Since being feted by Tony Blair, Ethiopia's government has grown increasingly intolerant of dissent – and the leader of its main opposition party is paying the price.
By Daniel Howden -The Independent
Tuesday, 3 February 2009
Birtukan Mideksa has been sentenced to life in prison. She spends her days and nights in solitary confinement in a two-metre by two-metre cell. She cannot leave it to see daylight or even to receive visitors. Previous inmates say the prison is often unbearably hot.
Her crime: refusing to say sorry. The judge, aged 34, is the head of Ethiopia's most popular political party, the only female leader of a main opposition party in Africa.
The government in Addis Ababa had her arrested on 28 December, claiming she had violated the terms of an earlier pardon.
Her previous release in 2007, which came after serving two years in prison, was conditional on her signing an apology for taking part in protests against fixed elections.
In November, the woman who is becoming a democratic icon in Ethiopia told an audience in Sweden that she had not asked for a pardon. On returning to Ethiopia it was demanded that she sign further apologies and, when she refused, she was re-arrested. The Ministry of Justice then issued a statement reimposing her life sentence.
Mesfin Woldemariam, an award-winning Ethiopian human rights campaigner, is clear about what she says is going on: "She refuses to bow to them. They want her to submit, but she didn't submit when she was a judge. That's why she left the bar. And she won't now. She's a tough cookie." She won national acclaim by defying government control of the courts and resigning the bar to practice law after high-profile decisions were overturned.
The charges against her go to the heart of Ethiopia's experiment with democracy in 2005 and the violent backlash that followed the country's flawed first attempt at a multi-party election. Click on 'Read More'.
When demonstrators, including Ms Mideksa, took to the streets to protest at the skewed results which returned the ruling party, the police opened fire, killing at least 187 people. The opposition leadership, along with thousands of others, were rounded up and jailed.
"In 2005, we expected the results of the national parliamentary elections as a strong foundation for building a temple of democracy in Ethiopia," she told a US Senate hearing in 2007. "Our hopes were dashed, and we found ourselves trapped in a burning house of tyranny."
Her response since being released has been to unite the fragments of opposition into a single party committed to non-violence, democratic reform and an independent judiciary.
A mother who has missed much of her five-year-old daughter's life so far, she has shown remarkable courage. "I'm not afraid of going to jail," she said last year after founding the Unity for Democracy and Justice Party. "Not because that is not a possibility. I know that could happen."
Professor Woldemariam was with her when it did happen. Five cars pulled up and the pair were confronted violently by police while on a street in the capital city. "They behaved as if there was a prize for the first person who got her," the former Fulbright scholar and now professor of geography recalls.
When he asked why they had not issued a warrant and asked her to give herself into custody, one of the men turned on him. "He hit me with the butt of his gun and they pushed her into a car and took her."
Her destination was a cell in the notorious Kaliti prison outside the capital Addis Ababa. It's a place with which she is already intimately acquainted, where prisoners are kept in conditions she once described as "dehumanising", "atrocious" and "barbarous".
The UK director of Amnesty International, Kate Allen, said: "There appears to be no lawful reason why Birtukan Mideksa was arrested or remains in detention. She has now been held for a month in solitary confinement and still has not been charged. This is unacceptable."
Ethiopia's Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, has been in power since 1995. He was formerly feted as a progressive voice by Tony Blair but he has become markedly dictatorial during his years in power. One regional analyst said the government was becoming increasingly paranoid.
"This came in the context of an election that the government lost control of in 2005, and ahead of 2010 elections that it fully intends to keep from going the same way."
Recently, laws have been passed to heavily restrict the work of international non-government organisations, despite an ongoing famine in areas of the country. "Much of the government's behaviour stems from security concerns, and a lack of understanding that improving human rights will actually help to mitigate many of their concerns," said the analyst.
Professor Woldemariam, one of a few people still prepared to speak out in a country he describes as a "police state", says the regime had become frightened of Ms Mideksa. "They are looking for any excuse to get her because she's a dynamic girl who is getting increasingly popular. They want to cut her short."
But it will not be easy to intimidate her, he believes. "She has such faith in the law. She says to me, 'the law says this, the law says that ...'. I said to her: 'What law are you talking about? You were locked up for two years with no due process.'"
Described as an "Ethiopian Obama" and a brilliant speaker and organiser, she has become a symbol of democracy in her own country, compared with figures like Burma's Aung San Suu Kyi.
