a new chapter unfolds

By Groum Abate

The CUD is born - 2003:
The Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), was first launched in 2003, as a coalition of four parties. These were the All Ethiopia Unity Party (AEUP), chaired by Eng. Hailu Shawel who is also CUD chairman, the Ethiopian Democratic Union Party - Medhin (EDUP - Medhin) chaired by Lidetu Ayalew, the Rainbow Party led by Dr. Berhanu Nega and the Ethiopian Democratic League (EDL).
These four parties came together on a multi-ethnic all inclusive platform. The coalition believes that land should be privatized and is against article 39 of the constitution which allows for secession as it holds that Ethiopian unity is non-negotiable.
On September 24, 2005, the CUD transformed from a coalition of four parties into one party and elected its current leadership. Following its registration by the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE), the CUD thereafter was officially known as the Coalition for Unity and Democracy Party (CUDP).
The coalition contested the May 2005 elections on one ballot.

Election fever - 2005
Addis Ababa's Meskal Square saw one of the largest crowds ever assembled, where on separate days supporters of the two main rival parties the EPRDF and the CUD rallied to show their support for their respective parties.
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said during the EPRDF rally that took place on Saturday May 6, 2005 "Such an overwhelming show of public support before the election proves to the opposition that the EPRDF needs no vote rigging as they claim in their smear campaigns."
On the contrary, an even larger crowd assembled the next day in support of the CUD. At the event, its chairman Hailu Shawel was quoted as stating, "What the people are saying is: 'We want change; we want a new government"…… "we are going to win, I guarantee it."
In the observers' eyes
Having followed the electoral process closely for over two months the EU Election Observers Mission (EOM), came to the following conclusions prior to election day:
On the positive side, the electoral process can be characterized by:
1. Participation of all relevant political forces in the electoral race.
2. Fair access to publicly owned media by all parties.
3. The creation of a public space as a result of unprecedented debates broadcast on radio and television between opposition and government allowing a genuine exchange of views on issues of public concern.
4. Increasing voter registration estimated at no less than 85% of all eligible population. Voter lists contained 25,605,851 people registered in 2005, 48% of which were women. These figures compare with 21,834,806 and 21,337,379 in 2000 and 1995 respectively.
Two points should be noted here. First, the registration increase rate between 2000 and 2005 is close to that of the estimated growth of the population (3% per annum), and is much higher than the increase in registered voters in the two previous elections. Second, that 48% of the registered were women both in 2005 and 2000 may reflect the fact that there still exists a certain degree of female under-registration as the female population is generally 1-2% higher than the male population in most societies around the world.
5. Although final accurate statistics are still being compiled, voter turnout as a percentage of registered voters should be very high.
6. Increased number of candidates and of women candidates with respect to previous elections. The total number of candidates for the House of Peoples' Representatives increased between 2000 and 2005 from 1080 to 1847 (71% increase). As for Regional Councils, the total number of candidates increased from 2,164 to 3,762 (74% increase). With regards to women candidates, the increase was still more spectacular. The total number of women candidates to the House of Peoples' Representatives rose from 91 to 253 (178% increase); and from 278 to 700 to the Regional Councils (152% increase). Also as a proportion of all candidates, women's share amounted to 14 % in 2005 as opposed to a mere 1% in 2000 for the House of Peoples' Representatives. As for the Regional Councils, the share of women candidates amounted to 19% in 2005 by comparison with 13% in 2000. This reflects initiatives undertaken by some parties, mainly by the EPRDF to boost women's participation through candidate quotas.
7. Establishment of a Joint Political Party Forum at national and constituency levels, meeting regularly with the electoral authorities with the purpose of discussing and, as appropriate, solving current campaign and election-administration problems.
8. The adoption of the EPRDF's of a Code of Conduct for its membership, and the agreement within the Joint Political Party Forum of a Code of Conduct binding all competing parties.
9. Special training on electoral issues for the police and the judiciary.
10. The signature by the EPRDF, main opposition coalition the CUD, and some other parties of a non-violence pact on the eve of Election Day.
11. Invitation of international observers by the Government of Ethiopia for the first time.
12. The peaceful character of massive rallies of the EPRDF and the CUD at the closure of the campaign in Addis Ababa.
On the negative side, the following issues were highlighted:
1. The use of administrative obstacles to gatherings or rallies of the opposition by some local authorities.
2. Intimidation of political opponents by public officials, most often by some kebele administrators and militias.
3. Disruption of rallies of opposition parties by militia and people allegedly related to the EPRDF. More than 300 cases have been reported of opposition activists being beaten, by comparison with only a few relating to EPRDF activists.
4. Detention, often for a short time, of opposition activists on several grounds, usually related to campaign activities.
The week before election day, spot reports from observers - based on complaints filed mainly by CUD, UEDF, ONC (member of UEDF), and OFDM as well as on direct account from observers- showed that violent threats and actions as well as imprisonment against opposition members and supporters had increased. Several hundreds of opposition supporters arrested or missing (80 reported in Ankober constituency) on alleged public disturbances at the occasion of rallies and other campaign activities.
5. Several young political activists from the opposition have been killed.
6. Changes in the legal framework made only a few weeks before elections (amendments to the Penal Code on media issues; NEBE directive banning electoral observation to most NGOs, later reversed by court decision). Any change in the rules of the game in the middle of the game, unless it is agreed upon by the major stakeholders, is presumed to create uncertainty and scope for manipulation.
7. Unfair Radio and TV campaigning using images and messages designed to intimidate by associating the genocide in Rwanda with the political aspirations/programmes of certain parties.
8. Use of state assets (i.e. cars, buildings) by the EPRDF in election campaigning.
9. Perceived lack of impartiality of the electoral authorities by most opposition parties, regarding both the NEBE and constituency authorities particularly at the lower level. The overlap intermingling of governmental officials and the electoral administration was particularly evident in rural areas.
10. As tension rose in the last weeks of the electoral campaign, serious allegations were made by all political contenders against rival parties.

