Migrant voices - Ethiopians in Yemen describe kidnapping and torture

Exhausted survivors of the Gulf of Aden crossing wait for help on a beach in Yemen

SANA’A, 11 April 2013 (IRIN) - Record numbers of migrants from the Horn of Africa are crossing into Yemen, most of them on their way to find better opportunities in Saudi Arabia and other rich Gulf countries. But many do not make it any further. Seeking a new life, they end up unwitting victims of asmuggling racket designed to exploit the migrants at each juncture of their journey.

Recent years have seen Ethiopians make up the majority of these migrants: Of the 107,000 recorded migrants crossing the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden into Yemen in 2012, around 80,000 were from Ethiopia.

Four irregular migrants with diverse backgrounds, all from Ethiopia, told IRIN about their journeys to Yemen.* While their stories differ in details, they all share a similar set of experiences: brutality, broken promises and extortion.

Marta, mid-30s, from Dire Dawa, eastern Ethiopia:

Photo: Casey Coombes/IRIN

Marta, mid-30s, from Dire Dawa, eastern Ethiopia

Marta says she fled Ethiopia in 2010 when she and her family were accused of supporting the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), a state-designated terrorist group. “The government said, ‘You are with the party of OLF,’ and chased us out of country. I don’t know where my family ended up.”

“I spent a year and a half in Djibouti, where I gave birth to my daughter. After her father disappeared, we left for Yemen. I paid a broker 10,000 Djiboutian francs [about US$55] to ride in a boat with 15 others from Djibouti to Yemen.

“Our night-time crossing of the Red Sea was calm until the end. As we neared the Yemeni coast, the owner of the boat, who was part of the smuggling operation, threw us into the sea. No one knew how to swim because in Ethiopia, we don’t have a sea, just lakes. The brokers and their thugs were waiting for us as we came ashore. They raped me and the other women. I’m 9 months pregnant with a child from that night.

“When I arrived to Sana’a, I was tired and decided to stay. For seven months, I was a house maid, but now I can’t work because of the pregnancy, so I have no income. [Ethiopian] migrants from the community in Sana’a are supporting me.

“I’m interested in tackling my problems, but at the moment I am pregnant and I am tired. All my money goes to my daughter, so this makes me tired. One day I will win.”

Alima, 18, from Miesso, eastern Ethiopia:

Photo: Casey Coombes/IRIN

Alima, 18, from Miesso, eastern Ethiopia

Alima fled to Dijoubti after being accused of being a member of the OLF. “I worked for one year in Djibouti City, where life was not good but not bad, until gangs started robbing us near where we collected our salaries. That’s when I decided to go to Yemen, where I’ve been for five months.

“I paid a broker 20,000 Djiboutian francs [about $110] to take me to the island of Haiyoo, where we would take a boat to Yemen. Thugs captured us and demanded more money when we arrived to Haiyoo. Because I had no money, they raped me. Men who did not have money were beaten, and the women were raped. Eventually, I contacted family and convinced them to send $200.

“We arrived to Yemen, north of Bab al-Mandab [the Mandab Strait], in a 120-person boat, and were transferred to the Yemeni smugglers who control that part of the country. The gangsters raped most of the women and tortured and beat the men to extort more money.

“They sell women who can’t find more money to other brokers, who send them to work as maids in Yemeni households. A broker bought me and sent me to Radaa, where I worked for three months cleaning houses.

“One man who loved me paid for my release and married me. He was also in Radaa, working on a qat farm and raising livestock. We moved to Sana’a two months ago. He cleans in a restaurant and I’m a maid.

“If an opportunity arises, or if I make money, or if the situation in Yemen gets worse, I’m interested in going to a better country.”

Mesfin, 38, from Dese, north-central Ethiopia:

Photo: Casey Coombes/IRIN

Mesfin, 38, from Dese, north-central Ethiopia

“I was born an orphan in Ethiopia, and grew up there. I had no family, and no one was helping me. Life was boring, so I decided to explore.

“I travelled five days on buses, trains and hiding out on heavy trucks before arriving at the border with Djibouti. I could have cut straight across the Welo desert to the Red Sea, but it was too dangerous. Most people spend their lives there.

“I paid brokers 1,000 Ethiopian birr [about $50]. That was supposed to cover the entire trip from Ethiopia to Yemen, but I was forced to pay 400 Ethiopian birr [$20] extra at Haiyoo.

