we talk about ogaden and the horn of Africa!

NAIROBI, Sept 19 (Reuters) - A local human rights group accused Ethiopia's government on Wednesday of manipulating a visit by U.N. aid officials and human rights investigators to the country's remote and violent eastern Ogaden region.

Hours before the United Nations was expected to publish its report in New York detailing the mission, the local group said Ethiopian authorities had detained critics for its duration and coached officials to pose as clan elders in U.N. interviews.

The Ogaden Human Rights Committee, which calls itself independent, said in a statement it had long called for a visit by U.N. investigators to the arid region bordering Somalia, but "deplores its inability to visit real crime scenes where gross human rights violations took place".

There was no immediate reaction from Ethiopian officials, who have previously denied manipulating the trip.

Addis Ababa has been waging an unprecedented military crackdown on Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) guerrillas after they killed 74 people in a raid on a Chinese-run oil exploration field earlier this year.

The separatist rebels have accused Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's government of committing "war crimes" in the area, and said the U.N. officials only visited sites sanctioned by the authorities.

Both sides have reported hundreds of deaths and accused the other of terrorising the population. But there has been no independent verification of the claims and counterclaims because the area is effectively off-limits to media and aid workers.

On Wednesday, the Ogaden Human Rights Committee said a number of restrictions had been imposed on the U.N. mission.

Critics were rounded up or threatened in advance of its arrival, the Committee said, while inmates at some crowded jails and police stations were moved to secret detention centres. "(The) government has coached its officials, members of security forces and collaborators and presented them to the U.N. mission as clan elders and victims of ONLF alleged wrongdoing," the Committee said in a statement.

The ONLF rebels are demanding greater autonomy for the ethnically Somali region. Meles denounces them as "terrorists" supported by arch-rival and neighbour Eritrea.

. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis

In an earlier article, we highlighted the inconsistence of the purpose for an academic – political – economic Conference focused on the Horn of Africa region, if the Conference consists in a “constructive dialogue amongst civil society groups, scholars, political leaders and business communities from the Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti”.

We explained the reasons for which if Sudan is to be involved, Yemen, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Madagascar should also be included and in absolute terms of priority with respect to Sudan.

Yet, for the sixth time, before a few weeks, the Horn of Africa Conference was held in Lund University, in Sweden, from 23 to 26 August.

In the present article, we will unveil the end target that is hidden behind the magnificent themes selected and speeches pronounced in the ominous conference.

Reportedly, “the theme of the conference was on post-conflict peace-building with the objective of identifying key characteristics and contentious issues with a view to facilitate a communicative rationality to encourage consensus by enabling networking and possible undertaking of future activities by the stakeholders drawn across the regions”.

The conference that announces peace will indeed herald the most ominous wars on African soil

Sudan, ‘Ethiopia’, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia: an irrelevant group

To include under this seemingly benevolent rubrics of this pompous statement Sudan, ‘Ethiopia’, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia – particularly in Fall 2007 – consists in Absurdity Record of All Times.

Sudan

In Sudan, the only area that can be considered as ‘post-conflict’ is the South that already functions as an independent entity, and will be declared and recognized as an Independent state in 2011. Quite contrarily to this, Darfur is an area in ongoing conflict, whereas nearby Kordofan and Beja Land on the Red Sea coast are the next terrain for righteous conflict and rebellion against Khartoum’s ruthless tyrant Al Bashir, who along with Meles Zenawi and Zimbabwe’s Mugabe makes the ‘trio bestiale’ of Africa’s worst carnivorous. Nubia awaits hermetically silent in the North; yet, the time is not far when the Nubians will demand respect for their language, imposing Primary and Secondary Education in Nubian, not Arabic – a most irrelevant and alien language for Africa’s Heart, Sudan.

“Enabling networking” in Sudan? You should be mad to say this to the mercilessly butchered Furis of Darfur, to the long ignored Haussa of Kordofan, to the Nubians and to the marginalized and noble Bejas in the East, whose land - if independent - will help asphyxiate the Khartoum Pan-Arabist gangsters.

The ludicrous Lund University Horn of Africa Conference organizers must have been daydreaming, when fixing such targets with respect to Sudan. The criminal Khartoum regime seems to have comfortably forgotten to pay tolls to the Bejas, when crossing their land to export their recently found Oil to China.

One should expect some nice explosions to start happening in the Wad Madani – Al Gedaref – Kessala – Port Sudan highway. With the Oil blocked, the Khartoum terrorists will have no means to buy arms in order to butcher the various peoples that colonial injustice managed to implacably place under the monstrous Pan-Arabist tutelage.

Somalia

If we shift to the opposite periphery of the malignantly selected group of countries, we find ourselves in Somalia. Comparing situations in Sudan and Somalia, we are met with an extraordinary revelation of the colonial perversity.

