/O Address: Kristianiagade
5, 2100 Copenhagen O, Denmark
His Excellency Prime Minister Mr Gordon Brown
10 Downing Street, SW1A 2AA London England
His Excellency Nicolas Sarcozy
President of the French Republic
C/O Kongens Nytorv 4 1050 Copenhague K Denmark
His Excellency Lars Løkke Rasmussen
Prime Minister of Denmark
Christiansborg
Prins Jørgens Gård 11
1218 Copenhagen K, Denmark
His Excellency Yvo de Boer
Executive Secretary of UNFCCC
Haus Carstanjen Martin-Luther-King-Strasse 8 53175 Bonn Germany
Madam Chancellor, Angela Merkel
Chancellor of Germany
C/O Stockholmsgade 57
2100 København Ø Denmark
Madam Secretary, Hilary Clinton
U.S. Department of State 2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520
His Excellency Jacob Zuma
President of South Africa
Union Buildings
Private Bag X1000,
Pretoria,
0001,
South Africa
His Excellency John E. A. Mills
President of Ghana
Office of the President
Osu Christiansborg
Ghana
Robert B. Zoellick
President, World Bank
1818 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20433
His Excellency Dr. Jean Ping
Chairman, the African Union Commission
African Union Headquarters
P.O. Box 3243
Roosevelt Street, W21K19
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Donald Kaberuka
President, African Development Bank
15 Avenue Du Ghana
P.O.Box 323-1002
Dr. Jacques Diouf
Director –General, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Viale Delle Termi Di Caracalla
00153 Rome, Italy
Honorable President William J. Clinton
Clinton Global Initiative
1301 Avenue of the Americas, 37th Floor
New York, NY 10019-6022, USA
Dr. Rajiv Shah
Administrator
U.S. Agency for International Development
Ronald Regan Building
Washington, DC 20523-1000
Karel De Gucht
European Commissioner for development and humanitarian aid
1049 Brussels, Belgium
Stavros Dimas
European Commissioner of the Environment
1049 Brussels, Belgium
Carter Roberts
President and CEO, World Wildlife Fund
1250 Twenty-Fourth Street, N.W.
P.O. Box 97180
Washington, DC 20090-7180
December 19, 2009
Oromo & Ogaden Communities Protest Against Zenawi in Copenhagen
| Oromo & Ogaden Communities Protest Against Zenawi in Copenhagen | for everyone |
Oromo & Ogaden Communities Protest Against Zenawi in Copenhagen
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK
DECEMBER 17 2009
Protestors from Europe’s Oromo & Ogaden Communities demonstrate outside the UN climate change conference on December 17, 2009 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The group were demonstrating against Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi participating in the COP15 United Nations Climate Change Conference, claiming that he has one of the worst environmental records in the history of Ethiopia and that he has no respect for fundamental human rights.
The Union of Oromo Students in Europe (UOSE), the oldest Oromo students organization, was the organizer for the December 17, 2009 peaceful protest against Mr. Zenawi’s presence at the Copenhagen Summit. Mr. Zenawi has used the Summit, not to represent the interests of Africa, but to buy legitmacy for his corrupt and illegal government. For Mr. Zenawi, his mere presence at the Copenhagen Summit is a great success since he’s desperately in need of legitmacy; since his arrival in Europe earlier this week, he has created more chaos and has betrayed other African and developing world’s negotiators at the Summit.
For more news and pictures, check back your OromiaTimes.
Members of the Europian Ogaden and Oromo Community demonstrate againist Meles Zenawi
Members of the Europian Ogaden Community demonstrate againist Meles Zenawi
Friday 18 December 2009
Members of the Danish Ogaden community demonstrate outside the Bella Center, the venue of the U.N. Climate Conference in Copenhagen Thursday Dec. 18, 2009/ Getty Images
Many Afican countries seek financial compensation for the continent in order to combat climate change. Recently, some African groups opposed a deal between Meles and European leaders.
Members of the Danish Ogaden community demonstrate outside the Bella Center, the venue of the U.N. Climate Conference in Copenhagen Thursday Dec. 18, 2009/ Getty Images
The Ogaden people are fighting for self-determintion. Extra-judicial killings, rape, disappearances, destruction of livelihood and the displacement of thousands of Ogaden people are the dialy norm in Ogaden.
There is constant fighting between Ethiopian troops and ONLF forces in the Ogaden region. Human rights organizations accuse the Ethiopian soldiers of violating the human rights by harassing the people in the Ogaden region.
December 16, 2009
African Parliamentarians Condemn Ethiopian Climate Proposal
His statement today, while not having any official bearing on the negotiations, undermines the bold positions of African negotiators and ministers represented here (see para 22 in this document http://unfccc.int/files/kyoto_protocol/application/pdf/algeriaafrican111209.pdf) , and threatens the very future of Africa.
The African Group made a formal submission to the UNFCCC on Saturday and that submission is Africa's position.
Prime Minister Meles' position:
* Threatens Africa with catastrophic damage by allowing warming to rise by 2 degrees C globally and therefore by around 3 degrees on the continent of Africa. It risks the lives and livelihoods of literally hundreds of millions of people, including the people of Ethiopia;
* Allocates to the industrialized countries including France atmospheric space worth more than 10 trillion dollars between now and 2050, denying it to developing countries, and threatening Africa's prospects of economic and social development and the alleviation of poverty; and
* Offers a mere @10 billion in financing for all developing countries in fast-start funding.
"The IPCC science is clear - 2 degrees is 3 degrees in Africa - this is death to millions of Africans" said Hon Awudu Mbaya, President of Pan-African Parliamentarians Network on Climate Change
"If Prime Minister Meles wants to sell out the lives and hopes of Africans for a pittance - he is welcome to - but that is not Africa's position" Mithika Mwenda of Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance.
"Every other African country has committed to policy based on the science. That means at least 45% cuts by rich countries by 2020 and it means $400 billion fast-track finance not $10 billion" said Augustine Njamnshi of Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance.
