UN appeals to Ethiopia to not use anti-terror laws to suppress human rights

GENEVA (18 September 2014) – A group of United Nations human rights experts* today urged the Government of Ethiopia to stop misusing anti-terrorism legislation to curb freedoms of expression and association in the country, amid reports that people continue to be detained arbitrarily.

 The experts' call comes on the eve of the consideration by Ethiopia of a series of recommendations made earlier this year by members of the Human Rights Council in a process known as the Universal Periodic Review which applies equally to all 193 UN Members States. These recommendations are aimed at improving the protection and promotion of human rights in the country, including in the context of counter-terrorism measures.

 “Two years after we first raised the alarm, we are still receiving numerous reports on how the anti-terrorism law is being used to target journalists, bloggers, human rights defenders and opposition politicians in Ethiopia,” the experts said. “Torture and inhuman treatment in detention are gross violations of fundamental human rights.”

 “Confronting terrorism is important, but it has to be done in adherence to international human rights to be effective,” the independent experts stressed. “Anti-terrorism provisions need to be clearly defined in Ethiopian criminal law, and they must not be abused.”

 The experts have repeatedly highlighted issues such as unfair trials, with defendants often having no access to a lawyer. “The right to a fair trial, the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to freedom of association continue to be violated by the application of the anti-terrorism law,” they warned.

“We call upon the Government of Ethiopia to free all persons detained arbitrarily under the pretext of countering terrorism,” the experts said. “Let journalists, human rights defenders, political opponents and religious leaders carry out their legitimate work without fear of intimidation and incarceration.”

The human rights experts reiterated their call on the Ethiopian authorities to respect individuals’ fundamental rights and to apply anti-terrorism legislation cautiously and in accordance with Ethiopia’s international human rights obligations.

“We also urge the Government of Ethiopia to respond positively to the outstanding request to visit by the Special Rapporteurs on freedom of peaceful assembly and association, on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and on the situation of human rights defenders,” they concluded.

 ENDS

(*) The experts: Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Ben Emmerson; Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai; Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, David Kaye; Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Michel Forst; Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Gabriela Knaul; Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Juan Méndez.

Special Procedures is the largest body of independent experts in the United Nations Human Rights system. Special Procedures is the general name of the independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms of the Human Rights Council that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Currently, there are 38 thematic mandates and 14 mandates related to countries and territories, with 73 mandate holders.

Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity

For more information log on to: Countering terrorism:

http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Terrorism/Pages/SRTerrorismIndex.aspxFreedom of assembly: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/AssemblyAssociation/Pages/SRFreedomAssemblyAssociationIndex.aspxFreedom of expression: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomOpinion/Pages/OpinionIndex.aspx Independence of judiciary: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Judiciary/Pages/IDPIndex.aspx Rights defenders: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/SRHRDefenders/Pages/SRHRDefendersIndex.aspx

Torture and Inhuman treatment: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Torture/SRTorture/Pages/SRTortureIndex.aspx

UN Human Rights, country page - Ethiopia: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/AfricaRegion/Pages/ETIndex.aspx

For more information and media requests, please contact Claudia Gross (+41 22 917 9187 / cgross@ohchr.org) or write to srct@ohchr.org.

 For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts:Liz Throssell, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+ 41 22 917 9466/ ethrossell@ohchr.org)

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 Check the Universal Human Rights Index: http://uhri.ohchr.org/en

=>ohchr

Baarentuu Gadaa: Dhiibbaa fi Dhiittaa Mootummaan Wayyaanee Irraan Gaheen Artiistii Beekamtu fi Sabboontuun Oromoo Meetii Jamamaa Biyyaa Baqatte

Baarentuu Gadaa Irraa*

Artiistiin Oromoo beekamtuu fi sabboontuun Meetii Jamamaa gaafii fi deebii Sagalee Bilisummaa Oromoo (SBO) waliin taasifteen miidhaa mootummaan abbaa irree wayyaanee ishii fi abbaa warraa ishiirraan gahaaturee fi jiru jalaa baqachuun biyyaaabbaa ishii dhiiftee godaanuu ibsite.

