በማሳቹሴትስ፣ ሜይን፣ ኒው ሜክሲኮ፣ ፍሎሪዳ፣ ዴላዌር፣ ከነቲከት እና ኒው ሐምፕሻዬር ለምትኖሩ ወገኖቻችን በሙሉ የቀረበ ታላቅ ጥሪ (January 12, 2021)
እኤአ ጃንዎሪ 17 ቀን 2021 ከቀኑ 3፡00 PM (ET) ክቡር አምባሳደር ፍጹም አረጋ በተገኙበት “አሻራዬን አኖራለሁ“ በሚል መሪ ቃል የታላቁ የኢትዮጵያ ህዳሴ ግድብ ድጋፍ ማሰባሰብ ማስጀመሪያ ታላቅ የዙም ውይይት እንድትሳፉ በአክብሮት ጥሪያችንን እናቀርባለን!
The US-based Mihret Medical Supply Group (MMSG) has donated medicines and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) worth $290,000 to Ethiopia.
Ambassador of Ethiopia to the United States, Fitsum Arega, tweeted that the donation “is for patients & health workers in Ethiopia.”
Ambassador Fitsum thanked MMSG for the donations and the transportation of the equipment.
Ethiopia has reported 128, 316 COVID-19 cases, with 1,994 deaths so far.
H.E. Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Ethiopia has met and discussed with cluster leaders of Ethiopia’s Public Diplomacy team today (January 09) at his office.
The meeting aimed at deliberating ways to better use the public diplomatic team in promoting and protecting the sovereignty of the country.
The Deputy Prime Minister spoke at length during the occasion regarding principal issues in the country.
Deliberations have also been made following presentations of detailed plans by the cluster leaders regarding tasks that need to be carried out by the public diplomacy team.
The meeting ended with the Deputy Prime Minister’s appreciation to the proposals submitted by the team and reiteration on the Ministry’s commitment to support and jointly work with the public diplomacy team.
The Ethiopian Public Diplomacy team was established a decade ago where it has shown its crucial role in facilitating smooth people-to-people relationships between Ethiopia and its neighbors, notably people of the Nile Basin countries.
Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Ethiopia and Joseph Borrell, High Representative for the Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of European Union conferred yesterday over the phone and exchanged views on the current humanitarian situation in Tigray regional state.
Demeke briefed the High Representative on the reconstruction and rehabilitation activities in the region which is being implemented under a cluster-based coordination mechanism.
The Government and humanitarian organizations are working in close coordination to effectively address the humanitarian needs in the region, he said.
Both the Deputy Prime Minister and the High Representative have agreed to continue to work closely to scale-up the efforts in the provision of humanitarian assistance in the region and strengthen the closer collaboration between Ethiopian and the European Union.
የዘንድሮውን የልደት በዓል የምናከብረው በዚህ ዓመት ያሳለፍነውን ፈታኝ ተጋድሎና ከፊታችን የሚጠብቀንን ወሳኝ ዕድል እያሰብን ነው። አሁን በፈተናና በዕድል መካከል እንገኛለን። ዓለምም የመጀመሪያውን የክርስቶስ ልደት ያከበረችው በፈተናና በዕድል መካከል ሆና ነበር። በአዳም በደል ምክንያት የመጣው የመከራ ዘመን እያለፈ፤ የመከራው ዋና ምንጭ የሆነው ዲያብሎስ፣ በማኅጸን በተጀመረ የማዳን ሥራ እየተሸነፈ፤ የጨለማው ንጉሥ እየተረታ፤ የዘመናት ቋጠሮ እየተፈታ ነበር። ከፊት ደግሞ የመዳን፣ የብርሃን፣ የሰላም፣ የነጻነት እና የፍቅር ዘመን እየመጣ ነበር።
ነገሩ ግን ሂደቱ ቀላል አይደለም። የጨለማው ዘመን አበጋዞች እንዲነጋ አልፈለጉም። ሊመጣ ያለው ድኅነት የማያስቀሩት ቢሆንም እንኳን፤ የሚያሸንፉት እስኪመስሉ ድረስ ተፍጨርጭረዋል። እየበራ ያለውን መብራት የሚያጠፉት ያህል ታግለዋል። የተከፈተውን የብሩኅ ተስፋ መስኮት የሚከረችሙት ያህል ፎክረዋል። የተሸነፈውን ዘንዶ ዳግም ሕይወት የሚዘሩለት ያህል ተገዳድረዋል። ግን ይህ ሁሉ አልሆነም።
