In the good old days it used to be the tradition of dictators to sit at home and never show their face in the capitals of the civilized world or in most parts of their own country. They respected the self-imposed isolation in the grand palace prison they constructed and did not pretend to love of be loved by others. It was a very refreshing condition for their subjects. They listen to the pronouncements of the dictator on the radio, watch the dictator cutting some ribbon surrounded by his security on TV or read about him in the local rag that passes itself as a newspaper.
Our friends Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Kim Jung of Korea, Omar al-Bashir of Sudan and others stay put in their prison. They do not venture out in broad daylight and impose themselves on the sensibilities of others. They are civilized enough not to embarrass their hosts and make others uncomfortable with their presence.
Then why is the little dictator from Ethiopia turning this tradition on its head? Why is Ato Meles popping up every place where pressing international matters are discussed? It looks like he has a bag ready to go at a drop of a hat to any and all conferences representing some obscure outfit but not the country he is purported to be leading. Why is he breaking the rule that has been working like a charm?
Ethiopia is one of the most back ward, illiterate, un electrified, un wired and famine stricken country in the entire world thanks to the backward looking voodoo economics practiced by our illustrious and fearless leader. There is no reason why the leader of such a country would want to sit on the same table as leaders of the most industrialized countries. He does not have a robust economy nor a strong military force to bring to the table. He does not have an imposing presence or a charming character to sway others. No logical reason at all. There is no reason why he will be invited to such a meeting either.
Thus in the twisted and unsurpassed cunning brain of his, the TPLF boss was able to insert himself by lobbying to represent Africa. It is a fact most of the African leaders would not dare to leave their capitals or do not have the chutzpah to sit on the same table as other elected leaders. But not our Meles. He is the indispensable, all knowing leader with the sharpest tongue East of the Nile. The word ‘shame’ is not in his vocabulary. ዩሉንታ and ስው ምንዩላል is foreign to Woyane and company. Thus while his people are starving in millions he have no qualms transporting his mafia entourage to far away places all at the expense of the Ethiopian people. You ask for what?
Vanity my friend. The dictator gets his legitimacy by rubbing shoulders with elected leaders. He strains his neck trying to have his picture taken besides powerful heads of state. While the Obamas avoid him like the plague, the Gordon Browns distance them selves away from him our hero keeps showing up again and again. Like a bad dream he does not go away. The interloper knows no boundary. The interloper marches to his own drummer.
The interloper is becoming a strain on the Diasporas budget. It took a lot of organization and finance to confront the dictator in London. The legitimate leaders drove by waving and nodding a knowing glace while our hero sunk in his chair to hide. Then he showed up again in Rome. Well our European cousins were forced to head over to Rome to unfurl the unwelcome sign again. Again hiding was the only option for the dictator.
Yesterday, It was the turn of the free Ethiopians in America to register our displeasure. That they did a good job is the talk of CNN, Al Jazeera and our independent and free websites. Those of us that did not attend owe our everlasting gratitude to you brave Ethiopians for speaking for the silenced in our homeland. Mr. Obama was heard to have said ‘the Ethiopians again, persistent aren’t they?’ Let us just say some of us are. There are many who take credit but secretly feed the monster. The ‘hodams’ among us, but that is another story.
The sad part is he is sticking around for a while. He is not ready to fade away. He is in the process of organizing his fourth ‘sham election’, which he will win. No question about that. Does it mean we have a few more unwelcome marches we have to go to? Is there a way we can convince the dictator to stay away from international conferences? Not a chance. On the other hand we want it to be registered to all conference organizers that unless you hold your meetings in some remote area like Pyongyang or Minsk we promise to be there. We do not enjoy disturbing your meeting but we believe someone have to give voice to the voiceless.
It is not news to us that the dictator and his wife were so unnerved by the protesters that they took the anger on each other. We know the only thing that would have calmed them was the sight of Ethiopian blood on the street and sidewalk. Helene Cooper of the New York Times was kind enough to record the furious arrival of the interlopers as they arrived to this lavish dinner they imposed themselves on. Here is an excerpt. There is no need to elaborate.
Next arrives Ethiopian President Meles Zenawi, who clearly did something in the car to anger his wife because she glares at him, Mr. Obama, Mrs. Obama, and anyone unfortunate enough to cross her line of vision.
The Obamas both look slightly taken aback by her. Wonder what happened in the car? The Ethiopian First Couple are quickly dispatched inside.
(http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/24/obamas-red-carpet-up-close-and-personal/?scp=2&sq=helene%20cooper&st=cse)
Now you know why Parliament members are sure to wear their diapers when in the presence of the Representative from Welkait. Being in her line of vision causes temporary loss of bodily functions, nervousness, twitching, stuttering and absolute cowardice. If you don’t believe me ask Teshome Toga.
Judge Bertukan has been in Woyane dungeon two hundred seventy days. Our protest is her strength. We are sad she is paying the price for our freedom. At the same time her resolve in the face of absolute tyranny empowers the rest of us to emulate our leader and stand firm. We wish Bertukan Medeksa a happy Meskel and promise to double our efforts until we are all free. We love you Bertukan may our god give you the strength to withstand the harsh conditions.
