Tetel Blog: Coalition for H.R.5680: Conference to discuss human rights Issues in Ethiopia November 4

Also in the news: Statement from the Crown Council, Interview: Creators of Black Gold, Book about Ethiopia: There Is No Me without You and more of today's top stories

Ethiopian athletics star Haile Gebrselassie (C) talks to orphans and vulnerable children at the launch of the 2006 Dream Campaign in Addis Ababa, November 2, 2006. The Dream campaign aims to raise 1 million birr (US$115,000) to fund projects for Ethiopia's 6 million orphans. The campaign is organised by UNICEF, Ministry of Women's Affairs and other members of Ethiopia's National Task Force on Orphans and Vulnerable Children. [Andrew Heavens/UNICEF]

Coalition for HR 5680: Conference to discuss the human rights situation in Ethiopia and the role HR5680 would play to improve the situation

The Human Rights Abuse in Ethiopia is going from Bad to Worse*: urgent need to pass H.R. 5680!

Saturday, November 4, 2006
2:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
At the American University Washington College of Law
4801 Massachusetts Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20016
Room 101
Speakers:

Professor Charles Schaefer, Associate Professor of African History, Country Specialist, Ethiopia , Amnesty International
Mr. Gregory Simpkins, Professional Staff , U.S. House Subcommittee on Africa , Golobal Human Rights and International Operations
Mr. Ted Dagne, Africa Specialist, U.S. Congressional Research Service
Professor Alemayehu G/Mariam, Professor of Political Science, California State University, Defense Attorney in California, Coalition for H.R. 5680 (More...)

Statement Given by the Crown Council Regarding the Recent Conflict between Christian and Muslim Ethiopians

(Picture - The President of the Ethiopian Crown Council, Prince Ermias Sahle-Selassie Haile-Selassie)

It is with deep dismay that members of the Crown Council have followed recent reports of conflicts between Christian and Muslim Ethiopians in various parts of our country. Our heartfelt condolences are sent to all those who have lost loved ones. We Ethiopians have for centuries lived side by side in peace with mutual respect of all religions. Therefore it is disheartening to hear that certain misguided people have now been swayed by the current tide of intolerance and violence.(More...)

Also read:
-Ethiopian royal family to sell property in Jerusalem to foreign nationals

Exploitation of Ethiopian Coffee Farmers

Interview, Chicago public radio

"Everyone drinks coffee. But not everyone knows the harsh economic and political story behind their morning latte." Nick Francis and Mark Francis—Filmmakers, Creators of Black Gold discuss their film with Chicago public radio. [Listen here]

There Is No Me without You
currently in the top 10 on the Powell's Books Bestseller list

There Is No Me Without You is the story of Haregewoin Tefarra, a middle-aged Ethiopian woman of modest means whose home has become a refuge for hundreds of children orphaned by AIDS.

It is a story as much about the power of the bond between children and parents as about the epidemic that every year leaves millions of children, mostly healthy themselves, without family. Originally a middle-class woman with a happy family life, Haregewoin fell into a deep depression after the death of her recently married daughter. But then a priest brought her two children, AIDS orphans, with nowhere to go.(More...)

Scientists witness the birth of a new ocean

Fissures have opened in the Earth’s surface in Afar as the Arabian and Nubian tectonic plates pull apart. Scientists say the process is the same as that which created the Atlantic. Photograph: Xan Rice

This is how the Atlantic was formed, separating Africa and Eurasia from the Americas. And this is what scientists believe is happening in Afar as the Arabian and Nubian plates pull apart...."Some people think that extreme natural phenomena happened only in historical times," said Cindy Ebinger, an American geologist leading the research in Afar. "But here we can see them happening right now." (More...)

Humor
Meskerem Bekele