Lagos, Nigeria – The Indian Social Action Forum (INSAF) and the Oakland Institute in the US will convene a day-long summit on 6 February at the India International Centre, New Delhi, bringing together activists resisting land grabs across India and Ethiopia.

In a press statement, received here Thursday by PANA, organizers said the meeting will be a ground-breaking opportunity for dialogue between Ethiopian small farmers and land rights activists and their Indian counterparts, providing space for those directly affected by land grabs to share their experiences, suffering, and collectively strategise to challenge institutional and corporate land grabbers.

In recent years, India has seen a massive transfer of land and natural resources from the rural poor to wealthy investors, the statement said, adding ‘And the country has become a leader in external land-grabbing as well.

‘Indian companies are the second largest investors in the Ethiopian economy, with approved investments worth nearly US$ 5 billion and land lease agreements for over 600,000 hectares across Ethiopia.

The deals have been facilitated by the Indian government, which supports merger and acquisition purchases of existing firms, public-private partnerships, and recently granted EXIM Bank’s largest single line of credit (US$ 640 million) to Ethiopia.

Ethiopia has been the focus of aggressive foreign agricultural investment, leasing out nearly 3.6 million hectares of land for commercial farm ventures from 2008-2010.

This investment corresponds with widespread human rights violations. Most egregiously, the Ethiopian government’s villagization programme will displace 1.5 million people by 2013 — with the five administrative regions that have the largest share of foreign investment the hardest hit.

The forced relocation of hundreds of thousands of indigenous people from their lands to make room for foreign investors has destroyed livelihoods and rendered small-scale farmers and pastoralist communities fearful of their own survival, as rapes and killings involving security forces have been reported in Lower Omo and Gambela regions.

Against this backdrop, the civil society summit aims to unify struggles across continents and amplify the voices of those impacted, thus lifting the demand for land rights and dignified livelihoods to a new level.

The Oakland Institute is an independent policy think tank whose mission is to increase public  participation and promote fair debate on critical social, economic and environmental issues.

Sorce: AfriqueJet Actualité Afrique

ECADF

2013 WORLD PRESS FREEDOM INDEX: DASHED HOPES AFTER SPRING

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After the “Arab springs” and other protest movements that prompted many rises and falls in last year’s index, the 2013 Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index marks a return to a more usual configuration. The ranking of most countries is no longer attributable to dramatic political developments. This year’s index is a better reflection of the attitudes and intentions of governments towards media freedom in the medium or long term.

The same three European countries that headed the index last year hold the top three positions again this year. For the third year running, Finland has distinguished itself as the country that most respects media freedom. It is followed by the Netherlands and Norway. Although many criteria are considered, ranging from legislation to violence against journalists, democratic countries occupy the top of the index while dictatorial countries occupy the last three positions. Again it is the same three as last year –Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea.

“The Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders does not take direct account of the kind of political system but it is clear that democracies provide better protection for the freedom to produce and circulate accurate news and information than countries where human rights are flouted,” Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Christophe Deloire said. “In dictatorships, news providers and their families are exposed to ruthless reprisals, while in democracies news providers have to cope with the media’s economic crises and conflicts of interest. While their situation is not always comparable, we should pay tribute to all those who resist pressure whether it is aggressively focused or diffuse.”

Coinciding with the release of its 2013 Press Freedom Index, Reporters Without Borders is for the first time publishing an annual global “indicator” of worldwide media freedom. This new analytic tool measures the overall level of freedom of information in the world and the performance of the world’s governments in their entirety as regards this key freedom In view of the emergence of new technologies and the interdependence of governments and peoples, the freedom to produce and circulate news and information needs to be evaluated at the planetary as well as national level. Today, in 2013, the media freedom “indicator” stands at 3395, a point of reference for the years to come.

The indicator can also be broken down by region and, by means of weighting based on the population of each region, can be used to produce a score from zero to 100 in which zero represents total respect for media freedom. This produces a score of 17.5 for Europe, 30.0 for the Americas, 34.3 for Africa, 42.2 for Asia-Pacific and 45.3 for the former Soviet republics. Despite the Arab springs, the Middle East and North Africa region comes last with 48.5.

The high number of journalists and netizens killed in the course of their work in 2012 (the deadliest year ever registered by Reporters Without Borders in its annual roundup), naturally had a significant impact on the ranking of the countries where these murders took place, above all Somalia (175th, -11), Syria(176th, 0), Mexico (153rd, -4) and Pakistan (159th, -8).

From top to bottom

The Nordic countries have again demonstrated their ability to maintain an optimal environment for news providers. Finland (1er, 0), Netherlands (2nd, +1) and Norway (3rd, -2) have held on to the first three places. Canada (20th, -10) only just avoided dropping out of the top 20. Andorra (5th) andLiechtenstein (7th) have entered the index for the first time just behind the three leaders.

At the other end of the index, the same three countries as ever – Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea – occupy the last three places in the index. Kim Jong-un’s arrival at the head of the Hermit Kingdom has not in any way changed the regime’s absolute control of news and information. Eritrea (179th, 0), which was recently shaken by a brief mutiny by soldiers at the information ministry, continues to be a vast open prison for its people and lets journalists die in detention. Despite its reformist discourse, the Turkmen regime has not yielded an inch of its totalitarian control of the media.

