Ethiopian News in Amharic : Thursday, June 28 2012 - YouTube: ""
'via Blog this'
EPRDF regime's self image of ethnically Balkanized Ethiopia, established by late Dictator Melese Zenawie. Freedom of Press is Dead in ethnocracy based irridentism. Fertile land is grabbed by foreign speculators, over 5 million are starving. 500'000 kids are on the streets. Millions are displaced by force. The regime is arming proxy warriors. Dams are built wantonly risking the existence of millions of indigenous people. Eritreans Moles are Ruling even after seceding in 1991.
Friday, June 29, 2012
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Ethiopia signs $3.2 bln deals for new railway line | Reuters
ADDIS ABABA, June 28 |
(Reuters) - Ethiopia has signed two deals worth $3.2 billion with Chinese and Turkish companies to construct a railway to link the land-locked Horn of Africa nation to Djibouti's Tadjourah port to export potash, officials said.
Ethiopia, which has seen high economic growth over the past five years, hopes to exploit growing business ties with China, India and Turkey to boost its expanding economy.
Under a five-year development plan launched in 2010, the government aims to pursue power projects and boost infrastructure, including building several new railways.
Getachew Betru, head of the Ethiopian Railways Corporation (ERC), said Turkish firm Yapi Merkezi will build a $1.7 billion railway line in the northeast, part of a project that stretches to Djibouti's third port of Tadjourah, which is under construction.
Tadjourah, on the Red Sea, is the closest outlet for Ethiopia's Afar region, where a number of foreign firms, including Canada's Allana Potash Corp, a re developing potash mines.
Allana said in February it would work with Djibouti authorities to integrate required potash storage and handling facilities into the new port plans.
Wednesday's deal followed a $1.5 billion agreement signed over the weekend between ERC and China Communications Construction Company to build a different section of the railway line to Tadjourah port.
Yapi Merkazi is expected to complete its portion of the line in 42 months, the foreign ministry said on its website.
This will link up with the section being built by the Chinese firm, as well as other portions, to give Ethiopia an alternative port access from the current route to Djibouti's mai n outlet, and providing an outlet for potash development,
Ethiopia aims to construct 5,000 km of railway lines by 2020 and says companies from BRIC nations have shown an interest in several projects.
The neighbouring economies are reliant on each other with about 70 percent of all trade through the tiny Red Sea state
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Ethiopia, China Communications in $1.5 Billion Rail Deal - Bloomberg
Ethiopia signed a $1.5 billion agreement with state-run China Communications Construction Co. to build a railway to carry potash from mines being developed in the nation’s northeast.
The 360-kilometer (224-mile) line will transport passengers and freight along a route to neighboring Djibouti’s Tadjourah port, which is being built. It should be completed by July 2015, Ethiopia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on its website yesterday.
CCCC (1800), a Chinese government-owned transportation infrastructure company, will be “mobilizing substantial resources to guarantee completion of the project,” the ministry said, citing the company’s vice president, Zhou Yongheng.
Ethiopia, sub-Saharan Africa’s second-most populous nation, is in the middle of a five-year plan to modernize and upgrade its infrastructure and industries. The government last year signed two agreements with Chinese companies to build a 4,744- kilometer (2,948-mile) rail network to Djibouti.
Landlocked Ethiopia lost its access to the sea after Eritrea voted for independence in 1993. The new rail line will run between the cities of Mekele and Hara Gebaya.
Canada’s Allana Potash Corp. (AAA), Sainik Potash Plc of India, Ethiopian Potash Corp. (FED)and Melbourne-based BHP Billiton Ltd. are all developing projects to extract potash, a fertilizer ingredient, in the Afar region.
To contact the reporter on this story: William Davison in Addis Ababa at
Sunday, June 24, 2012
UN worker jailed for 7 years in Ethiopia
An Ethiopian court has sentenced a United Nations guard to seven years in prison for communicating with a terrorist group.
Abdurahman Sheikh Hassan, who is Ethiopian, was earlier found guilty of participating in the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), which is banned, reported BBC News. Hassan had helped in negotiating the release of two other UN workers who had been kidnapped by the group and, according to the judge, passed information to terrorists while doing so. He also said Hassan was guilty of collaborating with a senior member of ONLF called Sherif Badio, who was sentenced in absentia to life in prison for "serving as a leader or a decision maker in a terrorist organization."
More from GlobalPost: Video: Ethiopia claims the Nile
"Under the guise of his job, he has been passing information to a terrorist organization with the aim to help them," Judge Mulugeta Kidane told the court before delivering his verdict, according to BBC.
Hassan appeared in court on Friday holding Muslim prayer beads, reported News24. He shook his lawyer's hand as she translated the sentence to him, as he does not speak Ethiopia's Amharic language.
