Torture Survivor Feyera Sobokssa Testifies at US Congress

June 27, 2015 Human Rights

Briefing for the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture

Happened on June 25, 2015 at the US Congress Building, from left Ms. Andrea, Feyera .  “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” ~ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. I would like to thank all of you who helped us to give our testimony at the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission.

BRIEFING

THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 201510:30 AM

ROOM H-137 OF THE U.S. CAPITOL BUILDING

Sena (L) and Lello Feyera. It is not only father gets tortured, but the whole family.

This briefing will take place at 10:30 AM on 6/25/2015, in Room H-137 of the U.S. Capitol Building.
The briefing is open to members of Congress, congressional staff, the media and the interested public.

DATE Thursday, June 25, 2015

TIME10:30 AM

LOCATIONRoom H-137 of the U.S. Capitol Building

BACKGROUND

In recognition of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, please join the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission for a briefing featuring testimonies from torture survivors.

በ2007 በኢትዮጵያ የተካሄደውን ምርጫ በሚመለከት ከመድረክ የተሰጠ መግለጫ:- ሕገ-መንግሥታዊና ሕጋዊ የምርጫ ሥርዓት በተጣሰበት ሂደት የተከናወነው ሕገ ወጥ የምርጫ ድራማ ተቀባይነት ሊኖረው አይችልም!

June 28, 2015 Ethiopia, Oromia

Ayyaantuu.net | Wxabajjii/June 28, 2015

ሕገ-መንግሥታዊና ሕጋዊ የምርጫ ሥርዓት በተጣሰበት ሂደት የተከናወነው ሕገ ወጥ የምርጫ ድራማ ተቀባይነት ሊኖረው አይችልም!

በሀገራችን ኢትዮጵያ የመድበለ ፓርቲ ሥርዓት እውን ሆኖ በነፃና ፍትሐዊ ምርጫ አማካይነት የሕዝባችን የሥልጣን ባለቤትነት የሚረጋገጥበት ሁኔታ በሕገ-መንግስቱ እውቅና ተሰጥቶት በይፋ ተደንግጎአል፡፡ ይሁን እንጂ ኢህአዴግ ሕገመንግሥቱንና የምርጫ ሕጎችን የጣሰ የምርጫ ድራማ በየ5 ዓመቱ በመቶ ሚሊዮኖች የሀገር ገንዘብ እያባከነ ያካሂዳል፡፡ ኢህአዴግ ይህንን የምርጫ ድራማ የሚያከሂደው፣ ወቅቱን የጠበቀ ምርጫ ማካሄድ በዓለም አቀፍ ለጋሽ ዴሞክራሲያዊ ሀገሮች ዘንድ እውቅና የስገኝልኛል በሚል ተስፋ ነው፡፡ ተጨባጩ እውነታ የሚያሳየው ግን ኢህአዴግ በሥልጣን ላይ በቆየባቸው 24 ዓመታት ራሱ ያጸደቃቸውን ሕጋዊና ሕገመንግሥታዊ ድንጋጌዎችን በመርገጥ የራሱን አምባገነናዊ ገዥነት ለማስቀጠል እንዲያስችለው የሕዝብ ድምፅ መንጠቂያና ማፈኛ ሕገወጥ የምርጫ ስትራቴጂዎችን እያወጣና ሥራ ላይ እያዋለ መሆኑን ነው፡፡ የሕዝባችንን ድምፅ መቀማቱንና ማፈኑን በየምርጫ ዙሮቹ እያባባሰ መሄዱን ቀጥሎበት አሁን ለደረስንበት የ100 ፐርሰንት ቅሚያም ደርሶአል፡፡ በተለይም በ2007 ዓም በተካሄደው የ5ኛ ዙር ሀገር አቀፍ ምርጫ ሕጋዊና ሕገመንግሥታዊ ድንጋጌዎችን በማንአለብኝነት በመጣስ በአጋርነት የፈረጃቸውን ፓርቲዎች አስከትሎና ሕዝቡንና ሐቀኛ ሰላማዊ ተቃዋሚ ፓርቲዎችን በኃይል አፍኖ ምርጫውን በሕገወጥ መንገድ መቶ በመቶ ለመቆጣጠርና ጠቅልሎ ለመውሰድ የፈጸማቸው አስነዋሪ ተግባራት ከአንድ በመንግሥት ኃላፊነት ላይ ከሚገኝ ፓርቲ የማይጠበቁ ናቸው፡፡ አገዛዙ በዚሁ ምርጫ ከመራጮች ምዝገባ ጀምሮ ከፈጸማቸው ሕገወጥ ተግባራት ዋና ዋናዎቹ የሚከተሉት ናቸው፡፡

