Fisseha Desta
Fisseha Desta (; born 21 April 1941) is an Ethiopian former general and former politician who was the first vice president of Ethiopia from 1987 to 1991. Early life. Fisseha Desta was born into a family of Tigrayan nobility in Adwa. His family then moved to Addis Ababa in 1947. He joined the Ethiopian Army at the age of 20 and graduated from the Harar Military Academy. Three years later, he joined the Kebur Zabagna (Imperial Bodyguard) and was specifically assigned at the Emperor's Palace. He later received advanced military training in the United States. Career. When the  Derg came to power in 1974 Fisseha became a senior member of the military committee and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was in command of the Third Division and had served in Eritrea. In 1979 Fisseha left the army and became a member of the Central Committee of COPWE. In 1980 Fisseha traveled to several Arab countries to convince them to cease their support to the Eritrean rebels. He had met with Saddam Hussein who believed that Muslims were being persecuted in Eritrea, Fisseha Desta had to use the case of Kurds to explain the Eritrean cause  which is when Saddam Hussein recommended federation for Eritrea. After the formation of the Workers' Party of Ethiopia in 1984, Fisseha was appointed as the deputy leader of the WPE and was the head of it's administration and justice department. In 1987 after the establishment of the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Fisseha was appointed vice president, a position he held until 1991. Later life. In the 1990s Fisseha was sentenced to 20 years in prison for his role in the military dictatorship. He was then released in 2011 under parole.