Tuesday, January 31, 2012

ለስካይ ባስ አደጋ የሚከፈለው የጉዳት ካሳ አራት ሚሊዮን ብር ተገመተ

(ፎቶ ከ አንተነህ ይግዛው)

በቅርቡ ከአዲስ አበባ ወደ ጎንደር ሲጓዝ በነበረው የስካይ ባስ አክሲዮን ማኅበር አውቶቡስ ላይ በደረሰው አደጋ፣ የሦስተኛ ወገን አስገዳጅ የመድን ሽፋን ተግባራዊ ከተደረገ ወዲህ ሕይወታቸው ላለፈውና ለተጎጂዎች የሚከፍለው ትልቁ የጉዳት ካሳ እንደሚሆን ታወቀ፡፡ ለደረሰው አጠቃላይ የጉዳት ካሳ ከአራት ሚሊዮን ብር በላይ እንደሚከፈል ተገምቷል፡፡

ከስካይ ባስ ኩባንያ ያገኘነው መረጃ እንደሚያመለክተው፣ በአደጋው ሕይወታቸው ላለፉ ቤተሰቦችና ጉዳት ለደረሰባቸው ተሳፋሪዎች ካሳ ለመክፈል ቅድመ ዝግጅቶች እየተደረጉ ነው፡፡

ለተሽከርካሪውም ሆነ ለተሳፋሪዎቹ የመድን ሽፋን የተገባው ከመንግሥታዊ የኢትዮጵያ መድን ድርጅት ሲሆን፣ በአሁኑ ወቅትም ስካይ ባስ ለኢንሹራንስ ድርጅቱ ስለአደጋው ሁኔታ የሚገልጽና የተጎጂዎቹን ስም ዝርዝር የያዘ መረጃ ማቅረቡ ታውቋል፡፡

በዚሁ መሠረት ኢንሹራንስ ድርጅቱ ከፖሊስ ማረጋገጫ የጠየቀ በመሆኑ፣ ለአደጋውና ለሟቾቹም የሞት አደጋ ሠርተፊኬት ለመስጠት እንዲቻል፣ የተጎጂ ቤተሰቦችን ቃል እንዲቀበሉላቸው ፖሊሶችን ወደ አዲስ አበባ በማስመጣት በስካይ ባስ ጽሕፈት ቤት እያነጋገሯቸው ይገኛሉ፡፡

በተገኘው መረጃ መሠረት ለሟቾች ካሳ እንዲከፈል ማሟላት ያለባቸው መስፈርቶች እንዳለ የተገለጸ ሲሆን፣ ይህም በአደጋው ሕይወታቸውን ያጡ ተሳፋሪዎች ወራሾች ከፍርድ ቤት ወራሽነታቸውን የሚያረጋግጥ መረጃ ይዘው መቅረብ ይኖርባቸዋል፡፡

አጠቃላይ ለደረሰው የሞትና የመቁሰል አደጋ፣ እንዲሁም ለተሽከርካሪው የሚከፈለው ካሳ ምን ያህል ነው የሚለው ጉዳይ ስካይ ባስ ኩባንያ ባይገልጽም፣ በአዲሱ የሦስተኛ ወገን አስገዳጅ የመድን ሽፋን አዋጅ መሠረት ለሟች ወራሾች ለእያንዳንዳቸው 40 ሺሕ ብር እንደሚከፈል ይደነግጋል፡፡ በአደጋው ሕይወታቸውን ላጡት 42 ሰዎች የሚከፈለው ደግሞ ወደ 1.7 ሚሊዮን ብር የሚጠጋ ይሆናል፡፡

ከአደጋው ለተረፉትና ለተጎዱት ደግሞ እያንዳንዳቸው 10 ሺሕ ብር በላይ የሚከፈል ሲሆን፣ ለተሽከርካሪው የተገባው ዋስትናና ለሕክምና የወጣው ወጪ ሲደማመር፣ የኢንሹራንስ ኩባንያው አጠቃላይ የካሳ ክፍያው ከአራት ሚሊዮን ብር በላይ እንደሚሆን ተገምቷል፡፡

ይህ በእንዲህ እንዳለ ለተጎጂዎቹ ጥር 27 ቀን 2004 .. ብፁዕ ወቅዱስ አቡነ ጳውሎስ በተገኙበት በቅድስት ሥላሴ ካቴድራል ፍትሀትና የፀሎት ሥነ ሥርዓት ይደረጋል፡፡ የፊታችን ዓርብ ደግሞ በአንዋር መስጊድም ተመሳሳይ ፕሮግራም ይኖራል ተብሎ ይጠበቃል፡፡

ጥር 9 ቀን 2004 .. ከአዲስ አበባ 46 ተሳፋሪዎችንና ሦስት ሠራተኞችን ይዞ ወደ ጎንደር ሲያመራ ዓባይ በረሃ ህዳሴ ድልድይ መዳረሻ ሊደርስ ሲል አደጋ የደረሰበት፣ ንብረትነቱ የስካይ ባስ ኩባንያ አውቶቡስ ተገልብጦ 42 ሰዎች መሞታቸው ይታወሳል፡፡ በግምት 80 ሜትር በላይ ጥልቀት ያለው ገደል ውስጥ የተገለበጠው አውቶቡስ በእሳት በመያያዙ ጭምር ሰለባ የሆኑት 42 መንገደኞች አስከሬን ደጀን ከተማ መቀበሩ አይዘነጋም፡፡ ስካይ ባስ ኩባንያ ለሪፖርተር እንደገለጸው፣ ለሟቾቹ መታሰቢያ አደጋው በደረሰበት ሥፍራ አንድ ትምህርት ቤት ለመሥራት አቅዷል፡፡

In Ethiopia: First impressions of a far-off land

Manitoba Co-operator editor Laura Rance travels in Africa with the Canadian Foodgrains Bank



The sun was just peeking above the horizon as the Boeing 777 banked south just over Cairo, Egypt and headed for Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital that serves as the hub for all of Africa.

We'd been travelling ahead in time, losing a night as we left Washington, D.C. at around 11 a.m. on Saturday, flying 13 hours non-stop and landing at our destination at 8 a.m., nine hours ahead of the clocks back home.

