የፓርቲዎች ትብብር ለአዳሩ ሰልፍ ቦታው መስቀል አደባባይ እንዲሆን ወስኗል

የ9ኙ ፓርቲዎች ትብብር ለአዳሩ ሰልፍ የእውቅና ደብዳቤ አስገባ
የ9ኙ ፓርቲዎች ትብብር ከህዳር 27/2007 ዓ.ም እስከ ህዳር 28/2007 ዓ.ም ለሚደረገው የአዳር ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ ዛሬ ህዳር 18/2007 ዓ.ም ለአዲስ አበባ አስተዳደር የሰላማዊ ሰልፍና ስብሰባ ማሳወቂያ ክፍል የእውቅና ደብዳቤ አስገባ፡፡
በነገረ ኢትዮጵያ ሪፖርተር
ለሰላማዊ ሰልፍና ስብሰባ ማሳወቂያ ክፍል የገባው ደብዳቤ በሰማያዊ፣ መኢዴፓ እና ኢብአፓ ተፈርሞ የገባ ሲሆን የእውቅና ደብዳቤውንም ኢንጅነር ይልቃል ጌትነት የሰማያዊ ፓርቲና የትብብሩ ሊቀመንበር፣ የከንባታ ህዝቦች ሊቀመንበርና የትብብብሩ ም/ሊቀመንበር አቶ ኤርጫፎ ኤርጌሎ፣ አቶ ግርማ በቀለ ከኦሞ ህዝቦች ዴሞክራሲያዊ ድርጅትና የትብብሩ ፀኃፊ እና የመኢዴፓ ሊቀመንበርና የትብብሩ ገንዘብ ያዥ አቶ ኑሪ ሙደሲር አስገብተዋል፡፡

የትብብሩ አመራሮች ወደ ሰላማዊ ሰልፍና ስብሰባ ማሳወቂያ ክፍሉ በሄዱበት ወቅት የአቶ ማርቆስ ተወካይ ለሆኑት አቶ ፈለቀ አበበ ደብዳቤውን ለመስጠት ጥረት ቢያደርጉም ተወካዩ ‹‹የከንቲባ ጉዳዮች ጽ/ቤ ኃላፊ አቶ አሰግድ ጌታቸው የለም፡፡ እሱ ካልመራበት መቀበል አንችልም›› በሚል ደብዳቤውን አልቀበልም እንዳሏቸው ለነገረ ኢትዮጵያ ገልጸዋል፡፡ አመራሮቹ ወደ አቶ አሰግድ ቢሮ ቢያቀኑም እንዳላገኙዋቸው ጨምረው ገልጸዋል፡፡

ሆኖም የትብብሩ አመራሮች ደብዳቤ መስጠት እንጂ ደብዳቤ ማስመራት የሰራተኞቹ እንጂ የእነሱ ስራ እንዳልሆነ በመግለጽ ደብዳቤውን ዛሬ ህዳር 18/2007 ዓ.ም ታመዋል የተባሉት የአቶ ማርቆስ ተወካይ የሆኑት አቶ ፈለቀ ቢሮ በአራት ምስክሮች ፊት አስቀምጠው መምጣታቸውን አስረድተዋል፡፡ አመራሮቹ የእውቅና ደብዳቤውን አቶ ፈለቀ ቢሮ አስቀምጠው ከመውጣታቸውም ባሻገር በኢትዮጵያ ፖስታ አገልግሎት ድርጅት በፈጣን መልዕክት (ኢ ኤም ኤስ) በሪኮመንዴ ቁጥር eg157416502et መላካቸውን ገልጸዋል፡፡

የአዳር ሰላማዊ ሰልፉ ህዳር 27 ከጠዋቱ 3 ሰዓት ተጀምሮ ህዳር 28 ከቀኑ 6 ሰዓት ላይ እንደሚጠናቀቅ የሚጠበቅ ሲሆን ቦታውም መስቀል አደባባይ ላይ እንደሚሆን መወሰኑ ታውቋል፡፡

የትብብሩ አመራሮች የእውቅና ደብዳቤውን ለማስገባት በሄዱበት ወቅት በቦታው የትብብሩ አመራሮች የሚያውቋቸው ደህንነቶች ባለ ጉዳይ በመምሰል ይመላለሱ እንደነበርና ፖሊሶችም ይከታተሉ እንደነበር ለነገረ ኢትዮጵያ ገልጸዋል፡፡

በዛሬ ቅዳሜ የሚሊዮኖች ድምፅ የህሊና እስረኞች መርሀ ግብር የዞን 9 ዘጠኝ ጦማሪያንን ታስበው ይውላሉ

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በዛሬ ቅዳሜ የሚሊዮኖች ድምፅ የህሊና እስረኞች መርሀ ግብር የዞን 9 ዘጠኝ ጦማሪያንን ታስበው ይውላሉ፤ እንደሚታወቀው በቃሊቲ ያሉት እስር ቤቶች በተለያዩ ዞኖች ተከፋፈሉ ሲሆን፤ ከዞን አንድ እስከ ዞን ስምንት ይደርሳሉ፤ እኛ በታሰረችው ሀገር በሰፊው እስር ቤት የምንገኝ ደግሞ የዞን ዘጠኝ ታሳሪዎች ነው የምንባለው፤ ስለዚህ ሁላችንም ያለነው ዞን ዘጠኝ ውስጥ ነው፤ የዞን ዘጠኝ ጦማሪያን ይህ እውነት ስለገለጡ ነው የታሰሩት።
የሚሊዮኖች ድምፅ የህሊና እስረኞች መርሀ ግብር ከተጀመረ ጀምሮ ብዙ አስደናቂ ነገሮች እየተስተዋሉ ነው ያሉት፤ በትናንትናው ዕለት የአንድነት አባላት ብቻ ተለይተው እነእስክንድር ነጋንና እነ አንዷለም አራጌን በቃሊቲ እንዳይጠይቁ ተከልክሏል፤ መከልከል ብቻ አይደለም ታግተው ውሏል፤ አብዛኞቹ ከሰዓት ላይ ሲለቀቁ፤ አራቱ ደግሞ ማታ ላይ ተለቋል፤ ትግስት ካሳዬ ምትባል የአንድነት የወረዳ አመራር አባል ደግሞ ስትፈታ እዚያው አሳድሯታል።
ታላቁ የህሊና እስረኛ እስክንድር ነጋም ‹‹በርቱ! እንቅስቃሴያችሁ ህጋዊና ሰላማዊ ይሁን እንጂ ትግላችሁን ቀጥሉ!›› የሚል መልዕክት አስተላልፏል። በተጨማሪም አሳሪዎቹ የማናገር ነፃነቱን እዚያው እስር ቤትም ውስጥ ሊገድቡት በመኮሩበት ሰዓት፤
‹‹መብቴን አሳልፌ አልሰጥም፤ የትም ብሆን ስለመብቴና ሀገሬ ያገባኛል፡፡ እዚህ ከሚጠይቁኝ ሰዎች ጋር የፈለኩትን ማውራት እችላለሁ፡፡ እናንተ ከፈለጋችሁ በር ላይ መልሷቸው እንጂ እኔ ጋር ከመጡ በኋላ ስለሀገሬ ከእነሱ ጋር መነጋገር መብቴ ነው፡፡ አዎ የትም ቦታ ብሆን፣ መቼም ቢሆን ስለ ሀገሬ ያገባኛል!›› በማለት አሁንም ለመብቱ ያለው ቁርጥ አቋም አሳይቷል። እስክንድር ቃሊቲ ውስጥ ሆኖ እንዲህ ካለ፤ እኛ በሰፊው እስር ቤት ያለነው ታሳሪዎች ምን እንጠብቃለን! እምቢ ለመብቴ እምቢ ለነፃነቴ እምቢ ለሀገሬ ማለት አለብኝ!
ሁላችንም የዞን ዘጠኝ ታሳሪዎች ነን!

Millions of voices for freedom – UDJ

“ለመተማመን እንነጋገር!”

ኢትዮጵያውያን “ከዘረኝነት ይልቅ ለሰብዓዊነት” ቅድሚያ ሰጡ!

