Ethiopia: November 1st, 2005 - Remembering the events of that day

ETP

A day earlier – the EPRDF led government of Ethiopia issues a violent statement on state run radio and TV. This statement drew parallels between the Rwandan Interehamwe militia and the popularly elected CUD leaders who, in reality, were advocates of a peaceful resistance. This statement leaves many angry and frustrated, what the government was trying to do was becoming obvious. It was trying to discredit the elected leaders and justify its grip on power.

November 1st – The government dispatches armed security forces to watch high schools and universities to look for signs of opposition.

Addis Ketema high School (Merkato) - security forces encircle the school without any given warnings. Students of Addis Ketema High School start protesting; troops start shooting at students. Stand byers seeing the students were brutally being massacred - fearlessly join the high school students in protesting. Troops start shooting into the unarmed crowd indiscriminately. News of what happened in merkato is heard all over Addis. Angry citizens all over Addis Abeba join in on the protest.

Massacre – Members of the Agazi unite, special branch of the EPRDF military, erratically start spraying bullets on protesters. The following are news excerpts of events that transpired on that day.

USA Today - "The violence spread across the city of 3 million people, reaching the doorsteps of the British, French, Kenyan and Belgian embassies all located in different parts of the capital. Workers at U.N. headquarters were told not to leave their offices. "

Reuters - The wounds are in the most dangerous areas. There are no shots below the knee. There are shots on the chest, on the head and other dangerous parts," the doctor told.

"I was on my way home when police attacked me with a stick. I was running for my life when I was shot in the arm," said Hunegnaw Teferi, 25, receiving treatment at St Paul's Hospita

Associated press - Witnesses also said police fired assault rifles and lobbed grenades indiscriminately against civilians Wednesday. Among the victims was Arabia Abdul, who was wounded by shrapnel in her stomach and legs.

"The police were looking for rioters and burst into our compound. They fired tear gas and then threw a grenade," said her father, a 44-year-old daily laborer. "The police then started shooting in the compound. My daughter has never been in trouble with anyone."

Witness reporting from Addis- "I was in a Taxi (Mini bus) on the way Abenet to Central Bus station. The area was not quite. The driver gets stopped, and then the soldiers arrived immediately. They took him out of the cabin. I do not know what he did wrong. They beat him hard & thrown him over the Police truck. All the passengers, including me jumped out of the mini bus. Following there was shooting. We run away. When I turn to a narrow street to the village I tried to see back many people were falling down. This was a tragic event for me in my life. Civilians get shot down by armed forces."

Arrest of the elected leaders - Police start arresting CUD (the opposition) leaders, including CUD's President Hailu Shawel, VP. Judge Birtukan Mideksa, Professor Mesfin W/Mariam (human rights activist), Engineer Gizachew Shiferaw, Dr Yacob Hailemariam, Dr Berhanu Nega, Dr Hailu Araia, judge Dr Befekadu Degifie, Tamru Gulilat, Major Melaku Admassie and many others. Ethiopia's civic organization leaders, members of the free press and human rights advocates are also hunted down and arrested.

At the end of the day; countless bodies lay in morgues in hospitals all over Addis, hundreds were left disfigured for life. The Prime Minister of Ethiopia calls the killings necessary and a few days’ later charges the arrested elected leaders of the CUD with genocide.

Also read:
-Ethiopian security forces massacred protesters: Associated Press
-Ethiopian forces killed 193 unarmed protesters: CNN
-Ethiopian protesters 'massacred': BBC

Interview of Judge Wolde-Michael Meshesha
By EMF and ethioguardian
Translation by Fikirte Hagos, ETP

.....On July 4 (sene 27), 2006, we voted 8 to 2 that the government has taken excessive force against civilians.