The air felt heavy as we stepped from the plane, which is odd because we were stepping into thin air. At its highest point, the capital city of Ethiopia is 2,390 metres above sea level and we were told its elevation makes it the third-highest capital in the world (next to La Paz, Bolivia and Bogota, Colombia).

But the early morning haze was rich with smells -- diesel from the multitude of vehicles travelling the streets, many of them belching black smoke as they sputtered along, and spices as we passed open-air restaurants and markets on our way to the hotel for a few hours of R+R before taking a sightseeing tour of the city. There was also a hint of wood smoke from cooking fires. We learned later in the day the most accessible fuelwood in the city is cut from eucalyptus trees growing rampant up the hillsides, which explains why there was an exotic tang to its acridity.

Sounds also add to this colourful assault on the senses. This is a land of open windows, so the air is filled with everyday living, children, laughter, dogs, city traffic and even some crowing roosters. Frequently through both day and night, the haunting sounds of a soulful male voice chanting the Ethiopian Orthodox gospel in Amharic, the dominant Ethiopian language, ripple through the alleys and side streets near our hotel.

And the tastes: Our first meals in this country were richly spiced, some with a little heat, but deliciously prepared.

Despite the fact it was Sunday, a Christian holiday just like at home, the streets were busy. The African Union is holding its annual summit in Addis this week, bringing heads of states from across the continent to the city. Traffic jams were inevitable as security forces blocked the streets to allow diplomatic delegations to pass.

There was no such pomp and circumstance for our delegation, a group of five Canadian journalists accompanied by Jim Cornelius, executive director of the Canadian Foodgrains Bank and Sam Van der Ende, CFGB's Ethiopian project co-ordinator. We are here on a Media Food Study Tour with visas granted by the Ethiopian government. But our hosts are forever conscious that in this part of the world, foreign journalists are sometimes suspect.

Touring projects

We are guests and we are here to learn more about food-security issues through the eyes of local CFGB partners. Over the next several days we will be travelling into the countryside to experience first-hand the kinds of projects Canadian farmers and the bank's 15 partners support through their fundraising efforts at home.

For me, this trip is an opportunity to do much more than escape the Prairie winter and reverse the thermometer from minus to plus. (Daytime temperatures here are hovering around 24 C and dropping to 11 C or so at night.

And it's kind of cool to think I've now been to two out of the three highest capitals in the world, having travelled to La Paz, Bolivia in 1997. (Guess there's more than one way of moving up in the world.)

But I accepted this opportunity for a different reason. I suspect I'm not alone in this, but I've never been to this country. And until my arrival here, the first images that came to mind whenever Ethiopia is mentioned were images of famine and starvation portrayed in the media coverage of those tragedies.

Of course I know at a conscious level that Ethiopia is about much more than droughts and distended bellies. But shaking those subconscious imprints on our memories can can be difficult.

Ancient and diverse culture

There is no question that famine has been a part of this nation's history and that hunger continues to stalk vulnerable sectors of its population. It has no doubt influenced its culture and its view of the world. But it does not define Ethiopia as a country.

While on a tour of the national museum, our guide recites history in the context of millennia. Ethiopia's Awash Valley is where the famous Lucy, a skeleton dating back 3.2 million years, was discovered in 1974. The specimen is scientifically known as Australopithecus atarensis, and considered the "missing link" in the evolution between apes and humans.

Ethiopians trace their civilization back to King Solomon's times. Emperors in the 12th and 13th centuries were paying homage to their spiritual beliefs through structures such as Lalibela, a collection of churches carved out of a mountain in the country's north that are considered architectural marvels even today. They successfully thwarted European invaders, not once, but twice, maintaining their independence as a sovereign country while much of the African continent was carved into colonies.

Ethiopia is home to about 80 million people, occupying an area nearly twice the size of Texas. There are 80 different ethnic groups and a population that is spiritually divided mainly between Muslim, Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity with a sprinkling of indigenous religions.

But unlike Canada, which is considered one of the most urbanized countries in the world with 80 per cent of its population living in cities and towns, Ethiopia's urban rural breakdown is almost exactly the reverse.

It is a rural country, with agriculture making up nearly half of its GDP and 80 per cent of its exports. Nearly 25 per cent of the population earns its livelihood from coffee, but Ethiopia is also known for its flowers, leather products, pulses, oilseeds, beeswax and, increasingly, tea.

The sun is rising again. As we follow the Rift Valley south today, I know I'm going to be visiting communities in which food security remains elusive. I expect to learn about the complexities of the work the Canadian Foodgrains Bank supports.

But I also know my first objective for this tour -- reformatting my simplistic image of Ethiopia -- has already been accomplished. I plan to relax and enjoy the ride.
http://www.albertafarmexpress.ca/

Godfather of Ethiopian Jazz back in the studio

Mulatu Astatke on his vibraphone.

These days, one of the world’s great bandleaders is dedicating his energy and time to giving African traditional music its rightful place in the world

“I was doing world music 42 years ago, long before it became a genre,” says the Ethiopian composer and performer Mulatu Astatke during a recording session in Nairobi last week.

The 67 year old is credited with successfully fusing Western jazz and funk with traditional Ethiopian folk melodies, and elements of music of the ancient Coptic Church. “I became a student of jazz composition and combined that knowledge with Ethiopian music to give birth to Ethio-jazz,” he says.

For the last few years Mulatu has been producing an opera using ancient church music by the Ethiopian composer, scholar and pioneer of musical notation, St. Yared, who created chants for church services and celebrations.
“The composition includes choirs, strings, trombones and an ancient conducting stick called the mekwamia. It has been a big challenge but I want to see what people will say,” says Mulatu.

The plan is to have the opera eventually performed at one of Ethiopia’s holiest sites, Lalibela, famous for its rock-hewn Orthodox churches.
The first section of the opera premiered at Harvard University’s Sanders Theatre two years ago while Mulatu was attending an academic Fellowship to research and develop the krar, a bowl-shaped six-string lyre made of wood, cloth and beads

He says young African musicians tend to opt for the guitar because instruments like the krar are limited in range. This process of development increased the strings to 8 and ultimately to 12, offering a dramatic improvement to the versatility of the instrument.

However the successful upgrade of traditional instruments must be done in tandem with the acquisition of new skills. “ The musicians who have played these instruments for years also need to develop their mind and thinking so that they can be better suited to contemporary times,” says Mulatu.