There is reported to be deep disquiet among the general population at her arrest and conditions of detention, even though their dissent is not tolerated. Ethiopia, largely Orthodox Christian, has been a staunch ally of the American-led war on terror and a partner in its disastrous policy on Somalia.
The arrest of Ms Mideksa has sparked criticism from some American senators and the hope that the Obama administration might change Washington's relationship with the Zenawi government.
"There is no democracy in Ethiopia today, despite empty claims of 'recent bold democratic initiatives' taken by our government," Ms Mideksa told US senators.
Many in Ethiopia and its large diaspora are hoping that Mr Obama's offer to "extend a hand" to dictatorships who would unclench their fists included a message to Addis Ababa.
Ms Mideksa has already given Washington her advice: "Ethiopia has many problems, including a legacy of repression, corruption and mismanagement. The US can help by using its considerable influence to encourage the government to negotiate with the opposition. It will not be easy to confront the past.
"We must start at the right point by embracing the rule of law, human rights and democracy."
Views from cyberspace: What the blogs say
*There is an old Ethiopian proverb which in translation says, "Oh, Mr Hyena, don't give me excuse to eat me". (Aya jibo sata mehagne blagne). Why is Zenawi resorting to such thuggish tactics against Birtukan? And Professor Mesfin? And the [Unity for Democracy and Justice Party]? Is he trying to create a convenient distraction from his devastating defeat in Somalia? - Quatero News and Views
*Birtukan has modelled courage and conviction. I do not think she is asking the Ethiopian people to personally rescue her; but instead, on behalf of others. - Anyuak Media
* Birtukan Mideksa continues to impress millions of her fellow compatriots to promote the struggle forthe triumph of democracy over tyranny. - Ethiomedia
*In fact, the Ethiopian tyrant has killed far more innocent people than the Zimbabwean tyrant. The Ethiopian tyrant also has rigged national elections for three times like the Zimbabwean tyrant. I hope and I believe democrats as well as President Obama will restore respect for the US by supporting people who aspire for their democratic rights. - Shemolo
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Ethiopia denies re-entering Somalia
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Ethiopia denied on Tuesday that its troops had re-entered Somalia to counter the militant Islamist group al Shabaab.
"This is absolutely false. The army is within the Ethiopian border. There is no intention to go back," minister and chief government spokesman Bereket Simon told Reuters.
He described the version of an Ethiopian incursion, given by locals in the area, as a "wicked" attempt to detract from positive developments in Somalia.
And here is the rest of it.
"This is absolutely false. The army is within the Ethiopian border. There is no intention to go back," minister and chief government spokesman Bereket Simon told Reuters.
He described the version of an Ethiopian incursion, given by locals in the area, as a "wicked" attempt to detract from positive developments in Somalia.
And here is the rest of it.
Somalia: Islamists give out deadline time to Ethiopian troops
Somaliweyn Media Center “SMC”
The officials of the Islamic Courts Union in Baladweyn town the headquarters of Hiran region in central Somalia has sent warning message to the Ethiopian troops stationed at Kalaberyka intersection which is geographically situated on the northern direction of Baladweyn and some 25KM from the town.
The message says that the Ethiopian troops should abandoned in the area which they have arrived some 2 nights ago within 24hours or will see the consequence.
“We cannot endure ourselves more than this the Ethiopian troops are dealing badly with the people who are traveling, and the are as well as nomad people living around the vicinity of Kalabeyrka intersection, we are going to raid them, if they remain there in the coming 24hours, this strong statement we are sending to the Ethiopian troops, we are an inch in their country, and we consider this as provocation” said Ahmed Osman (Inji) the security commander of the Islamic Courts Union in Hiran region speaking to Somaliweyn radio correspondent on the ground.
On the other hand the officer accused the Ethiopian troops of taking huge sum of money from the drivers traveling between south and central Somalia.
The Ethiopian troops have earlier invaded in Somalia supporting the fragile government of Somalia, and have pulled out from the country after 2 years of not achieving its goal in Somalia, and it is not manifest the main objective these Ethiopian troops in some parts of Hiran region in central Somalia.
And here is the rest of it.
The officials of the Islamic Courts Union in Baladweyn town the headquarters of Hiran region in central Somalia has sent warning message to the Ethiopian troops stationed at Kalaberyka intersection which is geographically situated on the northern direction of Baladweyn and some 25KM from the town.
The message says that the Ethiopian troops should abandoned in the area which they have arrived some 2 nights ago within 24hours or will see the consequence.
