Obama declares to Africa: End tyranny, corruption (AP)

About every time Obama cited his basic argument — that democracy is about more than holding elections, that Africa resist the drug trade and enforce a rule of law — members of Parliament raucously cheered him on. Then again, this audience was friendly. When Obama left, a choir sang a song to his campaign theme of "Yes we can," a line he used himself...more..

What Obama can do for us (Guardian)

Obama would also hear that there can be no compromise on free and fair elections. In too many countries recently – including America's close allies Ethiopia, Uganda and Kenya, as well as Zimbabwe – elections have been seriously tainted, and have been followed by violence, the loss of liberties and the strengthening of state security organs. ...more...

Ghana Fixation (Abbay Media)

By Yilma Bekele.

I was listening to National Public Radio and they were reporting about President Obama’s coming visit to Ghana. Of course I turned the volume up. I did not want to miss anything. My Ghanaian cousins were delirious. The reporter was interviewing a hotel owner that has named his establishment Hotel Obama. He was describing the big portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Obama in the corridor near the special suite named for them. They even spared a wall for VP Bidden. Let us just say the Ghanaians are gloating.

May be they do have every right to gloat. It is not every day that a US president drops by Africa. And when the US President is a fellow African it makes the visit extra special. Just because they were able to hold three consecutive elections without bloodshed and turmoil do they think they are god’s gift to Africa? The fact that the visit by President Obama will give them the opportunity to showcase democracy working on the African continent is no reason to be filled with pride.

They claim this is not just a visit by Mr. Obama but an investment that will pay dividends for a long time to come. It is true that investors are going to look at Ghana in a different light. We know that the self-esteem of the Ghanaian people is entering a new phase.

I don’t mean to rain on their parade but excuse me how about us Ethiopians? Hello we are still around. Thank you very much for asking but we are not just sitting idle either. We have a few accomplishments to crow about.

First thing first where is the President flying from to visit Ghana? That is right he was attending the G8 meeting in Italy (richest industrialized countries that include USA, UK, Japan, Germany, France, Italy and Canada) Officially invited were China, Brazil, India, Mexico and South Africa. It is a very important conference. Who do you think was claiming to represent Africa? That is right it was no other than the King sorry Prime Minter of Ethiopia. Don’t ask me what Ethiopia was doing there. We were invited by no other than our friend Senor Berlusconi ok? Let us just leave it at that.

This year G8 meeting was primarily concerning the global warming trend and reduction of green house gas emissions. I know for a fact the Ghanaians are not cooperating. From what I hear they are marching fast to industrialize their country. Their power consumption is one of the highest in Africa and they are in the process of developing their offshore oil deposits. Due to their ridiculous insistence on development and raising the standard of living of their people they were not invited to the meeting. That should serve them right.

On the other hand look at Ethiopia. A true citizen of this planet. A country that should be held in high regard by humanity. We are on the forefront of those that are concerned about the fate of planet earth. With no probing by anybody our country has decreased its carbon emission by more than eighty percent. We want the world to know that electricity is something you can do with out. We have voluntarily curtailed our generating capacity. Three days a week is more than adequate.

The few industries that were generating some pollution have been idle. The net reward is less commute for our people so they spend more time with their families huddled around kerosene lamps. We have also realized savings by abolishing the Ministry of Industry. As it was it was just a drain on our budget but the new policy of no electricity has made it obsolete.

Ethiopia has also been the pioneer in population control. We have elevated the science of food shortage crisis into a higher level. The current government is building on the important far-reaching work laid by the military regime. We are happy to say that food begging has been made into an art form. In accordance with our commitment to reduce world population Ethiopia has been sacrificing between ten to fifteen million citizens yearly. We are in the process of clearing more virgin forest to use it for subsistence level farming. We assure the world that the yield is so low that it will have no impact on our goal of creating further famine.

Our education policy is the envy of the continent. The whole planet is a net beneficiary. In the 1970 we dabbled in what is referred to as the ‘red’ and ‘white’ terror. The policy was able to eliminate most of the educated community. In the last twenty years we have perfected the system. Simply put we practice what is known as the ‘educate, train and exile’ principle. To attain that goal we have exported most of our university teachers and Doctors. The government is in the process of abandoning the field of education to be filled by unscrupulous individuals and organizations with profit as the main motive. We believe an ignorant population will help us meet our self-imposed goal of one hundred percent green house gas reduction. We will also realize gains by less expenditure on munitions since an ignorant population is a docile population.

We have a lot to crow about. You don’t see us gloating about all this, may be except the folks at Aiga. You know how they are. It don’t take much to excite them. I mean they put up a computer generated freeway system on top of a picture of Addis and get super delirious. Reality challenged is their other name. It would have been a lot better if Mr. Obama would have come to Addis and experienced total darkness. No light. No TV. No Internet. No cold soda. No hot water. If he is so lucky he can also enjoy the double whammy of no electricity and no water. Give us two more months and we can foresee the possibility of triple a hit. With the country’s foreign reserve dwindling there will be no petrol for civilian use. Need I add no Automobile. In your face Ghana!

Source: Abbay Media

Human Rights Watch Objects To Ethiopia's Anti-terrorism Law (NASDAQ)

"The draft law's overly broad definition of terrorist acts could be used to prosecute peaceful political protesters and would in some circumstances impose lengthy prison terms and even the death penalty as a punishment for damaging property or disrupting public services," the statement warned....more..

