On Friday, Addis Ababa accused the EU’s special envoy of making false statements with colonialist overtones.
as reported from Nairobi, Sebastien nemeth
Ethiopians refer to a meeting on Tuesday between Finnish Pekka Haavisto and a committee of the European Parliament during which the special envoy accused the Ethiopian authorities of “exterminating the Tigrayan people for 100 years”.
These are perhaps the most critical remarks of the Ethiopian authorities since the beginning of the war in Tigray. In February, Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto traveled to Addis Ababa, where he met with the Prime Minister, his Deputy and the Minister of Peace.
However, during the online briefing with MEPs, the Special Envoy reported that several senior Ethiopian officials had made extremist comments against the Tigrayans.
“The Ethiopian representatives really used this kind of language, that they would destroy the Tigrayans, that they would exterminate them for a century. To me, it refers to very serious atrocities, human rights violations and crimes. If you eradicate an entire minority. You can not destroy the entire population of Tigray. Obviously, we need to answer what looks like ethnic cleansing. It’s very serious, if it’s true. “
It is not known which officials are alleged to have made these statements. In any case, the Ethiopian reaction was virulent. The Foreign Ministry denied and believed that Pekka Haavisto had “a hallucination or a blackout”. Addis Ababa accused the diplomat of “shameless lies”, of “grotesque words that lacked context and understanding” and added that the special envoy demonstrated “his colonialist and self-satisfied state of mind”.
“In these circumstances, it is difficult for us to accept Mr Haavisto as a credible intermediary,” the ministry concluded. It is a diplomatic point to say that Finns are no longer welcome in Addis Ababa.
The country’s northern province is in a conflict between the old regional power and the federal power. The war has claimed thousands of lives, displaced millions and the humanitarian situation is serious.
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