42 Facts About Meles Zenawi

Meles Zenawi Asres was an Ethiopian soldier and politician who served as President of Ethiopia from 1991 to 1995 and then Prime Minister of Ethiopia from 1995 until his death in 2012.

Meles Zenawi's administration brought Ethiopia to ethnic federalism; he expressed his populist view that ethnic groups should share their own languages, culture and lands.

Meles Zenawi undertook major reforms to the country, including land reforms attempt to reduce serious droughts, school expansions, and agricultural interests.

Meles Zenawi died in Brussels on 20 August 2012 from an undisclosed illness.

Meles Zenawi eventually became better known by his nom de guerre Meles, which he adopted in honor of university student and fellow Tigrayan Meles Tekle who was executed by the Derg government in 1975.

Meles Zenawi received primary education at Queen of Sheba Junior High School in Adwa.

Meles Zenawi then joined the prestigious General Wingate High school in Addis Ababa on full scholarship and completed high school in 1972.

In 1975, Meles Zenawi left the university to join the Tigray People's Liberation Front.

Meles Zenawi was first with the Tigrayan National Organization, the forerunner of the Tigray People's Liberation Front.

Meles Zenawi was elected member of the leadership committee in 1979 and chairman of the executive committee of TPLF in 1983.

Meles Zenawi was the chairperson of both the TPLF and the EPRDF.

Meles Zenawi was president of the Transitional Government of Ethiopia during which he paved the way for Eritrea to secede from the country.

Meles Zenawi stated that EPRDF's victory was a triumph for the thousands of TPLF-fighters who were killed, for the millions of Ethiopians who were victims of the country's biggest famine during the Derg regime, when some estimates put up to 1.5 million deaths of Ethiopians from famine and the Red Terror.

The EPRDF handily won the 1995 elections, and Meles Zenawi was sworn in as prime minister when the new Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia was formally inaugurated on 21 August 1995.

Meles Zenawi was appointed as Prime Minister after the 1995 general election, and was chairman of the Tigray People's Liberation Front.

Under his government, Meles Zenawi encouraged privatization of government companies, farms, lands, and investments which reversed the previous Derg communist rule.

Meles Zenawi' government implemented ethnic based federalism as a response to old imperial rule of Amhara people.

Critic always commented this system brings to divisions, which on other hands, Meles Zenawi argues it gives several interests, equitable distribution and wealth to them.

Meles Zenawi added that the system provides recourse to fight poverty, peasants must choice their own decisions in their own languages.

Meles Zenawi government worked the country to economically grow steadily since he took an office.

In 2000 general election, Meles Zenawi reelected as prime minister, with opposition parties like United Ethiopian Democratic Forces shared parliament seats.

Meles Zenawi rearranged school expanding scheme with million of Ethiopian birr; while his policy focussing around agricultural sector, the jobs in urban areas became declined, resulting in opposition from students and urban residents as well.

Meles Zenawi government encouraged collectivist land reforms and redistribution at local levels.

Meles Zenawi's government believed privatization should be implemented potentially, but not presently.

Meles Zenawi government encouraged all-encompassing women participations, organized forums to discuss backward issues in national television.

On 18 May 2012, Meles Zenawi attended to Food Security 2012 G8 Summit in Washington DCto discuss agricultural transformation in Africa to deal with unification of farmers and private sectors.

Meles Zenawi moved to have Ethiopia gain a larger share of the Nile River water.

Since the War on Terrorism, Meles Zenawi sought to consolidate hegemony of Ethiopia in East Africa, including his mediation efforts with Sudan and South Sudan, as well as stabilizing Somalia towards the end of the mandate of the Transitional Federal Government.

Nevertheless, Meles Zenawi refused to pull back Ethiopian forces for Eritrean territory, leading to a no-war-no-peace situation in the region.

Meles Zenawi declared war on the ICU unprovoked in order to curry favor with the West.

Meles Zenawi played an important role in developing the African Union's position on climate change since 2009 and was a 'friend of the Chair' at the 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

On 31 August 2009, Meles Zenawi was appointed Chair of the African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change.

On 3 September 2009, Meles Zenawi made a speech to the Africa Partnership Forum, where he said:.

Meles Zenawi was getting better and we were expecting him to return to Addis Ababa.

Meles Zenawi will be in charge of the Ethiopian military and all other government institutions.

Meles Zenawi's funeral took place in Addis Ababa on 2 September 2012 in a religious ceremony attended by at least 20 African presidents and thousands of Ethiopians gathered in Meskel Square.

Political leaders, states, and institutions offered their thoughts on Meles Zenawi following his death.

Western NGOs Amnesty International called for the new administration to end Meles Zenawi' "ever-increasing repression" and Human Rights Watch similarly added that the next administration should repeal the 2009 anti-terrorism law.

Meles Zenawi acquired an MBA from the Open University of the United Kingdom in 1995 and a masters of science in economics from the Erasmus University of the Netherlands in 2004.

Meles Zenawi was married to Azeb Mesfin, a former rebel fighter in the TPLF and, as of 2013, a Member of Parliament.

Meles Zenawi was the father of three children; Semhal, Marda and Senay Meles Zenawi.

Prime Minister Meles Zenawi received various international awards for setting up a good foundation for the development of Ethiopia.