Kemal Gelchu & Co.: “OLF” Trojan horse? Part IV

By Observer

Continued from Part III (Read Here)

Kemal Gelchu & Co.'s Next Steps?

If you think Kemal Gelchu & Co.’s mission is limited to spying on, taking over and sabotaging the Oromo struggle led by the OLF and killing the organization, please think again. Their mission is much bigger than that. It is all part of the widely known and much talked about TPLF diaspora policy. Targeted for destruction by that policy is not only the Oromo struggle. Abyssinian (Habasha, Amhara & others) diaspora opposition groups, including Ginbot 7 (G7), are among those marked for infiltration and sabotage by various TPLF spies. Kemal Gelchu & Co. is but one such group deployed by TPLF.

The overall goal is to have diaspora opposition groups and liberation fronts silenced and surrender to TPLF where possible or saw discord among them to disrupt and frustrate their activities.

To that end, the Oromo struggle was chosen both as an end and a means - as an end, in that the effort targets the Oromo struggle for destruction; as a means, in that the effort includes using the Oromo struggle as a gateway to Abyssinian opposition groups marked for infiltration. The plan, which Kemal Gelchu & Co. is entrusted with executing, is killing two birds with one stone. The two birds are the OLF & diaspora Abyssinian opposition groups; the proverbial single stone to be used to kill both of them would be the OLF political program.

How?

If there is one thing Abyssinians (Habashas) hate even more than they hate the TPLF, it is the OLF political program which calls for Oromo self-determination with the option of forming an independent state of Oromioa. This is a fact beyond dispute. For the Habasha, to defeat TPLF only to lose Oromia, the most fertile and richest part of the empire, would be to win the battle but lose the war. This is something no Habasha is willing to contemplate much less accept or compromise on. One way in which the Habshaa believe they would be able to achieve both of their objectives (defeating TPLF and keeping Oromia under the yoke of colonialism) would be to have the Oromo drop their demand for self-determination, and statehood, and join them in the struggle to depose TPLF from the Imperial throne.

TPLF is keenly aware of this state of affairs just as we all are. Of course, it is working hard to infiltrate Abyssinian diaspora opposition groups directly as well. But, that is a pretty obvious strategy which the Abyssinians are aware of and are vigilantly guarding against. An even better strategy, however, would be to blindside them. The Abyssinian blindside, in this case, would be their obsession with having the Oromo drop their demand for self-determination. Any Oromo group willing to offer them “unity and sovereignty of Ethiopia” would be invited to alliances and even mergers. Within the country, MEDREK – which now includes Oromo People’s Congress (OPC) and Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement (OFDN) - is a case in point. Abyssinian diaspora organizations have not been as lucky. Having searched for such a group in the diaspora for many years to no avail, they think they have found one now. They are now beating the drum for Kemal Gelchu & Co – the Trojan horse approaching them with the promise of “unity and sovereignty of Ethiopia”. Little do they know that they are dancing to TPLF tune.

Making predictions is always hazardous. It would have been nice to have a crystal ball in which to look and see the future. Having no such tool at my disposal, what follows is not a set-in-stone declaration of what will happen-- but rather what very well could happen based on Kemal Gelchu & Co.’s journey thus far as well as current trends. With that disclaimer, I will be looking out for the following scenarios to materialize in the near future.

Having promised everything Ginbot 7 &. Co. would like to hear, including acceptance of a federal Ethiopia, Kemal Gelchu & Co. would propose some sort of alliance or a merger. It would be difficult for Ginbot 7 to turn down such a proposal for a couple of reasons. First, Kemal Gelchu & Co. has declared that the Oromo have no demand or question different and separate from that of other Abyssinians. That is exactly what Ginbot 7 has been preaching to whoever cared to listen. They have also accepted a struggle for “a functional and vibrant federal political structure” which Ginbot 7’s political program calls for. What reason would there be for Ginbot 7 to refuse a merger? Secondly, as an aspiring “multi-ethnic” organization, Ginbot 7 would love to have as many Oromos as possible associated with it to get a foot hold in Oromia which it is currently lacking. Why would Ginbot 7 not take this opportunity to extend its activities into Oromia region?

Before such a merger can take place, however, Kemal Gelchu & Co. would insist on the future merged organization renouncing raising arms to achieve a political end and declaring “non-violence” as its method of struggle. This is necessary because Ginbot 7 has not done so explicitly. In fact, it refused to disavow raising arms in its political program by “emphasiz[ing] that “peaceful struggle” works in a society where the government respects the rights of its citizens to dissent.” No one can tell if Kemal Gelchu & Co. will succeed in this endeavor but given that Ginbot 7 is currently not engaged in one any way, it would not be farfetched to opine Ginbot 7 may be open to the idea.

If they succeed, such a merger would give them opportunity to do more harm to the opposition group by spying for TPLF and sabotaging the merged organization’s work from within. Claiming representation for the Oromo people, they would occupy high leadership positions from where they can influence decisions detrimental to the organization and beneficial to TPLF. From such positions, they would gather information on the organization’s plans and activities to be transmitted to TPLF.

At the same time, they would argue that “peaceful” struggle cannot be waged from afar and would work hard on convincing the merged organization to return home to lead the struggle from inside the country. The only way to do so would be to negotiate their return with TPLF who would provide them with a face saving concession which Kemal Gelchu & Co. – now part of the merged organization leadership - would accept after some feigned negotiations effort.

If other members of the leadership of the merged organization formerly from G7 agree with the concession and decide to head home, then, this would be Kemal Gelchu & Co.’s ticket back home to a hero’s welcome from TPLF. Otherwise, this would lead to a split of the merged organization along Oromo/Abyssinia line enabling Kemal Gelchu & Co. to continue to cause confusion and turmoil in diaspora opposition organizations until such time that they are exposed and “defect” back to TPLF.

