Ethiopia: Terrorism Law Decimates Media

Free Jailed Journalists, Allow Media Freedom

MAY 3, 2013

Source hrw

Historical Significances of Odaa with Special Reference to Walaabuu

By D. Hinew Dehu  | May 6, 2012

Published on STAR Journal  in April-June 2012

ayyaantuu

Balaa Anniyya, Jaarsoo fii Mi’eeysorratti wayyaneedhaan baname

May 4, 2013 at 11:03 pm · Gadaa.com

(Caamsaa 4, 2013) – Waraannii naannoo Soomalii, Oromoo daangaa Soomaletti dhihaattu ammaas weeyrare, namni kumaan lakkaawamu balaa haarayaaf Saaxilaman.

Gabaasaan Mayyu (ona Anniyyaa) irraa nu dhaqqabe akka mirkaneeysutti Waraannii dhaabbataan naannoo Soomalii kan Ogaaden fii loltoonni Liyyuu Polis kan Ogaaden keeysatti ummata shoorarkeeysuun beekkame, daangaa naannoo Oromiyaa cabseee, lafa Oromoo Anniyyaa, Mayyuu Muluqee humnaan dhuunfate. Akka gabaasaa tanaatti, torbaan dabre guyyaa Salaasaa, tuutni loltoota Somalee lamaanuu harka tokko tahanii Oromoorratti waliin bobbahanii jiraattoota Oromoo kanneen naannoo Mayyuu qubatan balaa guddaa irraan gahanii jiran.

Gaafa dura humna waraanaatiin dhufanii Oromiyaa dhunfatan, Wayyaaneen Ummata Oromoo kan amma wayyaba tahe saba xiqqatti deebisuun nidandayama yaada ja’u Mallas dubbatee ture. Sagantaa dabaa, tan ummata Oromoo xiqqeeysuufii lafa isaa dhiphisuu kana hojiirra oolchuuf Wayyaneen, ollaalee Oromiyaa gara hundaan hidhachiiftee Oromoorratti bobbaasaa jirti. Humni Liyyuu Poolis, humna wayyaaneen jaartee hidhachiifte tahuun hubatamaadha.

Tarkaanfiin Liyyuu Poolis fii humna waraana Ogaaden kan amma Mayyutti bobbahee kuni Oromoo lafa isarraa buqqisani saba biraa qubsiisuuf sagantaa lafa kaayyame dalagatti hiikuuf duula walirraa hin cinne tahee jira.

Akka kanaan baatii ( ji’a ) jahan dabre baha Oromiyaa kutaa Harar, Oromoota Anniyya, Oromoo Jaarsoo tiifii Oromoo naannoo Mi’eeysoo qubatan lafa isaaniirraa buqqiftee Ogaadenootaafii Issaaf kennanii ummatoota Oromoo fii Soomalee jiddutti xifaa uumani jiran. Baatii April tana keysa, lafa Anniyyaa ona Mayyuu irratti duulli gara Ogaadeniin baname Oromoo kumaatamaan lafa isaa, Mayyurraa buqqisee jira. Oromoon meeshaa,humna waranaatiifii lojistikii (logistics) akka isaanii waan hin qabneef lola itti baname dura dhaabbatuu hin dadeenye. Warri Oromoo Anniyyaa, Jaarsoofii Mieeysoon lolaa jiru kun eenyu faa? 1, Waraana mootummaa naannoo Soomalii fii,2, waraana addaa ka liyuu police ja’amu, ka wayyaaneen akeeka ykn dalagaa tanaaf qopheeyfatte.

Mayyu lafa jidduu Cululiifii laggeen Ereriifii Gobeelle jiddutti argamti. Lafti Mayyu ja’amtu tun hedduu guddoodha. Dheerinni isii kaabaa kibbatti km 350 ni caalti, baharraa dhihatti KM 180 ni caalti. Lola haaraya kanaan Qabeenyi Anniyyarraa a’ame (saamame); Loon 475, Gaala 25 fii Harree 15.

