ETV የአዲስ አበባ መጅሊስና የአዲስ አበባ መስተዳድር ስብሰባ ዘገባ የካቲት 19 2005

ADDIS GETEM LE BERARIWU SAJIND ZEMDKUN

Obama: Failing the African Spring?

Obama: Failing the African Spring?

Helen Epstein

Saul Loeb/Getty Images

President Barack Obama preparing to

 address Ghana's parliament, Accra, Ghana, 

July 11, 2009

America’s new drone base in the West African city of Niamey, Niger, announced by the White House on Friday, further expands our counter-terrorism activity in Africa. It’s also consistent with the militaristic emphasis of the Obama administration’s engagement with the continent. This may help contain the spread of jihadist violence in specific cases, but by failing to address persistent abuses of human rights by our African military allies, America is also undermining its own development investments that are intended to lift millions of people out of poverty and ensure the continent’s peace, stability, and economic growth.
The administration’s neglect of human rights in Africa is a great disappointment, since the president began his first term by laying out ambitious new goals for the continent. In July 2009, when his presidency was only six months old, Barack Obama delivered a powerful speech at Cape Coast Castle in Ghana, the point from which millions of African slaves were shipped across the Atlantic. He called on African countries to end the tyranny of corruption that affects so many of their populations, and to build strong institutions that serve the people and hold leaders accountable. The speech seemed to extend the message of his much-discussed Cairo address a month earlier, in which he called for a new beginning for Muslim relations with the West, based on non-violence and mutual respect. Many thought that the policies of the new president, himself of Kenyan descent, would depart from those of the Bush administration, which provided a great deal of development aid to Africa, but paid scant attention to human rights.
After more than four years in office, however, Obama has done little to advance the idealistic goals of his Ghana speech. The US finally suspended military aid to Rwanda last year, after it was forced to accept evidence of Rwandan support for the brutal Congolese rebel group M23, but has otherwise ignored the highly problematic human rights situation in that country. In Uganda, the US looked on for years as President Yoweri Museveni’s cabinet ministers gorged themselves on American and other foreign aid intended for impoverished farmers, war victims, roads, and health care. US diplomats have recently begun expressing support for Uganda’s many oppressed civil society groups, but one wonders what took them so long. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that Uganda is a vital US military ally in Somalia, where Ugandan troops helped oust the Islamic militant group al-Shabbab from Mogadishu last year.
Meanwhile, Kenya, another important US ally in Somalia that is soon to be receiving drones from the Pentagon, is preparing for national elections on March 4. But some observers say the country is more violent now than it was in 2007, when post-election ethnic clashes left 1000 people dead and caused economic chaos across East Africa. Presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta and his running mate William Ruto have both been indicted by the International Criminal Court for crimes connected with those events. It’s not clear what the US will do if Kenyatta wins, but it often seems as if Obama will work with any African leader who furthers America’s military aims, regardless of how that leader treats his own people.

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Ethiopian Muslims protesting in Addis Ababa, October, 2012

And then there is Ethiopia. Today, Western nations give $3.5 billion a year in aid to Ethiopia, most of it for health care projects, food aid, and other development programs. Of this, the US alone provides roughly $700 million—an amount that has quintupled in the past decade, even as the nation’s human rights record has deteriorated to the point that Freedom House now designates it one of the least free countries in the world. The Ethiopian government has rigged elections, taken control of the economy, and outlawed virtually all independent media and human rights activity in the country—including work related to women and children’s rights, good governance, and conflict resolution. Thousands of political prisoners languish behind bars and dozens of editors, journalists, judges, lawyers, and academics have been forced into exile.
But when Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi died last summer, then-US Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice praised him as a personal friend and a “talented and vital leader.” When she remarked that “he had little patience for fools, or ‘idiots,’ as he liked to call them,” some in the opposition believed she was referring to them—and approving Meles’s sentiments. Rice’s support for authoritarian leaders in Africa was highlighted by critics who opposed—and ultimately derailed—her nomination to be secretary of state.
Perhaps most worrying of all is the unwillingness of Obama and other Western leaders to say or do anything to support the hundreds of thousands of Muslim Ethiopians who have been demonstrating peacefully against government interference in their religious affairs for more than a year. (The Ethiopian government claims the country has a Christian majority, but Muslims may account for up to one half of the population.) You’d think a nonviolent Islamic movement would be just the kind of thing the Obama administration would want to showcase to the world. It has no hint of terrorist influence, and its leaders are calling for a secular government under the slogan “We have a cause worth dying for, but not worth killing for.” Indeed, the Ethiopian protesters may be leading Africa’s most promising and important nonviolent human rights campaign since the anti-apartheid struggle.
Yet the United States, along with other major donors to Ethiopia’s government, including Britain, has stood by as women and men have been hideously beaten by police, hundreds have been arrested, eight people have been killed, mosques have been raided by security forces, and twenty-nine Muslim leaders, including lawyers, professors, and businessmen, remain in jail, charged with trying to use violent means to create an Islamic state.
The demonstrations started in late 2011, after the government began forcing Imams to adopt an imported version of Islam. The Ethiopian government has a long history of trying to control civil society groups, including religious orders, by taking over their leadership. In 1992, Meles replaced the Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian Church with a party insider. Many Christians still resent this. In 1995, he replaced the leader of the Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council, also known as the “Majlis,” again with someone from his party. Muslims grumbled about this, but did little more.
Then in 2011, on the pretext that the Islamic community was being radicalized by fundamentalist groups, Meles invited a Lebanese Islamic sect known as “Ahbash” to Ethiopia. The group, which was founded in Beirut by an Ethiopian exile in 1983, preaches obedience to government and opposes politicization of religion. All of Ethiopia’s Imams were required to go to meetings to listen to these newcomers, and were threatened with imprisonment if they refused. In the meetings, government officials were invariably present, and would lecture the imams about “Revolutionary Democracy,” the ruling party’s particularly rigid political doctrine. Most Ethiopian imams are volunteers, who work mainly as farmers, teachers, or in other trades to support themselves. But those who resisted taking part in the meetings and refused to preach the “Ahbash” version of Islam soon found themselves replaced by government-appointed, salaried adherents of the new official religion. The imams and their defenders began organizing nonviolent demonstrations that have since spread across the country.
In response, the Ethiopian government has attempted to portray the protesters as jihadists, most recently claiming in a government TV documentary that they are under the influence of Salafist extremists from Saudi Arabia. When a lawyer for the jailed movement leaders told a Voice of America journalist that the documentary undermined the presumption of innocence of his clients, he too was threatened with arrest. If this fear-mongering has been intended to send a message to the US, which supports Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism activities along the border with Somalia, it seems to have worked. Last year, former US Ambassador to Ethiopia David Shinn praised the Ethiopian reaction to the demonstrations, telling Reuters, “The government has done a pretty good job over the years in ameliorating religious differences where there are potentially serious conflicts.”
Ethiopian Muslims and Christians have long coexisted more or less in peace, as they do in Tanzania, Uganda, and other countries in the region. But since the demonstrations started, government officials have tried to infiltrate them and provoke violence among Muslim groups and between Muslims and Christians. It hasn’t worked. In recent months, Christians and secular human rights defenders have even joined in support of the Muslims, and the demonstrations have grown. The demonstrators use Facebook and secure Internet sites to outsmart government censors, and warn people to stay home when they learn that the government intends to plant violent hecklers among them to discredit the movement. When Abubakar Ahmed, the movement’s leader and history professor who had been detained with other protesters (he is one of the twenty-nine awaiting trial), was paraded in chains before TV cameras, protesters showed up at the next demonstration with his picture on their T-shirts, and stood in a phalanx before the police with their wrists crossed, as if they too were in chains.
The Ethiopian protests began around the time of the Arab Spring, when it seemed the Obama administration might finally begin taking human rights in Africa seriously. In late 2011, for example, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton joined British Prime Minister David Cameron in declaring that their governments would consider penalizing foreign aid recipients, including several African countries, that cracked down on the rights of homosexuals. This rallying to the cause of gay rights would be heartening, if it weren’t for the fact that Cameron and Clinton have done so little to protect everyone else’s rights. Such official statements could even undermine sympathy for the gay rights cause in Africa.
For years, observers have wondered what the US administration’s policy toward Africa really is. Then, three years into Obama’s first term, the White House finally released its first Africa strategy document. It states that the US will “promote strong democratic norms” and “support civil society actors who are creating vibrant democratic models….” But as the situations in Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Uganda make clear, little has been done to further these aims. While continuing most of the development and public health initiatives of the Bush Administration, the Obama administration has given priority to US military aims.
Failing to challenge government corruption and repression undermines economic growth and social development throughout East Africa and beyond, as well the prospects for long term peace and stability. Even our direct military interventions have had dubious results. Experts continue to debate the wisdom of intervening in Libya, but there is no arguing with the fact that it helped rally—and arm—al-Qaeda supporters, who have spread terror to Mali and Algeria and perhaps other West African countries; impoverished Niger agreed to host the new US drone base in part out of growing fear of the jihadism that has spread from Libya.
More than half a century of post-independence African history has shown that focusing on stability, security and development while ignoring democracy and human rights is self-defeating, because it undermines those very goals. The US and other Western donors to Africa must do more to use the many instruments at their disposal to promote the reforms necessary to protect basic freedoms and uphold the rule of law. This will pose diplomatic challenges, but they could start by not turning their backs on peaceful protesters, just when our moral support—at the very least—is most urgently needed. As Czech playwright, dissident, and former president Vaclav Havel put it during the depths of Cold War, “The ‘dissident’ movements do not shy away from the idea of violent political overthrow because the idea seems too radical, but on the contrary, because it does not seem radical enough.” At the time, Western leaders rushed to support Havel and other non-violent activists throughout Europe. Now that Africans are calling for the same thing, why don’t today’s leaders do the same for them?
February 25, 2013, 5:53 p.m

Ethiopian Muslim The Majlis Issue Part II New Best documentary Video...

