Some readers were upset with me for calling African leaders “thieves and murderers” last week as they met in Addis Ababa for African Union meeting. Look at the video below and you will arrive at the same conclusion that these so-called leaders are nothing more than cold-blooded murderers. They do not even deserve to be called human beings. No wonder they elected Meles Zenawi, another genocidal murderer, as their representative. (WARNING: Graphic Content. Not suitable for some people and children.) – Elias Kifle
Every time Eritreans come across their Ethiopian counterpart, the favorite statement of Ethiopians is that we are the same. We are brothers. Well, here is your time to prove it!
Prove it by standing with your brothers and sisters. Prove it by standing for justice. Prove it by showing your support and readiness for a new beginning; a beginning towards mutual trust, cooperation, understanding and love for each other for the good of the people in the region.
Every thing has a beginning. Elias Kifle, Sileshi Tilahun and Demise Belete among others made the initiative to visit Eritrea and to talk to President Isaias Afwerki, a controversial figure in Ethiopian circles and returned with a different attitude. They were determined to expose the Eritrean perspectives. They wanted to tell Ethiopians that Eritrea was not the enemy but a true friend of Ethiopia. That Eritrea seeks Ethiopian unity, peace, cooperation and partnership. Mr. Elias and his partners sacrificed a great deal; they were ridiculed and called traitors but they stood their grounds and pursued what they felt was the right thing.
They are not ridiculed anymore. In fact, they are regarded very highly. The price they paid and their determination paid off big time. The interview with PIA was a success. It changed the way many viewed president Isaias and, as a result, many Ethiopians are working with Eritreans now. The chance they took became a platform for the stage we are in today, a stage where many are openly saying “We want to march alongside our Eritrean brothers and sisters and express our solidarity with them on the incoming world-wide demonstration against the unjust UN imposed sanction slapped on Eritrea. In fact, we want to work with Eritreans in many other fields of mutual concern” and are doing so.
Likewise, we, Eritreans, want to be a part of a new beginning, to leave the history of hate and bloodshed behind-us and start anew. This demonstration is the first occasion where Eritreans and Ethiopians are to stand together side by side for a purpose in DC and tell the world that we are not enemies; and we will never be. We are brothers and sisters capable to work together. We are united for a purpose and that purpose is to live together side by side as partners; for our successes and interests and not at the expense of each other. That is what we are determined to achieve; what we are striving for and, that is what we want to tell the world.
We need to march in unity to change perceptions. For centuries the West were relaxed because they can take for granted the fact that we will kill one another for no reason. We will march to change that. We need to show the enemies of our people that we can be smart and stand united in order to challenge their evil ways. We need to march to set example to others that peace is the way. But most importantly, we need to march to set a good example for future generations. We need to be the first, so we can say; we are amongst those who marched first for unity, for peace, cooperation between Eritreans and Ethiopians for a new beginning.
We need to march together because we have a much bigger fish to fry. To get rid of a despot, a master of genocides, a thief and a mercenary. To put in jail a person responsible for so much bloodshed, destruction and displacement of millions; and a criminal whose murderous troops shot at point-blank and killed many youngsters who dared to stand up for freedom. We need to stand together and to march in unity to tell our detractors propping-up despots is not acceptable and their ways are hurting the future of our people and killing progress. Because if we don’t, they will think and believe, they are doing well by abusing our peoples. And unfortunately, the people they care most are the handful that are benefiting at the expense of millions while the millions are condemned for handouts. We are marching to break that cycle.
We need to march to annul the illegal, immoral and UNjust sanction imposed on Eritrea:
Firstly, because as Samuel Johnson English author, critic, & lexicographer once said “An injustice anywhere is an injustice everywhere”! They sanctioned Eritrea unjustly because they have a bully pulpit, ownership of a defunct world body, the UN. Meles, who is a party to the mischief, has been directly responsible for the arms and the bloodshed in Somalia. Eritrea is in no way capable of shipping arms or providing any other logistical support when the US is controlling the Indian Ocean, the land and air and anything in between. Furthermore, Eritrea doesn’t have the resources. What Eritrea did is stand for justice for the Somali people by asking the world community to allow them to resolve their issues without outside meddling. Eritrea took a moral stand just as many Arab states do on Israel by not recognizing Israel so long as the Palestinian issue remains unresolved.
