Trust and the redemption of Ethiopian politics

By Mitiku Adisu

We are inclined to believe those whom we do not know because they have never deceived us.

Samuel Johnson, 1709-1759

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Now that we have listened to endless claims and counter-claims from our political leaders, I think it is only fair to want to check if those words match deeds or are simply election week gimmick. Immediately we say that, however, we have a problem on our hands: the opposition was given a popular mandate not on its own merits but on the demerits of the governing body. Hence, distrusting the one need not be construed as trusting the other. We do not know if the opposition will honor what it purports incumbents failed to implement. Both repeat the familiar refrain that they will lead us to green pastures of development and well-being. We are skeptical and yet hope to see these promises blossom. Will human rights conditions improve? Will we be seeing less corruption, less nepotism, and less ethnic favoritism or alliances based on ideology rather than competence? Will the nation be less dependent on foreign subsidy and prescriptions? Will the influence of expatriate NGOs be curbed? What is the short- and long-term strategy to induce trust in one another? What must happen for the leadership to legitimately earn our trust?

Trust is one of those unique and inexhaustible items. First, unlike other resources, overuse will not diminish it. Second, every society irrespective of its socioeconomic standing can have access to a limitless fund of trust. Do the wealthy trust more than the poor? Do women induce more trust than men? Which macro-level policies best activate or center trust?

Over the past two decades trust has gained wider currency in public policy strategies. Indeed, the tremendous shift in world order (with all its downside) required the revival, among others, of concepts of trust and social capital. Trust remains the basis for individual and community relationships. Take away trust and friendships break down, straining the family unit and society at large. Distrust has led many a nation to war and countless institutions to fold.

Our forbears trusted each other to survive the harsh realities they encountered. The world is no less harsh than in times past. One readily observes that distrust proliferates public and private institutions: national leaders deal in half truths, privatization policy turns into a private benefit scheme, �checks and balances� is a check on the opposition (whoever they may be) and a fat check to family and friends (sending morality and finances tumbling off the balance sheets), spiritual leaders prey upon a trusting flock, the police tamper with the evidence and not infrequently pose danger to society, intellectuals can be dishonest to the point of exchanging their integrity for prestige and filthy lucre. The preceding pronouncements, obviously, paint a gloomy picture of our world. However, we should hasten to add that there is, thankfully, a sustained movement toward reason and order.

To say we live in a global world has become a clich�. Globalization, for all intents and purposes, ushered in interdependence hitherto unknown in human history�and with it a culture of non-committal, mobility, and a lax accountability structure. Can trust flourish in the absence of commitment to locality? What is trust? What factors undermine and/or foster it? Though a reasonable understanding of the term requires observing the global context, a realistic course of action is impossible without furnishing the background and its local setting.

Trust is often associated with the softer sciences of religion and philosophy, even though scientists of every stripe concern themselves with the problem of honesty in research (Gilligan, 2005). Are the results of a study politically motivated or are they a product of reliable and verifiable scientific research? Trustworthiness in research is in the end transferable to the world of policy. Thus: are the approved drugs really safe for public use? Is the new language policy enacted to enhance the pupil�s cognitive skills or merely to profit textbook publishers and accord control to expatriate managers and local politicians?

Especially, beginning in the early 1970s, a trans-disciplinary treatment of the subject by management sciences, earth and environmental sciences, economics, etc., has resulted in a much appreciated explanatory perspective on society and its individual parts. In other words, this trend entitles anyone the right and privilege to join in the discussion.

Trust is essentially a state of mind, a nurturing interaction spurred by a mutually beneficial outcome; it is having respect for each other and acting on the basis of, what I would call, �a word and a hand shake.� It means placing confidence in a Transcendent (God) or a person or a thing and expecting a positive return.

Obviously, not everyone is equal in inducing or conceding trust. Trust is a risky venture. It must needs incorporate past actions or present gestures to enable future commitments. Regaining the trust of others after having abused it is not always easy. Depending on the circumstances for the breach of trust, however, consistency and a mechanism to facilitate it may grant one a second chance. In both cases, the implications are enormous. Putnam (1993) and Fukuyama (1995) have argued that the trust level in a given polity is a pretty good predictor of economic vitality, political participation, and efficiency of governance. To this end, the authors have advanced the notion of less state and �free� market.