For the second year running, the bottom three countries are immediately preceded by Syria (176th, 0), where a deadly information war is being waged, and Somalia (175th, -11), which has had a deadly year for journalists. Iran (174th, +1), China (173rd, +1), Vietnam (unchanged at 172nd), Cuba (171st, -4), Sudan (170th, 0) and Yemen (169th, +2) complete the list of the ten countries that respect media freedom least. Not content with imprisoning journalists and netizens, Iran also harasses the relatives of journalists, including the relatives of those who are abroad.

Big rises...

Malawi (75th, +71) registered the biggest leap in the index, almost returning to the position it held before the excesses at the end of the Mutharika administration. Côte d’Ivoire (96th, +63), which is emerging from the post-electoral crisis between the supporters of Laurent Gbagbo and Alassane Ouattara, has also soared, attaining its best position since 2003. Burma (151st, +18) continued the ascent begun in last year’s index. Previously, it had been in the bottom 15 every year since 2002 but now, thanks to the Burmese spring’s unprecedented reforms, it has reached its best-ever position.Afghanistan (128th, +22) also registered a significant rise thanks to the fact that no journalists are in prison. It is nonetheless facing many challenges, especially with the withdrawal of foreign troops.

...and big falls

Mali (99th, -74) registered the biggest fall in the index as a result of all the turmoil in 2012. The military coup in Bamako on 22 March and the north’s takeover by armed Islamists and Tuareg separatists exposed the media in the north to censorship and violence. Tanzania (70th, -36) sank more than 30 places because, in the space of four months, a journalist was killed while covering a demonstration and another was murdered.

Buffeted by social and economic protests, the Sultanate of Oman (141st) sank 24 places, the biggest fall in the Middle East and North Africa in 2012. Some 50 netizens and bloggers were prosecuted on lèse majesté or cyber-crime charges in 2012. No fewer than 28 were convicted in December alone, in trials that trampled on defence rights.

Journalists in Israel (112th, -20) enjoy real freedom of expression despite the existence of military censorship but the country fell in the index because of the Israeli military’s targeting of journalists in the Palestinian Territories.

In Asia, Japan (53rd, -31) has been affected by a lack of transparency and almost zero respect for access to information on subjects directly or indirectly related to Fukushima. This sharp fall should sound an alarm. Malaysia (145th, -23) has fallen to its lowest-ever position because access to information is becoming more and more limited. The same situation prevails in Cambodia (143rd, -26), where authoritarianism and censorship are on the increase. Macedonia (116th, -22) has also fallen more than 20 places following the arbitrary withdrawal of media licences and deterioration in the environment for journalists.

Varied impact of major protest movements

Last year’s index was marked by the Arab spring’s major news developments and the heavy price paid by those covering the protest movements. A range of scenarios has been seen in 2012, including countries such as Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, where regime change has taken place, countries such as Syria andBahrain where uprisings and the resulting repression are still ongoing, and countries such as Morocco,Algeria, Oman, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, where the authorities have used promises and compromise to defuse calls for political and/or social and economic change.

Some of the new governments spawned by these protests movements have turned on the journalists and netizens who covered these movements’ demands and aspirations for more freedom. With legal voids, arbitrary appointments of state media chiefs, physical attacks, trials and a lack of transparency,Tunisia (138th, -4) and Egypt (158th, +8) have remained at a deplorable level in the index and have highlighted the stumbling blocks that Libya (131st, +23) should avoid in order to maintain its transition to a free press.

The deadliest country for journalists in 2012 was Syria (176th, 0), where journalists and netizens are the victims of an information war waged by both the Assad regime, which stops at nothing in order to crack down and impose a news blackout, and by opposition factions that are increasingly intolerant of dissent. In Bahrain (165th, +8) the repression let up slightly, while in Yemen (169th, +2) the prospects continue to be disturbing despite a change of government. Oman (141st, -24) fell sharply because of a wave of arrests of netizens.

Other countries hit by protests saw changes for the better and worse. Vietnam (172nd, 0) failed to recover the six places it lost in the previous index. The world’s second biggest prison for netizens, it has remained in the bottom ten. Uganda (104th, +35) has recovered a more appropriate position although it has not gone back to where it was before cracking down on protests in 2011. Azerbaijan (156th, +6) and Belarus (157th, +11) both fell last year after using violence to suppress opposition demonstrations and this year they just moved back towards their appalling former positions. Chile (60th, +20) is beginning to recover after plummeting 33 places to 80th in last year’s index.

Political instability puts journalists in the eye of the storm

Political instability often has a divisive effect on the media and makes it very difficult to produce independently-reported news and information. In such situations, threats and physical attacks on journalists and staff purges are common. Maldives (103rd, -30) fell sharply after the president’s removal in an alleged coup, followed by threats and attacks on journalists regarded as his supporters. InParaguay (91st, -11), the president’s removal in a parliamentary “coup” on 22 June 2012 had a big impact on state-owned broadcasting, with a wave of arbitrary dismissals against a backdrop of unfair frequency allocation. Guinea-Bissau (92nd, -17) fell sharply because the army overthrew the government between the first and second rounds of a presidential election and imposed military censorship on the media. In Mali (99th, -74), a military coup fuelled tension, many journalists were physically attacked in the capital and the army now controls the state-owned media. This index does not reflect the January 2013 turmoil in the Central African Republic (65th, -3) but its impact on media freedom is already a source of extreme concern.

