The reversal of the democratic process and the frustration of the Ethiopians not to be able to bring change have dire consequences of polarisation of political views and driving people of moderate views to extremes. May be this was the long-term strategic intention of the Woyane regime to frustrate other players to the point of throwing their hands in to the air and resort to desperate ways of moving the resistance movement forward.
It is well documented that the brutal regime of Meles Zenawi is exclusively responsible to the present political impasse by choosing to rule by fear and terror, and reducing the nation to what can only be compared to Apartheid-era South Africa, by stripping its subjects of all their constitutional rights. To add insult to the wound the entire leaders of the opposition have been thrown to jail on trumped up charges of genocide and treason and the PM has already passed a verdict with no prospect for a fair trial.
It is a matter of historical record that the west has not so far taken democracy
in Africa seriously because their policy emanates from their narrowly conceived interest of the time. Despite the obvious injustices carried out by the Woyane regime against the people of Ethiopia, the US State Department has chosen not to criticize and put the necessary pressure on Zenawi’s regime. Instead they look for a lousy and pathetic excuse to qualify their support to the people by saying that the democratic culture is not well developed or label a brutal action as a mere overreactions.
Mr Yamamoto on his testimony at the HR 4423 Hearing and his subsequent visit to Addis, instead of taking the opportunity to correct America’s misguided policy on Ethiopia and support the aspiration of the people for democracy, he carried on covering up of the injustices committed by the woyane regime and colluded to dismantle the credible opposition movement.
This is all done to maintain the status-quo of misery and repression not to disappoint an ally in the war against terrorism, which is for a better analogy similar to forcing a wife and her children to stay in a relationship marred by physical and emotional abuse from the “husband”. The other myth that needs to be tackled head on is that why does the State Department fail to see that a democratic government with respect for the rights of its citizens can not implement anti-terrorist policy better than a dictator. After all isn’t it the commitment of the people towards this goal that is rather more trustworthy?
As if it was not enough to see the state department doing everything it can to defend the brutal Woyane regime and belittle the pain and suffering of the Ethiopian people, I am dumbfounded to learn that Ambassador Vicki Huddleston has gone out of her way to play a role political canvassing at its best and coercing elected councillors of the city of Addis at its worst by twisting their arms to take up the running of Addis Ababa city Council unconditionally.
I am afraid it is becoming increasingly clear that Ambassador Vicki Huddleston has a dual role of working as a lobbyist of Woyane regime using her office and the might of the American Administration to coerce elected city council members of Addis Ababa to take over the running of the City and join a pseudo CDU despite their well founded reservation and their democratic right to refuse to participate in a stage managed exercise with twisted motives which does not represent the will of Addis residents.
The recent unprecedented meddling of Ambassador Vicki Huddleston in Ethiopian internal politics and the act of other western hypocrites has exquisitely been put by by the columnist Michael Wrong where; “watching western governments engage with “Ethiopian politics” is like watching a doctor trying to bully a perfectly sane individual into a straitjacket. “It’s for your own good,” smiles the doctor. “You’ll thank me in the end. For a while the man allows himself to be coaxed, until, registering the implications, he scatters his minders with a few well-aimed blows and heads for the open air”.
It is rather a scepticism shared by many that once the honeymoon is over the rush to take over the running of the City Council unconditionally would not necessarily lead to a meaningful administration of the City. In fact one possible outcome of this sham may be that elected members will loose their power and credibility such that the Prime Minster will decide to dissolve the council, and decide to run it from the Palace. The other possible outcome might be, given the mafia trickery tactics of the regime, is that elected councillors will be set challenges impossible to achieve and become escape goats and the government will dissolve the Council and take over the running of the City. Seats and responsibility with out authority with hands tied behind their back is well known recipe for playing a scapegoat game for all forthcoming failures.
I may not know precisely the exact bounds and limits of a diplomatic mission in the internal politics of the country it is represented in, it however appears to me that Ambassador Vicki Huddleston has crossed the line by any stretch of imagination, and Ethiopians have retracted all benefit of doubt granted for her actions todate assuming that they are well intended to help the democratisation process. This cynical project certainly not only would damage the credibility of the American Administration and strengthen the perception of scepticism and mistrust by Ethiopians but it also signifies her utter lack of respect to this great nation and her shallowness on principles.
What rather disturbs me is why would Ambassador Vicki Huddleston and the state department prefers to rearrange the deck chair on the Titanic ship of the Woyane regime rather than investing in true democracy by putting its money where its mouth is. It was Ambassador Vicki Huddleston who despite repeated calls from all peace loving Ethiopians and friends at home and abroad on the heinous policy of the Woyane regime she resisted to put the weight of her office and administration to challenge the tyrant regime of Meles Zenawi for incarcerating the true leaders of people and its divisive policy and injustice committed up and down the country.
It should be abundantly clear to Ambassador Vicki Huddleston that, as Meqdes Mesfin put it “We are not asking you to fight our fight; we know how to do that very well, what we are asking you is not to support the ruling regime and make the fight any harder than it already is.”
Ambassador Vicki Huddleston in her interview intends to paint a rosy picture of the Ethiopian economy by indicating that it is an assessment shared by the World Bank too. Yes we are all aware of the campaign to bombard the world with all sort of news, reporting regarding the growth achievements of the government ranging from gathering peanuts in the backyard to mineral exploration. However, people are curious about its timing which in some cases misleading and not worth the paper it is written but a plot mainly designed to drawn the news about the injustice committed by the government and its gross abuse of human rights.
Although we may not disagree with growth in some sectors of the economy however, it is utterly misleading to present as if it is the result of a sustainable government policy. After all, it is hardly surprising to see some growth given the injection of foreign aid to the tune of £15 billion pounds to date and the flow of about £1.5 billion pounds every year. The other important observation of this miraculous economic growth is that it has hardly trickled down to the poor as nearly half of its 75 million population live on less that 1 dollar a day and the income gap between the rich and the poor has doubled in the last ten years. People are rather sceptical of quoting the World Bank as a testimony to her statement given its close connection to the regime in power and the basis of its policies, which are more often without a human face.
Ambassador Vicki Huddleston in her interview stated that the donor world believes that Ethiopia uses its development dollar better than most African countries, and corruption rate in Ethiopia is considerably below the average for African countries, where in some African countries corruption is paralyzing the nations from going ahead. However, I am puzzled how she is a little short of saying that this achievement is exclusively attributed to the incumbent government and a reason to defend it for. First of all the effectiveness of external aid or assistance is the result of exiting institutions which have rather been eroded by the woyane regime and new paradigms in development teach that sustainable growth and development is better achieved with open and inclusive government with respect to human right and freedom (Amartya Sen: Development as Freedom, 1999). Although it is encouraging to hear that corruption rate is in Ethiopia considerably below the average for African countries, I wonder why she has failed to mention that economic and political corruption in a grand scale is a phenomenon that has become the bread and butter of the Woyane regime.
Ambassador Vicki Huddleston’s comparison of the state of corruption in Ethiopia with other African states, as if that should be the standards of measurement, rather than comparing its own record overtime is likened to praising a drug addict because his addiction is milder than his mate.
In Conclusion, the way forward is not to sit and do nothing in the face of injustice committed on the entire nation but to use all our power and resources to further the cause of freedom and liberty and forsa with the opposition in all forms available. Do not underestimate the contribution you can make to justice and freedom, and remember Edmund Burke’s saying that “For evil to triumph it is enough only that good men do nothing”.
Remember Ethiopia is not just another address, but our home country that made us what we are today, and let us unite and put tyranny and misery behind us.
