#OromoProtests

#OromoProtests, July 20, 2016

July 20, 2016 in Oromia

‪#‎Oromoprotests‬ mormii Oromoon gochaa jirutti kan muddame mootummaan gabroonfataan yeroo ammaa kana humna waraanaa qabutti fayyadamee dhaamsuu dadhabuu isaarraan kan ka’e hooggantoota humnoota waraanaa isaatti dheekkamaa jiraachuun himame.humni waraana Agaazii tarkaanfii ishee fudhachuu itti fuftus Uummanni guyyaadhaa guyyaatti fincila isaa bifa sodaachisaan adeemsisaa jira.

Nannoon Oromiyaa bulchiinsa komaand post(hooggansa waraanaa)jala jirtu military rule isaanii osoo hin sodaatiin fincila xummura gabrummaa hadhaawaa eegalte,isa erga eegalte ji’oota saddeettan lakkoofsise fuulduratti mirgisiisaa jirti.
Gidduu darbe godina shawaa lixaa Aanaa Ada’aa bargaatti gubachuu buufata waraanaatiin wal qabatee humni waraana biyyatti naannoo sana madheeffachuurraa sodaa qabu ibseera.kun immoo injifannoo ilmaan oromoo gochaa jirtuuti…

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‪#‎OromoProtests‬ Finfinne Is Filled in To Pile Trash After Oromo Farmers Stop The Trash To be thrown In Sandafa! Viva Oromo Farmers Of Sandafa Bakke!

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Godina Wallagga Bahaa Aanaa Waamaa Hagaloo Magaalaa #Qassoo keessatti fincilli uummataa itti fufe!
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Tarkaanfii poolisoota wayyaanee irratti fudhatameen poolisooti hospitalatti guuramaa jiru
Ni injifanna!

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#‎OromoProtests‬
Shawaa Lixaa magaalaa Ijaajjii keessatti Takkaalinyi Lachisaa barataa cimaa kutaa 11ffaa loltoota mootummaatiin ajjeefamee jira. Yeroo ammaa ummanni magaalattiifi gandoota naannoo irraa gara waajjira poolisiifi nama gurbaa san ajjeeseetti deemaa jira. Via Saphaloo Kadiir

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#‎Oromoprotests‬ Hangaa TPLF Oromiyaa dhiftee deemtuu ni falmaanna ja’uu da’iimmaan kunis! !! Isiin hoo maal jattuu?

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‪#‎OromoPtotests‬
“Qabsoon Umataa Oromoo kalatii hundanuu Itti fufaa jiraa kanaaf hangaa wayyaanee bojii’amutii Qabsoon keenyaa ittii fufaa” Via Anii Sifa Hamid

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Oromiyaa kutaalee garaa garaa keessatti mormiin haala adda taheen itti fufee ooleera.
Qotee bulaan keenya yeroo ammaa qabsoo barattoonni eegalte finiinsee itti fufaa jira.
Nuti ABO dha
ABO nu bulcha
Gabrummaan hin bullu 
Hanga bilisummaatti ni falmanna jechuun gootonni qonnaan bultoonni Oromoo qabsoo itti fufaa jiru.
BILISUMMAAN BARANAA
OROMOO BAKKA JIRTUU WANJOO GABRUMMAA FIRRAA KUFFISI. Via Oromiyaa Harmeekoo

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Godina Wallagga Bahaa Aanaa Waamaa Hagaloo Magaalaa ‪#‎Qassoo ‬keessatti fincilli uummataa itti fufe!
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Tarkaanfii poolisoota wayyaanee irratti fudhatameen poolisooti hospitalatti guuramaa jiru
Ni injifanna Via Deebisaa Gadaa Maccaa

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‪#‎OromoProtests‬ Shawaa Lixaa magaalaa Ijaajjii keessatti July 20, 2016 Takkaalinyi Lachisaa barataa cimaa kutaa 11ffaa loltoota mootummaatiin ajjeefamee jira. Yeroo ammaa ummanni magaalattiifi gandoota naannoo irraa gara waajjira poolisiifi nama gurbaa san ajjeeseetti deemaa jira. Via Hassan Ismail

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‪#‎OromoProtests‬ Road closure in action in Hirna, West Hararge earlier today, July 20, 2016 Via Jawar Mohammed

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Breaking:
Bekele Gerba and his colleagues are at hunger strike. They were very disappointed by the decision of the court on their appeal on bad treatment by prison administration and against the violations of their human rights. They started the strike yesterday according to the sources.
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Here is what their lawyer Abduljebar Hussien updated on his facebook:
“In Bekele Gerba and his colleagues case the Federal High court 19th criminal bench has handed down a court ruling on our petition on defendant’s human rights violations in Qilinto prison by the prison’s administration . The court says almost all claims raised in the petition are administrative issues and it has no power to entertain them. But regarding the issue that the room they are confined in is dark and kept unlocking for 24 hours a day, the court has ordered the public prosecutor to further investigate the same and report it to the court on the regular adjournment i,e. 25/11/08, and the ruling on this single issue regarding human rights violations is expected to be rendered together with the ruling to be given on preliminary objections. In effect it can safely be concluded that the court has said nothing on the matter as we have been expecting as a litigating party.”  Via Eli Darash

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#‎OromoProtests‬ Godina Harargee Lixaa Magaalaa Hirnaa keessatti guyyaa har’aa Adoolessa 20, 2016 keessatti mormiin gaggeeffamaa jira. Poolisoonni wayyaaneen dargaggoota keenya reebaa jiru. Mucaan tokko rukutamuus gabaafameera Via Barento Mohammed

