Press Release No10 April 2008

Kidnappings and Tortures in Somaliland

Two Oromo refugees are in a critical condition after they were kidnapped and tortured by Ethiopian solders operating in Somaliland.
1. Bayan Muktar Mohammed was kidnapped by members of the Ethiopian army in Wachale, Somaliland on Febrauary 2nd, 2008 and taken to a nearby military camp where he was severely tortured. Bayan Muktar Mohammed, who is originally from Western Hararge of Oromia region, is a UNHCR-registered refugee seeking asylum. Bayan was forced to flee his homeland due to continuous harassments and intimidations. He is a father of five; and head of a family of six, all of whom are dependent on him. Bayan Muktar, who managed to return back to Wachale, Somaliland after escaping from the military detention, is in a critical condition due to the severe torture inflicted on him; and one of his hands is paralysed, according to the HRLHA reporter in Wachale, Somaliland.

2. Abdumalik Adam Abdulahi age 32, born in Hararge/Dadar  was kidnapped by unidentified armed groups in Hargessa  on February 15, 2008 and handed over to Ethiopian soldiers. Abdulmalik was kidnapped at gun point from a place where he was working as a watchman. According to HRL reporter, Abdumalik was taken into the Ethiopian border to Jijjiga military camp, where he was held in solitary confinement for about one Month. He was subjected to continuous interrogations and torture while he was in custody. He was finally released on grounds that he was mistaken and kidnapped wrongly. Abdumalik Adam is also in critical condition due to the severe torture.

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) is highly concerned about the safety and security of all refugees residing in Somaliland. It urges other human rights agencies (local, regional and international) to join hands with it and condemn these illegal and inhuman acts of both the Ethiopian and the Somaliland governments against defenseless refugees. It also requests governments of the West and other international organizations to interfere so that the safety and security of those refugees would be secured.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the peoples of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa.
HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and organization. It is also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It has intended to work on the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil society.

======================================

HRLHA URGENT ACTION

Appeal To: The President of Djibouti

February 18,2008

His Excelency Ismail Omar Guelleh
President, The Republic of Djibouti
Po Box 185
Tel. (253) 35 39 95
Fax- (253) 35 39 40
Djibouti.

Your Excellency,

Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa(HRLHA) recieved from its informants in Djibouti a report that your Government’s security forces have arbitrarly arrested four very young Ethiopian refugees on Feburuary 01, 2008 in violation of international treaties to which, we believe, Djibouti is a signatory. All four refugees were picked up and taken to the Lagad Detention Center by the Djibouti scurity force on their way to the refugee camp from school, which they have been attending. The school was set up by Catholic church of Djibouti particulary to help children of the refugees in Djibouti.
It was very saddening to hear that they were tortured while they were in the detention centre; and that they are going to be deported to Ethiopia. We have confirmed from our reporters that,until their deportation date arrived, these teenagers who could be addressed as children, were forced to do very heavy labor in a very harsh situation on a construction site for 12hrs every day.
The names of the four youths abducted and subjected to the hard child labour are:

1. Kadir Hasan Ahmed, age 17, male
2. Fatih Mohamed Ali, age 16, male
3. Abdul Aziz Ahmed Hajii muhamed, age 17, male and
4. Muhamed Abdoo Ahmed, age 17, male.

The Ethiopian Government has a well-documented record of gross and flagrant violations of human rights, including the torturing of its own citizens who were involuntarily returned to the country. The government of Ethiopia routinely imprisons such persons. There have been credible reports of physical and psychological abuse committed against individuals in Ethiopian prisons and other places of detention. Under Article 33 (1) of the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (189 U.N.T.S. 150), to which Djibouti is a party, “[n]o contracting state shall expel or forcibly return a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his . . . political opinion.” This obligation, which is also a principle of customary international law, applies to both asylum seekers and refugees, as affirmed by UNHCR’s Executive Committee and the United Nations General Assembly
By deporting the four Youths, the Djibouti government will be breaching its obligations under international treaties and customary law.

2. For the purpose of determining whether there are such grounds, the competent authorities shall take into account all relevant considerations including, where applicable, the existence in the state concerned of a consistent pattern of gross, flagrant or mass violations of human rights.
We strongly urge the Government of Djibouti to respect the international treaties and obligations it has signed..

BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Two young refugees, Umar Aliye 16, and Abdulfattah Abdulattif, who were abducted by the Djibouti police from the steet on their way from the school to their refugee camp, who were also forced to do hard child labour  in hard situation on constration sites, were deported to Ethiopia  in November 2007 and  their whereabouts is unknown( HRLHA press release No 4 November 2007).
 
HRLHA urges the Djibouti Government to revise its policies and procedures so as to ensure compliance with the international conventions and declarations on refugees’ rights and protection; and release these four refugees from prison.

The HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa. It works on defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It also works on raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It encourages the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.

Sincerely,  
 
Garoma Wakessa
Executive Director
Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa

Cc:
Embassy of the Republic of Djibouti
(High Comission) Consulate to Canada
3525 Durocher street, Apt. 91 Montereal Quebec H2X 2E7
Phone (+1 – 514) 2888297
Fax (+1 – 514) 2888297
Email – elisabethdembil@yahoo.ca

==========================================

Press Release No9 February 2008
Mass Murder in Bossaso (Puntland, Somalia)
65 Oromo refugees murdered and more than 100 others injured

65 Oromo refugees from Ethiopia were killed and more than 100 others were seriously injured when two grenades were thrown at two different hotels owned by two Oromo refugees, Melaku and Jamal Arsii, in port town of Bossaso in Puntland, Somalia. The victims were watching a video game produced in Oromo Language by the time the attack  took place on the 5th of February, 2008.
According to HRLHA informants in the area, the deadly attack was planned and executed jointly by security forces from Ethiopia and Puntland. A three-member mercenary group organized in Ethiopia was sent out to neighboring countries were refugees from Ethiopia are believed to have been staying to take such actions against suspected members of opposition political organizations. Relatives and family members of the victims in particular give the following proofs to substantiate their claims:
     1. One day prior to the attack in Bossaso, houses of Oromo refugees living in Borama and Buro towns of Puntland were searched by the joint Ethio-Puntland security agents.
     2. 30 seconds before the happening of the attack, the power was turned off from its source and the whole town remained in absolute darkness; domestic and international telephone networks were disconnected.
     3. The town of Bossaso was fully surrounded by heavily armed security forces and all roads leading into and out of the town were blocked.
     4. After the attack took place, the bodies of the victims were immediately loaded onto two trucks and taken to unknown places.
     5. The vehicle of the Ministry of Interior of Puntland was identified at the place of the attack.

  The names of the injured Oromo refugees are:
 1.Abrahim Siraj Abrahim 28,born inRobe/Arsi
 2. Abdusalam Mustaffa 28,born in Baroda/Hrarge
 3. Abdala Kamal Tuse 20, Sude/Arsi
 4. Siraj Kadir Mohamed 20,Arsi
 5. Abdul Fatah Abubakar 18, Arsi,
 6. Suleyman Ahmed,
 7. Mohamed Usmael Kasim 18,Machara/Hararge
 8. Mohamed Usmael Aliyu 20, Wallo
 9  Jamal Mohamed Saali,
  10. Ali  Mohamed  Bashir
       11. Fadluu  Haji  Abdoo 20,Arsi
       12. Amin  Hussen Abdulqadir
       13. Mohamed Aloo
       14. Nagawo Abdoo Alliyyi
       15. Ture Aman   Abdo
       16. Mohamed Yasin Ibro
       17. Abdujabar  Mohamed  Abdo 24 Jaju/Arsi
       18. Umar Taka
       19. AliyyiiAhmed Musa
       20. Gidana Muse Dade
       21. Umar Aadam Umar  raya 23, wallo
       22. Jamal Mohamed Ulula 53
       23. Mohamed Amin Kadir 22, Robe/Bale
       24. Mustafa  Salii Abdalla 23,Baddanno/Hararge
       25. Abdiugafar Abdulahi Jabran 18, Wakkite Burka/Shwa
       26. Abdulle Biluu Ahmed 19, Shirka/Arsi
       27.  Ziyaad Ibrahim Hassan30,Galamso/Hararge
       28. Ahmed Bakar Birka
       29. Obsaa Aman  Sheeko
       30. Abdo kalifa
       31. Nagash Mohamed Idris
       32. Mohamed Said 21, Marti Abomsa/Arsi
       33. Mohamed Gazali Sh. Aman
       34. Arabu Hussen  Abdurahman
        35.Nura Abdurahman Sheka
        36. Muhaddin Kamal Aman
        37 Mohamed Amade Ulume
        38. Umar Mahamud Umare
        39. Aliyyi  Mohamed  Aliyyi 20, Wallo
        40. Xahir Hussen Abdilkariim25, Bale
        41. Ahmed Mahamud Kalil, Wallo
        42. Hassan  Umar  Duqaa 20, Wallo,
        43. Qasim Kadir 22, Lole/Arsi
        44. Abdiltif  Shubbe  Mohamed 42 Bale
        45. Redwan  Kadir23, Jaju/Arsi
        46. Daud Kadir Hussen 20, Jaju/Arsi
        47. Abdulmajid Abiti Mohamed 22, Jaju/Arsi
        48. Husseen Jara  Sulte
        49. Umar  Ahmed Tarafa, Wallo
        50. Abama  Nyalata  Abit
        51. Mohamed  Dhere
        52. Abdallaa Ahmed Malu ,Sambate/Wallo
        53. Nagahu  Abdi  Ali 38 Robe?Arsi
        54. Usmael Hasso Sh Aadam, Machitu/Arsi
        55. Alamu Bayana
        56. Mohamed Bile Ahmed Yusuf
        57.Wandwoson Baqalaa
        58. Sulayman  Ma’alim Warsame
        59. Melaku (hotel owner); and  the names of more than 40 victims who are in critical condition  were not included

