nazret.com

From catwalk to Africa

Top Model "Sara Nuru supported Karlheinz Böhm

Source: sueddeutsche

According to photo shoots, fashion shows and shooting for commercials dedicated to the Munich "Top Model" winner Sara Nuru soon an entirely different "heart". The 20-year-old will travel to Ethiopia in early September, in the home of her family, and embrace the work as an ambassador for the charity founded by Karl Heinz Bohm "people for people to". "That brings me to the carpet," Sara says Nuru. After the excitement since their participation in the program "Germany 's Next Top Model" she meant a lot, now that their trip "for something as important" stand up and she could help people in need through their media presence, perhaps.

Although Sara, who was born in Erding and lives in Munich, was previously only twice in Ethiopia - last 2002nd The situation in the country which is among the poorest of the earth, but they occupied since time immemorial. "My mom and dad it was very important that we know where we come from, that the world is not all beautiful, but that there are people who have nothing to eat," she says. The work of Karlheinz Böhm and his wife, Almaz, they have long pursued with great respect: "That they have come up to me, was really an honor." My mother almost cried. " Sara's parents regularly flying to Ethiopia, the majority of her family lives in the capital Addis Ababa. Sara will be accompanied on their week-long visit from her father. "He will interpret for us." She herself does not speak the local language Amharic fluently. Sara is the official youth ambassador for the initiative "Generation ABC - 2015", with a literacy rate of less than 50 percent in Ethiopia to be significantly increased. Schools in Germany should commit to building new schools in the country. ddp

Ethiopia - Washington's Avalon Theater to screen Haile Gerima's Teza

From acclaimed local Ethiopian filmmaker Haile Gerima

Source: Avalon

Winner! 2008 Venice Film Festival Golden Osella, SIGNIS Award (Honorable Mention) and Special Jury Prize

Teza is set in Germany and Ethiopia, and examines the displacement of African intellectuals, both at home and abroad, through the story of a young, idealistic Ethiopian doctor – Anberber. The film chronicles Anberber’s internal struggle to stay true, both to himself and to his homeland, but above all, Teza explores the possession of memory – a right humanity mandates that each of us have – the right to own our pasts.

After studying medicine abroad in Germany for several years, Anberber returns home to Ethiopia only to find his beloved country, and soon the quiet of his dreams, stifled and disarrayed by the country’s political turmoil.

Seeking escape from the center of violence, Anberber turns to the solace of his countryside childhood home, but quickly realizes that there is no shelter there. The competing forces of the military and opposition factions usurp the comfort he thought the memories of his youth would invoke. Anberber must determine if he can bear the strain of his reality and piece together a life from the fragments of a complete existence that lie around him.

Teza documents Anberber’s recognition of his own displacement and powerlessness in the face of the dissolution of Ethiopian humanity and social values. (Haile Gerima, 2008, 140 min, in Amharic, German and English w/ English subtitles, NR)

U.S. PREMIERE THU, SEP 17: 7:00 PM
THEATRICAL ENGAGEMENT BEGINS FRI, SEP 18

Opens Fri, Sep 18th
Avalon Theater
5612 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20015
202-966-6000

At a Minnesota market, tales of a hidden Ethiopian war

The Ogaden War

At the Village Market in Minneapolis, the major social hub for Somali-speaking Ethiopian refugees living in the Twin Cities, endless stories like Fatima’s are being urgently swapped every day. They are tales of evil that is so profound it would be unkind of me to suddenly start describing those crimes in detail right now.

Read Full Article from Daily Planet

Africans 'under siege' in Moscow

BBC News

Nearly 60% of black and African people living in Russia's capital Moscow have been physically assaulted in racially motivated attacks, says a new study.

Africans working or studying in the city live in constant fear of attack, according to the report by the Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy.


Read Complete Story from BBC News and Have Your Say

The New York Times had an interesting article regarding older immigrants in America. Although the article talks about the Indian community, we thought it is relevant to Ethiopian community as well. Read the article and have your say. Are there senior community centers for the Ethiopian community in the city or town you live?

Invisible Immigrants, Old and Left With ‘Nobody to Talk To’

By PATRICIA LEIGH BROWN
Published: August 31, 2009
Older immigrants, cut off from society by language and culture differences, are now America’s fastest-growing immigrant group.

Read complete article from The New York Times

Twenty-four Hours in Ethiopia's Capital, Addis Ababa

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- I have been in Ethiopia for less than 24 hours and have had my first experience with armed robbery.

I was walking around an open-air market -- in broad daylight -- in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, with a friend who has lived here for over a year. The Merkato is considered the biggest open-air market in Africa. With the exception of an Ethiopian contemporary art gallery, it was the one thing in Addis I really wanted to see -- mostly for the photo opportunities.


Read More from Huffington Post

Ethiopia's Mohammad Al Amoudi named 2nd richest person in Saudi Arabia

Source: Arabian Business

Born in Ethiopia to a Yemeni father, Mohammad Hussein Al Amoudi was raised in Saudi Arabia and is today considered one of the largest foreign investors in Sweden and North Africa.

He made his first fortune in construction and real estate before branching out into buying oil refineries in Morocco and Sweden — where he was honoured with the Royal Swedish Order of the North Star by King Carl XVI — and his native Ethiopia, where he bankrolls the national soccer team.

By the end of last year, the current economic crisis had taken a toll on a number of Al Amoudi’s Swedish investments. The stock exchange lost over 30 percent of its value between August and December 2008, while the plummeting oil price hardly helped Al Amoudi’s oilfield operations.

Yet while the Nordic region’s biggest economy is still in recession as the global paralysis of credit markets undermines consumer spending and saps demand for Swedish goods, the stock exchange has bounced back to summer-2008 levels. And that’s good news for investment behemoths such as Al Amoudi, who owns a broad portfolio of businesses not only in oil but also in mining, agriculture, hotels, hospitals, finance, operations and maintenance.

His holding and operating companies, Corral Group and the Midroc Group, employ more than 40,000 people. Corral Group has an investment portfolio in Europe and the Middle East that includes Preem Petroleum, the largest integrated petroleum company in Sweden, Svenska Petroleum & Exploration, SAMIR, Naft Services Co (Saudi Arabia) and Fortuna Holdings Co (Lebanon).

Diarrhoea outbreak kills 34 in Ethiopia

Relief Web

ADDIS ABABA, Aug 31, 2009 (AFP) - A diarrhoea epidemic has killed 34 people in Ethiopia and infected more than 5,000 in the last two weeks, officials announced Monday.

The disease has mainly affected the capital, where 500 people were admitted to hospitals on Sunday alone, said Daddy Jima, the country's Health and Nutrition Institute deputy director.

"The cases in Addis Ababa gradually increased since two weeks ago. But it has sharply decreased since three, four days ago when thousands were admitted in a single night," he said.

The Ethiopian government has maintained the outbreak is "acute watery diarrhoea" despite some non-governmental organisations saying it bears signs of cholera.

"We are reporting it as acute watery diarrhoea because we have not confirmed that it is cholera," Daddy said.

Cholera, a highly contagious water-borne disease, is contracted by drinking and eating contaminated food and causes severe diarrhoea and vomiting.

Acute Watery Diarrhoea is common among people with suppressed immunity. In severe cases and when accompanied by vomiting it can lead to light-headedness, weakness, confusion, kidney failure and possibly death.

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Thousands Felled by Diarrhea Outbreak in Ethiopian Capital

By Peter Heinlein
VOA

Addis Ababa
31 August 2009

Health officials in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa are battling a severe outbreak of Acute Watery Diarrhea. As many as 1,000 cases a day have been reported in the past week, and several people have died. Hospitals are erecting tents to handle the huge increase in patients turning up for treatment.

People have been lining up at hospitals around Addis Ababa for more than a week to get help. Ethiopia's health ministry says 4,000 Acute Watery Diarrhea cases have been confirmed in the past 10 days, 300 in the most recent 24-hour reporting period.

Tent compounds have sprung up on the grounds of at least five hospitals in the capital to treat the unusually high case load.

The U.N. Humanitarian Affairs office issued a bulletin expressing extreme concern that some residents, particularly children, might be especially vulnerable to infection because of malnutrition.

Nationwide, estimates of people in need of emergency food aid have risen steadily in recent months to 6.2 million. The U.N. children's agency reports it has dispatched 47 metric tons of ready-to-use therapeutic formula in a targeted feeding program in recent weeks, and more is on the way.

The U.S. embassy issued a warning to Americans in Addis Ababa last week of the increased risk of acute diarrheal illnesses, including Salmonella, Shigella and Cholera.

Dr. Daddi Jima, deputy director general of the Ethiopian Health and Nutrition Research Institute says the outbreak has been diagnosed as AWD, not cholera.

"We usually report it as Acute Watery Diarrhea. We have never fully confirmed for any etiologic agents," said Dr. Daddi Jima. "Because we more focus on managing the cases, because the management of Acute Watery Diarrhea is similar. So we are focusing on managing the cases we have rather than going into the details of the specific causative agents."

Dr. Daddi says Ethiopian health agencies have a sufficient supply of the antibiotic doxycyclIne, which is effective against AWD. But he cautions that the heavy rains that are normal in Addis Ababa this time of year play havoc with the public water system.

"AWD is endemic because of poor hygienic situation due to lack of enough water resource distribution, and low coverage of latrine use and the existence of the latrine is low, so because of this AWD happens every year in this country," he said.

The latest U.N. humanitarian bulletin says the government and partner agencies have set up a central command center to scale up efforts to contain the AWD outbreak. Partner groups, including many health agencies are meeting twice daily to coordinate a response wherever a flare-up may occur.

Aid agencies also say critical water shortages are affecting other regions of Ethiopia. U.N. officials say a drought in the Somali region is being compounded by the migration of unusually large herds of livestock from other drought-hit areas in neighboring Somalia and Kenya.

