Asegedech Mekonne`s article of April 12, 2004 which I have read in the Ethiomedia entails valuable critics and analysis from a phenomenal point of view which compels all those opposition politicians organized or not to give proper answer whether Asegedech`s judgment of the present political situation in Ethiopia correctly addresses the weak point of the educated intelligentsia in general, and the political parties in particular which criticize the present EPRDEF government for various reasons.

By way of using a metaphor, Asegedech wants to challenge all the opposition forces in and outside Ethiopia that there are positive changes in Ethiopia which we should not deny and which give hopes for all Ethiopians that the country is slowly heading towards a peaceful political arrangement and economic prosperity. In her eyes, the emerging of small production activities and scattered service sector, and building up of mega trade centers and the growing up of a new consumer class which is using its new wealth and social status, and which is trying to assimilate itself more in line with western style of living and market economy are some positive signals which will have positive impacts on political, economic and social situation of our country. On the other side, Asegedech by no means denies our country's overwhelming problems, such as backward political institution, corrupt bureaucracy, lack of democracy, and arrogant government which is stubborn to all positive criticisms, ethnic problems which is becoming more dangerous to the country's stability, and which is being used by the government as instrument of divide and rule to prolong its dictatorial rule are some problems which should be addressed correctly and intelligently

If one looks at Asegedech`s analysis it seems that by emphasizing on the positive side, and by trying to see the political and economic process of the country from this side as one step towards political stability, Asegedech`s article is more treacherous than earnestly meant which undermines the efforts of some patriotic forces which are struggling to bring a civilization oriented political and economic solution which bring Ethiopia out of the present political mess and give her proper place as a proud and strong nation in the international politics. At the same time, knowingly or unknowingly, Asegedech tries to divide the opposition forces by portraying some as wise, though such kind of characterization could be given only to persons who are brought up by the philosophy of Plato's system of thought, that the opposition forces in general do not have any other alternatives other than accepting the political setup which is organized by the present EPRDF government. Any solution outside of the present political set up is inconceivable. As the 2005 election is nearing, forces within the EPRDF and outside which support more or less directly or indirectly the destructive policy of the EPRDF government are trying to divert the attention of the opposition forces or at least their followers. Even the prime minister tries to characterize himself as a democrat, and the only uncontested intellectual who can give correct analysis, if things have gone wrong not because of his political handlings and his government but he has borrowed from the past governments a backward economic situation and primitive political institution. Like Pilate, he wants to wash his hands by claiming himself he is not the part of the political intriguing which has been practiced since the last 12 years.

In this small essay I try to show the logical contradiction and the methodological problem of Asegedech`s article of the present political situation in Ethiopia, why her analysis is drawn more from sense perception than a dialectical approach which is based on the idea of Plato. At the same time, I try to analyze the dilemma of the opposition forces, why their more feudalistic perception of social and political situation and their beliefs that only by accepting the political and economic ideology of the American Imperialism could emancipate Ethiopia from the present political and social turmoil which our country finds itself.

It is common now days in the Ethiopian politics to give analysis and judge certain conditions from their face values other than asking one self again and again why such kinds of things happen as we see them, and not challenge our minds what are the causes that lead certain groups or governments to behave and handle like this as we see and perceive them directly so that the political and economic situation get worse year after year. In seminars, news papers and magazines, one cannot learn any more the secret of such kinds of behaviors why not only the present government has been handling the situation at home in such a way so that the sovereignty and national integrity of our country is becoming worse, why the past two governments did not contribute something historical, so that we could not experience the present political turmoil. In this respect we apprehend things which relate normally to each other differently as if there are no causal relationships among them and try to analyze them separately out of a given historical context. Especially in a backward country like Ethiopia where complex thinking and logic are not the rule but emotion governs our attitudes and handlings it is common to believe that the past has no influence on the present, and the way we are brought up and the education system which we are adapted to have nothing to do on our thinking, our day to day practices and political handlings. The present political situation at home and the analysis which is given by different groups is clear example that we have not yet learned to develop a scientific methodology to analyze the political, economic and social condition of our country from a different angle so that we could approximately pin point the problems of our country and give concrete solution. In this respect it is the duty of those patriotic forces which are fighting to liberate their country from a neo-liberal ideology and bring a science driven technological development to give scientific analysis and show the fallacies of those forces who believe that their approach is incontestable and give correct solution to our country's social and economic crises.

Since three thousand years, humanity is being caught by two irreconcilable methods of philosophical analysis, namely the Socratic-Platonic method and the Sophistic method of analyzing political, social and economic situations as contending ways of understanding not only real social situations but also human behavior that are acting as historical figures to decide over the fate of existing generation but also the coming generations. First Socrates and later on Plato had developed what they called the method of truth finding, by way of asking themselves again and again to approximately find the truth and give scientific solution to a given social situation. According to Plato, in order to understand a given situation from a dialectical point of view the human mind must be trained by true knowledge so that the good part of the mind being dominant and the human sole which is equivalent to reason ultimately dominates over the emotionally constructed body. Following Plato, when human beings first appear in this world their brain is like raw materials. Before raw materials must be consumed or used for any other purposes they must be formed or must be cooked to become useable products. Like wise the human brain must get proper education to understand the secret of nature and to ultimately change the resources through finding new scientific methods in order to build a harmonious society. This by no means implies that the human mind is a tabula rasa which gets everything through sense perception as the English nominalists try to make us believe. Plato like his master Socrates firmly believed that idea is the sources of all true knowledge and through proper education the God given idea must be re-activated so that we attain true knowledge, and create science and technology in order to master nature and ease our lives.

According to the Greek philosophers starting from Thales on wards, including Pythagoras, and their successors, Socrates and Plato, humanity can redeem itself from all kinds of evils, natural and man made and become the Master of Science and technology, if it follows the method of hypotheses building. This philosophical method was challenged by the Sophists who believed that the only way of truth finding and mastering nature is not the self challenging road developed by Socrates, but by directly observing nature and including human beings one could come to the correct analysis and solution. According to the Sophists who fought vehemently the idea of Socrates and later on accused him of teaching the youth not to believe in God were of the opinion that equality benefits the strong. Not human love and brotherhood should be taken as principles of social harmony and permanent peace but ethnic solidarity and greed are the sources of human society and that shapes the human mind and attain him true freedom. These two methods of analyzing nature and understanding human behavior later on became the philosophical foundation of European civilization, and had greater impacts on the intellectual developments of successive generations who could develop science and technology and shape the movements of their societies. Thomas Aquinas, Nicolas Cues, Leibniz and Schiller, to mention some were the most prominent figures who developed the method of Socrates and Plato to its highest level and laid down the foundation of science and technology, where as the English empiricists fought against the humanistic approach in order to pave the way for oligarchic rules and block the development of science and technology across the glob. Schiller the most genius dramatist, political philosopher and the founder of universal history, after he had studied the Greek history and philosophy came to the conclusion that if the human mind is not aesthetically shaped his fate will remain dark and governed by war. By breaking himself from the Kantian view of categorical imperative* and will, he emphasized the need of attaining political morality through aesthetical education to bring the human life in accordance with Platonic view of brotherhood and equality.

Why is important to mention this here? If one looks at Assegedech`s analysis, though one does not know immediately her methodological approach, her description of the present political situation is not developed by strictly observing the social construction of our society. According to her view the very few cosmetic changes which one sees here and there are good starting points of development which will have trickle down effects. How these changes have come, what is happening behind these changes, and whether such kinds of changes will bring fundamental economic, social and cultural changes in our society which will be the real foundation of permanent peace and stability are not matter of concern. She neither asks herself whether the present economic development is supported by science and technology or simply become by itself the causes of other deep social and cultural crises. Asegedech raises so many questions and problems which are on one hand very complex and need deep theoretical analysis, on the other hand it is very difficult to follow her to understand which are the real causes for our country's backwardness. In order to understand the complexity of her analysis let us try to separate the causes from the effects and develop our own hypothesis to give approximately the real causes of Ethiopia's underdevelopment and why the effects will be changed again to the causes and arrest economic and social development.

After Asegedech has stated all the problems which are hovering over our country, like hunger, disease, economic backwardness and lack of education she comes to the conclusion that the main cause for all these things is lack of education and information. By mentioning one Ethiopian educated man she is convinced that the only way out of this malaise is the change of attitude in our people. But this mentioned wise man does not tell us why the static nature of attitude of the Ethiopian mind is the main cause of our backwardness and how we change it so that economic progress dominates our lives.

It can be true that lack of proper education hampers social and economic development. On the other hand there are complex social and cultural structures which block the introduction of proper education. For some it seems that the introduction of new ways of thinking will endanger their social status and their economic well being, and therefore they vehemently fight any change even though from a longer perspective the society as a whole will be in a better of position. This has been in all societies, whether in Europe or in other parts of the globe. It is not the peculiarity of our society that the fixing of our attitudes to traditional values will become stubborn and we remain immune to all changes which has been taking around the globe. If we look at the social history of Ethiopia, around the 16th century the prominent Ethiopian philosopher began questioning the doctrine of the Old Testament which according to his belief that what all stated in the bible is the work of men and not as the clergy taught that it is the work of God. Zera Yacob, after he had observed nature he came to the conclusion that empirical observation which can be deciphered by reason ultimately leads to the truth. He denied by no means that the Old Testament possess valuable teachings. This brought him anger from the clergy, because Zera Yacob`s approach was a challenge to the prevailing ideology of the clergy and the feudal order which saw in the masses not as creative being with aspiration of new ways of life but as masses of laborer which produce and feed the unproductive class.

