The Biden Administration and the EU’s message to Ethiopia:
‘DON’T CONFUSE US WITH THE FACTS, WE’VE ALREADY MADE UP OUR MINDS’!
Zerihun Tesfaye
In the past seven months it has become painfully clear, that the Biden Administration is promoting policies that are inimical to Ethiopia’s national interest. Not only has the Administration been actively engaged in this endeavor, it has also solicited and gained support for its ill-conceived policies from the EU, international organizations and other satellite states such as Saudi Arabia.
Not far behind, are organizations like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, who in the main do good work, but are currently towing the line of the US State Department with regards to events in Ethiopia. In the past eight months there have been several occasions when one or the other was caught promoting selective, and even sometimes unsubstantiated claims, which put the Ethiopian government in bad light. Unbecoming of organizations their stature, they were even caught red-handed, posting fake photographs to embellish their stories.
Then, we have ‘scholars’ like Alex de Wall and Kjettil Tronvoll who can be characterized as ‘ball-point mercenaries’ who have been promoting the TPLF clique as a righteous grouping and demonizing the Ethiopian Federal Government at every possible turn, spewing venomous propaganda couched as scholarly output in print, audiovisual and social media.
The Ethiopian Government, being victimized by misguided policies of the Biden Administration and its allies, pressed by undue harassment from human rights organizations and venomous attack by ‘ball-point mercenaries’, self styled analysts and journalists, has so far been able to withstand all with the support of a large segment of the population.
More than endurance though, Ethiopia has been able to beat back the attempted putsch by the renegade clique, and was also able to accomplish two major national projects during this period, namely the National Elections where over 35 million people participated and the Second filling of the GERD.
Unfortunately for Ethiopia, the main cause that made the array of the above-described forces to gang up against it; namely, the traitorous attack of the Ethiopian National Defense Forces by TPLF Special Forces and the government’s response in putting down the rebellion and attendant issues has still not been fully resolved. Establishing peace and security in the country as a whole is the primary responsibility of the central government, and it’s hoped that all efforts will be extended to realize it in the near future.
It is indeed unfortunate that a small clique and its insatiable appetite for power has caused great peril to the people they claim to represent and to the nation as a whole.
The State Department had no confusion in November of 2020 when TPLF attacked ENDF and this was reiterated by Asst. Secretary of State T. Nagy when he said,
“I mean, again, difficult to tell motivation, but it seems like they were doing this more to depose the prime minister from power and to reassert themselves into the prominent position that they had atop the Ethiopian political spectrum for the last 27 years”
If the Ethiopian government did not take measures to undo this reckless move by the TPLF clique, it definitely would have been a dereliction of duty, with fatal consequences to the body politics of the nation.
This being the case it’s indeed baffling why the Biden Administration totally abandoned the State Department’s understanding and assessment of the reality on the gr and sided with the renegade elements and started pressurizing the Ethiopian government from doing its constitutionally mandated responsibility, i.e. keeping the peace security and territorial integrity of the nation.
As if this unwarranted pressure is not enough, every time the Ethiopian government acceded to the demands by UN Agencies, the US or EU nations for unfettered access to media or aid agencies to support humanitarian concerns… etc., the goal- post is constantly being moved further and yet again new demands are made.
As the ex-Kenyan Parliamentarian Farah Maalim said ‘PM Abiy needs to be educated on a Somali saying that goes “Somebody who wants to humiliate & degrade you will not settle for the offer of your beautiful daughter’s hand in marriage but snatch your wife.” The West will not settle for anything short of regime change in Addis period.”
That’s why when it comes to the Biden Administration, the EU and others who espouse harmful policies towards Ethiopia efforts expended to enlighten them with facts on the ground, and the obtaining reality in the country, hiring lobbyists to present Ethiopia’s case… will be a huge waste of money and in the end will not have the intended consequences.
It’s incumbent upon Ethiopians and friends of Ethiopia to forget about these elements and to consistently and persistently lay out all the facts to the wider public both at home and abroad, while combating false information coming from all quarters.
The Ethiopian Government is also duty bound to do the right thing in protecting the well-being, peace and security of all its citizens; to be transparent and forthcoming with real time information whether it’s favorable to it or not; rebuff all undue pressure coming from all quarters, and keep its eyes on the prize and defeat the treacherous TPLF clique which is hell bent on destabilizing the nation and causing mayhem.