2007 Great Ethiopian Run, Addis Ababat
Thousands of Ethiopians took part in the 2007 Great Ethiopian Run in Addis Ababa today. As soon as the race started, it turned into a protest rally against the Woyanne regime.
The runners chanted slogans that are anti-Woyanne and that condemn the invasion of Somalia.
The runners also chanted:
“Kinijit Yegna!” (Kinijit is ours)
“Bertukan Yegna!” (Bertukan is ours).
“Gifa belew Eritrea Gifa belew! Betemingistun dem be dem adirgew!” (when they reached Arat Kilo)
“H.R. 2003 Endegfalen” (We support H.R. 2003)
25 thoughts on “The 2007 Great Ethiopian Run turned into a protest rally”
They also were saying “yileyal zendro”, “viva kinijit, viva Bertukan,…
This is actually expected from a suppressed people under tyranny.
The Great Run!
27,000+ runners descended on downtown Addis today to run the Great Ethiopian Run. It was awesome. I spent the night with my friends Sarah, Maren, Bethany and Josh last night in order to ensure that I could find them this morning! (They are working at a school here in Addis called Hope Enterprises…Sarah and I met a few months before I left for Addis–she lived in Minneapolis with my friend Anna…random, I know!). In any case, it was so great to have some other people to go/run with. For any of you who have run in large capacity races before, you know that it can be tricky to try and run with so many people on the road. Well, at least at races in the states, there is some sort of general order or protocol. This is Ethiopia–chuck protocol out of the window. First, there were walkers who began at the starting lines with the elite runners…meaning, that there were walkers interspersed all over the course blocking the path of those of us trying to run. Second, they didn’t hand out cups of water–you either had to buy bottles along the way or try to fight your way in line to get your hands on a bag of water (think the little milk bags from middle school lunch). Third, the fans weren’t necessarily traditional fans. Usually at races, fans make signs, clap, cheer, etc. Not here. The “fans” were 99% male and street kids and they basically just stood and stared at you. Some of the street kids got into it and cheered, but mostly, it was just a lot of people watching you huff and puff. But, even with these little oddities, it was still an awesome experience. It was a fun chance to participate in something with tons of Ethiopians. There was a lot of fun singing, yelling and even some protesting that took place. And, since running is a huge tradition here in Ethiopia, it just felt necessary to run in a race here. Here are some photos of the day.
Lauren
Ewnet mingizem atdebekem. Egziyabeher mengawen yetebekal.
Lauren,
You sound like a frustrated westerner who seeks order for ‘your importance.’ Let alone in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, one could hardly find a specific line to jog along even in London, Europe in a day like this one. In terms of the gender of the spectators, perhaps you will appreciate that many have no luxury to adore diplomats’ competition in the kingdom of misery that the west props up at the expense of the poor of Ethiopia. In the broader context, Ethiopia provides a gender neutral world class athletic competitors far better than your own country of the USA.
Good to know that despite moaning, you admit that ‘ … since running is a huge tradition here in Ethiopia, it just felt necessary to run in a race here. Here are some photos of the day.”
Tks for the photos.
Biri
it was peaceful… here is another bgolden apportunity let slip away! does this mean that the vampire regime managed to instill fear?
Thanks runners!Yes it was an opportunity to express their opposition against Woyanne.
Good job!
Lauren,
Do you know how many female world-class athlets Ethiopia currently has? I guess not. You sound clueless.
Ethiopians have been showered with words of God since creation, and have been blessed with power and wisdom since then.
Since the arrival of the enemy in Ethiopia, Ethiopians have been battling tooth and nail against the crime family of Meles Naziawi and its weyanne army.
At the beginning the enemy thought Ethiopians would give up and surrender to the killer and looting hands of the crime family. But this has been proven wrong when Ethiopians told the enemy GO BACK WHERE YOU CAME FROM.
Today, the crime family is peeing on its bed and pant; as it it positively expected, the enemy shall soon be crushed into minute gravels and packed in ash in black bags and sent back to the receiver in Nakfa cave.
Recently the enmy was attempting to jam the voice of Ethiopians as it has left with but the final desperate measueres. Soon, the enemy shall be defeated and left unburried where it has fallen.
Thank you Elias. This was the outcome democrats in my part of the world were expecting.
Birtukan is the apple of our eye. God save her from evil!
The ethiopian peole already said about the äremene weyane” and still they r shouting with out fear. am proud for thoes who shouted in the street of addis. woyane is facing a problem in every direction we know we will keep struggling till they left our country.
lets not forget that we will stand for one ethiopia and one people. God bless our beloved country Ethiopian and the the Ethiopian peple.
Dear Friends,
Please do not forget that ‘Kinjit is spirit that never and ever goes out of our mind. We keep showing them that we are ever stronger.
It is a matter of time and Kinijit shall win and build the prosporous and strongest nation.’ And the almighty GOD shall keep HIS WORDS for our beloved homeland.
God bless Ethiopia and her children!!!!
The weyanne crime family is running here and there to fascilitate and prepare for the 2010 election. No boubt in the enemy’s mind it will lose the 2010 election if the election is conducted in a democratic way; howerver, the crime family is dead sure that Ethiopians never and will never trust it.
