ዳምጠው ወያኔ/ኢሕአዴግና አፈና በኢትዮጵያ

ፕ/ር መስፍን ወልደማርያም

መጋቢት 2005

በቀልድ ልጀምር፤ አንድ ጮሌ የአስመራ ልጅ የእኔ ተማሪ ነበር፤ አንድ ጊዜ የጂኦግራፊ ክፍል ተማሪዎች አንድ ጃፓናዊ አስተማሪ ለመሸኘት ግብዣ አድርገው ነበር፤ በግብዣው ላይ የጠቀስሁት ነገረኛ የአስመራ ልጅ (የአስመራ ልጅ የምለው ላርቀው ፈልጌ እንዳይመስላችሁ፤) በአስተማሪዎች ላይ ቀልድ ያሰማ ነበረ፤ ስለኔ ሲናገር፤– መስፍን ወልደ ማርያም የቢሮውን በር ሁልጊዜ ክፍት አድርጎ የሚቀመጠው ለምንድን ነው? ይልና እሱው ሲመልስ፣ በሩን የመዝጋት ሌሎች ዘዴዎች ስላሉ ነዋ! ቀልዱ ለእኔ እንደገባኝ ፊቱን ስለሚያኮሳትር ሰዎች በሩን አልፈው እንዲገቡ አይጋብዝም ማለት ነው፤ በዚያን ጊዜ እኔም እየሳቅሁ እንደተናገርሁት የሱን ፈሪነት በእኔ መልከ-ክፉነት መደበቁ ነው፤ ቀልዱን ያመጣሁበት ምክንያት ወያኔ ለነጻነት የቆመ መስሎ ለመታየት ሳንሱር የሚባለውን የሚታተሙ ጽሑፎችን በቅድሚያ የማስፈተሽ ቀንበር በሕግ አነሣ፤ ሰዎች እውነት መስሎአቸው ቅሪታቸውን እያነጠፉ ጋዜጦችና መጽሔቶችን ማሳተም ጀመሩ፤ ጋዜጦች እንደአሸን ፈሉ፤ መጻሕፍት ታተሙ፤ ጥቂት ቲያትሮችም ታዩ፤ ዘፈኖች ተመረቱ! ነገር ግን የግል ራድዮና ቴሌቪዥን እንዲሁ የብዙ ሰዎች ሕልም ሆኖ ቀረ፤ ብዙ ሰዎች ብዙ ገንዘብ ከሰሩ፡፡

በሕዝቡ ዘንድ የነጻነት ፍቅር እየለመለመ መሄዱን ሲያየው ወያኔ ሆዱ ተንቦጨቦጨ፤ እንቅልፍ እያጣ ሄደ፤ ቀስ በቀስ ግራ እጁን በሕገ መንግሥቱ ላይ ጭኖ በቀኝ እጁ ጎራዴውን መዘዘ፤ ቀስ በቀስ፣ አንድ በአንድ የተለያዩ መብቶችን ለማስከበር የቆሙትን አንቀጾች ሁሉ አስተኛቸው፤ በተገላቢጦሽ መብቶቻቸውን የሚጠይቁ ሰዎችን፣ ስለመብቶች የሚጽፉ ሰዎችን፣ መብቶችን ከጥቃት ለመከላለከል የቆሙ ድርጅቶችን፣ ከወያኔ አመለካከት ውጭ የሆኑ ሰዎችን ሁሉ መንግሥት በመገልበጥ ሴራ፣ ወይም በሽብርተኛነት እየያዘና እያሰረ በመክሰስና በማስፈረድ የማፈን እርምጃዎችን ሁሉ አጠናከረ፤ አንዲህ ያለውን አፈና ማየትና መስማት እየተለመደ መጣ፤ በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ በሽብር ስም የሚካሄደው ጥቃትና የሰብአዊ መብቶች ረገጣ እንኳን እኛንና በሽብር ላይ ዓለም-አቀፍ ጦርነት ያወጁትን አሜሪካኖችንም እያስደነገጠ ነው፤ የዓለም የሰብአዊ መብቶች ድርጅቶች ሁሉ፣ የተባበሩት መንግሥታት የሰብአዊ መብቶች ኮሚሽንን ጨምሮ በምሬት እየጮሁ ነው፤ ጋዜጠኞች፣ የሠራተኞች ማኅበሮች፣ የፖሊቲካ ቡድኖች ጭጭ እንዲሉና ምንም ዓይነት እንቅስቃሴ እንዳያደርጉ መንገዱ ሁሉ እየተዘጋባቸው ነው፤ በትግራይ አብርሃ ደስታ የሚባል ወጣት የአፈናውን ድቅድቅ ጨለማ ጥሶ በመውጣት ስለጻፈ አፈናና ማስፈራራት ደረሰበት፤ ‹‹ጭቆናን ስላጋለጥሁ የሕዝብ ጠላት ተባልሁ›› ይላል፤ በቅርቡ እንኳን ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ በዋቢ ሸበሌ ሆቴል የጠራው የራት ግብዣ እንግዶቹ በተጠሩበት ሰዓት ተሰርዞ ተመልሰዋል፤ ለግራዚያኒ ስለሚሠራው ሐውልት የተቃውሞ ሰልፍ ለማድረግ የሞከሩ ኢትዮጵያውያን ታሰሩ፤ እነዚህን ኢትዮጵያውያንን ያሰሩትን ምን እንላቸዋለን? እንግዲህ በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ ምን የማያሳስር ነገር ሊኖር ይችላል?

