NAIROBI (Reuters) – A ban on the adoption of Ethiopian children by foreigners could curb child abuse and trafficking, but more support is needed for vulnerable families within the impoverished country, experts said on Monday.

Ethiopia is one the biggest source countries for international adoptions by U.S. nationals, with about 20 percent of all adopted children coming from the east African nation, according to the U.S. State Department.

Hollywood celebrities Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are among those who have adopted children from Ethiopia.

Child rights groups cite cases of “child harvesting” where adoption agencies unethically recruit minors for adoption by fraudulently altering paperwork to cast children with families as orphans whose parents had died or abandoned them.

In many instances, parents who cannot afford to look after their children consent to foreign adoption under the mistaken impression that it is like boarding school and they would maintain contact with their children, only to find out later that this is not the case.

Amid concerns that overseas adoptions fuel a trade in children from poor families and put them at risk of abuse, or being trafficked into slave-like conditions, parliament passed legislation on Jan. 10 banning inter-country adoption.

“Ethiopia has negative experiences with foreign adoptions, particularly in regard to child laundering, child harvesting, and children taken from families primarily due to poverty,” said David Smolin from the Center for Children, Law and Ethics at Samford University in the United States.

“Ethiopia’s ban on foreign adoptions is a reasonable response to past problems and to the need to focus efforts on assisting vulnerable children within Ethiopia.”

While many Ethiopian children have thrived due to inter-country adoption, there have been cases where they have faced abuse, and even death, at the hands of adoptive families.

In 2013, a couple in the U.S. were convicted of killing an adopted 13-year-old Ethiopian girl. The crime sparked debate about foreign adoption in a nation where families are forced to give children up due to a lack of money to care for them. .. Read More on Reuters

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ETHIOPIA TO DECLARE THREE MONTHS STATE OF EMERGENCY AS OF TODAY

Addis Abeba, February 16/2018 – The Council of ministers is set to declare a state of emergency for three months as of this morning, a source close to the government old Addis Standard. The military will be in charge via a command post, which will be “reporting to the Prime Minister,” according to our source.

The move follows yesterday’s resignation of Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn both as Prime Minister, Chairman of EPRDF and his own party, the Southern Ethiopian People’s Democratic Movement (SEPDM).

Initially, there there was a “strong push” against the decision from members of two of the parties that make up the EPRDF: the Oromo Peoples’ Democratic Organization (OPDO) and the Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM), the two parties that govern Oromia and Amhara regional states, according to our source. However, “the state of emergency will be declared this morning as the security situation in the country is getting volatile,” said the source.

Details of parts of the civilian constitution to be suspended will be announced at the end of the ministerial council’s meeting, but it is likely to be not much different than the October 2016 nine month state of emergency, which was extended by additional four months.

Read More on AddisStandard https://www.facebook.com/addis.standard/posts/1643140992433917

የኢህአዴግ ስራ አስፈጻሚ ኮሚቴ በወሰነው መሰረት መንግስት በተለያዩ ወንጀሎች ተከሰው የነበሩ ተከሳሾችን ክስ እያቋረጠ መሆኑ ይታወቃል ።
በዚሁ መሰረትም በዛሬው ዕለት የ101 ተከሳሾች ክስ እንዲቋረጥ ተደርጓል።

ከነዚህም ውስጥ 56ቱ የግንቦት ሰባት 41ዱ የኦነግ ተባባሪ ተብለው የተከሰሱ ነበሩ።

አራቱ ደግሞ በኃይማኖት አክራሪነትና ሽብር የተከሰሱ ነበሩ።

ከነዚህም ውስጥ ኮነሬል ደመቀ ዘውዴ ጌታቸው አደመ፣ አታላይ ዘርፉ ንግስት ይርጋና ተሻገር ወልደ ሚካኤል ይገኙበታል፤

በተያያዘ ዜና በተለያየ ወንጀል ተከሰው የተፈረደባቸው 18 ሰዎች በይቅርታ ቦርድ ጉዳያቸው እነዲታይና በርዕሰ ብሔሩ ጸድቆ እንዲፈቱ ተወስኗል።

