Semere T. Habtemariam

At the end of April 2018, Donald Yamamoto visited Eritrea, Djibouti and Ethiopia.He is the highest-ranking US diplomat to visit Eritrea in over a decade. Many things have changed in the region, but the one thing that had stayed the same is: the no-war-no-peace stalemate between Eritrea and Ethiopia. With the visible military presence of China in the region, the US finds the normalization of relations between Eritrea and Ethiopia important enough to embark on a new initiative. Yamamoto’s mission was to convey to both governments this new shift in US policy. Reliable sources have confirmed that he had succeeded in obtaining initial support to his initiative. Both governments have agreed in principle while reaffirming their 16-year old positions: demarcate first and then dialogue vs. dialogue first and then demarcate.

Although Yamamoto’s visit to the region was scheduled before the election of the new Prime Minister in Ethiopia, the mere coincidence has given the impression that the change in Ethiopia is beyond a change of personality, but a shift in policy. In his inaugural speech, Prime Minister Abiye Ahmed has said, “we want from the bottom of our hearts that the disagreement that has reigned for years to come to an end,” and urged, “the Eritrean government to take the same stand.”

Actions speak louder than words and the Ethiopian government, under the late Meles Zenawi and former Prime Minister Desalegn Haile Mariam have done nothing to resolve the impasse they’ve unliterary imposed on both countries. They did talk the talk, although, at times with open and veiled threats, inconsistency and equivocation. It should not be forgotten that in April 2003, Meles Zenawi had threatened to reject the ruling if adjustments were not made. On April 13, 2002, the Information Ministry of Ethiopia accused the Eritrean Ethiopian Boundary Commission (EEBC) of misinterpreting the December 2000 Algiers Agreement and the court’s ruling of April 13, 2002.

It is the hope of many that the new Prime Minister will take a new and refreshing initiative aiming at peace and the end of the no-peace-no-war stalemate. It shouldn’t be business as usual.Ethiopia has been playing the same song for the last 15 years but repeating the idea of dialogue often enough doesn’t make it a solution. There is no doubt that Eritrea will enter into a dialogue as soon as the previously agreed decisions are upheld by Ethiopia. Logic dictates so, and so does the EEBC verdict. It is true that Eritrea has also not changed its position since 2003 when the EEBC gave its “final and binding” verdict, but, it cannot be emphasized enough that Eritrea is on the right side of the law; and hence it cannot be held directly responsible for the impasse.

The Eritrean government’s mediocre response to Ethiopia’s diplomacy should not be confused with wrong-doing. Based on the Commission’s interpretation, Eritrea’s position is right; and Ethiopia’s position is wrong. Eritrea has fully complied with the EEBC’s ruling and Ethiopia has not. These are the facts.

The question is: Can Ethiopia and Eritrea dialogue while demarcating and demarcate while dialoguing? In a culture where intransigence is often confused with steadfastness, how does Yamamoto proceed?

Background To The Algiers Agreement:

In 1991, two allied organizations, the Eritrean Peoples’ Liberation Front (EPLF) and the Tigrayan Peoples’ Liberation Front (TPLF), came to power in Eritrea and Ethiopia respectively. They had fought together to defeat the Mengistu regime;and this strategic military alliance became the basis of their bilateral relations between 1991 and 1998.The two leaders, Isaias Afeworki of Eritrea and Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, were the embodiment of this unprecedented comity. They travelled together on Meles’ plane; vacationed together in the Red Sea; and Meles had a vacation house in Asmera that is still known as “inda Meles” to this day. However, there was something unsettling about their friendship; it was characterized by mistrust and rivalry. And on May 6, 1998, the two leaders shocked the world when they risked everything and entered into Africa’s biggest and deadliest war.

It was a war of choice, and not necessity (1998-2000), that claimed over 70 thousands lives, millions of internally displaced people, the destruction of property worth in the billions, the deportation of 98 thousands Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean origin, and the confiscation of their properties and businesses estimated in hundreds of millions of dollars. All these took place in just two years.

The world might not have understood the reasons that led to its sudden eruption, but it knew its cataclysmic effect. The US committed some of its top diplomats such as Susan Rice, Anthony Lake and the late Richard Holbrooke in mediating between the parties. President Clinton was personally responsible for brokering the air moratorium that helped avert the destruction of non-military, economic and development infrastructures.

On December 12, 2000, all became quieton the Zalembessa-Badme-Burie fronts when Eritrea and Ethiopia signed the Peace Agreement in Algiers, Algeria. This gave hope to a brighter future of cooperation and a possible restoration of a once promising cooperation between the two countries. This optimism was further reinforced when both countries accepted the Border Commission’s delimitation ruling in April 2002 and expressed their commitment to cooperate accordingly.

Peoples’ optimism, however, was short-lived when Ethiopia started to equivocate—proving that optimism and good will were predicated on the “in good faith” implementation of the Algiers Agreement.

Although Eritrea’s and Ethiopia’s stated policies (demarcate first and then dialogue vs. dialogue first and then demarcate) are not mutually exclusive, it cannot be emphasized enough that any peaceful resolutions of conflicts will be predicated on in-good-faith compliance to treaties, agreements, rulings, and international law by all member states.

When asked by Mo Ibrahim, in a conference held in Kigali, about the possibility of a new agreement between the warring parties in South Sudan, the former Prime Minister Haile Mariam rightfully responded, “Agreements are signed but never implemented. I don’t see that further (or) more agreements can be signed, but I don’t think it will be implemented as the history shows.”

Inadvertently, Haile Mariam has become the best advocate for Eritrea’s position.

The Algiers Agreement

The Algiers Agreement was the reaffirmation of the Organization of African Unity’s (OAU) Framework Agreement and the Modalities for its Implementation (July 1999) and the Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities (June 2000). Towards this end, the Agreement established two neutral independent commissions:the Eritrean-Ethiopian Boundary Commission (EEBC) and the Eritrean-Ethiopian Claims Commission.

The EEBC was an independent impartial body appointed by the Secretary General of the OAU in consultation with his counterpart at the UN. It was mandated “to delimit and demarcate the colonial treaty border based on pertinent colonial treaties (1900, 1902 and 1908) and applicable international law” (Article 4:2).Although Article 38(2) of the Statue of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) allows the court to rule on the basis of “equitable criteria,” both countries failed to authorize the Commission to “have the power to make decisions ex aequo et bono (according to what is equitable and good).”

Both Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed on the decision to be “final and binding.”

The UN Cartographic Unit would provide technical expertise, serve as the EEBC’s Secretary and perform functions necessary for the Commission. The two countries agreed “to cooperate with the Commission, its experts and other staff in all respects during the process of delimitation and demarcation, including the facilitation of access to territory they control” (Article 4:14).

Eritrea and Ethiopia provided their claims and evidence to the Secretary. The Secretary, in turn, provided his findings to the EEBC by identifying those sections of the border that were not in dispute and when disagreements arose, the parties were allowed to submit additional evidence.

In 2003, the EEBC gave its final ruling on delimiting the border. It transmitted its ruling to both parties, the OAU and the UN, and was ready to demarcate. Ethiopia accepted the ruling “in principle” but refused to allow the EEBC to demarcate.

16 years later, no progress has been made.

The See-saw game:

The regimes in Eritrea and Ethiopia were/are mirror-image of each other. They’ve been through thick and thin together and share a lot in common. But beneath this veneer of commonalities lies a dangerous pathology that is making any attempt of reconciliation impossible. The author believes it is this “personalization” of the conflict that former Prime Minister Haile Mariam was complaining about in his talk with Mo Ibrahim. The TPLF thinks that the border conflict is a Tigrayan and Eritrean issue. Former Prime Minister Haile Mariam has reportedly said that the Eritrean-Ethiopian conflict is “yetigre guday ne; it is a Tigre affair.” Tigre is the name the Amhara use to refer to Eritreans and Tigrayans together.

Without delving into the etiology of the Eritrean-Ethiopian border war, it suffices to mention that Eritrea was responsible for the escalation of an otherwise small skirmish into a full-scale war. The Hague ruling has also shown that Ethiopia’s occupation of Badme, the flash-point of the war, is what led Eritrea to take action.

Soon after the war broke out, Eritrea came up with a peace proposal to resolve the conflict. Ethiopia saw Eritrea’s quick move as a confirmation of a dangerous pattern in Eritrea’s behavior of “shoot first and then talk.” As charcoal is to embers and as wood is to fire, so is a quarrelsome Eritrea for kindling strife. (Pr. 26:21)

According to Ethiopia, Eritrea was guilty of Jedwood justice where the alleged criminal is hung first and then tried afterwards. This is why Ethiopia, during the war, insisted on “negotiating while fighting and fighting while negotiating.”

