MPs: Somalia turned into Ethiopia’s colony (Press TV)

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:07:15 GMT

Ethiopian troops have been blamed for killing thousands of Somalis. Somali parliamentarians have accused Ethiopia of turning Somalia into an ’Ethiopian colony’ while killing countless civilians.

Somalia has been robbed of its freedom thanks to the Ethiopian ’colonizers’ who have the blood of thousands of Somali civilians on their hands, said one Press TV correspondent quoting the contents of the lawmakers’ radio addresses which were broadcast across the capital, Mogadishu.

One lawmaker, Abdi Abdullahi Jini Boqor said the Somali leaders acted like ’Ethiopian slaves’ who refused to say a word in the absence of their masters’ blessing.

In the meantime, the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi contacted the leaders of Somalia’s most influential clan, the Hawiye, to guarantee the troops’ safe passage through Somali territory. The leaders have not yet responded to the request, however.

Ethiopia has said the US and the West were to blame for the killings as they failed to economically buttress the troops as well as they had to.

Encouraged by the US, the troops launched an invasion of Somalia in 2006 to help the country’s beleaguered transitional government.

Doing away with Somalia’s runaway insurgency has been one of the troops stated aims which they have failed to realize.

The Somali insurgents have expressed their determination to force the soldiers out of the country even at the cost of causing serious collateral damage.

HN/RA