በቅርቡ በዋሽንግተን ዲሲ ከተማ አካባቢ የአዲሲቷ ኢትዮጵያ የጋራ ንቅናቄ በአገራችን ውስጥ ስላለው ችግር መፍትሔ ለማምጣት ይጠቅማል በሚል በጠራው ውይይት ላይ ኢትዮጵያውያን ከአውሮጳ፣ ከአሜሪካና ከካናዳ ተጠራርተው በመምጣት በዓይነቱ ለየት ያለ ውይይት አድርገዋል፡፡ “ሰላም፣ ፍትሕ፣ ዕርቅና መከባበር የሰፈነበት ማኅበረሰብ ለመመሥረት” አንዳችን ስለሌላችን በመናገር ሳይሆን እርስበርስ ስለችግራችን መወያየት አለብን በሚል መሪ ሃሳብ ኢትዮጵያውያኑ ግልጽና በቅንነት ላይ የተመሰረተ ውይይት አካሂደዋል፡፡ “ከዘረኝነት ይልቅ ለሰብዓዊነት ቅድሚያ” የመስጠት አስፈላጊነትም በስፋት ውይይት የተደረገበት ጉዳይ ነበር፡፡

በዋሽንግተን ዲሲ የሚገኘው ኤምባሲ የስብሰባው አካል እንዲሆን ለአምባሳደር ግርማ ብሩ የንቅናቄው ዋና ዳይሬክተር ኦባንግ ሜቶ የላኩ ቢሆንም ከኤምባሲው በኩል የተሰጠ ምላሽም ሆነ በውክልና በስብሰባው ላይ የተገኘ አለመኖሩ በጋዜጣዊው መግለጫ ተወስቷል፡፡ የመግለጫው ሙሉ ቃል ከዚህ በታች ቀርቧል፡፡

አዲሲቷ ኢትዮጵያ የጋራ ንቅናቄ ጋዜጣዊ መግለጫ

ኅዳር 17፤2006፤ዋሽንግቶን ዲሲ፤

ለአዲሲቷ ኢትዮጵያ የጋራ ንቅናቄ (አኢጋን) ኅዳር6፤2006/ኖቬምበር15፤2014 በአሜሪካ ዋሽንግቶን ዲሲ ባደረገው ስብሰባ አዲሲቷንኢትዮጵያ ለመመሥረት ዕውቀት፣ ችሎታ፣ ስነምግባር፣ ብቃትና ልዩ ተሰጥዖ ያላቸው በርካታ ወገኖችን በተመለከተ አገራችን አሁንም የሰው ደሃአለመሆኗን ያስመሰከረ ነበር።

በስብሰባው ወቅት ከበርካታ የአላማ ጽናት ካላቸው ደፋር፣ አርቆ አስተዋይ እና ብልህ ኢትዮጵያውያን እጅግ የሚመስጡ ንግግሮች ተካሂደዋል። የአስተሳሰብ ልዩነት በነበረበት ጊዜ እንኳን ቢሆን የነበረው መከባበርና የማስተዋል መንፈስ ለበርካታዎች ትምህርት የሰጠ ነበር። እንደ እውነቱከሆነ እንዲህ ዓይነቱ የሰለጠነ ውይይት ለበርካታ በደል ለደረሰባቸው ኢትዮጵያውያን ችግሮቻቸውን በመደማመጥ እንዴት መወያየትእንዳለባቸው መሠረት የጣለ ስብሰባ ነበር ቢባል ማጋነን አይሆንም። በስብሰባው ላይ የተገኙት ሁሉ የመጡት በመጀመሪያ ራሳቸውን ወክለውነው። ጉባዔተኛው በህብረት በሚጋራው እሴቶች ላይ በመቀራረብ እውነት፣ ነጻነት፣ ፍትህና መግባባት ለሁሉም መፍጠር በሚቻልበት የጋራ አጀንዳ ላይ ውይይት ለማካሄድ ተችሏል።

በጋራ ውይይቱ ወቅት ከመድረኩም ሆነ ከተሰብሳቢው የተሰሙት ሃሳቦች እና ታሪኮች እንዲሁም አስተያየቶች ከዚህ በፊት በአብዛኛው ሲነገሩ ያልተደመጡ ናቸው። ለሕዝብ በተሰራጨው መጥሪያ ላይ በግልጽ እንደሰፈረው የውይይቱ ዋና ዓላማ “በኢትዮጵያውያንተቋማት መካከል የተለመደውን አለመግባባት ለመስበር” ሲሆን ይህም “ስለ ሌላው መነጋገር ሳይሆን እርስበርሳችን መወያየት”አለብን በሚል መንፈስ የተጠራ ነበር። በመሆኑም ስብሰባው በሁለት ተከፍሎ ነበር ውይይቱ የተካሄደው።

የመጀመሪያው ስብሰባ ከታቀደለት ሰዓት ዘግይቶ የጀመረ ሲሆን ከጋራ ንቅናቄው በኩል ስብሰባውን የመሩት ነጋሽ አብዱራማን ናቸው። የአዲሲቷ ኢትዮጵያ የጋራ ንቅናቄ ዋና ዳይሬክተር ኦባንግ ሜቶ የእንኳን ደህና መጣችሁ የመክፈቻ ንግግር ካደረጉ በኋላ የተለያዩ ተናጋሪዎች በልዩ ልዩ የሙያ ዘርፎች ንግግር አድርገዋል። በህወሃት/ኢህአዴግ አገዛዝ ሥርዓት ውስጥ በማገልገላቸው የሥርዓቱን ምንነት አብጠልጥለው ለመናገር ብቃት ያላቸው ተናጋሪዎች ትምህርታዊ የሆኑ ገለጻዎችን አድርገዋል። የዞን9 መስራች ሶሊያና ሽመልስ፣ የኦሮሚያ ክልል ከፍተኛ ፍርድቤት የቀድሞ ዳኛ ፈይሣ እስራኤል ኢታንሣ እንዲሁም በኢህአዴግ አገዛዝ የቀድሞው የኮሙኒኬሽን ሚኒስትር ድኤታ ኤርምያስ ለገሰ በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ ስላሉት ተቋማት እና እንዴት የአገዛዙ መጠቀሚያዎች እንደሆኑ ከልምዳቸው በዝርዝር አብራርተዋል።

በአገራቸው ቢሆን ከፍተኛ አገልግሎት ሊሰጡ የሚችሉትና ለዘመናት ያጠራቀሙትን ዕውቀት ለወገናቸው ማካፈል ይችሉ የነበሩት የልማትና የፖለቲካ ኢኮኖሚክስ ከፍተኛ ምሁር ዶ/ር ፈቃዱ በቀለ ከጀርመን በስካይፕ ሙያዊ ገለጻ አድርገዋል።

እነዚህንና መሰል ባለሙያዎች ከአገራቸው ወጥተው በከንቱ የውጭ አገራትን እየጠቀሙ መኖራቸው ሊያሳስብ የሚችል ጉዳይ ነው። እነዚህ በጣም ጥቂቱ ሲሆኑ አገራችን አሁንም የሰው ደሃ እንዳልሆነች በስደት የሚገኙ ምርጥየኢትዮጵያ ልጆች በየተሰማሩበት ሞያ አብረዋቸው ያሉትን የሚያስደንቁና በስነምግባር የታነጹ መሆናቸውበየጊዜው የሚመሰከር ነው።

የመጀመሪያው ስብሰባ የተካሄደው በእንግሊዝኛ ሲሆን በዋሽንግቶን ዲሲና አካባቢው የሚገኙ የተለያዩ ዓለምአቀፋዊ ድርጅቶች ከፍተኛ ኃላፊዎች፣የአሜሪካ መንግሥት አስተዳደር ውስጥ ኃላፊነት የነበራቸው አመራሮች እንዲሁም ሌሎች ታዋቂ ሰዎች ተገኝተው ነበር።

