A Sober view on the roots of Ethiopian Crisis

By Amare

I hardly believe what I am reading in the web sites of Deki Alula and Aiga, and yes, of course, in the Reporter. Reading the rumblings of the pure ideologues is sickening.

They don't even feel shame when they narcissistically advance an argument the gist of which is 'EPRDF must rule because its members died fighting the Dergue'. How so? What a pathetic idea?   They would want us to believe, really believe, the people of Ethiopia are free people and that they have consented to the Constitution.  If this is the truth, let them dare to take the Ethiopian people to the task to reaffirm the Constitution on a referendum. We shall see the true verdict of the people!

The blame the victim mentality is wide spread in their circles. Well, after all, it is a characteristic of dictators to blame the victim. That was what Dergue used to tell the people. They, the people, made him kill them.  What about the fear mongering propaganda they and their accomplices are showering us with?  Oh, God! These people have lost their mind.  One of the ideologue bluntly told us any move to demand or change the government is ' a clear recipe for the disintegration of the country.'

You cannot say enough about such shameful personalities who are devoid of clear thinking and blinded by irrational passion. Let me rather direct the readers' attention to one and one fact only, that is, the killing of innocent citizens by their own government.

Let me hope you will share with me your views in order to help us understand just how the government and its propagandists justify their actions. These are the indisputable facts as I know them:

�         The Constitution stipulates that citizens have the right to a peaceful demonstration and other related rights.

�         The opposition parties leaders in hoping to exercise these rights kept informing their supporters they would call for the exercise of such rights

�         The government on its part kept issuing warning after warning that such exercise has hidden agenda behind it

�         The citizens accepted the call of their parties or on their own, (does it matter? NO, no, no)   some were honking their horns, and some took it to the streets to show their dissatisfaction

�         The government under the guise of 'controlling riots' senselessly attacked the citizens with lethal weapons and killed scores of people. All done in clear contravention of the Constitution and international human rights laws.

Webster's defines an aggressor as one in the "practice of making attacks". Doesn't the government fit the definition? The police and the army visited massive violence upon the people.  When asked about the death of innocent civilians, the PM said �I will reserve judgment as to whether sufficient or excess force was used in controlling riots. I have no doubts as to whether riots have to be controlled or not. Riots have to be controlled. The police forces have to put and end to them, and on that point I have no second thoughts." There you have it.

Great leaders anguish long and hard over decisions that may entail paying the full and horrible human price. They do so even when the decision is necessary and unavoidable. The PM's forces and his 'sycophants' took his rather reckless cue and talked hotly in the days before the recent incident occurred about doing what they are trained to do, and that is to kill mass numbers of people and put the 'insurrection' , as they would love to call it, but the demonstration, down once and for all.  

As for the PM, whom I regarded as a person of good intention, I am all the more ashamed. I guess, as well, that I am embarrassed by the continual and foolish surprise of my naive expectation of the PM. Just ponder with me for a moment please! Lethal force was again used to kill 40 or so people. The number is really immaterial even one is too many. My contention is why should a government kill its own people? Wasn't it obvious if force were used people would die? Owing to this, responsible, secure, and wise leaders take pains to make certain that the use of deadly force is the last resort.

The PM, and his people, I am more and more convinced, may actually believe they are right in what they did. Still, they blame the victims. Did you notice?  This form of delusion should frighten us. Look, they just don't get it. Please hear me out. There is no acceptable justification for killing civilians just because they voice their opposition.  Oh! Yes, we heard it. They blocked roads, throw stones, burned down buses and so on. Even then killing is not the right response.

Perpetual leadership

The core problem we have in Ethiopia is perpetual leadership. They designed the Constitution in such a way as to guarantee perpetual rule. The PM can rule until he dies because there is no limit to the number of times he can be re-elected.  This in itself serves as incentive to cling to power by any means. But, mind you, people will get tired of being ruled by one person year in and year out. There may well be other citizens who aspire to be leaders too. They have a right too to have a shot at it if elected.

As a result, despite very real achievements, there are growing pressures on the government to stand down and accept that they have been in power for long enough. 15 years is a long time to stay in power and complaints against the PM naturally have mounted both inside and outside the country.  It is sad but a peculiar trait of power-hungry African leaders to hang on to power even after their �sell-by� date. I love the way Wafula Okumu spelled out the other distinguhible characteristics of these types of leaders. Listen to this:

First, they are skilful in manipulating the constitution and electoral laws to ensure that they continue being embarrassments and drags on their countries. Second, they refer to same �book of excuses� not to exit the political stage after the curtain has come down on their poorly scripted and performed political melodrama. Third, they cry out saying that they have not completed their tasks of building (or more aptly destroying) their nations. Fourth, they have systematically dismantled all institutions or sought to destroy all opposition that might interfere with their patrimonial system. And lastly, they are all contemporary and perfect displays of Lord Acton�s dictum: that �power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."

It sounds familiar, doesn't it?  There are many reasons why African leaders are prone to such distasteful behavior. Okumu eloquently explained this in this way, which I ascribe too. These leaders are for the most part hostages of their sycophants. They have patron-client relationship with their followers and they act as dispensers of favors. After a while, they become dependent on their sycophants to assure them that the mistakes they are making are in the national interest and the sycophants, on their part, come to heavily rely on their patron for their survival - which commonly involves looting public coffers and properties. The relationship evolves into a sycophantic system that eventually makes it difficult for these leaders to uncouple themselves totally from their followers. I am afraid this is what is happening in Ethiopia. How else can one explain such despicable actions of a government this undoubtedly intelligent PM is presiding over? 

I begin to believe that it is no longer for the PM to decide whether or not he will continue ruling. It is people like his party functionaries, with a stake in the government, who seem to have the last word on the issue. As sad as it sounds, we seem to read history to pass exams, not to learn from it. In just a mere decade, the once widely hailed selfless leaders are turning themselves into the one leader they sacrificed hugely to oust. 

The Way Out

I am and always of the opinion that there is still a way out of this political mud. With each day passes without taking concrete steps to rectify mistakes, however, the government is digging a hole from which it may not come out and may even be forced to decide 'going back is as good as proceeding' and turn into a more dictatorial regime. The ball now is in the government's quarter.  I humbly suggest they do the following:

Drop the silly treason charges and release all political prisoners.

Investigate the killings in a transparent way.

Start dialogue on the basis of the 8 points demand the opposition presented which I think are not unreasonable.

Change the Constitution to ensure a term limit to a PM's tenure.

This route, I am fully aware, requires a good deal of convincing the 'sycophants' that in the end it is in their best interest to change course. May God have mercy on all of us!