ሄሮድስ ተነሥቶ ነበር። ብዙዎችንም በአሰቃቂ ሁኔታ ገድሏል። ዘመኑም የብሩኅ ተስፋ ሳይሆን የመከራ ዘመን መስሎ ነበር። በክርስቶስ መወለድ የተፈጠረው ደስታ፣ በቤተልሔም ሕጻናት ግድያ የደበዘዘ እስኪመስል። በበረት ውስጥ የተፈጠረው ተስፋ፣ በድንግል ማርያምና በክርስቶስ መሰደድ ያበቃለት እስኪመስል። በመላእክት ዝማሬ የተበሠረው አዲስ ዘመን፣ በሄሮድስ አበጋዞች ጭፍጨፋ ሕልምና ተረት እስኪመስል። የኦሪት ዘመን አበቃ ሲባል፤ በኦሪት ዘመን የማይሠራ ግፍ፣ በዘመነ ሐዲስ በቤተልሔም ከተማ ተከሠቷል። ብዙዎችንም ተስፋ አስቆርጧል።
ቢሆንም መከራው አላፊና ጠፊ እንጂ ዘላቂ አልነበረም። ያ እንደ ተራራ የገዘፈ የመሰለው ሽብር እንደ እንቧይ ካብ የሚፈርስ፤ እንደ ባሕር የሰፋ የመሰለው መከራ እንደ መጋቢት ወንዝ የሚነጥፍ፤ የማይሸነፉ የሚመስሉት ሁሉ እንደ ጎልያድ የሚወድቁ፤ አስጨናቂዎች ሁሉ መልሰው የሚጨነቁ መሆናቸውን – ያሳየ አጋጣሚ በዚያን ዘመን ተከሥቷል። ለዚያም ነው ሁሉም አልፎ ዛሬ ድረስ የልደትን በዓል ልዩ ትርጉም ሰጥተን የምናከብረው።
ውድ የሀገሬ ሕዝቦች፣
አሁን ኢትዮጵያ በልደቱ ቀን ቆማ ልደትን የምታከብር ሀገር ናት። ተስፋዋን፣ ሰላሟን፣ ንጋትና ብልጽግናዋን እንዳታይ በዙሪያዋ የቆሙ የሄሮድስ አበጋዞች አሉ። በቻሉት መጠን መከራችን እንዲቀጥል ይፈልጋሉ። የተወለደልንን የተስፋ ብርሃን ለመግደል ይጥራሉ። ከተማዋን የዋይታ ከተማ ለማድረግ ይለፋሉ። ነገን እንዳናይ መስኮቶችን ሁሉ ይዘጋሉ። ወደ ተስፋ መጠጊያ ዋሻችንን በቋጥኝ ደፍነው በቀቢጸ ተስፋ ውስጥ እንድንቆይ የተቻላቸውን ሁሉ ያደርጋሉ።
ሆኖም ግን ፈተናችንን ያበዙብን ሄሮድሶች ከብልጽግና መንገዳችን አያስቀሩንም፤ እስከ መጨረሻው ሕቅታቸው ወደ ኋላ ሊጎትቱን ቢጥሩም ጨርሶ ከጉዟችን ሊያስቆሙን አይችሉም። በመንገዱ ላይ የዘሩትን አሜከላ እየለቀምን፣ እንቅፋትና ጋሬጣውን ተሻግረን ከተራራው እናት መውጣታችን አይቀርም። የተሰበረውን ድልድይ ጠግነን፣ ከችግሮቻችን በላይ ከፍ ብለን ያለጥርጥር ኢትዮጵያን ወደ ተስፋዋ አድማስ እናደርሳታለን።
ገና ያኔ የለውጥ ጉዟችን ሲወለድ ጀምሮ ተመሳሳዩን ሲያደርጉ ነበር። በየወቅትና አጋጣሚው ጉዟችን እንዲሰናከል ያልወረወሩት ድንጋይና ያልጣሉት ጋሬጣ አልነበረም። ከመንገዳችን ሳንሰናከል ገፍተናል፤ በፈተናዎቻችን ትምህርት፣ በችግሮቻችን ጥንካሬ፣ በእንቅፋቶቻችን ብርታት እያገኘን ዛሬ ላይ ደርሰናል። ከእያንዳንዱ ጨለማ ወዲያ ንጋት መኖሩን እያመንን፣ ዐይናችንን ወደ ወጋጋኑ አቅንተን ጉዟችንን ቀጥለናል። እኛ አንድ ወደ ፊት በተራመድን ቁጥር ችግሮቻችን ወደኋላ ይሸሻሉ፤ እኛ ይበልጥ በበረታን ቁጥር እነሱ ይሸነፋሉ።
ያም ሆኖ አንድ ልብ ሊባል የሚገባው እውነት አለ። ለኢትዮጵያ የፈነጠቀውን የተስፋ ብርሃን ከእንግዲህ ማንም ሊያጠፋው አይቻለውም ሲባል እስከናካቴው አይሞክርም ማለት አይደለም። የሄሮድስ ወታደሮች ሕጻኑን ክርስቶስ እስከ ግብጽ ድንበር ድረስ እንደተከታተሉት ሁሉ ፈታኞቻችን ነገም ይከተሉናል።
እንቅፋቶቻችን መልካቸውን እየቀያየሩ በመንገዳችን ላይ መቆማቸውን ይቀጥላሉ። ከእንግዲህ የኢትዮጵያ የትንሣኤ ጉዞ ፍጥነቱ ከምንም በላይ የሚወሰነው በእኛ ጥንካሬ እንጂ በእነሱ ችግር ፈጣሪነት መጠን አይደለም፤ መሆንም የለበትም።
