In one of its fliers, ActionAid rightly pointed out that in Ethiopia the perennial question is whether there is enough food. The NGO indicated, “Ethiopia has suffered from several famines, and many Ethiopians are chronically hungry. This is due to political, economic and environmental reasons.”Consequently, once again the inadequacy of food and water in many parts of Ethiopia for the next three months, i.e., June 2013, as determined by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS.NET) in March 2013, is increasingly becoming cause for concern. Drought is now evident in many places due to the lateness of belg rains and shortage of food and water.
The start of the Belg rains was already delayed by a month. A population once smitten by one drought sells all assets and has nothing else to withstand the next one. These people cannot recover for several years. When the lean seasons come one after the other it makes life for a perennial struggle for food and water, as ActionAid observed.
Citing a new report, Africa Review last week reported that an estimated 12.9 million in Eastern Africa face stressed to crisis levels of food insecurity through to June. The initial estimate was 14.9 million people about three months ago.
The countries affected by this lastet round of drought and hunger are Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti, Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania and Rwanda. It is also reported that the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) would soon undertake a new, faster and more precise way of measuring hunger and food insecurity in four pilot countries in Africa — Angola, Ethiopia, Malawi and Niger.
What this project known as “Voices of the Hungry” would do is to gather actual information from the hungry people themselves on the severity of their hunger, instead of relying on numbers governments provide. If this approach is found reliable, it would lead to the establishment of a new FAO-certified standard for food security monitoring, according to Africa Review.
In the coming three months, the scenario that went into FEWS.NET assumptions speak of the following key findings in the Ethiopian context:
◙ The February to May Belg rains started during the second week of March, which is earlier than last year. However, in most receiving areas, the rains were still between three and four weeks late. The subsequent late planting of Belg crops is likely to delay the harvest by a few weeks from its normal June start, which would extend the typical April to June lean season.
◙ In the sweet potato-producing areas of Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR), the sweet potato harvest is below normal. Sweet potatoes are an important bridge crop from March to June. Households without sweet potatoes may face food consumption gaps or need to employ coping strategies during the April to June lean season, which may extend by few weeks due to late Belg planting, keeping these areas in Crisis (IPC Phase 3) through June.
◙ In the Belg-receiving areas, poor and very poor households usually address their food needs through purchase from April to June. As many of these areas had poor Meher harvests from October to January, purchases began as early as January. Food access through markets is likely to be constrained across the country as already elevated food prices are anticipated to further increase as local market and households stocks are exhausted in Belg-receiving areas from April to June.
Furthermore, FEWS:NET foresees the following scenarios in Ethiopia:
◙ AFAR AMHARA, OGADEN, OROMIA, SNNPR & TIGRAY:
In most Belg-dependent areas in SNNPR, northeastern parts Amhara, eastern and southern parts of Tigray, and East and West Hararghe Zones in Oromia Region, the poor household stocks from the 2012 Belg and Meher harvests are nearly exhausted, so households have turned to markets, expected to have rising prices between now and June as demand increases.
The latest rainfall forecasts indicate that Belg rains for April and May are expected to strengthen from their current levels However, the Belg rains started late, and the amount so far has been below normal with uneven temporal and spatial distribution, particularly in the northern and central lowlands of the SNNPR, northeastern Amhara, eastern and southern parts of Tigray, and East and West Hararghe Zones in Oromia Region. With a below average seasonal outlook due to the late start, staple food prices may increase further.
Facing continued high and likely to be soon rising food prices, poor households will try to expand their incomes through urban labor, sales of firewood and charcoal, and small ruminant sales. However, despite some income from these sources, their food access is likely to deteriorate between April and June. Emergency food assistance requested to meet the plans in the 2013 Humanitarian Requirements Document (HRD) is expected to reach about 2.4 million people, many of them in the Belg-producing areas. Now that resources from the Productive Safety Nets Program (PSNP) are reaching the regions, some additional contingency resources from PSNP have already been released in Amhara and they may cover additional beneficiaries in some areas in SNNPR and Tigray Region.
However, poor and very poor households in the root crop and Belg-dependent areas of SNNPR, the northeastern parts of Amhara, eastern andsouthern parts of Tigray, and East and West Hararghe Zones, and the Bale lowlands in Oromia Region will not be able to meet minimum food needs without accelerated depletion of their assets. Poor and very poor households in the above mentioned areas will be classified at Crisis (IPC Phase 3) until June.
