Ethiopian opposition boycott opening of parliament

Oct 10, 2005 (ADDIS ABABA) — Ethiopia’s new parliament convened for the first time on Monday nearly five months after still disputed elections, in the absence of many opposition lawmakers who boycotted the session to protest alleged vote fraud.

Ethiopia’s ceremonial President Girma Giorgis opened the meeting with a stern rebuke to the opposition legislators who stayed away and have continued to call for a national unity government to oversee a re-run of the May 15 polls.

“The chapter of the third national elections has been concluded and those who were elected … are duty-bound to take their seats and serve the people who have entrusted them with this great responsibility,” he told members of parliament.

Although the vast majority of MPs elected to the 547-member did take part in the session only eight of the 109 elected MPs from the main opposition Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD) were present, according to parliamentary officials.

At the same time, all but one of the 52 elected lawmakers from the CUD’s chief ally in opposition, the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces (UEDF), attended, the officials said.

The opposition had previously held just 12 seats in parliament and had predicted an overwhelming victory in the May polls.

After losing, the two groups accused the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Forces (EPRDF) of stealing the election through massive fraud and had threatened an all-out boycott of parliament unless their concerns were addressed.

Protests over alleged irregularities sparked deadly violence in the capital in June and the opposition has vowed to stage mass demonstrations to demand a unity government, a suggestion repeatedly rejected by the EPRDF which won 327 seats in the 547-member parliament.

The government has reacted angrily to the opposition stance and accused it of fomenting violence in a bid to overthrow a democratically elected administration.

Girma repeated those claims as he opened parliament on Monday.

“It is known that in the aftermath of the elections, those who dispute the results have been engaged not in addressing their complaints through the provisions of the constitution, but through conspiracy and violence,” he said.

International observers have given the May elections mixed reviews with some saying they failed to meet international standards and others urging the opposition to accept the results given their substantial gains in parliament.

(AFP/ST)