ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) — Tanzania is to release 1,443 Ethiopian prisoners, the Ethiopian embassy in Dar Es Salaam announced on Tuesday.

In a press statement, the embassy said the decision to free 1,443 Ethiopian prisoners were made after a trilateral discussion involving Ethiopian embassy officials, European Union (EU) Officials and Tanzanian government officials.

“The 1,443 Ethiopian prisoners will be freed soon and will be assisted to return back home in collaboration with the UN migrant agency, International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the EU,” the statement said.

The press statement didn’t mention what crimes the Ethiopians had been imprisoned for.

However, every year hundreds of Ethiopians are detained in Tanzania while trying to use Tanzania as a transit point for their final destination, South Africa.

Human traffickers reportedly use various countries as transit points to smuggle Ethiopians to South Africa.

According to the Ethiopia Ministry of Foreign Affairs, human traffickers charge an average of 3,500 to 4,000 U.S. dollars to smuggle a single individual from Ethiopia to South Africa.

Despite a growing economy and public awareness campaigns on the dangers of human trafficking by the Ethiopian government, it is estimated that thousands of Ethiopians are trafficked to South Africa where they are mainly engaged in the informal economy.

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By Maggie Fick

DEBARK, Ethiopia – Rahmat Hussein once inspired fear and respect for the watchful eye she cast over her Ethiopian neighborhood, keeping files on residents and recommending who should get a loan or be arrested.

Now she is mocked and ignored.

Her fall – from being the eyes and ears of one of Africa’s most repressive governments to a neighborhood punchline – illustrates how Ethiopia’s once ubiquitous surveillance network has crumbled.

“My work is harder now,” she said, wistfully. “People don’t listen anymore.”

Rahmat worked for a system set up by the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) coalition in the early 2000s, officially to help implement central policies across the country of 105 million people.

But the system, which detractors say was twisted into a tool to silence government critics, began to unravel with the outbreak of deadly protests in 2015 which undermined the EPRDF’s authority.

The election of reformist Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who has vowed to make society more open and took office in April 2018, has accelerated its decline.

That has been welcomed by many.

“People were afraid and could not speak up,” said Agenagnew Abuhay, Rahmat’s colleague at a local women’s affairs office.

Others, like Rahmat, mourn its loss, saying the network drove advances in health, education and agriculture.

It is widely acknowledged among Ethiopians as having played a significant role in society, although many are still too nervous to speak openly about it.

Some officials and academics question whether Abiy can control a restive population, amid outbreaks of deadly ethnic violence, and deliver promised economic and political reforms without the system he has allowed to fray.

“The local administration is collapsing in some places,” said one civil servant in the capital Addis Ababa, who asked not to be identified because he was not authorized to speak with journalists.

“The government doesn’t seem to have much control.”

Abiy holds regular public meetings and is active on Twitter, said an official in the prime minister’s office, when asked how he would communicate with people now the old network has weakened. Most Ethiopian households do not have the internet.

The prime minister’s spokeswoman referred Reuters to the civil service commission for comment.

Its head, Bezabih Gebreyes, said the system was formed for the “noble rationale” of development but acknowledged that ultimately it had been a failure.

“The structure was very active for at least five years,” he told Reuters. It failed, he said, because workers did not like taking orders from political appointees.

“ONE TO FIVE”
Stacked on top of Rahmat’s kitchen cabinet in the town of Debark, 470 km (290 miles) north of Addis Ababa, are a dozen bulging folders detailing the lives of 150 neighbors: who has money troubles, who has HIV, who is caring for an orphan and who is hosting a stranger.

The 27-year-old kept a copy of her handwritten notes and delivered duplicates to a local government office, which crunched the numbers and reported them upwards.

“It made me very happy to do this work,” she told Reuters one cold morning, as she cooked bean stew in her one-room home. “I did it to serve the people.”

Rahmat, wearing a lemon-yellow headscarf, said she helped women seeking a divorce understand their rights, arranged for a fellow single mother to get a loan to start a café and ensured families had cards for subsidized staples like oil and sugar.

If there were strangers in the neighborhood, she reported them to police.

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Rahmat was more than a neighborhood fixer. She was a loyal party member, encouraging residents to join the EPRDF and promoting its policies at monthly meetings.

She was also part of a network of millions of people in cities and villages, universities and workplaces.

The system was popularly called “one-to-five”, because volunteers would typically be assigned five other people to monitor. Some, like Rahmat, supervised more.

The work was unpaid, but there were rewards. Rahmat got a government job. Others received preferential access to farming supplies or loans, she and other participants in the system say.

The government used the system to drive rapid agricultural and industrial reforms, aimed at transforming a mostly rural society dogged by famine into a middle-income country by 2025.

Volunteers taught farmers how to space their seedlings and use fertilizer, promoted safe birthing practices and kept track of rabble-rousers.

The system was also used “for surveying the population and to intimidate any kind of opposition,” Lovise Aalen, an Ethiopia expert at Norway-based research institute CMI, wrote in a 2018 paper.

Some former and current officials and aid groups credit “one-to-five” for helping Ethiopia achieve development goals.

The system helped reduce maternal mortality, said former health minister Kesete Admasu, in a report on the Gates Foundation website.

Volunteers acted as “model families”, gathering women over coffee, or at church or in mosques, to promote family planning and hygiene.

Maternal deaths fell by 11% from 1990 to 2003, the year the system was put in place. The rate plunged by more than half over the next eight years, Kesete said.

Over a third of the network’s maternal health groups, called The Women’s Development Army, have stopped functioning, said a ministry official working on women’s affairs, laying out a spreadsheet. Reuters could not independently verify the figure.

“It is very difficult to maintain such structures in a democratic system,” said Elshaday Kifle, a lecturer at Addis Ababa University who is studying the impact of such networks on women. “That’s a challenge for Abiy’s government.”

TESTING LOYALTY

The system permeated Ethiopians’ lives, dictating behavior in homes, offices, clinics and schools, Aalen said.

Volunteers tested people’s loyalty at meetings, reporting those with anti-government views. Consequences could be serious.

In 2014, Gizachew Mitiku Belete, then a 29-year-old judge in the northern city of Gonder, attended a course in the central city of Adama.

He sat in a hotel conference room as several dozen judges took turns to praise the constitution or government policies, in what he described as a test of loyalty under the “one-to-five” structure.

Gizachew went rogue, suggesting judges could disagree with parts of the constitution. The group leader shouted at him.

For the next year, he publicly criticized the government for suppressing free expression, but he was fired in 2015 and sought asylum in the United States. He eventually found work as a security guard in Seattle, where he still lives.

Judges, journalists, even farmers could be detained if they crossed the system.

Former policeman Fenta Marelgn said he was ordered to arrest farmers who did not attend a meeting on planting seeds in 2015 because they were busy harvesting crops.

Fenta, now 31, said he was docked a month’s pay for refusing the order. He quit shortly afterwards.

“You start to hate what you do,” he said, crushing a metal bottle top between his hands.

For years, government officials had trumpeted relentless progress. Barley and wheat production always beat forecasts. Vaccination campaigns reached every village.

“We lied left and right,” former information minister Getachew Reda told Reuters. “That’s why people got angry.”

The system began to disintegrate in the tumultuous years of protests that propelled Abiy to power in April 2018.

Since that time, Rahmat’s dossiers have been gathering dust.

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Eritrean Press

18 Dec 2019 – (EP) Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (pictured) said it may cut flights to Mekele down to one or suspend federal subsidies and other public services to Tigray, claims the respected local media Addis Fortune.

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Mahlet Fasil

Addis Abeba, December 19/2019– The number of Ethiopian women in the national legislative and executive branches has grown significantly since Ethiopia conducted its first parliamentary election in 1995. However a lot more needs to be done to make sure women are proportionally represented in political decision making.

This was highlighted at a daylong national conference under the theme: “Women’s Political Participation and Election in Ethiopia: Envisioning 2020 and Beyond for generation Equality.” The conference was organized by UN Women Ethiopia, in collaboration with Addis Abeba University’s Center for Human Rights.

“Women politicians face unique forms of online and offline attacks and deliberate actions to discourage their participation in politics. This reflects how patriarchal [our] society is in its functions,” said Daniel Bekele (PhD), Commissioner of Ethiopia Human Rights Commissioner, during his keynote speech. He also said that women face particular challenges in times of elections that seriously impact and discourage their participation.

According to UN women Ethiopia. after Ethiopia’s transition to a federal democratic republic in 1991, the share of seats held by women in parliament has climbed from under three percent in 1991 to 38 percent today. The gender gap in the cabinet has also been upped to 50 percent since Prime Minister came to office.

However the figures are not a match when it comes to women in leadership and strong presence in politics. “Ethiopian women constitute 51% of the country’s population and they represent more numbers than the proportion of all nations and religions. Questions should be asked as to why they [women] are not the mainstream considerations of elections and leadership positions,” said Dr. Sehin Teferra, Founder of Setaweet Movement, a movement working to create “a space for dialogue, research and activism by Ethiopian women and men.” Dr. Sehin presented a panel on women political participation.

“According to a 2019 report by world economic forum Ethiopia holds 16^th place in world on women political participation” said Yelfigne Abegaz National program Coordinator, UN Women.

But for Dr. Sehin, bringing women to politics by itself is not the only thing that matter, but “the policies these women bring” and the actual implementations of these polices is.

Yelfigne said realizing such gaps, under its women in leadership and governance program UN women is collaborating with various entities to amplify a meaningful participation of women in decision making venues. Similar collaboration with the Ethiopian Broadcasting Authority (EBA) aimed to provide capacity building training for 151 women print and broadcasting media professionals including volunteer journalist from community radios participants came from public and private media houses across the country.

In 2017 UN women’s current program on women in leadership and governance supported women’s effective participation and equal representation in leadership and decision making. “It focuses on the national and regional legislative and executive branches while also seeking change in communities,” according to a document.

UN Women also collaborates nationally with the ministry of women, children and youth and regionally with Amhara regional state bureau of women, children and youth affairs. It also engages with the house of peoples representatives, particularly  the parliamentary women’s caucus and  parliamentary  standing committees and their counterparts at the regional level. Other partners include education institutions such as Addis Abeba University and Bahir Dar University the center for human rights and community organization.

Addis Standard.

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ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – Ethiopia launched its first satellite into space on Friday, as more sub-Saharan African nations strive to develop space programs to advance their development goals and encourage scientific innovation.

Before dawn on Friday, senior officials and citizens gathered at the Entoto Observatory and Research Centre just north of the capital Addis Ababa to watch a live broadcast of the satellite’s launch from a space station in China.

“This will be a foundation for our historic journey to prosperity,” deputy prime minister Demeke Mekonnen said in a speech at the launch event broadcast on state television.

The satellite was designed by Chinese and Ethiopian engineers and the Chinese government paid about $6 million of the more than $7 million manufacturing costs, Solomon Belay, director general of the Ethiopian Space Science and Technology Institute, told Reuters.

“Space is food, space is job creation, a tool for technology…sovereignty, to reduce poverty, everything for Ethiopian to achieve universal and sustainable development,” he said.

The satellite will be used for weather forecast and crop monitoring, officials said.

The African Union adopted a policy on African space development in 2017 and declared that space science and technology could advance economic progress and natural resource management on the continent.

 

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By Salem Solomon

WASHINGTON – A new law being considered in Ethiopia is being called a threat to free speech and online expression.

Ethiopia’s “Hate Speech and Disinformation Prevention and Suppression Proclamation” is in a draft stage, but if approved, it would criminalize online, broadcast or print speech that promotes hatred, said the London-based rights group Human Rights Watch in a press statement Friday. It defines this as anything inciting “hatred, discrimination or attack against a person or an identifiable group, based on ethnicity, religion, race, gender or disability.” It also outlaws “dissemination of disinformation” or falsehoods, the statement added.

The law has been approved by the prime minister’s Cabinet but must still be approved by parliament.

But critics believe this law could be used to silence critical voices or political opponents. This, they say, was the case with an anti-terrorism law passed in 2009 which was used to imprison protestors and journalists.

UN Expert Urges Ethiopia to Stop Shutting Down Internet

‘Internet shutdowns are almost always in violation of the right to freedom of opinion and expression,’ says special rapporteur David Kaye

“These kinds of laws including, in the past, the anti-terrorism law, has been used to illegally stifle opposition,” said Befeqadu Hailu, the executive director of the Center for Advancement of Rights and Democracy (CARD), speaking to VOA Amharic. “So there is a concern that there hasn’t been enough discussion over these laws.”

Supporters of the law believe it is necessary, particularly to stop people from inflaming ethnic hatred.

Ethiopia has endured a tumultuous year of ethnic tension. In June, an Army general from the Amhara ethnic group led a coup attempt. In October, 86 people were killed in the Oromia region, Harari region and the city of Dire Dawa in clashes with security forces. The violence began when Oromo activist Jawar Mohammed announced that security forces were plotting to assassinate him.

In announcing the law, Ethiopia’s council of ministers said it was needed to prevent further violence. “It is deemed necessary to enact the law because the nation cannot address problems arising from hate speeches and fake news with existing laws,” the council said.

Human Rights Watch agrees that the threat of ethnic violence is real, but says a law like this is not the answer.

“The Ethiopian government is under increasing pressure to respond to rising communal violence that has at times been exacerbated by speeches and statements shared online,” said Laetitia Bader, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. “But an ill-construed law that opens the door for law enforcement officials to violate rights to free expression is no solution.”

