Battles rage in South Sudan as ceasefire hopes fade; Uganda interferes.

December 30, 2013, Juba (AFP) — South Sudanese rebels allied to ex-vice president Riek Machar sought to retake control of a key town Monday, the army said, as hopes faded that an upcoming ceasefire deadline will be obeyed in the violence-wracked nation.

United Nations peacekeepers said they were concerned over claims thousands of armed youths from Machar’s Nuer tribe were readying to attack Bor, the capital of Jonglei state, amid international efforts to stop two weeks of violence spiralling into all-out civil war.

“The forces of Riek Machar are now advancing on Bor, but we are confident we will hold them off and protect the town,” army spokesman Philip Aguer told AFP.

“Yesterday there were heavy clashes at Gadiang north of Bor… the people in Bor are fearing an attack at any time.”

Rebels were currently reported around 50 kilometres (30 miles) northeast of Bor.

It was not clear how many of the gunmen remained in the thick bush around Bor, but the army statement appeared to contradict claims by government spokesman Michael Makuei late on Sunday that “most of them have returned home”.

Reconnaissance flights by the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Sunday identified armed groups but could not confirm the force’s size.

The gunmen, a loose ethnic militia force loyal to Machar and dubbed the “White Army”, are heavily armed — some carrying automatic rifles or spears, others armed with rocket propelled grenades. They are known for smearing white ash onto their bodies as war-paint and to ward off insects.

The world’s youngest nation plunged into chaos on December 15 when President Salva Kiir accused his former deputy of mounting a coup, sparking deadly violence believed to have left thousands dead.

Ceasefire deadline Tuesday

Regional leaders at the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) have set Tuesday as a deadline for face-to-face talks between Kiir and Machar.

While the government has said it was willing to observe a ceasefire, Machar — who was sacked as vice-president in July — has made demands including the release of his arrested political allies before committing to a truce.

South Sudanese government spokesman Makuei told AFP on Sunday: “I really doubt if we, the South Sudanese government, will be in a position to sit with Riek Machar… He has not even respected the call by IGAD and the African Union to agree to the cessation of hostilities.”

Fuelled by ethnic rivalries between Kiir’s Dinka group and Machar’s Nuer, bloodshed has swept across the nation, with fierce battles reported in strategic oil-producing areas.

Grim reports of massacres, rapes and killings nationwide have emerged on both sides of the conflict.

Rebels swiftly took over several key regional cities including Bentiu, in the northern oil-producing state of Unity, and Bor, which was later recaptured by the army.

There was also heavy fighting in the town of Malakal, state capital of oil-producing Upper Nile, but the army said they were back in full control.

A video posted by UN humanitarian chief in South Sudan Toby Lanzer in Malakal showed burnt and looted stores and buildings in the centre of town.

“The situation in Malakal is stable, we are in control,” Aguer added.

Oil production, which accounts for more than 95 percent of South Sudan’s fledgling economy, has also been hit with oil companies evacuating employees.

The UN says some 75,000 have sought refuge in badly overstretched peacekeeper bases across the country, and over 180,000 are displaced across the country.

Tens of thousands of Sudanese refugees are also reported to have been affected.

UN peacekeeping reinforcements began arriving in the country last week, the spearhead force of some 6,000 extra troops voted for by the UN Security Council, that will nearly double the size of the mission in the country.

UNMISS chief Hilde Johnson is to brief the UN Security Council later Monday on the crisis.

South Sudan became independent in 2011 after a civil war that killed more than two million people between 1983 and 2005.

Source: AFP

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December 30, 2013, JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — An official says Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is in South Sudan to advance regional efforts to find a political solution to the country’s crisis.

Fred Opolot, a spokesman for Uganda’s Foreign Ministry, said Monday that Museveni visited South Sudan “in the spirit” of diplomatic efforts by East African leaders who want President Salva Kiir and his rivals to start peace talks by Tuesday.

Museveni, a strong ally of Kiir’s, has deployed troops to Juba, the South Sudan capital, but the military denies Uganda has taken sides in the conflict.

Ugandan military spokesman Lt. Col. Paddy Ankunda said Ugandan forces were stationed at the airport and their role is to “facilitate evacuation” of civilians.

Up to 180,000 people have been displaced by violence since Dec. 15, according to the U.N.

Source: AP

Ethiopia’s New Plan to Hunt, Kill or Maim Ogaden citizenry in the Diaspora,

December 29, 2013 (Ogaden Online) — The Ogaden Online News Network’s investigators have received confidential  information about a new clandestine plan to hunt, kill, maim, or intimidate, at the very least, the Ogaden citizenry in the Diaspora  especially in the Kenyan refugee camps and those present in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

This plan is spearheaded by the Ethiopian Intelligence using the Ethiopian military personnel at the Moyale, Kenya border, the Ethiopian embassy in Nairobi and members of its Kilil personnel both in Kenya and in JigJiga.

What the Ethiopian intelligence has done over the past one year is to collect the names, family history and even the pictures of the Ogaden leaders at the Kenyan refugee camps. They have also obtained, from those who have defected in the past six months, the same information concerning the leaders of the Ogaden citizenry living in the Kenyan capital.

What they have done with the information is to dispatch Somali members of the Kilil personnel to the Kenyan refugee camps and to Nairobi so they can have presence in the camps and in the capital city, Nairobi. These members were instructed to telephone the identified leaders in the refugee camps  with threats of them being killed if they do not help the Ethiopian regime. The refugee camp leaders were then called from many numbers as to multiply the threats of death or maiming of the leaders being called.

At times, the Ethiopian intelligence and its Kilil personnel have used, contrary to all international norms, the parents, siblings, or even spouses of these individuals who might still live in the Ogaden to relay their threats. The Ethiopian intelligence used the same tactics against the members of the Ogaden citizenry in Nairobi, Kenya.

The Ogaden Online News Network’s investigators were able confirm more than a dozen such threats being relayed to leaders both in the Kenyan refugee camps and those present in Nairobi, Kenya. The team also witnessed a botched one such operation where the Somali operators and their Ethiopian handlers could not pinpoint their target and they resorted to asking their target whether he was such and such individual not once but on two separate days and times.

