Friday, December 29, 2017
Thursday, December 28, 2017
Tuesday, December 26, 2017
Monday, December 25, 2017
#OromoProtests
That is a big step, a path to freedom and justice, our Lord has a plan for every nation,
what our people go thru doesn't go unnoticed. Enough is enough, let's pray and unite.
It's time to work hard together!!!
what our people go thru doesn't go unnoticed. Enough is enough, let's pray and unite.
It's time to work hard together!!!
Thursday, December 21, 2017
Ethiopian MPs' boycott over ethnic unrest
AFP
MPs from Ethiopia's Amhara and Oromia regions have boycotted parliament.
They say there is no point in parliament meeting until Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn gives an explanation for ongoing ethnic unrest in the country.
The Amharas and Oromos have been protesting against what they say is political and economic marginalisation.
There have also been months of deadly clashes between the Oromos and the Somalis, with more than 60 people killed last week.
On Wednesday, the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front coalition blamed weaknesses in its executive for the ongoing trouble.
Tuesday, December 19, 2017
NEWS: MOUNTING DEATH TOLL, VIOLENCE PUSHES ETHIOPIA TO THE BRINK OF SECURITY C RISIS
Addisstandard
Addis Abeba, December 18/2017 – Close to eighty people were killed (by official accounts) within just one week in various places located in east and west Hararghe administrative zones of the Oromia regional state, in the eastern part of Ethiopia, pushing the country to the brink of security crisis.
Addis Abeba, December 18/2017 – Close to eighty people were killed (by official accounts) within just one week in various places located in east and west Hararghe administrative zones of the Oromia regional state, in the eastern part of Ethiopia, pushing the country to the brink of security crisis.
The latest spate of violence began on December 14, barely two days after the killing by the federal security forces of at least 16 civilians in Chelenko, east Hararghe.
Addisu Arega Kitessa, head of the Oromia region communication bureau, confirmed the violence in a statement heposted on his Facebook page. “Starting from December 14, armed men who do not represent the peaceful Ethio-Somali communities have begun mounting attacks in Hawi Gudina woreda [of west Hararghe Zone], Ebsa and Tao Kebeles, killing 29 Oromos.” More than 360 houses were also completely burned, according to Addisu.
Driven by anger and revenge over these killings, an individual and his cohorts have mounted a violent attack against innocent Ethiopian Somalis who were from Gadullo district, killing as many as 32 civilians, according to Addisu.
But accounts on both the number of causalities and the circumstances vary. A twitter message first received by Addis Standard on the evening of December 15 claimed that 37 Ethiopian Somalis were killed by “militias from the Oromia region”. And the Mogadishu based Daslan Radio claimed in a headline “65 Somalis killed in Ethiopia.”
Following the lead on twitter, Addis Standard contacted three individuals for interviews: two in Mieso town, who have been credible sources of previous stories on Addis Standard, and one in Chiro (Asebe Teferi).
What is agreed by all is that the killings of these innocent civilians happened on December 15 “inside a single location,” where, according to one of the three interviewees, more than 100 people were “sheltered for fear of their security.”
This violence is preceded by last week’s killing in Chelonko and subsequent “sporadic killings, night time raids, raping of women and girls and abductions of teenage boys by armed forces,” acts, according to our interviewee, which are most of the times committed by members of the Somali “Liyu” forces, who are accused of serious crimes, and other armed bandits who have flourished in the area unchecked. “The Somali communities were worried about revenge attacks, that is why they were sheltered,” he said explaining the reason for the sheltering in a single location of the civilian victims.
Addisu Arega admitted in his post that the atrocious attack against Ethiopian Somalis were led by an individual who lost a brother among the 29 Oromos killed. “It was led by Ziad Teha, the brother of Ahmed Teha, who was a loved member of his community”.
The second source contacted by Addis Standard added that two more men were also among the leading members of the group who committed, in the words of Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, “a mass murder” against the Ethiopian Somali civilians. “I know both of them,” he said on the phone from Mieso, “the wife of one of them was taken by armed men three weeks ago and she was raped and dumped to die. Right now she is recovering in Chiro (Asebe Teferi) hospital. The second man that I know among the group had lost a 13 year old niece last week when she was abducted by a group of armed men. No one knows where she is now .”