በሁለተኛው ውይይት ወቅት “በልዩነታችን በመከባበር አዲሲቷን ኢትዮጵያ እንገንባ” በሚል ርዕስ ዙሪያ በርካታ የስብሰባውን ተካፋዮች ስሜት የነካ ዘለግ ያለ ውይይት ተካሂዷል። ይህኛው ውይይት በአማርኛ ቋንቋ የተካሄደ ሲሆን በወቅቱም ቄስ ተጋ ለንዳዶ (ከአሜሪካ)፣ ፊዮሬላ ሮማኖ(በትውልድ ጣልያንና ኤርትራ፤ ከስዊትዘርላንድ)፣ ፈይሣ እስራኤል ኢታንሣ (ከካናዳ)፣ ሼኽ ካሊድ ኦማር (ከአሜሪካ)፣ አካሉ ትርፌ(ከዩክሬን)፣ ሰዋሰው ዮሐንሰን (ከኖርዌይ)፣ ነጋሲ በየነ (ከአሜሪካ)፣ ዲባባ አመሌ (ዩኬ)፣ ዮሐንስ በርሔ (ካናዳ)፣ ሐምራዊት ተስፋ(ከአሜሪካ) እና መምሬ ፍሬሰንበት (ከአሜሪካ) ከመድረኩ ንግግር አድርገዋል። ከጋራ ንቅናቄው በኩል ዳዊት አጎናፍር ከዋና ዳይሬክተሩ ኦባንግሜቶ ጋር በመሆን ውይይቱን ሲመሩ አምሽተዋል። ሼኽ ካሊድ ኦማር እና ሰዋሰው ዮሐንሰን ባደረሱት የመግቢያ ጸሎተ ቡራኬ ስብሰባውሲጀምር መምሬ ፍሬሰንበት የማሳረጊያውን ቡራኬ አቅርበዋል።

ተሳታፊዎቹ የየትኛውንም የፖለቲካ፣ የዘር፣ ጎሣ፣ … ቡድን ሳይወክሉ በቅድሚያ ሰው በመሆናቸው ሲቀጥልም በኢትዮጵያዊነታቸው “ሁላችንምነጻ ካልወጣን ማንም ብቻውን ነጻ ሊሆን አይችልም” በሚል መሪ ሃሳብ አዲሲቷን ኢትዮጵያ መገንባት የሚቻልበትን መንገድ እና ቅን ፍላጎታቸውን በግልጽ ከልብ አስረድተዋል። በተደጋጋሚ ሲነገር እንደሚሰማው በህወሃት/ኢህአዴግ ላይ ጣት ከመጠቆም ይልቅ በኢትዮጵያውያንማኅበረሰቦች ውስጥ የተዘራውን መርዝ እንዴት መንቀል እንደሚቻል፤ የእያንዳንዱን ሰው ልዩ መሆኑን እንዲያም ሲል ባህሉን በማክበር እንዴት ግንኙነትን ማበልጸግ እንደሚቻል፣ እርስበርስ በመከባበር ያለፉትን በደሎች በመወያየት እንዴት ለወደፊቱ ትውልድ አዲስ የዕርቅ ምዕራፍበመክፈት ሁሉም ከፈጣሪውና ከጎረቤቱ ጋር መስማማት እንደሚችል፣ እርስበርስ ክፍፍልና ጥል ሳይኖር በልዩነት መስማማት እንዴት እንደሚቻል፣ወደነበርንበት በመመለስና በመካከላችን የተከሰተውን በማረቅ እውነት፣ ተጠያቂነት፣ ፍትሕ፣ መከባበርና ፍቅር የሰፈነባትን አዲሲቷን ኢትዮጵያመመሥረት እንዴት እንደሚቻል፣ ወዘተ ስሜት መሳጭ፣ ዓይን ከፋችና ማራኪ ውይይት በመድረኩ ከነበሩትም ሆነ ከጉባዔተኛው በጥያቄና መልስቀርቧል።

የጋራ ንቅናቄው ስብሰባውን በሚያዘጋጅበት ወቅት የትኛውንም መለየት ስላልፈለገ በዋሽንግተን ዲሲ ለሚገኘው ኤምባሲ አምባሳደር ግርማ ብሩከስብሰባው 11 ቀናት በፊት የጥሪ ደብዳቤ ቢልክም ከኤምባሲው ተወክሎ በመምጣት በስብሰባው የተገኘ ማንም ሰው አልነበረም። ዋና ዳይሬክተሩ ኦባንግ ሜቶ በአኢጋን ስም በላኩት በዚህ ደብዳቤ ላይ የስብሰባውን ሁኔታ ሲያስረዱ እንዲህ ብለው ነበር፡-

“ይህ የፖለቲካ ስብሰባ አይደለም፤ ነገር ግን ይህ ስለ ኢትዮጵያ ግድ የሚላቸው ወገኖች ተሰባስበው ውይይት ስለሚያደርጉበት ሁኔታመድረክ ለመፍጠር የታቀደ ነው፤ ይህንን በማመን ነው እርስዎም የዚህ ውይይት አካል እንዲሆኑ የጋበዝንዎት፤ ይህ “መንግሥትንስለመቃወም ወይም ስለመደገፍ” የሚካሄድ ስብሰባ ሳይሆን ስለ ኢትዮጵያውያን የጋራ ጉዳይ ለመመካከር ነው፤ የስብሰባው ተሳታፊዎችበወገኖች መካከል የሚኖር የሃሳብ ልዩነቶችን ያከብራሉ ተብለው ይጠበቃሉ፤ ነገርግን የኢትዮጵያውንን ጨዋነትና የውይይት ስልጣኔበማሳየት በኩል ምሳሌያዊ ሆኖ የሚካሄድ ስብሰባ በመሆኑ እርስዎም ሆነ የሚመጡት የኤምባሲው ተወካዮች በዚህ ረገድ ለመሳተፍደኅንነት ሊሰማቸው ይገባል፤ ይህንን ደግሞ እኔ ስብሰባው ሲጀመር በይፋ በመናገር የማስታውቀው ሲሆን ማንም ሰው ከማንም ጋር የሃሳብስምምነት ቢኖረውም ባይኖረውም አክብሮትና ትህትና ማሳየት እንደሚጠበቅበት ይህ ደግሞ ሌሎችን ስለማክበር የምንማርበት መድረክእንደሚሆን በግልጽ በመክፈቻው የማስረዳው ጉዳይ ይሆናል፤ ይህ አስተሳሰብ ደግሞ አዲሲቷን ኢትዮጵያ ለመመሥረት የሚያስፈልግናየአኢጋን ዋና መመሪያ ነው፤ እንዲህ አይነቷ ኢትዮጵያ ለሁሉም ቦታ ይኖራታልና።” (የደብዳቤው ሙሉ ቅጂ እዚህ ላይ ይገኛል)

ስብሰባው በወቅቱ ከሚካሄድበት ቦታ በቀጥታ ስርጭት በዓለም ዙሪያ የተላለፈ በመሆኑ ውይይቱን በአካል ተገኝተው መከታተል ያልቻሉ ወገኖች ባሉበት ለመከታተል ችለዋል። የአሜሪካ ድምጽ ሬዲዮ ስለ ውይይቱ ዘገባዎችን ያቀረበ ሲሆን በተለይ ስለውይይቱ ጠቅለል ያለ ዘገባ የተጠናቀረበት የድምጽ ሪፖርት እዚህ ላይ ይገኛል። ኢሣትም በበኩሉ የቀረጸውቪዲዮ እዚህ ላይ ይገኛል። ከአሜሪካ ድምጽ ሬዲዮ፣ ከኢሣት፣ እንዲሁም ከሌሎች ድረገጾች፣ የሬዲዮ ጣቢያዎችና የሚዲያ አካላት ላገኘነው ትብብር ምስጋናችንን እናቀርባለን። በአኢጋን የሚዲያ ሰዎች በዕለቱ የተካሄደው ሙሉ ውይይት እንዲሁም ከስብሰባው በፊት በተደረገው የራት ግብዣ ላይ ከወገኖቻችን የሰማነው እጅግ ስሜትን የሚነኩ፣ ትምህርታዊና ልባዊ የሆኑ ንግግሮች ተቀርጸዋል።

