Death Toll Rises To Nearly 100 In Ethiopia Protests

There have also been protests in Ethiopia’s Oromia region with local media reporting that dozens of people were shot dead in towns across the region, though the exact number is yet to be confirmed. The Oromo were joined recently by the ethnic Amharas who have protested in other areas of Ethiopia.

The government has only put the death toll at seven.

“All those arrested during the protests must be immediately and unconditionally released as they are unjustly being held for exercising their right to freedom of opinion”. “Ethiopian forces have systematically used excessive force in their mistaken attempts to silence dissenting voices”.

With at least 27 million people, Oromia is the most populous of the country’s federal states and has its own language, Oromo, distinct from Ethiopia’s official Amharic language.

Unconfirmed reports say several people were killed.

The U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa issued a statement expressing concern with the weekend violence, acknowledging that while many demonstrations “took place without authorization”, the U.S. nonetheless called on Ethiopia to respect the rights of all citizens, “including those with opposition views”, to free speech and free assembly.

Protests first began last November when the government had plans to expand the capital into Oromia, which would in turn displace Oromo farmers in the region.

Amhara region president Gedu Andargachew did not mention any deaths but told journalists the protests were illegal and said security services would take measures against anyone who took part.

“It has now become clear that people can not hold peaceful protests in Ethiopia”, said Seyoum Teshome, a blogger who monitored the demonstrations.

Ethiopian authorities had imposed a blanket internet blockade throughout the weekend.

After toppling Mengistu Haile Mariam’s Marxist military dictatorship, the former rebels set up the boundaries that they said would recognise the country’s different groups and prevent any one from dominating the others through a system of so-called ethnic federalism.

Some 500 ethnic Oromo people protesting both discrimination and what they perceive as economic equality, gathered iin Meskel Square amid a heavy police presence, shouting slogans such as “we want our freedom” and “free our political prisoners”.

Internet access was almost impossible Saturday in Addis Ababa itself, an AFP journalist said.