Luckily the individual pretended to know nothing about what he was being asked and before he realized what was happening on the second day, the Ethiopians and their Somali collaborators hastily left the area. Before the Ethiopians fled, the Ogaden News Network Investigators were able to snap pictures of the six individuals that were involved in the botched operation.

The team was also able to trace some of the telephone numbers where the threats originated from. Most of the numbers were sourced from the Ethiopian embassy in Nairobi. There were two specific numbers that also were traced to the Ethiopian military at the Moyale border.

One specific number was directly traced to an International calling card that is known to be used by the Kilil head in JigJiga. Using a number of techniques including cell tower information, the team was able to identify four cellphones that were ONLY used during set hours and ONLY used from identified hotels frequented by the Ethiopian intelligence members in the Kenyan capital.

Currently the Ogaden News Network’s investigators have completed the collection and corroboration of the information of all those involved in the planning and the implementation of this heinous crime against the Ogaden citizenry. We are in the final stages of ascertaining the role of each individual be they Ethiopian military personnel, intelligence or their Somali collaborators in the Kilil or outside of it.

Once we complete this final step, we will be publishing the entire plan with the locations, times and dates of the planners’ meetings; and the dossier of the individuals involved in this plan to hunt, kill, maim or intimidate the Ogaden citizenry. We will publish the names of the individuals, pictures – where possible, their role in the plan, the cellphone numbers they frequently use, and the list of individuals each was assigned to either eliminate or at the very least force them into hiding. Stay tuned for our next dispatch.

HORN OF AFRICA: Humanitarian Situation Deteriorates as New Year comes and goes.

December 28, 2013

HRLHA’s 2014 New Year Message

Dear friends,

Time does seem to pass ever more quickly. Has it really been a year since the HRLHA office last shared its thoughts on the occasion of the 2013 New Year? The fact is our attention is totally consumed by the job we are doing. For those who are languishing in prisons simply because they hold different political views from those of the ruling party of Ethiopia, for those Ethiopians and others who escaped from fear of persecution and are in refugee camps or live on the streets of the countries they took asylum in looking for their daily slice of bread, even a minute is too long. Soon we all will be joining together to welcome a new year with another new hope to do better. We must recognize the fact that doing better doesn’t happen simply because we wish it to be true. Rather, first we need to take our time and assess this year’s achievements or losses and compare them against the promises we made as this year began. In short, it is a time for “self-analysis”.

We can safely say the outgoing year has been the most turbulent year for defenders of human rights in the Horn of Africa and elsewhere. The struggles of the people which have been inflamed for over two years in North Africa didn’t come to an end and continued to reverberate in the Middle East and in North Africa. The people were attempting to rid themselves of dictatorial regimes and create a better democracy. Fearing that unrest would spread into the sub-Saharan countries, the governments of this region have been very busy in the past two or more years to silence any type of civilian movements in their respective countries. For example, in Ethiopia any individual or group who didn’t support the policy of the governing party was/were automatically labeled as terrorists. Muslim community members who opposed the involvement of the government in their religious affairs, farmers who resisted eviction from their ancestral lands, university students who demanded the improvement of university teaching and learning environments on their campuses were labeled as terrorists and imprisoned, tortured and sometimes killed- thousands escaped to neighboring countries. In general, the prolonged political unrests in, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, S. Sudan and others made these regions unsafe places for citizens to live; they have produced the largest numbers of refugees ever seen in the past decades. Thousands have fled their homelands to seek safety in neighboring countries, including in Yemen, and Middle East Arab Countries out of a fear of persecution and imprisonment.

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa and other human rights organizations have repeatedly reported on the humanitarian crises in the Horn of Africa in the outgoing year.

Even though we faced human and financial challenges in the outgoing year and much work remains to be done, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize some significant human rights achievements recorded in 2013 by the HRLHA. Many violations of human rights were compiled and disseminated- written and oral presentations on human rights violations in Ethiopia included – were made at United Nations Human Rights Council session of 2013. Another major accomplishment which I would like to mention is we managed to open HRLHA’s Regional branch office in Uganda/Kampala in October 2013, an event that we strongly believe will help to strengthen the involvement of HRLHA in communities of the region and enhance the efforts of the agency in getting effective results.

Finally, I wish a stable, peaceful, joyful and healthy New Year for all of HRLHA’s members, supporters, staff, volunteers, and friends in the Horn of Africa Countries and elsewhere. I hope the coming New Year will bring democracy, and respect for all forms of freedoms and human rights. Let all people be free from tyranny and suffering at the hands of their dictator governments.

“We fight for Human Rights!”

With Regards,

Garoma B. Wakessa

Executive Director.

South Sudan’s Tribal Militia Known As ‘White Army’ Marches To Fight.

Displaced people walk inside a United Nations compound which has become home to thousands of people displaced by the recent fighting, in Juba, South Sudan Friday, Dec. 27, 2013. Kenya’s president Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday urged South Sudan’s leaders to resolve their political differences peacefully and to stop the violence that has displaced more than 120,000 people in the world’s newest country, citing the example of the late Nelson Mandela and saying there is “a very small window of opportunity | ASSOCIATED PRESS

December 28, 2013, JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — Twenty-five thousand young men who make up a tribal militia known as the “White Army” are marching toward a contested state capital in South Sudan, an official said Saturday, dimming hopes for a cease-fire.

Seeking an end to the nearly two-week crisis in which an estimated 1,000 people have been killed, leaders from across East Africa announced on Friday that South Sudan had agreed to a “cessation of hostilities” against forces loyal to former Vice President Riek Machar, whom the government accuses of leading a coup attempt Dec. 15 that erupted into spiraling violence.

But Machar rejected that, saying in an interview with the BBC that any cease-fire had to be negotiated by delegations from both sides. The government in the capital, Juba, seized on that statement to further condemn Machar.

“Dr. Riek Machar has put obstacles to this genuine call by issuing pre-conditions that a cease-fire cannot be reached unless a negotiation is conducted,” said Vice President James Wani Igga. “This is complete intransigence and obstinacy because the main issue now is to stop violence.”

In addition to those killed, tens of thousands are seeking shelters at United Nations camps. More fighting is expected.

There is a looming battle for Bor, the provincial capital of Jonglei state that briefly fell to rebels before government forces took it back this week, said military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer. Pro-Machar forces are believed to be preparing a fresh offensive to retake Bor, he said. Bor is the town where three United States military aircraft were hit by gunfire while trying to evacuate American citizens on Dec. 21, wounding four U.S. service members.

