http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/opposition-leader-deadly-violence-ethiopia-likely-get-worse-n625721
Ethiopia Opposition Leader: Deadly Violence Likely to Get Worse
Aug 9 2016, 8:16 am ET
by Daniel A. Medina and Corky Siemaszko
An Ethiopian opposition party leader warned Monday "the situation will
get worse" after a weekend of violence in the African nation that left
nearly 100 anti-government demonstrators dead.
"People are desperate and the government is not respecting the demands
of the protesters," Mulatu Gemechu of the opposition Oromo Federalist
Congress Party told NBC News in a telephone interview.
Most of the bloodshed was in the Oromia region, the most populated
part of the country, and in the Amhara region.
"In Oromia, you see so much tension," said Gemechu. "Military troops
everywhere and for any little thing, opposition and student protesters
are imprisoned, beaten or killed."
While the protesters have been demanding for months an end to human
rights abuses by the country's government in Addis Ababa and the
release of political prisoners, the new demonstrations have also been
fueled by widespread discontent with the eroding quality of life in
the country.
"Inflation is going up, electricity, water, infrastructure systems are
all collapsing," said Gemechu. "Daily life here has become so
difficult and the people refuse to be silent any longer."
Mohammed Ademo, founder of Opride.com, said what's happening in
Ethiopia could potentially bring down the government, which is why it
is cracking down so hard.
"I have not seen anything of the sort happening now in my entire
life," Ademo said. "The closest historical parallel is the revolution
that saw the demise of Ethiopia's last emperor, Haile Selassie. Even
in that case the protests were largely confined to urban centers. The
current protests have swept an entire region - nearly half of the
country — galvanizing two of the country's largest ethnic groups — the
Oromo and Amhara."
There was no immediate comment from the Ethiopian government but the
state-owned Ethiopian News Agency said "illegal protests" by
"anti-peace forces" had been brought under control. It made no mention
of casualties.
Amnesty International, however, said at least 97 protesters were
killed by government forces firing live bullets. At least a third of
the casualties were in the northern city of Bahir Dar.
The security forces' response was heavy-handed, but unsurprising" said
Michelle Kagari, Amesty's Deputy Regional Director for East Africa.
"Ethiopian forces have systematically used excessive force in their
mistaken attempts to silence dissenting voices."
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Ethiopia is a key U.S. ally in the war against Islamic militants in
neighboring Somalia. And after the bloodshed, the State Department
said it was "deeply concerned."
"We reaffirm our call to respect the constitutionally enshrined rights
of all citizens, including those with opposition views, to gather
peacefully and to express their opinions," the U.S. embassy in Addis
Ababa said in a statement.
Received on Thu Aug 11 2016 - 10:31:09 EDT