BY ADDISALEM MULAT
It is public knowledge that shortly afterwards the war that broke out in the northern part of the country, Ethiopia managed to pass through many ups and downs, twists and turns, as well as highs and lows as a consequence of some foreign entities’ groundless pressure on Ethiopia aimed at pursuing their hidden agenda going behind the scenes.
At that specific juncture, alien entities left no stone unturned to twist Ethiopia’s arm and interfere in the internal affairs of the country under the veil of failure to give the green light to humanitarian access and come to the negotiating table as well as other related aspects. To everyone’s dismay, they have been persistently coming up with a broad spectrum of imaginary stories in an attempt to perplex the wider international community.
In good truth, notwithstanding the fact that a maximum amount of efforts have been done to turn the screw on Ethiopia and put under their control the sovereignty of the country, all their efforts went for nothing on the basis of the firm stance of the incumbent and the people of Ethiopia. As Ethiopians have been working around the clock to fend off external pressure, some entities ended up failing to pursue their hidden motives going behind closed curtains.
In a similar vein, they attempted in several instances to pursue their hidden motives in close cooperation with the discredited and shamefaced international media outlets that do not stand for the truth and abide by journalism ethics and standards.
As their intended objective on the subject of the war was confounding the global community with bogus stories, they have been unceasingly preoccupied with a smear campaign against the positive moves of the country and drag through the mire the constructive measures surfacing throughout the national territory. Sadly, as opposed to making an effort to make conversant the self-evident truth with the existing reality on the ground, they were time and again orchestrating treacheries to put unwarranted pressure on Ethiopia.
In the aftermath of the tidal wave of cooked-up stories waged against the people of Ethiopia, the propaganda campaign in the fullness of time metamorphosed into giving rise to unjustified pressure against Ethiopia.
It is an indisputable fact that Ethiopia managed to go to the ends of the earth to beat swords into plowshares effectuating a wide spectrum of effective solutions in the face of recurrent challenges. The sad thing is that regardless of the fact that the federal government went to great lengths to bring about sustainable and everlasting peace, Washington at the end of the day removed Ethiopia from African Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA).
It should not be forgotten that since the start of the war, the incumbent spared no effort to make peace happen in the northern part of the country, return everything to normalcy and smooth the path of humanitarian assistance in collaboration with a diverse range of aid organizations. Dejectedly, it was at this moment that Ethiopia was removed from AGOA.
It is important to remember that despite Ethiopia’s unflinching stance to get to the bottom of the problem in an atmosphere of calm, the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) was constantly playing a role in raising the stakes, adding fuel to the flames and throwing the cold shoulder to the peace deal proposed by the federal government.
In actual fact, axing Ethiopia from AGOA without a doubt is an erroneous act on the grounds that quite a lot of Ethiopians in employment in the textile and garment industries were discharged from their job. It should be remembered that in spite of the fact that the incumbent has given the green light to unfettered access to humanitarian assistance in addition to proposing a peace talk, Ethiopia turned out to be the victim of AGOA.
In the recent past on the subject of the issue, Sen. Jim Inhofe in his Twitter page stated that the Biden administration should take real steps to undo the sanctions against the democratically elected government of Ethiopia and roll back the termination of AGOA benefits.
In the present circumstances, as the federal government of Ethiopia and Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) ended up signing the cessation of hostilities agreement in Pretoria, South Africa, the United States of America should re-enlist Ethiopia into the African Growth and Opportunity Act at the earliest possible juncture by reconsidering its decision.
After the signing of the cessation of hostilities agreement, the smooth flow of humanitarian assistance has been stealing the attention of the wider international community.
In recent times, in an interview the National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC) Commissioner Shiferaw Teklemariam (Ph.D.) gave to the Ethiopian Press Agency said that more than 70,000 metric tons of humanitarian aid in the form of grain and nutritious food has been transferred to Tigray since the conclusion of the truce.
“The contribution of humanitarian organizations working under the leadership of the government is extremely encouraging and while the government has provided 13.6 thousand metric tons of grain and nutritious food in the reported period, the rest is covered by partner institutions, he added.
It is public knowledge that in the present climate the whole thing in the northern part of the country has been returning to normalcy and making progress in the right direction and receiving a pat on the back. Taking into account the positive moves, Washington should return Ethiopia to AGOA without batting an eye. The restoration of social infrastructure and resumption of electricity in conflict-impacted areas in the Tigray state has been moving in the right direction. Reasoning from this fact, the desired goal is being achieved in the shortest possible time.
Recently, EEP Communication Director Moges Mekonnen told the Ethiopian Press Agency (EPA) that, the repair work is becoming accessible in all areas where electricity has been cut. The maintenance experts at all areas are constantly participating and working on it with great diligence by withstanding the topographical problems of the area and other problems.
Mentioning the difficulty to get enough fuel for vehicles involving up to 200 employees, the director indicated the maintenance work forced to use up the spare parts that were in stock. “The government’s commitment continues to be strengthened in all sectors, especially as an electricity provider, it is strengthening its ability to avail power in Tigray.”
“When we say Mekelle’s power line is connected to the national power grid, it means that a way to get electricity from the national power control center or the main grid has been created,” he noted, adding that the task enables the city to receive power in the same line.
In an exclusive interview with The Ethiopian Herald, American Ethiopia Public Affairs Committee (AEPAC) Executive Chairperson, Mesfin Tegenu said that the country has met all the four or five criteria required to be relisted in the trade pact.
As part of the efforts in this regard, AEPAC has submitted letter to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR). Similarly, he said that they have had two congressmen who have submitted letters of support.
In his letter submitted to USTR, Donald S. Beyer Jr., he urged to consider initiating an out-of-cycle review regarding Ethiopia’s eligibility for benefits under AGOA. He further emphasized that pushing the nation in to poverty by continuing to exclude them from AGOA could further destabilize the country and severely weaken the US-Ethiopia relationships.
Mentioning that AGOA has served in strengthening ties between the two countries, and accelerating Ethiopia’s economic growth, he also expressed his hope that the recent truce brokered by the AU which allows unhindered humanitarian supplies to Tigray, will lead to Ethiopia’s swift reinstatement in to AGOA.
Besides, two businesses in Ethiopia also submitted their letters in support of Ethiopian rejoining of AGOA. “We believed that the only matter that was hanging was the peace situation in the northern part of Ethiopia. Now that the problem is solved, humanitarian access and services are restored, there is no reason that hinders Ethiopia to be reinstated in to AGOA,” Mesfin underscored.
The Ethiopian Herald December 14/2022
