http://www.worldbulletin.net/news/159290/ethiopia-opposition-vows-better-eritrea-ties
May 17, 2015
Ethiopia opposition vows better Eritrea ties
The leader of the opposition Ethiopian Democratic Party said that
bringing relations between his country and Eritrea back on track would
be a top priority for his party if it won the elections.
World Bulletin / News Desk
Ethiopia's opposition has vowed to normalize relations with
neighboring Eritrea and set a new foreign policy course if it won the
upcoming parliamentary polls, slated for next week.
"We want the two countries to return to their historical unity,"
Chanie Kebede Mamaye, the leader of the opposition Ethiopian
Democratic Party, told.
"We want a policy that brings the two peoples together," he said.
Ethiopia is set to hold its fifth parliamentary elections on May 24.
Fifty-eight political parties will be contesting 547 seats in the
House of Peoples' Representatives. The same parties will also contest
regional council seats.
Chanie said that bringing relations between his country and Eritrea
back on track would be a top priority for his party if it won the
elections.
Eritrea and Ethiopia used to be a single country, but a 1993
referendum saw Eritreans vote for independence.
Chanie believes that the two countries should settle the issue of
Badme, a region on their joint border, that has been at the heart of
their conflicts since 1998.
"The decision passed by the international boundary commission should
be replaced by a whole new international arbitration process," he
said, without elaboration.
For his part, Yonatan Tesfaye, spokesman for the opposition Semayawi
Party, said his party advocated peace with Eritrea.
"The no-peace-no-war situation…is very dangerous," he said, noting
that the party is keen on seeing a "confederation-type association"
between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
"The actual disagreement is between the incumbent governments of the
two countries, not between their peoples," he noted. "The peoples of
both countries have close historical and cultural ties."
Yonatan went on to say that tensions between the two nations could
usher in a permanent war economy.
Leader of the Unity for Democracy and Justice Party, Tigstu Awelu, agreed.
He expressed fears that potential border disputes would force the two
countries to increase their military spending.
"This situation would certainly hurt poor Ethiopia," Tigstu told Anadolu Agency.
"We will diligently work to restore peaceful relations with Eritrea
and end problems brought about by the cold war," he added.
-Nile row-
Chane, however, applauded improving relations between Ethiopia and
Egypt, especially when it came to the two countries' Nile water
relations.
"This was a result of good diplomacy by the leaders of both
countries," Chane said.
"The power alignment also changed making the unilateral use of a
common resource a thing of the past," he added.
Chane said his party appreciated what he described as the "visionary
stand" demonstrated by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi who
parted with the past and came aboard the venue of win-win diplomacy.
"The recently signed Declaration of Principles should be followed by
more robust, tangible agreements concerning the use of the Nile,"
Chane said.
Tigistu, on his part, said the foreign policy the ruling party has
been advocating is based on desire to lengthen its political life
span.
"Basically, relations with neighboring countries is limited to the
government-to- government level," Tigistu said.
"Although government-level cooperation remains valid we focus on
people-to-people relations," he added.
Received on Sun May 24 2015 - 11:01:33 EDT