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Hailu Shawel disinvited from King birthday celebration

The Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday celebration organizing committee in Atlanta disinvited the estranged chairman of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy Party (Kinijit) from giving a speech.

The committee decided to take this action after learning about Ato Hailu’s dictatorial action last week against members of the Kinijit executive committee.

The committee instead invited Prof. Alemayehu Gebremariam to address the gathering in Atlanta to celebrate the civil right leader’s birthday on January 15, 2008.

Martin Luther King’s birthday is a federal holiday in the United States.

Ato Assefa Dires, who introduced himself as Hailu Shawel’s “chief of staff,” appealed the committee’s decision to the King family and friends, including prominent civil rights leader Rev. Joseph Lowery. He argued that Hailu Shawel is still the chairman of Kinijit. As evidence he presented Kinijit spokesperson Dr Hailu Araya’s interview with the VOA earlier this week. Chief of Staff Assefa was simply told that Ato Hailu’s action is contrary to the teachings and principles of the civil rights community.

When Kinijit delegation led by Bertukan Mideksa went to Atlanta in October, they had visited the King Center and met with Rev. Joseph Lowery and other members of the civil rights community in Atlanta.

26 thoughts on “Hailu Shawel disinvited from King birthday celebration

  1. Oh Mr. Hailu…Minew beste-erjina hezbachin yetamawin democraciawinet erso yekadut? We’re done with u!! You have transformed yourself, perhaps your friends, from the undeserved well-admired leader of a democratic party and a nation to a leader of few self-appointed corrupts!! You clearly made the choice in front of not only us, but the world as the above article suggests!!

    You undeservedly had our hearts for the past few years, but your true nature has forced you to lose the hearts of millions of Ethiopians within few months!! I feel so sorry for you!! But we Ethiopian will be alright, because I know we are on the right track to a real democratic party and a real democratic state of Ethiopia!!!!

  2. That is a correct move by the organizing committee. The appeal to get Hailu Shawl in the invitees list is rather ludicrous. According to known leadership theories, leadership comes from the bottom; from acceptance. No follower, no leader. Obviously Hailu has no follower except a bunch of “hodams”. It is ridiculous that his “chkashumes” cry he should attend the birthday ceremony of such a great human and civil rights activist, Dr. Martin Luther King. Just being a nominal chairman [soon he will be stripped of his chairmanship] doesn’t mean he represents Kinjit. I doubt Hailu knows what Dr. King stood for; Dr. King stood for true democracy and the respect of human and civil rights. It would be an insult for such a great person in history [Dr. King] if Hailu not only made a speech but even appeared at his birthday.

  3. Yes!

    Evil has no unity with good. Dr. Martin Luther King disregarded his own life for the sake of justice, peace and love .. he followed the track of Jesus Christ. The infamous and greedy Hailu Shawel took his chane to destroy the cause of the nations, and he preached against unity and peace. Hailu Shawl is only as good as sadist Meles Zenawi.

  4. Congradulations!!!!

    As of now hailu showel will have an invitaion from woyane embassies and the like.

    No more he is public figure !!!He lose public trust and respect by his own irresponsible and rekcless act.

  5. “The committee decided to take this action after learning about Ato Hailu’s dictatorial action last week against members of the Kinijit executive committee”.

    “Ato Hailu’s action is contrary to the teachings and principles of the civil rights community.”

    ———————————
    Is some thing missing?. What has the internal affairs and administrative issues that resulted in a reaction from an action of a political party has to do with civil right and human right rules unless such was violated as defined. It takes two to disagree or agree to disagree. It is the process of the Kinijit Organization. I doubt very much that they decline his appearance because of his requuest to suspend activities of BB-5 until further resolution through LMB.

    Last year’s visible people who attended the Atlanta meeting were the current BB supporters group, except Obang Metho ( who is not a member of a political party). If I remember there was also some thing about inviting representatives of AFD and last minute cancelation etc. ( I stay corrected if need be).