Art. Meetii Jamamaa gaaffii deebii Fulbaan 17 bara 2014 SBO waliin taasifteen dhiibbaa fi hiraarrii mootummaan wayyaanee ishii fi abbaa warraa ishiirratti raawwachaa tureen gar malee kan miidhamaa fi hiraaraa turte ta’uu ishiitiin biyya abbaa ishee fi ummata Oromoo ogummaa ishiin ishee jaalatu dhiiftee akka baqachuuf dirqamte SBOf ibsitee jirti. Art. Meetiin akka jettetti mootummaan wayyaanee dhiittaa mirgaa ummata Oromoorraan gahaa jiruun kan ka’e yeroo ammaa kana kan yeroo kamiyyuu caalaa ajjeechaan, hidhaa fi dararaan hammaatee jira.

Miidhaan saba Oromoorratti gahaa jiru jabaachaa deemuun wal qabatee artiistoota sabbontoota ta’anii fi kanneen rakkoo ummata isaanii ogummaa qabaniincalaqqisiisan addatti tika wayyaaneetiin irratti xiyyeeffatamuun hiraarfamu jechuun rakkoo artiistoota Oromoo garaaf hin bullu jedhanirra gahu ibsitee jirti.

Artiistoonni sabboontonni garaaf hin bullu jedhan akka hojii ogummaa isaaniin wal qabatu hojjetanii hin jiraannelleen dhiibbaa adda addaa irratti taasisuu fi danqaa uumuun, yeroo barbaachise ammoo hidhuu fi ajjeesuun hojii ijoo mootummaa wayyaanee waan ta’eef, artistiin Oromoo jireenya akkasii keessa jira jechuun SBOf ibsitee jirti.

Art. Meetii Jamamaa anis akkan ogummaan qabuun ummata koo hin tajaajillee fi biyya koo keessatti hojjedhee hin jiraanne ati miseensa ABOti jechuudhaan humni tikaa fi qondaalonni wayyaanee/OPDO yoo guyyaa ayyaana keenyaa dhuftee nubiratti sirbite malee hin hojjettu jechuun walatajjii nadhorkachaa fi ukkaamsaa adda addaa narratti raawwachaa turan jetteetti. Itti dabaluudhaanis Art. Meetii Jamamaa akka SBOtti himteetti heyyama baafadhee akkan hin hojjenneefis mana qabsiisi, qarshii kuma dhibba shan argisiisi naan jechuun ta’e jedhanii waanan gochuu hin dandeenyeen jiruu fi jireenya na dhorkan jettee jirti.

Art. Meetii Jamamaa itti dabaluudhaan akka SBOtti himtetti abbaa warraa ishii Obbo Gammachiis Magarsaa humni tikaa wayyaanee miseensa ABOti itti jechuudhaan waggoota 10nii oliif hidhee akkadararaa adda addaa irraan gahaa ture fi ishiiniis kophaa ishii daa’ima waliin akka dararamaa turte addeessite. Abbaan warraa ishii Obbo Gammachiis Magarsaa reebichaa fi dararaa irra gaheen miidhaan qaamaa guddaan kan irra gahe ta’uu ibsitee jirti.

Yakki mootummaan wayyaanee OPDO of jala oofuudhaan ummata Oromoorratti raawwacha jiru kana qophaa miti kan jette Art. Meetiin, ummata Oromoo naannawa Finfinnee qeeyee fi qabeenyarraa buqqisuudhaan lafa Oromoo gurgurachuuu fi Oromoo biyya dhablee gochuuf deemuunis kan mataa nama dhukkubsuu fi kan hundi keenyaa tokkummaadhaan irratti qabsaawuu qabnuu dha jettee jirti.

Guutuu gaaffii fi deebii Sagaleen Bilisummaa Oromoo (SBO)n Art. sabboontuu, beekamtuu fi jaalatamtuu Meetii Jamamaa waliin taasise guutummaa isaa sagantaa SBOirraa dhaggeeffadhaa!

* Baarentuu Gadaa: gessogeda@gmail.com

=>gadaa

Scotland vs Oromos : When the uncomparable is compared

Hawi Chala |

Since a couple of weeks ago, I have been reading some articles and posts on social media arguing the Scotland referendum which can be a good lesson and role model for the Oromo struggle for independence. Contrary, I object this argument and rather argue that the Scottish referendum cannot be a lesson and role model to Oromo struggle for independence. There is no common historical experience that resembles our struggle to the Scottish. Neither social nor political nor economic resemblance prevails, at all, that makes it a role model for Oromo quest for independence. Here are my major points.