ከነዚህም ውስጥ ብርጋዴር ጀነራል ተፈራ ማሞና አሳምነው ጽጌ ይገኙበታል።

የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ ዐዋጁ ለስድስት ወራት ተግባራዊ እንደሚደረግ መከላከያ ሚኒስትሩ ገለፁ

በዛሬው ዕለት ለጋዜጠኞች በተሰጠው ማብራሪያ፤ ዐዋጁ በ15 ቀናት ጊዜ ውስጥ ለሕዝብ ተወካዮች ምክር ቤት ቀርቦ ከፀደቀ በኋላ ለቀጣይ ስድስት ተግባራዊ ሆኖ እንደሚቆይ ታውቋል። ዐዋጁ በሁሉም የአካባቢው ክፍሎች እንደሚተገበርም ተናግረዋል።
ለጋዜጠኞች የተሰጠው መግለጫ “ከብሔራው የደህንነት ምክር ቤት የተሰጠ መግለጫ” የሚል ሲሆን፤ መግለጫውን የሰጡት ደግሞ የመከላከያ ሚኒስትሩና የጽሕፈት ቤቱ ኃላፊ አቶ ሲራጅ ፈርጌሳ ናቸው። ዐዋጁ ለማስፈፀም አዲስ ኮማንድ ፖስት እንደሚቋቋም ተናግረዋል።
በዐዋጁ መሰረት የሚደረጉትን ክልከላዎችም አብራርተዋ። “ማንኛውም በሁከትና ብጥብጥ ማድረግ፣ በሕዝቦች መካከል መጠራጠርን እና መቃቃርን የሚፈጥር፣ ይፋዊ የሆነ የድብቅ ቅስቀሳ ማድረግን፣ ጹሑፍ ማዘጋጀትን እና አትሞ ማሰራጨትን፣ ትእይንት ማሳየትን፣ በምልክት መግለፅን ወይም መልዕክትን በማንኛውም ሌላ መንገድ ለሕዝብ ይፋ ማድርገን ይከለክላል።” ብለዋል።
አዲስ የሚቋቋመው ኮማንድ ፖስቱ አስፈላጊ ነው ብሎ ሲያምን፤ “ማንኛውም የመገናኛ ዘዴ እንዲዘጋ ወይም ደግሞ እንዲቋረጥ ሊያደርግ ይችላል፣ የአደባባይ ሰልፍ፣ መደራጀት እና በቡድን ሆኖ መንቀሳቀስን ይከለክላል። ።” ብለዋል – የኮማንድ ፖስት ሰብሳቢው አቶ ሲራጅ ፈርጌሳ።
በተጨማሪም፤ “ወንጀል ተፈፅሟል ብሎ ሲያምን በማንኛውም ጊዜና ሰዓት ከፍርድ ቤት ትዕዛው ውጪ ፍተሻ ማድረግ፣ ማስቆማና መበርበር ይችላል” ተብሏል።
አቶ ሲራጅ ከመግለጫው በኋላ የተወሰኑ ጥያቄዎችን ከጋዜጠኞች የተቀበሉ ሲሆን፤ በጥያቄና መልሱ የመንቅለ መንግሥት ሁኔታ ሊፈጠር የሚችልበት ዕድል አይኖርም ብለዋል።
የሽግግር መንግሥት እንዲቋቋም ሐሳብ ስለሚያቀርቡ አካላት ተተይቀው፤”አሁን በሥልጣን ላይ ያለው መንግሥት በሕዝብ የተመረጠ በመሆኑ የሽግግር መንግሥት መቋቋም አያስፈልግም” ብለዋል።
መርማሪ ቦርድ እንደሚቋቋም፣ የሰዓት እላፊ ተፈፃሚ የሚሆንበትን ሁኔታ እንደሚወሰን ገልፀው፣ “የዐዋጁ ዝርዝሩ በመመሪያ ይወጣል” ብለዋል።
ዐዋጁን እንደገና ማራዘም ካስፈለገም ፓርላማው ሁኔታውን ገምግሞ ለአራት ወራት በድጋሚ ሊያራዝመው እንደሚችል አስታውቀዋል።

ምንጭ፥ ቪኦኤ

We strongly disagree with the Ethiopian government’s decision to impose a state of emergency that includes restrictions on fundamental rights such as assembly and expression.

