http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content Ethiopia podcasts Thu, 05 Nov 2009 06:40:42 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 Ethiopia podcasts EthiopianReview.com Ethiopia, Ethiopian Review no EthiopianReview.com eliaskifle@gmail.com http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10822 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10822#comments Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:23:57 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=10822 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10822/feed 1 By Andrew Geoghegan | ABC Since Angelina Jolie adopted her daughter Zahara in 2005, the number of Americans adopting Ethiopian children has quadrupled. A pop-media obsession with celebrities adopting children in Africa has resulted in a queue of adopting foreigners dealing with opportunistic adoption agents in operating in a regulatory vaccuum. In Ethiopia and beyond its creating a heartbreaking mess. International adoptions may seem like an ideal solution to the dreadful deprivation among the young in Ethiopia and the often impossible circumstances confronting parents trying to feed and raise their children. The reality though, is far from ideal. Some adopting parents suspect or discover the new child they’ve taken in is not an orphan as they’d been assured. The child may also have a litany of health problems that has been covered up by corrupt officials. Also many ‘relinquishing’ Ethiopian parents or carers may have been duped into giving up their children through a heartless process called ‘harvesting’ and can’t hope to re-establish contact with them. Ethiopia has 5 million orphans needing homes and the United States has millions of homes needing babies. Africa Correspondent Andrew Geoghegan and producer Mary Ann Jolley, discover it’s not a simple mathematical equation or zero sum game. There are virtually no government regulations or policing of the process. Many international adoption agencies flashing Christian credentials are taking advantage of the situation. Corruption, fraud and deception are rife. Foreign Correspondent follows a Florida couple in their mid fifties as they travel to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, to pick up their three adopted children, aged three, four and six. It’s a gut wrenching moment when they meet the birth mother who has come to the orphanage to say a final goodbye to her children. This transaction appears above board but it’s all too common for Ethiopian parents to give up their children for international adoption after being coerced by adoption agencies. Foreign Correspondent investigates the activities of one of the biggest American agencies operating in Ethiopia. In a remote village in the country’s south, the agency openly recruits children with parents. Each child offered for adoption is then filmed for a DVD catalogue which in turn is shipped out to potential adoptive parents. A world away in California a mother of one looking for a brother for her son chooses from a CWA DVD catalogue. The agency’s sales pitch promised a healthy, abandoned child, but that could not have been further from the truth. Her story is tragic and disturbing and exposes the callousness of the profit oriented international adoption business A group of grieving mothers who have given up their children for international adoption gather at an orphanage to tell their stories. All claim they were told by adoption agencies they would receive regular information about the whereabouts and wellbeing of their children, but have heard nothing. It’s a thought-provoking edition of Foreign Correspondent and a must watch for anyone considering adopting a child from another country or who has celebrated the apparent social consciousness of Hollywood A-listers. Click here to watch the documentary. Transcript GEOGHEGAN: Palm Beach Florida is home to Christian couple Tim and Joni Gooley. He’s a pastor, she’s a school guidance counsellor. They’re empty nesters in their mid-50’s, looking to do some good in the world. JONI GOOLEY: “We kept looking around our house saying we’re not Bill Gates or someone like that where we can contribute a large amount of money, but what we have is a home and we have bedrooms.” TIM GOOLEY: “Right. We’ve been blessed with a lot and especially … compared to the rest of the world.” GEOGHEGAN: The Gooley’s have four adult sons, the youngest Taylor is home from college on holidays, but they’re not done with [...] By Andrew Geoghegan ABC Since Angelina Jolie adopted her daughter Zahara in 2005, the number of Americans adopting Ethiopian children has quadrupled. A pop-media obsession with celebrities adopting children in Africa has resulted in a queue [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10067 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10067#comments Mon, 15 Jun 2009 04:43:44 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=10067 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10067/feed 20 Two senior leaders of the Ethiopian People Revolutionary Party (EPRP), Ato Iyasu Alemayehu and Ato Mersha Yoseph, were guests on the Voice of America Amharic program Saturday. Mersha Yoseph is one of the leaders of the faction that split from EPRP and named itself EPRP-Democratic about two years ago. In explaining the main reason why his faction left EPRP, Ato Mersha said that he and his comrades had opposed the dialogue that Iyasu Alemayehu initiated with the Government of Eritrea. He accused Ato Iyasu of taking it upon himself, without the leadership committee's knowledge and approval, to establish contact with Eritrean officials. EPRP insiders argue otherwise, and are expressing outrage at Ato Mersha's claim. They say that Ato Mersha was on board when the leadership committee decided to send Ato Iyasu Alemayehu and Ato Mohammed Ahmed (EPRP's head of foreign affairs) to Asmara. On the second trip, Ato Tegegn Moges had joined them. It seems that after some 40 years in politics, Ato Mersha has yet to learn the ABCs of politics: In politics there is no permanent enemy, only