“We crossed the Red Sea in a small fishing boat loaded with about 80 people. While we were boarding, I heard the brokers contact Abd al-Qawi’s* people, who said they were prepared to receive them near Mokha. About five hours later, we hit land, and Abd al-Qawi’s gangsters started beating the men trying to escape and raping most of the women right there on the beach.

“They took me and some of the men and women to a detention centre, where they tortured them until money was transferred. The building was like a jail; people are not helped until someone sends them money. The women were raped there. I was detained and tortured for five days. On the fifth night, they untied me because I was in charge of feeding the others, and I managed to escape.

“I ended up in the main street of Mokha and caught a ride to Taiz in a day. An Ethiopian migrant paid for me to come to Sana’a, where I’ve been for five days. I want to work here, make some money, then return to Ethiopia to search for relatives.”

Yassin, 23, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia:

Photo: Casey Coombes/IRIN

Yassin, 23, from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

“I had no political issues - not many - in Ethiopia, but I had economic problems. I am from a poor family in Addis Ababa: no father, only my mother, and I have many sisters and brothers. I went to Yemen imagining living a better life because my mother couldn’t provide for us.

“I stowed away on a train from Addis to the Djibouti border, and from there to Haiyoo we travelled in a Land Cruiser. I paid a broker 1,000 Ethiopian birr [about $50] for the whole trip.

“After a week of waiting in Djibouti, we took a fishing boat filled with 45 people to Yemen. Before pushing off on our four-and-a-half-hour journey, another boat left ahead of us, which was built to hold 25 people but 50 piled in. The boat split in half and sunk not long after its departure. We could hear their screams as they drowned in the night. When the bodies washed ashore, we buried them before leaving. During the pitch-black crossing, we encountered a ship which seemed like an island it was so big. The waves filled our boat with water, and we almost capsized. We arrived near Bab al-Mandab.

“The landing wasn’t very scary because we were dropped so close to shore. But as we waded to the beach, Abd al-Qawi’s thugs started shooting guns into the air to scare those who tried running away. They loaded us into trucks and took us to detention centres to extract money. Because I know different dialects, I acted as translator and was released with those who paid. I saw them rape women, hang men by their hands and beat them with metal rods and red-hot poles; they shot off fingers and toes, poked hot shards of metal into their eyes and poured boiling plastic on their bodies.

“I travelled one day by Hilux to Haradh along the Saudi border. I saw the same beatings and rapes for extortion in Haradh throughout my six months there. As you see in Yemen, there is no work, so I have plans to leave to anywhere by any means.”

*Full names withheld
*Most migrants referred to Abd al-Qawi as the name of the Yemeni gangs who carried out the abuses, though the origin of this name is not clear.

cc/jj/rz

For more information see: Desperate Choices - conditions, risks and protection failures affecting Ethiopian migrants in Yemen

How Could a Lasting Peace between Ethiopia and Eritrea be Achieved?

 

After more than a decade of low-level hostilities and sour relations, there are signs Eritrea and Ethiopia could be ready to talk again.

ARTICLE | 10 APRIL 2013 – 12:11PM | BY SALIH NUR

 It has been over a decade since talks regarding the demarcation of Eritrea-Ethiopia border stalled, and relations between the two long-standing nemeses deteriorated into an effective cold war. Although the Eritrea-Ethiopia war officially ended with signing of the Algiers Agreement in 2000, relations are still marked by recrimination, sabre-rattling, and efforts at mutual destabilisation. Although each claims to be against another war, the risk of escalation remains high along their heavily-militarised border. Both sides continue to undermine each other’s stability, from allegedly supporting armed opposition groups to waging a proxy war in Somalia.

At the heart of this crisis is the ruling by the Boundary Commission which was established under the Algiers Agreement, a peace treaty marking the end of two years of hostilities. The Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission was tasked with defining the contested border, and both sides agreed to accept its decision. However, having initially welcomed the ruling in April 2002, Ethiopia reversed its position a few months later, displeased that Badme, the flashpoint of the war, had been awarded to Eritrea. Eritrea refused to agree to a new commission and negotiations came to a standstill. Tensions remained high and relations remained sour.