We recognize and share concerns expressed by the government about incidents of violence and loss of life, but firmly believe that the answer is greater freedom, not less.

The challenges facing Ethiopia, whether to democratic reform, economic growth, or lasting stability, are best addressed through inclusive discourse and political processes, rather than through the imposition of restrictions.

The declaration of a state of emergency undermines recent positive steps toward creating a more inclusive political space, including the release of thousands of prisoners. Restrictions on the ability of the Ethiopian people to express themselves peacefully sends a message that they are not being heard.

We strongly urge the government to rethink this approach and identify other means to protect lives and property while preserving, and indeed expanding, the space for meaningful dialogue and political participation that can pave the way to a lasting democracy.

Source: US Embassy Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Colonel Demeke Zewde interview with Amhara TV right after his release from prison. Colonel Demeke Zewdu is an elected leader of Wolqaite Amhara identity committee.

Colonel Demeke Zewdu resistance icon received hero’s welcome in Gonder as he was released from prison today. Defying the state of emergency, thousands of residents flocked to his home to cheer him up.

Addis Abeba, March 27/2018 –  AddisStandard

The just-concluded meeting by the Council of Ethiopia’s ruling party, EPRDF, elected Dr. Abiy Ahmed Aliy, chairman of the OPDO, as EPRDF’s new chairman. The council has not decided on who will be the deputy.

If the party sticks to its tradition, which is more likely than not, Dr. Abiy will be recommended by the council and be approved by the parliament to become Ethiopia’s next Prime Minister.

The election came three weeks after the executive committee of the 36 powerful bloc of the party began its meeting on March 11  which was then followed by the council’s meeting which began on March 20 and ended today.

EPRDF’s Council has 180 members comprised of 45 members each from the four major parties that make up the ruling party: the Oromo Peoples’ Democratic Organization (OPDO), the Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM), the Southern Ethiopian People’s Democratic Movement (SEPDM), and the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).

Dr. Abiy, 42, has served the national defense force with a rank of Lieutenant Colonel and was instrumental in establishing the Ethiopian Information Network Security Agency (INSA). He was also a one time minister of Science & Technology.

Dr. Abiy was recently elected as chairman of the OPDO by the 81 member of the party’s Central Committee, replacing Lemma Megerssa, president of the Oromia regional state who held the positions of both the chairman of OPDO & President of Oromia region.  His election as the new chairman of the OPDO placed him as the favorite front-runner among the major contenders for the premiership. Read More on AddisStandard

Ethiopia’s government is calling for the return of cultural artefacts  plundered 150 years ago by British military forces. The relics, some of which are currently on display at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum  (V&A), were stolen in 1868 after the Battle of Maqdala, in which British troops raided the fortress of Abyssinian Emperor Tewodros II to release a group of imprisoned missionaries.

Upon the defeat of his army, Tewodros killed himself and British forces loaded elephants and mules with their loot. They also spirited away Prince Alemayehu, the emperor’s seven-year-old son.

The dispute over the pieces on display at the V&A has once again cast a spotlight on debate over whether the spoils of war should remain in Western museums, or be returned to the people and lands from which they were taken.

Ethiopia has previously requested  that several British institutions give back hundreds of manuscripts and artefacts – and that the remains of Prince Alemayehu are returned.

V&A Director Tristram Hunt has proposed lending items in the museum’s collection to Ethiopian institutions as part of a “long-term loan” partnership.

Several Ethiopian officials, however, have balked at the suggestion.

“It is clearly known where these treasures came from and whom they belong to”, said Ethiopian National Museum Director Ephrem Amare. “Ethiopia’s demand has always been the restoration of those illegally looted treasures. Not to borrow them.”

So, should looted historical artefacts remain in Britain’s museums, or should they be returned to Ethiopia?

