Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed had not spoken for several weeks on the war in Tigray which has again bereaved the north of his country since the end of August. Tuesday, November 1, in a report on Chinese public television, he for the first time mentioned the negotiations in progress in South Africa with the authorities of Tigray, led by the TPLF party.
For weeks, the official Ethiopian media had been showing Abiy Ahmed almost every day inaugurating a major agro-food project, celebrating the institution of marriage, showing visitors a children’s park or a factory. Tuesday, November 1, in front of the cameras of CGTNa Chinese television channel, it presented a major agricultural project.
But in front of the machines plowing the land, he spoke of the talks in Pretoria, South Africa, where his government is discussing since October 25 with the Tigray authoritiesas a devastating war unfolds on the ground.
” We are trying to convince the TPLF to respect the law of the land, to respect the Constitution, to act along the lines of a unitary Ethiopian state. If they could understand our interest, if they could believe in their own Constitution and act accordingly, I think we will have peace “, did he declare.
But Abiy Ahmed also wanted to make the war in Tigray a matter between Ethiopians, denouncing interference from outside: “ If there are a lot of interventions from left and right, it makes things difficult. Ethiopians should understand that we can solve our problems on our own. And rather than listening to things coming from afar, it is better to respect our own laws, our own culture, our own customs. »
Held under the aegis of the African Union, the Pretoria talks are still ongoingin a strict camera.