Say no to Hailu and the Fives

Tedla Asfaw

 

I heard Engineer Hailu's short interview (Sept. 29) posted on kinijit.com and he rejected judge Birtukan Medekksa's plea she made last week in Boston.

 

Engineer Hailu questioned the sincerity of the plea and he alluded the plea as political posturing to isolate him from the Diaspora thousands of Kinijit supporters.

 

This short interview is very discouraging for many of us who hoped for dialogue between Engineer Hailu and five delegates and this friction sadly will be exported to millions of Kinijit supporters in Ethiopia.

 

In a country where the media outlet is under TPLF control our people will not have a chance to debate and  resolve these seemed  "Kurfia" now a solidified division, Engineer Hailu VS. the Fives, which will break the Kinijit spirit of 2005 and guaranteeing another five years under TPLF rule for our people.

 

Rumors and false propaganda of TPLF complimented by the factions attack spread by Internet and radios from the Diaspora might force supporters of Kinijit to take a stand since quarreling groups have no right to call meetings or print their views to be disseminated to Kinijt supporters in their constituency in Ethiopia.

 

We are moving to a dangerous course  and TPLF media will have an upper hand to spread  poisonous and divisive propaganda representing each faction for the battle to rage and presenting itself as the best alternative for our people reminding our people "Ke ZenJero Konjo Menune Yemeraretu".

 

Ethiopians remembered from their recent history, a Diaspora exported quarrel in the 1970s between EPRP and MEISON which resulted on huge loss of lives and helped the Derg regime to hold on power for many years that prolonged the misery of our people.

 

Engineer Hailu and the Fives if they choose to bring this conflict back home our people should say no to all of them until a better alternative comes which bring back the spirit of MIazia 30, 2005.

Freedom Initiative

Tedla Asfaw

 

I watched video clip on nazret.com and obviously pro TPLF site aiga jumped as usual to congratulate his hero  Melese Zenawi seating with his buddy Tony Blair lecturing us about climate change and its impact for the world in New York City on the Clinton Global Initiative gatherings which will end today.

 

Melese Zenawi was invited but his name was not on the  list of the speakers understandably not to bring us on show down with the organisers. Zenawi's talk about climate change surely not political change is not a concern of millions of Ethiopians who are living hand to mouth under sixteen years of brutal dictatorship.

 

Ethiopians are worried about today how to live like human beings not about what is happening about global climatic crisis.

 

Only free society can alleviate their problems with or without international help and global climatic change as a result of emitting polluting gases which is not their making should be replaced by Freedom Initiative for Ethiopians and many others who are living under tyranny.

 

Tyrants from Burma to Ethiopia are our immediate concerns and seeing Melese Zenawi on stage lecturing in New York City on the same week the Iranian president was denounced for speaking at Columbia University says about double standard a lot and many Ethiopians like me are angered by the Clinton global initiative for hiding the name of  Melese Zenawi on the speakers list and sabotage our right to denounce him for who he is.

 

By associatiing with the known tyrant, Clinton global initiative  has lost credibility in the eyes of many Ethiopians. 

Washera of Paltalk on Ethiopiafirst

Tedla Asfaw

 

I followed Ben's conversation on ethiopiafirst.com  with  Washera on September 21 and the critical conversation focused on Dr. Birhanu's speech given to the Diaspora in D.C. condemning the regime in power and this according to Washera will land back Dr. Birhanu to Kaliti jail. 

 

It is true the regime in power can throw these leaders back  to jail and to avoid that according to Washera who claim to be a supporter of Kinijit is to go for another election and join the parliament.

 

Washera failed to articulate the right of our people to assemble and freedom of speech and writing and without that you can not mobilize your constituents like Kinijit did in 2005 and go for another election.

 

Kinijit can not call public meetings for its supporters because it is illegal and such atmosphere  created by the regime in power fearing the people anger that was shown on last year's athletic event gathering by Kinijit supporters..

 

Ato Washera's recommendation to join the so called Kinijiti's parliamentarians like of Temesgene and others in parliament to what end I do not understand. What we need is the right of our people to gather freely to be respected and without that no change will be possible in our country.

 

Let our people support or denounce the Kinijit leaders for what they say and do not say and that is what democracy should be all about. If EPRDF/TPLF follows the route of intimidating leaders for what they say in USA or force them not to communicate with their constituents that will not bring us peace or democracy.

