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Meles Zenawi

Meles Zenawi Asres (Tigringa and መለስ ዜናዊ ኣስረስ; ), born Legesse Zenawi Asres (9 May 1955 – 20 August 2012) was an Ethiopian politician and a former anti-Derg militant who served as president of Ethiopia from 1991 to 1995 and as prime minister from 1995 until his death in 2012.

Born in Adwa to an Ethiopian father and mother, Meles became actively involved in politics after changing his original first name from Legesse to Meles, adopted following the execution of fellow university student Meles Takele by the Derg government in 1975. In that year, he left Haile Selassie I University to join the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and fight against the Derg (the Mengistu Haile Mariam-led military dictatorship in Ethiopia). In 1989, he became the chairman of the TPLF, and the head of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) after its formation in 1988.

After leading the EPRDF to victory in the Ethiopian Civil War, he served as president of the Transitional Government of Ethiopia from 1991 to 1995, then as the 2nd prime minister of Ethiopia from 1995 to 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. An Eritrean referendum was held during his four-year presidency, which resulted in Eritrean secession from Ethiopia in 1993, but the two countries entered into a war owing to the territorial dispute from 1998 to 2000, during which 98,217 people were killed. In the 2005 general election, Meles's party EPRDF won and he remained as prime minister, while opposition parties strongly complained that the election was "stolen" and unfair. Shortly during and after the election, disastrous riots and protests sparked across Addis Ababa, in which 193 people were killed by police brutality.

During his tenure, Ethiopia became one of Africa's fastest-growing economies. Meles undertook major reforms to the country, including land reforms attempt to reduce serious droughts, school expansions, and agricultural interests. He died in Brussels on 20 August 2012 from an undisclosed illness. Some analysts claim that he died from shock due to a confrontation at the G20 conference. "Zenawism" refers to his principles and policies of ethnic federalism, especially those the TPLF advocated, and is the subject of academic study.

Early life and education
Meles was born in Adwa in northern Ethiopia, to Zenawi Asres, a Tigrayan from Adwa and Alemash Ghebreluel, an Eritrean from Adi Quala. He was the third of six children. His first name at birth was Legesse (thus Legesse Zenawi, Ge'ez: ለገሰ ዜናዊ legesse zēnāwī). He 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. He received primary education at Queen of Sheba Junior High School in Adwa. Because he started school at age 11 or 12 it took him 5 years to complete the regular 8-year program as he was able to skip grades. He then joined the prestigious General Wingate High school in Addis Ababa on full scholarship and completed high school in 1972. Upon graduating with honors from General Wingate, he was awarded the Haile Selassie I Prize, a selective award given only to the most outstanding students. In 1975, Meles left the university to join the Tigray People's Liberation Front.

Meles Zenawi was an Ethiopian Orthodox Christian.

Ethiopian Civil War (1974–1991)
Meles was first with the Tigrayan National Organization (TNO), the forerunner of the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF). Aregawi Berhe, a former member of the TPLF, notes that historians John Young and Jenny Hammond "vaguely indicated" Meles as a founder of the TPLF in their books. Aregawi insists that both he and Sebhat Nega joined the Front "months" after it was founded. While a member of the TPLF, Meles established the Marxist-Leninist League of Tigray (MLLT). The TPLF was one of the armed groups struggling against the Derg, the junta which led Ethiopia from 1974 to 1991. Meles was elected member of the leadership committee in 1979 and chairman of the executive committee of TPLF in 1983. He was the chairperson of both the TPLF and the EPRDF. After the EPRDF assumed power at the end of the Ethiopian Civil War in 1991. He was president of the Transitional Government of Ethiopia during which he paved the way for Eritrea to secede from the country.

Domestic affairs
Meles 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. Accordingly, he maintained that the big support it received from peasants and rural areas helped EPRDF maintain peace and stability. Foreign support was diverse; the Arab League, as well as Western nations, supported the EPRDF rebels against the communist Soviet-supported government (although the TPLF was at the time Marxist) at the height of the Cold War.

"What the implications of this will be in terms of relations between Ethiopia and the European Union, we will have to wait and see but I don't think you will be surprised if Ethiopia were to insist that it should not be patronised."

The United States facilitated peace talks between different rebel groups including EPRDF and the Derg to bring an end to the civil war which lasted for nearly 17 years and reach some kind of political settlement in 1991. The talks did not bear any fruit as EPRDF's force were moving to the capital and Mengistu fled the country. The United States agreed to support the EPRDF which would have, nevertheless, seized power without anyone's support. Many angry demonstrators in Addis Ababa reacted to this by protesting against Herman Cohen, the U.S. State Department's chief of African affairs who attended a conference that demonstrators viewed as legitimizing the EPRDF.

In July 1991, the Convention of Nationalities was held. It was the first Ethiopian multinational convention where delegates of various nations and organizations were given fair and equal representation and observed by various international organizations including the United Nations, Organization for African Unity, European Economic Community, and the United States and the United Kingdom.

Foreign affairs
Although Meles and his administration claimed they preferred a united but federal state that included the Eritrean state, since Meles' TPLF fought together with EPLF, Meles did not have a choice but to leave the decision to Eritrean leadership in the hope that the independence referendum would vote against secession, according to Time magazine's 1991 analysis. The Eritreans were given the choice for independence or to stay in the union. They voted for independence on 24 May 1993, Isaias Afewerki became the leader of Eritrea. Meles was in Asmara, Eritrea as the keynote speaker. Many in the Meles administration, as well as opposition parties, were angry over the decision to grant Eritrea its independence.

Despite working together against the Derg regime, Meles and Isaias positive relationship turned sour after Meles succumbed to U.S. pressure to hold an election within a year, but Afewerki abandoned his original promise to create a transitional government in the early 1990s. The Eritrean-Ethiopian War began in May 1998 following the Eritrean troops invasion of Badme and parts of Sheraro woredas. Following the invasion Ethiopia demanded that the Eritrean troops leave the invaded areas completely. However, the Eritrean government refused to pull out. Then the Ethiopians responded with huge counter - offensive measures which subsequently lead to the capture of the disputed Badme area and most parts of western Eritrea, and Ethiopian President Negaso Gidada gave a victory speech and a peace treaty was signed a few weeks later. According to the peace treaty Ethiopia then pulled out of the Eritrean Territory. Though Ethiopian troops controlled Badme, after the Algiers Agreement (2000) ruled that Badme belonged to Eritrea, Ethiopia continued to maintain a presence of its soldiers in the town.

Prime Minister of Ethiopia (1995–2012)
A new constitution was approved in 1994, providing for a parliamentary system. The president served as ceremonial head of state, with the prime minister as head of government and chief executive. The EPRDF handily won the 1995 elections, and Meles was sworn in as prime minister when the new Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia was formally inaugurated on 21 August 1995.

First term (1995–2000)
Meles was appointed as Prime Minister after the 1995 general election, and was chairman of the Tigray People's Liberation Front. Under his government, Meles encouraged privatization of government companies, farms, lands, and investments which reversed the previous Derg communist rule.

Ethnic federalism
Meles' government implemented ethnic based federalism as a response to what he considered to be the "old imperial rule of Amhara people". Meanwhile, the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), while drafting the constitution counted Amharas and Tigrayans dominated the imperial rule likewise. Reasons posited the aim of ethnic federalism empowers all ethnic groups in Ethiopia to share their cultures and languages, and ethnic-based liberation front preferred to join the July Convention of Nationalities in 1991. Critic always commented this system brings to divisions, which on other hands, Meles argues it gives several interests, equitable distribution and wealth to them. He added that the system provides recourse to fight poverty, peasants must choice their own decisions in their own languages. Meles views emphasized an economic growth claiming "if you think it is threat, it will be; if you think it a benefit, then it will be. Ethnicity will become less an issue as the economy grows and Ethiopia's process of assimilation does its job."

His government criticized for decentralizing of language system. Critics concerned that this policy would fracture Ethiopian national identity. Regions of Ethiopia have their official state language. For example, Afaan Oromo is the official language of Oromia Region, Afar for Afar Region, Harari for Harari Region. Amharic is official working language to Amhara, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambela, and Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region.

Freedom of religion
Meles' government allowed freedom of religion formally in 1991. Previous issues including Orthodox Church dominance prior 1974, seizure of church by the Derg regime, state sponsored persecution against non-Orthodox Christians, second-class citizenship accorded to Ethiopian Muslims, and land owning issues by non-Orthodox population almost resolved. However, most analysis stated that there was sporadic clashes since equality and rights granted by national or new religions.

Freedom of press
Prior to federalism, both the Haile Selassie and Derg government limited media rights. During Meles' administration, however, politically inflicted media organization became decelerated, while entertainment surging in opposite. It was believed that FM radio stations were licensed under regional governments, community organizations and private companies. The government licensed seven regional state television transmission agencies, but there are not private broadcasters in the country.

Equity and growth
Meles government advocated "pro-poor" domestic policy. According to World Bank's East African leadership, the Ethiopian government ranked first to share GDP for "pro-poor" sectors. It also created regional development to Amhara Development Association, Tigray Development Association, Oromia Development Association and many others. Meles government worked the country to economically grow steadily since he took an office. During the last seven years, Ethiopia's GDP growth had shown 9 percent of rate. The country also topped to the category "policies of social inclusion and equity" in domain of "economic management", while Ethiopia was successful scoring "structural policies" and "public sector management and institutions". Gross primary enrollment rate which was initially poor, went 93% in 2004 from 72% in 1990, raising literacy rate from 50% in 1997 to 65% in 2002. Opposition parties contested those growth rate, stating double-digit inflation comes from a result of ruling party government economic failure. Ethiopia became the fastest growing countries in Africa.

Second term (2000–2005)
In 2000 general election, Meles reelected as prime minister, with opposition parties like United Ethiopian Democratic Forces (UEDF) shared parliament seats. According to Ethiopian Human Rights Council, local UN staff, diplomatic missions, political parties, domestic non-governmental organizations, both general and regional elections were free and fair in most areas. However, there was misconduct in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region, particularly in the Hadiya Zone.