 The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA believes that such kinds of mass murders were pre-planed and well organized. HRLHA also believes that defenseless civilians who have already fled their home lands seeking for safety and security should get a full protection in countries where they are staying; be it temporarily or permanently. It strongly condemns such barbarous act committed against defenseless refugees. Also, HRLHA is highly concerned about the safety and security of those refugees currently living in Puntland and other neighboring countries.
HRLHA urges other international human rights agencies to join hands with it to condemn these illegal and inhuman acts committed in Bossasso, Puntland against defenseless refugees. HRLHA also requests governments of the west and other international organization to interfere so that the safety and security of the  refugees in Puntland and other neighboring countries in the Horn would be secured. In the mean time, HRLHA demands that the barbarous act committed against defenseless refugees be investigated.
The HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the people of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa.
HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and association. It has also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It has intended to work on the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.

======================================

Press Release No8 January 2008

Mass Arrests and Imprisonments  in Western Oromia

In a continuous Mass arrest and imprisonment that has been taking place for months all over Oromia, HRLHA reporters confirmed that, in and around Mettu Town of Illubabor Zone in western Oromia, dozens of people have recently been sent to prison.  Most of those individuals who were arrested January 12 & 13, 2008 are teachers and students. Among those whose names have been obtained were: 
 1. Namarraa Addaamuu (a high school teacher),
 2. Zelaalem Amaanu'el (an elementary school teacher),
 3. Eliyaas Nyaaroo (a teacher),
 4  Bulaa Kuraa (a businessman),
 5. Kaasahun Fidaa (a student),
 6. Biruk Sewunet ( a student),
 7. Balaxee W/semayaat (a student)
 8. Another student known by a nickname “Giraany”.
            Some of those detainees  (for example Obbo Elias Nyaro) have been targeted for so many years and subjected to repeated arrests, imprisonments and other forms of harassments. None of those recent detainees were taken to court and charged. HRLHA reporter confirmed that, the reason for their arrest and imprisonment is the very common allegation that they sympathized with opposition political organization OLF.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is highly concerned about the safety and security of those detainees. HRLHA urges other human rights organizations ( local regional and international ) to join hands with and condemn this mass arrest by the Ethiopian Government security agents. HRLHA also request governments of the West and other international organizations to interfere so that the safety and security of the detainees would be secured.

========================================

Press Release No 7 January 2008

Abduction and Deportation of Oromo Refugees in Somaliland

The Somaliland security forces have continued to hunt down and abduct the Oromo refugees living in Hargessa, and hand them over to the Ethiopian government. According to the HRLHA reporter in the region, four Oromo refugees have been handed over to Ethiopian security agents operating in Somaliland on the 13th of January 2008. The four deported Oromo refugees are: 
1. Abba Cali Abba Biyya, age  45, born in Hararge
2. Riyad Haji Kamal, age  31, born in Bale / Gassara and father of two
3. Jamal Wallaga; and
4. Another refugee whose name was not identified at the moment. They were handed over to the Ethiopian security forces in the boarder town Wacale. The whereabouts of these refugees is not known since then.

