Donald Levine, University of Chicago (23 Sept. ‘09)– A half century ago, the ill-fated coup attempt against Emperor Haile Sellassie I in December 1960 marked the moment when Ethiopia entered the era of modernizing revolutions. The event, I have argued (eineps.org), became the first of several missed opportunities that Ethiopia suffered while trying to become a politically modern state. In hopes that the 2010 elections may offer an opportunity that this time Ethiopians might seize with complete success, I offer some thoughts on the challenging year ahead.
First off, let us acknowledge that nearly all parties involved in the tragic events of 2005 seem determined not to repeat their major mistakes. The Government will not again react with excessive violence to demonstrations or public protests. Opposition candidates will not refuse to accept the positions to which they were duly elected. Both sides will probably refrain from the most grievously inflammatory elements of their electoral rhetoric and focus on issues.
Second, let us acknowledge that Ethiopia’s difficulties during the past half century reflect the growing pains of any country moving from an absolute monarchy to a modern democratic state. Compare Ethiopia, then, not with countries that already attained the conditions of functioning democracies, whereby governments change hands through popular elections–like the U.S., France, Ghana, and now Japan–but with the small group of nations that have had to deal with similar circumstances. These include Iran, Thailand, and Afghanistan. Like Ethiopia, these three countries each possessed a core of indigenous traditions as a historic state. Those traditions helped them withstand colonization during the era of European imperial expansion. At the same time, their patterns of deeply-rooted authoritarian rule at the national level posed stark challenges to their advance toward a modern political system. In 1960, no one really could predict how they would handle that massive challenge. By the mid-1970s, all of them were riven by violent political storms. And today, each of them faces serious internal conflicts.
On the stage of world history Iran was the best known of these states, for being heir to the mighty empire of Persia that flourished as early as the 6th century BCE. The honorific title of its ancient emperors was shahanshah, king of kings, comparable to negusa negest. Retrieving that title, the 20th-century Pahlavi kings initiate robust efforts to modernize the country economically and culturally from the top down. These began with King of Kings Reza Shah Pahlavi (1926-41) and continued with his son Mohammad Reza Shah (1941-78)–the latter’s reign punctuated by the short, promising regime of Dr. Mohammed Mossadegh in which the king was briefly removed. In 1961, the same year that Haile Selassie introduced minor administrative reforms in the wake of the December 1960 coup, the Shah started an ambitious program of economic growth–the “White Revolution”– involving large-scale land reform and technical modernization. Yet politically, he wielded an extremely authoritarian scepter backed up by the SAVAK, a ruthless secret police. In 1978 the fundamentalist Islamist regime of Ayatollah Khomeini overthrew the shah, installing a no less repressive regime. The slaughter of vote protesters during this year’s election forms a massive blot on the country’s political record, not to mention the massive human rights violations produced under the Ayatollahs. As of this writing, waves of protest against the 2009 elections continue to be met with violent repression by the state.
Siam’s political modernization began in 1932–the year after Haile Selassie offered Ethiopia its first Constitution–when the Thai military overthrew the king and announced a constitutional monarchy. In 1935 the king abdicated and his son, living abroad, became monarch in absentia for 15 years. The country’s history thereafter involved a string of armed revolts, regicides, and politically motivated arrests, jailings, and murders. Through the 1960s, bureaucratic corruption and security force harassment provoked a reform movement that brought a new constitution and popular elections in 1968. After parliamentarians began attacking government corruption, General Thalom Kittikachorn dissolved the parliament. The General’s putsch incited protests by University students in late 1973 culminating in a standoff with the military, who mowed them down with tanks and helicopters near the royal palace. The 1973 revolt brought an unstable period of democracy; the military came back after a bloody coup in 1976. Although parliamentary rule returned for the three decades following, military rule erupted in the early 1990s and again following a coup in 2006. Restored civilian government in 2007 promised stability, but nine months later massive protests provoked renewed violence and government crackdowns, igniting a crisis that persists. In April 2009 one knowledgeable observer wrote: “Over the past few years, Thailand’s political elites have waged a battle on the streets of the capital using mobs to throw democratically elected governments out of power.”