"You cannot say you are proposing a 'solution' to climate change if your solution will see millions of Africans die and if the poor not the polluters keep paying for climate change" said Augustine Njamnshi.
This announcement reeks of "divide and rule" tactics designed to subjugate Africa and undermine good faith negotiations in the United Nations. We call on all Africans and citizens of developed countries to join together to condemn Ethiopia's unilateral position.
President Meles Zenawi must rescind his position or step down as Coordinator of African Heads of State and Governments on Climate Change.
Written by Mohamed Adow
Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance
December 15, 2009
At last, the Minnesota Oromo share their secret
Who knows the Minnesota Oromo? Who knows their dark secret?
Fifteen thousand Oromo live in Minnesota but they blend in almost invisibly, like a stealthy, anonymous population in the state.
Their secret enshrouds them although they are our neighbors, who mix completely within us and who, in the last analysis, are indistinguishable from us.
They are teachers, doctors and lawyers; they run retail shops and corporations; they attend Viking games, relax at coffee shops and stroll at malls. They are sometimes called "Ethiopian immigrants" because they are indeed from Ethiopia. But among friends and family, or if you ask them specifically, they carefully call themselves "Oromo."
Who are the Oromo?
They are the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia, numbering 31 million, and they are the subject of a new report, "Human Rights in Ethiopia: Through the Eyes of the Oromo Diaspora," prepared by The Advocates for Human Rights, based in Minneapolis.
The report describes how the Oromo began immigrating to Minnesota from their homeland 30 years ago, and in the process explains why, despite their mostly successful assimilation, they remain relatively little-known here.
The report dramatically reveals the Oromo's unshareable - until now - secret.
First, though, a warning. This column contains language that represents an awful reality, an affliction that at first may seem distant from us, but is actually as near to us as our neighbors -- that fellow at the football game, the woman at the mall.
State Power
So there is a chance that while reading these words you might all at once realize that this wound is open and burning today in Minnesota, which in turn might draw forth sadness from the deeps and enflame your righteous anger.
A century of history, summarized in the report, provides the context for understanding the Oromo's incognito status in this state. From the days of Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia in the late 19th century, and continuing through the tyrannical regime of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi today, the Oromo have been crushed down by state power.
Their Oromo's low profile in Minnesota reflects a century of focused, systematic, brutal campaigns by Ethiopian rulers to render them impotent and voiceless.
Successive Ethiopian governments for more than a century have defined the Oromo as second-class citizens holding severely limited rights to government representation, education, employment, free speech and property.
These strictures have prompted the Oromo to flee their homeland to a worldwide diaspora that numbers in the tens of thousands or possibly more - with Minnesota hosting probably the largest concentration of Oromo refugees in the world.
Personal Stories
But there is yet another deeper, psychological reason for the Oromo's eerily quiet presence in Minnesota all of these years.
That reason is provided in the new report by story after personal story, such as the three following, chosen at random from scores of similar interviews collected.
These stories amount to a public revelation of the intimate secret of the Minnesota Oromo, the searing shame they've held within themselves for many years.
Their secret is that they have been tortured, or deeply scarred by torture they have witnessed, or suffered in their family or among their friends:
"I was turned upside down. They started beating the bottoms of my feet with a piece of tire. Each time they whipped me they ripped my skin. The brought a bucket full of water and bleach in it. When they stopped beating me they put my face in the bucket. I thought I would die."
And this story:
"The killing of Mustapha created fear in us. They brought him to the city center where everybody could see his body. They nailed him to the ground. They removed his skin and took out his two eyes. They forced people to come and watch. At first I couldn't believe my eyes. I couldn't recognize him. I fainted when I saw him."
And this:
"It is hard for us to talk about this. They put flashlights in the sexual organs of the ladies. There is a woman that they put flashlight batteries in her vagina. She couldn't hold her urine and she used to urinate on herself."
Let me confess, I have some beefs with The Advocate's new report.
The biggest is that its historical sweep dilutes its potential present-day impact.
As horrific as they were, the human rights crimes of earlier Ethiopian dictators are now a part of history.
Meanwhile, the current dictator, now a bloody 18 years in office, urgently requires accountability that a more contemporary report could have provided with greater force.
The report's scope also leads to weakness in specifics. The cursory treatment of a massacre of 426 men of the Anuak tribe of Western Ethiopia, on Dec. 13, 2003, fails to mention the exhaustive evidence that the massacre was part of a government-planned genocide of the tribe.
The scant two-paragraph mention of the most urgent crisis in Ethiopia today, in the Ogaden region, is also troubling. As is the timidity, even the naivete, of calling upon the present Ethiopian government, which long ago showed the world its spots, to "immediately cease" its abominations.
Yet the report fulfills its most important function.
It helped the Oromo of Minnesota reveal their heavy, long-held secret.
The secret that for all these years has kept the Oromo hidden and voiceless, even while living as citizens in the land of the free and the home of the brave.
With help from The Advocates, the Oromo have shown great bravery in revealing their secret.
Will we return that courage by bravely listening?
After that, what will we do?
Source: Minnesota Daily
December 14, 2009
OSA'S Open Letter To 2009 UNITED NATIONS CLIMATE CHANGE CONFERENCE
OPEN LETTER TO 2009 UNITED NATIONS CLIMATE CHANGE CONFERENCE
December 12, 2009
Yvo de Boer
Chief Negotiator
United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009
Host Country Secretariat
Prins Jørgens Gård 11
1218 Copenhagen K, Denmark
Dear Mr. Yvo de Boer:
I am writing this open letter on behalf of the Oromo Studies Association (OSA), a scholarly, multi-disciplinary, nonprofit organization, established to promote studies on and relevant to the Oromo people residing in East Africa, mainly in Ethiopia. The Executive Committee of OSA is following the 2009 UN Climate Change Conference at Copenhagen with a great deal of interest. We believe that this conference is an important milestone in curbing the threats of climate change of the earth, for all its habitats in general, and for human being in particular. However, we are very much disturbed that one of the world’s most despotic dictators, the self proclaimed “prime minister” Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, is taking the central stage in this important conference of this international scale, and reportedly representing African nations.