“We cannot endure ourselves more than this the Ethiopian troops are dealing badly with the people who are traveling, and the are as well as nomad people living around the vicinity of Kalabeyrka intersection, we are going to raid them, if they remain there in the coming 24hours, this strong statement we are sending to the Ethiopian troops, we are an inch in their country, and we consider this as provocation” said Ahmed Osman (Inji) the security commander of the Islamic Courts Union in Hiran region speaking to Somaliweyn radio correspondent on the ground.
On the other hand the officer accused the Ethiopian troops of taking huge sum of money from the drivers traveling between south and central Somalia.
The Ethiopian troops have earlier invaded in Somalia supporting the fragile government of Somalia, and have pulled out from the country after 2 years of not achieving its goal in Somalia, and it is not manifest the main objective these Ethiopian troops in some parts of Hiran region in central Somalia.
And here is the rest of it.
AU Peacekeepers Accused of Firing on Civilians in Somalia
By Derek Kilner
Nairobi
03 February 2009
Local officials in Somalia have accused African Union peacekeepers of firing on civilians in the capital, Mogadishu, killing as many as 39 people after a roadside explosion. A spokesman for the AU force has denied that the troops shot at civilians.The deputy mayor of Mogadishu, Abdifatah Shaweye, says Ugandan peacekeepers opened fire on public buses, after a roadside bomb exploded near their convoy. He describes the event as a massacre, saying AU troops killed 39 civilians.
There have also been reports that AU troops confiscated the video camera of a journalist who was filming at the scene.
A spokesman for the AU mission, Bahoku Barigye, confirms a roadside bomb had exploded near an AU convoy. But, speaking to VOA from Mogadishu, he criticized the deputy mayor's comments as irresponsible.
"I am positively not at liberty to discuss some of the details we have about what transpired," he said. "For someone to stand up and say that AMISOM has murdered innocent civilians, it's unfortunate. I think the people of Somalia are not stupid, I know they are intelligent enough to look at these bodies and tell whether the death that was occasioned was from a roadside bomb or from bullets."
The nearly 3,000 Ugandan and Burundian AU peacekeepers have become an increasing target of Islamist insurgents in Mogadishu, particularly since Ethiopian troops withdrew from the country, last month. The AU has approved another 5,000 troops, but Nigeria and other countries have yet to follow through on their pledged contributions. Monday, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon raised the possibility of incorporating the AU troops into a larger U.N. peacekeeping force.
Ethiopian troops withdrew from Somalia last month, after spending two years battling Islamist insurgents. However, Ethiopia has retained large forces along the border. The Reuters news agency has reported claims that Ethiopian troops have crossed back into Somalia, in recent days, setting up a checkpoint near Baladwayne, which is controlled by the radical Islamist Al-Shabaab militia. Ethiopia denies this.
On Saturday, moderate Islamist leader Sheikh Shaif Sheikh Ahmed was sworn in as Somalia's new president. He was chosen by members of Somalia's parliament as part of an U.N.-backed agreement with the country's transitional government. The choice of Sheikh Sharif, who heads the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia, has been greeted with measured optimism. On Monday Ban Ki-moon praised his selection.
But the Shabaab, which was formerly allied with Sheikh Sharif in the Islamic Courts Union that briefly took control of Mogadishu in 2006, has vowed to continue its insurgency. Somalia's Radio Garowe reports that a spokesman for the group has accused Sheikh Sharif of siding with the United States over Islam. The group has organized demonstrations against Sheikh Sharif in the towns under its control, including Baidoa, site of Somalia's parliament. Sheikh Sharif's selection has also been rejected by a hard-line faction of the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia, led by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys and based in Asmara.
Nairobi
03 February 2009
Local officials in Somalia have accused African Union peacekeepers of firing on civilians in the capital, Mogadishu, killing as many as 39 people after a roadside explosion. A spokesman for the AU force has denied that the troops shot at civilians.The deputy mayor of Mogadishu, Abdifatah Shaweye, says Ugandan peacekeepers opened fire on public buses, after a roadside bomb exploded near their convoy. He describes the event as a massacre, saying AU troops killed 39 civilians.
There have also been reports that AU troops confiscated the video camera of a journalist who was filming at the scene.
A spokesman for the AU mission, Bahoku Barigye, confirms a roadside bomb had exploded near an AU convoy. But, speaking to VOA from Mogadishu, he criticized the deputy mayor's comments as irresponsible.
"I am positively not at liberty to discuss some of the details we have about what transpired," he said. "For someone to stand up and say that AMISOM has murdered innocent civilians, it's unfortunate. I think the people of Somalia are not stupid, I know they are intelligent enough to look at these bodies and tell whether the death that was occasioned was from a roadside bomb or from bullets."
