What a Legacy!
By G.E. Gorfu
August 1991
The Shoan hegemony has now ended after almost a century of dominance in Ethiopia. Menelik II, who took over the supremacy from the Tigrean emperor, Yohannes IV, did it not by force, as is the case in most traditional power transfers in Ethiopia, but by cunning and guile. Menelik had refused to pay tribute to the Tigrean emperor, clearly defying him and implying he was as legitimate a contender for the crown as Yohannes. But when Yohannes gathered his forces and marched into Showa, Menelik capitulated. He begged for mercy, falling low under the Emperor’s feet. They made a peace treaty with the traditional signature and seal, the arranged marriage between the son of Yohannes and the daughter of Menelik, Zewditu.
Menelik, however, was only biding his time and waiting on the wings. When emperor Yohannes fell in battle (some say by an assassin’s bullet on the express orders of Menelik) no one could challenge the Showan king, and was crowned Emperor. Thus began the Showan Dynasty that ended with the overthrow of Haile Selassie I. But the Showan hegemony continued on for another sixteen years until the shameful flight of Mengistu Hailemariam and crumbling of the Derg.
Now it is only reasonable to ask, what legacy, if any, did the Showan hegemony leave behind? Before Menelik II there was no distinction between Tigray and Eritrea, leave alone a demarcated border. The whole northern Eritrea, beyond the Aloe Waha river, was known as the Tigray- Tigrigni. Indeed, Ras Alula, foremost general of Yohannes, was the sole ruler of the Bahir Negash. Further, it was Alula who first established the city of Asmara as a stopping place for traders from Massawa to the hinterland. On several occasions, Alula had beaten off invading Turks, Egyptian led Sudanese Mahdi forces, as well as the Italians at Dogali, making it clear that the land by the sea belonged to Ethiopia. The Italians never had any claim on Eritrea until Menelik voluntarily traded it in exchange for arms. Further, it is difficult to understand why Menelik had to resort to such a dire measure after having soundly defeating the Italians at Adowa. Menelik could have used captured war prisoners (e.g. General Albertoni) for that purpose. But it was the deliberate act of Menelik which caused that first split. Only since that time has the Mereb river been seen as a, so called, “natural” border between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
Menelik II, though a very cautious king, had no modern outlook, and apart from laying some basic infrastructure in the land, left Ethiopia as underdeveloped as he found it. His greatest crime, that of selling a part of Ethiopia in exchange for arms, has caused much bloodshed and misery in the country for the last 30 years.
After Menelik II came a time of turmoil as his hand picked successor, Eyassu, was crowned. Many that did not like him personally or had nothing to gain by his stay, opposed him, saying he had abandoned the faith and turned a Moslem. In the mean time, the cunning Teferi was weaving and scheming an uprising, and finally a war, to overthrow Eyassu. That was the infamous Segele where Eyassu was defeated and captured. After Eyassu, Zewditu, the daughter of Menelik and a one time wife of the son of Yohannes, was crowned Empress with Ras Teferi as Prince Regent and successor. This was regarded as legitimate since she did not have any children to succeed her. Ras Teferi was the real power behind her throne, and, in fact, used her as a front to pave his own way to the crown. On her death (some say killed by the intrigues of Teferi) he was crowned Emperor Haile Selassie I.
Haile Selassie I was the best king Ethiopia had for the last century. He ruled the nation for half a century, interrupted only by the five years of Italian occupation. What ever could be regarded as modern in the country is a direct or indirect work of this emperor: the schools, the hospitals, the universities, the military, the navy, the air force, the air lines. His zenith of achievement, that of reuniting Eritrea to the mother land by pure diplomacy, turned out to be a hot bed of trouble.
After him came the Derg. A bunch of military up starts, no better than bandits, led by the arch villain, Mengistu Hailemariam, who gave pretenses of a nationalistic leader. The era of the Derg will have to be regarded as one of the worst in the history of Ethiopia, on the same scale as the periods of Yehudit (Gudit), Ahmed Gragne and Tewodros in atrocity.
In keeping with the Showan tradition of bartering “the family heir loom” for a short fall profit, Mengistu sold fellow Ethiopians for cash – the Fallashas to Israel. Mengistu has reportedly gained millions of dollars as a fee. This is worse than “blood price.” It has all the hallmarks of neo-slave trade, and it is simply ugly. Demanding and receiving money, above and beyond regular visa processing fee, is simply untenable.
Ethiopia paid, and is still paying, a very heavy price for the mistakes of Menelik II in selling Eritrea to the Italians. What price will future Ethiopians pay for the selling for cash of their own brothers? Only history will tell.
______________________________________
This is an abriged version of a longer article sent to other publications. G. E. Gorfu, who resides in Los Angeles, is a contributing editor of ER.
A news and opinion journal on Ethiopia