Ethiopia: Activists turn to social media to demand freedom of assembly
- Created on Friday, 10 May 2013 21:55
by Dharra Budicha
(OPride) —An Ethiopian activist and blogger group, Zone9, has launched its third online campaign demanding the Ethiopian government respect citizens’ rights enshrined within the Horn of Africa nation’s constitution.
Ethiopia: fire destroys UNESCO-registered coffee forest
- Created on Tuesday, 30 April 2013 06:32
(OPride) – A recent massive brush fire in the Illu Abba Boora zone of Oromia region, Ethiopia has wiped out a sizable portion of the UNESCO-registered Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve, reports said. The cause of the blaze, which has spread around the Yayu forest over the last several weeks, remains unknown.
Jeans and Martò: with love from Karrayyu
- Created on Wednesday, 24 April 2013 22:05
by Mohammed Ademo
“You have a nice pair of jeans,” I tell Roba in midtown Manhattan on a recent Sunday afternoon. “I brought my Martò too,” he responds with a grin. The Martò (Marxoo in Afan Oromo) is a traditional garment worn around the waist by Karrayyu Oromos.
State Department slams Ethiopia on human rights
- Created on Saturday, 20 April 2013 05:56
(OPride) — The U.S. government on Friday commended activists, netizens, and journalists for their courage in advocating for universal human rights and expressed concern over the heightened crackdown on civil liberties, rebuking several countries for shrinking the space for journalists and activists.
On ESAT’s "media war" against Oromo struggle
- Created on Saturday, 13 April 2013 20:46
by Leta T. Bayissa*
The birth of Oromo Democratic Front (ODF), a new Oromo political party, last month has stirred so much controversy among Oromo and Ethiopian blogosphere.
While the announcement received mixed reviews from Oromo nationalists, the reception from Ethiopianist groups has largely been positive. But there were also those who jumped on the opportunity to attack and delegitimize the Oromo struggle.
Wikileaks on Tadesse Birru and early days of the OLF
- Created on Tuesday, 09 April 2013 23:47
(OPride) — The whistleblowing website WikiLeaks has just published 1,707,500 U.S. diplomatic and intelligence documents from 1973 to 1976. While most of the latest documents have already been declassified and were available through the National Archives, WikiLeaks has created a searchable online database for quick access.
Several of the 1.7 million cables sent from U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia offer interesting insights into the gathering of rebellion against the Ethiopian rulers of the time, the Derg. The telegrams cover a wide range of topics including the formation of Oromo and Tigrean Liberation Fronts, and the execution of Tadesse Birru (pictured above with Nelson Mandela).
ODF's first meeting draws large crowd
- Created on Monday, 01 April 2013 06:27
(OPride) — Following a controversial declaration on March 28, 2013, the newly formed Oromo Democratic Front held its first public gathering in Saint Paul, Minnesota yesterday.
With a record attendance of more than 500 people, the meeting, intended to introduce the new organization to Oromos in Minnesota, was “the largest Oromo political gathering in years”, eyewitnesses told OPride. Minnesota, also known as ‘Little Oromia’, has the largest number of Oromo immigrants outside of Africa.
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