Tens of thousands of Ethiopians and many African leaders mourned late strongman Meles Zenawi on Sunday at the first state funeral for a leader of the Horn of Africa nation in over 80 years.
Followed by giant crowds, Meles’s flag-draped coffin was carried on a carriage through the capital from the National Palace to the vast Meskel Square, his family dressed in black following behind, many in tears.
The long-serving prime minister, who died last month aged 57, was hailed as an African hero and was a key Western ally in a region home to Al-Qaeda-linked groups, but also criticised by rights groups for a crackdown on basic freedoms. “The late prime minister was working not only for the renaissance of Ethiopia, but also for the renaissance for all of Africa,” deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said in a speech after prayers at Meskel square.
Hailemariam, who will lead the government until national elections in 2015, sat behind the coffin, which was placed on a stage above the huge crowd in the square. Thousands of soldiers stood guard as the ceremony progressed, some of them crying, before the funeral cortege moved to the capital’s Holy Trinity Cathedral, where Meles will be buried.
Presidents of all Ethiopia’s neighbours — with the exception of arch-foe Eritrea — attended the ceremony. South African President Jacob Zuma said Africa had “lost one of the greatest sons of the continent”, while Paul Kagame of Rwanda said Meles had “led a humble and simple life, but very meaningful one”.
Meles died in a Brussels hospital on August 20 after a protracted illness. He had not been seen in public for two months, spurring rumours about his health. The former rebel turned regional strongman took power in 1991 after toppling dictator Mengistu Hailemariam, remaining at the helm of Ethiopia — a relatively stable country in the volatile Horn of Africa region — until his death.
