White House News: The President on the Middle East Serious Human Rights Abuses, Posted by Menelik Zeleke, White House Correspondent

 

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

___________________________________________________________________________________________________

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                              February 23, 2011

Statement by the Press Secretary on the Designation of Iranian Officials

Responsible for or Complicit in Serious Human Rights Abuses

The historic events unfolding in the Middle East underscore the importance of protecting human rights around the world, which all nations have a responsibility to uphold.  In accordance with U.S. law and the Administration’s commitment to supporting the universal rights of the Iranian people, the Departments of State and Treasury designated today two Iranian government officials responsible for serious human rights abuses against the people of Iran.  

Today’s designation of Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, Tehran Prosecutor General, and Mohammed Reza Naqdi, commander of the Basij Forces, supplements the list of eight Iranian officials designated in September 2010 for human rights abuses pursuant to the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010, which imposes sanctions against senior officials in the Iranian government who, based on credible evidence, were involved in the commission of serious human rights abuses during or after Iran’s 2009 presidential election.  The individuals designated will be subject to financial sanctions and visa ineligibilities under U.S. law.  The list of names is not exhaustive and will continue to grow based on events in Iran, and as additional information and evidence becomes available. 

As President Obama has said, human rights are a matter of moral and pragmatic necessity for the United States.  The people of Iran should be able to express their opinions and their grievances without fear of reprisal from their government.  The United States reaffirms its support to all those in Iran and around the world who are struggling to have their voices heard and rights respected.  We continue to call upon the Iranian government to respect the rights of its people and we will continue to hold accountable those who infringe upon those universal rights.