Ginbot 7 would be well advised to beware of TPLF agents bearing the promise of “unity and sovereignty of Ethiopia”!

Conclusions

Having failed to succeed in recruiting from within the OLF and having failed to convince any faction of the OLF to join its government, TPLF had to come up with a crafty plot similar to what the Greeks did to defeat Trojans. It recruited Kemal Gelchu & Co. to infiltrate the OLF, take it over and wreak havoc among diaspora opposition groups.

As anyone with the slightest understanding of politics can see, it does not make sense for generals who purportedly left the employ of TPLF to challenge it by force to disband their army, renounce armed struggle before they fire their first bullet and adopt “peaceful struggle.” Nor does it make sense for their much loved and respected political organization to alter its political program which gained them public love and support and adopt one that is shown to have been rejected by the nation they claim to work for. On top of that, those who execute these changes are new comers to the organization – to the OLF. Where were they before joining this organization whose program and strategy they are changing? They were working for the enemy – the TPLF. Only an enemy agent would do what Kemal Gelchu & Co. did with the “OLF” faction they claim to lead. Only a Trojan horse would do such a thing!

The Eritrean government is aware of Kemal Gelchu & Co.’s mission from TPLF. However, as is common practice in the intelligence world, it is using the enemy agents for its own ends (more on this at a later date) while monitoring and controlling their activities. Kemal Gelchu & Co.’s request for travel permits outside Eritrea has been consistently turned down by the Eritrean government regardless of the purported purpose for travel request. Even within Eritrea, their movement is very much restricted. Since their arrival, they have been under special surveillance 24 hours a day and are followed everywhere by Eritrean HUMINT agents. Their communication with everyone and anyone, inside and outside Eritrea, is being monitored and reported every day. That is how the Eritreans found out the plot (in or around 2007) by Kemal Gelchu and diaspora supporters to force out Dawud Ibsaa and alerted the later who was able to thwart the plot easily. Even every interview Kemal Gelchu & Co. give is scrutinized by Eritrean intelligence officers for code words or code phrases meant to convey messages to TPLF.

Eritreans are very vigilant against infiltration. Are we, Oromos?

Will Kemal Gelchu & Co., "OLF" Trojan Horse, accomplish its mission and go back to TPLF to a hero’s welcome? That is their plan but only time will tell!

Have your say.

Kemal Gelchu & Co.: “OLF” Trojan horse? Part III

By Observer

Continued from Part II (Read Here)

On Changing the OLF Political program

No serious observer of the Oromo people and their struggle for liberation over the last twenty years would doubt their abiding love and support for the OLF. That much, I argue, is beyond dispute. One cannot find a stronger evidence of the truth of this statement than pointing to the fact that the Oromo people stuck with it over the last twenty years even when it is at its weakest. Even Melles Zenawi, the arch enemy of the OLF, is said to have quipped “if you scratch every Oromo, you will expose the OLF in them” or something to that effect. This quip is one of the most telling testaments of Oromo love for the OLF.

So, why is it that the Oromo people love this organization so much and refuse to abandon it even when it seems weak and ineffective? Why is it that no Oromo organization created since has been able to garner as much support as the OLF from the Oromo people? What has it done for them in the past and what has it promised them for the future?

Most importantly, to tie it to the Kemal Gelchu & Co. story, how can one kill the OLF which seems to have nine lives and would not die regardless of uncountable attempts on its life or the number of obituaries written about its death?

Follow me, please!

The Oromo people’s deepest love is not for the leaders or members of the day; Although they love and hold them in high regard too. They know that leaders and members come and go. Their love is for something constant, something persisting in the OLF regardless of who leads the organization or holds membership in it. That, my friends, is the ideals the organization represents; the fears, hopes and aspirations it is connected to. The ideals, the fears and hopes, and the aspirations it represents and stands for are the same as those that the Oromo people hold very dear. In fact, the OLF was formed for exactly that purpose – to represent and reflect Oromo hopes and aspirations. This is manifested in its political program. It is specified as dismantling the Ethiopian empire, freeing the Oromo people from colonial subjugation and enabling them to determine their fate with no external interference or undue pressure. Without dismantling the empire the Oromo will never see freedom and without freedom they won’t be able to determine their fate freely. When that opportunity comes around, while it advocates for independent state of Oromia, the OLF has promised them that it will respect and abide by their choice. That is what gained it so much love and support from them.

Not only has the OLF reflected Oromo hopes and aspirations for liberation, it has also achieved for them, in a few decades, part of what they had lost for over a century. Paramount among them, it has helped lift Oromo identity, history and culture from the dust bin to which it was relegated by the Habasha colonizers and located it in its rightful place among the respected ones on the planet. I say helped because it is the Oromo people that did much of the lifting work through their organized and unorganized resistance. The OLF, however, gave that resistance and renaissance shape and direction. It organized and led it. The implication of that achievement alone on the Oromo psyche is incalculable. A book can be written about the impacts of this achievement. However, for the purpose of this piece, suffice to say that we would not have Qubee, or recognized as a nation without this achievement.

OLF’s work is not completed by any stretch of the imagination. But, knowing what it has accomplished for them to date, the Oromo maintain confidence that it will deliver on its promises in the future as well. That is because they are mindful of the fact that past behavior is the best indicator of future behavior. The OLF has gone, and will go, through ups and downs, rainy and sunny days, disappointments and successes but at the end of the day, they believe, it will come through for them and will deliver on its promises as it has done before. Yes, it will stumble from time to time, it will even fall down now and then, but they are confident that it will pick itself up, dust itself off, and walk, even run and fly, again. Whether it is strong or weak at any particular time is not as important as what it stands for. Its point in time strength or weakness may be most important for opportunists among them but not for the vast majority of the Oromo people.

Simply put, what the Oromo love is not OLF the organization per se. Their love affair is with OLF’s political program which is the embodiment of their hopes and aspirations. Without its political program, the OLF may exist as an organization, in name only, but without doubt will forgo the love and support of the Oromo people it has enjoyed since its inception.

