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Eritrean community radio divides Minnesota Eritreans

By Sheila Regan, TC Daily Planet An ongoing controversy involving the Eritrean Community Radio program on KFAI, which airs on Sunday afternoons, continues to divide the Twin Cities Eritrean community, with no resolution in sight. The program, which started in

By Sheila ReganTC Daily Planet

An ongoing controversy involving the Eritrean Community Radio program on KFAI, which airs on Sunday afternoons, continues to divide the Twin Cities Eritrean community, with no resolution in sight. The program, which started in the 1990s, is hosted by Essey Asbu, a board member of the Eritrean Community Center, based in St. Paul. Another group, the Eritrean Forum of Minnesota, claims the KFAI program takes a pro-Eritrean government stance, and wants an alternative point of view to be heard.

Over the last couple of years, a number of contentious meetings have been held at KFAI, with Eritrean Forum members demanding time on the program, while many of the program’s listeners (and KFAI contributors) object to the Forum’s point of view.

Eritrean Forum position

Steve Paulos, a member of the Eritrean Forum of Minnesota, moved to the United States in 1974, when Eritrea was a part of Ethiopia. “We’re only asking to have constitutional country,” he said.

Paulos said the KFAI program follows only government-run news. “It’s transmit directly from Eritrea,” Paulos said. “He gives news from one station. We object to that.”

Paulos said the KFAI Eritrean community radio program was “given to everybody to serve the people living here. Unfortunately, it’s been taken over by pro-government people.”

According to Mugaleto Baka, another Forum member, one result from their meetings with KFAI last year was the advice that someone from the Eritrean Forum take volunteer training and begin volunteering with the station. Baka took part in the training program, with the hope that afterwards their group would be able to air their viewpoint. “We were understanding that the hour would be divided in two,” he said.

At first, Baka said, Vargas told him that he would have to submit a copy of whatever announcement the Forum wanted aired. Then, he was told that it was up to Asbu whether to air it or not.

“We’ve been trying to remain neutral on the subject,” said Vargas. “Our programmer is not required to address a U.S. travel warning.”

Essey Asbu’s position

Essey Asbu began volunteering for the program to help a friend in 1998, and 1999 joined as a host of the program, eventually to host by himself, he said.

The basic goal of the Eritrean Community Radio program, Asbu said, is to bring news about Eritrea. Back in the late 1990s, when Eritrea was at war with Ethiopia, “a lot of people didn’t have access to the internet,” he said. Any information people received was through VHS tape, which was often months old. Throughout the years, the program has also incorporated some cultural news as well.

“We can build a bridge between people here and people at home,” he said.

According to Asbu, each program has about 20 minutes of news in the Tigrigna language, with English portions as well.

According to Asbu, Eritrea, as a third world country, has been devastated by war, with entire cities erased. In one of the Northern Cities, only one mosque remained after the war, because, he said, the Ethiopians left it standing so they could find the city.

Since the wars, Eritrea is basically “starting from scratch,” he said. “We were bombed to the stone ages.” The country has few amenities, but the people “pride ourselves in the peace in our country. No one carries guns.”

But Forum members disagree with that assertion. According to Habtemaryam, who came to the United States in 2004, after leaving Eritrea in 2001, Eritrea is a very unsafe place. “Everyone has a gun,” he said. And citizens must request permission to move from one place to another.

Recent controversy over call-in

More recent controversy has erupted over Asbu’s refusal to air a travel warning from the U.S. State Department that explained current conditions that can be faced while traveling to Eritrea. Then, on June 9, Forum member Habtemaryam called in to the program to talk about the 22 years since Eritrean independence. Forum members claim Asbu didn’t allow Habtemaryam to speak, and was generally rude to him.

Habtemaryam’s call on the program this past spring isn’t the first time he’s appeared on the show, Asbu said, and his appearances are always controversial.  Many Eritreans here in Minnesota, he said, don’t like to “let the dirty laundry out. It’s hard to have an open discussion about anything.”

