History 101: Fiction and Facts on Oromos of Ethiopia

July 29, 2013

Prof. Feqadu Lamessa for Salem-News.com

(A guide for foreign journalists on Oromos and Ethiopian history)

(ADAMA, Ethiopia) – Recently, the Qatar-based media al Jazeera has published several articles concerning the Oromo people of Ethiopia. It is the first international media outlet to extensively report on our people and it should be praised for bringing our cause to the world stage.

One of the benefits of this exposure is it forces Ethiopian authorities to address human rights abuses in the country and to let them know that the world is watching. Oromos and other Ethiopians have been struggling for equal rights and democracy for decades. While it is important to report about Oromo people’ background and historical perspectives, it is however vital that we report accurate information. Instead of benefiting us, reporting inaccurate or biased information can actually harm our struggle for democracy. Instead of creating national consensus and peace, it can instigate bitterness and anger.

One of the reasons al Jazeera reported inaccurate information about Oromo history is because it depended on one-sided sources, especially from members or supporters of Oromo groups outside of Ethiopia (diaspora OLF, OFDM etc). But nobody can blame al Jazeera media because most people inside Ethiopia would be too scared to speak or contribute. The only option al Jazeera or any foreign media has is to use diaspora/refugee/external sources outside Ethiopia. This is a dilemma all foreign media outlets face while reporting about third-world countries like Ethiopia.

For educational purposes, some corrections are provided below to fix inaccuracies reported on al Jazeera media regarding Oromo history and our struggle for democracy. The corrections below are supported by non-political scholars, but they might be rejected by biased politicians (both from ruling party and from opposition party) for the obvious reasons. However, they are based on historical textbooks, European authors and scholarly accounts.

Fiction #1:

“Between 1868 and 1900, half of all Oromo were killed, around 5 million people”

Fact #1:

This is one of the most repeated inaccuracies, usually told by Secessionist Oromos, radical ethno-nationalist politicians outside the country or pro-OLF history revisionist websites like gadaa.com et al. However, the undisputed fact is that even the total Ethiopian population (the sum of dozens of ethnic groups) was much less than 5 million in the late 1800s, let alone one ethnic group being 10 million. So claiming that 5 million ethnic Oromos were killed by Emperor Menelik’s forces does not add up. The truth is several thousand Oromos were in fact killed during battles of that era. It was not a “genocide” as some politicians claim but it was a massacre of the ill equipped southern forces defeated by the Shewan military of Emperor Menelik which had more European weapons. Throughout those decades, the truth is more Oromos were killed by other Oromos than by non-Oromos because competing Oromo Clans often traded for weapons to have an upper hand against their local competitors, who were often their fellow Oromo and Sidama neighbors. And it was not the first lop sided victory of that era in Africa because various communities from all corners of Ethiopia had attacked one another during the “resource battles” and whichever group had more modern weapons had the upper hand. To summarize, Professor Mengistu Paulos of Jimma University said it best when describing right-wing Oromo liberation philosophy:

Power Africa? Empower Africans!

July 28, 2013

by Alemayehu G. Mariam

Power, power, power…

When President Obama recently visited Africa, he announced a “Power Africa” initiative.  In his Cape Town University speech, he proclaimed,  “I am proud to announce a new initiative. We’ve been dealing with agriculture.  We’ve been dealing with health. Now we’re going to talk about power: Power Africa, a new initiative that will double access to power in sub-Saharan Africa. Double it.  We’re going to start by investing $7 billion in U.S. government resources. We’re going to partner with the private sector, who themselves have committed more than $9 billion in investment.”

In the speech, President Obama used the word “power” 21 times in a variety of contexts. He philosophized about “power that comes from acting on our ideals” and the  “power of human beings to affect change”. He urged Africans to act “through the power of your example”. He encouraged support for programs “that empower women”. He mildly chided “those in power who make arguments to distract people from their own abuses.”

He puzzled over “what it will take to empower individual Africans” and enable Africans to have the “power to feed themselves.” He pleaded for “unleashing the power of entrepreneurship and market” and the creation of “partnership that empowers Africans.” He spoke about “the power to prevent illness and care for the sick” and “the power to connect their people to the promise of the 21st century.”

He lamented “Africa’s lack of access to power” and the need “to have power.”  He “talked about power — Power Africa” and “doubling access to power in sub-Saharan Africa.” He pitied those Africans who “live currently off the power grid.”

He wistfully spoke about Nelson Mandela “leaving power” which “was as profound as his ability to claim power”. He spoke of Mugabe’s “corruption of power” and Zimbabwe’s economic collapse.

To power Africa or to empower Africans, that is the question

Africa has a power problem. There is no question about that. Africa needs protection from thugs-cum-leaders who abuse power, misuse power, confuse power and excuse and justify their abuse and misuse of power. President Obama is already powering Africa. Every year, he hands out billions of dollars to Africa’s worst dictators (excuse me, he calls them “partners”) who abuse power in countries like Ethiopia.  Africa needs people power not thugs in power.

