ከምዕራብ ወለጋ የተፈናቀሉ እና አሁንም በአካባቢው ያሉ ዜጎች ፍትህ ማጣታቸውን ተናገሩ

ሰኔ ፲፩(አስራ አንድ)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-የአሜሪካ ድምጽ ራዲዮ ከምእራብ ወለጋ ዞን ጊምቢና ከቄለም ወለጋ ዞን የተፈናቀሉ አማርኛ ተናጋሪ ኢትዮጵያውያንን በተመለከተ ያቀረበውን ዘገባ ተከትሎ ኢሳት ከጊምቢ በታች በሚገኘው አሹ ቀበሌ ነዋሪ የሆኑትን እንዲሁም ተፈናቅለው ባህርዳር ከሚገኙት መካከል አንዳንዶቹን አነጋግሮ እንደተረዳው ፍትህ አጥተው የሚሰቃዩ ወገኖች በብዙ መቶዎች ይቆጠራል።

አሹ ቀበሌ ውስጥ የሚኖረው በንግድ ስራ የሚተዳደረው ወጣት እንደተናገረው ወንድሙ አካባቢውን ለቆ ባህርዳር ቢገባም፣ እርሱና ቤተሰቡ ግን ለመውጣት አልቻሉም። ” መውጣት መግባት አልቻንልም፣ ንብረት ተቃጥሎአል፣ ሰዎችም ተገድለዋል” የሚለው ወጣቱ፣ የአካባቢው ባለስልጣናት እጅ አለበት ብሎ እንደሚያምን ገልጿል። ድርጊቱን የሚፈጽሙትን ወጣቶች የሚያደራጁት ልዩ ሃይሎች፣ ፖሊሶችና ባለስልጣኖች መሆናቸውን ከድርጊታቸው መረዳት ይችላል ብሎአል

ተፈናቅለው ባህርዳር ከሚገኙት መካከል  ስሙ እንዳይጠቀስ የፈለገው ኢትዮጵያዊ ደግሞ ፖሊሶች ልበሳቸውን ቀይረው እየመጡ ድርጊቱን የሚፈጽሙትን እንደሚያበረታቱዋቸው ገልጿል

የአማራ ክልል ፕሬዚዳንት አቶ ገዱ አንዳርጋቸው ተፈናቃዮችን ቢያነጋገሩዋቸውም፣ ምንም አይነት መፍትሄ ሊሰጡዋቸው አለመቻላቸውን ተፈናቃዮች ተናግረዋል ጉዳዩን በማስመልከት ጥያቄ ያቀረብንላቸው የመኢአድ የሰሜን ቀጠና ሃለፊ ኢንጂነር ሽፈራው ዋሌ የክልሉ መንግስት ሰዎቹን በአድማ በታኝ ፖሊስ ከመስተዳድሩ አካባቢ እንዲርቁ ማድረጉን ገልጸዋል

ተፈናቅለው ወደ ባህርዳር ከመጡት መካከል አብዛኞቹ ሴቶችና ህጻናት መሆናቸውንም ኢ/ር ሽፈራው ገልጸዋል

በጉዳዩ ዙሪያ የአማራ ክልል እና የኦሮምያ ክልል ባለስልጣኖችን ለማነጋገር የተደረገው ሙከራ አልተሳካም። ይሁን እንጅ የኦሮምያ  የኮሚኒኬሽን ቢሮ ሃላፊ የሆኑት ወ/ሮ ራብያ ኢሳ ተፈናቃዮቹ መቶ የማይሞሉ መሆናቸውን ገልጸው ፣ አንድ የኦሮሞ ብሄር ተወላጅ እና 2 የሌሎች ብሄር ተወላጆች መሞታቸውን ገልጸው መንግስት ሌሎችም እንዳይፈናቀሉ፣ የተፈናቀሉትም እንደሚለሱ የአማራ ክልልና የኦሮምያ ክልሎች በጋራ እየሰሩ መሆኑን ገልጸዋል

አንድነት ፓርቲ በአዋሳ ለሚያደርገው የተቃውሞ ሰልፍ ችግር እንደገጠመው ታወቀ

ሰኔ ፲፩(አስራ አንድ)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-በመጪው እሁድ በአዋሳ የሚካሄደውን የተቃውሞ ሰልፍ ተከትሎ በቅስቀሳ ላይ የሚገኘው አንድነት፣ ሶሰትአባሎቹ እንደታሰሩበት አስታውቛል።

አዲስ አበባ መስተዳድር የህዝብ ግንኙነት ሃላፊ አቶ ያሬድ አማረ በቅስቀሳ ላይ የነበሩ 3 ሰዎች መያዛቸውን ገልጸዋል።

መስተዳድሩ የሰላማዊ ሰልፍ እውቅና ለመስጠት በሂደት ላይ በመሆኑ መቀስቀስ አትችሉም መባላቸውን የገለጹት አቶ ያሬድ፣ የእውቅና ጥያቄ ካስገቡ አንድ ወር ሞላቸው በመሆኑ በመስተዳድሩ የቀረበውን ምክንያት እንደማይቀበሉት ተናግረዋል።

የመስተዳድሩ ባለስልጣናት አዋሳ ከተማ ውስጥ የድምጽ ማጉያ  መጠቀም አይቻልም የሚል አቋም እንዳላቸው የገለጹት አቶ ያሬድ፣ ሰልፉን እሁድ እንደሚያካሂዱ በእርግጠኝነት ገልጸዋል።

አንድነት “የሚሊዮኖች ድምጽ ለመሬት ባለቤትነት” በሚል አላማ ሰልፉን የሚካሂድ ሲሆን፣ በኦሮምያ መንግስት የወሰደውን እርምጃ፣ በክልሉ ከማንነት ጋር በተያያዘ እየተፈጸመ ያለውን ግፍ፣ የሙስና መበራከትና ሌሎችም ጉዳዮች አንስቶ ያወግዛል።

መድረክ በቅርቡ በአዋሳ የተቃውሞ ሰልፍ ማድረጉ ይታወሳል።

አዲሱ የጉምሩክ ረቂቅ አዋጅ ለገቢዎችና ጉምሩክ ባለስልጣን ዋና ዳይሬክተር በፍርቤቶች ሊወሰን የሚገባ ጉዳዮችን እንዲወስን የተለ የመብት መስጠቱ አነጋጋሪሆነ፡፡

ሰኔ ፲፩(አስራ አንድ)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-ረቂቅ አዋጁ ሰሞኑን ለፓርላማው የቀረበ ሲሆን በዚሁ አዋጅ በዋና ዳይሬክተሩ ውሳኔ ብቻ ክስ የማይመሰረትባቸው ድንጋጌዎች ማካተቱ በፓርላማ አባላቱ ዘንድ ጥያቄ አስነስቷል፡፡

ረቂቅአዋጁ “ለሕዝብጥቅምሲባል በዋና ዳይሬክተሩ ውሳኔ ክስ የማይመሰረትባቸው አዲስ ሁኔታዎች በሚል ከዘረዘራቸው ውስጥ ወንጀል ፈጽሞአል የተባለ ሰው በዕድሜ መጃጀት ወይም በበሽታ ምክንያት ጉዳዩን በፍርድ ቤት መከታተል የማይችል ሲሆን ፣ጉዳዩ በክስሒደትውስጥቢያልፍብሔራዊደህንነትንወይምዓለምአቀፍግንኙነትንይጎዳልተብሎሲታመን፣የክሱመመስረትተመጣጣኝናሚዛናዊያልሆነየጎንዮሽጉዳትየሚያስከትልመሆኑከታመነበት፣ወንጀሉስልጣንላለውፍርድቤትሳይቀርብበመቆየቱአስፈላጊነትያጣከሆነ ክስ እንዳይመሰረትዋና ዳይሬክተሩ ሊወስን እንደሚችል ደንግጎጓል፡፡

እነዚህ ድንጋጌዎች የፍርድ ቤቶች ሰልጣን እንጂ የአንድ መ/ቤት ሃላፊ ወይም ዋና ዳይሬክተር ስልጣን እንደማይሆን በመጥቀስ ድንጋጌዎቹ ለሙስናና ብልሹ አሰራር ቀዳዳ የሚከፍቱ ጭምር በመሆናቸው እንዲሻሻሉ አንዳንድ ፓርላማ አባላት ጠይቀዋል፡፡

በተለይየአንድሰውየዕድሜመጃጀትምሆነጉዳዩንበፍርድቤትቀርቦመከታተልአለመቻል የሕክምናማስረጃጭምርየሚፈልግጉዳይመሆኑንበመጥቀስይህጉዳይበዋናዳይሬክተሩውሳኔእንዲሰጥበትየተፈለገበትምክንያትግልጽአለመሆኑአስተያየትተሰጥቶበታል፡፡