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#‎OromoProtests‬ Adooleessaa 20, 2016
Harargee Lixaa magaalaa Hirnaa keessatti ummanni mormiitti jira. poolisinis bifa kanaan uummaata shororkkeessa jiru! Via Sirkanan Ahmed

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‪#‎OromoProtests‬ Oromiyaa Godina Booranaa Magaalaa Yaabelloo Gooton Oromo mormii bifa kanaan itti jiran~~~~Jabaadhaaaa!!! Via Daraaraa Sabaa ‪
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#‎OromoProtests‬ In Yabellow town, Borana today July 20, 2016

mormii ciimaan guyyaa hardhaa godinaa boranaa maagala yaabaalloo keessaati geegefama olee jira . mormii gaanama sa’aati 12 eegale hangaa guyyaa sa’aati 6 ittiifuufaa jira. goototni ilmaan oromoo boraana sooda tokko malee ijaa dimeesan diina duraa dhaabata turaa. ammallee ittaa funfaanna jeechuun dhadanoo dhageesisan

Aloo jaatani Ali.
Abduba naqata.
Kan akka kormaa gudoee.
Goota jarsoo waqoo.
Qeerramsa Ali garoo.
Jaaba sabii dhabee jaal tokkocha teessoo.
Dargaggoo nu leenjisee
Jaal Halake didoo.
Hayyuu gorsa goosa
Areroo Galgalo.
Jaal subii waaqoo
Jaal hulluqaa waqoo
Jaannoota boorana
Jallawwaan waaraqoo.
Dargaggoota booranaa
Warra qabsoof
Dhabnee.
Yeroottii nu tolchee
Malee yoomi callifnee rafnee?
Ka,i qeerroo tiyyaa
Jannoota booranaa.
Dhiira fi dubartiin
Jaarti fi manguddoon.
Aloo gootoota keenna
Ka,a hidhadha marxoo.
Ani Sabo Gona
Dargaggoo leenjisa.
Entii fiira dhiisee
Diina ofii leellisa?
Umar Suleiman
Guddoo irra baradhee.
Osoo kiyya qabuu
Kankee itti daradhee………

Tokkummaan huumna ilmaan ayyaa!!! Via Sabo Gona

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‪#‎GonderProtests‬: The danger of creating a narrative in exchange of Self-Harm

I will be the first to tell you as an Oromo lady, our values go hand and in hand with wishing the same freedom, justice, equality and peace for all of the people currently denied access to these values. However, I will not be silent when we over play someone else’s achievement in the expense of down playing the most effective, organized, smart and courageous and longest running civil movement in the history of Oromia/Ethiopia i.e the‪#‎OromoProtests‬ because our neighbors showed up with the gun. If you think criticizing bare hand courage in exchange courage with gun, you are the problem.

We usually do not examine our own psyche and how deep the trauma we carry and lived through as people define how we see ourselves. It is an enlightenment to be an ally and an advocate for those who seek the same things we do. But, it is self-sabotage when we knowingly or unknowingly amplify minimal efforts of others while downplaying our greatest accomplishment of this generation and that calumniated by selfless efforts of those who came before us. We are disrespecting ourselves and the great sacrifices of our people both past and present in an effort to appease our neighbors. It is a great wisdom to be the bigger person at all times, I get it. However, did we forget, that these are the same people who refuse to even acknowledge the greatest effort our generation that is the #OromoProtests.

I want to speak to those in positions of power and prestige; you are responsible to uphold the values, principles and dream of your people and your nation first. We have to be our relentless ally first, before we can jump on someone else’s bandwagon. One needs to ask itself, if our allies both old and new are beneficial to our goal and then take stand. When we are self critical and beat the drum of victory for others and compare the incomparable, we have already lost the battle. The most effective weapon any enemy has ever used on the Oromo people is the Oromo people itself, do not ever forget that.

I also want to speak to those opportunistic, shortsighted and power hungry folks in all sides, we know the Oromo issue is nothing more than a ticket to the top for you. There is a fine line between being progressive thinkers and looking out for the values and principles we are dying to achieve. If these individuals use such an issue to try take an air out of the full resistance in effect in Oromo for almost 9 month still going, do not be their delivery vessel. It is not hard to draw out; fighting for liberation is not always getting involved on the battle ground directly. It is also protecting and safeguarding the values our people are paying their blood and bones for. I applaud the people of Gonder to fight for their rights in which ever way they desire and I hope the rest of them join in their fight. However, I will not stand for minimizing the massive; blood, bones and the human cost not mention the bravery of our people fighting bare hands shaking the foundation of this corrupt so called government by comparing it to something else of lesser caliber.

Just a thought, all have woken up and rising by using the road and courage that is paved by our Young and brave souls of Oromia!!! The exposure and unveiling of Ethiopian government facade made possible by our heroes who refuse to buy the image the regime sold, the image of strength and legitimacy. It is easy to shoot and kill an animal that is already wounded and going no where. Anyone with a gun can have a sudden courage or supported bravery. But, it takes real courage and bravery to stand in front of gun with nothing more than a conviction that Freedom is a value you are willing to give your life for! Sit in thought next time most of you want to drum for the other while silencing your own legitimate voice of freedom!!! Go ahead! And Do that!

‪#‎CourageOutsourcing‬ ‪#‎Oromia‬ ‪#‎ProtectTheDream‬
Via Najat Hamza thank you Sabboontuu! !!