Maaza Mengiste @MaazaMengiste
Author, Beneath the Lion’s Gaze
maazamengiste.com

Maxwell Anderson @maxandersonUSA
Author, Antiquities
maxwellanderson.com

Awol Allo @awolallo
Associate Professor, Keele University

የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጁ እንዲነሳ የሚኒስትሮች ምክር ቤት ወሰነ

አዲስ አበባ፣ ግንቦት 25፣ 2010 (ኤፍ.ቢ.ሲ) ዛሬ መደበኛ ስብሰባውን ያደረገው የሚኒስትሮች ምክር ቤት የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጁ እንዲነሳ ወሰነ።

ምክር ቤቱ በስብሰባው የሀገሪቱን የፀጥታ ሁኔታ ገምግሟል።

አሁን ላይም በሀገሪቱ ስርዓት ሰፍኖ ሰላምና መረጋጋት በመመለሱ የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጁ እንዲነሳ መወሰኑን የጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር ልዩ ፅህፈት ቤት ኃላፊ አቶ ፍፁም አረጋ አስታውቀዋል።

የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጁ እንዲነሳ የሚጠይቅ ረቂቅ የውሳኔ ሀሳብ እንዲፀድቅ ወደ ህዝብ ተወካዮች ምክር ቤት ልኳል።

ረቂቅ የውሳኔ ሀሳቡ በምክር ቤቱ ሲፀድቅ የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጁ ይነሳል ተብሎ ይጠበቃል።

የህዝብ ተወካዮች ምክር ቤት የካቲት 23 2010 ዓ.ም ባካሄደው አስቸኳይ ስብሰባው የሚኒስትሮች ምክር ቤት የካቲት 9 ቀን 2010 ዓመተ ምህረት ለስድስት ወራት ያወጀውን የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጅ ማፅደቁ ይታወሳል።

ምክር ቤቱ በኢፌዴሪ ህገ መንግስት አንቀጽ 93 ንዑስ አንቀጽ 1 (ሀ) መሰረት በታወጀው የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጅ ላይ ከተወያየ በኋላ በምክር ቤቱ ያፀደቀው።

በህገ መንግስቱና በህገ መንግስታዊ ስርዓቱ ላይ የተጋረጠውን ይህን አደጋ በመደበኛው የህግ ማስከበር ስርዓት ለመከላከልና ለመቆጣጠር ከማይቻልበት ደረጃ ላይ መድረሱንና ህገ መንግስታዊ ስርአቱን ለመጠበቅ የሚያስችል የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጅ ማውጣት በማስፈለጉ ነበር የታወጀው።

የሚኒስትሮች ምክር ቤት ዛሬ ባካሄደው ስብሰባው የሀገሪቱን የፀጥታ ሁኔታ ከገመገመ በኋላ አሁን ላይ በሀገሪቱ ስርዓት ሰፍኖ ሰላምና መረጋጋት በመመለሱ የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ አዋጁ እንዲነሳ ወስኗል።

ADDIS ABABA– Experts and local people have called for quick action by relevant authorities to rescue the ancient Entoto residence of Empress Taitu from the imminent damage.

The residential house belongs to Empress Taitu Bitul, the wife of Emperor Menelik II.

Deacon Yohanes Woldegiorgis, Entoto Raguel Church Museum tour guide told The Ethiopian Herald that Entoto Etegue Taitu’s home which is also called honeymoon house comprises five sections namely the security home, dining room, horse’s house, meat and kitchen house and other facilities.

He explained that ever since the reign Emperor Hailesselassie I the houses are confiscated by the government as state-owned rental houses and are currently occupied by individual settlers. As a result, Yohannes said that the houses are facing damage due to again and lack of maintenance.

The tour guide stated that before it changed its original style and before it totally collapses, it needs maintenance and cares as historic heritage of the country.

Priest Woldegiorgis Gebre, a local elder says that generally, Entoto area is a historic place of the country. He added that the homes were given by Emperor Menelik-II to his wife Etege Taitu and was used for different purposes like a dining room, home of horses and so on. Although the place is a historic place it did not get attention, he said. Responsible body should rehabilitate the residences before the heritage collapses completely, he added.

