Demonstration in Oslo: Against ethnic cleansing in Ethiopia

Posted: 14 Apr 2013 04:06 AM PDT   Demonstration in Oslo: The recent forceful eviction of members of the Amhara ethnic from Benishangul-Gumuz area was an obvious case of ethnic cleansing which is a serious crime.

Ethiopia Accused of Ethnic Cleansing Over Mass Amhara Evictions Posted: 13 Apr 2013 03:30 PM PDT Thousands of ethnic Amharas in western Ethiopia are being expelled en masse from the country's Benishangul Gumuzregion, where many have settled, in what some are condemning as a campaign of “ethnic cleansing“. Ethiopia has been divided into nine ethnically based and politically autonomous regional states and two chartered cities since 1996. The Amhara people, reportedly including children, pregnant women, and the sickly, are being uprooted to a rural area of Ethiopia's Amhara region, which contains their historical homeland. Human rights advocates say the deportation is illegal according to Ethiopian and international law. Ethiopian authorities have maintained that these claims are unsubstantiated, saying that they have been moving and resettling indigenous and local farmers in the name of villagization programs. This isn't the first time Ethiopian officials have forced Amhara people to move to another region. A reported 22,000 Amharas were evicted from southern Ethiopia and their homes confiscated in 2012. A report by Ethiopian Satellite Television in March 2013 and made available on  quotes opposition party leaders condemning the eviction.