Ethiopia - Land for Sale

As the economy thrives, we examine the plight of Ethiopians forced from their land to make way for foreign investors.

Just a few decades ago, Ethiopia was a country defined by its famines, particularly between 1983-1985 when in excess of half a million people starved to death as a consequence of drought, crop failure and a brutal civil war.

Against this backdrop, it is impressive that in recent years, Ethiopia has been experiencing stellar economic growth. The headline statistics are certainly remarkable: the country is creating millionaires faster than any other in Africa; output from farming, Ethiopia’s dominant industry, has tripled in a decade; the capital Addis Ababa is experiencing a massive construction boom; and the last six years have seen the nation’s GDP grow by a staggering 108 percent.

But it is not all positive news, because for all the good figures there are still plenty of bad ones.

Around 90 percent of the population of 87 million still suffers from numerous deprivations, ranging from insufficient access to education to inadequate health care; average incomes are still well below $1500 a year; and more than 30 million people still face chronic food shortages.

And while there are a number of positive and genuine reasons for the growth spurt - business and legislative reforms, more professional governance, the achievements of a thriving service sector - many critics say that the growth seen in agriculture, which accounts for almost half of Ethiopia’s economic activity and a great deal of its recent success, is actually being driven by an out of control ‘land grab', as  multinational companies and private speculators vie to lease millions of acres of the country’s most fertile territory from the government at bargain basement prices. 

At the ministry of agriculture in Addis Ababa, this land-lease programme is often described as a "win-win" because it brings in new technologies and employment and, supposedly, makes it easier to improve health care, education and other services in rural areas. 

"Ethiopia needs to develop to fight poverty, increase food supplies and improve livelihoods and is doing so in a sustainable way," said one official.

But according to a host of NGO’s and policy advocates, including Oxfam, Human Rights Watch and the Oakland Institute, the true consequences of the land grabs are almost all negative. They say that in order to make such huge areas available for foreign investors to grow foodstuffs and bio-fuels for export - and in direct contravention of Ethiopia’s obligations under international law - the authorities are displacing hundreds of thousands of indigenous peoples, abusing their human rights, destroying their traditions, trashing the environment, and making them more dependent on food aid  than ever before.

"The benefits for the local populations are very little," said renowned Ethiopian sociologist Dessalegn Rahmato. "They’ve taken away their land. They’ve taken away their natural resource, because these investors are clearing the land, destroying the forest, cutting down the trees. The government claims that one of the aims of this investment was to enable local areas to benefit by investing in infrastructure, social services … but these benefits are not included in the contract. It's only left up to the magnanimity of the investor."

And those investors, he continued, are simply not interested in anything other than serving their own needs: "They can grow any crop they want, when they want it, they can sell in any market they want, whether it’s a global market or a local market. In fact most of them are not interested in the local markets.” 

He cited as an example a massive Saudi-owned plantation in the fertile Gambella region of south west Ethiopia, a prime target area for investors: "They have 10,000 hectares and they are producing rice. This rice is going to be exported to the Middle East, to Saudi Arabia and other places. The local people in that area don’t eat rice."

But the most controversial element of the government’s programme is known as 'villagisation' - the displacement of people from land they have occupied for generations and their subsequent resettlement in artificial communities.

In Gambella, where two ethnic groups, the Anuaks and the Nuers, predominate, it has meant tens of thousands of people have been forced to abandon a traditional way of life. One such is Moot, an Anuak farmer who now lives in a government village far from his home.

"When investors showed up, we were told to pack up our things and to go to the village. If we had decided not to go, they would have destroyed our crops, our houses and our belongings. We couldn't even claim compensation because the government decided that those lands belonged to the investors. We were scared … if you get upset and say that someone stole your land, you are put in prison. If you complain about being arrested, they will kill you. It's not our land anymore; we have been deprived of our rights."

Despite growing internal opposition and international criticism, the Ethiopian government shows no sign of scaling the programme back. According to the Oakland Institute, since 2008, an area the size of France has already been handed over to foreign corporations. Over the next few years an area twice that size is thought to be earmarked for leasing to investors.

So what does all this mean for the people on the ground? In Ethiopia – Land for Sale, filmmakers Veronique Mauduy and Romain Pelleray try and find out.

Source:

Al Jazeera

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Secret Wikileaks Cable Reveals Recent Bombings in Addis Ababa the Work of Meles Zenawi's regime

SUBJECT: ETHIOPIA: RECENT BOMBINGS BLAMED ON OROMOS POSSIBLY THE WORK OF GOE


Classified By: CHARGE VICKI HUDDLESTON FOR REASONS 1.4(b)AND(d).

¶1. (S) SUMMARY A series of explosions were reported in Addis Ababa on September 16, killing three individuals. The GoE announced that the bombs went off while being assembled, and that the three dead were terrorists from the outlawed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) with links to the Oromo National Congress (ONC). 
An embassy source, as well as clandestine reporting, suggests that the bombing may have in fact been the work of GoE security forces. END SUMMARY

¶2. (U) On September 16, three bomb explosions were reported in the Kara Kore area of Addis Ababa. The explosions were heard at 4:45 a.m., 7:00 a.m., and 10:00 a.m. The National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), together with the Federal Police Anti-terror Task Force later reported that the bombs were "part of a coordinated terror attack by the OLF and Sha’abiya (Eritrea) aimed at disrupting democratic
development.” The NISS said that the intended terror plot had failed and the bombs had mistakenly gone off while the suspects were preparing them while hiding out at an illegally built house. 