Gulele Sub-City Woreda Six Culture and Tourism Office Head Tsedeke Ersido assured that Taitu’s home is registered as heritage within the Sub-city Culture and Tourism Office but due to a miscommunication the homes were given to poor individuals of the woreda by cabinet decision in 2016.

The Woreda office was not aware about the heritage of the homes during that time but later the Sub-City’s office reported that it was registered as heritage, he told The Ethiopian Herald.

He stated while the office knows about the heritage, the woreda administration is trying to give homes for the settlers to make free the heritage. Tsedeke stated that efforts are underway to maintain the homes without any material and shape change and announced for the sub-city office.

Gulele Sub-City Culture and Tourism Office heritage inventory and follow up expert Tigist Kelemewerk on her side said that the office has announced to the woreda and efforts are underway to free the houses and to protect the heritage.

Addis Ababa Culture and Tourism Bureau vice head, Alemu Adane on his part said that historic houses taken by individuals become a headache for the bureau to protect the heritages. On the issue of Etege Taitu home, the office is working with the sub-city and woreda administrations since the responsibility of preparing the house for the dwellers is the local administrations.

Source: Ethiopian Herald

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(WASHINGTON, DC) – In celebration of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s visit to Washington, DC, Mayor Bowser has proclaimed July 28, 2018 “Ethiopia Day in DC.” On Saturday, the Mayor will join Prime Minister Abiy at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, where the Prime Minister will address thousands of members of the Ethiopian diaspora community from across the region. Home to more than 30,000 Ethiopian immigrants, the Washington, DC metropolitan area has the largest population of Ethiopia-born people in the United States.

“The Ethiopian community is such a valued part of our city, and our Ethiopian neighbors have played a critical role in building the diverse, inclusive, and vibrant Washington, DC that we live in today,” said Mayor Bowser. “Now, during this new climate of goodwill and unity, we look forward to reaffirming the Sister City relationship between our two capital cities.”

The Mayor’s proclamation highlights that “since assuming office in April of 2018, Dr. Abiy has focused on improving human rights, ending the war with Eritrea, pursuing political and economic reforms, and eliminating corruption, that will move Ethiopia toward a more democratic society.”

Since 2013, Washington, DC has had a Sister City Agreement and Protocol of Friendship with Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.

Source: DC.GOV Mayor Office

Police fire tear gas at protesters during state funeral for Ethiopia’s Grand Dam engineer

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (CNN) — Police fired tear gas Sunday at demonstrators in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital, where tens of thousands had gathered to mourn a national hero.

The unrest occurred at a state funeral for Simegnew Bekele, lead engineer on the $5 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam project, who was found slumped at the wheel of his car Thursday with a gunshot wound to his head.
Bekele’s body arrived in the city’s Meskel Square about 11 a.m. local time in a hearse adorned with garlands, followed by about 50 white cars. Witnesses told CNN that some members of the crowd became angry after they were prevented from following Bekele’s coffin to the church where he was to be laid to rest.

The scene at Meskel Square in Addis Ababa during a state funeral for Semegnew Bekele.

“For about 20 minutes, they were chanting that this government is not yet democratic,” said Bisrat Teshome, 35, an economist who was at the square.

Several protesters then attempted to climb a pole and replace the current Ethiopian flag, which bears a star, with an older version without the emblem, in an act of political defiance.

The star is a symbol of diversity and unity, but there has long been public annoyance that it was added to the flag without proper consultation, Teshome said.

“They (the police) started throwing tear gas in between people. Then everyone ran away. It was the first time I had seen tear gas,” Teshome said.

A handful of people were rushed to a hospital after being sprayed with tear gas, witnesses told CNN.

When CNN contacted police to ask about the tear gas, an unidentified spokesman declined to comment and hung up the phone. Follow-up attempts to obtain a comment from Ethiopia police have so far been unsuccessful.

Tens of thousands of Ethiopians gathered for Bekele’s funeral at Meskel Square — the same place where his body was found three days earlier in what is widely believed to be an assassination.

Shouts could be heard across the capital as those gathered called for a proper investigation into Bekele’s death.

Security for the state funeral was extremely tight, with roads around the square closed and armed soldiers lining the streets.

A popular figure

Bekele was a hugely popular figure who had become synonymous with the nation’s ambitious flagship dam project, a source of national pride.