የአፈናውን ነገር እነእስክንድር ነጋ፣ እነርእዮት ዓለሙ፣ ውብሸት ታየ … ይመሰክራሉ፤ ለመሆኑ ወደዘጠና ሚልዮን የሚሆን ሕዝብ ያላት አገር ስንት ጋዜጣ፣ ስንት የራድዮ ጣቢያ፣ ስንት የቴሌቪዥን ጣቢያ አላት? ኤርትራ ሦስት የራድዮ ጣቢያዎችና ስድስት ጋዜጦች፣ ጂቡቲ ሦስት የራድዮ ጣቢያዎችና አምስት ጋዜጦች፣ ኬንያ አሥራ ስምንት የቴሌቪዥን ጣቢያዎች፣ ከሠላሳ በላይ የራድዮ ጣቢያዎች፣ ዘጠኝ ጋዜጦች አሉት፤ ትናንት የተፈጠረው ደቡብ ሱዳን እንኳን ሁለት የቴሌቪዥን ጣቢያዎች፣ አምስት የራድዮ ጣቢያዎች፣ አምስት ጋዜጦች አሉት፤ ኢትዮጵያ ያላትን እናውቃለን፡፡

ሰንጠረጅ አንድ

የኪስ ስልክ (ሞባይል) እድገት

እ.አ.አ.	2008	2009	2010	2011
አገሮች	ሞባይል ለ100 ሰዎች
በደቡብአፍ	91	93	100	127
ኢትዮጵያ	2	5	8	17
ኬንያ	42	49	62	65
ሱዳን	29	36	42	56
ኤርትራ	2	3	4	4
ሶማልያ	7	7	7	7
ጂቡቲ	13	15	19	21

ምንጭ፡- የዓለም ባንክና የዓለም ቴሌኮሚዩኒኬሽን ድርጅት

የአፈናውን ልክ በሁለቱ ሰንጠረጆች ማየት ይቻላል፤ ለንጽጽር የቀረቡት አገሮች የአፍሪካ ቀንድ ጎረቤቶች ናቸው፤ ነገር ግን ላቅ ያለ ግብ ለማመልከት ደቡብ አፍሪካ ተጨምሮአል፤ ለምሳሌ የኪስ ስልኩን ብንወስድ በደቡብ አፍሪካ በመጀመሪያው ዓመት እአአ በ2008 ለአንድ መቶ ሰዎች 91 የኪስ ሰልኮች ነበሩ በ2011 ለመቶ ሰዎች ወደ አንድ መቶ ሃያ ሰባት ደረሱ፤ ይህም አንዳንድ ሰዎች ከአንድ በላይ የኪስ ስልክ አላቸው ማለት ነው፤ከጎረቤቶቻችን መሀል ኬንያ በ42 የኪስ ስልኮች ለአንድ መቶ ሰዎች ጀምሮ በአራተኛው ዓመት ላይ ወደስድሳ አምስት ማደጉ ይታያል፤ ሱዳንም ከሃያ ዘጠኝ ተነሥቶ በአራተኛው ዓመት ወደሃምሳ ስድስት አድጎአል፤ ጂቡቲም ከ13 ጀምራ ወደ 21 ገብታለች፤ ትልቅዋ አገር ኢትዮጵያ በሁለት ጀምራ ከአራት ዓመታት በኋላ ለመቶ ሰዎች አሥራ ሰባት የኪስ ስልኮች አስቆጥራለች፤ በአፍሪካ ቀንድ በኪስ ስልክ የመጨረሻውን ዝቅተኛ ቦታ የያዘች አገር ትልቅዋና በዓመት ከአሥራ አንድ ከመቶ በላይ እድገት ታስመዘግባለች የሚባልላት ኢትዮጵያ ነች፡፡