On second thought, Africa does not have a power problem.  Africa has a problem of powerlessness. The people are powerless against thugtators who use power to abuse their human rights. Africans are powerless against the powerful forces of corruption – officials and their cronies who “illicitly transfer” (steal and stash) tens of billions of dollars in foreign banks. For instance, “Ethiopia lost $11.7 billion to outflows of ill-gotten gains between 2000 and 2009” and  “in 2009, illicit money leaving the country totaled $3.26 billion.” Africans are powerless and disempowered against powerful election thieves who claim electoral victory by 99.6 percent. Africans are powerless against powerful warlords who seek to divide them along ethnic, religious, linguistic and regional lines. Yes, Africa’s powerless have a big problem with Africa’s powerful thugtators.

President Obama does not seem to get it. The question is not whether to power Africa but how to protect powerless Africans from those dictators America has powered and empowered by doling out billions of dollars in aid, loans and technical assistance every year. If he wants to power Africa, he should begin by empowering ordinary Africans against those who abuse and misuse their power. He should power up the youth grid that remains unused, abused and disused by those who manage the political power grid. He should use the billions of dollars of annual aid to disempower the few powerful African thugtators and empower the hundreds of millions of African youth.

Last week, in his New York Times opinion piece, Eskinder Nega, the symbol of press freedom in Ethiopia and Africa, made a simple but effective recommendation to President Obama: “I propose that the United States impose economic sanctions on Ethiopia (while continuing to extend humanitarian aid without precondition) and impose travel bans on Ethiopian officials implicated in human rights violations.” This proposal is in line with established U.S. policy. Beginning in 2001, the U.S. has imposed “targeted sanctions on the Government of Zimbabwe, including restrictions on U.S. support for multilateral financing, financial sanctions against selected individuals and entities, travel sanctions against selected individuals, a ban on transfers of defense items and services, and a suspension of non-humanitarian government-to-government assistance.” The official reason for these sanctions is the “Zimbawean Government’s increasing assault on human rights and the rule of law.” The human rights record of the regime in Ethiopia is far worse than the regime in Zimbabwe. That is a fact that can be demonstrated. President Obama should understand that what’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

Tracing Woyane’s Anti-Ethiopianism to the Italo-Ethiopian War

July 28, 2013

by Selam Beyene, PhD

The history of Ethiopia is replete with contradictions and paradoxes. There are accounts galore of heroism and meekness, patriotism and treachery, devotion and apathy, and, above all, fear of God and acts of

brutality in that ancient country. These chronicles may help provide clues about the root causes of the Woyane anti-Ethiopia schema and the appropriate plan of action needed to deracinate them.

By anti-Ethiopianism we purport the systematic and government-sanctioned weakening of the national fabric by pitting one ethnic group against another, as was witnessed recently in such areas as Benishangul-Gumuz and Gura Ferda zones. Anti-Ethiopianism is the appalling government policy of dislocating natives from their ancestral lands and transferring national wealth to foreigners at dirt cheap prices. It is anti-Ethiopianism to frame a constitution whose central object is to promote the disintegration and land-lockedness of the country.  Most importantly, anti-Ethiopianism implies the deviant system of government under which all major economic, political and military institutions are controlled by the minority Woyane group, and through which fundamental human rights are suppressed and the people are denied their basic rights to participate in free and fair elections.

Confucius sagaciously advised: “Study the past if you would define the future.” Accordingly, when we consider the current predicaments of the country, which are characterized by ethnocentrism, totalitarianism, corruption, nepotism and absence of a feeling of Ethiopian patriotism amongst the rulers; and, most importantly, when we search for a viable solution to them, we should go no further for clues and explanations than the recent past events, beginning with the invasion of Italy in 1935-1940.

Much has been documented about the infamous Fascist aggression by notable Ethiopian and Western historians, journalists and novelists, as well as other writers who had taken active parts in the actual war. While well-researched history books and journal articles may serve as the ultimate sources for academic exercise, there is considerable information that may be gleaned from anecdotal accounts narrated by individuals based on their personal experiences. In this regard, we are fortunate to have at our disposal now the writings of three foreigners who had the opportunity to witness firsthand the savagery of the Fascist aggression, the heroism of the Ethiopian fighters, and the betrayal by local collaborators.

The three foreigners, whose paths had crossed several times in the battles of Tembien, Maichew and other fronts, had fought on the side of Ethiopia under the leaderships of such eminent Ethiopians as Ras Kassa Hailu Darge, Ras Seyoum Mengesha and Ras Mulugeta Yiggezu, the War Minister. In so doing, they were able to record considerable historical data and to leave behind intriguing accounts of bravery and treachery that could inform present and future researchers seeking answers to some of the most complex questions about present-day Ethiopia. Most importantly, they provide critical insights into the underlying reasons for the anti-Ethiopian agenda Zenawi and his Woyane entourage successfully exploited to catapult themselves to power; the continued damage to the long-term viability of the country that is caused by the misguided fiscal, economic, educational and military policies implemented by the TPLF-led regime; and the institutionalization of ethnic-based governance that is portentously promoted to nurture inter-ethnic animosity among brothers and sisters who have lived in relative harmony for many centuries.

