Birhane Mewa, The MAN
The first time I came across the name Birhane Mewa was when he was the chair of the Ethiopian private Industrialists Association. I read an article on the reporter by a famous young libertarian, criticizing Birhane for suggesting that the government should give protection for Ethiopian infant industries who were really struggling against the competition from Chinese manufacturers. A week or so latter, I had an opportunity to talk with the man on a panel organized by the Ethiopian Economic Association. The man was articulate, knew what he was talking about. I was quite mesmerized.
Afterwards, Birhane moved on to chair the Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce. I watched him closely. He was one of the very few leaders of an association who was not the imposter of EPRDF. The organizations he led were always independent of government influence, reflecting what Birhane thought were the interests of its members. With his profile always increasing, he gained the public’s trust as a man of principle, integrity and independence. As a public person, he had to constantly rise above the mud slinging and muck racking. Oh, boy he did.
That I, believed, put him in EPRDF’s blacklist; and when he was accused of tax evasion, not even the party’s members really believed the story. As it had done to many nationalist, dignified and competitive Ethiopians, EPRDF was aiming its arsenal to destroy Birhane. In fact, the reverse happened. The politically motivated charge enhanced Birhane’s reputation as a people’s man. When he left Ethiopia via Kenya after being released on bail, people were sad that a capable, Ethiopian-loving man was leaving Ethiopia yet again. Yet the formation of Kinijit and Birhane’s role as a representative of the party in the US has returned Birhane back to where he belongs – public life. The measured and articulate interviews he constantly gives on VOA these days have made him a hero in Addis.
So I was really surprised when ER started a smear campaign against Birhane. I chatted with people who worked under him to know if he had any skeletons in his cupboard. Their opinions about him were almost unanimous. He might be a fierce believer on some values and principles; and naturally, this kind of people may sometimes be uncompromising. Some people may not like that. Nevertheless, you could not accuse Birhane of obsessive squabbling and backbiting. He is grander than that.
Elias Kifle should stop smearing the unsmearable. Birhane’s moral high ground is so high that Elias would not stand the rockslide while digging to destroy The MAN.