If we look at the European history closely, after the down fall of the Roman Empire and the rise up of the German barbarians, European society remained for over thousand years in dark ages. The power struggle between the feudal aristocracy and the church leaders on one hand, on the other hand the ideological dominance of the Catholic Church had practically blocked any meaning full development. The Catholic ideology which was against the natural order and which denied any progress had kept the European mind as prison of blind ideology. The masses accepted what the church leaders had taught them that not the sun but the earth was at the centre of all the planets and including the sun. That means the Earth was a fixed object while the planets and the Sun were circulating around the Earth. Due to this blind belief and the suppression of science, war, destruction and hunger became the common fate of the European people. These cycles of hunger, disease and war could be stopped for a while when the ideology of the church was challenged, trade and industry had taken roots and new ways of wealth appropriation became slowly the rule of the European society. After the Copernican revolution in the 15th century, and during the renaissance time in the same century the European people began awaking and the light of true civilization began reflecting in their minds. The introduction of the classical education system of the Greeks, like astronomy, geometry, rhetoric, Music and the Greek language had helped the European intellectuals to invent new devices by which they could explore the nature of the universe and used it for human civilization. This in turn opened the door for new inventions. With the inventions of new instruments the people of Europe could exploit the resources available easily and transformed them to useable products. The buildings of cathedrals and cities which began around the 13th century gave them new impetus, as industry and commerce grew the power of thinking had progressively increased. In short only through the introduction of new education system which was practical and highly sophisticated, the European people became ultimately the master of their fate and control nature. This new development of science and technology could not continue like that. The cultural renaissance of the 15th century was stopped by new waves of empiricism which spread from England to other European nations. The development of a new nation-state concept which was slowly spread must be fought by confusing ideas to block any meaningful development in other countries. The development of the concept of utilitarian ideas that human being has no any aspiration other than maximizing its utility and the struggle each against every body became the main philosophical foundation of the English empiricists. Any society is seen as the sum of individuals where as every individual struggles for its own sake without regarding the wishes of the others. With the emerging of Darwin's theory of evolution, and the population theory of Malthus, any society is seen an arena of competition and pure utility maximization, where as those who could not suit to the system of struggle for survival will be overthrown. With the triumph of this utilitarian concept and the defeat of humanism oligarchic rules and thinking were firmly established. The religious war of the 17th century which had lasted over thirty years had thrown so many European societies to anarchism and to total economic collapse. In many countries the population had diminished to one third. Farm lands were abandoned, and the income of the feudal and aristocratic class had diminished to a historical level. In light of this reality there were no other option than to come to peaceful arrangements, and in 1648 major European states recognized the historical facts of building their individual nation-states. With the treaty of Westphalia, all hostilities were completely abandoned. Different nations-states began concentrating to build their own home market with the basis of manufacture activities.

The above short analysis shows wrong beliefs, false education systems which are conceived for a certain class and oligarchic rules which consider the majority of the masses as human cattle are the main cause of war, destruction and backwardness. As history proves again and again the majority of the people in any country have never been the causes of wars and destructions. Always the elite which controls power and which is not guided by the principles of social harmony and peaceful coexistence is the main cause of war. As any education system is determined by the same class in accordance of a certain kind of social relationship, it will have either positive or negative impacts on social and economic developments of a given society. This demonstrates that not the lack of education per se could be by itself the main causes of backwardness but the quality of the education system, in combination of the social relationships and the existence of a certain kind of historical and social consciousness that determine the nature and tempo of social development.

History has again and again demonstrated that being educated by itself could not be the motor of social progress. The question here is what kind of education one acquires, how he acquires and for what purpose he is going to acquire are the essential questions to be studied before one become acquaintance with certain kinds of education. Therefore at a given historical period certain kind of education which is not studied from scientific point of view which serves the interests of certain social groups becomes by itself the cause of underdevelopment. The so-called modern man if it is brought up by empiricist knowledge, by introducing not well studied social and economic changes will complicate existing social relationships. The overlapping up of traditional and modern values become in conflict, and these by themselves become the causes of permanent social and economic chaos. The introduction of modern education systems in so many African countries, especially after political independence, and the policy of import-substitution-industrialization are clear examples why the so-called modernization could not become the vehicle of economic progress. At the same time the introduction of new technologies, without asking oneself how one introduces what kinds of technologies one is introducing, and for what purpose, will not elevate existing social patterns. If the introduction of new technologies are not associated by quick imitation, research and development, economic progress will remain superficial and will have short duration. The result will be unequal development, resource utilization become improper and real capital accumulation on a wider basis will not be any more possible. At the same time due to the demonstration effects of some cosmetic change, resource outflow becomes the rule of the system which will become by itself the main bottleneck of industrialization and real capital accumulation. As we have seen in the last 5 decades all economic changes which have been introduced in the African soil have failed due to the type of the education system which are imposed on us not as such because of lack of education. The education system which we are compelled to learn could not open our minds and made us creative so that we become innovate to develop new technologies. The domination of foreign experts over the school systems of the African society, the introduction of unnecessary education which is detached from science and technology, the political influence of foreign forces on all state structures which are modern, and the gap between the so-called elite and the masses of the population are interwoven mechanisms which arrest any meaningful development. This process of confusing the African elite, including the Ethiopian intelligentsia is becoming more and more apparent as the so-called information technology dominates the global village. Information becomes synonymous with knowledge, though information is a product of sense perception, and is not as such true knowledge which brings a science driven technological development. The type of the education system that is organized on empiricist line and which contradicts true human civilization has totally shadowed the soul of the new generation. The system of the education that is infused in the minds of the African elite and which determines its way of thinking and handlings become the causes of underdevelopment. This has been the case in all social formations where oligarchic rules become the only norms which forms and guides the human lives.

If we examine the Ethiopian education system very closely the system of the education was not designed in such a way so that it could give us the power of thinking to observe our natural surroundings and become creative in order to build a new Ethiopia. It has neither enabled us to ask ourselves why we went to schools. The fact that we were compelled to learn word by word without questioning the meanings of the particular subjects this system of learning blocked our thinking capacity. The system of education was so organized that it has corrupted our minds not to understand our environments and to undermine our people. In neither of the elementary books none of the Ethiopian landscapes, the names of the rivers and their origins, the mountains, the types of the trees which are growing and their property and their usefulness to the society and the ecological setup of the country, the different types of fishes and the birds, etc. all these essential knowledge are not included in the curriculum. We neither know how the peasants are cultivating their farm lands. We do not have any knowledge about the types of cereals which are growing in our country and in which seasons they are growing. Even a student from Alemaya College does not have any knowledge about the farming system of the peasantry. As we grew in such kinds of education system and more and more foreigners who did not understand our psychological makeup and did not have the slightest knowledge about the Ethiopian history and landscape became integrated in our lives we became more confused and outward oriented. We became more eclectic than generally and deeply educated. This kind of education system has cemented the feudal order in our minds. Sober analysis, questioning and discussing in order to come to a positive result was no more possible. In short the modern education system had not rationalized our minds. We became its victim that is reflected in our thinking and handlings. The education system of our country has produced many idiots like me and who again produces other idiots. These idiots when they are assigned to new jobs they give false advice to the working people and to the peasantry and by that they change them to beasts. In other words, the peasants by being converted to seasonal workers, they will be integrated into the world market. Instead of becoming creative beings as God created them, they will be hired in areas where Coffee is growing and sell their labour power very cheaply. Peripheral capitalism which is introduced with the education system has not only changed the social matrix of our society but it has also distorted the production activity of our society in such a way so that the Ethiopian people could not develop science and technology in order to build a modern country. Even now the new generation of economists advice the Ethiopian peasants and investors to plant flowers for the world market. Look how perverse we are compelled to think. I think most of us do not know how the world politics and the world market are functioning. Thanks to the neo-colonial mentality of the EPRDF government and its advisors, the so-called foreign experts have the opportunity of masterminding our people and the government itself. By being totally brain washed the new and most of the old elite think that they are part of the white oligarchic class and they are ready to do whatever they obey them.

Such kind of education system that is completely detached from true civilization has totally perverted our thinking, behavior and handlings which have wide range consequences for our society as a whole. Instead of becoming the motor of a science driven technological development we become one of the main factors of underdevelopment. We will be easily irritated when some body raises questions and challenges unscientific ideas. We give all possible names to discredit some body as if he comes from another planet. We do not have the gut and the ability to understand the messages of entirely different ideas and could not give our own judgments on the basis of theory and philosophy. The bloody war of the Ethiopian revolution is the result of this type of very backward education system and the lack of thinking ability which we are compelled to acquire.

Still today we witness that the so-called educated Ethiopians become irritated when one begins to challenge their ideas and instead of listening gently and bring their own arguments scientifically they try to divert the attitude of their followers. The last 30 years starting the bloody revolution of the Derg and its cadres, and some leaders of the student movement and their followers, and the political cadres of the Woyane and the opposition forces, prove that all will be easily hesitated by new and challenging ideas. Their eyes become red, their hairs become straight, their heads become hot and their blood starts boiling. This proves that feudal thinking which is against any rational idea still dominates our thinking and handlings. What we mean and what we think are not compatible with each other.

In order to bring fundamental changes in our society, we must have to challenge our selves. We must ask ourselves whether the education system which we have acquired until now is the right type which helps us bringing fundamental changes in our society which will lead our society to permanent peace and prosperity. The question to day, not only in our country but also around the glove, even in the industrial west is not as such any type of education what humanity needs, but a type of education that helps him to understand his humanness and brings him to a situation so that he will be governed by reason, not by emotion. In a world like this where greed and power have become the dominating factors, where very few think that they can twist the globe according to their own wishes, we are compelled to ask our selves in such a dramatic technological change, human knowledge never seen before, beautiful music which shapes our minds so that we become more human, and wide spread literatures etc. why humanity is driven again and again to wars and economic depression. What are the factors that blind the human mind not to see the danger of wars and its consequences? As Ethiopians and as the citizen of this beautiful world we have the historical duty to make us acquaintance with the right type of education so that we could fulfil our historical mission.

The point whether empowered people could bring the necessary changes is again another question which needs elaboration, and which cannot be adequately answered here. In short one can say here there is a protracted war which is going on around the glove not to let ordinary people to participate in decision making. The so-called parliamentary democracy becomes the only option, and even becomes a natural thing which humanity in general should strive for. The empowerment of the masses could not and should not be seen in isolation of wealth acquisition. It is not secret to day that in all countries of the world the wealth of the respective countries is dominated by few hundreds of peoples. In the industrial west where the so-called parliamentary democracy becomes an established institution not more than few percent of the population is controlling the wealth of their society. Big Banks, Insurance companies, Industries which are converted into stock capitals, Investment Banks which absorb society's wealth through different mechanisms, institutions which serve as the ideological basis of their respective governments are controlling the majority of the wealth of their society. The fusion of these institutions with the state apparatus, and the influence of certain groups which are wealthy on parliamentarians, and the complex nature of the laws which cannot be understood by ordinary people, make the masses of the population the victim of manipulation. Therefore the representative democracy which is the west so proud of alienates itself from the masses, and the election that takes place every four years becomes simply a showdown. As neo-liberalism marches in all the institutions, the elected governments are no more governing their people in accordance of the constitution which they have sworn on. It is therefore very important to study the essence and forms of democracy in its widest context, and the nature of mass participation in decision making process for the building up of a strong nation-state which can be transferred to the coming generation.

In this regard, we come to the crucial point why the present government is arrogant, why it is handling the political situation like this as we see, what are the factors which hinder him not to make political dialogues with other parties which are trying to show him good will of discussing national issues?

