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Honorable congress man Chris draft resolution H.Res 861, a tool to encourage Egyptian and Shabia stooge Diaspora extremist groups

Honorable congress man Chris draft resolution H.Res 861, a tool to encourage Egyptian and Shabia stooge Diaspora extremist groups

By: W.Yilma                                                             3/21/17       

To start with, no matter what kind of government is in power, I am categorically opposing any kind of direct foreign interference in the internal affairs of Ethiopia. I truly believe that the direct involvement or interference of foreigners in this matter is counterproductive and in some case very dangerous. On the contrary, I stand with any group including foreigners if they expressed their concerns to the Ethiopian government with regard to human right and good governance issues through a proper diplomatic channel in respectful manner. What should be clear here is that it is the right of US America or any other countries to set a norm or formulate their diplomatic relationships with Ethiopia to keep their geo-political or economic interests. What they do not have the right is to interfere directly in the internal affairs of Ethiopia, including in economics and social programs the government is pursuing. Ethiopians have their own traditional means and ways to solve their internal problems by their own. We do not have a history of solving our internal problems by foreign mediations.

It should be clear here that there is no ambiguity about the importance of implementing democratic institutions in Ethiopia, including widening of the political spaces for opposition political groups to exercise their right freely, and the government commitments to respect the human right of its citizens.  Because in simple term, democracy is governing public office through free participation of the people and respecting the rules of law. No one is against this noble term. The only issue what we may arguing is how this process should be implemented. We all have responsibilities to advocate and challenge the government in power to implement and speed-up this process. Democracy from within through active participation of the public is a prerequisite for the establishment of solid democratic institutions in Ethiopia. To achieve this, the role of intellectuals is imperative.

Coming to my topic, United States politicians influenced by special interest groups have tried to formulate multiple policy resolutions toward Ethiopia in an attempt to force the government to comply with their demands. To this end many policy proposals were submitted to the congress or to the admiration in the past and many were failed due to lack of credibility’s. Now as an extension of the past failed policy resolutions, by initiation of honorable congress men Chris, and Coffman from New Jersey and Colorado respectively introduced a “new “draft resolution called H.Res.861 bill in the name of “supporting, respect for human right and encouraging inclusive government in Ethiopia”.  These honorable congress men are extremely one sided, mainly influenced by extremist Diaspora armed groups stationed in Eritrea. This draft resolution is rumbling here and there by repeating the same old stories raised by the so called “human right”, a biased diehard fifth- column foreign entity opposition group against the current Ethiopian government, and by others dysfunctional Diaspora “oppositions” supporters some of which are extremely intoxicated with hate against particular ethnic group. This draft resolution talk about “human right violations”, about some individuals or groups arrested and convicted according to the law of the land. This draft resolution also violated the sovereignty of the country by opposing the resettlement and villagization program took place in some part of the country in particular Gambela region. To me any resettlement program has its own shortfall which should be corrected in time by responsible government bodies. However, the main objective of the resettlement program in Gambella is to improve the livelihood of the indigenous people not intended to displace or murdered them the same way native Indian American were brutally murdered and displaced to take their land by white settlers here in America, in the 18th

The other strange issue raised in this bill is “violation of religion freedom”. In the first place the bill talk an old story. Second, the sponsors of this bill falsely accused the government as if the verdict reached by the country’s high court against those accused 8 “Muslim committee” was biased and a “violation of religion freedom”. They copied this allegation directly from human right groups, and the State Department press release reported by the so called “International Religious Freedom” chaired by a Muslim woman. What the honorable congress men are ignored is that Ethiopia is one of the first country accepted Islam next to Arabia and gave sanctuary for the followers of the prophet Muhammad. Ethiopians, including none radicalized Muslims knows what crime those convicted 8 Muslim committee were committed and who are behind them. It is here in America, an Egyptian-American radical Muslim imam and his followers (radicalized Ethiopians) encouraging openly Ethiopian Muslim to declare Jihad war in Ethiopia to kill Christian, and moderate Muslims. Many Christian Ethiopian brutally massacred as a result of this. These groups who are effectively exploiting American democracy are the one who crying foul and misleading the congress men to stand behind them in the name of “religious freedom” and “human right”.  The fact of the matter is Ethiopian Muslims have their own Sharia court and they are enjoying more freedom to exercise their rights under this government than any other Ethiopian past regimes. Does American Muslim have the right to establish Sharia court? I leave this question to the congress men.

Some of the phrases or terms expressed in this bill breaches international norms that should exists between two independent sovereign nations. To me congress man Chris sponsored bill is hard to get acceptance by the Ethiopian government. Because clearly it is a catalyzer, encouraging those chauvinists and narrow nationalists, and their foreign backers, like Egypt and Eritrea to continue their destructive activities against Ethiopia and beyond (it is expected that the Egyptian president general El- Sisi will effectively exploit the situation during his visit in Washington in April). Beside this as an Ethiopian origin American I see this as an insult to the Ethiopian people. It is clear for Everyone how many people in our world are suffering as a result of this kind of ill prepared bill sponsored by American and European politicians who lacks comprehensive knowledge about the county’s they claimed have attracted their “concerns”. This bill is a time bomb deliberately and intentionally prepared to instigate instability in Ethiopia. Action taken by this kind of Political ignorance should not be ignored and need to be challenged before it brings disaster.  Therefore, every peace-loving Ethiopians and Ethiopian origin Americans should oppose this dangerous draft bill.

