Former Prime Minister Now Professes Christ

01 July 2009
Adrienne S. Gaines

A former prime minister of Ethiopia who spent years as a freedom fighter says he’s on a new mission: to help his nation find freedom through Christ.

“I believe that the gospel is the only solution for my country,” said Tamrat Layne, 54, who served as prime minister of Ethiopia’s transitional government from 1991-1995. “For development, democracy, for politics, for economic development—the only way out, the only key is the gospel.”

A former atheist who embraced communism at age 18, Layne was part of a coalition that ousted Ethiopia’s military regime in 1991 and was a top leader in the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front coalition. In addition to serving as prime minister, Layne was deputy prime minister and defense minister. the rest