by M. Mikael, April 26, 2000

“This is not politics to us”, the Eritrean President Issayas loftily declares in a recent article in Newsweek (April 24, 2000), “The ports are open…any time they [donors] want to send food” (to the hungry in Ethiopia, that is). High-minded, magnanimous words, the casual observer unversed in the routine dealings of the “government” in Eritrea might think (which, unfortunately, is often the case than not)—especially considering the fact that Ethiopia and Eritrea are at war. To the people who faced the brunt of the naked aggression of this man and are still suffering its catastrophic effects, however, the reaction to these words is total disbelief and a sickening feeling bordering on revulsion. This is the guy, (a typical Ethiopian would muse), who ordered his aircraft to CLUSTER bomb a populated civilian area, far from any military activity, and caused the death and maiming of over 100 innocent people—including infants and young children playing in a school yard—and BRAGGED(!!) about it.

The feeling in the Eritrean camp, on the other hand, is an altogether different matter. The statement by their leader, (nauseating or otherwise), is to be taken as one more statement to prop the IMAGE that goes by the name of Eritrea. What sounds more noble and high-minded than offering your mortal enemy reprieve of any sort? Images being images, however, are invariably misleading.

And what of the opinion of the international community? All predictably, the international community (journalists included), have either fallen for simplistic deductions exhibiting the all too obvious disinterest in the affairs of poor nations such as ours or, chose to hide behind non-committal and “politically-safe” statements like “…all avenues need to be explored…”. The tragedy of the situation comes to bear when one contemplates that decisive positions on the part of the world community with regard to a clear-cut case of AGGRESSION could have avoided all this. Had the powers that be stood firm and demanded the reversal of aggression by the rogue “government” in Eritrea (proven beyond doubt early on by international mediators), the tragic situation of looming famine in the region in general and Ethiopia in particular would definitely have been avoided or reduced to manageable proportions. But that is spilt milk…one needs, perforce, to focus on the task at hand.

In the point of view of famine stricken Ethiopians (and thus, the Ethiopian government, Ethiopians at large and the HUMANITARIAN world community), the critical issue is availing timely relief aid and saving lives. The feasibility of implementing Issayas’ offer can, therefore, be viewed in two aspects. Firstly, the two nations being at war, the sincerity [and thus the character] of the party making the “noble and high-minded” offer (Issayas) need to be scrutinized. If no problems are encountered (if Issayas’ character and sincerity are found to be above reproach), then the technical feasibility of the offer can be looked into.

The question would, therefore, arise in response to the first aspect—who really are these people making the “magnanimous” offer? Would these be the same people who, for months, gleefully trumpeted the pain and suffering of our hunger afflicted—quoting none other than the Ethiopian government’s own plea for help? Would these be the same people who would stop at nothing, who contrary to civilized practice and norm, plastered the Internet with gruesome pictures of battlefield dead? Would this be the same “government” which:

• Stole more than 70,000 metric tonnes of relief grain—(a quantity of grain that would have greatly reduced and alleviated the looming danger of famine of the same people it profess to have sympathy for)—from this same port of Assab and fed it to its conscripts?

• Engaged in the really sad spectacle of alternately trying to accept and deny its responsibility in said grain theft in the, strange as it may sound, demented hope that it will receive relief aid to its starving conscripts in the name of hunger victims it refuses to acknowledge exist?

• Confiscated/sequestered and, it is said, auctioned off to finance its war, thousands of tonnes of commercial and development oriented material valued at over US $130 million and destined for Ethiopia through this same port of Assab and in the process ruined thousands of unsuspecting businessmen/women?

• Rounded up hundreds of Ethiopians, (to be used as ‘human shields’ in an “expected” attack on Assab), packed them inhumanely into steel containers and let them suffocate to a terrible death?

One can go on and on. And now they are telling the world that they “feel” for the Ethiopian people—that this is not “politics”? That they have no ulterior motive such as reviving a hitherto DEAD port at the expense of the Ethiopian people and the international donor community? That they have no interest in the small matter of collecting service fees in foreign currency desperately needed for the purchase of arms? I mean this is too much! The Ethiopian people may be poor and highly vulnerable to the whims of Mother Nature, but rest assured that they are not stupid. Granted, some people (especially those too apathetic or uncaring to pursue facts to the end), might question the validity of some of the statements above. But let’s for the moment accept them at their face value. Would any one then be surprised if the Ethiopian government were leery at accepting any offer of help or any gesture of “humanitarian” concern from such quarters as a party which engaged in all of the above despicable acts? No, I don’t think anyone will. And I assure you that all of the statements above are facts verified and easily verifiable by any one willing to look below the veneer of Eritrean double-talk and international apathy.

Hoodwinking at all levels, it unfolds, is the central policy tenet and modus operandi of the Eritrean leaders. They try to hoodwink the world at large, they try to hoodwink their neighbors, they even try to hoodwink us Ethiopians but, worst of all, they try to hoodwink their own people.

