Ethiopian authorities have arrested over 11,000 people since Addis Ababa declared a state of emergency in early October following violent protests.

Taddesse Hordofa, the chairman of the State of Emergency Inquiry Board

“Some 11,607 individuals have so far been detained in six prisons, of which 347 are female, in connection with the state of emergency declared in the country,” said Taddesse Hordofa, the chairman of the State of Emergency Inquiry Board, in a statement broadcast by the EBC television on Saturday.

Ethiopia has been the scene of political crisis with numerous outbreaks of violence over the past year. Addis Ababa has been engaged in a bloody crackdown on anti-government demonstrations since last year.

The protests were triggered by a government plan to expand the municipal boundaries of the capital city into the central region of Oromia, a move that could result in farmers from the Oromo ethnic group being displaced and losing their land and property.

Oromia, with at least 27 million people, is the largest ethnic group and the most populous of the East African country’s federal states, surrounding the capital Addis Ababa on all sides. The demonstrations, however, were limited to Oromia and spilled into Amhara region, with at least 35 million people, in the north.

According to an August report by Human Rights Watch, over 500 people have been killed by security forces since November last year.

At least 55 people were also reportedly killed after clashes between protesters and police turned into a stampede in the town of Bishoftu in Oromia on October 2.

In a bid to curb the unrest, the current government, which has been in power for 25 years, declared on October 9 a six-month state of emergency, first of its kind, “because the situation posed a threat against the people of the country.”

In the Saturday statement, Hordofa also read a long list of alleged offenses committed by the arrested people, ranging from major crimes such as “attacking security forces using firearms” or “killing civilians and members of security forces” to the much more mundane “denying provision of public services” and “disrupting movement of vehicles.”

The announced figure of the detained protesters shows a huge rise in the 2,500 arrests announced by Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn in late October.

Source: http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/11/12/493270/Ethiopia-Oromia-Amhara-protest-arrest-HRW

The Ethiopian security forces continued their unparalleled genocidal crimes of torturing, raping and killings, largely hidden from the eyes and ears of the international observers, embassies and the media. Records show that over two thousand Oromo civilians (students, farmers, teachers, civil servants, elders, leaders and members of the Oromo opposition party) were killed in the last one year from live bullets of the Ethiopian security forces. Witnesses out of Oromia show exceptional heinous crimes of killing that includes children from age 1 to the old men to the age of 80, pregnant women and mothers, a mother killed with her two sons, three siblings from the same parent. There are evidences of mothers and siblings ordered to sit on the dead body of their loved ones after being killed by the security forces. Wives and daughters were gang raped in front their husbands, loved ones and parents. Moreover, every independent Oromo person is routinely subjected to harassment, extrajudicial killings, imprisonment, rape and torture. Several thousands were wounded from live bullets and estimated over 50,000 were arrested in different detention camps in remote areas labeled as “terrorists” without convictions and/or rare trials.

The TPLF/EPRDF is still acting with impunity despite continued call for investigation into the genocidal crimes it commit by the renowned international human rights organizations, the UN Human Rights Council, African Commission for Human and Peoples’ Rights in the last several months. The western governments such as US, UK, Canada, Australia and others issued the statements of concern and travel warnings which may not be enough to curb the looming dangerous situation. The Ethiopian government had been major recipient of direct investment and economic aid earnings mainly from the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), the US, UK and the EU used to further human sufferings. Western governments are requested to sanction, use their diplomatic leverage to pressure the Ethiopian government to allow an independent UN and African Commission investigations over the massacres, completely halt the state of emergency and remove command posts from the villages, unconditional release of Oromo politicians and civilians from detention camps. Furthermore, the perpetuators of the massacres must be brought before international tribune to curb the genocide in the making in Oromia.

Source: Genocide in the making in Oromia

The current situation in Ethiopia in general and in Oromia in particular is at an alarming stage. Unless intervened promptly, Ethiopia as a state will collapse and the human right crisis will be out of control. This will also have a chilling impact for the horn of Africa as a whole.

Noticing the impending crisis, Her Excellency, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, the Chairwoman of the African Union Commission, has recently called upon the Ethiopian government to engage in a serious dialogue with the protesters (http://www.au.int/en/pressreleases/31333/au-calls- restraint-encourages-dialogue- followingprotests-ethiopia). Unfortunately, I do not expect a different response from the Ethiopian government than what their response was to the UNHRC. It is, therefore, for this reason that I ask the UN, as a responsible international body, to promptly intervene to save lives in Ethiopia.

Sincerely,

Daawud Ibsaa

Chairman, Oromo liberation Front National Council

Source: OLF asks the UN to promptly intervene to save lives in Ethiopia.