1. Scotland and Britain married each other in 1707 in Act of union voluntarily, by mutual agreement for mutual intest of both nations. It was neither invasion nor colonialism. While case of Oromia and Ethiopia is a forced one, without the will of the Oromo people. It is a real invasion and colonialism.

2. The Scotland and Britain have lived together for over 300 years peacefully, as a mother and a daughter, depending on one another. The Scots have never complained of the oppression, persecution, imprisonment or brutal rule of Britain. Simply speaking, no one was either imprisoned or inflicted or killed for just advocating for the independent of Scotland.

The Ethiopians and Oromo have lived together as an oppressor and oppressed, as an exploiter and the exploited or as master and slave. The Oromo have been complaining about the brutal rule of the Abysinians’ dictators and violation of basic human rights. You will hardly find a single Oromo individual whose family has not been either persecuted or imprisoned or exiled or killed for just voicing for the legitimate right of Oromo people.
Through all these years, Scotland could retain its major institutions like legal system, education,…etc.

3. The main driving force behind the Scottish independence is the presence of natural oil resource in Scotland. To access a better social welfare for the 5 million of Scots from the high revenue of oil is a must NOT miss opportunity for them to seek for secession from England. Free health service, free tuition, fee from rather skyrocketing tuition fee of England and some others social benefits are some of the driving forces for independence.

I don’t think that the Scottish would even think of secession from UK if there happened to be no natural oil resource in Scotland.
Being endowed by natural resources, economic advantages have never been the primary driving force of Oromos’ struggle for independence. Rather, the main driving force behind the Oromo struggle is the real need to get free from oppression, persecution, brutal rule, imprisonment, basic human right violations and similar legitimate political rights. In Oromo’s struggle for independence, the economic reasons followed the political reasons, unlike the Scotland.

4. As long as I understand, Scots are moving from economic dependence to independence, rather than to political independence as the oppressed Oromos and other oppressed nations of the world strive for. The recent voting polls shows very close percentage (between 52 % to 48 % ). This figure simply shows that their vote of yes or No, is not the vote that an oppressed nations votes for.

If Oromo people get the same chance of vote for referendum, the YES vote percentage will double the above number.

5. While living under the umbrella of UK, Scots have not lost their national pride and national feeling of being Scottish. They have been Scotland first, and for being so they didn’t challenged or refused. Through multiple cultural and social genocides, Oromos were forced to loss the feeling of Oromuma, and made us ashamed for being Oromo. The recent challenges, resistances and insults for saying ” I am Oromo first ” is a recent example.

6. Geographic advantage.

Scotland is located in the northern periphery of UK. And this by itself adds an opportunity for scots to easily apart themselves from the center. Oromia is located as the heart of the Ethiopia and share boundaries with almost all of other sister nations. There are some Oromo tribes residing within other ethnic groups. This diversified and complicated geographical location will not ease ways for secession as same as the Scots. This doesn’t mean that geographical location will hinder the quest for independence but might not be as easy as the one located at the periphery.
I want to quote two comments given by the Scottish boy and an Oromo boy for the question: why do you need independence?
The Scottish boy answered: “It is because I don’t want to be 40% or 20 % of something (UK), I just want to see Scotland. And I don’t want to be part of the extremely socially unequal part of England.”
The Oromo boy answered: “It is because I want to be free of oppression, persecution, and killing. I don’t want to be treated inhumanely.  I want to live in a country where my basic human rights get respected.”  The difference is visible.
There are some positive experiences we can gather from the Scottish independence, but taking their lesson as role model for the Oromo struggle will make us illusionary. Their struggle and our struggle have a very different paths, aspirations and goal.  In order for us as oppressed people to become part of a society that is meaningful, the system under which we now exist has to be radically changed. Our struggle for independence needs a huge sacrifice than that of Scottish. Independence to Oromo and Oromia will not be attained only through campaign and debates like that of Scots, it might rather require a life sacrifice.
Therefore, Scotland referendum can be a better role model for Catalonians of Spain than Oromos. The struggle and independence of South Sudan can rather be taken as a better role model for Oromo struggle for independence.