MACTV News: Arab rage should we worry? , Posted by Menelik Zeleke

Monday, 21 February 2011 14:28  By Kirubel Tadesse

With several regimes in Northern Africa facing popular revolts and neighboring countries’ leaders such as Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak decades long strong grip on power crimpling down by public protests, Ethiopia’s rival political camps are reacting to surrounding changes; the opposition says a similar scenario is likely to be seen here due to dire political and economic conditions while the ruling front touts its economic and political policies that they say have been bearing fruits, giving the public hope and preempting  such happenings.
State of affairs in Ethiopia
The states of socioeconomic and political affairs is where the ruling Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and its rivals, for example the main opposition group Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ), first differ on assessments.
UDJ says the economic hardship and absence of a democratic system that has led to popular rebellions across North African and Arab countries is also exhibited here in Ethiopia.
“When we see continued uprisings in Egypt, Tunisia and in other places, we find dictators who stayed in power for long with the so called dominant party state. The second character they all have is their governments don’t respect basic human and democratic rights while they intimidate arrest and kill those who protest their unjust systems. On the economic front, unemployment, hyper inflation and unaffordable living conditions are characteristics these places all have. All these hardships, socioeconomic and political conditions are also a reality here and they exist in Ethiopia even in worst degree,” says UDJ’s first vice chair Negasso Gidada (PhD).
The ruling EPRDF however paints a very different picture of Ethiopia. EPRDF says let alone resembling the hopelessness seen in Arab countries, Ethiopia today has become a benchmark, success story envied by others.
“There you see countries that have reached a middle income stage, but no longer are able to continue to grow. They have reached middle income status but have failed to maintain growth and now they have a high unemployment rate and inequitable distribution of wealth,” says Bereket Simon, EPRDF’s senior official and Government Communication Affairs Minister.
“Here we are embracing a growth era. The government is working to sustain uninterrupted economic growth and transformation from one chapter to another and more than ever, we have a public that has seen a glimmer of hope. We are succeeding both in creation of wealth and distributing it equitably across the public,” Bereket adds.
Former Defense Minister Siye Abraha, who is now among the leading opposition figures and a vice chair at UDJ, doesn’t accept the argument of economic growth.  “It was also said that Tunisia is registering economic growth and Egypt’s economy as well was recognized as a strong one. However, economic growth without a democratic system is unhealthy. Growth without democracy is anemic and corrupt development from which very few, the ones that are close to the regime, benefit from while the majority youth even with a university degree sits at home without a job and that’s exactly what we have in Ethiopia,” Siye argues.
Could similar protests happen here?
The 18 day old protest at Cairo Tharir [Liberation] Square, which successfully pushed Hosni Mubarak out of office, inspired many across Africa even opposition groups in ongoing Ugandan elections are vowing to emulate it; will Ethiopian youth be similarly inspired, will we see a revolt here?
“I don’t think the changes we desire, change to a democratic system, can be attained via revolution,” says the opposition Ethiopian Democratic Party president Lidetu Ayalew.
“We can attain what we desire through elections, with which we can assure a more certain outcome. Often revolution driven changes are uncertain and even those who started it go to a different path than they had planned. As we are seeing the future is in an uncertain path for Egypt, for example. Revolution is not something I desire for my country,” Lidetu adds.
Lidetu also downplays recent calls for an Egyptian style revolt posted on opposition websites: “In Egypt and Tunisia, the political parties there didn’t organize the revolutions as it was mainly spearheaded by the youth and the wider public. I have seen lately that some groups and individuals, mainly those living abroad, are trying to incite such actions from abroad via the Internet which would lead to nowhere.”
Lidetu argues Ethiopia is different from Egypt and Tunisia and it is highly unlikely that similar public revolts would surface anytime soon: “Ethiopia is different from Egypt in so many ways; if you noticed, those demonstrating there were in suits and wearing jeans; people  you may call middle income earners and they were not the poor that can’t get bread- you don’t have that here. There you have 3 million Internet users and a country where more than 90 percent embrace the same religion, and language which is very different from ethnic and language diversities we have; which altogether creates a very different socioeconomic and political situation. They have also a very warm, good relationship between the army and the public, which isn’t the case here.”
“If we say there is a similarity it can be the character of the regime, but that does not mean the means to change the regime should be similar,” Lidetu however stresses also cautioning that though undesired, popular revolt could happen and EPRDF should take lessons from what happened in other countries and reform vital areas such as strengthening public institutions and enforcing the full extent of laws that embrace human and democratic rights and civil liberties.
For UDJ’s Siye Ethiopia’s situation is bleaker: “The first question shouldn’t be whether we need a revolt or not rather it should be will there be a revolt or not. Wherever there is oppression, wherever there is injustice, there will be protest and, there will be struggle. In Ethiopia too there is a deep discontent and suffering among the public and it is inevitable that it will lead to protest through time.”
Siye, the former EPRDF front man himself who led a 17 year old armed struggle as the nation unseated a brutal communist regime, says public uprising in Ethiopia however inevitable it may be [unless EPRDF reforms], doesn’t mean that it will come immediately just because it happened recently in Egypt or Tunisia.
“Egyptians have come over their fear; they said ‘enough, enough.’ They said ‘no matter what happens, whether they kill or arrest us, we will not budge’ and they flocked to the streets from every direction to demand change. There will be a time Ethiopians too will overcome their fear and rise; no matter what they [the government] do, they will not stop this from happening. Egyptian authorities have tried to preempt it but they chose a forceful way that was unable to stop the uprising.”
Siye says there is no need for public rebellion: “to bring about change there shouldn’t be always bloodshed or destruction of properties. Ethiopia’s regime as wise governments do can draw a lesson from what has been happening and can prepare itself to bring about change. Understanding that such an uprising is inevitable, rather than preparing police, the approach should be to open doors for change and to allow the public to express its distress. The government should allow the public to express its opinion and listen to it and in accordance to delivering corrective measures; if they are able to do that we can witnesses change without any unnecessary tension, destruction of property or loss of life. So the ball is now in the court of our rulers; what will they choose? Will they chose peace, tolerance and dialogue or will they choose force to respond; that will be their decision to make.”
EPRDF’s outlook
EPRDF, which has led Ethiopia since 1991, wining all successive four elections, the latest one by collecting more than 90% of the votes, says popular revolts in Ethiopia will not be seen.
“No, we don’t,” firmly replied the senior cabinet minister Bereket Simon when asked if his government expects public rebellions like the ones seen in Egypt.
According to EPRDF’s assessment, there is no chance for a public uprising in Ethiopia as the predominately factor for such uprising in Egypt and Tunisia were middle income states that  no longer could drive through economic growth, and failed to provide enough jobs and equitable wealth distribution creating desperation among the public hardly resembles Ethiopia.
“There [where popular revolts happen] are desperate people, people who have nowhere to turn to. Our people are not desperate, here we have a public that has seen hope, a public that enjoys a glimmer of hope more than ever due to the recent years’ economic growth and transformation,” Bereket says.
According to the minister, for a country like Ethiopia that currently enjoys a higher economic growth and brighter future that is transferring lives of the public, uprisings that happen where there is dire situation are not a cause for concern.
“We have embraced democracy, freedom of expression is widely exercised and the public can put in power whomever it wants through elections,” Bereket elaborates explaining that without a need to go to the streets, Ethiopians enjoy freedom and rights to express themselves and bring about changes they desire.
EPRDF says, the assessment of opposition that says Ethiopian public is a desperate one comes from their inability to look into what is really happening; “they are impaired from reading the actual picture of our country and that has been the source of the mistakes they commit,” said Bereket.
Bereket says as the Ethiopian opposition remains unable to appreciate democratic and constitutional exercises the nation has embraced, they are often lured in whenever any violence or street clashes are observed elsewhere: “Whenever riots happen; be it the so called orange or any other fruit revolution or jasmine; whatever  happens, if it is it violence and street clashes that costs life, they are lured to it and they want to take lesson from it and emulate it here.”
Bereket insists it isn’t a concern for EPRDF whatever the opposition imagines will happen. “It is not only that EPRDF isn’t concerned with this, let alone now, even in 2005 where there hasn’t been an economic growth of the current scale, there wasn’t an uprising. There was violence because the opposition incited it and there was desperation to some extent, but now there is a higher rate of growth and the public is fully aware of it.”