የኢቲቪ ጀሃዳዊ ሀረካት የፈጠራ ድራማ የመብት ትግላችንን አይገታም

የኢቲቪ ጀሃዳዊ ሀረካት የፈጠራ ድራማ የመብት ትግላችንን አይገታም
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- (ሪሳላ ኢንተርናሽናል ሚኒሶታ 02-18-2013)
በቅርቡ በኢትዮጵያ ቴሌቪዥን ጀሀዳዊ ሀረካት በሚል ስያሜ ተራ የፈጠራ ተራኪ ፊልም ለህዝብ መተላለፉ ይታወቃል። በማናቸውም መመዘኛ ቅንጣት እውነታን ያላዘለ አግባብነት የሌለው ውንጀላ የሞላበት ለመሆኑ ለመረዳት አያዳግትም፤ የፊልሙ አዘጋጆች ምን ያህል የወረደ የሞራል ዝቅጠት ደረጃ ላይ እንደ ደረሰ የሚያመላክት ነው።
በዚህ ዓይነት የፈጠራ ተውኔት የሙስሊሙ የመብታችን ይከበር ጥያቄ ለማዳፈን ከንቱነት ነው። ሙስሊሙ ሕብረተሰባችን ትግሉን በስፉት ከጀመረበት ከ፩ አመት በላይ ፍጹም ሰላማዊ ጥያቄውን እያቀረበ ያለበት ስልት የሰለጠነና ሕግና ስርአትን የተከተለ ለመሆኑ የማያሻማ እውነታ ነው። በተገላቢጦሽ የመንግስትን ስልጣን የያዘው አካል ግን ሙስሊሙን ማሸበር፣ ማሰርና መግደል የእለት ተግባር አድርጎታል። በእስር ላይ በሚገኙ በመፍትሔ አፈላላጊ ኮሚቴ አባላትም ላይ እየደረሰ ያለው የአካል ጉዳትና የአእምሮ ሰቆቃ እጅግ ከፍተኛ ነው።
ይባስ ተብሎም ቅጥ ያጣው የመንግስት ድርጊት የሚያሳየን በፍርድ ቤት ለህዝብ እንዳይታይ እገዳ የተጣለበትን የኢቲቪ የፈጠራ ፊልም በግለሰብ ቀጭን ትእዛዝ ተሽሮ መቅረቡ ታውቋል። ይሕም ገዢው መንግስት ራሱን ከሕግ በላይ ማድረጉ እና ራሱ ህግን እንደፈለገው የሚያዘው መሆኑን ነው።
ሪሳላ ኢንተርናሽናል ከዚህ በታች የሚገለጸው አቋም ላይ መድረሱን ለሁሉም አበክርን እንገልፃለን።
፩ኛ. በእስርና በእንግልት ስር የሚገኙት የመፍትሔ አፈላላጊ ኮሚቴ አባላት ጎን ሁሌም በጽናት የምንቆም ሲሆን ያለንን አንድነት እንገልፃለን።
፪ኛ. በኢቲቪ ቴሌቭዥን የቀረበው ጅሐዳዊ ሀረካት የሀሰት ቅንብር ፊልም ህብረተሰቡን ለማደናገር ታስቦ የቀረበ በመሆኑ ይህንኑ እናወግዛለን። ከህዝብ በተሰበሰበ የታክስ ገንዘብ ለዚህ መሰሉ አሳፋሪ ተግባር በመዋሉ አሣዝኖናል።
፫ኛ. በግፍ በእስርና በእንግልት የሚገኙ የመፍትሔ አፈላላጊ ኮሚቴ አባላትና በየእስር ቤቱ የተሰሩ ሙስሊሞች በሙሉ ያላ ምንምቅድመ ሁኔታ በነፃ እንዲላቀቁ እንጠይቀለን።
፬ኛ. በሃገሪቱ በሚገኙ ከፍተኛ የትምህርት ተቋማት ሙስሊም ተማሪዎችን አፍኖ ማሰር ከትምህርት ገበታቸው ያለአግባብ ማገድና ማሸማቀቅ በአስቸኳይ እንዲገታ እንጠይቃለን።
፭ኛ. በሙስሊሙ ህብረተሰባችን የቀረበው ግልፅና መሰረታዊ የመብት ጥያቄ አሁንም ምላሽ የሚሹ በመሆኑ ለዚሁ ሰላማዊ ትግል ሙሉ ድጋፋችን እንገልፃለን ።
ኢስላም የሰላም ሃይማኖት ነዉ!!
እምነትን በነፃነት መተግበር ሰባዊ መብት ነዉ!
አላሁ አክበር! አላሁ አክበር! አላሁ አክበር!

Ethiopian Federal Police targets Muslims in house to house search - VOA

The Ethiopian-American Muslim Community in the Washington Metropolitan Area Deplores the Continued Gross Human Rights Violation by the Ethiopian Government

The Ethiopian-American Muslim Community in the Washington Metropolitan Area Deplores the Continued Gross Human Rights Violation by the Ethiopian Government

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Ethiopia: The Politics of Fear and Smear