Selling citizens, selling children and selling land – Yilma Bekele
The late Democratic Republic of Germany (GDR) commonly known as East Germany was a very sad country. It was a place where the state elevated the art of coercion into a science. The Stasi (short for Staatssicherheitsdienst, or State Security Service) was the most potent weapon ever devised by a dictatorship.
The Stasi kept a close tab on all its citizens. The collapse of GDR, and the dismantling of the Berlin wall, gave us a clear look into the workings of a totalitarian state. It is said that Stasi had 91,000 employees and 350,000 collaborators in a country of 17 million. The Stasi infiltrated all associations, organizations, and clubs. The Stasi used blackmail to persuade citizens to inform on each other, including their own family. The Stasi was the most evil organization. The familiarity with Ethiopia is not a coincidence. The TPLF Internal Security is the new Stasi.
The TPLF’s security system is modeled after the Stasi. The regime might be clueless regarding the economic system, but it does not spare a penny when it comes to organizing a ruthless internal security system to blackmail, intimidate, and frighten the citizens of the country.
The GDR leaders constructed walls, buried land mines, and erected watchtowers to prevent their people from fleeing to the West. They also devised a clever way to profit from their hostages. They agreed to release political prisoners in exchange for money from their West German cousins. By the 1980’s, the payments we so large, that they became part of the GDR’s economic planning. Overall, 33,755 prisoners were released from the GDR, for a total amount of 3,436,900,755DM or $2.28 billion US dollars. As you can see, it was a very lucrative business.
Today we have the Ethiopian regime playing the same game with a different twist. Instead of political prisoners, the regime generates income by selling our children. We were famous for drought and famine, but now we are famous for the export of our children. It is true that the spread of HIV Aids, and other communicable diseases have decimated our population. Orphans are everywhere. For a poor country, without any safety net, the plight of our children is very sad indeed. On the other hand, the problem cannot be resolved by selling your precious resource. The minority regime has opened the door to unscrupulous individuals and organizations that have set up shop in Ethiopia. Their main concern is turning a profit rather than searching for a lasting solution. Reading ‘The Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism’ report is experiencing a nightmarish situation while still awake. It makes you wonder if there is any thing sacred to the TPLF riffraff.
Well-informed sources have told the Schuster Institute that recent trends in Ethiopia’s international adoptions strongly suggest an increase in corruption. In the past, these have been signs that a country’s adoption system is shifting from “white” to “gray”—that is, from a well-regulated humanitarian effort dedicated to the children’s welfare, to a business that is taking children from living families in order to gain profits from Western adoption fees.
Once the regime figured out this is one area where an obscene amount of profit can be made, with little or no investment, there was nothing that would stop our gallant rulers. The Schuster Report goes on to say ‘For Ethiopia, the numbers of children sent in adoption climbed from a total of 262 in 2002 to more than 2520 in 2007—a tenfold expansion in five years.
When you consider that the average cost to adopt in Ethiopia is around twenty thousand US dollars (the cheapest in the world) the government took in over 50 million US dollars in 2007 alone. Based on the trend of the last eight years, the numbers for 2008 and 2009 must be considerably higher. The Woyane government that is passing laws to suppress the independent press, human right work, in addition to curtailing NGO activities, is all of a sudden very receptive to the idea of setting up ‘model orphan centers’ by non-regulated foreign adoption agencies. Schuster Report goes on to say,
· “Homes” for pregnant women that appear to have been created “strictly to provide infants for the adoption trade” (in the words of an observer).
· Fraud on the children’s documents about such facts as their real ages and whether they were abandoned or relinquished by families.
As you can see the TPLF regime in collusion with westerners was using the so-called “homes” as a baby factory designed for export of children who were treated like “another” commodity. Can you imagine the agony of a mother or a father who “gives” up their baby never to see him or her again? What is very alarming is the fact that some of the children who were put up for adoption are not orphans. Woyane agents falsified documents to show the children as orphans, while the birth parents were still alive according to Canadian parents that were swindled in Ethiopia.
As if selling children were not enough, the regime is also involved in signing long-term leases of our fertile land with foreign investors. An article by Michael Chebsi reads:
The Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has promised Saudi Arabia that his country will provide hundreds of thousands of hectares of unutilised agricultural land for growing cereals in the east African country. This is a follow up to an earlier pledge by Ethiopia to grant 5,000 hectares of land to the Djibouti government for large-scale commercial farming.
The Ethiopian agriculture ministry is identifying available land for such foreign investors; so far close to two million hectares of land have been identified in the regions of Oromia and Amhara, where almost all cereals in the country are produced.
Land is state property in Ethiopia. The regime uses its status as the landlord to control the life of the peasant farmer. Seventeen years of experimentation with voodoo economics have left the country unable to feed itself. Over fourteen million Ethiopians are in constant need of food handouts from foreign donors. Instead of changing a failed policy, the regime is trying to solve its balance of payment problem by leasing our land. The consequence of this action is to condemn millions of citizens into perpetual insecurity and forces them to need help from outsiders.
