Oromo Liberation Front – Oromo Liberation Army (OLF-OLA)
High Command
13 February 2023
Dear OLF-OLA High Command,
I am writing to you in relation to draft report “The Potential for Peace in Western Oromia”, produced by the European Institute of Peace and circulated in November 2022. I wish to apologise for the report and to inform you that it will not be published or further circulated.
The Institute received feedback on the report from a number of sources including a detailed analysis from you, dated January 17, 2023. We acknowledge that the document required correction and amendment in several respects, as it was methodologically flawed.
In particular, we regret the description of the Tole Massacre in the executive summary of the report. It attributed the blame for the massacre to the OLA. This was a mistake; please accept my apologies. It was at odds with the text of the report which recognises that this was an allegation, not a fact, that the allegation is rejected by the OLA and that the OLA has called for an independent evaluation.
Moreover, the report appeared at various points to advocate for particular positions and outcomes, which was not the intention of the document nor should it have been the tenor of the report. This is not in line with the approach the European Institute of Peace applies in its efforts as an impartial mediation organisation.
We hope this apology, as well as the decision to stop this process, will help to clarify the position of the European Institute of Peace.
I take this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to contributing to a peaceful and inclusive resolution wherever we work, including in Oromia, and our openness to favour dialogue between OLA and the Federal Government of Ethiopia.
Thank you for your consideration.
Michael Keating
Executive Director European Institute of Peace michael.keating@eip.org
European Institute of Peace, Rue des Deux Eglises 25, 1000 Brussels, Belgium http://www.eip.org
