"A man who was completely innocent, offered himself as a sacrifice for the good of others, including his enemies, and became the ransom of
the world . It was a perfect act". Mahatma Gand
Breakdown of peace and order in Ethiopia, the Tigray Factor, and the Confusing Ethiopian-Eritrean Relations
Ghelawdewos Araia, PhD IDEA Editorial January 9, 2019
In the last eight months, i.e. beginning end of April 2018 to present, the whole of Ethiopia is disturbed by ethnic clashes and confrontations that, in large measure, are mysterious and difficult to explicate and define. The victims of disturbances, now close to two million internally displaced, thousands dead, and hundreds upon hundreds that fled to neighboring countries like Kenya and Sudan, have tried to make sense out of the unfortunate phenomenon that they have encountered by saying, “we have lived with our neighbors for millennia, but we never have had such calamity of clashes; we were unable to figure out the agents of chaos who come and disappear after they ignite the quarrel among the people and burn down our properties; we never had such kind of social insecurity caused by criminality....
We, Tegaru/Tigrean residing in Northern
California such as the Bay Area, Fresno, Stockton, and Sacramento, had a
meeting on December 22, 2018 in San Jose, CA. The meeting agenda was to
assess the prevailing situation in Ethiopia with special emphasis on
Tigrai and Tegaru to discuss on how we can effectively help Tegaru in
Ethiopia who are heroically fighting the continuous psychological
distressing, political, economic and social attacking with the aim of
ethnic cleansing by the chauvinist and narrow tribalism forces. During the discussion, we recalled Dr. Abiy’s
sweet promises to the Ethiopian people as a whole, for democracy, rule of
law to apply, forgiveness, reconciliation, tolerance, love and unity with the mantra of “Medemer”
which meant all-inclusiveness and we were amongst the first ethnic group
to welcome and rally behind his vision.
ETHIOPIA: BIZARRO GOVERNMENT?
BIZARRO POLITICIANS? BIZARRO NATION?
Tecola W Hagos 1 January 2019
To state the obvious here and now, Ethiopia is going through very bizarre political and economic transformation. One may say it is perverse to a great extent to see yesterday’s “liberal democrats” advocating ethnic cleansing, supporting one-man-rule of dictatorship, encouraging the establishment of SS Nazi type Republican Guards, endorsing the internment of “Tigrians” in concentration camps, and vindicating Mengistu Hailemariam and his blood-soaked regime from all responsibility for the Red Terror and policy of starvation of millions of Ethiopians.
Ethiopian observer editorial
We are now living in Ethiopia in a volatile political situation and in an economic disaster looming all around us. We are surrounded by our historic enemies and newly minted ones that are getting stronger by the hour. Those of us in the Diaspora have a moral obligation not to promote ethnic conflict with harmful propaganda on the supremacy or corruption of any ethnic group thereby inflaming further a situation that is highly charged with hate and conflict already. Any ethnic based conflict within the Ethiopian community is a victory for Arabs and their foreign masters. Our enemies have become very powerful because we are a divided people. Thus, we urge all opposition leaders and their supporters to tone down their accusations of this or that ethnic or nationality group as the guilty party for all the problems faced by Ethiopia and Ethiopians.
I. Prolegomena - Pointing Fingers
I have never supported federalism based on ethnicism or on language for Ethiopia. I believe in a “unitary” system with guided limited local autonomous provincial administration, with few incorporated urban structures as needed. I justify my position of a unitary administrative structure based on two sold grounds: 1) the primitive state of life in Ethiopia cannot allow or sustain a modernist structure such as federalism of any kind, least of all one based on ethnic identity; 2) lack of skilled and enlightened managerial manpower and the low count of efficient second tier assistants and committed field operators to advance governmental policies and government backed projects.
The
acronym D.E.M.O.C.R.A.T stands for Democratic Ethiopian Movement of
Creative Reform and Transformation and it is an organization first
conceived and founded by Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia in 2009 and then an attempt
was made to reach out all Ethiopians in Ethiopia and the Diaspora; soon
after it began its initial task by establishing a board of directors,
however, because the larger Ethiopian society in general and the various
Ethiopian communities in particular were polarized by ethnic politics, the
organization was not launched until September 26, 2012. Even then, it was
impossible to get hold of the diverse Ethiopian national groups to work
together for a common goal; now, although ethno-nationalist tendencies
have not subsided yet, there are promising signs that Ethiopians can pull
together for a grand and common Ethiopian national agenda, and we at
DEMOCRAT are encouraged to put the pieces together, and as a result we
have begun our mission on September 2018 and laid the necessary
operational and guideline infrastructure to
catapult the mission and objectives of DEMOCRAT. The organizational
structure of DEMOCRAT and its departments as well as the aims and goals of
the organization will be made available for public consumption at a later
date. However, by way of kicking off DEMOCRAT here below is its mission
and objectives:
It is the best of times for PM Abiy Ahmed to be surrounded by an admiring intimate group of people. Even more so for a man who craves attention to be surrounded by such female crowed, however, bordering the ridiculous. He has created what seems to me a modern-day version of a Turkish Solarium—a harem minus the erotic aspect of that Turkish and Arabesque excesses. He has appointed females for more than fifty percent of all Ethiopian High Governmental Offices to date, including a female President and a female Chair of the National Election Board.