New Ethiopia law may criminalise opposition - group (Reuters)

"As drafted, the law could provide a new and potent tool for suppressing political opposition and independent criticism of government policy," Human Rights Watch said in a statement. "It could turn political speech and peaceful protest into terrorist acts."...more..

Hero vs. Zero (Addisportal)

Jason McClure of Bloomberg News reported last week the capo dictator in Ethiopia had declared that “there is ‘zero’ chance that opposition leader Birtukan Mideksa will be released from prison in time to compete in the elections scheduled for next May. He also said Birtukan’s jailing is not a pretext to eliminate political opposition… The prime minister also defended local elections last year, in which opposition candidates won just three of 3.6 million seats, saying that ‘democracy is about process, it’s not about outcome…If the process is clean and you get zero, tough luck.’” (Italics added.)...more..

Analysis of Ethiopia’s Draft Anti-Terrorism Proclamation (HRW)

The draft Anti-Terrorism Proclamation expands police powers in significant ways. Despite Ethiopian constitutional protections, the police and armed forces have long been implicated in arbitrary arrest, incommunicado detention, and torture and other mistreatment of persons in custody.19 Thus, the expansion of police powers without a serious effort to improve ..more..

Ethiopia plot suspects tortured, say relatives (Reuters)

"Some of them have been tortured and are injured," one relative, who asked not to be named, said outside court. "They have been interrogated for up to nineteen hours. One man with injuries to his penis had to be treated in hospital."...more...

Echo Chamber for Dictatorship? (Ethiomedia)

By Alemayehu G. Mariam | June 15, 2009

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Fierce Urgency of Speaking Truth to Power

Are we becoming an echo chamber for the dictatorship in Ethiopia by repeating its never-ending political babble and lies?

In the high-decibel Diaspora critique of oppression, widespread human rights violations and political dysfunction in Ethiopia, I have observed in dismay some pro-democracy activists, civic leaders, bloggers and media elements parroting and, sometimes unwittingly, toeing the line ordained by the ruling dictatorship. Recently, I did a radio interview in which I was asked for my views on the “coming 2010 elections in Ethiopia,” the “new anti-terrorism law that is before the parliament,” and the “criminal charges and court case against those accused of plotting a coup”, among other things. On previous occasions, I have been asked to comment on “Ethiopia’s invasion of Somalia”, the “civic society law,” the “new press law”, and the “revocation of pardon granted to Birtukan” and other topics.

I have often found questions on such topics mildly amusing, but also deeply troubling. By discussing and commenting on such topics without contextualizing and clarifying the assumptions that underlie them, one creates the risk of confusion and confirmation of facts which do not objectively exist. Here I am concerned about the loose and uncritical use of language in political dialogue and discourse. George Orwell, the famous English author whose penetrating understanding of totalitarianism, oppression and the need for clarity in language, argued that modern political prose and speech is intended to hide the truth rather than express it; and by using buzzwords and political platitudes one’s political consciousness and understanding of reality could be badly distorted. Orwell explained, “In our time, political speech and writing are largely the defence of the indefensible. Political language...is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind…”

Guarding Against “Doublethink”, “Doublespeak” and the Case for Unmasking Dictatorship

In our time, the means of communication available far exceed any limits that can be imposed upon them by the likes of Orwell’s all powerful Big Brother. The internet makes information available instantaneously to untold millions, which makes the task and duty of telling the truth urgent and all important because of the potential impact of propagating lies on the collective psyche of the citizens who inhabit the borderless cyberspace. Those of us who communicate by using internet technology or manage it must develop an acute sensibility about our indispensable role in public truth-speaking and unmasking official falsehoods. We must guard against both “doublethink” and “doublespeak.”

In his book Nineteen Eighty-Four, Orwell wrote:

"[Doublethink is] The power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them....To tell deliberate lies while genuinely believing in them, to forget any fact that has become inconvenient, and then, when it becomes necessary again, to draw it back from oblivion for just so long as it is needed, to deny the existence of objective reality and all the while to take account of the reality which one denies — all this is indispensably necessary. Even in using the word doublethink it is necessary to exercise doublethink. For by using the word one admits that one is tampering with reality; by a fresh act of doublethink one erases this knowledge; and so on indefinitely, with the lie always one leap ahead of the truth."

The result of doublethink and doublespeak is that “war is peace, freedom is slavery ignorance is strength”; or alternatively, dictatorship is democracy; a kangaroo court is a real court of law, rigged and stolen elections are peoples’ choices; terrorizing the population is enrapturing them; and a cascade of lies is a torrent of truth.

What do I think of the “2010 elections”?

