TERRITORIAL CLAIM IS BASELESS

The Cabinet of Ministers of the Eritrean government in its meeting held on May 20, 1998 mentioned Alitena, the heart of Irob, among the Ethiopian territories that it claimed. It was a few days after the Eritrean armed forces invaded the environs of Yirga Triangle in northwest Ethiopia. In their statement issued on that day (May 20) the Cabinet ironically stated, "the government of Eritrea regrets and condemns the use of force to resolve problems as it believes that the solution lies in negotiated and peaceful means." Exactly ten days later the same government invaded the Irob region.

Before last May the Eritreans never, officially, claimed Irob, during the referendum or in any other occasion. On the contrary, they had been affirming in clear terms that Irob is part of Ethiopia. In one of the chapters of their manual where they explained about Cushitic languages spoken in Eritrea, for example, we find the following passage: "---Saho is also the language of the Irob people who inhabit the north eastern part of Tigray in Ethiopia." In another geographic manual prepared in Tigrinia and that contains all localities and small villages of Eritrea in detail neither Irob nor any locality in it are mentioned.

Professor Asmeron Legese of Eritrea in an interview he gave to the VOA's Amharic service last month (Sept.'98) affirmed that his government occupied Irob region not because it claims it but for other purposes. The Eritrean officials' statements have been contradictory regarding the Irob region. In private they tell you that they occupied the Irob land not to stay but for strategic purposes and that eventually they will withdraw from it. When asked in interviews or they give official statements, either they do not answer or they simply say Alitena is in Eritrea, singling out one locality in the center of the region out of the whole area. Eritrean foreign minister Haile Woldensae in an interview he gave to VOA few days ago, when asked precisely about Irob and Zalanbesa, first he said Alitena is Eritreann; then when he was asked in what bases he could say so; he said: as borders in those areas have never been properly delineated there could be mistakes and if arbiters tell us that certain territories do not belong to us, we will respect that.

Anyway Irob has never been part of Eritrea and any claim by the Eritrean government, therefore, is baseless. It has never been administered by or paid taxes to any administration located in Eritrea, be it before the Italian colonization of the region, during the colonial period, during the British military administration of it, during federation or after. Even when fascist Italy occupied the whole nation of Ethiopia, reincorporating Eritrea in it, the Italians administered Irob through the town of Adigrat, not through Adiqeyih or any other administrative center in Eritrea.

Another very important point is that when the territorial conventions held between Italy and Emperor Menelik the two sides agreed that Irob had been, and is, part and parcel of Agame, therefore Ethiopia. The Irob leaders played important role in this, by presenting the historical background of Irob to the authorities. A delegation lead by Belata Naizghi of Adgadee-Are traveled to Adwa to meet Dej. Gebre-Selassie, the head of Ethiopian territorial commission, to brief him about Irob's case. Other Irob leaders like Ras Sebhat did as much by personally contacting the commissioners of both sides.

The Irob people paid heavy sacrifices fighting the colonialists to remain Ethiopians as ever. They have long said no to any attempt that could make them not Ethiopians. And there will never be peace in the area unless the aggressors completely leave every part of the forcefully occupied territories. No bargains, and no divisions among the Irob people, will be accepted. The invaders should not have any illusion because of the Irob peoples refrain from counter actions during the last five months leaving the handling of the matter to their government.

The Irob people have never bowed to foreign attempts of domination lowheaded and will never in the future. The routine behavior of EPLF leaders invading other peoples' territories and suggesting negotiations will not work for them with the Irob in particular and the Ethiopian people in general. The Eritrean rulers know this very well and that is why their army is not acting like a national army claiming the territories and the inhabitants as part of his country but as a mere gang of bandits come to kill, ravage and steal. All they are doing is systematic destruction of every thing the countryside people need to run normal life. Any normal government, when it has any justification for its claim, tries to gain the support of the concerned people. What the Eritrean government has demonstrated so far is the exact opposite: underestimation of and irrespect for the people. When president Isayas asked in an interview last May, if he takes in consideration the will of the concerned people, he answered: "The farmers and the shepherds do not know their borders." It is disappointing to hear such a statement from someone who lived with the countryside people for decades. Those who know the real borders in detail and where they belong are, in fact, the local people more than anyone else does.

