On Changing the OLF Political program
No serious observer of the Oromo people and their struggle for liberation over the last twenty years would doubt their abiding love and support for the OLF. That much, I argue, is beyond dispute. One cannot find a stronger evidence of the truth of this statement than pointing to the fact that the Oromo people stuck with it over the last twenty years even when it is at its weakest. Even Melles Zenawi, the arch enemy of the OLF, is said to have quipped “if you scratch every Oromo, you will expose the OLF in them” or something to that effect. This quip is one of the most telling testaments of Oromo love for the OLF.
So, why is it that the Oromo people love this organization so much and refuse to abandon it even when it seems weak and ineffective? Why is it that no Oromo organization created since has been able to garner as much support as the OLF from the Oromo people? What has it done for them in the past and what has it promised them for the future?
Most importantly, to tie it to the Kemal Gelchu & Co. story, how can one kill the OLF which seems to have nine lives and would not die regardless of uncountable attempts on its life or the number of obituaries written about its death?
Follow me, please!
The Oromo people’s deepest love is not for the leaders or members of the day; Although they love and hold them in high regard too. They know that leaders and members come and go. Their love is for something constant, something persisting in the OLF regardless of who leads the organization or holds membership in it. That, my friends, is the ideals the organization represents; the fears, hopes and aspirations it is connected to. The ideals, the fears and hopes, and the aspirations it represents and stands for are the same as those that the Oromo people hold very dear. In fact, the OLF was formed for exactly that purpose – to represent and reflect Oromo hopes and aspirations. This is manifested in its political program. It is specified as dismantling the Ethiopian empire, freeing the Oromo people from colonial subjugation and enabling them to determine their fate with no external interference or undue pressure. Without dismantling the empire the Oromo will never see freedom and without freedom they won’t be able to determine their fate freely. When that opportunity comes around, while it advocates for independent state of Oromia, the OLF has promised them that it will respect and abide by their choice. That is what gained it so much love and support from them.
Not only has the OLF reflected Oromo hopes and aspirations for liberation, it has also achieved for them, in a few decades, part of what they had lost for over a century. Paramount among them, it has helped lift Oromo identity, history and culture from the dust bin to which it was relegated by the Habasha colonizers and located it in its rightful place among the respected ones on the planet. I say helped because it is the Oromo people that did much of the lifting work through their organized and unorganized resistance. The OLF, however, gave that resistance and renaissance shape and direction. It organized and led it. The implication of that achievement alone on the Oromo psyche is incalculable. A book can be written about the impacts of this achievement. However, for the purpose of this piece, suffice to say that we would not have Qubee, or recognized as a nation without this achievement.
OLF’s work is not completed by any stretch of the imagination. But, knowing what it has accomplished for them to date, the Oromo maintain confidence that it will deliver on its promises in the future as well. That is because they are mindful of the fact that past behavior is the best indicator of future behavior. The OLF has gone, and will go, through ups and downs, rainy and sunny days, disappointments and successes but at the end of the day, they believe, it will come through for them and will deliver on its promises as it has done before. Yes, it will stumble from time to time, it will even fall down now and then, but they are confident that it will pick itself up, dust itself off, and walk, even run and fly, again. Whether it is strong or weak at any particular time is not as important as what it stands for. Its point in time strength or weakness may be most important for opportunists among them but not for the vast majority of the Oromo people.
Simply put, what the Oromo love is not OLF the organization per se. Their love affair is with OLF’s political program which is the embodiment of their hopes and aspirations. Without its political program, the OLF may exist as an organization, in name only, but without doubt will forgo the love and support of the Oromo people it has enjoyed since its inception.
In order to kill the OLF, it is not enough to murder, to “disappear” or to torture its leaders or members. Nor is it enough to delegalize it or label it as a terrorist organization. Twenty years of such practices have not borne fruit for TPLF. The secret to killing the OLF is to deprive it of the love and support it enjoys from its people. That is the only sure way of burying the OLF six feet under. What better way is there to accomplish that than by decoupling and disassociating it from its political program? None at all!
The sure way to kill the OLF, once and for all, would be to cajole, coerce or force it to abandon its missions and objectives as they are enshrined in its political program.
Enemies of the OLF know this very well. After years of attempts at cajoling and coercing it to change its mission, and having failed miserably at it, they have devised a crafty scheme they hoped the Oromo would be unable to uncover. It is to infiltrate the organization, take it over and force it to abandon its political program so as to deprive it of Oromo love and support. But they needed an Oromo tool, a “Trojan Horse” to accomplish this mission for them.
Say hi to Kemal Gelchu & Co., the lethal tool charged with this mission by the TPLF.
That is exactly what Kemal Gelchu & Co. announced on January 1, 2012. (Read Here) Under the guise of “a new vision with clear goals” they have changed the goal of the Oromo struggle led by their faction of the OLF from freeing the Oromo people from colonial subjugation and determining their fate freely to achievement of “New Federal Republic of Ethiopia.”
What is more, they accomplished their mission by trampling upon the due process procedure enshrined in the OLF constitution which calls for the organizations general assembly to make such a major change. Usurping the general assembly’s power and circumventing that due process was necessary to achieve their mission. Without such illegal act, they were certain that their mission cannot be accomplished for they would be opposed by the vast majority of nationalist Oromos who had joined their faction duped by their sugar coated mantra of “change”.
If the Oromo people’s aspiration were life in a “Federal” empire, they have had many organizations to choose from. First, there have been independent and “legal” Oromo organizations in the country that they could have supported and helped grow. These organizations have accepted a federal Ethiopia. The Oromo people, however, did not flock to join them and strengthen them. Secondly, the Oromo people have had the option of joining what Habasha’s call “multi-ethnic” organizations in the country. These are also “legal” and are working to remove TPLF from power. Twenty years after the OLF left the country, the Oromo people have refused to join these organizations.
Why? Why have they decided to stick to an “illegal” organization labeled a terrorist and face assured harsh treatment at the hands of TPLF?
The answer is simple. After twenty years of their refusal to join these other “legal” organizations in droves, it is fair to say that these organizations, although some of them seem independent and work for some Oromo interests, they do not represent the whole gamut of Oromo hopes and aspirations. The TPLF is very much mindful of this fact. According to TPLF even the few Oromos holding membership in “legal” opposition organizations, when scratched reveal the OLF in them.
So what is the purpose of changing the OLF political program to realizing “New Federal Republic of Ethiopia.” knowing fully that other Oromo organizations who are working for the same ideal have not gained their people’s love and support after twenty years of existence?
The purpose is to kill the OLF; deprive it of the love and support of the Oromo people it enjoys by changing its political program to one the Oromo don’t particularly care for. A “Trojan Horse” in the form of Kemal Gelchu & Co. was constructed and sent on this mission. Will they succeed? Only time and how the Oromo will react to these enemy spies’ actions will tell.
This is the third evidence of Kemal Gelchu & Co.’s clandestine work for TPLF from within the Oromo movement for freedom.
Continued in Part IV (Read Here).
Have your say!
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Kemal Gelchu & Co.: “OLF” Trojan horse? Part III
Sunday, January 08, 2012
Kemal Gelchu & Co.: “OLF” Trojan horse? Part II
On Challenging TPLF by Force
Today, five years after they joined the Asmara group of OLF and three years after claiming leadership of an OLF faction, Kemal Gelchu & Co, are generals without armies much less challenge TPLF by force. Not only have they no army to speak of but have surrendered to TPLF whatever army there was before their arrival and sided with them during their split with the Asmara Group of OLF.
Under Hailu Gonfa’s command, in Aug. 2009, they allowed the filming, and airing on a Kenyan TV station, of the Oromo liberation Army (OLA), “in southern Ethiopia near the border town of Moyale” there by pin pointing OLA location for TPLF. A few months later, in Jan 2010, the vast majority of the army surrendered to TPLF under mysterious circumstances. Even before that, it was widely rumored that the OLA under their command was full of TPLF spies.
Furthermore, before they even fire their first shot and having surrendered their army to TPLF, Kemal Gelchu & Co. abandoned armed struggle and declared “non-violence” (Read Here) as their method of struggle there by revealing their lack of intention to challenge TPLF by force. It is unheard of for army generals to renounce armed struggle and declare “non-violence” to challenge an adversary they have asserted does not understand dialogue. The purpose, from the beginning, I submit to you the reader, was to disband OLA (Oromo Liberation Army) to deny the OLF a fighting chance against TPLF. Had Kemal Gelchu & Co. succeeded in taking total control of the OLF (including the two other factions), there is no doubt that this group would have made the OLF a toothless liberation front without a liberation army for that is one of the objectives they were sent to accomplish.
But that is exactly what TPLF wanted all along and has been demanding from the OLF to no avail until Kemal Gelchu & Co. showed up on the scene. Kemal Gelchu & Co. partly achieved by infiltration what TPLF failed to accomplish by force and through negotiations. What force and negotiations failed to yield, infiltration delivered.
But why did Kemal Gelchu & Co. choose non-violence, a method they declared ineffective when they left TPLF? What has changed since to make “non-violence” appealing to them at this point? Nothing has changed for the better form what we know! Has TPLF become more democratic and tolerant of “non-violent” methods of struggle? No! In fact, TPLF became more tyrannical wining 99.6% in its last “elections”. It continues to “disappear”, torture, imprison and kill our people. It continues to fire live ammunitions against peaceful demonstrators. One can find no rational reason for such decision under such conditions. In order to make sense of their adoption of “non-violence”, one would have to assume they were sent on a mission by TPLF to pacify the OLF. But this is not a wild assumption. It is one supported by evidence of their actions and one widely held belief in Oromia.
If peaceful struggle is what they had in mind, why did they leave the country in the first place? Wouldn’t it make sense to join Oromo organizations who have adopted that method - the likes of Dr. Merera Gudina’s OPC (Oromo People’s Congress) and Obbo Bulcha Demeksa’s WAFIDO? How do they plan to conduct peaceful struggle from afar - from Asmara? In the successful peaceful struggles with which we are familiar, the leaders remained among their peoples and led the struggle. Dr. Martin Luther King walked at the head of freedom marches in his country and with his people. Gandhi was among his people when he took on the English empire and tasted the brutality of the colonizers with his brethren. What are we to make of their advocacy for “non-violent” struggle from outside the country?
Could “non-violence” be their ticket back to TPLF once they accomplish the mission they were sent to execute? I will address this a few paragraphs later in “What would the Logical next steps be for Kemal Gelchu & Co.?”
The answer to the question about whether they have challenged TPLF by force as they promised they would do when they “defected”, should be obvious by now – NOT AT ALL! In fact, they surrendered to TPLF part of the OLA that sided with them. Before they fired a single shot, they disavowed armed struggle and adopted “non-violence”. They have no intention or plan to challenge TPLF in any way much less by force because they were sent to do TPLF work. Kemal Gelchu & Co. bears the sole responsibility for dismantling the OLA under their command.
This is the second evidence of their clandestine work for TPLF from within the Oromo movement for freedom.
Continued on Part III (Read Here).
Have your say!
Saturday, January 07, 2012
Kemal Gelchu & Co.: “OLF” Trojan horse? Part I
On August 10, 2006, Oromo nationalist all over the world woke up to the news of Gen. Kemal Gelchu’s (a TPLF army general) defection to Eritrea and joining the Asmara Group of OLF (AKA the Dawud Ibsaa Group). Kemal Gelchu had been a very loyal soldier of the Ethiopian empire for many years both under the DERG and TPLF regimes. At the time of his defection to Eritrea, he was the commander of the TPLF 18th army division.
According to media reports, Kemal Gelchu simply walked across the border to Eritrea under cover of darkness from where he was stationed on Ethio-Eritrea border. What is more, he brought along 150 fully armed soldiers and, by some accounts, “tens of commanders” including Col. Abebe Geresu.
TPLF explained away the general’s defection as a disgruntled soldier who was denied promotion and chose to engage in “divisive activities”. Ethiopian TV reported: “Although his [Kemal Gelchu’s] colleagues repeatedly tried to correct the commander from his anti-government and inappropriate activities, the commander was not willing to change".
