Borkena
Toronto – Ethiopia’s ruling Prosperity Party celebrated its seventh anniversary this week. To be exact, the party was formed a year after Abiy Ahmed was picked as Prime Minister following widespread protests against the TPLF-dominated EPRDF government—now defunct. Seen from that point of view, what was celebrated this week is Abiy Ahmed’s takeover of power.
The self-image of the ruling party, which now boasts over 15 million registered members, is starkly different from realities on the ground. The party claims it has transformed the country into a “prosperous nation.”
No doubt Abiy started as a popular politician, mainly because of his speech at the Ethiopian Parliament, promising a break from the policies that triggered nationwide problems and disunity. It took less than three years for Ethiopians to realize he did not mean what he said in his first acceptance speech at the Ethiopian Parliament. He was not known to many before his speech at the parliament.
Promises
For three years before Abiy was picked as Prime Minister, there had been wrangling within the ruling EPRDF coalition. Democratic spaces in the country, gross human rights violations, corruption, and the domination of TPLF over the coalition were among the political problems that aggravated the nationwide protests at the time.
When Abiy Ahmed took power unexpectedly in 2018, he painted himself as a unifier and Ethiopian nationalist rather than an ethnic nationalist. He also promised, based on the coalition’s acknowledgment of the country’s political problems, to broaden political space, respect human rights, and pursue a foreign policy focused on mutually beneficial relations with neighboring countries.
As it turned out, Abiy Ahmed was unable to deliver on his promises. The country was plunged into bloody chaos, the likes of which had never been seen in its history.
Unprecedented ethnic violence and devastating war
Under his watch, the country degenerated to the point where traveling just 40 kilometers from the capital, Addis Ababa, became risky. What appeared to be politically motivated, massive, and recurring massacres across the Oromia and Benishangul Gumuz regions—mainly targeting ethnic Amharas—claimed tens of thousands of civilians, especially in the first four or five years. Disorder and anarchy became the hallmarks of his government, though they were projected as the work of TPLF forces, who retreated to Mekelle after losing central power.
The worst development came in 2020. Abiy Ahmed led the country into one of the worst wars in its history. The war between his government and the TPLF-led Tigray region is estimated to have – according to some media reports – killed more than one million people from the Afar, Amhara, and Tigray regions.
The violence in the Oromia region continued even after the TPLF was decisively defeated. In the last three years, attacks and massacres have also targeted religious communities—mostly followers of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Even members of monastic communities at Mount Zequala were hacked to death.
Additionally, his government started a devastating war in the Amhara region in August 2023, which is still ongoing. However, the stated objective of “disarming the Fano forces” has remained unachievable to date. The Oromia region has also experienced war between a militant nationalist group calling itself the OLA and Abiy Ahmed’s government. There have been demonstrations in the region calling for peace, but the war persists.
The state of human rights is perhaps worse than it was under the TPLF. Human rights organizations have reported the killings of hundreds of thousands of civilians in different parts of the country—especially in conflict zones. Civilians have been deliberately targeted with drone strikes and artillery shelling. Extrajudicial killings recur. The government denies these allegations.
Foreign relations
The promise of peaceful relations with neighbors proved disastrous. Especially in the past two years, Abiy Ahmed’s government has been preoccupied with damage control over misguided policies. The MoU deal with Somaliland triggered tensions with Somalia, and war seemed imminent before Turkey mediated between the two countries. When that crisis subsided, tensions with Eritrea escalated, with many analysts and politicians—including from Ethiopia’s Tigray region—speculating about the inevitability of war with Eritrea. The root cause of the tension is said to be related to the Pretoria Agreement, which Eritrea denies. The immediate cause appears to be the issue of access to the sea. Some voices suggest that “access to the sea” is a deflection tactic from the wars in the Amhara and Oromia regions.
Economic front
On the economic front, Abiy Ahmed’s government has managed to work closely with the IMF and secure some funding. But the cost of doing so appears to be unprecedented privatization (including some national assets) and the depreciation of the Ethiopian currency, which some economists describe as a “free fall.” The cost of living has worsened, leaving many unable to feed their families. The economic reforms were packaged as “homegrown” growth, though the core measures align with neoliberal policies.
