Oromo Views & Headline News

Meles Zenawi: Where the truth lies

2012-02-12T01:01:00.000-08:00

By Janice Winter

February 11, 2012 (Daily Maverick) - Daily Maverick’s The AU Summit: A rare ring of truth by Kevin Bloom lauds Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi as being unique in speaking “trenchant truth” at an AU gathering in the 49 years since its establishment (initially the OAU). Taking exception to this interpretation, JANICE WINTER exposes where the truth lies.

The speech in question was made at the inauguration of the new AU headquarters funded by China, where Meles Zenawi talked of an African renaissance underway, characterised by economic surges, social progress, improved governance, diminishing violence, the banishment of the one-party systems and the ability of Africans to make choices about their lives and societies.

The ‘evidence’ Bloom cites for the veracity of Zenawi’s promises of African growth and development: the cranes he sees scattering Addis Ababa’s skyline, impressive buildings alongside the city’s informal settlements, and touted plans for an impressive transit system. These anecdotal observations are unfortunately not trustworthy snapshots of the health of the economy of the capital city, or Ethiopia more broadly. The cliché about how looks can deceive is particularly germane in informationally closed authoritarian societies.

So, if not evidence of Ethiopia’s economic health, what else could such urban development indicate? Practically, that Zenawi’s regime has borrowed and printed a lot of money – and the evidence for this truth is Ethiopia’s runaway inflation rate that rose above 40% in 2011, with food inflation peaking above 50% and the ratio of debt to exports reaching above 130%. The regime recently imposed extensive price controls that caused severe shortages in various food items and left long queues of people waiting to buy cooking oil and sugar, redolent of the days of Mengistu Hailemariam’s dictatorship. The country is also beset by a series of currency devaluations, acute shortages in foreign currency reserve and a widening trade deficit. This is patently unsustainable, as leading economists have repeatedly warned. Ethiopia is a macroeconomic disaster, despite Zenawi’s unwarranted image as economist king. Yet despite the economy’s vulnerability, this runaway borrowing and spending has secured him political stability, at least in the short term, by providing a means with which to buy the loyalty of military leaders and co-opt members of the urban elite.

Zenawi spoke of Africa’s access to new centres of finance, which have indeed brought significant investment in infrastructure and development, and celebrated the continent’s declining dependence on the West. However, while such investment might bolster the incumbent regime in their ‘struggle for survival’, Global Financial Integrity explains that as a result of corruption by the ruling elite, “The people of Ethiopia are being bled dry. No matter how hard they try to fight their way out of absolute destitution and poverty, they will be swimming upstream against the current of illicit capital leakage.” A bit of conversation with locals and a few minutes spent googling would give any interested journalist numerous appalling anecdotes about the generals, members of the ruling party and party-affiliated, rent-seeking companies that own the lion’s share of Addis Ababa’s glittering buildings. While not all of the stories and studies can be assumed trustworthy, they surely provide substantial food for scepticism.

Zenawi has forecast a staggering 14.9% average economic growth rate between 2010 and 2015 and claims to have achieved “double digit” growth over the last seven years despite a global economic recession. There is credible scepticism of these figures by some international economists and substantial discrepancies in conclusions about the country’s performance and progress toward the MDGs. No independent institutions in Ethiopia exist to check the veracity of his government’s figures.

What confounds me is why the international community continues to accept Zenawi’s claims about the regime’s economic record, while taking for granted that he has lied repeatedly on human rights issues and consequently rejecting his official line on Ethiopia’s human rights record. That his statements on human rights, democracy, foreign threats, opposition groups, journalists and a host of other topics and issues are manifestly and consistently false should indicate that other information taken from the same source also has a high likelihood of being untrue.

But even if we choose to take his contentious economic figures at face value, does it suggest that his brutal authoritarian capitalism constitutes a model to be condoned, endorsed or even celebrated within Africa for its remarkable economic results? Do we really agree to overlook repressive prisons if they’re built along with impressive new road networks? Bloom understandably found it “kind of hard” to forget the AU memorial that has been erected to honour victims of human rights violations in Africa, considering that the AU’s current chair is a despotic dictator responsible for widespread human rights violations in Equatorial Guinea. Yet despite the monument being erected in Ethiopia’s capital, the article made no mention of the pattern of arrests, torture, rapes, forced removals and political manipulation of development aid that characterises Zenawi’s abysmal human rights record.

In fact, the one rare ring of truth in Zenawi’s speech was his opening line, which celebrated that the new AU headquarters “is built on the ruins of the oldest maximum security prison” known by Ethiopians as Alem Bekagn, which, loosely translated, means, “I have given up on this world, on this life”.

Intended as a metaphor for a world that had given up on Africa, those familiar with Ethiopian current affairs would note the analogy’s ironic aptness: the AU event took place in Addis Ababa at the same time that two Ethiopian journalists each received 14 years imprisonment, an exiled journalist received his second life sentence in absentia, while the world was talking about two Swedish investigative journalists condemned to serve 11-year prison sentences in Ethiopia, and as journalist and dissident Eskinder Nega faces the death penalty.

More than 114 journalists and opposition members have been imprisoned (some of whom may face the death penalty) in the past 11 months, in an environment that Amnesty International describes as “the most far-reaching crackdown on freedom of expression seen in many years in Ethiopia”. Even the UN – usually cautious of condemning its member states – has criticised this recent escalation of repression.

Where are these political prisoners being held? In Alem Bekagn’s replacement, the infamous Qaliti Prison, located just two miles from its predecessor and the new AU headquarters and thus effectively hidden from the view of most visitors. All that’s really changed is a strategic shift in its position, and not the experience within its walls. The same could be said of Meles Zenawi’s dictatorship, which, while less overt to outsiders than that of his predecessor, is largely the same in substance.

In short, his statement that “out of the decades of hopelessness and imprisonment, a new era of hope is dawning and that Africa is being unshackled and freed” is far from true in the context of Zenawi’s tyrannical leadership.

In fact, a striking parallel can be made between Zenawi’s Ethiopia and Mubarak’s Egypt. EPRDF, like Mubarak’s NDP, has a crushing dominance of the country’s political scene, using a mixture of co-option, manipulation, electoral fraud and repression. In 2010, the party declared that it won 99.6% of the country’s parliamentary seats, which was down from the even more ludicrous 99.9% sweep in local elections in 2008. Such Soviet-style electoral statistics would embarrass even some of the nastiest dictators in the world. Since 2007, the party has recruited 7-million members, nearly 10% of the population – a figure that trumps what the Communist Party of China accomplished in its entire existence. Some of these members are students and college graduates who have no opportunity to get government jobs (accounting for the overwhelming majority of urban employment) or to receive micro financing services without party membership. As in Mubarak’s Egypt, Ethiopia’s economy is controlled by very few people who have links with the army, the ruling party or Meles Zenawi’s family. Another similarity is the use of anti-terrorism laws and extensive torture to silence all forms of political dissent.

Indeed, in an article entitled What’s He Got to Hide? published in the New York Times (coincidentally, also last Sunday), Nicholas Kristof describes Zenawi’s “increasingly tyrannical” rule and condemns the dictator’s attempts to prevent public scrutiny of his “worsening pattern of brutality” by silencing those who seek to tell the truth.

Thus it is surprising to me that a publication whose open endorsement of liberal values such as freedom of expression, civil liberties and economic rights is as central to its identity, as is the case with the Daily Maverick, would run an article that celebrates a dictator’s dubious words as truth and that fails to include even a single caveat about his long record of lies. As you tell readers that “we expect you to call us out when we screw up”, this riposte is one reader’s attempt to do so.

It seems to me that Bloom has not done the research needed to do basic justice to this story. Kristof’s column could be a good place to start: he concludes that “the only proper response” by journalists “is a careful look at Meles’ worsening repression”. I agree.

Duula Siyaasaa Kaayyoo QBO irratti Banameen Balaa Boru Hordofuuf Maluuf Kan itti Gaafatamu Warruma Duula Kanatti Bobbahe

2012-01-16T02:32:00.000-08:00

(Infoo Deeskii ABO irraa)

Dhaabni Ginboot 7 jedhamu diina afaaniin akka diinummaatti himatu Wayyaanee gamatti

dhiisee mooraa QBO diiguu irratti xiyyeeffatee jira. Dhaabni kun mooraa QBO keessaa

namoota qubaan lakkaawamoo kan yakka dalaganiif gaafatamoo tahan bobaa jala qabatee

akka meeshaatti dhimma bahuudhaan, guddina ABO ittiin xiqqeessuu fi kaayyoo ABO

ittiin karaa irraa maqsuuf firoota kaayyoo isaa daboo/guuza waammatee duulatti seenee

jira. Sana biras dabree, mirga abbaa biyyummaa ummata Oromoo bal’aa irra

ejjechuudhaan, maqaa fi kaartaa biyya Oromoo, Oromiyaaf jibba qabu saalfii tokko

malee ifatti ibsachaa jira.

Dhaabni maqaa tokkummaa Itoophiyaatiinin sosso’a jedhu kun miidiyaa harka isaa jiru

ESAT jedhamu irratti, miidiyaalee Afaan Amaaraa dubbatan biroo hunda daboo baafatee,

ABO fi hoggana ABO irratti xiyyeeffachuudhaan, duula ummatoota wal ficcisiisuuf

deemu bal’inaan oofuu filateera. Adda Bilisummaa Oromoo dhugaa fi heerawaa tahe

irraa jibbaa fi sodaa guddaa qabaachuu irraa, namoota qubaan lakkaawamoo kan dhaaba

ABOs tahee kaayyoo QBO walii galaa bakka bu’uu hin dandeenye bobaa jala qabatee

ibiddaan taphachaa jira. Duula diiggaa eegale kana irraa akka of qusatu yeroo adda addaa

hubachiifamu illee gurra ittiin dhagahu hin qabaanne.

Akka duula ololaa G7 geggeessaa jiruutti, Oromoon biyya bal’oo Oromiyaa jedhamtu

qabaachuu fi falmachuun yakka tahee dhihaachaa jira. Kaartaan Oromiyaa kan bal’ina

qubsuma lafa Oromoo agarsiisu humna kana biratti balaa Itoophiyaa diigu jedhamee akka

hamaatti balaaleffatamaa jira. Oromoon mirga hiree murteeffannaa isaa hojii irra oolfatee

fedhu kophaa jiraachuu, fedhus ummatoota ollaa isaa waliin tokkummaa siyaasaa

jaarrachuuf mirgi qabu humna G7 jedhamu kanaan akka yakkaatti fudhatamee bal’inaan

irratti duulamaa jira. Gabaabumatti, dhaabni kun duula diiggaa QBO ABOtiin

hogganamu irratti geggeessaa ture yeroo ammaa gara ummata Oromoo bal’aa

diinomsachuutti ol guddisee jira.

Humni kun mirgoota ummanni Oromoo qabsoo isaa hanga har’aantanaatiin kabajsiifate,

kan sirni Wayyaaneeyyuu hanga tokko amanee fudhachuuf dirqame haqee sirna abbootii

isaa duriitti deebisuuf akka ifaajaa jiru ifaan ifatti lallabataa jira. Yeroo itti ummanni

Oromoo mirgoota harka isaa gahan jabeeffachaa kanneen isa hafan guuttachuuf qabsoo

hadhooftuu geggeessuu itti fufee jiru kanatti, humni maqaa G7 jedhuun of jaare

injifannoo ummatni Oromoo hanga har’aatti argateyyuu of duubatti deebisuuf hawwii

qabu ifatti mul’isaa jira. Oromoon hiree isaa murteeffachuun ummatoota Itoophiyaaf

balaa guddaa dha jechuudhaan, ummatoota biyyattii hundumaa Oromoo irratti kakaasuuf

sagalee ol fuudhee lallabaa jira. Oromoon ummatoota Itoophiyaa hunda biratti akka saba

bulguutti akka laalamuu fi irratti duulamuuf waamichi godhamaa jira. Hogguu kun tahu

ummanni Oromoos mirga isaa mulqamuuf dhaadatamaa jiru kana dhabama irraa oolchuuf

jecha tarkaanfii fedhe fudhachuuf dirqamuun waan hin oolle. Wal diddaa kanaan balaa

bor dhalatuu maluuf ammoo kan itti gaafatamu, G7, mediyaa isaa ESAT, miidiyaalee

isaaf daboo bahanii olola farra Oromoo kana oofaa jiranii fi yakkamotoota mooraa QBO

keessaa isaanitti gananii akka meeshaatti tajaajilaa jiran tahuun ifaan ifatti beekamuu

qaba.

Keessumattuu TViin ESAT jedhamu kan akka arraata G7tti tajaajilu, duula farra

Oromummaa oofaa jiruun qooda Radio Mille Collins(RTLM) wajjin wal fakkaatu akka

taphataa jiru yaadachiisuu feena. Raadiyoon Mille Collins jedhamu bara 1994 keessa

balaan Duguuginsa Sanyii Ruwaandaa (The Ruwandan Genocide) akka dhalatuuf sababa

guddaa tahuun isaa ni beekama. Ololoota hahhamoo miidiyaa kana irraan oofamaa turan

tu duguuginsa sanyii suukaneessaa san dhalche. ESATis akka amma Oromoo fi

Oromummaa irratti fuulleffatee tooftaa adda addaatiin duulaa jiru kanaatti, Itoophiyaa

keessatti rakkoon akka kan Ruwaandaa fakkaatu sun akka dhalatuuf bu’uura isaa buusaa

akka jiru ammumaan hubachiifna. Kanneen duulaan G7f daboo kana bahanii afarsaa jiran

illee gaafatama jalaa bahuu hin danda’ani.

Akkuma olitti tuqame, G7 ABO dadhabsiisee sabboonummaa Oromummaa

dhabamsiisuuf hawwii qabu dhugoomfachuuf jecha, miidiyaalee Afaan Amaaraa

dubbatan kan maqaaf walaba jedhaman mara daboo baafachuu irratti argama. Kanneen

sirna duraanii keessatti hiree barnootaa addatti laatameefitti dhimma bahuudhaan

miidiyaalee idil addunyaa kutaa Amaariffaa keessatti mindeeffamuuf carraa argatan

hundi, bakka jiran maratti dhaamsa walii dabarsanii akka itti Oromummaa doomsanii

Itoophiyummaa abbootii isaanii durii bakkatti deebisan irratti wal tumsanii hojjechaa

jiran. Duula farra Oromummaa, farra ABO fi farra mirga ummata Oromoo bal’aa tahe

kana hojii irra oolchuuf jecha, hiree miidiyaa harkaa qaban akka meeshaa guddaatti yoo

dhimma bahan mul’atu. Sagalee yakkamtoota bicuu kan QBO keessaa gananiidhaa gurra

guddisanii, sagalee ABO kan ummata Oromoo bal’aa biratti fudhatama qabuudhaa

ammoo dhoksuuf saalfii tokko malee hojjechaa jiran. Raadiyoolee, TV, marsaalee

interneetaa fi maloota wal qunnamtii leellistoota sirna duriin geggeeffaman hundumaa

irratti duula kana fakkaatu tu qindeeffamee deemaa jira.

Duulli hanga kana itti caphamee geggeeffamaa jiru garuu ummata Oromoo gowwoomsuu

hin dandeenye, hin danda’us. Murni yakkamaan hawwitoota sirna duraaniitiin

dhaadeffamaa jiru ummata Oromoo biyya keessaa fi alaa cufa biratti abaaramaa dha.

Marsaaleen interneetaa, manneen paltalk, raadiyooleen hawaasaa fi maloonni

walqunnamtii Oromoo walaba tahan kamuu murna dantaa Oromoo irra ejjetee Oromoo

irratti duula bane kana afaan tokkoon salphisaa jiran. Hanga ammaatti hawaasa Oromoo

keessaa akka namtokkeettis tahee akka gurmuutti tarkaanfii G7 kana kan deeggare tokko

illee hin galmeeffamne. Kanaafuu duulli diinummaa hogganummaa G7tiin Oromoo irratti

baname maayyiin isaa kufaatii, salphinaa fi gaabbii qofa. Akkuma dhaabni dhihoo kana

akeeke, duula geggeeffamaa jiru kanaan G7 fi tumsitoonni isaa ABO fi ummata Oromoo

moohachuu gonkumaa akka hin dandeenye irra deebinee hubachiifna. Humni sirna

duraanii deebisuu abjootu kun bu’aan duula kana irraa argatu yoo jiraate, akkuma olitti

eerame, balaa sababa duula kanaatiin dhalachuuf deemuuf suduudaan kan itti gaafatamu

tahuu qofa!

Infoo Deeskii ABO

Oromo Youth Condemn a Radical Political Shift Declared by B/General Kemal Gelchu’s OLF Group.

2012-01-08T22:34:00.000-08:00

We, the Oromo youth, want to express our disappointment and issue this press release in rejection of the so-called “New OLF Program” made public on January 1, 2012 by the OLF Change/Jijjiirama group led by B/General Kamal Gelchu.

According to the press release, the group had a two-day Oromo National Council Conference that resulted in the decoding of the OLF’s long established political program and affirmed their dedication to the struggle and to establishing a new Federal Republic of Ethiopia. The group called to reverse the Oromo political program that was deeply rooted in Oromo people’s political interest, which embraced the right to self-determination as an Oromo nation.

We, the Oromo youth, oppose and condemn such a political paradox within Oromo political affairs for the following reasons:

1. The minority clique within the the OLF-Jijjiirama group does not symbolize the view of

Oromo people and their political struggle.

2. The introduced program undermines a century long Oromo struggle for self-rule and selfdetermination, including ultimate sacrifices that have been paid by countless fallen heroes and heroines.

3. The program disregards the complex Oromo political evolution, changing the entire

course of the Oromo struggle overnight.

4. The new political vision is poorly constructed, paradox, and leaves the future in doubt.

5. The program devalues the mission and objectives of the Oromo Liberation Front, thus

compromising the interests of the Oromo people.

Therefore, it has become a historical responsibility for us to publicly send a strong signal of opposition to those who compromise the interests of Oromo people and disregard a history of political suffering. We call upon each and every Oromo, especially Oromo youth, to stand against a political vision that undermines the Oromo people’s rights to self-determination. Like any other youth in the world, the Oromo youth have their share in building a nation, being a voice for voiceless, defending their nation from internal and external enemies, promoting their culture and language, and fighting for the freedom of their people. Be part of history in defending Oromia, and may we never, ever, let down our martyrs.

Organizers:

Hashim Adam, Former President of OSU and IOYA

Edao Dawano, Former President of OYA; Oromo Youth Activist

Merertu Geleta Kitila, Former Vice President, Secretary, and PR of IOYA

Negassa Ayana, Former President of OYA; Oromo Youth Activist

Nadhii Haji, Active Member of IOYA and OYA; Oromo Youth Activist

Abdurahman Hassen, Active Member of IOYA, OYA, and OYA Hawwisoo

Surraa Tolasa, Active Member of IOYA and OYA; Oromo Youth Activist

Gutama Habroo, Secretary of IOYA

Jireenyaa Yaadetaa, Oromo Youth Activist

Miesso Wako, Active Member of OYA and OYA Hawwisoo

Ibrahim Ansha, Oromo Youth Activist

Dawit Baisa, Former President of IOYA

Mayra Kusa, Oromo Youth Activist

Oda Abdisa, Oromo Youth Activist

The above organizers can be contacted at this e-mail: OromianYouthVoice@gmail.com

IBSA EJJENNOO HOOGGANOOTA FI MISEENSOTA ABO

2012-01-01T13:24:00.000-08:00

KAAYOON BILISUMMAA OROMIYAA GURGURAMUU HIN HAYYAMNNU

Umanni Oromo eega biyya Oromiyaa humna waraana habashootan saamame, waggaa dhibba caalaa tahun beekamaa dha.Weerara habashoonni Oromiyaa irratti banan ifirraa ittisuu dhaaf wareegama gudda fi qaalii kan akka harka, miila, harma fi mormaa muruu kafaleeti jira. Akkasumatti kiyyo gabrummaa jalaa bahuu dhaaf hanga ammaatti wareegama qaalii kana kafalaa akka jiru seenaan diddaa gabrummaa sirritti ibsiti.

Habashootiin gargaarsa meeshaa baranee biyyoota alaa irraa arkataniin Oromiyatti dulanii eega cabsan booda, Oromoon gabrummaa jalatti kufe, biyya isaa irrattti alagoomee, gabrummaa hamtuu adunyaa irratti hiriyaa hin qabne mudate. Oromoon araddaa fi qe'ee isaa keeysatti akka bineensa bosonaatti aloolame ajjeefame, akka beeyladaatti dhimma itti bahame. Gabra fijaa hin qaabne ka hojjatee nafxanyaa Amaara gabbaru, kan osoo ilmaan isaa beelaa, daaraa fi doofummaan hubamanii, ilmaan nafxanyaa nyaachisuu fi barsiisuu dhaaf dirqamu tahe. Walumaa galatti roorroo fi miidhaa ilma namaa mudachuu hin qabne nafxanyoonni Oromo irraan akka gahan seenaan ni mirkanneysiti.

Haa tahuu malee, ummanni Oromoo hiree argamte hundaatti dhimma bahee, gabrummaa habashootaan isaan mudatte fonqolchee ifiraa kaasuu dhaaf, yaroon qabsoo irraa harka maratee taa'ee hin jirtu. Arralee, qabsoon Oromiyaa harka gabroomfataa habashaa jalaa walaboomsu dhaaf godhamtu itti fufaa jirti. Hanga Oromiyaan walaba taatuu, hanga ummanni Oromoo bilisa tahe hiree isaa dhiibaa takkaan maletti murteeyfatu qabsoon Oromiyaa walaboomsuu fi ummata Oromo bilisoomsuu dhaaf, kaayoo ABOn labsamte wareegama qaqqaalii kamillee yoo gaafattee hamma galiin fiixa baatuu qabsoon itti fufti jenne amanna.

Akkuma beekamutti, nuti miseensotiin ABO, bara 2008, keessa rakkoolee dhaaba keenya fuula dura deemuu dhoorkan irra aanuu dhaa fi furmaataas itti barbaadu dhaaf dhaaba keessatti jijjiirama hundee labsuun keenya ni yaadatama. Labsa jijjiirama kana irra kan ka'ee miseensota fi hoogganni dhaaba bakka lamatti qoodamuun, ABOn rakkoolee addaa keessa seenuun waan beekkamaa ti. Rakkoolee jaarmaya keessatti nu mudatan tanneen wal’aanuu dhaaf tattaafiin adda addaa godhamanillee haga ammaatti raakkoolee tanneen irra aanuun hin dandayamne. Kun tahuun qabsaawota, sabboontotaa fi ummata Oromoo bal'aa hamilee caphsuun waan dhokataa miti.

Dhugaan jirtu osoo tana taatee jirtuu, nu miseensota jijjiiramni hundee ABO keessatti arkamuu qaba jenee kaane, haallan ifirraa hin eeyne, haallan ni taha ja'amee hin yaadamin nu mudatee jira. Haallan kanneenis haallan gaddisisoo fi haallan murnoota maqaa ABO himatan kamillee irraa hin eegamne.

Hallan Kanneeniis:

Hoogganootiin hagoon ABO (Jijjiirama) geggeesan,

1 Kaayoo Adda Bilisummaa Oromoo tan (Kora Sabaa tiin bara 2004 tumamte) heeraa fi seera dhaabatiin alatti jijjiiruun,

2 Kaayoo Itoophiyaa dimokraateysuu akka kaayoo dhaabaatti fudhachuu dhaan qabsoo ummata Oromoo xurree irratti jaaramte irra fageeysuu dhaaf, afanfaajjii hammana hin je'amnne ummata Oromoo keeysati akka uumamu godhuun.

3 Sabboonummaa Oromoo kolaasanii, Habashaaf guggufanii, qabsoo bilisummaa Oromiyaa dura dhabachuu dhaaf murteefachuun,

4 Fedhii saba Oromoo irra fedhii Habashoota mirkaneeysuuf, Habashaaf irree tahuu filatani waan murteeyfatanif jecha,

Nuti, hooggantoonni fi miseensoonni dhaaba tarkaanfiilee asi gaditti tareeyfaman fudhanee jirra.

1. Hoogganoota dhaabaa kanneen kaayoo Itoophiyummaa filatan arra irraa jalqabee akka hoogganoota dhaabatti isaan hin beeynu.

2. Kaayoo Itoophiyummaa tan farra bilisummaa Oromiyaa ta namoota waa xiqqoon maqaa ABOtiin labsamte tana waan dandeenyu hundaan dura dhaabanna.

3. Nuti miseensoota fi hooggantoonni tarkaanfii tana fudhanne, dhaaba keenya akka kaayoo isaa irratti deebi'ee qabsaawu miseensota dhaaba waliin taanee qabsoo teenya ta Oromiyaa blisoomsuu,ta ummata Oromoo abbaa biyyaa taasisuu itti fufna.

4. Namoota Kaayoo dhaaba jijjiiranii kaayoo Itoophiyummaa (kaayoo Habashootaa) Oromoo irratti deebisanii mootomsuu filatan miseensotiin dhaaba, sabboontotiin Oromoo fi ummanni Oromoo bal'aan akka dura dhaabatan yaamicha goonaaf.

Dhaamsa:

Dhaabni keenya dhaabolee Oromoo walaba tahani fi moraa qabso bilisummaa oromiyaa keeysa jiran wajjiin qabsaawuu dhaaf qophii dha. Tanaas hujiin mirkaneeysuu dhaaf Koonfirensi Araaraa fi Dadaa Tokkummaa hatattamatti akka godhamu dhaaboolee bilisa tahani fi qabsaawoota hundaafuu yaamicha keenya ulfinaan dabarsina.

Nuti miseensoonni maqaan keenya armaa gaditti tareeyfame murtiin tun teenya akka taate mirkaneeysina.

1. Ibrahim Muumme, Miseensa gumii sabaa fi miseensa KHR, Dubbataa Dhaabaa.

2. Damsho Ali, Miseensa gumii sabaa, itti gafatamaa Birkii Siyassa.

3. Abdi Ibrahim (Rushi), Miseensa Gumii Sabaa, Itti gaafatamaa Birki Jaarmaya Biyya Alaa.

4. Samiya Usman, Miseensa Gumii Sabaa itti gaafatamtuu Dhimma Dubartootaa.

5. Ahmed Ibroshee, Miseensa Birkii Siyaasaa

6. Abbaa Abdii miseensa Koree Jaarmayaa

7. Diriba Hordofa, Miseensa GS,

8. Ahmed Yassin, Miseensa Koree Aadaafi Beeysisaa (waraabi)

Injifannoo ummata oromootif

Oromiyaan ni Bilisoomti

Amajjii (January) 1, 2012

Corruption Currents - Ethiopian Illicit Outflows Doubled In 2009, New Report Says

2011-12-06T21:49:00.000-08:00

By Christopher Matthews

Ethiopia lost $11.7 billion to outflows of ill-gotten gains between 2000 and 2009, according to a coming report by Global Financial Integrity.

That’s a lot of money to lose to corruption for a country that has a per-capita GDP of just $365. In 2009, illicit money leaving the country totaled $3.26 billion, double the amount in each of the two previous years. The capital flight is also disturbing because the country received $829 million in development aid in 2008.

According to GFI economist Sarah Freitas, who co-authored the report, corruption, kickbacks and bribery accounted for the vast majority of the increase in illicit outflows.

“The scope of Ethiopia’s capital flight is so severe that our conservative US$3.26 billion estimate greatly exceeds the US$2 billion value of Ethiopia’s total exports in 2009,” Freitas wrote in a blog post on the website of the Task Force on Financial Integrity and Economic Development.

The report, titled “Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries over the Decade Ending 2009,” drew on data from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund on external debt and trade mis-pricing to calculate illicit capital leakage. The study, which will be released later this month, measures the illicit financial flows out of 160 different developing nations.

Ethiopia is one of the poorest countries on earth as 38.9% of Ethiopians live in poverty, and life expectancy in 2009 was just 58 years.

“The people of Ethiopia are being bled dry,” Freitas wrote. “No matter how hard they try to fight their way out of absolute destitution and poverty, they will be swimming upstream against the current of illicit capital leakage.”

Ethiopia's crackdown 'a threat to democracy'

2011-12-01T23:21:00.000-08:00

By Jenny Vaughan (AFP) | December 1, 2011

A spate of arrests and terrorism charges leveled against opposition politicians and journalists in Ethiopia this year raises fears of a government slide away from democracy, analysts warn.

"The sheer numbers of arrests and prosecutions this year indicate a systematic crackdown, a systematic dismantling of the last few independent voices," said Amnesty International's Ethiopia researcher Claire Beston.

"The democratic process has been made a mockery by the events this year," she added. In November, 24 people were charged with terrorism and three journalists fled the country, citing fear of prosecution or imprisonment.

Local media also reported in November that an Ethiopian man called on his compatriots to fight for freedom, before torching himself to death.

"This is indicative of the desperation that people are starting to feel in Ethiopia," Beston added. The case follows several mass arrests: over 150 opposition members and journalists have been jailed since January, the worst crackdown since the country's bloody 2005 elections, according to rights groups.

Scores, including two Swedish journalists arrested after entering illegally into Ethiopia, are charged with terrorism. "We have reached a seminal point, which unfortunately we hit in the 2005 post-election crisis," said Tom Rhodes, from the Washington-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

"We were always afraid of reaching those dark days again and I feel now in 2011, six years later, we've reached them," he told AFP.

Political science professor Merera Gudina said the unrest is a popular reaction to a worsening economic climate in the country, where basic costs are rising. Food prices have jumped 63 percent from last year, according to the World Bank.

"The cost of living is really dramatically increasing and many people are going hungry," the Addis Ababa University teacher said. "Hostility from the population can be expected."

But government spokesperson Bereket Simon insists the ruling party is "trying its best" to address social and economic inequality.

"The government is moving in the right direction, there might be problems here and there, but we are solving problems as we go along," he said. Ethiopia is one of Africa's fastest growing economies and has seen great improvements in the areas of child mortality and malnutrition.

But some say these improvements are not enough to stave off popular discontent. Beston said the surge in arrests is driven by a fear of an Arab Spring-style social uprising. "The government has indicated they fear those protests and a mass-scale uprising moving to Ethiopia, and they have taken measures to prevent that from happening," Beston said.

The political environment is too tight to allow for mass protest, said Ben Rawlence from Human Rights Watch (HRW). "It's not a question of whether the Ethiopians might follow the Arab Spring. They had a spring (in 2005) and it didn't bloom into summer, it went back into winter," he said.

Bereket insists most Ethiopians want to see the government develop, not topple it. "We see cooperation being the rule rather than the exception. Most Ethiopian are cooperating to fight poverty and support good governance," he said. Bereket added this year's arrests are in response to legitimate threats from both inside Ethiopia, and not as means to stifle dissent.

"These arrests are made because government had special evidence to incriminate the suspects," Bereket said. But both Amnesty and Human Rights Watch in November accused the government of using anti-terrorism legislation to stifle peaceful dissent, while Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has been accused of condemning suspects before trial.

