Tedla Asfaw
Hundreds of Ethiopians are protesting against the presence of Meles Zenawi to co-chair the environmental finance conference with Gordon Brown in London right now. Meles Zenawi has come to London after it launched its pre election terror and sadly the European Union promised to send observers to give legitimacy for this crime. EU is sending its delegates to participate on the coronation of Meles Zenawi for five more years. Opposition leaders and candidates are jailed and killed and it is shame Gordon Brown is seating with a known human right abuser.
Will Gordon Brown seat with Osama Bin Laden to find a solution for terrorism ? That is what he did by seating with the known human right abuser, unelected leader to find a solution for global environmental problem. If the eighty million Ethiopians are from other planet then Gordon Brown is right to worry for the coming death and destruction from the global warming. Ethiopians are currently dying from terror organized by Meles Zenawi while Gordon Brown is worried for future loss of lives due to global warming.
Our people struggle will go on with or without freedom loving people support and no force and terror will stop Ethiopians march towards freedom. Meles Zenawi might be a darling of Gordon Brown but he is not an elected leader of Ethiopia. The least we ask Gordon Brown and other western leaders is not to give money in the name of poverty alleviation that is used to terrorize our people.
Wednesday, 31 March 2010
Friday, 19 March 2010
Voice of America as a voice for voiceless Ethiopians !!
Tedla Asfaw
This month has been the best for listeners back home and the rest of us in the diaspora thanks to VOA Amharic programs that covered issues that is critical to the future of Ethiopia and the well being of Ethiopians. The issue of the land grab by foreigners was the best of VOA Amharic by Tizita Belachew. This land grab documentary by VOA exposed the Ethiopian regime for leasing Ethiopian land for up to ninety nine years that attracted almost five thousands foreign landlords due to its cheap land deal promised by round o clock security protection by by the ruling regime. This is the program that certainly angered Meles Zenaw to start new business called Jamming Radio Enterprise.
This new company has the start up capital from EFFORT, a company that was born twenty five years ago from food aid that was again confirmed by Ato Seye Abraha this month. The jamming industry did start business five years ago around the 2005 election and draw its first "profit" the same year. It went out of business the same year.
Before it went out of business,however,VOA Amharic journalists were accused of genocide and due to pressure from USA the charge was dropped and this same charge has now come to the VOA Amharic. Meles Zenawi accused of VOA Amharic as hate messengers like that of Radio Mille Collines of Rwanda that organized and led the genocide in Rwanda in 1994.
Meles Zenawi is telling VOA English that his Jamming Enterprise after it went out of business for the last five years is now back to business and is going to sale its stocks for public soon. Providing the pubic with Chinese made radios that are allergic to short waves will be the strategic goal but in the short term the Jamming Enterprise might be forced to shut off power until it perfects its new technology of jamming for emergency when VOA Amharic is on air around 9PM. Battery business will be booming like the generator. We know who makes the money.
"I declare for the coming two months until my coronation, to finish the job I started two decades ago, VOA Amharic the number one enemy of my administration". VOA Afan Oromo and Tigrena according to Meles Zenawi are not as bad as the Amharic.
This is identical to Hutus VS Tutsis scare he declared on last election in 2005 after our people voted for Kinijit on landslide. Divide Ethiopians wherever they are as Amharas/Amharic VS all others shamefully. How comes VOA Amharic is bad to be compared to Radio Mille Collines that gave the address of Tutsis to be killed live on radio.
What VOA Amharic did is read on air the names of poor farmers whose land was given to new foreign landlords. This is journalism at its best telling the truth. I wonder where those poor farmers by now are. Not only lost their land they now will be charged for telling their stories that angered Meles Zenawi, his March madness.
Yes we are mad too. Our anger is not as one ethnic group VS others as Meles quotes whenever he is threatened, Hutus VS Tutsis every five years, but to his regime and all foreign landlords who are taking poor farmers land. This is not only anger I can assure you, no foreign landlords will harvest sack of crop without any challenge. Give order to your Interahamwee/Agazi and let the fight begins.
Meles Zenawi's Interahamwee has already started its job. Aregawi Gebremedhin the father of six children a candidate for Mederk was killed in Tigray and this is not a one man job will not be over by locking one man for fifteen years. Killing in Eastern part of Ethiopia is going on. Warning to students from elementary to universities is given by Meles Zenawi. The next two months plan to jam VOA Amharic is not surprising.
