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Boycott Woyanne cash cow: Ethiopian Airlines

By Elias Kifle

The Woyanne junta continues to commit horrible atrocities against Ethiopians with {www:impunity}. The recent ethnic cleansing campaign against the Amhara, Gambella and Afar people is not surprising because nothing has been done when khat-addicted dictator Meles Zenawi waged a war of genocide against fellow Ethiopians in Ogaden, filled Ethiopian prisons with Oromos, stolen elections, destroyed historic monasteries, sold Ethiopian fertile land to foreign investors at {www:basement bargain} prices, etc.

The Woyanne tribal junta is doing all this not because it is a superior power. It is a regime that survives on foreign handouts! Woyanne is peeing on us because we allowed it to do so. We finance its crimes against us by paying tax, buying goods and services from Woyanne-controlled businesses, socializing with Woyanne members whose hands are socked with the blood of our brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers.

We can stop the Woyanne junta dead if we are really serious. One of the first things we can do to stop Woyanne is to wage a worldwide economic boycott campaign and target its revenue sources.

One of the biggest hard currency earning enterprises for the tribal junta is Ethiopian Airlines. Currently there are serious discussions going on about boycotting Ethiopian Airlines and this coming Saturday, for the first time, several Ethiopian media representatives will propose a set of actions. [see here]

Ethiopian Airlines is Ethiopian only in name. From the CEO down it is controlled by central committee members of the Tigrean People Liberation Front (Woyanne). Many of the Ethiopian pilots are leaving and being replaced by foreigners who are hired at double the salary. The sales, maintenance, and all other parts of the company are staffed with Woyanne members.

Since the Woyanne took over the airline, domestic flights drastically decreased while flights to Tigray region expanded {www:manyfold}.

In 2010, the airline generated USD$1.3 billion for the junta. This money is being used to fuel the Woyanne killing and torture machine.

I heard some individuals saying that Ethiopian Airlines should not be boycotted since it carries the Ethiopian national flag around the world. This argument doesn’t work any more, because at the current pace, there will be no nation called Ethiopia if we allow Woyanne to remain in power. When Meles and gang implement Article 39 of their constitution, Ethiopian Airlines will be renamed Greater Tigray Airlines.

Let’s stop bitching and take action. Starve the Woyanne beast by drying its sources of income.

114 thoughts on “Boycott Woyanne cash cow: Ethiopian Airlines

  1. Ethiopian review has been talking about Weyane for 2decades.Talks is cheap!You become merchant of ETHIOPIAN POLITICS.

    Anonymous replies:

    #52 Tilahun,
    I wonder if people like you choose to be cruel or people like you are born with an evil heart that cannot feel and sense the suffering of human beings, your own country men, women and children who are evicted, tortured, locked up in prison and killed. I know you cannot come up with sufficient answer—What has Elias done so bad to you? Why do people like yourself, always bark at the wrong tree and support a dictator that is terrorizing innocent Ethiopians? Why don’t you put the blame on the tyrant that has the blood of hundreds of thousands innocent Ethiopians and the same dictator that is dragging your ethnic group in the blood of innocent Ethiopians?
    Why do you people hate people who are doing their best to stop the suffering of millions of law-abiding Ethiopians?
    Well, the answer is : Looters and killers and over all criminals always justify what they are doing and they never see anything wrong with it, simply EVIL, period!

  2. Elias- one reality that I would like to speak about is: If we do this economic sanction unianimously (at least 70-80%), and we do other similar actions staqrting from simple disobedience; and spreading the news which weyane has blocked from our people; I assure you that our freedom is within few months. But we ethiopians all_must agree on common and be united and show solidarity and be genuine. That is all needed… It is very very easy to destroy meles. One simple instrument is collect these news and spread them via email to people in Ethiopia. Morover, let us use Propoganda. Weyane is very extremely phobic of masferarat. If you email- the ongoing unrest in the rural parts and spread the succes of our people and their determination, this will make enormous impact… Becasue if I send to fifty people, 10 will spread to others. If many of us do this, then all people will recgonise that there are people who are sacrificing their lives, and this will boost the moral of our people. All Ethiopians are very ready to get engaged intodestroying weyane. I was calling to many friend over there and there response is “man yegemer? be bilawam bihone enenesalen new yemilut”.. Let us use phones and call to any people be it pubic office or any friend and give them this news that there is reall unrest in the rural areas, and the rebels are gettign upper hand and progressing etc…. Let us use mail. Print the news and send through postal service….

