Are Oromos Singled Out and Disproportionately Tortured in Ethiopia?

Image: Courtesy of TASSC International


You may ask people in Oromia, what is the language most widely spoken in Ethiopia's prisons? Who are the ethnic groups singled out and subjected to extreme torture in Ethiopia's notorious torture facilities? The answers to both questions are Afan Oromo (the Oromo language), and Oromo people respectively. People have pointed to this time and again to the point that torture and political imprisonments are almost becoming synonymous with one ethnicity in Ethiopia, the Oromo people.

Human Rights Watch just released a riveting account of torture in Maekealawi (comparable to Auschwitz of the Nazi era  and Gitmo of the post-9/11 period). The conditions Oromo political prisoners, including school children, who have barely come off age, face in Maekalawi and Kaliti and other facilities of torture is similar to those faced by the Jewish community during the Holocaust. The comparison to Gitmo might be a little far-fetched since Oromo detainees are innocent and unarmed civilians who get thrown into torture prisons in most cases for no other valid reasons than their default belonging in a nationality group that is different, politicized and competing with the nationality group that controls the levers of power through totalitarian parties known as the Tigire Peoples Liberation Front/ The Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front. 

I often get asked by Faranjii sympathizers with the Oromo conditions questions such as: did anybody try to sneak cameras into prisons and expose the tortures? Did anyone interview survivors of torture and human rights abuses and archive the information? When it comes to the Oromos doing the work by themselves, the answer is a resounding NO, but luckily, one could point to the work of Oromia Support Group and The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa for their specialty in putting specific ethno-national face to oft  effaced  torture in Oromia, Ethiopia.  

You can add Human Rights Watch's, “They Want a Confession”:Torture and Ill-Treatment in Ethiopia’s Maekelawi Police Station,"  to the list of important reports. This is a response to the 76-pages report on the use of torture by the Ethiopian government to extract information from political detainees, the largest of whom happen to be from Oromo people. HRW obtained interview data from over 35 former Maekelawi detainees and their family members of which the most poignant ones are acts of torture perpetrated on two Oromo students: 

1) B.G., an Oromo student who was detained for eight days in cell number 8 in mid-2011, described the cell:This cell is partitioned into four others. I was in 8.2 [numbered as such], so they can identify the prisoners. There were four rooms with four people.They were very dark and narrow. The cell was made up of stones with a door and window of metal, there are no holes, and it is totally dark. These cells were only for the people they want to hurt more. There is no space for two people in these cells. I could only sit down and I could not stretch out. There is no toilet—you use the cell as a toilet (HRW, 2013: 29).

Put yourself in B.G.'s shoes and imagine how hard it might be to be targeted with such extreme torture methods in a dark room, possibly for years.  Add to that a complication that no one, not even Human Rights Watch bothers to ask/add: who are these people who are being disproportionately tortured in Ethiopia's prison? Who are those who are not and so forth? These are commonsense questions, but answers to them can be very revealing as the ethnicity of those being tortured in Ethiopia are effaced under general and dubious labels such as the one by Human Rights Watch above, which makes it appear as if all ethno-national groups are equally targeted with torture and mass atrocity. They are not--the ruling ethno-national groups are more or less spared the extreme tribulations the Oromo have to go through based tramped-up charges. 

Also, below is another interesting text relating to the patterns of torture against Oromo students:

[2] L.V., an Oromo student held in Maekelawi in 2012, said his hand was broken when he was beaten on his hand while being held in this position and that over a year later his hand continues to hurt: In the interrogation room there was small piece of metal on the wall. They put me on it and locked my left hand to the wall and then my legs didn’t touch the ground. They beat me on my left hand. I think I was there one
hour, but I don’t know as I lost my memory (HRW, 2013: 34)

These texts are just the tip of the iceberg about what happens in Maekalwi torture prison since many Oromos who end up in Ethiopia's torture prisons barely live to tell the stories as in the case of Tesfahun Chemeda and thousands of others who died from barbaric acts of torture inflicted up on them for purposes of extracting information and for many other reasons, including terrorizing the victims and making them spectacles of violence for other dissenting Oromos.     

It's not new or surprising that  Ethiopia is party to many treaties and conventions on torture and human rights violations. What is surprising is that the lack of will among the so-called international community to divest from Ethiopia or to enforce regional and international laws to end the kind of torture that singles out members of a single ethnic group.  

Many more activists like Tesfahun Chmedas will be killed in prisons, many more school children like B.G. and L.V. are going to endure torture at Maekelawi or elsewhere, while foreign aid keeps flowing into regime coffers unabated, emboldening the torture nation of Africa, Ethiopia to even torture more without accountability. Reports can expose injustice and making headlines can make us happy temporarily, but as long as they are not followed-up by international or regional actions, they just raise our hopes and disappoint us more, but we still need them so the stories of those people who have paid heavy prices are not  lost. We wait hopefully for actions to follow words while also reinvigorating our will and ability to come forward and tell these crucial stories.   