The HRLHA reporter has also confirmed that the list of another forty Oromo refugees, who are strictly wanted by the Ethiopian security agents, has been given to Somaliland security forces to be hunted down. Because of this, Oromo refugees currently living in Hargessa have been forced to change their residential addresses almost on daily basis.  HRLHA reporter added that some TPLF spying agents have been sent to Somaliland to help in identifying and abducting those wanted Oromo refugees.
The fate and whereabouts of these Oromo refugees is not known. The Human rights League of the Horn of Africa / HRLHA believes that what has happened to these refugees is in violation of what were provided for in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights. In the Universal declaration of Human Rights Article 14/1, it was stated that, “Every one has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.” Also, in African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, it was stated in Article 12/1 that, “ Every individual shall have the right to freedom of movement and reside   the borders of the state provided he abide by the law.”
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) is highly concerned about the safety and security of those refugees. It urges other human rights agencies (local, regional and international) to join hands with it and condemn these illegal and inhuman acts of both the Ethiopian and the Somaliland governments against defenseless refugees. It also requests governments of the West and other international organizations to interfere so that the safety and security of those refugees would be secured.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the peoples of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa.
HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and organization. It is also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It has intended to work on the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.

=============================================

Press Release No 6 January 2008
Human Rights Abuse against Oromo Refugees in Sudan

Detention and Torture
Seven Oromo refugees living in the Sudan:

1. Adunya Shiferaw
2. Gammachis Nado
3. Shantam Amsalu
4. Harun Idiris
5. Abdala Suleman
6. Ibrahim Itana
7. Kamal Kalbessa

were detained in September 2007 by the Sudanese Government even though they had the UNHCR attestation papers, HRLHA Reporter in Khartoum confirmed.

First, these refugees were held and tortured in Dabki detention center approximately 150 Km North of the capital Khartoum. They were then transferred to KOBAR detention center located in the Capital in the fourth last week of December 2007. The families and friends of the detained refugees were asked to pay bribes of 100,000 Sudan pounds each to visit their loved one.  

 Refugees Handed Over to Ethiopian Gov’t

Despite their having the UNHCR attestation papers, the following refugees have been handed over by the Sudanese Government to the Ethiopian Government Security Forces at Ethio- Sudanese border town of Gadarif in the end of September 2007.

The Human rights League of the Horn of Africa / HRLHA believes that what has happened to these refugees is in violation of what were provided for in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, both of which the Sudan is a signatory. In the Universal declaration of Human Rights Article 14/1, it was stated that, “Every one has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.” Also, in African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, it was stated in Article 12/1 that, “ Every individual shall have the right to freedom of movement and reside   the borders of the state provided he abide by the law.”

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) is highly concerned about the safety and security of those refugees. It urges other human rights agencies (local, regional and international) to join hands with it and condemn these illegal and inhuman acts of both the Ethiopian and the Sudanese governments against defenseless refugees. It also requests governments of the West and other international organizations to interfere so that the safety and security of those refugees would be secured.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the peoples of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa.
HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and organization. It is also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It has intended to work on the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.

