Great expectations shattered

After every summit of AU Heads of State, it becomes ever more apparent that Ethiopia is indeed the obvious location for the AU headquarters. This may not be a surprise to the average Ethiopian and other Africans, who, partially mistaken, assume that our country was given the right to be the de-facto capital of Africa by reason of its anti-colonial past and also to the dexterity of Emperor Haile Sellassie I. The main cause is in fact much more practical, as the above were merely supplements that further justified the decision of the founding fathers of the OAU.
The most influential leaders of 1963 Africa were in order of international prestige, Haile Selassie I, Léopold Sédar Senghor of Senegal, Gemal Abdel Nasser of Egypt and Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah. The latter three represented francophone Africa, the Arab north and English speaking Africa respectively. These linguistic blocks, erstwhile rivals and still extant could not reach a consensus as each felt its region deserved to be the home of the just established OAU. The natural and neutral choice was an Ethiopia whose rich history and culture made it a distinctly unifying force in a fractured continent.
The exemplary role played by Ethiopia is not a recent phenomena but the result of a long standing commitment to African causes. Successive Ethiopian regimes since 1963 had had nothing at all in common with one another, as each had diametrically opposed ideologies but one constant has remained – Haile Selassie, Mengistu and Meles spoke the same language when it came to Africa. Indeed it was when he was defending Ethiopia’s right to house the AU against the serpentine plot of a certain robed leader that PM Meles uttered the only positive words ever about his predecessors. In effect he had said “Ethiopia’s past leaders, despite oppressing their own people and denying them the most basic of rights, were unequivocally pro-African and strived to contribute immensely to the cause of United Africa.”
Perhaps it is time for us to reacquaint some with Ethiopia’s African credentials. How many of us know or remember that the still imposing building and verdant compound housing the AU headquarters was bequeathed to the OAU by Haile Sellassie I? Ethiopia felt that Africa’s needs came first, because it had originally been built to be the new Ethiopian police college.
In regard to peace keeping - the issue at hand - Ethiopia was always more than ready to participate in even the first United Nations peace keeping mission. We did not hesitate when the UN, just seven years old,
Great expectations shattered

requested of us to send military units to the Korean peninsula. Our troops performed admirably in the defence and security of South Korea – a feat that will always be remembered by that dynamic and prosperous democracy.
In Africa, the jungles of the Congo will bear witness of valiant Ethiopian troops and some place names even have resonance today. Addis Ababans still call a section of their national stadium Katanga - the Congolese province in which Ethiopian troops had been posted. In subsequent decades, we have helped stabilize Rwanda, Burundi and Sierra Leone, not to mention the crucial role Ethiopia played in the independence struggle of Zimbabwe and in the elimination of apartheid from South Africa.
This recounting of Ethiopia’s shining record of continental and global engagement is not a jingoistic boast but rather a pointed reminder to the present crop of African leaders that we Ethiopians feel sorely let down after having expected so much from the 8th Ordinary Summit of AU Heads of State. Our troops are to pull out in two weeks and they will do just that, because Ethiopia shall keep its word. What this withdrawal entails is apparent to all. Somalia is a powder keg with a fuse fast burning short. But still, the AU failed to realize the consequences of not provding the required 8,000 peace keepers.
Ethiopia can not, should not and will not assume a de-facto protectorate over Somalia. We have a country to build. Ours!
The disappointment over the outcome of the summit was noticeable in PM Meles Zenawi’s body language, as he is not one to countenance months and years of hard work go down the drain. It is a mark of how discreet Ethiopian foreign policy is as it could not bear to upset the delegates by calling the summit for what it is – a continental failure of leadership and another more profound snub to Somalia.