“Every time I have a call-in program, people get disgruntled,” Asbu said, and no one has called more than Habtemaryam. On the Eritrean Independence Day, Habtemaryam called in, and wanted to discuss the 22 years of independence.

Habtemaryam also wanted Asbu to issue a travel warning, saying that there’s trouble for Americans going to Eritrea. The announcement described how if people travel, they must have their passports with them at all times.

On the June 9 show, Habtemaryam said that Asbu wouldn’t allow him to finish talking, and began attacking him. One of their disagreements was about whether there was a university in Eritrea.

Another was Habtemaryam’s contention that 4,000 people flee Eritrea every month, which was reported by the United Nations.

After the interview was finished, Habtemaryam said that Asbu “undermined him” in the media, saying he was stupid and other insults, and attacked him more the following week.

Asbu said he challenged Negassi, saying he had to back it up with facts. “I have to be able to ask questions,” said Asbu.

According to Asbu, Habtemaryam said Eritrea’s independence has been hijacked. Asbu, in turn, wanted to point out improvements in education and health care since the country’s devestation during the Ethiopian war.

According to Asbu, one university was closed in the mid-1990s because “it was not serving its intended purposes.” He said it has been since reassigned to take in law and medical school.  He also said there are seven new colleges since 2000, offering studies in agriculture, sciences, social sciences, etc.

The Eritrean Forum “say I’m an apologist for the government,” he said, but he denies that. He does oppose the sanctions imposed by the United Nations on Eritrea due to their devastating effect. He also takes issue with claims that Eritrea violates human rights.

Asbu acknowledges that young people are fleeing the country, but he says the main reason is economics, and the bad living conditions of Eritrea. Even top ministers abandon their work and go to other countries, in order to pay for their families, Asbu said.

Asbu also acknowledges that there is no independent media in Eritrea, but he says the reason is because in 1995-2000, media was thriving in the country, and there was controversy about media funded by the United States, and so it was forbidden.

The country has had Internet since 2000, but the speed has been very bad. Cell phones became available in 2007. “There is progress,” he said. “Sometimes the very people advocating for change become the biggest stumbling block,” he said.

In 2008, Eritrea kicked out the NGOs, because food aid “has to be self limiting,” Asbu said. “If it doesn’t have an end line, it’s just money for the NGOS. 80 billion dollars go for NGOs every year.”

Eritrea gave up a lot of the aid, and it was a difficult moment, but by 2010, they were feeding the people, he said.

The main stumbling block for peace, Asbu said, is the continuing border dispute. “Ethiopia should pull out,” he said, so that the 350,000 soldiers that are waiting at the border can go home.

Asbu said he gets attacked on both ends, with some from the community saying he’s too liberal, and other saying he’s pro-government. “I’m not going to go out of my way to talk about our great president is.  At the same time-  I won’t say he’s a thief,” he said.

Asbu said he likes to focus the conversation during call-in sessions. Habtemaryam is one of the few people that is willing to put his name out.  Others- no matter what their political views, shy away from speaking out.

KFAI’s response

Last year, former KFAI Executive Director Janis Lane-Ewart agreed to allow the Forum members to contribute announcements and news items to be aired as part of the program.

Notes from the board packet on April 16, 2012, indicate that Lane-Ewart and News Director Dale Connelly met the Eritrean Community Radio host and community members. At that time, Lane-Ewart said, “The programmer is expected to present public announcements as provided to him, and that translation of the program by two impartial translators will begin after pledge drive,” according to the board packet. “These translations are intended to determine if the program is fair, unbiased and representing the views of all Eritreans in the Twin Cities.”

According to KFAI Programming Director Miguel Vargas, the programmer does air announcements if they are not too long. “There are times where some things can be aired like events and announcements,” he said, but often Eritrean Forum members submit “long, opinionated pieces they would like recorded and placed on the show.”

When asked about translations for the portions of the show that are not in English, Vargas said that KFAI doesn’t have translations.