 

The burning question is the right of our people to free assembly without government intimidationis . Ben as well Washera recognised our people tolerance and politeness by bringing in to the conversation the events followed the fall of the Dergue , the massive protest in Miazia 30 2005 in Addis and the celebration of our "Esra Meete"/our 2000 without incident and this proves for all doubters that we have a mature and polite citizens and we should not abuse our people for the sake of holding power forever. 

                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                                                                          

 

 

 

Rebirth of Kinijit is Possible

Tedla Asfaw

 

I was saddened and also encouraged to hear Judge Birtukn Medekesa's  heart felt appeal directly to Engineer Hailu Shawel from Boston September 22, 2007 and I have no doubt the message this time has reached Engineer Hailu Shawel and will get positive reply soon. For all of us who followed this five to ten minutes appeal it shows that Kinijit visiting delegates or the millions in Ethiopia will not benefit from this stupid "Mekorarefe".

 

The beneficiary is none other than TPLF and those opportunist who are sleeping in the parliament and delver nothing for the millions of our people who are living hand to mouth and are fed false hope on the future  landslide victory by TPLF. They are blowing the current crisis to bury the spirit of Kinijit and for that to stop someone has to pick up the phone.

 

Judge Birtukan Medekessa sad speech has touched the audience in Boston and all of us who followed it on the addisvoice.com and other sites will encourage the Diaspora Kinijit supporters to rally behind her speech  and  for the misunderstanding between Engineer Hailu and the other visiting delegates to be dealt with immediately in the Kinijit spirit of the 2005.

 

This short appeal clearly underscores that we are not in a celebrating mode rather soul searching stage after two years of separation from our leaders obstacles created by few individuals in the Diaspora tried to drag them too.

 

I commend Judge Birtukan Medekessa for heart felt appeal to Engineer Hailu Shawel and encourage her to make a personal visit to see him face to face and that is not hard to do and I believe that is going to be a next step.

 

I do believe Gashe Hailu will not turn down the request and we all are marking our calender starting September 23 to the day we all see Engineer Hailu and other delegates in a big celebration and  the rebirth of Kinijit.

 

Let the count down begins for the rebirth of Kinijit and we all will see a united Kinijit delegates soon.

Kinijit has no Leader but Collective Leadership

Tedla Asfaw

 

 

Engineer Gizachew Shiferaw on last Sunday meeting (Sept. 16) in Arlington, Virginia confirmed for those who were there and most of us who listened the radio clip from VOA Amharic Service posted on the kinijitehtiopia.com web site that Kinijit has no leader but collective leadership the statement we heard  several times from Andargatchew Tsige of the KIL while Engineer Gizachew and other Kinijit officials were in the Kaliti prison.

 

In the Western world we are living which Engineer Gizachew and most of us emulate, leaders  shine in their party and will be picked to lead and there is nothing wrong about it and from our own experience there is a saying "Teketele Alekahene" and we also know that this leader is accountable to the people who voted for him in a democracy and will be a disaster in dictatorhip.

 

The campaign for May 2005 derailed election, individual candidates run on the platform of Kinijit and many got the peoples vote including Lidetu Ayalew which used it to make living as parliamentarian and we should not doubt that Ato Lidetu's appeal as a candidate was enhanced by running on Kinijit's ticket and we should not also doubt his personal appeal to voters.Charisma and trustworthiness was considered by the voters and  some got large vote for their party which shows their popularity.

 

A party like Kinijit which accepts the supremacy of the voters mentioned several times on Dr. Birhanu's speech should practice it too by accepting the popular leader as a party leader and ignoring it equals to dictating the people in the name of collective leadership.

 

This leader will only be sidelined or fired from his position by the popular demand not by very few elected party members. Kinijit supporters in Ethiopia can not do this because they are not allowed to organize peacefully because TPLF has not forgotten May 8, 2005. This lack of freedom should not be exploited by few elected Kinijit officials to deny the people their charismatic leader.

 

We should not forget the people power that came supporting Kinijit  on May 8, 2005 (Miazia 30) in Addis Ababa, Dr Birhanu described on his book "Ye Nestanet Gohe Sikede" that this was organized by ordinary people independently to bring change. If the Ethiopian people had a right to protest the current crisis in the Kinijit leadership would have never been averted.

