What it means to be an inmate in Kaliti

By Kiflu Hussien

July 8, 2007

Kiflu Hussien writing down some notes about the notorious Kaliti Prsion

Whenever I think of our gallant leaders whom we voted for in the May 2005 election, which was later annulled by Meles & Co., I feel extreme pride for I was not only there to cast my vote for these true sons and daughters of Ethiopia. I also did everything I could for the triumph of a genuine democracy so that the sun sets on Woyanne’s pseudo-democracy with which it duped the so-called international community for so long.

In addition,
I persuaded members of my family, friends and acquaintances who had never participated in any of the previous farcical elections held by Woyanne to take the electoral card this time. I argued and prevailed with some of them. “Yes,Woyanne may not accede to defeat by the ballot, but, at least, let’s exhaust every means before anyone thinks of resorting to the bullet.” I said let’s make it impossible for Woyanne to rig the votes or influence it in any other manner, unless engaged in a daylight robbery or hooliganism, as indeed it did later. By doing this, I added, we would also shut the mouths of some so-called donor countries or members of international community who lent a blind support to the regime. A case in point; Carter’s testimony after the polling. Today no politician from the West expresses support without stammering or experiencing a pang of guilt. In any case, what I did in 2005 of all deeds nourishes me to this day. Even when I was jailed on October 28, 2005 and charged several days later with a trumped-up case of corruption, all I was thinking of was what Gandhi said,
“We must widen the prison gates, and we must enter them as a

bridegroom enters the bride’s chamber. Freedom is to be wooed

only inside prison walls and sometimes on gallows, never in the

council chambers, courts or the schoolroom. Going to prison

was essential to the nation for liberation.”

This is exactly what our selfless leaders, journalists from the free press and members of civic organizations did. It’s another source of pride for me to be in prison around the same time as a result of a massive crackdown which began in June 2005.

However, to call the notorious Maekelawi detention centre and the concentration camp at Kaliti “Prison” just like any other prison is a disservice to all inmates who are suffering in that godforsaken place. The sheer number of prisoners too cannot be described as overcrowding for other countries that pay due respect to human beings also complain of this problem. We learned this with a sense of irony from the Economist magazine that came to a foreign prisoner convicted of pedophilia. In that magazine, we saw a colour picture of a California prison where bad condition and overcrowding is cited for urgent reform. One doesn’t find that kind of facility we saw in the California prison even in an Ethiopian hotel for the middle class, let alone in prison.

Of course, if Meles is confronted with this, he comes up with his usual chicanery and sophistry by citing Guantanamo Bay as an excuse. Leaving the sophistry to him, it must be known to all decent people all over the world that the Ethiopian regime doesn’t even spare a relation of a dissident. That’s what I encountered in Maeklawi detention centre during the second massive crackdown which began on November1, 2005. On that day, when the regime rounded up Hailu Shawel et al, they couldn’t find Abayineh Berhanu. So, they dragged his teenager who was suffering from asthma and lumped him together with us. His crime; being the son of an opposition leader who won an election. Hes named Yilekal Abayineh. Until the time I was transferred to Kaliti concentration camp on November 8,2005,Yilkal was still in detention.

Unless one takes time, first to heal from the trauma, then to recollect his experience in a book form for posterity, it’s difficult to recount the agony one suffers in that concentration camp in a small article like this except to sum it up as absolutely horrendous. If memory serves me right, the concentration camp is divided by 7 zones. Again every zone in its highly congested compound has houses which are identified as 1st, 2nd house etc. All houses are made of up of iron sheet; wall, roof, everything iron sheet! To even think of a cornice is a luxury. I was interned in zone 2, 4th house nicknamed apartment 4 by Nigerian inmates convicted of drug trafficking. Apartment 4 was supposed to be the widest and cleanest of all where dope and cigar is only smoked in the latrines and shower rooms which are in the same room. The width of the room is approximately 18 meters by 16 meters (18m x 16m).

At the time of my internment up to 400 inmates were packed in this room. Water comes to the 4 shower rooms for 400 inmates around midnight and stays up to 6:00 AM.After two weeks of my transfer to Kaliti, though, the water started running the whole day, thanks to the advent of CUD leaders from Maekelawi.
Then we got some relief from the unbearable stench. The other distinct feature of Zone 2 is the assortment of the inmates. Most are youngsters who have links to hard core crimes ranging from aggravated robbery to serial killing. Violent brawl is the norm and takes place frequently. So, one has to be always on guard to dodge anything that may be thrown your way.

Who is wanted to be tortured by the regime will be thrown into this zone or another zone called Zone 3.The majority of the inmates in this zone are small time habitual offenders. An inmate in this zone has no safety for his belongings. Of course, the regime didn’t dare to put high-profile inmates such as CUD leaders and former officials of the Dergue or Seye Abraha et al in places like that. However, when it wants to make them suffer more or wants to break their spirit, it occasionally puts them there. That’s how I came to meet and later became a close friend of Kassaye Aragaw, a retired army major who was a high ranking official during the military regime. At the same time, Captain Fikreselassie Wogderes, the Derg’s second man, had been transferred to Zone 3 too. Later, when I went to visit my fellow inmates, after I got released, I learned civil rights defenders Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demessie were also brought to Zones 2 and 3 for a couple of weeks.

On the other hand, isolating the prisoners of conscience from one another and subjecting them to more hardship and humiliation had begun much earlier, while I was still interned. Initially, all of them were together and interned to a relatively decent place along with the former officials of the military regime. However, it didn’t last long. The Woyanne separated them in 4 different zones, except 2 & 3. These two zones are always reserved for mental torture.Yet, the longer the prisoners of conscience remain in the clutches of Woyanne, it’s likely that they meet the same fate that many Ethiopians of Oromo ethnic group who are accused of membership to OLF or Mecha & Tulama have suffered.

But, above all one should never forget that Woyanne opened fire on inmates and killed scores of them on November 3,2005. Although, no one was killed or wounded, this same scenario was repeated one morning in the month of August 2006.Thanks to their commander,Meles Zenawi,every Woyanne in that concentration camp has been given carte blanche to open fire with the slightest provocation.

The purpose of this article

The primary goal of this article is to remind all freedom loving Ethiopians never to slacken their struggle for the release of the prisoners of conscience, for the establishment of the rule of law and the achievement of genuine democracy. Thus, to put views about Kaliti more into perspective, I attached an Amharic document drawn while I was still there.

The document came to being after another serious brawl between inmates which resulted in some fatal wounds. The new acting commander of the zone randomly picked some of us so that we recommend suggestions for his Woyanne style reform. What he expected from us was to be tipped off about ring leaders who smuggle khat, drugs and alcohol into Zone 2.What we suggested made him furious. Our quoting the ever obsequious Woyanne’s civil servant Dr Fasil Nahoum didn’t even help for our suggestions to be accepted.
Instead, he wanted to take away the hand written manuscript to suppress it forever.

We some how managed to get it typed via the assistance of one inmate who is allowed to work in the legal aid office set up by Action Professional Association for People (APAP) in the concentration camp. Because I got the document smuggled out before I got released, I am happy to share it now with anyone who cares. However, note that this is only the tip of the iceberg about Kaliti concentration camp.

Another lesson I drew from this experience was to confirm the veracity of what the learned Prof.Mesfin Wolde-Mariam said at one time:

“When you try to remove dirt from a repressive regime gently with a soft brush, it reacts violently against those who spotted it in the first place.”