Politicians the world over are advised by the professional consultants that  the secret to success is to lower expectations.  This way, if expectations  are met, it is a great victory; if they are not, they never were meant to be,  anyway, so what is your beef?   It is, as they say, a win-win situation.  If  expectations are exceeded, it is a license to throw caution and reason to the  wind and start ceaseless sessions of self-love.

While African politicians everywhere try to emulate their Western  counterparts in the Lower The Expectations game, the Ethiopian leaders--true  to Ethiopia's myth of 3000 year history--are way, way ahead in the game of  deception and deceipt.
 
 

(1) Instead of taking responsibility for the drought and famine in Ethiopia,  Ethiopian leaders told the world that at least they, unlike the Derg, didn't  try to keep it a secret.  Don't expect us to prioritize our resource and feed  our people; be grateful that we told you that we are starving.  Victory for  Lowered Expectations.

(2) Instead of taking responsibility for placing their nation and its leader  on the Enemies of the Press list for five consecutive years, they said the  jail accomodates more.  Don't expect us to live up to the terms of our  constitution; be grateful that we at least have a quasi-free press.  Another  victory for Lowered Expectations.

(3) Instead of taking responsibility for the looting and devastation of  Tessenei and Barentu and the bombing of Hrgigo, they told the world that at  least they didn't carpet bomb Eritrea.  Don't expect us to fight using the  rules of the game; be grateful that we didn't do worse.  After all, we had  total air superiority.  Another victory for Lowered Expectations.

(4) Instead of taking responsibility for the bogus elections that saw them  re-elected by 90% + margins, they told the world at least we had elections.   Don't expect us to implement democracy; be grateful that we are exercising a  little charade.  Another victory for Lowered Expectations.

There has been one case of exceeded objective expectations and failing short  of secret expectations.

For two years, the Ethiopian spokesperson, the Walta writers, the officials  at the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry, the Prime Minister, the Foreign Minister,  the governor of the sovereign state of Tigray, and every TPLF cadre worth his  stolen Eritrean villa were singing from the same hymn book.  It went like  this (all together now): Aggression must be reversed.  Ethiopia wants nothing  more and nothing less.  Nothing more; nothing less.  That was the bottom line.

Back then, I wrote a piece for Visafric entitled "Ethiopia's Bottomless List  of Bottom lines" warning of the ever-shifting Ethiopian conditions for peace.   I am told from reliable sources that the piece was circulated at the US  State Department amongst the Henze-ites.  Not as evidence of Eritreans  concern; but as one more proof of Eritrean paranoia.   Moreover, I got a  letter from the Man with Information Advantage (the American Mekele NGO guy  who couldn't stop crying about the tragic bombing of the Mekele school)  chastising me for my foolishness and telling me that Ethiopia has no interest  besides restoring status quo ante.  How paranoid of me.

Status quo ante did not include Senafe, all that claim of reversing  aggression was bogus and the State Department, as usual, was wrong.  The  Ethiopian government's response?

(5) Don't expect us to withdraw from undisputed Eritrean territories; be  grateful that we didn't go further because if we wanted to, we could have.   Really.  After all, 60% of Eritrea's force has been decimated.  And, they  admitted, they had thought about marching to Asmara. Or, as the Prime  Minister put it in his diplomatic briefing, the temptation was there.

Another Temptation of Lord Meles was Asab.   Port, the final frontier.  After  trying and failing to capture Asab, he pretended that he never tried to get  it anyway.  If I wanted to, I could quit smoking.  I just don't want to.   More lowered expectation.   The game of lowered expectations first started  with Meles telling us that he doesn't care a whit about Massawa and Asab,  which, after all, according to him, is nothing more than a watering hole for  camels.   This is a classic case of "Adgi zeyblus beqli y'niek."  (A man who  doesn't own an ass scorns a mule.)

Then the usual assortment of "Ethiopia tiKdemers" (an alliance of Dergistas,  Janhoyists and permanent Eritrea-haters) started openly expressing their lust  of Asab (It has been seven years since Eritrea formally became a nation in  1993 so this must be another 7 Year Itch.)  In his usual mock-professorship,  the Prime Minister gave a few reasons why he doesn't want the mule.  What t  is telling is that he never once said that he, on behalf of Ethiopia, has  committed to the United Nations and the OAU (in countless documents) that he  respects Eritrea's sovereignty.  Even using crooked maps made in Mekele,  Eritrea includes Asab.  Case closed.

It is in the long-term interest of Eritrea and Ethiopia to strike a  commercial deal on Asab.  But this deal has to be one among equal and  sovereign nations.  It is something that can come about not as part of peace  process negotiations but after the peace negotiations have been concluded and  the land is demarcated.   In the meantime, Ethiopia can use many of the fine  alternatives it told us it has like Mombasa, Berbere, Port Sudan.

Sometimes, politicians have to live with the consequences of their lowered  expectations.