Last August, the Eritrean Forum submitted an announcement that referenced human rights violations by the Eritrean government.

“Management thought it was lengthy,” Vargas said. “It was very political.” Vargas asked the Forum members to make the comment shorter, and he said they got upset, and felt it was censorship. They went to the Board of Directors, who in turn requested that the programming committee investigate the issue.

A meeting in October 2012 “got out of hand,” according to Vargas, and there was no amicable resolution.

KFAI’s programming committee then decided to give Vargas authority to nix any announcements that he doesn’t deem suitable, he said.

“What KFAI has tried to do is stay outside out of the political part of it,” said Vargas.

Asbu is a board member of the Eritrean Community Center of Minnesota, which holds events at a space on University of Minnesota, According to Vargas, members of the ECC have been very supportive of the radio program. “He has a supportive listening audience out there,” he said, which also includes pledge money.

Those listeners associated with the ECC call in to complain when the radio program airs announcements from Eritrean Forum, or when guests such as Habtemaryam call into the program.

“It’s not an easy thing,” said Vargas. “That’s when we realized-  we need to stay neutral.  We need to give better guidelines about getting messages through.”

“Essey has every right as an programmer to set an agenda.  It’s really on the guest to be cooperative with that.”

One alternative that Vargas has suggested to the forum group is to do their own web programming, which could be presented on KFAI’s web page, but so far, they have declined.

Thoughts from others in the community

Marta Merzi, a young woman from Liberia, said she’s a supporter of people having their own opinions, but she said that the members of the Eritrean Forum aren’t given facts. “It’s more venting,” she said.

One of her main issues was with Habtemaryam’s claims that there are no schools, or food in Eritrea. According to Merzi, Asmara University, which was shut down in the aftermath of the war, has re-opened, and there is also Orotta School of Medicine as well a new institute called “The Confucius Institute.”

Merzi said she’s a skeptic of all news. Eritrea, she said, is not looked upon very highly in Western news sources.  She questions some negative allegations about the Eritrean government; such as the coup that she says was not really a coup.

Amnesty International, which claims human rights abuses by Eritrea, she said, is using the claims as a political tactic to “dethrone the ‘other’” she said. “There are plenty of human rights issues around the world that Amnesty International has not spoken on.”

Merzi visited Eritrea in 2002, when she was 17. Although she was not fluent in the language, she said she felt empowered to see so many people with brown skin who looked like her, and people in the government that looked like her as well. There was religious diversity, she said, which she found powerful.

Merzi enoucrages people not to trust government sponsored news either. “Use your own reasoning,” she said. “There are many sources of information. Be fair.”

Rahwa Tesfe, a member of the Eritrean Forum of Minnesota, left Eritrea when she was eight years old, in 1989. She’s been in the United States since 1993.

When Eritrea first gained independence, Tesfe said, “everybody was happy. We are one now, we are united.”  Some people living in the United States moved back. But in 1998, the Border War started with Ethiopia, and people started dividing.

Now, Tesfe said, people are aware of what’ happening to their brothers and sisters in Eritrea, but they “can’t talk out loud, they can’t voice their opinion.”

People who want to go back to Eritrea are especially fearful, she said, because if the government finds out they were speaking out, they will go to prison.

Tesfe said the Eritrean community radio program should serve all Eritreans. She’s been involved in writing leaders and speaking with staff at KFAI about what they can do.

Source: TC Daily Planet

aseye.asena@gmail.com

Review overview
57 COMMENTS
  • ahmed saleh July 27, 2013

    Essey Asbu looks as opportunist person with two faces . We encounter many like him who do not have a firm stand .
    The words out their mouth say something and their deeds prove something else . I admire Habtemaiam’s courage to
    straighten-up the credibility of that radio station in Eritreans voice program . I wish him good luck to bring
    back a public station which is independent from any political affilations .