Two of the suspects died immediately, while another died on the way to the hospital. One other is in critical condition. The police task force reported having others in custody related to the plot and that evidence shows
the terrorists had ties to Oromo groups – the Mecha and Tulema Association (MTA) and the ONC. They also said that the bombs used contained parts sourced from Eritrea and were consistent with bombs used in previous terrorist attacks.

¶3. (S) On September 20, Dr. Merera Gudina (strictly protect), the former leader of the ONC (and a typically reliable information source), contacted Post to report that the deceased had not died not while constructing a bomb, but rather at the hands of GoE cadres. Dr. Merera said that the men 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. He did not indicate whether the men were ONC or OLF affiliated.

¶4. (S) Clandestine reporting indicates that the bombs did not explode inside the structure, but rather appear to have been placed outside and detonated. 

[Ambassador Vicki] HUDDLESTON

Where is Ethiopia Located Funny Answers From Foreigners [Very Funny Vide...

Lencho leta "ሃገር ቤት ገብተን በመታገል አዲስ ታሪክ እንሰራለን" - ሌንጮ ለታ

ኖርዎይ ቁጭ ብለን ምን እናደርጋለን፥ ሃገር ቤት ገብተን እንታገላለን፥.... ሌንጮ ለታ ለጀርመን የራዲዮ ጣቢያ

አርቲስት ነዋይ ደበበ በተወዛገበ ሁኔታ ውስጥ እንደሚገኝ የሙያ ጓደኞቹ ገለጹ

ከዓመታት በፊት በዋሽግተን ዲሲ ለሚታተመው ባውዛ ጋዜጣ “በ2001 ዓ.ም ወደ ሃገሬ እገባለሁ” በሚል ድምፃዊ ነዋይ ደበበ ሲናገር የቅርብ ወዳጅ አርቲስቶቹ “ሃገርህ መግባቱንስ ግባ፤ ግን ከሌሎቹ አርቲስቶች ተማር፤ አንተም ሃገርህ መግባትህን ግባ ግን ስለፖለቲካው ለየትኛውም የመንግስት ሚድያ አትናገር” የሚል ምክር ተሰጥቶት ነበር። ነዋይ ሲፈጥረው ግልጽ ሰው በመሆኑ የሚጠቅመውን እና የሚጎዳውን የሚያውቅ ሰው አይደለም እንደ ሙያ አጋሮቹ ገለጻ።

ይህ አርቲስት ለትዳሩ ፍቺ ያበቃውም ይኸው ግልጽነቱ ነው ይላሉ እነዚሁ ምንጮች። ለኮንሰርት ሌላ ሃገር ሄዶ ከአድናቂዎቹ ጋር ለሚስት የማይነገር ነገር ቢፈጽም እንኳ ለባለቤቱ ከመናገር አይደብቅም። “ሀመር መኪናዬን ይዤ ኢትዮጵያ ገባሁ” ብሎ ለሃገር ቤት ሚድያዎች ያወራውም ይኸው የሚነገር እና የማይነገር ነገርን ካለማወቁ የተነሳ ነው

ነዋይን በተለያዩ የአሜሪካ ግዛቶች ተዘዋውሮ የሙዚቃ ኮንሰርቶች እንዲሰራ ካደረጉት ሰዎች ውስጥ አንዳንዶቹ ለዚህ ዜና ዘጋቢ እንደተናገሩት “ድምጻዊውን ለራሱ የማያውቅ” ሲሉ ይገልጹታል ከሌላ አርቲስቶች ጋር በማነጻጸር። ይኸው ድምፃዊ ኮንሰርት ተጠርቶ ከፕሮሞተሮች ከሰርን የሚል ምክንያት ሲቀርብለት ገንዘብ እንደማይጠይቅም ይነገርለታል። ሌሎቹ ስለመዝፈናቸው እንጂ ፕሮሞተሩ ከሰረ አለከሰረ ግድ እንደሌላቸው ያገናዝቧል። በዚህ ሁኔታ ነዋይ በኪሳራ ውስጥ ወደቀ፤ ሚስቱንም በትዳሩ ላይ ስለሚፈጽመው ነገር ስለማይደብቅ ሕይወቱ ተመሳቀለ። በዚህ ሁኔታ ወደ ሃገሬ በ2001 እገባለሁ ሲል ሲናገር በሙያ አጋሮቹ ተመከረ። “እባክህ ሃገርህ መግባትህን ግባ ግን በመንግስት ሚድያዎች ቀርበህ ባከበረህ ሕዝብ ፊት እንዳትዋርድ”

ነዋይ ሃገር ቤት ገና ከመግባቱ አዲስ አበባን ሳያያት ኤርፖርት ላይ ተቀበሉት።

እነ ራድዮ ፋና “ሃገሪቷን እንዴት አየሃት?” ሲሉ ጠየቁት

ሃገሪቱን ተዘዋውሮ ያላየውና ገና ከአውሮፕላን እንደወረደ የተናገረው ነዋይ የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ በልማት ውስጥ እንደሚገኝ፤ ሃገሪቱም እንደተለወጠች ተናገረ። ልብ በሉ ገና ከኤርፖርት ወርዶ አላየም።