=>oromopress

Ethiopia: Torture in the heart of Addis, even as leaders gather in gleaming AU building

Author(s): 

 Laetitia Bader

Published in: 

 The East African

OUR REPORT: 

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  "They Want a Confession"
  Torture and Ill-Treatment in Ethiopia’s Maekelawi Police Station
  OCTOBER 17, 2013
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Many journalists and diplomats who attend events in Addis Ababa’s gleaming new African Union building are probably unaware that it rests on the site of one of Ethiopia’s most notorious prisons. While that prison was torn down in 2007, its legacy of torture and abuse continues today at the heart of the capital.

Over the past year, I have spoken to dozens of people who were held in a detention centre called Maekelawi in central Addis. They described dire conditions and a range of abusive interrogation methods to extract information and confessions.

Since 2011, scores of high-profile individuals have been detained in Maekelawi under Ethiopia’s draconian anti-terrorism law, including journalists and opposition politicians, and held for months under the law’s lengthy pre-charge detention period as their “cases” are prepared for trial.

“Getachew,” a 22-year-old ethnic Oromo, was snatched from his university dorm, driven hundreds of kilometres to Addis Ababa, and locked up for eight months in Maekelawi. His parents were never informed of his whereabouts; he was never charged or given access to a lawyer; and never appeared before court. He was ultimately released on condition that he would work for the government.

Like Getachew, many of the people detained in Maekelawi over the past decade are political prisoners — arrested because of their ethnicity, their real or perceived political opinions and actions, or journalism work. Voicing peaceful dissent or criticism of government policy is increasingly risky.

In a new report, ‘They Want a Confession’: Torture and Ill-Treatment in Ethiopia’s Maekelawi Police Station, Human Rights Watch documents how the police who run Maekelawi have tortured and ill-treated detainees during investigations. Former detainees held in the facility since 2010 described how investigators slapped, kicked, and beat them with batons and gun butts. Some were held in painful stress positions for hours upon end.

Some are held in solitary confinement for days or months. Getachew said he was held alone and shackled for five months: “When I wanted to stand up it was hard,” he told me. “I had to use my head, legs, and the walls to stand up.”

Those held in Maekelawi’s two worst detention blocks, nicknamed by residents Chalama Bet [dark house] and Tawla Bet [wooden house], described particularly dire conditions.

To make matters worse, investigators use access to basic facilities and needs to punish or reward detainees. Even access to the toilet can depend on the whim of the police, as Getachew explained: “I was only allowed to use the toilet once a day, although after two or three months, I was allowed twice… They want to get something, and either they get some evidence or they don’t.”

Access to daylight is also restricted; one person said that he was taken outside for just a few minutes three times in 42 days in the dark cells. Several former Chalama Bet detainees complained of lasting vision problems.

Detainees have also been denied access to their families and legal counsel, particularly those detained on politically motivated charges.

Former detainees described being forced, often while being verbally abused and beaten, to sign statements and confessions for crimes they did not commit. Sometimes the confessions are presented in court as evidence or used to put pressure on those released to support the government and ruling party, as in Getachew’s case.

Most recently, the prosecution submitted statements gathered in Maekelawi from prominent members of the country’s Muslim community who were charged under the anti-terrorism law in 2012 for organising peaceful protests. There is credible information that several of the defendants were mistreated in Maekelawi, making their statements questionable.

The fate of those passing through Maekelawi’s gates is largely unknown to the outside world. Tackling the regular abuses of the rights of political prisoners’ right in the heart of the capital requires first acknowledging the violations and then making a commitment to address the culture of impunity among security forces.

Ethiopia’s leaders should publicly state that torture and other ill treatment is prohibited, and should take concrete steps to hold to account those found responsible for these abuses.

Most important, the Ethiopian government should ensure that no one is ever arrested for exercising their basic rights, including by peacefully expressing their political opinions.

That means urgently overhauling Ethiopia’s draconian civil society and counter-terrorism laws. But change is unlikely to happen unless key regional actors such as the African Union, the African Commission on Human Rights Peoples’ Rights, and Ethiopia’s foreign donors make their concerns known.

Turning a blind eye to the abuses in the centre of Addis Ababa should no longer be an option.

Laetitia Bader is an Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch

=>hrw

Ethiopia: Al-Shabaab Takes 'Last Gasps' in Ethiopia

BY JACEY FORTIN, 21 OCTOBER 2013

Addis Ababa — The explosion went off at 2:40 on a Sunday afternoon, on a tree-lined side street in Ethiopia's capital city of Addis Ababa. The area was a quiet one - home to foreign diplomats, domestic civil servants and several embassies - and the blast was strong enough to kill two men, startle the neighbours, and demolish a small home.

But if the government's current theory is correct, the carnage could have been much worse.

Sunday, Oct. 13, was the day of a big football match - a rare shot at the World Cup playoffs for Ethiopia, which ultimately lost against Nigeria in Addis Ababa. Given the debris found at the site of the explosion, including suicide belts and an Ethiopian team jersey, investigators think the men may have been planning to detonate near the football stadium in central Addis, where thousands of fans and security workers had gathered.

