Remarks by U.S. Ambassador Mark Green at his Farewell Reception

Venue: Serena Hotel, Zanzibar - January 8, 2009

Waheshimwa Wageni Waalika,

Honorable Ministers,

Honorable Regional and District Commissioners,

Mabibi na Mabwana,

And most importantly, my dear Zanzibari friends

(Greetings and welcome)

Zanzibaris and Americans have been friends for many, many years. America’s official presence on Zanzibar goes back many years, to 1833 when a treaty between the United States and Oman provided for an American consular presence here – the first American consulate in Africa grew out of that. We have been trade partners with Zanzibar since the first American ships sailed here from across the oceans looking for whale oil to illuminate our city streets. Later, we brought cotton cloth and guns to trade for ivory and gum copal. Today, nearly 200 years later, we remain the largest purchasers of Zanzibari agriculture. As I mentioned to one of you tonight, it is not longer cloves that we are the largest purchasers of, but seaweed.

And of course there is another kind of trade that we are all engaged in – tourism. More American visitors than ever before are coming to these wonderful islands. And a night like this, with music that we have heard this evening, and the hospitality here, it is no wonder. More and more Americans will be coming here in the years ahead.

But America’s long interest here in Zanzibar goes way beyond business and recreation. We have such respect for your vibrant history, for your cultural achievements, and the unique union that you have with mainland Tanzania. Zanzibaris have contributed towards the creation of a language and a culture that have spread throughout much of East Africa, much of Africa, and shaped the world beyond. Your music, your architecture, your literature, your handicrafts, the wisdom in your proverbs. You have added so much to the cultural heritage of this world. You are rightfully very, very proud to be Zanzibari.

Again, I am very grateful to all of you for coming here tonight. I have come to Zanzibar more than a dozen times during my time here as Ambassador. Some official, some quietly so I can enjoy your beaches. With friends and family I have come. Even tonight my daughter, Rachel, is with me. We have been visiting friends and family, and visiting Zanzibari friends and family. I have been north and south of these islands, and I have been honored to have discussions with Zanzibaris from both Pemba and Unguja.

As I prepare to return home to America, I wanted you to know, honestly, that Zanzibar is one of my very favorite places, not just in Africa, but anywhere in the world. And so I must say, I am leaving with some sadness. Also because Zanzibar does hold a such a special place in my heart, I wanted to take this chance tonight to offer some personal thoughts on what, at least one person believes lies ahead for this special place.

Remember tonight that I am trying to speak as a friend and a well-wisher. Friends speak openly, honestly, and frankly to each another. Please make no mistake, I do not suggest, and I would never suggest, that Americans have all the answers. But just maybe, as a country that has faced some of the challenges you are facing, maybe we have made all the mistakes. And maybe you can learn from the mistakes that we have made. Perhaps by discussing some our our mistakes, and how we hope we have learned from them, maybe you will find some useful points that you can use yourselves, as you debate for yourselves, what paths you will choose to take.

A wise American writer once said, “Memory is what makes us who we are. If we lost our memory whenever we fell asleep at night, it would be the same as if we died and a new person had woken up in that body the next morning. History is the memory of a nation.”

And so I would like to share our memory. In particular, I would like to discuss our experiences with political tolerance, with power sharing, and with the prosperity that we have found grows from reconciliation. And maybe you will find some useful lessons from some of the poor choices that we have often made in the past.

You know, my country’s history is similar to Zanzibar in many ways. Outsiders sometimes forget we too had a revolution. And we had a revolution against a monarchy. And in the late 1700s, I must tell you that not all Americans agreed with the struggle for independence from the British King. In some ways, our war for independence from Britain was, in part, a civil war amongst Americans. Sadly, when revolutionary forces, American forces, captured an area, it was common for the property of those who were still loyal to the King, for that property to be taken away by the revolutionary government. Known loyalists were arrested as spies. And after the British defeat, many thousands of those loyalists, they no longer felt welcome, and so they fled America. And some settled in Canada, which remains a Commonwealth country to this day.

As you know, we say it is a fundamental American principle that everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion. But to be honest, in those revolutionary days, during a life and death struggle against what was the mightiest empire in the world, sometimes our leaders did not extend that right to those who remained loyal to the King. We fell short of our own principles in those early days of independence, when two factions in our country fought against each other fiercely.

Our second President, John Adams, he was so afraid that these factions would tear each other apart, that he actually introduced laws that limited the right of free speech. He defended these laws as necessary evils. He believed that they had to be there to keep political passions from getting too hot, from rising too high and destroying the nation.

Historians – American historians – now judge these laws harshly, as did American voters. John Adams was not re-elected. He lost his bid. His successor, Thomas Jefferson, repealed those laws. And contrary to what President Adams feared, bringing back the free expression of political opinion, it didn’t tear the country apart, it created harmony, it built the country, didn’t tear it down.

Now the dangers that John Adams saw were real, but instead of restricting freedom, he should have used his influence to cool hot rhetoric, and to call publicly for all leaders to put country before party.

As I look at today’s Zanzibar, this beautiful, magical place, I must say I can not help but see some of the same heated rhetoric politicians are using – politicians on both sides – are using about their rivals. Sometimes, for those of us who are outsiders, sometimes it seems as though these leaders see each other not as rivals, but as enemies.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the leaders of Zanzibar’s major parties publicly declared that they respect their rivals as patriotic Zanzibaris and patriotic Tanzanians? Wouldn’t it be even better if these leaders were willing to tell their supporters to put community before party?

