Thirsty child of the Nile versus the Nile accord irony

by Robele Ababya

Harnessing Ethiopia’s rivers for development

“Thirsty child of the Nile” is a popular proverbial irony in water-rich Ethiopia where hunger and thirst are rampant amid plenty

The Amharic version widely used is “Ye Abayin lij wuha temat”; it is meant to ridicule the paradox of abject poverty amid plenty; it extends to laxity in solving a problem in the face of untapped ideas, resources, knowledge or skills.

The first serious widespread slogan to harness Ethiopian rivers was enshrined in the revolutionary poem/song presented in 1974 to the Ethiopian people by the then famous Ethiopian Air Force. Two lines of the poem are reproduced below:

ወንዞች ይገደቡ ይዋሉ ለልማት፣ (wenzoch yegedeebu yewalu lelemat)
በከንቱ ፈሰዋል ለብዙ ሺ ዓመታት። (bekentu fesewl le bizu shi ametat)

It simply means that rivers have been flowing in waste for thousands of years; it is long overdue that they are harnessed for development by building dams for power generation and irrigation.

It is irrefutable that the patriotic song, with no Marxist ideological undertone, rallied the Ethiopian people for peaceful bloodless change aimed at development and prosperity for all - irrespective of ethnic origin or creed. Unfortunately the song was taken of the air after a few months under extreme pressure of communist ideologues labeling it ‘nationalistic’. The coward and ignorant Mengistu succumbed to the pressure of the leftist extremists.

It would be appropriate at this juncture to state that our forebears brought the indispensability of our rivers to the development of Ethiopia. School boys staged dramas on parents’ days attributed to our rivers. Those rivers that started and ended in Ethiopia like the famous river Awash were given the accolade of patriots; others like the Nile River in particular were branded traitors for they carried not only waters but also massive fertile soil across national boundaries. This sentiment is engraved in the minds of the past and present generations in spite of puppet regimes like TPLF serving foreign interests overtly and covertly in order to stay in power.

So the thorny issue of the Nile waters and indeed of all the waters of Ethiopia shall remain at the center of our relations with interested parties, including Egypt. This is more so in view of rising poverty in Ethiopia coupled with shortage of water for human consumption on our planet.

Nile accord 1993 & languages used in the accord

The centerpiece of the accord is the River Nile although the title reads “Framework for General Co-operation between the Arab Republic of Egypt and Ethiopia”. The preamble of the Framework reads: “Recognizing the importance of traditional ties existing between the two countries that have been consolidated during their long history of close relations and linked by the River Nile with its basin as a center of mutual interest”.

The above is obviously a cheap propaganda given the centuries-old acrimonious relations and mutual suspicions between the two countries always provoked by Egypt, which had launched multiple military aggressions against Ethiopia; each time, the aggressor suffered a humiliating defeat by heroic Ethiopians fighters under the able leadership of genius patriots like Ras Alula Aba Nega.

Nile Accord 1993 was made in the Arabic and English languages both texts being equally authentic. It is an insult to Ethiopia in that it is Amharic that has been the official language of independent Ethiopia for centuries. Tyrant Meles openly showed his hatred for the Amahars and our official language as well as contempt for the Ethiopian people.

Nile Accord 1993 is a two-page small document comprising eight short articles, five (5) of which pertain to the Nile basin. The Nile is actually also mentioned in the preamble as stated in the first paragraph of the under the above caption. Salient comments on key articles of the accord are briefly provided below. For the benefit of readers, wherever the word “shall” appears in a clause, it means in legal parlance that the provision therein is mandatory to comply with by the party concerned.
Article 4 stipulates that “The two parties agree that the issue of the Nile Waters shall be worked out in detail through discussions by experts from both sides, on the basis of the rules and principles of international law”. It is mandatory, a command to meet the conditions of Article 4. Article 5 is another command; it reads: “Each party shall refrain from engaging in any activity related to the Nile waters that may cause appreciable harm to the interests of the other party.” Article 6 commits Ethiopia to cooperate in projects that would increase the volume of flow of the river Nile. This is preposterous in that Egypt is actually warning Ethiopia that she has to commit to undertakings to ensure the increase of the volume of Nile Waters crossing her boundary. Article 7 in effect underlines that regional peace and stability will be threatened unless the two parties to the accord create a mechanism for periodic consultations “on matters of mutual concern, including the Nile waters”. Article 8 stipulates it is mandatory that “The two parties shall endeavor towards a framework for effective cooperation among countries of the Nile basin for the promotion of common interest in the development of the basin. It is strange that Ethiopia which contributes more than 86% of the Nile waters should join the major beneficiary Egypt for “effective cooperation among countries of the Nile Basin.