The UN had absolutely no evidence to back up US and Meles Zenawi’s claims about Eritrea’s support for armed groups in Somalia. South African Ambassador to the United Nations Dumisani Kumalo, who served as chairman of the U.N. Security Council’s Somalia sanctions committee, speaking of Somalia, said that 80% of ammunition available at the Somali arms markets was supplied by TFG and Meles Zenawi’s troops. Kumalo also said that the committee had received details of some 25 military flights sent by Meles Zenawi into Somalia and knew that Meles Zenawi’s troops had brought military equipment into the country to arm “friendly clans.” The UN Envoy for Somalia Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah also said that there was no evidence to prove the allegations made against Eritrea are correct.
The US does not care about the Somalis’ well being, because if it did, it wouldn’t have supported Meles in his quest for Somali blood. If the US truly was for justice, human rights and the rule of law, it would have supported the Somali freedom fighters instead of encouraging and abating the Meles’ and Museveni’s to help create mayhem in that lawless land. But, then again, who exonerated the US? We all know the US is a party to the conflict as well. I guess “Might is right” as the saying goes.
Secondly, the sanctions intended goal is to boost Meles Zenawi, weaken Eritrea (the only country standing on his ways) and render Ethiopians at the mercy of Meles Zenawi for decades without any serious challenge to his reign. Is that what you want? A murderous thief who is selling Ethiopia to individuals, entities and countries that will not have the best interest Ethiopia. He is selling Ethiopia piece by piece with the hopes that his investors will keep him in power in order to maintain their investments. Therefore to lose focus at this point is irresponsible. We need to march together to stop this madness.
Thirdly, we need to march because success means the defeat of Meles Zenawi and his gang. One of the intended goals of the sanction is to reverse the momentum that is ready to engulf the Ethiopian nation; the undercurrent that has been building due to hatred of the detested Meles’s regime. It is by far the most crucial moment in the history of Ethiopian struggle. This is a moment that will define history. Because if Meles is allowed to win, the bloodshed will continue for a long time because, the change his masters seek are dangerous and will mire the region into bloody conflicts worse than what we are witnessing in Somalia.
Conclusion
This is a time when Ethiopians need to take a firm and clear stand and decide whether they want Meles and the TPLF gang gone. There is no need for those who take a hesitant position and fearful to show that they are working with Eritrea because they are afraid of a backlash. No need for those who want to stay in the background afraid to be in a weaker position if Eritrea loses. No need for those who want to put themselves in a favorable position by taking the middle ground in order to switch sides when convenient ala Hailu Shawel. These people or groups have no stand and can not lead. Do you want Weyane gone? Then take a stand. Show the people of Ethiopia that you can stand against Woyanne and lead.
Woyanne junta chief Meles Zenawi told the opposition parties, if you want a change of government, do it like we did it, i.e., through armed struggle. The Ethiopian People’s Patriotic Front (EPPF) is doing just that. So why is Woyanne crying now?
ADDIS ABABA (Bloomberg) — Electricity output at Ethiopia’s largest hydropower generator, Gilgel Gibe II, has been halted after part of a tunnel that supplies water to the facility collapsed, the builder of the project said.
Production at the 420-megawatt plant may resume in two months, Salini Costruttori SpA, a Rome-based company, said in a statement on its Web site.
Gilgel Gibe II is powered by a reservoir at the Gilgel Gibe I dam in southwestern Ethiopia. Water is channeled through a 26-kilometer (16-mile) tunnel under a mountain before dropping 500 meters (1,640 feet) into the Omo River, according to a description posted on the Web site of Ethiopia’s Foreign
Ministry.
A geological event led to a “huge” rockfall involving about 15 meters of the tunnel, the company said. “Highly qualified personnel are already at work to ensure the earliest resumption of energy production.”
Ethiopia suffered frequent nationwide blackouts from January through September last year due to power shortages.
Meles Zenawi and officials from the state-owned Ethiopian Electric Power Corp. inaugurated the Gilgel Gibe II plant on Jan. 13. The project, which cost more than 5.2 billion birr ($388 million), increased the utility’s generating capacity by as much as 40 percent.
Misiker Negash, a spokesman for EEPCO, declined to comment on the collapse when contacted today by Bloomberg News. Andrea Scanzani, branch manager for Salini, said he couldn’t provide further details when reached on his mobile phone in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, today.