UN News: Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General on Egypt

Egyptians count the cost and loss due to the turmoil, Posted by Meosha Eaton

As reported by Reuters:

* Violence flares in desert province, breaking relative calm
* U.S., Germany call for end to emergency rule
* Al Qaeda Iraqi arm tells Egyptians to topple government
* Next big action planned for Friday (Adds violence in desert province)

By Yasmine Saleh and Patrick Werr CAIRO,

Feb 9 (Reuters) - Egyptians counted the economic cost of more than two weeks of turmoil on Wednesday as re-invigorated protesters flocked again to Cairo's Tahrir Square to demand President Hosni Mubarak quit immediately. A day after Egyptians staged one of their biggest protests in the capital, Tahrir Square remained crowded although no demonstration had been scheduled. Karam Mohamed, from Beheira province in the Nile Delta, said the protests were growing.

"We are putting pressure on them little by little and in the end they will fall." Protesters said the organisers were working on plans to move on to the state radio and television building on Friday, the day of the next big scheduled demonstration. "I think people outside will make crowds outside the radio and television ... President Mubarak will fall soon, in three or four days," said Mohamed Sadik, a Cairo engineer.

Security sources said a protester was killed and several suffered gunshot wounds in clashes with police in a desert province far from Cairo on Tuesday and Wednesday, the first serious confrontation since the "Day of Wrath" on Jan. 28 led to the army's deployment on the streets. With Mubarak refusing to step down before his term ends in September, the government has tried to portray itself as a bulwark against militant Islam and called for a return to normality for the sake of the economy.

In Berlin, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle called on the Egyptian government to end emergency law and implement more political reform, echoing comments made by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday. The Obama administration appears worried that Mubarak's government will not make meaningful changes in the most populous Arab nation, a strategic U.S. partner due to its peace treaty with Israel and control of the Suez Canal. Vice President Omar Suleiman, who has been holding talks with opposition groups, has said there was now a road map to hand over power, but protesters have been unmoved by the plan.