“Regional models” found wanting

In almost all parts of the world, influential countries that are regarded as “regional models” have fallen in the index. Brazil (108th, -9), South America’s economic engine, continued last year’s fall because five journalists were killed in 2012 and because of persistent problems affecting media pluralism. In Asia,India (140th, -9) is at its lowest since 2002 because of increasing impunity for violence against journalists and because Internet censorship continues to grow. China (173rd, +1) shows no sign of improving. Its prisons still hold many journalists and netizens, while increasingly unpopular Internet censorship continues to be a major obstacle to access to information.

In Eastern Europe, Russia (148th, -6) has fallen again because, since Vladimir Putin’s return to the presidency, repression has been stepped up in response to an unprecedented wave of opposition protests. The country also continues to be marked by the unacceptable failure to punish all those who have murdered or attacked journalists. The political importance of Turkey (154th, -6) has grown even more because of the armed conflict in neighbouring Syria but it has again fallen in the index. It is currently the world’s biggest prison for journalists, especially those who express views critical of the authorities on the Kurdish issue. There is no comparison with South Africa (52nd, -10), where freedom of information is a reality. It still has a respectable ranking but it has been slipping steadily in the index and, for the first time, is no longer in the top 50. Investigative journalism is threatened by the Protection of State Information Bill.

Democracies that stall or go into reverse

The situation is unchanged for much of the European Union. Sixteen of its members are still in the top 30. But the European model is unravelling. The bad legislation seen in 2011 continued, especially inItaly (57th, +4), where defamation has yet to be decriminalized and state agencies make dangerous use of gag laws. Hungary (56th, -16) is still paying the price of its repressive legislative reforms, which had a major impact on the way journalists work. But Greece’s dramatic fall (84th, -14) is even more disturbing. The social and professional environment for its journalists, who are exposed to public condemnation and violence from both extremist groups and the police, is disastrous.

Japan (53rd, -31) plummeted because of censorship of nuclear industry coverage and its failure to reform the “kisha club” system. This is an alarming fall for a country that usually has a good ranking.Argentina (54th, -7) fell amid growing tension between the government and certain privately-owned media about a new law regulating the broadcast media.

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Reporters Without Borders

Afkar Abdullah and Amanda Fisher 

Some Ethiopian illegal workers say their consulate has charged them thousands of dirhams for an outpass allowing them to leave the UAE during a two-month amnesty without penalty — something the Consul-General puts down to confusion

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Ethiopian Consul-General Mesganu Arga Moach said the most it should cost anyone to leave the country was Dh78, if they already had a passport — though renewal would be another Dh300.

However, Ethiopian citizens spoken to by Khaleej Times say they had been asked to pay up to Dh4,000, including Dh550 for a bond to build a dam on the Nile river, Dh490 for passport renewal, Dh270 for a community card and Dh25 for typing.

Cargo company salesman Tsfy said he had paid US$500 in bond money, which was expected to be returned in five years’ time. He said he thought the consulate assumed Ethiopians based in the UAE were richer and could afford to pay a big bond.

One maid, Eddis Kebeedda, said she was so concerned about the high charges that she prefered to face police penalties for being an overstayer, rather than go through her government to leave during the amnesty.

Fellow maids Sara and Hadija said during the last amnesty in 2007, they got their passports and outpasses for free, but when this amnesty started, the consulate had decided to try to exploit it to make money.

Those who paid the money said they had done so out of their life savings and now would have to pay for their own tickets home.

But Moach categorically rejected the suggestion citizens applying for an outpass were being told to pay high bonds, saying officials at the consulate encouraged every citizen who visited to consider buying bonds — which would pay interest in line with the international LIBOR rate.

“This is an opportunity for everyone. We tell them to invest in their country, to do business, this is their responsibility...this doesn’t have any relation with the outpass or a passport.”

There may be “confusion” amongst people who thought the offer was compulsory, not voluntary.

“We just tell them if they don’t want to buy, it doesn’t have any relation with the outpass. We have been (promoting bond purchase) for the last three or four years.”

Bonds offered big advantages, allowing people to use them as collateral to start a small-scale business, he said.

“If there was a proper developed economy at home, people wouldn’t prefer to go overseas so we push them to remit their money properly (and support development projects).”

Doing everything to help amnesty seekers, Moach said the consulate was even waiving fees and funding air tickets in desperate cases.

“If they don’t have 78 dirham, we would have that payment...even we purchase the (air) ticket...if they have money and they wish to pay (they do, but) if they don’t have the capcacity to pay, we cover it.”

There was a background test used to determine the “very difficult issue” of a person’s means, which included looking at their job, pay, and family support, he said.

Ethiopian citizen Jemila Yasin, who worked for a private company in Dubai, was at the embassy supporting someone applying for an outpass. She said she knew people were asked to pay bonds of differing amounts, up to US$500, based on their financial means.