Journalists and others who wrote about the "disputed" territories also manifested the disregard for the people. What they underlined was the quality of the land: "scorched land," "rocky land" etc. No body showed a concern for the plight of the people. In my opinion the priority should be given to the will of the concerned peoples. There is nothing worse than telling some one, under point of gun, "from now on we give you another identity and another citizenship." No human being, in general and no Ethiopian in particular can take this. It is one of the worst violations of human beings. Even animals prefer to live in the environment they are used to. The same people currently ruling Eritrea and suppressing other peoples' fate had been, for decades, asking for a referendum for their cause.

Besides the basic factor of the deprivation of identity the cruelty of the Eritrean army is unprecedented, at least in that part of the world. Even Italian fascists did not boot out elderly and disabled people from their homes in cold and rainy season. The worst thing the Italian fascists did to the Ethiopian people was the use of illegal poisoned gas. The Eritrean rulers who started the war by dropping cluster bombs at school children and other innocent civilians will not desist from using similar weapons if they can acquire them.

The Eritrean government, after it occupied the Ethiopian territories that have never been part of Eritrea argued that there are clear international borders between the two countries and that Ethiopia has violated them. The reverse is true and the International community knows that even if it has been irresponsible for not having condemned and pressurized the invader to withdraw.

The Eritrean rulers have been also circulating the colonial map and asking for arbitration based on it. They are talking about the map drown according to the 'agreements' signed between Menelik's Ethiopia and the colonial Italy supported by the imperialist powers of the time. Whatever validity they may had, those agreements were violated by Italy itself more than half a century ago. In 1935,when Italy occupied the whole nation of Ethiopia, reincorporated Eritrea in it, and created new internal demarcations for the Ethiopian Empire it invalidated the previously agreed on borders as it had been doing from the very beginning. Starting from the day Italy set its foot in Eritrea it proceeded on encroaching previous agreements until the day it left defeated. The whole scheme of the Italians, after all, was not colonization of Eritrea per se, but using it as a temporary station for their larger plan to colonize the whole nation of Ethiopia of which Eritrea had been an integral part. They demonstrated this at the end of the 19th century when the Italian armed forces attempted to occupy the whole country if they were not stopped by being defeated in Adwa and other places. Again in 1935 Italy, totally ignoring the so-called 'international treaties' and borders, occupied the whole nation and reincorporated Eritrea in it. Those one sided agreements signed under the gun point of colonial powers who had coordinated conspiracy against the only independent nation in Africa, therefore, should not have validity, not only because they were nullified by Italy itself in 1935, but also because Ethiopia, Eritrea included in it, was already internationally recognized nation. Hence, colonial lines viewed, by the OAU, as the only solution for African nations whose 'legal' boundaries were created by the colonial powers should not have been the same for a sovereign nation pre-existed the colonial repartition of Africa.

Another point is that after Italy was defeated in Ethiopia to which it had reunited Eritrea it never administered separate Eritrea again. Therefore the EPLF leaders' highly orchestrated claim that they are the heirs of a country belonged to Italians is legally questionable. The case is not as clear as they may think. Therefore, sticking to the colonial maps will not help anyone. Instead of colonial maps, the parts would have done better job if they tried to resolve the dispute by taking in consideration the traditional affiliation and will of the inhabitants of the disputed areas. The maps drown without any scientific base and appropriate physical knowledge of the localities will never be a solution. In the contrary, they will cause endless disturbances and instability in the region. Borders east of Belesa had not been delineated. The questionable colonial treaties are not enough to be legal base to deal about 'international borders', more importantly, they must not be pretext to invade the rest of Ethiopia. I am not, at all, against the Eritrean independence as far as it is the choice of the people. But the claim should not be based on inconsistent and legally arguable colonial footings. The destiny of peoples should not be based on legalities and above all the colonial legacy should not transcend the historical bonds and actual choice of the people.

If Isayas is left to proceed on the direction he has been marching so far, I will not wonder, if he comes out claiming new territories based on post-1935 Italian demarcation of the Ethiopian Empire. It must be bare in mind that the border of 'LA GRANDE ERITREA' is not limited at Mereb. He must be stopped! And the Eritrean people should not applaud to whatever step Isayas takes if they want peaceful coexistence with the brotherly people of Ethiopia.

- Souba Hais

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LOCATION, LANGUAGE AND RELIGION
BACKGROUND
CULTURE
EDUCATION
POLITICAL BACKGROUND
THE ERITREAN INVASION