The use of hate speech laws around the world shows that authorities have often abused them for political purposes, Human Rights Watch said.

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by Max Darrow
NBC Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — Within Clark County, there may soon be a district that is officially recognized as, “Little Ethiopia.”

The idea was officially presented to the Board of County Commissioners earlier this week, and many of the folks in the Ethiopian community are eager it may become a reality.

“It’s amazing, I was so happy, everybody is happy,” Melaku Mengistu said.

Mengistu is the owner of Sable Market and Cafe, an Ethiopian business near Decatur and Flamingo. His business may soon fall in the heart of “Little Ethiopia.”

“The businesses here, there are a lot of Ethiopian stores around here,” he said. “It’s good for us.”

News 3 caught up with State Assemblyman Alexander Asseffa at another spot in the area, Nu Ethiopian Kitchen.

Asseffa is the person spearheading the effort, which began several months ago when he brought the idea to the County Commissioners.

“The county had never done something like this before, so it didn’t have a policy in place to allow cultural districts to be named in our county,” he said. “It does open the door for many other districts, many other cultures, to come up with the same concept so they can highlight their traditions as well.”

So back in September, the county created and approved a cultural district designation policy, which effectively paved the way for Asseffa’s “Little Ethiopia” proposal.

“This is just one piece of the mosaic of cultures that make us a strong Nevada, a strong community here in Clark County,” he said.

The boundaries of the district would be as follows:

• Twain (northern boundary)
• Tropicana (southern boundary)
• Lindell (western boundary)
• Arville (eastern boundary)

There is a high concentration of Ethiopian businesses in this area, according to Asseffa.

But as is the case with preparing a batch of Ethiopian coffee, this process takes time. Asseffa brought it before the county earlier this week, it’ll go through two town boards, and then will finally be brought back to the county for a final vote. That process could take a few more weeks, according to Asseffa.

However, Mengistu says he’s happy to wait because the recognition means the world to him.

“We don’t have to rush, you know. I don’t have any problems,” he said. “Whatever it takes, time, we’re living here, we’re running business, everybody is running business.”

“A lot of people are not as very patient as he is, they’re excited, they want to get it done tomorrow,” Asseffa said. “I want to get it done tomorrow, too, but there are rules that we have to follow, there are procedures that we have to follow. So, that’s what we’re doing.”

He’s hopeful this will become official by February.

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By Alemayehu G. Mariam

“We are creating an Ethiopia that is second to none in its guarantee of freedom of expression. We should avoid the path of extremism and division, powered by the politics of exclusion. Our accord hangs in the balance of inclusive politics.

The evangelists of hate and division are wreaking havoc in our society using social media. They are preaching the gospel of revenge and retribution on the airwaves.

Together, we must neutralize the toxin of hatred by creating a civic culture of consensus-based democracy, inclusivity, civility, and tolerance based on Medemer principles.

The art of building peace is a synergistic process to change hearts, minds, beliefs and attitudes, that never ceases.

— H.E. Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed, Nobel Peace Prize Lecture, December 10, 2015

Author’s Note: Last week, David Kaye, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression issued an “End of Mission Statement” [hereinafter “preliminary report”] on the “situation of freedom of opinion and expression in Ethiopia today.” This was the first time since 2006 the U.N. rapporteur had been invited to enter Ethiopia to do an assessment.

In passing, I wish to note that Kaye is a clinical professor of law at the University of California, Irvine, a stone’s throw away from my own California State University, San Bernardino.

In passing, I also wish to note that Human Rights Watch on December 19, 2019 issued a statement echoing the “findings” in Kaye’s “preliminary report”. My analysis and response herein is intended to specifically address the concerns and criticisms expressed by Kaye regarding the draft “hate speech and disinformation” proclamation currently before the Ethiopian parliament.  I have studied that proclamation carefully and believe it not only conforms to international standards of freedom of expression but can also withstand rigorous analytical scrutiny.

I do not think the draft proclamation is perfect but I certainly do not share the “serious concerns” expressed by Kaye nor agree with his main conclusions about the draft proclamation’s alleged flaws. Neither do I believe Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights as propounded by the chosen few oracles is the standard of perfection for freedom of expression. 

It is the solemn duty of the defense lawyer to take a position on an issue of law and prevail by providing substantial evidence and persuasive and convincing arguments. I see no need presently to litigate the issue of freedom of expression in Ethiopia or the alleged flaws of the draft hate crimes and disinformation proclamation in the court of Ethiopian or world public opinion.

We all want freedom of expression to blossom and cherish in Ethiopia. All stakeholders – the government, opposition parties and groups, civic society and domestic and international human rights organizations and others – are on the same side of the issue. We all fully support the broadest enjoyment of freedom of expression in Ethiopia.

This is not to deny the fact that Ethiopia for the last 27 years has agonized  under the boots of a criminal regime deathly afraid of freedom of expression. Until this year, Ethiopia was #4 on the list of the “10 Most Censored Countries in the World”.

I have a very special interest in freedom of expression in America and in Ethiopia.

Freedom of expression to me is not a philosophical abstraction to talk about in the halls of academia and in the conference halls. It is not a fashionable idea to banter over at cocktail parties. It is not even a technical subject matter to litigate in the courts.

Freedom of expression is my  life, my passion and my raison d’etre (reason for being).

I have expressed myself for nearly 14 years (http://almariam.com/) in my weekly commentaries, (which some have said has been relentlessly hypercritical and censorious of the TPLF regime in Ethiopia), without missing a single week, sometimes expressing myself 5-7 times a week. I can confidently say few individuals anywhere have used freedom of expression as a weapon of mass galvanization against the TPLF regime than myself. My slogan emblazoned on my website is “Speaking Truth to (Abusers) Power”.

I believe the bedrock foundation of all liberties is freedom of expression. A society that does not protect and defend freedom of expression is a dead society. I pride myself as an unrepentant hard-core defender of freedom of expression.

I fully agree with John Milton in Areopagitica, arguably the most eloquent defense of freedom of expression written in the English language: “Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience, above all liberties.”

I consider myself well-tutored in the jurisprudence of freedom of expression and have taught it as an academic subject for decades. I have debated the subject on university campuses and written academic papers, op-eds, blogs and commentaries in defense of freedom of expression.

I believe the time now is right for all freedom lovers to come together in the spirit of Medemer and promote freedom of expression in Ethiopia.

Most lawyers in the world live in an adversarial world of competition where the rule is winner-takes-all. They prefer to play and win zero-sum legal games. That is, they win all the time and the other side loses all the time. Only when that is not possible or tenable will they opt for non-zero-sum games in which they will still try to take maximum advantage and win.

I believe today “We” have an opportunity to practice Medemer philosophy in the law particularly in enhancing laws that protects freedom of expression and promote human rights in Ethiopia.

I call that “Medemer jurisprudence”. We can advance the cause of freedom of expression in Ethiopia by creating legal synergy and working cooperatively to promote just, fair and reasonable laws. There are only winners and no losers if freedom of expression blossoms and flourishes in Ethiopia.

So, freedom of expression in Ethiopia today is a simple Medemer question:

Can Ethiopian scholars, academics, lawyers, judges, journalists, public officials, civic society leaders, local and international human rights advocates, opinion, youth and other leaders work together synergistically over the long-term to ensure the growth and expansion of freedom expression in Ethiopia?

They certainly can and produce amazing results!

In this two-part (or more) commentary on freedom of expression, I hope to be able to work with Kaye and any other human rights organizations, civic society or political groups as an independent academic and lawyer interested in promoting, expanding and defending expressive freedoms in Ethiopiain the spirit of Medemer.

If we can work in the spirit of Medemer, we can certainly begin to undertake massive homegrown legal reforms to promote human rights and effect improvements in other areas of the law in Ethiopia.

 If we can do that, I have no doubts in just a few years we can achieve PM Abiy’s promise of creating an Ethiopia that is second to none in freedom of expression.

We can transform Ethiopia from an arid landscape of enforced silence and fear of self-expression to an oasis, indeed a horn of plenty, of liberty.  

Truth be told, I proudly confess, my ultimate dream is to make Ethiopia the Mecca for freedom of expression in Africa.

In Part I, I shall discuss my personal philosophy and experience in defense of freedom of expression and my reservations about David Kaye’s “preliminary report”.

In Part II, I shall discuss the technical aspects of the draft “hate crimes and disinformation” proclamation before the Ethiopian parilament.

In service to the defense of freedom of expression

In his Nobel Peace Prize Lecture on December 10, 2019, H.E. Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed boldly announced to the world, “We are creating an Ethiopia that is second to none in its guarantee of freedoms of expression.”

Never in my wildest imagination did I ever think an Ethiopian leader would make such a statement before a worldwide audience of 1.2 billion people who listened to his speech, or even privately.

No Ethiopian leader in recorded history has ever made such a sweeping and unwavering commitment to expressive freedoms or, even more stunningly, followed action to affirm freedom of expression with verbal commitment to promote, cherish and defend it.

PM Abiy’s statement is stunning because in 2015, Ethiopia was known as the “fourth most censored country in the world”.

Until about a year and a half ago, Ethiopia was known as “the second worst jailer of journalists in Africa.”

Today, “for the first time in decades, there are no Ethiopian journalists in prison”, journalists are free to report, bloggers to blog, trolls to troll with their inanities and internet access is busted wide open.

From the absolute worst violator of freedom of expression to second to none in a matter of months simply boggles the mind. I am simply speechless (pun intended).

Freedom of expression is something that is near and dear to my heart and  a cause for which I have been criticized, denounced and chastised over the years.

I have written dozens of commentaries on freedom of expression in Ethiopia over the past 14 years.

In 2007, I offered to arrange a meeting between DLA Piper, the TPLF lobbyist, and exiled Ethiopian journalists including  the former president of the Ethiopian Free Press Journalists Association after the DLA Piper lobbyists incredibly claimed they had “no knowledge whatsoever” about the situation of journalists in Ethiopia.

In 2009, I defended press freedom in Ethiopia in my commentary, “The Art of War on Ethiopia’s Independent Press”.

In September 2010, in my “Open Letter to President Lee C. Bollinger, Columbia University”, I defended the late despot Meles Zenawi’s right to speak freely at Columbia even while he was jailing dissidents and journalists and shuttering the press in Ethiopia left and right.

The sad irony was the fact that I had to publicly disagree with journalists Eskinder Nega and Serkalem Fasil who had suffered greatly at the hand of Zenawi and did not want him to speak at Columbia. I had to choose between my loyalty to Eskinder and Serkalem and my commitment to freedom of expression and publicly side with the murderer Meles Zenawi. While I do not regret the choice, it was a painful and soul-searching decision for me at the time.

I was denounced for “selling out” all of those persons unjustly imprisoned by Zenawi in defending his right to speak.

In response to scathing criticism from diverse sectors of the Ethiopian diaspora for defending Zenawi, I subsequently issued my uncompromising explanation:

I have adopted one yardstick for all issues concerning free speech, Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: ‘Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.’ I underscore the words “everyone” and “regardless of frontiers.

I told my critics, “If we don’t believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don’t believe in it at all.”

In 2010, I presented profiles in journalistic courage. in Ethiopia.

I have defended foreign media reporting on Ethiopia when they came under attack by the Zenawi regime and criticized them when they failed in their journalistic standards.

In July 2011, I wrote about “Unfreedom of Information” in Ethiopia.

In 2012, I robustly responded to foreign media who called struggling Ethiopian web editors a “disgrace to press freedom”.

In 2012, I exposed the treatment of “The Free Press in Ethiopia’s Kangaroo Kourts”.

In 2015, I tried to answer the question, “When will Africa ever have a free press that is free from harassment, intimidation, incarceration, violence and persecution?”

In May 2017, I defended the right of Ann Coulter, the reviled femme fatale of the American conservative movement, to speak on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley campus.

I then turned my critical pen on UC Berkeley Chancellor Nicholas Dirk for denigrating freedom of expression on his campus by claiming, “This is a university, not a battlefield.” I sternly lectured Chancellor Dirks:

Universities should be battlefields of ideas where open-minded students, armed with reason and facts can joust and prepare themselves for the real world of offensive, outrageous and distasteful ideas. Suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous ideas is but a small price to pay for living in a free society.

In May 2019, I wrote ecstatically, “Behold Press Freedom Shining Bright in Ethiopia!”

Over a quarter of a century ago, I defended the right of Tom Metzger, the American white supremacist, Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan and founder of White Aryan Resistance (WAR) to come to my campus and speak. Though he was ultimately disinvited, I took a big risk in defending his right to speak his racist gibberish as an untenured professor.

The sad irony was the fact that members of WAR a few years earlier had murdered a young Ethiopian college student named Mulugeta Seraw in Portland, OR. It should be easy to imagine how painful it was for me to defend the right of expression of the man who was responsible for causing the murder of one of my people.

When I started practicing law some 27 years ago, one of my first pro bono clients was a young man of uneven temperament who believed relentless disruption and heckling of local government deliberations was part of his First Amendment right to free speech. He would stand up in meetings and lambaste local officials for their “sins” of corruption and lives of debauchery. Thankfully, the matter was resolved in pretrial without any adverse consequence to the client.

I have toiled ceaselessly to help enact legislation in the U.S. Congress to sanction the Zenawi regime for denial and suppression of press and expressive freedoms in Ethiopia, among other things.

