I have been getting a lot of email from Ethiopian-Americans who are very upset that Columbia University has invited Prime Minister Meles Zenawi to speak this coming Wednesday, like this one:
Most of the professors who come across him, in most cases are neutralized or transformed as his advocates. So far, you are the only one standing clear, so the Ethiopian people need one intellectual friend like you to make their case. Please don’t be afraid and help our people and speak up.
I am both moved and extremely uncomfortable. The Ethiopian diaspora critics of Meles are upset about the support for Meles coming from Professors Sachs and Stiglitz at Columbia (note: I hear from critics in the diaspora, because its nearly impossible to be a critic from inside Ethiopia). I have criticized the Meles regime here and here (2nd one joint with Laura). But it should not be up to the faranji to conduct the debate. None of us know enough or have enough at stake to get it right.
But I am happy to give the opposition a platform in this blog, without necessarily endorsing any one viewpoint, individual, or movement. Nor do I imply that any one I quote is necessarily representing a majority of Ethiopians. I have previously given space on the blog to a supporter of Meles.
So what are the issues? The Columbia student newspaper noted how Columbia’s original speech announcement had a laudatory bio of Meles (since removed), further outraging the Ethiopian opposition.
Under the seasoned governmental leadership of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi … Ethiopia has made and continues to make progresses in many areas including in education, transportation, health and energy.
Electoral manipulations, harassment, intimidation,beatings, political imprisonments and the withholding of humanitarianaid for any who do not support Meles ‘ethnic-based EPRDF party, have effectively closed all political space to any opposing groups. The criminalization of dissent, advanced through new repressive laws regarding civil society and vague antiterrorism laws that could make nearly anyone guilty, have further silenced the people and the media.
Columbia University has the right to invite whomever they choose, but yet, such an invitation will only be misused to further elevate a dictator who is oppressing the people of Ethiopia.
Political science professor Alemayehu Mariam wrote an open letter to Columbia president Lee Bollinger on the Huffington Post:
There is widespread belief among Ethiopian Americans that Mr. Zenawi’s invitation to speak …necessarily implies the University’s endorsement and support of Mr. Zenawi’s views, policies and actions in Ethiopia. I am writing to request your office to issue an official statement clarifying your position concerning Mr. Zenawi as you so eloquently did when Mahmood Ahmadinejad of Iran spoke on your campus on September 24, 2007.
Professor Mariam cites some of the credentials of Meles Zenawi to get the Ahmadinejad treatment:
In 2005, security forces under the personal command and control of Mr. Zenawi massacred 193 unarmed protesters and inflicted severe gunshot wounds on 763 others…
In December 2008, Mr. Zenawi arrested and reinstated a life sentence on Birtukan Midekssa, the only woman political party leader in Ethiopian history. He kept her under extreme conditions in prison.
The government enacted harsh legislation that criminalized coverage of vaguely defined “terrorist” activities, and used administrative restrictions, criminal prosecutions, and imprisonments to induce self-censorship… The government has had a longstanding practice of bringing trumped-up criminal cases against critical journalists, leaving the charges unresolved for years as a means of intimidating the defendants… Ethiopia as the only country in sub-Saharan Africa with ‘consistent’ and ‘substantial’ filtering of web sites…
Even it’s not up to the faranji to debate Ethiopia’s politics, we can all certainly comment on what support is given to each side by our governments, our aid agencies, and our universities.
What do you think of Columbia’s invitation to Meles? Should President Bollinger issue the “Ahmadinejad” disclaimer requested by the critics?
In an email message sent to Columbia Economics faculty, world-renowned economist, Jagdish Bhagwati, vehemently denounces the ill-advised tribute earlier accorded to Ethiopia’s dictator, Meles Zenawi.