Increase in trust also increases effectiveness of the judiciary as well as reduces corruption. And what is corruption but trust peddling, inefficient institutions and low literacy rate? A study of U.S. society by Edward Glaeser, et al (2000, p.13), for example, found a strong correlation between literacy and trust level. Hence, trust level for �no high school diploma� was 26.3 percent, while a high school and a college diploma yielded, respectively, 45 and 58.5 percents. Frequency of interaction or the lack thereof, national origin, and race also played a part in trust level and trustworthiness. Accordingly, U.S. blacks are less trusting (16.1 percent) than whites (44.2 percent). Certainly, those who were denied access to basic amenities should distrust the state and its institutions more than those who were not. It is only fair, therefore, for the state to redress such group grievances before they get out of hand. On the other hand, the present fragmenting policy of our government masquerading as ethnic recognition ought to be vehemently opposed for the mere fact that a meaningful community identity is achieved not by undue focus on its constituent parts but within a larger frame of a defined and stable polity.

As is wont to happen, implementing emerging paradigms can be costly and counterproductive in some contexts. For example, if, as Putnam/Fukuyama argued, effectiveness or efficiency is indicative of trust level, does it then follow that trust can be packaged to meet a specific community need? If so, will packaging trust degrade its quality or disguise its intent? Who should play the engineer? Whose institutions and institutional culture should mediate funding policy? This is the perennial question in all inter-national activities. Thus as Lasch (1995, p.21) advised, unbridled markets should be restrained so that they don�t seep across boundaries to commoditize �things that should not be for sale.� It is not farfetched, therefore, to assert that the history of international development institutions in the past fifty or so years internationalized, to some degree, the corruption of trust between nations.

Teaching trust has both formal and informal components to it. The home is where it ought all to begin. However, where homes barely exist or are not conducive to nurturing trust, schools, religious institutions and the work place become the locus of last resort to reinforce or inculcate it. Of course, we are assuming that the individual has access to education and employment. The Ethiopian reality of the past several decades, however, engendered a reversal of such an assumption in that the population of educated unemployed is swelling the pool of distrust in self and in institutions. Massive out migration, continuing student militancy, and rising substance abuse are illustrative of this condition.

In another study, the findings of Glaeser and Sacerdote (2002) seem to be relevant to the Ethiopian context. That is, secular education created distrust in religious truths. Secularism everywhere seeks to explain phenomena; Ethiopian religious sensibilities, on the other hand, make room for the unexplainable. In other words, the emergence of modern schools contributed to the decline of religious beliefs among the educated elite. Interestingly, level of distrust, cynicism, etc., among Ethiopian university students increased between their freshman and senior years; secular education and western culture supplanted local cultural history resulting in the alienation of the student (Negewo, 1977, pp.95-112; Negash, 1996; Kebede, 1999). In short, higher education for Ethiopian youth has been an exercise in distrust. We surmise that this condition has not improved with the ethnic federalist policy of the present administration and its fling with marketized education.

At any rate, the educated elite identified with the state instead of the church because the former provided job security and status. The church, on the other hand, remained incapable of translating its tenets to the satisfaction of the new generation; preservation, not transformation, remained the hallmark of the Ethiopian church. This could be attributed to rampant illiteracy among congregants and a segment of the clergy and to resistance to positive external influences.

The state became more trustworthy than the church. However, when the state failed to deliver the goods and restricted public space to the privileged few and turned against its own citizenry, violence took center stage as a means to resolving conflicts. Illegitimacy and failure to see beyond what is expedient led to a counter violence and anomie. In situations like this, it is not uncommon to search for institutions that are resilient and evince stability. The Ethiopian church has been such an institution. Sadly, institutional resiliency has not been matched by an interpretive doctrine that could absorb and acculturate modernity. Even worse, the educated elite actively undermined the stature of the church by not participating in its reformation, by using the Church to exclude or attack groups of different persuasion, and by ethnicizing the church altogether.