Environmentalist Opposition
Salini is also building the $2 billion Gilgel Gibe III power plant on the Gibe River, which has been opposed by environmental groups that say the project will harm indigenous people in the region and deplete Lake Turkana in northern Kenya.
Completion of the Gilgel Gibe II project had been delayed by two years after tunnel-boring equipment became repeatedly stuck and engineers had to redesign the tunnel’s path, according to International Rivers, a U.S.-based environmental group that has opposed hydropower programs in Ethiopia.
The project was funded in part by a 220 million-euro ($302 million) loan from the Italian government and 50 million euros from the European Investment Bank.
Advocacy for Ethiopia hosts Conference on Good Governance, Peace, Security, and Sustainable Development in the Horn of Africa in Washington DC, from April 9 – 11, 2010.
Announcement and call for papers:
The Horn of Africa continues to be extremely fragile. The sub-region’s volatility has increased significantly in the post 9/11 period. The total collapse of Somalia and the irresponsible and imprudent intervention of outsiders in the affairs of Somalia have created fertile ground for the rise of radical Islam in the region. Hence, the complex ethnic, religious and inter-state tensions make the Horn of Africa one of the most volatile places in the world. The Ethio-Eritrea boundary conflict remains unresolved. The absence of democratic institutions in the Horn of Africa and the new tension in the Sudan further makes the sub-region one of the most conflict-ridden and with a potential for more explosive scenarios ahead.
The purpose of this conference is, therefore, to bring together scholars, civil society leaders, activists, diplomats, journalists of the free press and representatives of the international community to one forum to highlight potential tragic conflicts that have escaped the minds of many in the past. The focus of the discussion will be on how to democratize Ethiopia, the biggest entity, in the Horn of Africa. The democratization of Ethiopia will certainly pave the way for peace, security, democracy, good governance, and sustainable development in the region at large.
The conference is sponsored by a number of civil society networks and advocacy organizations. In many respects this conference will be a unique and historical forum. At the end of the conference, a public meeting will be held where distinguished personalities will address the participants and the community at large. The viability of bringing change through the ballot box will be examined and how to clip the wings of the dictatorship will be outlined. Participants will make commitment to a roadmap for democratizing Ethiopia. Focus will be given to the state of the free press in Ethiopia and the plight of journalists who faced extreme difficulties, persecution and exile for doing their jobs. The conference will also hold a special program to honor those who have made notable sacrifices in the struggle for freedom and democracy. Civil society leaders and academics from the US and rest of Africa will share their experiences.
The three-day long conference will be in Washington DC. It is scheduled to be held from April 9 to 11, 2010. We are expecting it to be the biggest conference that has ever been organized to exclusively focus on Ethiopia within the context of the Horn of Africa.
The State of Governance in Ethiopia:
Past and present elections, post election scenarios; the state of governance, the state of human rights, freedom of the press, ethnic relations in today’s Ethiopia; the quest for a lasting democracy and good governance, etc.;
The role of civil societies, independent judiciary, independent security, freedom of the press in democratizing Ethiopia, etc.;
The State of the Ethiopian Economy:
Poverty, dependence, debt and foreign investment; the role of the TPLF as a Business Empire and a political party; economic inequality and the lack of equitable and sustainable development ; opaque land grab deals with foreign companies and implications for food self –sufficiency , national security and the environment; etc;
Peace and Security Challenges and Prospects in the Horn Africa:
Mr. Meles Zenawi’s policies in the region, the policies of foreign powers in the Horn of Africa, border issues; Prospects and Solutions for the Future of Ethio-Eritrea relations;
The threat of terrorism in the region; absence of good governance, ethnic politics, environmental degradation, climate change, consequences of being landlocked, etc. as causes for interstate and intrastate conflicts, instability, and insecurity in the Horn of Africa sub-region; Conflict prevention and resolution.
The papers must be short and presentable in 20 minutes or less. They must also be in either Amharic or English. Other Horn of Africa indigenous languages are acceptable provided there is translation and an interpreter is available at the cost of the presenter. Tables and annexes must be kept to the minimum.
This is an independent forum that does not advocate the political view of any single party or organization. Papers should be sent to the e-mail address below by March 26, 2010. The organizing committee calls upon all concerned to support and attend this historic conference.