In Sudan, the various oppressed African peoples passionately desire to achieve secession from the Pan-Arabist gang of Khartoum and national independence, but the colonial powers for more than 50 years after Sudan’s declaration of Independence (1956) persistently opposed this perspective, causing an extraordinary bloodbath in the South that lasted half a century, and a second merciless butchery at Darfur over the past 5 years.

In Somalia, there are not many peoples; the overwhelming majority are Somalis. In addition, there are some Oromos and some Banaadiris (the latter from Yemen). Despite the existence of various tribes, religious groups and socio-behavioural traditions, the Somalis are one people in the same way the Swedish are one people.

As one could easily imagine, all the Somalis passionately desire to unite and in addition to merge with Somalis who still live in the occupied Ogaden, the Somali province of ‘Ethiopia’, and those who live in Djibouti.

Acting always contrarily to local peoples’ will and desire, the colonial powers caused long time division in Somalia. Italy colonized the Eastern and Southern part, Britain the North (today’s Somaliland), France the extreme North (merging under the French colonial sceptre Afars and Somalis), and Abyssinia the West (the entire Ogaden).

When Somalia gained its independence in 1960, the Somalis realized that with the merge of the British and Italian colonial zones, Somalia was independent only partly. Djibouti was still in French hands and Ogaden lived under the Amhara Abyssinian terror. In addition, Somalis were left within the other East African technical entity, Kenya, which was another part of the British colonial empire in Africa, located immediately in the south of the Italian colony of East Africa.

 

With the ominous help of the Soviet and Cuban soldiers, the Communist regime of Abyssinia under Dictator Mengistu managed to fend the Somali attack off, and to continue the inhuman Amhara tyranny on Western Somalia, namely Ogaden.

Over the past 17 years, the colonial powers confusing the US foreign policy managed to worsen the division among Somali tribes, with the formation of Somaliland and Puntland in the Northern and North-eastern part of Somalia, whereas the South met the most abhorrent form of civil war, Islamist rule, and last but not least the Ethiopian invasion.

Today, practically speaking, there is no Somalia; instead of an entire conference comically pretending to help materialize grandiose targets that are out of reach, a more modest title and a more accurate focus on Somalia would certainly help realistically. Somalia must unite and will unite; this is the only guarantee for East African Peace.

If the conference organizers had a possibility to correctly perceive the situation, they would realize that Somalia is a present conflict area, and this is true not only because of the illegal intervention of the ‘Ethiopian’ tyrant Zenawi in the South, but also

1.because of the devastation caused in Ogaden by the Abyssinian occupation forces,

2.due to the lack of law in Kenya’s northern territories where a significant part of the population is Somali, and

3.as a consequence of the strife between Somaliland and Puntland.

Djibouti

This country is a technical entity; it belongs partly to Afars (the northern part around Obock), who due to colonial interference have been left without national statehood, being divided among Eritrea, ‘Ethiopia’ and Djibouti. The rest are Somalis (around Djibouti city) and would like to merge with a united Somalia.

Eritrea

Here again, we encounter the same situation as in Somalia; we are not in post-conflict period but in an ongoing war that seems to be temporarily dormant in the front lines but it is fully fledged when it comes to Diplomacy.

Eritrea supports various groups in Somalia in full disturbance of the Abyssinian dictator Zenawi.

Eritrean President Issaias Afeworki’s poor Human Rights and Development record cannot by definition help him form a stronger position in a geo-strategically critical location.

He gets involved in Sudan’s East because of the fear of an emerging Beja Republic that would mobilize Eritrea’s numerous Bejas; the Bejas denounce the controversial Eritrean president’s interference.

On the other hand, numerous Oromo (and not only) intellectuals and activists from Abyssinia reject Afeworki’s semi-paranoid position in favour of Abyssinia’s unity.

Perspicacious analysts assess the stance in very bleak terms, letting us expect the worst (Politics Makes Strange Bedfellows: Isaias Afeworki Pandering to CUDP? - http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=37755)

Probably, the Eritrean president would support unity for the so-called Ethiopia until the moment a Somali army would finally cut Ogaden off, triggering the most desired demise of the cursed tyranny; however, the methods are immoral, the tactics do not herald anything ingenious, and without some substantial help from abroad (Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iran, Libya, etc), Afeworki’s presidency would last some days.

Meanwhile, Eritrea remains poor, underdeveloped, isolated and fade. Issaias Afeworki should think times and again over questions like the following:

- If you have only one university in your country, why close it down?

- Who succeeded in this world after being considered as the most inauspicious country for free expression of speech and journalism?

We are left with another question to answer:

- Is it just poor branding of the new country that had crated so many expectations in the early 90s?

‘Ethiopia’ – the World’s most Inhuman and most Murderous Tyranny

This name is false, forged and fallacious; the real country’s name is Abyssinia. Well, in this case, we are face to face with the focus of East African evil.

