The Government is accountable for the death of a political prisoner at an Ethiopian jail

Ethiopia: The Government is accountable for the death of a political prisoner at an Ethiopian jail

Gadaa.com

HRLHA Statement

August 2013

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa strongly condemns the atrocious torture and inhuman treatment by the Ethiopian government against its citizens, and holds it accountable for the death of a political prisoner and prisoner of conscience Engineer Tesfahun Chemeda on August 24, 2013 in Kaliti prison.

Gadaa.com
HRLHA informants confirmed that Engineer Chemeda died in Kaliti Penitentiary due to the severe torture inflicted on him while he was in different detentions centers from 2007 until the day he died. We also protest the fact that he was denied medical treatment by the government.

Engineer Tesfahun Chemeda, an Oromo national, was handed over by Kenyan authorities to Ethiopian Security agents in April 2007 from where he had granted a refugee status from UNHCR in Kenya after he had fled to Kenya to escape persecution by the EPRDF government of Ethiopia.

Engineer Tasfahun Chemeda was one of the 15 Oromo nationals who was sentenced to life in prison in 2010 by the Ethiopian court (http://humanrightsleague.com/2010/07/a-call-for-the-reversal-of-theracial-politically-motivated-and-discriminatory-sentence-by-a-court-in-ethiopia/) for his activism and political beliefs that were different from the ruling EPRDF government of Ethiopia.

The Ethiopian Government is accountable for:

1. Torturing Mr. Chemeda in prison, thereby violating the 1984 Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, an agreement which Ethiopia signed and ratified in 1994.

2. For denying Engineer Tesfahun medical treatment, violating the rights of prisoners – which are clearly stated in international laws and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 10(1): “All persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.” and the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, the Rights of Persons Held in Custody and Convicted Prisoners, Article 21 (1): “All persons held in custody and persons imprisoned upon conviction and sentencing have the right to treatments respecting their human dignity.”

By handing over the Oromo refugees and others, the Kenyan Government is also breaching its obligations under international treaties as well as customary laws.

1. Under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1465 U.N.T.S. 185), the Kenyan Government has the obligation not to return a person to a place where they will face torture or ill-treatment.

2. Article 3 of the Convention against Torture provides: No state party shall expel, return (“refouler”) or extradite a person to another state where there are substantial grounds to believe that they would be in danger of being subjected to torture.

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa calls upon the Ethiopian authorities to immediately carry out an independent investigation into Engineer Tesfahun’s death, including whether torture played a part in his death, and disclose to the public anyone found responsible and bring that person to justice. The HRLHA also calls upon the Western political allies of the TPLF/EPRDF Government of Ethiopia to exert pressures so that it is forced to turn around, and start working on the genuine democratization of the country, halting the systematic elimination of citizens who demand basic rights and fundamental freedoms.

Finally we extend our condolences to Tesfahun’s family and friends in their time of grief as well as all Ethiopians who have been falsely accused, illegally detained or wrongly killed, at the hands of the brutal and hypocritical regime. Engineer Tesfahun is just one of thousands of victims of the EPRDF government’s campaign of violence, repression and efforts to curtail basic freedoms and fundamental rights of Ethiopians at all costs.

http://humanrightsleague.com/2010/07/a-call-for-the-reversal-of-theracial-politically-motivated-and-