1ኛ፡- የኢህአዴግ ካድሬዎች ከምርጫ ቦርድ በሚደረግላቸው ትብብር ብዛት ያላቸው የመራጮች ምዝገባ ካርደ እየተሰጣቸው አህአዴግን ይመርጣሉ ለሚሏቸው ቤት ለቤት በመዞር ለአንድ ሰው ከአስር ካርዶች በላይ ከተለያዩ ማስፈራሪያዎችና መደለያዎች ጋር ጭምር የምርጫው ዕለት ድረስ በማደል አንድ ሰው አንድ ድምጽ የሚለውን ሕግ በመጣስ ወንጀል ሲፈጽሙ ቆይተዋል፡፡ ተቃዋሚዎችን ይመርጣሉ ብለው የጠረጠሩዋቸውን በርካታ ዜጎችንም የምርጫ ምዝገባው ጊዜ ከማለቁ በፊት በምርጫ አስፈጻሚዎች #መዝገቡ ሞልቷል$ ወይም #ካርዱ አልቋል$ እየተባለ ሳይመዘገቡ እንዲቀሩ ተደርጓል፡፡ እንደዚሁም መድረክ በመረጃ የደረሰባቸውን ለሰው የታደሉ ትርፍ የመራጭ ካርዶችን ከመራጮች ምዝገባ ላይ ለማመሳከር ባደረገው ጥረት ካርዶቹ ተመዝግበው ያለመገኘታቸውን ማረጋገጡ፣ በመራጮች ምዝገባ ሂደት ከፍተኛ ወንጀል እንደተፈጸመ የሚያሳይ ነው፡፡ ይህ ሁኔታ አዋጅ 532/1999፣አንቀጽ 65 3ለ ላይ የሰፈረውን #እያንዳንዱ መራጭ በመራጮች መዝገብ ላይ ስሙ ሰፍሮ መገኘት አለበት$ የሚለውን ድንጋጌ መጣሱም ምርጫውን ሕገወጥ የሚያደርግ ነው፡፡

Mr. Obama’s visit to Ethiopia sends the wrong message on democracy

June 25, 2015 Ethiopia

By Editorial Board /The Washington Post 

National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) Chairman Prof. Merga Bekana announces preliminary results to the media in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Wednesday, May 27, 2015. (Mulugeta Ayene/AP)

(The Washington Post) — “AFRICA DOESN’T need strongmen, it needs strong institutions.” Those were President Obama’s words when he addressed Ghana’s parliament in July 2009, during his first trip to sub-Saharan Africa as president. The historic speech, watched around the globe, was an optimistic clarion call to the leaders on the continent from the son of a Kenyan. “First, we must support strong and sustainable democratic governments,” Mr. Obama said.

The president seems to have forgotten that speech. Last week, the White House announced that, while traveling to Kenya next month, Mr. Obama also will stop in Ethiopia, the first such visit by a sitting U.S. president to the country of 94 million. It’s almost unfathomable that he would make time for an entrenched human rights abuser such as Ethi­o­pia while cold-shouldering the nation that just witnessed a historic, peaceful, democratic change of power: Nigeria.

Administration officials justify the trip by citing the United States’ long-standing cooperation with Ethi­o­pia on issues of regional security and the country’s accelerating economic growth. Ethi­o­pia is a major recipient of U.S. development assistance, and the African Union has its headquarters there. But it also stands out in Africa for its increasingly harsh repression and its escalating chokehold on independent media and political dissent. Since June 2014, 34 journalists have been forced to flee the country, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Ethi­o­pia is also one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists.

