Violence in Ethiopia spreads/New Ethiopia/Eritrea conflict?

Troops movements on Ethiopia/Eritrea border worry AU

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia,11/06 - African Union (AU) Commission Chairperson Alpha Oumar Konare, has expressed "grave concern" at the movements of Ethiopian and Eritrea military personnel on both sides of their disputed borders.

"This has the potential to escalate into military confrontation, with far reaching implications for the two countries and the region as a whole," Konare warned in a statement Friday.

Reiterating AU`s full support for the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE), he urged both countries to exercise restraint and to avoid any action that could aggravate the situation.

Ethiopia and Eritrea fought a two-year border war that ended in 2000 with both countries committing to halt hostilities and to abide by the decision of an international Boundary Commission on the demarcation of their disputed frontiers.

But Ethiopia has rejected the Commission`s decision and Eritrea wrote the UN Security Council recently complaining that the international community had failed to bring Ababa Ababa on line.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has since called on both countries respect the peace agreements they signed and not to provoke a fresh confrontation.

Eritrea broke away from Ethiopia as an independent State in 1993.

ETHIOPIA: STATEMENT BY THE UK PRESIDENCY OF THE EU (06/11/05)


The United Kingdom, as Presidency of the European Union, expresses grave concern at the continued unrest in Ethiopia which has resulted in many deaths and injuries. Our condolences and sympathies are with their families. The use of excessive force, whether by security forces or demonstrators cannot be justified. There must be an end to the indiscriminate beatings and massive arrests. Likewise we urge all Opposition parties to discourage action which might incite violence or harm people or damage property.

The Presidency expresses serious concern at the arrest of many CUD party leaders and some from civil society and the media. All political detainees should be released. Individuals detained should be immediately released if not charged under due process. Their whereabouts should be notified; access to them should be granted for their families and representatives of the ICRC or other appropriate representatives of the international community; and they should be provided with medicines and humanitarian needs.

The tragic events in Addis Ababa and other towns have further deepened the political and social divisions in the community, as well as damaging the Ethiopian international reputation. The people of Ethiopia need reassurance of a peaceful, just and democratic future. To this end, we call on the Government and opposition parties to immediately exercise maximum restraint and to re-open political dialogue as soon as possible, of which the release of political detainees is part, based on principles of reconciliation, respect for the rule of law, human rights and democracy.

The Presidency calls for speedy review and revision of Parliamentary rules and practices to ensure all parties can participate on a fair and representative basis; the reopening of the private media and approval by all parties of a code of conduct to ensure balanced and responsible flow of information to the public.