ጎጂ ባህሎቻችን (ክፍል 2)

«ጎጂ ባህሎቻችን» በሚል ርእስ ተከታታይ ጽሁፎችን እንደማቀርብ ከሳምንታት በፊት በተለቀቀው ክፍል 1 (ጽሁፉን ለማንበብ ይህን ይጫኑ http://tekluabate.blogspot.no/2013/10/blog-post_20.html) ጽሁፌ ላይ ቃል ገብቼ ነበር:: የመጣጥፎች ዓላማም የማይጠቅሙንን ባህሎች በሚገባ እንድንመረምርና ገንቢና ጠቃሚ ባሃሎቻችንን እንድንገነባ የሚያስችል የውይይት መድረክ መፍጠር ነው::

የተባበሩ ክንዶች ከሳውዲ ባሻገር

ሰሞኑን ቅስም ሰባሪ በሆነ ክስተት ውስጥ ራሳችንን አግኝተናል:: ውድ ኢትዮጵያውያን በሳውዲ አረቢያ ዘግናኝ የሆነ የሰብአዊ መብት ጥሰት እየተካሄደባቸው ነው:: የችግሮቹን አይነትና መጠን የኢትዮጵያውያን የመገናኛ ብዙኃን በሚገባ  እየዘገቡት ነው:: በአጠቃላይ ሲታይ ግን የሳውዲዎችን ርምጃ እንደሰው ለመረዳት የሚከብድ ነው:: በዚህ ዘመንና መንግስት ባለበት አገር እንዴት የሰው ልጅ በእንደዚህ አይነት ሁኔታ ካገር እንዲወጣ ይታሰባል? ህግን ለመጠበቅ ወይም ለማስከበር ሲባል በምንም ዋጋ የማይገኘውን ውድ የሰው ልጅ ህይወትን ማጥፋትና ማጎሳቆል እንዴት ሚዛን ይደፋል?

ጎጂ ባህሎቻችን

ባህል ብዙ ትርጉም ይኖረዋል:: ለእኔ ግን የአንድ ኅብረተሰብ የአስተሳሰብ: የጠባይና: የባህርይ መገለጫ ወይም ምልክት ነው:: በተፈጥሮ (በዘር ውርስ) የማይገኝና በሰው ብርቱ ጥረት የሚፈጠር ስለሆነ እያንዳንዱ አገር የራሱ የሆነ ልዩ ባህል አለው:: ለልጅ ልጅም በትምህርትና በተሞክሮ ያስተላልፋል:: በጊዜ ብዛትና በተለያዩ ብሄራዊ: ክልላዊና: ዓለም አቀፋዊ ጫናዎች የተነሳ ባህል ሊከለስ ሊዳብር ሊለወጥም ይችላል:: ያም ቢሆን ግን አገራት በባህላቸው ልዩ የሆኑ ናቸው (የዓለም ህዝቦች የሚጋሩትም ባህል እንዳለ ሳንረሳ):: በአጠቃላይ ባህል የኅብረተሰብን ምንነትንና ማንነትን ገላጭ ነው ቢባል የተጋነነ አይሆንም::

የማታ እንጀራ ይስጥህ!

አገር ቤት ያደገ ወይም የቆየ ሰው ብዙ አባባሎችንና ምርቃኖችን እድሜ ከጠገቡ (እድሜ ካስቆጠሩ) ሰዎች ይሰማል ይማራል:: ከነዚህም ውስጥ የማታ እንጀራ ይስጥህ የሚለው ምርቃት ቀልብን ይስባል:: ገና ነፍስ ሳላውቅ የዚህ አባባል ትርጉም አይገባኝም ነበር:: ትርጉሙን የመጠየቅም እድሉና አቅሙ አልነበረኝም:: ነገር ግን በ20ዎቹ የእድሜየ ክልል ሳለሁ አንድ የተባረከ ሰው ትርጉሙን ሲያብራራ ሰማሁት:: ሳልጠይቅ ያገኘሁት መልስ ነበር:: ከዚያ በኋላ ለአባባሉ ልዩ ክብር መስጠት ጀመርኩ:: 