Ummanni Oromoo Anniyyaa kan ona isaarraa buqqa’ee Huusetti walitti qabamee jiru 500,000 ni gayan ja’ama.

Namoonni gataniis ni jira. Lafa qonnaa kani duraan qabaniifii oomisha isaanii akkasumatti dhiisanii biraa baqatan. Ummanni Oromoo qawwee gayaa hin qaban. Bakka heddutti mootummaan irraa hiiktee jirt. Hanga xiqqaa harkatti hafeef ammoo rasaasa hin qaban. gara geejjibaatiin akkasumatti ir’ina guddaa qaban. Yeroo kuni tahu Soomalootaafii Wayyaanota hidhannoo fii rasaasni konkolataa, xayyaaraa fii gaalatti fe’mee jala deema. Karaa biraatiin yoo Oromoon Anniyya humna waraana Soomalee kan ofirraa dhawan OPDOn hidhannoo ni hiikkachiifti.Torbaan dabre yeroo ummanni Oromoo Anniyyaa humna Soomalee ifirraa ittisuuf tattaafate, OPDOn ajaja Wayyaneetiin namoota Oromoo kudhanirraa qawwee hiikanii turan.

Balaan ammaa tuni tan Anniyya, Jaarsoo fii Mi’eeyso qofa xiyyeeffattee miti. Balaan tuni tan Wayyaneedhaan karoorfamte; balaa duguugiinsa shanyiiti. Kanaafuu Oromoon gara hundaan harka walqabatee, duguuginsa shannyi kan akka ummataatti isaan aaggate kanarraa if eewaluu qaba.

Source. gadaa

Failure of abay dam fund raising.

By Adugna Dinka

Abay dam or Millennium Hydropower Plant as they call it is a hydropower plant that is under construction by the TPLF government of Ethiopia. It is said to generate 5250 MW of electricity and the purpose of the construction is said to cover the energy demand of the empire as well as for export.

The cost of the dam is about 80 billion birr or about 4.76 billion dollar. The government is said to fund the project locally by selling bonds partly and some international partners. They also say that the government is ready to fund the project even if a loan is not available internationally. Due to this it appears as if the TPLF officials are running a marathon to collect money to cover the project. They are trying to co-ordinate fund raising meetings all across the world from Ethiopian diaspora. But the TPLF official’s assumption of collecting money from diaspora appears to be a failure.

This is due to the human right record of the TPLF government. Most of the diaspora communities of Ethiopia are those who were chased away by the weyane government or clearly aware of what the government is doing to any opposition group in the country. The TPLF government of Ethiopia is harassing and imprisoning any opposition group by categorizing them as a terrorist, even to a level that journalists cannot dare to report about them.

The recent fund raising activities of TPLF officials in Norway both at Stavanger and Oslo ended a failure. This is due to an effective protest of Oromo diaspora in Norway and others against the fund raising. It is also said that the failure of the fund raising program is everywhere. So, the success of abay dam is yet to be seen without a fair human right record at home. 

by Adugna Dinka (re_appear1@yahoo.co.uk)

SBO/VOL Silver Jubilee- 25th Anniversary 0n air! – June 15, 2013

Sagalee Bilisummaa Oromoo/ Voice of Oromo Liberation will mark its 25^th anniversary on 15^thJune 2013. Launched on June 15^th 1988, SBO/VOL has been contributing a lot in the long journey of Oromo struggle for freedom, despite several relentless attempts of the enemy to quit the media. This quarter-a-century contribution of SBO in informing, organizing and agitating the Oromo nation for the struggle to self determination enables the OLF organ the first Oromo media launched to entertain Oromo cause.

It is our great pleasure to celebrate this historical Silver Jubilee with our people in Oromia and around the world. You are all invited to take part in this historical celebration, being in your localities. We are so grateful to those who have made unforgettable contributions to keep SBO staying on air to this very day. Your contributions to make this celebration successful and still keeping the radio on air in the future (by donating money, sharing idea and forwarding your constructive comments or suggestions) are much appreciated.