In October, local media reported that Meles told parliament concerning those accused that "we know in our hearts that they are involved in terrorism acts." Some maintain Ethiopia's strategic importance in the region -- a relatively stable state in the volatile Horn of Africa bordering war-torn Somalia -- allows the government to clampdown with little objection from donor countries.

Ethiopia, one of the top recipients of foreign aid in Africa, also provides bases for US surveillance drones reportedly monitoring Shebab insurgents, the Al-Qaeda linked group based in southern Somalia.

"It's the same old story, (donors) believe quiet diplomacy is the best way of maintaining their access and their influence, they don't want to endanger their relationship with the government," HRW's Rawlence said.

Some fear the tight political climate could spark an angry reaction from those angry at the crackdown.

"Sooner or later, really things can go horrid," Merera said. "We can reach what you call a breaking point."

Ethiopia: Stop Using Anti-Terror Law to Stifle Peaceful Dissent

2011-11-24T00:05:00.001-08:00

Human Rights Watch (Nov. 21) The Ethiopian government should cease using its overly broad anti-terrorism law against journalists and peaceful political activists, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said today.

On November 23, 2011, the trial of 24 people charged with terrorism offenses on November 10 will continue. Those charged include six journalists and two members of the opposition Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ) party. Sixteen of the 24 are being tried in absentia. Several other terrorism trials of journalists and opposition activists are ongoing.

“The Ethiopian government is exploiting its vaguely worded anti-terror law to crush peaceful dissent,” said Rona Peligal, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch.

The Anti-Terrorism Proclamation of 2009 includes an overbroad and vague definition of terrorist acts and a definition of “encouragement of terrorism” that makes the publication of statements “likely to be understood as encouraging terrorist acts” punishable by 10 to 20 years in prison. These provisions mean that critics of government such as journalists and political opponents could be charged for encouraging terrorism, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said.

The organizations urged the Ethiopian government to facilitate systematic monitoring of the trials by the diplomatic community. The times and locations of hearings have been altered at the last minute at least twice during the ongoing trials. The government should ensure that key information, including location and time of hearings, is available to the public.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch also urged diplomats stationed in Ethiopia to carry out systematic monitoring of the ongoing terrorism trials and the trials of members of the Oromo political opposition arrested during 2011. This is particularly important in the absence of independent human rights organizations, which the Ethiopian government has effectively banned. While diplomatic representatives have attended several remand hearings and trial sessions of terrorism cases, none were apparently present at the November 10 confirmation of charges hearing, following a last-minute change of location, nor at the subsequent hearing on November 15.

Ethiopia’s foreign partners closely followed a series of trials from 2005 to 2007, in which treason charges were brought following contested elections. The Council of the European Union appointed a full-time trial observer, although the findings of its report were never made public. EU embassy staff monitored these trials on a rotating basis, and a US embassy staff member was also present.

“Diplomats’ systematic monitoring of these trials is essential,” said Michelle Kagari, deputy director for Africa at Amnesty International. “Without the presence of local civil society, diplomats can play a vital role in witnessing whether or not the suspects’ right to a fair trial is respected.”

None of the defendants detained and charged under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation during 2011 had access to a lawyer during the pre-trial period. Three of those charged have complained in court of mistreatment in detention.

Public comments by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and the government spokesman, Shimeles Kemal, have undermined the defendants’ presumption of innocence, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said. Their comments might also exert political pressure on the courts in a country where the judiciary lacks independence.

Since June 2011, the Ethiopian government has charged at least 33 people under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation of 2009.

In addition, in 2011, at least 98 members of the two main Oromo political opposition parties, the Oromo Federal Democratic Movement (OFDM) and the Oromo People’s Congress (OPC), have been arrested and charged under the Criminal Code on the basis of alleged involvement with the Oromo Liberation Front, a banned rebel group.

Seven of the people charged on November 10 had previously been charged during the trials that followed the 2005 elections. All had been given presidential pardon. Three of the seven are among the defendants who are now in custody, two others fled the country after their earlier release, and two were already living in exile when they were charged in the earlier cases.

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have long called for the anti-terrorism law to be amended to bring it into line with Ethiopia’s domestic and international legal obligations.

“The anti-terror law itself is a huge problem,” Peligal said. “The international community, especially the European Union, United States, and United Kingdom, should ask the Ethiopian government hard questions about why it is using this law to crack down on peaceful independent voices.”

Landgrabbing in Ethiopia: Legal Lease or Stolen Soil?

2011-11-13T13:18:00.000-08:00

By Philipp Hedemann* | November 13, 2011

ABABA, Nov 12, 2011 (IPS/Street News Service) - Kneeling in the middle of a sugar cane field in blistering 40 degree heat, a young boy is digging up weeds while an Indian worker stands over him to make sure he does not miss any. Red is eight years old and earns 73 pence for one day’s work - less than the cost of using pesticides.

By exporting food produced by child labour in Ethiopia, an Indian farm manager hopes to earn millions within three years. "It's still total wilderness here, but we will soon start growing sugar cane and palm oil and everything will look tidy," explains Karmjeet Singh Sekhon as he drives in a Toyota 4x4 through the burning bushland on his farm.

The 68-year-old Indian is the manager of a huge farm, which covers an area of 100,000 hectares in Western Ethiopia. Soon he wants to farm 300,000 hectares, an area bigger than Luxembourg.

Since 2008 there has been an unprecedented rush to secure farmland in Africa, South America and Asia. This is a result of the rise and fluctuation in food prices on world markets, which has seen food riots in a number of countries. Countries such as India, China and the Gulf states want to feed their growing populations, but are also looking to position themselves in the race to produce bio-fuels.

The World Bank says 45 million hectares of farmland were leased in 2009 - up from only four million a year between 2006 and 2008. It is estimated that by 2030 another six million hectares will be leased annually in developing countries, two-thirds in sub-Saharan Africa and South America.

Maize, rice, wheat, soy, sorghum, sesame, sugar cane and oil seeds are the main commodities. The World Bank sees both opportunities and risks.

"These large land acquisitions can come at a high cost. The veil of secrecy that often surrounds these land deals must be lifted so poor people don't ultimately pay the heavy price of losing their land," said former World Bank managing director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

In the world's thirteenth poorest country, the race for the country's most productive agricultural land has only just begun and the social and environmental consequences are unforeseeable. According to the U.N., 4.5 million people in Ethiopia are currently in need of aid as a result of a devastating drought. The majority of the food aid is imported from abroad.

"No problem," says farm manager Sekhon. "Some parts of our production remain in the country, and through the export Ethiopia gains hard currency to buy at the world market."

There is no law in Ethiopia to ensure that a certain percentage remains in the country. Karuturi marketing and logistics boss Birinder Singh makes no secret of the fact that his company is commercially orientated. They will sell to those who pay most, whoever that may be.

Eighty-five per cent of Ethiopia's population of 80 million live off the land, and little has changed over the past 100 years: most of the tiny fields are still worked using ox-drawn ploughs and the yields are low.

The government hopes that leasing farmland to foreign investors will lead to a wave of modernisation. According to the Food and Agricultural Organisation, food production needs a 70 per cent boost between 2010 and 2050 to meet global needs.

All Ethiopian land – 111.5 million hectares - belongs to the state. According to the government, three-quarters of it are suitable for agriculture, but so far only 15 million hectares are cultivated.

The government has now assigned 3.6 million hectares to foreign and domestic investors. One hectare of land costs between six and 231 dollars a year to rent, and the contract periods are between 20 and 45 years. Critics say the developing world is being sold off.

But Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi rejects the attacks as "ill-informed" or even "ill-intentioned." "We want to develop our land to feed ourselves rather than admire the beauty of fallow fields while we starve," Zenawi said.

It is not surprising that the Ethiopian government has become the darling of international agribusiness investors. "There is plenty of good land, enough water, a cheap labour force, and a stable government that ensures law and order", says Karuturi's Singh.

According to Esayas Kebede, head of the state agency which is responsible for the land leases, Ethiopia benefits in many ways from the deals. "By exporting food, we will receive dollars, the farms provide jobs, they import know how, they will help us to boost productivity and therefore to improve food security," says Kebede.

But many local farmers are not convinced. Ojwato is one of them. It only takes him a few minutes to cross his two acre field on foot, while Sekhon takes several hours to cover his by jeep.

The idea that his neighbour's harvests are being exported while he and his country regularly receive food aid makes Ojwato angry. "The foreigners promised to bring electricity, water and hospitals. But in the end only a few of us have worked in their fields and the pay was poor," the farmer says.

"We always pay the national minimum wage," Singh claims.

"Nobody is forced to work on the farm," Kebede says. However, many children labour on the fields.

Though his family could use some extra money from child labour, Ojwato forbids his children to work on the Indian farm. One day they shall become doctors, teachers or engineers, he says. But therefore they need to go to school, instead of working on the fields.

Not all parents are as far-sighted as Ojwato: "Sometimes only five out of 60 students are attending class. The others are working at the fields," says Tigaba Tekle, deputy headmaster of a school near the Karuturi farm.

Officially, only uninhabited land is used for the giant farms, but human rights groups fear that people are forced to leave their land. As a matter of fact, a state-run relocation programme is currently taking place in Western Ethiopia.

According to the government, there is no link between the relocation and the farm projects; everybody moves voluntarily. Human right groups doubt this, and the author was obstructed several times during the research for this article. The official reason given was: "We don't want you to gather politically unwanted information."

As well as human rights organisations, environmentalists also have a problem with the farms. Some four decades ago, 40 per cent of Ethiopia was covered by forest, but today it is less than three per cent - and the bushland in Gambella is burning.

Farm manager Sekhon does not hide his lack of interest in environmental concerns. For him, it is important to develop the farm, and he is behind his ambitious schedule. To catch up, little Red and his friends must continue weeding.

* Published under an agreement with Street News Service.

‘Itoophiyaa Keessa Hongee Malee Beelli Hin jiru’ Jechuun

2011-11-12T17:30:00.000-08:00

‘Itoophiyaa Keessa Hongee Malee Beelli Hin jiru’ Jechuun

Lubbuu Ummatootaatti Qoosuu Dha

Sirni Wayyaanee beela hamaa ummatoota miiliyoonota gaaga’e haaluudhaan ‘hongee malee beelli hin jiru’ jechuun kijiba. Balaa beelaa sababaa hongeetiin dhalachuuf ture irratti dursinee qophii gahaa waan gooneef lammiin tokko illee beelaan hin miidhamne jechuun lubbuu ummata miiliyoonotaatti qoose. Fiilmii dokmantarii kan haqa irraa fagoo tahe qindeessee miidiyaalee isaa irratti dhiheessuun sirna gaafatamni itti hin dhagahamne tahuu isaa dabalee mirkaneeffate. Balaa hongee fi beelaa dhalate kanaan akka malee kan miidhaman lammiilee Oromoo Kibba Oromiyaa tahuun beekamaa dha. Fiilmiin Wayyaaneen eega lafti itti guyya’ee booda miidiyaatti baafatee garsiifatus miidhaa guddaa jiraattota Oromoo naannoo kanaa mudate haguuguuf yoo tahe malee miidhama ummataa amananii fudhachuun fala barbaachisu faluuf kan qophaawe miti.

Ololli ‘Itoophiyaa keessa hongee malee beelli hin jiru’ jedhu yeroo kanatti akka dhihaatu maaliif barbaachise? Deebiin gaaffii kanaa ifaa dha. Balaa beelaa hongeen wal qabatee Kibba Oromiyaa, Kibba Baha Oromiyaa, Baha Oromiyaa, naannoo Ogaadeenii fi naannoo Ummatoota Kibba Itoophiyaa miidhe irratti amma dura baay’ee dubbatameera. Gabaasaaleen dhugaa kana ragaa bahan miidiyaalee idil addunyaa tokko tokkoo fi miidiyaalee arraata dhaabota siyaasaa kan akka Sagalee Bilisummaa Oromoo (SBO) irratti dhihaatanii turan. Miidiyaaleen kunis haala sirna Wayyaanee garmalee rifaasisee fi aarseen dhugaa jiru gurra addunyaan gahanii jiru. Maddeen oduu idil addunyaa bebbeekamoo keessaa tokko kan tahe BBCiin sagantaa isaa Newsnight jedhamuun dokmantarii dhugaa irratti hundaawee dhiheesseen Wayyaanee mataa wareersuun beekamaa dha. Akka gabaasaa BBC kanaatti beelli Itoophiyaa keessatti dhalate irra guddaatti namtolchee dha malee kan uumamaa qofa miti. Warra beela’eef gargaarsi biyya alaa irraa dhihaatus gara dabarfamee dantaa siyaasaa mootummaaf oolfamuu miidiyaan kun ragaa bahuun beekamaa dha. Ummata beela’e keessaa warri paartii aangoo irra jiru hin deeggarre gargaarsa dhowwatamanii adabamuu tu saaxilame. Arjoomtonni addunyaa waggaa waggaatti doolaara biiliyoona 3 ol Itoophiyaaf kan gumaachan tahu illee, horiin guddaan hangana gahu kaayyoo gumaachameef osoo hin taane akka sirnichi deeggarsa siyaasaa ittiin bitatee aangoo irra of tursuuf tajaajilaa jiraachuu tu ifatti ragaa bahame.

BBC qofas osoo hin taane miidiyaaleen akka VOAs, balaan beelaa keessumattuu Kibba Oromiyaatti dhalate, hangam akka ulfaataa tahe, balaa kanaanis lubbuun namootaa fi beeyladaa akka gaaga’ame saaxilanii jiru. Hagabaasaan VOA Sagantaa Amaariffaa Heenook Sammaagzeer torbaanota lama caalaaf naannoo Kibba Oromiyaa keessa sosso’ee gabaasaan dhiheessaa ture balaa ulfaataa sirnichi dhoksuu barbaadu BBCtti aanee kan saaxile ture. Akka gabaasaa kanaatti Kibba Oromiyaa keessatti hongee dhalateen lammiilee fi beeyladdan isaanii akka malee hubamuu tu saaxilame. Mootummaan Wayyaanee garuu hongee tu dhalate malee beelli hin jiru jedha waan taheef gabaasaan kun isa wareersuun hin hafne. Akka gabaasaa VOA kanatti omisha isaaniitiin kan beekaman loon Booranaa keessaa harka 70 ol kan tahan balaa hongee hamaa kanaan du’uu isaanii tu mirkanaawe. Kibba Oromiyaa, Boorana keessatti ilmaan namaa beelaan hubaman waan afaanitti qabatan dhabanii baala boqqolloo hongeedhaan goggoge beeyalada wajjin wal saamaa yoo nyaatan VOAn ragaa viidiyoodhaan deeggarameen saaxile. Sirni Wayyaanee garuu balaa beelaa suukaneessaa hangana ulfaatu dhoksuu barbaada ture.

Itoophiyaan loon horsiisuuudhaan addunyaa irratti 10ffaa, Afriikaa keessatti ammo 1ffaa jedhamuun beekamti ture. Baay’ina loonii kan sadarkaa guddaa kana irratti Itoophiyaa waamsise keessatti ammoo lakkoofsi loon Booranaa qooda guddaa qaba ture. Loon Booranaa kana keessaa har’a harki 70 caalaan balaa kanaan dhumaniiru. Kun silaa Itoophiyaa keessatti gadda ulfaataa uumuu fi xiyyeeffannoo miidiyaalee biyya keessaa harkisuu tu irra ture. Haa tahu malee akkuma hagabaasaan VOA naannoo sana deemee gabaasaa kana qopheesse ragaa bahe, ‘wayta balaan gaddisiisaan kana fakkaatu Kibba Oromiyaa rukutee jirutti miidiyaaleen mootummaa dubbii kana yoo xis ximbis jedhan hin dhagahamne. Balaa gaddisiisaa hangana gahu dhiisanii waa’ee misoomaa fi hidha laga Abbayyaa irratti xiyyeeffachuu waan filatan fakkaata. Yeroo itti Kibba Oromiyaa keessatti lammiileen beela’anii lafee qofatti hafan waan afaanitti jiifatan dhabanii qarree du’aa irratti argaman, Finfinnee irraa ayyaana bara haaraa kabajuuf dhiichifama ture.’

Dhugaa dha! Yeroo itti lammiileen kumni kudhanoonni garmalee beelaan hubamanii qarree du’aa irratti argaman, loon kumni kudhanoonni dhumanii raaqni isaanii goggoee dirree keessa ciisu, dabballootni mootummaa Wayyaanee Finfinnee irraa ayyaana jedhanii cooma murachuu fi wiskii unachuu irraa kan hafe yaaddoon lammiilee Oromoo kun dhimma isaanii akka hin tahin hubatamaa dha.

Sirni Wayyaanee dhugaa dhoksuu yaalaa ture kana tu jalaa saaxilame waan taheef har’a reef akka waan irriba irraa dammaqee dhimma hongee Kibba Oromiyaa rukute irratti waa munaaguuf dirqame. ‘Itoophiyaa keessa hongee malee beelli hin jiru’ jechuun soba adii yoo sobu hin qaanfanne. Kijibni Wayyaanee kun gabaasaalee ragaa irratti hundaawanii miidiyaalee alaatiin dhihaatan haaluuf kan akeekkate tahu illee itti hin milkoofne.

Fiilmii sobaa Wayyaaneen dhimma kana irratti qindeessee dhiheeffate wantoota fudhatama dhabsiisan keessaa hanga tokko tarrisuun ni danda’ama. Fiilmii kana keessatti namootni beelaan miidhaman tahe jedhamee akka kaameeraa duratti hin mul’anne taasifameera. Naannoo hongeen dhawamu kamuu keessatti namootni beelaan miidhaman qaamni isaanii maal akka fakkaatu beekamaa dha. Fiilmii Wayyaaneen dhiheeffatu keessatti garuu, tahe jedhamee namoota coraa cululuqaa qaban kan qubaan lakkaawaman tu barbaadamanii dubbifaman. Jaras yoo tahe haasawa isaan Afaan Oromotiin haasawan jallisanii Amaariffatti hiikuudhaan akka waan isaan mootummaa galateeffataniitti dhiheeffame. Naannoo hongee fi beela hamaadhaan miidhame dhiisanii gabaa midhaanii magaalaa keessaa, akkasumas kuusaa midhaan gargaarsaa irratti xiyyeeffachuu tu fiilmii kana keessatti bal’inaan mul’ata.

Kana malees kaameeraan fiilmii sobaa kanaa loon coraa wayyaa qaban qofa barbaadee irratti xiyyeeffate. Loon kumni kudhanoonni dhumanii lafeen isaanii dirree keessa guute akka fiilmii kana keessatti mul’atan hin barbaadamne. Fiilmiin dokmantarii Wayyaanee kun osoo dhuguma laalaa balaa mudate kanaa agarsiisuuf akeekkatee dhugaa bal’inaan mul’atu kana bira dabree loon coraa wayyaa qaban qofa barbaadee mul’isuu irratti hin xiyyeeffatu ture. Garuu fiilmicha tu fiilmii Wayyaanee ti. Fiilmicha tu fiilmii dhugaa haaluuf qophaawe. Fiilmicha tu fiilmii ololaa sirna gaafatamni itti hin dhagahamnee fi madaan ummatootaa isa hin dhukkubnee ti. Kanaafuu fiilmii Wayyaanee keessatti dhugaa barbaadanii arguu dhabuun waan nama raaju hin tahu.

Wanni hubatamuu qabu garuu, Itoophiyaan Wayyaanee Itoophiyaa miidiyaalee walaba addunyaatiin ibsamaa jirtu malee Itoophiyaa miidiyaalee sirnichaatiin dhaadeffamaa jirtu miti. Ummatoonni biyyattii keessaas namoota miidiyaaleen wayyaanee kumoota keessaa tokko lama filatanii kaameeraa fi maaykraafoona dura qabaniin kan bakka bu’aman miti. Haalli ummatoonni biyyattii keessa jiranis dabballoota paartichaa kan akka lammii leexaatti of ibsanii miidiyaa sirnichaa duratti dhihaatanii kijiba munaaganiin hin ibsamu. Har’a lammiilee wayyaba imaammata farra-namoomaa sirnichaatiin toora namummaatii bahanii jiran miidiyaatti dhiheessanii agarsiisuu fi laalaa keessa isaanii dubbachiisuun hojii ulfaataa dha. Miidiyaaleen biyya alaa walabni biyya keessa deemanii hojii ragaan deeggarame akkasii akka agarsiisan sirnichi hin eehamu. Inumaa kanneen yaalii hojii akkasii irratti argaman himata ‘gooltummaa’ jedhamuun yakkamanii hidhamaa jiru. Gaazexessitoota lammii Siwiidin lama kan dhihoo kana Ogaadeen keessaa qabamanii hidhaman akka fakkeenyaatti kaasuun ni danda’ama. Kana malees miseensonni hogganaa paartiilee Oromoo biyya keessaa gaazexessaa BBC fi qorattoota Amnestii Internaashinaaliif yaada kennitan jedhamanii hidhamuun dubbii kanaaf ragaa dabalataa taha.

Beelas tahee hongeen Itoophiyaa har’a addunyaan irraa dubbataa jirtu balaa uumamaa qofa akka hin tahin jala muranii ifsuu barbaachisa. Balaan kun balaa namtolchee ti yoo jedhame dhugaa irraa fagaachuu hin tahu. Jecha kanaaf fakkeenya gabaabaa tokko lafa kaayuun ni danda’ama. Sirnoota lamaan dabran keessa beelli deddeebi’ee Itoophiyaa keessatti mul’achaa ture naannoolee har’a balaan hongee fi beelaa irraa dubbatamaa jiru irraa fagoo ture. Akka fakkeenyaatti kaa’uuf, sirnoota dabran lamaan keessatti bakkoota balaa hongee fi beela hamaan dhawaman keessaa Tigraay toora duraa irra turte. Har’a garuu sun seenaa ta’ee dabree jira. Tigraay keessatti har’a waa’een hongee fi beelaa akka seenaatti dubbatama. Sababni isaas, Tigraay har’a mootummaa misoomaa fi badhaadhina isiif dhaabbate qabdi. Kana jechuun Tigiraay maaliif har’a beelaa fi hongee irraa baraaramte jedhanii qurramuuf akka hin tahin jala muruu feesisa. Ummatni Tigiraay kan sirnoota dabran keessatti beelaa fi hongee hamaadhaan dhawame har’a balaa kana jalaa dandamachuun oduu gammachiisaa dha. Dhalli namaa kamuu biyya lafaa irratti balaa suukaneessaa kana akka mudatu kan arguu hawwu hin jiru.

Haa ta’u malee hojii lubbuu oolchuu irra darbee misooma dinqisiisaa jedhame kana naannoo tokkoof qofa qoodanii kaan immo tahe jedhanii beelessuu fi beelas meesha sanyi-ballessaaf itti fayyadamamuu dha kan nama wal gaafachiisu. Mootummaan har’a aangoo siyaasaa Itoophiyaa dhunfatee jiru lafa dhaloota isaa kan taate Tigiraayiif mararfannoo addaa qabaachuun isaa nama hin ajaa’ibu. Wanni nama ajaa’ibuu fi gaddisiisu yoo jiraate, sirni kun naannoolee dur jiidhinaa fi xaahummaa isaaniitiin beekaman har’a lafa beelaa fi hongee hamaatti jijjiiruu isaa ti. Akka fakkeenyaatti godinaan Arsii baroota dabran mara hunda keessatti akka tayee daabboo (bread basket)tti laalamti ture. Dachii Arsii jiituu fi gabbattuu irraa midhaan qotamu ummatoota Itoophiyaa mara sooree akka irraa hafuu danda’u bal’inaan irraa dubbatamaa ture. Har’a garuu dachii badhaatuu tana fakkaattu fa’a tu beela’e.

Lafootni har’a balaa beelaa fi hongee hamaan dhawamuun isaanii qorannoo walabaan mirkanaawe Arsii qofas miti. Onootni Harargee Dhihaa fi Harargee bahaa baay’eenis balaa kanaan dhawamoo dha. Akka fakkeenyaatti Onni Fadiis dur fakkeenya dachii quufaa ture. Akka makmaaksaatti illee ‘Rabbi duubaan Fadiisi’ jedhama ture. Har’a bara Wayyaanee kanatti garuu ummata Oromoo lafa badhaatuu akkasii fa’a irra ture tu hongee fi beelaan dhawamee gargaarsa harka alagaa kadhachuutti jira. Sababni isaas Oromiyaa tu akka Tigraayitti mootummaa isiif quuqamu hin qabdu. Balaan hongee fi beelaa Oromiyaa keessatti miliyoonota gaaga’aa jiru balaa namtolchee ti malee kan uumamaa miti. Yoo kan uumamaa tahe balaa hamaa kan dur irraa qabee gama Kaabaa ture sanis irra aanuun hin danda’mu ture. Bakki dur hongeedhaan beekamu har’a badhaadhee bakki dur badhaadha ture har’a hongaawuun seera uumamaa osoo hin taane gochaa hammeenya ilma namaa ti. Mootummaan har’a Itoophiyaa bulchaan jira ofiin jedhu mootummaa naannoolee biyyattii hundumaa ija tokkoon hin laalle tahuu isaaf fakkeenyonni kaabaa kibbatti wal bira qabnee eerre kun ragaalee quufsoo dha.

Imaamanni sirna Wayyaanee imaammata farrummaa fi tuffii ummatootaa akka tahe ragaa tarrisanii fixuun ulfaataa dha. Mootummaa ‘Itoophiyaa keessa hongee malee beelli hin hin jiru’ jedhu caalaa sirni ummatoota bulchaan jira ofiin jedhuuf tuffii hamaa qabu addunyaa irra kan jiru hin fakkaatu. Tuffiin kun ammoo jibba irraa madda. Jibbi kunis diinummaa sirnichaa qullaa baasee mul’isa. Diinni diinuma. Har’a humna harkaa qabutti gargaaramee gateettii ummatootaa irra qubatee dhiiga isaanii dhugaa jiraachuun hin haalamu. Guyyaa tokko garuu gateettii ummatoota walabaa irraa akka buniitootti buqqifamee darbamuun isaa waan hin oolle.

Kun immoo gurmuu, kutannoo fi warraaqsa ummata Oromoo fi ummatoota madaa wal fakkaataa qabaniin mirkanaawa.

Haqni ni injifata!

Info Deskii ABO

TheFrustrating Situation of Refugees in Somaliland

2011-11-12T17:24:00.000-08:00

HRLHA Appeal and Urgent Action

November 12, 2011

The Frustrating Situation of Refugees in Somaliland

Your Excellency Mr. Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud,

President of the Republic of Somaliland.

Dear Honorable President,

First of all, Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) would like to express its appreciation to the people of the Republic of Somaliland and to its government for their hospitality and kindness towards thousands of refugees who have fled their homes to escaped government persecutions in Ethiopia, Eritrea, and other neighboring countries and now living in Somaliland.

However, what has been happening to refugees in Somaliland over the past two and three weeks is contrary to the expectations of the HRLHA and those of international communities.

According to information obtained by HRLHA through its correspondents in Hargeisa, Somaliland, the refugees in the country, most of whom are from Ethiopia have been subjected to different kinds of harassments and intimidations in a very unsafe situation. According those reports, the refugees have been (and are being) indiscriminately evicted from their rented temporary shelters; and, as a result, more than 700 refugees have been forced to live on the streets. They are temporarily gathered at a place know as Social welfare Centre near the UNHCR office in Hargeisa. At this place, only those who could afford to buy are using tents; while those who couldn’t are living in open air. Confiscations of properties, documents in particular, take place along with the kidnapping happens at their temporary shelter on street.

The refugees uniformly claim that their tenants told them that the evictions were on the order of the government of the Somaliland. Making their situations worse, those refugees have been denied any kind of accommodation and help from the local UNHCR office. The refugees add that they were told by the local UNHCR office that they will not get any help or support from the office unless and until they go back to their shelters (rented place), which is where they have been evicted from, and have been told they were not welcome back. The refugees also say that the local UNHCR office is aware of this situation. However, it has been difficult for the HRLHA to confirm this complaint with the local UNHCR office.

A very young child has died as a result of this unfriendly situation in which the refugees are; and, according to those refugees, more lives might have been lost especially due to lack of basic needs such food and water, had it not been for the some kinds of humanitarian gestures from local people.

The other frustrating situation is that there have been two very recent cases of kidnappings and disappearances by who were described as armed agents of the Ethiopian Government. HRLHA has confirmed that, in the first case of kidnapping which took place during the first week of this month (November 3 – 4, 2011), four refugees (all of whom were Oromo nationals from Ethiopia), have been kidnapped and taken away to currently unknown destination; but believed to be taken back to Ethiopia. They were Shek Abdurrahman Qabatoo, Mr. Riyaad Kamal, Mr. Ali Dabbal, and another refugee who was with Shek Abdurrahman at the moment. In the second case of kidnapping and disappearance, which happened on the 10^th of November, 2011, two other refugees, namely, Mr. Abdushukuur Mahammad (RF/06/055), and Mr. Hassan-nuur Mahammad Suleeyman (REC /361/08) have become victims of this illegal action; while a refugee named Mohammed Bushura Gurrachaa escaped the kidnapping by running away from site. The hunting and attempts of kidnapping the refugees has continued even while this urgent action is being compiled. Originally, the refugees were targeted at their rented places of stay; and now (after evictions) at the Social welfare Centre near the UNHCR office in Hargeisa.

According to eye witnesses, the armed team/group that is engaged in hunting and kidnapping the refugees drives around in a truck, approaches specific individuals it has targeted, or picks randomly, forces them onto the track, and drive away without any interference from the local government, or any other party. The fact that the vehicles were supplied by the local government makes the whole operation look like a joint work of the governments of Ethiopian and the Somaliland. It is important, here, to remind each other that such incidents and experiences of refugees are happening repeatedly; and that, in most cases, (as hinted at above through the UNHCR reference numbers provided) the victims of such illegal actions are refugees who are already under the UNHCR mandate.

Mr. President, even if those refugees are not protected by the UN mandate, what is happening to them is blatantly in breach of the 1951 International Refugee Convention. In this (1951) document, it is stated that:

“No Contracting State shall expel or return (“refouler”) a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers where his/her life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.”

The overall situations taken into consideration, the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) is highly concerned about the safety and wellbeing of hundreds of those refugees who are now in a socially, economically, and politically unfriendly environment in Somaliland.

So, the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) requests the government of the Somaliland to make efforts to honour its both local and international obligations, and ensure the safety of people within its jurisdiction. We specifically request that the Somaliland Government prevent such illegal actions as kidnapping from happening to innocent and defenseless people, and refrain from sending refugees back to a country that they fled because their lives were at risk.

Also, the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) calls upon regional and international humanitarian and diplomatic communities to join us in making and sending these requests to the government of Somaliland.

The HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. It works on defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It also works on raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It encourages the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Please send appeals to the Somaliland Government officials as swiftly as possible, in English, Somali, or your own language:

v Urging the Somaliland Government reverse its decision of expelling refugee from Somaliland

v Your Concerns at the apprehension and fear of Torture if they return to their home country

v Urging the authorities of Somaliland to ensure that these refugees are protected depending on the 1951 refugee convention.