Both Eritrea and Ethiopia have accepted and rejected the so many peace proposals, not on principle but on how well they thought they were doing militarily. They played see-saw with the lives of their own people.

Can Ethiopia now dialogue while demarcating and demarcate while dialoguing?

Eritrea Cannot Suppress its Pessimistic History with the World:

In less than 70 years, Eritrea has been twice short-changed by the UN, US and the international community. Many Eritreans are not fully convinced that the world will do the right thing if it means getting tough on Ethiopia.

The US’s past, one-dimensional obsession with fighting communism has been replaced by the new fight against the war on terror in the HOA. Ethiopia has taken advantage of this war by forging an alliance of convenience.

The Eritrean leaders and diplomats were caught napping; they could not rise up to the Ethiopian challenge. Ethiopia’s diplomatic savviness has totally eclipsed Eritrea’s diplomatic maneuvering. Ethiopia played a major role in the passage of the US-sponsored UN arms sanction against Eritrea for its alleged involvement in Somalia, but a UN panel of experts later found out no evidence to support the continuance of Eritrea’s alleged support.

Yamamoto could initiate lifting the sanctions on Eritrea; it would earn him credibility and good will from Eritrea and Eritreans.

The image of Eritrea that has emerged in the world is that of a hermetic nation that is hostile to outside influences. But Eritreans by geography, history, upbringing, and self-interest can’t be isolationists. Rightly or wrongly, they feel under siege by a world that has failed them multiple times. The Eritrean regime understands this mindset and exploits it to prolong its hold on power.

Eritreans have not been able to suppress this pessimistic history of negligence at the hands of world powers. Thousands of Eritreans died in the liberation war (1961-1991) due to the shortsightedness of US and UN policy makers, who in the late 1940s and early 1950s conspired against the will of the majority of Eritreans. When a decade later in 1962 the federation, that was imposed on Eritrea, was unilaterally abrogated by Ethiopia neither the UN nor the US raised eyebrows.

When Eritreans rose in arms and waged what has been named Africa’s longest war, none of the afore-mentioned powers showed any moral responsibility in resolving the conflict. It is only after Eritrea achieved its imminent and de facto independence—through military victory—these powers paid attention, and it is mostly to avert a power vacuum in Ethiopia. Eritrea, in itself, has never been important to the US and the world, although it should have been. Eritrea was home to US military base, Kagnew Station, for over three decades (1943-1977).

The strategically-located, free, democratic, and sovereign Eritrea will be a great and natural ally to the US and the freedom-loving world.

What goes for Ethiopia goes for the Horn of Africa (HOA):

Ethiopia is the regional giant; what it does has serious ramifications. A good Ethiopia is good for the HOA; it has to be assertive and strong, and yet friendly and peaceful. Ethiopia’s importance is even more evident in the case of Eritrea. Eritrea cannot afford to have a bad Ethiopia or Sudan—its two giants neighbors—and this reality should be the basis of its regional policy. What made the 1998-2000 war more tragic was that it belied this very basic truth.

It is in the best interest of the HOA countries to embark on a democratization project. Ethiopia and Djibouti with all their deficiencies have already taken the democratization baby-steps and the Somali region known as Somaliland is relatively on the consolidation phase and one could only hope this would have a spill-over effect on the rest of the Somali regions and Eritrea.

The voluntary resignation of former Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Desalegn Haile Mariam, and the peaceful transfer of power to the new prime minister, Abiye Ahmed, has heralded a new era of optimism.

Eritrea is far behind on the democratization project. All the strides that were made by the Transitional Government of Eritrea prior to the border war have been completely stricken out as the ruling party PFDJ has become increasingly oppressive. The siege mentality coupled with Ethiopia’s intransigence to comply with The Hague ruling has created a fertile ground for tyranny in Eritrea. Ethiopia’s preoccupation with security in Eritrea and Somalia is not helping because it limits its due influence and potential as a leading moral, democratic and economic force. Ethiopia has ignored the biblical precept that “By justice a king gives a country stability.” (Pr. 29:4)

An Ethiopia that is guided by a long-term vision of democracy, prosperity and regional cooperation is good for the HOA. Ethiopia must show the wisdom and courage to make short-term political sacrifices for long-term good gains. This is the stuff of greatness and an Ethiopia that lives up to this potential is what the HOA needs.

Nonetheless, it is not a bad thing that the regime, despite the objection of some Ethiopian naysayers, has declared its acceptance of The Hague ruling while insisting on resolving all pending issues prior to the full implementation of the agreement.This caveat, however, seems to be devised for domestic political consumption rather than for peace and justice. Many Ethiopians during the war rallied behind their flag with the tacit understanding that they would bring Eritrea, if not all of it, at least the port of Asseb back to Ethiopia.

Eritrea has suspected all along that Ethiopia is trying to achieve in a dialogue what it has not been able to win in war and arbitration. It has accused Ethiopia of disguising itself in her lips, but in her heart, it harbors deceit. (Pr. 26:24)

Ethiopia, however, can’t afford to be perceived as threat to its neighbors. The colossus of the HOA must learn how to strike the right balance between might and right. The boogeyman south-of-the-border is how the regime in Eritrea perpetuates an environment of fear and mistrust among its populace; it has enlisted its service effectively. Nobody questions how thin is the Ethiopian thread by which the sword of Damocles is suspended but most people believe it is there. It is how things are defended and rationalized in Eritrea and as long as it exists any efforts to democratize Eritrea will be easily thwarted.

One of the challenges of the Eritrean democratic forces is figuring out how they can convince the Ethiopian government to have this ground cut under PFDJ’s feet.If there is any short-cut on the road to regime change and democracy in Eritrea where the Eritreans are in charge, then, this is it.

Regime Change is the Prerogative of the Eritrean People

For many Eritreans, the Eritrean-Ethiopian conflict is the mother-of-all-conflicts which has taken the whole country hostage and put the democratization project on hold; for many others it’s Isaias’s tyranny that is responsible for Eritrea’s current predicament. The two are not mutually exclusive; they tend to feed on each other in an uncanny way. Solving the border will certainly create new challenges but also opportunities. In the case of Eritrea, reintegrating a heavily militarized society will prove to be a Herculean task which will most likely lead to mass uprisings or military coups.

Most members of the Eritrean opposition find themselves in an unenviable position. They operate from the land of the enemy without refuting the presence of the boogeyman. Whether reality or perception, this is part of the Eritrean public mindset that needs to be reckoned with.

One of the main reasons the Eritrean opposition has failed to make any progress in removing the regime is because the Eritreans that matter the most—those inside the country—are not convinced that the divided Ethiopia-based opposition have Eritrea’s best interest at heart. Some in the opposition are perceived by many as puppets of the TPLF.

To make matters worse, some groups within the Eritrean opposition have become disciples of Ethnic Federalism, and for an overwhelming majority of Eritreans this is anathema to everything they hold dear and good. The Eritrean opposition is perceived to be an accomplice to Ethiopia’s antagonistic policy towards Eritrea, and consequently it suffers from any real and perceived threats Ethiopia poses to Eritrea.

Eritrea—with its fiercely independent past, a culture of patriotic sacrifices and its recent experience with an autocratic system—is destined to marshal its resources and aspirations to realize a democratic Athens in Africa. The ideals of liberty, peace and democracy have never preoccupied the minds of Eritreans as they do today. The rude awakenings of the various recent tragedies have induced an intense interest on Eritreans to wrestle with these perennial political issues.

The fight for democracy stands a better chance today than ever before. Eritreans have an indefatigable esprit de corps and they will, once again, rise up to the occasion. What the HOA needs is democracy; more and not less of it. A Tigrinya proverb says that the source of prosperity is not the willowing floor but the floors of Ecclesia—peoples’ assembly.

The democratic transformation of Eritrea is in the best interest of the whole region. Good neighborliness and regional cooperation is only possible with an Eritrea that is free and democratic.

Why Dialogue Now?

Ethiopia has “accepted” the decision “in principle” but is calling for a “dialogue” to sort out the “anomalies and impracticabilities.” This is absurd because Ethiopia had its day in court and had willingly agreed to the arbitration terms when it was decisively enjoying the military upper-hand. In any war, the victor usually dictates the outcome of any armistice, and Ethiopia was not under any duress to accept the Algiers Agreement.

Ethiopia’s failure to honor its obligation is counter-productive to peace and stability. For a decade, the world in general, and Eritreans in particular have let the grass grow under their feet hoping for Ethiopia to comply. The UN, AU, EU, and the US have not done enough to shoulder their responsibility as guarantors and witnesses of the Algiers agreement.

Eritrea should not enter into a dialogue with Ethiopia out of fear, but it should not fear to enter into a dialogue. There were about 13 face-to-face border related meetings between 1993 and 1997, the last six of them were held in 1997. These meetings took place when the relationship between the two countries was warm and cordial.