To answer this question one must deconstruct the “doublethink” that surrounds the word “elections” Are we talking about the “2010 elections” in the same sense as the “elections” of the apartheid regime in South Africa from 1948-1994? That illegal white minority regime defended its “democratic elections”. Or are we talking about elections a la Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe where opposition leaders were beaten and their followers harassed and jailed? Or elections held under the spiritual guidance of Ghaddafi’s Greenbook in which the Supreme Leader and the Revolutionary Command Council are ordained to rule forever while local congresses are elected periodically? Perhaps we could be talking about the “2010 elections” in the same sense as the 2002 Iraqi elections where Izzat Ibrahim, Vice-Chairman of Iraq's Revolutionary Command Council under the regime of Saddam Hussien, declared, “There were 11,445,638 eligible voters [in Iraq]- and every one of them voted for the president.” To talk meaningfully about elections, one must frame the question in terms of the preconditions that make possible the likelihood of free and fair elections such as the existence of competitive political parties, a functioning independent media and civil society institutions, free exercise of civil and political liberties by the people, the application of the rule of law and other similar things. An election that is not free and fair is not an election; it is a cruel fraud perpetrated on citizens. Thus, it is meaningless -- nonsense-- to talk about any kind of elections in Ethiopia. The most important opposition leader in Ethiopia, Birtukan Midesa, is jailed for life on trumped up charges, and opposition political parties suffocate under the oppressive thumbs of a brutal and maniacal dictatorship. Since the 2005 elections, we have witnessed widespread violations of human rights and unspeakable political violence. There are no independent newspapers and civic society institutions are outlawed. There are no independent institutions through which citizens can meaningfully participate in the political process or assert their rights against the state. Under these circumstances, to talk about a having elections in Ethiopia in 2010 is as meaningful as taking about a fish riding a bicycle!

What do I think of the “new anti-terrorism law”?

To answer this question, at least three logical proposition must be true: 1) There is such a thing as the rule of law in Ethiopia. 2) There is a legitimate law making body to enact laws. 3) The “anti-terrorism law” itself conforms to the “supreme law of the land” (“constitution”). Proposition one is false because there is no rule of law in Ethiopia or anything that approximates it. Because Ethiopia is ruled by a dictatorship, the arbitrary command of the dictator is “The Law”, which trumps any other law in the country. The dictator and his coterie can order the arrest, imprisonment, torture and killing of any person in the country with impunity. Following the elections of 2005, security force under the direct command and control of the leader of the dictatorship fired on unarmed protesters and killed 193 persons while wounding 763, with impunity. Proposition two is false because a rubber-stamp parliament is incapable of performing the legitimate function of legislation which requires genuine broad-based deliberation, consultation, negotiation and accommodation. Proposition three is false because the draft “anti-terrorism law” before the rubber-stamp parliament is a violation of the “constitution”. Ethiopia’s former president and parliamentarian Dr. Negasso Gidada described it as “unconstitutional” and a tool to terrorize opposition groups in the country:

The proposed bill contradicts the constitution by violating citizens’ rights to privacy… and it generally violates the rights of all peoples of Ethiopia… Such laws are manipulated to weaken political roles of opposition groups there by arresting and prosecuting them using the bill as a cover.

OFDM chairman and parliamentarian Bulcha Demeksa described the bill as a weapon designed by the ruling party not only to weaken and totally eliminate all political opponents. Ethiopian election is next year and if this law is endorsed it will definitely be very hard for opposition groups to run for election… Our campaign for election, political or other meetings will be restricted under this law as a single call from any one to the police, no matter if there is any evidence or not could be considered as terror-related activity and put us all in jail.

To talk about a “law” that is designed as a weapon of mass incarceration, persecution, oppression and suppression of the civilian population and political opposition as a legitimate law is as meaningful as talking about a fish riding a bicycle!

What do I think about “Ethiopia’s invasion of Somalia”?

The war waged in Somalia by the dictatorship is a war of aggression and illegal under international law . But it is totally wrong to characterize it as “an Ethiopian invasion of Somalia.” It is an illegal war waged in the name of Ethiopia and its people. War is a matter of the ultimate seriousness undertaken only when a nation faces grave danger and only after all peaceful and viable alternatives have been exhausted or proven to be impractical, and the prospect of success assured. In war, military action is directed against combatants, not civilians. It is illegal to launch an attack on a military objective in the knowledge that the incidental civilian injuries would be clearly excessive in relation to the anticipated military advantage.

In a televised speech, the leader of the dictatorship said, “Ethiopian defence forces were forced to enter into war to protect the sovereignty of the nation and to blunt repeated attacks by Islamic courts terrorists and anti-Ethiopian elements they are supporting. Our defence forces will leave as soon as they end their mission. We are not trying to set up a government for Somalia, nor do we have an intention to meddle in Somalia's internal affairs. We have only been forced by the circumstances.”

Of course, the only reason for the dictatorship’s intervention in Somalia was to “meddle in Somali’s internal affairs” as the dictator himself explained long after the invasion: “But on a more fundamental level it appears that this jihadist movement is hell-bent on controlling all of Somalia. That for them, the negotiations are a ploy used to facilitate their goal. They see Ethiopia as a stumbling block.” By invading, Ethiopia becomes a “stumbling block” to a negotiated settlement in Somalia – a classic Orwellian doublethink and doubletalk. The fact of the matter is that no substantial evidence exists to show “attacks by Islamic courts terrorists” against Ethiopia. The “mission” that began in December 2006 is still ongoing, supposedly after an official “withdrawal”. The number of Somali civilian deaths to date exceeds 20,000, and displaced persons exceeds one million. War crimes charges in Somalia have been documented by international human rights organizations.