It is the best of times for PM Abiy Ahmed to be surrounded by an admiring intimate group of people. Even more so for a man who craves attention to be surrounded by such female crowed, however, bordering the ridiculous. He has created what seems to me a modern-day version of a Turkish Seraglio—a harem minus the erotic aspect of that Turkish and Arabesque excesses. He has appointed females for more than fifty percent of all Ethiopian High Governmental Offices to date, including a female President and a female Chair of the National Election Board.
Current Ethiopian Affairs: Ethnic Conflict, State-Level Confrontational Politics, and anti-Tigray Frenzy
Ghelawdewos Araia, PhD November 26, 2018
In this essay, I will systematically address the current messy Ethiopian affairs by employing the interpretive methodology in order to further elucidate the intricate Ethiopian phenomenon. Although I am using my own interpretation and explanation, it should be known that the interpretive method was first introduced by Max Weber in the late 19th to early 20th centuries. The interpretive method is intended to reconstruct the objective and subjective rationality, to meaningfully understand human behavior and motives, and to study social trends and problems.
Rotten and Fractured Beyond Repair EPRDF no More: Strategic Emergency Exit for TPLF
Par
Mogos Abraham, PhD
Center for Middle Eastern Studies 23 Nov. 2018
Consequences of ethnocentrism, which reveals immature political tendencies, are disastrous. Read for example, the manifesto of the National Movement of Amhara (NaMA), which was founded on 10 June 2018 in Bahir-Dar, the capital city of the Amhara Regional State. NaMA is an extremely dangerous organization. It disparages (demeans) TPLF’s contributions to Ethiopia’s modernization. It does not recognize EPRDF as a legitimate government. It has declared ANDM as an agent of TPLF.
Sometimes autocrats strengthen their power by expanding women’s rights. Here’s how that works.
By Daniela Donno andAnne-Kathrin Kreft November 23
Last month, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced that he had appointed a new cabinet — and that half of its ministers were female. Particularly noteworthy are the appointments of Aisha Mohammed as minister of defense and Muferiat Kamil as the first minister of peace, prestigious ministries at a time when Ethiopia is beginning to soften relations with neighboring Eritrea.
Abiy can appoint a gender-balanced cabinet because the EPRDF has long cultivated female leaders. Our research indicates that dictatorships with strong ruling parties often have dedicated women’s wings or ties with the women’s movement. These help spread the regime’s policies and vision for the country to the people. At the same time, they supply loyal female politicians to fill parliamentary and cabinet posts.
In Ethiopia, the EPRDF’s Women’s League has served these functions. The new minister of peace has held numerous party-appointed positions, including as minister of women’s affairs and as speaker of
Parliament
IN REMEMBRANCE OF OUR GREAT EMPEROR AND SIXTY MURDERED HEROES, 23 NOVEMBER 1974
Tecola W Hagos, 23 November 2018
I. Introduction
Not long ago, I wrote about my disgust with the Ethiopian Government of Meles Zenawi for pardoning some twenty high ranking Derg Officials who were convicted of murder, Red Terror, atrocities of all types on innocent Ethiopians, including the execution of high officials on the grounds of Alem Bekagn on 23 November 1974. I consider such pardon to be unjust and a violation of the rights of the victims and a permanent threat to our humanity. Even worse the Government of PM Abiy Ahmed invited a few such murderers and Red Terror participants to a State Banquette honoring the departing President Mulatu Teshome on the evening of November 2, 2018. We are hypocrites to the bone. Those Derg Officials, now being embraced by Abiy and by the degenerate former Prime Minister Haile Mariam Desalegn (pictured few months back smiling with the mass murderer Mengistu Hailemariam), had murdered and tortured countless innocent Ethiopians from 1974 to 1991. They showed no mercy or any humane consideration to any of their victims.
We
Ethiopians in general are not moralistic people but spiritualists. We do
not seem to have developed our critical thinking faculties to a high
degree. The freedom we had enjoyed for thousands of years is a lot more
the function of geography than our valor or cunning in fighting foreign
foes. I am not denying that
there were no highly sophisticated intellectuals and also incredibly
courageous commanders in our past. Of course, there were several, but they
were very few. For example, battle field statistics confirms the fact that
for a battle to be over between tens of thousands of Ethiopian combatants,
the death of a few hundred would result in a route and soldiers run for
their lives abandoning wounded comrades even if there were no hostile
pursuers.
