Berhanu Dinka

Berhanu Dinka (4 June 1935 – 8 July 2013) was an Ethiopian diplomat and economist. He was the ambassador to Djibouti, Canada, the United States, and the permanent representatives to the United Nations.[1][2] Dinka served as Ethiopia's first ambassador to Djibouti from 1980 to 1984.[2]

Dinka was born in the former Welega Province, Ethiopia, on 4 June 1935.[3] He held degrees in economics and politics from schools in Ethiopia and the United States.[3]

Dinka served as a career diplomat with the Ethiopian foreign service for twenty-seven years.[2] He initially worked as diplomat based at Ethiopian embassies in Monrovia, Liberia, Cairo, Egypt, and Washington, D.C.[2] He was promoted to ambassador in 1975 as the head of the Department of Africa and Middle East Affairs within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[2]

Dinka became the first ambassador of Ethiopia to Djibouti from 1980 to 1984.[2] He then became the permanent representative of Ethiopia to the United Nations, based in New York City, where he was concurrently accredited as ambassador to Canada.[2]

In May 1986, Dinka was arrested and held as a political prisoner by the government of Mengistu Haile Mariam after he was recalled from his assignment as ambassador to Canada and the United States.[4][5] He was released, along with eighty-seven other political prisoners, in 1989.[5] His release took place just five days before peace talks were due to begin in Atlanta, officiated by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, between the Mengistu Haile Mariam regime and Eritrean rebels.[5][6]

Dinka joined of the United Nations as an official in 1992.[2] He held several senior posts at the United Nations, including positions based in Cambodia, South Africa and Somalia. Dinka served as the special envoy of the Secretary-General of the United Nations to Sierra Leone from 1995 to 1997; special representative of the Secretary-General for the Great Lakes Region of Central Africa from 1997 to 2002; and special representative of the Secretary-General for Burundi from 2002 to 2004.[2]

Dinka was promoted to Under Secretary-General at the United Nations. He served as the UN's representatives at negotiations held in Arusha, Tanzania, as well as peace talks in Lusaka, Zambia, which were aimed at ending the conflicts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[2] The African Union asked him to serve as the chairman of the Power-Sharing Commission, which concluded with the signing of the Darfur Peace Agreement in March 2006 in Abuja, Nigeria.[2]

Former President of Kenya Mwai Kibaki appointed Dinka to The Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission of Kenya, which was formed in 2008.[2]

Dinka died of cancer in New York City on 8 July 2013 at the age of 78.[2]

References
  1. Nzau, Musau (2013-07-11). "Kenya: TJRC Commissioner Succumbs to Cancer". The Standard (Kenya). AllAfrica.com. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
  2. Jamah, Ally (2013-07-08). "TJRC Commissioner Berhanu Dinka passes away after battle with cancer". The Standard (Kenya). Retrieved 2013-08-05.
  3. "Friends pay tribute to TJRC Commissioner Ambassador Berhanu Dinka". International Commission of Jurists. 2013-07-08. Archived from the original on 2013-07-18. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
  4. "Ethiopian Ambassador Arrested After Return Home". Ottawa Citizen. 1986-05-22. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
  5. Perlez, Jane (1989-09-03). "Ethiopia Releases Prisoners From Haile Selassie's Family". The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
  6. "TJRC commissioner succumbs to cancer". The Star (Kenya). 2013-07-09. Archived from the original on 2013-07-14. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
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