.....At this point it became clear to us that we were in trouble but we stayed around until 6 PM. After this some people around the office started to say “How can you sit quietly. You know you’re surrounded.” Alarmed and aware that we were in danger, we all retreated to our lodgings. We all went to the same hotel except for the Chairperson who lived there and headed home for the night. When we got to our hotel, there were also a number of new faces there we didn’t see before. We asked the owner of the hotel and he even responded that he didn’t know who these people were. Interestingly this was June, the time of the world cup and people, including myself, were all eager to see the games. However the power outage didn’t make this possible and it continued through out the night and finally came back, I think, around 5 A.M. (More...)

(Poem by Mamush M)

Ethiopia: November 1st, 2005 - Remembering the events of that day

ETP

A day earlier – the EPRDF led government of Ethiopia issues a violent statement on state run radio and TV. This statement drew parallels between the Rwandan Interehamwe militia and the popularly elected CUD leaders who, in reality, were advocates of a peaceful resistance. This statement leaves many angry and frustrated, what the government was trying to do was becoming obvious. It was trying to discredit the elected leaders and justify its grip on power.

November 1st – The government dispatches armed security forces to watch high schools and universities to look for signs of opposition.

Addis Ketema high School (Merkato) - security forces encircle the school without any given warnings. Students of Addis Ketema High School start protesting; troops start shooting at students. Stand byers seeing the students were brutally being massacred - fearlessly join the high school students in protesting. Troops start shooting into the unarmed crowd indiscriminately. News of what happened in merkato is heard all over Addis. Angry citizens all over Addis Abeba join in on the protest.

Massacre – Members of the Agazi unite, special branch of the EPRDF military, erratically start spraying bullets on protesters. The following are news excerpts of events that transpired on that day.

USA Today - "The violence spread across the city of 3 million people, reaching the doorsteps of the British, French, Kenyan and Belgian embassies all located in different parts of the capital. Workers at U.N. headquarters were told not to leave their offices. "

Reuters - The wounds are in the most dangerous areas. There are no shots below the knee. There are shots on the chest, on the head and other dangerous parts," the doctor told.

"I was on my way home when police attacked me with a stick. I was running for my life when I was shot in the arm," said Hunegnaw Teferi, 25, receiving treatment at St Paul's Hospita

Associated press - Witnesses also said police fired assault rifles and lobbed grenades indiscriminately against civilians Wednesday. Among the victims was Arabia Abdul, who was wounded by shrapnel in her stomach and legs.

"The police were looking for rioters and burst into our compound. They fired tear gas and then threw a grenade," said her father, a 44-year-old daily laborer. "The police then started shooting in the compound. My daughter has never been in trouble with anyone."

Witness reporting from Addis- "I was in a Taxi (Mini bus) on the way Abenet to Central Bus station. The area was not quite. The driver gets stopped, and then the soldiers arrived immediately. They took him out of the cabin. I do not know what he did wrong. They beat him hard & thrown him over the Police truck. All the passengers, including me jumped out of the mini bus. Following there was shooting. We run away. When I turn to a narrow street to the village I tried to see back many people were falling down. This was a tragic event for me in my life. Civilians get shot down by armed forces."

Arrest of the elected leaders - Police start arresting CUD (the opposition) leaders, including CUD's President Hailu Shawel, VP. Judge Birtukan Mideksa, Professor Mesfin W/Mariam (human rights activist), Engineer Gizachew Shiferaw, Dr Yacob Hailemariam, Dr Berhanu Nega, Dr Hailu Araia, judge Dr Befekadu Degifie, Tamru Gulilat, Major Melaku Admassie and many others. Ethiopia's civic organization leaders, members of the free press and human rights advocates are also hunted down and arrested.

At the end of the day; countless bodies lay in morgues in hospitals all over Addis, hundreds were left disfigured for life. The Prime Minister of Ethiopia calls the killings necessary and a few days’ later charges the arrested elected leaders of the CUD with genocide.

Also read:
-Ethiopian security forces massacred protesters: Associated Press
-Ethiopian forces killed 193 unarmed protesters: CNN
-Ethiopian protesters 'massacred': BBC

Interview of Judge Wolde-Michael Meshesha
By EMF and ethioguardian
Translation by Fikirte Hagos, ETP

.....On July 4 (sene 27), 2006, we voted 8 to 2 that the government has taken excessive force against civilians.