 

Kinijit has a leader we know and the current so called collective leadership might work here in the Diaspora KIL circles but the  millions who supported Kinijit back home are disappointed and ready to show their anger when the time comes.  

Ethiopians in the Diaspora are Speaking

Tedla Asfaw

 

 

I am delighted to see new names coming to Addisvoice.com and articulate very well the current crisis in the Diaspora after we received the Kinijit delegates on September 9 and September 15 in a large turnout in Virginia and D.C. Bezawit Taye and Eyasu Tiruneh called for the Diaspora power mongers to slow down before their destruction power swept themselves and for the elected delegates gave advice to avoid this hurricane by barricading themselves together as they did in prison for two years.

 

These known agitiators are known for the last sixteen years jumping from organization to organization and destroying them finally. When they start their mission they swear that there is no one except them to that organization and their hate propaganda soon start and before we know it that organization is divided and we see an insult and defamation on each other on their Internet sites.

 

The so called KIL and KIC leaders should be sidelined if Kinijit want to get support from ordinary people in the Diaspora and the delegates should not be confused with a thousand if  not exaggerated on the conference hall showing up on September 16 and exercising their American  ovation skill to say the  least embarrassing.

 

Most of the people that participated on Sundays meeting called by KIL if they were asked what they felt about the meeting without its chairman Engineer Hailu I can tell you that they are not happy at all. On the other side if you ask many like me who followed Ethiopiawinet radio on September 16 while the KIL instigated category 4 hurricane swept our delegates, Engieer Hailu Shawel was also facing another threat from a radio station.

 

The radio host Ato Mirchaw as Eyasu Tiruneh pointed out start by insulting Judge Birtukan Medeksea mocking her as "Feteneche" and this guy forgot that this is a woman who gave birth to end up in jail and I can guarantee that he has never shown such bravery in his life time. Where are our women like sister/Eteye Luilet Mesfin, Meron Ahadu and women organizations and why did you not  condemn such sexist attack directed to one woman who is beloved by millions home.

 

It was unfortunate Engineer Hailu Shawel's introduction starts by this attack and we all were hoping Engineer Hailu to distance himself from this attack and however we all realized that  another category 4 hurricane was launched on "ethiopiawinet" studio and it was too late to defend and protect the leader of Kinijit.

 

The few Diaspora known power mongers succeed for one day and celebrated on their own quarters and however the majority in the Diaspora is saddened and some come and write their opinion and many will follow soon.

 

This is not the time for our millions of people, 25 million of them who voted on May 15, 2005 to be dictated by few and confused supporters of them say  thousands, many of them foreign nationals born Ethiopians to sabotage the elected leaders internal dialogue by preparing a battle ground for them separately and shame on all of them.  

Question for Engineer Hailu Shawel?

Tedla Asfaw

 

Welcome to USA, why do you not seat with other Kinijit delegates and bring hope to our people? is it not true that the Ethiopian people voted for you and other Kinijit members to bring hope to our people?

 

Who is now laughing at us? is it not TPLF who comes out as winner by let you and others go and intensify the fight in the Diaspora for the inevitable destruction of Kinijit?

 

How comes is possible a radio like Ethiopiawinet you are appearing today will also be used to accuse another Kinijit delegate, Judge Birtukan Medeksa as "Feteneche", " Seteyewa "? this says a lot about our situation and it is indeed sad we are living in" ZEMENE MESAFENTE" in our year 2000.

 

I am ashamed of being  part of this generation.

 

                                                                                                                Good Luck,                                           

Ethiopian Review on the coming of Engineer Hailu Shawel

Tedla Asfaw

 

The late coming of Engineer Hailu Shawel today though unfortunate will not bring only hundreds estimated by Ethiopian Review(ER) and the estimate will anger many and  in fact  Engineer Hailu will be welcomed like his fellow delegates on September 9 and surely Professor  Al Mariam will have another day also to be  remembered.

 

Ethiopian Review and its followers can stay home however many who know this brave man will jam the Regan International in D.C. to welcome him September 15 today at 4PM.

 

I salute Engineer Hailu for visiting ordinary people who lost family members and honoring their sacrifices as as a leader of Kinijit.

 

The campaign to discredit Dr. Birhanu for coming by himself and discredit Engineer Hailu for the so called alleged association with Shaleka Yoseph will be dealt with by the majority of Diaspora Kiniijit supporters who rejected these diversionary plot like they did in September 6 in New York and in Virginia in September 9.