Over the past 14 years, I have defended Ethiopian journalists who have suffered persecution and prosecution under the Zenawi-TPLF regime.

I have defended young bloggers and dissidents who have been jailed for simply expressing what’s on their minds.

Freedom of expression is not free. It comes with the price of responsibility. Each person is responsible for the legal consequences of his/her expression.

When I started my Ethiopian human rights advocacy in 2005, after the Meles Massacres in which 196 innocent citizens were slaughtered and nearly 800 wounded for taking to the streets to express themselves, I did not use my pen to call for “eye for an eye”.

It would have been so much easier to spew hateful rhetoric from an ocean away. But in the end that would have produced a nation of blind people.

I decided to fight the Zenawi’s criminals against humanity with the truth and proclaimed my personal struggle and mission as one dedicated to “Speaking truth to (abusers) power.”

It was so much easier to preach the gospel of hate to end ethnic apartheid in Ethiopia. But I chose to preach the path of forgiveness, reconciliation and truth.

I have two deeply held beliefs.

First, the only lasting victory that can be achieved against evil oppression is in a nonviolent struggle for the hearts and minds of people. In 2006, I  wrote:

 I believe we prove the righteousness of our cause not in battlefields soaked in blood and filled with corpses, but in the living hearts and thinking minds of men and women of good will.” We use the weapon of freedom of expression – speech, press, religion, peaceable assembly and petition for grievances — to convince and persuade others to accept our ideas.

Second, there are two ways we can fight those who want to force their ideas on us by instilling fear, anger, hatred, alarm and terror in our hearts and minds. We confront their falsehoods with facts, disinformation with accurate information and expose their lies to the light of truth. Those who seek to incite violence by abusing their freedom of expression must be held to account under the rule of law.

I believe the truth won against the TPLF (LF stands for lie factory), an organization listed today in the Global Terrorism Database.

I cite the foregoing examples not to tell “war stories” but to underscore my long and unwavering commitment to freedom of expression in Ethiopia, America and elsewhere.

Freedom of expression is non-negotiable for me.

But I draw the line.

I draw a bright red line on speech that is intended to incite violence.

There is no place for the children’s rhyme, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” in the adult world of inflammatory hate-mongering political rhetoric.

Words are more powerful than any weapon made by man.

Hateful words kill. Hateful words cause mass deaths and destruction.

Barely seven decades ago, the world was set on fire because one hateful man and his hate-filled collaborators were able to build a movement based on words of racial hate, superiority and vilification.

Six million innocent people were murdered by hateful words.

Words also heal.

Well over 2.2 billion (nearly one-third of the world’s population) people have found healing in the Word: “In the beginning, there was the Word.”

Using words to terrorize populations, to spread fear and alarm and to propagate messages of hate, disorder and violence using social and traditional media with the intent to cause violence and advance a political or social agenda cannot be interpreted, by any reasonable standard, as  freedom of expression.

Freedom of expression is not a suicide pact

There are those who ignorantly and mistakenly believe freedom of expression includes the freedom to use words to incite violence.

Freedom of expression is not a political or social suicide pact.

I share fully in the view of one of the greatest U.S. Supreme Court Justices, Robert H. Jackson, who argued reasonable restraints on civil liberties are not impairments of the liberty of the citizen:

The choice is not between order and liberty. It is between liberty with order and anarchy without either. There is danger that, if the Court does not temper its doctrinaire logic with a little practical wisdom, it will convert the constitutional Bill of Rights into a suicide pact.

As I explained in my May 2019 commentary, “If we do not temper press freedom with a little practical wisdom, I do not doubt that we will soon convert press freedom into a suicide pact in Ethiopia.”

I believe people have an absolute right to believe or not to believe in whatever they want. No person can be punished for their beliefs, disbeliefs or lack of beliefs. That is a sacred right of personal autonomy.

Conversely, no one has an absolute right to promote his/her beliefs by using words in a manner that can reasonably be anticipated to cause conduct which inflicts physical or psychological harm on others.

The conflict between one’s absolute right to belief and non-absolute right to express those beliefs in conduct, particularly violent conduct, creates the necessity for reasonable, just and fair laws that maximize the individual’s right to expression while minimizing harm to society (other individuals).

I may be biased but I believe the global gold standard for freedom of expression is the United States of America.

America has an enviable yet checkered tradition of expressive freedoms.

There are four reasons that explain the rock-solid status of freedom of expression in America.

First, we have solid constitutional protections for our bundle of expressive freedoms. The First Amendment to the U.S. constitution sweepingly proclaims, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

The uncompromising language of the First Amendment is stunning in its breadth and scope. What did the Founders of the American Republic have in mind when they wrote, “Congress shall make no law…”?

“Make no law” means make no law. There is no ambiguity in the plainly stated constitutional clause.

The First Amendment plainly bans the ultimate lawmaking authority in the United States, the U.S. Congress, once and for all, from legislating in the area of expressive freedoms.

Over the past century, the U.S. Supreme Court has tempered the uncompromising constitutional language with standards of reasonableness.

Second, the highly independent and intrepid American judiciary, and particularly the United States Supreme Court, has given special and highly favored status to the expressive freedoms listed in the First Amendment even though it has imposed certain limitations.

For the past 100 years, the U.S. Supreme Court has approved federal and state laws that have significantly curtailed freedom of expression despite the broad and sweeping language of the First Amendment.

To give effect to the sweeping language of the First Amendment, the Court has imposed extremely high standards for government regulation of expressive freedoms. The Court has developed legal doctrines, tests and standards by which to distinguish permissible from impermissible speech.

In the landmark case of Brandenburg v. Ohio, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled, “The constitutional guarantees of free speech and free press do not permit a state to forbid or proscribe advocacy of the use of force, or of law violation except where such advocacy is directed to inciting imminent lawless action and is likely to incite or produce such action.”

The key element in criminal culpability is the speaker’s intent to incite a violation of the law that is both imminent and likely.

Ultimately, the governing standard of freedom of expression or “hate speech and disinformation” in Ethiopia is not going to be the American First Amendment jurisprudence or even the international conventions. The governing standards will be rooted in Ethiopian jurisprudence, politics, society and culture.

Certainly, the legal traditions and civic culture of expressive freedoms in America and elsewhere could be a source of inspiration and useful and practical ideas, just as international legal principles and conventions could offer useful guides.

Third, there are individuals, organizations and private institutions committed to defending freedom of expression at the first sign of threat. For instance, the American Civil Liberties Union has always been in the forefront defending freedom of expression in the United States Supreme Court and has won numerous landmark cases.

Fourth, Americans have a civic culture of tolerating expression of diverse viewpoints and freely engage in the circulation of opinions, ideas, and artistic expression. Freedom of expression is part of the fabric of American society and a fact taken for granted by the average citizen.

The fact of the matter is that there is no one size fits all standard of freedom of expression for all societies. That does not mean there are no universal benchmarks and guidelines by which we can determine the viability of legislation regulating freedom of expression or model a particular legislation.

Indeed, there are.

One such benchmark is Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” It is also included in Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Ethiopia became a party by accession in June 1993.

Indeed, when I defended Zenawi’s right to speak at Columbia (see above), I invoked Article 19.

But benchmarks are just the beginning, not the end of the analysis.

The answer to issues related to freedom of expression must come from homegrown legal reform in Ethiopia. The answer must come from Medemer jurisprudence.

David Kaye’s preliminary Assessment of situation of freedom of expression in Ethiopia

Recently, a draft “hate speech and disinformation” proclamation was referred to Ethiopian parliament by the Council of Ministers after extensive public discussion and comment.

Last week, David Kaye, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression issued a preliminary report following his visit to Ethiopia during December 2-9, 2019.

Kaye met with various stakeholders in Ethiopia during his visit including government officials, members of Parliament and the Judiciary, human rights defenders,  academics, civil society leaders, journalists, students and others.

In his “end of mission statement”, Kaye makes a disclaimer that his “preliminary observations highlight — but do not extensively document and analyze — the opportunities and threats for freedom of expression in the current moment in Ethiopia.”

Kaye says the “basket of problems I am describing is deeply political and beyond the scope of my mandate to review fully.”

Kaye says his “evaluation is founded principally on the human right to freedom of expression guaranteed by Articles 19 and 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights [Covenant].” He will present his “detailed report on this mission at the 44th session of the Human Rights Council in June 2020.”

Nonetheless, despite such sweeping disclaimers Kaye offers brash and categorical  observation on the situation of freedom of expression in Ethiopia and specifically on the draft proclamation.

In the section below, I aim to highlight some of my general concerns regarding Kaye’s preliminary observation and provide a preliminary response to Kaye’s preliminary report. I shall respond to Kaye’s main observations on the draft proclamation listed below in Part II of my commentary:

The draft ‘Hate Speech and Disinformation Proclamation’ would threaten freedom of expression. As constructed presently, it could reinforce rather than ease ethnic and political tensions.

The Government’s draft Hate Speech and Disinformation Proclamation, which it recently presented to Parliament, goes far beyond the command of Article 20(2) and the limitations on restrictions required by Article 19(3) of the ICCPR. (See my comments in the attached document.)

Unlike other draft legislation proceeding through the Advisory Council, this proclamation was developed outside that process. I am concerned that the draft Proclamation will exacerbate ethnic tension, which in turn may fuel further violence.

Inter-ethnic conflict spurred on by hate speech and disinformation demand not just legal solutions but political ones in which the Government and its opposition pursue reform at each state and district level. Law can support that process, but ultimately political will must exist to allow it to survive and thrive.

The reform process may be at risk from the near-term threat of inter-ethnic politics and the emergence — or at the very least the perceived emergence — of hatred and disinformation as tools of politics.”

There is seeming consensus social and broadcast media are fueling disinformation and hatred.

The Government is obligated under Article 20(2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to prohibit by law “advocacy of national, racial and religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility and violence.

The problem of hatred in the media should involve legal steps. But that is only part of the approach, for hate is very much a function of politics and, as such, it requires first and foremost a political, national solution.

Because of the failure to limit the offense by principles of intent, context, and other factors found in the Rabat Plan of Action, by its terms the draft could lead to the criminalization of people who merely re-post or otherwise share content deemed “hate speech” or “disinformation”. The scope of such an approach could be enormous, in particular because the problem of hate speech is often not merely the content but its virality, the ease by which it may be shared by hundreds or thousands of people.

The draft’s excessive vagueness means that officials at the federal and regional level would have practically unbounded discretion to determine whom to investigate and prosecute, leading to an almost certain inconsistency in approach and a potential wave of arbitrary arrests and prosecutions.

Several interlocutors expressed the fear that the law could be used to silence critics. This is not fantasy. Because of the ethnic definition of politics and governance at the national and regional level, it is possible that robust political debate could be penalized under the Proclamation.

While I appreciate Kaye’s “evaluation” of the “situation of freedom of expression” in Ethiopia, I am disappointed by his conclusory, conjectural and overgeneralized observations.

I am disappointed he offers little evidence or analysis to support his conclusions or assertions regarding the draft proclamation except to issue ipse dixit and ex cathedra declarations about the alleged “flaws” in the draft proclamation buffered by sweeping disclaimers.

As a U.N. special rapporteur, Kaye should know that his “preliminary assessment” could potentially have significant impact in public perception of the draft proclamation. Both legal experts and lay persons could be misled by his overgeneralized conclusions.

To the extent, his “end of mission statement” is a preliminary report, Kaye should have carefully and narrowly constructed it to fit the limited purpose of a general overview.

With all due respect, Kaye’s preliminary report shrouded in a disclaimer that he will provide a “detailed report on this mission at the 44th session of the Human Rights Council in June 2020” is a cop out, a hatchet job and an excuse for an unfair hit-and-run operation on the draft proclamation.

My preliminary response to David Kaye’s “preliminary report”

I make several observations on Kaye’s preliminary report.

First, to be perfectly frank, Kaye’s “preliminary report” impresses me as a preview of the “Executive Summary” to his final report to be delivered at the 44th session of the Human Rights Council be delivered in June 2020. It has all the tale-tale signs of an executive summary consisting of a brief statement of the issues and problems, background information, concise analysis and main conclusions. Given the resolutely judgmental position Kaye has taken on the draft proclamation, I cannot imagine how the findings in his final report will be any different than his preliminary report. I can only expect a larger parade-of-horribles about the draft proclamation in the final report.

Second, I am disappointed by the fact that Kaye’s preliminary report is largely generic boilerplate critique of so-called “hate crimes” laws. I have read Kaye’s submission A/74/486 to the General Assembly dated October 9, 2019 and much of the criticism leveled at the draft proclamation is regrettably, and with all due respect to Kaye, a cut-and-paste job from that report or other similar reports. For instance, Kaye’s condemnation of the draft proclamation as “excessively vague” resonates the stock language Kaye included in his Annual Report of the UNHCHR report (p.8) “Anti-incitement laws in countries worldwide can be qualified as heterogeneous, at times excessively narrow or vague.”

There are tired old orthodoxies about freedom of expression which some self-righteous critics seek to impose on non-Western societies by insisting that there is only one benchmark by which to measure freedom of expression. While I subscribe fully to Art. 19 and related articles in the Covenant, I also fully reject the idea there are only a select few oracles of Article 19 who alone can interpret and fix its meaning for all others.