Political philosophy and political handlings of the present government

It is not as such sufficient to characterize the present EPRDF government as arrogant or to cry that absence of democracy and incompetent bureaucracy are dominating the lives of our people so that economic progress will be hampered. It is crucial important to analyze the political handlings of the present government from a philosophical point of view in order to understand its true nature, whether the EPRDF government has a political philosophy or it is guiding our society blindly to unknown destination.

What do I mean by political philosophy? Political philosophy is the art of governing a given society so that social harmony, economic progress, equality and justice among the member of the society become accepted parameters so that the society as a whole consciously shapes its life. The nature of the state apparatus and the philosophical backgrounds of those forces that are controlling the state apparatus are determining factors for the materialization of the mentioned parameters. A society that is not governed by a certain philosophy, a state apparatus that is not in a position to determine the path of the society from the above mentioned parameters, its destination will be confused and instead of orderly life social chaos will be the rule of such kinds of a system.

It is not without reason that the Greeks have found the first political philosophy as guiding parameters in order to construct a historical conscious society. Before the appearance of the writings of Homer, Thales and Pythagoras the founder of the Greek verse and philosophy, the Greeks as a whole were governed by oligarchic rules which drew them permanently to wars and destruction. The masses lived in desolate situation deprived of their natural rights. Wars, destruction and permanent dislocation of the people were seen as natural factors which were sent by Gods as punishment. Permanent war among the oligarchic classes, the destruction of social life which were seen as natural, were then put in question by the great philosophers of that time. Not Gods determines how human beings live in this world, but human beings themselves are the master of their fates. By observing the universe and the paths of the planets, they came to the conclusion that human beings could shape their lives in accordance of the harmonious universe. Therefore wars, destruction and permanent dislocation are not natural but they arise from wrong beliefs. Since the ruling classes are guided by the principles of power and greed, and since they consider the masses of their population as human cattle without any decent life, in order to fulfill their irrational fillings they drew their society into wars. According to the Greek philosophers, the ruling classes and the masses must be freed from such kinds of blind beliefs to build a society which is aesthetic and harmonious. Successive state men like Solon, and philosophers like Socrates and Plato had formulated a theory of political philosophy which could be as guide lines to govern a given society.

Solon who belonged to a rich family and by engaging himself in trade activities came into contacts with the ionian civilization and learned from Thales philosophy that helped him to shape his attitude. As a member of the oligarchic class who knew closely the massive exploitation of the peasantry by the feudal class and the inhuman conditions of the slaves, he understood well that this condition could not continue like this. As the first statesman he cancelled all the debts of the peasants and for those whose land was confiscated by force gave them back. Slaves were freed from their bondages, and the enforcement of creditors to own the slaves in case of non payable debt was forbidden. Only the acquisition of property as means of debt repayment could be acceptable in the era of Solon. Solon not only as a statesman, but also as a philosopher and a writer of dramas that could cultivate the human mind during his one year government had developed a new political culture that opened the door to more participation of the ordinary people in political decision process. Though Solon reforms could not continue like that, the political process that he introduced gave a special kind of dynamism for the next generation. Other philosophers and men of dramas, architects and artists came to the scene and gave new dynamism to the society in general that had decisive impacts in shaping the minds of the Greek people. Socrates and Plato by laying a new scientific philosophy as described above widened the scope of political philosophy. They have integrated into their political philosophy the methodology of scientific investigation to enable human being to become the master of nature by understanding the physical world. The dialectical method of Socrates and Plato as is analyzed above was challenged by the sophists in order to make humanity the prisoner of certain oligarchic classes which is guided by the mere principles of power and greed. These two contending ideas continued until the middles ages, the political philosophy of the Sophists get slowly the upper hand and being reformulated and widened by the English empiricists, like Hobbes, Locke and the classical economists which could slowly poisoned the global ruling classes of the different historical epochs. Educations, military science and political philosophy were formulated in order to serve certain ruling groups who saw in themselves that they are blessed to decide over the majority of their respective society. As professor Seung has clearly demonstrated in his fantastic book, Plato rediscovered: The politics of wars is always the politics of military-industrial complexes, which inevitably involves big money and power and breeds greed and fraud. This war philosophy in different historical epochs has been the political philosophy of the ruling classes in different societies and now in the era of high tech and interwoven military-industrial complexes it is the principal guide lines of the so-called world leaders who are bringing permanent chaos around the globe. Now let us go to Ethiopia.

In order to understand the political handlings of the EPRDF government it is relevant to study the nature of the political philosophy of the Haile Selassie government and the military dictatorship. Without understanding the social construction of the past two governments, and their political handlings it is very difficult to understand why the present government draws our society into permanent chaos so that our people live in fear and disharmony.

Some historians of Ethiopian origin and foreigners try to associate Emperor Haile Selassie with modernization, and the Emperor himself as wise leader of modern Ethiopia. As the political situation in our country becomes bleaker this attitude is gaining more support without through analysis of the Ethiopian situation during the Emperor time. For those intellectuals who have depth understanding of social theory and human civilization, the government of Emperor Haile Selassie has done nothing something historical which could guarantee the integrity and sovereignty of Ethiopia.

The emperor who did not have any political philosophy believed that the sovereignty and integrity of Ethiopia could be maintained by simply building up a huge civil and military bureaucracy which is detached from the masses. For the Haile Selassie government and his bureaucracy it was enough to have some cosmetic changes which could satisfy the consumption needs of the upper class. The fact that any sovereign national-state could be built up, maintained and strengthened when a science based industrialization policy has been taken which could encompass the whole country was not a prima facie fact by the ruling elite. It was neither known that the development of home market which could be the reproduction base of the society which could bring the society together and deliver him dynamism so that his thinking power develops was out of consideration. Haile Selassie believed that with the few changes he had introduced and the ideology that he had spread that he was sent by God to rule Ethiopia could maintain his power base for the coming thousand years. He thought that Ethiopia belonged to him and his family alone. He considered the Ethiopian people as human cattle without any aspiration, natural right to develop as free person in order to practice their god given creative power. This is characteristic to all feudal systems. Though the cosmetic changes he had introduced brought some contradictions and friction among the society, the attitude of the masses was not radically changed to bring new ways of lives. Since the reproduction base of the society was controlled by the ruling class the masses had little chance to alter their reproduction base and become innovative. The so-called modernization which is planted in few cities has perpetuated old values which hindered new and radical thinking. The overlapping up of old values with the so-called modern values which is mainly imported from America opened the way for an elite class which could alienated himself from the masses and behaved arrogantly. Since the education system did not have any philosophy and did not have the ability of redeeming the minds of the new elite, the mentality of this new class could not see things outside of its horizon. He could not understand that he had historical roles to play to bring systematic changes within the society that strengthens the integrity of the society and give him confidence that he belongs to the system. In short Haile Selassie produced sociologically seen, a very unstable class that does not have any self confidence in its own. The fusion of this peripheral education system with the feudal mode of thinking made him very intriguing, lazy and at the same time very arrogant, unpatriotic and selfish, without moral values and even racist that associates itself with foreign forces.

Haile Selassie's political handling was compatible with feudal thinking. The mode of production and the reproduction base of the society that was mainly agricultural hindered him to see things beyond his own life. He thought that Ethiopia belonged to him and his family alone, and the masses did not have any right of developing themselves as free human beings to build a society that is aesthetic and historical. The development of a money economy which was in its rudimentary form and which was concentrated in few cities could not eradicate the feudal mode of production, and as such the thinking of the ruling class remained static. Since the education system was not rationally organized so as to create a dynamic elite class which could produce new way of thinking by engaging itself in sophisticated literary works, arts and classical music, the system of feudal think was more cemented rather than being shattered. The Haile Selassie government was therefore not in a position to develop a system of confidence among the society by making systematic changes in the field of politics by giving more freedom, and in the field of economics by encouraging technological based industrial policy which could have dynamic effects to widen the reproduction base of the society on a system of capitalist economy. In short, the ruling class which was represented by the monarchy could not think strategically and did not understand the complexity of internal and international politics. As the system could not any more fit to control the internal contradictions which it had produced, and the international pressure which was manifested in economic crises and political shifts, the government of Haile Selassie must be overthrown. There was no any alternative to keep him in power. What could we learn from this? A ruling class which is not guided by a defined political philosophy and which is not in a position to find new ways of political handlings which are suit to new situations, it will not have another fate other than being overthrown.

The political handlings of the military dictatorship emanated from this feudal way of thinking. What makes it different from the Haile Selassie government was its violent and very irrational handling of the political situation. As so many argued that the political philosophy of the military dictatorship was not as such guided by socialist philosophy. As history proves one year or two years of introductions in socialist theory dose not alter the human mind. The socialist theory is a product of many generations and even thousands of years which ultimately takes its last shape by Karl Marx, and developed out of a capitalist society. As some argue, Marx used the philosophical theory of Kant and Hegel to develop his own version of materialistic theory. Whether the Marxian theory is a correct social theory which could solve existing social problems is another question. The issue here is that as the Bible and the Koran are not the sources of Christian and Muslim wars and aggressions, socialism cannot be blamed for the bloody war that we have experienced in Ethiopia. We could firmly believe today that the military ideology of the American imperialism and the feudal ideology had intricately produced a violent and very contradictory class which was ready to destruct any opposition forces when ever needed. The military ideology which is incompatible with human respect made the uncultivated mind of the military more brutal and wild. In Mendelssohn words, one of the greatest humanist and philosophers of the 18th century: "A wild person has not any filling of human respect and does not posses any moral and ethical values which could shape his mind so that love, order and total perfection governs his rational handling." This philosophical statement suffices to characterize all the members of the Derg which brutally slaughtered thousands of Ethiopian intellectuals that has never been seen before in Ethiopian history. In order to eradicate its opponents the Mengistu regime had organized a special force called Nebelbal, which was brutally trained to systematically kill which it suspected that could endanger the life of Mengistu Hailemariam. The members of this special force were collected from remote areas and did not have any educational backgrounds. With no any rational knowledge in their heads it was easy to train them brutally so that they could behave as wild animals. Well fed and trained they could fulfill the order of the Mengistu regime to sharply shoot its opponents. This demonstrates the wild nature of the military regime and the social background in which it was brought up and the special socialization which it used to enjoy and which the Haile Selassie regime unconsciously imported from America. It was a part of international conspiracy which was systematically developed by the American imperialism in order to undermine the development of capitalism in all Third World Countries. As we have seen in all Latin American countries where the brutalization of the state apparatus has taken an unprecedented scale in order to fight the supposed communism, the feudal regime of Ethiopia had also opened the door for the American imperialism to infiltrate into the state apparatus. The irrational student movement which did not have time to study adequately all these things, the social formation of our country and the psychological make up of the military had unnecessarily provoked the system which ended in blood shed. It is therefore incorrect to argue that the military government was solely responsible for the bloody situation and for the destruction of our country. All had participated consciously or unconsciously to create an atmosphere of chaos. If the remaining intellectual understands this situation and speaks openly that it had contributed for the disintegration of Ethiopia and did not understand the complexity of international politics it will have a role to play in constructing a new Ethiopia.

