ON My LAST ARTICLE ON UNITY
ON My LAST ARTICLE ON UNITY ogbai : “Unity is the best medicine to heal our wounds no doubt about that. But Mr. fetsum with respect for your hard work. WE, as your readers we would like
ON My LAST ARTICLE ON UNITY
ogbai : “Unity is the best medicine to heal our wounds no doubt about that. But Mr. fetsum with respect for your hard work. WE, as your readers we would like to hear from you and likes, to tell us who is against unity in the opposition. And who is behind it we should know. I am wondering last time you said . If that is the case and true it is our weakness for not working hard to find out and expose them for those against UNITY with a clear prove. Otherwise blaming each other without knowing who is against and whats behind it, that is lack of information insde and outside of each organization,movements,even individuals. For us the ordinary people it will be hard to know and understand where the truth is. As the saying goes . Please feed us the truth, and we will do the rest.”
Comment: Brother Uqbai, I want you to first understand that I did not say the names I mentioned (needless to say I include brother Saleh Yenus in the list) were against unity but that I strongly suspect something is going on otherwise because they have been quiet on UNITY for a long time and specially at the moment where more people are openly addressing the issue in the WEBCITES and few activities have been going on with the opposition camp everywhere.
EXAMPLES
The youth groups are still divided and some interfering in the business of others like what happened between the US and the Bologna groups recently. They need role-models to correct them and to unite them. Our most famous activists that served as role models of change for a long time are absent here.
The complete absence of UNITY in our demonstrations should have been openly and strongly addressed by the distinguished activists in order to direct the overall energy towards the question of unifying all of us in the opposition camp for a transitional government in post-Afwerki Eritrea. I do not see any initiative from them to this effect; and I suspect the unhealthy QUITISAM to be intentional considering the obvious advantage of UNITY to the resistance for freedom and democracy in our country.
The controversial firing of Chairman Yusuf Berhanu from BAITO while preparation is underway for the all inclusive Eritrean Conference in Ethiopia may negatively polarize the outcome of the conference: this development needs attention by any PRO-UNITY Eritrean but they are absent here too.
Our opposition forces as we know are still divided and the EDA alone could not guarantee the unity of the scattered groups out of its command. The fact that it needs any help it can get from any Eritrean activists in this regard has become obvious: Yet, no initiative for a strong voice has been offered from the activists to encourage or pressurize the splinters for unity.
In the mean time, we Eritreans cannot afford to accommodate QUIETISM from our activists at this critical time where UNITY has seemingly become the best answer to our problems. What I am saying is that any activist can have an alternate solution to our common problem and I respect that full heartedly but one should bring it out for discussion and public awareness instead of keeping it private for another surprise in post Afwerki Eritrea. There should no more be private agendas on our common cause. If a person of their importance in this camp does not consider UNITY as a solution, one should then confidently provide an alternate solution: you cannot quietly watch without saying something in this situation specially if you are a prominent activist. You either advocate unity or something else on the open and I want to see this happen with our respected activists who did a lot to the resistance for freedom from dictatorship.
Ghenet: “It [my last article] calls on all the groups and individuals who we believe that they fight for the good and right of Eritreans. We all need to step up and swallow our pride and try to focus on our common issues than our differences. Our country as Amanuel Iyasu Said is too small to entertain our division. As people, we need to call on all leaders, intellectuals, elites, youth to lead us to democracy and peace.
Politics is not about bickering, and looking for differences. It is all about skills of looking for a common ground and making the most out of it. It is all about commitment and integrity. It is about looking to the future and having a vision. It is about trying to find ways to make people’s lives better. Do our politicians have these? Or are they trying to score points? Are they fighting over positions? Is their cause democracy? I doubt it, because democracy does not include bickering and fighting. It only has a place for discussion and respect.
All groups and individuals who do not have democracy and Eritrean people on their agenda and programs, they should stand out of the way and let us pass and not be spoilers.Saving our people should be our main goal.
To the youth, I say this is more your fight because you have all your lives ahead of you and do not get fooled by burn-out so called politicians. Have a vision and include everyone who has the same vision in the struggle. All we need is democracy. If we have that, we will have peace as well. PFDJ is counting on our division to stay in power. Let us teach the untouchable PfDJ once and for all!!!”
Politics is not about bickering, and looking for differences. It is all about skills of looking for a common ground and making the most out of it. It is all about commitment and integrity. It is about looking to the future and having a vision. It is about trying to find ways to make people’s lives better. Do our politicians have these? Or are they trying to score points? Are they fighting over positions? Is their cause democracy? I doubt it, because democracy does not include bickering and fighting. It only has a place for discussion and respect.
