A statue of Emperor Haile Selassie, the last emperor of Ethiopia and a longtime ruler who garnered an image of an elder statesman and leader of Africa, was unveiled outside the African Union’s headquarters in Addis Ababa on Sunday. The Emperor (1892-1975) also brought Ethiopia into the League of Nations and the United Nations and made Addis Ababa the major centre for the African Union. Emperor Haile Selassie and Ghanaian president Kwame Nkruhuma promoted Pan-Africanism and African unity and spearheaded the creation of the Organisation of African Unity on 25 May 1963. Though a statue was unveiled for Nkruhuma on February 2012, Emperor Haile Selassie was conspicuously ignored, provoking the ire of many Ethiopians. A petition demanding that a statue of Nkruhuma be joined by Emperor Haile Selassie has been launched since then.

Source: Ethiopian News February 10, 2019 11:26 UTC