How can a call fordialogue be taken seriously in an environment rife with hostility, mistrust and suspicion?

It is a valid question and one that needs to be addressed. By insisting on having a dialogue prior to demarcation, Ethiopia is making the perfect the enemy of the good. Most reasonable people would agree that the demarcation is not the-be-all-and-end-all solution, but it is a great start that would inevitably lead to the normalization of relations.  Demarcation is just the edge of the wedge; and Ethiopia must make virtue of necessity.

It is not that the call for dialogue is patently wrong, but the context in which Ethiopia is invoking it.

Eritrea must clearly and unequivocally show its readiness and willingness to enter into a dialogue as soon as the border demarcation commences and work on resolving all pending issues which will gradually lead towards achieving what Ethiopia has called a “comprehensive peace.” This is a process which will inherently take a long time and most likely outlive the current generation of leaders. The goal of the current leaders should be to lay the ground work so future leaders can build on it. Focus should be on managing what is unavoidable and avoiding what is unmanageable.

There is some merit to the “anomalies and impracticabilities” concern that Ethiopia has raised, but it is a bit too late and a bit too small.  In the grand scheme of things, it is not that important to de facto nullify and void The Hague ruling and the Algiers Agreement. Perhaps it should have been part of the original agreement, or the court should have been given the power to make decisions ex aequo et bono (according to what is equitable and good), but it should not be used retroactively derail a process where life and death hinges on it.

The Ethiopians should find solace in history that the predecessors of the same villages and people they are concerned about have managed to move on with their lives when colonial powers divided them over a century ago. Family and silken ties are not severed easily and when they are temporarily suspended, they have a way of coming back. Besides, the affected village communities could invoke the right of self-determination on which side of the border they want to be.

The United Nations is also entrusted “to facilitate resolution of problems which may arise due to the transfer of territorial control, including the consequences for individuals residing in previously disputed territory” (Article 5:16). This stipulation is only applicable post the demarcation phase.

There is a reason why the US, EU, AU, UN, and most countries have called on Ethiopia to comply with the verdict. Granted their calls have a glaring lack of moral outrage and indignation, and this has casted, in the eyes of many Eritreans, a cloud of doubt on their sincerity and commitment to the agreement they had helped broker. They AU and UN have failed their obligations, but nevertheless recognize this is the only way to the normalization of relations between the two countries.

EEBC Has All it Needs to Do its Job

The EEBC has all it needs to start demarcation and get the job done. The agreement does not mandate her to facilitate or require a dialogue between the two parties. A dialogue, if agreed upon by the two parties, might help, but it is not essential or necessary for the commission to do its mandated work. All the EEBC needs from both countries is to be left alone to do its work.

Ethiopia has to honor its legal obligation and let the EEBC start demarcating the border.

Hanish Should Serve as a Precedent

Conflicts don’t prescribe war; how they are managed makes all the difference. The 1998-2000 war will go in history as a classic example of mismanagement and failure of leadership on both sides.

The reason the Eritrean-Yemeni Hanish Islands conflict came to a quick end, within 3 days (December 15-17, 1995), was because President Salah of Yemen had the courage to refuse to tango with Isaias Afwerki when a majority of his parliament were calling on him “to teach Eritrea a lesson.” The restraint of Salah had helped both countries avert unnecessary bloodshed, but also enabled Yemen to win most of the territories in dispute.

In October 1998, the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that the main islands making the Hanish archipelago belong to Yemen. Eritrea accepted the decision and withdrew its forces immediately.

In legal terms, Yemen won; and Eritrea lost, but in terms of peace, both won.

When conflicts arise, law, agreements and treaties should carry the day. This is the stuff peace is made of.  A mechanism of conflict resolution is the best down payment Eritrea and Yemen could have made in their peace and security. The legal and peaceful resolution of the Hanish conflict has set a good precedent.

Demarcation is a major step towards regional peace and democracy in the HOA:                                            

The only rationale Eritrea and Ethiopia are on the opposite sides on the Somali conflict is because Eritrea sees the conflict as an extension of its war with Ethiopia—its proxy war. It defies any other logic why Eritrea, in the early days of the Somali conflict, would support an al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group in Somalia if it was not for the notion that an enemy of my enemy is my friend.It is not the incremental “tightening” of UN sanctions that would give Eritrea the disincentives from playing a “spoiler’s” role in the HOA, but justice.The world’s inaction is seen by many Eritreans as tantamount to condoning Ethiopia’s intransigence and violation.

Solving the Eritrean-Ethiopian border conflict is, therefore, solving half of the HOA’s conflicts. If the international community can get Eritrea and Ethiopia to cooperate, pull together, or, at least, not work against each-other, then the possibility of a regional peace and democracy is within reach.

Peace can’t be so near and yet so far in the Horn of Africa.

Ethiopia and Eritrea hold the key; and a compromise can be struck between their respective positions. Both have accepted The Hague ruling and the sanctity of this decision is the launching pad of a way out.

Eritrea wants demarcation to precede normalization. Ethiopia wants to enter into a dialogue on all “pending issues” before letting the demarcation take place. Both positions can be reconciled if The Hague ruling is not part of the dialogue and it is implemented in the manner the EEBC sees fit. Dialogue on all other pending issues can be simultaneously conducted. In this win-win situation, The Hague ruling will not be undermined when Ethiopia allows the demarcation to take place “as it is” and Eritrea enters into a dialogue to resolve all “pending issues” leading to “comprehensive peace”.

Both countries can demarcate while dialoguing and dialogue while demarcating.

The US, UN, AU, EU, and the rest of the international community must lead this effort and facilitate the process. There is today less acrimony and bellicosity between the two governments and there is a widespread fighting-fatigue among the people particularly Eritreans. Many Ethiopians also recognize the importance of Eritrean ports to their economic development and regret the missed opportunities for cooperation between the two sisterly countries. According to a high ranking Ethiopian official Ethiopia’s expenditure in port fees has risen by more than 1400% since it went to war with Eritrea in 1998. Eritrea with its vacant ports has lost most of its revenue from port fees.

The situation is ripe, and the time is right for a shuttle diplomacy between Asmera and Addis Ababa.

The large Eritrean and Ethiopian Diaspora and its civil society organizations can play an important role in bridging differences and laying the ground work for regional collaboration. States should not be the only actors and more ways must be pursued where various people and organizations can play a constructive role in the HOA.

One way to make dialogue an attractive alternative is to let many and diverse civil society organizations as well as political parties to be part of the process.

Yamamoto could successfully finish what Susan Rice, Richard Holbrooke and Anthony Lake had started.

_______________________________

Semere Habtemariam

 

 

 

 

 

 

Semere T. Habtemariam:

is the Chief Executive Officer of the Forum for National Dialogue. He is one of the founders and pioneers of the civil society organizations that sprouted in the aftermath of the arrest of the group known as G-15 and the journalists of the free press. He is the author of two books, “Reflections on the History of the Tewahdo Church,” and “Hearts Like Birds.” He has a master’s degree in public Affairs and a Bachelor’s in Government and Politics from the University of Texas at Dallas. He lives with his wife and four children in Carrollton, Texas.

Disclaimer:

The author of this article is the Chief Executive Office and member of the Board of Directors of the Forum for National Dialogue, but the views and opinions expressed in this article are his only and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Forum for National Dialogue. FND does not espouse any official policy or position on any issues. Members of the Board are free to express any opinion they hold.