To understand the political handlings of the present EPRDF government we must drive our analysis from the above premises. EPRDF did not come from another planet. It is a product of feudal Ethiopia and peripheral capitalism. As such its political handlings and attitudes emanate from this social and psychological construction in which it has been brought up. What make it different from the two past governments is its ethnic component and more or less its homogeneity which is now eroding. It has at the same time unnecessarily developed within its own mind a kind of competition to demonstrate that now the time has come to install ethnic based ruling system which could terminate once for all the alleged Amhara ruling class from the Ethiopian minds. This gives it ethnic solidarity within its own community though the majority of them do not understand the essence of politics. This ethnic solidarity, the absence of any competing political group in the Ethiopian political scene and the systematic support of the US imperialism to dismantle Ethiopia as a nation state have more or less contributed to develop arrogance behavior within its mind. In addition to these the ethnic policy which it has been practicing since the last 12 years could be used as instruments of divide and rule to make instable the whole political set up. The country must be remained in permanent turmoil and the minds of the Ethiopian people must be confused to prolong its decadent ruling.

From this vantage point of view if we look especially its practice of the national question which Asegedech and the PM have celebrated as a mile stone in the Ethiopian politics that guarantee true freedom for the respected nationalities we see very contradictory things which contrarily hinder any meaningful development in all its aspects. First of all let us see the national question how it was raised by the student movement.

The most radical wing of the Ethiopian student movement, which was led by Wallelegne Mekonnen, who was one of the most aggressive and very irrational leader of the student movement as I could judge it today, had raised the issue of national question as one of the main causes of suppressions of the different Ethiopian nationalities after he had read Lenin's works on this issue. Wallelegene and others who followed suit this position came to the conclusion that the materialization of Lenin's suggestions that oppressed nationalities must have independence including up to political secession could guarantee true freedom. In order to strengthen his position Lenin resembled the issue of the national question as a relationship between a husband and a wife that as long as true love does not exist between them the only option is separation. This vulgar and unhistorical approach of Lenin was overtaken by the student leadership word by word. Lenin and the student movement by insisting the national question, as a way out of suppression forgot historically seen very important things. In any society the development of nation-state is a historical process which takes thousands of years. Before nation-states as we see them today in various degrees of development become into existence they must undergo various changes and complexities which gave their peculiar characteristics. Intermarriage between different groups which came into contact with trades, the development of language by borrowing certain words from each other, cultural contacts and formations which gave them some resemblances and differences, and social relationships which develop as different groups come into contacts and the division of labor which take different shapes as the various groups struggles to exploit their intelligence in order to satisfy their ever growing needs etc. all these have contributed to the formation of nations states across the world. As these processes were not sufficient to guarantee a fixed boundary and control more and more groups and resources some nationalities have taken as their historical duties to use violence as the only means to bring various nationalities under the control of one nation. Where the material conditions and the intellectual basis of the various nationalities have developed better, the formation of nation-states was easy to accomplish. In Ethiopia where the intellectual basis and the material condition were not that much developed various monarchs had used more or less violence to build Ethiopia as a nation-state. The feudalization of the society and the very rudimentary nature of the division of labor and the absence of any social movement were factors that hindered Ethiopia to become a coherent nation-state. In other words the nation-state formation is not complete. As Ethiopia becomes more and more integrated into the world capitalist market the suppression of the nationalities has taken another dimension which cannot be seen isolated from the over whole underdevelopment of the Ethiopian society. The suppression of the various nationalities is a by-product of feudalism and peripheral capitalism which can and must bee seen within the context of social formation which is in the path of reorientation and coherency. As I have tried to show above, because of the incompetence of the feudal order and its backward attitudes it could not play a historical role by developing the material basis of the society. In short over 90% of the Ethiopian people were the victims of feudal oppression which can be solved not by means of a kind of vulgar approach exercised by the present government but by metaphysical ways which elevate their power of thinking and make them creative so that in alliance they could build a free and strong Ethiopia on the basis of science and technology.

The political practice of the EPRDF government is not only reactionary but it also blocks any meaningful development. As social anthropology proves human beings could develop their creative power when they become more intermixed with each other. The ability to develop their own languages and learn other languages when they come into contacts with other groups and nationalities will empower them true freedom and independent thinking. Their isolation and marriage practices within their own groups alone hinder them to develop as free human beings. The more they are isolated and the more they develop a sprit of otherness they become suspicious and the ability of abstract thinking which is essential for the development of science and technology will remain underdeveloped. Therefore the policy of Killil is the policy of underdevelopment which must be fought scientifically. As PM Meles tries to make us believe that the various oppressed nationalities are enjoying the sweet of true freedom is pure nonsense and unscientific.

When put into practice, as Asegedech and the PM claims the oppressed nationalities could not attain true freedom. First of all they began revenging against the so-called oppressors, especially the Amharas and the Gurages became the victim of such kind of vulgar freedom. The old cadres of the Military government by using the new situation and integrated into the newly formed parties and by moving from place to place they began harassing whom they had suspected as oppressors and Nefetgnas. By using the new posts which they have acquired and being integrated into the new mechanisms of oppressions, they had the opportunity of dismantling the harmonious relationships which the various nationalities have enjoyed hitherto. Being frightened by the new circumstances, the Amharas and the Gurages had no other options than escaping themselves and their families and go to the capital city. As a result of these evections, farm lands were abandoned. Trade activities which so many cities had enjoyed until then were diminished to a historical level. The division of labor which the various nationalities have practiced became out of function. Cities became changed to small villages, and small villages to rural areas. In light of this clear situation one cannot claim that the various nationalities have acquired true freedom. This alleged freedom is not at all supported by true social emancipation and cultural renaissance. Instead of freedom one witness that in so many rural areas where various nationalities have set up their administrations social anarchy and economic regression have become the rule of the system. What is after all freedom if one is not in a position to communicate with other nationalities. There is also one important aspect which one should bare in mind. True freedom could be attained only if one recognizes the freedom of the others and respects their humanness. All in all the oppressed nationalities could not enjoy true freedom as our leaders are trying to convince us.

The political understanding of the present government goes beyond ones own imagination and its misconceptions of social formation like Ethiopia is very ridicules. By using a very bad metaphor it has tried to change radically the social fabrics of the Ethiopian society. According to its philosophy the Ethiopian society must be jarred like a bottle of Coca Cola. When the jarred bottle is opened the gas overflows and the rest remains at stand still which could be drank comfortably. Likewise such a society likes Ethiopia with its religious and ethnic contradictions and feudal like institutions must be confronted in such a manner so that the society at the end comes to harmony and social dynamism. In its false perception social dynamism and international politics the EPRDF government has opened the door for fundamentalist groups and religious sects which are in permanent confrontation against the old Orthodox Christian church and the Muslim tradition of our country. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the Ethiopian Muslims have been living over the last 1300 year more or less peacefully. Now because of the unnecessary radicalizations of the two groups there is permanent tension which could be culminated into a dangerous situation.

If one analyses the political handlings of the EPRDF government from a true political philosophy point of view it does not posses any social theory. It lacks coherence and changes its tactics from time to time to make the people live in permanent fear. It is a typical ugly feudal politics colored with peripheral capitalism which demonstrates its primitiveness and uncertainty at the highest level. Due to its changing tactics which is of course very primitive, the people in Addis say that Satan is advising the EPRDF government to behave like this. I think all the policies which have been adopted must be seen from the above vantage-point of view. To my belief the present government will go ahead with its ugly policy of divide and rule system. The "civilized" West supports the present government if it continues with its policy of disintegration and social anarchy. The West has one single interest: To see a divided and weak Ethiopia, where its citizens are living on permanent food aid. It is the philosophy of the American imperialism and the West to undermine any effort of nation building with the basis of science and technology. Therefore it is foolish to believe that the West will alter its policy of supporting the present EPRDF government.

Pro poor economic policy versus market oriented policy

In her analysis Asegedch tries to convince us that the EPRDF government has been following until now an economic policy which favors the poor. When Asegedch writes this sentence she has never tried to deeply analyze what she is trying to mean by pro poor economic policy. In several articles which I have contributed to Ethiopian magazines I have tried to show that the economic policy of the EPRDF government from the outset is consistent with the market economic policy of the IMF and the World Bank. The economic policy paper of 1993 which was drafted by the IMF and blindly accepted by the EPRDF government proves that the EPRDF government has never formulated an economic policy which could elevate the standard living of the Ethiopian masses. Its political philosophy and its poor backgrounds of political economy will not allow it to formulate an economic policy which could benefit the masses.

Following the economic draft of 1993, the EPRDF government has devalued the Ethiopian birr to 5,02 and the devaluation process has then successively continued and reached to almost 10 Ethiopian birr. The logic of this devaluation was to promote exports and to make restrict imports. The result is vice versa. As Ethiopia exports mainly coffee and other agricultural products, the expected export growth did not become a reality. As new competitors appear in the world market the elasticity demands for coffee instead of showing upward trends it diminishes successively. And hence the income from export could not grow as the IMF and the government have planned. On the other side, though from theoretical points of view imported goods become dearer and thereby could restrict imports, the liberalization of the foreign trade has enabled the new consumer class to import very luxurious goods which have wide range consequences on the trade balance of the country. As the liberalization process continues Asian countries, such as the republic of China, Japan and Korea used the opportunity to export more of their goods to Ethiopia and could compete with the manufacturing industry, especially with small and medium industries. The imports of goods from these countries have severely damaged the production capacities of the producers at home. As the result of this many employers were compelled to either reduce their production capacity or shut it at all. The consequence of this kind of liberalization is, shrinking the home market, increase of mass unemployment and thereby diminishing the buying capacity of the masses, diverting the meager hard currency to other consumptive purposes, and increasing activity of black markets which began destroying the cultural basis of the society. The privatization policy of the regime has aggravated this situation. As factories and trade corporations were sold to unknown individuals who were supported by the government, because of the restructuring of the companies thousands of employees have lost their jobs. The privatization policy of the regime has inevitably created a new social situation which on one side enriches very few individuals, and on the other side the pauperization of the society has taken unprecedented scale which has not been seen in our history before. Though some total free market adherents of Ethiopian origin are not satisfied with the intensity and progress of the market economic policy of the regime the Ethiopian masses are compelled to swallow the bitter medicine of the IMF market economic policy and know better than those experts who still believe that there is no other alternatives than accepting the market economic policy of the IMF.