Since then, Ethiopia’s position has softened slightly from its claim that the border judgment was “unjust and illegal”; in 2005, for example, Ethiopia’s foreign minister wrote a letter to the UN Security Council in which he repeated Ethiopia’s earlier acceptance of the decision “in principle” and added that this “does not mean going back to the drawing board”. Eritrea meanwhile has continued to insist that dialogue cannot recommence until Ethiopia unconditionally accepts the border ruling.

This environment of mistrust and stagnation has defined the status quo for the last decade, with prospects of genuine peace seeming far away. Recently, however, there have been hopeful signs that this could be slowly changing with each side expressing greater readiness for talks.

If negotiations do restart, how could a lasting peace between these arch-enemies be achieved?

The flawed Algiers peace process

The first step in answering this question is to examine why the Algiers Agreement failed. On the one hand, there is some truth to the argument that neither Ethiopia nor Eritrea had any real interest in the process to begin with. But at the same time, there was also a multitude of real and complex issues which hindered any possible reconciliation.

First, the Algiers process foundered because it failed to address the root causes of the war. The conflict arose due to myriad historical, political and economic issues, but the peace process treated the conflict as a mere border dispute. By focusing on just the immediate cause of the war, it eschewed the deep political and economic controversies central to the war. This undermined chances of a durable solution from the outset.

Second, this narrow approach was exacerbated by a flawed arbitration process which focussed in on legal matters rather than political disagreements. Legal methods are inherently conservative and inflexible, and the clause of Algiers Agreement which said the boundary decision would be “final and binding” left no leeway for cooperation – instead, it propelled both parties into a zero-sum game.

The arbitration process was also weakened by contradictory rulings by different bodies. Initially, mediation initiatives concurred with Ethiopia’s stance that Eritrea had crossed the international boundary and should withdraw, but the Boundary Commission’s ruling, which awarded Badme to Eritrea, suggested Eritrea had not advanced beyond its borders. This was again complicated by the later ruling by the Claim’s Commission that found Eritrea responsible for igniting the war.

What are the prospects for peace?

Recently, there seem to have been improved prospects for peaceful resolution. The death in August 2012 of Ethiopia’s long-time leader Meles Zenawi – whose personal rivalry with Eritrea’s president Isaias Afewerki stoked hostilities – has raised hopes of a return to the negotiating table. After taking office, Meles’ successor, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, expressed a willingness to travel to Eritrea to talk with Afewerki without preconditions. And in December, Afewerki reportedly requested mediation by Qatar, which previously brokered an agreement to resolve a border dispute between Eritrea and Djibouti in June 2010.

Several other issues could also push both parties to end the low-level conflict. After the Algiers Agreement, both governments sought to settle unfinished scores. In the protracted cold war, however, there was a clear winner and loser. Ethiopia managed to seize the status of regional hegemon, leave Eritrea diplomatically isolated, win the support of major powers such as the US, and get UN sanctions imposed on Eritrea. Eritrea, meanwhile, suffered economically, lost the upper-hand in the legal border battle, and came to be seen as a pariah state, accused of sponsoring regional instability and terrorism. The regime in Asmara is now in a struggle for its own survival. Its military capability is checked, external pressure remains high, its economic situation is dire, and there appears to be simmering domestic dissent as exhibited by several high-level defections and an army mutiny on 21 January, 2013.

This could suggest that Eritrea is more likely to agree to talks, but this is not necessarily the case and there are still many hurdles remaining. Firstly, there is baggage of the past, contrasting political and national interests, and the ongoing rivalry. Secondly, Ethiopia’s strong position could make it less willing to compromise. Thirdly, peace efforts may not even be in Afewerki’s interests. Afewerki’s regime has been subjecting Eritrea to political repression and economic hardships all in the name of defending against Ethiopian annexation. Reconciliation with Ethiopia would undermine this strategy and confront the regime with an array of challenges such as demobilisation, a return to constitutionalism, and a move to democracy – all so far postponed given the alleged existential threats facing the country. For Afewerki, a ‘no war no peace’ status quo might well be preferable to a peace that could cost him his power.

How peace could be achieved?

Firstly, any initiative should uphold the terms and achievements of the Algiers agreement. Although its legal and political instruments have expired, the accord has not been abrogated. Eritrea in particular seems committed to the treaty and upholds its integrity. The agreement continues to provide a framework within which Ethiopia and Eritrea can settle their differences.