2011: Dictatorship, corruption and the politics of fear and smear

Ethiopia: The Politics of Fear and Smear

Alemayehu G. Mariam | February 17th, 2013 In December 2011, I wrote a commentary entitled, “Ethiopia: Land of Blood or Land of Corruption?” contrasting two portraits of Ethiopia. At the time, the portrait painted by Transparency International (TI) (Corruption Index) and Global Financial Integrity (GFI) showed Ethiopia as a land blighted by  systemic corruption. GFI reported that “Ethiopia, which has a per-capita GDP of just US$365, lost US$11.7 billion to illicit financial outflows between 2000 and 2009. In 2009, illicit money leaving the economy totaled US$3.26 billion, which is double the amount in each of the two previous years.” TI gave Ethiopia a score of  2.7 on the Corruption Index (on a scale of 0 – 10, where 0 means “highly corrupt” and 10 means “very clean”).
At that time, the dictatorial regime, which is still in power today, sought to portray Ethiopia as a country under siege by traitorous terrorists. In a fear-mongering three-part propaganda “documentary” entitled “Akeldama” (or Land [field] of Blood, taken from  Acts 1:19 referring to a field said  to have been bought by Judas Iscariot with the thirty pieces of silver he got for betraying Jesus)  shown on ruling party-owned television service, the regime sought to depict Ethiopia as a country under withering terrorist attack by Ethiopian Diaspora opposition elements and their co-conspirators inside the country and other “terrorist” groups. “Akeldama” began with a proclamation on the arrival of a bloodbath doomsday in Ethiopia: “Terrorism is destroying the world. Terrorism is wrecking our daily lives, obstructing it. What I am telling you now is not about international terrorism. It is about a scheme that has been hatched against our country Ethiopia to turn her into Akeldama or land of blood. For us Ethiopians, terrorism has become a bitter problem….”
“Akeldama” stitched revolting and gruesome video clips and photomontage of terrorist carnage and destruction throughout the world to tar and feather all opponents of the late Meles Zenawi as stooges of Al-Qaeda and Al-Shabaab in Somalia. Gratuitously horrific images of dead bodies of babies and little children lying on the ground, fly-infested corpses of adults oozing blood on the asphalt, severed limbs scattered in the streets, burned vehicles, bombed buildings, doctors treating injured victims and footage of the imploding Twin Towers in New York City on September 11, 2011 were blended in a toxic video presentation to hypnotize and paralyze the population with fear and loathing. Following an orgiastic presentation of carnage and destruction, that “documentary”  pointed an accusatory finger at “ruthless terrorists” who are “destroying our peace” and “massacring our loved ones”. In a haunting voice, the narrator exhorts, “Let’s look at the evidence. In the past several years, there have been 131 terrorist attacks; 339 citizens killed; 363 injured and 25 kidnapped and killed by terrorists.”
By weaving deceitful, deceptive and distorted narratives between grisly spectacles of alleged terrorist atrocity, cruelty, brutality, bestiality and inhumanity from the world over, “Akeldama” hoped to create rabid public hysteria against Ethiopia’s opposition elements and justify the regime’s violent crackdowns on opposition elements. That propaganda hogwash gained little traction in the public mind.
2013: Dictatorship, corruption and the politics of fear and smear
Fast forward to February 2013. A recent exhaustive 448-page World Bank report revealed that Ethiopia has one of  the most corrupt-to-the-core regimes in the world.  According to this report, Ethiopia’s “Telecommunications Sector” is Corruption Central, the Ground Zero of Corruption: “Despite the country’s exceptionally heavy recent investment in its telecoms infrastructure, it has the second lowest telephone penetration rate in Africa. Amid its low service delivery, an apparent lack of accountability, and multiple court cases, some aspects of the sector are perceived by both domestic and international observers to be deeply affected by corruption.” Ethiopia’s “Construction Sector exhibits most of the classic warning signs of corruption risk, including instances of poor-quality construction, inflated unit output costs, and delays in implementation.” Corruption in the “Justice Sector” rears its ugly head in the form of “political interference with the independent actions of courts or other sector agencies, or payment or solicitation of bribes or other considerations to alter a decision or action.” Corruption in the “Land Sector” is built into the law itself: “The capture of state assets by the elite can occur through the formulation of policy that favors the elite.”
On February 5, 2013, the ruling regime in Ethiopia broadcasted a one hour “documentary” entitled “Jihadawi Harakat” (“Holy War Movement”) purportedly aimed at exposing Islamic extremists and terrorists preparing for a “holy war” to establish an Islamic government in Ethiopia. This “documentary” is nothing less than a declaration of an unholy war against Ethiopian Muslims. “Jihadawi Harakat” is a maliciously conceived and executed propaganda campaign right down to the diabolical title which seeks to portray Ethiopian Muslims peacefully demanding respect for their human rights as the handmaidens of such jihadist terrorist movements as Hamas (Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya), Harakat al-Jihad al-Islami al-Filastini and the Abu Sayyaf (terror group in the southern Philippines) group’s Al Harakat al-Islamiyya.
“Jihadawi Harakat” is very similar in tone and content to “Akeldama”. The principal difference is that “Jihadawi Harakat” targets Ethiopian Muslims for persecution and vilification. The “documentary” as a whole argues that Ethiopian Muslims who asked for  nothing more than respect for their basic human rights and non-government interference in their religious affairs are merely local chapters of  blood thirsty terrorist groups such Boko Haram (Nigeria), Ansar al Din (Mali),  Al Qaeda, Al Shabaab, Hamas… Despite the lip service disclaimer that the “documentary” is about a “few terrorists taking cover behind the Islamic faith to commit terrorism” in Ethiopia, this “documentary” stands as an ugly testament to official state religious intolerance and persecution rarely seen anywhere in Africa.
There are lies, naked lies, damned lies and sleazy lies. “Jihadawi Harakat” is all four. After viewing this revolting  “documentary”,  I recalled the furious words of the late Meles Zenawi when the European Union Election Observer Group confronted him with the truth about his theft of the May 2010 election by 99.6 percent. Meles was so angry that he got caught, he condemned the EU election report as “trash that deserves to be thrown in the garbage.” This phony, vile, shallow, pretentious, noxious and histrionic docutrash is such a pile of crap that it deserves to be flushed into the sewer.
First, let us establish the facts on the demands of Ethiopian Muslims. According to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, an independent body constituted by the Congress and the President of the United States to monitor religious freedom worldwide:

Since July 2011, the Ethiopian government has sought to impose the al-Ahbash Islamic sect on the country’s Muslim community, a community that traditionally has practiced the Sufi form of Islam. The government also has manipulated the election of the new leaders of the Ethiopia Islamic Affairs Supreme Council (EIASC).  Previously viewed as an independent body, EIASC is now viewed as a government-controlled institution.  The arrests, terrorism charges and takeover of EIASC signify a troubling escalation in the government’s attempts to control Ethiopia’s Muslim community and provide further evidence of a decline in religious freedom in Ethiopia. Muslims throughout Ethiopia have been arrested during peaceful protests: On October 29, the Ethiopia government charged 29 protestors with terrorism and attempting to establish an Islamic state.

The jihadists are coming, again?!
“Jihadawi Harakat” is not the first time the regime in power in Ethiopia has pulled the jihadist bogeyman out of their back pockets to scare the people of Ethiopia. Back in November 2006, a month before Meles Zenawi’s tanks “blitzkrieged” their way into Mogadishu killing tens of thousands of innocent Somali civilians and displacing over a million, I wrote a commentary  entitled, “The Jihadists are Coming!” I argued that Meles Zenawi had fabricated the Somali jihadist terrorist threat out of whole cloth to deflect attention from his dismal human rights record and repression and to buy the good will and diplomatic support of the U.S.:

Here we go again! Trot out the Somali jihadist bogeyman (aya jibo). Get out the smoke machine and mirrors. Show time! Act I. Narrator Zenawi: “Somalia is becoming a haven for terrorist. The sheiks of terror have declared an unholy war on Ethiopia, and the U.S. of A. They are on the outskirts. Patriots and countrymen, defend the homeland!…
But the whole jihadist business smacks of political fantasy. It’s surreal. Mr. Zenawi says the Somali jihadists and their Al Qaeda partners should be opposed and defeated because they are undemocratic, anti-democratic, oppressive and authoritarian. The jihadists don’t believe in human rights and do not allow political or social dissent. They are fanatics who want to impose one-party rule… Duh!!! Has Mr. Zenawi looked at the mirror lately?…
… Mr. Zenawi says the Somali jihadists are lurking behind every desert rock and boulder. He wants Ethiopians to come out and fight them in every hamlet, town and city. We want Ethiopians to come out of the jails and prisons and rejoin their families. We want them to come out into the streets and peacefully express themselves, show their opposition to government policies and actions, engage in constructive dialogue with their fellow citizens and enjoy basic human rights… Now, we have a choice to make. We can follow along the Zenawi Road Show and entertain ourselves with stories of the Somali jihadist bogeyman, Mickey Mouse and the Easter Bunny. Or we can stay focused on the real issues of human rights, civil liberties, the rule of law and democracy in Ethiopia.

