Mr. President let me begin by congratulating you for assuming the presidency of the Security Council for the month. I assure you of my delegation’s full support.
Mr. President, my country Ethiopia is undergoing a significant transformation that requires delicate and context driven handling of its domestic affairs. In our bilateral meetings with the members of council and the informal dialogue we had last month we have exchanged views and concerns, all of which the government of Ethiopia approached and acted upon in a constructive manner. This being said Mr. President; I am surprised by the rationales of calling for this open meeting.
We are fully cognizant of the responsibility of this Council to work towards international peace and security. The very first prerequisite for this honors responsibilities to encourage dialogue and prevent escalation through constructive engagement and reinforcement of achievements. This meeting is called at a time when the government of Ethiopia took bold measures and political decisions to meet needs and wellbeing of its people affected by the law enforcement operation in Tigray.
This measure should have encouraged our friends to give support and deescalate the unhelpful pressure. Equally we wish to express appreciation to all of you for recognizing our resolve for peace behind this difficult initiative we have taken.
Mr. President, since the Council helps the informal interactive dialogue on the humanitarian situation in Ethiopia there are critical developments that deserve your recognition and constructive outlook.
On 28 June 2021, the government of Ethiopia decided to cease the active military engagement Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) in the Tigray region. This decision for humanitarian ceasefire was reached after a concerted deliberation with various stakeholders and partners.
We hope that this magnanimous and far sided decision will not be wasted by the irresponsible conduct of the TPLF group which the government of Ethiopia opted to tolerate for the sake of the people of Tigray and to alleviate the humanitarian situation in the region.
The decision to cease military operation is hoped to create conducive environment for humanitarian operation in Tigray. It will also pave the way for inclusive national dialogue.
The TPLF group that were where pursuing continued its belligerence to protect few individuals in the furtherance of its agenda.
It began conscripting young, and elderly civilians, women and men to fight highly trained and armed men of their country. This exposed the people in Tigray for the military confrontation that they are not prepared for.
Furthermore, it posed a risk for disruption to the agriculture season. The groups ethnically charged tactic ovine the people against the government although found to be detrimental to our innate social fabric.
As a result, the government of Ethiopia as the bearer of the primary responsibility to protect its people made difficult political decision to suspend active military operation in favor of safeguarding the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Ethiopian State. Now, we believe we have created the space for unfettered humanity assistance and proper conduct for the agricultural planting season.
In addition, we will augment to humanitarian efforts in the region including distribution of food and non-food items from warehouses across Tigray. The National Disaster Risk Management Commission, and the five humanitarian agencies deployed in all woredas of the region are set to resume their function.
Furthermore, we are in the process of adopting the humanitarian assistance guideline and coordination mechanism to the new development. Public services will also resume once we create a situation for the safe operation of the infrastructure and their operators.
Mr. President Ethiopia faces the inevitable journey of addressing the political and structural underpinnings of what we had experienced last November when our defense forces were attacked from within. The immediate need lies in creating an environment for the delivery of much needed humanitarian assistance. In this regard, the government will continue to exert maximum effort and allocate the available resources towards this end.
We welcome and appreciate the concern expressed by the Council members for our compatriots in Tigray who have regrettably sustained the brunt of the impact of the law enforcement operation due to the cowardly tactics of the TPLF group. It is important to underline that wounds and suffering of all Ethiopians are unacceptable.
The shortcomings in preventing these sufferings are not something the government belittles. In the same vein, we take our responsibility to ensure accountability and remedy these problems with maximum seriousness.
For absolute clarity, I would like to reaffirm my government’s firm commitment to these core responsibilities of the state. There certainly are internal as well as external factors that play into the security challenge we are facing. The external security threats against us through no fault of or provocation on our part are complicating our internal political dynamics and distract us from key national priorities.
I wish to implore this council to act with full awareness of this external challenge Ethiopia is facing.
Mr. President following the organization of peaceful and successful national elections this month, efforts are now geared towards building a strong, united and democratic country. In this connection, the Ethiopian government is developing a roadmap for inclusive dialogue to ensure a lasting peace and stability. I want to reaffirm my government’s resolve to continue ensuring accountability for human rights abuse and crimes committed in the Tigray region.
We will make sure that impunity is not tolerated. We remain committed to work with all bilateral and multilateral partners through genuine partnership and understanding that the government of Ethiopia is more than capable of overcoming these challenges. We encourage council members to play constructive role in supporting the Ethiopian government in the implementation of the humanitarian ceasefire. We thank council members who have welcomed this positive gesture.
Again in contrast, I would like to make it clear that the political pressure and the bilateral coercive measures against Ethiopia are unacceptable and violets the basic tenet of international law.
Excessive pressures will put this ancient country of 110 million people to the precipice with no possibility of recovery, the people of Ethiopia are indeed watching and should not perceive that our pronouncement is pushing them to the abyss and into the endless political fission for Ethiopia it is a moment of introspection a genuine revisit of our success and challenges.
The main issue is how to heal our wounds. There are uncompleted grieving, mornings such as the Maikadra massacre by the TPLF youth group, the sufferings of the people of Welkait and Tegede who have been evicted from their ancestral land over the last 30 years.
The political culture of impunity should have closure as we know that what exalts us as a nation is to overcome our own challenges. What would elevate us as a nation is our commitment and the commitment of our people to stand for peace. We might be poor but, we also have hope. We are people with values cherished ones, for Ethiopia hope is still alive.
In conclusion, I hope the council members will take the situation in my country in the right perspective, understand the magnitude of the challenges we face and also recognize the important steps that we have taken in this regard. What we really need at the moment is the support, understanding and solidarity of the international community.
That’s why, I want to end by appealing to international partners and friends of our country to continue scaling up humanitarian support to meet humanitarian needs across Ethiopia. I thank Mr. President.
Editor’s Note: The views entertained in this article do not necessarily reflect the stance of The Ethiopian Herald
The Ethiopian Herald July 4/2021