አዲስ ፕሬዚደንት በአዲስ ዓመት

ሰባት ዓመት ገደማ ነው:: ባህር ዳር ከተማ ፓፒረስ ሆቴል ሻይ ቡና እያልኩ በሆቴሉ የመዋኛ ቦታ ዙሪያ እንደትል የሚርመሰመሱ ህጻናትና አዋቂ ሰዎችን እመለከታለሁ:: በሰዎች ብዛትና በመዋኛ ቦታው ስፋት አለመመጣጠን እየተገረምኩ ሳለ ድንገት የጦር ወሬ የተሰማ ይመስል ህዝቡ ሁሉ መሯሯጥ ጀመረ:: የሆቴሉ ሥራ አሥኪያጅና ሌሎች ሠራተኞች ዋናተኞችንና ሌሎች ተስተናጋጆችን ማዋከብ ጀመሩ:: ሁሉም ሰው ሆቴሉን ባስቸኳይ ለቆ እንዲወጣ ይለማመጣሉም ያመናጭቃሉም::

አዲስ ዓመት አዲስ ስብእና!

ኢትዮጵያ አዲስ ዓመት ልትቀበል አምስት ቀናት ይቀራታል:: 2006 ዓ.ም.:: በዚህ አዲስ ዓመት ሃገራችን ቢያንስ ዳጎስ ያለ ለውጥ ማየት ይኖርባታል ብዬ ተስፋ አደርጋለሁ:: ይህ ደግሞ  ምትሃትን ወይም ተአምርን አይፈልግም:: እያንዳንዳችን ድርሻችንን በሚገባ ከተወጣን ሊሳካ የሚችል ግብ ነው:: ከዚህ አኳያ በኔ እምነት ቀጥለው የተዘረዘሩትን ብንወጣ በአዲሱ ዓመት ቢያንስ ትክክለኛውን የለውጥ ጎዳና እንይዛለን:: ይህ ታላቅ ሃገራዊ ጎዳና የሚጀምረው ከእያንዳንዳችን ቤትና ግቢ ነው:: ይህ እውነታ ተዘንግቶ ለውጥ ለማምጣት መሞከር የራስን ግቢ ሳያጸዱ ያካባቢን ንጽህና እጠብቃለሁ ብሎ  እንደማሰብ ነው::

የትግራይ ህዝብ ሥጋትና የህወሓት ፖለቲካ

የትግራይ ህዝብ ከኢሕአዴግ መንግስት ምን ተጠቅሟል? የትግራይ ህዝብና መንግስት ምን አይነት ግንኙነት አላቸው? እነዚህንና ተያያዥ ጥያቄዎችን በተመለከተ አብርሃ በላይ ከመቀሌ አጥጋቢ መልስ ሰጥቷል:: አብርሃ እንደመነሻ ያደረገው ከአንድ የትግራይ ተወላጅ የቀረበለትን ጥያቄ ነው::  ጥያቄውም ይህ ነው:: “ኢህኣዴግን ትቃወማለህ፣ ግን ህዝብን ለለውጥ ኣነሳስተህ ከህወሓት የባሱ ፅንፈኛ የፖለቲካ ድርጅቶች ስልጣን ቢይዙስ ??? ስትቃወም ስለዉጤቱም ማሰብ ኣለብህ። በምትፅፋቸውን ነገሮች ለአዳንድ የትግራይ ጠላቶች መጋበርያ እየሆንክ ነው።”

Ethiopian New Year New Promises

New years seem to herald new beginnings in all cultures worldwide. There is a huge sense of euphoria and at times seriousness in relation to them. Relatives, friends, neighbors, and even those who appear to be ‘distant’ express to each other best wishes. The first day of a new year seems to beg for a new start in one’s life. 