Regardless of his alleged “divisive activities” and notwithstanding TPLF’s knowledge of it, Kemal was allowed to command TPLF’s 18th army division stationed at the border with Eritrea – Ethiopia’s arch enemy. By any standard, the border between the two states was highly guarded and monitored at the time he crossed over. Regardless, the general was able to walk across the border with 150 other soldiers in tow and with a minor shooting incident.
How he accomplished such a feat was never explained, much less in sufficient detail. Hard to believe? Read on!
Gen. Hailu Gonfa and Col. Gemechu Ayana, two other long time soldiers of the empire, followed suite a few weeks later. How they arrived in Asmara was never explained to my knowledge.
Their defection generated euphoria in some corners owing to the belief that these generals would re-organize and re-build a guerrilla force that would match, surpass and defeat the TPLF army.
The two generals fanned the euphoria by informing the public that peaceful struggle against TPLF is futile and that they had exhausted the possibility of bringing TPLF to its senses through dialogues. In an interview he gave to BBC soon after arriving in Asmara, Kemal Galchuu said “The language they (the Ethiopian government) understand is force and we're going to challenge them by force." (Read Here). Hailu Gonfa, on his part, told Eritrean Television, that their demands for democracy “fell on deaf ears, [as a result] they were compelled to raise arms against the [TPLF] regime and thus join the popular struggle.”
Five years after they joined the Asmara Group of OLF and given that they now lead an OLF faction and their announcement on new year 2012 of having changed the OLF political program (Read Here) , it is about time, and fair, to assess their performance.
Have they challenged TPLF by force as they promised they would do when they defected? Has the Oromo struggle fared better as a result of their defection? Has the Oromo struggle become stronger or weaker – militarily, politically, socially, etc - as a result of them joining it?. Most importantly, did they defect to the Asmara Group of OLF to help the struggle or to do TPLF work? How about the faction that Kemal Gelchu is leading – is it advancing the Oromo struggle or is it a TPLF tool – a Trojan horse for TPLF spies and saboteurs? Where they sent to infiltrate the Asmara Group of OLF, take control of the organization and ensure that faction accepts TPLF conditions of surrender: Accepting the TPLF constitution and renouncing armed struggle?
In the following paragraphs, I will search for answers to these questions in their actions over the last five years.
But, first, what is a “Trojan Horse?”
The term “Trojan Horse” comes from the legendary ancient war story between Greeks and Trojans (People of Troy). In this epic story, having given up on confronting the Trojans in face-to-face combats, the Greeks came up with a crafty plot. They built a wooden horse, hid Greek soldiers in its belly and left it at the gate of the heavily fortified and defended Trojan city. Believing that this was a parting gift to the gods from the Greeks, Trojans opened their gate, wheeled the wooden horse in and went about celebrating their “victory”. Unbeknownst to them, the Greeks had hidden their soldiers in the wooden horse, whom in the middle of the night came out of the horse’s belly and opened the gate to the Trojan city. Once the gate was thrown open, more Greek soldiers streamed in to the city and decimated the Trojans thereby winning the war. That wooden horse became known as “Trojan Horse” and the term itself has since been used to describe enemy operatives in one’s midst conducting espionage and sabotage to undermine the opponent from within.
So, is Kemal Gelchu & Co. a Trojan horse? Let the facts speak for themselves.
On Strengthening the Oromo Struggle
In a couple of years after their arrival, the Kemal Gelchu group split the Asmara Group of OLF. The reason given for the split depends on which side of the divide would be doing the explaining. However, there is one glaring fact that is undeniable about how they split the organization and the consequences accompanying the split on Oromo struggle.
The first, and the most damaging one to the Oromo struggle and Oromummaa (Oromo identity), is the fact that when they parted company with the Dawud Ibsaa Group, their constituency consisted entirely of Oromo nationals of Arsi birth. Not a single known Oromo personality from other regions of Oromia appeared in their list. They exploited the latent regionalist tendencies espoused by some in the organization. They purposefully promoted regional differences and suspicions to gain support. They presented the split as one caused by the organization’s refusal to allow an able leader from Arsi to take his rightful place at the head of the organization. “The time is ours”, they told their fellow Oromos from Arsi. “Arsi Oromos are discrimintaed against in the organization” they preached to them. They succeeded in taking their divisive activity to the Oromo public and worked hard to destroy Oromimmaa (Oromo identity) which had been built with the blood and flesh of heroes and heroines of the struggle. They sprayed this venom in every Oromo institution in diaspora including community associations, political and religious organizations. By doing so, they saw the seeds of mistrust even among former comrades and personal friends from Arsi and other parts of Oromia. The purpose was to destroy Oromummaa and Oromo unity without which they know the struggle cannot progress.
Without the slightest exaggeration, no action of anyone, including that of the enemy, has rolled back what was gained by the Oromo struggle to the extent they did by this action. This is a major setback Oromummaa suffered from which it is yet to recuperate. Insha Allah, it will!
“Divide and conquer” strategy against the Oromo has been a tried and true way utilized by successive Ethiopian regimes to keep Oromos from uniting. It is also a strategy employed extensively by TPLF against other nations and religious groups in the empire. Their fear is that a united group of people will be able to pool their resources together to build enough capacity to one day defeat them. Consequently, they leave no stone unturned to frustrate their effort to unite through their agents particularly within the group they fear. One of the missions Kemal Gelchu & Co. is charged with by TPLF was to execute this policy within the Oromo and other diaspora oppositions.
Today, the Oromo diaspora is socially more divided than when they arrived. Politically, it is more fragmented and disunited than when they defected. Militarily, the Oromo struggle is in a worse position than it was when they joined it to purportedly re-energize OLA and challenge TPLF by force. While they are not responsible for everything that transpired since their arrival, Kemal Gelchu & Co. have contributed purposefully and immensely to weakening the Oromo struggle over the last five years.
This is the first evidence of their clendestine work for TPLF from within the Oromo movement for freedom.
Continued in Part II - (Read Here).
Have your say!
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Another Court Battle in the Making over OLF Name, Logo & Flag?
Another winds of war between two OLF factions is blowing in the form of litigation in USA courts over the use of OLF name, logo and flag and is threatening to, once again, waste Oromo time, money and energy. Shanee’s (AKA The Dawud Ibsaa Group or the Asmara Group) sabre-rattling against TA-OLF (AKA the Dhugaasaa Bakakkoo Group or the QC Group) should be worrisome to all patriotic Oromos, to say the least, and could, indeed, end in a court room showdown.
It is to be recalled that, in July 2007, the Shanee Group of OLF took the TA-OLF group to a Minnesota court over the use of the OLF name, logo and flag. The lawsuit alleged that TA-OLF violated “Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act” and that it interfered with the Shanee Group’s “prospective economic advantage” by using the OLF name, logo and flag - (Read Here).
In August 2007, after two court appearances, the court dismissed the Shanee lawsuit without prejudice. In other words, while the Shanee case was dismissed for the time being, they were allowed to re-file if they so wished.
Undeterred by the dismissal and bent on winning the case, the Shanee Group re-filled and launched a second lawsuit over the same issue in September of the same year. After 14 months in the court system and after $50,000.00 (by a conservative estimate) of Oromo hard earned money was squandered on both sides to prosecute and defend this ridiculous charge, the court decided in favor of the defendant and awarded TA-OLF cost and disbursements which the Shanee Group was forced to pay up.
In dismissing the case in November 2008, the judge observed:
“The OLF began in Ethiopia in 1973 with the objective of establishing an independent [state of] Oromia for the Oromo people. Some individual Defendants have been members of the OLF since its inception in 1973. Beginning in 1999 and through approximately 2001, the OLF members began disputing the methods of accomplishing their mission. In 2001, the [Plaintiff or the Asmara Group] OLF began supporting the policy of recognizing the Ethiopian government. There were members who did not agree with this policy. The Plaintiffs continued operating under the name OLF in Minnesota (“Plaintiff OLF”). The Defendants rejected the authority of the [Plaintiff or the Asmara Group] OLF, but also continued operating under the name OLF in Minnesota (“Defendant OLF”)” - (Read Here).
In regards to the flag under dispute, the Shanee complaint asked TA-OLF to cease using the flag. However, Shanee members summoned for deposition (question and answer sessions between a possible witness and attorney of opposing side) all asserted that the flag is a national symbol and not just OLF’s which prompted the judge to observe:
“The OLF uses a flag. It is disputed whether the symbol on the flag was created for, and solely represents, the OLF or whether it is a symbol used by the Oromo people regardless of their affiliation with the OLF.”
With that, the judge dismissed the case for the second time and ordered Shanee to pay cost and disbursements to TA-OLF.
If you thought this would be the end of this madness, think again.
It is to be recalled that, in July 2007, the Shanee Group of OLF took the TA-OLF group to a Minnesota court over the use of the OLF name, logo and flag. The lawsuit alleged that TA-OLF violated “Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act” and that it interfered with the Shanee Group’s “prospective economic advantage” by using the OLF name, logo and flag - (Read Here).
In August 2007, after two court appearances, the court dismissed the Shanee lawsuit without prejudice. In other words, while the Shanee case was dismissed for the time being, they were allowed to re-file if they so wished.
Undeterred by the dismissal and bent on winning the case, the Shanee Group re-filled and launched a second lawsuit over the same issue in September of the same year. After 14 months in the court system and after $50,000.00 (by a conservative estimate) of Oromo hard earned money was squandered on both sides to prosecute and defend this ridiculous charge, the court decided in favor of the defendant and awarded TA-OLF cost and disbursements which the Shanee Group was forced to pay up.
In dismissing the case in November 2008, the judge observed:
“The OLF began in Ethiopia in 1973 with the objective of establishing an independent [state of] Oromia for the Oromo people. Some individual Defendants have been members of the OLF since its inception in 1973. Beginning in 1999 and through approximately 2001, the OLF members began disputing the methods of accomplishing their mission. In 2001, the [Plaintiff or the Asmara Group] OLF began supporting the policy of recognizing the Ethiopian government. There were members who did not agree with this policy. The Plaintiffs continued operating under the name OLF in Minnesota (“Plaintiff OLF”). The Defendants rejected the authority of the [Plaintiff or the Asmara Group] OLF, but also continued operating under the name OLF in Minnesota (“Defendant OLF”)” - (Read Here).
In regards to the flag under dispute, the Shanee complaint asked TA-OLF to cease using the flag. However, Shanee members summoned for deposition (question and answer sessions between a possible witness and attorney of opposing side) all asserted that the flag is a national symbol and not just OLF’s which prompted the judge to observe:
“The OLF uses a flag. It is disputed whether the symbol on the flag was created for, and solely represents, the OLF or whether it is a symbol used by the Oromo people regardless of their affiliation with the OLF.”
With that, the judge dismissed the case for the second time and ordered Shanee to pay cost and disbursements to TA-OLF.
If you thought this would be the end of this madness, think again.
The Shanee Group took over three years to prepare for another possible court battle. Having learned from their previous two failures that the courts are not likely to consider this dispute a commercial one, the Shanee Group went about preparing the ground work for the next battle.
On Nov. 17, 2008, a mere nine days after losing the case for the second time, the Shanee group applied to the US Patents & Trademarks Office (USPTO) to register the OLF name and logo in the Advertising, Business & Retail Services category - (Read Here).
Having succeeded in registering the OLF logo with the USPTO as Advertising, Business & Retail Services logo in June 2009, Shanee has now put TA-OLF on notice. In a letter written on Dec. 15, 2011 - (Read Here) - Shanee has accused TA-OLF of infringing on Shanee’s copy right and trade mark privileges. The letter asked TA-OLF to desist from further using the OLF “logo, flag and other materials.” Soon after, Shanee also issued a statement today on its web site (Read Here), warning the use of OLF name and logo by any other group but itself would be illegal and immoral thereby threatening lawsuit(s) against TA-OLF and perhaps also the Kemal Gelchu group of OLF.
If history is any guide, and from what we already know about the TA-OLF group, it seems unlikely that they will even dignify this letter with a response much less desisting from using what they consider rightfully belongs to the oromo people and their fallen comrades who paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives to free their people and realize an independent state of Oromia. Given TA-OLF’s attitude towards the OLF name, flag and logo, it seems inevitable that another (third) round of litigation will be launched by Shanee with the inevitable consequence of squandering tens of thousands Oromo hard earned money on American lawyers once again.
