(The Daily Item) Berhanu Nega’s story is a frightening testament that in some parts of the world, people are still enmeshed in life-and-death struggles for freedom.
Ethiopia’s regime recently announced that Berhanu Nega and other opposition leaders had been plotting a coup. Thirty-five opposition party members were arrested in Ethiopia, and a government official said if Berhanu ever returns, he will be jailed, too. It is not the first time Berhanu, a Bucknell University economics professor, has been targeted by the government in his native country.
Berhanu was elected mayor of Ethiopia’s capital city, Addis Ababa, in 2005 but was arrested afterward along with more than 100 other opposition politicians and stood trial for treason. He and the others were freed in 2007 in a pardon deal. He left Ethiopia after the trial.
Berhanu’s crime? Leading protests in response to alleged election fraud. Demonstrations started peacefully, but led to turmoil that culminated in a slaughter by government soldiers that left 193 people dead and another 765 wounded. The Ethiopian government pinned the blame for the deaths on the opposition leaders, and 38 people, including Berhanu, were arrested and placed on trial, originally facing possible execution.
Berhanu offers heroic evidence that those who experience democracy in action will risk everything to spread freedom.Through its history, Ethiopia was mostly governed by monarchy or dictatorship. The African nation has been struggling to live up to its formal name of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
Berhanu’s efforts to encourage the growth of democracy in Africa deserve the full support of the American government. The United States just completed an historic election that led to a transformational shift in power. The triumph of American democracy provided that the results of the election were accepted without a hint of civil unrest. The United States provides the model for sustainable democracy. This country should also foster the growth of freedom around the globe, including in places such as Ethiopia.
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This is the beginning of the end of the rotten regime of the Meles Zenawi. Long live out Ethiopia!!!
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April 28th, 2009 at 8:09 PM
the people will get the power. woyanne must stop arresting the ethiopans people.
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April 29th, 2009 at 1:44 AM
Untill hate Politics are eradicated from the opposition camp, I don’t expect absolute democracy in the country. Therefore, I advise the opposition lead including the the criminal man Dr. Birhanu “please, please avoid the hate politics.”
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April 29th, 2009 at 2:53 AM
I just called 1-800-GENOCIDE and left a message to my representative to take action not only on Darfur but also on Ethiopia before it is too late. I urge every Ethiopian to do the same. Please call, it only takes a few seconds. Thank you.
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April 29th, 2009 at 10:01 AM
The American Government has always spoke of freedom but in reality to promote tyranny. The problem is that they are not using the American or Oxford dictionary to define words. They have their own defination.The Anglo-Americans have coined their own word – “friendly tyrannt” to define people like Meles, Mobutu and co.
They (Anglo-Americans) does not care if 100 or 1000 Africans are killed as long as their interest is maintained by loyalists like Meles and co.
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April 29th, 2009 at 12:40 PM