An estimated 25,000 youths from the Lou Nuer sub-clan — the same tribe Machar is from — are marching on Bor, said Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth. The “White Army” gets its name in part from the white ash fighters put on their skin as a form of protection from insects.

“He has decided to mobilize the youth in the name of his tribe,” Lueth said.

The White Army has threatened the central government in recent past. In 2011 the army said that the Nuer youths would fight until all the Murle — another tribe — had been killed. The statement warned the national military to stay out of the way. Another statement warned that the White Army would “wipe out” the army, according to the Enough Project, a U.S.-based advocacy group that works on issues in central Africa.

Elsewhere, in oil-rich Unity state government troops were being forced to repel attacks by forces loyal to Machar, said Aguer. The military “is fighting back, but it is the other side that is attacking us,” he said.

IGAD, the regional bloc of East African nations, demanded on Friday that negotiations begin before the end of the year between South Sudan’s government and Machar, but there was no sign on Saturday that is likely.

“We are ready to meet even before that. It is now up to Machar to accept the ceasefire,” said Vice President Igga.

The government blames Machar for plotting a coup attempt on Dec. 15. Machar denies that charge and his backers insist violence began when presidential guards from President Salva Kiir’s majority Dinka tribe tried to disarm guards from Machar’s Nuer ethnic group. From Juba the military clashes then spiraled across the country.

The United Nations, South Sudan’s government and other analysts say the dispute is political at its heart, but has since taken on ethnic overtones. The fighting has displaced more than 120,000 people.

Source: AP

Freedom is never given voluntarily, it has always been earned.

By Ibrahim Amae Elemo, M.D., M.P.H | December 27, 2013

Dear Friends and Colleagues, Obboleeyyan Oromoo akkam jirtu, nageennii isan badhaadhaa:

The bigotry against the Oromo people continues unabated to date. It is an established historical fact that the Oromo people, the Somali and other peoples of the South were conquered and incorporated into the Abyssinian Empire at the end of 19^th century through an earth scorching policy and savagery of Menelik’s army supported by western powers such as the Great Britain and France. Twenty years ago we were close to defeating the remnants of the genocidal regime of Menelik and Haile Selassie had it not been for the voice of moderation by some politicians in the Oromo Liberation camp. Back then some of the Oromo elites wanted to give peace a chance, wanted to negotiate with the colonial settlers. They chose the path of peace and reconciliation. We recall the famous saying of Leenco Lata, “I am not an Ethiopian. However, I would like to negotiate to be an Ethiopian”. The answer to that offer from these remnants twenty years later is the formation of the revivalist groups who are planning to tour Oromiya to dance on the graves of the millions of Oromo martyrs and other peoples of the South who were brutally massacred while defending their homeland. The aftermath of the conquest was what we now know as one of the worst slave trade empire built by Menelik. I can hardly imagine the extent of the brutality when hundreds of thousands of Oromo children were taken way from under the arms of their loving parents and sold into slavery; tragically, several of whom died en route owing to harsh conditions. These were a people, reduced in to slavery and tenancy, were once the master of their own destiny and produced to the world a civilization superior to the Abyssinian civilization in East Africa.  This is also an established historical fact.

Today, many Oromo scholars, including myself, are profoundly enraged by a decision of a beer company to sponsor a singer that diminished the memory of the victims by glorifying the legacy of one of the worst tyrants of the modern Ethiopian empire into the Abyssinian hall of fame. This may cause the buried emotions of the Oromo nationalists to re-emerge again. There are millions out there, including myself, are willing to lead the Oromo people to a full victory through a well-controlled and disciplined struggle. We don’t like to see bloodshed between the oppressor class and oppressed masses, like what we have witnessed in Rwanda. The unwise campaign of these ignorant, never learning and unrepentant sons of our colonial masters may lead to undesired consequences. This is our worst fear. We remember what Dr. Gamachu Magarsa recently said when he was asked about his take on the Oromo people being bullied by the northern “superior race” of Ethiopia from one generation to another. He said “what will happen may not be good for them and for us as well”. That is the voice of moderation we hear from some of our elites. Even these very elites who are working to prevent the worst case scenario from happening are despised and bullied non-stop by the Abyssinian chauvinists.

Freedom is never voluntarily given. It has always been earned! Which means we Oromos must be willing to pay the necessary sacrifice to earn what all people love, cherish and celebrate every year, Freedom! Talking about earning what you deserve, I always remember what I told one of the college professors on the occasion of my graduation from Gondar College of Medical Sciences after I was suspended and penalized for a year and half for leading students’ protest against the current regime in Ethiopia. She said, “Congratulations Dr. Ibrahim, we have given you your degree and now you are ready to leave us”. I then boldly told her “Dear Dr. Thank you for congratulating me.  You may have given others their degrees. But, as far as I am concerned, I earned it.”  Just to distinguish myself from others who bowed to the puppets and all bullies in order to graduate from college with a degree. I was willing to pay the utmost price, and I knew I was not alone. I knew there were millions who suffered and continued to suffer.  They needed me more than I needed my very much desired degree, they needed us. The purpose of this short piece is to show our ignorant brothers in the opposite camp that they must cease and desist from their provocative actions. That is precisely what most of us want in this counter-campaign.  Or else, they are responsible for all the consequences of their campaign to re-conquer Oromiya.

Last but not least, it is worth mentioning the fact that judging by their past rhetoric the forces currently ruling Ethiopia may not be on the side of these sycophants who are so blind as to see the irreversible change of the mind sets of the oppressed masses of Ethiopia. Finally, I would like to conclude by using the words I used to love hearing from the mouth of my late Somali friend, Abdida’ad Ibrahim Bulala, whom I proudly call my Oromo friend, , Egereen kan Ummata Oromooti!

Dhufnee Dabarra Moo Boqonnaa Jireenya Gabrummaa Cufnee Dabarra ???

“Yaa Rabbi Situ Beeka Murtii ,
Wanti Dhuftee Hin Dabarre Eecha Jirti ?”

