By Scott A Morgan
According to a Ethiopian Newspaper the Addis Fortune, the Bush Administration is concerned about the “narrowing” of Democracy in Ethiopia. The report indicates that there are two pieces of Legislation at the Heart of the Concern of the US Government.
In a joint press briefing that was held in Addis Ababa on July 24th the US Undersecretary for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor David J Kramer was joined by the Current Ambassador Donald Yamanoto to discuss the Concerns. On this particular trip Ethiopia was the only stop made in Africa by Ambassador Kramer. He spent a total of 48 hours in the East African Country.
During his Visit the Ambassador met with Ethiopian Prime Minister Zenawi and other Members of the ruling EPRDF (Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front. The Ambassador stated that the US has vibrant relations with the Ethiopian Government. Two Areas that were prominently mentioned were Security and Humanitarian Issues.
However there are two major areas of concern for this Administration in its last few months. First is the New Ethiopian Media Law. In the eyes of some experts this law makes it easier for the Government to Launch new efforts of Repression. One Chilling Chapter can allow for Defamtion Cases to be filed by the Government even if the person that was injured decides not to file charges.
This comes on the heels of the “reforms” last year of the Ministry of Information. The Government now has power to use licensing and registration as a Punishment of Dissent. Another Feature gives the Government Power to stop the Distribution of a Newspaper if the Attorney General deems a news item to be a criminal act.
The Actions against NGOs is a Major concern as some of them have been targeted for their work in the Ogaden Region. Once again Ethiopia has suffered from drought conditions and the country is heavily involved in neighboring Somalia. Some NGOs have been targeted for their work since the Controversial 2005 Elections that had a violent aftermath.
The US Congress has introduced a Piece of Legislation HR 2003 The Ethiopian Democracy and Accountability Act. It passed the House of Representatives without dissent but is currently stalled in the US Senate. This was introduced to raise the concerns of the Legislative Body after the violence plagued 2005 elections. A better way to raise US Concerns would be to pass this legislation as well as contacts with the current leadership in Addis Ababa.
For what its worth Ethiopia is a hingepin for a successful US Policy in the Horn of Africa. It has been active in Somalia on behalf of US Interests for a couple of years now. It has a long running feud with Eritrea that could erupt into warfare as well. So Whatever action Ethiopia takes probably has the blessing of this Administration. But what of the next one?
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