Document #1010581
IRB – Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (Author)
According to a professor of law at the
College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, who is
familiar with Ethiopian politics, the Kefean Patriotic Front (KPF)
was formed in the late 1970s and early 1980s (7 Feb. 1997). The KPF
is based in the Gondar region near the border with Sudan (ibid.).
The source explained that "Kefean" is an Amharic word signifying "I
am unhappy or discontented" (ibid.).
The source explained that Gondar region
strategically placed because of its proximity to Sudan, which was
supporting various opposition groups during the struggle to oust
the Mengistu regime (ibid.). The KPF was formed by farmers in the
Gondar region who were unhappy that several political movements
opposed to the former government of Mengistu Haile Mariam, were
operating in their area. Among these groups wre the Tigrayan
People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Ethiopian Revolutionary
Party (EPRP), and the Ethiopian Democratic Union (EDU). The fact
that these groups were operating in Gondar made the KPF a target
for government harassment. The msource stated that Gondar region
was also targeted by Sudan and the TPLF because the KPF was a
patriotic group and strongly opposed to secession (ibid.). He added
that the KPF initially tried to expel the TPLF, EPRP and EDU from
Gondar, but it failed because "it was not a very powerful group"
(ibid.).
The current Ethiopean People's
Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) government, the majority of
whom are members of the TPLF, have reportedly incorporated the
province of Gondar into Tigray, further intensifying the KPF's
displeasure (ibid.). Consequently, the KPF has joined other groups
and is engaged in armed resitance against the government (ibid.).
The present government has imprisoned certain KPF members, and its
leader, Kidane Mariam, was killed by the government (ibid.). The
source adds that the KPF has members in Sudan, Europe and the
United States (ibid.).
According to a 4 January 1997 The
Indian Ocean Newsletter article, the KPF is an armed militia
based in Gondar (4). A majority faction within the KPF has
reportedly joined the Ethiopian Unity Front (EUF), a new opposition
movement that proposes to establish " a democratic Ethiopia where
human rights would be respected within the framework of a pluralist
system" (ibid., 3). Acccording to this source, the KPF faction that
joined the EUF includes elements operating in Ethiopia and Sudan,
but not those in the United States (ibid.).
This Response was prepared after
researching publicly accessible information currently available to
the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does
not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular
claim to refugee status or asylum.
References
Professor of law, College of William and
Mary Williamsburg, Virginia. 7 February 1997. Telephone
interview.
The Indian Ocean Newsletter
[Paris]. 4 January 1997. No. 747. Ethiopia: New Armed Opposition
Pole."
Attachment
The Indian Ocean Newsletter
[Paris]. 4 January 1997. No. 747. Ethiopia: New Armed Opposition
Pole," p. 4.