The Ethiopian Stasi strangle hold on our people is visible in every part of our country. The security services are part of the everyday landscape. They make it a point to be seen and felt. The idea is to intimidate and terrorize. They are in every office, in every coffee shop and bar on every street corner including places of worship. They do not try to blend in rather they like to stand out begging for recognition. The aim is to create mistrust and fear. The TPLF regime spends more money on security than education and health combined. Their presence is even felt by the Diaspora. Most of our people are afraid to have their picture taken during a protest, scared to sign their name and contribute money anonymously. I am sure there are a few that report back on the activities of the Diaspora but the fear factor is more than the reality. The TPLF regime is a fear factory.
Dictatorship is not sustainable. Despite all the effort by the leaders of GDR, they were not able to stop the spontaneous uprising by their people. Sooner or later the victims wake up. The East German dictator Erich Honecker fled to the old Soviet Union when his country withered away. Unfortunately for him, the Soviet Union went through some change itself and he was extradited back home. During the trial, he was found to be ill with terminal cancer, and the Germans government unceremoniously deported him to Chile where he died alone. His life was a total waste, but he also caused agony and hardship to his people.
Andenet Party Chairman Judge Bertukan Mideksa has been in jail two hundred and fifty days. Her crime is she stood up against the dictatorship. The regime is using Judge Bertukan to break the will of the people. It is a futile effort by those in power to get respect and recognition. It did not work for Mengistu Haile Mariam. It did not work for Erich Honecker. There is no reason to believe that it is going to work this time. All patriotic Ethiopians know Judge Bertukan is paying the price for our freedom. We know that Judge Bertukan is the reflection our dreams and our hope for our ancient kingdom. We share the sentiments of the late Senator Kennedy when he said ‘the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die.’ Hear this .WAV 173K The dream of the righteous and just Ethiopia will never die. We, that is you, and I, we are the future. Never doubt that. Ethiopia will rise up again.
It is the right season to demand justice. It is the right time to demand respect for human rights and the rule of law. After the long drought of hopelessness and apathy, we are ready to flex our muscle and deliver a powerful punch. Why the optimism you might ask?
It is a good question. The answer is both simple and straightforward. Both internal and external conditions are favorable to us. Internally the economic hardship is taking a toll. Inflation is still in double digits, devaluation is rendering the birr (Ethiopia’s currency) a useless currency and remittances that have been propping up the dying system have dried up. The illegal regime is forced into picking pockets of returnees to supplement its meager foreign currency reserves.
Externally the defeat of the republican administration in the US has dealt a heavy blow to ‘terrorist’ traders like the TPLF regime. The advent of Mr. Obama has become a game changer event. Democracy is in dictatorship is out, real verifiable election is in sham election is out in short reality is in vogue while fantasy and make believe is nothing but a pipe dream.
There is a Russian saying ‘A fish rots from the head’. It is Ethiopia in a nutshell. Any organization is a reflection of its leader. The TPLF type of leadership has run its course. It functioned when there was plenty to go around. The thieves did not have the time to fight over the loot. It worked when terror was deployed as a tool to intimidate and silence. Well there is no more to steal. The till is empty. Agazi militia, Federal Police or Kebele tugs have lost their aura of invincibility. Remember the last years of the Derg when the accusers walked with their head down in shame? It is déjà vu time again. It is the law of physics, what goes up must come down. It is independent of our will.
What happened in Adama last week was a reflection of a dying system. The last gasps of a disease ridden rotten fish flailing one last time. The eighteen years old society built on the concept of equality of nationalities was laid bare. Like we suspected Woyane was not building the future Ethiopian nation but rather a bunch of weak Bantustans ruled by mobs and zombies. This is the new improved Ethiopia, you stay on your side and I stay on my side. We thought Woyane wants to control what we say but now we also know they want to control in what language not to say it. Woyane never ceases to amaze. So in Adama you only speak Oromyea, in Tigrai conversation is allowed only in Tigregna, Amharic only in Gondar, Wolaita in Sodo and so forth. Can you watch Amharic News on TV in Sidamo? Can you think in Guragegna in Mekele? Where does all this madness stop?
Some body got to say it stops right here and right now! A lot have started to say enough is enough. But it takes time. Especially with us Ethiopians, time is a very fluid commodity. We are lackadaisical when it comes to time. Our philosophy could be summed up as ‘why do it today when it could be done tomorrow’. Some say it is good old responsibility avoidance. We also have a tendency to dump it on a higher power to shift blame. It is a good escape mechanism. It has not served us well. Indifference in the face of injustice is not a winning strategy.
No matter people are making noise. As our good brother Malcolm X said we are slowly but surely resolving to attain our dignity ‘by any means necessary’. It is about time all those that abhor injustice stand up and be counted. We in the Diaspora are the lucky ones that can say no. We speak because those at home are muzzled. For the vast majority life has become intolerable. Eating once a day has become a luxury. It is always surprising to hear our visitors talk upon their return from a trip back home. It is clear we see what we want to see. But on the other hand isn’t it true a hunger even by one is one too many hunger? How about by fourteen million? Does changing the description to malnutrition relive us of the responsibility?
Our people back home are fighting the injustice in many different ways. Silence, non-cooperation, sabotage, and exodus are some of the methods. None of them are healthy for a human being. It is not easy. Fighting a state organized for coercion is a formidable task. The Soviet Union lasted sixty-nine years. Eastern Europeans suffered for over forty years while the North Koreans are celebrating fifty-six years of misery.