Lalibela Should be Patronized and Renovated by Ethiopian Architects and Engineers
IDEA Editorial November 14, 2018
One of the magnificent historical sites in Ethiopia is the town of Lalibela in the north-central part of the country; and the splendid eleven rock-hewn churches in that town are a continuation of Aksumite architecture in the construction of hewn edifices; in Tigray alone there are 126 rock-hewn churches and monasteries, and it is these uniquely Ethiopian buildings, curved out of rocks with amazing mathematical precision and symmetry, that continued in Lalibela and elsewhere in Ethiopia.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed continues to irritate me with his obsequious behavior toward President Issayas Afeworki, and now his fawning over President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed (Farmajo) of Somalia. Pictures from the recent Meeting of the three Leaders show Abiy’s deplorable behavior the source of irritation for me and very many Ethiopians. The singular such picture of the three leaders huddled together like some giggling school girls is both disturbing and unbecoming of the dignified proper conduct of individuals representing sovereign people, I expected. [See the picture below.] Of the three, the most sycophantic is Abiy Ahmed wearing his ridiculous Jano in the fashion of dressing of an Agafare, not appropriate for a head of government. [Abiy, if you wear our National Dress, which is a good idea, but do it properly.] He is acting like a chihuahua beaming and wagging off his tail (in his case, his hands) in the presence of his owner. Look at Abiy’s posture and the look in his face, the way he is adoringly salivating fixated on the face of Issayas Afeworki. I simply could not stand watching an Ethiopian leader in such subservient and servile posture
DISSONANCE WITH TRUTH AND JUSTICE
Tecola W Hagos, 7 November 2018 Abstract: It is unfathomable to me that a current Ethiopian leader would invite former high officials of the brutal murderous military strongman Mengistu Hailemariam to an official State function. Abiy Ahmed just inflicted on us (Ethiopians) another painful and insensitive act of unbridled tyrannical power hubris by inviting the murderous Fikreselassie Wogderese (directly) and Goshu Wolde (by association) to the State Banquette given to honor the departing President Mulatu
Teshome.
I. In General
In the last few weeks much is reveled on both the naiveté and the complexity of the mind of the new Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed (hereafter referred to as either “Abiy” or just “Prime Minster”). Complexity or naiveté does not necessarily reflect an aspect of a state of moral or ethical content. It is utterly possible to be complex without a strand of ethics or morality in a matrix—consider the game of Chess et cetera. Even in such clear case of action taken in self-defense in preserving one’s own life, one’s action on the ground is not as clear cut of ethical or moral content as it is in theory, for numerous individuals are hard-wired for altruistic acts completely sacrificing their individual lives for the benefit of others often complete strangers.
ውግደ ዲያብሎስ ወራጅ አለ
In memory to all Ethiopians who sacrifice their life for justice and democracy in the true meaning of the slogan
Paul demands active unity in the church, “ A unity that explicitly joins together differing
ethnic groups because of their common identity in Christ. …… The old barrier form of brand-new
humanity. The old barrier of hostility has been demolished by the cross, and now, all peoples are to be one in
Christ” Rom,4. Gal 3-4; col 3
ቅዱሰ ጳውሎሰ በቤተ ዕምነት አንድንትን ሰብካል እንዲህም አለ “ሁሉንም ብሄር፤ ቀለም፤ ዘር የሚያጣምር አንድነት ወሳኝ ነው ምክንያቱም ሁሉም በክረሰቶሰ ፊት አንድ ነው።።
Tragedies of Political Puppetry in Ethiopia
Mogos Abraham, PhD
Center for Middle Eastern Studies
12 Nov. 2018
1. Prelude
In the context of this piece, a puppet is a person, party, or state under the control of an external-political power. Puppetry, therefore, is being a tool to serve external powers. Coached by external powers, political puppets are extreme opportunists, who emerge in times of national crises. Political puppets know very well the cultural norms and values of the masses (weakest links); possess an insider-information on the political organization (e.g., the EPRDF); are shrewd manipulators and orators, capable of delivering motivational speeches of hate that dehumanize other citizens who stand on their way to political power (e.g., Abiy Ahmed, Mengistu Hailemariam, and Adolf Hitler); and are more than willing to be hired as double agents to work for external powers at large amounts of dollars. They are willing to sale their own Motherland. Let us have a look at selected historical facts that reveal tragedies of playing puppetry. We can learn a lot from these facts. History matters a lot.
The
People of Tigray is a people who know its territorial borders, with
unequivocal clarity. A People, who does not have a shred of doubt on its
identity and territorial borderlines. It is a People, who cannot, has
never had, and will never, in all possible imaginations, have the remotest
of doubts on its identity and territorial borderlines; and it is a People
who has concretely, laid out its strategic lines of struggle for Tigrean
national integrity and sovereignty.
Praise for Dr/Professor Ghelawdewos Araia
Over the last three weeks, we have been flooded with numerous emails to express your appreciation and support to Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia contribution on the going democratic process in Africa in particular Ethiopia.
