Federalism has prevented "disintegration", gov't says

Ethiopia’s federal political structure has prevented the “national disintegration” of the country, the government said on Tuesday. A statement, released by the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), said the current federal system had boosted human and democratic rights, after the “brutal regime" of Mengistu Haile Mariam was overthrown in 1991. The statement - issued after a landmark conference on federalism, conflict and peace-building in Addis Ababa - said federalism had laid the foundations of a “solid” economic and political community. But critics argue that “political and economic confidence” in the country has been shaken by the recent border war with neighbouring Eritrea and corruption scandals. They also say that while “on paper” the country is radically devolved, often the real power lies within the federal structure and not the regions. But the government, headed by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, insists that a major devolution programme is underway. It blamed recent riots, in which dozens of people have been killed, on poverty and a misunderstanding of government’s democratic reforms. “The federal system of government adopted and under implementation in Ethiopia is the optimal means of achieving our vision of development and a democratic order,” the statement said. “One of the most important gains of the federal system of government was that it effectively averted the looming danger of national disintegration caused by past oppression and grievances,” it added.