Alemayehu G. Mariam Following the Battle of Zela in 47 B.C. (present day Zile, Turkey), Julius Caesar claimed victory by declaring: “I came; I saw; I conquered.” In 2011, Caesar Meles Zenawi, the dictator-in-chief in Ethiopia, scattered his top henchmen throughout the U.S. and Europe to declare victory in the propaganda war on Diaspora Ethiopians….
Alemayehu G. Mariam End Game Laurent Gbagbo of Cote d’Ivoire arrested! Hosni Mubarak of Egypt in intensive care! Moamar Gadhafi of Libya under siege! Omar al-Bashir of the Sudan, a fugitive from justice. Ben Ali of Tunisia out of Africa! Meles Zenawi, sleepless in Ethiopia. These are heady days on the African continent. These are…
Alemayehu G. Mariam The Common People Don’t Want War At the Nuremberg Trials in 1945, Hermann Goering, Hitler’s right-hand man, told his interrogator: Naturally the common people don’t want war. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to…
Alemayehu G. Mariam The Shell Game of African Democracy If the Ivory Coast, one of the most prosperous African countries, can be considered a template for political change on the continent, democracy can replace dictatorship only by means of a civil war. For the past 5 months, Laurent Gbagbo, the loser of the November 2010…
The Deal of the Century Supposing someone offered you the following land deal, would you take it or walk away believing it is too good to be true? For £150 a week (USD$245), you can lease more than 2,500 sq km (1,000 sq miles) of virgin, fertile land – an area the size of Dorset,…
Note: In ongoing commentaries, the author examines the Obama Administration’s policy in Africa. Moral Hazard and Moral Bankruptcy The concept of ‘moral hazard’ in politics may be used to explain a situation in which a government is insulated and immunized from the consequences of its risky, reckless and incompetent behavior. For instance, a regime that…
By Alemayehu G. Mariam Creeping Youthbellion and Youthvolution in Africa and the Middle East “When the sun rises, it rises for everyone,” goes the old saying. The sun that rose over tyranny in North Africa will not set at the edge of the Sahel; it will shine southward on the African savannah and rainforest. The…
Originally appeared in the Huffington Post on 02/28/2011 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alemayehu-g-mariam/thugtatorship-the-highest_b_828864.html Thugogracy in Africa If democracy is government of the people, by the people and for the people, a thugogracy is a government of thieves, for thieves, by thieves. Simply stated, a thugtatorship is rule by a gang of thieves and robbers (thugs) in designer suits. It…
Originally appeared in the Huffington Post on 2/20/2011 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alemayehu-g-mariam/out-of-touch-in-the-horn_b_825795.html The Berlin Conference of 2009 In 1884, the Berlin Conference was convened by the European imperial powers to carve out colonial territories in Africa. It was called the “Scramble for Africa”. In 2009, another Berlin Conference was convened by a high level group of diplomats (referring…
Originally appeared in the Huffington Post on 2/14/2011 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alemayehu-g-mariam/africas-youths-united-can_b_822702.html Mubarak, Irhal! A specter is haunting Africa and the Middle East – the specter of an awesome army of youths on the move, in revolt, marching for freedom, chanting for democracy and dying for human rights and human dignity. Millions of youths are standing up and…