In order to kill the OLF, it is not enough to murder, to “disappear” or to torture its leaders or members. Nor is it enough to delegalize it or label it as a terrorist organization. Twenty years of such practices have not borne fruit for TPLF. The secret to killing the OLF is to deprive it of the love and support it enjoys from its people. That is the only sure way of burying the OLF six feet under. What better way is there to accomplish that than by decoupling and disassociating it from its political program? None at all!

The sure way to kill the OLF, once and for all, would be to cajole, coerce or force it to abandon its missions and objectives as they are enshrined in its political program.

Enemies of the OLF know this very well. After years of attempts at cajoling and coercing it to change its mission, and having failed miserably at it, they have devised a crafty scheme they hoped the Oromo would be unable to uncover. It is to infiltrate the organization, take it over and force it to abandon its political program so as to deprive it of Oromo love and support. But they needed an Oromo tool, a “Trojan Horse” to accomplish this mission for them.

Say hi to Kemal Gelchu & Co., the lethal tool charged with this mission by the TPLF.

That is exactly what Kemal Gelchu & Co. announced on January 1, 2012. (Read Here) Under the guise of “a new vision with clear goals” they have changed the goal of the Oromo struggle led by their faction of the OLF from freeing the Oromo people from colonial subjugation and determining their fate freely to achievement of “New Federal Republic of Ethiopia.”

What is more, they accomplished their mission by trampling upon the due process procedure enshrined in the OLF constitution which calls for the organizations general assembly to make such a major change. Usurping the general assembly’s power and circumventing that due process was necessary to achieve their mission. Without such illegal act, they were certain that their mission cannot be accomplished for they would be opposed by the vast majority of nationalist Oromos who had joined their faction duped by their sugar coated mantra of “change”.

If the Oromo people’s aspiration were life in a “Federal” empire, they have had many organizations to choose from. First, there have been independent and “legal” Oromo organizations in the country that they could have supported and helped grow. These organizations have accepted a federal Ethiopia. The Oromo people, however, did not flock to join them and strengthen them. Secondly, the Oromo people have had the option of joining what Habasha’s call “multi-ethnic” organizations in the country. These are also “legal” and are working to remove TPLF from power. Twenty years after the OLF left the country, the Oromo people have refused to join these organizations.

Why? Why have they decided to stick to an “illegal” organization labeled a terrorist and face assured harsh treatment at the hands of TPLF?

The answer is simple. After twenty years of their refusal to join these other “legal” organizations in droves, it is fair to say that these organizations, although some of them seem independent and work for some Oromo interests, they do not represent the whole gamut of Oromo hopes and aspirations. The TPLF is very much mindful of this fact. According to TPLF even the few Oromos holding membership in “legal” opposition organizations, when scratched reveal the OLF in them.

So what is the purpose of changing the OLF political program to realizing “New Federal Republic of Ethiopia.” knowing fully that other Oromo organizations who are working for the same ideal have not gained their people’s love and support after twenty years of existence?

The purpose is to kill the OLF; deprive it of the love and support of the Oromo people it enjoys by changing its political program to one the Oromo don’t particularly care for. A “Trojan Horse” in the form of Kemal Gelchu & Co. was constructed and sent on this mission. Will they succeed? Only time and how the Oromo will react to these enemy spies’ actions will tell.

This is the third evidence of Kemal Gelchu & Co.’s clandestine work for TPLF from within the Oromo movement for freedom.

Continued in Part IV (Read Here).

Have your say!

Kemal Gelchu & Co.: “OLF” Trojan horse? Part II

By Observer

Continued from Part I (Read Here)

On Challenging TPLF by Force

Today, five years after they joined the Asmara group of OLF and three years after claiming leadership of an OLF faction, Kemal Gelchu & Co, are generals without armies much less challenge TPLF by force. Not only have they no army to speak of but have surrendered to TPLF whatever army there was before their arrival and sided with them during their split with the Asmara Group of OLF.

Under Hailu Gonfa’s command, in Aug. 2009, they allowed the filming, and airing on a Kenyan TV station, of the Oromo liberation Army (OLA), “in southern Ethiopia near the border town of Moyale” there by pin pointing OLA location for TPLF. A few months later, in Jan 2010, the vast majority of the army surrendered to TPLF under mysterious circumstances. Even before that, it was widely rumored that the OLA under their command was full of TPLF spies.

Furthermore, before they even fire their first shot and having surrendered their army to TPLF, Kemal Gelchu & Co. abandoned armed struggle and declared “non-violence” (Read Here) as their method of struggle there by revealing their lack of intention to challenge TPLF by force. It is unheard of for army generals to renounce armed struggle and declare “non-violence” to challenge an adversary they have asserted does not understand dialogue. The purpose, from the beginning, I submit to you the reader, was to disband OLA (Oromo Liberation Army) to deny the OLF a fighting chance against TPLF. Had Kemal Gelchu & Co. succeeded in taking total control of the OLF (including the two other factions), there is no doubt that this group would have made the OLF a toothless liberation front without a liberation army for that is one of the objectives they were sent to accomplish.

But that is exactly what TPLF wanted all along and has been demanding from the OLF to no avail until Kemal Gelchu & Co. showed up on the scene. Kemal Gelchu & Co. partly achieved by infiltration what TPLF failed to accomplish by force and through negotiations. What force and negotiations failed to yield, infiltration delivered.

But why did Kemal Gelchu & Co. choose non-violence, a method they declared ineffective when they left TPLF? What has changed since to make “non-violence” appealing to them at this point? Nothing has changed for the better form what we know! Has TPLF become more democratic and tolerant of “non-violent” methods of struggle? No! In fact, TPLF became more tyrannical wining 99.6% in its last “elections”. It continues to “disappear”, torture, imprison and kill our people. It continues to fire live ammunitions against peaceful demonstrators. One can find no rational reason for such decision under such conditions. In order to make sense of their adoption of “non-violence”, one would have to assume they were sent on a mission by TPLF to pacify the OLF. But this is not a wild assumption. It is one supported by evidence of their actions and one widely held belief in Oromia.