እኛ እስካልፈቀድንላቸው ድረስ ለሀገራችን የተወለደውን ተስፋ ሊያመክኑት፣ የተለኮሰውን ፋና ሊያጠፉት አይችሉም። ጨልሞባት የነበረችው ሀገራችን ምሽቷ መንጋት ጀምሯል – እኛ ከበረታን ዳግም በእነሱ ሤራ አይጨልምም። ያጎበጣት የዘመናት ፍዳ አንዴ መደርመስ ጀምሯል – እኛ ችላ እስካላልን ድረስ ዳግም አይቆለልም። ከእንግዲህ የኢትዮጵያ ስኬትና ውድቀት ማዕከሉ የእኛ ጥንካሬና ድክመት ነው ብለን ማመን አለብን።
ውድ ወገኖቼ፣
ከተስፋችን አንጻር ፈተናችን ብዙ ባይሆንም ወደፊት ይበልጥ መፈተናችን እንደማይቀር ማወቅ አለብን። ወደ ተስፋ በተጠጋን ቁጥር የመከራው ብርታት እንደሚጨምር ያለፉት ሦስት ዓመታት ጥሩ ማሳያዎች ናቸው። በመከራ ውስጥ ከሚመጣ መከራ ይልቅ በተስፋ ውስጥ የሚመጣ መከራ እጅግ ይከብዳል የሚባለውም ለዚህ ነው። በአንድ በኩል ልቡና ተስፋ እያደረገ ፈተና ሲገጥመው ያማርራል። በመከራ ውስጥ ሆኖ መከራ ሲገጥመው ግን ‹የበሰበሰ ዝናም አይፈራም› እንደሚባለው በአማራጭ ማጣት ይታገሣል። በተስፋ ውስጥ ፈተና የሚያጋጥመው ሰው ግን እምነት ያጣል። አእምሮው ለሐሴት እንጂ ለሑከት አልተዘጋጀም። ከትግል ጊዜ ይልቅ በድል ጊዜ ብዙዎች ይሞታሉ የሚባለው ለዚህ ነው። በትግል ጊዜ የነበራቸው የመሥዋዕትነት ሥነ ልቡና በድል ጊዜ አይገኝም።
ኢትዮጵያ ሁለቱም ያጋጥማት ይሆናል። ተስፋ ባነገበች ሀገር ላይ ተስፋ መቁረጥ፤ ሰላም ባነገበች ሀገር ላይ ግጭት፤ ብልጽግናን ባነገበች ሀገር ላይ ውድመት ይመጣባት ይሆናል። መነሻችን ‹አያዎ› ነው – ‹አይ እና አዎ›። መድረሻችን ግን ‹አዎ› ብቻ ነው። ብርሃን ጨለማን፤ ሰላም ጦርነትን፣ ፍቅር ጥላቻን፤ አንድነት መለያየትን፣ ብልጽግና ኋላቀርነትን ማሸነፋቸው አይቀሬ ነው። በልቅሶ የሚዘሩ በደስታ ማጨዳቸው የማይቀር ነው።
ከወፍ ዕንቁላል ውስጥ ጠንካራው ቅርፊቱ ነው። ጫጩቷ ቅርፊቱን ሰብራው ከወጣች በኋላ ግን ጠንካራ መሆኑ ያበቃል። ጫጩቷ ታድጋለች፤ ቅርፊቱ ግን በተቃራኒው መፈራረስ ይጀምራል። ጫጩቷ ትበራለች፤ ቅርፊቱ ዱቄት ይሆናል፤ ብሎም ይበሰብሳል። ጫጩቷ ወፍ ሆና ሌሎች ዕንቁላሎች ትጥላለች፤ ሌሎች ጫጩቶችንም ትፈለፍላለች። ቅርፊቱ ግን ይበልጥ እየበሰበሰ ወደ አፈርነት ይለወጣል። የኢትዮጵያም ችግሮች እንደዚሁ ናቸው። ለጊዜው ጠንካራና ዙሪያችንን ከብበው የያዙን ይመስላሉ። ይህ የሚሆነው ግን እስክንሰብራቸው ድረስ ብቻ ነው። ከዚያ በኋላ እኛ ከችግሮቻችን መብለጣችን አይቀሬ ነው።
ከክርስቶስ ልደት የምንማረው ይሄንን ነው። የትናንቱ ሲያልፍ ዝም ብሎ አያልፍም። የመጨረሻ ሙከራውን አድርጎ ነው የሚያልፈው። ልክ እንደሄሮድስ ሙከራ። የነገውም ዝም ብሎ አይመጣም፤ በተጋድሎ ነው የሚመጣው። ልደት ግን በሚያልፍ መከራና በሚመጣ ዕድል መካከል መሆኑ አይቀሬ ነው። ኢትዮጵያም እያለፈችው በምትሄደው መከራና፣ እያገኘችው በምትመጣው ዕድል መካከል ናት።
‹ዛሬ› በትናንትና በነገ መካከል ስለሆነ የሁለቱም መልክ ይታይበታል። ከትናንት የወረሰው መከራ፤ ከነገ የተዋሰው ደስታ አለው። ንጋት ማለት በሚያልፍ ጨለማና በሚመጣ ቀን መካከል ነው። መሽቷል ያለ ይተኛል፤ ነግቷል ያለ ይነሣል። የእኛም ምርጫ ይሄው ነው። መሽቷል ብለን እንተኛለን ወይስ ነግቷል ብለን እንነሣለን?