The ESAT Discussion Forum in Virginia

The Ethiopian Satellite Television (ESAT) is organizing a discussion forum to be held on the 18th of August 2013 in Arlington,Virginia, the USA. The general topic for discussion is, according to ESAT Radio August 15th broadcast, on current Ethiopian affairs and on identifying possible "solutions" to Ethiopia's problems. Participants are from political parties, civic organizations, government officials, and the general public. Branded as the first of its kind, the discussion is expected to explore possible 'exits' from the ugly political scene Ethiopia finds itself for decades. This is a timely and crucial initiative that needs deliberations. I want to highlight some points related to the planned forum.

Inclusive Discourse: A Prelude to National Reconciliation

To ensure the rule of law, freedom, and democratic governance in Ethiopia, the opposition mainly use two modes of struggle. What appears to be the dominant modus operandi is peaceful struggle, to which all the political parties operating in Ethiopia are required to subscribe. Armed struggle is preferred by other opposition parties/groups, whose scale of operation seems unclear to date. A limited number of groups claim to be eclectic in their approaches, vowing to use any means available to bring genuine change. The government of Ethiopia dubbed those groups that use the last two approaches as “terrorists” and hence, their physical presence is limited to the jungles and foreign capitals.  

The Ethiopian Opposition: On Keeping the Momentum

For the last two decades, the ruling party, EPRDF, set the agendas for political discourse, putting the opposition to a clear defensive position. The former drafted, ratified, and implemented rulings and laws solo several of which are calculated to contain and neutralize any form of public dissent. The opposition has had nothing to do about it but to mildly shout that the political playing field was and is too narrow to play. Discourses related to national economics and development were/are also the exclusive business of the ruling party. Moreover, it was/is the EPRDF only who re-defined/s our border lines and our relations to neighboring countries. The opposition reacted in some forms to such maneuverings. Generally, one could safely argue that the EPRDF and the opposition have respectively assumed their offensive and defensive roles for years.  

Ethiopia after Meles

By Obang Metho
I would like to thank the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Congressman Edward Royce, and all ranking members of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations for this important opportunity to examine the Ethiopian Government’s observance of democratic and human rights principles in post-Meles Ethiopia.

Ethiopian Airlines: Awards and Boycotts

The 2013 World Airline Awards were announced this June and The Best Airline Staff Service in Africa award went to Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian). This is just one of the many awards Ethiopian amassed over the years for its continued expansions and for its grip on state of the art technology in the airline business. To me, Ethiopian is the only entity in Ethiopia that defines my concept of competitiveness and productivity and excellence. Ethiopian is not just about commerce and profit; it is a national image carrier. It just communicates Ethiopia to the world.  I wish all other institutions follow suit!

Keep Rallies Up!

The peaceful demonstration organized by the Semayawi party is a giant step towards success. Great job, the Blue guys and all the brave Ethiopians who are able to make it to the streets! Congratulations! I also congratulate the Ethiopian government for allowing this to happen although they were supposed to daily enact the rights of citizens enshrined in the constitution. Ensuring the rule of law is the only option available out there.

The Ethiopian Diaspora!

The Ethiopian Diaspora are making seminal contributions to socio-economic and political realities back home. Their support ranges from making financial contributions to opposition parties at home to communicating government's and oppositions' deeds to the international community. 

Off Political Taboos and Woos

The regime in Ethiopia and the opposition in the Diaspora and at home appear to live in totally different ‘worlds’. Each is a typical alien to the other. The governing party sees the opposition as powerless, incompetent, disorganized, delusional, visionless, and remnants of the past regime. The opposition, on the other hand, tend to characterize the reign of the current regime as a complete failure. Metaphorically speaking, the gap between the opposition and the regime is, with no exaggeration, as deep and long as the Great East African rift valley which dissects Ethiopia into two. This political rift must be one of the major obstacles that stands on our way to genuine or adequate democracy. 

How We Behave Online

Thanks to advances in information and communication technologies, people overcome spatio-temporal limitations. We communicate in real time regardless of where we live. Traditionally, communications and collaborations were made between people and organizations that somehow know each other well. These times see communications of all sorts being made between entities that do not know each other in person.