DEATH AT IN THE DESERT
Government attempts to defuse the popular anger which erupted on Jan. 25 have so far fallen flat and the economy is suffering. "We cannot bear this situation for a long time and we must end this crisis as soon as possible," Suleiman said on Tuesday. Analysts at Credit Agricole bank estimate the crisis is costing Egypt $310 million a day. Ezzsteel, Egypt's largest steel maker, reported its plants were operating below full capacity but said an investigation involving its chairman, who had held a senior position in Mubarak's party, would not affect company activity. Chairman Ahmed Ezz denied allegations about vote rigging in parliamentary elections last November.

In Oslo, Statoil ASA said it was no longer drilling in Egypt. The Suez Canal, a vital source of foreign currency, reported a 1.6 percent drop in revenue in January from December. But the figure was up from a year earlier, and officials have said operations have been unaffected by the turmoil. Likewise, a feared collapse in the Egyptian pound has failed to materialise although the authorities have acted in support. The central bank said on Wednesday it was prepared to intervene directly in the currency market again after an intervention on Tuesday.

"We will intervene when we see the market is not orderly. If it is not, we will use our tools," Deputy Governor Hisham Ramez told Reuters, saying the market so far was quiet and orderly. The Egyptian pound slipped slightly in early trade after the central bank had stepped in to boost it by more than 1 percent on Tuesday when it hit a six-year low. CLASH IN THE DESERT The protester died when security forces clashed with a crowd of around 3,000 in New Valley, a province about 500 km (300 miles) from Cairo that includes a desert oasis. It appeared to be the first serious clash since Jan. 28, when police all but disappeared from Egyptian streets after they had beaten, teargassed and fired rubber bullets at protesters.

Mubarak sent the army onto the streets that night, but several days of looting and lawlessness followed the withdrawal of police and many prisoners escaped from prison. Al Qaeda's Iraq-based arm the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) attacked the Egyptian government for failing to implement strict Islamic law, and said it was better for Muslims to die fighting their government rather than live under its rule. It called on Egyptian Muslims to free all prisoners from their nation's jails after Suleiman said on Tuesday that militants linked to al Qaeda were among the thousands who escaped from jails. "Don't rest until you have rescued them all, then destroy them (the prisons) with the aid of God, so that not a single stone remains standing," it said in a statement on Islamist websites.

The ISI's links to Egyptian militants and the strength of its influence are unclear, but some analysts said the group may have inspired a deadly attack on an Egyptian church last month. The Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist organisation seen as Egypt's largest opposition group, renounced violence as a means to achieve political change in Egypt decades ago and has warned that government efforts to stamp out its influence could push some towards more radical ideas.

Many of those who swelled the ranks of protesters on Tuesday were joining for the first time, and some said they were inspired by a Google executive's tearful televised interview after he was detained by security forces. Google had launched a service to help Egyptians circumvent government restrictions on using the social network Twitter, enabling them to dial a telephone number and leave a voice mail that would then be sent on the online service.

(Additional reporting by Samia Nakhoul, Tom Perry, Dina Zayed, Marwa Awad, Andrew Hammond, Alexander Dziadosz, Yasmine Saleh, Sherine El Madany, and Alison Williams in Cairo; Erika Solomon in Dubai; Brian Rohan in Berlin; Writing by David Stamp, Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)

Mubarak promise comes after private Obama message, Posted by Meosha Eaton

* Special envoy for Obama urged transition in power
* Analysts question if Mubarak vow will satisfy clamor
* Influential U.S. lawmakers added to pressure on Mubarak (New throughout with more details)

By Caren Bohan and Andrew Quinn
WASHINGTON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - President Hosni Mubarak's speech announcing he will not seek reelection in September came after Washington delivered its clearest message yet that he should bow to popular pressure and prepare to transfer power.
After days of pressing Mubarak to address the grievances of his people, Obama sent an envoy to privately urge the Egyptian president on Tuesday to prepare for a transition of power.

Hours later, Obama and his advisers watched a recorded speech by Mubarak in which the Egyptian leader said he would not run for the presidency in September and would work in the last months of his term to allow the transfer of power.

