Saturday, January 10, 2015
ESAT Interview With Mesay from Asmara Jan 07 2015
From the two of the influential Amsterdam based Ethiopian SATELLITE Television ESAT journalists, who traveled Asmara, Mesay Mekonen, gave
a report how it is like in Asmara and His view and his witness about the people of Eritrea towards Ethiopian people. Also he reported about different opposition military bases in the country and the state of AFFAIRS
of these opposition armed forces.
Listen to the Interview
http://ethsat.com/video/esat-special-interview-with-mesay-from-asmara-jan-07-2015/
a report how it is like in Asmara and His view and his witness about the people of Eritrea towards Ethiopian people. Also he reported about different opposition military bases in the country and the state of AFFAIRS of these opposition armed forces.Listen to the Interview
http://ethsat.com/video/esat-special-interview-with-mesay-from-asmara-jan-07-2015/
Thursday, January 8, 2015
ESAT Reporters Traveled to Asmara to Cover Merger of Three Armed Ethiopian Opposition Organizations
January 7,2015
A combined force of a United Ethiopian Liberation Front is whatthe people of Ethiopia sought for
A combined force of a United Ethiopian Liberation Front is whatthe people of Ethiopia sought for
By TesfaNews,
TWO of the influential Amsterdam based Ethiopian Satellite Television (ESAT) journalists, Fasil YeneAlem and Mesay Mekonen, have arrived in Asmara today to report on the highly anticipated merger of three competing armed Ethiopian opposition forces.
The reporters will visit the different opposition military bases in the country and are expected to report on the state of affairs of these opposition armed forces.
For years, the Ethiopian people have been demanding for a united political front that ultimately leads to a strong, united Ethiopia that are in peace with its neighbors and itself. Time has come for the Ethiopian people to own a united struggle against the minority TPLF regime and pay the ultimate sacrifice to save Ethiopia and its people from the present quagmire.
Accordingly, the merger of the Ethiopian People Patriotic Front (EPPF); Ginbot 7 Movement for Justice, Freedmon and Democracy (G7); and the Amhara Democratic Forces Movement (ADFM) will be materialized in the coming days.
As soon as the merger of the three political forces is completed, the work of allying with other organization such as the highly militarized and the strongest of all, the Tigrean Peoples Democratic Movement (TPDM), will kick off. To help assimilate the said process, ESAT has already allocated a considerable amount of airtime for TPDM propaganda works over its satellite frequency.
ESAT reporters are also expected to conduct a series of interviews with high ranking Eritrean officials.
Ever since Ethiopia announced a change in its foreign policy against Eritrea and actively advocate for a regime change, the Eritrean government has maintained its defensive policy while building its capacity silently, efficiently.
The people of Ethiopia and Eritrea deserves peace and mutual co-existence. But peace won’t come without sacrifice.
http://ethsat.com/video/esat-two-esat-journalists-in-eritrea-january-7-2015/
http://ethsat.com/video/esat-two-esat-journalists-in-eritrea-january-7-2015/
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
“Freedom for Free and Fair Election!” is About Breaking the Vicious Cycle
December 27, 2014
by T.Goshu
1. We are about five months away from the “national election” expected to take place in May of this year. Whether we
will keep doing the same way of doing politics and oddly wait for
things to happen by themselves (if there is such happening in real
life), or we should play a dynamic political game and make things happen
in favor of freedom and justice is still a very tough challenge to
face. I do not think the issue is really our shortcomings in theorizing –
explaining the importance of election and how to do it. For that
matter, the current constitution (“the supreme law of the country”) does
not have serious deficiency in out lining the basic values and
principles in this regard. The very deep and serious challenge we are
facing is the total absence of constitutionalism. What we do really have
is a constitution or a document used by an ethno-centric TPLF and its
brain-children (members of the Front) to attack and eliminate all
opposition parties and dissenting political movements. Needless to say,
the document (the constitution) of TPLF/EPRDF is not used as the supreme
legal document either to check and balance the powers of the three
branches of government or to regulate the relationship between citizens
and the government. There is no need for us to go far in search of
evidence as this deadly notorious political game is part of the
day-to-day lives of the people. It is because of this kind of
chronically ill political environment that it is quite safe to say that
it will be a very stupid political mistake to announce and decide to
participate in the upcoming election instead of working in unison and
force the ruling elites to open the political gate and door they closed
on peoples’ face for the last two decades. And I think that is the very
powerful purpose of “Freedom for Free and Fair Election! “campaign.
