Ethiopia
Ethiopia: The Millennial Empire on Fire
Ethiopia is the only African country never to have been colonised (save for a brief Italian occupation). This country of 120 million inhabitants — Africa's second most populous — carries 3,000 years of history: the Queen of Sheba, the Ark of the Covenant in Axum, the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela. But the millennial empire is on fire: the Tigray war (2020–2022) killed hundreds of thousands, and other conflicts are simmering.
The Wars of Abiy Ahmed
Abiy Ahmed received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 for making peace with Eritrea. A year later, he launched a war against Tigray, his own northern region. The toll is catastrophic: famine used as a weapon, massacres, systematic rape. The 2022 peace is fragile. Other regions (Oromia, Amhara) are in rebellion. Ethiopia's ethnic federalism is cracking everywhere.
The Ubuntu Strength: Coffee and Spirituality
Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee — and the coffee ceremony, with its three servings, is a ritual of conviviality. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church, one of the oldest in Christianity, structures the lives of millions of faithful. Muslims (35% of the population) generally coexist peacefully. Ethio-jazz (Mulatu Astatke), cuisine (injera, doro wat), and athletes (Haile Gebreselassie) shine worldwide.
« ከሞኝ ጋር አትጣላ ካወቀ ያፍራል »
Do not argue with a fool, for if he understands, he will be ashamed
— Proverb amharique
Ethiopia reminds us that empires can collapse from within, and that the Nobel Peace Prize does not immunise against war.