Blair vs Zenawi: Some Advice for Mr Blair

By Wowoka Abebe

February 15, 2006

At odds with each other (BBC)

Referring to the February 13, 2006 Times article commenting on the strange relationship between Mr Blair and Mr Zenawi that surfaced during the summit of “progressive’ leaders in South Africa last weekend, I have the following to say:

• Talking to Mr Zenawi, Mr Blair sounded very angry by what Mr Zenawi has done to the Ethiopian people, obviously against his expectation.
• Mr Blair did not want to admit the mistakes he has made and the pain he has caused to the Ethiopian people by supporting Mr Zenawi.
• Mr Blair was begging Mr Zenawi to save him from further embarrassment and anger by doing something about the obvious human rights violations in Ethiopia.
• Mr Zenawi, knowing well the crimes he has committed against the Ethiopian people and the inevitable determination of the people to fight for their freedom, did not want to commit himself to take any kind of risk by accepting what Mr Blair suggested regarding the promotion of democratic reforms in Ethiopia.
• By rejecting Mr Blair’s request, Mr Zenawi once again confirmed to the world that he will continue his dictatorial rule in Ethiopia, no matter who tells or gives him what.

Well, Mr. Blair, you have it all again from your stone-faced (according to Jonathan Clayton of Times) “progressive” friend. What can you say now, Sir? It is about time you open your mind and think of other alternatives, which can serve the Ethiopian people better. By now you should be able to conclude that there is no hope in Mr Zenawi’s leadership in Ethiopia. In the minds of almost all Ethiopians and many others, his leadership has already reached a dead end. The Ethiopian people have rejected Mr Zenawi as a leader and consider him a criminal. Whatever hard he tries to hide or alter the news, a widespread movement for a democratic change is going on in the country in spite of his repression, and for sure there is no turning back.

From the experiences so far, I would like to kindly suggest the following specific things for consideration by Mr Blair.

• Admit that you made a mistake and hurt the Ethiopian people by supporting a tyrant. If you apologize for that, that would be even better.
• Openly condemn the tyrant for all his anti-democratic actions and stop providing him any kind of support immediately.
• Learn more about Ethiopia’s problem from the people themselves and from their true friends like Professor Christopher Clapham of Cambridge University.
• If you wish to offer help to the Ethiopian people, listen to them directly and do what they would ask you to do- not what someone who does not represent them begs you to do.
• Talk to other friends of yours including President George Bush about the real cause of the problem of Ethiopia and convince them to do the right thing for the people and the country.

In my opinion, these are the best and the right things you can do at this present time to help Ethiopia and its people. Your help in this regard can be instrumental for facilitating a peaceful transition, for which the Ethiopian people would reward you with forgiveness, appreciation and love. I hope you will make the right decision of choosing this noble and exciting undertaking very soon.