
Ethiopia: Amhara Youth Association, One Amhara & Alen Amhara – Joint Press Release (04.10.2022)





The UN experts raised serious concerns about Eritrean refugee women and children being at particular risk of trafficking for sexual exploitation, following abductions and displacement.
GENEVA, Switzerland, October 3, 2022 – Women and girls in the Tigray, Afar and Amhar are increasingly vulnerable to abduction and trafficking for sexual exploitation as they flee the conflict in Northern Ethiopia, UN experts* warned today.
The protracted armed conflict in the Tigray, Afar and Amhara regions of Ethiopia have heightened risks of trafficking for sexual exploitation as a form of sexual violence in conflict, the experts said.
“We are alarmed by reports of refugee and internally displaced women and girls in the Tigray, Afar, and Amhara regions being abducted while attempting to move to safer places,” they said. “We are concerned at the risks of trafficking, in particular for purposes of sexual exploitation, including sexual slavery.”
The UN experts raised serious concerns about Eritrean refugee women and children being at particular risk of trafficking for sexual exploitation, following abductions and displacement. “Urgent action is needed to prevent trafficking, especially for purposes of sexual exploitation, and to ensure assistance and protection of all victims, without discrimination on grounds of race or ethnicity, nationality, disability, age or gender,” the experts said.
They warned that children were at particular risk of trafficking for purposes of sexual exploitation especially in the Tigray region, where hundreds of children have been separated from their families. “The continuing lack of humanitarian access to the region is a major concern,” the experts said, urging immediate national, bilateral and multilateral measures to prevent all forms of trafficking of children and to ensure protection for all children.
Sufficient measures were not being taken to identify victims of trafficking, ensure protection and assistance and support their recovery in ways that fully takes account of the extreme trauma suffered, they said. “The failure to provide accountability for these serious human rights violations and grave crimes creates a climate of impunity, allows trafficking in persons to persist and perpetrators to go free,” the UN experts said.
They urged all relevant stakeholders to ensure that victims of trafficking can adequately access medical assistance, including sexual and reproductive health care services and psychological support.
The experts have been engaging with the Governments of Ethiopia and Eritrea.



Now that’s it apparent that the Democratic Governance Facility (DGF) is closing in December 2022. This after baseless accusations and demeaning insults from the His Excellency President Yoweri Tibuhurwa Kaguta Museveni ahead of the General Election in 2021. Certainly, he that to control the narratives and in general ensure to silence his critics. While the DGF only did what it always has done, which is to support over 30 CSOs/NGOs who works on governance and civil education, which could have strengthen the society at large.
That’s why the closure of DGF will not only hurt a 100 people who has worked directly in the DGF. No, it will hurt the over 30 CSOs/NGOs who was directly funded by the DGF. Also, government entities and structures, which was also funded by the DGF. The DGF over the last five years has ensured a circulation of Shs. 15 trillion shillings. That’s a substantial amount of currency and monies that are taken out of rotation, which would be there to get domestic revenue for the state and ensure livelihoods of plenty. This will hurt service providers and those who is bound by contracts to the DGF and the entities it provided funds for. It is really compelling the damage the National Resistance Movement (NRM) has done here and it will feel it in 2023.
We know things was bad when the President suspended the DGF in February 2021. While he has lifted the suspension in June 2022. The DGF will not continue now and the regime will feel the losses. Just like the DGF together with NIMD used to support IPOD. Now, there are several other entities that is losing out. That will hurt the government and it’s institutions at large, but we know the President isn’t concerned about it.
The donors who made the agreement with Government of Uganda (GoU) to create the DGF in 2011, which happens to be Austria, Denmark, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the European Union might seek other partners or places to fund. Since, they are not welcomed or has the mechanisms to ensure development goals are met. Because, the donors has again to report to their citizens and taxpayers for the usage of funds. Which means they cannot just waste money and not prove any sort of value for money. That is squandered here, because the DGF was an organization and an umbrella organization, which kept it all organized and good oversight over it.
We know the national budget still needs external funding sources, though the bloated budgets are projecting more domestic revenue by any given year. Though there are common practice of deficits of funds, which leads to more borrowing, either domestically or by other sources. Meaning, the spiral of debts are growing and the nature of financing is becoming more dire. Since, the state has to pay interests and pay old debts to keep up with the programs. Certainly, the state or the republic has no plans to configure or has a back-up for the loss of DGF funding. No, it has lived on these funds for years and thinks the donors are gullible to return the favour anyway.
The National Resistance Movement (NRM) has gambled a lot of people’s futures here. The current day-to-day operations of both government entities and CSOs/NGOs will be hurting for a long time. They will not have payroll or be able to keep up with contracts, which was signed a time back. We will see both local government and NGOs cry out. Especially, when the DGF finally close and leave.
It won’t be that easy for the donors of the DGF just to donate or use funds in Uganda after this. They have had mechanisms and organizations, which have followed statutes and means of oversight. That is needed and gives good basis for them to continue to donate in the Republic. However, when that is now gone and cease to operate. The NRM with it’s baseless attacks and wanting to interfere. Has ensured this loss. They will feel the pinch and the loss of domestic revenue through this. They might not consider it right now. Neither the ramifications of the CSOs/NGOs, but their activities and such has ensured livelihoods of lots of people. That’s why this is biting the hand that feeds you. Without having any sort of back-up or other revenue to ensure the longevity of the partners of DGF, which are getting hurt by this.
The IPOD is just one of them, but there are 30 CSOs/NGOs and a few government entities that is losing out too. That’s where there will be shortfall in 2023 and beyond. Unless, the Government of Uganda is able to talk and negotiate again with donors to create another body to have similar functions. Which I doubt, because, why do that? When you have seen how the NRM and the President has acted towards the DGF? Peace.