Indigenous instruments
He is full of admiration for what the West Africans have accomplished with the kora music, whose score was adopted in the 1970s and is now widely used by modern players.

Ethiopian Christians to be deported from Saudi Arabia

Ethiopia was one of the first Christian countries in the world.

Some 35 Ethiopian Christians face deportation from Saudi Arabia for "illicit mingling", the global rights body Human Rights Watch (HRW) says.

Police arrested the group - including 29 women - after raiding a prayer meeting in the second city of Jeddah.

The women were subjected to strip searches and the men beaten and called "unbelievers", according to HRW.

In 2006, the Saudi government promised to stop interfering with private worship by non-Muslims.

The group was arrested in a private home as they gathered to pray during the run-up to Christmas, celebrated by Ethiopian Orthodox Christians on 7 January.

HRW spoke to a man and two women by telephone from the prisons where they are being held.

They say they have been charged with mixing with unmarried persons of the opposite sex - even though HRW says Saudi Arabia has no law defining "illicit mingling".

Mixing of the sexes is not allowed in public - but normally permitted in private unless for "the purpose of corruption", according to the religious police.

The ultra-conservative Muslim kingdom bans the practice of any religion except Islam - but in recent years pledged to leave people of other faiths alone if they worshipped in private homes.

Ethiopia was one of the first Christian countries in the world, having officially adopted Christianity as the state religion in the 4th Century.
http://www.bbc.co.uk

Monday, January 30, 2012

Saudi Arabia: Ethiopian Christians Arrested for Praying


Ethiopian Women Subjected to Unwarranted Strip Search
Human Right Watch
(Beirut) – Thirty five Ethiopian Christians are awaiting deportation from Saudi Arabia for “illicit mingling,” after police arrested them when they raided a private prayer gathering in Jeddah in mid-December, 2011, Human Rights Watch said today. Of those arrested, 29 were women. They were subjected to arbitrary body cavity searches in custody, three of the Ethiopians told Human Rights Watch.
The Ethiopians gathered to pray together on December 15, during the advent of Christmas, in the private home of one of the Ethiopians, when police burst in and arrested them, three jailed members of the group, two women and one man, told Human Rights Watch.
“While King Abdullah sets up an international interfaith dialogue center, his police are trampling on the rights of believers of others faiths,” said Christoph Wilcke, senior Middle East researcher for Human Rights Watch. “The Saudi government needs to change its own intolerant ways before it can promote religious dialogue abroad.”
In October, Saudi Arabia, together with Austria and Spain, founded the King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue, located in Vienna, and funded by Saudi Arabia.
The Ethiopian men spent two days at al-Nuzha police station in Jeddah, after which the police transferred them to Buraiman prison. The women had already been transferred to Buraiman prison. Two of the women said that officials there forced the women to strip, and then an officer inserted her finger into each of the women’s genitals, under the pretext of searching for illegal substances hidden inside their bodies. She wore a plastic glove that she did not change, the women told Human Rights Watch. Officers also kicked and beat the men in Buraiman prison, and insulted them as “unbelievers,” the jailed Ethiopian man said.
Both men and women complained of inadequate medical care and unsanitary conditions at Buraiman prison. There were too few toilets, they said. In the men’s wing, six of twelve toilets were reserved for Saudi inmates, while hundreds of foreign inmates were forced to share the remaining six toilets. One female detainee said she suffers from diabetes and was given an injection in the prison clinic that caused swelling, and has received no further medical attention.
The Ethiopians, speaking via telephone from prison, said that about 10 days after being arrested, some in the group were taken to court, where they were forced to affix their fingerprints to a document without being allowed to read it. Officials told the group that they were being charged with “illicit mingling” of unmarried persons of the opposite sex. Some of the Ethiopians have been living in the kingdom for 16 years, while others are newer arrivals. Some of the women and men did not have valid residency papers, but all faced deportation, including those with valid papers, the jailed Ethiopian man said.
In July 2006, the Saudi government promised that it would stop interfering with private worship by non-Muslims. In a “Confirmation of Policies,” a written document the Saudi government sent to the US government, Saudi Arabia said it would “guarantee and protect the right to private worship for all, including non-Muslims who gather in homes for religious practice,” and “ensure that members of the [religious police] do not detain or conduct investigations of suspects, implement punishment, [or] violate the sanctity of private homes.” In this document, the government also said it would investigate any infringements of these policies. Public worship of any religion other than Islam remains prohibited in the kingdom.
“Saudi authorities have broken their promises to respect other faiths,” Wilcke said. “Men and women of other faiths have nowhere to worship in Saudi Arabia if even their private homes are no longer safe.”
The Arab Charter of Human Rights, to which Saudi Arabia is a state party, guarantees “[t]he freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs or to perform religious observances, either alone or in community with others,” and prohibits “arbitrary arrest.”
Saudi Arabia has no codified criminal law or other law that defines “illicit mingling.” In 2006, Shaikh Ibrahim al-Ghaith, the president of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, the religious police, told Human Rights Watch in an interview in Riyadh, “Mingling of the sexes is prohibited in public, and permitted in private unless it is for the purpose of corruption.”
Human Rights Watch called on the Saudi authorities to release the 35 Ethiopian men and women immediately if there is no evidence to charge them with offenses that are recognizably criminal under international norms. Saudi authorities should also investigate their allegations of physical and sexual abuse and, if warranted, compensate them for arbitrary arrest and any mistreatment they endured, and to hold accountable any officials found to be responsible for these acts.
Human Rights Watch also called on the authorities to allow members of the group who fear persecution in Ethiopia to lodge asylum claims with the UN Refugee Agency.
http://sodere.com

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Ethiopian Women national team defeated Egypt 4-0


Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – The Ethiopian Women nation soccer team “Dinkinesh” (Lucy) defeated their Egyptian counterpart 4-0 in the return leg match of the African Women’s Soccer Championship Preliminary qualifier here today to advance to the First round on a 6-4 aggregate score.
The Ethiopian team lost 4-2 in the first leg match two weeks ago in Cairo, Egypt.
Coach Abraham T. Haimanot, who blamed his team’s defeat in Cairo to an unwarranted penalty kick and some silly mistakes by his side, predicted that his team will advance to the next round as they’ve learned from their mistakes and they will be playing on home soil.
The team will face the winner of Namibia and Tanzania in the next round. Considering that Tanzania won the first leg match 2-0 away from home, it is the most likely opponent for the Ethiopian side.
http://www.ethiosports.com

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Frenetic pace of Ethiopia's khat boomtown


The global trade in khat is worth hundreds of millions of dollars a year and in one Ethiopian town daily life centres almost entirely around the drug.