ሁለተኛው የአፈናው መገለጫ የኢንተርኔት አገልግሎት ነው፤ በኬንያ በ2008 ከአንድ መቶ ሰዎች ውስጥ የኢንተርኔት ተጠቃሚ የነበረው 42 ሲሆን በ2011 ወደ ስድሳ አምስት አደገ፤ በኤርትራ ከ4 ወደ 6 ሲያድግ፣ በኢትዮጵያ አላደገም፡፡

እነዚህ ሁለቱም የመረጃና የእውቀት መተላለፊያ ዘዴዎች ለማናቸውም እድገት ቁልፍ መሆናቸው አያጠራጥርም፤ በተለይም ለነጻነትና ለእውቀት እድገት አስፈላጊዎች በመሆናቸው ለአምባ-ገነኖች እንደጠላት መሣሪያ የሚቆጠሩ ናቸው፤ ችግሩ እውቀት አለነጻነት አይገኝም፤ ነጻነትም አለእውቀት አይገኝም፤ እውቀትና ነጻነት ተነጣጥለው አይገኙም፤ ስለዚህም ነጻነትን ለመግደል የፈለገ እውቀትንም ይገድላል፤ ስለዚህም አምባ-ገነኖች ሞባይልንና (ተንቀሳቃሽ ወይም የኪስ ስልክ) ኢንተርኔትን ማፈን ዋና ተግባራቸው ያደርጉታል፤ በዚህም ምክንያት ሕዝቦቻቸውን በድንቁርና ያዳፍናሉ፤ በደሀነት ያሰቃያሉ፤ በዘመናችን ዋናው የአውቀት መተላለፊያ ኢንተርኔት ነው፡፡

ሰንጠረጅ ሁለት

የኢንተርኔት አገልግሎት እድገት

እ.አ.አ. 2008 2009 2010 2011 አገሮች የኢንተርኔት አገልግሎት ለመቶ ሰዎች ደቡብአፍ 8.5 10.1 18.1 20.9 ኢትዮጵያ 0.5 0.5 0.8 1.1 ሱዳን 10.2       ኤርትራ 4.1 4.9 5.4 6.2 ሶማልያ 1.1 1.2 – 1.3 ጂቡቲ 2.3 4.0 6.5 7.0 ደቡብ አፍሪካ የገባው ለንጽጽር ነው፤

ምንጭ፡- የዓለም ባንክና የዓለም የቴሌኮሚዩኒኬሽን ድርጅት

የኢንተርኔት አገልግሎት በቅርቡና በርካሽ ወይም በነጻ ከተገኘ ብዙ ሳይለፉ ምንም ዓይነት እውቀት ሊገኝ ይቻላል፤ በሠለጠኑት አገሮች በአንዳንድ ቡና ቤቶች ነጻ የኢንተርኔት አገልግሎት ይገኛል፤ በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ በኢንተርኔት ለመጠቀም ደህና ገቢ ያለው መሆን ያስፈልጋል፤ከደሀነት ለመውጣትም ሀብታም መሆን ያስፈልጋል!

Hailemariam Desalegn and Shiferaw Shigute the TPLF collaborators are accountable for Ethnic Cleansing

by Tedla Asfaw

From left: Hailemariam Desalegn and Shiferaw Shigute

On Monday April 8, 2013 Ethiopians are gathering in front of the White House like we have been doing for more than two decades. Our Voice is the Voice of the Voiceless Ethiopian people who are living in a giant jail with no freedom at all. Freedom to live shutting ones own mouth is not even allowed at present. The Ethnic Cleansing underway in Beni Shanguel Gumez in Western part of Ethiopia targeted Amharas as enemy to be removed from their farmland in thousands.