School expansions
Ethiopia has expanded schools partially since 1990 without regional coverage. Meles 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. In 1991, 27% of Ethiopian children attended school. The growth enrollment doubled to 77% and reached 85% in November 2006. As of 2005, there were 13,500 elementary schools and 550 secondary schools. Secondary schools were aided by satellite program called "School-Net". Under his leadership, many universities and colleges unprecedentedly expanded and constructed. Those higher institutions include Adama University, Jimma University, Mekelle University, and newly built Debub University. Other are Awassa College and Bahir Dar University. It also implemented various departments and faculties. and the new Wolaita Soddo University started taking in students in February 2007.

Land and agriculture
Ethiopia frequently suffered from droughts throughout its history. Under his office, major droughts occurred in 1999/2000, 2002/2003 and 2009/2010.

Meles government encouraged collectivist land reforms and redistribution at local levels. However, the constitution deemed has shortcomings. Article 40, section 3 states that, "The right to own rural and urban land as well as natural resources belongs to only to the state and the people." The farmers use uncertain transfer rights whilst using lands. Since 2008, the government announced "empty" land leasing to foreign investors. This outlook considered by some holders "land grabbing" with a risk of losing their plots.

The EPRDF once convinced that land should not be privatized, farmers would pay their land after drought. His government believed privatization should be implemented potentially, but not presently.

Third term (2005–2010)
The EPRDF faced an unprecedented challenge from opposition groups like the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), UEDF, and the Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement in the 2005 election. It was one of the most controversial elections in Ethiopian history, and the opposition accused the EPRDF of electoral fraud. Demonstrations broke out in Addis Ababa and protesters were massacred by government forces—763 people were killed and over 10,000 were imprisoned.

In spite of the 2005 Ethiopian general election violence, the Administrator of USAID recognized an EPRDF electoral victory and accused European Union election observers who were critical of the outcome of doing a "bad job" and of "favoring opposition groups".

Fourth term (2010–2012)
The TPLF administration strongly regards gender equality; Meles' wife and First Lady Azeb Mesfin was forefront advocator in women rights. Meles government encouraged all-encompassing women participations, organized forums to discuss backward issues in national television. Discussions include concerning tangential issues, HIV transmission, premature marriage, job opportunities and more. Various organizations emerged for example the Ethiopian Women's Lawyers Association (EWLA), Kembatti Mentti Gezzima-tope and Network of Ethiopian Women's Associations.

2012 journalist verbal attack
On 18 May 2012, Meles attended to Food Security 2012 G8 Summit in Washington D.C to discuss agricultural transformation in Africa to deal with unification of farmers and private sectors. Abebe Gelaw, a Washington-based Ethiopian journalist disrupted the conference by yelling at the podium against Meles with words: Meles Zenawi is a dictator! Meles Zenawi is a dictator! Free Eskinder Nega! Free political prisoners! You are a dictator. You are committing crimes against humanity. Food is nothing without freedom! Meles has committed crimes against humanity! We need freedom! Freedom! Freedom! Abebe was escorted by guards and detained. Abebe noted in his latest speech, "I voiced the anger, frustration and aspiration of the Ethiopian people in front of world leaders...Some are calling me a hero, others says I deserve honours. While I appreciate all the outpour of support, this is not about me. It is not about my heroism but the truth that must be told with utmost clarity. It is about our country, people, and the freedom and dignity we deserve."

Foreign affairs
Meles moved to have Ethiopia gain a larger share of the Nile River water. Part of this entailed using Ethiopia's hydropower prospects as leverage in exporting power to Egypt, amongst others. He had also aided the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement prior to independence of South Sudan as the rebels fought the government in Khartoum. Since the War on Terrorism, Meles 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. Though he had controversially sent troops to fight against the Islamic Courts Union, he had been praised for working towards a stable situation along with the African Union since 2009.

Eritrea
Meles Zenawi and President of Eritrea Isaias Afwerki were on good terms, as Eritrean forces helped TPLF overthrow the Derg. As the TPLF came to power in Ethiopia, it had occurred simultaneously with the EPLF's rise to power in Eritrea. After the 30 years of war between the two countries, the people of both countries enjoyed the fruit of peace, but not for long. In 1998, the Ethiopian government waged war with Eritrea on basis of border conflicts. The war comes to end in 2000. During the war, between 70,000 and 98,217 people were killed and 650,000 displaced. The Algiers Agreement was a peace agreement between the governments of Eritrea and Ethiopia signed on 12 December 2000, at Algiers, Algeria, which was supposed to be final and binding. Nevertheless, Meles Zenawi refused to pull back Ethiopian forces for Eritrean territory, leading to a no-war-no-peace situation in the region. Ethiopian forces reside in the sovereign lands of Eritrea, around the town Badme despite the EEBC Border ruling granting Badme to Eritrea. Eritreans feel Meles Zenawi and the TPLF have betrayed them and he is responsible for the loss of lives, relationships, and mutually benefiting opportunities of the two countries.

Somalia
Meles declared war on the ICU unprovoked in order to curry favor with the West. In 2006, the Islamic Courts Union assumed control of much of the southern part of Somalia and promptly imposed Shari'a law. The Transitional Federal Government sought to reestablish its authority, and, with the assistance of Ethiopian troops, African Union peacekeepers and air support by the United States, managed to drive out the rival ICU. On 8 January 2007, as the Battle of Ras Kamboni raged, TFG President and founder Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, a former colonel in the Somali Army, entered Mogadishu for the first time since being elected to office. The Somali government then relocated to Villa Somalia in the capital from its interim location in Baidoa. This marked the first time since the fall of the Siad Barre regime in 1991 that the federal government controlled most of the country.

In October 2011, a coordinated multinational operation began against Al-Shabaab in southern Somalia, with the Ethiopian military eventually joining the mission the following month. According to Ramtane Lamamra, the AU Commissioner for Peace and Security, the additional Ethiopian and AU troop reinforcements are expected to help the Somali authorities gradually expand their territorial control.

Climate change
Meles 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 (COP15) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). On 31 August 2009, Meles was appointed Chair of the African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC). The group had been established following 4 February 2009 decision at the 12th AU Assembly of Heads of States to build a common Africa position on climate change in preparations for COP15.Prior to Meles' appointment, but in light of the AU's decision and the Algiers Declaration on the African Common Platform to Copenhagen, on 19 May 2009 the Africa Group made a submission to the UNFCCC that included demands for US$67 billion per year in finance for adaptation funding and US$200 billion per year for mitigation and set targets in terms of reductions of emissions by developed countries not by reference to temperature.

On 3 September 2009, Meles made a speech to the Africa Partnership Forum, where he said: We will never accept any global deal that does not limit global warming to the minimum unavoidable level, no matter what levels of compensation and assistance are promised to us... While we will reason with everyone to achieve our objective, we will not rubber-stamp an agreement by the powers that be as the best we could get for the moment. We will use our numbers to delegitimize any agreement that is not consistent with our minimal position. If needs be we are prepared to walk out of any negotiations that threaten to be another rape of our continent.

Illness and death
In July 2012, questions arose concerning Meles' health when he did not attend African Union summit meetings in Addis Ababa. Opposition groups claimed that Meles may have already died on 16 July while undergoing treatment in Belgium; however, Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn attributed Meles' absence to a minor illness. A press conference, during which the government planned to clarify Meles' health status, was scheduled for 18 July but postponed until later in the week. While the government acknowledged that Meles had been hospitalised, it stated that his condition was not serious. There were further rumours of his death when he was not seen in public after the 2012 G20 summit and at the time of the death of the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Abune Paulos.

On 20 August, Meles Zenawi died after contracting an infection in Belgium.

Minister of Information Bereket Simon announced on state television: It's a sad day for Ethiopia. The man who led our country for the past 21 years and brought economic and democratic changes, has died. We have lost our respected leader. Meles has been receiving treatment abroad. He was getting better and we were expecting him to return to Addis Ababa. But he developed a sudden infection and died around 11:40pm last night. His body will be returned to Ethiopia soon. We have set up a committee to organise his funeral. More information will be released about that soon. As per Ethiopian law, Hailemariam Desalegn has now taken over the leadership. He will also be in charge of the Ethiopian military and all other government institutions. I would like to stress, nothing in Ethiopia will change. The government will continue. Our policies and institutions will continue. Nothing will change in Ethiopia. Desalegn will be confirmed by parliament.

After his body was repatriated two days later, thousands of mourners congregated on streets from the airport to Meles' former residence to pay their last respects as his coffin, draped in the flag of Ethiopia, was accompanied by a military band. The event was attended by political, military, and religious leaders, as well as diplomats and his wife, Azeb Mesfin. The body lie in state. A declaration of national mourning was also issued. There were also fears of a power vacuum after his death, as well as a possible detriment to Eritrea-Ethiopian relations.

Meles'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.

Reactions
Political leaders, states, and institutions offered their thoughts on Meles following his death.
 * Olympic gold medalist and Ethiopian national Haile Gebrselassie praised Meles' achievements.
 * Contemporary United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon praised Meles' "exceptional leadership".
 * Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office issued a statement that read: "[Netanyahu] presented his condolences to the Ethiopian people. Meles was loved in his country. He was also a true friend of Israel. During his mandate, Ethiopia became one of Israel's closest friends."
 * United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron called Meles "an inspirational spokesman for Africa."
 * United States President Barack Obama released the statement: "It was with sadness that I learned of the passing of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia. Prime Minister Meles deserves recognition for his lifelong contribution to Ethiopia's development, particularly his unyielding commitment to Ethiopia's poor. I met with Prime Minister Meles at the G-8 Summit in May and recall my personal admiration for his desire to lift millions of Ethiopians out of poverty through his drive for food security. I am also grateful for Prime Minister Meles's service for peace and security in Africa, his contributions to the African Union, and his voice for Africa on the world stage. On behalf of the American people, I offer my condolences to Prime Minister Meles' family and to the people of Ethiopia on this untimely loss and confirm the U.S. Government's commitment to our partnership with Ethiopia. Going forward, we encourage the Government of Ethiopia to enhance its support for development, democracy, regional stability and security, human rights, and prosperity for its people."
 * South Korean President Lee Myung-bak released this statement: "The passing of Prime Minister Meles is being mourned across the globe. We all have just lost a great leader of Ethiopia and a preeminent advocate for Africa and the developing world. [...] I pray for the repose of a truly bright mind who lived an intense and moving life – my close friend."