Drive along any road between Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia and you are likely to see pick-up trucks, piled high with bundles of fresh green leaves, hurtling past you at terrific speed, horns blaring, lights flashing.

A bit like ambulances. Or fire engines.

Land at any airport and you will see planes stuffed with the same green leaves, being unloaded at a frenzied pace.


 Whether there is war, drought or famine, the leaves get through. The khat industry booms.

I used to wonder where all this khat was coming from. Now I know.

The small
town of Awaday is in between Ethiopia's most holy Muslim town of Harar and its big eastern city of Dire Dawa.

I first arrived in Awaday late at night. Unlike the other towns I had passed through, it was not quiet, dark and asleep. It was wide awake and madly, crazily busy.    

                                                                         
Every scrap of pavement, every building, room and shack was devoted to the sorting, the weighing, the bundling and the selling of khat. There was a fresh, slightly bitter smell of vegetation.

I stood on floors which were soft, smooth and silky with glossy discarded leaves. Man, woman and child sat on these floors, rapidly chopping stems, picking through the leaves to choose the most succulent and tender.

There was something medieval about the process. Nothing was mechanised. Everything was done by hand.

Delicate weighing of the highest quality leaves - which fetch tens of dollars a bunch - was done with tiny brass weights on metal scales.

In each and every room, a man sat with a giant ledger, carefully noting down weights, prices and other figures.
"This is the khat capital of the world," one man told me. "This whole town is a khat factory.

"We harvest the leaves from the fields nearby, then we rush them to Awaday for sorting and pricing. This is our khat stock exchange.

"We all work from late afternoon until three of four in the morning. Only then do we rest."

In the middle of Awaday is a large five-storey building, the biggest I could see in the town.


It is devoted entirely to khat and is divided into small rooms, where people prepare the leaves for transporting all over the world.

The vehicles waiting on the road with their engines running reminded me of racehorses straining at the bit, before the starting bell. As soon as they are filled with khat, they race off into the night.

"This one's for Djibouti, this for Somaliland, Dire Dawa, Addis Ababa, London, China."

The reason for the speed is that khat has to be fresh.

Wherever possible, it must be on the market before noon the next day. Otherwise, as one devoted chewer told me, "it loses its deadliness".

Soaring spirits
During the day Awaday takes on slower pace
I spent time with some chewers the day after I visited Awaday.
They were known by their Somali nicknames of "Black Hair', "Big Nose" and "Round Mouth".

There is quite a ritual to chewing khat, which is usually done sprawled on the floor, preferably on a carpet or blanket, with cushions to lean on.

Soft drinks, water and tea are placed before each chewer, together with a large bundle of khat, a bin for the stems and a cloth for wiping sweat from the brow.

The session starts quite slowly.

There is not much conversation as packing the leaves and stems into the mouth and chewing them are the priorities.

After an hour or so, spirits lift, tongues fly and arms wave about. There is a lot of talking, planning, analysing, arguing and joking.
Business deals are made. Political problems are solved or created.
As the hours spin by, and the chewing subsides, the mood shifts downwards.

Eyes take on a glazed expression. Irritability sets in, and sleep refuses to come.

It is here that I see shades of what psychiatrists and others describe as the destructive side of khat, which they say can lead to serious mental health and other problems.

The next time I visited Awaday, it was daytime.

In this upside-down town, where people work through the night, there was hardly anyone on the streets.

All the doors were closed. Everybody was asleep.

There were a few goats trotting about, and a few dried khat leaves in the dust, the only reminder of the frenzied night-time activity.

I could not help thinking that khat is being grown in an area affected by drought and shortages of food.

It is being delivered fresh, with tremendous efficiency, to parts of Somalia affected by famine.

I suppose it is a matter of priorities, or, should I say, of money.

At the very least, perhaps the local authorities and the international aid agencies could learn something from the people of Awaday about how to deliver fresh supplies, perhaps of food and other essential items, to difficult and dangerous areas.
http://www.bbc.co.uk

Friday, January 27, 2012

Government backs Ethiopians’ departure


        Norway has signed an agreement with Ethiopia enabling nationals to return home, officials say.


The new deal means will enable around 400 paperless Ethiopians living in Norway illegally from authorities’ point of view to go back. Deputy Minister of Justice Pål K. Lønseth encourages them to return to Ethiopia voluntarily, giving them 40,000 kroner.
“We will not be using the option of forcible returns before the 15th March, meaning they have the opportunity to apply for a voluntary one soreturn. So the can return to Ethiopia under general conditions,” he tells NRK.
According to him, 15,000 kroner is “if they choose to reintegrate themselves in Ethiopia”, the rest is financial support towards measures after their arrival.
Approximately 100 Ethiopians went on hunger strike last February, locking themselves inside Oslo Cathedral, in protest against their treatment by the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI).
Those demonstrating at the time felt their lives were in danger because of Ethiopia’s political situation. The hunger strike lasted a week and the protesters gathered support from people in Oslo and Stavanger.
Calling the new agreement following 20 years of negotiation “good for Norway”, Deputy Minister Lønseth is now hoping deals can be made with other countries, and that “police and immigration authorities use it effectively.”
However, watchdog the Norwegian Organisation for Asylum Seekers (NOAS) personnel express concern about how the government has handled matter, particularly regarding children.
Secretary General Ann-Margrit Austenå says, “A number of Ethiopian children have lived in Norway for quite some time, and we believe their situation must be addressed. The government must postpone cases and make a new assessment if it is serious about their best interests.”
“I fear we will see some incidents of imprisonments [when Ethiopians have returned], and at the very worst torture, as well as destruction of individuals and families. Ethiopia’s regime is extremely authoritarian, with human rights violations having got worse over the past year. Many of them have been engaged in political opposition whilst living in Norway, and it will have consequences for some,” she concludes.
http://theforeigner.no/

AU to honor Nkrumah with Statue


The African Union (AU) will honor the founder and first President of Ghana, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, with the unveiling of a statue in Addis Ababa, for the role he played in African liberation struggle and the Pan African Movement.