 

Ethiopian Review can support and endorse whatever personalities it likes but has no right to defame elected leader of the party and pray for the low turn out.

 

The elected delegates of Kinijit will soon address all these lies which has been going on for the last two years and clean  the mess before they go back home for the unknown future.

 

We should respect our leaders who went to jail as one and came as one travelling separately to USA is the easiest burden they carried and sadly exploited by the ER as if it is he biggest of all.

 

Millennium Celebration and the Dissatisfied Majority in Ethiopia

Tedla Asfaw                                                                                                                              September 14, 2007

 

I read a statement by Oromo Parliamentarian Council dating August 27, 2007 and posted September 14, 2007 on Debteraw site and Debteraw tried to conclude from this statement that Oromo Parliamentarian Council(OPC) is anti "Habesha" and anti-Ethiopia and hence Alliance for Freedom and Democracy(AFD) should be rejected by all of us.

 

The OPC statement of the millennium celebration  as  "Habeshas" which has nothing to do with the Oromo people is for the individual Oromos to make decision and many holidays celebration in Ethiopia is way before OPC or other Oromo political movements formation and new year celebration in Ethiopia has been a public affair and we should not take it too far like Debteraw  and make it political.

 

Regrading the persecution of Oromos  by TPLF,  this is not incorrect and Dr. Birhanu Nega and many prominent political leaders who were jailed by TPLF witnessed the young and the old Oromos as old as 90 years suffering severely in jail suspected of OLF and without any exaggeration it can be said that the majority of political prisoners are Oromos and  the OPC has a legitimate grievance about the jailed Oromos while the regime tried to ignore or hide it in the millennium celebration.

 

TPLF from their early days in the jungle and until they reached  Menelik's palace have used the Oromo and other oppressed nationalities to rise up against the "Amharas" not "Habeshas" using the Oromo militia they recruit and took the lives of many innocent poor Amharas. TPLF's survival depends on pitting Amharas and Oromos and however the ordinary people have realized this long time  and formed alliance and put pressure on squabbling politicians to form the Alliance for Freedom and Democracy(AFD).

 

We know how Melse Zenawi was upset on the formation of AFD and accused Issayas for mixing "water" and "fire" which are not compatible and send it against TPLF and the truth of the matter is  it is not Issayas who is behind this alliance it is the majority of Oromos and other Ethiopians who forced the formation of  the  alliance after the derailing of the people struggle after May 2005.

 

Some Oromo military officials like General Kemal Gelchu abandoned TPLF and joined the struggle after the May 2005 stolen election and the killing and jailing of opposition supporters, Oromos and non-Oromos , many of them still in prison and for the record Debteraw did not put the video clip of Kemal Gelchu and other Oromo high military officials call for democracy and freedom to all Ethiopians including Oromos.

 

These same generals are now leading the military struggle of the OLF and we held them accountable to their own words  and could not speculate what they will or Will not do if their military operation removed TPLF and one thing is sure these generals are not anti-Ethiopia or anti "Habesha" and whether they celebrate Ethiopian millennium this week is their personal decision and I have not heard OLF or ONLF denouncing this holiday as "Habesha's" holiday.

 

I will alsol not conclude that TPLF by celebrating the Ethiopian millennium with exttravagnaza entertainment will make it pro-Ethiopia or "Habesha" and however  the many jailed Oromos and the majority  "freed Habeshas" or Ethiopians were spectators on this millennium celebration could not even afford simple holiday dish and if you ask me did they care about "Habesha's" holiday I will definitely say many did not care.

 

We can surely say there is an alliance of dissatisfaction on this millennium celebration and the root cause of this dissatisfaction, economical and political,  will only be overcome if we help to strengthen the alliance and fight for dignity and freedom in Ethiopia and hair splitting of political statements will not help us to move on that direction.

Fwd: Kinijit is not to be Abandoned

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Tedla Asfaw <tedla.asfaw@gmail.com>
Date: Sep 7, 2007 9:20 AM
Subject: Kinijit is not to be Abandoned
To: yenenehe@yahoo.com

Tedla Asfaw                                                                                                                                              September 7, 2007

 

 

 

The auditorium at New School in Manhattan was packed and extra seat has to be added and still there were many standing yesterday (Sept. 6) and  I can say that more than 500 guests about ten percent students and faculty members from the Economics Department and the freenega movements and the rest were Ethiopians few pro TPLF and many Ethiopian oppositions and members of the Diaspora community  coming from New York metropolitan area and some as far as D.C.

