The last few weeks have shed more light on the shady dealings that are going on between the TPLF government and the US Administration (primarily through the State Department and the nominally independent USAID) and the unprincipled stand of a few people in these two institutions. Here are examples.
One of the interesting developments is a Request for Applications (RFA 663-A-08-002) that USAID advertised last Friday (9 November) to fund a programme called “Human Rights Technical Assistance in Ethiopia”. Under this programme, USAID intends to provide approx. $1,028,000 USAID funding to be allocated over a two-year period.
According to the RFA, the purpose of the programme is “improved independent monitoring, investigation, and reporting of human rights abuses and violations with the objective of deterring human rights violations. This will be achieved through a package of interventions primarily targeted at the EHRC [Ethiopian Human Rights Commission] and EHRCO [Ethiopian Human Rights Council]. In addition, other NGOs will have access to capacity building activities, primarily through training, as the occasion arises”.
By USAID’s own admission, the EHRC has done little since its establishment by Parliament in 2000. EHRCO is an organisation that the TPLF would love to see disappear from the face of the earth!
One may ask, so what is the problem if USAID decides to make funds available to support human rights in Ethiopia? Is it not good news? Would not most Ethiopians like to see human rights violations independently monitored, investigated and reported? Well, at face value, we should rejoice that the US Administration has finally come to its senses and it is going to support human rights in Ethiopia. But, hang on, is it not the case that HR 2003 (Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act of 2007) was prepared by Congressmen Payne and Smith to support human rights in Ethiopia? Is it not true that the HR 2003 Bill actually offers a lot more money to support human rights protection in Ethiopia, not just US$1 million? Did not the State Department publicly oppose that Bill? It does not take a genius to understand the plot behind this “gesture” – the US Administration is doing everything including provision of a Human Rights Technical Assistance fund to support human rights in Ethiopia in order to avoid a Bill which highlights the lack of progress Ethiopia is making in this area.
The RFA blames the opposition for the post-election violence and tries to appease the TPLF government by arguing that it inherited weak institutions from the Derg and it is “some governmental institutions [that] have been accused of compromising the spirit and letter of the constitution when faced with threats, either in the form of active insurgencies or the unwillingness of some opposition parties to accept election results”. Are they trying to tell us that the top leaders are angels and bear no responsibilities for the execution of hundreds of people on the streets of Addis Ababa and up and down the country? This is completely unacceptable.
Furthermore, according to the RFA, “The Ethiopian Government has made strong constitutional, legal and rhetorical commitments to improve the human rights situation”. Indeed, the TPLF government is full of hollow rhetoric and very clever in pulling the wool over the eyes of the international community in this way. The RFA does not stop there. It tells us that “In the post-May 2005 election environment, some opposition parties and leaders allegedly used inflammatory rhetoric and even called for the overthrow of the Government, willingly or unwillingly contributing to the street violence and human rights abuses that followed the national elections of May 2005”. Conspicuous by its omission from the RFA is whether the said violence and human rights abuses were independently investigated and what the conclusions of the inquiry commission were! Who was responsible for the violence and abuses? Who carried out the violent acts and abuses? May be Mr Michael Rossman (the Agreement Officer) and Ato Belay Teame (the Agreement Specialist) could enlighten us more.
Having said the above, the architects of the RFA could not have timed the announcement better. When the HR 2003 Bill goes to the Senate floor in the coming few weeks, we should not be surprised if the Oklahoma Senator (R) James Inhofe (despite latest denials from his office that he has not put a hold on the Bill) argues that the US Administration is already doing what the Bill sets out to achieve and there is no need for the Bill. The ideas of Senator Inhofe and Jendayi Frazer are nauseating not only to Ethiopians who would like to see human rights respected in Ethiopia but also to their own citizens. I was having a conversation with two American colleagues from Washington DC (originally from New Hampshire) and San Diego areas a few days ago. Our conversation led us to politics and the foreign policy of the current US Administration. Their conclusion that the current US Administration is the worst that they have seen in their lives (they are in their late 40s) says it all. They commented the Administration completely ignores the world reality and lives in its own “invented reality”. I hope this will help them to understand the Ethiopian reality, and that what they are doing is not based on the facts.
