[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 16]
[Senate]
[Page 22841]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        ASSISTANCE FOR ETHIOPIA

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, after the overthrow of Ethiopia's brutal 
former Prime Minister Mengistu, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi ushered in 
a period of hope and optimism. On May 15, 2005, Ethiopia held its first 
open multiparty elections. The international community praised the 
people of Ethiopia for an astounding 90 percent voter participation 
rate, an encouraging beginning to a new political process. The 
Ethiopian people deserve a democratic process in which opposition 
parties can organize and participate, and journalists can publish 
freely, without fear of arrest or retribution. Unfortunately, as it 
turned out, the 2005 election was not the turning point many had hoped 
for.
  Early polls suggested the opposition Coalition for Unity and 
Democracy Party would make gains in the Ethiopian Parliament that could 
threaten the control of Prime Minister Meles' ruling Ethiopian People's 
Revolutionary Democratic Front. These reports were followed by credible 
allegations of manipulation of the vote-counting process. When the 
government finally announced results that assured its continued hold on 
power, thousands of people took to the streets in protest. The police 
arrested over 30,000 people and some 193 people were killed. Although 
most of the protesters were released soon after their arrest, 70 
opposition leaders and journalists remained in prison.
  Following these events, I wrote to Ethiopia's Ambassador Kassahun 
Ayele and officials at the State Department to express my concern with 
the imprisonment of the Ethiopian politicians. Human rights 
organizations and other international figures condemned the detentions 
and urged Prime Minister Meles to release them. These efforts were to 
no avail.
  Some detainees remained in jail for over 2 years before being brought 
to trial in a manner that was incompatible with international standards 
of justice. Last month, they were convicted of such vague charges as 
``outrage against the constitution'' and ``inciting armed opposition.'' 
They were stripped of their rights to vote and to run for public 
office. Several were sentenced to life in prison. Nothing was done to 
prosecute the police officers who fired on the protesters. The 
situation had gone from bad to worse.
  Then suddenly, less than 2 weeks ago, the Ethiopian Government 
announced the pardon and release of 38 opposition leaders. I am pleased 
that Prime Minister Meles heeded the pleas of the Ethiopian people and 
the international community and released these prisoners. The fact is, 
none of them should have been arrested or tried in the first place. 
Their release was long overdue and is welcome.
  I hope the government acts expeditiously to release the remaining 
political detainees, and bring to justice police officers who used 
excessive force. I also hope the negotiations that resulted in the 
prisoners' release will lead to further discussions between the 
government and the leaders of the opposition, to ensure that their 
political rights are fully restored and that future elections are not 
similarly marred.
  While this news is positive, it comes at a time when journalists and 
representatives of humanitarian organizations report human rights 
abuses of civilians, including torture, rape and extrajudicial 
killings, by Ethiopian security forces, including those trained and 
equipped by the U.S., in the Ogaden region.
  Congressman Donald Payne, chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa and 
Global Health, and a vocal defender of human rights and democracy in 
Ethiopia, inserted into the Congressional Record a June 18, 2007, New 
York Times article that described these abuses.
  This situation is also addressed in the Senate version of the fiscal 
year 2008 State, Foreign Operations Appropriations bill and report, 
which were reported by the Appropriations Committee on July 10. The 
Appropriations Committee seeks assurance from the State Department that 
military assistance for Ethiopia is being adequately monitored and is 
not being used against civilians by units of Ethiopia's security 
forces. We need to know that the State Department is investigating 
these reports. We also want to see effective measures by the Ethiopian 
Government to bring to justice anyone responsible for such abuses.
  Unfortunately, it appears that the Bush administration has made 
little effort to monitor military aid to Ethiopia. It is no excuse that 
the Ethiopian military has impeded access to the Ogaden, as it has 
done. In fact, this should give rise to a sense of urgency. If we 
cannot properly investigate these reports, and if the Leahy law which 
prohibits U.S. assistance to units of foreign security forces that 
violate human rights is not being applied because the U.S. Embassy 
cannot determine the facts, then we should not be supporting these 
forces.
  As if the allegations of human rights violations were not enough, the 
New York Times reported on July 22 that the Ethiopian military is 
blocking food aid to the Ogaden region. The article also claimed that 
the military is ``siphoning off millions'' of dollars intended for food 
aid and a UN polio eradication program. A subsequent article on July 26 
indicated that the World Food Program and the Ethiopian Government have 
reached agreement, after weeks of discussions, on a process for getting 
food aid through the military blockade to civilians in the Ogaden 
region. But the same article also reported that regional Ethiopian 
officials have expelled the Red Cross.
  During the Cold War we supported some of the world's most brutal, 
corrupt dictators because they were anti-Communist. Their people, and 
our reputation, suffered as a result. Now the White House seems to 
support just about anyone who says they are against terrorism, no 
matter how undemocratic or corrupt. It is short sighted, it tarnishes 
our image, and it will cost us dearly in the long term.
  Prime Minister Meles has been an ally against Islamic extremism in 
the Horn of Africa, for which we are grateful. But there are serious 
concerns with Ethiopia's U.S.-supported military invasion of Somalia. 
It has led to some of the same problems associated with the Bush 
administration's misguided decision to invade Iraq without a plan for 
leaving the country more stable and secure than before the overthrow of 
Saddam. Iraq's partition now seems only a matter of time, and it is 
hard to be optimistic that Somalia a year from now will be any more 
secure, or any less of a threat to regional stability, than before the 
influx of Ethiopian troops.
  Ethiopia is also a poor country that has faced one natural or man-
made disaster after another, and the U.S. has responded with hundreds 
of millions of dollars in humanitarian and other assistance. We have a 
long history of supporting Ethiopia and its people, and we want to 
continue that support. But our support to the government is not 
unconditional. We will not ignore the unlawful imprisonment of 
political opponents or the mistreatment of journalists. We will not 
ignore reports of abuses of civilians by Ethiopian security forces

                          ____________________