Ethiopia’s prime minister met members of 81 opposition parties on Tuesday to discuss on ways of reforming the electoral system, as mhe pressed on with promises to open up a political arena dominated by hiscoalition.
Abiy Ahmed has turned national politics on its head since coming to power in April by welcoming back exiled opposition and separatist groups, releasing prisoners and appointing a formerly jailed dissident as head of the election board.
The meeting focused on highlighting the reforms required to ensure the upcoming election free and fair, and the shared responsibilities of all.
Last week he appointed Birtukan Mideksa as head of the election board preparing for the next national elections, scheduled for 2020. She was one of dozens of opposition figures
arrested in the violent aftermath of a 2005 vote when an oppositioncoalition stood against the government across the country, then challenged the EPRDF’s victory.
Security forces opened fire on crowds who took to the streets accusing the government and the election board of rigging the 2005 vote. Dozens of people died.
Abiy has promised to rein in the powerful security services and started consultations to rework an antiterrorism law that critics said had criminalized dissent. Also on Tuesday, parliament approved new members to the census commission, signaling that the country
is getting ready to conduct its first census in 10 years.
Besides representatives from the ruling party, EPRDF (Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front), leaders from some 81 opposition parties are in attendance.
Included were leaders of opposition parties registered in Ethiopia as well as parties that have returned from exile recently.
The main thrust of the conference is believed to be about the ongoing reforms and on ways to make the upcoming elections free and fair for all.
The Ethiopian Prime Minister said today marks the beginning ofdiscussions with political parties. He called on all political parties to work together regardless of differences.
He also said the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) under the newly appointed former opposition party leader Birtukan Mideksa will use ideas which in the conference
as a bench mark to design its own programs.
Under previous EPRDF governments, Ethiopian opposition parties had little chance to compete against the mighty EPRDF in a quarter of a century. Being in control of the media, security and economic institutions, the EPRDF had no meaningful opposition to its rule.
For much of its rule, the EPRDF had managed to occupy the Ethiopian parliament all by itself – a feat that is achieved only by totalitarian regimes of the world.
Opposition figures and media personalities who dare challenge the status quo were thrown into jail, or became the subjects of politicalmotivated dismissals and lawsuits that
brought them financial ruins.
The new Prime Minister of Ethiopia wants to change all that. He seems to realize that the old way of governance was not only bad for the country, but also for the EPRDF itself (Reuters).
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has met members of opposition parties to discuss ways of reforming the country’s electoral system, the latest move in a campaign to open up a political arena dominated by his ruling coalition.
Abiy has turned Ethiopian politics on its head since coming to power in April by welcoming back exiled opposition and separatist groups, releasing prisoners and appointing a formerly jailed dissident as head of the election board.
Birtukan Mideksa, Chairperson of NEBE was one of dozens of opposition figures arrested inthe violent aftermath of a 2005 vote when an opposition coalition that stood against the government across the country challenged the EPRDF’s victory.
Abiy has promised to rein in the powerful security services and started consultations to rework an anti-terrorism law that critics say has criminalized dissent.
Also on Tuesday, parliament approved new members to the census commission, signaling that the country is getting ready to conduct its first census in 10 years.
Ethiopia has more than 80 ethnicities and has designed its political system around regional ethnic groups, making the results of the census potentially contentious (Aljazeera).
Electoral reforms are high on the agenda as Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed hosts dozens of opposition leaders in his office to discuss what he called “the building of
democratic institutions and culture”.
The meeting, which is being attended by the newly appointed chair of the electoral board, Birtukan Mideksa, signals the beginning of a series of talks between the governing Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and opposition groups ahead of elections in 2020.
In his opening marks Abiy affirmed his government’s commitment to hold a free and fair election and support the opposition which he urged to be less fragmented.
Many of the country’s main opposition groups had been based outside Ethiopia and only recently returned, following the prime minister’s programme of reforms since taking office seven months ago (BBC).
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Tuesday met with members of 81 opposition parties to discuss ways of reforming the electoral system to ensure credible polls in the future.
Abiy in the meeting pledged to open up Ethiopia’s political field to interested parties to ensure fair participation (CGTN).