But something went wrong, and the two suspects - Somali nationals, according to the government - never made it out of the house before their explosives went off.

Al-Shabaab, a militant group based in Somalia, claimed responsibility for the attack on its Twitter account, but its details were off. "We Claim Responsibility for Today's Bomb Blast in #AddisAbaba, #Ethiopia, that Left Nearly 10 Kuffar [disbelievers] Dead," said the Monday tweet, which greatly exaggerated the number of casualties and was not posted until the day after the actual explosion.

"It is a plausible assumption that Al-Shabaab may be connected to the crime," Kjetil Tronvoll, an Ethiopia expert and senior partner at the International Law and Policy Institute, told IPS, noting that Al-Shabaab has repeatedly denounced Ethiopia and threatened to carry out attacks.

"Ethiopia has a standing high-alert security vis-a-vis Somalia," he added. "[The recent explosion] gives justification to such alertness."

The Ethiopian government is adamant about clamping down on extremism in all its forms, said Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn at a press conference this month. "Extremism often degenerates into terrorism, so we have to fight extremism as much as we can, and that has no compromise at all." This approach has garnered criticism from some Ethiopian Muslims - including ethnic Somalis - who claim their communities are unfairly targeted.

"The terrorist incident, if connected to Al-Shabaab, may sadly contribute to a possible stigmatisation of the Somali population at large in Ethiopia," said Tronvoll.

The Ethiopian government said it would not change its approach to national security on its own soil, and would focus instead on its borders, since the two suspects in the Sunday explosion arrived illegally.

"We will not make any changes to domestic security - that situation is already intact," government spokesman Redwan Hussein told IPS. "We will only make sure we are more secure when it comes to people getting into the country in the first place."

In Somalia, Al-Shabaab has positioned itself as a bulwark against Ethiopian and Western influence ever since its inception as the military wing of the Islamic Courts Union (ICU), an Islamist governing body that rose to power in Somalia in early 2006. In its early days, it garnered some public support as a counterweight to the Ethiopian troops that effectively ousted the ICU from Mogadishu in late 2006 with backing from the United States.

Over the next few years, Al-Shabaab set up a governing system based on Shariah, or Islamic law. Its territory expanded across most of southern Somalia and the group forged closer bonds with Al-Qaeda, formally linking with it in 2012. But that process wrought some discord between those Al-Shabaab leaders who envisioned a global Islamist movement and those who sought to focus on domestic issues first and foremost.

The cracks began to show after 2011, when Ethiopian and Kenyan troops moved in to bolster troops from the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). At the same time, Al-Shabaab's refusal of humanitarian aid during a devastating famine was already eroding its public support. In the two years since, Al-Shabaab has been pushed out of its former strongholds in the capital city of Mogadishu and the port city of Kismayo, and vicious leadership scuffles have become a threat to cohesion. More and more, the organisation has struggled to conscript voluntary fighters, relying instead on forced recruitment.

Some analysts see the attacks Al-Shabaab has taken credit for - including the Addis Ababa bomb this week and the massacre that killed 67 at a Nairobi mall last month - as last gasps rather than shows of power. The organisation remains a very real threat, but it no longer enjoys the level of support it once did.

"There might be some fringe elements here and there on both sides, who could use [the Addis Ababa attack] to air some grievances," Alula Alex Iyasu, an Ethiopia-based analyst at the Institute for Peace and Security Studies, told IPS.

"But Muslims and Christians have been living side-by-side in Ethiopia, and in Somalia the vast majority despise Al-Shabaab and affiliated groups. So I'd imagine they'd condemn the Addis bomb wholeheartedly just as if it had happened on their own soil."

Somalia has lately been making strides in its effort to end two decades of failed statehood. A new constitution and federal government were established last year, with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud at the helm.

The international community has pledged billions of dollars to rebuild the war-torn country, and the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called this week for AMISOM to bolster its troops in Somalia, already numbering about 18,000, with another 4,400.

As Somalia struggles toward order, peace reigns around the explosion site on Rwanda Street in Addis Ababa's Bole neighbourhood, where a high concentration of ethnic Somalis live side-by-side with Ethiopians, and where children of both ethnicities used to play together in the very compound where the perpetrators of Sunday's bomb lived and died.

In the days following the blast, police tape was stretched across the gate and a few federal policemen guarded the site. But other than that, life along the leafy street was progressing largely as normal, with ethnic Somali and Ethiopian residents mingling at small shops and stopping to chat on street corners.

If the perpetrators hoped to stir up divisions between Somalis and Ethiopians, as Al-Shabaab once did to rally support for its cause, it would appear they missed the mark -- and lost their lives into the process. The Ethiopian national security apparatus, meanwhile, has gained one more reason to keep up its controversial tactics.

"Ethiopia takes these kinds of threats seriously," said Iyasu. "Somalia has been in this precarious situation for the past 20 years, so in a way this is nothing new for the Ethiopian government."

