After more than a decade of low-level hostilities and sour relations, there are signs Eritrea and Ethiopia could be ready to talk again

It has been over a decade since talks regarding the demarcation of Eritrea-Ethiopia border stalled, and relations between the two long-standing nemeses deteriorated into an effective cold war. Although the Eritrea-Ethiopia war officially ended with signing of the Algiers Agreement in 2000, relations are still marked by recrimination, sabre-rattling, and efforts at mutual

destabilisation. Although each claims to be against another war, the risk of escalation remains high along their heavily-militarised border. Both sides continue to undermine each other’s stability, from allegedly supporting armed opposition groups to waging a proxy war in Somalia.

At the heart of this crisis is the ruling by the Boundary Commission which was established under the Algiers Agreement, a peace treaty marking the end of two years of hostilities. The Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission was tasked with defining the contested border, and both sides agreed to accept its decision. However, having initially welcomed the ruling in April 2002, Ethiopia reversed its position a few months later, displeased that Badme, the flashpoint of the war, had been awarded to Eritrea. Eritrea refused to agree to a new commission and negotiations came to a standstill. Tensions remained high and relations remained sour.

Since then, Ethiopia’s position has softened slightly from its claim that the border judgment was “unjust and illegal”; in 2005, for example, Ethiopia’s foreign minister wrote a letter to the UN Security Council in which he repeated Ethiopia’s earlier acceptance of the decision “in principle” and added that this “does not mean going back to the drawing board”. Eritrea meanwhile has continued to insist that dialogue cannot recommence until Ethiopia unconditionally accepts the border ruling.

This environment of mistrust and stagnation has defined the status quo for the last decade, with prospects of genuine peace seeming far away. Recently, however, there have been hopeful signs that this could be slowly changing with each side expressing greater readiness for talks.

If negotiations do restart, how could a lasting peace between these arch-enemies be achieved?

The flawed Algiers peace process

The first step in answering this question is to examine why the Algiers Agreement failed. On the one hand, there is some truth to the argument that neither Ethiopia nor Eritrea had any real interest in the process to begin with. But at the same time, there was also a multitude of real and complex issues which hindered any possible reconciliation.

First, the Algiers process foundered because it failed to address the root causes of the war. The conflict arose due to myriad historical, political and economic issues, but the peace process treated the conflict as a mere border dispute. By focusing on just the immediate cause of the war, it eschewed the deep political and economic controversies central to the war. This undermined chances of a durable solution from the outset.

Second, this narrow approach was exacerbated by a flawed arbitration process which focussed in on legal matters rather than political disagreements. Legal methods are inherently conservative and inflexible, and the clause of Algiers Agreement which said the boundary decision would be “final and binding” left no leeway for cooperation – instead, it propelled both parties into a zero-sum game.

The arbitration process was also weakened by contradictory rulings by different bodies. Initially, mediation initiatives concurred with Ethiopia’s stance that Eritrea had crossed the international boundary and should withdraw, but the Boundary Commission’s ruling, which awarded Badme to Eritrea, suggested Eritrea had not advanced beyond its borders. This was again complicated by the later ruling by the Claim’s Commission that found Eritrea responsible for igniting the war.

What are the prospects for peace?

Recently, there seem to have been improved prospects for peaceful resolution. The death in August 2012 of Ethiopia’s long-time leader Meles Zenawi – whose personal rivalry with Eritrea’s president Isaias Afewerki stoked hostilities – has raised hopes of a return to the negotiating table. After taking office, Meles’ successor, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, expressed a willingness to travel to Eritrea to talk with Afewerki without preconditions. And in December, Afewerki reportedly requested mediation by Qatar, which previously brokered an agreement to resolve a border dispute between Eritrea and Djibouti in June 2010.

Several other issues could also push both parties to end the low-level conflict. After the Algiers Agreement, both governments sought to settle unfinished scores. In the protracted cold war, however, there was a clear winner and loser. Ethiopia managed to seize the status of regional hegemon, leave Eritrea diplomatically isolated, win the support of major powers such as the US, and get UN sanctions imposed on Eritrea. Eritrea, meanwhile, suffered economically, lost the upper-hand in the legal border battle, and came to be seen as a pariah state, accused of sponsoring regional instability and terrorism. The regime in Asmara is now in a struggle for its own survival. Its military capability is checked, external pressure remains high, its economic situation is dire, and there appears to be simmering domestic dissent as exhibited by several high-level defections and an army mutiny on 21 January, 2013.

This could suggest that Eritrea is more likely to agree to talks, but this is not necessarily the case and there are still many hurdles remaining. Firstly, there is baggage of the past, contrasting political and national interests, and the ongoing rivalry. Secondly, Ethiopia’s strong position could make it less willing to compromise. Thirdly, peace efforts may not even be in Afewerki’s interests. Afewerki’s regime has been subjecting Eritrea to political repression and economic hardships all in the name of defending against Ethiopian annexation. Reconciliation with Ethiopia would undermine this strategy and confront the regime with an array of challenges such as demobilisation, a return to constitutionalism, and a move to democracy – all so far postponed given the alleged existential threats facing the country. For Afewerki, a ‘no war no peace’ status quo might well be preferable to a peace that could cost him his power.

How peace could be achieved?

Firstly, any initiative should uphold the terms and achievements of the Algiers agreement. Although its legal and political instruments have expired, the accord has not been abrogated. Eritrea in particular seems committed to the treaty and upholds its integrity. The agreement continues to provide a framework within which Ethiopia and Eritrea can settle their differences.

Secondly, any peace initiative should go beyond previous negotiations in seeking a comprehensive settlement of the root causes of the conflict – both economic and political. One major contention is land-locked Ethiopia’s claim of a “right of access to sea” either through incorporation of some Eritrean territory along the coast or guaranteed lease of the port of Assab. Previous fears that Ethiopia could claim access to the sea by military force make Eritrea’s insistence that Ethiopia unconditionally respect Eritrea’s territorial sovereignty all the more salient. The lease of Assab to Ethiopia would likely be in Eritrea’s economic interest, but a history of Ethiopian (previously Abyssinian) attempts to annex the country mean mistrust is high. Any peace effort must come up with an intelligent way to address this and other complex issues.