It is a well documented and established fact that Meles Zenawi has a record of grave human rights violations against all peoples of Ethiopia out side his narrow Tigrean ethnic group. Particularly the massive massacres, arbitrary killings, disappearances, arrests, torture, perpetrated against the Oromos, Anuaks, and Ogadenians is characterized by many humanitarian organizations at a level of genocide.
On environmental issue, Meles Zenawi is responsible for environmental degradation in Ethiopia, much far from being an advocate of climate change. He is part of the environmental problem; he is the last candidate to be part of the solution. To mention few documented cases:
* OSA has written an appeal letter about the pollution of Lake Koka of Oromia regional state, Ethiopia, urging the Ethiopian government to stop polluting the lake and the up stream Awash river, making copy to the UN Secretary General and several other governmental and non governmental organizations to intervene, on May 03, 2009.
* Since no action was taken by our first appeal letter, OSA has written a second follow-up letter on September 29, 2009 and no action was taken by the Meles Zenawi regime.
* Several other organizations such as Al Jazeera TV documentary series, February 2009, Action Professionals Association for the People (APAP), a non-profit, non-partisan nongovernmental organization, a professional research paper of 2003 (Hydrobiologia, Volume 492, Numbers 1-3, February 2003), Voice of America (VOA) Afan Oromo program, have all aired their grave concerns about the severe environmental degradation in Ethiopia in which the Meles Zenawi Regime is directly responsible.
* In 1999/2000 before Mr. Zenawi sent his army to the bloody border war with Eritrea, his security forces started fire to natural forest of Oromia at several places in one day. When the Oromo students get organized to fight the forest fire and made a peaceful demonstration several of them were killed by the Ethiopian security forces. The burning of the Oromian forest by the government was politically motivated since the intention of the regime was to “deny the Oromo Libration Army shelter and food”. Consequently, Oromian forest has been alarmingly destroyed and wild life severely diminished.
* Ethiopia is the poorest country in the world having the highest number of refugees in the world, despite of the abundant natural resources available in that country. Meles Zenawi is the main cause for the disasters in Ethiopia. Therefore, we urge the participants of the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen to include good governance, social justice and regard for human rights as part of the solution to climate change and take extreme care in decision making to help the continent from further catastrophic destabilization of global climate change.
Dear Mr. Yvo de Boer:
Due to the above and other record of Meles Zenawi, we believe that his attendance at this very important and useful conference is already tarnishing the image of the UN, your image, and that of well respected world leaders. The positive results expected from the outcome of the conference will also be compromised. Therefore, we appeal that you and your organization take a note of this situation and take extra care before assigning any responsibility as a solution to this environmental threat and of appropriating any funds to dictator Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia or any of his affiliates in relation to this.
Sincerely,
Haile Hirpa, Ph.D.
OSA President
December 12, 2009
Yvo de Boer
Chief Negotiator
United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009
Host Country Secretariat
Prins Jørgens Gård 11
1218 Copenhagen K, Denmark
Dear Mr. Yvo de Boer:
I am writing this open letter on behalf of the Oromo Studies Association (OSA), a scholarly, multi-disciplinary, nonprofit organization, established to promote studies on and relevant to the Oromo people residing in East Africa, mainly in Ethiopia. The Executive Committee of OSA is following the 2009 UN Climate Change Conference at Copenhagen with a great deal of interest. We believe that this conference is an important milestone in curbing the threats of climate change of the earth, for all its habitats in general, and for human being in particular. However, we are very much disturbed that one of the world’s most despotic dictators, the self proclaimed “prime minister” Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, is taking the central stage in this important conference of this international scale, and reportedly representing African nations.
It is a well documented and established fact that Meles Zenawi has a record of grave human rights violations against all peoples of Ethiopia out side his narrow Tigrean ethnic group. Particularly the massive massacres, arbitrary killings, disappearances, arrests, torture, perpetrated against the Oromos, Anuaks, and Ogadenians is characterized by many humanitarian organizations at a level of genocide.
On environmental issue, Meles Zenawi is responsible for environmental degradation in Ethiopia, much far from being an advocate of climate change. He is part of the environmental problem; he is the last candidate to be part of the solution. To mention few documented cases:
* OSA has written an appeal letter about the pollution of Lake Koka of Oromia regional state, Ethiopia, urging the Ethiopian government to stop polluting the lake and the up stream Awash river, making copy to the UN Secretary General and several other governmental and non governmental organizations to intervene, on May 03, 2009.
* Since no action was taken by our first appeal letter, OSA has written a second follow-up letter on September 29, 2009 and no action was taken by the Meles Zenawi regime.
* Several other organizations such as Al Jazeera TV documentary series, February 2009, Action Professionals Association for the People (APAP), a non-profit, non-partisan nongovernmental organization, a professional research paper of 2003 (Hydrobiologia, Volume 492, Numbers 1-3, February 2003), Voice of America (VOA) Afan Oromo program, have all aired their grave concerns about the severe environmental degradation in Ethiopia in which the Meles Zenawi Regime is directly responsible.
* In 1999/2000 before Mr. Zenawi sent his army to the bloody border war with Eritrea, his security forces started fire to natural forest of Oromia at several places in one day. When the Oromo students get organized to fight the forest fire and made a peaceful demonstration several of them were killed by the Ethiopian security forces. The burning of the Oromian forest by the government was politically motivated since the intention of the regime was to “deny the Oromo Libration Army shelter and food”. Consequently, Oromian forest has been alarmingly destroyed and wild life severely diminished.
* Ethiopia is the poorest country in the world having the highest number of refugees in the world, despite of the abundant natural resources available in that country. Meles Zenawi is the main cause for the disasters in Ethiopia. Therefore, we urge the participants of the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen to include good governance, social justice and regard for human rights as part of the solution to climate change and take extreme care in decision making to help the continent from further catastrophic destabilization of global climate change.