ነዋይ ድሮ ሃገሩን እንዳልወደደና በሕዝብ እንዳልተፈቀረ ይህን ከተናገረ በኋላ በጣም ተናቀ። ከአሜሪካ በሚስቱ አማካኝነት ይዞት የነበረው ገንዘብ አለቀና አላሙዲንን ፍለጋ ሮጠ። በሸራተን ጋዝ ላይት የሚያመሹ የአላሙዲ ተላላኪዎች ነዋይ “አላሙዲንን አገናኙኝ” እያለ ሲለምመጥ እነሱ ይስቁበት ‘አላሙዲ አሁን በዚ አለፈ፤ በዚያ ሄደ” እያሉ ይስቁበት፤ ያቁለጨልጩት ጀመር። በሕዝብ የተከበረ ዘፋኝ በአላሙዲ ተላላኪዎች መሳለቂያ ሆነ።

ነዋይ ኢትዮጵያ ገብቶ በተቸገረበት ወቅት ራድዮኖች እየደወሉ ፕራንክ ኮል እያደረጉ ይሳለቁበት ገባ። በወያኔ መንግስት ፈቃድ ተሰጥቷቸው እየሰሩ የሚገኙ ራድዮኖች ነዋይን ፕራንክ እያደርጉ ሲሳለቁበት እንዴት ያሳቅቅ። ድሮ ይቃወምባቸው የነበሩ ወያኔዎች በሳቅቅቅ፣ ነዋይ ግን ስቅቅ። ነዋይ ግን አልገባውም። እንደውም ተወዛግቦ ራድዮኖቹ ለሱ ያዘኑ እየመሰለው ያለ የሌለውን ይቀባጥራል። “ሙዚቃ የሚያቀናብርልኝ አጣሁ” እያለም በግልጽ ፕራንክ ላደረጉት ራድዮኖች መጠላቱን ተናገረ። ይኸው ምስክርነቱ የነሰይፉ መሳቂያ ሲሆን፦

ነዋይ ምስኪን ነው። ሰው ሲስቅበት አያውቅም። ወያኔዎች እየተጠጉ “ጥሩ ሥራ ሰራህ you did good” ሲሉት ጥሩ እየመሰለው አቶ መለስን ሲቃወም እንዳልነበር ነጠላ ዜማም ሰራላቸው። የአቶ መለስ ሞት ሰሞን በወያኔ ደጋፊዎች ዘንድ የተሰጠው ሙገሳ ልቡን ነፍቶት እንደነበር የሙያ አጋሮቹ ይናገራሉ። ሆኖም ግን ነዋይ ኢትዮጵያ ሄዶ ባለማወቅም ይሁን በማወቅ የሰራውን ስህተት ወደ ዋሽንግተን ዲሲ በመጣበት ጊዜ በደረሰበት ተቃውሞ ተደናግጦ “እኔ እኮ ለአቶ መለስ የዘፈንኩት ሰዎች አሳስተውኝ ነው” ሲል ተናገረ።

ነዋይ በነዋይ ይሳሳታል – ይህን አይተናል – ከአላሙዲ ፍራንክ ሲቀበል። ነዋይ በሴት ይታለላል – ለሚስቱ ተናገሮ ፈታዋለች። አላሙዲ ሊያስታርቁ ሲዊድን ድረስ ጠርተዋቸው የሆነውን ነገር ወደፊት እንጽፈዋለን። – ነዋይ በውዝግብ ላይ እንዳለ ደግሞ ወደ ኢትዮጵያ ሲሄድ ከተመከረው ምክር፤ እዛ ከሄደ በኋላ ባለማወቅ በሰራው ስህተት፤ መለስ ከሞቱ በኋላ በተሸወደው ሽወዳ (እሱ እንዳለው) አይተናል።

ግን አሁንስ?

ያኔ ሁለት ጣቱን ለቅንጅት በመቀሰሩ የተነሳ የመንግስት ጋዜጠኞች ባገኙት ቁጥር ካሁን ካሁን ታሰርኩ ብሎ የሚበረግገው ነዋይ ደበበ፤ ለመለስ ብትዘፍን ያዋጣኻል – “እሺ”፤ ለአባይ ቦንድ ግዢ ኮንሰርት ዱባይ ሂድ “እሺ”… “እሺ” ባይ አርቲስት ሆኖ ቀረ። ሚስቱ የክሊኒክ ማናጀር አድርጋ አሜሪካ አስቀምጣው እንዳልነበር በርሷ ላይ ሲቀማጠል ተራ ሆኖ አረፈው። አሁን ከሰሞኑ ደግሞ በገና በዓል ዝግጅት ላይ አገራችን በዴሞክራሲ መመንጠቋንና የዘንድሮውን ገና በደርግ ዘመን ከነበረው ልዩ የሚያደርገው የአሁኑ በዴሞክራሲያዊ ስርዓት መታጀቡ ስለመሆኑ ሲናገር እያየን ነው። አይ ነዋይ የአርቲስት ምሁርi እነ በቀለ ገርባ፣ እነ እስክንድር ነጋ፣ እነ አንዷለም አራጌ፣ ላሊሴ ኦልባና፣ ርዕዮት አለሙ የታሰሩት ዴሞክራሲ ስላለ ነው? ለነገሩ ነዋይ ካሳሳተው ነዋይ ምን ይጠበቃል?

