ዕውን ኢትዮጵያን የሚመሯት ኢትዮጵያውያን ናቸው?

(ምንጭ፡ ፍኖተ ነጻነት)

የኢትዮጵያ ክብር ተቆርቋሪ የግል ተነሳሽ ኮሚቴና ባለራዕይ ወጣቶች ማህበር ከሰማያዊ ፓርቲ ጋር በመሆን ያዘጋጁት ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ አላማ ለፋሺስቱና ለጦር ወንጀለኛው ግራዚያኒ በጣሊያን ሀገር የተገነባውን መናፈሻ ስፍራና ሀውልት ለመቃወም ነው፡፡ ይህ ግለሰብ ኢትዮጵያውያን ላይ የተፈፀመውን ዘግናኝ ጭፍጨፋ ታሪክ አይዘነጋውም፡፡
ግራዚያኒ በመርዝ ጋዝ በሺዎች የሚቆጠሩ ኢትዮጵያውያንን ጨፍጭፏል፤ ከየካቲት 12 ጀምሮ ለቀናት በዘለቀው የበቀል ጭፍጨፋም በአካፋ ሳይቀር በአዲስ አበባና በአካባቢዋ ያሉ ኢትዮጵያውያንን በግፍ ጨፍጭፏል፡፡ ግራዚያኒ በወቅቱ በሰጠው ትዕዛዝ የፋሺስት ወታደሮች ህይወት ያለውን ተንቀሳቃሽ ፍጥረትን ሁሉ ገድለዋል፡፡ ይህ እሩቅ በማይባል ጊዜ የተፈፀመ ድርጊት ነው፡፡
የኢህአዴግ ባለስልጣናት ለእንዲህ አይነቱ ጨፍጫፊ የተገነባን ሀውልት ለመቃወም በወጡ ዜጎች ላይ የወሰዱት የእስር ተግባር እውን ኢትዮጵያን የሚመሯት ኢትዮጵያውያን ናቸው? አስብሎናል፡፡ ኢህአዴግ በስልጣን ዘመኑ ኢትዮጵያና ኢትዮጵያዊነት ላይ በተደጋጋሚ ጥፋት ፈፅሟል፡፡ ሀገራችንን የባህር በር ማሳጣትን ጨምሮ ሀገራዊ ስሜትን አንኳሶ ጠባብ የብሔር ስሜት እንዲንሰራፋ አድርጓል፣ ታሪክን ለስልጣኑ መደላድል ሲል በራሱ መንገድ የሚያዘጋጀው የኢህአዴግ መንግስት ኢትዮጵያን ጠፍጥፎ እንደሰራት ሁሉ ደርግን ለመጣል ካደረገው ትግል ውጪ ያለውን የአርበኞች ተጋድሎ እውቅና ሲሰጥ አይታይም፡፡
መንግስት ለፋሽስቱ ሩዶልፍ ግራዚያኒ የተገነባውን ሀውልት በመቃወም የወሰደው እርምጃ አለመኖሩ ሳያንስ ግራዚያኒን ለማውገዝ የወጡ ዜጎችን በመደብደብና በማንገላታት ማሰሩ አሳፍሮናል፡፡ ለዜጎቻቸው እና ለሚመሯት ሀገር ክብር የማይሰጡ ይልቁንም የጦር ወንጀለኛና ፋሺስትን ለመቃወም የወጣን ዜጋ ማሰርራቸው የኢህአዴግ ባለስልጣናት ወገንተኝነታቸው ለዜጎቻቸው ነው ወይስ ለፋሺስት? የሚል ዘግናኝ ጥያቄ እንድንሰነዝር ያስገድደናል፡፡
በሰልፉ ላይ የተገኙት ሀገር ወዳድ ዜጎች በማን አለብኝነት ሲታሰሩ ድባደባ ተፈፅሞባቸዋል፡፡ ከዚህ በተጨማሪም የታሳሪዎቹን የኢሜይልና የማህበራዊ ገፅ የይለፍ ቃል (password) በግዳጅ የሚቀበሉ የደህንነት ሀይሎች ተልከውባቸዋል፡፡ ይህን ቅጥ ያጣ አንባገነናዊ ድርጊት የፈፀመው ወይም እንዲፈፀም ትዕዛዝ የሰጠው አካል ማንነት ተጣርቶ የማስተካከያ እርምጃ ሊወሰድ ይገባዋል፡፡ በየምክንያቱ ዜጎችን ማሰር የለመደው አንባገነኑ የኢህአዴግ መንግስት ምን ያክል ኢትዮጵያዊነትን እየተዋጋ እንዳለም የሚያሳይ ድርጊት ነው፡፡ መሰረቱ ዜጎች በማንኛውም ጉዳይ ላይ የተቃውሞም ሆነ የድጋፍ ሰልፍ ማድረግ እንደሚችሉ ህገመንግስቱ ደንግጓል፡፡ ይህን መብት ዜጎች እንዳይጠቀሙ ያፈነው መንግስት፣ ኢህአዴግን የሚደግፉ አልያም በራሱ ከተጠሩ ሰልፎች ውጪ ዜጎች እንዳይሳተፉ በአሰራር ከልክሏል፡፡ ይህ የመብት ረገጣ ከመሆኑም በላይ በዜጎች መካከል 1ኛ ደረጃና 2ኛ ደረጃ ዜግነትን ያስቀመጠ ነው፡፡
የኢህአዴግን ባናውቅም፣ እኛ ኢትዮጵያውያን በቅኝ ገዢዎች የተዋረደ ስነልቦና የለንም፡፡ ሆኖም የግል ጥቅማቸውን ለማደላደል ሲሉ ለቅኝ ገዢ ጠላቶቻችን ያደሩ ባንዳዎች እንደነበሩ ታሪክ በጥቁር መዝገቡ ሸክፎታል፡፡ ይህን አሳፋሪ ተግባር በጣሊያን ወረራ ወቅት የፈፀሙ ኢትዮጵያውያን ለልጅ ልጆቻቸው የሚያስተላልፉት አንገት ቀና የሚያደርግ ታሪክ አይኖርም፡፡
በዚህም ዘመን ተመሳሳይ ክህደት የሚፈፅሙ አካላት መኖራቸው አይጠረጠርም፡፡
የኢህአዴግ መንግስት በይፋ ለጦር ወንጀለኛውና ለፋሺሽቱ ሩዶልፍ ግራዚያኒ የተሰራውን ሀውልት በይፋ ካለማውገዝ ባለፈ ለተቃውሞ የወጡትን ኢትዮጵያውያን በግፍ የማሰሩን ምክንያት ስንመረምር አንድ መራራ እውነት እንረዳለን፤ ይኸውም ጣሊያን ለኢህአዴግ መንግስት ዋንኛዋ ለጋሽ ሀገር መሆኗ ነው፡፡ ይህ የኢህአዴግ መንግስት ተግባር በስልጣን ዘመኑ በኢትዮጵያዊነት ላይ ከፈፀማቸው ክህደቶች እኩል በታሪክ ጥቁር መዝገብ የሚቀመጥ ይሆናል፡፡