    As to the ariline: I know it is already broken apart after Obo Girma Wake resinged (truly forced to resign becasue weyane deseprately was in monopolising it but has not been working so far). Therefore, We spread to all customers of the misbehavior of the hostees etc; and how it has been serving the weyane regime and indeed tell to friend the very deteriorating conditoons of the airline” Very simple…
    Let us all decide no to send money at least for 6 months…. LEt us be determined…. Weyane is already getting very weka– Blood west are sponsoring him to kill our people but they alone will never never be capable of doing this..

    LEt us spread news of love, respect, honouring one another…which ever ethnic/religion group you are from… God honours us all.. LEt us learn other cultures,, let us continue tirelessly to uplift other ethnic groups; let us open to share our proble; I think the mas media can play bigger role….

    To conclude: If we do this we will get our freedom: Our beautiful country ethiopia and her beautiful and lovely and very respectful people: North, South West, East Center… Very lovely people

    Elias I would like you to initiate a forum so all ofus contribute ideas to continue to smash down weyane’s economy. Each of us great thing to contribute. Once we compile them, we prioratise for immediate action and implementation.
    Sorry for the unedited language but hope you understand my message
    OUr ethiopia and people shall rise!!! All together… Better!!!

    Wako (prof)

  3. The recent and historic expulsion of thousands of Amhara Christians from their farm lands in the Oromia region should not be taken as an isolated incident: it is a well-orchestrated, well planed, and well-designed scheme by the enemies of Christian Ethiopia and her beloved Orthodox Tewahido Church.

    Commenting on this heart-breaking and forced removal of the young, the old, the sick, and the poor Amhara Christians, Gragn Ahmed, overjoyed by such depressing and humiliating event, said few days ago on nazret.com: “It is over due.” To him, the Amharas should not have gone to Oromia and settled there permanently. To my understanding of freedom and citizenship, any Ethiopian has the right to settle anywhere in Ethiopia without any passport to show to any Ethiopian officials.

    By the way, the Amharas are not the only ones Meles has been terrorizing, expelling, persecuting, jailing, and killing for twenty one years: Thousands of indigent people from Gambella have been facing the same problem under Meles Seitanawi (Zenawi). If we add the expulsion of each person from Ethiopia every day to the mass expulsion of the Amhara and the Gambella people, the number will reach to millions and millions of Ethiopians who have been unjustly removed from their own country for fear of overthrowing the Meles corrupt regime.

    Meles doesn’t care about religion, about Ethiopiawinet, about land, and about the history, tradition, and culture of the Ethiopian people. The only thing he cares the most is about ethnicity, and that ethnicity he adores in his heart of hearts is the ethnicity of the Tegaru, the business of the Tegaru, the education of the Tegaru, and the welfare of the Tegaru. I am not creating a division between the Tegaru and the rest of the Ethiopian people: it is Meles the brigand, who has created such a big and an impenetrable chasm between his people – the Tegaru – and the other Ethiopians whom he regards as his arch enemies and a big threat to his survival in office for a long time.

    I was in tears, and so were those around me, when I saw those little Amhara children huddled together around their mothers and fathers, and their wandering bright eyes telling the story that they are homeless, and they have no place where to go, where to play, where to learn, where to sleep and where to go to Church. Of course, their dads and moms, thinking they will be safe and that Aba Paulos would let them stay in the Church, took them to the Holy Trinity Cathedral Church in Addis Ababa. As soon as their feet touched the compound of this Christian Church but now under siege by Meles-appointed and illegitimate patriarch, Aba Paulos, the federal police arrived and removed the Amharas evicted from their farm land in Oromia and thought they would be safe in this big Church until they could find a temporary place to stay. This is their second eviction from Church while their first eviction was from their farm lands. The notorious federal police took them away in big trucks to the unknown place, and no one knows what has happened to them: the cruel federal police might have executed them one by one or they might have thrown theme into a cliff, or they might have taken them to a desert area and left them to die there in starvation and thirst.

    The people in Washington, London, Berlin, and Paris have made up their minds never to help Ethiopia in bringing down Meles the dictator because at this time there is no oil in Ethiopia as there is in Libya where the west brought down Colonel Kaddafi and liberated the Libyans. What would the western nations get from Ethiopia if they help Ethiopia and bring down Meles from power? The land is already sold out to the Arabs and to the Indians; the gold is already carried out by Al Amoudi and deposited in the Arab banks; the Ethiopian big gold in the Ethiopian Bank and the Ethiopian coffee have been stolen by the insider traders – Meles Seitanawi (Zenawi) and his wife Jezebels (Azeb). Nothing is left in Ethiopia that would attract the west and help Ethiopia to have a democratically elected leader. Perhaps, the famous paintings of Maitre Afewerk Tekle could have attracted them to help Ethiopia; even those indispensable paintings by the Amhara Christian Afewerk Tekle from Menz by now could have been looted by Meles and his greedy wife Jezebel after he died at age 80. Had he been alive, he could have painted the eviction of his people from their farm lands and exposed Meles Seitanawi and his wife Jezebel (Azeb) to the world.

