በሁሉም የአገሪቱ ቀበሌዎች በእያንዳንዳቸው 300 እጩዎች እንዲቀርቡ የሚል መመርያ በማውጣት ተቃዋሚዎችን ከጫወታ ውጭ ካደረገ በኋላ በግዳጅና በማባበያ ለአዲስ አበባ ብቻ 32 ሺህ እጩዎችን ያቀረበው ወያኔ አስቀድሞ ላወቀው የምርጫ ውጤት ለእጩዎቹ ሲሰጥ የሰነበተውን የህዝብ አስተዳደር ስልጠና አጠናቀቀ፡፡
በሁሉም ክፍለ ከተሞች በመሰጠት ላይ የነበረው ስልጠና አንድምታ አሁን ካሉት ተቃዋሚ ፓርቲዎች አንዳቸውም የተባለውን እጩዎች አሃዝ ያህል ማቅረብ ባለመቻላቸው ወሳኙ ጉዳይ ለ2002ቱ (2010) ምርጫ ራስን ከማዘጋጀት ባለፈ ቀጣዩ ‹‹ውድድር›› አሳሳቢ ያልነበረበት መሆኑ ተመልክቷል፡፡
Teachers are replaced with TVs and hyenas roam near schools, although they are less harmful than the trigger-happy Federal Police.
By Lyn Barton, Western Morning News, UK
(Poltair School, Cornwall UK) — Two teachers from a Cornish secondary school have spoken of the life-changing experience of visiting a school in Ethiopia.
Peter Booth, one of the acting head teachers at Poltair School in St Austell, and Linzi Booth, director of its sports college, spent a week at Yirgalem School in southern Ethiopia.
Yirgalem School, at the heart of the coffee plantation industry, has 6,000 pupils aged between 15 and 20.
During the visit, the two Cornish teachers met staff and students and observed lessons.
They also taught rugby and rounders to staff and pupils, although the classes were a little larger than they were used to.
“One of the biggest differences between Poltair and Yirgalem is the sheer number of pupils who attend the school,” said Mr Booth. “There is no way that all 6,000 pupils can be taught at the same time, so it is usually a question of those children who turn up first being able to take part in the lessons.
“We are used to teaching classes of between 20 and 30 pupils in a sports lesson at Poltair. When we turned up to demonstrate a rugby lesson at Yirgalem, however, Linzi and I were greeted by 150 boys and 150 girls and only a tiny number of rugby balls.”
Mr Booth said the school was sited in a very poor area of the country, and so had very little equipment.
Most lessons are taught via TV screens at the front of the class which broadcast data sent from the Government.
“Unfortunately, although the lessons, which are made in South Africa, are generally of good quality, the pupils find them very difficult to follow as they do not have the text books to accompany them,” said Mr Booth.
Both teachers were overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of pupils and said neither the staff nor students allowed limited facilities to stop them.
“Visiting the school was a very humbling experience which has changed my life,” said Mr Booth.
“Pupils in the UK take their right to a high-quality education for granted and it was incredible to see the youngsters having to battle to actually get inside the classroom in the first place and then work so hard to make the most of their chances.”
Both Poltair teachers say their visit to Ethiopia was an experience they will never forget.
“There were a few moments which will certainly stick in my memory,” said Mr Booth.
“One of these was meeting a hyena while walking down the hill away from the school. Having been told not to run away under any circumstances, Linzi and I stood absolutely still.
“We got a little worried when it began growling and started coming towards us and looked round for reassurance, only to see the Yirgalem staff running as fast as they could back to the school.
“Needless to say, we immediately followed their example.”
በተቀዳሚ ምክትል ሊቀመንበር ብርቱካን ሚደቅሳ የሚመራው የአንድነት ለዴሞክራሲና ለፍትህ ፓርቲ የመስራቾች ፊርማ ማሰባሰብ በነገው እለት ይጀመራል፡፡
ወደተለያዩ የአገሪቱ ክልሎች በሚደረገው በዚህ የመስራች አባላት ፊርማ የማሰባሰብ ሂደት ወ/ሪት ብርቱካን፤ አቶ ሙሉነህ፤ መቶ አለቃ አለማሁ የኔነህ (አስተባባሪው)፤አቶ መሃመድ አሊ እና ሌሎች የስራ አስፈጻሚ አባላት ተሳታፊ የሚሆኑ ሲሆን በዛሬው እለት ርቼ አከባቢ ባለው የፓርቲው ጽ/ቤት በተደረገው ማብራርያና የቅድመ ዝግጅት ውይይት በሂደቱ የሚሳተፉት አባላት ማንኛውንም መስዋእትነት ለመጋፈጥ መዘጋጀታቸውን አረጋግጠዋል፡፡
የምርጫ ቦርድ የድጋፍ ደብዳቤ ለመጻፍ የተለያዩ ሰበቦችን ሲያስቀምጥ ከቆየ በኋላ እምቢታውን መግለጹ ይታወሳል፡፡
(Source: Today’s Zaman) The Ethiopian Woyanne ambassador to Turkey says Ethiopia is lucky to have a society rich in diversity and that members of all the country’s different ethnicities consider themselves Ethiopian.