ይህአዲስአዋጅጥፋቶችተፈጽመውበሚገኙበትጊዜአጥፊውንሁሉበቁጥጥርስርበማዋልጉዳዩለፍርድቤትቀርቦውሳኔእስኪያገኝሰዎችለእንግልትናእስርየሚዳረጉበትሁኔታንለማስቀረትአዋጁንበመተላለፍየሚፈጸሙጥፋቶችእንደክብደታቸውመጠንበአስተዳደራዊእናበእስርናበገንዘብቅጣትየሚታይበትሁኔታማካተቱእንደበጎጎንታይቶአል፡፡አዋጁለሚመለከተውቋሚኮምቴተመራሲሆንከሰኔ 30 በፊትይጸድቃልተብሎይገመታል፡፡

ሌ/ጄኔራል ዮሃንስ የጁባ የሰላም አስከባ ሃይል አዛዥ ሆኑ

ሰኔ ፲፩(አስራ አንድ)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-የተባበሩት መንግስታት ድርጅት የሰላም አስከባሪ ሃይል በአብየ አዛዥ የሆኑት ሌ/ጄ/ዮሃንስ ገብረመስቀል በደቡብ ሱዳን የሚመሰረተውን የሽግግር መንግስት ሂደት እንዲመሩ ተሹመዋል። ከ100 ያላነሱ ወታደሮች ደቡብ ሱዳን የገቡ ሲሆን፣ አዛዡም ጁባ መግባታቸው ታውቓል።

ጄ/ል ዮሃንስ በወር ከ20 ሺ የአሜሪካ ዶላር በላይ  እንደሚከፈላቸው የውስጥ ምንጮች ለኢሳት ገልጸዋል። በአዲስ አበባ በተፈረመው የሰላም ስምምነት መሰረት በደቡብ ሱዳን አዲስ የሽግግር መንግስት ይመሰረታል።

በኢትዮጵያ 34 ድርጅቶች ጤፍ ወደ ውጭ በመላክ ላይ ናቸው

ሰኔ ፲፩(አስራ አንድ)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-ከመንግስት የተገኘው መረጃ እንደሚያመለክተው የመንግስቱን የእርሻ ሰብል ድርጅት ጨምሮ 34 የንግድ ድርጅቶች ጤፍ ወደ ውጭ አገር በመላክ ላይ ናቸው።

መንግስት በአገሪቱ የጤፍ ምርት እጥረት ማጋጠሙን ተከትሎ ጤፍ ወደ ውጭ እንዳይወጣ አግዶ የነበረ ሲሆን እገዳውን ከ ግንቦት ወር 2005 ጀምሮ  አንስቷል።

አንድ ኩንታል ጤፍ በአዲስ አበባ ከ1800 እስከ 2000 ብር በመሸጥ ላይ ይገኛል።

በእነማይ ወረዳ የመኢአድ አባላት እየተዋከቡ ነው።

ሰኔ ፲(አስር)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-በምስራቅጎጃም ዞን  በነማይወረዳደንጎሊማቀበሌ የሚኖሩት አቶሞሳአዳነቅዳሜሰኔ 7 ቀን በኢህአዴግ ታጣቂዎች ከተገደሉ በሁዋላ ሌሎችም አባሎች እየተዋከቡ መሆኑን የወረዳው የመኢአድ ተወካይ መቶ አለቃ ደመላሽ ጌትነት ተናግረዋል።

ግለሰቡ ገበያ ውሎ ሲመለስ አዲሱ ጫኔ እና ብርሃኑ ታምሩ የተባሉ ካድሬዎች መንገድ ላይ አስቁመው በዱላ ደብድበው እንደገደሉት የሟቹ ወገን የሆኑትና በህይወትና በሞት መካከል ባለ ጊዜ ደርሰው ቃሉን የተቀበሉት አቶ ይልቃል የሻነው ተናግረዋል።

አቶ ይልቃል እርሳቸውንም ለመግደል ሙከራ በመደረጉ አካባቢውን ለቀው መሰደዳቸውን ገልጸዋል። ፖሊስ ምንም የተጨበጠ መልስ እንዳለስጣቸውም አክለዋል

አቶይበልጣልወንድሜነህ የተባሉ በደብረጥሞና ቀበሌ የሚኖሩት ሌላው የመኢአድ አባል ደግሞ  መሣሪያ ደብቀሃል በሚል ቤታቸው ተከቦ እንደሚገኝ ግለሰቡ ግን ማምለጣቸውን መቶ አለቃ ደመላሽ ተናግረዋል።

በጉዳዩ ዙሪያ የወረዳውን ባለስልጣናት ለማነጋገር ያደረግነው ሙከራ አልተሳካም።

ለመለስ ፋውንዴሽን ማሰሪያ እየተባለ በግዴታ የሚዋጣው ገንዘብ ፋውንዴሽኑን ለመስራት ከሚፈልገው በእጅጉ እንደሚልቅ ታወቀ

ሰኔ ፲(አስር)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-ለመለስ ዜናዊ ፋውንዴሽን በሚል በአገሪቱ ያሉ ወረዳዎች እያንዳንዳቸው በአማካኝ ከ17 እስከ 25 ሚሊዮን ብር ከህዝብ እንዲሰበስቡ ቢታዘዙም የሚዋጣው ገንዘብ ፋውንዴሽኑን ለመስራት ከሚፈለገው 300 ሚሊዮን ብር በላይ መሆኑን የሚናገሩት ምንጮች ትርፉ ገንዘብ የት እንደሚገባ እንደማይታወቅ ጠቁመዋል።

በአማራ ክልል  106 ወረዳዎች ያሉ ሲሆን ለፋውንዴሽኑ ማሰሪያ 2 ቢሊዮን 600 ሚሊዮን ብር ያላነሰ ገንዘብ ይሰበሰባል። በኦሮምያ ደግሞ ከ205 በላይ ወረዳዎች ሲኖሩ ከ4 ቢሊዮን ብር በላይ ይሰበሰባል። በትግራይ ከ38 ወራዳዎች ከ600 ሚሊዮን ብር በላይ ፣ በደቡብ ከ500 ሚሊዮን ብር በላይ ሲዋጣ፣ በአዲስ አበባ የሚወጣው ደግሞ እስከ 2 ቢሊዮን ብር ይደርሳል። በመላ አገሪቱ  በሚገኙ ወረዳዎች ከ10 ቢሊዮን ብር በላይ የሚወጣ ሲሆን፣ ለፋውንዴሽኑ ከተበጀተው 300 ሚሊዮን ብር ውጭ ያለው ከ9 ቢሊዮን ብር በላይ ገንዘብ የት እንደሚገባ እንደማይታወቅና ቁጥጥር የሚያደርግ አካል አለመኖሩንም ምንጮች ገልጸዋል።

ደሃውበምግብውድነት: ነጋዴውበግብር አርሶአደሩ በማዳበሪያ እዳ እየተሰቃዩ ባለበት ጊዜ ይህን መክፈል አይቻልም በማለት ተቃውሞ ያስነሱ ሰዎች፣ ተቃውሞቸአውን የሚሰማቸው አካል አላገኙም። አንዳንድ  ዜጎች ገንዘብ የከፈሉበትን ደረሰኝ ለኢሳት በመላክ፣ ዝርፊያው እንዲቆም ህዝቡ ተቃውሞ እንዲያሰማ እየጠየቁ ነው።

የመለስ ፋውንዴሽን፣ የቀድሞውን ጠ/ሚ መለስ ዜናዊን የሚዘክሩ ስራዎችን የመስራት አላማ አለው። ፋውንዴሽኑ በህዝብ ፈቃድ እና ከመንግስት በሚሰጥ ገንዘብ ይሰራል ተብሎ ቢነገረም፣ ህዝቡ  ለማዋጣት ፈቃደኛ ባለመሆኑ በግዴታ እንዲያዋጣ እየተደረገ ነው። ከህዝብ ፈቃድ ውጭ የተሰራ ፋውንዴሽን ፣ ኢህአዴግ እስካለ ጊዜ ብቻ እንደሚቆይ የሚናገሩት አስተያየት ሰጪዎች፣ ፋወንዴሸኑ ከደሃው ኢትዮጵያዊ ገንዘብ መሰብሰቢያና ሃብት ማካበቻ መሆኑንም አክለዋል።

የዋስትና መብት የተነፈጉ ነጋዴዎች ፍርድ ቤት ቀረቡ

ሰኔ ፲(አስር)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-በሃረር በቅርቡ ከተነሳው ቃጠሎ ጋር በተያያዘ በእስር ላይ ከሚገኙት ከ20 በላይ ነጋዴዎችና ሰራተኞች መካከል ፍርድ ቤት የቀረቡት 3ቱ ተከሳሾች እንደገና ሌላ ቀጠሮ ተሰጥቷቸዋል።

