By Elias Kifle
In 2011 Ethiopian Review, the longest running independent Ethiopian journal, celebrates its 20th year in service. It is a milestone period in the journal’s history and a special occasion for those of us who have labored hard to keep it going. As the editor-in-chief, in deciding who to select as Ethiopian Review’s Person of the Year, this time I have decided to look at our own accomplishments and recognize those who have been there through thick and thin over the years. While there are many individuals — too many to list here — who have been providing valuable support to Ethiopian Review, for their enduring contribution special recognition goes to: (In alphabetical order)
Wzr. Meseret Agonafer, who is a fountain of inspiration and moral support, as well an authentic example of a genuine friend.
Ato Elias Wondimu, who once served as the managing editor and after launching his own publishing house, Tsehai Publishers, continued to consult on the editorial direction of the journal.
There is another person who deserves even greater appreciation, for without his consistent moral support and advise there would not have been Ethiopian Review. He is my own father Kifle Seifu.
My father is currently in the US. I, along with my sister and brothers, have brought him and our mother here a few months ago after witnessing Woyanne going after the families of its opponents. He had already survived an attack about 15 years ago by Woyanne gunmen who sprayed his house in Addis Ababa with machine gun bullets. He returned fire taking down (wounding) one of the shooters. It was nothing short of a miracle that he survived the attack. He spent 3 months in jail and was released with the help of the American charge d’affairs in Addis Ababa and Ted Dagne at the U.S Congressional Service.
After he was released, for the past 15 years, Woyanne made sure that my father could not do any business in Ethiopia. Every venture he tried was blocked. After a long legal battle, about 4 years ago, three different courts, including the supreme court of Ethiopia ruled that properties (worth over 63 million birr) that Derg confiscated from my father returned. Woyanne refused to obey the court order and told my father that his properties would be returned under one condition: That he must stop his son from publishing critical opinions and reports about the ruling junta on Ethiopian Review. My father’s answer was unequivocal no. I’m proud of him for that to no end.
I don’t know any one who has worked so hard through out his life as my father did. One time when he was working as a contractor on the Ethiopian Air Force base in Debre Zeit he collapsed due to sleep deprivation. It was normal for him to disappear for several months at a time exploring mines in some of the remotest parts of Ethiopia.
He is now 84 years old and after all the hard work through out his life he doesn’t have a penny in the bank. During the Derg era its prime minister FikreSelassie Wogderes, and security chief Tesfaye WoldeSelassie confiscated (robbed) most of his properties. The Woyanne junta that replaced the Derg refused to return his properties ignoring court orders, and made sure that he doesn’t earn a living in Ethiopia.
There are countless others who have lost much more than properties in the hands of the two barbaric regimes. They have taken away the lives of so many innocent Ethiopians. I am lucky and grateful to have my father still alive.
The two vampire regimes, Derg and Woyanne, have left my father penniless. But he has one thing that is more precious and that no one could take away from him — honor.
With his skills, experience and hard work, my father could have been one of the wealthiest individuals in Ethiopia. Unfortunately, in a country where the president is a pig, the prime minister is a mass murderer and the patriarch is a thief, it is extremely difficult for a person of honor to succeed and thrive.
I’m profoundly blessed to have a father like Kifle Seifu and in this special milestone year for the journal it is my honor to choose him as Ethiopian Review’s 2010 Person of the year.
153 thoughts on “2010 Person of The Year”
Dear Elias,
Glad that you nominted your dad for such a big award. People like your dad and a family like yours are the reason why we continue to hope, hope for the future of a blessed and free Ethiopia. My God Bless you and your family.
Well done!
Happy New Year to you and family.
Elias even though i have my own person of the year i do appreciate your choice of giving this respected and hard working Ethiopian is really touching. What he has gone through and i join you your dad deserved to be one, God give him enough time to have every wish fullfilled like eyob in the bible.
I HAVE Start reading ER after a long QUIT!!
CONGRATS Mr KIFLE SYIFU.
Wow Elias what a contrast b/n you selections of your father and Esias Afewerki, this is one of the best selections you have made so far. I congratulate you and your father for this great honor. May God bless both of you. Ethiopia shall survive this century’s ordeal.
Solomon G
Raleigh,NC
In todays society the rich and famous are always nominated to be person of the year. For 2010 as a person of the year, you selected Mr Kifle.To me this is one step in the era of peoples journalism. It should not be always the powerfuls to be recognized person of the year.The hard working Ethiopians who have lost so much, who have also given so much for mother Ethiopia deserve to be recognized. I congragulate your courage and wisdom in peoples journalism and fully support your decision. May god bless your father and the rest of the family. Happy New Year Mr Kifle and congragulation on your nomination to be Person of the Year.