Amharas in the Southern Fiefdom are not new for such Ethnic Cleansing. Last year Amharas were kicked out of their livelihood from Gura Ferda in thousands. Their crime is looking and sounding different from Ethiopians over there.The people have been living along with their neighbours very well infuriating the Southern Warlord Shiferaw Shugite. Instructed by his boss, the Tigrean Warlords, Amharas farmlands was cleared to give it to Tigrean Land Lords and foreign land buyers.

The late Meles Zenawi on his fake parliament last year at this time accused the displaced for being “anti environment “. He said, forests were destroyed for farming and has to be stopped. What was his “solution” ? Instruct Shiferaw Shigute, the Southern Warlord to take away land from Amharas and give it away to Tigreans and foreign buyers.

After the death of the dictator we are now witnessing his “vision” put into practice in Beni Shanguel Gumez , Southern Fiefdom. More than 5,000 Amharas are forced out by terror and close to one hundred died of car accident travelling by truck to save their lives. The sad thing is that they paid for the truck that takes them to their death. Many are travelling on foot, women forced to give birth on their way, children and elderly forced to walk and All living their property behind.

The Amharas are the people that are marked as the enemy of the Tigrai people by the ruling mafia clique and they are putting that “motto” into action to honor their dead tyrant. Hailemariam Deslaegn the current prime minster/worshipper is the one in charge of the Ethnic Cleansing in Western part of Ethiopia.We are asking the Obama Administration that Hailemariam Desalegn should not be allowed to enter to USA. We Ethiopians are asking other Western countries to do the same.

The Southern Fiefdom is where Hailemariam Desalegn claims to be elected by the people. Therefore he is accountable to the Ethnic Cleansing in that part of Ethiopia. The President of that fiefdom Shiferaw Shigute another person that should be accountable for this crime and we demand the Obama Administration not to give entry visa to this criminal too.

We do believe that the solution to this problem is removing the TPLF Mafia. That is the job of the Ethiopian people. We have been disunited for more than twenty years. We are not there when our people needs us the most. Those who are trying back home to do their best to expose the crime committed by the regime can not stop crimes like Ethnic Cleansing because they can not Walk the Talk.

Those far from home are only Talking but not Acting to change the situation too. Let us stop “fight” among ourselves and earn respect and support of the Ethiopian people by being their defenders. There is an Ethiopian saying, ‘SewMalet SewMalet, Sew Yehonenew SewYeteffa Elet” meaning people who are born into time of crisis and face the challenge to lead their people to freedom are heroes to the people. We are still looking for such Ethiopians more than any time in our history.

UN panel: Eskinder Nega jailing violates international law

by Tom Rhodes/CPJ East Africa Consultant

Authorities in Ethiopia describe Eskinder Nega, a prominent columnist and government critic jailed since September 2011 on vague terrorism charges, as a dangerous individual bent on violent revolution. However, in an opinion handed down in 2012–publicized only this week by Washington, D.C.-based legal advocacy group Freedom Now–a United Nations panel of five independent experts ruled that Eskinder’s imprisonment came “as a result of his peaceful exercise of the right to freedom of expression.”

The opinion from the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention was issued after a judge in Addis Ababa sentenced Eskinder to 18 years in prison in July 2012, accusing him of writing “articles that incited the public to bring the North African and Arab uprisings to Ethiopia.” In the opinion, the experts detailed several breaches of Eskinder’s rights, from his arrest without warrant and allegations of mistreatment in pre-trial detention, to a flawed prosecution and trial that fell short of international standards of fairness.

“It is our sincere hope that the government will look closely at the opinion and come to the same conclusion as the Working Group,” Patrick Griffith, an attorney with Freedom Now, told me. “The opinion here is especially well-reasoned and clearly explains why the continued detention of Eskinder is a violation of international law; it is now up to the government to do the right thing and release him.”

