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2016 January: Government drops plans to expand Addis Ababa boundaries after months of protests by Oromo ethnic group
fearing farmers could be displaced. Rights groups estimate at least 140 people killed by security forces during protests.
Millions of people face dire food shortages after Ethiopia suffers its worst drought in decades.
2016 July: Tens of thousands of people from Ethiopia's ethnic Amhara group take part in an anti-government demonstration in
the northern city of Gondar.
2016 September: The African Union calls for restraint in Ethiopia after months of anti-government protests which began in the
central Oromo region before spreading to Amhara in the north. Human rights groups say at least 500 people have been killed.
2016 September: Britain, the EU and the World Bank announce a project to create 100,000 jobs in Ethiopia. A third of the jobs
will be for Eritrean refugees to whom the Ethiopian government will grant full employment rights.
2016 October: Government declares a six-month state of emergency following months of violent anti-government protests.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13351397; Retrieved 2016-11-05
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Shortly after VICE News visited Shashamane, the town where hundreds of Rastafarians still reside on the land that Selassie
designated to them, an elder Rastafari man was murdered in his home, in what appears to be motivated by land tensions of the
sort that are characterizing the country.
She said there has not been any backlash or increased animosity; there was a common understanding of the greater issues
affecting the whole country, which had been demonstrated on a personal level in this incidence. “Land has become a very
precious commodity, and in Ethiopia you’re not allowed to own land, you’re occupying it, but at the same time it’s so precious
that it’s money to people.”
Shashamane is located in the Oromia Region — where deadly protests have been taking place over the past few months against
the government’s recently-shelved “master plan” — a strategy to expand Addis Ababa into the farmland surrounding it.
At least 140 people — many students — were reportedly killed by government security forces during demonstrations that
began in November.
http://ecadforum.com/2016/02/07/a-murder-in-shashamane-ethiopia-shaken-the-rastafarian/;Retrieved 2016-11-05
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Human Rights Watch
Need for an independent investigation
Recent calls for an international investigation reflect the gravity of human rights violations that we and others have
documented, but also the lack of a credible, transparent, and impartial national investigation into the abuses that have occurred
since November 2015. The June 2016 Human Rights Commission oral report to parliament that largely exonerated the state
security forces did not meet basic international standards. No one, including several parliamentarians who have spoken to
Human Rights Watch, has seen a written version of the report, which reaches conclusions very different from those of all other
organizations who have documented abuses. If a written version of this report exists we urge you to publicly release it.
http://ecadforum.com/2016/11/04/open-letter-to-the-government-of-ethiopia-hrw/;Retrieved 2016-11-05
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Shashamane is fed up of Agazi
After being subjected to daily killings for peacefully demanding their rights for the last 3 months, the Oromo people are within
their legitimate right to hit back against ruthless Agazi soldiers. Last month elders from all provinces of Oromia traveled to
Finfinne demanding to speak with appropriate authorities. But no one wanted to talk to them. The federal government refused
to see them. The regional authorities were also prevented from meeting with them. Hence they left recorded and written
message which included demanding immediate withdrawals of the military from villages and towns. The elders explained with
evidence how soldiers have been abusing women, attacking youth for no reason, robbing businessmen and obstructing farmers.
This demand was echoed by OPDO central committee which demanded withdrawal of federal forces from the region. Yet the
military does not only remain in Oromia but also more reinforcement is being sent to several districts.
http://www.satenaw.com/shashamane-is-fed-up-of-agazi/; Retrieved 2016-11-05
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