Letter to President Joe Biden: Ethiopian-American Civic Organizations

Via: National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan

From: Mesfin Mekonen and 10 Concerned Ethiopian-American Civic Organizations

Subject: Averting Civil War in Ethiopia

Date: October 30, 2024

Mr. President,

I am writing on behalf of the Ethiopian-American community to alert you to the imminent danger of civil war in Ethiopia. As a longtime representative of our community, I previously corresponded with your office when you chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and today we reach out once again, profoundly concerned about Ethiopia’s deteriorating human rights situation.

The Ethiopian government’s recent use of drones to target and kill Amhara civilians has escalated this crisis. We urgently request that your administration intervene to prevent these attacks on civilians. The United Nations Human Rights Office has highlighted the “devastating impact of drone strikes and other violence on the population in the Amhara region” conducted by the Ethiopian National Defense Forces.

While the conflict between the Ethiopian government and Tigray rebels has received some media coverage in the U.S., there has been little attention given to the widespread violence targeting the Amhara people. The Ethiopian government has intensified attacks against its own citizens, displacing Amhara communities, and waging campaigns against the Orthodox Church and the free press. Journalists are being jailed, and reports from the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission document these human rights abuses in the Amhara region.

The White House and the State Department must condemn these acts and take immediate steps to address the crisis. We request targeted sanctions against Ethiopian officials responsible for these abuses or who fail to protect the lives of innocent civilians.

We urge the United States and the international community to condemn these atrocities. Rising tensions between the central government and the Amhara people have escalated into armed conflict that threatens to engulf the region. The U.S. has a moral responsibility to avert a civil war that could destabilize Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa.

At a time when the world is focused on crises in the Middle East and Ukraine, we ask that Ethiopia not be forgotten. Ethiopia, with a population of over 120 million, is pivotal to regional stability. It faces multiple, severe challenges:

• An unresolved civil war

• Ethnic cleansing and violence

• Widespread hunger and malnutrition

• Systemic human rights abuses

• Rampant corruption

The U.S. must act swiftly to advocate for a legitimate transition of government and a path to a new constitution for Ethiopia. The current system of ethnic federalism, which began under the TPLF and persists under Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, has fostered division and conflict. In the Wollega region, for example, the Oromo Liberation Army and local authorities have engaged in massacres and displacement of Amhara people, leaving over two million displaced.

On behalf of Ethiopian-American civic organizations, we ask the United States to intervene to prevent further escalation of violence, particularly the drone strikes killing civilians.

On October 23, Ethiopian-Americans convened in the Kennedy Caucus Room at the U.S. Senate Russell Building for the Ethiopia Constitutional Conference of the Diaspora and Congressional Briefing. This event, organized by ten Ethiopian-American civic organizations, reflects our community’s deep concern and commitment to peace and stability in Ethiopia:

• Ethiopiawinet

• Ethiopian American Civic Council (EACC)

• Ethiopian Survival Salvation Association (ESSA)

• Unity for Ethiopia

• Ethiopian Advocacy Network (EAN)

• Horn of Africa Peace Development Center (HAPDC)

• Ethiopian American Community (EAC)

• Ethiopian Dialogue Forum (EDF)

• Global Amhara Coalition (GAC)

• Global Alliance for the Rights of Ethiopians (GARE)

Thank you for your attention and action to prevent further violence and suffering in Ethiopia. We believe that the United States can make a meaningful difference in ensuring peace and stability in the Horn of Africa.

Sincerely,
Mesfin Mekonen

On behalf of Ethiopian-American Civic Organizations