የ25  አመቱ  ቢኒያም ጌታቸው፣ የ28 አመቱ ሲሳይ አሊ አህመድ እና የ16 አመቱ  ዙቤር  አህመድ  በ1996 ዓም የወጣውን የወንጀል ህግ በመተላለፍ ” በፌደራል ህገመንግስት የተቋቋመውን የሃረሪ ህዝብ ክልል መንግስት ፣ በዚህ ክልል መንግስት የተቋቋሙትን የአስፈጻሚ አካላትን የተለያዩ የመንግስት መስሪያ ቤት ሰራተኞች መስሪያ ቤቱ የእለት ተእለት ስራውን በተለይም የትራንስፖርት  መገናኛ ጽ/ቤት ባለስልጣን እና ሰራተኞች እንዲሁም የክልሉ ፖሊስ ሃይል አባላት የሃረር ብሀረሰብ እና ሰራተኞች በፌደራልና በክልል ህገመንግስት የተሰጣቸውን የማስተዳደር ስልጣን ለማደናቀፍ ተከሳሾች መጋቢት 1/2006 ዓም ከጠዋቱ ከ3፡00 እስከ 7 ሰአት ባለው ጊዜ በቀበሌ 14 ውስጥ በሚገኘው የትራንስፖርትና መገናኛ ጽ/ቤት እና ፊት ለፊቱ ባለው መንገድ ከ300 እስከ 500 የሚሆኑ ህወገወጥ ስለፈኞችን በመምራት በዛቻ፣ መንገድ በመዝጋት፣ ድንጋይ በመወርወር የመንግስት ሰራተኞች እና የክልሉ ነዋሪዎች ወደ እለት ስራዎች እንዳይሄዱ በመከላከል በመንገድ ትራንስፖርት መገናኛ ጽ/ቤት ላይ ግምቱ ከፍተኛ ጉዳት በማድረስ እና እንዲደርስ በማድረግ፣ አንድን ብሄረሰብ ነጥሎና ፖሊስን በመሳደብ፣ የመንገድ ትራንስፖርት መገናኛ ጽ/ቤት በእሳት ለማጋየት በሞመከር የክልሉን ሰንደቃላማ ከተሰቀለበት በማውረድ የመንግስትና የህዝብ ንብረት በማውደም የክልሉን ህገመንግስታዊ ተግባርን በማደናቀፍ ወንጀል” መከሰሳቸውን የክስ ቻርጁ ያመለክታል።

በተለይ አንደኛው ተከሳሽ ቢኒያም ጌታቸው የሃረሪ ክልልን ሰንደቃላማ በንቀት ከተሰቀለበት በማውረድና በማቃጠሉ የመንግስት ምልክት በመድፈር ወንጀል መከሰሱን የክስ ጃርጁ ያመለክታል።

ሶስቱም ተከሳሾች ” የሃረሪ ክልል ባለስልጣኖችን፣ ያሃረሪ ፖሊስን፣ የሃረሪ ብሄረሰብን ሌባ በማለት የሃሰት ወሬዎችን በመንዛት የፖለቲካና የዘር ጥላቻን በመቀስቀስ በፈጸሙት የሃሰት ወሬዎችን በማውራት ህዝብን በማነሳሳት ወንጀል መከሰሳቸውንም የክስ ቻርጁ ይዘረዝራል። ተከሳሾች በበኩላቸው የሃረሪን መንግስት እንጅ ህዝቡን አልተሳደብንም በሚል እየተከራከሩ ነው።

ፍርድ ቤቱ የዳኛ እጥረት አለብን በሚል ለሃምሌ 24 ቀጠሮ ሰጥቷል። በ20 ሰራተኞችና ነጋዴዎች ላይ የተመሰረተው ክስ ደግሞ ሰኔ 20 ቀን እንደሚታይ የደረሰን መረጃ ያመለክታል።

ቻርለስ ቴለር ወደ አፍሪካ ሄደው የእስር ጊዜያቸውን እንዲፈጽሙ ጠየቁ

ሰኔ ፲(አስር)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-የቀድሞው የላይቤሪያ መሪ ቻርለስ ቴለር በሴራሊዮን እኤአ ከ1991-2002 በነበረው የእርስ በርስ ጦርነት እጃቸው አለበት በሚል በሄግ ኔዘርላንድስ በተቋቋመው ልዩ ፍርድ ቤት  የ50 አመት እስር ተፈርዶባቸዋል።

የእስር ጊዜያቸውን በእንግሊዝ የሚያሳልፉት ቴለር፣ 15 ልጆቻቸውን በየጊዜው ለማየት ባለመቻላቸው ወደ ሩዋንዳ ተወስደው እንዲታሰሩ ጥያቄ አቅርበዋል።

ከቤተሰቦቻቸው እርቀው እንዲታሰሩ መደረጉ አለማቀፍ ህግን የሚጥስ መሆኑን የቴለር ጠበቆች ተናግረዋል። ይሁን እንጅ የእንግሊዝ መንግስት በጉዳዩ ዙሪያ የሰጠው አስተየያት የለም።

ቻልረስ ቴለር በሰሩት ወንጀል የተቀጡ የመጀመሪያው አፍሪካዊ መሪ ናቸው። በስልጣን ላይ ካሉት መሪዎች መካከል የሱዳኑ ጄኔራል አልበሽር በአለማቀፍ ፍርድ ቤት የሚፈለጉ ሲሆን፣ የኬንያው መሪ ኡሁሩ ኬንየታና ምክትላቸው ዊሊያም ሩቶም ጉዳያቸው ዘሄግ በሚገኘው ፍርድ ቤት እየታየ ነው።

በኦሮምያ የተነሳውን ተቃውሞ ተከትሎ ከታሰሩት መካከል አንዳንዶች ሲፈቱ ሌሎች ደግሞ ፍርድ አጥተው እየተሰቃዩ ነው

ሰኔ ፱(ዘጠኝ)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-ከአዲስ አበባ ማስተር ፕላን ጋር በተያያዘ በኦሮምያ ተነስቶ የነበረውን ተቃውሞ ተንተርሶ ከተያዙት በሺ ከሚቆጠሩ ወጣቶች መካከል የተወሰኑት ከእስር ሲለቀቁ፣ አብዛኞቹ አሁንም በእስር ላይ ይገኛሉ።

የክልሉ ወኪላችን እንደሚለው በወለጋ፣  በአንቦና አጎራባች ወረዳዎች የታሰሩ በርካታ ወጣቶች አሁንም ፍትህ አጥተው በእስር ላይ ሲሆኑ በቡራዩ ታስረው ከነበሩት መካከል 3ቱ ዛሬ በዋስ ተለቀዋል። ጋዲሳ ጉደታ፣ ቱፋ በክሩ እና ጉዲሳ ድሪባ የተባሉት ተከሳሾች ዛሬ ከእስር ሲለቀቁ፣ ዳውድ ሃሰን የተባለው ደግሞ ከሳሽ አጥቶ ወደ እስር ቤት እንደሚለስ ተደርጓል። የዞኑ ፍርድ ቤት የዳውድ ክስ አይመለከተኝም ያለ ሲሆን፣ የወረዳው ፍርድ ቤትም ክስ እንደማይመሰርትበት አስታውቋል። ዳውድ ፍትህ አጥቶ በእስር ቤት እንዲቆይ በመደረጉ በከፍተኛ ሁኔታ የስሜት መረበሽ አጋጥሞት እንደነበር ጉዳዩን በቅርበት የሚከታተሉ ሰዎች ለወኪላችን ገልጸውለታል።

በደዴሳና በአምቦ እስር ቤቶች የታሰሩ ወጣቶች አሁንም በፍትህ እጦት እየተሰቃዩ መሆኑን ወኪላችን አክሎ ገልጿል።

ይህ በእንዲህ እንዳለ የአዲስ አበባ መስተዳድር በከተማዋ አዲስ ማስተር ፕላን ዙሪያ ውሳኔ ሰጥቶ ወደ ተግባር ለመንቀሳቀስ አለመቻሉን የውስጥ ምንጮች ገልጸዋል።

እንደምንጮች ገለጻ ከፍተኛ ተቃውሞ ያስነሳውን የከተማዋን ካርታ ከመጪው ምርጫ በፊት  ተግባራዊ ማድረግ የአካባቢውን ህዝብ ቁጣ የሚቀሰቅስ በመሆኑ እስከ ምርጫ 2007 ጉዳዩን ላለማንሳት ሊወስን ይችላል።