Ethiopia: Abdullahi Hussein holds Seminar in Support of Ogaden Human Rights

June 24, 2015 Ogaden

By Ahmed Abdi

The Ogaden whistle-blower, Abdullahi Hussein, has held a seminar addressing the current human rights abuses in the occupied Ogaden region, Southeastern of Ethiopia.

 

Hussein held the seminar at Folkhogskola school in Västerås, Sweden, after being invited to update the human rights atrocities being committed against the Ogadeni civilians by the Ethiopian Security Forces and allied fighters known as special (Liyuu) Police, which have also been known as Ethiopian Janjaweed. 

 

The seminar was attended by professors, Horn of Africa experts, politicians and the school’s students, among others.

 

Hussein stated that the Ogaden region requires United Nation’s sponsored fact finding mission to investigate the recent extra-judicial killings that occurred in the Shilavo area near the border of Somalia.

” Ethiopian Security forces are targeting civilians to eliminate them in part of its campaign, apparently to make the area uninhabitable so that the oil corporations can easily have an access to Ogaden basin mainly Calub and Hilala gas fields without being passed their information to the Ogaden National Liberation Army (ONLA) [the group’s military wing],” he said.

Amnesty International Asks Ethiopia to Investigate Suspicious Murders and Human Rights Violations

June 24, 2015 Human Rights

(Amnesty International) — The suspicious murder of opposition leaders and wide-spread human rights violations against opposition party members over the past few weeks raises questions about Ethiopia’s elections, said Amnesty International as the parliamentary poll results were announced yesterday.

The organization has also expressed concerns about the failure of the Africa Union Elections Observer Mission (AUEOM) and the National Elections Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) to properly monitor and report on allegations of widespread abuses before, during and after the election.

“Amnesty International has received a number of reports concerning the deaths of political opposition figures in suspicious circumstances, as well as of a pattern of human rights violations against political opposition parties throughout the election period. These reports must be investigated and perpetrators brought to justice,” said Michelle Kagari, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for Eastern, Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes.

“It is unacceptable that these violations barely warranted a mention in reports released by official observers, including the Africa Union Elections Observer Mission and the National Elections Board of Ethiopia.”

In the run-up to the elections, more than 500 members of the Ethiopian Federal Democratic Unity Forum (EFDUF)/ Medrek – a coalition of opposition parties, including the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) were arrested at polling stations in Oromia region. Forty-six people were beaten and injured by security officers while six people sustained gunshot injuries and two were shot and killed. Gidila Chemeda of the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC/Medrek) was shot and killed by police in Western Shewa zone, Dima Kege Woreda, Gelam Gunge Kebele of the Oromia region.

Obama’s plan to visit Ethiopia criticised as ‘gift’ for repressive government

June 24, 2015 Ethiopia

Activists express anger at US president’s trip to country widely criticised for human right abuses.Global Voices report

Wajir, KENYA: US Senator Barack Obama tours Kenya’s northeastern district of Wajir on the country’s arid frontier with Somalia and Ethiopia where millions are threatened with starvation in the four-year drought. He visited a hospital, aid projects and community centers, speaking to victims. Some 3.6 million Kenyans are among more than 15 million people in five east and Horn of Africa nations to be affected by the drought. Kenya, Obama’s father’s birthplace, is the second leg and highlight of his tour of Africa, which began in South Africa and will continue in Chad and Djibouti. AFP PHOTO/STRINGER (Photo credit should read STRINGER/AFP/Getty Images)

(The Guardian) — Barack Obama’s decision to visitEthiopia has shocked human rights activists, who say the visit sends the wrong message to a repressive government widely accused of clamping down on dissent.

A White House statement said Obama will visit the east African country for meetings with government officials as part of his last African trip as president. As well as meeting the leadership of the African Union, the visit will form part of US efforts to strengthen economic growth, democratic institutions and improve security in the region.

But as activists and social media users have been making clear, Ethiopia’s track record on human rights and democracy is deeply troubling.