With near normal to below normal March to May Sugum/Gu rains anticipated this year, the situation is not expected to improve to its normal level and therefore the poor and very poor households found in Afar and Somali Regions will likely be in food Crisis (IPC Phase 3) level of food insecurity from April to June. On the other hand, the expected normal March to May Genna rain in Borena and Guji Zones of Oromia Region will help poor and very poor households meet their minimal food requirements, and therefore they will remain Stressed (IPC Phase 2) through June.
The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS.NET) is a USAID-funded activity that collaborates with international, regional and national partners. It provides time and rigorous early warning and vulnerability information on emerging and evolving food security issues.
FEWS NET also focuses its efforts on strengthening early warning and food security networks. Activities in this area include developing capacity, building and strengthening networks, developing policy-useful information, and building consensus around food security problems and solutions.
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Hailemariam Desalegn and Shiferaw Shigute the TPLF collaborators are accountable for Ethnic Cleansing
by Tedla Asfaw
On Monday April 8, 2013 Ethiopians are gathering in front of the White House like we have been doing for more than two decades. Our Voice is the Voice of the Voiceless Ethiopian people who are living in a giant jail with no freedom at all. Freedom to live shutting ones own mouth is not even allowed at present. The Ethnic Cleansing underway in Beni Shanguel Gumez in Western part of Ethiopia targeted Amharas as enemy to be removed from their farmland in thousands.
Amharas in the Southern Fiefdom are not new for such Ethnic Cleansing. Last year Amharas were kicked out of their livelihood from Gura Ferda in thousands. Their crime is looking and sounding different from Ethiopians over there.The people have been living along with their neighbours very well infuriating the Southern Warlord Shiferaw Shugite. Instructed by his boss, the Tigrean Warlords, Amharas farmlands was cleared to give it to Tigrean Land Lords and foreign land buyers.
The late Meles Zenawi on his fake parliament last year at this time accused the displaced for being “anti environment “. He said, forests were destroyed for farming and has to be stopped. What was his “solution” ? Instruct Shiferaw Shigute, the Southern Warlord to take away land from Amharas and give it away to Tigreans and foreign buyers.
After the death of the dictator we are now witnessing his “vision” put into practice in Beni Shanguel Gumez , Southern Fiefdom. More than 5,000 Amharas are forced out by terror and close to one hundred died of car accident travelling by truck to save their lives. The sad thing is that they paid for the truck that takes them to their death. Many are travelling on foot, women forced to give birth on their way, children and elderly forced to walk and All living their property behind.
The Amharas are the people that are marked as the enemy of the Tigrai people by the ruling mafia clique and they are putting that “motto” into action to honor their dead tyrant. Hailemariam Deslaegn the current prime minster/worshipper is the one in charge of the Ethnic Cleansing in Western part of Ethiopia.We are asking the Obama Administration that Hailemariam Desalegn should not be allowed to enter to USA. We Ethiopians are asking other Western countries to do the same.
The Southern Fiefdom is where Hailemariam Desalegn claims to be elected by the people. Therefore he is accountable to the Ethnic Cleansing in that part of Ethiopia. The President of that fiefdom Shiferaw Shigute another person that should be accountable for this crime and we demand the Obama Administration not to give entry visa to this criminal too.
We do believe that the solution to this problem is removing the TPLF Mafia. That is the job of the Ethiopian people. We have been disunited for more than twenty years. We are not there when our people needs us the most. Those who are trying back home to do their best to expose the crime committed by the regime can not stop crimes like Ethnic Cleansing because they can not Walk the Talk.
Those far from home are only Talking but not Acting to change the situation too. Let us stop “fight” among ourselves and earn respect and support of the Ethiopian people by being their defenders. There is an Ethiopian saying, ‘SewMalet SewMalet, Sew Yehonenew SewYeteffa Elet” meaning people who are born into time of crisis and face the challenge to lead their people to freedom are heroes to the people. We are still looking for such Ethiopians more than any time in our history.