 

ገዲም ተጋዳላይ ሓርበኛ ዘቢብ ማና ግደይ ብዝሓደሮ ሕማም ምኽንያት ብቤተሰቡን ብሕክምናን ክእለ ድሕሪ ምጽናሕ ዕለት 5/12/18

 

ብመስዋቲ ከምዝተፈልየና ንፈተውቱን መቓልስቱን መስዋቱ ከነርድእ መሪርሓዘን እንዳተሰማዓናእዩ።

 

ሓርበኛ ዘቢብ ቅድም ኣብ ..ቀጺሉ ድማ ምስ ሰውራዊ ባይቶ፣ምስ ሰልፊ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ፣ከምኡውን ምስሰልፊ ደሞክራሲ ህዝቢ

 

ኤርትራ ኮይኑ ክሳብ ዕለተ መስዋቱ ኣብ ኤርትራ ሃገርና ፍትሕን ዲሞክራስን ንምርግጋጽ ኣብ ዝግበር ዘሎ ዘይሕለል ቃልሲ እጃሙ

 

ከበርክት ዝጸንሐ ውፉይ ተቓላሳይ እዩ።

 

ሓመድ ኣዳም ዝለብሰሉ ዕለትን ኣድራሻን ክንሕብር ኢና።

 

ስድራ ቤት

ርእሰ-ዓቀጽ ሰዲህኤ

“ሰዲህኤ ናይ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ፡ ሃይማኖታዊ፡ ብሄራዊ፡ ቀቢላዊ፡ ባህላውን ቋንቋውን ብዙሕነት ይኣምንን ከም ሃገራዊ ቅሙጥ ጸጋን ሓይልን ይቖጽሮን።” (ካብ ፖለቲካዊ መደብ ዕዮ ሰዲህኤ ዓንቀጽ 1፡1፡2 ዝተወስደ)

ኤርትራውያን ብብዙሕ መልከዓት ዝግለጽ ብዙሕነት ኣለና። ቋንቋታትና፡ ባህልታትና፡ እምነታትና፡ ብሄራትና .. ወዘተ ናይዚ ኣብነት እዮም። ካብዚ ሓሊፉ ኣብ ፖለቲካዊ መዳይ ኣብ እንወዳደረሉ እውን ናይ ኣተሓሳስባ ብዙሕነት ነይሩናን ኣለናን። ኣብ ግዜ ብረታዊ ቃልስና ጀብሃን ሻዕብያን ንበሃሃል ዝነበርና፡ ኩሉና ኤርትራውያን ክነስና ናይ ኣተሓሳስባ ብዙሕነት ብምፍጣርና እዩ። ኣብ ክንዲ ነዚ ብዙሕነት ተቐቢልና ንፍልልያትና ኣመሓዲርና ኣብቲ ብሓባር ዝብጸሓና ሃገራዊ ጉዳይ ብሓደ ምስራሕ ነቲ ዝፈላሊ ኣጉሊሕናን ክሳብ ናይ ግዳም ሓይሊ ዓዲምናን ኣብ ውግእ ሕድሕድ ምእታውና ከኣ ከም ናይ ድኽመትና መግለጺ ኮይኑ ዝተሰነደ እዩ። እዚ ከኣ ፍልልያት ብግቡእ ክመሓድር እንከሎ ዓቕሚ ብግጉይ ክተሓዝ እንከሎ ከኣ ጠንቂ ውድቀት ከም ዝኸውን ዘርኢ እዩ።

ኣብ ዕለታዊ ህይወትና ነቶም ነናትና ናይ ብዙሓነት መግለጺ ዝያዳ ከነቕልበሎም ባህርያዊ እዩ። ከምኡ ምግባርና ከኣ ዘነውረና ኣይኮነን። ኣብ ሃይማኖትና ንግደስ፡ ንቋንቋና ዝያዳቲ ካልእ ነፍቅር። ኣብቲ ካልእ ናይ መንነት መለለይናን ፖለቲካዊ ኣተሓሳስባናን’ውን ከምኡ። ነዞም ተገዳስነታት እዚኣቶም በይኖም ነጺልና ከነበርኾም ክንፍትን እንከለና ግና እቲ ውጽኢት ሰላም ዝህብ ኣይኮነን። ስለዚ ኣብቲ መንነትና ዝገልጽ መለለይና ክንግደስ እንከለና ነቲ ናይ ካልኦት ናይ መንነት መለለይ’ውን ኣብ ግምት ከነእትዎን ከነኽብሮን ናይ ግድን እዩ። ብጸቢብ ስምዒት ኣብ ናትና ጥራይ እነተኩር እንተኮይና ግና ኣተሓሕዛና ጐደሎ እዩ ዝኸውን። ጐደሎ ከኣ ጐደሎ እዩ ዘስዕብ። ብዛዕባ ቋንቋና ክንግደስ እንከሎና ነቲ ናይ ካልኦት ቋንቋ ጸጋና ምዃኑ ክንዝንገዖ ኣይግበኣና። ኣብቲ ካልእ ናይ ብዙሕነት መርኣያና እውን ከምኡ።

እቶም ነናትና ቋንቋ፡ ሃይማኖት፡ ባህልን እምነትን ፈሊና ከነበርኽ እንሓስብ፡ ዝመረጽናዮ መንገዲ ናይ ድሓን ዘይምዃኑ ክርደኣና ይግባእ። እዚ ሓሳብና በይኑ ክስጉም ኣይክእልን እዩ። ምእንቲ’ዚ ነቲ “ናተይባ ናትካባ” ዝሕመረቱ ምንጽጻግ ኣወጊድና፡ ናይ “ኢደይኢድካ” ምምልላእ ባህሊ ከነተኣታቱ ይግበኣና። ካብዚ ሓሊፉ ነቲ ሓደ ዝገብረና ላዕለዋይ ጠማሪ ክብሪ ሃገር ዘንጊዕና፡ ኣብ ምሕብሓብ ጸበብቲ ስምዒታት እንተተጸሚድና እቲ ንኩለንተናና ዝሓቁፍን ዘጽልልን ኤርትራዊ መንነትና ክሃጉግ እዩ። ኤርትራውነት ኣብ ዝሃሰሰሉ ከኣ ዝገበርና እንተገበርናን ናይ ሓደ ውሱን ወገን ናይ መንነት መለለይ ኣንጊስና ንመርሽ እንተኢልናን ኤርትራዊ ምሉኡነት ከም ዝጐድለና ርዱእ እዩ። ምሉእነት ዝተዘንገዓሉ ጉዕዞ ከኣ ናይ ግዜ ጉዳይ እንተዘይኮኑ መወዳእትኡ ወዳቒ እዩ።

ኣብዚ እዋንዚ ኣብ ኤርትራዊ ደንበ ተቓውሞና ብዙሓት ነናቶም ኣተሓሳስባ ዝውንኑ ፖለቲካዊ ውዳበታት ኣለዉና። እዚ ብዙሕነት ከምቲ ንገለ ወገናት ዝመስሎም ኣባና ዝጅመር ዘሎ ኣሉታዊ ሓድሽ ምዕባለ ዘይኮነ፡ ካብ ነዊሕ ግዜ ኣብ ደቂ ሰብ ዝኽሰት ዝነበረን ዘሎን መርኣያን ነጸብራቕን ናይ መሰል ምውዳብን ሓሳብካ ምግላጽን እዩ። ብእምነትና ብዝሒ ውድባት ኣብ ብዝሒ ዝተፈላለየ ፖለቲካዊ ኣተሓሳስባ ዝምርኮስ እዩ። ካብዚ ሓሊፉካ መሰረታዊ በይንኻ ንክትውደብ ዘገድደካ ፍሉይ ኣተሓሳስባ ኣብ ዘይብልካ ውድብ ምዃን፡ ዘይተደላይ ዓቕሚ፡ ንብረትን ግዜን ካብ ምብኻን ሓሊፉ ካልእ ትርጉም ኣይህልዎን። ክንውደብ እንከለና ነቲ ኣተሓሳስባና እነተግብረሉ ውዳበና፡ ክንግደሰሉ፡ ከነዕብዮ ኣድላይ እንተኮይኑ እውን ክንስወኣሉ ባህርያዊ እዩ። እዚ እንኸፍሎ ኩለመዳያዊ ዋጋ ነቲ ካልእ ውዳበታት፡ ግቡእ ግምትን ክብርን እንተዘይሂቡ እቲ ናትና በይኑ ክዕወት ኣይክእልን እዩ። ኣብ ከምዚ ዓይነት ሰላማዊ ናይ ኣተሓሳስባ ውድድር እንተ ክትስዕር ወይ ክትሰዓር ነብሱ ዝኸኣለ ቀጥዒ ዘለዎ መስርሕ እምበር ከከም ዝደረፍካዮ ዝኽየዶ ኣይኮነን። ምክብባር ጥራይ ዘይኮነ ኣብቲ ሰላማዊ መስርሕ ክትመላላእ እውን ናይ ግድን እዩ። ካልእ ናብ ዓወት ዘብጽሕ መወዳደሪ ኣገባብ ስለ ዘየለ። ምውድዳር ካልእ ገጽ ናይ ምትሕብባር እምበር ጽልኢ ምዕዳም ኣይኮነን።

ሚዛናውነት ኣገዳሲ እዩ። ኣብ ጉዳይ ርኢቶና፡ ውዳበና፡ መንነትና ክንግደስ እንከለና እዚ ተገዳስነት ምስቲ ኣብ ጉዳይ መላእ ሃገርን ህዝብን ዘለና ተገዳስነት ሚዛኑ ዝሓለወ ክኸውን ናይ ግድን እዩ። እቲ ሚዛናውነት እንተዘቢሉ ግና እቲ ውጽኢት እውን ዘባል እዩ ዝኸውን። ከምቲ ንቋንቋና፡ ሃይማኖትና፡ ብሄርና፡ ወይ ብሓፈሻ ንፖለቲካዊ ኣተሓሳስባና እንግደሶ እቶም መወዳድርትና እውን ነቲ ናቶም ከምኡ ከም ዝግደሱ ምዝካርን ኣፍልጦ ምሃብን ፈጺሙ ክስገር ዘይግበኦ እዩ። ናብዚ ክትበቅዕ፡ ተጸዋርነትን ኣስፊሕካ ናይ ምርኣይን ሓላፍነት ዝሓትት እዩ። ነዚ ከይበቓዕካ ንሃገር ኮነ ንህዝቢ ፍሉይ ተሓላቒ መሲልካ ነናብ ኢድካ እንተሰሓብካዮም በይንኻ ክትዕወት ኣይትኽእልን።