ሰበር ዜና

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የአንድነት ፓርቲ አመራሮች ቤት በፖሊሶች እየተበረበረ ነው
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- ብርበራው ቀኑን ሙሉ እንደሚደረግ ታውቋል
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በደቡብ ወሎ ዞን በሀይቅ ከተማ የሚገኙ የአንድነት ፓርቲ አመራሮችና አባላት ቤት ላይ ዛሬ ከማለዳው 12 ሰዓት ጀምሮ ብርበራ እንደተጀመረ የዞኑ የአንድነት ፓርቲ አመራሮች ለፍኖተ ነፃነት አስታወቁ፡፡
የአንድነት ፓርቲ የወረባቡ ወረዳ ሰብሳቢ አቶ እድሪስ ሰኢድ ለፍኖተ ነፃነት እንዳስታወቁት ዛሬ ከማለዳው 12 ሰዓት ጀምሮ “የጦር መሳሪያ ሰውራችኋል” በሚል ፖሊሶችና ሚኒሻዎች በሀይቅ ከተማ ባሉ ከ16 በላይ በሚሆኑ የአንድነት ፓርቲ አመራሮችና አባላት መኖሪያ ቤት ውስጥ ብርበራ አካሂደዋል፡፡ ብርበራው ከተካሄደባቸው አመራሮች መሀከል አንዱ የሆኑት የወረዳው የአንድነት ፓርቲ የፋይናንስ ኃላፊ አቶ አራጌ ሑሴን ለሪፖርተራችን እንደገለፁት 5 ፖሊሶችና 1 ሚሊሻ ከማለዳው 12 ሰዓት ጀምረው መኖሪያ ቤታቸውን ፈትሸዋል፡፡ አቶ አራጌ ሁሴን አክለውም “እኔ ሰላማዊ ሰው ነኝ ምንም አታገኙም አልኳቸው፤እንዳልኩትም 2 ሰዓት የፈጀ ብርበራ አድርገውም አንዳች ሳያገኙ ወጥተዋል” በማለት ገልፀዋል፡፡
“ብርበራው መንግስት በአንድነት አባላት ቤት ውስጥ የጦር መሳሪያ አገኘሁ በሚል የተለመደ ድራማ ለመስራት እንደተዘጋጀ የሚያስረዳ ነው” ያሉት የአንድነት ፓርቲ የደቡብ ወሎ ዞን ሰብሳቢ አቶ ብስራት አቢ ኢህአዴግ የደቡብ ወሎ ህዝብ በግዳጅ አንድነት ፓርቲን እንዲያወግዝ በተለያዩ ከተሞች ስብሰባና ሰላማዊ ሰልፎችን እንደጠራ አስረድተዋል፡፡ በአንድነት አባላት ቤት የሚደረገው ብርበራ እስከ ምሽት ሊቀጥል እንደሚችልም ለፍኖተ ነፃነት የደረሱ መረጃዎች አመላክተዋል፡፡

የሰማያዊ ፓርቲ ጥያቄ እና የመንግስት ምላሽ በአዲስ ዘመን ጋዜጣ ገፅ 3 (አጀንዳ)

