Very heavy fighting between Ethiopian Woyanne troops and insurgents has broken out in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu.
Reports say several people have died in the morning battles taking place in three areas close to the stadium.
Ethiopian Woyanne forces supporting the interim government have moved in reinforcements in a bid to crush Islamist fighters.
The UN says Mogadishu is facing a “humanitarian catastrophe” with some 80,000 people fleeing the fighting within the past three days.
Uncertainty
The Ethiopian Woyanne forces engaged fighters who have been conducting guerrilla-style attacks on them since the beginning of the year.
The insurgents are loyal to a group of Islamic courts which were expelled from Somalia after briefly controlling much of central and southern parts of the country.
It is also reported that local residents have also been firing at Ethiopian forces.
There was heavy fighting at the weekend, and according to eyewitnesses the fighting in the past few hours has been more intense and casualties have been numerous.
International aid agencies have warned of an unfolding humanitarian crisis in parts of Somalia since the fighting began last week.
This warning came as Somali faces further uncertainty after its prime minister, Ali Mohammed Ghedi, resigned on Monday.
About 40 aid agencies working in Somalia have said the fighting has cut off their ability to respond effectively to the needs of the displaced people.
According to the UN some 400,000 displaced people are now living in camps in towns outside Mogadishu, which include Afgooye.
Somali’s transitional government is struggling to impose it authority on the country and its forces and their Ethiopian Woyanne allies face daily attacks from insurgents.
SHERE, Ethiopia, Nov 2 (Reuters) – When Ethiopia and Eritrea went to war nine years ago, Mullu Brhane was living in a town on the Ethiopian side of the border and his father lived just a few miles away in Eritrea.
“Only a river separated his village from Ethiopia and we used to visit each other,” says Mullu, now a 26-year-old tour guide. “But with the war, everything stopped.”
He smiles nervously and shrugs: “Maybe he’s dead. I don’t know.”
The 1998-2000 border conflict claimed some 70,000 lives but the dispute over the frontier was never resolved. And talk of another war is worrying residents of Ethiopia’s border country.
A deadline for the rivals to demarcate their frontier passes later this month when an independent boundary commission — apparently frustrated at their lack of progress — winds up its work amid increasingly aggressive rhetoric from both sides.
Ethiopia’s northern region of Tigray bore the brunt of the fighting during the last conflict — as it did during the country’s long and damaging civil war.
It also suffered severely during the 1984 famine that brought Ethiopia global attention.
“CAN’T AFFORD WAR”
But the area is now showing signs of development. Towns like Axum, Shere and Sheraro look more prosperous and labourers work on buildings that would not look out of place in the capital.
Food security has not been a big a problem in recent years and growing numbers of tourists are flocking to the area’s stunning rock-hewn churches and internationally-protected obelisks.
Some locals worry their progress could be undone.
“We’re doing good,” says Tesfaye, 37, as he enjoys a beer with friends in Shere town. “I hear the whole of Ethiopia is growing. We can’t afford another war.”
But his friend Habtamu, 42, adds: “The real problem is that the Eritrean government doesn’t want peace. It wants war.”
Both nations say they will not start any new fighting. But if war breaks out again, Tigray is sure to be at the centre.
Abandoned tanks and rusting armoured troop carriers lie along its twisting roads — reminders of the frontline role the region played in the last conflict.
Camouflaged observation posts on hilltops, busy military bases and uniformed men walking the streets of small towns are a constant reminder that tensions are still high.
SHARED HISTORY, CULTURE
“Our countries share a history and a culture,” says Tesfaye, adding that Eritrean television can be picked up in Shere without an aerial — but you need one to receive Ethiopian TV.
“We even speak the same language,” he says. “Before the war we could cross the border freely and marry each other. Many families were separated by the war. And not just in the north.”
Locals talk often of loved ones who died in the conflict.
“My father died in the last war,” one young woman tells Reuters, asking that she not be identified. “People were killed on both sides and that has caused bad feeling. Some Ethiopians hate Eritreans. I just want us to live in peace.”