እንደ ሙያ አጋሮቹ ገለጻ ከሆነ ነዋይን ወሰድ መለስ የሚያደርገው የአእምሮ መወዛገብ ከፍርሃት፣ ከፍቺና የሚጠብቅን ዝና ካለማግኘት ጋር የተይያዘው የአእምሮ ጭንቀት ነው።

ESAT HUMAN RIGHT EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY THE MASSACRE OF BEDENO 1992 ETHIOPIA

እኛና እነሱ /ዝቅ በል/ !

በአለም ላይ ካሉ ሃገሮች ውስጥ ስልጣን የሌለበት ሃገር ቢኖር ወይም ባለስልጣኑ ህዝብ የሆነበት ሃገር ቢኖር ሳላጋንን ኖርዎይ የምትባለው ሃገር ናት ማለት እችላለሁ፥፥ በግልፅ ህዝቡ የሚፈልገውን፥ ያስተዳድረኝ እገዛለታለሁ ብሎ አምኖ ድምፁን የሚሰጥለት መሪ፥፥ መሪውም ከልቡ እራሱን ዝቅ አርጎ ለሃገሩ፥ ለወገኑ የሚሰራበት ሃገር፥፣ ህገመንግስቱ ወይም በኖርዌጅያኑ አጠራር /GrunnLov/ ለሁሉም እኩል የሚሰራና ተፈፃሚ የሚሆን፥፥

በቃ ዋናው ነገር ህገመንግስቱን አትንካ ነው፥፥

አስታውሳለሁ በአንድ ወቅት የአለም መንግስታት ተባብረው ቢንላዲንን ለመደብደብ ብለው አፍጋኒስታንን በሚደበድቡበት ወቅት የኖርዎይ የውጭ ጉዳይ ሚኒስቴር ለተለያየ የስራ ጉዳይ በሚል በብዛት ወደ አፍጋኒስታን ይመላለሱ ነበርና እዛም ሲመላለሱ በአፍጋኒስታኖቹ ባህል ስጦታ የተለመሰ ነገር በመሆኑ ለካ አቶ የውጭ ጉዳይ ሚኒስቴርዬ አንድ ምንጣፍ በስጦታ አጊንተው ሲመለሱ ስጦታው ወደድ ያለ ሆኖ እያለ ለኖርዌጂያን ግብር ስብሳቢ ቢሮ ወይንም /tax Administration/ ማስመዝገብ ሲገባቸው ዘንግተውት በኖርዎይ ትልቅ መነጋገሪያ ርእስ ሆኖ ሚዲያዎች ቁም ስቅላቸውን ሲያበሉአቸው ነበር፥ እንዲሁም ባንድ ወቅት የትራንስፖርት ሚኒስትርዋ በአንድ ወቅት አነስተኛ መርከብ ለመመረቅ ተጋብዘው በሄዱበት ወቅት ከአንድ ባለሃብት የእጅ ሰንሰለት የወርቅ በስጦታ አጊንተው እሳቸውም ዋጋው ውድ መሆኑን በለመረዳት ይመስላል ሳያስመዘግቡ በመቅረታቸው ሚዲያዎች ነገሩን ይደርሱበትና ካራገቡት በኋላ ታክስ አስቆርጠውባቸዋል ሚኒስቴርዋም ስጦታውን በመቀበላቸው እንደተፀፀቱ ለህዝባቸው ተናግረዋል፥፥

አሁን ግን ይህችን አጭር ፅሁፍ ለመፃፍ ያነሳሳኝ ከዚሁ ከኖርዎይ ሳልወጣ በዚህ በፈረንጆች ገና ዋዜማ በኖርዎይ ውስጥ ተሆነውን በሃገራችን ህልም ሳይሆን ቅዠት ወደሆነብኝ ነገር ልውሰዳችሁ፥፥

ከሶስት ወር በፊት በሴፕቴምበር 2013 በኖርዎይ በተደረገው የጠቅላይ ሚኒስቴር ምርጫ ተሸንፈው ስለጣናቸውን ያስረከቡት በኖርዎይ ምናልባትም ቁጥር አንድ ተወዳጅ ናቸው የሚባልላቸው የንስ ስቶልተንበርግ እንደውም ለምርጫው ጊዜ ታክሲ ሾፌር ሆነው ቅስቀሳ ሲያረጉ በነበረበት ጊዜ በኢሳት፥ በቢቢሲ የተዘገበላቸው http://ethsat.com/video/esat-kignet-taxi-shofieru-prime-minister/  የነበሩት ጠቅላይ ሚኒስቴር ለአሁኑ ገና በአል ዋዜማ ስራ ከለቀቁ በኋላ የመጀመርያ ስራቸው ያረጉት የገና ዛፍ መሸጥ ነበር፥፥

ዜናውን ሳየው ብዙም አልደነገጥኩም፥ ግን ቅናት አደረብኝ እንደውም ተስፋ ነው የቆረጥኩት፥፥

ሰውዬው እንዳልኩት በአንድ ወቅት በተለይ ኢኮኖሚ ክራይስስ ተብሎ አውሮፓውያኑ እየተጨናነቁ በነበረበት ወቅት ሃገራቸውን በብቃት ችግሩ ባጠገቧም ሳይደርስ ስላሳለፉት የሃገሪቷ ቁጥር አንድ ተወዳጅ ሰው ከንጉሱም በላይ ተብሎ ሚዲያ ላይ ወቶ እንደነበር አስታውሳለሁ፥ ሃብታም ናቸው፥ እውቀት አላቸው በነገራችን ላይ አባታቸውም የኖርዎይ ጠቅላይሚኒስቴር ሆነው አገልግለዋል፥፥ 