Lacking ancient lineage as a nation, the Afghan state dates from the coronation of an ambitious warrior, Ahmad Shah Durrani, as king in 1747. Even so, Afghanistan entered the modern world with characteristics similar to the three other states mentioned here. Known as “king of kings,” Ahmad Shah–like Emperor Tewodros II–unified a number of contending fiefdoms in pursuit of a sacred mission, which included a jihad against a Hindu caste. His clan was ancestral to nearly all subsequent patrimonial Afghan rulers until 1978. The Afghans maintained independence against England and Russia, fighting three wars against the British over eighty years culminating in 1919. In 1964, King Zahir Shah promulgated a liberal constitution providing for a bicameral legislature composed one-third each by popular election, royal appointment, and provincial assembly selection. Zahir’s “experiment in democracy” produced few lasting reforms; rather, the University he founded facilitated the growth of unofficial extremist parties on both the left and the right. Those extremist parties led first to the Marxist regime following a coup in 1978, and then the Taliban regime from 1991. There is no need to mention Afghanistan’s current plight of unending civil wars and recent electoral embarrassment, of which President Jimmy Carter said: “Hamid Karzai has stolen the election. Now the question is whether he gets away with it.”
In this comparative perspective, Ethiopia’s painful lurches in the direction of democratization can be grasped more readily. She can boast a number of substantial achievements in the areas of political modernization, stability, and democratization, and this in the face of unprovoked military aggression from two of her neighbors. Despite severe setbacks following the National Election of May 2005, she has now a minimally functioning multi-party system, an elected Parliament, a fairly free press, and elites who have learned the importance of nonviolent politics and civil discourse. To be sure, the coalition of opposition parties have accused the government of continued harassment of their potential candidates; political leader Judge Bertukan Mideksa languishes in prison under what legal experts consider a charge fraught with ambiguities in the pertinent law; and allegations of severe human rights violations continue to appear. Even so, Ethiopia does have potentially transparent, official channels through which each of these issues can be addressed: the National Elections Board, and two exemplary institutions established by Proclamations No. 210 and 211–the National Commission on Human Rights and the Institution of the Ombudsman.
The major responsibility for seeing to it that 2010 becomes a resounding success rests with the EPRDF regime and the Parliament. The current regime can claim enormous achievements in the areas of infrastructure development, expansion of schools and medical services, and openness to Green Technology–the energy hope of the future. There is a level of freedom of expression in the country that has no parallel in Ethiopian history. The question is: can the regime find sufficient confidence in its achievements and their popular support to relax the defensive posture, driven by insecurity, that has marked their early years along with all national governments in Ethiopia since the time of Emperor Menilek?
Perhaps above all, at a time when mutual confidence-building is more crucial than ever, can the Government shift from reacting to criticism as treason, and take robust steps toward the kind of openness they claim they really want to facilitate? A few simple steps might convince critics of their intention.
- Ensure that the National Election Board is independent, impartial, and professional and attends to such incidents as the shouting down of opposition speakers at the peaceful assembly in Adama.
- Provide whatever assurances it takes to move forward, as the Prime Minister affirmed recently, to devise of a code of conduct designed to put an end to harassment if it exists, or to prevent it if it doesn’t.
- Appoint a committee of experts on constitutional law to consider the status of the law under which Judge Bertukan Mideksa was imprisoned again.
- Activate, with serious energy and resources, the Office of Ombudsman.
- Activate, with serious energy and resources, the National Commission on Human Rights.
A heavy responsibility also lies on the shoulders of the diverse opposition groups. A few simple steps might help the government relax and convince the public of their constructive attitude.
- Reiterate their commitment to the importance of nonviolent politics and civil discourse.
- Acknowledge publically their respect for the legitimacy of the current regime.
