Meles Zenawi after midnight
Meles Zenawi, the vampire of East Africa
Watch this video to see what we mean by ‘vampire’
Meles Zenawi
Some Somalis believe that it is the Amharas who invaded them
It seems that the Woyanne regime is telling Somalis that it is the Amharas who are occupying their country, as the article below by Time Magazine shows. Ethiopians must inform the people of Somali that it is the Woyanne terrorist regime led by Meles Zenawi’s crime family that is occupying and pillaging their country. There are some hodam Amharas, Oromos, and others who are supporting the Woyanne regime, but as a people, Amharas have nothing to do with the invasion. In fact, most Amharas bitterly oppose the invasion of Somalia by the Woyanne regime acting as an Ethiopian government.
Black Hawk Down, and on Display
“Close the door,” shouts the lady sitting in front of me. One of her grandchildren quickly obliges and the metal-sheeted door is shut with a squeak. It is mid-day in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu but there is little activity on the usually bustling streets of the neighboring market. Ethiopian soldiers are busy rooting out alleged al-Qaeda terrorists and members of the Islamic Courts Union, which held sway over the city and most of the country until the end of 2006. At the smallest hint of trouble, the soldiers are quick to respond with bursts of gunfire in all directions. The last thing my interviewee wants is lead pouring in through her front door.
Her name is Hawo Hussein Adan, more popularly known as “The Helicopter Woman.” She resides in a squalid two-room house with bullet-riddled walls but she prefers to live in its tiny courtyard amidst the chicken that scurry about at her feet. She hasn’t budged from this spot for 17 years. But despite a foot injury and her relatively run-down lifestyle, the helicopter woman is renowned here in Mogadishu as a symbol of defiance and resilience for many Somalis in the city. The Somalis who visit the helicopter w oman today see her as a symbol of nationalism — and her guardianship of the relic that provides her nickname resonates with Somali belief in their own courage in the face of foreign encroachment. Says one neighbor, “She is a strong woman.”
Adan won her strange appellation when one of the U.S. Black Hawk helicopters fell on her house in October 1993, in the middle of a U.N. humanitarian intervention gone disastrously awry. Adan managed to retain a part of the helicopter’s remains before everything else inside the aircraft was destroyed or looted. The piece sits in a corner of the courtyard as proof of what she has gone through and her small but emotional part in the country’s history.
During my visit, she recounted the fateful afternoon in October, 1993 when she lost her home. “We were 20 people inside the room when the helicopter fell on our house. Militia first attacked [it from the] Bakara market. It came down and fell among our houses. When the chopper fell, a wounded American jumped away. He along with others ran from the back of our house to the front and stood near us. When he came to the front of our house, he stopped there and he killed several people. He killed one man there, there and there,” she says, pointing around the neighborhood. “Everyone was afraid and ran away from him. When he did such a thing, some of our Somali men came from behind the trees and hiding, they caught the wounded man. When he was captured, some of the Somali men fought with each other about what to do with him. They said, ‘We should kill him’. Some said, ‘We should not kill him because some of our men are taken by the Americans. We should keep him to help us release them.'” The American, pilot Michael Durant, was held by the Somalis for 11 days.
Adan managed to escape from the conflagration unscathed but two of her children were killed under the falling debris. (She also lost 100 kilos of food and 11 of her goats). Her house was among several in the neighborhood consumed by the ensuing fire. “It was very troubling. I was afraid. We were afraid, all of us because our houses were destroyed, our people were killed, our land was captured, so that’s why we were afraid.”
Like many she sees what’s happening today as a continuation of the crisis from the early 90’s. Since the beginning of this year, Ethiopian troops have taken over the city in an attempt to rid the capital of remnants of the earlier Union of Islamic Courts. But Adan, again like the rest of her countrymen, sees nothing positive in this.”I’m praying to God to take those Amharra and Christians away from us,” she says. Amharra is a reference to the Ethiopians; Christians refers to all Westerners. “I don’t need any Amharra or Christians.” The best solution to all of Somalia’s problems, she feels, is in leaving Somalis alone. Declares the Helicopter Woman: “Allah can give us everything we need.”
Divide and hit policy of TPLF in action in Ogaden: Why are we so indifferent?
By Ewnetu Ashenafi
Our indifference towards Ethiopia Somalis in Ogaden who suffer from the barbaric acts of genocide perpetrated by the TPLF regime is likely to have a long-term impact on freedom, democracy and Ethiopia’s unity
It is a sad and regrettable fact that Eritrean independence is the result of lack of freedom and democracy in Ethiopia. Are we repeating the same historical mistakes in the Ogaden? One of the historical mistakes that led to the secession of Eritrea from Ethiopia is the lack of statesmanship and political maturity of the then Ethiopian leaders. It seems that we have not yet taken the lessons of the past. What is currently unfolding in the Somali region of Ethiopia is indicative of this fact.
