Tsedale Lemma engagement report

Best tweets

• May 9, 2019149x their median

  I just witnessed the extraordinary ceremony when, after passing through 5 d/t stages of 8 yrs each & 40 yrs of patience, my father became Aba Gadaa Lemma Gemmechu! I can't describe how proud I am of him & my culture! #Oromo #GadaaDemocracy! 🔴⚫⚪ (Pic 3 with my bros & sisters) https://t.co/j2S1y1W63L

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• Nov 30, 202532x their median

  #NewProfilePic https://t.co/pjY3Y2Vx8n

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• Nov 30, 202532x their median

  That the most visceral moment of my indignation (when I was being lied to straight in the face) has now become a trending meme thanks to PP’s digital militia is, frankly, the most satisfying twist of the week. The fact that ya all fixated on the screenshot thinking it captured my “unflattering” face is exactly where the line between a horde of cadres and me is drawn, if you get my drift 😉. So thank you for amplifying it. I happily endorse it as my official portrait for every moment I am lied to in my face. And the comic relief in all this? An English phrase from Getachew somehow reborn as an Amharic wax-and-gold masterpiece. 🫢 Ethiopian literature experts could use the help. P.S. My gratitude to all of you who spoke out in my defence against this vicious online attack, one I know all too well. 🙏🏿

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• Aug 24, 202531x their median

  Happy #Ashenda to the indefatigable and stubborn joy of #Tigrayan women. You are the pulse that keeps Tigray alive; the heartbeat who endure, resist, and love louder than any attempt to silence you. Salute for pulling this year’s beautiful celebrations together! https://t.co/ZJWwpIeiqK

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• Apr 18, 202518x their median

  Public notice regarding federal police raid on Addis Standard and mass confiscation of electronic devises This is a public notice regarding a coordinated police raid on April 17, 2025, targeting both the private residence of a senior staff member and the offices of Addis Standard, by the federal police. We would like to reiterate that although the detained staff members were released, the continued seizure of a wide array of personal and professional electronic equipment - including laptops, mobile phones, hard disks, and CPUs - has not only disrupted our operations but are a cause for alarm. The confiscated electronics remain in police hands, leaving our communication channels vulnerable to misuse. Although our main digital credentials remain secure, we cannot guarantee the integrity of any messages or emails sent from the compromised devices. This opens the door to potential impersonation, misinformation, or attempts to incriminate our team members through unauthorized access or manipulation of data. In such a volatile environment, the use of these devices outside our control presents serious risks not only to our staff’s safety but also to the integrity of our journalistic work. We call for urgent attention to this matter and reiterate our commitment to pursuing all legal and peaceful avenues to protect our team and uphold our integrity to defend the freedom of the press in Ethiopia. JAKENN Publishing PLC The Publisher of Addis Standard tri-lingual publications

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• May 25, 202518x their median

  Sunday thoughts: On the inverse reality, revisionism and warped logic of #IsaiasAfwerki’s Independence Day speech Anyone who carefully listened to President Isaias Afwerki’s Independence Day speech on Saturday would have found more than enough material for a case study in inverse reality, revisionism, and warped logic. Here are some of the key points that stood out for me. Inverse reality His claims of foreign interference in the Horn of Africa is a brazen attempt to rewrite the very political history he helped shape through a violent interference into every single country in the Horn of Africa over the past 34 years. His argument becomes especially twisted when he describes recent wars in Ethiopia “declared against the Ethiopian people under the rubric of Prosperity (their new surrogate).” This is a stunning inversion of reality. It was his own military that crossed into Ethiopia and joined its forces in a genocidal campaign against the people of Tigray, a campaign documented in gruesome detail by every international human rights organisation, UN experts, and the media, to list the few. If there were any “surrogate” involved in waging war against the people of Ethiopia, Eritrean forces were at the centre of it and Isaias wasn’t a bystander, he was a lead actor. You can change the course of history through shifting allegiances, but you can’t rewrite it. Revisionism His claim that the “euphoria and optimism” generated by Ethiopia’s political change seven years ago remains “fresh in our memories” rings hollow when, from the outset, that so-called “reform” was aborted by the dismantling of a repressive yet functional political system, replaced by one that is both centralised and dysfunctional. It was a shift Isaias not only supported but actively helped engineer. “Ethnic federalism”, as he scorns it and incessantly attacks it, is not the source of Ethiopia’s current or past instability, but a fragile solution to the country’s deep historical inequalities. For all its flaws, it had delivered Ethiopia its longest period of relative stability. But the seven years since it began to unravel revealed that it was the backroom alliance involving Isaias himself and built on resentment of the protectorates the federal system that helped destroy Ethiopia. Again, you can change the course of history through shifting allegiances, but you can’t rewrite it. Warped logic But what I found most upsetting is how, as a President, Isaias resurrected the term “ideology of Oromummaa”, and used it to reinforce a claim invented by Ethiopia’s reactionary right painting Oromo identity as a violent political ideology. Isaias’s way of distancing himself from the backlash of having to say it was “it does not represent the Oromo people.” But this doesn’t conceal the warped logic of inserting it in his speech in the first place. Oromummaa is no more a political ideology than being Eritrean is. It is simply what it means to be Oromo. You can’t invoke being Eritrean as a neutral state of identity while, in the same breath, claim that being Oromo, or Oromummaa, is a violent political ideology that doesn’t represent the Oromo. But beyond the basic argument of logical fallacy one can raise about the abuse of this term, what’s interesting is the fact that Isaias used the rhetoric the same way as those scapegoating it to shield themselves from their roles in turning Ethiopia become an open field of endless violence. By sprinkling this term into his critique of Abiy, Isaias is not only peddling a toxic narrative targeting the Oromo identity as criminal, he is distancing himself from the wartime ally he has been in the crimes that dismantled the Ethiopian federation as we know it. In so doing, he just joined the warped logic of “Oromummaa did it”.