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Waamicha kana addatti Ijoollee ‪#‎Salaaleetiif‬!
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Akkuma beekamu ‪#‎Minilik‬ bineensichi ‪#‎Manz‬ kan ta’e dirree Oromoo toora‪#‎Angolaalaatti‬kan dhalateefi, maqaa Mootota Shawaa jedhuun Mootota kaabaa injifachuuf xiyyeeffannaa garboomfannaa kibba biyyattiiitti geggeecheen,ilmaan‪#‎TuulamaaAbbichuuGalaanEekkaaGullallee‬deeggarsa irraa argachaa fi isaanumas buqqisuun isaa ni beekama!
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Maarree sirna alagaa fi garboomfataa kanaa hanga har’aa nurra jiru of irraa fonqochuun falmaan geggeessunu akkuma bara Gadaa‪#‎AbbaaGadaaGaariiDuufaa‬ kan ‪#‎Ankoobariin‬achitti qaarisiisee of irraa sirna ‪#‎SaahileSillaasee‬ of irraa deebisaa ture deebisuuf, qabsoo ji’oota saddeetiif ture kana jabeessinee kaayyoosaa dhugoomsuun dirqama keenya!
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Waan kana ta’eef, ‪#‎OromoProtests‬ haalaan itti fufneefii tumsa barbaachisu geggeesinee Uummata Oromoo kutaalee Oromiyaa biroo wajjin fincila keenya haa jabeessinu
‪#‎MeettaaRoobii‬
‪#‎YaayyaaGullallee‬
‪#‎Dagam‬
‪#‎Darraa‬
‪#‎GarbaGurraachaaa‬
‪#‎Jiddaa‬
‪#‎Fiichee‬
‪#‎WarraJaarsoo‬
Kaa’aa Ka’aa
Fincila finiinsaa
Deebisaa Gadaa Maccaatiin

Africa/Ethiopia/Protests EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: AFTER DEADLY PROTESTS IN GONDAR WHAT SHOULD THE GOVERNMENT DO NEXT? addisstandard / July 21, 2016

Between July 12th and 14th more than a dozen people were killed in a protest in Gondar, northern Ethiopia, that followed a raid by heavily armed federal security forces, including the Anti-Terrorism special force, targeting members of the Wolkayit community who have been protesting against the federal government’s decision to incorporate the area where the community lives into the Tigray regional state. The Wolkayit community members also reject the idea of them being ethnically considered as Tigrayan and want to identify themselves as Amhara.

The government said 11 of its security forces were killed during a shootout between members of the community and security forces. Several eye witnesses put this number, including the number of civilians, at more than 20. Many cars belonging to the government were set ablaze and businesses considered to be affiliated with the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF), the all too powerful party within the ruling EPRDF, were vandalized by protesters, sparking, although unfounded, fears of ethnic violence.

After a negotiated surrender to the local police of Colonel Demeke Zewdu, the leader of the “Wolkayit Committee” who has represented the community to lodge complaints both at the regional and federal governments, calm seems to have returned to the city of Gondar, a historic city home to thousands of tourists every year. But many fear the federal security forces’ attempt to take the colonel into its custody may spark further resistance from members of the community and residents of the city at large.      

Addis Standard interviewed Tsegaye R. Ararssa of the Melbourne law school and a constitutional law expert, on the genesis of the Wolkayit question and what lies ahead. Excerpts:   

Tsegaye R. Ararssa

Addis Standard – If you can please explain to our readers the genesis of the recent protest in Gondar in Amhara regional state? What lies at the heart of the matter? 

Tsegaye R. Ararssa – The protest has its roots in the decisions made in the 1990s when the area was first incorporated into Tigray region as part of the larger TPLF-EPRDF scheme of restructuring the Ethiopian state, devolving power to self-governing regional entities, and recognizing the right of “nations, nationalities and peoples” to self-determination (Proc No 7/1992). When Tigray was reconstituted as Region one, this area, which hitherto had been part of Gondar Province, was made part of Region one and formed what came to be known as the Western Province of the Regional State of Tigray. The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) constitution of 1995 endorsed that by the simple acceptance of Region 1 as the Tigray Region, also known formally as the ‘Tigray National Regional Government.’ The boundary was taken for granted. No discussion was made about the boundaries. No consideration of the will/consent of the people was made. No consideration of the settlement pattern was made; if anything, it was ignored especially in this locality. Nor were the identity and language patterns of the area. This stood in stark contrast to what the constitution (in its article 46) prescribes for delimitation of inter-regional boundaries.

AS – Can you explain these factors that lay out the delimitation as per the constitution?  

TA – According to art 46 (2) of the FDRE Constitution, four factors: settlement pattern, consent, identity, and language, are the factors to consider in the process of delimiting states. As it is well known, as a frontier area, three languages are commonly spoken in the area: Amharic, Tigrigna, and Arabic. But the vast majority of the people there identify themselves as Amhara. This is as true as it is today, although there was a massive Government-driven Tigryan settlement in the area since the 1990s. The settlement is presumed in some circles as a TPLF strategy of diluting the demographics of the area, but the majority still seem to identify themselves as Amhara nonetheless. And the settlers, most of whom are former TPLF fighters that were demobilized after 1992, view themselves as Tigryan settlers. In short, like everywhere else, the criteria of delimiting regions in art 46 (2) were ignored, and we, as a country, continue to bleed from the reckless delimitation that was done then. The current conflict is an example of the problem of TPLF-EPRDF failure to deliver its own constitutional promises.

AS – When did the people of the area start protesting against this arrangement?