የሰማያዊው ፓርቲ ጥቁር ተግባራት
ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ በጠራው ሕዝባዊ ሰልፍ ላይ ያቀረባቸው ጥያቄዎች የተሰላፊዎች ጥንቅርና መሰረታዊ ዓላማ በእጅጉ አነጋጋሪ ለሆኑ ጉዳዮች መነሻና መንደርደሪያ ሆነውኛል።
ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ ከአንድነት ፓርቲ ባለመስማማትና በልዩነት ራሳቸውን ያገለሉ፣ መርህ ይከበር በሚል ተሰባስበው የነበሩ ግለሰቦች የመሰረቱት ፓርቲ ነው፡፡ ወደ ኋላ ስንመለስም በ1997 ዓ.ም ቅንጅትን ከመሰረቱትና የከሸፈውን አመጽ በማስተባበርና በመምራት ከፊትና ከኋላ የነበሩ፤ ዛሬ ደግሞ የቀድሞውን ማንነታቸውን ሳይለቁ በአዲስ መልክና በአዲስ ኮፍያ ለመንቀሳቀስ እየሞከሩ ያሉ ናቸው፡፡
አንድ ተቃዋሚ የፖለቲካ ፓርቲ ሕገ መንግስቱ በሰጠው መብት በሰላምና በሕጋዊ መንገድ ሕጉንና ስርዓቱን አሟልቶ መንቀሳቀስ ይጠበቅበታል፡፡ ሰማያዊም ፓርቲ ሆነ ሌሎቹ ተቃዋሚ ፓርቲዎች በውጭ ከሚገኘው ጽንፈኛና አክራሪ ኃይል ጋር በመቀናጀት በአረቡ ዓለም የታየውን አብዮት ወደ ኢትዮጵያ እናመጣለን በሚል ለረዥም ጊዜያት ውስጥ ውስጡን ሲንቀሳቀሱ ቆይተዋል፡፡ ሆኖም እውነቱን የተረዳው ሕዝብ በአንድም ሆነ በሌላ መልኩ ይህንን ሊቀበላቸው አልፈቀደም፡፡
ከውጭ የአሸባሪው ግንቦት ሰባት ቴሌቪዥን ጣቢያ «ኢሳት» ባለፉት አመታትም ሆነ አሁን ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ የጠራውን ሕዝባዊ ሰልፍ አይነት እንዲካሄድ በዚህም ጠንካራ ጸረ-መንግስት እንቅስቃሴና አመጽ በአዲስ አበባና በክልሎች እንዲቀጣጠል፤ሁኔታዎች ከቁጥጥር ውጭ እንዲሆኑ፤ ሀገሪቷ ሰላሟ ደፍርሶ ወደ ሁከት፣ ብጥብጥና ስርዓተ አልበኛ ሁኔታ እንድታመራ፤ ያልፈነቀሉት ድንጋይ ያልጫሩትና ለማቀጣጠል ያለኮሱት እሳት የለም፡፡ አሁንም ሕዝቡ የተረጋጋ ሰላማዊ ሕይወቱን፣ የሀገሩን ሰላምና ደህንነት አጥብቆ የሚፈልግ በመሆኑ ይኸው እኩይ ሙከራቸው ሳይሳካ ቀርቷል፡፡
ካለፈው አመት ጀምሮ በአዲስ አበባ የሚገኙ ተቃዋሚዎች በርቀት ካለው ጽንፈኛው አክራሪ ሀይል ጋር በውስጣዊ ትስስር በመቀናጀት፤ አጀንዳ በመጋራት ሌላው የሴራ መንገድ አላዋጣቸው ሲል፤የሙስሊም ወንድሞቻችንን ትግል እንደግፋለን፤ ከጎናቸው እንሰለፋለን፤ መንግስት በሙስሊሞች ጉዳይ ጣልቃ ገብቷል፣ የታሰሩት ይፈቱ፣ ወዘተ የሚሉ መፈክሮችን በአገር ውስጥ ደጋፊዎቻቸው በጋዜጦች በዌብ ሳይቶች (በተለይም በአረቡ ዓለም መገናኛ ብዙሀንና ድረ ገጾች) በመጠቀም የፖለቲካ ድጋፋቸውን ለማስፋት በእጅጉ ደክመዋል፡፡አሁንም ገፍተውበታል፡፡
በአሜሪካና በሌሎች አገሮች የሚገኙ የጽንፈኛው ግንቦት ሰባት አክራሪ ቡድን አባላትና ደጋፊዎች በጅምላው የሙስሊሙን ጥያቄ እንደግፋለን በሚል ስብሰባ አካሂደዋል፣ ሰልፍ ጠርተዋል፡፡ ከሂጅራ ፋውንዴሽን ጋር በመተባበር የገንዘብ እርዳታ አሰባስበዋል፡፡ ይህንን ሁሉ ሸብ ረብ ሲያካሂዱ በኢትዮጵያ የአክራሪ እስልምና አደጋ መሰረት እየጣለና የሸረሪት ድሩን እያደራ መሆኑን እያወቁም ቢሆን ይክዳሉ፡፡
እነሱ የሚፈልጉት ምንም ሆነ ምን ከጎናቸው ተሰልፎ ኢሕአዴግን የሚጥል ሀይል ማበራከት በሚለው የጨለማ አስተሳሰብ የተቃኘ ነው፡፡ ስለዚህም ጥቂት አክራሪ ሙስሊሞች በየሳምንቱ የዓርብ ጁምአ ጸሎት፤ለስግደት በወጣው ሕዝበ ሙስሊም መካከል መፈክር በማሰማትና በማስተጋባት ሲያካሂዱት የነበረውን እንቅስቃሴ ተቃዋሚው ሀይል አይኑን ጨፍኖ ሕጋዊ ጥያቄ ነው በማለት ድጋፉን እየሰጠ ይገኛል፡፡ ይህንኑ አንድነት፣ መድረክና ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ በአይዞአችሁ ባይነት እያጋፈሩና ስፖንሰር እያደረጉት ይገኛሉ፡፡ ጉዳዩ ኢሕአዴግን የመደገፍ ወይንም ያለመደገፍ ጉዳይ ሳይሆን የአክራሪ ሙስሊሞች እንቅስቃሴ በኢትዮጵያ መከሰት የኢትዮጵያ ሀገራዊ ሕልውናና የደህንነት ጉዳይ መሆኑን ከጥላቻ ወጥቶ ማስተዋል ያልቻለ ተቃዋሚ ይሏል ይህ ነው።
