EPRDF televises meeting on good governance, critics say it’s yet another show

By Engidu Woldie

The ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Front, (EPRDF) has recently televised a high level meeting that deliberated on a study conducted on good governance in the country. Government experts who conducted the study say their findings show corruption and bad governance were the hallmark of the government at various sectors and levels of the bureaucracy.

The study, jointly carried out by the Policy Research Center and the Ministry of Public Service and Human Resource Development, has focused on what it called rent-seeking, a practice by middle-men and fixers as well as government officials at all levels who are engaged in bribery, kick backs and favoritism, even for the conduct of mundane official duties by government offices. The study, which government officials claim to be scientific and representative, has met serious criticism by Ethiopians at large and political analysts.

Critics say the meeting, where officials of the government were seen preaching about good governance, was just political posturing and empty rhetoric. They say it is a public knowledge that the same officials sitting at the meeting and their cronies are involved in high level and widespread looting and embezzlement of public and private properties.

Many agree the ostentatious commitment shown by the officials at the meeting in fighting corruption was a pretence; and one that is aimed at creating the perception that they are serious in combating widespread and massive corruption and plunder of the resources of the state and the people such as eviction of citizens and communities from their homes and land, a widespread practice throughout the country.

The televised meeting was just staged to divert the attention of the Ethiopian public away from the real issues at hand, namely the famine, freedom of the press, democracy and the rule of law.

Former Minister d’état for Communication Affairs, who lives in exile in the US, currently a political analyst with ESAT, Ermias Legesse, says the study ignores the main dimensions of good governance. He cites rule of law, transparency and most of all, freedom of the people, as the main areas that the study deliberately missed. Ermias further mentions the the private sector and opposition political parties that have huge following in Ethiopia, did not take part in authoring the study.

The focus of the study, according to Ermias, was only on the economic dimension of the problem of good governance in Ethiopia. Most of the attention was given to corruption linked to the lease and sale of urban and rural land, on which army generals who are members of the ruling Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and high level government officials were involved in unbridled plunder in a broad day light. He underscored good governance would never be attained where fundamental freedom and rights of citizens, the rule of law, a vibrant free press as a watch dog, accountability and transparency do not exist.

He further questions the legitimacy of the government saying the people of Ethiopia do not have confidence on the government and they don’t trust officials are serious about ending corruption. He said the claim by the government that the study was a representative study does not hold water. And that the same staged show of ending corruption and instituting good governance has been undertaken by the regime at high levels time and again. The former minister said the study should have been done by independent think- tanks, not by an institution that is run by the same people who also run the government, de facto.

Ethiopian political commentators who also agree with Ermias say they believe the aim of the recent bravado by the ethnocentric government is to cover up and divert the attention away from the political and economic crises it is facing. This is yet another show to impress and hoodwink the Ethiopian people and the international community that the regime is handling the multidimensional crises it is facing. They say it could also be a show staged in a bid to get good ratings by the international community, particularly the WB and IMF.

The three month study conducted by the government that covers the Amhara, Tigray, Southern Ethiopia, as well as the capital Addis Ababa finds rampant corruption by government officials at various levels who work with middle men in the sale of land, services and other properties. The study that covers land, trade, investment, justice, transportation sectors has found lack of competence on the part of the officials who run the sectors. The finding by the study makes it clear that the officials, through the middle-men, receive kick backs from investors who come to their offices for routine paper work. The government experts who present the study say people are now forced to pay bribes even to obtain government issued ID cards and driving licenses.

The justice sector was also highlighted in the study as a major failure. Tardiness on the part of Judges and failure to give the proportionate sentence on convicts who give bribes were mentioned. Prosecutors and judges work hand in glove in accepting bribes in high profile cases of crimes. People with money and connection with the higher-ups do not serve their prison sentences fully. A case in point was a wealthy businessman from Tigray who was sentenced to prison terms, but conducts his business in the day and goes back to his cell at night. He was brought back to the court after he hit a pedestrian in a traffic accident.

Goods and food products meant to be rationed to the people have been illegally sold to traders who then sale the items to the public at sky high prices. Businessmen with connections to government officials do not pay taxes while huge taxes were levied on petty traders, who live hand-to-mouth. There is no quality control on imported products and people have no option but to buy goods that fall far below the standard, according to the government study.

The study, however, does not mention nor specify any government official or their cronies by name for the massive corruption and pervasive plunder that has become the hallmark of the Ethiopian regime . For this reason, Ethiopians wonder whether the government is really genuine to fight corruption this time around, when the very people involved in rampant plunder were also the ones sitting at the helm and even among those at the meeting chaired by Hailemariam Desalegen, the prime minister, and a fact admitted by him during the same televised meeting.

In the past, it is well known that a number of studies on fighting corruption and instituting good governance were conducted by the EPRDF government with no action taken against the perpetrators. Many believe no amount of studies and meetings would do away with the root cause of systemic corruption and the all around economic and political crisis plaguing the country. The remedy against systemic corruption, many agree, is to remove the regime and replace it with a popular representative government; and establish institutions that are pillars of genuine democracy and rule of law in Ethiopia. Only the presence of transparent and accountable institutions with a vibrant free press can stop corruption.

Source:: Addisvoice

በአዋሳ ከፍተኛ የነዳጅ እጥረት መከሰቱ ተሰማ

ነኅሴ ፲፩ (አስራ አንድ) ቀን ፳፻፯ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :-ወኪላችን በላከው ሪፖርት በከተማ ውስጥ ባለፉት 3 ቀናት ከፍተኛ ሆነ የነዳጅ እጥረት በመከሰቱ ፣ አሽከርካሪዎች ነዳጅ ለማግኘት ሲቸገሩ ታይቷል።
በርካታ ባጃጅ ተሽከርካሪዎች ቀኑን ሙሉ በየማደያዎች ተሰልፈው የታዩ ሲሆን፣ ይህንን ተከትሎ የታየው የዋጋ ጭማሪ ህዝቡን ለምሬት ዳርጎታል። በባህርዳርም እንዲሁ በቅርቡ ተመሳሳይ የነዳጅ እጥረት መከሰቱ መዘገቡ ይታወሳል።