It is our strong belief that beyond creating further confusion among the Oromo people, the Atlanta convention will do little to help address the problem facing Oromia and millions of the Oromo people. A novel and timely effort would have been to work on mobilizing resources in support of our people who are doing the real fighting on the ground.

With or without convention, there is no doubt that the gallant Oromo people will defeat the ruthless enemy and free themselves from a century old yoke of subjugation and exploitation.One needs to remember, however, that history will never forget and forgive. It is not too late for all of us to do the right thing and rewrite our personal history.

Source: Questioning the Motives of the Atlanta Leadership Convention

The ancient Oromo nation is being reborn in our time in the womb of the historic Oromo Protests. A new generation of Oromo has risen with unprecedented heroism affirming the unity of the nation and in defense of Oromo national pride, heritage and civilization. The Oromo people have clearly expressed their demands for popular sovereignty, democratic order, peace and respect for human dignity.

Source: GUMII OROMO: CONVENING AN OROMO NATIONAL CONVENTION IN DIASPORA

By Yaadasaa Badhaasaa Kutuu*

Folks it’s clear the oppression and suffering of our people back in Oromia has completely changed its phase from from the traditional one by one extrajudicial killings to a complete ethnic cleansing phase. We have seen and always lived with low scale killings here and there under this dictatorship regime. But now it’s different it’s entirely different phase, the game is transformed in to an Ethnic cleansing on general Oromo and particularly the youth who are at the risk of extermination.

The amount of energy and initiation to look for solution has to match the level of danger we are in as a nation.Tough moments always call for tougher measures. Albert Anstien said, “You can’t expect different result, by doing the same thing over and over and over again.”  “Badiisa hamaa keessa jira, walgahii fi TV fi radio irraa bookkisuu qofaan Ajjeechaa Hamaa fi sukkanneessaa Tigreen Oromo irraan gahaa jirtu dhaabu hin dandeenyu.” Let stop fake and superficial solutions and start looking for real answers. Adios!

Source: Tough moments always call for tougher measures

(Advocacy for Oromia, 7 November 2016) On the 6th of November 2016, Oromia Support Group Australia, Advocacy for Oromia and other refugee communities met with the UN Special Rapporteur for the Human Rights of Migrants.

The aim of the meeting was to raise concerns and suggestions on Australia’s refugee policies at Refugee Council of Australia.

The Special Rapporteur is the head UN individual who is responsible for investigating, monitoring and advocating for specific human rights problems for migrants (including refugees and asylum seekers).

Oromia Support Group Australia, Advocacy for Oromia and other refugee communities met with the UN Special Rapporteur for the Human Rights of Migrants, Photo Credit-Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA)

(A4O, 5 November 2016) What started as a holiday celebration for Ethiopia’s Oromo people turned into a deadly protest as demonstrators tried to flee police firing tear gas and warning shots into the crowd.

It triggered a stamped that killed dozens.

https://youtu.be/tnDrylL0YIs

(Advocacy4Oromia, 4 November 2016) Until recently, Ethiopia has been hailed as an African success story. After a decade of strong economic growth, the country has begun to shed its image as a famine-struck wasteland.

But repression by Ethiopia’s authoritarian government has sparked demonstrations that have led to the deaths of hundreds of protesters this year.

The movement gained worldwide attention at the Rio Olympics when the country’s silver medal-winning marathon runner Feyisa Lilesa crossed his wrists above his head at the finish line in a symbol of the protest movement.

On this edition of Global Journalist, we explore the dangerous ethnic tensions fueling the unrest and the government’s effort to silence its critics after declaring a state of emergency.

Joining the program:

*Tsedale Lemma, editor of the Addis Standard magazine, an Ethiopian magazine forced to stop publication in October

*William Davison, Ethiopia correspondent for Bloomberg News

*Birhanu Lenjiso, an Oromo rights activist and former lecturer at Ambo University in Ethiopia

*Felix Horne, a senior researcher on Ethiopia and Eritrea for Human Rights Watch

(A4O, 31 October 2016)-A solidarity campaign calling on the Ethiopian Government to step down in light of the second wave of protests that began in November 2015, now a movement that has engulfed most of Ethiopia.

The Oromo people have been leading this call for national reform and as a result, have been met by unimaginable state sanctioned violence. In joining the movement, Amhara regions and Southern Nations have also been subject to extreme violence by Ethiopian security forces. Now a full blown revolution that will only end when the Ethiopian Government is no longer in power, we stand with the people in their call to make this a reality.

The Ethiopian government needs to #StepDown. We will release one video a week for four weeks, each video telling a specific story from the revolution, each story giving you clear insight into why it is time for the Ethiopian Government to #StepDown. Week one, we bring you the story of the people of Konso.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U0WkL5ROME