መንግስትና የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ የችግሩን መሰረታዊነትና አሳሳቢነት በውል የተረዳው በመሆኑ ይህንን አደጋ ለመቅረፍ በጋራ እየሰሩ ይገኛሉ፣ ውጤታማም ሆነዋል፡፡ ምንም እንኳ ሰማያዊ ፓርቲ ያካሄደው ሕዝባዊ ሰልፍ ለሌሎች ጸረ ሰላም ኃይሎች አጀንዳ ማራመጃነትና መጠቀሚያነት ያገለገለ ቢሆንም። ሁከትና ብጥብጥ ሳይነሳ፤ በትዕግስት ማስጨረሱ የመንግስትን ብስለት በገሀድ ያረጋግጣል፡፡
ይህንን እንደ መልካም አጋጣሚ የወሰደው ጽንፈኛ ተቃዋሚ በድርጊቱ በመግፋት በክልሎችም ሰልፉን እያስተባበረ ይገኛል፡፡ መድረክ በመቀሌ ሰልፍ ለማድረግ ተከለከልኩ ሲል አንድነት ደግሞ ሁለት ወር የሚዘልቅ ሰልፍ በየክልሉ ለማድረግ ፕሮግራም አውጥቷል፡፡ የግብፆች እቅድ፤በአገር ውስጥ ተቃዋሚ በመጠቀምና በገንዘብ በመርዳት መንግስትን ማዳከም፤መወጠር የሚለው ስትራቴጂያቸው በገሀድ ነፍስ ሲዘራ እያየን ነው ማለት ነው፡፡ በመሰረቱ ሀገር በስራ እንጂ በሰልፍና በጩኸት አትለወጥም፣ አታድግምም፡፡ የውጭ ሀይሎች ተላላኪና መሳሪያ መሆን፤ የሀገርን ልማትና እድገት ለማጨናገፍ በፖለቲካ ሽፋን መንቀሳቀስ በሀገር ላይ የሚፈጸም ከባድ ወንጀል ነው፡፡ በሰማያዊው ፓርቲ ሰልፍ ላይ የታየው የሌሎች ተቃዋሚ ፓርቲዎች መሪዎችና አባላት ብቻ ሳይሆኑ በአብዛኛው ለአክራሪዎች ወግኖ የቆመው ኃይል ነው፡፡ይህም ሰማያዊው ፓርቲ አስቀድሞ ውስጥ ውስጡን የማስተባበር ስራ መስራቱን በገሀድ ያረጋግጣል፡፡ መካከለኛ እድሜ ላይ ያሉና አዛውንቶች ጭርሱንም በሰልፍ ላይ የሉም ማለት ይቻላል፡፡
የሰልፈኛው ቁጥር አናሳ ከመሆኑ አንጻር ያን ያህልም ግምት የሚሰጠው እንዳልሆነ በግልጽ የሚታወቅ ቢሆንም፣ «ለራስ ሲቆርሱ አያሳንሱ» ዓይነት ተረት ሆነና 100 ሺ ሰው ሰልፍ ወጥቷል ሲሉ የሰማያዊ ፓርቲ ኃላፊ ከእውነታው የተጣላ መግለጫ ለተለያዩ ሚዲያዎች ሰጡ፡፡ ኢትዮ ምሕዳር ጋዜጣም ይህንኑ በማስተጋባት ይሁን በራሱ ስሜት ተነሳስቶ እንደሆነ አይታወቅም በመጀመሪያ ገጹ ላይ «100 ሺ ሰዎች ሰልፍ ወጡ» ሲል ግነቱን በመድገም ዘገባ አቅርቧል፡፡ መልእክቱ አያሻማም፣ ለቀጣዩ ሰልፍ ሰዎች እንዲሰናዱ በኋላም ብዙ መቶ ሺዎች ወጡ ለማለት እንዲመች የተዘጋጀ የቅድመ ፕሮፖጋንዳ ስራ ወይም የቅስቀሳ ማስታወቂያ መሆኑ ነው፡፡
ሌሎቹም የውስጥና የውጭ ሚዲያዎች ከ1997 በኋላ የነበረው ፍርሃት ተሰበረ በሚል በመቶ ሺዎች ሰልፍ ወጡ፤ መንግስት በሶስት ወራት ለቀረቡለት ጥያቄዎች መልስ ካልሰጠ ተቃውሞውና ሰልፉ ተጠናክሮ ይቀጥላል፤ ተቃዋሚውም የበለጡ የተቃውሞ ሰልፎችን ለማድረግ እቅድ እያወጣ ነው፣ ተባብሮ እየሰራ ነው የሚሉ ዘገባዎችንም አንብበናል፡፡
ለዚሁም ተግባራዊነት አሜሪካና አውሮፓ ከሚገኙ አክራሪ ተቃዋሚ ሀይሎች ገንዘብ የማሰባሰብ ስራ እየተካሄደና ከወዲሁም ለመንቀሳቀስና ለማስተባበሪያ የሚሆን ገንዘብ በተለያዩ ሽፋኖች ወደ ሀገር ውስጥ እየገባ መሆኑን አንዳንድ መረጃዎች ያሳያሉ፡፡ በቀጣይም መሰል የተቃውሞ ሰልፎችንና የአደባባይ ስብሰባዎችን ለማደራጀት እንደሚንቀሳቀሱ እየገለጹ ይገኛሉ።
