OLF urges Kenya to not involve its troops beside Ethiopia

The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) views Kenya as a friendly and peace-loving country with whom the Oromo people have lived in harmony as good neighbors for years. Thousands of Oromo refugees have fled the wrath of successive Ethiopian regimes taking refuge in the peace of Kenya. The policy of the OLF towards Kenya and other neighboring countries reflects the sacred desire of all our peoples to live in harmony as neighbors and work towards peace and progress.

OLF political and military activities are directed only and strictly against the Ethiopian regime that continues to deny basic human rights to the Oromo and all other people. Our main objective is to achieve self-determination for the Oromo people. We derive our policy from our strong belief that only respect for human rights and tolerance to cultural diversity promote peace and stability in Ethiopia. That is why OLF took the leading role in the formation of the Alliance for Freedom and Democracy, bringing together the major political parties and liberation organizations in Ethiopia to realize a broad-based dialogue for a speedy transition from tyranny to freedom and democracy.

The OLF and the Oromo people took the news of the ongoing joint military operation by Kenya and Ethiopia with great apprehension. In the process, many innocent Kenyans of Oromo Origin have been ill treated and suffered. Kenya has long prided itself as a democratic nation respectful of its ethnic and cultural diversity. It is home to thousands of Kenyan citizens of Oromo origin and thousands of Oromos who seek refuge from the brutality of the Ethiopian minority regime. Kenya should be the last country to take part in the futile political and military aggression of the Ethiopian regime that has repeatedly violated its own borders. This military cooperation brings bad name to the long-standing democratic and pro-peace stature Kenya enjoys among its neighbors. It could leave an indelible scar between our brotherly peoples.

A recent press release issued by a Kenyan government spokesman makes a baseless allegation that a number of OLF fighters were seized inside Kenya. We have stated time and again that the OLF fighters have no business in Kenya and its military activities are confined in Oromia. On the other hand, the OLF takes no policing responsibility for individuals, Oromo, Kenyan, or other citizens, taking illicit activities, such as banditry, inside or outside Oromia.

Our region has been gripped by complex political, social and economic problems. All governments in the region in general and that of Kenya in particular should play a more constructive role to stabilize the region rather than partnering with a minority, discredited and decaying regime that is at war with all the peoples in Ethiopia and with most of its neighbors. We, therefore, call on the Kenyan government to desist from this misguided operation and rather assist our search for just peace in Ethiopia and not become a party to the conflict.