What next? May be another USAID programme to build the capacity of the media in Ethiopia announced a day or two before the HR 2003 goes to the Senate floor? It will not come as a surprise if the major beneficiaries of such a programme are going to be the state controlled Ethiopian TV and Ethiopian Radio and the “free press” Walta Information Centre!
Jendayi Frazer, when she retires from public service, may tell why she blindly supported a dictator. Is it not that what Ambassador John Bolton (formerly US Ambassador to the UN) did in his new memoir, “Surrender is Not an Option: Defending America at the United Nations and Abroad”? He exposed Ms Frazer for informing him that she wanted him to “reopen” the 2002 Eritrea Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) decision, “which she had concluded was wrong, and award a major piece of disputed territory to Ethiopia”. Ms Frazer may also tell in her memoir pretty soon after the current Administration’s departure who instructed her to ask the Ambassador to consider “reopening” the EEBC decision.
As long as such blind diplomatic, political and financial support is maintained, Meles, Bereket and their comrades will continue abusing the human rights of Ethiopians: the right to life and personal security, to a fair trial, right to participate in the democratic process, and freedom of expression. As Bereket was quoted saying in a recent interview, the death of Ethiopian soldiers in Somalia is a sacrifice but “not that serious in our opinion”. Of course, the death of Ethiopian soldiers is not a matter for Bereket to lose sleep over!
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Samuel Habtu Belay can be reached at [email protected]
Senator James Inhofe
1900 NW Expressway, Suite 1210
Oklahoma City, OK 73118
Dear Senator Inhofe,
I was sorry to learn of your opposition to H.R.2003, the “Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act of 2007.” I know you have a strong personal tie to Ethiopia and that you have been charmed by the personable Prime Minister Meles Zenawi (as have I). I believe, however, that H.R.2003 is sound legislation in holding the feet of the ruling TPLF to the fire to live up to its rhetoric about what you refer to as a positive democratization process. The record of the Meles-led government is too rife with democratic deficits and the abuse of human rights to make it worthy of your praise. The Government in Addis Ababa has gotten by for too long in not providing the people of Ethiopia with democratic processes and in stomping out any folk bold enough to dare oppose the government in the political arena. H.R.2003 provides a gentle corrective to a government that has received massive foreign and military aid from the United States but has thumbed its nose at the valid criticism of the U.S. State Department and human rights organizations. There simply are too many documented shortcomings of the TPLF Government to make H.R.2003 an inappropriate statement of the expectations of the United States for its ally in the Horn of Africa.
I hope you will reconsider your position on H.R.2003 and join your colleagues in the House of Representatives in striving to promote democracy and human rights in Ethiopia. By not standing in the way of Senate concurrence in this significant foreign policy initiative, you will be serving your constituents well. Please let me know if I can provide you with any additional information about the current situation in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa.
Sincerely yours,
Theodore M. Vestal
Professor of Political Science, Oklahoma State University
Theodore M. Vestal, Ph.D.
Professor of Political Science
Oklahoma State University
534 Math Sciences
Stillwater, OK 74078-1060
(405) 744-7586, Fax (405) 744-6534 [email protected]
http://fp.okstate.edu/vestal/
The following opinion piece by former American ambassadors Vicki Huddleston and Tibor Nagy is posted on the New York Times. While serving in Ethiopia, Ambassador Huddleston had earned a reputation as a Woyanne apologist instead of a true representatives of the U.S. Government and American values after she refused to speak out against the massacre of pro-democracy protesters and unarmed civilians by Meles Zenawi’s forces in June and Nov. 2005. It is callous diplomats like Vicky who advance the interest of dictators who are harming the image of the United States around the world. What Vicky and Tibor fail to point out is that for the 70 million people of Ethiopia there is no worse terrorist than Meles Zenawi and is gang of Woyanne thugs. That is why if Meles starts a war with Eritrea, most Ethiopians will stand with the Eritrean regime or boycott the war.