Contact us:

Email: sbo.radio88@gmail.com

Victory to the Oromo People!

SBO/VOL Editorial Board

Jubilii Meetii (Waggaa 25^ffaa) Tamsaasa SBO!

Waxabajjii 15, 2013

Sagaleen Bilisummaa Oromoo (SBO) waggaa 25^ffaa tamsaasa raadiyoo itti eegale Waxabajjii 15, bara 2013 kabajata. SBOn guyyaa itti hundeeffame, Waxabajjii 15, bara 1988 irraa qabee hanga har’aantanaatti adeemsa qabsoo dheeraa keessatti carraaqqii qilleensa irraa dhaamsuuf diinni taasisu hundumaa dandamatee gumaacha oláanaa waliin waggaa 25^ffaa isaa kabajuuf qophaawaa jira. Kurmaana bardhibbee tokkoof ummata Oromoo barsiisuu, ijaaruu fi qabsoo hiree murteeffannaaf kakaasuudhaan gumaachi SBOn taasisaa yoona gahe arraata ABO kana meediyaalee dhimma qabsoo Oromoof hundaawan kamuu keessaa isa hangafa taasisa.

Jubilii Meetii (Waggaa 25^ffaa) guyyaa hundeeffama keenyaa kana ummata keenya Oromiyaa fi addunyaa mara irratti argamu waliin yoo kabajannu gammachuu gudaatu nutti dhagahama. Hundi keessanuu bakkuma jirtanitti nu waliin tahuun ayyaana seena qabeessa kana irraa akka qooda fudhattan afeeramtanii jirtu.

Waggoottan 25nan dabraniif SBO jiraachisuuf karaa adda addaa haala seenaan hin daganneen warra gumaachaa turtan maraaf galatni bilisummaa dha. Ayyaana kana milkeessuuf, akkasumas, gara fuula duraattis SBO raadiyoo keessan tamsaasa irra jiraachisuuf karaa maallaqaa, yaadaa fi gorsa ijaaraa gumaachuun akka nu cinaa dhaabbattan hiree kanaan waamicha goona.

Nu qunnamuuf:

Email: sbo.radio88@gmail.com

Injifannoo Ummata Oromoof!

Boordii Gulaalaa SBO

source ayyaantuu

Who Burn Oromian forests?

By Adugna Dinka

In a brief short news, the website called ‘ayyaantuu.com’ posted the burning of UNESCO registered Yayu Forest of Iluu Abbaa Boor, Oromia on its facebook account. According to the information, the forest fire was raging for the last two weeks without getting any attention from Government or public officials. It is said that the government has blocked all media outlets from reporting about the forest fire while it was supposed to try to extinguish the fire. Effort (the business wing of the ruling party) is also reported as a culprit of deforestation as part of its coal mining activity in the area. This reminds me about how the government of Ethiopia burn down the forest of Boorana and Gujii zones back in 2000.

In the year 2000, a forest fire happened in the then Boorana zone of Oromia (Gujii and Boorana zone of today). In addition to the forest fire of Boorana, there was also a huge forest fire in Bale zone. In Boorana zone the forest fire occurred in Areero and Manqubsa (Nagelle) forests. While in Gujii zone the forest fire happened in Shakiso, Adoola, wadera and Bore forests. The fire was intense in Areeroo, Nagelle and shakkisoo. It almost completely burnt out the forest of manqubsa(nagelle), and devastated the Areeroo  and shakkisoo forests.

There are multiple reasons for the burning of the forest that time.  The government of Ethiopia claims that OLF guerilla fighters reside in the forest. The other reasons were the mining process of shakkisoo and the then investment activity. It is true that OLF fighters take shelter in the forest but this can’t be the reason to burn it. And this was the main reason that Areeroo and manqubsa forests were dealt with.

The mining activity of shakkisoo was the other reason. Mineral exploitation, especially Gold mining and exploration needs to clear the forest. In addition to these, the company needed a place to ditch toxic waste.