It is the fear that victims and their families will come on air and expose these crimes in a language which is widely spoken, Amharic, made VOA Amharic a target. We expose TPLF's crimes for foreigners in their language but TPLF did not jam BBC for that matter for exposing food aid for gun this month.
VOA Amharic did a good service by inviting former and current TPLF bosses like Aregawi Berhe, Gebremedhin Araya and in fact the famous interview of Aboy Sibhat Nega, my favorite a year ago. "We did not know each other before the TPLF infrastructure development, people start coming together". "EFFORT is the richest company and it is only Tigrean". These were the words of Aboy Sibaht Nega and no one cry Hutus VS Tutssi as Meles Zenawi wished then. In fact Seye Abraha told us this week that EFFORT is now a few selected TPLF family members property.
On recent program on the food aid loot and the massacre in Hawzen more than two decades ago we heard Aregawi Berhe and Gebremedhin Araya though they have the same stand when it comes to food aid for gun by TPLF they differ on what happened in Hawezene. VOA Amharic put the opinion of Aregawi who accused Derg for the crime and Gebremedhin Araya accuseing TPLF for orchestrating the crime to get the support of Tigrayans. That is journalism as we know it in a civilized society.
Today we will have Aregash Adane an opposition candidate to challenge Meles in Adwa and Aregawi Berhe are debating the issue of food aid for gun and many including Meles Zenawi are listening. VOA Amharic is giving an alternative for our people. Let TPLF talk about its development proudly and if this development changed peoples lives why to worry about the Hutus VS Tutsis. As Aboy Sibhat Nega said thanks to TPLF Ethiopians have come closer.
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
Congratulatory letter to Seye Abraha
Dear Seye Abraha,
I just finished reading nine pages speech by you on Medrek gathering, estimated to be six thousands, at Mekelle Municipality last Sunday. The speech was one of the best I heard from former TPLF leaders. I wish you made such speech when you joined the UDJP few months ago. On that speech I congratulate Dr. Negasso Gidada while demanding more from you on my piece, "Well come Dr. Negasso Gidada and we are waiting for the arrival of Seye Abraha". I am happy your plane touched at the Mekelle Municipality safely last Sunday. Well come home Ato Seye Abraha.
I have respect for you and I saluted you when you came out of jail after separated from your family for more than six years. I wish you success on whatever political platform you wish to serve your country. I wish Medrek and AEUP work in collaboration than adversarial because the only one will benefit from such division is none other than the TPLF gangs.
Yours,
Tedla Asfaw
Thursday, 4 March 2010
Bob Geldoff defending the looters of food aid ?
Tedla Asfaw
I met Bob Geldoff in Belgium, Ghent, in 1986-87 by accident in conference as a young student and was excited to see him after the live aid he organized saved the lives of the famine of 1984-85 victims in northern Ethiopia of Tigray.This young man was my hero and many Ethiopians do believe like that. However, Ethiopia after twenty five years of the great famine is still on food aid, wide famine has been averted only because of food aid by USA and the west for TPLF since it has been in power in 1991. The hundred millions of dollars food aid "fruit" is also visible buying wealth for TPLF millionaires.
The current rulers of Ethiopia, TPLF, which Bob Geldoff know them personally are millionaires using looted money from food aid. BBC documentary by Martin Plaut, March 3. 2010, exposed, though late, how aid money was used to buy weapons which many Ethiopians have been aware thanks to one of the person in the documentary, Gebre Medhin Araya, TPLF fighter then. The scheme of deception and looting has been the trade mark of TPLF since that deadly famine. An experience that is only getting sophisticated year to year after TPLF has controlled power for almost two decades.
What Matin Plaut did is telling the world community what he found in his one year investigation, no wonder, the thieves and those who were cheated, the aid agencies, are crying foul. I wish Bob Geldoff has not declined the invitation for the documentary. However, Bob Geldoff defending the looters and accusing BBC for the story and accusing the former TPLF fighters who are our heroes as disgruntled people is to be fooled once more and we totally reject it.
Let me tell you one thing Mr. Geldoff. The aid money that went through, Relief Society of Tigray( REST) is now under Endowment Fund For Rehabilitation of Tigray (EFFORT) that controls ninety percent of wealth in Ethiopia. This is a fact and the source of the wealth is foreign food aid which you yourself and other aid agencies handed to REST/TPLF in Khartoum for which Gebre Medhin Araya was a witness, TPLF treasurer.
