January 27, 2018
APPEAL TO BRING MENGISTU HAILEMARIAM TO JUSTICE
To: European Parliament
Antonio Tajani, President
Rue Wiertz 60
1047 Brussels
Belgium EU
Feteh LeEthiopia[1] presents its respectful compliments and submits this letter of appeal for your kind assistance, to bring the former Ethiopian dictator, Mengistu Hailemariam, to justice, for the crimes he committed from 1974-1991.
It is an established fact that Mengistu Hailemariam is responsible for the horrendous crimes committed in Ethiopia, including the massacre of over 500,000 people, the imprisonment, wounding, torture and migration of millions. An example of the extra-judicial action taken by Mengistu is the attached Amharic letter signed by him (English translation also attached), in which he gave his order to murder 54 former officials of Emperor Haile Selassie I’s government plus Derg members, a total of 60 people. That criminal action included the massacre of renowned Ethiopians such as former Prime Minister Aklilu Habtewold and Endalkachew Mekonnen. It is also recalled that one of his victims was the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, His Holiness Patriarch Abune Tewoflos.
In 1991, Mengistu fled to Zimbabwe, with some international assistance, where he has been residing without facing any credible judicial process, although there have been outstanding appeals for action by Ethiopians to the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, the African Union, the UN Human Rights Commission, the USA Department of State, etc. It is a travesty of justice that one of the most brutal murderers in the records of human history is still at large, pretending innocent, fooling well-meaning African brothers and sisters and eluding justice.
Feteh LeEthiopia fervently appeals for the following bodies to act on the recommendations here under in the important quest of achieving full accountability and justice:
- That, as the nation that facilitated Mengistu Hailemariam’s migration to Zimbabwe, the government of USA assist, through the UN Security Council, the establishment of an international tribunal for his trial;
2. That the United Nations, the European Union, the African Union, the International Criminal Court and other concerned institutions assist in the effort;
3. That concerned human rights institutions, such as Human Rights Watch, assist in the campaign for justice;
4. That surviving victims of the Derg regime, as well as supporters of human rights add their weight by supporting this petition and by providing relevant information;
5. In particular, we fervently call on the Government and people of Zimbabwe to be on the side of the Ethiopian people, whose help as a nation was an important factor for their independence from colonial rule.
Most respectfully,
Kidane Alemayehu
Chairman
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[1] Feteh LeEthiopia literally means Justice for Ethiopia
