As part of refugee week that happened in Melbourne in July, the Ogaden community celebrated at Fitzroy Town Hall on the 25^th of June 2010, complete with traditional food, entertainment and the screening of the powerful documentary “Silent Cry”. Ogaden is a region on the border of Somalia, which is located in south-East Ethiopia in Africa. Its population is around 5-6 million, and here in Australia there are approximately 3000 Ogadenian people, who mainly live in the capital cities.

“Silent Cry” is a documentary about the genocide which is happening in the Ogaden region.

The people of Ogaden are suffering from killing, torture and rape, which has occurred because of the Ethiopian military regime.

The documentary has been seen in 26 countries, especially western countries. It was created by a group of amateur student filmmakers who came across victims of the genocide whilst holidaying in Africa.

Abdi Hussien, a member of the Ogaden community in Victoria who was the chairperson for the evening said that this genocide was caused by Milles Zainowe who has isolated the people of Ogaden from the rest of the world,

“It's time for the International community now to take an action for that area” Abdi Hussien said.

An Ogaden community elder, Ahmed Hassan strongly agrees with this perspective.

“It is time for the international community to stop the Ethiopian military regime and what they are doing to the Ogadenian Somalian people, because they experience genocide, real genocide. The Ethiopian government do not allow any media, journalist, reporter or any other kind of communication as well as human rights activists (into the region)” Hassan said.

According to Hassan there are no medical centres, roads, and infrastructure at all and that it is a very complicated issue. He also says the Ethiopian government is fully responsible for this horror,

“They created this conflict by exercising their threat which involves killing children, torturing people. Elderly women have been raped and families have been breaking apart”. Hassan says.

Another speaker during the evening Abdullahi Bashir, said that one of the main reasons for the west ignoring the call of the Ogaden people is because of the media blackout.

“Since there is the media blackout of Ogaden the world is not hearing the people of Ogaden…they are basically voiceless” Bashir says.  

The documentary is therefore a brave attempt to bring what is happening in the region to the surface on an international scale. “Silent cry” has exposed the consequences of the genocide with graphic imagery of the suffering of the Ogaden refugees.

For more information about “Silent Cry” visit www.silentcry.co.uk