የአዳዲሶቹ የስኳር ፋብሪካዎች ግንባታ መጓተቱትን መረጃዎች አመለከቱ

ሰኔ ፱(ዘጠኝ)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-አዳዲስ የስኳር ፋብሪካዎች ፕሮጀክቶችና የነባር የማስፋፊያ ፕሮጀክቶች የግንባታ ስራዎች አፈጻጸም እጅግ ደካማ መሆኑን ከገንዘብና ኢኮኖሚ ልማት ሚኒስቴር የተገኘ መረጃ ጠቁሟል።

ለዚህደካማአፈጻጸምሚኒስቴሩበዋንኛነት ያስቀመጠውምክንያትከስራውስፋትናውስብስብነትአንጻርያጋጠመውትልቅየማስፈጸምአቅምማነስነውብሏል፡፡በቀጣይዓመትበሚጠናቀቀውየመንግስትየዕድገትናየትራንስፎርሜሽንዕቅድየመጀመሪያዎቹሶስትዓመታትማለትምከ2003-2005 ኣ.ምየአዳዲስስኳርልማትፕሮጀክቶችየሚካሄዱትከዚህበፊትምንምየመሰረተልማትባልተዘረጋባቸውናለግንባታስራየሰለጠነየሰውኃይልበማይገኝባቸውአካባቢዎችበመሆኑበዕቅድዘመኑውስጥየመጀመሪያዎቹሁለትዓመታትማለትም 2003 እና 2004 የመንገድናሌሎችየአዋጪነትየጥናትስራዎችመከናወናቸውንመረጃውይጠቅሳል፡፡

በመሆኑምበእነዚህኣመታትለቀጣይስራመደላድልከመፍጠርባለፈተጠናቅቆ ወደምርትየገባፕሮጀክትአልነበረም፡፡ የነባርስኳርፋብሪካዎችየማስፋፊያፕሮጀክቶችየግንባታስራዎችመካከልየወንጂናየፊንጫስኳርፋብሪካዎችተጠናቅቀውበ2005 ኣ.ምወደስራየገቡሲሆንየተንዳሆስኳርፋብሪካበዚህዓመትወደስራእንደሚገባመረጃውይጠቅሳል፡፡

አዳዲሶቹስኳርፋብሪካዎችማለትምኩራዝ፣የጣናበለስእናወልቃትየመስኖመሰረተልማትግንባታ፣የመሬትዝግጅትናየሸንኮራአገዳተከላ፣የፋብሪካናየመኖሪያቤትግንባታዎችእየተከናወኑቢሆንምአፈጻጸማቸውበዝቅተኛደረጃላይእንደሚገኝተመልክቷል፡፡

በዚህምምክንያትፕሮጀክቶቹየዕድገትናየትራንስፎርሜሽንእቅዱ በሚጠናቀቅበትበቀጣይአንድኣመትጊዜያትእንደማይደርሱከወዲሁተረጋግጦአል፡፡

በአንድወቅትየስኳርኮርፖሬሽንዳይሬክተርየነበሩትአቶአባይጸሐዬየስኳርፋብሪካዎቹበዘርፉልምድ ባለመኖሩምክንያትየማስፈጸምአቅምማጋጠሙንአምነው  “እየተማርንበመስራትላይነን” በማለትበፓርላማመድረክያደረጉትንግግርበሃገርሐብትመቀለድነውበሚልከፍተኛትችትአስከትሎባቸውእንደነበርየሚታወስነው፡፡

በሌላ ዜና ደግሞ በውጭሃገርካሉኢትዮጵያዊያንእናመንግስታዊያልሆኑድርጅቶችአማካይነትወደ ሃገርውስጥየሚገባውሃዋላየወጪንግዱንገቢእየተገዳደረውመሆኑንከብሔራዊባንክየተገኘመረጃጠቆመ፡፡

እየተገባደደባለውየኢትዮጵያዊያን 2006 በጀትዓመትዘጠኝወራትከሸቀጦችኤክስፖርት 2  ቢሊየንዶላርሲገኝከግልሃዋላምተቀራራቢበሆነመልኩ 2 ቢሊየንዶላርተገኝቷል፡፡

አምናበ2005 በጀትዓመትሃገሪቱከሸቀጦችንግድ 3 ቢሊየንየአሜሪካንዶላርስታገኝከግልሃዋላደግሞ 4ቢሊየንዶላርማግኘትዋንመረጃውንይጠቅሳል፡፡

የባንኩመረጃእንደሚያሳየውበውጪአገርየሚኖሩኢትዮጵያዊንለወገኖቻቸውንናለተለያዩስራዎችማስኬጃወደሃገርውስጥየሚያስገቡትዶላርበዓመትእስከ 20 በመቶእያደገየመጣሲሆንበአንጻሩበቡናኤክስፖርትላይብቻየታሰረውየወጪንግዱእያሽቆለቆለመምጣቱንመረጃውያሳያል፡፡

የዚህዓመትየዘጠኙወራትኤክስፖርትገቢካለፈውዓመትተመሳሳይናከተያዘውዕቅድጋርሲነጻጸርአፈጻጸሙዝቅተኛመሆኑንየጠቀሰውየብሔራዊባንኩመረጃይህምሊሆንየቻለውበዓለምገበያላይበዋንኛነትየቡናናወርቅእንዲሁምየስጋምርቶችዋጋበማሽቆልቆሉነው፡፡

በኬንያ የሽብር ጥቃት ፈጽመዋል የተባሉ በርካታ ሰዎች ታሰሩ

ሰኔ ፱(ዘጠኝ)ቀን ፳፻፮ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-ቢቢሲ እንደዘገበው በላሙ የወደብ ዳርቻ ሰሞኑን የተፈጸመው ጥቃት የ60 ሰዎችን ህይወት አጥፍቷል። ፕሬዚዳንት ኡሁሩ ኬንያታ ጥቃቱን የፈጸመው አልሸባብ አለመሆኑን ገልጸው ነበር። ጥቃቱ በአልሸባብ እንደተፈጸመ ተደርጎ መረጃውን ያሰራጨውን ሰው መያዙም ተገልጿል።

ግድያው ከጎሳ ፖለቲካ ጋር የተያያዘ እንደሆነ የአገሪቱ መንግስት ገልጿል። ሰሞኑን በተፈጸመው ጥቃት ከሞቱት ሰዎች በተጨማሪ 12 ሴቶችም ታፍነው ተወስደዋል። ታፍነው የተወሰዱት ሴቶች የት እንደገቡ የታወቀ ነገር የለም።

ኬንያ ከቅርብ ጊዜ ወዲህ በተለያዩ ሃይሎች ተደጋጋሚ ጥቃት እየደረሰባት ነው።

SOUTH SUDANESE REFUGEES UPDATE: MSF CALLS FOR SPECIAL MOBILIZATION

Elissa Jobson/The Guardian

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) International, an organization providing medical aid to South Sudanese refugees in Ethiopia since January this year, says the emergency situation of the refugees calls for special mobilizations of South Sudanese refugees.

Describing the situation, Antoine Foucher, MSF’s head of mission in Ethiopia, said since the conflict in South Sudan broke out in December, an average of 1,000 people have been arriving daily in Ethiopia’s Gambella region. However, that average only partially reflects massive inflows of between 10,000 and 15,000 people per day, for example, as occurred after the battle of Nasir in Jonglei state. There are more than 130,000 South Sudanese refugees in Ethiopia today. According to an HCR estimate, that number could reach 350,000 by the end of the year.

Are the refugees receiving assistance?

The vast majority are women and children, who are extremely weak when they arrive, having traveled several days or weeks, on foot or by boat. They may arrive at different points of entry into Ethiopia – Tiergol, Pagak or Burubiey. MSF teams provide medical care in these transit camps, treating the children, some of whom die within the first days following their arrival in Ethiopia. The population at the Burubiey transit camp today exceeds its capacity. Approximately 13,000 people are housed there, under extremely precarious conditions, while awaiting transfer to Kule camp. However, transfer to the region’s two main refugee camps, each of which holds around 45,000 people, does not guarantee healthy living conditions. Despite efforts, these camps, which are often located in flood prone zones, lack adequate shelter and sufficient water (seven liters per day per person at the Burubiey center), and latrines (one latrine per 60 people at Lietchuor and one latrine per 288 people at Kule 1). These conditions are among the primary vectors of morbidity and mortality in the camps.