permanent interest. EPRP and EPLF (the current ruling party in Eritrea) were once enemies. But that was then. Today, these two forces have a common interest the removal of Woyanne that is currently pillaging Ethiopia and preparing to invade Eritrea. The irony in Ato Mersha's position is that he favors dialogue with Woyanne, which was and continues to be a deadly enemy of EPRP. On the interview, Ato Mersha was incoherent, self-contradictory, and ideologically bankrupt. He opposes cooperating with Eritrea, but says that his party wants to work with those who cooperate with Eritrea. Ethiopian Review is not a big fan of Iyasu Alemayehu, but we need to give credit where it's due. He explained himself well, he was articulate, consistent, and intelligent. Whereas Mersha exposed his weak stand toward Woyanne, Iyasu was clear about what he believes needs to be done. From what we heard on the VOA interview, the Mersha faction is more like EPRP-Hypocritic, not -Democratic. Click below to listen the interview: | Two senior leaders of the Ethiopian People Revolutionary Party (EPRP), Ato Iyasu Alemayehu and Ato Mersha Yoseph, were guests on the Voice of America Amharic program Saturday. Mersha Yoseph is one of the leaders of the faction that split from EPRP [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10029 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10029#comments Wed, 10 Jun 2009 23:39:12 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=10029 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/10029/feed 44 The founding member of the ruling Tigrean People Liberation Front (Woyanne), Ato Sebhat Nega (also known as Sibela Nega), is interviewed by VOA's Amharic Program on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. Sebhat is no longer a member of the TPLF politburo, and he has recently been removed from his chairmanship of the Endowment Fund for the Relief of Tigray (EFFORT), a multi-billion-dollar criminal organization. Some informed sources say he was pushed out by Meles Zenawi's ambitious wife Azeb Mesfin, who is now a ranking member of the EFFORT board. But Sebhat is still a member of the TPLF central committee and remains one of its most influential and richest members. His personal wealth is estimated to be over $100 million. Click below to listen to his embarrassing interview with VOA's Addisu Abebe. | | The founding member of the ruling Tigrean People Liberation Front (Woyanne), Ato Sebhat Nega (also known as Sibela Nega), is interviewed by VOA's Amharic Program on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. Sebhat is no longer a member of the TPLF [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9613 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9613#comments Tue, 05 May 2009 00:49:46 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=9613 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9613/feed 6 Our dear friend Prof. Adugnaw Worku has lost his beloved father late last month. The loss of a parent is one of the most devastating things that could happen to any one. But what makes Prof. Adugnaw's grief more bitter is the fact that he could not be in person at home in Ethiopia to bid his father the last goodbye because of his strong stand against the Woyanne regime's human rights atrocities. There are countless other Ethiopians who have faced the same situation the distinguished Ethiopian artist Ato Tamagne Beyene, to mention one. He, too, had to say goodbye to his father from 15,000 miles away. Such are sacrifices paid by true sons of Ethiopia who stand up for the their people. In memory of his father, Prof. Adugnaw has a written a 5-page captivating story entitled "The Patriotic Farmer." It is a story that should be read to every Ethiopian child in every school through out Ethiopia, because it represents our grandfathers who kept a united, free Ethiopia. Click here to read [pdf, Amharic]. (Prof. Adugnaw can be reached at aworku@puc.edu) Listen below one of his poems: Our dear friend Prof. Adugnaw Worku has lost his beloved father late last month. The loss of a parent is one of the most devastating things that could happen to any one. But what makes Prof. Adugnaw's grief more bitter is the fact that he could not [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9346 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9346#comments Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:22:52 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=9346 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9346/feed 14 Min Yilalu Sewoch Setihed Siketelat Alchalkum Tiz Alegene Yetintu Bemishit Chereka Yezenbaba Mar Nesh Engudaye Neshi Ewedish Nebere Kifu Anyinkash Kulun Mankwalat Yezenbaba Mar Nesh Akal Aynishin Fikir Lebechaye Ene Yalanchi Alnorem Ouota Ayaskefam Min largachew Bemishit chereka Ere min yishalegneal Fikir lebechaye Kifu ayinkash Yehiwote hiwot Yezenbaba Mar Nesh Aykedashem Lebe Satidwdegn Wedijat Selamtaye Yedres Setehed Seketelat Tezalegn Yetentu Min Yishalegnal Ye hiwote hiwote Min Yilalu Sewoch Setihed Siketelat Alchalkum Tiz Alegene Yetintu Bemishit Chereka Yezenbaba Mar Nesh Engudaye Neshi Ewedish Nebere Kifu Anyinkash Kulun Mankwalat Yezenbaba Mar Nesh Akal Aynishin Fikir Lebechaye Ene Yalanchi Alnorem Ouota [...] Alamaregnem http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9173 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9173#comments Sun, 05 Apr 2009 19:29:52 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=9173 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/9173/feed 54 By Addisu Abebe | VOA The former Ethiopian Prime Minister, Tamrat Layne, denied involvement in mass killings more than 15 years ago in Dire Dawa, Bedenno, Arbagugu, Aris and other communities, during an exclusive interview with VOA Amharic's Addisu Abebe. Major excerpts from the interview were aired on March 25 and 26, 2009. Tamrat,served a 12-year sentence in Ethiopian prisons on charges of corruption. He has been in the United States for two months and attended a Pentecostal church in the Washington, D.C. area where he confessed