Oromo Youth protested against dictatorial Ethiopian regime in Oslo, Norway

Today September 14, Oromo youth in Norway, protested in front of Norwegian Parliament in Oslo against the dictatorial Ethiopian regime for human right violation and crimes made against humanity , on Oromo students , Oromo political prisoners as an example by mentioning what happens on Engineer Tesfahun Chemeda. Additionally the youth asked United Nation, European Union ,USA, and country’s like Norway to stop financing the TPLF regime against Oromo people !
Here are some of the pictures taken during the demonstration









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Heavy fighting’s between ONLF and Ethiopia coalition Troops reported in Ogaden, 52 Ethiopian coalition troops, and 12 ONLF was killed

ONLF Fighters in Ogaden

By Mohamed Faarah

14 September 2013

Ogadentoday Press)- A heavy fighting between, Ogaden National Liberation Front, "ONLF” a secessionist group fighting for the independence of Ogaden Region in eastern Ethiopia, populated by Somali ethnic and Ethiopian Troops is reported.

A according to a report received by Ogadentoday Press , About 150 ONLF fighters attacked on military Camp located at Hoolla, a small village between Dhagahbour and Jigjiga, a capital city of local administration.

The report says, the camp surrounded by ONLF's forces near Jigjiga on 9 September.

According to a report published by ONLF, 41 attacks were carried on; the government has cut off the telecommunication on the area.

A pro-government website published on last week on Tuesday that heavy clashes took place in Ogaden, and senior Liyu Police and Ethiopian officers were killed in meanwhile ONLF senior member was captured alive in other attack.

Local residents in Kebribayah, a district at Jigjiga province confirmed to Ogadentoday Press that ONLF took control of the military Camp and took 41 guns including 9 RBG, A rocket-propelled grenade, and other guns.

52, Ethiopian coalition troops, including, local Liyu Police, a paramilitary police of regional state was killed in, meanwhile report says 13 ONLF fighters were killed in the operation.

It is very hard to prove, how well, the attack happened and the number of death, since there is no an independent media allowed in Ogaden, Ethiopia has barred off, Ogaden Region international media.

Government and ONLF has not yet commented officially the attacks.

ONLF (from Somali Region)is the most effective secessionist Somali rebel group in Ethiopia, and seeking the self-determination of Ogaden Somali Region in eastern Ethiopia. They have waged a war against Ethiopian troops in Ogaden since 1994.

Last year, Ethiopia and ONLF held a peace-negotiation in Kenya but stalled, there are ongoing efforts to continue the dialogue, a source close to mediators told Ogadentoday Press.

Right groups accused the government of Ethiopia committing genocide in Ogaden region; same experts label the region, as Darfur of Ogaden, Ethiopia denies the allegation.

Western countries view ONLF as secessionist group fighting for self-determination of their people and region, but wants to solve the conflict on politically peaceful way. 

According to the historians and the colonial agreements records Ogaden was handed over to Ethiopia by the British kingdom in the late of 19Th century. Britain ruled the Ogaden after when the Italian was ousted from the Horn of Africa.

Britain administration in Ogaden was formally known as, British Military Administration of Ogaden(BMAO).

The region is populated by Somali ethnic group, and estimated 5.5 but Ogaden people believe in that they are 7 million.

The natural resources mainly Gas and Oil is believed in reserved in Ogaden Somali Region.

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Ambo Micro College Keessaa Barachaa Kanneen Turan Barattooti Oromoo Lama Bakka Buuteen Isaan Dhabme.

Sochii warraaqsa Bilisummaa fi Dimokraasiif dargaggoonnii fi barattooti Oromoo deemsisaa turan waliin kan wal qabate yeroo adda addaatti mootummaa Wayyaaneen doorisifamaa kanneen turan barattooti Oromoo hordoffii tikni diinaa yeroo gara garaa irratti taasiseen tureen ,barattooti Oromo lama Mesgene Dhimmaa fi Ababu Dhimmaa Baayyisaa kanneen jedhaman Hagayya 07,2013 irraa eegalee Kolleejjii  barataa turan keessaa bakka buuteen isaanii dhabamuu gabaasi Qeerroo Ambo irraa addeessa.