 

This meeting was mainly organised for the Economics Department students and staffs and Dr. Birhanu Nega however try not to forget the Ethiopian large contingent on his one hour speech and for many of us who read his book "Ye Nestanset Gohe Sekede" and closely follow our country situation there was nothing new he told us about the struggle of our people in the last sixteen years.

 

There was no discussion on the current crisis in the Diaspora CUD support groups and what  Dr. Birhanu was focusing was on the  derailed democratisation process and  confirmed for foes and friends that he will not abandon the struggle of Kinijit and in fact will intensify the struggle even if that will land him again back to jail he is ready to pay the price.

 

The crowd supported him with a big applause and for me that was the highlight of his speech because the Ethiopian people are not expecting less from these leaders who gave them their vote on May 15, 2005 and even if the government rigged that election and now is ruling by force the regime whether it like it or not has to prepare  itself on how to be the next opposition party.

 

If TPLF believes that jailing opposition leaders will break their spirit I think some of the TPLF supporters in the crowd yesterday learnt that that is not the case and one pro TPLF supporter question of how Dr. Birhanu  and Kinijit will have any chance of winning an election from TPLF who has a huge "loyal" army and Dr. Birhanu's answer was simple, we have the people.

 

Dr. Birhanu also separated American citizens and values he admired and is inspired from the USA Administration and asked for their support and however he affirmed that the fate of our country is on fellow Ethiopians and we have to be ready to pay the price for freedom and dignity which is the only wat to extract our people from the current poverty and  backwardness.

 

During the one hour question time the floor was given mainly to the students and faculty members and there was no question and answer which most of us we do not know about except some who brought if there was anything different Kinijit would have done to keep the democratisation process in track.

 

Dr Birhanu confirmed once again Kinijit had already awarded the regime to rule for the next five years if free  institutions is going to be formed to help the democratic process for the future on their eight points and the answer they got was jail and there is nothing they can do than to accept jail rather than seating in the parliament and betray the millions who elected them.

 

We are now on the situation before the 2005 election and the regime is now preparing for the next election by ignoring the demands set by Kinijit and I will not be surprised if these leaders are thrown again in to jail and the question is will the population accept such action or  we will never have another free election again that will cost TPLF and its Western supporters imposing their will on our people.

 

The Diaspora role should focus on the future and it is sad to see and hear fights in  the name of Kinijit on matters that do not reflect our peoples wish and if we have decency let us help the cause of our people and otherwise let us not soil Kinijit's name for which the elected leaders and thousands others paid dearly and willing to pay until the democratisation process is on track to leave our country to be  run by people for people not by power of gun and foreign support.

Delay or Denial of USA Visa for Engineer Hailu Shawel

Tedla Asfaw                                                                                                                                                September 3, 2007

 

 

Engineer Hailu Shawel's short interview I heard posted (Sept. 3) on ethiolion.com says a lot about USA Administration and as Engineer Hailu put it you can not force any country to give you an entry visa for foreign nationals.

 

We should not also use this visa issue as Ato Mirchaw of Ethiopiawinet on his short interview tried as some Kinijit delegates got it while Engineer Hailu Shawel visa is delayed or denied.

 

This in fact was intended to make such division among Kinijit delegates by foreigners but it will back fire and galvanize all Ethiopian Nationals to stand by our leaders whether they are in USA or Europe.

 

The delegates planned trip to North America can not make or brake Kinijt and we all know that the struggle is back home and Engineer Hailu told us Kinijit is still not registered legally and can not call any public gatherings and hundreds maybe thousands of its young supporters are still in jail and a lot of hard and frustrating work remains behind.

 

It seems now that most of the Kinijit delegates without their chairman will be in USA this month as Dr. Befikaddu Degeffe the financial chief of Kinijit said recently in his interview they need money.

 

We can raise money to the Kinijit struggle back home and that will be possible while the leadership is with us in the Diaspora and that is a positive thing that will come out of their tour in North America.

 

As far as the struggle it should focus on more mass mobilization back home and  less politics in the Diaspora  and more fund raising for our peoples fight against foreign sponsored tyranny.

 

 

                                                                                                                                               Yechalal,

 

                                                                                                                                Melkame Esra Meete for all Ethiopian Nationals