Kan armaan olii kun sirba aadaa Oromoo keessaa fudhatame. Waa’ee bara 2013 kan dhufee dabruuf dhihaatee fi waa’ee tahiinsa ‘event’ guddaa bara kanaa (Du’a Mandeellaa) osoon yaaduun waa’ee sirba kanaa yaadadhe. Kanumatu barruu kana akkan barreessus na dhidhiibe. Oromoon rakkina keessa jiraachuu isaa fi rakkinni kun ammoo dabruun isaa akka hin oolle abdii qabu ibsachuuf sirba kana sirbe fakkaata. Hiikkaan sirbichaa, Waaqayyo isa waan hundumaa uume malee uumamni hundi dhufeetuma dabra ykn. kan bara baraan itti fufee jiraatu hin jiru jechuu fi achumaanis rakkina harkaa nu qabuuf ammoo murtiima Waaqayyoo eegganna, hanga inni waan nutti fide kana nu irraa dabarsutti akka jechuu fakkaata. Ani amma waa’ee sirba kanaa barreessuuf hin kaane. Yeroon sirba kanaa fi waan isa kana fafakkaatan kan biroo dhagahu wanti natti dhagahamu waan jiruuf isaan wal qabsiisee bakka na nyanyaattu hooqqachuuf malee.

Uumama Waaqayyo lafa kana irratti uume keessaa tokko shanyii namaa ti. “Nama”    Namni uumama keessaa tokko haa tahu malee waan ittiin uumama kaan irraa adda tahe hedduu qaba. Waaqayyos yeruma jalqaba uumama hunda (namas dabalee) uumu namni uumama hunda irratti abboomuuf aangoo guutuu akka qabaatu godheeti uume jedhama. Fakkeenyaaf akka macaafa amantii kiristaanaa kan “Macaafa Qulqulluu/Holy Bible” jedhamu keessatti ibsametti akkas jedha. “Then God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” The Holy Bible (Genesis I:26)

Waan taheef dhalli namaa akka uumamni warri kaan, Fakkeenyaaf, mukkeen/biqiltuulee fi horiinfaan dhalatanii ykn. biqilanii guddatanii dhalanii ykn. firii harcaafatanii/dabarfatanii qofa dabranitti dhufeetuma jiraatee shanyii qofa dabarfatee hin dabru. Akkasiifis hin uumamne. Mirgaa fi aangoo uumamaan ganamuma badhaafametti gargaaramee hanga lubbuudhaan jirutti haala jireenya uumama warra kaanii fi kan ofii isaa irrattis yeroo yerootti jijjiirama adda addaa argamsiisaa (Kaan tolchaa kaan balleessaa) jiraata.

Yeroo sirba aadaa keenyaa isa ani jalqaba irratti tuqe sana sirbinu tarii Waaqayyoo miidhaa namootuma akka keenyaatiin nu irra geessifamufaa nu irraa hambisuuf dhufee lafa kana irratti murtii nuuf kenna jennee isuma qofa eegna yoo tahe hedduu dogoggorree jirra. Inni (Waaqayyo) inumaayyuu nu warra afaan amma ani ittiin barreessu kana dubbannuuf akka looguu tahe jedhamee yoo warra biraatiin komatamefaa malee nuti waan nutti hir’ise jennee isa komannu hin qabnu. Lafa jiituu/badhaatuu irratti nu uumee qomoo keenya illee guddise. Qaamaa fi fayyaa guutuus nuuf kenne. Inumaa Waaqayyo osoo hojii isaa keessa bakki wayyeessa feesistu yoo jiraatte wal qixxeessuuf jedhee nutti gadi dhufee, waan nu irraa xiqqeessee warra biraaf qoodu malee waan isinitti hanqate jedhee nuuf dabalu arga natti hin fakkaatu. Kanaaf nuti Waaqayyoon galateeffachuu fi “Waan nuuf Kennite Nu Irratti Irraanfadhu! Kennitee Hin Gaabbin!”  yoo jennefaa malee waan kadhaa biraatiin isa cinqinuuf hin qabaannu. Sirbumti aadaa keenyaa kan olitti tuqame sunuu osoo akka armaan gadii kana tahee jiraatee ykn. akkasitti wayyeeffamee caalaatti haala keenya ibsa. Nurraahis bareeda. Waaqayyoonis gammachiisna turre jedhanii kanneen yaada dhiheessan jiru.

“Yaa Rabbi Fixxeerta Murtii ,
Kan Hafte Harka Keenya Keecha Jirti.”

Egaa, Barri 2013 akkuma baroota isa dura turanii dhufee dabruuf kunoo guyyoota muraasatu hafan. Dalagaan baraa (yeroo) kanuma. Dhufeetuma dabruu dha. Itti dalagachuu fi dhiisuun kan abbaa ti. Bara kana keessa nama guddaa Addunyaan kun Jaarraa tokkoof qabaattetu du’aan addunyaa kana irraa boqote. Rolihlahla ykn. Mandeellaa ykn. Maadiibaa. Namni kun foonii fi lafeen isaa hafuuraan gar-gar bahee akkuma kan nama kaanii haa awwaalamu malee, inni akka nama kaaniitti Dhufee Hin Dabarre. Boqonnaa Seenaa Jireenya Gabrummaa kan Ummata Gurraacha Africa Kibbaa cufee dabre. Ummatoota Addunyaa kanaa hundumaafis fakkeenyaa fi barnoota guddaa kan baroota itti aanan hedduudhaaf seenaan isaa hin moofofne dhiisee dabre.

Kan akka keenya har’a illee jireenya gabrummaa (bittaa alagaa) jala jiru, akka ummataattis tahe akka nam-tokkeettis eenyummaa Mandeellaa irraa waan hedduu barachuu qaba. Keessattuu hoogganootni jaarmayoota siyaasaa Oromoo fi qabsaawotni hundi. Sadoo fi qananii jireenyaa, aangoo dhuunfaas tahe kan murnaa ykn. gosaa caalaatti dantaa Saba Oromoof waan hundumaa olitti bakka guddaa kennineefii galma gahiinsa QBOtiif waan hundumaa keenya yoo wareegne gufuulee qabsoo warra hafan injifachuun hedduu salphaa dha. Maddi jabina Mandeellaa inni guddaan sadoo/qananii jireenya dhuunfaa isaa guutuutti wareeguu irraa jalqaba. Gamnummaa, beekumsa, obsaa fi bilchina qabutti dhimma bahee murni/jaarmayaan isaas akka jaarmayaatti waan guddaa fi furtuu tahe argachuuf jecha wanneen xixiqqaa hedduu akka wareegu taasisuu bira taree, Ummatni Gurraachi Africa Kibbaatis mirga isa mirgoota hundumaaf furtuu tahe harkatti galfachuuf jecha wanneen sanaa gadii hedduu akka wareegu taasisuu danda’e. Mandeellaan seenaa qabsoo bilisummaa Ummata Gurraacha Africa Kibbaa keessatti dhiibbaa fi dhageeytii guddaa hangana gahu qabaachuu kan danda’een akkuman olitti ibse jireenya isaa wareegee warraaqxummaa dhugaatiif fakkeenya tahuu waan danda’eefi.

