Protestors demand end of Ethiopian politican’s visit
By Jason Warick | The Star Phoenix (Canada)
The University of Saskatchewan should not be hosting an Ethiopian politician implicated in corruption scandals and the forcible removal of tens of thousands of peasant farmers from their homes, human rights groups say.
A group of 30 protesters from Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta stood outside the U of S Administration building Tuesday at noon with placards and flags demanding the removal of Shiferaw Shigute.
“Saskatchewan university, send him back!” chanted the group. “Saskatchewan university, shame on you!”
Tom Wishart, the U of S special adviser on international initiatives, said he was not familiar with the allegations against Shigute, as the delegation arrived just a few days ago. He said the university takes such concerns seriously and the matter is being researched.
Shigute, a minister in the Meles Zenawi national government and chief of Ethiopia’s Southern Nations Nationalities and Peoples Regional State (SNNPR), arrived in Saskatoon Sunday and has been in private meetings with U of S officials. He is part of a delegation discussing a longtime education and agriculture partnership between the two regions.
Protesters and human rights groups say the partnership has produced many benefits for Ethiopian people, but Shigute’s involvement will raise many questions.
“The university is keeping him hidden,” said Taye Maulugeta of Regina. “We have a right to see him. This guy should not be here.”
Fellow protester Ali Saeed drove overnight from Winnipeg to participate.
“We heard Shigute was invited here. He is responsible for pushing thousands of people off their farms to places where there is no water, no food,” said Saeed, winner of the government of Manitoba’s recent Human Rights Commitment award.
“Why are we in Canada associating with this man?”
According to U.S., European and Ethiopian media reports, legal experts and human rights organizations, Shigute is leading the removal of peasant farmers from southern Ethiopia. Many of these families are allegedly being sent back to the region where the world saw shocking images of famine in the mid-1980s.
Shigute could not be contacted for comment, but he has denied the allegation in media reports from Ethiopia.
“We should not be doing business with this man,” said Obang Metho, a U of S graduate and executive director of Washington D.C.-based Solidarity Movement for a New Ethiopia.
Metho penned a letter to U of S president Peter MacKinnon, as did officials with other human rights groups in advance of Shigute’s arrival.
“I would like to highly commend the University of Saskatchewan for their laudable efforts in reaching out beyond the borders of our great province and nation to meaningfully address the long-standing issues in Ethiopia of chronic food insecurity, malnutrition, lack of agricultural development and inadequate health care,” Metho wrote.
However, Metho lists the concerns over Shigute’s involvement, including the forced removals, a citation for corruption surrounding his time with the national coffee growers’ association and other allegations. He said the U of S should take a stand for the people of Ethiopia and demand Shigute be removed.
“Truth, academic freedom, freedom of expression and the respect for the basic dignity and rights of all people do not exist in Ethiopia. The U of S, the people of Saskatchewan and the government of Canada can all help create an environment most conducive to success by unflinchingly addressing these issues,” Metho wrote.
Wishart said he’s heard from about one dozen people expressing opposition to Shigute’s presence. Wishart said the university receives 150 different delegations every year and he wasn’t aware of the allegations against Shigute.
“I’m not in a position to make any judgment,” he said.
Wishart said university officials are consulting with the Canadian government and others on the issue, but no conclusions have been reached yet.
Wishart said the 15-year partnership has been of great benefit to both Ethiopia and Saskatchewan, providing valuable education and knowledge exchanges.
Officials with the Canadian government’s Foreign Affairs and International Trade department said they would look into the matter, but had not responded by press time Tuesday.
6 thoughts on “Woyanne delegation to Canada confronted by protestors”
Look at AIGA forum (Weyane web site) to divert attention from hot issue about our beloved Ethiopia bleeding under the hand of weyane they posted a head line about individual acction as a big News.
Grow up Aiga!! be the voice of voiceless Ethiopian people under Weyanne
the so-called delegates are not representing Ethiopian, they are wayane delegates.so that you should call wayane!!
Shigute is only an instrument, a henchman used to carry out orders from the woyane mafia leader zenawi. there are many like him who are serving zenawi. they are opportunists who exist to stuff their bellies and nothing more. shigute and his likes are the lowest of the low.
abbay:
you are correct. The only person who has admitted to deporting those women and children was Weyane. Shiferaw Sigute has denied from the beginning to the end of deporting any people.
This indicates to me, it was Meles Zenawi who was in charge of the act. And it was Meles Zenawi who gave the justification that those women and children were deported because they were setting fire to forests, which is incredibly stupid. You would think, if that was true, he would also deport the Indians and Pakistanis who did clear hectares and hectares of Gambella forest by setting it on fire.
Shiferaw Shigute is most likely an innocent man. In all his interviews he has denied deporting any people. It was only Meles Zenawi who admitted to the act and supplied the sick justification.
Mamo.
Shiferaw Shigute is a clear sympton of the failure and weakness of the diaspora oppostion to the tribalist despotic regime in Ethiopia. All the opposition does is to make minor public demonstrations and submit high sounding petitions. All these, however, do not get much attention.
That is why thugs such as Shiferaw Shigute manage to conduct successful missions to North America and Europe, the seemingly main areas of control by the opposition. They literally roam around freely in the lion’s den virtually unaffected by the hues and cries of the various activities.
What do we learn, if we wish, from this shameful situation. It’s simple. Let us make use of our potent force in the right way. And that is to utilize the voters, be they Canadian/Ethiopians, German/Ethiopians, American/Ethiopians, etc. that should be deployed to influence the policies of the respective governments by contacting the key officials and members of parliament/congress on a continuous basis. In this manner, thugs like Shiferaw would not be invited let alone laugh all the way to the bank at the opposition.
Please think about and use your force effectively!!!!
Jason these are not Ethiopian politicians Rather the servants and henchmen of the time biggest mafia type structured gang with the help of some institutions and western countries and takes our beloved nation hostage for the last 20+ years.The guy who is the leader of the gang(delegation)is the most wanted criminal by Ethiopians.