Secondly, any peace initiative should go beyond previous negotiations in seeking a comprehensive settlement of the root causes of the conflict – both economic and political. One major contention is land-locked Ethiopia’s claim of a “right of access to sea” either through incorporation of some Eritrean territory along the coast or guaranteed lease of the port of Assab. Previous fears that Ethiopia could claim access to the sea by military force make Eritrea’s insistence that Ethiopia unconditionally respect Eritrea’s territorial sovereignty all the more salient. The lease of Assab to Ethiopia would likely be in Eritrea’s economic interest, but a history of Ethiopian (previously Abyssinian) attempts to annex the country mean mistrust is high. Any peace effort must come up with an intelligent way to address this and other complex issues.

Finally, a sustainable peace process should emphasise long-term reconciliation and cultivate the right environment for the normalisation of relations and possible future cooperation. Alongside formal negotiations, informal channels could also be important in this. Non-official Track II diplomacy involving civil society, community elders, religious leaders and others could provide an effective peace-making mechanism. It has the advantage, amongst other things, of laying the foundation for a more durable peace through broad social reconciliation by dealing with historical-political grievances and the deeper roots of inter-communal conflicts. Unlike more adversarial formal proceedings, it could help thaw hostilities between two governments locked in the pride and prejudice of their kin communities.

Think Africa Press welcomes inquiries regarding the republication of its articles. If you would like to republish this or any other article for re-print, syndication or educational purposes, please contact:  editor@thinkafricapress.com

Source: http://thinkafricapress.com/ethiopia/how-could-lasting-peace-between-ethiopia-and-eritrea-be-achieved

Egypt’s president dispels crisis over Nile River

by Admas » 10 Apr 2013, 19:00

By Mohammed Awad

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi on Saturday attempted to dispel fears that rifts were continuing to create tension between Egypt, Sudan and the rest of the Nile Basin countries. His comments came after months of wrangling after a report suggested Egypt was ready to attack Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance Dam project if it went forward.

“Egypt’s ties stumbled in the past, but now we are together, with possibilities of enhancing cooperation that satisfies the interests of all sides,” Morsi told reporters at the end of a two-day visit in Sudan.

“Mutual talks in this respect are currently ongoing, and we welcome the restoration of old relations with Africa,” Morsi added.

However, he did not talk specifically about the demands of other Nile Basin countries, including Ethiopia, which has long pushed to have their own rights to the world’s longest river. Sudan and Egypt are seen as two allies and stalwart in their antagonism against other Nile River countries, especially concerning any dam projects.

Despite Egypt and Sudan’s war of words against Ethiopia and the dam project, Addis Ababa has said it will go forward with the project as part of its energy needs.

A source close to the Ethiopian government and those responsible for the massive Nile Renaissance Dam project has told Bikyanews.com that the government is expected to increase efforts to push forward on the construction of the large dam project that has left Egypt and Sudan frustrated.

“It is serious that the government here is looking to increase productivity on the dam project,” said the source, who has worked in the higher levels of the Ethiopian government over the past two decades. “It is a result of the public antagonism that has been leveled at Ethiopia over Nile water and what is believed to be the right of any nation to use its resources for the betterment of its own society.”

It is the latest in the ongoing battle for the world’s largest river’s water, with Egypt and Sudan continuing to remain obstinate in amending any of the colonial treaties that guarantee their countries with a lion’s share of water from the Nile.

Wikileaks released documents this month that revealed Egypt and Sudan had been planning to attack an Ethiopian dam project to “protect” their rights over Nile water based on colonial era treaties.

In documents revealed by Wikileaks, the Egyptian and Sudanese government appeared ready to develop a launching pad for an attack by Egypt against the dam.

Wikileaks has leaked files allegedly from the Texas-based global intelligence company, Stratfor, which quote an anonymous “high-level Egyptian source,” which reported that the Egyptian ambassador to Lebanon said in 2010 that Egypt “would do anything to prevent the secession of South Sudan because of the political implications it will have for Egypt’s access to the Nile.”

Is Egypt following in Ethiopia’s footsteps?

 by OrchidAdmin 

As early as next week, a law may be passed in Egypt to force international NGOs to obtain authorisation from a committee on almost all aspects of their projects. The draft law may obstruct groups from promoting and protecting human rights.