The opinion, however, is not binding, and Ethiopian authorities have a notoriously tough hide when it comes to international criticism of their human rights record–despite being major recipients of Western aid. Griffith is still optimistic, saying: “Pressure can have an impact on the ground; the release of political prisoners in 2007 (following mass arrests in 2005) and the release of the Swedish journalists last year came after considerable international attention–so there is hope.” Griffith says Freedom Now will urge governments, especially that of the United States, to more forcefully insist on Eskinder’s release. Griffith also hopes that by vigorously pursuing Eskinder’s case, the group can train more global attention on other Ethiopian journalists in prison. There are currently six journalists behind bars, some without charge.

Prior to his arrest, Eskinder had criticized authorities for carrying out such practices, claiming that the government used a sweeping anti-terror law to scare critics of the ruling party into silence. “In the well-publicized applications of the dreaded anti-terrorism law lies the perfect means to stretch fear to its furthest limit. Raw fear is in the air. And journalists have been affected the most,” Eskinder wrote in a July 2011 column entitled “SOS: Dissent and terrorism in Ethiopia.”

As a member of the U.N. Human Rights Council, Ethiopia should comply with international law and release Eskinder immediately and unconditionally.

ጋዜጠኛ ርዮት አለሙ በቃሊቲዎች ክስ ቀረበባት!

አቤ ቶኪቻው

መምህርት እና ጋዜጠኛ ርዮት አለሙ በቃሊቲ እስር ቤት የሚገኙትን የአስተዳደር እና የጥበቃ ሰራተኞች ትንቂያለሽ፣ትሰደቢያለሽ እንዲሁም “የምትሰሩትን በሚዲያ እና ድረ ገፆች አጋልጣለሁ” ብለሽ ትዝቺያለሽ በሚል ክስ ቀርቦባት መጋቢት 25 /2005 ዓ.ም ቃሏን መስጠቷ ተሰማ፡፡

ጋዜጠኛይቱ ክሱን አስመልክቶ ቃሏን እንድተሰጥ የተጠየቀቸችው መጋቢት 19 /2005 ዓ.ም ምሽት ከመኝታዋ ተቀስቅሳ የነበረ ቢሆንም ከጠበቃዬ ጋር ሳልነጋገር ምንም የምሰጠው ቃል የለኝም በማለቷ እስከ መጋቢት 25 ሊዘገይላት ችሏል፡፡

ርዮት የተከሰሰችው በፌደራል ታራሚዎች አያያዝ የሚኒስትሮች ምክር ቤት ደንብ ቁጥር 139/1999 አንቀፅ 36 መ እና ሠ ላይ በተቀመጠው መሰረት ሲሆን ይህ አንቀፅ “ከባድ የዲሲፒሊን ቅጣት የሚያስከትሉ ድርጊቶች” ተብሎ የተዘረዘረ ነው፡፡

ርዮት ቅጣቱ ተግባራዊ ከተደረገባት፤

ከአንድ ወር እስከ አራት ወር ለሚደርስ ጊዜ በወዳጅ ዘመዶቿ እንዳትጎበኝ፤ ደብዳቤ እንዳትልክ እና እንዳትቀበል (ይሄ እንኳ አሁንም ተግባራዊ ተደርጎባታል) የእስር ቤቱን ቤተ መጻህፍት እንዳትጠቀም፣ በእስር ቤቱ በሚደረግ የጋራ ዝግጅት እና መዝናኛ ላይ እንዳትሳተፍ እንዲሁም ከአንድ ወር እስከ ሁለት ወር ለሚደርስ ጊዜ ለብቻ እስር ትዳረጋለች፡፡

እንዲህ ከሆነ ደግሞ ያቺ በቃሊቲዊቹ ውቃቢ ትፈቀድ የነበረች አመክሮም ልትከለከል ነው ማለት ነው፡፡

በነገራችን ላይ ወጣቱ ፖለቲከኛ ናትናኤልም በእስር ቤቱ እየደረሰበት ያለውን አበሳ በመቃወም የርሃብ አድማ ላይ መሆኑ ተሰምቷል፡፡ የሙስሊሙ መፍትሄ አፈላላጊ አባላትም ቅጥ ያጣውን የእስር ስርዓት ሃይ ለማለት የርሃብ አድማ ላይ ናቸው፡፡