Oppressed nation will not remain oppressed.

Hawi Chala


=>ayyaantuu

International Oromo Youth Association’s Press Release

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September 16, 2014

On July 1, 2014, the International Oromo Youth Association and the Advocates for Human Rights submitted a detailed report to the Pre-Sessional Working Group of the Committee on the Rights of the Child. The report identified numerous human rights violations of the rights of children under the age of 18 in Ethiopia. The report concluded that ethnic identity is a major risk factor—children belonging to certain ethnic groups such as the Oromo face severe discrimination and rights violations. The report specifically focuses on human rights violations that followed the recent peaceful protests that occurred across schools in the Oromia region. Other issues pertaining to liberty, security, privacy, freedom of expression and association, family, basic health and welfare, education, and leisure and cultural activities were also included in the report.
On July 17, 2014, IOYA received a letter of invitation to present the report at the closed session for the Committee on the Rights of the Child, part of the UN Human Rights Office in Geneva, Switzerland on Friday, September 26, 2014. IOYA will be sending two representatives from the executive board. Human Rights attorney Amy Berquist of the Advocates for Human Rights and IOYA president Amane Badhasso will present the report at the closed session and answer questions posed by the committee. In addition to the report, representatives of both organizations will have weeklong opportunity to meet with UN organizations and other NGO’s while in Geneva.
This is indeed a huge step for Oromos and other groups across the globe who have tirelessly worked to expose human rights violations in Ethiopia, particularly those against Oromo students. None of this would be possible without the financial contribution of Oromo Communities and individual donors. We are very grateful for the generous support and assistance provided to IOYA throughout the planning process.
We believe in the rule of law and implementation of human rights, as well as protection of all groups against violations of freedoms granted to all persons.

Sincerely,
IOYA Board
www.ioya.org

=>ayyaantuu

Rights group: African Union soldiers raped, exploited Somali women, girls

By Jethro Mullen and Nana Karikari-apau, CNN

File photo: An African Union commander addresses Ugandan soldiers serving with the AU operation in Somalia in 2012.

CNN) -- African Union soldiers stationed in Somalia have raped and sexually exploited women and girls on their military bases, Human Rights Watch says in a new report.

The report released Monday accuses soldiers of working through Somali go-betweens to use a variety of ploys, such as humanitarian aid, to force women and girls to have sex as well as to sexually assault women who came to the bases seeking medical help or water.

"Some African Union soldiers have misused their positions of power to exploit Somalia's most vulnerable women and girls," said Liesl Gerntholtz, executive director of the women's rights division at Human Rights Watch.

The rights group said it interviewed 21 women and girls who recounted being raped or sexually exploited by Ugandan or Burundian troops serving with the African Union Mission in Somalia since 2013.

 Among the cases described in the report is a 15-year-old girl who was allegedly raped by a Burundian soldier after she went to a military base to try to get medicine for her sick mother.

African Union challenges report

The African Union said it was "concerned" by the report and would "thoroughly" investigate the allegations. But it took issue with much of the content of the document, accusing it of "imbalance, inaccuracies and partial view."

The regional body said the portrayal of the AU mission and the broad conclusions in the report "constitute a misrepresentation of the sacrifices, achievements and genuine commitment" of the mission.

AU troops are in Somalia to support Somali forces cracking down on Al-Shabaab, a group fighting the government in hopes of turning the country into a fundamentalist Islamic state.

The mission's mandate includes helping with humanitarian assistance in Somalia, which is plagued by war, poverty and famine.

Scale of problem unclear

The AU said the Human Rights Watch report "uses a small number of cases to arrive at a generalized conclusion."

The rights group said it didn't "assess the scale or prevalence of the abuse" because of the sensitivity of the subject and the "profound reluctance" of victims and witnesses to speak out.

"Nonetheless, the findings raise serious concerns about abuses by AMISOM soldiers against Somali women and girls that suggest a much larger problem," the report said.

It called on the countries who contribute troops, the AU and donors to the mission to "urgently address these abuses and strengthen procedures inside Somalia to seek justice."