Democracy is dialogue. Democracy also requires respect. By all means we must discuss, debate, argue, it’s a good thing. But we must also remember that in order to disagree, you do not have to disrespect. Of course, struggling with how to preserve a civil tone, to preserve democracy, it’s not the only challenge that Americans and Zanzibaris have in common.

One of the darkest, saddest chapters in our history – in the 1860’s America fought a bloody Civil War. The most bloody war in our history. We fought over how much freedom a region should have within a national government. We fought over slavery. That conflict included violence against civilians and destruction of civilian property. Some would say it wasn’t until 100 years later, at the very time that America was beginning to become a world power, it wasn’t until then that we began to heal our society by reconciling Black and White.

One thing we noticed in those days is that the regions of the country which were the worst with racial tolerance, which were not very tolerant, they were also the poorest, and the least educated, and the most ill-governed parts of our country. But once progress was made in reconciliation, these areas grew rapidly, and they had great social progress and great political progress.

I think Zanzibar shares some of our sad history of political violence, also of slavery and the devastating consequences of division. We all know that by the end of the British colonial rule in Zanzibar, or that at the end of it, there followed a violent uprising against the first post-independence government. And we know that that violence, just as in America, included violence against civilians. But the great thing is that in your country, and in mine, we can talk about such things. Openness and tolerance, and the willingness to talk about painful chapters, we have learned in our country anyway, it is necessary to overcome bitterness and to help a country move forward. And again, we hope that you can learn your lessons more quickly, and better, than we have often learned ours.

And so we come to the delicate topic of power sharing. You know, our constitution, which is our supreme law, our constitution divides power between Federal and State governments. And at Federal and State level, power is further divided between the executive, legislative and judicial branches. It is common in our system, for one party to head the executive branch while another party heads the legislature. In fact, it is more common than not, in our long history. It is also common for the President to choose ministers (we call them Secretaries) but to choose some ministers from the rival party. From the opposition party. President Bush did this. President Clinton did this. And we have seen, although he is not yet President for one more week, President-elect Obama has already done this, by naming members of the opposition party to lead major cabinets, including our Department of Defense. Likewise, in our legislature, it is common for members of one party to join members of the other party in support of a law their leadership may even oppose.

What we think we have learned in our own system is that no one leader can or should ever have everything go his way forever. No party ever wins 100% of power, and no party is ever completely shut out of power. What history tells us, sometimes in humorous ways, is that today’s opponent may be tomorrow’s ally. Today’s opponent may be a necessary friend for debates that occur in the future.

You know, I am convinced that the bitterness we sometimes read about in Zanzibari politics, I think it stems from traditions of political exclusivity. We know that in past periods, before independence, power was sometimes concentrated in the hands of just a few. In those days, there was little or no consultation of the majority. One side had all the power and the rest had none of the power. And so to lose power was to lose everything. A few would suggest that this tradition survives today. Even though the form of government is different, and the identity of those governing is different, some people feel as though it is still winner takes all.

The first member of my own party, and I am a Republican from my past days, the first member of my party to be elected President was Abraham Lincoln. Many Americans, Democrat, Republican, Independent, believe that Abraham Lincoln was our greatest President because he saved our union from splitting apart in those terrible days of the civil war. And that by his decency and his willingness to reach out to some who in the past had been his rivals or his enemies, he built the groundwork for eventually healing the nation and putting away our bitterness.

He once said, “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you really want to test a man's character, give him power.” Maybe it is time that we test each other’s character by sharing a little power.

Another great American President, this one a Democrat, John F. Kennedy, a friend of Africa I would say, he said famously, and President-elect Obama repeated this many times on the campaign trail, he said, “Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.” As a friend of Tanzania, and as friends of Zanzibar for many years, let me suggest that people should not be afraid to negotiate. A negotiation in which each side gives, and both sides get, and gain.

I am confident that Zanzibar’s current political leaders, both sides of the aisle as we would say, are capable of reaching reconciliation and a power sharing agreement in a way that represents the interests of all. I am confident that going into the 2010 elections, we will see a dialogue that will produce free and peaceful and fair elections. And I think all of us, regardless of your background, would agree; Zanzibar can not afford another controversial election.

I am absolutely confident about Zanzibar’s future because I believe that the leaders of both parties really and truly have Zanzibar’s best interests at heart. And I believe that Zanzibar’s leaders in the future can count on the goodwill and assistance of their fellow Zanzibaris and Tanzanians in the years ahead.

No one will suggest to you that it is easy, but as my mother used to say, if it were easy, then anybody could do it.

Let me close on a personal note. You’ve been very kind to listen to what I have had to say.

One of my political heroes, another president, was Teddy Roosevelt, President Theodore Roosevelt. And he said something that I have written – and the Americans from the mission who are here can tell you it is true – have written on a board in my office, and it says, “Far and away, the greatest prize that life has to offer, is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.”

What we have talked about tonight, as we have walked around this beautiful setting, and many of you have talked to me about programs and projects, what I have tried to talk about tonight, the belief in dialogue and the great potential for reconciliation and a government that is representative of the entire community – hard work. It is very hard work. But I think we all know, at the bottom of our heart, it is work absolutely worth doing.

I have been honored to be the Chief of Mission in Tanzania. I have been honored by the hospitality and the friendship that I have seen and felt from so many Zanzibaris. I have been amazed at the hospitality and the sense of optimism that lies here. This is a truly special place, and so every single day that I have been here has been a blessing to me. And by all of you coming here tonight when you have so many other things you could be doing, on this beautiful evening, that is a blessing to me as well. Thank you so much.