APA-Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) - The United States Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Karl Wycoff, on Thursday called for a free and fair election in May 2010 in Ethiopia.

The call was made after a delegation of US officials led by Wycoff held bilateral talks with Ethiopian officials, which included discussions on political and economic affairs.

This is a reaction to the debate on federalism and devolution of power going on among the political parties. First, it is impressive to hear that all agreed to the federal option though, as they say, the devil is in the details. That was not the case some years back. In this respect, there is some modest progress.

Prof Beyene representing Medrek, emphasized that the process of introducing the federation lacked openness/inclusiveness and hence is top bottom as opposed to the more inclusive system we had in the transition. He also emphasized that in many cases federalism in diverse societies like ours should be kind of elite peace making, result of negotiation among the key political elites of the country. He also mentioned some of the tensions and conflicts that emerged in the last decade and half and the grave consequences.

Ethiopia accused the Lebanese government, saying it has been deterring the investigation process of the crashed B-737 aircraft by hiding essential information.

Preliminary report of the investigation does not include crucial information of the accident, Diriba Kuma, Minister of Ethiopian Transport and Communication said in a press conference he gave today February 24, 2010.

By Yeneneh Mamo

It was with a mixed feeling that I was listening to the first round election 2010 debate between EPRDF and the Opposition. A lot of things went through my mind while watching the debates. Below are my brief observation and commentary on the debates.

1. Boycotting the 2010 election: As it happened in the May/05 historic election, there are some sections of the society who are still lobbying the opposition to boycott the 2010 election; of course with out coming up with any other viable alternative. Now the election debate has started. Parties based at home are showing their readiness and willingness to use the window of opportunity for their advantage as in election 2005.