እስር ቤቶቻችን በሕገ-መንግሥት ወይንስ በ‹‹ሕገ-አራዊት››?

ምንጭ፣ ዞን ዘጠኝ ጦማር

በጌታቸው ሺፈራው
እስርቤቶቻችንና ሕገ-መንግሥታዊ መብቶች
የኢትዮጵያ ሕገ መንግሥትን እንዲጸድቅ በበላይነት የመሩት አቶ መለስና አቶ ሌንጮ ለታ መሆናቸው ይነገርላቸዋል፡፡ ይህ በአሁኑ ወቅት በኢትዮጵያ ፖለቲካ ጉዳይ ቀጥተኛ ተሳታፊ ባልሆኑት የተገንጣይ መሪዎች ጠንሳሽነት የጸደቀው ሕገ መንግሥት ለአገር ሉኣላዊነት፣ አንድነትና ታሪክ ክብር የሌለው ቢሆንም ዓለማቀፋዊ የሰብኣዊና ዲሞክራሲያዊ መብቶችን አጠቃልሏል፡፡ ሆኖም እነዚህ ሰብኣዊና ዲሞክራሲያዊ መብቶች ለእርዳታ ማሰባሰቢያ የተቀመጡ እንጂ ወደመሬት ወርደው ተግባራዊ መሆና ባለመቻላቸው የይስሙላህ ሕግ ሆኗል፡፡ ከሕገ መንግሥቱ ይልቅ የገዥዎች ጊዜያዊ ሥልጣን ጥቅም ለማስጠበቅ በየጊዜው ትርጉሙ የሚቀያየረው የአብዮታዊ ዲሞክራሲ ‹‹መርሕ›› ሕዝብ ላይ የተጫነ ገዥ ሕግ ከሆነ ሰነባብቷል፡፡ ይህን ስርዓት ፕሮፌሰር መስፍን ወልደማሪያም ‹‹ሕገ አራዊት›› ሲሉ ይገልጹታል፡፡ በዚህ ስርዓት ሕዝብ በሕግ ስም እንጂ በሕግ የሚዳኝበት አጋጣሚ አይታይም፡፡ ብዙዎቹ በዚህ ስርዓት ያለውን የኢትዮጵያን ሕዝብም የታሰረ፣ ታስሮ የተፈታና ለወደፊት የሚታሰር እያሉ በቀልድ መልክ በሦስት የእስራት ምድብ ያስቀምጡታል፡፡ እንደ እኔ ሌላ አራተኛ ምድብም ሊካተት ይገባዋል፡፡ ይኸኛው እንደ ሦስቱ ምድቦች የአካል ጉዳትና ሰብኣዊ መብት ጥሰት የማይደርስበት ሕገመንግሥቱን አጽድቆ ራሱ የሚጥሰው አሳሪው ክፍል ነው፡፡ ይህ አሳሪው የኅብረተሰብ ክፍል በአካል ያልታሰረና ስርዓቱ እስካለ ድረስ በአካል ሊታሰርበት የሚችለው አጋጣሚ ጠባብ ቢሆንም የአዕምሮ እስረኛ ነው፡፡
ኢሕአዴግ እየዘመረለት የሚገኘው አቶ መለስና በእኩል ደረጃ የሚያወግዘው ‹‹አሸባሪው›› አቶ ሌንጮ ያጸደቁት ሕገ-መንግሥት ኢትዮጵያውያን ታሳሪዎች ምቹ ሁኔታ እንዲመቻችላቸው በርካታ አንቀጾችን አስቀምጧል፡፡ ለአብነት ያህል አንቀጽ 19 (2) የተያዙ ሰዎች ላለመናገር መብት እንዳላቸው