Obama, who is to deliver remarks on Egypt later on Tuesday, has sought to balance his desire to see reform with concern that change take place in an orderly fashion in Egypt, a longtime U.S. ally in the region and the most populous Arab nation.

It was far from clear that the path to transfer power that Mubarak laid out would satisfy the hundreds of thousands of protesters who had gathered across Egypt earlier in the day to call on him step down immediately.

"It won't work. This just really won't work," Elliot Abrams, a former deputy national security adviser, told CNN.

ORDERLY TRANSITION
"I can't see anybody in Tahrir Square accepting that he will be president for eight more months and that he would, after 30 years, be trusted to be the man in charge of the democratic transition. Why would anyone believe that?"

Former U.S. ambassador Frank Wisner met with Mubarak earlier and delivered a message about the need to prepare for an orderly transition, according to U.S. officials.
Critics have accused the U.S. administration of being slow to grasp the scale of upheaval in Egypt after similar protests toppled nearby Tunisia's longtime president on Jan. 14.

The Obama administration reached out on Tuesday, not only to Mubarak, but to other key players on both sides of the crisis.

The U.S. ambassador to Egypt, Margaret Scobey, spoke to Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, an opposition figure who has seen rising support from a broad swath of Egyptian groups.

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates spoke with Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, Egypt's defense minister. The Pentagon declined to give details about the call.
Oil prices jumped above $102 per barrel on Tuesday amid concern about port disruptions in Egypt.

ElBaradei, the former head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog, returned to Egypt last week and has since seen growing support from opposition groups, including the banned Islamist group the Muslim Brotherhood, Christians, intellectuals and others.
Edward Walker, a former U.S. ambassador to Egypt and Israel, said there may be little patience among Egyptians for a graceful exit for Mubarak.

"I think we are going to see continuing demands for his immediate ouster," Walker said.
"UNREALISTIC"

Some U.S. lawmakers also reacted with skepticism to Mubarak's announcement. The U.S. senator who oversees foreign aid said Mubarak had no credibility to oversee Egypt's transition, and he renewed a threat to withhold aid from Egypt if it necessary to push for democracy there.

"President Mubarak's decision to stand down from future leadership of the government is welcome, but his continued role in Egypt's transition is unrealistic," said Senator Patrick Leahy, who chairs the Senate appropriations subcommittee that approves U.S. foreign aid.

"We (the United States) should do what we can to support a transition to democracy including, if it becomes necessary, withholding aid to the government," Leahy, a Democrat, said.

Senator John Kerry, a Democrat who is close to Obama, said Mubarak had made an important announcement about bringing his presidency to an end, but "...it remains to be seen whether this is enough to satisfy the demands of the Egyptian people for change."

Mubarak should now work with the military and civil society to establish a caretaker government, Kerry, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in a statement.

Kerry, in an opinion piece in the New York Times published earlier on Tuesday, had called on Mubarak to quit power.

But Obama and his aides have been reticent about publicly urging Mubarak, 82, to step down, in part of concern that it would unsettle other authoritarian U.S. allies in the region.

Brian Katulis, security analyst at the Center for American Progress, said Mubarak's move was the start of a "very complicated political transition and negotiated process."
"It is unclear what comes next," Katulis said. (Additional reporting by Susan Cornwell, Phil Stewart and David Alexander; writing by Caren Bohan; editing by Mohammad Zargham, Frances Kerry and Eric Walsh)

President Mubarak's speech after mass protest, Posted by Meosha Eaton

CAIRO, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Following is the text of a televised speech delivered by President Hosni Mubarak on Tuesday after a million Egyptians took to the streets demanding he leave office:


"I talk to you during critical times that are testing Egypt and its people which could sweep them into the unknown. The country is passing through difficult times and tough experiences which began with noble youths and citizens who practise their rights to peaceful demonstrations and protests, expressing their concerns and aspirations but they were quickly exploited by those who sought to spread chaos and violence, confrontation and to violate the constitutional legitimacy and to attack it."