The investment policy of the regime by itself is another attempt to strengthen the existing underdevelopment of the country. If one looks at the investment policy the regime continues the old form of import-substitution-industrialization whose import content is very high. The expansion of food and beverage factories which have very low multiplier effects and which have weak technological basis become the main investment options where the regime concentrates its efforts. These two areas which have very weak backward linkages become the main focuses even for the private investors. With the advice of the World Bank and UNIDO the regime continues its unequal development policy. The expansion of the sugar factory in Wongi with the help of the EU and the World Bank in order to stimulate exports clearly shows how the regime could not understand the nature of such kinds of investment. As we know the world market is completely overwhelmed by the Brazilian sugar and the synthetic sugar from the EU which is heavily subsidized. In light of this situation to divert the meager resources to this unprofitable and cost intensive area of investment demonstrates how our leaders could be easily manipulated by their foreign advisors. As statistics demonstrate these investments could not have the capacity of absorbing the reserve army which is looking for jobs. The concentration of the investments in few areas has widened the already exiting unequal development. In this case one cannot claim that the EPRDF government has been following until now economic policies which favor the poor. All the policies and the reality in Ethiopia clearly prove that the majority of Ethiopians become the victim of such a market economic reform which has the capacity of disintegrating and marginalizing the whole society.

The lack of any scientifically studied economic policy and the incapacity of the policy makers to understand the complexity of the social reproduction base of our society have compelled many private business men to divert their resources in areas where the turn over of capital is very quick but its accumulation base is very weak. Opening hotels and other services which have very low capacity of absorbing labor and very weak linkages become the main focuses where private capitals is allocated. Building activities, the formation of insurance companies which resemble the western style and which do not match with the economic base of the country, Banks which are not connected to productive sectors etc. are the celebrated areas where the so-called modern man is trying to throw its capital. All the above and these economic activities have very low value added effects and as such could not transform our society into a scientifically based capitalistic economy. In short in light of mass poverty and not clearly defined economic policy which is not based on physical economic principles the underdevelopment of the country will take another dimension which threatens the national integrity and social harmony of our society.

If we look at the private sector, money making is the main aim and as such all economic activities are not related to technological developments. The logic of capitalistic rationality, such as investing, maintaining, widening and rationalization of the industries is completely absent from the minds of the investors. The lack of any economic dynamism in such area and the consumption habit which the new economic class has developed block real capitalistic development. In this case if we examine the whole economic activity it is highly dispersed without organic links via money mechanism. The nature of the economic activity which is more or less organized on feudalistic principles, that means the absence of any efficiency in terms of raw material storage, getting the right types of input factors, and producing at the right time and the right products to satisfy consumer demand, the lack of efficient method of production cost calculation, the very weak link with the Banking sector and the absence of any organizational principles are characteristic aspects which block any meaning full capitalistic development. The government is not aware of these facts which still govern the attitude of our society. In this case the general trend of the economic activity is not very promising as Asgedech tries to make us believe.

Let me come to the question of land privatization. I would like to affirm that both Asegedech and the EPRDF government are completely right when they insist that the present lease system is the only alternative which could firmly hold the peasantry to the rural area and guarantee him true freedom. In this case some of the opposition forces and those academicians who insist that without land privatization the improvement of food security is impossible are wrong. As in any economic theory and policy there is also misunderstanding concerning the land question and the role of land privatization in economic development.

Land like water and air is a free gift of nature and as such it is not a human product. Historically in all countries of the world the question of land and the privatization process have been resolved by means of powers. Those forces which had political powers and those which were intermingled with the political power could ultimately usurp land and could bring the weak part of the society under their control. The capitalist development of the West is not particular from the above facts. The feudalization process which was started beginning the 10th century in central Europe and the political strength of the feudal and aristocratic class which gained momentum had diminished the peasantry to serfdom and to total subordination. As capitalism grows and manufacture activity expands the land become slowly a private institution which cemented the existing social relationships by legal means. As political economy is freed from mercantilism and liberal ideology takes the upper hand those social forces who believed that their time had come saw the question of land as one means of wealth accumulation and means of political power. Hence via legal mechanisms they could gain the status of private property as a part of individual freedom. The crucial aspect that private property from purely legal point of view without exercising power could not be the basis of exploitation is unscientific. Only the massive exploitation of the peasantry, the denial of its humanness and the expulsion of the peasantry from its farmlands in order to expand capitalist development could pave the way for general capitalist development. This fact is well documented and no one can deny that without primitive accumulation the present system of international capitalism could not affirm its dominance.

When we come to Ethiopia the question of land which was dominantly in the hands of the church, the aristocracy and the feudal lords had negative impacts on the social and economic development of the country. For centuries the Ethiopian peasants were degraded to serfdom like situation which blocked the development of the productive forces and hence capitalism. Though there were different land tenure systems in north and the south of the country, in general the concentration of lands in very few hands undermined the social mobility of the society and the development of capitalism. At the end of the 19th century when the traditional holding system slowly changed to private property, the situation of the peasants did not get improve. The introduction of money has changed the character of payment from natural to money rent. The penetration of capitalism especially after the 1940s had a greater impact on the development of peripheral capitalism. The private property on land began being transformed from its feudal character to a quasi capitalistic relationship. This was the case especially in the southern part of the country where cash cropping become the dominant mode of production. The expansion of money economy and the relative social mobility had mainly its impacts on the mode of consumption other than on the development of the productive forces. Hence the feudal relationships with its various contradictions could dominate the lives of the Ethiopian people. The fact that the Haile Selassie government was not ready to make land reforms it was at the end necessary to make radical land reforms. Here one could debate on the nature of the reforms whether it was necessary from political point of view to make such a radical land reform. Without doubt there were mistakes in the reforms which were the reflection of the political and social consciousness which was prevailing during the revolution. All in all the land reform was a necessary factor which freed the Ethiopian masses from a quasi serfdom situation. Why the land reform did not bring the necessary result is another question which needs wide theoretical and empirical elaboration and is beyond the scope of this analysis.

In the light of the prevailing hunger problem and due to the ideological dominance of neo-liberalism many Ethiopian academician even the old Marxists are insisting that the privatization of land is a necessary criteria to alleviate the hunger problem and to gain food sufficiency. To my understanding there is a great confusion among those forces who insist that land must be privatized. They do not have theoretical and scientific foundations to justify their slogans of private property on land. If one takes the case of Brazil where private property on land exists over 40% of the population live beyond poverty line and there is hunger problem from to time to time. That is the case in so many Latin American countries where oligarchic forms of land relationship is existing and where the majority of the people are working as daily laborers for the world market without improving their lives for generations. This shows that irrespective of private property on land there still exists economic underdevelopment and mass poverty in so many Latin American countries. Hence one cannot associate the problem of hunger and mass poverty in Ethiopia with the absence of private property on land. The problem of underdevelopment in Ethiopia is more a cultural, a political and a mental problem than the non existence of private of property on land. The groups which insist that private property on land could solve existing food shortages do not know what kind of a society they want to establish. As we know any society is more than an arena where economic practices are taking place. The sum of political, economic, cultural and certain defined value systems which are being practiced in any society determine the nature and the social coherency of that particular society. To reduce any society to economic practices and to private property alone is not only pure reductionism but it is also very dangerous which paves the way for social anarchism. This is the most important aspect which must be analyzed well.

The arguments for private property are diverse and contradictory. As I have stated above the most crucial point what the free-marketers insisting is that the introduction of private property will abolish the existing hunger problem. The second point is that the existing state ownership on land could not create favorable situation for foreign investors. As studies in Latin American countries prove where foreign investors have more rights than the ordinary people the majority of the masses are reduced to slave like situation without slightly improving their lives from generation to generation. The children of the workers too are compelled to work in the plantations and do not have the opportunity of going to school and improve their lives. That means the social mobility of the children of the peasantry and the seasonal workers is restricted and remained for generation on the same level. Peasants and workers do not have any right of organizing themselves and they live in quasi human cattle situation without social security. Those who oppose such system of exploitation will be shot by paratroops whose political ideology is quasi fascism. The Americans and their associates in these countries consider any social movement for the improvement of the lives of the workers as the works of communists. Especially American multi national firms which are engaged in quasi plantation economy by intermingled themselves with the state apparatus of the concerned governments are the causes of concentration of wealth in small groups of people which are terrorizing their people and force unequal development in various sphere of the society. Without further analysis this is the situation in so many Latin American countries where social anarchy and state terrorism which is supported by international synarchist forces become the social norm of these societies. In light of these circumstances to believe that private property on land will have positive impacts in attracting foreign investors is nothing than reducing Ethiopia and our people to slave like situation. If foreigners have access to invest in Ethiopia they will concentrate in those areas and produce which will be marketable and will be exported. Foreign investors in any country of the world do not have any interest in stimulating the development of the home market and such kind of foreign involvement is against the natural right of the Ethiopian people. As in so many Latin American countries, the government and few individuals that associate themselves with foreigners will be the only beneficiary of foreign investment. The case of the Metahara and Wonji sugar plantation and factory, the role of Mitchelcot, in the Awash region in the 60s are clear examples why foreign investment could not bring a balanced and well sustained economy which benefits the majority of the masses. I think most academician seem to forget all the crimes foreigners had inflicted during the reign of the Haile Selassie government on our people. The problem of the free-marketers in Ethiopia and who live abroad is that they do not have the concept of humanity and human civilization in their own heads. That all human beings are created according to the images of God and are equipped with creative soul to understand the physical world and create new instruments to exploit nature in a balanced way so that they could ease their lives and live in harmony with nature is out of their paradigm with which they are brought up. They think and believe that the ideology of the free market will solve existing economic and social problems if everything is free and each and every individual will then have equal access to what is marketable and every body will maximize its utility in accordance of the market principles of demand and supply. If we accept this philosophy and capitulate to these free-marketers we will commit the greatest crime against our people. It is our duty to show that these individuals organized or not they are fighting against the interest of our people, and they are even against a genuine capitalist development which is based on science and technology.

