U.S. Senator Russ Feingold, chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on African Affairs, and a bipartisan group of his senate colleagues, sent this letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice regarding human rights abuses committed by the Meles regime’s military in the Ethiopia’s Ogaden region.
Dr. Condoleezza Rice
Secretary of State
Department of State
2201 C St. NW
Washington, DC 20520
July 31, 2007
Dear Madam Secretary:
We are deeply concerned by reports of systematic human rights abuses being committed by the Ethiopian military in Ethiopia’s Ogaden region. We believe it is the moral and legal duty of the United States to promptly and vigorously investigate these allegations and send clear, consistent messages that there will be serious consequences if these violations of national and international law are proven to be true.
As you know, last month the Ethiopian government announced a crackdown on Ogaden National Liberation Front rebels operating in Ethiopia’s eastern Somali region after the rebels attacked a Chinese-run oil exploration field in April. While the threat posed by the rebels is real and increased security measures in the area are warranted, the military’s operations appear to go far beyond what can be justified by national security concerns.
A New York Times article published on June 18, 2007, described “a widespread and longstanding reign of terror, with Ethiopian soldiers gang-raping women, burning down huts and killing civilians at will.” Although aggressively denied by Ethiopian authorities, reports of murder, torture, rape and village burnings have been corroborated by independent observers and aid groups struggling to respond to the growing humanitarian crisis in the region.
On July 4, 2007, Human Rights Watch released a statement accusing the Ethiopian military of forcibly displacing thousands of civilians from rural areas to large towns to deny support for the rebels. The Ethiopian government has also imposed a commercial blockade on parts of the region, preventing both normal commercial exchange and the delivery of food aid and other essential humanitarian assistance. The blockade has already provoked serious food shortages and large sectors of the population may face a severe emergency if commercial and humanitarian access is not immediately restored and preserved as the coming rainy season brings the threat of renewed flooding.
For years, the State Department’s own Human Rights Country Reports have cited unlawful killings and arbitrary detentions by Ethiopian security forces and police, most of which have never been investigated or resolved. In the meantime, the United States Government has been providing increased non-humanitarian assistance to Ethiopia, with a request to nearly double that support next year.
We understand that the United States has a valuable strategic relationship with the government of Ethiopia. However, we believe it is of fundamental importance to ensure that in our relationships with all governments on the African continent and around the world, the United States demonstrate a steadfast commitment to human rights, good governance, and justice.
We urge you to intensify pressure on the Ethiopian government to respect fundamental human rights norms even as it pursues critical security objectives. We expect that you will keep us appraised of new information regarding the Ethiopian military’s operations and conduct in the Ogaden and how the United States is responding.
Thank you for your attention and timely action on this important issue.
Sincerely,
Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI)
Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN)
Senator Susan Collins (R-ME)
Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME)
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
Senator Joe Biden (D-VT)
Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD)
Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL)
Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO)
CC: Assistant Secretary Jendayi Frazer
CC: Ambassador Don Yamamoto
2 thoughts on “U.S. Senator Feingold writes to Secretary Rice on abuses in Ogaden”
what a joke!
How can we trust the very machinery that keeps Zenawi afloat to save us from him? At this day and age, only the dumbest will buy this BS. All we have to remember is what happened to Rodney King and the subsequent verdict, the ongoing support the US is giving the house niggers posing as governments through out Africa and officials at the state department. Need I say more? The only salvation is through self sufficiency and preparedness to the tremendous self less sacrifice required! We Africans must be ready to fight white supremacy, because nothing short of that will ensure our God given rights to live on earth as human beings.
I Second what Eshetu K writes. In order to change the policy of this “Democratic Country” we live in, we all have to be citizen and vote. Otherwise we can curse, shout and cry until the hell freezes. You can only change the policy, and can take power from someone is either by the ballot box or by the bullet of the barrel. Which one can we choose and afford is upto us. Actions speaks louder than words. Thank you.