Mr. Geldoff, whatever is exposed now can not be washed away as a case of few disgruntled individuals including Aregawi Berhe former TPLF commander, trying to score points. The fruit of the loot is open for all to see. As I said last year on the twenty fifth anniversary of the famine on my piece, "Millionaires were born out of Ethiopia's famine" Oct. 25, 2009. Now as BBC reported it was also used to buy weapons. Stop the cover up Mr. Geldoff, and I urge you to distance yourself from Meles Zenawi and other looters who are busy now selling Ethiopian land for fast cash in open market.
The diaspora community will rally against Meles Zenawi and call for him to step down representing Africa in global environmental conference. A man who supervised the sale of "Sand for Money" is responsible for the loss of thousand of lives and can not be a spokesperson for planet earth. My hero, Bob Geldoff defending such a man is an insult to all Ethiopians, the victims of that famine and those of us who are still alive !!!!
I met Bob Geldoff in Belgium, Ghent, in 1986-87 by accident in conference as a young student and was excited to see him after the live aid he organized saved the lives of the famine of 1984-85 victims in northern Ethiopia of Tigray.This young man was my hero and many Ethiopians do believe like that. However, Ethiopia after twenty five years of the great famine is still on food aid, wide famine has been averted only because of food aid by USA and the west for TPLF since it has been in power in 1991. The hundred millions of dollars food aid "fruit" is also visible buying wealth for TPLF millionaires.
The current rulers of Ethiopia, TPLF, which Bob Geldoff know them personally are millionaires using looted money from food aid. BBC documentary by Martin Plaut, March 3. 2010, exposed, though late, how aid money was used to buy weapons which many Ethiopians have been aware thanks to one of the person in the documentary, Gebre Medhin Araya, TPLF fighter then. The scheme of deception and looting has been the trade mark of TPLF since that deadly famine. An experience that is only getting sophisticated year to year after TPLF has controlled power for almost two decades.
What Matin Plaut did is telling the world community what he found in his one year investigation, no wonder, the thieves and those who were cheated, the aid agencies, are crying foul. I wish Bob Geldoff has not declined the invitation for the documentary. However, Bob Geldoff defending the looters and accusing BBC for the story and accusing the former TPLF fighters who are our heroes as disgruntled people is to be fooled once more and we totally reject it.
Let me tell you one thing Mr. Geldoff. The aid money that went through, Relief Society of Tigray( REST) is now under Endowment Fund For Rehabilitation of Tigray (EFFORT) that controls ninety percent of wealth in Ethiopia. This is a fact and the source of the wealth is foreign food aid which you yourself and other aid agencies handed to REST/TPLF in Khartoum for which Gebre Medhin Araya was a witness, TPLF treasurer.
Mr. Geldoff, whatever is exposed now can not be washed away as a case of few disgruntled individuals including Aregawi Berhe former TPLF commander, trying to score points. The fruit of the loot is open for all to see. As I said last year on the twenty fifth anniversary of the famine on my piece, "Millionaires were born out of Ethiopia's famine" Oct. 25, 2009. Now as BBC reported it was also used to buy weapons. Stop the cover up Mr. Geldoff, and I urge you to distance yourself from Meles Zenawi and other looters who are busy now selling Ethiopian land for fast cash in open market.
The diaspora community will rally against Meles Zenawi and call for him to step down representing Africa in global environmental conference. A man who supervised the sale of "Sand for Money" is responsible for the loss of thousand of lives and can not be a spokesperson for planet earth. My hero, Bob Geldoff defending such a man is an insult to all Ethiopians, the victims of that famine and those of us who are still alive !!!!
Wednesday, 3 March 2010
Pre Election Terror should be condemned by all !!!!
Tedla Asfaw
The killing in Tigray of a Medrek candidate last this past Monday is an Election Terror ninety days before a planned election. Meles Zenawi who declared five years ago Interhawe for his supporters to start a war Tigrayans VS others after he lost election and failed miserably and is now calling Tigrayans to kill each other for him to stay on power. His cadres answered and spilled blood when we are celebrating the Adwa victory in Adwa.
He started an election terror early this time and the killing of Aregawi Gebre Medhin and injuring other candidate gravely is the beginning of an election terror.
AEUP president Eng. Hailu Shawel previously informed us one killing in Gonder a member and now the Medrek candidate killing should not be seen in isolation. It is our death by all definition. The death of Medrek candidate and AEUP member are both to chase away opponents way before election starts.