From left: Hailemariam Desalegn and Shiferaw Shigute
Amharas in the Southern Fiefdom are not new for such Ethnic Cleansing. Last year Amharas were kicked out of their livelihood from Gura Ferda in thousands. Their crime is looking and sounding different from Ethiopians over there.The people have been living along with their neighbours very well infuriating the Southern Warlord Shiferaw Shugite. Instructed by his boss, the Tigrean Warlords, Amharas farmlands was cleared to give it to Tigrean Land Lords and foreign land buyers.
The late Meles Zenawi on his fake parliament last year at this time accused the displaced for being “anti environment “. He said, forests were destroyed for farming and has to be stopped. What was his “solution” ? Instruct Shiferaw Shigute, the Southern Warlord to take away land from Amharas and give it away to Tigreans and foreign buyers.
After the death of the dictator we are now witnessing his “vision” put into practice in Beni Shanguel Gumez , Southern Fiefdom. More than 5,000 Amharas are forced out by terror and close to one hundred died of car accident travelling by truck to save their lives. The sad thing is that they paid for the truck that takes them to their death. Many are travelling on foot, women forced to give birth on their way, children and elderly forced to walk and All living their property behind.
The Amharas are the people that are marked as the enemy of the Tigrai people by the ruling mafia clique and they are putting that “motto” into action to honor their dead tyrant. Hailemariam Deslaegn the current prime minster/worshipper is the one in charge of the Ethnic Cleansing in Western part of Ethiopia.We are asking the Obama Administration that Hailemariam Desalegn should not be allowed to enter to USA. We Ethiopians are asking other Western countries to do the same.
The Southern Fiefdom is where Hailemariam Desalegn claims to be elected by the people. Therefore he is accountable to the Ethnic Cleansing in that part of Ethiopia. The President of that fiefdom Shiferaw Shigute another person that should be accountable for this crime and we demand the Obama Administration not to give entry visa to this criminal too.
We do believe that the solution to this problem is removing the TPLF Mafia. That is the job of the Ethiopian people. We have been disunited for more than twenty years. We are not there when our people needs us the most. Those who are trying back home to do their best to expose the crime committed by the regime can not stop crimes like Ethnic Cleansing because they can not Walk the Talk.
Those far from home are only Talking but not Acting to change the situation too. Let us stop “fight” among ourselves and earn respect and support of the Ethiopian people by being their defenders. There is an Ethiopian saying, ‘SewMalet SewMalet, Sew Yehonenew SewYeteffa Elet” meaning people who are born into time of crisis and face the challenge to lead their people to freedom are heroes to the people. We are still looking for such Ethiopians more than any time in our history.
Margaret J. O’Connor on lessons she learned growing up in Ethiopia
By Chicago SunTimes
April 6, 2013
You wouldn’t know it by looking at me, but I have two native countries — Ethiopia and Australia — and an adopted one, America. I was born and raised in Ethiopia, a daughter of Australian missionaries. We lived in a small village in the highlands of the Great Rift Valley. There, I grew up surrounded by love, gentleness and kindness — not only from my family, but from the Amhara and the Arusi-Galla tribal people among whom we lived. For me, color was never an issue. It was not black or white, but rather, friend or not.In the village where I grew up, we were the only white children. When I was 3, my family was returning to Australia for a yearlong furlough, and another missionary family with three children was coming to take over my parent’s mission post. The children were near our ages, and when they asked my sisters and I to play with them, we were shy and ran off into the village to play with our friends.
April 6, 2013
You wouldn’t know it by looking at me, but I have two native countries — Ethiopia and Australia — and an adopted one, America. I was born and raised in Ethiopia, a daughter of Australian missionaries. We lived in a small village in the highlands of the Great Rift Valley. There, I grew up surrounded by love, gentleness and kindness — not only from my family, but from the Amhara and the Arusi-Galla tribal people among whom we lived. For me, color was never an issue. It was not black or white, but rather, friend or not.In the village where I grew up, we were the only white children. When I was 3, my family was returning to Australia for a yearlong furlough, and another missionary family with three children was coming to take over my parent’s mission post. The children were near our ages, and when they asked my sisters and I to play with them, we were shy and ran off into the village to play with our friends.
That night, my mother asked me why I’d run away. I’d said, “Mummy, they’re so different than us.” I’d never seen another white child, except for my sisters. I didn’t grow up noticing color. That’s why I know that bigotry is learned. Hatred is learned. It’s something we teach our children.