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• Nov 3, 202515x their median

  The #Tigray War Five Years On: The Pretoria Agreement and the Need for Peace https://t.co/rIaLtK1IwS In ways few are ready to fully confront, the war in the Tigray region has redefined both the Ethiopian state and its place in the world. November 4 marks five years since the outbreak of the war, one of the most devastating wars of the 21st century. While the 2022 Pretoria Agreement brought an end to the fighting, its implementation remains incomplete. What went wrong? Tomorrow, I’ll join a panel to reflect on these legacies and the path forward. Opening Remarks: Representative Sara Jacobs (CA-51) Jeremy Konyndyk, President, Refugees International Panel Discussion: Payton Knopf, Special Advisor, Dialogue Advisory Group & former U.S. Deputy Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa Mike Woldemariam, Associate Professor, University of Maryland School of Public Policy and me. Moderator: Nick Schifrin, Foreign Affairs and Defense Correspondent, PBS NewsHour 🗓 Tuesday, November 4, 2025 🕤 9:30 – 11:00 AM ET / D.C. 🕠 5:30 – 7:00 PM EAT / Addis Ababa – Nairobi 🕞 3:30 – 5:00 PM CET / Brussels – Berlin Panelists will assess progress and setbacks since the Pretoria Agreement, examine the risks of renewed conflict, and explore what Washington can do to help advance a sustainable peace in Ethiopia. An audience Q&A will follow. Register here https://t.co/rIaLtK1IwS

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• Oct 5, 202512x their median

  When you find yourself in the in-between (neither in your homeland nor in your home away from home) memories become your only place of celebration. Happy #Irreechaa to my people, and to everyone who honour and cherish our way of life - the beauty, resilience, and harmony we, as #Oromos, hold dear. Baga ittiin nu gahe 🖤❤️🤍

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• Jun 24, 20268.1x their median

  Congratulations to the entire #AddisStandard team. This recognition belongs not only to those who are here today, but also to everyone who contributed to building Addis Standard over the years. Everyone who believed in the mission and carried it forward. Most of all, it belongs to those who chose to stay and fight the good fight when the pressure was at its highest; when some of the very institutions entrusted with protecting the safety and security of citizens became sources of intimidation; when doing journalism seemed impossible, and when the easier choice would have been to simply walk away. You stayed not because you were untouchable, but because you refused to let fear define your profession. You believed that this brand was worth the cost, that facts matter, and that the public deserves to know. There were moments when everything seemed impossible. Yet you showed up, day after day, and kept faith in the idea that what you do matters. This award is a recognition of that perseverance and a reflection of years of sacrifice, resilience, and quiet courage that often go unseen. So, here I am to say thank you for holding the line. Thank you for believing. And thank you for staying. Congratulations again on this well-deserved recognition!❤️🙌🏿🙌🏿

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• Nov 12, 20256.6x their median

  I’m happy to announce the launch of “The Standard Signal”, my maiden podcast episode featuring a compelling conversation with Semhal Meles on the escalating war narratives between the central and Tigray governments, and the broader political economy that sustains Ethiopia’s recurring cycles of violence. Your comments are comments! Also, my amazing team of producers are working hard to fix the audio challenges. https://t.co/2CxRCqnkwL

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