“This guy had been the hope of Ethiopians,” said Abel Wabella, 31, managing editor of the Gobena Street news site, who was at the funeral. “He had been telling people about this mega-project for seven years. Everybody knew who he was.”

A huge brass band led Bekele’s coffin through the city to Holy Trinity Church, where he was to be buried alongside Emperor Haile Selassie I, the late prime minister Meles Zenawi and British suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst.

In a country splintered by tribal politics, Bekele’s funeral was a uniting factor that crossed ethnic lines.

“All the ethnic groups in Ethiopia are saddened and angered by what happened to him,” said Wabella. “The people here are not Amhara (Bekele’s tribal group).”

Simegnew Bekele’s funeral procession passes the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Addis Ababa.

Simegnew Bekele’s funeral procession passes the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Addis Ababa.
Read More on CNN … Pictures and Video from social media.

የሶማሌ ክልል ፕሬዝዳንት አብዲ ሞሃመድ ኡመር ከስልጣናቸው ወረዱ – BBC Amharic News

የኢትዮጵያ ሶማሌ ክልል ፕሬዝድንት የነበሩት አብዲ ሞሃመድ ኡመር ከስልጣናቸው መነሳታቸውን የክልሉ የኮሚኒኬሽን ቢሮ ሃላፊው ኢድሪስ ኢስማኤል ለቢቢሲ ሶማልኛ አረጋግጠዋል።
ከኢድሪስ ኢስማኤል መረዳት እንደተቻለው፤ አብዲ ሞሃመድ ኡመር ከክልሉ ፕሬዝደንትነታቸው ይነሱ እንጂ የኢትዮጵያ ሶማሌ ህዝቦች ዴሞክራሲያዊ ፓርቲ መሪ ሆነው ይቆያሉ ብለዋል።
ኢድሪስ ኢስማኤል ጨምረው እንደተናገሩት አህመድ አብዲ ሞሃመድ የቀድሞውን ፕሬዝደንት በመተካት ተሹመዋል።

አዲሱ የክልሉ ፕሬዝደንት አህመድ አብዲ ሞሃመድ የሶማሌ ክልል ፋይናንስ እና ኢኮኖሚ ልማት ቢሮ ሃላፊ በሞሆን አገልግለዋል።
ከቅዳሜ አንስቶ በጂግጂጋ እና በክልሉ ሌሎች ከተሞች የተከሰተውን ሁከት ተከትሎ የሃገር መከላከያ ሠራዊት እና የፌደራል ፖሊስ ወደ ክልሉ ገብቶ ሰላም እንዲያስከብር መታዘዙ ከሰዓታት በፊት ይፋ ተደርጎ ነበር።
በስፋት ”አብዲ ኢሌ” በመባል የሚታወቁ አብዲ ሞሃመድ ኡምር ሰልጣን በፍቃደቸው ወይም ተገደው ስለመልቀቃቸው የታወቀ ነገር የለም።
ባለፉት ቀናት በክልሉ በተከሰተው ሁከት የሰው ህይወት ጠፍቷል እንዲሁም ንብረት ወድሟል።

Sheraton to be renamed Marriott Addis –

By Samuel Getachew

Sheraton Addis, the iconic boutique-like hotel located near the national palace, is going to be renamed Marriott Addis.

According to sources at the hotel, which opened shop twenty years ago, the new brand change is to happen by the end of the year. This is two years after Marriott purchased Starwood Hotels & Resorts, owner of the Sheraton brand at a reported USD 13 billion merging the world’s famous brands under a single portfolio.

Marriott – the world’s largest operator of hotels – has been in an aggressive drive to expand its brand within the African continent aiming to open two hundred hotels, by either acquisition or by construction of new hotels with the aim of offering 37,000 guestrooms by the year 2022.

While the purchase of Starwood took place in 2016, Marriott has had a slew of challenges to flip some of the newly bought brand hotels to that of its famous Marriott brand.

