ETHIOPIA – THE SOLID ROCK HAND CARVED CHURCHES OF LALIBELA

One can’t help but notice with any flight in Ethiopia, the inconsistent security measures that are applied to passengers.  One airport hardly looks at your baggage going through the x-ray crawler if you are European or American.  Others take everything out of your bag, trash it, and expect you to put it back together.  This was experienced flying from Gondar to Lalibela.

Taken were my camera monopole, duct tape and small sections of rope (clothesline).  Luckily they were able to be transferred to my single check-in bag, since the Ethiopian Air system is slow to move these items out to the tarmac or the plane.  Large bottles of water were strangely allowed to pass through carry on.

Virtually every site in Ethiopia is extolled at length by locals.  No detail is too insignificant to feed you.  Every site, every rock, every turn of a river long since dried up is Holy to the Ethiopes.  They claim that whatever is found in Jerusalem, is found in Lalibela (and vice versa).  Lalibela comes close to living up to their hype, if for no other reason than the churches there are hewn by hand from solid rock and are nearly unique among the world’s list of magical places to visit.

The city was the second capitol of Ethiopia in the 12^th century.  There was much pressure from Sufi and Islamic warriors to compress the Ethiopian nation, north to south.  Often, Christian churches were destroyed in the process (or co-opted as in Spain and turned into mosques).  It was decided monolithic churches carved out of solid rock would be very difficult to destroy and would survive as a legacy no matter the fortunes of war.

Thus began an attempt in 1158 to create a “Second Jerusalem” in this overwhelmingly Christian nation, that saw 11 churches painstakingly crafted from solid rock.  It took 40,000 workers 23 years to complete all of these unique spiritual centers.  They were started with the roof at ground level, and channel carved (top decoration and then along the sides, until reaching their foundation levels well below ground).  At this time the rough exterior shape was complete and the interior of each church was then carved bottom up –  ground floor to ceiling.

The work was largely done without metal tools, utilizing granite drills and hammer pieces that were necessarily plentiful and harder than the basalt foundations from which they were carved.  Axes, hammers and chisels were used in the construction.  The buildings were sheltered in modern times as part of a Unesco World Heritage Designated Site attempt at preservation.

The Italians were given the responsibility for massive canvas covers over steel pole frames to protect these churches against the elements.  For some reason, the Italians came up short.  Instead of extending the steel framing well beyond the carved out roof and sides of each church, they stopped short and merely sank large, ugly tinker-toy type legs into the carved out side channels of each masterpiece.  The net result is a sullied appearance that detracts from the magnificence of the carving and artwork extent in each church.

St. George (Bete Giyorgis) is the famous standard bearer for the Lalibela masterpieces.  It was carved in an attempt to replicate Noah’s Ark.  It is three stories high, has deep side channels on all four sides extending vertically up to 15 meters, and has a free-standing cruciform shaped roof.  The largest church – symbolizing the “earthly Jerusalem” – is 11.5 meters high, 33.5 meters long, and 22.5 meters wide.

Also of note in Lalibela, is the outstanding Scottish/Ethiopian Restaurant of Ben Abeba.  It commands a 270 to 360 degree territorial view of Lalibela and its distinct elevated countryside.  The concrete and steel central structure where the kitchen and bar preside looks like a lopsided teapot from a distance.

It is surrounded by eating platforms appearing to be giant lily pads, attached at various levels by interconnected spiraling concrete walkways.  The food is plentiful and tasty (especially the fish and the salads) but the real star here is the architecture and view.  For anybody passing through Lalibela, this dining establishment is a “can’t miss” necessity.

Also visited while in Lalibela for two days, was the 9^th Century Yemerhan Kristos palace and monastery.  Though located 42 kilometers outside Lalibela on difficult rutted roads (this jarring travel experience is called “an African massage”), its natural and deeply recessed basalt grotto was turned into a fortified royal retreat.  According to legend, the temple was finished with stone imported from Jerusalem.

The site is notable for its approachable royal graveyard, and the mummified bodies of various priests who have served the complex over the years -- casually tossed into piles within easy touching distance as if neglected rag dolls awaiting rediscovery.