In the above picture President Mubarak displays aloofness and contempt unbecoming of a host, while tyrant Meles is apparently perusing the ‘English’ text of the accord. What a shame!

The entire accord is clearly in the interest of Egypt. It is null and void for it is not ratified by the Ethiopian people. And this affront by the boss of the brutal TPLF regime is an open invitation for coordinated, urgent and decisive response by all opposition forces in unison.

Déjà vu rhetoric

Each time there are serious domestic political upheavals, the regimes in power used the issue of the river Nile to deflect attention of the public. This was the case during the Imperial regime; leaflets/ flyers inundated Addis Ababa in a futile attempt by government officials to convince the public that the solution to permanently stem the kind of famine of 1974 and usher in prosperity was to build dams on the Nile for power generation and irrigation farming. The Derg regime went so far as to express its intention to exact price for every barrel of water reaching Egypt. The cunning Meles reassured the sovereignty of the Egypt over the waters of the Nile in the accord signed in 1993 to get political support of Egypt for his fledgling Transitional government. The cunning tyrant is now playing cheap politics to fool Ethiopians once again staging demonstration by few his supporters in Washington purportedly seeking the support of the Obama Administration to reign in Egypt so that it will not interfere with Ethiopia’s plan to build dams on the Nile. Most ridiculously, the tyrant is accusing Egypt of beating the drum about the impending war with Ethiopia starting with destabilizing the latter by supporting dissidents.

The pronouncement by Meles may have come as a surprise to Mubarak. But this is only for public consumption, because, as the saying goes, the duo keeps its tents apart but its hearts together. The President of Egypt will never let down Meles who has surrendered veto power to Egypt over all issues relating to the development of projects using the waters of the Nile - 86% of which emanate from Ethiopia.

It is absence of democracy, stupid!

Ethiopians understand and respect the natural dependence of Egyptians on the Nile waters as a sole source of their survival; they understand the moral, political and legal consequences of denying neighborly countries of their fair shares of waters under international law. However, Ethiopians can no longer afford to go thirsty and starving while their own fair share of waters cross national boundaries. What is needed is amicable solution to this age-old problem through civilized dialogue. But the problem is that the masses of Ethiopia and Egypt are ruled by despotic regimes that repress their respective peoples.
The status quo in the sharing of Nile waters cannot continue. The young generations in both countries, Egypt and Ethiopia in particular, should rise up in earnest to foster democracy in their respective countries while cooperating to seek solution in a friendly frame of mind to the present grossly and unacceptably skewed share of the Nile waters in favor of Egypt.

Conclusion

The so-called “Framework for General Co-operation between the Arab Republic of Egypt and Ethiopia” is nothing but the first ever formal endorsement of the power of veto bestowed on Egypt by the arch colonial power of the time. Period!
Meles surrendered Ethiopia’s rights of veto power, in any issue involving riparian states, on the strength of her contribution of 86% of the Nile waters. There is no need for Ethiopia to run an errand for Egypt to promote cooperation among states of the Nile basin. Ethiopia’s decision on how best under international law to protect her interests over the Blue Nile within her territory will in no way affect states contributing 16% of the waters of the White Nile.

The signing of the Nile Accord 1993 coupled with ceding of large tracts of fertile to the Sudan, which is also a beneficiary of the Nile waters, is another recipe for popular uprising in self defense. Add to this the stolen elections in the last two decades particularly elections 2005 and 2010 that culminated not only in daylight robbery of votes but also in premeditated execution of democrats; incarceration of tens of thousands of peaceful demonstrators by security forces under the direct command of Meles Zenawi.

Opposition forces that Meles publicly branded as enemies have every right to defend and protect the rightful wealth of the country in unison holding their political difference in abeyance. Those that may have fallen to the age-old intrigue of Egypt will not get anything back in return. For Egypt too it is better to deal with a democratic, prosperous and law-abiding Ethiopia.
Finally, I wish to remind readers that despot Meles once said that democracy is not an option for Ethiopia but a necessity for her survival. Those who took him at his word should now know that thousands of political prisoners are still in filthy jails suffering unprecedented mental and physical torture. All pillars of democracy have been shattered. Election 2010 has been stolen. Immoral funds from some Western donors continue to flow generously to the coffers of the brutal ruling regime.
Therefore, it is long overdue to commence massive coordinated and effective civil disobedience.

