Ethiopia after Meles

Meles Zenawi overthrew a dictator and became a darling of Western donors. But in the name of fighting Islamists in neighbouring Somalia, is the West too quick to look the other way when it comes to radical land reform, a crackdown on minorities and suppression of free speech?

DEBATE

Alexis MASCIARELLI. International Affairs Desk, France 24;
Frehiwot TSIGUE SHIFERAW. Former BBC correspondent in Ethiopia (from New York);
Ahmed MOEN. Associate Professor, Howard University (from Washington).

Produced by François Picard, Anelise Borges, Mary Colombel and Christopher Davis.

Watch the second part here.

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Ethiopia ater Meles

by Anonyme - 25/08/2012 - 21:35

Let it be known that Meles' double digit growth of the Ethiopian economy is fraudulent. He made up numbers that made him look good to the western donors. Think about it, who is going to double check his numbers? As far as the improvement of higher education, sure we see new colleges being built, but these educational institutions lack content. Students are offered sub-standard education. Their graduates cannot even speak good English, let alone read and write at the college level. However, if you travel north to Mekele, where Meles is from, careful attention is given to the quality of education. The standard of education just like anything else is based on ethnicity. The favorite and elite ethnic group for Meles are the Tigreans. So, any progress that we may see in Ethiopia is to their benefit. The rest of the Ethiopian people are living in servitude.