———————————————- Don’t Turn on Ethiopia Woyanne
By VICKI HUDDLESTON and TIBOR NAGY
NINE years ago, two nations began the first modern war in sub-Saharan Africa, leaving in two years more than 100,000 dead. Today Eritrea and Ethiopia Woyanne could reignite their old border conflict. Arms and money from radicals throughout the Middle East, as well as troops trained in Eritrea, have strengthened an insurgency in Ogaden Province, in southeastern Ethiopia.
A new war in the Horn of Africa would destabilize the region and bolster radical Islam’s push to build a Muslim caliphate.
Sadly, Congress is poised to fuel the march toward war by passing a bill that threatens to cut off technical assistance to Ethiopia Woyanne, one of our closest allies, if it does not, among other things, release political prisoners, ensure that the judiciary operates independently and permit the news media to operate freely. Ethiopia Woyanne has already freed opposition leaders, reformed parliamentary rules [not true] to give opposition parties greater legislative responsibility [not true] and approved a new media law that meets international standards [oh! what a lie]. By singling out Ethiopia Woyanne for public embarrassment, the bill puts Congress unwittingly on the side of Islamic jihadists and insurgents [to save Woyanne from embarrassment, the people of Ethiopia should continue to suffer, according to Vicky].
A far better approach would be to buttress Ethiopia against threats to its survival [the only threat Ethiopia faces to her survival is from Woyanne] — by helping it resolve its border conflict and ensuring that it reopens negotiations with insurgents and traditional leaders and permits international investigation of reported military abuses (including allegations of rape and murder [by Meles Zenawi’s soldiers]). Ethiopia Woyanne has begun this process by allowing the United Nations and humanitarian aid agencies to assist civilians in the Ogaden.
Eritrea demands that the border be marked exactly as determined five years ago. But this places some Muslim and Christian villages on what they consider to be the wrong side of the border, cuts through others and splices certain roads several times. The United States should press both governments to let people who live on the border help reach a mutual agreement on the final boundary.
Ethiopia is a nation where 77 million Orthodox Christians and Muslims live in peace, engaged in building a democracy while besieged from within and without by enemies of democracy. Congress should put aside its bill and instead use creative diplomacy to deal with the combined threat of insurgency and war.
_____________________________
Vicki Huddleston, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Tibor Nagy, a vice provost at Texas Tech University, are former chiefs of mission at the American Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Ethiopians and friends of Ethiopia in Oklahoma hold a protest rally in front of Senator Inhofe’s office
Ethiopians and friends of Ethiopia in Oklahoma hold a protest rally in front of Senator Inhofe’s office
__________________
For Immediate Release – November 14, 2007
ETHIOPIAN-AMERICANS and FRIENDS of ETHIOPIA in
OKLAHOMA For H.R. 2003
First Week Peaceful Protest at Senator Inhofe’ s Oklahoma City office Successful
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – On Tuesday, November 13, 2007, Ethiopian-Americans and Friends of Ethiopia in Oklahoma for H.R. 2003, held a successful peaceful demonstration in front of Senator James Inhofe’s district office in Oklahoma City. Local TV stations and international media such as Associated Press covered the peaceful demonstration.