Equally important, a legitimate war waged by a nation brings with it accountability because of the enormous sacrifices in lives and resources. The people in whose name the war is waged are entitled to know what happened and hold those who prosecuted the war accountable: Did the leaders lie to them in marching to war? Did the leaders engage in illegal activities? How many soldiers died in the war? How many were wounded? How many civilians? How many of the “enemy” killed and wounded? How many displaced? How much money was spent on the war? If such accounting can not be made, ipso facto, it was and is a private war waged in the name of Ethiopia and its people.

What do I think of Birtukan’s re-arrest and imprisonment by the “government for violation of the terms of her pardon”?

According to the so-called Justice Ministry, Birtukan was imprisoned to serve out a life term because she denied receiving a “government granted pardon… and she failed to annul her denial, though she was repeatedly requested to do so.” This claim is patently false as Birtukan has attested in her widely disseminated public statement Q’ale (“My Testimony”): “As one of the prisoners, I had indeed signed the document, a fact which I have never denied.” The truth of the matter is, to paraphrase the dictator himself, that the ruling dictators are “hell-bent on controlling all of Ethiopia” come hell or high water. Birtukan was re-imprisoned not because she “denied” a “pardon” but because she posed a singular threat to the dictatorship. Here is a young woman who comes from a modest background irrevocably committed to peaceful change and dialogue. She has never advocated violence or armed struggle. There is no reason whatsoever to jail her. But the law of unintended consequences has intervened on her behalf. Birtukan today is the brightest point of light under the blue Ethiopian skies capable of leading the people out of the darkness of repression into the sunlight of freedom. She is a symbol of heroic and peaceful resistance in the face of oppression, and an outstanding example of the “power of the powerless". Like Aung San Suu Kyi, Birtukan believes: “‘Human rights’ means every human being should be able to live as free and respected members of society. But we are not free in our own country. We are very much prisoners in our own country. Prisoners of [a regime] which decides whether we have the right to freedom or the right even to live. Many of our people have been arrested without trial or without a fair trial, and many of them have been condemned to long years in prison.” Like Aung San Suu Kyi, like Birtukan!

What do I think about “the charges brought against the persons accused of plotting a coup”?

By official accounts the accused army officers are “desperadoes” whose plan was to “assassinate high ranking government officials and destroying telecommunication services and electricity utilities and create conducive conditions for large scale chaos and havoc.” But even assuming the “charges” were valid, is there a reasonable way to defend against them? To answer this question in the affirmative is to accept the truth of the following assumptions: 1)Political crimes are charged by prosecutorial professionals who make decisions only on the evidence of wrongdoing before them, and without political pressure, manipulation or interference. 2) There is a judicial system that functions independently of the dictatorship. 3) There are independent professional judges who perform their duties not only without political interference but also in active resistance to it and with unshakeable fidelity to the principle of the rule of law.

None of the three propositions is true with the judicial and prosecutorial systems in Ethiopia. As Human Rights Watch concluded in its 2007 report, “In high-profile cases, courts show little independence or concern for defendants' procedural rights… The judiciary often acts only after unreasonably long delays, sometimes because of the courts' workloads, more often because of excessive judicial deference to bad faith prosecution requests for time to search for evidence of a crime.” Dictatorships and judicial independence are like oil and vinegar. They do not mix. As vinegar is mostly water, dictatorship is mostly about the rule of one man. As oils are "hydrophobic" (chemically repel water), truly independent courts are "tyranno-phobic". They repel arbitrary and dictatorial rule. Thus, to talk about justice, due process and the rights of the accused in a dictatorship is as meaningful as talking about a fish riding a bicycle.

Calling a Spade a Spade

Ethiopians can never be reconciled to a dictatorship that maintains itself by brute force alone. In a country where there are no expressive freedoms but a flourishing culture of corruption and impunity, where the integrity of intellectuals is squeezed out by intimidation, threats and coercion and where universities are turned into temples of darkness, it is important for those in the Diaspora to take every opportunity to unmask the crimes, wrongdoings and brutality of the dictatorship. There is nothing more they wish than to have us become their unwitting cheerleaders talking about their bogus elections, laws and trials. But we should always guard against their ceaseless and slick efforts to make us echo chambers for their rackets. Our job is to call a spade a spade and tell it like it is. Analyze, scrutinize, criticize and publicize the crimes of dictatorship!

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The writer, Alemayehu G. Mariam, is a professor of political science at California State University, San Bernardino, and an attorney based in Los Angeles. For comments, he can be reached at almariam@gmail.com

Source: ETHIOMEDIA

Ethiopia charges 32 with plot to topple government (Reuters)

Security forces killed about 200 protesters after elections in 2005 when the opposition disputed the government's victory.

Berhanu was elected mayor of the capital Addis Ababa in that ballot, but was arrested and accused of orchestrating the street protests. He was pardoned and released in 2007...more...

Inside the barley republic (Ethiomedia)

By Alemayehu G. Mariam | June 8, 2009

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Our (home)land on firesale

A while back, the capo di tutti capi (the “boss of bosses”) of the dictatorship in Ethiopia rebuked Congressman Donald Payne for pushing H.R. 2003 (“Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act”). He quipped with his signature sarcasm, “Ethiopia, this government and this country, are incapable, unwilling and unable to be run like some kind of banana republic from Capitol Hill or anywhere else.” That is not exactly true today. The evidence shows that “Ethiopia and this government” are “capable, willing and able to be run like some barley republic from Jeddah or any of the other Gulf states.” It has been widely reported that Saudi and other Gulf “investors” have spent over two hundred million U.S. dollars to buy (“lease”) fertile Ethiopian farmland free of local taxes and other requirements to supply themselves with a cornucopia of agricultural commodities which, oddly enough, they could purchase on the world market at competitive prices. It seems the desert sand has trumped the fertile land in the barley republic.

