Borkena
Toronto – Four Ethiopian Opposition parties on Monday released a joint-statement revealing information from what is said to be a leaked government document detailing plans to crackdown on potential contenders in the upcoming election.
Early signs of crackdown against opposition and the free press have been noticed ahead of the upcoming general election and the four opposition parties seem to have noticed them well. The leaked information is another layer of information.
All Ethiopian Unity Party, The Amhara Ghionian Movement, Enat Party and Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Party (EPRP) express concern that the practice of cracking down on opposition and activism is not just lingering in Ethiopia but transforming to a new level as the government is legalizing torture under the guise of recovring “illegally acquired wealth and fighting against terrorism.”
The parties noted that they have learnt that the ruling prosperity party has established a team drawn from institutions meant to be neutral. It is tasked, according to the opposition parties, to dismantle opposition parties that could potentially pose challenges in the upcoming election, kidnap leaders or even eliminate them.
The leaked document is reportedly prepared for Prosperity party leaders at different levels to assist them in carrying out work in relation to “current affairs.”
The Amharic title given to the document could translate to “Enemy’s new strategy of struggle and directions to tackle them.”
The parties also stated that the document made a reference, on page 7, to four parties that are coordinating the opposition. The ruling party has designated them as “destructive and enemy”
The statement also pointed that it is in the aftermath the leaked information, which was apparently overlooked first, that the government made a move to formally legalized torture by introducing legislation granting power to investigators and legal immunity for any crimes against suspects except in the case of death the suspect. It essentially legalized torture, and serves as “a legal cover for kidnapping and torture.”
The parties argue that the new legislation has violated three constitutional rights including the rule of law, the right to life, security of person and liberty and equality of rights.
Recent patterns from what the parties called “activists fed by the government” urging the government to take action with the mantra “how come we see them quietly” is also highlighted in the joint statement. They likened it to what used to be government produced documentaries with a purpose to attack dissenting voices in the 27 years before the Prosperity Party.
The joint statement concluded emphasizing that repressive tactics against opposition party politicians, journalists and social activists “could serve a temporary purpose of consolidating power” but they are the beginnings of government fall.
It called on the government to stop attacking political party leaders, business leaders and prominent figures. It also called an end to using institutions that are meant to be neutral, for purposes of repression. However, the names of the institutions are unspecified.
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