Ethiopian Arabica Coffee Prices Rose as Much as 6.1% Last Week

By Jason McLure

Aug. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Coffee prices in Ethiopia, Africa’s largest grower of the beans, rose as much as 6.1 percent last week as volumes climbed 31 percent on the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange.

Trading volume rose to 1,850 metric tons in the week ending Aug. 28 from 1,416 tons the week previous, the Addis Ababa-based exchange said in a report downloaded from its Web site.


Read Complete Article from Bloomberg

Ethiopia Coffee Exports May Rebound This Year, Exchange Says

By Jason McLure

Aug. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Coffee exports from Ethiopia, Africa’s largest producer of the beans, are expected to rebound to about 171,000 metric tons this year after shipments fell to their lowest level in six years last year, an official with the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange said.

“Early assessments indicate a very good potential for a bumper harvest of coffee,” said Eleni Gabre-Madhin, chief executive officer of the Addis Ababa-based exchange, in an interview on Aug. 29. “We are expecting at least 2007/2008 tonnage.”


Read Complete Article from Bloomberg News

Washington, DC Ethiopian-Americans for Change—in partnership with the Washington Nationals—bring to you the Inaugural Ethiopian-American Appreciation Day. The event will be held at the Nationals Stadium and will feature a pre-game Ethiopian-American Cultural Celebration inside the stadium’s roof-top deck.

For the discount price of $29.00, patrons will be able to enjoy the pre-game celebration for no cost that features free food, free music, Ethiopian dancing, and other cultural events until we reach the capacity of the roof top deck. The Washington Nationals will honor the contributions that Ethiopian-Americans have made to the United States and highlight the Ethiopian community in America.

Event Location:

Date: September 25, 2009

Place: Washington Nationals Stadium

Address: 1500 South Capitol St SE, Washington 20003

Time: 3:00 PM EST – 11:00 PM EST

A request is being made to deploy media assets to this event in order to cover this unique cultural event. We are expecting a massive turnout; thus we are also requesting human interest stories as a precursor leading up to the event.

For general information, contact info@ethiopiansforchange.com at ethiopianamericansforchange.org

Ethiopia - Meles Zenawi off to Libya

Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi left for Libya on Sunday, to take part in the Special Session of the Assembly of the African Union Heads of State and Government, ENA, the state-run news agency reports.

The session, which will be opened in Tripoli on Monday , is expected to discuss on ways to prevent conflict in Africa.

The session will give due attention in particular to issues related to problems in Somalia, Darfur, Sudan and Great Lakes Region, according to the Ethiopian Radio and Television Agency.

Ethiopia will also take part in a meeting organized to discuss on climate change.

The premier on Wednesday will attend Libya's 40th National Day celebrations.

Upon departure at the Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, Prime Minister Meles was seen off by senior government officials.

Ethiopia - Arsonist sought for setting fire to Ethiopian embassy in Kuwait

Source: Arab Times

Kuwait : Police are looking for an arsonist for allegedly setting fire to the Ethiopian Embassy in Jabriya, reports Al-Qabas daily.
Acting on information firemen rushed to the spot and doused the fire. The fire is said to have caused limited material damage to the embassy in addition to a car which was parked in front of the embassy building.

According to Director of Public Relations and Media Department at the Kuwait Fire Services Directorate Colonel Nabil Al-Huseinan after the Operations Department of the Ministry of Interior received a report on the fire firemen from the Hawalli Fire Station were dispatched to the area.

He added the firemen quickly brought the fire under control before it could spread to other areas of the embassy.

He added according to initial investigations it was a clear case of arson.

Netanyahu slams Israeli school ban on Ethiopia Jews

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday condemned three Jewish religious schools for what he termed their immoral refusal to admit 100 Ethiopian Jewish students.

Spokesmen for Israel's 100,000-strong Ethiopian community described the schools' decision as discriminatory. Black Jews have long complained of prejudice in Israel.


Read More from Reuters

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Funding of Petah Tikva schools refusing Ethiopian students cut

Education Ministry suspends funding of three of city's private religious schools following continuous refusal to accept Ethiopian pupils. Headmasters rebuff criticism, regrets 'use of personal agenda to drag school system into chaos'

Yaheli Moran Zelikovich
Published: 08.30.09
Israel News

The Education Ministry announced Sunday that it will cut off government funding for the three Petah Tikva private religious schools which refused to enroll Ethiopian students


Read More from YNet News

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Ministry to hold hearing for Petah Tikva schools today

By Or Kashti

Haaretz

Education Ministry Director General Shimshon Shoshani is to hold a hearing today for the principals of three private religious schools in Petah Tikva that have refused the state's demand that they enroll students of Ethiopian descent.

Read More from Haaretz

Ethiopia Government to amend Chinese pre-shipment inspection accord

By Kaleyesus Bekele

Alarmed by the inferior quality products being imported from China, the Ethiopian government has entered into an agreement with the Chinese government to conduct a pre-shipment inspection on products imported from China into Ethiopia.
However, some Ethiopian traders protested against this agreement and imported Chinese products into Ethiopia via Dubai or Kenya. Mesay Girma, director general of the Quality and Standards Authority of Ethiopia (QSAE), last Tuesday told a press conference that some Ethiopian traders whose business interest was affected by the agreement started to take the Chinese products from China to Dubai and then import it into Ethiopia. Mesay said the traders argue that the products imported from Dubai or Kenya, even if they are Chinese made, should not have undergone a pre-shipment inspection.


Read More from Reporter

Ethiopia- Authority launches roads census in metropolis

The Addis Ababa City Roads Authority (AACRA) announced this week that it had launched a census on roads in all sub-cities of the metropolis. The census is believed to help in identifying the exact number of the roads, it said.
The objective of the road census, which will be continued for about two weeks, is expected to enable the authority to identify the city’s road network, roads width, length and type in order to carry out periodic maintenance and construction both on roads and bridges in the budget year.

Beside the maintenance and construction work, the authority said, the roads census will give detailed information on how many areas are covered by road network.


Read More from Reporter

Ethiopia - Insurance claims at EIC soar by 31mln birr

By Hayal Alemayehu

The amount of claims filed at the state-owned Ethiopian Insurance Corporation (EIC) during 2009/08 increased by 31 million birr to a record high of 262.1 million birr, EIC’s 2008/09 corporate report indicated.
Although the amount of the claims was slightly lower than EIC’s target, it has surpassed that of the previous year by 13.4 percent, according to the report released yesterday at the 23rd EIC annual management meeting.

The report revealed that motor insurance was the major factor responsible for the rise in claims incurred during the reported year where it accounted for over 51.1 percent of the total claims filed at the corporation, the largest insurance company in the country.

The corporation settled a payment of 110.7 million birr for claims incurred under motor insurance coverage during the reported year while it had earmarked 123.8 million birr for unsettled claims filed under motor insurance during the reported year under the same insurance coverage.


Read More from Reporter

Ethiopia - Meles will chair high-level climate change session here next week

The special session of the Africa Partnership Forum (APF) on climate change will be held on September 3 at the United Nations Conference Centre in Addis Ababa, it was learnt. Prime Minister Meles Zenawi will chair a high-level session of APF which will discuss the immediate concerns and expectations of Africa on climate change, especially as they relate to mitigation, adaptation, technology and finance.
The session will be attended by ministers in charge of the environment from Sierra Leone, DRC, Uganda, Burkina Faso, Rwanda, Cameroon, Sudan, Kenya, Mozambique and Algeria.

Other high-level participants include Mr. Jean Ping, Chairperson of the African Union, Dr. Ibrahim Mayaki, CEO of NEPAD Secretariat, Lord Nicholas Stern, Chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, and Mr. Abdoulie Janneh, UN Under Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ECA.


Read More from Reporter

Ethiopian aid needs $5,500 to help ship a container of books, clothes, medical equipment and computers to Ethiopia.

Shipping costs all that's keeping donated items here

By BRETT CLARKSON, SUN MEDIA

Source: SUN

Samuel Getachew needs to amass $5,500 to help ship a container of books, clothes, medical equipment and computers to poverty-stricken Ethiopia.

The native Ethiopian already led efforts to ship an ambulance donated by the city of Ottawa to the African nation's capital, Addis Ababa, earlier this year.

But Getachew, who heads up the Friends Of Ethiopia charitable organization, said additional donated items including 50 computers, at least 5,000 books, and medical equipment such as wheelchairs are stuck in transit because of the shipping costs.

The goods have been in storage at Meridian Express Shipping in Mississauga for about six months, he said.

A rep with the shipping company confirmed the goods are awaiting transit.

The company has done its best in terms of storing the goods, Getachew said, but unless money can be raised to cover shipping, the items won't be going anywhere.

"If Canadians were to hear about our story and our plight, I think they would want to help us," Getachew said.

Anybody who wishes to help can visit www.friendsofethiopia.ca or call Getachew at 647-210-5538.

Ethiopian Airlines keen on expanding Indian operations

Appoints Benzy Holidays as GSA for Gujarat market

By Anita Jain | Mumbai

The national carrier of Ethiopia – Ethiopian Airlines is keen on expanding its Indian operations to cities like Chennai, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad. Currently, the airline operates a daily flight from Mumbai and five weekly flights from Delhi to Addis Ababa (Capital of Ethiopia). Despite the global recession, the airline recorded an average load factor of 77.36 per cent, while the target of the airline was 75 per cent. The average load factor for the first four months (January – April) of this year was 81 per cent.

Read More from Travel Biz Monitor

Ethiopian Airlines to launch New Services to Mombasa

Posted on web August 30, 2009

Ethiopian Airlines is proud to announce that effective 25 October 2009 the airline will launch new daily flights to Mombasa, Kenya. These new flights will connect the exotic city of Mombasa with Ethiopian’s extensive network spanning the four continents.

Located on the Indian Ocean, Mombasa is the second largest city in Kenya and is the centre of coastal tourism industry in Kenya. Mombasa is a major trade centre and home to Kenya's only large seaport. Mombasa is known for its beaches, marine parks, 16th century buildings, and wildlife national parks.