In February 2009, the Ethiopian Government endorsed one of the most controversial NGO laws in the world – the Proclamation to Provide for the Registration and Regulation of Charities and Societies (CSP). Among other things the law restricts NGOS that receive more than 10% of their financing from foreign sources from engaging in all human rights and advocacy activities in Ethiopia.

This law has put in place a series of barriers making it easy to deny registration of any charity or society deemed to be used for unlawful purposes relating to peace, welfare or good order in Ethiopia. In essence the law restricts participation in activities that include the advancement of human and democratic rights, the promotion of equality of nations and nationalities and peoples, and that of gender and religion. The restriction on NGOs resources could effectively silence civil society in Ethiopia and extinguish their right to expression. What’s more, this restriction could force the closure of many Human Rights organisations particularly as local sources of funding are limited, therefore increasing NGO’s dependence on international funding[1].

Since the CSP law was passed, the vast majority of independent NGOs working on human rights issues in Ethiopia have been forced to discontinue their work. In 2012 alone, Ethiopia’s Charities and Societies Agency (CSoA) shut down 10 NGOs under the CSP law. They also issued a warning to over 400 organisations thought to be operating against the rules and regulations of the country.[2]

A local women’s education programme run by KMG in Ethiopia

Foreign funding in Egypt has already been cut to women’s rights groups, which has been said to be suffocating the activities of NGOs. In addition to international NGOs needing to obtain authorisation, under possible new legislation local groups would also need to seek permission to receive funding from foreign sources. A number of local NGOs are currently working to address the issue of FGC, conducting community visits to attempt to persuade mothers not to cut their daughters.

This could mean a huge implication for the fight to end FGC, already an uphill struggle in Egypt (see previous post here http://orchidproject.org/2012/02/female-genital-cutting-in-egypt/) because the president and most of the country’s parliamentarians are members of the Muslim Brotherhood who have previously opposed a complete ban on FGC on grounds that Islam does not forbid FCG. If this law were to go through, few NGOs, whether international or local, would be allowed to work explicitly on FCG. This would be extremely detrimental to women’s rights which should arguably be the focus of organisations; Egypt was ranked 125 out of 134 countries in terms of gender equality and has an estimated prevalence of 91.1% FGC amongst women aged 15-49. http://orchidproject.org/2013/04/is-egypt-following-in-ethiopias-footsteps/

Ethiopia Leading Africa’s Bamboo Revolution

The Country Is Seen As An Attractive Forestry Investment Destination

by Tsveta Zikolova, 

09:34, April 10

An abundance of bamboo resources and foreign investment are making Ethiopia a frontier for Africa’s bamboo revolution, Inter Press Service (IPS) reported on April 8. Being home to the largest area ofcommercially untapped bamboo reserves in East Africa, Ethiopia is seen as an attractive forestry investment destination.

Ethiopia at the Forefront of Africa’s Bamboo Revolution

IPS quoted Mitiku Kassa, Ethiopia’s State Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, as saying that the country had resources, investment as well as a rapidly-developing manufacturing industry and strong foreign demand for bamboo products.

“We have what we need”, Kassa said. “The expansion of Africa’s bamboo sector has begun.”

Forestry Investment Destination

As IPS pointed out, Sub-Saharan Africa has three million hectares of bamboo forests, approximately four percent of the continent’s total forest cover, with Ethiopia being the country with the largest area of commercially untapped bamboo reserves in East Africa. In addition, Ethiopia is reported as planning to increase its bamboo area from one to two million hectares over the next five years.

“Bamboo is a major untapped resource for Ethiopia,” Minister Mitiku Kassa told IPS, adding that the government was starting to work with farmers and enterprises to encourage and develop the sector to Ethiopia’s economic and environmental benefit.

IPS also quoted the director general of the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), J. Coosje Hoogendoorn, as commenting that governments in Africa have to make financial resources available to enterprises wishing to develop the continent’s bamboo industry. In addition, with the industrial development of Africa’s bamboo resources still being at its early stages, investors are being cautious to put their money into a market with relatively unknown dividends.

“We want governments to put structures in place that offer financial support such as micro finance and that remove any hindrance for investors in the bamboo market, so that when companies want to set up a bamboo industry they have access to financial support,” Hoogendoorn said, as quoted by IPS.