ወይ ጣጣ… ብዬ የራሴን አስተያየት በአዲስ መስመር አቀርባለሁ…

እኔ የምለው ግን ኢህአዴግ ምነው እንዲህ መካሪ አጣ…? እርሱ እኛን በስንቱ መከራ እንዳልመከረን እርሱን የሚመክረው ማጣቱ የሚገርም ነው፡፡

እስቲ አሁን በእስር ላይ የሚገኙ ሰዎችን እስሩ አንሶ አሳር የሚያበላው ምን ይሁነኝ ብሎ ነው? እንደሰማነው በርካታ የህሊና እስረኞች በታመሙ ጊዜ የሚያክሟቸው የእስር ቤቱ ሀኪሞች “መግደል ነበር አንተን” “መጨረስ ነበር አንቺን” እያሉ ያስፈራራሉ፡፡ እውነቱን ለመናገር ይሄ የመጨረሻው ዘመን ምልክት ነውና ነቅታችሁ ጠብቁ፡፡ መንግስታችን “ባትሪ ሎው” እያለ ይመስለኛል!

In Aid to Ethiopia, a Costly Trade-Off

Freedom House
Chloe Schwenke, Vice President of Global Programs

The dividing line between developmental assistance and aid that is intended to strengthen human rights and democratic governance is an obscure boundary, yet it has considerable moral and strategic significance. Donor countries must weigh a variety of factors—including security and economic questions and the geopolitical role of the beneficiary country—that often leave democracy and human rights goals on the back burner. Such a ranking of priorities has an immediate negative effect on the ground, and it ultimately represents a costly trade-off in which long-term interests are exchanged for short-term gains.

By any plausible account, the performance of Ethiopia’s current government raises daunting dilemmas of this kind. International donors have generally responded by emphasizing economic growth and all but ignoring the erosion of human rights. It is an approach that flies in the face of American values and of current U.S. policy for sub-Saharan Africa, which explicitly promotes the creation of democratic and just societies.

The Ethiopian government’s recent actions clearly warrant scrutiny. In February of this year, the Federal High Court revived previously dismissed charges against one of the regime’s few remaining critics in the country, the respected journalist Temesghen Desalegn, who had been chief editor of the weekly newspaper Feteh until it was shut down by the government in July 2012. Temesghen must now confront charges of “outrages against the constitution” for having exercised a basic human right that Americans cherish—freedom of expression. The case is illustrative of a continuing and pervasive deterioration in the space for free speech, peaceful protest, and opposition political activity.

The death of longtime Ethiopian prime minister Meles Zenawi in August 2012 raised many uncertainties about the future of the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). Susan E. Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, marked his passing by praising the prime minister’s “decades-long commitment to Ethiopia’s development” and “his tireless efforts to liberate his proud people from famine, poverty, and disease.” It is true that Meles was a leading figure in the revolutionary movement that rid Ethiopia of the Marxist dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam. And while Ethiopia remains one of the world’s poorest countries, Meles did preside over significant gains in economic development during his two decades as undisputed leader. He even adhered to a range of democratic standards after taking power. However, his leadership style became increasingly ironfisted over time, following a trajectory that is all too familiar in Africa. The close elections of 2005 led to years of persecution of the political opposition and suppression of civil society. The next elections in 2010 were thoroughly tainted by government intimidation of opposition parties and their supporters, independent media, and civic activists.

Despite this degradation on human rights and democratic governance, the international community has maintained its robust support for Ethiopia’s economic progress. The World Bank has become the country’s largest provider of official development assistance, offering over $7 billion in aid over the past 21 years. In 2006, amid growing concerns about human rights violations by the Meles government, the bank canceled all of Ethiopia’s debt as part of the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative.

Bilateral donors have also been active. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has shifted from the famine relief efforts of past decades to a relatively newstrategy intended to help Ethiopia “transform its economy and society toward middle income status.” USAID hopes to achieve this by “coordinating its efforts more closely with the Government of Ethiopia, other donors and civil society.” But under Ethiopian government pressure, USAID projects to strengthen human rights and democratic governance have been assigned a lower priority than economic growth and trade. If it continues, this pattern could have sobering consequences.

