Horror stories of torture hound Ethiopia as it proclaims commitment to reform

NICK WADHAMS

Special to The Globe and Mail, with a report from Zoe Alsop

May 29, 2007

NEKEMTE, ETHIOPIA -- During the six months that 25-year-old Aman was detained in an Addis Ababa prison, he alleges, police kicked and punched him and kept him for weeks on end in a tiny cell with his hands bound as if always in prayer.

Then there was the day that Aman, a second-year law student at the time, went before a judge and found himself correcting her on the Ethiopian criminal code. She had granted prosecutors' request to detain him for three weeks of investigation, a week longer than the law allows.

"I could not have words to express the situation, it is so difficult," said Aman, who was never charged with a crime and eventually released.

"They appoint judges who have no legal knowledge of law, who learn about the law for six months and sit at the court."

Amnesty International Report

Political trials

Following the disputed May 2005 elections and mass arrests of opposition party activists, leaders of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), journalists and civil society activists were brought to trial in May. They faced charges including treason, outrage against the Constitution and other capital charges. The 76 defendants included Hailu Shawel, the CUD president, Berhanu Negga, an economics professor, and Mesfin Woldemariam, a retired geography professor. In addition, 34 prominent Ethiopians in exile were charged in their absence. Five Voice of America radio journalists who were US citizens were among nine defendants discharged before the trial started.

All but three defendants refused to defend themselves on the ground that they did not expect a fair trial. The trial had not concluded by the end of 2006. AI considered they were prisoners of conscience and sent a trial observer in October.

Four other CUD-related trials on similar charges were not completed at the end of the year. In the trial of Kifle Tigeneh, an elected member of parliament, and 32 other people, some defendants complained in court that they had been tortured to make false confessions. Berhane Mogese, a lawyer, was on trial with 22 others.

A separate trial of Mesfin Woldemariam and Berhanu Negga continued. They were accused of instigating violence during demonstrations at Addis Ababa University in 2000.

SUCCESSFUL PUBLIC MEETING ON MAY 20, 2007 TORONTO

A SUCCESSFUL PUBLIC MEETING AND DINNER. TORONTO MAY 20, 2007




CONGRATULATIONS KINIJIT CANADA COUNCIL

Where is Bashir Makhtal?

Lawyer demands answers about Canadian detained in Ethiopia without charge

May 21, 2007 04:30 AM

Debra Black
Staff Reporter

A leading Canadian human rights and immigration lawyer wants Ottawa to clarify what Ethiopia has done with Bashir Makhtal and explain why the former Toronto resident hasn't been given consular access.

Lorne Waldman says the African country's government is either lying to the Canadian government or lying to an Ethiopian lawyer hired to represent Makhtal.

Waldman's comments are the latest twist in a protracted story that began in late January when the Canadian citizen was detained without charge.

Initially, the Ethiopian government denied it was holding Makhtal, believed to be 40 although his birth is not documented in the village where he was born. Later, Ethiopia acknowledged his detention.

Now, officials at the Central Investigation Bureau in Addis Ababa are telling another story.

On Friday, Mekuria Tafassa, an Ethiopian lawyer hired by the man's family in Canada, went to a prison known as Maikelawi to visit Makhtal, said Said Maktal, Makhtal's cousin, who lives in Hamilton.

The lawyer was told Makhtal wasn't there.

Human Rights in Ethiopia and the U.S. Foreign Policy Response

In early 2005, leading up to the May 15 elections, Ethiopia appeared to be turning a corner in its respect for codified international human rights norms. Prime Minister Meles Zenawi sat on Tony Blair’s Commission for Africa, which considered an array of issues related to political transparency and accountability, economic development, anti-corruption measures, human capacity building and the enhancement of human rights in Africa. The Government of Ethiopia was allowing some—albeit limited—international press access and space for political opposition rallies, particularly in Addis. Yet since the disputed 2005 elections, around which accusations of electoral fraud emerged alongside mass demonstrations in protest, political repression greatly increased. In several days of demonstrations in June and November 2005, government security forces shot and killed 187 people and wounded 765, including 99 women and several children. Six police officers were also killed in clashes with demonstrators.