While there were no guarantees the money would be paid back in several years’ time, as anything could happen financially or a future government may not honour the scheme, people who could afford to buy bonds should do so, she said.

“For citizens you should because your government doesn’t get any money from anwhere. Of course, all the citizens do what they have to do.”

Between December 4, when the amnesty began, and January 23, 1,568 Ethiopians had applied for outpasses, Moach said, with 
the consulate dealing with about 300 people each day during the amnesty for a variety of matters.

Most simple cases were able to be processed in under an hour, though complicated cases where people did not have their passport or a copy, could take up to several days.

There had been fewer people than anticipated making use of the amnesty, Moach said.

“Frankly speaking, most of them use the opportunity. There maybe some still who escaped during the amnesty period...who don’t have money (for the outpass), who aren’t ready to go...those numbers may be quite small.”

Most of the amnesty cases were maids who had run away after being abused or unpaid, he said.

afkarali@khaleejtimes.com

amanda@khaleejtimes.com

Ban on Ethiopian maids to be lifted soon

A ban on domestic and blue collar Ethiopian workers coming into the country which has been in place since last July is set to end soon. The ban was implemented until such a point where the UAE and Ethiopian governments arrived at an agreement to protect vulnerable workers, who were often exploited by rogue recruitment agents, human traffickers or sponsoring families.

Ethiopian Consul-General Mesganu Arga Moach said a draft Memorandum of Understanding had been signed between the two countries and would come in to force “very soon”.

khaleejtimes.com

sodere

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Britain’s Department for International Development (DfID) is accused of failing to properly address allegations of human rights abuses in Ethiopia, one of its biggest aid recipients.

While visiting South Omo in January 2012, DfID and USAID officials were told by Mursi and Bodi ethnics of the Ethiopian government’s use of rape, arrests, withholding food aid and other threats, in an attempt to evict people from their land to allow more commercial investments.

A joint USAID-DfID report of the January trip emphasized that, while the accusations were extremely serious, they could not be substantiated by the visit and that a more detailed investigation would be launched. In November 2012, Justine Greening, the UK International Development Secretary,remained unable to address the situation in South Omo, a region, which is inhabited mainly by pastoralists of more than 12 ethnic groups, who, according to the Oakland Institute, are currently under considerable threat, since they are forcibly evicted off their lands in order to make way for the Gibe III hydroelectric dam project, road-building and commercial investors.

While a DfID spokesman confirmed that the Ethiopian government had been asked about the people’s accusations, he did not comment if any response had been given or if the UK Government was pressing the Ethiopian authorities on this issue. DfID response in the matter seems to contradict David Cameron's development’s "golden thread,” promoting rights and freedoms of individuals, good governance and justice for the poorest people.

At the same time, the British Aid agency is also involved in a legal action over its support of the Ethiopian government’s highly disputed three-year "villagization" program, aiming to relocate 1.5 million rural families from their land to new model villages in four regions across the Ethiopia.

In September 2012, Mr O., an Ethiopian farmer, initiated legal action against DfID through London-based law firm Leigh Day & Co. He claims that, in 2011, he was forcibly evicted from and beaten off his farm in Ethiopia’s Gambella region, while witnessing rapes and assaults as government soldiers were forcing other people to leave their land. He also argues that, in the new village, he had no access to farmland, food or water and opportunities to gain enough money to feed his family. He was told to build himself a house, but, as he was not progressing quickly enough, he was taken to a military camp and beaten again.

Like many other Ethiopian villagers forced to relocate, Mr O. soon decided to sneak past village leaders and "local militias" who controlled the area, refusing to let people leave, and fled to Kenya, joined nearly half a million displaced people living in the Dadaab refugee camps, one of world’s largest refugee complexes.

Leigh Day lawyers argue that, by contributing significant funding to the Protection of Basic Services (PBS) program, DfID supports villagization, either by financing infrastructure in the new settlements or ensuring the salaries of the authorities overseeing the relocation operations. In a 2010 report, Human Rights Watch report had already revealed the fact that the PBS program was used as a weapon to starve, intimidate or reward people into supporting the ruling party, without however prompting the DfID to investigate the situation, but claiming instead that the problem did not exist.

In response to the Leigh Day’s allegations, the DfID has argued that the UK does not fund Ethiopia’s commune development program and that it would review the situation on the ground and raise concerns at the highest levels with the Ethiopian government. Speaking more generally, it emphasized that it takes the issue of human rights extremely seriously and will review the situation on the ground and take any concerns to the Ethiopian government.

Ethiopia is currently one of the largest aid recipients of British aid. After a recent aid review, aimed at reducing the number of countries receiving UK assistance, Ethiopia came out as one of the preferred receiving countries, with UK donations likely increasing from £240 million in 2010 to £390 million in 2014-15. Ethiopia is an attractive receiving country for the UK, because, with a population of 85 million people, Ethiopia has, as DfID recognized itself, “the largest market” of poor citizens, but also because its government, while ruthless and authoritarian, has managed to make some progress in reaching some of the UN Millennium Development Goals.

