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| In the middle: Villagers, like these in Degahabur, are caught between separatist rebels and Ethiopian government forces. anita powell/ap |
In Ethiopia, does staying silent save lives?
Government warns aid workers if they talk to press about atrocities in Somali region, they will lose access.
from the February 26, 2008 edition
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The ONLF has been fighting to win greater autonomy for Somali-speakers, about 5 percent of the population, for more than two decades. The simmering conflict flared up again last April when the ONLF attacked a Chinese-run oil exploration facility, killing 74 people.
The United Nations has called for an independent investigation into allegations across the region, but the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights still has no access; meanwhile, international aid workers say they cannot wait for justice.
In Gudis, and in hundreds of similar villages, food and water are in short supply, leaving the residents to rely mostly on camel's milk for sustenance. Medical supplies ran out long ago.
"You always come down on the same side," said the director of one organization operating in the region. "It's better to keep yourself operational and to do something."
Still, questions remain about whether the food aid is reaching the people who need it – about 750,000, according to a recent US-funded assessment. Amid the conflict, food disbursements have been slow. The World Food Program (WFP) planned to distribute 53,000 metric tons of food aid in the Ogaden in the three months beginning in December. As of last week, less than 10,700 metric tons had reached beneficiaries.
"One of the things we want to make sure about is that the food gets to the people," said Gregory Beals, a spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the agency acting as interlocutor for aid efforts in the region. "That may mean that the food will go a little slower than we originally planned."
Yet even at the slow pace, aid workers and clan elders say that regional government officials and military forces still manage to divert supplies away from villages suspected of sympathies with the ONLF.
Some aid workers, increasingly frustrated by the situation, are discreetly speaking out. Many say they quietly and privately inform the head of the UN mission in Ethiopia, Fidele Sarassoro. The US Embassy has also convened a roundtable meeting on the Somali region.
For international staff, these surreptitious confessions may put their mission at risk, but for national staff – some who are from the Somali region – the stakes are even higher. Most refused to cooperate on this article for fear that they might be imprisoned or killed.
In spite of the perceived risk, a few local aid workers are eager to confide.
"It's a relief to speak with you," said one local aid worker. "You hear these things and they weigh on your heart."
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