Why?
Why would Shanee spend Oromo hard earned money that can be put to a better use, say to take Meles Zenawi to World Court rather than targeting another Oromo group? Or even use the money to maintain their Washington DC office for which they were unable to afford rental fee and therefore downgraded to a smaller office recently? Why not use the money to help our refugee brothers and sisters suffering around the world or our brethren dying of famine in Oromia? While NGOs and benevolent governments feed our starving people, why would an Oromo group (Shanee) purportedly struggling for Oromo freedom waste thousands of dollars on a dispute which will not advance an inch, but retard, the Oromo struggle?
It is no secret that the Oromo camp is fragmented, disunited and disorganized as it is. Nationalist Oromos everywhere are demanding unity based on clarity of purpose for the struggle. Having given up on their leaders, they are beginning to organize grass root Oromo unity movements. For Shanee to threaten a lawsuit at this particular time, after having lost twice before on the same issue – would be to pour gasoline on fire and frustrate the call for unity.
A Call to Action
This blogger continues to appeal to the Shanee Group in general and Obbo Dawud Ibsaa in particular, as he had done during the first and second Shanee Lawsuits, to stop this madness.
Obbo Dawud: What you are engaged in is an inter-Oromo political fight for the hearts and minds of the Oromo people. The Oromo people and them alone can and should render the final verdict as to which group deserves to call itself the OLF or not. Given time, one of you factions will die a natural death from lack of support from the Oromo people or thrive because of it. No amount of positive verdict from a foreign court will earn you Oromo love and support or acceptance from them. In fact, what you are doing is sending the wrong message to the Oromo. And that message seems to be that you lack confidence in the Oromo people’s ability to render this verdict which prompts you to appeal to foreign courts for help. I urge you to reflect on your group’s actions, the adverse reactions it can generate and their overall impact on the Oromo struggle.
This blogger calls on all Oromo compatriots, particularly Shanee members and Oromo elders everywhere, to do everything they can to stop Shanee from wasting money they collect in the name of Oromo struggle on something that will not advance the Oromo struggle one inch.
This blogger explicitly calls on Oromo elders to not turn a blind eye to this madness this time around, as they did in the two previous litigations where they chose to silently watch from the sideline while the Oromo movement was made a laughing stock of the world as a result of Shanee intiated litigations.
Related articles:
OLF Legal Woes
The Asmara Group Lawsuit Dismissed Without Prejudice
Nuro Dedefo Defebds the Asmara group's lawsuit
The Asmara Group of OLF Takes TA-OLF Back to Minnesota Court
Have your say!
On Nov. 17, 2008, a mere nine days after losing the case for the second time, the Shanee group applied to the US Patents & Trademarks Office (USPTO) to register the OLF name and logo in the Advertising, Business & Retail Services category - (Read Here).
Having succeeded in registering the OLF logo with the USPTO as Advertising, Business & Retail Services logo in June 2009, Shanee has now put TA-OLF on notice. In a letter written on Dec. 15, 2011 - (Read Here) - Shanee has accused TA-OLF of infringing on Shanee’s copy right and trade mark privileges. The letter asked TA-OLF to desist from further using the OLF “logo, flag and other materials.” Soon after, Shanee also issued a statement today on its web site (Read Here), warning the use of OLF name and logo by any other group but itself would be illegal and immoral thereby threatening lawsuit(s) against TA-OLF and perhaps also the Kemal Gelchu group of OLF.
If history is any guide, and from what we already know about the TA-OLF group, it seems unlikely that they will even dignify this letter with a response much less desisting from using what they consider rightfully belongs to the oromo people and their fallen comrades who paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives to free their people and realize an independent state of Oromia. Given TA-OLF’s attitude towards the OLF name, flag and logo, it seems inevitable that another (third) round of litigation will be launched by Shanee with the inevitable consequence of squandering tens of thousands Oromo hard earned money on American lawyers once again.
Why?
Why would Shanee spend Oromo hard earned money that can be put to a better use, say to take Meles Zenawi to World Court rather than targeting another Oromo group? Or even use the money to maintain their Washington DC office for which they were unable to afford rental fee and therefore downgraded to a smaller office recently? Why not use the money to help our refugee brothers and sisters suffering around the world or our brethren dying of famine in Oromia? While NGOs and benevolent governments feed our starving people, why would an Oromo group (Shanee) purportedly struggling for Oromo freedom waste thousands of dollars on a dispute which will not advance an inch, but retard, the Oromo struggle?
It is no secret that the Oromo camp is fragmented, disunited and disorganized as it is. Nationalist Oromos everywhere are demanding unity based on clarity of purpose for the struggle. Having given up on their leaders, they are beginning to organize grass root Oromo unity movements. For Shanee to threaten a lawsuit at this particular time, after having lost twice before on the same issue – would be to pour gasoline on fire and frustrate the call for unity.
A Call to Action
This blogger continues to appeal to the Shanee Group in general and Obbo Dawud Ibsaa in particular, as he had done during the first and second Shanee Lawsuits, to stop this madness.
Obbo Dawud: What you are engaged in is an inter-Oromo political fight for the hearts and minds of the Oromo people. The Oromo people and them alone can and should render the final verdict as to which group deserves to call itself the OLF or not. Given time, one of you factions will die a natural death from lack of support from the Oromo people or thrive because of it. No amount of positive verdict from a foreign court will earn you Oromo love and support or acceptance from them. In fact, what you are doing is sending the wrong message to the Oromo. And that message seems to be that you lack confidence in the Oromo people’s ability to render this verdict which prompts you to appeal to foreign courts for help. I urge you to reflect on your group’s actions, the adverse reactions it can generate and their overall impact on the Oromo struggle.
This blogger calls on all Oromo compatriots, particularly Shanee members and Oromo elders everywhere, to do everything they can to stop Shanee from wasting money they collect in the name of Oromo struggle on something that will not advance the Oromo struggle one inch.
This blogger explicitly calls on Oromo elders to not turn a blind eye to this madness this time around, as they did in the two previous litigations where they chose to silently watch from the sideline while the Oromo movement was made a laughing stock of the world as a result of Shanee intiated litigations.
Related articles:
OLF Legal Woes
The Asmara Group Lawsuit Dismissed Without Prejudice
Nuro Dedefo Defebds the Asmara group's lawsuit
The Asmara Group of OLF Takes TA-OLF Back to Minnesota Court
Have your say!
Monday, December 12, 2011
The inherent danger of Abyssinian extremism and bigotry
By Gumaa Guddaa
Combination of racism and ideology is a very dangerous cocktail. In the case of the Abyssinians, the combination of their hatred for any human being other than ‘Habesha’ and their fervent cult like belief in the Coptic Orthodox church is unfortunately at the root of all evils in that dying empire.
Listen to the following poem in the Amhara language:
The above Abyssinian war cry in the form of extreme hatred and religious fundamentalism directed against nations that have done nothing to them other than asserting their national identity and claiming their rights to self-determination seems to be not an isolated incident. What is the civilized world to make of this hateful racist agitation against the Oromo and the Somali nations? But, can the world ignore it as an abrasion or should the world look deeper and wider to look for evidence indicating a deeper rooted malaise? Is it an isolated work of someone with twisted mind or a reflection of a culture?
It is nothing more than a rhetoric one may argue. Nonetheless, it is important for every living Oromo and Somali to understand that hatred for their cultures and identities seems to be deeply ingrained in the soul of every Habesha –Tigre and Amhara alike. It appears that anti-Oromo and anti- Somali sentiment is deeply woven into the Abyssinian psyche. Look no further than how they demonised the Oromo Qubee when the Oromo decided to utilize the Latin alphabet and rejected the Ge’ez script which the Abyssinians use to write their languages – Amhara and Tigre languages. The Ethiopian Orthodox church called on all Oromos who learned Qubee to confess their “mortal sin” of attending Qubee classes and seek redemption. Such is the Habasha extremism and bigotry.
The Amhara have been out of power for over two decades. They, however, still dream to return. Whilst we should not be sleepless about Amhara hegemony returning anytime soon, we must be concerned as to what their cousins are doing right now. The Tigre regime in Ethiopia is perpetrating what the above war cry is calling for in a systematic way. I would argue that the ethnic cleansing, in the name of farmland sale, economic and political persecution and extermination of the Oromo people is already happening. The only difference between what is on the ground and what the above propaganda material is agitating for seems only to be the gusto and the speed of the ‘final solution’ to the “Ethiopian problem” – the Oromo and the Somali nations, the two nations to which the above audio makes frequent references.
Who is Habesha? The etymology of the term Habesha is not certain. However, the widely accepted theory is that the term Habesha comes from the Arabic word al-Habash. The Amhara and Tigre peoples constitute Abyssinians. One thing is clear thus far. History indicates that the people known as Habesha immigrated to Africa from Arabia. Axum was in the hands of the indigenous African people at the time of the arrival of the Habesha.
Geography also tells as a lot. They are sandwiched between the Beja people in the north and the Oromo people in the south since their arrival from Arabia, sometime in the first millennia. These two peoples had a common language known as Ge’ez. They now speak Amharic and Tigre languages, derived from Ge’ez. They share similar cultural heritage. They are both warlike. Listen to the author(s) of the above audio and read their history. There is no mistaking their prejudice in the superiority of their ethnic group and their culture, and their contempt for all non-Habasha peoples in that empire and beyond. Why do we not hear this sort of intolerance from Ogaden, Afar, Gurage, Oromo, etc. nations? Simply, it is because, unlike the Habasha, they are tolerant of other ethnic groups and their cultures.
The Oromo are peace-loving people. They have no problems with other peoples such as Agaw, Afar and Somali to mention but a few. They have peacefully co-existed with them except for the Habasha. But, unfortunately, they find themselves in a hostile terrain. Their relationship with their northern neighbours has so far been acrimonious to put it mildly.
Written history indicates that there has been ongoing struggle between the Oromo and their northern neighbours – Abyssinians - since time immemorial. I would like to hypothesize that the animosity even dates back to the first millennia when the immigrant Abyssinians arrived in Africa. It is easy to understand that the new arrivals would have to negotiate or even fight with the indigenous Africans including the Oromo in order to eke out a living.
Throughout out the long history of mankind conflict on resources has shaped the relationship between neighbouring communities. Therefore, the conflict between Oromia and Abyssinia is no different. The difficulty emanates from the fact that the Oromo live in Oromia and only Oromia. The Abyssinians mainly live in their homeland Abyssinia but some segments of the Abyssinian society occupy Oromia to have access to the riches of Oromia. The Oromo have shown their card i.e. quest for sovereign Oromia. The Abyssinians have become aware of this fact. The power balance at the present is with the Abyssinians. This imbalance has placed the Oromo nation at a disadvantage, an imbalance in need of urgent attention.
I have to admit I was taken aback by the depth of the knowledge of the composer of the above Abyssinian call for the extermination of the Oromo. The author of the lyric seems to have done his/her homework. I wonder how many Oromos are well versed with the efforts of our forefathers, mentioned in the negative propaganda poem, including the Raya Oromo, Anole, Calanqo, the Western Oromo Confederacy declaration of independence, etc. The Oromo need to learn history. The old adage says “those who refuse to learn from history will be punished by repeating it”. Especially Oromos in Tinsa’e Ethiopia, Ethiopian Patriotic Front, AFD, and coalition with G7, OPDO etc. political organizations must re-appraise their stand. By the way, do not forget that the Eritreans are Habesha too.
So that you will have a balanced view I would like to offer you the opportunity to tune in to what the Oromo sing and what their aspiration is:
Simply put, the Oromo claim what is theirs. Unlike the Amhara in the aforementioned war cry, they never call for the elimination of nations. What motivates someone to call for the killing of the entire nation requires a leap of imagination to fathom. Perhaps it is the Oromo dream for peace and prosperity that threatens the evil spirit in others. But, do not be deceived by the lack of reason for such hatred. Hitler did not have a reason either.