Elias now I know why you are the way you are, it is true because of your up bringing who you are now just like Meles is hated by all of us. On the opposite you are really loved by most of us you and your family are treasure I think your father deserves more glory from all of us because of his good charactor you came to be who you are as a result all of us have benefited from your hard work. I am sad though because you should put this barbaric TPLF Mafia work on your family again and again for people like me who did not know what happen to your family. what happen to your family is a big story to be seen for future court and these idiot TPLF must pay your father back with the interest your fathers hard work fruit. However not saying about your self when you have this big amazing life story you ignored so that shows by itself you are not running as some do for their own personal power interest thank you. You are an amazing humble man. Thank you thank you again and again I wish long life for you and your father as well for the rest of your family and for your web sight I wish the best 2011 thank you Elias.
Happy New-Year Elias Kifle Seyfu
Now I know why you are working hard for the betterment of mother Ethiopia. You have grown-up under the hand of true patriot Ethiopian father. Your great choice made me know you and your family better.
Your father paid their sacrifice while he lives in Ethiopia, and you did not forget your country for the last two decades even if you are living far away. Ato Kifile Seyfu must be proud of you as well.
Belew,
Canada
After the woyane “election/erection” 2010, meles gave a speech to his supporters in addis from behind bullet proof glass covered podium. Yesterday Isias was seen in Asmara crossing right through thousands of revellers in Bahti meskerem square with a mere a handful of body guards!! The woyane suckers in this forum should tell meles that the Russian roulette is his turn and should try one of that in addis!!
Elias,
I am teared up and emotional while reading this years choice. An excellent choice!
I must say your honorable father is lucky, too. His son is one of a kind. His grand children and generations to follow will walk chines up. That is what Zenawi and the thugs won’t see in future free Ethiopia.
This penniless, frail old man is exemplary to all of us. Despite all miseries he went through, he kept his integrity, honor and dignity.
Unlike the perpetrates who are ending up rotten in rathole one after another, this old man stands tall with a clean conscience in front of us. Congra!!
God bless your father. He truly deserves it. May the god almighty help him to see free Ethiopia; where every citizen treated equally and I hope your father reclaim his hard earned properties. Happy New Year.
my honorable father who worked hard and sacrificed his life to raise me and my 6 siblings is my man of the year every year. i believe that goes for many of you too.
Mr. kifle seifu deserve so much more than just person of the year. God bless him and let us not close our eyes on TPLF. TPLF will go down.
It is very very hard to read or to look at without being so emotional and very touched.I see now you are the son of a double patriot.thank you for showing us one of the greatest and true patriot of our beloved ETHIOPIA(our mother land) and your roots.No wander you are a voice for the voiceless.
May God bless you and your family.
Happy New Year!
I think there is a conflict of interest and ethical question, you being the owner and the editor of the paper and nominating your own father as the man of the year, while there are quite a few Ethiopians, who have given their lives or imprisoned for their stand against the monopoly of ethnic governance, such as Ms. Birtukan Mideksa.
I am sure and am certain that you love and respect your father, most of all, as you stated that you owe your father a great lot. It goes without saying that I am sure there are great many of us, who do really feel the same way, yet not having the venue to nominate them as a person of the year or the month, even the week, since we also love and respect, most of all, owe so much to our father too. However, by the mere fact that you own this site does not meant that you can shove your personal choice on us, with due respect to your father, yet could not be compared to those people who have sacrificed their lives in the name of their country.
Mr. Kifle Seifu is one of the many living testimonies for the horrendous atrocities committed against the Ethiopian people by Derg and Woyane regimes.
It is a wise choice as Ethiopian Review’s Person of the Year for he represents the millions of Ethiopians who sacrificed and invested their lives, wealth, time, energy and moral obligation for the betterment of their country.
If there is anyone out there who is not happy with this selection, tough luck.
Happy New Year all.
This is proof that you are not the “Elias ‘Eritrean Review’ Kiflom” that some people think you are. Since you have this quality of being, well, quality, stylish and bold, and your choice in this case a bit self-serving, still, it is within taste and probably a well deserved pick. Standing for the oppressed, powerless and poor is very noble indeed and goes a long way and should not be limited to the plights of Ethiopians:
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I usually don’t agree with most of your opinions but for a change I agree with you on 110% basis when you honor your father in a sincere way.
Elias – You have done a good job by selecting your father as Person of the Year. That is indeed a great honor to your father and your family.
Unfortunately, this story reminds me those African leaders who nominate their sons and daughters as their successors to the throne as if their countries have no one rather than his/her special family.
