Ethiopia sees home stretch on freedom road
Leading journalist and former political prisoner Nega reflects on the winds of change
Just a few months ago, Ethiopia — a vast country of 100 million people — was still mired in dictatorship and war. But dramatic shifts are taking hold and they appear to be moving the country in the right direction: towards freedom.
This week, Ethiopia’s democratically elected Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmad, signed a peace treaty with Eritrea, its longstanding enemy. The news was one more sign that the change promised by the new government is real. Ethiopia still has a long way to go. But Eskinder Nega, a leading Ethiopian journalist and former political prisoner, recently told me that he sees democracy as the inevitable destiny of his homeland. Now, he said, it’s “Ethiopia’s turn.”
Nega has spent a total of nine years in prison, most recently serving a six-year stint on a terrorism conviction for supposedly inciting violence against the government.
Amid growing protests, he and several other political prisoners were released in April in a bid to “foster national reconciliation”, authorities said at the time.
Do you think reforms being implemented by Ethiopia’s current government will lead to real change?
We don’t know whether the new leadership envisions the kind of change that [Mikhail] Gorbachev imagined [for the Soviet Union] or whether they want the kind of change [F.W.] de Klerk wanted [in South Africa under apartheid].
The kind of change that we want, as a people, is the De Klerk version. A multi-party democracy.
It’s encouraging that the new leadership acknowledges the need for change, and they should be supported at least in this regard.
What’s at stake?
If Ethiopia implodes, the region will come down, and this will seriously affect Western interests. If there’s chaos in the Horn of Africa, the strategic security alliance the US has with the Ethiopian government will be compromised.
I don’t think the world can afford to see chaos in the Horn of Africa, because extremists will have the sort of safe haven they had in Afghanistan.
At a moment when there is an epic struggle between authoritarians and democrats, is the current aspiration for freedom unique to Ethiopia or is it universal?
When you aspire for freedom, you’re asking for recognition of your human dignity and this is innate. This is the human condition wherever you are, whatever your religion, culture or history is. Authoritarianism undermines that quest. No country or society is an exception.
We don’t know when each society will come out to demand it, but we know that at some point all of them will. The French and the Americans reached that point 200 years ago. Now is the time for Ethiopians.
What do people think about the prospects of reconciliation with Eritrea?
Most Ethiopians don’t like the idea of Eritrea being a separate country. Including me. But there is a recognition that Eritrea is gone. It’s now a member of the international community, the United Nations and the African Union. And this is not something we could undo without violating international law.
We should have peace with Eritrea whether we like its independence or not. Whatever the government is doing to come to peace with Eritrea should be supported.
Has the US pursuing its security objectives undermined freedom on the ground in Ethiopia? Ethiopia has played a major role in combating terrorism in the Horn of Africa. It’s understandable that the US should have an alliance with any government in Ethiopia, because it’s the most effective partner in this fight. Unfortunately, since 9/11, security issues have completely overshadowed the cause of freedom.