his sins to God, he said. Tamrat joined the communist party at the age of 18, and is now a born-again Christian. He has also denies taking any money from the government. Hear Addisu's full interview with Tamrat below. By Addisu Abebe VOA The former Ethiopian Prime Minister, Tamrat Layne, denied involvement in mass killings more than 15 years ago in Dire Dawa, Bedenno, Arbagugu, Aris and other communities, during an exclusive interview with VOA Amharic's [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8315 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8315#comments Mon, 19 Jan 2009 23:17:41 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=8315 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8315/feed 14 The former president of Ethiopia's western region of Benishangul-Gumuz, Ato Yaregal Aysheshum, has changed his story about defecting and now he claims that he is in Canada for medical treatment. Click here to listen: On January 17, Ethiopian Review had reported that Ato Yaregal defected and has joined the opposition camp. The same day the story was published, an internet discussion forum that is run by the Woyanne propaganda chief Bereket Simon, brought Yaregal for interview from where he was hiding. Apparently, he still keeps with him a mobile phone that the Woyanne regime assigns to all its puppet regional officials to keep tabs on them. In the interview with the Woyanne internet forum, Yaregal denied that he has defected and that he has received permission from Meles Zenawi to get medical treatment abroad. First of all, this fool further exposed himself what kind of puppet he is by saying that he asks permission from Meles Zenawi to get medical treatment abroad, although he was president of a bantustanized region. Imagine the governor of Texas or California asking permission from the U.S. president to to travel abroad. Secondly, why did he have to travel through Uganda, stay there for several days, fill out political asylum forms with the local UNHCR office, before traveling to Canada? The truth of the matter is that when Meles sacked him in November 2008 from his position as president of Beninshangul-Gumuz and appointed him to some commission, Yaregal was angry and started contacting Ginbot 7 officials, telling them that he wants to defect and join the opposition. He wanted to use his membership in Ginbot 7 for his political asylum case. Ginbot 7 officials facilitated his trip to Uganda where they took him the office of the UNHCR's director. But once he arrived in Canada safely, he refused to speak out against the regime's atrocities and corruption in the Benishangul region, which he had told about to the UNHCR office in Uganda. He told those who assisted him to come to Canada that that he has hotels and other properties in Ethiopia and that the Meles regime will confiscate them if he speaks up. He also expressed concern about the safety of his children who are still in Ethiopia. It was at this point that Ethiopian Review decided to publish the story him. It seems that Yaregal wants to be in a safe country and live a life of luxury with the money he looted without taking accountability for his part in the Woyanne crimes in Ethiopia. At the same time, he is too greedy in that he wants to save his ill-gotten properties in Ethiopia. Yaregal Ayshesum had played a major part in all the atrocities and massive corruption that were being committed by the Meles regime in Ethiopia for the past several years. The Government of Canada should thus deny his asylum request. When Yaregal contacted Ginbot 7 officials, he told them that he could not continue to see the crimes being committed by his boss Meles Zenawi and that he wants out. Thinking that this man perhaps has a sliver of human conscience and that he may want to do the right thing from now on, they helped him escape to Uganda and then to Canada. Even while in exile, Yaregal continues to prostitute himself for the Woyanne brutal dictatorship. The former president of Ethiopia's western region of Benishangul-Gumuz, Ato Yaregal Aysheshum, has changed his story about defecting and now he claims that he is in Canada for medical treatment. Click here to listen: On January 17, Ethiopian [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8281 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8281#comments Fri, 16 Jan 2009 05:25:51 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=8281 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8281/feed 41 By Elias Kifle Supporters of Meles Zenawi's dictatorship in Ethiopia are losing it. They know their end is coming soon and they are desperate. Just listen to the kind of death threats they continue to make against Ethiopian Review. Listen the audio below: . Please feel free to come and visit me: 601 4th Street NW Washington D.C. 20535 And here is my phone number: 202 369 9543 By Elias Kifle Supporters of Meles Zenawi's dictatorship in Ethiopia are losing it. They know their end is coming soon and they are desperate. Just listen to the kind of death threats they continue to make against Ethiopian Review. Listen the audio [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8101 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8101#comments Mon, 05 Jan 2009 17:37:08 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=8101 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/8101/feed 75 By Elias Kifle It was easy to predict how cadres and supporters of the ruling Tigrean People Liberation Front (Woyanne) would react to Ethiopian Review's choice of President Issayas Afeworki as "Person of the Year." Woyannes have committed and continue to commit unspeakable atrocities against Ethiopians. Because they have no fear of and respect for the leaderless people of Ethiopia, they carry out their crimes with impunity. On the other hand, Meles and gang know what they did to Eritreans. The ethnic cleansing these Woyanne hyenas committed against 500,000 Eritreans is a crime against humanity and Meles, Seye and all those who participated in it will be brought to justice sooner or later by the lions of