Source:: Ethsat

በሆሳዕና የተነሳውን ተቃውሞ ተከትሎ በመቶዎች የሚቆጠሩ ሰዎች ታሰሩ

ነኅሴ ፯ (ሰባት) ቀን ፳፻፯ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :- ከገንዘብ ዝውውር ጋር በተያያዘ ትናንት ነሃሴ 6፣ 2007 ዓም በሃድያ ዞን በሆሳእና ከተማ የተነሳውን ተቃውሞ ተከትሎ በርካታ ሰዎች ክፉኛ ተደብድበው ሆስፒታል የገቡ ሲሆን፣ በመቶዎች የሚቆጠሩ ነዋሪዎች ደግሞ መታሰራቸውን የአይን እማኖች ገልጸዋል። በርካታ ወጣቶች አሰቃቂ በሆነ ሁኔታ መደብደባቸውን የሚገልጹት ነዋሪዎች፣ ሆስፒታል የተኙት አመሻሹ ላይ ወደ እስር ቤት በፖሊሶች ተደግፈው መወሰዳቸውን ማየታቸውን ገልጸዋል። የተቃውሞው መንስኤ ደቡብ አፍሪካ የሚኖሩ የአካባቢው ተወላጆች 6 ሚሊዮን ብር የሚጠጋ ገንዘብ በሰዎች ወደ አዲስ አበባ ከላኩ በሁዋላ፣ አዲስ አበባ ያሉ ሰዎች ገንዘቡን በባንክ ወደ ሆሳእና ሲልኩ፣ የመንግስት ባለስልጣናት በማወቃቸውና ገንዘቡን በመውረሳቸው ነው። ባለስልጣናቱ ገንዘቡ ወደ አገር ውስጥ የገባው በባንክ በኩል ባለመሆኑ መንግስት ማግኘት የነበረበትን ጥቅም አላገኘም በሚል ምክንያት ሲያቀርቡ፣ ህዝቡ ደግሞ ልጆቻችን ለፍተውና በሰው ሃገር ተንከራተው የላኩት ገንዘባችን ሊወሰድ አይገባውም በማለት ገንዘቡ መወረሱን ተቃውሞአል። ገንዘቡ ከ100 በላይ ለሚሆኑ ሰዎች ለማከፋፈል የተላከ እንደነበር ታውቋል። በውጭ የሚገኙ ኢትዮጵያውያን ለተሻለ ምንዛሬ እንዲሁም ስርአቱን የሚቃወሙ ደግሞ በህጋዊ ባንክ ላለመላክ በሚል ገንዘባቸውን ከባንክ ውጭ ባሉ ዘዴዎች ይልካሉ። ከፍተኛ የውጭ ምንዛሬ ድርቅ ያጋጠመው መንግስት፣ ከባንክ ውጭ ያለውን የገንዘብ ዝውውር ለማስቆም የተለያዩ እርምጃዎችን ቢወስድም አልተሳካለትም።
Source : http://ethsat.com/amharic/%e1%89%a0%e1%88%86%e1%88%b3%e1%8b%95%e1%8a%93-%e1%8b%a8%e1%89%b0%e1%8a%90%e1%88%b3%e1%8b%8d%e1%8a%95-%e1%89%b0%e1%89%83%e1%8b%8d%e1%88%9e-%e1%89%b0%e1%8a%a8%e1%89%b5%e1%88%8e-%e1%89%a0%e1%88%98/

The U.S. prevailed in Addis, but it also showed itself to be on the wrong side of history.

[Joseph E. Stiglitz] America in the way

NEW YORK -- The Third International Conference on Financing for Development recently convened in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. The conference came at a time when developing countries and emerging markets have demonstrated their ability to absorb huge amounts of money productively. Indeed, the tasks that these countries are undertaking -- investing in infrastructure (roads, electricity, ports, and much else), building cities that will one day be home to billions, and moving toward a green economy -- are truly enormous.

At the same time, there is no shortage of money waiting to be put to productive use. Just a few years ago, Ben Bernanke, then the chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve Board, talked about a global savings glut. And yet investment projects with high social returns were being starved of funds. That remains true today. The problem, then as now, is that the world’s financial markets, meant to intermediate efficiently between savings and investment opportunities, instead misallocate capital and create risk.

There is another irony. Most of the investment projects that the emerging world needs are long term, as are much of the available savings -- the trillions in retirement accounts, pension funds and sovereign wealth funds. But our increasingly shortsighted financial markets stand between the two.

Much has changed in the 13 years since the first International Conference on Financing for Development was held in Monterrey, Mexico, in 2002. Back then, the G-7 dominated global economic policymaking; today, China is the world’s largest economy (in purchasing-power-parity terms), with savings some 50 percent larger than that of the U.S. In 2002, Western financial institutions were thought to be wizards at managing risk and allocating capital; today, we see that they are wizards at market manipulation and other deceptive practices.

Gone are the calls for the developed countries to live up to their commitment to give at least 0.7 percent of their GNI in development aid. A few northern European countries -- Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden and, most surprisingly, the United Kingdom, in the midst of its self-inflicted austerity -- fulfilled their pledges in 2014. But the United States (which gave 0.19 percent of GNI in 2014) lags far, far behind.

Today, developing countries and emerging markets say to the U.S. and others: If you will not live up to your promises, at least get out of the way and let us create an international architecture for a global economy that works for the poor, too. Not surprisingly, the existing hegemons, led by the U.S., are doing whatever they can to thwart such efforts. When China proposed the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to help recycle some of the surfeit of global savings to where financing is badly needed, the U.S. sought to torpedo the effort. President Barack Obama’s administration suffered a stinging (and highly embarrassing) defeat.

The U.S. is also blocking the world’s path toward an international rule of law for debt and finance. If bond markets, for example, are to work well, an orderly way of resolving cases of sovereign insolvency must be found. But today, there is no such way. Ukraine, Greece and Argentina are all examples of the failure of existing international arrangements. The vast majority of countries have called for the creation of a framework for sovereign-debt restructuring. The U.S. remains the major obstacle.

Private investment is important, too. But the new investment provisions embedded in the trade agreements that the Obama administration is negotiating across both oceans imply that accompanying any such foreign direct investment comes a marked reduction in governments’ abilities to regulate the environment, health, working conditions, and even the economy.

The U.S. stance concerning the most disputed part of the Addis Ababa conference was particularly disappointing. As developing countries and emerging markets open themselves to multinationals, it becomes increasingly important that they can tax these behemoths on the profits generated by the business that occurs within their borders. Apple, Google and General Electric have demonstrated a genius for avoiding taxes that exceeds what they employed in creating innovative products.

All countries -- both developed and developing -- have been losing billions of dollars in tax revenues. Last year, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists released information about Luxembourg’s tax rulings that exposed the scale of tax avoidance and evasion. While a rich country like the U.S. arguably can afford the behavior described in the so-called Luxembourg Leaks, the poor cannot.

I was a member of an international commission, the Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation, examining ways to reform the current tax system. In a report presented to the International Conference on Financing for Development, we unanimously agreed that the current system is broken, and that minor tweaks will not fix it. We proposed an alternative -- similar to the way corporations are taxed within the U.S., with profits allocated to each state on the basis of the economic activity occurring within state borders.

The U.S. and other advanced countries have been pushing for much smaller changes, to be recommended by the OECD, the advanced countries’ club. In other words, the countries from which the politically powerful tax evaders and avoiders come are supposed to design a system to reduce tax evasion. Our Commission explains why the OECD reforms were at best tweaks in a fundamentally flawed system and were simply inadequate.

Developing countries and emerging markets, led by India, argued that the proper forum for discussing such global issues was an already established group within the United Nations, the Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters, whose status and funding needed to be elevated. The U.S. strongly opposed: it wanted to keep things the same as in the past, with global governance by and for the advanced countries.

New geopolitical realities demand new forms of global governance, with a greater voice for developing and emerging countries. The U.S. prevailed in Addis, but it also showed itself to be on the wrong side of history.

By Joseph E. Stiglitz

Joseph E. Stiglitz, a Nobel laureate in economics, is a professor at Columbia University. His most recent book, coauthored with Bruce Greenwald, is “Creating a Learning Society: A New Approach to Growth, Development and Social Progress.” -- Ed.

(Project Syndicate)

Source:http://www.koreaherald.com

Approval of US leadership in East Africa is dropping – Gallup survey

By: JAMES KARUHANGA
President Obama during his visit to Kenya last month. A Gallup survey says East Africans have lower confidence in US leadership compared to that of China. (Net)
Approval of US leadership among Kenyans has fallen 35 percentage points throughout President Barack Obama’s tenure, while approval of China’s leadership has gained five points, says a new Gallup survey.