ይደነግጋል፡፡ ከዚህም በተጨማሪ በዚሁ አንቀጽ ንዑስ አንቀጽ (5) ‹‹የተያዙ ሰዎች በራሳቸው ላይ በማስረጃነት ሊቀርብ የሚችል የእምነት ቃል እንዲሰጡ ወይንም ማንኛውንም ማስረጃ እንዲያምኑ አይገደዱም፡፡ በማስገደድ የተገኘ ማስረጃ ተቀባይነት አይኖረውም፡፡›› ቢልም በተለያዩ ጊዜያት የተሰሩ የፕሮፖጋንዳ ፊልሞች ላይ ‹‹እማኝነታቸውን›› የሰጡ ታሳሪዎች የሚሰጡት ቃል በኃይል የተደረገ መሆኑ እየተነገረ ነው፡፡
መጋቢት 8/2005
ይህን እውነታ እሁድ መጋቢት 8/2005 ‹‹ለማርሻል ግራዚያኒ ክብር መሰጠት የአባቶቻችንን መስዋዕትነት ማራከስ ነው›› በሚል የተደረገ ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ ተከትሎ እኔና ጉዋደኞቼ በታሰርንበት ወቅት ለማረጋገጥ ችያለሁ፡፡ አንድ ታሳሪ ከአንድ ጊዜ በላይ ቃል መስጠት እንዳለበት የሚገልጽ የሕግ አሠራር ባይኖርም ከሶስት እስከ አራት ጊዜ ቃል እንድንሰጥ ተደርገናል፡፡
በመጀመሪያው ዙር ሁሉም ሕገ መንግሥቱ ‹‹ሰጥቶኛል›› ያለውን መብት ተጠቅሞ ‹‹ቃል አልሰጥም›› ብሎ ፊርማውን አስቀምጦ ወጣ፡፡ በዚህ የተደናገጡት መርማሪዎች አንዳንዶቹን ቃል እንዲሰጡ ቢያባብሉም ሊሳካላቸው አልቻለም፡፡ በታጎርንበት ጣቢያም ሆነ በሌሎቹ ጣቢያዎች የፖሊስ አባል መሆናቸው ያልታወቀውና ከመጀመሪያው ጀምሮ ሰልፉን የበጠበጡት ‹‹ኮማንደር›› ግን ‹‹ይህ ፒቲሽን በመሆኑ ጥንቃቄ ሊደረግበት ይገባል›› በሚል መርማሪዎች የቻሉትን ሁሉ ተጠቅመው ቃል እንዲቀበሉን ትዕዛዝ አስተላልፈዋል፡፡ ሆኖም ሁሉም ታሳሪዎች ቃል ሳይሰጡ ቀሩ፡፡ ይህን ተከትሎም የይስሙላህ ሕገ መንግሥቱ ተግባር ላይ የዋለው ለተወሰኑ ደቂቃዎች ብቻ ሆነ፡፡
ቃል አንሰጥም ካልንበት ወቅት በኋላ ለጥቂት ጊዜ ጠፍተው የቆዩት ‹‹ኮማንደር›› ታሳሪዎች በእየተራ ፎቶ ግራፍና ቪዲዮ እየተቀረጹ ሌላ ተጨማሪ ቃል እንዲሰጡ አደረጉ፡፡ ይህን ምርመራ የሚያከናውኑት ፖሊሶች ሳይሆኑ ደህንነቶች በመሆናቸው ቃል አልሰጥም የሚለው መብት አይሰራም፡፡