I first learned of a growing controversy taking place in Ethiopia while in Lalibela.  The Ethiopians started damming the Blue Nile River in the northwest part of the country in 2011 (expected finish date: 2019).  The Dam promises to be the largest in Africa, and the 8^th largest in the world.

Apparently Egypt is upset about potential flows that come to them from the south being minimized, and have threatened retaliatory action in the World Court.  The military option has not been taken off the table, either.  Both sides, it appears, are both very passionate about this issue and also very adamant about the correctness of their particular position re: water rights vis a vis storage, recreation and hydroelectricity rights.

DJIBOUTI – A CESSPOOL OF CORRUPTION

Normally I do not jump around in my posts.  I enter my travels in chronological order so that they show a progression that makes the most sense when old info comes up to help explain new situations.  But two things have conspired to change that for the first time here.

Awaiting the outcome of the personal safety status of John Yohannis in Gondar (who I had worried about for ten days in that he may have run into trouble with the Ethiopian police for not sharing the largesse of benefactor gifts), and the discovery of an even more egregious case in Djibouti City with two American electrical power generation contractors – Dallas M. Peavey, Jr. and Jamie Lopez.

The first part that is necessary to understand by way of introduction is that Djibouti is a cesspool of corruption and nepotism.  The government exists only to pilfer funds for the President, First Lady, and their cronies.  The whole governing apparatus is only a thin cover for a high level extortion and graft arrangement.  The governing authority here is unofficially a kleptocracy.  The theft is open and on a scale that boggles the mind, primarily due to the presence of French and US military bases (we trade our national conscience and usual laudable stand on human rights, for drone bases). 

There are absolutely no civil or human rights here at all.  I spent all afternoon talking to two US political prisoners/business hostages (Peavey and Lopez), being held against their will because they would not give up 30% of their company without recompense to the President and Minister of Finance in Djibouti.  They were put in jail for 40 days for their refusal.  Without charges.  Even when exonerated, they were not allowed to leave the country.  They remain there to this day.  “It feels just like being in prison,” they tell me.

The US government was of no help to them whatsoever, and in fact became an ally of the Djibouti extortion cabal.  It is one of the most compelling stories of organized crime on a national scale that I have ever heard of, in a continent that specializes in starving peasants and further fattening already filthy rich despots.

Peavey and Lopez’s problems in Djibouti started when they were assigned a controller for their public-private partnership with the Djibouti government to supply electrical power (a necessary component of Djibouti business, as a local “responsible party” must be hired as part of the organization).  They learned much too late the extent of this mistake.  The controller was the brother-in-law (Mohamed A Amaraiteh) of the Djibouti Minister of Finance, Ilyas Moussa Dawaleh.   Within three months, he had embezzled $165,000 from the firm.

The pair carefully considered their options, but concluded they must file charges as US law disallows any bribe to a foreign government or official to procure business.  They felt it necessary to avoid even the appearance of impropriety.  Charges were filed against the Finance Minister’s brother.  He was held for 4 hours for interrogation, but released upon demand by the Finance Minister, then tried in a Djibouti Court.  But before he could be sentenced, he was flown to Canada.  Why Canada?  No extradition treaty with Djibouti, and he held a Canadian passport which he had used 10 years prior to get out of Djibouti when he embezzled $560,000 from the national telecom company

Within days of arriving in his new safe haven in Canuck Country, Peavey and Lopez were arrested.  They spent 40 days in jail.  Both were initially not allowed any contact with the US Embassy, in violation of international treaty.  Or a lawyer.  After several days and protests they were allowed only limited contact with the US Embassy.  It took three weeks to be allowed a lawyer, even though under Article 10 of the Djiboutian Constitution legal representation is afforded to everyone being accused of any crime whether they can afford it or not.

No translator was ever provided, as required under Djiboutian law.  Charges were never filed against them (another violation of Djiboutian law).  The judge assigned to their case had no idea why the case was even before her.  It should also be known legal charges must be finalized under Djibouti law within 30 days.

But if a new investigation is started or judges are reassigned, the clock starts over. So does the jail clock.  Judges were reassigned twice.  The two Americans had no lawyer.  Documents were in French.  They had no translator.  They were told to sign a plethora of legal forms multiple times, to include a statement (written in French), under threat of long-term incarceration in the national prison.  Both refused.  The final judge admitted to the pair they had been used as leverage in the negotiations over lease extensions of the US military bases in Djibouti.