Marriott International announced its transformation plan this summer aiming to refurbish the Sheraton brand after the latter lost some of its lusters over the years. “From the moment we closed the Starwood merger in late 2016, the revitalization of Sheraton has been a top priority for our company,” it’s CEO and President Arne Sorenson said. “We knew that the way to restore this incredible brand was to focus and collaborate with our hotel owners”.

The owner of the local Sheraton, Mohammed Hussein Ali Al-Amoudi remains in a Saudi Arabia prison and his new role remains unclear. There was to be a milestone celebration in February of this year, but was abruptly canceled due to the situation of the owner. Read More on The Reporter Ethiopia

The National Army Museum has quietly removed from display a 19th-century looted braid of hair which the Ethiopian government has requested back as a national treasure.

It came from the head of the Emperor Tewodros II, who killed himself at the end of the British invasion of Ethiopia in 1868 rather than being taken prisoner. He shot himself with a pistol that had been a gift from Queen Victoria.

His clothes were torn from him and the braid was cut off and taken to the UK, along with hundreds of objects pillaged by an expeditionary force under the command of Lt Gen Sir Robert Napier.

It was a military expedition to save British hostages, including the British consul, Charles Cameron, who had been kept in chains for more than two years.

The army destroyed the emperor’s Maqdala mountain fortress in northern Ethiopia. It brought back treasures, transported on 15 elephants and 200 mules, that were eventually deposited in various British institutions.

For years, the braid has been held at the National Army Museum in Chelsea. It was removed from view following a visit in April by the Ethiopian ambassador, who made an official call for its return. Ethiopia wants the braid to be interred with the rest of the emperor’s remains at his final resting place at the monastery of the Holy Trinity at Quara.

Sources said the museum discussed the request at its May council meeting and that the director was asked to write a report recommending possible outcomes, which were to be communicated to the Ethiopian embassy before 1 September.

The museum declined to comment on Monday. The Ethiopian embassy in London confirmed that a restitution request has been made.

Ethiopia has long called for Britain to return the looted artifacts. In April, the Victoria and Albert Museum announced that a gold crown was among treasures that could be returned on long-term loan.

Its director, Tristram Hunt, noted that even in the 19th century this episode of British and Ethiopian history “was regarded as a shameful one”. He acknowledged the “objects’ difficult past and their rich Ethiopian cultural heritage”.

The Ethiopian government is calling on the British Museum and other UK custodians of treasures seized at Maqdala to follow the V&A’s example. Part of the problem is that institutions like the British Museum do not have legal powers to deaccession.

In 2010, Westminster Abbey was criticised by campaigners over its refusal to return a looted tabot to the Ethiopian Orthodox church. Tabots – small tablets that symbolise the Ark of the Covenant – are regarded by 35 million Ethiopian Christians as so sacred that only priests are allowed to look at them. The abbey has a stone tabot inlaid at the back of an 1870s altar in the Henry VII Lady Chapel, where it is visible to anyone peering around its left side.

Source: The Guardian

Officials say paramilitary forces from the Somali region carried out cross-border attacks in Oromia’s East Hararghe.

At least 40 people were killed by paramilitary forces in eastern Ethiopia over the weekend, a senior regional official said, in the latest spate of violence driven by ethnic divisions.

On Monday, the Oromia regional administration’s spokesman Negeri Lencho said heavily armed members of a paramilitary force from the Somali region had carried out cross-border attacks in Oromia’s East Hararghe district.

“We still do not know why Liyu forces raided the areas on Saturday and Sunday,” he said, referring to the paramilitary soldiers. “But we know that all the victims were ethnic Oromos. At least 40 were killed in the attacks.”

Unrest first broke out along the border of the country’s Somali and Oromia provinces in September, displacing nearly a million people, though the violence had subsided by April.

Earlier this month, mobs looted properties owned by ethnic minorities in the Somali region’s capital Jijiga.

The central government said the unrest had been stoked by regional officials who had fallen out with central authorities trying to address rights abuses in the region.

According to the spokesman, the officials had said the government was illegally forcing them to resign, and that Liyu forces had taken part in the attacks under their orders.

The forces are seen as loyal to the region’s leader Abdi Mohammed Omer, who has since resigned.

Authorities in the Somali region were not immediately available for comment.

