Press Release
Kinijit International Leadership
Kinijit International Political Leadership Committee on behalf of the Kinijit leadership is actively pursuing the realization of the objectives of Kinijit and mobilizing the Ethiopian community for the struggle for freedom and democracy. The release of our leaders is the prime objective of our activity. Maximizing the utilization of various media outlets including those that are its own as an instrument for the struggle.
It is to be noted that several concerns have been raised with regard to the website (www.kinijit.org) which has been an official outlet of the party. Recently, the Kinijit International Political Leadership has been closely looking at the issues raised, including ownership, management and performance of the website. After carefully discussing the issues in three consecutive meetings and exhausting all the possible rectifications, it was found difficult to continue using Kinijit.org as the official website of Kinijit. The website has not been under the supervision of any authorized body of Kinijit. In such a situation, the leadership is left with no choice but announce its disclaimer to the public.
Therefore, we hereby announce that KINIJIT.ORG has ceased to be the official website of KINIJIT. An alternative website will be announced soon.
Kinijit as a party and Kinijit International Political Leadership as an authorized and mandated body to represent our leaders in prison are not responsible for any posting on the website. This is also to kindly request those people who do have access to the control of the website to refrain from portraying the site as the official website of Kinijit.
Any communication with respect to this issue can be made through the e-mail address:[email protected]
Kinijit International Political Leadership.
August 15, 2006
Ethiopian Review conducted an interview with former Kinijit Vice President Lidetu Ayalew on Saturday, August 12. The interview, which is 2 hr and 38 min. long, covers Ato Lidetu’s political activities before the formation of the Coalition for Unity & Democracy (CUD/Kinijit), preparations for the May elections, disagreements within Kinijit before and after the elections, his decision to enter the parliament, current activities, and his future political outlook.
ER will withhold its comments on the interview until readers have the chance to listen and comment on it.
LISTEN HERE
COMMENT
Shaleka Yoseph Yazew
Chairman, Kinijit North America Support Committee
Washington DC
Dear Shaleka Yoseph:
We, concerned Kinijit chapter officers, chapter members and supporters, would like to lodge our serious concern and formal complaint on the purpose and intent of the Extraordinary General Assembly Meeting (EOGAM), called for August 19-20, 2006.
We will proceed into why we believe the initiative to call the meeting was illegal, undemocratic and conspiratorial. Further, we would venture to bring to your attention how the EOGAM, if allowed to proceed in its questionable form, will damage the credibility of the entire Kinijit operation and put serious dent on the struggle. We strongly and unequivocally believe that Kinijit and all related operations should be run in the spirit of the Kinijit Manifesto and in the format charted by our courageous leaders in Kaliti prison.
1.There is enough evidence to prove that the call for EOGAM is the brainchild of Ato
Moges Bruk, Chairperson of the Los Angeles Kinijit Support Chapter.
2.Ato Moges initiated the call for EOGAM and lobbied the support chapters without consulting and obtaining the approval of the LA Board of Directors. Therefore, the initial petition by Ato Moges and the subsequent measures taken by KNA office to call the EOGAM is illegal, dictatorial and devoid of normally accepted democratic practices.
3.Ato Moges never solicited with a clearly defined written petition and therefore was never able to justify the need for EOGAM, one that could not be delayed until the next GA meeting. The problems and challenges we face today are no different from the ones we faced during the May and July GA meetings.
4.That Ato Moges launched his vigilante campaign driven by his staunch opposition to the establishment of Kinijit International Leadership (KIL), which was sanctioned by our leaders in Kaliti prison, is an open secret. His recorded statement at the July GA meeting in Los Angeles and his email statement broadcast over the internet are sufficient proofs.
5.There is evidence to prove that Shaleka Yoseph assisted Ato Moges’s campaign to convene an EOGAM by lobbying chapters that are considered soft and vulnerable. An email communication from Dr. Gashu also reveals the level of coercion used to get chapters to support the meeting.
6.The KNA chapters are summoned to the August 19 Washington DC meeting without being provided a petition document which specifies the agenda and argues the emergency nature of the agenda items. Without such a document and without valid signatures of the parties supporting the petition, KNA should never have called the meeting. As a result, the meeting is null and void and the KNA officers who endorsed the costly meeting should be held accountable.
7.We do not know how many chapters subscribed to the EOGAM after being convinced of the need for such a meeting or how many were lured into supporting it. We do not also know how many chairpersons sought the approval of their respective boards before committing to the meeting. Even if the petition was done with good intent, it should be remembered that a call for EOGAM is not valid unless it is supported by a large majority of members, usually 66-75%.
