Broken bones and body bags: horrors facing Ethiopian domestic workers(The Daily Star)

In one recent case, Mekdes Tesfaye Tefera's corpse was found with a noose around her neck. But the consulate has doubts that this was a self-inflicted death and has filed a police report.
"They always say, 'she killed herself,'" the social affairs officer said.
In the case of Zebiba Kedr, who is currently hospitalized, the consulate is working on having charges laid against the woman for whom she was working. The employers have stated that Kedr fell from the 12th floor of their building, but the head of the consular section said that when he went to see her in the hospital and asked her "Madame" had pushed her, she indicated 'yes' by blinking her eyes. read more...

G7 condemns the ongoing mass detention of Oromos Ethiopian Media Forum)

The Meles dictatorship is known for forging documents, producing fake witnesses and conjuring up spectacular crimes, such as treason and genocide against any one, even peaceful human right activists. Seen in this context, the recent mass detention of Oromos under the pretext of foiling a terror plot is a complete farce. We believe that it is an attempt by the regime to gain the sympathy of the new U.S. president...read more

የለውጥ ዝናብ መቼ ይሆን በኢትዮጵያ የሚያካፋው? (ግርማ ካሳ) (Ethiopia Zare)

ጥቂት ደቂቃዎች እንደቆየሁ ለቅሶው የደስታ ብቻ መሆኑ ቀረና የኀዘን እየሆነ መጣ። የተፍታታውና በፈገግታ የተሞላው ፊቴ መጥቆር ጀመረ። የተወለድኩባትና ማንነቴ የሆነችዋን ሀገሬ ኢትዮጵያን አሰብኩ። ድህነቷ፣ ለማኝነቷ፣ የልጆቿ በዘር መከፋፈል፣ የልጆቿ መራብ፣ የልጆቿ በዓለም ዙሪያ ሀገር እንደሌላቸው መበታተንና የልጆቿን መብት መረገጥ ወደ አዕምሮዬ ሲመጣ ውስጤ አዘነ።...more..

A Call for Ethiopians live in the Twin Cities and in greater MinnesotaAnyuak Media)

Right now, our Ogadeni and Somali brothers and sisters are being slaughtered and starved to death by the man who claims to be the leader of their own country, Meles Zenawi, and what is our response?.more..

Body of housemaid lying in UAE morgue for a month (Gulfnews)

"The cost of visa cancellation and obtaining departure permission is not more than Dh200 and must be shared by both," the official said...more..

Barack Obama has Opened Up a New Door of Opportunity and Now We Must Move Ahead! (Anuak Justice Council)

His language of acceptance, justice, unity, inclusiveness and hope was what attracted many supporters, but the road to the presidency required perseverance, sacrifice and hard work. History was made in front of our eyes and could be made in Ethiopia, but it cannot be done as long as we are divided. The antidote is the moral and spiritual transformation of our culture, one person at a time, into a people who can work together with humility and determination for a better future not only for themselves or their ethnic groups or regions, but also for other Ethiopians...more..

World reacts to Obama win (BBC)

Television news bulletins across the world have been reporting the story of Barack Obama's US presidential victory. ..read more..

Obama turns to building his administration (msnbc)

If Emanuel accepts, he would return to the White House where he served as a political and policy adviser to President Bill Clinton. Emanuel is the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives as the Democratic Caucus Chair. ...more..

In quotes: US election reaction (BBC)

"Your victory has demonstrated that no person anywhere in the world should not dare to dream of wanting to change the world for a better place.
"We wish you strength and fortitude in the challenging days and years that lie ahead." FORMER SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT NELSON MANDELA ...more..

Reactions Around The World (PHOTOS) (The Huffington post)

Source The Huffington Post

Obama Elected President as Racial Barrier Falls (NY Times)

“If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer,” said Mr. Obama, standing before a huge wooden lectern with a row of American flags at his back, casting his eyes to a crowd that stretched far into the Chicago night....more..