Rebels destroy EPRDF-owned cotton truck

Ethiomedia
March 28, 2013
WORETA, Northern Ethiopia - Rebels on March 28 burned down a ruling party truck that was parked at the town's bus terminal. Rebels of the Ethiopian Unity and Freedom Force (EUFF) set the truck that was loaded with tons of cotton on fire in this town that serves as a key distribution center for major cities like Gondar, Bahr Dar and Woldiya.The truck was ferrying the cotton to Bahr Dar city, a rebel spokesperson told Ethiomedia by phone on Thursday.
Earlier this month, the rebels also burned down 22 cotton and sesame stores in Qucheet, a small transit town between Shehadee and Metema on the border with Sudan. All the stores were owned by security members of the ruling party EPRDF, EUFF said

Civicus celebrates adoption of UN resolution on protecting human rights defenders

Press Release
March 28, 2013
Johannesburg -- Global civil society alliance, CIVICUS welcomes the landmark adoption of UN Human Rights Council Resolution A/HRC/22/L.13, “Protecting Human Rights Defenders”, as a vital step in creating a safe and enabling environment in which human rights defenders and civil society organizations (CSOs) can operate free from unwarranted restrictions. The resolution, spearheaded by the government of Norway, was adopted at the 22nd Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on 21 March 2013 with broad cross-regional support from 70 UN Member States. CIVICUS highlights the following provisions of the resolution codifying a number of essential protections for human rights defenders:

The Council has called on UN Member States to guarantee that national regulations and legislation affecting human rights defenders are clearly defined, non-retroactive and consistent with international human rights law. To this end, the Council urges UN member states to immediately amend national anti-terrorism legislation to protect against the criminalisation or stigmatisation of human rights defenders including the use of arbitrary detention and detention without due process guarantees.

Moreover, the resolution takes unprecedented steps in stipulating specific measures governments should take to foster an enabling operating environment for civil society at the national level. Specifically, the council calls on states to ensure that registration requirements for civil society are non-discriminatory, expeditious and inexpensive and allow for the possibility of appeal. The council further calls on governments to ensure that reporting requirements for CSOs “do not inhibit functional autonomy,” while ensuring that civil society groups, especially those working on human rights, are not subjected to discriminatory restrictions on access to national and international funding.

In response to the ongoing global crackdown on nonviolent protest movements, the council urges states to ensure that “human rights defenders can perform their important role in the context of peaceful protests” consistent with the Charter of the United Nations and international human rights law. The resolution further calls on governments to refrain from acts of reprisals including subjecting peaceful demonstrators to excessive or indiscriminate use of force, arbitrary arrest or detention, torture or other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment, enforced disappearance and abuse of criminal and civil proceedings.

The resolution comes in the wake of growing criminalisation of the activities of human rights defenders across the globe through the adoption and discriminatory invocation of restrictive legislation. In Ethiopia, CIVICUS has documented the devastating impact of the 2009 Charities and Societies Proclamation which prevents human rights groups from receiving more than 10% of their funding from international sources. In Russia, the government has introduced a spate of restrictive regulations, including amendments to the Law on Public Rallies which drastically increases fines for participating in unsanctioned demonstrations, aimed at preventing human rights defenders from carrying out their legitimate work. In Turkey, thousands of human rights defenders,

Mr. Obang Metho addresses Ethiopian women Conference

Mr. Obang Metho addresses Ethiopian women on the second annual International Conference of Ethiopian Women in the Diaspora in Washington, DC on March 23 – 24, 2013

