Date: Sun, 25 May 2014 02:22:12 +0200
<http://www.madote.com/2014/05/pias-bombshell-independence-day.html> PIA's
Bombshell Independence Day Announcement
By Bereket Kidane,
May 24, 2014 | 3:12 PM
<http://www.madote.com/2014/05/pias-bombshell-independence-day.html>
4comments
President Isaias Afewerki's bombshell Independence Day Announcement
regarding the
<http://www.madote.com/2014/05/president-isaias-afwerkis-independence.html>
drafting of a new constitution does not come as a surprise to those of us
who have been saying all along that President Isaias Afewerki, who is the
George Washington of Eritrea because he was a leader during the fight for
independence and later became its first President, and the current
Government of Eritrea are keenly aware of the frailties of human nature and
that when the time is right they will bequeath a working, constitutional
government to the next generation.
The fact that the drafting of a new constitution was announced today might
come as a surprise to some, but it shouldn't if you have been paying
attention for the last three years or so. President Isaias has hinted at
this on several occasions. The 1997 constitution had many good things in it
so it can still serve as the basis. The Eritrean people and their
government can leverage the 1997 constitution, keep the parts that they
think will work and are appropriate for the Eritrean society and discard the
ones that won't work as well. This is perfectly normal.
Nations go through many changes early in their nationhood. Eritrea at 23
years old is a baby. The history of nations is written over a long period
of time. The 1997 constitution was written while Eritrea was a brand new
state and its government was new to the business of running a modern
nation-state. With the benefit of hindsight and experience, Eritrea can
produce a new and more perfect document that will help it form a better
governing document.
The timing is appropriate in that the political fortunes of Eritrea's arch
enemy, Weyane Tigray, also appear to be changing. Weyane is itself in
trouble with the ethnic federalism it introduced to the Ethiopian polity and
doesn't pose the threat it once did to the Eritrean State.
Eritrea is fortunate in some ways because it was tested early in its infancy
and survived the challenges to its sovereignty and nationhood. As the
saying goes, "What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger." Having
survived the early challenges to its nationhood from a determined enemy, it
can now chart a new road map for the future Eritrean State and its
posterity. President Isaias has hinted at this several times in the past so
work on this matter might be further along than one suspects.
In any case, Eritrea now has the benefit of hindsight and the experience of
running a modern nation-state in this complex global arena that will enable
it to come up with a more suitable governing document for its posterity.
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President Isaias Afwerki
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