- Focus effectively on issues and programs rather than grievances.
- Attend to ways of building consensus rather than infighting
- Express themselves honestly and courageously without recourse to anonymity.
As we approach the 50th anniversary of the disastrous initiative of the Neway brothers, this may be a propitious moment to stand back and appreciate how far Ethiopia has come today–in spite of the tragic events of 1960, 1974, 1991, 1998-2000, and 2005–and then to resolve to move Ethiopia forward in as constructive a manner as possible this time. It is time for EVERYONE to stop nursing grievances and extending blames, and to begin open, honest, searching discussions of issues which ought to concern Ethiopians of diverse backgrounds and viewpoints: poverty, food insecurity, energy, environment, women’s rights, health, and quality of education.
Bertatun Yisten Le Addis Amet!
September 23rd, 2009 at 4:01 pm
The writer is known to be a good friend of Ethiopia and also very familiar to and knowledgeable about the situation in Ethiopia. But I see in this article the naivity of a foreigner, a disregard to the realities of the political situation in Ethiopia, or a deliberate misniformation to promote the interests of the strong as is done by most wetern diplomats in Ethiopia. The truth is that the TPLF/EPRDF regime is destroying every opporunity for democratisation, unity and stability of the country. Unprecedented corruption and plundering of the resources of the country is going on. It is clear that the country has gone back far in the demoratic process. Whatever negotiations and arrangements made now will not have any meaningful impact for the 2010 election. The current regime is bent on staying in power and doing meticulous manipulations and repression to destroy any form of participation in the political process.
September 23rd, 2009 at 4:33 pm
Its shame how these fernjes come over and again to the rescue of woyane when they think the regime is in a dire situation. Look at the rhetoric of this ignorant fernje trying to paint woayne as a legitimate and democractic gov’t! you have deliberately escaped some very overt attributes about woyane that tells us a lot about the tru nature of the bandas:
1. dont u know that those ‘transparent official channels’ are owned by meles zenawi and are run by loyal tigray cadres.
2. Wy did u chose not to mention the obvious fact that woyane has ethinically divided the country for 18 years now and is still trying to fume ethinic clashes among different society groups; while enriching the tigray land and the tigray people. That is basically our problem with woyane, its an ethnofashist, narrow minded group of thugs!
3. Why didn’t you fail to tell us how the whole nation is held hostage by the banda tigrays and are scrumbling to loot whatever resources that they find will be sold (land, infant children and youth girls included), when you know it very well as you were part of that selling machine. here is sufficient prove that shows all the investment, adopting and employment agncies are run by tigrays who have unbreakable bond with woyane.
4. and finally, don’t you know that you are comparing an apple with an orange when you attempt to draw a comparison between ethiopia under zenawi with such advanced nations as thialand and iran. A simple look at this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita proves your case baseless. As can be seen on the above link iranians boost a per capita, of 11,000 USD interms of ppp, while the
thai people earn a per capita of 8,222 USD. Even the war ravaged afganistan (thanks to the misguided and aggressive neocolonialism agneda of the USA and the UK) have a higher per capita than meles zenawi’s ethiopia.
In sum, I do strongly believe that the writer is an other hired woyane propagandist. He tries a lot to twist facts to make them fit to his arguments. He is just fooling himself and his alikes. We, Ethiopians, know how we can get rid of the invading woyane force…we dont need an obesolate solution from an obesolate and sold out woyane propogandist that comes in a white skin!
DEL le ethiopia
DEL le Ginbot 7
Ethiopia shall prevail
September 23rd, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Dear Chicago Professor,
I don’t see where to “look ahead!” TPLF having 99% of the Ethiopian Army Generals populated by Tigreans, recruiting through compulsion destitute women, children, students, people of old age etc to their party to secure votes for the election and terrorising the whole nation so that people can vote for them and confining most of the oppositions activities to the capital, where to “look ahead”? Above all keeping a potential candidate for the election, Birtukan Mideksa, are you saying there is a hope to look ahead in the face tyranny?
