Monday, January 1

The Courage of A Child/ More Arrests Bring in the New Year

I have been unable to get over the fact that local police shot and killed a young boy in front of his classmates at his elementary school. I know it is not the first time such horrors have occurred here, and sadly will most likely not be the last…but I cannot get it out of my thoughts. I think my heart is broken.

There is more to the tragic story reported last week by Ethio-Zagol:

A Grade six class at Africa Andenet Elementary School decided to protest against their school director, insisting that his frequent and unjustified beatings made it impossible for them to learn. The admirably defiant kids refused to continue their lessons and moved to the school courtyard, at which time the local police were called.

Simply for daring to demand a safe learning environment, a young boy was shot and killed at close range within the confines of the school yard. He couldn’t even run away...


These are the lessons being learned by the children in this country. This is what happens to their dreams.
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MORE ARRESTS BRING IN THE NEW YEAR:

Though I was assured last week by an Amnesty International worker that “Meles likely wouldn’t dare try anything over the holidays”, (as “Ethiopia is a Christian country”), mass arrests continued throughout the weekend. Local police have now started arresting known opposition party members and supporters from their homes.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

What is happening in Ethiopia is so sad. The world needs to know. Meles is hiding behind Somalia and cracking down locally - he has found the best opportunity to oppress and kill unnoticed, little he knows the good of Ethiopia and its people only helps him. People like him make Africa an embarrassement breeding addicted murderers and terrorists. Ethiopia has never been this terrorized, for that matter has any other country been this terrorized ever? This is beyond ignorance and cruelity and we must end it soon. Please keep telling the real stories so the world knows. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Thank you!

Anonymous said...

MENGEDEGNA- You are a good man. I am assuming you are a man based on your writing. If I am wrong, I am sorry. What you are saying is 100% true. Ethiopians are slowly but surely coming to realize that Europeans and AMericans have a death wish for Ethiopians. The policies of the EU and US simply does not make sense from a logical point of view. They are driving a peaceful kind people to extremism because that is the only thing that they pay attention to.