Haalli kun kan yaaddesse qeerroon nanneen hidhaa naannoo Amboo fi bakkoota biro keessatti iyyaafachiisaa akka jiru dhaamsi dhaqabe beeksisa.

Kana maleen mootummaan Wayyaanee yaaddoo barruuleen warraaqsaa bakkoota adda addatti maxxanfamaa fi raabsamaa jiru irraa kan ka’e godina Ilu-Abbaa Booraa magaalaa Baddallee keessatti humna waraanaa fi tikaa heddummeessuun dabballooti ABO magaala kana seenaniiru sababa jedhuun bufata adda addaa fi bakka oolmaa dargaggootaa sakata’aa akka jiru Qeerroon godhina kanaa gabaasa.

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Konyaan ABO Adelaide Yeroo Duraaf Kora Waggaa Gaggeeffatan

Haala qabsoon Oromoo irratti ibsa godhameen boodas gaaffilee mana keessaa ka’aniif deebiin kennamee jira. Keessayyuu, Kaayyoo Oromoo tiksuu fi milkeessuu irratti sochiin karaa ABO godhamaa jiru amma illee kana hin daddaaqamne ta’uun marii kana irratti ibsamee jira.

Xumura irrattis hirmaatoti Kora Konyaa ABO Adelaide ibsa ejjennoo baafatan keessatti kutannoo fi murannoo qabsoon Oromoo milkeessuuf qaban irra deebi’anii mirkaneessuun, umurii sirna wayyaanee dararaa fi dhumaatiin adeemaa jiru gabaabsuuf waan danda’an maraan akka hojjatan waadaa isaanii haaromsanii jiru.More at gadaa

Statement of peaceful demonstration of the Oromo Community in the United Kingdom

Today, 13 September 2013, members of the Oromo Community in the UK, protested against human rights violations and brutal killing exercised by the criminal Ethiopian Government.

The aim of the protest was to stand against Human rights abuses and the brutal killings of thousand s of Oromos including Engineer Tesfahun Chemeda and the Massacred Muslim Oromos in Arsi.  The arbitrary arrest, torture, extra-judicial killings, mass murder & disappearances are not only the day- to- day practices in Ethiopia, but also reached the highest peak.  For example,  the Oromia Support Group in United Kingdom, a non-political organization that raise awareness of human rights violations in Ethiopia, has reported four thousand two hundred seventy nine (4,279) extra-judicial killings and 987 disappearances of civilians in Ethiopia from 1994 – 2010. These figures do not include the unreported killings and secret arrests that are exercised at several corners in the country particularly in Oromia region. The recent shocking incidents were the killings of twenty- seven innocent civilians including five children in Kofale, Arsi region of Oromia on August 3, 2013. http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/ethiopian-repression-muslim-protests-must-stop-2013-08-08 and the murder of Engineer Tesfahun Chemeda who has been tortured and killed in Kaliti prison custody on August 24, 2013.

The surprising news was that, despite all the repressions and killings, the Ethiopia Government was privileged to be the top aid recipient in Africa. Currently, the Ethiopian government is receiving $500,000,000 every year ($2 billion in the next 4 years) from the UK government alone.http://www.voanews.com/content/ethiopia-is-top-uk-aid-recipient-117204413/157544.html..  According to the current trend, the size of this aid is increasing and there is also a plan for huge investment at the cost of poor Oromo farmers’ displacement due to the land grab. The donors say ‘’we are trying to help the millions of very poor, very vulnerable Ethiopians improve their lives’’. But the reality on the ground is that they are financing the government who is terrorizing and suppressing its people and increasing poverty, while enriching the government officials and few of their cliques.

A number of independent bodies accused the Ethiopian government for using the aid money for repression and sidelining the opposition into submission.  Also the Ethiopian Government officials openly use their power to enrich their families and close friends with the aid money. The corruption, poverty and injustice increased alarmingly at a higher rate in Ethiopia as the aid money goes up. Sowhere is the help for the poor?