The addition of Mombasa to the network increases Ethiopian’s already formidable strength in East Africa. Ethiopian already operates daily service to Nairobi, Entebbe, Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar, Bujumbura, Kigali, Djibouti, Kilimanjaro, and Juba. Mombasa becomes Ethiopian’s 10th station in East Africa, 34th station in Africa, and 55th station worldwide.

Ethiopian’s new service has been carefully designed to provide business travelers and tourists to and from Mombasa a link via Addis Ababa to stations throughout the world, including London, Washington, Brussels, Rome, Frankfurt, Paris, Dubai, Bombay, Tel Aviv, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Beijing, Guangzhou, Lagos, Abidjan, Khartoum, Cairo and Beirut.

From Addis Ababa to Mombasa
Flight	Depart	Arrive	Via	Effective	Days
ET813	1000	1225	Non stop	25OCT09	Daily

From Mombasa to Addis Ababa
Flight	Depart	Arrive	Via	Effective	Days
ET812	1720	1945	Non stop	25OCT09	Daily

Ethiopian’s Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam, said: “Our new flights to Mombasa will give passengers faster and more convenient connections from Europe and indeed the world. Our flights to Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar are very popular with travelers, and Mombasa will give our passengers the opportunity to explore more of the beauty of East Africa. Also, our passengers will be able to avoid customs clearance in Nairobi by flying directly to Mombasa.”

To celebrate the new service, Ethiopian has is offering special fares to Mombasa for a limited time. Seats are limited and will fill quickly, so book early at ethiopianairlines.com

From	To	Fare Starting from*
London	Mombasa	USD 371
Frankfurt	Mombasa	USD 536
Paris	Mombasa	USD 677
Rome	Mombasa	USD 571
Stockholm	Mombasa	USD 613
Mombasa	Dubai	USD 568

* Taxes and other surcharges may apply; see ethiopianairlines.com for complete fare rules.

About Ethiopian Airlines

Ethiopian Airlines, one of the largest and fastest growing airlines in Africa, made its maiden flight to Cairo in 1946.

Currently, Ethiopian is making a huge investment to expand its fleet and broaden its network. Including the recent orders of five B777-200LR and twelve A350-900, Ethiopian has 35 new airplanes on order direct from the manufacturers which will enable the airline to operate one of the newest and environment-friendly fleet in Africa.

In July 2009, Ethiopian won ‘Airline of the Year 2009’ award at African Business Award organized by the London based African Business Magazine and Common Wealth Business Council.

In August 2008, Ethiopian won the 2008 Corporate Achievement Award of Aviation & Allied Business for setting the pace towards the development and growth of the African aviation industry.

Ethiopian is also the first African carrier to win the 2008 Brussels Airport Company Award in recognition of its distinguished long haul operations witnessed through the introduction of new routes, new products, and close cooperation with Brussels Airport in marketing activities.

Ethiopian was the winner of the ‘2008 Best Airline in Africa Award’ at the African Travel Award in Lagos, Nigeria, for its excellent network and convenient connections in Africa.

PR & Publications

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Millions facing famine in Ethiopia as rains fail

The Independent

International aid agencies fear that the levels of death and starvation last seen 24 years ago, are set to return to the Horn of Africa. Paul Rodgers reports

The spectre of famine has returned to the Horn of Africa nearly a quarter of a century after the world's pop stars gathered to banish it at Live Aid, raising £150m for relief efforts in 1985. Millions of impoverished Ethiopians face the threat of malnutrition and possibly starvation this winter in what is shaping up to be the country's worst food crisis for decades.

Read More from Independent

Ethiopian forces drive Islamist rebels from Somali town

Source: AFP

MOGADISHU — Hundreds of Ethiopian troops backing Somali government forces on Saturday drove out hardline Islamist fighters from a town in central Somalia, officials and witnesses said.

The Shebab militants took control of parts of Beledweyn, a town near the Ethiopian border, on August 20 in retaliation for an offensive by pro-government fighters on their strongholds.

"Its true that our forces advanced on the other part of the town with the backing of several hundred Ethiopian armed forces," Gedi Mohamed, an army commander, said.

"The terrorists who occupied that area fled before we reached and there was no fighting."

Ethiopian troops have been spotted on several occasions in Beledweyn according to residents in the town and Addis Ababa recently said it has been training the Somali forces.

"I saw many Ethiopian troops in military vehicles crossing the bridge that divides the town this morning. They took control of the rebel position in the west without fighting," said Abdulahi Abukar, a resident.

Another witness Mohamed Adan said: "They raided houses and businesses and arrested several people before taking positions outside the town."

Pro-government forces recently launched a raid against the Shebab, an Al Qaeda-inspired militia group which alongside the more political Hez al-Islam have vowed to oust the internationally backed Somali government.

The rebels in May embarked on a sweeping onslaught on the capital Mogadishu against the government of President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, reducing his reach to only a handful of areas thanks to the backing of African Union peacekeepers.

Ethiopia ended an ill-fated two-year invasion of Somalia in January which had been aimed at uprooting Islamic extremists and consolidating the transitional government.

Washington Post reporter briefly held in Ethiopia - Report

Ethiopian authorities held Stephanie McCrummen, Washington Post's East Africa correspondent, for 13 hours after arriving at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, Afrik.com reports. According to Afrik.com, Ms. McCrummen was detained because she attempted to embark on a reporting assignment without permission from the Ethiopian government.

Ms. McCrummen was released after calling and talking to Ethiopia’s minister for communications, Bereket Simon, who wrote a letter to airport authorities, the report said.

Just this week, two Ethiopian journalists were thrown in prison on Monday after a judge convicted them under an obsolete press law in connection with coverage of sensitive topics dating back several years.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Ethiopia is one of the world's worst backsliders of press freedom, a steady decline made worse by a recent draconian anti-terror legislation.

AGRICULTURE-ETHIOPIA: Changing Mindset Over Markets

Omer Redi Ahmed interviews ELENI GABRE-MADHIN, chief executive officer of the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange

ADDIS ABABA, Aug 28 (IPS) - In 2001/2002, Ethiopia enjoyed a bumper maize harvest - so good in fact, that prices tumbled, and many farmers simply left the grain in the fields. When the rains failed the next season, famine loomed.

Eleni Gabre-Madhin, a former senior economist at the World Bank and author of a book on market reforms and structural transformation in Africa, was one of many disturbed observers.

She put her doctorate in economics and 15 years of experience in agricultural markets in Africa to use in founding the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange (ECX).

The exchange is intended to grant smallholder farmers information about and access to national - even international markets - enabling them to negotiate better returns for their produce, and confidently make planting decisions based on futures prices.

She spoke to IPS in Addis Ababa; excerpts of the interview follow.

IPS: Through the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange, you want to turn Ethiopia - the biggest recipient of food aid in the world - into a regional food basket. Do you think hunger and famine are just about poor marketing systems?

Eleni Gabre-Madhin: It is not just about poor marketing systems. But I think when we talk about hunger and famine the often neglected piece is marketing. We often immediately think of production as a major element. While that is true, the other element is distribution.

We have many instances - the most famous I think being the 1984 famine - where we didn't realise until several years later that there were pockets of surplus in Ethiopia.

The same story was repeated in 2003 when there were places in Ethiopia with such a surplus that prices have collapsed by 80 percent in parts of Arsi and Bale (major wheat and maize producing areas in southwest Ethiopia) and yet a few months later there was an emergency food aid appeal for 14 million people in the eastern and northern parts of the country.

So we have distribution problems. If we can distribute what we have, I think we are further along in reaching food security.

It is not by coincidence that the World Food Programme (WFP) now sources a big part of its relief and food aid operations with local procurement. It is increasing the share of its food aid from local procurement.

If the WFP can buy it from one part of Ethiopia and distribute in another, or buy from Ethiopia and distribute in Kenya, then we can do the same as a marketing system.

ECX is the channel for this and even WFP is now buying through ECX.

IPS: But how does this work for the people at the bottom: when big institutions like the WFP or private exporters or local traders buy through ECX, it is just from suppliers on the ECX trading floor. These are not actually the producers, these are not the farmers. Do your farmers themselves transact through the Exchange?

EG: ECX is not exclusive to any particular party. The very first transaction in the case of maize was made by farmers.

Currently 12 to 14 percent of the members are farmers. The farmers are represented either by their own cooperative unions or some form of collective groups, because it is very difficult for a small-scale farmer to have the means to be at the exchange.

In our case, because land is so fragmented, it is a must to group farmers in the trading. To come to the market with two or three bags at a time, a farmer has no market power and it is costly per bag to travel long distance to sell the product.

Farmers can be members in two ways: either they become members as individuals and through cooperatives, or they can be clients of the members. Right now, we have 496 members and those members have about 2,000 clients.

IPS: This number is a small figure compared to the number of farmers in Ethiopia.

EG: Absolutely. The path ahead of us is to get more clients and members and more institutional engagement. In relation to coffee, we are much further along. With other commodities, we are pushing further for more engagement.

IPS: You are planning to expand the reach of the ECX across Ethiopia by installing about 200 price tickers around the country in the next two years. Considering the high illiteracy rate among farmers and their very limited knowledge about what the system is, how is that going to be any help to them?

EG: I have never found illiteracy to be a problem when people are trying to make money, because we all find a means to accommodate our constraints in our own interests. So if you tell a farmer that there is a way that the product he and his family have worked for several months to produce can earn more to reward his time and effort, he will figure it out.

IPS: You are also considering expanding to other African markets. Can you explain?

EG: I think the potential is there. There are many economies in Africa that don't have sufficient volume to support a national exchange. If you look at East Africa, Ethiopia's production of maize is twice the total volume of Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya combined. So it would make more sense for these countries to engage with our platform because they are structurally deficit countries for maize and Ethiopia has a structural surplus.