She says she hopes her fears reach the ears of Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, himself a native of Tigray, where his Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front rebels led the fight against Ethiopia’s dreaded previous regime — and won in 1991.
“Meles has done some good things for Ethiopia,” she says. “He should continue that work and not get involved in another war. That is my wish.”
For Mullu, his wish has been the same for the past nine years: “I hope to see my father,” he says. “If peace comes maybe we will find each other.”
The great Ethiopian artist and member of Kinijt executive committee arrives at the Toronto Pearson Airport yesterday on November 1st 2007 at 5:30pm. Hundreds of Ethiopians, young and old, women and men were at the Airport to welcome Ato Debebe. There were Ethiopians who have travelled from as far as Waterloo, Hamilton and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) to show their support to Kinijt and welcome one of the their own.
The delegation led by Wzt. Birtukan are scheduled to join Ato Debebe today and at the town hall meeting tomorrow.
On Saturday, Oct. 27, Kinijit North America, on behalf of the Kinijit delegation, hosted a special get together in Virginia for members of the media and representatives of Kinijit chapters. There were about 100 people all together. My associates and I were among those who had been invited.
The who’s who of Kinijit in North America was at the party. The delegates — Dr Hailu Araya, Ato Gizachew Shiferraw, Ato Brook Kebede, and Dr Berhanu Nega — were there. Wzt. Bertukan, who was sick with flu, could not make it. Ato Aklog Lemeneh, Ato Yilma Adamou and all the other officials of the Kinijit NA and DC, Ethiomedia’s Abreha Belai, Addis Dimts Radio’s Abebe Belew, EMF’s Dawit Kebede… were all there.
As part of the event’s program, the delegates gave plaques to representatives of Kinijit chapters in the U.S. in recognition of their tireless efforts in the past two years in providing critically needed support to the party.
Members of the Kinijit Youth League also received a special recognition as the current workhorse and the future leaders of the party.
Cultural songs were being played to entertain the gathering. It seems that the value of cultural activities, including music, in politics is well understood by Kinijitians. Most Kinijit events include songs from different ethnic groups.
Lastly, Ato Aklog, on behalf of Kinijit North America, expressed his appreciation to Ethiopian Review, Ethiomedia, Addis Dimts Radio, Abugida and other Ethiopian media for helping with the Kinijit delegation’s successful USA tour.
I had attended several of these kinds of events over the years. But none compares with what I have witnessed or experienced on Oct. 27:
1) I am impressed with the professionalism of the organizers — from the way they dressed up, to how they welcome and interact with the invited guests, and
2) The delegates exude positive energy, optimism and hope that is hard to describe. They are leaders to be loved, not feared. They were approachable and sociable. They were going from table to table to say hello and they even went to the stage and did some iskista and other traditional Ethiopian dances. It was a memorable experience.
But the highlight of the event for me personally was to finally meet with Berhanu Nega. It was our first face to face meeting. Even though I had been one of Dr Berhanu’s harshest critics in the past, I always maintained a great deal of respect for him as a scholar and political leader. My disagreement with him had been over strategy and organizational rules, not over character. I thought his position as the campaign manager of Kinijit two years ago did not allow him to make public statements contradicting the chairman of the party. If the executive committee of Kinijit disagrees with the chairman, the proper way to communicate the disagreement to the public, if deemed necessary, is through the party’s official spokesperson — the same way as it is done right now. Other than that, the tremendous contribution made by Dr Berhanu to the Kinijit movement was well noted.
I believe that it was the intellectual fire power of Dr Berhanu Nega and Prof. Merera Gudina of ONC (credit where it is due), joined by Ato Lidetu Ayalew’s oratorical skill, that left the Woyanne regime politically naked and led to its defeat at the polls in May 2005. This is not to say that others did not play critical roles, particularly Ato Hailu Shawel, who helped organize the countryside, Ato Andargachew Tsige, who was the architect of Kinijit’s election campaign, and many others.