We believe that the UK and US Governments are fully aware of all sorts of human rights abuses exercised by the Ethiopia Government.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201304231206.html?viewall=1. However, they give deaf ears to these repressive and brutal government actions and provide the huge tax payers’ money and give moral and technical supports.  Therefore, we appeal to the UK government, the US government and the international community:

• To stop indirect or direct involvements in activities suppressing the struggle of the Oromo and other victims of the brutal Ethiopian Government by revising their aid plan.
• To seek justice for Engineer Tesfahun Chemeda who has been murdered while he was under the custody of the Ethiopian regime.
• To seek justice for the twenty seven innocent Muslims, including 5 children, who have been massacred in Kofale, Arsi region of Oromia by the Ethiopian Government?
• To support the Oromo and other victimized communities in Ethiopia to overcome injustice and help them to live in freedom, peace, and democracy and achieve stability in the region.

The Oromo community in the UK

London, September 13, 2013.

        

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Ethiopia to Continue Land Grabbing and Forced Resettlement

By Curtis Kline 

September 13, 2013 (Inter Continental Cry) — Millions of acres of Ethiopia’s most fertile lands are being offered to foreign investors, often in long-term leases and at bargain prices. At the same time, through its ‘villagization’ program, the Ethiopian government is forcibly displacing hundreds of thousands of Indigenous Peoples in order to free up their land so the transnational agro-industry can move in and grow foodstuffs and bio-fuels for export. It is a process of dispossession in which Indigenous Peoples are being forced to become dependent on aid handouts having lost their land and their ability to produce their own food.

For over a year, the Anuak and other Indigenous Peoples of the Gambella region of Southwest Ethiopia have been forced into government created villages which seldom contain the amenities promised to them. There is little access to food, arable land, water or electricity.

Last year the Anuak implicated the World Bank in the many severe human rights abuses that are being carried out as part of this resettlement. Last April, Bank President Dr. Jim Yong Kim announced, “The World Bank Group shares these concerns about the risks associated with large-scale land acquisitions. He conceded that more efforts “must be made to build capacity and safeguards related to land rights—and to empower civil society to hold governments accountable.”

The World Bank has been a key investor in several more land grabbing scandals across the developing world, despite their stated principles of respecting Indigenous People’s right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent before projects that affect their lands.

However, in this case, the World Bank, with its links to the Ethiopian Government’s Protection of Basic Services Program (sponsoring the villagization), has denied evidence that their funds are linked to villagization and says they haven’t encountered any human rights violations in the area.

An independent panel at the World Bank has been created to investigate the issue. The Inspection Panel, argues the position of denying the allegations of financing human rights abuse is not sound, saying: “The two programs depend on each other, and may mutually influence the results of the other.”

In a letter sent to the panel last year, Ethiopian refugees say some people have been forcibly relocated from their land, which is now being leased to foreign investors. “These mass evictions have been carried out under the pretext of providing better services and improving the livelihoods of the communities,’ says the letter. “However, once they moved to the new sites, they found not only infertile land, but also no schools, clinics, wells, or other basic services.” It also says they were forced to leave their homes and abandon their crops just before the harvest, and were not given any food assistance during the move. Those farmers who have refused to move from their land have been targeted for arrest, beating, torture and killing,” the letter says. The refugees state that they have been severely harmed by the World Bank financed project which is contributing to the Ethiopian Governments program of forced villagization.

US and UK development agencies have been tied to the same alleged abuses, especially in the Lower Omo Valley. Around the same time the World Bank was implicated for its sponsorship abuses and land theft, the U.K. Department for International Development (DFID) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) were accused of ignoring evidence of human rights abuses including intimidation, beatings and rape.

A farmer from the Gambella region is attempting to sue the UKgovernment after claiming that its funding of a project led to such human rights abuses against his family. The man–known as Mr. O–told his lawyers he was evicted from his farm, beaten and witnessed rapes as part of the “villagization” scheme.

According to his lawyers, Mr. O asserts that his family was forced to resettle in a new village where there was no replacement farmland or access to food and water. When he tried to return to his former home, Mr. O says he was hit repeatedly with a rifle butt and taken to a military camp by Ethiopian soldiers where he was gagged and subjected to further beatings.

Despite the list of human rights complaints and strong criticism from many human rights organizations, the Ethiopian government has vowed to continue with its villagization program in the coming years.

