Ethiopia’s ex-president accuses government of “pre-election harassment”
August 30, 2009 (ADDIS ABABA) — Only few months remaining for the national election to be held, Ethiopia’s former president and current parliamentarian Dr. Negasso Gidada accused the government of making situations impossible for opposition parties to carry out their pre-election campaigns by deliberately disrupting their public political meetings.
Dr Negasso has hold the Ethiopian government responsible for the recent disruption of a political meeting organized by an opposition party, Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ),in Adama town, Oromiya’s regional capital.
“The Mob was not a spontaneous disrupting group. There were some GPDO/EPRDF Cadres among the mob. I myself could recognize at least two government cadres with whom I worked in the organization before I resigned from it in June 2001. It is obvious that the disturbance was an organized one.” Dr Negasso said.
The opposition MP says that The UDJ got permission from the local authorities to hold a public meeting. “The Municipality even rented its town hall to the UDJ.”
But the town administration later forbid the UDJ from posting posters to the town and from going around in the town to announce about the meeting and invite the public to attend the meeting.
Several hundred residents of Adama and Ethiopian Social Democratic Party, Binyam of the South Coalition, Hadi of the Ethiopian Democratic Unity Movement, Siyye Abraha, former Defence Minister, (all members of the Forum for Democratic Dialogue) and the former president were there to attend the meeting as guests of honor.
According to sources collected from the opposition group, around 50 people started to disturb the meeting while Eng. Gizachew Shiferraw, vice chairperson of the UDJ was addressing the meeting.
The former president in his letter to the Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, in complaint to the disruption of the meeting said that he was disappointed that this happened in a country in which the regime claims that there is respect of the constitution, the law and order.
“This is so sad to see it happened in a state where the ruling party claims that there is democracy, the respect of democracy and human rights. In a country where the constitution provides the right of using any language, and where the members of the federation have promised to respect the federal constitution,” he said.
Dr. Negasso said that as to him this is a clear indication that there is no pre-election leveled playground for political parties in Ethiopia.
“This confirms that the complaints of the opposition political parties that there is no democratic political space, is absolutely true.”
“I call on all those who stand for the respect of democracy and human rights, for peace and stability of this country and for economic development of this country to do something today and not tomorrow” Dr. Negasso stressed.
Following the incident North American support groups for the opposition group, unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ) organized a teleconference with the former president to discuss on the alleged harassment.
(ST)