who
are arbitrarily arrested
It is eighteen years now since EPRDF has been in
power. Throughout these years, it has never ceased to preach about the
rule of law and human rights. However, the preaching and the practice have
never gone together. In fact, Ethiopia is known as one of the forefront
countries where blatant violations of human rights are perpetrated.
Although many examples could be cited, let us take Birtukan�s
imprisonment as an example. She has been illegally imprisoned. We
repeatedly notified the Addis Ababa City Administration of our wish to
hold candle light vigils at the Meskel Square to commemorate our
Chairperson�s illegal imprisonment. This is our right enshrined in the
Constitution. But the City Administration has repeatedly denied us this
right. Article 30 of the Constitution, guaranteeing citizens the right of
assembly is repeatedly and blatantly violated. This clearly demonstrates
that the EPRDF and one of its arms, the Addis Ababa City Administration,
are making a mockery of the Constitution and the rule of law. The
mockery does not stop here.
Particularly at this time--the eve of the coming
election�human rights violations are being perpetrated by the ruling
party. This is attested by the recent report of the international
organization, Human Rights Watch. We cannot call public gatherings in
Addis and meet with the people. We are in the process of selecting our
candidates for the 2010 election but our prospective candidates are being
targeted and imprisoned on fabricated charges. The law on Terrorism is
being applied on them so that their cases could be processed quickly and
they could be sent to prison fast, thus making them unable to register as
candidates.
Even though the Ethiopian Government says that W/t
Birtukan�s imprisonment has been according to the law, it is well known
that she was imprisoned not even according to the law of pardon. The
Government�s argument on the legality of Birtukan�s imprisonment could
not convince its own members, let alone the rest of the Ethiopian people.
The UN Human Rights Report published on 15 January 2010 has officially
declared that Birtukan Mideksa is one of the people who are arbitrarily
arrested and languishing in prison.
The fact that Birtukan�s imprisonment is seriously
recognized at the level of the United Nations as being illegal is
significant. This recognition shows that the Government�s effort to
mislead the international community on how Birtukan�s imprisonment was
according to the law has been in vain. However, this recognition by the
United Nations is not enough by itself. We wish to take this opportunity
to request the United Nations Human Rights Council to urge the Ethiopian
Government to release W/t Birtukan immediately. It is recognized by all
that such atrocity of arbitrary imprisonment committed anywhere is a
serious threat to world peace. We also call on other governments and
international institutions to use their good offices to keep urging the
Ethiopian Government to release prisoners of conscience, including W/t
Birtukan, who are found in prisons throughout the country.
The FORUM has made it known long in advance that it
is making full preparations to participate in the coming election
according to the law and with determination. However, there seem to be
dangerous moves to push UDJ out of play on the pretext that it is not one
of the signatories to the Code of Conduct. UDJ will proceed with its
preparations in accordance with the law. It condemns any attempt to deny
it of its legitimate rights on a pretext that it is not a member of a �club�
created by the EPRDF.
We wish to take this opportunity to call upon the
Ethiopian people to take this coming election as a precious chance for
demonstrating their deep longing for freedom and democracy. Therefore, we
urge them to come out in full force, register and prepare themselves for
the crucial Election Day. Hungry, thirsty and oppressed people could have
no legitimate reason to distance themselves from active involvement in
politics.
The illegal imprisonment and mistreatment of our
Chairperson, W/t Birtukan Mideksa, is a symbolic imprisonment and
mistreatment of the entire population of Ethiopia. It is the manifestation
of the repression of freedom and democracy. This is a matter of concern
not only for Ethiopians but also for the rest of the international
community.
UDJ will continue to pursue its course of peaceful
endeavor to see our leader Birtukan Mideksa and other prisoners of
conscience released and freedom and democracy become a reality in
Ethiopia. We call upon the international community to stand on our side in
the pursuit of this noble and common cause. It would be a serious mistake
to believe that anyone�s interest could be protected in an environment
where repression rules.
Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ)28 January 2010
Addis Ababa