የጋራ ንቅናቄው እያንዳንዱ ሰው የሚናገረውና የሚያካፍለው ታሪክ እንዳለው ያምናል። ከዚህም እያንዳንዳችን መማር ስለምንችል ስለሌሎች ከመነጋገር ይልቅ እርስበርሳችን ስለራሳችን ታሪክናልምምድ በመነጋገር ብዙዎችን ሊያስተምሩ የሚችሉ ጠቃሚ ትምህርቶችን መለዋወጥ አለብን። ይህ ደግሞበአንድ ስብሰባ ብቻ ተጀምሮ መጠናቀቅ ያለበት ሳይሆን ኢትዮጵያውያን በሚገናኙበት ቦታ ሁሉ ለቡናስንሰባሰብ፣ በቤ/ክን ወይም በመስጊድ፣ በኮሙኒቲ ማኅበረሰቦች፣ ወይም በቤታችን ውስጥ በምግብ ጠረጴዛችንላይ፣ ወዘተ በተደጋጋሚ እየተነገሩና ልምምድ እየተካፈልንባቸው የምንሄድባቸው ሊሆን ይገባል። ስለሌሎችከመነጋገር ይልቅ እርስበርሳችን መነጋገር፤ ልምምዳችንን መለዋወጥ፤ አንዳችን ከሌላው ትምህርት መውሰድ፤ይህንን ትምህርት ደግሞ ለሌሎች ማስተላለፍ፤ ማስተጋባት፤ በክፉው ከመጠመድ ይልቅ መልካሙን ለራስበማድረግ ይህንን ይበልጥ በማኅበረሰባችን ውስጥ ማስፋፋት፣ ማበልጸግ፣ ደግሞ ደጋግሞ ያለማቋረጥማስተጋባት!

ማጠቃለያ

በመካከላችን ስላሉት ችግሮች መነጋገር እንዳለብን ግልጽ ነው። ሆኖም ይህ ከመንግሥት ጋር ዕርቅ መፈጸም፤ ወይም በተለያዩ ተቀናቃኝ ፓርቲዎችመካከል ዕርቅ መፈጸም ማለት አይደለም። ነገር ግን እርስበርሳችን በመነጋገር ወደ አንድ ዓላማ ለመምጣት አብረን መሥራት ማለት ነው። ይህንንዓይነቱ ውይይት በቀጣይነት ፍሬያማ የሚያደርገው አስቸጋሪ ወይም ውስብስብ ናቸው በምንላቸው ጉዳዮች ላይ በመከባበር እና ስለሌላውበማሰብ መወያየት ስንችል ነው። ስለዚህ በስሜት እየተነዳን ከምንጠቀማቸው ቃላቶችና አነጋገሮች መቆጠብ ይገባናል። ምክንያቱን ጉዳትያደርሳሉ፤ ግንኙነት ላይ ትልቅ ችግር ያመጣሉ፤ ለመግባባት እንቅፋት ይፈጥራሉ። የዚያኑ ያህልም የሚነገሩ ነገሮችን ሁሉ እኛን በግል ለመጉዳትየተነገሩ አድርገን በመውሰድ ችግሮችን ከማቀጣጠል ይልቅ አንዳንዴ ሆደ ሰፊ በመሆን ለምናልመው ታላቅ ሃሳብና ዕቅድ ቅድሚያ በመስጠት ቸልእያልን ማለፍን መማርም ያስፈልጋል። በዚህ ዓይነት ሁኔታ መተማመን የምንችልበት ሁኔታ ላይ ከደረስን እንደ አንድ ቡድን በመሆን ለኢትዮጵያዘላቂ ሰላም ማምጣት የምንችልበትን ሥራ እንደ አንድ ቡድን ሆነን መሥራት እንጀምራለን። ይህ እየቀጠለ ሲሄድ ለችግሮቻችን፣ ለቅሬታዎቻችን፣ለተግዳሮቶቻችን፣ ወዘተ በቀላሉ መፍትሔዎችን ማግኘት እንችላለን።

ስለዚህ ሰላምን የመፍጠር ባህል በውስጣችን ሊዳብር ይገባል። ይህ ሊሆን የሚችለው እውነትን በትህትና ስንናገር፣ ፍትህንና ከበሬታንለጎረቤቶቻችን (ለሌሎች) ለመስጠት ስንመኝ፣ የሕግን የበላይነት በልባችን በመጠበቅ በስነምግባር የታነጽን ሐቀኛ ሰዎች ስንሆን ነው። የዘርን፣የሃይማኖትን፣ የፖለቲካን እና የሌሎችን ግድግዳዎች በማፈራረስ ከፈጣሪ በተሰጠን ኃላፊነት በሐቅ ላይ ሳንመቻመች የሰላም መልዕክተኞችና ሰላምፈጣሪዎች መሆን የእያንዳንዳችን ኃላፊነት ነው። ይህ ቀላል አይደለም፤ ብዙ ጊዜ እንደሚባለው “የሚያስቸግር ነገር ማለት የማይቻል ማለትሳይሆን ብዙ ሥራ የሚጠይቅ ማለት ነው”።

የጋራ ንቅናቄያችን ከዚህ ውይይት የተማረው ነገር ቢኖር ይህንን መፈጸም የሚቻል መሆኑን ነው፤ ምክንያቱም ሰዎች በተግባር አከናውነውታል።ከዚህ ጅማሬ በመነሳትም በሌሎች ቦታዎችም ይህንን መሰል ውይይቶች እንዲካሄዱ እናስባለን፤ እናቅዳለን። ስለዚህም በመጪው የአውሮጳውያን አዲስ አመት የጸደይ ወራት በአውሮጳ ሌላ የውይይት መድረክ ለማዘጋጀት ይቻላል የሚል ተስፋ አለን።

ፈጣሪ ለሁላችንም ለመስማት የፈጠነ ለቁጣ የዘገየ፤ ይቅርታን ለመጠየቅም ሆነ ለመስጠት የተዘጋጀ ትሁት ልብ ይስጠን። በመሆኑም ሁላችንም ነጻካልወጣን ማንም ብቻውን ነጻ መውጣት ስለማይችል ከዘር ይልቅ ሰብዓዊነትን ከፍ አድርገን የምንሰብክበትን ማኅበረሰብ ለመገንባት እንድንችልፈጣሪ ሁላችንንም ይርዳን፤ ቅን ልብ ይስጠን።

ለተጨማሪ መረጃ የአዲሲቷ ኢትዮጵያ የጋራ ንቅናቄ ዋና ዳይሬክተር ኦባንግ ሜቶን በዚህ ኢሜይል አድራሻ ማግኘት ይቻላል፡-Obang@solidaritymovement.org

Unipolar power in decline, new cold war & EPRDF in fear By Robele Ababya

I would like to start writing this piece, centered on respect for basic human rights, with this quote derived from the address to the European Parliament by His Holiness Pope Francis on 25 November 2014:- “Promoting the dignity of the person means recognizing that he or she possesses inalienable rights which no one may take away arbitrarily, much less for the sake of economic interests.” These are immortal words delivered to the August EU Parliament received with standing ovation and warm applause of the distinguished audienceIt is needless to elaborate that genuine fighters for freedom, unity, equality, democracy and prosperity under the supreme rule of law should understand the alignment of global powers at play in terms of politics, economics, and social affairs – noting that the fighting is carried out in a rapidly changing and perplexing global environment in which 15% of the top rich of the world’s population possess a whopping possess 85% of the wealth in our global village. It is even worse in Ethiopia where the tiny rich (top civilian officials, generals, businessmen allied to TPLF regime, and their cronies) hailing from a minority ethnic group comprising only 6% of the Ethiopian people possess 94% of the national resources. And this filthy- rich group trade in the name of the valiant and impoverished people of Tigray.

The French Revolution (1789 -1799) gave a bright hope for the supremacy of social justice to reign in human civilization. But it was followed by two world wars and a nasty period of a cold that the world community celebrated its end in 1989/1990 .But it was after all pregnant with a new cold war to the utter disappoint of this generation in the 21st century. The perplexing question is why Europe has been the epicenter of these wars!