LONG LIVE ETHIOPIA!!!

Judges for yourselves!

Ethiopian-Unity a Source of power or a source of Misery?

By Yohannes Haile

            First of all I want everyone who may read this article to take it as alternative-as something that can be put on the table in case the antiethiopian elements in Ethiopia want secession as the one and only option.

            Is Ethiopia really indivisible? If the answer is yes I believe at least the majority of Ethiopian nationalities should think so. Otherwise it can be a nation where warring factions exist in the same house to bleed its children and cause misery. We have been a nation that is condemned to live in abject poverty. We live on western handouts just to fulfill the least any human being in a normal condition should do, i.e. food, clothing and shelter. What is really the matter with the state of Ethiopia as a nation and we Ethiopians as a people? Why that is our starving people are screened on the global media, year after year, saying that Ethiopia is begging for food “again”.

            We Ethiopians had passed through many ups and downs during our long history. Our forefathers have done countless things that we are proud of. Taking the history of the world in to consideration it would not be rational to blame the generation before Tewodros II except for the creation of the Zemene Mesafint.  Menilik II was one of the genius leaders that Ethiopia has produced. I believe our problem as a nation/people can be traced to the ignorance of Haile Sellasie I to the timely land and political reformations (like the abolition of feudalism), the stupidity of Derg/Mengistu Hailemariam and the evilness of woyane/Meles Zenawi.

            We should learn from the mistakes of the past regimes ( Haile/Mengistu) as they didn’t work, purposely,  to bleed and destroye Ethiopia .But woyanes are evils beyond imagination. They are born to destroye anything Ethiopian whether it is people, religion, culture, history. All Ethiopians should unit for the common cause of saving our country and people from the vampire woyanes. If we able to unit all Ethiopians, at least those who don’t have any problem with Ethiopia as a nation, we can get rid of the mafias in no time. The more time we give for woyanes, the closer they get in achieving their goal of destroying our country/people. Instead of waiting OLF/ONLF to denounce their objective of liberating themselves from “Abyssinian colonization”, it would be wise to unit those  people of Gondar, Gojame, Wollo, Shoa, SNNP, Afar, Gambella, Benishangul Gumuz) who have no problem with Ethiopia as nation but its wicked governance. With determination nothing is impossible.

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            Ethiopia after Woyane?

If we want to have a lasting peace and prosperity, we need to be ready to see all the alternatives to solve our deep rooted problems even if that means reshaping Ethiopia. I know this idea will be unacceptable for many nationalist Ethiopians who think Ethiopia is a creation of God and should last forever regardless of its seemingly endless problems. I myself want Ethiopia to last for eternity if it is possible. But it is essential to think outside the box and face the fact that Ethiopia have some elements that want to see her bleed and will never rest no matter what kind of democracy and good governance we will have in the future.

            I personally believe there are three groups (TPLF

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            The case of Woyane and Tigrians from the past till the present

-Tigrians are and always will be first Tigrains and then Ethiopians. Forget the nonsense of Tigray being the foundation/base of Ethiopia. They have been doing everything they could to undermine Ethiopia. They are to the most part responsible for the creation of Zemene  Mesafit (the era of the prince), a century of war and turmoil. They have been bleeding Ethiopia and its people whenever they feel like they could even if that means siding with foreign invaders. Yohannes IV sided with the invading British army and killed the visionary leader Tewodros and ravaged the people and animals of Gojame/ wollo /Gonder and shoa.  The decendants of Yohannes sided with the colonizing Italian army and created chaos in wollo and its environ as they got countless of weaponry from the retreating Italian soldiers-they call it woyane I. Again the bandas of the north (woyane II) opened fire on unsuspecting EPRP members and killed many of them just to fulfill their narrow agenda. They used the cold war opportunity to bleed Ethiopia/Ethiopians. Now they are using state power to eliminate nationalist Ethiopians. They are killing the people of humera, wolkait and  tsegede while settling their own “golden people.” They are evicting the amharas from Gondar and wollo-killing the young men- raping the young girls and forcing them to marry handicapped “Tegadalayes.”  These people are evil to say the least. I will never forget what my Gojame friend told me as how TPLF fighters used to shot, from the back, and kill countless of young Gojames who fought alongside with them against Derg, thinking that they may give them power/job when they assume power. To add salt to the wound TPLF fighters used to bring flower to the graves of those who they massacred mercilessly saying that they got sacrificed for democracy and equality.  Woyanes massacred the farmers of Gondar who were fighting the Sudanese army that came to take the land given to them by the banda and miniorty regime.