መልካም የልደት በዓል ይሁንልን።
ኢትዮጵያ በልጆቿ ጥረት ታፍራና ተከብራ ለዘላለም ትሩር!!
ፈጣሪ ኢትዮጵያና ሕዝቦቿን ይባርክ!
ታኅሣሥ 28፣ 2013 ዓ.ም
H.E. Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia and H.E. Ambassador Girma Biru, macroeconomic advisor to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, chaired today (January 05) the regular meeting of the joint forum that was established to tackle challenges of attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Ethiopia.
The meeting deliberated the types of problems investors are facing in the country today and measures taken to alleviate the observed hurdles.
At the occasion, H.E. Lelise Neme, Commissioner of Ethiopian Investment Commission, has tabled a paper reflecting on monitoring mechanisms of the post-investment performance of the foreign investors in the country.
The Commissioner also spoke in detail on the performance and suitability of Ethiopia’s business environment in maintaining and expanding the ongoing investments as well as creating business linkages for foreign investors
Mrs. Lelise’s presentation showed that lack of coordination among institutions, bureaucratic bottlenecks, poor understanding of investment guidelines by investors coupled with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are observed as bottlenecks for a smooth flow of FDI in the country.
The meeting underscored the importance of working in concert among institutions and charted out the way forward with tasks that stakeholders should carry out.
Ministers and high-level officials as well as representatives of relevant stakeholders attended the meeting.
The trilateral meeting on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam will resume on Sunday January 10, 2021 when experts from the three countries are expected to present identified common positions and differences, according to Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The negotiations on GERD which resumed this week are chaired by South Africa International Cooperation Minister.
Briefing the media today, Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Dina Mufti said ministers of water, and foreign affairs were part of the delegations who discussed the way forward based on the modalities presented by the experts.
“Though the modalities were accepted with conditions by our side and the Sudanese side with certain recommendations. But the Egyptian side has entirely rejected the modalities,” the spokesperson revealed.
Finally, the ministers decided that the experts of the respective three countries continue identifying and sorting out differences and common positions that have been registered so far and to come up with the outcomes, he elaborated.
According to the spokesperson, the experts will present common positions by the three parties and the differences to the meeting which will take place on Sunday.
Asked about the Ethio-Sudan border situation, Dina confirmed that Ethiopia has still a firm position that the situation will be resolved in a peaceful manner through dialogue and diplomatic means.
He noted that “Ethiopia always considers the big picture of the two countries’ relation. That is why its doors are still open for dialogue and negotiations to settle the situation in a sustainable manner.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, H.E. Mr. Demeke Mekonnen discussed today (January 04) with Ambassadors and representatives of members of Human and Resilience Donor Group (HRDG) on the current humanitarian situation in Tigray.
Attending the meeting were also H.E. Mufarihat Kamil, Minister of Peace, H.E.Redwan Hussein, State Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Mitiku Kassa Commissioner for National Disaster Risk Management, and Director for Administration for Refugee and Returnee Affairs (ARRA).
Mr. Demeke appreciated member countries of the Group for their support and briefed the Ambassadors on the ongoing humanitarian activities in the Tigray region and the results achieved thus far.
The Deputy Prime Minister said food items, commodities, and medical supplies are being provided in the region to address the needs of the beneficiaries.
As agreed between the Government of Ethiopia and the UN Resident Coordinator, and using the existing coordination mechanism, the provision of humanitarian assistance is going as planned said the Deputy Prime Minister.
Recalling the colossal destruction caused on infrastructure by the TPLF junta, Mr. Demeke briefed the Ambassadors on the daunting task of reconstruction that is now underway with telecommunication lines being restored in almost all parts of the region and financial institutions resumed their operations.
The Deputy Prime Minister also said that relevant government institutions are working closely with donor communities and will continue to do so to effectively and timely address issues of refugees and those who need humanitarian assistance.
