|
|
|
|
|
Leave no Stone
unturned for the release of Kidnapped ICRC Workers |
The news that two International Committee of
the Red Cross (ICRC) workers were kidnapped
in the Godey area of Ogaden is very
troubling in many fronts. First ICRC has
been and still is one of the few brave
organizations who refused to head the calls
of the Ethiopian autocracy to leave Ogaden
or restrict its relief operations to the
areas bordering the main military garrisons.
ICRC is the only non-governmental
organization working in Ogaden with the
international clout to force the regime in
Addis Ababa to grant access to Ogaden
civilian detainees. Although ICRC does not
get timely, unfettered access to these
detainees as stipulated by the international
treaties to which Ethiopia is signatory to,
however the very fact of their, ICRC
employees, presence in Ogaden at a time when
many non-governmental organizations have
either abandoned the Ogaden people or
restricted their humanitarian work to Addis
Ababa leaves the Autocracy in Addis Ababa in
its toes as they are unsure when ICRC will
knock their door to demand access to the
detainees..
ICRC has been providing to the Ogaden
populace the services that were supposed to
be provided by the regime in Addis Ababa.
Services such as food, shelter and basic
health were provided by ICRC in Ogaden for
the past decade. It is a fact that whoever
kidnapped these ICRC employees intended to
hurt the Ogaden populace. The group that
took away the relief workers must have very
well calculated that this kidnapping will at
the very minimum lead to the suspension of
all ICRC relief work in Ogaden.
Hurting the Ogaden populace is not on the
agenda or in the interest of the Ogaden
National Liberation Front (ONLF). We, the
Ogaden Editorial Board (OEB), know ONLF or
any of its affiliated organizations have NOT
taken part in the commission of this heinous
crime against the Ogaden populace. However
we ask ONLF to put all its resources in
locating and freeing the kidnapped ICRC
relief workers.
It is most probable that members of the
myriad armed militias affiliated with the
Ethiopian military have carried out the
kidnapping in the hopes of inflicting untold
injury to the Ogaden populace. We, the OEB,
ask whoever kidnapped these relief workers
to release them unconditionally. We ask ICRC
not to pull out all its relief workers from
Ogaden as this is the main objective of the
kidnappers. Since ICRC pullout hurts the
Ogaden populace the most, ONLF should leave
no stone unturned in helping find the
kidnapped ICRC relief workers.
editorial@ogaden.com
Ogaden Online Editorial
Sept 21, 2006
|
|
|
|
|
