Hailu Shawl re-elected as AEUP president

Hailu Shawl re-elected as AEUP president

By member reporter
July 21, 2003

---

ADDIS ABABA – A three-day general Assembly of the All Ethiopian Union Party (AEUP) held from July 10 to July 12
has wound up by electing Hailu Shawel as its President, ratifying
the
Party’s Program that was a subject of intensive public discussion and
passing a
ten-point resolution, Embilta reports.

Other
elected officials include Major Getachew Mengiste, vice president and
other
three deputy presidents in charge of various regions, Dr. Mekonnen
Bishaw,
Secretary General, and Professor Ayenew, Shadow Minister of Foreign
Affairs.
High-level opposition party leaders, celebrities, and members of the
diplomatic corps,
as well as observers representing Ethiopians in Diaspora attended the
colorful closing ceremony, Embilta reports.

The Assembly consisting of over three hundred representatives covering
240
Woredas (Boroughs) and 15 Administrative Zones is said to be the
largest
coverage of electoral posts ever achieved by a single opposition party
in the history
of the nation. At this moment AEUP with its partners, the Oromo
National
Council (ONC) and the Council of Alternative Forces for Peace and
Democracy in
Ethiopia (CAFPDE) wrap up almost all election posts that contain the
Ethiopian
Parliamentary Seats.

In a speech he made at the closing ceremony Hailu Shawel hailed his
Party’s
achievement in organizing the people as “remarkable if not complete”.
He then
went on to say that ” his party will continue its effort to cover each
and
every part of Ethiopia at the earliest possibility.”

According to Embilta, Hailu Shawel vowed that AEUP will commit itself
to the
fulfillment of the desire of the “People of Ethiopia” for a free and
democratic rule. He promised that AEUP will be conducting a peaceful
and unwavering
struggle to attain the aspiration that was snatched by the ruling party
and
hand it back to the legitimate owner, the “People of Ethiopia.” He
called on
democratic forces of the world to exert pressure on the EPRDF to
compete with the
oppositions in the coming election on a leveled ground or otherwise
face its
inevitable downfall.

“It is only when the corruption, mal-administration, ethno- centered
and
divisive policies of the EPRDF are nullified that justice and democracy
can come
to the People of Ethiopia” said, Hailu ” the only way to achieve this
is to use
the people’s electoral power that drops down the EPRDF from the
political
power it holds by the muzzle of the gun” Hailu added. Because it is
anti-people
the EPRDF has now become impotent confined to the Arat Killo Palace”
remarked
Hailu acerbically.

Hailu Shawel then declared the transfer of his party from defensive to
offensive position. He stressed that the victory of a party is signaled
by its
ability to expose misleading propaganda that is intended to melt the
hearts of
innocent people and create psychological muddle in the minds of the
general
public. “We shall no more stand at the vanquished position appealing
for justice and
submitting petition or complaining about the offensive and suppressive
acts
of the EPRDF. From now on we must be able to bring the ruling party
into a
defensive position by functioning in a coordinated political and
organizational
framework that would solidify our peaceful struggle,” Hailu persisted.

In reference to the unity of the opposition parties, Hailu called on
the
opposition to avoid hatred and competition among themselves and congeal
their full
power towards the elimination of the EPRDF. “We ardently call the
opposition
to stand along with us in this process of eliminating the “EPRDF” said,
Hailu.

Earlier, the general assembly had engaged itself in a driving debate
that
finally ratified the Party’s program and a ten- point resolution on the
social,
political and economic affairs of the nation, Embilta said. (See
resolution at
http.www.aeup.org)

The AEUP Party Program pledges to create conducive conditions for
Ethiopians
in Diaspora to participate in the process of nation building on the
termination of the destructive EPRDF. The AEUP program is the only
program that contains
such an article in favor of Ethiopians in Diaspora, it is believed.

A senior AEUP leadership team that included Major Getachew Mengistu,
Vice
president and Dr. Mekonnen Bishaw, Secretary General will be arriving
in the US
in the coming week to discuss the recently released AEUP Program and
the
Party’s recent activities, it was learnt from the UII Embilta.