The interim administration is also working tirelessly in making sure that different levels of the administration of the region provide the necessary services including engaging the community to effectively respond to the development needs of the people in the region, said Mr. Demeke.
Ministers and other officials of the Ethiopian government present at the meeting also provided detailed information on the work that is underway to address the humanitarian situation in Tigray.
An understanding was reached to continue the engagement with the Group to work together to further scale-up humanitarian activities in the region.
The Ambassadors appreciated the government of Ethiopia for taking the initiative to brief them on current issues in detail.
The virtual meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Ministers of Water Affairs of Ethiopia, Egypt, and Sudan is held on 03 January 2021. The meeting is convened by the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of the Republic of South Africa and Chairperson of the AU Executive Council.
The Ministers exchanged views on the continuation of the trilateral negotiation focusing on a draft document presented by the experts assigned by the Chairperson of the African Union. Ethiopia pronounced its positive outlook towards the draft document and expressed its willingness to use it as a single work document for the trilateral negotiation. Similarly, Sudan conveyed the importance of the document for the progress of the negotiation and its willingness to proceed with the negotiation with a defined role of the AU experts. Egypt categorically rejected the document.
Most of the issues on the first filling and annual operation of the GERD are agreed on. The main difference lies on the co-relations between the GERD Guidelines and Rules and the future water development projects on the Abbay Basin.
The GERD is a non-consumptive hydroelectric generating dam. Any agreement over the dam, which is being negotiated in the absence of a comprehensive water treaty and the prevalence of an unjust status-quo, shall be considerate of these fundamental factors. Ethiopia will not agree to a GERD deal that will in any way restrict its right to use the Nile waters.
On this basis, Ethiopia is committed to conclude the negotiation with good faith to reach an agreement. Accordingly, Ethiopia forwarded alternative approaches to Egypt and Sudan, which is hoped to garner their affirmative response.
In the coming week, the trilateral meetings will continue at expert’s level with oversight of ministers of water affairs, to take stock of agreed and outstanding issues to be presented to the six ministers meeting that is expected to be held on Sunday the 10th of January 2021.
BY DEMEKE MEKONNEN (FDRE DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS)
It has been two months since the TPLF clique has launched its onslaught on the Ethiopian Defence Forces stationed in Mekelle. What they call ‘a pre-emptive lightning’ attack has unveiled the true nature of the group both to the international community and the people of Ethiopia.
Ethiopians have observed how the group gradually morphed from being the ‘friends of the oppressed’ into evil incarnate during the group’s grip on power for almost three decades. However, the unwarranted strike not only took the nation by surprise but shock it to the core given the detail of the project that mercilessly butchered the unsuspected soldiers as well as hundreds of civilian people in Mai-Kadra town.
It was not that hard for Ethiopian’s to adjust their understanding of the group and to what extent it debases itself in its cupidity and lust for power.
But it was extremely hard, if not impossible, to change the minds of the international community that the clique stupefied with its propaganda for almost three to four decades. Thus, we were not that much surprised to observe renowned media outlets succumb to the group’s propaganda and kept on philosophizing on why and how the government started the war.
They prefer to stick to their narrative that the government used the law enforcement operation as a pretext to attack the group and weaken the federal governing structure than digging to find facts on the ground. Thanks to one of the members of the junta who officially gloated on their own media the clique’s success in the pre-emptive attack of the Northern Command, the world seems to understand who the belligerent side was.
The junta has been active in leading an orchestrated mainstream and social media campaign that perpetuates lies and seems to impair some members of the international community’s ability to pass informed decisions on the matter.
Sensing the government’s and the people of Ethiopia’s uncompromising attitude to protect the country’s sovereignty, the clique had launched rockets to cities in the Amhara region and neighbouring Eritrea in its desperate attempt to cover up its criminal deeds under the ‘guise’ of regionalized war.
