OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – About 75 Ethiopian protestors attended a demonstration outside the Oklahoma City office of U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe, saying he is blocking consideration of a bill (H.R. 2003) that addresses human rights in Ethiopia.
But a spokesman for Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican, says the senator has not placed a hold on the bill, which has not yet reached the Senate floor.
The spokesman, John Collison, says he planned to meet with the protest leaders on Tuesday afternoon.
During the peaceful protest, held across the street from 1 of Oklahoma City’s major shopping malls, many demonstrators held U.S. flags, while others held the green, red, and yellow flag of Ethiopia.
The bill, which passed in the U.S. House, decries Ethiopia’s recent human rights record and opens the door for sanctions.