10.12.13
Ethiopia is
a country located in the horn of Africa. Its population is around 90 million.
There are more than 80 different ethnics in the country.
The main
agenda I raising Now is the violation of human rights in the country.
Unfortunately, the country has never had democratic regime for the last 40
years. In addition to the fact that the former regime was dictatorial and
military government, the Tigray Peoples’ Liberation Front (TPLF) who overthrew
it after 17 years of war, has continued violation of human rights to the worst
stage for the past 22 years. So the Ethiopian people are currently under the
worst dictatorial rule in their history. Under this regime, all parts of the
society have been victimized. However, the youth, who have the responsibility
for tomorrow’s Ethiopia, have been victimized to the worst. Because the youth
do not have freedom of speech and the power lays in the hands of one ethnic
group, particularly called the Tigrayans, the people could not find political
and social justice.
The youth
have tried to peacefully bring an end to this dictatorship. The regime replied
to the peaceful struggle by killing and imprisoning those who opposed it. This has resulted in the persecution of the
young Ethiopians. So they are migrating to Europe, North America, and the
middle east countries such as Saudi Arabia.
Currently,
there are around a million immigrants in Saudi Arabia from different countries
including Ethiopia. The government has given a time of 7 months for the
immigrants to contact their respective embassies, bring passports, and to be
legalized by bringing in addition contracts of jobs if any. By doing so, many
were legalized at the end of these 7 months. However, considerably many
Ethiopians could not get passports from the Ethiopian Embassy in Saudi Arabia.
The Embassy, thinking that those immigrants in Saudi Arabia are opponents to
the regime, did only issue passports to few who are loyal to the TPLF and
rejected the applications of the majority. At the end of this 7 months period
of pardon, the method of deportation used by the Saudi Arabian government
lacked humanity to the worst. The police and other voluntary young Saudi
Arabians broke and entered the homes of the Ethiopians by force. The police
took the Ethiopian males with them and left the Ethiopian women to be gang raped
and robbed by those Saudi voluntary workers. What happened is impossible to
believe that it occurred in this 21st century.
The
Ethiopian male immigrants said that they had the right to return in peace back
to their home country. They also protested that the Saudis should stop the gang
rapes and robberies against the Ethiopian females. This resulted in the killing
and physical abuse of a number of Ethiopians.
This
irresponsible act of violence taken by the Saudi police and people, enraged all
Ethiopians around the world. Consequently, the diaspora Ethiopians have been
continuously protesting at the Saudi Arabian Embassies.
The Human
Rights Watch (HRW) has also a report on this issue. Please refer to the
following webpage.
After this
terrible violence, an organization struggling for the rights of the Ethiopian
victims in Saudi Arabia has been established. It is called Global Alliance for the Rights of Ethiopians in Saudi Arabia. The organization has also prepared
a petition. So any person who feels with us about this violation of human
rights in Saudi Arabia, can sign on the following webpage. http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/stop-violence-against-5
In memory
of those who have been killed and physically abused and for the women who have
been gang raped in Saudi Arabia, we Ethiopians who live in Harstad and the
nearby towns will light candles in Harstad sentrum Tuesday, 10 December 2013 at
3 PM (15:00).
With kind
regards,
posted by Samuale Tewelde
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