Favourable Demand Outlook

The Country Is Seen As An Attractive Forestry Investment Destination

Felix Boeck, an associate engineer at public-private partnership Africa Bamboo PLC, estimates that Europe has massive market potential in terms of demand for Ethiopian bamboo, IPS said. Reportedly, Africa Bamboo PLC is planning to invest €10 billion over the next five years in their operation in Ethiopia which would supply flooring products to customers in Europe and the US.

“The fastest-growing market in Europe for the wood industry is flooring and outdoor decking,” Boeck noted, as quoted by IPS. “We expect our products to play a large role in this market.”

Forestry investment in bamboo plantations in Ethiopia is likely to be supported by the general timber supply-demand trends. The US housing recovery is one of the factors creating a more favourable supply-demand ratio since it is likely to lead to higher demand in housing and repair or remodelling.

Ethiopia presents itself as tourist destination for Indians

Ethiopia and India are among some of the most ancient civilizations in the world
Ethiopia is focussing on tourism from India, with an aim to bag a substantial chunk of 13 million Indians travelling outside the country every year.
    
Located in the Horn of Africa, the African nation plans to raise the pitch about 'Come, visit Ethiopia' theme to project itself among top five hot spots in the continent."India is a good source market for tourism now a days. More than 13 million people travel out of India every year. We also expect to have a good share of this market, even one or two per cent of this is significant for us," Genet Teshome, Consulate General of Ethiopia in Mumbai, told PTI here.
    
Asked how the government plans to popularise Ethiopia as a tourist destination in India, Teshome said, "We at trying our best to advertise Ethiopian destinations in India. We participated in a number of tour and travel exhibitions. Only this year we participated in Pune."
    
Surrounded by Eritrea in north, Djibouti and Somalia in east, Sudan and South Sudan in west, and Kenya in south, the second most populous nation in the Africa has made elaborate arrangements to attract Asian tourists, including from India."Our Federal Government is very clear in its aim that Ethiopia should be among the five top tourist destinations in Africa and India will play a very crucial role in this process," said Tourism Facilitation Senior Expert, Cultural and Tourism Ministry, Getenet Yigzaw.
    
Having recently opened a cultural centre in its embassy in New Delhi, the country is also planning to set up tourism boards in India for tourism promotion."By next year we plan to establish our Tourism Boards in New Delhi and Mumbai. India is going to be a crucial factor in development of Ethiopia as a world-class tourism destination," Yigzaw said.

Ethiopia and India are among some of the most ancientcivilisations in the world and we are ready to establish this connection again through tourism promotion, Yigzaw added.
    
Mandated to popularise the country's tourism, the state-owned Ethiopian Airlines recently took a group of tour and travel operators from India on a week-long familiarisation tour to some of its popular destinations."We have all forms of tourism in Ethiopia, be it historical, wild life, religious and anthropological. We need to promote it as a package," said Tekeba H Sellasie, Regional Director (Indian subcontinent), Ethiopian Airlines.
    
The airline presently operates a total of 14 passenger and nine cargo flights a week from Delhi and Mumbai. It also plans to operate from other Indian cities in coming years."We are planning to have Chennai then after a while we want to operate from Bangalore and Ahmedabad also. These will be three new destinations. Their frequency will depend on the traffic volume and the market share along with the demand. If the demand is there we can make it daily also," he said.
    
Keeping in mind the distinct food habits of the Indian tourists, the country is paying special attention to this factor."We have a good number of Indian restaurants in Addis Ababa. This can be increased with flow of Indian tourists. Our food is very close to Indian in terms of flavour and sometimes even ingredients in some cases. For vegetarians we have a huge variety of Ethiopian fasting food," Teshome said.
    
Ethiopia, also known as the 'Cradle of Human Kind', is widely considered the region where the human species first started to walk upright some 3.2 million years ago.
    
"In 1974, 52 fragments of hominid were discovered in Lower Awash Valley. The study of this early hominid skeletons provided clue as to when and how the humans began to walk upright," Yigzaw said.
    
In terms of nature, Ethiopia is the fourth largest bio-diversity zone in the world and claims to have more unique species of flora and fauna than any other African nation.
 SOURCE: http://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/ethiopia-presents-itself-as-tourist-destination-for-indians-113040900197_1.html