In 1967, my family came to America — one of the most important events in my young life. I really believed the streets would be paved with gold. America was the land of plenty, the new “promised land,” one filled with opportunity, the best of the best. But within 10 months, everything changed forever for me.
Forty-five years ago today, and just a few short months after my family came to America, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot and killed. I was 12, and it had a profound effect on me.
I had never been exposed to such violence or such discrimination based solely on skin color. I asked my father why they would kill him, and I have never forgotten what he said to me: “He wanted to make the world a better place, but it’s not that way right now, and one day because of him, it might be.”
From Martin Luther King Jr.’s death, I learned about things I had never known: Bigotry and violence and hatred. But I also learned how far one man’s dream can take him, a people and a nation. I learned about the passion of conviction; that nonviolence and love can triumph over blind hate. I learned about a man who awoke a nation to racial injustice and the struggle for freedom. He stirred souls and people to action with his call for unity.
If, in 1960, someone had asked if a black man coming out of the South could champion a movement whose effect would be heard and felt around the world — and by a young strawberry blonde girl from Ethiopia — the answer would be an emphatic no. But Martin Luther King Jr. saw the oppression and despair of a people. He believed that change needed to occur, “but within the framework of the American democratic set-up … One of the greatest glories of American democracy is that we have the right to protest for rights.”
With that, he began to lay the groundwork for equality for all. He believed, “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter,” and, “Today, the choice is no longer between violence and nonviolence. It is either nonviolence or nonexistence.”
Martin Luther King Jr. moved a nation toward his dream. His dream sustained a people and began to turn the tide away from apathy and ignorance. And he ultimately laid down his life for his fellow man, an act of “no greater love.”
His life has taught me that anything is possible, even if I am only one. He taught me that dreams, moral fiber, integrity and compassion are essential life characteristics. And he also reminded me of that essential lesson I learned as a young girl growing up in Ethiopia — that all people should be treated equally.
Food or freedom: Which comes first?
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| Abraha Desta |
Food must be accompanied by freedom to make humanity flourish. Human beings are like trees. Trees need water (and other nutrients) ... This is food. But they need sunlight (They must be free to see the sun), if they are to flower and get ripe. Though water is important for the growth of trees, it is sunlight that makes their growth meaningful. Same is true to human beings: Human beings need both food and freedom. We are also in a position to have them both by transforming our political system from the rule of man to the rule of law.People have the right to food (food is one component of freedom). Human beings must be free to get food. Plus, citizens have also the right to express what they want. Freedom of consciousness (freedom of speech, expression, to be listened ........ every other aspect beyond filling the belly or stomach). We are not here to eat only; we also want to express our lives freely so as to realize our true selves.
Food and freedom are not mutually exclusive. We can achieve them all together. We may exert efforts to eradicate poverty (achieve food security). But there is no effort needed to let people free. Because freedom is just allowing people to be the way they like as long as their actions do not affect the right (freedom) of other fellow citizens. So, freedom only needs a good will of the ruling class accompanied by the maturity of individual citizens. In order to achieve and sustain food security, every citizen must take part (participate) in the development endeavors of the nation. Participation is all rounded. It includes.....freedom of speech (or expression).... Freedom of speech needs free thinking. When citizens are free to think, express and act the way they like, there is high possibility of inventing new ways of doing things. With freedom, there will be new innovations which help us develop our economic growth and other aspects. So, Freedom of Expression must be allowed for the sake of our national development.Economic growth (food) is one component of development. Development subsumes democracy (besides economic growth). The essence of democracy is freedom; freedom in all aspects. Without freedom, development is not complete. The Human Development Index is all about freedom (access to education, democratic participation etc). The well being of the people is measured by the freedom the people enjoy. As the people are the major actors in bringing development, they must be let free. People without freedom cannot be innovative..... Without freedom we are weak who cannot achieve remarkable changes. So, freedom and food reinforce with each other. We cannot expect people without freedom to bring development. As the saying goes, we eat to live (we do not live to eat). Our fathers (including those who had a good opportunity of having huge incomes) struggled for freedom. Because people do not live to eat; they eat to live (living with freedom). Living is not only eating.... but also realizing the fruits of life, which is possible only with freedom. I am not prioritizing food or freedom. We should not prioritize ... because both of them are equally important. Economic growth is not a guarantee for unity and stability. The people in Libya, Egypt and other Middle Eastern peoples do not have food problem. They have excess food (economic growth). But they lack freedom (democracy). This is why they violently opposed to their own rulers (that resulted in bloodshed). Freedom is also a component of the development of a nation. Therefore, the EPRDF led government must let the Ethiopian people free. OR, if the ruling party is not capable of achieving both (food and freedom), it must confess that it is time for the other parties to come to power to make them both happen to humankind. However, if the ruling party tends to continue denying freedom (of the people) by naming and/or defaming ‘freedom fighters’ as ‘terrorists’, it really poisons our future political systems and results in ‘social decay’. This may lead to instability. When the government terrorizes people in order not to express their political view freely, they tend to use force as a last resort. So, if the government continues to suppress human freedom in the name of 'terrorism', it is aggravating violence. Therefore, the EPRDF-led government should openly be informed to stop such activities that could lead to violence which brings more loss! As responsible
22 Years On: The Caravan Still Rolls On
By Destaw Andargie (Dr.)