We at Ethiopian Observer would like to share our heartfelt gratitude to all of you who participated in our praise project for Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia. After we announced the Praise initiative, we managed to collect earlier statements in admiration of Professor Ghelawdewos and we also received some praises directly sent to Ethiopian Observer, some of which are presented below in chronological order.
As we have stated in our first announcement, Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia is “a man of integrity with unshakable principled stands on issues surrounding the liberation and freedom of the African people in general and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ethiopia; above all, he is one of the high caliber Ethiopian scholars who for decades presented highly educational and balanced articles, essays, book reviews, blurbs, and commentaries.” Now, we are gratified that our evaluation of the professor, in fact, is well endorsed and corroborated by the many people who responded to our call.
Praise for Dr Ghelawdewos Araia September 30, 2018
The Ethiopian Observer will soon launch praise for Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia; and individuals, groups, and institutions are encouraged to send us their praise, and we will compile and post it.
DICTATORS ARE NOT BORN, BUT MOLDED AND SHAPED
Tecola W. Hagos, 2 October 2018
Our Ethiopia is in big trouble. And we have a leader who is more interested in the trappings of Power and does not seem to understand his unique role as a leader of a country going through tremendous difficulties. It is time to remove such a leader and install a practical local-grounded individual. I want a sensitive, resolute, and visionary leader not someone who is fascinated by his recent toy (B787 Jetliners). Abiy Ahmed is a tragedy, despite all this suffering, he has not even established an emergency Commission especially dedicated to tackle the tumultuous displacements, killings, lootings et cetera all over the country.
Professor Desta, Asayehgn
In order to halt a late 2015 wave of anti-government protest and eventually stimulate political and socio-economic reforms, Ethiopians elected Dr. Abiy (hereafter referred as Abiy) Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia on April 2, 2018. After six months in power, instead of facilitating a peaceful and democratic pathway, Abiy appears more focused on self-aggrandizing and enhancing his popularity. By ignoring the parameters and ideological premises of the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) in favor of various opposing groups, Abiy seems to further balkanize the Ethiopian state by opening a political can of worms.
Ethiopia
is a great nation that has proved to itself and the world its resilience
against trying circumstances and outright colonial attempts and
subjugations. For this reason and other factors, the country remained a
jewel in the crown for Africa and pride as well as symbol of independence
for the Black Diaspora. Ironically, however the present generation of
Ethiopians seem to suffer from amnesia to the greatness of Ethiopia and
the patriotic pan-Ethiopian agenda of its forebears, and on the contrary
they have wittingly or unwittingly embraced narrow ethno-national
proclivities and practices; hence, the present ethnic-warfare that has
afflicted much of Ethiopia.
In light of the barbaric and horrifying murders, rapes, dehumanizing treatments and looting of ethnic minorities in the suburbs of Addis Ababa on two consecutive days of 15 and 16 of September 2018, much has been written by journalists, and heart wrenching statements were also made by individuals who lived through the horrors. Similar attacks on minorities had been the characteristic feature of PM Abiy Ahmed’s reign of ineffective governance since his ascendance to the premiership “throne” on 2 April 2018.
there is a narcissist Prime Minister who is more concerned about his personal fame and self-aggrandizement than the peace and stability of his Country and the security and welfare of his people and who is busy making useless and non-stop domestic and foreign visits (shirshirs) while his people are being slaughtered by armed thugs and terrorists, our domestic "ISIS" and his Country is being burned.”
The removal of PM Abiy Ahmed from office is necessary and legitimate in order to save Ethiopia from lasting damage and disintegration.
Press freedom remains elusive in
Ethiopia By Abraham Fisseha ADDIS ABABA, May 1 (AFP) — Freedom of the press in Ethiopia has remained as elusive as ever since the current government overthrew dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam in May 1991, Ethiopian media experts and lawyers said ahead of Monday’s World Press Freedom Day.
"After the current government came to power more than a decade ago, press freedom has become increasingly elusive and the talk of it has only been for the consumption of international donors and financial institutions to attract their fundings," communications analyst Assefa Chewaka said.
Will the largest dam in Africa ever be completed?
The multi-billion dollar project has been dogged by disputes and delays.
The Grand Renaissance Dam being built by Ethiopia along the Nile is slated to be the largest hydroelectric power plant in Africa upon its completion.
But the multi-billion dollar project, which Ethiopia says is vital for its future economy, has been dogged by disputes and delays.
Egypt and Sudan also rely on the river Nile. Although Ethiopian leaders deny the dam will cause water shortages, farmers in Egypt fear they will have less water to irrigate their fields.