When we come to its practicability the adherents of a pure market economy do not have any workable solution how they put it into practice. First of all privatization means that selling all lands which are under the control of the state. For these to happen the constitution must be changed since all claim they respect the rule of law. Without changing the constitution one cannot simply sell state properties. Secondly, if private property is allowed the state does not have the right to allocate lands to the peasantry. Private property means nothing but selling to individuals who have money. That means the peasants who have possession rights until now must be evicted from their lands. This leads us automatically to concentration of private property in the hands of few individuals who have the ability to buy. With this one changes inevitably the social matrix of our society, and consciously or unconsciously will pave the way for a new kind of social anarchism which will undermine any meaning full economic and social development. Given this bleak situation if private property will be introduced, we should and must work in harmony how we could organize the present lease system in a favorable situation so that on one side economic development will be possible and on the other hand social harmony will be the norm of our society so that Ethiopia as a nation-state not only survives but also strengthened and transferred to the next generation. I do not believe that lease system if it is organized well will undermine capitalistic development. To simply copy the historical facts of the West as the only alternative of capitalistic development is to make grave error.

The present food shortage and hunger problem in our country is more a structural problem which could be analyzed and understood from the over whole underdevelopment of our country. The present EPRDF government by following very contradictory policies is aggravating the situation. Its policy of divide and rule, the implementation of a neo-liberal economic policy which undermines genuine development and its irrational approaches to all social situations are worsening the social and economic conditions of the peasantry. Because of the neo-liberal ideology and free trade policy of the regime the Ethiopian market is overwhelmed by cheap American and European grains which damage the peasant's ability of cultivating its farm in accordance of the needs of the society. It is not secret that because of problems of market many peasants are throwing their grains in the cities after they have brought many kilo meters away from home. They could not carry them back home. Secondly the government does not have a comprehensive policy of agricultural development which could on one hand guarantee food security and reduces hunger, on the other hand improves the social and economic conditions of the peasantry. Thirdly the majority of the peasantry still depends on very primitive farm method that is not compatible with the demand of the society. The very primitive nature of farm practices damages the productivity of the soil and hence productivity per man and per acre land is diminishing year after year. Land management systems on one hand to improve the fauna and flora of the country side, and on the other hand to raise the yield of the farm are not being practiced. Because of weak institution and lack of qualified experts the peasants are left alone. Fourthly, the majority of the peasants do not have access to cheap credit. Fifth, because of fear of loosing its control the government creates in certain areas chaotic situations which undermine the farm practices of the peasantry. In Gojam and Gondar areas where the EPRDF government still practices a policy of divide and rule, and because of debt repayment problems, the peasants of these areas could not resume their farm practices from time to time. Some come to the cities to find jobs in order to pay their debts. Under these circumstances it is unwise to believe that only the privatization of land could solve our countries food and hunger problem. It is therefore very important to concentrate our efforts so that on one hand to compel the government to change its policy of destruction, on the other hand to struggle for radical changes in all fields of our society so that true political emancipation which paves the way for the transition of power will become effective.

The Alternative

Any economic policy which will be put into practice must be theoretically and scientifically supported whether it is capable enough to solve existing social and economic problems. A society which is not guided by certain theoretical and philosophical principles will be sooner or latter condemned to permanent social chaos. Instead of social harmony and balanced economic development, wealth appropriation by the few will be the norm of the society. From this vantage-point of view it is quite important to give theoretical and some empirical analysis why the neo-liberal ideology of market economy has an inbuilt mechanism of unequal development which automatically excludes the majority of a given society not to be included in developmental process.

The present problem in Ethiopia and outside Ethiopia in the Ethiopian communities in Europe and North America is that no theoretical and scientific discussion about the fate of our society takes place. The present intellectual atmosphere within our country and in the Diaspora is not promising. In some areas there exists total resignation, in certain areas some prefer a Pinochet type of market economy that tends towards fascism, and in other areas where the slogan of Ethiopiawinet becomes the main focal point of political struggle, there is a frustrating misunderstanding between true scientifically based economic development which strengthens Ethiopiawinet and a neo-liberal market economy which undermines the social integrity of our people and weakens its national sovereignty. Some who believe that they could solve the country's social and economic problem when they seize power are not open to scientific discussion and tend towards paternalistic attitudes as if they are legitimated to talk on behalf of our people, and they have the sole monopoly to do so. In this atmosphere of total confusion it is practically impossible to be engaged in open discussion to teach and learn and then come to a workable solution that could give hope so that our people rise in unison to build a strong and united Ethiopia. In order to come to some discussion and clear up the confusion made by the neo-liberal ideology as the only alternative of solving social problems across the world let me show its irrelevance as an instrument of creating real social wealth.

The fallacy of the neo-liberal ideology lies in the fact that it is based on pure assumptions which do not exist in the real world or in any given society. In other words it negates existing social realities in any given society. According to the neo-liberal ideology, political power, social relationships and the relationships between man and nature and the role of culture in influencing economic development of a given society positively or negatively are not included in its model. It neither includes in its model historical analysis and comparative social studies as means of detecting the causes of underdevelopment in any given society. Land, capital and labor are taken as the simple premises of any economic analysis, the scarcity and relative abundance of one or the two factors and their efficient or non-efficient allocations determine whether a given society is capable of structuring its economy on the pure principle of market economy. By taking the Hobbesian dictum of each against every body and forms of organizations on purely individualistic basis without organic links, individuals in any given society tend towards utility maximization. According to neo-liberal ideology, since human needs are unlimited, if a society is consciously or unconsciously organized on the principle of market economy, individuals are struggling to get the maximum utility. Such a system of economic organization is organized for the sake of utility maximization, and individuals are in permanent struggle against each other to fulfill this desire. In other words any individual has no other mission other than engaging itself in economic activities which yields him the maximum utility.

According to the neo-liberal ideology the present capitalistic developments of the West has reached this stage not 1) through scientific investigations laid during the last two or more thousand years which had passed from one society to the another and through intermingling of different cultures and moved towards the West to serve there as the basis of further development, 2) through cultural renaissance which had started first in Italy and spread in other parts of Europe, 3) through internal accumulation processes and long trade activities which could enhance general capitalistic development , 4) through primitive accumulation on international level by undermining economic developments on other parts of the globe, 5) through internal cohesion social relationships and formations of nation-states which favored economic development on manufactured based activities and fastened the development of the home market by building organic links among the different economic sectors. All these very important aspects are not part of the theoretical and scientific analysis of the neo-classical model. In short the neo-classical economic model operates beyond the scope of time and space and by assuming things which are not relevant from a purely capitalistic development point of view.

In the neo-liberal model all the three production factors, namely land, capital and labor do not exist in any given society at the same time with the same quantity and quality. In one country there exists more land and labor, where as in another country capital is the overwhelming production factor. In this case and through the necessity of international trade between different nations, different countries that are engaged in exchange activities the relative mobility of one or the two factors are possible. For example since all Third World Countries do not posses enough capital they must import capital from relatively developed countries. In other words countries which lack capital should not concentrate to develop their own technology and they do not need to develop their own science and technology. All the three factors are seen in functional relationships which have their prices which are determined according to the scarcity and demand and supply. By that the neo-classical model negates all the theoretical and scientific analysis that was developed by the Greek Classics from Thales on wards, especially by Plato that capital is nothing but the product of idea which could be progressively developed when the cognitive power of every individual equipped with the correct knowledge. According to the physical economic principles, first developed by Leibniz capital cannot be seen differently from technological development, where as technology is embodied in capital which could come into existence by creative ability of the human soul. If one looks at the technological developments prevailing today it is the product of thousands of years which come into existence through the interactions of different cultures. That means technology is by no means a product of one particular race. In all societies where technological development has taken place, -there have been always some developments- one observes that the human mind tries to invent new instruments to exploit the resources of nature and make it edible. Without progressive change in the human knowledge technological development is practically impossible. For example, how did the first human being come to develop a plough? How was it possible that it used oxen or horses to plough the land it controlled?

How it was possible that human being did not only invent fire but used it to smelt iron in order to produce instruments of labor? Fire which is a metaphor for technological development in Promethean myth which rebelled against Zeus, the most jealous of the Greek Gods which punished Prometheus for revealing the secret of knowledge to human being was one step towards the development of technology. This proves also that human being is in constant struggle to change its mode of production by inventing new instruments. The story goes on like that. To undermine or to exclude the cognitive power of human being to develop technologies out of an economic model is not only anti science but also anti human and a historical.

When we come to political economy which was developed around the 16th century, and which is dialectically connected with the rise of nation-states the problem of developing a national economy become apparent. Until the rise of liberal economic theory at around the 17th and the 18th century, mercantilism was the only economic policy which served as effective instrument in building a national economy and constantly creating new wealth. Only through the intervention of the state and supporting the active forces of economic agents different European countries developed internal markets and abolished existing boundaries within their own nation-states. As nation-states become facts, and rivalries grew new ideas came which wanted to undermine the nation-state concept of relatively underdeveloped economies. The liberal ideology and free trade economic doctrine of the English empiricists gained momentum and spread in different countries. The ideological struggle had taken another dimension and the struggle to get more wealth through unequal exchange and if necessary through non-economic mechanisms becomes a part of economic policy. New territories, new markets and raw materials to feed the rising industrial development become a part of capitalistic development. In this way political economy began being interpreted differently and the struggle to develop and defend once own nation is seen the most important aspect of nation building. The German historical school prominently represented by Friedrich List is one historical step forward to develop the concept of national economy to its highest level. Friedrich List had vehemently refuted the liberal ideology of free trade represented by Adam Smith, why it undermines the development of a technologically based economy. In short as neo-liberalism tries to reduce economic model to only three factors or the known growth model of modern day economic theory is not only very dangerous but also anti-human which prolongs the misery of Third World Countries like Ethiopia for thousands of years if it is not corrected urgently.