Neither was able to generate any income during incarceration.  Their bank accounts were cleaned out.  Their office, homes, and vehicles were locked up.  Peavey and Lopez had only the clothes on their back, and one change of t-shirt and shorts.

During his incarceration, Peavey went on a 20-day hunger strike during which he lost close to 45 pounds.  The US Embassy – instead of helping -- tried to compel the Djibouti government to force feed him while in the prison infirmary.  This decision was made by non-medical personnel somewhere from the shadows.

The US Embassy included the Djiboutian prosecution office in all email correspondence with the State Department in Washington DC, even though the prosecutor’s office had already lied several times to the US Consulate.  At one point the courts had ordered the pair to be released, but upon arrival at the prison the prosecutor’s office called the warden to illegally cancel the release without concurrence from the court -- another violation of Djiboutian law.

This lack of support for a pair of US citizens is perhaps the saddest part of this whole nightmare – the conspiratorial role played by the US Embassy on behalf of the Djibouti government.  Their message in essence became: “Don’t make waves.  We are negotiating the lease renewal for our US bases in Djibouti (the only ones allowed in Africa) and the timing is very sensitive.  Just wait.”  No additional assurances of “and don’t worry, this will all be over soon” were added. 

To this day, the State Department neither confirms nor denies that it will interfere with the two men’s ability to leave Djibouti.  The State Department has done nothing to discern facts in the case and help assist the two businessmen with their standing in the Djibouti legal mystery.  And the State Department has not been forthcoming with those querying about the condition or status of the two (including Texas Senator John Cornyn).

The Embassy itself is the most expensive in US history.  At a cost of $1.5 billion and $300,000 monthly in maintenance fees, it is also supposed to be the most secure.  Though it is in a “War Zone” (meaning soldiers and contractors here get elevated hazard pay, though they do not risk being shot at), there are often open gates and a shortage of blast and vehicle barriers to bar entry to its inner sanctums. 

Prior to their arrest, Peavey and Lopez had also initiated a Djibouti Business Exchange to promote interactions and enhanced efficiency with the US military base (Camp Lemonier) and Djibouti commercial interests.  The two men set up the exchange, organized it, financed it, held meetings in their office at their own expense, and initially were considered a welcome catalyst to commerce by both sides.

After charges were filed against their embezzling controller, however, they suddenly found themselves “persona non grata” on the very base they were attempting to elevate   service capabilities (photocopy availability being a primary example).  A letter from the US Embassy to the camp commanders indicating the two were “trouble makers” soon meant they were denied access to the bases.

While their case is investigated and untangled – and the puppet master behind their indefinite hold in Djibouti remains anonymous -- Peavey lives in a modest hotel in Djibouti City and Lopez rents an inexpensive apartment in town.  Peavey’s wife Leolaina (a citizen of the island nation of Palau) is attempting to provide  support for their family of five, courtesy of limited provision from her own family in the Pacific.  Support services to her and the couple’s three children (mandatory as Palau is a US Protectorate) have been refused by the US Embassy.

In the meantime, there have been no consequences to the convicted brother-in-law nee controller recently escaped to Canada.  Nor to the US Embassy for their lack of support, misleading Congress on status reports re: the two, incompetence, and outright lies.  Nor to hidden forces within the Djibouti government for holding two US citizens hostage.

The United States government criticizes Djibouti’s government roundly in official reports for its civil rights violations, and then Barack Obama praises Djibouti in press conferences for ”being a partner in the fight against terrorism” and the “fight against piracy in the Red Sea.”  It seems odd to criticize nations such as North Korea for human rights violations, then turn around and do business with what has been termed one of the worst dictators on the planet (source: CBS News).  Especially when US citizens are involved.

The US Embassy, in fact, told Peavey and Lopez they needed to report any journalists they met with or who made inquiries about their case to the Djibouti authorities.  [This is just one of many reasons I am relieved to be out of that hellhole; others include extreme heat and humidity, absurdly high consumer pricing, no views or beauty spots to speak of, and a predatory instinct on the part of most businessmen there to get every last dollar out of you that they possibly can.  Luckily, there are a few notable exceptions to this rule ].

