President George Bush on November 5 recognized Dr. Mekonnen Meshesha of Boston, Massachusetts, as “The 606th Daily Point of Light” for the Nation. Dr. Meshesha, a native of Ethiopia, helps to resettle and support African refugees in his community.
Dr. …
Amidst prayers, and religious ceremony, Mo Anbessa, Ethiopians for Constitutional Monarchy, held its first public meeting in Addis Ababa on November 18 at the former Haile Selassie I Theater (renamed National Theater by the Derg). The playing of the old …
The Eritrean People Liberation Front (EPLF) is actively seeking diplomatic recognition. It also made it clear by preventing the German Ambassador to Ethiopian from visiting Asmara that it wants foreign relations directly and not through embassies in Addis Ababa.
The …
The EPLF has systematically stripped Eritrea of any trace of the former regime. The battlefields around Dekemhare, Ghinda and Keren have been meticulously cleaned of debris. The word `Ethiopia’ has been effaced from every public building. Ethiopian Airlines, whose daily …
Pawlos Nio Nio is receiving Medical treatment in Germany after he was diagnosed with Prosta Carcinoma, a disease curable with medication.
Retired from his 32-year career, Ato Pawlos enjoys an active life writing and researching historical books.
After having a …
Thousands of people carrying banners and placards in Amharic, Oromigna, Tigrinya, English, and Arabic demonstrated in Addis Ababa Meskal Square to give moral support to EPRDF and its government’s Charter in early November.
Mulualem Abebe, administrator of Addis Ababa and …
Disarming a section of the population, while leaving others untouched has proved to be an invitation to disaster–sometimes of genocidal proportions. The killings and massacres that are reported to be taking place in various sections of the country, notably Dre …
Tens of thousands of tons of food for starving refugees in Ethiopia are rotting on arrival piers, the U.N. High commissioner for refugees said early in November.
The agency’s Geneva headquarters said at least 71,000 tons of food “is scattered …
If one looks for troops in their usual encampments in Addis Ababa today, one does not find them. The old 4th division military camp is empty. So are other military garrisons in the city. THE EPRDF chose to house all …
By Sophia Bekele
What are the characteristics that make one women hate another? Beauty, success, intelligence, or confidence. Generally, the appearance of `having it all’ brings out negative reactions in women who feel that they lacke these qualities. Conversely, these …
By Dr. Robert Ingram Powell
In the August 1991 issue, Tekle Menelik of San Francisco commented on my commentary, “Worthwhile Considerations For A New Government,” (July, 1991). It is not, as Mr. Menelik states, “the essential mandate of any legitimate …
By Lemma W. Senbet
After twenty years of departure, I visited my home country on a two-week trip in August. The trip was filled with excitement, sadness, and at times hopelessness. My remarks focus on my observations of the current …
By Dr. Araya D. Negash and Dr. Afrasa M. Zamanel
In his sour and vile commentary (Ethiopian Review, August 1991) projecting his parochialism and ethnocentric resonances, Ato G.E. Gorfu displayed his difficulty in distinguishing between fact and fantasy. He accused …
By Herman J. Cohen
The thirty years of civil war, including seventeen years of brutal Communist dictatorship have ended in Ethiopia. At last, Ethiopia has the opportunity to concentrate on forming a government that will enable its people to earn …
By Getachew Mekasha
It all seems unreal. Four months into the Transitional Government’s administration, Addis Ababa still remains an enigma. Apart from the removal of the disgraced top echelons of the former Derg regime, and the wholesale incarceration of the …
By Alex Shoumatoff
The following piece is taken from a lengthy article written by Alex Shoumatoff for the November 1991 issue of VANITY FAIR magazine. Mr. Shoumatoff is a visiting scholar at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Recently …
By Aleme Eshete
EPRDF’s so-called “National Conference” of July 1991, attended by hand-picked individuals who had no popular mandate, approved the separation of Eritrea from Ethiopia.
EPLF’s Secretary General Issayas Afeworki, who had attended the meeting as an observer, had …
In August, 1991, Prime Minister Tamrat Layne presented his economic proposals for public debate. The 35-page (Amharic) booklet entitled Draft Transitional Economic Policy for Ethiopia sought to comprehensively address the country’s diverse economic problems. Generally, the proposals are uninspired, timid …
By Fantu Agonafer
ETHIOPIAN REVIEW has become the voice of Ethiopians residing in North America and elsewhere. Provocative and timely ideas concerning Ethiopia’s past, present, and future are articulated.