Western NGOs Amnesty International called for the new administration to end Meles' "ever-increasing repression" and Human Rights Watch similarly added that the next administration should repeal the 2009 anti-terrorism law. As The New York Times asked about a gap between the United States of America's strategic and ideological goals in relation to its support for Meles' government, it quoted HRW researcher Leslie Lefkow as saying: "There is an opportunity here. If donors are shrewd, they will use the opportunity that this presents to push a much stronger and bolder human rights stance and need for reform." Author Dan Connell, who had interviewed Meles in June, said that "he seemed focused [then] on wrapping up a number of major projects as if he were aware the end was near. Meles knew his days were numbered." The Committee to Protect Journalists cited and criticised the secrecy around Meles' death. The Washington Post said that the "circumstances of his death remained laced with intrigue".

Regional groups responded with the Ogaden National Liberation Front saying it hoped his death "may usher [in] a new era of stability and peace" and Al Shabaab that it was celebrating the "uplifting news".

Personal life
Meles 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. In July 2002, he received an honorary doctoral degree in political science from the Hannam University in South Korea. Meles was married to Azeb Mesfin, a former rebel fighter in the TPLF and,, a Member of Parliament. Meles was the father of three children; Semhal, Marda and Senay Meles.

Economic prosperity of Ethiopia
During Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's rule, Ethiopia prospered economically (with double-digit economic growth for his last 9 years). The high economic growth is continuing 7 years after his death, since his party Tigray People's Liberation Front and EPRDF continued to work with the same policies. Ethiopia even became the fastest-growing economy in Africa.

Titles, awards and honors
Prime Minister Meles received various international awards for setting up a good foundation for the development of Ethiopia. Even though Ethiopia remains one of the poorest countries in the world, the near double-digit annual economic growth rate recently is seen as the beginning of Ethiopia's long marathon struggle to eliminate poverty. Acknowledging the rapid GDP growth of the country, the UK newspaper The Economist said in December 2007 that "Ethiopia's economy has been growing at record speed in recent years." In 2008, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) described the speed of Ethiopia's economic growth in recent years as the "fastest for a non-oil exporting country in Sub-Saharan Africa", with Ethiopia ranked as the second-most attractive African country for investors.

 * Prime Minister Meles was awarded the Haile Selassie I Prize Trust, a highly selective award given only to the most outstanding graduating students.
 * The Rwanda government awarded Meles Rwanda's National Liberation Medal, the "Uruti," in July 2009 for helping to liberate Rwanda and end the genocide in the country. Alongside two other African leaders, Meles was also given Rwanda's highest accolade, the "Umurinzi" medal, Rwanda's Campaign Against Genocide Medal.
 * PM Meles Zenawi was allegedly awarded the World Peace Prize for his contributions to global peace and his effort to stabilize the Horn of Africa through cooperation with Inter-Governmental Authority for Development (IGAD). However, the World Peace Council strongly denied that they have awarded this prize to Meles Zenawi: saying " WPC press bureau wishes to declare that no such award was given by our organization in the past or will be given"
 * Tabor 100, an African American entrepreneur's organization, honored PM Meles for his contribution toward economic and social transformation in Africa with its prestigious Crystal Eagle International Leadership Award in April 2005. Tabor 100, a U.S.-based nongovernmental organization, calling Meles Zenawi "international leader of the year 2005", also honored the efforts of the Ethiopian government in general for its war on poverty and backwardness.
 * PM Meles was awarded the Good Governance Award of the Global Coalition for Africa for leading Ethiopia along a democratic path during the challenging period of transition. He was selected for the good governance award by the US-based Corporate Council on Africa.
 * PM Meles received the Norway-based 2005 Yara Prize for Green Revolution for initiating a good foundation for economic progress in Ethiopia, particularly in the agricultural sector, where the poor country has doubled its food production. During the award ceremony held in the Norwegian capital of Oslo on 3 September, the director of the UN project for Africa said, "With our support, Ethiopia can lift itself from poverty and hunger. Under Prime Minister Meles the country has created the grassroots structure to enable this to happen."
 * Meles was given the Africa Political Leadership Award of 2008 by the US-based newspaper, Africa Times. Previous winners of the award include Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela and others.
 * Ethiopia's military honored Prime Minister Meles for his leadership during the 1998–2000 war with its northern neighbour when Eritrea invaded Ethiopia in 1998.
 * Residents of the historic and ancient UNESCO town of Axum in Ethiopia honored Prime Minister Meles for his political and diplomatic leadership role in the return and re-erection of the Obelisk of Axum after a 68-year stay in Rome, Italy.
 * Meles received a Gold Order of Merit award from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) in February 2007. PM Meles was given the CAF organisation's highest award for his services in advancing the progress of African football. Ethiopia was one of the founding countries of the CAF (1957) and the organization, with the dedication of AU leaders like Meles, was celebrating the International Year of African Football in 2007.

Positions

 * Meles was a co-chairperson of the Global Coalition for Africa (GCA.) The Global Coailition for Africa brings together senior African policy makers and their partners to deepen dialogue and build consensus on Africa's priority development issues.
 * Prime Minister Meles served as the Chairman of the Organization for African Unity (OAU, now the African Union – AU) from June 1995 to June 1996.
 * In 2007, the African Union elected Meles to chair the executive committee of the NEPAD (the New Partnership for Africa's Development)
 * Meles was chosen to represent Africa at the G8 Summit and the G20 summit in London.
 * In February 2010, the UN named Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles as co-chair of the Advisory Group on Climate Change Financing, a new high-level U.N. advisory group on climate change financing.

Milestones
Several social, economic, religious, and political developments and systems were established for the first time in Ethiopia under Meles' rule.
 * First regional referendum for peaceful Secession (Eritrea, 1991–)
 * First Multi-party National election for opposition (2000, 2005, 2010)
 * First institutionalized linguistic freedom at the local level (1994–)
 * First ethnic-based federalism (since 1994)
 * First private media outlets in Ethiopian history (since 1994)
 * First consecutive double-digit GDP growth – International Monetary Fund (since 2006)
 * First multi-party parliament with opposition MPs (since 2000)
 * First unrestricted freedom of religion for evangelicals/Pentecostals (since 1994; a Pentecostal succeeded him in 2012)

Foundation
Meles was given the Green Revolution award and a financial prize of 200,000 dollars by the Norwegian Yara Foundation in September 2005 "in recognition of past accomplishments and encouragement to achieve economic development for the people of Ethiopia."

Meles donated his $200,000 financial award to a foundation called "Fre—Addis Ethiopia Women Fund" (Fre-Addis Ethiopia Yesetoch Merja Mahiber). The Fre-Addis Ethiopia Women Fund has an objective "to empower girls through providing educational opportunities" and it currently supports 514 needy and orphan rural girls to pursue their education throughout the country.

Media appearances

 * Motherland (Film 2010)
 * Teachers TV (Interview)
 * Al Jazeera (Interview)

Quotations

 * "They don't want to see a developed Africa. They want us to remain backward to serve their tourists as a museum" - in response to critics of the hydro dam and other development projects
 * "I regret the deaths but these were not normal demonstrations. You don't see hand grenades thrown at normal demonstrations"—on a post-election issue
 * "Africa's downfall has always been the cult of the personality. And their names always seem to begin with M. We've had Mobutu and Mengistu and I'm not going to add Meles to the list."—Dimbleby questioning Meles on his exposure to the people.
 * "We have taken measures and beefed up our defense capabilities around the border since December to prevent any miscalculation by the other side," post-Eritrean-Ethiopian war complications
 * "..countries pretend their foreign policy is based on democratisation when this is clearly not the case. For all the challenges in Zimbabwe, for example, it is a bit of a stretch to say it is less democratic than some of the sheikhdoms of the Gulf. But none of the sheikdoms has a problem visiting Europe."- Meles Zenawi's response about European sanctions and travel ban on Zimbabwe's Mugabe
 * "If it is presumed that the Kenyans will democratise in order to eat the peanuts of development assistance from the European Union... it would be a big mistake"- Meles Zenawi's reaction to European threat of sanctions on Kenya.
 * "Democracy is the expression of a sovereign people. To impose it from outside is inherently undemocratic."- Meles interviewed by The Guardian
 * "It's true we have our disagreements on border issues, we have disagreements on trade and related issues, but you don't go invading a country whenever you have a dispute on trade issues, ... We have more civilized mechanisms on resolving such problems." – after Eritrea's attack on Mekele, Ethiopia
 * "America didn't give us any money because of Somalia intervention. This doesn't mean America hasn't given us food aid or money for HIV prevention before. It certainly has. But we aren't going to fight Somalia using Condoms." – Meles's reply to MP Bulcha Demeksa's teasing question on whether America gave financial support to Ethiopia for the Somalia intervention.
 * "This is not your run-of-the-mill demonstration. This is an Orange Revolution gone wrong" – PM Meles accusing opposition parties of the violence.
 * "I have never heard of any convincing reason as to why we should privatize land at this stage." Part of PM Meles' controversial reply to Dr. Abdul Mejid Hussien.
 * "The violence has marred the image of Ethiopia,... The worst is clearly behind us and we do not expect any such violence in the near future."—on post-election events
 * "Even when we obey international laws after exhausting all peaceful means, some countries might not support our move to defend Ethiopia because of their own national interests or diplomatic rationale. So what do we do? Two choices: either we seat & welcome our enemies to invade our homes or we stand up for ourselves. I hope parliament chooses the second option...we don't need the blessing of other nations to defend our country."—Meles speaking to parliament about Somali Islamic courts. (from amharic translation)
 * "I am proud to be an Ethiopian. I am proud to be a part of that history."—Meles speaking to American intellectuals about Ethiopia and its history.
 * "When they (Somali Jihadists) control the whole of Somalia it would be very naive to assume that they will mend their ways, cease to be terrorists and become very civilized and very tame pussycats."—Interview with AP on Somali extremists.
 * "As we respond to the assault of our enemy and defend our country, we must never break international laws. Crime can not be solved by more crime." – Meles Zenawi speaking to Parliament 23 November 2006.
 * "We believe the problem between ourselves and Eritrea will have to be resolved through dialogue, but it takes two to tango"—on border dispute with Eritrea
 * "The rest of the contextual factors have no relevance whatsoever to the investigative process. Indeed, they remind me of the famous Tina Turner song. 'What's love got to do with it?'"—Meles Zenawi's response to EU-EOM implying Mrs. Ana Gomez's alleged contradicting accusations.
 * "So why don't you give them additional concessions?' We said, 'What concessions? Concessions from our sovereignty? That has never been done by any government in Ethiopia in 3,000 years.' That is the only thing of great value what we have inherited from our past, our unflinching determination to keep our...country independent even if we are dying of hunger."—Response to EU's demands for Eritrea
 * "While they are entitled to their own opinion, this government and this country are incapable, unwilling, and unable to be run like some banana republic from Capitol Hill. It is very worrisome that some of these individuals appear to have entertained such views."—In response to Rep. Donald Payne's pressure for Hailu Shawel & Co.

title: Meles Zenawi


text:
Sonny Landham

William M. "Sonny" Landham III (February 11, 1941 – August 17, 2017) was an American actor. He portrayed Billy Bear in 48 Hrs. (1982) and tracker Billy Sole in Predator (1987).

