Egypt is threatening Ethiopia with war if they use the Nile under a new agreement reached with the Nile basin countries. The countries around the Nile basin include Kenya, Tanzania Burundi, Rwanda, DRC and Ethiopia who all jointly agreed on using the Nile for irrigation under a new treaty.
According to Egypt, Ethiopia would be breaking the 1959 Treaty. That treaty is the continuation of the Nile water agreement of 1929 – brokered by the British when they were the colonial power. Egypt was guaranteed 48bn cubic meters of water. Following the 1959 deal, which did little more than reaffirm Egypt and Sudan's right to a majority of the Nile; this was increased to 55.5bn cubic meters, while Sudan is allotted 14.5bn cubic meters.
Egypt and Ethiopia share a long history of wars from ancient to the time Egypt was occupied by the Greeks, Turks followed by the Arabs. Our present similarity may have watered in modern times, however the river Blue Nile from Ethiopia following has not changed. The ancient Egyptians called present day Ethiopia the land of the Gods, as they depended on the water and silt Ethiopia gave them. They even had an ancient measuring device along the river banks to measure the height of the river and the silt levels.
Ethiopia throughout the years defended its territories from ancient invaders and colonial invaders to Arabs. Ethiopia was delayed with modernizing in the 20th century due to two world wars and in the 80’s had to deal with a civil war and an attack from Somalia as well as famine.
While the world was concerned with providing food aid to Ethiopia no one gave them the solution to be self sufficient and use their resources. Ethiopia’s image was blown up as a poor country locked in a time zone; no one acknowledged the gift of the majority of the Nile it gave to Egypt. Egypt was associated with the Nile exclusively as if it flowed upstream from the air and made use of it by themselves.
During the cold war, there where systematic political games being played on Ethiopia by foreign powers for their own purposes. Egypt supported any of Ethiopia’s political enemies and terrorists to cause instability in the country to continue using the Nile in peace. Now there is peace in Ethiopia, it is very worried so is trying to cause further chaos and instability; by encouraging separatism and ethnic tension amongst the tribes.
Thanks to the Chinese who have remained neutral, have agreed to help fund Ethiopia with the building of the dam on the Nile basin; when Western bank lenders refused Ethiopia like a parent refuses his child for candy. The only thing that is stopping the construction now is Egypt and the Northern administration of Sudan threatening war.
My question is what right has Egypt got to try and get the upper hand and say the colonial treaty signed in 1929 must be upheld in 2010? How does Egypt explain such a selfish attitude of threatening war on a developing country that just got out of a drought and threaten to cut aid for the other countries that depend on aid from Egypt? The fact of the matter is, these African countries rich in resources such minerals and fertile lands but poor due to civil wars want to be self sufficient and use their resources. Why do foreigners get uneasy when African resources are used by their own people? Is there a law that sates diamonds can be mined by black people but must given to the Lebanese, Belgian or French company? Oil must only go through Arab countries and owned by European companies like BP who are happy to help the community by building one water tap.
Rivers that pass through African countries cannot be used by black African countries. Newly independent African countries had been brain washed by their former colonial powers so much they accepted the unjust treaties put in place to make generations of Africans poor and dependant on food aid. As soon as a couple of African countries rally and demand to use their God given recourses, they get bullied with war threats with the backing of rogue states. Will Egypt defend the 1929 treaty to USA?
Barack Obama who is half Kenyan wrote in his book ‘Dreams of my father’ about his grandfather’s struggle against colonialism and being imprisoned for believing in freedom. I doubt Barack Obama will defend a colonial treaty that did not involve a free Kenya and other Nile basin countries. How about the African Americans or ‘Afrocentrics’ described by critics, who are having an increased interest in the motherland. Rastafarism is a growing trend which sees Ethiopia as Zion against Babylon. Other groups will have a say such as the Hebrew Israelites and the Kemets who follow the ancient religion of Egypt and believe the ancient Egyptians were black like the rest of the African countries.
The black Egyptians called Abbay’s the name of Ethiopia’s blue Nile waterfall are marginalized and have lost their land and are treated like second class citizens by the majority Arabs Egyptian.
Egypt has always denied they are African but do not mind using African resources. In times of trouble they would rather side with their Arabian relatives than side with their African slaves neighbors. This exploitation and inconsiderate use of resources must stop, Africa had been suffering from the after effects of slavery and colonization for too long. This treaty established in 1929 is a relic of the past era and its up to African countries collectively to rip it up and demand change.
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