Blog Archives

Ethiopia: An Early Warning for a Famine in 2013

fm2For the past several months, there has been much display of public sorrow and grief in Ethiopia. But not for the millions of invisible Ethiopians who are suffering and dying from starvation, or what the “experts” euphemistically call “acute food …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

Ethiopia: Land of Blood or Land of Corruption?

Alemayehu G. Mariam

Portrait of A Poor Country

Lately, the portrait of Ethiopia painted in the reports of Transparency International (Corruption Index) and Global Financial Integrity shows a “Land of Corruption”. That contrasts with an equally revolting portrait of  Ethiopia …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

We are all prisoners

By Yilma Bekele

East Europe suffered under Soviet domination for over fifty years. While West Europe was marching forward, East Europe was engulfed in darkness and hopelessness. The Arabs with all their vast population and abundant natural resources stumbled around …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

Missing a “Large Chunk” of Ethiopian Territory?

By Alemayehu G. Mariam

When the going gets tough…

When the going gets tough, the tough go looking for distractions and diversions.

The past few weeks have been tough going for dictator Meles Zenawi in Ethiopia. Secret cables released by …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

What Should Starving Ethiopians do to Help Themselves?

Alemayehu G. Mariam

In 1987 when Time Magazine featured a famine-stricken Ethiopian mother on its cover page, it failed to ask the most important question of all: What should Ethiopians do and not do to help themselves?

It is the …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

What Should the World Do and Not Do To Save Ethiopians?

Alemayehu G. Mariam

Nearly a quarter of a century ago, Time Magazine on its cover page asked two weighty questions about recurrent famines in Ethiopia: “Why are Ethiopians starving again? What should the world do and not do” to help …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

Why are Ethiopians Starving Again in 2011?

Alemayehu G. Mariam

Time Eth Famine

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On December 21, 1987, Time Magazine on its cover page featured a downcast and crestfallen young Ethiopian mother as a symbol of famine victims in that country. Time asked two …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

Starve the Beast, Feed the People

By Alemayehu G. Mariam

Americans fed up with uncontrolled deficit government spending are often heard invoking a familiar battle cry: “Starve the Beast!” In other words, no more taxpayer dollars for wasteful government spending.

Meles Zenawi on life supportI say we stand up to …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

Ethiopia: Dictator With a Conscience?

Alemayehu G. Mariam

Ethiopia, Famine and the Oxford Dictionary

Oxymorons (figures of speech that combine contradictory terms) can sometimes provide unique  insights into the cognitive process. Consider, for instance, the phrase “honest politician”. Is there such a thing? It sounds …

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Posted in Ethiopia News

Ethiopia: Apocalypse Now or in 40 Years?

By Alemayehu G. Mariam

In October, 2009, I wrote a weekly commentary titled, “Famine and the Noisome Beast in Ethiopia”:

It is hard to talk about Ethiopia these days in non-apocalyptic terms. Millions of Ethiopians are facing their

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Posted in Ethiopia News

Ethiopia’s “Silently” Creeping Famine

By Alemayehu G. Mariam

“Oh! What a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive,” said Sir Walter Scott, the novelist and poet. Is there “famine” in Ethiopia, or not? Are large numbers of people “starving” there, or …

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Posted in Ethiopia News