What Price The Fight for Democracy in Ethiopia?

Washera

April 20101

In the last five years, I have been involved in the political debate affecting our country, Ethiopia. My interest peaked following the historic 2005 elections and the debacle that followed its outcome. The refusal of the opposition party members to join parliament and head to prison instead, caused me unimaginable grief and loss of hope to what could have been a remarkable achievement in the democratic movement in Ethiopian.
As a combination of luck, pursuit of professional career and family obligation, I was spared the successes or dramatic failures of political players in Ethiopia in the past decades. Except a brief stint in the early ninties, I was an unknown quantity in Diaspora politics. This afforded me an opportunity to explore the Ethiopian political landscape with pure objectivity. I consumed all the writings of Ato Lidetu Ayalew, Dr. Berhanu Nega’s diatribe and Prime Minister Meles Zenawi’s dissertation on his policy to improve the plight of the Ethiopian farmer. Countless other books on democracy and the numerous articles on the internet became my daily ration. The hundreds of hours I spent in paltalk political rooms educated me on Ethiopian politics more than the opportunity it gave me to polish my public speaking abilities. I met a large number of wonderful Ethiopians and Ethiopian political leaders through this medium. These and my own humble beginnings in Gara Kuffa, gave me a remarkable perspective about my role in Ethiopian politics, in the twilight years of my life.
As I was getting ready to formulate my political opinions and design the path I wanted to follow, I had all the information I needed minus the baggage of previous political junkies.
In addition to freely expressing my feelings on paltalk, radio or television debates, I practiced my desire at becoming a wordsmith through a personal blog and by sending articles to favorable outlets.
My participation in the debates to have the imprisoned political leaders from the 2005 elections released, brought me in close contact with some of the political leaders of EPRDF, both in Ethiopia and in the United States. Not only did these people impress me with their commitment for their political philosophy, but the fiasco that followed the release of the Kinijit leaders, was paramount in my decision to side with EPRDF. From early on, I have articulated, in no uncertain terms, why I supported EPRDF and what my reservations were. I have stood by those reservations, even as I ploughed alongside my EPRDF colleagues.
For someone who has spent over 30 years in the United States of America and become a proud citizen of this fascinating country, I should be the first one to speak about the need for following the principles of democracy and freedom of expression anywhere in the world. I believe in the rule of law and resolving differences through a civil dialogue and the ballot box and not through the use of a bayonet. I will hold all politicians to these same standards and will fight those who believe otherwise. I will leave no stone unturned to express these believes.
These expressions have come at some cost, though inconsequential, to me and my family from early on. A recent castigation by a certain Hana Teffera from Switzerland, and another anonymous individual, came to the attention of my wife and made for an intimate discussion between us. I will spare you the details, but assure you that the above authors made me even more convinced that I have been doing the proper thing all along.
We will not stop here. We will knock at all your doors and challenge you on your own turf. We will not sit idle as VOA, Ethiomedia, Al Mariam or some of the Washington, D.C. airwaves, continue to spew their hate politics toward our Diaspora members and Ethiopians at home. We will not stand still as fake Horn of Africa conferences mislead foreign sponsors to end up with laughable declarations on good governance, peace, security and sustainable development in Ethiopia.
We will not stand aside and watch the likes of Ato Seye Abraha use flagrant language toward our Ethiopian leaders and invite us to war against our Eritrean brothers and sisters. We will not watch as war mongers like Dr. Berhanu Nega, empty the pockets of confused Diaspora members to subsidize their trips abroad.
We will fight the good fight and leave the voting to the people.