Urgency of Addressing the Plight of Women Belonging to Vulnerable Groups in Ethiopia Highlighted at UNPO EP Conference
On 22 March 2017, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), in collaboration with the People’s Alliance for Freedom and Democracy (PAFD) and Mrs Liliana Rodrigues, Member of the European Parliament from the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats (S&D), held a conference at the European Parliament in Brusse ls entitled “Women’s Inferno in Ethiopia: The Plight of Women from Ogaden, Oromo, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella & Sidama”. The conference assembled a wide variety of perspectives on the compound struggles facing marginalised populations within Ethiopia and, more specifically, the dismal condition of women’s rights within the country. The speakers covered topics ranging from the famine and cholera in Ogaden to child abduction in Gambella to the Irrecha massacre in Oromiya , with the main themes of minority suffering and gender-based violence recurring throughout the presentations. With nearly 100 participants attending and more