I hope I am not making the reader uncomfortable but here are questions to mull over. Can you think of one good reason why anyone should trust you? Do you think others trust you? Why or why not? Who do you trust the most and why? Do you trust him or her with your bank account, your secrets, or even your life? Inventory, if you will, your circle of friends. How many of those you trust are not your immediate family members or are outside your ethnic group? Have you kept track of your friends of twenty years ago? Can you be trusted with power? Is it possible to trust others and not be trusted in return? Can one distrust others and still gain the trust of others?

During the first Gulf War, General Colin Powell was briefing reporters using a simulated data to show how U.S. forces had outmaneuvered and overpowered Iraqi defensive alignment. As the General�s charts did not have numbers on them, a look of quiet suspicion could be read on the faces of the reporters. Observing this, the General preemptively made a stunning statement: �I can�t tell you what the numbers really are, but trust me, trust me.�

And they trusted him. The fact that a representative of the federal government could make such a bold statement in broad day light and get away with it felt so strange that the country was abuzz for several days afterwards. Why did they trust him? Could it be because he was in his military uniform and exuded confidence? Could it be because he was handsome, 6�2�, and articulate? These facts could have some input, of course, but do not tell the whole story. To get to the root of the matter one needs to look into the immediate past. In the period leading up to the war, another reporter had asked the General what his strategies were to repulse the Iraqi force. Again, his reply was memorable: �First,� began the General, �we�re going to cut it off and then,� he continued, �we�re going to kill it.� And that was exactly what happened. To flourish, trust must be couched in a verifiable frame.

Now suppose our own embattled prime minister takes the podium and repeats similar words: �Nations, and nationalities, hear me. I want you to trust me. I want to be transparent with you from today on. Trust me. Mistakes may have been committed over the past fourteen years. But it is well to remember that even developed societies are not perfect. Having said that, you will all be proud to know that compared to dictator Mengistu�s records ours is quite an improvement (if I remember correctly, about 2.5 percent improvement). We have also finalized a Memorandum of Understanding that will spur us to the 21^{st Century. We already have our PSRPs squared away. All this, you will be interested, is authenticated by the latest World Bank/IMF report��}

I�m sure a replay of the prime minister�s public and private statements will begin rapidly flashing across everyone�s mind: the flag is but a piece of cloth, Assab is a watering hole for camels, Badme is a barren land not worth fighting over, etc.

Some may even begin to appreciate, in relative terms, the late-Emperor or Dear Comrade Chairman Mengistu. What is common to all three rulers is, however, that none of them really trusted the people of Ethiopia; their trust was only in those things that were politically expedient to their survival. As a society, we survived on a deficit of trust for so long that it has become the norm in how we related to each other. For the Emperor we remained to the very end children incapable of any responsibility and in constant need of his fatherly oversight; for Colonel Mengistu, we were faceless automatons at the mercy of his military machine. �Trust me,� I could hear him say, �Fellow Ethiopians, trust me I loved my country. I still do. Don�t you remember the good old days when in unison we chanted the slogan, Revolutionary Motherland or Death? Well, the truth is that every time you the masses demanded Death, I was opting out for the Motherland.�

All looked down at us condescendingly and thought that physical treatment of some sort is not a bad idea to bring us aboard. The late-Emperor Haileselassie, I will postulate, could not have brought himself to saying �trust me.� That would have been beneath his royal person. Rather, he would have urged his people to trust God (read: God has trusted me with your very lives; you distrust me at your own peril.) What I am driving at is this: every one of these leaders must be examined in relation to their past with us. However, I don�t want to make a fool of myself by not singling out the Emperor for his superior statesmanship. In fact, it will be difficult for me to associate him with public vulgarity of any kind. The Emperor was a master at self-control which, by the way, did not make him less deadly�only that his wrath was delayed. Comrade Mengistu, on the other hand, cursed the hell out of �imperialists and their stooges� as he smashed red-ink filled bottles at a public rally. As far as PM Meles is concerned, his first and only public letter bearing his name carried several �garbages� in reference to an international document. [Incidentally, I would suggest that all international documents�the Ethio-Eritrean Boundary Commission Ruling, EU-EOM Report, Carter Center Report�be issued simultaneously in English and Amharic and that the Amharic translation be certified and disseminated through broadcast media to forestall misunderstanding and unnecessary conflict. It is worth remembering that the problem with the 1889 Wuchale Treaty was due in part to the fact that the Amharic and the Italian versions suggested two incompatible meanings.]