Talks between the countries have been deadlocked for months, and leaders have vowed to iron out their differences peacefully.Presenter: Elizabeth Puranam Guests:Timothy Kaldas - TIMEP political analysis,Yohannes Gedamu - political science lecturer, Georgia Gwinnett College,Harry Verhoeven - professor of government, Georgetown University
Source: Al Jazeera News
ON THE KIDNAPPED AFRICAN BOY WHO BECAME A GERMAN PHILOSOPHER
KWAME ANTHONY APPIAH TELLS THE TALE OF AMO AFER
In 1707, a boy no more than five years old left Axim, on the African Gold Coast, for Amsterdam, aboard a ship belonging to the Dutch West India Company. In those days, the trip to Europe took many weeks, but his arrival in the Dutch port was not the end of his long journey. He then had to travel another few hundred miles to Wolfenbüttel, the home of Anton Ulrich, Duke of
Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.
FINIAN CUNNINGHAM | 02.09.2018 | WORLD / AFRICA
Ethiopia – Breaking the Dam for Western Debt Slavery
Ethiopia’s new Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is moving quickly to open up the strategic Horn of Africa country to Western capital. But far from the move being seen as a progressive reform, many Ethiopians and observers are concerned that the new direction is leading the nation into “debt slavery”.
This is where the timing of the new World Bank funds earmarked for Ethiopia is suspicious. Those funds are likely to go into the coffers of a foreign contractor appointed to replace METEC. But it will be the Ethiopian nation that is saddled with paying off the “loan” – a debt which up to this juncture it has not had to contend with.
In June, Ethiopia’s Abiy made his first foreign trip to Cairo where he was warmly received by President Abdel Fattah el Sisi. There was a remarkable change of position, with the Ethiopian leader giving assurances that the dam would be delayed to suit Egypt’s interests. Ethiopian sources noted how the PM recited a Muslim prayer to the Egyptian leader by way of giving assurance.
Ethiopia
– Breaking the Dam for Western Debt Slavery
Are Ethiopia and Eritrea moving towards federation?
By Sal Younis
The first thing to say about this is that both the government of Ethiopia and Eritrea (in the person of Isaias Afwerki ONLY) had expressed their desire for this as early as 1993. Actually, shortly after Eritrea’s referendum on independence was held, Reuters reported (on May 3, 1993) that then-President Meles Zenawi “did not rule out confederation, a view shared by Eritrean leader Isayas Afewerki.” The second thing to say about this is that, on the merits, this may very well be the best arrangement for Eritreans and Ethiopians, but that’s hardly the point. The third thing to say about it, which will be the focus of this article, is that the author’s objection to it is that it is being done, at least from the perspective of Eritreans,
Skyscrapers, trains and roads: How Addis Ababa came to look like a Chinese city
China's credit line to Africa has provoked criticism. Earlier this year, Rex Tillerson, then US Secretary of State, said that China's "predatory loan practices" in Africa "mire nations in debt and undercut their sovereignty, denying them their long-term, self-sustaining growth."
Ethiopia has taken at least $12.1 billion from Chinese creditors since 2000. But overall the country is $29 billion in the red -- it owes more collectively to the Middle East, the World Bank and others than to China. The same is true for the majority of African countries.
Envisioning Ethiopia’s Future
Professor Desta, Asayehgn
On the other hand, Abiy’s vision seems populist, evangelical and non-operational. Abiy’s concept of “Medemer” is too vague and his concept of MEDEMAR has become a laughable concept. Opposing his own party, the OPDO, Abiy seems to be entertaining the formation of a centralized Federal system in Ethiopia. For example, he intervened to dismantle the leadership structures of the autonomous regional Ethiopian Somaliland and the Southern region rather than allowing them to solve their domestic problems.
Why Ethiopians believe their new prime minister is a prophet
By Jenni Marsh, CNN
Ahmed Shide, minister of government communication affairs, did not reply to CNN's request for comment. Abiy did not reply to multiple CNN requests for
interview. perhaps the biggest concern is that "Abiymania," and the faith it confers, will blind Ethiopians to the potential flaws of their leader, and weaken the democratic process. Natasha Ezrow, a professor in the department of government at Essex University in England, says: "We should be cautious of leaders who emerge and appear to be a messiah for everybody." Ethiopia, she adds, has "no institutions for democracy" and is "used to a strong man." Unless Abiy implements significant checks on his own power, then it will be hard to avoid a dictatorship, she says.
GERD might not see light: Ethiopian PM
Farah Tawfeek
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced on Saturday that Ethiopia’s Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) might not be completed, the Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) reported.
In a press conference, Ahmed said the project was scheduled to be completed in five years, but was unable due to the failed administration as well as meddling from the Metal and Engineering Corporation (METEC), a company under the management of the Ethiopian Defense Forces.
The
Future of Ethiopia: Developmental State or Political Marketplace?