Finally, one has to think if we could cleanse Abyssinians from their contempt for the Oromo nation. The short answer is may be never. It seems to be a matter of world-view for them. It is actually how they define themselves. So for anyone to be nice to them or force them to change it will mean changing the Abyssinian make up literally in terms of identity and world-view. I truly believe that the only solution to stop this nonsense and spare the coming generation from listening to this sort of venomous dehumanizing and potentially genocidal propaganda is by bringing forward the liberation of Oromia. What ever the Abyssinians think about us will then be limited to their territory- Abyssinia and their sphere of influence. Surely, that can only be a good thing!
Have your say!
Listen to the following poem in the Amhara language:
The above Abyssinian war cry in the form of extreme hatred and religious fundamentalism directed against nations that have done nothing to them other than asserting their national identity and claiming their rights to self-determination seems to be not an isolated incident. What is the civilized world to make of this hateful racist agitation against the Oromo and the Somali nations? But, can the world ignore it as an abrasion or should the world look deeper and wider to look for evidence indicating a deeper rooted malaise? Is it an isolated work of someone with twisted mind or a reflection of a culture?
It is nothing more than a rhetoric one may argue. Nonetheless, it is important for every living Oromo and Somali to understand that hatred for their cultures and identities seems to be deeply ingrained in the soul of every Habesha –Tigre and Amhara alike. It appears that anti-Oromo and anti- Somali sentiment is deeply woven into the Abyssinian psyche. Look no further than how they demonised the Oromo Qubee when the Oromo decided to utilize the Latin alphabet and rejected the Ge’ez script which the Abyssinians use to write their languages – Amhara and Tigre languages. The Ethiopian Orthodox church called on all Oromos who learned Qubee to confess their “mortal sin” of attending Qubee classes and seek redemption. Such is the Habasha extremism and bigotry.
The Amhara have been out of power for over two decades. They, however, still dream to return. Whilst we should not be sleepless about Amhara hegemony returning anytime soon, we must be concerned as to what their cousins are doing right now. The Tigre regime in Ethiopia is perpetrating what the above war cry is calling for in a systematic way. I would argue that the ethnic cleansing, in the name of farmland sale, economic and political persecution and extermination of the Oromo people is already happening. The only difference between what is on the ground and what the above propaganda material is agitating for seems only to be the gusto and the speed of the ‘final solution’ to the “Ethiopian problem” – the Oromo and the Somali nations, the two nations to which the above audio makes frequent references.
Who is Habesha? The etymology of the term Habesha is not certain. However, the widely accepted theory is that the term Habesha comes from the Arabic word al-Habash. The Amhara and Tigre peoples constitute Abyssinians. One thing is clear thus far. History indicates that the people known as Habesha immigrated to Africa from Arabia. Axum was in the hands of the indigenous African people at the time of the arrival of the Habesha.
Geography also tells as a lot. They are sandwiched between the Beja people in the north and the Oromo people in the south since their arrival from Arabia, sometime in the first millennia. These two peoples had a common language known as Ge’ez. They now speak Amharic and Tigre languages, derived from Ge’ez. They share similar cultural heritage. They are both warlike. Listen to the author(s) of the above audio and read their history. There is no mistaking their prejudice in the superiority of their ethnic group and their culture, and their contempt for all non-Habasha peoples in that empire and beyond. Why do we not hear this sort of intolerance from Ogaden, Afar, Gurage, Oromo, etc. nations? Simply, it is because, unlike the Habasha, they are tolerant of other ethnic groups and their cultures.
The Oromo are peace-loving people. They have no problems with other peoples such as Agaw, Afar and Somali to mention but a few. They have peacefully co-existed with them except for the Habasha. But, unfortunately, they find themselves in a hostile terrain. Their relationship with their northern neighbours has so far been acrimonious to put it mildly.
Written history indicates that there has been ongoing struggle between the Oromo and their northern neighbours – Abyssinians - since time immemorial. I would like to hypothesize that the animosity even dates back to the first millennia when the immigrant Abyssinians arrived in Africa. It is easy to understand that the new arrivals would have to negotiate or even fight with the indigenous Africans including the Oromo in order to eke out a living.
Throughout out the long history of mankind conflict on resources has shaped the relationship between neighbouring communities. Therefore, the conflict between Oromia and Abyssinia is no different. The difficulty emanates from the fact that the Oromo live in Oromia and only Oromia. The Abyssinians mainly live in their homeland Abyssinia but some segments of the Abyssinian society occupy Oromia to have access to the riches of Oromia. The Oromo have shown their card i.e. quest for sovereign Oromia. The Abyssinians have become aware of this fact. The power balance at the present is with the Abyssinians. This imbalance has placed the Oromo nation at a disadvantage, an imbalance in need of urgent attention.
I have to admit I was taken aback by the depth of the knowledge of the composer of the above Abyssinian call for the extermination of the Oromo. The author of the lyric seems to have done his/her homework. I wonder how many Oromos are well versed with the efforts of our forefathers, mentioned in the negative propaganda poem, including the Raya Oromo, Anole, Calanqo, the Western Oromo Confederacy declaration of independence, etc. The Oromo need to learn history. The old adage says “those who refuse to learn from history will be punished by repeating it”. Especially Oromos in Tinsa’e Ethiopia, Ethiopian Patriotic Front, AFD, and coalition with G7, OPDO etc. political organizations must re-appraise their stand. By the way, do not forget that the Eritreans are Habesha too.
So that you will have a balanced view I would like to offer you the opportunity to tune in to what the Oromo sing and what their aspiration is:
Simply put, the Oromo claim what is theirs. Unlike the Amhara in the aforementioned war cry, they never call for the elimination of nations. What motivates someone to call for the killing of the entire nation requires a leap of imagination to fathom. Perhaps it is the Oromo dream for peace and prosperity that threatens the evil spirit in others. But, do not be deceived by the lack of reason for such hatred. Hitler did not have a reason either.
Finally, one has to think if we could cleanse Abyssinians from their contempt for the Oromo nation. The short answer is may be never. It seems to be a matter of world-view for them. It is actually how they define themselves. So for anyone to be nice to them or force them to change it will mean changing the Abyssinian make up literally in terms of identity and world-view. I truly believe that the only solution to stop this nonsense and spare the coming generation from listening to this sort of venomous dehumanizing and potentially genocidal propaganda is by bringing forward the liberation of Oromia. What ever the Abyssinians think about us will then be limited to their territory- Abyssinia and their sphere of influence. Surely, that can only be a good thing!
Have your say!
Sunday, October 02, 2011
“Independent State of Oromia, a Bargaining Chip” – Dima Noggo Sarbo
In an interview he gave to ESAT (Amhara Satellite TV program) lasting about 90 minutes, Dima Nego gave a lengthy account of the Oromo struggle, the OLF, his involvement in the front and in the transitional government of 1991 in which he served as the minister of information and his opinion on the way forward.Much of what he told the Habshaa TV station was narration of what has been in the public domain for a long time except for a few pieces he dropped in the course of the interview. Two such information that stood out for many of us were Dima’s claim to first chairmanship of the OLF and his assertions about the “true” intentions of the founders of the organization when they included the realization of independent state of Oromia in their political program.
Dima informed his listeners that the founders of the OLF never meant “itoophiyan la maganxal” (to secede Oromia from Ethiopia). According to Dima, the inclusion of achieving independent state of Oromia in the political program was only for the purpose of using it as bargaining chip in future negotiations with the colonial state. (Listen at end of article)
First Chairmanship
Dima was introduced as the first Chairman of the OLF. The introduction and the fact that Dima referred to himself as such was a surprise to many longtime members of the front for they had never heard that Dima held that position in the organization at any time. However, further investigation revealed that Dima was truly the first chairman elected around the end of 1976. But his chairmanship was to be very short lived before he abandoned the organization and his post.
In early 1977 Dima applied for a scholarship with United Nations Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP) in Dakar, Senegal, and was accepted. Without informing his comrades, Dima abandons his position, boards the plane and leaves for Dakar, Senegal. Upon realizing what had happened, the executive committee members of the OLF got together, removed him from chairmanship and elected Jaal Magarsaa Barii to replace him. According to his contemporaries, Dima severed all contacts with the OLF until he completed his education and was about to return home in 1978. Unfortunately for Dima, “red terror” was in full swing and DERG (the military government at the time) was in the middle of herding off his former comrades to prisons on allegation of being OLF members. Afraid to go home to suffer a similar fate, Dima contacts his former comrades who had escaped the DERG onslaught and were in the middle of opening a second front in Western oromia - the first being in eastern Oromia. Upon being pardoned for abandoning the organization and his post, he was allowed to join them. Over the next 13 years, Dima rose to the position of a Politburo member in the organization.
No wonder this was one of the best kept secrets in the OLF until Dima himself revealed it to a Habashaa media very recently.
But why did Dima decide to claim first chairmanship of the front now in public - after sweeping it under the rug for the last 40 years? Could it be to lend some authority and believability to what he was speaking about? Why did he particularly stress his claim to his short lived chairmanship right when he was about to “reveal” the true intention of the founders of the OLF in relation to why independent Democratic Republic of Oromia was included in the political program? Is Dima credible?
While we are on the issue of credibility, here is what Dima told his sponsors about his activities in 1980s to obtain “Global Leaders Fellowship Program” scholarship: “In the 1980s, Dima was involved in relief work among refugees and internally displaced persons in Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia. When the military government in Ethiopia collapsed in 1991, he became a member of the new government as a member of the transitional legislature and a cabinet minister in 1991-1992." (Read Here)
As Dima himself admitted in this interview, the truth, however, is far from it. Contrary to what he told his sponsors, in the 1980s, Dima was NEVER “involved in relief work among refugees and internally displaced persons in Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia.” He was an active participant and, in fact, a politburo member of the OLF. It was as a high ranking officer of the OLF that he became Minister of Information for the Transitional government of Ethiopia (1991 – 1992) to which the OLF was a party. When the OLF withdrew from the transitional government, as he explained in this interview, Dima tendered a written resignation to the TPLF government as a true bureaucrat would do (no freedom fighter would do such a thing), left the country because TPLF “would not guarantee his safety” (no freedom fighter would expect guarantee of safety from his colonizers) and, once again, abandoned the OLF to return to school.
Independent state of Oromia, a bargaining chip?
According to Dima, the call for independence of Oromia was included in the OLF political program for two reasons none of which was “Itoophiyaan la maganxal” – [to truly secede [decolonize] Oromia from Ethiopia]. The first reason was for the purpose of using it as bargaining chip in future possible negotiations with the colonial government of Ethiopia while the second reason was for the sake of being different from EPRP and MEISON – two political organizations that had already accepted the question of nations to self-determination.
Dima’a answers to these questions were huge surprises to the rank and file members and all former leaders of the organization contacted by this writer. They all describe the sense of disbelief, astonishment and betrayal they felt upon listening to what Dima had to say on these issues.
In 1982, Dima gave a similar interview to “Horn of Africa” magazine in which he was asked to “summarize the program of the OLF and tell us how much of it has been put into practice.” His response at the time was “As I stated before, the main goal of the Oromo people’s struggle, led by the OLF, is to end foreign political domination and economic exploitation. In short, [it is] to end Amhara colonial administration of Oromia and to replace it with a democratic, progressive and popular Oromo government.” (Horn of Africa, Vol. 5, No. 1, 1982).
As one of Dima’s contemporaries said “What he [Dima] said on these two issues were absolute lies. As a co-founder of the front, I can tell you that no such points were raised nor considered much less agreed upon. Obbo Dima has the right to change his mind 40 years after he first agreed to Independent state of Oromia. However, to revise history to fit ones current political views in this case would be nothing less than the epitome of opportunism wrapped in dishonesty and lack of integrity.”
Another co-founder of the OLF begins an article he recently wrote in response to the same interview by saying "these days we are starting to twisted tales in foreign language about the OLF from irresponsible veterans, novices and the anonymous." Defending his fallen comrades, the article goes on to say, "When the outlook of martyrs is being destorted and they connot rise to defende themselves, it is believed that this note may serve as an affidavit to some extent." (Read Here)
But does Dima truly understand the implications of what he said?