===================================

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL URGENT ACTION

PUBLIC AI Index: AFR 25/030/2007
11 December 2007
UA 328/07 Torture / incommunicado detention
ETHIOPIA Mulatu Aberra (m), trader, aged 34
Najima Jamal Ismail (f), aged 17
Najima Jamal Ismail's stepfather, a trader (name unconfirmed)
Mulata Aberra, a trader of Oromo ethnic origin, has been held incommunicado at a federal police detention centre in Harar city in eastern Ethiopia since his arrest on 29 November. Also arrested at the same time were Najima Jamal Ismail and her step father. Najima Jamal Ismail is being held in a women’s detention centre in Harar. Amnesty International has received reports that Mulatu Aberra and possibly the other two have been tortured. Mulatu Aberra and Najima Jamal Ismail were transferred to hospital in Harar on 10 December and were retuned to prison on 11 December. All three appeared together before a court in Harar on 6 December where police obtained permission to extend their detention for investigation into alleged involvement with the armed opposition group, the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). Mulatu Aberra has been detained on two previous occasions and accused of being a supporter of the OLF. In 1996 he was arrested, and was detained incommunicado in Harar without charge or trial. His family was
not informed of his whereabouts until 1998, when he was charged with killing a person on behalf of the OLF. He was tried and acquitted in 2000. He was frequently tortured during this period of detention and as a result he now suffers from a hearing impairment and both of his arms are partially paralysed. He was arrested for a second time in late 2006 in the nearby town of Dire Dawa and accused again of links with the OLF, but was released without charge after five months. During this period of detention Mulatu Aberra was again tortured, and was seriously injured.
Amnesty International in not aware of any case in Ethiopia where a judge has ordered an investigation into allegations of torture
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Thousands of members of the Oromo ethnic group have been detained, and many of them tortured, in recent years on suspicion of links with the OLF. The OLFhas been fighting the Ethiopian government in eastern and western Oromia Region and other areas since 1992. Among detainees held on these grounds have been people who Amnesty International believed were prisoners of conscience who had not used or advocated violence.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in English or your own language:
- expressing concern at reports that Mulatu Aberra, and possibly also Najima Jamal Ismail and her stepfather, who were arrested with him on 29 November in Harar, have been tortured in incommunicado detention; - calling on the authorities to allow all three detainees regular access to their families and legal representatives, and any medical treatment they may require;
- expressing concern that Najima Jamal Ismail is said to be under 18 years of age and calling for her to be treated as such under the juvenile justice system;
- calling for an immediate and independent inquiry into the allegations that the three have been tortured while in police custody and for the findings of the inquiry to be made public and for any police officer found responsible for torture to be brought to justice;
- pointing out that according to international fair trial standards, no statement made as a result of torture can be used as evidence in any court proceedings and judges are obliged to separately investigate or order an investigation into allegations of torture;
- calling on the authorities to release the three people if they are not to be charged with a recognizable
criminal offence and given a prompt and fair trial.
APPEALS TO:
Prime Minister
His Excellency Meles Zenawi, Office of the Prime Minister, PO Box 1031, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 1552020
Salutation: Your Excellency
Minister of Justice
Mr Assefa Kesito, Ministry of Justice, PO Box 1370, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 5517775
+251 11 5520874
Email: ministry-justice@telecom.net.et
Salutation: Dear Minister
Federal Commissioner of Police
Mr Workneh Gebeyehu, Federal Police Commission, Ministry of Federal Affairs
PO Box 5068, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Salutation: Dear Commissioner
COPIES TO:
The official Ethiopian Human Rights Commission
Ambassador Dr Kassa Gebreheywot, Chief Commissioner, Ethiopian Human Rights Commission
PO Box 1165, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Fax: +251 11 618 0041
Email: hrcom@ethionet.et
Salutation: Dear Chief Commissioner
and to diplomatic representatives of Ethiopia accredited to your country.
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 22 January 2008.

===========================================

Press Release No.5 December 2007

Arrests and Deportation of Suspected Opposition Members

Nairobi, Kenya, Despite the fact that Ethiopia is one of the countries that imposes and implements death penalties, the Kenyan police have arrested and deported two alleged members of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), one of the Ethiopian opposition groups. This is happening at a time when the Ethiopian government is holding in prison more than one alleged members of the same opposition group who have already been sentenced to death penalties. It is very likely that those deported Oromos are going to face torture and other inhuman treatments at the hand of the Ethiopian Government.

The Kenyan police have also announced, according to Reuters, that they have 19 more alleged members of OLF in custody who are being investigated and who might eventually be deported to Ethiopian. The Kenyan police didn’t even take into consideration the comments by local Kenyans that those individual, too, were local Kenyans who lived with them and couldn’t do anything similar to the allegations the police are making against them. Local Kenyans were quoted by Reuters as saying, “The police are just picking on them.”

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) strongly condemn these acts of the Kenyan police. It also expresses its deep concern over the situations of the two alleged members of the OLF who have already been deported to Ethiopia.

================================

Press Release No.4 November 2007

Human Rights Abuses In Ethiopia and Djibouti

Ethiopia (Arrest, Torture and Disappearance)

It has been a serious concern for both families and friends that the whereabouts of Dirirsa Biqila is not known since the end of December 2006. The eventual disappearance of Dirirsa Biqila, a fresh graduate of Law from Mekele Univeristy, happened after passing through a very inhuman situation in the hands of the Ethiopian security agents.
According to HRLHA reporter, Dirirsa was one of the fourteen Oromo students who have been denied their degrees and diplomas upon graduation from the same (Mekele) university for allegedly organizing what was termed as “OLF-affiliated anti-government movement” within the university. Dirirsa, who came to Addis Ababa immediately after the graduation in July 2006, was first kidnapped by unidentified men in civilian clothes on November 30 2006 around 2:00p.m from the area known as Megenanya in Addis Ababa. HRLHA reporter has later confirmed in an interview with Dirirsa's family that his kidnappers were government security forces. Dirirsa, after being kidnapped, was taken to an underground prison (handcuffed and blindfolded), where he was severely beaten up and tortured (please see the picture). Dirirsa's family told HRLHA reporter that he temporarily lost his consciousness as a result of the severe torture. After two days, he was taken to the Air Force base in Debrezeit/Bishoftu, where he was subjected to further torture and harassments. Then, Dirirsa was brought back to Addis Ababa and held at Lafto Sub-City police station before he was driven to and dumped in Walo Safar area in the Capital very early in the morning on December 5, 2006.

