A
proud nation, which was exemplary in its fight for sovereignty against
all kinds of intruders from the Dervish, Turks, Egyptians, and British
to Italians, has been degraded into a nation with no history. A country
of heroes with vigor and bravery has been transformed into a spineless
bunches of cowards. Ethiopians who for long time preserved their national
entity and interest are now “willingly“ giving away territories, which
belongs to her under the auspices of “peaceful border demarcation/delimitation”.
Where are her people and where are the souls, who inhabit her far stretched
fields, mountains, gorges, arid and semiarid plains, sea, rivers and beautiful
landscapes? Is the people of Ethiopia, who really define and live within
her boundary and who used to appreciate and hail forefathers for their
firm resistance and independence, going to accept without any participation
in whatever form it may, an inglorious ruling and let their country be
landlocked forever, citizens uprooted and villages abandoned? Is this generation
going to bear the condemnation of Ethiopia’s historic rights and accept
the dictator’s plot with the sworn enemies in dismantling the whole nation?
Territories
Ethiopians have not lost during successive wars with colonialists are to
be soon negotiated away peacefully under the aegis of UN peacekeepers and
border commissioners. UN peacekeepers, who armed to their teeth and with
their machine guns and heavy armory on their jeeps are not only patrolling
the “Southern Border of the Temporary Security Zone” but are with their
warlike uniforms searching places and vehicles as far away as Axum, Adigrat
(electric-fenced headquarter with some incidents of local people) and all
the way between Shire to Mekelle. Thus, the Meles regime not only is ceding
Ethiopian lands but is also letting the people live under the siege of
foreign “peaceful” forces! For the first time after the Second World War
some 60 years ago, the Ethiopian land-the Sovereign land not desecrated
by any power has been “occupied” by foreign forces, although their stay
was thought to be within the confines of the so-called TSZ.
Do
we ever remember that the Ethiopian army was deep in the so-called Eritrean
territory, trashing the fascist army of Isaias, that the peacekeepers were
to be composed of African armies and the OAU to head the operation, that
the source of the conflict of May 12,1998 was to be investigated, that
the war crime tribunal was to be carried out with all the evidences (among
others the cluster bombings of school children and Adigrat residents, the
systematic killing of the Irob and Afar peoples), that the whereabouts
of our compatriots and those languishing in the prisons, dungeons and mental
hospitals are unresolved, that his trade agreements and military pact with
his Eritrea has never been ratified by the Ethiopian Parliament, etc. All
these crimes were to be concealed in order to save the comrade-in-arms
and long-time friends of Meles and divert our attention to imaginary but
unacceptable border demarcation/delimitation. (See
my previous article on the Ethio-Eritrean border war http://www.oocities.org/~dagmawi/NewsApr2000/Comment_Abdu_Thoughts.html).
How
many of our compatriots did fall victims to the warmonger and fascist friend
of Meles not only during the 1998-2000 “nonsensical war” according to Isaias
but also during the whole phase of the so-called Eritrean liberation years
and independence? No paid lawyer could have done a better job than this
disguised Eritrean within the Ethiopian political elite. Who will ever
forget his authorship of the so-called book “The struggle of the Eritrean
people from where to where” teaching us about our colonial relationship
to Eritrea and its peoples’ exploitation by the feudo-capitalist Ethiopia
and his virulent attack and writing “The barrel of the Eritrean people
will never point down” in defense of EPLF against the famous Eritrean opposition
head-person Dr Tesfatsion. The prerequisite or qualification to join the
TPLF’s armed struggle or other satellite movements was not what people
did have for belief or dedication to the cause of Ethiopia, it was primarily
based on what stand and approach they had on the “colonial question and
secession of Eritrea”. Raising or even mentioning the Eritrean question
made Meles furious or outrageous as to place people in camps of anti-people
or pro-Derg, anti-peace or warmongers (among others when he recommended
university students to go and have their own fight with Eritrea), chauvinists,
narrow nationalists, etc. The Meles regime is incomparably to the Derg
so hateful and disastrous to the very existence of Ethiopia and Ethiopians.