The Elections - May 2005
On Sunday May 15, 2005, Ethiopians turned out in massive numbers to vote in the most genuinely competitive elections the country has experienced in spite of a number of restrictions on the full exercise of political rights and some violations of human rights in the pre-electoral period. The atmosphere on polling day was peaceful. The voting and counting operation at the polling stations was completed despite a shortage of material and organizational resources, particularly in urban areas, the effect of which was partly mitigated by an extension of polling hours.
Early results showed the opposition with a big lead, sweeping all of the contested seats in the capital Addis both in the race for parliament as well as the City Council. By the afternoon of the 16th of May, the opposition was halfway towards winning a majority in the national parliament with only about a third of the constituencies reporting complete results. Late on May 16, in the preliminary report covering just under 200 seats released by the National Election Board, the ruling party announced that it had won more than 300 seats, while conceding that opposition parties won all 23 seats in the capital city.

Post Election - June 2005
The two major opposition parties, the (CUD) and the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces (UEDF) claimed on that same day that they had won 185 of the approximately 200 seats for which the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE), had released as preliminary results.
That was a significant improvement over the 12 seats the opposition had in the previous parliament.
The NEBE was required to announce the official results on June 8.
A state of emergency was declared which outlawed any public gathering on May 16. PM Meles assumed direct command of the security forces, and replaced the city police with federal police and special forces drawn from elite army units. The NEBE, simultaneously, ordered the vote tallying process to stop, an order which was not rescinded for nearly a week. An action against which the opposition and the independent election monitors strongly objected.
The next official report from the NEBE, released on May 27, showed that the EPRDF had won 209 seats, and affiliated parties 12 more. The report indicated the opposition parties had won 142 seats.
However, the Carter Center, the highest profile among the mission of foreign observers, said there had been no pattern of intimidation or interference in the election by the ruling party or the government.

Speed bumps appear
The CUD lodged complaints in 139 constituencies; while the UEDF lodged 89. The EPRDF on its part raised its concerns over irregularities in more than 50 seats. Including the complaints lodged by small parties, those concerning the results in 299 parliamentary seats were also lodged.
According to an official of the NEBE, political parties had until June 3 to provide evidence of fraud, or their complaints would be dismissed. However, investigations led to elections being re-run at a minimum of 16 voting stations, and affecting elections for at least six seats.
Provisional results were scheduled to be released on May 23, but the need to investigate claims of voting irregularities and disruptions in two regions-Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Regional State and Oromia Regional State - pushed the release of these results back to June 8, the date originally scheduled for releasing the official results.
This is when things started getting sticky.
While the ruling party had unofficially been reported to have won the election, demonstrations were held protesting alleged election fraud and continued into June 2005 when they turned violent. On June 8, police shot 42 people.
The government afterwards stated that an appropriate level of force was used and accused the CUD of fomenting dissent; the CUD denied these accusations, and claimed that the government was attempting to distract attention from election fraud. This led to the leaders of the CUD, including head Hailu Shawel, being put under house arrest.