While it would have been expected of the UK to reassess its investment in the PBS program after Mr O. launched his DfID pledged £480 million to PBS’s third phase, surpassing even the World Bank, which asked the independent Inspection Panel to launch an investigation into the connections between its money and the villagization abuses.

digitaljournal

Ben Rawlence 28 January 2013

Tags: aid | dfid | ethiopia

This year, for the first time, the UK government will devote 0.7 per cent of Gross National Income to foreign aid, finally meeting the target set in a 1970 UN General Assembly resolution. The budget of the Department for International Development has leapt from £8.8 billion in 2012 to £11.5 billion for 2013, about £183 per UK citizen. A report by Jonathan Foreman for the right-wing think tank Civitas has criticised the arbitrariness of the 0.7 per cent figure, and there has been a raft of scandals involving overpaid consultants, private equity firms and a lack of transparency at DFID last year, but the place of foreign aid in British politics appears assured. The big question, though, is who to give the money to.

Most West African economies are too small to absorb much cash. India, Nigeria and Kenya are becoming awkwardly well off. Uganda, Tanzania and Mozambique have small populations and serious corruption problems. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is in turmoil, andRwanda’s backing of rebels in eastern Congo has led to its aid being suspended. When the coalition government conducted a review of aid spending intending to focus on only a few countries, Ethiopia came out top by a long way. Spending on Ethiopia will rise from £240 million in 2010-11 to £390 million in 2014-15.

The attraction of Ethiopia is twofold. At 85 million, Africa’s second most populous country has, in the words of a DFID official, ‘the largest market’ of poor inhabitants. And the government may be ruthless but it appears to get things done and has made progress towards some of the UN’s Millennium Development Goals. Thus, a bit like the bond market in a time of austerity, Ethiopia has become oversubscribed. This, in turn, has created curious pressures on DFID’s programmes there.

In 2005, when Tony Blair entertained the late prime minister Meles Zenawi at the G8 Gleneagles summit, Zenawi’s security forces mowed down nearly 200 demonstrators and jailed thousands of opposition members who objected to his rigging of the recent election. Financial support to the government was briefly suspended but restarted six months later under a new name, Protecting Basic Services (PBS). Worried about Zenawi’s dictatorial tendencies, donors created a ‘Democratic Institutions Programme’ to support an ombudsman, a human rights commission and a revamped national elections board.

When the elections board pronounced Zenawi’s party the winner (by 99 per cent of the vote) in the ‘free and fair’ 2010 general elections, the DIP, and the money, continued as before. When a 2010 Human Rights Watch report (full disclosure: I wrote it) described how government services funded by DFID through PBS were used as weapons to starve, intimidate or reward people into supporting the ruling party, DFID not only failed to investigate but claimed the problem did not exist.

In 2011, the Zenawi government began its most audacious authoritarian move yet, the collectivisation of 1.5 million people in model villages the better to provide them with the basic services PBS pays for. DFID denied that it was funding the so-called ‘villagisation’ programme. But a recent UK case brought by an Ethiopian refugee living in Kenya, Mr O., alleges otherwise and has led to the release of internal DFID assessments (morehere). These clearly show DFID-funded local government officials implementing the programme which, according to Human Rights Watch, has resulted in forced relocations, beatings, hunger and insecurity.

You might have expected DFID to pause at this point. But the same month as Mr O. launched his case in London, while many other nations stayed their chequebooks, DFID pledged an additional £480 million to PBS’s third phase, outstripping even the World Bank whose independent Inspection Panel was concerned enough to launch an investigation into the links between its money and the villagisation abuses.

DFID commissions academic report after report into Ethiopia’s progress towards the MDGs, but sent a few staff twice to conduct brief surveys of the villagisation programme while claiming it cannot substantiate allegations of rights violations. Spending money ethically and effectively takes resources, and requires caution. But with ever more pressure to disburse coming from above, uncomfortable checks and balances are likely to be swept away by the force of that virtuous 0.7 per cent.

Irb

                                                                                    Artist Eskedar Tameru and Abebe Wondemagen

Plain closed Ethiopian security officers have reportedly arrested  Eskedar Tameru, a member of United Kingdom based Ethiopian dance group, Dan-Kira and her husband Abebe Wondemagegn, from their home around Bole area  in Addis Abeba last week, sources informed De Birhan. Witnesses also added that at the time of the arrest the couple and the Officers didn't understand each other as the later spoke "little Amharic". The couple with their 2 year old baby traveled to Addis Abeba from London to celebrate Christmas and epiphany with their families. Eskedar and her baby have been released few days ago, while Abebe is still in custody. He was taken to Court  and was denied bail. He is appointed to appear in court after 20 days. Sources say their arrest was  due to "political" reasons. 

Both are said to be in possession of British Passport and families have reportedly informed the British Embassy in Addis Abeba about Abebe's detention. Multi-talented artist Eskedar has been a member of the Dan-Kira Dance group since its formation. The dance group was founded by Daniel Dulla and Daougi Teddy in 2007.  Dan-Kira entertainment perform East African/Ethiopian traditional dance, live music and theatre events in UK and all over the world. The company also offers short courses on diverse African dance rhythms. They performed at big events such as BBC radio and WOMAD festival 2010. Dan-Kira won the BEFFTA Awards (Black Entertainment Film Fashion Television and Arts) in best dance act categories in 2011. 

