The original title at waltainfo.com read as follows: EEBC and its “Legal Nonsense”
This is suicide!!

EEBC and its “Legal Nonsense”

Off late many pundits and stereotyped journalists are generous with prophesies on what they call a rising conflict over the historic region. It is unfortunate to have this label.

As an Ethiopian I am sure that my government is committed to peace and stability in the region and it has, over and over, said that what ever it takes Ethiopia is for peace. I have no doubt, in this regard, that my government will act as it has been clearly stated by his Excellency PM Meles Zenawi in his recent Parliamentary debate.

The conflict with Eritrea is not and perhaps was not border issue; and whatever we do I don’t think the one man police state in Eritrea will come to its senses. In 1998 the PFDJ inner circle started what many call “nonsense war” and now they are on drum beats. PFDJ supporters within Eritrea and the Diaspora are holding meetings under the theme “Hizbawi Mekete” literally meaning “Popular Defense” offering us the benefit of doubt on the possible conduct of the inner circle.

The Ethio-Eritrea border, including Badme triangle, the area of the first flash that sparked a war by Eritrea in 1998, is a colonial boundary fixed in 1902 by a treaty between the Italian Government and Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia. When Badme was awarded to Eritrea in 2002 a considerable area, including getting on villages, in the Tserona area, formerly administered by Eritrea were also awarded to Ethiopia following the ruling by the EEBC.

Ethiopia accepted the ruling with its entire impediment and suggested that parties discuss on its implementation. Eritrea refused to talk on the implementation of the ruling a move that mired EEBC’s plans to demarcation. Ethiopia insisted that it will comply with the EEBC ruling and the only legitimate concern was on the implementation of the demarcation without separating families, shifting the nationality of a portion of local residents and dividing religious, cultural and historical heritages.

Ethiopia fears that the thin line we leave today between both countries could be a potential border dispute in future. Instead, the frustrated commission gave time until end of November to facilitate and if parties fail decides to issue the infamous “Virtual Demarcation”.

After the EEBC’s endorsement of its irrelevance by completing its mission subject to issuance of “Virtual Demarcation” I heard his Excellency PM Meles Zenawi saying “legal nonsense”.

We all know that the flawed decision of the EEBC was accepted unconditionally by Ethiopia and recall the mentioning it this time again. Here, I just wanted to say something on what the PM said on the self mortifying EEBC’s position.

I am not a lawyer, nor do I know international law terms, but as clearly put by the PM it is indeed a “legal nonsense”. To attest my stand I am here shedding some light on the issue. In doing so I want to start defining what Border Demarcation is and what the procedures are.

Border demarcation is intended basically to guarantee the parties right for the land. In this process the arbiters are expected to establish the accurate extension of the area under party possession, assuring the protection of the demarcated limits and keeping visible marks or monuments of its limits.

In such cases, there are commended procedures that the arbiter has to follow: These include, but not limited to, the following procedures:

1. Identification of exact location of each delimitation point;

2. Approval of the identified limits by parties;

3. Check and settle if any dispute arises between parties under 1 and 2;

4. Declaration of limits that has passed 1,2 and 3;

5. And finally Physical demarcation that includes placement of physical monuments on exact locations of each point.

If that is the case, then where did the self debasing EEBC bring that fancy terminology “Virtual Demarcation”?

For me, it is clear. It is “The EEBC’s legal nonsense”.

(c) Walta Information Center, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Bad words over Badme

A bitter old row shows no sign of fading

Eritrea has heard it before. Ethiopia tried to drive it into the sea at Massawa between 1998 and 2000, and failed. Instead, 70,000 on both sides died in trench warfare; a stalemate led to a truce. This time Mr Zenawi's belligerence comes as the Eritrea-Ethiopia Border Commission wound up business this month, with no agreed demarcation. In 2002 it awarded the disputed village of Badme to Eritrea. Ethiopia rejected the verdict, and has since used diplomatic verbiage to obfuscate and stall.

The border is more militarised than ever. According to the International Crisis Group, a think-tank, Eritrea has 4,000 troops inside a supposedly demilitarised buffer zone and a further 120,000 dug in along its side of the craggy border that is 1,000km (621 miles) long. On its side, Ethiopia has 100,000 troops.

A UN monitoring force is meant to pack up next month but may stay on. The tension gives both countries an excuse to spend more on guns and spies, some to be turned on domestic enemies. Neither country can afford such things. Ethiopia, at least 75m-strong, is bogged down in Somalia and fighting separatists in the Ogaden desert; Mr Zenawi says he is putting Ethiopia's defence budget up by 17% to $390m. Eritrea, with only 5m people, simply cannot keep up.

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