It is true that the crime family of that fugitive Meles Zinawi has already exchausted all means to suppress and oepress Ethiopians; therefore, it is now attempting to fool and bribe Ethiopians to surrendering Ethiopia to its looting and murdering hands. Is it possible? Not at all.
Last week and beyond and still now, Weyanne crime family is telling Ethiopians that it will create1,200,000 jobs for the unemployed. Is it possible and believable? Not at all. Even in Europe or elsewhere they can not do this; because it is not realistic and feasable.
It has been more than 16 years since the crime family positively knew and said to itself I AM NOT NEEDED ANYMORE!!!
Ethiopians know that this crime family of Weyanne has been the number one enemy of Ethiopia and Ethipians since its birth in Nakfa Caves and used by Shabya and other external enemies of Ethiopia to destroy the fabric of the society of Ethiopia and use the looted resources to enrich itself for years to come.
Yes, it has never been easier to defeat this crime family than defeating the external enemies; because, the Meles Zinawi crime family is enternal enemy that is better equiped in every possible means. But the defeat of the Meles Zianwi crime family is coming to fruition chiefly because the mighty power of the punishing feast of Ethiopians has been practically tested on historical enemies; therefore, the defeat of Weyanne is coming faster and faster.
tanks the organizer this is the only option we have to say what we want to say for the dictator woyane and for forigners/USA/ for supporting HR 2003
However long the night, the day will come. Truth is always truth. If you wanna change this through gun, then the gun itself will change you. But Weyane didn’t, don’t and won’t understand this.
God bless Ethiopia!!!
Some times we need to take care of our wordings. What are we rechanting “Gifa belew Eritrea Gifa belew! Betemingistun dem be dem adirgew!” ? Who said Shabia is better than Woyane? The run was realy great, that shows that when the day comes all Ethiopians are in one pace to vote for Democracy and freedom. Ethiopians are matured enough of what they are saying. We do not coose shaebia to liberate Us! We never chant this way. That is why we are angeles strugling evils.
This is another prove that the woyanne regime is living in a borrowed time.I wonder who will defend them if the war broke out with Eritrea since there were slogans such as “Gifa Belew Eritrean Gifa Belew Betemengistun Dem Bedem Adergew” during the great Ethiopian run.This is the first time Ethiopians in their history openly supported another country to destroy the government of their own or may be the government imposed on them through gun.
To Lauren: why don’t you say something about the words they used when yelling and making slogans? You know at least that they were against the regime and in support of the main opposition, CUDP.
At the end ETHiopians will be the winner,the END of Woyane is near ONE ETHIOPIA ,ONE PEOPLE.
GOD BELESS ETHIOPIA
Kinijit is a party of the future. It won’t be stopped by TPLF, AAPO, EPRP or any other tribalist and reactionary group. This was another evidence that it truly became the spirit of struggle for freedom. Good job our people in Ethiopia.
Weyanne shall for sure be tossed away into garbage bin as this is the only fate this crime family is deserved. Frankly speaking, Ethiopians shall and will crush both shabya and weyanne by their united arms.
It is known that both Meles Zinawi and Isyas Afework have been/are criminals for those years while they were hiding and bleeding Ethiopia. As the adage says it all, what comes around goes around; on tht fateful day, both robbers shall receive sufficient punishment from Ethiopians.
It could well be this, the death of one fugitive is the victory for the other fugitive; but, the death of both criminal murderers is of course, the ultimate victory for all Eethiopians.
Yes, at the beginning of the 12th month both fugitives will meet head on at the upcoming battle. For sure, Isayas bragged about his armies by saying to Meles Zinawi that he has 4,000,000 combatants. Well and true, Meles Zinawi and his crime family are on their own; no single genuine and trusted Ethiopians will fight for the crime families.
This is true too; when Meles Zinawi and his crime family catured by Ethiopians, Isayas Afework the fugitive is also on the wanted list in Ethiopia;so what is Isayas Afework going to do? fight Ethiopians or flight to a sunny place acros the red sea? He must be choosing the later one.
Isyas Afework and Meles Zinawi are not a kind of persons to make promised words such this: IN LIFE OR DEATH TOGETHER to their followers. When their fate comes, both shall be catured either alive or dead by Ethiopians.
yewoyane mekabirin Mekoferiaw gize iyederese new
This was what we where looking for.We will go ahead until the last days of the dictators.
I support, admire the courage and encourage the Ethiopian people at home to excel their frustration and condemning the Woyane brutal regime in any means they can get.
However, I see again the shortsightedness of the struggle some how favoring Shabia over Woyane charging it to action to make Ethiopia “Dem Bedem!” Shabia is nothing, but Woyane. They are two sides of the same penny. I’m afraid, history might repeat itself. During the Derg’s reign, the Ethiopian people opened their hearts and the gates for the “Libration Fronts” TPLF – Woyane and Shabia, thinking nothing can be worse than the brutal Derg regime. By the time they realized, it was too late.
Hareg Mismaku,
Nothing can ever be worse than the Derg regime. As much as I hate Woyane and Shabia, I can never tolerate any kind of Derg regime. This does not make Woyanes any better ,however if given a chance to choose between Woyane and Derg I would say long live Woyane.
NO MATTER WT ; IT IS SO BEATIFUL ; A YELLOW ROAD LIKE BEES