{"id":4969,"date":"2015-11-06T04:45:47","date_gmt":"2015-11-06T04:45:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitederitreamedia.com\/blog12\/?p=4969"},"modified":"2015-11-06T04:45:47","modified_gmt":"2015-11-06T04:45:47","slug":"ambassador-herman-cohen-eritrea-ethics-ethiopia-lobbying-susan-rice-november-3-2015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitederitreamedia.com\/blog12\/2015\/11\/06\/ambassador-herman-cohen-eritrea-ethics-ethiopia-lobbying-susan-rice-november-3-2015\/","title":{"rendered":"Ambassador Herman Cohen, Eritrea, Ethics, Ethiopia, Lobbying, Susan Rice November 3, 2015"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

Ambassador Herman J. Cohen is no stranger to controversy in his long career of lobbying on behalf of foreign governments. Africa Intelligence called Ambassador Cohen \u201cone of the most active American lobbyists for Africa in the 1990s. The American Prospect put it more cynically saying, \u201che [Ambassador Cohen] has emerged as the influence peddler of choice for African despots in need of a public relations buff-up.\u201d Charles Lewis, executive director of the Center for Public Integrity, characterized lobbyists who represent foreign dictators as \u201cputting a face on murder and mayhem.\u201d<\/p>\n

A list of some of Ambassador Cohen\u2019s clients is a virtual \u201cwho\u2019s who\u201d of dictators: Robert Mugabe (Zimbabwe), Mobutu Sese Seko (former Zaire), Laurent Kabila (Democratic Republic of the Congo), Blaise Compoare (Burkina Faso), Charles Taylor (Liberia), Edward Dos Santos (Angola), and Hajji Omar Bongo Ondimba (Gabon).<\/p>\n

Ambassador Herman Cohen is not officially registered as a lobbyist for the Eritrean government. Yet, just a few days ago he tweeted a statement on the U.N.\u2019s decision to continue sanctions on Eritrea as a \u201cmiscarriage of justice.\u201d He wrote:<\/p>\n

The United Nations Security Council has decided to continue sanctions against Eritrea for another year. This decision has no basis in fact. It was taken because certain persons in the highest levels of the United States Government have mean spirited grievances against Eritrean President Isayas Afwerki.<\/em><\/p>\n

All accusations against Eritrea regarding alleged assistance to the Islamist terrorist group al-Shebab in Somalia have never been substantiated. All experts on Somalia now agree that for the past three years, there have not even been rumors about such assistance. This is pure bullying.<\/em><\/p>\n

He then blames \u201ccertain persons <\/em>[Susan Rice] in the highest levels of the United States Government have mean spirited grievances against Eritrean President Isayas Afwerki.<\/em><\/p>\n

Last week he tweeted: \u202a#Ethiopia<\/a>\u202a is suffering a terrible drought while #Eritrea<\/a>, in same neighborhood, with same rainfall and climate, continues to feed its people<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Seriously, Ambassador Cohen?<\/p>\n

Ambassador Cohen is not a registered lobbyist for the Government of Eritrea. However, public records show that in 2012 he, along with George Denison, was a lobbyist for a group called Democracy Ethiopia. They were paid a total of $20,000 for unknown lobbying activities in 2012. Information from the Sunlight Foundation shows that in 2014, Ambassador Cohen still represented this organization. But who are they? There appears to be no information online about such a group other than a fragment of a sentence that says the organization seeks to encourage democracy in Ethiopia.<\/p>\n

Huh? So Ambassador Cohen feels comfortable representing the interests of a government just recently cited in the U.N. Human Rights Commission report as \u201ca violator of gross human rights abuses\u201d and \u201ccrimes against humanity,\u201d and, at the same time, an organization allegedly promoting democracy in Ethiopia.<\/p>\n

Ambassador Cohen has had positions at the highest level of our government\u2014from Ambassador to National Security Advisor. Yet, he seems to have no shame about flaunting his hypocrisy on values that are fundamental to principles of American democracy. The simple fact that 5,000 Eritreans a month are risking life and limb to flee their country should be a wake-up call to the Eritrean government and to its defenders such as Ambassador Cohen. No elections. No constitution. Indefinite military service. \u201cSlavery-like\u201d conditions of military service, says the United Nations. Poverty. Despair. This is Eritrea.<\/p>\n

If Ambassador Cohen is not legally representing the government of Eritrea, then why is he ruining his name and the good offices of the United States government. There must be more to the story than we know.<\/p>\n

By David Smith<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Ambassador Herman J. Cohen is no stranger to controversy in his long career of lobbying on behalf of foreign governments. Africa Intelligence called Ambassador Cohen \u201cone of the most active American lobbyists for Africa in the 1990s. The American Prospect put it more cynically saying, \u201che [Ambassador Cohen] has emerged as the influence peddler […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":{"_ml_titleColor":"#000000","_ml_titleFont":"Roboto","_ml_titleFontSize":1.1359999999999998987476601541857235133647918701171875,"_ml_titleFontWeight":"400","_ml_titleLineHeight":1.3000000000000000444089209850062616169452667236328125,"_ml_metaColor":"#708090","_ml_metaFont":"Montserrat","_ml_metaFontSize":0.67849999999999999200639422269887290894985198974609375,"_ml_metaFontWeight":"400","_ml_metaLineHeight":0.92000000000000003996802888650563545525074005126953125,"_ml_bodyColor":"#a9a9a9","_ml_bodyFont":"Open Sans","_ml_bodyFontSize":0.84999999999999997779553950749686919152736663818359375,"_ml_bodyFontWeight":"400","_ml_bodyLineHeight":1.1999999999999999555910790149937383830547332763671875,"_ml_wooPriceColor":"#666","_ml_wooPriceFont":"Open Sans","_ml_wooPriceFontSize":0.90000000000000002220446049250313080847263336181640625,"_ml_wooPriceFontWeight":"400","_ml_wooPriceLineHeight":1.270000000000000017763568394002504646778106689453125,"_ml_headingColor":"#000","_ml_headingFont":"Merriweather","_ml_headingFontSize":2.020000000000000017763568394002504646778106689453125,"_ml_headingFontWeight":"700","_ml_headingLineHeight":1.4699999999999999733546474089962430298328399658203125,"_mlglobal_userfontcolors":{"headingColorUser":[],"titleColorUser":[],"metaColorUser":[],"bodyColorUser":[],"wooPriceColorUser":[]},"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nAmbassador Herman Cohen, Eritrea, Ethics, Ethiopia, Lobbying, Susan Rice November 3, 2015 - UNITED ERITREA MEDIA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ambassador Herman Cohen, Eritrea, Ethics, Ethiopia, Lobbying, Susan Rice November 3, 2015 - UNITED ERITREA MEDIA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"  Ambassador Herman J. 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