De Birhan.

Ethiopia: call on Congressman Chris Smith to save life of the most revered young political prisoner.

There is a renewed hope in Ethiopia that the much awaited visit of Congressman Chris Smith to the severely tyrannized nation would help alleviate the plight of venerated political prisoner Andualem Arage who is serving a lengthy jail sentence for “terrorism.”

Former UDJ deputy president Andualem is the only prisoner out of more than 56, 000 political prisoners held in concentration camp- like jails across Ethiopia who is still suffering in solitary confinement and never allowed to see his family for the past 9 months.

Known for his uncompromising stance on issues of good governance and human rights in Africa, Congressman Smith is expected to meet opposition party leaders where Andualm’s predicament would possibly top the agenda.

He will also discuss regional and security issues with TPLF warlords who recently exported terrorism to the United States by attempting to assassinate free press journalist Abebe Gelaw, according to sources in the state department.

Currently, Congressman Smith chairs the house Africa, global health and global human rights subcommittees.

Eagerly anticipating his arrival in Addis Ababa, Andualem Arage’s supporters are frantically pleading with him to personally intervene and secure his release.

“We placed our hope in the hands of his Excellency Congressman Chris Smith, a true friend of the people of Ethiopia to save the young patriot from the jaws death.” The supports said.

According to a disturbing recent report received by the Horn Times, if human rights organizations, democratic governments and the international community in general doesn’t intervene and secure Andualem Arage’s (pictured above) unconditional release soon, Ethiopia’s most revered young political prisoner might not survive long as his health deteriorates rapidly inside a tiny cell he is forced to share with five hardened death row prisoners.

The cell which is situated inside maximum security zone-3 of Kality prison in Addis Ababa has no window, light or toilet, and the wardens open the door only for about 10 minutes a day.

Worse still, under current prison system in Ethiopia, only Tigres, members of the ruling minority clan are guarding maximum security prisons and they see the revolutionary Andualem Arage as their arch enemy who caused the death of their god, the late despot Meles Zenawi.

In February 2012, he was left to die after being severely assaulted by a prison gang allied to the junta and was denied any medical treatment.

In September 2012, Andualem Arage was again attacked for “not showing sympathy” to the dead tyrant Meles Zenawi.

Andualem Arage’s condition was made public in early January after a group of opposition party leaders led by DR Negaso Gidada visited him for few minutes in the chief warden’s office.

“We find him both physically and psychologically fine. But we could see that his skin color was turning yellowish due lack of sunlight. I don’t know how fellow humans can do something like this to fellow human. The cruelty of keeping him for more than 9 months in isolation is beyond imagination.” One of those who visited him tearfully told the Horn Times.

The notorious Kality prison is home to thousands of political prisoners including journalists Reeyot Alemu and Eskinder Nega, activist Bekele Gerba and hundreds of Muslim leaders of the ongoing uprising.

infohorntimes@gmail.com

indepthafrica

BY KIRUBEL TADESSE

ASSOCIATED PRESS

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- A senior Eritrean diplomat denied on Saturday there was an attempted coup early this week in the Horn of Africa nation and said reports to the contrary are a deliberate disinformation campaign.

Girma Asmerom, Eritrea's ambassador to the African Union, said in a statement that coup reports were "wishful thinking" by people he did not name.

"There has never been an 'attempted military coup' and there will never be a coup d'etat in Eritrea," Asmerom said.

Without explaining the incidents on Monday, Asmerom wrote of acts of terror being called something else.

"As is the case all over the world an armed crazy, stupid and terrorist individual or group can take stupid actions such as kidnapping of individuals or taking hostages by raiding government and private institutions and offices," he said. "Such isolated incidents which frequently occur in the West are considered terrorist acts. I don't understand why in Africa they are considered coup d'etats. It is the highest form of double standard and hypocrisy."

But activists and experts said about 100 dissident soldiers stormed the state broadcasting at Ministry of Information in the capital, Asmara, and read a statement vowing to free all political prisoners and implement the country's constitution.

Eritrean President Isaias Afworki took power when the country broke away from Ethiopia in 1991 after a civil war that lasted three decades. His regime is seen by rights groups as repressive.

Ethiopia, which has no diplomatic relations with Eritrea, says the incident is not the first attempt to dislodge Afworki and that the president is likely to respond with brutal force.

"In May 1993, embarrassingly a mere four days before the country's official declaration of independence, soldiers who had received no pay following the country's de facto independence two years earlier, launched a major protest in Asmara, demanding a meeting with the president and to be paid," Ethiopia's foreign ministry said in a statement Friday. "When the president finally agreed to meet them and hear their grievances, he quickly promised to improve conditions and provide pay. The troops returned to the barracks but within a matter of days, with the protests over, hundreds were arrested."

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CAF (the Confederation of African Football) warns the state monopoly TV station, Ethiopia Radio and Television Agency (ERTA) for transmitting live the African football match between national teams of Ethiopia and Zambia last night (January 21, 2013).

