I have yet to read the book on dictatorship in Eritrea’s recent past; though dictatorship is not new to Eritrea, just to remind you the ugly but often forgotten Italian colonial fascism under Benito Mussolini, the worst dictatorship took place under Eritrea’s own Issaias Afewerki of the Higedfites and the minions of Jebha elites.
My recent visit to Eritrea attests that Issaias Afewrki and the wimps in of Jebha elites make Col Mengistu Hailemariam look like a regular tyrant who committed the common crimes in a warring environment. Any Asmarino will remember Col Mengistu for supplying the Kebele Shops with ample wheat, Taff, sugar, Keffa coffee, the monthly kerosine ration, the coupon for pieces of loaves from the neighborhood shop keeper, … at the cheapest price in Africa. All while fighting the war!
Who would believe me now if tell you that anyone who barely passes the Ethiopian matriculation can get a full scholarship to Russia, East Germany, Yoguslavia, Cuba, Poland, India, Bulgaria … even sometimes to Italy, Sweden, Canada, Holland, Australia … no question asked.
Who would believe me that Mengistu was flying his famous Russian made noisy but tough freights – the Antonovs to transport goats from Harar, sheep and Taff from Gojam during the Holiday seasons when the “liberators” were deliberately starving Asmarinos and other towns to death.
Did I forget the easy access to Ethiopian passport after getting six or five signatures from Kebele-keftegna-education-police-immigration-foreign affairs, then fly directly to Greece, Yugoslavia, poland, Kenya, italy, East Germany, … (Remember the red passport with the statement: ke zeregnaw debub Africa besteqer/ with the exception the Apartheid South Africa). The brave Eritrean Amiches and Ethiopians were even forging Ethiopian documents from the heart of Ethiopia in Addis. When Mengistu’s police catch you, you only get three months jail (Issaias and Jebha would torture and shoot you in Adi Abeyto or Teseney) and then you buy one more for fifty dollars forged in Greece and photocopied behind the ramshackle photocopiers behind the General Post office in Addis and you fly away in Ethiopian Airlines in three months with $250 US dollars officially approved to any Ethiopian traveler. Yes, the poor and starving Ethiopia was allowing any traveler to get $250.00 US dollars at the official rate of $1US dollar for only 2.15 Birr.
Oh! Did the good Dr Misgna write the book deliberately to make us remember the tyrant Mengie’s good times?
did Mengistu have jails? Yes, he had like anyone in a war environment but issaias the jebha elites had more prisoners and jails than he had.
(I was to write more but the good moderators of Assenna will be mad at me)
Fanco, if you were privileged by Mengustu regime due to your direct association, remember there were people whose villages were burned and were slaughtered in mass.
What you said is absolutely right.I haven’t read the book either but to compare Dergi’s dictatorship VS Ghedli’s is simply nonsense.Only one example ; What does it mean to arrest 12 years in Shahil prison Caves?( Do not forget that was to their own comrades ).
It is true that human being is the result of its environment and we grew up in in a space full of myths and lie of Ghedli lovers and Ghedli them selves,this dirty myths had cemented in our heads like a rock ,and now it is very difficult to red off, even for the scientists like the author. One Example of the very popular myths and lie; ሀይለ ስላሴ ” ኤርትራ መሬታ እንበር ሰባ አየድልየናን እዩ ኢሉ”
Look how many of our brothers and sisters took this clam seriously and gave their lives in vain? And only now after 50 years of debacle come to the surface who the author of this famous lie was. The list is long i have to stop here.
Thank you brother for the elementary comparison.
እንታይ ይገበር እናርኣና ዐዊርና፤ እናሰማዕና ጸሚማና፤
The disaster of communism his you two times. First time you think the leaders couldn’t do their duties right. Second time you know communism dont work on human beings in their free will.
In communist countries the goals are campaigns not the achievement.
Insentives are slogans and uniforms.
For evry failure there is a corresponding external sabotages.
Every individual success is considered as a gift from the communist party.
Keep it up. Dr meshina you are doing good. We need books it will help to record In history and raise awarness of the youth. They are abandoned by the dictatorial regime to die in desert.
Absolutely correct to highlight the two dictators of the Eritrean people over the last 40 years but I would rank them as follows in terms of their sustained brutality over our people:
1. Isayas – for the torture of his own people
2. Menglstu – for torture of his fellow human beings
Fanko February 11, 2015
I have yet to read the book on dictatorship in Eritrea’s recent past; though dictatorship is not new to Eritrea, just to remind you the ugly but often forgotten Italian colonial fascism under Benito Mussolini, the worst dictatorship took place under Eritrea’s own Issaias Afewerki of the Higedfites and the minions of Jebha elites.