=>allafrica

Baareentuu Gadaa: 1=5555555555 … Nee Wayyaanee

1≥ 55555555555555…….nee  Wayyaanee  Afirikaa Hang Ameeriikaatti Diiriiree Jiru Fuundura Dhaabbachuun Dirqama Oromoo Hundaati!

Baareentuu Gadaa irraa*

Har’a Impaayera Itiyoophiyaa  keessatti namni tokko jaalallee, haadha warraa ykn abbaa warraa argachuuf 1≥ 555555555….nee keessatti gurmaawuun dirqama ta’aa dhufeera.  Dhiirrii intala laallatee takka haadha warraa godhachuuf ykn jaalallee taasifachuuf yoo barbaade dirqama 1≥5555555555555555…nee isaatti gabaasuu qaba. Karaa dursaa 1≥ 555555555……nee isaatiin intalattiin 1≥ 555555555…nee dubartootaa keessatti hammatamuu fi “Abiyootaawii dimokiraasif” amanamtuu tahuun ishii mirkanaawee heeyyamni fuudhuu dandeessa ykn jaalallee taasifachuu dandeecha jedhamu kennamaaf. Gama dubartootaatinis akkasuma jaalallee ykn abbaa warraa aragchuu isaanii 1≥ 5555555…….nee isaanitti gabaasanii nama “Abiyootaawii Dimookiraasaawii” cuubbamee fi miseensa 1≥ 5555555555…….nee tahuu qorachiisuu fi heeyyamsiifachuun dirqama isaaniti.

Namoonni miseensa 1≥ 5555555555… tahuun isaanii mirkanaawee akka wal fuudhan heeyyamameef kunis yeroo cida isaanii nammoonni  isaan Miinjee,waarsaa fi Addooyyee taasifachuu danda’an akkasuma warra 1≥ 5555555555..nee keessa jiranii fi “Abiyootaawii dimookiraasii” humnaan cuubbaman tahuun dirqama. Idoo tokko tokkootti inumaawuu Hamaamonnileen kan “Abiyootaawii Dimookiraasii” cubamee fi miseensa 1≥ 555555..nee tahe akka tahuuf qajeelfamni wayyaaneerraa bu’uuf jedhameet keessa keessan hasawamaa jira. Maaliif jennaan akka  Hamaamoonni cidicharratti sirboota  warraaqsaa hin sirbamneef. Akka cidicharratti sabboontoonni  “Abiyootaawii Dimookiraasii” hin  cuubamnu jedhanii didan hin hirmaanneef.

Erga 1≥ 5555555555555555….neen dhufee as baadiyyaa Oromiyaa keessa yoo gadi buutan  namni gabaa dhaqus akkasuma gabaa kam akka dhaqu, maal akka gurguuruu fi bitu dursaa 1≥ 555555….nee isaatti himuu fi gabaasuu qaba.  warra du’aas akkasuma  “Firri kiyya du’e, abaluun koo najalaa du’ee” jedhanii awwaalchaaf fardaa-lafoon fiiguun hafeera. Dirqama osoo awwalcha hin dhaqin eenyutu du’e, maaliif du’ee, eechatti du’e, eessatti awwaalama? Osoo hin du’in dura 1≥ 555555…nee keessa hin jiramoo hin jiru? Ilaalchi isaa hoo akkam? Kan jedhu dursaa 1≥55555……neetiin dursee beekamuu qaba. Dhugaa kana eenyuuyyuu jaalatee jibbee, eenyuuyyuu amanee dhiisee; wayyaaneen har’a bara bittaa fi saamichaa ishii  ittiin dheeraffachuuf jeecha Impaayera Itiyoophiyaa keessatti kallatiidhan ammoo  uummata Oromoorratti hojiirra Oolchaat jirti.

Namni waayee Impaayera Itiyoophiyaa Ordofu kamuu yeroo ammaa kana  isa wayyaaneen  maqaa Raayyaa Misoomaatiin nama namarratti ijaartee akka wal-basaasan taasiisaa jirtu tokko, shanee(1≥=55555555555…nee) kan quba hin qabne hin jiru.  Ijaarsa kana irri isaa Raayyaa misoomaa jedhuus keessi isaa raayyaa basaastootaa fi lukkeelee wayyaaneetiin kan guutamee dha. Baadiyyaa hanga magaalaa  namni ijaarsa kana keessatti  miseensa hin taane yeroo ammaa kana wayyaanee biratti yakkamaa dha.  “Hin barbaadu, ijaarsa 1≥=5555555… jedhamu kana hin fudhu, keessatti hin hirmaadhu” inni jedhe ammoo balaan  wayyaaneerraa isa qonnamu hedduu dha. Hojjetaa sivil-sarvisii; jiraataa Magaalaa taanaan akkuma hunduu quba qabu  qorannoodhaan (Gimgamaadhan) faayeliin biraa itti banamee hojiirraa ari’atama!.  Maqaan Mankaraarsaa, Gooleessaa, farraa fi gufuu misoomaa, kiraayi sassaabiduu jedhuu fi kanneen biroo itti maxxanfamanii balleessaa malee saree gabaa seentee taha. Yoo barbaachisees Maa’ikaalaawii seenee sukkuumamee bahuun Itiyoophiyaa keessatti akkuma hunduu beeku waanuma aadaa tahee dha. Daladalaas yoo tahe cubbuun inni hin beekne fi hin hojjeennee galamee wayyaaneerraa dubbifameefii Qaalliittii ykn Qilinxooti of arga.