Early life and education
Landham was born February 11, 1941, in Canton, Georgia, and raised in Rome, Georgia. He identified one-eighth Seminole descent, and partly of German, English, and Irish descent. He also stated he had Jewish heritage. Landham had at least one sibling, a sister, Dawn.

He attended Saint Mary's Catholic School and Darlington School before playing football for a year at the University of Georgia. Subsequently, he transferred to and graduated from Oglethorpe University. After college, he did a stint in the U.S. Army, worked in an oil field, as an ordained Baptist minister, and a model.

Acting career
Landham studied acting for two years at Pasadena Playhouse before moving to New York in 1968 to pursue a career in acting. At the beginning of his acting career, Landham was an actor in pornographic films. He also posed for nude layout for Playgirl. He then became a mainstream movie actor and appeared in a number of Hollywood films, including The Warriors (1979) as a subway policeman whose leg gets broken by a baseball bat-wielding Michael Beck, 48 Hrs. (1982), Predator (1987), Action Jackson (1988), and Lock Up (1989).

Politics
In 2003, Landham ran in the Republican Party primary election for the post of Governor of Kentucky, hoping to repeat the success of his Predator castmates Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. He based his candidacy on opposition to an amendment which endorsed the Kentucky Family Court, saying his bad experiences at the hands of the family court had convinced him it was for the benefit of lawyers rather than families or children. He was unsuccessful in gaining the party's nomination. He ran briefly as an independent candidate, but withdrew on June 18, 2003, and endorsed the Republican slate.

In January 2004, Landham announced his candidacy for the 27th State Senate District of Kentucky. That year he was the keynote speaker at the official launch party of the radio show, The Political Cesspool. In 2005, Landham spoke at the Council of Conservative Citizens (CofCC) convention.

On June 25, 2008, Landham announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat held by Mitch McConnell, as a Libertarian.

On July 23, 2008, Landham appeared on the political radio show The Weekly Filibuster, where he was asked, in relation to past comments of his quoted in the Louisville Courier-Journal, if he was calling for the genocide of Arab people. He replied, "I call for outright bombing them back into the sand until they surrender and if they don't surrender, then you continue the war. Because if you don't, you will never have peace in the United States. Now do you want peace in the United States or do you want to live to some utopian ideals that are impossible in a world?" He further called for Arabs to be banned from entering the United States, and referred to that ethnic group as "camel dung-shovelers", and when questioned on this, suggested using the epithets "rag-heads" and "camel jockeys". On July 28, the Kentucky Libertarian Party asked Landham to withdraw his nomination, citing those comments and explaining that his politics did not agree with their platform and values.

Personal life
Landham was married five times. He had four children, including a son named William, and a daughter named Priscilla.

After being convicted on federal charges of making threatening and obscene phone calls to his wife, Landham spent three years in prison. However the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the conviction in May 2001.

Death
Landham died on August 17, 2017, aged 76, from congestive heart failure.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Sonny Landham


text:
Apolo Nsibambi

Apolo Robin Nsibambi (25 October 1940 – 28 May 2019) was a Ugandan academic and politician who served as the 8th Prime Minister of Uganda from 5 April 1999 until 24 May 2011, when Amama Mbabazi succeeded him.

Early life and education
Apolo Robin Nsibambi was born on 25 October 1940. He was one of 12 children born to Eva Bakaluba and Semyoni Nsibambi, a leader in the Balokole movement or the "East African Revival". Apolo Nsibambi attended King's College Budo for his high school education. He held a Bachelor of Science degree in economics, with honors, from the Makerere University. He also held a Master of Arts degree in political science from the University of Chicago in the United States. His Doctor of Philosophy degree was obtained from the University of Nairobi.

Career
Nsibambi served as the dean of Faculty of Social Science at Makerere University from 1978 until 1983 and from 1985 until 1987. He was appointed head of the Department of Political Science at Makerere University in 1987, a position he held until 1990. He was Director of the Makerere Institute of Social Research from 1994 to 1996.

Between 1996 and 1998, he served as Minister of Public Service in the Uganda Cabinet. In 1998 he was appointed Minister of Education and Sports, serving in that capacity until 1999 when he was appointed Prime Minister and Leader of Government Business in Parliament.

Nsibambi also served as the chancellor of Makerere University from 2003 until October 2007. He taught at the university in the 1960s, befriending author Paul Theroux, who interviewed Nsibambi in his travelogue Dark Star Safari.

Personal life
He married Esther Nsibambi in March 2003 after the death of his first wife, Rhoda, in December 2001. He was the father of four daughters. He was a practising Anglican. Nsibambi died on 28 May 2019, at the age of 78.

title: Apolo Nsibambi


text:
Costas Simitis

Constantine G. Simitis (Κωνσταντίνος Γ. Σημίτης; born 23 June 1936) is a Greek retired politician who led the 'Modernization' movement of Greece. He succeeded in leadership Andreas Papandreou, the founder of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK), and served as Prime Minister of Greece from 1996 to 2004.

The leadership transition from Papandreou to Simitis was neither orderly nor `friendly.' Simitis faced loyalists of the former Prime Minister who had spent much of their energy trying to prevent such a transition from ever taking place. From the outset, the less-than-dominant position Simitis held in his party circumscribed so many of his actions. By the time he had left office in 2004, however, Simitis had a number of significant achievements and reforms in the wider society and economy to proclaim: Greek entry into the Euro currency; the Cypriot accession into the EU; the successful completion of the Athens 2004 Summer Olympics; and the accomplishment of a variety of large-scale infrastructure projects (like the new Eleftherios Venizelos airport, the Athens ring road, Athens Metro, and Rio–Antirrio Bridge). New institutions were also introduced, such as the Greek Ombudsman and a number of regulatory bodies to supervise market liberalization.

Under Simitis' governments, the Greek economy, after two decades of the exuberant rhetoric of his predecessors and financial stagnation, was put in order by reducing inflation from an annual average of 15% to 3%, and budget deficits from more than 10% to 3%. The economy grew with an average annual increase of 4.1% of GDP.

Much later, after the debt crisis erupted in Greece in 2009, the legacy would be re-interpreted by critics as not being enough or misleading. Yet, under Simitis, Greece had seemingly strengthened its capacity for reform and had, indeed, appeared both more 'modern' and 'European.'

Biography
Costas Simitis was born in Piraeus to Georgios Simitis, a Professor at the School of Economic and Commercial Sciences, and to his wife Fani (née Christopoulou). He studied law at the University of Marburg in Germany and economics at the London School of Economics. He is married to Daphne Arkadiou (b. 1938) and has two daughters, Fiona and Marilena. He currently resides in the Kolonaki district of Athens. His brother Spiros Simitis was a prominent jurist specializing in data privacy in Germany.

Political activity before 1981
In 1965, he returned to Greece and was one of the founders of the "Alexandros Papanastasiou" political research group. In 1967, after the military coup on 21 April, this group was transformed into Democratic Defense, an organization opposed to the military regime. Simitis escaped abroad after planting bombs in the streets of Athens (in later years, he acknowledged his activities on the Greek MEGA TV channel) in order to avoid being jailed and became a member of the Panhellenic Liberation Movement (PAK), led by Andreas Papandreou. He also took up a position as a university lecturer in Germany. He returned to Athens in 1974 and was one of the co-founders of PAK's successor, the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK). In 1977, he took up a lecturer's post at the Panteion University.

Ministerial offices
Simitis was not a candidate for the Greek Parliament in the 1981 elections, but he was appointed Minister of Agriculture in the first PASOK government of that year. Following the 1985 elections and his election as a deputy to the Parliament, he became Minister of National Economy; he undertook an unpopular stabilization program, trying to curb inflation and reduce deficits, but resigned his post in 1987 because he felt that his policies were being undermined. In 1993, he took over the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, but in 1995, he again resigned from the ministry and the party's Executive Bureau following a public rebuke he received from Prime Minister Papandreou.

Rise to the offices of Prime Minister and President of PASOK
On 16 January 1996, Papandreou resigned as Prime Minister due to ill health. In a special election held by the party's parliamentary group on 18 January, Simitis was elected in his place over the candidacies of Akis Tsochatzopoulos, Gerasimos Arsenis and Ioannis Charalampopoulos. Papandreou, however, remained Chairman of the party for the next months until his death on 23 June (also Simitis' 60th birthday), just before a party conference would select the party's vice-president; after Papandreou's death, the conference would elect the new Party President. Simitis was elected in PASOK's Fourth Congress on 30 June, defeating Akis Tsochatzopoulos on a platform of support for the European Union.

Simitis then led the party in the national elections of 22 September 1996, gaining a mandate in his own right. He also narrowly won the national election of 2000. He worked very closely and had a good relationship with his Cabinet Secretary of 8 years, Sokratis Kosmidis. Although he is widely respected throughout Europe, in Greece, Simitis was regarded by some Greeks as a rather dull technocrat, lacking the charisma of Papandreou.