In its 2014 report, Human Rights Watch noted that Ethiopia increasingly clamps down on the freedoms of its citizens “using repressive laws to constrain civil society and independent media, and target individuals with politically motivated prosecutions”.

Last month, Ethiopians voted in parliamentary elections which were widely denounced as unfair. Though the African Union declared that the vote was peaceful, they fell short of using the words “free and fair”.

While the US state department has expressed concerns about restrictions on civil society, media, opposition parties, and independent voices, Ethiopia remains a significant recipient of foreign aid money and security support.

On Twitter Hannah McNeish, a freelance journalist , juxtaposed last month’s suspicious elections results with the White House’s decision to honour Ethiopia with an official visit:

Dispatches: Alarm Bells for Ethiopia’s 100% Election Victory

June 24, 2015 Human Rights

(HRW) — Elections where a ruling party wins 100 percent of the seats in parliament should always ring alarm bells. Results in Ethiopia from the May 24 general election, released yesterday, are no exception. According to Ethiopia’s National Electoral Board, the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) coalition won 546 parliamentary seats (with the 547th seat still to be announced).

The results shouldn’t be seen as a stamp of approval for Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn’s government – rather they are the inevitable outcome of a political system in which opposition parties face extraordinary challenges and nearly all avenues for citizens to engage in political debate are closed.

The seeds for this situation were sown years ago. Since the last election in 2010, in which the EPRDF won a mere 99.6 percent of parliamentary seats, political space has been further restricted: the independent media has been decimated, civil society groups virtually eliminated, and peaceful public demonstrations quelled, sometimes by force.

Dozens of journalists forced into exile, report shows

June 18, 2015 Ethiopia

Committee to Protect Journalists issues report revealing that Ethiopia has produced the most exiled journalists

(Aljazeera) – Dozens of journalists have been forced into exile in the last 12 months, fearing imprisonment or death at the hands of their own governments, according to a report released Wednesday.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) issued its “Journalists in Exile” study on Wednesday, showing that at least 82 reporters were forced to flee to another country between May 2014 and June of this year.

According to CPJ figures, that number is the smallest since the press freedom advocacy group started keeping figures in 2010-2011, when 84 journalists went into exile. In 2012-2013, a record 97 journalists were forced out ot their home countries.

In the last five years, according to CPJ, at least 452 writers and photographers were exiled, mostly from Syria, Cuba, Mexico, Iran and Ethiopia.

The real figure is likely higher as the CPJ number represents only the reporters the organization tried to help through its Journalist Assistance Program, which finds refuge and funds for journalists in danger.

The report revealed about 50 percent of journalists exiled since May 2014 said the likelihood of imprisonment was the primary reason they fled with another 28 percent blaming threats of violence.

But the problems don’t end at the border, said Nicole Schilit, the author of the report.

Ethiopian Opposition Party: Candidate’s Murder Was Politically Motivated

June 18, 2015 Ethiopia

Fatal torture widespread in Ethiopia – Samuel Awoke tortured and murdered by the regime

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) — An Ethiopian opposition party said on Wednesday that one of its candidates, who took part in last month’s elections, was beaten to death in a “brazen attack” it believes was politically motivated.

A government spokesman denied that Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn’s government was involved in any way.

The Horn of Africa country has won plaudits for delivering growth for much of the past decade, but rights groups often accuse the government, which has won every seat announced so far in the May election, of clamping down on dissent.

Samuel Awoke, a Semayawi Party candidate in the north-central Amhara Region at the May 24 vote, was attacked on Monday evening in Debre Markos, less than 300 km (190 miles) north of the capital Addis Ababa, party chairman Yilekal Getinet said.

“His attackers approached him at 7:30 in the evening and beat him to death, right in the middle of the street on his way home,” Yilekal told Reuters.

Samuel Awoke was a happy student

“It was a brazen attack carried out on an individual who was critical of the government and who was a victim of a previous assault on election day. This was not some petty crime – it must have been politically motivated,” he said.