Unfortunately, Merera and Lidetu sold out the movement and became Woyanne’s decoration in the rubber stamp parliament. The much respected Hailu Shawel sadly turned himself into a double-tongued dictator. On the other hand, Kinijit gave birth to new heroes — the likes of Bertukan Mideksa and Muluneh Eyoel — to join Hailu Araya, Yacob Hailemariam, Gizachew Shiferraw, Berhanu Nega and others in leading the movement forward.
Whereas Hailu Shawel and Lidetu have fallen off Kinijit’s freedom train in disgrace, Berhanu Nega stayed loyal to the cause. Instead of seeking power (he could have been the mayor of Addis Ababa), he chose to respect the people’s wish at great personal sacrifices. He thus proved himself to be a man of integrity in keeping the trust bestowed upon him by the people of Ethiopia. This is on top of the brilliant mind he has. Hopefully, he will stay true to the principles of democratic governance and continue to grow as a leader… Who wants to end up disgraced like Lidetu, Hailu and Taye?
It was with all this in the back of my mind that I met with Berhanu Nega on Oct. 27. As I was chatting with a couple of friends, he walked across the room and came to talk to me. That by itself says a lot about him. Which Ethiopian politician, or religious leader, or any prominent person do we know of who would walk up to his critic to say welcome and exchange greetings? Can you, for example, imagine Iyasu Alemayehu doing that? Or Hailu Shawel? Or Meles? In Meles’ case, his lawyers sought death penalty against me just for being a critic. The kangaroo court decided that death is too harsh and gave me life in prison instead, just for expressing my views on a web site. After witnessing how Ato Hailu Shawel’s gang mistreated members of the media at their Oct. 14 public meeting (fiasco) in Washington DC, I am certain that if he comes to power, there will continue to be no free press in Ethiopia.
My encounter with Dr Berhanu lasted for about 15 minutes. We agreed to get together some other time for further discussion on some of the issues we raised during our brief conversation.
Berhanu Nega and Elias Kifle in Crystal City, Virginia, Oct 27, 2007
On a grey autumn evening of 1 November 2007 outside the Ethiopian Embassy, Londoners once again came out and remembered those massacred by the tyrant woyane regime in June and November 2005, fighting for freedom and democracy, following the protest against stolen votes in the May 2005 General election.
In November 2005, 193 peaceful and unarmed protesters were unlawfully killed, execution-style, by security personnel loyal to the regime of Meles Zenawi. According to the Inquiry Commission, “The majority of [the peaceful protesters] died from shots to the head.” The regime has used and continues to use paramilitary groups to commit extra judicial political killings and arrests in Oromia, Sidama and now Ogaden regions.
According to independent reports troops of woyane regime are burning villages, raping women and killing civilians as part of a systematic campaign to drive them from their homes. They reported dozens of villages destroyed and accused the Ethiopian government of forcibly starving its own people by preventing food convoys reaching villages and destroying crops and livestock.
Despite the release of leaders the main opposition and civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists in July 2007, and the rhetoric to bring the democratisation process back on track, the regime still keeps a tight grip on the nation and deny any space for political opposition. The release of Kinijt leaders is by the way the beginning in the struggle for freedom and democracy Not an end by itself.
The TPLF regime following local and international pressure may have released 38 prisoners of conscious, but Daniel Bekele, policy manager of ActionAid Ethiopia, and Netsanet Demissie, General Manager of the Organisation for Social Justice in Ethiopia, and hundreds others political prisoners still remain in prison for allegedly supporting the opposition. Kinijt as a movement for freedom and democracy built around the hopes and dreams of free Ethiopia continues to fights for the release of all political prisoners and establishment of democratic and independent institutions serving citizens not regimes in power. As a generation that does not remember its fallen heroes of freedom and democracy would runs the risk of living as a subject of rulers than a free citizen, on Remembrance Day we acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of those who died fighting against the tyrannical regime in Ethiopia. We strongly believed that their sacrifice have already made a significant difference for the future of our country, but it is up to us to ensure that their dream of free Ethiopia is realized.