In line with that, President John Evans Atta Mills, who leaves Accra today, for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to attend the 18th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the AU, has invited Dr Francis Nkrumah and Ms Samia Nkrumah to join him at the unveiling ceremony in honor of their father.

The statue has been mounted at the forecourt of the newly constructed AU Building in Addis Ababa.

The President is expected to deliver the keynote address on the theme: “Boosting Intra-African Trade”, and also be the guest of honor at the unveiling ceremony.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Ayele Abshero breaks course record in Dubai Marathon


DUBAI — Ayele Abshero of Ethiopia won the Dubai Marathon on Friday, setting a course record of 2 hours, 4 minutes, 23 seconds in his first marathon, giving his country a morale-boosting victory over rivals Kenya in an Olympic year.
The 21-year-old moved up to the full marathon distance after having broken the hour mark in the half marathon in the Hague last year.

Abshero moved to the front of a pack at the 34 kilometer (21.13 miles) mark and then pulled away from his compatriot Dino Sefir Kemal at 39 kilometers (24.2 miles) to win the race by 25 seconds over Kemal. Markos Geneti was third, completing a clean sweep of the placings for Ethiopia.

Abshero’s time was 30 seconds faster than the course record set by the great Haile Gebrselassie in 2008.

Abshero’s victory was unexpected not only because of his inexperience but because of the number of top Kenyans entered in the race.

But the likes of five-time major winner Martin Lel of Kenya and the 2011 champion David Barmasai of Kenya couldn’t keep pace and dropped out of contention with about 10 kilometers (6 miles) to go.

The win, which returns Ethiopians to the top spot in Dubai following Gebrselassie hat trick of victories from 2008-2010, .also puts a dent in the dominance of Kenyans who won every major marathon last year and would have been banking on gold in the upcoming Olympics in London.

In the women’s race, defending champion Aselefech Mergia made it an Ethiopian double as she held off Lucy Kabuu of Kenya by just three seconds, winning in 2 hours 19 minutes and 31 seconds. Kabuu, running her first marathon after being a force at 10,000 meters, briefly held the lead in the closing stages but Mergia passed her and held on for the victory.

Ethiopia’s Mare Dibaba was third, 21 seconds behind compatriot Mergia.

Washington Post

ሰበር ዜና ፦ በሽብር ወንጀል የተከሰሱት እነ ኤልያስ ክፍሌ ተፈረደባቸው


የፌዴራል ከፍተኛ ፍርድ ቤት ሦስተኛ ወንጀል ችሎት ጥር 17 ቀን 2004 .. በዋለው ችሎት በአምስት የሽብር ወንጀል ተከሳሾች ላይ ከዕድሜ ልክ እስከ 19 ዓመትና የገንዘብ ቅጣት ወሰነ፡፡ በዚህ መሠረት ኤልያስ ክፍሌ የዕድሜ ልክ እስራት የተወሰነበት ሲሆን፣ ዘሪሁን ገብረ እግዚአብሔር 17 ዓመት እስራትና 50 ሺሕ ብር ቅጣት፣ ውብሸት ታዬ 14 ዓመት እስራትና 33 ሺሕ ብር ቅጣት፣ ሒሩት ክፍሌ 19 ዓመት እስራት፣ ርዕዮት ዓለሙ 14 ዓመት እስራትና 36 ሺሕ ብር ቅጣት ተወስኖባቸዋል፡፡

አምስቱም ተከሳሾች እያንዳንዳቸው ለአምስት ዓመታት ከሕዝባዊ መብቶቻቸው እንዲታገዱ ፍርድ ቤቱ ወስኗል፡፡

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Ethiopian federation lifts suspension on Bekele, others



 BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BRUSSELS — The suspension of Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele and 34 others was lifted Tuesday, clearing the way for the Ethiopian great to run at the London Games.

Ethiopian Athletics Federation president Bisrat Gashawten Tirfe told The Associated Press by telephone that “we have agreed to discuss all the matters concerning their problems.” The athletes were suspended last week for not reporting for an early pre-Olympic camp to improve performance.

Bekele won the 5,000 and 10,000 meters at the Beijing Olympics and holds the world record in both events. He was suspended along with Tirunesh Dibaba, winner of the two long-distance women’s titles in Beijing.

The suspension would have prevented them from running at this year’s Olympics.

Under the agreement though, the federation said all athletes would still have to report to camp in the future, despite calls from Bekele to be allowed to continue individual training.

Federation spokesman Fikru Tekele said the 35 athletes have agreed to “fully follow” the federations training, without any exceptions.

በሽብር ወንጀል ተጠርጥረው በተከሰሱት እነ አንዱዓለም አራጌ ላይ ብይን ተሰጠ


በግንቦት 7 አሸባሪ ድርጅት ውስጥ አመራርና አባል በመሆን የአገሪቱን ፖለቲካ፣ ማኅበራዊ፣ ኢኮኖሚያዊና ሕገ መንግሥታዊ ተቋማትን በኃይል ለማናጋት ሲንቀሳቀሱ ተደርሶባቸዋል በሚል ተጠርጥረው በሽብር ወንጀል ክስ የተመሠረተባቸው፣ አንዱዓለም አራጌን ጨምሮ ስምንት በአገር ውስጥ ሆነው ክሳቸውን በመከታተል ላይ ያሉና በሌሉበት ክሳቸው በመታየት ላይ የሚገኙ ተከሳሾች፣ ተጠርጥረው የተከሰሱበትን የሽብር ወንጀል እንዲከላከሉ ትናንትና ብይን ተሰጠ፡፡ የፌዴራል ዓቃቤ ሕግ የመሠረታቸውን ስድስት ክሶችና ያቀረባቸውን የሰውና የሰነድ ማስረጃዎችን መርምሮ ሦስተኛና አምስተኛ ክሶችን ውድቅ በማድረግ፣ ተጠርጣሪዎቹ እንዲከላከሉ ብይን የሰጠው የፌዴራል ከፍተኛ ፍርድ ቤት ልደታ ምድብ ሦስተኛ ወንጀል ችሎት ነው፡፡