Finally, a sustainable peace process should emphasise long-term reconciliation and cultivate the right environment for the normalisation of relations and possible future cooperation. Alongside formal negotiations, informal channels could also be important in this. Non-official Track II diplomacy involving civil society, community elders, religious leaders and others could provide an effective peace-making mechanism. It has the advantage, amongst other things, of laying the foundation for a more durable peace through broad social reconciliation by dealing with historical-political grievances and the deeper roots of inter-communal conflicts. Unlike more adversarial formal proceedings, it could help thaw hostilities between two governments locked in the pride and prejudice of their kin communities.

thinkafricapress

By his own admission, founder of Access et al, Ermyas T. Amelga, has collected over 1.3 billion Br from the public, through Access Real Estate SC, a company he helped establish and where he controls a majority share, alongside Access Capital Services SC. Yet, his closest business associates estimate the figure could be as high as 1.7 billion Br, mobilised from homebuyers numbering a little over 2,000.

Today, the real estate firm, praised by many of Ermyas’ supporters as pioneering the industry, finds itself in a typical “bank run” crisis. It is a situation in which a large number of customers demand to withdraw their money simultaneously, due to concerns over a company’s solvency. Such a decision from customers comes when they panic about the prospect of losing their savings.

Nothing explains the mood in Addis Abeba over the past couple of weeks, in relation to Access Real Estate, better than sheer panic. Only last week, prospective homeowners conducted a series of meetings in different sites of the company, plotting a way to recover their money or retain assets believed to be under the company’s deed.

One such meeting took place inside a construction site located adjacent to Nyala Motors, where Access Real Estate entered into the market immediately after it was formed by 65 shareholders. It is a plot leased by the city to Eskinder Kassa, a returnee businessman who wanted to start a real estate business in the early 2000s. Partnered by Access, he formed a company by the name ME’RAF Plc, where Access held a majority share, and leased over 6,000sqm plot from the city administration.

It was to be one of the first projects for a public company that had managed to raise close to 35 million Br in equity from its shareholders.

The contract to build eight blocks of condos was given to Gabby Investments Plc, owned largely by Biniam Mebrhatu, an engineer by training and a founding shareholder of Access Real Estate – although he left the company after selling his over two million Birr’s worth of shares, shortly after the firm’s founding, in 2008.

Almost three years on, homebuyers on this site have yet to receive one flat and the site remains a construction zone. Although 50pc of the work has been completed, consuming a total of close to 129 million Br, it has been over a year since construction activities were halted, owing to the construction company’s claim of an outstanding payment of 25 million Br, Fortune confirmed.

This outstanding payment included an adjacent plot, which Access sold houses on, after acquiring it from another company, owned largely by Laura Plc. Almost completely sold to homebuyers, after the company advertised floor plans, the project has so far consumed 85 million Br of investment.

These investment amounts are part of the 500 million Br Ermyas claims the real estate firm has spent in hiring contractors for 19 sites across the city. Another company with products new to the domestic construction industry has been paid as much to deliver not only homes to buyers, but also impact the overall business model of Access Real Estate.

YBEL Industry Plc, which claims to have an ambition of “building change”, was paid 260 million Br to work on 12 sites, introducing a construction scheme that is different to the conventional method of employing rebar, blocs and concrete. YBEL’s emergence on the local construction industry scene is intertwined to Access, due to Ermyas’s bold business venture in promising to deliver homes within one year, for apartments, and 18 months for villas. It was also daring of Ermyas and his rather passive board of directors to pledge a penalty for failure of 5,000 Br, in monthly rent, or the option of a full refund with 15pc interest mark-ups, to those who demanded their money back.

YBEL Industry was established by three young professional shareholders; Yonas Tadesse, Brehane Woldu and Luchiano Framolin, the latter is now only a board member. The shareholder base later on increased, after Noah and Teklebrehan Ambaye, the construction mogul and brother of Brehane, joined the company.

Priding itself as a pioneer, in introducing “revolutionary construction methods”, YBEL provides turnkey projects of residential, commercial and industrial structures using light gauge steel structure frames, agro-stone panels and magnesium boards. The company has acquired a factory, and owned  by a Chinese company on a 150,000sqm plot it leased in the Tateq area, on the outskirts of Addis Abeba.

It is here that raw materials, such as magnesium oxide, mined from a query near Qinticha, Oromia Regional State and fibre, imported from China, get mixed to manufacture the magnesium boards and agro-stones. It is also here that light steel structures, imported from the same country, are framed before being shipped out to construction sites.

And, many of the sites Access acquired from other companies and sold houses for are contracted out to this company, which is thought to build on no less than 65,000sqm of built up area. Faster to be erected, allegedly cheaper in price, and considered to be fire resistant and safe from hazards, shareholders of YBEL are passionate in introducing this technology, which managers claim costs 4,000 to 5,000 Br a square metre, almost half the price of conventional methods.

However, it is not a claim without a challenge by many in the construction industry, who suggest that the price may go as high as 12,000 Br a square metre.

Despite the dispute within the industry, YBEL has succeeded in securing contracts from the state owned Metal & Engineering Corporation (MeTEC) to build 10 blocks of apartments in Mojdo and over 1,000 units of housing in the labour camp at the Great Renaissance Dam.

Its largest contract, both in volume and value, came from Access Real Estate, which signed out deals worth over three billion Birr initially – subsequently brought down to a little over two billion Br. It was to construct apartments and villas on at least 12 sites, successfully marketed and sold by Access for 750,000 Br each, for three bed-room flats, and 686,800 Br each, for two bedrooms. The company had pledged to deliver these homes within a year and close to two years.

The first attempt was rolled out on a plot leased by Meri Real Estate Plc in front of the CMC residential complex, on a little over 8,000sqm, originally leased by Star Business Group. Access bought 75pc of shares in Meri, in the same manner it did with ME’RAF Plc, to build four-storey apartments, dubbed “Diplomatic”, in two blocs, and designed by Living Steel Plc, a company that has subsequently merged with YBEL Industry.

Ermyas was little prepared for the abrupt decision of local authorities, to suspend 15 projects in Yeka District, following claims by the Addis Abeba Chamber of Commerce over the plots to build an international trade fair facility on a 110,126sqm plot. Delayed significantly, the resumption of construction was forced to change from four to seven storeys, thus almost doubling the number of homebuyers. This also led to the change in plan to use steel structure, whose imports Access Real Estate advanced 2.6 million dollars to cover letters of credit opened at Zemen Bank.