Domestic challenge for Abiy

Recent anti-government protests broke out in the Oromia region over land rights in 2015. Hundreds were killed by security forces over a two-year period.

The violence is said to be the biggest domestic challenge facing reformist Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who took office in April. Abiy has ushered in a number of reforms, including ending a military statemate with neighbouring Eritrea and extending an olive branch to dissidents overseas.

Separately on Sunday, three people were killed in a stampede among thousands who attended a visit by a prominent political activist in the town of Shashemene, according to officials from the Oromia regional government. The event was held to mark the return to Ethiopia of Jawar Mohammed, an activist who had been in exile in the United States but played a key role in mobilising Oromo young people through social media.

Amid the chaos, another person was beaten to death by a mob after rumours circulated he had carried a bomb, residents said. “Police did not take action while all that took place,” the witness told Reuters news agency. “It is an example of the lawlessness that is taking root in the country.”

Source: Aljazeera.com

ኢትዮ ቴሌኮም በስልክ አገልግሎት ላይ የታሪፍ ቅናሽ አደረገ

አዲስ አበባ ፣ ነሐሴ 16 ፣ 2010 (ኤፍ ቢ ሲ) ኢትዮ ቴሌኮም በስልክ አገልግሎት የታሪፍ ቅናሽ ማድረጉን አስታወቀ።

ኢትዮ ቴሌኮም ዛሬ በሰጠው መግለጫ፥ ተቋሙ በስልክ አገልግሎት ላይ የታሪፍ ቅናሽ ማድረጉን አስታውቋል።

በዚህ መሰረት የስልክ ኢንተርኔት አገልግሎት ላይ የ43 በመቶ፣ የስልክ ድምፅ ላይ የ40 ከመቶ እንዲሁም አጭር የሞባይል የፅሁፍ መልዕክት ላይ የ43 በመቶ ቅናሽ ማድረጉን ገልጿል።

የታሪፍ ቅናሹ ከዛሬ ጀምሮ ተግባራዊ የሚደረግ መሆኑንም ነው የገለጸው።

የታሪፍ ቅናሹን ተከትሎም በደቂቃ 83 ሳንቲም የነበረው የሞባይል ስልክ ጥሪ አገልግሎት ወደ 50 ሳንቲም ዝቅ እንዲል ተደርጓል።

ከዚህ ባለፈም ቀደም ሲል በሜጋ ባይት 35 ሳንቲም የነበረው የሞባይል ኢንተርኔት አገልግሎት 43 በመቶ ቅናሽ ተደርጎበት በሜጋ ባይት ወደ 23 ሳንቲም ዝቅ ብሏል።

በአጠቃላይ በሞባይል ኢንተርኔት ፓኬጆች ላይ ደግሞ ከ33 እስከ 44 በመቶ ቅናሽ ተደርጓል።

በሞባይል እና መደበኛ ብሮድባንድ ኢንተርኔት አገልግሎት ላይም እስከ 54 በመቶ ቅናሽ መደረጉም ተገልጿል።

የብሮድባንድ ሲም ካርድ ሽያጭ ለጊዜው የተቋረጠ ሲሆን፥ በቀጣይ መስፈርቱን ከሚያሟሉ ባንኮች፣ ሆቴሎች እና ሱፐርማርኬቶች ጋር አጋርነት በመፍጠር የብሮድባንድ ሲም ካርድ ሽያጭ እንዲያከናወን ይደረጋልም ነው ያለው።

MOBILE VOICE SERVICE 40% OFF

MOBILE INTERNET SERVICE 43% OFF

BROADBAND INTERNET 54% OFF

MOBILE M2M SERVICE 41% OFF

MOBILE SMS SERVICE 43% OFF

ዝርዝር የዋጋ ቅናሹን እዚህ ማጣቀሻ ላይ ይመልከቱ

http://www.ethiotelecom.et/tariff-reduction-september-2018/

Tariff Reduction

የኢፌዴሪ ጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር ዶክተር አብይ አህመድ ከጋዜጠኞች ጋር ያደረጉት ቆይታ

Ethiopian PM Dr. Abiy Ahmed held a press conference answering questions from government and private media journalists.