What is currently happening to Ethiopia Somali’s in the Ogaden is totally catastrophic. It is really shocking when one imagines living in Somali region at this time. People are being killed, houses are being burned, women and girls are being raped, young people are routed, kidnapped and killed and the list goes on and on. Oh my God! It is really shocking! The people of Ogaden are paying a high price alone due to the divisive political arrangements of the incumbent regime in Ethiopia.
The issue has now made headlines in the New York Times thanks to the brave work of its journalists. Thank God, the hidden dark work of the Woyanne forces has now come out into the open. It has also entered into the minds of some concerned U.S. officials such as Senator Patrick Leahy. Shouldn’t we be even more concerned about it as Ethiopians?
TPLF is using a combination of war and starvation strategies to force the Somali people to abandon supporting ONLF fighters. TPLF is causing immense damage to the people of Somali region as well as to the unity of Ethiopia in general.
What is even disconcerting is our indifference to the cause of the impoverished Somali people in Ethiopia. Our indifference is due to the wrong perception we have towards the just cause of the people of Ogaden resulting in poor response that do not go beyond mere lip service so far. If our indifference continues, the current crises will escalate to form the basis of another war of independence that is difficult to reverse in its advanced stages. This reminds me of an Ethiopian joke. A hyena came to a group of donkeys lying and sleeping in the dark night. As the hyena starts eating one of them, the victim whispers to others: you guys be quiet, the hyena starts eating me from my legs, not knowing that the hyena would not rest until he sees each one of them devoured one at a time.
The enemy we face is an angry hyena that will pursue each one of us one at a time. The divide and rule tactic is working closely with the divide and hit tactic. TPLF will not rest until it finishes its job of making Ethiopia the then Soviet Union. Meles Zenawi is the Gorbachev of Ethiopia. His Revolutionary democracy is the perestroika that is on its way to complete its job if a regime change does not happen in the short term.
The TPLF would like us to believe that the Ogaden problem is an issue of secession and as such it should be condemned and fought. Surprisingly, many Ethiopians who even oppose the current tyranny fell into this trap. The best way to avoid session is to tackle it at its root. Think of what happened to Eritrea because of the same old war policy of Mengistu Haile-Mariam. The TPLF policy is in fact aimed at fueling the conflict and exacerbating the struggle for session. What is being done has happened and will definitely happen in Oromia, Amhara, the Southern Region, Gambella and other regions of the country. Woyanne is an evil force and anti-Ethiopian in its nature. Its control of governmental powers in Ethiopia makes it even more dangerous not only to Ethiopia but also to east Africa in general.
What we need is a proactive approach to counter the divisive propaganda and action of the Meles regime. We should stand alongside the peace loving people of Ogaden, as they are Ethiopians as we are. We need to identify with them and cry for them before the international community to get attention and support. We need to coordinate our struggle with them for freedom and democracy.
We need to change our perception towards the Somali region of Ethiopia. Let us see the cause of freedom and democracy behind their secessionist movement. Let us not grossly condemn them like we did to Eritrea. The problem in the Ogaden region is part of a larger problem in Ethiopia. It is the lack of democracy and rule of law in Ethiopia.
Let us make it clear to the people of Somali region of Ethiopia and to the international community that what is being perpetrated in Ogaden is the work of TPLF regime. It does not represent the wishes of the Ethiopian people who sees the people of Ogaden as Ethiopian equally subjugated to tyrannical rule in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Somalis urgently need our help in this critical moment. The barbaric acts of TPLF in Ogaden should be condemned in the strongest possible terms. As such, condemning, not supporting, the terrorist acts of TPLF in Ogaden is standing up for human rights, democracy and Ethiopia’s unity.
Ethiopians demand explanations on land giveaway to Sudan
OPEN LETTER TO THE ETHIOPIAN PRIME MINISTER MR. MELES ZENAWI
[በኣማርኛ, pdf]
Mr. Meles Zenawi,
Prime Minister
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
August 8, 2007
Mr. Prime Minister,
The characteristic peculiar to our country, which distinguishes it from other countries, is the fact that it played an exemplary role in fiercely defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity at the time when powerful foreign powers were on the rampage to subjugate most lands on the globe.
Indeed, there have been periods in our history where our country had land mass many folds more than of the present one and trade relations and influence extending into the interior of the then neighboring Nubian Empire. This glaring history has been attested by innumerous literary works of ancient and modern scholars, both foreign and local origins.
Virtually, all Ethiopian governments prior to that of the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front ( EPRDF ), although rightfully criticized for their autocratic and repressive leadership style, decidedly took preserving the unity and territorial integrity of the nation as their primary undertaking. Under their leadership, and largely because of it, our country repulsed powerful invaders such as the Ottoman Turks, Egyptians, Italians and Mahadists.