BYE BYE BLAIR................CAN YOU TAKE MELES WITH YOU? WITH HIS BRAIN HE WILL SIT IN 10 BOARD ROOMS AT THE SAME TIME....TAKE YOUR BUDDY WITH YOU PLEASE

Office for Democratic Governance

THIS IS WHAT WE WISH FOR MOTHER ETHIOPIA. ARE WE ASKING TOO MUCH???????????

Elements of Democratic Governance

Human Rights

• Strengthen formal human rights institutions and mechanisms
• Support civil society, education and accountability roles
• Realize human rights of women, children, and marginalized groups

Freedom & Democracy

• Build open and accountable political systems: electoral and legislative assistance, decentralization, federalism, and local government, political parties, and competition
• Create a democratic environment: independent media and transparency, development of civil society, education for democratic culture, building inclusive societies

Rule of Law

• Promote predictable, impartial, accessible, timely, and effective legal systems
• Support independent and non-discriminatory judicial systems
• Advance public legal education and engagement
• Support informal legal practices that respect human rights

SECURITY COUNCIL PRESS STATEMENT ON ETHIOPIA, ERITREA

The following Security Council press statement on Ethiopia and Eritrea was delivered on 8 may by Council President Zalmay Khalilzad ( United States):

Members of the Security Council remain deeply concerned by the impasse in the Eritrea-Ethiopia peace process and by the growing tension between the two countries.

Members of the Security Council once again reaffirm the integrity of the Temporary Security Zone and urge both parties to withdraw immediately their troops and equipment from positions within and in close proximity to the Temporary Security Zone.

Somalia: The Other (Hidden) War for Oil

The U.S. bombing of Somalia took place while the World Social Forum was underway in Kenya and three days before a large anti-war action in Washington, January 27. Nunu Kidane, network coordinator for Priority Africa Network (PAN) was present in Nairobi, and after returning home asked out loud how 'to explain the silence of the US peace movement on Somalia?'

Constitutional Rights and Constitutional Wrongs:

Alemayehu G. Mariam
Thank you for inviting me to speak at the Ethiopia Roundtable Forum of the Canadian
Peacebuilding Coordinating Committee (CPCC) in Ottawa, Canada.

The CPCC network, which is made up of about 75 Canadian organizations and individual members
involved in peacebuilding and conflict prevention activities, is engaged in enabling dialogue on peace
and conflict issues and in articulating peacebuilding policy and program approaches.
Let me also thank the Solidarity Committee for Ethiopian Political Prisoners (SOCEPP) of Canada
for its assistance in organizing this Roundtable Forum. Please be assured that all of us engaged in the
defense and advancement of the cause of democracy, freedom and human rights fully support your
efforts to obtain the release of all political prisoners in Ethiopia.
Though I am unable to join you in person, I thank you all for giving me the opportunity to comment
on the issue of “justice reform” in Ethiopia.
I shall focus my remarks narrowly on individual rights under the “Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Ethiopia.”
Ethiopia, Utopia?

Kenya Airways releases names of passengers

By Standard Reporter

Kenya Airways has released the names of passengers who were on board flight KQ 507 from Douala to Nairobi.

The plane is suspected to have crashed in a forest near Douala shortly after take off on Friday night.

Addressing the Press in Nairobi, Kenya Airways CEO Mr Titus Naikuni said the search for KQ 507 had resumed in Douala. Cameroonian authorities called off the search on Saturday night due to darkness and the heavy rains.

Hello Ethiopian Canadians: How about getting organized?

We call on all Ethiopian Canadians to organize a coalition movement for the advancement of human rights for those in Ethiopia as well as for the rights and well being of every Ethiopian in Canada and in the Diaspora. Ethiopian Canadians are all of you who call Ethiopia your motherland, but who now live in Canada. If you fit that description, we need your participation in organizing a Canadian civic organization that is unified beyond our ethnicity, our religion and our political views by this common factor of being Ethiopian Canadians.