ፍርድ ቤቱ በቀረበባቸው ክስ እንዲከላከሉ ብይን የሰጠባቸውና በአገር ውስጥ ሆነው ጉዳያቸውን በመከታተል ላይ ያሉት አንዱዓለም አራጌ፣ ናትናኤል መኮንን፣ ዮሐንስ ተረፈ፣ የሸዋስ ይሁንዓለም፣ ክንፈ ሚካኤል አበበ፣ ምትኩ ዳምጤ፣ ጋዜጠኛ እስክንድር ነጋና አንዱዓለም አያሌው ናቸው፡፡

ፍርድ ቤቱ ተከሳሾቹ በአንደኛ ክስ ማለትም በግንቦት 7 አሸባሪ ድርጅት ውስጥ በአመራርነትና በአባልነት፣ በሁለተኛው ክስ የሽብርተኝነት ድርጊቶችን ለማስፈጸምና ለመፈጸም፣ በህቡዕ በሽብርተኝነት ድርጅት ውስጥ በአመራርነትና ውሳኔ ሰጭነት፣ በአራተኛ ክስ ከኤርትራ መንግሥት ጋር በህቡዕ በመገናኘት አጀንዳውን ለማስፈጸም ሚስጥራዊ ግንኙነት በማድረግ፣ አባላትን በመመልመልና ወደ ኤርትራ በመላክ በፈጸሙት የክህደት ወንጀልና በስድስተኛ ክስ የሙያ ድጋፋቸውን በመስጠታቸው በፈጸሙት የወንጀል ክሶች እንዲከላከሉ ብይን ሰጥቷል፡፡

ፍርድ ቤቱ ተጠርጣሪዎቹ የመከላከያ ምስክሮቻቸውን ስም ዝርዝር፣ የሰነድ ማስረጃዎቻቸውን በጽሕፈት ቤት በኩል እንዲያስገቡ ትዕዛዝ ሰጥቶ መከላከያ ምስክሮችን ለመስማት ለየካቲት 26 እና 27 ቀን 2004 .. ተለዋጭ ቀጠሮ ከሰጠ በኋላ፣ አንዱዓለም አራጌና ክንፈ ሚካኤል አበበ ያላቸውን አቤቱታ ለፍርድ ቤቱ አሰምተዋል፡፡

አንዱዓለም አራጌ ባሰማው አቤቱታ ጉዳያቸው በፍርድ ቤት እየታየ ሳለ፣ ጠቅላይ ሚኒስትሩና የመንግሥት መገናኛ ብዙኅን ፍርድ እየሰጡባቸው መሆኑን ለፍርድ ቤቱ ቢያመለክቱም፣ ፍርድ ቤቱ አቤቱታውን ውድቅ በማድረጉ፣ አሁንም ድርጊቱ መቀጠሉን በአቤቱታ ተናግሯል፡፡ በመሆኑም የፍርድ ቤቱ ሥልጣን እየተጣሰ በመሆኑ ፍርድ ቤቱ ለኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብና ለፍትሕ በእውነት የሚሠራ ከሆነ ዕርምጃ እንዲወስድ ጠይቋል፡፡ ፍርድ ቤቱ ለአንዱዓለም አራጌ በሰጠው ምላሽ ብዙ ጊዜ ፍርድ ቤቱን እየደፈረ መሆኑን ጠቅሶ፣ ‹‹ይኼ ድርጊትህ ሊያስቀጣህ ስለሚችል ብትጠነቀቅ ጥሩ ነው፤ ፍርድ ቤቱ በቀረበለት ማስረጃ መሠረት ሕግን የመተርጐም ሥራ እየሠራ ነው፤›› በማለት አስጠንቅቆታል፡፡

ክንፈ ሚካኤል አበበ በበኩሉ ባቀረበው አቤቱታ፣ ተመሥርቶበት በነበረው አምስተኛ ክስ የኤርትራና የአሸባሪዎች ተላላኪ ሆኖ ይሠራ እንደነበር ቢሆንም፣ ዓቃቤ ሕግ ያቀረበበት ማስረጃ ባለመኖሩ ፍርድ ቤቱ ክሱን ውድቅ እንዳደረገው በማስታወስ፣ አሁንም ግን ከኤርትራ መሪዎች ጋር እያሳየው መሆኑን በመጥቀስ፣ የኢትዮጵያ ሬዲዮና ቴሌቪዥን ድርጅት እንዲጠየቅለት አመልክቷል፡፡ ፍርድ ቤቱ ግን አቤቱታውን ውድቅ አድርጐታል፡፡

Monday, January 23, 2012

Ethiopian Idol Judge Seeks Critique of Upcoming Album


Yeshi Demelash of Ethiopian Idol fame walked in the same shoes as contestants of the show on Wednesday, December 28, 2011, as formed she held a pre-release review for selected songs of her debut album Quine at Hilton Addis Abeba Hotel.

The Gojam-born artist, 28, got the judging job on Ethiopian Idol a year after graduating from Addis Abeba University’s Yared School of Arts where she majored in flute and minored in piano.

It is this musical knowledge that Yeshi constantly displays on Ethiopian Idol, along with the other judges Sertse Fire Sebehat, a musical expert, and Dagmawe Ali, composer and bassist. on using it to judge contestants’ performances.

Simon Cowell, the famous judge who used to be on American Idol and a similar British show Pop Idol, once said that idol spinoff shows just try to replicate the interplay of personalities created on their American counterpart where he was the tough caustic judge and Paula Abdul, a pop personality from the eighties, played a soft judge who would complement the clothes people wore if she could not say anything nice about their voice.

The three Ethiopian judges with ample musical background however, have managed to make the show unique, more educational, and less about personalities, informing non-musical audiences about the Ethiopian scale, the nuances of pitch and tone, and other musical terms.

Yeshi and Sertse sometimes even demonstrate how songs should be vocalised, making many wonder why they do not sing instead of judge.

Yeshi took the first step in this endeavour, preparing an album with 12 songs, most of which were penned by the artist herself.

“I have always wanted to be a musician,” she says.

She was exposed to music at an early age in her mother’s bar in Lumame, 261km northwest of Addis, where she grew up as a middle child of six siblings.

The artist came to Addis Abeba when she was 12, by which time she had completed middle school.

“There was no high school in my town,” explains Yeshi, who said that her brothers learned in Debre Markos 299km northwest of Addis Abeba. “I was too young to be living alone in Debre Markos, so my father sent me to live with his brother in Addis Abeba, where I have stayed ever since.”