Although a bomb-shelter like concrete foundation, comprising of an underground parking lot, was laid by an Italian subcontractor, MISAC, today, the steel bars, spread out and left in view, serve as grim reminders of a project abandoned for sometime; they were erected to hold the structural steel that has been left to rust inside ports in Djibouti.

Managers at YBEL would give curious visitors a tour of their plant, in Tateq, to show the light gauge steel brought in to use at the Meri site, before the plan was changed to use structural steel. But, they still hope to use them for internal partitions, alongside the magnesium boards, which they claim to have the manufacturing capacity to produce 3,000 units in one shift.

It remains a mystery for many that a real estate firm, entrusted with billions of Birr advanced by homebuyers, can struggle to settle what it owes its bank, in order to complete the import of steel structures. It is largely due to Ermyas’ ill fated decision to not invest the money collected from homebuyers to complete the sites already sold. Rather, he channelled this fund to Access Capital Services, an investment offshoot of Ermyas’, established a year before the formation of Access Real Estate.

Promoted mainly by Ermyas and his one-time business confident, Haileleul Tamiru, Access Capital Services has had as many as 280 shareholders, who raised the registered capital of close to 80 million Br. It is this company that had investments worth close to 95 million Br, in shares, in 10 subsidiary companies, including Access Real Estate.

It was a daunting indictment on Ermyas’ management style when independent auditors, Kokeb Moges & Co, revealed last year that 75pc of investments made by Access Capital Services were financed by funds mobilised from the public through Access, Pacific and Meri real estates.  All of which are companies where the majority of homebuyers put their life savings, placing their faith on a man they viewed as a brilliant investment banker, with solid experience in Wall Street.

A father of five, Ermyas came back to Ethiopia in the early 1990s and acquired the state-owned edible oil plant, Edget, which he changed to a mineral water bottling company. Jointly owned with two American citizens, Apex Bottling was his flagship company that surprised the market once dominated by Ambo, with its Royal Crown Water brand. Facing negative publicity shortly after its launch, his resurgence came with the nation’s first table water, Highland Water, bottled inside the same plant, which not only won him public admiration, but too, was a pioneering venture copied by over 20 bottlers since then.

Despite another slump in business, due to tax related problems, his resilience to promote and open a financial firm, Zemen Bank, is viewed by many as an inspiration and a symbol of native entrepreneurship. Ermyas had enormous public goodwill to cash in on when he offered apartments and villas promising short delivery, cheaper prices and style.

He has succeeded in delivering none of these. If there is any chance, a scheduled delivery of villas appears to be just two months away on Access Real Estate’s site in the Lebu area. Beneath Furi Mountain, Access acquired the 60,000sqm plot, its largest site, from an individual, and has over 71 villas with a total built up area of 7,100sqm under construction.

On Friday afternoon, few in number, but busy construction workers were putting up the installations of fittings to complete at least 10 villas, which are almost through with major construction works. Given the collection of site works, these are villas where only finishing jobs remain and soon they will be ready to house their prospective residents. An additional 29 villas are scheduled to be completed within another two months, if YBEL gets the finishing materials supplied by Access contractors, according to managers of YBEL.

Although YBEL’s managers have declined to disclose how much remains outstanding from what they were paid in advance by Access Real Estate, after stock and completed works are accounted for, they say that they will continue to work on the Lebu and Pacific sites to the extent that the outstanding amount allows them to go. At the Pacific site, Access hopes to deliver 52 villas and 13 apartments, in a total built up area of 22,000sqm.

Nonetheless, YBEL may owe Access Real Estate almost half of what it was paid in undelivered works, according to sources.

“Close to 110 million Br worth of construction payment has not been properly carried out, thus the company is taking corrective measures,” Access told its disgruntled homebuyers two weeks ago.

Although shy from pointing fingers at any of its three contractors, it is clear who is being blamed here. YBEL managers are, however, willing to be audited by a fact-finding team that the Access’ board of directors may form, they told Fortune. Yet, the involvement of the board of directors in overseeing the governance of the company’s affairs has been questionable.

Access board consists of shareholders, such as; Tsehay Legesse, Tamrat Shita, Amsale Bayu (the company’s lawyer), Tigist Negede, Tesfaye Legess, and Ermyas himself – ETG Designers Plc and Haileleul resigned from the board close to two years ago. None of these directors have stopped Ermyas when making investments worth over a billion Birr, acquiring questionable properties in over 34 sites, and other assets Access Capital Services own – a company where Ermyas has commanding shares of 40pc.

They are questionable because that was what the auditors found out a year ago.

“Even if the company has sold real estate homes and shops to many customers, the majority of the properties for future constructions lack approved building plans, as title transfers are pending,” reads the audit report on the books of Access Real Estate, disclosed last year.

Even after such a revelation by external auditors, the shareholders, who met at the Hilton last year, gave Ermyas a standing ovation and elected him to serve on the board, whilst the board of directors voted him to remain as their chairperson. A series of irregularities and misconducts, contrary to general accepted accounting standards, such as the unconsolidated accounts of the various companies, experts feared showed a misleading financial position of Access. Nonetheless, shareholders had endorsed the qualified audit report with no move to right the wrongs.

So do prospective homebuyers continue to pour their hard earned money in, despite public disclosure of this murky state of affairs of both Access and its many tentacles. So long as cash is being poured into the companies’ accounts held at Zemen Bank, the business model was meant to oil the huge business machinery Access has designed to operate.

This, too, changed abruptly a few weeks ago when a retired military officer who was issued a cheque for a refund by Access, reported an alleged cheque bounce crime to the police. Ermyas was put under police custody for a night, as the case was explained by the Bank, not as the result of insufficient funds, but rather, due to a suspended account on order from a court of law. The person was paid right away, an amount which is part of the 65 million Br Access has so far paid to those who have demanded their money back, with the 15pc the firm had promised it would pay in cases of defaults in delivery.

The retired officer was one of many with cheques that were unable to be cashed immediately. Subsequent to the news that Ermyas had been detained, there was panic among cheque holders who began to rush to the banks for cash, or threaten to report to the police. Ermays chose to stay away from the country, thus beginning a futile attempt to settle cases from afar. He is still in the United States running the show by proxy.