The firm does not explain why the attitude of east Africans toward US leadership have become less favourable, but it suggests Africa is increasingly looking up to China for leadership at the global stage as opposed to the US.

In Eastern Africa, which Obama visited last month, a new Gallup survey released Thursday suggests US leadership approval fell significantly in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

“In this region, percentages of those who didn’t know or did not respond ranged from 11 per cent in Kenya to as high as 41 per cent in Uganda. Still, this does not fully account for the declines in US approval in countries such as Kenya where approval dropped significantly and disapproval rose,” reads part of a related article by Magali Rheault and Justin McCarthy, two senior analysts with the Gallup Centre.

The survey’s results are based on face-to-face interviews with at least 1,000 adults, aged 15 and older, conducted every year between 2009 and 2014 in Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda.

“Approval of US leadership has dropped in all of these countries since 2009, ranging from more tempered declines in the single digits in Senegal and Mauritania to large double-digit drops in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.”

Of the three countries in East Africa where Gallup has polled consistently over the past eight years, approval of US leadership remains highest in Kenya, Obama’s paternal ancestry side, with a majority of 58 per cent.

The survey, conducted months prior to President Obama’s recent visit to Kenya, says 61 per cent of Kenyans expressed approval of Chinese leadership, while 58 per cent approved of US leadership.

In Tanzania, 49 per cent approve of US leadership, a drop of 40 points over five years, and 50 per cent endorse Chinese leadership, a drop of 14 points since 2009. More Ugandans support the US role than that of China, Gallup found, with 48 per cent approving of US’s leadership compared to 37 per cent of Ugandans who give an affirmative response to China’s.

“In all countries except Chad, US leadership lost more approval than China’s leadership. It should be noted, however, that in 2014, relatively high proportions of Africans in several countries did not express an opinion about the leadership of the US or China.”

The two analysts note that the highest approval ratings for both the US and China in 2014 came from the Sahel region where Senegal and Chad had the highest approval ratings of US leadership performance, while Niger and Senegal had the highest approval ratings of Chinese leadership performance.

Bottom line, Rheault and McCarthy say, since the launch of the World Poll in 2005, sub-Saharan Africa is the region where approval of US leadership has been the highest in the world.

Accordingly, after Obama was elected in late 2008, Africans’ approval of US leadership topped 75 per cent in many nations.

“Although their approval has been declining in recent years, such a decline is not mirrored by an increase in Africans’ approval of China’s leadership. Rather, Africans’ attitudes toward China have remained relatively stable over the years.”

The analysts note that the findings also underscore the need to analyse results at the country level because each one has its own specific needs and interactions with the US and China.

They say that the two countries’ engagement across the continent also has been quite different, with greater emphasis on human development and governance for the US and a deeper focus on infrastructure for China.

Source:: strathink.net

Ethiopia politicizes courts to strangle dissent

The crackdown on Muslim activists is part of Addis Ababa’s crusade against independent voices and opposition leaders
July 10, 2015 2:00AM ET
by Awol Allo   @awol_allo
On July 6, Ethiopia’s Federal High Court convicted leaders of the Ethiopian Muslims protest movement on charges of terrorism and conspiracy to create an Islamic state in Ethiopia. The verdict — against two Muslim journalists, 10 activists and six members of the Ethiopian Muslims Arbitration Committee — came after three years of a politically motivated trial whose outcome was long ago determined. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 3.

The trial and the verdict against the Muslim leaders is a political spectacle designed to conceal the regime’s reindoctrination campaign and silence long-standing grievances of the Muslim population. The crackdown on Muslim activists is part of the ruling party’s larger crusade against journalists, bloggers, activists and opposition leaders and supporters.

A peaceful movement

The Ethiopian Muslims movement was organized around the community’s three core demands: ending the government’s continued control of the Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council, the official Islamic authority in Ethiopia; terminating the controversial reindoctrination of Ethiopian Muslims launched by the government in July 2011; and reopening the Awoliya College, the country’s only Muslim college. Authorities closed the institution in 2011, alleging it had become a breeding ground for radicals.

While the government has always controlled the council, it was Awoliya’s closure and the coercive reindoctrination campaign that triggered the confrontation. The government denies allegations of interference and control of religious institutions, but a leaked audio from the initial indoctrination sessions shows that it has invited preachers from Lebanon to introduce Al-Ahbash, a supposedly moderate sect of Sunni Islam, to Ethiopia.

Authorities arrested members of the Arbitration Committee in July 2012 after negotiations with the government failed, and they were charged with “intending to advance a political, religious or ideological cause” by force, signaling the impending criminalization of the peaceful movement.

Repressive political ends

Since the disputed 2005 elections and the mass arrests of opposition leaders and journalists, the use of court proceedings for repressive political ends has become one of the signature traits of the Ethiopian government. The primary purpose of these administrative acts disguised as criminal proceedings is the elimination of political opposition and critical voices. These trials function not to adjudicate legal disputes but to remove actors from the democratic sphere. The judicial machinery is set in motion not to determine guilt or innocence but to sustain and consolidate the government’s authoritarian stranglehold on its people.

In order to build a coherent narrative, the government often recasts genuine grievances as a national security threat and reconfigures activism as criminal offenses. For example, it accused the jailed Muslim leaders of working in tandem with foreign terrorist groups to destabilize Ethiopia and undo its economic progress. By dramatizing the impending danger and alleged links to regional militant groups such as Somalia’s Al-Shabab and Nigeria’s Boko Haram, the defendants’ prolonged trial was used to create an alternative reality manufactured by the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF).

The accused Muslim leaders see their actions as a defense of the constitution and their trial as persecution — a dubious plot to delegitimize their peaceful protests against the injustices of the state.
The government presented various forms of evidence — including documents, audio and video of sermons and speeches by the defendants, witness testimonies and material obtained through surveillance. However, most of the evidence was presented in closed sessions, and the accused were not given adequate opportunities for cross-examination. The government has deployed stealth propaganda to incriminate the defendants. Since the committee members’ arrests, authorities have produced two fake documentaries intended to generate images and narratives of terrorism to scare Christian Ethiopians and Western observers, in flagrant violation of the presumption of defendants’ innocence until proven guilty.

The verdict of history

The accused Muslim leaders see their actions as a defense of the constitution and their trial as persecution — a dubious plot to delegitimize their peaceful protests against the injustices of the state. The government misrepresented their cause in a desperate attempt to suppress their aspiration and consolidate its control over religious institutions and doctrines.

As the judge read out the verdict, one of the committee members accused the judge of being complicit in the perversion of justice and reading a judgment “written by the security establishment,” according to defense lawyers. “We appear before this court not because we thought that this court is an institution of truth and justice that judges without fear of favor but to clarify the historical record,” another defendant said.

The trial has been an occasion for the defendants to mount their objection to the government’s oppressive narratives and expose its abuse of institutions of truth and justice. As part of their struggle over the historical record, the committee members petitioned Africa’s top human rights watchdog, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, to intervene in the matter. Given the justice system’s lack of independence, the defendants are seeking to present their version of events before an independent international institution, contesting the allegations and images the government created in a trial in which it is both prosecutor and judge. In February 2015 the commission granted a provisional measure, asking Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn to undertake a full investigation into allegations of torture and other violations of due process rights.