We are on our thirty fifth year. Thirty-five years of destruction of the body and the spirit. Every household in Ethiopia has been negatively affected. No one escaped from this calamity. It is a miracle we survived intact. The Derg and the TPLF regime have done incalculable damage to our country. The TPLF regime is in league with the likes of Stalin, Pol Pot, Erich Honecker and Nicolae Ceauşescu. The hallmarks of a dictatorship include dividing people on tribal basis and encouraging difference, setting up a very lethal security apparatus that uses terror to create fear, pitting one group against another, state sponsored extortion and blackmail and hit squads that kill in broad day light. The TPLF regime in Ethiopia displays all these characteristics.
All the above dictators were forced out. Not one of them walked away peacefully. They all have an inglorious end. That is the way of dictatorship. It has to be nudged away.
That is the reason for the Washington DC march on Sunday, September 13. It is to nudge the Ethiopian dictator. It is a show of force. It is to remind President Obama the invaluable help he got from the Ethiopian community. We are pleased by the new emphasis on democracy, free elections and respect for basic human rights. We are hopeful the US will not turn a blind eye to the abuse of our people. We don’t expect the US, Western Europe or anyone else to do our battle. What we want them to do is stop enabling the minority government by granting aid, easy loans from IMF and World Bank and any kind of military assistance. We will do the rest.
The Washington DC march on September 13 is one aspect of our resistance to dictatorship. Attending the march is a civic responsibility. It is transforming word into action. It is showing love for ones country in a concrete way. Dress green yellow and red and carry green yellow and red. Turn Washington DC into a sea of green, yellow and red. Show the dictator that we will never ever submit to terror.
The Actions of Our Enemies, the Silence and Indifference of Our Friends
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends,” said Dr. Martin Luther King. The silence and indifference of our friends could be just as harrowing. Thank you Gasha (Shield) for Ethiopians for remembering the thousands of political prisoners languishing in Ethiopia today. Nothing is more important and uplifting to political prisoners than knowledge of the fact that they are not forgotten, abandoned and forsaken by the outside world. Remembrance gatherings at town hall meetings such as this one serve to remind all of us who live in freedom the divine blessings of liberty and the unimaginable suffering of those trapped in the darkness of dictatorship. Thank you Gasha for organizing this event to remember Ethiopia’s voiceless, but not forgotten, political prisoners. [1]
Birtukan Mideksa as the Symbol of All Political Prisoners in Ethiopia
The symbol of all political prisoners in Ethiopia today is Birtukan Mideksa. It could be said Birtukan is the accidental heroine in our struggle against dictatorship. She is a young woman in her mid-thirties, and a single mother with a four-year old daughter. She is soft spoken, humble and unassuming. She is thoughtful, articulate, witty, analytical and measured in her speech. She studied law and became a judge. She performed her judicial duties with integrity, independence and extraordinary professionalism. Birtukan represents the best of the best generation of Ethiopia – the young women and men who are destined by history to rescue Ethiopia from the darkness of dictatorship and deliver her to the bright sunlight of freedom, democracy and human rights. Birtukan will remain our flickering candle of hope in the withering storm of dictatorship and oppression that has gripped our homeland.
Birtukan’s Reimprisonment
Following the 2005 elections, Birtukan was jailed for nearly two years with other opposition leaders, human rights advocates, journalists and civic society activists. She was released by a “pardon” in July, 2007. In December, 2008, her “pardon” was revoked because “she failed to annul her denial” of receiving it in 2007. Birtukan told a different story:
On December 10, 2008 the Federal Police commissioner sent two officers of the District 12 Police to ask me to go to his office, I went to his office thinking that he probably wanted to talk to me about our Unity Party. However, when he told me the reason I was summoned to his office was related to the pardon, the first question I asked him was what authority the police have in relation to this issue. But his response was accompanied with a smile of surprise and said this is not an academic discussion and it is better for you to stop this kind of question. But what they found to be funny and perplexing is something great that I will forever live for, stand for, and sometimes get jailed and released for – it is the rule of law and abiding by the constitution…
On December 24, 2008 he summoned me to his office again through a messenger but without a legal warrant. But when I received a legal warrant in the afternoon of the same day, I did not waste a minute to go to his office. What awaited me at the Commissioner’s office and what was stated in the warrant were very different. Instead of asking me questions as stated in the warrant, what the Commissioner did was to give me a warning that sounded like an order. He said that unless I retract the statement I made in Sweden within three days, the government will remove the pardon and lock me in jail.” [1]
Of course, Birtukan has never denied receiving a “pardon”. Even if she had made a denial, the fact that she received one is a matter of public record. Her opinion on the subject has no legal significance; it is certainly not a crime. For allegedly “denying” her “pardon”, she is now doing a life sentence. She was held in solitary confinement for the first six months, a punishment reserved for the most violent criminals inside any prison. But her re-imprisonment is instructive on the brutal and outrageous nature of the dictatorship in Ethiopia today.