Dear Mr. Yvo de Boer:
Due to the above and other record of Meles Zenawi, we believe that his attendance at this very important and useful conference is already tarnishing the image of the UN, your image, and that of well respected world leaders. The positive results expected from the outcome of the conference will also be compromised. Therefore, we appeal that you and your organization take a note of this situation and take extra care before assigning any responsibility as a solution to this environmental threat and of appropriating any funds to dictator Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia or any of his affiliates in relation to this.
Sincerely,
Haile Hirpa, Ph.D.
OSA President
Ethiopian B763 at Lagos on Dec 13th 2009, ATC radar and comms failure leads to fuel emergency
Incident: Ethiopian B763 at Lagos on Dec 13th 2009, ATC radar and comms failure leads to fuel emergency
By Simon Hradecky, created Monday, Dec 14th 2009 An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 767-300, flight ET-901 from Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) to Lagos (Nigeria) with 180 passengers, was on approach to Lagos, when the air traffic control's radar and communication radios failed. Unable to obtain a landing clearance the crew entered a holding but eventually had to declare emergency about 2 hours later and land in Lagos without landing clearance. The airplane landed safely.
Several other flights, amongst them a Qatar Airways Airbus A330-200 flight QR-592 from Doha (Qatar) to Lagos with 190 passengers, also performed precautionary landings after holding at Lagos, a number of aircraft diverted to other airports.
Nigeria's Airspace Management Agency NAMA confirmed the incident reporting their radar and communication systems had broken down at around noon and remained unavailable for more than 2 hours.
Nigeria's CAA also confirmed the incident. An investigation has been launched, additional measures to prevent a similiar break down are being taken. NAMA should have contingency plans in case such failures occur.
Source
December 12, 2009
HRLHA Press Release: Victimization of Refugees Continues in Puntland
HRLHA Press Release: Victimization of Refugees Continues in Puntland
HRLHA Press Release No21
December 2009
Victimization of Refugees Continues in Puntland
According to documents obtained by HRLHA from its reporters in Bosaso, Puntland, a refugee has been killed and twenty six others injured on December 1st 2009 at around 7:30 PM with what was believed to have been a hand grenade thrown by unidentified group of people. This attack, which happened in the town of Bosaso/Puntland, Halo Kismayo #1 area, only three weeks after the gunning down of two Oromo refugees in Garoowe/Puntland, targeted Oromo and Somali refugees from Ethiopia who were at the time watching television at a local snack bar. Among the twenty six wounded refugees were eighteen Oromos and eight Somalis.
According to some eye witnesses, the culprits arrived at the site of the attack in a car and drove away in the same vehicle after committing the attack. The attack claimed the life of one Somali refugee, while injuring twenty six others. The death of this Somali refugee and that of Mrs. Samira Ahmed Musa, a mother of five who was gunned down in her own temporary shelter in Bosaso, on 23rd on November, 2009, brings the total number of the victims of extra-judicial killing in a one month time to four. The killing of Mrs. Samira Ahmed Musa, which came following that of her husband a year ago, leaves behind five orphaned children refugees.
Among the injured were: Among the injured were:
Name - Sex - Age - Birth - Place
1 Abdo Fita Aba Fogi - M - 22 - Jimma, Daddo
2 Mohamed Kedir Kamal - M - 32 - Arsi ,Robe
3 Mustafa Aba Tamam - M - 23 - Jimma Agaro
4 Rais Aba Sinal - M - 25 - Jimma, Limmu
5 Tahir Bashir Abdurahiman - M - 18 - Bale, Agarfa
6 Awel Kaliga Aba Adi - M - 20 - Jimma, Daddo
7 Tahir Kedir abba Simbo- M - 25 - Jimma, Sigmo
8 Kalid Aba Jabel - M - 30 - Jimma ,Saka
9 Bonsa Gada Badada - M - 28 - Jimma, Daddo
10 Jamal Shihasan Mohamed - M - 30 - Harar, Haroo
11 Gale Aba Ware - M - 27 - Jimma, Deddo
12 Abdu Geder Abba Goro - M - 25 - Jimma, Sigmo
13 Nazimo Sado Abdulahi - M - 32 - Jimma, Limu
14 Abdulkader Aba Chafa - M - 35 - Jimma, Agaro
15 Badada Gemechu Tola - M - 28 - Wallega, Buluk
16 Birhanu Bati Ragassa - M - 23
Among the injured refugees
According to HRLHA reporter, the refugees in Bosaso, Puntland have high suspicion that the Ethiopian TPLF-led government has been behind those attacks with the approval of the local government. The suspicion is very likely; given the way the attacks have been planned and carried out.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa would like to express its deep concern over these continued attacks and extra-judicial killings against defenseless refugees. It is a saddening irony that refugees are met with such fates in a country where they should have been offered the maximum security possible under the protection of not only the host country but also international bodies such as the UNHCR. It is more saddening that this is the very
reason why those refugees fled their homelands in the first place.
HRLHA would like to draw the attention of the government of Putland State of Somalia as well as other regional and international bodies to these worrisome situations of refugees in Putland State of Somalia. It would also call upon the Putland State of Somalia government to take all necessary legal actions to bring the perpetrators of these crimes to justice in a way that the safety and protection of other refugees in the country could be guaranteed.
Background Information: HRLHA reported in February 2008 in its No9 Press Release that 65 Oromo refugees from Ethiopia were murdered and more than 100 others were seriously injured when two grenades were thrown at two different hotels owned by two Oromo refugees, Melaku and Jamal Arsii, in port town of Bossaso in Puntland State of Somalia.
The HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. It works on defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It also works on raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It encourages the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.
December 10, 2009
Oromummaa Waliin Qabnna (www.oromummaa.com)
OROMUMMAA WALIIN QABNA!