 Dirirsa's family still believes that he is rearrested by Ethiopian Scurity. Dirirsa Biqila, age 25 was born in West Wallaga/ Western Oromia

Djibouti  (Kidnappings and Disappearances)

Two young Oromo refugees who were forced to do very heavy child labour in a harsh situation on a construction site are reported to have disappeared, according to HRLHA reporter in Djibouti.

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is highly concerned about the safety and security of Dirirsa Biqila, Umar Aliyye, and
Abdulfattaah Abdullaxiif and condemns such barbarous act against humanity.

HRLHA urges other human rights agencies (local, regional and international) to join  with it and condemn these illegal and inhuman acts jointly committed by Ethiopian and Djibouti Securities against defenseless citizen and refugees. HRLHA also requests governments of the West and other international organizations/NGOs to interfere, so that the safety and security of those disappeared would be secured and their whereabouts is to be disclosed by their kidnappers.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the peoples of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa.

HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and organization. It is also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It has intended to work on the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies

================================

Press Release No.3 November 2007

Refugees Targeted by Gunmen in Nairobi

Three refugees were killed and three others seriously wounded by unidentified gunmen on November 4, 2007 in Nairobi, Kenya. Two former university students, Endalkachew Teshome (a 25-year old Oromo refugee from Ethiopian) and Meles, whose father’s name is not know, (a Sidama refugee from Ethiopia) were extra-judicially killed by unknown gunmen who were wearing masks in the Easliegh area of Nairobi in Kenya. Also a Kenyan called Jaferson has become one of the victims of the assassination. The three were shot dead after they were dragged out of their homes.
Another three refugees, Gashaw Teshome, Girma Teshome and Dadi Raba, all of whom were Oromos and university students from Ethiopia, were seriously wounded during the attack by those unidentified gunmen. The three wounded refugees, one of whom has lost his right eye as a result of the severe attack inflicted on him, have been receiving medical treatment at the Referral Hospital of Nairobi.
Earlier on Saturday, unidentified armed men also held four exiled Ethiopian journalists at gunpoint, tied their hands behind their backs, dragged them out of their home when violence-wary neighbors cried out for help and stopped the progress of the crime.

Ethiopian refugees who held a demonstration November 6, 2007 in front of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Nairobi office, appealed to the UN body for protection against what they described as, “… the death squads of the dictator in Addis Ababa frequently sent to Kenya to hunt down even those who have fled their native countries and sought sanctuary in foreign lands.
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA believes that such kinds of extra-judicial killings are pre-planed and well organized. It also believes that defenseless civilians who have already fled their home lands seeking for safety and security should get a full protection in countries where they are resided, be it temporarily or permanently.

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is highly concerned about the safety and security of those refugees and condemns such barbarous act against humanity.

It urges other human rights agencies (local, regional and international) to join hands with it and condemn these illegal and inhuman acts jointly committed in Nairobi against defenseless refugees. It also requests governments of the West and other international organizations to interfere so that the safety and security of those refuges would be secured and the barbarous act committed against defenseless refugees is investigated.

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the peoples of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa.
HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and organization. It is also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It has intended to work on the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.

===========================

Press Release No.2 November, 2007

Human Rights Abuses in Ethiopia

Eastern Oromia, Ethiopia

Killing – Abdii Abrahim, age 30 years, from Dire Xiyara /Kombolcha District in East Hararge was shot with three bullets and killed on October 30,2007 by the Ethiopian government solders .

Abdii Abrahim was shot dead near Ethiopian military camp found in a place called Didiibbo in Eastern Hararge. He was killed in a car he was driving. HRLHA reporter has confirmed that Abdii Abrahim was a businessman and a father of four children. 