በበይኑ ዝወፍር ድሌታት፡ ስምዒታትን ኣተሓሳስባታትን ብሓደ ገዛኢ ሕጊ እንተዘይተወዚቡ ብማዕዶ ማዕዶ ክውገን ኣይክእልን እዩ። እቲ ኣብ መንጎ ውድባትን ሰልፍታትን ምናልባት እውን ኣብ ማሕበራት ዝኽተም፡ ስምምዕ፡ ቻርተር ወይ ካልእ ስም እንህቦ ቃልኪዳናት ናይዚ ኣብነት እዩ። እንተኾነ እዚ ቃል ኪዳናት ሓቢርና ክንጐዓዝ ዝሕግዘናን ንከምድላይካ ናይ ምዕንዳር ድሌታትና ዝድርት ክነሱ ኣይነኽብሮን። ኣብዚ ከኣ ነቲ ኣከኣኢልካን ኣመዛዚንካን ናይ ምኻድ ፈተና ኣይንሓልፎን። ናይ ክሳብ ሕጂ ኩነታት ደንበ ተቓውሞና ከኣ ነዚ እዩ ዘርኢ። እዚ ኣገባብዚ ግድን ክንሰግሮ ዘለና እምበር ካልእ ኣቋራጭ መማረጺ የብልናን።

እቲ ኣብዚ እዋንዚ ዘለናዮ ሃለዋት ብምክብባር ጥራይ ኣይኮነን ዝስገር። ምምልላእ ክንውስኸሉ ናይ ግድን እዩ። ከምቲ “ኣደ ትብሎ ንጐይበይ ጓል እትብሎ ከኣ ንገዝመይ” ዝበሃል እቲ እንሓስቦ ምእንቲ ሓንቲ ሃገርን ሓደ ህዝብን ስለ ዝኾነ ዓወቱ በየናይ ውድብ ወይ ሰልፊ መጺኡ ብዘየገድስ ናብ ሓደ ህዝባውን ሃገራውን ፈለግ ከም ዝውሕዝ ክንዝንግዕ የብልናን። ኣብዚ ሸነኻዊ ስምን ዝናን ክንረክብ ክንብል ኣብ ክንዲ ንመላላእ፡ ክንከላላእ ኣይግበኣናን እዩ።

Friday, 11 May 2018 11:04

The purge of 1973: origins of the EPLF

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This historic interview was undertaken with Haile Menkerios, the most senior Eritrean at the UN – Under Secretary-General of the United Nations. It concerns the early years of the Eritrean liberation struggle.

Haile uses the term Meda(ሜዳ), a word that is translated as the “field,” is also used to refer to areas of operation for the Eritrean liberation fighters during the war of independence. Liberation fighters collectively called all of their strongholds, as well as other areas of operation, meda.

The Haile Menkerios revealed important details of the split within the liberation movement and Isaias Afwerki’s crackdown on his opponents in the Menkae

Members of Executive Committee of EPLF 1977–1987Members of Executive Committee of EPLF 1977–1987 standing: Ogbe Abraha, Ali Said Abdella, Sebhat Efrem, Haile Woldetinsae, Petros Solomon, Mohammed Said Bareh, Mesfin Hagos, Al-Amin Mohammed Said Sitting: Berhane Gherezgiher, Ibrahim Afa, Romedan Mohammed Nur, Isaias Afewerki, Mahmoud Shrifo

 The PLF leadership crisis 1973

Contributed by Aida Kidane, 31 Jul 2005

Source: EHREA

This incident was one small happening which led to a large one, fighters purging each other thus the killings of the “Menkae” and possibly the “Yemeen” branded fighters of the so called movements.

I prefer sending the persons interviews than analyzing it because the fighters I interviewed told me of their personal experiences and were not in the exact places when the happenings occurred.

Interview with Haile Menkerios 24.10.04

Question: When did you join the struggle?

I went to meda early 1973.

Question: Why did you go?

You have to understand there was a lot of idealism, student movement, and it was not only I but many students. It was a duty which we happily accepted. We knew that harsh life was expecting us. We decided that we should be examples to all Eritreans for such a commitment. I was in graduate school then. We were the first ones going from here. We were about 5 who started but only I and another friend went to meda.

We went through Yemen to meda since we had contact with meda. Aboi Welde Ab was in Cairo in the PLF- Peoples Liberation Forces- office. The ELF and PLF were in civil war then. Going to Sudan was falling into the hands of the ELF and the main office of PLF was in Democratic republic of Yemen – Aden. There was another office in Beirut too, in these 3 countries.

In Cairo office was Taha Mohammed Nur, Osman Sabbe himself in Beirut and fighters in Yemen who had direct contact with meda. And anyone joining meda goes through Yemen in those days.

So we went to Cairo and then to Yemen. From there we took a small boat, a fisherman’s dhow across the Red Sea to the Eritrea-Sudan border to Sahel, and at night time.

While in the US, we had contact with meda through members as Tsegai Khasai had come, and also Mahmoud Sherifo and Gebre Medhin Gidey who were in Kessela. We had contact with them from end of 1970 and 71, and after they went to meda we had contact through Aboi Welde Ab and Taha.

All the fighters split from ELF. Some went to Ala, others in small groups to the Sudan when killing started. Those PLF1 mostly Red Sea people, were taken by Sabbe to Aden and then to meda. Sherifo had stayed in Kessela and we corresponded with him. Then Gebre Medhin went to Cairo.

When I joined the front, there was no regular military training. We were joining in small numbers, 2 or 3 in one time. At daytime those not trained were called out to the river banks and we got some military exercise as we went along and at nights we slept in hills.

Then a large group of about 30 came from inside Eritrea and we had a 2 week training together in a place called Arag, in Sahel.

We heard of the civil fightings of Geregir and that the Sudanese had told the Eritreans to get inside Eritrean border. When we reached Eritrea, there were fighters waiting for us since supplies and weapons too were brought with us. They told us of having heard shooting in Geregir when coming to us that our forces must have moved camp. The civil strife continued when we were there for 6 months.

There was registration of new comers, written in note books, not properly as was later used. One to be fighter is already known of, coming to Yemen. For those joining from inside Eritrea, the town agents gathered them in Bahri. The person’s name and background is known then and proceed to Sahel.

The PLF 1 (Shabia)were about 150 man strong and PLF 2 (Selfi) about 120 and Obel 20-30 men. All sides had their circles, it was not totally integrated then. We new ones and the 30 other new ones and some coming in few numbers had made training for 2 weeks, numbering to about 50. This is a large number of force that reformation (tekhlit) were made, and a new haili formed.

Then, I and Mehari Gimatsion from the USSR were told that we should go abroad and organize students, workers etc organizations and to return to Europe. I did not want the job after come determined to fight in the field. It was better to send a veteran fighter who had many experiences because we cannot be called fighters in only 6 months time.

While we were at the river side, there had been a long time competition between Selomon W Mariam and two leadership members, Tewelde Eyob and Asmerom Gerezghier. Selomon was an active person who used to make cliques of his own, he was a city man with connections with civil organizations, not much a military man.

Tewelde Eyob was the strongest of the three and Asmerom was not much educated or active but they were regarded militarily leadership by the fighters. As the country had feudal society, people depended more on persons from their region. Selomon was rumoured on being a regionalist and had sometime spoken the Akele Guzai being more numerous. We were surprised that such backward thoughts were in meda, even Eritrea was seeming little for us let alone think in region, and we did not know who was from where.

All soldiers slept in hill tops while the leadership rested in river bank guarded making it not easy for the enemy to enter. Water was so important it had to be well guarded surrounding the area lest the enemy control the water areas. We were expecting to be sent abroad.

We had come to understand the confrontations of Selomon on one side and Tewelde and Asmerom on the other side. One day, Selomon came to us and said that from now on he will eat in our group. The first female fighters Dehab and Werku were already with us.

As we were distributed radios, Selomon took our radio. I asked him why he did not use the leadership’s radio than ours because we wanted to hear news too. He answered no, theirs is the mesafinti (feudal) radio, and I was shocked that the leadership had such disagreements.