The EPRDF is using counterterrorism as carte blanche to consolidate its authoritarian control over the country. Meanwhile, the United States, Ethiopia’s close ally in the global war on terrorism, has turned a blind eye to the misuse and abuse of its counterterrorism funding. President Barack Obama’s upcoming trip to Addis Ababa would be seen as yet another seal of approval for the regime’s repressive practices and the ruling party’s landslide victory in the recent elections. Ethiopia’s sudden and unexplained release of journalists and bloggers ahead of Obama’s visit later this month is a strategic move meant to assuage Washington’s concerns and to minimize the bad publicity around their continued incarceration.

Regardless of the outcome of these trials, history’s judgment will be different. In the verdict of history and the archives and repertoires of the oppressed, these individuals, like many who came before them, will be seen as victims of a grotesque system of justice.

Source :http://america.aljazeera.com/opinions/2015/7/ethiopia-politicizes-courts-to-strangle-dissent.html

Ethiopia and kenya secret plan to subvert somalia

The transparency website WikiLeaks late on Tuesday disclosed a secret plan to annex and divide Somalia between Kenya and Ethiopia.
“Somalia has become a fertile ground for the interest of a lot of countries,” the cable that originated from the Saudi Embassy in Djibouti outlines. “At the current moment in time, there are a number of countries in Somalia, some of whom have noticeable pull.”

According to the documents leaked by WikiLeaks,  Somalia will be split into “four regions”—two that will belong to Ethiopia, two that will belong to Kenya. The division will make both countries extend their territories by roughly 300,000sq km and additional populations of about five million.

Ethiopia and Kenya have mobilized thousands of their troops into Somalia as part of the U.N.-mandated African Union forces AMISOM to support the Somali government in its fight against the armed group, al-Shabab.However, WikiLeaks has it that the two countries pursue a much more ambitious agenda than it is officially stated. It further suggest that Kenya is said to have trained young men from the areas around Kismayo to help them win allies. The document states that Italy stands with Kenya and Ethiopia on this.

According to the cables, the Saudi Ambassador in Djibouti didn’t hide his annoyance regarding what was going on between the Prime Minister Abdi-Weli Muhammed and the regional President Abdul-Rahman Muhammed Faroole and Ambassador Augustine Mahiga, the UN’s man in Somalia. The Ambassador described Augustine as being the merchant of the Somali conflict, who was aiming to institute power-sharing in the incoming government by dissolving the current parliament and calling for a re-election of 225 members who would be chosen (so as) to ensure that the AbdiWeli is elected President and Faroole as a Prime Minister, says the undated memo.

Neither Ethiopia nor Kenya have reacted to the Wikileaks cable on the alleged project to swallow Somalia.

Somalia has been without an effective central government since warlords toppled dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 and then turned on one another, carving much of the country into armed camps ruled by violence and clan law. The government, which includes warlords linked to the violence of the past, was established with the support of the United Nations to help Somalia emerge from anarchy. But the body wields no real power and it has no military.

WikiLeaks’ memo provides a glimpse at how far Saudi Arabia will go to ensure Somalia adheres to positions in line with the Kingdom. A Somalia delegate is scolded for not voting on a resolution on the humanitarian situation in Syria like Saudi Arabia had wanted. The 61,000 Saudi cables, the first tranche of 500,000 promised by Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder, also show the Saudi’s sharp focus on its strategic rival Iran and the revolution in Egypt, and support for allies and clients in Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen and elsewhere in the Middle East.

Source: http://www.ethiopiaobserver.com/ethiopia-and-kenyas-secret-plan-to-subvert-somalia/

ወያኔ የሻእቢያ ተቃዋሚ የሆኑ ፓርቲዎችን በአዲስ አበባ ደሳለኝ ሆቴል ሊሰበስብ ነው:: – በወያኔ እና በአልሸባብ መካከል ተጋግሎ የቀጠለው ጦርነት የኦባማና ባለስልጣኖቻቸውን አትኩሮት ለመሳብ ነው

July 25, 2015 – ምኒሊክ ሳልሳዊ
ወያኔ የሻእቢያ ተቃዋሚ የሆኑ ፓርቲዎችን በአዲስ አበባ ደሳለኝ ሆቴል ሊሰበስብ ነው::-በወያኔ እና በአልሸባብ መካከል ተጋግሎ የቀጠለው ጦርነት የኦባማና ባለስልጣኖቻቸውን አትኩሮት ለመሳብ ነው::Minilik Salsawi (ምንሊክ ሳልሳዊ)​-የወያኔው ጉጅሌ አገዛዝ የሻእቢያ ተቃዋሚ የሆኑ የፖለቲካ ድርጅቶችን በማስታጠቅ እና በማደራጀት ዙሪያ በደሳለኝ ሆቴል ሊሰበስባቸው መሆኑ ተሰምቷል::በመጭው ሳምንት የሚሰበሰቡ እና በስብሰባው ተሳታፊ እንዲሆኑ ጥሪው የቀረበላቸው የኤርትራ የፖለቲካ ድርጅቶች:-

1 Eritrean People Congress,
2 Democratic Front for Eritrea Unity,
3 Eritrea Liberation Front,
4 Eritrea Democratic Party,
5 Eritrean Democratic Movement ,
6 Eritrean Nahda Party,
7 Eritrean Islamic Party for Development & Justice,
8 Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization,
9 Eritrean Islamic Congress”……….ናቸው:: እነዚህ ድርጅቶችን ወያኔ በራሱ ሰው ሃይል አዋቅሮ በማስታጠቅ እና በማደራጀት ፊት ለፊት አስቀድሞ የሻእቢያን መንግስት የመገርሰስ ሕልሙን የሚያሳካበት ስብሰባ መሆኑ ተጠቁሟል::ሻእቢያ በኤርትራ ምድር ላይ የወያኔን መንግስት ልመጣል የሚታገሉ ድርጅቶችን በማደራጀት እና በማስታጠቅ እየረዳ እንደሚገኝ ይታወቃል::ወያኔ እንዲሁ በተመሳሳይ መልኩ ከዚህ ቀደም ሲረዳቸው የነበሩ ድርጅቶችን አሁን በመሳሪያ ለማስታጠቅ እንዳሰብ ታውቋል::ባለፈው ወር በጎንደር ተሰብስበው የነበሩ ድርጅቶች እርስ በርስ አለመግባባት እንደታየባቸው ሲነገር ሰንብቷል::

ይህ በእንዲህ እንዳለ በምስራቅ ኢትዮጵያ የኦባማ መምጣት ከተሰማ በኋላ በወያኔ እና አልሸባብ ሰራዊቶች መካከል ጦርነቱ ታጋግሎ መቀጠሉ የኦባማ እና የባለስልጣኖቻቸውን አትኩሮት ለመሳብ እና ሽብርን እየተዋጋን ነው በሚል የማጭበርበሪያ ስልት መሆኑ ታውቋል::በወያኔ ትንኮሳ የተነሳው ጦርነት እስካሁን ያልበረደ ሲሆን የውስጥ ጉዳዮችን እና ውጥረቶችን በመሸፋፈን ሽብርን እየተዋጋሁ ነው በሚል ሰበብ ከአሜሪካ ከፍተኛ ድጋፍን እና የገንዘብ እርዳታን ለማግኘት የሚደረግ መራወጥ መሆኑ ተጠቁሟል::ይህ የኦባማን እና የባለስልጣኖቻቸውን አትኩሮት ለመሳብ የተጀመረው ጦርነት ከኦባማ ጉብኝት በኋላ እንደሚቆም ምንጮቹ ገልጸዋል::ጦርነቱ ምንም የማይፈይድ እና ወታደሮችን ከመገበር ውጪ አዋጪ ያልሆነ የባለስልጣናት ኪስ በአሜሪካ ዶላሮች የሞሞላ መሆኑ ታዛቢዎች ይናገራሉ::#ምንሊክሳልሳዊ