The AU said in its statement it had developed mechanisms "to prevent and respond to issues of misconduct and abuse in peace support operations, in accordance with the AU's zero-tolerance policy on this matter."

Contacted for comment, a spokesman for the mission referred CNN to the AU statement.

Somali government to launch investigation

The Somali Prime Minister's office issued a statement Tuesday expressing concern over the "grave allegations" in the Human Rights Watch report.

"The government condemns all forms of abuse against the Somali people and remains committed to ensuring perpetrators of any crime against its civilians are brought to justice," the office said.

"The government will lead a rigorous and prompt investigation into the allegations with all stakeholders and necessary action will be taken as required."

CNN's Faith Karimi contributed to this report.

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Ethiopia's Meles Zenawi: Legacies, memories, histories

Distorted rhetoric and commemorative acts seek to obfuscate the true dictatorial legacy of Ethiopia's late leader.

Awol K Allo Awol K. Allo is a Fellow in Human Rights at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Ethiopia's long-term Prime Minister Meles Zenawi died on August 20, 2012 [EPA] August 20 marked the second anniversary of the death of Ethiopia's long-time leader, Meles Zenawi. Two years on, the Zenawi phenomenon is still as divisive as it is unsettling. For his supporters, Zenawi is a statesman and a visionary leader that represents not only the hopes and aspirations of "the new Ethiopia" but also "the African renaissance". For those who were excluded and marginalised under his rule, Zenawi is the symbolic personification of a tyrannical system that violently quashed their desire for freedom and justice. Still for others, he is a complex figure that condenses within himself the qualities of a political genius and a seasoned dictator. In the words of The Economist: "the man who tried to make dictatorship acceptable." Two years on, the spectre of Zenawi hangs over the Ethiopian state. His name, his policies, and his visions still provide the cement that keeps together the ideological edifices of the Ethiopian state. His successors elevate him to a pure symbol, take pride in and identify with his legacies. The constant invocation of Zenawi by regime officials gives the impression that the entire social and political order of the state is predicated on the image and imagery of a single man. The "Meles Legacy" has become a grand memory work - an archive that condenses within it a great many different things for a great many different people. Legacy and the politics of archives Zenawi now belongs to the archives. But archives are pivotal - "great historical watchtowers" or "observation posts" from which we can access and observe the past. In archives, we see the random elements and the minute details of our identity. Archives are not just about remembering and understanding the past. In fact, at stake in every recounting of the past is not the past as such; it is the future. In his seminal essay, "Archive Fever", French philosopher Jacques Derrida observes , the question of the archive is "a question of the future, the question of the future itself, the question of a response, of a promise and of a responsibility for tomorrow. The archive: if we want to know what that will have meant, we will only know in times to come." To speak about Zenawi's archives, then, is not to speak about the past: It is about the future. But archives are contested spaces: They not only conserve but also produce and reproduce. Far from being neutral voids in which facts and events are placed, archives are active agents that participate in the production and reproduction of meaning. For every archive, there are counter-archives. For every narrative, there are counter-narratives. It is precisely for this reason that Zenawi's legacy has become such an important site of political struggle in Ethiopia today. Zenawi's archives As a man who played the single most important role in Ethiopia's history of the last two decades, Zenawi is a giant in that archive. When asked by Al Jazeera's Andrew Simmons about the legacy he leaves behind, Zenawi said, "I would like to be remembered as someone who got Ethiopia off to a good track, democratic one, […] where Ethiopia's proverbial poverty begins to be tackled in an effective way; I would like to be remembered as someone who has started the process." During his funeral ceremony two years ago, his successor, Hailemariam Desalegn called him a "visionary", an "intellectual", and a "technocrat" who has been " working for the renaissance Ethiopia and Africa".  