TA –The arrangement was rejected by the local people from the very start. The people protested the decision then, but their protest was ignored by the TPLF dominated EPRDF government and was submerged at the national level by several other political issues (such as the Eritrean referendum, the precarious peace among the parties that “negotiated” the transition, emergence of low-profile local conflicts among various groups, etc) that proliferated in the face of the state crisis. However, it persisted as a low key, intermittent, ad hoc, if disorganized, resistance to the regime. It is important to note, incidentally, that the resentment was openly expressed in the society through local songs in the area and in the wider Amhara region for the last two decades and a half. (In most of these Amharic songs, the names of the towns and villages in the area were invoked as part of Gondar as they used to be before the ascension to power of TPLF-EPRDF. Fasil Demoz’s song is only one example.

AS – but the government maintains the current crisis was orchestrated by Eritrean based rebel groups with the support from the Eritrean government.  

TA –The genesis of the current crisis has its roots in not paying attention to the identity, consent, settlement pattern, and language of the people of the area in the process of delimiting the region. And this is not accidental. Many people from the area consider it as part of the TPLF’s ambition to impose Tigryan hegemony both in the region and in the wider country by incorporating and subsuming peoples in the periphery of its historic borders under Tigrayan political dominance. (The Raya-Oromo of the historical Wollo and the Afar of historic Afar are now incorporated into Tigray (and rendered totally invisible in the region). The Kunama and the Irob (also called Saho in some writings) are the other numerically small groups who, although part of the historic Tigray, were culturally and linguistically suppressed and rendered invisible in the region struggling even to assert a Woreda-level self-government.) There is also the view that the TPLF wants to take economic advantage of the relatively more fertile nature of the land in the area.

AS – What changed in recent years? How did the protest gain momentum?

TA – In recent years, the hitherto sporadic, fragmented, and disorganized resentment gathered momentum and found an organizational expression through the “Wolkayit Committee” that launched a legal campaign of self-definition by recognizing their distinct identity as Amharas. They believe they are wrongly placed in Tigray region. They presented their claim at various levels of governance: at the levels of District, Zone, State, and Federal Governments. The central claim of their demand is the right to self-definition as Amhara rather than Tigryan. They relied on art 39 of the Federal Constitution and its regional equivalent. Apparently, they took self-definition, rightly, as a form of self-determination.

The demand for self-definition was however not an end in itself. Through self-definition, they sought to advance what is otherwise known as a demand for “ethno-cultural justice.” They sought to redress the neglect of their culture as Amhara (holidays, songs, dresses, styles, etc), the marginalization of their language (Amharic) as a medium of providing social services (e.g. education, administration, justice, etc), and their exclusion or severe marginalization in ‘representative’ political and administrative institutions. They also feel politically dominated by the Tigrayan majority that came up with a series of land laws that effected the transfer of land to Tigryan investors and settlers thereby increasingly displacing the indigenous inhabitants. The coordinators of the demand also suggest that there are social and local government pressure for the Wolkayit Amhara people to leave the land to the region and go. Implicit in their demand (so far unstated, I think) is the interest to be re-incorporated as part of the Amhara Region South of the border. This is seen as a form of irredentism that leaves Tigray at a disadvantage. The demand has thus activated the fear that this may lead to losing to the Amhara region, often perceived as their traditional rivals.

The grassroots mobilization and formal presentation of the demand provoked a political rage from the TPLF in the region and in the Federal Government. In the first place the regime failed the question primarily because of its undeclared aspiration to impose Tigryan hegemony both in the region and in the country. There is a Tigryan nationalist desire to expand the territory and entrench the power and privileges of the Tigryan nation. And they want to do this top-down undemocratically. That is the central problem.

Although legal resolution of the problem could have been easier, they resorted to political footballing (playing back and forth between the Region and the Federal government) and outright military violence—which has ultimately led to the recent uprising in Gonder. Consequently, the demand has been met with repressive violence almost at every turn. The coordinators, conscious residents, and activists have been routinely harassed and intimidated, arrested, detained, beaten or otherwise abused by local government officials. There are reports that several people – sometimes claimed to be over a hundred – are subjected to enforced disappearance in these localities. Their right to freely assemble, associate, and organize on the matter has been brutally suppressed. The coordinators complain that they couldn’t even hold a public meeting to gather petitions. They charge that their constitutional rights to freedom of assembly, association, petition, and more are consistently violated by the local and regional government. As a result, they had to rely on local self-help associations and restaurants, cafes, market places to have the petition signed. But they were followed by security officials wherever they go. They were even arrested in Addis Abeba while they were on a mission to submit their demand to the House of Federation (HoF).

The coordinators say that [they] had better freedom in the neighbouring Gonder city where they organized a couple of public meeting for the residents of the city as well as the people from their localities. Most of the mobilizers and the activists were in safer Gonder when the security forces came to arrest them on July 12th which provoked so much anger from the residents of the wider Gonder.

The outburst in Gonder should be understood in context: a long held resentment against the general frustration with the democratic exercise owing to the general closure of the political space and people’s deprivation of any avenue of having a say; the perceived privilege of Tigryans living in the city and in the wider country; the perceived cession of a legitimately Ethiopian (Gondere) territory to the neighbouring Sudan; the unfair economic exploitation of the area that historically belonged to Gonder; the perceived mishandling of the Qemant question and the trauma socially experienced because of the deadly conflict that ensued therefrom; and the long-held anger about the incorporation of the Wolkayit area into Tigray without their consent in the first place.

