It’s been more than a week since anyone has heard from three students kidnapped from the Awassa University campus in southern Ethiopia by government security forces, according to the Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA). Whereabouts of the students, Nagga Gezaw, Dhaba Girre, and Jatani Wario, is still unknown. The students were part of a local movement in southern Ethiopia which has called on their government to address river contamination, unpaid compensation and other problems caused by the Lega Dembi open pit gold mine. Several student-led demonstrations in early December brought promises to address the issues, promises now left empty by the extra-judicial kidnappings. (For more info on the demonstrations, see Addis Fortune and Voice of America.)
The gold mine belongs to MIDROC, a company owned by billionaire Mohammed Al Amoudi, believed to be the largest foreign investor in Ethiopia. It is the only industrial gold mine in Ethiopia, though the government has signed dozens of mineral exploration licences and recently approved MIDROC's Sakaro gold mine near Lega Dembi. Gold is Ethiopia’s major mineral, and the government is counting on a six-fold increase in production. MIDROC has reportedly earned $466 million from the Lega Dembi mine since 1998.
According to the HRLHA, the kidnapping is part of a recent wave of arrests and extra-judicial actions against students in southern Ethiopia. It comes on top of other human rights violations related to the government’s use of Ethiopia’s natural resources, and ahead of elections planned for later this year. Elections in 2005 were followed by a wave of arrests and kidnappings of activists. Last year saw two new laws enacted which immobilize local advocates. The new Charities Law criminalizes human rights work by most local organizations while the new Anti-Terrorism Law gives new, unrestrained powers to the government. In July, 42 NGOs were suspended by the government reportedly in response to their connection to a US report on human rights.
We have been following the massive dam-building in Ethiopia, which has also witnessed gvernment retaliation against local voices. The government plans to invest $12 billion in large hydro dams and sell the power to other countries. But Gibe 3 Dam, the largest so far, will devastate the downstream ecosystem which supports half a million people. Last April, community members who were believed to have spoken with the BBC about Gibe 3 were harassed. The government has generated a culture of fear that keeps nearly everyone from disagreeing with official positions on issues of huge consequence.
With communities silenced, the government's agenda moves forward. A high-level Italian delegation is in Ethiopia this week for the official commissioning of the Gilgel Gibe 2 project, a massive hydropower scheme marred by delays and cost overruns. Italy provided €220 million for Gibe 2 despite internal recommendations against funding the project. The controversial decision triggered a criminal investigation in Italy.
Italian construction giant Salini built Gibe 2 and is now building the US$1.55 billion Gibe 3 Dam. Both lucrative contracts were given to Salini without competitive bidding. Ethiopia is hoping that Italy will back Gibe 3 with €250 million, an aid package essentially to pay Salini. Salini began construction of Gibe 3 in 2006 despite the government’s failure to complete project studies or community consultations.
Companies like MIDROC and Salini are clear winners in Ethiopia's hurried push to develop big mines and big dams. Communities are forced to remain silent while they lose their resource base. When the brave few who do speak out disappear, it sends a loud message – and leaves Ethiopian society the poorer.
Src: International Rivers
www.internationalrivers.org
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
Kidnappings and Disappearances of Students in Southern Ethiopia | HRLHA
January 8, 2010
Your Excellency Prime Minister Meles Zenawi
PO Box 1031
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Tel. 251 11 1552044 or 251 11 1113241
Fax: +251 11 1552030
In a recently launched wave of kidnappings and arrests against students in southern Ethiopia, three Oromo students of the Awassa University have so far disappeared; and the extra-judicial action against students is said to have continued.
According to HRLHA informants in the area,
1. Nagga Gezaw, second year Civil Engineering student, and
2. Dhaba Girre, third year Management student
were kidnapped and taken away from the university campus by members of the security and police forces of the Federal Government of Ethiopia on the 5th of January 2010 while Jatani Wario, second year Co-operative student, was taken away from the campus in the same manner by the same kind of forces on the 6th of January 2010. The whereabouts of the three Oromo students were not known ever since they were kidnapped by the government security and police forces. HRLHA informants have learnt, though it has been difficult to trace and document, that there are more students that have faced the same fate and might be in the same situations as a result of these most recent extra-judicial actions.