With fake ‘Ethiopia’ we are not in post-conflict situation, and we are not just in a war environment due to the land dispute with Eritrea, and to the ill-fated military intervention in the Somali South.

In the case of ‘Ethiopia’, we are in front of the world’s most explosive pre-war situation, in terms of at least 7 pending national rebellions that within shortly will turn Zenawi’s dictatorial abode into an omni-burning Hell for the cruel Amhara and Tigray oppressors.

Ogadenis, Oromos, Sidamas, Afars, Kaffas, Shekachos, and Gambellas realize that when hundreds of millions of dollars are spent in their impoverished country for the pathetic, erratic and counterfeit Millennium of the Amhara and Tigray heretic pseudo-Christians, at a moment the entire population is starving, being totally deprived of their natural resources, wealth, properties, and Human Rights, nothing is left to them except the rebellion against the inhuman and barbaric Amhara and Tigray invaders of their countries.

Conclusions

Even if all the other targeted countries were correctly focused on by the organizers of the Horn of Africa Conference that was held in Lund University, ‘Ethiopia’ should be excluded.

And no Amhara and Tigray politician, academic and businessman among them should be invited before publicly denouncing the colonial plans, tactics, deeds and inhuman practices of the successive Amhara and Tigray Abyssinian regimes.

However, as this did not happen, and the organizers seem to methodically pursue their plans, following their agendas, we have to enquire about their true motives.

What is hidden behind the Horn of Africa Conference (Lund University)?

Having analyzed that, in order to set a correct scope to the Horn of Africa Conference, one should have included many other countries that have been excluded, and having analyzed that nothing allows us to think of a possible combination of interests of the peoples and nations involved in the Conference, we consider the following points as regards the intentions of the conference organizers:

1. There has finally been an agreement among various establishments throughout the world for the final splitting of Sudan. That country will not exist within a few years, when a certain number of states will occupy its present territory, involving South Sudan, Darfur, Kordofan, Nubia, Beja and Central Sudan.

2. Djibouti is too small to possibly consider.

3. Somalia is partly invaded by ‘Ethiopia’, whereas secessionist states on Somali territory, Somaliland and Puntland, have established a cooperation with the ‘Ethiopian’ tyranny, more particularly the former, offering harbour facilities to landlocked ‘Ethiopia’ (Berbera).

4. Eritrea has been in an interminable war with ‘Ethiopia’, which seems to have consolidated both minority regimes in the respective countries.

5. To survive, tyrannical ‘Ethiopia’ needs more resources to exploit; with Sudan decomposed over the next three years, Ethiopia appears to be the only major country among those studied in the conference.

Any bilateral relationship (Djibouti – Ethiopia, Eritrea – Ethiopia, Somalia – Ethiopia) would consolidate Africa’s most repugnant and loathsome tyranny. The same would happen if representatives of the various peoples and states that will emanate out of Sudan’s decomposition come to cooperate with ‘Ethiopia’, as the conference preaches so fervently.

6. It becomes therefore clear that the Horn of Africa Conference, through the bias of “constructive dialogue amongst civil society groups, scholars, political leaders and business communities” intends to produce the articulations on which to set a further expansion of the bogus-‘Ethiopian’ tyranny that, according to the secretive plans of the organizers, would stretch from the borders of Egypt to the borders of Kenya, incorporating South Sudan’s Christian populations as a counterweight to the Muslim Bejas and Nubians.

Quite apparently now, the presence (inclusion in the conference) of Yemen, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Madagascar would disturb and/or divert the ominous plans; that is why these countries that had to be included have been excluded in a non-academic way.

7. The scenario sets the scene for an apocalyptic war between Libya, bogus-Ethiopia’ and Egypt that would explode the entire Black Continent and the Eastern Mediterranean, involving at the same time Europe, Russia, and the US.

That is why the ultimate and imminent dissolution of the inhuman tyranny ‘Ethiopia’ becomes top urgency for its oppressed nations and peoples.

Any country in the world that would wish to avoid an East Africa explosion should help by all possible means the long tyrannized Ogadenis, Oromos, Sidamas, Afars, Kaffas, Shekachos, and Gambellas tear down the most anachronistic and dysfunctional tyranny of the world.

In a forthcoming article, we will provide evidence about the secretive targets of the conference organizers, as they speak openly about them in the world press.

Note

The spectrum of King Ahmed Ibn Ibrahim pursues the Amharas and the Tigrays in their panic that is expressed in the deeds of the cruelest African tyranny; and all this is effectively manipulated by the European colonial powers to the absolute disaster of numerous African peoples.