Kabajamtoota ilaam Oromoo, nagaan kabaja Oromummaa bakka jirtanitti isin haaga’u. Barri haarayaa itti adeemnu kun bara ilmaan Oromoo waliif galanii alaa galan, bara wal gorfatanii tokkoomaan, bara dogoggora darbeef dhiifama waliif godhan, bara xiqqaa fi guddaan walii abboomaman, bara diinumman afee obbolummaan itti dagaagu, bara safuun ulfinni Oromummaa itti kabajamu, bara gammachuu bara jaalaa, bara nageenyaa, bara tokkummaa, bara bilisummaa isinnif haata’u!
Kabajamtoota ilmaan Oromoo kutaalee garaagaraa keessatti dhalachuun, Ilaalcha siyaasaa garaagaraa qabaachuun, Amantii adda addaattii buluun fafa hin qabu, mirga dhuunfaati. Garuu moo dhiiga ittiin ganama umamne Oromummaa waliin qabnu waliin jabeefachuun mirga qofaa otoo hin ta’iin dirqama keenya. Kanaafuu kutaa kamittuu haa dhalannuu, Jaarmiyaa Siyaasaa Qabsoo Bilisummaa Oromoo adda addaa kamillee haadeeggarru, Amantii kamittillee haa bulluu tokkummaa Oromummaan waliin qabnu cimsuuf qophii haa taanu! tattaaffii haa goonu!
Oromummaa Foundation kaayyoo calqabe baldhinaan ummataan ga’uuf Koree Qindeesituu WTUOGA-Ntherlands waliin ta’uudhaan sagantaa addaa qopheessee jira. Sagantaan kun bara harayaa 2010 itti seennu ilaalcha haarayaan, sammuu obbolummaa Oromummaa tiin waliin akka simanuuf, wal hubannoon ilmaan Oromoo jidduutti akka dagaagutti yaadamee sagantaa qophaa’ee dha.
Sagantaan kun akkuma adaa Oromoot Maanguddootinni tarree galanii margaa jiidhaa qabatanii eebbaan banu. ibsa gabaabaa fi mariin booda sagantaa bashannanaatu itti fufa. Dhumarrattis eebba Maanguddoo tiin xumurama.
SAGANTAA BASHANNANAA
Sagantaa kana midhagsanii milkeessuuf Artistoota Oromoo bebeekkamoo ta’an, Gazexeesitoota, Walaleesitoota, Abbaa qoosaa/Comedian qooda fudhatu.
Artistoota:- 1.Hangaatuu Baalchaa 2.Mahaaddii Sheekaa 3.Habtaamuu Hayeta Dabalee 4. Bakkaangahaa Margaa
Waggaa lamaan darbe, Mudde 23 bara 2007 yeroo sabboontotinni Gazexeesitoota oromoo arfan Dammaqaa Nagaasaa, Lamlam Faantaa, Mohaammad Ahmad fi Dassuu Duulaa yeroo biyya Eritira’aa gara biyya Netherlands dhufan jiraatotinni Oromoo Netherlands ilaalcha siyaasaan, kutaan, amnatiin otoo wal-hin qoodiin Jaallan kanaaf simannaa addaa gochuun isaanii ni yaadatama. Ammammoo “tokkummaan oromummaa wanta hunda caala, dhaabbannee isin keessummeesina” jechuu dhaan obbolaawwan keenya kun sagantaa qophaa’ee kana’rratti dabaree isaanii Uummata simachuun ogummaa qabaniin waltajjii kana sagantaa seena qabeessa ta’e taasisuuf qophaanii sin eegaa jiru.
“Dhaamsa kiyya addaan hin kutu, yoo qalbeefattan walaloon kiyya lafa hin buutu!” jedhu addee Makkiyaa Abdullah /Binta Dirree
Kolfaan gammaduun akka nyaachaa fi dhugaati nama gabbisa, an qoosuu hin dadhabu isin kolfuu hin dadhabiina!”jedha Raayyaa Abbaaduraa/Lateo Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
“Harmeen kiyya Weelluu dhaan isin gammachiifti ani moo walaloon hiriyoota koo Daa’imman Oromoo dadammaqassa, dhaamsa nama guddaa isiinif dabarsa!” Jedha mucaan waggaa 11 Roobinus Shimallis.
Calqabaa sagantaa hanga dhumaatti isin keessuummeesuuf sabboontoota kabajaan isin eegaa jiran:- 1. Raayyaa Abbaaduraa 2. Shimallis Shaanqoo 3. Aliimaa Usmaan 4. Sannayiti Galataa 5. Ambassee Sambataa 6. Hussein Mahaammad 7. Midhaqissaa Baalchaa
Sagantaan kun bakkee da’imman Oromoo itti wal-arganii, waliin gammadan, Lakk. bilbilaa, e.meela wal-jijjirrattani enyummaa obbulummaa Oromummaa isaan kan ittiin jabeefatanii dha. Kaffaltiin galma ittiin seenamu EU.20.00, namoota kaampii baqataa keessa jiraatani “documentii”bakkee jireenya isaanii mirkaneessu agrsiisanii EU 10.00 qofaa kaffalanii galma seenu. Ijoolleen waggaa 18 gadii hanga umurii 15 waraqaa eenyummaa/umurii isaan mirkaneessu agarsiisanii kaffaltii malee bilisaan galma seenu. Sagantaan bashananaa kun karaa sarara “paltalk” Waldaa Tokkummaa Uummata Oromoo Guutuu Addunyaa tiin suduudaan qilleensa’rra oola.
Guyyaa, sa’a fi bakkee sagantaan itti gaggeeffamu:- Amajjii 09 bara 2010, sa’a 12.00_21.00, Straat Weltevreden 4 postcode: 3731 AL De Bilt/Utrecht Netherlands.
Akkaataan ittiin dhuftan Utercht centeral train station’rraa Bus lakk. 77 kan gara Magaalaa Bilthoven deemu qabadhaa. Bakkee Groenekanseweg/ Alfred Nobellaan jedhamutti Bus’rraa bu’aa. Karuma Busa’rraa buutaniin fuula duratti xiqquma yeroo deemtan ibsaa tiraafikaa ceetanii harka mirgaatti daandii qaldhoo “biskileetaa” ‘rra miilaan bakkee/mana Weltevreden lakk.4 ga’uuf minute 8 qofaa deemtu. Yoo train stationa Magaalaa Biltihoven’rraa kaatanis garaagarina hin qabu, bifuma armaan olitti caqafameen deemama.
