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July 27, 2007
By Ogaden Online Staff
Having seen how destructive the timing and
the publication of the recent, factual New
York Times, NYT, articles have become to the
carefully crafted but now crumbling
self-image of the so-called Ethiopian
democracy, the Ethiopian dictatorship
initiated a scare mongering campaign abroad.
The mission is to intimidate journalist par
excellence, to borrow a term from
Selam Beyene,
Ph.D, Mr. Jeffrey Gettleman of
the NYT. The Ethiopian embassy in Washington
has claimed to have written to
Bill Keller, the NYT
editor. The statement
released by Samuel Assefa, Washington
representative of the Ethiopian autocracy
claimed to have requested a ‘full
retraction’ for what they claimed to have
been a single source article by Mr.Gettleman.
Let us call a spade a spade and analyze both
the release by
Mr.
Assefa and the NYT articles
recently wrote by
Mr.
Gettleman.
Mr. Assefa based his request for ‘full
retraction’ on the fact that Mr. Gettleman
used a single source. Looking at the NYT
articles in question, we were able to find
quotes from multiple sources including
former Ethiopian administrators, relief
officials, the head of the WFP in Ethiopia,
and a defected member of the puppet
Ethiopian federal parliament. May be Mr.
Assefa expects Gettleman to release the
names of his sources so that the
autocracy can hunt them down!
Mr. Assefa claimed that the head of the WFP
was quoted out of context without providing
the context in which the WFP head was
misquoted. It is quite telling that the head
of the WFP in Ethiopia has not to this day
come out to refute the quote in the NYT
articles. He, Assefa, also claimed that the
WFP has since refuted the claims of total
blockade in the NYT articles authored by Mr.
Gettleman.
Careful analysis of the press release
provided by Mr. Peter Smerdon of the WFP
reveals that WFP carefully chose its words
as if they were more interested in
preserving its self-image than the welfare
of the blockaded Ogaden civilians. It said
that they had concerns since they were
allowed access only to three zones out of
nine Ogaden zones. Is this a rebuttal? May
be Assefa can explain!
If there are no blockades, as Assefa wants
to claim in the defense of the indefensible
Ethiopian autocracy, why will the autocracy
blockade access to two thirds of the Ogaden
region? If there was no blockade why are the
Ethiopians
and the WFP now discussing access
and the removal of the blockade?
Assefa wondered why Mr. Gettleman would take
the word of ‘terrorists’ as he puts it
without being specific as to whether he
meant the terrorist Addis Ababa autocracy,
over the WFP and that of the Ethiopian
autocracy.
Brouhaha aside, how does Assefa ever expect
anyone to belief the word of an autocracy
that has mass starved, extra judicially
killed, maimed, and raped thousands of
Ogaden civilians as well as Other Ethiopians
such as Oromo, Amhara, Gambella, and even
Tigrays who do not agree with the current
autocracy? Why would anyone belief the word
of a regime that detained illegally for two
plus years now the victors of the 2005
Ethiopian
elections?
What is apparent is that the Ethiopian
autocracy is acting like a deer caught in
headlights. They seem to have never expected
nor do they seem to have planned for in the
event of an investigative Western journalist
braving all self-hazards in order to access
Ogaden.
What appear to annoy the most the Ethiopian
dictatorship is not the facts or the number
of sources quoted in Mr. Gettleman’s
articles but the timing of the NYT articles.
The latest article came out right after the
Ethiopian dictatorship
released
from illegal detention honorable CUD
members.
Instead of basking in the glory of having
‘pardoned’ CUD members from illegal
sentences and released them from detention,
and appearing statesmanlike in the process,
Mr. Meles Zenawi, the head of the Ethiopian
dictatorship, has to deal with the NYT
articles, which were widely quoted, in the
Western press. Assefa and the Meles minions
are not barking against the veracity of the
NYT articles but they appear to be peevish
about loosing the media spotlight to Mr.
Gettleman and the NYT.
In conclusion, anyone should take with a
grain of salt anything that comes out of the
current Ethiopian autocracy. The NYT times
and its journalist
par
excellence should be nominated
for a Pulitzer price for the Ogaden articles
and for having stirred the debate on the
happenings of that remote land called
Ogaden.
staff@ogaden.com
Ogaden Online Satff
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