Tesfaye Dinka
Encyclopedia
Tesfaye Dinka Yadessa was Minister of Foreign Affairs
(1989–1991), and acting Prime Minister (26 April - 6 June 1991) of Ethiopia
.
Born in Ambo
, Tesfaye is an ethnic Oromo
. He attended high school in Ambo.
He was a leading member of the regime of Mengistu Haile Mariam
and alternate member of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Ethiopia
. Prior to his appointment as Prime Minister, Tesfaye served in various ministerial posts, successively Minister of Agriculture
, Finance, Industry; he also served as Deputy Prime Minister of the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
from 10 September 1987.He was the member of Mengistu’s civilian inner circle with no blood on his hand. He was a technocrat and has no say on Mengistu’s monumental decision such as the infamous collectivization program of the mid-80s which uprooted thousands peasants from the northern part of the country and resettled them in the southern and western part of Ethiopia. Tesfaye Dinka is considered by many to have been a moderate and calm member of the Mengistu regime, and part of the faction of government officials who advised Mengistu to negotiate with the Eritrean People's Liberation Front
(EPLF) and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).
In the last days of Mengistu's rule, he was appointed Prime Minister. He attended the London peace conference of 27 May 1991, which was intended to broker an end to the Ethiopian Civil War
. Other attendees included Isaias Afwerki who led the EPLF, Meles Zenawi
the leader of the TPLF, and Lencho Letta the deputy secretary general of the Oromo Liberation Front
. US Assistant Secretary of State Herman Jay Cohen
served as mediator. Ostensibly, the conference was supposed to explore ways to set up a transitional government in Ethiopia, but its proceedings were soon overtaken by events. The talks had hardly gotten under way when Cohen received a message that Lieutenant General Tesfaye Gebre Kidan
, acting President of Ethiopia, had lost control of the government's remaining armed units and Addis Ababa
was threatened with a complete breakdown of law and order. To prevent uncontrolled destruction and looting, Cohen recommended that EPRDF forces immediately move into Addis Ababa and establish control. Although Tesfaye Dinka strenuously objected, he spoke from a position of weakness and could not prevail. He eventually walked out of the meeting, and the London conference continued the next day without him.
Tesfaye worked in the 1990s for the World Bank
and various UN agencies. He has lived for years in the U.S. and is now Senior Advisor to the Global Coalition for Africa, an organization dedicated to the economic development of Africa.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ethiopia)
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the Ethiopian government ministry which oversees the foreign relations of Ethiopia....
(1989–1991), and acting Prime Minister (26 April - 6 June 1991) of Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
.
Born in Ambo
Ambo, Ethiopia
Ambo is a spa town in central Ethiopia. Located in the Mirab Shewa Zone of the Oromia Region, west of Addis Ababa, this town has a latitude and longitude of and an elevation of 2101 meters...
, Tesfaye is an ethnic Oromo
Oromo people
The Oromo are an ethnic group found in Ethiopia, northern Kenya, .and parts of Somalia. With 30 million members, they constitute the single largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and approximately 34.49% of the population according to the 2007 census...
. He attended high school in Ambo.
He was a leading member of the regime of Mengistu Haile Mariam
Mengistu Haile Mariam
Mengistu Haile Mariam is a politician who was formerly the most prominent officer of the Derg, the Communist military junta that governed Ethiopia from 1974 to 1987, and the President of the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia from 1987 to 1991...
and alternate member of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Ethiopia
Workers' Party of Ethiopia
The Workers' Party of Ethiopia is a Communist party in Ethiopia that was, from 1984 to 1990, the only legal political party in the country.-The Commission to Organize the Party of the Workers of Ethiopia:...
. Prior to his appointment as Prime Minister, Tesfaye served in various ministerial posts, successively Minister of Agriculture
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Ethiopia)
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is the Ethiopian government ministry which oversees the agricultural and rural development policies of Ethiopia on a Federal level...
, Finance, Industry; he also served as Deputy Prime Minister of the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
The People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia was the official name of Ethiopia from 1987 to 1991, as established by the Communist government of Mengistu Haile Mariam and the Workers' Party of Ethiopia...
from 10 September 1987.He was the member of Mengistu’s civilian inner circle with no blood on his hand. He was a technocrat and has no say on Mengistu’s monumental decision such as the infamous collectivization program of the mid-80s which uprooted thousands peasants from the northern part of the country and resettled them in the southern and western part of Ethiopia. Tesfaye Dinka is considered by many to have been a moderate and calm member of the Mengistu regime, and part of the faction of government officials who advised Mengistu to negotiate with the Eritrean People's Liberation Front
Eritrean People's Liberation Front
The Eritrean People's Liberation Front was an armed organization that fought for the independence of Eritrea from Ethiopia. It emerged in 1970 as an intellectual left-wing group that split from the Eritrean Liberation Front .-Background:...
(EPLF) and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).
In the last days of Mengistu's rule, he was appointed Prime Minister. He attended the London peace conference of 27 May 1991, which was intended to broker an end to the Ethiopian Civil War
Ethiopian Civil War
The Ethiopian Civil War began on September 12, 1974 when the Marxist Derg staged a coup d'état against Emperor Haile Selassie, and lasted until the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front , a coalition of rebel groups, overthrew the government in 1991. The war overlapped other Cold War...
. Other attendees included Isaias Afwerki who led the EPLF, Meles Zenawi
Meles Zenawi
Meles Zenawi Asres is the Prime Minister of Ethiopia. Since 1985, he has been chairman of the Tigrayan Peoples' Liberation Front , and is currently head of the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front .Meles was born in Adwa, Tigray in Northern Ethiopia, to an Ethiopian father from...
the leader of the TPLF, and Lencho Letta the deputy secretary general of the Oromo Liberation Front
Oromo Liberation Front
The Oromo Liberation Front , or OLF, is an organization established in 1973 by Oromo nationalists to promote self-determination for the Oromo people against what they call "Abyssinian colonial rule". It has been outlawed and labeled as a terrorist organization by the Ethiopian government...
. US Assistant Secretary of State Herman Jay Cohen
Herman Jay Cohen
Herman Jay "Hank" Cohen served as the United States Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs from 1989 to 1993. His lobbying firm, Cohen and Woods International, has represented the governments of Angola and Zimbabwe...
served as mediator. Ostensibly, the conference was supposed to explore ways to set up a transitional government in Ethiopia, but its proceedings were soon overtaken by events. The talks had hardly gotten under way when Cohen received a message that Lieutenant General Tesfaye Gebre Kidan
Tesfaye Gebre Kidan
Tesfaye Gebre Kidan was an Ethiopian general who was President of Ethiopia for one week in late May 1991.Tesfaye was a student at Holetta Military Academy, where he met Mengistu Haile Mariam; according to Gebru Tareke, along with Legesse Asfaw and Gebreyes Wolde Hana Tesfaye was part of Mengistu's...
, acting President of Ethiopia, had lost control of the government's remaining armed units and Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia...
was threatened with a complete breakdown of law and order. To prevent uncontrolled destruction and looting, Cohen recommended that EPRDF forces immediately move into Addis Ababa and establish control. Although Tesfaye Dinka strenuously objected, he spoke from a position of weakness and could not prevail. He eventually walked out of the meeting, and the London conference continued the next day without him.
Tesfaye worked in the 1990s for the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
and various UN agencies. He has lived for years in the U.S. and is now Senior Advisor to the Global Coalition for Africa, an organization dedicated to the economic development of Africa.