Ethiopian Fans in Addis - Photo by Sisay Guzay

The Ethiopian TV, which was displaying advertisement of several sponsors of the game in the middle of the game, was exposed by the commentator of the game two times during the second half.

The TV station, which has the license to transmit the match from CAF displayed warning text warning in the middle of the match stating that Ethiopia Television is broadcasting the match live without making any payment to CAF or organizers of the continental football match.

“Shame on ETV! It broadcast an announcement that it broadcasts a transmission from another channel without paying what is due!, Now imagine this same ETV reporting about the rule of law, punishing illegality, etc with a blessing from the government!! I would have loved to see ETV bosses in court, but that only happens had it been a station in another country,” commented another Ethiopian journalist on his facebook wall.

The station will face legal charges from the football governing organization of the continent and the organizers for “the piracy”, according to the commentator, who didn’t said much about what exact measure will be taken by CAF against the Ethiopian government-owned lonely TV station in the country.

The 2013 African football tournament is opened on Saturday (January 20, 2013) in South Africa.

Among the sponsors advertisements displayed during “the pirated live broadcast” by the station includes advertisements of government institutions and both private and state banks as well as insurance and manufacturing firms, among others.

According to an Ethiopian spectator who commented anonymously describing the situation as “disgracing for the country”, the TV station has to give official clarification on the accusation to the sponsors, organizers of the continental match and the Ethiopian people who watched the game with a bunch of sponsors advertisements throughout the whole game. "Such violation of international laws will portray a bad imgae to the country, which has been working hard to join the World Trade Organization (WTO)," he said.

Ethiopian team, whose goalkeeper is sent off with red card, draw one goal each with Zambia – the winner of African cup of nations two years ago. Ethiopian fans are seen celebrating their national team’s first match result at the tournament after 31 years failure to qualify.

Ethiopian national football team known as “the Antelopes”, are grouped with Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Zambia. As Nigeria and Burkina Faso who played after Ethiopia and Zambia also draw one each, the second match for each team will be decisive.

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Virginia Rose Luling, a social anthropologist and strong supporter and activist for the Oromo cause, has passed away at age 73.

Below is an article published by O Pride:

Social anthropologist, human rights activist, and a much-loved friend of Oromo and other Horn of Africa immigrants, Virginia Rose Luling, died of lung cancer at her home in London on Jan. 7, 2013. She was 73.

Luling, who grew up in wartime Europe, studied Social Anthropology at London School of Economics and Oxford University where she completed a thesis on Government and Social Control among peoples of the Horn of Africa, in particular the Oromo people, according to an obituary written by a family friend. Author of many books and numerous scholarly articles on Somali tradition and descent system, most of Dr. Luling’s later work and life was inspired by her initial field research in 1960s in the village of Afgooye, Somalia where she spent three years. 

After briefly teaching at Open University, Luling joined Survival International, a nonprofit that promotes the rights of tribal people worldwide, first as a volunteer — later as editor of the Survival International News, and most recently as Africa Campaigns Officer. Her treasured editing gig took Luling to remote areas across Africa, an experience which she documented “in long and vivid letters home, and numerous field reports.”

After retiring from Survival in 2004, Luling was employed by UK’s Home Office as case specialist and expert witness for Somali asylum seekers, a position she held until shortly before her death.

‘Oromo heroine’

Dr. Luling’s first contact with Oromo people came in the mid-1960s when she studied the Oromo Gadaa system under the guidance of renowned anthropologist Paul Baxter. But it was a meeting in 1977 with Oromo scholar, Dr. Mohammed Hassan, Associate Professor of History at Georgia State University in Atlanta, that catapulted Luling to the center of Oromo advocacy. 

Five years after their meeting, Luling joined Hassan and others as a founding member for the Oromo Relief Association (ORA), a humanitarian organization that works for the relief and support of Oromo refugees in the Horn of Africa. “She remained a stalwart supporter of ORA throughout her life” despite demanding academic career and the need to care for her nieces, according her obits. 

Under Luling’s guidance, both as a board member and Chair, ORA worked with other NGOs to send “health professionals to train Oromo health workers and midwives among refugee populations in Sudan and within areas of Oromia region before and after the regime changed in 1991.”  

A passionate and relentless advocate of justice, Ginnie as she was called by her family, didn’t give up on ORA when many others, including Oromos, did. A true friend and champion of Oromo rights, Luling forged new alliances with other charitable organizations while also investing in and spearheading ORA’s many fundraising campaigns.  

“In April 2010, when ORA was on the verge of insolvency,  Dr. Virginia almost single-handedly persuaded Oromo friends, and her own friends and family, to rescue ORA and commit to regular contributions to keep the organisation afloat in the future,” the family friend said in a statement. “Because of her leadership, the management committee is now able to envisage an expanding role for ORA again.”

She was also instrumental in the establishment of a secondary school education programme for teenage Oromo refugee girls in Nairobi. Luling remained active in the organization until her death by “personally funding one of the students [at the Nairobi school] in the last year,” the statement noted. 

In honor of Luling’s three decades of involvement “in Survival’s work as a volunteer, fundraiser, editor, researcher and campaigner”, the UK-based NGO has named an internship in her name. 

She leaves behind a remarkable legacy that touched many lives across several continents.