Attending Yared, Yeshi had thought that she was going to learn how to sing. “I did not know then that it was more of a classical training that delved into the science of music, when I applied there.” she told Fortune.

Yeshi did not leave upon finding out that vocal lessons were not given, however.

“The school picked only 25 of us out of over 400 applicants, so I knew I had to take the opportunity,” she said.

She is now grateful that she took advantage of it because it has helped her a lot in her work.

“In the beginning, I forgot about singing and concentrated on the courses. However, by my fifth year I remembered my initial dream and why I was there at Yared,” Yeshi recalls.

She started recording songs at that time. However, it took a few more years, in which she changed record labels and landed the job for Ethiopian Idol, before the album could be finalised.

Before the album could be released, however, the judge’s work had to undergo a review process by an audience compiled of people in the music industry. In the audience were singers like Fikeraddis Nekatebeb, actors like Aster Bedane, and lyrical experts like poet Abebaw Melaku, producer of the Addis Zema programme on FM Addis.

Yeshi did not find it difficult to relinquish the role of judging to others.

“I think input and criticism are very important.” she told Fortune. “It is unusual in our country to have such kinds of reviews prior to the release of an artist’s work. However, it should be encouraged.”

The fact that it is unusual was, perhaps, a disadvantage for the live review process, which did not see much audience participation. Attendees were encouraged to speak out their thoughts after each song and, in the end, to write whatever views and comments they had on a paper provided to them.

After introduction by representatives from Adika Communications and Events, the sister company of Adkia Tour and Travel, who has signed the artist and is to handle the sale, distribution, and promotion Yeshi played five songs that she selected from her album, starting off with the title song.

Quine is a slow jazzy number accompanied by guitar tunes with Michael Melesse. Like almost all of the songs in the album it was composed by Robel Dagne, a young talent, who used to be Yeshi’s classmate at Yared. It is a love song that tells of a little spark in the heart that grows into something larger. At the end, the artist does a vocal riff that shows the musical capacity of her voice.

As she did with all of her songs, the artist sat down in a chair, bobbing her head to the music, with a laptop in front of her that was connected to a big projector, which displayed the lyrics.

After the song was over, the audience was urged to give their opinion of the music. However, members of the audience, who were no strangers to public speaking for the most part, were reluctant to come forward. Even Tsersefere, her colleague at Idol, who was present did not comment.

After being prompted to no avail, by both Yeshi and representatives from Adika Communications and Events, Yeshi proceeded to play the second song.

The song was entitled Tikusena Berad, which translates as Hot and Cold. This song was also written by the artist herself as a love song.

The song tries to do something new through the combination of a Western rock beat and a local anchihoye scale, according to Yeshi.

Again, the audience was reluctant to share their opinions for the second song, so it was decided that the rest of the songs would be played back-to-back, and the stage would be open for review after all the selected songs had been heard.

Hager, an ode to Ethiopia, accompanied by a masinko, the local single string lute; Melkamena Kifu, whose lyrics contain a moral tale about reaping what is sowed; and Fano, a local folk song unusually done with a fast beat accompanied by trumpets and a trombone, were played in succession.

All selections were played twice so that the audience could pay attention to details to help them in their review. After these songs were played, Abebe from Addis Zema took the stage and provided comments on all five songs.

“When hearing the way she expressed herself on Ethiopian Idol, I thought that if Yeshi wrote she would be a good poet,” he said. “She did not disappoint.”

However, Melaku picked on some of her word choices in her lyrics, which he said were either repetitive, out of context, or unusual. For instance, Yeshi described her country as a friend instead of as a mother, as is common, in her song Hager.

“I would have preferred it if Yeshi explained why she chose that term in her lyrics. Motherland would not require an explanation but describing a land as a friend does,” he said.

Yeshi countered that a friend made more sense to her as she would tell things to a pal that she would not ten her mother.

The judging was a little different from Ethiopian Idol. There it is the judges that sit while the contestants stand up and present. For Yeshi’s review however, chairs were not provided for the audience, which stood through two runs of all five recordings.

As Yeshi’s harmony teacher, Yared Abraham took it upon himself to admonish this oversight when he got up on stage to review her work after Abraham. He appreciated Yeshi’s album, however, saying that the songs could be listened to again and again without tiring their audience.

His only fear was that some of the songs are not be marketable, because Yeshi tried to do something new.

“Of course, being commercial is important, but it should not limit us from doing something new or putting out a product that we believe in,” Yeshi told the audience. “There is a reason the  I asked professionals from the industry for this review. It is because they will appreciate new genres and notice the nuances in the music.”

No other audience member got up to give comments, and the programme ended with just two vocal comments. The other audience members submitted their comments through notes.

“I like how the whole process went. Even though not too many people spoke out loud, I got many comments that were invaluable and very encouraging,” Yeshi later told Fortune. She had made minor changes based on comments that she believed were justified. “I accept their opinion and appreciate it.”

After the programme was over, Sheger FM owner Binyam Gebreyes was impressed with Yeshi’s debut album.

“I think she has a good idea of what will work because she is involved in the profession,” Binyam said.

Pre-recording reviews are not a new thing for Binyam who had also attended artist Fantahun Kochew’s review programme, where the artist put up his whole album for review.

“I chose the five songs that were representative of the whole album,” Yeshi said. “Her favourite song, however, was not included in the review. Titled Kokeb, the song is a tribute to a person she knows and admires.

DJ Lee from FM Addis liked all of the songs. She especially liked the rock beat of Tekusena Berad, saying it will become an instant hit. However, she is worried about the marketability of Quine, because it is so new.

Yeshi is not as fearless when it comes to the wider audience, however.

“My exposure in the media has been rewarding but also limiting,” she said. “Those who know me from Ethiopian Idol must expect a lot, so it took me time to prepare work that would live up to their expectations. However, at some point I had to say that this fear should not stop me from my dreams.”

This album is not just a debut for Yeshi but also for Robel, who composed nine songs.

“I previously composed single releases for artists like Michaia, but this is my first experience in making  an album,” he said.

Before the start of the review, Yeshi also announced that Adika would help produce a new album for the small 16-year old Ethiopian Idol sensation Dawit Alemayehu, who seemed excited about the prospect.

