3 thoughts on “The 2nd millennium: Who is behind or who is ahead?”

1. Very interesting observation. In my opinion, no body is behind or ahead. We are all where we ought to be on the basis of our own individual perspectives. And this what tolerance and respect to other’s views is all about!

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2. On September 11, 2007, while the whole world concentrates on remembering the infamous occurrences of 2001, Ethiopians will celebrate the dawn of the 3rd millennium. For the zealous tourist and historian, it presents a unique spotlight on a nation whose tourism potential remains untapped. Ethiopia, boasting proud facts that include solely resisting colonialism and being widely accepted as the cradle of humankind, will defiantly show the world its adherence to its own idea – since no one can produce Christ’s birth certificate – of when we are. On Tuesday, Ethiopia will leave behind 1999 (no, we are not worried about the Y2K bug) symbolically embracing a new era.

   Much can be said about the historical aspect of why, proudly so, we are over seven years behind the rest of the world. Much more, however, should be said of why, shamefully so, we are lagging millennia behind the rest of the world in human development. If my memory serves me well, our Ethio-Saudi Billionaire, Sheik Mohammed Al Amoudi, is going to indulge our moneyed class in an extravaganza of celebration for a pseudo achievement of continuing to exist i.e. the majority has little life to celebrate. It is sad to realize that residents of Addis Abeba have one gratifying moment on New Years Eve – exaltation at the sight of fireworks worth millions of dollars spewing out of the elite oasis that is Sheraton hotel. It shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone accustomed to Ethiopian culture that people will flock to see this fantasy of kinetic stars because that is what our culture is themed around: illusion propaganda. The dissonance between our pride and our actual accomplishments is immense.

   “Ethiopians are a hospitable (engida akbari), intelligent, and beautiful people” are some of the laudatory utterances one will hear in conversing with a native or anyone knowledgeable on the country. Close to the truth as this may be, it gives young minds a false sense of direction as these qualities are not directly redeemable for the hard currency we require, among the numerous dire needs, to invest in our agriculture to feed the malnourished millions, acquire antiretroviral drugs needed for the propagated HIV infections, and present the superfluous supply of intelligent young minds with ample opportunities by dedicating a real education system. And enough with the half truth claiming an abundance of beautiful people; in all honesty, it is only our women that are beautiful and them that we discriminate against. No nation can be labeled “beautiful” without washing off the ugly gender inequality that masks its true potential. Thus, to the best of my knowledge, no nation is yet to lay claim to the “most beautiful people” award. As long as second class citizenship of females is prevalent in this world, the titles for “most confident men,” “most successful and intelligent society,” and “happiest people” remain fair game and that, my Ethiopians of the 3rd Millennium, is the urgent sense of direction to be ingrained in your offspring.

   Illusion is our cultural approach to comforting a nation so undeserving of the subhuman standard of living. Through our education system and our mass media, the position has always been that our land is the most arable, our livestock plentiful#, our bodies of water sufficient, and other forms of resource abundance that just don’t explain the resulting poverty. Ethiopia’s restraining order (mandated by international law) from manipulating the waters of the Nile River, of which 80% originates in its highlands, is a clear indication of the fallacy that the great river is our resource. Concocted by Britain, a treaty was signed (by swindling our leaders), in 1929, forfeiting Ethiopia’s right to the use of the Nile to Egypt and, to a lesser extent, The Sudan. Since both countries were British colonies, we can conclusively dispel the illusion that we were never affected by colonization. The river takes all the silt of fertile soil and gifts it to the Egyptian desert transforming it into an oasis. The leaders of the riparian countries of both the white and Blue Nile know the historical facts and should work hard to reach an equitable solution.* As a humanist, I will not suggest that Egyptian lives be sacrificed but there should be limits to the use of the Nile beyond subsistence farming i.e. any profit from agricultural or industrial activities along the Nile should be shared (utopia) with the people of Ethiopia. To be fair to Egypt, we do have other bodies of water and considering the remarkable irrigational achievements of the one time desert nation of Israel, our country will feed itself with proper organization and leadership.%