· His Excellency Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud

President of the Republic of Somaliland

TEL/FAX: 252-225-3871

president@somaligovernment.org

· UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

United Nations Office at Geneva 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland Fax: + 41 22 917 9022

(particularly for urgent matters) E-mail: tb-petitions@ohchr.org This e-mail address is

being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

· International Committee of the Red Cross

19 Avenue de la paix CH 1202 Geneva

Tel: +41 22 734 60 01

Fax: +41 22 733 20 57

E-mail webmaster@icrc.org>

· African Commission on Human and Peoples‘ Rights (ACHPR)

48 Kairaba Avenue, P.O.Box 673, Banjul, The Gambia.

Tel: (220) 4392 962 , 4372070, 4377721 – 23 Fax: (220) 4390 764

E-mail: achpr@achpr.org

· U.S. Department of State

Tom Fcansky – Foreign Affairs Officer

Email;-TOfcansky@aol.com>Washington, D.C. 20037

Tel: +1-202-261-8009

Fax: +1-202-261-8197

· Amnesty International – London

Tom Gibson

Telephone: +44-20-74135500

Fax number: +44-20-79561157

Email;- TGibson@amnesty.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots.

You need JavaScript enabled to view it

· Human Rights Watch – New York,

Leslie Lefkow

lefkowl@hrw.org;

The Macha-Tulama Cooperative and Development Association (MTA), USA, Inc.

2011-10-13T22:04:00.000-07:00

Press Release October 12, 2011

Illegal imprisonment of Macha-Tulama officials

As all its predecessors, the current dictatorial and terrorist regime of Ethiopia came to state power and managed to stay in office through brutal force for twenty years. Since it grabbed state power by force, the main target of its hidden war and terrorism is the Oromo people. This Tigrayan-led regime has been employing all means of violence, terrorism, intimidation, torture, harassment, throwing thousands of innocent people in prison camps by branding them with unsubstantiated labels. Furthermore, thousands of Oromo peasants, artists, intellectuals and students with any political dissent have been forced into exile. Independent political and civic associations were outlawed. Only those who bowed down to the will of the regime have been spared and they are used by the government as pawns.

The Macha-Tulama Self-help and Development Association are among many independent Oromo civic associations that have been surviving under the continuous attack by the brutal state machinery of Meles Zenawi. Sadly, the international community had been watching silently while the Ethiopian regime raided the Macha-Tulama office in Finfinnee (Addis Ababa) and confiscated its property and thrown the leaders into jail in 2004. Continuing its crimes against Oromo leaders, recently in September 2011, the Ethiopian dictatorial regime repeated with impunity the same fiasco once again. Regrettably, the international community has not raised its voice against this heinous crime against humanity.

The Macha-Tulama high officials Mr. Laggese Deti Dhaba, Mr. Mulugeta Riqitu and Sisay Sarbesa are all held incommunicado at the Maikelawi Torture Center in Finfinnee as of today. Mr. Dhaba was the Secretary General of Macha-Tulama Self-help Association for the year 2002- 2003. Mr. Dhaba has also served as the Chairman of History and Culture Committee of the association. He is a cultural expert of Oromo society, and hence imprisoning and attacking him is tantamount to destroying Oromo cultural resources and foundations. Similarly, his colleagues who have been imprisoned with him have deep interests in promoting Oromo history and culture. They are Mr. Mulugeta Rikitu, School Director and Board Member of MTA; and Mr. Sisay Serbesa, 3rd Year Student at Addis Ababa University.

These Oromo notables were detained on August 24 on their way home returning from a celebration of Gubaa Ceremony, one of the oldest Oromo original holidays celebrated in connection with the beginning of the New Year in early September. They are mainly targeted for showing respect and interest in Oromo cultural festivals and for showing mental independence in Oromo cultural renaissance. There is a serious concern as to the safety and well-being of these detainees. The Ethiopian regime has well documented history of using torture on detainees and extrajudicial execution in cold blood. The Macha-Tulama Cooperative and Development Association, USA, Inc. appeals to the US government, European governments, human rights groups, the UN, political leaders and the international community to urge the Ethiopian regime to release Mr. Legesse Deti Dhaba, Mr. Mulugeta Rikitu and Mr. Sisay Serbesa immediately and unconditionally, and to stop its ongoing war of intimidation and terror on the Oromo people.

Sincerely,

Board of Directors

Macha -Tulama Association, USA, INC.

Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA

2011-10-12T22:51:00.000-07:00

Press Release

Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA

October 2011 - Somalia - Peoples’ Free Will; Not Coercions

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa strongly condemns the heinous and deadly terrorist attack carried out in the Somali Capital, Moqadisho on the 4^th of October, 2011, in which 70 plus innocent civilians were killed, and more than one hundred others wounded. Among the dead were students who were waiting for scholarship application results at the office of the Ministry of Education. It is so saddening and so shameful to hear that a group who claims to have been fighting in the name of the Somalis targets innocent civilians in such an indiscriminate manner, and kills students (the younger generation) in the hands of whom is the future of the country and the people.

In today’s world of the 21^st century, when the maximum advancement, growth and maturity have been achieved in all aspects of human lives, and when all forms of communication, dialogue, negotiation, and peaceful resolution of conflicts are possible, it is difficult to find a reason as to why such deadly and destructive acts of terrorism are committed so indiscriminately. One of the reasons why Somalia has become an example of a failed state is because none of those groups who have been operating in the name of the Somalis has attempted to allow the ordinary Somalis to exercise their free will to make choices of their own, and be part of the decision making processes. The Somalis undoubtedly have a lot of socio-economic issues to be concerned and think about. Particularly at the present time, hard hit and taken up by severe drought and starvation, they are looking out into the hands of international communities for food - which they need to save as many lives threatened by the catastrophe as possible.

Any form of terrorist act is aimed at forcibly imposing one’s own wills and interests against the targeted group’s free will and/or consent. It would in no way bring a lasting solution to war torn countries and societies like Somalia. It is instead very likely that it would give rise to other different or similar forms of coercive systems.

HRLHA calls up on the Al-Shabab, the group that has claimed the responsibility of carrying out the deadly attack, to refrain from such terrorist acts against one’s own people, and engage in peaceful means of finding lasting solutions to the internal conflict of Somalia that has already caused enormous destructions.

The HRLHA is a non-political and non-profit organization that attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. It works on defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It also works on raising the awareness of individuals about their own fundamental human rights and that of others. It encourages the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.

Resolution of the Oromo Liberation Front National Council Fifth Regular Session

2011-10-11T21:53:00.000-07:00

ADDA BILISUMMAA OROMOO

OROMO LIBERATION FRONT

Resolution of the Oromo Liberation Front National Council Fifth Regular Session

The Oromo Liberation Front National Council (OLF-NC) has successfully completed its fifth regular session held from October 3 - 10, 2011. The NC, during this session, addressed wide ranging issues including organizational matters, the situation of the Oromo people and its struggle, the unparalleled brutality of the TPLF/EPRDF regime against the peoples in Ethiopia in general and the Oromo people in particular, peace and stability in the Horn of Africa and other regional and global issues. After thorough deliberation the NC concluded its meeting by passing several important resolutions.

The Oromo liberation struggle for freedom and sovereignty, led by the OLF, continuous to enjoy popular support of our people, who continue paying immense sacrifices. The ongoing popular uprising led by the Oromo youth, the Qeerroo, which is gaining wide spread support from the Oromo and other peoples, is shaking the regime to its foundation. In the course of the struggle, our organization has encountered and overcame various internal and external challenges. The council reaffirms its unfolding commitment to the achievement of the Oromo people’s right to self-determination up to and including independence. At this junction, we call upon all Oromo political forces to join hands with us in the continuous effort to liberate our people. We are committed to peacefully resolve tactical differences that might have existed between us.

The TPLF/EPRDF regime has continued targeting the Oromo people through brutal repression to extend its grab on power. Accordingly massive human rights violations, extreme economic exploitation and blatant discrimination has become the lot of the Oromo people. The recent ‘Anti Terrorism Law’ by the rubber stamp parliament has worsened the condition of Oromo individuals of all walks of life. This law is being used to suppress fundamental human rights including the right to assembly and freedom of expression. Today more than any time in the past the Oromo people are subjected to extrajudicial killings, disappearance, torture, mass arrest, harassment and imprisonment in villages, workplaces, towns and cities. Imposition of exorbitant taxation on the farmers and small businesses, eviction of peasants from their ancestral farm lands for leasing to foreigners under obscure terms, denial of job opportunities and dismissal of employees from their jobs on flimsy excuses is a daily experience of our people. Oromos and Oromia are discriminated against in employment, promotion, education, and other social services.

Millions of people are facing famine due to deliberate wrong policies in Oromia. However, the fact that the existence of famine is denied and access to the area by outsiders is blocked by the regime, the people are not receiving the life saving assistance necessary from the international community. Therefore, we urge the international community to pressure the regime to open up the areas for access and provide necessary assistance. Because of the sever repression in Oromia, thousands of Oromos have sought refuge in the neighbouring countries like Somalia, Kenya, Sudan, Djibouti and beyond. Many have perished trying to cross the Indian Ocean to the Arabian Peninsula. Others have faced the same fate trying to cross the Sahara and other deserts. The Ethiopian security agents have crossed international borders to assassinate, abduct or harass the refugees. We call upon the hosting countries and pertinent international agencies to assist the refugees in accordance with the relevant international law.

The regime has been maintaining itself in power by habitually instigating conflicts between the romo people and its neighbors using the defunct ‘divide and rule’ policy. The latest such tragic episode took place between Oromo and Gumuz people in western Oromia and between the Oromo and Somalis in the East. In addition, the regime has been working hard to incite religious conflict in the Oromo society and elsewhere by destroying the traditional tolerance among religious groups. Incidents like burning churches and holly books including the Qur’an, that have never been heard in the long history of peoples with different religions living side by side, have recently surfaced in some localities of Oromia with apparent connivance of the authorities. We call upon the Oromo and neighboring peoples to resist the enemy instigation and resort to the traditional way of resolving their differences peacefully. Similarly we call on Oromo and other religious communities to adhere to the long held tradition of practices of tolerance.

Ethiopia which shares border with all the IGAD countries except for Uganda, lies at the centre of the security complex of the Horn. Consequently the situation in Ethiopia should be of a serious concern to the IGAD member states. The instability in Oromia, which lies at the centre of Ethiopia, affects the stability of the whole region. The case of thousands of refugees in all the member countries and the cross border incursion by the Ethiopian security forces is one of the cases in point. Therefore, the Council urges the IGAD member states to support the genuine Oromo Liberation struggle for justice and freedom and dissociate themselves from the baseless and false allegations of the Ethiopian regime against the OLF.

The international community is turning blind eye to the injustices perpetrated by the TPLF/ EPRDF regime against the peoples in Ethiopia. Despite credible report of Human Rights Organizations Media Reports about the misuse of the assistance given to the regime some governments particularly from the west are actively continuing to support the regime by providing the means of oppression. The National Council calls on these governments to review their policy towards the oppressive brutal regime and instead support the genuine struggle of the Oromo and other peoples for freedom and equality which could serve for lasting peace in the region.

The Tigrian political elites ruling Ethiopia today are the enemy of the peoples in Ethiopia including the Tigrian people. The regime has slammed the door on peaceful means of resolving the perennial political conflict with resistance groups and closed the political playing field of legal oppositions. The OLF is ready to cooperate in the struggle against this regime. Therefore, we call upon all forces opposed to the dictatorial minority regime and struggling for liberation, equality, freedom and peace to rise up in unison to get rid of these autocrats.

Victory to the Oromo People!
Oromo Liberation Front-National Council
October 10, 2011

2011-09-30T21:13:00.000-07:00

New Statesman (Sept. 29) The powerful NGO says the international development secretary has been "disingenuous" and "misleading".

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused Andrew Mitchell, the International Development Secretary, of being "disingenuous" and "misleading" about the misuse of aid in Ethiopia.

Last month, an investigation by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Newsnight revealed that the Ethipian government was using long-term development aid for political purposes. It found that communities considered loyal to the opposition had been denied food aid, seed and fertiliser.

Appearing on Newsnight last Wednesday, Mitchell stated that no British development support goes through the government of Ethiopia. He also said that officials had conducted an on-the-ground investigation and found no evidence of the systemic misuse of food aid.

This is where HRW got involved. Jan Egeland, the deputy executive director for HRW Europe, has written an open letter questioning Mitchell's comments. It uses exceptionally strong language, and is unprecedented in accusing a secretary of state of being misleading, and implying he has bowed to pressure from the Ethiopian government. Here are the highlights:

You said in the Newsnight interview that DFID officials had investigated the allegations but, "found no evidence at all of systemic misuse of food support." However, a proper investigation capable of drawing conclusions about the nature of abuses by the Ethiopian government would need to be conducted at the field level, and our understanding is that no such investigation has been undertaken.

Your claim that no British support goes through the Ethiopian government is disingenuous. The vast majority of British support to Ethiopia passes through the government.

We recognise that the Ethiopian government is extremely resistant to scrutiny. Nonetheless, the British government and other donors to Ethiopia should not allow the Ethiopian government to dictate the terms on which public British money is monitored, and every effort should be made to prevent British development aid from strengthening authoritarian rule and repression.

The letter goes on to explain that the Ethiopian federal government is responsible for administering and monitoring the largest development programme, which the British Ambassador to Ethiopia said was "budget support in all but name".

Mitchell has replied:

As I have made clear, the British government does not agree with all of your assertions nor your conclusions. We also do not believe the report is methodologically sound.

Human Rights Watch is an organisation for which I have profound respect and admiration.

But it is important not to overstate criticisms in an unbalanced manner, the effect of which will be to undermine the vital work HRW carries out in other parts of the world.

You point out in your letter that the Ethiopian government must not dictate the terms on which British public money is monitored. I am happy to confirm that this is not the case.

After Mitchell's Newsnight appearance, a DfID official confirmed that the investigation he referred to was actually a desk study conducted from Addis Ababa. It looks as if the matter will not be resolved until a full on-the-ground investigation is carried out.

UPDATE - 3.20pm: I've been contacted by DfID, who said that the statement read out on Newsnight (regarding the desk study) was inaccurate. The following clarification was read out on Friday's programme:

The Department for International Development has confirmed that, as Secretary of State Andrew Mitchell made clear on Wednesday's programme, DFID officials in Ethiopia did make regular field visits to look into the allegations of aid distortion.

Those field visits -- and dozens of similar visits by other donor agencies -- made clear that there was no systemic distortion for political reasons in the distribution of aid.

Qeerroo Press Release

2011-09-18T03:19:00.000-07:00

Email: Qeerroo2011@gmail.com
Facebook: Qeerroo Bilisummaa
Website: http://qeerroo.wordpress.com

“Just to point one, like the Woyane regime did in the past; we are observing organizations like Ginbot 7 are trying to take the invalid shortcut to their own goal.”
- Qeerroo

Press Release: Crackdown and campaign of mass imprisonment can never stop the struggle for freedom and Self Determination

The bitter struggle for freedom, democracy and self determination have come a long way from the day of the empire formation while to the contrary the response from the consecutive Ethiopian regimes happens to be mass imprisonment, looting, exiling and killing. What is special about the current regime is that, the life of these imprisoned and the other individuals, who are in principle free, are almost the same. It became customary to imprison, kill and confiscate the property of the people who have come up with legitimate discontent and spoke about their rights.

The reality dictates uniting efforts to topple the two decades long Woyane dictatorship as the only option on the ground. It is also the will of every nation in the country to join hands to erode the unspeakable tragedy of the people and to see the country on right path to development and equality. The clear goal after the days of the current dictatorship should also be to unchain the people and to open a new path of history whereby the people of the country decides freely on their future. The Oromo people is working for a system and a government that respects its rights and aspirations. It is against the other version of dictatorship whereby the Oromo continues to serve the interest of other hidden agendas and all sort of marginalization. The youth and people of Oromo is keenly and actively working to rebuff any sort of fake and ungrounded partnership even if we are open to democratic and credible partnership which is in line with the aspiration our people.

Having said that, we have not yet seen any credible support for our people ongoing struggle for freedom and democracy from these organizations who claims to have been fighting against Woyane regime. At a time when the Oromo people is suffering from mass imprisonment, killing, looting and land grabbing, not a single Pro Ethiopian organization have voiced against the injustice going on. Even if these things are all unfortunate, the Youth movement of Qeerroo still believes in the necessity of partnership and solidarity in the struggle that can secure the freedom all peoples in Ethiopia.

Just to point one, like the Woyane regime did in the past; we are observing organizations like Ginbot 7 are trying to take the invalid shortcut to their own goal. At a time when the imprisonment and killing in the country was intensified not only against the Oromo but also against other nations who started to say NO to the regime on power, avoiding the real way of dealing with the issue and engaging in a political game and show-off for simple political consumption is very disappointing.

As we all remember, the regimes on power have been doing all nasty tricks to divide the opposition camps. These tricks have brought nothing but intensified the problem in the country. It is a recent memory how the regime in power used individuals like Asefa Chamisso to divide and weaken the opposition camp on the CUD. Likewise the Ginbot 7 leaders look as if they are big fun of this nasty game. Rather than putting a credible and tangible struggle on the ground, they are busy to show the face of some individuals who have been proved to lack organizational discipline but claims to represent the Oromo people. This is not a fashion show and the Oromo clearly understand the terrible agenda behind the scene. This old and ugly way of struggle, which is the main reason for the failure of the Ethiopian politics so far; can never stand to the current need and aspiration of the people. The right answer is to engage in a serious and credible partnership in a bid to topple the dictatorship in Ethiopia once and for all and to work for freedom, democracy and self determination. It is the defining moment for these type of organization to clearly spell and tell their stand on solidarity, partnership and their understanding of right to self-determination in the country.

It is important to note that the objective of partnership is not to install new form of dictatorship which disregards the right to self-determination on empire mentality but to realise it and build the country on a democratic, justified and equal footing. By eroding the dictatorship in Ethiopia, we should be able to address the plight of the different peoples in Ethiopia, underline the unalienable right to self determination and open new era of bright future. There is no short cut to the realization of self determination but to accept and to deal with it. But if there are still some organizations that are not ready to accept the unalienable right to self determination in any form, they can not be seen different from the Woyane regime on power.
Qeerroo believes in the potential of new generation to realise freedom, democracy and justice in a sustained struggle against dictatorship. What is more, Qeerroo would like to assure that it will work for struggle that take all stake holders on board that can come up with a convincing and preferred option to solve the problems in the country.

Finally, the usual way of Woyane regime mass arrest and violence against people who raises a legitimate right, in a bid to take its regime forward can not work anymore. As we can understand from history Imprisonment and killing have never answered a clear political problem. Likewise the current unspeakable violence and inhuman treatment against people with legitimate demands can not stop us from struggle and can never deter us from realising self determination and democracy in Ethiopia.

Victory for the subjugated people!

Freedom and Democracy Shall Prevail!

National Youth Movement for Freedom and Democracy (NYMFD)

17th of September 2011
Adama

Ethiopia 'using aid as weapon of oppression'

2011-09-17T17:13:00.000-07:00

Watch Angus Stickler's full report and Ethiopian and UK responses

A joint undercover investigation by BBC Newsnight and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism has uncovered evidence that the Ethiopian government is using billions of dollars of development aid as a tool for political oppression.
Posing as tourists the team of journalists travelled to the southern region of Ethiopia.

We are just waiting on the crop, if we have one meal a day we will survive until the harvest, beyond that there is no hope for us

Villager in southern Ethiopia

There they found villages where whole communities are starving, having allegedly been denied basic food, seed and fertiliser for failing to support Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.
The investigation has also gathered evidence of mass detentions, the widespread use of torture and extra-judicial killings by Ethiopian government forces.
Yet Western donors including Britain - which is the third largest donor to Ethiopia - stand accused of turning a blind eye by continuing to provide aid money despite being warned about the abuses.
The aid in question is long-term development aid, not the emergency aid provided in response to the current drought in Ethiopia and its neighbours in the Horn of Africa.
Government response
Ambassador Abdirashid Dulane, the Deputy Head of Ethiopia's UK Mission, has rejected the allegations saying that the Newsnight/Bureau report "lacked objectivity, even-handedness".

The team found villagers eating leaves in order to survive

"The sole source of the story was opponents of Ethiopia who have been rejected by the electorate, and time and again it has been shown that their allegations are unfounded".
Our reporters visited one village in southern Ethiopia with a population of about 1,700 adults.
Despite being surrounded by other communities which are well fed and prosperous, this village, which cannot be named for fear of reprisals, is starving. We were told that in the two weeks prior to our team's arrival five adults and 10 children had died.
Lying on the floor, too exhausted to stand, and flanked by her three-year-old son whose stomach is bloated by malnutrition, one woman described how her family had not eaten for four days.
"We are living day to day on the grace of God," she said.
Another three-year-old boy lay in his grandmother's lap, listless and barely moving as he stared into space.
"We are just waiting on the crop, if we have one meal a day we will survive until the harvest, beyond that there is no hope for us," the grandmother said.
'Abandoned'
In another village 30 km (19 miles) away it was a similar story.

Almost all of the aid goes through the government channels... in terms of relief food supply and some of the safety net provisions, they simply don't get to the needy of an equitably basis

Professor Beyene Petros, opposition politician

There our team met Yenee, a widow who along with her seven children is surviving by begging, eating leaves and scavenging scraps from the bins in the nearest town.
"The situation is desperate," she said. "We have been abandoned... It is a matter of chance if we live or die."
The two villages sit just 15km (9 miles) either side of a major town, surrounded by other communities where the populations are well fed and healthy. They are in desperate need, but no-one is helping.
According to local opposition members they are being punished for failing to vote for the ruling party, the Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), which Mr Meles leads.
Further north a group of farmers alienated by Mr Meles' government met the BBC/Bureau team at a secret location on the edge of a remote village.
One farmer described how he had been ostracised for failing to support EPRDF: "Because of our political views we face great intimidation. We are denied the right to fertiliser and seeds because of political ideology," he said.
'Buying support'
The Ethiopian federal and regional governments control the distribution of aid in Ethiopia.
Professor Beyene Petros, the current vice-chairman of the Ethiopian Federal Democratic Forum, an alliance of eight opposition parties known as Medrek, told our reporters that aid is not distributed according to need, but according to support for the EPRDF:

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi took power in 1991

"Almost all of the aid goes through the government channels... in terms of relief food supply and some of the safety net provisions, they simply don't get to the needy of an equitably basis.
"There is a great deal of political differentiation. People who support the ruling party, the EPRDF, and our members are treated differently. The motivation is buying support, that is how they recruit support, holding the population hostage," he said.
Mr Beyene said that the international community, including the British government, is well aware of the problem and that he has personally presented them with evidence:
"The position of the donor communities is dismissive... they always want to dismiss it as an isolated incident when we present them with some proof. And we challenge them to go down and check it out for themselves, but they don't do it."
Accountability
The UK International Development Minister Stephen O'Brien issued a statement in response to the allegations raised by the investigation, saying:
"We take all allegations of human rights abuses extremely seriously and raise them immediately with the relevant authorities including the Ethiopian Government, with whom we have a candid relationship. Where there is evidence, we take firm and decisive action.

They raped me in a room, one of them was standing on my mouth, and one tied my hand, they were taking turns, I fainted during this

Ethiopian woman from the Ogaden

"The British aid programme helps the people of Ethiopia, 30 million of whom live in extreme poverty. We demand full accountability and maximum impact on the ground for support from the British taxpayer."
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and Newsnight also gathered evidence of a crackdown and human rights abuses in Ethiopia's Somali region, the area bordering Somalia and Kenya, also know as the Ogaden region.
Ethnic Somali rebels from the outlawed Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) and Ethiopian government forces have been fighting for control of Ogaden since the 1970s.
The media and most aid agencies are banned from the region.
Ethiopia, one of the poorest countries of the world, is currently suffering from horrific drought.
Many of those fleeing the ensuing humanitarian crisis have headed to Dadaab refugee camp in northern Kenya.
It is the largest refugee camp in the world, and the vast majority of the 400,000 people there are from Somalia, but among them are an increasing number of Ethiopians from the Ogaden.
'Revenge killings'
Abdifatah Arab Olad, an Ogaden community leader, told our reporters that up to 100 refugees are arriving every month with tales of killings and the burning of villages by government troops.

Ethiopians from the Ogaden are fleeing to Dadaab refugee camp

"Whenever fighting has taken place between the rebels and the army, for each army member that is killed, the military go to the nearest town and they start killing people," he said. "For each army member killed it equals to 10 civilians losses."
In the corner of a makeshift shack in the camp, an old woman who had arrived from Ogaden three weeks earlier described being arrested along with 100 others in her village.
She said they were taken to a jail where they were locked up in a shipping container, and picked out on a nightly basis to be tortured:
"They beat me then started to rape me; I screamed and fought with them... I tried to bite them... they tied me this way," she said, gesturing to her legs.
"They raped me in a room, one of them was standing on my mouth, and one tied my hand, they were taking turns, I fainted during this... I can't say how many, but they were many in the army," she said.
'Assaulted when pregnant'
Other women in the camp also said they had been arrested and accused of being members of the OLNF.
They included one who said that she was eight months pregnant when she was detained and raped by eight soldiers:
"They were beating me while I was being raped, I was bleeding," she said, describing how one soldier stamped on her stomach and beat her with the stock of his rifle:
"I fell unconscious when I saw my baby... a man jumping on your stomach, you can imagine what happened to the child, very big kicks blows with the back of a gun. As a consequence of that the child died."
We cannot substantiate these individual allegations. But other credible sources have reported similar stories of the widespread use of rape by Ethiopian security forces against women in the Ogaden.
Speaking on Newsnight, Ethiopia's Ambassador Abdirashid Dulane said that the claims of rape and torture were a "rehash" of old allegations that the Ethiopian government had answered time and again.
"The Ethiopian government is governed by the rule of law, and human rights and democratic rights are enshrined in the Ethiopian constitution," he said.

Source: BBC

Wikileaks Ethiopia Files: Ethiopia Bombs Itself, Blames Eritrea

2011-09-17T16:28:00.000-07:00

by Thomas C. Mountain

September 6, 2011 (Foreign Policy Journal) - Recently released Wikileaks Ethiopia files expose how Ethiopian security forces planted 3 bombs that went off in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on September 16, 2006 and then blamed Eritrea and the Oromo resistance for the blasts in a case that raises serious questions about the claims made about the bombing attempt against the African Union summit earlier this year in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

In a report from 2006 marked “Secret ; Subject: Ethiopia: Recent Bombings Blamed on Oromos Possibly the Work of GOE [Government of Ethiopia]” “Classified By: Charge [d’Affairs] Vicki Huddleston”, “An embassy source, as well as clandestine reporting, suggests that the bombing may have in fact been the work of the GoE security forces.” (Cable reference id: #06ADDISABABA2708.)

At the time, the western media reported the Ethiopian National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) claims that the bombs were “part of a coordinated terror attack by the OLF [Oromo Liberation Front, the oldest national liberation movement in Ethiopia] and Sha’abiya (Eritrea) aimed at disrupting democratic development”.

The Wikileaks report goes on, “a typically reliable information source” who “contacted Post to report that” the bodies of three men found at the bomb sites “had been picked up by police a week prior, kept in detention and tortured. He said police then left the men in a house and detonated explosives nearby, killing 3 of them.”

This exposes the history of how the Ethiopian regime has planted bombs and then blamed Eritrea and the Ethiopian resistance. The lies that make up the official version of this alleged terrorist attack raises serious questions about the credibility of the recently released report by the UN via its US State Department affiliate, the Monitoring Group for Eritrea and Somalia, which blames the Eritreans and the OLF for the January bombing attempt at the African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Identical lies about a nearly identical “terrorist attack”, all accepted as fact by the western media. This should also deliver another body blow to the Obama White House and its claims that Eritrea supports terrorism in the Horn of Africa.

So once again the bellowing against Eritrea by the USA and it lackeys at the UN going back to 2006 is exposed as complete bunkum and an identical frame up of Eritrean and the Oromo resistance in Ethiopia that has been regurgitated by the UN and its truth challenged Monitoring Group on Eritrea and Somalia must be subject to a more critical scrutiny. Based on this expose’ it can only be hoped that the UN inSecurity Council, which has yet to decide whether to pass severe sanctions against Eritrea, will refrain from doing so.

Thomas C. Mountain is an independent western journalist based in the Horn of Africa, and has been living and reporting from Eritrea since 2006. He was a member of the 1st US Peace Delegation to Libya in 1987. Read more articles by Thomas C. Mountain.

IBSA IJJANOO MISEENSOOTA ABO KUTAALEE USA FI KAANAADAA

2011-07-31T00:28:00.000-07:00

Nuti miseensoonni ABO kutaalee USA fi Kaanaadaa kora miseensootaa Adooleessa 20-21 2011 fi guyyaa yaa’ii Ummataa Adooleessa 22/2011 magaalaa Minneapolis keessatti gaggeeffame injifannoon xumuranne. Walgahii kana irratti Ibsa HD ABO J. Dawud Ibsaa irraa karaa teleconference fi Hoggnoota ABO SHGS fi GS walgahii kana irratti argaman irraa ibsa kenname dhaggeeffanee gaaffiilee qabnuus erga gaafanee booda xinxilaa fi marii bal’aa QBO fuldra tarkaanfachiisu erga gooneen booda ibsa ijjannoo fi murtiilee armaan gadii kana dabarfanne.

1. Miseensoonni hujii dhaaba keenyaa kan biyya alaa kanatti hojjachaa jirru ilaalchisee xinxila fi marii gaggeesine irratti dhaabbannee, hujiilee biyya alaa kanatti hojjannu hunda kan durii caalaa galmaan gahuuf dirqama nurraa eeggamu hundaa gumaachuuf wa’aada keenya haarayoomfanne.

2. Qaceelfamaa fi murtii dhaabni keenya fudhatu hundaa ni deeggara. Hujii irra oolchuufiis dirqama nurraa eeggamu guutummatti baanee argamuuf qophii dha.

3. Hujiilee dhaaba keenyaa, kan caayaalee fi hawaasaa hunda keessatti gaggeefamaa jiru irratti ciminaan hojjanna. Keessattu qooda dubartootaa, dargaggootaa fi shamarranii olkaasuuf jabaannee hojjachuuf murteefanne.

4. WBOn haala rakkisaa tahe keessatti tarkaanfii halleellaa diina irratti fudhachaa jiru hedduu dinqisiifachaa, WBOn haleellaa diina irratti fudhachaa jiru, daran jabeessee bilisummaa sabni keenyaa hawwaa jiru akka argamsiisu taasisuuf tinnisa WBO goonu fi waan nurraa barbaachisu hunda dacha dachaan godhuuf murteefanne.

5. FDG Ummanni keenya Oromiyaa guutuu keessatti gaggeessaa jiran guutummati deeggara. Gama keenyaan, FDG kana galmaan gahuuf jabaannee hojjachuuf murteefanne. Ummanni Oromoo biyyaa fi biyya ambaa jiru hundinuu FDG biyya keessatti belbalaa jiru kana cinaa akka dhaabbataniis waamicha goona.

