Ethiopian+state+and+Yusuf+lack+legitimacy,+Dirk+Spilke,+The+Star

The Star, Johannesburg, Letters, March 20, 2007 //Edition 1//
=Ethiopian state and Yusuf lack legitimacy=


 * Dirk Spilke, Bantry Bay, Cape Town**

I am writing to you with regard to the opinion-page contribution by Josh Ruxin in your edition of March 12 2007.

Most of his contribution deals with Rwanda, of which he surely knows a lot more than I. However, some of his introductory remarks on Somalia cannot go unanswered.

He hails the brave Ethiopian forces and American jets that ousted the "radical Islamists". At the same time, he refers to the "willingness of Ethiopia and Somalia to put aside past differences and unite against radical Islamists that threaten both".

This assessment is rather surprising. It neglects the particular interests of both Ethiopia and the US administration.

First of all, in saying "Ethiopia and Somalia … unite", Ruxin can only be referring to the current transitional government under Abdullahi Yusuf.

It might be worth noting here that Ethiopia under Meles Zenawi played an essential role in the peace process that led to the current Somali government, and this government and especially Yusuf are widely regarded as Ethiopian buddies by probably the majority of the Somalia people. It is true that in terms of external legitimacy, this government is recognised by "international community".

On the other hand, however, if we put all our hopes and dreams in this government under Yusuf, we must not forget that it lacked internal legitimacy from the very beginning.

The Ethiopian government under Meles Zenawi has been positioning itself as a loyal ally in the worldwide "war on terror". There are several aspects to this issue.

First, a close ally to the US in the war on terror gives Meles some much-needed international recognition in light of Ethiopia's own poor human rights record.

Second, obviously Ethiopia and Somalia have a violent history in common and Ethiopian governments have always been paranoid in terms of perceived "threats" from their neighbour.

It is not at all interested in a strong central state of Somalia, but rather quite satisfied with the deteriorated, quite anarchic situation on the ground: A country without a central authority cannot threaten another country.

Third, some prominent figures of the "Islamic courts" movement are quite well known to Ethiopia as some sort of personal enemies, first and foremost Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys.

Already in the 1990s, there were violent clashes between Ethiopian forces and the then "al-Itihaad al-Islaami" under the leadership of Aweys.

Over the past years, Ethiopia has constantlyover-exaggerated the threat posed by Islamic fundamentalists and "terrorists" in and from Somalia.

However, the events since end of 2006 clearly show that the Islamic Court's militias did not at all pose an actual military threat to the Ethiopian army.

Also, all research suggests that Somalia's role and the role of Somalis in international terrorism is insignificant.

Nevertheless, the US administration in its ridiculous war on terror again proves to be more or less unable to differentiate between international terrorism and Islamic groups with a local agenda.

Hence, the Ethiopian strategy vis-à-vis the US seems to have worked quite well - support the perception of the Somalia Islamists as bad terrorists and then bomb them away, with the full backing of the US.

What we could see in Somalia is first and foremost actors pursuing their very own interests. It's got nothing to do with a new era of regional co-operation.


 * From: http://www.thestar.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=3739584**

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