Eritrea. This is what keeps Woyannes sleepless at night. It is therefore expected that they would react extremely violently to the choice of Issayas Afeworki by the most popular Ethiopian online journal as "Person of the Year." The messages I am receiving on my phone tells it all. I have saved some of the death threats. Here are two of them (click below or here) . As you can hear, their voice is dripping with murderous hate and rage. . So far, Meles and his tribal gang have succeeded in identifying and eliminating genuine leaders of Ethiopia such as Prof. Asrat Woldeyes. A people without powerful leaders are easily subjugated by criminal elements like Woyanne. People who have determined, pragmatic, smart leaders can fend off against any force. We have seen it in Somalia. A group of determined leaders with a clear vision of what they want (removal of the Woyanne invading forces from their country) did not need more than 3,000 fighters to crush the 300,000 strong Woyanne army. . What Ethiopians at the moment lack is such leaders. Fortunately, there are some who are emerging now, such as the EPPF and Ginbot 7 leaders whose movements are gaining momentum, thanks, in part, to the assistance provided by the government of Eritrea. As Somali freedom fighters succeeded in defeating the Woyanne army with the assistance of Eritrea's government and Somalis in the Diaspora, so will Ethiopian freedom fighters. That is the path to victory against Woyanne. . Regarding the death threats I am receiving, they will hear it back when they sit in a court room to defend themselves against charges of war crimes soon. Please do continue to leave me your messages. Here is my number: 202 369 9543. . By Elias Kifle It was easy to predict how cadres and supporters of the ruling Tigrean People Liberation Front (Woyanne) would react to Ethiopian Review's choice of President Issayas Afeworki as "Person of the Year." Woyannes have committed and [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/7847 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/7847#comments Sat, 20 Dec 2008 08:26:52 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=7847 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/7847/feed 10 Ato Sileshi Tilahun, organizational affairs head of the Ethiopian People's Patriotic Front (EPPF) International Committee, talks about the resistance group's effort to organize Ethiopians around the world, in an interview with Ethiopian Review publisher Elias Kifle and EPPF Int'l Committee's head of press office Demis Belete. Click below to listen: Ato Sileshi Tilahun, organizational affairs head of the Ethiopian People's Patriotic Front (EPPF) International Committee, talks about the resistance group's effort to organize Ethiopians around the world, in an interview with Ethiopian Review [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/7759 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/7759#comments Tue, 16 Dec 2008 20:52:04 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=7759 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/7759/feed 4 Interview with the Ethiopian People's Patriotic Front (EPPF) International Committee's chairman Ato Leul Qeskis with Ethiopian Review publisher Elias Kifle and EPPF's head of press office Demis Belete. Click below to listen | Interview with the Ethiopian People's Patriotic Front (EPPF) International Committee's chairman Ato Leul Qeskis with Ethiopian Review publisher Elias Kifle and EPPF's head of press office Demis Belete. Click below to liste Ethiopia, Elias Kifle, Leul Qeskis http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5960 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5960#comments Sun, 02 Nov 2008 10:01:48 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5960 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5960/feed 3 All Ethiopian Unity Party (AEUP), a former member organization of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (Kinijit), is reporting that police in the town of Sodo entered it's vice-chairman Dr Tadiwos Tantu's hotel room and confiscated his documents on Oct. 28. According to AEUP's press release, Dr Tadiwos Tantu was on a working visit in Sodo at the time. Another official of AEUP, Ato Ali Mirah Yayu, was arrested in Assayita Zone by the local police on Oct. 27, 2008, and released the following day. Ato Ali was arrested on the order of the Assayita police commander Shambel Mohammed Abdela, according to AEUP. Ato Ali Hareb, the property owner who rented his building to the AEUP for office, was beaten up and tortured by the Assayita police. Ato Getye Desta in Northern Shoa and Ato Bekele Girma in Gedio Zone both AEUP officials are currently languishing in jail. Two days ago, UDJ vice-chairman Ato Gizachew Shiferraw and two other party officials were arrested in Gojjam, northern Ethiopia. On the same day, secretary general of the Oromo Federal Democratic Movement (OFDM), Ato Beqele Jirata, was arrested by the Federal Police while on his way to his office. His home was searched and documents were confiscated. On Friday, Ato Shiferraw Jarso, a Woyanne regime official, was on Voice of America claiming that opposition parties are free to operate in the country. Click below to listen: . . All Ethiopian Unity Party (AEUP), a former member organization of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (Kinijit), is reporting that police in the town of Sodo entered it's vice-chairman Dr Tadiwos Tantu's hotel room and confiscated his documents [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5938 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5938#comments Sat, 01 Nov 2008 23:33:06 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5938 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5938/feed 5 On VOA's Crossfire program Friday, Kinijit's (now UDJ) member of parliament Ato Temesgen Zewdie and Woyanne's puppet head of the rubber stamp parliament, Ato Shiferraw Jarso, were engaged in a brief but heated debate. VOA's Addisu Abebe should have given them more time or continued the debate today. He cut the