So it would make sense for us to try to link because whenever Kenyans have deficit, they buy it from South Africa or Argentina while we have surplus right next door. This is something that I have had a personal vision of for the last two decades.

IPS: Where do you see the ECX in 20 years?

EG: Our vision is to become a global commodity market of choice for Arabica coffee and sesame.

We believe ECX has the potential to be like Kuala Lumpur for rubber or DaLian Commodity Exchange in China for soya bean or the South African Exchange for maize.

Both Arabica coffee and sesame are commodities in which Ethiopia has dominance, and it can become a hub for Africa. Ethiopia is the second or third-largest sesame producer. There is no organised global market for sesame. So ECX can become a reference for these commodities.

IPS: What are the major challenges you face in realising your vision?

EG: The major challenge is the mindset of the public. We are seriously challenged in trying to change the marketing system that people have been using for millennia.

The poor state of the infrastructure in the telecom and finance sectors are two other serious and big challenges.

In addition to the change resistant attitude among the public, finding the right balance between the public and private sectors is another challenge.

Ethiopia's Kenenisa one step away from $1 Million Jackpot

Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele is in the hunt for the $1 million Golden League jackpot, with just one Golden League meet left. Kenenisa Bekele ,the world champion in the 5,000 and the 10,000, won the 5000m race in 12:52.32 today at Zurich.

Kenenisa needs to win the 5000m in the last Golden League meet in Brussels next week (Friday Sep 4) to be one of the jackpot winners. The jackpot goes to the athletes who win their event in all six of the Golden League meets. If no one manages to win all the six meets, then anyone with five victories will share half the original prize - $500,000.

Just three athletes are in the run for the $1 million jackpot, Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele, Sanya Richards of the United States (400m) and Yelena Isinbayeva of Russia (Pole Vault). If all three win next week in Brussles, Kennisa will take home a cool $333,333.

Ethiopian Honey Penetrates the Scandinavian market

20 tons of Ethiopian honey arrived in Oslo, Norway.

- An important step, "said Minster of Environment and Development, Erik Solheim on the unique Norwegian-Ethiopian cooperation.

Erik Solheim was well pleased with the flavor of the Ethiopian honey.
Being Africa's largest honey producer, Ethiopia uses honey both as luxury and basic goods for making the local beer “tej” and as medicine. Now it is also exportable.

- This is purely business for us, but we succeed, this will provide fertile ground for Ethiopia to be able to export honey also to other developed countries, "said general manager in Honningcentralen, Roger Hem.

Nothing is wrong with making money, replied Solheim, who was on the Quay in Oslo to receive the first 20 tones of honey. The Minister was crystal clear that the only way to contribute to rural development is through trade, political change and development aid.

- This will contribute to development, which in turn leads to more jobs, more children will have to go to school, "said Solheim.

Climatic conditions in Norway makes honey production fluctuates from year to year. It was because of that Honningcentralen became interested in Ethiopia. In cooperation with the Development Fund and NORAD, the product is now ready for Norwegian families’ breakfast table honey within two to three weeks. The result gave a lesson for future development work, according to the Development Fund.

- When the market will expand more and more into the sector the production will increase. It is especially important for the country’s poor farmers, landless; women and young rural Ethiopian students whose income will increase and enable them improve their live standard. Increased demand and sales of Ethiopian honey in Norway will directly increase the welfare of many beekeepers in Ethiopia, "said Teshome Hunduma, program coordinator for agricultural biodiversity in the Development Fund.

It is expected that the Ethiopian honey will be able to meet the need for 200-300 tones of honey in a few years. It is harvested mainly from southern part of the country, Kafa and the region is characterized by low pollution. Honey is organic and there is no usage of herbicide and pesticides. Side by side with the development of imports and adventure, the Honningcentralen will invest in skill development for the honey collectors and beekeepers in the country.

- The transfer of expertise will increase production again and give more market access for beekeeping as explained from the Ethiopian side during his visit according to Roger Hem.

The current honey was transported by sea and the container was full of 60-pound barrels of the strong and sweet Ethiopian honey. Minster Solheim, of course, tasted the honey and his comment was simply: - Sweet contribution to rural development!

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The above article was first published on bistandsaktuelt.no in Norwegian. Translated to English by nazret contributor Teshome H.

Peres: Refusal to enroll Ethiopian students a disgrace no Israeli can accept

By Or Kashti, Haaretz Correspondent

President Shimon Peres on Thursday slammed the refusal by a number of schools in Petach Tikva to enroll Ethiopian immigrant children.

The decision not to enroll the students is "a disgrace no Israeli can accept", Peres said Thursday.

In response, the three Petach Tikva private issed a joint statement Thursday in which they vowed to allow Ethiopian immigrant children and students with disabilities to enroll for school, adding "it's up to the president to learn the facts of the matter."


Read More from Haaretz

Captured in Ethiopia: An American nightmare

By: Rory Linnane /The Daily Cardinal - August 26, 2009

A UW-Madison sophomore recounts her experience being detained and deported from her host country of Ethiopia.

A strong hand planted stiffly on my shoulder and sent shivers through my body, freezing every muscle as I stood on my host family’s front lawn in Ethiopia. I slowly turned as my eyes traveled up a large arm and over to the other arm, which was grasping an AK-47. I looked up at his face as he glanced back at two other armed men and his lips parted into a grin.


Read More from The Daily Cardinal

Ethiopia jails two editors on old charges under obsolete law

Source: CPJ

New York, August 26, 2009--Two Ethiopian journalists were thrown in prison on Monday after a judge convicted them under an obsolete press law in connection with coverage of sensitive topics dating back several years, according to local journalists and news reports.

Ibrahim Mohamed Ali, editor of the weekly, Muslim-oriented newspaper Salafiyya, and Asrat Wedajo, former editor of Seife Nebelbal, a now-defunct weekly that was banned amid the 2005 government crackdown on the press, have begun serving one-year sentences at Kality Prison, outside the capital, Addis Ababa. Wedajo did not have a lawyer, but Ali's lawyer, Temam Ababulgu, told CPJ he would appeal the verdict.

Federal High Court Judge Zewdinesh Asres convicted Ali and Wedajo on several charges under Ethiopia's criminal code and its now-obsolete Press Proclamation of 1992, according to Ababulgu. The 1992 media law was reformed as the Freedom of the Mass Media and Access to Information Proclamation, which officially took effect in December 2008, according to CPJ research.

"Prime Minister Meles Zenawi assured CPJ in 2006 that his government would end the practice of sending journalists to prison on charges dating back several years," said CPJ Africa Program Coordinator Tom Rhodes. "But independent journalists continue to be charged and intimidated using obsolete media laws."

Wedajo was charged in connection with a 2004 story alleging human rights violations against the ethnic Oromos, the largest ethnic group in the country.

Ali was charged in connection with a piece written by a guest columnist and published in 2007, criticizing the Ministry of Education's proposal to restrict headscarves for female Muslim students at public education institutions, according to Ababulgu. In 2008, the editor spent nearly two weeks behind bars, along with Al-Quds Publisher Maria Kadim and Editor Ezedin Mohamed for reprinting postings from the Web site EthiopianMuslims that criticized the ministry's proposal to restrict religious practices in public schools. A magistrate acquitted Kadim but fined Mohamed 10,000 birrs (US$800) in July, according to local journalists. Mohamed told CPJ he is returning to court in September to face more charges over coverage of religious issues.

The Ethiopian government has had a longstanding practice of reviving years-old criminal cases, some of them seemingly dormant, as a way to silence critical journalists. The practice has persisted despite Zenawi's pledge, made to a visiting CPJ delegation in March 2006, that the government would reconsider the practice. Pending criminal charges or the possibility of criminal prosecutions now hang over at least eight more editors of Amharic-language newspapers for their coverage of political and public affairs, according to CPJ research.

Ethiopia is one of the world's worst backsliders of press freedom, a steady decline made worse by a recent draconian anti-terror legislation.

Exchange student from Ethiopia missing in UK

Police are investigating the disappearance of 22-year-old Konjit Assefa from Ethiopia who was visiting Hartlepool as part of the Global Xchange programme.

Ms Assefa, who was staying on the Headland, has not been seen since Tuesday, August 25.

Read More from Hartleppol

IMF Executive Board Approves US$240.6 Million Arrangement for the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Under the Exogenous Shocks Facility

Press Release No. 09/289

IMF

August 26, 2009

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved a 14-month, SDR 153.755 million (about US$240.6 million) arrangement under the Exogenous Shocks Facility (ESF) to help Ethiopia cope with the effects of the global recession on its balance of payments. The arrangement (115 percent of Ethiopia’s quota) was approved under the high access component of the ESF, a facility designed to provide policy support and financial assistance on concessional terms to eligible low-income countries facing temporary exogenous shocks. A disbursement of SDR 73.535 million (about US$115.1 million) will become available following the Board’s decision.

Following the Executive Board discussion, Mr Takatoshi Kato, Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair, issued the following statement:

“Ethiopia’s economy has been adversely affected by a series of shocks, first from surging commodity prices in 2008, and most recently from the global recession. While the authorities have been successfully implementing a macroeconomic adjustment package since late 2008 to help lower inflation and build up international reserves, the global recession is now putting renewed pressure on the external position as export receipts and remittances weaken and inward direct investment slows.

“The authorities have adopted an appropriate program for 2009/10 to address the strains on the balance of payments and to keep inflation low. Seeking a balance among conflicting objectives—limiting inflation, rebuilding reserves, accommodating higher capital outlays, unwinding recent real exchange rate appreciation—their program calls for a continued tight fiscal stance (though eased somewhat from 2008/09), a slowing of the pace of monetary growth, and gradual real exchange rate adjustment, aided by a step depreciation of the birr on July 10, 2009.

“The general government budget for 2009/10 envisages some easing of the tight limits on public spending instituted last year, financed by a mix of external and domestic borrowing. Public sector domestic borrowing will be contained to 3 percent of GDP, with the government acting to improve controls over borrowing by public enterprises and monitoring carefully external debt levels to ensure debt sustainability. The authorities are committed to crafting a tax reform strategy, aimed at reversing the decline in the tax-to-GDP ratio recorded in recent years.