Official results - July 2005
On July 8, the NEBE released the first official results for 307 of the 547 national parliamentary seats. Of the 307 seats, the EPRDF had won 139, while CUD and UEDF won 93 and 42, respectively. Smaller parties and independent candidates won the remaining 33 seats.
Dr. Berhanu Nega, vice-chairman of the CUD, had criticized the process on July 20, claiming that, "The investigation process was a complete failure. Our representatives and witnesses have been harassed, threatened, barred and killed upon their return from the hearings."
Meanwhile, the NEBE continued to investigate voting fraud and other irregularities, while also arranging new polls to resolve some disputes. On August 9, official results were released, acknowledging that the ruling EPRDF had won 296 of the total 524 seats - about 56 % - enabling it to form a government, while its allied parties won 22 seats. The UEDF won 52 seats. Dr. Berhanu said his party, which had officially won 109 seats, was debating whether they would challenge the results in court. Election reruns was scheduled for August 21 in 31 areas where either irregularities were reported or results were challenged.
On September 5, the NEBE released its final results, in which the EPRDF retained its control of the government with 327 seats, or 59% of the vote. Opposition parties won 174 seats, or 32% of the vote. The CUD alone won 20% of the vote.
CUD, in August 2005 announced it had filed charges against the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE), concerning what it said were irregularities conducted by the board.
CUD officials said that the opposition party has filed charges to the Federal High court, so that the court could order the NEBE to give copies of decisions of complaint hearing bodies, minutes, audiocassettes and other relevant documents to the party.
The Mayoral Election - August 2005
On August 20, 2005 the CUD elected Dr. Berhanu Nega to be mayor of Addis Ababa with 123 votes. Accordingly, the following were elected to administer the city:
1. Dr. Berhanu Nega - Mayor (123 votes)
2. Dr. Admasu Gebeyehu - Deputy Mayor (109 votes)
3. Ato Assefa Habtewold - Speaker of House (69 votes)
4. Wro Shewaye Kiros - Deputy Speaker of House (106 votes)
5. Ato Anteneh Mulugeta - Secretary (74 votes)
After the official announcement of the election, Dr. Berhanu Nega, the Mayor-elect, said that the active participation of the residents is of great importance not only in appreciating the good but also in criticizing when they do wrong. Issues of importance in the city government, according to Berhanu, would be governance and economic development. He stressed the problems of unemployment and HIV/AIDS as core issues to be addressed.
Soon after, charging that the vote was rigged, the CUD decided to boycott the new parliament. The ruling party then stripped the elected CUD officials of parliamentary immunity. In response, the CUD called for additional protests on November 2, 2005, including a stay-at-home strike and a boycott of ruling-party businesses the following week.
Once again, at least 46 people died, and over 200 were injured. The authorities reported that hand grenades had been thrown on police and that seven had been killed.
There were smaller protests in other towns such as Dessie, Debre Berhan and Bahar Dar in the Amhara Region, and Awassa in the Southern Region. These demonstrations involved students in particular. Thousands were arrested in the first few days of November. Protesters in Addis Ababa were taken to remote prisons in rural areas, where conditions are harsh.