Meles used the jihadist bogeyman in 2006 to plunge Ethiopia into the civil war in Somalia. In 2013, his disciples hope to use same jihadist bogeyman to plunge Ethiopia into internecine sectarian civil war.
“Jihadawi Harakat” or the art of Islamophobia
“Jihadawi Harakat” is such a revoltingly amateurish piece of propaganda  that one could easily dismiss it as dimwitted cartoonish gibberish and sophomoric fear mongering melodrama. But that would be a serious mistake because this vicious docutrash scandalizes, villiainizes, slanders and vilifies Ethiopia’s Muslim community. As lame and as cynical as this docutrash is, its tacit propaganda aim is to present a “morality play” of “evil” Muslims against “good” Christians. It is intended to scare Christians into believing that the same Muslims with whom they have coexisted peacefully for a millennia have now suddenly been transformed into “Islamic terrorists” and are secretly planning to wage a jihadist war on them to establish an Islamic government. Just as “Akeldama” sought to demonize, dehumanize, anathematize, demoralize and barbarize all of Ethiopia’s dissidents and opposition groups as a confederation of blood thirsty terrorists, “Jihad Harekat” seeks to do exactly the same thing to Ethiopian Muslims by creating Islamophobic hysteria in Ethiopia.
Careful review and analysis shows the ruling regime sought to accomplish a number of propaganda objectives with this docutrash: 1) tar and feather all Muslims who demand respect for their basic human rights and regime non-interference in their religious affairs as blood thirsty terrorists, fanatical jihadists and homicidal maniacs, 2) inflame Christian passions to incite hatred and spread distrust and suspicion against Muslims; 3) vilify Muslims and create a climate of fear, loathing and intolerance which the regime hopes will trigger mass hysteria, persecution and discrimination against Muslims; 4) divert the attention of the population from the desperate  economic, social and political issues of the day by feeding them ugly fantasies of jihadists Ethiopian Muslims planting bombs and planning terrorist acts to create an Islamic state, and 5) establish the moral justification for ruthlessly cracking down and clamping down on Muslims who have asked for nothing more than respect for their religious liberties and official non-interference in the administration of their religious affairs. Of course, the regime desperately wants to divert public attention from its massive corruption documented in the World Bank’s exhaustive 448-page report.
Anatomy of a Docutrash
For those who do not wish to waste their time viewing this pile of bull manure (make sure to hold your nose if you must watch it) passing off as a “documentary”, here is a summary. The docutrash opens with a text-image insert announcing, “An evidence-based documentary on a few individuals who have used the Islamic faith as a cover to conduct terrorist activities. A documentary prepared in collaboration with the national intelligence service, federal police and Ethiopian television and radio organization. It presents evidence on how a few  individuals have taken cover behind the Islamic faith and tried to implement the terrorist plans of Al Qaeda and Al Shabaab in Ethiopia.”
For 13 seconds, the text image insert slowly recedes on the screen; and without warning the face of a menacing “terrorist” set against a pitch black background emerges and scrolls to the right on the screen for 8 seconds to inspire a foreboding sense of fear and panic in the viewer. The same man whose picture has been photoshopped to make him look wild-eyed and sinister appears  and gives the first “evidence” by “confessing” in a soft voice and gentle demeanor, “The jihad is between Muslims and those who are not Muslims.”
The “evidence” presented consists of  “confessions” (mostly 2 0r 3 sentence incriminating admissions by the “suspects” unaccompanied by the questions of the interrogators) of some of the 29 terror suspects mentioned in the report of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom referenced above. (The terror suspects giving “confessions” are currently on trial and the regime broadcasted  the “documentary” in flagrant violation of a court order not to do so.)
Following the “confession” of the man admitting to a jihad between Muslims and non-Muslims, a video clip of riotous young men (insinuating that they are Muslim rioters) running away  from something is shown. Video clips likely scarfed from the internet immediately follow showing turbaned and disguised jihadists from all over the world wreaking havoc in unnamed places.  A text-image follows announcing, “Boko Haram in Ethiopia.” Young Ethiopian Muslim men are briefly shown at a peaceful gathering protesting. A  young Muslim leader is shown speaking to a group and claiming that Muslims are being “accused of being terrorists, criminals and seeking power.” More photos of turbaned and armed terrorists are shown followed by a video clip of Muslim terrorists digging up a cache of arms from a hole in the ground. A bearded Muslim man appears and states, “We have prepared the weapons and the manpower needed for the war against the government and our aim is to establish an Islamic government.” Photomontage of terrorists from other parts of the world brandishing AK47s and RPGs  follow along with more video clips of terrorists blowing up buildings. Civilians are shown running away from scenes of terrorists attacks. Unnamed terrorists are shown marching in the bushes. Photoshopped pictures of the same bearded suspects shown at the very beginning of the video are scrolled time and again across the screen to give the creepy impression that the “confessing” suspects are stalking the viewer like beasts  of prey. For another 58 minutes, the same theme is repeated over and over again with snippets of “confessions” sandwiched between scenes of armed terrorists and terrorist devastation.
Rule of Law or Rule of Ignoramuses
Leaders of the ruling regime often trumpet their allegiance to and defense of their Constitution. Last September propaganda meister Bereket Simon, after telling and retelling the world the Big Lie about Meles’ health and death, waxed eloquent day after day about constitutional succession and the game of official musical chairs to be played in the post-Meles period. As “communications minister”, Simon authorized the broadcasting of the “Jihadawi Harekat” docutrash. One really wonders how these “champions of the Ethiopian Constitution” seem to be enlightened only about those provisions they like but are willfully benighted about the parts they don’t like such as the rights of the accused.  It reminds one of a line from Shakespeare, “The devil can cite Scripture for his purposes.” Are they cunningly malicious or just plain ignorant? For years, I have been saying that preaching constitutional law (the rule of law) to the regime in Ethiopia is like preaching Scripture to a gathering of heathen. These vacuous imposters  would not recognize the Constitution if it ran them over like a Mac truck.
What needs to be doubly underscored in the case against the 29 Muslim “terror suspects”, including those who allegedly confessed in “Jihadawi Harakat”  are three important facts: 1) All of the “suspects” are pretrial detainees entitled to full procedural due process protections provided in the Ethiopian Constitution and various other binding international human rights conventions. 2) There is substantial evidence to show that the “suspects” who allegedly confessed did so under coercion. In the case of one “suspect”, for instance, a video of the interrogation and “confession” shows him  handcuffed.  3)  All  of the 29 “terrorism suspects” in custody are political  prisoners.
In terms of the flagrant disregard for the constitutional and human rights of the suspects, one cannot be unimpressed by the abysmal depth of ignorance and depraved indifference of the regime leaders. The  Ethiopian Constitution under Art. 20 (3) provides: “During proceedings accused persons have the right to be presumed innocent.” They seem to be totally clueless (or don’t give a damn) of their obligation under international human rights conventions which are incorporated expressly into the Ethiopian Constitution under Article 13. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) provides under Art. 11: “Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which they have had all the guarantees necessary for their defence.” The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) under Art. 14 (2): “Everyone charged with a criminal offence shall have the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law.” The African Charter on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) provides under Art. 7 (b): “The right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty by a competent court or tribunal.” The presumption of innocence requires that there be no pronouncement of guilt of the defendant by responsible public officials prior to a finding of guilt by a court of law.  Moreover, the “confessions” obtained in this docutrash are in flagrant violation of the prohibition on coerced  admissions and confessions and the exclusionary rule in Article 19 (5) which provides that  the accused “shall not be compelled to make confessions or admissions which could be used in evidence or against them. Any evidence obtained under coercion shall not be admissible.”
The sad irony in the case against the Muslim “terror suspects” is that the kangaroo court which issued the injunction against the broadcasting of the docutrash will not have the integrity or the guts to throw out all of the “confessions” or impose  other sanctions including criminal contempt citations against those who willfully disobeyed its order and/or dismiss with prejudice the case against the defendants for such an egregious and outrageous violation of their fair trial rights.
Frankly, I must confess that I take a bit of perverse pleasure in being fully vindicated. For years, I have been saying that there is no rule of law in Ethiopia and the courts are kangaroo courts puppet-mastered by the political bosses. Is there any doubt now that the miscarriage of justice has become justice in Ethiopia?
A desperate dictatorship and the art of sewage politics
With this docutrash, the dictators in Ethiopia have proven not only that they can get lower than a snake’s belly in a wagon rut but also that they are the grandmasters of  sewage politics. The fact of the matter is that the only proven cases of terrorist carnage in Ethiopia were committed by the regime. In “Akeldama”, the regime claimed “131 terrorist attacks; 339 citizens killed; 363 injured and 25 kidnapped and killed by terrorists” over the preceding decade. However, the official Inquiry Commission established by Meles Zenawi determined that in just a few days following the election in May 2005, security troops under the personal control and command of Meles Zenawi  massacred 193 unarmed protesters in the streets and severely wounded another 763. The Commission concluded the “shots fired by government forces [which were intended] not to disperse the crowd of protesters but to kill by targeting the head and chest of the protesters.” In September 2011, the world  learned “Ethiopian security forces (had) planted 3 bombs that went off in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on September 16, 2006  and then blamed Eritrea and the Oromo resistance for the blasts in a case that raised serious questions about the claims made about the bombing attempt against the African Union summit earlier this year in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.” It was the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa which conducted its own “clandestine reporting” and fingered “GoE (Government of Ethiopia) security forces” for this criminal act. If all other acts of state terrorism committed against Ethiopian civilians were to be included, the body count would be in the hundreds of thousands. Those who point an accusatory index finger to tar and feather others with charges of terrorism  should be careful to see which way the other three fingers are pointing.
“Jihadawi Harekat” is a smear campaign designed to vilify, malign, demean and marginalize Ethiopian Muslims. It is a vicious propaganda effort aimed at poisoning the centuries-old peaceful relations between adherents of the Islamic and Christian faiths in Ethiopia. It is an outrageous piece of propaganda designed to promote irrational fears of Muslims and Islam in Ethiopian society and facilitate the creation of conditions that will eventually lead to the  persecution, discrimination and exclusion of Muslims  from the political, social, economic and  public life of the nation. “Jihadawi Harekat” is out-and-out Islamophobia.
We should never tolerate or yield to Islamophobia in Ethiopia!
Release all political prisoners in Ethiopia!
Professor Alemayehu G. Mariam teaches political science at California State University, San Bernardino and is a practicing defense lawyer.
Previous commentaries by the author are available at:
http://open.salon.com/blog/almariam/
www.huffingtonpost.com/alemayehu-g-mariam/
Amharic translations of recent commentaries by the author may be found at:
http://www.ecadforum.com/Amharic/archives/category/al-mariam-amharic
http://ethioforum.org/?cat=24

Ethiopia airs jihadi film amid sensitive Muslim protest trial

Ethiopia airs jihadi film amid sensitive Muslim protest trial

The strategic Horn of Africa country is one-third Muslim and two-thirds Christian; why is its state-TV ginning up religious tension?

By William Davison, Correspondent / February 14, 2013 

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Ethiopia, a US ally in the battle against Al Qaeda-affiliated militants in Somalia, added to mounting worries about religious discord in the diverse east African state by screening a provocative documentary on Islamic extremism.
Ethiopian Muslims are furious about the film, which they say dishonestly blurs the distinction between legitimate political protest and violence by using lurid images of foreign terrorists that have nothing to do with them.
The program, Jihadawi Harekat (Holy War Movement), ran on state-TV at peak watching hours last week, and it associates local Muslim protesters now on trial with militant groups such as Nigeria's brutal Boko Haram movement and Somalia's Al Shabab, as well as unrelated Ethiopian militants.
Currently, 29 leaders of a Muslim protest movement, and representatives of two Islamic charities are on trial in Addis Ababa, facing charges of plotting violence to create an Islamic state. The trial is being held behind closed doors in order to protect some 200 witnesses, according to the government.