The head of UN security in Ethiopia's Ogaden region, Hassan was arrested last July after he participated in the negotiations to release two UN World Food Programme hostages held by the ONLF, according to News24.
Since Ethiopia introduced its new anti-terrorism law a year ago, two Swedish journalists have been sentenced to 11 years each in jail, while a case involving another 23 people is still under way, said the Africa Report.
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
Ethiopia court convicts UN security officer of 'terrorism' - AFP
ADDIS ABABA — An Ethiopian security officer with the United Nations faced up to 10 years in jail after a court in Addis Ababa found him guilty Monday of "participating in a terrorist organisation."
"The defendant has not convinced us that he did not commit a crime... he's guilty," judge Mulugeta Kidane said.
Abdurahman Sheikh Hassan, who was based in Ethiopia's troubled southeastern Ogaden region, was charged last July with having links to the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), a secessionist rebel group.
He is charged along with Sherif Baido, whom the charge sheet lists as a senior member of the ONLF and was convicted on the same charge in absentia, according to Mulugeta.
The two men face five to ten years in prison. The court is expected to deliver a sentence on Friday.
Hassan was arrested after negotiating the release of two UN World Food Programme (WFP) officers kidnapped in the Ogaden.
Judge Mulugeta said defence witnesses failed to prove Hassan did not have links to ONLF members.
The key evidence used by the prosecution was recordings of phone conversations between Hassan and his co-defendant.
The judge said the voices of Hassan and Baido had been matched to those on the tape after it was analysed by the cybercrimes unit.
"It has been proved by the cybercrimes section that it was their voices," he said.
Hassan -- an ethnic Somali who does not speak Ethiopia's main language, Amharic -- stood expressionless as the judge read the verdict in Amharic. He appeared in court wearing a clean white shirt and holding Islamic prayer beads.
The prosecution called for the court to impose a strong sentence against Hassan, saying his case should serve as a warning to would-be offenders.
"We want the court to take this as a really serious offence, he has a connection to the ONLF and he is a real danger to the country," the prosecutor told the court.
But Hassan's lawyer Netsanet Getahun asked the court to be lenient towards her client.
"My client hasn't harmed anyone, he hasn't done any concrete damage... we want the court to be considerate because he has already served one year in jail," she said, adding that Hassan suffers from high blood pressure and heart disease and has a large family to support.
Rights groups have criticized Ethiopia's 2009 "anti-terrorism" legislation for being far-reaching and used to stifle peaceful dissent and freedom of expression. Close to 200 people, including opposition members and journalists, were charged under the law in 2011.
In December, two Swedish journalists were sentenced to 11 years in prison after an Ethiopian court found them guilty of supporting ONLF rebels in the Ogaden.
Hassan was arrested in the remote Ogaden region, where ONLF militants have been fighting for independence since 1984, claiming they have been marginalised by Addis Ababa.
Oil and gas reserves in the region have brought hopes of wealth but also fears of increased conflict.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Ethiopian Forces Ditch Another Town in South-Central Somalia | Allsomalia war helaa talo hela
Somalia: Ethiopian Forces Ditch Another Town in South-Central Somalia
Mogadishu — Ethiopian and government backed Ahlu Sunna forces, have abandoned another town in south central Somalia, Radio Garowe reports.
The village of Wabho, approximately 40 kms south west of El Bur was vacated by Ahlu Sunnah and Ethiopian forces on Tuesday.
According to residents of Wabho, after the allied forces deserted the village, Al Shabaab militants quickly seized control and have been carrying out inspections of the allied forces’ empty barracks.
The allied forces in their tanks and technical vehicles headed to the district of Guri’el 120 kms west of Wabho, where they have set up camp.
It is unclear why the allied forces have retreated from another town in the region. Ahlu Sunnah authorities when asked did not comment on why the forces evacuated the town.
However local sources close to Ahlu Sunnah, said that the group will release statements following a meeting, which officials will discuss the recent retreats of allied forces in the Galgudud region and potential security measures.
On Sunday, Ethiopian forces vacated the town of El Bur which was quickly taken over by Al Shabaab insurgents. The following day two men, who were suspected of working with the allied forces, were found beheaded in the town’s center.
The brutal murder has left residents gripped with fear as Al Shabaab has assumed control.
On the other hand Ethiopia stated earlier this year that their mission was to force Al Shabaab from towns occupied by them but not to safeguard cities captured by Ethiopian forces.
Ethiopia has stated that they will depart from towns after handing it over to African Union forces (AMISOM) that have already deployed a small number of forces in Baidoa with more set to arrive.
Analysts say that the reason for the retreats by Ethiopian forces could possibly be delays in the substitution period, in which AMISOM forces were to assume control of cities captured by Ethiopian and Somali forces, causing Ethiopian forces to vacate even before the AU forces arrive.