Diddaa 1≥=x555555555555..nee keessatti ijaaramuu kana kan agarsiisee nama baadiyyaa yoo tahe ammoo  hunda caalaa qorichi isaa salphaa dha.  Akka baadiyyaa keessa  lafa malee jiraachuun hin danda’amnee waan beekamuufuu nama 1≥ 55555555555555555…nee kana jibbee fi morme laficharraa buqqisanii harka qullaattii hanbisuu dha. Yookan ammoo xaa’oo fi sanyii filatamaa akkasumas gorsa ogeessaa dhorkachuun akka inni homisha gahaa dhabee hiyyoomu  taasisanii beeleessanii amansiisu dha. Horsiisee bulaas hoota’e akka Loon isaatiif qoricha hin argannee fi Bishaan walootti hin fayyadamne taasisuun hortee isaa harkaa fixanii beeleessuun  adabanii of jalatti deebisuu dha.  Kanatu har’a Impaayera Itiyoophiyaa keessatti wayyaaneedhaan cunqurfamtootarratti keessattuu saba Oromoorratti maqaa Raayyaa misoomatiin, 1≥ 55555….needhan raawwachaa jira.

Wayyaaneen gochoolee hammeenyaa fi dabaa raawwachasa jirtu kana akka galmaan gahaniif ammoo  dabballoota hedduu bobbaaftee jirti.  Dabballoonni kun baay’een isaanii warra wayyaaneen uummattoota cunqurfamoo keessattuu uummata Oromoo saamtee qallaba safartuuf yoo tahan; garaan isaanii gunnaan Obbooleessa, Obbooleettii Abbaa-Haadha, Lammii waan jedhamu gongumaa hin beekan. Sobaa jedhamnaan ni sobu, ajjeesaa jedhamnaan  abbaa argan  ajjeesu, hidhaa jedhamnaan abbaa argan hidhu, saamaa fidaa jedhamnaan ofilleen saamanii geessu. Isa saamanis qabatanii balabala wayyaaneerra eejjatanii nurraa fuudhii kadhatu. Garaaf bultoonni maqaa 1≥ 5555555555..tin ergama wayyaaneerraa fudhatanii uummatoota biyyattii mankaraarsaa jiran kun gama tokkoon miseensoota paartii jalee wayyaanee eennaa tahan;  gama biraatiin nama siyaasaan alaa of fakkeessanii uummata afaan faajjeesuuf yaalu. Maqaa gaggeessitoota waldaa Barsiiftootaa, Hojjettoota sivil sarvisii , Dargaggoota, Dubartootaa, Foramii, Ogeessota misooma baadiyyaa ykn DA fi kanneen biroot himatu. 1≥ 55555555..niin  ijaaramanii sochoo’uun akka gaarii tahee lallabu. Akka ijaarsii kun kaayyoo siyaasaa of keessaa hin qabnee holoolu. “Erga 1≥ 55555555…niin  ijaaramanii hojjechuun dhufee as misoomneerra,  guddanneera, baranneera, guyyaatti 10 nyaachaa jirra, dimookiraasiin garmalee kabajamuu isaatiin  bilisummaan nu macheesseera jechuun guyyaa adiidhan haqa jiru dhoksanii soba watwaatu. Hooloolanii hololchiisuun akka uummattoonni cunqurfamoonni biyyattii keessattuu uummanni Oromoo saamicha, ajjeechaa fi hidhaa murna wayyaanee jedhamtuun irra gahaa jiru dagatu carraaqu. Sabicha gama hedduuttii qoodanii  akka wal basaasee wayyaaneetti gabaasuuf 1≥555555555555…niin walirratti ijaaranii sochii isaa hunda too’achuu fi bara baraan dhiittaa  fi saamicha ofii jala turfachuuf halakanii guyyaa fiigaa jiru.