Dear Prof Levine,
I know your Son is doing business with the Woyane government and you are not going to let him down. It is clear that you went to Addis after your (good and reasonable then) radio talk argument and letter exchnages with the former Woyane Ambassador Kasahun Ayele. The TPLF cadres have told you that the country is flourishing and also showed you their family members who drive American style cars. They didn’t show/tell you the 20 million people starving in the 21st century. You then changed your mind/tone and started to soften your language on them.
For heaven sake, what did the opposition Kinjit do wrong in the 2005 election?
For your record, the election 2010 is over, all Ethiopians know it! All I ask you is, please be on the side of the helpless people of Ethiopia, and don’t soften your language on dictators!
Deep down you know who the evils are!
September 23rd, 2009 at 5:01 pm
There is no institution Professor Ethiopian expert, there is one dictator called Meles Zenawi, he is the law, the police and the court.There will be peace in this world only if your government stops supporting “friendly tyrants”. Loosing power for TPLF means the nationalization of EFFORT which is all Ethiopian stolen money and the facing of justice of all killers and looters so Meles will not leave power alive, either he will be like Saddam Hussien or the last dictator of communist Romania.
September 23rd, 2009 at 5:33 pm
I totally disagree with Levine. I respect his contribution to Ethiopia, but this time no. He knows that things went from bad to worse after the 2005 election. To mention a few is the terrorism law and the NGO laws. He talks about the free media ; for sure it is Tamirat of Forune who feeds him all this false information. He doesn’t even know who tamirat is. I think Levine should rewrite his article, which is non scholarly to say the least.
September 23rd, 2009 at 9:26 pm
Sir:
You say something today and you change your story tomorrow. If you think that there is elected government and cnsiderable freedom of the presss that may be for you not for the Ethiopian people. Will you please be kind to keep your mouth shut and leave us alone to take care of our business!!!!
September 23rd, 2009 at 10:18 pm
an elected parliament? a free press? the opposition refused its offices? respect the legitimacy of the regime?
what planet does this guy live on?
September 23rd, 2009 at 11:52 pm
ይሀ ሰዉየ ተረት ነው የሚያወራው? ወየስ ይቃዛል?
September 24th, 2009 at 1:42 am
The scary part of today’s Ethiopia is that all the atrocities are commited by a minority tigray against the majority of the people. Yes, they have created the office of the ombudsperson, and human rights commission. But, TPLF guys are the appointed commissioners; like any other strategic security, defense, police, and foreign relations departments.
I understand that the question of the ethnicity of the person in charge should be irrelevant in assessing good governance. However, for a poor country in which government is the owner of everything (land, natural resources, etc), political power is directly related to economic power. In other words, tigreans’ political power amounts to economic power. We envy this as they are getting enriched while the rest of us are getting poor by days. We want you to call out your friend Meles the same way ICG did recently, if your are indeed a friend of the Ethiopian people.
Peace
September 24th, 2009 at 3:00 am
Come on Prof Levine!!
Based on your “comparative analysis”, I hope you won’t ask us to lick Meles’s wound to ease the pain he is currently in. I have respect for you but in here you deliberately decided to miss the point. What are you trying to tell us? To me it is just patronizing, to say the least. You are right why do we compare ourselves to Ghana when we are better than Afganistan, thanks to King Meles. You are also right, with such pace our dream being like Ghana is farfetched, you tell us. We just have to keep on “kebero memtat” that we better than Afganistan. How come in your comparison missed Zimbabwe?
Read what you wrote: what we have no is “… minimally functioning multi-party system, an elected Parliament, a fairly free press, and elites who have learned the importance of nonviolent politics and civil discourse …” what a joke.
