26 January 2009 - In his January 15, 2009 letter addressed to Hon. Lawrence Cannon, Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Paul Dewar, MP, Ottawa Centre and the NDP”s Foreign Affairs Critic, stated that: “NDP believes that the Government of Canada must call on the Ethiopian authorities to release Birtukan Mideksa immediately and unconditionally, unless she is charged with a recognizable criminal offence”.
By clearly stating the details around Ms. Mideksa”s arrest on December 28, 2008 without charge and the harrowing life she has been subjected to in solitary confinement for the mere exercise of her freedoms, Mr. Dewar unequivocally labeled Miss Mideksa as “a prisoner of conscience.”
He further expressed his concern about the fact that Miss Mideksa has not been provided access to legal representation of her own choosing. Hence, gravely concerned about solitary confinement and the denial of her rights to legal council, Mr. Dewar expressed his concern to the Foreign Minister stating: “I am deeply concerned that Ms. Mideksa is at risk of torture or other forms of ill-treatment.” In his closing remarks, Mr. Dewar urged the foreign ministry for an immediate action stating that: “Canada’s NDP believes that the Government of Canada must call on the Ethiopian authorities to release Birtukan Mideksa immediately and unconditionally,” adding: unless she is charged with a recognizable criminal offence.”
It is to be remembered that two other Canadian parliamentarians - The Hon. Maria Minna (Toronto) and Hon. Judy Wasylycia-Leis (Winnipeg) responded to SOCEPP Canada’s similar appeals and have issued letters urging the Prime Minister of Canada to intervene on January 19 and 15, respectively. These two letters were posted on the web to the general public. Both parliamentarians called for the immediate and unconditional release of Birtukan Mideksa. The details of the two strongly worded letters can be found posted on various websites.
SOCEPP- Canada is grateful and appreciative of the action of the three Canadian Parliamentarians and others who continue to be a voice for the voiceless in Ethiopia. WE continue to urge the Government of Canada and the international community to continue using their influence and demand the respect of basic rights and the rule of law in Ethiopia including the immediate release of Birtukan Mideksa, Chair of the UDJP, Tsegaye Gebremedhin (and Compatriots), Leader/s of the EPRP, the popular Ethiopian singer and icon: Teddy Afro, Mr. Bekele Jarso (Oromo Federalist Party) and many others who continue to languish in prison under inhumane conditions only because of their political beliefs and for exercising their internationally recognized human rights. We urge Canadians of Ethiopian origin and all others who stand for Human Rights and Justice in Ethiopia to continue writing to their members of parliament urging them to demand the end of human rights abuse.
SOCEPP Canada
___________________________________________________________________________
P. O. BOX 413, STATION - E., TORONTO, ON (Canada) M6H 4E3
Email: socepp.can@sympatico.ca
January 27th, 2009 at 12:20 am
HA!!HA!!!HA!!!!!HA!!!!!!!!
January 27th, 2009 at 1:59 pm
http://www.eastafro.com/Post/2009/01/22/video-tigray-fighters-tpdm-put-out-of-action-294-woyane-soldiers/
VIDEO: Tigray Fighters (TPDM) put out of action 294 Woyane Soldiers
We support our troops fighting weyane meles, seya, and adawa gangs.
we are ethiopian. We are against weyane agazzzi ethnic based government
victory to our people
Meles & seya and his adawa gang are giving us tigrain bad name. We tigrain are hated by ethiopian & eritrean as result of weyane gang.
We tigrain are not welcome in addis or asmara.
Never before in tigray history we hated
as result of weyame. Tigrain remember we are hated as result of meles & his cadres.
While few tigrain are getting rich, mass tigrain are used. Look at our history. Tell me when are we hated like we are hated today.
real talk.
tigrain wake up. Meles & his carde are using Us.
No tigrain benefited from meles. they are using us.
Today, Tigrain are corner. WE have no freind. Today. Only slavation to tigrain is TPMD .
January 28th, 2009 at 12:41 am
Mr. Tigrayepeoplekiller,
Dear my amara brother, i agree 100% with you, we need more Amara politician like yourself. Keep up the agitprop. I am sure One day we Amaras will take over Ethiopia once again just like old amhara hey days. Keep up the hope.