ብቻ ለማጠቃለል ያህል ሰዎቹ ከራሳቸው በላይ የሚያስቀድሙት ብዙ ነገር ዓላቸው፥ ህዝባቸው፥ ሃገራቸው፥ አላማቸው፥ ግባቸው፥ ሌላም ሌላም

እንግዲህ እስካሁን ስለ እነሱ ነው ያወራሁት ግን እኛስ？

እኛ ማን ነን？

ለምንድነው የምንታገለው？

ለማን ነው የምንታገለው？

ምንድነው አላማችንና ግባችን？

ወደኛ ሲመጣ ይህ ጥያቄ ለሁላችን በግለሰብ ደረጃ መልስ ሊያገኝ የሚገባው ጥያቄ ይመስለኛል፥፥ 

ዝቅ እንበል！

እግዚአብሔር ኢትዮጵያን ይባርክ！

Mandela in Ethopia

Ephrem Madebo defending the role of Atse Menelik

BBC - A teacher in Ethiopia has died after setting fire to himself

DEDICATED TO ETHIOPIAN IMMIGRANT - Shambel belayneh Wegenea teteka

Nelson Mandela Arrived in Addis To thank OAU and Ethiopia for their h...

"The Ethiopian Gov. Is Part Of The Problem" -Abebe Gellaw

Ethiopian Journalist, Abebe Gellaw joined SaharaTV’s Adeola Fayehun to explain the ongoing deportation of Ethiopians in Saudi Arabia. Gellaw, an exiled journalist and founder of Addis Voice stated that “There are over 30,000 Ethiopians held in concentration camps [in Saudi Arabia],” said Gellaw. He also noted that those in concentration camps rarely receive food and medical help. According to Gellaw, “The Ethiopian Government is part of the problem.” Because of oppressive living conditions in Ethiopia “The people of Ethiopia go to Saudi Arabia for better opportunities but unfortunately that hasn’t been the case,”said Gellaw. In efforts to expose this situation, Gellaw says he and other protestors are appealing to the international community.

የታምራት ላይኔ ፀፀቶች Tamrat Layne on SBS Radio

[Must Watch Full Video] Who Will Forget These Ethiopians Voices From Sau...

በኢትዮጵያ ህዝብ ላይ እየደረሰ ያለው መከራ፥ ስቃይ፥ እንግልት፥ ድብደባ፥ እስራት፥ ግድድያ፥ እና ስደት ገደቡን አልፏል፥፥ ይሁን እንጂ እኛ ኢትዮጵያውያን ይሄንን ሁሉ በደልእያየን እንዳላየን፥ በወገን ላይ በሚደርስ በደል ከንፈር ከመምጠጥ ያለፈ መንም አለመቆርቆራችንለምንድን ነው?

ሁላችንም እንኳን በወገን ላይ ለሚደርስ መከራ አደለም በራሳችንም ላይ ለሚደርስ መከራ ለበጎነው ብለን ከማለፍ ውጪ ፈቀቅ ያለ የተግባር ስራ ማረግ አለመቻላችን ከማሳዘን አልፎ አሳፋሪ ሰዎች እየሆንን መተናል፥፥

በተለይ በውጭ ሃገር የምንኖር ኢትዮጵያውያን በምንኖርባቸው አገራት ያለውን ለሰው ልጅ የሚሰጠውን ክብር እያየን፥ የሰው ልጅ የነፃነት መብት፥ የመናገር መብት እያየን እንኳን ይህ መብት ለኛ ለኢትዮጵያውያን እንደማይገባን ያህል ማሰባችን ያስገርማል፥፥

በቃ ህልማችን ሁሉ ውጭ ሃገር መተን የሰው አገር ባሪያ ሆኖ ለመቅረት የወሰንን ይመስላል፥፥ 

የሚገርመው ነገር ግን በአረብ ሃገር በኢውሮፕ እንዲሁም በአሜሪካም ጭምር ከሰው በታች ሆነን መኖራችን ነው፥፥

እንነሳ፥

እንነሳ፥

እንነሳ፥!

Jacky Gosee - Hememen Bezema - Ethiopian Music

STOP VIOLENCE AGAINST ETHIOPIANS IN SAUDI ARABIA!!!!

SMNE Calls for Strong Measures from the International Community, Donors and International Investors in Confronting Official Corruption in Ethiopia

November 9, 2013

Press Release
Washington, DC, November 4, 2013

The Government of Ethiopia is broadly soliciting for development aid, foreign-based business partnerships and financial investors; yet, the unpopular ruling party has been accused of abuse of state power, misuse of donor funds, widespread party-run business monopolies, illicit financial practices and endemic corruption. It is time to demand accountability from all involved and concerned.

The Solidarity Movement for a New Ethiopia (SMNE) is a non-political and non-violent social justice movement of diverse people that advocates for freedom, justice, good governance and upholding the civil, human and economic rights of the people of Ethiopia, without regard to ethnicity, religion, political affiliation or other differences. The SMNE believes a more open, transparent and competitive market economy, supported by viable institutions and reasonable protections, which provides equal opportunity, will result in greater prosperity to the people rather than keeping it in the hands of a few political elites. 