You also said ” 3.Appoint a committee of experts on constitutional law to consider the status of the law under which Judge Bertukan Mideksa was imprisoned again”. I am sure you know deep in your heart that there is no a shred of constitutional violation that Judge Midekas committed. You know as much as I do that the country is fully controlled by racist Meles and Co. It is not because he is Tigre but what he is doing with it. You tell me that
As I was reading about the history of Dr. Goebbbles, I read how Hitler had indeed cause to be grateful to his Propaganda Leader, who was the true creator and organizer of the Fuhrer myth, of the image of the Messiah-redeemer, feeding the theatrical element in the Nazi leader while at the same time inducing the self-surrender of the German masses through skilful stage management and manipulation. Are you telling us something Prof. Levine about Meles that you want us to believe in and worhsip.
That won’t happen. Yes, the elites and the Ethiopian people have learned a lot. Just watch!!!
September 24th, 2009 at 4:01 am
Dear Professor,
Thank you for your insight and hope for the future of Ethiopia.But I found some of your statemnts very very misleading.For instance you say Ethiopia has’a minimally functioning multi-party system, an elected Parliament, a fairly free press’.What does it mean dear professor?Would you please tell us how on earth there is multi-party system in Ethiopia?Ethiopia is a de facto one party state and the regime does not believe in such democratic principles.I hope you know the 2005 election that was seriously rigged.How can we call such parliament as elected parliament?I am very much surprissed about your claim that there is free press press in Ethiopia.It seems like’lekebariw mardat’ statement.Are you telling us the few opportunist news papers like Reporter,Fortune or Sheger FM,who are rent seekers and who sold out their profession for money are free?
I have respect for you and your eforts to help Ethiopia.But such misleding comments would rather legitmize dictatorship rather than bringing democracy.
September 24th, 2009 at 4:34 am
Thanks a lot Donald Levine for your great and tireless contributions to Ethiopia’s past, present and future political directions. But, there seems to have a complete misunderstanding of the political situation of this country on the ground right now. particularly in reference to the coming Ethiopian Election in 2010. You have witnessed the fact that the regime in power have clearly demonstrated to the world that they are not ready by any means to give or share piece of their power to any opposition power in Ethiopia through free ballot box. At least what we have observed in Kenya and Zimbabwe very recently. We all know today that the next Ethiopian Election is already won by EPRDF. No single doubt about that. Ethiopians are not ignorant about the idea of peaceful and non violent struggle at all. At least some the parties which have opted to take this way after 2005 election have seen that it is in did futile. Then what options do Ethiopians have for the democratization of this country? Accept authoritarian leadership? Legitimize the regime in power through participating in an already won election? What really is peaceful and non-violent struggle for you?
Your articles recommendation does not seriously address these critical issues. It is an exhausted recommendation for critical problem. Hope you well take note of that and see you with great and new suggestions.
September 24th, 2009 at 5:50 am
Interesting Essay, Professor. We need more of this type of unbiased, level-headed analysis
September 24th, 2009 at 6:05 am
Dear Dr. Donald,
I have great respect for you since you wrote a number of articles on Ethiopia and its people especially during hard times like 2005 elections. However, I am not satisfied with this article of yours:
-Do you think that there will be a free and fair election in 2010?
-Do you think that there will strong opposition parties this year while there is lots of intimidation and arbitrary arrests of opposititon members?
The only way to expose Woyanne/EPRDF is to boycoat from the fake election which will only legitimize its dictatorial, totalitarian, and authoritarian nature.
We, true children of Ethiopia in country and elsewhere will NEVER trust what Meles and his followers say!!!
September 24th, 2009 at 10:42 am
Mr. Levine,
I believe you have a very wrong prescription for Ethiopia’s future. Ofcourse, we are not all conversant on the particulars of those countries you picked up to relay your support for the TPLF. I can only imagine the significant differences between thos countries and Ethiopia in the composition of the population, religious make up and economic monopolization of the countries wealth under a minority ethnic group. No country or people are asked to tolearte the kind of government that has been imposed on the Ethiopian people on the grounds of developing evolutionary democracy. The TPLF leaders admit that Ethiopian economy financial systems are controlled by TPLF affliated organizations, the military is controlled by the TPLF and so forth and still the Tigrean population is a meagre 6% of the Ethiopian population. There is no future under such a system even if they window dress many things.