Source: Allafrica
Friday, June 15, 2012
A Skype call in Ethiopia will now get you 15 years in prison | VentureBeat
A 30-second call using Skype in Ethiopia can land you a 15-year prison sentence, thanks to new legislation passed by the country’s government.
The new legislation will criminalize the use of all Voice Over IP (VoIP) services, such as Skype or Google Voice, from within the country, according to an Al Jazeera report. The legislation, which was voted into law last month with little notice from international media, seems to close a loophole that was allowing some of its citizens to communicate without being monitored by authorities.
The country’s sole communication infrastructure is operated by government-run telecomEthio Teleco. The new legislation empowers the state-owned telecom to prohibit the use not only of VoIP services, but also of video chatting, social media, e-mail, and any other data transfer service capable of communicating information. So that encompass pretty much all communication except for speaking aloud and talking within your own mind.
The law also gives the government the right to inspect any imported voice communication equipment as well as the power to ban any inbound packages that don’t have prior permission from the state, according to the Al Jazeera report.
Anyone in the country who uses an illegal phone service will face up to 15 years in jail and heavy fines. Making a phone call over the Internet is punishable by 3 to 8 years in prison plus fines. Ethio Teleco also recently installed a system for blocking access to the Tor network that users browse anonymously and access blocked websites, according toReporters Without Borders.
Ethiopian authorities claim the drastic measures called for under the new law are necessary to protect against security threats. However, African Review notes that observers are saying the law is instead aimed at limiting freedom of expression and the flow of information between the nation’s 85 million people.
Via TechCrunch
The Ethiopian Dictator dupe the IMF during its mission to study the famine economy of Melese Zenawie t
The group was led by the head Mr. Michael Atingi-Ego who is the know for his pro Melese zenawie stance gave a blind eye to the economic of famine in ethiopia.
An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission visited Addis Ababa May 30-June 13 to conduct discussions for the 2012 Article IV Consultation. The mission met with the heads the dictator Minister Meles Zenawi, his Minister of Finance and Economic Development Sufian Ahmed, Governor of the National Bank of Ethiopia Teklewold Atnafu, Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister Newai Gebre-ab, other senior officials, as well representatives of the private sector, the international community, and civil society. At its conclusion, the mission head Mr. Michael Atingi-Ego issued the following statement: “The Ethiopian economy continues to grow at a robust pace, poverty continues to fall, and inflation, while still high, has been declining. The expansion in economic activity has been supported by robust export growth and public enterprise investments. Tight monetary and fiscal policies have contributed to the deceleration of inflation, which also reflects declining international commodity prices. Monetary tightening, reflected in a contraction of base money, was achieved by terminating central bank financing of the budget and significant sales of foreign exchange. As a result of this foreign exchange intervention, gross official foreign reserves have declined to under two months of import coverage. The budget execution has been prudent, but increased domestic credit to public enterprises has been providing strong fiscal impulse. “For 2011/12, the mission projects real GDP growth at 7 percent and end-year inflation at about 22 percent. A similar growth rate and single digits inflation are achievable in 2012/13 if implementation of tight monetary and fiscal policies is maintained. “Going forward, the mission recommends continuing the fight against inflation. Raising interest rates immediately would enhance the activation of the Treasury bill market for liquidity management and monetary policy implementation. Higher interest rates will also support domestic savings mobilization efforts that are key for financing investment to achieve ambitious objectives in the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP). In addition, the policy of no central bank financing of the budget should remain in place to send a strong signal of the government’s commitment to fight inflation. “The financing of the GTP should strike a balance between seeking to promote growth and ensuring macroeconomic stability. Given the authorities’ objective of financing long-term projects by domestic sources and the resulting strong financial real sector linkages, it will be important to increase the oversight of the financial sector to ensure its stability. On the external front, rebuilding gross official foreign reserves will provide a buffer against potential exogenous shocks given the current volatile global environment. A comprehensive monitoring of both external and domestic public debt would help maintain debt sustainability. “The IMF Executive Board is expected to complete the 2012 Article IV consultation in mid-September 2012.”
SOURCE: International Monetary Fund
Saturday, June 9, 2012
An Ugly Conversation-Sharon Van Epps:
Two weeks ago, my son, Gobez, adopted from Ethiopia, turned 10. His birthday happened to fall on an early release day from school, so we went out for a special lunch, just the two of us. We opted for our favorite Thai restaurant, mostly because of its proximity to the fabulous gelato shop where we planned to indulge in giant scoops of Oreogasmic afterward. Quality time like that is rare in our busy family of five, and, I have to admit, I was feeling pretty good about making it happen.