Typology of Ethiopian Political Prisoners
The phrase “political prisoners” may be overbroad in accurately describing the ordinary citizens from all walks of life who are held captive by the dictatorship. The discrete categories of political prisoners in Ethiopia are numerous. There are “no political prisoners” who are “political prisoners.” The capo dictator in 2006 declared, “There are no political prisoners in Ethiopia at the moment. So it is difficult to explain a situation of political prisoners because there are none. However, insurgents and militants have been imprisoned because of their militant and violent acts.”
There are political prisoners who have committed “state” crimes by exercising their guaranteed “human and democratic rights” in the “Ethiopian constitution”. Dissenters, critical journalists, civic society leaders and members are jailed arbitrarily despite the fact that they have unrestricted constitutional “freedom of expression and information and ideas of all kinds without interference,” press censorship is prohibited and “freedom of association and peaceably assembly” guaranteed. The are those who, like Birtukan, are made political prisoners because they “will forever live for, stand for, and sometimes get jailed and released for [upholding] the rule of law and abide by the constitution.”
There are political prisoners who were once members of the dictatorship but fell out of grace when they opposed the cabal leadership (that is the “government within the government”). Among these include individuals with strong nationalists leanings, advocates of Ethiopian unity and critics of endemic corruption.
There are those who are imprisoned as “desperado-terrorists”. They are accused of attempting to overthrow the “government” and its “leaders” at the bidding of alleged international masterminds who manipulate them by remote control. Members of certain organizations are automatically presumed to be “militants,” “insurgents” and “terrorists” and jailed.
There are guilty-by-association political prisoners, often family members and friends of those accused of “state” crimes or deemed to be opponents of the “government”. There are scapegoat political prisoners, innocent individuals who become the fall guys for the corruption and wrongdoing of those in power. There are individuals who became political prisoners because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. There are even entertainers who became political prisoners because they did not sing praises of the dictatorship.
Then there are the inmates of Prison Nation Ethiopia, Inc., some 80 million political prisoners who live each day under relentless oppression.
All of these political prisoners have their own stories to tell, but they can not because they have been rendered voiceless. We must stand in for them and tell their stories to the world.
Campaigning for the Release of Political Prisoners in Ethiopia
We need to undertake a campaign for the release of political prisoners in Ethiopia. By its very nature, this campaign is a moral undertaking. It is a campaign to bring about external pressure on the ruthless dictators to improve the prison conditions for these prisoners and to gain their eventual release.
Such a campaign will not be easy, and we should not expect quick results. Most importantly, we must begin the effort with a clear and realistic understanding of certain fundamental facts about the dictators who maintain Prison Nation. We must incorporate in our operational assumptions that the dictators 1) are concerned only with clinging to power as long as possible and at any cost; 2) operate in a complete moral vacuum; 3) view all Ethiopian Diasporic human rights efforts with contempt and derision; 5) believe that the Diaspora is in a state of disarray, dissension, disagreement and division and without a unifying leadership and therefore incapable of concerted action in any endeavor; 6) know they can sneer at the international community in much the same way as Robert Mugabe and the Burmese military junta; 7) will conform their conduct to international human rights standards only when their personal, financial and monetary interests are at stake, namely when they believe there is a risk of sanctions or loss of international aid and loans which they skim to line their pockets.
In light of the foregoing, how can we best advance the cause of political prisoners in Ethiopia? How can we ensure that political prisoners are not tortured, mistreated, abused and dehumanized? How can we get them released? I believe these objectives can be achieved in a multiphasic process. The first phase is the creation of massive international public awareness of the plight of political prisoners.
Phase 1: Increasing International Awareness of Ethiopian Political Prisoners
Fact Gathering and Documentation. To be effective advocates of Ethiopian political prisoners, we must be well informed on prison conditions and the techniques used by the dictators to transform ordinary citizens into political prisoners. Currently, we have limited empirical data on the number of political prisoners, their distribution throughout the country and prison conditions. It is essential that we collect qualitative and quantitative data. Anecdotal evidence shows that there are 3 “federal” prisons and 117 “regional” ones. It is well established that there are numerous secret prisons and detentions facilities throughout the country. According to a 2008 report by Col. Michael Dewars, an internationally recognized riot expert hired by the dictatorship, “conditions inside Ethiopian prisons are appalling,” possibly the worst in the world. The 2008 U.S. State Department Human Rights Report described prison conditions as follows:
Prison and pretrial detention center conditions remained harsh and life threatening. Severe overcrowding was a problem. Prisoners often had less than 22 square feet of sleeping space in a room that could contain up to 200 persons, and sleeping in rotations was not uncommon in regional prisons… Prison conditions were unsanitary and there was no budget for prison maintenance. Medical care was unreliable in federal prisons and almost nonexistent in regional prisons. In detention centers, police often physically abused detainees. Authorities generally permitted visitors but sometimes arbitrarily denied them access to detainees. In some cases, family visits to political prisoners were restricted to a few per year. While statistics were unavailable, there were some deaths in prison due to illness and poor health care. Prison officials were not forthcoming with reports of such deaths.
Organize Conferences, Town Hall Meetings and Other Discussion Forums. To be effective advocates for Ethiopian political prisoners we must come together and discuss strategy and tactics in a common forum. Today’s forum organized by Gasha for Ethiopians is an excellent first effort. Other meetings and conferences should actively seek the participation of former Ethiopian political prisoners, scholars, human rights advocates, policy makers and others to brainstorm strategies.