Characterizing the Columbia faculty who were behind the invitation of Zenawi as “entrepreneurs,” Professor Bhagwati writes:
… as soon as you dilute these objectives [i.e., teaching and high-quality research, the twin pillars of universities’ functioning] by giving unaccountable power and funds to “entrepreneurs” whose objective is to use the University to advance their own agendas, you get into situations like the one you object to. It seems probable that the President’s office was merely reproducing uncritically the rubbish that was supplied by one of these Columbia entrepreneurs whose objective is to ingratiate himself with influential African leaders regardless of their democratic and human-rights record, to get PR and “goodies” for themselves at African summits, at the UN where these leaders have a vote, etc.”
He went on to affirm:
In short, the rot begins with these people, NOT with President Bollinger who is merely a victim of these “unacademic” Professors on campus who have gotten close to him, I am afraid.”
Jagdish Bhagwati is a University Professor at Columbia University and a Senior Fellow in International Economics at the Council on Foreign Relations. He has been Economic Policy Adviser to Arthur Dunkel, Director General of GATT (1991-93), Special Adviser to the UN on Globalization, and External Adviser to the WTO. He has served on the Expert Group appointed by the Director General of the WTO on the Future of the WTO and the Advisory Committee to Secretary General Kofi Annan on the NEPAD process in Africa, and was also a member of the Eminent Persons Group under the chairmanship of President Fernando Henrique Cardoso on the future of UNCTAD. Five volumes of his scientific writings and two of his public policy essays have been published by MIT press. The recipient of six festschrifts in his honor, he has also received several prizes and honorary degrees, including awards from the governments of India (Padma Vibhushan) and Japan (Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star). Professor Bhagwati’s latest book, In Defense of Globalization, was published by Oxford University Press in 2004 to worldwide acclaim.
The full text of Professor Bhagwati’s message is cut and pasted below.
Sent: Sat 9/18/2010 6:11 AM
From: Professor Jagdish Bhagwati
University Professor, Economics and Law
Columbia University
I understand the anguish of Professor Nagash over the Columbia University invitation to PM Zenawi of Ethiopia who is allegedly a man deserving of condemnation, especially as regards academic freedom and independence in his country (especially since Columbia is a university).
I understand also that the objection is not to the invitation per se but particularly regarding the encomiums extended to this PM on the Presidential website (without President Bollinger even knowing about its contents, I am sure).
Columbia has correctly decided to be a global university, like some others, like Yale. But this must mean bringing foreign universities and faculties and students, and our own, into mutually rewarding contact: i.e. through teaching and high-quality research, the twin pillars of universities’ functioning through centuries.
But as soon as you dilute these objectives by giving unaccountable power and funds to “entrepreneurs” whose objective is to use the University to advance their own agendas, you get into situations like the one you object to. It seems probable that the President’s office was merely reproducing uncritically the rubbish that was supplied by one of these Columbia entrepreneurs whose objective is to ingratiate himself with influential African leaders regardless of their democratic and human-rights record, to get PR and “goodies” for themselves at African summits, at the UN where these leaders have a vote, etc.
In short, the rot begins with these people, NOT with President Bollinger who is merely a victim of these “unacademic” Professors on campus who have gotten close to him, I am afraid.
In short, the real issues are different from what you worry about. We need a dialogue on how Universities are being “captured” by such entrepreneurs who should NOT be in universities, or at least in prominent positions at Universities. And we need full transparency on their activities and University funding (which is often diverted in effect to them at the expense of scholarly research and teaching.
Columbia president Lee Bollinger tries to portray the university as an oasis of free speech that is tolerant of even dictators such as Meles Zenawi who repress their people.
However, a speech freedom group named Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) has recently issued a red alert (see here) against Columbia University for a number free speech violations. In one case, the university suspended the hockey team for distributing “offensive” flyer:
After intense public criticism, Columbia University revoked its semester-long suspension of the Men’s Ice Hockey Club. Columbia suspended the club for the semester—effectively canceling the club’s entire season—for posting recruiting flyers containing language that some found offensive. FIRE, along with other groups and individuals both within and outside the university, vociferously opposed Columbia’s attack on free expression. Columbia’s Office of Athletics Communications issued a statement announcing a reduction in the club’s punishment. The club was allowed to engage in league play, but it remained suspended from its preseason and nonleague games. The club was also required to apologize for the flyer, attend “leadership training,” and remains on probation for one year. [read]
A tyrant such as Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia who jails, tortures and murders innocent people has more right in the eyes of President Bollinger than his own students when it comes to free speech!!