Abdala Osman Adam ,a 19-year youth from Ililii Darartuu/ Baddano District in Gara Mulata Region in East Hararge, was tortured and beaten to death by Ethiopian  

Solders. He was arbitrarily arrested on October 28, 2007 on his way to Jijjiga for the business purpose, HRLHA reporter in Eatern Hararge Confirmed. Abdala Osman was thrown in to the bush after severely injured on his head. He was fortunately found alive after two days in the bush.
Abdala Osman told HRLHA reporter that he was accused by the Ethiopian government solders of allegedly being a member the OLF.

Abdala Osman – (Photo by HRLHA reporter)

Detantion In Djibouti

Many refugees, who have already obtained a refugee status and are living in refugee camp under UNCHER in Djibouti, are reported to have been left without protection. The refugees, who were mainly from Ethiopian, were first forced to flee the refuge camp after repeated attempts were made by Djibouti security forces to hand them over to the Ethiopian government. They run from the camp because of the Djibouti Security forces intended to pass them to the Ethiopian Security

Among those who managed to flee the refuge camp, two were arrested and detained by Djibouti security forces. The two detained refugees, Tamaam Ahmed Bashir (from Iluababora, Western Oromia) and Tesfaye Eshetu (from Jimma, Western Oromia) were arrested in Djibouti on October 16,2007 by Djibouti police; and since then are being held in Gaboti central prison, HRLHA reporter in Djibouti confirmed. Those who were not arrested are still on the run.

 Refugees who are currently on the run in Djibouti are:

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa (HRLHA) is highly concerned about the safety and security of those refuges. It urges other human rights agencies (local, regional and international) to join hands with it and condemn these illegal and inhuman acts jointly committed Ethiopian and Djibouti governments against defenseless refugees. It also requests governments of the West and other international organizations to interfere so that the safety and security of those refuges would be secured.
 
The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the peoples of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa.

HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and organization. It is also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It has intended to work on the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.

==============

Press Release No.1 October 2007

Human Rights Abuse in the Horn of Africa

The Human Rights League of the Horn of Africa/HRLHA is a non-political organization which attempts to challenge abuses of human rights of the peoples of various nations and nationalities in the Horn of Africa.

HRLHA is aimed at defending fundamental human rights including freedoms of thought, expression, movement and organization. It is also aimed at raising the awareness of individuals about their own basic human rights and that of others. It has intended to work on the observances as well as due processes of law. It promotes the growth and development of free and vigorous civil societies.

Killing and Abduction OF Ethiopian Citizens in Somaliland.

Killing: Yadata, an Oromo man living in Hargessa/ Somaliland, was killed on October 06, 2007 by two unknown gunmen on his way to the home of his friend called Muktar, HRLHA Horn of Africa reporter confimed.

The two gunmen disappeared after killing Yadata with four bullets, said the reporter.

These gunmen were believed to belong to the Ethiopian insurgencies sent to hunt down the suspected members of Oromo Liberation front (OLF) and Ogadenian National Liberation Front(ONLF).

Abduction: Abbas Abdala Sa’id , a worker in Hargessa/Somaliland was abducted by Somaliland Government security personnels on October 07, 2007 from his work place and handed over to the Ethiopian Government troops searching for OLF and ONLF supporters in Somaliland, the HRLHA Horn Africa reporter confirmed. Abbas Abdala Sa’id was handed over to the Ethiopian troops together with more than ten men and women, all of whom were alleged members of Ogadenian National Liberation Front (ONLF), the HRLHA reporter added.

Three Ethiopian Solders,

1. Ilala Mohamad (Oromo), 2. Geremu Tesfaye (Oromo) and

3. unknown name (from Tigray Region),

who defected from Ethiopian based in a Camp situated on the Ethio-Somalian border, were given back to the Ethiopian government by the government of Somaliland after they reached the Somaliland town of Wachale. This defection, arrest and handover took place in the last week of September 2007.

The fate and whereabout of Abbas Abdala Sa’id, the three former Ethiopian Solders and the ten Ogaden nationals is not known.

=============================== 

Press Release

A New Human Rights Organization Formed to Monitor Human Rights Situations in the Horn

It is almost a universal consensus that all human beings are entitled to certain basic rights under any circumstances. The most fundamental rights are the rights to life and physical safety, political rights, the rights of freedom of thought and expressions and equal treatment before the law, among others. Such rights are given "naturally," to human being. This means that they are not earned and cannot be denied on the basis of race, creed, ethnicity or gender. These rights are often violated by some irresponsible rulers and their agents. To protect them from such rulers and their agents, the rules of law were formulated. However, it has been proved that these rules of law could not stop the unjust conducts of governments and their forces of suppression from violating human rights.