  • ssara1 July 27, 2013

    Mr Essey Asbu,These facts are not “dirty laundry” as you put it. It is called first class ATROCITIES, CRIMES, FRAUD, DICTATORSHIP, CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, UN ERITREAN ACT, AND IT IS PUNISHABLE BY DEATH. THOSE MANY ERITREAN IN MINNESOTA, DON’T WANT THE CRIME TO BE EXPOSED ARE COLLABORATORS OF THE DICTATOR’S CRIME AGAINST OUR PEOPLE IN ERITREA. YES, THEY ARE LIVING IN THE FREE WORLD TO LIVE PEACEFULLY AND RAISING THEIR CHILDREN AS THEY WISH. HOWEVER, THEY DON’T WANT THE ERITREAN PEOPLE IN ERITREAN TO HAVE THE SAME RIGHT. WHAT A SHAMEFUL PEOPLE. I WANDER WHAT THEY ARE GETTING OUT OF THIS CRIME. MARK MY WORD, THEY WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR ACTIONS.

    • Genet July 29, 2013

      Dear ssara1,
      Next time, when you paste, cut and copy other peoples’ post, you make sure you use a quetation mark. other whise the paste, cut and copy of a larger note would not make sense. Use a quetation mark.
      What ever you do, Keep participating!
      Genet

  • Simerrr2012 July 27, 2013

    Essey Asbu, you already decided to live with shame the rest of your life after the fall of PFDJ.Let me tell you who you are …you left Eritrea when other brave Eritreans joined the EPLF or ELF, you came to USA as refugee to save your worthless life when other brave Eritreans students and graduates from US Universities went back to die for freedom and justice.You get married and give the best you can to your children when Eritrean children are suffering under this brutal dictator.You defend the dictator in a free country by abusing the freedom of information.You call your self apologist but you are more than that you are criminal who support and advocate dictatorship living in a country of Abraham Lincoln, George Washington and Martin Luther King.If you get a gun and go back home to bring Isayas back to power after Eritreans get rid of him, then you have a reason to live and die. But I can assure you you will be the first who will dance and tell people oh i did not that and play again the same game what you are doing now political prostitution ….all the so called supporters of pfdj have no clear stand and character. All who marry my mother is my father.

  • Negasi July 27, 2013

    We seek simply basic human right and rule of law in Eritrea. Essey stop defending to one of the most totalitarian leaders in the world.

  • Yorda July 27, 2013

    We know how Essey and his family came to USA. I am serpreased how Asbu “undermined him” in the media, saying he was stupid and other insults.

    • Eritreawit July 28, 2013

      Yorda,
      How did Essey and his family came to the USA? Do you have a different story? Do tell please!

  • sidiabd@gmail.com July 27, 2013

    Better go the legal route to share the air time . For now, it is worthywhile going that route and eventually discredit any one who is a mouthpiece of Hatzie Issias Afwerki government

    • The Truth July 27, 2013

      Money talks. And the supporters are the backbone of the radio station. So with that said, the opposition loses. Why don’t they create their own station? Why mess things up that have always worked?

      • Genet July 27, 2013

        True..
        It is a public radio supported by community members. It is called Eritrean community radio. They don’t need to get a second community radio. They should take this issue to the Minnesota attorney general office. Essey and all the dictator’s supporters in Minnesota should pay for their own radio station to support a foreign dictatorship Gov.
        Genet

  • Tes July 27, 2013

    Essey Asbu you are disgrace with HGDF supporters. You are the cancer of our nation and your days to go to hell is approaching fast. Habtemariam and Eritrean Forum Members it is a good fight keep up the pressure until they throw their towel. they don’t have any principle to fight you back they are opportunists.

  • Semhar July 27, 2013

    THIS IS OUR TIME!

    It’s better late than never!

    The time has come for change in Eritrea and in Minnesota!

    Let’s march for freedom in Eritrea and all over the world!

    Thanks and may God bless ጅግና፡ ኤርትራዊ ስዉእ ስዒድ ዓሊ ሕጃይ (ወዲ ዓሊ and his courageous comrades who marched with their tanks from Sorona, Akeleguzay to FORTO, Asmera to liberate our land and our people.