The most acute shortcomings come from our highly egoistic political mentalities and the very backward political culture (devoid of democratic values) throughout our political history which seriously affect the very necessity of having collective vision for common destiny. Simply put, the very puzzling part of our way of doing politics is our terrible weaknesses to make the relationship between our theories (words) and deeds as meaningful as it should be. I am not talking about perfection which is unrealistic in dealing with politics in general and the Ethiopian politics in particular. What I am trying to say is that making very wonderful political rhetoric that cannot be tested with actions (deeds) is doomed to fail. In other words, whatever and how much we may theorize and argue about what the problem is and how and why we deal with it , they remain great theories and arguments until they examined or tested in practical terms. And this examination and testing requires the wisdom and courage to pay any necessary price in order not to compromise our fundamental principle and values, and to accomplish the desired goal we aspire and set. True, the path of our political struggle may terribly be full of up and downs to the extent of paying ultimate sacrifices , especially in countries languishing under ruthlessly tyrannical regimes such us ours.
One of the great Greek Philosophers, Socrates (before the birth of Christ) powerfully challenges us when he argues, “Unexamined life is not worth living.” Yes, we should honestly and courageously acknowledge the unfortunate situation in which we are living after thousands of years if we want to bring about a change that would make our lives worth living. Needless to say, the very issue of choosing or electing our representatives through a process which we as a people set up and have a sovereign power over it is the only means to break the vicious circle we have come through and to make our lives truly worth living. In other words, joining the deadly notorious drama of election which has been tested and tragically failed for the last two decades in the name of peaceful political struggle will not only keep the vicious cycle going but it will also make our lives much more dehumanizing or not worth living. This may sound to some fellow Ethiopians very harsh and kind of pessimistic. But that is what it is unless we want to deny and avoid it instead of face it, deal with it and overcome it.
I strongly want to argue that the announcement by some opposition political parties to participate in the upcoming election without public mobilization which meaningfully do put pressure on the reckless behavior and deadly political game of the ruling elites sounds not encouraging. I do deeply believe that the general crisis (political, socio-economic, moral/ethical, cultural, religious, not to mention identity) we are facing desperately requires the very feasible political strategy and perseverance, not the other way round.
It is my strong believe that there is a need for us to be deeply and genuinely self-critical if we have to make the upcoming election the turning point for good that should be bound to our desired common destiny: the prevalence of peace, freedom, a real sense of equality, justice, socio-economic wellbeing, and human dignity all of which are of course the sources of our national pride.