Simply put, Dima is asserting that our fallen heroes, the likes of Elemo Qilxuu, Gen. Taddasaa Biruu, Magarsaa Barii, Muhe Abdo, Baaroo Tumsaa, Mullis Abbaa Gadaa and more lied to those selfless Oromo youth they put in harm’s way. Besides lying to all, these true sons of the Oromo people who paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives never intended to bring about a liberated and decolonized Oromia into existence; never did they intend to dismantle the Ethiopian empire and the colonial administration. Dima would have us, and his Amhara audience, believe that the ones alive today, the likes of Jaarra Abba Gadaa, Dhugaasaa Bakakkoo, Galaasaa Dilboo, Ibsaa Guutamaa and more continue to lie to us even after 40 years. Our artisits, the likes of Ebbisa Addunyaa and Usumayyoo Muusaa paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives for a cause they were cheated into joining. The hundreds of thousands of our brethren who heeded the call of the OLF and joined the front, those who have fallen in the battle fields of Oromia to enemy fire, those who were murdered by consecutive Abyssinian governments, those who endured detention and torture for tens of years were all deceived. There is no other way of understanding Dima’s responses.
This may make Dima’s Amhara audience happy but it could not be further from the truth. If that were the case, there is no way Dima would be the sole custodian of such a “secret”. The only case in which Dima would be the lone keeper of such a “secret” would be if this has been an idea only in Dima Noggo Sarbo’s mind. Even that is doubtful given the various interviews he gave in the last 40 years in which he had given the opposite of his responses to ESAT questions.
I say, Dima’s credibility left much to be desired.
What do you say?!
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Dueling “elders” compete to reconcile the OLF and TPLF- WikiLeaks.
Reconciliation of the Shanee Group of OLF and the TPLF regime in Ethiopia has become a business venture for some so called Oromo “elders.” According to another leaked document, in 2008, two groups of “elders” talking to two different Shanee groups were competing for Meles’s attention and for funding by the US embassy in Finfinnee.
The first group, referred to in the document as Elders 1, led by Prof. Ephraim Isaac and Pastor Daniel Gebreselassie handled “OLF elders” - the likes of Dima Nago, Lenco Lata and Ababiya Abajobir. According to the document, Ababiya Abajobir returned to Ethiopia one week after the three were contacted in Amsterdam which encouraged Ephraim Isaac to suggest “that Ababiya's unharassed return reflects only the first step in a looming wave of former OLF leaders' returns to Ethiopia.”
The second group, which the document refers to as Elders 2, consisted of AMb. Berhanu Dinka, Rev. Itaffa Gobana and Aberra Tola. Elders 2 dealt with the Daud Ibsa group which the document referred to as “Asmara-based”. Their purpose was to force the Shanee group to surrender or “risk losing the support of the in-country Oromo community.”Both “elder” groups told the US embassy that TPLF “expects the OLF to unilaterally abandon its professed strategy of armed struggle without any prior indications of the GoE's willingness to reconcile beyond the word of the Prime Minister passed through intermediaries.” But all the same, “Prof. Ephraim and Amb. Dinka emphasized that they believe that the Prime Minister's receptivity to reconciliation with the OLF remains intact, and that he may be placating the OPDO, and hard-liners within the TPLF, with the current crack-down to cover his own strategy of returning the OLF to Ethiopian politics.” Blinded by self-interest, they never fail to find excuses for Meles’ actions against my people. Some “Oromo elders!”
Contrast that with the ambassador’s comments: “The GoE's harassment, arrests, and crack-down on Oromos and Oromo political parties, sends a clear message, in our assessment, that the GoE is not sincerely committed to meeting the OLF even part way in breaching the GoE-OLF divide.”
Related Articles:
Beware of Mediator Bias and Mediation as a Tactic: A word to the Wise
Melles to [the Asmara Group of] OLF: Leave Asmara or No Talks
Abbabiya Abba Jobir Returns to Ethiopia; Leenco Lata & Dima Nego to follow soon?
Best Practices for an Aspiring Tyrant
Melles to [the Asmara Group of] OLF: Leave Asmara or No Talks
Abbabiya Abba Jobir Returns to Ethiopia; Leenco Lata & Dima Nego to follow soon?
Best Practices for an Aspiring Tyrant
Have your say!
********** BEGIN ***********
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DE RUEHDS #3188/01 3290956
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O 240956Z NOV 08
FM AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA
TO RUEHAE/AMEMBASSY ASMARA IMMEDIATE 3622
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 2864
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RHMFISS/HQ USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE IMMEDIATE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEPADJ/CJTF HOA IMMEDIATE
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RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
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RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ADDIS ABABA 003188
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/05/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL EAID ET
SUBJECT: RECONCILING THE OROMO LIBERATION FRONT AND
ETHIOPIAN GOVERNMENT
REF: A. ADDIS 3159
¶B. ADDIS 2487
Classified By: Ambassador Donald Yamamoto for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
SUMMARY
-------
¶1. (SBU) Recognizing that the outlawed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) is widely supported -- at least in principle -- among Ethiopia's largest ethnic group, Embassy Addis Ababa has long held that reconciliation between the Ethiopian Government (GoE) and OLF is critical to the long-term political stability of Ethiopia. Holding a similar view, two separate groups of Ethiopian "elders" have worked in recent months to bring the OLF -- formerly a partner of the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) until the lack of power sharing by the EPRDF led it to advocate armed struggle against the GoE in 1992 -- back into the fold of legal political parties within Ethiopia. While the GoE's persistent harassment of legal Oromo opposition parties in Ethiopia and its recent crackdown on Oromos (Ref. A) has certainly not sent the necessary gesture of goodwill to the OLF in exile, the moderation of some OLF elders in the diaspora combined with the Prime Minister's approval of both "elders" processes suggest that there may be an emergent opening for reconciliation and a positive role the USG could play.
End Summary.
THE DUELING ELDERS
------------------
¶2. (SBU) Coming off of the success of brokering the pardon of the opposition leaders arrested in November 2005, Professor Ephraim Isaac and Pastor Daniel Gebreselassie (Elders 1), approached the Embassy to support their efforts to broker various reconciliation efforts, including the GoE and the OLF. While the Elders 1 group was critical in the opposition pardon, they, and Prof. Ephraim in particular, were often seen as partisan through the process, exerting significant pressure on the opposition leaders to admit their guilt while not press the GoE to stand down or temper its position against them. Since then, Prof. Ephraim (himself an Oromo) and his colleagues have unilaterally reached out to various OLF elders including former Chairman Leencho Lata and grandson of the last king of Jimma, Ababiya Abajobir, and Dima Negewo, around reconciling with the GoE. The Elders 1 group met these three in Amsterdam September 19-21 along with the Ethiopian Ambassador to the Netherlands. One week later, Ababiya returned to Ethiopia after years in exile. Prof. Ephraim informed Ambassador and Pol/Econ Chief on November 4 that Prime Minister Meles continues to support his group's efforts to reach out to the OLF, and suggested that Ababiya's unharassed return reflects only the first step in a looming wave of former OLF leaders' returns to Ethiopia.
¶3. (SBU) While the Elders 1 process was afoot, a second team of Oromo elders (Elders 2) approached the Embassy with a new proposal. Ambassador Berhanu Dinka, Head of the Mekane Yesus Church Rev. Itaffa Gobana, and Oxfam America Director Aberra Tola offered a new option (Ref. B). The Elders 2 group reported in late September that a group of Oromo community leaders from within Ethiopia approached the three, previously rather apolitical prominent Oromos soliciting that they attempt to reconcile the GoE and OLF. Amb. Dinka reported that based on approval by Prime Minister Meles for his team to approach the OLF, the Elders 2 succeeded in January 2008 in getting an initial written commitment (the Amsterdam Agreement) from OLF Chairman Dawud Ibsa that the OLF would "accept, in principle," the Ethiopian constitution. When taken to the Prime Minister in the spring, Meles expressed skepticism about the statement and requested that the Elders 2 reconfirm that the OLF Executive Committee agreed to it. Despite outreach to, and receiving the support of, a broad variety of prominent Oromos in the diaspora around this effort, OLF Executive Committee members based in Asmara rejected the statement.
¶4. (SBU) Amb. Dinka presented us with a proposal in late September that he claimed had been endorsed by prominent figures at the Oromo Studies Association meeting in July, the community leaders in Ethiopia who initially approached his group, and several key OLF-related individuals. The proposal was to convene a conference of major Oromo elders and community leaders in Ethiopia to produce a declaration insisting that the OLF pursue reconciliation with the GoE. Amb. Dinka argued that such a consensus declaration could persuade Asmara-based OLF hard-liners -- hardened either by principle or due to pressure exerted on them by Eritrean President Isaias not to engage the GoE -- either to agree to engage the GoE or risk losing the support of the in-country Oromo community.
¶5. (SBU) When queried on the duplication of "elders" activities with Prof. Ephraim's group, Ambassador Dinka argued that Prof. Ephraim had lost the confidence of the Oromos for his partisan interventions on the GoE's behalf in the opposition pardon effort. Additionally, as an Oromo elder himself and having had a brother killed by GoE forces for alleged ties to the OLF, Prof. Ephraim, Amb. Dinka argued, is particularly not a credible advocate among Oromos because he has never once advocated to the GoE for the pardon or release of the thousands of Oromos detained in Ethiopia. Amb. Dinka further dismissed Elders 1's reconciliation efforts with the OLF noting that OLF Chairman Dawud Ibsa himself had written a letter to Prof. Ephraim arguing that the OLF leadership would not engage with him. In response to our skepticism about the receptivity of the EPRDF's Oromo sub-party the Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO), Amb. Dinka argued that he and his group had discussed the issue with OPDO leaders including Addis Mayor Kuma Demeksa, Trade Minister Girma Birru, and Oromiya Regional President Abadula. While admitting that Abadula was initially opposed to such outreach, he later came around, and Kuma and Girma both supported the initiative. Amb. Dinka speculated that the OPDO support may reflect a desire for the OPDO to gain credibility within Ethiopia and shed the public perception of the party as an Oromo puppet of the Tigrayan leadership. Bringing the OLF back to Ethiopia, and possibly pursuing a future alliance with the EPRDF could offer a chance to aspiring OPDO leaders to later join the OLF, gain legitimacy, and pursue higher office. While we were skeptical that much of an opening genuinely existed among either the OLFQr the GoE, the proposed approach was novel, low cost, and offered a slight opportunity potentially to help stabilize Ethiopia's increasingly fragile political climate. As such, the Ambassador confirmed with the Prime Minister the latter's support for this effort and we funded the conference.
CONVENING ETHIOPIA'S OROMOS
---------------------------
¶6. (SBU) On October 30 and 31, the Elders 2 convened ten apolitical elders and community leaders from Addis Ababa and each zone of Oromiya to discuss how to bring the OLF back into the fold of legal political parties in Ethiopia. In a November 1 declaration, the 160 elders "strongly demanded that the OLF leadership heed the genuine desire of the Oromo people and enter into negotiations with the GoE" on the basis of the Amsterdam Agreement. On November 3, 30 of the assembled elders met with Prime Minister Meles to report on the conference and express concerns about the recent crack-down on Oromos in Ethiopia. Meles reportedly informed the group that he has two roles which he must balance: 1) maintaining law and order in the face of credible threats, and 2) promoting political reconciliation. As such, Meles affirmed that the GoE would continue to crack-down on anyone overtly supporting the OLF through actions, but would otherwise press for leniency toward those who simply support the OLF politically or in principle.
¶7. (SBU) On November 14, Amb. Dinka and his two colleagues briefed the press on their conference and the details of the Oromo leaders' declaration. On November 15, the OLF Executive Committee issued a press release noting that it had previously informed the Elders that it would not sign on to the Amsterdam Agreement as the OLF retains its position that "the OLF is committed to dialogue without precondition in the presence of a third party." Despite this statement, the Elders 2 group is not surprised by, and plans to reach out to the Asmara-based OLF leadership directly to assess whether the statement accurately reflects the OLF's actual position, or more the position that they must take while living in Asmara under the influence and pressure of Isaias.
IS THE GOE RECEPTIVE?