    The mad dog, the evil spirit ሕስረት ዝለመደ ዕባይ እንዳ ስዋ Isayas and his blind followers the PFDJ will be smashed!

    Eritrea will be free!

    Let freedom ring in Akeleguzy!
    Let freedom ring in Barka!
    Let freedom ring in Sahil!
    Let freedom ring in Senhit!
    Let freedom ring in Semhar!
    Let freedom ring in Seraye!
    Let freedom ring in Denkel!
    Let freedom ring in Hamassien!

    2013 freedom will ring all over ERITREA!
    ERITREA will be the Land of the FREE and the home of the BRAVE just like the USA.

    On July 4th 1776 the thirteen states declared independence. From day one they implement the constitution George Washington became the first president when his solders wanted to make him a king he refused he wanted a democracy he didn’t want to change the British monarchy into U.S monarchy. In Eritrea we never had election and the so-called transitional government has been ruling for 22 years without constitution and rule of law. Its shame for those who support this dictator who never been elected and destroying our land and our people.

  • NEW HOPE ERITREA July 27, 2013

    UNCLE NEW hype ERITREA (NHE)…gives brilliant analysis…

    ¨Young people , ¨IF NOBODY HATES YOU ,THEN YOU DO NOT STAND FOR NOTHING !!!¨

    In my age bracket ,it is only I & president Isaias that do not care what others think…..others have to check their opinion with others ,before they utter it .The ¨HERD MENTALITY¨/SLAVE MENTALÑITY kicks in.
    Mind you ,you should not be antagonistic ,for the sake to be ,anti social ,then ,you have a problem.You should not stand out to get attention ,or to make just a thought fashion statement…..It is counter productive.
    Tegadelti´s who were with Jebha were extremely conscious ,brilliant & had people´s interest ….as even they freed orisoners during Gedli era..would give a choice to the individual ,to join Jebha ,go to shaibiya or cross to Sudan..This was Gedli era ,I believe ,until about 1978 ,when Jebha excibited bandit symptoms of forcibly recruiting fighters.
    The Jebha tegadelti ,mostly were fighting half heartedely inj the so called civil war of the 80 s.A good number of Jebhas preferred to put their weapon up side down ,A SIGN OF ,I WILL NOT KILL MY BROTHERS¨..that was noble ,yet ,naive ..because EPLF bandits were shooting fallen Jebha corpses …shouting ..¨THAT MOSLEM SON OF HALIMA, LET HIM BE VERY DEAD ¨…however ex – JEBHA fighters had not matured in the process of democratic rules & they think it is endless bickering ,argument with no compromise.ክሰርዓካ ፣ክኣልየካ ፣ነጥቢ ስነ ስርዓት___ብላ___ብላ__ብላ….THAT IS NO DEMOCRACY ,AS A BATTER IS NO FINISHED BREAD.
    If like your fathers & mothers you give only safe opinions ,you already have become Isaias´s /oppositions bitches.I WANT YOU TO CREATE YOUR OWN ,OLD GOATS´FREE ORGANIZATION.
    – And ,stop following some Smerrr ´s attitudes ,of insulting Tigrawot of Tigray …because ,Weyane will sabotage you f, for a very good reason….WHY SHOULD THEY HELP A TIGRAWAY OF TIGRAY BASHER TO POWER ? ¨And ,it is not called for .I do not blame smerrr ,it is a political paltalk ..and the only Eritrean nationalism left is hatred..EVERY POINT FOR ERITREAN CASE HAS BEEN PROVED BULL CRAP ,EXCEPT OUR EXPERTISE ON SELF HATRED .