All groups and individuals who do not have democracy and Eritrean people on their agenda and programs, they should stand out of the way and let us pass and not be spoilers.Saving our people should be our main goal.
To the youth, I say this is more your fight because you have all your lives ahead of you and do not get fooled by burn-out so called politicians. Have a vision and include everyone who has the same vision in the struggle. All we need is democracy. If we have that, we will have peace as well. PFDJ is counting on our division to stay in power. Let us teach the untouchable PfDJ once and for all!!!”
Comment: The Eritrean struggle consumed a big chunk of my generation’s lives and the Eritrean government swallowed the rest of it as you can witness in front of your eyes. Life slipped away for my generation because we trusted too much to ask about issues and feared openly standing for the welfare of our society. I have been in political asylum since 1976 hoping to return home after independence and here I am living my life in asylum 22 years after independence because of the terrible dictatorship that has been standing in the way of our freedom and justice. We did not check and balance the EPLF and we are suffering the consequence today.
It seems like we have been condemned to age and die in refugee life after we sacrificed too much for independence. Two Eritrean leaders Tela Uqbit and Afwerki to ever run our country with substantial authority messed up our society; the first under strong external pressure and the second by personal choice. One thing we can learn from our experience is that we have been toyed by our so called liberators and the youth groups should never allow being toyed by their leaders. Don’t let this slip away if you want to save your country and enjoy it with freedom and equality: Do not repeat history and learn from our experience about the dangers of following leaders blindly.
The struggle for purity on the question of UNITY is mandatory for Eritrea’s quest for democracy and freedom. This is time to march forward and not to stand still or to regress. This is the right time to question the integrity of the youth leaders and to challenge them on the question of UNITY. “TRUST ME” does not work anymore because it did not work in the past. We tried that with the EPLF and specially with Mr. Afwerki and you know what happened. “SHOW ME” on the other hand is a legitimate question for one to ask a leader or an activist in order to follow. SIKIFTA on the other hand is a destructive self deception that will burn you alive by your own making. Do not think SIKIFTA is okay: it is not because it is a disease that makes one a liar.
Love your leaders but do not trust them completely. Please respect your leaders by confronting them on the issue of UNITY. The Eritrean people do not deserve another betrayal from selfish politicians: they deserve democracy and freedom. Stop being taken for granted and respect yourselves by expressing your feelings about anything concerning the ERITREAN UNITY. Political unity is not about favoritism or cult development but it is about compromise and free exchange of ideas through equal participation.
As you know our distinguished youth leaders HAVE BEEN silent about UNITY and the only way I can show them respect is by asking WHY and the only way they can show their respect to the people is by confidently ANSWERING it without contemplation. Being a follower of a given political affiliation does not mean becoming a slave and conforming to the leaders unconditionally. You are not animals to be herded at will by power hungry individuals; please be confident and consistent on your democratic outlook and take your freedom of speech to find answers from your leaders BEFORE YOU CONDEMN YOUR PEOPLE AND YOUR GENERATIONTO ANOTHER DICTATORSHIP AND CIVIL WAR!
I respect Tesfay Seyoum, Elsa Chirum, Yoseph Gebrehiwet, Saleh Yenus, etc. enough to confront them on the question of UNITY. These have been the most outspoken and courageous activists of yesterday when we were all shutting up: they managed to get us here through collective effort. They cannot disappear from the scene at this critical time when the youth organizations are wobbling to stand on their visionless agendas WITHOUT A REASON. They cannot remotely watch the staggering level of division without involvement. The youth needs them more than ever in the past because UNITY has become the only obvious tool of defeating thedictatorship and building democracy in Eritrea. I will continue respecting my brothers and sisters in this category; by yet asking the following question
WHERE DO YOU STAND IN THE QUESTION OF UNITY AND WHAT IS YOUR POLITICAL STRATEGY OTHERWISE? WHAT IS PLAN ‘B’ IN YOUR LIST IF UNITY IS OUT OF IT SO THAT WE CAN ENTERTAIN IT TOGETHER WITH MUTUAL RESPECT?