If peaceful struggle is what they had in mind, why did they leave the country in the first place? Wouldn’t it make sense to join Oromo organizations who have adopted that method - the likes of Dr. Merera Gudina’s OPC (Oromo People’s Congress) and Obbo Bulcha Demeksa’s WAFIDO? How do they plan to conduct peaceful struggle from afar - from Asmara? In the successful peaceful struggles with which we are familiar, the leaders remained among their peoples and led the struggle. Dr. Martin Luther King walked at the head of freedom marches in his country and with his people. Gandhi was among his people when he took on the English empire and tasted the brutality of the colonizers with his brethren. What are we to make of their advocacy for “non-violent” struggle from outside the country?

Could “non-violence” be their ticket back to TPLF once they accomplish the mission they were sent to execute? I will address this a few paragraphs later in “What would the Logical next steps be for Kemal Gelchu & Co.?”

The answer to the question about whether they have challenged TPLF by force as they promised they would do when they “defected”, should be obvious by now – NOT AT ALL! In fact, they surrendered to TPLF part of the OLA that sided with them. Before they fired a single shot, they disavowed armed struggle and adopted “non-violence”. They have no intention or plan to challenge TPLF in any way much less by force because they were sent to do TPLF work. Kemal Gelchu & Co. bears the sole responsibility for dismantling the OLA under their command.

This is the second evidence of their clandestine work for TPLF from within the Oromo movement for freedom.

Continued on Part III (Read Here).

Have your say!

Kemal Gelchu & Co.: “OLF” Trojan horse? Part I

By Observer

On August 10, 2006, Oromo nationalist all over the world woke up to the news of Gen. Kemal Gelchu’s (a TPLF army general) defection to Eritrea and joining the Asmara Group of OLF (AKA the Dawud Ibsaa Group). Kemal Gelchu had been a very loyal soldier of the Ethiopian empire for many years both under the DERG and TPLF regimes. At the time of his defection to Eritrea, he was the commander of the TPLF 18th army division.

According to media reports, Kemal Gelchu simply walked across the border to Eritrea under cover of darkness from where he was stationed on Ethio-Eritrea border. What is more, he brought along 150 fully armed soldiers and, by some accounts, “tens of commanders” including Col. Abebe Geresu.

TPLF explained away the general’s defection as a disgruntled soldier who was denied promotion and chose to engage in “divisive activities”. Ethiopian TV reported: “Although his [Kemal Gelchu’s] colleagues repeatedly tried to correct the commander from his anti-government and inappropriate activities, the commander was not willing to change".

Regardless of his alleged “divisive activities” and notwithstanding TPLF’s knowledge of it, Kemal was allowed to command TPLF’s 18th army division stationed at the border with Eritrea – Ethiopia’s arch enemy. By any standard, the border between the two states was highly guarded and monitored at the time he crossed over. Regardless, the general was able to walk across the border with 150 other soldiers in tow and with a minor shooting incident.

How he accomplished such a feat was never explained, much less in sufficient detail. Hard to believe? Read on!

Gen. Hailu Gonfa and Col. Gemechu Ayana, two other long time soldiers of the empire, followed suite a few weeks later. How they arrived in Asmara was never explained to my knowledge.

Their defection generated euphoria in some corners owing to the belief that these generals would re-organize and re-build a guerrilla force that would match, surpass and defeat the TPLF army.

The two generals fanned the euphoria by informing the public that peaceful struggle against TPLF is futile and that they had exhausted the possibility of bringing TPLF to its senses through dialogues. In an interview he gave to BBC soon after arriving in Asmara, Kemal Galchuu said “The language they (the Ethiopian government) understand is force and we're going to challenge them by force." (Read Here). Hailu Gonfa, on his part, told Eritrean Television, that their demands for democracy “fell on deaf ears, [as a result] they were compelled to raise arms against the [TPLF] regime and thus join the popular struggle.”

Five years after they joined the Asmara Group of OLF and given that they now lead an OLF faction and their announcement on new year 2012 of having changed the OLF political program (Read Here) , it is about time, and fair, to assess their performance.

Have they challenged TPLF by force as they promised they would do when they defected? Has the Oromo struggle fared better as a result of their defection? Has the Oromo struggle become stronger or weaker – militarily, politically, socially, etc - as a result of them joining it?. Most importantly, did they defect to the Asmara Group of OLF to help the struggle or to do TPLF work? How about the faction that Kemal Gelchu is leading – is it advancing the Oromo struggle or is it a TPLF tool – a Trojan horse for TPLF spies and saboteurs? Where they sent to infiltrate the Asmara Group of OLF, take control of the organization and ensure that faction accepts TPLF conditions of surrender: Accepting the TPLF constitution and renouncing armed struggle?

In the following paragraphs, I will search for answers to these questions in their actions over the last five years.

But, first, what is a “Trojan Horse?”

The term “Trojan Horse” comes from the legendary ancient war story between Greeks and Trojans (People of Troy). In this epic story, having given up on confronting the Trojans in face-to-face combats, the Greeks came up with a crafty plot. They built a wooden horse, hid Greek soldiers in its belly and left it at the gate of the heavily fortified and defended Trojan city. Believing that this was a parting gift to the gods from the Greeks, Trojans opened their gate, wheeled the wooden horse in and went about celebrating their “victory”. Unbeknownst to them, the Greeks had hidden their soldiers in the wooden horse, whom in the middle of the night came out of the horse’s belly and opened the gate to the Trojan city. Once the gate was thrown open, more Greek soldiers streamed in to the city and decimated the Trojans thereby winning the war. That wooden horse became known as “Trojan Horse” and the term itself has since been used to describe enemy operatives in one’s midst conducting espionage and sabotage to undermine the opponent from within.