---------------------
¶8. (SBU) As reported in Ref. A, the Elders 2 conference of Oromo leaders coincided with a significant crack-down on Oromos in Ethiopia, re-igniting the question of the GoE's sincerity in reconciling with the OLF. Fundamentally, both Prof. Ephraim and Amb. Dinka have acknowledged to us in the past few months that the GoE is not willing to change its own tactics domestically with regard to the Oromo community or legal Oromo political parties in Ethiopia as a confidence building gesture. Instead, both elders have argued, the GoE expects the OLF to unilaterally abandon its professed strategy of armed struggle without any prior indications of the GoE's willingness to reconcile beyond the word of the Prime Minister passed through intermediaries.
¶9. (C) In response to our inquiries, Amb. Dinka speculated that the recent GoE crack-down on Oromos results from a resurgence of concern from the OPDO that the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF) at the core of the EPRDF may abandon the OPDO for the OLF as it's Oromo partner should the OLF return to the domestic political scene. Despite this crack-down, both Prof. Ephraim and Amb. Dinka emphasized that they believe that the Prime Minister's receptivity to reconciliation with the OLF remains intact, and that he may be placating the OPDO, and hard-liners within the TPLF, with the current crack-down to cover his own strategy of returning the OLF to Ethiopian politics.
FINAL COMMENT AND NOTE
--------------------
¶10. (C) The GoE's harassment, arrests, and crack-down on Oromos and Oromo political parties, sends a clear message, in our assessment, that the GoE is not sincerely committed to meeting the OLF even part way in breaching the GoE-OLF divide. Just as the GoE's unrelenting assault on the domestic Oromo community impedes reconciliation, so to does the OLF's unwillingness to accept, even in principle, the Ethiopian constitution as a basic precondition to talks. The Elders 2 initiative provided a novel approach and a narrow window of opportunity, which we recognized before deciding to support their proposed conference. Despite the minuscule chance of the conference producing a break-through, having a consensus document endorsed by prominent elders and community leaders from throughout Oromiya calling on the OLF to pursue reconciliation with the GoE is a useful step.
¶11. (C) Embassy Addis Ababa fundamentally believes that GoE reconciliation with the OLF is critical to Ethiopia's long-term stability. If the USG chooses to support or facilitate GoE-OLF reconciliation -- as we did from 2004 to 2006 -- we must be prepared to exert pressure on both parties to offer confidence building gestures toward the other including a GoE pardon of alleged OLF prisoners and easing in the harassment of Oromos in Ethiopia as well as a unilateral declaration by the OLF to cease, at least temporarily, its commitment to armed struggle. Should the USG seek to pursue such efforts, it may be useful for AF and/or INR/AA to reach out to OLF leaders in the U.S. and Europe, as well as for Embassy Asmara to reach out to OLF Chairman Dawud Ibsa and members of the OLF Executive Committee separately, to explore the relative merits of the two "elders" initiatives, perceptions on the opening for reconciliation, and press for a commitment to re-attempt reconciliation. With the Elders 2 declaration, the Oromo people in Ethiopia have clearly stated that they are no longer looking for conflict, but for a peaceful approach to reverse Oromo marginalization. If the OLF can show themselves to be politicians and statesmen, the world would certainly be more sympathetic to their cause.
End Comment.
YAMAMOTO
Thursday, September 15, 2011
WikiLeaks on "REACHING OUT TO THE [Shanee Group of] OLF ..."
A secret document leaked by WikiLeaks (see below) confirms that the Oromo struggle continues to be used as a pawn in the chess game played by western powers on their Horn of Africa chess board.
If history is any guide, it is not likely that this "REACHING OUT TO THE [Shanee Group of] OLF ..." would be in search of a just resolution of the conflict between Oromia and Ethiopia which would be the decolonization of Oromia through the Oromo people’s right of self-determination. The sole purpose in this case seems to be the isolation of Eritrea, another state using the Oromo struggle as a pawn in its chess game against the West and its neighbor to the south.
Eritrea and the West share a common interest, albeit to a differing degree, when it comes to the OLF. A weakened OLF is in the best interest of both. The West would like to see a OLF weakened to the point of surrendering to TPLF without or with minimal face saving concessions for its demands. In that way, it can keep one of its tyrant clients – Meles Zenawi - happy and in power. Eritrea, on the other hand, would not want to see a strong and independent OLF that can take on TPLF on its own. But, neither does it want to see OLF surrender to TPLF before it (Eritrea) has a chance to use it (the OLF) as a bargaining chip in possible future negotiations with TPLF. It would require a total suspension of logic and rational thought to be able to imagine a deal between the two which would not include the fate of THE [Shanee Group of] OLF while they are both (Shanee – The Dawud Ibsaa Group, and Jijjiirama – The Kamal Gelchu Group) stationed in Asmara.
One tried and true method both sides use to keep the OLF weak and pathetic is by helping it replicate itself every few years. How? They simply refer to some of the OLF leaders as “moderates” and to others as “hard-liners.” To top it up, they throw in Meles’ wish to negotiate with the moderates. Then, the race to become the darling of the West would begin. Given the omnipotence some leaders of the Shanee Group of OLF attach to the West and their craving for West’s attention, they start talking to the West behind each other’s backs and promising to meet the set conditions including renouncing armed struggle, accepting the TPLF constitution or whatever is asked of them.
In 1998 a group of OLF leaders, led by Lenco Lata and referred to as “moderates”, signed agreement with World Lutheran Federation (WLF) to accept the TPLF constitution and renounce armed struggle. They gained nothing for doing so except contempt and disregard from the West, TPLF and the Oromo public. Their action split the leaders in to two groups. Another group of OLF leaders, led by Dawud Ibsaa and referred to as “moderates”, accepted the same conditions set by the West and TPLF in the form of “Agenda for Peace” in 2000. Besides causing the organization to split and earning the leaders of the organization contempt from the Oromo mass and others, nothing was gained by this group's action either. In 2008, this later “moderate” group split into two: one led by Dawud Ibsaa a.k.a Shanee and another led by Kamal Gelchu a.k.a. Jijjiirama. It is not enough for the West and TPLF that these two groups offered their “Agenda for Peace” as moderates before their split. As you can read from the leaked document below, they have to further be dichotomized into “moderates and hard-liners” to weaken them further.
Having learned nothing from history and in its race to become the darling of the West, the Kemal Gelchu group has come up with “OLF Declaration of Non-violent Struggle against Meles Zenawi and its Tyrannical Regime” ( READ HERE)
If history is any guide, it is not likely that this "REACHING OUT TO THE [Shanee Group of] OLF ..." would be in search of a just resolution of the conflict between Oromia and Ethiopia which would be the decolonization of Oromia through the Oromo people’s right of self-determination. The sole purpose in this case seems to be the isolation of Eritrea, another state using the Oromo struggle as a pawn in its chess game against the West and its neighbor to the south.
Eritrea and the West share a common interest, albeit to a differing degree, when it comes to the OLF. A weakened OLF is in the best interest of both. The West would like to see a OLF weakened to the point of surrendering to TPLF without or with minimal face saving concessions for its demands. In that way, it can keep one of its tyrant clients – Meles Zenawi - happy and in power. Eritrea, on the other hand, would not want to see a strong and independent OLF that can take on TPLF on its own. But, neither does it want to see OLF surrender to TPLF before it (Eritrea) has a chance to use it (the OLF) as a bargaining chip in possible future negotiations with TPLF. It would require a total suspension of logic and rational thought to be able to imagine a deal between the two which would not include the fate of THE [Shanee Group of] OLF while they are both (Shanee – The Dawud Ibsaa Group, and Jijjiirama – The Kamal Gelchu Group) stationed in Asmara.
One tried and true method both sides use to keep the OLF weak and pathetic is by helping it replicate itself every few years. How? They simply refer to some of the OLF leaders as “moderates” and to others as “hard-liners.” To top it up, they throw in Meles’ wish to negotiate with the moderates. Then, the race to become the darling of the West would begin. Given the omnipotence some leaders of the Shanee Group of OLF attach to the West and their craving for West’s attention, they start talking to the West behind each other’s backs and promising to meet the set conditions including renouncing armed struggle, accepting the TPLF constitution or whatever is asked of them.
In 1998 a group of OLF leaders, led by Lenco Lata and referred to as “moderates”, signed agreement with World Lutheran Federation (WLF) to accept the TPLF constitution and renounce armed struggle. They gained nothing for doing so except contempt and disregard from the West, TPLF and the Oromo public. Their action split the leaders in to two groups. Another group of OLF leaders, led by Dawud Ibsaa and referred to as “moderates”, accepted the same conditions set by the West and TPLF in the form of “Agenda for Peace” in 2000. Besides causing the organization to split and earning the leaders of the organization contempt from the Oromo mass and others, nothing was gained by this group's action either. In 2008, this later “moderate” group split into two: one led by Dawud Ibsaa a.k.a Shanee and another led by Kamal Gelchu a.k.a. Jijjiirama. It is not enough for the West and TPLF that these two groups offered their “Agenda for Peace” as moderates before their split. As you can read from the leaked document below, they have to further be dichotomized into “moderates and hard-liners” to weaken them further.
Having learned nothing from history and in its race to become the darling of the West, the Kemal Gelchu group has come up with “OLF Declaration of Non-violent Struggle against Meles Zenawi and its Tyrannical Regime” ( READ HERE)
This is particularly interesting coming from a group whose leader was once a loyal TPLF soldier who purportedly left Ethiopia because he felt it was impossible to defeat Meles Zenawi through peaceful methods but only by waging armed struggle. Before he even fires his first bullet as a liberation fighter, he disowns armed struggle. This smells like the Trojan horse Spartans used to defeat Troy from which the adage “beware of gift bearing Greeks” originates. I plan to return to this issue at a later date. (READ HERE)
What is my point?
May point is that what TPLF and the West are looking for is not a moderate OLF. If that was the case, they would have been satisfied with those who signed the WLF agreement and would have pressured or persuaded Meles to compromise with them. They did not! Had the West was looking for a moderate OLF, it would have been satisfied with the group that published “Agenda for Peace” in 2000. It did not happen! That group got no help from the West, nor any compromise from Meles. What they are looking for is a OLF weakened into nonexistence. In other words, the only way you can satisfy them is by destroying the OLF, not by being “moderates”.
Oromo nationalists should Resist! Resist! and Resist this machination at all cost!
===Leaked Document Begins Here=====
Reference ID: 07ADDISABABA1961
Created: 2007-06-23 14:48
Released: 2011-08-30 01:44
Classification: SECRET
Origin: Embassy Addis Ababa
VZCZCXRO4049
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHDS #1961/01 1741448
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 231448Z JUN 07
FM AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6729
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 ADDIS ABABA 001961
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR AF AND AF/E
LONDON, PARIS, ROME FOR AFRICA WATCHER
CJTF-HOA AND USCENTCOM FOR POLAD
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/23/2017
TAGS: PGOV PINS ER ET
SUBJECT: ETHIOPIA: REACHING OUT TO THE OLF AND CUTTING
ERITREA'S DIVISIVE INFLUENCE
Classified By: AMBASSADOR DONALD YAMAMOTO. REASON: 1.4 (D).
¶1. (S/NF) SUMMARY. Norwegian Church Aid representatives Arne Saeveraas and Hans Birkeland told Ambassador June 21 that while there was little progress on their mediation efforts between the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and the Ethiopian Government, they were keeping lines of communications open. The continued presence of OLF hard-liners and leaders in Asmara remains a stumbling block to progress in engaging Ethiopian leaders and the OLF, but the Norwegians are hopeful that they can bring moderate elements of the OLF into closer dialogue with Ethiopian officials. Sebhat Nega, TPLF central committee member and stalwart within the Ethiopian government, is scheduled to travel to Europe in the near future to meet with OLF representatives. The Norwegians believe that strong U.S. support for the moderate OLF leadership will help undercut Asmara,s divisive influence and bolster a greater opening between the OLF and Ethiopian government. Embassy supports Norway's approach and believes encouragement of the Ethiopian Government and outreach to the OLF moderates on a dialogue will enhance internal Ethiopian peace and stability. END SUMMARY.