The people of Ethiopia brought in the new Ethiopian millennium on Sep. 12, 2007. Ethiopians do not attach any particular religious meaning to the new millennium like some countries in the West; for them the millennium is all about looking to the future.
Ethiopians regard the new millennium as a period in which they will take their place among the emerging countries of the world. They see it as a time for growth for their ancient country. That is why Today’s Zaman chose to speak to Ethiopian Ambassador to Turkey Mulatu Teshome.
Mr. Ambassador, why does the Ethiopian millennium fall at a different time than the one celebrated by much of the world?
The Ethiopian calendar is a slightly revised version of the Julian calendar. The Western world uses the Gregorian calendar, which was actually a later invention. Ethiopians stuck to their old tradition and continued with the Orthodox calendar, which is seven or eight years behind the Gregorian one. This is also about the firm belief in the Orthodox Church as it is the original, the authentic one. The Roman Catholics and other religious groups all came in later periods.
Do the Ethiopian people attach any special religious meaning to the millennium, like a second coming of Jesus?
Some of the clergy hold such expectations, but the country as a whole sees this as a time to look to the future while also preserving the ancient culture of Ethiopia.
What do you mean by ancient?
Ethiopia is a very ancient country, a country that has a history of more than 3,000 years. It is referred to as the “cradle of mankind.” It is where Lucy, the world’s oldest-known almost complete hominid skeleton — more than 3.3 million years old — was discovered by an archaeology team. Recently, archeologists also found the skeleton of a 3-year-old girl, “Selam,” who died 3.45 million years ago, in the Afar region of eastern Ethiopia.
When you said future, were you referring to the people’s political and economic expectations for the new millennium?
Yes, indeed. Ethiopia is a very ancient country, but its economy does not reflect its history and tradition. Ethiopia is still a very backward country. So the aspiration of the Ethiopian people is to make Ethiopia, within the next two decades, rank near the middle among all countries for per capita income. That calls for very rapid economic development, of course. The new millennium for Ethiopia is regarded as a new chapter in our history.
Do you see any political reforms coming in the future?
Frankly speaking, Ethiopia does not need any political reform. We previously were ruled by a monarchy. It was banned in 1975 with the Ethiopian Revolution. From 1975 to 1991 Ethiopia was ruled by a military dictatorship and was regarded a socialist country. Of course, neither one brought modernity to Ethiopia. During that period Ethiopia did not even approach democracy. In 1991 a new era started; the military dictatorship was overthrown, and we started drawing up a new constitution. This is a constitution based on the modern thinking of democratic governance that recognizes private ownership. But what really makes the Ethiopian Constitution new and democratic is the fact that it was drafted through popular participation in a process that lasted from 1991 to 1995.
By 1995 the constitution was adopted, and in compliance with this new constitution we held elections. The elections take place every five years. What we need is to practice what is contained within the constitution, not more political reform. We have a very good constitutional framework; what is expected from the government is to realize what is written there.
Every country has its problems. What do you see as the main ones Ethiopia faces?
Ethiopia is lucky to have a very diverse society. All of these different ethnicities say they belong to their tribes, but when it comes to their country they are all Ethiopian. They have only one roof over them, and that roof is Ethiopia. Having said that, we of course had problems in the past and we still have some. These come mainly in the form of terrorist groups which are manipulated mainly from abroad.
Are these separatist groups or otherwise?
Well, these groups don’t have civilian demands. Sometimes they use the slogans of a given regime or ethnic group and demand more freedom and more economic development. We have no problem with that. What we are against is taking up arms and sabotaging the security of the population. Unfortunately most of these terrorist groups are linked to Eritrea. You know, Eritrea was a province of Ethiopia in the past, and today it is cultivating these elements within Ethiopia.
What is the reason for this enmity?
Eritrea was once a province of Ethiopia. It received independence through a referendum in 1991. Before that there was not a clear boundary, because Eritrea was a part of Ethiopia. The division between Eritrea and Ethiopia is not ethnic or national. That part of Ethiopia was occupied by the Italians for 63 years and during the occupation they developed a separate identity. Today the two identities are clashing.
When we speak of Ethiopia, we use the term “Gateway of Africa.” Does this label seem accurate to you?
