On Ethiopian Embassies

The website of the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs maintains that Ethiopia has 39 missions (embassies and consular offices) in Europe, North America, Asia, and Africa. These missions officially represent Ethiopia and poise to serve the Ethiopian Diaspora and Ethiopian-origin nationals. They also intend to encourage and facilitate the transfer of capital, technology, and science to Ethiopia. Since recent times, missions seem to aggressively work on 1) winning the hearts and minds of foreign investors particularly from the Arab world, India, and China, and 2) collecting funds for the construction of the “Grand Renaissance Dam”.

The Meles Zenawi Foundation

The government of Ethiopia organized a congress that founded the Meles Zenawi Foundation (MZF) on the 6th of April 2013 at the AU Hall in Addis Ababa. The foundation is set to establish a library, a research center, a fellowship programme, and a public park, and will also recognize great achievements. Present at the occasion were Meles family; senior government officials; Presidents of the Sudan, Uganda, and Djibouti; former President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo; Commissioner of the African Union (AU) Commission Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma; and other invited guests.

Forced Eviction of the Amharas

The government in Ethiopia is forcefully and inhumanly evicting the Amharas who used to live and work in Southern and Western parts of the country. This is contrary to the Ethiopian Constitution and other regional and international human rights and legal frameworks, to which Ethiopia is a signatory. This is one of the several atrocities orchestrated against the Amharas since EPRDF took office in 1991. The government at local, woreda, zonal, regional and federal levels must clearly understand that they will be fully accountable to this mindless act.  

Ethnic-based Politics in Ethiopia

According to the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia, there are 79 political parties registered under Proclamation No573/2008. Of these, only 29% have country-wide (national) identity whereas 71% are regional parties that are organized around ethnic lines.

Tigray Economics and Ethiopian Politics

During the last two decades, Tigray has occupied the minds of Ethiopians. That EPRDF’s (the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Party) creator, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), is native to Tigray explains all the discourses. Ordinary conversations, media reports, and developments on the ground all seem to testify that Tigray is being preferentially and positively treated in all fronts.

Asrat Woldeyes & Ethiopian Politics

September 1997. I was in Bichena, the stronghold of the hero Belay Zeleke. My plan was to reach at Addis Ababa University (AAU) for registration as final year undergraduate student. Unfortunately, the scheduled bus failed to appear. Everyday around 6pm, we passengers were supposed to get registered afresh, hoping the bus could come the next day. We did registration six times, that is for six days. My money generously given by my relatives run real fast and I was in shock. But most worrisome was whether I could reach for the registration at AAU. Every passing day seriously touched my nerves. That time, no mobile, no Internet. Was real dark time.

Addis Ababa!

What is Addis Ababa (henceforth Addis) to you? Just answer the question before you proceed to read. And I do not mean to stimulate answers such as: Addis is the capital city of Ethiopia; Addis is home to nearly all the ethnic groups of Ethiopia; it is also the political capital of Africa; it has a population of around five million; Addis has an average temperature of 22-26 degree Celsius. These are yes objective facts that are not hidden from an average person. My question requires answers that are probably unique to you and are value laden.