So, is Kemal Gelchu & Co. a Trojan horse? Let the facts speak for themselves.

On Strengthening the Oromo Struggle

In a couple of years after their arrival, the Kemal Gelchu group split the Asmara Group of OLF. The reason given for the split depends on which side of the divide would be doing the explaining. However, there is one glaring fact that is undeniable about how they split the organization and the consequences accompanying the split on Oromo struggle.

The first, and the most damaging one to the Oromo struggle and Oromummaa (Oromo identity), is the fact that when they parted company with the Dawud Ibsaa Group, their constituency consisted entirely of Oromo nationals of Arsi birth. Not a single known Oromo personality from other regions of Oromia appeared in their list. They exploited the latent regionalist tendencies espoused by some in the organization. They purposefully promoted regional differences and suspicions to gain support. They presented the split as one caused by the organization’s refusal to allow an able leader from Arsi to take his rightful place at the head of the organization. “The time is ours”, they told their fellow Oromos from Arsi. “Arsi Oromos are discrimintaed against in the organization” they preached to them. They succeeded in taking their divisive activity to the Oromo public and worked hard to destroy Oromimmaa (Oromo identity) which had been built with the blood and flesh of heroes and heroines of the struggle. They sprayed this venom in every Oromo institution in diaspora including community associations, political and religious organizations. By doing so, they saw the seeds of mistrust even among former comrades and personal friends from Arsi and other parts of Oromia. The purpose was to destroy Oromummaa and Oromo unity without which they know the struggle cannot progress.

Without the slightest exaggeration, no action of anyone, including that of the enemy, has rolled back what was gained by the Oromo struggle to the extent they did by this action. This is a major setback Oromummaa suffered from which it is yet to recuperate. Insha Allah, it will!

“Divide and conquer” strategy against the Oromo has been a tried and true way utilized by successive Ethiopian regimes to keep Oromos from uniting. It is also a strategy employed extensively by TPLF against other nations and religious groups in the empire. Their fear is that a united group of people will be able to pool their resources together to build enough capacity to one day defeat them. Consequently, they leave no stone unturned to frustrate their effort to unite through their agents particularly within the group they fear. One of the missions Kemal Gelchu & Co. is charged with by TPLF was to execute this policy within the Oromo and other diaspora oppositions.

Today, the Oromo diaspora is socially more divided than when they arrived. Politically, it is more fragmented and disunited than when they defected. Militarily, the Oromo struggle is in a worse position than it was when they joined it to purportedly re-energize OLA and challenge TPLF by force. While they are not responsible for everything that transpired since their arrival, Kemal Gelchu & Co. have contributed purposefully and immensely to weakening the Oromo struggle over the last five years.

This is the first evidence of their clendestine work for TPLF from within the Oromo movement for freedom.

Continued in Part II - (Read Here).

Have your say!

Another Court Battle in the Making over OLF Name, Logo & Flag?

Another winds of war between two OLF factions is blowing in the form of litigation in USA courts over the use of OLF name, logo and flag and is threatening to, once again, waste Oromo time, money and energy. Shanee’s (AKA The Dawud Ibsaa Group or the Asmara Group) sabre-rattling against TA-OLF (AKA the Dhugaasaa Bakakkoo Group or the QC Group) should be worrisome to all patriotic Oromos, to say the least, and could, indeed, end in a court room showdown.

It is to be recalled that, in July 2007, the Shanee Group of OLF took the TA-OLF group to a Minnesota court over the use of the OLF name, logo and flag. The lawsuit alleged that TA-OLF violated “Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act” and that it interfered with the Shanee Group’s “prospective economic advantage” by using the OLF name, logo and flag - (Read Here).

In August 2007, after two court appearances, the court dismissed the Shanee lawsuit without prejudice. In other words, while the Shanee case was dismissed for the time being, they were allowed to re-file if they so wished.

Undeterred by the dismissal and bent on winning the case, the Shanee Group re-filled and launched a second lawsuit over the same issue in September of the same year. After 14 months in the court system and after $50,000.00 (by a conservative estimate) of Oromo hard earned money was squandered on both sides to prosecute and defend this ridiculous charge, the court decided in favor of the defendant and awarded TA-OLF cost and disbursements which the Shanee Group was forced to pay up.

In dismissing the case in November 2008, the judge observed:

“The OLF began in Ethiopia in 1973 with the objective of establishing an independent [state of] Oromia for the Oromo people. Some individual Defendants have been members of the OLF since its inception in 1973. Beginning in 1999 and through approximately 2001, the OLF members began disputing the methods of accomplishing their mission. In 2001, the [Plaintiff or the Asmara Group] OLF began supporting the policy of recognizing the Ethiopian government. There were members who did not agree with this policy. The Plaintiffs continued operating under the name OLF in Minnesota (“Plaintiff OLF”). The Defendants rejected the authority of the [Plaintiff or the Asmara Group] OLF, but also continued operating under the name OLF in Minnesota (“Defendant OLF”)” - (Read Here).


In regards to the flag under dispute, the Shanee complaint asked TA-OLF to cease using the flag. However, Shanee members summoned for deposition (question and answer sessions between a possible witness and attorney of opposing side) all asserted that the flag is a national symbol and not just OLF’s which prompted the judge to observe:

“The OLF uses a flag. It is disputed whether the symbol on the flag was created for, and solely represents, the OLF or whether it is a symbol used by the Oromo people regardless of their affiliation with the OLF.”

With that, the judge dismissed the case for the second time and ordered Shanee to pay cost and disbursements to TA-OLF.

If you thought this would be the end of this madness, think again.

The Shanee Group took over three years to prepare for another possible court battle. Having learned from their previous two failures that the courts are not likely to consider this dispute a commercial one, the Shanee Group went about preparing the ground work for the next battle.