It will soon be twenty-two years since TPLF seized power in Ethiopia. Over these long and torturous years, TPLF faced no serious external challenge whatsoever. It has been in absolute command. Its rule has never come under threat. Even during its worst internal crisis back in 2001, the issue was all about which faction would emerge the winner. It was still all about TPLF- the sole star in the political theatre. Indeed, despite dubious and useless rumors about infighting within TPLF, all objective indications suggest that TPLF will continue to dictate the country for the foreseeable future. The demise of its longtime leader notwithstanding, TPLF is as assured of its hegemony as ever. After 22 years of absolute domination, many are only hoping (against hope) for TPLF to commit suicide. The extent to which people are moved by the deceptive rumors that TPLF is fracturing proves nothing but the prevailing level of defeatism.[1] After all these years and everything that has happened; all the talk from the opposition camp (as with citizens) is still about what the TPLF does and does not, as if action was the natural monopoly of the TPLF. After twenty-two years, we still continue to talk about how divisive and tyrannical TPLF is. Obviously, such defeatist talks neither make news nor change anything. Yet, we continue down that path either because blaming TPLF for everything (including our own weaknesses) has transformed into a sort of addiction or just because it makes us feel somewhat good about ourselves for it relieves us from asking ourselves tougher questions. We seem to enjoy blaming TPLF for everything, and never to ask ourselves.[2] And, of course, TPLF loves that, for talk is cheap and will never alter the status quo.
After twenty-two long years, we have no political group with any realistic chance of knocking TPLF down now or at any point in the foreseeable future. The grim reality is that it is not obvious if the opposition is in a better shape now than it was ten or twenty years ago or will be in a better shape after ten or twenty years. So much is the magnitude of the opposition’s failure. This is a truly remarkable achievement for TPLF-one that any dictatorship would dream of. What remains to ask is this: why has TPLF been so successful? If TPLF is such a tiny minority with deeply unpopular political agenda, how do we fathom its extraordinary success? Where are the overwhelming majority of Ethiopians-those who claim to hold a burning love and patriotism for their mother land? What attributes does TPLF possess that the opposition does not? These are simple but momentous questions anyone who really cares about Ethiopian politics must ask. In what follows, I will engage these questions and put forward my views. My views may sound harsh on the opposition, but I have long been convinced that TPLF may not be more responsible for our troubles than we are. TPLF is doing what it is supposed to do, while the same cannot be said about the opposition. Importantly, blaming TPLF has never solved, and will never solve anything. If we really care and want to see change in Ethiopian politics, it is an imperative for us to ask what we can do, for neither TPLF nor anybody else in the world will do the job for us. Why? Because change is fundamentally against their interest. Quite the contrary, TPLF and global powers will do everything they can to preserve the status quo. It is entirely up to those who crave change to bring about change; as it has always been the case throughout history. Now, let me turn to my first question: why has TPLF been so successful? And what lessons for the opposition?
Success is NOT given, it’s earned!
