Mr. President:

We, members of the Ethiopian Community, currently residing in Austria, would like to draw your attention to an issue of utmost importance to our country, Ethiopia and to the ongoing conflict with Eritrea.

We learnt to our surprise that after causing the loss of thousands of innocent lives and huge material destruction, the President of Eritrea wrote a letter to you, Mr. President, and the Security Council, expressing his country's decision to accept the OAU Framework Agreement.

This latest attempt by the President of Eritrea to hoodwink once again the International Community and the fact that the US continues to appease the aggressor, Eritrea, at the cost of peace loving Ethiopians, prompted us to send a petition on Feb. 27th 1999, to remind your government to adhere to the principles of justice and democracy developed by the American fathers.

The petition was addressed to the State Department,2201 c Street, NW, Washington, DC 20520.

In the letter we appealed to the US government:

1) To rethink the position it has taken, which has done injuries to Ethiopia, and to exert the necessary moral and political pressure on the Eritrean regime to accept the OAU Framework Agreement and to cease its aggression.

     The OAU Framework Agreement which is supported by the US requests Eritrea to withdraw not only from Badme, where the Eritrean army had already been evicted by force at the time the President wrote a letter to the Security Council and to You Mr. President, but also from all territories it occupied by force, without any precondition.

2) Justice and fairness demands that the US stands behind Ethiopia, the aggressed party.

This Petition was not the first one sent to the State Department. We did also send a similar request when the belligerent party, Eritrea, rejected the OAU Framework Agreement in Dec. 1998.

However, until today, Mar. 18, 1999, we have not seen any response from the State Department. As the say goes 'rubbing salt on the wound', we even are denied a simple acknowledgement whether the State Department has received our Petition, let alone getting the kind of support we would have wished from your government.

We find this lack of reaction puzzling, especially coming from a government that aims to promote democracy, fundamental freedom and is responsible for preserving peace throughout the world.

Mr. President, the record of the Eritrean regime shows that its reason d'être is not to create democracy, peace and regional stability, but to disrupt efforts in this area. The following facts suggest the evidence.

(1) Within a period of five years, Eritrea has aggressed four of its five neighbours. ( Sudan, Yemen, Djibouti and Ethiopia)

(2) The government of Eritrea has a close connection with rogue states. This is a public secret. It secures its armaments to suppress democratic movements at home and to invade neighbouring countries from these states.

(3) Issaias has only contempt to international rules and norms. For example, he boycotted the air embargo and made more than six flights to Libya. It is rumoured that Ghadafi awarded him Medal for defying the air embargo.

(4) The Eritrean regime supports fully & provides military training to AL-ITHAD, an Islamic extremist movement, that aims to destabilise Ethiopia and the sub region.

(5) Eritrea is a one party state and has no respect for basic human rights and fundamental freedom.

(6) After the invasion of Ethiopia by Eritrea, numerous efforts were taken to resolve the conflict through peaceful means. Ethiopia was the first country to call for a peaceful settlement of the dispute and for the restoration of the status qou ante. Next came the US-Rwanda peace proposal which the President of Eritrea rejected outright. This was followed by the rejection to the OAU Framework Agreement.

(7) The latest attempt by the President of Eritrea to confuse once again the world community by expressing his country's decision to accept the OAU Framework Agreement, came only after the humiliating defeat at the battle field and is only intended to buy time.

However to our disappointment the US seems to have associated itself with the aggressor party, Eritrea. What compelled us to believe so is that:

1) the US has not yet condemned the aggressor, Eritrea.

2) the US was instrumental in drafting and adopting res. 1227(1999) of the UNSC, which denied Ethiopia the means to exercise its self-defence under article 51 of the UN Charter.

3) just on the basis of the letter, the President of Eritrea wrote to the Security Council and to you, Mr. President, you made a statement welcoming the decision of President Issaias and called for both parties to stop fighting without even spending a day thinking the seriousness of the President.

     The fact is while he informed you of his acceptance, he and his cohorts were tirelessly briefing their people on their 'tactical retreat to later inflict heavy damage on Ethiopia'. What else can be expected from a belligerent state?

Therefore Mr. President, we would like to call once again upon the US government, to favour justice and:

(1) Condemn the aggressor, Eritrea;

(2) Exert effective pressure on Eritrea to withdraw from all occupied territories, without any precondition;

(3) Make it crystal clear, that Eritrea should bear full responsibility for all Human and Material loss it caused and

(4) Reconsider res. 1227(1999) of the UNSC.

This call is not solely of the government of Ethiopia but of millions and millions of people. We believe we deserve a positive response that reverses the damage inflicted on us.

The long standing and historic Bond between Ethiopia and the US should prevail over the self-interest of a dictator like Issaias.

We Thank You in advance.

Ethiopian Community
(Austria, Europe)