Ethiopia accused of torture

Debra Black
Staff Reporter

A former Toronto resident is being tortured in Ethiopia, his relatives say.

Bashir Makhtal has been detained in Ethiopia since late January.

He is among 41 prisoners from 17 countries that Ethiopia has admitted holding; 29 were ordered released by a military court.

Makhtal was among the dozen who were to remain in custody.

Ethiopia: Trial of opposition leaders, human rights defenders and journalists continues

One year after their trial opened in Addis Ababa on 2 May 2006, 48 members of the opposition Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD) party, human rights defenders and journalists are still in prison. Most charges carry possible death sentences. They are on trial for allegedly inciting violence in opposition demonstrations in 2005 protesting alleged electoral fraud. The demonstrations started peacefully but ended in clashes with government forces that shot dead 187 demonstrators.

Amnesty International reiterates its call for the immediate and unconditional release of those defendants whom it considers are prisoners of conscience who have not used or advocated violence and were peacefully exercising their right to freedom of expression, association and assembly, as guaranteed by the Ethiopian Constitution and international human rights treaties which Ethiopia has ratified. They include:

• CUD leaders -- some of whom were elected to the federal parliament or Addis Ababa city assembly -- for example Dr Berhanu Negga, an economics lecturer, Dr Yakob Hailemariam, a law professor and former UN prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, Ms Birtukan Mideksa, a lawyer and former judge, and retired geography professor Mesfin Woldemariam, founder and former president of the Ethiopian Human Rights Council, among others;
• two civil society activists and human rights lawyers -- Daniel Bekele, policy manager of the Ethiopian office of ActionAid, the international development agency, and Netsanet Demissie, founder and director of the Organization for Social Justice, an Ethiopian NGO;
• seven journalists from the independent media who are charged on the basis of published articles which to Amnesty International’s knowledge did not advocate violence.

ATO KIHDETU & HIS MEDHIN PARTY

PRESS REALESE FROM KINIJIT CANADA

IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM KINIJIT CANADA

PRESS REALEASE ON THE FORMATION OF KINIJIT TORONTO

ከቅንጅት ለሰብAዊ መብትና ዲሞክራሲ ቶሮንቶ የተሰጠ መግለጫ
የቅንጅት ራEይ፡

“የዜጎች ሰብAዊና ዲሞክራስያዊ መብት ሙሉ በሙሉ የተከበሩባት Iትዮጵያን
ለህዝቡ ፍላጎት መሟላት፣በሃላፊነትና፣በተጠያቂነት መንፈስ የሚሰራ Aመራር
በሁሉም ደርጃ ግልጽና ዲሞክራሲያዊ በሆነ ስርAት የሚሰራ መልካም Aስተዳደር፣
በEኩልነትና በመከባበር ላይ የተመሰረተ Aንድነት ያለውና ራሱን ከኋላ ቀርነትና
ድህነት ለማውጣት Aብሮ የሚሰራ ህዝብ ማየት ነው” ይላል ይህንንም ራEይ
በማንገብ Iትዮጵያውያን ከAድማስ Eስከ Aድማስ በሰፊው በመንቀሳቀስ ላይ
ይገኛሉ::

PRESS REALEASE

Kinijit’s vision is: “to see a country in which, its people are united on the basis of
equality and mutual respect; in which the people work together to extricate themselves
from poverty and backwardness; to see Ethiopia as a country in which the human and
democratic rights of its citizens are fully respected; to see Ethiopia having a leadership
that works in a spirit of responsibility accountability and on the basis of fulfilling the
demands of the people; to see a country endowed with good governance that operates at
all levels in a system of openness and democracy”. Ethiopians from all walks of life have
embraced this motto and are rallying behind it to make it a reality.

REMEMBERING MAY -SEP 2005
HUMAN RIGHT ABUSE AND LAWLESS ETHIOPIA UNDER EPRDF

YouTube - AFD

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