debate off prematurely without giving Ato Temesgen a chance to respond. In the debate, Ato Temesgen has practically admitted that peaceful political activity has become impossible in Ethiopia under the Woyanne dictatorship. He said that Ato Shiferraw has recently summoned him to his office and asked him if he wants to raise his children or not. According to Ato Temesgen, the Woyanne puppet threatened him for demanding to know the details of the land giveaway to Sudan by the Meles regime. Click below the listen the debate. . Meanwhile, Ato Gizachew Shiferraw, Ato Aemero Aweke and Ato Lebawi Abebe of UDJ were arrested while on a working visit in Gojjam yesterday. All three were later released. Also yesterday, the Secretary General of the Oromo Federal Democratic Party (OFDM), Ato Beqele Jirata, was arrested by the Federal Police while on his way to his office. His home was searched and documents were confiscated. Despite our recent criticism of UDJ, Ethiopian Review admires Ato Gizachew Shiferraw and colleagues for traveling to Gojjam and meet with the people. UDJ needs to do more of this and stop attacking freedom fighters who raised arms if it is to be taken as a real opposition party. UDJ also needs to adhere to Kinijit's 8 Points and stop acting silly by preaching to the people of Ethiopia that Woyanne is not an enemy. Woyanne is more than an enemy. It is a gang of blood thirsty monsters who torture, rape and kill women and children. On VOA's Crossfire program Friday, Kinijit's (now UDJ) member of parliament Ato Temesgen Zewdie and Woyanne's puppet head of the rubber stamp parliament, Ato Shiferraw Jarso, were engaged in a brief but heated debate. VOA's Addisu Abebe should have [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5931 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5931#comments Sat, 01 Nov 2008 20:43:52 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5931 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5931/feed 1 Ginbot 7 Movement for Justice and Freedom issued a statement remembering the massacre of pro-democracy protesters in Addis Ababa and other cities through out Ethiopia. Following the May 2005 elections, in which Meles Zenawi's regime was defeated, Meles suspended the constitution and ordered his death squads (the Federal Police and Agazi Special Forces) to shoot and kill Ethiopians who protested the stealing of the election. A report by an inquiry commission later accused the Meles regime of engaging in wholesale torture and murder of unarmed civilians. Hundreds of thousands of young Ethiopians were also rounded up and thrown in disease-infested concentration camps. All the top leaders of the opposition Coalition for Unity and Democracy Party (Kinijit) were arrested. Ginbot 7 dedicated its Nov. 1st radio program to the June and November 2005 massacres of Ethiopians who were gunned down for exercising their constitutional right to hold protest demonstrations. Click below to listen. Ginbot 7 Movement for Justice and Freedom issued a statement remembering the massacre of pro-democracy protesters in Addis Ababa and other cities through out Ethiopia. Following the May 2005 elections, in which Meles Zenawi's regime was defeated, [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5638 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5638#comments Mon, 27 Oct 2008 17:30:07 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5638 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5638/feed 50 It's been six months since Ginbot 7 Movement for Freedom and Democracy in Ethiopia was formed. In June 2007, EthiopianReview.com wrote (read here) that the new movement has less than 6 months to prove itself. Did it prove itself to be a viable opposition party? What did it accomplish so far and what is it currently doing? Ethiopian Review had posed these and other straightforward questions to Ato Andargachew Tsege, a senior official of Ginbot 7, in an interview conducted Sunday, Oct. 26, 2008. Ato Andargachew said, among other things, that another 2 or 3 years of rule by Woyanne will further devastate Ethiopia and that those in the opposition camp who are talking about the 2010 election are committing political suicide. He said another election under the Woyanne brutal regime is not an option. Ato Andargachew also said that Ginbot 7 is preparing the ground work for a formidable anti-Woyanne alliance involving several organizations, including EPPF and OLF. Click here to listen the interview: It's been six months since Ginbot 7 Movement for Freedom and Democracy in Ethiopia was formed. In June 2007, EthiopianReview.com wrote (read here) that the new movement has less than 6 months to prove itself. Did it prove itself to be a viable [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5482 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5482#comments Sun, 19 Oct 2008 19:41:16 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5482 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5482/feed 0 The stone huts of Deir al Sultan monastery in Jerusalem are at the heart of the row between Ethiopia and Egypt[Photo: BBC] BBC NEWS JERUSALEM, ISRAEL The centuries-old site, where many Christians believe Jesus was crucified, is visited by hundreds of thousands of pilgrims and tourists every year. A recent survey says that part of the complex, a rooftop monastery, is in urgent need of repair, but work is being held up by a long-running dispute between two Christian sects who claim ownership of the site. Within the main building, dark-robed monks with long beards chant and swing incense as they conduct ceremonies in the many small chapels and shrines. There has been a church on this site for 1,700 years. Over the centuries it has been destroyed and rebuilt several times but some parts are very old indeed. Collapse risk Various Christian denominations Greek Orthodox, Armenians, Catholics, among others have always jealously defended and protected their own particular parts of the site. VIDEO: Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre Disputes are not uncommon, particularly