Alex de Waal
I find much of the commentary on Ethiopia’s current predicament to be
polarized, generalized or not sufficiently attuned to the specifics of the
country’s recent history. In my case, one prism through which I
interpret Ethiopian developments is the analysis derived from numerous
discussions that I had with Meles Zenawi between 1988 and 2012. I
initially developed the framework of the ‘political marketplace’ as a
critique of Meles’s theory of the ‘democratic developmental state’.
In particular, I saw monetized or marketized politics as a threat to the
stateled developmental order that Meles envisioned: I argued that as well
as the two scenarios he envisaged, namely economic transformation versus a
relapse into poverty and chaos, there was a third: a political
marketplace.
Ethiopia’s Political Trajectory: From Meles to Abiy Ahmed. By Teodros Kiros (Ph.D.) 08/22/2018
Meles and his idea of the Developmental State had put Ethiopia on the modernity project, the central ideas of which can be summarized as follows.
The development of the Ethiopian nation must be assumed as the defining task of the State. The State must guide all the necessary components of a functional state, the economy with its central institutions including the banks, education, infrastructure and parts of civil society. All the subordinate parts of the state must follow directives articulated by the state and then processed by the appropriate functionaries of the state, most particularly the bureaucrats.
Torpedoing Africa, and then complaining about 'migration'
European countries are still shaping the lives of millions of Africans, determining both their present and future. Lorenzo Kamel by Lorenzo Kamel
Out of the 67 coups in 26 African countries in the last 50 years, 61 percent took place in former French colonies. Fifty percent of the monetary reserves of 14 African countries are still today under full French control: none of them has any control over its macroeconomic and monetary policy. France makes billions of euros from Africa annually under the form of "reserves", and lend part of the same money to its owners on market rates.
Instead of tackling these epochal challenges and acknowledging that 87 percent of world refugees are hosted in low and middle-income countries, a number of European politicians and millions of average citizens have chosen the "easiest path": they are invoking a Europe-wide alliance against "mass immigration", or, more precisely, quoting Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, "a League of the Leagues of Europe, bringing together all the free and sovereign movements that want to defend their people and their borders".
Vision and the Politics of Ethiopianity: The leadership of Abiy Ahmed. By Teodros Kiros (Ph.D.
Introduction
I would like to begin below with what I wrote on Ethiopianity and Independent Thinking a few years ago to frame my present argument that Ethnic consciousness is mediated by positive ethnicity and National Consciousness and that the two are inextricably intertwined. I argue further that ethnic consciousness, anchored on positive ethnicity, is the material infrastructure for the superstructure of culture. By Positive Ethnicity, I understand, “a modality in which an individual humbly takes pride in one’s geographical belonging and celebrates the cultural ornaments of his/ethnic group, the language, the dances, the music and the cuisines, as expressions of diversity.” (Abbay Media, Zehabesha, Ethiopia 360, January 9, 2018
Ethiopia in Turmoil of US, Saudi-Backed Coup, Not ‘Reforms’
Nearly five months after a change in power in Ethiopia, the country is witnessing an outbreak of deadly communal violence in several regions. The surge in conflict has come after many years of political stability in the Horn of Africa nation, stirring fears that the country may be facing widespread chaos and even
break-up. There have also been other deadly clashes in southern, central and western regions. Notably, the sparse Western media coverage tends to depict the violence as occurring in spite of “reformist” Abiy Ahmed. Whereas, more accurately, the surge in violence appears to be the responsibility of the new ruling faction around the prime minister.
Political Leadership and Political Economy in Contemporary Ethiopian Politics
Ghelawdewos Araia, PhD August 16, 2018
As far as I am concerned, politics is not just about power although the latter is, without doubt, the unit currency in leadership and governance. Politics is the administration of the state and the people, and the sources for the legitimacy of power are the people. On top of my definition of politics, a political leader for me is one who is farsighted, visionary, creative, innovative, change agent, and one who (s/he) is really committed to the people. On top of these qualities, the individual and/or collective leadership ought to revive the glory of Ethiopia (its ancient and medieval civilizations), not only for the sake of pride and psychological satisfaction, but also to use it as a fulcrum to mobilize Ethiopians toward forging their country into an industrial hub and economic success.
Ethiopia Violence A Concern Despite Reform Promises
Government Should Address Killings in Somali and Oromia Regions
Maria Burnett Director, East Africa and the Horn
In Jijiga, capital of the restive Somali region, a youth group known as Heego, which is loyal to the region’s former president Abdi Illey, and the region’s paramilitary Liyu police carried out attacks earlier this month that left many people dead. The Ethiopian Orthodox church said eight of its churches were burned, and more than 15 people, including 7 priests, were killed. Hundreds of people reportedly took shelter in a church compound after their homes were destroyed. The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission said its Jijiga office was also attacked, with offices burned and staff beaten. Officials said they believe the attackers were trying to stop the Commission’s recent investigation into human rights abuses in the area.