Policy
formulations to safeguard the peoples’ welfare, national interest and security
of Ethiopia have led to mass death both in wars and famines as well as
total submissiveness of the territorial integrity of Ethiopia. Meles, who
came to power by outwitting his comrades both during the armed struggle
and now under the pretext of diehard communists cannot this time lure the
whole world about how Ethiopia is managed or mismanaged. In contrast to
his greed and struggle for power behind the curtains, the Ethiopian people
are openly demanding in written protest letters, petitions and demonstrations
and are telling the world that this regime does not represent the true
interests of Ethiopia and Ethiopians, that this regime is in collusion
with the Eritrean regime and that this regime does not and will not renounce
its earlier policy and decision on the territorial integrity of Ethiopia.
Ethiopians of all ages and genders are also telling the world that recognition
of a landlocked Ethiopia with Africa’s third populous country only can
lead to a spiral of wars and instability and that abandoning ones own citizens
is a heinous crime committed by a malevolent regime, bent on creating mayhem
to Ethiopia and her neighbors.
The
irony of all ironies is that while Meles testifies that the Afar Red Sea
Coast and the Barka-Gash Setit belongs to his compatriot and dictator-in-arms
Isaias, his minion and errand-boy Mesfin, the foreign minister is talking
about recruitment and payment of huge sums to the “best recognized” international
law firms to show that Badme and Burre are Ethiopian territories. Ethiopia,
which is endowed with a huge collection of documents and prominent Ethiopian
historians and scholars, who can fight, confirm and support her cause,
argue for and defend her legally on the border issues are deliberately
sidelined and considered as enemies by the Meles regime. Meles, the narcissist
boy who from time to time poses as the most informed and educated cartographer,
geographer, lawyer and historian Ethiopia has ever had, had already in
his secret negotiations with Isaias sold out the territorial integrity
of Ethiopia. Both during the armed struggle and his numerous meetings with
Isaias, he has shown his dedication to fulfill the wishes of Eritreans.
It didn’t come as a surprise attack for Meles (he was both informed by
his PB and CC members and representatives of the “mass”), though he deceitfully
has been telling the Ethiopian people “he was stabbed in the back”, when
Isaias sent troops and occupied large chunks of the Ethiopian territory.
What the Eritreans and Isaias, the disciple of Mussolini did was that they
“rightfully occupied land, which rightly belonged to them” according to
the promises, secret arrangements and agreements concluded with their wedi
Zenawi. We heard how massive and spiteful propagandas were waged against
those who stood up and fought hard against the invading new fascists, while
Meles was mentioned as peaceful and even invited time and again to a for
face-to-face meeting by Isaias.
Documents,
which federated Eritrea with Ethiopia by the UN, were deliberately obliterated
so that century-old “agreements” were recalled to justify the nationhood
of Eritrea. Do these agreements have any relevance to today’s Ethiopia?
Didn’t Ethiopia have the legal status of rescinding those old agreements
and renegotiate and reinvigorate our obligations to the UN and take care
of our lost territory? If Eritrea was going to be independent, who was
and is the other party to Ethiopia in negotiations concerning territorial
demarcation and delimitation? Amateurs and laymen, who are destined to
destroy all possibilities not only for this generation but also for the
coming generations, are sidelining issues of paramount interest for our
Ethiopia. Politicians with short memories and naiveté are what Ethiopia
is suffering from. We all know the huge sums of money invested in the “Eritrean
ports” Assab and Massawa to increase the facilities and expedite the ever
growing needs of Ethiopia. Similar investments were done in Djibouti, which
leased the port services to a firm in Dubai. More is now invested in Port
Sudan and the “longest highway” to accommodate Ethiopia as “free port”
for its imports and exports. Other ports, such as Berbera and Mombassa
are in queue to be refurbished and equipped by borrowed money. We all also
know the insecurities, vulnerabilities, instabilities, changes of alliances
and distances of these ports and states. Sometime ago, when I approached
and asked a party member, whom I heard has now a portfolio in Meles’ government,
about the impossibility of not having own port, then the response was “we
are building everywhere runways so that direct import and export is possible
by Ethiopian Airlines”! When told about the expenses and if the problems
with our neighbors prevail, then he exclaimed, “we are going to war”! This
is a simple snapshot of how irresponsibility and immaturity mixed with
fear for purge and imprisonment by Meles and the safe heaven for corruption
may adulterate once conviction and ignorance. Selling oneself for aid money
and pay obeisance to his new masters is worth more than the sovereignty
of Ethiopia. Countries, which condemned us for defending ourselves from
aggressors (according to Article 51 of the UN Charter) and imposed on us
arms embargo have suddenly found a person, who of his own volition, conviction
and by using the security and police is ready to hand over the territories
of Ethiopia for paltry handouts and personal enrichment.