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The Muslim defendants were arrested in August after nearly a year of nonviolent protests over what they allege is unconstitutional Ethiopian state meddling in Islamic affairs.
"The risks posed by violent religious radicalism in Ethiopia are not imaginary," says Jon Abbink, senior researcher from the African studies center at Leiden University in the Netherlands. "But the documentary is probably over-doing it; the susceptibility of Muslims in Ethiopia to Al Qaeda-like radicalization is slim," he says, adding that the film would appear to "delegitimize" peaceful political disagreements by Muslims and set up the possibility of a "backlash."
Ethiopia is considered a stronghold of Sufism, an approach to the practice of Islam sharply at odds with that of Al Qaeda and aligned groups. The area has been heralded for centuries for the largely peaceful co-existence of its varied religious communities – though concerns are rising over extremism. Twice in recent years the Army has invaded Somalia to pursue and combat Islamist militants and salafis whose influence is said to be increasing on the Ethiopian side of the border.
Muslims make up a third of a population of around 90 million in sub-Saharan Africa's second-most populous nation, according to CIA statistics. There are an estimated 57 million Christians.
Ethiopia's key position in the Horn of Africa – adjacent to volatile Somalia and Sudan and in close proximity to the Middle East and North Africa – gives it an importance in the eyes of Western nations. It receives some $3 billion in strategic aid from various donors and Washington has looked on approvingly as Ethiopian troops take on militants in Somalia and as its peacekeepers patrol the flash-point Sudanese region of Abyei.
In return, Ethiopia allows the US to fly surveillance drones over Somalia from the southern Ethiopian city of Arba Minch.

ፍትህ ሬዲዪ ልዮ ፕሮግራሟን አቅርባለች Feb 11 - Furaat Islamic Media

ፍትህ ሬዲዪ ልዮ ፕሮግራሟን አቅርባለች Feb 11 - Furaat Islamic Media

Raadiyoo Fitih Sagantaa 3FFaa. - Furaat Islamic Media

Raadiyoo Fitih Sagantaa 3FFaa. - Furaat Islamic Media

ድምፃችን ይሰማ

ሰበር ዜና

የፌዴራል ጉዳዮች ሚኒስቴር የአርቡ ሕዝባዊ ትዕይንት ላይ ሁከት ለመፍጠር ያደረገው ሙከራ ከሸፈ

ሁከት ፈጣሪዎቹ በራሪ ወረቀቶች እንዲበትኑ ተልእኮ ተሠጥቷቸው ነበር

የድርጊቱ ዋነኛ ተዋናይ ዶክተር ሺፈራው እና የፍትህ ቢሮ ሃላፊዎች ናቸው

ባለፈው ሳምንት መንግስት ሕገ መንግስቱንና የራሱን ፍ/ቤቱን ትዕዛዝ በመጣስ ያሰራጨው ‹‹ጂሀዳዊ ሃራካት›› ‹‹ፊልም››ን በመከተል ሙስሊሙ ህብረተሰብ ባለፈው ጁሙዓ በአንዋር መስጊድ ባካሄደው ከባድ ተቃውሞ ላይ መንግስት ሁከት ለማስነሳት ሙከራ አድርጎ እንደነበርና፤ ሙከራውም ሳይሳካ መክሸፉ ተሰማ፡፡ በእለቱ የመንግስት ባለስልጣናት ዶ/ር ሺፈራው፣ የአዲስ አበባ መጅሊስ ፕሬዚዳንት ዶ/ር አሕመድ እንዲሁም የፌዴራል መጅሊስ ሀላፊዎች በጋራ ለመጅሊስ ተመራጭና በአዲሱ የአሕባሽ ማህበር ስር ለተሰባሰቡ ሰዎች አበል በማዘጋጀት አንድ ተልእኮ ሰጥተው ነበር፡፡ ይኸውም ሙስሊሙ ማህበረሰብ ‹‹በጂሃዳዊ ሀረካት›› ፊልም ስለተቆጣ ዛሬ ትንሽ ነካ ብናደርገው ለብጥብጥ ወደኋላ አይልም የሚል ግምት በማዘል የተሰባሰቡት ሰዎች በራሪ ወረቀት በአርቡ የተቃውሞ ትዕይንት መሀል እንዲበትኑ ነበር፡፡ ይበተናል የተባለው ወረቀት ‹‹መስጂዶቻችን የጥቂት አክራሪዎች መፈንጫ አይሆኑም›› የሚል ፅሁፍ ሰፍሮበት የነበረ ሲሆን ይህን ይበትናሉ የተባሉትና ስለተሰጣቸው አደገኛ ተልእኮ በውል የማያውቁ የሚበዙበት ቡድን ስራውን ለማሳካት ወደ አንዋር ቢንቀሳቀስም አንዋር ቢንቀሳቀስም በአንዋር የገጠመው በመቶ ሺዎች የሚቆጠር ሙስሊምን ሲመለከት ሀሳቡን እንዲቀይር አስገድዶታል፡፡

ከኢዱ ተቃውሞ ቀጥሎ እጅግ ከፍተኛ ቁጥር የነበረበትና ሰዎች በአደባባይ እንባቸውን እየዘሩ ጭምር ለመሪዎቻቸው ያላቸውን ታማኝነት እንዲሁም መንግስት በመሪዎቻችን ላይ የፈጸመውን አሰቃቂ ቶርች በምሬት የገለጹበት ትይንት ላይ የተገኙት የመንግስት ተልእኮ አስፈጻሚዎች የሚያዩትን ነገር ባለማመንና የሙስሊሙን ቁጣ በቅርበት ማየት በመቻላቸው የተሰጣቸውን ተልእኮ ሳይፈጽሙ ቀርተዋል፡፡ ብዙዎቹ የተልእኮው አስፈጻሚዎች መንግስት እኛን እርስ በእርስ ሊያስገድለንና የራሱን የፖለቲካ ትርፍ ሊያጋብስ በማሰብ የጎነጎነው ሴራ ነው በሚል ስሜት የተሰጣቸውን ወረቀት ሳይበትኑ ተመልሰዋል፡፡ የወረቀቱ መበተን አላማ ወረቀቱን በሚበተንበት ወቅት የሚከሰተውን ግርግር ተጠቅሞ ወደ ሌላ አቅጣጫ መቀየር እንደነበር ተሰምቷል፡፡ ይህ የከሸፈው የጁመዓ ሴራቸው ባለፈው አንድ አመት በመላው ሃገሪቱ ለተፈጠሩ ሁከቶችና ግድያዎች መነሾውና ጠንሳሹ መንግስት መሆኑን ቁልጭ አድርጎ የሚያሳይ ነው፡፡

የዚሁ ተልእኮ አስፈጻሚዎ በነጋታውና ከዚያም ቀን በኋላ ከመጅሊስና አቶ ኩማ ደመቅሳን ጨምሮ ከሌሎች የመንግስት ሀላፊዎች ጋር በነበራቸው ስብሰባ ቁጣ በተሞላበት መለኩ መንግስት ሰጥቷቸው የነበረው ተልእኮ አደገኛ እንደነበርና መንግስት በመሰል ተግባሮች ለምን መሰማራት እንደፈለገም ጠይቀዋል፡፡ በሙስሊሙ መሀከል ግጭት እና አለመግባባት እንዲፈጠር መንግስት ለምን ይፈልጋል? የሚለው ዋነኛው ጥያቄ ነበር፡፡ በተጨማሪም ማክሰኞ ከ‹‹ፊልሙ›› በኃላ ሌሊት ላይ በስህተት ተለቀቀ በተባለው ፊልም ለምን እንደተለቀቀ ተሳታፊዎቹ የጠየቁ ሲሆን አቡበከርን በዚህ አይነት ሁኔታ የሚያንገላታ ቪዲዮ ለሕዝብ መሰራጨቱ ፋይዳው ምንድን ነው? የሚል ሞጋች ጥያቄ ማንሳታቸው ተሰምቷል፡፡ ሆኖም ብዙዎቹ የመጅሊስና የፍ/ቢሮ ሃላፊዎችም በወቅቱ መልስ መስጥት ሳይችሉ ቀርተው እንደነበር ተሰምቷል፡፡ በሙስሊሙ ማህበረሰብ ውስጥ በገንዘብና በስልጣን ተደልለውም ሆነ መንግስት በጎ የሰራ መስሏቸው በሌላው ህዝብ ላይ በተንኮል የሚሰለፉ ካለ ትልቅ ትምህርት የሰጠ ነው፡፡ ዛሬም ደግመን የምንናገረው የሚሊዮኖችን ጥያቄ በሃይል እርምጃና በተንኮል ለማክሸፍ መሞከር መንግሰታዊ ባህሪ አለመሆኑን ነው፡፡ ከመንግስት የሚጠበቀው ተግባር ህዝብን አስተባብሮ ለልማት ማሰለፍ እንጂ ህዝብን በህዝብ ላይ አነሳስቶ እልቂትን መጋበዝ አይደለም፡፡

አላሁ አክበር!