“Monetary policy focuses on entrenching single-digit inflation by providing a strong nominal anchor. The monetary program seeks to limit broad money growth to 17 percent for 2009/10, with the National Bank of Ethiopia seeking to enhance its control over reserve money by systematic use of the regular Treasury-bill auctions to manage liquidity.

“Prudent implementation of this program, accompanied by planned reform measures, will provide a sound macroeconomic environment for economic growth. The financial support being provided under the Exogenous Shocks Facility, coupled with the new allocation of SDRs, will further boost foreign reserves, thereby enhancing confidence in the sustainability of the government’s economic program.”

Recent Economic Developments

Ethiopia has faced a turbulent external economic environment in the past two years, stemming from sharp movements in import prices and then the global slowdown. Surging import prices helped push reserves down to some US$900 million (1.2 months of imports) by mid-2008 and contributed to an exceptional jump in consumer price inflation. The global recession is now putting renewed pressure on the external position via weaker export receipts and remittances and slowing inward direct investment.

The authorities implemented a macroeconomic adjustment package from late-2008, which was supported by the IMF’s January 2009 disbursement of SDR 33.425 million (about US$52.3 million) to Ethiopia under the rapid-access component (RAC) of the ESF (see Press Release No. 09/13). The adjustment program has met key policy targets. Inflation in the 12 months to June declined to 3 percent, aided by falling food price levels, while foreign reserves, helped by increased donor assistance, reached some US$1.5 billion (1.8 months of import cover) by end-June 2009.

Key Program Policies and Objectives

The authorities’ program for 2009/10 includes:

*

• Limits on domestic borrowing by the public sector, although the limits are eased slightly from 2008/09 levels

• Some easing of the fiscal stance, tightened sharply under the 2008/09 adjustment program

• Further slowing of the pace of monetary expansion

• Judicious exchange rate adjustment in a manner that does not destabilize expectations or fuel consumer price inflation.

• Supporting structural measures, focusing on tax reform, the control of public enterprise borrowing, and the control of liquidity through indirect instruments.

The policies supported under the arrangement, coupled with the Fund’s financial support and Ethiopia’s increased allocation of Special Drawing Rights (see Press Release No. 09/283), are expected to contribute to the rebuilding of international reserves to 2½ months of imports by 2010/11, while maintaining a sound macroeconomic environment for growth and poverty reduction.

Senator Ted Kennedy after visiting Ethiopia in 1985 - Video

In 1984 Ethiopia was in the middle of multiple civil wars, which together with a failure of the rains caused one of the most severe famines in recent memory, one in which over a million people are believed to have perished.

In December, 1985 Ted Kennedy was one of the first U. S. officials to visit Ethiopia during the famine. Along with Jerry Tinker (see more about Jerry below) of his Senate staff, with him were his daughter Kara and son Teddy, traveling to what was decidedly not a vacation spot.

Directly as a result of the Senator's efforts and the publicity surrounding them, President Reagan asked for a $400 million increase in aid for Africa for 1985. A later Senate report said that as a result "seven million people have been spared starvation by a remarkable success story of international relief."

----------------
In January 1985, Senator Kennedy wrote the following on People Magazine

Land of Death and Desolation

Source: People

By Edward M. Kennedy

In Famine-Ravaged Ethiopia and Sudan, a U.S. Senator and His Family Find Suffering and Despair, Dignity and Courage

Ethiopia was once a proud and fertile land of coffee and grain fields. Today it is an unrelenting desert. Even for Africa, long stricken by droughts, the famine now gripping 12 of the 14 Ethiopian provinces and threatening Sudan is a tragedy of fearsome proportions. More than 12 million people in an area the size of California and Texas combined are suffering, and one million are believed to have perished. Man and nature share the blame for the crisis. Overgrazing, deforestation and poor agricultural practices have combined with a lack of sufficient rainfall for three years to parch the land; meanwhile, the civil war between Marxist government troops and rebels in the northern provinces of Tigre and Eritrea has cut off four million of Ethiopia's 40 million people from relief efforts. More than half a million refugees from these two provinces crossed into Sudan in 1984.

In an effort to halt the devastation, 50 feeding centers staffed by government workers, private charities and international organizations have been set up in hard-hit areas; 20 large relief camps are also in operation. In the last four months the U.S. has shipped 250,000 tons of food, worth $115 million, to Ethiopia. But this aid and an equal amount from other nations is inadequate. An additional 500,000 tons of food are still needed. Thousands more famine victims may die in the region this year if the relief efforts are not successful.

Last month Senator Kennedy, who as a 20-year member of the Senate Refugee Subcommittee has a longstanding commitment to such problems, conducted a fact-finding mission in Ethiopia and Sudan. He was accompanied by daughter Kara, a 24-year-old New York television news researcher; son Teddy, a 23-year-old Wesley an graduate; Jerry Tinker, counsel of the Refugee Subcommittee; John Wise of the Krause Milling Company in Milwaukee and Jay Kingham of the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of America.

After spending over a week observing the devastation and working alongside officials in the relief camps and in their cold-water lodgings, Senator Kennedy, at PEOPLE'S request, wrote his observations of the African tragedy.

Dec. 19—Arrival in Mekele

It seemed like forever getting here. Kara wondered, "Will it be as bad as the pictures?" Teddy agonized over who is to blame for the famine: "Is it human error? An accident of nature? An act of God?"

Memories of a decade ago came flooding back—the millions of refugees I saw in India and Bangladesh stricken by massive starvation and disease; children with swollen bellies; dying mothers nursing dying children. Could Ethiopia really be worse? Already it is one of the most battered nations of this century—ravaged by fascism in the 1930s and a previous famine in the 1970s. I remembered putting coins in the collection plate for Haile Selassie when I was a child.

Are we grandstanding by coming here? We don't think so. We wanted to come to gather as much information from the field as we could, to see whether the efforts of governments, private industry and individual citizens were making a difference. We also wanted to spend Christmas in the camps, to work with the private relief agencies and bear witness to one of the worst human tragedies of our lifetime. The real heroes are the workers from the Red Cross, Catholic Relief Services, CARE, OXFAM and other official and private groups. Perhaps something Teddy, Kara and I can do will avert even greater tragedy—or at least help to see that America is doing enough.

Arriving at the outskirts of Mekele [population: 70,000] in late afternoon, our car stopped on a hill near one of the largest relief camps in northern Ethiopia. Below lay a scene that none of us will ever forget—tens of thousands of people, most with no shelter at all, huddled in a camp that stretched for miles. "It's going to be worse than the pictures," Kara said, her words almost inaudible. Surprisingly, there was a chill in the air, yet most of the people were clothed only in rags. As we entered the camp, a boy began to follow Teddy, without responding to questions through our interpreter, as if he could not speak. Teddy tried to hug him to keep him warm; he was shivering, and Teddy had his shirt half off to give the boy when a Red Cross worker said gently, "No, no, no. You can't do that. There are too many. That's not the way."

Later the boy broke his silence and told us that his mother had died; he had been sleeping outside, because there wasn't room for him in a tent. The Red Cross worker said he couldn't even get the child a blanket. "If I did," he said, "turn around and look." A hundred other gaunt children were following us. We've never felt so helpless. "How can they stand it?" Teddy asked. "How many of them will die tonight?"

At the single water station serving 20,000 people in this part of the camp, the pipes were turned on for brief periods each day, and after the water was turned off, children sucked on the pipes. An official turned the valve on for us to prove that water was available, and a small pool quickly formed under the pipes. One of the children fell in, and they laughed and splashed each other—defying the seemingly inevitable outcome of their lives.

The children in the camps are getting less food than we were told, less than what is needed to keep them alive. Their parents knew the truth: They have been told by relief workers that their children are not getting enough food to survive, that they will die because there was not enough food in the camp.

Teddy was surrounded by a sea of children. They all wanted to shake his hand. A shipment of brightly colored children's clothes had come in from Italy—delicately decorated pants and blouses—and they were being distributed to a group of youngsters. One child put on a beautiful veil with flowers woven through it. You couldn't see anything nicer in the Easter Parade. And the child had nothing else on. The absurdity was deeply touching. People wanted to help—if only their good intentions could be channeled in practical ways that could make a difference.

We were told that 32 people had died in the area last night, that 10,000 will die this year in this camp alone and that the life expectancy in the camp is two years.

A UNICEF worker gave us a priority list of 35 to 40 drugs that are urgently needed, especially a vaccine against measles. But food was the worst problem, he said. They had not received a shipment in Mekele for two weeks. We had been told that there was enough food through February, and that 100,000 tons of wheat and other grains were coming in. But it clearly is not enough, and very little, if any, can be getting to the remote camps farther north, because the food comes here first and then moves out to the other distribution points.

At sunset, as we prepared to leave, the temperature began to drop into the 40s. Families in groups of five or six were huddled over fires they had made in shallow ravines or small rock piles for protection against the wind. The groups extended far up the hillside and their tiny fires seemed like thousands of matches in the night. Our saddest feeling was that we could leave the camp, but they could not.

After this first day in the field, our dominant impression of the people was their incredible dignity and pride amid this terrible adversity—their piercing, flashing eyes and quick smiles; so friendly and warm, never begging.

At a working session this evening with government officials and relief workers at a small hotel in Mekele, it was obvious that our hosts were reluctant to be candid, as if somehow they were at fault for the meager resources at hand. I told them that after we left, they would wish they had revealed what was in their hearts. I said, "I'm not here to find fault, but to help. America cares, and sometimes we can make a difference—but we have to know what you need the most." But no one volunteered. The failure of communication was frustrating. Perhaps we should have held private meetings with these officials, not group sessions.

We heard more reports and statistics from government officials, Red Cross and UN workers, and Japanese and Italian medical teams. But we could not stop thinking of the hillside and the helpless children huddled against the night cold without food, shelter or chance of survival.