Washington Times associate editor J.P. Freire writes:
It’s all well and good that he [Meles] is an ally for the United States, but why should Columbia honor him with a speaking engagement?
It may be hard for those who are as yet not aware of the relationship between Meles on the one hand, and Professors Jeffrey Sachs and Joseph Stiglitz on the other hand, to imagine that two renowned scholars from a prestigious university could create a strong bond to a cold-blooded dictator-turning-totalitarian. For those who are still incredulous and are looking for hard evidence, we have compiled this body of evidence, letting Sachs’ and Stiglitz’s own words speak for themselves:
Jeffrey Sachs on the Ethiopian dictator
1. A Sachs speech
Some excerpts from this speech: “Your Excellencies: our wonderful host Prime Minister Meles”… and: “When I meet with Prime Minister Meles and President Museveni I feel like I am attending a development seminar. They are ingenious, deeply knowledgeable, and bold.” [full text]
Here, Sachs measures Meles up against the lowest possible bar: “Meles Zenawi, the prime minister of Ethiopia, has the most insightful, indeed ingenious, ideas about rural development of any leader in that country’s modern history.” [full text]
4. Sachs’ speech as Meles was accepting the Yara award, cited verbatim by a blogger named Weichegud [see here and here]
This is what Sachs says in the midst of the 2005 killings: “Prime Minister, you have distinguished yourself as a one of our World’s most brilliant leaders. I have often said that our many hours of discussion together are among the most scintillating that I have spent on the topics of economic development. I invariably leave our meetings enriched, informed, and encouraged about Ethiopia’s prospects. Moreover, I know fully that you are deeply committed to peace, development, and the success of your country.” And: “Third, I am here to pay my respects to those who have lost their lives in the struggle for democracy, both the fighters for freedom who toppled a despicable regime 14 years ago, and also the dozens of students and innocent bystanders who tragically and unnecessarily lost their lives several weeks ago when they were shot by security forces during protests in the nation’s capital. There is no excuse for such loss of life; security forces must be equipped with non-lethal means for riot and crowd control. And our students anywhere are our future. ” And further: “I especially admire, Mr. Prime Minister, your deep commitment to Ethiopia’s rural communities and to Ethiopia’s Green Revolution, the very commitment that we recognize today with this award.” And: “Ethiopia is a much divided society, as shown by the recent contested elections and the controversies that swirl around them. Political divisions are natural, indeed healthy. They are part and parcel of democracy. But the hate and distrust that are on view in Ethiopia’s multi-ethnic society are beyond normal. They are social ills that need mending. Few countries in the world have been able to make multi-ethnic societies work peacefully for all. Grievances and distrust in Ethiopia are deep and have deep historic roots. Many of the attacks on the current government reflect revanchist sentiments from an earlier era of Imperial domination of a former elite. But others reflect real and deep grievances about the present day. Still others are simply a byproduct of the suffering of extreme poverty.”
In communications after the speech, Sachs further elaborates: “The fact that security forces have shot again into the crowds is not acceptable. Aside from the heated charges and counter-charges of who has done what to whom and who has or has not provoked the violence, the government and its security forces should have been much better prepared with non-lethal means to control unhappy crowds.” And “The opposition leaders too should have been speaking out much more to keep their own followers peaceful and unarmed. There are many reports that people in the crowds fired upon the police. I do not know whether those reports are accurate, and as far as I know there has been no independent assessment to date. […] Undoubtedly, though, there is responsibility required on all sides in a tense confrontation such as this, and more that both government and opposition can and should be doing much more to secure the peace.”
