Washington update – by Mesfin Mekonen
We are launching a 50-State Strategy to mobilize Ethiopian Americans and friends of Ethiopia across the country. Each state will organize efforts to contact U.S. Senators and Members of Congress to raise awareness and demand action from the U.S. government.
What You Can Do
- Organize Locally
Form or join a state-level advocacy group to coordinate outreach to your elected officials. - Contact Your Senators and Representatives
Call, write, and request meetings with your Senators and Members of Congress.
-
- Explain the worsening human rights situation in Ethiopia.
- Emphasize the atrocities being committed against Amhara civilians.
- Highlight the Ethiopian government’s suppression of democracy, unlawful killings, and mass imprisonment.
You need to explain to the law makers in your states that at a time when Washington is focused on prioritizing its national interests, allowing Ethiopia to collapse would be a strategic failure. If the U.S. cedes influence in the Horn of Africa, China and Russia will fill the void. Preventing Ethiopia’s descent into chaos isn’t just a moral obligation—it is a crucial national security concern for the United States.
The regime in Ethiopia is rarely if ever truthful. It has always given the Ethiopian people empty words about democracy and about investing infrastructure projects that will create prosperity. The regime’s basic rule is to monopolize power in Ethiopia and to concentrate the nation’s wealth in its own hands. All decisions on all issues are resolved following this basic rule.
The regime’s well documented violations of human rights and denial of the rule of law are a result of its adherence to this rule. The corruption that has held back progress in Ethiopia is the consequence of having a regime in power that seeks only to enrich its members.
The Ethiopian-American community should make sure its voice is heard. Call and write to members of the Senate Intelligence and Foreign Affairs Committee urging them to support and draft a legislation on Ethiopia human rights violations
To express your support go to https://www.congress.gov/
find your Representative’s and Senators’ contact information.