    We already know help that would remove our number one enemy – Meles Seitanawi (Zenawi) from power – is not coming to our country, and we should not concentrate our hearts on that superficial foreign help. That help has to come from within us as my friend Elias Kifle has suggested: We must not use the Ethiopian air line whenever we want to do business with that company. We must encourage the Ethiopian people to stop riding buses; we must convince the Ethiopian taxi drivers to stop transporting people from their homes to their works and back to their homes; we must influence all the Ethiopian students to holt going to schools for at least one year or more: we may see few students from the Tegaru breaking the rules and attending schools. We must ignore them, and they know what will happen to theme when Meles is gone for the good of the whole country. University and college professors and elementary and high school teachers must refrain from teaching. Clergies, Rabbis, Imams, Evangelical and Pentecostal Christians must galvanize the common people to stand up for justice: justice for the evicted Amharas, justice for the Gambella people, justice for the imprisoned journalists, justice for the Ethiopian domestic workers in the Muslim Arab world, and justice for the millions of Ethiopian children sold to foreign countries.

    May the Almighty God hear the cries and the tears of the Amhara and the Gambella people as he considered the tears of the Biblical Rachael, and may he also consider the sufferings of our Ethiopian sisters in Beirut, Saudi Arabia, in Dubai, and in many other Islamic Arab countries! Amen and Amen! Maranatha!

  4. #54,
    Yes, there is no OIL in Ethiopia as it is in Libya, Kuwait, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and other places in the world, but sorrowfully, tyrant Meles that has the blood of hundreds of thousands Ethiopians on his hands has been able to convince the mother of Democracy United State, to see him as valuable as OIL. It is unfortunate that, the very man that has robbed the poorest country in the world and also terrorized poor Ethiopians for the last twenty one years, has been taken as one of friends of the West to fight terrorism around the world. And Meles has scarified poor Ethiopian soldiers to fight in Somalia to prove his friendship to the West. The recent photos of Dictator Meles with Madam Secretary Hillary Clinton shows how tyrant Meles has persuaded the West to be on his side, regardless the atrocities he has committed and still continues to commit on innocent Ethiopians for the last two decades. Very disappointing indeed to people who seek real Democracy!!!

  5. Elias,boycotting the comm bank of Ethiopia will choke to death the woyane. The commercial bank of Ethiopia is the woyane’s life line. The regime and its cronies have access to any credit they need,as it is government owned.It is to be remembered few years ago the gold kept in the banks vaults was found to be fake. No body nows todate what happened to the tons of gold ones kept. Let the public give their business to the flourshing private banks. That would be a kill.

  6. Brother Elias!
    You must have hit these stinking Woyanes right on their cactus sniffing nose. They are stinking the whole neighborhood with their dragon breath. Just reading through most of their comments, one can discover that they are suffering from a variety of ailments, inferiority complex being one of them. We can all and rightfully so expect that one of the cardinals of a democratic governance is transparency. Do Woyane stooges like Gezaee H. above expect me and millions others to believe that unfettered transparency exists in Meles’ Ethiopia? Have they made EFFORT’s finances available and verified by independent auditors? President Obama today released his family’s tax returns for the last 12 years. Will Meles and his entourage make their finances for the last 21 years public? Ethnic politics share attributes of those ethnic based underworld societies. It is just like a crime family. You are not supposed to talk about family business with others outside the family. To such narrow minded mad men doing wrongs to others outside their ethnicity is not considered a sin or crime. That is why when I hear groups calling themselves liberation this and liberation that makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I don’t want to be liberated alone when my neighbor is not. I want to be liberated together with everyone around me. Otherwise it will be temporary one and it will not take too long before my own liberators turns their trained guns against me. You don’t want me to give you examples about that. If you do I can give you tons of samples to prove that to you. They have transitioned from munching cactus to choosing between filet mignon and rib roast. That is why they have become so murderous. They have been moving everything up north that you can hear a pin drop in whole Tigray. The problem there is indigestion. Go figure!!!!