6. Tokkummaa qabsaawootaa kan dhiigaa fi Lafee jaallan QBOf wareegamaniin argame diiguuf warra hojjatan hundaa ni balaalleefanna. Gochaa farra Ummata Oromoo fi QBO kana irraahiis akka dhaabbatan janna. Diina qofa irratti xiiyyeefachuun waan yeroon gaafatu tahuus dhaamanna. Karaa keenyaan tokkummaa saba keenyaa fi dhaaba keenyaa tiikfachaa qabsaa’uuf murteeffanne.

7. Jaarmayoota Oromoo hunda jiddutti Araara buusuu fi mooraa QBO keessatti nagayaa fi tasgabbii uumuuf imaammta dhaabni keenya hordofaa jiru guutumatti deeggarna. Imaammata kana hujoomsuuf qaceelfama dhaaba keenyaa hujoomsuufiis murteefanne.

8. Mootummaan farra namoomaa fi dimokraasii tahe kun aangoo irra turuu kan danda’een gargaarsa mootummoota gurgurdoo Adunyaatiin waan ta’eef, gargaarsi mootummoota kanaa ummata ajjeesuu, hidhuu fi hiraarsuuf akka Wayyaaneen dhimma itti bahaa jirtu hubatanii, gargaarsa mootummaa kanaaf godhaa jiran akka dhaaban gaafanna.

9. Haalli baqattoota Oromoo biyyoota ollaatti baqatanii jiraatan yaachisaa dha. Mootummonni itti baqatan tikaa fi gargaarsa isaan irraa eeggamu godhuufi hanqachuu irraan kan ka’e balaa guddaan irra gahaa jira. Waan taheef, Mootummoonni, dhaaboonni mirga dhala namaaf dhaabatanii fi dhaaboonni baqatoota gargaaran hundi gargaarsa barbaachisu akka yeroon godhaniif qofa otuu hin tahini akka biyyoota keessa jiraan keessatti mirga baqatummaa isaanii eegamuuf dhiibbaa godha gaafanna.

10. Mootummaan shorarkeesituun Wayyaanee daangaa dabruun, baqatoota Oromoo roorroo fi hacuucaa biyya isaanii keessatti irra gahaa jirurraa baqatanirratti gaggeessaa jiru ni balaaleefanna.

11. Haala QBO, haala WBO fi ummatni keenya kan biyya jiru keessa jiran yeroo bal’inaan xinxille, QBO bakkaan gahuuf haalli keessa jirru mijjaawaa ta’uu hubanna. Haala kanatti gargaaramanii QBO bakkaan gahuufiis dirmannaa dhala Oromoo hunda kan gaafatu waan ta’eef Ilmaan Oromoo harka wal qabannee tinnisa nu irraa eeggamu akka gumaachinu waamich akeenya dabrfanna.

12. Ilmaan Oromoo fi ilmaan Saba cunqurfamoo biiyya sanii kanneen diinaa waliin dhaabbatani ummata isaanii miidhaa jiran hundi, gochaa farra namoomaa ummata ofii irratti gaggeessaa jiran kana irraa dhaabbatanii ummata isaanii waliin diina kana fonqalchuu irratti qooda isaanii gumaachan waamicha goona.

13. Maayyii irratti nuti miseensoonni ABO kutaalee USA fi Kaanaadaa murtiilee kora gamtaa kana irratti dabarfanne hunda hujii irra oolchuuf murteefanne

Injifannoo Ummata Oromoof!

Gadaan Gadaa Bilisummaa ti!!

The trifecta of civil resistance: unity, planning, discipline

2011-02-19T15:54:00.000-08:00

Hardy Merriman, 19 November 2010

Three attributes can make the difference between success and failure for nonviolent movements around the world: unity, planning, and nonviolent discipline. About the author Hardy Merriman

was director of programs and research at ICNC from 2005 to 2007. He edited the book "Waging Nonviolent Struggle: 20th Century Practice and 21st Century Potential" by Gene Sharp and also co-authored "A Guide to Effective Nonviolent Struggle".

What makes nonviolent civil resistance movements effective? If we accept the axiom that in politics “power is never given, it is always taken”, the conclusion necessarily is that historic nonviolent movements were successful because, somehow, they wielded power that was greater than that of their opponents.

This conclusion conflicts with, and opens up a direct line of questioning about, the widely-held assumption that power ultimately originates from control of material resources and capacity for violence. If this assumption were entirely correct, nonviolent movements would categorically fail against better-armed and -resourced opponents. What history reveals, however, is a timeline of many successful nonviolent struggles, extending back for more than a century, with protagonists and causes as diverse as humanity itself. To list some examples:

· In the 1930s and 1940s, Indians won their independence by engaging in massive noncooperation (economic boycotts, school boycotts, strikes, tax refusal, civil disobedience, resignations) that threatened to make India ungovernable and eventually convinced the British to leave;

· During the 1950s and 1960s, the US Civil Rights Movement won equal rights through nonviolent campaigns such as the Montgomery bus boycotts and the Nashville lunch-counter sit-ins that exploited weaknesses in the institutionalized segregation system and attracted supporters nationwide;

· From 1965-1970, the United Farm Workers union grew from a small, practically unfunded local organization to a national presence through their successful use of strikes and boycotts against California grape vineyards;

· In 1986 in the Philippines, activists joined with military defectors to rally millions to demonstrate against the US-backed dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. With his options quickly diminishing in light of this nonviolent uprising, Marcos fled the country;

· In 1988, Chileans overcame the fear instilled by the brutal dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet and campaigned and demonstrated against him. These actions so undermined Pinochet’s support that even his fellow military junta members were no longer loyal to him at the peak of the crisis,
and he was forced from power;

· From 1980-1989, Poles organized an independent trade union as part of the Solidarity movement and took back their country from Soviet rule;

· In 1989, protests and strikes that became known as the Velvet Revolution led to a peaceful transition from communism in Czechoslovakia. Similar actions led to peaceful transitions in East Germany, and in Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia in 1991;

· Strikes, boycotts, civil disobedience and external sanctions beginning in the 1980s played a major role in ending apartheid in South Africa in the early 1990s;

· In the following decade, Serbs (2000), Georgians (2003), and Ukrainians (2004) ended autocratic rule by mobilizing to prevent or resist fraudulent election results;

· In 2005, Lebanese ended the occupation of their country by Syrian troops through massive nonviolent demonstrations;

· In 2006, Nepalis engaged in mass disobedience and forced the restoration of civilian rule;

· From 2007-2009, in the midst of violent insurgency and in the face of a military ruler, Pakistani lawyers, civil society groups, and ordinary citizens successfully pushed for the restoration of an independent judiciary and a repeal of state of emergency laws.

If people do not obey, rulers cannot rule

These and other movements of civil resistance succeeded because they were based on a fundamental insight about power: that nearly all institutions, organizations, and systems in a society depend on the ongoing consent, cooperation, and obedience of large numbers of ordinary people. Therefore, if people choose to withdraw their consent and cooperation in an organized and strategic way, they can wield coercive power. When people do not obey, then presidents, mayors, CEOs, generals, and other “power holders” can no longer rule with unchecked power.

Nonviolent tactics, such as strikes, boycotts, mass demonstrations, civil disobedience, the establishment of parallel institutions, and literally hundreds of other creative actions, were the instruments used to do this. They were not used necessarily for moral reasons, but rather for pragmatic ones. Some who adopted civil resistance had seen similar strategies work in other countries or in their own histories, and recognized that this type of resistance had the best prospects of success of the options available to them.

Skills and conditions

Amidst these inspiring nonviolent movement victories, however, history and the contemporary
world also offer examples of failed or inconclusive movements. The world watched Poland’s and Czechoslovakia’s nonviolent revolutions in the same year that it saw the Tiananmen Square massacre. In the last decade, large numbers of people used nonviolent tactics in Burma, Zimbabwe, Egypt and Iran, but movements' goals have not so far been achieved. In the successful self-determination struggle in East Timor, civil resistance was indispensable, but while it has helped propel civilian-based movements against occupiers elsewhere—in Palestine, West Papua, Western Sahara and Tibet—those
struggles remain unresolved.

What accounts for the discrepancies among these and other cases?

The factors that made these and other movements succeed or fail is a subject on which reasonable and well-informed people can disagree.[1] Each situation is highly complex and establishing direct causality is difficult at best. The arguments I most often hear by scholars, journalists, and others are that the trajectories and outcomes of these and other predominantly nonviolent movements were largely determined by structures, conditions and exceptional circumstances in which each movement operated.

For example, arguments have been made that nonviolent movements are effective only in societies in which an oppressor is unwilling to use lethal force. Others may claim that certain economic criteria (i.e. economic ideology, income levels, wealth distribution, the presence of a middle class) and educational levels are critical for successful movements. Still others claim that the role of superpowers and regional hegemons supersedes the importance of other variables in determining a vement’s outcome. The number of additional structures and conditions a person can cite—i.e. ethnic diversity, political and cultural history, population size, land area—are numerous, and to be sure, many of these conditions can influence the course of a given movement.

As a counterpoint to structural and conditional factors are factors based on a movement’s skills in waging conflict, i.e. what academics call “agency”. Skills and agency refer to those variables over which a movement has some control: what strategy of action the movement chooses; what language it uses to mobilize people and keep them involved; how it builds coalitions; where and how it targets its adversary; and a myriad of other decisions involved in engaging in civil resistance.

In my view, these skill-based factors are often significantly underemphasized or overlooked by those who come into contact with and analyze nonviolent movements. Why this is so is beyond the scope of this article, but one reason may be that people doubt or do not know the premise on which nonviolent action is based—that through shifts in collective behavior, power can be re-allocated from entrenched and oppressive adversaries to people’s movements. Instead, they assume that there must have been exogenous variables or extraordinary circumstances that made this possible in the cases in which it has occurred.

However, we can respect the role of structures and conditions in influencing nonviolent movements' trajectories and outcomes without downplaying the importance of agency and skills. Indeed, agency and skills make a difference, and in some cases have enabled movements to overcome, circumvent, or transform adverse conditions.

The importance, and sometimes primacy, of skills and agency are considered common knowledge in
other disciplines such as business or military thinking. Why should nonviolent struggle be any different in this regard? A military general or corporate CEO would laugh if they were told that strategy was of marginal importance to the outcome of their endeavors. Sun Tzu’s classic The
Art of War would not be so well known if people thought the outcome of contests and contentious interactions were always foreordained by material conditions.

To return then to the opening question of this article—what makes nonviolent movements effective?—we can start to find answers by looking at strategic choices and best practices gleaned from historic movements. There are a variety of agency-based factors and skills that can influence a movement’s outcome, but (for the sake of simplicity) if we distill those down to a few essentials, three attributes of successful nonviolent movements emerge: unity, planning, and nonviolent discipline.

Unity, planning and discipline

At first glance the importance of such attributes may seem self-evident. Yet the profundity of these attributes and their overarching implications sometimes are missed when one views movements at a predominantly tactical and granular level. Each merits elaboration.

Unity is important because nonviolent movements draw their strength from the participation of
people in diverse sectors of society. Put simply: numbers matter. The more people a movement has supporting it, the greater its legitimacy, power, and tactical repertoire. Successful movements therefore continually reach out to new groups in their societies, e.g. men and women; youth, adults,
and elders; urban and rural populations; minorities; members of religious institutions; farmers, laborers, business people, and professionals; wealthy, middle class, and lower economic stratas; police, soldiers, and members of the judiciary, as well as other groups.

Successful movements also continually reach out to their opponent’s supporters, understanding that one of the strengths of sustained civil resistance in the service of a unifying vision is the ability to induce loyalty shifts and defections among its opponent’s ranks. For example, the South African anti-apartheid movement’s ongoing civic disruption combined with its call for national reconciliation was able to garner widespread support and create unity for the cause of change, even among some white supporters who had previously supported the apartheid state.

Participants in nonviolent movements must also make complex decisions about the course their
movements should take. Strategic planning is of central importance in doing this. Regardless of the merit of one’s cause or the morally indefensible acts of one’s opponent, oppression is usually not overcome solely through spontaneous and improvised acts of resistance, even if such acts are
well-executed. Instead, movements gain traction when they plan how civil resistance can be systematically organized and adopted by people in society to achieve targeted and focused goals.

Deciding what tactics to use and how they should be sequenced; developing galvanizing
propositions for change based on the aspirations and grievances of the people who the movement aims to represent; planning what individuals and groups to target with tactics and what short-, medium-, and long-term objectives to pursue; and building lines of communication so that coalitions can be
negotiated and built are just some of the issues around which nonviolent movements must creatively strategize. Doing so requires a holistic analysis of the situation in which the nonviolent struggle takes place. As part of their planning process, effective movements formally or informally gather information, listen to people at the grassroots, and analyze themselves, their adversaries, and uncommitted third parties constantly through the course of a conflict.

Finally, a strategy is only effective if it is executed in a disciplined way. The largest risk for a failure of discipline in a nonviolent movement is that some members may become violent. Therefore, nonviolent discipline—the ability of people to remain nonviolent, even in the face of provocations—is
often continually instilled in participants. There are practical reasons for this. Violent incidents by members of a movement can dramatically reduce its legitimacy while giving the movement’s opponent an excuse to use repression. Furthermore, a movement that is consistently nonviolent has a far greater chance of appealing to a broad range of potential allies—including even an adversary’s supporters—through the course of its struggle.

A full exploration of these attributes could fill books, and the subject of nonviolent resistance merits and is continually receiving further systematic study. Each movement that emerges adds a body of knowledge to the collective understanding of this phenomenon, yet there is still much about the
art and science of this form of political and social action that remains to be mapped and developed.

But these three attributes—unity, planning, and discipline—are timeless, and as such provide a
general framework through which members and supporters of movements, as well as those who report and study them, can quickly assess a movement’s state. Is it unified? Does it have a plan? Is it disciplined? The actions of those who embody these principles in nonviolent action have already blazed a path towards a more peaceful and just world. The future will be shaped by those who continue to do so.

[1] For he purposes of this article, I am defining “successful” movements as those that achieve their stated objectives and “failed” movements as those that do not achieve their stated objectives. There is a temporal element in this definition as well.

A successful movement may achieve its stated objective (i.e. the Orange movement in Ukraine in 2004) but challenges in ensuing years to that movement’s achievement may cause backsliding (for more information on the Ukraine case, see the November 17, 2010 article “The struggle after people power wins” by Olena Tregub and Oksana Shulyar on openDemocracy). Conversely, a movement that fails to achieve its stated objective (i.e. the Chinese pro-democracy movement in 1989) may create collateral effects in ensuing years that constructively advance the movement’s cause (for more information on the China case, see the November 17, 2010 article “Repression’s Paradox in China” by Lester Kurtz on openDemocracy). While not necessarily changing the classification of a specific movement as “successful” or “failed”, these subsequent effects can be powerful and therefore are noteworthy in their own regard.

Statement of Protest Against Zenawi’s Criminal Regime Participation on 47th Conference of Global Security

2011-02-07T23:59:00.000-08:00

We, members of the Oromo Communities in Germany and other countries in Europe, appreciate the objective of Munich Security Conference that aims to address the main global security issues through the approach of constantly looking ahead so as to take up future issues at an early stage. However, the participation of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia on the 47th International Global Security Conference has disappointed us. It is doubtful whether you are concerned about peace and security of the Horn of African peoples in the global perspective.

The regime of Meles Zenawi, known as the Tigray People’s Liberation Front or Ethiopian People Revolutionary Democratic Front (TPLF/EPRDF), is by any means morally not qualified to deliver a significant role in order to achieve sustainable peace and security in the region of Horn of Africa because his regime is the major part of the problem. The regime’s anti-peace characteristics are demonstrated by systematic gross human rights violations, the 1998-2000 border war with Eritrea, the 2006 war crime in Somalia, environmental degradation, eviction of peasants from their land without compensation, perpetrating aggravation of conflicts in the Horn, and etc. For example, the Oromia Support Group in United Kingdom, a non-political organization to raise awareness of human rights violations in Ethiopia, has
reported four thousand two hundred seventy nine (4,279) extra-judicial killings and 987 disappearances of civilians in Ethiopia from 1994-2010. Also, Meles is now best known for his latest mock election in which his TPLF/EPRDF party won 99.6%. He has not been willing to peacefully transfer political power within
last twenty (20) years.

We believe it is necessary to refrain from sponsoring racist and anti-peace policies of the TPLF regime in order to realize sustainable peace and stability in the Horn of African region if the principle of security for
humanity is applicable for the human beings in that region. Therefore, we appeal respectfully to families of international communities and democratic governments to stop acting against the struggle of the Oromo people in particular, and the oppressed peoples of the Horn of African region. We would like to remind you that objectives of the struggle of the Oromo people are to overcome century-old injustice, to live in freedom, to build peace, to practice democracy, and to achieve stability.

Justice and Peace Shall Prevail!
Oromo participants of peaceful demonstration

5tth of Feburary 2011, Munich, Germany

Sochii Ergamtoota Diinaa Kaaba Amerikaa fi Biyyoota Alaa Keessatti

2011-01-27T23:26:00.001-08:00

Shira kan Hawaasa Oromoon Dhabama!!

“Barruun gabaabaa kun ergamtooti Wayyaanee sochii biyya alaatti taasisan qabatamaan muldhisa”

Mootummaan wayyaanee ummata Oromoo qabsoo mirga isaa kabajsiifatuuf gaggeessaa jiru irraa
gufachiisuudhaan bittaa sirna gabrummaa isaa hundee jabeeffatuuf yeroo adda addaatti shira xaxaa akka ture beekkamaa dha. Sirnichi QBO ABOn durfamaa jiru dhabamsiisuuf tahuufii baannaan ammo laaffisuuf adda durummaan kan irratti fuuleffatu hawaasa Oromoo biyyoota ambaa keessa jiruu dha. Akeeka isaa farrummaa kana galiin gahatuudhaafis Ministeera Haajaa Alaa jalatti, Dhimmoota Diyaaspooraa kan jedhuun Damee utubuun maallaqa biyyattii miiliyoonaan itti dhangalaasaa ture; ammas itti jira. Ergama wayyaanee qabsoo Oromoo diiguun Oromoo fi Oromiyaa gabrummaa jalatti hambisuu akeekkate kana fudhatanii raawwataa kan turanii fi jiran ammo lukkeelee sirnichi ramadate
keessattuu OPDOta.

Murni bicuu TPLF ergama isaa kana wayta lukkeeleetti laatus akka hawaasa biyyoota alaa salphaatti
gowwoomsanii fi irraas deeggarsa argataniif jecha maqaa baazaarii misoomaa, ijaarsa bu’uraalee adda addaa fi tinnisa Waldaalee maqaa Oromiyaan dhaabbataniitin akka sossohan golgaa uuma. Kanaaf ammo dabaa-shirri sirnichi maqaa WMO jedhamuun biyyoota alaatti addatti USAtti gaggeessaa jiru akka fakkeenyaatti kaasuun ni danda’ama. Icitiin dhiyeenya kana keessa wayyaanotaatii nu dhaqqabes kan dabaa-shira sirnichi karaa lukkeelee isaa, maqaa Waldaa Misoomaa Oromiyaatin Kaaba-Ameerikaa keessatti hawaasa Oromoo keessatti gaggeessuuf jiru bal’inaan kan saaxile dha. Nutis Sagantaa har’aa keessatti akeeka ergama wayyaanee kanaan duuba jiruu fi namoota hoji-raawwachistummaan akeeka diinaa kana galiin gahuudhaaf sossohaa jiranii raga qabatamaa arganne
irratti hundaa’uun saaxilla.

Ragaan gola wayyaanotaatii nu dhaqqabe kun akka hubachiisutti, mootummaan wayyaanee QBO ABOn durfamu dura dhaabbachuu, diiguu fi dabrees madda galii isaa gogsuuf karaa dhaaba maxxannee isaa taate, OPDOtin, hojjetaa jira. Hojiin shiraa kun jaarmota Oromoo biroo kanneen sirnicha irratti qabsa’anis ni ilaallata. Sirnichi garaaf bultootaa fi lukkeelee ergama diinaa fudhatuun lammii isaaniitti umrii gabrummaa dheeressuu filatan bakka bakkaa walitti qabuudhaan golgaa Waldaa Misooma Oromiyaa-Kaaba Ameerikaa (ODA-NA) jedhuun ergama isaa itti laatee jira. Haaluma
kanaan gareen ergamtoota maallaqa guddaa wayyaanee irraa fudhachuun hojii shiraaf bobbaafamanii maqaanii fi hojiin isaanii kana gaditti ibsamu kunneen akka waan Waldaan ijaaramanii misoomaaf sossohanii fakkaatuun walgahanii ajandaa Wayyaaneen itti laatte akkaataa raawwatan irratti marihatan. Akka raga kanaatti Kutaalee Ameerikaa adda addaa fi Kaanaadaa irraa dabalatee ergamtoonni kan
keessatti argaman Koreen tokko maqaa Waldaa kanaatin kan ijaarame yoo tahu, Muddee 12, 2010 walgahii gaggeeffataniiru. Hirmaattoti dabaa-shira wayyaanee kana qindeessuudhaaf maqaa Boordii kanaatin walgahii karaa telefoonaatin gaggeeffame kanarratti argamanis maqaa, teessoo fi gaafatama isaanii waliin kanneen armaan gadii ti.

1. Nugusee Birraatuu (DC) Dura taa’aa Walchiaa

2. Abdulwaasii Raabsaa (MN) I/A D/T

3. Abdurahman Umar (MN) Barreessaa

4. Mohammed Jafar(Philade.) Horii-qabaa

5. Abbaa Duulaa Muussaa (MN) I/G Q- ummataa

6. Feysal Abraahim (DC) Imbaasii wayyaanee irraa

7. Fiqaaduu Bayyanaa (DC) Imbaasii wayyaanee

8. Hussenur Hassan (DC) Miseensa

9. Adaaene Bashule (DC)

10. Muhammad Daawud fi

11. Najii Ibraahim (MN) Miseensota

12. Muhammad Jaafar (Philiy) Horii-qabaa

13. Aman Kadir (Seatle) Miseensa

14. Yassin Yasin (Seatle) Gargaaraa Barreessaa

15. Daani’eel Yaadataa (Chicago) fi

16. Muhammad Ibsaa (Atlanta) Miseensota.

Kanneen malees, namoonni 6 walgahii Koreen QBO fi hawaasa Oromoo biyyoota ambaa keessatti argaman irratti shiruuf golgaa waldaa misoomaatin wayyaaneen sossoosu Muddee 12, 2010 gaggeessite kanarratti hin argamne. Isaanis:

1. Seyfu Begashaw (Ohio) I/A D/T

2. Darajjee Mul’ataa (S/ Dakota) Miseensa

3. Ibsaa (Toroontoo) I/G Qunnamtii Ummataa

4. Shimelis Hailu fi Jifar Miseensota yoo tahan namni 6ffaan maqaa isaa hin ibsamne.

Akeekni ijoon mootummaan wayyaanee karaa OPDOtaa Koree kana maqaa waldaa Misooma Oromiyaatin ijaaree sossoosaa jiruuf hawaasa Oromoo biyya ambaa keessa jiran kanaan qabatee keessa seenuun diiguudhaafi. Kanaan alas olola oofuu fi shira xaxuun ilmaan Oromoo biyyoota ambaa keessa jiran QBO ABOn durfamaa jirtu keessaa akka qooda hin fudhannee fi jala hin hiriirre taasisuu dha ergamni haaraan lukkeelee kanneenitti kenname. Kanaanis madda galii ABO gogsuudhan sochii QBO gufachiisuun ummata Oromoo fi Oromiyaa cunqursaa wayyaanee jalatti hambisuuf diinaaf marxifatanii hojjechaa jiru ergamtoonni olitti ibsaman. Gama kaaniin ammoo, hawaasa Oromoo gowwoomsuudhaan maqaa misoomaatiin maallaqa irraa saamuuf akeekkatan. Ergamni wayyaaneen bifa haaraan lukkeelee maqaa Boordii WMO jedhuun ijaare kanatti kenne, dhaaba kallacha qabsoo Oromoo ABO irratti olola oofuu fi shira xaxuudhan falmaa bilisummaa gaggeeffamaa jiru gufachiisuuf yaaluu qofaan kan daangahee miti.

Oromoo fi Oromoon akkasumas jaarmayaaleen Siyaasaa Oromoo sirna isaa irratti qabsoo gaggeessaa jiran dabaa-shira inni xaxuun gufatanii akka waldura dhaabbatan gochuu fi diiguu dhas dabalata. Kana malees, karaadhuma koree maqaa waldaatin ergama abaaramaa baattee deemtuu kanaan Oromoon sirna wayyaanee jalatti mirga guutuu qaba jechuun lallabbii dharaa dhageessisuun alagaa biratti jaarmiyaa Oromoo laafisuu kkf keessatti argama. Egaq ergama kana bifa icitaawaa taheen hojiirra oolchuuf lukkeelee armaan olitti maqaan isaanii ibsame dirqamni adda addaa itti kennameera. Gaafatamtoota Koree kanaa ti kan jedhamanii fi hirmaattonni walgahii Muddee 12 bara 2010 sa’aatii 9:00 WB jalqabe kanaa ajaja gooftolii isaanii irratti erga haasa’anii booda ergama diinummaa kana qooddataniiru.

1. Waldicha galmeessuu fi seera qabeessa fakkeessuuf ID waraqaa TAKSII baasuuf kanneen ramadaman Abdulwaasii Raabsaa fi Abbaaduulaa ti.

2. Akkaawuntii Baankii akka bananiif Feysal Aliyyii fi Fiqaaduu Bayyanaa.

3. Chaappaa fi Asxaa Waldaa hojjechiisuuf Feysal Abraahimii fi Fiqaaduu Bayyanaa.

4. Weebsaayitii baasuuf(Website development) Feysal Abraahimii fi Abdulwaasii Raabsaa

5. Waldaalee fi jaarmayaalee akeeka kana tumsaniif cimsuu Feysal Abraahimii fi Fiqaaduu Bayyanaatin kan raawwatamu yoo tahu ergamoota kana olii hunda yeroon akka xumuramaniif wayyaanotaan beellamni qabameef kan maayyii Muddee 19,2010 akka ture icitiin gola wayyaanotaatii nu gahe kun ni addeessa.

6. Miseensota galmeessuun akkasumas miseensi kabajaa jedhamee waldaa kana keessatti galmaahu eenyu fi akkamitti galmaaha kan jedhus miseensotaan dalagama akka ergama wayyaanee kanaatti.

Koreen ergama wayyaanee fudhate kun dhimma Dokumenteeshinii irratti kan hin marihanne tahuu kan hubachiisu ragaan nu gahe, hojiin inni xumuraa fi ijoon akeeka farrummaa kana akkaataa itti hawaasa Oromoo keessa facaasan qabxii 9^ffaa jalatti tarrisa. Haaluma kanaan waa’ee Koree golgaa WBO-KA (ODA_NA) jedhuun dhaabbate kanaa ilaalchisuudhaan ibsa akka baasuuf ergamticha Nugusee Birraatuu jedhamutti kan dirqamni laatame. Barruu, waraqaalee fi Kaalaandara fi kkf maxxansuudhaan akeeka cubbamaa kana ilmaan Oromoo biyyoota ambaa jiran biraan gahuudhaaf ammo namni itti hin ramadamne. Gaaffii fi deebii adda addaa Raadiyoo irratti taasisuudhaan olola oofuuf ammo ergamtoonni itti gaafatamtoonni qunnamtii ummataa koree kanaa fi kanneen biroo akka raawwataniif kan kaahame tahuutu ibsame. Kana malees, ergamtoonni kunniin hundeeffamuu waldaa kanaa ilaalchisuudhaan xalayaa adda addaa erguudhaafis kan karoorfatan tahuu dokumentiin kun ni ibsa. Mootummaan wayyaanee karaa ergamtoota walitti qabee kanaan saamicha maqaa misoomaatiin amma gaggeessaa jiru malee, fuula durattis teletoonii qopheessuu fi koreen kunis kanarratti hawaasa Oromoo ala jiraatu akka sossobuuf dirqama itti laatuutu ibsame.

Walumaagalatti egaa akkuma olitti icitiin dabaa-shira wayyaaneen hawaasa Oromoo biyyoota alaa fi QBO fi qabsicha kan hoogganu ABO irratti xaxuuf saganteeffate saaxile kun dhala Oromoo qalbifateef waan hubachiisu qaba. Inni duraa mootummaan wayyaanee ammallee sirna gabrummaa isaa itti fufsiifuu fi Oromoo fi Oromiyaa akkuma cunqursaa jiru itti fufuus karaa lukkee isaa, OPDO, hojii farrummaa itti fufuu dha. Addatti ammo hawaasa Oromoo biyya ambaa keessa jiru gamtaa fi waliigaltee dhoowwee akka isaan qabsoo saba isaanii hin finiinsine diinagdee fi waan dandeettii isaanii maraan hin tumsine gochuuf rafee kan hin bulle tahuu dha. Inni lammafaan ammo kannen maqaa Oromoo baadhatan, maallaqaan bitamanii biyyoota ambaa keessa sossohan farreen siicoo hawaasaa tahanii fi ergama diinaa bakkaan gahuun saba isaanii miidhuuf golgaa adda addaan sossohaa jiraachuu isaanii ti. Hawaasni Oromoo biyya ambaa jiru keessattuu kan Ameerikaa Kaabaa jiru kana hubachuun ergama wayyaaneen lukkeelee kanneenitti maqaa WMO-KA (ODA-NA) jedhuun itti laatetti dammaquun dura dhaabbachuun fashalsuu qabuun dhaamsa keenya.

Ethiopia: Monitoring of conflict, human rights violations and resulting displacement still problematic

2011-01-22T14:26:00.000-08:00

January 20, 2011 - Internal Displacement monitoring Center (IDMC)

An estimated 300,000 to 350,000 people remained internally displaced within Ethiopia in late 2010. There were reported displacements related to violence and human rights violations in Gambella and Somali Regions in 2010.

Armed conflicts and localised episodes of violence have continued to cause displacement in various areas. In particular, government forces have continued to fight insurgency groups including the Ogaden National Liberation Front in Somali Region and the Oromo Liberation Front in the south of the country. In Somali region, the government has made peacemaking efforts in recent months,
but fighting has continued.

In areas affected by displacement such as Somali, southern Oromiya and Gambella, food security, health, nutrition, and access to water were all of major concern to the humanitarian community in 2010.

Despite the serious humanitarian need in areas of displacement, the government has restricted the access to conflict areas of international humanitarian agencies and the media. The government has also introduced draconian laws that restrict activities of human rights organisations and humanitarian agencies, making it difficult for independent bodies to monitor and document violations of rights.

Background

Armed conflicts over international boundaries, internal armed conflicts between government forces and insurgency groups operating in various parts of the country, and local conflicts over water, pasture resources and administrative boundaries, have all taken place in Ethiopia in the past decades. Ethiopia went to war with neighbouring Somalia (from 1977 to 1978) and Eritrea (from 1998 to 2000) over their shared boundaries. Ongoing internal conflicts with insurgency groups including the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) in the Ogaden area of eastern Somali Region and the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) in the south of the country have continued to affect people’s lives and livelihoods (Sudan Tribune, 23 December 2010).