It’s an emergency situation

The refugees are in a state of extreme physical vulnerability., said MSF: “We observed the extent of their malnutrition when they arrived in Burubiey in April. Nearly one child out of four was suffering from malnutrition and the rate of severe acute malnutrition was above 7%. After several weeks in the camps, where living conditions are very precarious, they do not get any better. Although malnutrition rates declined, they remained above emergency thresholds. Diarrhea and pneumonia are the primary illnesses associated with malnutrition, we see at the hospital and health center where we are working in Lietchuor camp, and at the Itang hospital, 10 kilometers from Kule camp. These illnesses are linked to poor living conditions. As a result, mortality rates have been above emergency thresholds. In May, mortality rates ranged between 7 and 18% at the two MSF centers in Lietchuor and Itang, where children are hospitalized and receive intensive nutritional treatment. Of course, we do not have an overview of mortality for the entire refugee population, but the indicators available to us reveal alarming rates. With the start of the rainy season, sanitary conditions will worsen and new illnesses, such as malaria, appear.

What has been the response to this emergency?

This emergency situation requires an exceptional mobilization. Gambella region must receive a commensurate attention and support to the critical situation from national authorities, the United Nations and NGOs. Increased administrative, financial and political resources must be provided so that humanitarian aid can be deployed rapidly and massively. Unless we are willing to risk a health catastrophe, we cannot accept a deployment that improves day by day but is never adequate to turn the epidemiological situation around.

A cholera epidemic Jonglei

MSF has proposed a preventive strategy that includes a cholera vaccination campaign and a pentavalent pneumococcal vaccination campaign. We’ve got to move quickly to deliver vaccinations against cholera that can protect 60 – 80% of those who are potentially infected. The cholera vaccine is an oral vaccine, administered in two doses that can be given to adults and children.
This preventive strategy also involves positioning major supplies for treating malaria and cholera as soon as an epidemic begins. It will save many lives but does not substitute for a major deployment of assistance that provides water, sanitation and shelter.

Teams treat refugees when they arrive at transit centers and at Lietchuor camp. The organization set up an 85-bed hospital and a health center at Lietchuor and a 75-bed hospital at Itang.

Cover Photo: South Sudanese children gather at a refugee camp in Gambella, one of the poorest regions in Ethiopia.

Tewodros Beharu: Ethiopia’s prosecutor from hell in America

June 16, 2014

by Abebe Gellaw

Under the brutal rule of the TPLF, courts are key instruments of repression. This is not an allegation. It is rather a well-documented and substantiated fact widely known across the world. One of the worst crimes the TPLF has committed in the last two decades is using fake laws, Kangaroo courts, unjustly ruthless “prosecutors” and “judges” to silence and torment anyone opposed to its criminal tyranny.

“Prosecutors” and “lawyers” in the league of Shimelis Kemal have committed heinous crimes under the guise of nonexistent due process. Among other things, Shimelis is the author of the so-called anti-terrorism proclamation and the charities and societies law. Tewodros Beharu, who was recruited as a student OPDO operative at college, is one of those who were willingly followed the bloody footsteps of TPLF’s hacks like Shimelis.

Journalists, activists and political dissidents that have survived torture chambers, killing sprees and all sorts of inhumane treatment are mostly forced to go through the Kangaroo court system even if the whole process is a sham designed to give repression a semblance of justice. The system deliberately dispenses injustice by imposing the will of the TPLF under the guise of justice.

The fake and unjust “lawyers” like Tewodros Beharu, Berhanu Wondimagegn, Zeresenay Misganaw and Berihun Teklebirhan were given tasks to persecute journalists and activists using the anti-terrorism law. In the service of their TPLF paymasters, the hack lawyers have fabricated countless treason and terrorism charges against innocent people whose only crime was exposing and challenging the corruption and tyranny of the TPLF.

Fake prosecutor Tewodros Beharu is no exception. He willingly and passionately played a key role in sending Eskinder Nega, Andualem Aragie, Reeyot Alemu, Nathnael Mekonnen, Bekele Gerba, Olbana Lelisa, the Muslim leaders and so many political prisoners to the hellish TPLF jails. This unjust man is now living in Silver Spring, Maryland. While his victims are suffering in harsh jails, he appears to go to bed without any remorse and regrets.

After shattering the dreams of so many patriots condemned to suffer nightmares just for the love of their people and country, he is pursuing “happiness” and the American dream. It appears that the former TPLF tormentor and persecutor has sought asylum under false pretence that he was persecuted and tortured. To make matters worse, he rejected numerous requests to explain about the way he and his partners in crime were able to convict innocent people with serious terrorism offences and crimes they have never committed. He even tried to blame it all on Shimelis Kemal despite the key roles he played in the whole drama.

Whatever the justification, Tewdoros knows the fact that political prisoners deemed to be threats to the TPLF are always guilty, even before they are pronounced guilty as charged by opportunistic Kangaroo court judges and prosecutors like himself hired to do the dirty job. He is also aware of the fact that the “terrorists” he convicted faced concocted and fictitious charges without the need to present any shred of evidence. They have been denied a fair trial and the basic right to challenge false accusations to prove their innocence.

The worst and most outrageous legal drama unfolded in the aftermath of the 2005 elections. The landslide election victory the opposition had pulled off triggered Meles Zenawi’s panic attacks. Over 193 civilians including minors were mowed down by the brutal Agazi brigade and the federal police. Then opposition party leaders, journalists and civil society leaders were detained and charged with genocide, outrage against the constitution and treason, charges authored by Shimelis Kemal and his handlers.

Former publisher and journalist Serkalem Fasil and her son Nafkot Eskinder, who was born in jail in the wake of the 2005 election turmoils, were forced to flee Ethiopia almost a year ago. Her husband , the fiery award-winning journalist Eskinder Nega, was convicted of trumped-up “terrorism” offenses. He was condemned to 18 years in jail. The chief prosecutor in this and other high profile anti-terrorism charges to inflict maximum harm and pain was none other than Tewodros Beharu.

Following Eskinder’s terrorism conviction, their two houses and a car were confiscated. Adding insult to injury, TPLF was very eager to make sure that not only Eskinder but his family suffer the injustice. After losing everything they have, it was a hard and heartbreaking decision for Serkalem to leave her husband behind. But upon his insistence, she had no choice but to go into exile, at least to protect their child from the unjustly tormenting and painful experience.

A couple of weeks later, Tewodros Beharu, along with his wife Meron Girma, left Ethiopia dreaming a better life in the United States. Unlike the majority of Ethiopian exiles that flee persecution, torture, killings and discrimination, the former public prosecutor left behind the shattered dreams of so many political prisoners and their families.

Tewodros was one of TPLF’s prosecutors, or rather persecutors, trained and employed to fabricate terrorism charges against political prisoners like Eskinder Nega, Andualem Aragie, Nathaniel Mekonnen, Reeyot Alemu, Wubishet Taye, Bekeke Gerba, Olbana Lelisa, the Muslim community leaders and the two Swedish journalists Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye. Tewdos also convicted exiled “terrorists” such as Obang Metho, Neamin Zeleke, Dr. Berhanu Nega, Ephrem Madebo, Fasil Yenealem, Mesfin Negash, Abiy Teklemariam and myself.

In a reversal of fortune, Tewodros Beharu has ended up among the terrorists he falsely accused and convicted. This beggars the question how the persecuted and the persecutors can coexisted in the land of freedom where the rule of law is supreme. When victims and tormentors face off, the “dreamer “in the pursuit of happiness may be too sad to face truth, justice and reality….

As Malcolm X once said, “I’m for truth, no matter who tells it. I’m for justice, no matter who it’s for or against.” Not only Tewodros but all the false accusers and judges in Ethiopia should realize the fact that those of us they convicted with all sorts of crimes and terrorism are not criminals and terrorists but law-abiding citizens that dare to speak truth to power.

Tormenting and attacking innocent people with false accusations and fake laws is nothing but terrorism. Those who falsely accuse and prosecute others are conscious criminals. They cannot invoke ignorance or arrogance as a defense.

Let the truth speak for itself. The truth never lies. It is always powerful and irrefutable.

Ethiopian: Moving Toward a Generation of Negotiation and Principled Compromise?

June 18, 2014

by T. Goshu

The very reason for me to come up with this piece of writing is the recent truly encouraging political step taken by the two major opposition political parties in Ethiopia, Unity for Democracy and Justice (Andinet), and All Ethiopian Unity Party (AEUP). I was one of many Ethiopians who were genuinely concerned about the question of whether the process for unification could be successful or not. This serious concern was not without legitimate reason. The concern was because of certain obstacles between the parties themselves, and most outrageously because of the tyrannical ruling elites who have stupidly attempted to disrupt the process for genuine democratic change not only by using their usual dirty political game but also by deploying their deadly parasitic political cadres to infiltrate the process of which they considered as a threat to the continuation of their notoriously dirty political game.