The nearly 3,000 Ugandan and Burundian AU peacekeepers have become an increasing target of Islamist insurgents in Mogadishu, particularly since Ethiopian troops withdrew from the country, last month. The AU has approved another 5,000 troops, but Nigeria and other countries have yet to follow through on their pledged contributions. Monday, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon raised the possibility of incorporating the AU troops into a larger U.N. peacekeeping force.
Ethiopian troops withdrew from Somalia last month, after spending two years battling Islamist insurgents. However, Ethiopia has retained large forces along the border. The Reuters news agency has reported claims that Ethiopian troops have crossed back into Somalia, in recent days, setting up a checkpoint near Baladwayne, which is controlled by the radical Islamist Al-Shabaab militia. Ethiopia denies this.
On Saturday, moderate Islamist leader Sheikh Shaif Sheikh Ahmed was sworn in as Somalia's new president. He was chosen by members of Somalia's parliament as part of an U.N.-backed agreement with the country's transitional government. The choice of Sheikh Sharif, who heads the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia, has been greeted with measured optimism. On Monday Ban Ki-moon praised his selection.
But the Shabaab, which was formerly allied with Sheikh Sharif in the Islamic Courts Union that briefly took control of Mogadishu in 2006, has vowed to continue its insurgency. Somalia's Radio Garowe reports that a spokesman for the group has accused Sheikh Sharif of siding with the United States over Islam. The group has organized demonstrations against Sheikh Sharif in the towns under its control, including Baidoa, site of Somalia's parliament. Sheikh Sharif's selection has also been rejected by a hard-line faction of the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia, led by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys and based in Asmara.
Witnesses says Ethiopians are back in Somalia
MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Witnesses on Tuesday reported that Ethiopian troops have returned to Somalia, just over a week after pulling out of the country. The Ethiopian government denied the claim.
At the same time, the newly elected Somali president told fellow African leaders he wants to improve relations with Ethiopia, a significant change in approach for a man who has in the past characterized the neighboring country as an enemy of Somalia.
Farhan Dheere, a resident of the Somali town of Kalabeyrka, a few miles (kilometers) from the border, said Ethiopian troops in 17 military vehicles arrived on Monday and set up a checkpoint.
Truck driver Botan Ali said his vehicle was searched by Ethiopian troops in Kalabeyrka on Tuesday and Somali militiamen working with the Ethiopians demanded he pay some money that they described as "tax."
Ethiopian Communication Affairs Minister Bereket Simon denied there are any Ethiopian troops in Somalia. Click on 'Read More'.
"We're within the bounds of Ethiopian territory and we have no intention of crossing" the border, Bereket told The Associated Press.
Sheik Abdurrahman Ibrahim Ma'ow, the chairman of the Council of Islamic Courts in the central Somali region of Hiran, said the Ethiopians have moved further inland. Kalabeyrka is in the Hiran region.
"We, the authorities in the region, will not accept it. If they do not leave within 24 hours we will fight with them," Ma'ow told the AP by phone.
In his first speech to his fellow African leaders, Somalia's new president, Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, said his country will lay aside its decades-long animosity for Ethiopia. It is unclear if he was aware of reports of Ethiopian troops being in his country.
"I have a commitment to create a peaceful life for my people," Ahmed said, speaking in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. "I will do my best to create a good relationship between Somalia, Ethiopia and Djibouti. I think all of them, they are doing well to create a peaceful life in the Horn of Africa. And we have to respect each other and to respect our sovereignty."
Ahmed also said his government will play a role in combating piracy off the coast of Somalia. The coastline of the lawless Horn of Africa nation has become a haven for pirates, who last year seized more than 40 vessels.
Ethiopia invaded Somalia in December 2006 after Somalia's weak government asked for help to oust an Islamic group. Ahmed was a key leader of that group but since his election Saturday as president he has vowed to part with his former extremist allies and pursue a moderate Islamic policy.
On Jan. 25, the last Ethiopian troops withdrew after an unpopular two-year deployment.
Somalia and Ethiopia have been rivals for decades, and fought in the late 1970s over a southeastern region of Ethiopia populated principally by people of Somali origin.
Arid, impoverished Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew a socialist dictator and then turned on each other.
Associated Press writer Anita Powell in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, contributed to this report.