    I AM NOT TEACHING YOU POLITICS THAT GIVES YOU GUIDE per se ,BUT A WINNING STRATEGY ,FROM SELLING GARLIC ,COSMETICS ..TO BEING A LEADER OF A COMPANY OR ALMOST A COUNTRY (LIKE OUR ERITREA )
    I truly ,truly ,say unto you..the bandits liberated you from relative peace ,stability & riches….I AM HERE TO LIBERATE YOU FROM YOUR PARENTS SLAVE MENTALITY.
    CHOOSE ERITREA OR REJECT IT ,I DO NOT PRESCRIBE TO THAT ,BUT ,THE PEOPLE ARE YOUR PEOPLE .IT IS YOUR IDENTITY ,BEING ,PRIDE.
    AS FOR ME ,WHEN WE WERE ETHIOPIANS ,I WAS HAMASIEN TIGRAWAY ….THEN BECAME ERITREAN ,CANADIAN ,AMERICAN …..ONE THING DID NOT CHANGE IN ALL THIS ..MY HAMASENO – SERAYE..ie…TIGRAWAY IDENTITY.
    You be Kunama ,afar ,Hadendawa ,Bilen…..etc…..Know your history & learn how it made the salad like beautiful society.See the good in other people …but ,like the so called ,fake identided HIZBE TIGRINYA ,reject & hate yourself..then you have cut the main source of communication ,interaction & development.
    WHEN YOU HATE & REJECT YOUR OWN TIGRAWAY IDENTITY..HOW THE HELL ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE COMPASSION FOR A TIGRE ,BILEN ,KUNAMA.
    We are all Eritreans & that is what matters is bull crap in reality.That is the American way of the so called melting pot American phylosophy ..that is leading to identity crises & leading minorities to frustration & drugs..THE CANADIAN MULTI CULTURALISM IS A GOOD EXAMPLE OF PRIDE OF YOUR ORIGIN AND COLLECTIVE LOVE FOR OTHERS YIELDING PRODUCTIVE PEOPLE.
    THE HIZBE TIGRINYA DID NOT ONLY DENY THEIR TIGRAWINET ,BUT FIND IT SHAME FUL TO SAY I ANM HAMASENAY ,AKELE TSAIDA OR SEREWETAY. Pride of identity is a taboo ,they feel they are dividing people by admitting their awraja ..I AM HERE TO TELL YOU ,I AM HAMASIEN ,SERAYE ..UPTO ADWA..AND GONDERE (TIGRAY OF OLD TIMES)..BY WAY OF SHEWATE DIMBEZAN (DEMBIYA) .I LOVE TO FIND A GUY FROM SUCH AREAS ,BUT I WOULD NOT GIVE ANY OF THEM A POST WHILE THE GUY FROM ADI KEIH IS MORE QUALIFIED.
    THOSE WHO HIDE THEIR AWRAJA HAVE A PROBLEM & ARE CLOSET REGIONALISTS.
    I TRY NOT TO BE ,ALTHOUGH IT IS CHALLENGING I LET MY PRINCIPLE LEAD ME ,NOT MY EMOTION .I FIND JOY & LOVE CONVERSING WITH BILENS & TIGRES ..MY NEIGHBOURS & PURE AS MORNNING WATER .THAT IS HOW MY RELATIVES USED TO BE .THEY DIED IN BANDITRY.
    STAND UP FOR WHAT YOU BELIEVE ,BUT BE TACTFUL ,CHOOSE YOUR BATTLES ..LIKE THE GOOD BOOK SAYS …BE INNOCENT LIKE DOVES ,YET WISE LIKE SERPENT .
    YOU HAVE NO ENEMY ,BUT THE MENTALITY OF YOU RETARDED PARENTS ,UNCLES & AUNTIES. THE NEW GENERATION IS SMART .
    REMMEMBER ,I AM ONLY SMARTER THAN ALL ERITREANS MINUS THE EVIL PRESIDENT ISAIAS AFEWERKI.

    • Eritrawit July 28, 2013

      Nhe, don’t you see no one is answering to your postings, that is The Eritrean way. Once we know who you are. That is it your done. You have been told kla ezi kea. Lol. So long sucker my last post to your.

  • Harnetna2013 July 27, 2013

    The Eritrean communitty living in Minisota should demonstrate against Asbu and demand that he go back to live in Eritrea.

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