Yeroo waan Mandeellaa dubbannu, barnoota/beekumsa, gamnummaa dhalootaa, obsaa fi warraaqxummaa nama tokkoo (Mandeellaa) tu kophuma isaatti qabsoo bilisummaa Ummatichaa fiixaan baasuu danda’e jechuu akka hin taane beekamaa dha. Walter Sisulu, Govan Mbeki, Steve Biko,  Oliver Tambo,  Lilian Ngoyi, Desmond Tutu, Mariam Makeba Winnie Madikizela Mandela…fi kkf hedduu dabalatee wareegamaa fi qooda mumul’ataa sadarkaa fi fuula hojii qabsoo adda addaa keessatti qabsaawotni ilmaan Ummatichaa gumaachanii fi akka waliigalaattis sochii Ummatni gurraachi Africa Kibbaa kan abbaa qabsichaa tahe biyya keessaa fi biyya alaatti qabsaawota ilmaan isaa cinaa cichoominaan dhaabbachuudhaan taasise hundaatu walitti cuunfamee seenaa sana dalage. Mandeellaa fi hiriyoota/jaallan isaatiifis hamilee fi jajjabina kennee akka kaayyoo isaanii irratti cichanii dhaabbatanii maayyii milkaawan kan taasise dhugaa kana. Hoogganoota qabsoo sabaa kanneen dhugumaan of kennanii warraaqxummaa dhugaatiin qabsoo gaggeessan cinaatti qoodni tokkoon tokkoon miseensota/qabsaawota hundaa fi akka waliigalaatti dammaqiinsaa fi hirmaannaan Ummaticha Abbaa Qabsoo taheetis hundi yoo gahaatti jiraatee fi wal utube qofa karaan qabsoo gabaabbata jechuuf kana kaasna.  Hubannaa kana irra dhaabbachuudhaan gaaffiilee armaan gadii of gaafachuun barbaachisaa dha:

1. Sabni keenya (Oromoon) qabsaawotaa fi hoogganoota qabsoo bilisummaa kanneen dhugumaan qabsichaaf of kennan hagam qabaachaa turee? Hangamis qabaachaa jira?
2. Kanneen akkasii cina dhaabbannee qabsoo bilisummaa ummata keenyaa daran jabeessuu fi galii keenya dhaqqabuuf qooda nu irraa eegamu hangam gumaachine? Hirmaannaa hagamii qabaachaa jirra?
3. Kanneen wareegaman, Kanneen diina harka bu’anii hidhaa keessatti dararamaa jiran, Kanneen hidhaa diinaa keessatti qabaa bineensummaa diinaatiin ajjeefaman….wkf. meeqa beekna. Deebisaa/Reaction akkamii qabaanneef, hangamis waan akkasii hordofaa jirra?
4. Maalummaa fi gatii Bilisummaa hangam beekna? Maalummaa Qabsoo Bilisummaa fi qooda sanaaf nu irraa eegamu ilaalchisee hoo dammaqiinsaa fi hubannoon keenya hagamii fi kan akkamii ti?
5. Meeqan keenyatu akka waan Bilisummaa Oromoo fiduudhaaf qaama/murna addatti miindeffamee achi nu irraa bahe kan akka ‘Contractors’ qabnuu fi inni sun ergama isaa bahachuu hanqatee (galfata nyaatee nu hoongesseetti) hubachuudhaan namootaa fi murna haga tokko irratti gungummii, alaan’alaa fi olola diigaa oofuu qofa hojii godhachaa akka turree fi jirru beeknaa?
6. Walumaagala Bilisummaa Ummata Keenyaa dhugoomsuuf maaltu mala? Ana irraa akka “Namaa” fi akka ilmoo Oromoo tokkotti maaltu eegama? Jennee kan of gaafannuu fi gaafatamni seenaa kan nutti dhagahamu meeqa taana?

Gaaffiilee akkanaa kanneen of gaafannee deebisaa malu erga ofiif kenninee booda gara waan “Dhufee Dabruu” keenyaatti haa deebinu. Wanneen dhufanii dabran keessaa inni guddaan tokko yeroo dha. Kunoo akkuma barri 2013 dabree 2014 seenuuf/dhufuuf deemu kana. Halkanii fi guyyaa, bonaa fi ganna….kkf. Isaan keessaa kan Waaqa itti kadhatan balaa uumamaa kan akka caamaa/hongee, rooba hamaa, bubbee hamaa…..kkf. hedduun ni jiru. Rakkinaa fi roorroo namni akka ofii nama irraan gahu garuu, abbumaatu of irraa dhorka ykn. qolatee of irra dabarsa malee waaqni itti hin gaafatamu. Fakkeenya salphaa fudhachuuf, mataan Wayyaanee kan miidhaa waggoota 20 oliif ummata keenya irra gaheef sadarkaa duraatti silaa itti gaafatamu (Mallas Zeenaawwii) dhufee waan barbaade nu irratti dalagee dabreera ykn. du’a isaaf male jalaa miliqeera. Yeroo sana namticha gocha diinummaa hamaa ummata keenya irratti raaw’ate sana waan nu irraa dabarseef kan Waaqa galateeffanne hedduu dha. Garuu namticha tokkicha sanatu dabre malee miidhaan inni geessisaa ture namoota biraatiin itti fufee geessifamaa jira. Hanga nuti xiiqii namummaatiin hadhoofnee sossoonee of irraa dabarsinuttis sun ittuma fufa.