The seed of the advent of a new cold war was planted by former President George W. Bush Junior when he and his coalition of the willing invaded Iraq without the mandate of the United Nations. The ex-President took the unfortunate course of action because he knew that the UN Security Council and the world at large would not support the invasion. At least Russia and China would have vetoed any resolution to that effect.

But in spite of costly setbacks, the aspiration of humanity for a law-abiding and compassionate world is alive and the struggle to achieve it will continue!!!
Unipolar power in decline
According to Lundestad referring to Henry Kissinger, the U.S.A., USSR, EU, Japan, and China comprise the Pentapolar power world order. Lundestad portrays China, with its vast resources and expansionist attitudes, as a true superpower in the making. Source: “The Rise and Decline of the American “Empire”: Power and its Limits in Comparative Perspective” by Geir Lundestad – published by Oxford University Press on 8 March 2012.

India as the largest democracy in the world and based on quantitative measurement of its resources – human, natural, industrial or military – would qualify as a candidate in the emerging “superpower club”. So a “Hexapolar” world order is on the offing!
His Holiness (HH) Pope Francis uttered His conviction that the EU should be one of the superpowers. I surmise that the Pontiff made His persuasive and powerful speech to that effect to the European Parliament. Some very interesting excerpts from the speech are provided below for ease of reference to my esteemed readers:-

Quote:-

•My visit comes more than a quarter of a century after that of Pope John Paul II. Since then, much has changed throughout Europe and the world as a whole. The opposing blocs which then divided the continent in two no longer exist, and gradually the hope is being realized that “Europe, endowed with sovereign and free institutions, will one day reach the full dimensions that geography, and even more, history have given it”.

•As the European Union has expanded, the world itself has become more complex and ever changing; increasingly interconnected and global, it has, as a consequence, become less and less “Eurocentric”. Despite a larger and stronger Union, Europe seems to give the impression of being somewhat elderly and haggard, feeling less and less a protagonist in a world which frequently regards it with aloofness, mistrust and even, at times, suspicion.

•“It is a message of encouragement to return to the firm conviction of the founders of the European Union, who envisioned a future based on the capacity to work together in bridging divisions and in fostering peace and fellowship between all the peoples of this continent. At the heart of this ambitious political project was confidence in man, not so much as a citizen or an economic agent, but in man, in men and women as persons endowed with transcendent dignity.

•I feel bound to stress the close bond between these two words: “dignity” and “transcendent”. “Dignity” was the pivotal concept in the process of rebuilding which followed the Second World War. Our recent past has been marked by the concern to protect human dignity, in contrast to the manifold instances of violence and discrimination which, even in Europe, took place in the course of the centuries. Recognition of the importance of human rights came about as the result of a lengthy process, entailing much suffering and sacrifice, which helped shape an awareness of the unique worth of each individual human person. This awareness was grounded not only in historical events, but above all in European thought, characterized as it is by an enriching encounter whose “distant springs are many, coming from Greece and Rome, from Celtic, Germanic and Slavic sources, and from Christianity which profoundly shaped them”,[2] thus forging the very concept of the “person”.

•Only if it is capable of adopting fair, courageous and realistic policies which can assist the countries of origin in their own social and political development and in their efforts to resolve internal conflicts – the principal cause of this phenomenon – rather than adopting policies motivated by self-interest, which increase and feed such conflicts. We need to take action against the causes and not only the effects.

•In the end, what kind of dignity is there without the possibility of freely expressing one’s thought or professing one’s religious faith? What dignity can there be without a clear juridical framework which limits the rule of force and enables the rule of law to prevail over the power of tyranny? What dignity can men and women ever enjoy if they are subjected to all types of discrimination? What dignity can a person ever hope to find when he or she lacks food and the bare essentials for survival and, worse yet, when they lack the work which confers dignity?

•Promoting the dignity of the person means recognizing that he or she possesses inalienable rights which no one may take away arbitrarily, much less for the sake of economic interests.

•Here I cannot fail to recall the many instances of injustice and persecution which daily afflict religious minorities and Christians in particular, in various parts of our world. Communities and individuals today find themselves subjected to barbaric acts of violence: they are evicted from their homes and native lands, sold as slaves, killed, beheaded, crucified or burned alive, under the shameful and complicit silence of so many.

•I encourage you to work to make Europe rediscover the best of itself – “A Europe which bestrides the earth surely and securely, a precious point of reference for all humanity!” Unquote

The above is a deadly blow to the beggar EPRDF shunning self-reliance and riding roughshod on basic human rights; it is a humiliating shame to foreign donors giving direct budgetary and political support to the brutal regime that they know so well for its flagrant violation of fundamental human rights.

His Holiness in His moving speech underlined freedom of the individual and exalted the family as a building block of society. He also cautioned that freedom of the individual is not ‘absolute’ in that it is incumbent on that individual to respect the freedom of other individuals.
I strongly recommend that readers refer to the entire speech, which will found on Google.

The AU versus emerging multipolar world order

Part of Geir Lundestad’s approach to the question of whether the US’ sphere of direct influence or domination can rightly be characterized as an empire consists of a quantitative measurement of its resources – human, natural, industrial or military – as the most obvious elements of national power
According to my understanding from Lundestad’s paper, qualification for becoming one of the emerging multipolar powers will be based on “quantitative measurements” [or criteria] of resources including:- human, natural, industrial or military”. In terms of human and natural quantitative measurements, Africa has the potential to be reckoned with as a formidable power in the long run – provided visionary, energetic, patriotic and competent leaders are put in place. The continent is far behind in the development of its industrial resources. The policy in the establishment of military institutions and acquisition of military resources is pathetically wrong in that it does not directed the long term goal of the AU. What the continent critically needs is a unified African Military Command structure appropriates to its needs – such as averting regional conflicts under the direct operational orders of the AU. As things stand now, exposing the continent as a dumping ground for obsolete military equipment amounts to a grotesque wastage of resources and missing the goal of defending the goal of stabilizing and protecting the continent by a long shot. What is now needed is more reliance on foot soldiers and much less spending on fighter jet airplanes.

Prospect of “New Cold” War

The 25th Anniversary of the demolishing of the 15 kilometers long Berlin Wall was celebrated on 09/11/2014. The glamourous jubilee was marked by releasing 8000 illuminated balloons into the night clear sky watched by thousands of jubilant spectators.

Gorbachev underscored that he and George Bush Senior signed the agreement ending the Cold War on 09/11/2014. He complained that the Western powers used the agreement as a tool to discredit the USSR’s policy in order to advance their expansionism instead of managing the change for fostering world peace. He blamed these powers for the present situation of putting the world on the brink of new cold war. He said that some say that the new cold war has already started.

In view of the above Mr. Gorbachev expressed full support for President Vladimir Putin’s policy in defense of Russia’s national interests.

I am one of those convinced that the new cold war has already set in. The tension over Ukraine between Russia on the one side and the USA and its allies on the other is a glaring example. Add to this the increasingly souring tension between China and Japan (a staunch ally of the U.S.A.) emanating from their respective claim of sovereignty over the islands in South China Sea. Readers are invited to identify hot spots on the global map and determine which other smaller counties align with the bigger powers.

The new cold war is here in my opinion. The point I want to make at this juncture before I go to the next section is that the beggar EPRDF regime will be forced to walk on a tight rope of choosing between political alliance with Communist China or economic reliance on donors of the Western world, especially the U.K. and U.S.A. that keep it afloat.

EPRDF in fear

The ruling regime is gripped with fear … It is sinking wearing a heavy albatross of heinous crime around its neck. This is because the legacy of the dead tyrant Meles Zenawi amounts to gruesome package of gross violations of fundamental human rights of Ethiopian citizens including genocides, war crimes and crimes against humanity not to mention in detail colossal damage to vital national interests on a scale unprecedented in the long history of Ethiopia. As a result of the brinkmanship of the Zenawi Era Ethiopia is land-locked paying close to one billion US$ dollars annually to tiny Djibouti for the use of its sea port.