In the daytime next day, I talked to some officers saying we are seeing a not strong leadership. We had the criticizm and self criticizm customs. That Selomon openly calls the others feudalistic, how could a weak leadership continue, meaning the whole front is not strongly led. They told me I should say to Selomon himself and I answered that the leadership makes us criticizes for the loss of needles and they should together do their own criticizes. I cannot go to Issayas and tell him Selomon calls him a feudalist.

This was the start of the whole situation that expanded into other matters. This called for a meeting of 12 persons, the leadership and some cadres. Issayas wondered why the meeting was called. I was then asked what happened. I repeated what had happened and said I think the fighters see you as a solid leadership and matters should come into agreements. These fighters had long time relationships and said it was Selomon who was feudalist and was regionalist tendencies too. They talked of past experiences what had happened and the majority were against Selomon.

Issayas then said that he cannot continue acting like their priest and the issue must be resolved among these people once and for all. When he said that, the issue became wider. We were there to reconcile and the some of the accused cadres and leadership now became the accusers. We said to them that they could not solve the problem as they were seen accusing each other and it should be examined. Selomon is accused of being regionalist, and you who should be in between are becoming accusers. We were 7 together. I suggested that those who knew them all should hold a large cadre discussion. This radio incident was the opener of the conflict history.

Then 52 members from all hailis-units and veterans gathered. They told us to run it and we saw there was a deeper division amongst them, Akele Guzai and Hamasien divisions. As the front’s strongholds were in Ala and Semanawi Bahri-Hamasien, it was the people from there who joined in most numbers. Many from Serae and other regions joined ELF because ELF was in those areas. Joining the front for many was not an ideology question, but proximity to join. Many who joined were specifically from Karneshim and Tsena Degle areas because they lived in these areas.

Selomon had his gangs of supports and Tewelde/Asmerom had their own gang. It was much later we learnt that Asmerom was from Debarua, Serae. It is common that people connect to their near folks and feudal traditions are not overcome yet.

The worst situation came from the educated fighters who did not like the way the leadership run the front, saying The leadership are backward and are attacking Selomon by regionalism. That the leadership should be thoroughly changed, and we should be guided by scientific socialism, saying this was a national democratic revolution, socialist in character to lead to communism. These fighters were strongly leftist, with many opinions which we believed in too. They claimed that the leadership is feudal and Issayas was with these men that it should be changed. Our aims should be changed making it a socialist revolution.

The leftists sided with Selomon claiming the leadership wanted to kill him, to get alliance from the Hamasien side were more in number and stronger, and gain support from his side. And Selomon became their ally.

In this meeting of the 52 members, the leftists were attacked saying they are using Solomon’s regionalism to remove him later and take power because they themselves are regionalists. The leftists wanted to use the cracks on the leadership. They wanted larger fighters meetings and that the educated should lead etc. This lead to the movement known as the ‘MenkaE movement’.

Then Musie T Mikel from the leftists said these people use the front as their personal power who ‘pee and make faeces’ as they wished. Musie was not at loss to use words. They suppress people and charge anyone as they wish be it in regionalism or other to kill him.

Since we were the ones who gathered this meeting, we had called fighters who could make changes from the leadership and Musie and co were one of these. We invited them specifically too.

When Musie used these words, there was Tsegai Keshi, a haili leader, who was against Selomon, though he was Hamasien too. He was a very forward and honest but uneducated man and no talker. He got so angry saying ‘now you say this leadership pees and makes faeces!’ and hit Musie on the head with his rifle butt. This should not have happened and we demanded that Tsegai be imprisoned. I, Mehari Girmatsion and a third man were the responsible for holding this meeting. As it was according to PLF rules, I myself imprisoned Tsegai. He did not shoot at his comrade but hit him and putting a guard on him, he was sentenced to punishment.

That became the end of meetings and the leftists said did we not say so, that they pee and have faeces on us. And they took over and Musie used that. Musie was a smart guy. Thinking about it later, there was nothing bad about it, it was true.

The traditional leadership did not have capacity to lead, although they started the military wing. Tewelde Eyob was a good military leader. Issayas was the only politically capable person. Basically many fighters had come from the rural areas and the conflict situation had come untimely, otherwise their opinions were not disagreeable. And that they attacked the leadership. The timing and way they conducted was not right.

So they went and said that the leadership should go down and be replaced, we shall have a scientific socialism and we know about it. And the other side disagreed that Yohannes etc – the leftists- should rule and we thought it was opportunistic talking only about the leadership.

Their mistake was their arguing on the leadership than reshape the line, and nobody who knew of it did not oppose changing our ways. The situation started growing widely and that Musie was hit, as if we too sanctioned it. What we wanted was taking the right road, recognize the weakness of the traditional leadership and demanded a congress be made and new leadership to be elected. We did not have a programme or constitution and we had the 3 united fronts working in their own rules that the congress becomes our lead.

But there came confusion in the front and the leadership was not obeyed and at that time the Ethiopians came on us in Sahel, the 13 day war. Instead of guerrilla warfare we were forced to fight holding positions.

Petros Selomon and Sebhat Efrem were with the leftists-Menka at the beginning and were thus imprisoned, and that is the first time I saw imprisoning of them, as they had wanted to imprison the leadership. Now all of a sudden, Selomon recognized that these people at the end would break his post and take it, and turned against them.

The front had now split into three groups. One was the Menka who claimed that the leadership was old with no knowledge and should be changed to scientific socialism etc.

The second was Selomon’s group whose region Hamasien were numerous as they were in the ridge to the front, the Semenawi Bahri. When one joined the front one who knows him join too and the geographical location attracted it. These big numbers were the supporters of Selomon. These were against Issayas and the Menka, even though they sided with the Menka at the beginning. They had claimed Selomon was to be killed, but they did not want to glorify Selomon. They started saying Selomon is no different from the others in the leadership and they should be changed. When Selomon realized this he came to opposition to them and had to come back to the leadership mould again. Now the leadership and their supporters built a united front.

Selomon was earlier attacking the Akele Guzai, then changed and supported the Menkae and again attacked both sides. He was a good and active organizer of people, and started imprisoning fighters.

The third group said the leadership was feudalistic but should be changed systematically. This would widen the split between the Hamasien and Akele Guzai.

So it was an uneasy alliance. There were Serae too but we did not know them, being too few.

We started talking to Issayas and others that these two groups are dangerous. We cannot complain on Selomon and the feudalists as we are surrounded wholly by it. It is a secondary issue which will get better with education and time, we cannot oppose all these peasants. There must be an alliance and this extreme leftism will crush us so we have to create a solid organisation. We cannot teach communism with the mostly peasants and we started organising.

This is what eventually created the Party inside the front. Wedi Selomon and others realized where it was leading and changed sides. Yohannes-Menka was a man of fists, just like Issayas. But Issayas was a good military leader who maintained the balance and was aware of the social traditions. He knew where power was to be taken.

We had united with PLF 1 while the situation was going on and these were in between and eventually took sides of the third group. And some of their leadership, particularly Romadan had a big roll. He had balanced opinions and free from regionalism and religion and far sighted, and Ibrahim Afa, Ali Said etc were with him.

There had to be a structure because it was a united front and a secret socialist party was created and it went on getting bigger and took over. When the Menkae became imprisoned, it can be said that the rest dispersed. The Menkae did not have a big support and there was much persecution by Selomon.

Our position was that we opposed Selomon’s group and the extreme leftism that came, and being in between was considered biased and was dangerous and that’s why we organized and Isayas and Romadan were key in organising it. And that became the totally dominant force throughout being the instrument of control and leadership at the beginning. There were no more Menkae or Yemin. As time went by, the leadership role got less and instrument of control got bigger.

Petros and Sebhat had been with the Menkae and when imprisoning started, they changed positions saying the Menkae were trying to take power not for the better of the revolution. Now that we know them, it is us who shall charge them and did so. They were instrumental in organising it and also the secret Party.

The Menkae were imprisoned for a long time and in 1979 when there was no more support for them, a military committee was formed, the military tribunal. The party was formed in 1975 and by 1979 it was totally dominating. The Menkae were charged and killed in secret and I did not know. Nobody was told when the killings were done and they were alive in the congress of 1976. Some were freed in 1978 as Werku was freed and  was brought to us. Maybe they were killed and we heard it much later to justify their case, we did not know. That is when I heard and it was not officially. Those who knew the whole secret are not more than 5 or 7.