On 7 January 2004, with PASOK's popularity collapsing, Simitis announced that he would resign as party president and would not stand for re-election as Prime Minister in the forthcoming legislative elections. At the time, he was accused of bowing out to avoid humiliation at the polls. However, by the end of his tenure on 10 March, he would be in office for over eight consecutive years, the longest continuous term in modern Greek history. In a past interview, Simitis had already stated that he would remain prime minister for only two legislative periods since "he wanted to do other things in his life as well." On 8 January, he called elections for the party president to be held on 8 February. Simitis was succeeded as PASOK leader by the then-Minister of Foreign Affairs George Papandreou, the only candidate in these elections. Despite Papandreou's personal popularity, PASOK lost the 7 March elections to the conservative New Democracy party, whose leader Kostas Karamanlis succeeded Simitis in the office of Prime Minister.

Political activity after 2004
After the 2004 electoral defeat, Simitis remained a Member of the Hellenic Parliament for Piraeus, sitting on the Standing Committee on National Defence and Foreign Affairs. Re-elected in September 2007, he entered into a conflict with his successor as PASOK leader, George Papandreou, on the political choices of the party. In June 2008, he was excluded from the PASOK parliamentary group after opposing Papandreou's position in favour of a referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon, which he had helped to draft as member of the Amato Group. Though never formally excluded from the party, he kept his distance with the leadership and could not come to terms with Papandreou in time to be a candidate for the 2009 elections, upon which he definitively left his MP seat for Piraeus.

Social policies
Various social reforms were carried out under Simitis. EKAS, an income-tested pension supplement that restored the link of minimum pension with 20 daily minimum wages, was introduced, while the pension replacement rate was set as 70% of the last five years of salaries. Seniority pensions were also introduced, along with a contributory pension scheme for farmers. Law 2738/1999 on "collective bargaining in the public administration, permanent status for workers employed under open-ended contracts and other provisions" laid down, for the first time, “the right of public servants to negotiate their terms and conditions of employment, excluding pay and pensions, and to conclude collective agreements.” Law 2874/2000 on 'Employment regulations and other provisions,' in addition to working time arrangements, “ regulates a range of important issues relating to labour relations, such as overtime, redundancies and matters involving leave,” while Law 2839/2000 on 'Regulation of matters regarding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Public Administration and Decentralisation and other provisions' established a gender quota system in the public sector's various governing councils, administrative boards and collective bodies. In 2003, a substantial level of legislative activity relating to employment, workplace health and safety and social security took place.

Financial policies
Simitis is known mainly in Greece for his political philosophy, known as "Eksynchronismos" (modernization), which focused on extensive public investment and infrastructure works as well as economic and labor reforms. His supporters credit Simitis with overcoming the chronic problems of the Greek economy and thus achieving Greece's admittance into the Eurozone. During his governance, official data presented inflation as having decreased from 15% to 3%, public deficits diminished from 14% to 3%, GDP increased at an annual average of 4%, and factual labor incomes increased at 3% per year. However, the macroeconomic data presented by Simitis' government were called into question by an audit performed by the successor government of New Democracy in 2004.

Many large-scale infrastructure projects were carried out or begun during the so-called 'era of Eksychronismos', such as the new "Eleftherios Venizelos" Athens International Airport, the Rio-Antirio bridge, the Athens Metro and the Egnatia Odos.

Internal issues

In 2000, Simitis was embroiled in a dispute with the Archbishop of the influential Greek Orthodox Church, Christodoulos of Athens, when the Greek government sought to remove the "Religion" field from the national ID cards carried by Greek citizens on the grounds that the Hellenic Data Protection Authority recommended so; its decision also included the "Nationality" field, but was not implemented following a subsequent EE directive to the contrary. Christodoulos opposed the decision, claiming that the action pursued deviously the religious de-identification of the Greek nation. Faced with the government's robust but unpopular stance, he organized two massive demonstrations in Athens and Thessaloniki alongside a majority of bishops of the Church of Greece. Simitis's attitude gained faint-hearted support even within his party, but he found a surprisingly militant ally in the Eksychronismos opinion makers. Kostas Karamanlis, the opposition leader, signed a petition, organized by the Church of Greece, calling for a referendum on the matter and signed, too, by more than three million citizens. However, the inclusion of religious beliefs on ID cards, even on a voluntary basis, as the Church had asked, was deemed unconstitutional by the Greek courts.

Foreign policy

While PASOK traditionalists disliked his move away from the more traditional/orthodox norms of the Democratic socialism of Andreas Papandreou' policies, and also his relative moderation on issues such as the Cyprus dispute and the Macedonia naming dispute, his supporters saw both of these as positive elements of the eksynchronismos movement that Simitis was seen as spearheading.

During January–June 2003, Simitis, as Greek Prime Minister, exercised the presidency of the European Council.

Controversy and criticism
In 1996, the appointment of the PASOK-leaning To Vima newspaper editor, Stavros Psycharis, as political administrator of Mount Athos was particularly criticised by the opposition.

Siemens bribery scandal
A significant issue during Simitis' tenure concerned corruption, which became endemic in Greek public life (including the Siemens Greek bribery scandal, incidents like Akis Tsochatzopoulos, who later was imprisoned for criminal actions for the purchase of the German type 214 submarines) etc.

Siemens CEO Michalis Christoforakos testified that during his trial in Germany, he bribed (2%) both the two major political parties, ND and PASOK (through Geitonas and Tsoukatos, partner of Kostas Simitis). According to Tsoukatos, the money was put in PASOK's cash desk. As of 2018, Simitis was under prosecutor investigation regarding the Siemens Greek bribery scandal, but was later exonerated.

Validity of statistical data
New Democracy revised the size of the defense expenditures for the years 1997-2003 by changing the regulation for the cost accounting of the defense expenditures from the date of delivery of war material (delivery basis), which was at the time followed by half the countries of the EU, to the payment date of the advance payments (cash basis). Eurostat accepted the change, because of the lack of reliable data for the deliveries of war material. By the revision of the 1999 defense expenditures, the deficit of 1999, the year of the Greek economy's evaluation, amounted to 3.1%. Since 2005, Eurostat changed its rules and records the defense expenditures according to the delivery date for all the countries of the EU, including Greece. Eurostat requested that the member countries to correct their data retroactively. Greece did not proceed to the rectification.

The deficit of 1999, year of the Greek economy's evaluation, is still presented to be 3.1% of the Gross National product (GNP), greater than the Maastricht criterion for a deficit lower than 3% of the GNP. Subsequent revisions of the data show also other countries exceeding the fiscal deficit (government deficit) of 3% during the evaluation period. Thus, in 1997, which is the year of the evaluation of the first countries that became members of the Euro zone, the deficit of France was 3.3%, of Spain 3.4% and of Portugal 3.4%.

Other
Other points of criticism included the 1999 Greek stock market crash in the Athens Exchange, such as his handling on the Abdullah Öcalan's capture and the Imia incident regarding the foreign relations with Turkey.

Simitis rejected New Democracy's bills for accountability and transparency with regards to governmental expenditure and decisions, while New Democracy leader Kostas Karamanlis accused Simitis during a parliamentary plenum of being an "archpriest of cronyism", referencing the index of the NGO Transparency International. However, Greece's position has fallen by five places in the same index during the New Democracy government (2004-2009). Four years later Karamanlis himself admitted that he exaggerated and that he never doubted Simitis' personal integrity.

Works
Simitis has authored several books and articles on legal and economic issues as well as on politics.

Political works

 * "Structural Opposition", Athens 1979
 * "Politics, Government and Law", Athens 1981
 * "Politics of Financial stabilization", N. Garganas, T. Thomopoulos, Costas Simitis, G. Spraos, introduction-preface: Costas Simitis, Athens 1989, Gnosi Publications
 * "Populism and Politics", N. Mouzelis, T. Lipovach, M. Spourdalakis, introduction Costas Simitis, Athens 1989, Gnosi Publications
 * "Development and modernisation of the Greek Society", Athens 1989, Gnosi Publications
 * "Views on the politic strategy of PASOK", Athens, 1990
 * "Propositions for another politics", Athens 1992, Gnosi Publications
 * "Nationalist Populism or national strategy;", Athens 1992, Gnosi Publications
 * "Let's dare united", Athens 1994
 * "For a strong society and a strong Greece", Athens 1995, Plethron Publications
 * "For a financially strong and socially fair Greece", Athens 2002, Kastanioti Publications
 * "For a strong in Europe and in the world Greece", Athens 2002, Kastanioti Publications
 * "For a strong, modern and democratic Greece", Athens 2002, Kastanioti Publications
 * "Politics for a Creative Greece 1996–2004" ("Πολιτική για μια Δημιουργική Ελλάδα 1996–2004" in Greek), Athens 2005, Polis Publications
 * "Objectives, Strategy and Perspectives", Athens 2007, Polis Publications
 * "Democracy in Crisis?", Athens 2007, Polis Publications

title: Costas Simitis


text:
Saufatu Sopoanga

Saufatu Sopoanga (22 February 1952 – 15 December 2020) was a Tuvaluan politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Tuvalu from 2 August 2002 to 27 August 2004. He drew international attention for his speeches warning about the effects of the rising sea level on Tuvalu and other low-lying island countries.

He later served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2004 to 2006. His younger brother Enele Sopoaga served as Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 2013 to 2019.

Early life and career
Sopoanga was born on Nukufetau Atoll on 22 February 1952. He received a diploma in development administration from South Devon Technical College, Torquay in 1978 and a postgraduate diploma from the University of Manchester in 1992. In 1993, he received a Master's degree from the University of Liverpool.

Sopoanga began working in the civil service of the Ellice Islands in 1973, and was a permanent secretary for different ministries between 1975 and 1995. During his time at the Ministry of Natural Resources, he facilitated visits by foreign geologists after Tuvalu became a member of the South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission in 1984. From 1996 until his retirement in October 2000, he was a state secretary, the highest rank in the civil service.

The Electoral Provisions (Parliament) Act of Tuvalu was amended in May 2000 to increase the membership of parliament from 12 to 15 MPs. Sopoanga was elected as a member of the Parliament of Tuvalu for the constituency of Nukufetau, in a special election in November 2000, (together with Amasone Kilei and Namoto Kelisiano) and they attended their first parliamentary session on 7 December 2000. He became a Special Ministerial Adviser in the Ministry of Works, Communications & Transport to the government of Prime Minister Ionatana Ionatana. Under prime minister Koloa Talake, he served as the minister for finance, economic planning and industry.