TPLFites are behind all the religious and ethnic conflicts that have claimed the lives of so many innocent Ethiopians. They have been preaching hate by telling people fabricated and inflammatory stories that have never happened in the first place.  They give weapon for one ethnic group to attack the other and after the loss of so many lives they come as a middle men acting as a “peace maker.” They have no respect for human life what so ever. We all are witnesses of all the crimes committed by agazis  in Oromia, Gambella,Gonder, Ogaden , Addis Ababa and all over the country.

They hate Ethiopia and all non-Tigrian Ethiopians in general and amharas in particular. They consider all amharas, from the past till the present/future, enemies to be destroyed. That is why they have been committing hidden genocide against the amharas.  TPLF have been committing systematic genocide against the amharas for the past two decades that claimed the lives of 2-3 million amharas. This is not just a fabricated story but a fact that is proven by woyanes census bureau. According to the 2007 census the population growth rate of amharas was just 1.7 % while the national average was about 3%. How is this possible unless there is some hidden genocide against the Amharic speaking people. By woyanes own admission there is a depopulation of amharas by about 2-3 million. The census was even repeated in the amhara region as it seemed unlikely for this to happen. But the repeat count came up to be the same. And the only explanation given by woyanes was HIV/AIDS and Contraceptive-high degree of birth control. This writer believes that woyanes are systematically using diseases(HIV/AIDS ,malaria) and other methods such as disabling amhara women from having babies(contraceptive and others) to eliminate the Amharas. As the poverty of the amhara region is so severe amhara women are almost singled out for prostitution and sexual exploitation. During the 1994 woyanes own census( which is basically consistent with the previous censuses), the amharas comprised about 31% of the Ethiopian population. During the 2007 census the amharas comprised just 25% of the Ethiopian population which is a big difference given the shortness of the time which is just 13 years.

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[ While the 2007 census was announced by the head of the census bureau, Meles was not in the parliament as usual. He was reportedly celebrating, with his founding colleagues( Bereket Simon , Sibhat nega , Seyum Mesfin ….), the success of TPLF as a guerilla movement and as a government. They all talked about how they set up the bombing of Hawzeen. We always love the people of Tigray . But we had to use Hawzeen to reach to our goal said the crime minister Meles Zenawi. On one hand the stupid Derg was condemned by the international community giving us incalculable political advantage. On the other hand, we got the unflinching support of all Tegarus. We sacrificed 1200 Tigrians to the Derg bomb but it was worth the gain. Meles Keep on saying it is not how many people you kill but how you kill that can get you to the spot light. He also proudly spoke about how TPLF eliminated about 2.5 million amhara chauvinists and their children within such a short time. If the trend continues it won’t be long before the threat of our enemies put to rest for once and for all said the crime minister Zenawi. He went on boasting about how TPLF managed to snatch the land from wollo and Gondar. Meles was overheard saying-using our policy of aggressive resettlement , Tigrianization, elimination of the local men, impregnating the local women by Tigrian  men, wolkait-tsegede and other amhara lands that we took, will be as Tigrian as Adwa and axum within few years.  He also said how TPLF is built and lead by smart people even than those of the Nazis. He said ,you see, it is due to the smartness of TPLF that no one ,let alone the international community and ordinary amharas ,even the so called amhara intellectuals, knows what we did to them. Bereket also has this to say: TPLF one of the best organizations ever existed on this planet has three basic characteristics for its success, namely
                        1. Ability to keep its Secret
                        2. ability how to eliminate its enemies
                        3. Alertness never to repeat mistakes ]

Desperate Chauvinists' Crusade Against Historical Ethiopian Personalities

By Mathza

Nov 03, 2010

“Ethiopian-Unity a Source of power or a source of Misery?” By Yohannes Haile, (ethioLion.com, September 2010) is among the latest articles on bashing TPLF and Tigrayans. It is a must read for all well meaning Ethiopians.