Arrests - November 2005
On November 7, 2005, the Federal Police issued a "wanted list" of 58 individuals stating that they would be charged with treason, which carries a possible death penalty. By early December, police had detained over 40 of the people on the wanted list. The detainees protested that there is no basis for these accusations.
The Trial Opens - December 2005
In December 129 people including CUD leaders went on trial for treason and attempted genocide of which the latter was later dropped. The accused refused to defend themselves maintaining that the trial was political. Thirty-five of the accused were abroad and being tried in absentia.
As well as CUD officials, the accused include journalists and civil rights activists.
The trial was held in open court before a panel of three judges headed by a presiding judge. Besides the EU trial observers, foreign diplomats as well as local and some foreign journalists had been regularly attending the proceedings, with interpreters provided by the court. The CUD leaders and journalists boycotted the trial on the grounds that it would be fundamentally unfair and that the court was not independent. They claimed that they had already been convicted in advance. The court entered pleas of "not guilty" on their behalf when they refused to plead.
The government of Meles had been under strong international criticism amid allegations that it is reneging on democratic commitments.
Some 8,000 people have been freed since opposition arrests after two waves of poll protests in June and November in which more than 190 people died.
Journalist Serkalem Fasil, who was pregnant at the time of her arrest in November 2005, gave birth to a daughter in the police hospital. Serkalem's partner, Eskinder Negga, was also arrested in November 2005 and detained at Kaliti prison. Both were released two months ago after the Federal High court acquitted the two and other journalists.
Co-owner and publisher of Asqual, Menilik and Satenaw newspapers, Serkalem Fasil was arrested, along with 13 other journalists, after publishing articles critical of the government's actions during the May 2005 parliamentary elections.
The Second Criminal Bench of the Federal High Court ruled for 25 journalists to be set free and for eight editor-in-chiefs to defend the charges brought against them by the Federal prosecutor.
The court later lifted the attempted genocide and treason charges leveled against all the accused in the case of Engineer Hailu Shawel et.al.
Regarding the charge of attempted genocide, the court stated that the prosecution's evidence did not show that the accused acted with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, members of the Tigray nationality. It noted that the acts of the accused, namely issuing a call to ostracize sections of the society that support the EPRDF, could only be construed to be a strategy aimed at exerting pressure on the government.

The End Game - July 2007
More than 30 opposition members were given life sentences for their role in the 2005 election protests. More than 100 opposition figures were put on trial on charges of plotting a coup following elections in 2005 which the ruling party won but the opposition claims were rigged. The government has been criticized by international human rights organizations over their detention, and pushed for clemency. But PM Meles refused to interfere with the rule of law.
Meanwhile there were consistent but unconfirmed report of the formation of a special group of elders led by Professor Ephraim Isaac, which included Haile Gebre Sellassie, Paster Daniel Gebre Selassier, Ambassador Bekele Endeshaw, Eng. Wolde Leul and General Solomon. The group was said to be on promising track of finding a meditated solution.
Various non-Ethiopian initiatives had also been started, but in the end it was down to Ethiopians themselves to come out of this extended crisis.
After repeated and earnest attempts of negotiations for which details are still sparse a breakthrough was achieved which was acceptable to all.
Rumors of a formal apology having been signed by 71 detainees swept the capital.
Prior to the president's pardon, an investigation into the authenticity of the pardon request, signed by 71 individuals, was conducted by a team headed by Justice Minister Aseffa Kesito.
President Girma Wolde Giorgis on his part granted the pardons.

The Pardon - July 20, 2007
The almost two-year long political saga seems to have wrapped up, as the 38 senior leaders and members of CUD, and journalists were released from prison on Friday July 20 after their request for a pardon was approved by the President of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE), Girma Woldegiorgis, on Thursday.
"This sorry saga of the so-called 'Orange Revolution' is now fully behind us. This is dead and buried now. This is a new chapter for everyone. I hope it also conveys that there is no sense of revenge and vendetta on the part of the government as long as people recognize that the rules of the game are to be respected by everyone, everyone is given a fair chance to participate," Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who called a press conference at his office on Friday to announce the news, said.
The mediation process that led to Friday's release of the opposition leaders and members was initiated 18 months ago by Ethiopian elders among them whom is the renowned Harvard academician, Professor Ephraim Isaac.
Of those who still remain in prison, some are said to have refused to sign the pardon request and will see their cases through the courts.
There are also those who are waiting for the court's decision and it is expected they will also be granted pardons once the legal process has been concluded.
Of the six journalists who had also signed on the document requesting a pardon, five have been released and one awaits the court's decision for his appeal.

