Letter of Support and Solidarity with Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis
Letters to the Editor
August 27, 2007
Dear Sir/Madam,
I was shocked and distressed by Ms.Alem Zemdkun’s baseless allegation against Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis. Ms. Alem accused Dr. Muhammad of advocating terrorism, disintegration of a sovereign country by advocating force as well as racism.
I as a regular visitors of http://www.americanchronicle.com, and a reader of Dr. Muhammad’s scholarly and insightful articles, would like to underline the following realities
1. Ms. Alem Zemdkun hails from an ethnic group, which ruled and rules now the empire-state of Ethiopia, namely Amhara-Tigray elite, who oppress nations, nationalities and peoples of the empire-state of Ethiopia from Menelik to Meles. And she wants her minority ethnic group to maintain its privileged and dominant position at any cost.
2. She grew up in a country where there is no free press, freedom of speech, thought, movement, worship…etc So she lacks the culture of tolerance and listening other people’s point of view.
3. Ethiopian journalists are the most jailed in the world according to journalists without border reports.
4. In my country, the Ogaden, which is under Ethiopian occupation jails and detentions centres outnumber hospitals and schools. And every Ethiopian knows that sad reality.
5. Denying, lying, dissimulating and distorting realities are the common features of all successive Ethiopian governments.
Can we qualify someone who writes about the horrors of nazi concentrations camps, Rwanda genocide, ethnic cleansing in Bosnia and Kosovo as a racist ?
There is nothing racist, offensive or derogatory in Dr. Muhammad’s articles on Ethiopia. He relates past and present events in an honest and truthful manner. I did not understand what provokes Ms. Alem in telling the truth as it is.
The URL http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=34922 and the excerpt, which Ms. Alem has cited to prove her allegation exonerated Dr. Muhammad, since there is no shred of evidence that supports her allegation.
I think her letter is a part of a campaign to intimidate and silence honest writers and journalist who are not in the pay roll of the Ethiopian government. Ethiopian government’s arrest and mistreatment of three American journalists who were on a legitimate newsgathering mission, in Dhagaxbuur, on May 16th 2007, and Ethiopian government’s defamation campaign against New York Times journalist Mr. Jeffrey Gettleman is a case in point.
Instead of attacking writers and journalists, Ethiopians like Ms. Alem should ask their government to stop terrorizing civilian population in the Ogaden, Oromia and elsewhere in the empire-state of Ethiopia, and allow them to exercise their inalienable right to self-determinations.
I read an article written by an Ahmara /Tigrean by the name of Gemeda Humnasa. The article which is posted on http://www.americanchronicle.com, on 17th August 2007, under the URL http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=35277, is full of distortions and misinformation but we are not going to insult or threaten its writer or American chronicle as Ms. Alem did. But our response will be in a civilised responsible manner.
Finally, I would like to express my solidarity and unwavering support to Dr. Muhammad and other writers and journalists who are the target of the Ethiopian governments vicious campaign of defamation and misinformation.
Many thanks to Americanchronicle.com and its staff for their dedication to freedom of speech.
Best regards,
A.Sulub Abdi
I was shocked and distressed by Ms.Alem Zemdkun’s baseless allegation against Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis. Ms. Alem accused Dr. Muhammad of advocating terrorism, disintegration of a sovereign country by advocating force as well as racism.
I as a regular visitors of http://www.americanchronicle.com, and a reader of Dr. Muhammad’s scholarly and insightful articles, would like to underline the following realities
1. Ms. Alem Zemdkun hails from an ethnic group, which ruled and rules now the empire-state of Ethiopia, namely Amhara-Tigray elite, who oppress nations, nationalities and peoples of the empire-state of Ethiopia from Menelik to Meles. And she wants her minority ethnic group to maintain its privileged and dominant position at any cost.
2. She grew up in a country where there is no free press, freedom of speech, thought, movement, worship…etc So she lacks the culture of tolerance and listening other people’s point of view.
3. Ethiopian journalists are the most jailed in the world according to journalists without border reports.
4. In my country, the Ogaden, which is under Ethiopian occupation jails and detentions centres outnumber hospitals and schools. And every Ethiopian knows that sad reality.
5. Denying, lying, dissimulating and distorting realities are the common features of all successive Ethiopian governments.
Can we qualify someone who writes about the horrors of nazi concentrations camps, Rwanda genocide, ethnic cleansing in Bosnia and Kosovo as a racist ?
There is nothing racist, offensive or derogatory in Dr. Muhammad’s articles on Ethiopia. He relates past and present events in an honest and truthful manner. I did not understand what provokes Ms. Alem in telling the truth as it is.
The URL http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=34922 and the excerpt, which Ms. Alem has cited to prove her allegation exonerated Dr. Muhammad, since there is no shred of evidence that supports her allegation.
I think her letter is a part of a campaign to intimidate and silence honest writers and journalist who are not in the pay roll of the Ethiopian government. Ethiopian government’s arrest and mistreatment of three American journalists who were on a legitimate newsgathering mission, in Dhagaxbuur, on May 16th 2007, and Ethiopian government’s defamation campaign against New York Times journalist Mr. Jeffrey Gettleman is a case in point.
Instead of attacking writers and journalists, Ethiopians like Ms. Alem should ask their government to stop terrorizing civilian population in the Ogaden, Oromia and elsewhere in the empire-state of Ethiopia, and allow them to exercise their inalienable right to self-determinations.
I read an article written by an Ahmara /Tigrean by the name of Gemeda Humnasa. The article which is posted on http://www.americanchronicle.com, on 17th August 2007, under the URL http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=35277, is full of distortions and misinformation but we are not going to insult or threaten its writer or American chronicle as Ms. Alem did. But our response will be in a civilised responsible manner.
Finally, I would like to express my solidarity and unwavering support to Dr. Muhammad and other writers and journalists who are the target of the Ethiopian governments vicious campaign of defamation and misinformation.
Many thanks to Americanchronicle.com and its staff for their dedication to freedom of speech.
Best regards,
A.Sulub Abdi
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