Needless to say that given the very ugly and deadly political drama of the inner circle of TPLF/EPRDF on one hand; and the outrageously senseless weaknesses of the political opposition organizations on the other hand for the last two decades, it is with a very mixed feeling that I have to
by T.Goshu
1. We are about five months away from the “national election” expected to take place in May of this year. Whether we
will keep doing the same way of doing politics and oddly wait for
things to happen by themselves (if there is such happening in real
life), or we should play a dynamic political game and make things happen
in favor of freedom and justice is still a very tough challenge to
face. I do not think the issue is really our shortcomings in theorizing –
explaining the importance of election and how to do it. For that
matter, the current constitution (“the supreme law of the country”) does
not have serious deficiency in out lining the basic values and
principles in this regard. The very deep and serious challenge we are
facing is the total absence of constitutionalism. What we do really have
is a constitution or a document used by an ethno-centric TPLF and its
brain-children (members of the Front) to attack and eliminate all
opposition parties and dissenting political movements. Needless to say,
the document (the constitution) of TPLF/EPRDF is not used as the supreme
legal document either to check and balance the powers of the three
branches of government or to regulate the relationship between citizens
and the government. There is no need for us to go far in search of
evidence as this deadly notorious political game is part of the
day-to-day lives of the people. It is because of this kind of
chronically ill political environment that it is quite safe to say that
it will be a very stupid political mistake to announce and decide to
participate in the upcoming election instead of working in unison and
force the ruling elites to open the political gate and door they closed
on peoples’ face for the last two decades. And I think that is the very
powerful purpose of “Freedom for Free and Fair Election! “campaign.The most acute shortcomings come from our highly egoistic political mentalities and the very backward political culture (devoid of democratic values) throughout our political history which seriously affect the very necessity of having collective vision for common destiny. Simply put, the very puzzling part of our way of doing politics is our terrible weaknesses to make the relationship between our theories (words) and deeds as meaningful as it should be. I am not talking about perfection which is unrealistic in dealing with politics in general and the Ethiopian politics in particular. What I am trying to say is that making very wonderful political rhetoric that cannot be tested with actions (deeds) is doomed to fail. In other words, whatever and how much we may theorize and argue about what the problem is and how and why we deal with it , they remain great theories and arguments until they examined or tested in practical terms. And this examination and testing requires the wisdom and courage to pay any necessary price in order not to compromise our fundamental principle and values, and to accomplish the desired goal we aspire and set. True, the path of our political struggle may terribly be full of up and downs to the extent of paying ultimate sacrifices , especially in countries languishing under ruthlessly tyrannical regimes such us ours.
One of the great Greek Philosophers, Socrates (before the birth of Christ) powerfully challenges us when he argues, “Unexamined life is not worth living.” Yes, we should honestly and courageously acknowledge the unfortunate situation in which we are living after thousands of years if we want to bring about a change that would make our lives worth living. Needless to say, the very issue of choosing or electing our representatives through a process which we as a people set up and have a sovereign power over it is the only means to break the vicious circle we have come through and to make our lives truly worth living. In other words, joining the deadly notorious drama of election which has been tested and tragically failed for the last two decades in the name of peaceful political struggle will not only keep the vicious cycle going but it will also make our lives much more dehumanizing or not worth living. This may sound to some fellow Ethiopians very harsh and kind of pessimistic. But that is what it is unless we want to deny and avoid it instead of face it, deal with it and overcome it.
I strongly want to argue that the announcement by some opposition political parties to participate in the upcoming election without public mobilization which meaningfully do put pressure on the reckless behavior and deadly political game of the ruling elites sounds not encouraging. I do deeply believe that the general crisis (political, socio-economic, moral/ethical, cultural, religious, not to mention identity) we are facing desperately requires the very feasible political strategy and perseverance, not the other way round.
It is my strong believe that there is a need for us to be deeply and genuinely self-critical if we have to make the upcoming election the turning point for good that should be bound to our desired common destiny: the prevalence of peace, freedom, a real sense of equality, justice, socio-economic wellbeing, and human dignity all of which are of course the sources of our national pride.
Needless to say that given the very ugly and deadly political drama of the inner circle of TPLF/EPRDF on one hand; and the outrageously senseless weaknesses of the political opposition organizations on the other hand for the last two decades, it is with a very mixed feeling that I have to
Court Adjourns Ethiopian Bloggers’ Trial for 15th Time
January 5, 2015
(VOA News Addis Ababa) The trial of Ethiopian bloggers known as Zone 9 was adjourned yet again Monday after prosecutors failed to amend terrorism charges as ordered by the court. The development raises the likelihood that some charges against the young bloggers and journalists may be dropped.