"Those protests were transformed from a noble and civilised phenomenon of practising freedom of expression to unfortunate clashes, mobilised and controlled by political forces that wanted to escalate and worsen the situation. They targeted the nation's security and stability through acts of provocation theft and looting and setting fires and blocking roads and attacking vital installations and public and private properties and storming some diplomatic missions."

"We are living together painful days and the most painful thing is the fear that affected the huge majority of Egyptians and caused concern and anxiety over what tomorrow could bring them and their families and the future of their country."

"The events of the last few days require us all as a people and as a leadership to chose between chaos and stability and to set in front of us new circumstances and a new Egyptian reality which our people and armed forces must work with wisely and in the interest of Egypt and its citizens.

"Dear bothers and citizens, I took the initiative of forming a new government with new priorities and duties that respond to the demand of our youth and their mission. I entrusted the vice president with the task of holding dialogue with all the political forces and factions about all the issues that have been raised concerning political and democratic reform and the constitutional and legislative amendments required to realise these legitimate demands and to restore law and order but there are some political forces who have refused this call to dialogue, sticking to their particular agendas without concern for the current delicate circumstances of Egypt and its people."

"In light of this refusal to the call for dialogue and this is a call which remains standing, I direct my speech today directly to the people, its Muslims and Christians, old and young, peasants and workers, and all Egyptian men and women in the countryside and city over the whole country."

"I have never, ever been seeking power and the people know the difficult circumstances that I shouldered my responsibility and what I offered this country in war and peace, just as I am a man from the armed forces and it is not in my nature to betray the trust or give up my responsibilities and duties.

"My primary responsibility now is security and independence of the nation to ensure a peaceful transfer of power in circumstances that protect Egypt and the Egyptians and allow handing over responsibility to whoever the people choose in the coming presidential election.

"I say in all honesty and regardless of the current situation that I did not intend to nominate myself for a new presidential term. I have spent enough years of my life in the service of Egypt and its people.

"I am now absolutely determined to finish my work for the nation in a way that ensures handing over its safe-keeping and banner ... preserving its legitimacy and respecting the constitution.
"I will work in the remaining months of my term to take the steps to ensure a peaceful transfer of power.

"According to my constitutional powers, I call on parliament in both its houses to discuss amending article 76 and 77 of the constitution concerning the conditions on running for presidency of the republic and it sets specific a period for the presidential term. In order for the current parliament in both houses to be able to discuss these constitutional amendments and the legislative amendments linked to it for laws that complement the constitution and to ensure the participation of all the political forces in these discussions, I demand parliament to adhere to the word of the judiciary and its verdicts concerning the latest cases which have been legally challenged.

"I will entrust the new government to perform in ways that will achieve the legitimate rights of the people and that its performance should express the people and their aspirations of political, social and economic reform and to allow job opportunities and combating poverty, realising social justice.

"In this context, I charge the police apparatus to carry out its duty in serving the people, protecting the citizens with integrity and honour with complete respect for their rights, freedom and dignity.

"I also demand the judicial and supervisory authorities to take immediately the necessary measures to continue pursuing outlaws and to investigate those who caused the security disarray and those who undertook acts of theft, looting and setting fires and terrorising citizens.

"This is my pledge to the people during the last remaining months of my current term:
"I ask God to help me to honour this pledge to complete my vocation to Egypt and its people in what satisfies God, the nation and its people.

"Dear citizens, Egypt will emerge from these current circumstances stronger, more confident and unified and stable. And our people will emerge with more awareness of how to achieve reconciliation and be more determined not to undermine its future and destiny.

"Hosni Mubarak who speaks to you today is proud of the long years he spent in the service of Egypt and its people. This dear nation is my country, it is the country of all Egyptians, here I have lived and fought for its sake and I defended its land, its sovereignty and interests and on this land I will die and history will judge me and others for our merits and faults.

"The nation remains. Visitors come and go but ancient Egypt will remain eternal, its banner and safekeeping will pass from one generation to the next. It is up to us to ensure this in pride and dignity."

(Translating by Samia Nakhoul and Andrew Hammond)