And it has now become the historical burden of this generation to carry on the great tradition of keeping the territorial integrity of the nation as the best way of commemorating the sacrifices of our forefathers. However, recent international media coverage of giving away another part of our country in the making is in circulation.
On July 4, 2007, the Sudan Tribune, under the title ‘Eastern Sudan farmers get back disputed lands from Ethiopia’, wrote, “A joint Sudanese-Ethiopian committee would start today to hand over agricultural lands to residents of more than 17 Sudanese villages located in eastern Atbara River along the Ethiopian-Sudanese border.”
The Sudan Tribune further reported that the governor of Al-Gadarif State, in eastern Sudan, Abdelrahman al-Khidir as saying, “… technical arrangements have been finished and a committee of seven experts from each side would give the Sudanese farmers their lands, pointing out that his government is ready to append these farmers with the current agricultural season. …with the end of the committee’s work which might last for a week, the lands would be back to their owners…that the final operation of border re-demarcating which might conclude after the autumn season would put an end for all kinds of security breaches and instability situation in the area.”
This clearly states that handing over the territory is already in advanced stages, and yet the Ethiopian government has not made any public statement of denying or sanctioning the report. It is extremely difficult to believe what type of package deal could make your government hide behind the screen of secretly negotiating and carving out a piece of our land to a foreign nation; and it is viciously wrong to keep the Ethiopian people in the dark on such most ominously crucial issue.
Not surprisingly, traumatized echoes are becoming progressively louder over this issue, inside and outside of the country, and at a time where the public is highly skeptical over anything that goes to the credibility of your government in preserving national unity and territorial integrity.
Ethiopians today are clamoring so desperately for answers to this crucial issue and we, groups of concerned Ethiopians, earnestly request your government to provide detailed account to the Ethiopian people regarding the alleged negotiations and the handing over the North Western part of Ethiopia to the Republic of the Sudan.
Respectfully,
Groups of Highly Concerned Ethiopians
CC
1. The Ethiopian House of People’s Representatives Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
2. Amhara Kilil Administration, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia
3. Beneshangul-Gumuz Kilil Administration, Assosa, Ethiopia
4. North Gondar Administration, Gondar, Ethiopia
5. South Gondar Administration, Debretabor, Ethiopia
6. All Ethiopian Opposition Political Organizations
ESAC condemns the deliberate attack on Civilian and Religious place In Jigjiga
The Ethiopian Somali Advocacy Council (ESAC)
Washington, Dc
Press Release
The inhuman attack on a market and religious place, a church, in Jigjiga, in the capital of Somali Region shows that the authoritarian regime of Meles Zenawi is on his last leg. History has showed that the last resort of dictator is to use a tactic to diverting the attention from his horrendous and barbaric act. Meles Zenawi, who imposed Gestapo style of ruling on Ethiopian Somalis, is employed all kind of tactic to export his own internal crisis to another dimension of an ephemeral political element, terrorism.
A reliable resource from the capital of Somali Region has allegly indicated that the Ethiopian regime is the primary culprit of this barbaric acts. The Federal government of Ethiopia is blocking food and other basic necessities that the ordinary people are badly needed. Ethiopian TV has showed many innocent and poor young Ethiopian Somali rounded up in the name of fighting terrorism and destabilizing factors, but Meles Zenawi’s long repressive arm will not stop the aspiration of Ethiopian Somali.
As Boston Globe simply put in its editorial of this week, THE UNITED STATES is expanding its military presence in the Horn of Africa in an attempt to counteract terrorist groups in the region. But military activity is not the way to achieve that goal. Instead, the United States needs to put more effort into solving the outstanding political dispute there: the border conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea, involving all Somalis clan in peace and reconciliation in Somalia, and allowing freedom of speech of all Ethiopian political organizations.
As one Somali elderly eloquently sum up, “we thought that the demise of cold war will herald a new democracy and rule of law in Horn of Africa, but we, Somalis, are condemned to live in constant war by simply being a neighbor of Ethiopia that is ruled by Meles Zenawi.”
It is not altogether difficult to understand those who rhapsodize on democracy as the preferred form of government in the contemporary world. The collapse of the ‘totalitarian’ regimes in Eastern Europe in the early 1990s thereby heralding ballot-box democracy, freedom of the press, an independent judiciary, the right to be different and all the other appurtenances of democratic praxis, would seem to have confirmed Churchill’s euphoria.
If for the better part of the 20th century, we had lived in a divided world of competing ideologies, we were henceforth to be treated to a monochromatic diet of liberal democracy and human rights, symbolized by periodic elections based on free enterprise capitalism. But, the new component, terrorism has ushered a hot war in this era of globalization and the dictator regime of Meles Zenawi is using its utmost this component in Horn of Africa.