A second government official confirmed the incident but rejected claims of political foulplay, saying Samuel – a lawyer – was attacked by a client aggrieved over his handling in court of a dispute over land.

“The attacker is in custody while another individual is being investigated,” the government spokesman, Shimeles Kemal, told Reuters. “There was nothing political about it.”

The ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front coalition swept all 442 seats announced so far, out of a total 547. The opposition held a sole seat during the last term.

Critics and the opposition say the government has quashed dissent, jailed bloggers and journalists for their views and may have rigged elections. The government denies the charges, saying it guarantees free speech and conducts fair elections.

Al Shabab ambush kills 30 Ethiopian soldiers

June 13, 2015 Somalia

Burhakaba, Somalia (Shabelle Network) – Heavy fighting broke out between Ethiopian forces serving under AU mission in Somalia ‘AMISOM’ and Al Shabaab militants in Jameco area 20 Km east of Burhakaba town in south of Somalia’s Bay region.

The fighting started with an IED hit a convoy of Ethiopian forces than Al Shabab militants armed with propelled grenades and machine guns launched an ambush assault on its military vehicles travelling through the town.

Al Shabab claimed to have killed at least 30 Ethiopian forces and destroyed 7 military technical convoys during the ambush raid according to pro Al Shabab website though Shabelle Media did not count that number.

Meanwhile, African Union and Somalia National army officials said that its troops had successfully repelled Al Shabab attacks, adding that militants fled from the area, AU statement reads.

AMISOM Sector Three Commander, Col Yemane Gabremichael says the militants attempted to attack the convoy on the Leego – Buur Hakaba road but were overpowered by AMISOM and Government forces.

Burhakaba, a town 150 Km northeast of Mogadishu is under control of Somalia National Army, along with African Union mission in Somalia-known as AMISOM, which battling Al Shabab militants the past 5 years.

http://www.ayyaantuu.net/al-shabab-ambush-kills-30-ethiopian-soldiers/

Ethiopia’s crackdown on dissent drives opposition to push for ‘freedom first’

June 11, 2015 Ethiopia

Government’s critics weigh options after ruling party landslide leads to loss of faith in ballot box while case of Zone 9 bloggers discourages free speech

 

William Davison, June 11

22 May 2015, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia — Ethiopian people read newspapers a day before the country goes into a general election in capital Addis Ababa May 22, 2015. REUTERS/Tiksa Negeri — Image by © TIKSA NEGERI/Reuters/Corbis

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (Bloomberg News) — On the very day Ethiopia’s ruling party celebrated another crushing electoral victory, a young blogger on trial under anti-terrorism laws in an Addis Ababa courtroom lashed out at the authorities.

“You yourself should respect the law,” said Abel Wabella, 28, from the Zone 9 blogging group, after judges denied him the chance to protest against the tortuous pace of legal proceedings that began more than a year ago.

The case of nine journalists and bloggers arrested in 2014 has been decried byhuman rights groups as an example of Ethiopian authorities’ crackdown on dissent. The nine were detained on allegations that they worked for foreign human rights groups or had used social media to incite violence.

The Release of the ONLF Negotiators Abducted by the Ethiopian Government

June 3, 2015 Ogaden

(ONLF) — The Ethiopian government has released the two ONLF negotiators Mr Sulub Ahmed and Ali Hussein who were abducted in Nairobi by the Ethiopian government and were freed on June 1, 2015. Ethiopian security official brought the two delegates to Moyale town, at Ethiopian-Kenyan border. The two delegates are now in Nairobi and have been reunited with their families. After their abduction on January 26, 2014, they were taken to Ethiopia and detained in an undisclosed facility for oneyear and four months.

 

The Ethiopian government released the two delegates after sustained diplomatic efforts by the Kenyan government and members of the international community insupport of calls by the ONLF for their release. The Kenyan government is facilitating the ongoing dialogue between ONLF and the Ethiopian government.

 

The ONLF welcomes the release andreturn of its two delegates as a positive development that removes an important obstacle to progress in the peace talks.

 

ONLF is committed tocontinuing the  peace process in pursuit of a just and durable political solution.

 

Issued by ONLF