On Ethiopian Embassies

The website of the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs maintains that Ethiopia has 39 missions (embassies and consular offices) in Europe, North America, Asia, and Africa. These missions officially represent Ethiopia and poise to serve the Ethiopian Diaspora and Ethiopian-origin nationals. They also intend to encourage and facilitate the transfer of capital, technology, and science to Ethiopia. Since recent times, missions seem to aggressively work on 1) winning the hearts and minds of foreign investors particularly from the Arab world, India, and China, and 2) collecting funds for the construction of the “Grand Renaissance Dam”.

The Meles Zenawi Foundation

The government of Ethiopia organized a congress that founded the Meles Zenawi Foundation (MZF) on the 6th of April 2013 at the AU Hall in Addis Ababa. The foundation is set to establish a library, a research center, a fellowship programme, and a public park, and will also recognize great achievements. Present at the occasion were Meles family; senior government officials; Presidents of the Sudan, Uganda, and Djibouti; former President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo; Commissioner of the African Union (AU) Commission Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma; and other invited guests.

Forced Eviction of the Amharas

The government in Ethiopia is forcefully and inhumanly evicting the Amharas who used to live and work in Southern and Western parts of the country. This is contrary to the Ethiopian Constitution and other regional and international human rights and legal frameworks, to which Ethiopia is a signatory. This is one of the several atrocities orchestrated against the Amharas since EPRDF took office in 1991. The government at local, woreda, zonal, regional and federal levels must clearly understand that they will be fully accountable to this mindless act.  

Ethnic-based Politics in Ethiopia

According to the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia, there are 79 political parties registered under Proclamation No573/2008. Of these, only 29% have country-wide (national) identity whereas 71% are regional parties that are organized around ethnic lines.

Tigray Economics and Ethiopian Politics

During the last two decades, Tigray has occupied the minds of Ethiopians. That EPRDF’s (the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Party) creator, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), is native to Tigray explains all the discourses. Ordinary conversations, media reports, and developments on the ground all seem to testify that Tigray is being preferentially and positively treated in all fronts.

Asrat Woldeyes & Ethiopian Politics

September 1997. I was in Bichena, the stronghold of the hero Belay Zeleke. My plan was to reach at Addis Ababa University (AAU) for registration as final year undergraduate student. Unfortunately, the scheduled bus failed to appear. Everyday around 6pm, we passengers were supposed to get registered afresh, hoping the bus could come the next day. We did registration six times, that is for six days. My money generously given by my relatives run real fast and I was in shock. But most worrisome was whether I could reach for the registration at AAU. Every passing day seriously touched my nerves. That time, no mobile, no Internet. Was real dark time.

Addis Ababa!

What is Addis Ababa (henceforth Addis) to you? Just answer the question before you proceed to read. And I do not mean to stimulate answers such as: Addis is the capital city of Ethiopia; Addis is home to nearly all the ethnic groups of Ethiopia; it is also the political capital of Africa; it has a population of around five million; Addis has an average temperature of 22-26 degree Celsius. These are yes objective facts that are not hidden from an average person. My question requires answers that are probably unique to you and are value laden. 

The EOTC Decided

The 28^th of February 2013 seems to mark the end of the end of reconciliation efforts that were underway between the two Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church (EOTC) synods. Abune Matias, Archibishop of EOTC Jerusalem, was announced as the sixth patriarch of the EOTC. 

                                              Patriarch Abune Matias, Google picture 

The ESAT Society

                                           ESAT Logo, Copied from ECADF Website

Established on April 24, 2010 “to promote free press, democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law in Ethiopia”, the Ethiopian Satellite Television Service (ESAT) becomes one of the most trusted and reliable broadcast media. ESAT has its main studio in Amsterdam and branch studios in Washington D.C. and London. Its radio and television programmes cover nearly all socio-economic, cultural and political issues and topics. The major audience is the Ethiopian majority who happens to suffer from lack of credible and non-partisan media. In just nearly three years and despite serious interference by the Ethiopian government, ESAT is successfully creating a society of its own. A society who longs for freedom of all kinds, rule of law, and democratic governance in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia's Future Peace

Background

In his latest paper entitled “Ethiopia: Where do we go (or not go) from here?”, Professor Alemayehu cogently discussed possible trajectories Ethiopia would and should take in the years to come. He questioned how and to what extent the opposition is doing their jobs compared to what people in the governing party are doing. The implicit message of the paper is that the opposition and all concerned Ethiopians must choose and drive on the highway that leads to genuine democracy. I concur with his passionate call and would like to contribute to the discussion from a different perspective.