  7. It is long overdue, I totally agree with you elias on this one. I personally do not fly EAL nor drink Dashen. I do not carry their yellow card, I just do not want to pay woyane to reclaim my Ethiopiawinet. It is my birth right, Ethiopia is my country, woyane has no right to charge me for what is mine. I like to call on all the people of Tigray. We the people of Ethiopia had enough with Woyane, we are done. “If you are not with us, we will take it as you are against us”

    “There is no peace with out freedom, There is no Freedom with out a fight”

  8. Again!

    Ethnic cleansing is a serious accusation. As a non supporter of this regime, but a conscientious citizen, I am always stunned by comments from some people on this site. Blinded by hatred, fact free flamethrowers come here and post comments that contribute nothing for civil discourse.

    Now, what does really mean economic boycotting? Do you really want no roads, bridges, dams, etc? What does that benefit you? Why do people let their hatred cloud their judgment? It is obvious to all rational people that alternative political view is essential for growth of a democracy in any society. But it should not come at the expense of civil unrest, war and instability especially for people like us who suffered tremendously. We have already had more than of our share for that. Those advocating violence, economic boycott (sinister at worst and empty rhetoric at best) may need to look at themselves and rethink what they are wishing for.

    I can only hope that you are just kidding when you say “Boycott Ethiopian Airlines”, really? Ethiopian Airlines is an organization that has been tested time and again. To the joy of all true Ethiopians, it has consistently passed its tests despite the countless hurdles thrown at it at different times. As we all know, Derg was a dictatorial, communist junta that had no boundaries in undermining Ethiopian entrepreneurship, intellectualism and progressiveness. A few under-educated, over-armed cruels put their hands on everything that Ethiopia has ever built and destroyed it. You like it or not Ethiopian Airlines is the pride and property of Ethiopian people and it doesn’t belong to any government but Ethiopian people. Please read and learn its history how it has survived our country’s volatile political environment time and time again. It seems that you just don’t hesitate to damage the last bridge even if it meant it is your only way out. I am proud to fly Ethiopian Airlines and will continue to do so and many others will do as well. While it is anyone’s right to disagreeing with the current government, it is pathetic to lump the government and the thousands of people working there and supporting their families. Wow, so many keyboards have gotten into the wrong hands, therefore we have to endure daily when good people and organizations are disparaged by few incoherent, irrationals.

    We lost irreplaceable generation of young and disciplined Ethiopians during Derg era. Our country has never recovered maybe will never be from that painful loss of her once promising and blossoming talent of youth. It is interesting to note that those who once participated in mass murders of those dear children of Ethiopia, they are now all of a sudden civil right advocates and patriots and they think that we have amnesia.

    Your half-baked assertions of “the end justifies the means” has gone out of the way and has reached new lows. Only history will judge you for that. You went to Asmara to align yourself with Ethiopia’s number one enemy Shabia. When people learned about your motives and rejected you, you cried foul and kept injecting yourself into the country’s affairs. Luckily, your path has taken you only from one losing strategy to another one. When are you going to wake up and smell the coffee? Ethiopia does not need pseudo patriots who preach hatred and orchestrate violence remotely. Ethiopians are concerned about what they are going to feed their kids, how they are going to buy books and clothes for new school year, how to get clean drinking water and maybe, maybe a basic health care that is accessible and could at least help reducing preventable deaths. It just doesn’t seem like asking for too much, right?

    It is amazing, how these pseudo patriots leading a relatively comfortable life in the western world, are out of touch and conveniently ignore the daily struggles of an average Ethiopian. It is not fun to go to sleep with empty stomach; it is not fun not able to afford buying a piece of cloth for your child; it is not fun to die by Malaria; it is not fun not having a clean drinking water. Now, you are conspiring to orchestrate an economic boycotting? What else could be more unpatriotic than this indifference? I am ashamed knowing that there are people out there who are wishing a revolution like the Arab world. Let me state the obvious here: if they run revolutions, that is their choice and after all they have never been through in what we have been through. The last thing we need in our country is, going through another turmoil. I am sorry to inform you but the majority of Ethiopians do not want that anymore. The Arabs marched on their own streets for what they believed unlike our vocal compatriots who strictly run their demo and actions remotely. Come on, you can’t get any more coward than that.
    Opportunism and hatred are no match for a true patriotism.
    Long live Ethiopia!

    Teklu replies:

    Dear Solomon
    I think you need to get up and smell the Coffee your self. You look like you are disconnected from reality.

    You Woyanes and supporters will not cheat us no more. TPLF did not fight for Ethiopians. We know You are the haters and we will fight hate. F..k Ethiopian Air line.

  9. Your only mantra is boycot this and boycot that. I think you are a banch of idiots and agents of disraction. Ethiopian Airlines is the only pride we have got would you please leave it alone.