የአረቡ ዓለም ዓይነት አብዮት በመፍጠር በሁከትና በትርምስ መንግስትን በኃይል ለመጣል ይቻላል ብለውም ዕምነት ይዘዋል። ይህ ግን ኢ-ሕገመንግሥ ታዊና ሕገወጥ ከመሆኑም በላይ የሃገራችን ነባራዊ ሁኔታ ሊያስተናግደው የማይችል ከንቱ ምኞት ከመሆን የዘለለ አይሆንም።፡፡ እነሱ እንዳሰቡት ሕብረተሰቡ የስውር ሴራቸውና የአመጻቸው ተባባሪ ይሆናል ተብሎም ጭራሽ አይታሰብም። በዚህ ዓይነቱ ድርጊት ጀርባ በቀጥታና በተዘዋዋሪ የእነማን እጅ አለ? የነማንን ጥቅም ለማስከበርና ዓላማ ለማሳካት ነው ይህ ሁሉ እየታሰበ ያለው? ለዚህ ዓላማ መሳካት ሲባልስ በተለያየ መንገድ ከውጭ የሚገባ ስውር ድጋፍ የለም ወይ? የተለያዩ ክፍተቶች እንዲፈጠሩ በማድረግ የራሳቸውን ጥቅም ለማስከበር የሚራወጡ የተለያዩ የውጭና የውስጥ ኃይሎች የሉም ወይ? ወዘተ የሚሉትን ጥያቄዎች አንስቶ በሚገባ መፈተሽ ተገቢ ይሆናል። የመንግሥትን ጥብቅ ክትትልና ቁጥጥር በመፍራት ኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ ባሉ በመንግስትም ሆነ በግል የገንዘብ ተቋማት በኩል ግዙፍ ገንዘብ በቀጥታ አይልኩም፡፡ ሽብርተኞች በውጭው ዓለም እንደሚያደርጉት ሁሉ እነዚህም ጨዋታውን የሚያካሂዱትና ገንዘብ የሚያስገቡት ሕጋዊ ባልሆኑ የተለያዩ ስውር መንገዶች ነው፡፡
ይህ ሁሉ ደፋ ቀና በእርግጥ በዚህች አገር የተሻለ ለውጥ ለማምጣት ሳይሆን የሀገሪቷን ሰላም በማደፍረስ ወደ ሁካታና ትርምስ ማዕከልነት ለመለወጥ በዚህም ጥፋትና ውድመት መካከል በሚፈጠር የመርፌ ቀዳዳ በሚያህል ክፍተት ተሽሎክሉኮ በሕገወጥነትና በኃይል ሥልጣን መጨበጥ ብቻ ነው፡፡ ይህ የቀን ቅዥታቸው ግን በምንም መንገድ ዳር የሚደርስ አይሆንም፡፡ የኢትዮጵያ ሕዝብ ለዚህ የኢትዮጵያ ጠላቶች ከጀርባ ሆነው በፋይናንስ በመርዳት ለሚያደርጉት ርብርብ ውስብስቡን ገጽታቸውን ስለሚረዳው ፈጽሞ አይንበረከክም፡፡
የታላቁን ሕዳሴ ግድብ ግንባታና ሌሎችን የተጀመሩ ፈጣን የልማት እንቅስቃሴዎችን ለመግታት የሚራወጡት በተቃዋሚነት ስም ያሉ ሰማያዊ ፓርቲን የመሳሰሉና ሌሎች የሃይማኖትና የፖለቲካ ጽንፈኞች እንቅስቃሴ በአንዳንድ የውጭ ሀይሎች ስለላና መረጃ እንዲሁም ቀጥተኛ የፋይናንስ ድጋፍ ሊታገዙ እንደሚችሉ መገመት ከእውነታው የራቀ አይሆንም። ይህን ለማለት የሚያስደፍረውም በአቋም ደረጃ እያራመዱት ያለውና በተግባርም እንተረጉመዋለን የሚሉት ሁሉ ያለው ተመሳሳይነት ነው። የሰማያዊ ፓርቲ፣የአንድነትም ሆነ የመድረክ ሽር ጉድ ለሰላም፣ለዕድገት፣ለፍትሕና ለዲሞክራሲ መስፈን ሳይሆን በአቋራጭ ራሳቸውን ለሥልጣን ለማብቃት የሚያደርጉት የህልም እሩጫ ነው።
ለዚህም ሕዝቡን ለማነሳሳት፣በዲሞክራሲና በሰብአዊ መብት ስም መነገድ፤የሕዝብ ስሜትን ይቀሰቅስልናል ብለው የሚያስቡትን የተዘጋና ፈጽሞ ተቀባይነት የሌለውን አጀንዳ ሁሉ ከተቀበረበት አውጥቶ የሌለ ሕይወት ለመስጠት አቧራ ማስነሳት፣ በአሸባሪነት ተጠርጥረው ጉዳያቸው በነጻ ፍርድ ቤት በመታየት ላይ ያሉ ሰዎችንና ቀደም ብሎም የፍርድ ውሳኔ የተላለፈባቸውን በተመለከተ ከፍርድ ቤት ይልቅ ራሳቸውን ፈራጅ አድርገው በመሰየም ይፈቱ ማለትና በዚህም አክራሪነትንና ጽንፈኝነትን መደገፍ ነው ስራየ ብለው የያዙት፡፡
ታላቅ የሆነ ሀገራዊ ጉዳይ እያለ ያንን ለማሰናከልና ለውጭ ሀይሎች መሳሪያ በመሆን ሕዝቡን ለመከፋፈል መሮጣቸው ማንነታቸውን ይበልጥ አጋልጦታል፡፡ ማንም በዚህ የሚዘናጋና የሚታለል አይኖርም፡፡ ጥሪያቸውም ሆነ ቅስቀሳቸው ተቀባይነት የለውም፡፡ የሰማያዊ ፓርቲ፣ የአንድነትና የመድረክ ጥቁር ተግባራት ሀገሪቷን ወደ ጥፋት አቅጣጫ ለመውሰድ ያነጣጠረ እንጂ ለሕዝብ ጥቅምና ክብር ከማሰብ የመነጨ አይደለም፡፡ በዚህ ድርጊታቸው ግን የታሪክና የትውልድ ተጠያቂነትም እንደሚኖርባቸው ጠንቅቀው ሊገነዘቡት ይገባል፡፡