In the last three issues of Ethiopian Review I have read …
By Paul B. Henze
A New Beginning
On May 29 Meles Zenawi telephoned me in Washington with an invitation to come to Addis Ababa to observe the transition to a new political system. With the support of RAND and the …
by Gene Sharp
FORMAL STATEMENTS
1. Public speeches
2. Letters of opposition or support
3. Declarations by organizations and institutions
4. Signed public declarations
5. Declarations of indictment and intention
6. Group or mass petitions
COMMUNICATIONS WITH A WIDER AUDIENCE…
By Alemayehu Gebre Mariam
The July Conference Objectives
Just three months ago few would have predicted the downfall of the Derg or the sneaky departure of its brutal chieftain to Zimbabwe. The suggestion that Ethiopia’s warring factions would assemble for …
By Mesrak Gessesse
Many young Ethiopian women came to the U.S. in the early 1970s. We hoped to finish college and return home. Few of us expected to be here more than eight years. Many of us were not willing …
By Tesfaye Tekle-Haimanot
I began my career in the Ethiopian government service as a Junior Secretary in the Ministry of Education. This assignment included a period of service in Emperor Haile Selassie’s Private Secretary’s Office and also in the Ministry …
By Samuel W. Yohannes
Power and Legitimacy
One of the main issues that were never addressed properly is the legitimacy of government power in Ethiopia. This article attempts to clear the confusions that have arisen around this fundamental issue throughout …
By Getachew Mekasha
These are extraordinary times for Ethiopia, and times like these need to be approached in an extraordinary way. The unceremonious departure of Mengistu Haile Mariam from Addis Ababa, while a welcome event in itself, raises all sorts …
In less than a month Mengistu HaileMariam and his Derg have been swept from the Ethiopian political landscape. Victory for the Ethiopian People’s Democratic Revolutionary Front (EPDRF) came quickly and Addis Ababa was captured with minimum resistance.
The political implications …
By Getachew Mekasha
March 1st, 1991 was the 95th Anniversary of the Battle of Adowa. In the short space available, it is impossible to do justice to Menelik II and his times. Many books and monograms have been written (mostly …
By Ephrem Aklilu
In many ways America is a nation of immigrant entrepreneurs. However, only recently have Ethiopians focused their interests in small business entrepreneurship. Being an entrepreneur helps you achieve a level of personal satisfaction you may never have …
By Chris Prouty
The demonstrators holding placards outside the Royal Court Theater in London on 16 March 1987 were made up of Ethiopians and Ras Tafarians (the sect originating in Jamaica that reveres Haile Sellasie I.) They were protesting the …
As opposition forces ringed Addis Ababa, Col. Mengistu Haile Mariam boarded an Ethiopian Airlines plane on May 22 and fled Ethiopia for a ranch in Zimbabwe. State-run radio announced Mengistu’s unceremonious departure without comment. After 14 years of iron-fisted rule, …
By Jegede Legesse Allyn
Ethiopians have many problems when they arrive in the U.S. Usually their expectations are shattered by the realities of life in the U.S. Ethiopians coming to America face the same problems that African Americans do. Wouldn’t …
By Essayias Lesanu
I was banished from home and went from fairy-tale fortune to bare and continual poverty. I had spent a decade in Germany before I came to US; and now I am earning my daily bread in pettiness. …
By Woldu Yoseph
Most people buying a home, no matter how many times they may done it, find the process of applying for a mortgage mystifying and even intimidating. Considering that most folks don’t do it that often, this is …
By Seble Teferra
It is important for Ethiopians to be informed about the current crises in Ethiopia. Unfortunately, the international press addresses most any bush war in the boondocks of the world, but rarely finds time to address the war …
By Dr. Robert Ingram Powell
Although revolutions are sometimes necessary to overcome tyranny, it is abundantly clear that the biggest product of revolutions is DEAD BODIES.
The Ethiopian Civil War, now approaching its thirtieth (30th) year, records 5 Million Human …
By Getachew Mekasha, Ph.D.
Dark Ages in Ethiopian History
The 18th century English historian, Edward Gibbon Wrote: “Encompassed on all sides by the enemies of their religion, the Aethiopians slept near a thousand years, forgetful of the world by whom …
For the past decade Western political analysts have been predicting Mengistu’s downfall. Many Ethiopians also anticipated Mengistu’s regime to come to a quick and violent end. Now, all signs point to a slow and agonizing death for Mengistu’s regime.
The …
By Getachew Mekasha
The 4 point plan calls for the following:
1. A council of elders will be elected by the people from every region and they will be authorized to appoint a trusteeship government under their control.
2. The …
By Edmond J. Keller
The war of national liberation in Eritrea has now been raging for over thirty years. What is more, the conflict could go on for another thirty years unless there are renewed, serious attempts to find a …
The Mayor of Seattle Norm Rice declared the week of June 30 – July 6 Ethiopian Week. This year 20 teams are expected to participate in the Ethiopian soccer games in Seattle. Besides the tournaments, cultural shows such as art …
This famous Ethiopian playwright, translator of several Shakespearian plays and a government official in the Ministry of Arts, was invited to Los Angeles to make a presentation in the Los Angeles Central Library on the 27th of April. He was …
The Ethiopian government is seeking a peace settlement with the opposition forces. President Mengistu is maneuvering to stave off his government’s collapse. His newly appointed prime minister is forming a cabinet with new faces, possibly including the leaders of the …