Following the recent protest, heavily armed security forces were seen roaming the city of Gondar. Photo: Social media

AS – The government is repeatedly saying the protest has nothing to do with Wolkayit’s identity question. But we have, if you like, a government that first introduced a federal system in which Ethiopia will be celebrated as a multi-nation state, but why do you think is this same government trying to distort the truth now and distance itself from it?

TA –The Ethiopian government is caught in a deadly paradox. On the one hand, it projects an image of a multinational federal state in which, at least in theory, ALL groups have the right to self-determination. On the other hand, it subscribes to a political practice that represses all rights of groups as well as individuals. Denial of group rights is often justified on the basis of the wrong claim that the question of group rights (alias known as the National Question) is fully and finally addressed through the constitution in 1995. Denial of individual rights is often justified in the name of ‘legal limits’ or by claiming that the violation of the result of lack of good governance, development, and the imperfection of a young democracy. The contradiction between its projected image and its political practice, the tension between the legal rhetoric and the political reality, couldn’t anymore be contained. Hence, the almost total inability to address just demands of the people. The contradiction demonstrates the unsustainable tension between the pretension of the regime to practice “democratic federalism” on the one hand and its abysmal performance in ensuring democratic opening and in enhancing federalist accommodation of diversities. The failure to address this issue is the final and perhaps the most conclusive example of the limits of the regime pretension both in terms of democratizing the state and decentralized exercise of state power.

AS – There are voices that strongly claim that the aftermath of the protest (the burning of buses and business establishments belonging to a particular ethnic group – the Tigrayans in Gondar) is, in the first place, the result of the current Ethiopian constitution that introduced what’s commonly known as “ethnic federalism.” As an expert on constitutionalism, what’s your take on that?

TA – No, if anything, it is refusal to implement the promises of multinational federalism that led to this crisis. It seems to me that the crisis is caused by the absence of federalism of any sort rather than too much of it as the regime’s critics say. If the regime adheres to the type of federalism that it proclaimed, responding to the demands of self-definition would have been the simplest of responsibilities to discharge. In multinational federalism one has more resources than could address the right to self-definition and preservation of one’s local, ethnic, or national identity. If anything, this is a demonstration of the need for a more aggressive implementation of the right to self-determination that the Ethiopian multinational federation endorses. Negatively, it exposed the regime’s democratic pretensions thereby showing how a federalism without democracy becomes an instance of the abuse of cultural pluralism. It confirmed to us the pattern that suggests that without democracy, federalism tends to degenerate into ‘bad’ pluralism (among which apartheid is an outstanding example).

 AS – Once again, the government seems to have hit another dead end with the people of Ethiopia, this time through the people of Wolkayit. What should the government do next to deal with the people of Wolkayit?

TA –Yes. It could have handled it better. It had all the constitutional-legal resources it could deploy to handle it better. The solution is not easy but fairly uncomplicated: first, restore peace. Release the activists. Remove the army. Stop the harassment, the arrest, and enforced disappearances. Secondly, allow the people to decide on their identity (if they are Amhara or Tigray). This can be done by a referendum as per the words of the constitution and Proclamation 250/2001. This satisfies the question of self-definition. The demography settles it. The option that gets most of the votes will win. Thirdly, allow the people to decide to which region (Tigray or Amhara) they want to be incorporated into. If the decision of the majority is to be part of the Amhara region, then deal with the issues of inter-state borders and issues related to that. If the decision is to remain in Tigray, then deal with the issue of the rights of those who wanted out. If the decision is to be by themselves, then, depending on whether they submit a demand for a separate statehood in the federation, conduct another referendum to decide on statehood. Whichever way you want to go, the basic principle is simple: listen to the demands of the people and respect their choices. Period.

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Cover Photo: Protesters set ablaze a Bus belonging to “Selam Bus” a transport company many claim is affliated with TPLF. Photo credit: Social media 

ጃዋር መሐመድ እና ሙሉቀን ተስፋው በጎንደር ዙርያ ያደርጉት ሰፋ ያለ ውይይት | ሊደመጥ የሚገባው

ጃዋር መሐመድ እና ሙሉቀን ተስፋው በጎንደር ዙርያ ያደርጉት ሰፋ ያለ ውይይት | ሊደመጥ የሚገባው

oromoo

#OromoProtests

ጥርስ ኣልባው ሃይለማርያም ደሳለኝ ስልጣን ቢለቅ ለሕወሓት ትልቅ ኪሳራ መሆኑ እየተነገረ ይገኛል ::
‪#‎Ethiopia‬ ‪#‎EPRDF‬ ‪#‎HMD‬ ‪#‎Ethiopiaprotests‬ ‪#‎MinilikSalsawi‬ ‪#‎Freedom‬

