Oromo: OLF Statement Following the Briefing Trip to Europe on the Human Rights Situation in Ethiopia
“All Ethiopian regimes lack the good-will to disentangle themselves from
their past authoritarian political traditions” said Mr. Dawud Ibsa, the
chairman of Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), in his highlight regarding the successfully
accomplished mission of the OLF delegate that toured Europe to brief European
governments, International organisations, Human right defenders, Social Research
Institutes, Journalists and Reporters about the political situation of the Horn
of Africa, mainly Ethiopia.
Despite the good will from EU, the United States, Canada and other democratic
peace loving nations in assisting Ethiopia to promote democracy and good Governance,
the minority regime of Meles Zenawi, like all its predecessors failed to implement
its own constitution and adhere to international norms and standards which are
very vital to alleviate poverty and create favourable conditions for sustainable
economic development and peace on the Horn of Africa.
Though we, the OLF, alarmed democratic nations on the situation to follow when
TPLF derailed the Transitional Charter in 1992 and forced many genuine political
organisations including the OLF to withdraw from the Transitional Government,
it took the International community more than a decade to realize that all Ethiopian
regimes lack the good-will to disentangle themselves from the authoritarian
political tradition. The great majority of nations and nationalities like the
Oromos, Ogadenis, Sidamas, Benishangul, Anuak, Nuer, Walaita, Gurage, Adere,
Kambata and etc who are overtly marginalized in the Ethiopian politics still
have no voice in decisions on war and peace in Ethiopia.
As Ethiopia is geo-politically important by sharing its geographic boundaries
with five countries of the Horn, Oromos who demographically constitute more
than half of the Ethiopian population, and its land Oromia which stretches Northwest
from Sudan to South east up to Somalia respectively, east from Djibouti west
up to Sudan and south up to Kenya vis-à-vis has a key role in peace and
stability of Ethiopia and the Horn at large.
Any social, political and economic alienation of this great majority (the Oromo)
of the Empires’ population would persistently lead the empire to poverty
and human misery. UN Human Development Index ranked Ethiopia as 168th out of
173 countries. It is typical political facade of EPRDF that it currently aspires
a democratic national election without genuine and significant opposition groups
and adequate time of election process. The outcome of the upcoming election
process is already clear; the recent expulsion of representatives of the International
Republican Institute (IRI), the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and the
International Foundation for Electoral System (IFES) from Ethiopia is a clear
diagnosis of the election, that is, the EPRDF will continue to rule undemocratically
but the denominator of Ethiopia’s image, war, poverty, famine, resettlement,
human rights violations and all sorts of human misery will worsen. The regime’s
legislature, judiciary, executive, security and military are interwoven in to
a single body. There is no distinction between TPLF party leaders and owners
of private sector. The OLF, who enjoys the overwhelming support of the Oromo
and other marginalized nations and nationalities, has a key role in stability
of the Horn of Africa.
We call upon International organisations and democratic governments to opt for
a viable long lasting peace by using all its diplomatic and economic tools on
Meles’s regime that the people in the empire decide freely on their own
fate.