Saudi-Japanese Business Council discusses strengthening investment partnerships    Tenth Saudi relief plane for Syrians arrives at Damascus airport    SR12.7 billion allocated for beneficiaries of Golden Handshake Program for 3 years    Energy minister unveils Saudi Arabia's plans to enrich and sell uranium    CEO Nasser: Saudi Aramco aims to increase energy production by 70%    Croatia's President Zoran Milanović re-elected by a landslide in run-off    Saudi Arabia offers new benefits to importers and exporters    Zelensky offers exchange of North Korean soldiers    South Korea's impeached president gets pay rise    Meghan Netflix show delayed over LA wildfires    LA fires death toll rises to 24 as high winds expected    Justice minister discusses ways to enhance cooperation with UN Resident Coordinator    Al Ittihad held to 1-1 draw by Al Fayha, lose Saudi League top spot    Al Orobah sign Saudi Pro League's all-time top scorer Omar Al Somah    Al Hilal thrash Al Orobah 5-0 to reclaim Roshn Saudi League top spot    Almarai successfully deploys SAP solutions to power strategic expansion Seamless implementation via RISE with SAP on Google Cloud supports company's SR18 billion growth plan    Al-Ahli defeats Al-Shabab 3-2 in Saudi Pro League thriller    SFDA warns of potential risks associated with high doses of Ginseng    Oscar nominations postponed because of LA fires    Islamic Arts Biennale 2025 to witness first-ever display of full kiswah of Kaaba outside Makkah city    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    









Hopes abound as new Ethiopia PM takes over
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 22 - 09 - 2012

Hailemariam DesalegnADDIS ABABA — Ethiopia's parliament swore in a new prime minister Friday in the US ally's first peaceful change of power in modern history, sparking hope for change in a nation that's largely a one-party with a poor human rights record.
Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn succeeds Meles Zenawi, who died on Aug. 20 after ruling Ethiopia for more than two decades.
No vote was held Friday. Instead the country's ruling party, the Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front — which controls 546 of the 547 seats in parliament — announced its choice for prime minister. Hailemariam was unanimously voted in as chair of the party last weekend by the ruling party's 180-member leadership.
Girma Seifu, the only opposition member of parliament, said he sees a brighter future — in time — for Ethiopia with Hailemariam in charge.
“I don't expect swift changes by next Monday, if he has powers to do so. I would be happy but I don't think that will happen," Girma said.
Hailemariam, Girma said in an interview with The Associated Press, should consolidate his power so he can run the country properly, then free those in the opposition who have been unjustly jailed.
Since Meles' death, the country's Justice Ministry has withdrawn two separate charges against two weekly newspapers.
“We are full of hope about the new leadership," said Mohamed Keita of the Committee to Protect Journalists. He added that the group has guarded optimism until it sees what kinds of freedoms are allowed.
Speaking to parliament in the nationally broadcast ceremony, Hailemariam said Ethiopia would remain “a stable and democratic nation" and would continue its security role in the region, including in Somalia and by aiding talks between Sudan and South Sudan.
Meles was credited with improving Ethiopia's economy and was well liked in Washington for his cooperation on security matters. But critics denounced his country's human rights record and the few opportunities allowed for opposition parties. With Hailemariam's ascension, civic groups and the opposition are holding out hope he will start to open the country's politics.
Making changes before Ethiopia's 2015 national elections could be difficult, though. Unlike Meles and his inner circle, Hailemariam did not take part in the 17-year armed struggle that unseated brutal communist leader Mengistu Hailemariam, the struggle that saw Meles come to power in 1991. It's not clear how much freedom Hailemariam will have to make changes that the older leaders oppose.
Ethiopian and US officials signaled that the countries' cooperation would continue. Ethiopia borders Somalia and has sent troops there several times to battle Al-Qaeda-linked militants. The country allows the US military to operate drone aircraft from its runways. The US gave more than $2.8 billion in aid to Ethiopia, mostly in the health and agriculture sectors, between 2009 and 2011.
“I doubt that there will be any major changes in the US-Ethiopia relationship, but there will inevitably be changes on the margins as time goes on," said David Shinn, the US ambassador to Ethiopia from 1996-99.
According to Ethiopia's Foreign Affairs Ministry, Hailemariam told the US delegation that attended Meles' funeral last month that his government will keep close ties with America. Shinn said he believes the US welcomes Hailemariam as prime minister but that it expects improvements in individual and political rights.
In his speech to parliament, Hailemariam vowed to sustain his predecessor's polices including ambitious economic goals “to take the country among middle income economies in just a decade." Meles was hailed for overseeing economic progress.
Despondency, Hailemariam said, “has finally given way to hope; darkness to brightness. More importantly, we have proven that victory over poverty and backwardness is within reach after all."
Hailemariam entered the political scene in 2006 as an adviser to Meles. He was promoted in a surprise move to the party's deputy chair in May 2010. — AP


Clic here to read the story from its source.