16 government cars destroyed in Dessie public unrest

Residents at war with Meles regime

EthioMedia

March 25, 2006

"Ethiopians are cognizant of the malicious intentions of Meles Zenawi and have rejected him in an election he organized and staged for the sake of the political consumption of his western donors. The regime`s frequent reference to the Rwandan Interhamwe is a clear testimony as to Meles Zenawi`s diabolic intentions in the event of serious threats to his power." - KSDON, March 21, 2006

With all high schools shut down, Agazi turned their violent acts toward elementary school children, a measure which sparked public protests that destroyed more than a dozen government-owned vehicles.

“It is not a student protest issue any more. Now residents are up against the ruthless regime. Public anger is intense so much that traffic from Addis Ababa to Bahrdar or Mekelle via Dessie, and vice versa, has come to a standsill, and all vehicles now seek the protection of a military convoy to pass through Dessie," a resident said.

“Pointless fighting with Agazi broke out everywhere on Thursday, and No. 4 (government-owned) cars were being destroyed in the city. Agazi forces didn’t fire shots for fear of fueling and spreading the protest,” a reporter said. “But several people were wounded in clashes with Agazi, already known for their savage and wicked beatings. No government vehicles were seen moving in the city on Saturday.”

A huge number of Agazi forces were pumped into the city over the weekend, giving the look of a besieged city to Dessie, a city traditionally known as a commercial hub but now one of the hotspots of a nationwide political unrest against a 15-year-old regime hanging onto power by means of the gun.

Police meanwhile have detained an unknown number of students, mostly from Memhir Akalewold School, in different police stations in the city, and at Tita Military Camp, 7km out of the city.

DESSIE – A government deadline to end a 16-day school strike in Dessie failed on Monday after students started chanting anti-government slogans during a flag-raising ceremony. The student unrest ran out of control in the morning, and schools involving over 17,500 students were closed for the rest of the day.

The students chanted:

a) Release our Kinijit leaders now!
b) EPRDF must resign!
c) Agazi criminals must face justice

Agazi are the special security forces loyal to the tyrant, Meles Zenawi, and those who were responsible for the killings of unarmed protesters in June and November protests in Addis Ababa as well as in many parts of the country.

Dessie students also saw Agazi changing not hearts but uniforms to look like the city police. “The notorious are known by wearing ranger-uniforms. This time, they posed as city police officers although everyone knows who they were,” residents said.

"Known for being the prime targets of Meles Zenawi’s Agazi forces, students of Memhir Akalewold were spared on Monday being confronted by Agazi," a source said, adding "gunshots were heard from a distance at Kidame Gebaya School."

Over 17,500 students are involved in the strike started by Memhir Akale-Wold Preparatory Secondary School, Hottie Comparative High School and Kidame Gebaya Secondary School two weeks ago. The schools were shut down after the police savagely beat young students.

Many Kidame Gebaya students beaten by Agazi forces ended up in clinics, and three youths are believed to have died from severe beatings. Parents who rushed to save their kids were also beaten by the special forces.

Talks between the authorities and Agazi special forces on one side and parents of students on the other collapsed with parents supporting the legitimate demands of their children. Similarly, parents of students from Memhir Akalewold rejected a meeting with EPRDF officials, saying they would rather die with honor than watch their children being tormented by criminal hooligans in uniform. (EthioMedia)