Due to the inflated self-image that it has portrayed in the minds of the international community, the group wanted to sell the message that it was not a group of thugs under a ‘wanted list’ by the government but a legitimate group that can stand on equal footing with the federal government of Ethiopia and the Eritrean government.
The trick seemed to have worked for a while when the international community urged and sometimes ‘pressurized’ the Ethiopian government to sit for negotiation with the criminals.
I have seen the impact of the cliques’ propaganda during my tour in Europe leading an Ethiopian delegation and met as well as brief the Leaders on the objectives of the law enforcement operation. Although they understood what was going on the ground, they also seem to have been bought into some of the clique’s intentionally exaggerated and distorted narratives propelled by disproportionate coverage of the issue by the mainstream media and social media accounts of well-known people and trollers too.
It took quite a time to make the leaders really understand that the group had been playing victim while it was the belligerent, summarily kill people, displace them and loot their property while implicating it on the federal government.
Our delegation’s efforts were successful although some statements issued by the European Union seem to indicate the presence of remaining undercurrents which, we suspect, are the influence of the clique’s propaganda.
Just like in Ethiopia, in most of the neighbouring countries that I visited recently, the mainstream and social media penetration is relatively low compared to the developed nations. Thus, it would be very hard to get leaders that are easily deceived by the sheer volume of information on the media, which may or may not be true.
This was helpful to the delegation that I led to these countries since they were not victims of prejudices regarding the objectives of the law enforcement operation in Tigray. Their direct or indirect experience with the junta, during its time at the wheel, might have also contributed a lot in sympathizing with the law enforcement measure taken against the TPLF clique.
The success of the diplomatic efforts of Ethiopia and its genuine and friendly attitude towards its neighbours has already been manifested during the recently held IGAD’s 38th Extraordinary Assembly.
We believe that the media are there not just to inform but to influence policymakers too. But unless the media remains to be ‘the marketplace of ideas,’ in its true sense, then relevant stories tend to be stifled and the true nature of things left to be uncovered.
A casual observation of social media messages, for instance under the heading #Ethiopia on Twitter, at any given moment, will tell you how an organised and orchestrated group stifles the free flow of information by releasing a cumbersome amount of lies almost on every second.
If such lies are accompanied by the mainstream media, which already suffer from selective perception in dealing with some issues related to the law enforcement operation, then one can find potent weapons to attack the truth.
Yes, in the absence of information and access to facts, journalism suffers. But when ample information and evidence are provided and reveal the naked truth on issues of the law enforcement operation, the government and people of Ethiopia expect a fair, if not objective, report from seasoned media outlets.
Yes, no access to banking, telecommunication and transport and other services is a news story. But how is that not newsworthy when evidence is provided on the responsible bodies who disrupted such services in the first place? And above all, doesn’t the restoration of communication and electric lines qualify as a news story? To my knowledge, no media has made a report on the video that was provided by the Ethiopian Telecommunication office at Mekelle showing how some people cut the lines before the government announced the capture of Mekelle.
No one also reported the TPLF clique-led bank robberies that made resuming banking services difficult in the region. There was no mentioning of the destruction on infrastructure which includes the destruction of Axum Airport.
Despite the continued misrepresentation in the media, we are really deep into forming a new administrative structure in the Tigray region. The interim government of Tigray has been busy restoring normal administrative services in the region by forming responsible bodies that are deemed to fit to serve the public.
Leaders of competing political parties even get the chance, for the first time in decades, to serve the public and voice their opinions on things that matter in the region.
The interim government has been mobilizing the public from the grassroots level and engaging all people from all walks of life to participate in the process of normalizing life in the region. People in Tigray deserve peace and they are eventually getting it. Isn’t that good news? But true to form, some media outlets have never considered this as a legitimate agenda for coverage.
The ‘good news doesn’t sell media outlets,’ seem to be unhappy with the unexpected demise of the TPLF clique. The main news actors, whom the Ethiopian government is hunting for criminal deeds, are no more in the scene.