Notwithstanding the heinous crimes committed by the Derg junta, one should be exceedingly worried of even the worst crimes of the EPRDF regime bent on selling Ethiopia to greedy scavengers. The article by Professor Alemayehu Gebremariam titled “The de-Ethiopianization of Ethiopia” dated … 2014 brilliantly captures the draconian damage done by the TPLF/EPRDF regime to our national interest during the last 23 years, and counting, of its tyrannical misrule far worse than that of its predecessor.

Therefore, the top echelon in the leadership of the brutal ruling regime has every reason to fear accountability in the face of mounting awareness of the international community about its gross human rights violation, pathological lies, incompetence and endemic corruption.

In closing:-

As His Holiness Pope Francis, Leader of 1.2 million Catholics in our global village stated, that “Today, the promotion of human rights is central to the commitment of the European Union to advance the dignity of the person, both within the Union and in its relations with other countries. This is an important and praiseworthy commitment, since there are still too many situations in which human beings are treated as objects whose conception, configuration and utility can be programmed, and who can then be discarded when no longer useful, due to weakness, illness or old age.” Let us sincerely heed His message and apply in our daily lives!
Let us share the Pontiff’s concern that “… there needs to be a united response to the question of migration. We cannot allow the Mediterranean to become a vast cemetery!” The victims are mainly Africans including Ethiopians and Eritreans!!!!

Pope Francis puts “Humanity comes first” in human civilization; and so do the opposition democratic forces, civic organizations, and the entire suppressed citizens at home and in the Diaspora. So the latter must combine their resources to dethrone the EPRDF regime without further delay.

Let us appreciate the profound sympathy of the Pope with the frustration of unemployed youths and the loneliness of the old.

Let us listen to the call of our own patriotic Archbishop His Holiness Melketsedeke – Secretary General of the Holy Synod of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Exile – that all Ethiopians pray in earnest for the ending of tyrannical governance in Ethiopia in the year 2017 (2014/2015 European Calendar).

My daily Prayer:- All political prisoners and prisoners of conscience in Ethiopia including:- Andualem Aragie, Eskinder Nega, Andargachew Tsige, Abraha Desta, Bekele Gerba, Reeyot Alemu, Temesgen Dessalegn, Leaders of the Ethiopian Muslims, the 9 bloggers and 3 Journalists, et al should be released immediately and unconditionally!

LONG LIVE ETHIOPIA!!!
rababya@gmail.com

“የደም ከፈን!” ኦባንግ ለስዊድኑ ባለሃብት ማስጠንቀቂያ ላኩ

ኦባንግ ለስዊድኑ ባለሃብት ማስጠንቀቂያ ላኩ

የአዲሲቷ ኢትዮጵያ የጋራ ንቅናቄ ዋና ዳይሬክተር ኦባንግ ሜቶ ለታዋቂው የስዊድን ጨርቃጨርቅ ዓለምአቀፍ ቸርቻሪ H&M Hennes & Mauritz AB (H&M) ፕሬዚዳንትና ዋና ሥራአስኪያጅ ካርል ዮሐን ፔርሶን ከህወሃት/ኢህአዴግ ጋር ስለሚያደርገው የንግድ ውል ኩባንያቸው ሊገጥመው ስለሚችል አደጋ ማስጠንቀቂያ ልከዋል፡፡

ሰኞ በዋሽንግተን ዲሲ በተደረገ ሥነስርዓት ሚ/ር ፔርሶን የ2014 በንግድ የማያዳላ ተሸላሚ መሆናቸውን አስመልክተው በላኩት ደብዳቤ ላይ ኩባንያቸው በኢትዮጵያ ሊጀምር ያለው የንግድ ስምምነት ፍጹም አድሏዊነት የተሞላበት መሆኑን ገልጸዋል፡፡ በተለያዩ የዜና ማሰራጫዎች እንደተመለከተው H&M ኩባንያ ከኢህአዴግ ጋር ለሚያደርገው ውል ለሸሪክነት የተመረጡት አምስት የአገር ውስጥ ኩባንያዎች ሶስቱ የህወሃት የግል ሃብት የሆነው የኤፈርት አባል ኩባንያዎች መሆናቸውን ኦባንግ በደብዳቤያቸው አሳውቀዋል፡፡ ሌላው ኩባንያ ደግሞ የህወሃት/ኢህአዴግ ቀኝ እጅ የሆኑትና በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ የፈለጉትን ዓይነት ንግድ ያላንዳች የህግ ገደብ እንዲሁም ተገቢውን ግብር ሳይከፍሉ ንጹህ ትርፍ የሚያጋብሱት የሼኽ መሓመድ ሁሴን አላሙዲ ኩባንያ መሆኑን “ጥቁሩ ሰው” ኦባንግ ሜቶ አመልክተዋል፡፡ የአምስተኛው ሸሪክ ኩባንያ ማንነት እስካሁን አልታወቀም፡፡

የአዲሲቷ ኢትዮጵያ የጋራ ንቅናቄ (አኢጋን) በመርህ ደረጃ ልማት፣ ዕድገት፣ የንግድ ሽርክና፣ ወዘተ የሚደግፍ መሆኑን በደብዳቤው ላይ የተመለከተ ሲሆን ችግር የሚሆነው ግን እንዲህ ያለው ሽርክና በሰብዓዊ መብትና ሌሎች የዜጎችን መብት በመርገጥ በአምባገነንነት ለተቀመጠው የህወሃት/ኢህአዴግ አገዛዝ ዕድሜ ማራዘሚያ የመሆኑ ጉዳይ እንደሆነ ኦባንግ አመልክተዋል፡፡

ለአንድ ወገን (ለአንድ ዘር/ጎሣ) ፍጹም አድሏዊ በሆነ መልኩ “የራሴ” የሚላቸውን እየጠቀመ በሥልጣን ከቆየው ህወሃት ጋር በንግድ ውል መተሳሰር በመልካም አሠራሩ ለታወቀው እንደ H&M ላለው ኩባንያ ስም ወደፊት ትልቅ ችግር እንደሚፈጥር በደብዳቤው በዝርዝር ተመልክቷል፡፡ ከዚያም ባሻገር በአፍሪካ በሴራሊዮን “የደም አልማዝ” በመውሰድ ራሳቸውን እያበለጸጉ እንዳሉት ሁሉ ከህወሃት ጋር በጨርቃጨርቅ ንግድ ሽርክና መጀመር “የደም ከፈን” እያመረቱ ማትረፍ እንደሆነ በማስጠንቀቅ ኩባንያቸው ሊደርስበት የሚችለውን አስቸጋሪ መዘዝ ኦባንግ በደብዳቤያቸው ላይ ጠቅሰው የቅድሚያ ማስጠንቀቂያ ለባለሃብቱ ሰጥተዋል፡፡

ለሚገዛው ሕዝብ ቅንጣት ታህል ሐዘኔታ የማይሰማው ህወሃት/ኢህአዴግ በፖለቲካው መስክ ፓርላማ ብሎ ባስቀመጠው መሰብሰቢያ 99.6በመቶ መቀመጫውን መቆጣጠሩን፣ አፋኝ የመያድ፣ የጸረ ሽብርተኝነት ወዘተ ሕግጋትን በማውጣት ተቃዋሚዎቼ ናቸው የሚላቸውንን ሁሉ በአሸባሪነት እየከሰሰ ለእስር፣ ለግድያ እና ለስደት እንደሚዳርግ፤ በሰብዓዊ መብት ረገጣ በተደጋጋሚ የተወነጀለ መሆኑን፣ ወዘተ ማስረጃዎችን በመጥቀስ አቶ ኦባንግ አስረድተዋል፡፡ ለማስታወስም ያህልም በኦጋዴን ክልል በጋዜጠኛነት ተሰማርተው የነበሩት ሁለት የስዊድን ጋዜጠኞች 438 ቀናት ታስረው ቢፈቱም በጸረ አሸባሪነት ሕጉ 11ዓመት ተፈርዶባቸው እንደነበር በመግለጽ የጋራ ንቅናቄው ዋና ዳይሬክተር የኢህአዴግን የጭከና አገዛዝ ሊዘነጋ የማይገባ መሆኑን ለስዊድኑ ባለሃብት አስገንዝበዋል፡፡