ለወልቃይት የማታለያና የጊዜ መግዣ እንዲሆን ጊዜያዊ የራስ ገዝ ኣስተዳደር ሊሰጥ ይችላል::ያልተጠናቀቁ አዋጆችን ለማፅደቅ ?? Minilik Salsawi - mereja.com - ኢትዮጵያ ከፍተኛ የፖለቲካ ቀውስ ውስጥ እየዋዥቀች ነው።የአማራ ክልል ባለስልጣናትን ያላከተተ ዝግ ስብሰባ በሃይለማርያም ደሳለኝ እየተመራ ባህርዳር ላይ ተቀምጧል። የወያኔ ጅቦች ሊበሉ ያሰቧቸው የብአዴን ሰዎች እንዳሉ ኣመላካች ነው።ለፓርላማው ስለወቅታዊ የሃገሪቱ ሁኔታ እንዲያነብ በሕወሓት ተጽፎ የመጣለትን ንጝግር እንዲሻሻል ቢጠይቅም ተቀባይነት ኣላገኘም።በሃይለማርያም ደሳለኝና በደህንነት ቢሮው ሃላፊ እንዲሁም በሕወሓት ጄኔራሎች መካከል ኣለመግባባት የተከሰተ መሆኑ እየተነገረ ሲሆን ሕወሓት ሃይለማርያም ኣርፎ እንዲቀመጥ ኣስጠንቅቃዋለች፥ ወታደራዊ እና የደሕንነት ሪፖርት የፈለገው የጠቅላይ ሚኒስትሩ ቢሮ የሕወሓት ባለስልጣናትን መልስ ተከትሎ ሃይለማርያም ደሳለኝ በጥርስ ኣልባነቱ ቢጮሕም የሚሰማው ኣላገኘም።በስልጣን የመቆየት ፍላጎት እንዳሌለው የሚያስነግረው ሃይለማርያም በነዱት የሚሄድ በግ መሆኑን ሕወሓቶች ራሳቸው መስክረውበታል።ፓርላማው ኣስቸኳይ የተጠራው ግድያን እና መንግስታዊ ሽብርተኝነትን በኣለማቀፍ ደረጃ ሕጋዊ ለማሰኘት ነው። (ከሐምሌ ወር ጀምሮ ተግባራዊ እንዲሆን የሚጠበቀውን የገቢ ግብር አዋጅ እና ሌሎች ለቋሚ ኮሚቴ ተመርተው ያልተጠናቀቁ አዋጆችን ለማፅደቅ ??? )የኣማራ ክልል መሳሪያ ማስፈታት ካልቻለ ፌዴራል መንግስቱ መሳሪያ ያስፈታ የሚል ስልጣን የሚሰጥ ኣዋጅ እየተረቀቀ እንደሆነ መረጃዎች ኣሉ። ይህም ለፓርላማ ይቅረብ ኣይቅረብ ኣልታወቀም።በሃገር ውስጥና በውጪው ኣገር የሚኖር ኢትዮጵያዊ ሁሉ ጉዳዩን በንቃት እንዲከታተል እና ለለውጥ በሕዝቡ እየተደረገ የሚገኘውን ንቅናቄ እንዲያግዝ ሕዝቡ እየተናገረ ይገኛል።

በማስፈራሪያ የታጀበው የሳሞራ የኑስ መልስ ቁጣን የቀላቀለ እንደነበር ምንጮቹ ይናገራሉ፥ሃይለማርያም ደሳለኝ ስልጣን ቢለቅ ለሕወሓት ትልቅ ኪሳራ መሆኑ እየተነገረ ይገኛል፥ፓርላማው ኣስቸኳይ ስብሰባ የተጠራ ሲሆን በምን ጉዳይ ላይ ይወያያል የሚለው ኣጀንዳ እስካሁን ይፋ ኣልሆነም።ሕወሓት የኣማራውን ሕዝብ ንቅናቄ ተከትሎ ከፍተኛ ድንጋጤና ውጥረት ውስጥ የገባ ሲሆን በብአዴን ላይ ያለው ተስፋ እየወረደ ስለሆነ ኣስጊ የሚባሉ ባለስልጣናትን ያስወግዳል የሚል ኣስተያየት እየተሰጠ ይገኛል፥ለወልቃይት የጊዜ መግዣ እንዲሆን ጊዜያዊ የራስ ገዝ ኣስተዳደር ሊሰጥ ይችላል የሚሉም ኣልጠፉም።የሕዝብን ጥያቄ ከመመለስ ይልቅ በግድያ በማሰር ዜጎችን ኣሸባሪ ብሎ በመፈረጅ እና ሕዝብን በመናቅ ላይ የሚገኘው ሕወሓት መራሹ ኣገዛዝ በክፋት አና በተንኮል የተሞላ እኩይ ተግባሩናን ጸረ ሕዝብነቱን ቀጥሎ ይገኛል።በሃገር ውስጥና በውጪው ኣገር የሚኖር ኢትዮጵያዊ ሁሉ ጉዳዩን በንቃት እንዲከታተል እና ለለውጥ በሕዝቡ እየተደረገ የሚገኘውን ንቅናቄ እንዲያግዝ ሕዝቡ እየተናገረ ይገኛል። ‪#‎ምንሊክሳልሳዊ‬

#OromoProtests

‪#‎OromoProtests‬ TARKAANIIFII: Baatilee saddeettan ummanni Oromoo falmaa keessa ture kanatti, humna Agaaziitiin dabalatee milishoonnifi poolisoonni bulchiinsamootummaa Oromiyaa jalatti ajajama ilmaan Oromoo ajjeesaafi madeessaa turan. Jara kana keessa namoota 37 ta'an kan ragaa qabatamaan irra jiru Godinaaleefi nannoof ifaafi gara keessaatinis dabarsaa turre. kan kan gooneefis Oromoon yakka walirratti yoo hojjate haaloo walbahurraa seeraan wal gaafachuutu wayya yaada jedhurrayi. Haa ta'uu garuu hamma ammaatti warra nama ajjeese keessaa nama tokko, jechuunis,Abdallaa Mahammad kan Masalaatti nama ajjeese, qofatu seeraaf dhihaate. Warri hafan bakkuma bakkatti jijjiramanii, inumaatuu aangoon dabalameefi jiraachaa jiru. Dhiheenyuma kanaahuu yoo fedhanne, poolisiin Calanqotti Sabriinaa ajjeese, namichi Awwadaayitti joollee shan rasaasaan dhahe, kan torban lama dura Gincitti Eshetu Warquu ajjeese, hanga amma himanni iti hin banamne. Mana hidhaatis hin jiran.