Nama maqaa  guddinaa fi misoomaatiin 1≥ 555555555555555555…….niin walitti qaanjeessanii/walirratti ijaaranii“Abiyootaawii Diimookiraasaawii” wayyaaneedha cubanii akka mirga isaaf hin falamanee fi goongumaa  of irraaffatuuf afaan faajjeessuun kun yeroo ammaa kana rakkoo biyya keessaa qofa tahaa hin jiru. Akkuma Finfinneedhaa hanga baadiyaa biyyatiititti  Dabbalootaa ishii bobbaastee maqaa misoomaa fi guddinaatiin 1≥ 55555555555…niin walitti qaanjeessitee sochii siyaasaa uummatootaa fi qalbii  namootaa too’achuuf carraaqaa jirtu mormitootaa fi balaaleeffattoota ishii too’achuuf yoo tolees akkuma  barte butee gara biyyaa deebistee tarkaanfii ajjeechaa fi hidhaa irratti fudhachuuf dabballoota baqataa fakkaatan biyyoota ollaa Ityooophiyaa jiranitti bobbaasaat jirti. Kaan maqaa  boondii hidhaa Laga Abbayyaa bitadhaa jedhuun, kan ammoo  mana koondoomineemii fi lafa argattu jechuun sossoobdee harkatti galfachuuf yaalii walirraa hin cinne godhaa jirti. Yaa tahu malee namni ishuma wayyaaneedhaan madaayee biyyaa hari’ame  tokko gongumaa  deebi’ee ishuma wayyaaneef ni sagadaan habjuu dha. Dadhabbiin ergamtoota wayyaaneetis gama kanaan yoomiyyuu hin milkaawu. Wayyaaneen kalees har’as  Oromoodhaf diinuma waan taateef!

Deemsi shiraa fi yakkaa wayyaanee  inni 1≥ 555555555555555… jedhu kun yeroo ammaa Kana kan finfinnee fi biyyoota Afirikaa keessatti qofa murtaawee dhaabbates miti. Yeroo ammaa kana   biyyoota Arabaatii-hanga Ardii Eezhiyaa, Awuroopaa dha hanga Ameerikaa karaa dabballoota ishii fulla’ee jira. Hawaasa  Impaayeera Itiyoophiyaarraa baqatee gamas jiru keessattuu Oromoorratti fulleeffachuun Afaan faajjeessa adda addaa uumuun qoqqooduu fi qabsoo bilisummaa isaaf godhu laaffiisuuf carraaqat jirti. Kunis dadhabuma itti taha malee Oromoon wayyaanee harka dhiigaa waliin taa’ee maaddii tokkorratti hin nyaatu.

Harr’a Dabballoonni wayyaanee biyyoota guddatan kanatti boobaafaman gama siyyaasaatiinis haatahu gama diingadeetiin wayyaanee uutuubuudhaf fardiffa fiigaa jiru. waltajjii irratti argamanirrattis  nama sayaasaan alaa,  nama bilisa tahee misooma qofa deeggaru  of fakkeessu. “Guddina biyya keenyaatif gumaata godhuu fi wayyaanee  deeggaruu maaltu walitti fide?  Guddina biyya keenyaatiif gumaacha godhuun wayyaanee deeggaruu miti “ jedhanii jechiisiisu.  Haala kanaanis uummata gidduuttii afaan faajjeessa uumanii  wayyaanee harka lafa jalaatiin hirphaa jiru.

Yeroo ammaa kana darbee darbee holoola dabballoota  wayyaaneef dhoksaadhan hojjeetan kanaatiin ‘Diyaaspoorooti’ dubbiin hin galiiniif  tokko tokko  biyya alaattis 1≥ 5555555555555….niin wal ijaaranii maqaa Boondii Laga Abbayyaa, Lafaa Finfinnee, akkasuma koondoomineemii fi faayidaa adda addaat argattuutiin  wayyaanee jala fiiganii buusii busaat jiru.   Mahaallaqa isaanirraa guurame kanaan garuu Qawweetu bitamaa, Qawwichaanis ilmaan cunqurfamtootaa keessattuu dhalattoota Oromootu dhumaa jira. Umrii sirna bittaa fi saamichaa wayyaaneetu dheerachaa jira. Fedhiin ergamtoota kanaatiis kanuma galamaan gahuu dha.

Kaayyoon tokko shanee (1≥55555555…..)  wayyaanee walumaa galattii misoomaa fi guddina  osoo hin taane saboota cunqurfamoo keessattuu uumata Oromoo saamaa, ajjeesaa fi bitaa jiraachuuf wal basaasiisu dha. Akka tokko tahee mirgaa fi bilisummaa isaatiif irratti hin kaane walirratti ijaaranii/walitti qaanjeessanii sochii siyaas-diinagdee isaa too’achuu dha. Sababni caasaan wayyaanee Finfinnee dhaa hanga Awuroopaa  Eezhyaadhaa hanga Ameerikaa, Giddu Gala Bahaatii Hanga Awustraaliyaa diriireefis Alaa manaa saamanii kisii ofii fi kan qabsoofneef jedhan naannoo Tigraayi addatti misoomsuu dha. Faayidaan  1≥ 55555555555neen dhalateef, hojiirra oolaa jiruuf  kanaa fi kana qofa.