Both are the attempt to kill us separately because TPLF thinks Medrek and AEUP will not stand together. Big miscalculation !!!!It is time for AEUP and Medrek to denounce these killings in unison. Gebru, Seye, Beyene, Merara, Gizachew and Hailu have to stand together to fight the killers by mobilizing the masses.
Indifference to loss of life is unacceptable. Those who died were killed for organizing their supporters and if the leaders of Medrek and AEUP are not standing together they will be losers.
I urge the diaspora supporters of these parties not to look for an scapegoat, Hailu Shawel, for TPLF killing. This is not Medrek VS AEUP it is the killers VS those who are organizing their constituencies peacefully.
AEUP made it clear way before this killing that it will only be part of a transparent election. If not it will not participate to give legitimacy to the killers.
I am encouraged that Medrek's leadership is now turning three hundred sixty degree that boycotting of this election is a possibility. Organized boycotting by AEUP and Medrek has to be explored immediately.
Unite and defend our people !!!
The killing in Tigray of a Medrek candidate last this past Monday is an Election Terror ninety days before a planned election. Meles Zenawi who declared five years ago Interhawe for his supporters to start a war Tigrayans VS others after he lost election and failed miserably and is now calling Tigrayans to kill each other for him to stay on power. His cadres answered and spilled blood when we are celebrating the Adwa victory in Adwa.
He started an election terror early this time and the killing of Aregawi Gebre Medhin and injuring other candidate gravely is the beginning of an election terror.
AEUP president Eng. Hailu Shawel previously informed us one killing in Gonder a member and now the Medrek candidate killing should not be seen in isolation. It is our death by all definition. The death of Medrek candidate and AEUP member are both to chase away opponents way before election starts.
Both are the attempt to kill us separately because TPLF thinks Medrek and AEUP will not stand together. Big miscalculation !!!!It is time for AEUP and Medrek to denounce these killings in unison. Gebru, Seye, Beyene, Merara, Gizachew and Hailu have to stand together to fight the killers by mobilizing the masses.
Indifference to loss of life is unacceptable. Those who died were killed for organizing their supporters and if the leaders of Medrek and AEUP are not standing together they will be losers.
I urge the diaspora supporters of these parties not to look for an scapegoat, Hailu Shawel, for TPLF killing. This is not Medrek VS AEUP it is the killers VS those who are organizing their constituencies peacefully.
AEUP made it clear way before this killing that it will only be part of a transparent election. If not it will not participate to give legitimacy to the killers.
I am encouraged that Medrek's leadership is now turning three hundred sixty degree that boycotting of this election is a possibility. Organized boycotting by AEUP and Medrek has to be explored immediately.
Unite and defend our people !!!
Monday, 1 March 2010
Who said we need election ?
Tedla Asfaw
I am not a fan of a strong man of Eritrea, Isaias Afeworki, and I did not show up on the Feb.24 demonstration in Washington D.C. to denounce the USA sponsored sanction against Eritrea. One thing I agree with Isaias Afeworki is his stand on election. He never believes in election like his neighbor TPLF led Ethiopia. On many interviews he told us that such election is a waste of resources and lives as we saw five year ago in May 2005 in Ethiopia.
Since 1991 Isaias has not conducted any election while his counterpart in Addis have conducted many including the election billed to the world as "Enkene Yeleshe Mircha"/ flawless election. We all know what happened and Ethiopians are still not recovering from the trauma of May 7, 2005 election and its aftermath.
A TPLF led regime is known on exaggeration of its strength except being surprised on Badme war more than a decade ago and our people election verdict five years ago. It lost both, the Badme war and the election of May 2005. It was only after using Ethiopian nationalism and the call of defending the mother land it beat back Shabia and recovered Badme. However, recovering from its electoral defeat of May 2005 is impossible in any transparent election.
Moreover, since May 2005 election we heard Meles Zenawi and his top cadres telling us that they learned form their loss of May 2005 and will do all to win in the May 23, 2010 election. For the majority of Ethiopians nothing has changed in their lives to change their vote of May 2005. In a fair and free election the ruling regime in Ethiopia is gone for good and the truth is it will stay on power for years to come to catch up with the Asian Tigers and its model is not the West but China. Development for the masses and politics for ideological or tribal elites
The cry of development, the infrastructure, schools,clinics double digit economic growth is not benefiting the people whose living standard is going down daily. I have not seen also development attracting Ethiopian Diasporas going back to Ethiopia in masses to help themselves and their country.