The six members of the Zone 9 blogging collective and three affiliated journalists were imprisoned in April, accused of using social media to incite violence in Ethiopia. They were charged under Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism law in July. This was the 15th adjournment of their trial, now due to resume January 14.
Ameha Mekonnen, the attorney for eight of the nine defendants, said “this is the last chance” for the prosecution to amend charges. If that’s not done by the next hearing, he said, the judges will exclude them. One is related to digital training allegedly received by the journalists.
The court on Monday accepted other charges: that the defendants formed a clandestine organization, incited, attempted and organized damage to the community, and planned terrorist acts as outlined in Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism proclamation.
Ameha said it would be good for the Zone 9 bloggers and journalists if the prosecution fails to amend the remaining charges.
“It has got only six types of human behaviors that are regarded as terrorist acts,” he said. “… The law itself is not clear – simply, if someone plots to cause damage to the community, it amounts to terrorism.”
Criticized as vague
International human rights organizations have repeatedly criticized Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism proclamation for its vagueness and its use as a tool to silence dissident.
In a recent study, the Committee to Protect Journalists lists Ethiopia as one of the countries with the most imprisoned journalists.
Ethiopia’s government insists that those arrested are criminals and not journalists.
ECADF
Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Court Adjourns Ethiopian Bloggers’ Trial for 15th Time
January 15.2015
ADDIS ABABA The trial of Ethiopian bloggers known as Zone 9 was adjourned yet again Monday after prosecutors failed to amend terrorism charges as ordered by the court. The development raises the likelihood that some charges against the young bloggers and journalists may be dropped.
ADDIS ABABA The trial of Ethiopian bloggers known as Zone 9 was adjourned yet again Monday after prosecutors failed to amend terrorism charges as ordered by the court. The development raises the likelihood that some charges against the young bloggers and journalists may be dropped.
The six members of the Zone 9 blogging collective and three affiliated journalists were imprisoned in April, accused of using social media to incite violence in Ethiopia. They were charged under Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism law in July. This was the 15th adjournment of their trial, now due to resume January 14.
Ameha Mekonnen, the attorney for eight of the nine defendants, said “this is the last chance” for the prosecution to amend charges. If that’s not done by the next hearing, he said, the judges will exclude them. One is related to digital training allegedly received by the journalists.
The court on Monday accepted other charges: that the defendants formed a clandestine organization, incited, attempted and organized damage to the community, and planned terrorist acts as outlined in Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism proclamation.
Ameha said it would be good for the Zone 9 bloggers and journalists if the prosecution fails to amend the remaining charges.
“It has got only six types of human behaviors that are regarded as terrorist acts,” he said. “… The law itself is not clear – simply, if someone plots to cause damage to the community, it amounts to terrorism.”
Criticized as vague
International human rights organizations have repeatedly criticized Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism proclamation for its vagueness and its use as a tool to silence dissident.
In a recent study, the Committee to Protect Journalists lists Ethiopia as one of the countries with the most imprisoned journalists.
Ethiopia’s government insists that those arrested are criminals and not journalists.
Source: VOA
Monday, January 5, 2015
አክብሩ የተባለነው የተኛውን ሰንደቅ ነው፤ የተዘቀዘቀወን፣ የተረገጠውን ወይስ የተቀበረወን…?