We strongly contend that Ethiopia will not emerge as a dependable global economic partner until the corrupt and illegal practices of the current one-party regime’s monopoly end and existing blocks of entry to non-party members are lifted. We also believe the global business community as well as donors to Ethiopia can contribute by coming alongside Ethiopians in the push for meaningful reforms. Such reforms would include greater transparency and an opening up of economic space to the private sector, without which growth and development—beyond the benefit of the ruling party’s affiliates—will never be realized.

In light of this, the SMNE urges the international community, donor nations, charitable organizations, and the international financial and business community to make demands on the Government of Ethiopia (GOE) for compliance with national and international laws. This must include holding companies affiliated or owned by members of the ruling party, including those businesses associated with their business conglomerate, Endowment Fund for the Rehabilitation of Tigray, (EFFORT), accountable. Additionally, measures should also strongly support restoring autonomy to independent institutions, the judiciary, and the Media and upholding the human and economic rights of the people.

Until these measures are taken, the SMNE urges these stakeholders in the international community to withhold investments, development financing and other forms of partnering with the regime and its cronies.

The ruling TPLF/EPRDF party has misused its state power and expenditures of foreign aid to corner the market through its companies and affiliates in all sectors of the economy. Illegal expropriation of land and public resources, corruption, illicit capital leakage and dubious allegiances riddle these secretive deals, putting prospective partners at high risk for future liability or other uncertain consequences. 

The Oakland Institute in its July 17, 2013 press release: “Development Aid to Ethiopia: Overlooking Violence, Marginalization, and Political Repression,” warned the international community on the dangers of unwitting complicity in creating this illegal monopoly of business and civil society that provides the Ethiopian regime development aid amounting to “an average [of] $3.5 billion a year, equivalent to 50 to 60% of Ethiopia’s national budget.”

Likewise, the international community and investors have largely ignored or, knowingly or unknowingly, become complicit with the pervasive corrupt practices of many of the 100’s of companies owned and operated by theTigrayan Peoples’ Liberation Front (TPLF) that dominates the ruling coalition government of the Ethiopian Peoples’ Democratic Republic Front (EPDRF).“Companies under the Endowment Fund for the Rehabilitation of Tigray, known as EFFORT, alone account for roughly half of the country’s modern economy”, according to an IPS report titled “Examining the Depths of Ethiopia’s Corruption.” The wife of the late Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, headed up the organization until only recently.

Bloomberg News, in its October 27, 2009 edition, reported “Guna Trading House Plc, owned by Ethiopia’s ruling party, said it plans to become one of the nation’s biggest coffee exporters, raising concern among industry observers that private industry may get crowded out.

The report quotes the late prime minister regarding the company’s plans to expand in the industry. ‘We are intending to export to Europe, the U.S. and China,’ he said. Guna is among at least four other companies owned by the state or Prime Minister Meles Zenawi’sruling party.”

Coffee Plantation Development Enterprise, Dinsho Trading P.L.C and Ambasel Trading House P.L.C. are among coffee exporters under the ownership of the ruling party that has been able to obtain favored treatment from public agencies and enterprises due to the regime’s control of these government agencies that should otherwise be holding them accountable. Companies that fall out of line can suddenly fall under the scrutiny of these agencies. As a result, those associated with the ruling party are able to dominate key industries, including the export of commodities. See some of the morevisible companies and less visible, like Wogagen Bank, Sheba Tannery P.L.C., Ambasel Trading House P.L.C., and many more companies owned by the ruling party.

Another company within EFFORT’s group is Almeda Textile Factory. According to the company, it is the biggest textile factory in Ethiopia. It is one of the major exporters of textile products to the US market. The company has had help in achieving this position through assistance from US government agencies, made available through the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Additionally, according to the United States Agency for International Development‘s News, they report giving technical assistance to Almeda Textile Factory through the USAID East Africa Competitiveness and Trade Expansion Program (COMPETE). They also sponsored the company in an exhibit at the MAGIC Apparel Trade Show in August 2009.

Essentially, the US government agency admittedly supported this Ethiopian ruling party-owned company in its exports into the US market, also allowing Almeda AGOA’s duty free import privilege, something that was intended for independent businesses. This is in direct violation of US anti-corruption laws.

Another ruling party-owned company, Addis Pharmaceutical Factory, which dominates the local market, claims to be the largest pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in Ethiopia. According to the company, it manufactures “analgesics, anti-acids, antibiotics, anti-malarias, anti-asthmatics, amoebicides, anthelmenics, cough syrups and vitamin preparations.” Addis Pharmaceutical allegedly benefits from the expenditure of health funding from development agencies.  

The international community, including development agencies, charitable organizations and investors, often have ignored the implication of associating with the ruling party’s owned companies. This is contrary to the public interest and is in violation of international laws and regulations against corruption.

For example, in a press release on the appointment of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s first official representative in Ethiopia, the co-chair, Melinda Gates, said, “We invest more than half of our resources in Africa, and we want to build closer and more effective relationships with valued partners on the ground.”   

According to the Foundation, “Ethiopia is an important focus country for the foundation, which currently provides more than USD $265 million in funding to partner organizations that are operating health and development programs across the nation.” 

In Ethiopia, ruling party controlled organizations and businesses are nearly the only partners possible, creating an oligarchy similar to what has happened in Russia and other countries in Africa where totalitarian governments and their cronies pillage the economy and resources to their own advantage and without regard to the people.