It was with a very mixed feeling that I heard and read the news about the signing of the pre-unification agreement between the two parties on June 8, 2014. Needless to say that this kind of feeling of mine about the “breaking news” is not something different from the feelings of most of my fellow Ethiopians. It goes without saying that the very reasons for this mixed feeling do emanate from: a) a very strong aspiration to see this kind of critically desirable political move in our political history in general and at this critical moment in time in particular b) and the second reason has a lot to do with something that challenges the first one when it comes to multiple of terribly failed past experiences of which various opposition political parties and movements have come across.

Yes, we have come across failure after failure for the last two decades as far as the issue of real sense of dialogue, reasonable level of selflessness for the sake of national interest, resolving issues of differences through negotiation and principle compromise, and marching together for the realization of a democratic society is concerned. I do not think I need to enumerate all the names of councils, forces of unity, coalitions and the like which terribly had failed and had caused very deep discontent to the people of Ethiopia. Because I do think that these terrible stories of failures were parts of our day-to-day political lives. I am equally well aware that it is true the ruling front led by the ethnic-based minority (TPLF) had and still has its own poisonous contribution to those terrible failures of political opposition forces. However, it would be stupidly wrong not to admit what went terribly wrong within and among opposition forces and not to do something about it here after. I reasonably hope that the great news about the political step taken by UDJ and AEUP will turn our ugly political discourse of the past quarter of a century into a wonderfully desirable political reality. It is from this optimistic view of mine that I want to believe that the current mixed feelings we are experiencing will slowly but surely become positively clear and refined.

I tried hard to make some sort of reasonable and rational meaning out of this kind of mixed feeling (skeptical and optimistic state of mind) of mine. The first thing I had to do was to get more information (opinions and clarification) from those who made their own contribution to the success of the process as well from the members of the leadership of the two would- be -united parties. I listed to the very brief interview by journalist Eskindir Frew (the reporter of VOA Amharic Service) with Dr. Yaqob Hailemariam on 06/12/14. I have to say here that my mixed feeling has relatively turned into a more of clear optimism when I heard Dr. Yaqob saying that four genuinely concerned and well –known Ethiopians (Himself, Dr Dagnachew Asefa, Dr. Almayehu Areda and Ato Yilam Yifru) have made a great effort in keeping the process in the right track and finally witnessing its signing ceremony. Dr. Yaqob’s comment on the political significance of the agreement between the two parties, and his advice based on the current political and socio-economic reality in the country is so powerful if we look at it with our open and sincere minds and hearts. The point he made about the direct and strong relationship between the makings of political unity, if not genuine cooperation and coordination among all genuinely concerned political parties and the coming election is a very convincing case in point. Yes, as there is no a system of proportional representation in the current political system, there is no doubt that TPLF/EPRDF will continue its evil-driven political agenda even by securing twenty percent of the vote if the opposition parties do not do something serious about walking and working together towards the upcoming election. We have to be so grateful to those four senior citizens of Ethiopia who have made great efforts and helped the two political parties to come to a remarkable agreement and to be examples for others to do the same, if not to create some sort of healthy and cooperative working political environment.

Needless to say, those citizens have shown us how the role of cultural or traditional settling of disagreements and conflicts in the history of societal interaction of our country could be effective if we really use it genuinely and properly. Families, friends, neighbors, elders, religious leaders, respected personalities in communities, honestly prominent intellectuals have played their own roles in resolving disputes and conflicts between or among individuals, groups and communities. Unfortunately enough, our political elites have seriously damaged this wonderful cultural mechanism of settling disagreement or conflicts. How? Either by making it part of their corrupt, immoral, cynical, and even deadly political games, or by attacking it whenever they believe it could not serve their dirty purposes.

The terrible assault on the valuable of traditional mechanism of resolving disputes or conflicts coupled with the total absence solving political problems with a democratic mechanism has led the people of Ethiopia to a situation where survival is extremely difficult let alone aspiring for the better. I am not arguing in reference to a well-developed way of dealing with political problems. What I am trying to emphasize here is that our political history is almost devoid of civility as far as the issue of resolving differences of political views and interests, and thinking of the better generation of tomorrow is concerned. Needless to say, the consequences of the absence of resolving our political differences and conflicts through dialogue and principled compromise are seriously troubling and disturbing unless we learn from our miserable failures and do something about them. And this has to start today, not tomorrow.

I also carefully listened to Abebe Belew of Addis Dimts radio conducting fairly brief interview with Engneer Gizachew Sheferaw , chairman of Andinet ; and Ato Abebaw Mehari , chairman of AEUP on 06/14/14. My impression about the responses of the two politicians is that things look very encouraging. Their strong reaffirmation to move forward in a united force is truly commendable. The way they expressed the very inspiring and strong initiation from members of both parties to see this very desirable political step being realized is the most interesting and encouraging factor for moving forward in an irreversible manner. By the way, this is or was the powerful expression expressed by Dr. Yaqob too.

It goes without saying that mere theorization and preaching about democratic society without the culture of engaging in a real sense of dialogue, negotiation and reaching a resolution based on principled compromise does not make sense at all. And this kind of senseless political discourse has brought about disastrous consequences to subsequent generations of the country. Yes, our politicians in general and the royal families (monarchies) and subsequent ruling groups, including the current ethno-centric ruling elites in particular had no and have no any interest in engaging the generation of their own time let alone the generation of tomorrow. They had been and are blinded by getting their own wildly voracious short-term interests satisfied. And that is why our political lives especially for the last half a century (1960s – present) is mainly characterized by unprecedented level of degradation and crises after cries. It goes without saying that unless we want to continue with our pretending mentality and the foolish sentiment of avoidance of the political reality we are experiencing, we should be courageous enough to face a very critical challenge that requires a deeply thoughtful and feasible way of doing things beyond this generation of ours; that is to say for the sake of the generation of tomorrow. May we have a sincere look at the following realistically touching equation?

“The children of tomorrow must be good negotiators. They must be prepared to resolve differences in a civilized way: to listen, to be responsible, and to be unafraid to adjust conflicting values. The alternative in an age of rising expectations is violence.”

This timeless truth is stated by Chester L. Karrass in his book, The Negotiating Game (1970). Although the book is mainly about the role of negotiating game in dealing with our day –to – day lives in general and our socio –economic interactions in particular, there is no doubt that it powerfully tells us about the very deeply unfortunate side of our own political history . Needless to say, this very unfortunate situation is mainly because of the ruling elites who have been using and continue to use not only any dirty but also deadly political game to maintain and advance their own monstrously voracious self-interests. They never have shown any common sense about the future of their own children and families let alone about the very fate of this generation and the generations to come. The very challenge we continue to face is that the current ruling elites have unequivocally told us through their late mentor, Ato Meles Zenawi that a change of their political power will be on their graves only. And the current prime minister, Ato Desalegn Hailemariam has told us that he is instructed by the bosses of the front in which he belongs (TPLF) to carry on the legacy of the late “great leader” and he is committed to do so. That is why there is a compelling reason to be convinced that the struggle for a democratic change is extremely challenging and the victory will be remote without taking a unified and coordinated, and timely political action. And this strongly requires the interpretation of words into deeds.

Let me sum up my opinion by a quotation from a small but very thoughtful book of Louis Fischer (Gandhi: His life and Message for the World, 1954, 1982). He states, “He (Gandhi) took words and ideas seriously and felt that having accepted a moral precept he had to live it. Then he could preach it. He preached what he practiced.”

Why I am boycotting Ȼoca Ȼola

June 16, 2014

by Alemayehu G. Mariam*

Why I am boycotting Ȼoca Ȼola

Coca Cola is NOT the real thing

Diaspora Ethiopians are expressing their outrage on social and online media and calling for a boycott of Coca Cola Company for its unethical, arbitrary and unfair dealings with Ethiopia’s pop music superstar Teodros Kassahun (Teddy Afro). They say the Coca Cola Company singled out Teddy and maliciously targeted him for discrimination. Coca Cola commissioned 32 local versions of the 2014 Brazil FIFA World Cup “anthem”. Coca Cola has officially released all versions except Ethiopia’s version sung by Teddy Afro!

I now join the boycott of Coca Cola. I ask the millions of readers who have followed my weekly commentaries over the past eight years to join me in boycotting Coca Cola.

I am convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the Coca Cola Company and its representatives have done Teddy wrong. They have demeaned, degraded and humiliated him publicly. They have dishonored, tarnished and scandalized his good name.  They have treated him unfairly, cruelly and unscrupulously.