The third person who is from Chiro told Addis Standard this morning that he has a business partner staying with his family who escaped the military violence in Hawi Gudina. “We are not able to establish any contact with his family members left behind in Hawi Gudina, there is no power, no internet and no telephone lines since five days” he said.
In an interview with the VOA Amharic Abdurezak Ahmed, head of the west Hararghe communication bureau, said that armed men who have came from the Somali regional state have taken control of two kebeles and were responsible of burning at least 80 houses by Friday December 15. By the time he gave the interview on Friday, Abdulrezak admitted that the killing in Gadullo has indeed happened but due to lack of communication he could not tell the exact number of causalities. He referred to armed and organized groups who were responsible of agitating the area. The VOA’s attempts to hear from officials of the Ethio-Somali regional state were to no avail.
PM addresses nation
Addressing the nation in a rare televised message in connection with these violent incidents, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn expressed his condolences to the families of the victims. But in what can only be seen as code red, the Prime Minister also said these latest incidents were posing serious danger to the peace and stability of the country.
PM Hailemariam has not been seen addressing the issues in the past weeks, during which ethnic-based violence in various universities located in Oromia, Amhara and Tigrai regional states have left at least a dozen students killed, followed by the death of the sixteen civilians in Chelenko on Monday Dec. 12.
The Prime Minister promised to investigate the incidents along with the regional governments and make the findings public; he also said his government would take appropriate measures against the perpetrators. he said the government and the ruling party would be working together to identify the fundamental causes of these conflicts and called on the public to stand with and support the government.
But several questions remain unanswered. “Who is going to tell us what is happening to the rest of the defenseless civilians in Gadullo? Why were they not protected both by the federal army, the Liyu police and the regional militia forces who seem to be everywhere in the area these days? And who is going to protect us from now on?”, asks our interviewee from Chiro. AS
Sunday, December 17, 2017
#OromoProtsts
TPLF is determined to secure the status quo - the laughable arrangement in which a party that purports to represent 6% of country’s 1000 million people dominates all aspects of public life. According to their decadent logic, everyone of us calling for change are either narrow minded, chauvinist, terrorist, anti-peace and anti-development.
There is so much at stake. Our hope is on the line, our safety is on the line, and our future is one the line. Above all, the integrity of the Ethiopian state is on the line. They must not be allowed to get their at. Not this time. #ANDM #OPDO #EPRDFEC Meeting
There is so much at stake. Our hope is on the line, our safety is on the line, and our future is one the line. Above all, the integrity of the Ethiopian state is on the line. They must not be allowed to get their at. Not this time. #ANDM #OPDO #EPRDFEC Meeting
Saturday, December 16, 2017
Friday, December 15, 2017
Thursday, December 14, 2017
What can Ambo learn from India’s 1919 Amritsar; reflection on Woyane’s weakness, its use of military
Posted: Onkoloolessa/October 26, 2017 · Finfinne Tribune | Gadaa.com
On April 3, 1919, thousands of Indians gathered in Amritsar, in India’s Punjab province, for a religious and cultural celebration. The time was at the turning point of the nonviolent/peaceful movement against the British occupation of India. Thus, similar to Oromia’s Irreecha celebrations, there were expressions of pent-up protests against the occupation at the celebration. These expressions of protests didn’t settle well with the British army in India.
The vast gathering place was all fenced with few gates here and there. On the orders of the British army leaders in India, the military was brought in and ordered to seal all but one of the gates, then machine guns were fired on the unarmed celebrants. Bodies piled up in the hundreds. The incident brought international condemnation against the British occupying force in India. This incident was also one of the motivations for Mahatma Gandhi to turn his focus into building a formidable nonviolent/peaceful movement that finally ended the British occupation of India in 1947.
Today (on October 26, 2017), we have witnessed a similar incident in Ambo, Oromia/Ethiopia. Ambo was sealed off while Woyane’s military brutalized the Oromo people, killing at least 10 people, according to media reports. There’s no doubt that it was a military operation by Ethiopia’s Defense Forces against own citizens (against own unarmed civilian citizens). That it was a military mission has now been confirmed by Woyane’s Deputy Prime Minister (PM) Debretsion Gebre-Michael on his official Facebook page. There are also photos of the military in Ambo on social media (one is attached here).
