Police on Tuesday shot two people to death and injured a dozen more when members of the Christian faithful resumed building a church the government had said was opposed by Muslims in the area. The BBC said on Wednesday a third person died when the victim fell off a cliff.
The leaders of the Christian faithful – who had suspended building St. Arsema Church in Azewa Gedel – then met with their Muslim counterparts, who told them that they had no objection if the church was built.”
Trouble broke out when the Christians realized that they had no problem with their Muslim kith and kin, and went ahead with rebuilding the church. Federal police forces who were lying in wait then opened fire on the crowd, killing two and wounding 12.
Meanwhile, the state-owned TV whose news reports are usually carried online via EthioTube, said two were killed and 12 others injured when individuals who had “concealed agendas” clashed with police. The government warned the society to distance itself from individuals it said had “hidden motives.”
Dessie has for a long time been known as a city of religious diversity where Christians and Muslims have intermarried and lived harmoniously for generations. But the government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has been caught on several occasions trying to spark ethnic conflicts in the country. Lately, it has resorted to igniting religious violence.
“The government tried to spark ethnic conflicts for the last 20 years and failed. Now it is trying to harvest political dividends by igniting religious conflicts that would carry it through the next 20 years,” according to a report on the Amharic-language www.ethiopiazare.com.
During the stolen 2005 election, Meles Zenawi went on TV and Radio and warned against the danger of Ethiopia plunging into a Rwanda-like genocide. Observers say had he failed to reverse the tide of the opposition, Zenawi could have no doubt resorted to an ethnic slaughter.
Observers from the European Union, notably member of European Parliament, Ms. Anna Gomes, warned Mr. Zenawi that he would ultimately be held responsible because he was itching to introduce words like “Interhamwe” into a country that has been very much at peace with itself.