Third, I am disappointed Kaye should take the liberty to make grand and overgeneralized criticisms of the draft proclamation yet avoid critical accountability by hiding behind a wall of disclaimers about the limited scope of his mandate in Ethiopia, the complexity of the Ethiopia political situation, the problems of ethnicity, etc. For instance, Kaye claims the draft proclamation “reinforce[s] rather than ease ethnic and political tensions.” Such an extraordinary claim requires extraordinary evidence but Kaye simply avoids the issue by stating further analysis of the issue is beyond his mandate.

Fourth, I am disappointed that Kaye’s analysis of the draft proclamation is overly academic and with little understanding of the mechanics of the criminal law. This is a common problem among academic lawyers who do not have substantial litigation experience especially in the criminal law. There is a world of difference between legal theory and legal practice in the courtroom.

To be perfectly frank, I am not sure if the “preliminary report” is aimed at the Ethiopian legal community or the 44th session of the Human Rights Council. It appears to me to be the latter. It is my personal observation that the average, or even the above-average Ethiopian judge, prosecutor and defense lawyer in Ethiopia is untutored in the jurisprudence of Articles 19 and 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. I would insist on educating them before hectoring them prejudgementally and presumptively that they will misuse, abuse and confuse the draft proclamation after it becomes law.

Perhaps Kaye may not realize it but many in the Ethiopian legal community regard his preliminary report an arrogant, imperious and cavalier criticism of their good faith and good will efforts to address a critical, urgent and emergent problem in their society.

Fifth, I am somewhat confused by Kaye’s discharge of his duties as U.N. special rapporteur. I am fully aware of the mandate of the special rapporteur. But nowhere in the mandate do I discern a quasi-judicial role prescribed for the special rapporteur. I understand rapporteur’s role to be investigative and recommendatory.  What Kaye has done in his preliminary report, in my view, is a thinly disguised condemnation and damnation of the draft proclamation before the final report is even issued.

Sixth, I am disappointed Kaye’s conclusions on the draft proclamation are based on his own (and other “experts” like himself ) ex cathedra “expert” analysis of the “terms” (I suspect plain meaning) of Articles 19 and 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. He declares, ipse dixit, the draft proclamation does not pass muster because he said so. Indeed, he makes references to General Assembly resolutions, the work of experts in the Rabat Plan of Action and other sources but cites no other controlling or persuasive legal authority to support his conclusions.

As a defense lawyer, I have made use of experts in civil and criminal cases.

The fact of the matter is that the testimony of experts may be rebutted by testimony from other experts or by other evidence or facts.

If Kaye’s ultimate authority to support his conclusions on the draft proclamation is the expertise and wisdom of a group of designated experts, I am prepared to call other expert witness to rebut their expert opinions.

We could have a “battle of experts”.

Seventh, I am disappointed that Kaye’s “preliminary report” tends to be generally hortatory. Indeed, he makes suggestions about repealing certain sections of the Ethiopia penal code, consultations with regional law enforcement authorities and international human rights organizations, etc., but he offers very little by way of specific suggestions to improve the draft proclamation.

It is easy to talk in broad generalities but Kaye says very little about how the draft proclamation could be immediately cured of the legal diseases of “vagueness” and “overbreadth”.

Eight, I am troubled by Kaye’s sweeping generalizations about the draft proclamation given his caveat:

Combating hate speech is a delicate endeavour, which requires an in-depth knowledge of the local context, proficiency in local languages, and understanding of social and cultural habits, among so many others.

Several dozen languages are spoken in Ethiopia. Given this fact, how does Kaye suggest the draft proclamation be drafted? There is an old Ethiopian saying, “The sky is near to one who is sitting and pointing an index finger.”

Ninth, I am confused by Kaye’s claim “the draft’s excessive vagueness” could result in mass arrests. That is one of his core criticisms of the draft proclamation. I have difficulty discerning the simply vague from the excessively vague.

If Kaye’s position is that the draft proclamation is “excessively vague” because it does not state explicitly and definitely what conduct is punishable, then I strongly disagree. The draft is not vague as I shall demonstrate in Part II of my commentary.

It is also not clear to me what standards of “excessive vagueness” Kaye is using in his analysis of the draft proclamation. He does not say. Is Kaye is using standards of “vagueness” derived from the jurisprudence of the due process clauses of the U.S. Constitution? If he is, he should make it clear that Ethiopia’s draft proclamation fails under American constitutional standards. If he is using an article 19 standard, he should also make it clear.

Kaye further claims the definitions of the offenses “raise[] serious overbreadth concerns under the legality test of Article 19(3).” If Kaye’s argument is the draft proclamation on its face, without application, is so broad as to not make a distinction between speech intended to incite imminent lawlessness as well as other forms of expression critical of the government, I also strongly disagree. Kaye claims there is a “legality test” under Art. 19(3) for overbreadth but he does not make clear the test or the elements of “overbreadth” under Article 19.

I find it curious that Kaye should complain similar criticisms he has offered to Italy, Malaysia, and Singapore have been ignored. Could it be because Kaye’s standard of vagueness is itself “excessively vague”?

Tenth, I am disappointed we must wait for six months to read Kaye’s final report. Be that as it may, I shall continue to study his preliminary report and explore ways of cooperating with him in improving the overall state of freedom of expression in Ethiopia.

With all due respect to Kaye’s work and contributions, I respectfully disagree with him on his “evaluation” of the draft hate crimes and disinformation proclamation. That should not be a surprise to anyone. It is in the nature of the “lawyering business” to disagree on legal issues. This should be regarded as good not only for reforming human rights laws in Ethiopia but also in public education. It is useful to the public to have such open debate on the draft proclamation since we are both interested in improving the human rights situation in Ethiopia.

I hope I can work cooperatively with Kaye in improving the draft proclamation law.

But if that is not possible, when Kaye issues his final report, I will issue my final response on his final report.

We will create an Ethiopia that is second to none in its guarantee of freedom of expression

I proudly join H.E. Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed in his declaration that we  “we will create an Ethiopia that is second to none in its guarantee of freedoms of expression.”

I will guarantee we will create an Ethiopia that is second to none in its guarantee of freedoms of expression with or without the assistance of outsiders. I make the iron-clad guarantee based on the following FACTS:

Ethiopia today has a leader whose commitment to freedom of expression is total and unwavering.

Ethiopia today is a nation of young people, some 70 percent of the population is under 35 years of age. The one important thing above all else to young people is freedom of expression because that is the fountainhead of their creativity, political dynamism and economic survival.

Ethiopians living today know for the past 27 years they have suffered and held their heads in shame that their country was the poster country for jailing journalists, for making press freedom and journalism a crime. They will never let that history repeat.

Ethiopia shall soon have a government elected in a free and fair election. The people’s representatives will not sacrifice freedom of expression on the altar of despotism.

Ethiopia has committed intellectuals who will fight for freedom of expression come hell or high water.

Ethiopia has many friends in the international human rights community that will help in ensuring freedom of expression. Many of them have been a vital force in the defense of human rights over the past 27 years. I thank them profusely and appreciate them. I am optimistic they will work constructively with Ethiopian authorities, civil society and legal communities to advance the cause on an equal and good faith basis.

However, I caution them not to be didactic, imperious and haughty in their supportive role. Approaches that are antagonistic, adversarial and could be perceived as disrespectful will not only be unproductive but create a hostile environment and a harsh backlash that will ill-serve the cause of freedom of expression not only in Ethiopia but throughout the continent.

“We are creating an Ethiopia that is second to none in its guarantee of freedoms of expression. We should avoid the path of extremism and division, powered by politics of exclusion.”

To be continued… Part II.

The post Hate, Hearts and Minds: “Creating an Ethiopia That is Second to None in Its Guarantee of Freedom of Expression” (Part I) appeared first on Ethiopian Registrar News/Breaking News:.

By Katharine Houreld

NAIROBI/ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – Days after the March 10 crash of a Kenya-bound Ethiopian Airlines’ Boeing jet that killed all 157 people on board, strangers began calling or visiting bereaved families, saying they represented U.S. law firms.

They showed up uninvited at memorials and at homes full of weeping relatives. They cold called. They left brochures. In one case a grieving husband was offered money for an appointment. One woman offered counseling and another said she was creating an emotional support group, without disclosing they were working for lawyers.

Reuters interviewed 37 relatives of the victims, or their representatives, and found that 31 complained of inappropriate approaches by those saying they represented U.S. law firms.

In some instances, the behavior may have been illegal or unethical under U.S. laws and rules barring solicitation and deceptive practices, several legal ethics experts said.

Six firms were particularly aggressive in courting prospective clients after the Boeing plane nosedived into an Ethiopian field: Ribbeck Law Chartered and Global Aviation Law Group (GALG) of Chicago; The Witherspoon Law Group and Ramji Law Group from Texas; and Wheeler & Franks Law Firm PC and Eaves Law Firm of Mississippi.

Witherspoon, Wheeler and Eaves denied any wrongdoing. Ribbeck, GALG and Ramji did not respond to requests for comment.

Ribbeck Law and GALG have jointly filed two lawsuits against Boeing seeking “all damages available under the law” without being specific about the size of the claims. Three suits filed by Ramji have been dismissed. The other firms haven’t filed any suits.

By Thursday, there were 114 cases filed against Boeing in Chicago federal court on behalf of 112 crash victims, according to lead counsel for the plaintiffs, Robert Clifford. More than three dozen law firms are representing them. No trial date has been set.

Boeing has said it is “cooperating fully with the investigating authorities” and said that safety is its highest priority.

It has acknowledged errors in failing to give pilots more information on 737 MAX software involved in a Lion Air crash that killed 189 in Indonesia in October 2018 and the Ethiopian crash five months later, but Boeing has not admitted any fault in how it developed the aircraft. The 737 MAX is currently grounded.

Boeing declined to comment on the lawsuits.

UNINVITED GUEST

An uninvited stranger turned up at Paul Njoroge’s family home in Kenya just hours after a memorial service for his wife, his three small children, and his mother-in-law, who all died in the crash.

Njoroge said the visitor gave him promotional materials for the law firm Wheeler and Franks.

“I said, I don’t know who directed you to this place. Everyone here is praying,” Njoroge told Reuters.

Two other families said they received visits around the time of memorial services from Wheeler’s lawyers or people who said they represented the firm.

James Ndeda, who Wheeler represented after he was injured in the 1998 embassy bombing in Kenya, said he visited Njoroge. The firm’s partners, Bill Wheeler and Jamie Franks, asked Ndeda to help the firm connect with crash victims’ families, Ndeda said. Wheeler sent him literature featuring his firm and another Mississippi firm, Eaves Law Firm.

Ndeda said he went to visit victims’ families either by himself, sent employees or accompanied Bill Wheeler or Jamie Franks, and sometimes Leo Jackson, an investigator with Eaves. Jackson declined to comment.

Wheeler and Franks, and Eaves, said in a joint emailed statement they only met families if invited.”The story you have been told is completely wrong,” they wrote.

“We contacted no families without an invitation.”

They declined to answer further questions.

MANY OVERTURES

Ethiopian Bayihe Demissie, whose flight attendant wife Elsabet was a victim, told Reuters a man who said he was from The Witherspoon Law Group called him three days after the crash. Bayihe said he was too upset to speak.

People saying they represented more than 30 firms contacted him over the next few months, including Witherspoon again, and GALG, said Bayihe. The constant calls about compensation hurt because it felt like people were suggesting he could benefit from his wife’s death, he said.

Witherspoon denied the allegations.

“This firm does not solicit or engage in any illegal practices. We do not represent any of the families involved in the tragic crash,” Witherspoon’s founder Nuru Witherspoon said in an email.

REJECTED APPROACHES

A woman named Mihret Girma sent a Kenyan victim’s family a message in August, inviting them to attend a meeting with a grief counselor and the Law Society of Kenya.

At that time, she did not reveal she had ties to the firms GALG and Ribbeck, according to the family, who shared messages received from Mihret.

Mihret was in a WhatsApp group with GALG staff and U.S. lawyers Manuel Ribbeck and Monica Ribbeck Kelly within three weeks of the March crash, other messages reviewed by Reuters show. Dozens of the messages show GALG staff and the Ribbecks discussing how to reach bereaved families.

Mihret did not return calls or messages seeking comment.

The Illinois state disciplinary commission censured Monica Ribbeck in 2014 for filing an aviation accident suit on behalf of someone who had already terminated her.

In 2015, the commission’s hearing board recommended she be suspended for 60 days for filing what it alleged was a frivolous action for legal discovery over the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines’ Flight 370. That was overturned after a review.

This year, the Ribbecks set up a new entity, GALG, according to messages between GALG and the Ribbecks that have been viewed by Reuters. GALG staff directed clients to the Ribbecks, messages and emails shared by several bereaved families show.

GALG set up its website on March 28, only 18 days after the accident, and filed its articles of incorporation in Illinois on April 24.

Amos Mbicha, whose sister and nephew died in the crash, said he helped more than ten law firms, including GALG, connect with bereaved families. He said he stopped working with GALG in October when the firm tried to contact a victim’s relative after he had warned them not to.

Neither Ribbeck nor GALG responded to requests for comment. Monica Ribbeck did not return multiple email and phone messages from Reuters.

While many families interviewed by Reuters say they turned away cold callers, they typically wound up retaining lawyers after doing their own research.