The purpose of the demonstration was to protest Senator James Inhofe’s opposition to H.R.2003,
the “Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act of 2007” In a statement that Senator James Inhofe made on the Senate floor on October 17, 2007, he stated;
“… In Ethiopia, recently, I met with Prime Minister Meles, his wife. I met with members of the Parliament and with all the individuals there who are trying to do a good job. While there, I saw first hand their democratic progress and commitment in fighting terrorism….…..In spite of all these successes, in spite of what we have talked about and the significance of Ethiopia, I think we have to oppose H.R. 2003….This resolution’s idea of encouraging and facilitating is to impose restrictions and ultimatums. These punitive actions could damage the bilateral relationship between the United States and the Government of Ethiopia, as well as derail progress Ethiopia has made in furtherance of democracy and supporting human rights.”
Senator Inhofe went on to say, “I hope when it comes to this side, if it does come in this form, that we will be able to resoundingly defeat it. I look forward to being in Ethiopia in about 3 weeks. I will certainly hope that I don’t have to go over there after having something like this pass the Senate.”
The senior Senator from the State of Oklahoma was referring to a visit in Addis Ababa with Prime Minster Meles Zenawi – that Parade Magazine identified as one of the Worlds Worst dictators.
A delegation representing the peaceful demonstrators presented a letter with backup documents that documented the recurring human rights abuses in Ethiopia to Senator Inhofe’s district office Director. The delegation comprised of Ethiopian-Americans, and native-born Americans underlined the importance of H.R.2003 in the struggle for human rights, freedom and the rule of law in Ethiopia. The delegation stressed that they were very concerned about Senator Inhofe’s continued opposition of the Human Rights bill.
The District Director stated that Senator James Inhofe did not, at this present time, put a “hold” on H.R.2003 and that Senator Inhofe as well as his staff will be doing further research on H.R.2003. The delegation requested that Senator Inhofe put out a statement stating that he did not put a “hold” on the bill and discussed thoroughly the reasons Senator Inhofe should support H.R.2003 when it came to the Senate Floor.
After exiting Senator Inhofe’s office, the delegation reported to the crowd the result of the meeting; commitments were made from the energized crowd to continue to engage Senator James Inhofe to garner his full support in the passage of H.R.2003 from the U.S. Senate.
As promised, Senator James Inhofe put out a short statement later on in the afternoon confirming that he has not put a hold on H.R.2003 at this time. Senator Inhofe’s quote on not currently having a hold on the bill is as follows:
“I do not currently have a hold on the Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act of 2007 as it is still being considered in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and has not yet been reported in its final form.”
-U.S. Senator James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.)
In light of today’s successful campaign towards Senator James Inhofe, Ethiopian-Americans and Friends of Ethiopia in Oklahoma for H.R. 2003 commit to continue engaging Senator Inhofe so that he will give his full support to the human rights bill. Ethiopian-Americans and Friends of Ethiopia in Oklahoma for H.R. 2003 urge all who have successfully supported the November 13 effort to continue to call, fax and e-mail Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) , Senator Trent Lott (R-MS) and Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) until Friday, November 16, 2007.
Ethiopian-Americans and Friends of Ethiopia in Oklahoma for H.R. 2003, thank everyone for the support that was given to the Oklahoma campaign, without the united action of everyone the effort would not have shown the success seen today.
Contact Person:
Mr. Muluneh Zeleke, Spokesperson
Phone: 405-314-4560
The Woyanne regime has jammed the VOA broadcast to Ethiopia since yesterday, according to ER sources in Addis Ababa. Woyanne has been trying to jam VOA for a long time, but finally it succeeded with the help of the Chinese Government that provided technicians and powerful radio jamming equipments.
This is one more evidence that China is fast becoming a major obstacle to Africa’s move toward democracy.
Ethiopian Review and all other web sites that are critical of the regime are continued to be blocked. Ethiopian Review was briefly accessible in Ethiopia last month after the web site changed an IP address. It is now blocked again.
ER Research Unit has found out that the Woyanne helicopter gunship that disappeared last Friday had landed in Mogadishu after it was hit by machine gun bullets while carrying out a mission. The pilots and two gunners survived the landing and are heading to Addis Ababa on an Ethiopian Airlines plane, according to the ER sources.
