Memorandum
TO: The United Nations Security Council Sanctions Committee
FROM: Ginbot 7 Movement for Justice, Freedom and Democracy.
DATE: October 27, 2014
SUBJECT: Response to References made about Ginbot 7 in the Report of the Monitoring Group of Somalia and Eritrea (here after SEMG), Pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 2111 (2013).
Ginbot 7 Movement for Justice, Freedom and Democracy expresses its high regards to The United Nations Security Council, and would like to use this opportunity and bring to the attention its reservations regarding some references made about it in SEMG report of October 13, 2014.
1. The SEMG report states that “Ginbot 7 is a banned opposition group”. We would like to call the attention of the International Community to the infamous “Anti-Terrorism Proclamation” promulgated by the TPLF/EPRDF regime of Ethiopia with the aim of stifling political dissent. The dictatorial regime has used this proclamation as an instrument to label and criminalize Ginbot 7, as well as other political opposition organizations, human rights advocacy groups, civil society, journalists and bloggers inside and outside of Ethiopia.
2. Let alone the claim in the report that Ginbot 7 was established in 2005, which is categorically false, even the so-called Anti-Terrorism Proclamation was not promulgated until 2009.
Ginbot 7 was formed in 2008 after few members among its leadership spent almost two years in prison in the aftermath of the ill-fated election of May 15, 2005. As well known by the International community, the regime overturned the election results that clearly showed the opposition party Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD) has won the majority throughout the country. This is a fact corroborated by international election observes such as the European Union’s Election Monitoring Group that was present in Ethiopia to observe the election in 2005. Those who formed Ginbot7, then leaders of the CUD, were among the leaders thrown in prison on trumped up charges.
Ginbot 7 was formed as a political movement in order to advance justice, freedom, and liberal democracy in Ethiopia. Ginbot 7 believes that no meaningful and genuinely competitive elections can take place in the country due to the prevailing and ever worsening egregious human rights violations, the closing of political space, the harassment and persecution of members of the legal and peaceful political opposition. Furthermore, an entrenched minority ethnocratic dictatorship in Ethiopia has determined to perpetuate its hold on power by all and any means necessary.
የአንድነት ፓርቲ የሕዝብ ግንኙነት ክፍል ሃላፊና የሚሊዮኖች ግብረ ኃይል ሰብሳቢ የነበሩት፣ አቶ ሃብታሙ አያሌው በጸና መታመማቸዉንና ዛሬ በሆስፒታል መዋላቸዉን ለማረጋገጥ ችለናል።