”ጋዜጠኛ ተመስገን ደሳለኝ አንዱ ጆሮው ፈፅሞ አይሰራም ሆኖም አሳሪዎቹ ወደሀኪም ቤት ሊወስዱት ፈቃደኛ አይደሉም” ፕሮፌሰር መስፍን ወ/ማርያም ትናንት ወደ ዝዋይ እስር ቤት ሄደው ከጠየቁት በኃላ የፃፉት ልብ የሚነካ ፅሁፍ

በእስር የሚማቅቀው ጋዜጠኛ ተመስገን ከሚንከባከባቸው ሕፃናት ጋር
ከእዚህ በታች ያለው ፅሁፍ ፕሮፌሰር መስፍን ወልደማርያም የዝዋይ እስር ቤትን በእዚህ ሳምንት ከጎበኙ በኃላ የፃፉት ፅሁፍ ነው።
ዝዋይ እስር ቤት
ፕሮፌሰር መስፍን ወልደ ማርያም
ሐምሌ 17/2007
ሐምሌ 16/2007 ዓ.ም. ለአሥር ወራት በእስር ላይ የቆየውን ጋዜጠኛ፣ ተመስገን ደሳለኝን (ከኃይለ ማርያም ደሳለኝ ጋር ዝምድና የለውም፤) ለመጠየቅ ወደዝዋይ ወህኔ ቤት ሄጄ ነበር፤ የወሕኒ ቤቱ ባለቤቶች ማረሚያ ቤት ይሉታል፤ ማረሚያ ቤት ማለት ሀሳቡን በነጻነት የሚገልጽና በሀሳቡም ከወያኔ ጋር በሎሌነት ለመተዳደር የማያመች ሲሆን የቀናውን በጉልበት የሚያጎብጡበት ማለታቸው ነው፤ ማረም ማለት ቀጥታውን ማጉበጥ ነው፤ እንዴት እንደሚያጎብጡት ላሳያችሁ፤–
1. የኛን እንተወውና በተባበሩት መንግሥታት ውሳኔ እስረኞች ሰዎች በመሆናቸው ሰብአዊ ደኅንነታቸውና ክብራቸው ሁልጊዜም እንዲጠበቅላቸው ያስፈልጋል፡፡
2. የኛን እንተወውና በተባበሩት መንግሥታት ውሳኔ እስረኞች ሁሉ ከመሰቃየትና ከመጉላላት በጸዳ አያያዝ እንዲጠበቁ ይደነግጋል፤
3. የኛን እንተወውና በተባበሩት መንግሥታት ውሳኔ አንድ እስረኛ ዘመዶቹና ወዳጆቹ ከሚኖሩበት በጣም ርቆ አይታሰርም፤
4. የኛን እንተወውና በተባበሩት መንግሥታት ውሳኔ የታመመ እስረኛ ሙሉ ህክምናና አስፈላጊውን መድኃኒት ሁሉ ማግኘት አለበት፤
5. የኛን እንተወውና በተባበሩት መንግሥታት ውሳኔ እስረኞች በአእምሮና በመንፈስ የሚያድጉበት ትምህርትን የማግኘት፣ መጻሕፍትን የማግኘት መብቶች አሏቸው፤
6. የኛን እንተወውና በተባበሩት መንግሥታት ውሳኔ ማንኛውም እስረኛ በእምነቱ መሠረት አምልኮቱን የመፈጸምና የሃይማኖቱን መጻሕፍት የማንበብ መብት አለው፤
7. የኛን እንተወውና በተባበሩት መንግሥታት ውሳኔ ማንኛውም እስረኛ ዘመዶቹና ወዳጆቹ እንዲጎበኙት መብት አለው፤
8. እስረኞች የእስር ጊዜያቸውን ጨርሰው ከወህኒ ቤት ሲወጡ ትክክለኛ የማኅበረሰቡ አባሎች ሆነው እየሠሩ ለማኅበረሰቡ እድገት ድርሻቸውን እንዲያበረክቱ ማሰናዳት ያስፈልጋል፤
በዝዋይ እንዳየነውና እንደተነገርነው የእስረኞች ሁኔታ በጣም የሚያሳዝንና ከላይ የተዘረዘሩትን የሰብአዊ መብቶች የሚጥስ ነው፤ ጤንነት ዋና ነገር ነውና በሱ እንጀምር፤ ተመስገን ደሳለኝ ወንጀል የተባለበት የፖሊቲካም ሆነ የማኅበረሰብ እምነቱን እያፍረጠረጠ በመጻፉ ነው፤ (በ1992 ለዩኒቨርሲቲ ተማሪዎች ባደረግሁት ንግግር ‹‹አትፍሩ›› ብለሃል ተብዬ ተከስሼ ነበር!) እንዲያውም ክሱን አስቂኝ የሚያደርገው መንግሥትን ነቅፈሃል የሚል መሆኑ ነው፤ ሦስት ዓመት እስራት ተፈረደበት፤ ይግባኝ ተከለከለ፤ አሁን ከታሰረ አሥር ወራት ሆኑት፤ ተመስገን በጣም ከታመመ ጥቂት ቆየ፤ አንደኛ አንዱ ጆሮው በጭራሽ አይሰማም፤ ሁለተኛ ከባድ የወገብ ሕመም ስላለበት መተኛትና መቀጥም በጭንቅ ሆኖበታል፤ ሆኖም አሳሪዎቹ ወደሀኪም ቤት ሊወስዱት ፈቃደኛ አይደሉም፤ ከዚያም በላይ መድኃኒት ከውጭ ሲመጣለት ይከለክላሉ፤ እኔም የወገብ ሕመም ስላለብኝ የወገብ ሕመሙን የሚያቀልለትን መድኃኒት ወስጄለት ነበር፤ አንድ አሥር አለቃ መድኃኒቱን አየና ከለከለ፤ መልሼ ይዤው መጣሁ፤ እንዲህ ያለውን ውሳኔ የሚያደርጉ ሁሉ ወያኔዎች ናቸው፡፡
ከተመስገን ጋር ትንሽ ጊዜ ቆይተን በዚያው በዝዋይ የታሰሩ ሌሎች ጋዜጠኞችን ለመጠየቅ መጀመሪያ ተፈቅዶልን ስለነበረ ወደዚያ ስናመራ አንድ ሹም መሳይ መጥቶ ወታደሮቹን ለብቻ ለብቻ በስም እየጠራ በመንሾካሾክ ትእዛዝ ይሰጣል፤ እየተንሾካሾከ ለአንዱ ትእዛዝ ሰጥቶ ሌሎቹን እንዳናይ ከለከለንና ተመለስን፤ ምክንያቱን ብንጠይቅ በአንድ ጊዜ መጠየቅ የሚቻለው አንድ እስረኛ ብቻ ነው ተባልን፤ ቅን መንፈስ ለጎደለውና ለሙስና ለተጋለጠ አሠራር ጥሩ ምሳሌ ነው፤ በመንሾካሾክ የሚሰጠውም ትእዛዝ ዓላማው ያው ይመስላል፤ ወያኔ በሰዎች ላይ እንዲህ ያለ ጭካኔ ማሳየት የሚፈልገው ለምንድን ነው?
በዝዋይ እስር ቤት ትምህርትም እንደመድኃኒት የተጠላ ነገር ነው፤ ለተመስገንም ሆነ ለሌሎች መጻሕፍት አይገቡላቸውም፤ ለምን? ብዬ ስጠይቅ አንዱ ጠባቂ ‹‹ለእውቀት የሚሆን መጽሐፍ ይገባል፤›› አለኝ፤ የእውቀትን ፍቺ ለመጠየቅ ስሞክር ቶሎ ግራ መጋባቱን አየሁና ተውሁት፤ እሱም እንዳያውቅ ስለሚፈልጉ፣ አለቆቹ የእውቀትን ፍቺ ጠበብና ቀለል አድርገው አስተምረውታል፤ ሎሌ ትእዛዝን በሹክሹክታ እየተቀበለ ማስፈጸም እንጂ፣ እውቀት አያስፈልገውም፤ እዚህ ላይ ምናልባት በደርግ ጊዜ በእስር ቤቶች የነበረውን የትምህርት መስፋፋት ማንሣት ይጠቅም ይሆናል፤ በደርግ ዘመን ብዙ የተማሩ ሰዎች ታስረው ስለነበረ እረስበርሳቸው እየተማማሩ አንዳንድ ሰዎች ጀርመንኛና ፈረንሳይና ቋንቋዎች፣ ግእዝና ታሪክ እየተማሩ ወጥተዋል፤ በተለይ በሁለተኛ ደረጃ መልቀቂያ ፈተና ወህኒ ቤቶች አንደኛ ሲወጡ እንደነበረ አስታውሳለሁ፤ ዛሬ በወህኒ ቤቶች ትምህርት ክልክል ነው፤ በቃሊቲ ሁለት የትምህርት ሙከራዎች ከሽፈውብናል፤ አንድ ጊዜ ኦሮምኛ ለመማር የፈለግን ሰዎች ተሰባስበን ተከልክለናል፤ ሕግ ለመማርም ጀምረን ታግደናል፤ እንዲሁም ጂምናስቲክ በቡድን መሥራት ክልክል ነበር፤ ማናቸውም እውቀት አደገኛ ነው! ታዲያ ማረሚያ ቤት የሚሉት ማንን ለማታለል ነው? ማረሚያ ቤት እንዲሆን በመጀመሪያ አሳሪዎቹ መታረም አለባቸው!
እንደተመስገን ደሳለኝ፣ እንደአብርሃ ደስታ፣ እንደእስክንድር ነጋ፣ ከዞን ዘጠኝም በፈቃዱ ኃይሉ፣ ናትናኤል ፈለቀ፣ አቤል ወበላ፣ አጥናፉ ብርሃኔ ገና አልተለቀቁም፤ በተጨማሪም ከእስልምና በኩል የመፍትሔ አፈላላጊ ኮሚቴ አባሎች ዛሬም እንደታሰሩ ነው፤ የመፍትሔ አፈላላጊዎችን ማሰር ነገሩም ግራ ነው፡፡
በመጨረሻም መነሣት ያለበት አንድ አደገኛ አዝማሚያ አለ፤ ፖሊስ የሚባለው ፍርድ ቤት ከሚባለው ጋር ያለው ግንኙነት ሕግ የሚባለውን ከጨዋታ ውጭ አድርጎታል፤ ፍርድ ቤት የሚባለው እስረኛ እንዲፈታ ፖሊስ የሚባለውን ሲያዝ እንደማይፈጸም በተደጋጋሚ ታየ፤ ይህ የመጨረሻው የውድቀት ምልክትይመስለኛል፤ቆም ብሎ ማሰብና አስፈላጊውን የለውጥ እርምጃ መውሰድ የሚያስፈልገው አሁን ነው፡፡