Wuxineessaan Sagantaa kanaa, Bakkaangahaa Margaa Bu’uuressaa Oromummaa Foundation fi WTUOGA Lakk.bil. 0031624548926
Haala kaayyoo Oromummaa Foundation fi WTUOGA gabaabumatti quba isin qabsiisuuf:- Oromummaa Foundation Mirgaa fi Gargaarsa Namoomaa garaagaraa raawwachuuf akkasumas Dagaagina Aadaa fi Hawaasummaa Uummta Oromoo’rratti kan fuulleefateedha, keessattuu Baqatoota Oromoo, Hidhamtoota Siyaasaa, Daa’imman maatii hin qabne gargaaruuf Dhaabbata Namoomaa seeraan hundeefamee dha.
Tokkummaa Oromoo cimsuun fedhii ilmaan Oromoo maraati. Kanaafuu fedhii Tokkoominaa Uummata Oromoo galmaan ga’uuf “Oromummaa Foundation” ijaarsa Waldaa Tokkummaa Uummata Oromoo Guutuu Addunyaa (WTUOGA) gaggeessaa jira. Ijaarsi kun biyya alaa fi biyya keesatti ilmaan Oromoo maraa kan hammatuudha. (Namootaa diinaaf meeshaa ta’anii hojjachaa jiraniin alati ilmaan Oromoo martinuu WTUOGA keessatti qooda fudhachuu ni dandayu).
Jiraatota Oromoo biyya Netherlandi fi biyyoota ollaa kanneen dhaamsi kun hin qaqqabne akka qaqqabsiiftan kabajaa Oromummaan isin gaafanna.
Waan Bayeessa haa Hojjannu!
www.oromummaa.com
Oromummaa Foundation fi
Koree Qindeesituu ijaarsa WTUOGA-Netherlands
National liberty preceds multinational (regional) democracy! (By Fayyis Oromia)
National liberty preceds multinational (regional) democracy!
Fayyis Oromia
This short essay and, of course, my hitherto contributions are my x-mass gift to all my readers and, at the same time, this one is a good-bye message. Thank you all for reading my opinions till now, be it they are constructive or not to the pragmatic move of the Oromo liberation and the liberation movement of all oppressed nations in the Ethiopian empire. I have tried to do my contribution using different nick-names for the last many years. One of the fruits I am now enjoying is the current tendency of all Oromo nationalists to preach and practice Oromo unity for liberty (Tokkummaa for Bilisummaa). This is one of the results of our efforts for many years, thanks Waaqayyoo/Rabbii, we could silence to some extent Weyane cadres and “naive Oromos”, who used to sow a discord among different Oromo groups based on region, party and religion as well as using the division parameters like leaders vs followers, young generation vs old generation, etc.
Now it seems that all Oromo nationalists in the ruling party of Oromia, in the opposition parties aka Oromo democratic federalists, and in the rebel fronts like Oromo Liberation Front do agree on the necessity of Oromo unity as a source of our power to liberate Oromo and Oromia from domination, exploitation and tyranny. The Oromo nation being the third big native nation in Africa (next to Berber and Hausa), our liberation will definitely be a precedence and an example for the future self-determination of all national groups in Africa, be it they are big or small, and have their autonomy at different levels (state, province, district or county) of administrative arrangement of the future African federation.
The coming five months are, the time of “struggle for democracy per election” in the Ethiopian empire. The ruling TPLF wants this election for legitimacy in front of the international community (not necessarily in front of Ethiopian nations and peoples) to rule further for the next five years. It has prepared itself for the last five years after the defeat it experienced in the election of 2005. The final preparation it undertook is the Codes of Conduct it agreed on with three unitarist parties, which it desperately needed for the legitimacy, and as the binding procedure to secure its winning of the next election. All the three “opposition” parties which signed this agreement of the Codes of Conduct with the incumbent are the sympathizers of the ex-nefxenya Ethiopia; they chose to make the neo-nefxenya Ethiopia survive further instead of be challenged and transformed by democratic unionists like Medrek at home and AFD in Diaspora. Why did this alliance of the ex-nefxenya admirers and the neo-nefxenyas happen now? Is the movement of the Oromo people and other oppressed nations for liberty endangering the existence of the Abyssinian domination system, which the two nefxenyas try to save?
It is clear that all the oppressed nations in the Ethiopian empire, in general, and the Oromo nation, in particular, are fighting for their liberty for the last more than one century. The two nefxenyas in the contrary still sing and dance about the necessity of “unity and democracy.” Unfortunately, there can never be unity of nations and democracy of the empire without first accepting and respecting the God-given rights of citizens as individuals and the liberty of nations as groups. That is why political organizations like AFD and G-7 used to advocate for freedom to be achieved before establishing democracy in the region called Ethiopia. Liberty from exploitation, tyranny and oppression under both the ex-nefxenyas and the neo-nefxenya Weyanes should come to end. If there is such liberty (freedom) of citizens and nations, the Oromo people are the last to fear the propagated unity and democracy, which are untiringly preached by those who want to keep the empire’s domination system by any means.
We all know that liberty is a concept of political philosophy and identifies the condition in which an individual or a group has the right to act according to his or her own will. So the question we all need to ask is, do individual citizens and collective nations as a group in the Ethiopian empire have such right to act according to their will? The answer is a big NO! That is why before preaching about democracy, unity and peace, all concerned stakeholders need to fight for such liberty together. The attempt of pro-liberty forces to come together like what they did in Medrek and AFD is very encouraging to say the least. If such alliances fight first for freedom (liberty) from Weyane’s tyranny and achieve it, then the probability of forging both democracy and unity based on their free-will can be high.