Prime Minister of Tuvalu
Sopoanga was elected Prime Minister of Tuvalu by the Parliament of Tuvalu on 2 August 2002 after the general election. He also held the foreign affairs and labour portfolios.

After being elected Prime Minister, Sopoanga announced his intention to create a plan to improve education and healthcare in Tuvalu. He attended a United Nations Sustainable Development summit in Johannesburg in September 2002, where he warned that Tuvalu would be completely submerged in 50 years due to global warming-related increases in sea level. On 24 September 2003, Sopoanga delivered a speech to the United Nations General Assembly which outlined issues facing Tuvalu on its 25th anniversary of independence, such as economic underdevelopment. He called climate change "a slow and insidious form of terrorism" against Tuvalu.

As Tuvalu's parliament is nonpartisan, both Sapoanga's government and the opposition experienced periodic defections and uncertain by-elections. Due to this instability, Sopoanga personally voiced support for making Tuvalu a republic with a directly-elected head of government.

The Sopoanga government first lost its majority in May 2003, following the results of the 2003 Nanumea by-election and the 2003 Niutao by-election. As Sopoanga did not call parliament afterward, opposition leader Amasone Kilei filed a case on 20 June 2003 with the High Court of Tuvalu seeking orders regarding the appointment of a speaker and the calling of parliament. The governor-general had already issued a notice on 19 June ordering the election of a speaker, which was won by opposition MP Faimalaga Luka. On 6 August 2003, the Chief Justice of the High Court issued his decision on the case: he declined to force the prime minister's resignation, and deferred the decision to call parliament to the governor general's reserve powers as defined under Section 116(1) of the Constitution of Tuvalu.

Sopoanga finally recalled parliament to meet in September. On 9 September, he nominated the new Speaker Faimalaga Luka as the next governor general, triggering the 2003 Nukufetau by-election in October. Elisala Pita won the by-election and joined the government's benches, restoring its majority.

On 25 August 2004, Sopoanga resigned as prime minister after a no confidence motion carried in parliament, 8–6. One of the government members was sick in New Zealand, and the Speaker Otinielu Tausi voted with the opposition due to a disagreement over Sopoanga's financial policies.

Later career
After resigning as prime minister, Sopoanga resigned his seat in parliament to delay the election of a new prime minister, as the Constitution required all fifteen MPs to vote. The 2004 Nukufetau by-election was held on 7 October, and Sopoanga regained his seat. However, Maatia Toafa was elected prime minister on 11 October 2004, 8–7. Sopoanga then became deputy prime minister, also holding the Works, Communications & Transport portfolio. At the 2006 Tuvaluan general election, Sopoanga lost his seat in Parliament.

After leaving parliament, Sopoanga served as Chairman of various organizations, such as the Tuvalu National Private Sector Organization and the Public Service Commission. He was also the Secretary-General of the Tuvalu Red Cross. In 2018, he became a member of Tuvalu's Memory of the World Committee.

Personal life
Sopoanga had several brothers; his younger brother Enele was also Prime Minister from 2013 to 2019. Sopoanga and his wife Filifau had four children.

Death
Sopoanga died on 15 December 2020 in Tuvalu. He received a state funeral on 22 December 2020.

Honours

 * Order_of_the_British_Empire_(Civil)_Ribbon.svg Officer, Order of the British Empire (1998 Birthday Honours)

title: Saufatu Sopoanga


text:
1885 in science

The year 1885 in science and technology involved some significant events, listed below.

Astronomy

 * August 20 – Ernst Hartwig discovers S Andromedae, a supernova in the Andromeda Galaxy, the first supernova discovered beyond the Milky Way.

Biology

 * The genus Plasmodium is described by Ettore Marchiafava and Angelo Celli.
 * The bacterium Escherichia coli (E. coli) is discovered by Theodor Escherich.
 * The bacterium Salmonella enterica is discovered by Theobald Smith, working under Daniel Elmer Salmon.
 * Hans Driesch performs a form of artificial cloning on a sea urchin embryo.

Chemistry

 * Carl Auer von Welsbach patents his first incandescent gas mantle.
 * Eugen Goldstein names the cathode ray, later discovered to be composed of electrons, and the canal ray, later discovered to be positive hydrogen ions that have been stripped of their electrons in a cathode ray tube; these will later be named protons.

Earth sciences

 * Eduard Suess begins publication in Vienna of his Das Antlitz der Erde setting out his theory of eustasy, the existence of the former supercontinent Gondwana, and his pioneering concepts in ecology.

Medicine

 * January 4 – The first successful appendectomy is performed by Dr. William W. Grant on Mary Gartside.
 * July 6 – Louis Pasteur and Émile Roux successfully test their rabies vaccine. The patient is Joseph Meister, a boy bitten by a rabid dog.
 * Georges Gilles de la Tourette publishes an account of nine patients with what will become known as Tourette syndrome.

Meteorology

 * January 15 – American photographer Wilson Bentley takes the first known photograph of a snowflake by attaching a view camera to a microscope.

Physics

 * Johann Balmer publishes an empirical mathematical formula for the visible spectral lines of the hydrogen atom.

Psychology

 * Hermann Ebbinghaus publishes Über das Gedächtnis ("On Memory", later translated as Memory: a Contribution to Experimental Psychology).

Technology

 * March 24 – George H. Pegram is granted a United States patent for the Pegram truss.
 * April 3 – Gottlieb Daimler is granted a German patent for his single-cylinder water-cooled engine design.
 * August 29 – Gottlieb Daimler is granted a German patent for the Daimler Reitwagen, regarded as the first motorcycle, which he has produced with Wilhelm Maybach.
 * September 30 – Tolbert Lanston makes his first application for a United States patent on a typesetting system which includes the basic Monotype System keyboard.
 * Autumn – Karl Benz produces the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, regarded as the first automobile (patented and publicly launched the following January).
 * John Kemp Starley demonstrates the Rover safety bicycle, regarded as the first practical modern bicycle.
 * The first, not yet practical, form of gyrocompass is patented by Marinus Gerardus van den Bos.
 * Rufus Eastman patents the first known electric food mixer.
 * Completion of the Home Insurance Building in Chicago, designed by William Le Baron Jenney. With ten floors and a fireproof weight-bearing metal frame, it is regarded as the first skyscraper.
 * Completion of Sway Tower in Hampshire, England, designed by Andrew Peterson using concrete made with Portland cement. It remains the world's tallest non-reinforced concrete structure.
 * The Nipkow disk is patented by German scientist Paul Gottlieb Nipkow.

Institutions

 * October 13 – The Georgia Institute of Technology is established in Atlanta (United States) as the Georgia School of Technology to teach mechanical engineering.

Awards

 * Copley Medal: Friedrich August Kekulé von Stradonitz
 * Wollaston Medal for Geology: George Busk

Births

 * January 24 – Marjory Stephenson (died 1948), English biochemist
 * January 26 – Harry Ricardo (died 1974), English mechanical engineer
 * March 23 – John Fraser (died 1947), Scottish surgeon
 * June 2 – Hans Gerhard Creutzfeldt (died 1964), German neuropathologist
 * August 1 – George de Hevesy (died 1966), Hungarian Nobel laureate in chemistry
 * September 8 – Douglas Guthrie (died 1975), Scottish otolaryngologist and medical historian
 * September 16 – Karen Horney (died 1952), German-born psychoanalyst
 * October 7 – Niels Bohr (died 1962), Danish physicist
 * October 23 – Jan Czochralski (died 1953), Polish discoverer of the Czochralski process for growing crystals
 * October 26 – Niels Erik Nørlund (died 1981), Danish mathematician
 * November 7 – Sabina Spielrein (died 1942), Russian psychoanalyst
 * November 9 – Hermann Weyl (died 1955), German mathematician
 * December 2 – George Minot (died 1950), American Nobel laureate in physiology

Deaths

 * February 1 – Sidney Gilchrist Thomas (born 1850), British inventor
 * February 8 – Nikolai Severtzov (born 1827), Russian explorer and naturalist
 * March 14 – Friedrich Theodor von Frerichs (born 1819), German medical pathologist
 * June 12 – Fleeming Jenkin (born 1833), English engineer
 * September 6 – Narcís Monturiol (born 1819), Catalan intellectual, artist and engineer, inventor of an early submarine
 * September 15 – Jumbo (born 1861), African elephant, killed in railroad accident
 * November 26 – Thomas Andrews (born 1813), Irish chemist

title: 1885 in science


text:
Otmar Hasler

Otmar Hasler (born 28 September 1953) is a politician from Liechtenstein who served as the Prime Minister of Liechtenstein from 2001 to 2009.

Earlier life
He was educated at the University of Fribourg. Hasler served as President of the Landtag from January 1995 to December 1995.

Prime Minister of Liechtenstein
Hasler was appointed Prime Minister of Liechtenstein from 5 April 2001 to 25 May 2009, replacing Mario Frick, and led a coalition government of the Progressive Citizens' Party and the Patriotic Union. His rule saw a significant transfer of powers from his office to the reigning Prince of Liechtenstein. During his premiership in 2008, the country was the subject a tax scandal involving Germany, the United States and other countries.

Later life
Otmar currently serves as a member of the board at the Kaiser Partner Privatbank in Vaduz.

title: Otmar Hasler


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Zafarullah Khan Jamali

Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali (1 January 1944 – 2 December 2020) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Pakistan from 2002 until his resignation in 2004. He was the first and only elected prime minister from Balochistan, Pakistan.

Originally a supporter of the Pakistan Peoples Party, Jamali emerged from the politics of Balochistan under military governor Rahimuddin Khan during the 1970s. He became a national figure as part of the government of Nawaz Sharif, and was Chief Minister of Balochistan for two non-consecutive terms (from June–December 1988 and November 1996 –February 1997). Although he was a senior leader in the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) and Sharif's confidant, relations between Jamali and Sharif cooled and Jamali joined the Pakistan Muslim League (Q) after the 1999 coup led by General Pervez Musharraf. In the 2002 general election, Jamali won his bid for the office of Prime Minister after his supporters and colleagues crossed party lines to support him. On 21 November 2002 Jamali was appointed the 13th Prime Minister of Pakistan-designate. He took the oath on 23 November 2002, serving until he unexpectedly announced his resignation in 2004. He is the fifth shortest-serving democratically elected Prime Minister in the history of Pakistan.

