Building of the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam/GERD/ electrifies Ethiopia at its own expense. Electrifying Ethiopia means using electric oven, electric cars and the like building green economy reducing deforestation.
Though it is at its own expense it decreases foreign exchange to buy fuel from Arab league member countries. Losing market for the Arabs from an emerging country like Ethiopia is likely to be unbearable.
In addition to this Egypt tries to maintain its lion`s share of the River Nile though it spends the water spree. So, on one hand Ethiopia is building green economy using hydro power and limiting petroleum use. On the other hand Egypt wants a total control of the Nile. That is why Egypt has given a resolution for Arab League which denies Ethiopia`s self-development using its own water without affecting others. That I am afraid makes the organization Egyptian League than Arab League.
Arab League has to do its homework there in countries like Syria and Yemen before crossing the Eritrean Sea/Red Sea/ and even it is expected to solve problems in Sudan and Egypt first if it has a policy to meddle into affairs of countries like Ethiopia which are not its members. Had it solved acute problems in Syria, Syrians would not have crossed the Red Sea and become refugees in Ethiopia while most Arab countries expel Ethiopian and Arab migrants forcefully. But Ethiopia continued to welcome refugees from Arab countries open armed for the past thousands of years including the first Muslims who were relatives of Prophet Mohammed.
Like some Western countries some if not all Arab League countries are trying to interfere into the affairs of their good neighbour Ethiopia.
Just recently they issued a statement against Ethiopia and demanded United Nations to interfere in the GERD related issues. By this they have denied AU`s chance of solving the “problem” of the dam. The problem is not a problem. It is an obstacle created by Egypt and Sudan saying let us drink and belch all the water of Nile. They said so referring to archaic agreements in which Ethiopia had not been actively engaged or totally ignored.
It is also a problem if Ethiopia says let me drink all the Nile water by thirsting downstream good neighbours of Sudan and Egypt. It had never said so.
But the good neighbours are said to be inciting racial and religious differences in Ethiopia and trying to destabilize the country by orchestrating border conflict. These neighbours have always assisted Ethiopian opposition in arming them. A good neighbour never does that and works on similarities than differences.
A good neighbour doesn’t envy when its neighbour gets something to benefit its people without causing significant harm on downstream countries like that of GERD.
But these good neighbours accused Ethiopia on The Arab League platform of which Ethiopia is not a member. If they sought concrete solutions they would have come to the African Union /AU/ of which accusers and accused are establishing members. This is regardless of the fact that AU has forwarded the best solution than those who have tried to intervene so far.
Well it is up to Cairo and Khartoum to choose anybody else to hammer Ethiopia and convince her to draw back to colonial time of which Ethiopian population was estimated to be twenty or so million. But now the population of the country is more than 110 million. The country needs to feed all these. But it shall not always bring wheat and rice from donors. It also needs to lit rural and urban areas using a tiny fraction of the abundance of the potentials of hydro power used in the country so far. It shall not expect green light from Egypt and Sudan to build green economy reducing petroleum consumption.
As Ethiopia mostly imports its petrol from members of the Arab League, deduction of this as a result of GERD may be a disaster for these oil exporting countries. It may even be salt in their wounds for the fact that Ethiopia is an emerging economy as it is said earlier.
On the other hand Egypt is the largest of the Arab League in terms of population. It also is the seat of The League. So a few member states by proxy may not want to offend their populous member -The Arab Republic of Egypt.
It may be with these and related matters that The League has issued a statement against Ethiopia on June 15, 2021 at a meeting in Doha Qatar. It could have played a leading role in bringing the three countries to round table discussions as African Union does. How can a resolution be independent while it is prepared by an accuser Egypt?
It is totally against Cairo declaration of Human Rights in Islam issued in August 1990. It said “All human beings from one family whose members are united by their subordination to Allah and descent from Adam” This declaration prohibits “Discrimination on basis of race, colour, language, belief, sex, religion, political affiliation, social status and other considerations.” Where does standing against Ethiopia come then?
Everybody in Arab League knows that Ethiopia has played a fundamental role in accepting the first Muslims and is the first foreign country to accept Islam. But The League has denied Ethiopia`s self-development using its water, as Addis Ababa is not its member and Cairo is its “big” member who is always sitting on the driver`s seat. As most countries including “The Driver” are African countries, they should have sought African solutions for African problems: if generating power using its own river is still a problem without affecting the downstream countries.
This is harming Ethiopia, which is a friend and neighbour for four of The League members and one observer. That is why The Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the resolution by a statement issued on June 16,2021. In this it said “Ethiopia is exercising its legitimate right to use its water resources in full respect for international water laws and the principles of causing no significant harm.”
As the ministry said Nile is a shared resource than a private property of Egypt and Sudan with the former having the lion`s share so far. The unfair lion`s share now has become the lion`s roar using The Arab League.
As repeatedly said earlier, let The Arab League solve the Problems in Yemen and answer the uprising in Sudan and Egypt than condemning Ethiopia for using Nile to benefit itself and these neighbours. It should work for mutual benefits of people of the three countries than alienating Ethiopia. Let it stop becoming mouthpiece of Egypt.
BY MELKAMU TEKLE
The Ethiopian herald June 19/2021