Of flying ‘toilets’ and Addis slum life

By Tedla Desta

If you have heard of ‘toilets’ that fly, then you must have been to one of Addis Ababa’s squalid slums. These ‘toilets’ do fly, though they don’t use dny type of propulsion system. Or do they? Because in fact, a person pilots them to any direction wanted. The usual direction though, is to throw them up and away to land at any destination. Are you still puzzled? Don’t be!! These flying toilets are human plastic bags of feces, after use as restrooms due to the absence of proper toilets and sewerage systems. This practice is widely observed in the most dilapidated slum areas of Addis Ababa.
“We don’t have a single toilet in our area. If there is one, it is blocked up to its roof. So the most suitable option for us is to ‘do our business’ into plastic bags and throw them to the road sides when nobody is around”, says a young resident who requested anonymity.
Recent reports have it that over a billion people in the world still use unsafe drinking water and 2.6 billion don’t have access to adequate sanitation facilites. More than two million people die every year – a child every 15 seconds – from water related diseases.
A global alliance for making safe water and sanitation facilities a reality for all was established in 1990, the Ethiopian chapter in 2004, with WASH Ethiopia movement. The movement has recently conducted a one day trip for journalists to two sites in the capital. the July 17, 2007 press junket consisted of two visits that closely observed the sad condition of residents who live in the worst condition of sanitation and water access. “Acute water Diarrhea (AWD) has once again occurred in Ethiopia”, said Alemayehu Negash, Addis Ketema sub-city Health Department Head.
He stated that of the seven cases of AWD assessed in Addis, one has been confirmed to be in this sub-city that contributes 27% of Addis Ababa’s total waste.
The sub city is also home to one of Africa’s largest open markets -the Merkato, and the main hub of the national long distance bus system. Precipitated by several socio- economic factors, the condition of the district is difficult to describe in words.
The inhabitants of the area did not hesitate to air their grievances to media workers. Improper disposal of wastes was chief among their many complaints.
“Our children go to the clinic every time after getting sick from epidemic like diseases. Ten family members live in this single room that does not have a toilet or water. We actually have one toilet for hundreds of people,” says an ageing mother. Most of the people in this specific district, no. 34, make money by renting cheap beds, selling the local ale and by providing ‘qat’- chewing services.
The trash from the qat and the human waste make it all the dirtier. At the old lady’s doorstep, there is a small toilet for all the residents of the district that number over 600.
However, nobody uses it, with most preferring the roadsides, while others, thanks to cheap plastic bags, use the system of flying toilets.
The stinky neighborhood repels all newcomers immediately or sees them off with a nose cold. We were compelled to conduct our interview standing practically on the mess and urine, which is a normal everyday situation to the inhabitants.
“I hear those who contaminate their front door area are fined but I’ve never seen it done by the concerned officials,” said Sisay Geda, a young woman, looking extremely upset.
“One of the basic problems that are creating this hardship is the absence of running water. We buy a bucket of water for 15 Eth. cents (0.02$); this makes our life more difficult, beyond the sanitational, hygienic and sewerage related risks that we are exposed to,” says Sisay.
Access to clean drinking water is a universal human right. However, the deprivation we witnessed in these communities is saddening to anyone who can appreciate the meaning of water. It has been estimated that the total number of deaths worldwide attributable to unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene is 1.8 million per year. This figure corresponds to 88 per cent of diarrhoeal diseases worldwide, which is considered to be the percentage of diarrhea due to unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene. Most prevalent are trachoma, schistosmiasis, ascariasis, trichuriasis and hookworm disease. Other conditions, such as malaria and Japanese encephalitis, are related to inadequate water resources management. The total number of deaths per year due to just these latter two diseases is approximately 1.1 million.
“We care more about access to water rather than to its purity because drinking has priority” Sisay comments on how acute the predicament of the lack of water is, in a comparative statement.
Abebe, 13, is a 7th grader. Even at this young age, the poor sanitation, hygiene and water standards of his neighborhood concern him deeply.
“We don’t have anywhere to play. The roads also serve as latrines. It makes us ill and prevents us from having fun. I know children who have died after getting sick from the contamination,” he said.
The area is densely populated, with most inhabitants leading a subsistence life.
Asked what they could do to help reduce the problems and pressurize policy makers into taking action, Michael Negash, coordinator of WASH Ethiopia Movement stated that they focus mainly on advocacy and strongly believe that their activities in advocacy and communication would bring about change.
On the other hand, Samuel Korma, representative of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health stated, “My ministry does not believe that it is possible to solve 75% of the country’s health problems caused by environmental degradation just by building hospitals. We are rather emphasizing a prevention based approach. Since these problems can also be solved by focusing on environmental protection, we have devised a new sanitation strategy and urban health packages.