Early life and education
Jamali was born on 1 January 1944 to a political, religious and landlord family in Rojhan village of Commissariat Baluchistan of the British Indian Empire, now Nasirabad District in Balochistan, Pakistan.

Jamali received his early education at Lawrence College, Murree and A-levels from Aitchison College, Lahore.Jamali was a great hockey player in his time. He then studied in a government college for a bachelor's degree. He received his master's degree in political science at the University of the Punjab in 1965.

Political career
Jamali began his political career in 1970 and joined PPP. Jamali took part in 1970 Pakistani general election for the first time, but lost it.

He was elected to the Provincial Assembly of Balochistan in 1977 Pakistani general election on a PPP ticket. He was appointed a provincial minister in the provincial cabinet of Nawab Mohammad Khan Barozai in Balochistan. He briefly held portfolios for the departments of Food, Information, Law and Parliamentary Affairs.

After the imposition of martial law in Pakistan by General Zia-ul-Haq, he was allied to Zia-ul-Haq.

Jamali was appointed as a state minister in the federal cabinet by General Zia-ul-Haq.

Jamali was elected as the member of the National Assembly of Pakistan in 1985 Pakistani general election from Naseerabad constituency and was inducted into the federal cabinet of Junejo and given the portfolio of Federal Minister of water and power.

Jamali was appointed as the caretaker Chief Minister of Balochistan in 1988 after General Zia-ul-Haq dismissed the government of Junejo.

Jamali was re-elected as the member of the provincial assembly of Balochistan in 1988 Pakistani general election and became the chief minister of Balochistan.

He was elected as the member of the Senate of Pakistan in 1994 and again in 1997.

Jamali ran for the seat of National Assembly in the 1990 Pakistani general elections, but was defeated by a PPP candidate.

He was re-elected as the member of the Provincial Assembly in 1993 Pakistani general elections on the PML ticket and defeated a PPP nominee. Jamali was re-appointed caretaker as the chief minister of Balochistan in 1997.

Prime Minister of Pakistan

In July 2002, Jamali joined the Pakistan Muslim League's breakaway Pakistan Muslim League (Q).

He was re-elected as the member of the National Assembly of Pakistan in 2002 Pakistani general election.

In November 2002, Jamali became the 13th Prime Minister of Pakistan by a simple majority for five years for the first time after securing 188 votes out of 342 seats in the National Assembly of Pakistan. He was the first politician from Balochistan to become prime minister of Pakistan.

Since no party had an exclusive mandate, his election as Prime Minister followed weeks of negotiation. He formed a coalition government with MQM, MMA, PPPP and the splinter group of the Pakistan Muslim League. He oversaw Pakistan's transition from two-party to multi-party democracy.

Foreign policy

In 2004, Jamali visited Afghanistan, which was the first highest-level visit from Pakistan since the fall of the Taliban government in 2001 which was an ally of Pakistan. Jamali supported Hamid Karzai as President of Afghanistan and assured him of cooperation between the government of both countries in everything, from trade to terrorism. Jamali announced donations of 300 buses and trucks, scholarships for Afghan students and aid for improvement of road, railway and hospital projects in Afghanistan.

In October 2003 Jamali visited the United States, meeting with President George W. Bush and vowing to support the U.S. in the war on terror.

Jamali vowed to improve relations with India immediately after assuming office  and procuring a peace agreement and cease-fire in the disputed Kashmir region. He appointed a special envoy to improve relations and lessen tensions between the two countries which had arisen during the 1990s and early 2000s.

Resignation
In June 2004, Jamali abruptly announced his resignation on television after a three-hour meeting with Musharraf. There had been rumours of Jamali's strained relationship with Musharraf on the execution of government policies. According to media reports, resignation became inevitable when Musharraf became unhappy with Jamali's performance and his failure to strongly endorse Musharraf's policies.

The Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal was initially surprised; the mainstream parties saw Jamali's resignation as "forced and [a] humiliation for democracy" and "bad for the future". With his surprise announcement, Jamali dissolved the cabinet and nominated his party's president Shujaat Hussain as interim prime minister. Weeks after his resignation, it was learned that it came as the result of deteriorating relations with Hussain.

Post-prime ministership
After resigning, Jamali pursued his passion for field hockey. In 2004, he became president of the Pakistan Hockey Federation and vowed to solve the problems facing the Pakistan Hockey Federation and revive the Pakistan men's national field hockey team. He previously played for Punjab province, acted as Chief-de-Mission for the 1984 Summer Olympics and was chief selector for the national team.

In 2008, he resigned as its president after the national hockey team performed poorly at the Olympic Games.

In May 2013, he joined the Pakistan Muslim League (N). He remained a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from 2013 until his resignation in May 2018.

In June 2018, he quit PML-N and joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.

Death
On 29 November 2020, Jamali was admitted to Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology and put on a ventilator after suffering a cardiac arrest. He died in Rawalpindi on 2 December 2020 at the age of 76. On 3 December 2020, after funeral prayers, Jamali was laid to rest in his native village.

title: Zafarullah Khan Jamali


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Japan Trench

The Japan Trench is an oceanic trench part of the Pacific Ring of Fire off northeast Japan. It extends from the Kuril Islands to the northern end of the Izu Islands, and is 8,046 m at its deepest. It links the Kuril–Kamchatka Trench to the north and the Izu–Ogasawara Trench to its south with a length of 800. km. This trench is created as the oceanic Pacific plate subducts beneath the continental Okhotsk Plate (a microplate formerly a part of the North American Plate). The subduction process causes bending of the down going plate, creating a deep trench. Continuing movement on the subduction zone associated with the Japan Trench is one of the main causes of tsunamis and earthquakes in northern Japan, including the megathrust Tōhoku earthquake and resulting tsunami that occurred on 11 March 2011. The rate of subduction associated with the Japan Trench has been recorded at about 7.9 - 9.2 cm/yr.

Tectonic history
During the late Neogene period (23.03-2.58 million years ago), the Japan Trench underwent a period of plate convergence between the Pacific and Okhotsk plates. Based on the sediment sequence during this time, there appears to have been little net accretion of sediment onto the overlying plate as well as evidence of mild erosion at the base of the convergent margin.

During the Cretaceous (145.5-66 million years ago) to early Paleogene (66–23.03 ma), evidence of andesitic volcanism along with the development of a large syncline and a thickened sediment sequence indicate the possible development of a forearc basin. Activity during the Cretaceous included subduction events as well as extensive accretion of sediment to the Northeastern Japan Arc that continues today. Volcanism decreased during the early Paleogene (66 ma), exposing the thickened Cretaceous-Paleogene 160 km thick sediment sequence. Once this sediment sequence subsided, volcanism once again resumed.

Seismicity
Seismic activity along the Japan Trench occurs along the associated subduction zone at disruptive convergent plate boundaries between the Okhotsk and subducting Pacific plate. The continuing movement along these plate boundaries occur at a depth of about 8,000. m.

Seismic events
During the year of 1896, a magnitude (M) 6.8 earthquake was recorded within the Japan Trench. Later during the same year, a destructive magnitude 8.5 earthquake occurred resulting in two tsunamis wreaking havoc.

A series of M7 earthquakes occurred at the Fukushima-oki region in 1938, registering five in total. The magnitudes were 7.4, 7.7, 7.8, 7.7 and 7.1.

During December 1994, transient crustal movements were recorded by a Global Positioning System (GPS) network after an inter-plate earthquake arose within the Japan Trench. This very subtle, but distinct disruption observed indicates a "silent" slow fault slip was triggered by this. A recorded magnitude 7.7 earthquake was recorded in Sanriku-oki that may have been triggered by the slow slip observed earlier.

Many other earthquakes have been recorded from interplate and transient postseismic slip data along the Japan Trench. Dates include August 2005, May 2008, July 2008, and March 2010 ranging in magnitudes 7.2, 7.0, 6.9, and 6.7 respectively. A characteristic earthquake (~M7) periodically occurred at a recurring interval rate of about 37 years. ~M7 earthquakes can be seen in the table to the right, occurring in the years 1938, 1989, 1992, 2005, 2008, 2008 and 2011.

Ocean bottom seismometers placed in the base of the Japan Trench measures the ground for any motion created by recording the seismic waves emitted. In 2012, the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience (NIED) stationed in Tokyo started the construction of seismic and tsunami observation networks along the trench. They planned to layout 154 stations about 30 km apart, each equipped with an accelerometer to observe seismic changes and a water pressure gauge for tsunami observation.

2011 Tōhoku earthquake
On March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake occurred on the subduction interface boundary of the Pacific Plate sinking underneath Japan along the Japan Trench. A rupture within the central region of the trench spanning an area of about 450 km long and 150 km wide resulted here. It is considered as the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in Japan as well as one of the four most powerful earthquakes ever recorded since the start of modern record-keeping in 1900. This megathrust earthquake caused giant tsunami waves to form which eventually caused destruction to the coastline of northern Japan. The damage left about 16,000 people killed along with a catastrophic level 7 nuclear meltdown of three nuclear reactors located at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant complex. The World's Bank recorded the total cost of damage to be about US$235 billion, making it the costliest natural disaster in history.

Surface roughness
Large magnitude and frequent earthquake activity occurring at the northern Japan Trench may be explained by variations in surface roughness of the subducting Pacific plate. Regions of smooth ocean floor subduction are correlated with typically large under-thrust earthquakes within the deeper part of the plate interface zone. No earthquakes have been observed or reported from the shallow aseismic zone of the north Japan Trench. Regions of rough ocean bottom subduction are correlated with large normal faulting earthquakes within the outer-rise region, along with larger tsunami earthquakes occurring at the shallow region of the plate interface (megathrust events).