According to some insiders, the kidnapping and disappearance of the three Oromo students of the Awassa University is related to the students’ movement taking place in Gujii/Borena Zone of Oromia Regional State – which was triggered by the alleged poisoning and contamination of local rivers and stream waters by uncontrolled and/or unregulated waste products from the activities of gold mining industry at Lega Dembi.
During the UN’s Universal Periodic Review of Ethiopia on December 9, 2009, the Ethiopian delegation testified in front of the member states that there were no human rights abuses in Ethiopia; and guaranteed that any form of human rights abuses would never be committed. However, within a one month time, the bad human rights record of the Ethiopian government has surfaced once again.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) expresses its deep concern over the safety and well-being of the three Oromo students and others. Given the very bad record of the Ethiopian prison officials and the worst situations of prisons in Ethiopia, as confirmed and reported on by many regional and international human rights agencies as well as diplomatic bodies, the case of the three Oromo students becomes very worrisome.
HRLHA calls upon governments of the West, all local, regional and international human rights agencies to join hands and demand the immediate halt of such kinds of extra-judicial kidnappings, mass arrest and imprisonment of innocent students and other civilians by the Ethiopian government.
The HRLHA is a non-political and non-profit organization that is engaged in challenging abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. It works on defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It also works on raising the awareness of individuals about their own fundamental human rights and that of others. It encourages the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.
Garoma Wakessa – Executive Director
Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA)
Cc:
Ministry of Federal Affairs
Siraj Fegisa
P.o.Box 5718, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Tel 251 11 1512766 or 5159330
Ministry of Justice
Brihan Hailu
PO Box 1370, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 1517755
+251 11 1515099 or 15157950
Email: ministry-justice@telecom.net.et
Federal Commissioner of Police
Mr Workneh Gebeyehu, Federal Police Commission, Ministry of Federal Affairs
PO Box 5068, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Simone Joseph – Foreign Affairs Officer
U.S. Department of State
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights & Labor
Washington, D.C. 20037
Tel: +1-202-261-8009
Fax: +1-202-261-8197
Joseph, Simone O (DRL) [mailto: JosephSO@state.gov ]
European Commission Delegation to Ethiopia
Paola Cerea – Human Rights Project officer
Paola.cerea@ec.europa.eu
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
United Nations Office at Geneva
1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Fax: + 41 22 917 9022
(particularly for urgent matters)
E-mail: tb-petitions@ohchr.org
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR)
48 Kairaba Avenue, P.O.Box 673, Banjul,
The Gambia.
Tel: (220) 4392 962 , 4372070, 4377721 – 23
Fax: (220) 4390 764
E-mail: achpr@achpr.org
Amnesty International – London
Telephone: +44-20-74135500
Fax number: +44-20-79561157
Human Rights Watch – New York, Tel: +1-212-290-4700
Fax:+1-212-736-1300
Email: hrwnyc@hrw.org
Souce: HumanRightsLeague.com
Your Excellency Prime Minister Meles Zenawi
PO Box 1031
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Tel. 251 11 1552044 or 251 11 1113241
Fax: +251 11 1552030
In a recently launched wave of kidnappings and arrests against students in southern Ethiopia, three Oromo students of the Awassa University have so far disappeared; and the extra-judicial action against students is said to have continued.
According to HRLHA informants in the area,
1. Nagga Gezaw, second year Civil Engineering student, and
2. Dhaba Girre, third year Management student
were kidnapped and taken away from the university campus by members of the security and police forces of the Federal Government of Ethiopia on the 5th of January 2010 while Jatani Wario, second year Co-operative student, was taken away from the campus in the same manner by the same kind of forces on the 6th of January 2010. The whereabouts of the three Oromo students were not known ever since they were kidnapped by the government security and police forces. HRLHA informants have learnt, though it has been difficult to trace and document, that there are more students that have faced the same fate and might be in the same situations as a result of these most recent extra-judicial actions.
According to some insiders, the kidnapping and disappearance of the three Oromo students of the Awassa University is related to the students’ movement taking place in Gujii/Borena Zone of Oromia Regional State – which was triggered by the alleged poisoning and contamination of local rivers and stream waters by uncontrolled and/or unregulated waste products from the activities of gold mining industry at Lega Dembi.