Roorroo nama akka keenyaatiin nu irra gahu of irraa dhaabnee jireenya ummata keenyaa jijjiiruudhaan boqonnaa seenaa haaraa banuu akka dandeenyuuf dura akka namaatti of ilaallee ulaagaa namummaan gaafatu guuttachuuf murannoo fi xiiqiidhaan hojjechuu qabna. Akkuman olitti ibse, namni akkuma uumama kaanii (akkuma biqiltuulee fi horii) dhalatee guddatee ilmoo ykn. shanyii dabarfatee dabruu qofaaf hin uumamne. Yoo sanaaf taate dhala namaa caalaa booyyeetu irra jabinaan faarfamuu qaba. Firii hormaataa al-takka achi dhukaasuun ilmoolee sagal (9) kan lafa naqu.

Guddinaa fi badhaadhinni, sadoo fi qananiin jireenyaa bakka nagaan hin jirretti hin yaadamu. Nageenyi waaraan ammoo bilisummaa malee abjuu dha. Bilisummaa guutuun ammoo biyya ofii qofa irratti argama. Kanaaf yoo sammuu namummaatiin kan yaadnu taate, biyya teenya harkatti galfannee bilisummaa ummata keenyaa mirkaneessuuf hundaa olitti dursa kenninee hojjechuu fi sanaaf wareegama inni nu gaafatu hunda baasuuf of kennuu caalaa mul’atni biraa nuti qabaachuu dandeenyu hin jiraatu. Haalli yeroo ammaan tanaa ilmaan Saba keenyaa kan hiyyummaa fi gidiraa jireenya gabrummaa jalaa dheessanii baqattummaadhaan biyya Sa’ud Arabia jiraachaa turan mudachaa jiru fakkaattota isaanii kanneen Awroppaa fi America dabalatee Addunyaa tana biyya tamuu keessa jiran hin mudatu jedhanii of gowwoomsuun hin feesisu. “Ilti/Iji gaara duubatti waa hin argine tan of keessaa baasanii gatani.” Jedha mammaaksi abbootii keenyaa tokko. Lakkuma umriin bittaa alagaa (gabrummaa) dabalaa deemuun akka nam-tokkee fi akka Sabaattis haalli nu mudachuu malu hanga tilmaamuu dandeenyu caalaa yaaddessaa tahuu akka danda’u beekanii falachuun gamnummaa dha.

Kana hundaafuu, Akkuma halkanii fi guyyaa, akkuma booyyee fi jaldeessaa, akkuma harbuu fi waddeessaa Dhufnee Dabarra moo duuba, akka Namaa xiiqii fi seexaa namummaatiin guutamnee waan nu duubatti hafee jiraatu kan hin duunee fi hin dabarre (Seenaa Boonsaa) hojjechuudhaan  boqonnaa jireenya gabrummaa Ummata keenyaa Cufnee Dabarra? Gaaffiin jettu gaaffii dargaggeessaa fi dargaggeettii Oromoo har’aa tahuu qabdi ! Bara Haaraya as deemu kana (2014) gaaffii kanaan simannee itti haa dalagannu! jechaa, gorsa gabaabduu asitti aantu, tanin walaloo qabsaawota Africa Kibbaa durii keessaa muree fudhadheenin yaada kiyya goolaba.

Tedy is a modern Minelik II weapon to wage genocide against Oromo.

Oromo have their own country Oromia

Oromia is Oromo country annexed by Abyssinian- the modern Ethiopia in 1890s. The Abyssinia got help from supper power of that time: USA, Russia, France, and Italy. Since then, Oromo people have been struggling in different ways to get back their country. Thus, about 45000 Oromo political prisoners are serving in Abyssinian colonial jail as Dr. Troman reported.

When Oromo activists claim their God given rights, the Habasha ( Abyssinian) defile the name of Oromo activists as narrow nationalists or extremists. I can take the current ongoing debate about Tedy, the Habasha musician who supported the genocide made by Menelik II whose target was to demolish the Oromo from the face of the earth. Tedy said that the war Minelik waged against Oromo people which resulted in 5 millions of death of Oromo heroes and heroines is holy war. But Oromo human rights activists like Jawar Muhammad, Abdi Fixe, Garsuu Tufa and others are seen as extremists and condemned as Anti-unity by colonizers ( Abyssinian).

By the way, what is extremism? Is it speaking true history or denying it?, If exposing what the colonizers did unto the oppressed is extremism, then, what do we call those who label such exposes as “extremist”? However, you like it or not, you will go no where with such a medieval mindset. I would like to inform you that Oromo people is ready more than ever to pay all the sacrifice to reestablish Oromia, to clean Finfinnee that your ancestors defiled since they annexed it. I hope that as Oromo is people of “safu” means respect, we will offer Abyssinian equal rights and equal opportunities to live in Oromia. I swear you that Oromo people will not avenge you, but what they need is freed Oromia. Be that as it may, know that, there is no place for subduing Oromo and their country Oromia under your colonial power. To wrap it up, what the Oromo heroes and heroines human rights activist said is incredibly true: Tedy is recognizing the genocide against millions of Oromo is holy war. On top of that, if Tedy believes that such inhuman act is a holy war, the historical memory directly goes to religion which in Abyssinian cases reflects on the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. I will not go deep now, I will come back to it.

When we- Oormo talk about Tedy we are not arguing the that Tedy represent Oromo. For that matter, Oromo have never ever accepted Tedy as our friend or as he represent us in any ways. What we are talking is simple. Tedy clearly showed us that he is our enemy reconsigning what Minelik II has done. Otherwise both Tedy and Minelik II are our enemies from 1890s. Minelik can be a hero for Habasha- Abyssinian because he build the country in which they are enjoying higher standard life by selling land of thousands of Oromo farmer by evicting them. So they can celebrate him. The TPLF should know that Oromo people have a goal of restablishing Oromia, the country destroyed by Minelik II .

Sadly, the owner of Bedele Beer sponsored Tedy to prepare concert in the big city of Oromia, Finfinnee. Politically, this concert is going to be held in memory of Menelik II who massacred 5 million Oromo. This can be easily deduced from Tedy’s speech. Thus it would be surprising if Oromo tolerate, allow him to accomplish this mission without confrontation. It will be bad memory in Oromo history if any attend this concert Oromo which is prepared to humiliate Oromo dignity. Once again, I urge Oromo people not sell, buy and drink Bedele Beer. In addition, it is pivotal to take legitimate action against Habasha workers at this company in Oromia, to remove them from our country. Indeed, it the time to remove the termite- Habasha not only from Bedele Beer company but also from nervy corner of Oromia.