“I am Ethiopian first” Abebe Gellaw"

July 23, 2013

by Abebe Gellaw

Abebe Gellaw

It has come to my attention that my brief Facebook comment regarding a few controversial statements made by Jawar Mohammed has been posted on ECADF’s website as an article. I had no intention of writing a series piece on the issue. Quite obviously, there is a big difference between a well-thought out lengthy commentary and a brief message in a particular context.

My intention was just to appeal for calm and harmony, a necessary effort lacking in our political discourse. Often times, a message without its context is open to misinterpretation and misunderstanding. So there seems to be a need to clarify.

Politics, as far as I understand, is a mechanism of managing conflict of interests. It is a means of building consensus through dialogue and compromise. Since the early 1960s, the major political conflict in Ethiopia has been between ethno-nationalists and nationalists. The forces on both ends of the political spectrum have not still found a middle ground that can bring them towards consensus and compromise.

My understanding is that Jawar is an ethno-nationalist. As an ethno-nationalist, he says he is an Oromo first. Unlike him, I am a nationalist. But that is not the major problem. The problem is the way he has chosen to articulate and present his views in question that have been widely perceived as inflammatory and divisive.

I firmly and fervently believe that I am an Ethiopian first. I do not wish to allow the ethnic origin of my predecessors and parents to define me as a human being and overshadow my Ethiopian identity.

Jawar said Ethiopian identity was imposed on him. On the contrary, I argue that such a position is fundamentally flawed. Nowhere in the world is anyone given choices of national identity.

The Chinese-American writer, Eric Liu, once said: “The next time someone uses denial of citizenship as a weapon or brandishes the special status conferred upon him by the accident of birth, ask him this: What have you done lately to earn it?” Our predecessors, who have bequeathed us a country called Ethiopia with all its faults, challenges and problems, have made huge sacrifices in blood and flesh so that we’ll never be stateless. We should rather make sacrifices to reclaim our country and make our citizenship more meaningful by winning our rights, as citizens, to live in our country with full dignity, freedom and equality. We should make Ethiopia a country where every citizen and ethnic group is equal.

Unfortunately, our birthplaces also define the major problems and opportunities we inherit. Ethiopia is not a perfect nation. Far from it, it is defective and faulty as a result of the age-old tyrannies and injustices we have been condemned to suffer collectively.

Like any nation, it offers unique challenges as well as opportunities. With all its problems and baggage, Ethiopia is a nation of 80 million people. Our destiny is intertwined. We are diverse and yet we are all Ethiopians, whether we like it or not. I believe that rejecting Ethiopia as our country is not a solution to any of the problems we are supposed to confront. We should rather make strenuous efforts to reconstruct Ethiopia as a country where all of its citizens live in freedom, harmony, justice, peace and prosperity.

In the new Ethiopia we envision, there should be no room for inequality, injustice and tyranny. It should never be a prison for its children, regardless of their political, ethnic or cultural backgrounds. No ethnic or political group should be allowed to impose hegemony at the detriment of the majority.

The worst challenges all citizens of Ethiopia, except the oppressors, face are political oppression, grinding poverty, indignity, inequality, injustice and discrimination, just to mention a few among so many. At this time and age, what has been imposed on us is not national identity but the tyranny of the TPLF, an extremist ethno-nationalist group whose aim was nothing more than seceding Tigray. That is why we should continue struggling to throw off this backbreaking tyranny from our shoulders.

