July 3, 2004

After more than five years of procrastination, the ruling EPEDF has finally announced that two of its loyalists, Dr. Kassa Gebre Hiwot and Ato Abera Kifle Beyene, have been named Commissioner for Human Rights and Ombudsman respectively. This is yet another confirmation of the stubborn determination on the part of the EPRDF to continue with the gross human rights violations.

The "election" process of the above two officials was, as expected, controlled and manipulated by the EPRDF. Dr. Kassa, a seventy years old Tigrean who was the EPRDF ambassador to Russia for ten years, was reportedly nominated by the administration in Tigrai while Ato Abera, who is associated with the ANDM (a component part of the ruling EPRDF), was nominated by the administration of the Amara region. Dr. Kassa had been, in the past, accused of practicing ethnic discrimination and was reportedly a major share holder of a firm that arranged arms purchase from Russia by the EPRDF. Both individuals are partisans of the ruling EPRDF and loyalists to its politics. By naming these two loyalists to these important posts the EPRDF has confirmed that these two bodies will be functioning as just another instrument of its ongoing attempt to dupe the international public opinion. It is safe to predict that the human rights commission and the Ombudsman will be of little use to Ethiopians yearning for the respect of their human rights.

SOCEPP