I asked Sister Mary of Catholic Relief Services how she could face each day. She replied, "When the children come in, their eyes are empty and they act like zombies. After we feed them a little and care for them, a light clicks on—and the brightness in their eyes gives all of us the strength to carry on."

As we sat down to eat our meal of chicken, lentils and tef, the traditional Ethiopian bread, Teddy tried to say grace. He began, "I've never been so thankful for food. I've never been so thankful for anything in my whole life. I'm so glad my family is here." And he stopped in tears. It was how we all felt.

Dec. 20—Mekele

We were up at sunrise to return to the camps. In the morning chill, people were moving stiffly, obviously suffering from the cold. We saw a stretcher covered by a red-and-white cloth being carried from a small lean-to. A child had not survived the night.

The gravediggers were already at work beside the camp, and the stretchers were lined up. An official at the clinic said there had been more deaths than expected last night because of the cold. Children were buried in double graves dug deep and covered by large stones to prevent hyenas from digging up the remains. We had heard the hyenas barking last night.

Fearing the worst, I looked into a small tent where a father and mother had been treating a sick and emaciated child the day before. Today the boy was sitting up and smiling. We were all cheered by his tiny victory and we prayed it would last.

In mid-morning I flew by helicopter to a more distant feeding center at the village of Maych'ew, while Teddy and Kara stayed to work in Mekele. At Maych'ew, in a large tent, 600 to 800 children were receiving their daily ration of a cup of milk and a fortified biscuit. The smallest were in front; some were so weak they had to be held up by brothers or sisters. Mothers with infants, already served, were seated in the back, waiting to receive a supplemental ration. It was quiet except for the sound of children coughing, continually coughing, everywhere, and the sound of coughing became a haunting memory of the trip.

The camp director said that as many as 800 people spent the night in nearby Quonset huts, and that the strongest often slept outside to make room for the weakest. In the open area adjacent to the huts, hundreds of empty grain sacks were stretched on top of wooden sticks, flimsy protection against the weather. With incredible patience, people huddled in groups and waited their turn to receive food and water.

The stench in the feeding tent was overwhelming, and we could feel and see disease everywhere. Flies crawled over children's eyes, gathering moisture; clouded eyes signaled the presence of serious illness. We were struck by how many children had crossed eyes—and always the coughing. Yet mothers were painstakingly braiding their children's hair, as if they were about to leave for a birthday party.

When I returned to Mekele, Teddy was discouraged after his day at the Red Cross feeding station. "I just wanted to help in whatever way I could—to be another pair of hands," he said. "They put an apron on me and put me to work. But the children wouldn't eat—they just ignored their bowls. So I rubbed my stomach and kept saying, 'Yum, Yum, Yum!' They laughed, but they still wouldn't eat, and it made me so incredibly sad. When I tried to feed them myself, they pulled back their hands and turned their heads away. Sometimes the mothers had to hold their children down, force their mouths open and hold their noses to make them swallow. These children had been breast-fed until now and didn't know how to eat. The food itself was so strange—porridge, with a cup of milk to wash it down. Sometimes I would spend 20 minutes feeding a child with a teaspoon only to have him throw up all over me. Mothers are denied food if they lose their identification cards. The policy seemed cruel, but otherwise everyone would lose their cards in order to get more rations."

Teddy also visited the hospital in the center of Mekele, where the sickest children were taken, usually to die. He had been to cancer wards in the United States and talked with children who were dying—for whom nothing could be done. "But this is different," he said. "It's all so preventable, so senseless. To come from the United States and to see so many children dying of starvation, it makes me feel angry and helpless. It's so unfair and so wrong."

Kara spent the day at a special nutrition center in the camp for mothers whose children were gaining weight and who were eligible for extra rations. If the child did not gain weight, the ration was cut off. "It seemed so heartless to me," she said. "Yet there was no other way to be sure the ration was actually given to the child."

Those with severe diseases also received special care. Kara helped the nurses and described the scene: "My job was to weigh and measure the children, and help give their shots. I saw so many horrible things—the small black spots of typhoid on a child's stomach; gangrene in one girl's mouth so bad that she had no lip; lots of measles and tuberculosis. All the children had lice when they arrived. The nurses took their clothes, gave them new ones and fumigated the old ones. I could see the bites from the lice on the children's backs. One child came to the center every day, even though his mother had died. He knew he could get food here three times a day. The children are seated in row after row. Not until today did anyone notice the boy was alone. I wanted to put my arms around him and take him to a better place with food and shelter and clothing. But I couldn't, and there were so many, many others. How can I go home?"

Pondering the enormity of the crisis, we had to fight a growing sense of despair. Kara wondered whether even this inadequate relief effort could be sustained. "If we have enough funding for weapons," she said, "why can't we have enough to save the lives of children?" I answered that their future need not be hopeless—India had endured horrendous famine in the 1960s and now feeds itself as a result of Western aid and agricultural reforms.

Dec. 21—Bati

Up at 7 a.m. for a two-hour drive to the camp at Bati. Statistics chalked on a large blackboard in the administrative tent gave us the grim figures: The population of the camp was now 22,000, 54 had died yesterday and there were 34 full-time gravediggers. Working was the only way to overcome our feelings of sadness, anger and depression, and at Bati we did not have to look far for something to do. Before I knew it, I had a bowl in my hands with warm mush—"CSM" they called it, corn-soy meal mixed with water. I was feeding a set of twins with a teaspoon, while their mother held their mouths open. How can this happen to children? I wished I could will life back into them.

Next, I carried a bucket of milk down long lines of children. Some refused to drink at all, and I tried making noises to encourage them to imitate me. "Wheee," I said as I dipped my ladle into the bucket, and "wheee" again as I poured it into their small cups. And a chorus of "wheee" started. As I moved down the line, I said "thank you"—and so did they. For the next two hours little groups were saying "wheee" and "thank you" before I even reached them with the bucket.

At noon Kara and I went over to the tent where doctors were immunizing children for measles. Teddy was fitting disposable needles to the syringes, but the most recent shipments of needles were the wrong size for the syringes. It was one of the bureaucratic blunders that made these days so frustrating. The doctors had to save the used needles, boil them and reuse them as long as they could still puncture the skin. Most of the children were so emaciated that the doctors inserted the needle sideways, to prevent it from coming out the other side. Teddy said, "It helps a lot to feel useful." Only three doctors were inoculating children, with hundreds waiting outside, and Teddy's help was needed.

When the doctors searched the camp for sick children, the mothers gave them the healthiest ones and hid the others, because they wanted to be sure that at least the healthy child survived. Many of the children had walked for days and were malnourished to the point of no return—the doctors said they could not possibly live. And yet the women can still give birth. One nurse told us that she had never seen people suffer from such severe malnutrition and still deliver children. Those who reached the maternity ward were the fortunate ones; most infants were born in the tents or outside the camp along the road in the cold with a slim chance of survival.

I asked a mother why she did not take her child to the feeding station. An official had told her she needed to fill out a form, but the form she clutched was printed in English. It said, "Please let this child in." With tears streaming down her face, she said she had been showing the form for a week at the station, but the Ethiopian relief workers could not read English.

Teddy made friends with children in each camp. Today, as we said goodbye and started for the airport for our flight to Dire Dawa, a boy ran down the road barefoot after us for 200 yards, and we stopped. His father had died three days before, and his mother and sisters were still in the hills. He had come to the camp alone, and now we were leaving him. It was one of the saddest moments of the trip.

Dec. 22—Jijiga

This morning Teddy had a severely upset stomach, but he insisted on coming with us. On the hour flight to Jijiga, a Canadian development expert told us that the food and weather trends spelled serious long-term trouble for this region and its four million people.

We stopped at a feeding station and clinic run by Sister Bertilla of Mother Teresa's order. She fed 2,000 people a day from nearby villages, most of whom walked two to three hours to reach the station. She had 100 patients in her clinic, and the men, women and children were placed in wards, divided by disease.

It was the best run center we had seen. The relief workers mixed the food themselves and distributed it at 10 in the morning and 3 in the afternoon. "We can feed everyone," Sister Bertilla told us, "because the Lord will provide the supplies—and if He doesn't, Mother Teresa will, because President Reagan has told her so in writing." Kara worked with Sister Bertilla for an hour, passing out a mixture of sorghum, rice, sugar and soybean oil stirred into chicken or beef broth.

An elderly woman in the feeding area told us she was over 90. Her clothes were clean, her head was shaved, and she had a twinkle in her eye. She had nine children, but all of them had died in the famine, and now she was alone. She rattled her empty pot gently with her long walking stick and asked Sister Bertilla to "fill it up nicely, please." The politeness of her comment captured the extraordinary sense of dignity and courtesy in so many of the survivors.

Sister Bertilla told us that many things could grow here if they had the opportunity. She had started a garden to teach the people to plant more nutritious food. Pointing to a ripe papaya tree, she said that the people often tried to shake the fruit because they thought it was a coconut. Papaya is rich in vitamin A, and her achievement obviously brought her great satisfaction.

Sister Bertilla accompanied us on the plane back to Addis Ababa. I told her how much my younger son, Patrick, had wanted to make this trip, but the doctors had advised against it because of his asthma. As we left the plane, Sister Bertilla pressed a small statue of the Virgin Mary into my hand and said she wanted Patrick to have it.

Dec. 23—Khartoum and Kassala

A morning flight brought us down from the high plateaus of Ethiopia to the river plains of Sudan and the ancient city of Khartoum (pop. one million), where the Blue Nile and the White Nile meet to begin their 2,000-mile journey north to the Mediterranean. The air was dry and dusty, and the two great rivers seemed out of place, isolated by the sand.