The attempt of Weyane to tell us that we do have already achieved freedom, unity based on free will and democracy under their rule is the 21st century big LIE we ever heard in the world. Weyane talks freedom and walks tyranny; talks unity, but walks divide-and-rule method; talks peace, but walks state terrorism; talks democracy, but walks dictatorship. What the neo-nefxenyas talk and walk are diametrically opposite. What about the opposition? Here we should differentiate the unitarists like AEUP and EDP from the unionists like Medrek and AFD. The unitarists being the nostalgic admirers of the ex-nefxenya just emulate the neo-nefxenyas in their hypocrisy. They talk democracy, but walk to achieve Amhara elite’s dictatorship; they talk unity, but want to keep the empire with its domination system, etc. The unionists are the only genuine opposition group struggling for both freedom and democracy as a precondition for the union of liberated nations in the empire/region to forge a possible united states of Ethiopia as a base for the future United States of Africa.
Of course, democracy is a political government either carried out by the people (direct democracy), or the power to govern is granted to elected representatives (representative democracy). In this sense, the democracy, which was tried by the monarchy of T. Mekonnen, by military dictatorship of Mengistu and now by ethno-cratic dictatorship of Meles are the pseudo-democracies we had in the empire. Actually, it is practically impossible to democratize an empire, where there is a sort of domination system. For the empire to be democratized, the domination system of both the ex- and neo-nefxenyas must be destroyed. This shows us that first comes national liberty, then follows regional (empire’s) democracy. Democracy under national slavery (unity without liberty), such us what we do see in the Ethiopian empire system, is only a dream, which can never be realized. The Oromo nation, in particular, and all other oppressed nations, in general, need to fight for our liberty by any means now. We can realize democracy only in a liberated Oromia and in the other liberated national areas; that is why the democratization of the Ethiopian empire is a futile exercise even though it is one of the means leading us to our Kaayyoo (the END-goal). To achieve the liberty we do want, we need to be well-informed and well-armed (empowered). Empowering the Oromo nation and other oppressed nations can only come through Tokkummaa for Bilisummaa (unity for liberty) of all national liberation fronts. So let’s unite first to achieve liberty from Weyane’s tyranny and then forge a democracy in a multinational union of the region called Ethiopia. Democratization of such a NEW Ethiopia is possible on the contrary to the attempt of democratizing the imperial Ethiopia.
Regarding the unity we do talk about, there are two types of unity: the one required to achieve liberty, which is the unity of the freedom movements of all nations (unity for liberty), and the other one is which we need after liberty, that is a union of nations in the region/empire. To have the first one (unity for liberty), it is good to have a common ground for all opposition freedom fighters regarding what to achieve after liberty. The common ground can only be to have a union of liberated nations in the empire/region. The two nefxenyas, including those who want to dismantle Oromia (the wish of the ex-nefxenya) and those who want to keep the status quo of the de-autonomized Oromia (the wish of the neo-nefxenya), must be dealt with by the cooperation and the coordination of the two parts of the unionist opposition, i.e. by the working together of those, for instance, who want to achieve only Oromian autonomy in the Ethiopian federation, like what OFC of Medrek is trying, and those who do fight for Oromian independence in a possible union of nations in the empire/region like for what OLF struggles.
So let us the unionist opposition groups at home in the form of Medrek and groups in Diaspora in the form of AFD, which does now include OLF, ONLF, SLF, BPLM and GPLM, cooperate and coordinate our efforts. I hope the other ‘quasi-unionists’ like G-7, EPPF, EPRP and UEDF-Diaspora will join the AFD group or we will see in the near future if they are part and parcel of the unitarist admirers of the ex-nefxenyas. I know that specially G-7 already made an acceptance of the unconditional Ethiopian unity as a precondition to forge any sort of alliance with AFD member organizations. With such arrogant position, G-7 just showed its color of a tendency to long for the unitarist Ethiopia. I just recommend G-7 and the likes to make the right of citizens and the wish of nations for liberty as a common ground, not their mantra about unconditional unity. Only free citizens and free nations can decide on the issue of Yes vs No to a union of nations in the empire/region, in which we can forge democracy of multi-national Ethiopia, of course, after securing our individual and national liberty. That is why we tend to say: national liberty, such as Oromian liberty, precedes regional democracy like that of Ethiopian democracy!
Galatoomaa and nagaan ta’aa!!
December 09, 2009
OSA Appeal on the Reported Killings of Oromo Immigrants in Bossaso, Puntland
OSA Appeal on the Reported Killings of Oromo Immigrants in Bossaso, Puntland
To: Mr. António Guterres,
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Case Postale 2500
CH-1211 Genève 2 Dépôt
Re: Massacre of Oromo Refugees in Bossaso, Puntland (Somalia)
Dear Commissioner Guterres,
I am writing this letter on behalf of the Oromo Studies Association (OSA), a scholarly, multi-disciplinary, nonprofit organization, established to promote studies on and relevant to the Oromo people. The Executive Committee of OSA is deeply concerned about the repeated and orchestrated killings of innocent Oromo immigrants in Bossaso, Puntland, a breakaway region of Somalia, in which a total of at least 67 Oromos lost their lives and hundreds others severely wounded and left without any medical attention.
The killings occurred on two separate occasions. The recent killing was on Tuesday, December 01, 2009, reportedly committed when assailants in a small car threw a hand grenade at a cinema in the city center where people mostly from the Oromo community were watching films. While the reported number of casualties vary, OSA has received credible information that at least two of the three people reported dead are Oromo immigrants and some 18 Oromos have been severely wounded. Many of the wounded are reportedly left without medical treatment and currently appealing to Oromo communities abroad through different media outlets.
An earlier killing, which occurred some two years ago, on 02/05/2008, was rather a massacre. The incident took place when two grenades were thrown at innocent Oromo refugees who were watching video in Afan Oromo language at two hotels owned by two Oromo refugees in the same city of Bossaso. According to reports gathered from several unrelated sources, such as the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA), an independent human rights group, Radio Voice of America Afan Oromo service, radio Voice of Oromo Liberation (VOL), and several websites, 65 Oromos were brutally murdered and more than 100 others were injured in this incident. Among international news outlets, Reuters reported that at least 20 were killed and over 100 were injured. Some other sources have also reported that about 250 homes have been burned to the ground leaving several other Oromo refugees without shelter. Many of those injured are reported to have been left without any medical attention. HRLHA has also published the names of 59 Oromos who are among the injured on its website.