“Not all the lawyers are bad. If we say that, Boeing wins. We needed to find someone to get justice,” said Tom Kabau, a Kenyan lawyer who lost his younger brother George in the crash and whose family has hired Husain Law and Associates and Wisner Law Firm.

POTENTIALLY HUGE FEES

Lawyers representing victims of airline crashes can get millions of dollars in fees if they win or settle cases in U.S. courts, where there can be large payouts.

Awards against an airline are capped if it was not negligent. But there is no limit for manufacturers, making lawsuits against Boeing potentially lucrative.

Plaintiffs’ lawyers in these kinds of cases don’t usually charge fees up front but take at least 20 percent of any settlement or award. That standard practice is being followed in the Ethiopian crash cases, bereaved families say.

Beyond the aggressive approaches by certain firms, in Ethiopia, one lawyer offered to pay for access.

Adam Ramji of Texas-based Ramji Law Group sent Bayihe six messages in 20 minutes on July 13, and offered cash in exchange for a meeting, according to Bayihe and a review of his text messages.

“Let me give you $100 for 15 min of your time,” Ramji wrote.

Bayihe has since filed a suit through Chicago-based Clifford Law Offices, telling Reuters he deliberately sought out a lawyer who had not pitched to him.

Ramji filed three lawsuits in Chicago. A judge threw out two of them after the families concerned said the names of the “executors” of the estate who were named as the lawsuits’ plaintiffs were unknown to them. A third suit was dismissed because there was no person by that name aboard the flight.

Ramji did not respond to requests for comment.

LACK OF RESOURCES

U.S. states have ethics rules that prohibit lawyers or anyone acting on their behalf from soliciting business by phone or in person, in most cases over any time period.

They also bar lawyers from giving anything of value to solicit a prospective client.

There is also a U.S. federal law that forbids lawyers from contacting victims’ families within 45 days but it appears to be only applicable to U.S. aviation accidents, according to two legal experts.

Contacted about the cases cited in this story, Robert Glen Waddle, director and counsel at the Mississippi Bar’s Consumer Assistance Program, declined comment. Steven Splitt, spokesman at the disciplinary commission of the Illinois bar, and a spokeswoman for the Texas disciplinary board, also declined to comment.

U.S. disciplinary boards often don’t have the resources to investigate complaints from abroad, said Jim Grogan, former deputy administrator and chief counsel at the Illinois bar disciplinary commission.

“There are so many shadows in which people can act, especially abroad,” said Grogan.

(Additional reporting by Tracy Rucinski in Chicago; Noeleen Walder in New York; Tim Hepher in Paris; Tina Bellon in New York; Jack Stubbs in London; Tom Hals in Wilmington.; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Martin Howell)

The post After Ethiopia crash, victims’ relatives say they were hounded by U.S. law firms appeared first on Ethiopian Registrar News/Breaking News:.

by Bileh Jelan

Addis Abeba, December 23/2019 – In a letter written and signed by Mustefa Muhmud Omer, vice president of Somali regional state, and was addressed to the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) and House of Federations (HoF) on December 10/2019, the regional state asked for equitable representation of parliamentary seats at the national parliament, House of People’s Representatives (HoPR).

In the letter, the vice president stated that based on the 1994 population and housing census of Ethiopia, which put the Somali population at 3, 198, 514, the regional state should have been represented by 32 seats at HoPR. However, nine seats were reduced and the region is now represented by a mere 23 seats. Therefore, the regional state requested for appropriate measures to be taken in order to make sure the Somali people get their “constitutionally guaranteed equitable representation” at the national parliament during the upcoming election in 2020.

Mohammed Olad, media & communication advisor of vice president Mustefa, told Addis Standard that the current arrangement didn’t follow the guidelines set by the constitution, and argued that the regional state’s request for new arrangement was a “constitutional request.” According to him, the issue was a long standing point of discussion in the regional council & among the wider Somali population. The Somali Regional State’s 23 seats in the HoPR is on bar with Addis Abeba and 15 seats less than the 38 seats allocated for Tigray Regional State while Somali region is more populous than both Addis Abeba and Tigray Regional State, Mohammed argued.

“We hope this will help address in some ways, the acute under-representation of Somalis in the House of People’s Representatives and to some extent, the federal bureaucracy,” he said, adding that in the past, despite repeated attempts, “no one dared or bothered to address this constitutional abrogation. For most part of the last three decades, the region was run by successive clientele administrations.”

The federal parliament has 547 seats currently all occupied by the ruling EPRDF and its allied parties including Somali Democratic Party (SDP). The EPRDF is now in the process of being renamed “Prosperity Party” and includes SDP.

“This is solely an independent initiative taken up by the Somali Regional administration based on our constitutional mandate, and on behalf of the Somali people, to advocate and look after their interest, Mohammed said, “however, we will not be surprised if other regions and communities raise similar constitutional demands that are always inevitable, regardless of whether our current efforts inspired them.” AS

Addis Standard.

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23 Dec 2019By : Nikos Krinis

We are thrilled with Ethiopian Airlines’ historic come-back to the Athens market after 18 years.” – Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Tewolde GebreMariam

Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian), the largest aviation group in Africa, recently resumed flights between Addis Ababa and Athens, which now marks the carrier’s 20th destination in Europe.

“An old friend has come back… As of December 13, Athens is directly connected with Addis Ababa and the African continent as a whole, through the airline’s rich and extended network, thus increasing significantly the connectivity of Athens and Greece,” Athens International Airport (AIA) Director of Communications & Marketing Ioanna Papadopoulou said during a press conference in Athens.

***

Following an 18-year gap, the thrice weekly flight to Athens is operated by the ultra-modern B787 Dreamliner.

“The fact that Ethiopian Airlines is once again connecting Athens with Addis Ababa, actually means that it connects it with the whole sub-Saharan Africa and South Africa, which means a huge increase of the interconnection of our city,” Papadopoulou added.

Group CEO: Now was the right time to return to Athens

***

“Athens used to be one of our main destinations and one of the oldest and unfortunately we suspended it in October 2001 as September 11 had shaken the whole world. There was a crisis all over the world and a change in Europe… But ever since then we have been thinking of coming back,” Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Tewolde GebreMariam told GTP Headlines.

Underlining that the historical relations between Greece and Ethiopia go back many thousands of years, GebreMariam said that now was the right time for Ethiopian to return.

“Greece is an important tourist destination and alot of people all over the world are interested to visit the country… Now that we fly to Greece, we are going to connect it with 126 destinations all over the world located in Asia, the Middle East and Africa… We can also connect Greece with Brazil and Argentina, which are very important destinations for us,” he said, adding that in a later stage, Ethiopian’s plans include connecting Greece with Australia.

Aim to establish daily Addis Ababa – Athens route

Ethiopian’s flight ET760 departs from Addis Ababa at 11.00pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, arriving in Athens at 3.00am the next day. (The flight then continues at 4.05 to Moscow, Russia, where it arrives at 8.20am.)

The return flight ET761 (which arrives from Moscow) departs from Athens on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 1.05am, arriving in Addis Ababa at 7.15am.

According to GebreMariam, the airline’s goal is for the Addis Ababa – Athens route to become daily.

“Since the route is shared with Moscow right now, I think the first order of business would be to seperate both because Moscow also wants a dedicated non stop flight. Right now Moscow has a stop in Athens… After a few months or perhaps a year (depending on passenger traffic), we will seperate Athens and Moscow and then both will go to daily,” he said.

Ethiopian sees phenomenal growth ahead of 2025 target year

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline that has become one of the continent’s leading carriers, unrivalled in efficiency and operational success.

“Our awards are the result of an extraordinary and remarkable achievement,” GebreMariam told GTP Headlines.

According to GebreMariam, the industry has recognized Ethiopian’s performance this past decade, which was based on a 15-year strategy roadmap.

In 2010 the airline launched its Vision 2025, a strategy that set out a number of goals, including growing to 90 international destinations, 120 aircraft and 22 million passengers.

The roadmap drew a line from China to Brazil and touched China, India, Africa and Brazil.

“Τhe location advantage for Ethiopian Airlines was tremendous, so as a result the potential was significant… We have achieved most of our goals ahead of time… Right now we have 127 destinations, including Athens; the number of aircraft is close to 130; our passengers have reached 20 million; and revenue this year is expected at around $5 billion,” he said.

***

GebreMariam, who was named Airline Executive of the Year at the CAPA conference in Malta this month, informed that since most of Ethiopian’s targets have been achieved, the plan will soon be revised to a new vision – Vision 2035 – another 15-year strategy roadmap.

It should be noted that Ethiopian operates one of the youngest fleets in the world.

“Our average fleet age is about five years and the global industry average is 12 years, offering convenience to the customer, new technology airplanes, and at the same time less carbon emissions,” GebreMariam said.

Moreover, aiming to combine the airline industry with sustainability, Ethiopian soon plans to launch its ‘Plant one tree for every passenger flown’ project. The initiative will aim for 9 million trees to be plnted in the name of Ethiopian Airlines in different regions of Ethiopia.

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ADDIS ABABA – Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki flew to Addis Ababa Wednesday for his first meeting with the Ethiopian prime minister since Abiy Ahmed won the Nobel Peace Prize for initiating a thaw between the sparring neighbors.

Eritrea and Ethiopia fought a border war in 1998-2000 that left an estimated 80,000 dead before a prolonged stalemate took hold.

Shortly after he came to power last year, Abiy, 43, stunned observers at home and abroad by reaching out to Isaias and creating momentum for a peace deal.

Abiy welcomed Isaias at Addis Ababa’s Bole International Airport, Ethiopia’s state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate said.

“During his stay in Ethiopia, the Eritrean president is expected to meet with Ethiopian officials to discuss bilateral issues,” Fana said.

Isaias was accompanied by Foreign Minister Osman Saleh and Yemane Gebreab, a presidential advisor, according to a post on Twitter by Eritrean Information Minister Yemane G. Meskel.

“The two leaders will discuss enhancement of important bilateral & regional matters,” Yemane wrote.

Abiy’s office and a spokesman for Ethiopia’s foreign affairs ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

After the two leaders first met and embraced on the tarmac in Asmara, the Eritrean capital, last year, they reopened embassies, resumed flights and held a series of meetings across the region.

But the initial optimism fueled by these gestures has faded, and citizens of both countries complain that they are still waiting for meaningful change.

During the Nobel award ceremony in Oslo earlier this month, Norwegian Nobel Committee chairwoman Berit Reiss-Anderson noted that the peace process “seems to be at a standstill,” with border crossings closed and little apparent progress on border demarcation efforts.

She said the committee hoped the Nobel would “spur the parties to further implementation of the peace treaties.”

Isaias and Abiy last met in Asmara in July.

Upon returning from Oslo to Ethiopia this month, Abiy expressed hope that the two leaders would be able to meet “soon”.

Abiy wrote on Twitter Wednesday that he was “happy to welcome again to his second home my comrade-in-peace, President Isaias Afeworki and his delegation.”

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By: Egypt Today

CAIRO – 25 December 2019: Egypt stressed adherence to its proposal regarding filling and operating the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, the Ministry of Water Resources said, after “malicious” reports claiming that Egypt abandoned one of its main conditions.

Egypt affirms its keenness, during negotiations around the (Grand Ethiopian) Renaissance Dam, to reach understanding and agreement with both Sudan and Ethiopia regarding the rules for filling and operating the dam, especially during periods of drought and prolonged drought, the ministry said in a statement.

It also confirms endeavor to reach a compromise formula that achieves the interest of the three countries, represented in the right of Ethiopia to achieve the development that it seeks, in a way that does not represent a grave danger to Egypt and ensures the flow of water to it (the Egyptian land) and guarantees (Egypt’s) right of life.

Egypt has presented an alternative formula to link the two dams (GERD and Egypt’s Aswan High Dam), in the interests of both sides.

The ministry has denied recent reports regarding Egypt’s abandonment of its condition to have 40 billion cubic meters of Nile water annually, as part of negotiations to fill and operate GERD.

It is necessary to clarify that Egypt is demanding the passage and flow of 40 billion cubic meters annually from the Blue Nile River, which is the average during periods of drought and prolonged drought, as a similar case to what happened during the period from 1979 to 1987, the statement read.

The Egyptian, Sudanese and Ethiopian water resources and irrigation ministers agreed to continue their technical discussions on all unresolved issues concerning the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) project during their next meeting on January 9-10 in Addis Ababa, according to an Egyptian government statement earlier in December.

Egypt and Ethiopia are at loggerheads over the $4-billion dam; Cairo voiced concern over its water share [55.5 billion cubic meters] after Ethiopia started building the dam on the Blue Nile in May 2011. A series of tripartite talks between the two countries along with Sudan began in 2014. One year later, the three countries signed the Declaration of Principles, per which the downstream countries [Egypt and Sudan] should not be negatively affected by the construction of the dam.

However, Cairo has blamed Addis Ababa for hindering a final agreement concerning a technical problem, calling for activating the Article No. 10 of the Declaration of Principles, which stipulates that if the three countries could not find a solution to these differences, they have to ask for mediation.

Later, the United States sent an invitation to the three countries to resume the talks. Meetings were held with foreign and water ministers of Egypt and Upper stream countries, in the presence of United States Secretary of Treasury Steven Mnuchin and a representative from the World Bank.

President Donald Trump praised the meeting with the top representatives ofthe three countries, saying on his Twitter that it “went well and discussions will continue during the day!”