On “National Unity Experiences- its challenges and opportunities: by Fesseha Nair”
Nair: “The political Opposition did not raise its political agenda to accommodate the Project of National Unity, A project that could bear financial, psychic and materialistic towards for the entire Eritrean components against the sacrifices they had made, in fact the political programs of the National Opposition forces never exceeded the hollow emotional rehearsal of the “National Unity”, an emotional rehearsals that could not be sufficient enough to encourage the people pay new and fresh sacrifices. Therefore, we find that a large segments of our people have started looking for other temporarily alternatives..”
Comment: Emotional rehearsal for temporary psychological satisfaction at the expense of genuine bliss from benevolent participation for peace and democracy in Eritrea is a sad situation to be in. The opposition could not “raise its political agenda to accommodate the Project of National Unity” because it is not firmly united. A weak and divided force can only produce weakness and division. It can only be a role model of grudge and unhealthy competition. Personifying national agenda and anger have become the modes of communication between the opposition forces. “the political programs of the National Opposition forces never exceeded the hollow emotional rehearsal of the “National Unity”” because the leaders are selfish and they lack maturity, the only condition a person needs to dignify emotion instead of reason. Problem of controlling emotional discharge is a derivative of lack of wisdom; the reason society excuses children for such a reaction.
Apparently, said temporary alternatives take different phases and more:
1) Dependence on external forces to solve the problem in whatever form it may come. Because of frustration (the result of lack of substance from the youth organizations and opposition forces) some Eritreans tend to support external input to resolve the issue on the ground. This is pessimism and as dangerous as it may seem to be they want to get it over with despite the consequence.
2) Sticking with the regime: Among other consequences related to the weakness of the resistance, this is a derivative of fear of another dictatorship in Eritrea because of mistrust. Who wants to struggle for another dictatorship after this experience?
3) Quietism: Some of us have chosen to stay quiet and watch the development in distance because of the hopeless environment created by the divisive opposition forces.
4) Neutrality: Some of us consider the two opposing sects similar to one another and therefore choose to stay neutral in this critical situation.
5) Some of us want to ignore all opposition forces and start from the scratch.
6) Some of us just hang on detached from nationalism with no forecast of whatever…..
To be continued
erikid August 12, 2013
Eritreans and Tigray people are like oil and water. They don’t mix. Unfortunately, Tigray people are like a parasite. We have to find a way to get rid of them so Eritreans can unite.
Beleza August 13, 2013
Erikid
we have to treat kids for the best future because such wrong sentiment is the idea of old amhara sentiment. But we Eritreans are Tegaru and Tegaru are Eritrean it is absolute Tigrains.
Please we have take-care of this issue. Unity is nothing without Tigrain in Particular and Ethiopian in general.
Your Beleza
erikid August 13, 2013
Eritreans are not Ethiopians . I disagree with you. We are independent nation. We have paid generations to get our independence. All Tigray people belong to Ethiopia.
ogbai August 12, 2013
Thank you Mr. Fetsum for giving some concren in my UNITY question.I am sure all Eritreans love to be united and live together in peace and harmony. But If we look in our history all our envaders that thier first tool were to divide us and rule us forever. Because they well know that if we are united they can,t face us. Hoever, after long sufering by paying heavy prise at last we gain our independece. It was then in the morning of the independece day should have been reconciled for unity and forgivence amond eachother for the past mistakes. Instead, here we are again crying for unity.DIA or the junta group wants us to shut up and obey thier rule even with out RULE of LAW. Even the so called the opposition don,t want to bring united fronts what ever means they have in thier hands instead they are siging the song of division. this kind opposition they are n,t benefitting us to UNITED us, but so far we remained divide as our enemies want us.It is very sad time even in the oppostion camp to take us these long time while our people is suffering with self made dictators. the opposition is divided by the name of religion,by subnationalits,and ethinic groups. These things should be solved in the democratic stage in the head office of state after the fall of the dictatorial regime. if nedeed even by national refordom. Those are the obstacle in the so called opposition dancing with tools of our old enemy wherever they are. Then,they are equally resposible for the suffeering of our people. Therefore, we need a strong media asking the right questions like Assenna Mr. Amunael Iyasu. again keep the good work, with the help of tecnology and smart media power there is no a place to hide any where any more.
dembelas August 13, 2013
MR Ogubay
thanks for your message on the article of Mr Fitsum and I appreciate too. But what I dislike among your comment is you mentioned “so far we remained divide as our enemies want us” ” the obstacle in the so called opposition dancing with tools of our old enemy wherever they are”.
By the way these all on my assumption is wrong statement that could never raise in any condition. As we know the sole enemy of Eritrea was , is , will Eritrean our selves. So how could we bring and fabricate any enemy of Eritrea.