ESAT Waza ena Kumenger Ethiopia

Radio Bilal Feb 8, 2013

Bilal Nation

Radio Bilal Feb 8, 2013 የእለተ የራዲዮ ቢላል ስርጭት Feb 8 2013
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ኢቴቪና ብሔራዊ ፌዝ

‹‹ፊልሙ›› ላነሳቸው ሃሳቦች ምላሽ የሚሰጥ የድምጽ ማብራሪያ ነገ እንለቃለን

ዛሬ የመሪዎቻችንን ጉዳይ በሚያየው አራተኛ ወንጀል ችሎት እግድ ተሰጥቶበት የነበረው ‹‹ፊልም›› በሕግ ወጥ መንገድ በኢቴቪ ተላልፏል፡፡ ‹‹ፊልሙ›› እንደለመደው ላለፈው አንድ አመት መንግስት ሲያደረግ የነበረውን የሙስሊሙን ማህበረሰብ ሰላማዊ ትግል እና ተመራጭ የኮሚቴ አባላትን በሽብርተኝነት እና አክራሪነት የመወንጀል አባዜ በስፋት ሲያራምድ ነበር፡፡ ‹‹ፊልሙ›› ደጋግሞ የሙስሊሙን ማኅብረሰብ ጥያቄና የትግሉን መሪዎች ሽብርተኞች፣ የብዛ ሃይማኖቶችና ብሄሮች በሆነችው አገራችን ኢትዮጵያ ኢስላማዊ መንግስት ለመመስረት የሚሹ፣ የኢትዮጵያን ሕዝብ ሰላም ለማናጋት ተልእኮ የተሰጣቸው፣ ለዚህም ከውጪ ስልጠናዎችን ወስደዋል እና ሌሎችንም ሀረጎች በመጠቀም ሲወነጅላቸው አምሽቷል፡፡ የህግ የበላይነት ምሶሶ የሚባለው የተጠርጣሪዎችን ከፍርድ ውሳኔ በፊት ነጻ ሆኖ የመገመት (Presumption of innocence) መብትም ዛሬ በግልጽ ሲጣስ ተመልክተናል፡፡ ‹‹ተጠርጣሪ አሸባሪ›› የሚል የለበጣ ሀረግ በመጠቀም የመሪዎቻችን ሕገ መንግስታዊ፤ በሕገ መንግስቱ አንቀጽ 20/3 ‹‹በፍርድ ሂደት ባሉበት ጊዜ በተከሰሱበት ወንጀል እንደ ጥፋተኛ ያለመቆጠር፣ በምስክርነት እንዲቀርቡም ያለመገደድ መብት አላቸው፡፡›› የሚለውን አንቀጽ በመጣስ ጣቢያው ለሕግ ተገዢ እንዳልሆነ ምስክርነቱን በአደባባይ ሰጥቷል፡፡ የፍ/ቤቱንም እግድ እንዲሁ ያለ ከልካይ ጥሷል፡፡ በ‹‹ፊልሙ›› ከመንግስት በማይጠበቅ መልኩ ካሜራ በድብቅ በማስቀመጥ የሚፈልጉትን ቃላት መልቀም ያሳፍራል፡፡ ሰዎች የማይሹትን ነገር በግድ እንዲናዘዙ ማስገድ የህግ የበላይነትን ይንዳል፡፡ በተለያዩ ጊዜ የተደረጉ ንግግሮችን እየቆረጡና እየቀጠሉ (ያውም በቀሽም ቆርጦ ቀጣዮች) የተለየ መልእክት ለማስተላለፍ መሞከርም ከአንድ ብሄራዊ ቴሌቪዥን ጣቢያ ማየት በጣም ያሳዝነናል፡፡ ኮሚቴዎቻችን ትላንትም ዛሬም ነገም የምናምናቸው ስለምናምናቸውም ፈርመን ውክልና የሰጠናቸው በመሆኑ መቼም ለእነሱ ያለን ታማኝነትና ክብር አይሸረሸርም፡፡ እንደዛሬው በመሪዎቻችን ላይ የሚሰራ ተራ ፕሮፖጋንዳ ፍጻሜው ውደቀት እንጂ ምንም ሊሆን አይችልም፡፡

በ‹‹ፊልሙ›› ላይ ሙስሊሙ ህብረተሰብ ያነሳቸው የመብት ጥያቄዎች ምላሽ ማግኘታቸው በስፋት ሲራገብ ነበር፤ ኢትዮጵያውያን ሙስሊሞች በአገራችን በነጻነትና በተድላ እየኖርንም እንደሆነ ተነግሮናል:: ከዛሬ አንድ አመት በፊት በአወሊያ እና በመላው አገሪቱ ከሚገኙ ሙስሊሞች የቀረቡ ሦስት መሰረታዊ የእምነት ጥያቄዎችን በተወካዮቻችን አማካኝነት ለመንግስት አቅርበን ነበር፡፡ ሶስቱም ጥያቄዎች ዛሬም ምላሽ አላገኙም፡፡ የመጅሊስ አመራርን ምርጫ መንግስት በሚፈልገው መልኩ ብቻ ለማካሄድ ስለ ፈለገ ሙስሊሙ ህብረተሰብ ከምርጫው ራሱን አገለለ፡፡ ምርጫውም ቅርጫ ሆኖ በጥቂት ግለሰቦች አስገቢ አስወጪነት ተካሄደ፡፡ በዚህ አይነት ድራማም ሙስሊሙ ሌላ መሪ በእጅ አዙር በመንግስት ተሾመለት፡፡ የአህባሽ አስተሳሰብ በግድ አይጫንብን ሲባል የተነሳው ሁለተኛ ጥያቄም ምላሽ ሊያገኝ ቀርቶ መንግስታዊ እስልምናን እንከተላለን ለሚሉ ጥቂት ካድሬ ኢማሞ አሳልፎ በመስጠት ሙስሊሙ ከራሱ መስጊድ ተገፍቶ እየወጣ ይገኛል፡፡ ባለፈው ወር ብቻ በመላዋ አገሪቱ ከ12 በላይ የመስጊድ ኢማሞችና የሰላት ጥሪ አድራጊዎች ከስራቸው በሀይል ተነስተው መንግስታዊ ኢማሞች በፖሊስ በመታገዝ ቦታቸውን ይዘዋል፡፡ አወሊያ ተቋም ከመጅሊስ እጅ ወጥቶ በነጻ ቦርድ ይተዳደር የሚለው ጥያቄ ዛሬም ምላሽ ሳያገኝ አሁንም ተቋሙ በመጅሊስ አመራር እጅ ውስጥ ይገኛል፡፡ እውነቱ ይህ ሆኖ ሳለ መንግስት ምጸት ያወራል፡፡ ጥያቄውን መልሻለሁ ብሎ ሕዝብ ላይ ብሄራዊ ፌዝ ያሰማል፡፡

‹‹ፊልሙ›› ሙስሊሞች ዛሬ በኢትዮጵያ ነጻነታቸው ተጠብቆ እየኖሩ ነው ብሎ ነግሮናል፡፡ እስቲ እውነት ነው የሚል እጁን ያውጣ፡፡ ግን የዚህ ሀሳብ ምጸቱ የሚጀምረው የሙስሊሙን ህብረተሰብ መሪዎች በእስር እና ቶርች እያሰቃየ በሚያናዝ ፊልም ላይ መገለጹ ነው፡፡ ዛሬ በመላው አገሪቱ ሙስሊም መሆን ወንጀል ነው የተባለ ይመስል፤ ሙስሊሞች ለሰላት መስጊድ ሄደው በሰላም የማይመለሱበት ሁኔታ እያየን፣ የመብት ጥያቄን ያቀረቡ ሺዎች ተደብድበው ከፊሎችም ተገድለው እየተመለከትን፤ ሙስሊሞች በነጻነት እየኖሩ ነው ተብለናል፡፡ ሙስሊም ሴቶች መከናነቢያ ማድረግ ባልተከለከሉበት አገር የምን ጭቆና?ም ተብለን ተጠይቀናል፡፡ ዛሬ ይህ ‹‹ፊልም›› እየታየ ባለበት ሰዓት ግን ጥቂት በማይባሉ የአገሪቱ ዩኒቨርሲቲዎች የሚማሩ ሙስሊም ተማሪዎች በመከናነቢያቸው ምክንያት፣ በእምነታቸው እና ጸሎት በማድረሳቸው ሳቢያ እየተገፉ እየወጡ ነው፡፡ ብዙ ሙስሊሞች ደህንነት እየተሰማቸው አይደለም፡፡ የሃይማኖት ነጻነት እንደቀልድ መገፈፈ፣ ወደ እስር ቤትም መወርወር ሙስሊሙ ላይ አይንን ከድኖ ከመግለጥ የበለጠ ቀላል ኖኗል፡፡ ግን ‹‹ፊልሙ›› ነጻነት አለ ይለናል፡፡