Because I was in the Zena (news) group, it was basically the center of ideology and materials to read. It was after 1976 that the political office of the Party was formed. When the girls Abeba, Werku and Maasho were freed 1976 and brought to us that we shall indoctrinate them. I tried to explain to them that both sides were incorrect, Selomon being Feudal and the Menka being extremist. Selomon was at his highest. I told them we cannot erase feudalism now and we cannot fight it head on, but with education and time. But this extremism is dangerous for the front and lead to its collapse. Dehab and Aberash were not freed and imprisoned with the rest because they did not repent and believed their cause was just.

The leadership were few and the issue was taken at that level and supposedly trusted by the fighters to do the right thing. The Executive Committee, the Politburo was formed then and made the decision, I was member of the Central Committee. Things like that were secret as it was a military front.

There were two parallel organisations in the front. The Party was secret and had its political office, i.e the Politburo, and they also had a Central Committee. And the front had its politburo and Central Committee. I was member of the latter, the mass organisation, and never in the secret Party’s committee. They did not trust the educated fearing they would topple them.

Some of the secret politburo members were Isayas, Romadan, Ibrahim Afa, Ali Said Abdella, Haile Durue, Alamin. Mesfin Hagos was there at one time. This led to absolute authority of the leader.

Question: In the ‘Destructive Movement of 1973’ supposedly by Isayas, it states that the first female fighters of EPLF were having problems of upbringings and origins, and that they were spoiled. Was that the fact you saw?

This is just false accusations. They were with my ganta from the start until they were imprisoned. We were not interested on others origins and were thinking in international socialist ways. They were not in leading positions either. They were idealists like all of us. Once they were convinced their group were right and did not want to go against their comrades. Werku and Masho in our ganta, Dehab and Aberash in another ganta.

Source=https://eritreahub.org/the-purge-of-1973-origins-of-the-eplf

Eritrean refugees SwitzerlandOver the past two years, the Swiss Office for Migration has steadily intensified its crackdown against Eritrean asylum seekers, even though there has been no evidence that the human rights situation in the country of origin had really improved.

We, an association of private individuals and organisations from Swiss civil society, as well as numerous members of the Eritrean community based in Switzerland are therefore of the opinion that these legislative changes are politically motivated.

However, the right to asylum is granted in various international treaties and must not be subject to political opportunism.

We are therefore jointly demonstrating so that the right to asylum for Eritrean refugees in Switzerland shall continue to be respected.

Where? On the square in front of the Federal Palace in Bern.

We cordially invite you to talk to both Eritreans and Swiss about their reasons for participating in the rally, to later attend the petition handover in front of the Federal Parace and finally to attend the press conference from 11.45 a.m. onwards.

See the video here

See the press release Swiss refugee protest

The press release and a detailed dossier in German and French explaining the reasons from launching the petition are attached to this e-mail. Under point 6 of the press dossier, you will find the contact details of the persons from the petition committee who will be happy to answer your questions even in the run-up to the demonstration.

See the Swiss refugee protest

Schedule:

9.30 h
Gathering. Participants unfamiliar with the location will be welcomed at Bern train station by members of our security team and then be escorted to the Federal Palace.

10.00 h
Start of the rally. Speeches will be given by representatives of the Eritrean community, the church, the Swiss refugee agencies as well as by a member of the Parliament.

11.30 h
Handing over of the petition
http://chn.ge/2xVmBGA
by members of the citizens committee to the Justice Minister and the Parliament.

11.45 h
Press conference.

12.00 h
End of the rally.

Source=https://eritreahub.org/swiss-protest-petition-and-rally-against-eritrean-deportations-friday-18-may

ብምኽንያት ዝኽሪ መዓልቲ ነጻነት ኤርትራ ንቀዳም ዕለት 02.06.2018 ኣብ ፍራንክፈርት በዚ ኣብ ታሕቲ ሰፊሩ ዘሎ ሰዓትን ቦታን ሰፊሕ ሰሚናር መዲብና ከምዘለና ንሕብር።

ኣብዚ ሰሚናር እዚ ንነጻነት ንምምጽእ ዝተኻየደ ቃልሲን፣ ጉዕዞን ፣ተምክሮ ፣ ብገዳይም ተቃለስቲ ክቀርብ ከሎ ብምሁራት ዲማ ብዛዕባ ነጻነትን ሓርነትን ዝምልከት ትንተናን ኣስተምህሮን ክቀርቡ ተመዲቡ ይርከብ።

ብተወሳኺ ኣብ ከባቢና ንመጻኢ ክግበር ዘሎ ኣገባብ ኣከያይዳ ቃልስን ከምኡውን በቲ ተተኺሉ ዘሎ ሕጋዊ ማሕበር ዝምልከት ኣርእስትውን ኣብቲ ሰሚና ክዝተየሉ ምዃኑ ንሕብር።

ኣብዚ ሰሚናርዚ ኩሉ ተሳታፋይ ሓሳቡን ርእይቶኡ ክህብን ብንጥፈት ክሳተፍን ንኩሉ ንዕድምን ነተባብዕ።

ድሕሪ ናይ ፖሊቲካ መደብ ናይ ዕላል መደብ ክቅጽል ኣዩ።

ኩሉም ኣብ ፍራንክፉርትን ከባቢኡን ትርከቡ ደለይቲ ፍትሒ (ተቃወምቲ ውድባት፣ ሰልፊታት፣ ስቪካውያን ማሕበራትን፣ ነጻ ኣካላትን) ኣብዚ ሰሚናር ተገዲስኩም ክሳተፍ ብኽብሪ ንዕድም።

ሰሚናር ዝካየደሉ ጊዘን ቦታን:

ዕለት ፡ ቀዳም ዕለት 02.06.2018

ሰዓት ፡ ካብ 15፡00 ክሳብ 24፡00 (ፍርቂ ለይቲ)

ኣዳራሽ ፡ ዛልባው ጋሉስ

 

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ብኤስባናት ወይ ሽትራሰንባናት ናብ ጋሉስ ዝኸዳ ወሲድኩም ካብቲ ጋሉስ ሃልትሽተለ ኣስታት 200 መትሮ ምስቀጸልኩም ብየማን ሸኘኽ ዝርከብ ኣዳራሽ ናይ ሳልባው እዩ።

 

ብድሓንምጹ

ሽማግለህዝባዊምልዕዓልፍራንክፈርትንከባቢን

ምናልባት ከምቲ “ቤተይ እንተ ኢልካዮ መቓብር’ውን ይመውቕ” ዝበሃል ሕሰም እውን ስለ ዝልመድ፡ ለሚድናዮ ንኸውን እምበር ኤርትራውያን ኣብ ኣዝዩ ሕማቕ ኩነታት ኢና ዘለና። ንሓንሳብስ ምናልባት ደንዚዝና ግዲ ኮይና ኮነታትና ካባና ዝያዳ ንኻለኦት ፍትሓውያን ዘቐንዝዎም ይመስል። መዝገብ ቁጠባ፡ መዝገብ ሰብኣዊ መሰል፡ መዝገብ ድሕንነትን ውሕስነትን፡ መዝገብ መሰላት፡ ዲሞክራሲ፡ ፍትሕን ልዕልና ሕግን ኮታ ኩሉ መዛግብቲ እንተገንጸልካ ኣብ እንዳ ህግደፍ ብድፉኑ ኩሉ ጸሊም እዩ። እዚ ኩነታት’ዚ ዘሳቕየና ዘሎ ጥራይ ዘይኮነ፡ ናይ ምዕራዩ ከቢድ ሓላፍነት ዘሰክመና’ውን እዩ። ኣብ ገለ ኣጋጣሚ ክንዕዘብ እንከለና ክምቲ “ዝጠልቀየ ዝናብ ኣይፈርሕን’ዩ” ዝበሃል ግዲ ኮይኑ ነቲ ጸገም ዝረዓምናዮ ንመስል። ቅድሚ ናብ ካልእ ምስጋርና እዚ ኩነታት ህግደፍ ባዕሉ ዝፈጠሮን ዘሳዕረሮን እምበር ዘሻቕሎ ከምዘይኮነ ምርዳእ ኣገዳሲ እዩ።

እምበኣር ክብደት ጸገምና ከምዚ ዝተጠቕሰ ካብ ኮነ፡ ናብ ንቡር ናይ ምምላሱ ሓላፍነትና ከኣ ክብደቱ ካብኡ ንላዕሊ እዩ። ሃገርናን ህዝብናን ካብዚ ዘለዉዎ ዘሕዝን፡ ዘገርምን ዘተዓዛዝብን ኩነታት ወጺኦም ንፋስ ራህዋ ከተንፍሱ ዝኽእልሉ ኩነታት ምፍጣር ኣብ እንግደዓ ናይቶም ንመሰረታዊ ለውጢ ንቃለስ ዘለና ኤርትራውያን ዘሎ ዕዳ እዩ። እዚ ዕዳዚ ናይቶም ሕሰም ህዝብናን ሕማቕ ምስሊ ሃገርናን ዘስቆርቁረና እምበር ነቶም ጉልባቦም ቀሊዖም ርእዮም ከምዘይርኣዩ ምስ ጉጅለ ህግደፍ ዝዓለዉ ውሕጅ ግዝያዊ ረብሓ ዝወሰዶም ውሑዳት ወገናትና ዝምልከት ኣይኮነን። ንሕና እቶም ጉዳይ ህዝብናን ሃገርናን ዝዓጠናን ምእንታኡ ንቃለስ ዘለናን”ደሓን ኣለና” እንዳበልና፡ ከምኦም ከይንዓሉ ከነስተብህል ይግበኣና።

