A sad week for Ethiopia

With the death of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and the funeral of Abune Paulos, the Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox church, this has been an exceptionally sad week for Ethiopia.

The late Patriarch

I attended the Patriarch’s funeral, at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Addis Ababa (where Emperor Haile Selassie and suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst are buried) on Thursday.   There was a huge crowd present to witness the event, including Ministers, officials, diplomats and religious dignitaries and the Patriarch had tributes paid to him from church leaders from across the world.  He was a very visible and colourful figure, who will be remembered among other things for his work on church modernisation; on reconciliation; and on humanitarian issues. Our thoughts and prayers are with the congregation of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church at this sad time for them.  I would like to send Abune Natnel, the transitional Patriarch, my Embassy’s very best wishes following his appointment.

On Tuesday morning, I awoke to the very sad news that Prime Minister Meles Zenawi had died, while being treated overseas for an illness.  I was shocked; Ethiopia had lost a leader who achieved so much for the country.  As a sign of respect, we immediately lowered the Embassy’s Union Flag to half mast (it will remain so until the funeral).  Members of our Embassy, both British and Ethiopian, have been noticeably sad and downbeat all week.

I was present at the airport when the Prime Minister’s body returned, on Tuesday evening.  Crowds of Ambassadors, government ministers, religious leaders, senior business people and the world’s media were also present.  There were also tens of thousands of residents of the capital filling the roads around the airport.  I could not help but being affected by the emotion of the occasion:  people were clearly grieving deeply.  I saw several serious looking police and military personnel break down in tears.  There is a real sense of lose across Addis – I have since heard that people are queuing for over four hours to pay their respects to the Prime Minister’s body (at the National Palace).  Ethiopians, regardless of their ethnicity, religion, age or wealth, are uniting in their sorrow over the Prime Minister’s death.

Her Majesty The Queen has sent a message to the Ethiopian President, Girma Wolde-Giorgis, saying that she was “greatly saddened” to hear of the death of Prime Minister Meles, and that the Prime Minister was “an important friend of the British Government and gave strong leadership in Africa.”  British Prime Minister David Cameron said that Prime Minister Meles was an “inspirational spokesman for Africa” and his personal contribution to Ethiopia’s development “set an example for the region.”

In the eight months I have been in this job, I met Prime Minister Meles on many occasions, discussing with him governance, trade, development and regional issues.  He was an important friend of the UK.  I believe he valued our strong development partnership, shared many of our objectives for the region, and was particularly focused on the increasing bilateral trade and investment between the UK and Ethiopia.  Personally, I found Prime Minister Meles a cooperative and intellectually stimulating partner, and I was always struck by his extraordinary grasp of detailed issues, combined with a powerful vision for his country.

The late PM Meles Zenawi

This is a time for reflection.  It has been a tough week.  Both the Patriarch and the Prime Minister will be sorely missed.  But Ethiopia is a brave, strong country.  Since my arrival, I have seen the determination of Ethiopians on so many occasions.  I know that, sad as this week has been, Ethiopia will continue to move forward.  And I can be certain that while of course it has had its controversies, Ethiopia truly has a bright future  – thanks in large part to the leadership of Prime Minister Meles over the last 20 years,.