humanrightsleague.com

Eeba Hawaasa Oromoo Tingvoll fi Romsdal

Image | Posted on August 12, 2013 by oromotingvoll

Kabajjamoota ummata Oromoo!
Duraan dursinee, maqaa KHG OCTMR-tiin, baga nagaan nuuf jiraatan isiniin jenna!!
Akkuma beekamu Hawaasa Oromoo Tingvoll fi Romsdal Norway (OCTMR) hawaasa yeroo dhiyoo keessa hundeefame ta’uun isaa ni beekama. Haata’uu malee, hanga hundeefamee asitti hujiilee hawaasa Oromoo boonssan hedduu dalaguti jira. Isaan dalagaman keesaa Aaadaa Saba Oromoo ummata biyya keesa jirutti argisiisuu, seenaa saba Oromoo barsiisuu fi Afaan Oromoo ijoollee biyya ormaati dhalatan barsiisuu dabalatee Gaafii mirga dhala namummaa kan sabin Oromoo sarbamee/dhabee jiru debisiisuuf gaafilee barbaachisaa ta’an qaama dhimmi ilaaluuf dhiyaasaa jira of-fuulduras haala cimaa ta’een kan itti fufunu tu’uu isaa ni beeksisfina. Kanaaf, Eebi Hawaasa Oromoo Tingvoll fi Romsdal Norway Fuulbaana 21.2013 waree-dura sa’aa 12:00 AM-11:00 Hlkan-qixee akka lak. EU-tti ta’uu isaa ni beeksina. Kanaaf, kootaa woliin haa kabajinuu! “Wolitti heddummatee jirbiin Arba hiiti” jedhuumiiree! Akkasumas waan dandeettan hundaan hawaasa kana jabeessuu irratti akka qooda keessan baatan abdii fi kabajjaan waamicha isinii dabarsina.
Galatoomaa!
Aadam Jaalatoo Fardoo
Dura ta’aa OCTMR.

Worldwide Peaceful Rallies Against Death and Long-Term Sentences Passed on Oromos by Zenawi's Dictatorial Regime

OSA President's, Dr. Haile Hirpa's, speech at the U.S. State Dept. during the May 21 historic rally in DC:

Videos from Washington-DC & St. Paul-MN - for more pictures, videos & updates, click here.

OSA Appeals to President Obama about Repression of Oromos by the Zenawi Regime
Statement from the Australian Oromo Community: Zenawi - The Most Repressive Dictator in Africa
Updates from Melbourne, Vic, Australia - for more pictures, videos & updates, click here.


“The Oromo people are counting on you, and you have to be their voice. Please do not say, 'it does not matter if I go to the demonstration or not, because I am one person.' Sure, you are one person, but one person to count on.” - Dr. Haile Hirpa

African Media Leaders Must Boycott Ethiopia

Ethiopia: African Media Leaders Must Boycott Ethiopia

Ethiopian journalists have come to expect the worst from our government
August 22, 2013 (Indepth Africa) — One of the world’s most hostile governments to an independent press, it has jailed friends and colleagues, forced them to leave the country and unjustly branded them as terrorists or enemies of the state for doing their jobs. But until now we have at least been able to count on the moral support of fellow journalists, media organizations and others opposed to injustice.
That has been changed by the deeply disappointing decision of the African Media Initiative (AMI) to hold its annual convention, the African Media Leaders’ Forum, in Addis Ababa this year. Far from helping to improve Ethiopia’s media environment, as suggested by the AMI’s chief executive, Amadou Mahtar Ba, this move will instead embolden the government in its ongoing war against the press.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 49 Ethiopian journalists have been forced into exile since 2007. Nine of our colleagues languish in prison, making the country the second worst jailer of journalists in Africa after Eritrea.
Just last year, the government forced the closure of Feteh (“Justice”), the prominent independent newspaper in Addis Ababa, because of its critical editorial line. Its publisher, Mastewal Berhanu, who was forced to leave the country after receiving threats from security agents, is one of those who have said that the AMI’s decision is a blow to jailed and exiled Ethiopian journalists.
We have held the AMI in high esteem because of its stated commitment to”promote the development of pluralistic media”. But we believe its justification for holding the forum in Ethiopia is self-serving and insensitive to Ethiopia’s independent media community, and we cannot understand why Mr. Ba calls the decision “courageous”.
The AMI’s suggestion that holding the forum in Addis Ababa will further a process of “constructive engagement” with media stakeholders, including the government, is either naïve or aimed at benefitting narrow interests that do not really serve the Ethiopian media community at large. Neither the publishers’ association nor the media council with which the AMI has interacted represent independent journalists, nor do they defend their rights.
Despite all the Ethiopian government’s actions to stifle press freedom, I used to believe that if the press could organize itself it could gain enough strength to overcome its multi-faceted challenges. To test my belief in practice, I tried in 2011 to organize a monthly informal journalists’ roundtable, bringing the highly-polarized media together to discuss investigative journalism, particularly on corruption issues.
This platform sought to help the media play its watchdog role and I hoped it would grow into an investigative or anti-corruption journalists’ association.
But over ten months of meetings, the arrest and intimidation of journalists, along with the closures of local rights groups, rendered members frustrated and hesitant about forming an independent association.
Even the monthly roundtable meeting could not be sustained as participants gradually dropped out. Stringent laws, arrogant bureaucracy, threats and other challenges sapped the media of its energy, leaving it too weak to build one strong local media association which could help protect itself.
Today, professional media associations are either under the concealed patronage of the government or too scared to speak out for unlawfully imprisoned journalists such as Eskinder Nega, Reeyot Alemu, Woubshet Taye and many others. The Ethiopian government has ensured that there is no strong and vibrant media association that can stand for freedom of speech and press freedom.
Mr. Ba’s suggestion that the government-sponsored media council “is known for its independence and commitment to building free and balanced media” confirms our fears that the AMI, its handful of local partners and the Ethiopian government are speaking with one and the same voice.
I appreciate the Pan-African approach of Mr. Ba. But Pan-Africanism begins with African solidarity, based on the understanding that injustice against one African is an injustice against all Africans. The Ethiopian government is willing to have the AMLF meet in Addis Ababa because it can use the event as a counter to international pressure for freedom of speech and press freedom.
In our struggle to realize the freedoms promised in our constitution, Ethiopian journalists have seldom heard African intellectuals, media leaders or the African Union call out our government on its grave abuses and support those struggling to be free. Apartheid and colonialism were not defeated with “constructive engagement” or apathy and silence.
Business interests that worked with the apartheid regime are marked with shame forever. The AMI should reconsider its plan to hold the meeting in Addis Ababa.
–Indepth Africa