በአንዋር መስጊድ እና በሌሎችም አካባቢዎች ‹‹ድምጻችን ይሰማ›› እያለ መፈክር የሚያሰማን ሰላማዊ ህዝብ እና የሶማሊያ ታጣቂዎችን የአንድ ሳንቲም ሁለት ገፅታ ናቸው ብሎ ማቅረብም መንግስት ለህዝበ ሙስሊሙ ያለውን ንቀት ትንሽም ለመደበቅ አለመፈለጉን በግልጽ አሳይቶናል፡፡ ይህ በምንም መልኩ በዝምታ የሚታለፍ አይደለም፡፡ የዛሬው የኢቴቪና የመንግስት ድርጊት እጅግ አሳዝኖናል፤ አሳፍሮናል፡፡ እንደ ሕዝብ መንግስት ነኝ ከሚል አካል የምንጠብቃቸው በርካታ በጎ ነገሮች ቢኖሩም በዚህ አይነት አሳፋሪ ስራ ውስጥ መንግስት ተጠምዶ ማየታችን ስለ አገራችን ዕጣ ፈንታ የምር እንድንጨነቅ ያደርገናል፡፡ የኛ ትግል ግን ነገም ከነገ ወዲያም ሚሊዮኖችን ከኋላው አስከትሎ ገና ይቀጥላል፡፡ ትግላችን በወሬ እና በሀሜት የሚፈታ ቢሆን ኖሮ ድሮ እናየው ነበር፡፡ የኛ ትግል ግን በሰላማዊነትና በሕዝቦች የአብሮነት መተሳሰብና የሃይማኖት ቀናኢነት ላይ የተገነባ በመሆኑ እስከጥያቄያችን መመለስ ድረስ ይቀጥላል፡፡ ጥያቄዎቻችን ከማንኛውም የተለየ የፖለቲካ አስተሳሰብ የጸዱ፣ የሌሎችን እምነት እና መብት የማይጻረሩ ንጹሕ ሕገ መንግስታዊ የመብት ጥይቄዎች ናቸው፡፡ ኮሚቴዎቻችንም ሆነ ጥያቄዎቻችንን በየትኛውም መንገድ በመጠምዘዝ ከህዝብ ለማስጣል የሚደረገው ጥረት መቼም አይሳካም፡፡

በመጨረሻም ‹‹ፊልሙ›› ጠምዝዞና አወላግዶ የተለየ ውዥንብር ሊፈጥር ያደረገው ሙከራ፤ ሕዝቡ በሌላ አቅጣጫ መንግስት ሙስሊሙ ላይ እና ኮሚቴዎቹ ላይ የሚነዛው የሀሰት ፕሮፖጋንዳ ምን ያህል መሰረተ ቢስ እንደሆነ የተረዳበት ነው ብለን እንገምታለን፡፡ በተለይም የሌላ እምነት ተከታዮች በሙስሊሙ ህብረተሰብ ላይም ሆነ በሰላማዊ እንቅስቃሴው ላይ የተለየ አሉታዊ አመለካከት እንዲኖራቸው የተደረገው ሙከራ እንደማይሳካ እንገምታለን፡፡ እኛም በነገው እለት ‹‹ፊልሙ›› ላነሳቸው ሃሳቦች ምላሽ የሚሰጥ የድምጽ ማብራሪያ ይዘን እንድምንቀርብ ቃል እንገባለን፡፡ በተለያዩ መንገዶችም ለሁሉም ለማዳረስ ዝግጅትና ጥረት እናድርግ፡፡

አላሁ አክበር

ድምፃችን ይሰማ

ታግዷል የተባለው ፊልም እንዳይታገድ የእጅ አዙር ድራማ ተሰራበት

ፍትህ ሆይ የት ነው ያለሽው?

ዛሬ ምሽት ኢቴቪ ያስተላልፈዋል ተብሎ የነበረውና ዛሬ በፍርድ ቤት እንዳይታይ እግድ የተጣለበት ፊልም በአስተዳደራዊ እርምጃ በሚመስል መልኩ በከፍተኛ ፍ/ቤት ዳኛ ደብዳቤው ኢቴቪ መዝገብ ቤት ተፈርሞ ከገባ በኋላ ተስቦ እንዲወጣ ተደርጓል፡፡ ጠበቆች ጉዳዩን ለማጣራት ወደ ከፍተኛ ፍ/ቤት ፕሬዚዳንት ቢሮ ቢሄዱም፤ ውሳኔውን ልናነበው እንፈልጋለን የሚል ምክንያት በመስጠት ጥቂት መስመሮች ያሉትን ደብዳቤ ለሰአታት ቢሮዋቸው ውስጥ ካስቀሩ በኋላ የስራ መውጫ ሰአት ሲደርስ ነገ ተመለሱ ዛሬ አላለቀም የሚል ምክንያት ሰጥተው ነገ ተመለሱ የሚል ምላሽ ለጠበቆቹ መስጠታቸው ታውቋል፡፡ ጠበቆች ፕሬዚዳንቱን ለማናገር ጥረት ቢያደርጉም ፕሬዝዳንቱ ማናገር አልችልም የሚል ምላሽ ሰጥተዋቸዋል፡፡ የፍ/ቤትን ውሳኔ በቀጭን የስልክ መስመር መሻር የሚቻልበት አሰራር በአገሪቱ ውስጥ ባይኖርም የፕሬዚዳንቱ ድርጊት ይኸው ነበር፡፡ ውሳኔው ዛሬ ተፈጻሚ መሆን ያለበት ዛሬ መሆኑ እየታወቀ በእጅ ጥምዘዛ የተፈጸመው ውሳኔውን ተፈጻሚ ያለማድረግ ድርጊት ስለ አገሪቱ የፍትህ ስርአት ፍትሃዊነት እና ታማኝነት ደጋግመን እንድንጠይቅ ያደርገናል፡፡ በዚህ ጉዳይም የህግ ባለሞያ አስተያየት ይዘን ለመቅረብ ጥረት እናደርጋለን፡፡

‹‹ፊልሙ›› እንደሚገመተው ዛሬ የመታየት እድሉ ሰፊ ነው - ፍ/ቤቱ እንዳይታይ ውሳኔ ቢያሳልፍበትም፡፡ ሆኖም የፍ/ቤቱም ቀዳሚው ውሳኔ መሪዎቻችን እየተካሄደባቸው ካለው አሳዛኝ የምስክርነት የችሎት ድራማ ጋር ተያይዞ ሙሉ እምነት የሚጣልበት አልነበረም፡፡ አንድ ሊታወቅ የሚገባው ቁም ነገር የ‹‹ፊልሙ›› መታየት ወይም አለመታየት በሙስሊሙ ህብረተሰብ ትግል ላይም ሆነ በመሪዎቻችን ላይ የሚፈጥረው አንዳችም እክል እንደሌለ ነው፡፡ በተቃራኒው የ‹‹ፊልሙ›› መታየት ከሚጥሰው ሕግ በተለይም ዛሬ የተሰጠውን የፍ/ቤት ውሳኔና የተጠርጣሪዎችን ከፍርድ ውሳኔ በፊት ነጻ ሆኖ የመገመት (Presumption of innocence) መሰረታዊ የህግ መርህ የሚጥስ ከመሆኑም በላይ የሙስሊሙን ህብረተሰብ ትግል የበለጠ የሚያፋፍም መሆኑን ለመግለጽ እንወዳለን፡፡ ሙስሊሙ ህብረተሰብ ከፊልሙ መታየት ጋር በተያያዘ ምንም አይነት ስሜታዊነት ሳይንጸባረቅበት የተለመደ ስክነቱን በማሳየት ቀጣይ ሂደቶችን እንዲጠብቅ እንጠይቃለን፡፡

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አገር በተቀነባበረ የሀሰት ድራማ አትመራም!

ድምፃችን ይሰማ

አገር በተቀነባበረ የሀሰት ድራማ አትመራም!