የትኛውን ሰንደቅ አላማ፤ የተዘቀዘቀወን፣ የተረገጠውን ወይስ የተቀበረወን…? (እኔ)
እንደ አቶ መለስ እና እንደ ኢሃዴግ ባንዲራውን ጠምዶ የያዘ ማንም አልነበረም። ምክንያቱ ግልጽ ነው፤ ኢህ አዴግ ያኔ ”ወንበዴ” የነበረች ጊዜ ያኔ መንግስት የነበረው ደርግ አይቀጡ ቅጣትም ይሁን ይቀጡ ቅጥጣት ”ወንበዴውን” በሚቀጣው ጊዜ በድል ቦታ ላይ የሚያውለበልበው አረንጓዴ ቢጫ ቀይ ባንዲራን ነበረ። እና በወቅቱ ወንበዴ በአሁኑ ወቅት ደግሞ ነጋዴ የሆኑ መሪዎቻⶭን ባንዲራን ጠምደው ቢይዟት ምንም አይደንቅም። (በቅንፍም፤ መሪዎቻችንን ነጋዴ ያልኩት ከወንበዴ ጋር እንዲገጥም ብዬ እንጂ ለክፋት አለመሆኑን እገልጻለሁ።)
በነገራችን ላይ ኢህ አህአዴግን ኢሃዴግ ያደረጉት አራቱም ድርጅቶች ለየከልላቱ የመረጡት ባንዲራ /አርማ/ ከኢትዮጵያ ባንዲራ መልክ ራቅ ያለ እንዲሆን የተደረገውም የባንዲራውን አረንጓዴ ቢጫ ቀይ ቀለማት ላይ ቂም ከመቋጠር የተነሳ ሊሆን እንደሚችል እንጠረጥራለን።
መጠርጠራችን ካልቀረም የኦነግን አርማ ራሱ ኢህአዴግ ጠምዳ የያዘችው ከዋናው ሰንደቅ አላማ ቀለማት የተቀዳ በመሆኑ ነው። ከዚህ በፊት እንዳወጋነው ኦነግ ሲመሰረት የነበሩ ታጋዮች የትግሉ ማዕከል ”ጭርቁምፈምቶታ ኡመታ ኢትዮጵያ” (የተጨቆኑ የኢትዮጵያ ህዝቦች) የሚል መሆን አለበት የሚሉ እና ኦሮሞ ነጻነት ግንባር የሚሉ ሁለት ሃሳቦች ይንሸራሸሩ ነበር። የኦነግን አርማ ልብ ብለን ስናይ ሁለቱም አይነት የግንባሩ ታጋዮች ጸባቸው ከኢትዮጵያ ሰንደቅ እና የሰንደቁ ቀለማት ሳይሆን ጨቋኞች ከሚሏቸው አመራሮች ጋር መሆኑን መረዳት ቀላል ነው።
የኢህአዴግ ቂም ግን ስር ነቀል አቄቂያም ነው። ”ፀቤ ከጨቋኙ ደርግ አምባገነናዊ ስራአት ጋር ነው” ሲለን የነበረው ኢህ አዴግ ”ባንዲራን ጨርቅ ነው” ከማለት ጀምሮ በአፋር ግመሎቹ ሁሉ ያውቁታል የሚባለውን፣ በኦሮሞ የተቃዋሚው አርማ ቀለም ሁሉ የተደረገውን፣ በደቡብ ከትንሽ እስከ ትልቅ በዓላት ማድመቂያ የተደረገውን፣ በትግራይ እና በአማራው ዘንድም የማንነት መገለጫ ሆኖ የነበረውን አረንጓዴ ቢጫ ቀይ ቀለም በሌሎች ክልላዊ ባንዲራ ተካው። ሳስበው ኢህ አዴግ ጠቅላላ የሀሪቱን ሰንደቅ አላማ ራሱ ሌላ አይነት ቀለማት ቢሰጠው ደስታው ይመስለኛል። ነገር ግን ሰንደቁን እንደ ደሙ ለሚያየው መላ ኢትዮጵያዊ ይሄ ከባድ ነበር።
እኛም እንጠይቃለን፤
የቱን ባንዲራ…
አቶ መለስ ጨርቅ ነው ያሉትን ነው፣ ወይስ በአደባባይ ዘቅዝቀው የያዙትን፣ ወይስ በቀብራቸው ጊዜ ሳይሞት አብሯቸው አፈር የገባውን፣ ወይስ መቼለታ ዶክተር ቴውድሮስ ያስረገጡትን ባንዲራ ነው ካላከበራችሁ ወዮላችሁ የምትሉን… !?
አቤ ቶክቻው
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