Tuesday 9th October, 2018
Teshome made the comments amid increasing
ethnic-based clashes that are challenging the east African country’s recent
positive developments. Last week, the
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 09 (Xinhua/GNA) – Ethiopian
President Mulatu Teshome said on Monday that confusion between freedom and
anarchy creates mass destruction and human displacement.
Teshome made the comments amid increasing
ethnic-based clashes that are challenging the east African country’s recent
positive developments. Last week, the
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said more
than 70,000 people had fled their homes due to communal violence in western
Ethiopia’s Benishangul Gumuz regional state.
Attacks late September also drove more than
15,000 people to flee and seek refuge in schools and other public facilities
across Addis Ababa.
“For centuries, Ethiopians have lived in
peace and harmony even under difficult times,” Teshome said, adding that
“in recent years there has been confusion between freedom and
anarchy.”
According to Teshome, this confusion has
created “destruction of property, mass displacement of people and
lawlessness.”
Teshome urged Ethiopians to refrain from
destructive acts.
“It is clear that the fate of a country
without laws is social crisis, internecine and even fragmentation,” he
told a joint session of the two houses of the Ethiopian parliament.
Over the weekend, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed
called on Ethiopians from all walks of life to maintain the long-standing peace
and togetherness and avoid misunderstandings that lead to conflicts.
Ethiopia’s ruling coalition, Ethiopian
People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front, during a congress meeting that
concluded on Saturday, vowed to sustain ongoing socioeconomic and political
reforms and effectively respond to conflicts and violence.
GNA