What congress man Chris and his cohorts do not understand is that, their direct interference in supports of groups who have sinister agendas against Ethiopia people will not advance the interest of US America in fighting terrorism. Supporting this draft bill is supporting those terrorist groups who are fighting US America in Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya and beyond. US America Foreign relation issue should not be treated as a partisan politics in US congress. It is an open secret that the majority of Diaspora extremist Ethio-American followers supported republican candidates during the past election. This is because not from understanding what policy the elected republican will bring to the American people but what policy they will formulate against Ethiopia by lobbying the republican dominated government. Nothing this kind of strange but cruel intention has been observed in other countries Diaspora communities. This sinister conspiracy should worry fair-minded Ethiopians and Ethio-American seriously. Because we knew it is an easy task for American politicians to formulate their foreign policy towards foreign countries based on few individuals unsubstantiated claims and testimonies.  

As we know, Ahmad Chalabi an Iraqi politician was the one who was helped and mislead American policy makers to invade Iraq using flawed “intelligence” information. Similarly, the war in Syria and Libya started by training few armed and few intelligence groups from both countries. The daily civilian, including innocent children’s suffering and atrocities we are witnessing in in television screen in these countries is a direct result of wrong political measure taken by western countries based on the information they gathered from unrepresentative groups in the name of regime or political change. How many human life, including American lost their life in those countries as a result of wrong decisions? As if the civil strife in these countries are not enough, why few congress men/women trying to instigate another conflict in Ethiopia by passing H.Res. 861? As I stated above this bill was prepared to satisfy those few self-appointee “Ethiopian opposition” extremist groups and those countries backing them behind. This is not secret that the offices of these congress men/women are wide open for those extremist groups and closed for fair minded and non-partisans Ethiopians to express their concerns. 

Many Ethiopians knew US America relation with Ethiopia have many ups and down. Back to the second world war, when Emperor Haileselasse came to the then League of Nation to appeal for help from member’s countries in fighting against the Italian invasion, the then American representative response was not better than an approval of the then Fascist Italian illegal occupation of Ethiopia. Similarly, during the Siad Barre (Somalia) invasion and occupied some Ethiopian territories in 1977-78, the then US President Jimmy Carter not only supported openly but also supplied military armors to Somalia aggressor’s army. After the Ethiopia gallant defense forces reversed the aggression with huge sacrifices and wiped out the aggressor army from the occupied Ethiopian territories, Carter continue to support the then Eritrean Liberation Front, and the Ogaden National Liberation Front, which is now transformed by Eritrean government to terrorist groups. Understanding the hideous policy of US America against foreign country, it seems the H.Res. 861 bill is an extension of this policy.

To remind readers, similar bills were proposed by Us Congress in the past to punish Ethiopia based on unsubstantiated allegations by an Al-Qaida affiliated terrorist group, the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), and their supporters such as the Human Right and Amnesty International. ONLF is fighting with the Ethiopian Defense Force (EDF) to secede and to create an Islamic state in Ogaden.  This group have also a close collaboration with Alshibab, another terrorist group fighting the multinational armed forces of African Union Mission to Somalia. Both these groups are organized, train, and equipped secretly by Egypt but openly supported by Eritrea government to launch a proxy war against Ethiopia. Relied on ONLF testimony western politicians accused our gallant EDF as if “indiscriminately” killing civilians, and recommended to send an independent fact finding international missions to investigate the claims. If they recommended to Ethiopia, why not they also recommend the same fact finding mission to Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen? How many people died as a collateral damage by western alliances, including America during war engagements with those sadist terrorists? Are there different strategies in fighting terrorism without a collateral damage? Western politicians lack comprehensive knowledge about the complexity of the Eastern Africa region, the war engagement objectives, tactics, strategies and behaviors of the terrorist groups, using human shield to get sympathy from naive western politicians and special interest groups, like Human Rights. Fighting with terrorism is brutal and need a global coordination efforts. Accusing those defense forces and security personnel by overreacting to the false accusations by the terrorist is not only counterproductive but also encouraging them to continue with their evil activities. Leave alone fighting with terrorism a conventional war between countries abide by war engagement ethics have a collateral damage.  It is better to surrendered to their demands if we assumed to eliminate terrorism without acceptable collateral damage. But this choice is “dancing on the grave” of those brave men and women all over the world who sacrifice their life in fighting the enemies of the civilized world.

Siting in comfort offices where everything is available, it is an easy to comment for western politicians, diplomats or the so called human right advocates what went wrong by law abiding EDF who are fighting lawless savage criminal terrorist in a very harsh and life and death situations.  The gallant EDF are fighting with ONLF and Alshibab, terrorist groups, not with the people of Ethiopian Somali region or the people of Somalia who fade-up by the brutality of the terrorist. This fight produced fruits. Many of this terrorist conspiracy were thwarts, and many of them eliminated from the field during military engagements. For these reasons, the people of Ethiopian Somali regional State as a whole and the larger part of Somalia at this time live in peace and many developmental endeavors are in progress.

Let me mention one fact here how even fighting with terrorism apply double standard when it comes to Ethiopia by western politicians and special interest groups. In 2007 when more than 72 innocent Ethiopian and Chinses civilian, including children were mercilessly massacred by ONLF terrorist group, aftermath killing the ONLF terrorist spokesperson gave an interview for the BBC from one of European cities. Terrorism is condemned only when western citizens are killed by terrorist. Because life is not treated equally even during death for all human race.

Last, we Ethiopian should know that the interference of foreigners in our internal affairs is a recipe for disaster. It will divide us more, and this is what they want. Understanding this it is our responsibility, in particular honest responsible intellectuals to play their role in showing the path for reconciliation and establishment of democratic institutions through direct participation of our people. The solutions are in our hands. If we wisely exploited in timely manner through compromising and tolerance, we will survive as a united country. If we failed to do so by not using our conscious, the future will not be on our side, and others will benefit out it.  

Long Live Ethiopia!

                                          


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