At the same time, the newly elected Somali president told fellow African leaders he wants to improve relations with Ethiopia, a significant change in approach for a man who has in the past characterized the neighboring country as an enemy of Somalia.
Farhan Dheere, a resident of the Somali town of Kalabeyrka, a few miles (kilometers) from the border, said Ethiopian troops in 17 military vehicles arrived on Monday and set up a checkpoint.
Truck driver Botan Ali said his vehicle was searched by Ethiopian troops in Kalabeyrka on Tuesday and Somali militiamen working with the Ethiopians demanded he pay some money that they described as "tax."
Ethiopian Communication Affairs Minister Bereket Simon denied there are any Ethiopian troops in Somalia. Click on 'Read More'.
"We're within the bounds of Ethiopian territory and we have no intention of crossing" the border, Bereket told The Associated Press.
Sheik Abdurrahman Ibrahim Ma'ow, the chairman of the Council of Islamic Courts in the central Somali region of Hiran, said the Ethiopians have moved further inland. Kalabeyrka is in the Hiran region.
"We, the authorities in the region, will not accept it. If they do not leave within 24 hours we will fight with them," Ma'ow told the AP by phone.
In his first speech to his fellow African leaders, Somalia's new president, Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, said his country will lay aside its decades-long animosity for Ethiopia. It is unclear if he was aware of reports of Ethiopian troops being in his country.
"I have a commitment to create a peaceful life for my people," Ahmed said, speaking in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. "I will do my best to create a good relationship between Somalia, Ethiopia and Djibouti. I think all of them, they are doing well to create a peaceful life in the Horn of Africa. And we have to respect each other and to respect our sovereignty."
Ahmed also said his government will play a role in combating piracy off the coast of Somalia. The coastline of the lawless Horn of Africa nation has become a haven for pirates, who last year seized more than 40 vessels.
Ethiopia invaded Somalia in December 2006 after Somalia's weak government asked for help to oust an Islamic group. Ahmed was a key leader of that group but since his election Saturday as president he has vowed to part with his former extremist allies and pursue a moderate Islamic policy.
On Jan. 25, the last Ethiopian troops withdrew after an unpopular two-year deployment.
Somalia and Ethiopia have been rivals for decades, and fought in the late 1970s over a southeastern region of Ethiopia populated principally by people of Somali origin.
Arid, impoverished Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew a socialist dictator and then turned on each other.
Associated Press writer Anita Powell in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, contributed to this report.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Ethiopia releases two Yemeni traders
SANA'A, Feb. 01 (Saba) - Ethiopian ambassador to Yemen Tawfik Abdullah has confirmed the release of two Yemeni livestock traders the Ethiopian authorities arrested in Addis Ababa in November.
In an interview with the Alsiyasiah newspaper, Abdullah confirmed his country freed on Thursday Hussein Ahmed al-Junaidi and Ali Hadi al-Rafeek who were arrested in connection with having large sums of money.
However, Abdullah affirmed the bilateral relationship between Yemen an Ethiopia can not be affected by arrests of violators of each country's rules.
Having large sums of money is not a crime but foreigners in any country have to have large sums through this country's Central Bank but not through the black market or smuggling, he said, adding violators must be punished.
MD/FR
And here is the rest of it.
In an interview with the Alsiyasiah newspaper, Abdullah confirmed his country freed on Thursday Hussein Ahmed al-Junaidi and Ali Hadi al-Rafeek who were arrested in connection with having large sums of money.
However, Abdullah affirmed the bilateral relationship between Yemen an Ethiopia can not be affected by arrests of violators of each country's rules.
Having large sums of money is not a crime but foreigners in any country have to have large sums through this country's Central Bank but not through the black market or smuggling, he said, adding violators must be punished.
MD/FR
And here is the rest of it.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Ethiopian activists staged protest in Tübingen, Germany
by Tsegaye TekleOn 31 January 2009, a protest was staged in Tübingen, Germany to put pressure on the Ethiopian government on a number of issues. The demonstration was attended by groups of Ethiopian activists from different parts of Germany as well as German government officials, and human rights representatives. The demonstraters demanded the release of Birtukan Mideksa, leader of the opposition political party Unity for Democracy and Justice and all other political prisoners. The protest also reflected different issues ranging from sexual violence against women to ethnic cleansing and genocide against the Anuak in Gambela. Click on 'Read More' for more pictures.
Women protesting the re-arrest of the first female opposition leader
A government official showing support.
No partnership with a torture state.
Free Teddy Afro and all political prisoners.
Click here to read what the Schwäbisches Tagblatt reported about the demonstration.
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