Election protest kill 4 in Ethiopia (Friday, 4.11.2005)

Election protests kill 4 in Ethiopia
By The Associated Press

Prime Minister Zenawi Meles' commitment to reform is tested by protests.
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — Violent protests of disputed elections spread Friday from the capital to other parts of Ethiopia, leaving four people dead, and the prime minister vowed to prosecute opposition officials after a week of bloody clashes, state media reported.
Police have killed at least 40 people since the protests began Tuesday in the capital, following largely peaceful protests Monday, medical officials said. Government officials put the dead this week at 24 civilians and seven police officers.
The violence erupted over protests of May 15 parliamentary elections seen as a test of Prime Minister Zenawi Meles' commitment to reform.
The vote gave Meles' Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front control of nearly two-thirds of parliament. Opposition parties say the election and vote count were marred by fraud, intimidation and violence, and they accused the ruling party of rigging the elections.
Meles told the state media that the main opposition Coalition for Unity and Democracy was responsible for the violence during the protests. Opposition officials would be charged in court, he said.
Diplomats from four European countries told The Associated Press on Friday they had reports from opposition members and other contacts of police rounding up suspected opposition supporters overnight. An estimated 3,000 people had been detained, according to the diplomats.
Ambassadors from 21 countries that donate large sums of money to Ethiopia issued a statement calling for an urgent investigation and recommending all political detainees be either charged or released.
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