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Praxis is simply the practical application of theory.

In praxis, one is not interested in trying to understand the world in the abstract but to act in the world in order to change it and make it better.

Last week, H.E. Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed was doing whirlwind shuttle diplomacy demonstrating the praxis of his Medemer “theory” to the distressing, tragic and often aggravating politics of the Horn of Africa.

On March 1, PM Abiy hosted President Uhuru Kenyatta, who brought with him as many as 100 Kenyan government authorities, corporate and business community representatives, to discuss a range of economic and investment issues.

On March 3, PM Abiy and President Uhuru flew to Asmara to meet President Isaias for trilateral discussions on regional economic integration.

On March 4, PM Abiy and President Isaias were in Juba, South Sudan to discuss “regional peace, economic ties and infrastructure development”.

On March 5, Somali president Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed “Farmajo” arrived in Ethiopia for bilateral talks.

On March 6, PM Abiy was in Nairobi mediating a maritime border issue on the Indian Ocean between Kenya and Somalia.

All I have to say is, “Henry Kissinger, king of shuttle diplomacy, eat your heart out!”

I have previously discussed in detail what “Medemer” means to me and its practical implications.

Broadly stated, “Medemer” consists of specific political practices to determine the collective destiny of a given people.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. often said, “We must all learn to live together as brothers or we will all perish together as fools.”

“Medemer”, to me, is the road map out of the wilderness of the Valley of Fools in the Horn of Africa where we have lived for centuries as enemies hellbent on destroying each other.

PM Abiy’s Medemer in the Horn of Africa has a clear and unmistakable message and resonates the truth of MLK’s words:

We have great issues facing us today in the Horn of Africa. No individual can live alone; no nation can live alone. We are tied together in the Horn of Africa in a single garment of destiny, caught in an inescapable network of mutuality. And whatever affects one Horn country directly affects all indirectly.

The Horn of Africa today faces myriad issues ranging from grinding poverty, disease and ignorance to large scale population displacements (and population explosion) and endless strings of deadly conflicts.

What happens in each Horn country affects the others. War in one country threatens the peace in the other. Peace and democracy in one country becomes an example of good governance for others.

But for decades, Horn countries (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Kenya, Djbouti, South Sudan and Uganda) have chosen the path of perishing as fools.

Ethiopia and Eritrea fought a needless war in the name of “national pride” and “territorial integrity” between 1998-2000, which resulted in the deaths of as many as 100,000 people, displacement of up to one million and diversion of much needed resources to buy bullets instead of butter.

In July 2016, a “general” of the now defunct regime in Ethiopia openly advocated waging war against Eritrea for the purpose of regime change.

Not long ago, Sudan built up its troop presence on its eastern border with Eritrea on the pretext of potential conflict in the Red Sea.

Over the past several decades, Ethiopia and Somalia have had three full blown wars and numerous border clashes in which untold numbers of civilians were killed and displaced.

Somalia and Kenya have had low intensity conflict for decades. Last month, Kenya broke diplomatic relations with Somalia over off-shore gas and oil disputes.

There have been recent tensions between Eritrea and Djbouti.

And history continues to repeat itself in the Horn endlessly.

Since the creation of South Sudan in July 2011, President Salva Kiir and former Vice President Riek Machar have manifestly decided not to live as brothers but perish as fools.

In 2013, a power struggle between President Kiir and Mr. Machar turned into armed conflict as Kiir accused Machar of plotting a coup.

The two leaders mobilized their ethnic bases and South Sudan was headed to hell in a handbasket. Thousands died and thousands more were displaced.

A peace agreement was reached in 2015 but it did not last as conflict flared in July 2016 and Machar was forced to flee the country. South Sudan was again in the grips of civil strife and the suffering of the people continued.

In September 2018, Kiir and Machar signed a 128-page peace agreement with the aim of creating a “revitalized transitional government of national unity” and conduct new elections, among other things.

When Machar returned to South Sudan in November 2018, Kiir said he had forgiven Machar and was ready to start fresh. “I want to reiterate that the war in South Sudan has come to an end. To forgive is not an act of cowardice. It is a Christian obligation.”

There is no guarantee the tenuous peace between Kiir and Machar will hold. Thus, the peacemaking mission of PM Abiy and President Isaias.

Source: ECADF