I think it is quite accurate. Geographically its location in the northeastern part of Africa makes Ethiopia best placed strategically in its region. You can fly easily from there to the Middle East, to Asia and to Europe. Of course, this is facilitated by Ethiopian Airlines. It flies to almost all countries in Africa. In addition, the headquarters of the African Union is in Ethiopia; the headquarters of the UN’s Economic Commission for Africa is also in Addis Ababa. And many international regional headquarters are there. So basically Ethiopia is the capital of Africa.
When were diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and Turkey established?
Our relations reach back to the Ottoman period, to the 1560s. But real diplomatic relations started just before World War I. Ethiopia had very close contacts with the sultan of the Ottomans at that time, and in 1912 a Turkish Consulate was opened in Ethiopia. Ethiopia was the only independent country in Africa then and it was the only country recognized as a state. In 1925 Turkey opened its embassy in Addis Ababa. Turkey was the sixth country to open an embassy in Ethiopia. Ethiopia also had an embassy in Ankara. Our emperor, Haile Selassie, visited Turkey two times. But in 1975, after the socialist revolution, Ethiopia closed down its embassy. For a long time we didn’t have a presence in Ankara; we reopened our embassy only in 2006. Today the relations between Turkey and Ethiopia are excellent, both politically and economically. We have no conflicts of interest and we support each other on international platforms. We are enjoying strong economic relations and witnessing a growing number of Turkish investors coming to Ethiopia. Our mutual trade has grown from nothing to approximately $200 million annually, and our target is $500 million.
When we speak about Ethiopians in Turkey, the Queen of Sheba comes to mind. Is this a myth or a historical reality?
The Queen of Sheba is not a myth. If you go to the northern part of Ethiopia, to Aksu, you can see the ruins of her palace. She was the empress of Ethiopia and having heard of a powerful emperor in the north, she visited Solomon. They fell in love and on her way back to Ethiopia she became pregnant. After she returned she gave birth to a boy and named him Menelik. Menelik I was the emperor, the son of Solomon. That line actually ruled Ethiopia until 1975.
So the family of the emperor is the family of Solomon. Does the family still have social and religious importance in Ethiopia?
From the first emperor to the last, they were highly respected and were considered gods among people. The emperor was called King of Kings, Elect of God, Lion of Judah, Emperor of Emperors. After 1975 that respect faded; the members of the royal family left the country, some were imprisoned and even after their release they left for England and the US. Some, of course, returned after the change in political regime, but as only common citizens. They are no longer a threat to the democracy. They know that the Lion of Judah is not going to return to power.
The Ark of the Covenant is in Ethiopia also?
It is in Ethiopia, again in Aksu. Every year on Nov. 28 or 29 Ethiopians organize a very big celebration around the temple where the ark is kept. Not only the ark, but also the true cross, as people call it, is in Ethiopia. So there is potential for religious tourism. I invite Turks to come and invest in Ethiopia, but also to visit Lake Tana, the source of the Blue Nile, and our national parks. Ethiopia’s natural beauty, in my opinion, is not comparable to that of any other country in the world.
(The University of Winchester) – The University of Winchester is helping to lead an international investigation into one of the most important archaeological sites in Africa.
It is hoped the initiative will advance the understanding of Lalibela, a former medieval capital in the mountains of northern Ethiopia. The town lies on the slopes of Mount Abuna Yosef and has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage site for its remarkable rock-cut churches.
“We’re delighted the University will be at the forefront in Europe of research into medieval Ethiopia,” said Dr Niall Finneran from the Department of Archaeology at the University of Winchester. He has just returned from a week-long study trip funded by the British Academy to outline the strategy and direction of the project.
“Strangely enough, up until now, no one has actually done much archaeology in Lalibela,” he explained. “Research has just been centred on the churches.”
Dr Finneran will be heading up a team of archaeologists from the UK, working with French and Ethiopian scholars whose goal will be to study the landscape context of the churches over the next three years. The team will be working closely with local communities as well as the Authority for Research and Conservation for Cultural Heritage to promote a broader understanding of the site.
“Ethiopia’s diverse landscape hosts an enormous wealth of economic, ecological and cultural treasures,” said Dr Finneran who has carried out extensive research within the country over the past 15 years. He is also a member of the publications committee at the French Institute for Ethiopian Studies (CFEE).
“There is much negativity in the press about famine and poverty in Ethiopia – it’s hoped this collaborative project will help enhance opportunities for sustainable tourism in the area.”
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The University of Winchester press office can be contacted by calling 01962 827678 or by emailing [email protected]
The Woyanne puppet President Girma Woldegiorgis, who is over 300 lbs, was unable to walk during his recent visit to Germany. His problem is too much excess fat from eating all day and all night. In contrast, these children have nothing to eat at all.