   And then, we have the illusion that we, the people, are at war with Eritrea. This week, it has been reported that the Ethio-Eritrean border conflict is on the brink of resumption. This is nothing more than the total lack of respect for the Ethiopian and Eritrean intellect by Meles Zenawi and Isayyas Afewerki respectively. After assimilating Ethiopians into a landlocked border and coercing Eritreans to believe that being left with only the Red sea is a sound choice, these ethnic idealists expect their citizens to die for a useless arid border yet one more time! As we share this New Year celebration with Eritreans, our resolution is that the next time a citizen of either country sheds blood, it will be in the noble cause of usurping the governments of these true butchers of Africa.

   And speaking of Africa, Ethiopians need to come to terms with the fact that, let alone Eritreans, all sub-Saharan countries are siblings.@ All human beings should understand that we are one, albeit dysfunctional, family. However, Africans should be closer and more cooperative because the rest of our family, for one reason or another, seems indifferent to our fate. The Aids Afridemic is eating at our foundation and we have to find ways to curb the infections and drugs to decrease the orphaning of Africa’s children. The pharmaceutical companies do not see the urgency of making drugs available for people that do not have the money to fill their prescriptions. So it is up to us, regardless of patent restrictions, to integrate the medical minds of Africa and mass produce generic drugs. Africans, please open your eyes to a situation where “the game is rigged and the table is tilted”; paying attention to international law and world bodies like IMF, UN, and the World Bank will only leave you collecting crumbs from the masters’ table.

   And finally, the main reason we allow such injustice in our country, continent, and the world is the illusion that there is something out there looking out for us. Even with all the advancement in the human race, both good and bad results are attributed to the creator. The use of common phrases like “God willing,” “an act of God,” “why does God allow this?” and so forth is our way of washing our hands from our fate. It is our refusal to assume accountability for our true roles, accept credit for our achievements or failures, and instead, assign factors for the consequences of our actions as being anything but us. This is not an attempt to discredit religion but to transfer responsibility back to ourselves. My theory works whether you believe in a higher being or not. If you are a secularist, then you have no choice but to believe in yourself. If you believe in God, then take heed from the sights of creation. Do you think the purpose of the awesome design of our minds is just to pray and wait for deliverance? In fact, it can be compared to times when your parents leave town and you have mistreated the house. You don’t know when they are coming back but it is clear that you better clean up by then!

   So whether you are an Ethiopian, Eritrean, or have any reason to celebrate the New Year with us, I invite you to have the best of times. Eat, drink, and be festive because life is meant to be celebrated. But to not consider these things is unfair to those that will die or lose someone, due to the reasons above, before the fireworks go off on New Years Eve. More importantly, understand my resolution that all this pain we see or hear about our country daily is one of two things: dying pains of a sick and battered country or birthing pains of a reviving nation – it is up to us to determine the route.

   Elaborative footnotes

   #Ethiopia has the largest livestock of any country south of the Sahara

   *The principle of international law behind this ridiculous arrangement is pacta sunt servanda which is Latin for “a treaty signed must be respected.” Basically, the British deceived us in a game we were not prepared for in the 1920s. The only way we can come back from this predicament (and the only way Pacta sunt servanda can become obsolete) is the principle of rebus sic stantibus which allows for revision if there are extreme and provable changes of circumstance. I feel drought and erosion of thousands of years will suffice as change, but unfortunately, I cannot afford an international lawyer at the moment

   %Ethiopia is at the heart of the Rift valley extending from Syria to Mozambique. Rift valleys have an abundance of lakes and rivers. This is why Ethiopia is a starting point for the Longest River in the World (Nile) and the fifth in Africa (Shebelle)

   @Even before this step, we have to understand that Amhara, Oromo, Gurage, Tigre, Wolaita, Sidama, and all other ethnic groups have no distinction (except language) and POSITIVELY contribute to Ethiopia’s beautiful array of diversity

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3. interesting. well said to say the least.

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