The government has already moved 200,000 households into 388 resettlement centers. Anuradha Mittal, Executive Director of the Oakland Institute has said that it’s up to the officials of the World Bank, USAID and DFID “to swiftly re-examine their role and determine how to better monitor funding if they are indeed not in favor of violence and repression as suitable relocation techniques for the development industry.”

Ethiopia currently receives more foreign aid than any other country in Africa–over $3 billion a year–the major donors being the United States and the United Kingdom.

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Birra 50th anniversary tribute celebration 1963 – 2013 Toronto

The 50th anniversary tribute celebration 1963 – 2013 held in the city of Toronto this past weekend on September 7, 2013 has concluded with great success.

The event, which was organized by three community organizations, Oda Relief Association of Toronto, Oromian- Canadian Society of Ottawa and Dirre-Oromos of Toronto, was well received by the audience and well attended by an estimated crowd of more than 300.

The night was kicked-off with a breathtaking moment welcoming the legendary artist entering the audience hall, accompanied by ladies dressed in Oromo cultural dresses, and the first ever song played by Dr. Ali Birra in 1963 ‘Biradha Barihe’ playing in the background by the artist Muhktar and the audience join together in singing. It was a memorable moment

The night’s opening speech was delivered by the host, Obbo Abdo Alisho who welcomes the guests and pay tribute to Dr. Ali Birra for his significant contribution to the advancement of our language, art and culture.

After a brief video clip, produced by Girma Gemeda, a highlight of Dr. Ali Birra musical careers, the president of Oda Relief Association of Toronto Obbo Zaim Ibrahim welcomed the guests and wish all participants a wonderful night.

Several guest speakers which includes prominent individuals and community leaders paid tribute to Dr. Ali on this historic occasion.

The president of Oromo-Canadian Association of Toronto, Obbo Kitaba Megersa, in his speech raised the importance of oromo artist in oromo national struggle in general and that of Ali Birra in particular.

Obbo Abdulhamid Ame Kabira, an oromo nationalist, expressed his interpretation of the true meaning of Dr. Ali Birra’s nationalist songs and what kind of messages they were delivering in different times and situations.

The audience also heard from members of Hiriyaa jalalaa band – the first oromo musical band of Dr. Ali Bira — Obbo Abubakar Mohammed — chairman of the band, Obbo Ali Abdi – accordion Player, and Obbo Abdo Barento — band dance member. They recounted how they invited him to the band at a time and paid tribute to his long musical career.

An oromo nationalist and song writer, Aadde Makiya abdullahi from Germany via Skype, also read her beautiful poem which captivated the audience.

But the highlight of the event that night was the marvelous speeches given by our young Oromos, Sabrina Galmo – the daughter of the late Saleh Galmo (RIP)- Oromo Artist and one of the founders of the Oromo Sports Federation in North America (OSFNA), Lensa Ali, Jalo Ismail and Urgee Urgeesa. They talked about what he meant to them and how he touches their lives. Its an inspiring speeches that the audience would not forget.

The dazzling tribute performance of several oromo, harari and somali artists, such as, Adero Mukhtar, Shamsudin ali, Adham adus, Adib Abdosh, Awale Adem, Koshen, Abdo Jobir, Abdulhakim Ibsa, Abdulhakim Gorbe as well as The Young Oromo Band of Toronto who were there to pay tribute to the legend made the night exceptionally special.

It was the legend him self though when he took to the stage, before the end of the event, that thrills the audience with his wild performance playing his all times songs: ‘Biradha Barihe, Karaan Manni Abbaa Gadaa Eessaa, Anis Biyyaan Qabaa, Afaan Oromo, and other songs, and the audience, not surprisingly, went wild.

A young Ali Birra picture with an autography of Dr. Ali which was donated by Obbo Girma Gemeda (Lagatafo Studio) to Birra Children Education Fund was put on auction at the event. An astonishing $600 was raised to the foundation and Anisa Qawwee declared the winner.

The organizing committee would like to take the opportunity to thank all the participants who took part in this historic event and congratulate our beloved artist Dr. Ali Birra on his 50th Anniversary celebration.

The DVD/video of the event will be released soon.

The Organizing Committee.

birra50thanniversary@hotmail.com

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