    Jegnaw Ethiopiawe replies:

    EAL is now TPLF air line. so if you take TPLF air you are not serving Ethiopia.We are extending the life of TPLF is that a good thing.? I don’t think so..

  10. It is so sad to see how peoples difrences on a certain issue is entertained with such vilfied comments.one solomon,outshines these bunch of Elias followers,who are always ready to bark before they finish to read what is written and listen what was said.
    We ethiopians need few SOLOMONS in our country.

  11. elias ena guadegnochu,
    if my memory serves me right, you called for EAL boycott before and the result was the airline had unprecedented number of flights and passengers. so if i were you, i would probably try the opposite.

    anonymous dude, it is obvious to see you are a very gullible ambitious young man, sort of like those youth who demanded “democracy yalegedeb” and perished by red terror and netsa ermija, while there agitators (pimps) enjoy their hamburger and heineken in the west. what many of you are not getting is it easy to change government in ethiopia, i myself have seen 3 or more of them so far, but what we have been unable to do is to bring our nation to the 20th century even by africa standard. for god sake what good is it going to do if you remove meles and the nation has no road, no electricity, no education or hospitals or clean water?????

    Jegnaw Ethiopiawe replies:

    I,think you are scared to death.just wait until the cat is awake then rat like you will be a denier.
    right now the mouse are playing cos the cat is away.

  12. Let me tell you something, you can’t afford to boycott Ethiopian Air Lines. It just doesn’t work. Who would match the convenience EAL put in place for you guys? All those old people who are in need of Amharic speaking hosteses, the non-stop 5 days a week flight from US to Addis etc. Before you do that, set up an Airline who would match that, then convince the other hundereds of thousands of Ethiopians who are proud to fly Ethiopian Airlines change their routine for your sick proposal. Just because 30 people at a meeting say lets boycott EAL doesn’t mean the majority spoke. As a matter of fact the people who are passionate about boycotting EAL (A.K.A Elias and Crew), the gov’t already boycotted them:) They are already on the do not fly to Ethiopia list. So how on earth will they be able to boycott when they can’t even get on a plane to fly to Ethiopia….LOL. You guys are so funny!

    Jegnaw Ethiopiawe replies:

    It is struggle against WOYANNE so it is a little price to sacrifice our convenience for mother Ethiopia…

  13. Welcome fellows!
    i have been doing it since 12years.As a very young Manager i had to Travel for Business, and had to painfully experience the disgusting and discriminating Flight attendants and even office workers of the ET_AL. Then i tried though expensive, some European(West) AL and i was really a “king” in there.

    God put mercy up on these ignorant staff,

    Peace to ye all

  14. I support the idea of boycotting Ethiopian Airline. The boycott should not only stop on EAL but must target other institutions owned and exploited by the Weyanes. Please fly other airlines and send money to your family in ethiopia using other banking systems. It is good to stop sending money, hard currency to Ethiopia. However, if one must send money, he/she should use other alternative. Thanks

  15. There has to be a task force to co-ordinate the implementation.

    Any airlines can’t afford losing a single passenger at this harsh economic situation. If possible try to get market analysis on Ethiopian Airlines International Flights mainly to Europe and North America. Who is a frequent flyer? When and why are they flying? Flight fare compared to other airlines and the advantage and disadvantage of flying Ethiopian airlines. We can use these information for the campaign effectively.

    I feel bad for my sisters and brothers in Ethiopian Airlines business. But, we have to suggest them with alternatives and make sure them to be ready for the worse.

    Put emphasis on the outcome. I wish we work for the prosperous Ethiopia but the selfish few and the mafia government have different agenda. Expect the counter offense from these group. Design protective mechanism. It requires very good information/intelligence coordination in and outside the country.

    Economic boycotting hurts. All what you need is visionary campaign leaders. If plan “A” fails assess why and learn from the mistakes. Remember, in the last 20 years politicians have been organizing meeting after meeting, Rallies outside embassies, white house, … we went to the extent that USA or EU does the sanction and fight for our liberation from tyranny. It doesn’t work. Countries and leaders have their own problems. Let us fight for ourselves.

    Elias, don’t get over ambitious. I like your fighting sprite. Put more information on Flight to Ethiopia from different parts of North America. Some need visa requirements. My friends and I have already switched to KLM.

  16. what is wrong with you every body ? Why boycotinc your own airline ? If you really wnt to boycot you should boycot weyanes companes EEFORT is not the one which hurting us most ? Boycot mesfin industrials product , guna, ambasel ,ezana .almeda textile ….and many more not our airlines

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