The Deputy PM, after calling the incident in Ambo a “military operation,” congratulated the “Defense Forces” for carrying out the “mission” successfully. This provocative statement was posted on his Facebook page (see quote below). This, as you can see in the video of the 1919 Amritsar below, shows his weakness, and the weakness of his government, not his or his government’s strength as he put it on his Facebook post. There is no reason for sending in troops of the “Defense Forces” against own unarmed civilian citizens unless it’s out of weakness and desperation.
The formidable and mightier Oromo force is the nonviolent/peaceful movement that has brought the Woyane government to its current weakest and most desperate state. Inspired by the Oromo Gadaa ethos of complete reverence for all creatures of The Almighty (Waaqa), including for those – like Debretsion Gebre-Michael – who knowingly inflict pain on this great Oromo nation, the Oromo nonviolent/peaceful movement has become a force to be reckoned with in the Horn of Africa, which has, for decades, hosted the world’s deadliest violent struggles for freedom and democracy with no sign of freedom and democracy in the region. There is absolutely no shred of doubt that the Oromo nonviolent/peaceful movement has become stronger, and will also become stronger, with each drop of blood spilled by the ever weakening Woyane force. Let Debretsion gloat in the blood of the Oromo spilled in Ambo; let him show his weakness by declaring war on defenseless citizens. We shall continue to believe that Waaqa will not let us down in our quest to be free of all forms of oppression; Waaqa will not let us down. We will be free of Woyane – nonviolently/peacefully.
Tuesday, December 12, 2017
#OromoProtest#OromoRevolution
Unrest in Ethiopia's Oromia region, federal forces blamed for deaths
There is an uneasy calm in Ethiopia’s Oromia region following the deaths of fifteencivilians at the hands of federal security forces. About a dozen others are said to
have suffered gunshot wounds.
The Addis Standard news portal cited the Oromia region communications Bureau chief,
Addisu Arega Kitessa, as implicating members of the national defense force,
adding that a probe was underway to ascertain how peaceful civilians had been killed.
Adissu Arega said people in the region’s east Hararghe zone had hit the streets to
protest the killing of an individual leading to the latest clashes that have
claimed more lives.
Locals told the Addis Standard portal that a notorious paramilitary force the
Liyu Police – were to blame for the death of the individual, for which reason they
staged the protest.
The security forces were said to have applied superior force to dismantle road
blocks in other parts of the region. Hospital staff in the city of Dire Dawa
confirmed that a dozen other people had been treated for gunshot wounds.
“On December 09, 2017; residents of Babile and Moyale towns in east Hararghe
and southern Ethiopia respectively have told the VOA Amharic that there were
everyday killings committed by members of the Liyu police.
“Several pictures showing wounds of gun shots and dead bodies are circulating in
Ethiopia’s social media space,” Addis Standard noted in its report on the situation.
The Oromia region was the heartbeat of anti-government protests that hit Ethiopia in
late 2015 through the better part of 2016. The protests spread to the Amhara region
leading to deaths after a violent security crackdown.
The widening protests led to the imposition of a six-month state of emergencyin October
2016. It, however, lasted 10 months after the parliament voted an extension
after the initial expiration in April this year. It was eventually lifted in August 2017.
Calanqoo ( Oromia,Ethiopia ) Massacare !
Calanqoo: "Daa'ima ganna
kudhanii mataa keessa dhahanii ajjeessan"
Jiraataan magaalaa Calanqoo maqaan isaanii akka eeramu hin feene, kan kaleessa hospitaala Calanqoo keessa turan, "ofii kiyyaan reeffa namoota 20 lakkaaheen jira, kaan riifariin hospitaala birootti ergaman, lakkoofsichi sanii ol ta'uu mala jechuun BBC'tti himanii jiru.
Jiraataan kun akka jedhanitti namoota ajjeefaman keessa daa'imni ganna kudhanii kan rasaasaan mataa keessa dhawame ni jira, abbaafi ilmi waliin ajjeefaman akkasumas kan ilmi rukutame lubbuun hafe garuu abbaan biraa du'ellee ni jiru.