ካብዚ ህዝብናን ሃገርናን ብሰንኪ ጉጅለ ህግደፍ ተዋሒጠምዎ ዘለዉ ሰልሚ ክንወጽእ ከም እንደሊ ዘዳዲ ኣይኮነን። ጭርሖና፡ ድሌትና፡ ኣዋጃትና፡ መደረታትናን ዕላላትናን ከምኡ ምዃኑ ፍሉጥ እዩ። እንተኾነ እዚ ጽቡቕ ድሌት ብውፉይን ምቕሉልን ተግባር እንተዘይተሰንዩ ፋይዳ የብሉን። እዚ በብኩርናዑ ጉጅም እንብሎ ናይ “ከምዚ ክንገብር ኣለና” ድምጺ ብ“ከምዚ ንገብር ኣለና” እንተዘይተሰንዩ ብዘይቃለዓለም ሕልሚ ኮይኑ እዩ ዝተርፍ። ህግደፍን ናይ ወጽዓ ስንክሳሩን ድማ ኣብዚ እንተፈታሕካዮ ባዶ ቁጻራት እዮም ዝነብሩ። ስለዚ ካብ “ክንገብር ይግበኣና” ናብ “ንገብር ኣለና” ክንሰግር እዋናዊ ጠለብ እዩ። ካብዚ ሓሊፉ እዝኒ ብዘይትግበር መብጸዓ ኣይትሃጥርን እያ።

ንሕና ብቓልስና፡ ካብዚ ንሃገርና ዓምጢርዋ ዘሎ ምኩሕ ዲክታተርነት ናጻ ክንወጽእ ይግበኣና። ቅድም ካብቲ ህግደፍ ዝሕበኣሉ ዘሎ ናይ 2009 ናይ ሕቡራት ሃገራት ማዕቀብ ዘይኮነ፡ ካብቲ ህግደፍ ኣብ ልዕሊ ህዝብና ኣንቢርዎ ዘሎ፡ ናይ ቁጠባ፡ ናይ ምንቅስቓስ፡ ናይ ምዝራብ፡ ናይ ምውዳብን ሓሳብካ ምግላጽን፡ ኣብ ዓድኻ ናይ ምንባር፡ ናይ ምንጋድ፡ ምምሃርን መሬት ናይ ምውናንን ማዕቀባት ናጻ ክንወጽእ ይግበኣና። ህግደፍ ንሱ ኣብ ልዕሊ ህዝቡ ዝጸዓኖ ማዕቀብ ሓቢኡ፡ ብቤት ምኽሪ ጸጥታ ሕቡራት ሃገራት ኣብ ልዕሊ መጠፋፋእቲ ላዕለዎት ሓለፍቱ ዝተበየነ ማዕቀብን ገበናዊ ተሓታትነትን ከልዕል ጸፋዕፋዕ ክብል እንከሎ፡ ኣብ ልዕሊ ህዝብና ዘሎ ኣርዑት ዘይኮርኮሓናስ ኣብ ክሳድ ህግደፍ ዘሎ ኣርዑት ዝያዳ ክዓጠና ከምዘይግባእ ንኹልና ንጹር ይመስለኒ። ህግደፍ ግና ብባህሪኡ ደገደገ ምምዕዳው እምበር፡ ናብ ውሽጡ ክርኢ ኣይተብዕን እዩ። ንሱስ ባህሪኡ ኮይኑ ንሕና እቶም ረብሓና ብመሰረቱ ካብ ረብሓ ህግደፍ ዝፍለ ኤርትራዊ ወገናትከ?

ኣብ ቅድሜና ዘሎ ዕማም ሓቀኛ ድሌት ጥራይ ዘይኮነ፡ ሓቀኛ ተግባር እንተዝውሰኾ እኮ ለውጢ ምውሓስ ከቢድ ኣይመኾነን። ንሕና ውጹዓትን መሰረታዊ መሰላትና ዝተገፈፍናን ኤርትራውያን ወገናት ርእስና እነድንነሉ፡ በላዕሰብ ህግደፍን ኣሳሰይቱን ድማ ሓለይቲ መሲሎም ክባጭዉን ክሕጭጩን እንከለዉ “ኮር ተገልበጥ” ከም ዘብል ኩልና ኣይንስሕቶን ኢና። ጉጅለ ህግደፍ ዋላ’ኳ ኣብ ኣደባባያት ዓው ኢሉ እንተዘይተዛረበሉን ንቓልስና ኣፍልጦ እንተዘይሃቦን፡ ኣይቋመተናን ማለት ይኮነን። እቲ ብግሁድ ይኹን ብስዉር ዝጥቀሞ ሜላ ከኣ ዘይሩዘይሩ ናይቶም ናይ ሓባር ወጽዓ ዘለና ወገናት ሓድነት ምድኻም ክሓልፍ ከምዘይክእል፡ ካብ ተመኩሮ ናይቶም ተመኩሮኦም ብህግደፍ ዝውረስ ዘሎ፡ በብመድረኹ ዝሓለፉ ገዛእቲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ እንርደኦ እዩ። ርግጽ እዩ ብብዙሕ ምኽንያታት ንጉጅለ ህግደፍ ብዓይኒ ናይቶም ኣብ ኤርትራ ዝሓለፉ ንህዝብና ድከት ዘስተይዎን ደም ዘንብዕዎን ገዛእቲ ምርኣዩ ንክብሪ ኤርትራ ምትንካፍ ኮይኑ ዝረኣዮም ወገናት ኣለዉ። እንተኾነ “ሓወይ ዝብል ኣይውቃዕካ” ዝብል ምስላ ወራዙ ከኣ ኣይንረስዕ።

ናብቲ ዘንቀለና ቀንዲ ጉዳይ ንመለስ። ነቶም ኣንጻር ጉጅለ ህግደፍ ተቓሊስና ተዓዊትና ብዓብይኡ “ናጻ፡ ልኡላውን ጉዳዩ ባዕሉ ዝውስን ህዝቢ” ክንከውን እንደልን ምእንታኡ እንቃለስ ዘለናን ዝጐድለና ብዙሕ ምዃኑ ርዱእ እዩ። ክሳብ ሕጂ ናይ ዘይምዕዋትና ምስጢር ከኣ ሓያልነት ህግደፍ ዘይኮነ ናትና ድኽመት እዩ። ናይ ጉድለትና ማእከል ከኣ ድሌትና ሓደ እንከሎ ብሓባር ክንወፍር ዘይምኽኣልና እዩ። ኣብዚ እዋንዚ “ብሓባር ከምዚ ክንገብር ኣለና” ዝብል ናይ ተስፋ ድምጺ ዘየድምጽ ውድብ፡ ሰልፊ፡ ማሕበር፡ ምሁርን ግዱስ ኤርትራዊ ዜጋን የለን። እዚ ክበሃል እንከሎ ግና፡ ነቶም ብዋጋ ህዝቦም ንህግደፍ ዝረዓሙ ውሑዳት ገዲፍካ እዩ። ኣብዚ ኩነታትዚ “እሞ ክሳብ ክንድዚ ብሓባር ምቅላስ እንኮ መዋጸኦ ምዃኑ ካብ ተረዳእኩም ደኣ ሓቢርኩም ዘይትስጉሙ?” ዝብል ሕያዋይ ሓታታይ እንተሓቲቱና መልስና እንታይ ከምዝኸውን እንድዒ። እቲ መልሲ “ትሕቲ ጉጭ ልዕሊ ጉጭ” ዝብል ዕባራ ምኽንያት እዩ ክኸውን። ስለዚ በዚ ዘለናዮ ናይ “ደላይን ተዕባይን” ኣገባብ እንተቐጺልና’ሞ ጽቡቕ ዘለና እንተመሲሉና ከምቲ “ውሕጅስ እንዳስሓቐ እዩ ዝወስድ” ዝበሃል ክንከውን ኢና። ካብዚ ክንድሕን እምበኣር “ክንገብር ይግበኣና፡ ዘይኮነ ንገብር ኣለና” ክንብል ግዜኡ ጽባሕ ዘይኮነ ሎሚ እዩ።