“Land Grabs, Displacement, Urban Evictions and Other Forms of Government-Sponsored Poverty Creation in Ethiopia and its Affect on Women”

Sponsored by the Center for the Rights of Ethiopian Women

I am honored to be invited to this very important conference on “Ending Violence Against Ethiopian Women.” I would like to give my deepest thanks to the Center for the Rights of Ethiopian Women, the sponsors of the Second International Conference of Ethiopian Women in the Diaspora. I was invited to participate last year, but due to scheduling conflicts, I was unable to come. Despite much going on again this year, at the last moment, happily, I was able to make the arrangements to be with you. Initially, I was only going to attend to give my support to Ethiopian women, but now I have been invited to speak as well. You have no idea how meaningful it is to me to be part of this dialogue.
The role of Ethiopian women in building a New Ethiopia is so important that I believe we will never achieve our goal without the involvement of the women of our nation, many of whom are our wives, mothers, sisters, daughters, grandmothers, colleagues and community members.
If we think of our struggle as a huge puzzle of many pieces that must be put together, Ethiopian women make up a huge section of the still missing pieces. Our Ethiopian women make up one of the largest sub-groups in the country, around 50% of our population. They share many common values, aspirations, challenges and obstacles; however, they also are representative of our rich and diverse Ethiopian culture.
For example, some of our Ethiopian women may come from some of the larger or more powerful ethnic groups, like the Oromo, the Amhara, the Somali, the Tigrayan or the Gurage. Others may come from some of those ethnic groups you hardly know, like the Konta, the Dirashe, the Irob, the Murle or the Bodi. They may be Muslim, Ethiopian Orthodox, Evangelical Christian, Ethiopian Jew, animists or non-believers, but they all are women. They may come from the rural regions, marginalized settings, urban areas or from the Diaspora. They may be highly educated or illiterate, young or old, rich or poor. They may speak several languages or only their tribal language, but they are all Ethiopian women and they are us!
Our topic today is about Ethiopian women, all women, regardless of differences. I would suggest that nearly all of them want a better Ethiopia for their children and grandchildren; however, as of today, the moral backbone of our society is broken and in many situations, it is our women who are carrying a heavy burden as they struggle to care for their children and families.

New Era of Political Leaders Emerges in Ethiopia

By KIRUBEL TADESSE,(AP)
March 27, 2013
BAHRDAR, Ethiopia - Ailing ruling party veteran officials in Ethiopia are leaving their posts to a group of younger leaders in the East African nation which enjoys close ties with Washington but is increasingly looking to China as a model.Newcomers dominated the ruling party's election of the powerful 36-member executive and 180-member central committees. The election comes at the end of a four-day congress of the ruling Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front, or EPRDF, held at a regional town Bahir Dar.
But the leadership change doesn't necessarily mean more political space for the country's heavily prosecuted opposition which has only a single member in the 547 parliament seats. Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn on Monday called the opposition neo-liberal mouthpieces with zero contribution to a developmental state.The ruling Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front, or EPRDF, in September clinched a first ever peaceful power transition for the country after late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi died on August 20. The sudden death of Meles had caused concern that the government he tightly ruled since 1991, and which remained a key ally for the U.S., would unravel in months.But Hailemariam, who had served as Meles' deputy since October 2010, was peacefully named the party chairman and later a prime minister in September.
In a rare but frank reflection, Meles' long time senior aide and former Foreign Affairs Seyoum Mesfin on Monday admitted that the death of the late leader was a serious problem that tested the party."I think we need to draw a lesson from the problem that was created after the martyrdom of our great leader Meles," Seyoum told 1,000 ruling party elites and their supporters that met for the party congress. He told his colleagues that the aging leaders need to retire and the lower officials be prepared to take the wheel.Seyoum and eight of his colleagues, all veteran members of Meles' Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), have stepped down voluntarily."I am really surprised by the pace, they are seriously implementing the leadership succession and most senior official are retiring," said Daniel Berhane, a political commentator and blogger who keeps a close watch on the ruling party's activities. "With the current pace of things as they say all veteran officials who led the armed struggle would vacate senior government and party posts by 2015."Daniel, however, stressed that not all parties are moving at the same pace."The outgoing executive members of the Oromo Peoples' Democratic Organization (OPDO) will continue to participate in the executive committee with an "observer status",'' he said.And another competing party, the Amhara National Democratic Movement, did not retire most of its senior officials allowing for a possible shift of power.Hailemariam and Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Demeke Mekonnen were re-elected on Tuesday as chair and deputy chair of the ruling party. Both in their late 40s, the two never took part in the armed struggle and are considered as part of the new generation of leaders.The four-day congress, despite the changes to the committees, however, did little to alter major government polices favored by Meles. Hailemariam said the late leader's economic and social policies would remain in place. Meles favored tight political control while forging close ties with China to access loans to boost the country's infrastructure.Beijing is providing billions of dollars as loans for Ethiopia's fast expanding road, telecom and now railway networks. The Ethiopian Investment Agency says over the last two decades, close to 920 Chinese companies came to Ethiopia to claim the largest share among foreign investors.Ethiopia holds national elections in May 2015.