January 28th, 2009 at 7:01 pm
http://www.eastafro.com/Post/2009/01/22/video-tigray-fighters-tpdm-put-out-of-action-294-woyane-soldiers/
VIDEO: Tigray Fighters (TPDM) put out of action 294 Woyane Soldiers
We support our troops fighting weyane meles, seya, and adawa gangs.
we are ethiopian. We are against weyane agazzzi ethnic based government
victory to our people
Eritrean or somilia’s are not our problem. our # 1 enemy of us ethiopian are the tigrain & agazzzi baby killers. Today, these 3 million agazzzi babay killers are killing our people, looting our resources, raping our woman. The tigrain # 1 enemy of ethiopia. not somili’s or eritrean. We oromo, amhara, gurage all must unite to fight weyane tigrain agazzzi baby killer who is starving 13 million ethiopians and destoying our country ethiopia. Tigraian # 1 enemy of ethiopian people. These rats must me killed.
90 million ethiopian aganist 3 million tigrain rats.
our people are dying,raped,looted by tigrrain not somilia’s or eritrean.
wake up ethiopian.
Meles & seya and his adawa gang are giving us tigrain bad name. We tigrain are hated by ethiopian & eritrean as result of weyane gang.
We tigrain are not welcome in addis or asmara.
Never before in tigray history we hated
as result of weyame. Tigrain remember we are hated as result of meles & his cadres.
While few tigrain are getting rich, mass tigrain are used. Look at our history. Tell me when are we hated like we are hated today.
real talk.
tigrain wake up. Meles & his carde are using Us.
No tigrain benefited from meles. they are using us.
Today, Tigrain are corner. WE have no freind. Today. Only slavation to tigrain is TPMD .
January 29th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
http://www.EastAFRO.com/Post/2009/01/29/djibouti-will-resist-war-with-eritrea-president/
“Because what interests him is Ethiopia. He has problems with Ethiopia, but not us. Why is he making us the hostages?” said Guelleh.
Poor DJIBOUTITI
why start a fight you can’t finish.
The french is not going to protect you
weyane agazzzi baby killer is not going to protect
UN is not gooing to protect you.
DJIBOUTITI prositue. You are going to get fucccked.
watch.
hahahhahahahahahhahahahahahahhahahahahah
what a shame
By David Clarke
DJIBOUTI, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Djibouti will not be pushed into war with its Horn of Africa neighbour Eritrea and will exhaust all legal means to settle a long-running border row, the Djibouti president said in an interview.
The two nations, on a crucial shipping lane linking Europe to Asia, clashed in June after Djibouti accused Eritrea of moving troops across the border. Eritrea denies the accusations. A dozen Djiboutian soldiers were killed in the fighting.
The United Nations’ Security Council passed a resolution on Jan. 14 giving Eritrea five weeks to withdraw its forces from the Red Sea coastal area of Ras Doumeira and Doumeira Island — a demand quickly rejected by Asmara.
“They want to lure us into war. But we will not do it. We will exhaust all the legal solutions,” Djibouti’s President Ismail Omar Guelleh, 61, told Reuters in an interview at the colonial-era presidential palace on Wednesday.
Djibouti hosts France’s largest military base in Africa and also a major U.S. base. The country’s modern port is used by foreign navies patrolling the busy shipping lanes off the coast of Somalia to fight piracy.
The former French colony of some 800,000 people, which also borders Somalia, is the main route to the sea for Ethiopia — Eritrea’s arch enemy and Washington’s chief regional ally.
Guelleh said Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki would most likely try and block a U.N. team from visiting the disputed area to compile a report for Secretary General Ban Ki-moon once the five-week deadline was up.
“Because what interests him is Ethiopia. It’s not working. He has problems with Ethiopia, but not us. Why is he making us the hostages?” said Guelleh.
He said Eritrea was now trying to court Iran by sending ministerial delegations to the Islamic Republic, perhaps with a view to sending Washington a warning message.
“But they are not listening. He’s going to lose there as well. You don’t win by threatening people,” said Guelleh.
Critics say Eritrea has isolated itself, is a danger to security in the Horn of Africa and is acting as a destabilising force in both Ethiopia and Somalia.
But Asmara says it has long been the victim of pro-Ethiopian prejudice and unfair meddling by the international community, particularly in its border dispute with Addis Ababa.
Djibouti has been Ethiopia’s main gateway for imports and exports since it lost the ports of Assab and Masawa when Eritrea won its independence in the early 1990s after a 30-year war.
The U.N. Security Council demanded in its resolution earlier this month that Eritrea acknowledge its border dispute with Djibouti and participate in diplomatic efforts to resolve it.
Asmara accuses Security Council members of ignoring what it called breaches of international law by Ethiopia, with which it fought a 1998-2000 border war that killed 70,000 people.
For Guelleh interview about Somalia, click on [nLS510639] (Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)