For now, the EPRDF’s rule appears to be secure. An internal party compromise after Meles’s death confirmed Hailemariam Desalegn as prime minister. Nevertheless, the leadership shows no sign of opening the political space and allowing some dissenting voices to be heard. To the contrary, the assault on human rights has continued apace, with widespread use of internet surveillance, censorship of websites and social media, smear campaigns against all opposition figures, and broad application of restrictive statutes like the antiterrorism law and the Charities and Societies Proclamation (CSP). Few human rights organizations remain active in Ethiopia; they have not benefited from a largely symbolic relaxation of restrictions on nongovernmental organizations addressing issues like gender equality and maternal and child health. The CSP has cut off local human rights groups from foreign donors, and the authorities have stripped them of any existing assets and any opportunity to raise funds. Several opposition activists and Ethiopian journalists, including the blogger Eskinder Nega, still languish in prison, serving sentences on terrorism and treason charges. The EPRDF inhibits free private discussion by maintaining an presence at all levels of society, exploiting a network of paid informants and a nationwide telephone-tapping operation.

Recent economic development efforts in Ethiopia do benefit the poor in some ways, but they also serve to perpetuate and legitimize what is essentially a one-party authoritarian regime. Some argue that economic growth must come before high democratic governance standards and observance of human rights. Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen offered a rebuttal to this position in his 1999 book Development as Freedom, explaining that “political rights, including freedom of expression and discussion, are not only pivotal in inducing social responses to economic needs, they are also central to the conceptualization of economic needs themselves.” In short, when economic growth is not linked to development priorities established through the democratic process, it is more likely to serve the existing power elite while neglecting the real needs of ordinary citizens.

Donors should devote more attention to the long-term costs of authoritarian rule. Businesses can only go so far in the absence of impartial courts, strong property rights, and independent corruption watchdogs in the media and civil society. Left to their own devices, dictators inevitably sacrifice the well-being of their subjects to protect their own wealth and security. Moreover, their regimes frequently end in violence and disorder, partly or totally destroying any economic or social gains they may have achieved, and reversing any contributions they might have made to regional stability. An aid strategy dedicated to genuine, sustainable prosperity and security would emphasize political rights and civil liberties at least as much as basic economic development, and resist pressure to work against the true interests of both donor and recipient.

For Immediate Release - Also read the UN General Assembly Report – WGAD Opinion

April 1, 2013 -

UN FINDS IMPRISONMENT OF ETHIOPIAN JOURNALIST ESKINDER NEGA ARBITRARY UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW AND CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Washington, D.C.: In an opinion released today by Freedom Now, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found the Government of Ethiopia’s continued detention of independent Ethiopian journalist and blogger Eskinder Nega a violation of international law. The panel of five independent experts from four continents held that the government violated Mr. Nega’s rights to free expression and due process. The UN Working Group called for his immediate release.

Mr. Nega is serving an 18-year prison sentence on terror and treason charges in response to his online articles and public speeches about the Arab Spring and the possible impact of such movements on the political situation in Ethiopia. Arrested in September 2011, Mr. Nega was held without charge or access to an attorney for nearly two months before authorities charged him under Ethiopia’s widely criticized anti-terror laws. This is the eighth time during his 20-year career as an independent journalist and publisher that the Ethiopian government has detained Mr. Nega. His appeal has been repeatedly postponed, most recently on March 27, 2013.

In the attached opinion, released in conjunction with an op-ed by the renowned Ethiopian opposition leader and former prisoner of conscience Birtukan Mideksa, the UN Working Group found that the application of overly broad anti-terror laws against Mr. Nega constituted an “unjustified restriction” on his right to freedom of expression. The UN Working Group’s opinion also recognized “several breaches of Mr. Nega’s fair trial rights,” further rendering his continued detention arbitrary under international law.

“The Ethiopian government cannot continue to use anti-terrorism legislation to muzzle the work of independent journalists, even when it does not like what is being reported,” said Freedom Now Executive Director Maran Turner. “The targeting of journalists by resorting to overly broad anti-terror laws, just like the use of anti-state charges in the pre-9/11 era, is a violation of the internationally protected right to free expression and undermines international efforts to address real security threats.”

Freedom Now represents Mr. Nega as his international pro bono counsel.

Land and Ethiopia’s Corruptocracy

by Alemayehu G. Mariam

The silence of Ethiopia’s “beautiful minds”

Professor A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, the renowned Indian scientist  (“Missile Man of India”)  and Eleventh President of India (2002-2007) said, “If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher.”