Inside the bustling restaurant, the hostess seated us at the only available table for two, located just a foot away from a middle-aged white couple. I didn't want to be so close to another party -- what if Gobez chewed with his mouth open or cracked a fart joke? And then there was the odd way that the woman looked at us as we sat down. She didn't seem hostile, exactly, but she'd noticed us, and her look made me feel on notice. We had no other seating options, so I tried to brush away my discomfort.
We placed our order: Pad Thai for Gobez, Spicy Chicken with Eggplant for me. Meanwhile, our neighbors chatted about work. We were so close, it was impossible not to overhear. I needed to use the restroom, so I handed Gobez my phone so that he could play a quick game of Pocket God while I was gone.
"Turn off the sound," I reminded him. "You don't want to disturb other people."
When I returned a few minutes later, my son appeared deep in an online game stupor. I sipped my water and tried not to listen to the next table's conversation, but there was no escaping it.
"He had gashes on the back of his head. He was bleeding," I heard the woman say.
"The 911 operator told him to stand down," said the man.
"What's he supposed to do if he's attacked?"
"If you start a bar fight, you know you're gonna get punched."
It took me a few seconds to process the exchange, but then it hit me: They're talking about Trayvon Martin. I'd seen the latest news photos of a bleeding George Zimmerman, the man accused of shooting Martin, an unarmed black teenager. Zimmerman's lawyers claim these injuries prove their client acted in self-defense after the teen attacked him, but to my mind, the boy had clearly been minding his own business until Zimmerman started trailing him out of suspicion through a suburban Florida neighborhood.
"Sounds like the kid threw the first punch." The tone of the woman's voice told me that she blamed Trayvon Martin for his own death.
I felt sick. Why were they talking about this with my son right here? Had the mere sight of my big-for-his-age African child sparked the ugly conversation?
I looked at Gobez, still seemingly engrossed in his game. Had he heard? Did he understand?
Although I talk to my kids about how to deal with racism, they're still young enough that I try to shield them from violent and sensational stories in the media. We don't watch TV news at home, though Gobez did catch one CNN report on a pizzeria TV when the case first broke. As far as I knew, that story had been his only exposure to the details of the tragedy, but who knows what he might have heard at school or at a friend's house? And so I faced a dilemma: Should I probe my son about what he might have understood about the restaurant conversation, souring his birthday, or convince myself that he hadn't heard a thing?
The waitress delivered our food. Inexplicably, she patted Gobez affectionately on the back as she left, almost as if she'd heard something awful, too, and wanted to comfort him. We began to eat, and I felt a rush of relief as the conversation next to us turned to fishing.
"Mom," Gobez said after awhile, "Can I get a fish for my birthday?"
I took a deep breath. Just because he's listening now doesn't mean he was listening earlier. My mind whirred with the insanity of the situation, even as the usual "No, you can't have a fish/parrot/lizard/pit-bull" speech came out of my mouth. I wondered if the couple next door was now eavesdropping on us. I silently screamed for them to GET OUT of the restaurant, but they took their time.
After our lunch plates had been cleared, Gobez declared himself too full for ice cream. I can count on one hand the number of times my son has been too full for anything but broccoli -- he typically eats enough for two grown men -- and I worried that he'd lost his appetite because of our neighbors' conversation. Then again, I consoled myself, he'd certainly cleaned up the Pad Thai.
At home, we rolled into our afternoon routine of homework and chores, and in the evening, more celebrating and lots of gifts. My son seemed happy. Normal.
I never said anything to Gobez about what happened in the restaurant. I couldn't even bring myself to tell my husband for several days; the shock and pain felt too deep. Even now, as I write this, I don't know how to put my pain into words. I know some will read this and think I overreacted, saying that couple's conversation had nothing to do with us. But I know better. Sometimes I wish I didn't.
Ethiopia proposes $8 billion national budget - Sudan Tribune: Plural news and views on Sudan
June 8, 2012 (ADDIS ABABA) - Ethiopia’s Council of Ministers has proposed a record 137.8 billion Birr (nearly $ 8 billion) annual budget for the 2012/2013 fiscal year, focusing on combating poverty.
The proposed budget, according to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, will mainly be allotted for priority projects such as infrastructure development, education, health and power generation activities, which will be carried out during the fiscal year, which in Ethiopia begins in July beginning July.
The majority 2012/2013 budget will be raised from internal income, while the balance - projected to be around $ 1 billion - will be mobilised from external sources in the form of loans and grants.
Just over more than 26.8 billion Birr ($1.5 million) of the stated budget serves as the country’s regular budget, while over 54.4 billion Birr ($3 million) is allocated for capital budget.
Over 36.5 billion Birr ($2 million) of the budget is allotted to subsidize regional states while 20 billion Birr ($1.1 million) is earmarked to support activities aimed to meet the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The proposed draft budget, was formulated by taking into account the country’s current, economic, social situation and other important factors and has been referred to parliament for final approval.
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