.....At this point it became clear to us that we were in trouble but we stayed around until 6 PM. After this some people around the office started to say “How can you sit quietly. You know you’re surrounded.” Alarmed and aware that we were in danger, we all retreated to our lodgings. We all went to the same hotel except for the Chairperson who lived there and headed home for the night. When we got to our hotel, there were also a number of new faces there we didn’t see before. We asked the owner of the hotel and he even responded that he didn’t know who these people were. Interestingly this was June, the time of the world cup and people, including myself, were all eager to see the games. However the power outage didn’t make this possible and it continued through out the night and finally came back, I think, around 5 A.M. (More...)

(Poem by Mamush M)

New deadly floods kill 67 in Ethiopia

Also in the news: Attention readers in Ethiopia: Judge W/Michael Messhesha's Interview (Amharic), Ethiopian royal family to sell property in Jerusalem to foreign nationals, The Ethiopian who uses old mortar shells to make great coffee and more of today's top stories

Ethiopia hit by new deadly floods

At least 67 people have been killed by floods in Ethiopia's eastern Ogaden region, aid workers say. Almost 300,000 have been affected after the Shabelle river burst its banks, an aid worker told the BBC.

There are also unconfirmed reports that crocodiles have killed two people in the floods. Accurate information is hard to get from the remote area.The area was also hit by devastating floods earlier this year, which killed hundreds and left thousands homeless.

The BBC's Amber Henshaw in Ethiopia says some people had only just returned home when they were forced to flee again following torrential rain. "Sixty-seven people have died since the worst flooding hit Friday, and the crocodiles in the area are eating some of the bodies," Muktar Mohammed, flood coordinator for the government-run Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Bureau, told the AP news agency. (More...)

Attention readers in Ethiopia

You may not have had the chance to see the real report of the real independent inquiry commission. Below is a transcript of Judge W/Micheal Meshesha’s Interview with Radio Ethiopia Sweden. In this interview Judge W/Michael Messhesha reveals what was to be the report of the Original inquiry commission. [Courtesy of HR5680 taskforce]

(Read transcript)

Ethiopian royal family to sell property in Jerusalem to foreign nationals

Ethiopians in Jerusalem (EIJ)

On 21 September 2006, the Jerusalem District Court in Israel decided in favor of conferring a disputed property in Jerusalem to the survivors of Emperor Haile-Selassie and Empress Mennen.

As recalled, this property’s ownership was in dispute between the Royal Family and the EPRDF government in Ethiopia since 1999. The would-be Empress acquired the land, which is situated on Dvora Hanevia St. no 4 and 6 in Jerusalem through the mediation of the Ethiopian Consul in Jerusalem at the time Ato Paulos in early 1928, and was legally registered under the names of the late Emperor and Empress on January 25, 1928.

....Selling this ‘holy’ site to foreigners can only amount to a treacherous act against the people of Ethiopia and the memory and legacy of HIM Emperor Haile-Selassie and Empress Mennen. Through this act an important part of this memory and legacy of both of them will be irreversibly extracted and extorted from Jerusalem and Ethiopia’s histories once and for all.

So when faced with the dilemma of choice between a tyrant nihilistic regime and a self-centered elite claiming to have royal blood, one ought to remember that in both cases the Ethiopian nation is the one losing a great deal. (More...)

The Ethiopian who uses old mortar shells to make great coffee

In Biblical times they said "turn your swords into ploughshares", now in northern Ethiopia a tradesman is bringing the saying into the 21st century.

In his workshop in Mekele, just 200km from Ethiopia's border with Eritrea, Azmeraw Zekele is turning burnt-out shells into cylinders used in coffee machines.

Most of the shells are leftover from the war between the two countries which took place between 1998 and 2000.

The workshop is made up of three quite small ramshackle rooms that lead from one to another with sunlight coming through the gaps, but it is a hive of activity for Mr Azmeraw and his six staff. (More...)

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