Ocean drilling
In 1980, lipids samples were taken via sediment cores located on both the landward and distal sides of the Japan Trench during six sections of the Deep Sea Drilling Project's transect. They were analyzed using gas chromatography and computerized-gas chromatography-mass spectrometric data. Samples were identified to contain many components such as aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, ketones, alcohols, acids and other poly functional components. These components are considered as indicators for terrestrial, marine (non-bacterial), and bacterial inputs within the sediment of the Japan Trench.

Expedition 343 of the Japan Trench Fast Driling Project was conducted under the supervision and authority of the Japan Agency For Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC). The drilling occurred during two periods; April 1 to May 24, 2012, and from July 5th-18th, 2012. Their main goal was to better understand the very large fault slip of 30 - 50 m that occurred during the Tohoku earthquake and its potential as one of the main triggers of tsunami wave formation occurring along the northeast coast of Japan.

In 2013, the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Expedition 343 collected sediment samples from drilling at the plate boundary fault zone along the Japan Trench. The sediment cores collected exhibited low friction at coseismic slip velocities as well as at low slip velocities. These studies and samples have supported the idea that these frictional properties of the fault zone possibly triggered the shallow and large slip during the Tohoku earthquake.

Turbidite paleoseismology
Sediment samples within the Japan Trench consist mainly of highly localized clay-rich material. The subducting Pacific Plate creates basins along the ocean floor of the Japan Trench, accommodating the deposition of fine-grained turbidites and interseismic sediment deposits through turbidity currents. These turbidites preserve the sediment deposits as a geologic record of past large earthquakes by indicating the change in sediment deposition through sediment gravity flow. The small deep-sea basins with high sedimentation rates found along the Japan Trench pose favorable environmental conditions for the studying of turbidite paleoseismology.

Microbial activity
During an exploration to the Japan Trench on January 1, 1999, a sample of deep-sea sediment was taken from a depth of 6,292 m from the use of a pressure-retaining sediment sampler. Samples from the expedition showed that the microbial diversity displayed a wide distribution of types in the Bacteria domain. 16S ribosomal RNA genes were amplified through the use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to determine the nucleotides and identify the bacteria phylogenetically. Further analysis of fatty acids extracted from the same cultures further supported the phylogenetic results observed. The discovery of different bacterial domains in these sediments can be used as indicators for microbial diversity found within the Japan Trench.

Exploration

 * In 1987, results from the French-Japanese Kaiko exploration program into the Japan Trench along with complementary data were used to create and propose a model of the subduction of seamount chains between the Japan and Kuril trenches as well as along the southern part of the Japan Trench.
 * On 11 August 1989, the Shinkai 6500 three-person submersible descended to 6,526 m while exploring the Japan Trench.
 * In October 2008, a UK-Japan team discovered a shoal of Pseudoliparis amblystomopsis snailfish at a depth of approximately 7,700. m in the trench. These were, at the time, the deepest living fish ever filmed. The record was surpassed by an unidentified type of snailfish filmed at a depth of 8,145 m in December 2014 in the Mariana Trench, and extended in May 2017 when another unidentified type of snailfish was filmed at a depth of 8,178 m in the Mariana Trench.
 * On August 20, 2022, as part of a joint Caladan Oceanic / University of Western Australia / JAMSTEC expedition, the first manned dive to the trench's bottom was made in the DSV Limiting Factor. The submersible pilot, explorer Victor Vescovo, and scientific mission specialist Prof. Hiroshi Kitazato of the Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology descended to a maximum depth of 8,001 +/- 9 meters as indicated by multiple depth measurement devices mounted on the vehicle. Other sonar readings of the trench made by the expedition's Kongsberg EM124 sonar indicated a maximum depth of up to 8,012 +/- 11 meters across its broad bottom plain.

title: Japan Trench


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Mohamed Ghannouchi

Mohamed Ghannouchi (محمد الغنوشي Muhammad Al-Ghannushi; born 18 August 1941) is a Tunisian politician who was Prime Minister of Tunisia from 1999 to 2011. Regarded as a technocrat, Ghannouchi was a long-standing figure in the Tunisian government under President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. He also served as the President of Tunisia from 14 to 15 January 2011, holding the powers and duties of the office nominally for the absent President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who had fled the country due to the 2011 revolution. On 15 January 2011 the presidency was declared vacant by the Constitutional Court and Ben Ali's term was officially terminated, leading to Speaker of Parliament Fouad Mebazaa taking office as Acting President. Ghannouchi stayed on as prime minister for six more weeks after Ben Ali's overthrow before himself resigning.

Political career
Ghannouchi was a member of the Tunisian parliament for the Democratic Constitutional Rally. He was the Minister of Finance from 1989 to 1992. From 1992 to 1999, he served as Minister of International Co-operation and Foreign Investment, and from 1999 to 2011 he was the Prime Minister of Tunisia, making him the longest serving prime minister since the proclamation of independence, surpassing his predecessor Hamed Karoui.

After the fall of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali on 14 January 2011 in the wake of the 2010–2011 Tunisian uprising, he was the self-proclaimed acting president of the country for a few hours starting on 14 January 2011, under Article 56 of the Constitution of Tunisia. He remained prime minister for six weeks before stepping down.

WikiLeaks description
In a 2006 diplomatic cable from the United States diplomatic cables leak, Ghannouchi was described as being generally popular among the population of Tunisia. Passport, a blog by Foreign Policy, gave a different view of Ghannouchi, saying he "is not necessarily any more popular than Ben Ali, though he's not nearly as tainted by the lurid tales of corruption and excess that so damaged the ruling family. But Tunisians certainly don't respect the prime minister; they call him 'Mr. Oui Oui' because he's always saying yes to Ben Ali".

Role following 2010–2011 Tunisian uprising
On 14 January 2011, before Ben Ali had fled the country during the Tunisian Revolution, Ghannouchi announced that Ben Ali had called for parliamentary elections in six months, dismissed the government, and asked him to form a new government. During the evening, Ghannouchi announced that he was taking temporary control of the country on state television. Ghannouchi promised to begin discussing political and economic reforms the next day. Ghannouchi said he would hold new elections within sixty days, as required by the Tunisian Constitution. On January 15, The Economist reported that some protesters were calling for Ghannouchi to step down. On that same day, it was announced that Congress Speaker Fouad Mebazaa was taking the post of Acting President of Tunisia.

Al Jazeera claimed that some lawyers disagreed with Ghannouchi's claim to power, interpreting the constitution differently, in particular referring to Article 57.

Afterwards he resumed as prime minister and formed a new national unity government that included members of opposition parties, civil society representatives, and even a blogger, Slim Amamou, who only a week previously had been imprisoned by the regime of the deposed President.

Ghannouchi resigned his membership of the RCD on 18 January. His resignation was followed by similar actions from other RCD members within the government; but on 27 January, Ghannouchi carried out a major reshuffle of the government to remove most former RCD members other than himself.

After a new wave of protests, Ghannouchi resigned as PM on 27 February 2011. The current whereabouts of Ghannounchi to this day are unknown, but it is likely Ghannounchi is still residing in Tunisia with his family.

Awards and honors

 * Knight of the Order of Independence (Tunisia)
 * Grand Cordon of the Order of the Republic of Tunisia
 * Grand Cordon of the National Order of Merit of Tunisia
 * Grand Cordon of the Order of 7 November
 * Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (Japan)

Personal life
Ghannouchi is married and has two children.

title: Mohamed Ghannouchi


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Faisal Al-Fayez

Faisal Akef Al-Fayez (فيصل عاكف مثقال الفايز; born 20 December 1952) is a Jordanian politician who was the 34th Prime Minister of Jordan from 25 October 2003 to 6 March 2005. Additionally, Al-Fayez is the only person in Jordanian history who was a Prime Minister, President of the Senate, President of the House of Representatives, and Head of the Royal Hashemite Court. He took office following the resignation of Ali Abu al-Ragheb. He previously served as Minister of Defense and is very close to King Abdullah II. He was educated at the College De La Salle, Amman, Jordan (1970) and then went on to Cardiff University, United Kingdom, where he received a degree in political science in 1978. In 1981, he attained his master's degree in international relations from Boston University.

Political experience
Al-Fayez was Consul at the Embassy of Jordan in Brussels from 1979 until 1983. He then held the post of Assistant Chief of Royal Protocol at the Royal Court from February 1986 until 1995, when he was promoted to Deputy Chief of Royal Protocol at the Royal Court. Four years later, in 1999, he became Chief of Royal Protocol at the Royal Court.

In March 2003, Al-Fayez was appointed Minister and head of the Royal Hashemite Court. He subsequently served as Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 16th Parliament of Jordan in 2010. He has served as member of the Senate from 2007, and once again from 2013. He was appointed President of the Senate on 25 October 2015, replacing Abdelraouf al-Rawabdeh in that position. Al-Fayez was again appointed as the President of the Senate on September 27, 2020, by royal decree.

Prime Minister (2003–2005)
In a royal letter of designation, Al-Fayez was tasked with acting on domestic, social, and economic reforms. This included increasing the level of freedom of the press and the public, social issues such as women and youth issues, and the lowering of the unemployment levels. Al-Fayez would trim down the cabinet from 29 members to 21, and his government would be the first in Jordanian history to have three women Cabinet Ministers.

In 2004, Al-Fayez's economic reforms helped increase Jordan's GDP per capita by 9.17%, the largest increase in GDP per capita in one year for Jordan's economy since 1992.

In January of that year, signed the multinational agreement for the second phase of the Arab Gas Pipeline, the second phase was focused on extending the pipeline from Jordan's southern border in Aqaba to its northern border at Rehab at a total cost of $350 million, bringing the total cost of the project to $1.2 billion. Al-Fayez signed the agreement alongside Rafiq Al-Hariri, Atef Obeid, and Mohammad Al Otari.

Awards
Faisal Al-Fayez has received a number of Jordanian decorations throughout his career:

In 1987, he was named Officer of the Order of Order of Independence (Order of Al-Istiqlal), and was promoted to the rank of Grand Officer in 1995.

In 2000, he received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Star of Jordan (Order of Al-Kawkab Al-Urduni).

Personal life
Al-Fayez was born in Amman to Sheikh Akef Al-Fayez. He is married and has three children.

title: Faisal Al-Fayez