Hence, the observers of the vigil sang:
“We remember our martyrs, we remember our heroes, Your death is not in vain, Your sacrifice is not in vain, Your suffering is not in vain, and Justice will be done. There may not be a parade or there may not be a band, but you shall not grow old in our mind.”
We firmly believe Kinijit leaders owe to those many unsung heroes, who left their home and never made it back, and those who left their family never to come back, and to those who called their name in all weathers; to come together and fulfil the long- desire to create a democratic Ethiopia.
Forcible return/ fear of torture or ill-treatment/incommunicado detention/ prisoner of conscience
Atanaw Wasie (m), aged 74, political activist
14 Ethiopian refugees
On 27 September, the Sudanese authorities forcibly returned 15 recognised refugees to Ethiopia. They were handed into the custody of Ethiopian security personal at the Ethiopia-Sudan border. Their current whereabouts in Ethiopia is unknown, and Amnesty International believes they are now at risk of enforced disappearance, arbitrary and incommunicado detention, torture and unfair trials.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced on 11 October that the 15 had been part of a group of more than 30 Ethiopian refugees arrested in early July 2007 by Sudanese intelligence officers in Khartoum and Blue Nile state.
Among the 15 was Atanaw Wasie, who has chronic asthma for which he needs medical treatment. He was a leader of the Ethiopian Democratic Union (EDU) political party, which opposed the Dergue government that was overthrown in 1991, but is no longer active. He was arrested on 7July 2007 in the eastern town of Gedaref and held incommunicado. His whereabouts in Ethiopia are unknown.
Others who were returned and detained are reported to be alleged members of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), which is fighting the Ethiopian security forces in the Oromia Region. Several thousand members of the Oromo ethnic group have been arbitrarily detained and tortured in Ethiopia in recent years.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Hundreds of Ethiopian and Eritrean nationals were arrested in Sudan in early July 2007. Many of those detained were asylum-seekers or recognized refugees. The recent detentions of Ethiopians came immediately after the Ethiopian foreign minister visited Sudan in June 2007. Many of the detainees have been living in Sudan as refugees since the late 1970s, and others are opponents of the government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi in Ethiopia, who have been arriving in Sudan since the 1990s to seek asylum.
Ethiopia is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, and the Organization of African Unity (OAU – now the African Union) Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, all of which oblige the authorities not to forcibly return any person to a country where they risk torture or other serious human rights violations.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in English or your own language:
– expressing concern for the safety of 15 Ethiopian refugees including Atanaw Wasie who were forcibly returned to Ethiopia on 27 September, in violation of international refugee protection law, and detained on arrival at the Ethiopian border;
– urging the Ethiopian authorities to immediately disclose their whereabouts and legal status;
– if the 15 are still being detained, calling for the Ethiopian government to explain the grounds for their detention; ensure that they are not subjected to torture or ill-treatment and are given immediate access to lawyers and relatives, and all necessary medical treatment – particularly for Atanaw Wasie;
– If they are in detention, calling for the Ethiopian Government to bring them promptly before a court and ensure they are either released or receive a prompt and fair trial in accordance with recognized international fair trial standards.
APPEALS TO:
Meles Zenawi, Office of the Prime Minister, PO Box 1031, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 1552020
Minister of Justice, Mr Assefa Kesito, Ministry of Justice, PO Box 1370, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 5517775/ +251 11 5520874
Email: [email protected]
COPIES TO:
The official Ethiopian Human Rights Commission
Ambassador Dr Kassa Gebreheywot, Chief Commissioner, Ethiopian Human Rights Commission
PO Box 1165, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 618 0041
Email: [email protected]
and to diplomatic representatives of Ethiopia accredited to your country.
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 11 December 2007.
