The Honorable Donald Payne, member of the US Congress

WASHINGTON DC – Growing US indifference to widespread human rights violations in Africa and elsewhere because governments are supporting the US war on terror would only worsen the chaos and instability in those countries and spread an anti-American sentiment across the globe, a US lawmaker has warned.

Congressman Donald Payne(D-NJ) told a joint US-EU Summit on June 8 that he was fully behind the US global war on terror but not if those governments the US considers as ‘partners in the fight against terror’ were let loose on committing atrocities against their own people.

The Summit on “Africa Matters” focused mainly on Darfur, Somalia and Ethiopia.

“African countries that support America’s global war on terror have
been the recipient of military assistance and training in order to build their
capacity to assist with our efforts to fight extremists, and prevent another
attack on U.S. soil. I fully support efforts to combat terrorism,” Mr Payne said.

However, he said the US government will find itself in more troubled waters if it doesn’t reverse the trend of turning a blind eye to atrocities in Ethiopia, Somalia and Darfur.

The Bush Administration has given the Meles government a “free pass when
it comes to respect for human rights, the rule of law and democratic
freedom,” Payne said, citing that the Meles government had killed nearly 200 innocent
civilians who protested against vote rigging in the last election in 2005.

The US should probe its policy toward human rights and democracy in Ethiopia, said Payne, who visited the leaders of Ethiopia’s major opposition party – the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD) – jailed on capital charges. “Their crimes?” asked Payne, “they ran for parliament and won.”

Congressman Donald Payne said he was particularly touched by the ‘brutal act’ of an Ethiopian woman who was killed by security forces for asking why they were arresting her husband.

Etenesh Yimam was killed in her her home in front of her family, her husband imprisoned, and her daughter in hiding somewhere in Africa, this is one act in a country where thousands are behind bars for their political views, Payne said. “We continue to provide military assistance to the government of
Ethiopia, while failing to take a consistent outspoken stance in support of
democracy and human rights at the highest levels of our government.”

From the European side, Ana Gomes, member of the European Parliament who had led a 160-strong delegation to the Ethiopian Elections in May 2005, severely criticized the West for failing to support fledgling democracies like Ethiopia which was nipped in the bud by the government. The European Union declared in its final report the elections failed to meet international standards due to vote-rigging and other irregularities. (Ethiomedia)

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The following reports were also presented at the joint US-EU Summit on “Africa Matters.”