An official representative of Coca Cola Company was quoted in a June 7 report stating that“Teddy Afro was brought into our Coke Studio in Africa to record a version of the Coca-Cola FIFA World Cup song, ‘The World is Ours’ with the goal of capturing the unique genre of Ethiopian music. The contract with Teddy Afro was executed by a 3rd party, Mandala Limited, a production House based Nairobi and Teddy Afro was compensated in full for his efforts.” The official further stated that “following recording the produced track become the property of Coca-Cola CEWA to be used at the Company’s discretion. The song has not been released and there are no plans for release at this time.”

In a June 10 press release, Teddy Afro’s official representatives decried Coca Cola’s bizarre and unprofessional behavior in making the public statement given the fact that a confidentiality clause in the contract precluded public disclosure of contractual terms. The statement expressed puzzlement over Coca Cola’s “unwarranted prevention of the release of the Ethiopian Version of the World Cup Anthem” and lack of  “any response although we have brought the issue to their attention before we decided to publish the press release on our website.” It accused Coca Cola of engaging in “corporate arrogance”, bad faith dealings and a flagrant violation of its “supposed corporate ethical principles of integrity, honesty, public trust and confidence.” It expressed deep disappointment over the fact that Coca Cola released a public statement that is  “degrading and disrespectful of our fans and even Coca Cola’s customers.”

Teddy Afro’s official representatives categorically rejected Coca Cola’s assertion that “the contract with Teddy Afro was executed by a 3rd party, Mandala Limited, a production House based Nairobi.” They said an official Coca Cola representative, “Mr. Misikir Mulugeta [Brand Manager for Ethiopia and Eritrea, and Manadala TV] approached us and took the initiative to make the selection for the Coke project and further “brought” us in touch with Coke Studio, signed the contract with Mandala TV, the agent for Coca Cola, Central, East and West Africa Limited… Mr. Misikir as an employee and Manadala TV as the agent who have been contracted to carry out various musical property services and acted for and on behalf of Coca Cola Central, East and West Africa, in the same legal capacity and effect as the representative of Coca Cola, headquartered in Atlanta that issued the statement.”

They also pointed out glaring inconsistencies in Coca Cola’s public statement.  If the Coca Cola Company does not have any contractual relationship with Teddy Afro, why did it feel the need to issue a public statement on him? Why did Coca Cola claim that Teddy has been paid “in full for his efforts,” and that “the produced track become the property of Coca-Cola CEWA?” if the Company did not have a contractual engagement with Teddy to produce the world cup song?

What is so objectionable about the Ethiopian version of the world cup anthem that compelled Coca Cola not to release it officially?

There is ABSOLUTELY nothing political or controversial about the lyrics or melody in Teddy’s version of the world cup anthem.  In fact, Teddy used an Amharic translation of words taken directly from David Correy’s official lyrics to the world cup song “The World is Ours”. Nothing more, nothing less.

Why is Teddy Afro singled out of 32 global musical artists and targeted for humiliation and degradation by Coca Cola? Why is  Coca Cola unwilling to privately explain to Teddy its reasons for not releasing the Ethiopian version of the song officially? Why isn’t Coca Cola coming clean and telling Teddy’s  millions of fans its reasons for not releasing the Ethiopian version of the anthem?

Why I am “dumping” Coca Cola

The official statement of Coca Cola refusing to release the Ethiopian version of the world cup song has been a source of jubilation and victorious chest-beating for Teddy Afro haters. They triumphantly announced, “Coca Cola dumps Teddy Afro!”

I am dumping Coca Cola like they dump industrial chemicals at a toxic waste dumpsite.  I am not using this metaphor lightly. “The Coca-Cola Co. has settled lawsuits over ingredients that can form cancer-causing benzene (in two of its products) Fanta Pineapple and Vault Zero”.

Coca Cola lists 114 different product lines on its website beginning with virtually every letter of the English alphabet from Aquapure to Zico.

I am dumping all 114 products. I will not buy or use Aquapure, Barq’s, Coca-Cola, DASANI, Evian, FUZE, Glacéau Vitaminwater, Hi-C, Inca Kola, Jericho, Kinley, Lift, Minute Maid, Northern Neck, Odwalla, POWERADE, Red Flash,  Sprite, TaB, VAULT, Worx Energy, Zico… I will not encourage or recommend to anyone to buy or use these products. As a matter of fact, I ask my millions of readers throughout the world not to buy or use these products!

Let us unite and Dump Coca Cola and all of its 114 products!

For decades, the Coca-Cola Company promoted its products with all sorts of charming and gimmicky slogans and jingles that affirmed its corporate integrity, universal appeal and wholesome business values. Their ubiquitous taglines proclaimed, “Coke: It’s the Real Thing.”  “Things Go Better With Coke.” “Coke is what the world wants today.” “I’d like to buy the world a Coke.”  “Coke Adds Life.” “Have a Coke and a Smile.” “Coke is It.” Coca Cola even had a television commercial song with the opening line, “I’d like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony.”

The truth is Coke is as real as a sprite (fairy).
Things go bitter with Coke in Ethiopia.
Coca Cola has caused acrimony, not harmony in Ethiopia.
Coke has added not life but strife in Ethiopia.
Coke does not make Ethiopians smile; it makes them downright hostile.
Coke is It, if you only added the letters “sh” to it.
I will not drink Coke, the high fructose makes me choke.
I would like the world NOT to buy Coke or any of the other 113 products.
The last thing the world needs today is Coke.                                                            Coke is a joke!

I know why they do not want the song of the proud bird of Ethiopian popular music not to be heard by the world

Teddy Afro loves his people and country and he is being punished for it.

There is no question in my mind that  the despicable and petty-minded regime in Ethiopia has pressured Coca Cola not to release Teddy’s song. The reason is simple. That wickedly vengeful regime wants to show Teddy Afro who the real boss is. They want to show Teddy and his supporters how smart,  cunning and smooth they can be in taking revenge. They watched and snickered as the whole deal went down with Coca Cola from the beginning. They let it go on. They said, “Let Teddy work his heart out and come up with a beautiful song.” They rubbed their hands gleefully, “We’ll teach him a lesson in revenge that he will never forget.” Revenge and hate courses in their blood stream.

At the last minute, they pounced on Coca Cola. (Coca Cola completed its third bottling plant in Dire Dawa in 2013.) If Coca Cola wants to expand its market in Ethiopia, it must not release Teddy Afro’s world cup song. Poor Coca Cola is literally caught between the Devil and Teddy Afro.

Of course, none of that nonsense matters to Teddy Afro. He will keep on singing “Love conquers all.”  His maxim is, “There is no revenge so complete as forgiveness.” He forgives those who have done him wrong. (Jah, Yasteseryal!)

Any casual observer of the thugtatorship in Ethiopia is familiar with the silly psyop (psychological warfare) they are waging against Teddy to demoralize, unnerve and discourage him from being a symbol of national unity and pride. They have used similar dirty tricks for years against their opponents and will continue to do so.

The fact of the matter is that for his entire artistic career Teddy Afro has shown undying love for Ethiopia. In all of his songs and lyrics,  Teddy has glorified Ethiopia and spoken truth to mercenaries and thugs. His music, songs and lyrics have been effective antidotes to the diabolical efforts to undermine the spirit and morale of the Ethiopian people. Teddy proclaimed in his lyrics, “Hold on, hold tight! Ethiopia’s resurrection (Ye Itopia tinsae) is near, if only we forgive each other in love.”

In his album Yasteseryal, Teddy exposed the truth about the seizure of the “throne” by a criminal band of thugs. He used his songs to call on Ethiopians of all ethnic backgrounds to live in harmony, peace and love in a single Ethiopian nation. He has used his peerless musical talent to bring Christians and Muslims to join hands in peace and friendship.   Teddy has been offered riches and rewards beyond measure to sell out his integrity and honor. But on all occasions, he has refused to sell his soul to thugs.

Teddy Afro is the most inspiring young artist of his generation. Teddy has inspired millions of Ethiopia’s young people to yearn for democracy, freedom and human rights in a single Ethiopian nation.  Now they are making him “pay” for his patriotism by silencing his musical voice. It is impossible to silence the song of truth.

Teddy is not for sale! Teddy cannot be bought by Coca Cola, by a billionaire or by thugs. They can try to humiliate and scandalize him. The simple truth is that Teddy has pride and dignity in himself and in his country as big as the Ras Dashen mountain.  Thugs, bullies and gangsters will forever remain thugs, bullies and gangsters no matter how rich they become for all of the money they have stolen. This is no invective. It is a fact!

Please don’t hate Teddy Afro because he has pride in himself and his country! Don’t hate him because he is a class act. Don’t hate him because he is a patriot. He can’t help it. He was born that way!

Teddy Afro, NOT Coke, is the real thing in Ethiopia! 

