(Revealing Shiferaw Shugute’s wicked acts against the rights of Sidama Nation)
Moderator, Sidama National Regional State Information Network
Kaala Baqaala Wariyo, one of Sidama's human rights defender intellectuals emphasises that, an evil minded individual could obliviously continue with his/her wicked actions against the fundamental rights of citizens if left unchallenged by those against whom he/she commits crimes. To this light, he brings the aspects of Sidama nation’s on going quest for constitutional rights which was illegally and unconstitutionally denied by the regime in power- for the last 22 years. He further recalls that for this very reason, hundreds of Sidama civilians were slaughtered in broad day light by the army and security forces of the regime whilst peacefully and non-violently demanding the aforementioned rights.
Kaala Wariyyo reminds us all once again that the Sidama civilians have paid ultimate sacrifices with their precious lives although their death still remain in vain as long the noble cause they have been massacred for isn't constitutionally and legally responded and those who’re responsible aren’t brought to justices. Until then, the souls of Looqqe massacred Sidama civilians cry for justice to be served on their behalf. Their spirits lingers seeking rights to fundamental respects to individual and collective rights for which they have been slaughtered to be materialised.
There are variety of reasons for the failure of the Sidama nation to succeed in asserting their constitutional rights to regional self-determination in addition to others gross violation of human rights common in the entire empire. Needless mentioning, the regime in power is Sidama nations’ adversary number one. The first and foremost, Mr Wariyyo says, are a handpicked Sidamas’ pariah cadres such as ‘Shiferaw Shigute’ who is for his past and present anti-Sidama actions rewarded by the regime in power therefore he keeps moving upward in the regime’s authority ladder. He is no body without his anti-Sidama campaign, sadly watering down on the Sidama nation’s needs under whose name he is given these privileges.
Thus, Mr Wariyyo adds, hundreds of Sidama civilians became the victims of government and its cadres’ orchestrated crime against humanity despite unambiguous clarity stated in Ethiopia's constitution that allows nations and nationalities to the extent of secession let alone becoming regionally self-administrative which is given to others nations and nationalities of Ethiopia. No one is held accountable for their crimes against the massacred Sidama civilians either.
The Sidama nation was denied these rights time and again. It was primarily granted in 1993/4 for brief period of time when today’s amalgamated- pressure cooker SNNPR’s were 5 independent regional self-administrations partitioned based on socio-culturally, linguistically and others attributes that helps nations with similar background to coexist peacefully and fraternally. These 5 independent regional constitutional arrangements subsequently reversed by the sole decision of late PM Meles Zenawi without the knowledge and agreements of his pseudo-parliamentarians who uttered no word. Ever since the people of Sidama nation are hunted down like antelopes for asking for its reinstallation. Since the late PM reversed the previous arrangements to create the aforementioned SNNPR, he had lied to the Sidama nation on several occasions; physically going to Sidama region, promising to the Sidama SONGO (elders council and Sidama Zonal general assembly where all unanimously agreed that the Sidama to be regionally self-administrative); that the Sidama nation will be regionally self -administrative once he wins election after election simply kidding our peoples by hoodwinking the nation with his usual deceits and pretences.
In particular when TPLF/EPRDF was shocked by unexpected ground slide victory of the then Amhara dominated Kinjit; Meles’s regime needed the support of the SNNPR with particular focus on the largest ethnic nationals in the south, the Sidama. For this reason, once again he has physically travelled to Sidama Zone where he had officially announced that once the 2005’s election is over with his party’s victory; the Sidama nation will be regionally self-administrative. Similar unfulfilled promises were made on previous two occasions for which he gravelly apologised stating that the Sidama nation will be regionally independent for sure after this particular victory. The Sidama nation voted for his party as promised, yet the Sidama wasn’t granted its regional autonomy until he was given a final farewell after he has been called by the supernatural power. His promises remained just a simple lie and deceit.
Therefore, the Sidama elders cursed him on several occasions for his failure to fulfil his promises. The Sidama elders who had genuinely thought that he was telling the truth, failing to understand the heinousness of the late PM and his followers who are still following on his footsteps to continually deny the Sidama nations’ legitimate rights felt very sad and angry at him and his regime ever since.
Some of the key players in implementing an anti-Sidama polices in Sidama-land are the Sidama cadres who are all trading by the name of the Sidama nation involving the aforementioned culprit and his second mentor, the current PM Hailemariam Desalegn and numerous others Sidama pariahs all of who are good for nothing.
Shiferaw Shigute (also known as Shiferaw Shuguxe) with central his governments and regional authorities premeditates, plans, implements and monitors the unlawful killing, extrajudicial arrests of civilians and Sidama professionals and more essentially who facilitates the blockage of Sidama regional rights to self-governance is still at large. Additionally, he ordered the closures of the only Sidama language primary Scholl in in its capital city Hawassa, seriously undermining the rights of Sidama children to learn with their mother tongues in their tender ages, where they form their identities. This person is such heinous for the entire times he had worked for, for the past over 15-17 years, and remains so and isn’t refraining from playing a wicked game against the legal, legitimate and constitutional quest of the Sidama nation.
Kaala Baqaala also informs us that he is playing his ugly game against the interests of the Sidama nation as we speak. Unsatisfied with his previous numerous coward actions he played against the nation, Shiferaw Shugute is still playing his similar card both covertly and overtly. His anti-Sidama thirst is unquenched even after he has been uprooted from his regional post from where he used to terrorise the Sidama nation on daily basis. This brief, yet informative message Kaala Baqaala sent us reveals his barbaric ant-Sidama nature, which further help us to understand the gravity of his hideous roles in stifling Sidama nations’ just causes to its rights to regional self-administration. The nation must take an urgent action to officially denounce this pariah!
Since Jan 25/2014 the SNNPR cadres including the current PM Haile/Mariam Desalegne are holding an urgent meeting in his office to discuss about Sidama’s ongoing quest to its regional self-administration. As kaala Baqaala Wariyyo’s contact, almost 90% of the participants unanimously agreed to unconditional grant to Sidama nation of their rights to regional self-administration. The leaked information from the inner circles further affirms that only 10% involving Shiferaw Shugute are arguing against this. He cowardly leads the staunch opponents of such a grants.
Kaala Baqaala says their final decision will be open for public domain as soon as it’s being received and further advises the Sidama community at large how the aforementioned Sidama cadre is playing against the rights of Sidama nation whom he pretends legally representing as he remains accountable to Sidama nation. Therefore, the actions of this person and his accomplices must be categorically denounced and rejected by all Sidama and its friends from within Sidama land and beyond. The Sidama nation must be unconditionally granted its constitutional and legitimate rights!! All political prisoners from Sidama, Oromia, Ogadenia and others part of the empire must be released for the rule of law to become supreme.