CALL FOR A PEACEFUL PROTEST AGAINST THE TYRANNY IN OROMIA

Human Rights are Universal and indivisible! 

Call for a Peaceful Protest against the Tyranny in Oromia

Over the past 21 years, the Tigrayan Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF)-led and dominated Ethiopian government, has imprisoned tens of thousands of political opposition and citizens, mainly Oromos. As a consequence to the government’s repressive policies, thousands of innocent citizens have been languishing in prisons and secret camps, and many have been and are being severely tortured, deformed and/or killed. Others have been abducted in broad day-light and made to disappear or murdered secretly.
Rampant arrests, unlawful killings, abductions, tortures and other human rights abuses by the Ethiopian government, consistent with the direct experiences of many of us, are documented and confirmed in the annual reports of well-respected human rights organizations such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the US State Department.
Despite these tangible facts of human rights abuses, the Ethiopian government continues receiving billions of dollars of aid money every year. Subsidizing over one third of its budget from foreign aid, Ethiopia has built one of the biggest and best-equipped armies in Africa, while millions of its citizens depend on food aid. In fact, the aid money is used to impose the Tigrayan ethnocentric dictatorship on Oromos and other peoples in an involentary multinational society.
It is frustrating to  witness the  West’s reluctance to use their influence  to effect real change, and even worse to believe the fairy tale of  a human-rights-abusing government, that  claim to be moving on the road to democracy.
While thousands of Oromos and others are languishing in prisons under bogus terrorism charges, the current Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Mr. Hailemariam Dessalegn, brazenly argued in public that there are were no political prisoners in Ethiopia.
Such blatant misinformation has been the norm within the entire leadership of the TPLF- regime, intended to deceive international donors and allies. Again referring to his inauguration speech, the new prime minister also promised to continue implementing the policies of the late autocratic Prime Minister Meles Zenawi; this, is a clear indication that the new prime minister is under the control of the Tigrayan elite and that he cannot make any reform and democratic changes in the empire-state of Ethiopia.
Observing the painful agony and sufferings of the ordinary people, the political prisoners in particular, and the worsening situation at home, We members of the Oromo Communities and the Union of Oromo Students in Germany, call for a Peaceful Demonstration on 30.08.2013 in Frankfurt am Main, to Protest against the Tyranny of the TPLF-Ethiopian government and earnestly appeal to the German government and its  allies to use their good offices with the Ethiopian government and facilitate the following :