The widespread panic that these turn of events instigated not only compelled many homebuyers to get organised, in to exploring methods of recovering their prospective losses, but too, it gravely damaged the firm’s business model, which requires constant cash flow.

In the absence of bank loans, which the central bank instructed Zemen Bank not to advance to Access’ companies, and with no capital base to oil the machinery, the story of Access Real Estate appears to have reached a point of no return. Despite Ermyas’s continued pledges that he will be back and salvage the companies, the bank run state of affairs is too large to be handled by anything less than a government bailout, suggested a person who worked for Ermyas for many years.

The kind of salvage Ermyas has in mind is to sell off some of the assets he has acquired, but at a significantly lower amount than if he did not have to sell quickly. For instance, brokers in town are busy searching for buyers for an asset Access has on Africa Avenue (Bole Road) for a calling price of 22 million Br, Fortune has learnt. It is a textbook solution for a firm that goes insolvent due to a bank run. Buyers are not easy to come by, however.

“The market is depressed,” said a contractor who also runs a real estate firm. “Due to the regulatory shock last year from the newly revised lease law, many are cautious of putting their money into this.”

Indeed, a rewritten law governing the lease market last year, that has put a much higher regulatory burden on the transactions of leased plots, was one of the biggest blows to Ermyas. No lease right can be transferred to a third party before at least half of the construction has been completed on leased plots. Access has no plot where construction is finalised to that stage.

“He has just turned out to be unlucky on many fronts,” said another real estate owner, who partnered with him briefly.

AddisFortune

by David Pred

A multi-billion dollar aid program administered by the World Bank is underwriting systematic human rights abuses in

The Mursi tribe in Mago national park, Ethiopia, 2011. Photograph: Patricia White/Alamy

Ethiopia. Last September, Ethiopian victims submitted a complaint about the program to the World Bank Inspection Panel, which is tasked with investigating whether or not the Bank complies with its own policies to prevent social and environmental harm.  A meeting of the Bank’s board of directors to discuss the Panel’s preliminary findings was postponed on March 19^th due to objections from the Ethiopian government.

Ethiopia is one the largest aid recipients in the world, receiving approximately US$3 billion annually from external donors. The largest aid

program, financed by the World Bank, the UK, the European Commission and other Western governments, is called Promotion of Basic Services (PBS).  It aims to expand access to services in five sectors: education, health, agriculture, water supply and sanitation, and rural roads. The PBS program objectives are indisputably laudable and aim to meet a number of dire needs of the Ethiopian population. There is evidence, however, that it is contributing to a government campaign to forcibly resettle an estimated 1.5 million people.

In the lowland region of Gambella, the government’s principle means of delivering basic services is through the implementation of the “Villagization Program”. The government claims that “villagization” is a voluntary process, which aims to “bring socioeconomic and cultural transformation of the people” through the resettlement of “scattered” families into new villages.  The services and facilities supported by PBS are precisely the services and facilities that are supposed to be provided at new settlement sites under the Villagization Program.

However, Gambellans, now amassing in refugee camps in Kenya and South Sudan, report that the program has been far from voluntary.  When I visited the camps last fall, the refugees reported a process involving intimidation, beatings, arbitrary arrest and detention, torture in military custody and extra-judicial killing.  Dispossessed of their fertile ancestral lands and displaced from their livelihoods, Gambella’s indigenous communities have been forced into villages with few of the promised basic services and little access to food or land suitable for farming.  Meanwhile, many of the areas from which people have been forcibly removed have been awarded to domestic and foreign investors for large-scale agro-industrial plantations.

In September, Human Rights Watch and my organization, Inclusive Development International, arranged a meeting with the World Bank and five newly arrived refugees in Nairobi.  One by one, they gave chilling testimony of the abuses that they and their families have experienced under the Villagization Program.  Their testimony corroborated detailed reports about the program by Human Rights Watch and the Oakland Institute.

Yet, despite these credible reports and first-hand accounts that Bank staff heard in Nairobi, the Bank has continued to deny the forcible nature of villagization. The Bank also insists that its project is not linked to the Villagization Program, despite its acknowledgement that it finances the salaries of public servants who are tasked with implementing villagization.  These arguments are wholly disingenuous.

Donors must accept responsibility for human rights abuses they help make possible and do everything in their power to prevent them.  There are ways the Bank can support critical investments in human development while ensuring that it is not underwriting human rights violations. It could, for example, require that the Villagization Program comply with its safeguard policy on resettlement as a condition of its $600 million concessional loan for the latest phase of PBS.  If this policy were applied, the government would have to ensure, and the Bank would have to verify, that resettlement is truly voluntary and that the program improves people’s lives.

Yet the Bank and bi-lateral donors have instead chosen a strategy of denial. They have invested too much for too long in Ethiopia to admit that things have gone horribly wrong, and they are too worried about upsetting a critical military ally in a volatile part of the world to start attaching human rights conditions to aid packages.

That is why the World Bank Inspection Panel is so important.  After undertaking a preliminary assessment, the Panel determined that the link between PBS and villagization was plausible and it recommended to the Board a full investigation in order to make definitive findings.  However, Ethiopia’s representative on the Board has stymied approval of the investigation.  A meeting to discuss the Panel’s report scheduled on March 19 was postponed due to resistance from the Ethiopian government, which is vying to set the terms of the investigation.

The Inspection Panel was established as an independent body that people harmed by World Bank lending practices can access in order to hold the Bank to account.  Bank managers and member states are not supposed to interfere in the process.  The Bank’s president, Jim Yong Kim, should stand up for accountability and tell the Board to let the Panel do its job.  The truth that will come out of this investigation may be inconvenient for the Bank and an important client government, but it will be a rare measure of justice for the Ethiopian people.

ECADF

Wikileaks, which has bee shaking the  global security, diplomatic  and economic establishments, by acquiring and publicly releasing highly secretive US cables, have recently released a new batch containing 1,707,500 diplomatic documents from 1973 to 1976.  Among these documents  found seven files containing information that shows what US diplomatic and intelligence services knew about General Tasesse Birru’s   effort to launch ch armed struggle. Although documents from earlier years are yet to be released, there are signs that the US government has been following the ‘storied’ General  with  keen interest since his early days. Aside shading more light on the last years of this founding father of the  Oromo movement, the files also  tells us quite a bit about how the US government perceived the movement at the time. Fon innstance, the judged that the  “capture of Gen. Tadesse is sharp setback to Oromo dissidents, as other potential Oromo leaders of his stature few and far

between“. Set back , it was. But the movement bounced back because the cold blooded murder of Tadesse produced thousands of gallant fighters  who picked arms, propelling the movement forward.