On Nov. 17, 2008, a mere nine days after losing the case for the second time, the Shanee group applied to the US Patents & Trademarks Office (USPTO) to register the OLF name and logo in the Advertising, Business & Retail Services category - (Read Here).

Having succeeded in registering the OLF logo with the USPTO as Advertising, Business & Retail Services logo in June 2009, Shanee has now put TA-OLF on notice. In a letter written on Dec. 15, 2011 - (Read Here) - Shanee has accused TA-OLF of infringing on Shanee’s copy right and trade mark privileges. The letter asked TA-OLF to desist from further using the OLF “logo, flag and other materials.” Soon after, Shanee also issued a statement today on its web site (Read Here), warning the use of OLF name and logo by any other group but itself would be illegal and immoral thereby threatening lawsuit(s) against TA-OLF and perhaps also the Kemal Gelchu group of OLF.

If history is any guide, and from what we already know about the TA-OLF group, it seems unlikely that they will even dignify this letter with a response much less desisting from using what they consider rightfully belongs to the oromo people and their fallen comrades who paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives to free their people and realize an independent state of Oromia. Given TA-OLF’s attitude towards the OLF name, flag and logo, it seems inevitable that another (third) round of litigation will be launched by Shanee with the inevitable consequence of squandering tens of thousands Oromo hard earned money on American lawyers once again.

Why?

Why would Shanee spend Oromo hard earned money that can be put to a better use, say to take Meles Zenawi to World Court rather than targeting another Oromo group? Or even use the money to maintain their Washington DC office for which they were unable to afford rental fee and therefore downgraded to a smaller office recently? Why not use the money to help our refugee brothers and sisters suffering around the world or our brethren dying of famine in Oromia? While NGOs and benevolent governments feed our starving people, why would an Oromo group (Shanee) purportedly struggling for Oromo freedom waste thousands of dollars on a dispute which will not advance an inch, but retard, the Oromo struggle?

It is no secret that the Oromo camp is fragmented, disunited and disorganized as it is. Nationalist Oromos everywhere are demanding unity based on clarity of purpose for the struggle. Having given up on their leaders, they are beginning to organize grass root Oromo unity movements. For Shanee to threaten a lawsuit at this particular time, after having lost twice before on the same issue – would be to pour gasoline on fire and frustrate the call for unity.

A Call to Action

This blogger continues to appeal to the Shanee Group in general and Obbo Dawud Ibsaa in particular, as he had done during the first and second Shanee Lawsuits, to stop this madness.

Obbo Dawud: What you are engaged in is an inter-Oromo political fight for the hearts and minds of the Oromo people. The Oromo people and them alone can and should render the final verdict as to which group deserves to call itself the OLF or not. Given time, one of you factions will die a natural death from lack of support from the Oromo people or thrive because of it. No amount of positive verdict from a foreign court will earn you Oromo love and support or acceptance from them. In fact, what you are doing is sending the wrong message to the Oromo. And that message seems to be that you lack confidence in the Oromo people’s ability to render this verdict which prompts you to appeal to foreign courts for help. I urge you to reflect on your group’s actions, the adverse reactions it can generate and their overall impact on the Oromo struggle.

This blogger calls on all Oromo compatriots, particularly Shanee members and Oromo elders everywhere, to do everything they can to stop Shanee from wasting money they collect in the name of Oromo struggle on something that will not advance the Oromo struggle one inch.

This blogger explicitly calls on Oromo elders to not turn a blind eye to this madness this time around, as they did in the two previous litigations where they chose to silently watch from the sideline while the Oromo movement was made a laughing stock of the world as a result of Shanee intiated litigations.

Related articles:

OLF Legal Woes
The Asmara Group Lawsuit Dismissed Without Prejudice
Nuro Dedefo Defebds the Asmara group's lawsuit
The Asmara Group of OLF Takes TA-OLF Back to Minnesota Court

Have your say!

The inherent danger of Abyssinian extremism and bigotry

By Gumaa Guddaa

Combination of racism and ideology is a very dangerous cocktail. In the case of the Abyssinians, the combination of their hatred for any human being other than ‘Habesha’ and their fervent cult like belief in the Coptic Orthodox church is unfortunately at the root of all evils in that dying empire.

Listen to the following poem in the Amhara language:



The above Abyssinian war cry in the form of extreme hatred and religious fundamentalism directed against nations that have done nothing to them other than asserting their national identity and claiming their rights to self-determination seems to be not an isolated incident. What is the civilized world to make of this hateful racist agitation against the Oromo and the Somali nations? But, can the world ignore it as an abrasion or should the world look deeper and wider to look for evidence indicating a deeper rooted malaise? Is it an isolated work of someone with twisted mind or a reflection of a culture?

It is nothing more than a rhetoric one may argue. Nonetheless, it is important for every living Oromo and Somali to understand that hatred for their cultures and identities seems to be deeply ingrained in the soul of every Habesha –Tigre and Amhara alike. It appears that anti-Oromo and anti- Somali sentiment is deeply woven into the Abyssinian psyche. Look no further than how they demonised the Oromo Qubee when the Oromo decided to utilize the Latin alphabet and rejected the Ge’ez script which the Abyssinians use to write their languages – Amhara and Tigre languages. The Ethiopian Orthodox church called on all Oromos who learned Qubee to confess their “mortal sin” of attending Qubee classes and seek redemption. Such is the Habasha extremism and bigotry.

The Amhara have been out of power for over two decades. They, however, still dream to return. Whilst we should not be sleepless about Amhara hegemony returning anytime soon, we must be concerned as to what their cousins are doing right now. The Tigre regime in Ethiopia is perpetrating what the above war cry is calling for in a systematic way. I would argue that the ethnic cleansing, in the name of farmland sale, economic and political persecution and extermination of the Oromo people is already happening. The only difference between what is on the ground and what the above propaganda material is agitating for seems only to be the gusto and the speed of the ‘final solution’ to the “Ethiopian problem” – the Oromo and the Somali nations, the two nations to which the above audio makes frequent references.