These are the people who would have us believe that they live in an Eritrea where the vagaries of weather are “civilized” enough to distinguish man-made borders [of a former European colony] and proffer rain on the Eritrean side of a drought affected region. These are the people who would have the world believe that, (whatsoever the facts might indicate), it would be unseemly to consider even for a single moment that Eritrean nationals would be stricken by famine or have us believe that the cattle of the vast majority lowlander nomadic Eritreans can graze on dry, parched land. Maintain the IMAGE at any cost, is the message. Take, for instance, Issayas’ reply to—considering past experience with the rogue state—a perfectly legitimate question from a Newsweek reporter on what “guarantees [he has provided]” that the food will indeed be delivered (issue of April 17). “This is stupid”, he is quoted as saying, “No one is interfering….They can’t use this as an excuse…”. Obviously, Issayas believes everybody is stupid if he thinks he can get away with such statements as these and get his hand on grain supplied by guileless donors. And again obviously, it seems that he is not aware of the fact that one can’t forever live a lie. And how will all this translate to the hunger afflicted Ethiopians waiting to receive relief aid shipped through Assab? They will perhaps receive it in the next world is the sad conclusion.

Examination of the other aspect outlined above—that of the technical feasibility of Issayas’ offer—reveals even more the serpentine character of the “government” of Eritrea and lays bare its twisted intentions.

The port of Assab has now been totally IDLE for close to two years. A port that used to process about 75% of Ethiopia’s imports has sadly been reduced to handle the occasional troop carrier or supply boat for the Eritrean army. What does this really mean? Any technically disposed person knows the highly detrimental effect of normal exposure to the elements of climate on idle machinery and equipment. Moreover, the fact that the effect of the elements on EVEN properly protected and regularly maintained idle machinery and equipment located in coastal areas can be quite devastating is commonly known. ‘Proper protection and regular maintenance’ would definitely not be the case in Assab, where [the small matter] of hurried and sustained conscription of all able bodied persons into the army has but created the best of situations for its port machinery and equipment. One can, therefore, easily perceive the condition of machinery and equipment abandoned to the elements in the port of Assab. Add to this the suddenly (and shamefully) expedient claim of Issayas—(in response to charges of grain theft and his feeble attempt to avoid liability)—that the port was bombed by Ethiopian warplanes. Although it is not above Issayas and his well-oiled hoodwinking machinery to have us believe that the bombing selectively destroyed Ethiopian destined grain and goods(!), any reasonable person can deduce that any bombing of the port, (taking Issayas at his word on the bombing, that is), would not have spared facilities of the port.

So how are the cargoes of the expected hundreds of thousands of tonnes of relief grain and supplies to be handled in the ghost port of Assab? Perhaps Issayas has a suggestion. Forgive me for being sarcastic, but he sure will not to tell us that it would only take two to three months to repair/replace the rusted, corroded and “bombed” machinery, equipment and facilities. And the fact that it might be too late for the Ethiopians facing famine? “Well, we don’t like to be ‘bulldozed’”, he is sure to say, “Don’t try our patience and generosity. One thing at a time. We will think about that after we repair the port of Assab’s facilities”. It will be informative to note that the welfare of Ethiopians has never been and will never be the concern of this ruthless dictator masquerading as a latter-day humanitarian.

But the condition of the machinery, equipment and other facilities in the port of Assab by itself becomes a non-issue when one considers the state of war prevalent in Assab and its environs for the last two years. The place is practically bristling with armament of all sorts but the most serious danger posed for relief operations would be by booby-traps and mines that the Eritreans themselves admit are literally strewn in the area and encircle Assab. Forgive me for being sarcastic again, but has anyone heard Issayas mention the small matter of how he intends to clear the mines or otherwise make the overland delivery process on his side of the border safe? Safe in time for the relief grain and supplies to make a difference in saving lives? No, I don’t think so.

Would anyone with these facts say that Assab is the best route to supply the famine stricken area of Ethiopia? It is when one mulls over these things that irresponsible and often uncaring reports in the international media rankle.

Unfortunately, such reports have an impact on the relief effort the world is trying to mount. Take, for instance, a statement in an article in the April 24 issue of Newsweek: “The most efficient way to get emergency food to Ethiopian hunger zones is via the port of Assab in Eritrea…”. How on earth did the authors of the article come to such a conclusion? Is it because of Assab’s proximity to the stricken area? No, of course not. Even a perfunctory look at the map provided in the article itself would show that Assab is hundreds of kilometers farther from Gode than both Djibouti and Berbera. Is it because of Assab’s port facilities? It is common knowledge that both Djibouti and Berbera happen to have much larger capacity and more efficient facilities than Assab. Where did the authors get the information they based their conclusion on? From Eritrea? It is really sad. And it costs lives.

It is unfortunate that the Ethiopian government has not been successful in making the world aware of such simple truths. Even with the glaring truth at its side, it has not been able to overcome the prejudices of skeptical observers, let alone the hoodwinking machine of Issayas. As a frustrated Ethiopian netter once noted, the Ethiopian government’s PR drive is just a disaster. But this shouldn’t be reason for Issayas & Co.’s vitriolic PR to win the day. I believe that all Ethiopians have the responsibility to make the actual facts known in whatever way they find suitable. Truth will eventually prevail it is true, but not if left shrouded.