Alemayehu G. Mariam

OWN THE YOUTH, GAIN THE FUTURE

WHERE HAVE THE ETHIOPIAN INTELLECTUALS GONE?

Note: In my first commentary[1] on the theme, ‘Where do we go from here?’, I suggested that the ruling dictatorship in Ethiopia following its 99.6 per cent ‘victory’ in the May 2010 parliamentary ‘election’ will continue to do business as usual in much the same way as it has over the last two dec

Always speak truth to power; but sometimes it is necessary to speak it to the powerless too. Truth must be spoken not only because it renders naked the hypocrites and villains, but also because it has a cathartic, or cleansing effect on its defenders.

THE 2010 ELECTION: PUTTING LIPSTICK ON A PIG

There is an old morality tale of 'The Emperor's New Clothes' about a king who is so self-absorbed, vainglorious and obsessed with his appearance that he hired two suit-makers and gave them vast amounts of money to sew him the finest silk robes.

Except for elements inserted in the nature of narrative licence, syntax and independently established facts, this interview is based on English or Amharic translations of public statements, hearing testimony, speeches and other declarations[1] of Birtukan Midekssa, the first woman political party

As Mother’s Day is celebrated in Ethiopia on the second Sunday in May, I feel privileged to share with my readers a testimonial tribute honouring Birtukan Midekssa, the first female political party leader in Ethiopian history and the most famous political prisoner in that country.

Encore performance! It is the same two-act play (farce) of May 2005. The stage is the same. The director is the same. The stagehands are the same. The script is the same. The players are the same stage veterans. The stagecraft (lighting, makeup, props) is the same. The audience is the same.

‘Four hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets,’ fretted Napoleon Bonaparte, emperor of France, as he summed up the informative powers of an independent press.