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contactBill Unfairly Targets Ethiopia
The House of Representatives in September 2007 passed H.R. 2003, a bill that disregards Ethiopia's immense progress in creating a competitive, pluralistic system of government and a more open civil society. Were this irresponsible legislation to become law, it would create fresh obstacles to Ethiopia's bold efforts toward comprehensive democratic reforms.
The Ethiopian Embassy released a statement following the taking up of the bill by the House Foreign Affairs Committee and another statement after the legislation was passed by the House.
Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) harshly criticized the bill on the senate floor. Read Sen. Inhofe's statement and watch a video of him praising Ethiopia as a strong U.S. ally and partner in the war on terror.
The decision by the House to pass the bill was assailed in the media. A New York Times op-ed by Former U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia Vicki Huddleston described the bill as an attempt to punish a U.S. ally.
In a public statement, Institute on Religion and Public Policy President Joseph K. Grieboski, called the bill "a perfect example of positive Congressional intent that will result in negative consequences."
A piece published in The Cutting Edge called into question the motivations of the bill's author Rep. Donald Payne (D-NJ).
Click here to urge your senators to support Ethiopia and not to support H.R. 2003.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing on policy options for the Horn of Africa in March 2008. During that hearing, Ethiopia was strongly praised and the actions of Eritrea to destabilize the Horn were sharply condemned.
Read statements in support of Ethiopia delivered by Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer and by Theresa Whelan, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for African Affairs.
Click here to read an article on the hearing published by the Ethiopian Reporter newspaper.
