BY SOLOMON WASSIHUN
One of the most beautiful flags I know is the flag of the African Union (AU). The latest version of the AU flag, inaugurated in 2010, was designed by an Ethio-American artist Yadesa Bojia. It depicts a green Africa with the rays of the sun in the background .
Every time I look at the flag, it reminds me of the most inspiring time of the day, sunrise.- When the sun breaks through the dim, reddish horizon of dawn with a flash of light and fills the heart with a flood of optimism. This is what most Ethiopians feel after the signing of the AU- brokered peace deal.
Soon after the signing of the Pretoria peace accord early this month, formally known as the Permanent Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, CoHA, the northern Ethiopia situation is improving fast beyond the expectations of Ethiopians and anyone following up on the situation. The wind of peace is blowing on northern Ethiopia at a faster pace than the marathon peace process that so far succeed in passing through two stages.
On the latest event of the peace talks held in Nairobi, we saw pleasing images and videos that were almost unthinkable just a few weeks earlier. The military chiefs of the warring parties in civilian outfits were sitting side by side, exchanging smiles and ideas, and shaking hands. Delegates from both sides were seen intermingled outside the negotiation hall, hugging each other to express their joy at the signing of the Nairobi declaration.- an agreement laying out the roadmap for implementation of the Pretoria peace deal signed 10 days earlier.
Both sides of the negotiation rejoiced at the emergence of a ray of hope for lasting peace in northern Ethiopia.-like the one seen in the AU flag . The mediators of the negotiation as well shared the feeling of the negotiating parties.
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, the lead mediator of the AU-led peace talks, said: “The fact that we are here is to give everybody hope that the progress we expect will be achieved.”. His associate, the former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta also shared Obsanjo’s strong hope for peace in Ethiopia. He sounds very confident and satisfied with the way things are going following the signing of the peace deal in Pretoria. “We started in Pretoria. We are inching closer. we are now in Nairobi. We are very hopeful, and next, we will be in Mekelle for our meeting. And ultimately we will celebrate together in Addis Ababa.This is the prayer. This is the hope, This is what we see.”, he said.Kenyatta pronounced Addis Ababa just like the way Ethiopians do. That indicates how Addis Ababa is a household name among all Africans.
The declaration ,the Declaration of Senior Commanders on the Modalities for the Implementation CoHA, especially focuses on the implementation of disarmament of Tigray combatants and provision of humanitarian assistance and ensuring the protection and security of civilians in the Tigray region.
It should be noted here that the provision of humanitarian assistance to the majority of the Tigray region was going well underway even before the signing of the peace deals. It is those small, Tigray combatants-held areas including the regional capital, Mekelle, and its surrounding that shows a great improvement in getting access to humanitarian supplies, in the later days following the signing of the Nairobi declaration.
A week after the signing of the Pretoria peace deal, the Premier’s national security Advisor, Radewan Hussien announced: “Aid is flowing like no other time. Even in the areas not yet held by ENDF[Ethiopian National Defense Forces].Thirty -five trucks of food and three trucks of medicine arrived at Shire[ a major town in west Tigray]. Flights are allowed. Services are being reconnected. The agreement just provides opportunities to enhance services.”
The fast-improving situation in the provision of humanitarian assistance to the Tigray region is a proven fact that has been verified by various international agencies and governments that had been closely following up on the situation as well as participating in the process as a stakeholder.
For instance, The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Ethiopia has recently expressed appreciation for the announcement by the Ethiopian government on the opening of all humanitarian corridors to accelerate unhindered access to relief supplies in Tigray, Afar, and Amhara. “The government of Ethiopia has announced we would have access going in and out Tigray by roads and by air. That is really good news. It is not only a commodity but it is also people and personnel required on the ground to work with people in the various zones.”
Now that humanitarian assistance is flowing to the Tigray region in all four major corridors without any hindrances. The people in Tigay, as well as those in the neighboring regions, will have full access to food and non-food items, medical supplies, and other basic necessities. An enabling atmosphere has been created for truck drivers, and other aid workers to access areas that were previously inaccessible due to security issues arose from the conflict.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has confirmed its convoy of trucks carrying medical aid arrived in Mekelle, Tigray’s regional capital. The medical supplies are intended to support health facilities in Tigray to treat patients with conditions that need urgent care. A day later, ICRC and WFP test flights landed in Shire, a town in western Tigray . The agencies have expressed optimism that the resumption of airlifts to the Tigray region will help carry urgent humanitarian aid to the region more quickly to alleviate the suffering of thousands in the area needing immediate support.
Similarly, WFP trucks have begun rolling into the war-affected areas via the Gondar corridor for the first time since June 2021, carrying critical food assistance to be delivered to communities in the area.
Officials of international agencies are in close contact with relevant government authorities and other actors to step up the delivery of humanitarian supplies to the people in the war-torn regions “We, along [with] our humanitarian partners, are continuing discussions with the relevant sides to resume aid and personnel convoys’ movement to Tigray,” a spokesperson for the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) aid said.
Government Communication Service State Minister has recently announced that following the signing of the peace deal, over 43,200 quintals of wheat and over 7,300 quintals of nutritious food were distributed to some 287,000 aid recipients in conflict-affected areas including Raya Bala, Alamata, and Quorum. She also mentioned that the work of delivering humanitarian services to needy people would be strengthened in coordination with non-governmental aid agencies.
The peace deal not only improved humanitarian access to the war-affected areas ,but also significantly reduced commodity prices in Tigray and the war-affected areas of the neighboring regions. This is due to the fact that traders have to send consumer goods to the areas and those who have been hoarding their goods commodities for the worst days are bringing their products to the market. As a result the high prices for staples such as teff and wheat have dropped dramatically. The emerging situation gives residents of thse areas cause for optimism that things will soon return to normalcy.
Repair works has begun on damaged roads and bridges connecting the towns in the the war affected regions . As before, Members of the Ethiopian defense forces began last week helping Tigrayan farmers gather the harvest in the field. The ENDF’s military engineers are setting up a detour in places where bridges are heavily damaged to help the transportation of humanitarian supplies and commodities, as well as the return of residents to their hometowns and villages.
All in all, the peace deal has brought immensely encouraging changes in the lives of the people in war-torn provinces in a relatively short period. So far, it appears that the hopes and optimism expressed by the mediators of the peace talks, Obasanjo and Kenyatta, seem realistic and achievable.
The Ethiopian Herald November 22/2022