At a meeting with President Gaafar Nimeiri of Sudan, I praised his generosity for accepting hundreds of thousands of refugees from the famine, when millions of his own people now were also threatened by the drought. He told us in fluent English that 1,500 people a day were crossing the eastern border into Sudan from Eritrea and Tigre. Supplies were adequate for now, he said, but no food was pledged after February. "The Russians support the developing world by giving guns," he said, "and the Americans give food. That's the difference between the Soviet Union and the United States."

Later, flying east to the town of Kassala, which would be our base for the next two days, we passed over miles of barren, red earth, scorched by the sun. Almost nowhere in the two-hour flight did we see land where crops could grow, and we wondered how the refugees from Ethiopia could survive in this terrain. But Kassala is an oasis created by nearby streams and irrigation canals; 100,000 Sudanese live in clusters of painted brick or mud houses, and spectacular colors of pink, green and yellow suddenly broke the monotonous brown landscape.

From the airport, we left by Land-Rover for Tekl el Bab across the flat sandy plain. The Sudanese drivers, cautious in town, accelerated as we reached the desert, leaving a thick dust cloud in our wake. Our driver said be grateful we were in the first car.

At dusk, an hour outside the city, we came to the camp at Tekl el Bab, at the foot of a steep rocky hill. At first there was no sign of a camp, no sense of a large refugee population. But as we approached we saw that vast numbers of families were huddled under thorny scrub brush—the only vegetation—with tattered cloth or dried branches as their shelter. The groups stretched over a mile, and thousands more were up on the hillside, seeking warmth among the rocks heated by the sun. A handful of makeshift tents was barely sufficient to serve as clinics and feeding stations.

Tekl el Bab was home for 36,000 refugees who had crossed the border from Ethiopia. Three months ago there had been nothing here, only the desert. But as many as 2,000 refugees a day had been arriving since October—without shelter or water at the site, without latrines or sanitary facilities. Grain had run out days ago, and in desperation relief workers were bringing small food supplies from other camps.

Disorganization and chaos were obvious, and we worried that no one seemed in charge or knew what was going on. The difference from the more organized camps in Ethiopia was striking, and the disparity in food and care was painful. Had the refugees trekked so far for so little? Was anyone to blame, or was the human tragedy overwhelming the meager resources available to avert it? On top of all the suffering, why did there have to be so much organizational chaos?

One official from Kassala told us that the food had been adequate at first, but with the arrival of thousands of new refugees, the stocks had run out. He was pressing his superiors in Khartoum and he thought more food was coming. When, he did not know.

Departing after dark, we witnessed another extraordinary scene. The refugees on the hillside had begun to make fires to keep warm, and the hill was glowing with tiny sparks that looked from a distance like thousands of sparkling Christmas lights. But instead of radiating the joy of Christmas, the lights reflected the barren hardships of the people's lives. Kara turned away in despair.

Later that evening, in Kassala, we learned that a 500-ton shipment of grain had been sitting for three weeks at Port Sudan on the Red Sea—four hours away by truck, caught in a bureaucratic battle over whether it should be warehoused in Khartoum or diverted to Kassala. I have never seen a more graphic demonstration of the truth that red tape kills.

Christmas Eve—Wad Sharifie

Another early departure, again by Land-Rover, for the camp at Wad Sharifie. Originally it had been designed as a temporary transit center, not a camp. In the past six months it had grown to its present size of nearly 40,000, with waves of new refugees settling in concentric circles around those who had come before. At the medical center the doctors told us that the primary cause of death—22 to 24 persons a day—is respiratory infection, followed by measles and malaria. We thought of our malaria pills and the inoculations we had received against yellow fever, cholera and typhoid, and we hoped they would be effective.

At a supplementary feeding station only 40 to 50 children were receiving milk and biscuits, even though we could see that hundreds more were in need. Diane Mackie, a Red Cross nurse from Canada, told us candidly that the camp was deteriorating because of inadequate food, water, shelter and medical supplies. There was no central place where new refugees were received. Some had been in the camp for days and still had not been given food or medical care or even identification cards, although the Sudanese administrator had told us that teams went out each day to register new arrivals. Of four water wells at the camp, only one was usable. Mackie spoke nervously, looking over our shoulders, realizing that the local officials were listening. But her commitment to the refugees was so strong that she was willing to risk whatever wrath came to her. If there are profiles in courage today, they are people like Diane Mackie and the other relief workers who are saving lives against the odds in forgotten places like this.

Throughout the area were homemade shelters made of grain bags or mats stretched across the top of four sticks in the sand, creating a square yard of shade—enough for two or three children and their mother to escape the hot sun. Some of the children we saw seemed too weak to go to the feeding station, and we learned that the mothers carried them. One woman told me she had heard that America was sending tents, and she was grateful—but what she really needed was food. "Most of all," she said, "your presence and your touch mean more than whatever food God gives me or whatever God inspires you to do." That woman, and hundreds of others we met, knew that Americans cared, and it gave them hope. I felt proud that millions in the United States were involved and trying to help. I wished I could tell them all, "Keep it up. It makes a difference."

We drove to the outer circle of the camp to see the newest arrivals. At random, I looked into a small stick hut whose roof was a tattered mat and saw an infant lying beside an obviously dying woman. The relief worker with us was embarrassed and immediately arranged for the mother and baby to be rushed to the hospital. I have thought about them often since. Why hadn't they been found before? They were alive when we left the camp. I don't know if they survived.

Many people have reached this camp in fair condition because of the feeding stations along the way, although several families told us of relatives left behind because they were too frail or sick. In Sudan the organization of the camps was worse, but here in Wad Sharifie the plight of the people is not yet as desperate as in Tekl el Bab or in Ethiopia. Still, infant mortality was increasing here—which is ominous, since the rate in most camps in Ethiopia was going down. We had the feeling that much worse is yet to come.

Teddy learned that two volunteers from the Swiss Red Cross had opened a small shop in Kassala to make crutches and even artificial limbs for handicapped refugees. Teddy stopped at their shop and showed them his own artificial leg. Later he told us: "I asked whether they needed any supplies from America—whether I could be of any help. But I was surprised to learn that everything they used came from Sudan. They had to be self-sufficient and make and repair their devices with the money they had. Otherwise, the local people could not afford their devices and would revert to their old wooden crutches and stumps."

Returning to Kassala that evening, Christmas seemed very far away. But throughout the day we had seen an extraordinary spirit of giving and sharing, particularly by the workers of the relief agencies. We decided that our Christmas Eve should honor them and we invited all 15, representing seven different nationalities, to share the evening with us at our small government bungalow.

The Dutch team brought little plastic Christmas trees with bright decorations for the table, the French medical team sang a French carol, and the American Embassy officer brought a small turkey. I insisted that the persons who had labored in the field the longest should be served first, because they were the ones who had been doing the Lord's work on this night the Lord was born.

Christmas Day—El Obeid

Up early for 6:30 Christmas Mass, celebrated in a small brick church by an Ethiopian priest for his refugees. Then we headed off again by Land-Rover to the border to try to see the daily flow of refugees. As we reached the border, we scouted a number of areas, and caught up with a column of refugees moving toward Tekl el Bab. Last in the long line by 50 yards was a small boy, walking painfully with a long stick. He was almost too weak to talk, but we found out that he was an orphan and we took him the remaining distance to the camp in our car.

Ahead of us, stretching for a mile, were endless groups of refugees, almost entirely women and children in tattered clothes holding small plastic jars with a few ounces of water, carrying a few meager possessions of pots and mats. Teddy observed, "My age group doesn't exist—all I see are children, mothers and older people." The Sudanese driver said that anyone Teddy's age in Ethiopia who could walk was drafted into the army by the government or the rebels.

We walked a few hundred yards with the refugees in the hot sand, and we were already tired. How could they go for days in the 90° F. heat? The bleached animal carcasses by the road were probably the only reminder they needed of their fate if they stopped. I thought: "These are the death marches of the 1980s."

When we stopped beside another group, they squatted down, oblivious to the flies that quickly covered them—flies so thick on some children's faces that we could not see their eyes; flies in the mouths of the women; flies swarming on their clothes. They had been walking for a month, and they said they would go back to their homes in Ethiopia one day. A small boy collapsed, and we picked him up. His eyes were glazed, his face was puffed out and his bones were jutting through his frail frame. A sense of hope was the magnet that pulled them along the road toward the camp—but their hope must surely be dashed when they arrive and find that Tekl el Bab is out of food, water, medicine and clothes.

I thought of my own childhood, walking with my mother on the beach at Cape Cod. Sand and sun have always meant happy times for us, but here they were the enemy—destroying lives and killing mothers and their children. None of us will ever forget these families struggling across the desert.

Our pain and alarm were obvious, and our Sudanese hosts tried to put a brighter face on the suffering. They meant well and wanted to believe that things were good. They feared that if things were bad, it would reflect negatively on them. But things are bad, and they are only beginning to understand that we are here to help, not criticize.

We were silent on the ride back to Kassala, numbed by the scale of the tragedy we had seen. So many scenes have touched our souls in these past seven days. We thought of people waking up now on Christmas morning in other parts of the world, far from here. We remembered other Christmases in other places and our happy family gatherings. Kara, Teddy and I have missed Patrick many times on this trip, but at this moment we missed him most of all. I closed my eyes to capture an image of him as he is today—a healthy, active boy of 17. How blessed I have been with my children.

Long ago, on this day, the Prince of Peace was born, but there can never be real peace on earth as long as there is misery and hunger of the magnitude we have seen here. We asked God's blessing for these people who need it most of all, and we hoped our Christmas prayer would be heard.

From Kassala we flew back to Khartoum and on to the city of El Obeid in central Sudan. The dust traveled with us—but the despair did not. This region is also suffering from drought, but the situation is better. Local officials are a step ahead of the crisis and, with outside help, they are holding their own against the famine that has engulfed the areas to the east. The camp we visited outside the city was well organized; the people were Sudanese and they were in far better condition than the refugees we had seen from Ethiopia this morning. A special feeding program, scheduled for our arrival, demonstrated the effectiveness of the effort.