Unarguably, it is not the law of nature, a stroke of luck or mythical destiny that put TPLF at the helm. It is down to verifiable universal attributes of success that TPLF possesses (and the opposition sorely lacks). It is high time for the political opposition to come to terms with reality. The harsh reality is that TPLF has superior standing and vitality than probably any political group in Ethiopia. Whatever else TPLF leaders are, they have proven to have a clear political project; that they work around the clock and thus are masterly in executing their project; that they are apt in making their case; that they are highly organized, disciplined and tenacious (almost 40 years old, still as rock solid as ever); pragmatically confident; cunning and skillful (which unfortunately matter immensely in the game of real politics); and crucially, that they are unwaveringly committed to the cause they fought for! Whether their cause is good or bad is an entirely different question, but they have a cause and they fought and continue to fight for it. It would be an exercise in futility to try to find these attributes in the opposition camp.
1. Clarity of purpose
As secretive and sophisticated TPLF leaders are, they are also unabashed in declaring what they believe in (however obscene that may be), what they stand for, what they plan to do, and they do it; action being their other admirable quality. For anyone who cares, TPLF’s political agenda, strategy, tactics, and almost everything else, were known even before they came to the helm of power. That is why accusations that TPLF is deconstructionist, or hates this of that people, or is divisive, or is anti-free media, and the like become annoyingly boring-something that neither makes news nor solves anything. It makes no news because that is what they told us they would do from the very beginning. Look at the following statements:
The country will have to be a federation …We can no longer have Amhara domination…
EPRP…have become just another version of the Derg. They favour Amhara domination. We don’t think we can cooperate with them…We are often very unhappy with the Amhara chauvinist line we hear on…the Voice of America…It sometimes sounds more like the “Voice of the Amhara” than the Voice of America…
These are statements of the late Meles Zenawi, made in his conversation with Paul Heinz, the American intelligence officer back in 1990. They reveal how they were prepared to deal with what they call Amhara dominated Ethiopia. It reveals their apprehension of any media that they have no control over (hence the VOA) and of any political party whose birth they have not midwifed. TPLF has never concealed its deconstructionist political agenda. Its hegemonic strategy has never been disguised. When it masterminded the creation of the other ‘coalition’ members (so-called PDOs-), one after another, simply to give the appearance (at least to the outside world) of an ethnically balanced representation, it was obvious that they would not be equal partners. While the created can never claim equality with its creator, TPLF made it clear from the very beginning that there would be no room for rival political groups, and that its doors are completely shut against the idea of national reconciliation. Standing in 1990, you could tell almost everything they would do for the next twenty-
It will soon be twenty-two years since TPLF seized power in Ethiopia. Over these long and torturous years, TPLF faced no serious external challenge whatsoever. It has been in absolute command. Its rule has never come under threat. Even during its worst internal crisis back in 2001, the issue was all about which faction would emerge the winner. It was still all about TPLF- the sole star in the political theatre. Indeed, despite dubious and useless rumors about infighting within TPLF, all objective indications suggest that TPLF will continue to dictate the country for the foreseeable future. The demise of its longtime leader notwithstanding, TPLF is as assured of its hegemony as ever. After 22 years of absolute domination, many are only hoping (against hope) for TPLF to commit suicide. The extent to which people are moved by the deceptive rumors that TPLF is fracturing proves nothing but the prevailing level of defeatism.[1] After all these years and everything that has happened; all the talk from the opposition camp (as with citizens) is still about what the TPLF does and does not, as if action was the natural monopoly of the TPLF. After twenty-two years, we still continue to talk about how divisive and tyrannical TPLF is. Obviously, such defeatist talks neither make news nor change anything. Yet, we continue down that path either because blaming TPLF for everything (including our own weaknesses) has transformed into a sort of addiction or just because it makes us feel somewhat good about ourselves for it relieves us from asking ourselves tougher questions. We seem to enjoy blaming TPLF for everything, and never to ask ourselves.[2] And, of course, TPLF loves that, for talk is cheap and will never alter the status quo.