One thing that you and those African leaders usually forget is that this institutions do not belong to you.
Elias – I afraid, once again you got the selectin absolutely wrong. Trust me it is not by no means a disrespect for accomplishments of your father. However, when I read the first paragraph where you state “As the editor-in-chief, in deciding who to select as Ethiopian Review’s Person of the Year…” I said O Elias – here you are! Since you are in public service, you have to reflect public interests and not your personal agenda at your site.
From the bottom of my heart I wish to your father and your family the healthiest and most blessed New Year.
God bless Ethiopia
Kewle
God bless your father.
He truly deserves it.
May the god almighty help him to see free Ethiopia; where every citizen treated equally and I hope your father reclaim his hard earned properties.
Happy New Year,
Good choice. Your dad’s story speaks for many in Ethiopia. The country is under communist rule for almost 40 years now (DERG+WOYNAE)
Elias, I agree with your choice. Your father represents all other fathers who live honorable life and raise patriotic Ethiopians like you. I am one of the unlucky ones who lost his father to the savage regime. Your father’s story has made me think about my own father who was a man of incredible integrity. Thank you Elias.
Elias;
May God bless your beloved father with more years and health.He has grace that he even does not look he is in his eighties.
Above all he should be proud of you-his son, who is fighting woyane by all means.
Great choice and a perfect way for Ethiopian Review to end 2010 and start the new year.
What a wonderful and amazing character. I want say more but speechless and emotional to say the least. God be with you Mr Kifle.
Thumbs up. Thank you Elias
Elias, it is sometimes good to teat onself where there is no one taking you seriously. You and your thinking are revolving around you… most of the time… right? You are someone who can’t grow out of self-obsesed personality like a toddler who is ready to do anything to get attention. This is a sickness nobody can change t until you come to the end of your course
Elias I like your father, but I hate you because you delete my comments.
Congratulations Elias, you have a very graceful father. Let God bless you and your father. I like you,and I like what you do. I do not agree with everything you do though, like attacking Hailu Shawel. I wish most Ethiopians had the spirit you and your father have, a fighter spirit. Keep up the good work, we are behind you and I am sure you will prevail
With all the imperfections of human thinking and opinions including yours, some of us agree with your choice for the persons of the year and others including myself don’t agree. I see nothing wrong with disagreeing with the choice because no matter what your choice is, no 100% of the people are going to agree any ways but it seems like over 95% of the bloggers agree with your assertions. I have to admit that you have gotten a good grade. The point to me is not why and how you nominated, rather it is about your personality, upbringing and why you are a fierce opponent of the Weyane. After reading the article on the nominations, I concluded that you are a very decent human being and that we as Ethiopians are lucky to have a person such as you to represent us and fight on our behalf. Elias, keep up the good fight!
wow!! Elyas with all respect… happy new year to u and all ur family!
It doesn’t make sense at all. Why do we have to spend our time reading your father’s story? Keep your family’s matter among your family. Please do not mix family matter with public issues.
When some one makes a comment he/she have every right to say what he/she wants to say,as long as it is not malicious. That is why we at the Diaspora wants this kind of right to bring to our people. Knowing that #37 and #41, I really respect your view of objecting Elias’s selection of Ato Kifle.One of you even said “Birtukan Medeksa should have been selected” TRUE she was one of, if not the first choice of mine too.But this is not only about politics and Ato Kifle represent millions of ordinary Ethiopians who are not elected officials,who don’t have the Human right commission ask their release from jail,who are not known by foreign governments,and most of all Elias have every right to chose his father for what this father and son went trough by the barbaric group back home.By saying this it is not by any means to make Birtukan’s sacrifice any less and when i think of what she went trough it leaves me speechless but there are to many venues she can be nominated on so don’t try to lash on me.
There is lot of ppl who are suffering by dictator woyanes. Therefore i wish long live to ababa kifle!! Good bles you!
Wow, Elias you have a great father and I wish to you and your father a happy new year. This year your choice was great and lets hope in 2012 your father will be again a man of the year. I will choose your father as a man of year until the end of his life. I was always against you but today I was with u because of your father.
This is truly a moving moment for all of us. Ethiopia has fallen in the hands of a beast, the sad part is one beast is replaced by another. Unlike the previous beast where differences exist in the top echelon, these bunch have blood ties. More like the Suadi royal family the current beast is there to stay. Having a family business to protect the current rulers will make sure that when it is a war they share it with Ethiopians and when it is a benefit its strictly for the family, EFFORT.