Toftaan namoota walitti qaanjassanii soochii siyaasaa fi dingdee to’achuuf yaaluu kun eennaa gadi qabamee ilaalamu toftaa fokkataa fi  dubatti hafaa dha. Toftaa qoqqoodanii bituuf jecha kolanneeffattoonni Awuroopaa jaarraa tokkon dura yaalanii boodarra salphisee qullaa isaan dhaabe dha. Toftaa jaaraa 21ffaa kana keessa bakka hin qabne.

Uummanni Oromoo wal duukaa hiriiree qabsoo bilisummaa isaa gama hundaanuu jabeessinaan Wayyaaneenis yeroo gabaabduu keessattii toftaa dulloomaa fi fokkataa akkasii;  isa qabsoo bilisummaa Oromoo fundura  ittiin dhaabbachuuf wixinfattee kaate kana waliin quullaatti hafuun hin oollu. Keessattuu hawaasinii Oromoo biyyoota gara garaa keessa jiru afaan faajjessaa fi sossoobbii faayidaa xixiqqoodhan taasifamu didee tokkummaa fi  wal-tumsuu isaa jabeessee qabsoo fi sochii uummata isaa kan biyya keessa jiru gama hundaanuu deeggaraan umriin wayyaanee baay’ee gabaabaduu dha. Oromoon alaa manaa tokkummaan dhaabbatee qabsoo bilisummaa jalqabe jabeessee itti fufunaan  saamichi, Ajjeechaa fi hidhaan maqaa guddiinaa fi misoomatiin ilmaan isaarratti wayyaaneen raawwatu ni dhabbata. Basaasnii fi Ordoffiin maqaa 1≥ 555555..nin irratti gaggeeffamu wayyaanee waliin halayyaa bu’a!

* Baareentuu Gadaa: gassogeda@gmail.com

=>gadaa

Oromiyaa Biyya Koo Madda Sirna Gadaa

Abdii Borii irraa*

Dachii burqaa aadaa fi madda sirna gadaa,
Kennaa uumamaa ti waajjirri kee odaa,
Irreechaa fi ateetee aadaas hedduu qabdaa,
Elellee fi shaggooyyee dhiichisaa fi ragada.

Biyya koo lalistuu qabeenyaan badhaatuu
Madda lageen hedduu gaarreniin marfamatu
Qabeenya addaa addaan kan baayyee hawamtu
Midhaan gosa hedduu fi albudaan faarfamtu.

Bosonaa fi qilleensa rooba ganna guutuu
Nyaata gosa hedduu baayyinaan kan qabdu
Biyyoo biyya abbaa koo hundaan badhaafamtuu
Oromiyaan keenya biyya jaallatamtuu.

Biyya dhadhaa fi dammaa dachii bunaa fi warqee
Badhaatuu hangaatuu qabeenyi ishee marge
Halagaa si saama mirga ilmaan kee sarbee
Yoom aara galfattaa kun hndumtuu darbee
Waa’ee biyya kootii an waan baayyeen faarsaa
Si irra fagaachuu kootu gar malee na aarsaa
Halkan hundaa ciiseen abjuudhaan si argaa
Galma hann’uura kootii dachii haadha margaa

Kan addunyyaaf fakkii biyya sirna gadaa
Badhaatuu uumamaa kan hin qabne mudaa
Akkasitti hin haftuu gaaf tokko gmmaddaa
Ol ka’ii dubbadhu nus siif seennee waadaa.

Dachee koo dubbadhu meeqa beela baaftee? (2)
Lageen koo iyyadhu meeqa dheebuu baaftee?
Warteessuus halagaa hagam jiraachiftee?
Jabana hijiraas keessumota halalaa meeqa keessumsiiftee?

Iyyadhu Oromiyaa tasa hin callisinii (2)
Lmuu ilmaan nafxanyaa hin keesumsiisinii
Iyyii iyya labsi ilmaan kee dammaqsi
Gadaa kee deebisii addunyaadhaaf labsi.

Biyyuma kee irratti nagaa si dhorkattee
Bosona kee gubdee warqee kee buqqaaftee
Ilman awaannisaa dhakaa keessaa yaatee
Siin si agabsitee ofiif quuftee bultee???

Dachii koo dubbadhu meeqa jiraachiftee?
Hagam beela baafte meeqa dheebuu baaftee?
Ilmaan nafxanyootaa warteessuu guddiftee
Tolaan kee maaf bade maaf galata dhabdee?

Hrma kee xuxxuuxee harka kee irraa nyaatee
Si irratti guddatee dhala kee fakkatee
Nyaaphaaf si afeera sobaan si hawwatee
Kee lubbuu siif dhaba dhugaan si jaallatee.

Harras boo’aa jirta kan Tasfahun Camadaa
Ilmaan kee hundatu Lapheen Cabee gadda
Gumaa ilmaan kee baasuuf haaromsinee Waadaa
Gadda kees jijjiirree gaaf tokko gammaddaa.