Condemnations and Legislative Resolutions. Following the Iranian election and the kangaroo trial of Aung San Suu Kuy, there has been an extraordinary demonstration of moral outrage by various leaders. President Barack Obama, Prime Ministers Stephen Harper and Gordon Brown have condemned the illegal detention of Iranian demonstrators and the kangaroo court conviction of Ms. Kuy. The EU tightened sanctions on Burma. India, Indonesia and a number of the ASEAN countries have condemned Burma’s military dictators. There is no reason why we can not get such action taken on behalf of Birtukan and the thousands of political prisoners if we put our resources together. It should be recalled that Ethiopians living in the states of Massachusetts, Washington, Oregon and Oklahoma managed to get legislative resolutions passed over the past couple of years. We need to undertake such an effort on an international scale.
Securing Support From Former Political Prisoners and Other Human Rights Defenders. The cause of Ethiopian political prisoners could be advanced significantly if we could get the support and endorsement of individuals who have earned universal respect for their moral courage and personal integrity. Recently, President Nelson Mandela called for the release of Ms. Kuy. Archbishop Desmond Tutu has condemned political repression in Africa and called for release of political prisoners. President Vaclav Havel (imprisoned for 5 years by the Czechoslovak Communist regime for his leadership of the dissident group Charter 77 and later president), the Dalai Lama, Paul Rusesabagina (the Rwandan hotel manager who saved thousands from Hutu massacres), Walesa (a former political prisoner, later President of Poland and recently spearheaded efforts for release of Cuban political prisoners), Mary Robinson (former president of Ireland and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights) could be enlisted in this effort. We can confidently say that Shirin Ebadi, (first Iranian woman Nobel Luareate for peace pioneering efforts for democracy and human rights) and Dr. Wangari Maathai (first Kenyan woman Nobel laureate for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace) and many others could be persuaded to champion the cause of Birtukan and the thousands of other political prisoners in Ethiopia if they are approached.
Join and Support the Work of International Human Rights Organizations. We can’t do it alone. Collaboration with international human rights organizations must be a critical component of everything we do to campaign for Ethiopian political prisoners. We owe a debt of gratitude to Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Genocide Watch and many other organizations for much of the documentation and analysis we have today on human rights violations in Ethiopia. We need to join these organization in large numbers and work with them to bring pressure on the dictators. We need to engage the International Committee of the Red Cross, which has previously visited “regional” prisons, to investigate prison conditions now.
Think Global, Act Local: Using Local Media and Resources. Those of us who live in exile in the democratic countries should make use of local media resources available in our communities to raise public awareness for Ethiopian political prisoners. We should write in local newspapers, give radio and television interviews and speak at civic association meetings. Though such efforts may seem somewhat challenging, they could be done relatively easily by anyone who is willing to inform him/herself and is committed to stand up and speak up for the voiceless political prisoners.
We should also make use of resources available at the law schools, universities, high schools, churches and other community organizations to create broad public awareness of Ethiopian political prisoners. For instance, if American students could be mobilized to champion the cause of Darfur, young Ethiopian college students could also mobilize them to support Ethiopian political prisoners. Similar mobilization efforts could be undertaken with religious institutions and civic associations.
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned…
In Isaiah 58:6 is written: “Free those who are wrongly imprisoned… Let the oppressed go free, and remove the chains that bind people.” The essence of this message is present in the teachings of all of the world’s great religions. The cause of freeing Ethiopian political prisoners is divinely ordained, and all of us in exile must shoulder our responsibility, if not for man’s sake, to fulfill the will of the Almighty. We must labor for the cause of Ethiopian political prisoners not because it is easy or fashionable, but because it right and just. In the end, what will make the difference is not the brutality, ruthlessness and inhumanity of the dictators but our humanity, empathy and compassion for the wrongly imprisoned. Let us join hands and do our divine mission: “Free those who are wrongly imprisoned…”
[1] Commentary based on a presentation given at a town hall meeting in Washington, D.C. sponsored by Gasha (Shield) for Ethiopians, a civic organization dedicated to promoting the rule of law, democracy and human rights in Ethiopia, on August 16, 2009.
Last Monday Aiga Forum, the website reflecting the views and opinions of Tigray Peoples Liberation Front, the party in power in Ethiopia that is led by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi posted a racial slur directed at the president of the USA. It said:
“The misguided extremist Diasporas have been cheering up for the last couple of days. You know why? Hillary
Clinton will not visit Ethiopia during her trip to Africa. Hmm! Who cares if the N**** administration ignores Ethiopia?!” Aigaforum.com
This posting was viewed by thousands of people as far away as in Germany and as close as San Francisco, CA. You can read Ato Abebe Gellaw’s investigative reporting on the subject here.
The fact that Aiga Forum posted the racial slur is undeniable. Aiga Forum used an ugly racial epithet to describe the administration of President Obama is a fact that will not disappear by the simple rearrangement of a web site posting. Once on the Internet it stays on the Internet. What is published on the web will stay there no matter what, unless of course a nuclear explosion obliterates the thousands of servers diligently saving all that is put in cyber space.
