Ethiopians Must Renew Spirit of Adwa for Strong Future, Says American Analyst 

Addis Ababa, March 02/2024 (ENA) Ethiopians should renew the spirit of Adwa to build a strong nation for the current and future generations, the political-economic analyst Lawrence Freeman said.

Today Ethiopians marked the 128th anniversary of the Victory of Adwa which is considered a symbol of African resistance against colonialism. 

In an exclusive interview with ENA, the analyst said the victory shocked the very foundations of European imperialism and almost brought them into a downfall.

“This became something that all Africans and African-Americans in the United States basically rallied around. And this became the basis of parts of the movement for the liberation of African nations in the 1960s and 1970s. And it's still today remembered as an absolutely unique event of effective resistance by an African nation and African people.” 

The victory was a result of a unified country where Ethiopians had to put aside their differences and conduct a battle to defeat the Italian imperialists on 1st March 1896, he added.

According to him, various sections of Ethiopian society united to defeat an enemy and guarantee their freedom; and the “event has helped shape the Ethiopian mindset in the 20th and 21st centuries.”

“What we saw at Adwa was people (Ethiopians) had to give up their grievances with each other, and they had to unite to defeat an external enemy.”

Therefore “what I'm suggesting today is that we do the same thing in the spirit of Adwa to build a strong future for Ethiopia, the best way to guarantee a strong future for their grandchildren,” he said.

He also praised Ethiopia for inaugurating the newly built Adwa Victory Memorial this month in order to commemorate the nation’s heroes and heroines.     

What happened in 1896 at Adwa still affects the Ethiopian mindset today as the people are grow up with Adwa inspiration and heroism, he added.

Therefore, the children of Ethiopia can be told the stories of how the country defeated the imperialist which no other country did in the whole continent, Freeman  said.

“Now we should use the memorial to reinforce and reeducate and revisit this historic battle," he stressed.

Moreover, the political-economic analyst stated that Ethiopia’s potential for economic growth is virtually boundless and the country is already a leading nation in East Africa.

In this case, Ethiopia has demonstrated its commitment to regional integration through the export of electricity and will continue it from the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam(GERD) to its neighboring nations, he elaborated.

Ethiopia has also become one of the African nations to join the BRICS. This  itself is another form of leadership for Africa, according to Freeman.

The American analyst believes that Ethiopia’s membership will increase the potential of more economic growth in the East African region.