————————————————————-

PROVINCIAL DISTURBANCES CONTINUE

1974 April 3,

While nature of local government varies in different areas, common theme running complaints now being voiced seems to be one of long-standing government irresponsibility and exploitation by local officials or urban and rural inhabitants  particularly if they non-shoan amhara. (report on local government structure and politics prepared in February ’74 by John Cohen for aid/w is most comprehensive analysis available.) Demands for removal government officials primarily generated by and confined to town dwellers. As far as we aware, movement has not yet catalyzed traditionally submissive rural peasantry. Recent “Oromo uprising” over land ownership issues has remained centered on rift valley lake area (Addis 3037). There are indications, however, that Oromo sub-groups attempting organize autonomy movements. We note that Gen. Tadesse Biru, leader of 1966 “Oromo revolt”, escaped house arrest last month. Gall politicians also hinting to us that some type plans under preparation.

REPORTING ON INTERNAL ETHIOPIAN SITUATION

1974 April 9,

We would appreciate additional reporting on ethnic, regional and religious cleavages within the military, particularly regarding the Oromos and the Tigrean- Eritrean majority within the air force. How close is the relationship of air force and student Tigreans and Eritreans? Is Endalkatchew viewed as anti-Eritrean? Would Zawde be more acceptable to Eritreans and Tigreans? What is the attitude of Tigrean-eritrean military elements toward elf? What more is known about Tadesse Biru’s escape?

FRAGMENTS FROM THE COUNTRYSIDE

1975 March 5

Ethiopian Herald reported that Major Abebe Gebre Marian and Lt. Col. Hailu Regassa, vice chairman of the general court martial, have fled with eth$80,000 proceeds from sale of Ethiopian Tikdem buttons. Various independent sources report that both officers, who are Oromo staff members on “dirg,” have taken money and large store of weapons from Holleta military academy and joined General Tadesse Biru’s dissident group near Ginche in northern Shoa.

DISSIDENCE GROWS

1975 March 10,

Usually reliable diplomatic source reports three recent raids by Oromo dissidents loyal to Oromo leader Tadesse Biru. The first occurred in Ginche near Ambo (see para 12 reftel), the second near Fitche on the Gondar road and the third was a theft of dynamite and exploding caps from a quarry near Debre Berhan. 2. Diplomatic source and well-informed Afar leader both report destruction of highway bridge at Mahal Meda in menz. Bridge was reportedly blown by dissident sons of Ras Biru. 3. Both sources report that biru brothers have joined Dej. Berhane Meskal wolde-selassie (who is married to the niece of Asrate Kassa). The afar source believes Berhane is now in lasta (wollo province) and is gathering a sizeable force. Diplomatic source understands that Berhane Meskal’s amhara group may be preparing to link with those supporting Tadesse Biru in opposing the PMAC.

ARREST OF OROMO INSURGENT LEADERS March 14,  1975

Ethiopian media march 13 and 14 prominently feature arrest of B/G Tadesse Biru and Lt. Col. Hailu Regassa with clutch of their “accomplices.” men, taken by security forces “in cooperation with the public”, are accused of opposing “Ethiopian Popular Movement” and attempting to incite rebellion. According media, they are to be charged before special general court martial today (March 14). Prisoners (pictures displayed on tv and in press. 2.

Media report that rebels were taken in village of Curo Mako in Meta Robi district, Menegesha, Shoa province, “where they have been hiding for some time.” according government spokesman, B/G Tadesse and Lt. Col. Hailu attempted incite rebellion on “tribal basis” to cover their true motives, which said be opposition to land reform. Deputy administrator of Meta Robi district reportedly was killed during shootout preceding arrest these men.

Comment: department will recall that Tadesse Biru is storied Oromo leader long kept by ex-emperor in custody/house arrest for his rebellious past. Lt. Col. Hailu is highly educated soldier who had been assigned as vice-president of special general court martial now trying former officials. Press explains his dissidence by saying he was large landowner. Press also charges Hailu with theft of eth$80,000 raised for drought relief, together with Maj. Abebe Gebre Mariam, who remains at large. Capture of Gen. Tadesse is sharp setback to Oromo dissidents, as other potential Oromo leaders of his stature few and far between. Conversely, it is quite a feather in EPMG’s cap. We note that EPMG confident enough in appeal its land reform among Oromos to attempt use B/G Tadesse Biru’s putative opposition to it against him.

PMAC TRIES AND EXECUTES REBELS

1975 March 19,

Media march 18-19 report the execution of Hailu Regassa, Tadesse Biru, Alula Bekelle, Rezene Kidane, Meless Tekle and Giday Gebre-wahid late march 18 in Addis Ababa.

2. According press, these men had been tried by a special military court. Latter condemned Hailu Regassa to the capital penalty and the rest to life imprisonment. This verdict was reviewed by PMAC which directed, on the basis of the evidence and the crimes with which these men were charged, that all be executed. Limited official use limited official use page 02 addis 03233 191305z

3. Hailu Regassa and Tadesse Biru were found guilty of “attempting to disrupt the Ethiopian popular movement” and to oppose the nationalization of rural land. Department will recall (ref a) that these Oromo leaders were recently captured near ambo.

STUDENT PROBLEMS IN ADDIS ABABA

1975 March 21

Fairly reliable source with access to radical circles told emboff that three Tigres charged with Addis bombings and executed with general Tadesse Biru and Col. Hailu Regassa (addis 3233) were important student leaders, including editor of university publication “struggle.” source believes three were guilty of bombings and were turned in by teacher at Teferi Makonnen school who formerly collaborated with them during early days of revolution. Source also believes that adverse student reaction could well result because of these executions.

———————————

NB: For a family account of the revolt led by Gen Tadesse and Col Hailu Regassa, how they were caught and who betrayed them, you can watch these three part interview of Col Hailu’s mother. She repeatedly asserts that the two leaders were betrayed by General Jagama Kello.