During the UN’s Universal Periodic Review of Ethiopia on December 9, 2009, the Ethiopian delegation testified in front of the member states that there were no human rights abuses in Ethiopia; and guaranteed that any form of human rights abuses would never be committed. However, within a one month time, the bad human rights record of the Ethiopian government has surfaced once again.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) expresses its deep concern over the safety and well-being of the three Oromo students and others. Given the very bad record of the Ethiopian prison officials and the worst situations of prisons in Ethiopia, as confirmed and reported on by many regional and international human rights agencies as well as diplomatic bodies, the case of the three Oromo students becomes very worrisome.
HRLHA calls upon governments of the West, all local, regional and international human rights agencies to join hands and demand the immediate halt of such kinds of extra-judicial kidnappings, mass arrest and imprisonment of innocent students and other civilians by the Ethiopian government.
The HRLHA is a non-political and non-profit organization that is engaged in challenging abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. It works on defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It also works on raising the awareness of individuals about their own fundamental human rights and that of others. It encourages the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.
Garoma Wakessa – Executive Director
Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA)
Cc:
Ministry of Federal Affairs
Siraj Fegisa
P.o.Box 5718, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Tel 251 11 1512766 or 5159330
Ministry of Justice
Brihan Hailu
PO Box 1370, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 1517755
+251 11 1515099 or 15157950
Email: ministry-justice@telecom.net.et
Federal Commissioner of Police
Mr Workneh Gebeyehu, Federal Police Commission, Ministry of Federal Affairs
PO Box 5068, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Simone Joseph – Foreign Affairs Officer
U.S. Department of State
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights & Labor
Washington, D.C. 20037
Tel: +1-202-261-8009
Fax: +1-202-261-8197
Joseph, Simone O (DRL) [mailto: JosephSO@state.gov ]
European Commission Delegation to Ethiopia
Paola Cerea – Human Rights Project officer
Paola.cerea@ec.europa.eu
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
United Nations Office at Geneva
1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Fax: + 41 22 917 9022
(particularly for urgent matters)
E-mail: tb-petitions@ohchr.org
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR)
48 Kairaba Avenue, P.O.Box 673, Banjul,
The Gambia.
Tel: (220) 4392 962 , 4372070, 4377721 – 23
Fax: (220) 4390 764
E-mail: achpr@achpr.org
Amnesty International – London
Telephone: +44-20-74135500
Fax number: +44-20-79561157
Human Rights Watch – New York, Tel: +1-212-290-4700
Fax:+1-212-736-1300
Email: hrwnyc@hrw.org
Souce: HumanRightsLeague.com
Friday, December 18, 2009
African Leaders Condemn Meles Zenawi Climate Proposal
African Parliamentarians and civil society leaders attending the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, condemned the proposal made today by Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. They say Ethiopia does not speak for Africa.
His statement today, while not having any official bearing on the negotiations, undermines the bold positions of African negotiators and ministers represented here (see para 22 in this document http://unfccc.int/files/kyoto_protocol/application/pdf/algeriaafrican111209.pdf) , and threatens the very future of Africa.
The African Group made a formal submission to the UNFCCC on Saturday and that submission is Africa's position.
Prime Minister Meles' position:
* Threatens Africa with catastrophic damage by allowing warming to rise by 2 degrees C globally and therefore by around 3 degrees on the continent of Africa. It risks the lives and livelihoods of literally hundreds of millions of people, including the people of Ethiopia;
* Allocates to the industrialized countries including France atmospheric space worth more than 10 trillion dollars between now and 2050, denying it to developing countries, and threatening Africa's prospects of economic and social development and the alleviation of poverty; and
* Offers a mere @10 billion in financing for all developing countries in fast-start funding.
"The IPCC science is clear - 2 degrees is 3 degrees in Africa - this is death to millions of Africans" said Hon Awudu Mbaya, President of Pan-African Parliamentarians Network on Climate Change
"If Prime Minister Meles wants to sell out the lives and hopes of Africans for a pittance - he is welcome to - but that is not Africa's position" Mithika Mwenda of Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance.
"Every other African country has committed to policy based on the science. That means at least 45% cuts by rich countries by 2020 and it means $400 billion fast-track finance not $10 billion" said Augustine Njamnshi of Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance.
"You cannot say you are proposing a 'solution' to climate change if your solution will see millions of Africans die and if the poor not the polluters keep paying for climate change" said Augustine Njamnshi.
This announcement reeks of "divide and rule" tactics designed to subjugate Africa and undermine good faith negotiations in the United Nations. We call on all Africans and citizens of developed countries to join together to condemn Ethiopia's unilateral position.