What appears to be negligence and a lack of doing due diligence on the part of the foreign aid community and investors, including the UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG), the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, USAID, among many other agencies and investors, unfortunately contributes to making it possible for the ruling party and its affiliated companies to involve themselves in all kinds of shadow businesses while eroding the prospects for viable independent businesses to emerge and survive. 

As a result, in the last decade the number of parallel shadow business enterprises associated with the ruling party and affiliates have mushroomed in every sector of the economy while at the same time the international community has poured in billions of dollars in development aid and investment without appearing to question the ruling party’s extensive involvement in business and trade. 

Global Advice Network on its Business Anti-Corruption portal concludes in the profile on Ethiopia: “The [Ethiopian] government strategy is clearly top-down, dominating anti-corruption institutions, the anti-corruption debate, and the formulation of anti-corruption policy. Despite the introduction of anti-corruption initiatives in previous years, including the Federal Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission (FEACC) in 2001, corruption remains widespread at many levels of government administration in the country.”

In the findings of the Bertelsmann Foundation 2012 Report , they assert: “Ethiopian society’s deeply ingrained clientelism does not foster a culture of accountability and transparency, has fostered cover-ups and non-enforcement of laws”. For example, they report: “Competition laws aimed at preventing monopolistic structures and conduct exist within some sectors, but are enforced inconsistently. A Competition Commission was established in 2006, and by the end of 2007 had reviewed some 23 cases. Although informally provided, the strongest complaints are against the government’s preferences for party-affiliated businesses; [however], only trade-related issues were investigated. The transportation sector, for example, is to a large extent in the hands of business people belonging to the para-party sector. There are a number of companies close to the government and the ruling party, which leads to a lack of transparency and [high levels of] corruption.”  

A World Bank 2012 report on Ethiopia reinforces the same, saying that “high-level corruption is widespread within the construction sector, and that it is dominated by the ruling party affiliated companies.” 

Reports alone cannot fully capture the enormity of the ruling party’s affiliated companies’ extensive involvement in all sectors of the economy due to the ruling party’s control of:

1. Public agencies such as: Ethiopian Rural Land Management Agency, Privatization Agency, Investment Commission, Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, Ethiopian Agriculture Transformation Agency, Ethiopian Grain Trade Enterprise, Development Bank of Ethiopia, The Federal Ethics and Corruption Commission, Information and Communication Technology Agency and others;
2. Trade institutions such as: Chambers of Commerce and Sectoral Associations, The Ethiopian Commodity Exchange, Ethiopian Coffee Exporters Association and farmers and trade union and associations;
3. Licensing and regulating of charitable organizations, which includes: The Ethiopian Charities & Civil Societies Agency (ECCA) and legislations severely limiting the kinds of activities—civic engagement important to healthy societies—that organizations are allowed to carry out if they receive more than 10% of their financing through foreign sources, rather than through government funding under the Charities and Societies Proclamation; resulting in the ruling regime’s operation of hundreds of charitable organizations, including the Tigray Development Association (TDA);
4. Public Media infrastructures, including Ethiotelecom, (the only internet provider in the country) ‎ View shared postand Ethiopian Broadcasting Authority  (the only shortwave Radio and Television broadcasters in the country), The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology http://www.mcit.gov.et/

The UNDP commissioned Global Financial Integrity Report: ‘Illicit Financial Flows from the Least Developed Countries: 1990-2008’, revealed that “approximately US$197 billion flowed out of the 48 poorest developing countries and into mainly developed countries, on a net basis over the period 1990-2008. Trade mispricing—when imports are overpriced and exports underpriced on custom documents—accounts for 65 percent of illicit financial flows.”

The report ranked Ethiopia among the top ten worst countries out of the forty-eight. As a recipient of the largest development aid in Sub-Sahara Africa, the international community has the obligation to hold the GOE and the ruling party owned business conglomerate and facilitating organization primarily responsible and accountable.

In light of these concerns, the SMNE calls on the international community, donor countries and organizations and financial institutions, investors or business partners, either prospective or established, to not ignore the overwhelming evidences of endemic corruption but to take strong measures to ameliorate the problem to the best of their ability through exposure, denial of services, investigations, criminal proceedings and remedial actions. Some of these actions should include:

• Demand that the ruling party disclose and dissolve all its business holdings built on public resources and foreign aid

• Demand that the ruling party affiliated charitable organizations’ including EFFORT Group, disclose their financial holdings to the public and cease operating charitable organizations
• Call for an independent investigation of the regime’s business and charitable activities
• Call for the immediate restoration of the independent Media, including allowing the international Media to operate freely in the country with full access to the public records
• Demand public disclosure of all records on foreign investment, including land contracts for the purpose of commercial farming as well as real-estate, mining and manufacturing

The SMNE urges the international community, donor nations and organizations, Ethiopian political parties, civic and religious organizations and the Media, at home and abroad, to pressure the international communityto:

• Not provide a blank check and diplomatic cover for the Government, the ruling party and its affiliated companies
• Require meaningful conditions be met as part of receiving development aid and diplomatic support
• Closely monitor the misuse of military and security assistance they or others have provided that has helped the ruling party gain control of the ways and means of the economy
• Open an investigation on crimes of corruption and money laundering on the part of the ruling party’s affiliated companies, officials, and family members residing inside or outside of the country, in their respective jurisdictions abroad
• Close any access for the ruling party affiliated companies that do business in the international markets until compliance with international and national laws are followed.

