By Coalition for HR 2003

WASHINGTON DC – US lawmakers were stunned on Monday when Prime Minister Meles Zenawi warned that he would not set free the opposition leaders if the US Congress went ahead and marked up an Ethiopia Human Rights Bill on Tuesday.

The mark-up of HR 2003 was set for June 26, 2007 but US lobbyists representing Zenawi rushed the warning to Congressman Donald Payne, chairman of the House Africa Sub-committee, and Congressman Tom Lantos, chairman of House Foreign Affairs Committee, who decided to postpose the date so that the prime minister would release the political prisoners.

On the eve of the mark-up date, a steady stream of State Department officials, lobbyists and others visited Capitol Hill or called to tell Chairmen Payne and Lantos that the fate of the Kaliti prisoners depends on the committee’s decision to mark-up H.R. 2003.

State Department officials have sought to persuade the two committee chairmen and other members that Zenawi is in the final stages of releasing the Kality prisoners, and that marking up the bill at this time would cause him unspeakable embarrassment. Members were told that by marking-up the bill at this critical time, Zenawi will “lose face” among Ethiopians and the international community. To help him “save face,” members were asked to delay the mark-up for at least two weeks.

A Zenawi intermediary who has been recently shuttling messages between Zenawi and the political prisoners reportedly called particular members of Congress several times yesterday to assure them that this time around Zenawi will surely release the prisoners. Members were further assured that Zenawi was not up to his usual delaying tactics or tricks.

Zenawi’s threats to take the Kaliti prisoners hostage has caused considerable concern and consternation among the two chairmen and other members of the Foreign Affairs committee.

The members are particularly concerned that they do not want to be responsible for the continued and needless suffering of the Kaliti prisoners by going forward with the mark-up of the bill at this time. They want to make sure that the Kaliti prisoners and all other political prisoners are set free and allowed to join their families. They were willing to delay the mark-up for a few weeks if that will help in getting them released.
Zenawi’s Hostage-taking Strategy

Zenawi’s threat to take the Kality prisoners hostage is a transparent strategy calculated to delay and ultimately thwart legislative action on H.R. 2003. His strategy is based on one or more of the following:

* By releasing the Kality prisoners in the next few days, he expects his monstrous crimes will be overlooked or forgotten by Ethiopians and the international community excited over the release of the political prisoners.

* By releasing the political prisoners and delaying mark-up action, Zenawi expects that Congressional interest in H.R. 2003 will wane and decline because members of Congress will be satisfied by the release of the prisoners and not insist on passage of H.R. 2003 or other sanctions;

* By delaying the mark-up of H.R. 2003 until the Congressional summer recess, Zenawi hopes opposition in Congress and in the Diaspora will weaken, and the bill will not see floor action.

* By delaying the mark-up of H.R. 2003 Zenawi hopes that he could trick the two chairmen and other committee members that the bill is not necessary because he is doing whatever Congress wishes to achieve in the bill.

* By releasing the prisoners and delaying the mark-up, Zenawi hopes to hoodwink the Diaspora into believing that he is a is really a good guy.

* By delaying action on H.R. 2003, Zenawi thinks his old trick of DELAY, DELAY, DELAY will get him through another Congressional session!

The Truth About H.R. 2003 or What Zenawi should Know About H.R. 2003

Zenawi appears to believe that H.R. 2003 is exclusively about the release of the Kality prisoners. IT IS NOT. The Kality prisoners issue is a paramount issue, but only one of many other issues. If Zenawi is not aware of the objectives of H.R. 2003 in Ethiopia, here is a short primer for him:

H.R. 2003 is about:

* gaining the unconditional release of ALL political prisoners of conscience.

* instituting democratic reform and accountability.

* restoration of the democratic rights of the people.

* strengthening human rights and civic society organizations.

* establishing permanent human rights monitoring and reporting processes.

* increasing the independence of the judiciary.

* creating and supporting a judicial monitoring process, with special focus on unwarranted government intervention in strictly judicial matters.

* arresting and prosecuting human rights abusers, torturers and murderers, and bringing to justice the killers of 193 innocent men, women and children and wounding of 763 others.

* improving election procedures and insuring fraud free elections, and restoration of the CUD leaders to their elected positions.

* removing press censorship and full freedom of the press.

* repealing restrictive press laws.

* establishing a program to strengthen private media in Ethiopia.

* training programs for democratic participation.

* limitations of the use of U.S. security assistance to peacekeeping and counter-terrorism and NOT against the civilian population.

* fostering stability, democracy and economic development in the region.

* establishing a program to provide legal support for political prisoners and prisoners of conscience

* providing assistance to strengthen local, regional, and national parliaments and governments, political parties, and civil society groups;

* strengthening training for political parties such as organization building and campaign management;

* providing training for civil society groups in election monitoring in Ethiopia; and

* professionalizing the National Election Board in order to address issues such as delimitation of constituencies, voter registration, political party registration and candidate registration, and it is quintessentially about

* accountability for crimes against humanity.