In addition, OPDO also know that this is true thus why many of them were thrown into jail in Ethiopian empire.

Above all, I would like urge every able bodied Oromo: intellectuals, farther, businessmen, students, OLF guerrilla arm group, all Oromo citizen in Oromia and around the globe to continue to fight for their legitimate rights to set free their human resource and natural resource from Ethiopian colonial rule.

Thousands dead in South Sudan violence, UN says !

The BBC’s James Copnall explains the fighting gripping the world’s newest state, South Sudan – in 60 seconds

December 24, 2013 (BBC) — Thousands of people must have been killed in the past week of violence in South Sudan, the top UN humanitarian co-ordinator there has told the BBC.

Toby Lanzer, who is in Bentiu in northern Unity state, said it had been “a devastating week for South Sudan”.

Earlier President Salva Kiir said his forces had recaptured the key town of Bor days after it was seized by rebels.

The rebels are led by Riek Machar, of the ethnic Nuer, who has been battling President Kiir, of the Dinka.

The UN earlier said that it had reports of at least three mass graves.

One was in Bentiu in the north, and two in the capital, Juba.

‘Palpable fear’

Mr Lanzer told the BBC’s Newshour programme: “I think it’s undeniable at this stage that there must have been thousands of people who have lost their lives.

“When I’ve looked at the hospitals in key towns and I’ve looked at the hospitals in the capital itself, the range of injuries, this is no longer a situation where we can merely say it’s hundreds of people who’ve lost their lives.”

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, said: “There is a palpable fear among civilians of both Dinka and Nuer backgrounds that they will be killed on the basis of their ethnicity.”

The UN says at least 80,000 people have been displaced by the South Sudan crisis – about half of them seeking shelter at a number of UN bases.

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Dec 24, 2013 (CNN) – U.S. Marines stood by to help evacuate Americans in South Sudan as the top U.N. official there warned Tuesday of a “breakdown in respect for the most basic rights of people” amid the country’s widening military and humanitarian crisis.

U.N. Assistant Secretary-General Toby Lanzer tweeted that more accounts were reaching him of human rights abuses amid widening violence that has stoked fears of an all-out civil war in the world’s newest country.

In Geneva, Switzerland, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay called human rights abuses in the country a “serious and growing” problem.

“Mass extrajudicial killings, the targeting of individuals on the basis of their ethnicity and arbitrary detentions have been documented in recent days,” Pillay said, according to the statement. “We have discovered a mass grave in Bentiu, in Unity State, and there are reportedly at least two other mass graves in Juba.”

One U.N. official saw 14 bodies at the mass grave in Bentiu and another 20 on a nearby riverbank, said Ravina Shamdasani, a spokeswoman for the commissioner.

“As for the other two reported graves in Juba, we are still working to verify but it is very difficult, and there are reports that some bodies may have already been burned,” she said.

South Sudan’s breathtaking descent into widespread conflict comes a little more than two years after the nation was ushered into existence with help from international powers after decades of civil war between separatists in the oil-rich south and Sudan’s northern government.

Fighting began midmonth after President Salva Kiir said forces loyal to the country’s dismissed vice president, Riek Machar, launched a coup attempt. Kiir and Machar are longtime rivals.

Machar denied there was a coup attempt in an interview with CNN.

South Sudan has suffered from sporadic violence since its formation in 2011.

But the broad nature of this conflict and the intensity of the violence — which U.N. officials say has taken on ethnic overtones — has raised fears of another genocide along the lines of Rwanda, the African nation where 800,000 people were slaughtered in 1994, according to the United Nations.

As the U.N. Security Council prepared to meet to discuss Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s call to reinforce the agency’s peacekeeping force in South Sudan, about 150 U.S. Marines waited in Djibouti, hundreds of miles east of South Sudan.

Marines on standby

They flew in from a base in Spain to await possible orders to enter South Sudan and help evacuate Americans who remained behind after a U.S.-led evacuation transported more than 300 U.S. citizens out of the country.

In a statement, the U.S. military’s Africa Command said Monday it was positioning the Marines to be able to respond should conditions deteriorate even more. The decision grew out of the U.S. experience in Benghazi, Libya, where an attack last year killed U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans. No U.S. forces were close enough to respond quickly.

“One of the lessons learned from the tragic events in Benghazi was that we needed to be better postured, in order to respond to developing or crisis situations, if needed. These precautionary movements will allow us to do just that,” the command said in its statement.

According to a senior administration official, 380 Americans and about another 300 third-country nationals have been evacuated.

“Based on registration, there are American citizens in other towns and areas throughout South Sudan. We are trying to track down how many may still be there. Many may have gotten out on their own. We are trying to track that down,” the official said.

On Sunday, all Americans who showed up at the U.N. camp in the flashpoint town of Bor were evacuated safely, the State Department said. A State Department official said about 15 Americans were flown out Sunday. U.N. civilian staff were moved from a compound in Bor to Juba, the capital, on Saturday.

“The U.S. government is doing everything possible to ensure the safety and security of United States citizens in South Sudan,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement on Sunday. “We are working with our allies around the world to connect with and evacuate U.S. citizens as quickly and safely as possible.”

Continued fighting

Sudanese forces retook Bor after a nearly six-hour fight Tuesday, Defense Minister Kuol Manyang Juuk said Tuesday.

Sudanese military spokesman Col. Philip Aguer also predicted Tuesday that government forces would soon recapture the oil-rich Unity state.

Government forces and opposition fighters also clashed Tuesday in Malakal, he said.

The United Nations said fighting had spread to five of South Sudan’s 10 states.

It described the situation in Juba as “stable but tense,” but said conditions in Jonglei were deteriorating, with reports of clashes between armed factions near Bor, the site of a U.N. peacekeeping base. Conditions were also tense in Bentiu, where the United Nations reported military units on the move amid sporadic fighting.

