Addis Abeba (epo). - Die Lage in der äthiopischen Hauptstadt Addis Abeba bleibt nach tagelangen Protesten und gewaltsamen Aktionen der Sicherheitskräfte der Regierungspartei EPRDF weiterhin angespannt. Nachdem die Regierung am Mittwoch mit Polizeikräften aus dem Norden des Landes gegen Demonstranten eingeschritten war und dabei mindestens 22 Menschen getötet hatte, wurden am Donnerstag führende Mitglieder der Oppositionspartei CUD (Koalition für Einheit und Demokratie) verhaftet und Augenzeugenberichten zufolge auch misshandelt.
Die US-Regierung rief die äthiopische Regierung und die Opposition im Land zur Zurückhaltung auf. Alle Beteiligten sollten sich zurückziehen und auf Gewalt verzichten, sagte Außenamtssprecher Sean McCormack in Washington. Die Probleme in Äthiopien müssten auf politischem Wege und durch Dialog gelöst werden, forderte McCormack.
Entwicklungspolitik Online erhält aus Addis Abeba per E-Mail Berichte eines Augenzeugen. Im Folgenden die Berichte von Donnerstag:
The situation in Addis Ababa this morning
Thu, 09 Jun 2005 07:42
Hi everybody.
The condition is more tense today. The government media admitted that 22 (our hospital sources say it is more than 40 dead and more than 140 people wounded) people died and gave warning that the same will continue unless everybody keeps quite. As I explained previously, the EPRDF fabricated its common lie and blamed the opposition party for all what happened in the country in the past few days. Information minister Bereket Simeon one of the master evil mind for all the killings carried out by well trained security forces of the TPLF said that the opposition party leaders will take the responsibility for the crisis.
Yesterday (June 8, 2005) after the shootings and killings I went to the hospital to pick up my wife and one of her friends from the neighbouring hospital. The bodies of the people killed by the brutal TPLF special forces were in the Black Lion and Zewditu hospitals. I talked with some of the medical staff who saw the dead bodies and the wounded people. They told me that most of the people who died were hit by the bullets on their heads. One of the Red Cross staff giving first aid for the victims said that the soldiers were shooting directly at the gathered crowd and even these security forces were firing at those who were running. He said that these special forces were not listening to us because they do not understand Amharic language (the official language of the country) and the only language they know is firing live bullets on the people. The government (TPLF) had deliberately removed and replaced the city police and even disarmed those who are suspected as supporters of the opposition party and brought in special force who are trained for this particular purpose. From the inside information I gathered, these security forces accept command only from the PM and they are like robots loaded with particular software and the access code is in the hands of the evil minds of the TPLF leaders.
I will keep on updating you with latest information and please try to tell the world, particularly for those who believe in true democracy about the situation of our country and how our dictator leaders are abusing democracy and cheating the world in the name of democracy. Please tell your friends to give their eyes and ears just for a minute to the cry of the Ethiopian people and I know there are a lot of international organizations who are operating in Ethiopia who are witnessing all brutal and merciless actions taken by the so called "EPRDF".
The main opposition party, the CUD leaders are under house arrest and sooner or later the security forces of the TPLF will take action on them. Today from the information I had, the security forces had beaten LIDETU AYALEW one of the leaders of the CUD and very popular to the Ethiopian people. In the past few years, he was arrested many times and tortured brutally by the TPLF security forces. He is known here as "Ethiopia's Mandela". The next person who is a headache to the EPRDF is Dr. Berhanu Nega who is a known economist and a lecturer at the AAU. He has beaten all EPRDF ministers during the election campaign that was broadcasted by the EPRDF owned radio and television media. Also there a lot of intellectuals in the leadership of the CUD like Engineer Hailu Shawl, Prof. Mesfin W/M, Engineer Gizaches, Dr. Yakob, Dr. Shimeles, and so many others. These are the people who are fighting the heavily armed EPRDF with their pen and paper only. The TPLF leaders are very afraid of them because they are singing true democracy, because they exposed the criminal activities of the EPRDF dictators.
I confirmed that Ledetu Ayalew was beaten by security forces in his office and his secretary was taken to an unknown place. Addis Ababa is full of soldiers and security forces are everywhere. EPRDF started revenge on those who did not vote for it. The attack began yesterday in the sub-city where CUD candidate Lidetu won. The attack continued today and a lot of military and police trucks with full of soldiers are moving toward Jimma road around old airport area. Troops with red berets (air born soldiers) just moved in the city to assist the security forces.
I will keep in touch soon.
Addis Abeba, Thu, 09 Jun 2005, 20:51
My dear friend,
Thanks again to you and your colleagues for the support and concern for our democratic struggle.
This evening the Ethiopian Information Minister Bereket Simeon told that the CUD (Coalition for Unity and Democracy) leaders are under rest and they will be brought to court for all the killings carried out by his security forces. One of the CUD leaders Lidetu Ayalew is in his office and he is without food for the past 30 hours. He gave an interview this evening with VOA Amharic service and confirmed that he was beaten by the security forces and even the security forces told him that they will kill him and throw his body in the street. The observers from the EU tried to visit him and to give him some food, but they were not allowed to enter to his office. This is how EPRDF defines its democracy, by torturing those who oppose in a peaceful way. The EU countries cover most of the Ethiopian budget deficit and they sent around 200 election observers to the country. I wonder why the TPLF-led government bans the journalists from Deutsche Welle Amharic service and VOA. These were the only media from where the Ethiopian people could get balanced information about their country. The TPLF (their local name is WOYANE) owned radio and TV stations broadcast always their propaganda, based on fabricated lies and the people are sick of listening to them.
This evening I received very terrible and shocking news that the ruling party is printing forged leaflets, that look as if produced by the CUD leaders and in which they supposedly call for the killing of Tigryans (the ethnic group of the ruling part TPLF). These leaflets are to be used as "evidence" against the CUD leaders, fabricating a cause to maybe even kill them.
The evil minds of the EPRDF or TPLF leaders are looking for scapegoats for their dirty works and at the same time to get rid of those who challenged them in the election. The Ethiopian people never and ever will kill each other and the TPLF leaders tried so many times to divide the people by their ethnic affiliation. I think they are the only rulers who prepared citizenship ID cards based upon ethnic group (such IDs existed in Rwanda before the killings there). All these plots seem to be part of a pre-planned strategy of the EPRDF. We will not be surprised that tomorrow morning their radio or TV will broadcast this pre-fabricated lie but most of the Ethiopian people are aware of such repeated mischieves. Unless those responsible EU governments interfere in the current Ethiopian situation, then a very disastrous situation will occur and it will be to late to regret. Those of you, who are reading this message, please try to put some pressure on your governments to look into Ethiopia and to investigate what is really happening in this poorest country of the world.
A lot of university students are detained in unknown military camps, to be tortured for supporting opposition parties and so many Ethiopian farmers were killed, tortured and imprisoned for casting their votes for opposition parties. All this information is in the hands of the EU observer team and I have no idea why they are waiting so long, unless they want to see thousands of bodies in the streets.
Please act now, there is no time left.
In pictures: Ethiopian bloodshed (BBC)