There are many bewildering things about this sordid multimillion dollar land deal. First, as the dictators are orchestrating a fire sale of chunks of the country to foreign governments fronting as “investors” and lining their pockets, nearly a quarter of the Ethiopian population is teetering on the brink of famine. The rest of the population is menaced daily by malnutrition and hunger. Second, the dictators are bending over backwards to insure food security in the “investor” countries while Ethiopia’s food insecurity is causing frantic alarm in the rest of the world. For the past year, the UN Food and Agricultural Organization has been calling for immediate steps to be taken to protect the poor in Ethiopia from skyrocketing food prices. Just last week the U.N World Food Program issued an advisory estimating that the national relief program for Ethiopia will fall nearly 178,000 metric tons short of assessed needs for the second quarter of the year. Third, to add insult to injury, the same dictatorship, after engorging itself with the proceeds of the ill-gotten loot from the so-called “investors”, will shamelessly stand at the gates of the World Food Programme, the U.S. Government, the European Union and other donor countries panhandling for food aid. Such is the brazen audacity of dictatorship!

Everyone in the world is perplexed by this new mercenary land hustle taking place in Ethiopia. The Economist magazine, that unwavering bastion of conservatism and defender of free trade and globalization, wondered in total bafflement: “… Are these ‘land grabs’, ‘neocolonialist’ rip-offs, different from 19th-century colonialism only because they involve different land-grabbers and enrich different local elites?” Even the left-leaning Independent newspaper expressed righteous indignation: “Over the past few months, Saudi Arabian investors have paid $100m for an Ethiopian farm where they hope to grow wheat and barley, adding to the millions of acres they already own in the war-ravaged country… Neo-colonialists are buying up agricultural land in Africa and local farmers could be crushed unless there are international rules to protect them…” Agricultural experts worldwide have also chimed in to condemn such one-sided secret deals arguing that the deals ultimately serve to water the deep roots of the culture of corruption among Africa’s kleptocratic dictatorships than materially contributing to its development.

Anatomy of the Sale of Ethiopia

Time was when foreign private companies bought land from private owners in the developing countries and created large scale plantations. In the “banana republics” of Central America, multinational corporations exploited a large, impoverished peasant class by creating a dependent and subservient local oligarchy. American fruit companies eventually became powerful enough to dominate the entire export sector of these countries and own and operate key infrastructures such as railways, mining and ports.

What we are witnessing in countries like Ethiopia today is an extreme form of the banana republic syndrome. In the barley republic, the aim is to create a foreign enclave economy (completely and totally isolated and insulated from the local economy) in the host country with the singular purpose of extracting agricultural commodities for export back to the “investor” countries. The farms to be established on the acquired lands are expected to be high technology driven using high yield seeds, modern pesticides and other production systems. The “agricultural clusters” that are expected to be developed will have little connection to the host country’s broader economy. They will contribute very little to the development of a skilled work force at the local level, and local workers will be relegated to menial jobs that require minimal training. There will be few environmental standards for these “investors” to uphold, and there is no way to monitor the damage they are likely to cause to the local ecosystem. In short, in the enclave economy of the barley republic, there will be little “spillover” or “ripple” effect on the local or national economy; and there will be miniscule net gains to the host countries from the “investments” (except the millions of dollars that will line the pockets of the corrupt dictators). For Ethiopia’s wretched poor and hungry, it will all be a surreal experience: They will be standing by the dusty roadsides watching helplessly as the endless caravan of diesel trucks shuttle back and forth delivering the harvest of barley, wheat and rice to port for shipment.

The dictators in Ethiopia naturally want to conceal the corrupt and mercenary nature of the land deals. They say they are just attracting foreign direct investment which will result in a stable source of capital, boost national income and local employment while reducing the country’s debt load. Is that even theoretically possible in an enclave economy?

According to a study prepared by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), it is obvious that the whole land deal is an elaborate swindle, a scam, a shell game¹:

In Ethiopia, for example, enquiries at the state-level Oromia investment promotion agency found evidence of some 22 proposed or actual land deals, of which 9 were over 1,000 ha, in addition to the 148 recorded at the national investment promotion agency. It is possible to speculate that state-level agencies in other Ethiopian states may also have records of additional projects, and that some land acquisitions may not have been recorded at all….For example, in Ethiopia information about the land size of many deals proposed or concluded in 2008 was missing….

In another instance, “an investment by German company Flora EcoPower in Ethiopia was reported to involve 13,000 ha (hectare), while it is recorded at the Ethiopian investment promotion agency for 3,800 ha only.”