Dear Mr. Commissioner,
Many Oromos are forced to flee to neighboring countries because they are unable to live in peace in their own homeland. The current government of Ethiopia, led by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, has a well-documented record of gross human right violations. Particularly, many Oromos are subjected to widespread imprisonment, torture, and arbitrary killing due to alleged support of Oromo political groups opposed to the government, mainly the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). Many local and international humanitarian and governmental organizations, such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the US States Department, have consistently reported on their respective yearly reports, the extensive human right violations perpetrated on the Oromos by the current regime in Ethiopia.
Even school children are not spared from gross human right abuses. Just to mention few, according to Human Rights Watch, in January, 2007 more than thirty students were rounded up and arrested, and at least one died as a result of police beatings in Dembi Dollo, Western Oromia, about 700 kilometers west of the capital, Finfinnee (Addis Ababa). The others are severely injured and hospitalized. During the same time, local police and militia members in Ghimbi town shot two high school students dead, one as he and others were walking peacefully along, the other as he covered the body of the first with his own to protect him from further harm. In February, 2007, Ethiopian security officials are reported to have secretly killed 19 men prisoners and a 14-year–old girl prisoner in Miesso, northeastern Oromia, and thrown their body into a jungle known as Gaara Suufii. Several days later, the news of their killing leaked out and the local people were able to search for the bodies, the remaining bones of which had been eaten by wild animals, and buried them. The list of atrocities and killings goes on and on.
Massive arrests have been a day to day experience in Oromia, especially since the current regime came to power in 1991. Tens of thousands of Oromos are reported to have been regularly rounded up and sent to jail. Many of them face torture, and many others are executed, according to several credible reports. A reliable testimony to such atrocities committed on the Oromos is from Mr. Seye Abraha, the founder, former political bureau member of the Tigrean People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and a former Defense Minister of the regime now ruling Ethiopia, who got out of Qaliti prison (one of known huge detention and torture centers in Ethiopia) after six years, spoke out to Ethiopians in Diaspora on January 5, 2008 in Virginia (USA) by saying “The Prison Speaks Oromiffa” (Oromo language). Mr. Seye added that “about 99% of the prisoners in Qaliti are Oromos”.
A large number of Oromos are forced to leave their home and take refugee in Somalia, Kenya, Djibouti, Sudan, Eritrea and Yemen due to fear of such massive arrest, harassment, torture, disappearance and arbitrary executions. Unfortunately, they have not been safe even after they flee to neighboring countries. The current Bossaso killing and the 2008 Bossaso massacre are just few of such examples. Just to mention a few reported cases, in 2003, a well respected Boorana Oromo, Mr. Halakhee Diidoo, was reported to have been killed by Ethiopian security forces in the town of Moyale, Kenya. In 2004, Mr. Areeroo Galgaloo was reported to have been gunned down in the same town. On September 4, 2007, the Ethiopian government security forces are reported to have crossed to a neighboring Kenyan town of Moyale and murdered Mr. Gaaromsaa Abdisaa, a resident of Moyale town, Kenya, for alleged ties with the OLF. On the same day, the body of an Oromo woman believed to have been murdered by the same “killing squad” was found in the same town. What is more disturbing is that these Oromos are reported to have been murdered in broad day light, right in front of the Kenyan government office, and the killers are reported to have been returned to the Ethiopian side of the border, full of military track, without any question from the Kenyan authorities. On November 06, 2007, 10 Oromo refugees were reported to have been executed in their apartment in Nairobi Kenya. There are reports that the suspected killers are likely the Ethiopian security agents; many Oromos believe that there is no other entity that would kill these Oromos other than the Ethiopian hidden intelligence forces and known by many as “killing squads”.
Dear Mr. Commissioner,
We fear that the reported massacres in Bossaso, Puntland, are very likely an extension of the systematical killings of Oromo refugees committed by the current regime in Ethiopia and its allies in neighboring countries over the years. The current authorities in Puntland, Somalia, Kenya, Djibouti, and Sudan have always been allied with the Ethiopian authorities in targeting Oromo refugees resulting in arrest, torture, disappearance, killing, and most commonly forcefully deporting and handing the refugees back to the Ethiopian authorities. Frustrated by their situation in Puntland and Somalia, many Oromos catch a boat across the Gulf of Aden and risk the treacherous crossing every year, and hundreds die when overloaded boats capsize or sink.
The Oromo Studies Association, OSA, therefore, appeals to the UNHCR, all UN member nations, humanitarian, governmental and non-governmental organizations to put necessary pressure on the Puntland and Somalian authorities to protect the life of refugees in their respective territories. We demand that the perpetrators of the Bossaso massacres be hunted down and brought to justice. We call upon all governmental and non-governmental organizations to put pressure on the Ethiopian authorities to stop harassing, torturing, and killing Oromos and respect their basic human rights at home and in neighboring countries.
Sincerely,
Haile Hirpa, Ph.D.
President, Oromo Studies Association
P.O. Box 32391
Fridley, MN 55432
USA
CC:
1. His Excellency Mr. Ban K-Moon
Secretary-General, United Nations
Office of the Secretary General
885 Second Avenue
New York, NY 10017
2. Madam Secretary, Hilary Clinton
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW, Washington, DC 20520
3. Honourable Prime Minister
Mr Gordon Brown
10 Downing Street
London England
4. Amnesty International USA
Penn Plaza
New York, NY 10001
Phone: (212) 807-8400
Fax: (212) 627-1451
5. Human Rights Watch
350 Fifth Avenue, 34th Floor
New York, NY 10118-3299
USA
Tel: 1-(212) 290-4700
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