The reality on the ground now is relative peace in the region and remarkable joint efforts of the federal government and the interim government of Tigray to rehabilitate affected people and displace ones in addition to rebuilding public goods that were demolished by the irresponsible criminal clique.
The media seem to reverberate with unfounded statements by some international organizations and aid agencies, which sometimes amount to outright infringements on the sovereignty of the country. Echoing and magnifying every accusation, including those forwarded by international agencies and their leaders is a far cry from Ethical journalism.
Reporting some sporadic incidents in the Tigray region as manifestations of protracted insurgencies wouldn’t also help anyone. What makes us free all here is the public’s right to know the truth shall not be hampered by hidden agendas and vested interests of various bodies.
As I write this, people in the Tigray region are enjoying the fruits of peace and tranquillity and have started to exercise their rights, such as entertaining pluralistic views regarding politics or anything else for that matter, for the first time since the change in the political dispensation two and half years ago.
The TPLF clique, for decades, have been trying to persuade the people of Tigray, other Ethiopians and the international community that the fate and the wellbeing of the Tigrean people are intertwined with the fate of the TPLF. In a sense, it amounts to say that the Tigrean people are one and the same with the TPLF. How on earth is this humanly possible? And yet some people, including some elements in the international community, seem to buy this propaganda.
Following the capture of Mekelle by the federal government forces, the opposite of what many have feared to occur has happened. Now people are free, people have realized that the fate of the Tigrean people cannot be tied to the life span of a political party, which proved itself criminal at the end of the day.
People and professional journalists should carefully consume the social media messages of the privileged few Tigreans who happen to live abroad. Their lies, and sometimes genuine information formulated on unfounded fear, should not confuse the international community on the true needs of the public in the Tigray region.
Talk to people in the streets of Mekelle or anywhere in Tigray, they will gladly tell you that they are happy for not sacrificing their lives to the selfish needs of the TPLF clique who did almost nothing to the betterment of the Tigrean people during their nearly 30 years stay in power.
The government in concert with pertinent local and international partners has been providing the affected community in Tigray with all the needed humanitarian aids in addition to carrying out coordinated activities to sustainably rehabilitate the people.
I have observed that some Ethiopians who live abroad and those of Ethiopian origin are countering the false media narratives of TPLF sympathizers and reckless statements by some politicians and ‘scholars’ in Europe and the US. Some Ethiopians have gone to the extent of petitioning against statements made by our partners in Europe that failed to paint the true picture in Tigray. I appreciate all of these initiatives but a lot remains to be done.
Although the truth finally prevails, we should not idly wait for it to arrive. We should strive, at least, to minimize the damage that the lies inflict on the image of our country and our people. While thanking those compatriots who relentlessly try to disseminate the truth about the situation, I would like to remind all that you don’t need to be well versed to write complicated issues in defending the sovereignty of your country.
You can at least tweet unceasingly on the positive things of your country. You may have to prefer group efforts to individual ones to exert maximum pressure. Remember, we are now in a different time where technology is dramatically shifting the meaning and works of diplomats.
In a sense, with social media at hand, every Ethiopian living abroad is his country’s diplomat. The new diplomacy along with the traditional ones impersonated through our diplomats in various missions should work in tandem for exerting maximum pressure to keep our country’s integrity and well-being intact.
The way the media portrays the federal government’s law enforcement operation and the orchestrated heinous and inimical messages of some social media trollers is a wake-up call to our Ministry.
It has reminded us of the need to undertake institutional level transformation on using social media platforms in addition to the mainstream ones. We are now giving training to our staffers to make them fit the requirements of the new age diplomacy.
We have also been working with social media users who relate their works in various languages and subject matters to address audiences who are fragmented in line with age, language and other interests. Building media institutions that are well versed with the application of the new age communication platforms should also be the assignment of the government to dwell serious time on.
The Ethiopian herald January 1/2021