Who is Habesha? The etymology of the term Habesha is not certain. However, the widely accepted theory is that the term Habesha comes from the Arabic word al-Habash. The Amhara and Tigre peoples constitute Abyssinians. One thing is clear thus far. History indicates that the people known as Habesha immigrated to Africa from Arabia. Axum was in the hands of the indigenous African people at the time of the arrival of the Habesha.

Geography also tells as a lot. They are sandwiched between the Beja people in the north and the Oromo people in the south since their arrival from Arabia, sometime in the first millennia. These two peoples had a common language known as Ge’ez. They now speak Amharic and Tigre languages, derived from Ge’ez. They share similar cultural heritage. They are both warlike. Listen to the author(s) of the above audio and read their history. There is no mistaking their prejudice in the superiority of their ethnic group and their culture, and their contempt for all non-Habasha peoples in that empire and beyond. Why do we not hear this sort of intolerance from Ogaden, Afar, Gurage, Oromo, etc. nations? Simply, it is because, unlike the Habasha, they are tolerant of other ethnic groups and their cultures.

The Oromo are peace-loving people. They have no problems with other peoples such as Agaw, Afar and Somali to mention but a few. They have peacefully co-existed with them except for the Habasha. But, unfortunately, they find themselves in a hostile terrain. Their relationship with their northern neighbours has so far been acrimonious to put it mildly.

Written history indicates that there has been ongoing struggle between the Oromo and their northern neighbours – Abyssinians - since time immemorial. I would like to hypothesize that the animosity even dates back to the first millennia when the immigrant Abyssinians arrived in Africa. It is easy to understand that the new arrivals would have to negotiate or even fight with the indigenous Africans including the Oromo in order to eke out a living.

Throughout out the long history of mankind conflict on resources has shaped the relationship between neighbouring communities. Therefore, the conflict between Oromia and Abyssinia is no different. The difficulty emanates from the fact that the Oromo live in Oromia and only Oromia. The Abyssinians mainly live in their homeland Abyssinia but some segments of the Abyssinian society occupy Oromia to have access to the riches of Oromia. The Oromo have shown their card i.e. quest for sovereign Oromia. The Abyssinians have become aware of this fact. The power balance at the present is with the Abyssinians. This imbalance has placed the Oromo nation at a disadvantage, an imbalance in need of urgent attention.

I have to admit I was taken aback by the depth of the knowledge of the composer of the above Abyssinian call for the extermination of the Oromo. The author of the lyric seems to have done his/her homework. I wonder how many Oromos are well versed with the efforts of our forefathers, mentioned in the negative propaganda poem, including the Raya Oromo, Anole, Calanqo, the Western Oromo Confederacy declaration of independence, etc. The Oromo need to learn history. The old adage says “those who refuse to learn from history will be punished by repeating it”. Especially Oromos in Tinsa’e Ethiopia, Ethiopian Patriotic Front, AFD, and coalition with G7, OPDO etc. political organizations must re-appraise their stand. By the way, do not forget that the Eritreans are Habesha too.

So that you will have a balanced view I would like to offer you the opportunity to tune in to what the Oromo sing and what their aspiration is:



Simply put, the Oromo claim what is theirs. Unlike the Amhara in the aforementioned war cry, they never call for the elimination of nations. What motivates someone to call for the killing of the entire nation requires a leap of imagination to fathom. Perhaps it is the Oromo dream for peace and prosperity that threatens the evil spirit in others. But, do not be deceived by the lack of reason for such hatred. Hitler did not have a reason either.

Finally, one has to think if we could cleanse Abyssinians from their contempt for the Oromo nation. The short answer is may be never. It seems to be a matter of world-view for them. It is actually how they define themselves. So for anyone to be nice to them or force them to change it will mean changing the Abyssinian make up literally in terms of identity and world-view. I truly believe that the only solution to stop this nonsense and spare the coming generation from listening to this sort of venomous dehumanizing and potentially genocidal propaganda is by bringing forward the liberation of Oromia. What ever the Abyssinians think about us will then be limited to their territory- Abyssinia and their sphere of influence. Surely, that can only be a good thing!

Have your say!

“Independent State of Oromia, a Bargaining Chip” – Dima Noggo Sarbo

In an interview he gave to ESAT (Amhara Satellite TV program) lasting about 90 minutes, Dima Nego gave a lengthy account of the Oromo struggle, the OLF, his involvement in the front and in the transitional government of 1991 in which he served as the minister of information and his opinion on the way forward.

Much of what he told the Habshaa TV station was narration of what has been in the public domain for a long time except for a few pieces he dropped in the course of the interview. Two such information that stood out for many of us were Dima’s claim to first chairmanship of the OLF and his assertions about the “true” intentions of the founders of the organization when they included the realization of independent state of Oromia in their political program.

Dima informed his listeners that the founders of the OLF never meant “itoophiyan la maganxal” (to secede Oromia from Ethiopia). According to Dima, the inclusion of achieving independent state of Oromia in the political program was only for the purpose of using it as bargaining chip in future negotiations with the colonial state. (Listen at end of article)

First Chairmanship

Dima was introduced as the first Chairman of the OLF. The introduction and the fact that Dima referred to himself as such was a surprise to many longtime members of the front for they had never heard that Dima held that position in the organization at any time. However, further investigation revealed that Dima was truly the first chairman elected around the end of 1976. But his chairmanship was to be very short lived before he abandoned the organization and his post.