The author who claims to be in his twenties is saturated with all kinds of evils. He is racist, hateful, jealous, prejudiced, vengeful, etc. The lies, allegations, diatribes, etc. in every paragraph of his long article testify to this characterization. Although each and every one of them can be refuted, I will limit my commentary to one of them that reads:

-Tigrians are and always will be first Tigrains and then Ethiopians. Forget the nonsense of Tigray being the foundation/base of Ethiopia. They have been doing everything they could to undermine Ethiopia. They are to the most part responsible for the creation of Zemene Mesafi[n]t (the era of the prince[s]), a century of war and turmoil. They have been bleeding Ethiopia and its people whenever they feel like they could even if that means siding with foreign invaders. Yohannes IV sided with the invading British army and killed the visionary leader Tewodros and ravaged the people and animals of Gojame/ wollo /Gonder and shoa…

Every sentence in the paragraph is refutable. For example, what proof has he got to categorically state “they are to the most part responsible for the creation of Zemene Mesafi[n]t”? This is pure lie and unheard of. Apparently, he made it up. On the contrary Ras Michael Sehul of Tigray was invited to Gonder to help the declining monarchy. For brevity’s sake, suffice it here to state that he defended the monarchy in all possible ways but conditions did not allow him to prevent the situation from deteriorating to the Zemene Mesafint starting around 1760s during the reign of Emperor Yohannes II.

Now, let us concentrate on Emperor Yohannes IV and the people of Tigray. The statement regarding Yohannes IV is outrageous. His reign was a period when Ethiopia faced a series of invasions from Egypt (twice), Italy and the Mahdists of Sudan. In all over eight battles (between 1875 and 1889 mostly in Eritrea) were fought and won. The two victories over the Egyptian invaders sealed the aspiration of Egypt to control the headwaters of the Blue Nile. Egypt, apparently realizing that force was not the means, started to destabilize Ethiopia by: (a) creating, abetting, financing and supporting through other means, the so-called separatists/liberation fronts, religious extremists and expansionists and (b) mobilizing support of international institutions to starve Ethiopia of financing the development of its water resources. This heinous process continues to this very day. It was recently reported that Egypt openly declared its ethnic division strategy and that Egyptian investment in Ethiopia would enable it to retain its belligerency in relation to the Nile waters! It is time for the Egyptians to wake up from their thousands of years sleep.

Who defended Ethiopia during the above aggressions? Unlike the battle of Adwa when Ethiopians from all corners of the country participated, Tigrigna speakers from both sides of the Mereb River fought all the above invasions in which Ethiopia came out victorious. It was Emperor Menelik II who gave away the territory now known as Eritrea to Italy. During Yohannes IV’s rule, Kebessa and other parts of Eritrea were part and parcel of Ethiopia and administered by the legendary Ras Alula.

As regards, the allegation that Yohannes IV “sided with the invading British army and killed the visionary leader Tewodros “ the truth is Yohannes IV was, as all Ethiopians were, fed up with the atrocities of Emperor Tewodrs II and let the British pass through his territory. (Of course, the former did not kill the latter as insinuated.) The British expedition promised they would pull out after achieving their objective and they kept their word. On the contrary, Menelik II in his letter to Napier wrote “I was first willing to send (supplies) to you in a suitable manner, but my enemies are between us… Now I am far off, but I have no hesitation (to help).” This should not surprise readers as he had repeatedly sided with external enemies of Ethiopia. (See asteYohannes)*

As the above and the links show, the chauvinists of whom the writer is one conceal the heroism and country love of non-chauvinist Ethiopians. In the case of Yohannes IV, they intentionally exclude his name when talking and writing on or praising the most recent emperors. They jump from Tewodros II to Menelik II and Haile Sellassie I. The purpose of this tactic is obvious. It is to show that there is no history other than that of Amharas. By the same token, the history made and being made by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has no place in Ethiopian history. It should be noted here that the chauvinists comprise of an infinitesimally vociferous miniscule minority of Amhara and wannabe Amhara.