The three parts interview is available at Gadaa.com

the gulepost

Last April, I wrote a “Special Tribute to My Personal Hero Eskinder Nega”.  In that tribute, I groped for
words as I tried to describe this common Ethiopian man of uncommon valor, an ordinary journalist of extraordinary integrity and audacity. Frankly, what could be said of a simple man of humility possessed of indomitable dignity? Eskinder Nega is a man who stood up to brutality with his gentle humanity. What could I really say of a gentleman of the utmost civility, nobility and authenticity who was jailed 8 times for loving liberty?  What could I say of a man and his wife who defiantly defended press freedom in Ethiopia, even when they were both locked up in Meles Zenawi Prison just outside of the capital in Kality for 17 months! What could anybody say of a man, a woman and their child who sacrificed their liberties, their peace of mind, their futures and earthly possessions so that their countrymen, women and children could be free!?   

Ethiopian journalist Eskinder Nega is a special kind of hero who fights with nothing more than ideas and the truth. He slays falsehoods with the sword of truth. He chases bad ideas with good ones. Armed only with a pen, Eskinder fights despair with hope; fear with courage; anger with reason; arrogance with humility; ignorance with knowledge; intolerance with forbearance; oppression with perseverance; doubt with trust and cruelty with compassion. Above all, Eskinder speaks truth to power and to those who abuse, misuse, overuse and are corrupted by power.   

Now almost a year since I wrote my tribute, I remember my great friend and brother Eskinder Nega as he languishes in Meles Zenawi Prison.  But I do not remember him in sadness or with heartache.  No! No! I remember Eskinder in the hopeful, faith-filled and resolute words of American poet James Russell Lowell (“The Present Crisis”): “When a deed is done for Freedom, through the broad earth’s aching breast…/ Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide…/ In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side... For Humanity sweeps onward: where to-day the martyr stands…/ Truth forever on the scaffold, wrong forever on the throne…/   

Eskinder and his wife Serkalem did the right deed to defend the right of press freedom in Ethiopia. They spoke truth to falsehood in their newspapers and never backed down. They spoke right to wrong in kangaroo court. The man who tried for 20 years to right the wrongs of tyranny, today, like Lowell’s Truth, hangs on the scaffold in the belly of Meles Zenawi Prison, a place of  “wrath and tears where the horror of the shade looms”, with his head bloodied but UNBOWED!     

Last week, Birtukan Mideksa wrote an opinion piece for Al Jazeera urging the release of Eskinder Nega and  other journalists including Reeyot Alemu (winner of the International Women’s Media Foundation 2012 Courage in Journalism Award) and Woubshet Taye (2012 Hellman/Hammett Grant Award) and all political prisoners in Ethiopia. Birtukan is the first female political party (Unity for Democracy and Justice) leader in Ethiopian history. Birtukan, like Eskinder, was the personal political prisoner of the late dictator Meles Zenawi.   Meles personally ordered Birtukan’s arrest and on December 29, 2008, a year and half after he “pardoned” and released her from prison, he threw her back in jail without even the usual song and dance of kangaroo court.  On January 9, 2010, Meles sent chills down the spines of reporters when he declared sadistically that “there will never be an agreement with anybody to release Birtukan. Ever. Full stop. That’s a dead issue.” On January 15, 2010, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention adopted an opinion finding that Birtukan Midekksa is a political prisoner.  

It is heartwarming to read Birtukan’s moving and robustly principled defense of Eskinder Nega and the other Ethiopian journalists and political prisoners. It is also ironic that Eskinder should replace Birtukan as the foremost political prisoner in Ethiopia today.   

Few can speak more authoritatively on the plight of Eskinder and all Ethiopian political prisoners than my great sister Birtukan who also spent years in in the belly of Meles Zenawi Prison, a substantial part of it in solitary confinement. In her Al Jazeera commentary she wrote:  

My journey to become a political prisoner in Ethiopia began as a federal judge fighting to uphold the rule of law. Despite institutional challenges and even death threats, I hoped to use constitutional principles to ensure respect for basic rights… [Ethiopian] authorities have detained my friend Eskinder Nega eight times over his 20-year career as a journalist and publisher. After the 2005 elections, Eskinder and his wife – Serkalem Fasil – spent 17 months in prison. Pregnant at the time, Serkalem gave birth to a son despite her confinement and almost no pre-natal care. Banned from publishing after his release in 2007, Eskinder continued to write online. In early 2011, he began focusing particularly on the protest movements then sweeping North Africa and the Middle East. Eskinder, who does not belong to any political party because of a commitment to maintain his independence, offered a unique and incisive take on what those movements meant for the future of Ethiopia. Committed to the principle of non-violence, Eskinder repeatedly emphasised that any similar movements in Ethiopia would have to remain peaceful. Despite this, police briefly detained him and warned him that his writings had crossed the line and he could face prosecution. Then in September [14], 2011, the government made good on that threat. Authorities arrested Eskinder just days after he publicly criticised the use of anti-terror laws to stifle dissent. They held him without charge or access to an attorney for nearly two months. The government eventually charged Eskinder with terrorism and treason, sentencing him to 18 years in prison after a political trial. Unfortunately, Eskinder is not alone; independent journalists Woubshet Taye and Reeyot Alemu also face long prison terms on terrorism charges.  

Eskinder is a hero to the world but a villain to Meles Zenawi and his disciples  

Who really is Eskinder Nega? In Meles Zenawi’s kangaroo court, Eskinder has been judged a “terrorist”, a “public enemy”. In the court of world public opinion, Eskinder is celebrated as the undisputed champion and defender of press freedom.  

When speaking of my brother Eskinder, I could be accused of exaggerating his virtues, hyperbolizing his singular contributions to press freedom in Ethiopia and overstating his importance to the cause of free expression throughout the world. Perhaps I am biased because I hold this great man in such high respect, honor and admiration. If I am guilty of bias, it is because seemingly in Ethiopia they have stopped making genuine heroes like Eskinder Nega, Woubeshet Taye, Anudalem Aragie, Temesgen Desalegn… and heroines like Birtukan Midekssa, Serkalem Fasil, Reeyot Alemu….   

Let others more qualified and more eloquent than I speak of Eskinder Nega’s heroism, courage, fortitude, audacity and tenacity in the defense of press freedom.   