UAE Plans Pipeline From Ethiopia To Eritrea In Latest Horn of Africa Move
by Reuters|Maggie Fick & George Obulutsa
NAIROBI, Aug 10 (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates plans to build an oil pipeline connecting Eritrea and Ethiopia, the latest sign of the Gulf state's increasing involvement in the Horn of Africa.
The pipeline will run from Eritrea's port city of Assab to Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, an Ethiopian official said.
Landlocked Ethiopia began extracting crude oil on a test basis from reserves in the country's southeast in June and will need access through Eritrea in order to export it.
Ethiopian broadcaster Fana first reported the pipeline plan earlier on Friday following a meeting in Addis Ababa between Ethiopia Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Reem Al Hashimy, the UAE's minister of state for international cooperation.
PM Abiy Ahmed is not the leader we all thought Godsend. This is not something personal, for I like Abiy Ahmed as an individual. However, in such short period since his visit here in the United States, much has come to light that has made me to look at the current Leaders far more closely and objectively, and I find them lacking and dangerous to the very existence of Ethiopia as a nation.
I heard Abiy Ahmed repeatedly making totally misleading and insulting remarks about the struggle of members of the TPLF in the prolonged fight of seventeen years waged against Mengistu Hailemariam, the brutal genocidal coward who run off stealing millions when he realized of the eminent defeat of his poorly lead Army in 1991. Abiy Ahmed with his convoluted sense of historical facts about the sacrifices of tens of thousands of TPLF warriors, disparaged the entire Tygrean population with
insightful words and phrases such as የቀን ጅቦች Yeken Jiboach. The age-old wisdom expressed in the Amharic
language tells us the time tasted truth that once there is a serious crack
in a glassware, no amount of mending can restore it to its original use.By analogy, if there is a serious breach of trust in a tightly held
organization, that organization will not survive in its original form.ብርሌከነቃአይሆንምዕቃ።
I was in Addis Ababa when Abunna Markorios, the former Patriarch of Ethiopia fled the country. If Ato Tamrat’s testimony is that he left the country under duress, it is far from the truth. Abunna MArkorios happened to have been a very passive Patriarch who failed to defend the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. The Patriarch before him, Abunna Tewoflos was murdered by Derg, the military junta and buried on the threshold of the palace and Abunna MArkarios did not raise a finger. When EPRDF entered Addis Ababa after it toppled the military, the patriarch was in a state of panic and sought shelter at American Embassy.
Tewahedo
Church, which stands at a crossroads. It has taken a step on the wrong
path; it could pull back the starting foot into the cross in order to
rethink, dialogue and discuss to reach a better consensus. Should it
ignore the red flags and proceed on the path it is about to start, the
institutional values and respect accorded it will vanish.
“Shithole” Psychedelic Psychobabble and Menelik’s 3rd Stunt
Ethiopian commentator Commentary
On 18 February 1975, (1967), a handful of idealist Tigrayans committed themselves to solve a fundamental problem bedeviling the people of Tigray. The scope was later expanded to address Ethiopia’s existential threat posed by the issue of the Nations and Nationalities for self-determination.
AFRICA
Reconciliation Efforts Must Speed Up to Defuse Tensions in Ethiopia
August 04, 2018 11:54 AM
Lisa Schlein
The UN refugee agency is ramping up life-saving aid to nearly one million people displaced by violence in southwestern Ethiopia and is urging accelerated reconciliation efforts to defuse tensions in the region.
As its name implies, the UN refugee agency's mandate is to assist and protect refugees. But, at the request of the Ethiopian government, it is extending its humanitarian support to include the nearly one million Ethiopians internally displaced by intercommunal violence in the Gedeo and West Guji areas.
THE VISIT OF PM ABIY AHMED: SUMMATION
Tecola W Hagos August 1, 2018
“Out of the crooked timber of humanity, no straight thing was ever made.” Immanuel Kant, [Trans. Isaiah Berlin]
As I stated above the death of Engineer Semegnew Bekele is far more important and most significant challenge facing Ethiopia than the feel-good visit of Abiy Ahmed of Ethiopian Diaspora in the United States. At times, the visit seems absurd and pointless.
A legitimate question that one could ask is whether the PM achieved what he was aiming at by coming to the United States that he could not have achieved by delaying his trip by few months. This is a rhetorical question of degrees rather than an inquiry for absolutist answers. Despite the efficient program/itinerary of the PM there were serious errors,
Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has been in power for only four months but already he has signed a peace deal with Eritrea and released political prisoners. Sputnik spoke to Negasi Tesfaye, a political observer in Addis Ababa, about what lies behind the changes.
"Behind the scenes there was definitely involvement of the US State Department and the United Arab Emirates in orchestrating a ‘soft coup' in Ethiopia to expel the Chinese from the Horn of Africa and punish Djibouti for expelling (Dubai-owned) DP World (which had run its container terminal)," Mr. Tesfaye told Sputnik."There's also rumors that security guards and a chauffeur were removed from Bekele just days before he was killed. He was ordered not to give interviews according to some social media users, which explains why he sounds so nervous in his final interview in BBC Amharic just one day before his murder," Mr. Tesfaye told Sputnik.
