The Millennium Vision
By Fitsum G.
October 26, 2006
Believe it or not, the new catch word these days is the Millennium! The Ethiopian Millennium! Six years ago, the whole world seemed to be overwhelmed by the idea of the dawning second millennium. People had a lot of worries that some kind of catastrophe, either natural or technological, would befall. There was what was called the Y2K phenomenon. Today, it is Ethiopians’ turn to celebrate their own local second millennium. Hence, every one seems geared towards this event, as if every thing, including our very existence, depended on its celebration or glorification. Many Ethiopians seem to be thinking in terms of ‘changing their lives’ or ‘beginning a new life’ with the advent of the new millennium. Vows are not spared for another occasion; it should be done now, they seem to have decided. Some say: “with the new millennium, I will stop smoking; I will stop boozing; I will stop chewing chat; and I will be conducting a fresh and healthy life, get married and make babies, referring to their personal life. Others are more ambitious and indulge in intellectual pledges: “I will write a book of poetry, a novel, my autobiography”. Still others vow: “I will be serving my God with devotion and fervour, and stop the non sense life I have been conducting to date. I will reconcile with all those with whom I had grudges and repulsion, including my former sweetheart or spouse, my in-laws, my former neighbours, my former classmates etc. Apparently, everything will begin anew with the millennium; everything will end with the same.Once it was on the occasion of the heralding of a new year that many used to make such vows and promises; and often it ended up that before any thing new actually materialized, the new became old, and to renew the promises again, (a ritual) one had just to wait yet for another new year. Were these people afraid of the old French dictum: Plus ça change, plus c’est le même; the more it changes, the more it remains the same? In any case, this time, a millennium becomes rather difficult to change so soon, or wait for with optimism. It would take a thousand years, at least twenty generations to savour the next one! Can you imagine it?! Obviously, no one, even the most intimate relative of the biblical Methuselah would expect to be so fortunate to live until then. Perhaps, none of our direct descendants may attain such target.
Incidentally, it is inevitable that certain curiosities hover in our mind. What was the world like a thousand years ago? What was Ethiopia like? Was there ‘Ethiopia’ in the first place? (Definitely, history teaches us there were the predecessors of present day Ethiopia, albeit in another form.) What will Ethiopia be like by the year three thousand? Will there be the Ethiopia we now know as we know it? Will there be the world as we know it now, both geographically and politically? (with current security trends, there seems to be little to be optimistic about.) Who will be the great powers of the epoch? Will the world unite, or will it further disintegrate? Will hate and resentment conquer it, or love and understanding? What will be the role of religion? Politics, science? Who knows?!
In the meantime, every one is booking a place for the glorious millennium celebration slated for September, in ten and a half months. The Ethiopian Diaspora are anxiously planning to come home in tens of thousands for the celebrations. Hotels are being reserved starting now. Marriage ceremonies have already been planned, and unlike any other years, all available facilities are being booked in advance. Tour guides, tour agents, flights, hotels, halls, auditoriums, restaurants, parks etc are among them. The count down has officially begun in earnest! Walta has begun an official countdown on its website, but soon huge watches are to be hoisted in various squares in many Ethiopian cities. Come next 11 September, Ethiopians will be celebrating the end of the second millennium and welcome the beginning of the third amidst non Ethiopians being baffled wondering ‘where does this millennium come from? Haven’t we had one just six years ago? Yes, but Ethiopia has its own calendar, and according to it, next year is going to be the year 2000.
Already, on the government side, there appears a lot of excitement about the preparations and celebrations. Having reportedly begun with the preparations already three and a half years ago, a special task force guided by Seyoum Bereded and Mulugeta Asrate Kassa, has now been assigned to oversee, supervise, guide and coordinate the celebration ceremonies, whose main target is to change the cliché of Ethiopia as ‘land of misery, destitution, conflicts and diseases’. This looks like an irreplaceable opportunity for the government to show its fairer side, using the occasion to refurbish its fading image as a sound government, seriously committed to the well being, happiness, and progress of its people, not only in the eyes of its citizens, but also its international allies and donors. The millennium committee has been talking about a host of activities to be carried out through out the country for the whole span of the year 2000; and not only pomps and ceremonies. There will be certain campaigns aimed at helping to improve the lives of people. Song festivals, art exhibitions, discussion fora, workshops and the like are scheduled. To the supporters of the government, this could look like a very promising occasion to consolidate its image, and rally more influence and legitimacy, both domestically and abroad. Which better occasion than this could a government capitalize on, other than an occasion such as this that recurs once in a millennium! Conversely, for those who brew grudge against the legitimacy and hence policies of the same, specially in the wake of the recent electoral consultations, such extravaganza may appear misleading and not very palatable. And this would be interesting to watch as things develop either way.
Ethiopia’s historically and generally accepted age spans over three thousand years, and to celebrate the third millennium after the birth of Christ may not look so impressive after all. Flattering as it may sound to talk about a civilization that has lasted for three millenniums, (in fact Lucy, the mother of all humans was born here 3.2 million years ago!), nevertheless, the question props up automatic: what in substance is the current plight and status of the country, or what has been conserved in terms of achievements over the stated period? This remains a crucial question to ponder on carefully. If we refer and accept what world development indices assert, Ethiopia’s status does not seem so rosy. The second largest state in sub-Saharan Africa still suffers from, among others, food insecurity, and the gap between the elite ‘haves’ and the vast majority of the ‘have-nots’ is staggering with no sizeable middle class on which the locomotive for change could feed on. Unfortunately, it has bee found out that such sector of society prefers to abandon the country and live in exile, when it can. Many attribute to such state of affairs to a national feeling that is fast eroding. Hence with what vision and prospect do we receive the coming millennium? The survival of one of the most diversified societies is seen threatened by a host of negative influences. In what way can the rich cultural and ethnic diversity of the country be converted to being a strong asset rather than a liability? These are issues we are forced to raise in perspective, and battle with.
The Ethiopia of nations and nationalities, has lagged behind despite its enjoyment of centuries of glorious history and culture. Why? Newly created states are seen surpassing Ethiopia attaining higher standard of living. Could it be that Ethiopians are not hard working enough? Could it be that the country lacks adequate resources or not been able to make sound use of the same? Is it because Ethiopians are busy fighting each other rather than work in harmony and unison? Could it be that Ethiopians were never blessed enough to avail of an efficient and capable, democratic government? Why? Let us leave this homework for the economists, historians and political scientists, according to their areas of specialization. What is now of interest to us all is to draw our attention to certain similar hot issues so that all of us have the time and occasion to think about them, thanks to the millennium. This is a collective matter not to leave to politicians alone as the country belongs to all citizens, and not only to politicians. It is in this context that the Ethiopian Millennium should fit and be celebrated. Otherwise it becomes an idle and ill-conceived exercise. Why even mention it? Counting only the years is worthless.
The millennium will thus offer us a precious ‘once in a life time occasion’ to change our image, our life, our perception of life, check with our aspirations for the country and its people. We can ponder where we went wrong, and why, and most of all meditate the manners of coming out of it, rectifying. Our descendants who will be celebrating the third millennium should not be talking about food security, drought, environmental degradation, foreign aid, the search for good governance and the like. Catching up with the rest of the world, taking advantage of the infinite opportunities that the world of sophisticated science and technology offers us, we should liberate ourselves from backwardness and all its attributes. We should only talk about how to maximize the golden opportunity in front of us, being a part and parcel of a wonderfully advanced global society. The glorious occasion is here; let us make the most out of it!