Dubbadhu dachii koo tasa hin callisinii
Osoo wareegamtuu du’a kee hin dhoksinii
Dachii magariisa dhiigaan booressanii.
Ilmaan kee qaqqaalii hedduu ajjeesanii

Masaraa kee diiguun mana hidhaa ijaartee
Garii biyyaa yaasuun kaanis iyyoomsitee
Osoo nuti jirruu maaliif tuffatamtee,
Ati hortee qabdaa nutu si dagatee

Qaamnni hundaa cirmee gar malee madooftee
Walii galteen kahee nama hidhuuf dhabdee
Maaf irratti ilaaltu hundattoo dhaammattee
Yaa ilmaan koo maaloo na dhaqqabaa jettee.

Dhaamsa ishee dhagahaa waan jabaa dubbattee
Isin alaa wal nyaattuu diinni natti ammattee
Osoo isin jirtanii mirga koo sarbitee
Lafa irraa daguugdee daa’imman koo fixee

Jaarraa tokkoon dura jaarsa kabajamaa addunyaan hawwitu,
Abbaa keessan kunoo Bokkuu harkaa darbattee diinni kan salphistu’
Qaanii hagas gahu gurraan dhaageessanii ijaanis argitu
Waan haaraa maal qabdu me deebii naaf kennaa isin maalitti jirtuu?

Shamarran koos kunoo hedduun biyyaa yaatee
Hormi itti taphatee gar malee dhaanamtee
Gariis gurguramtee kaan allattiin nyaattee
Baayyees galena irraa qurxummiin hirmaattee

Nyaaphaan cunqurfamee yartuun tuffatamee
Mirga koo uumamaa borxaadhaan sarbamee
Hagamin jiraadha gadootti ilaalamee
Jetteetu dubbattee Aayyoon dararmtee

Kolonii balleessuuf warraaqsi dawwaa dhaa
Cunqursaa sabummaa maalumaafan baadhaa
Kanaafan wawwaadha eenyummaan himadhaa
Diinaa fi firri haa beekuu biyyi koo Oromiyaa dha
Harras boris taanaan anis oromoo dhaa …

– Abdii Borii

=>gadaa

Kenya: Dozens of Ethiopian migrants arrested

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

October 20, 2013 (ADDIS ABABA) – Kenyan authorities this week arrested 53 illegal migrants from Ethiopia. Two Ethiopian human traffickers were also taken to custody along with the group.

According to Kenyan media outlets, the migrants were attempting to travel to the capital, Nairobi hoping to get Jobs before they were caught by police officers in Samburu county near the Ethiopian border.

Kenyan police said it will press charges against the group of migrants for illegally entering Kenya further calling on the Kenyan government to tighten laws and take tougher punishment against human traffickers.

Hundreds of Ethiopians destined for South Africa illegally enter neighbouring Kenya before traveling to Tanzania, which is often used as a transit route for East Africans to migrating to South Africa.

Although Ethiopia is one of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world, the unemployment rate is still high driving tens of thousands of mainly young female Ethiopians to migrate to the wealthy oil-rich gulf nations seeking lucrative jobs.

However, many economic migrants are subjected to different types of abuse at the hands of their employers, including to rape and torture. As a result many of them commit suicide or suffer mental illness
.

TRAVEL BAN TO SAUDI

Ethiopian prime minister, Hailemariam Desalegn earlier this week said that the country will temporarily suspend travel to Saudi Arabia for Ethiopians seeking jobs in the Arab nation.

The premier said the ban will be put to effect as of next month and will remain in place for the coming six months.

He said the aim of the six month ban was to allow concerned government bodies to prepare facilities for migrants to receive proper training lessons before leaving.

The lessons intend to create awareness on how economic migrants ensure their rights once they fall in the hands of employers.

It is believed that the pre-departure trainings will eventually curb the growing mistreatment of Ethiopians who mostly work as house maids in the Arab world.

(ST)

=>sudantribune

Call for a Peaceful Rally Bergen, Norway

We Oromo communities residing in Bergen Norway, neighboring communities and friends of Oromo are very concerned about human rights violations particularly against the Oromo in Ethiopia. Therefore we have a plan to have a peaceful rally against the dictatorial regime in Ethiopia on October 25, 2013.

Time and Place:

The demonstration will be held on the 25^th October 2013 from 13.00 to 15.00. We will gather at the bluestone, and we will head through the gallery, pass along the exhibition center and move all the way to the police station and thereby deliver a letter to the person in charge.

Aim

• We shall demonstrate against human rights violations by the dictatorial regime in Ethiopia. We will turn to the New Norwegian government to press the Ethiopian government to respect human rights and release all political prisoners.
• Call for the release of Bekele Gerba, Mesfin Abebe and other political prisoners in Ethiopia
• Candlelight vigil to remember the Oromo activist Engineer Tesfahun Chamada, who died in the Kaliti Prison after a horrible and inhuman torture by the Ethiopian government.

All protesters are welcome to join us to stand against and say no to the dictatorial and tyranny government.

Regards,

Dandana Bafkane,
Dejene Sorry,
Members of the Committee

For Further information contact

Abdi Gameda  Chali            Tel. +4794724502

=>ayyaantuu