President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi also lauded the constructive and pivotal role played by President Trump and the US, which reflects the depth of the strategic relations between Egypt and the United States. The president said that this would contribute to reaching an agreement on the filling and operation of GERD and promoting stability and development in East Africa.

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Concluding his two days visit to Ethiopia, President Isaias Afwerki of Eritrea returned back to Asmara today.

During his stay President Isaias has met with prime Minister of Ethiopia Dr. Abiy Ahmed and other Ethiopian government officials. President Isaias along with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has also a ceremony for the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Eritrean Embassy planned to be built in Addis Ababa

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By Reuters

ADDIS ABABA — Ethiopia on Friday charged the former head of the state electricity company and the former deputy head of military-run industrial conglomerate METEC with corruption in relation to the giant hydroelectric dam the country is building.

Azeb Asnake and Mulu Woldegebriel were charged in relation to a 5.1 billion Ethiopian birr (about $159 million) contract awarded to METEC to clear a forest area where water from the dam on the Nile River is planned to flow, Attorney General office spokesman Zinabu Tunu told Reuters.

At least half of the money was wasted and the contract was never finalised, he said.

Azeb is the former CEO of Ethiopian Electric Power and Mulu is the former deputy head of METEC.

Azeb did not respond to phone calls seeking comment after Friday’s announcement by the attorney general’s office. Mulu, previously charged in a separate corruption case involving METEC, is in jail awaiting trial in that case.

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(Bloomberg) — Sign up to our Next Africa newsletter and follow Bloomberg Africa on Twitter

Ethiopia has set the minimum spend by solo foreign investors in local businesses and infrastructure projects at $200,000 as Africa’s second most populous country pushes ahead with a privatization drive next year.

For those planning a joint investment with a domestic operator, the requirement drops to $150,000, according to a new draft proposal presented to parliament. The amount is lower still for architectural or engineering initiatives, the document shows.

The government plans to sell a minority stake in phone monopoly Ethiopia Telecommunications Corp. in 2020, alongside two new licenses to create competition. Six sugar plants are also due to be sold by the end of March.

The International Monetary Fund this month approved a $2.9 billion loan to support Ethiopia’s plans for economic reform, which are being overseen by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

To contact the reporter on this story: Samuel Gebre in Abidjan at sgebre@bloomberg.net

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The Nobel laureate has his work cut out for him: protecting beleaguered minorities in Ethiopia.

Dec. 29, 2019 2:35 pm ET

Abiy Ahmed was in a hurry. This year’s Nobel Peace Prize laureate surprised his Norwegian hosts when he declined to hold two press conferences and skipped town shortly after delivering his Dec. 10 Nobel lecture. Rising ethnic tensions beckoned the Ethiopian prime minister home.

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Sarah El-Sheikh

The three sides are set to continue talks in Addis Ababa on 9-10 January, ahead of two decisive meetings in Washington

gypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi discussed the developments of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) during a meeting on Saturday with senior government officials with the aim of reaching an agreement that takes into account all the sides’ interests and water rights.

Al-Sisi confirmed that Egypt is adhering to reaching an agreement that takes into account all concerns related to its water interests and rights in the Nile River, especially those related to filling and operating the dam, at the same time achieving the interests of other sides, Sudan and Ethiopia.

Last week, the Egyptian government denied the news reported by some media outlets that Cairo had withdrawn its timeline proposal for filling the GERD’s reservoir.

This came a few days after the irrigation ministers of the three countries met in Khartoum to resume negotiations on the GERD. This meeting was the third of four meetings to discuss the GERD which were agreed upon during a mediation meeting in Washington, on 6 November.

Egypt has been demanding an annual flow of 40 billion cubic metres of water from the Blue Nile during the filling of the dam’s reservoir.

Egypt and Ethiopia failed to reach an agreement so far on the volume of water to be released during drought times because Egypt needs 40bn cubic metres of Nile water to reach its territory, while Ethiopia proposed to release up to 35bn cubic metres.

The three sides are set to continue talks in Addis Ababa on 9-10 January, ahead of two decisive meetings in the same week in Washington, DC.

The foreign ministers of Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan are converging on 13 January to discuss the dispute in a second follow-up after the 9 December meeting.

This year has seen dramatic changes for the path of the dam’s negotiations.

In the beginning of 2019, Ethiopia has made pledges to not harm the water interests of Egypt amid verbal assurances by Ethiopian officials without their taking any action on the ground. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said in October that his country is ready to mobilise millions if a war is a necessity.

The timeframe for filling and operating the dam is one of the main obstacles in the negotiations. The three countries have tabled different proposals on the duration of filling the GERD’s reservoir. Egypt’s proposal calls for a relatively extended filling period.

Cairo fears that the construction of GERD will lead to a decline in the flow of water in the Blue Nile, which Egypt depends on for obtaining 90 percent of its water.

GERD which is set to be Africa’s largest hydro-electric dam, has already tensioned relations between Egypt, and Ethiopia. Ethiopia is constructing the dam the Blue Nile in the Benishangul-Gumuz region some 40 km from the Sudanese-Ethiopian border.

The dam measures 1.8 km long and 145 metres high, and is scheduled for completion by the end of 2020 and full operations by 2022.

The project started in 2011 with a cost was estimated at $4bn and it was expected to provide electricity for Ethiopia’s population of more than 100 million.

https://wwww.dailynewssegypt.com/

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Many Ethiopians are uneasy at the idea of seeing their beloved country following an administrative structure that empowers the regions and limits the central government. The main reason for this is their dread of the Zemene Mesafint (Era of Princes), a period characterized by perceived lawlessness and chaos, which is imprinted on their collective unconscious.In fact, I argue, it is the sub-conscious abhorrence felt towards this era and the glorification of the extreme reaction taken by Emperor Tewodros II in ‘setting it right’ which is the cause for the political trauma whose vengeful tides have come to lap at crisis-ridden shores once again.

In short, it is our failure to properly resolve the crisis of the Zemene Mesafint, which ran from the mid-1700s for about a century, that continues to haunt us. In the following essay, I will undertake to revisit the Zemene Mesafint and re-examine it in relation to the current political crisis. I will do so based on the framework of Richard Reid’s recent book: ‘Frontiers of Violence in North East Africa’.

The Zemene Mesafint was actually named after the ‘era of the judges’ in the Old Testament, when Israel had no King and ‘every man did that which was right in his own eyes’. Paul Henze suggests amending this verse to read ‘every noble did that which was right in his own eyes’ to more fittingly describe what went on during the era. Overtly defiant regional lords from parts of modern-day Tigray, Amhara and Oromia fought each other and challenged monarchical authority.

The forging of alliances and counter alliances along ethnic lines, frequent inter-regional wars, and absence of strong central authority all strongly resemble the current situation in Ethiopia. Even more striking is how the people’s reaction to inter-ethnic strife and corruption during the era mirrors the rallying behind the new regime today and the demand for strong leadership.

Forceful expression of a deep-lying problem

The crisis evinced in the Era of Princes was actually a forceful expression of a deep- lying problem that had been brewing under the surface during the previous centuries. Reid recognizes the importance of this fact in correctly understanding contemporary Ethiopian politics:

The conflicts which erupted in the 1760s and 1770s were a long time coming. They finally shattered the façade of unity—of political and ethnic homogeneity—much trumpeted at the apex of the medieval Ethiopian state…. The zemene mesafint was the crystallization of many of the evolving crises experienced by the habesha polity dating to the mid-sixteenth century… The processes and dynamics which were unleashed from the late eighteenth century…would come to define the region’s history long after the supposed ‘reunification’ of Ethiopia in the middle of the nineteenth century. The patterns of violence, and the reasons behind such violence, exist to the present day. (p 39)

It was the outcome of the increasingly strained relationship between the central government and the peripheral regions that had eventually grown to create fissures among the empire’s populace. Regional and ethnic identity, which had always been there, increasingly marginalized and subdued under the overarching super culture of the empire’s religio-political narrative, had finally got the chance to reassert itself, rather forcefully, on the political and religious center.

But the Era of the Princes was even more brutal and damaging than the actions of the emperors’ who served to ignite it. The glorification of the excessive and often vengeful actions undertaken by Tewodros II in subduing the regions, should thus be examined in the context of this resentment. And popular demands that call for such Tewodros-like leadership and their potential long-term effects should, in turn, be weighed accordingly.

Skeletons in the closet

Conventional Ethiopian history presents the Zemene Mesafint in the worst possible light. Many of its darker features—massacres, petty feuds between lords, bloody wars—causing havoc among the public may indeed justify such pronouncements. Recently, however, some historians have begun to question whether the extremely negative portrayal of the Zemene Mesafint, by local and foreign historians alike, is in fact, in part, the outcome of personal prejudices and misconceptions.

Although the era certainly entertained significant chaos and turbulence to merit healthy disapproval, the exaggerated condemnation that is evident in the writings of early chroniclers and subsequent historians predisposes us to inquire whether unmerited presuppositions have infiltrated perceptions of the era. Richard Reid tells us:

The Zemene Mesafint, from this perspective, is treated as a form of temporally determined ‘pre-modern savagery’, in much the same way as escalations of violent conflict in the nineteenth century have been regarded in other parts of the continent. (p.39)

But, while the period saw excessive violence and lawlessness, Reid believes it has been mischaracterized to fit preconceived trends and mythological notions:

It is axiomatic to suggest that contemporary European sources must be treated with caution in this context; ‘Western’ observers had a tendency to exaggerate and misunderstand the level of violence they were witnessing, and to emphasize above all else the prevalence of war, or what passed for it, among savage tribes endlessly at one another’s throats. What they were witnessing, in fact, was vicious total war, ruthlessly rational in economic and political terms. (p.43)

Although Reid explored the possible causes for westerners’ biased reports, he doesn’t explicitly mention the preconceptions for the markedly biased assessment of Ethiopian chroniclers and historians. He merely informs us that to the habesha mind, the state of things during the era were ‘against natural order of things’. It is therefore right to ask: “what makes it unnatural?” Was it the numerous wars and unrest that were common during the era, that made it sound ‘unnatural’ to the habesha mindset? To argue this suggests that apart from the ‘accursed’ era (the Zemene Mesafint), Ethiopia had been an island of peace and stability and bloody wars and persecutions were alien to the land.

Anyone who is even faintly familiar with medieval Ethiopian history would acknowledge that this is absurd. Bloody wars and relentless persecutions were common during much of it. Apart from an increased intensity of persecutions and bloodbaths, what changed during the Era of Princes was a difference among those who caused the bloody wars and who ended up with the spoils. What struck a chord among conservative chroniclers and made the Era of Princes ‘unnatural’ was the nobility’s dominance over the monarchy. The periphery had come to overwhelm the center.

Federalist façade for centralist front

Despite TPLF probing, an incoherent EPRDF staggers on. More jostling looks likely, as the Prime Minister tries to cobble together a centrist alliance.

Ethiopians at the political and religious center were nurtured from posterity with the idea of a strong monarch forcefully subduing the frontier. Reid traces the origin of this idea to the religio-political myths of Kibre Negastwhich claimed that  “‘the greatness of kings’ was related to possession of a sacred emblem (namely the Ark of the Covenant) and a blood connection with a God-anointed elect.” (p.27)

According to Kibre Negast, the legendary Menilek I:

…waged war wherever he pleaseth, and no man conquered him, but whosoever attacked him was conquered, for Zion himself made the strength of the enemy to be exhausted. But King David II with his armies and all those who obeyed his word, ran by the chariots without pain, hunger or thirst, without sweat and exhaustion.

Consequently, whichever war the king chose to wage was blessed as righteous: “Righteous violence became legitimized through Solomonic mythology and came to occupy a central role in habesha political discourse and action, as real and as vital to nineteenth – and twentieth – century rulers as it was to early Solomonic monarchs” (p.28). Subsequent Solomonic kings strove to live up to the mythical Menilik (I)’s legacy of excessive yet ‘righteous’ violence to expand and subdue the periphery.

As such, the Era of Princes, with the unwelcome reality of autonomous nobles from the periphery exerting influence over the weak monarchs of the center, was indeed an abhorrence, and the idea of loosely connected regions, a sort of proto-federation, was blasphemy. The uncivilized periphery was meant to be subdued and tamed, not operate unchecked at the center, or even develop autonomy.

As such, Reid’s central thesis portrays the medieval and modern history of Ethiopia as the outcome of the unresolved tension and conflict between the center (embodied by authoritarian monarchy) and the periphery (politically and culturally alienated groups of the empire). The center ever strives to use ‘righteous violence’ to subdue the periphery and they in turn become “shifta” or “woyane” and attempt to influence the center by fomenting revolution.

The history of the past several centuries can thus be explained through these un-reconciled dialectics. More importantly, the current political tension between the Unitarian/centripetal and Federalist/centrifugal forces can be seen to be the direct outcome of unsuccessful past attempts to resolve the tension.

National messiah

Absolutist and maximal centrism was further reinforced by the 16^th century myth of a forthcoming national king. According to this myth, which probably had its origin in ‘Fikare Iyesus’ and inherited Jewish traditions about the warrior messiah, a messianic figure will emerge from relative anonymity to vanquish the enemies of Ethiopia and restore the country to her rightful place of greatness and prosperity. Peace, glory and joy are assumed to reign in Ethiopia when this glorious figure occupies the throne with some claiming his reign will last a thousand years. This myth is highly popular among the masses and its influence heightens whenever the country enters into crisis. And curiously enough, this messiah-king was foretold to assume the throne name of ‘Tewodros’.