President Meles Zenawi must rescind his position or step down as Coordinator of African Heads of State and Governments on Climate Change.
Written by Mohamed Adow
Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance
His statement today, while not having any official bearing on the negotiations, undermines the bold positions of African negotiators and ministers represented here (see para 22 in this document http://unfccc.int/files/kyoto_protocol/application/pdf/algeriaafrican111209.pdf) , and threatens the very future of Africa.
The African Group made a formal submission to the UNFCCC on Saturday and that submission is Africa's position.
Prime Minister Meles' position:
* Threatens Africa with catastrophic damage by allowing warming to rise by 2 degrees C globally and therefore by around 3 degrees on the continent of Africa. It risks the lives and livelihoods of literally hundreds of millions of people, including the people of Ethiopia;
* Allocates to the industrialized countries including France atmospheric space worth more than 10 trillion dollars between now and 2050, denying it to developing countries, and threatening Africa's prospects of economic and social development and the alleviation of poverty; and
* Offers a mere @10 billion in financing for all developing countries in fast-start funding.
"The IPCC science is clear - 2 degrees is 3 degrees in Africa - this is death to millions of Africans" said Hon Awudu Mbaya, President of Pan-African Parliamentarians Network on Climate Change
"If Prime Minister Meles wants to sell out the lives and hopes of Africans for a pittance - he is welcome to - but that is not Africa's position" Mithika Mwenda of Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance.
"Every other African country has committed to policy based on the science. That means at least 45% cuts by rich countries by 2020 and it means $400 billion fast-track finance not $10 billion" said Augustine Njamnshi of Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance.
"You cannot say you are proposing a 'solution' to climate change if your solution will see millions of Africans die and if the poor not the polluters keep paying for climate change" said Augustine Njamnshi.
This announcement reeks of "divide and rule" tactics designed to subjugate Africa and undermine good faith negotiations in the United Nations. We call on all Africans and citizens of developed countries to join together to condemn Ethiopia's unilateral position.
President Meles Zenawi must rescind his position or step down as Coordinator of African Heads of State and Governments on Climate Change.
Written by Mohamed Adow
Pan-African Climate Justice Alliance
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Guji Zone Protests MIDROC Mining
The protests of high school and elementary school students in Shakisso and the surrounding Guji zone of Oromiya drew a promise from regional administrators to investigate complaints that the mining company’s surface mining is causing severe environmental damage and threatens the health of residents.
Gujii zone administrator, Gadaa Robee, met with representatives of the students, who agreed to return to classes if the government authorities would investigate their charges against the MIDROC Ethiopia Technology Group’s open pit mining operation in Legedembi gold mine.
The students and nearby residents also complained the MIDROC has offered no community services for a community in which many residents have been forced to leave, due to recent expansion of the mines in Sakaro after the company and the Ministry of Mines signed an agreement at the Sheraton Addis on November 24.
Ministry representative Gebre Egziabher Mekonnen told VOA’s Jalene Gemeda that the Sakaro project will use a new underground mining practice to lessen the environmental impact of the mine.
Midroc branch office spokesman in Shakisso said they had not received any formal complaint. In the meantime, Midroc has released a written statement expressing its willingness to respond to the complaints.
Source: http://www.voanews.com/horn/2009-12-11-voa2.cfm
By Jalene Gemeda
Washington DC
11/12/2009
Gujii zone administrator, Gadaa Robee, met with representatives of the students, who agreed to return to classes if the government authorities would investigate their charges against the MIDROC Ethiopia Technology Group’s open pit mining operation in Legedembi gold mine.
The students and nearby residents also complained the MIDROC has offered no community services for a community in which many residents have been forced to leave, due to recent expansion of the mines in Sakaro after the company and the Ministry of Mines signed an agreement at the Sheraton Addis on November 24.
Ministry representative Gebre Egziabher Mekonnen told VOA’s Jalene Gemeda that the Sakaro project will use a new underground mining practice to lessen the environmental impact of the mine.
Midroc branch office spokesman in Shakisso said they had not received any formal complaint. In the meantime, Midroc has released a written statement expressing its willingness to respond to the complaints.
Source: http://www.voanews.com/horn/2009-12-11-voa2.cfm
By Jalene Gemeda
Washington DC
11/12/2009
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