Sachs continues: “I will also note for you that I receive many heartfelt assertions that accuse some of the opposition leaders of stoking violence and ethnic hatred. It appears that some of the spiraling unrest is partly, and dangerously, ethnically motivated on both sides. It is also widely believed that there are revanchists from the Mengistu era stoking some of the unrest.”
5. Sachs’ book, “The End of Poverty” [full text]
In this book, Sachs remarks: “My ardent hopes for Africa are fueled by the powerful and visionary leadership that I have seen in abundance throughout the continent, in contrast to the typical uninformed American view about Africa’s governance. In particular, I would like to thank Africa’s new generation of democratic leaders who are pointing the way, including […] Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia.” , and: “I visited and worked in many places with good governments that were struggling mightily against the odds. Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi […] all have better governance than might have been expected given the burdens of extreme poverty, illiteracy, lack of financial resources […]” And: “The prime minister made a powerful and insightful presentation about Ethiopia’s potential to expand food production, and thereby to overcome pervasive hunger. …”
Joseph Stiglitz on the Ethiopian dictator
6. An op-ed Stiglitz wrote for the New York Times [full text]
Excerpt from this article: “Ethiopia also receives a lot of aid from Western countries, partly because they feel the government uses it in ways that benefit the vast majority of the citizens.“, and: “Meles’ overthrow of Mengistu not only ended the Red Terror, but also centuries of domination by the Amharas. Power was devolved toward the regions, and a most unusual constitutional provision, giving regions rights to withdraw, ensured that the center would not abuse its powers.”
7. Stiglitz’s book, “Globalisation and its Discontents”
(See longer excerpts here; a a summary version also written for the Atlantic )
In his book, Stiglitz dedicates a many pages long segment to Meles and Ethiopia. Among other things, he states: “A doctor by training, Meles had formally studied economics because he knew that to bring his country out of centuries of poverty would require nothing less than economic transformation, and he demonstrated a knowledge of economics—and indeed a creativity—that would have put him at the head of any of my university classes. He showed a deeper understanding of economic principles—and certainly greater knowledge of the circumstances in this country—than many of the international economic bureaucrats that I had to deal with in the succeeding three years. Meles combined these intellectual attributes with personal integrity: no one doubted his honesty and there were few accusations of corruption within his government. His political opponents came mostly from the long-dominant groups around the capital who had lost political power with his accession, and they raised questions about his commitment to democratic principles. However, he was not an old-fashioned autocrat. Both he and the government were generally committed to a process of decentralisation, bringing government closer to the people and ensuring that the centre did not lose touch with the separate regions. The new constitution even gave each region the right to vote democratically to secede, ensuring that the political elites in the capital city, whoever they might be, could not risk ignoring the concerns of ordinary citizens in every part of the country, or that one part of the country could not impose its views on the rest.”
8. Peter Gill on the Stiglitz-Meles relationship in the book “Famine and Foreigners
(See longer excerpts here). Anintriguing account which illustrates the deep backing Meles had from Stiglitz, strongly influencing Meles hand in policy negotiations, and an illustration of their tight bond, based on a common “enemy”, the IMF, and based on Stiglitz’s intellectual delight and titillation with Meles’ way of thinking and articulating himself.
When many of us learned about Columbia University’s invitation to dictator Meles Zenawi to give a keynote address on “leadership,” it was not difficult to figure out who were behind it — Sachs and Stiglitz, two American professors who exhibit passionate affection toward some of the world’s despicable tyrants, particularly Ethiopia’s bloodthirsty dictator Meles Zenawi. As it turned out, it was these two professors who have convinced Columbia’s president Lee Bollinger to extend the invitation to Meles.
But that is not the whole story. How did these two professors come to know Meles Zenawi? The answer is Prof. Awash Teklehaimanot, who works for Columbia University as Director of Malaria and NTD Program, and also for Meles Zenawi’s regime as Director of the Center for National Health Development in Ethiopia.