ጉዳያችን GUDAYACHN BLOG
Source:: gudayachn

Obama’s Africa visit troubles human rights groups

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama’s trip to Kenya and Ethiopia is drawing fresh criticism that the two countries are heavy-handed on human rights and basic democratic freedoms.

Obama will become the first sitting U.S. president to visit Kenya, his ancestral homeland, when he arrives Friday to attend a business summit and meetings with President Uhuru Kenyatta. Obama will become the first U.S. president to travel to Ethiopia when he lands there Sunday to confer with Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and to address the African Union, which is headquartered there.

“While both countries face real security threats, we are concerned by the way in which each government has responded, often with abusive security measures and increased efforts to stifle civil society and the media,” Human Rights Watch and other advocacy organizations and analysts said in a letter to Obama. “Many of these initiatives undermine core human rights protections and the rule of law and are also counterproductive when it comes to reducing insecurity.”

Obama said one of the themes he will stress during the trip is that the economic growth that Africans seek depends on good governance, including free and fair elections; strong, democratic institutions; freedom of speech and the press; vibrant civic participation and respect for human rights.

The White House says the trip, Obama’s fourth to the continent as president, is an important opportunity for him to promote trade and investment with Africa, but to also check in with important Horn of Africa partners in the fight against Islamic extremism. The U.S. and Kenya work together to counter al-Shabab, the Islamic militant group based in neighboring Somalia that has carried out numerous attacks in Kenya, including the mass killing of university students in April, the 2013 attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, the capital, and the bombing of the U.S. Embassy, also in Nairobi, in 1998.“Some African nations have made impressive progress on these fronts,” he said in an opinion piece published Thursday by The Root, a website with a largely African-American audience. “Others have not. My trip will be an opportunity to address these issues candidly, both publicly and privately in my meetings with leaders.”

Ethiopia shares intelligence with the U.S. as part of the anti-terrorism effort and also has sent troops across the border into Somalia to address instability there.

The letter to Obama said he should put the “pressing human rights concerns” in Kenya and Ethiopia “at the forefront of your discussions.”

The letter expressed concern that both countries are using national security concerns to stifle the media as well as civic participation and, in Kenya, to crack down on Somali refugees who have fled the instability in their home country. Kenya’s deputy president, William Ruto, is also under indictment by the International Criminal Court for alleged links to violence after the 2007 election. The ICC recently dropped similar charges against Kenyatta, an outcome that increased the odds of an Obama visit to the East African nation.

The Ethiopian government earlier this month released several journalists and bloggers who had been arrested in April 2014 on charges of incitement and terrorism, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Ethiopia is known for media oppression and the journalism watchdog group ranks it as the second-worst jailer of journalists in Africa, after Eritrea. The country’s ruling coalition also won a sweeping victory in parliamentary elections in May that Western nations criticized as unfair.

“With all the countries in Africa, and a visit to two countries, to pick Ethiopia is a very bad optic, I think,” said Jennifer Cooke, director of the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Susan Rice, Obama’s national security adviser, said “there is nothing unique” about Obama’s visit to Africa. The president often meets with foreign leaders with whom the administration has concerns about how they treat their people, she said Wednesday while previewing the trip for reporters.