 To protect human rights is to ensure that people receive some degree of decent and human treatment. To violate fundamental human rights, on the other hand, is to deny individuals their fundamental moral entitlements. It is, in a sense, to treat them as if they are less than human and undeserving of respect and dignity. It is the realization of the dignity and worth of the human person and its endowment with inherent and inalienable natural rights that prompted the nations of this world on the forum of the United Nations to adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights almost 60 years ago.
All the members of the United Nations have agreed to observe the fundamental human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Nevertheless, in the past years, we have witnessed that a lot of member states, contrary to this universal agreement, commit enormous systematic and massive violations of human rights. And this has forced the United Nations Security Council to ignore the UN charter principle of sovereignty in order to save large populations from extermination. This was done because the UN Charter also affirms the member states’ obligation to ensure to their citizens respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms, a provision on which the Universal Declaration of Human Rights itself was based.

If we consider the current situations in countries like Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia, we could say that this declaration is violated, more than anywhere else, in the Horn of Africa. There have been mass killings, mass arrests and imprisonments without trial and verdict, mass displacements, kidnappings and disappearances, etc. The Darfur and Ogaden situations could be good cases in point. More astonishing is that such multiple and widespread atrocities have been, totally and in some cases partially, being concealed from the rest of the world. Another example is the military intervention in Somalia by Ethiopian Government, which is costing the lives of hundreds of innocent and defenseless civilians, and causing destructions of public institutions such as schools and hospitals.

If we take Ethiopia, for example, the country’s constitution, in chapter three, loudly proclaims that basic human rights and freedom of individual and groups shall be guaranteed and fully protected. But, in violations of these constitutional guarantees, large numbers of people are arrested every year. The peoples’ right to habeas corpus and bail is systematically denied with impunity. Citizens are arrested without court warrant and are imprisoned for weeks, for months and sometimes even years, before appearing in court. Torture and other bodily indignities are routinely perpetrated against citizens by security forces. Unknown numbers of prisoners die in incarceration in places that could not be accessed by any human rights organization. This all is happening to those citizens simply because they attempted to exercise their basic human rights such as expressing their political opinions. What is worsening such suppressive situations from time to time is, more than any other thing, the lack of adequate knowledge of rights and responsibilities on both the governed and the governing sides.

These and other similar situations have forced a group of exiled individuals to come together and establish an organization called HUMAN RIGHTS LEAGUE OF THE HORN OF AFRICA/HRLHA. The founding members of the League signed its Charter on May 25, 2007, in Toronto/Canada. .

The group has defined its mission as a “… commitment to making continuous and strenuous humanitarian effort to ensure that citizens are protected against the violations of their human rights, that they live in freedom and dignity, free from arbitrary arrest, beatings and imprisonment.” It has also made a commitment to offer extensive programmes of civic education to raise the awareness of citizens about their democratic and civil rights. The League will employ all legal means to achieve its objectives.

The Charter of the HRLHA highlights the detailed objectives of the organization as follows:

Enlighten citizens on Human Rights;

Detect, monitor, verify and report human rights violations in the Region;

Conduct research on human rights with the view to disseminating its finding and/or conclusion in a way that it would broadening knowledge regarding the honouring of human rights;

Lobby concerned authorities for legislations that favor human rights and accede to new international initiatives that would promote and further protect human rights;

Provide legal aids and services to victims of violations of human rights, to members of their families and other relatives as necessary;

Participate in international conferences, workshops and seminars in which other human rights groups interact and share information on how to better campaign for the protection of human rights, and spread education with regard to the enforcement of existing national and international human rights legislation.

The League has a board of five persons and will have its headquarters in Toronto/Canada; but will have branches in the Horn of African Countries and else where as need arises. The League will have a governing body (General Assembly) consisting of all members including those that will join after the Charter of the League had been signed by those who were present and signed on May 25, 2007.

The General Assembly of the League has elected a chairperson and secretary at its inaugural meeting on May 25, 2007.

The League’s office is headed by an Executive Director who has been elected by the General Assembly. The League has been registered as an non-profit making organization with the Ministry of Consumer and Business services in Ontario, Canada on June 14, 2007.

HRLHA seeks support of International community, human rights organizations and individuals who are committed to the protection and promotion of human rights in the Horn of Africa. 

October 1, 2007 

Board of Directors