In the south, the OLF has fought for autonomy since 1970. The OLF has employed “hit and run” tactics and government armed forces have even pursued OLF fighters into Kenya. The government labels OLF as a terrorist group (Daily Nation, 6 August 2009).

In pastoralist-inhabited areas of southern Ethiopia near the border with Kenya, violent conflict over water and pasture resources reportedly affected communities in 2010 (CEWARN, September 2010).

There were reportedly between 300,000 and 350,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) in Ethiopia in late 2010. However, these figures are difficult to verify because of the government’s reluctance to allow humanitarian agencies to conduct country-wide assessments (Interviews with humanitarian agency staff in Ethiopia, November 2010).

Displacement in Gambella

Inter-ethnic conflicts and government interference in the local politics of Gambella Region have reportedly contributed to ethnic conflicts and displacement there (IRIN, 13 September 2010). In November 2008, police forces attempted to force villagers from Laare and Puldeng villages near the border with Sudan to move to a new area. When villagers refused, violence ensued, and police reportedly killed nine civilians and wounded 23. Police also reportedly set fire to homes and killed livestock (USDoS, 11 March 2010).

In April 2010, inter-clan clashes among ethnic Nuer groups drove thousands from their homes. Local leaders accused the government of not doing enough to facilitate reconciliation or provide protection and livelihoods. In 2009, thousands of Ethiopian Jikany Nuer were displaced from their land by Sudanese Lou Nuer groups who had crossed into the Gambella Region of Ethiopia. According
to Gambella regional authorities, some 38,000 IDPs from that incident still remained displaced in September 2010. Another 40,000 people were displaced in 2009 in Gambella as a result of recurrent clashes over land, natural resources and vendettas between local agro-pastoralist Nuer and the mainly agrarian Anuak (IRIN, 13 September 2010).

Conflict in Somali Region

Since it was outlawed in 1994, the ONLF has engaged in low-intensity armed conflict with government forces. Human rights organisations, international NGOs, and the media have reported that both the Ethiopian National Defence Force (ENDF) and the ONLF have been responsible for human rights violations and abuses, and have used violence to intimidate the civilian population. ONLF
attacks on police and military targets over the years have led to severe disruption and loss of lives (BBC News, 13 September 2010; Press TV, 18 August 2010; Bloomberg news, 19 June 2010).

In December 2010, attacks on villages by Ethiopian security forces reportedly led to the burning of villages, the death of about 20 civilians and the displacement of hundreds of families (Ethiopian Review, 20 December 2010; Sudan Tribune, 23 December 2010).

The regional conflict in Somalia that began in December 2006 spread to the Somali Region and the ONLF, reportedly aided by support from the Eritrean government greatly increased its armed activity. In 2007 another insurgent group with a limited presence in the region, the United Western Somali Liberation Front, engaged in armed violence against government forces (USDoS, 11 March 2010).

In 2007, the ENDF began significant counter-insurgency operations in the Ogaden in response to the killing of Chinese and domestic oil exploration workers. In 2008, Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused the Ethiopian government of war crimes and crimes against humanity, and reported that the ENDF had burned down villages and killed, raped and tortured civilians in its counter-insurgency
campaign (HRW, June 2008). ONLF rebels also accused the government of pursuing a scorched-earth policy in the Ogaden which amounted to collective punishment (VOA, 16 November 2009).

Since then, government interference in the economic affairs of the Ogaden population has aggravated the humanitarian crisis in the region. The government’s harsh policies have added to the marginalisation of Somali Ethiopians, who are effectively excluded from national institutions. Public infrastructure and the delivery of services in Somali Region are worse even than in Ethiopia’s
nieghbouring highlands, in Somaliland or elsewhere in Somalia (ISN, 5 October 2010; Daily Telegraph, 17 October 2008).

In 2010, the government increased peace overtures with some rebel groups in the Ogaden, but analysts expect the insurgency to continue in the absence of meaningful commitment from the government and major insurgent groups including the ONLF (ISN, 5 October 2010). Fighting continued in 2010 between the ONLF and government forces and government-affiliated militias (ISN, 5 October 2010; BBC News, 13 September 2010). Between September and December 2010, opposition sources reported that government forces had killed over 300 civilians, leading to the displacement of civilian populations in the region.

Reporting of conflict and human rights violations

Conflicts in Ethiopia have often triggered widespread human rights abuses by all parties (USDoS, 11 March 2010). Human rights groups have accused the government of fuelling conflicts in different parts of the country, but especially in Somali, southern Oromiya, and Gambella regions (ICG, 4 September 2010; AI, May 2010; HRW, June 2008) and have published credible reports of violations.
Deliveries of food and medicine were limited by military restrictions as well as insecurity and lack of capacity (AI, May 2010, p.141; HRW, 24 March 2010).

Since 2007, the government has continued to limit the access of diplomats, NGOs, and journalists to Somali Region, citing serious security concerns. The government has allowed some humanitarian access but restricted the investigation of human rights abuses. Human rights groups and others have
asserted that the government denied access to the region to prevent the monitoring of ENDF operations. Most reports of human rights violations have come from interviews with second-hand sources or alleged victims who have fled the Somali region. NGO personnel have been forced by ENDF and police forces to report ONLF activity and have faced beatings and death threats if they did not comply. Some villagers reported that local authorities threatened to retaliate against anyone reporting ENDF violations (AI, May 2010; HRW, June 2008).

In January 2009, the Ethiopian parliament enacted a law to control the work of civil society organisations. The Proclamation to Provide for the Registration and Regulation of Charities and Societies (the CSO law) has hindered independent human rights monitoring and reporting. The government has since refused to heed calls for independent, impartial and credible investigations to
prosecute those responsible for human rights abuses (HRW, 24 March 2010).

In August 2009, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) recommended that the government consider reviewing this legislation to ensure that due consideration is given to the important role of civil society organisations in the promotion and protection of human rights (CERD, 31 August 2009).

Protection risks in areas of displacement

Food security, health, nutrition, and access to water in internal displacement-affected areas such as Somali, southern Oromiya and Gambella were of major concern to the humanitarian community in 2010 (OCHA, January 2010)

An assessment by the Somali Regional Health Bureau in July 2009 showed that malnutrition rates in Somali Region had reached critical levels. Conducted in seven woredas (districts) between April and May, the assessment found global acute malnutrition rates of 14.5 to 21.9 per cent (a rate exceeding 15
per cent reflects an emergency situation).The highest rate was recorded in Degehabour woreda of Degehabour zone. Five other woredas in the zone also exceeded the emergency threshold.

The assessment noted that acute water shortages, poor access to safe water, low immunisation coverage, high rates of childhood disease and dependence on relief food had aggravated the situation. Household coping mechanisms had also weakened after drought (OCHA, 13 July 2009).

In November 2010, UNICEF reported serious water shortages in the chronically water-insecure Somali Region (OCHA, 1 November 2010).

National and international responses

The overall leadership of the humanitarian response remains the responsibility of the government at all levels, including federal, regional, zonal and woreda. The Government is also responsible for facilitating the active participation of relevant partners, including donor governments, UN agencies, national and international NGOs, civil society organisations and affected communities.

Ethiopia is party to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and other relevant international human rights standards. The inviolable and inalienable right to life, the security of person and liberty are enshrined in Article 14 of the

federal constitution, and also in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The government has signed, but not ratified or domesticated, the African Union Convention on Internally Displaced Persons (the Kampala Convention).

The national response to conflict-induced displacement has been criticised by national and international agencies operating in Ethiopia. Nonetheless, international donors and aid agencies have continued to engage with the government. In December 2009, the United States, through its Embassy in Addis Ababa, urged the government to improve on its human rights record (Bloomberg, 11 December 2009).

The UN’s Ethiopian Humanitarian Country Team, led by the Humanitarian Coordinator and comprising the heads of agencies including FAO, IOM, OCHA, OHCHR, UNDP, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNICEF, WHO and WFP, as well as the country directors of CARE, Oxfam GB, and Save the Children/UK and the national NGO consortium CRDA, have continued to work with the government to provide overall coordination of the humanitarian response.

Given the sensitivities around conflict and protection, there is no active protection cluster or government counterpart on protection issues (Interviews with humanitarian agencies, June 2010). Protection was also left out of the 2010 Ethiopia Humanitarian Requirement document.

Humanitarian access

Aid agencies have regularly reported interference and severe restrictions by the government on their work. The government requires agencies to seek military escorts to deliver food aid to conflict areas, which, they report, has hindered their access (IRIN, 24 November 2009; Reuters, 17 November 2009; Daily Telegraph, 17 October 2008).

International agencies usually face restrictions in areas of operations. The government forced ICRC to close down its operations in Somali Region in 2007, and Médicins Sans Frontières had to leave the region because of government restrictions (USDoS, 11 March 2010; MSF, 4 October 2008).

If the government does not enable improved humanitarian access, affected IDPs and other vulnerable people will continue to face a protection and humanitarian crisis (ICG, 17 June 2008). USAID reported in March 2008 that “literally hundreds of areas… have neither been assessed nor received any food assistance”, with “populations terrorised by the inability to access food” (The Times, 18 September 2008).

HRW reported in 2010 that the government had used foreign aid including food to punish regions seen to be opposition strongholds, with officials in the ruling party using their power to give or deny assistance to citizens based on their political affiliation (HRW, 19 October 2010). The government has been accused of limiting food aid to areas which it considers opposition strongholds to the detriment of its vulnerable populations (IRIN, 24 November 2009; Reuters, 17 November 2009). The British Channel 4 reported that the army had withheld food from villages in Somali Region as part of a “scorched earth” policy against the ONLF (BBC, 19 September 2008; The Times, 18 September 2008). Before the British Minister for International Development toured a hospital in the town of Kebri Dehar during a visit to Somali Region in October 2008, local officials reportedly forced starving infants out of the emergency ward and on to the street (The Telegraph, 17 October 2008).

Response to disaster-induced displacement

The government response to displacement as a result of natural disasters is more positive. A proposed disaster risk reduction policy has called for the mainstreaming of disaster risk management throughout government and greatly strengthened disaster management capacity at the highest levels of government. Debates continue within the government regarding the policy, and it is unclear if or when it will be adopted (ODI, June 2009). The policy has not been finalised or adopted as of December 2010.

It is also unclear to what degree the new policy will deal with conflict-induced displacement. A study by the Feinstein International Center in December 2009 found that the policy was heavily focused on preventing or mitigating the risk of natural disasters, particularly climatic and environmental disasters, and made no reference to conflict (Feinstein International Center, December 2009).

The new Disaster Risk Management Council is to be chaired by the Prime Minister. Humanitarian agencies are concerned that the government might downplay the impact of disasters to show the international community that it is self-sufficient. They have warned of a government habit of downplaying numbers of people in need and levels of malnutrition and disease, so as to minimise
their political and diplomatic impact (IRIN, 27 September 2010).

After Sudan; World should Focus on Oromo

2011-01-19T23:22:00.000-08:00

It has never known political stability after the colonial conquest and subjugation by Abyssinia. It has never enjoyed real prosperity in spite of being one of the richest nations in natural resources in the horn of Africa with a population estimated at 33 million. It is

Africa’s longest political conflict that appears to have been forgotten by the international community including IGAD and Africa Union among others. It has won the unenviable accolade of being the cradle of the world’s largest forced mass movement from one country in modern African history, namely the current exodus from Ethiopia. Welcome to Oromia, the country of the Oromo people (375,000 square miles). In the last four decades, the Horn of Africa, with Ethiopia as an epicenter, has experienced an unprecedented wave of refugee flows, resulting in large concentrations of displaced persons. Nearly all these displaced persons are from Ethiopia. Today there are an estimated over 10 million refugees originating from Ethiopia, second only to those from Afghanistan and Iraq put together. The influx of Ethiopians fleeing their country to Kenya has always hit headlines in the local and internal press. Ironically, most are apprehended by Kenyan authorities and handed back to the Ethiopian authorities or locked up in Kenyan prisons. Some of the refugees are said to be on transit to South Africa.

The Oromo Liberation Front has for decades been embroiled in a protracted war for the liberation of the Oromia. The most striking aspect to political pundits and academics is the manner in which the international community has accorded the conflict a blind eye, and regional governments, IGAD and AU cannot explain why Ethiopians are fleeing their country in droves. Who will save the Oromo people from
institutionalized oppression and blatant abuse of basic human rights by the Addis Ababa government? What is the IGAD and the Africa Union doing to resolve the conflict? The 140 years of continuous acts of cultural genocide by successive Ethiopian regimes is a remarkable testimony to the resilience of the Oromo cultural values and democratic heritage. Even as the international community remain silent in the face of the conflict that has claimed lives of millions of people, it is is important to note that as a geo-cultural bridge between Europe, Africa and Asia, the Horn of Africa has always been embroiled in some world-historic events, since the times of the Roman empire. The Horn remains important in security considerations of the Middle East and the increasingly competitive global economy.

It is important to observe that the current Ethiopian regime is being sustained in power by foreign western powers for imperialistic reasons. Take the case of the Tigrean People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), also known as Wayyane, which was promoted in 1991 by foreign governments, particularly that of the US, to fill the power vacuum created by the downfall of the Dergue regime. As expected, this led to replacement of the Amhara regime by a Tigrean power as was evident to those familiar with the Ethiopian political landscape.

Under the pretext of opening the country for world market and democratization, traditional supporters and partners of the Ethiopian empire used the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to pump huge amounts of money into the coffer of TPLF. During the first four years of its rule, the regime received about US$3 billion in bilateral grants. The Paris Club member countries granted significant debt-cancellations and rescheduling. The TPLF regime used the multilateral and bilateral assistance to dismantle Amhara-centre state apparatus and to replace it by institutions that are nothing more than appendages of a tightly controlled party-apparatus of the Tigrean ruling class.

Today, there is no public institution, be it the military, the judiciary, the civil service, the regulatory agencies, and financial institutions outside the control of the TPLF and its surrogate parties. Thus, the regime cannot claim democratic legitimacy by any standard. Most disturbing are reports of Kenyan Borana Oromo near the border being harassed and imprisoned in Kenya. These incidents are violating international law regarding refugees. They could have been taken to Kenyan courts, if suspected of any crime. The human rights crisis in Ethiopia is so worrying. No one seems to understand the scale of the violations. targeted and systematic tortures, disappearances and extrajudicial killings are common
place in that country. There seems to be no hiding place for the victims of human rights violations under the current regime in Ethiopia. Peasants in certain areas are particularly targeted and expelled in broad day light from their farmlands for the sake of the officials and of TPLF-led government financial gains. “The peoples of Oromia and Kenya share a longstanding cordial relationship. In particular, Kenya, as a democratic and stable country, continues to provide safety for a significant number of Oromo refugees fleeing from persecution by the Ethiopian state. However, it is of also of grave concern that recently, a

large number of Oromo refugees have been handed over to the Ethiopian authorities by the Kenyan agents who have been recruited by the Addis Ababa spy network. More worrying is the fact that their operations are not sanctioned by the Kenyan government. These refugees are sent back to inhumane torture and certain death in the hands of the Ethiopian security agents,” says an OLF petition to Kenya’s President Mwai Kibaki.

The petition, copied to the country’s Prime Minister Raila Odinga further notes: “We believe Kenya could play a positive and constructive role in supporting a peaceful resolution of the conflict between Oromia and Ethiopia and that would make Kenya a legitimate player in the international arena. We respectfully urge you to appraise the situation and reconsider your policy and assure supporting the just cause of the oppressed Oromo people rather than assisting the bloodthirsty regime in Ethiopia." In the recent months, Kenyans authorities have been accused of illegal rendition of Oromo refugees and Kenyans to Ethiopia under the pretext of cracking down on the Oromo Liberation Front ( OLP) militias. While in Ethiopia, the individuals are arraigned before special courts where they are handed heavy jail sentences ranging from death to life in prison. The ORA has accused the Ethiopian government and some elements within the Kenyan government of gross violation of the basic human rights of
the Oromo refugees and Kenyans shipped to Ethiopia.

The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) was established in 1973 by Oromo nationalists to promote the right to self-determination for the Oromo people against what they call "Ethiopia colonial rule." There are reports that the OLF has increased its activity following the general elections of 2005 and has offices in Washington, D.C. and Berlin. The international community particularly IGAD and the AU ought to appreciate the
fact that the fundamental objective of the Oromo liberation movement is to exercise the Oromo peoples' right to national self-determination and end centuries of oppression and exploitation by Ethiopian colonialism. The foreign policy of OLF stipulates that it respects the territorial integrity and national sovereignty of Kenya and all neighbouring countries. Kenya, the host state to the refugees has been accused of violating the 1951 UN Convention and 1967 Protocol on the status of the refugees for handing over the Oromos who have fled their homes to escape persecution. It was through the initiative of IGAD, AU and the EU that a protracted peace deal was negotiated between SPLM and the Khartoum government,
effectively putting an end to one of Africa’s longest conflict then. As the Southern Sudan people undertake a decision on the future of the nation through the referendum, it is important that the international community focus attention on the Oromo conflict to save the plight of the Oromia nation.

The Oromo people’s demand of self-determination is neither a question of secession from a country with whom they have willfully integrated nor a matter of a periphery struggling for decentralization or devolution of power from a central government. It is a demand by the Oromo people to restore the sovereignty taken away from them and to freely determine their own political status. This demand does not, therefore, violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Khartoum government. The Oromo people have never been meaningfully represented in Ethiopian political process. There has never been a moment in the political history of the Ethiopian empire-state when the state possessed a government representing the “whole people.”Moreso, the Oromo people’s demand for self-determination is not an internal affair of Ethiopia. Many nations in the world including Kenya are shouldering the burden of refugees from the Ethiopia. UNHCR is spending millions of dollars to sustain refugees from Ethiopia. Much more too is spent on relocating some of the refugees to friendly countries in Europe. This indeed, makes the conflict a matter of interest and concern to the international community including regional bodies like IGAD, AU and relevant UN agencies. In the same vein, the liberation struggle of the Oromo people against successive Ethiopian regimes cannot be characterized as “an internal civil
strife, banditry, terrorism, or civil war.” It is a struggle of people under alien domination.

What the international community must realize is that TPLF regime constantly fabricates false accusations to criminalize and demonise Oromo political organisations as a smokescreen to conceal the regime’s acts of genocide against Oromo social and cultural life. An attempt by the regime to link the Oromo liberation movement with fundamentalism and international terrorism is a fabrication to discredit and garner international community’s sympathy.

By Kasembeli Albert

Kasembeli Albert is the Editor, Business Journal Africa, a regional business and finance magazine

Prof. Ted Vestal asks Colombia to redeem its reputation

2010-09-21T22:25:00.000-07:00

September 21st, 2010

Dear President Bollinger:

I am a constitutional scholar who has admired your writing about First Amendment freedoms.
I am also an Ethiopianist who must take strong exception to your posting an ill-advised encomium of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia prior to his speaking at the Columbia University World Leaders Forum on 22 September 2010.

I was pleased that the words of praise for the Ethiopian leader provided by the embassy of Ethiopia have been taken off the World Leaders Forum website, but the damage has been done. By publishing such editorial comment even for a short while, you have violated your own self-proclaimed neutrality of sticking to “basic factual information” in such activities. I hope the party responsible for demeaning Columbia University’s good name as a bastion of free speech will be
appropriately disciplined and that you will have the courage to make such action known to the public.

The only way you can redeem the damaged reputation of the World Leaders Forum is by
publicly making known the shortcomings of Prime Minister Meles and his government in your introductory remarks—a refutation similar to what you did in introducing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejab of Iran in 2007.

The deficits of democracy and abuse of human rights by the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Front (EPRDF) are too well known and documented for you to miss. If you need additional information about the totalitarian practices of the Ethiopian leader you honor, please see my book, Ethiopia: A Post-Cold War African State (Praeger).

With best wishes,
Theodore M. Vestal, Ph.D.

Protest Letter from Oromo American National Foundation

2010-09-21T21:55:00.001-07:00

Lee C. Bollinger

President

Columbia University

202 Low Library

535 West 116th Street

New York, NY 10027

E-mail officeofthepresident@columbia.edu

Dear President
Bollinger:

I am writing this letter to express the concerns of Oromo-American National Foundation (OANAF) members and urge you to reconsider your decision to invite Prime Minister Meles
Zenawi of Ethiopia to speak at Columbia University’s World Leaders Forum.

This is very troubling considering the fact that Prime Minister Meles is one of the worst human rights violators in the world. Columbia University, a preeminent academic institution, need not host a murderer of thousands of Oromos as well as other nationalities in Ethiopia. The atrocities committed by Mr. Meles and his henchmen on Oromo people and others in Ethiopia are well document by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, US State Department’s Annual Survey of rights violations and scores of other civil rights groups.

Today, as Columbia is arranging to host Mr. Meles, thousands of Oromos are suffering in prison and concentration camps, facing torture, extra-judicial killings, disappearance, arbitrary detention and rape. Oromos are the single largest political prisoners in Ethiopia. Mr. Meles’ former Defense Minister, Siye Abraham in a public forum in Arlington, Virginia, affirmed this fact by declaring, “the language of the Ethiopia prison is Afaan Oromo (Oromo language).” Mr. Siye Abraham was a prisoner in the said prison before he was freed by Meles Zenawi. This is a
grave indictment by someone who is not an Oromo, but from Mr. Meles’ own ethnic
group.

Today in Ethiopia, neither democracy, rule of law, nor any sort of freedom exists for the Oromos
and other Ethiopians. The Tigrean Liberation Front (TPLF), a Stalinist bunch chaired by Mr. Meles, has usurped the state power by military means and has a total monopoly of power imposing terror and massive human rights violation of Oromo people who are the single largest population in Ethiopia.

We understand that Columbia University has the duty and responsibility to enrich its students and faculty by bringing noted personalities to its campus to listen to views some times controversial. However, Columbia University should also have a moral obligation to listen to those who object to the presence of notorious dictators and genocide perpetrators like Prime Minister Meles of Ethiopia and his likes.

We expect a lot from a venerable institution like Columbia University to stand on the sides of those who are oppressed and brutalized by despots. Columbia University need not cavort with people like Prime Minister Meles Zenawi whose hands are stained by the blood of Oromo people and other Ethiopian. Hence, we humbly ask you to disinvite Mr. Meles from the World Leaders Forum.

Sincerely,

J. T. Shaböraa
Chair
Oromo-American National Foundation (OANAF)
September 20, 2010

Ahmad Taqi Sheikh Mohammed Rashid (May 14, 1940 - September 6, 1974) was an Oromo nationalist.

2010-04-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

Early life

Ahmad Taqi was one of the sons of the prominent Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Sheikh Bilal Choree. His mother was Mariyam Ahmad Hajji Salih Diimaa. He was born at Chirrati (Belbelti), in the Habro District of Hararghe province (modern-day Habro woreda in Mirab Hararghe Zone of the Oromia Region). He was the third child in his family. In his early ages, he was educated in Islam and Oromo history by his father. Being well educated and well known, his father could spread his beliefs even if the then regime banned such nationalist thoughts.

When he was only 15, he moved to Gelemso town with his elder brother Muteki Sheikh Mohammed (Muttaqi Sheek Muhammad). He lived there by working on wholesaling and trading in coffee. Throughout his career, he supported the poor and especially students of the area.

The beginning of his Career as an Oromo Nationalist

Later on, he came to know General Taddese Birru, one of the founders of Mecha and Tulama Self-Help Association, and who was under house arrest at that time in Gelemso. Tadesse and Ahmad Taqi began to teach the people that they have a right just equal to that of the landlords of the area, and being an Oromo is not a curse but a virtue to love. On his frequent travels to Dire Dawa and Addis Ababa (Finfine), he was known by famous Oromo nationalists like Baro Tumsa, Jarra Abba Gada, and Ali Birra.

His Introduction to Elemo Kiltu

At last, the Haile Selassie regime was brought down by the 1974 Revolution. Ahmed Taqi had helped Taddese Birru escape his house arrest, bringing him to Addis Ababa by night. And at his stay in Addis Ababa, He knew the activist Elemo Kiltu (also known as Hasan Ibrahim), who returned from Syria to launch an armed struggle against the government. Elemo told Ahmad Taqi the idea of coming to Gelemso and Ahmad Taqi accepted it.

The Armed Struggle

In May 1974, Elemo went to Gelemso, and made necessary arrangements to launch the armed struggle against the oppressing regime of Haile-Selassie. He visited Sheikh Mohammed Rashid, the father of Ahmad Taqi, and the sheikh advised him to begin the struggle in the mountains of Guba Koricha (50 km north of Gelemso).

Elemo went with an army of 19 persons to Guba Koricha in June 1974. Then, he and his forces started to take measures against the rural landlords. They fought against the defenders of Mulatu Tegegn who was harassing the Oromo tenants to force them to pay high tributes. The guards of Mulatu killed Hajji Omar Khorchee instantly. The rebels killed Mulatu Tegegn, a notorious landlord, and all his men at a place called Hardim. The dead body of Mulatu was brought to Gelemso. The supporters of the government were very angry and they vowed revenge. Government started to detain suspects for the case. Ahmed Taqi was one of the suspects as he used to preach national pride and self governance for the Oromos.

Ahmad Taqi escaped the arrest, and went to join the Oromo freedom army led by Elemo. As he was a merchant, he went with handful of money that might support the army for living needs. He met Elemo at a place called Bubbee (33 km away from Gelemso town on the top of Bubbe mountain). The necessary arrangements were made on the leadership. Elemo was chosen as the chairperson and Ahmed Taqi was made the commander of the army.

The army of the Oromo freedom fighters began more actions, more war and more resistance against the government forces. Ahmed Taqi was given a nickname "Hundee" by the army. But the name has long been used by his father.

The military junta of the Derg who seized power from Haile Selassie sent an army led by General Getachew Shibeshi. At the presence of the public, the then administrator of Harerghe, Colonel Zelleke Beyyene, vowed to destroy Gelemso if he could not kill Ahmad Taqi.

The search of both continued. And finally, on September 6, 1974 both armies met each other at Tiro (26 km East of Gelemso). Ahmad Taqi was killed at noon, and Elemo assumed command, continuing to fight the government forces with his few men until sunset. Finally the government forces managed to kill Elemo with mortar fire. Only three persons of his army survived the battle. Two of them are still alive.

The Prophecy of the father of Ahmad Taqi

The father of Ahmad Taqi heard the martyrdom of his son and said "My son is not dead. His blood is a seed to the future freedom of the Oromos. A seed will be a big tree one day. One day, the name Oromo will be known all over the world". So, as the sheikh said, the name Oromo is a pride for Oromos today. And Ahmad Taqi is still remembered when the Oromo freedom struggle is mentioned.

Ahmad Taqi was never married. But he has so many relatives and fans, including his elder brother Muteki Sheikh Mohammed.

[edit] Ahmad Taqi and Elemo in Art and Literature

1.The famous singer Ali Birra made Ahmad Taqi immortal by singing for him. In his song, in a very metahporic way, Ali Birra says:

"Yaa Hundee Bareeda- Yaa Finxee Midhagaa". (Hundee is Ahmad Taqi himself)

2. Theodros Mulatu, a well known Amharic novelist, used the movements led by Ahmad Taqi and Elemo for his book Akel-Dama, (the Bloody Land). However, Theodros is criticized for attaching the movement to EPRP (Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Party, commonly known as "Ihaappaa")

3. The Canadian based Oromo singer Elemo Ali praised the martyrs of The Battle of Tiro in his album titled "Oromiyaa" which was released in 1992.

Ebla 15 Guyyaa Goottaa ti!!

2010-04-13T23:48:00.001-07:00

Akkaataa fi maaliif Guyyaan kun akka murtaawe)

Ummatni Oromoo guyyaa gabrummaa jalatti kufe irraa kaasee bilisummaa fi walabummaa isaa deebifachuuf wareegama baasuu eegale. Wareegama baasuu erga jalqabee waggaa dhibbaa ol taheera. Bilisummaa isaaf jecha ummatni Oromoo har’a illee wareegama qaalii baasaa jira. Boris, ifitaanis haga bilisummaan mirkanaawuutti wareegama baasuun kan hin oolle taha. Gootoota ilmaan Oromoo kan bilisummaa saba isaaniif jecha gatii lubbuu baasan yaadachuunis dirqama ilma Oromoo mara irraa eegamu. Kanaafiis Addi Bilisummaa Oromoo Ebla 15 Guyyaa Goototaa Oromoo jechuun murteessee erga kabajamuu jalqabee kunoo waggaa 20 ol taheera. Guyyaan kun akka itti murteeffamee gad fagennaan wal hubachiisuun barbaachisaa dha. Sababa isaa hubachuun yaadannoo goonuf nu gargaara.

Gootowwan ilmaan Oromoo bilisummaa saba isaaniif jecha baatii adda addaa keessa, guyyaa adda adda keessatti kufan galmee seenaa irra jiru. Har’a illee gootowwaan keenya guyyuu diina kuffisaa kufaa jiru. Wareegama baasuun keenya osoo hin dhumatin maaliif guyyaa goototaa jennee Ebla 15 kabajanna yaadi jedhu illee namatti buluu danda’a. Seenaa armaan gadii hubachuun sababaa Ebla 15 itti kabajnuuf nu hubachiisa. Addi Bilisummaa Oromoo Ebli 15 Guyyaa Goototaa Oromoo akka tahu sababa malee hin murteessine. Innis akka armaan gad jiruu dha.

Bara 1978 walakkeessa irraa kaasee haga dhuma 1979tti ABO haala akkan rakkisaa keessa ture. Yeroon kun yeroo lolli Somaliyaa fi Itophiyaa dhumatee, waraanni Ziyaad Barree arihamee bahee, mootummaan Dargii humna ABO kan reefu ijaaramaa jiru dhabamsiisuuf duula wal irraa hin citne itti bobbaase ture. Waraanni Bilisummaa Oromoo Baalee, Arsii fi Harargee keessatti duula kana of irraa deebisuuf lola cicimaa seene. Qunnamtiin isaa addaan citee ni faca’aa yaaddoon jedhu illee guddaa ture. Qabsoon haqaa yoomuu waan injifatuuf jagnootiin WBO duula Dargii of irraa qolatanii Amajjii 1, 1980 walitti dhufanii ayyaana guddaa ayyaaneffatan.

