Friends With Benefits: Political Power and Oppression in Ethiopian Adoptions EDITED

The following was sent to us and we were given permission to post. Thanks to our reader who shared this information. It is a must-read and very timely in the wake of the WSJ expose on CHSFS.

“Wide Horizons for Children is an American adoption agency based in Massachusetts. Among agencies with Ethiopian programs, theirs is renowned for its dedication to ethics and professionalism. Those in the adoption community who fiercely defend Ethiopian adoptions amidst ongoing corruption scandals often point to WHFC as an example of a “good” or “ethical” agency, whose child-centered work should not be unfairly affected by the acts of a few “bad apple” agencies.

The evidence below, gathered from a variety of websites including news articles, NGOs, blogs, and the agency’s own website, suggests that WHFC’s Ethiopia program has long benefited from the agency’s ties to Ethiopian politicians who participate in the oppression of the country’s minority groups. It will be up to others to explore where and how these benefits factor into the adoption process- for example, the identification of adoptable children, the approval of necessary documents at the kebele level, or the Ethiopian Ministry and Judicial consent for the adoptions. The following simply clears the way for those conversations to take place within a factual context: even the most “ethical”of adoption agencies is undeniably tainted by deep-seated corruption in Ethiopia.

To start, a brief background of the volatile political climate in Ethiopia:

Meles Zenawi, the current prime minister, came to power in the early 1990s after overthrowing the Derg regime as a Marxist member of the Tigrayan People Liberation Front (TPLF). He is a dictator. Elections are fixed, violence (incarceration, torture, murder) is used against political opponents, and various resources (land, infrastructure, food, education, aid) are divvied up among allies and withheld from the powerless and the rebellious. America tolerates this behavior because Ethiopia is viewed as a critical ally in a world region ripe with political and religious conflict (think Sudan,Somalia).

In 2002, the Ethiopian government (TPLF/EPRDF) decided that the city of Awassa would no longer serve as the capital of Sidama, but instead become a federally-controlled zone capital. The Sidama capital would be moved to Aleta Wondo, a far less economically and politically powerful town. A refusal to cooperate with the restructuring could mean risking the loss of what little power the Sidama leaders already had; several decided to jump ship after being offered bribes of jobs and power by the Zenawi-powered government. On May 24, 2002 Sidama people peacefully took to the streets of a town near Awassa to protest. The Ethiopian government responded with violence; a massacre ensued. At least 25 people were murdered (according to Amnesty International; Sidama sources say the number is much higher) and many others were jailed and tortured.

Here is where Wide Horizons comes in. They are very proud of their Ethiopian director, Dr. Tsegaye Berhe. According to an old Wide Horizons page retrieved via the Wayback Machine, Dr. Tsegaye actually contacted Wide Horizons in 2002 to inquire about starting an adoption program. Dr. Tsegaye hails from Adwa, in Tigray, just like Meles Zenawi. In fact, they both went to the same school, Queen of Sheba Academy, alma mater to many in the TPLF. Whether Dr. Tsegaye is affiliated with the TPLF or not, his loyalty to the place of his birth is strong: he has just opened a self-dedicated school called “Tsegaye Berhe Woldu Academy of Honor Students” along with a medical clinic and elementary school supported financially by Wide Horizons.
Prior to joining the agency, Dr. Tsegaye worked for the Ethiopian Orthodox Church for thirty years as the head of Child Care Services. According to the EOC website, those services include residential child care, reunification and integration, family preservation, community-based child support, and community development. (International adoption, it should be noted, is not included amongst its goals.) The church operates dozens of sites, with particularly heavy saturation in the Tigray and Amhara regions, but only two in the SNNPR: Gurage and Awassa. After years of humanitarian work among his cultural and religious community, why would Dr. Tsegaye set up an adoption project in a completely different region- with the proceeds being used to fund a school, in his name, among his own people?

Many Wide Horizons clients have met Dr. Tsegaye during his trips to the United States; he is well-liked and appreciated by adoptive families. It is not unusual for him to be joined on these trips by Ethiopian government officials. WHFC hosts receptions for these delegations and encourages adoptive parents to attend. In fact, they have hosted some of the very same politicians accused of being responsible for the massacre in Sidama 2002. Shiferaw Shigutie, then head of finance, was rewarded with the position of President of the SNNPR for willingness to cooperate with ET government. Another WHFC visitor, Dr. Kebede Kanchula, the head of the Sidama department of Agriculture and Rural affairs, was involved in the meetings leading up to the attack on the protesters and continued to report farmers suspected of resistance to the Ethiopian government afterward, resulting in their imprisonment.

[The following has been edited from the original form since the author of the blog has asked to take it down as she does not support “our agenda.”Linking to blogs is 100% LEGAL. Any harrassing messages to our comments or email about this post will not be published or answered about material in the public domain as it constitutes spam and you will be subject to federal fines if not ceased. Our purpose in sharing how dots connect is to assist the many APs who are living with questions and concerns postadoption. This information benefits the adoptees and biological families even more so. Our smart readers who need this information will be able to have their questions and suspicions answered by reading the following]

The reader has sent blog accounts. Blog accounts can be found by googling Ethiopia Dr. Tsegaye and Dr. Kebede.

AWHFC event is still available via the internet at this link http://www.whfc.org/events/archive/EventView.asp?EventId=244 and we have pasted an excerpt below from that WHFC event link:
“In July 2008, Wide Horizons was delighted to host the following very special visitors from Ethiopia:

– His Excellency Shiferaw Shigutie, President of the Southern Nations Nationalities & Peoples’ Region (SNNPR)*
– Ato Teshome, President Shiferaw’s assistant
– Dr. Tsegaye Berhe, WHFC’s representative from Ethiopia
– Ato Fitsum Kalayu, Dr. Tsegaye’s colleague from Ethiopia”

Oromo coffee issues:
Opride.com The TPLF Taking Over Oromo Coffee Farms and Businesses [Rally note, link no longer available]

Sidama hunger: Hunger and Human Rights Abuses Escalate in Sidama, Ethioipa January 7, 2005

Dr. Tsegaye Berhe Woldu Academy of honor students:http://tbwahs.com/index.html

Work of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Ethiopia: Te Earth Insitute at Columbia University, Center for National Health Development in Ethiopia

Keficho killings:

REFORM Puzzle Piece