To avoid public scrutiny and ward off local opposition, the dictatorship intentionally and fraudulently misclassifies all land sold to foreign governments as vacant “wastelands” implying that the land is unused, unoccupied by anyone or just wilderness. In fact, the so-called “wasteland” often supports herders who graze animals on it and people who have farmed it for generations. The dictators ignore the customary rights of the local people to satisfy their voracious appetite for foreign-investment deals to line their pockets. There is also evidence to suggest that smallholders have had their arms twisted to sign away their rights for insignificant compensation. According to the above-referenced study:

In Ethiopia, for example, all land allocations recorded at the national investment promotion agency are classified as involving “wastelands” with no pre-existing users. But this formal classification is open to question, in a country with a population of about 75 million, the vast majority of whom live in rural areas. Evidence collected by in-country research suggests that at least some of the lands allocated to investors in the Benishangul Gumuz and Afar regions were previously being used for shifting cultivation and dry-season grazing, respectively.

Although the dictatorship claims that the so-called land leases are determined by the regional governments, the evidence proves conclusively otherwise:

Most documented land leases are granted by the government. This includes 100% of documented cases in Ethiopia.

The dictatorship’s claim that the land deals bring prosperity and jobs to the local economy is simply false. The evidence actually shows that the “investors” are ripping off the country blind in broad daylight:

In-country research confirms the general impression that land fees are low in monetary terms and an unimportant component of negotiations. In Ethiopia, rent was required in four deals out of the six projects examined in greater detail, with prices ranging from US$ 3 to 10 per hectare per year. These fees are low in the international context, though land rentals are going up (in the Ethiopian state of Oromia, for instance). Several deals – including the contract from the Benishangul Gumuz Regional State, examined by this study – involve five-year exemptions from land fees (article 4(a) of the Benishangul Gumuz contract)…. In Ethiopia, for example, profit tax (estimated at US$ 20 per hectare per year) is usually exempted for a period of 5 years; for a total of 602,760 ha allocated to documented projects, it is estimated that the exemption of this tax for each project over 5 years amounts to US$ 60,276,000.42.

This is the deal that made it possible for the king of Saudi Arabia a few months ago to celebrate the delivery of the first fresh harvest from his lush farms in Ethiopia.

The Scramble for Africa Redux?

It is a historical irony that Ethiopia should escape and successfully defend its sovereignty and independence during the European scramble for Africa in the late 19th Century and again in the last century against Italian colonial aggression only to become the first casualty of a newfangled neocolonial agricultural scramble. The historical parallels are obvious: In its early stages, European imperialism planted its economic tentacles in Africa by sending out its explorers, adventurers and merchantmen. The gunboats and armies showed up later. In the kinder and gentler world of petrodollar neocolonialism, there is no need for gunboats. The weapon of choice is a slush fund of petrodollars and so-called sovereign-wealth funds directed at corrupt and thieving African dictators and politicians who are able, willing and ready to sell out chunks of their countries for pennies. In this brave new world of petrodollar neocolonialism, neither the corrupt dictators nor their bankrollers care about the consequences of their deals on the local population, the displacement of local farmers and herders or adverse environmental impacts.

Last May, Tekleab Kebede, “Ethiopian Consul General” in Saudi Arabia, sought to bless the Saudi land deal by saying: “After all, the relations between Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia are longstanding. There is geographical proximity and the religious values and linguistic affinities that we share have brought the two countries close and strengthened the bonds. So, Saudis should have no hesitation in turning toward Ethiopia for investment.” That may be polite diplomatic palaver, but historically it is untrue. It is a fact that Saudi Arabia provided substantial material and moral support to secessionist elements in Ethiopia in the not too distant past. It also supported Somalia diplomatically and materially in its invasion of Ethiopian territory in 1977. Ethiopia’s supposed “special relationship” with Israel and other matters of religion have been a cause of ongoing irritation for the Saudis in their relations with Ethiopia.

The simple point is that this runaway land deal with the Saudis and the Gulf states needs to be scrutinized carefully for its broader implications. Is this ever expanding land deal a Trojan Horse used by the Saudis and the Gulf Shiekdoms for a broader thrust into Ethiopia? Are these “investments” the first elements of a grand strategic calculus to penetrate and dominate the Ethiopian economy and society? Or is it merely a benign search for land to raise crops, which by all accounts can be purchased on the world market at very competitive prices? Here the experience of the banana republics is instructive. The multilateral companies that invested in Central America, the Caribbean, Colombia, Ecuador and other places initially produced and exported bananas, pine apples, coffee and other commodities. Over a period of time, through their control of the large plantations, they managed to place a chokehold on the local oligarchies who depended almost entirely on the cash flow provided by the multinational agri-businesses. As history shows, it did not take long for the foreign “investors” to own and operate the rail, trucking, ports and banking systems in those countries. History also shows that the social upheavals in the banana republics which occurred in reaction to the oppressive alliance of the oligarchies and multinationals resulted in atrocities that lasted for decades in those countries.

Is this the bright future that awaits the brave Barley Republic of Ethiopia?