On Januar 13, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister [genocidal dictator] Meles Zenawi inaugurated the Gilgel Gibe 2 scheme, the country’s biggest hydropower project. “It is possible to speed up development without polluting the environment,” Zenawi proudly declared as he cut the ceremonial ribbon. Yet this was wishful thinking.
Due to shoddy preparation, the project had already been delayed by more than two years. And less than two weeks after the inauguration, the project’s core component, a 26 kilometer-long tunnel, collapsed partly. Power generation had to be stopped for several months. Ethiopia’s hydro sector demonstrates that there are not shortcuts to sound infrastructure development. Cutting corners does not “speed up development,” but produces costly mistakes.
Gilgel Gibe 2 has a price tag of 374 million Euros and a capacity of 420 megawatts. The project works without a reservoir, but channels the water discharged from the Gilgel Gibe 1 Dam through a long tunnel and a steep drop directly to the valley of the Omo River. The undertaking was plagued by shoddy management from the beginning. In violation of Ethiopian law, the government negotiated the project contract with the Italian construction company Salini without competitive bidding. No-bid contracts for public works projects are a big red flag of corruption. The Gilgel Gibe deal was awarded without a feasibility study, and construction started without the legally required environmental permit.
In violation of Italian law and against the recommendation of its own evaluators, Italy’s Ministry of Development Cooperation awarded 220 million Euros of aid money for Salini’s no-bid contract. Gilgel Gibe 2 was “the biggest development fund released to a single project in the history of the Italian Cooperation,” the Ministry says proudly. The European Investment Bank, which is notoriously weak in appraising power projects, contributed another 50 million Euros, and the Ethiopian government funded the remaining 104 million Euros.
Gilgel Gibe 2 was supposed to be completed in Dec. 2007. Yet the poor preparation soon took its toll. Deficient geological studies had overlooked sandy soils and aquifers in the rock. The tunnel boring equipment got stuck in the mud, and the engineers had to redesign the tunnel’s path. As we heard, the aqueduct collapsed only 12 days after its inauguration, nine kilometers inside the mountain.
Who pays the price for such development failures? The dubiously negotiated contract for Gilgel Gibe 2 exempts Salini from geological risks, so the Ethiopian electricity consumers and tax payers ended up paying for the cost-overruns. Salini will certainly try to shift the blame for the tunnel collapse to Ethiopia once again. In the meantime, the country’s poor remain without electricity, and the environment gets spoilt for nothing.
Italy’s Campagna per la Riforma della Banca Mondiale has documented the numerous legal problems and shortcuts of the Gilgel Gibe 2 project in detail. The Campagna’s Caterina Amicucci comments that aid projects like Gilgel Gibe 2 “not so much address a country’s urgent development needs, but subsidizes a major Italian company.” The Campagna and International Rivers have asked that the bill for the latest disaster be paid by Salini and not Ethiopia’s taxpayers.
Gilgel Gibe 2’s dodgy deal is the rule, not the exception in Ethiopia’s hydropower sector. The contract for the slightly smaller Tekeze Dam was awarded in 2002, and power generation was supposed to start in 2007. Yet in this case, the ground on which the dam was being built was too weak — a fact which a proper feasibility study would have found in advance. Landslides caused further delays, and the project was commissioned two years late in 2009.
The story doesn’t end with Gilgel Gibe 2 and Tekeze. In July 2006, the government awarded a $2.1 billion contract for the Gibe 3 Dam — its biggest infrastructure project ever — to Salini through direct negotiations. Again there was no competitive bidding. Again project construction started without an Environmental Impact Assessment and an Economic, Financial and Technical Assessment. If built, the Gibe 3 Dam will devastate the fragile ecosystems of the Lower Omo Valley and Lake Turkana, on which 500,000 poor farmers, herders and fisherfolk rely for their livelihoods. Even though the project violates Ethiopian law and their own safeguard policies, the African Development Bank and the World Bank are currently considering support for the project.
Will the collapse of the Gilgel Gibe 2 be a wake-up call for the World Bank and the African Development Bank? Latest news indicates that the financiers, who refused to get involved in Gilgel Gibe 2, may yet shy away from the dodgy Gibe 3 deal. They know that their credibility is on the line.