Extinguishing this fire took more than three months and it was the arrival of the rainy season that helped to extinguish the fire completely. But at the early stage of the fire, there was no attention from the government or officials, only agricultural department was making an effort to extinguish the fire. Just like yayu forest fire of today, there was no media coverage during the early stage of the fire. Luckily there were many NGOs in the zone and they get the word out to international media.

It was after it gets international media coverage that the government organized a team from Federal agricultural office and the military and dispatched them. But the issue was no more a regional or national issue; it became a global issue as main international media outlets started giving analysis of the effect of the forest fire. They put it clearly that it affects not only east Africa, but also global. Some estimated the forest fire can affect 50 million people directly in the sub-continent.

It was after this that professional fire fighters arrive from South Africa. The South African started to monitor the fire from air. They monitored the whole southern Ethiopia from Bale to Arba minchi, while the fire fighters were stationed in Shakkisoo.

Nationally, it gets momentum and media outlets started covering about the forest fire. University students started arriving from different universities and colleges. Regionally, the people and government workers put a great effort to put out the fire.

But what is very interesting was what the farmers (local people) say. They say it is Impossible to extinguish this fire. What they say was, while people put out the fire day time, there is somebody or group who put on the fire during the night. When people extinguish the fire day time at one place, the next morning they find an intense fire at the same location.

The TPLF led Ethiopian government doesn't totally care about the natural resources in Oromia. The UNESCO registered Yayu forest is facing the same fate of the Boorana-Gujii forests. The land or the soil underneath the forest might be needed for some purpose. It may be used to fulfill investment interest of TPLF.

It is said that the deforestation and burning of Yayu forest of Oromia is to build Tigray. The huge coal deposit beneath the forest is the main reason to burn down the forest. It was also said that the big tigrean companies like EFFORT has already moved to the area to make as much money as they can.

 The UNESCO registered Yayu forest

If there is no media coverage at local or national level, and if there is no government effort to extinguish the fire at local, regional or national level, for sure there will be a conspiracy to deal with the forest, so that the land can be available for some other purposes. The soil under the forest is favorable for any mechanized agriculture. This fits the government policy of leasing land for foreign investors or Tigrean based national investors.

 yayu forest

It is not late for the Oromos to save their forest of Yayu. Oromos in diaspora must make an effort to put the news in the hand of international media. We have to get the news to concerned international bodies, which of course UNESCO itself is the main. Other international conservation based organizations must also get the information. It is only these organizations and the international media who can influence the Ethiopian government to make an effort to extinguish the UNESCO registered Yayu forest fire of Oromia.

Some countries and international organizations blindly help the Ethiopian government without analysis of what the Ethiopian government is doing to its natural resources. It is not fair to provide support before ensuring whether the government is doing its job in the interest of the people, which in this case is protecting the natural forest of the country. One good example is the participation of Norway and United Kingdom in the project of climate resilient green economy (CRGE) in Ethiopia in which they agreed to provide multi-layer support. To the contrary, the Ethiopian government is not in a position to protect and conserve the existing natural forest.  It is difficult to recovery from climatic change or adapt to the change in any means through CRGE unless the existing natural forests are protected. 

By Adugna Dinka (re_appear1@yahoo.co.uk)

Oromo online discussion forums of Paltalk messenger.

By Adugna Dinka

In recent years online discussion forums become effective way of communicating with audience from across the world in a short time. It is also effective in getting the feedback immediately just like a normal meeting. The anonymity of the audience makes online discussion forums more open minded than a normal meeting, though sometimes people don’t use their right appropriately. Some people use anonymity in a wrong sense and use it for insulting or defaming purposes.

One of these online discussion forums is the paltalk messenger in which people can create their own room and conduct discussion for the purpose they want. The participants can participate in the room by airing their view in which all people can hear him/her or by text pasting in the room. But if one wants to send out his message clearly, he has to speak, because text messages might not be read by all audience or sometimes it might be misunderstood or sometimes the texts are meant for individuals. Other than that, when hundreds of people are texting, it is difficult to hear the one speaking and follow the texting at the same time.

