Recent Developments
The Walta Information Center reported 9 October that the CUD lost its legal life with the conclusion of the 2005 election, and is no longer accredited as a political party. Although a number of members of the Ethiopian Parliament still possess identification cards issued by the CUD, National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) deputy head Tesfaye Mengesha stated that this does not guarantee eligibility. The CUD that existed in the pre-election had long taken its exit, he concluded. “Today’s CUD has borne nothing of the former, but the name.”
In a surprise development, the General Assembly of the CUD met on 22 October in the Hall of the NEBE in Addis Ababa, and elected new officials. Ayele Chamesso was elected party Chairman and the former Chairman Temesgen Zewde was elected Deputy Chairman in absentia, while Sasahulh Kebede became Secretary General. However Temesgen Zewde stated that the meeting was held against party rules and its decisions were illegal. When asked why the NEBE allowed the assembly to take place on its premises, Mekonnen Wondimu, the Acting Registrar of the NEBE Political Parties Registration Office, replied that the request had been made in writing by the Deputy Chairman of the party, and that the NEBE has never turned down the requests of political parties when they made similar requests.
After a split between inside CUD in the diaspora, another split occurred to CUD in Ethiopia during the Ethiopian intervention in Somalia. A CUD group led by Temesgen Zewde disapproved the decision by the government to go into Somalia, while a CUD group led by Tadesse Bekele (CUD's elected representative for Addis Ababa City Council) supported the ruling party's decision to go into Somalia. Tadesse said "Ethiopians have never been divided on the issue of the sovereignty of the country, and the stand of the CUD group led by Temesgen and some opposition parties has failed to prioritize national interest."
After a long trial, the Ethiopian court found 38 CUD officials guilty of breaching Ethiopia's constitution. General charges ranged from armed rebellion to "outrage against the constitution". In addition to organizing and provoking the violence, witnessed also accused some CUD leaders of attempting assassinations on government heads. Various human rights organizations have accused the trial of being politically motivated.
Read more about this topic: Coalition For Unity And Democracy
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