Thus, it is no surprise that this popular yearning for the national messiah reached its peak during the Zemene Mesafint, when the power of the monarchy was undermined and centrifugal forces were causing havoc. It was during this time, when every Abyssinian was dreaming of a Saviour who would take Ethiopia out of this troubled time and ‘restore’ her back to greatness, that Kassa of Quara emerged as the national messiah, taking the throne name of Tewodros:

His very choice of throne name suggested an amalgamation of hubris and insecurity, alluding to a longstanding Orthodox belief that a monarch named Tewodros would come to save the kingdom, and rule for a thousand years. It was a popular fiction, but the historicization of violent conflict was the defining feature of nineteenth century habesha statehood, and was underpinned by ideas about destiny and inheritance. (p.52)

Any form of compromise and diplomacy was thus perceived as a weakness. Leaders occupying the center were urged and pressured by this centuries-old mythology to assume the role of the ‘big man’ and forcefully cleanse what was impure and do away with what was considered an abomination. Any form of negotiation and compromise with the periphery would not do. Only when ‘righteous violence’, legitimized by sacred scrolls and chronicles like the Kibre Negast, was unleashed upon alien usurpers from the frontiers, to put them to their proper place, would the centrists be satisfied.

Middleman

An Ethiopian prime minister torn between rival Oromo and Amhara political camps is increasingly acting in his own interests.

The widespread euphoria that quickly accompanied Abiy Ahmed in his rise to power and the equally quick and widespread denunciations he received from the populace is yet another sign that the habesha reared from childhood with such unrealistic messianic expectations of political leaders possess neither the patience nor the political maturity to allow leaders to make sober and diplomatically sane decisions.

Conversely, this ‘righteous’ violence breeds dissatisfaction by politically and culturally alienated groups which provides them with just cause and righteous indignation (‘woyane’ comes from the Tigrigna word ‘way ane (ዋይአነ)’ – a cry of indignation) to march on the center.

The ‘liberators’ are quickly welcomed with euphoric acclaims and the vanquished are portrayed in their worst light. Labels such as ‘the dark years’ are tagged to previous regimes and attempts to acknowledge even faint positives are met with outrage. The ‘Zemene Mesafint’ had been portrayed as the ‘dark era’ and Tewodros heralded as the bringer of light. In line with this trend, the Derg, similarly demonized the Imperial era and claimed heroic status for slaying the ‘dragon’. The TPLF-EPRDF regime, for all its anti-centrism rhetoric, followed down this well-trodden path towards vilifying the past and heralding itself as the messiah.

Such unrealistic expectations, bordering on childish narcissism, drive policy decisions and political strategies for generations, further escalating conflict between the center and the periphery. With Abiy’s government following in the footsteps of its forerunners in calling the previous era “27 years of darkness”, the trend does not seem to have changed.

The curious case of Tigray

The tension and conflict between Tigryan elites and political center, which has been casting its shadow on Ethiopian politics for centuries, seems poised to remain as a destabilizing force for some time to come. It is interesting that the Era of Princes was ushered by a Tigrayan noble, Ras Mikael Sehul. His march to Gondar to defeat and execute Emperor Iyoas in 1769 marked the beginning of the Zemene Mesafint. The event almost resembles the ‘decentralization project’ which was witnessed with the coming to power of the Tigrayan based TPLF-led coalition. The TPLF, of course, didn’t receive a formal invitation from the center, as Mikael Sehul did from Etege Mentewab. Yet it did not stop TPLF from considering the centrists’ active rejection of the Derg and their unenthusiastic acceptance of the imminent reality of the new regime to be essentially equivalent.

But the parallels do not stop there. Ras Mikael was then the kingmaker and was able to appoint two emperors, Yohannes II and Teklehaymanot II. This was not too dissimilar to TPLF’s role during the past 27 years. What makes it all the more striking is that Mikael Sehul was defeated and ousted from power by combined Amhara and Oromo nobility. Again, this roughly resembles the combined ‘Oro-mara’ forces which brought Abiy Ahmed to power. History does indeed repeat itself.

This was then followed by the exclusion of Tigrayan nobles from the political arena and the subsequent dominance of imperial politics at Gonder by Oromo nobles—the so-called era of the wara-she/Yejju/rulers. However, the assimilated Yejju Oromos soon started to face opposition from their un-assimilated southern kinsmen on the one hand and resentment from the Amhara of Gondar and Gojjam on the other. Again this almost mirrors the current tension Abiy’s regime is experiencing; torn between the unionist Amharas and ethnic extremist Oromos especially over the thorny question of Addis Ababa. This state of fragmentation and continual wars was to last until the coming to power of Tewodros II.

Is Tigray really a drop in the bucket for Abiy’s administration?

Many Tigrayans are wondering why the Prime Minister took such a sharp turn against their region. A move they believe undermines his welcome reform agenda.

The formation of the new Prosperity Party and the inevitable exclusion of TPLF—and presumably of the Tigrayan people—from Ethiopian politics seems set to bring about the re-enactment of this violent historical tension between Tigray and the center. But excluding Tigray did not work before. It only served to breed resentment among Tigrayans and end up in initiating episodic revolutions with varying degrees of success. Yohannes IV’s rise to power and the first and second Woyane rebellions were all empowered by the resilient belief that Tigray did not receive appropriate recognition as the cultural and political co-founder of Ethiopia. There were thus forceful reactions to exclusions from the center.

It is noteworthy that in all three cases none of these movements emerging from Tigray attempted either to culturally dominate or declare complete autonomy from the center. Yohannes IV, although he reigned from Tigray, refrained from imposing Tigrigna language and culture on the rest of the country. The first Woyane rebellion of 1943, similarly, remained Pan-Ethiopian, merely content on seeking autonomous self-administration ‘under the Ethiopian flag’. The second Woyane launched the EPRDF.  All three in effect endorsed federal type arrangements.

This shows the defensive type of ethnic identity that lies at the center of Tigrayan politics. This is in sharp contrast to certain aggressive elements among other ethnic groups who have sought to impose their culture and identity over others. Anti-Tigrayan sentiments put forward by some quarters need to note this virtuous aspect and temper their criticisms accordingly. On the other hand, the recent movement by certain sections of Tigrayan politicians to split Tigray from Ethiopia should also recognize the deeply Ethiopian character of Tigrayan identity and previous resistance movements, and consequently re-orient their efforts to combat perceived and apparent injustices within the national political space.

History at a crossroads?

The question is whether Abiy Ahmed will back-track and ‘cave in’ or will he embrace centrists’ expectations and strive to fill Tewodros’ messianic role, thereby continuing the vicious cycle of excessive centrism and reactive revolution? Indeed, his swift, albeit veiled actions to deal with potentially rebellious regional leaders are reminiscent of Tewodros II’s attempt to quash the princes and end the Zemene Mesafint. Without fanfare, he appears to have succeeded in making all but two of the regions subservient to his rule.

Popular centrist expectations, leading many to hang Abiy’s photo alongside that of Tewodros, may present ominous temptations to the newcomer and may cause alarm among critics that another authoritarian leader is at the helm. However, while he may have initially played on such popular fantasies and appeared to subtly condone such associations, as morally ambiguous as they may be, it is doubtful if Abiy entertained their use beyond the means to reach power.

So far Abiy seems to have resisted the urge to take manifestly hostile actions, especially against overtly defiant regions like Tigray. This may be because he may have doubted his success; or he may be waiting for the appropriate time. Equally, it shows populism has not driven him towards losing his reason; in fact, his approach so far resembles more that of the cautious Haile Selassie I than the hot-headed Tewodros II.

Reconciliation that excludes Tigray will not endure

Yet Abiy would do well to note that even Haile Selassie’s diplomatic prowess and veiled tactics did not prevent resentment boiling over in the form of the Woyane rebellion of 1943. While it may have eventually been subdued, the Woyane rebellion served to entrench animosity among Tigrayans, which eventually brought about the TPLF insurgency. This shows that even overt pacifism is not enough as long as true autonomy of regions is being eroded. The only way out would be to recognize and grant true autonomy for regions and work towards an all-inclusive political platform at the federal level. It is ironic, however, that regions such as Tigray are exercising their greatest autonomy today under a leader who is suspected of the intent to undermine their right to self-rule.

It remains to be seen whether or not the Tigrayan elite will follow the post-Mikael Sehul track and choose a path of political alienation and passive resistance to centrist encroachment until another indignation (‘way-ane’) prompts them to episodic rebellion.

On the other hand, Oromo and Amhara elites need to recognize that any reconciliation that excludes Tigray will not endure. While the numbers game might initially make it seem that Tigray would not pose a threat, the overall situation would merely create another center-frontier tension which, through time, could provoke further embitterment on the part of the excluded and end up in some form of rebellion that might potentially undermine the unity of the country.

History shows us the futility of such actions as, ironically, Abiy’s present rise to power is the outcome of a reaction to such exclusion. Thus, the subtle yet apparent attempts to take TPLF—and Tigray by default—out of the political game by moulding the EPRDF into a single party needs to take into account such far-reaching consequences. After all, ‘medemer’ (as ‘inclusivity’) must not be interpreted to mean unity against Tegaru, but must be sincere enough to include all Ethiopians for it to bring about a true and lasting solution for Ethiopia’s political conundrum.

Reflection time

Equally, the Tigrayan elite need to make a sober assessment of the past 27 years. They need to recognize that, although there were remarkable contributions in terms of infrastructure development and empowering previously suppressed ethnic groups, the TPLF has been wrongfully dominating the political and economic platform. For such a resistance ideology, which built its reputation upon the assertion that the Amhara elite had been unjustly dominating the political and economic platform earlier, it would be ironic not to recognize that the Tigrayan elite had themselves been doing the same for the past two decades. Thus, they need to understand that such disproportional activity , though blown out of proportion for their political agenda by unionist elements, genuinely bruised other nationalities and caused real embitterment. Honest reflection and acknowledgement of this fact should start the process towards reconciliation.

Moreover, TPLF and other ethnic based groups need to acknowledge that the ‘wuhud /assimilated/’ are a major force to be reckoned with and give them their due recognition. There is a huge segment of the overall population that has been assimilated and does not profess any ties to conventional ethnic groups. They should not be rejected or stigmatized for not having an ethnic identity. They have the right to exist and develop their ‘non-ethnic’ identity without being forced to adopt ethnic titles to which they have no attachment. So far centrifugal forces have either turned a blind eye to their existence or resorted to trivial name calling and belittlement. Merely calling them ‘Amharized’, ‘mehal-sefaris’/moderates/ or ‘keyet‘ is not going to dissolve them into non-existence.

Beyond ethnic federalism

Ethnic federalism is inherently flawed as it drags most political and economic debates down to the level of ethnicity. Ethiopia deserves a better political system.

Political ideology needs to stop demonizing centripetal forces and acknowledge that they are the legitimate representatives of this segment who need a voice as much as un-assimilated ethnic groups. I believe amendments that recognize such groups need to be considered within the federal constitution. There should be laws that guarantee the rights of assimilated groups just as much as their ethnically affiliated fellow citizens. The controversial case of Addis Ababa also needs to be revisited from this perspective. As such, the rights of Addis Ababans, who do possess distinct non-ethnic identity and shared cultural values, for self-determination and self-governance should be affirmed.

I believe ‘Team Lemma’ (or whatever is left of it) has used the anti-TPLF card for far too long. Although some might regard their initial anti-TPLF rallying call as justifiable to bring about the change of regime, anyone would recognize the extent and duration of this propaganda has outdated its agenda and is now threatening to defeat the purpose. The creation of a siege mentality may work for a while but apart from the fact that it is not going (economically speaking) ‘to bake the bread’, it will inevitably  have negative consequences in the long term.

In fact, this is already starting to appear. Though intended or not, anti-TPLF remarks have been widely expanded into anti-Tigrayan reactions by the populace. This, in turn, is invoking widespread anti-nationalist and secessionist movements among the Tigrayans. Some may underestimate such tendencies with oversimplified assumptions about the capacity of the region to stand on its own, and consequently downplay their viability.

That is beside the point. The federation, as it stands, cannot withstand another secessionist impulse, no matter how supposedly insignificant the region may be. Ethiopia barely survived Eritrean secession in 1993 with Oromo and Somali separatists demanding similar treatment and almost getting away with it. Another such debacle would risk severing the very chord holding the country together.

This is the author’s viewpoint. However, Ethiopian Registrar will correct clear factual errors.

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About Us

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Aklog Birara (Dr.)

“The ugly reality is that most poor people in most poor countries most of the time never receive or even make contact with aid in any tangible shaper or form: whether it is present or absent, increased or decreased, are thus issues that are simply irrelevant to the ways in which they conduct their daily lives.”
Graham Hancock, Lords of Poverty

Part II of V

In Part I, I expressed my personal appreciation and commended Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed for his Nobel Prize win. This win is part of a larger and more complex set of issues. In a valuable commentary “Abiy Ahmed, Vladimir Lenin and the Quest for Peace” released on December 29, 2019, the Wall Street Journal pinpointed the formidable and interactable challenges Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed faces in his homeland.

“Abiy won the Nobel for his “decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighboring Eritrea,” but his most important work lies ahead of him. Ethnic conflict is the principal threat to the stability of Ethiopia—Africa’s second-most-populous country, one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, and a critical U.S. counterterrorism partner.”