እውነትን ገድዬ ሀሰትን ላነግስ ነው - ኢ.ቴ.ቪ ማክሰኞ ጠብቁኝ ብሏል

ሙስሊሙ ኅብረተሰብ ሁለቱን ደማቅ ኢዶች ጨምሮ ባደረጋቸው የአደባባይ ተቃውሞዎች ሁሉ ኢ.ቴ.ቪን ሌባ ሲለው ነበር፡፡

ወትሮም እውነት መናገር የማይሆንለት ኢ.ቴ.ቪ ዛሬ ምሽት ላይ ለወራት ለመቀጣጠል ሲደክምበት የነበረውን ሰላማዊ እንቅስቃሴያችንና ኮሚቴዎወቻችን ላይ ጥላሸት ለመቀባት ያለመ የሀሰት ‹‹ዶኩመንተ›› ፊልም ማክሰኞ ምሽት እንደሚያቀርብ አስታውቋል፡፡ ይኸው ፊልም ከተሰራ ወራቶች ያለፉት ቢሆንም በተለያየ ጊዜ ባለስልጣኖች ጋር ለግምገማ ቀርቦ አሳማኝ ባለመሆኑ ተሻሽሎ እንዲፈበረክ ሲደረግ ከርሟል፡፡ ከተለቀቀው ማስታወቂያ መረዳት እንደሚቻለው ፊልሙ በዋነኛነት ሙስሊም ያልሆነው የህብረተሰብ ክፍል የሙስሊሙን ሰላማዊ የመብት ጥያቄ እና እንቅስቃሴ በስጋት እንዲያየውና ሙስሊሙና ክርስቲያኑ ወደ ግጭት እንዲያመራ ማድረግ ነው፡፡ ይህንኑ እኩይ ስራ መንግስት ከዚህ ቀደም በተለያየ መንገድ ሞክሮት የከሸፈበት መሆኑ ይታወቃል፡፡ በርካታ ክርስቲያን ወገኖቻችንም ይህንኑ ዓላማ ተረድተው በተለያየ ጊዜ መንግስት ሙስሊሙንና ክርስቲያኑን በማፋጀት ዕድሜውን ለማራዘም የሚያደርገውን ሙከራ አውግዘዋል፡፡ በተግባርም ክርስቲያኑ ህብረተሰብ ለትግሉ ድጋፉን በተለያየ መልኩ ሲሠጥ ቆይቷል፡፡ የመንግስት ባለስልጣናትም በዚህ የክርስቲያኑ ህብረተሰብ ድጋፍ በመናደድ የምሬት መልሶች ለሚዲያዎች ሲሰጡም ጭምር ተሰምቷል፡፡

ሙስሊም ህብረተሰብ መሰረታዊ የእምነት ነጻነት መብቱን ለማስከበር ባለፈው ዓመት ያደረገው ትግል ሰላማዊ ለመሆኑና የትኛውንም የህብረተሰባችንን ክፍል ስጋት ውስጥ የማይከት ለመሆኑ የተለያዩ የውጪ አገር የሰብአዊ መብት ተሟጋች ድርጅቶች ካወጡት መግለጫ በላይ ‹‹ሊያርዱህ ተነስተውብሃል›› እያሉ ሲያስፈራሩት የነበረው ክርስቲያኑ ህብረተሰብ በየሰደቃ ፕሮግራሞቹ ላይ ያሳያቸው ትብብሮች ማረጋገጫ ናቸው፡፡ ኢ.ቴ.ቪ ዛሬ ይዞት ብቅ ያለው የተቀነባበር ድራማም ይህን በሙስሊሙና ክርስቲያኑ መሃከል የተፈጠረውን መተማመን ለመናድ የተተኮሰ የመጨረሻ ጥይት ይመስላል፡፡ ኮሚቴዎቻችንና ዳዒዎቻችን በማዕከላዊ እስር ቤት ባሳለፏቸው የግፍ ወራት በአሰቃቂ እና ተከታታይ ቶርቾች ነፍስ ግቢ ነፍስ ውጪ ሁኔታ ውስጥ ሁነው በግድ እንዲናገሩ ያደረጉዋቸውንና በድብቅ ካሜራዎች የቀረጿቸውን ንግግሮች ቆርጦ በመቀጠልና በማቀናበር ‹‹ኢስላማዊ መንግስት ለመመስረት ነበር የምንንቀሳቀሰው›› ብለዋል የሚል መልእክት ለማስተላለፍ የሚሞክር የሚመስለው ይኸው ፊልም ከዚህ ቀደም ሲወሩ የነበሩትን የተቀበረ መሳሪያ አወጣን ድራማዎችንም እንዳካተተ ማስታወቂያው ያሳያል፡፡ እነዚህ ሁሉ ኢ.ቴ.ቪ ከዚህ ቀደም በህብረተሰቡ ውስጥ ካገኘው አሉታዊ ስም ጋር ተዳምሮ የማንንም ቀልብ ሊገዛ እንደማይችል ግልጽ ነው፡፡

መንግስት የሙስሊሙ ህብረተሰብ ተቃውሞን ለማዳፈን ከዛቻና ማስፈራሪያ ጀምሮ ቃታ እስከመሳብ የደረሱ እርምጃዎች ቢወስድም ጥያቄችን ፍትሃዊና እንደ ረፋድ ፀሃይ ውልል ያለ በመሆኑ አድማሱን እያሰፋ ከአንድ ዓመት በላይ በጽናት መቀጠል ችሏል፡፡ አሁንም ቢሆን ተቃውሟችን ሊፈታ የሚችለው በተቀነባበረ የሃሰት ድራማ ሳይሆን ጥያቄዎቻችን ፍትሃዊ መልስ ሲያገኙ ብቻ ነው፡፡ ጥያቄው የመረጥናቸው ኮሚቴዎች ብቻ ሳይሆን የመላ ህብረተሰባችን ለመሆኑ ተቃውሟችን ኮሚቴዎቻችን ከታሰሩ በኋላም ከ 6 ወራት በላይ አንዳችም መቀዝቀዝ ሳያሳይ መቀጠሉ ብቻ በቂ መረጃ ነው፡፡ ህዝብን ለማታለል እና አንዱን ኢትዮጵያዊ የሌላው ጠላት አድርጎ ለመሳል ቀን ከሌሊት የሚባዝኑ መሰሪ አዕምሮዎችና ሃብቶች የህዝብን ችግር ለመፍታት ቢውሉ አገራችን የት በደረሰች ነበር፡፡ ግን ለዚህ አልታደልንም፡፡

አመት የቆየውን ድምጻችን ይሰማም ከዛሬ ጀምሮ በተከታታይ ይህን የሃሰት ድራማ ከንቱነት ፍንትው አድርጎ የሚያሳይ የተለያዩ የድምጽ ዘገባዎች ይዛ እንደምተቀርብ እያስታወቀች ሁላችንም ለቤተሰባችን፣ ለመድ አዝማዳችን እንዲሁም የሌላ እምነት ተከታዮቻችን ጎረቤቶቻችንና ወዳጆቻችን እውነታውን በማስረዳት እንድንበረታ ከወዲሁ እናሳስባለን፡፡ እውነትን ማንም አይጥላትም፡፡ አገር በተቀነባበረ የሀሰት ድራማ አትመራም፡፡

አላሁ አክበር!

በስኬት የተጠናቀቀ ወር!

ድምፃችን ይሰማ

በስኬት የተጠናቀቀ ወር!

አመት የሞላውን የኢትዮጵያውያን ሙስሊሞች ትግል ለማሰብ ለአንድ ወር ሙሉ ስናካሂድ የነበረው መርሀ ግብር በአላህ ፍቃድ በስኬት ተጠናቋል። ሚሊዮኖች በአላማ ተዋህደው፣ ጥረታቸውን አዋድደው በጋራ ለፍተውበታል። በእርግጥም ውጤታማ ወር ነበር። በሰላሳ ቀናት ውስጥ ብቻ በአገር ውስጥ ከ 35 በላይ ህዝባዊ የተቃውሞ ትእይንቶች ተደርገዋል፤ በአማካይ ቢሰላ በቀን ከአንድ በላይ ተቃውሞ ተደርጓል እንደማለት ያክል ነው፡፡ በውጭ አገራት ደግሞ በአውሮፓ፣ በአሜሪካ፣ በካናዳና በአህጉረ አፍሪካ በርካታ የተቃውሞ ትእይንቶች እና ሴሚናሮች የተካሄዱ ሲሆን በአገር ውስጥና በውጭ አገራት የሚገኙ ሚዲያዎች ለአመት መታሰቢያ ዝግጅቱ ሰፊ የዘገባ ሽፋን ሰጥተውታል።

በዚህ የመታሰቢያ ተቃውሟችን ምን ጥቅም ለማግኘት እንደቻልን የተወሰነ ትንተና መስጠቱ አስፈላጊ ሆኖ ይታየናል። ምክንያቱም የስራችንን ውጤት ለመመዘን እና ድክመቶቻችንን ነቅሶ በማውጣት ለማሻሻል ይረዳናልና ነው። በመሆኑም ወር ከፈጀው ትግል የሰበሰብናቸውን ፋይዳዎች ጠቀስ ጠቀስ ለማድረግ እንሞክራለን።

Hijab for a day: Non-Muslim women who try the headscarf

By Catrin Nye BBC Asian Network

Jess Rhodes, with and without her hijab

World Hijab Day calls on non-Muslim women to try out life under the traditional head scarf. Can it lead to more religious tolerance and understanding?

"Because I'm not very skilled I'm wearing what you could call a one-piece hijab - you just pull it over your head. But I've discovered the scope is endless. There are all sorts of options."
So says Jess Rhodes, 21, a student from Norwich in the UK. She had always wanted to try a headscarf but, as a non-Muslim, didn't think it an option. So, when given the opportunity by a friend to try wearing the scarf, she took it.
"She assured me that I didn't need to be Muslim, that it was just about modesty, although obviously linked to Islam, so I thought, 'why not?'"
Rhodes is one of hundreds of non-Muslims who will be wearing the headscarf as part of the first annual World Hijab Day on 1 February.
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