Jiraataan magaalatti biroo BBC'n bilbilaan haasofsiise Obbo Sufiyaan Usmaan, "jalqaba Aanaa Meettaa araddaa Sarkamaatti liyyuu poolisiin Somaalee nama tokko ajjeefte, sana booda mormii uummataa ka'e irratti kan raayyaan ittisa biyyaa nama ajjeese," jedhu.
"Raayyaan ittisa biyyaa gariin magaaluma Calanqoo turan, gariin ammoo Harar irraa dhufan," kan jedhan Obbo Suufiyaan, "bakka Qullubbii jedhamtu as dabarraan namumaa karaa irratti argan, kana sana osoo hin jedhiin dhawaa seenan," jechuun dubbatu.
Kan manatti itti seenanii ajjeesanillee ni jiru jedhu jiraattonni kunneen.
Wayita bilbilaan haasofsiifne, namoota ajjeefamaan awwaaluuf gara giddugala Siidaa wareegamtoota Calanqoo deemaa akka jiran kan nutti himan jiraattonni kunneen humni waraanaa meeshaalee gurguddoo hidhatee uummata doorsisaa jira jedhu.
Dubbi himaan mootummaa naannoo Oromiyaa Obbo Addisuu Araggaa lakkoofsi namoota haleellaa raayyaa ittisa biyyaatiin ajjeefamanii 15 gahuu fuula Feesbuukii isaanii irratti himanii jiru.
Mootummaan Naannoo Oromiyaa ajjeechaa raayyaan ittisa biyyaa namoota nagaa irraatti fudhate cimsee kan balaaleeffatuu fi tarkaanfiin kun maaliif fudhatame akkamitti fudhatame kan jedhu qaamni qulqulleesu caffee Oromiyaa irraa kallatti Pirezidaantiin Oromiyaa kaa'aniin bobba'e jira, dhimmichi akka qulqullaa'ee xumurameenis ummata keenyaaf ifa goona jechuunis barreessanii jiru.
Namoota ajjeechaa kana raawwatan seera duratti dhiyeessuufis ni hojjenna jedhan.
Dhimma kana hordofne, odeessawwan dabalataa isin biraan geenya.
Monday, December 11, 2017
Sunday, December 10, 2017
Hachalu Hundessa “was deep, enigmatic, resilient, enduring, and affirming
- all at the same time. Rhythmically rejuvenating, and beautiful,
that performance was [almost] pitch-perfect!
He not only harnesses and deploys the deep well of Oromo traditional music with
an astonishing directness and depth, he also represents a new generation of Oromo
musicians who can capture and mesmerize the imagination of the Oromo
public and beyond. “
Thursday, December 7, 2017
Freedom Fighters and Legitimate Leaders of the Masses - Dr Merera Gudina - Bekele Gerba - Ahmedin Jebel
Freedom Fighters and Legitimate Leaders of the Masses
- Dr Merera Gudina
- Bekele Gerba
- Dr Merera Gudina
- Bekele Gerba
Ahmedin Jebel
Wednesday, December 6, 2017
This is what the dectator of Ethiopian government want to do to stay on power
December 6,
2017 1:01AM EST
Letter to Cyberbit Solutions
re Sale and Use of Cyberbit Systems in Ethiopia
Dear Mr.
Dar,
Human
Rights Watch is an independent international organization that monitors human
rights in more than 90 countries around the world. I am writing to request your
input and perspective to incorporate into Human Rights Watch’s reporting on
surveillance abuses in Ethiopia. Our reporting is based on a forthcoming report
by Toronto-based research group, Citizen Lab.
We have
recently learned through research conducted by Citizen Lab that several
Ethiopian activists and commentators based in the United States and United
Kingdom, along with one of Citizen Lab’s own research fellows, were targeted
with email phishing attacks that, if successful, would have infected their
electronic devices with spyware. The report also identifies dozens of other
successfully infected devices belonging to unidentified targets in 20
countries. Once infected, the entity that controls the spyware would have
unauthorized access to information stored on the targets’ devices. Citizen
Lab’s analysis of the spyware log files for these attacks links them to
Cyberbit’s PC Surveillance System (PSS) product and places the spyware’s
operator inside Ethiopia. The report also identified potential product
demonstrations to possible clients in several other countries, including
Kazakhstan. Thailand, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
The
Ethiopian government has a documented history of abusing surveillance
technologies, which has facilitated a range of other human rights violations.