In early 1977 Dima applied for a scholarship with United Nations Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP) in Dakar, Senegal, and was accepted. Without informing his comrades, Dima abandons his position, boards the plane and leaves for Dakar, Senegal. Upon realizing what had happened, the executive committee members of the OLF got together, removed him from chairmanship and elected Jaal Magarsaa Barii to replace him. According to his contemporaries, Dima severed all contacts with the OLF until he completed his education and was about to return home in 1978. Unfortunately for Dima, “red terror” was in full swing and DERG (the military government at the time) was in the middle of herding off his former comrades to prisons on allegation of being OLF members. Afraid to go home to suffer a similar fate, Dima contacts his former comrades who had escaped the DERG onslaught and were in the middle of opening a second front in Western oromia - the first being in eastern Oromia. Upon being pardoned for abandoning the organization and his post, he was allowed to join them. Over the next 13 years, Dima rose to the position of a Politburo member in the organization.

No wonder this was one of the best kept secrets in the OLF until Dima himself revealed it to a Habashaa media very recently.

But why did Dima decide to claim first chairmanship of the front now in public - after sweeping it under the rug for the last 40 years? Could it be to lend some authority and believability to what he was speaking about? Why did he particularly stress his claim to his short lived chairmanship right when he was about to “reveal” the true intention of the founders of the OLF in relation to why independent Democratic Republic of Oromia was included in the political program? Is Dima credible?

While we are on the issue of credibility, here is what Dima told his sponsors about his activities in 1980s to obtain “Global Leaders Fellowship Program” scholarship: “In the 1980s, Dima was involved in relief work among refugees and internally displaced persons in Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia. When the military government in Ethiopia collapsed in 1991, he became a member of the new government as a member of the transitional legislature and a cabinet minister in 1991-1992." (Read Here)

As Dima himself admitted in this interview, the truth, however, is far from it. Contrary to what he told his sponsors, in the 1980s, Dima was NEVER “involved in relief work among refugees and internally displaced persons in Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia.” He was an active participant and, in fact, a politburo member of the OLF. It was as a high ranking officer of the OLF that he became Minister of Information for the Transitional government of Ethiopia (1991 – 1992) to which the OLF was a party. When the OLF withdrew from the transitional government, as he explained in this interview, Dima tendered a written resignation to the TPLF government as a true bureaucrat would do (no freedom fighter would do such a thing), left the country because TPLF “would not guarantee his safety” (no freedom fighter would expect guarantee of safety from his colonizers) and, once again, abandoned the OLF to return to school.

Independent state of Oromia, a bargaining chip?

According to Dima, the call for independence of Oromia was included in the OLF political program for two reasons none of which was “Itoophiyaan la maganxal” – [to truly secede [decolonize] Oromia from Ethiopia]. The first reason was for the purpose of using it as bargaining chip in future possible negotiations with the colonial government of Ethiopia while the second reason was for the sake of being different from EPRP and MEISON – two political organizations that had already accepted the question of nations to self-determination.

Dima’a answers to these questions were huge surprises to the rank and file members and all former leaders of the organization contacted by this writer. They all describe the sense of disbelief, astonishment and betrayal they felt upon listening to what Dima had to say on these issues.

In 1982, Dima gave a similar interview to “Horn of Africa” magazine in which he was asked to “summarize the program of the OLF and tell us how much of it has been put into practice.” His response at the time was “As I stated before, the main goal of the Oromo people’s struggle, led by the OLF, is to end foreign political domination and economic exploitation. In short, [it is] to end Amhara colonial administration of Oromia and to replace it with a democratic, progressive and popular Oromo government.” (Horn of Africa, Vol. 5, No. 1, 1982).

As one of Dima’s contemporaries said “What he [Dima] said on these two issues were absolute lies. As a co-founder of the front, I can tell you that no such points were raised nor considered much less agreed upon. Obbo Dima has the right to change his mind 40 years after he first agreed to Independent state of Oromia. However, to revise history to fit ones current political views in this case would be nothing less than the epitome of opportunism wrapped in dishonesty and lack of integrity.”

Another co-founder of the OLF begins an article he recently wrote in response to the same interview by saying "these days we are starting to twisted tales in foreign language about the OLF from irresponsible veterans, novices and the anonymous." Defending his fallen comrades, the article goes on to say, "When the outlook of martyrs is being destorted and they connot rise to defende themselves, it is believed that this note may serve as an affidavit to some extent." (Read Here)

But does Dima truly understand the implications of what he said?

Simply put, Dima is asserting that our fallen heroes, the likes of Elemo Qilxuu, Gen. Taddasaa Biruu, Magarsaa Barii, Muhe Abdo, Baaroo Tumsaa, Mullis Abbaa Gadaa and more lied to those selfless Oromo youth they put in harm’s way. Besides lying to all, these true sons of the Oromo people who paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives never intended to bring about a liberated and decolonized Oromia into existence; never did they intend to dismantle the Ethiopian empire and the colonial administration. Dima would have us, and his Amhara audience, believe that the ones alive today, the likes of Jaarra Abba Gadaa, Dhugaasaa Bakakkoo, Galaasaa Dilboo, Ibsaa Guutamaa and more continue to lie to us even after 40 years. Our artisits, the likes of Ebbisa Addunyaa and Usumayyoo Muusaa paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives for a cause they were cheated into joining. The hundreds of thousands of our brethren who heeded the call of the OLF and joined the front, those who have fallen in the battle fields of Oromia to enemy fire, those who were murdered by consecutive Abyssinian governments, those who endured detention and torture for tens of years were all deceived. There is no other way of understanding Dima’s responses.

This may make Dima’s Amhara audience happy but it could not be further from the truth. If that were the case, there is no way Dima would be the sole custodian of such a “secret”. The only case in which Dima would be the lone keeper of such a “secret” would be if this has been an idea only in Dima Noggo Sarbo’s mind. Even that is doubtful given the various interviews he gave in the last 40 years in which he had given the opposite of his responses to ESAT questions.

I say, Dima’s credibility left much to be desired.

What do you say?!