Jacob Zuma of South Africa called him " one of the greatest sons of the continent" while Paul Kagame of Rwanda recognised his unreserved support in the fight to end the Rwandan genocide and praised his "humble", "simple" but "meaningful life " . The most notable eulogy was delivered by then US Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, who depicted a rather erudite and progressive image of Zenawi. Rice spoke of "his world-class mind" : " he wasn't just brilliant. He wasn't just a relentless negotiator and a formidable debater. He wasn't just a thirsty consumer of knowledge. He was uncommonly wise." In many ways, he has built international reputation for himself as "the voice of Africa", and the West's key ally on "the war on terror". Whatever the truth of these eulogies, Zenawi's domestic credentials are absolutely dismal . For the last two decades, Ethiopia consistently ranked as one of the most repressive states in the world. Susan Rice's ownState Department chronicled a consistent pattern of grave violations of human rights including torture, arbitrary killings, restrictions on freedom of the press and expression, denial of religious freedoms, and the politicised use of its notorious anti-terrorism legislation. Contradicting her own government's documented practices of torture and other grave human rights violations, Rice's eulogies slips into an agonising denial that flies in the face of the facts . Rice exploits the grandeur of US power and its enunciating force to rework the history of repression and torture. This reworking, as the Philosopher Michel Foucault says , functions to "ensure that the greatness of the events or men of the past could guarantee the value of the present". However, history cannot remain reworked. As Walter Benjamin's messianic but sublime insight reveals: " The past carries with it a temporal index by which it is referred to redemption. There is a secret agreement between past generations and the present one. Our coming was expected on earth." Zenawi's counter-archives Zenawi was a paradoxical figure who embodied the traits of a brutal dictator and a politico-economic genius, both unified in one. Just before the 2010 election in which Zenawi won 99.6 percent of the seats, Andrew Simmons sought an explanation for these two faces: "There are  . . . those who say that you have two faces, you have a face for Davos, charming, a progressive and you have another face, which is totalitarian and repressive; how do you respond to that?" Zenawi's answer was misleadingly simple: "As far as I am concerned, what you see is what you get. No two faces, just one." Those who are deprived of the means of narrative production by Zenawi see him as a man who used his omnipotent power and his knowledge of the politico-military complex toeliminate the very conditions under which alternative ideas and competent political operators could emerge. It is not simply that he built a system around himself, but deliberately established himself as the only leader able to supply the cement necessary to hold together the nation's internal ruptures. He might have helped Ethiopia achieve rocketing economic progress but this progress came at a cost of two decades of terror and repression. The relentless memorialisation of Zenawi's legacy conceals, misrecognises, misrepresents, de-historicises, and ultimately erases the fundamental relationships of domination and inequality instituted by the order minted by Zenawi. Theses obsessive commemorative practices , i.e. events, parks, monuments, and institutions built up to remember and commemorate Zenawi have the purpose and effect of transforming everything about Zenawi into "a dazzling action" that can be appropriated by the order he founded and the sovereignty he left behind. It has the goal of transcribing his deeds into a discourse that ensures the sedimentation of these utterances into common-sense knowledge, into that which remains when everything is forgotten. This, then, is what is at stake in the struggle over the legacy of Meles Zenawi. No doubt the darling of the West who outmanoeuvred his adversaries, Zenawi's domestic reputation is radically at odds with his international stature. In the eyes of his people, Zenawi was irredeemably authoritarian. Awol Kassim Allo is Fellow in Human Rights at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Follow him on Twitter:  @ awol_allo =>aljazeera

Essence of the Scottish Referendum in the Eyes of an Oromo Nationalist

By Boruu Barraaqaa | September 9, 2014

Scotland will vote next week on a referendum to become an independent country. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/Guardian

It is obvious that both supporters and opponents of Oromian independence in Ethiopia are watching carefully what is going on in the UK. Both political entities have their own reasons for their respective wishes. Some Abyssinian elites could ridiculously try to resemble their cause to that of English elites, who were in the forefront of building the great nation, UK. However, there is no factual resemblance between the savage invaders from Abyssinia and the most civilized, prosperous and the leading democratic nation in the world. In spite of the fact that the British were once the brutal colonialist rulers in the world history, I don’t judge them by their history of yesterday in this context, but by who they are and what they are contributing for the betterment of our world today.
Therefore, our comparison should not be based on the past history, but on what is going on today. I am happy to see a historical test that is happening in a leading democratic nation, UK, but I will not have a cause to rejoice if I see the Scottish independence or to be sad by their possible defeat simply because of I am from a fellow suppressed nation in Africa. The encouraging event for the colonized peoples like the Oromo is just to witness such kind of referendums around the world and grabbing some experiences for their own future. Feelings that could spark from any result of the referendum should be left for the stakeholders.