2018/2019 Planning, Land Use & Zoning Committee
Planning, Land Use, and Zoning Committee Special Meeting - Public Hearing 7/31/18
Agenda: Chair's Report; CF 314346: University of Washington Major Institution Master Plan - presentation & public hearing.
Ethiopians want love and forgiveness. But they want justice too
In its long history, Ethiopia has seen a few political contours. These range from politics based on alleged divine will to scientific materialism – as a rejection of divine ascription – and to ethno-linguistic politics. While political personalities greatly differed from one another, one can legitimately argue that authoritarianism, the use of force and fear as a means of governing was common to all of them.
The language of love and reconciliation also colours his diplomatic agenda. His positive message of togetherness has won friendship with Djibouti, Sudan, South Sudan, Somaliland and even Eritrea.
Doubtless, this approach is his greatest strength. Because of it, he has amassed political
capital both at home and abroad. But, it could be his greatest weakness too. There are those who oppose him and are prepared to use violence to stop his reform agenda, and render the country ungovernable. Besides sporadic ethnic clashes, there have been some high profile assassinations (and an attempted
assassination) that remained shrouded in mystery.
It is the best of times for PM Abiy Ahmed to be surrounded by an admiring intimate group of people. Even more so for a man who craves attention to be surrounded by such female crowed, however, bordering the ridiculous. He has created what seems to me a modern-day version of a Turkish Solarium—a harem minus the erotic aspect of that Turkish and Arabesque excesses. He has appointed females for more than fifty percent of all Ethiopian High Governmental Offices to date, including a female President and a female Chair of the National Election Board.
It is the best of times for PM Abiy Ahmed to be surrounded by an admiring intimate group of people. Even more so for a man who craves attention to be surrounded by such female crowed, however, bordering the ridiculous. He has created what seems to me a modern-day version of a Turkish Seraglio—a harem minus the erotic aspect of that Turkish and Arabesque excesses. He has appointed females for more than fifty percent of all Ethiopian High Governmental Offices to date, including a female President and a female Chair of the National Election Board. 
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed continues to irritate me with his obsequious behavior toward President Issayas Afeworki, and now his fawning over President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed (Farmajo) of Somalia. Pictures from the recent Meeting of the three Leaders show Abiy’s deplorable behavior the source of irritation for me and very many Ethiopians. The singular such picture of the three leaders huddled together like some giggling school girls is both disturbing and unbecoming of the dignified proper conduct of individuals representing sovereign people, I expected. [See the picture below.] Of the three, the most sycophantic is Abiy Ahmed wearing his ridiculous Jano in the fashion of dressing of an Agafare, not appropriate for a head of government. [Abiy, if you wear our National Dress, which is a good idea, but do it properly.] He is acting like a chihuahua beaming and wagging off his tail (in his case, his hands) in the presence of his owner. Look at Abiy’s posture and the look in his face, the way he is adoringly salivating fixated on the face of Issayas Afeworki. I simply could not stand watching an Ethiopian leader in such subservient and servile posture
We at Ethiopian Observer would like to share our heartfelt gratitude to all of you who participated in our praise project for Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia. After we announced the Praise initiative, we managed to collect earlier statements in admiration of Professor Ghelawdewos and we also received some praises directly sent to Ethiopian Observer, some of which are presented below in chronological order. 
In light of the barbaric and horrifying murders, rapes, dehumanizing treatments and looting of ethnic minorities in the suburbs of Addis Ababa on two consecutive days of 15 and 16 of September 2018, much has been written by journalists, and heart wrenching statements were also made by individuals who lived through the horrors. Similar attacks on minorities had been the characteristic feature of PM Abiy Ahmed’s reign of ineffective governance since his ascendance to the premiership “throne” on 2 April 2018.
there is a narcissist Prime Minister who is more concerned about his personal fame and self-aggrandizement than the peace and stability of his Country and the security and welfare of his people and who is busy making useless and non-stop domestic and foreign visits (shirshirs) while his people are being slaughtered by armed thugs and terrorists, our domestic "ISIS" and his Country is being burned.”
The removal of PM Abiy Ahmed from office is necessary and legitimate in order to save Ethiopia from lasting damage and disintegration.
I was in Addis Ababa when Abunna Markorios, the former Patriarch of Ethiopia fled the country. If Ato Tamrat’s testimony is that he left the country under duress, it is far from the truth. Abunna MArkorios happened to have been a very passive Patriarch who failed to defend the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. The Patriarch before him, Abunna Tewoflos was murdered by Derg, the military junta and buried on the threshold of the palace and Abunna MArkarios did not raise a finger. When EPRDF entered Addis Ababa after it toppled the military, the patriarch was in a state of panic and sought shelter at American Embassy.