“I would love to work on an album. Yeshi has been a great help and role model for my musical aspirations,” Dawit, who says he will use famous lyricists if he makes an album, told Fortune.

The date that the album is to be released is not certain yet. The artist would prefer it to come out within this week.

However, her promoters at Adika suggest that she do a couple of music videos, which could be handed out with the album for the first few buyers.

“It is yet to be seen which course we will take, but I hope that it will come out soon" she told Fortune.
http://addisfortune.com

ቦይንግ አውሮፕላን በርካሽ Boeing 725 for 80,000 Br!

The Boeing 725 abandoned by its Nigerian owners, has so far only attracted a few individuals at auction and no corporate buyers.

Ethiopian Airlines, which has been trying to auction a Nigerian aircraft at a threshold bid price of 80,000 Br, requested the High Court to postpone the sale for the third time, after only seven bidders showed up on Wednesday, January 18, 2012.

Back in November 2011, Ethiopian had cancelled the same tender, after a lone bidder appeared before the Federal Court’s Judgement Execution Division. The airline had wanted to see more bidders, but not even the seven who appeared last week were thought to be a sufficient number.

“The company wants to see corporate bidders rather than the individuals that have appeared now,” said an airline official.

The airline got involved in a civil suit at the Federal High Court after its lawyers claimed an unpaid fee (184,218 dollars) for the maintenance of a Boeing aircraft (B725-256) operated by Trans-Saharan Airlines.

A Nigerian domestic airline with its hub in Lagos, the company has been operating with only one aircraft but went out of business after the plane was downed for maintenance and painting.

The aircraft was manufactured in 1974, with a JT8D-9 model engine and was operated by Iberia of Spain before it was acquired by the Nigerian company.

The aircraft landed at Addis Abeba International Airport in December 2003 for maintenance, after the two parties signed a contract for the job. Claiming a breach of contract after default notices, Ethiopian filed a civil suit against Trans-Saharan back in 2007, at the Federal High Court.

In March 2008, Presiding Judge Dereje Eticha ruled against the Nigerian airline, tried in absentia after several notices published in a local newspaper. The airline company was not only absent from the Ethiopian court to defend its interests, it could not be found in a list of 16 currently operational domestic airlines at the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority.

The Judge had ordered the Nigerian airline to pay 184,218.76 dollars at the exchange rate of the day of the payment, with nine per cent interest to be calculated from the day of the suit until the payment day.

Following the ruling, Ethiopian filed a judgement execution through its lawyer, Halleluiah Negash, at the Federal High Court Eighth Civil Bench, in January 2011, to be given the nod to go ahead with the auction. It was Habtamu Worku, the presiding judge at the Eighth Bench, at the time, who had ordered the remains of the plane body to be auctioned off.

Without having seats inside and with a faded outer body, the aircraft has been slowly decomposing inside Bole International Airport. It is unlikely that it will fly again.

“She is never going to fly again,” a pilot who went by the name of Boss Raptor posted on a website dedicated to professional pilots.

Ethiopian knows that the aircraft will sell at a cheap price, it seems, for its starting bid value is less than 100,000 Br. The series of tenders, however, have only managed to attract individual bidders at the Judgment Execution Division, headquartered on Chad Street, near Mexico Square.
http://addisfortune.com

Kenenisa Bekele's ban over


ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- Two people familiar with the situation say Ethiopia's track federation plans to lift the suspension it placed on Olympic distance running champion Kenenisa Bekele, clearing the way for him to compete at the London Games.

The people tell The Associated Press that the federation plans to reinstate Bekele soon. They spoke Monday on condition of anonymity because the decision had not yet been made public.

Bekele won the 5,000 and 10,000 meters at the Beijing Olympics and holds the world record in both events. He was suspended last week along with 34 other Ethiopian athletes for not reporting to a training camp. The suspension would prevent Bekele from running at this year's Olympics.
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

Facial reconstruction patient Ethiopian Yeabsra Hailmarim full of bounce as she arrives in Toronto


Yeabsra Hailmarim returned to Toronto still full of popcorn, as they say in Ethiopia.

She is 7 years old now, her mother explains, and is showing a little of the reserve that is part of growing up. But she’s still spunky and bounces around.

Yeabsra and her mother, Aynalem Adugna, will meet with surgeons at the Hospital for Sick Children this week to prepare for the next stage of facial reconstruction surgery. This time, they will build a new nose for Yeabsra. Last April, in a 12-hour operation, doctors cut her skull into four pieces and put it back together in repairing a complex disfigurement. Her eyes are now closer together and the cleft that left her gums in a sharp V is almost perfectly straightened. It’s a big step forward.

In Grade 2 now, Yeabsra is more aware that she is different, her mother said Sunday. “She doesn’t want to see herself in a mirror.”

She asks her mother why children stare at her. “But deep down Yeabsra is happy,” Adugna adds, speaking through a translator.

With a deeply supportive family, Yeabsra has always been a confident child, though her mother fears that will be eroded as classmates become more intolerant of physical differences. Though the family can scarcely afford it, Adugna sent Yeabsra to private school, hoping it would offer a more protective environment where kids were less likely to make fun of her.

At the arrivals hall in Terminal Three at Pearson Airport, Yeabsra showed her independent spirit, as she wandered off in search of her friend, Laura Lewis-Watts from Transforming Faces Worldwide, the charity that is sponsoring her in Toronto. Walking away for a moment, Yeabsra came back to her mother holding a $20 bill that a woman had just given her. “I said thank you,” she said.

Wearing a long dress and a pink ski jacket, she asked her mother to put on snow boots to replace the sandals she was wearing. “I can’t tie shoes yet,” she explained in English.

The Herbie Fund at Sick Kids is paying for her hospital care, while private donors have raised money for their airline tickets.

Last spring, Dr. Christopher Forrest, chief of plastic surgery at Sick Kids, asked Yeabsra what she would like him to do for her. “She said she wants her nose replaced,” Adugna said shortly after they arrived from Addis Ababa, their country’s capital. “Even if she didn’t want that, I want my daughter to be able to be with other kids. I don’t want her to be different.”

She has tried not to talk to Yeabsra about the operations that will lie ahead. “I don’t want her to be worried, but I think she knows.”

As Yeabsra cavorted nearby, Adugna added: “I want my daughter to have a bright future and be able to play with her friends at school in the playground.”
http://www.thestar.com