Off the Sidelines and Discreetly Into the Fray : Ethiopia: U.S. diplomacy bolsters constructive tendencies in revolt.

The citizens of Addis Ababa danced last week as a crane pulled down the giant statue of Lenin that overlooked Revolution Square. Students scrawled graffiti condemning Marxism, Leninism and socialism on the corpse as it was hauled away.

President Mengistu Haile Mariam’s long-overdue abdication was lamented by only a few of his cronies. The rest of Ethiopia rejoices and welcomes the beginning of a new era.

Nevertheless, there is apprehension about the Tigrean and Eritrean rebels who reduced Mengistu’s armies to tattered remnants. Not long ago their leaders also were mouthing Marxism. They say they have been converted to democracy. They can prove it--and allay the fears of some of their compatriots--by establishing an open society, a free-market economy and a multiparty political system.

They must also refrain from vengeance and ethnic favoritism. Mengistu set Ethiopians against each other and reduced a potentially rich country to starvation. Ethiopia needs no more bloodshed and no more dogma. It needs a free press and respect for human rights.

The United States played a quiet but highly constructive role in the events that led to Mengistu’s departure. Above all, three U.S. government officials deserve credit for their patient efforts:

-- Herman Cohen, assistant secretary of state for Africa, patiently pursued talks between the Eritreans and Addis Ababa. Neither side was willing to compromise, but in the process the originally stubborn Eritreans came to realize the importance of moderating their demand for independence and are now cooperating in efforts to build a better government in Addis Ababa.

-- U.S. Charge d’ Affairs Robert G. Houdek kept pressing Mengistu to recognize the futility of a last-ditch fight. He has already established effective relations with rebel leaders.

-- Robert Frasure, a National Security Council Africa specialist, met repeatedly with rebel leaders and persuaded them to pursue their campaigns with a sense of balance and statesmanship.

Behind the American involvement in the Ethiopian situation lies the realization that much as we might like to stay on the sidelines in Third World strife, it is better to bring our weight to bear discreetly and in good time. This lesson has been learned in Liberia, in Somalia and in the Iraqi Kurdish situation.

All the contending forces in Ethiopia look to the United States for leadership. The United States has spent enormous sums--perhaps $3 billion during the past decade--on famine relief in the Horn of Africa. If Ethiopia can be restored to peace and progress, the entire region will benefit. Famine relief can be transformed into development aid and long-suffering populations--if their leaders adopt constructive economic policies--can begin to feed themselves and produce surpluses for export.

The cost of recovery in Ethiopia--a process in which the United States, along with Canada and our European allies, can jointly play a major role--will be much less than the cost of famine relief.

The Soviet Union, which gave Mengistu more than $12 billion in arms between 1977 and 1990, is now irrelevant. Ethiopians know that Lenin has also been largely discredited in his own homeland. There, too, the only feasible alternative is the free market and an open political system.