On December 3, 2012, when Carl Bernstein (one of the two investigative journalists who exposed the Watergate scandal leading to the resignation of President Richard Nixon) read at a public forum Eskinder’s last blog before he was arrested, he said:  

… No honor can be greater than to read Eskinder Nega’s words. He is more than a symbol. He is the embodiment of the greatness of truth, of writing and reporting real truth, of persisting in truth and resisting the oppression of untruth… So let us marvel at and  celebrate Eskinder Nega. For who among us could write what I am about to read [a blog of Eskinder’s] spirit unbound, faith in freedom and the power of the word untrammeled…   

When Eskinder was named as the recipient of the prestigious 2012 PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award, Peter Godwin, president of PEN American Center said, “The Ethiopian writer Eskinder Nega is that bravest and most admirable of writers, one who picked up his pen to write things that he knew would surely put him at grave risk…”   

Larry Siems, director of PEN Freedom to Write Award, at the award ceremonies groped for words trying to describe Eskinder Nega. “…[This year] one [journalist] really stood out, and that is Eskinder Nega. So tonight we recognize one of the world’s most courageous, most intrepid, most creative advocates of press freedom that I have ever seen…”   

In awarding its prestigious Hellman/Hammett Award for 2012,  Human Rights Watch described Eskinder and the other journalists as “exemplifying  the courage and dire situation of independent journalism in Ethiopia today. Their ordeals illustrate the price of speaking freely in a country where free speech is no longer tolerated.”   

The Committee to Protect Journalists declared, “The charges against Eskinder are baseless and politically motivated in reprisal for his writings. His conviction reiterates that Ethiopia will not hesitate to punish a probing press by imprisoning journalists or pushing them into exile in misusing the law to silence critical and independent reporting.”   

Charlayne Hunter-Gault, the American civil rights heroine and former CNN Johannesburg bureau chief defended Eskinder and travelled to Ethiopia to plead for his release:  

The specific charge against Eskinder was that he conspired with a banned opposition party called Ginbot 7 to overthrow the government. At his trial, government prosecutors showed as evidence a fuzzy video, available on YouTube, of Eskinder at a public town-hall meeting, discussing the potential of an Arab Spring-type uprising in Ethiopia. State television labeled Eskinder and the other journalists as “spies for foreign forces.” There were also allegations that he had accepted a terrorist mission—what the mission involved was never specified.   

United States Senator Patrick Leahy read a lenghty statement into the Congressional Record informing his colleagues that “7,000 miles from Washington, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia… a journalist named Eskinder Nega stands accused of supporting terrorism simply for refusing to remain silent about the Ethiopian government’s increasingly authoritarian drift…”  

The U.S. State Department has condemned the imprisonment of Eskinder and the other journalists:      

   

The United States remains deeply concerned about the trial, conviction, and sentencing of Ethiopian journalist Eskinder Nega, as well as seven political opposition figures, under the country’s Anti-Terrorism Proclamation. The sentences handed down today, including 18 years for Eskinder and life imprisonment for the opposition leader Andualem Arage, are extremely harsh and reinforce our serious questions about the politicized use of Ethiopia’s anti-terrorism law in this and other cases.  

Eskinder is a hero to the heroes of international journalism. In April 2012,  twenty international journalists who have been recognised as “World Press Freedom Heroes” by the Vienna-based International Press Institute (IPI) stood by Eskinder’s side, condemned his unjust imprisonment on trumped up terrorism charges and demanded his release and the release of other journalists. These press freedom heroes minced no words in telling Meles Zenawi of their “extremely strong condemnation of the Ethiopian government’s decision to jail journalist Eskinder Nega on terrorism charges.”     

On November 21, 2012, the U.N. Human Rights Council Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issued a 9-page legal Opinion concluding: 

“The deprivation of liberty of Eskinder Nega is arbitrary in violation of articles 9, 10, 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 9, 14, and 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights… The Working Group requests the Government to take the necessary steps to remedy the situation, which include the         immediate release of Mr. Nega and adequate reparation to him.”   

In December 2012, 16 member of the European parliament demanded the release of Eskinder Nega and journalists Reeyot Alemu and Woubshet Taye.     

Who is (are) the real terrorist(s) in Ethiopia?   

Meles said Eskinder and all of the journalists he jailed are “terrorists”.  If Eskinder Nega is a terrorist, then speaking truth to power is an act of terrorism. If Eskinder Nega is a terrorist, then advocacy of peaceful change is terrorism; thinking is terrorism; dissent is terrorism; having a conscience is terrorism; refusing to sell out one’s soul is terrorism; standing up for democracy and human rights is terrorism; defending the rule of law is terrorism and peaceful resistance of state terrorism is terrorism. If Eskinder Nega is a terrorist today, then Nelson Mandela was a terrorist then. The same goes for all of the other jailed journalists and opposition leaders jailed by Meles Zenawi.   

But the real terrorists know who they are. When Meles and his horde of guerilla fighters challenged military dictator Mengistu Hailemariam, they were officially branded as terrorists, bandits, mercenaries, criminals, thugs, murderers, marauders, public enemies, subversives, rebels, assassins, malcontents, invaders, traitors, saboteurs and other names.  Were they?    

Let the evidence speak for itself. In an interview Meles Zenawi gave to an Eritrean magazine called Hiwot (which was translated into Amharic and published by Etiop newspaper, (Vol. 5 Issue No. 52), he presented himself as the Willie Sutton of Tigray pulling bank jobs all over the palce. Meles spoke proudly of the banks he and his comrade-in-arms robbed or attempted to rob to finance their guerilla war. Meles boasted of his “victorious” robberies in Shire and Adwa while regretting botched jobs in Axum. Today they own the banks!   

The current ruling party, “Tigrayan Peoples Liberation Movement” (TPLF), is listed today in the Global Terrorism Database as a terrorist organization. Documented acts of terrorism by the TPLF include armed robberies, assaults, hostage taking and kidnapping of foreign nationals and journalists and local leaders, hijacking of truck convoys, extortion of business owners and merchants, nongovernmental organizations, local leaders and private citizens and intimidation of religious leaders and journalists.   