September 24th, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Levine understands very well what’s happening in Ethiopia. He is being diplomatic because he wants to maintain an open communications channel with the government and he wants to be able to exert what little influence he as on certain elements within the government.
Of course, he could just come out and tell the truth and blast the government. But what good would that do? He’ll just be ignored, like any other individual.
In the democracy movement, a wide variety of strategies and tactics are needed. You have people keeping the PR heat on, making sure everyone knows we’re dealing with just another African dictatorship. You have people working on the inside in various capacities. Etc. These are all necessary ingredients to winning the fight.
This is a complicated fight that requires wisdom, patience, and strategy.
September 24th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
That Mr. Levine supports the Ethiopian govenment is evident, based on the article he wrote. That is his right nobody could take away from him. But in trying to legitimize his support, he let his opinions to supplant facts. He states “[Ethiopia] has now a minimally functioning multi-party system, an elected parliament, a fairly press.” He at least was prudent in choosing the adverb “minimally,” had it not been, his article would have relegated not worthy of reading. Even assuming he might have a reservation somehow about the government as his choice of word indicates, it is doubtless to say, he sees the Ethiopian politics the way he wished it to be not as is. The minimally functioning multi-party system that he was talking about, he should have known, was a ploy EPDRF put in place to garner the Western countries acceptance. Is there a single instance Levine could cite that the opposition parties in parliament which they have stopped the EPDRF’s written laws, directives, and so on from being implemented. Does the opposition parties agenda have ever passed in the parliament that Levine knew that we do not? The answer is no. The opposition parties are in parliament without having any say whatsoever in the country politics. I could not question Levine’s interest to see democracy flourish in Ethiopia. But I question his integrity when he chose to base his understanding of Ethiopian politics based on what the regime dessiminates to dissuade some who had an interest in Ethiopian politics, like Mr. Levine.
September 24th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
Hmmmmm!!! No wonder AEUP is dancing softly with TPLF. These days, the corps de ballet look like they are matches made in heaven. The writer, who is a resident of Chicago, must have successfully convinced the KAIAB (Kinijit AEUP International Advisory Board) chairman, Dr Taye Weldesemaiat, who is also a Chicago resident.
It seems like AEUP is following precisely Mr. Levine’s 5 points to a tee. Since AEUP’s voice http//www.kaeup.org did not challenge, as it usually does, TPLF central committee member owned Reporter’s news http://www.ethiopianreporter.com/content/view/6538/1/ must be true.
I guess this is what Mr Levine’s idea of “A few simple steps that might help the government relax…”
Hopefully the people’s struggle for Freedom and Democracy is not in a “relaxation” mode.
September 24th, 2009 at 3:29 pm
It is very sad to see how Donald Levine at old age has become a caricature of his former self.
I do not know whether he has become senile. If that is the case, his family and friends should advise him not to keep writing these ludicrous articles about Ethiopia.
But if Levine is still in full control of his mental faculties, he certainly has become a very disingeuous and manipulative man in the service of Meles’ backers in Washington DC.
If that were not the case, how would learned man like him so blatantly and relentlessly try to divert attention from the foundamental cause of Ethiopia’s current political trauma?
He knows perfectly well that Ethiopia’s present political problems stem from the basic fact that an ethnically organized group that claims to represent less than 7% of the population is determined to dominate and control over 90% of the population (i.e., the economy, politics, military, clergy, etc). And Levine does understand perfectly well that such a regime can only try to govern by means of intimidation, repression, and terror, NOT through democratc accommodation.
But of course, Levine has chosen to treat his Ethiopian readers like a kindergarten audience. I must confess that Levine’s recent writings make me sick in the stomach, more so than Meles’ lies and smart Alex verbal acribic. At least, Meles is a shallow tribal warlord and cannot help himself. But why does Levine need to do all this? It is just sad to see how ferenjis of great repute at times can so easily sell their soul to the devil.
