We separated. I went to Ethiopian Airways, bought a new ticket to Entebbe. I had someone I knew in Addis who worked for the OAU and I called him, told him I would be passing through and asked him if I could stay a day or two while I waited for my flight to Entebbe. He was happy and said everything would be fine.”

This was not a good time for anyone to be passing through Addis Ababa, Kinzer comments. For several years, the Ethiopian dictator Haile Men­gistu Mariam had been slaughtering his opponents in a campaign called “the white terror”. Now with rebels closing in on the capital, his regime was on the brink of collapse.

Desperate soldiers raged through the streets settling old scores. Several elite units were posted at the airport, assigned to prevent enemies of the state from fleeing.
“There was real chaos there, a lot of commotion,” Kagame is quoted in the book.

“When I arrived at the airport, things were a bit difficult. You had to declare if you had any cash. If I declared my money it would be robbed, or taken from me. Possibly I would lose my life. You could see chaos even at the airport. I decided not to declare my money. I got through alright, and found this guy waiting for me. Getting in was easy. Getting out was going to be more difficult because they check you.

I stayed a day or two. My flight to Entebbe was supposed to be on a Sunday. I asked my host if he had the possibility, diplomatic or otherwise, to assist me to go through the checks at the airport. If they find you with cash and you didn’t declare it, they confiscate it and there is a case. He told me it wouldn’t be possible for him to do it himself, but he had a friend who would help me through diplomatic means, someone senior he knew.