Sanctions are cruel and counterproductive tools that hurt ordinary citizens: Francesca Ronchin
Addis Ababa, April 20, 2022 (FBC) –An Italian Journalist, Francesca Ronchin said sanctions are cruel and counterproductive tools that negatively impact target nation’s economy and hurt ordinary citizens in many ways.
In an exclusive interview with FBC, the Italian Journalists noted that H.R. 6600 (Ethiopia Stabilization, Peace and Democracy Act) and S.3199 (Ethiopia Peace and Stabilization Act of 2022) draft bills proposed by the U.S. congressmen and senators will only cause sufferings to poor Ethiopians rather than addressing the issues raised by drafters.
The bills sound like a cynical joke because they are intended to impose suspension of security and financial assistance to the Ethiopian government which is playing an important role for the well-being of the region, she said.
Such sanctions require the U.S. to prohibit international monetary agencies like the Wold Bank and International Monetary Fund from accessing financial support to Ethiopia and Eritrea there by cause serious impacts on the livelihoods of the ordinary people in the two countries.
“How can these draft bills be called “instrument of peace, democracy and stabilization”? she asked. The sanctions will end up with affecting the people especially the poorest who are in need.
Not to mention how they are in fact the main obstacle to the implementation of the African Union Agenda 2063 and the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
“According to OCHA, millions of people in Ethiopia are in need of humanitarian assistance. On the other hand, the U.S. is calling the member countries of the United Nations Security Council, among the others, to impose coordinated and multilateral sanctions on Ethiopia. It is really a cynical and disdainful approach,” she noted.
“Eritrea was under sanctions for more than a decade, almost one third of its age as an independent nation. The sanction on Eritrea was lifted in 2018 following the change in Ethiopia. The lifting of the sanctions came after UN Secretary General Antonion Guterres announced that they were no longer necessary. What is the need to bring back the country to the same situation that was caused by the sanction?”
“The U.S. claims to be supporter of efforts of African nations to develop and register sustainable growth. But, it is calling for sanctions that would pose a negative impact on the continent.