Ethiopian Leader Moves to Meet ‘Critical Situation’ in Rebellion

President said Friday that northern rebels had thrown Ethiopia into its “most critical situation” ever and called an emergency session of the parliament.

In a radio and television address to the nation, Mengistu announced plans to combat the rebels with a reserve force that would include everyone under 60 years old in this African nation of 50 million people.

“Everybody talks about peace and democracy, but the fact is that military strength is the decisive factor,” he said.

The president’s address follows a string of military victories by Tigrean rebels who have seized control of two northwestern provinces and significant parts of three other regions since launching an offensive Feb. 23. They already controlled their home province, Tigre.

Along with powerful Eritrean insurgents, who have been coordinating their advances with the Tigreans, the rebels now control Ethiopia’s northern third. Mengistu called on Ethiopians to “tighten their belts” and make the necessary sacrifice “in the face of the most critical situation faced by the country in its long history.”

The president said he had called an emergency session of the Shengo, the national assembly. Sources said it would meet Monday.

In the past, Mengistu has used conscripts to replenish his military, the largest in sub-Saharan Africa with 238,000 soldiers and a 200,000-member militia.

Mengistu’s 17-year-old Marxist government was backed by the United States until the late 1970s, when it became the Soviet Union’s strongest ally in the region.

Faced with a severe economic crisis, Mengistu promised last year to begin liberalizing the economy and to move toward a multi-party democracy, but the reforms have not been put into practice.

The Tigreans took up arms in 1976. They lately have softened claims of seeking to replace Mengistu with hard-line Communist rule and say they want a broad-based coalition government.

The Eritreans have been fighting since 1961, seeking independence for their home province of Eritrea, a former Italian colony.