Falls Church, Virginia (09/21/2021)—The Oromo Legacy Leadership and Advocacy Association (OLLAA) is pleased to announce the official launch of the Australian chapter of our organization.
Australia is home to a significant Oromo population, which is estimated to comprise over 10,000 people, and has become an integral part of the broader Australian community. The majority of Australian Oromos fled the region following the “red terror” campaign of brutal military dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam in 1978, and then again following his ousting in 1991, as Oromos continued to face terrible persecution.
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We call on the vibrant and active Oromo communities of Australia to join OLLAA in our mission to advocate for the Oromo people and ensure their voices are heard at the highest levels of the Australian Government, as well as in the international community. We hope to highlight the pain felt by Australian Oromos and their families during this difficult time and assist them in their efforts to call on the Australian government for action.
While OLLAA applauds recent interventions by the United States and international community to condemn the atrocities committed by the Abiy administration in the Tigray region, and urges Australia to join in on these efforts, we emphasise how important it is that these interventions extend to the whole of Ethiopia, especially Oromia and other southern regions where atrocities had taken place for years. The widespread devastation currently experienced across Ethiopia threatens to destabilise the entire Horn of Africa region, and requires a coordinated and all-inclusive approach to tackle it.
OLLAA urges the Australian Government that as the largest single ethnic group in Ethiopia, and comprising at least half of the population, it is imperative that the Oromo are included in the dialogue towards achieving peace and stability in Ethiopia. The situation for Oromos is dire and they currently face enormous suffering: starvation, arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings and forcible displacement are widespread. We urge the Australian Government to not let this humanitarian disaster go unchecked.
OLLAA officially calls on Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the Australian Government to undertake the following actions:
- Pass a resolution condemning the horrific human rights violations currently faced by the Oromo people;
- Build on the efforts of the US and international community in condemning human rights violations in the Tigray region to include all of Ethiopia, including the hard-hit Oromia region;
- Demand that the UNHRC conduct an independent investigation into the atrocities committed against the Oromo people by Ethiopian government forces, including allegations of minors receiving up to 15 years in prison;
- Urge the initiation of talks that include all parties, including the Oromos, who as a significant part of the population, must be included in the international dialogue on Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa region in order to build meaningful peace and stability in the region.
OLLAA is an umbrella organization that represents dozens of Oromo communities around the world