The problem of a pure neo-liberal market economy goes beyond these fallacies which it vehemently represents. It sees all nations of the world through one mirror as if all nations have the same developmental preconditions. According to the free market principles of neo-liberalism monetarism is the correct policy which could eradicate imbalances in any given society which are existing. In all societies the intervention of the state to bring developmental changes undermines individual efforts and market philosophy principles. The macro economic policy which was developed in the 30s of the last century and expanded after the war is the only theoretical foundations that all nations should follow and apply. The macro- economic policy with its micro-economic foundation is the only theoretical guide line which enforces market economy when it is correctly applied. Inflation theory, general employment, money and commodity market and the theory of balance of payment and international tread are the parameters with which the neo-liberal ideology is operating. Though so many societies do not have the same features all policies for all countries are being formulated from these factors. For example a country like Ethiopia where about 85 % of the population is practicing subsistence farming and other informal economic activities is seen as if the society is living in purely capitalistic society where as other laws and forms of organizations are the rules and norms of the society. Hence a society like Ethiopia must accept the bitter medicine of monetarism if the country wants to develop a market economy. Monetarist policies, like restricting money supplies by restricting credits and making expensive bank credits, reducing budget deficits by diminishing the role of the state in all economic and social activities, by liberalizing trade and privatization of state properties, and by devaluing the currencies the monetarist ideologists believe that any country could pave the way for a true market economy which ultimately improves the lives of each and every individual. As we observe and experiences in so many developed and underdeveloped countries demonstrate when such policies are applied they have wide range consequences for the society as a whole which is known and which I do not dwell long on the subject. It is important to mention here that the monetarist ideology of the IMF and the World Bank negates all the empirical evidences of the last 60 years which have been practiced in all capitalist societies, and in the emerging economies of the republic of China, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore. All these economies could grow only through the massive and conscious interventions of the governments of these countries. If we take the capitalist countries, where almost the share of the state amounts to 45% of the GSP, the governments are suppliers and demanders of products and services at the same time. There is no area where the governments of the capitalist countries are not directly or indirectly intervening. From direct investment policies to tax and money policies and diverse laws which are related to economic activities are means of interventions where the various capitalist states exercise their influence. In light of these facts to put pressure on such governments like Ethiopia is not only anti science and also very dangerous. After I have given some theoretical, historical and empirical analysis let me give my alternative how we could tackle the present economic and social crises in our country.

Any economic policy if it becomes effective must take into account the essence and the role of the state as its starting point of theoretical and empirical analysis. Without a profound analysis of the essence and the role of the state no economic policy could achieve the necessary result and no nation will get its true freedom.

The problem of the Ethiopian intellectual is that it has never adequately analyzed what should be the nature of any state, and especially the nature of the Ethiopian state if Ethiopia develops and being strengthened as a nation state. The Ethiopian state of the last 60 years has been taken as normal and as god given without asking how the Ethiopian state system came into existence in the last 60 years and what did it achieve for its citizen so that our people exercised true freedom and economic prosperity. The lack of a theoretical analysis in this area is characteristic to all Marxists and non Marxist organizations. Their feudalistic perception of human development and civilization blocked their intellectual capacity to study the social formation and underdevelopment of Ethiopia.

Thanks to western intellectuals of the critical school of thought starting from Socrates on wards that have developed elaborate theoretical works what should be the nature and the essence of any nation if peace, true freedom and prosperity will be the main guidelines of any society. As any state is a product of certain social formations and power struggles its historical roles can be determined by the existing social and historical consciousness of that given society. The practices of the state in its various forms reflect the historical and intellectual consciousness of the particular conditions which have been developed through centuries. Accordingly, in accordance of its particular historical consciousness it either creates favorable conditions for the improvement of the productive forces which bring over whole economic development or block economic development. If we look at the state formations of the capitalist societies starting the 16th century, the role of the states in creating favorable conditions for economic development and direct interventions to stimulate capitalistic economic growth are well theoretically elaborated. From a theoretical, empirical and philosophical point of view the role of the state in all major capitalist societies was not seen in isolation of national sovereignty, economic development on the basis of physical economic principles and individual freedom which reflected the various historical epochs of the various countries. As such the capitalist state has always worked within a certain theoretical and philosophical paradigm which was elaborated by philosophers of the different epochs. On the other side countries like Ethiopia which do not have any theoretical foundations of the state have followed blindly the advices of imperialist countries to waste their wealth and intelligence and block economic and social developments. From this perspective it is very important to define the nature and the role of the state in accumulation process. With this in mind it is then very simple to come to other economic issues and their practicability to bring Ethiopia on the road of genuine economic development which guarantees the social integrity and sovereignty o the country. I will concentrate on certain points which I believe that they will effectively change the images of Ethiopia if they are put into practice consistently and vigorously.

1. Defining the role of the state: The role of the state must be defined in the new

constitution which will be formulated and accepted by the Ethiopian people. In accordance

of the constitution the state has the historical and moral duty to follow a policy of economic

development which enables accumulation processes and bring an over whole development

that could improve the lives of the Ethiopian people. In this case the direct and indirect

interventions of the state in economic matters must be worked out and must be improved

from time to time when ever they are necessary. There are three main areas where the role

of the state becomes significant and unavoidable if medium and long term development . could be come effective. In the area of strategic investments, like iron and steel industries,

transportation system especially train systems that could be expanded and developed with

a special kind of financial mechanism, inland canal system for material and human

transportation and highways and organizing a new system of education which supports

science and technology are the main areas where the state must give the maximum effort

to induce genuine development.

2. Defining the role of private investment: 
Individuals who want to invest their money and know how must get the necessary legal

frame work, material and spiritual support so that they could participate in building a new

Ethiopia. In the constitution private property except on land must be fully guaranteed and

individual investors have full freedom in accordance of the law to plan and make their own

decision. Private investments as long as do not contradict the constitution, and work in

accordance of well defined laws that do not violate the health of the society,

ecological setup of the country and maintain certain criteria will be encouraged.

 In this case the government must encourage private investors

to invest not only in few cities but also in all cities and districts of the country. For those

who invest in remote areas the state should give incentive mechanisms, like tax

exemption for a certain period, land leasing at lower prices, and facilitate transportation

system which fasten the valorization of capitalist development Foreign products which

compete against home mode products and destroy the existing industries will be strictly

prohibited from entering into the country.

3. Defining the role of money and banking: Until know the Ethiopian banking system is

operating under the principles of peripheral capitalism which blocks the development of

capitalism and the velocity of capital at higher level so that money could not circulate

effectively quickly. The banking system lends money mainly to service sector and does not have any strategy how it stimulates capitalist growth. The banking and the productive sector do not

have organic links. Most of the people still maintain their money at home below their bed and

give it for consumption purpose which hamper capitalist money accumulation by being

invested from time to time. Because of the subsistence nature of the economy all payments

occur in direct contacts, wages and salaries do not pass the banking systems. Therefore the

banking system of the country could not get the necessary capital to forward as credit for

private investors. In this case it is very important to organize the banking system on three

principal lines which could exist side by side which favor all parts of the society. The

central bank and other state regulated banking systems are the first criteria which could

organize effective money circulation and forward cheap credits for small and medium

industries. Cooperative banking system, especially for the purpose of agricultural

development and building houses are effective means to enhance balanced development

and support capitalist development. Thirdly, the organization of private banking system on

the basis of effective credit allocation and management. In order to control the effectiveness

the banking system a special institute of credit control and allocation will be organized

which will report to the government and the parliament from time to time. At the same

time all black market activities and circulation of hard currencies outside the banking

system must be legally prohibited.

.

4. Defining the role of physical economy: Physical economy is the principle by which

a given society develops on the basis of science and technology. Any society that is not

governed by the principles of physical economy will be disintegrated soon or later.

Without the principle of physical economy and its full materialization any society could

not give the maximum living standard for its citizen. The basic foundation of physical

economy is the Socratic and Platonic philosophy which is the basis of science and

technology and which encompasses art, music, architecture and other aspects of human

development which support the creative activity of the individuals. Therefore the education

system of the country must be formulated and organized on the basis of physical economic

principles which shapes the human mind as a free and creative citizen so that harmonious

development is possible and transferred to the coming generations. In addition to this the full

mobilization of the masses, whether educated or not for every kind of work, road building,

city construction, construction of houses, organization of industrial activities, changing the

rural area to a place not only agricultural production takes place, but also to make it for

inland tourist attraction so that the young generation grasps and enjoys the beauty of his country,

etc. is a necessary precondition for the development of physical principles. No nation state

has taken the present shape without using the physical power of its citizens for dam

buildings, construction of cathedrals and cities, and for making canals for ship

transportation. Societies which do not effectively use their human resources will be

condemned to permanent poverty and backwardness. God has created human beings to use

their creative powers so that they could change the material world in accordance of their

needs and develop it to a higher level. It is against the natural order and against humanity

not to use the given human resources for building a given nation. In this principle every

citizen has the moral and historical duty and right to take part in any work which could

transform Ethiopia to one of the most beautiful countries in this world. He who opposes

this ideal and create unnecessary obstacles is the enemy of genuine civilization.

5. Defining the role of agriculture: Agriculture is the basis of our living condition and

sources of raw materials. The development of agriculture should not and must not be seen

not only from the point of profit maximization, but also from the perspective of building

a natural habitat for animals and human beings as well. A society which undermines the

role of agriculture and which purely organizes the system on purely profit basis losses

soon or later the grip of controlling balanced growth of the fauna and flora of the country

side. Until now the Ethiopian agricultural system is underdeveloped and its potentialities are not well explored. Because of the primitive nature of the state apparatus and weak institutions the peasants could not develop their full potential to diverse their farming practices. Because of very weak market institutions the peasants could not get guaranteed prices as rewards for their hard works. It is therefore very important to see the agricultural 

sector as sources of raw materials for the industries and as sources of human living condition without which healthy life is not possible. The agricultural sector can be effectively organized on family basis on small and medium size. Gross farming should be allowed in areas where products are planned for exports and for continues industrial process as raw materials, 

especially in the field of oil seeds plantation.

6. Formulating accumulation model: All the above points could be materialized through an extended accumulation which operates like blood circulation. There are four essential

elements which determine the practicability and effectiveness of such an accumulation

model that has a dynamic multiplier effect for the general economy. 

1. Raw material producing and processing sector, which can be called as department I

2. The second sector is steel and iron industry which is department II.

3. Machine engineering sector which produces various tools and machines for further

construction and assembly. This sector incorporates design engineering and is department

III. 4. Consumption goods producing industry to satisfy the consumption needs of the

society and it is called department IV.

Among these various departments there exists organic links, since each department depends

on the other. The fact that each department serves as a supplier and receiver of semi processed goods for further production on a higher scale the constant flow and 

relationship among the various departments enable the economy to grow progressively. 

This system of accumulation will compel individual producers to modify their products from time to time in order to get the maximum market share and profit. Since all departments as a matter of fact employ workers, and the wages of the workers will be allocated for consumption purposes, the workers become again markets which guarantee the circulation of money so that money which is paid as wages and salaries goes to its original place and serves as capital. Only such a model of accumulation could generate capitalist development and lays the foundation of a coherent national economy.

