May 15/2008

RELEASE ALL THE MAY--JUNE 2005 PRISONERS IN LABOR CAMPS

May-June 2005, the EPRDF regime massacred more than 200 peaceful protesters who had said no to its vote rigging and blunt fraud. More than 50,000 Ethiopians were rounded up and taken to Zwai, Dedesa, Bir Sheleko, Shoa Robit and other horrible detention centres. More than 35,000 are still languishing there and dozens have been disappeared.

 The EPRDF was convincingly defeated in the May 2007 election but it refused to respect the voice and choice of the people (thereby denying them their basic right) and then let loose its Federal police and special murder squads and snipers to liquidate more than 200 innocent people in Addis Ababa. All over Ethiopia, thousands of people were rounded up and sent to the labour camps where the condition of detention has been horrible for years. While a few thousand were released the regime still holds more than 35,000 and has recently arrested more and killed scores of opposition sympathizers in Dessie, Gondar and other places. The ban on the independent press is still in vigour despite pretensions by the regime that free newspapers abound (most are controlled by the regime actually).

 SOCEPP calls on all peace loving people and defenders of human rights to put pressure on the Meles Zenawi regime to release ALL the political prisoners in Kaliti,Dedesa, Bir Sheleko,Zwai, Shoa Robit, Jijiga, Gondar, Dessie and so many other places. The regime  must also stop the killings and those directly responsible for the massacre of some 200 people in June 2005 should be brought before a proper court of law.

SOCEPP