1.  immediate Stop of Financial support to the Dictatorship in Ethiopia
2. immediate stop to Ethnic-Cleansing now underway in Eastern-Oromia’s Anniyya region
3. Unconditional and immediate release of all political prisoners
4.  practical action to promote real democratic changes in the country
5. immediate stop  to Land-grabbing and their restitution to the indigenous owners
6. Immediate implementation of the right of the Oromo and other nations for Self-determination.
7. Respect freedom of Religion and journalism
8. Justice for those criminally murdered in Arsi – Kofele and all Parts of Oromia

Union of Oromo Students in Germany
HOB
HOMN

Ethiopia: Police Foil Plan to Attack Addis Ababa Airport

Note: Do not forget reading Wikileaks’ files below “Recent Bombings Blamed on Oromos Possibly the Work of Government of Ethiopia” and “Ethiopia Bombs Itself, Blames Eritrea“

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Aug 17, 2013, Addis Ababa (All africa)— The Ethiopian federal police said on Friday that they have uncovered explosive devices planted inside, Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, averting a major tragedy.
Two explosives were found around the departure terminal of the country’s largest airport targeting the hundreds of passengers waiting to fly.
The incident created panic among passengers and caused a delay in flights until bomb disposal experts were able to dismantle the devices, which are believed to have been home made, and cleared the rest of the area for other explosive devices.
It is not clear how the attackers managed to pass the number of security check points at the airport.
A police official told Sudan Tribune that the nature of the attack is under investigation and it is yet to be determined if the attempt was a terrorist attack.
“It is safe now and no more threats. There is nothing to worry” about the source, who requested anonymity, said.
Airport authorities have placed the international airport on high alert with a heavy security presence.
Addis Ababa Bole International Airport is among Africa’s three busiest hubs.
–All Africa

Wikileaks Ethiopia Files: Ethiopia Bombs Itself, Blames Eritrea

by Thomas C. Mountain
Foreign Policy Journal | September 16, 2011

Recently released Wikileaks Ethiopia files expose how Ethiopian security forces planted 3 bombs that went off in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on September 16, 2006 and then blamed Eritrea and the Oromo resistance for the blasts in a case that raises serious questions about the claims made about the bombing attempt against the African Union summit earlier this year in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
In a report  from 2006 marked “Secret ; Subject: Ethiopia: Recent Bombings Blamed on Oromos Possibly the Work of GOE [Government of Ethiopia]” “Classified By: Charge [d’Affairs] Vicki Huddleston”, “An embassy source, as well as clandestine reporting, suggests that the bombing may have in fact been the work of the GoE security forces.” (Cable reference id: #06ADDISABABA2708.)
At the time, the western media reported the Ethiopian National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) claims that the bombs were “part of a coordinated terror attack by the OLF [Oromo Liberation Front, the oldest national  liberation movement in Ethiopia] and  Sha’abiya (Eritrea) aimed at disrupting democratic development”.
The Wikileaks report goes on, “a typically reliable information source” who “contacted Post to report that” the bodies of three men found at the bomb sites “had been picked up by police a week prior, kept in detention and tortured. He said police then left the men in a house and detonated explosives nearby, killing 3 of them.”
This exposes the history of how the Ethiopian regime has planted bombs and then blamed Eritrea and the Ethiopian resistance. The lies that make up the official version of this alleged terrorist attack raises serious questions about the credibility of the recently released report by the UN via its US State Department affiliate, the Monitoring Group for Eritrea and Somalia, which blames the Eritreans and the OLF for the January bombing attempt at the African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Identical lies about a nearly identical “terrorist attack”, all accepted as fact by the western media. This should also deliver another body blow to the Obama White House and its claims that Eritrea supports terrorism in the Horn of Africa.
So once again the bellowing against Eritrea by the USA and it lackeys at the UN going back to 2006 is exposed as complete bunkum and an identical frame up of Eritrean and the Oromo resistance in Ethiopia that has been regurgitated by the UN and its truth challenged Monitoring Group on Eritrea and Somalia must be subject to a more critical scrutiny. Based on this expose’ it can only be hoped that the UN inSecurity Council, which has yet to decide whether to pass severe sanctions against Eritrea, will refrain from doing so.
–Foreign Policy Journal

