It appears that Ethiopians’ hunger for justice hits an all time high. The displacement crisis, racially motivated killings, human and property rights violations, mayhem, arson, embezzlement… the list of crimes being perpetrated is endless. The nation is still under transition period. Under such temporarily shaky conditions, it is not surprising to find gullible people tempted to take the law into their hand and be instrument of war lords and thugs with no sense of citizens’ duties and responsibilities.
Nevertheless, we can still see light at the end of the tunnel. The Abiy administration has already began introducing reforms in the justice system; besides it is meticulously netting those individuals who violated the law of the land . We do believe no matter how long it may take ,no criminal and no crime would get away with it unreported and unaccounted for. Crime suspects have to come forward, confess it and ask their people for pardon; or else they need to be bold enough to engage their accusers in a court battle and litigate their case.
Hundreds of individuals including government officials at various states, suspected of being involved in criminal activities, are reported to have been detained and being investigated. In their relentless efforts to ensure the peace and security of its citizens, law enforcement agencies are acting in synchronized manner to bring murderers, human rights violators, swindlers, and hoodlums to the book. In this regard, an important progress has been made over the last few days with the Federal Attorney General formerly charging the ex- intelligence chief of Ethiopia, Getachew Assefa and other high level former officials. They will be tried in absentia.
According to news report in several media, the charged individuals are suspected of gross human rights violations, including torture, forced confessions, sodomy, rape, electrocution, and arbitrary detention of people including in secret facilities. The intriguing thing is despite all this allegations, Getachew still holds high profile position in the government of his home state, Tigray State. Undoubtedly, it is the wish of the overwhelming majority of Ethiopians to see Getachew getting out of the famous yellow helicopter handcuffed ,policemen holding him on the arm ;or sitting on the defendant’s chair in the court of law accompanied by his lawyer, facing justice and giving detailed account for all what he did.
Getachew is more like a Hollywood character than real life person. He acted differently from his predecessor and successor. While in power in the federal government, Getachew was a shadowy figure. One could see his office, his entourage, or hear reports about him or some of his sound bites. He has never been seen or heard on the media. Even, the only two or three poor quality pictures of him , repeatedly being seen/ printed on the media these days ,are not yet verified to be the true image of the man.
Unfortunately for Getachew, he has become the living and walking symbol for all egregious crimes committed by Ethiopian authorities against their own citizen during the TPLF led EPRDF rule. After relinquishing his power last year, he metaphorically transcended into a new level of abstraction turning himself into a thing of a spirit. The very mention of his name send shiver down to the spine of many citizens. No one has said he/she has seen Getachew. Even the top man of Tigray State has been quoted as saying he did not know where Getachew was located.
Nevertheless, like works of a ghost, actions masterminded by Getachew are still happening and are well evidenced. Case in point is the assassination attempt on premier Abiy last year and also the endless incidents of ethnic clashes flickering here and there in various corners of the country. Running from the light into the darkness! That is the most usual way top criminals, dictators and thugs end up with, when their reigning days are over. They do not have the courage and self respect to stand tall before their opponents to explain themselves and defend their ideals. Remember Sadam Hussien, Muammar Gadafi, Mengistu H/ mariam.
Such people are only after their dear life. So far as their selfish interest is fulfilled, they would leave no stone unturned regardless of the consequence of their actions to their people. Let us make no mistake that until now Getachew is just a suspect. He is not yet a convicted felon, and therefore he is treated as such until proven guilty by the court of law. However, there are tons of human and documented evidences attesting his crime. It is up to Getachew and his cronies to come forward and prove their innocence. Shying away from the law is tantamount to pleading guilty. History would probably record Getachew Assefa as the Ethiopian equivalent of Lavrentiy Beria, the Soviet state security chief under the rule of Joseph Stalin.
The Ethiopian Herald Sunday Edition May 26/2019
BY SOLOMON WASSIHUN