In the first hand we are not the initiates of the issue of independence
belay nega August 13, 2013
” As we know the sole enemy of Eritrea was , is , will Eritrean our selves. ”
You mean the under nationalists?
dembelass August 15, 2013
Yes we are enmeis of ourselves.
Kalighe August 12, 2013
Thanks brother Fetsum for your continuous effort to highlight the importance of national unity.
Although enough have been said about national unity, there is still very little input from the public about how this can be achieved. Here are my two cents contributions:
1. Every major issue that is standing on the way to our unity should be itemized on national agenda, clearly defined, debated and solutions acceptable to all proposed.
2. Some of these issues my be solved before regime change in Eritrea, others may be after dictatorship is gone. So,instead of discussing everything together, we should prioritize our tasks.
3. Whose unity we are talking about ?, unity among we ordinary citizens, political organizations or both ?. The most important thing now is unity among the people. Wen we reach consensus on major national issues and build trust among us, we will be able to stand together on the face of any political force. It’s unity of the people that brings real change in politics.
4. The longer it takes to remove a dictatorship, the more complex get issues that people living under it need to tackle. This is because, dictators keep diving people in any possible way, and instigate conflicts to remain in power. Therefore, the sooner we start to work together for our own safety the better. There isn’t any particular group that benefits alone from this effort, peace is everybody’s concern. Those who were against national unity in early nineties, because they thought it would only benefit the so-called “remnants of ELF”, have lived long enough to see what happened even to them after that.
Kalighe August 12, 2013
Correction:
please read: “dictators keep dividing people in any possible way”.
Areza August 13, 2013
Mr dear reader and our brother kebbire
You did it , when you engaged in good position you are pure Eritrean and when you are opposition you consider as Tigraway. this happens when Ali Abdu request ayslom in Canada.
After all who is pure Eritrean and who is migrant or Tigrain.
Please we know each other from where we are ? whether we are from kebessa or metaht or other , we dont have typical Eritrean or genuine Eritreans from the rural or urban areas of Eritrea. Basically the migrants of Eritrea is known world wide How on earth can we say on this issue it is shamefull. the only country that canhandle the economy through remitance is solely Eritrea.
The indigenous Eritrean in this world is the Indigenous trees and the maunteneouse area of ambaseyora and ambaderho and the mounaneouse area of highlands which was not affected by volcanic eruption or Earthquake.
Typical Eritrean citzenship awarded from the Encyclopedia Abyssinia
Ambaderho and Amabsoyra
Wedi adi
erikid August 13, 2013
Please Tigray people go to Tigray. Don’t waste our time and yours.
erikid August 13, 2013
It is not fun for Eritreans to carry parasites. It doesn’t look good on Tigray to abandon their Ethiopia and try to be Eritreans where you are not welcome. Please leave us alone or we have to get rid of you by any means necessary.
ghenet August 13, 2013
Erikid,
Please keep your ignorance, arogance and immaturity to yourself. This is not a platform for kids like you.
erikid August 13, 2013
Genet, you may be a parasite.
ghenet August 14, 2013
Arikid.
moron, parasites do not write unless they are like you. Study biology before opening your little foul mouth.
abdu August 13, 2013
Erikid
Tigray isn’t abandent it’s sons & doughters who did abandon we all know very well. So; i want to ask you a quetion if you are real Eritrean where are the pure Eritreran who fought and paid expensive price and made it a country Eritrea today; as amatter of fact with out them you could’ve not called youself proudly say i am an Eritrean; and also with out them you could’ve not write an insult to your Brothers & sisters tody you know what i am talking about. Ok let’s go back to the my quetion have you ever ask youself where are the heroic Eritreans; wher are the peole who made and recorded a big histroy in the world; where are the peole who defit that looks undefeted. well; to mentionsome of the names such as like Halie doru; Mahmud Sherifo; petros solomon; Okebea Abrah;Betaweded;Salih Kekia Jermano and so on….where are they aren’t they Eritreans; that isn’t betrayle are you going to tell me this not abendon?
netabay August 13, 2013
dearest Futsum
is that emotional if i quote my self this way:” the old (those who were teenagers in the mid and early 70s) have already done their assignment. they lead the two eritrean organizations , elf and eplf, some of them were conscripted in the ”commandos”, some of them were slaughtering Addis ababa university students fearing they will be out smarted by them and be thrown away from the leadership, some of them were collaborators of the Sudanese army who were massacring Asmara residents in the 40s, some of them were/are Baathist , some of them are reared up in the very feudal families of the time that our society was very traditional, academically , they were not competent, they are with very hot religious affiliations (they only pretend as if they are secular minded)..after the the civil war they developed a mind set of the defeated and the victorious…which still going on as a legacy of that time….