The organization of the Ethiopian economy on the above principles is the only alternative which could lay the basis of capitalist development and guarantee her freedom. The pure cry that a neo-liberal economic model could bring growth and individual freedom is not only dangerous it will disintegrate Ethiopia into chaotic mini states. The neo-liberal model paves the road for foreign intervention and for the synarchist forces which are struggling to setup a fascist type of government in Ethiopia so that our people live in permanent fear and chaos. Therefore the neo-liberal model must be rejected as anti human, anti civilization and as anti nation-state.

The Problem of the Opposition

It is very difficult to claim that there is a genuine political opposition which could bring Ethiopia out of the present economic and social chaos and build the economy on the basis of science and technology. Starting the student movement until today opposition forces in and outside Ethiopia could never organize themselves on true philosophical and scientific backgrounds. All forces lack theoretical, philosophical and scientific basis as guide lines to develop and organize as alternative forces. All have feudal structures which is the main cause of their ineffectiveness and lack of vision. They are more interested in seizing power than bringing a science driven technological development. All could not organize the youth. All are reliable on foreign forces, especially on America. All have accepted the paradigm of the American imperialism and the neo-liberal world outlook. All have fixed ideas and feudalistic perception of human beings. The concept of human being as the motor of any development is not integrated in their concepts of political struggle. Most of the opposition forces do not see politics as the art and instrument of building a harmonious and balanced nation-state. The concept of a nation-state and hence national sovereignty is not well understood. All in all the present opposition forces have no any organizational structures which could legitimate them to seize political power.

The perception of the opposition forces on the present government emanates from their feudalistic attitude which is still troubling their minds. The fact that we are not grown in a free society we see every thing suspiciously. We still believe that the past two governments have done something historical to our society, though the present government is the product of that feudal Ethiopia, and its political handlings are being dictated by feudalistic principles of divide and rule colored by peripheral capitalism. We do not dare to give profound analysis by going backwards and understand the complexity of our society and how it has developed at least in last 60 years. The lack of any philosophy and social theory to analyze our country's situation hinders us to see the present political conditions beyond a certain projected political frame work. In this respect it is very difficult to give a well defined and scientific analysis to grasp the nature of the political setup of the present system and its political practices. In addition to these the ethnical element and our belongings to this or that ethnic category plays a major role in understanding or misunderstanding the position of the other groups. In short we are bad politicians and philosophers that lack any sober analysis and harmony in our minds.

The problem of the opposition forces becomes clear when one examines their position towards the American imperialism. They do not consider and do not understand that the present government came to power with the direct help of the American imperialism, and America has never participated in the bloody war during the revolution and did not help Somalia in those days when Ethiopia terribly invaded and the Ethiopian masses were defending their motherlands. In the eyes of most of the opposition forces America has never sided with those separatist forces to draw Ethiopia into permanent war. Most of them have never the information that America has given the green light for Eritrean invaders to annex Badme. Since most of them still believe that they can come to power with the help of the American imperialism what America is doing in this world and against Ethiopian sovereignty is normal and natural, and hence no one should stand against the interests of the American imperialism. During the presidential campaign some old forces have contributed for over a million dollar for Al Gore for the democratic candidate with the hope that America may change its foreign policy towards Ethiopia. How a naive political understanding it is? As if the foreign policy of the United States depends only on one person they try everything to show their loyalties so that their dream of seizing political power will be materialized. Even to day some of them are trying to convince the congress men that America recognizes the sovereignty of Ethiopia concerning the border conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea though there are evidences that America has never supported the causes of Ethiopia, and played dirty rolls to undermine the national integrity and sovereignty of our beloved motherland. Their non profound understanding of international politics and lack of political philosophy drive them to wrong tactics and strategies. For the misunderstanding of international politics and specially the foreign policy of the United States there are some Ethiopian journalists and contributors for certain Ethiopian Magazines who have been terribly writing in the last 13 years in confusing the Ethiopian youth so that it could not understand the true nature of international politics. Most of these forces are terribly in love with this super power and as such their minds could not see how this world is burning due to the foreign policy of America and its aspiration of dominating the world resources and expanding its ugly culture. These eclectic forces with their fine Amharic writings and sophistic ideas they have chosen not the path of civilization but the path of darkness and Ethiopian disintegration. Our mothers and fathers who fought courageously for sovereignty of Ethiopia against the Italian invasion in Adowa and in those dark days in Maichew have never dreamt that a generation of cowards and sophists would play a role in the Ethiopian politics. Their dreams were to lay the foundation for a strong, beautiful and prosperous Ethiopia. That was their vision. In comparison to the present day opposition forces the generation of Menelik and Tewodros had enlightened and farsighted vision. Under these circumstances it is very difficult to talk about a constructive and homogenous opposition force which could fulfill the genuine aspiration of the Ethiopian people i.e. to struggle for a prosperous, strong and democratic Ethiopia.

On the other side the present government by seeking confrontation and by taking unnecessary measures which are provocative is worsening the atmosphere for political dialog. Its stubborn mentality, its arrogance, feudal intrigues and neo-colonial attitudes and its submissive behavior towards foreigners and racist handlings of our people demonstrate that the government is ready for a direct and brutal confrontation. Its misunderstanding of politics leads it to change its tactics from time to time in order to prolong the misery of our people. Under the motto we have the weapon and the support of the American imperialism the government believes it could rule Ethiopia for the coming 100 years. That the social and economic conditions of our country are getting worse every day is not a matter of concern for the present government. With its huge militaristic build up and strong economic base for its supporters it is completely confident that it could twist the situation in its own terms. It does not understand that the situation will be out of control within ours and days. No state in history could stay on power by simply strengthening its military force and relying on certain groups which are greedy and do not have any political perspectives.

The irrational political handlings of the present government over the last 13 years have allied all forces together as if all of these are struggling for the sovereignty and prosperity of the country. The present political setup of our country becomes a subterfuge for all forces irrespective of their bad political performances in the past and disintegrating activities of our country. Most of those evil forces took part in the past in murderous activities and spied for the US imperialism to destroy Ethiopia as a nation-state. It seems that the Ethiopian people have forgotten all their evil deeds. And they have not yet learned and still consider that what they all did was in the service of Ethiopia. Now they are dreaming to seize power to prolong the misery of our people. It is a very confusing situation which our country faces. The very intriguing thing is that the present government creates favorable situation for some forces which participated in the bloody action during the revolution. Though I do not have any idea of revenging these elements, I could imagine that such forces will never bring genuine changes in our country. As history proves such kinds of forces which are engaged in bloody activities will tend again and again to destruction and bloody action. These forces if they are genuine enough they should confess all their past mistakes. With their irrational participation and spying activities the Ethiopian people become the victim of the present political system Thousands of young Ethiopian fled away from their country and live in precarious conditions in various countries of the world. Because of their misunderstanding of politics as instrument of revenge they are the causes of family disintegration, cultural destruction and ethnic violence. In that bloody white and red terror actions of self destruction all have contributed in their capacity to destruct our beloved and beautiful Ethiopia. No one could escape this fact. As Plato clearly says when such kinds of forces are in a position to look inside their own minds to understand the nature of their crimes and confess to their own people so that others do not repeat them, they will have a role to play. It is therefore the moral and historical obligation of all those forces which participated in the ugly war of annihilation of their brothers and sisters to come forward and say god forgive us for our irrational deeds. In this manner we all contribute something historical for the rebuilding of our country and for the next generation. As tit for tat cannot be the basis of genuine and constructive politics, we can build the future of Ethiopia on the basis of forgiveness and self confession for the past crimes we have done.

Conclusion

I am compelled to give this long essay to throw some lights into our minds so that we can ask ourselves and understand political events from a different perspective. Political analysis as we are accustomed and emotional approaches with which we are trained will not enable us to understand the political construction of present day Ethiopia and the political handlings of our government by a simple empiricist approach. It is quite important to dig more and more in the political processes of our country to know the driving motives of such kinds of political handlings. Why the government like the past two governments in Ethiopia pursues the same kinds of politics for the last 13 years though it is crystal clear that the society as whole is heading towards ever growing crises? What makes it stubborn not to correct its political handlings and why it is not willing to change its axiom so that the situation could become controllable? Why is it necessary to march on the path of self destruction though there are other methods which the present government should follow and can correct some of the mistakes which it has done in the past? To understand all these problems it is necessary to go beyond some simplistic concepts.

Asegedech`s approach to understand the political construction and backward nature of our society emanates from a different epistemological background which lacks coherency and is eclectically written. Her beautiful English overshadows her false empiricist approach and wrong understanding of the social formation of our society. Hence she could not understand the complexity of Ethiopian politics and the political handlings of the present government and the various groups which are struggling to seize power. This type of analysis reflects also the major weak point of most of the opposition forces which are assembled around certain slogans that are from scientific and philosophical point of view irrelevant and could not solve our country's vast problems.

In a world like this when political confusion is more apparent, instead of political dialogs confrontation becomes the only alternative to solve internal and international conflicts, at a time when few think that with their technological and military powers they could dictate the fate of so many nations, we are compelled to see the events not through conventional methods, but through dialectical approaches. Since all of us consciously or unconsciously follow certain values and methodologies, our apprehensions of this world's political events differ diametrically, and we have opposing ideas which reflect our epistemological backgrounds and social status. Only few who can see this world through a different mirror and pose questions again and again could give correct assessments whether the world political construction as we see it today reflects certain power relationships to extend empire buildings or as we hear through mass media that the danger emanates from some projected dangers. Therefore, especially as citizen of a very backward country we have the historical and moral responsibility to choose the correct paradigm which helps us to understand social relationships and political events so that we could give correct analysis and solve existing problems. Only a correct paradigm could help us to develop free and independent mind which is the precondition of a scientific analysis.

* By categorical imperative Kant understands concepts which constitute the very supposition

for having and using empirical concepts. For example substance is a category. It is a necessary condition or comprehending anything as any thing. In other words Kent's system of knowledge develops out of experiences and material objects which we see and perceive

and understand through our reasons

.

Dr. Fekadu Bekele / Berlin

1. Brunn, Snell. The Road to Think and to Truth. G�ttingen, 1978

2. Friedrich, List. Outline of American Political Economy. Wiesbaden, 1966

3. Hartnack, Justus. From Radical Empiricism to Absolute Idealism. New York,1986

4. LesLie A. Mulholland. Kant's Systems of Rights. New York & Oxford, 1988

5 Meier, Christian. The Political Art of the Greek Tragedy. Munich, 1980

6. " " " The development of Politics by the Greeks. Frankfurt a Main, 1980

6. Schiller, Friedrich. Theoretical Writings. K�ln, 1999

7. Seung, T.K ; (1996) Plato Rediscovered: Human Value and Social Order. Boston, 1996