Distrust seems to pervade our interactions. I think the Amharic novelist Hailemelekot Mewa�el captures this exceedingly well in Goongoon (Intrigue?). A review of events of the past thirty years may also shed some light on this phenomenon. Thirty years ago a mere haileselassie yMut (I swear by the life of the Emperor) sealed a gentleman�s agreement. Can you imagine mengistu yMut or meles yMut authenticating transactions? The idea itself is amusing and worthy of an outright guffaw. One may also recall the ditty,

firmana waraqat taffi naW taqadaj

matamamen bCha yBaqal leWadaj.

(Signed agreements are doomed to ruin;

between bosom friends a simple trust suffices)

Though we are far from glamorizing the imperial era, yet we must admit that its demise also opened the floodgates to ruptured values and social dis-cohesion. Viewed in this light, the revolution of February 1974 was a �bang and a shock,� not a �creeping coup� as was erroneously labeled. Gunshots were heard and Elders of the land summarily executed without recourse to legal defense. The mad �saviors� simply wrote off religious traditions of a thousand and one years and instituted Marxian class conflict as the central and indisputable focus of creativity. Hence, we were told that at the beginning was thesis followed by an anti-thesis, culminating in a synthesis. You are to trust no one; not even yourself. In case you were found entertaining a contrarian view, you purge yourself by undergoing a self-criticism session (or be purged permanently). Then came the White Terror (thesis?) followed by Red Terror (anti-thesis) culminating in more terror. Then there were EPRP, MEISON, and the Derg. All of them may have meant well in their attempt to deliver us from eternal poverty and injustices. Could it be that each loved the Motherland so much and knew exactly what was needed to bring her back to her old glory (whatever that means) that they were willing to fight to the last person rather than make compromises or accept the possibility that the other side has something to offer?

Was this a brotherly competition gone awry or simply an unimaginative and raw greed for power? How much of what transpired was fueled by East German, Bulgarian, and Soviet spy network? Are we any better today at making compromises than yesteryears? Here then is a lesson we may want to draw: trusting Ethiopian intellectuals should not come at the enormous price of distrusting one�s conscience, native wisdom, and common sense; one need not concede too readily to fellow mortals the destiny of the nation, especially, after the thwarting of our hopes and dreams and refusal to be accountable for the massive blunder. This is why we believe leadership from the bottom in the current popular resistance is an interesting development. In fact, it may hold the promise for not allowing a lone figure and his henchmen (rarely women) to hold our fate in the balance.

In effecting a new revolutionary paradigm then, trust was criminalized and a policy of distrust institutionalized. Ethiopian streets and trails were soaked with tears and blood; fear and suspicion rotted the chords that bound us together. What of the promised green pastures of equality and justice for all? What happened? Really, only one thing: none knew that the outcome of their (misdirected) zeal was �full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.� And if I may add, any attempt to rearrange the past or analyze and justify after the facts, instead of owning up destroys whatever little good was achieved.

The current experimentation in ethnicity is but the past by any other name. The fact that matters of national significance are decided in total disregard for the input of the people or that legitimacy and control issue out of the barrel of a gun did not start with the present administration. To argue otherwise smacks of hypocrisy. Hence, any effort to alter current conditions (e.g., integration or not with Eritrea, regionalism, etc.) should be preceded by a thorough public debate and an understanding of what factors led to these in the first place and how similar pitfalls could be avoided in the future. Under no circumstances should a national agenda be decentralized or left to the whims of powerful but minority groups.

The African leader, in general, and the Ethiopian in particular is symbolically more powerful than his/her counterpart in developed countries. The culture of the lone strongman could explain why Ethiopian intellectuals are in denial of their destructive role during and after Emperor Haileselassie�s government and why they continue to scapegoat top leaders. Lest we think the rest of us are off the hooks, the truth is that we produced such leaders and therefore their story is indeed our own story in a nutshell.