over who has the authority to carry out repairs. For example, a wooden ladder has remained on a ledge just above the main entrance since the 19th Century because no-one can agree who has the right to take it down. The latest row is potentially much more serious. The ladder has remained above the church entrance since 19th Century The Deir al-Sultan monastery was built on part of the main church roof more than 1,000 years ago. The modest collection of small rooms has been occupied by monks from the Ethiopian Orthodox Church since 1808. But a recent engineering report by an Israeli institute found that the monastery and part of the roof were "not in a good condition" and that parts of the structure "could collapse, endangering human life". Ownership of the monastery, however, is hotly disputed between the Ethiopians and the Egyptian Coptic Church, and the dispute is holding up much-needed repair work. Click here to see a diagram of the Church Although the Ethiopian monks have lived there for more than 200 years, after losing many of their rights within the main church, the Copts were in overall control of the monastery. From a vantage point overlooking the disputed monastery, I discussed the "situation" with Father Antonias el-Orshalamy, General Secretary to the Coptic Church in Jerusalem. The monastery is on the roof of the Chapel of St Helena "The Ethiopians were always there as our guests, but then they wanted to take control," says Father Antonias referring to the night in 1970 when Coptic monks were all attending midnight prayers in the main Sepulchre church. With the help of Israeli police, the locks in the Deir al Sultan monastery were changed and the keys given to the Ethiopians. Subsequent Israeli court rulings, ordering that control be handed back to the Copts, have effectively been ignored drawing accusations that Israel has shown political bias in favouring the Ethiopians over the (Egyptian) Copts. Whatever the political and religious arguments, the Ethiopians remain in control of the ancient monastery and refuse to budge. They will not entertain any suggestion that the Copts should have any say over repairs to the monastery and rooftop courtyard. In that vein, no one from the Ethiopian Church would speak to us. 'Unedifying' Coptic and Ethiopian monks have come to blows in the past but they are not the only ones who have allowed tensions to boil over. Fights between monks from different sects in the Sepulchre are not uncommon and passions run high, particularly on important holy days. Hundreds of thousands come from all over the world to pray in the Church Father Jerome Murphy O'Connor is a professor at the Ecole Biblique in Jerusalem. "The whole spectacle is unedifying and totally un-Christian in nature", says the affable Irish priest, who has witnessed [...] The stone huts of Deir al Sultan monastery in Jerusalem are at the heart of the row between Ethiopia and Egypt[Photo: BBC] BBC NEWS JERUSALEM, ISRAEL The centuries-old site, where many Christians believe Jesus was crucified, is visited by [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5344 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5344#comments Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:43:11 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5344 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5344/feed 1 By Peter Heinlein, VOA Listen the report: ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA Ethiopia's government The Woyanne dictatorial regime in Ethiopia is coming in for fierce criticism over a draft law before parliament that would prohibit or criminalize many activities of foreign charities and NGOs. VOA's Peter Heinlein in Addis Ababa reports the bill is almost certain to pass easily in a legislature overwhelmingly controlled by Ethiopia's ruling party. Ethiopian Woyanne officials have told western diplomats that parliament will approve a proposed Charities and Societies Proclamation within weeks. The bill would give the government supervisory powers over non-governmental organizations that receive at least 10 percent foreign funding, including money from Ethiopians living abroad. The text before lawmakers prohibits such NGOs from promoting democratic or human rights, the rights of children and the disabled, and equality of gender or religion. Violators could face up to 15 years in prison and fines up to $10,000. Foreign NGOs have reacted with alarm to the bill, saying it could make it impossible for them to operate in Ethiopia. A group of ambassadors in Addis Ababa recently warned Ethiopian Prime Minister Woyanne dictator Meles Zenawi that passage of the Charities and Societies Proclamation could mean the loss of untold millions of dollars in desperately needed aid. The organization Human Rights Watch issued a statement urging Ethiopia's lawmakers to reject the bill, calling it 'repressive'. But the leader of an opposition parliament faction, Bulcha Demeksa, said he and like-minded lawmakers are powerless to stop it in the face of an overwhelming ruling-party majority. "The government is going to silence the NGOs and their leadership when they speak about human rights, when they spoke about democratic rights, when they spoke about giving democratic education to the citizens." He continued, "The government does not like it, that is why the government wants to silence them, and I am very sorry about it, I am very hurt about it. I wish I could do something about it, because practically all the NGOs are doing something good for this country." A senior adviser to the prime minister dictator, Bereket Simon, says NGOs will still be welcome to help fight poverty. But he says the bill is designed to prevent foreign interference in the country's political affairs. "We need foreign NGOs to participate in poverty alleviation programs and to participate in development works, but we definitely believe the political realm must be left for Ethiopians. That is the prerogative of Ethiopians." Tom Porteous, the U.K. country director of Human Rights Watch says laws governing the behavior of foreign NGOs can be