ኩባንያቸው ሽርክና የሚያደርግባቸው ኤፈርትና የአላሙዲን ድርጅቶች የሰራተኛ መብቶችን በመርገጥ፣ የነዋሪዎችን የመኖሪያ ቦታ በግዳጅ በመንጠቅ፣ የዜጎችን ጉልበት ያለ አግባብ በመበዝበዝ፣ በሙስና የተጨማለቀና አድሏዊ አሰራር በመከተል፣ ወዘተ ተነግሮ የማያልቅ ግፍ የፈጸሙና እስካሁንም እየፈጸሙ ያሉ በመሆናቸው በተለይ ለሴቶች “የሥራ ዕድል” ይከፍታል የተባለው የኩባንያቸው ኢንቨስትመንት በምስኪን እና ደጋፊ አልባ ኢትዮጵያውያን ደም የዓለምን ሕዝብ የዲዛይነር ጨርቃጨርቅ ሳይሆን “የደም ከፈን” ለማልበስ መዘጋጀቱ ሊያስቡበትና ሊጠነቀቁበት የሚገባ ጉዳይ መሆኑን በጥብቅ በማሳሰብ የጋራ ንቅናቄው ዋና ዳይሬክተር ኦባንግ ሜቶ ደብዳቤያቸውን አጠናቀዋል፡፡

የደብዳቤው ሙሉ ቃል ከዚህ በታች ይነበባል፡፡

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 Open Letter to Mr. Karl Johan Persson, Winner of 2014 Fairness Award Faces Significant Challenges in Partnering with Autocratic and Corrupt Ethiopian Government-Controlled Businesses

Head Office
H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB
Mäster Samuelsgatan 46A
SE-106 38 Stockholm
SWEDEN

Dear Mr. Karl Johan Persson,

On behalf of the Solidarity Movement for a New Ethiopia (SMNE) and the Ethiopian people we represent, I extend my warmest congratulations regarding the upcoming event at the Historic Howard Theatre in Washington D.C. on November 24, 2014 when you will receive the 2014 Fairness Award given by the Global Fairness Initiative (GFI) along with Mr. Robert B. Zoellick, former president of the World Bank Group (2007-2012) and Ms. Nani Zulminarni, Founder of Perempuan Kepala Keluarga (PEKKA), Indonesia.

This is no small accomplishment. According to the Fairness Award website, this award honors “exceptional leaders whose work and life have opened opportunity and access for poor and marginalized communities. By honoring these outstanding individuals, GFI hopes to inspire a new generation of leaders to dedicate themselves to economic justice, fairness, and equality.”[i] As a Swedish businessman, and President and CEO of one of the largest global fashion retailers, H&M Hennes & Mauritz AB, we can see how you have combined value-based business practices with great success.

The reason for this letter is to express our deep concerns regarding a recently announced business venture H&M is planning in Ethiopia. H&M, with venture capital provided through a Swedish State-run group, Swedfund[ii], has announced a decision to invest in cotton projects within Ethiopia. Reportedly, it will involve partnering with five different companies in Ethiopia, three of which are members of the business conglomerate, EFFORT, which is essentially owned by the Tigrayan Peoples’ Liberation Front (TPLF), the controlling party of the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). Although the EPRDF is said to be a coalition government representing four of the nine ethnic-based regions of Ethiopia, the TPLF is recognized to be in charge. In other words, Ethiopia, with 86 different ethnic groups, is ruled by an ethnic-based minority party making up only 6% of the population. This has been the case since 1991.

The fourth company is owned by Saudi Arabian-Ethiopian businessman and billionaire, Sheik Mohammed al Amoudi, who is known as the right hand of the TPLF/EPRDF government. He has profited immensely from that association and in doing so, has been complicit in violating the rights of other Ethiopians. The identity of the fifth company is not yet known.

For your information, I am the Executive Director of the SMNE, a non-violent, non-political, grassroots social justice movement of diverse Ethiopians; committed to bringing truth, justice, freedom, equality, reconciliation, accountability and respect for human and civil rights to the people of Ethiopia and beyond. The SMNE was founded to build a better future for the people and is based on the belief that the future well being of our global society rests in the hands of those among us who can put “humanity before ethnicity,” or any other distinctions that divide and dehumanize other human beings from ourselves; inspiring us to care about these “others;” not only because of the intrinsic God-given value of each life, but also because “none of us will be free until all are free.”

In regards to H&M’s business interests in Ethiopia, we want to make it clear that the SMNE strongly supports business development, partnerships, and private and foreign investment in the country, believing that if Ethiopians are going to more widely prosper and increase food security to its growing population, a strong, market-driven economy is essential; however, what exists today is crony capitalism, the exploitation of the land, national assets, and resources of Ethiopians, and a brutal crackdown on the human and civil rights of the majority.

After reviewing the stated values and goals of H&M and Swedfund, which strongly affirm economic justice, fairness, respect, ethical behavior, inclusion, embracing diversity, a commitment to the protection of human rights, a zero tolerance policy on corruption—including bribery, gifts, and favors, integrity, transparency, honesty, equality, avoidance of conflicts of interest, following the law at all times, and striving for sustainability, we are in full agreement with them.

We believe H&M and Swedfund can provide an excellent model for doing mutually beneficial business in Ethiopia. However, we want to strongly caution H&M and Swedfund that the business climate is inseparable from the complete domination of the current corrupt regime and their friends and cronies. As the winner of the Fairness Award and as a business with high ethical standards, you will face significant challenges in partnering with Ethiopian government-controlled businesses. We believe it is critically important to your long-term success to know this in advance. Companies of high repute can unwittingly damage their reputations by acts of their partners. 

For example, in December 2003, Ethiopian National Defense Forces, along with militia’s they equipped, targeted my own indigenous ethnic group, the Anuak, massacring 424 of the most educated leaders within three days. Over the next several years, nearly two thousand others were killed, many others were beaten, arrested and tortured, thousands more fled to other countries. Much of the limited infrastructure in this marginalized Gambella region of southwestern Ethiopia was destroyed. The goal was to eliminate resistance to the extraction of possible oil reserves in the region. None was found, but companies involved in that effort were complicit in turning a blind eye to what was going on.

In Sierra Leone, the same thing happened in the extraction of diamonds, creating the name, blood diamonds. We seek to warn you of the risk of association with the TPLF/EPRDF regime, known for its ruthless treatment of its people so the legacy of H&M will not be associated with the blood and suffering of the Ethiopian people as these examples point out. This is a ethnic apartheid regime that does not care about the well being of all its own people. As a result, your goal of creating a business that benefits both the people of Ethiopia and H&M; that reduces poverty, enfranchises informal communities and advances human rights and livelihoods, as stated as GFI’s mission goal, will be challenged at every juncture for those doing business in Ethiopia under the egocentric control of this regime. This will be keenly felt by those, like yourself, who has a proven track-record of high standards in regards to business practice.

The only access into the economic structures of Ethiopia comes through close association and loyalty to the TPLF/EPRDF. All others are excluded, including the majority of people of Ethiopia. The impressive double-digit economic growth figures claimed by the Ethiopian government are not only questionable, but to the degree there is growth, that growth has gone into the pockets of the TPLF/EPRDF elite. Additionally, massive amounts of illicit capital leakage have ensured little improvement in the quality of life for the people.

Working in Ethiopia will present enormous challenges to H&M. I am not simply talking about the lack of infrastructure—roads, transportation, electricity, communication technology and even running water; neither are we talking about the challenges of undeveloped land, the abundance or lack of water, navigating through a maze of unfamiliar bureaucracy, or adjusting to working in a country of many different cultures, languages and geographical differences. Instead, I am talking about a conflict of values when H&M attempts to work with a regime whose goals, objectives and practices are in complete contradiction to most every ideal espoused by H&M—despite any deceptive rhetoric you might hear to the contrary.

