Speech of The Day (218) - presented the flag to the Second Battalion at the site campf of Wuseta

On May 11, 1959, during His tour of the Gojjam

Province, His Imperial Majesty, Haile Selassie

I, Commander-in-Chief of Ethiopia's Armed

Forces, presented the flag to the Second Battalion

of the Land Forces at the site camp of

Wuseta with the following words:

"In presenting to you as We have done to other units

in the various branches of Our Armed Services­ - Land,

Air and Naval Forces, We say now as We have said then,

the national flag is the symbol of nation's independence.

Our national flag was never cancelled not even during the

five years of the partial occupation of Ethiopia, because

our valiant patriots, under Our orders, courageously

resisted the enemy. Many countries refused to recognise

the occupation and there the Ethiopian flag continued as

an emblem of Ethiopia's freedom. The faithful people

of Gojjam fought bravely against the enemy during the

invasion, they resisted the occupation, and rather than

submitting to the enemy, many of them preferred to live

as refugees.

Presenting this flag to the Second Battalion which

under Our command marched into the capital, symbolises

Our triumphant entry into Addis Ababa, which

does not limit its significance to the battalion, but is of

meaning to the whole of the Empire. This flag you

receive now is the symbol not only of the resistance and

the sacrifices endured during the exile; it is witness of the

historic moment when We raised the Ethiopian flag at

Omedla. During that time this battalion was a guard

of honour to Ourselves, and We know better than anyone

the services rendered by each one of you when this

battalion served as Our guard of honour.

The faithful people of Gojjam who fought relent-

lessly during the five years against the enemy, never

surrendering, were chosen to be the first among those

to liberate the country and lead the campaign to victory.

The value of a flag springs from the sacrifices made to

defend it as the symbol of independence, otherwise there

is no difference between a flag and any other piece of

cloth. That is why the flag is an eternal source of

inspiration, of loyalty and the symbol of the sacred ,

duty and obligation of a soldier; to him it is a moral

sentinel.

We entrust this flag to you - this testimony to those

who have served Us by their sacrifices made during the

exile and the campaign of liberation; moreover, this

symbol of the sacrifices made by the patriots. We hope

the Almighty will guide you to fulfill this trust."

Speeches delivered by His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie Ist Emperor of Ethiopia on various occasions - page 125 -