OWN CORRESPONDENT, Addis Ababa | Thursday 7.00pm.
ETHIOPIA will succeed in averting famine threatening some eight million people, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said on Thursday while rejecting criticism that its war with Eritrea had exacerbated the crisis.
Speaking after meeting with the visiting director of the UN World Food Program Catherine Bertini, Meles said: “The pledges that have been made … give us a realistic chance to avert the disaster.”
He added: “I do not believe there will be a famine in this country for two reasons. We will not allow it to happen, and the indications are that the food which will avert the disaster may be forthcoming.”
The prime minister rejected charges that the government is not doing enough in the face of the looming famine, saying: “While we have no intention of rolling over when some engage in the business of spreading untruth in a vain effort to find a scapegoat, we would much prefer to focus all our attention on saving lives.”
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said on Sunday that the Ethiopian government was failing to distribute aid “properly” and criticised Addis Ababa for continuing to spend money on the border war with Eritrea, saying it hampered the distribution of supplies.
Meles said he expressed to Bertini his government’s “strong opposition to any attempt to link the drought relief program with the conflict imposed on Ethiopia by Eritrea.”
Meles reaffirmed that Ethiopia wanted — by peaceful means or by force — to regain territory it accuses Eritrea of occupying.
“You do at the same time what you can to save lives and at the same time defend your soil,” he said. “The choice between relief programs and protection of our sovereignty is a false choice.” — AFP
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