“Lieutenant General Tadesse Werede, the Commander-in Chief of the Tigray Defense Forces confirmed Eritrean forces are in Sheraro, northwestern Tigray, where the rebels said they were resisting a major offensive that Ethiopia and Eritrean troops launched last month on the region. In a statement Thursday, Tigray forces accused the air force of neighboring Eritrea of striking Adi Daero and killing “a number of civilians.” Eritrean forces are fighting alongside Ethiopia’s military in Tigray” (Garowe Online, 01.10.2022).
The last few weeks has been brutal to the Ethiopian National Defence Force (ENDF) and the Eritrean Defence Force (EDF). The Tripartite Alliance, which consist of ENDF, EDF and Amhara nationalists haven’t advanced or gotten any progress in the Tigray region. Even with the superiority in the air and with the usage of drones. The armies aren’t able to pushback or hurt the defensive lines of the Tigray Defence Force (TDF).
The leadership in Addis Ababa and Asmara are both blaming Mekelle for everything. They are busy vilifying the TDF and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). That’s being done in government media and in official press releases. No one should be shocked by that, the Prosperity Party and PFDJ (Higdef) have before the November 2020 start of the conflict gone after Tigray. Therefore, no one should be shocked or in awe by this, but that’s status quo propaganda for it’s objectives; which is to undermine and consolidate all power in the Republic. Also settle old grudges and use the TPLF history to bite it ass, by acting and creating Biafra situation in the Tigray region, which PP High Ranking Officials even has said on TV for everyone to hear. The Tripartite Alliance isn’t worried about the mass-deaths, massacres, the famine or the lack of humanitarian aid. The same government that is going after the WFP or anyone else helping the people suffering, by supporting and directing a blockade against it.
In this regard… The Herald is even pushing this sort of narrative through The Ethiopian Current Fact Check, which could only be a sideshow of the FDRE Government Communication Service, because they sound like twins and are coordinating the information. Nevertheless, we are just supposed to trust them… when the FDRE, Prime Minister and everyone else has lied about most of the things associated with the conflict. They even lied about the reason for invading Tigray in the first place and lied about refugees, wheat aid and the list goes on.
So here is the latest from the FDRE:
“This group is additionally using properties under the United Nations and other humanitarian aid institutions for transportation and storage of weapons caches. Recently, the Ethiopian Air Force has taken action targeting the locations of military equipment and arsenals of the TPLF in Adi Daero, Tigray region. And as expected, fallacious claims have been made by TPLF supporters that civilians have been targeted in this operation. Nonetheless, Ethiopian National Defense Forces ensure that military assets are isolated from civilians before taking action” (Ethiopian Press Agency/The Ethiopian Herald – Update on Current Issues!!, 30.09.2022).
It is really striking that the FDRE is claiming this and that the TPLF or TDF is using humanitarian aid or logistical support for their war-effort. As it is not videos of the ENDF doing military training with a UN vehicle and transports to the front was done with UN vehicles too. That’s why this is what we call projecting and blaming the other party for what you are doing yourself.
We know how the FDRE claimed the Mai Kadra didn’t really happen or the involvement of EDF wasn’t part of the warfare to begin with. So, when the FDRE is saying they only attacked military targets. We can take that with a grain of salt. Just like it has bombed markets and other public grounds in cities, towns and such since the beginning of the war. No one should think that the Tripartite Alliance is valuing life or such. If they did… they would let people starve, lack medicines, electricity and even water. However, that’s something they have done for months and with pride. That’s why this sort of messaging is insincere and shouldn’t be taken as fact. They would later pin the deaths on the TDF and not take accountability. That’s what they do… and we all know that by now. Peace.