September 24th, 2009 at 8:01 pm
Prof Donald L.
A person of your stature and knowledge of present and past history of “emama” Ethiopia shouldn’t indulge himself in such mockery. It seems that you dare to tell us “for someone who is born naked any form of clothing is more than enough”(literal Amharic folk lore, I’m sure you know it!). If you have any respect to Ethiopia and its people as you always claim, please either refrain yourself from hoodwinking facts or spit it out (say it as it is), then leave the judgement to your potential readers. Your readers,Ethiopians, are capable of understanding the prevailing realities, firsthand, with or without “helm fetchi ferenji!!!!”
I hope You understand what we are writing!
September 24th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
African leaders are all about cash- in and cash -out .These never ending process have brought our nation to the brink of loosing the so called intellects, experts and good citizens of Africans. Our continent is in such quagmire stage that where most prominent writers called it the’ sleepiest continent’. No one knows what kind of transition our own Ethiopia is facing; the guessing game of leadership and our lack of good investment in to its knees .
September 24th, 2009 at 10:11 pm
African leaders are all about cash- in and cash -out .These never ending process have brought our nation to the brink of loosing the so called intellects, experts and good citizens of Africans. Our continent is in such quagmire stage that where most prominent writers called it the’ sleepiest continent’. No one knows what kind of transition our own Ethiopia is facing; the guessing game of leadership and our lack of good investment in the education sector brought our nation to its knees .
September 25th, 2009 at 12:19 am
prof donald levine as you maintion from absolute mounarchy to modern democratic state wrong we are in ethinc federalism USA France Ghana Japan completly they are not exersice ethnic kilil democracy in afghanistan the democrtic election problem in our ethiopia we dont went out sider to gave as advice suport the dectator what we now ethiopia was not meant to be a lasting nation the distraction ethiopia immeditaly begun the people of the anciant nation have suffered immensely as not other time. the patience of the people is completly depleted and changes are on the horizons. inventeors of human cages called kilil shall leave ethiopia disappear from the face of the earth. prof donald democracy is a principle by which fortify and build not divided societies the peoplel of any region have a democratical right not to be excluded and barred from sharing the heritages and resources
we should realized the fact that meles only repeted the words that he was indoctrinated about by his masters who ever they may be .
respectively ethiopia is demanding those whom she fed,raised to pay her back the leaves and roots and rock of ethiopia the ark of covenant must yield the medicine that will eradicate the carrier of kilil virus.
September 25th, 2009 at 6:51 am
Dekre,
I agree with you, he does understand all those things. But he wants to be in the middle, no matter what. It is like a person watching an abusive husband beat his wife, and shouts to the wife and the husband to behave. You remember the Bush administration calling for restraint from BOTH the regime and the oppsition back in 2005, at a time when Meles was savagely killing dozens and putting thousands in concentration camps? Levine is now in that camp, trying to legitimize Meles’ regime by drawing moral equivalence between the criminal tribal regime and its victims.
In order to understand why Levine writes the way he does, you should consider that he belongs to the old school of fernejis. Like all those colonial officers of past, he seems to believe that Africans are clueless like children and can therefore be easily manipulated. He wouldn’t write in the laugable way that he does if he respected his readers’ intelligence.
September 25th, 2009 at 7:44 am
we are the people to show our solidarity to change the direction of western country helping dictator aganist the majority principle .
we are stan for freedom leagal responsiblity for the whole oppressed nation of world and the voice of ethiopian
against tyrant suport our opposition for their historical trustee
September 25th, 2009 at 8:47 am
I am hereby draw your attention on the behalf of 80 millions Ethiopians who are not in the position to voice their grievance to the like of you; in a nutshell what we Ethiopians want fairness and just without any artificial modification either by the ruling party or by its foreign proxies. Please show us you are standing for these values, in your scribles!!!!!!