    In fact as civill right organizers, should not they be open to give a plat form for the temporarily “other faction” and actualy the first Chairperson of CUD while he is here. I believe he probably had experienced directly the pain of human right and civil right violation more than any of the “Political prisoners of Conscience”. He has an amazing story of over coming the rights he was denied during his illness in Kality. Prof. Alemayehu is an advocate and human right defender and an expert in the field. If Prof, Alemayehu has some deep reflection on this, and may be among the organizers and CUD president Hailu Shawel, can’t they both speak?.. Engineer Hailu also supports HR2003, and I do not believe this is the way or time for Kinijit’s internal affairs to spill over and influence such historical institution. I hope more information will be available in an objective manner.

    Simply keeping up… I have no direct support for a specific Kinijit leader yet, except keep up in understanding more of each step while holding on to support its principle and meaning.

  6. this is a great action from friends of ethiopia and democracy. aste hailu even does not deserve a participant seat in such big event.
    we all ethiopians waiting from such pro humanright and democrat organisation more action and neglaction against such selfish and narrowminded person and groups

    long live ethiopia

  7. Hailu has never been and will never be an important figure.
    Can any body try to convince me any impressive scholar type speech ever made by him even before the election?

  8. Please announce this great shame in a very bold news. This is enough for us. The tear of the poor people is not dried. Taye, what did you feel if you hear this sad news?

  9. MLK birth day celeberation is not for dictators.It is for those who think wider than their ethnic group.Hailu is a shame.I think Hailu is going to fire some one for this too.kkkkkkk. shame shame shame….

  10. Good job, glad to hear Hailu Shawl was not representing Ethiopia. It would have been a shame and disgrace.

    He can only represent his Akrari and tribalist clowns, who live still in the era of the princess.

    It would have been a disgrace to give such a fool a place in Atlanta or anywhere.

    Hailu Shawl is a man without a brain or common sense. He has damaged Ethiopian Unity more than the Woyanes, unfortunatley, he still does not get or his rude and crude friends led by EPRP.

    Dawit Haile

  11. God is Great!!!

    Ato Hailu should be isolated from any Ethiopian associations in any world wide recognized forum. forget his presentation as a guest of honor,he should not be allowed to even attend.
    no more with us. I regret for the support i gave him as a leader.

    i personally appreciate the organizing committee’s action and decision. it gives lesson for Hailu and others who are still walking on his foot steps.

    I do hope Professor Alemayehu as usual, will deliver a remarkable speech which will strengthen our relationship with African American Community who mostly are our back bones in our struggle for freedom and civil rights. This forum will also help us to expose the current action of the government against Kinijit.

    thank you

    yigermal.

    12.22.2007

  12. Hailu shawel and co.we are fighting you and your “way” which has totally ignored the will and aspriation of the Ethiopian people no more democratic plat-form to the crook Hailu who shamed us all, no more business in the name of poor Ethiopian million Ethiopian are ready to fight the reactionary view you and family “GUDU TAYE” are promoting against the party principles,shame Hailu the disgrace !!!

  13. I am very disappointed with Ato Hailu Shawel political attitude. I never trusted Hailu Shawel’s leadership. Ato Hailu wasn’t a good leader and manager. Ato Hailu should be Kinijit’s Honor President. People with management and leadership problem acts like dictators. I am ashamed for what Ato Shawel done this great party called KINIJIT. God Bless Ethiopia

  14. The committes have done fantastice by rejecting or ignoring that shameless chikashum hailu shawul. IF the committes invited dictator hailu shawul who has sold the popupar ethiopia’s people struggle for freedom and democracy for 1.2m dollars , it could be really disrespect , an insulting and shame for the freedom fighter martin luther king. because MLK paid the highest price in his life for the freedom of black americans and other minority ethnice groups in USA against rascism and discrimination in colour, language , religion and others.Chikashum hailu shawul has sold ethiopia’s ppl struggle for freedoma and democracy , and has already created an alliance with weyanes ,who have imprisoned him with his colleagues for 21 months, ras hailu shawul’s business firm has already signed 20m contract with weyanes to up grade baher dar air port. Dictator has no morale group to be invited and talk about ethiopia’s ppl .

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