The way a person or an organization reacts to incidents is a reflection of their mindset, philosophy, or their general outlook in life. The way that Aiga Forum, as the mouthpiece of the TPLF regime, decided to respond to this shameful incident is a window into their standard operating procedure.
If I might digress a little bit, let’s compare two situations that happened within the last month. On July 16 a black Harvard professor was arrested by a white police officer in Cambridge, MA. The incident received wide coverage. During a press conference, Mr. Obama responded to a question and said the Cambridge police ‘acted stupidly’. He spoke too soon. Plenty of folks, both black and white, were hasty in their conclusion.
Our dear professor President, Barrack Obama, realized he was wrong. Upon further reflection, he later admitted that, “I could have calibrated those words differently.” He did not leave it at that. He decided to use the incident as a ‘teachable moment’ for all Americans. He opened the door for citizens and law enforcement people to discuss racial sensitivity, racial profiling, and the issue of race in today’s America. A positive outcome was created out of a bad situation.
Now, let us look at how Aiga Forum and the TPLF regime handled the ugly incident that they created. They wanted to shift responsibility away from their despicable act. They denied that what many people saw, did not exist. They attempted to make the story about me because I wrote an article pointing out their shameful insult against President Obama, and our African American brethren. That is not fair. The story is about Aiga/TPLF’s defamation of the first African American President.
The following is their response to their dirty deed:
Take for example a certain Yilma Bekele article that appeared on abbay media and ethio forum websites about Aigaforum. For the record Aigaforum did not write or post the comments attributed to us in the article! Yilma must be idle or hurt by the ongoing saga with UDJ! Else what was he smoking when he wrote such white lie about Aigaforum? Shame to those websites who posted the article without checking! The two websites could not even agree how to present the article to their readers. One is trying to cheat readers to make it more believable!
Yilma, ethioforum and abbay media you are wrong! When we want to say something we do not hide or speak /write in ‘qene’ we are straight. Next time quote us properly! And we ask you to apologize to your readers for misinforming them.
You see what I mean. The highlighted color is theirs, and the emphasis is theirs. What brought about idleness, smoking, and UDJ into the picture is not clear. After publishing this, they have the chutzpah to ask for an apology. Two Amharic sayings come to mind. The first one is ‘ye leba aynederek melso lib yaderq’ and the second one is ‘ke detu wede matu’. The explanation and the usual insult was posted on Wednesday, August 5th. The next day they came up with a whole new clarification. They claimed that their ‘nemesis’ used ‘disposablewebpage.com’ to defame their image. Of course, this new spin on the story is not true either. We have IT professionals that can prove the so-called disposablewebpage.com that they claim created the insulting posting, was made after the fact. This is just another feeble attempt to white wash the original blunder.
Aiga Forum/TPLF editors could have used this incident to reflect on their destructive behavior. They could have dug deep into their psyche and try to understand what we have been pointing out about their ethnic based mentality, and its negative effects on our country. They could have used this ugly uttering as a ‘teachable moment’ about the pearls of narrow ethnicity, racially motivated hatred, and using insults to demean a fellow human being.
That is not the style of the minority-based government in Ethiopia, the bankroller of Aiga forum. Aiga Forum has made it a habit to insult and demean fellow Ethiopians. Its web page sole reason for existence is to inflame inter ethnic animosity between our people. It is a cheerleader for the inhuman acts of its sponsors that are directed at the citizens of Ethiopia and neighboring countries. It is a factory of lies, innuendos, and half-truths used to split opposition parties and to pit one group against another to later enjoy the fireworks sitting on a high chair.
It has insulted our tireless and successful community organizer Ato Obang Metho as a ‘phony’ leader, it has led the charge against Kinijit, and the massacre of peaceful demonstrators in the aftermath of the 2005 election. It is currently salivating at the prospect of a civilized argument inside Andenet turning into a full-blown war. Aiga Forum is adding fuel to the family discussion trying to turn it into a conflagration.
If Aiga Forum can prove that they are not responsible for that which was posted on their website, I will be the first one to apologize. I will go to great length to ask for forgiveness from Aiga Forum for defaming them. I am sure our independent web sites will not hesitate to print a retraction.
On the other hand, there is definitely no chance that this will happen. It is because we stand by our story that upon opening Aiga Forum site people saw the ugly post right on their front page. Unless Aiga Forum can prove that someone hacked into their site, and planted the ugly degenerate statement, the statement I made continues to be a verifiable fact.
What to do about it a good question. Thanks to the freedom we enjoy in the USA Aiga Forum is protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution. Many people died to uphold that right we take for granted. The right to use the N word Aiga Forum is throwing at the President did not come cheap. Many of our African American brothers and sisters paid a heavy price, in order for us to live and enjoy life to the fullest. We Ethiopians should know better. When our country was attacked by Fascist Italy, our African American friends were the first ones to volunteer to help us stand up against a European aggressor. The great African American poet journalist Langston Hughes wrote the ‘Ballad of Ethiopia’ that included the words:
All you colored peoples
Be a man at last
Say to Mussolini
No! You shall not pass
We definitely owe quite a lot to many people, specially our natural allies, the Africans in the Diaspora. Aiga Forum wrote ‘we put a quick disclaimer and moved on’. It is not that easy my friends. A disclaimer cannot erase a deliberate insult and a shameful act. President Obama has been insulted in a vicious manner. I have been defamed by being called a liar, and the Ethiopian people have been included in this shameful act. The only way out is for the alleged Administrator of Aiga Forum, a certain Isayas Abay, to acknowledge this transgression, and to ask for forgiveness from all the injured parties, including the people of Ethiopia. I believe that Aiga Forum should have its own ‘teachable moment’ and refrain from becoming such a divider and a negative force in our country’s strive to attain democracy, respect for human rights, and the ushering of the rule of law into our ancient kingdom. There is no other way out.