¶2. (S/NF) Norwegian Church Aid special advisor Arne Saeveraas and country representative Hans Birkeland briefed Ambassador on their latest discussions with Ethiopian officials on an OLF engagement. Saeveraas said Norwegian Church Aid and Norwegian Government remained hopeful but that the current dialogue between the OLF and Ethiopian Government (which is conducted in Brussels through former Ethiopian Ambassador to the U.S. and current Ambassador to the EU Berhane Gebrechristol) required higher Ethiopian attention. Ambassador Berhane, a conservative hard-line member of the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF), had been a barrier to dialogue. Saeveraas noted that TPLF central committee member and stalwart of the Ethiopian Government, Sebhat Nega, who remains a close advisor to Prime Minister Meles, plans to travel to Europe in August to meet with moderate OLF officials.
¶3. (S/NF) While Sebhat,s involvement is hopeful, Saeveraas is trying to push the Ethiopians to reach out and engage the moderate elements of the OLF rather than to set conditions for expanded dialogue. Saeveraas noted that so long as Asmara hosted and played a significant role influencing the hard-line OLF members and much of the leadership, expanded OLF-Ethiopia dialogue would be difficult. Saeveraas said moderate OLF leaders like former leader Leencho Lata were being marginalized by more hard-line members resident in Asmara.
---------------------
U.S. MUST PLAY A ROLE
---------------------
¶4. (S/NF) Saeveraas and Birkeland both underscored the importance of the U.S. to the process. Public encouragement by the U.S. and other countries for the moderate wing of the OLF would help bolster OLF leaders seeking a dialogue with Ethiopia and moderate the influence of the hard-liners in Eritrea. Saeveraas suggested that Norway could host a meeting of the OLF leadership, including those from Asmara, but there needed to be strong support from the U.S. and other countries to help moderate OLF leaders demonstrate to their membership that the path of dialogue was more effective than armed resistance and the more intolerant rhetoric of hard-line members.
¶5. (S/NF) Further, both Norwegian Church Aid officials said that the U.S. and other countries privately encouraging the Ethiopian Government to reach out to the moderate OLF leaders would be the best way to undercut Asmara,s negative influence.
¶6. (S/NF) COMMENT. Over two years ago, the Africa Bureau, working with Norway, engaged moderate elements of the OLF and encouraged Prime Minister Meles and his envoy, Ambassador Berhane, to take a more positive approach to OLF-Ethiopia Government discussions. A meeting with some OLF leaders, including a few based in Asmara, over two years ago at the State Department, while highly encouraging, did not lead to greater USG involvement, because of the lack of interagency consensus and differing views with Post which did not fully support engagement.
¶7. (S/NF) COMMENT CONTINUED. Tough measures adopted by Ethiopian security forces in parts of the country in response to increased security threats and continued political differences between Oromo and Ethiopian Government leaders make dialogue between the Government and the OLF challenging. A dialogue with moderate elements, an effort Prime Minister Meles supports, should be encouraged. Post recommends that the interagency support the Norwegian efforts for a moderate OLF-Ethiopian Government dialogue, and that the U.S. play a greater supportive role, along with our European colleagues, in encouraging expanded dialogue. Getting the OLF leadership and supporters out of Asmara would be critical to a successful dialogue, but the U.S. and others will need to encourage the OLF that dialogue will be more beneficial in securing long-term peace, than armed resistance or opposition to dialogue. END COMMENT.
YAMAMOTO
What is my point?
May point is that what TPLF and the West are looking for is not a moderate OLF. If that was the case, they would have been satisfied with those who signed the WLF agreement and would have pressured or persuaded Meles to compromise with them. They did not! Had the West was looking for a moderate OLF, it would have been satisfied with the group that published “Agenda for Peace” in 2000. It did not happen! That group got no help from the West, nor any compromise from Meles. What they are looking for is a OLF weakened into nonexistence. In other words, the only way you can satisfy them is by destroying the OLF, not by being “moderates”.
Oromo nationalists should Resist! Resist! and Resist this machination at all cost!
===Leaked Document Begins Here=====
Reference ID: 07ADDISABABA1961
Created: 2007-06-23 14:48
Released: 2011-08-30 01:44
Classification: SECRET
Origin: Embassy Addis Ababa
VZCZCXRO4049
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHDS #1961/01 1741448
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 231448Z JUN 07
FM AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6729
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 ADDIS ABABA 001961
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR AF AND AF/E
LONDON, PARIS, ROME FOR AFRICA WATCHER
CJTF-HOA AND USCENTCOM FOR POLAD
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/23/2017
TAGS: PGOV PINS ER ET
SUBJECT: ETHIOPIA: REACHING OUT TO THE OLF AND CUTTING
ERITREA'S DIVISIVE INFLUENCE
Classified By: AMBASSADOR DONALD YAMAMOTO. REASON: 1.4 (D).
¶1. (S/NF) SUMMARY. Norwegian Church Aid representatives Arne Saeveraas and Hans Birkeland told Ambassador June 21 that while there was little progress on their mediation efforts between the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and the Ethiopian Government, they were keeping lines of communications open. The continued presence of OLF hard-liners and leaders in Asmara remains a stumbling block to progress in engaging Ethiopian leaders and the OLF, but the Norwegians are hopeful that they can bring moderate elements of the OLF into closer dialogue with Ethiopian officials. Sebhat Nega, TPLF central committee member and stalwart within the Ethiopian government, is scheduled to travel to Europe in the near future to meet with OLF representatives. The Norwegians believe that strong U.S. support for the moderate OLF leadership will help undercut Asmara,s divisive influence and bolster a greater opening between the OLF and Ethiopian government. Embassy supports Norway's approach and believes encouragement of the Ethiopian Government and outreach to the OLF moderates on a dialogue will enhance internal Ethiopian peace and stability. END SUMMARY.
¶2. (S/NF) Norwegian Church Aid special advisor Arne Saeveraas and country representative Hans Birkeland briefed Ambassador on their latest discussions with Ethiopian officials on an OLF engagement. Saeveraas said Norwegian Church Aid and Norwegian Government remained hopeful but that the current dialogue between the OLF and Ethiopian Government (which is conducted in Brussels through former Ethiopian Ambassador to the U.S. and current Ambassador to the EU Berhane Gebrechristol) required higher Ethiopian attention. Ambassador Berhane, a conservative hard-line member of the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF), had been a barrier to dialogue. Saeveraas noted that TPLF central committee member and stalwart of the Ethiopian Government, Sebhat Nega, who remains a close advisor to Prime Minister Meles, plans to travel to Europe in August to meet with moderate OLF officials.
¶3. (S/NF) While Sebhat,s involvement is hopeful, Saeveraas is trying to push the Ethiopians to reach out and engage the moderate elements of the OLF rather than to set conditions for expanded dialogue. Saeveraas noted that so long as Asmara hosted and played a significant role influencing the hard-line OLF members and much of the leadership, expanded OLF-Ethiopia dialogue would be difficult. Saeveraas said moderate OLF leaders like former leader Leencho Lata were being marginalized by more hard-line members resident in Asmara.
---------------------
U.S. MUST PLAY A ROLE
---------------------
¶4. (S/NF) Saeveraas and Birkeland both underscored the importance of the U.S. to the process. Public encouragement by the U.S. and other countries for the moderate wing of the OLF would help bolster OLF leaders seeking a dialogue with Ethiopia and moderate the influence of the hard-liners in Eritrea. Saeveraas suggested that Norway could host a meeting of the OLF leadership, including those from Asmara, but there needed to be strong support from the U.S. and other countries to help moderate OLF leaders demonstrate to their membership that the path of dialogue was more effective than armed resistance and the more intolerant rhetoric of hard-line members.
¶5. (S/NF) Further, both Norwegian Church Aid officials said that the U.S. and other countries privately encouraging the Ethiopian Government to reach out to the moderate OLF leaders would be the best way to undercut Asmara,s negative influence.
¶6. (S/NF) COMMENT. Over two years ago, the Africa Bureau, working with Norway, engaged moderate elements of the OLF and encouraged Prime Minister Meles and his envoy, Ambassador Berhane, to take a more positive approach to OLF-Ethiopia Government discussions. A meeting with some OLF leaders, including a few based in Asmara, over two years ago at the State Department, while highly encouraging, did not lead to greater USG involvement, because of the lack of interagency consensus and differing views with Post which did not fully support engagement.
¶7. (S/NF) COMMENT CONTINUED. Tough measures adopted by Ethiopian security forces in parts of the country in response to increased security threats and continued political differences between Oromo and Ethiopian Government leaders make dialogue between the Government and the OLF challenging. A dialogue with moderate elements, an effort Prime Minister Meles supports, should be encouraged. Post recommends that the interagency support the Norwegian efforts for a moderate OLF-Ethiopian Government dialogue, and that the U.S. play a greater supportive role, along with our European colleagues, in encouraging expanded dialogue. Getting the OLF leadership and supporters out of Asmara would be critical to a successful dialogue, but the U.S. and others will need to encourage the OLF that dialogue will be more beneficial in securing long-term peace, than armed resistance or opposition to dialogue. END COMMENT.
YAMAMOTO
Tuesday, September 06, 2011
Wikileaks on Kuma Demeksa, Born Taye Teklehaimanot: “opportunistic, reclusive and not well regarded in Oromiya region”
WikiLeaks, the non-profit organization dedicated to publishing previously classified, hidden or sensitive documents, has released one on Kuma Demeksa of TPLF/OPDO from 2008 in which he is characterized as “opportunistic, reclusive and not well regarded in Oromiya region” by the former US ambassador to Ethiopia. What the Oromo knew for many years – that Kuma is not Oromo and that he was “born in Oromiya Region of Amhara parents” (see below) - is also confirmed in this message.
Enjoy!
__________________________________________________________________
VZCZCXRO0462
RR RUEHLMC
DE RUEHDS #1416/01 1430515
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 220515Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0714
INFO RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 3496
RUEHAE/AMEMBASSY ASMARA 2729
RUEHDJ/AMEMBASSY DJIBOUTI 8992
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP WASHINGTON DC 0117
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADDIS ABABA 001416
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O.12958: N/A
TAGS: KDEM PINR PGOV PREL PHUM ET
SUBJECT: PARTY-HACK ANOINTED MAYOR OF ADDIS ABABA
SUMMARY
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RR RUEHLMC
DE RUEHDS #1416/01 1430515
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 220515Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0714
INFO RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 3496
RUEHAE/AMEMBASSY ASMARA 2729
RUEHDJ/AMEMBASSY DJIBOUTI 8992
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP WASHINGTON DC 0117
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ADDIS ABABA 001416
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O.12958: N/A
TAGS: KDEM PINR PGOV PREL PHUM ET
SUBJECT: PARTY-HACK ANOINTED MAYOR OF ADDIS ABABA
SUMMARY
¶1. (SBU) Following its landslide victory in the April 2008 local elections, the ruling Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) appointed Defense Minister Kuma Demeksa, an opportunistic 50-year old party loyalist, as mayor of Addis Ababa. In a conference held at the City Hall on May 20, the EPRDF also selected the Deputy Mayor, as well as the Secretary General, the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the City Council.
¶2. (U) The 137 EPRDF city council members-elect appointed Kuma Demeksa Mayor of Addis Ababa in a ceremony held at the City Hall on May 20. Other EPRDF members selected for office include: Kefyalew Azeze--Deputy Mayor; Woizero Sinkinesh Atale--Speaker of the Addis Ababa Council; Elias Seid--Deputy Speaker of the Council; and Woizero Negede Lema--Secretary General of Addis Ababa Council. The EPRDF also selected ten heads of the various bureaus in the city administration: Abate Setotaw, Youth and Sports; Dulamo Otore, Education, Tsegaye H/Mariam, Justice and Security; Belaynesh Teklai, Finance and Economic Development, Fikru Merga, Trade and Industry; Getachew H/Mariam, Works and Urban Development; Daba Debele, Capacity Building; Dr. Hussein Mohammed, Health; Gebretsadik Hagos, Culture and Tourism; Ejigayehu Akberot, Women's Affairs. END SUMMARY.