People use paltalk messenger across the world for different purposes. These include political activism, religious purposes, language teachings, music, arts and entertainment, family issue, love and dating, sports, science and even pornography. People from across the world participate in discussion and text messaging for the purpose they want.

 Music, language teaching, love and dating, arts and entertainment, sport and science have an audience from across the world, though it appears that western world have more participants in these aspects. But political activism is different. People participate in political activism of pal talk messenger from areas of where there is unsolved business. These include Africa (especially east Africa), Asia and pacific, central and south America. From religion, Christianity and Islam have more audience than others, though it is difficult to know from which part of the world they have more participants.

East Africa is a volatile area politically and religiously.  It is an area where there is so much unsolved issues from semi stateless Somalia, colonial and dictatorial Christianity based Ethiopia, a dictatorial Eritrea and a recently liberated southern Sudan with a resource based conflict with northern Sudan lies. The unstable Somalia with unrecognized governments of puntland and Somalilands and the UN supported government of Somalia and again the unsolved issue of Ethiopian Ogadenia region of Somalia makes this area at high level of political activism.

The case of Ethiopian empire is also similar. The Abyssinian based long dominancy of the government has led to nations and nationalities based political activism for the liberation of nations and nationalities hold together by force in that empire. The pseudo federal system of Tigrean based politico economic domination of today is a big reason for the political activism and it manifest itself in online discussion forums which actually pal talk is the main. 

The online politically oriented paltalk discussion forums of Ethiopian empires are based on two lines; one is the Union based discussion forums which again can be seen in two ways. The first is the one that supports the present day dictatorial government that advocate the existence of true federated democracy in the country. This group shows clearly the support and connection it has with the EPDRF government of Ethiopia and even has the ability to call government officials at any time for discussion. The second union based discussion forums are those who actually based on diaspora participants and political organizations. It seems that these group stuck to king Minilik’s era, a group that believe in everything one (one country, one language, one culture etc.). It seems as if they can’t analyze the dynamism of the current Ethiopian empire situation.  

The other group is the freedom based discussion forums. These are the group that believes in the freedom of nations and nationalities from the Ethiopian empire. In today’s context The Oromos, Ogadenians, the Sidamas clearly advocate the freedom of nations and nationalities. They believe that even if a union of the federation of Ethiopia happens, it should be based on the agreed and consensus of all nations and nationalities.

There are online discussion forums that clearly show the interest of the second group, among which the Oromo online discussion forum is based. The Oromo online discussion forum of paltalk messenger has achieved much. It is known that there are different Oromo groups that struggle almost for similar purposes and goals but use a different strategy. Almost all Oromo organizations believe in the self determination of Oromo people. They all advocate that let the Oromo people decide about their future, Let they decide where they belong democratically in a modern and acceptable way. But the way the political organizations explain this can vary or the strategy they are using, but overall it appears that all are going for the same goal.

My point here is that, the online paltalk discussion forums are not recognizing this. Due to this it appears that, the followers of different Oromo political groups forget their common enemy which is the dictatorial EPDRF government and spend their time on criticizing one another.  The followers of different Oromo political groups must understand that every group has a right to choose its strategy and the end goal they want, but still must recognize the say of the Oromo people. It is not Oromo political groups that decide the future of the Oromos, but the Oromos themselves. The job of political groups must be to take Oromos to the destination where they can decide about their future in a clear and democratic way. It is only the Oromos, not the political groups that decide where Oromos want to belong in the future, whether to stay in a democratized Ethiopia or become a free Oromian nation.

So, it has no use to waste a precious time on criticizing each other rather than targeting an enemy. It is better for an Oromo organization to negotiate with each other and work hand in hand, though there is a different in strategy and tactics to achieve an Oromo cause than fight each other and waste a scarce resource and time on each other. 

Paltalk discussion forum is a good media. It is a media that can be used for many purposes if used effectively and properly.  If focused on, it can bring Oromo unity than create a difference.

 By Adugna Dinka, email (re_appear1@yahoo.co.uk)