I have read a couple of comments on the achievements and brutalities of Meles Zenawi. He has generally been doing what any politician does in almost all his deliberations. Visionary? – Yes. Brutal? – Yes. Corrupt? – Yes. A politician must need be evaluated in light of time and space. As a third-world leader, he is doing perfectly what he does. As a 21st century leader, there is more to be desired; but his people do not have the 21st century mentality either. You can’t feed democracy — you build it!

In 2005, he fought teeth and nail to win back his nearly lost empire; he killed. But don’t forget, guys, that this is also the same fellow who got recorded the Hawzen massacre as a means of promoting his TPLF agenda. Got the point? He doesn’t even care to tell his people in those days not to got to that market day although he and all his comrades knew — and were also part of the plot — that there would be helicopter gunships coming to conduct that atrocity. In less than 24 hrs Meles and his group used the video records of that massacre to get the World condemn the then dictator Mengistu Haile-Mariam. The question is: Why did Meles and his fellow liberation fighters aligned with the insiders of the Derg regime to conduct that massacre and were recording the activities of the helicopter gunships against the very people they claimed were trying to liberate from Derg? Sure, they did so for political gain — and this is exactly what a politician of the Third-World country does! Nothing new! Do any one of us make a mistake of not suspecting Meles for even larger massacre than we witnessed in Addis in 2005? Sure not. He would have done more had things turned out to be worse — and the World (the West) would be watching because Meles is their “beloved” dictator as Marcos of the Philippines and Mobutu of Zaire were.
Ethiopians need to come to terms with themselves. As a people, they the leader they deserve — be it Mengistu or Meles!

I believe Meles is a good politician and, more so, he is better than all that open their stinky mouths from abroad under the cover of democracy and what not! At least he stayed in the Country and fought his way — whatever the consequence. A collection of failed economic refugees and stirring unrest in the Country are not welcome. Ethiopian seem to have had more than enough cheaters and robbers right there in their country. They should better deal with those whom they know there rather than hoping to be led by those who are hard-hit by the economic crisis here and there and try to create some kind of face-saving scenarios for themselves to go back and settle in Ethiopia with whatever hard currency they tried to save over years. That trick may have worked for gentlemen like Nebiyu Samuel and others — then in 1991 politicians (out of kitchens in Los Angeles) and now cronies of Al Amudin. Go it?

Thanks for your comments, thoughts and views. But in my point of view the fall of northern Saharan countries’ leaders shall rather serve as lesson to the others. I would NOT predict who goes next or otherwise, but if the remaining GREAT and everlasting leaders as they call themselves watched all those events in Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Yemen and now Syria then I will rather ADVISE them to change their internal policy.
Because as matter of reality if a leader understand his people by providing them with minimum of needs, jobs, security, good infrastructures and care I can assure them that nothing would happen even if they would like to remain in power for life alike predicted others are now gone…may their souls remain in peace. Unfortunately our African leaders are more likely interested in their power securing rather than the welfare of their populations. Therefore as long Africans eyes are now widely opened by other countries’ developments and grows if they do not act now, then they shall pay the price of their…

Many point to Africa’s lack of experience with democracy or colonial legacy as the reason for such poor governance. The real answer why Africa has such poor leaders is because African’s tolerate their bad behaviour. Look at all the endemically corrupt regimes that still manage to win elections. They say a country gets the politicians they deserve, in most of Africa’s case that is true.

May be its time to outsource democracy from India ?

If the west can outsource technology from India may be its worth a try ?