Injifannoo karaa waraanaan argames karaa jaarmayaan itti fufuuf hogganooti ABO Arsii, Baalee fi Harargee keessa turan baatii Bitootessa keessa walitti dhufan. Hogganooti ABO biyya alaa turanis mootummaa Somaliyaa irratti hojjachuun waajjirri ABO Moqaadishootti bara 1980 keessa baname. Haala mijjataa kanatti dhimma bahamee hogganooti biyya keessaa fi ala jiran qaamaan wal arganii dhimmaa jaarmayaa dhaaba irratti murtii irra gahuun akka barbaachisu hubatame. Akka kanatti hogganoota yeroos dirree turan keessaa jilli tokko kan Dura Taa’aa fi I/A/Dura Taa’aan keessatti argaman akka Moqaadishoo deeman murtaawe. Akka kanatti jaallan namni kudhan gara Somaliyaatti socho’an. Isaanis:

1. Jaal Barisoo Wabee (Magarsaa Barii) - Dura Taa’aa

2. Jaal Gadaa Gammadaa (Damisee Tacaanee)- I/A Dura Taa’aa

3. Jaal Abbaa Xiiqii (Abboomaa Mitikku) – miseensa Koree Gidduu

4. Jaal Dori Bari (Yigazu Banti) – miseensa Koree Gidduu

5. Jaal Falmataa /Umar/Caccabsaa

6. Jaal Faafam Dooyyo

7. Jaal Irra’anaa Qacalee

8. Jaal Dhaddacha Boruu

9. Jaal Dhaddacha Mul’ataa

10. Jaal Marii Galaan (Mohammad Ibraham) turan.

Jaallan kun amna isaanii itti fufuu dhaan gammojjii Ogaadeen bakka Shinniggaa jedhamu yeroo gahan haalli isaan hin eegne isaan mudate. Bakka kana humni waraana Somaliyaa irraa hafee kan biyya saamuu fi jeequ shiftaatu ture. Jaallan kun osoo hin beekin harka waraana shiftaa kana bu’an. Waraanni Somaalii kun jibba guddaa ABO fi ummata Oromoo irraa waan qabuuf jaallan keenya guddaa hiraarse. Uffata irraa baafatee paantii duwwatti hambise. Harka duubatti hidhee reebee miidhaa guddaa irraan gahe. Osoo isin hin ajjeesin warri kiristaanaa taatan gam tokkotti, warri islamaa taatan gama biraatti bahaa jedheen. Jaallan hogganoota dhaabaa garuu nuti Oromoo dha, amantii fi gosaan adda hin baanu jedhanii didan. Shiftooti Somaalii jaallan hoggannoota keenya Ebla 15, 1980tti rashanamanii boolla tokkotti awwaalaman. Tokkummaan ummata Oromoo amantii fi gosaan kan adda hin baane tahuu jaallan keenya guyyaa kana dhiiga isaaniin mirkaneessan.

Jaallan hogganooti ABO dirree bahaa fi dhihaa keessa jiran oggaa odeessa kana argatan naasuu fi gadda guddaatu itti dhaga’ame. Miseensoti hogganooti hubatoo fi qaroon kufuun isaanii yoo dhaga’an abdii kutannaa fida jedhamee sodaatame. Haata’u malee qabsaawaan ni kufa qabsoon itti fufa! Gumaa jaallan keenyaa bilisummaa dha! jechuun qabsoo itti fufan. Kufaatii jaallan kanaas akka shororkaa hin uumneef dhaaba keessatti osoo hin labsamin ture. Walgahiin Koree Gidduu Godina Bahaa bara1984 baatii 7ffaa Harargee dhihaa, Ona Daaroo Labuu bakka Sakkattee jedhamutti teessuma irra osoo jiruu waraanni Dargii lola itti banee lola kana irratti miseensoti Koree Gidduu sadii wareegaman. Lolli xumuramee walgahiin itti fufee wareegamun hogganootaa akka miseensaaf labsamu, ittis dabalee Ebli 15 guyyaa gootota Oromoo jedhamee akka bara baraan yaadatamu murtaawe. Dhaaba keessatti sirnaan kan ayyaaneffatamuu jalqabe garuu Ebla 15 bara 1985 ture. Kun egaa bara kana irraa kaasee guyyaan yaadannoo gootota Oromoo waggaa waggaa dhaan yaadatamaa har’a geenye.

Guyyaan yaadannoo kun kan dhaaba tokkoo duwwaa miti. Gootowwan Oromoo yaadannu warra miseensota dhaaba ABO duwwaa osoo hin taane gootowwaan Oromoo dhaabota adda addaa, kanneen ijaaramaniis osoo hin ijaaramin diina falmuu irratti wareegama lubbuu kaffalan hundaa yaadanna. Guyyaan kun idileetti guyyaa ummatni Oromoo gootowwan isaa itti yaadatuu dha.

Guyyaa kana yeroo yaadannu faaruu goototaa faarsuun, dhaadannoo gumaa wareegamtoota keenyaa bilisummaa dha! jedhu dhageessisna. Gumaa gootowwan kufanii baasuuf qabsoo finiinsuuf waadaa keenya haaromsina. Tokkummaa ummata Oromoo wareegama gootowwan keenyaan bu’ureeffame tiksuuf irbuu keenya haaromsina.

Guyyaa kana akka lamatti yaadanna. Tokko gaddaan yeroo tahu inni kaan ammoo gammachuu dhaan. Jaallan keenya lubbuu isaanii geeddaraa hin qabne of cinaa dhabuu keenyatti ni gaddina. Waliin hiriira lolaa seennee jaallan bilisummaaf kufan dhabuu keenyatti ni gaddina. Gama kaaniin ammoo osoo isaan hin kufne tahee ifa bilisummaa har’a argaa jirru arguu hin dandeenyu kanaaf ni gammadna. Har’a Oromoo tahuu keenya mataa ol qabannee himanna. Biyyi Oromoo Oromiyaa tahuu diinni iyyuu osoo hin jaallanne amanee jira. Kun Oromoof injifannoo guddaa dha. Injifannon kun kan argame wareegamuu jaallan keenyaatiin waan taheef, jaallan gootota akkasii qabaachuu keenyaaf ni boonna, ni gammadna. Ummatni goota hin qabne mataa ol qabatee hin jiraatu. Goota qabachuun kabajaa namatti hora. Kanaaf Oromoon gootowwan qabaachuutti ni boona.

Hunda caalaatti xurree gootowwan keenya lubbuu isaanii itti wareeguun nuuf saaqan irra buunee kaayyoo isaanii bakkaan gahuuf didhaan nurra jiru yaadachuuf, itti cichinee hojjachuun nurraa eegama. Diinnis wareegama gootota keenyaa gatii dhabsiisuuf dhaaba keenya ABO diiguuf kan isaa danda’ame hundaa godhaa jira. Kanaaf nuti miseensoti ABO, deggertootii fi ummatni bal’aan Oromoo kaayyoo bilisummaatti cichinee, tokkummaa sabaa fi dhaaba keenyaa tiksinee, ilaalchaa fi gochaa nu diigan rukutaa, qabsoo finiinsuu nurraa eegama. Kana yoo goone wareegama gootowwan keenyaati firii godhuu dandeenya.

Qabsaawaan ni kufa, Qabsoon Hin Kufu!

Kaayyoo Wareegamtoota keenyaa Bakkan geenya!!

Injifannoo Ummata Oromoof!!

DDSJ – ABO

Ebla 2010

FROM OROMO REFUGEE COMMUNITY

2010-03-01T22:15:00.000-08:00

NAIROBI, KENYA
Date: 29th Feb,2010

TO UNHCR BRANCH OFFICE
Nairobi, Kenya

Subject: Peaceful dimonstration regarding the current insecurity problems of oromo refugee community by the Ethiopian secret agents.

We members of oromo refugee community here in Kenya,to day have being dimonstrating peacefuly the recent secret mission or plots of Ethiopian government aganst oromo refugee community here in their asylum country.

The main objective of this peaceful dimonstration being condomning the the secret plot of the current regime of Ethiopia as it is being the state tererist act and genocidal act aganst the oromo refugee community here in kenya and to call up on all international organization and Governments of all concerned country to protecte oromo refugee community from the current insecurity problem and put nasassary presure up on Ethiopian government, with especial impisize on the following major points:

1.We recall up on our previous application and plea regarding the current potential insecurity danger on our oromo refugee community here inside Kenya and woud like to impisize that our fear being transfered to implimantation stage,which can be easly realized from the recent captives of Ethiopian secret agents and thier recent activities of threatning innocent members of our community.

2. We condomn all the state tererist act and genocidal act of the Ethiopian government inside and out side the country on oromo people ingeneral and specificaly on oromo refugee inside thier asylum country like Kenya.

3. We call up on the Kenyan government and all other concerned international organizations to bring to Jestice the recent captive who are the secret agents of the Ethiopian government including the remaining 24 members of this group who have recently smageled in to Kenya illegaly to under take above mentiond state tererist and genocidal activities such as abdaction, killing and missed members of oromo community since 1992 up to now.

4.we call up on all concerned government and international organization to condomn this genocidal and state tererist act of Ethiopian government up on oromo people in general and specificaly on oromo refugee community inside their asylum country mainly in side Kenya , put nacassary pressures on the current regime and protecte the oromo refugee community in kenya, before things go out of hand or before it reached irriversable stages.In addition to facilitating to bring to jestice those secret agents of the wayane regime who was captured by kenyan government including the remaing members this group which are hide themselfes inside Nairobi.

Finally we request all concerned bodies to give due attention for our previous and recent plea, thereby protect our refugee community from the recent threat of the Ethiopian government secret agents functioning in side this host country. And hereby we attached documents of our previous plea as a referance.

With Best Regard

Feb, 29th, 2010

Oromo refugee community

Gantuun Kana Qoofa Miti Moran Qabsoon Oromoo Qulqula’uu qaba::

2010-01-27T22:05:00.000-08:00

Gumii Paarlaamaa Oromoo (GPO), Oromo Parliamentarians Council (OPC)

Uummataa of diina jalatti gabromee jiru utuu argani obsan mataa gadii qabatan jirachuun salphina gudadha. Qabeenya Uummataa keenya diini humnan fudhatee nyachaa jiru falmatan irra fudhachuu dhiisan maallaquma Oromoo diini deebsee isaan kenutii Qabsoo haqaa gurguratan diinati galun amoo salphina salphina caaluu dha. Ilmi lammi isaa diinaf saxilee uummata isaa gutuu ganuu kami iyuu egren isaa ykn dhimmi isaa diina birratis lammi biratis saxilamee qula dhabachun isaa hin oluu. Gantuun dhuma irratti ni ganamti.

Ergan diigamasa mora qabsoo keessatti gurma’inan sochoo’aa ture kan egalamee barana utuu hin tanee kan bubuledha. TPLF moraa qabsoo Oromoo keessatti hojeecha akka jirtu ifati dubacha turte. Maallaqa dolara miliyoona 86 ramadee hojeecha jirachuu ishe erga dubane ture jira. Maallaqn kun baasii caasaa “Diaspora direktoorat” jeedhuuf utuu hin tane kan ramadame namoota garaa isaanf bulan ittin bituuf akka ta”ee ilee dabalame ibsame jira. Wayyanee Qinjitiin akka Shunkurtti ququnciftee fixee kuni Oromoodhaaf ciiftee hin jirtuu wan ta’eef mora qabsoo keenya tiksu, tokkuma qabsa’oota tiksun murteesadha dhamsa jeedhu Gumiin Paarlaamaa Oromoo dabarsa turun isaa dagatamu hin qabu.

Qabsa’oon dhugga laga fi amantaan wal qoodu irra kayyoo ganama irratti cicaniin jiran lotee sentuu, madii jeequmsa fi diigumsa ergama diina gegesan of keessa caalalun barbaachisa dha yamu jedhama ture, qabsootu qancare, ganda abaluufatu baleese malee ergan diinaa nu keessa hin jiru jeechuun wari dhadaata turan bayeedha. Dhuggan jiru garu haxinatu hagudatu diiree qabsoo caalaa diaspora keessa balaa Oromoo diinaf saxilu guddatu gegefama ture. Haqi qalatee sobi babalatee, faarii qabsoo goota fakkatee, firri qabsoo diina godhatan maqa baleesun, laga fi amantaan lammi bakkan lakawan qoomoon arba irrati gegefama ture media diinan utuu hin tanee media Oromoti wara ofini jeedhan ture, amalee hin dhabanee.

Diini Diaspora Oromoo gandan, amantan qooda jirachuu isaa ebsamun wagga lama dura egalame. Media Oromo fakkatani halkan guyyaa diina dhisan dhaabilee Oromoo fi qabso’oota Oromoo qoofa balaleefachuu fi qoqoduu irratti hojjecha turan ga’een isaan mal akka ture hundi of gaafachuu qaba. Moraa Qabsoo Oromoo kan diiga ture namoota torba (7) diiree Kiibatti harka laatan qoofa jeedhan wari labsacha jiran yoo jiratan amma ilee diina nu giidu dhokksan bori rakko keenyatti nu deebsuf wara barbadan qoofa. jequmsi guddan kan dhalatee fi egalame diaspora keesatti malee diiree Kiibatti miti. Paltak fi websitiin Oromoo laga fi amantaan wal dura dhaba turan, samu qulquludhan haqa hojjecha turan yoo jene amma ilee diina keenya hubacha akka hin jire mulisa. Sababi isaa gantoon mora qabsoo wagga lama gutuu jeeqa turan nama torba(7) Kiiba Oromiyyaa irra diinatti galan qoofa yoo jeene madali kamin iyuu siiri miti. Utuu jara kana qoofa ta’aan Wayyanee Diaspora Direktoorat” jeete caasaa gudda bantee maallaqa miliyoonan hin rabsitu turte kun dhugadha.

Gummin Paarlama Oromoo Mora qabsoo diiguuf diini maallaqa guddan deggerame hojecha waan jiruf qabsa’oon Oromoo kayyoo isaan fi qabsoo isaan tikisun diina akka of irra qoolatan yeroo adda addaa wamicha dhiyeessa ture. Keessatu Miseensoon Paarlamaa naannoo Kenya turan laga fi amantaan qoodamisi deema jiru harka diina keessa jirachuu ibsun qeequn, furmata fudhatamu qabu akeekun, kun ta’uu banan balaa qaqabuu danda’uu tilmamun iyyachaa akka turan hund keenya ni beekna. Abban qabsoo jira caalsaa yaamun jeedhames jira ture. Waan nu gadisise keessa inni gudan garu qabsa’ooni Oromoo diina isaan walaluu isaani caalaa iyuu jaala qabsoo dhugga waliin deema jiran adda bafatani walalun wal hamachuu fi jeequmsan of saxilu isaantti. Yeroo yeroon wal gamagama deemamu dhabun rakkon hikuu dadhabamee wal balaleefachuu kan fidee ta’uu hubana.

Dhamsii keenya inni guddan mani of utuu hin badiin Eegachuu, rakko dhalatuf amoo murtii irra deebi hin qabnee keenanf hojii fuladura dhufti deemu malee waan darbee odeesa oluun oduu hojii goodhachu ta’aa. Amalee mora qabsoo keenya qulquleesuf dursa keenun foon suma’ee fi foon fayaa adda caalalun mora qabsoo summin diina keessa hin jire, qabsaa’o’ta dhugga kayyoo fi qabsooti cichan qoofan Uummani Oromoo tokkomsan qabsoo gegesu danda’aa dha. Maqa tokkumman qawaa diinaf baduu caalaa, dhabba ofi keessatti dura wal gamagama, wal madalaa fi wal siirresa mora Galmaa tokkummaa Qabsoo Oromoo cimsuun bilisumma dhiyootti fidun ni dnda’ama.

Bilisummaa Uummataa Oromoof

Gummi Paarlaamaa Oromoo

Amajjii 26/ 2010

GANTUU!!!

2010-01-24T20:48:00.000-08:00

Murna abbaa garaa Lichoo Bukraa jaaree!

Dhiiga obbaleeysaa birriidhaan gurguree!

Kan foon sabaa nyaatu fakkaataa adurree!

Dottaawaa akka harree!

Ajaawaan akka moorree!

Abdataan baasiree!

Birriidhaaf gororee!

Diina ilmaan ayyaa mallasaa ziyaaree!

Qabsoo walabummaa hurree itti maree!

Dantaa sabaa borcee arraataan waqaree!

Gantummaa dhaadheeysee olii gad finxiree!

Arraata tolfatee aduu gama waaree!

Galma utubaa hinqabne kan keeysi buburree!

Kan galgala diigu ganama ajjeeree!

Maqaa tokkummaatiin kijiba dhandhaaree!

Dandii walabummaa dura jaaree qoree!

Saba burjaajeeysuuf wallaalchisee xurree!

Qabsaawoota sabaa; gurraachaa fi diimaa adiin gargar hiree!

Booranaa – Bareentu gandaan gargar ciree!

Arsii ofi qabee Wallagga abaaree!

Karrayyuu fi Jidda gosaan wali diree!

Bifa takka hinqabu akka gaararraa ti amalli buburree!

Ka’ee nyapha gale of hanqisee saree!

Hubadhaa saba koo gantuu qalbiin darree!

Diinaa - fira hinbeeytu nu cirti mogolee!

Qochumaaf jettee nyaaphaaf taatee golee!

Ijaa – gurra hinqabdu garaa isii malee!

Yaaman hindhageeysu waaqaatu daboolee!

Suuta hindubbattu akka waan dhagoolee!

Kijibaan kakatti ol fuutee sagalee!

Maraatuu hinfayyan ni wyyaawan malee!

Gantuun loon taatee billawaan hinqalluu!

Magaalaa geeysinee qarshiin hindaldalluu!

Akkanaan dandeenyee alaahiis hingalluu!

Diiga goototaa yoo hinbafnee haaluu!

Ormomummaa sobaan of dhaaduun hinmaluu!

Gurmuun tokko taanee; sirna dhablummaa gamtaan haa gilgalluu!

Ijaa nama gartu; udaan nama hindhufuu!

Foon-foon ifii nyaatee, dhala ofii hingaddaafuu!

Diinaaf gurmuu tahee ofi tahee gufuu!

Yaa ilmaan oromoo haa eegannuu saffuu!

Osoo wal arrabsinee; teenyee wal abaarruu!

Dhufaa dabraa mara dhalootaan gabbarruu!

Dhiiga goota keenyaa ka akka Taadee Birruu!

Elemoo Qilxuu fi Buruysoo Boruu!

Nadhii Gammadaa fi jaallan ilkaan kaarruu!

Warra lubbuun dabran; dandii bilisummaa osoo nu taraaruu!

Dagannee hubadhaa dhamsa isaanii faaruu!

Dhiiroo haa yaadannuu akkanaan hinwarruu!

Mee marti of milladhaa; waaqi nu haa maaruu!

Amala waraaboo mee laalaa qalbisaa!

Jiraa fi du’aa maruma ququmsaa!

Kan qeensee dhugu dhiiga obbaleeysaa!

Ilma ayyaa malee kan biraa dhageeysaa?

Rabbi maganfannaa; waaqatti nu dheeysaa!

Kadhadhaa waaqayyo qalbii qulqulleeysaa!

Hamtuu nu fakkeeysee; toltuun nu badhaasaa!

Gurgurataa sabaa haabee dhabamsiisaa!

Dhugaa dubbadhaa hamilee wal tiiysaa!

Diini irree hinqabu numa waliin cabsaa!

Ganda – gandaan dhawee akka lafee warseeysaa!

Birrii fi angoon cubbuu gammachiisaa!

Gosaa fi amantiin dallee wal nyaachisaa!

Albuda nu saamee; lafa oromoo alagaaf moggaasaa!

Hidhaa fi beelaan oromoo gidirsaa!

Mee kutaa kamtu nagayaan elmatee raasee dhadhaa baasa?

Oromoo ergatee waan kijibduu raattuu?

Kan maqaa Booranaa beesharaa tolfattu!

Sabbo moo goonaatu ergate; saba koo na himtuu?

Ilmi oromtichaa booranaa – bareentuu!

Gurgurattuu sabaa maqaan isii gantuu!

Akka saree marattee tan abbaa cinintuu!

Abdataa baasiiree cubbuu hinlagatuu!

Hinjiru WBOn je’ee soba yoo dubbatu!

Jireenya WBO kan habashaan beeytu!

Ilmi oromtichaa xiqqollee hinqanfatuu?

Yoo qoma of dhahee cubbuudhaan kakatu!

Kun waa fayyaa mitii hubadhaa maraatuu!

Jazaan dur ni turti akka kismidaalii!

Tan zamanaa tun akka foon waxallii!

Daftee nama dhaqqabdi xufxufaa irra qaalii!

Onnee dhabanillee soonbaa nama dutaa!

Lammii koo mee laalaa Lichoo fi Abdataa!

Obbaleeyan isaanii badhe diini gataa!

Gumaa baasuu dhiisee WBO quba laataa!

Shakkii hinqabaatiin; yaa lichoo bukraa dhiiyni addaa keetii suma galaafataa!

Nulleen dabarfannee Waaqatti magantaa!

Rabbiin fagoo hinjiruu jazaa ni arkattaa!

Ibiddi Waahiyaannee si gubuuf jiraataa!

Oromoon takkaa Rabbirraa hindhabne dhugaadhaan kadhatee!

Irbuun ati diiyde wa’ada si taatee!

Midhaanii fi bishaan summii sitti gootee!

Dhukkuba biyya hinjirreen afaan si cancaltee!

Sammuu belbelchitee; of si wallaalchiftee!

Dhihotti nu haa garsiisu waaqi nu rahamatee!

Ilmi oromtichaa tokkummaan kadhatee!

Irbuu; irbuu irbuu je’ee gootota yaadatee!

Imimmaan gad roobsee; Odatti haqatee!

Killa bunaa qalee; gurraachaan simatee!

IUO f!!!

GGB ti!!!

Omar Osman irraa

Human Rights Watch report on Ethiopia

2010-01-21T18:58:00.001-08:00

Events of 2009 (HRW) - Ethiopia is on a deteriorating human rights trajectory as parliamentary elections approach in 2010. These will be the first national elections since 2005, when post-election protests resulted in the deaths of at least 200 protesters, many of them victims of excessive use of force by the police. Broad patterns of government repression have prevented the emergence of organized opposition in most of the country. In December 2008 the government re-imprisoned opposition leader Birtukan Midekssa for life after she made remarks that allegedly violated the terms of an earlier pardon.

In 2009 the government passed two pieces of legislation that codify some of the worst aspects of the slide towards deeper repression and political intolerance. A civil society law passed in January is one of the most restrictive of its kind, and its provisions will make most independent human rights work impossible. A new counterterrorism law passed in July permits the government and security forces to prosecute political protesters and non-violent expressions of dissent as acts of terrorism.

Political Repression and the 2010 Elections As Ethiopia heads toward nationwide elections, the government continues to clamp down on the already limited space for dissent or independent political activity. Ordinary citizens who criticize government policies or officials frequently face arrest on trumped-up accusations of belonging to illegal "anti-peace" groups, including armed opposition movements. Officials sometimes bring criminal cases in a manner that appears to selectively target government critics, as when in June 2009 prominent human rights activist Abebe Worke was charged with illegal importation of radio equipment and ultimately fled the country. In the countryside government-supplied (and donor-funded) agricultural assistance and other resources are often used as leverage to punish and prevent dissent, or to compel individuals into joining the ruling party.

The opposition is in disarray, but the government has shown little willingness to tolerate potential challengers. In December 2008 the security forces re-arrested Birtukan Midekssa, leader of the Unity for Democracy and Justice Party, which had begun to build a grassroots following in the capital. The government announced that Birtukan would be jailed for life because she had made public remarks that violated the terms of an earlier pardon for alleged acts of treason surrounding the 2005 elections. The authorities stated that there was no need for a trial as the move was a mere legal technicality.

In July the Ethiopian government passed a new anti-terrorism law. The law provides broad powers to the police, and harsh criminal penalties can be applied to political protesters and others who engage in acts of nonviolent political dissent. Some of its provisions appear tailored less toward addressing terrorism and more toward allowing for a heavy-handed response to mass public unrest, like that which followed Ethiopia's 2005 elections.

Civil Society Activism and Media Freedom

The space for independent civil society activity in Ethiopia, already extremely narrow, shrank dramatically in 2009. In January the government passed a new civil society law whose provisions are among the most restrictive of any comparable law anywhere in the world. The law makes any work that touches on human rights or governance issues illegal if carried out by foreign non-governmental organizations, and labels any Ethiopian organization that receives more than 10 percent of its funding from sources outside of Ethiopia as "foreign." The law makes most independent human rights work virtually impossible, and human rights work deemed illegal under the law is punishable as a criminal offense.

Ethiopia passed a new media law in 2008 that improved upon several repressive aspects of the previous legal regime. The space for independent media activity in Ethiopia remains severely constrained, however. In August two journalists were jailed on charges derived partly from Ethiopia's old, and now defunct, press proclamation. Ethiopia's new anti-terror law contains provisions that will impact the media by making journalists and editors potential accomplices in acts of terrorism if they publish statements seen as encouraging or supporting terrorist acts, or even, simply, political protest.

Pretrial Detention and Torture

The Ethiopian government continues its longstanding practice of using lengthy periods of pretrial and pre-charge detention to punish critics and opposition activists, even where no criminal charges are ultimately pursued. Numerous prominent ethnic Oromo Ethiopians have been detained in recent years on charges of providing support to the outlawed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF); in almost none of these cases have charges been pursued, but the accused, including opposition activists, have remained in detention for long periods. Canadian national Bashir Makhtal was convicted on charges of supporting the rebel Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) in July, after a trial that was widely criticized as unfair; he was in detention for two-and-a-half years before his sentence was handed down, and he was unable to access legal counsel and consular representatives for much of that period.

Not only are periods of pretrial detention punitively long, but detainees and convicted prisoners alike face torture and other ill-treatment. Human Rights Watch and other organizations have documented consistent patterns of torture in police and military custody for many years. The Ethiopian government regularly responds that these abuses do not exist, but even the government's own Human Rights Commission acknowledged in its 2009 annual report that torture and other abuses had taken place in several detention facilities, including in Ambo and Nekemte.

Impunity for Military Abuses

The Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) has committed serious abuses, in some cases amounting to war crimes or crimes against humanity, in several different conflicts in recent years. Human Rights Watch is not aware of any meaningful efforts to hold the officers or government officials most responsible for those abuses to account. The only government response to crimes against humanity and other serious abuses committed by the military during a brutal counterinsurgency campaign in Gambella in late 2003 and 2004 was an inquiry that prosecuted a handful of junior personnel for deliberate and widespread patterns of abuse. No one has been investigated or held to account for war crimes and other widespread violations of the laws of war during Ethiopia's bloody military intervention in neighboring Somalia from 2006 to 2008.

In August 2008 the Ethiopian government did purport to launch an inquiry into allegations of serious crimes in Somali Regional State, where the armed forces have been fighting a campaign against the rebel Ogaden National Liberation Front for many years. The inquiry was sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, lacked independence, and concluded that no serious abuses took place. To date the government continues to restrict access of independent investigators into the area.

Relations in the Horn of Africa

In August the Eritrea-Ethiopia Claims Commission issued its final rulings on monetary damages stemming from the bloody 1998-2000 border war between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Nonetheless the two countries remain locked in an intractable dispute about the demarcation of the heavily militarized frontier. Eritrea continues to play a destabilizing role throughout the Horn of Africa through its efforts to undermine and attack the government of Ethiopia wherever possible. The government of President Isayas Afewerki hosts and materially supports fighters from Ethiopian rebel movements, including the Oromo Liberation Front. Eritrea has also pursued a policy of supporting armed opposition groups in Somalia as a way of undermining Ethiopia's support for the country's weak Transitional Federal Government.

Key International Actors

Ethiopia is one of the most aid-dependant countries in the world and received more than US$2 billion in 2009, but its major donors have been unwilling to confront the government over its worsening human rights record. Even as the country slides deeper into repression, the Ethiopian government uses development aid funding as leverage against the donors who provide it-many donors fear that the government would discontinue or scale back their aid programs should they speak out on human rights concerns. This trend is perhaps best exemplified by the United Kingdom, whose government has consistently chosen to remain silent in order to protect its annual £130 million worth of bilateral aid and development programs.

Donors are also fearful of jeopardizing access for humanitarian organizations to respond to the drought and worsening food crisis. Millions of Ethiopians depend on food aid, and the government has sought to minimize the scale of the crisis and restrict access for independent surveys and response.

While Ethiopia's government puts in place measures to control the elections in 2010, many donors have ignored the larger trends and focused instead on negotiating with the government to allow them to send election observers.

A significant shift in donor policy toward Ethiopia would likely have to be led by the US government, Ethiopia's largest donor and most important political ally on the world stage. But President Barack Obama's administration has yet to depart from the policies of the Bush administration, which consistently refused to speak out against abuses in Ethiopia. While the reasons may be different-the current government is not as narrowly focused on security cooperation with Ethiopia as was the Bush administration- thus far the practical results have been the same. The events described above attracted little public protest from the US government in 2009.

Ethiopian rebels play down defections

2010-01-21T18:42:00.000-08:00

January 20 (Daily Nation) - A recent defection of 80 Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) fighters to Ethiopian authorities in Northern Kenya will not affect the struggle, OLF says from Asmara.

OLF issued a statement from Eritrean capital Asmara today saying the recent surrender of its 80 fighter forces in northern Kenya was a conspiracy between Ethiopian intelligence and OLF traitors dismissed from the group a year ago.

Those who surrendered to Ethiopian regime are traitors, who had contact with the regime’s intelligence network and had, for a long time, been sources of problems in the area, OLF added.

OLF said, traitors shall not determine the Future of the Oromo Liberation Front or the Destiny of the Oromo Nation. OLF expressed its disappointment on the report on January 14, 2010 on the issue from the ground.

“It’s misleading and unbalanced” the rebel group said. OLF is fighting with Ethiopian governments since 1970s for independence and autonomy mainly based in northern Kenya and Eastern Ethiopia regions.

Now days OLF senior officials based in Ethiopia’s arch foe Eritrea

Traitors shall not determine the Future of the Oromo Liberation Front or the Destiny of the Oromo Nation

2010-01-19T22:57:00.000-08:00

Statement of the Oromo Liberation Front

The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) is prompted to issue this statement in response to misleading information published in the Daily Nation of January 14, 2010 regarding the defection of Mr. Licho Bukhura and conspirators, who on January 13, 2010, officially surrendered to the tyrannical TPLF regime of Ethiopia.

Let it be known to all that Licho Bukhura, Abdataa Baasiree and collaborators had established contact with the TPLF spy network and had been trying to form a splinter group and were consequently expelled from the organization on October 31, 2008. Responsible journalism, fairness and the need to provide balanced news to readers and/or audience require full coverage of the issues under consideration. In this regards, the Nation Media Group Reporter only reported a one sided erroneous information instead of contacting the OLF and obtaining a balanced information; that some members of the OLF surrendered to the TPLF regime.

Those who surrendered to the TPLF regime are traitors, who had contact with the tyrannical minority regime’s intelligence network and had, for a long time, been sources of problems in the area. Surrendering to the regime only makes their collaboration official.

To show to their spy handlers that they persuaded a significant number of the Oromo Liberation Fighters to surrender, the ringleaders of the defection, Licho Bukhura and Abdataa Baasiree, managed to collect their recruited of about fifty unarmed Oromo youth from the locality, deceived few fighters and shamefully paraded with them in front TPLF TV reporters. They claimed that they are the last remaining OLF fighters. It was obvious that the whole show was planned and coordinated by TPLF government intelligence agents as part of the forthcoming sham election’s propaganda campaign of the regime. We would like to assure all concerned that, the OLF Army in the South, East and Western Oromia is intact and will continue to discharge its national duty until the liberation of the Oromo nation from the tyranny is achieved.