The Public Image of Ethiopia versus the Ethiopia known by Ethiopians:

As a social justice organization that cares for the well being of the Ethiopian people, our concern is that the partners H&M has chosen are part of an autocratic regime representing the interests of a small minority at the top, most all coming from one ethnicity which does not even represent many of their own people. In the last flawed election, the highly unpopular TPLF/EPRDF party claimed to capture 99.6% of the total vote. Only one of the 547 seats in Parliament was taken by an opposition member. That member is allowed only 3 minutes of debate on any issue. As the next national election in May of 2015 looms ahead, the ruling regime has eliminated any political space. People are denied freedom of expression, freedom of association, and freedom of assembly.

Civil society has been decimated by using a law, the Charities and Societies Proclamation[iii] (CSO) which has closed over 2,600 civic organizations within Ethiopia. Those that currently exist are arms of the regime. The CSO law includes serious criminal consequences for any who advance human rights or rights for children, for women, or for the disabled if the organization has received over 10% of its funding from foreign sources. Similarly, it outlaws conflict resolution between ethnicities or religious groups or democratic advancement under the same criteria.

All sectors of society are controlled by the ruling party. (Please see link for examples.)This includes the media, public and private institutions, the military, federal and local security and police, the justice system, the educational system, the financial system—including access to loans, access to business opportunities, customs, taxes, and government jobs. Entry into any opportunity is blocked unless the doors are opened based on ethnicity (TPLF-Tigre), party membership (EPRDF) and loyalty to the ruling party. Human rights organizations have documented the politicization of humanitarian aid and services. This all has caused significant resentment and increasing tensions between the majority and the TPLF/EPRDF. Access to the Internet is controlled and websites are blocked. Landline phones and mobile phone usage is among the lowest in all of Africa due to a fear of what communication and technology might incite within its disenfranchised and repressed population.

Ethiopian laws are used to repress resistance rather than to protect the people. For example an anti-terrorism law, enacted in 2009, has been used to criminalize dissent, leading to Ethiopia being the second highest jailer of journalists in Africa, only topped by its neighbor, Eritrea. Numbers of Ethiopia’s most courageous voices of freedom languish behind bars, many victims of torture. Think of the arrest and long detention (438 days) oftwo Swedish journalists, Martin Schibbye and Johan Persson who were sentenced under the anti-terrorism law to 11 years in prison for documenting human rights abuses.

We realize you understand the repression of information and criminalization of journalists who report the truth due to H&M’s substantial donations to Civil Rights Defenders, a non-profit to uphold the human rights of people across the world. This organization wrote a letter to Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn regarding the recent jailing of Zone9 bloggers. One of those bloggers, Soleyana Shimeles, who was charged in absentia, was recently a guest of the SMNE at a forum we held in Washington D.C., Breaking the Cycle of Dysfunction in Ethiopian Institutions.

The ethnic apartheid regime of TPLF/EPRDF is also well known for its widespread, serial human rights abuses, its displacement of indigenous people from their land without consultation or compensation, and their absolute impunity from the courts they control for crimes committed. For example, Ethiopia has become a destination for those wanting to lease cheap agricultural land with access to water under long-term contracts. The people who live on the land are described in some of those contracts as impedimentsto be removed. Large scale land grabs have forced hundreds of thousands of small-scale farmers, pastoralists and villagers from land occupied by their families for centuries.

Similar evictions have been forced on city-dwellers throughout the country. When they resist, people have been intimidated, harassed, beaten, raped, arrested, disappeared or killed. Many have fled to refugee camps outside the country.

The TPLF/EPRDF government promised to resettle the displaced people in a villagization project where improved services would be available, but in reality this usually meant the people would have to build their own shelters, find new sources of water—often further away, clear land and replant crops on less fertile land and not find any new or improved services. Poverty and insecurity has increased and many of these people, who used to be self-sufficient, now must depend on food aid.

H&M has made it clear you will do everything possible to ensure that cotton will not come from appropriated land. We commend you for this stance, but you will have to be careful.

Our concerns:

1. Doing business with members of the oppressive TPLF/EPRDF party will further empower and legitimize them, undermining the struggle of the people for freedom, justice and equality.
2. No safeguards exist, other than empty rhetoric, which will protect the people, many of the most vulnerable; neither are there safeguards in place to protect the environment, already seriously affected, from the TPLF/EPRDF’s abuses, especially in regions where the people have no voice.
3. This is a country where there is no transparency or accountability. The justice system is controlled from the federal level to the local level by the TPLF/EPRDF. It is used to reward friends of the regime and to fine, charge or impose difficult regulations or corruption charges on individuals and businesses that do not comply or who speak unfavorably towards the regime.
4. EFFORT businesses account for some 90% of all businesses in Ethiopia.
5. Sheik Mohammed al Amoudi, owner of Saudi Star Farm in Gambella, is leasing indigenous land to grow rice, most of it for export to Saudi Arabia.  Heavy use of water for irrigation is having an impact down river. Human rights abuses were inflicted in order to force the local people from the land.  Much of the land was forested, leading to clearing it of valuable Shea trees and much more. An incident of violence did erupt on the farm in 2013 between workers and the local people.
6. A new anti-corruption law is being proposed that may act similarly to the anti-terrorism law in criminalizing any behavior by officials and companies, Ethiopian or foreign, who do not conform to TPLF/EPRDF expectations. This is a regime prone to changing the rules according to their self-serving needs. There is little recourse for outside companies and investors who are in conflict with the TPLF/EPRDF. It is to the regime’s advantage to engage a major company like H&M so they may lay out the red carpet; however, you may also be expected to conform to business practices that are unacceptable to you. Doing business with members of EFFORT is comparable to doing business with an unpredictable authoritarian regime where non-compliance may bring unfair charges or decisions. You are a company with strong values and an excellent reputation. Even though H&M may be willing to risk your capital, you may need to think twice before working with the TPLF/EPRDF, which may put your good reputation at risk.

We in the SMNE, with the help of the people, hope to correct these unfavorable business conditions through meaningful reforms, the restoration of justice and through reconciliation in order to build a more inclusive society for the people of Ethiopia.

If you want to invest in Ethiopia, we would welcome you, but urge you to look for long-term, sustainable partnerships where the rights and livelihoods of the people are upheld and where H&M can bring an outstanding model of how to do ethical, inclusive and profitable business in Ethiopia. This would be a real win-win solution for all of us!

If you do choose to go forward with your present plans, we genuinely hope that honorable companies like H&M will be a force for change for the common good of the people in countries of repression like Ethiopia—for our humanity has no boundaries. That means refusing to overlook the injustice; standing strong and firm in upholding all your values to the great benefit of the voiceless.

Please feel free to contact me should you have further questions, suggestions or comments.

Sincerely yours,

Obang Metho,

Executive Director SMNE
910- 17th St. NW, Suite 419.
Washington, DC 20006 USA
Phone 202 725-1616
Email: obang@solidaritymovement.org
Website: www.solidaritymovement.org

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[i] http://www.fairnessaward.org/

[ii] Swedfund, owned by the Swedish state, provides risk capital, expertise and financial support for investments in the emerging markets of Africa, Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe. Our mission is poverty reduction through sustainable business, contributing to economic and environmental development as well as a positive impact to society. Since 1979 Swedfund has been engaged as an active, responsible and long-term investor in more than 230 companies in our countries of operation.

[iii] A repressive 2009 law against civil society, the Charities and Societies Proclamation now prohibits any organization that receives more than 10% of its budget from foreign sources from (a) advancing human and democratic rights, (b) promoting equality of nations, nationalities, peoples, gender and religion, (c) promoting the rights of the disabled and children, (d) promoting conflict resolution or reconciliation and, (e) promoting the efficiency of justice and law enforcement services. This has meant the closure of most every independent civic organization. In their place, the regime has created pseudo-organizations controlled by the regime, oftentimes appearing legitimate to outsiders. The law carries harsh criminal penalties for violators. It is used for political purposes and has paralyzed civil society. In its place, look-alike pseudo-institutions have sprung up, all created and controlled by the government.