What the scorecard shows
Despite the multifaceted crisis, Abiy Ahmed’s government asserts that it is leading the country toward prosperity. Urban development projects, wheat production, and tourism infrastructure are showcased as proof that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government is “on the right path” to prosperity. Of course, only party members seem to buy this narrative. His government struggles to sell it to non-members. Sharp criticisms abound on social media platforms. Yet again, his government has not only monopolized state-owned media but has also deployed a “media army,” as Reuters revealed last year, tasked with dominating narratives on social media to suppress dissenting views.
__
Subscribe : https://borkena.com/subscribe-borkena/
Join our Telegram Channel : t.me/borkena
Like borkena on Facebook
Add your business to Ethiopian Business Listing / Ethiopian Business Directory Business Listing Toronto
Join the conversation. Follow us on X (Formerly Twitter) @zborkena to get the latest Ethiopian News updates regularly. Subscribe to YouTube channel To share information or for submission, send e-mail to info@borkena.com
Open Season on Abiy (!?): How can Abiy protect others when he couldn’t even defend himself [ youtu.be/Pg3WuF1eXww?t=5 ]? Wasn’t the defense/intelligence under TPLF?
Abiy & Amaras: Abiy tried to turn Amara Zone to Bread Basket. Egypt’s Anti-Amaras wanted otherwise: 1). youtu.be/_ejBczkTHlA?t=250 (2). youtu.be/Dhdj8eAeJSg?t=2642
Abiy’s Ethiopia: Abiy transformed “World’s Poster Child of Poverty & Famine” to “World’s Poster Child of Prosperity & Greenery! Under Abiy, ≥ 10 million children get 2 meals/day at their schools [all over Ethiopia]! Isn’t that a relief for ≥10 million parents?
Adanech’s Addis: Adanech catapulted Addis from “World’s Open Sky Toilet Capital” to “World’s World-Class Diplomats’ City”. She also gave apartments with facilities that offer 2 free meals per day [in ≥22 of Addis Ababa’s 28 municipalities]!
Frehiywot’s EthioTelecom: She is one heck of a born telecom wizard who turned the Tele with no working landlines in to a world-class Public 5G Network [within no time]. She also taught EthioTelecom some Philanthropy.
Borkena & Honest Presentation of Events: Abiy emptied prisons [filled with TPLF opponents & high caliber criminals of diverse expertise]! He invited various self-appointed liberation fronts [based in Eritrea & funded by Egypt] to participate in democratic elections! He even airlifted some of them. Alas, they used Abiy’s amnesty to show off their expertise: Violence/Murder, Robbery/Heist [Banks/Armory], etc.
I saw the author of this article interview on anchor media and there are some delusional things he said, he said in the last seven years of war kidnapping and famine in Ethiopia only women and children are the victims or affected. As a person who works for men and boys rights and wellbeing i didn’t want to pass this speech easy. For the last 7 years of war in Ethiopia only men and young boys are the ones who get abducted and conscripted forcefully by government forces and rebels on the other side, not only that but armed personnel also targets and kills mostly men and young boys in the war zone, there are also undocumented sexual violence on men and boys in war zones, most of the time men and boys also don’t get shelter from government and international organizations because most organizations and government only provide shelter and food for women and children including able bodied young women. How can this professor says only women and children suffered for the last seven years while more men died by the war than women and children? He also said during famine men don’t suffer because men can hunt and eat while the women can’t, he said this as if we are living in the stone age. But data shows such as world food program nearly 350 million people suffer from famine individual children, women and men, from this massive statistics 49 million people are on the brink of famine it doesn’t say women are most affected etc. In fact there are studies that show men most likely die during famine especially when armed conflict political repression and famine coincide. While all this data this so called professor claims that only women and children suffer from famine and war. I stopped watching after I heard him saying this nonsense.