and so and so……….
so what do you think if i we say —these are the generation which are misplaced. the generation which tries to lead eritrea using a very old soft ware ….Macintosh in windows 8….they ate the talent of our generation….we the new generation are lost with out any foot print…we became victims of the faults of the generation of 70s. they used to tell us ”you are the future” but when we came to the imagined Eritrea…they told us pragmatically…..’they fought for 30 years , and they will compensate these lost years and their lost opportunities with in that range of time” so we are left with more ten years …..
Sahle Yosieph August 13, 2013
The road to UNITY is honesty. We never were untied because of our religious and regional line. To build a house you need a good foundation. That we don’t have. We have to start approaching as individual thinker than a group thinker. Accept a good idea regardless where it come from and correct the wrong one. “We agree to disagree” really apply to us. Lets change it. ERIKID either is a typical Eritrean ignorant or paid distracter.
Zaul August 13, 2013
I say let’s disregard all the political organizations altogether. If they want to settle old scores with each other, let them have fun. The people already tried to unite them on many instances (e.g Weki-Zager, 1975). They refused and the Derg burned those villages and killed many innocent people as revenge.
Our people needs are very simple, “three meals a day” and “a safe place to stay”.
Let’s make our demands simple, Implement the constitution. Amend the constitution to allow for a multi-party system (if doesn’t already).
If people have a job to go to and schools to go to, all matters of religion and region will sort themselves out. Friendships and inter-personal relationships will prevail over suspicion and mistrust.
The political parties are in the way of progress.
Kalighe August 15, 2013
Our people needs are very simple, “three meals a day” and “a safe place to stay”.
Selamat Zaul,
I thought you know better than the average Eritreans who are struggling to find a way out of the mess created by the regime. People do not mind to eat even once a day as long as they are left free to do their business. So, it’s about freedom in the first place, everything else comes only if there is freedom. The regime’s ideologues have been saying, people need to it, that is all. Not because they think food is only issue, but it’s a way of misleading people, a way of denying the most valuable commodity: freedom. Enough food can be created only when there is freedom. The former Soviet Union had a very large agricultural cooperative societies, on lands owned by the State. The output was supposed to be enough to feed not only the Soviet Union, but all the Comecon countries (common market of Easter block countries). But most of the time the Russian had to buy American grain to survive.
Eritrea’s want to live free in their country, every other issue can be solved after that.
Kalighe August 15, 2013
Please read ” people need to eat, that is all”
Zaul August 15, 2013
Kemey qenikha Kalighe,
I hear what you’re saying about freedom, but it has to be regulated by rule of law. That’s why I mentioned the constitution. I’m just so dissappointed with our political parties and elders obsession with symbolic issues and lack of magnanimous outlook. They have failed to explain to us how to go from where we are now to FREEDOM.
If you read the universal human rights declaration, article 25(1) states.
“Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.”
I would love to hear our political parties give alternative visions on how to tackle this concrete issues.
Kalighe, I don’t consider myself to know any better than anybody else, I’m just giving my perspective.
Kalighe August 15, 2013
“I would love to hear our political parties give alternative visions on how to tackle this concrete issues.”
Zaul,
Alternative visions develop only when there is a space for civil society and people learn to debate national issues freely. That is not happening in Eritrea, and those of us in diaspora are busy taking care of our business, raising kids and waiting for things to happen. So, let’s do something: get someone who can contact the good Doctor to collect suggestions, and redraft the constitution for eventual debate and approval by public. Reaching consensus on constitution would solve a lot of problems, and would help us move forward.
Zaul August 15, 2013
Kalighe,
I would say there are two things in the way of progess.
1. Ethiopia. [i)Border Ruling , ii) interference in the opposition].
2. Consensus on the constitution.
The good Dr. Berekhet Habteselassie is over 80 years now, there must be other qualified, wise, “non-political” scholars out there.
We need scientists to handle this matter now. Constitutional scholars, Sociologists, Religious scholars, Historians, Economists, Medical scholars and even some Natural scientists (environmentalists). Politicians and Religious leaders may give their input and advice, but ultimately the people must own the process and content. As you correctly stated, it’s hard to bring change from Diaspora, unfortunately, I have no easy solutions neither.