The nationalists’ dream: Meritwa inji hizbwa anfelgm
Selam Saleh,
If you haven’t figured it out from the hundreds of pages in articles I have written in these 13 years by now, why do you think you would be able to know the nature of my belief in regard to Eritrea by the “fill in the blanks” assignment you have given me? Anyways, I will make you happy by doing that; I will even be briefer than what you are anticipating. But before I do that, let me take you through the steps that lead to that brief response.
We can attribute to Haile Selassie anything, but not stupidity. Only an immensely foolish leader would say, “meryetwa inji hizbwa anfelgm”, and the Emperor was not that foolish. Yet, the Eritrean nationalists have been attributing this saying to him without examining the logical incoherence of their belief. And you, Saleh, intelligent as you are, you tend to subscribe to this implausible belief. But what I find to be ironic is that you nationalists ignore the glaring fact that it is the Eritrean Revolution that has fulfilled this “dream” on the ground.
All you need to look at is the present day Eritrea to see how that dream has been fulfilled to its minutest details on the ground by the liberators. Never have we seen the case of liberators ending up hating and abhorring the masses they “liberated” as it is in present day Eritrea: they imprison them, torture them, rape them, starve them, enslave them, deprive them of everything, force them to carry arms indefinitely, drive them out of the nation in their hundreds of thousands, and even sell them in the Arab slave market. While here you have a clear cut case of “we want the land, and not its people” that ghedli championed enacted on the ground in real time, you and the nationalists try to fantastically seek it in the mind of a dead Emperor – it is astounding the level of detachment from reality that unbridled nationalism causes! No wonder that the Shaebia foot soldiers in diaspora has been rallying around “Land First!” despite the fact that such a policy has been nothing but horror to the masses. …
…
And you, Saleh, happen to be an ardent follower of that “Land First” mantra – that is, as it has been clearly displayed in your actions. When sanctions against the regime were entertained by the US in 2007 for the first time, you vociferously opposed it. Your overriding concern was that the army would be weakened if sanctions were imposed on Eritrea. So was it when the UN imposed sanctions in 2009, when you went “accepting” it but rejecting the arms embargo. Again, your overriding concern was the weakening of the army (you made it explicit when you said you do not believe in unilateral disarmament). But it would be a cruel joke if by that, you are expecting the army to protect the people; and you know that more than anybody else. If so, your only concern must have been for the Eritrean Army to stay strong enough to defend the land. Without maximal mobilization and arming the army to the teeth, you know that such a quixotic attempt could never be entertained let alone enacted. But given that it is this maximal mobilization (as in national service) that is at the root of the mass exodus (that is, of emptying the land of its people), your preference perfectly fits to that of the “Land First” crowd.
Now let’s come back to your “fill in the blanks” assignment you have given me as to the nature my belief. It is rather simple to figure out; all that you have to do is put your belief on its head: “People First!” And when I say that, I mean wherever it may lead. I have not the slightest fetish that attaches me to the land; if there is any attachment to the land, it would be entirely on pragmatic ground.
And please do not confine your response on my behalf. If I have time I will respond; if not, others will. After all, this dialog is not between you and me only.
Hazhaz December 22, 2013
Some political tidbits from yg:
Yosief Ghebrehiwet on December 19, 2013
The nationalists’ dream: Meritwa inji hizbwa anfelgm
Selam Saleh,
If you haven’t figured it out from the hundreds of pages in articles I have written in these 13 years by now, why do you think you would be able to know the nature of my belief in regard to Eritrea by the “fill in the blanks” assignment you have given me? Anyways, I will make you happy by doing that; I will even be briefer than what you are anticipating. But before I do that, let me take you through the steps that lead to that brief response.
We can attribute to Haile Selassie anything, but not stupidity. Only an immensely foolish leader would say, “meryetwa inji hizbwa anfelgm”, and the Emperor was not that foolish. Yet, the Eritrean nationalists have been attributing this saying to him without examining the logical incoherence of their belief. And you, Saleh, intelligent as you are, you tend to subscribe to this implausible belief. But what I find to be ironic is that you nationalists ignore the glaring fact that it is the Eritrean Revolution that has fulfilled this “dream” on the ground.
All you need to look at is the present day Eritrea to see how that dream has been fulfilled to its minutest details on the ground by the liberators. Never have we seen the case of liberators ending up hating and abhorring the masses they “liberated” as it is in present day Eritrea: they imprison them, torture them, rape them, starve them, enslave them, deprive them of everything, force them to carry arms indefinitely, drive them out of the nation in their hundreds of thousands, and even sell them in the Arab slave market. While here you have a clear cut case of “we want the land, and not its people” that ghedli championed enacted on the ground in real time, you and the nationalists try to fantastically seek it in the mind of a dead Emperor – it is astounding the level of detachment from reality that unbridled nationalism causes! No wonder that the Shaebia foot soldiers in diaspora has been rallying around “Land First!” despite the fact that such a policy has been nothing but horror to the masses. …
Hazhaz December 22, 2013
…
And you, Saleh, happen to be an ardent follower of that “Land First” mantra – that is, as it has been clearly displayed in your actions. When sanctions against the regime were entertained by the US in 2007 for the first time, you vociferously opposed it. Your overriding concern was that the army would be weakened if sanctions were imposed on Eritrea. So was it when the UN imposed sanctions in 2009, when you went “accepting” it but rejecting the arms embargo. Again, your overriding concern was the weakening of the army (you made it explicit when you said you do not believe in unilateral disarmament). But it would be a cruel joke if by that, you are expecting the army to protect the people; and you know that more than anybody else. If so, your only concern must have been for the Eritrean Army to stay strong enough to defend the land. Without maximal mobilization and arming the army to the teeth, you know that such a quixotic attempt could never be entertained let alone enacted. But given that it is this maximal mobilization (as in national service) that is at the root of the mass exodus (that is, of emptying the land of its people), your preference perfectly fits to that of the “Land First” crowd.
Now let’s come back to your “fill in the blanks” assignment you have given me as to the nature my belief. It is rather simple to figure out; all that you have to do is put your belief on its head: “People First!” And when I say that, I mean wherever it may lead. I have not the slightest fetish that attaches me to the land; if there is any attachment to the land, it would be entirely on pragmatic ground.
And please do not confine your response on my behalf. If I have time I will respond; if not, others will. After all, this dialog is not between you and me only.