Source:http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/obamas-africa-visit-troubles-human-rights-groups/

Berhanu Nega: Eritrea’s cannon fodder or Ethiopia’s big hope?

Many Ethiopians had a diverse reaction to the latest news that Dr Berhanu Nega has gone to Eritrea to lead the armed struggle against the Ethiopian regime.

I first met Dr. Berhanu Nega in New York city in 2007. After his release from prison in Ethiopia, he came to a research college at 5th avenue downtown Manhattan at 13street. Berhanu spoke passionately about all the problems in Ethiopia, sweating aggressively as he concluded his list of main points. He told the mostly non-Ethiopian audience that there will never be changes in Ethiopia peacefully. After his presentation, I spoke with him for a few minutes and discussed various topics.

Dr. Berhanu Nega is truly one of Ethiopia’s greatest sons; very patriotic, educated and of course, the first democratically elected mayor of Addis Ababa. Like Obama in the US, Dr. Berhanu has been one of the greatest orators or gifted communicators in modern Ethiopian history. As we all know, he led the CUD national party in 2005 to a convincing election victory, not only in Addis Ababa and Amhara region, but also in most of the south. Such nationwide success by CUD in 2005, even in some parts of Oromia region, surprised many of us and proved that the Meles Zenawi regime has not yet made tribalism more powerful than Ethiopian nationalism in the country.

But Zenawi’s brutality and the 2005 election fraud, as documented by the EU election observers, inspired Berhanu to establish the GINBOT 7 organization. Its stated goal was to establish democracy in Ethiopia, either thru armed struggle from the periphery or from the inside-out via a military coup.

Many of us had our reservations when he announced his new plan, because we know, from history, that political changes thru the barrel of gun often lead to another cycle of dictatorship; or worse, spark another civil war. And Ethiopia already has too many foreign enemies close by that would love to exploit such a scenario.

But the Eritrea route has been too hard to resist.

Yes, we want the Assab port back.

Yes, we don’t like how the Isayas regime has oppressed our Eritrean brothers and sisters. And yes, we oppose Eritrea’s short sighted policy of helping fundamentalists in Somalia. But we still have one big common interest with Isayas or one common belief: we both see Zenawism as the biggest threat to stability of the horn of Africa. For those who are new to this term “Zenawism,” it is an ideology that extremely politicizes tribal identity in order to promote the creation of ethnic based mini-nation states through out Africa. It is a dangerous doctrine that I attribute to Meles Zenawi since he established ethnic-federalism as the foundation for such a reality that can spread like cancer continent-wide. Zenawism stands against the African Union charter and against conventional wisdom which demanded that Africa keep colonial era boundaries in order to avoid endless wars. Basically, since there are over 3,000 major tribes and languages in Africa, if Zenawism spreads continent-wide, it could translate to over 3,000 tribal pseudo states fighting for nationhood, possibly leading to thousands of new and endless ethnic-based border wars all over Africa.

Just like Ethiopia, Eritrea is also made up of many ethnic groups. If President Isayas cares about Eritrea at all, it would be in his best national interest to stop the spread of Zenawism inside Eritrea. Potentially giving up (or sharing) Assab port is a very small price to pay in order to save the fabric of Eritrean society from Zenawism.

The ultimate question now is, will this common interest between the Ethio opposition and the Eritrean regime be a strong enough glue to lead them to victory? Or is President Isayas simply playing them for a fool? In the absence of any insurance policy for the opposition, many Ethiopians also wonder if the weak Eritrean regime is just planning to exploit Ginbot 7 or use Ethiopian opposition as “cannon fodder” in its future war with the Ethiopian regime. In addition, knowing how thousands of Eritreans are deserting the Eritrean army, one wonders if the Ethiopian opposition groups inside Eritrea are actually there as expendable human wave to protect Eritrean troops. The answer to all these questions, we will not know anytime soon. But the latest 100% election “victory” of the EPRDF regime in Ethiopia seems to have pushed many Ethiopians like Dr Berhanu Nega to the limit, to a place where nothing can get worse than it already has.