UNPO

(ESAT News)–Genocide Watch, the Global coalition to end genocide and mass atrocities, says that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is well aware of the fact that the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) is a terrorist organization that the United States should label as such.

In an exclusive interview with ESAT, President of Genocide Watch, Prof. Gregory Stanton, said any specific threats from TPLF agents and operatives in the United States should be reported to the FBI right away.  “The FBI has got the TPLF already in its sights. It knows very well that the TPLF is a terrorist organization,” he said.

He also pointed out that the U.S. should declare the TPLF a terrorist organization and made clear that efforts would be exerted to bring that to the attention of the concerned authorities. TPLF is already registered in the Global Terrorism Database (GTD), kept by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, a center of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

He noted that TPLF’s assassination plots and criminal activities in the United States would have serious ramifications on the questionable relationships it has with the Government of the United States. “First of all, FBI will try to hunt them down, arrest them and put them in prison. Secondly, it will have ramifications on the foreign policy of the United States towards Ethiopia because the TPLF is still in charge of the government there.”

He urged the government of the United States to seriously review the assistance it gives to Ethiopia in light of the criminal activities of the TPLF. “Our government should have a hard look at the kinds of assistance we are giving to Ethiopia since it has a criminal regime in charge of the government.”

Special FBI Agent Greg Comcowich told ESAT that the agency would take seriously any criminal activities that violate not only the civil rights of individuals but also the constitution of the United States.

“Anybody who threatens people’s lives because of their political views or attempt to usurp one’s constitutionally protected First Rights Amendment will be dealt with appropriately. That is not the way America works,” he said.

He also noted that the FBI takes allegations of being agents of a foreign government very seriously. He encouraged Ethiopians who feel threatened to contact their local FBI branches.

Prof. Stanton advised that Ethiopian exiles should not take any inkling of threats lightly. “The justice department has never declared the TPLF a terrorist organization the way it should but it is clearly the arm of a criminal government, which is the TPLF government in Ethiopia. The FBI needs to be aware of any inkling of threats against anybody, any Ethiopian. If they are threatened they need to report to the FBI.”

He pointed out that it is outrageous to try to persecute and threaten anyone for exercising their constitutionally guaranteed rights of free speech in the United States. “We have perhaps the freest speech in the world here. It is not free speech to conspire to commit a murder. That is a violation which is not protected by our First Rights Amendment,” he noted.

The Genocide Watch chief underlined the need for Ethiopians to get organized to fend off terrorist threats by the TPLF and its agents that are illegally trying to violate the civil rights of Ethiopian exiles by spying and intimidating them into silence. “It is helpful to organize to challenge an organized group like the TPLF. That is why we need organizations like FREE and solidarity movement…The best antidote to a criminal organization like the TPLF is a legal organization,” he said.

The Forum for Rights and Equality in Ethiopia (FREE), a coalition of 18 international and local advocacy groups, is under formation to make a global effort to press for change in Ethiopia. Genocide Watch is among the founding members of the new international front that will be launched once all the groundwork is complete, it was learnt.

Regarding members and supporters of the TPLF that claim political asylum in the U.S. under false pretense of facing persecution in Ethiopia, he pointed out that if anyone becomes a member and supporter of the TPLF in the U.S., the main political persecutor and tormentor in Ethiopia, that person would lose his or her claim to political asylum in the Unites states. “That person should be sent back to Ethiopia because they would not be under any political persecution at all as members of the party that carries the persecution out.”

In his message to Ethiopians, Prof. Stanton called on them to be steadfast in their struggle for freedom and justice and never lose hope. “Eventually the TPLF will fall. Those who are committing these kinds of acts of terror should also be aware that they are eventually going to be held accountable for their crimes. We are keeping their names. So don’t ever be under the illusion that we will forget them,” he said.

Professor Stanton, who was a Yale-educated lawyer, is globally recognized for successfully leading an international effort to bring leaders of the Khmer Rouge to justice for committing genocide and mass atrocities in Cambodia. He founded Genocide Watch in 1991 with a mission to predict, prevent, stop, and punish genocide and other forms of mass murder. Genocide Watch has already identified Ethiopia under the TPLF as one of the few countries in the world facing serious risk genocidal conflicts.

In his message to Ethiopian across the world, Prof. Stanton called on Ethiopians to be steadfast in their struggle for freedom and justice and never lose hope. “Eventually the TPLF will fall. Those who are committing these kinds of acts of terror should also be aware that they are eventually going to be held accountable for their crimes. We are keeping their names. So don’t ever be under the illusion that we will forget them.”

Meanwhile, a coalition of political and rights groups fighting for justice have issued a strong-worded press release condemning the recent alleged assassination plot in Boston. The group, Joint Actions Coordinating Committee of Ethiopian Political & Civic Democratic Forces, demanded the U.S. government to take appropriate measures against the terrorist regime in Ethiopia which has been committing gross human rights violation and extrajudicial killings.

“We also ask the FBI to investigate and expel agents of the Ethiopian government whose sole purpose is intimidating and spying on the Diaspora, and indulging in illegal activities including transfer of funds for top government officials to the U.S. and to offshore accounts,” the released said.

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