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Dear Senator ---:
I
write to request that you oppose HR 2003 when it comes before the
United States Senate. Proponents
of HR 2003 have portrayed this bill as a measure in favor of, and
one that is widely supported by the Ethiopian people, both here in
the
United States
and in
Ethiopia
. These
representations are false. HR
2003 will only undermine efforts currently underway to strengthen
Ethiopia
’s democracy and improve the lives of the Ethiopian people.
HR
2003 curtails
US
aid to
Ethiopia
unless
Ethiopia
meets a series of human rights benchmarks.
This approach is flawed in a number of respects:
-
The
underlying objectives behind HR 2003 are already being
met—and without the need for confrontational legislation
that only will harm our Ethiopian ally, degrade US-Ethiopian
relations, and diminish American leverage in the region.
Ø
At a recent hearing before the House Foreign Affairs
Committee, the Assistant Secretary of State of State for African
Affairs testified that
Ethiopia
has recently taken “unprecedented” steps to strengthen human
rights, which “represent a monumental advancement in the
political environment.”
Ø
The Assistant Secretary also testified that the
mandates for future
US
aid are already being implemented under the current program—the
legislation would unnecessarily diminish aid flexibility.
-
The
legislation’s benchmarks are set so high that even many of
America
’s strongest allies around the world could not meet them.
In fact, some would argue that, confronted with the
current terrorist threat common to both
Ethiopia
and
America
, that the
United States
itself does not meet all the benchmarks in the bill.
-
While
the bill purports to send a message to the Ethiopian
government, the vast majority of the aid in question does not
even go to the Ethiopian government.
Instead the bulk of
US
aid to
Ethiopia
is provided through nongovernmental groups to help the
Ethiopian people. Curtailing this aid will only harm the
Ethiopian people.
As
an Ethiopian-American I can say from personal experience that for
all these reasons HR 2003 is not supported by the majority of
Ethiopians in the
United States
or in
Ethiopia
. The bill is being
pushed almost exclusively by supporters of the opposition party,
who are seeking to use the
United States
to undermine the current government.
Such an intervention in the domestic politics of
Ethiopia
will only undermine the development of a strong pluralistic
democracy in
Ethiopia
—and it will undermine American standing with the majority of
the Ethiopian people.
Thank
you in advance for your consideration.
Name:
____________________________________________
Address:
__________________________________________
City:
_____________________________________________
State:
__________________________ Zip: _______________
And
send it to as many Senators as possible by any means possible, but
Fax is said to be more effective…
Senate
Foreign Relations Committee: http://foreign.senate.gov/
Senate
name list: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
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