The Ethiopian government reps. held a town hall meeting in a city not far from where I live. There
were over a hundred of us protesting outside and two hundred plus were inside listening to the
marketing. It was an out of this world experience. San Jose and other cities where the salesmen went
were transformed in a new and positive manner. The intervention was definitely divine. Ethiopia
stretched her hands to God and it was answered.
They came with their ethnic baggage in hand; we waited for them as one. They came to divide, we
ended up together. They came to saw hate and discord but they made us see how beautiful our
diversity is. They are programmed to think as one while we celebrate the many voices that enrich our
discussion. It was obvious we were like oil and water. Woyane and Ethiopia don’t mix. Mengistu and
Ethiopia did not mesh either. Too bad we ended up where we started.
The government is perfectly aware that there was no chance of holding a fund raising or any event in
any western city. None. Why do it then? Why does a snake bite? It is embedded in its DNA. Hate and
violence are imbedded in Woyane’s nature. They came specifically to stir the pot of hate and ethnic
division. They knew they were going to set up a single ethnic group against all others. If it serves their
purpose and they did not care for the consequences. They are cold blooded.
San Jose was one such place where this tragic theatre was played. It was financed by all but directed,
stared by and played by a single ethnic group. It started late, sound and video were not set up and
things never got any better. When it did start the presentation made you wonder why a meeting was
called for. The presenter who later on the program introduced himself as Minster of Internet just
read the power point presentation word for word. That was the whole shpeel. The question and
answer were a wholesale situation where nothing of significance was asked or answered. It was a
depressing display of weakness.
Looking at the officials made me think how much we all contributed to this madness. I thought of my
cousins starving, their children not learning, the graduates not working and the mothers and fathers
watching their kids wasting their productive years. Here we have a 35 people strong delegation
visiting 10 US cites to stir trouble. It is not a cheap trip. Here is a very conservative budget for building
a bridge to nowhere.
Do you think the investment is worth the return? Or should the question be what exactly was the
regime expecting from such an investment. I believe it was meant to deflect attention away from the
current peoples uprisings in North Africa. It is also to cover up the ongoing economic melt down. As
far as the regime is concerned both are very troubling issues currently eating up scarce resources to
safeguard the status quo. The whole country is employee of the Ethiopian government. There is no
branch of activity the government either directly or thru its proxies such as EFFORT is not involved in.
Land, Communication, banking, insurance, import export, are all under the control of the TPLF party.
It requires a lot of resources to run an illegal enterprise.
It requires constant injection of new capital. The economic downturn in the west and the Middle East
is having a negative impact on the regime. The remittance cash is drying up. Expenses are going up.
As usual the government is throwing up all kinds of solutions hoping one works. We have seen this
before. You remember when growing for bio-fuels was the salvation or was it flowers? How does that
compare to railway line to Port Sudan or was it to Mombassa? I believe even Hargessa was in the
running. I do not think it was as dramatic as fiber optics wiring for good old Ethiopia and that was five
years ago. A few weeks ago the PM was speculating about streetcars for Addis, hope he was
dreaming of solar powered, you don’t want all those trolleys stuck in the middle of the road for lack
of electricity do you? Menged be fereka.
The new scam to expropriate cash from the citizen is the millennium dam on the mighty Nile. The
idea is so beautiful it takes your breath away. It is a very bold proposition that stirs the soul. Imagine
a big dam holding our water just for us. As usual as far as TPLF is concerned the dam is done. The
computer-generated design is awe-inspiring. You can almost touch it. That is all it is, pie in the sky.
They will collect a few dollars and let it die a natural death. Just like the railway line to Kenya, the
great highway to Sudan, broadband Internet all over Ethiopia the Millennium Dam will be allowed to
evaporate. But, what a warm feeling it created in all of us. Thank you for the wonderful trip Woyane.
While the regime is in such a generous mood to modernize Ethiopia we have a few suggestions if we
are allowed. It does not require a single penny from the government. Let us start with education. It is
the key. Knowledge is what makes the world go round. Knowledge is what is needed in Ethiopia. Can
we allow the privatization of the communication sector and unleash the power of the Internet to
spread knowledge free of charge? The rewards are beyond our dreams. It will create thousands of
jobs (service providers, web designers, programmers, sales and advertising) not to mention a smarter
generation.
Let us also allow the private press to flourish. Private television, radio, newspaper and magazines
inform and nurture our people. The government will collect revenues from all this enterprises while
the citizen creates jobs and wealth. The San Jose participants were freely given beautifully printed
brochures full of pictures, graphs and marketing all done by government-confiscated presses. How
sad due to the artificial price of paper, ink and Communications department sanctioned use of
violence, threat and other illegal acts the free press in Ethiopia is withering away as we watch. Today
our country is the last in Africa in newspaper distribution, variety and freedom scale. Darkness is the
friend of the totalitarian system. Knowledge and freedom go hand in hand.
The Ethiopian government means to keep the population in ignorance. Our country is the worst wired
and the least digitized on the planet. The government is afraid of the citizen getting unbiased opinion.
Independent Web sites are blocked, our satellite TV transmission is jammed (www.esat.com) even
VOA and Deutsche Welle are victims of TPLF madness. How could such a government be trusted to
do anything good? Why would such a system that degrades human beings be allowed to exist?
It exists because we allow it. It exists because we feed it. It exists because some of us have decided
our personal interest is bigger than our love for country and fellow human being. It exists because we
have knowingly decided to turn our face away. There are no two sides to dying of hunger. There is
nothing to be said about being exiled from your homeland and finding yourself wondering in the
deserts of Libya, the Jungles of Malawi, the ghettos of Rome or Frankfort the projects of America. But
our silence makes all this happen. If not for us telling the world the trials and tribulations of our
people who else?
Since the uprisings in the Moslem world the Ethiopian government has been experimenting with
various responses to hold this tsunami of freedom at bay. I believe we are on response #5. It is good
to notice that there has never been this flurry of activity in past crisis situations. This one is different.
It seems to have a life of its own. No one has found the right combination of response. The one that
has come close is Ben Ali of Tunisia. He left early, he left clean. The others, like patients on AID
medicine are trying different combinations.
Ato Meles is trying hard. There is no margin for error here. If history is any indication his neck is on
line. To his credit he sent Berket, gave a press conference, used the speech at the kangaroo
Parliament, sent his delegates to Europe and America and created the Millennium Dam fiction. That is
five different responses in two months time. For a person whose contract specifies eight hours a day
this uprising business is creating over time situation. It is lonely at the top. He does not have any good
will left with anybody. His old friends are more than happy to be called as witnesses for the
prosecution, his Kilil servants will even the score at a drop of a hat, his foreign benefactors will send
Ambassadors to meet the new guys in town and the reliability of family and close friends is not
certain. This is not a happy Easter.