My recent visit to Eritrea attests that Issaias Afewrki and the wimps in of Jebha elites make Col Mengistu Hailemariam look like a regular tyrant who committed the common crimes in a warring environment. Any Asmarino will remember Col Mengistu for supplying the Kebele Shops with ample wheat, Taff, sugar, Keffa coffee, the monthly kerosine ration, the coupon for pieces of loaves from the neighborhood shop keeper, … at the cheapest price in Africa. All while fighting the war!
Who would believe me now if tell you that anyone who barely passes the Ethiopian matriculation can get a full scholarship to Russia, East Germany, Yoguslavia, Cuba, Poland, India, Bulgaria … even sometimes to Italy, Sweden, Canada, Holland, Australia … no question asked.
Who would believe me that Mengistu was flying his famous Russian made noisy but tough freights – the Antonovs to transport goats from Harar, sheep and Taff from Gojam during the Holiday seasons when the “liberators” were deliberately starving Asmarinos and other towns to death.
Did I forget the easy access to Ethiopian passport after getting six or five signatures from Kebele-keftegna-education-police-immigration-foreign affairs, then fly directly to Greece, Yugoslavia, poland, Kenya, italy, East Germany, … (Remember the red passport with the statement: ke zeregnaw debub Africa besteqer/ with the exception the Apartheid South Africa). The brave Eritrean Amiches and Ethiopians were even forging Ethiopian documents from the heart of Ethiopia in Addis. When Mengistu’s police catch you, you only get three months jail (Issaias and Jebha would torture and shoot you in Adi Abeyto or Teseney) and then you buy one more for fifty dollars forged in Greece and photocopied behind the ramshackle photocopiers behind the General Post office in Addis and you fly away in Ethiopian Airlines in three months with $250 US dollars officially approved to any Ethiopian traveler. Yes, the poor and starving Ethiopia was allowing any traveler to get $250.00 US dollars at the official rate of $1US dollar for only 2.15 Birr.
Oh! Did the good Dr Misgna write the book deliberately to make us remember the tyrant Mengie’s good times?
did Mengistu have jails? Yes, he had like anyone in a war environment but issaias the jebha elites had more prisoners and jails than he had.
(I was to write more but the good moderators of Assenna will be mad at me)
AHMED SALEH February 12, 2015
Xemam si hade derfu zitebahle nikhemzi
kemakha iyu . Shim gedli ketebalashw
asmat inakeyayrka yiakhleka higi tebziho
alokha
Sol February 12, 2015
Fanco, if you were privileged by Mengustu regime due to your direct association, remember there were people whose villages were burned and were slaughtered in mass.
Teclay February 13, 2015
Fanko
What you said is absolutely right.I haven’t read the book either but to compare Dergi’s dictatorship VS Ghedli’s is simply nonsense.Only one example ; What does it mean to arrest 12 years in Shahil prison Caves?( Do not forget that was to their own comrades ).
It is true that human being is the result of its environment and we grew up in in a space full of myths and lie of Ghedli lovers and Ghedli them selves,this dirty myths had cemented in our heads like a rock ,and now it is very difficult to red off, even for the scientists like the author. One Example of the very popular myths and lie; ሀይለ ስላሴ ” ኤርትራ መሬታ እንበር ሰባ አየድልየናን እዩ ኢሉ”
Look how many of our brothers and sisters took this clam seriously and gave their lives in vain? And only now after 50 years of debacle come to the surface who the author of this famous lie was. The list is long i have to stop here.
Thank you brother for the elementary comparison.
እንታይ ይገበር እናርኣና ዐዊርና፤ እናሰማዕና ጸሚማና፤
AHMED SALEH !!! February 14, 2015
Who is Fanko? Who is Teclay ? HAHAHA !
The same sick person this forum tolerated for a while .
tamrat tamrat February 12, 2015
The disaster of communism his you two times. First time you think the leaders couldn’t do their duties right. Second time you know communism dont work on human beings in their free will.
In communist countries the goals are campaigns not the achievement.
Insentives are slogans and uniforms.
For evry failure there is a corresponding external sabotages.
Every individual success is considered as a gift from the communist party.
Minimal input and minimal output.
Sawaforto February 12, 2015
HGDF meshmishu(shetitu) gbatemeretu yeriena
Genbot February 13, 2015
Keep it up. Dr meshina you are doing good. We need books it will help to record In history and raise awarness of the youth. They are abandoned by the dictatorial regime to die in desert.
Asmara Eritrea February 15, 2015
Absolutely correct to highlight the two dictators of the Eritrean people over the last 40 years but I would rank them as follows in terms of their sustained brutality over our people:
1. Isayas – for the torture of his own people
2. Menglstu – for torture of his fellow human beings
Eritrea forever