ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – Ethiopian soccer authorities said on Thursday a suspension by FIFA was illegal and that they would take their case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
FIFA suspended the Ethiopian Football Federation (EFF) on Tuesday after it repeatedly failed to comply with a February 2008 agreement aimed at restoring its officially recognised leaders.
“The ban imposed by FIFA is illegal and EFF will take its case to the international Court of Arbitration for Sport,” the body said in a statement.
Unless the suspension is lifted, Ethiopia will not be able to play their next international match, a 2010 World Cup qualifier against Morocco on Sept. 7.
The statement urged FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to send a delegation to Ethiopia to investigate the problem. (Reporting by Tsegaye Tadesse; Editing by Sonia Oxley)
United Ethiopian Democracy Forces (UEDF) evaluates its performance and proposes a new strategy in a 7-page statement it released today. Click here to read [Amharic, pdf]
Ethiopian Peoples Patriotic Front (EPPF) and Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) have inflicted heavy losses on Woyane troops, killing and wounding 251. Watch below.
The Washington DC-based Addis Dimts radio reports that a group of armed men has attacked Woyanne targets in North Shoa. Click below to listen [forward to 13:00].
[podcast]http://www.ethiopianreview.info/audio/addis_dimts07-27-08.mp3[/podcast]
The entire executive committee of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) has been relieved of its duties and replaced with a provisional executive council today.
Majority of the OLF national council members has passed a vote of “No Confidence” on the executive committee in order take the organization out of the current paralysis and stagnation due to an irreconcilable disagreement inside the executive committee.
The main source of the disagreement revolved around the vision and performance of the organization. The new OLF leadership is said to be committed to advancing the interest of Oromos, as well as all Ethiopians.
The new leadership will focus on intensifying the armed struggle against the Meles regime and playing a key role in unifying and democratizing Ethiopia in collaboration with other opposition forces, according to Ethiopian Review sources.
Leaders of Ginbot 7 Movement and other forces have been briefed of this development by the new OLF leadership.
There had been an ongoing and heated internal debate inside the OLF leadership for quite a while over strategy and the overall political platform of the organization, leading to today’s revolutionary change.
Key leaders of the change that is taking place inside OLF include Dima Nego, founding member and first chairman; General Kemal Gelchu, chairman of the OLF forces high command; Ahmed Hussein, founding member and former Minister of Foreign Trade; Lencho Letta, former deputy secretary general of OLF; General Hailu Gonfa, head of the OLF army’s training and deployment; Lencho Bati, former OLF spokesperson; Hassan Hussein, head of foreign relations; and Ibrahim Mume, coordinator of OLF supporters and members in the Diaspora.
Despite its military and political strength, OLF had been unable to wage a consistent and forceful campaign against the regime of Tigrean People Liberation Front (Woyanne). Oromos are currently one of the most persecuted peoples in Ethiopia. The overwhelming majority of prisons in Ethiopia are filled by Oromos who are suspected of supporting OLF. Most Ethiopian refugees in Kenya, Sudan, Uganda, Somalia, Yemen and other countries are Oromos. And yet, OLF has been unable to protect Oromos from all these atrocities even though it has a professional army, and an experienced political leadership.
The new OLF leadership strives to change that and work to end the Woyanne brutal regime in collaboration with all opposition forces, according to ER sources close to the OLF.
As you know, Ethiopian refugees are enduring very deplorable conditions in several countries. Our refugees in Yemen say they are treated like a “trash,” as are those in Libya prisons. Many die on the way as they escaped political persecution or the grinding poverty in our country. To raise global awareness over the plight of Ethiopian refugees, concerned Ethiopians have launched Save Ethiopian Refugee International (SERI).
SERI has now launched a petition drive to persuade UNHCR to treat Ethiopian refugees as fellow human beings, and give them due legal protection.
Please sign the petition today. Click here to sign.
