Tedla Asfaw
The Ethiopian Rally on Saturday April 9 in front of the Adam Clayton Plaza in Harlem is mainly to educate New Yorkers on what is going on the second floor, "Art Show".The letter we received from Ethiopian Mission in New York is not about "Art", it is a political gathering by the dictatorial regime of Ethiopia. Many things have been said about this regime by human right organizations and I am not going to waste time here. This is a continuation of the Art of Cheating, "election", "Growth" and " Investment" in Ethiopia for the last two decades, now on its high gear after TPLF was defeated by popular vote in 2005.
Ethiopia under the current regime for the last two decades is a country that drove many educated people to exile because if you are not joining their "Art Show " you have no Right to Live in your own country. These same people are following the Ethiopian Diaspora they chase to "invest" his or her money to keep the ruling tribal elite for "infinity". On a recent interview TPLF/EPRDF Ambassador to United Nations,Tekeda Alemu, clearly told us politics is now a domain of the few elites and the masses have just to harvest the fruit of Meles Zenawi "Growth and Transformation".
Therefore booking the meeting as "Art Show" is not by accident it is how the regime operates, cheating all the way, call it Tomahawk cheating across Atlantic. The "Growth" and Transformation" in the next five years "contract" under TPLF/EPRDF is not new. There has been growth and transformation for the very few and millions of Ethiopian lives,however, is getting worst day to day. Egyptians and Tunisians revolted not for piece of bread but for liberty. But, Ethiopian revolution first and foremost is going to be for the right to feed oneself by putting all resources to our people. You can not build any democracy with empty belly or by food aid from West. Thirty years of subsidy by the West did not stop the Egypt revolution and it will not stop the coming Ethiopian revolution.
This "Growth and Transformation" has been going on for the very few and why it has now become a Diaspora Project is clear for all Ethiopians. Our people back home are living in empty belly and fear. Ethiopians are forbidden to come out on street to show their grievances, a right to feed themselves and their children, live without fear.The West so called Aid to Ethiopia is to feed our people so that they will not revolt. Make no mistake Ethiopians have no less aspiration to that of Egyptians, Tunisians, Yemenis, Libyans and Bahrain for freedom. Poverty does not mean we have no aspiration for liberty. We showed to the whole world more than five years ago that our poverty is mainly a result of unaccountable rulers and real Growth and Transformation can only be achieved by empowering the Ethiopian people.
The supporters of this regime are now on mission to "empower" the Diaspora. Living in a democracy we know what freedom is, without political freedom there is no economic freedom. First and foremost the right to freely express yourself, the right of free assembly and the right to vote for your representatives on all stages of government.
Ethiopia is now Saudi Arabia without oil. The rulers are for life unchallenged and even cross borders to squash any protest that will undermine their hold on power, Saudi did it this month by going to Bahrain destroying the popular uprising. The Ethiopian regime crossed to Somalia on Christmas 2006 and kill a lot of Somalis on its two year occupation. The drum war against Eritrea at present is a continuation of that, destroy anything which threaten their hold to power. "Destroying" Diaspora, the voice of the voiceless Ethiopians, is the main agenda of the "Art Show".
Both these regimes are supported by USA previous and current administration. The West claims "national interest" in Persian Gulf and in Ethiopia they have a regime that contracted itself to the USA war to fight "Islamic Extremism" in Somalia . Eighty millions of Ethiopians do not deserve the freedom the Tunisians and Egyptians got by their popular uprising. The reason is Meles Zenawi is good for America even if it is bad for 80 million Ethiopians.
Like the Yemen people who are now more than a month on revolt they have to be slaughtered to keep the West backed Saleh on power as is called by Secretary of Defense, Bob Gates, in many occasions. West has national interest in Yemen and if that interest collides with the freedom of millions let it be. The value of freedom we dearly hold here in America is traded for tyranny, fighting few fringe "fanatics' who are flourishing under tyranny itself.
Make no mistake it is Saudi Arabia and Libya who exported fighters to fight USA in Iraq than any other country.Tyranny is not helping fighting any extremism, it is a breeding ground for many fanatics. September 11 is a good example for that, Saudi extremists attacked the wrong target. We have been saying that the West siding with the totalitarian regime of Ethiopia for two decades is a bad investment like it was exposed in Egypt.
Ethiopians are demanding freedom like Egyptians, Tunisians, Yemenis, Bahrain and Libyans. We have been calling on many times through writings and rallies. Our recent rally in New York last September at Columbia University denouncing the presence of Meles Zenawi was a success and we reached to the Colombian Community that giving platform for human right abusers in this age is shameful and should be condemned by all.
The April 9 rally in Harlem will educate the the Harlem community why we should not give platform to human right abusers. Had our people had such liberty no need for such rally.However, those who shut our people mouth in Ethiopia can not shut our mouth here because we are not afraid or intimidate by them.
The thousands who will come out this coming Saturday in Harlem and throughout America cities including Canada each of us is carrying the voice of hundred thousand of our people.We are proud of doing it. We will expose the "Growth and Transformation" fiasco in its true nature, "Greed and Transaction", selling the land of our country and Ethiopians, cheap "Transaction" driven by total Greed by very few tribal elites. We will not be part of such "Art Show" !!!!!!