Ethiopia: Ogaden Leaders Accuse Govt of 'Genocide' allAfrica.com 13 September 2007 Brian Kennedy Washington, D.C. Leaders of the Ogaden National Liberation Front (OLNF), a rebel group fighting against the Ethiopian government, have accused the Ethiopian army of committing crimes "tantamount to genocide." Responding to a claim made by the government that the ONLF is a terrorist organization, the front's chairman, Mohamed Osman, told allAfrica in an interview: "The real terrorists are the Ethiopian government." Osman and the ONLF's foreign relations secretary, Abdirahman Mahdi, spoke to allAfrica's Washington, D.C. office this week. They were visiting the United States to meet with members of the diaspora, non-governmental organizations, and lawmakers on Capitol Hill. The armed wing of the ONLF has been fighting for self-determination, and against the current government in the Ethiopian state of Somali, since 1993. Osman and Mahdi said Ethiopia's army is committing widespread war crimes, including destroying over 100 villages and lynching over 30 people, in the Ogaden region in the east of Ethiopia. They also said that a recent United Nations mission sent to the Ogaden did not receive complete access; they contend that the UN mission was not allowed to visit the Doollo and Fik regions, the areas where the worst atrocities have been committed. Additionally, they allege that before the mission went to the region, opponents of the Ethiopian government were rounded up, arrested and sent to military camps. The United Nations mission is expected to release its report later this week. "We challenge the government to allow independent observers," Madhi said. "Democracy does not bar information." The Ethiopian government has repeatedly denied charges of rights abuses in the Ogaden, claiming that the reports are lies and propaganda spread by its enemies. The crisis in Ogaden has escalated in recent months. In April, the ONLF attacked a Chinese oil site in the region, killing 77 people, including nine Chinese oil workers. Asked about the attack, Osman said "the exploration [for oil] was not a civilian operation. It was a military garrison." He also said that he was "sad" that the Chinese were caught in the middle. Observers were surprised that the OLNF was able to carry out such a daring attack, and many suggest that Ethiopian troop cuts in the Ogaden since the invasion of Somalia have given the ONLF a window of opportunity. After the attack on the Chinese oil site and a string of other ONLF attacks in the region, Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi announced on June 9 that the Ethiopian military was starting a "political and military operation" to contain ONLF activities. In July, a Human Rights Watch statement accused the government of widespread rights abuses. "Ethiopian troops are destroying villages and property, confiscating livestock and forcing civilians to relocate," said Peter Takirambudde, Africa director of Human Rights Watch. "Whatever the military strategy, these abuses violate the laws of war." In the same statement, Human Rights Watch said that the ONLF targets civilians in their attacks. The OLNF representatives denied the charges during the interview. They acknowledged that civilians sometimes die, but contended that the government had armed civilians and said Human Rights Watch does not have full information. The OLNF representatives also addressed charges that the ONLF had stolen food aid in the past. Mahdi said local people had given them the food. He also contended that a government-enforced blockade has "stopped cross-border trade" in most of the region. Observers estimate that food prices have doubled or tripled in the region because of the blockade. Many analysts say that the conflict in the Ogaden is closely linked to the wider conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Mahdi acknowledged that the OLNF received "political sympathy" from the Eritrean government and others in the region, but said it received no military aid from Eritrea. The ONLF representatives said that they are open to talks with the Ethiopian government, providing the talks have a neutral, third-party facilitator, and take place at a neutral venue. They said that they would welcome the United States playing a role.

The Ethiopian regimes war crimes in Ogaden have resulted in thousands of civilians seeking refuge in parts of neighboring Somalia with limited food, medical aid and financial resources over the last four months. These victims of the regimes war crimes have include victims of rape, torture, gunshot wounds and those fleeing burnt villages. These fleeing civilians provide the best testimony of the policy of collective punishment being pursued by the Ethiopian regime in Ogaden.

The plight of these families shows the world that despite the regimes denials, war crimes continue in Ogaden. It is clear that the Ethiopian regimes policy in Ogaden continues to be a campaign of State sponsored terror that largely avoids engagements with ONLF forces and instead focuses on collectively punishing our civilian population.

We call on donor nations to bear pressure on the Ethiopian regime to end its brutal campaign against our civilian population and allow international journalists and humanitarian organizations to travel and operate freely in Ogaden. If this regime has nothing to hide in Ogaden there is no reason why it should continue to ban international journalists and reputable humanitarian organizations such as the ICRC from operating and traveling freely in Ogaden.

We further call on the United Nations in particular to come to the immediate aid of our forcefully displaced people seeking refuge in neighboring Somalia. The United Nations bears a particular responsibility to thoroughly investigate war crimes in Ogaden and halt the unfolding of yet another preventable African genocide . To do this, the United Nations must have access to all parts of Ogaden and not be limited to routes approved by the regime as was the case with the recent UN Fact Finding Mission.

Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF)e the impact of the violence on the civilian population, but it has not yet made its conclusions public.

 

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hilaRGsP9to6YEhY_GQWAjFe4ElA