The governor of the camp took Teddy, Kara and me to a place where he had assembled 2,000 people, and they reacted warmly and spontaneously when we were introduced. They knew we were Americans and they knew America was helping them. I asked them to vote on what they needed most, and I listed water, shelter, clothing, medicine and food as the choices. When I came at last to food, they erupted with cheers. The message was clear. They were better off than most, but food, food and more food was still the gift of life, the gift they needed most on this Christmas Day.

Dec. 26—El Obeid to Khartoum

As our last day began, we traveled by Land-Rover across sand dunes to the village of Urn Sot outside El Obeid. It was a trip of 25 miles, but it lasted an hour and a half because of the difficult desert terrain. Um Sot is one of the villages targeted by the Sudanese government, the U.S. and CARE as part of a joint innovative program designed to feed local populations in their own areas and revive their agriculture before famine hits and forces them to flee to the cities to survive.

Roads are almost nonexistent in this region, and the logistical problems in the experimental effort are immense, especially in the villages farther out. But the alternative is worse—a future for Sudan that could repeat the present in Ethiopia.

At midday we returned by plane to Khartoum for our international flight to the U.S. It seemed impossible that I would land in Boston on the same day that I left Khartoum, and that Ethiopia and Sudan, with all their suffering, were only a plane ride away from the abundance of America.

I have visited two profoundly moving places in my life. At ground zero in Hiroshima in 1979 I resolved to do all I can to stop the nuclear arms race. Africa has been another ground zero—and I will never stop working to end hunger in the world.

Behind the scenes, Kennedy labored to fix individual wrongs

By Jenna Russell, Globe Staff

They left their homes in Ethiopia to seek an education, and while they were away, in the 1970s, violent turmoil erupted in their country. A military regime seized power, targeted its enemies, and killed their relatives. Fearing for their lives, Abebe Abraham and his wife, Azenegash, sought permission from the government to stay in the United States.

No, came the answer from immigration officials, who concluded that the coup had not hurt the couple directly, and that they must go back.


Read Complete Story from Boston Globe

Ethiopia - Haile Gebrselassie and Tyson Gay in Adidas Ad

Ethiopian marathon runner Haile Gebrselassie and American sprinter Tyson Gay go neck and neck in an Adidas spot that offers an interesting insight into the running men and their best performances. Set to appear next month on www.adidas.com/running

Read more from AdWeek

Ethiopian athletes flee from hotel

BBC News

Scottish Athletics has confirmed that four Ethiopian athletes have fled their London hotel ahead of Wednesday's Falkirk Cup event in Grangemouth.

The athletes absconded from their hotel and failed to make a connecting flight from London to Edinburgh.

The missing individuals are Betelhem Shewatatek, Feleke Bekele, Hagos Tadesse and Tirehas Haileselassie.

"This is a sad thing to happen for my country and the sport," said Dagmawit Amare of the Ethiopian management team.

"My colleague actually tried to restrain two of them, but they ran off."

Scotland will compete against England, Ethiopia, Ireland and a Bank of Scotland Development Team in the Falkirk Cup event, which gets underway on Wednesday.

Meeting manager Ross Cunningham said: "It blows a hole in the Ethiopian team's prospects and it represents our worst scenario in inviting them.

"We will see how Scotland does against England and Ireland and support those Ethiopians who have made the trip and their anticipated 100 supporters from Manchester and Glasgow."

It is the fourth year of the Falkirk Cup, an invitational event the highlights of which will be broadcast on BBC One Scotland on Sunday 30 August.

Ethiopia, along with England, are taking part for the first time and had been hopeful of preventing the hosts winning the event for the fourth year running.

Scottish Athletics chief executive Geoff Wightman added that the organisers had been obliged to report the missing athletes.

"We invited them, so it's our duty to report it to the authorities," he added.

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Ethiopian athletes on way to Scotland flee

By SHÂN ROSS

FOUR Ethiopian athletes due to take part in a major athletics event tonight have disappeared from their hotel in London and are believed to be seeking asylum.
The missing athletes – two men and two women – were to compete in the Falkirk Cup at Grangemouth Stadium in Falkirk.

The team arrived at Heathrow Airport on Monday afternoon but due to delays in processing their paperwork were unable to catch the connecting flight to Edinburgh and were given hotel accommodation.

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Missing Ethiopian athletes seek asylum

DOUG GILLON, Athletics Correspondent

Four Ethiopian athletes who were due to compete at an international meeting in Scotland today were missing last night after fleeing from their hotel in London.

A statement from scottishathletics said the athletes were seeking asylum.

The sports organisation confirmed the four team members "fled from their hotel" yesterday at lunchtime and failed to make their connecting flight to Edinburgh.

They had been due to take part in the Falkirk Cup athletics event at Grangemouth Stadium.

Geoff Wightman, scottishathletics' chief executive, was forced to report the athletes to police as missing persons.


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Ethiopia - Two Journalists Imprisoned

By Eskinder Nega

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - The federal high court sentenced two journalists to imprisonment for ‘‘dissemination of false stories”.

The editor of Sefe Nebelbal,Asrat Wedajo and editor of Selifya,Ibrahim, were convicted and sentenced to one year imprisonment each on Monday by the tenth bench of the federal high court.

Sefe Nebelbal was one of the thirteen papers that were closed down in late 2005, this conviction is for a story that run almost five years ago. The paper was the most popular Oromo centric newspaper at the time of its illegal closure by the government. The Oromos are Ethiopia's largest ethnic group.

Selefya is an Islamic paper reputed for its advocacy of strict adherence to Koranic principles. It is still in print.

The court turned down a request by the defendants for penalty by monetary fine as opposed to imprisonment.

"Kenya and Ethiopia have killed cross country"

It is now emerging that the domination of cross country running by Kenya and Ethiopia is ultimately killing the sport.

At their council meeting held on the fringes of the World Championships in Athletics here, the International Association of Athletics Federations ruled that the World Cross Country Championships will now be held once every two years rather than annually.

The IAAF council members argued that this would allow the continents to organise continental championships on the alternate years.


Read Complete Article from Daily Nation and Have Your Say

Virgin Nigeria partners with Ethiopian Airlines

ABUJA, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Virgin Nigeria Airways, which has broken its ties with founder Virgin Atlantic, signed a cooperation agreement with Ethiopian Airlines [ETHA.UL] on Monday to share aircraft maintenance and staff training.

The two African airlines said the new partnership highlighted the industry's progress and independence in the continent.

More from Reuters

Lifan Car seeks new partner in Ethiopia

By Elias Meseret

Yangfan Motors Plc, a Chinese company that claims to have the right to produce Lifan cars in Ethiopia, says it is vigorously seeking a local partner to form a joint-venture company in Ethiopia.

The company announced Friday that it has terminated its contract with Holland Car Plc. Yangfan, better known as Lifan, claims Holland Car failed to observe the Exclusive Agency Agreement that the two companies had entered.

"The terms of the agreement no longer apply and no common ground could be found, though Lifan has exhausted all means of resolving the problem," the company's statement reads.
Though representatives of the company were not willing to disclose details of the breach, they say they have taken the action after numerous efforts were made to contact and correct the situation with the Ethiopian company - Holland car.


Read Complete Story from Capital

Ethiopia - Political sphere narrowed:
UDJ appeals to the PM

By Kirubel Tadesse

The opposition party, Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ), submitted a report to Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, detailing what it calls intolerable abuses and crimes committed against its leaders, members, and supporters.
The party said its offices across the country have been targeted, shut down by local security officers, and some even demolished. They also say senior members are being put in jail on fabricated charges predominately in Oromia, Amhara and Southern Nation Nationalities and Peoples regions. The report, which UDJ says demonstrates how the nation's political sphere has been severely narrowing, was also sent to the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia.


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Ethiopia - High hopes for US footwear market


By Muluken Yewondwossen

Ethiopia is vying to export leather footwear to the US market under a special export promotion program launched jointly by the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the USAID funded Agribusiness and Trade Expansion Program, USAID - ATEP.

Prominent industry experts from the US, fielded by USAID ATEP, began looking into the potential for Ethiopia to export to the world's biggest footwear market more than a year ago.
They talked to several US footwear buyers in a bid to introduce Ethiopia to them as a new source.

The process also involved screening and selecting footwear factories capable of meeting stringent US requirements, product development and adaptation and showcasing what Ethiopia has to offer to potential buyers.


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Ethiopia - New commodities and initiatives at ECX

By Muluken Yewondwossen

The Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX) is gearing up to add new features to its auction center and the services it offers producers and traders.
The harvest season starts in October and is also the second month of the Ethiopian New Year. This will mark the launch of trading in sesame, specialty coffee and white pea beans. The ECX, which has previously worked on test trading of many of these agricultural commodities, will now fully provide for their trading including inventory financing, field warehousing systems, and SMS and IBR systems, according to Eleni Zawde Gebre Medhin (PhD), chief executive officer (CEO) of ECX.

Specialty coffee
Since ECX started coffee trading at its auction center at the end of last year, specialist coffee exporters have not sent their coffee beans to international buyers, with the exception of a few organizations and unions who have a special right to export the product directly. According to Eleni, from October the ECX will include speciality coffee in trading.


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Ethiopia - Turkish firm proposes huge industrial zone in Oromia

By Kirubel Tadesse

In a move that would further strengthen the growing Turkish businesses presence in the country, a Turkish firm, Akgün Construction and Machinery, has proposed to map a huge Ethio-Turkish industrial zone in the Legetafo area of the Oromia region.
The industrial zone, planned to cover 1,460 hectares in Legetafo, will consist of industries including pharmaceutical producers, garment factories, leather processing units and packaging factories. It will also incorporate technical and vocational training centers, health institutions and hotels.

According to Akgün Construction and Machinery board chairman, Yusuf Akgün, the Ethio-Turkish industrial zone, upon successful completion, has the potential to generate one million jobs.
"The project was warmly welcomed by senior government officials including Prime Minister Meles Zen