For decades now, I have been arguing that Ethiopia’s ethnic-federal system imposed on the Ethiopian people by the TPLF dominated regime puts the country in a permanent cycle of conflict and suspense. As the Journal notes aptly “And the country’s constitution exacerbates the problem. To stave off disaster, Mr. Abiy must reverse decades of ethnic exclusion, reinforce pan-Ethiopian identity, and reform a flawed federal system. He must also banish the ghost of Vladimir Lenin.”

Ethiopia is neither federal nor democratic. “The 1995 constitution has reinforced differences among” Ethiopia’s 85 plus ethnic groups “by dividing the country into nine ethnically defined regional states. Now that Mr. Abiy has called for elections and lifted restrictions on freedom of expression, ethnonationalists among the regionally dominant groups are feeling emboldened. Some are violent. Minorities in the nine ethnic states have good reason to fear the tyranny of the majority: Nearly three million Ethiopians fled their homes in 2018. That’s more than were internally displaced due to conflict in Syria, Somalia and Nigeria combined last year.”

As the Norwegian Political Scientist Lovise Aalen put it succinctly, “Ethnic federalism is “a very problematic model for any multiethnic society.” Among other things, it does not empower citizens at all. It divides and marginalizes them. Instead, “The federal structure empowers regionally dominant groups like the Oromo (34% of Ethiopia’s population) and the Amhara (27%), giving them little reason to compromise with ethnic minorities or migrants who’ve left their home region.” Even within ethnic based regional states, power and resources grab has begun to escalate. Identity based conflicts have mushroomed everywhere thereby creating chaos and disorder throughout the country. Unable to preserve peace and security, federal authorities are in firefighting mode quelling one unrest in one location while another ethnic and or religious conflict erupts somewhere else.

I agree with Professor Asnake Kefale of Addis Ababa University who says rightly that “Unlike any other constitution, Ethiopia’s “allows self-determination up to secession.” I had opined several times that Ethiopia’s constitution won’t hold the country together; and had warned against the potential danger of Balkanization in the same manner as that of former Yugoslavia. The TPLF and its allies, the OLF and EPLF made a deliberate and strategic decision to establish ethnic federalism. The intent was to leverage TPLF’s minority stratus and to exercise political and economic hegemony. By all accounts this plot worked.

The impact of the Apartheid-like ethnic federal system on the ground continues to be horrific. Ethnic cleansing, whole sale massacres of Amhara, Annuak, indigenous people in the Omo valley and others, displacements of millions of people from their homes and properties, denigration and forcible evictions based on ethnic and religious affiliation, hatred and use of inflammatory language revenge and retaliation and the propagation of false and misleading narratives to shape the future, etc., etc. have been normalized.

However, this TPLF-led minority ethnic-based hegemony is no longer the case. The political and organizational structures that the TPLF created are, nevertheless, relatively intact. Newly emerging political and economic aspirants and elites are fighting among themselves for influence and control. This is compounded by external pressure, most prominently from Egypt.

“Ethiopian ethnic federalism presents a historical puzzle: Why would an ethnically diverse country adopt such a constitution, especially a few years after the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia fell apart?” asks the Journal.

It is painful for those of us who believe in Ethiopia’s long and distinguished past and promising future to understand why the TPLF, OLF and EPLF adopted a Constitution that allows secession for a country that served as a beacon of independence for all non-white peoples. Part of Abiy’s challenge is to undo this harm. As an African proverb puts it, “It takes a village to raise a child.” It takes all of us to navigate Ethiopia’s dangerous political landmines and save it from collapse.

As critical, I find it unfathomable that, almost 30 years after the ethnic-based system proved harmful and divisive, those who lost power and others aspiring it continue to drum up support for its continuity. It seems that political elites have learned almost nothing from the past.

Its is against this unsettled and uncertain political picture that foreign aid, including substantial loans must be assessed. For Ethiopia to optimize the full benefits of aid, first and foremost it must have peace and consensus on the country’s future. All its citizens must enjoy personal security. They must enjoy freedom to live, work, move, own personal property and establish enterprise in any part of the country.

Part II of these five parts series deals with what I call “Peace Dividends.” In the light of Ethiopia’s contentious loans and credits history over the past 28 years, I shall diagnose the potential benefits and risks of substantial loans in the amount of $9 billion that Prime Minister Dr. Abiy’s government announced. The Prime Minister was recognized” for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation, and in particular for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighboring Eritrea.” Peaceful coexistence with neighbors has developmental values and impact.

I opine here that Abiy’s achievement is widely recognized by the global community, including multilateral donors. This is the reason I called the loans “peace dividends.”  Peace is a multifaceted and essential ingredient in advancing sustainable and equitable development. This leads me to the equally important and dire socioeconomic condition of Ethiopia’s 115 million people whose future prosperity depends on their freedom and empowerment. Increase in domestic product alone does not portray welfare and wellbeing.

What matters most is the capacity of individuals and families to meet basic needs on a sustainable manner; and to improve their condition year after year.

In this connection, most educated Ethiopians and especially elites and so-called foreign experts seem to have forgotten Ethiopia’s dark and debilitating times under the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and its ethnic coalition, the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) that governed Ethiopia for 27 years. Despite harsh realities on the ground, Ethiopia was identified as one of the “fastest growing economies” in the world. At the same time, Ethiopians were treated brutally and harshly. Tens of millions of Ethiopian youth remained unemployed and underemployed. An untold number of Ethiopians, especially youth, perished. Hundreds of thousands left Ethiopia in search of opportunities abroad. Dozens were hacked to death in Libya; and large numbers died on the way to the Middle East and in the brutal Sahara Desert on their way to Europe.

One can’t forget the one hundred thousand plus Ethiopians who were expelled from Saudi Arabia. An estimated 750, 000 migrant workers live in Saudi Arabia. Tens of thousands are stranded in war-torn Yemen. They left because of a desire to improve their lives.

Beware of Ethiopia’s Mafia-like Network of thieves!

Against these cruel and punishing conditions that lasted for almost three decades, the TPLF dominated regime received and squandered massive amounts of loans and grants. Party, state and government operated in tandem and created a Mafia-like network that plundered Ethiopian society. The corrosive and demoralizing effects of institutionalized plunder are still being felt today. Abiy’s government is therefore not the first one that received massive loans. By comparison it is small.

The question in my mind is “Can Abiy’s government do better?”

The measurement I want to use is the extent to which Ethiopia’s current government plans to deploy loans, grants, remittances and foreign direct investments (FDI) so that Ethiopia generates millions of jobs for its youth and for females; empowers and unleashes its domestic private sector with a deliberate vision and plan to make it globally competitive; accelerates the modernization of the agricultural and pastoral sectors; reduces unnecessary imports through import substitution schemes; criminalizes all forms of bribery, commissions, waste, corruption and illicit outflow of capital;  identifies all forms of borrowing and renegotiates its massive debts or seeks debt forgiveness; and demands that the stolen billions of dollars in foreign destinations are remitted back to Ethiopian society as soon as possible.

I remind the reader to note that the largesse extended to the TPLF-dominated regime was squandered, stolen; and tens of billions of dollars were taken out of the country. Ethiopians were left with massive debt. This is why the IMF, the World Bank, the governments of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and others extended loans to Ethiopia. Loans are not free goods. By definition, loans are repayable at one point; and in one form or another.

I have doubts about optimal use. This is because the current loans are given against a background of institutionalized and normalized party, government, state and private individual theft, robbery, corruption and massive illicit outflow of precious capital (የቀን ጅቦች ተብሎ የሚጠራው).  What institutional mechanisms are in place to mitigate risk?

How was theft, graft and corruption possible?

For one, there was ample capital to steal and to hide. By the time the reform process began two years ago, this organized theft left millions destitute. Ethiopia’s middle class was crushed by rising costs that went up by 20 percent last year alone.  Ethiopia’s national treasury was left virtually empty.

Second, there was no oversight.

Ironically, the 1990s and the early decade and half of the 21st century Ethiopia received tens of billions of dollars in bilateral and multilateral aid, including grants. The United States alone granted Ethiopia between $20 and $30 billion. A major American newspaper reported at one point that almost all of it was siphoned off by party state and government thieves. Imagine how many factories the stolen billions would have built. Imagine how may jobs these factories would have created.

Why import substitute matters

Imagine that these monies could have enabled Ethiopia to establish factories that would produce and sell edible oil to Ethiopian consumers. Instead, Ethiopia spends at least $600 million per year for edible oil alone. A further $700 million per year is spent to import wheat. There is no accurate data that can tell us the true picture; and guide policy.

There is some good news. I am delighted to hear and learn that Sheikh Al-Amoudi is establishing a factory that will produce and sell edible oil. I do hope and pray that this is a trend in import substitution that Ethiopia needs urgently. I underscore the dual benefits of generating employment and providing consumables to Ethiopians.

How to lie with statistics

On December 17, 2019, Reuters did an outstanding piece under the title “Ethiopia’s Surveillance Network Crumbles, Meaning Less Fear and Less Control.” It quotes Getachew Reda, former Minister of Information who admitted thus. “We lied left and right” and gave false and fake statistical data on practically everything, including production rates. To his credit, he acknowledged the damage. “That is why people got angry” and revolted against the regime and overthrew it. The question many Ethiopians are asking is this. “Is the replacement better?” Have officials ceased lying with data?

Remember that the “One to Five” surveillance network that is disintegrating faster than its creators thought possible had exaggerated growth rates and the welfare of the population; had propagated the notion of transparency and accountability in a country where these principles were non-existent etc. The regime denied theft, graft, corruption and illicit outflow with vigor and success. Donors never questioned this phenomenon. Has the narrative changed?

At one point the World Bank had questioned the government of Ethiopia in general and the National Bank in particular why they were underreporting remittances. The reason is simple. The regime wanted to receive more foreign exchange and under reporting remittances was part of fake statistics.

Independent Institutional Oversight is Imperative

The governing party, the state and government borrowed foreign exchange and spent it at will without any institutional mechanism to check and to assess benefits and risks. Financial and monetary data was underreported. It was made opaque intentionally. Massive theft, graft and waste is real. It is morally and ethically corrosive and destabilizing. The greatest damage is borne by the poorest of the poor and by the middle class.

As the captioned quote illustrates, the poor are never in the loop when it comes to aid. The irony is that aid is given to alleviate poverty. How do you alleviate poverty without engaging the poor? How do you justify aid year after year for more than 50 years without creating resiliency?

Evidence shows that, despite waste and theft, Ethiopia became one of the largest recipients of foreign aid under the TPLF regime.  In theory at least, this massive inflow of capital should have induced substantial employment and increased productivity; and should have created a large middle class. Ethiopia should have achieved food self-sufficiency. Ethiopia produces sesame but imports edible oil.

Massive foreign exchange inflow, including remittances created a handful of millionaires and possible paper billionaires in one of the poorest, starved and unhealthiest countries on the planet. The rich build lavish homes; construct formidable fences using imported iron bars to protect themselves against the very people who made them rich; and live in constant fear for their own personal safety and for the safety of their families.

I had seen identical enclaves in Brazil and Venezuela. The few with financial means remit and hide their financial assets overseas for a number of reasons.

1. To protect their wealth assets from prying journalists, civil society and public officials.

2. To avoid taxation.

3. To finance and support their children’s education in foreign places and to ensure their long-term security.

4. To invest in reliable and secure properties such as houses, apartments, condos, groceries, eating places and the like.

5. To avail themselves of liquidity in the event of sickness and change in government.

Do Ethiopia’s rich have social responsibility?

Yes; they do. I remember once on a mission to Indonesia talking with a colleague there what corrupt Indonesian officials and private persons do with their riches. He asked me “Do you see that bridge over there?” I said, of course. The man who built it is a crook; but a good crook. He posed another question. “Do you know who owns the factory that produces the beautiful silk dresses and batiks that you and other foreign visitors buy here? The factory and numerous others like it employ hundreds of thousands of Indonesians, most of them females. The public knows that Indonesia is a corrupt country. But those who are corrupt have a redeeming quality. They invest their wealth, produce goods and provide employment.”

His depiction left me speechless. The contrast between Indonesia and most of Sub-Saharan Africa is huge. The lesson I gained is this. If you steal and or if you are corrupt, at least invest your riches in productive enterprises within your own country. After all, the money you stole belongs to the society you robbed.

This is hardly the case in Ethiopia or in the rest of Africa.

I leave you to ponder the following questions.

• What did the rich and super rich produce? What is the source of their wealth?
• Did they build factories that employ thousands of youth, including females?
• Which of Ethiopia’s consumer goods did they produce for the domestic market?
• What structural transformation did they bring?
• Did the well to do dig wells or construct water kiosks similar to what rich Kenyans did in their villages?
• Did the rich and superrich build schools in their home towns so that deserving children would attend schools close to their homes?
• Did the well to-do, instead, send their children overseas to acquire their education so that they could be ahead of their peers and govern the poor?
• Did they promote the right moral, ethical values and standards?
• What proportion of their wealth did they contribute for charitable purposes?
• Does pumping more loans into the Ethiopian economy without a clear vision of where the money is invested and for what make sense?

Part III of V: The Benefits and Risks of Ethiopia’s Massive Loans—The past as a guide in utilizing loans—will be posted next week. 12/30/2019

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