An official Inquiry Commission established by Meles Zenawi to investigate the deaths that occurred in the post-2005 election period determined that security forces under the personal control and command of Meles Zenawi  massacred 193 unarmed protesters in the streets and severely wounded another 763. The Commission concluded the “shots fired by government forces were intended not to disperse the crowd of protesters but to kill by targeting the head and chest of the protesters.” On November 1, 2005, security forces in the Meles Zenawi Prison in Kality gunned down 65 inmates while confined in their cells. No one has ever been brought to justice for these crimes against humanity.  

In September 2011, the world learned that “Ethiopian security forces (had) planted 3 bombs that went off in the Ethiopian capital on September 16, 2006 and then blamed Eritrea and the Oromo resistance for the blasts in a case that raised serious questions about the claims made about the bombing attempt against the African Union summit earlier this year in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.” Following its own investigation and “clandestine reporting”, the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa fingered “GoE (Government of Ethiopia) security forces” for this criminal act. If all other acts of state terrorism committed against Ethiopian civilians were to be included, the body count would be in the hundreds of thousands.     

Who are the real terrorists and criminals in Ethiopia today?   

Tale of the Good Wolf and Evil Wolf   

The late Meles Zenawi and his apostles remind me of an old Cherokee (Native American) tale of two wolves:  A grandfather tells his young grandson that everyone has a Good Wolf and an Evil Wolf inside of them fighting with each other every day. The Good Wolf thrives on peace, love, truth, generosity, humility and kindness. The Evil Wolf feeds on hatred, anger, greed, lies and arrogance. “Which wolf will win, grandfather?” asked the boy. “Whichever one you feed,” replied the grandfather.  

Meles and his disciples have been feeding the Evil Wolf for decades, and now the Evil Wolf sits triumphantly crowned on the Throne of Hatred and Falsehood. They have fattened the Evil Wolf with a lavish diet of inhumanity, barbarity, brutality, ignobility, immorality, depravity, duplicity, incivility, criminality, ethnocentricity, mediocrity, corruptibility and pomposity. 

Eskinder, Reeyot, Woubshet, Andualem. Temesgen and the rest have managed to tame the Good Wolf and have followed the path of peace, love and truth. Their wolf thrives on a simple diet of humanity, unity, integrity, authenticity, civility, morality, incorruptibility, dignity, affability, humility, nobility, creativity, intellectuality and audacity.  

It is hard for the reasonable mind to fathom why Meles and his disciples chose to embrace and follow the path of the Evil Wolf. Indeed, the Evil Wolf has been very good to them. The Evil Wolf has made it possible for them to accumulate great wealth and amass enormous power. They have unleashed the Evil Wolf to divide and rule the country along ethnic, religious, linguistic and regional lines. They have used the Evil Wolf to destroy not only the lives and futures of young professionals like Eskinder, Birtukan,  Reeyot, Woubshet, Temesgen and  Andualem but also the future of the younger generation. They have used the Evil Wolf to sell off the country’s most fertile lands for pennies and plunder its natural resources. They have used the Evil Wolf to convict the innocent in kangaroo courts. They have used the Evil Wolf to strike fear and loathing in the hearts and minds or ordinary citizens.  

They have given new meaning to the ancient Roman playwright Paluatus’ aphorism homo homini lupus est  (“man is a wolf to his fellow man”).  They have used the Evil Wolf to create war from peace; strife from harmony;  wrong from right; vice from virtue; division from unity;  shame from honor;  immorality from decency; poverty from wealth; hatred from love; ignorance from knowledge; corruption from blessing; bondage from freedom and dictatorship from democracy.  In 21 years, Meles and his disciples have managed to jam a whole nation between the jaws of a snarling, gnarling and howling Evil Wolf.   

How long before the Good Wolf wins over the Evil Wolf?  

The great Nelson Mandela wondered when Apartheid would end. He told those who had unleashed the Evil Wolf of Apartheid,  “You may succeed in delaying, but never in preventing the transition of South Africa to a democracy.”

My friend Eskinder Nega warned the overlords of the Evil Wolf in Ethiopia, “Freedom is partial to no race. Freedom has no religion. Freedom favors no ethnicity. Freedom discriminates not between rich and poor countries.  Inevitably freedom will overwhelm Ethiopia.”   

But how long before freedom overwhelms Ethiopia? How long before Ethiopia transitions to democracy? How long before “truth crushed to earth rises again” in Ethiopia? How long before all Ethiopian political prisoners are set free? Before Eskinder is released and joins his wife Sekalem and their son Nafkot? How long before Reeyot, Woubshet, Andualem… rejoin their families? How long before the Good Wolf wins over the Evil Wolf? 

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. agonized over similar questions during the darkest days of the struggle for civil rights in America. His answer to the question, “How long?” was “Not long!”. 

I know you are asking today, “How long will it take?”  Somebody’s asking, “How long will prejudice blind the visions of men…?”  

Somebody’s asking, “When will wounded justice, lying prostrate on the streets of Selma and Birmingham… be lifted from this dust of shame…? … How long will justice be crucified, and truth bear it?”

I come to say to you this afternoon, however difficult the moment, however frustrating the hour, it will not be long, because “truth crushed to earth will rise again.”

How long? Not long, because “no lie can live forever.”

How long? Not long, because “you shall reap what you sow.” 

How long before the Good Wolf wins over the Evil Wolf? Not long, because “once to every man and nation comes the moment” to decide between Good and Evil. 

How long before wounded justice, lying prostrate on the streets of Addis Ababa, Mekele, Adama, Gondar, Awassa, Jimma… is lifted from the dust of shame? Not long, “because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

How long before truth and right crushed to earth rise up again in Ethiopia? Not long, because truth and right will not remain forever on the scaffold nor wrong and falsehood nest forever on the throne! 

I have no greater honor than to stand up, speak up and defend my friends, brothers and sisters Eskinder Nega, Serkalem Fasil, Reeyot Alemu, Woubshet Taye, Temesgen Desalegn, Andualem Aragie and all political prisoners held in Meles Zenawi Prison! 

Professor Alemayehu G. Mariam teaches political science at California State University, San Bernardino and is a practicing defense lawyer. 

Previous commentaries by the author are available at: 

http://open.salon.com/blog/almariam/ 

www.huffingtonpost.com/alemayehu-g-mariam/ 

Amharic translations of recent commentaries by the author may be found at: 

http://www.ecadforum.com/Amharic/archives/category/al-mariam-amharic 

http://ethioforum.org/?cat=24   

open salon