Recently, the World Bank released its 448-page World Bank (WB) report, “Diagnosing Corruption in Ethiopia” with evidence galore showing that Ethiopia under the absolute dictatorship of the Meles Zenawi regime has become a full-fledged corruptocracy (a regime controlled and operated by a small clique of corrupt-to-the-core vampiric kleptocrats who cling to power to enrich themselves at public expense). Perhaps the report’s findings should not come as surprise to anyone since “power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely”.

Over the past several weeks, I have made a number of cursory remarks on the shocking findings of the WB report. I have also discreetly appealed to a segment of  Ethiopia’s  “beautiful minds”  (its teachers, professors, economists, political and social scientists, lawyers, and other members of the learned professions)  to critically examine the report and inform their compatriots on the devastating impact of  corruption on the future of their poor country and make some recommendations on how to deal with it. I even challenged the political opposition to issue a “white paper” and make crystal clear their position on accountability and transparency and make some concrete proposals to remedy the endemic corruption that has metastasized in the Ethiopian body politic.

I have yet to see any substantive analysis or commentary on the WB’s “diagnosis of corruption” in Ethiopia in the popular media or in the scholarly journals;  nor have I seen any proposals on how to sever the vampiric tentacles of corruption sucking the lifeblood from the Ethiopian people. Could it be that Ethiopia’s “beautiful minds” can’t handle ugly truths? Or do Ethiopia’s “beautiful minds”  turn faint-hearted when it comes to speaking ugly truths to power?

Few can tell the ugly truth about corruption in Ethiopia more bluntly than Global Financial Integrity  (GFI), the renowned organization that reports on “illicit financial flows” (illegal capital flight, mispricing, bulk cash movements, hawala transactions, smuggling, etc.) out of developing countries. In 2011, GFI told the world, “The people of Ethiopia are being bled dry. No matter how hard they try to fight their way out of absolute destitution and poverty, they will be swimming upstream against the current of illicit capital leakage.”

When the late dictator Meles Zenawi was asked in July 2011 about his feelings concerning the use of the word “famine” synonymously with Ethiopia by the Oxford Dictionary,  he said, “… Like any citizen, I am very sad. I am ashamed. It is degrading. A society that built the Lalibela churches… Axum obelisks… some thousand years ago is unable to cultivate the land and feed itself….  That is very sad. It is very shameful. Of all the things, to go out begging for one’s daily bread, to be a beggar nation is dehumanizing. Therefore, I feel great shame.”  I too feel great shame that Ethiopia has become not only a “beggar nation” over the past 21 years, but also that she has now become synonymous with the word “corruption”. It is unbearable that the land of “13 months of sunshine” has become the land of 13 months of the darkness of corruption.

Speaking the ugly truth to power

Given the icy silence of Ethiopia’s “beautiful minds”, it is my humble duty and unenviable job to continue to speak the ugly truth about corruption to the powers that be in Ethiopia. For years, I have written numerous commentaries on corruption in Ethiopia as a serious human rights violation. I agree with Peter Eigen, founder and chairman of Transparency International (Corruption Index) that “corruption leads to a violation of human rights in at least three respects: corruption perpetuates discrimination, corruption prevents the full realisation of economic, social, and cultural rights, and corruption leads to the infringement of numerous civil and political rights.” I also believe corruption undermines  good governance, cripples the rule of law and destroys citizens’ trust in political leaders, public officials and political institutions.

In 2007 when Ethiopia’s auditor general, Lema Aregaw, reported that Birr 600 million of state funds were missing from the regional government coffers, Meles fired Lema and publicly defended the regional administrations’ “right to burn money.” In my December 2008 commentary “The Bleeping Business of Corruption in Ethiopia,” I argued that “corruption in Ethiopia is an evil with a thousand faces. It is woven into the fabric of the political culture.” Corruption is the modus operandi of the regime in power in Ethiopia today. Former president Dr. Negasso Gidada clearly understood the gravity of the situation when he declared in 2001 that “corruption has riddled state enterprises to the core,” adding that the government would show “an iron fist against corruption and graft as the illicit practices had now become endemic”. In 2013, the business of corruption is the biggest business in Ethiopia.