Some of the articles written by concerned Ethiopians regarding your ever changing stants:
http://www.addisvoice.com/article/donald_levine.htm
http://seminawork.blogspot.com/2006/05/zagol-contra-levin-professor-donald.html
http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/2070 (read the comments of concerned Ethiopians on your article)
http://nazret.com/blog/index.php?blog=13&title=shimagle&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1 (read the comments of concerned Ethiopians on your article)
……………..
Let me refrain myself as you are a prolific writer and dare to write on the “seme/wax” not on the “work/gold”!!!!!!
September 26th, 2009 at 10:44 am
Dear Professor,
This is not the time for Ethiopian people to live by hope. Because you put your hope, but,the reality is comletely different from what you put on paper. You know that the present Ethiopian people is living belo poverty line. This is the direct implication of abused administration of Zenawi who nominate him self as a leader of the country. To see all the present situation : direct violation of HR ,no peaceful political movement, no free press, arbitrary arrest, disappearance, torture,………..a lot not mentioned…….Have you ever seen such administration ? For more information, please I seriously invite you to read the US state department report 2008, on human right condition of Ethiopia, in addition to opposition parties of Ethiopia.
September 26th, 2009 at 3:14 pm
Proff. Donald Levine
You are criticized by pro government and opposition camps as stated above and on Aigaforum.com but majority of ethiopians we share your views.
Thanks for your constructive and educational article, we expect more articles in the future.
good on you
September 27th, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Most Ethiopians say that This writer is a white Woyanie and this justified by his advice about the woyanie created National Commission on Human Rights and the Institution of the Ombudsman. He is well awared that the organizations are managed by prominant Woyanie members. So why does he always try to confuse Ethiopians?
Isn’t is enough friend Donald Levin ???
September 27th, 2009 at 7:04 pm
Did I read somewhere that Professor Levine was a friend of Ethiopia?….with friends like Professor Levine who needs enemies. All I can say is follow the money.
September 28th, 2009 at 7:33 am
My uncle used to be a good friend of Prof Levine, but these days he doesn’t even want to hear his name.
Knowledge without morality only produces monsters, and Prof Levine, like other professors such as Prof Andreas Eshete, have turned into monsters who trade on Ethiopia’s misery.
At no time has Prof Levine ever utterd a critical word on US policy towards Ethiopia, even as he very well knows that the US was the earliest clandestine backer of Isayas Afework’s EPLF, or that the Reagen adminstration contributed immensely to the growth of ethnic politics in Ethiopia since they were responsible for arming and financing ethnic insurgent groups like the TPLF in their bid to destabiize and overthrow Mengistu’s communist regime. That policy worked for the them, but left Ethiopia with totally ravaged national/central institutions.
His far fetched comparison of Ethiopia with Iran and Afghanistan offers little historical guide for understanding our realities. A more useful way would have been to look at Ethiopia in the context of Cold War politics in the Horn of Africa, where rivalry and switching alliances between the US and the Soviet Union throughout the 60s to the 90s have contributed to destroying Somalia completely, and have put Ethiopia on a path to (self-) destruction. The comparison of Ethiopia to Iran and Afghanistan could only serve eject Ethiopia from Africa and thereby help to neutralize or protect Meles’ regime from the pressure for democratization that the Obama regime has unleashed on African dictators.
As my uncle says, Levine does appear to enjoy putting a dagger into our wounds. Only a man of knowledge who has not been tamed by ethics draws pleasure from doing that.
Incidentally, as long as Alamudi’s billions work for Meles, don’t expect a lot of ferenjis to stand for truth, except the truly ethical ones like those in Amnesty International, the Crisis Group, international Jurists Union. It is Alamudis billions that Meles has used indirectly to corrupt so many diplomats and so called Ethiopia-experts over the past 20 years.
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:58 pm
Here’s an idear: Give Westwood the nineteen grand, and just keep it open, and increase the fees by one or two bucks and see what happens. ,