Before Prof. Awash’s friends and relatives — Woyannes — came to power, malaria had almost been eradicated from Ethiopia through the efforts of Ethiopian Malaria Prevention Center. When Woyannes came to power, they dismantled the Center and took every thing to Tigray. A few years later, Ethiopia was hit with Malaria epidemic that killed tens of thousands of people. Malaria continues to be one the deadliest diseases in Ethiopia.
Prof. Awash holds the title “Director of the Center for National Health Development in Ethiopia,” however, every foreign assistance he manages to obtain in the name of Ethiopia goes to Tigray.
As a loyal and prominent member of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (Woyanne), Prof. Awash also works to promote Meles Zenawi’s agenda in the U.S. academia by introducing him to the likes of Prof. Sachs, who is his long-time mentor. The current Minister of Health in Ethiopia and politburo member of the ruling Tigray People Liberation Front, Tewodros Adhanom, was Awash’s student. When ever Meles goes to New York, one of the few Ethiopians he meets with is Awash Teklehaimanot. The other one is his investment adviser Kassahun (Kassy) Kebede, Managing Partner of Panton Capital Group, LLC (more about this guy another time).
Awash Teklehaimanot also worked behind the scene to arrange former president Clinton’s August 2008 visit to Ethiopia.
In 2004, Awash arranged a visit by Columbia University president Lee Bollinger to visit Tigray.
[Columbia President Lee Bollinger (center) visited the village of Abraha Astebha in the Tigray region of Northern Ethiopia in July, 2004, along with Earth Institute health expert Awash Teklehaimanot (far left) and members of the Hunger Task Force of the United Nations Millennium Project. Jean Magnano Bollinger, President Bollinger’s wife, is standing to his left. Second to his right is Dr. Mitiku Haile, President of Ethiopia’s Mekelle University and a soil expert.]
Awash did not take Bollinger for a visit to southern, western or any other region during their stay in Ethiopia.
The Woyanne junta has many individuals through out the U.S. who work behind the scene to promote Meles Zenawi’s ethnic apartheid program in Ethiopia where every thing is controlled by one ethnic group.
It is up to Ethiopians to expose these bigots so we can challenge and confront them where ever they are in order to minimize the damages they are doing in Ethiopia.
Please post in the comment section below any further info you have about this Woyanne aparthied professor and others like him.
Selling away Ethiopia’s fertile lands piece by piece to foreigners is one of Meles Zenawi’s methods of looting the country. The money he receives in hard currency leaves the country while the people of Ethiopia are stuck with agreements that do not benefit the country. The foreigners must be told in clear terms that any agreement they sign with Meles will be void as soon as he is thrown out of power. — Editor’s Note
INDIA — Punjab-based farmers, who are known for feeding the country, now want to try their hands offshore, with a group of progressive farmers all set to acquire 50,000 hectares of farm land on lease in Ethiopia for growing high-value cash crops, including pulses and maize.
“We will be inking a deal with the Ethiopia government next month for getting at least 50,000 hectares of area for growing crops like pulses and maize, which will be exported to India and Europe,” Confederation of Potato Seed Farmers President, Mr Sukhjit Singh Bhatti, told PTI here.
Mr Bhatti will lead a delegation of 16 interested potato growers from Punjab to carry out farming in Ethiopia.
What encouraged these potato growers to try their hand at farming overseas was land availability at almost throwaway rates, duty free imports of capital goods and the zero duty on farm exports offered by Ethiopia.
“Unlike here, most of the agricultural land is with the Ethiopian government and it has offered us to acquire land on lease for a period ranging between 25 to 40 years at a nominal rate, which works out to Rs 400 per acre per annum in Indian currency. Moreover, we will not have to pay for the first five years of our operations,” he said.
Furthermore, the cropping pattern in Ethiopia is not that intense as it is in Punjab. “With less pressure on land there (Ethiopia), the soil will be suitable for growing pulses, maize and other cash crops,” he said, adding, “These crops will be exported to India and Europe.”
The Ethiopian government has also assured that it will not levy any duty on the import of machinery like farm implements and export of agricultural commodities. (Sources: (Deccan Chronicle, ENA)