The world and, most of all, the world football federation needs Teddy Afro. Teddy is an African musical genius. His lyrical mantra is, “Love Conquers All!”  He brings Africans together in uplifting lyrics and musical harmony.

Teddy is the most popular musical artist in Ethiopia today because his music brings people together. He sings of love, peace, friendship and goodwill among Ethiopians and Africans. He sings protest songs. He sings of the need for reconciliation, understanding and forgiveness.  He sings work songs for those building a new Ethiopia. He sings about the natural beauty of Ethiopia and its people. Teddy Afro sings about his love of Africa.

Teddy Afro’s music makes life supremely enjoyable. I’d like to see the world listen to Teddy Afro sing in perfect harmony. Teddy Afro’s music adds life and joy to  a country that has been rendered lifeless and joyless by a vicious dictatorship.

Teddy Afro is the real thing! Teddy Afro is the real Ethiopian!

Teddy’s latest album, Tikur Sew (Black Man), is a celebration of Ethiopia’s victory over Italy in 1896. That stunning victory is a milestone in African and world history. Less than two years after the Berlin Conference in which the European colonial powers agreed to carve up Africa and began their subjugation of African peoples, Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia routed the Italian Army at the Battle of Adwa in the First Italo-Ethiopian War.  The Battle of Adwa marked the first time a European power was brought to its knees by an African army. Fascist Italy tried to colonize Ethiopia again in 1935 in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War. They got a rear-end kicking they would never forget. Ethiopia remained the only country in Africa (other than Liberia) to remain free from colonialism. Teddy Afro sings of Ethiopia, its fearless leaders and the ordinary people who fought to keep their independence and sovereignty not only with bows, arrows and outdated muskets, but also pride.

I am proud of Teddy and his extraordinary artistic accomplishments. I am proud of his enormous contributions to Ethiopian popular culture. I am proud of his untiring efforts to bring about harmony, unity and reconciliation among the people of Ethiopia through his music. He is a man of extraordinary integrity and disarming humility. When they attack his reputation viciously, he does not respond. He just says, “Love conquers all.” Haters just can’t fight a man who uses love to conquer all.

When the late Meles Zenawi jailed Teddy on trumped up charges of hit and run resulting in a fatality in 2008, I defended Teddy in the court of world public opinion. I also listed the ten real “crimes” Teddy committed for which Meles Zenawi ordered his arrest and conviction. Meles was pierced by the truth and aspirations expressed in Teddy’s lyrics.

When Teddy came to Los Angeles in 2010, I attended his concert. It was phenomenal.Teddy reminded me of the great Bob Marely I saw as a young man during his Kaya and Survival tours in the late 1970s standing in the front row.   Like Marley whose passion was African liberation and Pan-Africanism, Teddy’s passion is the freedom, unity, reconciliation and harmony of the Ethiopian people. Like Marley, Teddy’s music is stirring, thrilling and even heart-wrenching. Like Marley, Teddy sings songs of love, peace, hope, faith, charity, justice, reconciliation, understanding and forgiveness. These are the sources of Teddy’s rhythmic power which enable him to reach deep into the Ethiopian soul and psyche and suture the festering wounds of despair, soothe the unendurable pain of oppression and prophesy the resurrection of Ethiopia from the graveyard of dictatorship. Nothing can stop Teddy from preaching love, peace and justice in Ethiopia.

I consider Teddy a heroic Ethiopian artist and my personal hero!

The world is ours, NOT Coke’s. We must dump Coca Cola one person, one Coke bottle/can at a time

I am calling on the millions of readers who have followed my weekly commentaries over the years to join me and “Dump Coke!” Let’s rescue our world from the clutches of Coke.

Coca Cola does not care if we hold candle light vigils in protest. Coca Cola does not care about our moral outrage. It cares only about its bottom line. Coca-Cola has global sales of over 30 billion cases in over 200 countries. They spend billions of dollars in global marketing campaigns every year. The only language Coca Cola understands is the language of the bottom line.

If we act one person at a time and stop buying and using the 114 Coca Cola products, we can take back our world from the clutches of Coca Cola in 114 days.

I ask my readers in Ethiopia to conduct their own boycott.  I ask them to have their own individual “Coke Out Day”.  No Coke, every day!!!

This boycott is not about Coca Cola. It is about Ethiopian national pride. It is about taking back our country from soda peddlers and thugs.

I say fight back one Coca Cola bottle, one Coca Cola can at a time!

Coca Cola brags, “The World is Ours!” We need to show Coca Cola Ethiopia is OURS!

Ultimately, my personal boycott of Coca Cola is not about challenging Coca Cola to come clean on Teddy Afro. It is not even about speaking truth to the tone deaf regime that is twisting Coca Cola’s hands behind the scenes. It is about my pride in being an Ethiopian.  When Coca Cola commissions  32 local versions of the world cup song, releases 31 of them and  “dumps” the Ethiopian version, I say to Coca Cola, “GO TO HELL!!!”

Woyane is a dead and deadly regime walking

June 17, 2014

Ethiopians must be very attentive to safeguard the safety of our people and the integrity of our country from a dead and deadly regime walking. We must warn the officials and the cadres of the regime to abandon Woyane like their colleagues or ultimately pay for all the crimes of the Woyane. There would be no excuses not to abandon the regime and expect a safe haven to hide or run.

by Teshome Debalke

The defection rate of Woyane’s officials and cadres are increasing faster than ever. In recent news several individuals including the Deputy Communication Minster Ermias Legesse, the Federal Prosecutor Tewodros Behar, the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange Executive Director Anteneh Assefa, and the General Manager of the Endowment Fund for Rehabilitation of Tigray (EFFORT) Getachew Belay Wendimu is the sign of a dead and deadly regime walking.

The testimony of the former Deputy Communication Minster Ermias Legesse 1 2 3 / alone is sufficient to the extent of the crimes of Woyane to abandon it. Others choose to remain silent as cowards from telling what they know. They will be sought out as conspirators of the regime’s crime for the rest of their lives.

Things are not going well for Woyanes. Desperation is setting in among the officials and the rank and file of the cadres of ruling regime Woyane. They are searching for a place to run for dear life.

There are no armed oppositions surrounding them to surrender yet. There is no popular uprising to overthrow the regime yet. They are afraid of the same regime they have been serving most of their adult life going to use them as fall guys for its extensive crimes to buy time.

The inner circles of TPLF are scared to their pants from each other and are in a no-way-in no-way-out position the regime put them in. It is like being in hard place and a rock. The grandfather of Woyane Sibhat Nega is seen shuttling back-and-forth to calm down the Gangs of Adwa to stick with each other or else.

The ethnic puppets Woyane assembled and use to justify its crimes are in more crises than ever. Used and abused as front men by TPLF’s ethnic agenda, they sensed they are disposable to get out of the jam the regime got itself in to save face. Stuck from getting out of their predicament of serving the criminal enterprise of TPLF they are looking for escape route out of the reach of the regime’s assassins.

The vocal Diaspora apologists are also looking for an easy way out of their association with Woyane. With very little options for their transgression against the people of Ethiopia for far too long, economic growth and peace and stability became the only safe things to say to feel better. The popular badmouths of Woyane are also toning down their insult of Ethiopians on behalf of TPLF– sounding more patriotic that unite Ethiopians than Woyane lovers. If it wasn’t for the perk, they would have bailed out sooner than later singing Tobia Hagre woy mot.

The top enchiladas of the regime are also scrambling to stop the bleeding of Woyane by throwing all kinds of bizarre propaganda as they go. Accordingly, terrorist are surrounding us is becoming the quick way of buying time until they find a better diversion.

Other developments are, the numbers of Woyane’s officials’ family abounding the country to settle around the world. ’According to the advocacy groups that follow up these case most of the families of high officials are seeking residency permits as investors while the low ranked cadres are applying for political asylum. Sources inside the regime reviled the operatives of the regime are issuing passport and legal papers for substantial fee to smuggle officials to preferred destination of Western countries.

Others that fear Diaspora oppositions in Western countries prefer to migrate in African countries, South Africa in Africa and Thailand and Malaysia in Asia being the preferred destination.

As much as many corrupt officials and their families are free to migrate anywhere around the world with stolen public money without much challenge, oppositions rarely challenge them with all legal means available in the countries of their destinations.

Ethiopians have a long way to go to setup legal groups to challenge the officials of the regime and their families that committed crimes of atrocities and corruptions. Medias can’t any longer seat ideal and watch when the regime officials and their family launder public money in front of our nose. Political parties can no afford to squabble over minor differences than saving their country and protecting their people they want to rule. Individual Ethiopians no longer can pretend the little benefit they may have gotten from Woyane in a form of land is sufficient to abandon their people and country for the criminal enterprise of TPLF.

It is time to standup and be counted