Ethiopians in Winnipeg want Canada to do more to stop Tigray's bloody civil war

Ethiopians in Winnipeg are urging the Canadian governmentto help bring an end to a war that has killed thousands and displaced millions more.

As the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed struggles to keep the Tigray People's Liberation Front from encroaching on the capital, Roboam Berhane, who once lived in Tigray, fears for his family who live in the region under siege.

"It's very difficult. Even when I talk about it I get emotional. Since the war started last year in November, we call it genocidal war," he said.

"I'm not sure why Canada has been quiet since the war started. So many atrocities have been committed carried out in Tigray."

The United Nations says about 5.2 million people remain in need of help across the Ethiopian regions of Tigray, Amhara and Afar,after heavy fighting erupted a year ago between government troops and those aligned with the Tigray People's Liberation Front.

The UN says thousands are feared killed and more than two million have been forced to flee their homes amid allegations of widespread human rights abuses.

Berhane said he spends most of his time consoling his wife, who came to Winnipeg from Tigray as a refugee three years ago. He said she doesn't know if her sister, parents and other family members are alive or dead, and she hasn't been able to contact them since June.

"There is no phone, there is no internet, banks are closed still. People are starving because of the war," he said, adding most of the health facilities have been destroyed and people are dying of curable diseases because there are no medications available.

Meanwhile, he said the Tigray military, which has joined forces with other groups, isencroaching on the capital with the intent to overthrow and create a transitional government.

Ahmed promisedto bury his government's enemies "with our blood" as he marked the start of the war in the Tigray region one year ago.

Abiy, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019, spoke a day after the state of emergency was declared, urging residents of the capital to take up arms themselves.

"We have been begging the international community to intervene and to find some durable solutions to negotiation but unfortunately the prime minister, which was once a darling of the western (nations) and the African (countries), became the bloodiest dictator," said Mustefa Ebro, a human rights advocate who chairs the board of Winnipeg's OromoUnion.

Ebro, who came to Winnipeg as a political refugee, said the Oromo people, like the Tigrayans, also face persecution from the government.

Since the state of emergency was declared in the region, he said government security forces are taking bribes, stopping and searching whoever they want, confiscating their belongings and engaging in other abuses of power.

"This is beyond one can express. People are killed just for no crimes are committed, basically for who they are, especially if they are Oromo or if they are from Tigray," said Ebro.

He adds that Canada, which provides about $200 million annually to Ethiopia in financial aid, needs to intervene.

"Canadian government has tremendous amount of diplomatic influence to pressure the Ethiopian government to abide to the international rule of law. Not to harass people, not to commit genocide, not to rape a woman simply because they belong to Oromo or Tigray," Ebro said.

Global Affairs Canada issued a statement Sunday calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities and "an end to indiscriminate attacks on civilians and humanitarian personnel in northern Ethiopia."

Berhane said he and other Ethiopian refugees want Canada to stop funding the Ethiopian government whileAhmed remains in power, and to continue torefuse to supply drone technology to Turkey which could be used in future attacks.

He said in Ethiopia's famine of the 1980s, Canada played a strong role in providing aid and assistance.

"Canada hasn't made that much effort to help stop this war, this genocidal war, and we were wondering why because we were expecting Canada to do more," he said.

Berhane said he hopes once Ahmed's regimeis overthrown, the groups involved will form a transitional all-inclusive government with the help of the United Nations, the African Union and European countries.

Ethiopians in Winnipeg want Canada to do more to stop Tigray's bloody civil war

3 years ago

Duration 2:11

Ethiopians in Winnipeg are urging the Canadian government to help bring an end to a war that has killed thousands and displaced millions more.