In a 2014 report, Human Rights Watch documented how the Ethiopian government
misused telecommunications surveillance systems and spyware to monitor the activities
of perceived political opponents and to silence dissent and intimidate critics.
[1] The
report describes how Ethiopian authorities have previously used spyware
products sold by two other companies, UK/Germany-based FinFisher and
Italy-based Hacking Team, to similarly target journalists and government
critics outside of Ethiopia. Ethiopian authorities continued to misuse Hacking
Team’s system to spy on individuals abroad through at least 2015, when a widely
covered breach of the company’s corporate data confirmed its business in
Ethiopia.
[2]Ethiopia’s
national laws lack meaningful protections for the right to privacy, and the
country’s broad security and law enforcement powers are not adequately
regulated to prevent arbitrary, unlawful, or disproportionate surveillance. The
Ethiopian government has also long invoked national security as a pretext for
clamping down on human rights. For example, in a 2015 report, we documented how
the government used counterterrorism laws to target journalists and others critical
of government.
[3] At
least 75 journalists have fled into exile since 2010.
Given this
context, we want to better understand the circumstances under which Cyberbit’s
product was obtained by the Ethiopian government and the steps Cyberbit takes
to address any abuse of its products and services by its governmental
customers, particularly government agencies seeking lawful intercept,
intelligence, or offensive capabilities. We would appreciate specific replies
to the following questions. This will greatly assist our understanding of
Cyberbit, the products and solutions it offers, its approach to human rights
risk, and how it would respond to credible reports of illegal surveillance and
other human rights abuses linked to its products and services.
What products,
services, or training has Cyberbit provided to the Ethiopian government? Has
Cyberbit specifically sold its PC Surveillance System (PSS), PC 360, or a
similar product that enables covert information gathering from remote computers
to any Ethiopian governmental agency?
Does Cyberbit currently have any governmental
clients in the other countries identified in the Citizen Lab report as
locations of potential product demonstrations, including Kazakhstan, Nigeria,
the Philippines, Rwanda, Serbia, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, or Zambia?
What
policies and procedures does Cyberbit have in place to vet potential sales or
governmental customers? To what extent does Cyberbit inquire about the end use
or end users of its products and services?
Has Cyberbit ever conducted due diligence with
respect to sales to the Ethiopian government, particularly by examining the
government’s human rights record and past surveillance abuses targeting
journalists and activists (for example, using FinFisher or Hacking Team
products)?
Can Cyberbit elaborate on any policies or
procedures it has in place to address and prevent human rights abuses linked
with the use of its products or services by governmental customers?
How does Cyberbit monitor whether governmental
customers are complying with the terms of their contracts or otherwise misusing
its products? What steps, if any, does Cyberbit take if it uncovers violations
of company contracts or the use of its products to facilitate human rights
abuses by its customers?
We would appreciate a response by December 5,
2017 in order to reflect your response, as well as any other perspectives you
may wish to share, in our reporting.
Thank you
for your consideration and we look forward to your responses to our inquiries.
We would also welcome the opportunity to discuss these issues with you further.
[1] Human
Rights Watch, “They Know Everything We Do”: Telecom and Internet Surveillance
in Ethiopia, March 25, 2014,
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2014/03/25/they-know-everything-we-do.
[2]
“Ethiopia: Digital Attacks Intensify,” Human Rights Watch news release, March
9, 2015,
https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/03/09/ethiopia-digital-attacks-intensify;
“Ethiopia: Hacking Team Lax on Evidence of Abuse,” Human Rights Watch news
release, August 13, 2015,
https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/08/13/ethiopia-hacking-team-lax-evidence-a....
[3] Human
Rights Watch, “Journalism Is Not a Crime”: Violations of Media Freedoms in
Ethiopia, January 22, 2015,
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2015/01/21/journalism-not-crime.
Region /
Country Ethiopia
Topic
Business Free Speech Internet Freedom
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