Ethio-Somali

28 November 2008

The Ethiopian government’s response regarding Human Rights Watch’s report on War Crimes perpetrated by the Ethiopian Army against the Ogaden Somali civilian population is a weak and shoddy attempt at trying to subvert the truth and deceive the international community about the Zenawi regime’s crime in the Ogaden.

Both the content and the timing of the report are indicative of the lengths to which the regime will go in order to conceal the established crimes it is committing in the Ogaden. First, the report claims that an independent investigation team conducted the investigation and reported the outcome, but it conveniently omits the identities of the independent investigators. Ethiopia refused to allow the UN to investigate further human rights abuses identified by the first UN mission to the Ogaden in October 2007. It also prevented Human rights groups, ICRC and independent journalist to have access to Ogaden, and now it wants and expects that the international community to consider its employers as independent investigators and to believe it’s explicit lies? The regime knows that its ploy is obvious but it is hoping that the motto of old dictators will work which says- tell a lie often enough, loud enough, and long enough and people will believe you.”

Secondly, the regime is trying to use as evidence of not  committing War Crimes in the Ogaden by presenting what it says are confessions by the people it victimised,  which were then extracted by the perpetrators of the crimes, and finally collated  by its “independent investigators. Then those who ordered the crimes to be carried in the first place now present it and want to convince the international community of their innocence. If Ethiopia has nothing to hide let it allow free access to international media and independent international investigators from reputable organisations to conduct an impartial investigation.

Thirdly, by publishing this report right after the Mumbai incidence and labelling ONLF a terrorist organisation the Regime is hoping that it may associate terrorism with ONLF and gain a temporary respite from international condemnation of its crimes of war and Humanity in the Ogaden. The Ogaden National Liberation Front is a national liberation Organisation that is struggling for the rights of the Ogaden people. ONLF legitimacy resides with the Ogaden Somali people and does not need the acceptance of a dictatorial regime that has no legitimacy even within the Ethiopian people and rules by the gun

The reality of the matter is that the Ethiopian regimes has committed War crimes in the Ogaden and is continuing to commit such crimes with impunity in the Ogaden. At the Same time Ethiopia is actively engaged in trying to conceal such crimes and the real purpose of these teams that it claims to have sent to the Ogaden was to insure that no traces are left. Since the Ethiopian regime believes that the political environment in the international community that used to support blindly it heinous crimes in the Ogaden and other parts of Ethiopia is about to end, it no longer feels safe and has to engage in deceptive strategies.

ONLF believes Human Rights Watch has grossly understated the extent of Ethiopian crimes in the Ogaden and not the other way round and that it is high time that the Ethiopian regime be brought to account for its crimes against Humanity in the Ogaden. The Ethiopian Army killed Thousands and displaced tens of thousands. Moreover, more languish in military prisons. Furthermore, Ethiopia deliberately denied ICRC, which usually monitors prisoners’ rights, to visit Ogaden prison inmates or provide necessary relief to the civilian population and is now claiming in the report that ICRC trains it Army to observe Human Rights. In order to shade light on the extent of Crimes committed by the Ethiopian Army and security forces, ONLF will publish a detailed report of the Ethiopian Atrocities in the Ogaden and a comprehensive response to Ethiopian report.

Finally the sons and daughter of the Ogaden Somali people formed ONLF and its raison d’être is to actualise their dream to freedom, dignity and progress and there is no rationale for it to harm its own people as the Woyane claims and would like others to believe. As for the report’s assertion that Ethiopia is democratic and abides by the rule of law and constitutional rule, the blood and bones of 2005 pro-democracy civilians killed in Addis Ababa in broad daylight after the dictator lost the election is a more revealing testament to the nature of the regime.

F.G. Picture: A three year old boy and two year old girl burned in Lebiga in their family’s hut

The Ogaden National Liberation Front

…… But also because of the tremendous oppression that the current Ethiopian regime is launching in Ogaden, is actually making the situation worse and increasing the demand of the Ogaden people for independence from Ethiopia..
Source: http://jimmatimes.com/article.cfm?articleId=31493

Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) Registers another Glaring Victory: Puts 73
Enemy Troops out of Action!
 
November 4, 2008 (OLF News). The Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) Eastern
Command reported that our gallant freedom fighters have killed 31 and
seriously wounded over 42 TPLF occupation troops on October 31, 2008 in
Eastern Oromia, Western Harargee Zone, in the district of Gabiibaa at a
confluence of the rivers of Saaqataa and Raammis. The enemy troops who
are spared from the OLA attack were forced to retreat and call in heavy
reinforcement to carry its badly wounded elements to big hospitals.
 
After the battle the enemy troops are said to evict the local people,
from their locality of Cophii Miyaawaa, and picking up their remaining
casualties by helicopter. It is reported that they evicted the local
people from their homes and villages in Baddeessaa, Bookee, Gabiiba and
other districts when they pick up their wounded troops to hide their
defeat from the population.
 
In this operation, as in the previous operations, our freedom fighters
captured several AK-47 guns, hand grenades, and ammunitions to be added
to the arsenal of the Oromo liberation struggle.
 
It is to be recalled that OLF News reported that:
 
 - On October 18, 2008 OLA freedom fighters killed 10 and wounded 5
enemy troops in the Western Harargee Zone.
    
 - On October 08, 2008 OLA fighters killed 3 and wounded 2 in Eastern
Harargee Zone.

 - OLA eastern command added that our freedom fighters will continue
their attack on the invading Woyane troops until liberation. Stay tuned
with OLF News for the news of the result of the OLA attacks to come.
 
OLF News
http://www.oromoliberationfront.org/News/2008/OLA%20Registers%20another%
20Glaring%20Victory.html
 
  <http://www.oromoliberationfront.org/map1>

Things go from bad to worse in Ethiopia for Abdullahi Hassan
 
The Indian Ocean Newsletter
 
SECTION: POLITICS & POWER/ON THE LINE

Ousted at the beginning of the month from the presidency of the Somali
Regional State (South West Ethiopia), Abdullahi Hassan was placed under
house arrest in Addis Ababa last week and at the same time a dozen of
his supporters were imprisoned in Jigjigaa.
 
At the beginning of October, the Somali People’s Democratic Party (SPDP)
had relieved him of his functions, accusing him of bad management and
being weak in the fight against the rebels of the OgadenNational
Liberation Front (ONLF). Whereas Abdullahi Hassan was himself wounded in
a grenade attack in May 2007, the authorities suspect him of connivance
with the ONLF and reproach him for sending all his family to live
abroad. However, this former journalist is not someone to be easily
taken in. He was summoned to Addis Ababa by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi
who wanted to tick him off, but Abdullahi Hassan made the mistake of
standing up to him. He then returned to Jijiga to hold a public meeting
to present his defence.

This was too much for the Ethiopian government, which placed him under
house arrest in Addis Ababa for a certain time. Abdullahi Hassan has
thus himself become the victim of methods similar to the ones he had
used to reach power within the SPDP and in the Somali Regional State
four years ago.
 

November 5, 2008
The Indian Ocean Newsletter