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Alastair Thompson Profile picture
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8 Oct, 4 tweets, 3 min read
2 damaging pieces about Ethiopia in @TheEconomist today, an editorial and a report. Both behind a paywall, and inaccessible to most Ethiopians

"Abiy against the world

Ethiopia is losing friends and influence

An essential Western ally now faces sanctions and isolation"
The editorial is the more damaging of the two, and links to the report, upon which it is loosely based.

"No favours for killers
Ethiopia is deliberately starving its own citizens
The world should apply whatever pressure it can to force it to stop"
LINKS:
Editorial >> economist.com/leaders/2021/1…

The report is linked at the bottom with the phrase "increasingly paranoid and erratic" used to describe @AbiyAhmedAli

Report >> economist.com/middle-east-an…
The articles are both in the print edition for 9th October and will predate recent developments, hence the absence of mention of the expulsions and the UNSC meeting.

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More from @althecat

Alastair Thompson Profile picture
8 Oct
This (2nd image) is what >> un.org/ruleoflaw/them… << the @UN says about the the need for Freedom of Information laws to be in place in nation states to protect freedom of expression as per the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
And this is a recent (2020) statement issued by the independent OHCHR [Office of the high commissioner of human rights] issued about the absence of implementation of Freedom of Information within UN institutions. ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/…
“The UN and many international organizations lack the kind of freedom of information policies that are increasingly the norm among governments,” - David Kaye said before presenting a new report to the UN General Assembly.
Read 11 tweets
Alastair Thompson Profile picture
7 Oct
I'd love to know who @Jack talked to when he visited Ethiopia and what they talked about?

The role of @Twitter in reversing the information warfare dominance of TPLF, based mostly on lies, and replacing it with narratives based on reality has been an outstanding success.
There are spectacular differences between the approaches applied by the TPLF's cyber corps and those of Ethiopia.

TPLF: trolling, lying, gaslighting, bland unspecific allegations.
ETHIOPIA: humour, amplifying, revealing, informing, investigating, thanking and politely rebuffing
On the news media side the TPLF maintain clear dominance however. They have put in a lot off effort with things like story fabrication and placement, engineered and carefully deployed leaks.
Read 12 tweets
Alastair Thompson Profile picture
7 Oct
UN Interference in Ethiopia. Exhibit #1

An extraordinarily foolish oped by Mark Lowcock. UN Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator between 2017 and 2021.

I.E. The official in charge of Tigray when war began.

cgdev.org/blog/how-destr…
This oped is indicates that from the outset the war, the UN’s perspective on Tigray was divorced from reality.

TPLF attacks on multiple ENDF bases, killing 1000s of soldiers & officers, stealing heavy weaponry and attacking a neighboring state. Is not a “political dispute”.
I can only conclude from this intemperate and delusional account of recent history that Sir Mark Lowcock is anxious, that when the causes of the humanitarian disaster in Tigray are determined, they will be sheeted home to his leadership.
Read 4 tweets
Alastair Thompson Profile picture
6 Oct
And @USAmbUN Stakeout:

The expulsions are an affront. To the UN (and others). These are self inflicted wounds. And they reflect how this is conflict where Ethiopians are killing and raping Ethiopians. It is Ethiopia's leaders who are letting down Ethiopia.
@USAmbUN She goes on a bit. You can watch the video here >> media.un.org/en/asset/k17/k… (3:17 mins in).
Q1: Reuters - are you going to impose sanctions on Ethiopia?

A: The fact of the UNSC meeting today was an action. It was not an action that was easy to take. The US have tools at our disposal. It could be a resolution...
Read 5 tweets
Alastair Thompson Profile picture
6 Oct
The appearance by @antonioguterres at the end of the meeting is perhaps the most striking bit of all of this.

"It is my duty to defend the honour of the United Nations," he said when asked about his "right of reply" at end.
VIDEO: (Beginning 2:36mins) media.un.org/en/asset/k17/k… Image
"The UN has no political agenda in Ethiopia. Our agenda is just one to support the Ethiopian people, Tigrayans, Amaharas, Afaris, Somalis, that have suffered so much. We cannot see people going on dying, because of bullets, because of hunger...
"... we need to do everything to stop this conflict. We need to do everything to ensure that humanitarian aid is distributed everywhere to everybody. We need to do everything for a dialogue to be established among Ethiopians to solve the problems in Ethiopia."
Read 7 tweets
Alastair Thompson Profile picture
6 Oct
The @UN_Spokesperson's insubstantive remarks on Ethiopia at today's media briefing was likely indeference UNSG @antonioguterres, who has chosen to make it the focus of the UNSC centerpiece of the day, the consultation on "Peace and Security in Africa".

2pm US/9pm EU/10pm ETH
Estonia followed Ireland, so far the statements have been very predictable. Reiterating and reinforcing existing flawed understanding of what has been, and is happening in Ethiopia.
France speaking now, says Obasanjo is in Paris tomorrow to talk to the French. A short formulaic statement also.
Read 46 tweets

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