Kana jechuunn OPDOfi waajjirri abbaa alanagaa isheen durfamu hidhattoota mootummaa ummata ajjeesan adabuuf fedhii hin qabu. Kanaafuu har'a irraa kaasee gama keenyaan jara kana mootummaatti gabaasuu dhiisuun ragaa guutuu waliin faana isaanii hordofnee gara miidiyaatiin ummata beeksifna. Ummanniis mootummaatu seeraaf naaf dhiheessa jedhee abdachurra tarkaanfii isaanin malu humna danda'een fudhachuun isaa hin oolu.

Jawhar Mohamed

#OromoProtests

Mekuria Bulcha (Prof.):- From Student Movement to National Revolution – A Struggle with an Independent Oromo State in Sight

From a Student Movement to a National Revolution

A Struggle with an Independent Oromo State in Sight*

Mekuria Bulcha

Introduction

The Oromo and the other peoples in the southern part of Ethiopia are caught in a vicious circle of tyranny that is deeply rooted in a colonial conquest at the end of the 19^th century. The tyranny had stirred popular uprisings in many places at different times. Hitherto, most of the uprisings have been suppressed, and the revolutions were hijacked and reversed. As we know, the revolution that overthrew Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974 was hijacked by a military junta, which came in promising democracy but delivered terror in abundance. The response to the military dictatorship was the formation of half a dozen national liberation fronts with the aim of waging a struggle and liberate their respective peoples from an empire which a British political scientist Ernst Gellner called a prison-house of nations.[i] After a decade and a half they defeated the military regime in 1991 and formed a Transitional Government of Ethiopia (TGE). One of the victorious fronts which formed a coalition and built the TGE was the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). The Charter on which the transitional government was based, promised to bring about fundamental changes in the prevailing political and social order in Ethiopia. It made provisions for a federal structure that will create space for democracy and the self-determination of peoples in Ethiopia. However, within a year, the revolution was hijacked and reversed by the TPLF which was militarily and organizationally the strongest party in the coalition and a new dictatorship replaced the military dictatorship. As an autocrat, Emperor Haile Selassie was the law for there was no law above him. He ran the country as his private property, handing out favors in land and punishing lack of loyalty severely. After consolidating his political power and asserting his position as the prime minister of Ethiopia, the TPLF leader Meles Zenawi assumed an autocratic posture similar to that of Haile Selassie and ruled the country with an iron hand. In his book Ye-Meles Tirufatoch (The Legacies of Meles), Ermias Legesse mentions that Zenawi’s subordinates – ministers and other functionaries in his government – referred to him internally as “Dirgitu”, meaning “The Organization”.[ii] Gradually, his wishes and orders came to weigh more than provisions in the Ethiopian Constitution and conditions set by the laws of the country. Thus, with a pernicious form of Abyssinian rulers’ despotism in place, Melese and his acolytes intensified the abuses of their predecessors plundering the properties of the state which they were supposed to guard. They committed human rights violations with impunity that has surpassed the appalling records of the military regime they had replaced. The Oromo have been affected by the policies of the regime more than most of the peoples in Ethiopia. The reason is simple and well known: (a) they occupy a territory that produces more than 60 percent of Ethiopia’s gross national product. The Oromo peasants produce more than 85 percent of the coffee exported from Ethiopia. Gold, platinum and tantalum which play an important role in the Ethiopian economy today are also extracted from mines in Oromia. (b) Democracy, as promised by the Transitional Charter, will not allow the TPLF leaders to structure the political economic institutions in their own favor. (c) Therefore, it was necessary not only to weaken the structure that was designed for a democratic change in Ethiopia, but undermine also legitimate Oromo institutions and political organizations in order to control the state and exploit the economic resources of Oromia, and indeed the rest of the country.

A revolution can be aborted by a counterrevolution, but that does not always mean that no change had occurred or the present is an unaltered continuation of the pre-revolution system. Whenever and wherever revolutions occur somethings will change or seeds of change are planted. One of the changes which was introduced by the 1991 Transitional Charter was the right to language and culture. In the case of the Oromo, what made this change important was the “vernacular revolution” which followed in its aftermath. The speed and efficiency with which textbooks were prepared and the change from Amharic to Afaan Oromoo was implemented between July 1991 and June 1992 was stunning. What could have taken several years to organize and implement was accomplished in less than a year under the leadership of Ibsaa Guutama, a member of the OLF who was Ethiopia’s Minister of Education in the TGE. The school which, by and large, was seen as an alien institution in many parts of the Oromo countryside in the past became an Oromo institution overnight. WithAfaan Oromoo as a medium of instruction, it became a place of learning and engagement, where education was sought eagerly and acquired easily by millions of Oromo children. The Oromo children who started their education with Afaan Oromoo as a medium of instruction in 1991-92 became the first cohort of the qubee generation. The Oromo youth who are currently enrolled in grade-schools (grades 1-8), high schools (grades 9-12), colleges, and universities are over seven million.[iii] Without this generation, we wouldn’t have had the ongoing revolution. The strength of the current uprising cannot be appreciated without a proper understanding of the qubeegeneration’s cultural underpinnings and demographic background.