The writer can be reached at Teshomeborago@yahoo.com

Source:: satenaw

ከ24 ቢሊዮን ብር በላይ ወጪ የተደረገበት የጦር መሳሪያ ሊገዛ ነው

ሐምሌ ፩ (አንድ) ቀን ፳፻፯ ዓ/ም ኢሳት ዜና :- የጦር ሃይሎች ኢታማዦር ሹም ጄ/ል ሳሞራ የኑስ ፣ ጠ/ሚኒስትሩን ጨምሮ ከፍተኛ የኢህአዴግ የጦር አዛዦች በተገኙበት የወታደራዊ ጥቅል አቋማቸውን አቅርበዋል።
በከፍተኛ ሚስጢር በተካሄደው ስብሰባ ላይ ፣ ጄ/ል ሳሞራ ” ጦራችን ከጊዜው ጋር እየዘመነ አይደለም፣ የታንኮቻችን አቅም ያረጀ ነው፣ ተዋጊ አውሮፕላኖቻችን ከገበያ የወጡ ናቸው፣ መቀየሪያ እቃዎቻቸው ( ስፔር ፓርትስ) ከገበያ እየወጡና እየጠፉ ነው። ” ብለዋል።
349 ሺ 571 የሰራዊት አባላት እንዳሉ የገለጹት ጄ/ል ሳሞራ፣ የምድር ሃይል በ10 ክፍለጦሮችና 61 ብርጌዶች መዋቀራቸውን ተናግረዋል።
ጠረፍ ጠባቂ የሰው ሃይል 13 ሺ 564 ሲሆን፣ ቀዳሚ ኮር ተብሎ የሚወሰደው 2 ሺ 300 ፣ ማዕከላዊ የደህንነት ኃይል 349 ሺ 571 እንዲሁም ብሄራዊ ጠባቂ ጦር 35 ሺ 000 ድንበር ተከላካይ ደግሞ 11 ሺ 578 መሆኑን ጀኔራል ሳሞራ ገልጸዋል።
በምድር ጦር ሃይል በታንኮች ምድብ ከፍተኛ ደረጃ ያላቸው ኤም 1 ኤ 1 ብዛት 537 ሲሆን፣ አገልግሎት መስጠት የሚችሉት 321 ዱ ናቸው፡፡
አገሪቱ መለስተኛ እና አነሰተኛ ኤም 60 ኤ 3 ፣ 234 ሲኖሩዋት በትክክል መስራት የሚችሉት 198 ናቸው። 301 የሚሆኑ ኤም 6 ኤ 1 የጦር መሳሪያ ሲኖሩ መስራት የሚችሉት 299 ዱ ናቸው ፡፡ ከ253 ቲ-62 ታንኮች መካከል መስራት የሚችሉት 211 መሆናቸውን፣ ካሉት 203 ቲ- 55 መለስተኛ አነስተኛ የምድር ጦር ታንኮች ውስጥ 119 ኙ መስራት እንደሚችሉ ጀኔራሉ ገልጸዋል።
የቅኝት አውሮፕላኖቻችን አቅም ውስን ነው ያሉት ጀኔራል ሳሞራ የኑስ በአሁኑ ስዓት 7 የቅኝት አውሮፕላኖቻችንን ይዘን መንቀሳቀስ ከፍተኛ ጉዳት በመሆኑ ፤ በአዲሱ የሀገሪቱ በጀት ከግብርና ፤ ከጤና ሴክተር ከተበጀተላቸው የስራ ማስኬጃ 15 በመቶ የሚሰጡት ወደ 20 በመቶ ማደግ አለበት ብለዋል፡፡
ሞዴላቸወ ኤፒሲኤስ ኤም 113 ኤ 2 የኤኤፍ ቪኤስ ተሽከርካሪዎች በቁጥር 1560 ሲሆኑ አገልግሎት መስጠት የሚችሉት 678 ብቻ ናቸው፡፡
አይኤፍ ቪኤስ ሞዴል የሆኑ – ዋይ ፒአር -765 ተሸከርካሪዎች፣ በቁጥር 314 ፤ ቢኤምፒ-1 በቁጥር 189 ፤ ቪ-150 /ቪ-300 ኮምንዶ በቁጥር 186 እንደሚገኙም ገልጸዋል።
በቅኝት መሳሪያነት ቢአርዲኤም -1 በቁጥር 158፣ ቢቲአር-40/152 የቅኝት ሞዴል 523 አሉን ያሉት ጄ/ል ሳሞራ፣ በቀጣይ የዘመኑ ቢቲአር -50 -ፒኬኤም በቁጥር 156 ፣ዋይፒአር-765 በቁጥር 326 እንደሚያስፈልጉ ገልጸዋል።
156 የሚሆኑ በመድፍ ጦር መሳሪያ ሞዴላቸው 155 ሚሊ ሜትር ኤም 109 ኤ2 ያሉ ሲሆን አገልግሎት መስጠት የሚችሉት 99 ብቻ ናቸው፡፡ 87 ፣ 122 ሚ ሜ ኤስፒ ያሉ ሲሆን፣ ሀሉም አገልግሎት መስጠት ይችላሉ፡፡
ሞዴላቸው 130 ሚሊ ሜትር ኤም-46/ ፣ 122 ሚሜ ዲ-130 የግዥ ጥያቄ ቀርቦ በድርድር ላይ ነው፡፤
ሞዴላቸው 155 ሚሜ ጂኤች 52 ኤፒዩ እና 153 ሚሜ ኤም 109 ኤ2/ኤ3 በሀገር ውስጥ ለመሸፈን መለዋወጫዎችን ከውጭ በማስመጣት እየተሰሩ ያሉ የመድፍ አይነት መሆናቸውንም ጄኔራሉ ገልጸዋል።
አገሪቱ 3፣ አርቲላሪና ሞርተር አመልካች ራዳሮች ኤኤን/ቲፒ ኪው-36 ሲኖሯት፣ ኤኤን/ቲፒ ኪው-37 በቀጣይ ሶስት ወራት ወደብ ይደርሳሉ ተብሏል።
ሌሎች በርካታ የጦር መሳሪያዎችና የተሽከርካሪዎችን ብዛት በዝርዝር የገለጹት የመከላከያ ምንጮች፣ ኢሳት ለዜና በሚመች መልኩ ያቀረበው፣ ጄ/ል ሳሞራ ካቀረቡት ሪፖርት በጣም አነስተኛውን ነው።
ጄ/ል ሳሞራ ሪፖርቱን ካቀረቡ በሁዋላ አቶ ሀይለማርያም ደሳለኝ ‹‹እኔ ስለጦርነት ምንም አይነት ኖሃው ( አውቀቱ) የለኝም፣ የግዥ ፍላጎቱን አፀድቃለሁ፣ እናንተ ብቻ ይሆናል የምትሉትን አቅርቡልኝ” የሚል አጭር መልስ ሰጥተዋል።
በወይይቱ ወቅት የተነሱ የኢህአዴግ ሰራዊት የስልጠና እና ግንኙነት አውሮፕላኖች አይነት እና መጠን ፤አየር ሃይሉ አሉት የተባለውን የጦር መሳሪያ ፤ አየር መካላከል እና የጦር ሃይሉን ስርጭት እንዲሁም፣ የጦር ሃይል ሰፈሮች ፤ የአየር መከላከያ ዘዴዎች ፤ መጠገኛዎች እና የጦር መሳሪያ ማከማቻ ቦታዎች ፤ የጦር አወሮፕላኖቻቸውን የወጊያ ብቃት እንደምናቀርብ ለመግለጽ እንወዳለን።
ኢሳት መረጃውን ላቀረቡልን የዘወትር ምንጮች ያለውን ከፍተና ምስጋና ለማቅረብ ይወዳል፡፡

Source:http://ethsat.com/amharic

Obama criticised for scheduling visit to ‘oppressive’ Ethiopia

Human rights groups and a leading US newspaper are criticising President Barack Obama’s planned visit next month to Ethiopia.

“It’s almost unfathomable that he would make time for an entrenched human-rights abuser such as Ethiopia while cold-shouldering the nation that just witnessed a historic, peaceful, democratic change of power: Nigeria,” the Washington Post declared in a June 24 editorial.

The Obama administration has previously rebuked Ethiopian authorities for repressive practices. But the US also recently praised Ethiopia for “strengthening its democracy” and has remained silent on the results of elections last month that saw the ruling party, in power for nearly 25 years, capture every seat in the 547-member parliament.

READ: Ethiopian party in total sweep of seats in poll

Sarah Margon, Washington director for Human Rights Watch, called that outcome “ridiculous” and likened it to the results of sham elections in the former Soviet bloc.

“We’re disappointed the president is going to Ethiopia,” Ms Margon said in an interview with The East-African. “It’s only going to be seen as, and played by the Ethiopian government as, a reward.”

Human Rights Watch has “no problem” with Mr Obama’s scheduled visit to African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ms Margon added. The US media often portrays Ethiopia as “a success story,” she said, when in fact “it’s a human-rights disaster.”

Some analysts suggest that the US leader’s decision to meet with Ethiopia’s rulers reflects the overriding priority that Washington assigns to counter-terrorism initiatives in East Africa.

Ethiopia contributes nearly 4,500 troops to the 22,000-member African Union force fighting Al Shabaab in Somalia.

The US maintains a base in eastern Ethiopia from which it flies Predator drones over parts of the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia was also reportedly among the sites where the CIA operated secret prisons for interrogating suspected members of Al Qaeda.

Some US businesses are eager to invest in Ethiopia, a country of 94 million people that has recorded significant economic growth in recent years. The Washington-based Corporate Council on Africa is holding its bi-annual US-Africa Business Summit in Addis Ababa in November.

“A decade-long campaign by Ethiopia’s government to silence dissent forcibly has left the country without a viable political opposition, without independent media, and without public challenges to the ruling party’s ideology,” Freedom House, a New York-based NGO, commented last week.

The organisation noted that of the $400 million in projected US aid to Ethiopia’s “oppressive regime” this year, only $2 million is focused on promoting democracy and human rights.

“Ethiopia is also one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists,” the Washington Post noted in its editorial.

The newspaper argued that Mr Obama’s planned meetings with Ethiopian officials contradicts his declaration of support for African democracies during a visit to Ghana in 2009. “Africa doesn’t need strongmen,” the US president said on that occasion. “It needs strong institutions.”

Mr Obama’s trip to Ethiopia will send “the opposite message, in essence validating Ethiopia’s sham elections and rewarding a regime that has shown no intent to reform,” the Post’s editors wrote.

“Six years after his idealistic speech in Ghana, Mr Obama is sending a message to Africa that democracy isn’t all that important after all.”

Source:http://www.theeastafrican.