On the other hand, there is a separation of powers in developed countries; institutions subsist on secularism and rationality and ensure continuity. The African is very religious and has no compartments for the spiritual and the secular. Leadership is infused with the supernatural. The leader is in essence a lesser deity; he demands gifts and submission to his person. That is why the culture of exerting influence through the medium of the sorceress and the medicine man (tenqwai bet/debterra) has been a recurring theme in political power relations during the reigns of the Emperor, Mengistu, and now Meles. This is to say, in short, that the propagation of distrust and secrecy from the top inflicted an incalculable social and psychological damage. How should schools be organized to counter a culture of distrust and instill confidence?

Trust is not easily elicited under conditions of anonymity and opaqueness; secrecy of the leader�s identity is the breeding ground for distrust. It is relatively recently that most of us are let on that the Emperor, for example, was part Oromo (for whatever reason), and that Chairman Mengistu is part Konso. For the former, his lineage extended beyond this damned world in order to disable earthly challengers; we were never sure of his age. For the latter, at least initially, we were told that the revolution was his wife and his children and that he himself was uncertain where the revolution began and his private life ended.

The 1974 revolution, and by corollary the Chairman himself, owned us body and soul. In this sense, the revolution was simply an extension of the imperial era. In comparison, PM Meles let loose ownership to totality of the polity and restricted himself to Tigray (and Gondar bordering the Sudan and perhaps also to the north of Tigray.) As far as PM Meles is concerned I remember reading a genealogy of sorts that included the Oromo (who the author is only God knows)�not that this is surprising but that the attempt is telling. So we see a pattern: Ethiopians are ever suspicious of the �foreigner�, seem to be secretive about our age and our social status. Often, we brandish our ethnic origin when and wherever it becomes politically and socially useful. Such behavior is, in short, ungraceful and unworthy of trust.

Ethiopian politics, in one respect, is not different from those in the developed countries. To sideline the opposition, for example, just use the shaebia, derg-ist, amhara, and tigre labels and in extreme cases also the �t� word. The Emperor�s government used the shifta sticker. It stuck. Derg may be the best at it: reactionary, Arab-sponsored infiltrators, counter-revolutionaries, CIA-financed groups, etc., and of course, the grim yeFyell wata�Te. To clobber the PM, just mention his Eritrean blood and someone�s blood begins to boil. The irony is that the same critics inadvertently advance the notion that the two peoples are in fact one and the same�except in the case of the PM. Of course, the PM has not slackened in this himself. In fact, the main reason for his survival is his effective use of the attack machine to disorient his challengers and at the same time win over a complacent donor community.

None the less, there remain profound differences in trust level between developed and developing countries. This is, due mainly to viable institutions, the rule of law, and a creative and accountable leadership. Where these factors are weak, as is the case in Ethiopia, God (however he is understood), through the agency of the church/mosque and traditional civic organizations became the mediator of trust within and between communities as well as reformer and restrainer of the leader and the led. Did the church stand up to her prophetic calling? Perhaps she did in times of foreign aggression, as was amply illustrated by the exploits of Abuna Petros (d.1936). How has ethnicity affected the traditional pan-ethnic associations of equb, eder, and mahbar? Perhaps only time will tell the magnitude of changes in this area.

In censuring rulers or instructing the laity, however, the Ethiopian church�s record is not something to be proud of. The current church leadership, not unlike its predecessors, is too eager to please Caesar instead of Christ; the booing down of the Holy Father during this year�s Masqal festivities is evidence to the diminishing trust in his person and office. Have the faithful too become so unruly as to not show reverence for the holy?

We also witnessed how the opposition came around to request, tactfully, public prayers at a time when election results were uncertain. We only hope this gesture is genuine and sustainable, and not a deceptive tactic (similar to Derg�s) to garner popular support. In the end, a strong and independent church is a holy terror to evil rulers and a beacon of hope to a pacified population. How I wish the Ethiopian church could take its commissioned role�a leavening role, not suggesting a theocracy�and mediate stability and character in the land. That will remove, if nothing else, ownership of thorny national issues out of the hands of the donor community and migratory consultants.

Let us now assess our leaders in relation to the value themes of rist (land, territory), mist (wife, family), and emnat or haimanot (religious faith traditions) for the defense of which Ethiopians are said to willingly lay down their lives. This should give us a thumbnail measure of the trustworthiness and closeness to popular ideals of the three leaders under consideration.