Meles was a poor man who had no bank account - Azeb Mesfin

Editor's Note - Azeb Mesfin, the widow of Meles Zenawi, said her husband's net salary was 4,000 Birr a month, too little money that he had no need for a bank account. Azeb was mad that such an important fact was missing from the minds of those who write flawless tributes in honor of her late husband. Eulogy writers should heed her advice before she gets hold of them: First, she is a member of the powerful TPLF politburo; second, if money is power, Azeb is uber-rich, perched like an eagle's nest atop the mountain of gold called "EFFORT."
Delegates of the ninth convention of the ruling EPRDF party have shown their dissatisfaction over a eulogy written for their late leader, Meles Zenawi, while some were critical of the quality of its writing and completeness of the content.Translated from Tigrigna, the eulogy was first presented to the congress of the TPLF, held in Meqelle two weeks ago, before it was presented to over 1,000 delegates at the conclusion of the ruling coalition's convention on Tuesday, held in Bahir Dar.
The first to voice such disappointment over the organisation of the eulogy and its content structure was Meles's widow. Elected to the political bureau of the TPLF for the second time and to the all too powerful Executive Committee of the EPRDF, Azeb Mesfin was displeased to see the eulogy incomplete.
Some of the points she argued as missed are Meles's place, role and the contributions he made as an Editor-in-Chief of the party's ideological organ, Addis Ra'ey. Azeb feels that the contributions Meles had made in originating the idea of forming a training facility for the rank and file, now directed by Addisu Legesse, and the manual he develop ought to be forcefully underlined.
Azeb defended her late husband's legacy in relations to how he had handled the conflict and the subsequent war with Eritrea. Despite condemnations from his political opponents due to his heritage, Azeb told delegates that Meles had never negotiated on the national interests of Ethiopia.
"Not even for a second," Azeb told delegates rather emphatically.
Azeb described Meles's conduct during the war with Eritrea in the late 1990s as "extraordinary" in not showing what he had felt of the accusations, but focused on defending his beliefs and political positions regardless.
She recalled her late husband as perhaps the only leader who had earned a little over 4,000 Br a month in net salary, but fought poverty with courage and resolve, while remaining selfless.
"Meles didn't have a bank account," Azeb said. "He had neither an ID card nor a driving licence."
These parts, Azeb argued, were not given their proper place in the eulogy, which was read by Hailemariam Desalegn, re-elected to chair the EPRDF twice since the death of Meles in August 2012.
Hailemariam's re-election was fait accompli, although he was made to pass the test of contest to the office. His deputy, Demeke Mekonnen of ANDM, and Alemayehu Atomsa of OPDO, were nominated by their respective parties for the chairmanship, while leaders of the TPLF have declined to nominate their leaders, Fortune learnt.
Hailemariam has won the chairmanship with a landslide, after bagging 176 votes of the 180 Council members of the ruling party, sources in the Council disclosed to Fortune.
Although the other two contenders have received two votes each against Hailemariam, Demeke too claimed the deputy chairmanship position with significant margin, claiming 146 votes against 25 given to his contender, Fortune learnt.
Emerging as uncontested non-combatant leader of the Revolutionary Democrats since the party's formation in the late 1980s, Hailemariam was seen endorsing the conciliatory proposition made by Addisu, who remains one of the 13 political bureau members of the ANDM but left out from the EPRDF's Executive Committee.
Addisu has argued that the eulogy is filled with repetition, is not well organised, and suffers from losses in translation, while its structure is weak. Addisu urged delegates to let the EPRDF's Executive Committee rewrite the eulogy before it gets adopted as the party's official document, a proposition Hailemariam had secured its adoption by the Congress unanimously.