positive. But he says the draft before Ethiopia's parliament is contrary to the country's constitution. "NGOs should not be immune from accountability, and we would support efforts by the Ethiopian Woyanne government to increase the accountability of civil society organizations." Porteous added, At the same time, many other countries in Africa have managed to achieve this without criminalizing human rights activities for example, and in fact this law contravenes not only international and regional African treaties on freedom of association and so forth, but it actually violates Ethiopia's obligations under its own constitution." Ethiopian Woyanne officials, however, say they see nothing repressive or unusual about the draft law. Bereket Simon says NGOs who stay out of Ethiopia's internal affairs should have nothing to fear. "It is not repressive, because this is a matter that is between Ethiopia and foreigners, so foreigners have their domain, we have our domain. As a sovereign state which runs Ethiopia, we are designing our own law, and any foreigner who is ready to work in Ethiopia should come and see the law, and if it feels comfortable with the law, it can continue to work. If he does not feel comfortable, then we are not going to force [...] By Peter Heinlein, VOA Listen the report: ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA Ethiopia's government The Woyanne dictatorial regime in Ethiopia is coming in for fierce criticism over a draft law before parliament that would prohibit or criminalize many [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5255 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5255#comments Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:25:31 +0000 Elias Kifle http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5255 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5255/feed 57 Ethiopian Review Editorial The chairperson of Union for Democracy and Justice (UDJ), Wzr. Birtukan Mideksa, held a press conference on Sunday, Oct. 12. In the press conference, Birtukan explained her party’s current and future programs. She talked about participating in the 2010 elections and a budget proposal of 7.3 million birr that will be used to carry out party activities. Birtukan said the money for the proposed budget will be raised from membership fees and other means. Asked to explain the difference between UDJ and Dr Beyene Petros' fake opposition party, United Ethiopian Democratic Forces (UEDF), Birtukan said the difference is that Dr. Beyene’s party is organized along ethnic lines. To the question that UDJ never speaks about the fate of millions of Ethiopians who are facing starvation, Birtukan said that starvation to Ethiopia is not new and that it has become one of those things that Ethiopia is identified with. However, she said, that her party will do a study and present solutions. Regarding the implementation of the Kinjit 8-Point proposal for participating in future elections, Birtukan answered that as a party that chose to wage peaceful methods of struggle, participating in elections is one of UDJ's main activities. Sunday's press conference has affirmed that UDJ will take part in the 2010 fake elections that will be used only to fool the international community into legitimizing Woyanne as an elected Ethiopian government. Woyanne will then turn around and beg for hundreds of millions of dollars from the international community on behalf of Ethiopia. The donated money will be used by Woyanne to continue pillaging and plundering Ethiopia. With help from the likes of UDJ the Woyanne tribal junta will get more foreign aid to buy more weapons and continue to commit atrocities against our brothers and sisters in Gambela, Gojam, Gonder, Ogaden, Oromia, Shewa, Sidama, Somalia and other parts of Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa. Woyanne will increase the salary of its mercenary army to keep the killers loyal and brutal. A large portion of the money will be siphoned off by the corrupt Woyanne officials. Thousands have lost their lives, so many have made enormous sacrifices for the principles Kinjit had advocated. By dropping Kinijit's 8-point Proposal, thus joining the ranks of Dr Beyene Petros and Lidetu Ayalew, UDJ has betrayed the people of Ethiopia. Kinjit’s 8-Point Proposal states the following: 1. The Restructuring of the Election Board into an Independent body. 2. Freedom of and access to All Media 3. Independent legal system (free from Woyanne party control) 4. An Independent Commission to investigate the killings of innocent Ethiopians following the May 2005 elections 5. Non-involvement of armed forces in political affairs 6. Reinstatement of parliamentary procedures and governance of Addis Ababa in accordance with the verdict of the people 7. Release of all political prisoners 8. Independent commission or body to adjudicate the above. It is not possible to form a new political party and take part in an election without the implementation of these preconditions. Most of these preconditions are not only true for Ethiopia, but also for countries that are continuously working to build their democracy. They are the foundations for fair and free elections, as well as representative governments. UDJ’s activities are also nothing but fraudulent. After dropping the 8-Points, UDJ has called itself the former Kinjit and taken funds that were raised for Kinjit in the U.S. and EU. Ethiopians in the Diaspora had made contributions believing that the Kinijit leaders will continue to struggle for the principles they advocated, not to create a new party that surrenders the people's vote to the Woyanne dictatorship. Senior UDJ leader Prof. Mesfin WoldeMariam had traveled to the U.S. last July and asked Ethiopians to follow the teachings and practices of the Tibetan Dalai Lama, instead of the teachings of [...] Ethiopian Review Editorial The chairperson of Union for Democracy and Justice (UDJ), Wzr. Birtukan Mideksa, held a press conference on Sunday, Oct. 12. In the press conference, Birtukan explained her party’s current and future programs. She [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5256 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5256#comments Mon, 13 Oct 2008 05:24:38 +0000 Berhan http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5256 > We’ve been reporting on Chicagoans who are deeply invested in the presidential race between Illinois Senator Barack Obama and Arizona Senator John McCain. Today, we meet an Ethiopian-born Chicago resident who's been volunteering for the Obama campaign. Ethiopian Diamond restaurant boasts the best coffee and [...]]]