Meles regime has been ruling for 17 years. It is about time that he relinquishes the power peacefully. In 2005, Kinijit has defeated Meles political accolade in Addis Ababa and his new chieftain of kilil will not silence the genuine struggle of Ethiopian Somalis, Oromos, Afar and Gambelas. A real federal system that allows regional autonomy is badly needed, not the one party system ruling of EPRDF.
The Western world and particularly the United States can help by putting more pressure on Ethiopia, a de facto ally and the recipient of hundreds of millions of dollars in aid. We, Ethiopian Somali Advocacy Council urge our call to all international peace loving people that Meles Regime has to stop harassing innocent people in the regional Somali State.
Abdul S. Ibrahim (President)
[email protected]
The Ethiopian Somali Advocacy Council (ESAC) is a non-partisan organization that promotes democracy, good governance and human rights in the Horn of Africa region. 1340 W Street, NW, Washington, Dc 20009, Telephone 202-204-2758, Fax number 202-588-0559 www.galbeed.com
Ogaden’s downward spiral
By Simon Tisdall
The Guardian
Rising tensions in the Ogaden region of eastern Ethiopia, combined with chronic instability in neighbouring Somalia, Eritrean enmity, and human rights concerns, are testing US support for the Addis Ababa government led by Clinton-era good governance pin-up Meles Zenawi.
The Bush administration welcomed the recent release of 38 opposition politicians detained after violent protests over the conduct of elections in 2005. But it has kept quiet over Ethiopia’s subsequent expulsion of International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) workers from Ogaden’s Somali regional state, following claims they were aiding Ogaden National Liberation Front separatists (ONLF).
The ICRC condemned Ethiopia’s action, warning it would have “an inevitable, negative impact” on an already impoverished, largely nomadic population. The ONLF claimed the expulsions, and a ban on foreign media, were an attempt to prevent the international community witnessing “the war crimes taking place against the civilians of Ogaden at the hands of the Ethiopian regime”.
The rebels also blamed Ethiopian government forces for the killing in a roadside attack on July 29 of two leaders of the main indigenous relief organisation, the Ogaden Welfare and Development Association. Despite Ethiopian denials, the ONLF says the government continues to enforce “a virtual blockade against aid and commercial goods in Ogaden”. It has repeatedly called for UN intervention.
Congress’s Africa committee endorsed legislation last month that could oblige President Bush to withhold US financial and military assistance to Ethiopia’s government unless all political prisoners are freed, freedom of speech and information are respected, and human rights groups can operate unhindered.
“Ethiopia’s authoritarian prime minister Meles Zenawi was once a darling of the Clinton administration and has forged close ties the Bush administration. With Washington’s blessing, Meles sent troops to Somalia in December to expel the radical Islamic Courts movement linked to al-Qaida,” a Washington Post editorial noted. But the paper said the “preposterous” charges against opposition activists, abuses in Somalia and reported atrocities in the “internal war” in Ogaden meant ties might have to be reviewed.
A recent report for the international watchdog Human Rights Watch quoted witnesses describing how Ethiopian troops burned homes and in some cases, killed fleeing civilians.
Human Rights Watch said the separatists were also guilty of serious abuses, a refrain vigorously pursued by the Ethiopian government. “The ONLF, a terrorist group acting in collaboration with the defunct Islamic Courts (in Somalia) and the Eritrean government, has been committing atrocities and human rights violations, including indiscriminate murder of innocent civilians,” the foreign ministry said.
Wider US interests in the Horn of Africa suggest Washington will be minded to continue to accept Addis Ababa’s side of the story, unless the situation grows egregious and the international community becomes more involved. Those US interests include Ethiopia’s role in supporting the enfeebled transitional government in Somalia and opposing the spread of Islamist extremism across the region.
Keeping a firm hand on ethnically Somali, Muslim Ogaden, the scene of a cold war-era proxy conflict, is a long-standing US objective. The US has also sought Ethiopia’s support in peacemaking in southern Sudan and Darfur.
But region-wide instability seems to be increasing. Nearly 30,000 Somalis were displaced from Mogadishu in July. Political reconciliation efforts have made no headway so far. Despite their political differences, many if not most Somalis regard the Ethiopian troops as a hostile occupation force.
Eritrea, its bitter border dispute with Ethiopia still simmering, is shipping “huge quantities of arms” to insurgents in Somalia, according to a UN report. Concerns about a spreading humanitarian and refugee emergency grow, even as international aid targets undershoot. And now, far from being “defunct”, Somalia’s Islamist movement may be gaining friends and influence in an increasingly isolated, radicalised Ogaden.