The reason for the formation and persistence of the OLF is the political, economic and sociocultural situation of the Oromo nation in Ethiopia; where the Oromo people have forcibly been deprived of political power in their own country, lost control of their natural resources and subjected to suppression, humiliation, subjugation, marginalization, exploitation, gross violation of their fundamental human rights and freedoms and the relegation to a status of second class citizenship. The objective of the Oromo National Liberation struggle led by the OLF is to undo the status quo that the Oromo nation is consigned to in Ethiopia. Among the indispensable preconditions for peace and stability in the Horn is the Liberation of the Oromo nation. It is foolhardy to believe that the defection of a few traitors is the end of the Oromo liberation struggle.

The surrender of the whole battalion of TPLF fighters during the war with the Dergue regime did not change the course of war between TPLF and the Dergue. Similarly, this as well, will not change the course of the Oromo people’s Struggle. Traitor’s of the Oromo liberation struggle have betrayed commitment to their
people and organization and also have sold out pride for monetary gains. The traitors sold their pride and chose to serve the regime than continuing the struggle with the Oromo Nation that is yearning for liberation and justice. As such traitors do not represent the aspiration of the Oromo people for liberation, freedom, equality and justice. Traitors shall not determine the future of the OLF or the destiny of the Oromo Nation. The future of the Oromo nation shall only be determined by the Oromo nation and its true sons and daughters who are committed to its national liberation.

Victory to the Oromo People!

Oromo Liberation Front

January 18, 2010

Murna Maqaa "Jijjiiramaan ABO keessaa fottoqe keessaa hagi tokko Wayyaaneetti galuuf murteeffatan!

2010-01-10T16:32:00.000-08:00

Bara 2008 keessa murni maqaa "jijjiirama" jedhu qabatee faallaa seeraa fi heeraa ABO dhaabbate ABO keessaa of baasee ShG-ABO irratti olola gaggeessaa turuun ni yaadatama. Murni kun maadhee isaa biyya alaa fi ollaa godhatee miseensota ABO qabsoo bilisummaa Oromoo irratti cimanii hojjetanii fi haamlee qaban diinatti dabarsee kennuu, abdii kutachiisuu, gaaffii Oromoo xiqqeessani fi gadi buusanii irratti ololuu, maallaqaa fi dantaa xixiqqaan wal goowwomsuu irratti bobbahee ture.

Bara 2009 keessaa ammoo murna kana keessaa namni Lichoo Bukura jedhamu akka qaama jijjiiramaa irraa abdii dhabe xalayaa fuula marsaa bilisummaa.com jedhamu irratti maxxanseen akka qaama jijjiiramaan (QJ) hin hogganamne ibsate. Lichoon murna waraana zoonii kibbaa irraa qooduun bifa firummaa fi gosaan itti dhiyaate WBO zoonii kibbaa jeequutti seene. Murna foxxoqe kana itti dhiyaachuun namoota biyya alaa jiran irraa maallaqa argachuuf tattaafate haga ta’e itti milkaahus garaa isa gahuu hin dandeenye. Murnooti QC fi QJs akka inni hawwetti fedhii isaa guutuufii dadhaban. Kana sababeeffachuun namni kun fakkaattota isaa qabatee bakka maallaqa guddaa argatu wayyaaneetti harka kennachuuf murteeffate.

Namni kun namoota gosa isaa fi haala qabsoo Oromoo walii galaa sirnaan hin hubatiin, haala siyaasaa xiinxaluu hin dandeenyee, warra naannoon qabsoo gaggeeffamtu keessaaa ABO kaadhimee qabsootti make, haala jireenyaa, qubee, gaaffii Oromoo barsiise fi asiin gahe turan. Ta’us sababa gosummaan wal jala deemuu aadaa godhataniif jecha namoota kana ofitti qabchuun qabsoo ganuuf bitamuun isaanii hubatamee jira. Kunis yeroo dhiyoo kan ifa bahu ta'a.

Yeroo fedhii fi sababaa jarri kun gantummaan diinaaf bitamuu filataniif yoo ilaalle:

1. Warra bu'aa bahii qabsoo dadhabee, diina injifachuu hin dandeenyu jedhee haamlee dhabe, dandeetti isaanii irratti amantaa hin qabne, filannoo KS ABO of dura gaggeeffamu irratti Oromoon nu hin filu, gatii dhabneerra kanaaf diinumatti maxxannee amma lubbuun keenyi jirutti haa jiraatnu warra jedhanii yaadan

2. Hiree dhalootaa dhiisanii hiree dhuunfaa isaanii jala deemuun rakkoo fi gaaffii Oromoo salphisanii fi tuffatanii ilaalan; fedhii dhuunfaa isaanii fedhii uummataa irraa caalchisanii ilaalan; qabsoo Oromoo akka fedha dhuunfaa isaaniitti micciiruuf tattaafatanii itti milkaahuu dadhaban

3. Qabsoo Oromoon gama hidhannoon gaggeeffamu irraatti dandeetti itti dhabuun qaamni biraa akka hin gaggeessiinef dirree qabsoo irraa ganuun, uummata haamlee dhabsiisuun qabsoo isaa irraa duubatti deebisuuf diina irraa maallaqa guddaa birri ethi. 1.2 milion fudhatee fi uummataa fi ABO irratti Ololuuf dirqama fudhate

4. Dirqama diinni maallaqa, aangoo, fi abdii guutamuu hin dandeenyee fi qilleensa irraa jiru itti kijibuun qondaalootaa fi miseensota ABO warra diinatti dabarsaa kennaa turee, ilmaan Oromoo qabsoo keessa turan gansiisuu irratti bobbahan, ilmaan Oromoo jajjaboo irratti ololaa turanii fi ammas miseensota ABO fi hoggana isaa irratti olola diiggaa oofu fi oofsisuf warra maallaqaan bitaman

5. Warra heeraa fi seera ABO cabsanii badii fi yakka dalagan gaafatama seeraa ABO jalaa bahuuf gosaan wal ijaaruun wal ittisuuf diinatti harka kennatuu filatan keessaa haga tokko dha.

Isaanis:

1. Lichoo Bukhuraa

2. Edin Waaqoo

3. Abdataa Baasiree

4. Dachaas Roobaa

5. Guyyoo Biiqqaa

6. Areeroo Meeggaa

7. Waaqoo Guyyoo

8. Kanuu Jirmoo fi

9. Jaatani Kunnoo

Akeeki Murna Kanaa:

1. Dirqama diinni itti kenne raawwachuu. Yeroo duraa akka jijjiiramaatti tarsiimoon waliigalaa qabaachaa turan tarsiimoo diinni itti kenne dha. Innis caasaa ABO fi WBO diiganii diina waliin araaramuu akka ta’e waliif dhaamaa turre. Amma hawwii isaanii ABO fi WBO diiguu akka raawwachuu hin dandeenye hubachuun fi abdii kutachuun sadarkaa wal duraa duubaan diinatti galuun fi TV ishee irratti ololuun, Oromoo ganuu fi bitamuun Oromoo qabsoo isaa irraa abdii kutachiisuuf

2. Raawwii ajandaa dhoksaa Mallasaa waliin Araaramuu jedhu duraanuu qabaachaa turan galmaan gahuuf Oromoo Gosaa fi gandaan qoodanii laaffisuun ummati Oromoo akka ABO jala hin hiriirre tolchuu

3. Dantaa maallaqaa diina irraa argachuu

4. Yakka Qabsoo Oromoo irratti hojjetan haguugachuu

5. Qabsoo gananii jireenya dhuunfaa isaaniitti deebihuu dha

Akeeki Diinaa:

1. Diinni namoota fayyaaleyyii kana TV isaatiin muldhisuun sochii Oromoon irratti cimsu laaffisuu dha. Yeroo ammaa yeroo wayyaaneen filannoo itti gaggeessa jettee olii fi gadi fiigdu, yeroo qabeenya Oromoo saamaa jirtu, yeroo lafa Oromoo gurgurachaa jirtu kanatti yoo isaaniin ofitti fuutee waan afaanfajjii uumuuf ishee gargaaruuf

2. Ummati Oromoo akka haamlee dhabee qabsoo isaa irraa of duuba deebihu tolchuuf; namoota harka itti kennatan kana qabatee Oromoo qabsoo isaa irraa abdii kutachiisuuf ABO laafee jira, WBOn hin jiru, hogganooti ABO kanaa fi sana tolchan jedhee qabsoo Oromoo irratti ololuuf

3. Sochii uummati Oromoo qabeenya isaa deebifachuuf, lafa isaaf falmachuu, mirga isaa fi abbaa biyyummaa isaa falmachuu akka itti hin fufne gufachiisuuf

4. Aangoo isaa bara baraan tikfachuun qabeenya Oromoo saamuu, ilmaan Oromoo akka fedhii isaatti ergachuu, lafa Oromoo irratti akka fedha isaatti basha’uu fi gurgurachuun Oromoo biyya dhablee taasisuuf

Waan Oromoon Hubachuu fi Gochuu Qabu:

1. Wayyaaneen baroota dheeraaf namoota adda addaa miseensa ABO dha, hoggana ABOti jettee TV ishee irratti dhiyeessitus qabsoo Oromoo of duuba deebisuu hin dandeenye. Ololli qabsoo haqaa sabni qabu dagachiisuus ta’e gufachiisuu hin dandahu.

2. Yeroo shirri fi ololli qabsoo Oromoo irratti gaggeeffamu kun isa duraa miti. Diinni qabsoo Oromoo sakaaluuf socho’uus qabsoo Oromoo bu’uurefamte tana of duuba deebisuu hin dandahu.

3. Qabsoo Oromoo dhiigaa fi lafee jallaniin biqilte laliste kana galmaan ga’uuf murannaa, itti-of-kutaa fi haxxummaa jabaa feesisu akkuma baroottan darban irra aanne ammas haamlee jabaa fi obsaan irra aanna.

4. ABO erga jaaramee QBO adda durummaan gaggeessuu calqabe irraa kaasee bu’aa ba’ii hedduu keessa dabreera. Injifannoo cuccululuqxus galmeessera, akeeki guddichi ammallee akka rarra,eetti jira. Sabboontonni hedduun dhugoomuu kanaaf wareegama boonsaa baasanii fi hara’allee itti baasaa jiru. Akeeka siyaasaa ABO sagantaa siyaasaa irraa qabu galmaan gahuuf Oromoon marti jabaatee wal ijaaruun wal qajeelchuu qaba.

5. Shira diinaan qindaawee fi gantuu fi bitamtuun deeggaramu kana karaa hundaan saaxiluu, akeeka ABO uummata hubachiisuu, caasalee ABO hunda akka QBO bakkaan gahuuf hojjatanii fi mirga sabaaf jecha tarsiimoo dhaabni dhaamu hordofanii diina dur dhaabbatuuf wal qindessu

6. Ilmaan Oromoo marti olola wayyaaneen TV fi radiyoo ishee irraan gaggeessituf akka gurra hin kenninee fi shira itti jiran dursanii walii dhaamuu

7. Wayyaaneen ABO irratti bara 1992 irraa eegaltee ABO nama qubaan lakkaahamu dha, isaanuu somale keessa jiru jettee yeroo ololaa baate irraa kaastee haga ammaatti humni akka eebootti ishee sodaachisa jiru yoo jiraate ABO dha.

8. Kanaaf Oromoon dhimma kana akka dhimma haaraatti fudhatee olola wayyaaneen midiyaa ishee irratti ololuuf qophaahaa jirtuf gurra hin kennine walii dhaamuun qabsoo isaa kan qabeenya, lafa, mirgaa hiree murteeffatnaa, mirga dhala namaa fi abbaa biyyummaa isaaf godhu irratti keessaa fi alaan wal jabeessee qabsoo isaa finiinsu waliif dhaamna.

Injifannoo Ummata Oromoof!

The Meles Zenawi's regime is selling lands while starving the Oromo people

2010-01-07T19:18:00.000-08:00

Nigerian Ex-President gets 20,000sqm of land in Oromia

Published 12/31/2009 - 12:02 a.m. GMT

Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo joined President of Djibouti and the Ethio-Saudi Sheik

Mohamed Al Amoudi by acquiring large plots of Oromia land. The size of the area is 20,000sqm, according

to Capital Ethiopia newspaper.

(AfricaNews) Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, is to invest in Hotel and tourism sector of Ethiopia and has since secured a 20,000 square meter of land near Bishoftu (Debre Zeit) town of Oromia Region called Ada . Obansanjo’s intention to invest in Bishoftu has come following the footsteps of Djibouti’s president, Ismael Omar Guelleh, who took 10,000 square meters of land last year to build holiday home in Bishoftu and also bought 3,000 square meters of land for agriculture in Bale, Oromia Region of the country. After Bishoftu town’s administration approved anew master plan last year, many investors are now investing in the town, which is known for its eight unique lakes

- "World leaders" taking notice of land in Oromia

- 300,000 hectares of more Ethiopian land handed out

*******

300,000 hectares of Ethiopian land handed out for $15 birr per hectare

Published 12/31/2009 - 12:21 a.m. GMT

Until last year, people in the Ethiopian settlement of Elliah earned a living by farming their land and fishing. Now, they are employees. They work for Bangalore- based Karuturi Global Ltd., which is leasing 300,000 hectares ( 741,000 acres ) of local land, an area larger than Luxembourg .

Under the agreement with Ethiopia ’s government, Karuturi pays no rent for the land for the first six years. After that, it will pay 15 birr (U.S. $1.18) per hectare per year for the next 84 years. Labor costs of less than $50 a month per worker and duty- free treaties with China and India also attracted Karuturi Global, he said. The $100 million projected annual profit will come from the export of food crops, including corn, rice and palm oil, he said. The company also is plowing land on a 10,900- hectare spread near the central Ethiopian town of Bako .

*******

Ethiopia's ruling junta gives Egypt 20,000 hectares of land

December 30th, 2009

CAIRO (apa) — Egypt announced on Tuesday preparations to invest on 20,000 hectares of land in Ethiopia , with a multimillion-dollar investment.

The announcement was made by the visiting Egyptian Prime Minister, Dr.Ahmed Nazif who is on a working visit to Ethiopia starting on Tuesday.

The Egyptian delegation assured the Ethiopian officials that Egypt was keen to be involved in various investment opportunities in the country.

The Egyptian PM said that the National Bank of Egypt will initially develop 20,000 hectares of land of agricultural products as from 2010.

According to state media reports, Egypt will invest the undisclosed amount of agricultural investment in the Afar regional state of Ethiopia , known for its livestock resources.

The two countries prime ministers held talks late on Tuesday on how to boost their trade and investment cooperation, which in the past few years was poor.

The Egyptian delegation also showed interest to invest in other areas such as drug manufacturing.

It was also reported that Ethiopia , Egypt and Sudan are expected to reach an agreement on installation of electricity connectivity in the near future to link the three countries with hydroelectric power supply from Ethiopia , which is currently undertaking a multi-billion investment on hydroelectric projects.

Ethiopian tribal dictator Meles Zenawi and his Egyptian counterpart Dr. Ahmed Nazif also expressed their commitment to work together in the efforts to ensure benefits for the peoples of the two countries.

*******

Djibouti first lady gets 20 hectares of land in Ethiopia

August 1st, 2008

By Groum Abate, Capital Ethiopia

Khadra Mohammed, First Lady of Djibouti, has received the 20 hectares of land in the Sebeta area for a flower farm, on Tuesday July 22, 2008, from Alemu Sime, Investment Bureau Head of the Oromia Regional State [another Woyanne donkey].

The First Lady received the plot on behalf of her son, Ayinashe Omar Guelleh, whom it was learnt, plans to engage in the booming flower sector.

Floriculture already earns Ethiopia over 150 million dollars annually. The Ethiopian government Meles regime is keen to encourage investors political allies, offering them a five-year tax holiday and duty-free import of machinery.

The area, 30 minutes south of Addis Ababa with green hills and lush valleys, is ideal for cultivating the country’s fastest growing export – flowers.

Ethiopia exports more than 80 million stems a month to 40 countries. 70% percent is to the Netherlands , from where they are sent around the world. It also exports to Germany , Britain , Russia and, in smaller amounts, to the United States and the Middle East .

Five years ago, Ethiopia made just $159,000 from exports of cut flowers, cuttings and summer flowers. Last year that had grown to $63.5 million and this year it is expected to hit $166 million.

Last week, President Ismael Omar Guelleh of Djibouti obtained 10,000 hectares of land around Bale, Oromia Regional State for investing in the agriculture sector. The multi-million dollar investment is expected to commence in the coming few weeks. The plot is mainly slated for growing wheat.

The president also visited the 10,000 meter square plot on Babogaya Lake in Bishoftu (Debre Zeit) town 45 kilometers south east of Addis Ababa and received a title deed for the plot to construct his vacation home.

Khadra, during the ceremony on Tuesday July 22, 2008 also visited the plot, which her son is going to invest. The title deed for a 20 hectare flower farm was also presented to the first lady last week on Friday July 18, 2008 during the ceremony that also presented President Guelleh with his title deed for both sites in Bishoftu and Bale.Warda A. Graham, owner of Wajag Gas and Alemayehu Ketema a businessman prominent in the construction sector facilitated the investment opportunity.

*******

Indian company acquires 765,000 hectares of land in Ethiopia

November 23rd, 2009

Ethiopia's autocratic leader Meles Zenawi has embarked on a controversial policy of leasing huge amount of land to foreign private investors in an attempt to boost agricultural production for the local market and for export. However, environmentalists and agricultural policy planners fear the leasing of huge tracts of land to private developers in some countries could harm the environment. They are concerned that land which is already under strain from years of degradation will suffer more. They say the loss of trees in particular has caused an imbalance in the eco-system, resulting in regular drought and famine.

By Billie O'Kadameri

(RFI) — Indian businessman Ramakrishna Karuturi, managing Director of Karuturi Global Ltd, one of the world's top agribusiness transnational corporations, has acquired nearly 765,000 hectares of land in Ethiopia. His company is involved in flower and food production.

Karuturi told Radio France International (RFI) that the world should applaud instead of vilifying efforts by people like him. “When you look at the last ten years of world food production vis-à-vis consumption, I think over six of those ten years, we in the world have eaten more than we produced, and world food stocks are at a debilitatingly low 67-day stock. 67 days of food is disastrous and I don’t think in the history of mankind, the world has ever come this close."

With very low per capita electricity coverage, nearly 85 percent of Ethiopia ’s rural population relies on wood fuel for domestic energy for cooking, according to Dr Gemedo Dalle, Head of Forest Genetic Resources Department at the Ethiopian Institute for Biodiversity and Conservation in Addis Ababa .

This already constitutes an emerging crisis for the government and policy planners. Yet more land tree cover will be under pressure as large-scale land investors flock to Ethiopia taking advantage of the country’s land policy that makes it easy to acquire huge land areas.

Professor Kwadwo Asenso-Okyere, Director of the Addis Ababa-based Knowledge, Capacity and Innovation Division of the International Food Policy Research Institute opposes the leasing of huge tracts of land to foreign investors:

If you are acquiring say hundreds of thousands of hectares of land and you clear all of this land, the impact on the environment is very severe, because you are going to cut all the trees. [...] Sometimes they don't grow food, sometimes it is for bio-fuel plants and other things so it is not going to improve the food security of the people. Sometimes they even cultivate food but the food is shipped completely out.

But 43-year old Karuturi rejects the claims that his investment will not address food security problems in Africa . “ Africa is the world’s largest market for food. Africa imports 16 billion dollars worth of food every year. Out of 25 million tonnes of rice that is traded globally per year, 10 million tonnes is imported by Africa . Of course I will sell my food in Africa because Africa is the best place to sell food [...] people are acutely short of food here.”

The Ethiopian government insists that its policy will seek to balance investment in agriculture, with a strict regime for protecting the environment.

Abera Deressa is Ethiopia 's Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development. “They cannot harm the environment. We are very clear on this. We in the Ministry of Agriculture are developing an environmental code of practice for the private sector. [...] We are also advising them not to cut trees, they have to manage soil erosion."

"As you know very well the global climate change crisis is because of poor management of the environment in developing countries; the other is by emission of carbon dioxide into the air by developed countries through industrialisation process."

"But but here in Africa , in our country pollution of the environment is by poor management of agricultural practices; deforestation, degradation, improper land management; these are the factors that we have to control”.

*******

Saudi Arabia joins in the Ethiopian land grab

August 7th, 2008

EDITOR'S NOTE: The following is reported as is by WIC, Woyanne's own news web site. By proudly reporting about this latest land give away, Woyannes are saying to the people of Ethiopia , 'go suck your thumb, we'll do what we want with your land.'

(Walta Information Service) ADDIS ABABA — Saudi Arabia, which is making efforts to provide food security for its nationals, can look up to Ethiopia where huge tracts of unutilized agricultural land are available for growing cereals, according to Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.

A Saudi ministerial delegation, which visited Ethiopia to explore the prospects of investing in agriculture, is impressed by the country’s huge potential and as a follow up sending a team of experts to conduct specialized studies, said Zenawi who spoke in this exclusive interview with Arab News on a variety of economic issues ranging from rising oil prices and inflation to his country’s bilateral trade relations with Saudi Arabia.

Following are excerpts:

Saudi Arabia is engaged in providing food security. A Saudi ministerial delegation has visited your country in this connection. Could you throw light on this?

Saudi Arabia has evinced interest in investing in agriculture, particularly in production of cereals, and has been looking at various options. One of the countries they are looking at is Ethiopia , which has a lot of unutilized land, particularly in the lowland areas of the country where all sorts of agricultural products can be grown. The Saudi delegation studied the prospects of investing in agriculture in this country.. We told them we would be very eager to provide hundreds of thousands of hectares of agricultural land for investment, particularly for cereal production. There is a broad agreement and understanding and this will be followed by visits by Saudi experts to conduct specific studies for investment.

What are the existing Saudi investments in Ethiopia ?

Most of the Saudi investments have been in manufacturing and hospitality sectors. This has been the focus so far, but we expect a sizeable increase in the Kingdom’s investment in agriculture as a result of its decision to invest in cereals.

What are the other potential areas available for Saudi investment?

The manufacturing sector is promising, especially textiles, leather, leather products and iron bars. In fact, all sectors of manufacturing are open. Investment in infrastructure is also something we are looking for. Real estate development and particularly the hospitality sector including hotels and tourist places, as well as agriculture and agro processing industries are among the other potential areas.

What is the existing level of trade and investment between the two countries?

Saudi Arabia is one of our top three trading partners. Our trade volume is $1 billion, although much of the trade balance is in favor of the Kingdom. The trade gap is about half a billion dollars. We mostly import oil and petroleum products and export coffee, meat and other agricultural products. About 240 Saudi companies have been given the investment license. These companies including those who are operational are expected to invest $2.5 billion. Saudi Arabia is our very important investment partner. Economically, we have solid and fast growing relations.

What has been the impact of rising oil prices?

The dramatic increase in oil prices has hit Ethiopia very hard. Our oil import bill over the past three years has increased by over a billion dollars. This amounts to 3 percent of our GDP. That has upset our balance of payment very significantly. It has created a huge pressure on our balance of payment and complicated the inflationary issue. We are trying to tackle this problem by increasing our exports so that we can pay for our increased import bill, and improving agricultural production so that we can dampen our food prices. We are importing some food from abroad to check the rising trend of our agricultural prices. We are importing wheat. We are no doubt growing wheat but due to an inflationary pressure we are bringing more wheat from abroad to flood the market so that the rising trend of prices in the country can be checked.

How high-level exchange of business visits has benefited your country?

We have had frequent exchanges by leaders at high levels. My assessment is that these high level visits have contributed a lot to the fast growing economic partnership and contributed a lot to the political understanding that we currently enjoy. I expect such exchanges to continue. We are expecting a high level ministerial delegation to visit us in October. I would expect a similar high-level visit from Ethiopia to Saudi Arabia .

Oromo & Ogaden Communities Protest Against Zenawi in Copenhagen

2009-12-19T00:55:00.000-08:00

December 18, 2009 at 9:04 pm

COPENHAGEN, DENMARK – DECEMBER 17: Protestors from Europe’s Oromo & Ogaden Communities demonstrate outside the UN climate change conference on December 17, 2009 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The group were demonstrating against Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi participating in the COP15 United Nations Climate Change Conference, claiming that he has one of the worst environmental records in the history of Ethiopia and that he has no respect for fundamental human rights.

The Union of Oromo Students in Europe (UOSE), the oldest Oromo students organization, was the organizer for the December 17, 2009 peaceful protest against Mr. Zenawi’s presence at the Copenhagen Summit. Mr. Zenawi has used the Summit, not to represent the interests of Africa, but to buy legitmacy for his corrupt and illegal government. For Mr. Zenawi, his mere presence at the Copenhagen Summit is a great success since he’s desperately in need of legitmacy; since his arrival in Europe earlier this week, he has created more chaos and has betrayed other African and developing world’s negotiators at the Summit.

The Oromo Farm Land Deals between the TPLF/EPRDF Tyrannical Regime and the Third Parties is Null and Void

2009-12-02T22:53:00.000-08:00

Statement of the Oromo Liberation Front

As the Oromo Liberation Front has repeatedly stressed, the current Ethiopian regime has, since it came to

power in 1991, dispossessed, displaced, and disenfranchised tens of thousands of the Oromo people.

TPLF’s policies of dispossession and marginalization of the Oromo nation have remained at the root of

today’s underdevelopment and the spectacle of mass starvation that has been witnessed throughout

Oromia in recent years.

Now, the TPLF/EPRDF regime is doubling down on its policies of dispossession and disenfranchisement

of the Oromo people by engaging in an adventurous and even more reckless policy of leasing the Oromo

farmlands to third parties, both governments and private businesses, from Asia, Europe, and the Middle

East. It is worth noting that:

• The leases are being offered by the TPLF/EPRDF--a government that is not democratically

elected in a free and fair election. The Oromo nation, the true owner of the farmlands, is not a

party to the farmland transactions between the TLPF/EPRDF and the third parties. The local

Oromo populace is neither consulted nor compensated for giving up these lands;

• The leases are being offered on a long term basis, for a period of 40 to 99 years, and the third parties

are entering into these unconscionable business contracts with the objective of profit-making,

as well as securing food supply to their own citizens in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East through

exports from Ethiopia;

• The lease policy will undoubtedly further displace and impoverish the Oromo nation, forcing millions

of smallholder Oromo farmers to give up their land and work as laborers on these farmlands.

The policy will throw back many Oromos to the old days of the “Gabar” system, where peasants

toiled only to enrich the landlords, failing to eke out a decent living. The only difference is that,

this time, the landlords are coming from afar—from Asia, the Middle East, and possibly other corners

of the world.

• The medium to long-term negative ecological impact of the lease policy will be irreversible. The

flower farms in Oromia have already demonstrated just what to expect in terms of the ecological

and social disasters of unregulated, large scale commercial farming intended for exports-- the use

of chemical pesticides that are detrimental to the environment; pollution that causes a variety of

health problems for the local populace; and poor working conditions and lack of decent working

rights. The land lease policy will only further exacerbate these ecological and social ills throughout

Oromia.

The OLF unequivocally condemns this reckless land lease policy of the TPLF/EPRDF government,

which further disenfranchises and impoverishes the Oromo people. The land transaction between the

TPLF regime and the third parties displaces the rightful owners of the land—the Oromo people—

subjecting millions to further poverty, starvation, and death. As such, it is a crime against humanity.

The OLF warns the third parties to the Oromo land deals that their contracts are null and void as

far as the Oromo nation and the OLF are concerned. We stress that they are entering into these

contracts with a government that is not accountable to the people, a government that has continued

to trample on the human and political rights of the voiceless Oromo people. Indeed, we

consider them accomplices to the TPLF’s crime against humanity perpetrated against the

Oromo nation. We counsel the third parties to immediately cease and desist from participation

in the land deals and transactions.

To the Oromo people:

You have endured subjugation for more than hundred years under a succession of alien rules--

massacre and extra judicial killings, loss of freedom and dignity, political disenfranchisement,

violations of your fundamental human rights, and poverty and famine. The TPLF/EPRDF regime

is only a continuation of this rule, and the current Oromo farmland transaction between

the TPLF regime and third parties is a continuation of the serfdom you have been subjected to

for more than a hundred years.

Your oppression and disenfranchisement cannot stop on its own or at the mercy of the rulers.

We the Oromo people need to stand up and defend our land and dignity. We call upon you, the

Oromo people, to stand up in unison against the TPLF’s sell of the Oromo farmland. The national

liberation struggle shall continue until we win back our freedom and dignity, the right to

influence our destiny including on our vital assets such as land, and a decent chance at escaping

starvation and poverty.

Victory to the Oromo People!

The Oromo Liberation Front

November 29, 2009

Ibsa WBO ZK ABO Marsaa 2ffaa

2009-12-01T00:33:00.000-08:00

Ibsa WBO ZK ABO marsaa 2ffaa.

Barruun tun gabaasa Itti-bahaa tarkaanfii/ejjennoo/yaamicha nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa ABO, QBO fi Saba Oromoof WBO ZK gaafa Onkololeessa 13, 2009 labse ture kan haga yoonaa, dhaabbii gareelee ABO sadeeni, wannneen hubataa dhufne, dhaamsa qabnu fi yaamicha waliigalaa hammata.

Gaafa Onkololeessa 13, 2009, humna dhaaba ABO kan ta’e Waraanni Bilisummaa Oromoo Zoonii ABO Kibba Oromiyaa (WBO ZK ABO) rakkinoota haga dabraa, yeroo dheeraaf furmaata dhabuu dhaan, dhaaba ummatni Oromoo hunda caalaa mararfatu ABO, naafisani argaman; akkasuma Qabsoo bilisummaa Oromoo (QBO) gaadi’e jiru; dharraa Bilisummaa akkasuma dheebuu abbaa biyyummaa Saba kabajamaa Oromoo haalotni kun gara dhaaressuutti cesisaa dhufan; gama keennaan fala takkicha hafe jennee amannu-nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa waliigalaa qaama ‘bu’ureessitootaa fi buuleyyii ABO’ deegaruuf tarkaanfii seenaa rakkinoota mooraa ABO, QBO fi ummata Oromoo keessatti hin irraanfatamne jennee laallu akka kanaatti aanuutti fudhanne, labsuun keenna ni yaadatama.

Barruuleen sun;

• Ibsa WBO ZK - Xalayaa Lakk: 0001/ibsa-wbozk-abo/2009,

• Ejjennoo WBO ZK - Xalayaa Lakk: 0002/ejjenno-wbozk-abo/2009 fi

• Yaamicha waliigalaa – Xalayaa Lakk: 0003/yaamicha-wbozk-abo/2009 ture.

Ka’umsa tarkaanfii/murtii/ejjennoo deegarsa nagaa, araara fi tokkummaa akkasuma akeeka tarkaanfii WBO ZK Onkololeessa 13, 2009 fudhatame ture laalchise;

Dhibdeelee dhaaba teenna ABO keessatti yeroo adda addaatti uumamuun furmaata Heeraa fi Seerota dhaabichaan argatuun ijibaatame, diigamsa dhaabaa, qabsoo bilisummaa Oromoo fi gurmuu Saba Oromoof hin malle dhalche argame faluu dhaaf, dirqama miseensummaan dhaabaa, Sabichaa, Kaayyoon itti irbuu seennee fi haalli yeroos nu ajaju bahatuu dhaaf, murtii fi ejjennoo fudhatuuf dirqamne turre.