BIO ON THE MAYOR
¶3. (U) The newly-elected mayor, Kuma Demeksa, a.k.a. Taye Teklehaimanot, was born in Oromiya Region of Amhara parents in 1958. He completed his elementary and secondary education in Gore town, Illubabor Zone of Oromiya Region. Kuma joined an elite police force in the early 1970's and was promoted to the rank of captain after the 1974 revolution that brought the "Dergue" military regime of Mengistu Hailemariam to power. As a member of the elite police force, Kuma served in Eritrea, where he was captured and made a prisoner of war by the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) guerilla forces.
¶4. (SBU) In an agreement reached between Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and EPLF in 1981, the guerilla forces handed Kuma over to TPLF. TPLF "re-educated" Kuma and allowed him to join the Ethiopian Peoples' Democratic Movement, EPDM (the non-Tigrayan, junior partner of TPLF). In 1990, Kuma Demeksa quit EPDM to form the Oromo Peoples' Democratic Organization (OPDO), the Oromo wing of EPRDF. When the EPRDF coalition came to power in 1991, Kuma was appointed as Minister of Interior in the Transitional Government of Ethiopia (1991-1995). Kuma's leverage at the helm of the Interior Ministry was overshadowed by the effective control held by Tigrayan security chief Kinfe Gebre Medhin (assassinated in May 2001). When Ethiopia's federal government was established in 1995, Kuma was elected head of the executive committee of Oromiya Region. Kuma remained President of Oromiya region until July 2001.
¶5. (SBU) Kuma temporarily fell out of favor following the split within TPLF in the Spring of 2001 because he supported the dissident TPLF group led by Seeye Abraha, who was later jailed for six years for corruption. In July 2001, Kuma was officially removed from his position as president of Oromiya region and Secretary General of OPDO because of allegations of corruption, abuse of power and anti-democratic practices. He laid low for more than a year.
¶6. (SBU) In late 2002, Kuma re-emerged and was appointed as one of the three State Ministers at the Ministry of Capacity Building under the supervision of the austere party ideologue, Tefera Waliwa. He served as state minister until October 2005. Embassy contacts say that Kuma convinced the TPLF leadership that he had been "reformed" and demonstrated unconditional loyalty to the party while serving as State Minister under the watchful eyes of Tefera Waliwa. Kuma was subsequently appointed as Minister of Defense in October 2005 when Prime Minister Meles reshuffled his cabinet in the wake of the 2005 national election.
¶7. (U) Kuma has been married twice and is a father of seven, with three children from his first wife and four from his current wife. Kuma received his first and second degrees from the London-based UK Open University while working as State Minister at the Ministry of Capacity building.
COMMENT
¶8. (SBU) Kuma's critics describe him as a colorless party-hack who has "been everywhere and has reached nowhere." Kuma is quite and reclusive and rarely meets with non-party members. However, he is committed to the party and very loyal to Prime Minister Meles. Kuma is said to be a survivor because he respects authority, is reclusive and keeps a low profile. He is not well regarded in Oromiya region, where he served as President for over six years, and has been labelled indecisive and ineffective. Kuma's appointment as Mayor has puzzled many residents of Addis Ababa. Observers expected that the EPRDF would appoint a sharper and more apt Mayor to address the multi-faceted social, political and economic problems of the city in order to win the hearts and minds of residents who voted overwhelmingly in favor of the opposition in 2005, and largely stayed home during the 2008 local elections. END COMMENT.
YAMAMOTO
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Tuesday, August 09, 2011
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Ethiopian Airlines: Anti-Oromo
By Dirribi Demissie Bokku
My name is Dirribi Demissie Bokku. I am president of Mecha -Tulama Association. In this capacity I was imprisoned for three years because we protested against the removal of Oromia’s capital from Finfinne. Prior to my imprisonment I was employed at the Ethiopian Airlines for over twenty years. Upon my release from employment the Ethiopian Airlines against its policy and the law refused to take me back. They also refused to pay me my severance pay and other benefits including free tickets for employees who had worked and retired from employment. The Ethiopian Airlines had not done this type of harsh measure against anybody in its long history in the past. This was done specifically because of my strong stance against the removal of Oromia’s capital from Finfinne.
My life history and the saga of Ethiopian Airlines (EAL) are as presented in my book Oromo Wisdom in Black Civilization as follows:
Mr. Dirribi Damuse has put down certain points he sees as milestones in the course of his life to this day. The aim of putting down the points to the attention of readers is not an attempt of glorifying the life of an ordinary Oromo national. It is rather to tell the hardship an Oromo nationalist confronts under the Ethiopian empire even at the turn of this century; it is to the extent of denial of the right to life. It is to tell the reading public how much the state and its machineries boldly act to subjugate or else eliminate an Oromo. This is a rare opportunity the writer grabs to inform the world about man’s inhumanity to man.
Mr. Dirribi Damuse tells us about major events in his life in the form of first person “I” as he claims it is right to do so since he is master of his own affairs. In fact, it is possible to develop his personal account in to a big volume. However, that would lead to unnecessary wastage of precious time of readers.
I, Dirribi Damuse Bokku Abdi, was born to a peasant family in the presently West Shawa Zone of Ilu Galen District in May 1952. I attended Primary School at Gedo town and Secondary School in Finfinnee, the capital. It was during the reign of the Derg that I was imprisoned implicated with affiliation to All Ethiopia Socialist Movement known by Amharic acronym MEISON. I served five years and three months prison term without trial. That created the chance for me to study nationalism in line with the Marxist view of the time associated with history of the Oromo. Out of prison, I was employed at the Ethiopian Airlines in 1983. As a staff of the Airlines, I studied Economics in the evening/extension programmed at Addis Ababa University, which requires longer period than the regular does. When I was in fifth year round (1991) out of the seven years to complete, the Derg was overthrown with eventual closure of the University for a while. I also found mine in the lineup of politics in the new chapter though never returning to school.
I became a member of Waaqeffannaa Religion Followers Association in 2001 in the course of which I began to study the culture, history and religion of the Oromo. In the same year, I became member of Maccaa-Tulama Self-Help Association to which I was elected president two years later. On the other hand, the Association entered into a serious political debate with the government that year. The argument attributed to the issue that Oromia should retain Finfinnee immediately after it was announced that the Council of Oromia moved its capital to Adama. I, together with other board members of the Association, maintained firm stand on the matter.
The Association called for public demonstration to express their view against the decision. The government violently crashed the demonstration blaming the Association for blackmailing the state. Apparently, I was imprisoned from May 18, 2004 up to March 2007 only under litigation process with the pretext of taking buy time for clarification. At the end, I was released up on acquittal. Then I was informed dismissed from my position with the Airlines without any sufficient ground. One could say, unfortunately though, it was due to solely the deep-rooted hatred of Abyssinians directed towards the Oromo. The Ethiopian Airlines Management, in a feat of demonstrating loyalty to the government by starving my family and me, wrote a letter on April 30, 2008 stating, “The reason for interruption of your employment duties would not allow you to rehire.” Besides, I was denied severance pay despite my legal right to claim for it after well over 20 years service. I did neither steal nor damage the property of the Ethiopian Airlines. I never had dispute with any staff member too. If I fought for the rights of the Oromo over Finfinnee, there is nothing to bother the Airlines because it is none of its business.
The die-hard stance is testimony to the harm done on purpose against those who struggle for the rights of Oromo. The intention in this specific case is to deny the claim by Oromo over a city completely encircled by the very population and the issue the government accepted justified. The constitution provides especial rights to Oromia over Finfinnee. It is true that Finfinnee naturally belongs to the Oromo where God created them. Thus, I committed no crime at all. Since I was confident that I never committed any crime, I was ready even to face the gallows on the issue of Finfinnee.
Here the Ethiopian Airlines committed three major crimes: denial of the opportunity to work and live; unwilling to effect severance pay; and denial of 8 free air tickets per year during retirement. The Ethiopian Airlines had the tradition of restoring many of its employees who were released from prison after serving jail terms. There is a notable case to cite. The government released a person called Ob. Darara Damasa in the Millennium Pardon Act. He had been accused of affiliation with OLF and had been sentenced to death but later on changed to life imprisonment. After serving 13 years of jail he was set free in the new Millennium. Moreover, the National Regional Government of Oromia allowed him to resume his job, teaching. The reason behind refusal of restoring me to my position by top management of E.A.L such as Mr. Girma Wake (Chief executive Officer C.E.O)[1] and Mrs. Frehiwot Worku Executive officer human resource E.O.H.R) has never been clear to my conscience. In fact, they did not want direct talk with me. Do not I deserve due human respect? Alternatively, they do not care for human respect. It is from this that I concluded the hatred and contempt of the Habesha against the Oromo to be the underlying cause. (King Sahel Silasie’s army at Bole, which is the current Ethiopian International Airport site, killed my great grandfather. Oromos are still uprooted from Finfinnee and its environs. They are denied job opportunity. Why should the Habesha commit all such heinous crimes? Why do they kill us? How long should they uproot us from our fatherland?)
After two years or so of joblessness I was employed in Oromiya International Bank that enabled me support myself and my family as part of its objective of alleviating economic problems of the Oromo. This, to my understanding, is the reflection of the role of nationalism in helping nationals under difficulty. The very fact that the Oromia National Regional State re-instated Mr. Darara despite difference in political outlook again is a matter of fellow feeling under nationalism. It means the problem of an Oromo family is a matter of their concern. To the contrary, the E.A.L Management rejected my request to resume my duties as a matter of survival since they do not bother whether an Oromo family starved to death. While running lucrative business in Oromia land and Air space and Finfinnee, center of Oromia, why is E.A.L act against the interest of Oromo? Let history and Oromo people judge as to what the reaction to intentionally starving human beings and that those who are at least formally acknowledged citizens of a country should be.
I ask all my compatriots to demand that Mr Girma Wake, Ex Chief Executive Officer of EAL and Ms. Frehiwot Worku, the Ex Executive Officer of Human Resource, who were officers at the time when the action was taken against me and the current management of EAL, to answer the following questions:
What is the justification that EAL refused to return Mr Dirribii’s to his job?
As a matter of management ethics, is it appropriate to refuse to talk to an employee for the entire year, an employee who served the EAL for over 20 years?
Is it appropriate that an employee who served for more than 20 years should be fired simply because he was jailed without being found guilty of any offense?
It was reported that Ms. Firehiwot Worqu said “when he stands on a street side and begs, he will refrain from his talk of the rights of the Oromo, and others will see him and also stop talking about Oromo rights.” Is it correct to fire an employee from his job to make him example to others for political reasons?
The dismissal letter of April 30, 2008, states the reason for the denial to rehire as follows: “the reason for which your employment was interrupted in the first place will not allow you fore reinstatement to your job.” Following this logic, what are the conditions that become the ground for refusal to rehire of an employee who had been forcefully removed from his job?
The action that the EAL took against me was intentionally done to discourage an individually Oromo from struggling for his people’s cause. The EAL management through its acts has clearly shown that it is an anti-Oromo organization. Even though this organization is created and maintained through the Oromo people’s wealth it has time and again shown its anti Oromo stance. Even if at this stage there are not many things that we could do, I demand our people to boycott flying the EAL until and unless it reverses the action it took against me and change its way of discouraging Oromos from struggling for their people.
[1] He also tried to contact through elders such as Prof Ephraim Isac Mr Bulcha Damaksa, a member of parliament and Mr. Alemayehu G/Medin.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Oromia Land Grab: Buying a parcel of land with your soul
It is not just the Saudis, the Indians and other foreigners that are engaged in land grab in Oromia after all. Some in the Oromo Diaspora are also busy participating in displacing the Oromo poor from their land and sharing the booty with the TPLF regime of Ethiopia. The list is long but it includes Oromo church “elders” and community “leaders”.
What is a parcel of land worth for these people? Their soul!
Here are three of the MPLS, MN “elders and leaders” with Girma Birruu of TPLF/OPDO selling their souls for a few acres of land in Oromia.
What is a parcel of land worth for these people? Their soul!
Here are three of the MPLS, MN “elders and leaders” with Girma Birruu of TPLF/OPDO selling their souls for a few acres of land in Oromia.
Thank God for the nationalists in MPLS (see picture below) for their continued effort to be the voice of our voiceless people back home.
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