The only one who are benefiting from infrastructure development are foreign investors/landlords that are coming to buy cheap land that will primarily benefit them, the regime at the expense of poor rural farmers and will have great consequence, destroying Ethiopian agriculture. The infrastructure development is helping these foreigners to ship their harvest out from the land locked Ethiopia that will live on donated food for years to come.
The regime is boasting number of clinics and number of schools built in many parts of Ethiopia. It claims itself as a development state like Peoples Republic of China. What we all know is that China reached its current high development without any election. Eritrea media is also full of development news without any election. So why do we spend resources for such election ?
Neither Eritrea nor China will waste their resources in election fiasco. The truth is that the Ethiopian regime is surviving on foreign loans, budget subsidy and its defense budget paid fully by the west primarily USA.. To get all these aids the West demands election fair or not, for poor Ethiopia. No one asks China to make election because the big corporation of the West are making big investment in China and in fact less in an elected government of India.
Moreover, the Ethiopian regime is accountable to its subsidizers, the West. Their interest is to fight their war on terror in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East. The West argue that Ethiopia is a strategic country and Meles Zenawi is a respectable leader who Liston to them not Isaias who put his finger on their eyes, deserves sanction or possible regime change.
The May 23 election is only less than ninety days and the game remains still the same. Election to satisfy the demand of the West not to empower our people in a fair, free and transparent election. I hope the West will not hold back its aid if our people boycott this coming election.
I am not a fan of a strong man of Eritrea, Isaias Afeworki, and I did not show up on the Feb.24 demonstration in Washington D.C. to denounce the USA sponsored sanction against Eritrea. One thing I agree with Isaias Afeworki is his stand on election. He never believes in election like his neighbor TPLF led Ethiopia. On many interviews he told us that such election is a waste of resources and lives as we saw five year ago in May 2005 in Ethiopia.
Since 1991 Isaias has not conducted any election while his counterpart in Addis have conducted many including the election billed to the world as "Enkene Yeleshe Mircha"/ flawless election. We all know what happened and Ethiopians are still not recovering from the trauma of May 7, 2005 election and its aftermath.
A TPLF led regime is known on exaggeration of its strength except being surprised on Badme war more than a decade ago and our people election verdict five years ago. It lost both, the Badme war and the election of May 2005. It was only after using Ethiopian nationalism and the call of defending the mother land it beat back Shabia and recovered Badme. However, recovering from its electoral defeat of May 2005 is impossible in any transparent election.
Moreover, since May 2005 election we heard Meles Zenawi and his top cadres telling us that they learned form their loss of May 2005 and will do all to win in the May 23, 2010 election. For the majority of Ethiopians nothing has changed in their lives to change their vote of May 2005. In a fair and free election the ruling regime in Ethiopia is gone for good and the truth is it will stay on power for years to come to catch up with the Asian Tigers and its model is not the West but China. Development for the masses and politics for ideological or tribal elites
The cry of development, the infrastructure, schools,clinics double digit economic growth is not benefiting the people whose living standard is going down daily. I have not seen also development attracting Ethiopian Diasporas going back to Ethiopia in masses to help themselves and their country.
The only one who are benefiting from infrastructure development are foreign investors/landlords that are coming to buy cheap land that will primarily benefit them, the regime at the expense of poor rural farmers and will have great consequence, destroying Ethiopian agriculture. The infrastructure development is helping these foreigners to ship their harvest out from the land locked Ethiopia that will live on donated food for years to come.
The regime is boasting number of clinics and number of schools built in many parts of Ethiopia. It claims itself as a development state like Peoples Republic of China. What we all know is that China reached its current high development without any election. Eritrea media is also full of development news without any election. So why do we spend resources for such election ?
Neither Eritrea nor China will waste their resources in election fiasco. The truth is that the Ethiopian regime is surviving on foreign loans, budget subsidy and its defense budget paid fully by the west primarily USA.. To get all these aids the West demands election fair or not, for poor Ethiopia. No one asks China to make election because the big corporation of the West are making big investment in China and in fact less in an elected government of India.
Moreover, the Ethiopian regime is accountable to its subsidizers, the West. Their interest is to fight their war on terror in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East. The West argue that Ethiopia is a strategic country and Meles Zenawi is a respectable leader who Liston to them not Isaias who put his finger on their eyes, deserves sanction or possible regime change.
The May 23 election is only less than ninety days and the game remains still the same. Election to satisfy the demand of the West not to empower our people in a fair, free and transparent election. I hope the West will not hold back its aid if our people boycott this coming election.
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