Tarkaanfii deegarsa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa dhaaba ABO, QBO fi walumaa gala moonaa Oromoo tana yoo fudhannu, akka humna WBO ZK fi kanneen ejjennoo tana deegaran cufaatti, ofii keennaa rakkinoota jedhaman kanneen irraa qulqulloo of taasifnee, dhiba ofii qooda bifaa fi sadarkaa taheettu keessaa hin qabne tokko, akka furamuuf yaamicha goone jechuutti illeetti akka hin hubatamne namuu qaabsifna. Hundi keenna sadarkumaan, haga taheetti qaama rakkoo qabsoo, dhaabaa fi faca’u gurmuu sabichaa tahuu beekaa, kan hundaa akka nuufis waan keennatti, gamuma jirruun, dabre ammoo fuulota kamuuttu qaama furmaataa akkasuma hundi waliin tahuutti akka fuulleffannuuf, kun yaalii seenaa goone jennee laakka’anna.

Gama kaaniin, akkuma ‘nami wal yakku owwaachaa wal yakka’ jedhaniitti, tarkaanfi deegarsa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa fudhanne eebbifamaa kana jallisuuf qofaaf jecha, akka waan WBO ZK kun maanguddoo araaraaa gara biraa tahe of dhiheesseetti warri sababaa diddaa tokkoomuu qaban akeeka seenaa kana yakkuu fi yarsuufaa agarre. WBO ZK tarkaanfii fi ejjennoo fudhateen ‘gartuulee sadeen maqaa ABOn of yaaman cufti waliitti dhufuun haa araaramani’ jenne yaalii tokkummaa eegalame turre deegaruun jabeessine dhiheessine malee, ‘koottaa isin araarsinaa’ hin jenne!

Akkasuma, wallaachaan ykn ammoo gariin aadaa fi muuyxannumaa iyyuu itti qabaachu dhabuufaan tahu kan danda’e, akeeka nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa moonaa ABO, QBO fi Oromoo jidduutti daballe dhiheessine kanaa deebisani akka biraa illeetti jallisuu dhaan marsaalee internet gara garaatti fi marsaa marii paltalk jedhamu adda addaarrattis ‘bifa yaadaa’ fakkeessani afanfaji kanneen uumuu yaalan hin dhabamne. Akeeka nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa WBO ZK deegaruun babal’ise kanaa iyyuu akka gartuulee dhaan ‘harka waliitti kennadhaa’ jechuufaa, ‘dhiifama waliif tolchuu’ jechuufaatti, badiilee fi miidhama akkasuma hubama ABO, Zoonilee WBO, miseensota, hooggana, jaarmayicha, deegartootaa fi ummata Oromoo irraan falmaan akka malee dhaaba keessatti tatahe kun dhaqqabsiise ‘irraanfadha’ jennee dhiheessinefaatti kan hubatani, hubachiisuus yaaluunis hin hafne. Kun cufa sababootuma diddaa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa jenne laalla.

Eegaa, nuti akeekni tarkaanfi deegarsa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa WBO ZKn Onkololeessa 13, 2009, wal dhabbiilee dhaaba ABO keessatti deddeebi’ani mudatani, haga yoonaatti bifa kamiinuu furmaata argachuu dadhaban faluu qofa akka tahe ar’as irra deebine hubachiifanna.

Kana ammoo haalli diigamsaa, addaan deemuu, dhaabotni maqaa ABO himatan sadii ykn sanaa olii illee moggaasuun haga yoonaa argameef hiikkaa walumaagala dhibdeelee jiraniif fiduu waan dadhabaniif, roga biraa irraa yaali akka yaalii eegallu taane. Kanuma waliin akkuma murnummaan fala hin taane, murnii tokkoo illeen haga ammaatti jabaate jaarmayaa, hujii fi qabsoo waliigalaa fuula dura tarkaanfachiisuu dadhabu dhugaa diida jirtu tahurraa, haalli addaa fala addaa kan fedhu waan taheef, tarkaanfiin, murtii fi ejjennoo akkasuma yaamichi addaa sun barbaachise/barbaachisa jennee gaafas, ar’as amanna.

Dhaabni sadii kan maqaa tokko waliin qabu; kan laakofsa nama manuma tokko keessa waliin jiru wal saamuu qofaa karoora qabsoo sabaa godhate; hujiin fardeeffamu wal balleessuun maqaa ABO dhaaluu callaa; fi qabsoon himatamu kan morka hin dhumnnee, matoomi jiru kan ‘kabajaa’ namootaa, tuutaa fi kkf qofa waardiyu; dorgommi walirraa aanu qofa akeekkattuu; fi haala galiin qabsoo bilisummaa sabaa xurii akkanaan bakka bu’e; kaan kaan balleessee ofiif ‘maqaa’ qofaa fi ‘wakkiilummaa qabsoo’ dhaaluu callaa tahe argamu kana hifanne, quufne, jibbine, balaaleffanne, nu gahe!

Kun nuu, WBO ZKf kanaan booda karaa miti! qabsoo miti! dhaabaa miti! hujis miti! Karoora qabsoo galii sabaa dhugoomsuu miti!.....badii dha! Yakka-yakkaarraatti ida’achuu dha! Nuti gama keennaan haalaa fi deemsa akkanaa kana hunda dhaareffannee, humaa keessaa dhabnee dhiifne, namuu akka dhiisuuf miseensummaa fi Oromummaan lallabne. Harkii caalaan humna gartuulee ABO sadeeni, hooggana isaanii dabalate garuu amma illee, ar’aa illee, achuma, bakkuma sana jiraatu agarra. Kana guddoo taajjabne, gaddines jennaan! Haala kanaan kan injifatamu Oromoo dhuma, dhumarratti kan moo’us diinuma tarsimoo qofa jennee amma illee dhaamnaaf.

Kan barbaannu, gara qabsoo sabaatti of-deebisuu gartuulee dhaaba ABO sadeen; rakkinoota dhaaba ABO keessaan diiguu bira dabre QBO fi gurmuu saba Oromoo facaasaa jiru kanneen ariitiin fala (itti waliif galamu) lafa kaa’uu dhaan; gara dhaaba ABO, jaarmaya isaa, qabsichaa fi guruu miseensotaa akkasuma sabaa waalt’essuun; dheebuu saba Oromoo tan taatee Bilisummaa Ummata Oromoo fi Walaabummaa Oromiyaa dhugoomsuutti cufti keenna waliin tokko taane, waliin ol-ka’uu dhaan mirkeessuuf waliin hojjatuu ti.

‘ABO 3n’ yaamicha Onko. 13, 2009 WBO ZK tolchineefiitti owwaachuu laalchise;

WBO ZK tarkaanfi deegarsa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaaf fudhate akka gama dhaabaa adda babbahe kamuunuu waliitti hidhamee hin laalamneef, murtii fi ejjennoon akeeka kanaaf fudhate taatuu fi hanqattuus, fudhatamtuu fi didamtuus, faarfamtuu fi balaaleffatamtu illee, WBO ZK dhuma akka maqeeffattuuf jecha ajaja ‘ABO sadeeni’ kamuu jalaa bilisa of taasisuu ifaatti ibsinee turre.

Akkasumas, akeekni nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaan yaamne hundaaf qixxee akka tahuuf, milkeessuuf gami kamuu akka wal qixa itti tahuuf, marii, haasawaa fi kanarratti illee waliitti deddeebisuu maluuf waraana zoonii tanaa biraatti gartuu kamuu nuti kan wal hin caalcifnee fi carraan isaani nu biraatti wal qixxee akka taate ibsaa fi ejjennoon labsanne, addeessine jira. WBO ZK gama kamiifuu kan hin baabsine tahuunis kakuu humna dirree akkuma ture amma illee tahe jira. Akkasuma ergaa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa yaamnee ammoo, kanneen yaamicha kanaaf owwaatan kamuu waliin dubbachuuf banaa akka taane, banaatti kan wal marihannuu fi waan gama kamuu irraa dhagahamu akka walii keennaa fi Oromoota hundumaa beeksifnu imaammataa fi dhaamannoo keenna.

ABO 3n’ jechuun gartuulee ABO Shanee Gumii (ShG ABO), Qaama Cehumsaa (QC ABO) fi Koree Yeroo (KY ABO/Jijjiirama) wal duraa duubaan ibsoota babaasaniin tarkaanfii deegarsa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa WBO ZK fudhate kan deegaran tahuu, akka kanaan gadiitti beeksifatani turan. Kunis, akkuma wal-duraa duubummaa ibsa baasaniitiin;

i) Shanee Gumii (ShG-ABO), ShG GS ABOn – Gaafa Onkololeessa 20, 2009.

ii) Qaama Cehumsaa (QC-ABO), KHGn – Lak.111/ABO/09, Onko.26, 2009.

iii) Koree Yeroo (KY-ABO), WKYn – Gaafa Sadaasa 07, 2009.

Cunfaadhaan, gartuuleen ABO sadan oliitti tarrifaman kamuu, ibsoota wal duraa duubaan baasaniin; Tarkaanfii, murtii, ejjennoo fi yaamicha nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa WBO ZK dhiheesse kan deegaran, fudhatani fi milkeessuuf hojjattan tahuu isaani beeksisani turan. Kun eegaa waan barruuleen ibsoota dhihaatani hammatan ture.

Barruuleen ibsoota kanneen fi qabiyyeelee isaani akkuma marsaalee oduu afaan Oromoo gara gara irraatti naafamani turan, marsaalee (websites) gartuulee kanneenirratti ammaa illee argamu.

Deebisaalee fi ejjennoo gartuulee ‘ABO 3niiin marii WBO ZK suduudaan itti dhiheesseef laatame.

Deebisaa fi hafuura qaama araaraaf uf-dhiheesse ture kan ‘bu’ureessitootaa fi buuleyyii ABO’ eegne dhabuun yaadda’aa dhufurraa gaafa Sadaasaa 15, 2009, karaa koree dhimma qunamtiif WBO ZK bakka buufate, Koree Takkaarrii, dhaamsaa fi ergaan bifa barruun suduudaan matoota ‘ABO 3niif’teessoo isaani e-mail dhaan ergamefi ture. Xayalaan matoota ABO 3niif WBO ZKn mariif ergame, guyyaan ergamee fi dhaamsi hammate tokkichuma ture.

(Barruun dhaamsaa fi ergaa akkasuma marii karaa matoota jaarmayoota isaanii ABO 3nf ergame ture sun xalayaa ibsaa kanaan waliitti maxxanfame gara jalaatti argama.)

Dhaamsa, ergaa fi marii suduudaan hoggana ABO 3niifuu ergine turre kanaaf, akka deebisaa/ejjennootti QC-ABO ibsa sirnaa baasee nuun gahe jira. Mataa jaarmayichaan (D/T QC ABO), ammoo hiree arganneen itti fufne qaamaanis ejjennaa qaban irraa dhagahuuf carraa dabalataas arganne turre. KY-ABO/Jijjiirami bifa ibsaan osoo hin taane, barruu dhaamsotaan, dabalee bilbilaan karaa qaama hooggana jaarmayichaa olaanoo keessaa ejjennaa isaanii qabsiifatani jiru. ShG ABO karaa mataa jaarmayichaa (HD GS ABO) dhaamsa bilbilaan, dabalee karaa miseensa hoggana gartuu sanaa kan fuula jirruutti argamuutiin hiree qaamaan wal arguu taheen ejjennaa isaani qabsiifatani jiran.

Haa thu malee guutummaa deebisaalee fi ejjennoolee dhihaatan kanneeni, barruu tanaan labsuuf mirga, kabajaa, naamusa qunnamtii fi safuu Oromummaa illee jaarmayoota/jaallan hooggana isaani kanneeni kamuu eeguufiif jecha deebisaalee/haasawa nuuf dhihataniif fi ejjennaa ABOn 3n ergatan laalchise waan ibsa sirnaan nutti dhufe illee dabalate, dhaamsotaa fi haasawa gama kamuu waliin goone keessaa haguma ibsa kanaaf barbaachisu qofa, bifa isaan kamuu hin addaatti miineen (warra waan akka malee nuuf deebisan illee dabalate, of biraatti qabuun, ofiif ittiin miidhamu filachaa), cuunfaa dhumaa ejjennoolee dhiheessu filatu dursinee hubachiifna.

Tahus sadarkaa kanaatti hubannaaf akka toluuf dhaabbiin gartuuleen ABO 3niitu ibsoota barruu dhaan akka oliitti odeessuu yaalleetti tarkaanfi WBO ZK deegaruu isaanii ittiin beeksisani turani fi ejjennoon deebisaalee xalayaa suduudaan marii WBO ZK gaafa Sadaasaa 15, 2009 matoota jaarmayaalee kanneeniif ergineen dhiheessan kan wal hin fudhanne tahu akka kanaatti aanuutti wal duraa duubaan gabaafna.

i) Shanee Gumii ABO

Gabaabumaatti, dhimma rakkoo ABO keessatti dhalate, miidhaa geessifame jedhan fi akkaataa furmaataa laalchise dubbii qaami ‘bu’ureessitootaa fi buuleyyii’tti waan kennatameef, sanuma eegataa akka jiranii fi sanumaan xumura dubbii tanaa eegu kan filatan tahu isaani. Tarkaanfiin WBO ZK ammoo akka daandii araaraa gara biraa ykn WBOn ZK maanguddummaaf akka biraatti of dhiheesseetti hubatani illee waan jiruuf, daanduma jalqabaa (‘bu’ureessitootaa…) sana dursuu fi itti bahaa sanaa kan eegan himatan. Kanuma waliin gartuulee maqaa ABO qaban lamaan hafan laalchise KY-ABO waliin karaa qaama ‘bu’ureessitootaa…’ gaaddisi beellamame akka jiru. QC ABO waliin ammoo suduudaan gaaddisa qaama araaraa ‘bu’ureessitootaa….n’ alaatti wal haasawaa akka jiran. Yaaddoo tarii qaami araaraa ‘bu’ureessitootaa’ kun dirqama isaani bahuu hanqatuu ykn karaa isaani gartuun biraa dubbii waliin fixachuu laafisu ykn hanqachuu malu itti dhiheessineef ammoo ejjennaan qaban-yeroo haga qaama araaraa kana dubbiin tun gaafattu cufa laatuufiin (yeroo hangamu yo tahe!) waan itti buufatan dhagahu akka fedhan, hanqatu ammoo hangamu turu, gaafa tokko ofii isaaniiti (ShG) akka jaarmayaatti ibsa ijibaataafaa akka baafatanfaa ejjennoo isaani thu qabsiifatan. Ibsi Onko. 20, 2009 baasan ammoo akkas hin jedhu.

Tarkaanfi nagaa fi araaraa WBO ZK fudhateef ammoo suduudaan itti fufaniakka jaarmayaa ShG qofatti/kophaatti zoonicha waliin haasawuun xumuratu akka fedhan dhiheeffatan.

ii) Qaama Cehumsaa ABO

Sadarkaa duraatti, haasawa mataa jaarmayaa kanaa irraa qaamaan hubanneen, tarkaanfiin WBO ZK fudhate seenaa qabeessa tahu isaa, dhaamsa, ergaa fi mariin suduudaan Sadaasaa 15, 2009 Qorbituu Takkaarriin hooggana isaanittii ergame isaan biraatti fudhatama kan qabuu fi ijibaata rakkoo dhaaba ABOf akkasuma QBOf kan tahu jechuutti dabalee, falli jiru sanuma tahu isa akka amanan, milkeessuufis gama isaaniin waan malu/danda’ameef cufa godhuuf qophii tahu mirkaneessan.

Haa tahu malee ibsi qaama hoggana KJQBO-QC ABO Washington DC irraa ajaja mataa dhaabichaan qophaa’e gaafa 19/11/2009 nutti ergame akkas hin jedhu.

Kan ibsichi addeessu, tarkaanfiin WBO ZK deegarama tahu isaa, QC ABO akkuma WBO kanaatti ammoo dursee iyyuu dhuma bara dabreetti yaamicha fakkaataa godhe akka turee fi suduudaan gartuuleen ABO akka waliin dubbatuun furmaataan hojjatan dhiheese akka jiru.

Jaarmayootni ABO lamaan hafa yaamicha isaani kanaatti waan owwaataniif fi mariin waliin waan eegalameef, itti bahaa mariilee kanneeni booda, keessattu yo milkaa’u hanqatan tarii yaada WBO ZK kanaatti deebi’u akka malan, walumaa gala deemsa araaraa itti jiran irratti waan irraa gahanis yero yeroon kan WBO ZK beeksisan tahu ibsatan.

iii) KY ABO (Jijjiirama)

Barruu ibsaa tarkaanfii WBO ZK laalchise baasani fi ejjennoon suduudaan dhiheeffatan akkasuma kan wal hin simannee dha.

Ejjennoon suduudaa cunfaadhaa;

Yaada moonaa qabsoo Oromoo tokkoomsuu fi gaaddisa tokko jalatti deebisuu jedhu Adoolessa 1, 2008 irraa kaasee irratti hojjataa akka turan. Hujiin kun akka imaammataatti kan labsatan tahu isaa. Imaammann qaban kunis Sadaasa 8, 2008 jaarmotaa fi gurmuulee Oromoo jaha (6), maqaa ABO qabanii fi hin qabnellee dabalatee, hundaaf xalayaa barreessuun sirneeffamu isaa.

Deebii jaarmotaa fi gurmuuleen adda addaa kennan irra dhaabbatuu dhaan hujii eegaluu isaanii, marii waggaa tokkoon booda jaarmotaa fi gurmuuleen shan (5) Onkoloolessa 31, 2009 walitti makamuun tokkooman jiran jedhan.

Kanuma waliin mariin qaamoota ABO waliin godhamus eegalamee sadarkaa adda addaa irra jiraachuu. Fknf haasaan KY ABO fi QC ABO waliin gidduu-galummaa maanguddummaa kamiin alaatti eegalame sadarkaa xumura irra jiraachu isaa.

Araarri ‘bu'ureessitotaa fi buleeyyii ABO’ kan dhiyaate jedhan erga KY ABO yaamicha isaa dabarsitee hujitti seenteen duuba tahu isaa. Qaamota hooggana ABO sadiihiif xalayaan ‘bu’ureessitoiotaa fi buuleyyiin’ barreessan KY ABO fi ShG ABOn yoo fudhatama argatu, QC ABOn fudhatama akka dhabe ture.

Mangudgummaa ‘bu'ureessitotaa fi buleeyyii ABO’ tin mariin marraa tokko KY ABO fi ShG ABO giddutti ta'ee, kan marraa 2ffaa dhihootti tahuuf akka jiru.

Akka yaada xalayaa Qorbaa takkaarrii itti ergame itti hubatanne jedhaniitti, kan WBO ZK gaafata jiru araaraa haarayatti eegaluu, akkasuma WBO ZK akka qaama araaraa gara biratti of dhiheesseefaa akka tahe. Deebisaan/gorsii/yaanno/ejjennoon sanaaf qaban ammoo yaadni marii araaraa KYn eegalame jiru deeggarsa dabalataa WBO ZK illee irraa argatee akka fiixa bahu gochuu qofa jedhan.

Rakkoo kanaaf fala kan ta'u jedhanii laalan, zooniin ajaja dhaabaa (KY ABO) jalatti deebi'uun marii/yaalii araaraa KYn hunda dursee iyyuu eegalame fudhannee waliin fiixa baasuuf hojjachuu fi kkf.

Waliigalaatti haalota gartuulee ‘ABO 3n’ irraa calaqisuun hubatame

• Idileetti, akka gartuulee fi jaarmayaalee sadaniittu nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa jedhame fedhurratti wal fakkeennan ibsatu,

• QC ABO fi KY ABO tokkummaa fakkaataa (gara garaatti) bara dabree keessa akka jaarmayaatti yaamani turan milkeessuuf, karuma isaani itti fufani dhiibuu filatu. KY ABO daandii marii tokkummaa eegalan milkeessuuf warri hafe akka isaan waliin dhaabbatuun irraa wayyaa dhiheeffatu. QC ABO yaamicha isaani kan karaa qabate jiru waan irraa gahu baruuf ammaaf sanuma eegu filatu.

• QC ABO araaraa, tokkummaa fi maanguddummaa jiddu-galummaa qaama ‘bu’ureessitoota fi buuleyyiin’ geeggeffamuutti hin amanu, irra illee hin hirmaanne/hin hirmaatus..

• ShG ABO fi KY ABO jidd-galummaa bu’ureessitootaa fi buuleyyiitiin’ waliitti haasawuu fudhatani turan. Tahu iyyuu, haga ammaatti marroo tokko qofa akka haasawani fi kan lammeessoo fuula dura isaan jira jedhu. Lameenuu akka jaarmayaa fi hogganaatti suduudaan waliitti siquu ykn haasawuuf hedduu addaan fagoo jiran, fedhii akkasiitis ammaatti hin qaban.

• ShG ABO hoogganaa fi jaarmayaa QC ABO waliin suduudaan haasawuun waan tokko irraa gahu akka malan himatu. KY ABO fi QC ABO illeen akkasuma sadarkaa waliin xumurachuu irraa gahaa jiraachu himatu.

• ShG ABO fi KY ABO ofiif waliin nagaa bu’uudhaa fi waliitti araaramuuf (suduudaanis tahe qaama araaraa jidduu taa’uu kamuu keessaan), waliitti dhufuu osoo hin taane, isaan kamuu gara garaatti WBO ZK akka suduudaan isaaniitti deebi’u gara garaatti barbaadan, gaafatan.

• ShG ABO fi KY ABO jidd-galummaa qaama ‘bu’ureessitootaa fi buuleyyiin’ waliitti haasawuuf yaamicha qaama kanaan godhame tureef owwaatanii uyyuu, lameenuu, waltajjii sanaan waliin fixachuuf walirrattis tahe, maanguddummaa sanarratti abdii hin qaban.

• Sababoota adda addaa tarrisaniif, karaa waltajjii jaarrrummaa qaama araaraa (‘bu’ureessitoota fi buuleyyii’) kanaan, rakkini ABO kun furame, tokkummaan hawwamu dhufuu isaa, harkii caalaan hooggana gartuulee ABO, miseensotaa isaanii fi deegartootni gartuulee kanneen jala hiriiran amanti hin qaban.

• WBO ZK kun tarii nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaan gaafate hanqaturraa fi/ykn haaluma rakkina gara garaa dirree qabsootti beekaman adda addaa irraa, akkasuma tura keessa abdii kutatuu dhaan gara faca’uufaatti deeminna ‘abdii’ jedhuun, akkuma kanneen haala akkasii keessaa waa eegataa jiran dhagahaman/mumul’atan, kan haala akkasii mudatu keessatti humna ‘masaanuu’ jedhamu diqqaa cinaa sanaa qabaatu abdatan (kan amma nama itti leejjifatuun dabalatuuf fiffiigaa jiramu), ‘qaawaa’ humni guddichi ZK kun irraa ‘deemuun’ uumuu malu buufatuu dhaan, “qabsoo itti fufuu” kan tilmaamatanis hin dhabamne. Garuu Itti-bahaa yaamicha WBO ZK nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa irratti kan hirkatuu fi gaafa Ammajii 01, 2010tti gara taheetti kan mirkanaa’u, yoo tokkummaan hin jiraannee, sanaan achi qabsoon dhuga waan hin jiraanneef, fuula kanaatti maqaa hin jirreen, sana booda ummata Oromoo miidhuun kanaafuu akka hin jiraanne WBO ZK ammumaan hunda akeekkachiifna.

• Ilaalchaa fi ejjennoon goggodduun adda tahe ammaa illee gartuulee ShG ABO fi KY ABO jidduu caalaatti mul’ata. Laafaatti fi dhihoottis kan waliitti siquun hin eegamnes kanneen kana jidduu dha. Sababiin hundee haala kanaaf hubatame, addaan bahinsaa fi morkiin jiddu jirru yeroon isaas dhihoo fi ammaa illee oowwaa waan taheefaa fakkaata. Gartuun lameenu QC ABO waliin haasawuu fi yo tahe gara fixachuutti kan deemu maluuf adda addadummaa, morkaa fi falmiin QC ABO waliin gara garaattis isaan qaban isa turaa, kan qabbanaa’e jiruu fi dubbiin QC ABO baroota waan laaka’atee jiruuf kan hundaaf caalaatti haffallate fakkaataf. Falli gartuun lameen dubbiin jidduutti ammaa illee jabduu kun laalaa jiran keessaa haalli addaan jiraatu isaani kun akkuma kan QC ABO sanaatti baroota haga tokko itti fufe yo laaka’ate, dubbiin ofumaanu dhama fixachaa, barrii/haalotni biraa dubbii jidduu dulluumsaa deemuu fi qabaneeffatufaa waliif tilmaamu.

• Cuunfadhaan dhugaan jirtu garuu, harki caalaan gartuulee ABO jiran kanaa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa jedhame idileetti kan fedhan tahu himatani illee, bifa, akkaataa, yeroo fi haala dureelee gartuu isaaniif caalmaatti bu’aa qabaatu qofaan kan itti seenan akka haala dureelee ifaatti hundaatti hin himamneetti gra garaatti qabu. Warra waliin nagaa bu’an, waliitti araaramanii fi waliin tokkoomanis ulaagaa mataa isaani kaayyatuu dhaan kan filatan fakkaatu. Araaraa fi tokkummaa maanguddummaan ykn gartuulee sadan jiran keessaan kaaniin ykn WBO ZKn dhihaatu osoo hin taane, yaamichaa, sagantaa fi qophii ofii isaaniitiin dhufu gartuuleen harkii wayyaan barbaadu. Itti yaamamuu fi kaan irraan dhufu irra, tokkummaa ofiif yaamaniin, abbaa itti tahani, maqaas itti fudhatani tartiibuma isaaniitiin, ariiriitii tokkoon maleetti geeggeffatu/geeggeffamu kan filatu fakkaatu..

Yaamicha waliigalaa

Hoogganootni gartuulee ABO sadeen ammaas akka yaadota morkaa fi matoomaa moonaa QBO fi ABO diige kana irraa deebitani, gara ofiifi tokkoomtani, dhaabaa ABO, QBO fi ummata Oromoo waliin tokkoomsitaniitti akka ariitiin deebitan ammaas irraa deebinee isin gaafanna.

Dhaamsa qabnu

1. Faarulee, ergaalee, dhaamsa/dhaamannoo, murannoo, dhaadannoolee tokkummaa ABO/Oromoo fi kkf suduudaan walgahii waliigalaa dhihii dirreetti baklka takkaatti geeggeffateen muraatotaa fi buttaaleen WBO ZK akkasuma jaallan fi ilmaan Oromoo gamtaan; Hogganaa fi miseensota gartuulee ABO sadaniif, ummata Oromoof fi Zoonilee WBO hfan akkasuma miseensota WBOf fi kkftuuf qopheessani dhaammatan bifa DVD dhaan suduudaan karaa caasalee isaanii fuula jirruutti argamaniin ABO 3niif erguu gabaafna. Ummata bal’aas karaa waltajjiilee fi walgahiilee gara garaan gahuuniin karoorfame jira.

2. Hogganootni jaarmayaa gartuulee ABO sadeen, ergaa nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa dhihaateetti akkuma ibsootni jaarmayoota keessani jaqaba addeesse tureetti dhugaan kan itti-amantan taate, gareen jirtan kamuu guyyaa ar’aa irraa kaasee qaama hooggana sadarkaa olii keessaa namoota lama-lama (2:2), bakka buufachuun zoonii WBO Kibbaatti akka ergattan isin afeerra. Hiree sanaan ejjennoo nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa hawwame irratti jaarmayaa fi hogganni keessan qabdan akka humna waraana keessaniitti ibsattani fi dhaabbii akasuma dheebuu nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa ABO, QBO fi Sanba Oromoo WBO ZK kun qabu ofumaafu akka hubattaniif kunoo isin yaamne. Jilli keessan gaafa Mudde 15, 2009tti dirree WBO sana akka dhaqqabu dhaamanna. Haala kan milkeessuuf Qorbituu Takkaarrii waliin akka wal quba qabaatan ammuma irraa dhaamanna.

3. WBO fi dirreen qabsoo dhaaba ABOn heeraan eessattuu utubamee fi saaqame kamuu haga Kayyoo fi jaarmayaa isaa hin ganiniitti humna qabsoo bilisummaa Sabaa Oromoo ti. WBO ZK fi Dirreen/Zooniin WBO Kibba Oromiyaas qaama seenaa QBO dhaaba ABOn utubamee, diriifamee fi hogganamaa as gahee dha. Gartuuleen ABO sadeenu akka jaarmayaa fi hoogganaattis ar’aaf addadummas qabaatan dhaabaa fi jaarmayaa ABO ti. Waan taheef, WBO ZK rakkoo dhaaba ABO naafifte akka furmaata argatu qofaaf tarkaanfii dhiibbaa waan fudhateef jireenna dhabuu ykn jireennaan doorsifamuurraa, gartuuleen ABO sadeenjiran kun kamuu, ammumaan gaaffii fi kadhaan maleetti qabeenna qabsoo qabdaniin akka dirmattaniif irra deebine yaadachiifna.

4. Miseensoti dhaaba ABO, deegartooni dhaabichaa/qabsichaa, maanguddooti Oromoo, hayyooti Oromoo, sabboontotaa fi Ka’imani akkasuma haawwan Oromoo tarkaanfii nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa ABO, QBO fi Ummata Oromoo dhugoosuuf WBO ZK gaafa Onk. 13, 2009 fudhate kana milkaa’uu fi hanqatuun isaa isiniifis dhimma keessan tahu yaadachiifna. Kanaaf itti dhiheennaan akka hordoftanii fi milkeessuufis bira dhaabbattan gaafanna.

5. Amma illee taanaan guyyaan ayyaana WBO kan Ammajii 01, 2010 guyyaa itti bahaan tarkaanfii nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaa waliigalaa WBO ZK yaame kun dhugoomuu fi hanqatuu isaa itti gabaafamu waan taheef, gartuulee ABOs, miseensonni, deegartootaa fi ummati Oromoo sanaa asiitti hamtuu oolchuuf waan irraa eegamu cufa akka tolchitan irraa deebine dhaamanna.

6. Nagaa, araaraa fi tokkummaan WBO ZK dhaaba isaa ABO, qabsaawota waliigalaa fi Oromoo akka sabaatti dhiheesseef kun sababoota seenaan hin fudhatamne gara garaan kan hanqatuu fi didamu yo tahe, WBO ZK iyannaa fi himannaa isaa yeroo beellameen achiitti gara ummata Oromootti, aadaa sirna Gadaatti fi Waldaa Machaa fi Tuulamaatti kan dhiheeffatu tahu ammumaan hundaatti dabarfanna.

Injifannoo Ummata Oromoof!

WBO ZK ABO

Sadaasa 29, 2009.

Wbo_zk_abo2010@yhoo.com