President-Elect Barack Obama in Chicago (You Tube)

President-elect Barack Obama's remarks in Chicago at You tube

Obama victory sparks cheers worldwide (AP)

"With Obama, the world will see the Americans as having more sense, being more receptive to change," Khosla said on his way to work. "If Obama even remotely changes things, perceptions will change...more..

Kenyans celebrate Obama victory (China View)

"On behalf of the government and people of Kenya, and on my own behalf, I join the rest of the world in celebrating and congratulating you on your election as the 44th President of the United States of America," Kibaki said. ....more..

Europe awaits new US president in time of crisis(EU Obsever)

If Europeans had a vote, Barack Obama would beat John McCain by large margin. He enjoys greater popularity due to the fact that he represents a more evident contrast to the politics of the outgoing president, Republican George W. Bush.

Mr Bush's eight-year-long term has been marked by a unilateral decision to invade Iraq - something that his reputation has never recovered from, even though he later reached out to consult Europe on issues such as Iran....more..

Chicago gets ready for Obama(The SUN)

All these good people – and Americans ARE good and decent people – will be descending on to Chicago’s lakeshore tomorrow night to salute the man they believe can lay to rest the stumbling incompetence of the Bush era and restore pride, prosperity and confidence to the world’s most powerful nation.

Win or lose tomorrow, Barack Obama has transformed not just American politics but the way the world is run.

He is the first truly cosmopolitan leader, a product not of one place at one time but all places at all times....more...

Japan's Obama town set to party for U.S. namesake (Yahoo News)

Shops in the town have been selling everything from T-shirts, fish burgers and steamed cakes to chopsticks bearing Obama's name.

"We've been dancing for Mr. Obama for more than six months," said Yuko Shirayama of the local "Obama Girls" hula dancing group, created to cheer on Obama. "So I hope he wins."

Her group traveled to Hawaii to celebrate Obama's victory over Hillary Clinton in the Democratic nomination for U.S. president earlier this year and the dancers hope to go to Obama's inauguration ceremony if he wins....more..

The 843-Day War (Ethipolitics)

The Question of War Crimes

Now that there will be a “ceasefire” (effectively ending the occupation and the war), there are serious questions of war crimes against Zenawi’s troops, the forces loyal to the TFG and the insurgents. The tip of the war crimes iceberg is evident in a report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) entitled, Shell Shocked: Civilians Under Siege in Mogadishu [1] HRW in its scathing report alleges that the insurgents would “launch mortar rounds within minutes, then melt back into the civilian population.” The “Ethiopian and TFG response to mortar attacks increasingly included the return firing of mortars and rockets in the direction of origin of insurgency fire.” Specific “neighborhoods like Casa Populare (KPP) in the south, Towfiq and Ali Kamin around the Stadium, all along Industrial Road, and the road from the Stadium to Villa Somalia were heavily shelled or repeatedly hit by Ethiopian BM-21 multiple-rocket launcher and mortar rounds.” The impact of the shelling on the civilian population was “devastating”. HRW concluded, “The appalling consequences of indiscriminate attacks, the deployment of forces in densely populated areas, and the failure of all warring parties generally to take steps to minimize civilian harm is reflected in the thousands of civilians who died or whose lives were shattered by the injuries they sustained or by the loss of family members. It is also reflected in the staggering numbers of people who fled Mogadishu and in the scale of the destruction of homes, hospitals, schools, mosques, and other infrastructure in Mogadishu.”...more..

Ethiopia arrests opposition leader, journalist hurt (Reuters)

The Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement (OFDM) confirmed its general secretary Bekele Jirata was picked up on Thursday as he was going to his Addis Ababa office in what it called an abuse of rights....more..

Meles dissolves the Ministry of Information (Ethiopian review)

Meles did not give any specific reason for dissolving the ministry but said in general that it is not due to a particular reason.

The dissolution of the ministry, some legal experts say, raises some questions as regards who would assume the mandates that the ministry used to have such as licensing newspapers and regulating the media.

So far, nothing has been said as to the fate of the different government media outlets and the Broadcasting Agency, which were accountable to the ministry.

It is not clear so far to which government institution the Ethiopian Television and Radio Enterprise and the state-owned newspapers will be accountable in the future...more..