To be called a revolution, an uprising should mobilize a population for a fundamental change. Uprisings can occur in a country in different places and their causes may be also similar; but they become revolutionary only when they occur simultaneously “nationwide”. In the case of the Oromo, the uprising which occurred in a small town a small town of Ginchi, central Oromia, on November 12, 2015 had triggered such an event. Together with the prevailing contention between the Oromo people and the Ethiopian state over the so-called “Addis Ababa Integrated Development Master Plan”, widely known as “the Master Plan,” and multitudes of other illegitimate acts conducted by the TPLF regime against the Oromo, the event in Ginchi, as will be discussed in this article, could raise popular grievances to a boiling point throughout Oromia. The result is a revolution in which millions of people have taken part during the last five months. In spite of the brutal violence with which the regime has been trying to suppress the revolution, not a single day has passed without massive demonstrations, often occurring simultaneously in a number of towns, cities and districts in Oromia during the last five months. The situation has been such that it gives, at times, the impression that the entire Oromo nation is out demonstrating in the streets.

#OromoProtests

Joint Statement by Four Oromo Liberation Organizations: ODF/ADO, OLF-U/ABO-T, OLF/ABO and FIO/KWO

JOINT STATEMENT

by four Oromo liberation organizations

Minnesota
May 1, 2016

We, the representatives of four organizations which are committed to the liberation of the Oromo people and the independence of Oromia, announce that we have concluded a meeting where we discussed issues pertaining to the Oromia-wide popular protests that have rocked the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF)-led unjust regime in Ethiopia. We deliberated on and reached an agreement for cooperation on ways of strengthening the protests and leading them to a successful conclusion, on the future of the liberation struggle, on the right to self-determination, on our relationships with the people of the Horn of Africa and of the world. To implement our agreement, we have established a Coordinating Committee.

It is clear that the Oromo protests that have now lasted more than five months were started to end the dictatorship of the TPLF, the rapacious system of exploitation and the heavy burden of oppression. Though they were triggered by the land grab scheme around the city of Finfinne (Addis Ababa), the uprising in Oromia was spurred by structural factors, primarily the lack of self-rule, the dearth of respect for human rights, denial of rights to self-determination and absence of genuine democratization.

The popular protests were peaceful and demonstrations were conducted in accordance with the Ethiopian Constitution. Instead of responding to the popular demands in a peaceful manner, the government chose to unleash its security forces against the peaceful protestors, firing live ammunition at unarmed men and women, young and old. Even children were not spared. As a result, hundreds were killed, several hundred wounded, and thousands rounded up and subjected to torture in prisons. We note these atrocities with profound sadness and anger.

The EPRDF/TPLF leaders bear primary responsibility for the wanton destruction of human life and property. It is our duty to work with all concerned parties to bring to justice those who perpetrated crimes. Meanwhile, we believe it is still necessary to search for a peaceful political solution to the entire problem that triggered the protests. In this vein, we have messages for the Oromo people, the EPRDF/TPLF, the Ethiopian people and to all countries which have strategic interests in the Horn of Africa.

To our dear Oromo compatriots,

Your struggle is just. You are not going to be defeated by the unlawful killings, false propaganda, and other injustices perpetrated against you. We are filled with pride that you have removed the structures of bad governance and replaced them with local committees of self-government that now maintain law and order. We have no doubt that you will continue moving along this path you have blazed. We believe that your blood that was shed and the bodily harm you sustained because of EPRDF/TPLF action will become the building blocks for constructing a free and democratic Oromia. The cases of each life that they cut short, the injuries they caused, and the innocents they herded into prisons must be documented fully. We express our full support for your uprising and assure you in the name of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice that those who committed these crimes will be brought to justice. The political organizations that stand for Oromo liberation and Oromia’s independence pledge to continue our struggle while standing alongside you. The EPDRF/TPLF has not ceased from pitting you against other peoples by murdering non-Oromo residents of Oromia, destroying their property and burning down houses of worship and then blaming everything on the Oromo protesters. This will not subvert your uprising against injustice. Recall that the EPRDF/TPLF was caught while trying to plant explosives to incriminate on what it described as “agents of unknown forces.”

To EPRDF/TPLF leaders,

Just as happened with your predecessors, the rising tide of popular uprising is about to wash away your system of oppression. This is because of your refusal to address popular demands frontally. If, however, you prefer to give peaceful means of conflict resolution and dialogue a chance, Oromo liberation forces are ready to resolve the existing political problems through peaceful means. Barring this, we would like to restate that we will intensify the ongoing struggle to bring to a successful conclusion the Oromo struggle for freedom.

To the Ethiopian people,

The lawlessness and authoritarian dictatorship of the EPRDF/TPLF has now caused the Oromo people to rise up demanding genuine democracy and respect for human rights in the face of a heavily armed military force. We are aware that you are also affected by the regime’s excesses. We call on all forces which seek democratic and human rights to continue their own struggle alongside the Oromo people. Even though you have not yet openly supported the Oromo protests, perhaps terrified by fear of EPDRF/TPLF reprisals, we take this opportunity to assure you that the huge sacrifice that the Oromo are paying is aimed at ensuring respect for human rights, democracy, and the right to self-determination of all oppressed peoples.

To all forces with strategic interests in the Horn of Africa,

The incumbent regime is blindly marching toward darkness. Only a peaceful resolution of the conflict will be able to obviate the looming catastrophe. We urge you to encourage the EPRDF/TPLF, urgently to seek a peaceful resolution of the conflict and begin dialogue with the genuine representatives of the Oromo people in the country and out of the country. If this is not done, we predict that that the chaos in Oromia will engulf the rest of Ethiopia and will spread to the neighboring countries.

The four Oromo liberation organizations:

– Oromo Liberation Front
– Oromo Liberation Front, “United”[1]
– Oromo Democratic Front
– Front for Independence of Oromia

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