By Dawit Giorgis
My name is Dawit Giorgis. I am the Executive Director of The Africa Institute for Strategic and Security Studies operating out of Africa. (AISSS).
I write this on behalf of the Ethiopian people, the professional association of Ethiopian scholars and all human rights organizations and activists in Ethiopia for the release of Mrs Meskerem ABERRA who is a professor at Dilla University, with keen interest on the democratization of the totalitarian ethnocentric government and the human rights of the people of Ethiopia regardless of their ethnic background. She is also an author of two books with several published articles. Meskerem has selflessly struggled for equal treatment under international law particularly for the Amhara ethnic group who have been victims of genocide, crimes against humanity and segregation in all aspects of life in Ethiopia .
Meskerem has been the voice of those voiceless people. She was imprisoned twice last year and released after posting a bail of 30 and 50 thousand Ethiopian Birr. Meskerem is a married woman with two sons aged 8 and one, who need her attention and care.
Her passion has been teaching and advocacy for human rights in Ethiopia. She had established a studio in the capital city and was regularly providing information and educating people on their inalienable rights to express their opinions and make the government accountable for the continuing human rights violations in the country. Her numerous published articles, opinions and interviews has made her an icon of civil liberties and one of a few bold activists and political analysts the country has.
Mrs Meskerem has never violated the laws of the country. She exercised her rights to freely speak , demand and blame the system for the wide ranging corruption, criminal acts and crimes against humanity.
Mrs Meskerem is a powerful voice of all those who have been denied justice and equal treatment under international law. She has become the symbol of resistance to ethnic profiling , descrimnation and detention without due process of law.
Meskerem is a brilliant academician, analyst and advocate loved and adored by millions. She knows the laws of the country and was careful not to be seen violating them: even though the existing Constitution is designed to partition the country along ethnic lines and deny freedom of expression to those groups whose identity is not the same as the members of the ruling junta.
Meskerem ABERRA is a role model to the youth who looked upon her as one of their leaders and mentors of this generation.
She is a confident educated woman who stood for the truth and always on the side of those who have been denied justice. She is a tireless advocate, teacher and political analyst who is already missed in the society.
Ethiopians across the nation demand her immediate release and request international human rights organizations to send investigators to see her condition in prison, to listen to her story and to demand the government to immediately release her or bring her to the court of law for a fair open trial.
Let loving mother of angelic children and wife go. Let her go now, not tomorrow but today. If the regime thinks it has evidence that she might have said something inciteful then let her go on bail and let the court do the rest. I repeat let this mother go. We need women like her who dare to speak up their minds. They should be encouraged and every platform should be available for them to get involved in the affairs of the country without being harassed and prosecuted, In fact, if I have my ways our women should be the ones that must run the old country and we the men should be relegated to way back in line for the next 100 years, at least. We men have monopolized politics since antiquities that we have gone irredeemably arrogant. We make wars whenever we feel like it sending millions of sons and daughters of mothers like Meskerem bint Aberra to their deaths. There is no such thing as ‘excuse me’ left in us men. So, H.E. PM Abiy, let this loving mother and patriot go and leave HER ALONE!!!!!