Ethiopia another election, another victory for Democracy
April 15, 2008
By Moges Bezabih
Last Sunday the 3rd Local and bi-elections took place in Ethiopia. It was momentous and indicative of the will and commitment of Ethiopians to the democratic values enshrined in the Constitution. Ethiopia and all its citizens should be proud for the progress they have made through this momentous democratic act. Through the broad participation of the people and the political parties they have once again made us proud of being an Ethiopian. Their active and democratic engagement in the third Local election has added to the countries' democratic resume in a lot of ways.
First this election was a clear continuation of the democratic process that we have seen in the pre election and election of 2005. The voters registered en mass. A record number of 27 million voters registered and more than 90% of them have cast their votes. Even the number of voters who participated in Addis is as high as 80% of the registered voters and few thousands short of the 2005 election. This is unprecedented, especially when measured based against the imagined effects of the post 2005 crisis. Ethiopia must be congratulated for its successful implementation of this election where the majority of the electorate have taken matters into their own hands. This is another victory of the Ethiopian democracy.
The pre election period of the third local election has shown us the deepening of the democratic culture of fair competition. Contending parties have been accorded sufficient print and electronics media time and space to expound their alternatives and they have used this opportunity to the best of their ability. The parties in Ethiopia must be commended for their courage and commitment to the democratic ideals enshrined in the constitution. Truly speaking I feel this is a healthy signal of rejection of the zero sum game politics that we widely see in the developing world.
The efficiency exhibited by the National Electoral Board in terms of the conduct of the election was simply superb. Ensuring a smooth and efficient voting process for 27 million people simply could have been a logistical night mere. But the National election Board has done it. For such a late organized body like the NEB the ability to conduct such a big election without serious flows indicates that the Ethiopian electoral system is functioning like a properly oiled machine. It is another success that makes us Ethiopians proud on our emerging democratic institutions. All in all the 3rd local and bi-election has disproved all the wrong predictions about the possible back tracking of Ethiopia from Democracy; on the contrary it once again has proved that Ethiopia is not only on the right track, but also on a thoroughly democratic footing.