8.That the call for EOGAM was made by Dr. Gashu, circumventing the secretariat and the Secretary General of KNA, proves the shoddy nature of the plot.
No, we are not EPRDF surrogates. No, we are not a group of anarchists bent on disrupting Kinijit. No, we are not power mongers. Indeed, we are individuals who like millions of other Ethiopians, are dedicated to the cause of democracy, justice and the rule of law. Even more importantly, we are committed to see to it that Kinijit support leadership functions observing democratic tenets, in full transparency and accountable to its constituency. This is the vision set by Kinijit the party and the example set by our leaders.
We earnestly hope we have presented a compelling case to let you appreciate the gross misconduct and consequently, the undesirable precedence which ensues if this EOGAM continues without serious and honest intervention. Here are our recommendations that hopefully mitigate the situation.
1. We request that the KNA Executive Committee make a formal apology realizing it has allowed itself to be manipulated by an individual who is sworn to “Kill KIL”.
2. We request that KNA officers who knowingly collaborated with Ato Moges be dismissed or receive stern disciplinary action.
3. We suggest the meeting be postponed even if participants sustain financial cost. They will still be in a position to salvage valuable time and some cost associated with hotels.
4. In the event the meeting cannot be cancelled or postponed, we suggest the GA use the time to streamline its operation after an open discussion on the many shortcomings of KNA which has virtually paralyzed operation and forced the community into a withdrawal syndrome from which it is difficult to extract.
5. We suggest that KNA establish a “Kaliti Commission” whose main purpose will be to focus attention on the plight and release of our elected leaders upon which Ethiopia hinged its hopes.
Sincerely,
Note: The signatories to this petition have agreed to email you this three-page document as an attachment to their individual notes, thus making it a legal and acceptable communication.
CC:
KNA Executive committee members
KNA Support Committee Chapter Board members (Individually)
Kinijit International Leadership
Ethiopian Army Brigadier General Kemal Gelchi and tens of other army commanders together with hundreds of soldiers have defected to Asmera yesterday, according to the Voice of Eritrea.
It is reported that the commanders and their troops “arrived in Eritrea at dawn on August 9 along with their full logistics, communication equipments and military hardware,” VOE reported.
“Hundreds of Ethiopian soldiers and tens of their commanders are also joining opposition groups in eastern and western Ethiopia,” VOE’s report added.
With the latest defection of General Kemal Gelchi and the other senior commanders, the instability of the Meles regime is reaching at a crisis level, according to observers.
Sources close to EEPF have said that General Kemal and the troops who have defected with him have shown an interest to join the patriotic front.
Shocked by General Kemal’s defection, the Meles regime propaganda outlets have unleashed a smear campaign against him.
“My argument is that the neo-liberal paradigm is a dead end, is incapable of bringing about the African renaissance, and that a fundamental shift in paradigm is required to bring about the African renaissance…” – a quote from Meles Zenawi’s recent paper on African development.
Meles, who presides over the worst economy in the world, tries to present himself as an expert in development. His parasitic dictatorship is an obstacle to the growth of Ethiopian economy. For Africa to prosper, it must cleanse itself of corrupt dictatorships like that of the Meles regime.
There will be a live teleconference interview with former Kinijit Vice President Lidetu Ayalew this coming Saturday, August 12, at 9 PM EST.
Ato Lidetu Ayalew is a historical figure who has a lot to say about the on going Ethiopian politics. He is one of the few individuals who created the May 2005 Ethiopian political tsunami. After the May 15 elections, and particularly after the four parties that made up the Coalition for Unity and Democracy merged to form a unitary party, Ato Lidetu and some of his allies engaged in a bitter intraparty battle that led to his suspension and later withdrawal from the coalition.
Ethiopian Review has been highly critical of Ato Lidetu’s conducts during the infighting, because the main points of contentions were technical in nature and could have been solved through negotiations. If Ato Lidetu and friends thought that they were treated unfairly by the other officials of CUD, their grievances could have been addressed at a later time. As a young politician, he should have stepped back. Because he didn’t do that, he became a tool for the Meles regime.
ER rejects the accusations by some that Ato Lidetu is a Woyanne. It is unfortunate that Woyanne took advantage of his falling out with the other Kinijit leaders, and after he quit Kinijit, Woyanne continued to use him for its sinister propaganda.
As a politician who had a major role in forming Kinijit and mobilize the people of Ethiopia against the Meles dictatorship, it is ER’s hope that Ato Lidetu will reconcile his differences with Kinijit leaders and come back home where he belongs.
Please send your questions or comments to Ato Lidetu Ayalew.
The live teleconference interview is available for ER sponsors only. But the audio file will be posted on Sunday. To attend the teleconference, please send email to [email protected]