I submit that none fared better than the other, in qualitative terms, in matters relating to mist (or broadly speaking, the role of women in national life). Obviously, the socialists of 17 years had organized women�s associations (just like the Soviets, East Germans, and Cubans). In relative terms, that was an improvement over the Imperial government. However, mere increases in associational membership do not accurately portray women�s participation in decision making. Women have remained in the background as providers and as an adornment. To verify my statement, the reader is well advised to run through list of standing committees of the opposition and the current and past governments.

For me the place to look if women are participating is at the upper echelons of power�especially, the wives of the heads of state. In so doing, one quickly observes that it is indeed a �man�s world.� And a �man�s world� is filled with violent wars and consumed by the temporal; women�s, on the other hand, is a world of survival and continuity. Just think of your mom�how she would make sure everyone gets enough in the midst of scarcity and under tremendous personal cost to herself. I think Ethiopia is ready for a woman head of state. The �coalition of convenience� should seriously consider independent-minded women for the ministerial posts of finance and defense, for an overdue change.

To get back to where we started, Empress Mennen always took the back seat and her absence was later made permanent upon her death in 1961 (the widowed Emperor died 14 years later). Now the government of Prime Minister Meles, arguably, is an improvement in that 42 out of total 547 members of the House of People�s Representatives are women. But this could be deceptive because an unprecedented mass migration of women to servitude in the Middle East is taking place under the watchful eyes of his administration. Appointments to high office are on the basis of ethnic and political affiliation. In terms of an active First Lady, however, Her Excellency Woizero Azeb�s educational achievement, business ventures and public appearances easily accord her pride of place.

Despite the rhetoric of equality of women, Chairman Mengistu�s wife stayed away from the limelight. It could be that she spent her days praying for her husband�s safety, which we now observe paid off. Or may be it felt awkward for the Chairman to have her by his side and be reminded by chuckling comrades and enemies of the revolution that true to her name she indeed was �the beauty� (WubAnchi), and not him. With that kind of name I am afraid I would be upstaged too. In the end, the one charming formula common to all three wives is their beautiful names: Mennen Asfaw, WubAnchi Bishaw, Azeb Golla.

Coming to the theme of national territory, PM Meles is, obviously, the odd man out. The other two rulers used diplomacy and the gun to effect unity, albeit, a fragile unity. PM Meles fought a winning war only to relinquish his side of the border. The one difference with Chairman Mengistu in the conduct of wars is that the latter spread his militarism over a decade and a half under the cover of Cold War politics, while PM Meles concentrated his over few months incurring an incalculable damage to lives in the hope of getting good grades and foreign aid.

Death in the defense of emnat (one�s faith) is the last of the three themes. That faith is significant in Ethiopian lore is evident in the fact that Menilik had the Tabot (Holy Ark) carried to the 1896 battle of Adwa (his gallant Empress Taytu at his side) to help him exorcise demons out of the European colonialist. Ironically, Menilik failed in his legacy to secure a stable territory, though he had won the battle. The demons that were cast out returned fifty years later in the guise of Mussolini�s planes spraying mustard gas. The current Emperor Haileselassie left for exile, shortly after the mysterious death of his nemesis, Iyyasu; his integrity has never recovered. Could this explain why he clung to power into his senile years and never trusted even his own legitimate successor to ascend the throne? In any case, the Emperor exuded deep religiosity. On returning from exile in 1941, for example, he went directly to Debre Sina monastery for a three-day fasting and prayer of thanksgiving. We�ve said earlier that Abuna Petros preferred death in the hands of fascists than see the land desecrated and the people pacified.

In making space for women, we said all three did not register a qualitative difference. In defending the territories, PM Meles�s allegiances remain shrouded in secrecy. In the area of religious sensibilities, however, the Emperor did not see himself less than a deity to his people�probably more so in the eyes of Rastafarians than local populations. Chairman Mengistu came to power invoking the name of the �Living God� but in the interim discovered that Gun also began with the letter �G��and not particularly patient with people either. Just before he exited, however, he was said to have requested that prayers be offered continually in every church and mosque. Alas, he sneaked out of the country while the people prayed. Our leaders seem to be in the habit of deserting us at a time of our greatest need. PM Meles, like the Chairman, is an atheist. Interestingly, his three-part Letter to the Editor of The Ethiopian Herald showed us a side of him not easily let on. In the famous letter, therefore, we see him mention the �G� word twice [�May God save humanity from observers with such perverse reasoning�To the author of the statement, God save her soul�� Part I, p.4; Part II, p.3]. Why mention God at this hour? Does this portend something? Is it not intriguing that someone living in Ethiopia could manage to remain nonreligious?