As I have clearly stated in another Facebook post, addressed to Jawar, “No nation-state was formed through consensus and democratic deliberations. Nation-states emerged out of conflicts, conquests, occupations and colonialism. While almost all African states were created by the colonial powers, Ethiopia was formed through internal processes. It was a painful process but not even as painful as what Native Americans and Europeans, who had gone through two devastating [world] wars.”

“We Ethiopians do not need to be bitter about the past. We are not part of the old history. But we certainly need to preserve our country and make it a nation for all correcting past injustices and mistakes. We need to move forward with a united spirit. As long as we can bring about real equality, justice, freedom and democracy, we will be fine. That is what we should all fight for rather than dwelling on the past [and gnaw old bones]. It is the present and the future that really matter….”

While I called for unity rather than condemning each other, making such inflammatory and controversial statements that turned out to be divisive are not only wrong but also damaging to our common cause for freedom. I said Jawar had misspoken. The dictionary definition of misspeak is not to endorse or approve. It means, “To speak mistakenly, inappropriately, or rashly.” I think that should be clear enough. It was particularly wrong for Jawar to speak in such a divisive ethno-religious tone at a time when we desperately need to unify to overcome and overwhelm the divide-and-rule tyranny of the TPLF. That is where he misspoke, in my humble opinion, without completely disregarding so many positive contributions.

I was under the impression that calling for sanity and unity at this critical juncture in our struggle would not also be misconstrued as a sign of weakness. I always see myself as a moderate. Compromise for the sake of the greater good is at times a mechanism to avoid unnecessary conflict and feelings. Even if that was my intention, I believe that we Ethiopians should never compromise on anything that undermines our unity, freedom, harmony and peace.

After all, our aspiration is to rebuild a united nation that will accommodate every citizen as equal and guarantee the freedom of every individual citizen including those who believe that they are the byproducts of their cultural and ethnic heritage. For that to happen, we need to preserve Ethiopia, a country that we will all be proud of when we claim our freedom despite its troubles and predicaments.

Anyone is not entitled to apologize on behalf of Jawar. If any apologies are needed, no one but only Jawar is entitled to make. As far as I am concerned, I am nobody’s apologist.

That said, I will be disingenuous if I do not repeat my main message. Let us move on with a united spirit and focus on our just cause for freedom, equality and justice. That is much more important than the war of attrition and divisiveness that is derailing our gains. Whenever we have problems, we should first have the courage to address them in a civilized manner. Again let us move on united as Ethiopians…

Deconstructing Construction Corruption in Ethiopia

July 21, 2013

by Alemayehu G. Mariam

In my fifth commentary on corruption in Ethiopia this year, I focus on the construction sector. The other commentaries are available at my blogsite.

The cancer of corruption in the construction sector the World Bank (WB) documented in its “Diagnosing Corruption in Ethiopia” is just as malignant and metastatic as in the land, education and telecommunications sectors. According to the WB report:

In the construction sector, Ethiopia exhibits most of the classic warning signs of corruption risk, including instances of poor-quality construction, inflated unit output costs, and delays in implementation. In turn, these factors appear in some cases to be driven by unequal or unclear contractual relationships, poor enforcement of professional standards, high multipliers between public sector and private sector salaries, wide-ranging discretionary powers exercised by government, a lack of transparency, and a widespread perception of hidden barriers to market entry.

Ethiopia’s “construction sector” falls into four categories: roads, water supply and irrigation, power, and other public works including construction of universities, schools, hospitals and markets. Annual spending on roads alone is estimated to be US$1.2 billion. The “government” totally dominates the construction sector. “Ethiopia is unusual compared with most other African countries, which have already fully privatized the design and construction of public works.”

There are multiple and “interrelated drivers of corruption in Ethiopia’s construction sector.” These drivers are “related to deficiencies in accountability (transparency based on clear performance criteria), capacity (availability of sufficient material and human resources and proper procedures), and trust (confidence in the market that allows businesses to invest in increasing their own capacity). In Ethiopia, “A lack of capacity makes corruption possible, a lack of accountability makes corruption happen, and a lack of trust allows corruption to take root.”

The WB report highlights corruption in Ethiopia’s construction sector along six dimensions. The policymaking and regulatory processes are at high-risk area of corruption. Such corruption “has a major effect on sector governance.” Policies and regulations could “encourage, or help hide, corrupt practices” and unless corrected perpetuate corruption by groups or individuals. The Ethiopian “government” “controls the price of construction materials, access to finance, and access to equipment. It controls professional and company registrations. It maintains high-level, bilateral infrastructure deals with China and lacks independent performance audits.” According to the WB report, “Many stakeholders are concerned about the possibility of a connection between the dominant role of Chinese contractors in the road sector and high-level links between the Ethiopian and Chinese governments” and the “lack of effective competition, with Chinese contractors dominating the international market and a limited set of domestic contractors dominating the national market.” These problems are compounded by other factors such as poor quality control, weak enforcement of professional standards and overall lack of transparency. Professionals in the construction sector are reluctant to complain “for fear of being victimized” and believing there is no truly independent body to which they can appeal.” Since the “government is a major client”, “there is a reluctance to express dissent.”