[size=150][b]Ato Kifle Seifu[/b][/size] Should not feel the pain for there are several more who have lost their livelihood. Having health and a caring family is something no beast can attain, because the loot will always gets in between. Just like 26 Woyanne beasts tried to run [i][b]Scannia[/b][/i] and failed after only ten years, the Woyanne bigger objective of holding power by force will come to its end. The law of physicas states, all things that go up will come down, the bigger the rise the harder they fall. Woyanne will fall face first upon its demise.
Leoul says:
I am proud of your father it deserve this honour,This shows for those who left behind in ethiopia suffering from the cruel regim equally meorable.For your father I wish him long life and Eliase, HAPPY NEW YEAR.In the name of ETHIOPIAN PEOPLE,I THANK YOU for your hard work againest this cruel regim.
Elias this choice demonstrates your wisdom.
Selam Elias,
What a graceful and good looking father you have at 84! What he does is as good as how he looks. A great guy. He was supposed to be the man of the year every year. How come you remember him just now? I know why. You were stuck with that Eritrean sucker by the name Esayias Afeworki. This sucker took your great father’s spot for many years and he is now hunting real EPPF leaders sabotaging the struggle to free Ethiopia. By the way still helping his former friend-Zenawi.
Elias, your father not only looks handsome. He also looks intelligent. You inherited his looks from your dad. But you missed his intelligence. Otherwise you would not have put that sucker Afeworki as the man of the year twice.
Anyway, you made the best choice this time. But now you got me worried about your dad and your family. Killer Zenawi may harm them because of you and this overwhelming publicity and support your dad has received here in the Diaspora. Now you may have to think and plan about your dad and your siblings. You know what killer Zenawi did to Dr. Berhanu’s and Ato Andargachew Tsige’s family.
God bless your dad.
K.Bekele
Your father brought one of the worst person, you, to this planet. I feel sorry for him.
Thank you Elias. Great nomination.
This is the right choice. Elias God bless you and your father.
Am glad you meet your father bless him.But you are such a selfish arrogant person young mans are dying in that desert and you are talking about man of the year such a corrupt organization SHAME ON YOU
Elias,
Great choice. Your father represent the true Ethiopian spirit: hard work, antinkugne baynet, defiance under repression and contempt for tribalists and dictators. By selecting him as a person of the year you have also honored his generation. Now you initiated it, don’t stop at this. Please find similar exemplary charaters like your father to teach the current generation. You don’t need to wait a year to do that.
I am proud of you and Your Dad! Great choice, Elias!
I second your nomination. Also Meseret Agonafer deserves a complement for her persistent determination.
Dear Elias:
I read your choices of personalities who deserved to be on Ethiopian Review’s person of the year for 2010. I can honestly say you made good choices, regardless of what others might say. The choice of Professor Alemayehu Gebremariam a political science instructor at California State University, and an attorney in profession is absolutely the right person for this choice. Professor Alemayehu is also a prolific writer which I enjoy reading his articles on Ethiopia in many web sites I scour through most of the time.
The young journalist Ato Elias Wondimu of Tsehai publishing CO. whom I met in Washington, DC. during The National Summit On Africa in February 2000, is also an, energetic and a well polished journalist who elevated his career to the next level. He deserved to be chosen for 2010 person of the year’s recognition.
My sincere apologies regarding Wzr. Meseret Agonafer, due to my lack of knowledge about her, I would rather leave that alone as you already stated about her wonderful contribution towards your scintillating web site.
The last and not the least is about your father’s determination and sacrifices he had made to protect his children’s well being by turning down the request made by the dictatorial, terrorist, and illegal regime of mother Ethiopia. Many despicable cowards will never hesitate for a second to sell their pride and soul for a meager hand full of dollars to carry out the dictators wish list. No one in the history of bribery ever turned down a property that is worth so many millions of dollars just like that. Yet your brave father chose not to take back his own property that he toiled his fingers to the bone to build it. Although it is tempting to refuse that amount of money, I take my hat off to his courage and beliefs for not selling out his unblemished honor and reputation of him and his family.
I wish you, your family, and parents a wonderful happy new year filled with love, prosperity and tranquility for years to come.
Regards, assefa
I know Gash Kifle for a long time. We used to live in the same kebele. He is an embodiment of honesty and bravery. I remember the specific incident Elias mentioned. Gash Kifle chased away 6 Woyanne thugs who came at him carrying Kalashnikovs with only a pistol. The cowards ran away with their tails between their legs and later came back with about 50 other thugs just to surround one man.
Elias: All i can say is you hit the jack-pot baby. […]
What a very good choice Elias! Your father deserves this honor. The story touched my heart. Your dad is a brave man. By selecting him for this honor you are selecting all the fathers from Ethiopia with similar history and bravery.