The United Nations also said it had credible reports civilians were being attacked and killed based on their ethnicity, and reported that private property and the facilities of some humanitarian groups were being looted.

Humanitarian concerns

Meanwhile, U.N. officials struggled to make accommodations for some 45,000 people crowding its compounds seeking shelter from the violence. Nearly as many people were seeking shelter elsewhere.

U.N. officials said they have concerns about health conditions among those fleeing the fighting and urged assistance for medical care and other needs.

The U.N.’s Lanzer, who visited the base in Bor on Monday, said in a statement he had heard “heartbreaking accounts of people’s suffering.”

Ban, who is seeking to increase the 6,800-strong U.N. force in South Sudan by another 5,500, said Monday the agency will do its utmost to protect civilians.

“The U.N. stood with you on your road to independence,” Ban said in a message to the people of South Sudan. “We will stay with you now. I know that the current situation is causing great and growing fear. You are seeing people leave the country amid increasing chaos. The U.N. will stay with you.”

Diplomatic efforts

Secretary of State John Kerry has spoken with Machar in a bid to get talks started between the former vice president and the government, a senior State Department official told CNN.

“He urged him to implement a cease-fire and begin mediated political talks,” the official said.

The European Union’s foreign affairs minister, Catherine Ashton, said the violence threatens to send South Sudan “spiralling into a disaster for both its own people and the region.”

“Such a situation can, and must be avoided,” she said in a statement.

As Ban did Monday, she called for all sides to begin talks to resolve their differences.

“This dialogue must include all groups, including those whose leaders are currently imprisoned and those in revolt against the government,” she said. “The use of force will achieve nothing, and all must use their influence to immediately cease hostilities and prevent further fighting which will only cause the further shedding of innocent blood.”

Miniliik…..bofa gurraacha !

Seenaan daawitii dha dhalotaan ilaalama
Hojiin gaarii darbe ittiin yaadatama
Jiruun hawaasa tokko ittin madaalama
Yaadannoo dha seenaan yoom irraanfatamaa

Seenaan utubaa dha;utubaa jireenyaa
Bu`uura sabaati;hin qabu fakkeenyaa
Seenaan galaana;bal`aa dha keessi isaa
Gargar kan hin baafne soreessa fi hiyyeessa

Kan gaarii hojjate seenaan isa kaasa
Hin dagatamu yoomu ni himama waa`en isaa
Dhalonni ittin boona ol qabe maqaa isaa
Hojjatee waan darbeef hojii gammachisaa

Seenaa maali qaba kan gaarii hin hojjanne
Saba midhuu malee kan bu`aa hin buufne
Abbaa irree ta`e ummata gadi cabsee
Murna tokko olkaasee kaan gad-deebisee
Ofiin sanyii rabbii jedhee of moggaasee
Kaanin gadi cabsuun bineessaan qixxessee

Jara kanneen keessaa Miniliik isa tokko
Oromoo kan saaxilee gadadoo fi rakkoo
Gara-jabeessa inni hin qabu namummaa
Hameenya yoo ta`e malee hin beeku gaarummaa
Ummata koo nagaa waamee manaa baasee
Dhiraa fi dubartii hiriira qabsiisee
Gara-jabeessa ta`u isaa ifatti kan mul`isee
Harmaa fi harka saba koo dabareen cirsiise

Dhala namaa miti inni waraabessa
Bifaa fi amalaan kan ta`e fokkisaa
Oromoo kan nyaate sababa tokko malee
Godaannisa qabna kan Calanqoof Annolee

Ta`ee otoo jiru Miniliik bofa hamaa
Dhiiga Oromoo kan xuuxe sanyii abaaramaa
Har`a maaltu dhufnaan maaliif yaadatamaa
Madaan inni nutti fide yoom fayye haga ammaa

Lamuu hin deebi`u Miniliik darbeera
Lukkeewwan akka isaa kumaatamaan horeera
Hojii isaa kaleessaa akka gaaritti kaasu
Motii gurraacha jechuun maqaa itti moggaasu

Oromoon damaqeera lamuu hin gowwamu
Bofa dhiiga xuxuun motii jedhee hin waamu
Seenaa irraa barannee waan baayyee hubachaa
Nuti immoo jenneerra Miniilik bofa gurraachaa!

ONLF and Ethiopian Troops clashes in Ogaden

By Mohamed Faarah

24 December 2013 (Ogadentoday Press)- Ogaden National Liberation Front, ONLF and Ethiopian Military along side with Regional Paramilitary Forces known Liyu Police have clashed in several Zones in Ogaden, according to reports.

According to sources in Dhagahbour, Korehay and Fik Zones, the clashes have left 70 Ethiopian Troops meanwhile a doze of ONLF has been killed in fighting.

A weekly report issued by ONLF commanders in the field said that they have killed hundreds.

There is no comment from The Ethiopian Government and the regional administration.

Ogadentoday Press has learned that three officials of Ethiopian Troops have been killed while the Ethiopian Paramilitary forces confirmed that they have killed an ONLF commander.

According to elders in the Area, Ethiopian Troops harassed the civilian population and have been ordered to move from the area.

Independent source has reported that hundreds of civilians have been transported from that zones and been detained in the Jigjiga, the Regional administrations Capital.

Abdi Mohamud Omar, the Regional governor, said in the press-conference last week that they are uprooting the ONLF members in the area but elders accused him as targeting the civilian’s populations in the area.

Right groups accused the government of Ethiopia committing genocide in Ogaden region; same experts label the region, as Darfur of Ogaden, Ethiopia denies the allegation.

In Ogaden, military leaders have formed paramilitary forces that are fighting alongside with Ethiopian national defense forces (ENDF).

Ethiopian Paramilitary Forces have long accused of human right abuses in Ogaden Region but Ethiopia denies the accusations.

Media and journalist are banned in the Ogaden region and that is why the conflict in Ogaden is not getting international attention.

The past few days the region has seen an increase in heavy fighting.

Since 2005, Ethiopia government isolated Ogaden region from the World, Ethiopia imposed a ban all international aid and media organizations in Ogaden despite some are operating under the permit of intelligence surveillances.

Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) fighting for the self-determination of Ogaden Region in Ethiopia since 1994.

Oromo show at Federation Square and Oromo Wisdom

Oromo show at Federation Square 23/12/2013	Oromo Wisdom