nazret.com Merkato Blog

Ethiopia: Washington Update

By Mesfin Mekonen

The elections are over leaving the power structure in Washington largely unchanged, but there are likely to be personnel changes at both the State Department and in Congress that could impact U.S. policy to Ethiopia. The next Secretary of State will seek to exert his/her influence by appointing new staff. This will probably include senior officials with responsibility for Africa. A senior State Department official says major changes in the department's Ethiopia policy are unlikely -- unless there is some strong press for change.

The most powerful force for change is Congress. Ethiopian-Americans should focus on our elected representatives in Congress. A small number of dedicated individuals can have a huge impact on Congress, and Congress can dictate or change American policy.

We have seen that organizing the Ethiopian Diaspora to contact members of Congress and prompting major news media to report about Ethiopia issues has been effective in the past. There are strong supporters of Ethiopian human rights and democracy in Congress, but it will take a lot of work to get Ethiopia on the agenda.

To Supporters of democracy and human rights in Ethiopia, it is time to build on the impressive achievements of the Ethiopian-American community in the 2008 session of Congress, when the House of Representatives unanimously passed legislation promoting Ethiopian human rights, democracy and economic prosperity. This time we need to get both houses of Congress to pass legislation.

There are many, competing priorities in Congress. The ONLY way we will succeed is by making our voices heard. Members of Congress respond to their constituents. The bill will help Ethiopia to be independent of foreign aid. Ethiopia can feed itself by employing modern agricultural technologies, and help eradicate HIV/AIDS and tropical diseases.

Changes in Congress include leadership of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Two friends of Ethiopia, Chris Smith (NJ) and Ed Royce (Calif.). It looks like Royce will be appointed to lead the committee. He and especially Smith are actively interested in promoting democracy and human rights in Ethiopia. Smith has been working very hard to get legislation introduced and passed to support human rights and democracy in Ethiopia. There is a chance it will be enacted in the coming weeks, but if it is not, it will be necessary to start over again in the new Congress.