Resistance to Land Swindles

Not everyone is taking it lying down. Recently, the government in Madagascar was overthrown in large part because of public anger over a secret deal by the deposed ruler to hand over to a South Korean company one million hectares of Madagascar to grow maize. Marc Ravalomanana, the deposed president, initially denied the existence of a secret land deal. He and his cronies were expecting to pocket millions of dollars from the deal until the coup disrupted their plans. The interim president Andry Rajoelina rejected the deal declaring that, "In the Constitution, it is stipulated that Madagascar's land is neither for sale nor for rent, so the agreement with Daewoo is cancelled.” Interestingly, the South Korean company had “promised to spend $6-billion in the next 20 to 25 years to help build infrastructure such as roads, railways, a port and schools in exchange for developing huge swathes of arable land in Madagascar.” The Maize Republic of Madagascar was not to be! (It is worth noting that Madagascar is ranked 143/176 on the U.N. Development Program Human Development Index (which measures life expectancy, literacy, education, GDP per capita in 176 countries in the world). Ethiopia ranks 169/176. Local opposition is brewing in Zambia against a proposed Chinese plan to acquire 2million hectares for a biofuels project. Kenyan farmers are demanding to produce the commodities themselves and export it to Quatar instead of working as menial farmhands.

The Real Questions

There are many basic questions that need to be answered: Should a country teetering on the verge of famine and starvation engage in large-scale shady land leads in secrecy and without public discussion? Has Ethiopia become a Crookdom where a small oligarchy of crooks is free to do whatever it wants? Do these land agreements have any validity under international law? What safeguards are in place for the environment and the rights of the indigenous people?

There are some economists who suggest that a country like Ethiopia that is perpetually afflicted by food shortages will eventually explode as in the case of Madagascar. Others plead for implementation of interim measures to protect the local people and ecosystem by some international standards or code of conduct. Still others argue that technologically sophisticated large farms could never work in Africa. They say history shows that such efforts “have often ended with abandoned machinery rusting in the returning bush.” In the long run, it is said, peasant farming will trump advanced commercial farming. What is clear in Ethiopia’s case is that none of these land deals will bring about development of infrastructure or have any significant “spillover effect.” There will be few, if any, schools, hospitals, roads, bridges, rail lines or other lasting structures built as a result of these deals. The only legacy will be more misery and exploitation for the local people and environmental damage. As Ruth Meinzen-Dick, a senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute warned: "The majority of agricultural land in Africa is not titled. If these rights are not respected in these transactions, the livelihoods of millions of people will be put at risk." In the end, in the petrodollar land swindle, Ethiopians will be stuck holding the bag. An empty bag!

Source: Ethiomedia
¹ http://wwww.reliefweb.int/rw/RWFiles2009.nsf/FilesByRWDocUnidFilename/KHII-7SE4R4-full_report.pdf/$File/full_report.pdf Read See pp. 40, 41, 62, 78, 79, 80

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The writer, Alemayehu G. Mariam, is a professor of political science at California State University, San Bernardino, and an attorney based in Los Angeles. For comments, he can be reached at almariam@gmail.com

President Obama goes to Africa (Addis Voice)

By Yilma Bekele ǀ May 30, 2009

President Obama is traveling to Africa. After attending the G8 meeting in Moscow the President is making a quick one-night stop in Accra, Ghana on July 10. This is not the first visit by a sitting US president to our continent. But this trip is very different. One of our own is coming to Africa as the leader of the most powerful nation.

As an African I am very happy. Mr. Obama is a very busy person. He is dealing with the worst economic downturn in his nations history, nuclear proliferation issues in Korea and Iran, the ongoing problem in the Middle East and the legacy of two wars he inherited from his predecessor. The fact that he found the time to stop over in Africa says a lot about where his heart is.

Again I am delighted he is honoring our continent with his presence. The choice of Ghana as his first stop to Africa says a lot about the President. Out of forty-seven countries in Africa why Ghana? Is it because it is the biggest, most populous, the richest, the most powerful, or the oldest? Why Ghana is a good question.

He could have traveled to Kenya the home of his father. He could have stopped in Ethiopia, the seat of African Union. Nigeria as the most populous black nation would have been good too. But President Obama chose Ghana.

He chose Ghana because according to a White House source “Ghana is an outpost of democracy and civil society in a volatile region." Very simple and straight forward statement. In other words Ghana has a legitmate governement chosen by the people. Ghana is a beacon of bright light in our dark continent. President Obama is making a powerful statement regarding democracy, human right and the rule of law.

As an Ethiopian I was filled with conflicting emotions regarding his visit. I wanted him to come to Ethiopia. I know it is being selfish but it is the truth. As the founder of Africa Union and the seat of the Organization, Ethiopia should have been the logical venue for the President to share his vision for Africa.

We deserve such an honor because we are one of the oldest nation state in the world. Our country was in the forefront of the struggle of the African people to gain their freedom. Most liberation movements in Africa are indebted to Ethiopia for the generous help offered by our government and people. We helped in training freedom fighters, giving safe haven to those prosecuted for their beliefs and urged the UN to bring the cause of freedom to the forefront.

On the other hand I am very glad President Obama chose Ghana instead of my homeland. It is the right thing to do. To be frank I would have been disappointed if he had come to Addis. I would have considered him an enabler (http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&q=yilma+bekele+enabler&btnG=Search&aq=f&oq=&aqi=)
It would be looked at as coddling a military junta masquerading as an elected government. The lawlessness nature of the Ethiopian government has been recorded by reports such as US Department of State, Amnesty international, Human Rights Watch, Doctors without Frontiers, International Federation of Journalists, Education International and the most compelling witness of all; you the Ethiopian in the Diaspora.