Meanwhile in Djibouti business goes on as usual.  Except for Peavey and Lopez, who have reluctantly agreed to give the Djibouti government their “requested” (read: demanded) 30% share of the business (now raised to 49%) in exchange for their passports.  They have been refused.  The Djibouti government wants them to “stay” and help run the business they started, driving additional profits into already soiled hands.

The Gross National Product of Djibouti with its 800,000 population is $1.9 billion annually.  The United States provides 25% of that.  So where does all that money go?  Certainly not to the public.

Clothes, rice, beans, wheat paid for by international donations do not make their way toward the intended civilian population.  They make their way instead to brokers, who then sell the goods to the very crowd it was intended to assist (but at highly inflated prices).  It is common to see “USA” or “WFB” (World Food Bank) or “ADG” (Africa Development Group) lettered sacks at restaurants and private businesses … who then go on to charge among the highest prices in Africa, due to the locked in and guaranteed market provided by French and American troops.

The Director for the Port of Djibouti, making approximately $20,000 yearly in salary, had a $100 million bank account frozen recently by a French Court after losing an arbitration case for breach of duty.  Even assuming him to be not guilty for a moment … where did that kind of money come from and how did it land in an employee’s private account?

It is a widely known insider’s secret that Djibouti’s First Lady controls the nation’s khat trade.  That is the mildly narcotic and highly habit forming leaf that is customarily chewed in Arab culture by both men and women in the same way some Europeans and Americans customarily drink beer or smoke cigarettes.  This crop completely dominates the economy of some towns (such as Harar in Ethiopia).

The leaf is endemic.  It is delivered to the center of Djibouti City then distributed by taxis to feeder stands where it goes out to the population at large.  Some time back Ethiopia cut off the supply for two weeks.  Djibouti went haywire.  The problem leading to the shortage was soon resolved in Ethiopia’s favor.  Khat is so part of the fabric of Djibouti, it is even found in prisons.  In some cases, it is used in place of currency.

The Djibouti First Lady is also the cause of a 100 year-old Catholic orphanage being shut down.  The official reason is that this Islamic nation doesn’t want Muslim babies being given to Christian families.  The reality is that she is starting two for-profit orphanages of her own, and doesn’t want competition.  Ironically, the children at issue are Somali and Ethiopian orphans, and not Djibouti children.

The President himself controls ALL security contracts, including those with the US military.  That alone is a perfect vehicle for siphoning off billions into private accounts.

Roads are built by the Unites States, France, the European Union, and the United Nations.  Not by the Djibouti government.  The state is seeking to profit and further this “feed us please!” welfare mentality by requesting that their United Nations and World Bank economic status as an underdeveloped country (179^th out of 196 in worldwide economic performance) be changed to that of an “undeveloped country.”

The reason: they would no longer be required to provide matching funds for grants and loans (allowing of course, more time for full-time pilfering at the highest official levels).

The United States interest in Djibouti is its two leased military bases, a haven for 3500 troops, the rights to a reconnaissance and spy drone epicenter, and a spot removed from US legal jurisdiction where rendition interrogations can still take place far from the eyes of US civil rights snoops.  The Navy Seal team that terminated Osama Bin Laden also is based out of Djibouti.  Everything begins and ends here when it comes to putting out trap lines for US military intelligence and quick strike response capability in the Middle East.

The US will put $6 billion in construction development into this country in the next four years.  The lion’s share of that goes to Djibouti construction firms.  The newly negotiated lease (in which Peavey and Lopez were unwitting pawns) recently evolved from $80 million annually for 93 acres, to $63 million annually for 400 acres.  And the reason for the sweetheart deal?  The base is in a flood zone.  The French had abandoned the land and would not re-up their lease for the base they had previously occupied.  US forces purchased an expensive desert wash.

The final recommendation and parting words from these two American men held in Kafka-like limbo is: “Don’t believe the hype about opportunities in Third World Countries.  Ignore the stories about the potential gold.  Ignore the feasibility studies.  There is no such things as a good ‘in country’ agent.  Do not invest your money, time or energy into any of these places -- and especially Africa.  You have no rights there.  You will be used and treated as a pawn. There is a reason they have been Third World for all this time with no change.”

The only relevant question remaining at this time is: Who amongst you can help?