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

Wikileaks

Classified By: CHARGE VICKI HUDDLESTON FOR REASONS 1.4(b)AND(d).
¶1. (S) SUMMARY A series of explosions were reported in Addis Ababa on September 16, killing three individuals. The GoE announced that the bombs went off while being assembled, and that the three dead were terrorists from the outlawed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) with links to the Oromo National Congress (ONC). An embassy source, as well as clandestine reporting, suggests that the bombing may have in fact been the work of GoE security forces. END SUMMARY
¶2. (U) On September 16, three bomb explosions were reported in the Kara Kore area of Addis Ababa. The explosions were heard at 4:45 a.m., 7:00 a.m., and 10:00 a.m. The National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), together with the Federal Police Anti-terror Task Force later reported that the bombs were “part of a coordinated terror attack by the OLF and Sha’abiya (Eritrea) aimed at disrupting democratic development.” The NISS said that the intended terror plot had failed and the bombs had mistakenly gone off while the suspects were preparing them while hiding out at an illegally built house. Two of the suspects died immediately, while another died on the way to the hospital. One other is in critical condition. The police task force reported having others in custody related to the plot and that evidence shows the terrorists had ties to Oromo groups – the Mecha and Tulema Association (MTA) and the ONC. They also said that the bombs used contained parts sourced from Eritrea and were consistent with bombs used in previous terrorist attacks.
¶3. (S) On September 20, Dr. Merera Gudina (strictly protect), the former leader of the ONC (and a typically reliable information source), contacted Post to report that the deceased had not died not while constructing a bomb, but rather at the hands of GoE cadres. Dr. Merera said that the men had been picked up by police a week prior, kept in detention and tortured. He said police then left the men in a house and detonated explosives nearby, killing 3 of them. He did not indicate whether the men were ONC or OLF affiliated.
¶4. (S) Clandestine reporting indicates that the bombs did not explode inside the structure, but rather appear to have been placed outside and detonated.
[Ambassador Vicki] HUDDLESTON
–Wikileaks

Junedin Sado was killed by Woyyanee

Junedin Sado, Former governor of Oromia, was killed by Woyyanee

Gurmessaa Beekamaa/facebook | August 17, 2013
Junedin Sado, an Ethiopian politician and former governor of the state of Oromia was killed by Woyyanee under cover agents in Robbii, Shewa when he secretly returned to the country from Kenya.
He was thrown out of the EPRDF government due to his disagreement with certain policies that the ruling government imposed on the governing system and alleged accusation of involvement in his wife, Habibe Muhammad’s plot of terrorism in the country.
Sources haven’t confirmed his death but eye witnesses are saying, he was killed in Robbii , Shewa when he secretly returned back to the country in July, 2013 after fleeing to Nairobi, Kenya with 8 other colleagues. Junadin was president of the Oromia region from 28 October 2001 until 6 October 2005 when he was replaced by Abadula Gemeda.
During his government, he was a share holder in killing and arresting, thousands of Oromo students in many parts of the region. The Oromo diaspora community had repeatedly warned him to stop working with this government, but he refused and continued his atrocities against his own people, but at the end, he lost his life at the very hands of the people, he served for so many years.
Junadin subsequently was appointed Transport and Communication Minister, which is the office he was holding when Prime Minister Meles Zenawi moved him to the Science and Technology Ministry October 2008. Following the 2010 general election, Junedin was appointed Minister of Civil Service.
Ethiopian government eliminated him from the position of ministers when he subsequently rose his disagreement with the government.
We show condolence to the families who lost their son, and tell the families who lost their children during his administration that one way or another, justice has reached your house.
Who must be the next round of death who is seriously against the Oromo working with and claimed to be the husband of Azeb Mesfin??? Who is the next servant in line for death? A.  Abdulaziz Mohammed,  B. Abba Dula,  C. Alamayehu Atomsa,  D.Muktar Kedir