The SMNE and partners advise all concerned organizations to use established laws, agreements and protocols, where possible, to compel the ruling party to abide by international and regional conventions and protocols as well as to follow all applicable laws and regulations on corruption both nationally and internationally. 

TPDM TV AMHARIC interview with tegay mola asgedom chair man of TPDM 30-10-13 PART-1-

የወያኔ ሰራዊት እየተዳከመ ነው:: ( SEE VIDEO 3 PARTS )


የኢትዮጵያ መከላከያ ሰራዊት ማለት የሃገራችን ኢትዮጵያ መከላከያ ሰራዊት ሳይሆን ያለው የስርኣቱ (የኢህኣዴግ) ሰራዊት ሁኖ ነው ያለው፣ የሃገር መከላከያ ሊሆን የሚችለው የኣገሩን ደንበር ጣባቂ ኣስከባሪ፤ የህዝቡን መብት ጠባቂ፤ ለህገ-መንግስቱ ተገዢና የኣንድ ፓርቲ ጥገኛ ያልሆነ ነው፣ የኢትዮጵያ መከላከያ ሰራዊት ግን የወያኔ ሰራዊት ነው፣ በሌላ ደግሞ ሰራዊቱ እየተዳከመ ነው፣
የመዳከሙ ውጤትም ወደ 2 ፤ 3 የሚጠጉ ክ/ጦሮች ወደ ሌላ ክ/ጦሮች ተበትንዋል፣ እኛ የምናውቋቸው ክ/ጦሮች እኳ 19ኛ፤ 35ኛ፤ 12ኛ የመሳሰሉ ክ/ጦሮች ኣሁን ወደ ሌላ ክ/ጦሮች ተበውዘዋል፣ የዚህ ምክንያት ደግሞ በጣም ብዙ የሚባሉ ከሻለቃ በላይ የነበሩ ኣመራሮች ከመከላከያ ተባርረዋል፣ ሌላው ምክንያት ደግሞ በመከላከያ ውስጥ መክዳት ብቻ ሳይሆን ትልቁ ነጥብ እርስ በርስ መተማመን የለም፣ በቅርብ ግዜ ራሳቸው ያጠፉ የሻለቃ ኣመራሮችም ኣሉ፣

ህወሓት ሊወድቅ የሚችለው የህዝብ ትግል ሲፋፋም ብቻ ነው፣ የህወሓት ኣመራሮች ቢሰናጠቁ ኣንዱ ተባርሮ ኣንዱ ታስሮ እንዲህ በንዲህ እያለ ህወሓት በደከመ ሁኔታ በስልጣን ይቆያል፣ ከስልጣን ለማስወገድ ዋነኛው ኣማራጭ ግን መታገል ነው፣

PART ONE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rpDvX1nOg4
PART TWO http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIZ9QYBKPoA
PART THREE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_tRnLUbRYo

Nelson Mandela escaped assassination in Ethiopia

A Retired Ethiopian Police Officer, Commander Gudeta Dinka, Relates the Plot to Assassinate Nelson Mandela in Addis Ababa.  Nelson Mandela is known to have taken military training in Ethiopia as part of a support he was getting for his Anti Apartheid struggle. Former Ethiopian Police Officer, Commander Gudeta Dinka, has said to the local radio station in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, that once he was asked to kill the then military trainee, Nelson Mandela.  Gudeta Dinka, 76, was a police officer under the command of General Tadesse (A top military officer, then colonel, who was appointed by the Emperor himself for the training and safety of Mandela). The retired officer told the radio station that it was only four people; General Tadesse, Colonel Fekadu, Commander Fekade and he were allowed to a tight section in the Kolfe Police Academy where Mandela stayed and took training.  Mandela used to leave the window open at night; the commander remembers. He said that as he was one of those in charge of Mandela’s safety, once he was contacted by a police officer to discuss on a very serious matter. When they met at Taitu Hotel, Commander Guta relates that the officer gave him 2,000 pounds and offered him to strangle Mandela.  The commander remarked that the officer offered a lot more money for both of them and a safe way out of the country if he killed Mandela. “Finish him and when you leave the compound a car will be waiting for pickup. Two chances are before us. We shouldn’t miss them…” said the officer to commander Guta, as he remembered the incident.  “I acted as if I have agreed, and then I told about the plot to General Tadesse. The plot held in great secrecy and those people behind the plot got identified and then banished from the country” said the retired police officer, Commander Guta Dinka. Source: http://www.diretube.com/articles/read-nelson-mandela-escaped-assassination-in-ethiopia_3789.html

Ethiopian Election 2010 - 3rd Round Political Party's Debate - Part 7

Confrontation with Meles Zenawi on Amhara Ethnic Cleansing:14 years ago

Wikileaks Ethiopia Files; Ethiopia Bombs Itself, blames Eritrea, Oromos 2006, 2011?

By Thomas C. Mountain

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]...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), contacted Post to report that” the bodies of three men found at the bomb sites were “men [who] 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 the only independent western journalist in the Horn of Africa, living and reporting from Eritrea since 2006. He can be reached at thomascmountain at yahoo dot com.

Source: http://www.modernghana.com/news/350917/1/wikileaks-ethiopia-files-ethiopia-bombs-itself-bla.html

Sebhat Nega and his bodyguards attacking peacef...

Sebhat Nega and his bodyguards attacking peaceful Ethiopian activists in DC

Ginbot 7 Popular Force Fundraising Event in Oslo Sep. 28, 2013