                                                    A symbol of peace, Google picture

African Diaspora for Development

Brain drain designates the international transfer of human capital from developing to developed countries due to ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors. In Africa, where starvation is pervasive, the economy is staggeringly poor, and development is at its inception, the flight of its limited human capital is even much more worrisome. Since 1990, the continent loses 20,000 professionals annually and currently, over 40,000 of its PhD holders are living overseas. Moreover, 50% of all medical doctors trained in Africa leave the continent. This has serious socio-economic ramifications. For instance, Africa spends over $4 billion USD a year to employ expatriates to fill vacant positions.

To download the paper, click the link below and enter the code you are to be provided by the system. 

http://www.ziddu.com/download/21484153/AfricanDiasporaforDevelopment.docx.pdf.html 

The EOTC Synod in Exile: Issues and Challenges

                                               The exile synod, picture taken from their website

Introduction

The reconciliation efforts underway between the EOTC home and exile synods seem to come to an abrupt halt. Technically speaking, it is the home synod who takes it to the limit. The ratification of a law that governs patriarch choice, the selection of patriarch nominating committee, the crystal clear decision not to allow Abune Merkorios to reassume his position, and the firm decision to proceed with election of patriarch are four of the many ‘hurdles’ put forward by the home synod that freeze the unity negotiations. Putting God’s will at a constant, one could reasonably conclude that the peace talks reached at a point of no return ‘thanks’ to the home synod.

A More Peaceful World in the Future but Ethiopia

I have read a couple of papers/reports that conclude that Ethiopia is one of the few countries in the world that would experience conflict in the future. While I was thinking about the reports, I got another one that speculates that the world would be a more peaceful place to live (with limited conflict) in the next decades. This study is  conducted by Professor Håvard Hegre of the Department of Political Science at the University of Oslo in cooperation with the Oslo Peace Research Institute. 

EOTC Synod Relived its Failure

Millions of Ethiopians have been closely following the peace and unity talks underway between the two competing synods. There was a general understanding and optimism that the synods would make sacrifices of all sorts to ensure reconciliation. The optimism seems to be effectively dashed out as of yesterday. In their general assembly, the EOTC synod in Addis passed several decisions that successfully put aside the peace and unity initiatives. They decided, among others, that Abune Merkorios would not be allowed to head the patriarchate; election for the sixth patriarch should proceed as planned; members of the synod abroad could participate in the election should they agree; and the peace talks should continue. These decisions are planned to sustain the leadership crisis the church has been suffering from for years.

Spying the Spy

Spying or espionage is a clandestine act of collecting, transferring and/or communicating sensitive information to a third party without the consent of the information holder. Information is collected about an actual, perceived, or potential enemy or competitor. The final goal of spying is to make informed decisions, which would ensure the safety and security of state apparatus, citizens, and/or organizations and institutions. The witty thing is that espionage is illegal in many countries around the world. What is publicly known and legally and ethically sound is intelligence gathering, which usually collects information from public, open sources.

Ethiopians in the Middle East

Introduction

Twenty years ago, my cousin returned from the Middle East totally incapacitated, physically as well as psychologically. I recall that people were talking about her doomsday, that she threw herself down from her employer’s many-storey building. She was paralyzed from her neck all the way down to her feet. Even more, she got a rumbling mind that she kept crying and insulting all day. I recall how her parents were devastated by her condition, as they expected her to win her life and then to be a role model to her siblings. After battling with all sorts of complications and excruciating pains for months, she finally passed away, leaving behind a psychological scar to the family. The scar was the result of their guilt for allowing her to leave for the Middle East while they were and still are the richest persons in their town.