Falls Church, Virginia (03/17/2021)—On Friday, March 19, Oromo community members across North America will participate in protests to demand justice for the Oromo refugees murdered in Yemen last week.
On March 7, a migration detention facility housing nearly 900 Ethiopian migrants in Sana’a, Yemen was set ablaze with hundreds of refugees trapped inside. Mothers, children, and scores of innocent people were harmed—some were seeking a brighter future in the Gulf, while others were escaping persecution by the current Ethiopian government, only to die in a burning warehouse facility with no escape.
As of March 10, 44 people are confirmed dead. But eyewitnesses at the facility estimate that over 500 people actually died, and that the fire was no accident but a deliberate act of murder by Houthi authorities.
The UN special envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, described the deaths of Oromo refugees as “extraordinarily horrific” and called for an independent investigation into the killings.
The Oromo diaspora community will take to the streets, marching through major U.S. and Canadian cities. The Friday rallies will call upon the international community and media outlets to immediately address the suffering of Oromo refugees detained in Yemen, along with the surviving families of the victims.
Please contact your local Oromo community organizations to learn how you can participate. Attendees must wear masks and maintain social distancing.
We urge all peace-loving people to attend. All are welcome.
Media, please email us at media@ollaa.org for more details and high-resolution photos of the rallies.