After twenty-two long years, we have no political group with any realistic chance of knocking TPLF down now or at any point in the foreseeable future. The grim reality is that it is not obvious if the opposition is in a better shape now than it was ten or twenty years ago or will be in a better shape after ten or twenty years. So much is the magnitude of the opposition’s failure. This is a truly remarkable achievement for TPLF-one that any dictatorship would dream of. What remains to ask is this: why has TPLF been so successful? If TPLF is such a tiny minority with deeply unpopular political agenda, how do we fathom its extraordinary success? Where are the overwhelming majority of Ethiopians-those who claim to hold a burning love and patriotism for their mother land? What attributes does TPLF possess that the opposition does not? These are simple but momentous questions anyone who really cares about Ethiopian politics must ask. In what follows, I will engage these questions and put forward my views. My views may sound harsh on the opposition, but I have long been convinced that TPLF may not be more responsible for our troubles than we are. TPLF is doing what it is supposed to do, while the same cannot be said about the opposition. Importantly, blaming TPLF has never solved, and will never solve anything. If we really care and want to see change in Ethiopian politics, it is an imperative for us to ask what we can do, for neither TPLF nor anybody else in the world will do the job for us. Why? Because change is fundamentally against their interest. Quite the contrary, TPLF and global powers will do everything they can to preserve the status quo. It is entirely up to those who crave change to bring about change; as it has always been the case throughout history. Now, let me turn to my first question: why has TPLF been so successful? And what lessons for the opposition?
Success is NOT given, it’s earned!
Unarguably, it is not the law of nature, a stroke of luck or mythical destiny that put TPLF at the helm. It is down to verifiable universal attributes of success that TPLF possesses (and the opposition sorely lacks). It is high time for the political opposition to come to terms with reality. The harsh reality is that TPLF has superior standing and vitality than probably any political group in Ethiopia. Whatever else TPLF leaders are, they have proven to have a clear political project; that they work around the clock and thus are masterly in executing their project; that they are apt in making their case; that they are highly organized, disciplined and tenacious (almost 40 years old, still as rock solid as ever); pragmatically confident; cunning and skillful (which unfortunately matter immensely in the game of real politics); and crucially, that they are unwaveringly committed to the cause they fought for! Whether their cause is good or bad is an entirely different question, but they have a cause and they fought and continue to fight for it. It would be an exercise in futility to try to find these attributes in the opposition camp.
1. Clarity of purpose
As secretive and sophisticated TPLF leaders are, they are also unabashed in declaring what they believe in (however obscene that may be), what they stand for, what they plan to do, and they do it; action being their other admirable quality. For anyone who cares, TPLF’s political agenda, strategy, tactics, and almost everything else, were known even before they came to the helm of power. That is why accusations that TPLF is deconstructionist, or hates this of that people, or is divisive, or is anti-free media, and the like become annoyingly boring-something that neither makes news nor solves anything. It makes no news because that is what they told us they would do from the very beginning. Look at the following statements:
The country will have to be a federation …We can no longer have Amhara domination…
EPRP…have become just another version of the Derg. They favour Amhara domination. We don’t think we can cooperate with them…We are often very unhappy with the Amhara chauvinist line we hear on…the Voice of America…It sometimes sounds more like the “Voice of the Amhara” than the Voice of America…
These are statements of the late Meles Zenawi, made in his conversation with Paul Heinz, the American intelligence officer back in 1990. They reveal how they were prepared to deal with what they call Amhara dominated Ethiopia. It reveals their apprehension of any media that they have no control over (hence the VOA) and of any political party whose birth they have not midwifed. TPLF has never concealed its deconstructionist political agenda. Its hegemonic strategy has never been disguised. When it masterminded the creation of the other ‘coalition’ members (so-called PDOs-), one after another, simply to give the appearance (at least to the outside world) of an ethnically balanced representation, it was obvious that they would not be equal partners. While the created can never claim equality with its creator, TPLF made it clear from the very beginning that there would be no room for rival political groups, and that its doors are completely shut against the idea of national reconciliation. Standing in 1990, you could tell almost everything they would do for the next twenty-
UN panel: Eskinder Nega jailing violates international law
by Tom Rhodes/CPJ East Africa Consultant
Authorities in Ethiopia describe Eskinder Nega, a prominent columnist and government critic jailed since September 2011 on vague terrorism charges, as a dangerous individual bent on violent revolution. However, in an opinion handed down in 2012–publicized only this week by Washington, D.C.-based legal advocacy group Freedom Now–a United Nations panel of five independent experts ruled that Eskinder’s imprisonment came “as a result of his peaceful exercise of the right to freedom of expression.”