> http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5256/feed 0 Produced by Natalie Moore, Chicago Public Radio Click here to listen >> We’ve been reporting on Chicagoans who are deeply invested in the presidential race between Illinois Senator Barack Obama and Arizona Senator John McCain. Today, we meet an Ethiopian-born Chicago resident who's been volunteering for the Obama campaign. Ethiopian Diamond restaurant boasts the best coffee and food of its kind in Chicago. It’s also been the site of gatherings for the city’s African and Caribbean population who are supporting Barack Obama. RETTA: Obama, his case is very unique. But Obama is for the people. Obama, his agenda, his change and his hope that resonates to everybody. Befekadu Retta has been organizing on behalf of the campaign. He lives in Edgewater and says his young children forget about their cartoons when Obama appears on the television screen. The Ethiopian native says there may be a feeling a kinship because Obama’s father was Kenyan. RETTA: Yes, African. First-generation African. But again that doesn’t persuade me as what he’s standing for. Retta says he evaluates the candidate on the economy, education and support of the African Diaspora. Retta came to the United States more than 20 years ago as a refugee. He went to Roosevelt University, became a citizen and works for Cook County. The pull of politics is apparent for him in this historic presidential race. Retta was in Iowa when Obama won the primary and he’s taken his children to Ohio to canvass. When he returned to Iowa a few weeks ago, about a hundred Africans and West Indians went too. Retta says Obama is an easy pick for those in the African Diaspora. Obama’s plan includes debt relief to poor countries and investing in fighting AIDS. RETTA: African and Caribbeans have been a victim of poverty, starvation, lack of democracy. Obama, according to his platform that we have seen so far, hopefully he will continue on that and he will give for the other part of the world how people can live together. How they can tackle the poverty, especially HIV that which affects all over the world and especially the Third World. We’re hoping he’ll be able to help and to make sure that the other part of the world are with us to tackle and solve those problems. Retta says there’s been energy in his community about Obama. But that’s not always the case in American elections. Traditionally, the focus is on political activism in the Old Country. RETTA: We have our own back home attachments with politics and economy because home is home. One expert says he’s never seen this level of presidential election interest among the West Indian and African populations in the U.S. They’re contributing and registering voters. Jean-Germain Gros is a political science professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. GROS: We have to be honest about it, it’s race. A lot of people of African descent would very much support Obama because he’s of African descent. But I would think that equally important is this fact: if Obama should become elected, for a lot of people this would provide a kind of inspiration if not to them but to their children. Gros says there’s an African and Caribbean tradition that at election time artists put out tunes for a particular candidate. This is the first time in his memory he’s seen someone do that for a U.S. presidential candidate. song Mighty Sparrow is the calypso crooner. The title of the tune is “Barack the Magnificent.” song I’m Natalie Moore, Chicago Public Radio. Produced by Natalie Moore, Chicago Public Radio Click here to listen >> We’ve been reporting on Chicagoans who are deeply invested in the presidential race between Illinois Senator Barack Obama and Arizona Senator John McCain. Today, we meet an [...] http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5198 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5198#comments Fri, 10 Oct 2008 19:56:53 +0000 Berhan http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/?p=5198 http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/5198/feed 1 UN Dispatch "HORN OF AFRICA AT A CRITICAL STAGE," proclaims the very prominent headline on the homepage of United Nations World Food Program. The urgency is not without reason, as a statement released by Oxfam today underscores. Facing a "perfect storm" of drought and rising food prices, the number of people in Ethiopia in need of emergency assistance has jumped from 4.6 million to 6.4 million in less than four months. This would be bad enough, but there are 7.2 million additional Ethiopians who receive only some small support from their government Woyanne. From Oxfam's statement: "Today's figures, terrible as they are, show only half the picture. Over 13.5 million Ethiopians are in need of aid in order to survive. The number of those suffering severe hunger and destitution has spiraled. More can and must be done now to save lives and avert disaster," said Oxfam's country director, Waleed Rauf. Namely, donor countries can step in and provide the $260 million needed for aid efforts in the country. WFP has only received a third of the funds it needs to deliver food, and, without further support, it will likely have to scale back operations to even more dangerous levels. Watch this video for more. UN Dispatch "HORN OF AFRICA AT A CRITICAL STAGE," proclaims the very prominent headline on the homepage of United Nations World Food Program. The urgency is not without reason, as a statement released by Oxfam today underscores. Facing a "perfect [...]