By Jill Callison, [email protected]
The Argus Leader
Two leaders in the opposition movement against the current Ethiopian ruling party will come to Sioux Falls on Sunday.
Birtukan Mideksa and Gizachew Shiferaw, officials with the Kinijit Executive Committee, were detained in an Ethiopian jail for almost two years.
They are traveling in the United States to thank their supporters, said Solomon Bulcha, an Ethiopian native who has lived in Sioux Falls for 11 years.
“We invited them to come over here because we have supported them the last five years,” Bulcha said.
The Ethiopian community in Sioux Falls, which Bulcha estimates at 3,000, has held several rallies in support of Mideksa and Shiferaw, and raised funds for their defense.
Mideksa is a former Supreme Court justice in Ethiopia. She is seen as a leader in the opposition to Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.
Shiferaw is a member of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy’s executive committee.