The exclusion referred to above applies to historical sites as well. Very often when writing about or advertising Ethiopian tourist destinations on the historic route, Axum and other historical sites (including the over 120 rock-hewn churches) in Tigray, are not mentioned let alone their historical significance described. Many years ago a friend told me that when he approached the woman at the tourist desk in Gion Hotel to reserve a room in Axum, she advised him to go to Bahdar, Gonder and Lalibela, noting that there is little to see in Axum. My friend experienced exactly the same thing a few years later. These two incidents show that there is a deliberate attempt at re-directing tourists to specific areas of the historic route. Statistics of the number of tourists support this conclusion.

The chauvinists, who by the way, include disgruntled Derg and EPRP remnants, vehemently resent the loss of political power and everything that went with it during the previous regimes. This is the main reason why they are avowed anti TPLF, Tigrayans and other Ethiopians that instituted the federal system and irreversibly made it work. This group is the one that was predicting the imminent disintegration of Ethiopia a la Yugoslavia when the EPRDF took over. They have continued with this daily rant ever since because of the ethnic-based federal structure to which they are vehemently opposed. This group was and is highly frustrated and worried. It knows that the adoption of federalism is what saved the country from being another Yugoslavia. It, like Menelik II, sides with external enemies of the country and encourages, supports, cooperates and joins forces with separatists like OLF and ONLF in undermining Ethiopia’s security, territorial integrity and interest. Note the participation of Eritreans, OLF and ONLF in the New York demonstration against Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. It is ironic how the chauvinists can be bedfellows with President Isayas Afeworki’s regime. It is very well known that they have not accepted the independence of Eritrea and want to repossess Asseb if not the whole of Eritrea. Despite this fact, they are doing every thing and will do anything to disintegrate Ethiopia, thereby fulfilling President Isayas Afeworki’s aspiration.

This group, which finds the change brought about by the EPRDF far too hard to swallow, is the source of most of the pathological lies, deceptions, exaggerations, rumors, spinning, etc. against the EPRDF, the government, the TPLF and the people of Tigray. The five part, particularly the last part, audio program (Gemena: Keguada…Eske…Godana) prepared by Zerihun Teshome posted on ethiopiafirst.com, 10/24/10) says it all.

The TPLF and the people of Tigray were and are in the forefront in defending the country against external invaders and bringing peace, stability and development that the Ethiopians increasingly are enjoying now. To the chagrin of the chauvinists, the majority of Ethiopians know this. This is why this radio active group and some of the oppositions would leave no stone unturned to avenge their loss and undermine the process of democratization and development. This is why the chauvinists incessantly and vehemently target TPLF and the people of Tigray.

Ethiopia, a large country, both in terms of area and population, is home for about 80 ethnic groups and multiple religions. These coupled with the complex negative interactions with the corresponding number of languages, traditions and cultures could have been a recipe for disaster following the fall of the Derg and the numerous liberation fronts at that time. In view of this, Ethiopia would have been in a situation much worse than that of Somalia had the chauvinists been in place of EPRDF.

History that will be written by genuine historians will surely expose the machinations of those who have been and are writing their versions exalting their ethnic leaders and ignoring the deeds of those of other ethnic Ethiopian heroes and leaders. The tactic of excluding historic personalities in writings and oral presentations and communications with the intention of denying Ethiopians of accurate information on the latter’s contributions to Ethiopia’s continued existence and historic events of significance will not work. There will come a time when the young generation who had been and are being hoodwinked by the old diehards spreading politics of hatred among Ethiopians will know the truth about the TPLF and Tigrayans. It has already started thanks to pioneers, particularly former Ethiopians who were against EPRDF, such as Negusie Woldemariam. The process is accelerating as shown by the Washington and New York demonstrations in support of the Prime Minister and the Ethiopian government. The nasty commentaries (about 23 out of 30) on Prof. Alemayehu G. Mariam’s Ethiopia: Feed Them and Bleed Them (nazret.com, 10/25/10) is another proof of Ethiopian Diaspora awakening to hate-mongers’ and ethnic bashers’ misinformation, machinations, lies, spinning, intimidations, etc, etc.

The Ethiopian nations, nationalities and peoples will not permit the chauvinists to highjack the victories that the former parents and brothers and sisters won with great sacrifices. There is, for sure, no going back. The federal system is here to stay. The recent WSLF and ONLF welcome steps taken show that Ethiopia has found in the federal structure solutions to its perennial ethnic and religious divergences and manipulating and distorting Ethiopian history. To the chagrin of the chauvinists, the nations and nationalities are now developing their languages, cultures and traditions and rewriting their true histories.