If on the other hand, the Aiga Forum/TPLF owners persist on this fiction of blaming others for their hate crimes, they leave us no choice but pursue all legal means to stop them from hurting us again. We are in the process of finalizing a petition drive to ask Ethiopians, and all peace loving people to condemn the actions of Aiga Forum/TPLF and to make our feelings known in no uncertain terms. We are not afraid any more. We refuse to be bullied. We refuse to be victimized by the narrow ethnic based regime. We refuse to be insulted, degraded, and dehumanized when our country is crying out for justice and progress. We demand the removal of the unjust system that is keeping our country backward, illiterate, and center of starvation in the twenty first century. Enough is enough. We say to Aiga Forum/ TPLF camp, you can run but you cannot hide from the truth.
“The misguided extremist Diasporas have been cheering up for the last couple of days. You know why? Hillary Clinton will not visit Ethiopia during her trip to Africa. Hmm! Who cares if the N**** administration ignores Ethiopia?!” Aigaforum.com
U.S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is visiting Africa. She is on a seven-nation tour that includes Kenya, South Africa, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Liberia and Cape Verde. If you notice Ethiopia is not included. Why isn’t Ethiopia included is a good question.
Ethiopia is the seat of African Union. Ethiopia is the second most populated country in Africa. Ethiopia is one of the oldest Nation State in the world. Ethiopia is known for staying independent while most of the planet was colonized by European powers.
We Ethiopians were sad when President Obama choose Ghana as his first stop to showcase his commitment to democracy and the rule of law on our continent. We were happy for Ghana; nevertheless we were disappointed we were not accorded such honor. His Secretary of State bypassed our old kingdom and choose Kenya as the first leg of her African tour.
It is not just another humiliation to be shrugged off. We feel slighted. In diplomatic circles it is seen as a major put down. It is a loud and clear statement by President Obama’s administration that our country is not worthy of positive attention.
The reason Ethiopia is totally ignored is not because our country is not important in both continental and international affairs. It is not because we are poor and backward. It is not because we are not strong. The only reason we are considered not worthy of attention is because we have a government structure that is undemocratic, illegal and seen as a pariah in civilized circles.
The TPLF regime is the reason for our humiliation. Both President Obama and his Secretary of State were not willing to be seen associating with a dictatorial regime. They were not willing to bestow such honor on a regime that views it s citizens as sub humans to be bullied and abused.
How did the regime responded to such a loud statement by the US government? Did the TPLF regime saw the slight as an opportunity to question their policy on human rights and good governance? Did it make them pause and see the wrong road they are traveling? Was it a cause of discussion among the ruling party to see what can be done to remedy the ugly situation?
None of the above is the answer. The mouth piece of the TPLF regime choose to sink so law that it is even shameful to repeat what was said and written. It is unspeakable. TPLF is Aiga Forum. Aiga Forum is TPLF. What Aiga Forum published on it website is beyond reprehensible. It is ugly and it is not Ethiopian. I repeat it with sadness and a very heavy heart. I quote Aiga Forum because all civilized people should see TPLF’s ugliness. The Ethiopian people have been the recipient of such verbal and physical humiliation by the TPLF regime for the last eighteen years. Following is what Aiga Forum published on its web site.
“The misguided extremist Diasporas have been cheering up for the last couple of days. You know why? Hillary Clinton will not visit Ethiopia during her trip to Africa. Hmm! Who cares if the N**** administration ignores Ethiopia?!” Aigaforum.com
To use such ugly and despicable term to describe the President of the United States is madness in its extreme state. To describe a universally loved, respected administration as such is beyond insanity. To use that word on a fellow black person is incomprehensible. Even to think in such terms about the leader of the free world is very sick. It is a loaded word that has been used as a putdown on our African American brethren.
We Ethiopians are not cheering Mrs. Clinton’s non-visit to our homeland. We are saddened. We know how to differentiate between our dear nation and the government. We are torn between our love for our homeland and the ramifications of a visit that will bestow legitimacy on an illegal regime.
The publishers of Aiga Forum and their cousins in Ethiopia are so used to insulting us, putting us down and humiliating us that they thought nothing of it when they heaped their insult on our brother. We might be cruel with each other, we might have gone astray the last few years and done some shameful things to each other but we want the world to know that we are god fearing, neighbor loving and loyal people. We are saddened, ashamed and deeply disturbed by the sick statement uttered by our fellow Ethiopians. We wish it was never said, but we want the world to understand what our country is going thru at this very moment under the tyranny of the TPLF regime. We ask for forgiveness.
