Ethiopia: a peace with wounds to heal

Ethiopia now has a peace agreement. Olusegun Obasasio, the African Union mediator in the peace talks in Pretoria, has announced the cessation of hostilities between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Ethiopian government.  

The agreement, which includes a ceasefire, the resumption of humanitarian access, and "healing and reconciliation", has already received the support of the international community. "It is an important step. It is a solid pillar for preserving sovereignty and territorial integrity", said the African Union, the main promoter of the agreement.

A similar assessment was made by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who described the agreement as "a bold step" by the two parties and took the opportunity to urge the parties involved to make way for humanitarian aid to the areas most affected by the conflict. "The Secretary-General urges the continuation of negotiations in a spirit of reconciliation in order to reach a lasting political settlement, silence the weapons and return to the path of peace and stability," said the Secretary-General's spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric. 

The European Union's High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, also welcomed the agreement, but he put a little more emphasis on the resolutions of the conflict. Borrell urged the two sides to go beyond this agreement and called for further negotiations to achieve a permanent ceasefire and to push for political talks at the highest level. 

The peace agreement was signed between Ethiopian Deputy Foreign Minister and National Security Advisor to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Redwan Hussien, and TPLF representative Getachew Reda. While Hussein has welcomed the cessation of hostilities, Getachew Reda has not.

The TPLF continues to accuse the Ethiopian government of perpetrating genocide in Tigray with the latest attacks in the region. "It is not only words that can help the people of Tigray", denounces one of the spokespersons of the self-styled Tigray Foreign Office, Kindeya Gebrehiwot, showing videos of alleged attacks by Ethiopian and Eritrean forces in Tigray while peace is being negotiated in South Africa. 

While Pretoria is celebrating peace, Addis Ababa is still at war. The pro-Ethiopian government media commemorate all the soldiers who have died during these two years of conflict. Digital media such as The Ethiopian Herald, Addis Heraldo or Borkena pay tribute to the victims of 3 November when the TPLF attacked the army base in Mekelle, the step that started the hostilities.  

Now that the agreements have been reached, the anti-Western sentiment that has been shaking the country, especially since the 22 October demonstration, has been redoubled. "The West, especially the United States, has supported the TPLF politically, diplomatically and narratively throughout the war, and now it is wavering", one of these articles states, considering that the peace talks were reached before the TPLF surrendered.

Cartoons with American flags and characters meddling in Ethiopian politics are published on the front pages of many of these media outlets, hailing one of the main Ethiopian motivations: non-intervention in the politics of old Abyssinia. 

These publications are currently dominating the Ethiopian agenda, despite the fact that the government and the TPLF have pledged in Pretoria to "put an end to all forms of conflict and hostile propaganda", a goal on which they will have to work to lower the tension in Ethiopian public opinion, far removed from international reactions.