Trust, we discussed, is an intangible community article and yet tangible enough to invigorate our interactions, especially, when the top leadership is actively setting the tone. The maintenance of trust, we also said, requires societal realignment. That is, the importance of including women in the upper echelons of power, identifying hindrances to trust and designing policies to minimize their impact, and teaching trust (and religious values) in schools cannot be overstated. Does mutual trust exist between national leaders and the public, between the teacher and the pupil and between pupils? And if so, is it evident in public policy design and implementation, in the curricula, in test preparation, grading, and disciplining of the pupil?

There are obviously a number of things that have to be established both at the macro- and micro-levels. For example, a term-limit should be enacted for leaders (not more than two terms) so as to develop national leadership, continuity, and accountability. In fact, I go to the extent of suggesting that national leaders don the prisoner�s gown and appear in chains before a court of law for the oath-taking ceremonies. This should be their humble testimony that they are not above the law and that they don�t really deserve the office more than the trained agricultural economist languishing in maximum security prison. I know it sounds cruel and crude. But I ask, in comparison to what?

Several things have to happen to induce trust through Ethiopian web sites. Here are some suggestions. First, contributors ought to supply their full legal names and editors require that they do so. Second, web sites whose mission it is to advance national issues could take a non-ethnic page identity. Third, some sites have to seriously consider forming a coalition (merger) to offset the cost of running them, to strengthen their editorial reach, and to build bridges within the larger community. Fourth, in addition to a mission statement, such sites also may have to disclose who is on their board of trust, including the most recent audited financial statement.

Individually, we do well to strive to enlarge our radii of friends. Indeed, growing kinships is by far the better and enduring way to reduce poverty and fight ethnicism than solely adhering to Jeffrey Sachs� possibility manual to ending poverty. To limit our interactions to a family circle or an ethnic enclave amounts to impoverishing our lives and the lives of those around us. Those visiting our homeland, could include Balle in their Axum itinerary; visit Gondar, not just Harar; Wollo and Benishangul in addition to their village.

Eluding common comprehension can create social distance, misinterpretation, and distrust. It should be told loud and clear that any individual or group that confuses the public with alien, fashionable, and untranslatable concepts ought to be voted out of office. For party buffs, abbreviated identity may save space and time but not necessarily be people-friendly: Meison sounds French; eHapa; eHadeg; eMadefepa; ib�Ag; meE�ad; oNeg; eSepa; e�Hewat, eDepa, eHagu, eDeHah, and so on. These are mostly movements or fronts; abbreviations helped to cleverly conceal their true color while exposing their elitist tendencies. It is anybody�s guess what they sound to different language groups. On the other hand, take kinijit or keste demena (not endorsing, only for the sake of our discussion). Their symbolism is at once intelligible to every Ethiopian and their meaning self-evident. Moreover, expatriates not conversant in the local language are forced to learn and dance to our tunes.

In my opinion, the best that happened to Ethiopian politics in the past 30 years is not that we excelled in revolution-making or participated in democratic elections with a 90 percent turn out. Rather, the amazing development is the fact that there was a quiet shift from abstraction to a concretized nomenclature and from foreignness to native perspective. Could this account for the landslide victory of the opposition? Finally, fellow Ethiopians need to loosen up; we seem to be too religious for politics; we view politics as tsidkena kunenne (life and death event). We need to move away from old politics of mimicking and keeping score to new politics of making space for others today to reap the benefits tomorrow. We need also to be intentional about causing ripples of trust. Shoot appreciation, not arrows of deceit and altercation. Incite others in �whatever is true, whatever is noble, and whatever is admirable.� These are the stuff trust and well-being are made of. Live your life to the fullest; take the initiative. Go ahead. Do it now.

�by Mitiku Adisu, October 2005

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