You know how many rely on you to survive. You are aware of those being washed in the shores of Yemen. It is an open secret the abuse of young Ethiopian girls in the Middle East. You have heard of those who travel thru territories escorted into unknown lands, a few left behind during this dangerous trek to die alone while others are Caught and put in jail for trespassing. You are the best witness if you want to be.

Nairobi's Daily Nation wrote "in skipping Kenya, the first African American president is signaling that he puts political values over ancestral allegiances." I agree. Ethnic politics is very backward and destructive. It should be a thing of the past. When it comes to Ethiopia Mr. Obama was avoiding two negative characters he abhors. He is definitely not familiar with tribalism. Tribalism is primitive and so yesterday. Democracy and the rule of law is what he promised to uphold and it will be contrary to his principles to bestow such honor on a tyrannical regime as Ethiopia. Ghana is a perfect choice to enable positive character. It is a perfect reward to the achievement of our Ghanaian cousins.

I am sure his confidential report on Ethiopia includes such facts as:
Government ownership of all land.
Government monopoly of news media such as TV, Radio and Newspaper.
Government ownership of communication media such as telephone, both land line and mobile and Internet service.
Government practice of blocking web sites.
Single ethnic group control of commercial enterprises such as insurance, transportation, construction, fertilizer, seeds and now coffee.
Single ethnic group control of the military and internal security.
The ruling party’s practice of creating clone parties and trade organizations.
The ruling party’s use of death squads to get rid of opposition.
Government act of exiling opponents by intimidation and physical violence.

All nations with embassies in Ethiopia are perfectly aware of the nature of the government. I am sure their reports back to their government is full of revelations of the atrocities committed by the regime. They all have their own interest when they assesss their relationship with our country. We are the only ones that can change the equation.

I am sure it is early enough to catch President Obama during his next visit to Africa. I am hopeful he will be met by a nation united under the umbrella of democracy and committed to the rule of law. Ethiopia will take its righteous place as the leader of Africa. It is up to each one of us to get involved and help steer the freedom train on the right track. Mr. Obama made a powerful statement. Are you going to sit there and talk about it or lift a finger and be part of the solution? Source: Addis Voice

Ethiopia's new climate of fear (The guardian)

...But for all this generosity, an authoritarian government rules Ethiopia with virtual impunity. Prime minister Meles Zenawi, in power for 18 years, has crushed the opposition. His ruling party dominates public institutions. Worse still, in a vast and predominantly rural country, the prime minister's underlings control broadcasting and maintain a choke-hold on other media.
Four years ago this month, Zenawi's Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Party (EPRDF) suffered its worst loss at the polls since the former guerrilla overthrew a ruthless, Soviet-backed regime in 1991. Rather than accept its losses, the EPRDF-run government responded with a brutal crackdown, claiming outright victory and accusing the opposition of trying to stage an insurrection...more...

Ethiopia: Government must reveal fate of political prisoners (Reporter Freelance)

“Several may have been detained solely for their family ties to men who have expressed political opposition to the government. They should be released immediately. Any others should be charged with a recognizable criminal offense or released. All should have immediate access to their families, lawyers and any medical care they may require.”...more..

Ethiopia asked to name 'plotters' (BBC)

..The group says more people have been detained since, including an 80-year-old man in need of medical attention...more..

What is the truth behind Ethiopia’s “coup” plot? (Reuters)

he story broke two weeks ago when the government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said 40 men had been arrested for planning a coup after police found guns, bombs and “written strategies” at their homes. But a few days later the government communication office was asking journalists not to use the word coup anymore. The “desperados”, they said, had planned to “overthrow” the government by using assassinations and bombings to create enough chaos to get supporters on the streets to topple the government...more..

Potential For Violence Shadows Ethiopia's 2010 Election (VOA)

Ethiopia's next national election is a year away, but tensions are already increasing. At least two opposition politicians have recently been jailed, both possibly facing life in prison, and security forces have arrested dozens of others, accusing them of plotting against the government. Both government and opposition leaders are expressing concern about the potential for election-related violence...more..

Terminal Paranoia! A Plot Here! A Plot There! A Plot Everywhere! (Nazret)

...We must understand that removing a brutal dictator or a one-party dictatorship does not a stable democracy make. A study of the history of the rise and fall of dictatorships from Albania to Zimbabwe over the past two decades shows the immense difficulties in institutionalizing democracy in the aftermath of a dictatorship. In the Ethiopian case, the ethnic, religious, linguistic and regional divisions created and nurtured by the current dictators will present massive challenges in a post-dictatorship society.....more...

Ruling party tightening grip on Ethiopia ahead of poll( The East Africa)

“The people are withdrawn because they are angry that EPRDF is practising politics of exclusion and it is not ready to share power, despite the realisation that a good number of Ethiopians do not support it but are afraid to speak out for fear of persecution. This could create a conducive ground for a repeat of the 2005 post-election violence,” said Mesfin Kebede, a former journalist, who had to abandon the profession due to an increasingly hostile operating environment. ...more..

Senior Ethiopia officers "plotted assassinations" (AFP)

..."Ginbot 7 remains committed to work for the establishment of democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law in Ethiopia. No amount of scurrilous accusations, threats or blackmail by the regime will deter us from pursuing the cause of democracy and freedom," it added....More..