The opinion from the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention was issued after a judge in Addis Ababa sentenced Eskinder to 18 years in prison in July 2012, accusing him of writing “articles that incited the public to bring the North African and Arab uprisings to Ethiopia.” In the opinion, the experts detailed several breaches of Eskinder’s rights, from his arrest without warrant and allegations of mistreatment in pre-trial detention, to a flawed prosecution and trial that fell short of international standards of fairness.
“It is our sincere hope that the government will look closely at the opinion and come to the same conclusion as the Working Group,” Patrick Griffith, an attorney with Freedom Now, told me. “The opinion here is especially well-reasoned and clearly explains why the continued detention of Eskinder is a violation of international law; it is now up to the government to do the right thing and release him.”
The opinion, however, is not binding, and Ethiopian authorities have a notoriously tough hide when it comes to international criticism of their human rights record–despite being major recipients of Western aid. Griffith is still optimistic, saying: “Pressure can have an impact on the ground; the release of political prisoners in 2007 (following mass arrests in 2005) and the release of the Swedish journalists last year came after considerable international attention–so there is hope.” Griffith says Freedom Now will urge governments, especially that of the United States, to more forcefully insist on Eskinder’s release. Griffith also hopes that by vigorously pursuing Eskinder’s case, the group can train more global attention on other Ethiopian journalists in prison. There are currently six journalists behind bars, some without charge.
Prior to his arrest, Eskinder had criticized authorities for carrying out such practices, claiming that the government used a sweeping anti-terror law to scare critics of the ruling party into silence. “In the well-publicized applications of the dreaded anti-terrorism law lies the perfect means to stretch fear to its furthest limit. Raw fear is in the air. And journalists have been affected the most,” Eskinder wrote in a July 2011 column entitled “SOS: Dissent and terrorism in Ethiopia.”
As a member of the U.N. Human Rights Council, Ethiopia should comply with international law and release Eskinder immediately and unconditionally.
Authorities in Ethiopia describe Eskinder Nega, a prominent columnist and government critic jailed since September 2011 on vague terrorism charges, as a dangerous individual bent on violent revolution. However, in an opinion handed down in 2012–publicized only this week by Washington, D.C.-based legal advocacy group Freedom Now–a United Nations panel of five independent experts ruled that Eskinder’s imprisonment came “as a result of his peaceful exercise of the right to freedom of expression.”The opinion from the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention was issued after a judge in Addis Ababa sentenced Eskinder to 18 years in prison in July 2012, accusing him of writing “articles that incited the public to bring the North African and Arab uprisings to Ethiopia.” In the opinion, the experts detailed several breaches of Eskinder’s rights, from his arrest without warrant and allegations of mistreatment in pre-trial detention, to a flawed prosecution and trial that fell short of international standards of fairness.
“It is our sincere hope that the government will look closely at the opinion and come to the same conclusion as the Working Group,” Patrick Griffith, an attorney with Freedom Now, told me. “The opinion here is especially well-reasoned and clearly explains why the continued detention of Eskinder is a violation of international law; it is now up to the government to do the right thing and release him.”
The opinion, however, is not binding, and Ethiopian authorities have a notoriously tough hide when it comes to international criticism of their human rights record–despite being major recipients of Western aid. Griffith is still optimistic, saying: “Pressure can have an impact on the ground; the release of political prisoners in 2007 (following mass arrests in 2005) and the release of the Swedish journalists last year came after considerable international attention–so there is hope.” Griffith says Freedom Now will urge governments, especially that of the United States, to more forcefully insist on Eskinder’s release. Griffith also hopes that by vigorously pursuing Eskinder’s case, the group can train more global attention on other Ethiopian journalists in prison. There are currently six journalists behind bars, some without charge.
Prior to his arrest, Eskinder had criticized authorities for carrying out such practices, claiming that the government used a sweeping anti-terror law to scare critics of the ruling party into silence. “In the well-publicized applications of the dreaded anti-terrorism law lies the perfect means to stretch fear to its furthest limit. Raw fear is in the air. And journalists have been affected the most,” Eskinder wrote in a July 2011 column entitled “SOS: Dissent and terrorism in Ethiopia.”
As a member of the U.N. Human Rights Council, Ethiopia should comply with international law and release Eskinder immediately and unconditionally.
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