No subject
Wed May 23 11:04:48 SAST 2007
trying to softly, softly breaking the news to us Ethiopians what they=20
intend they will do in the next
--part1_91.95baec1.280c1454_boundary
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<HTML><FONT FACE=3Darial,helvetica><FONT COLOR=3D"#0000ff" SIZE=3D6 FAMILY=
=3D"SERIF" FACE=3D"Times New Roman" LANG=3D"0"><B>Writing on the wall, who i=
s the most gullible of them all?
<BR>
<BR></FONT><FONT COLOR=3D"#0000ff" SIZE=3D3 FAMILY=3D"SERIF" FACE=3D"Times=20=
New Roman" LANG=3D"0"></B>by Haileselassie Girmay April 14, 2001=
</FONT><FONT COLOR=3D"#000000" SIZE=3D3 FAMILY=3D"SERIF" FACE=3D"Times New=20=
Roman" LANG=3D"0">
<BR> =20
<BR>
<BR>Yes, it is now almost three years gone, since the incident took place.
<BR>Remember it was May 1998 when Ethiopia was dishabille and mortally=20
<BR>flogged. It was not small an incident to be blocked out of anyone's memo=
ry.=20
<BR>It=20
<BR>was a brutal attack, no less than all the other attempts done in the pas=
t. It=20
<BR>was well worked out a plot to see Ethiopia fractured and humiliated=20
<BR>forever, if only the dreamers' plan had materialised.
<BR>
<BR>And materialised it almost did. For over two years the Eritreans=20
<BR>managed to hold sovereign Ethiopian territories and began vaunting to th=
e=20
<BR>world at
<BR>large that they were here to stay for good. No force, certainly any
<BR>Ethiopian force in any form and shape, would dislodge them from the=20
<BR>Coveted lands they so dear cherish as war booties.
<BR>
<BR>It took long and hard struggles to put ours acts & pull our resource=
s
<BR>together and redirected our actions to the war front. Then, once the=20
<BR>war, began in earnest, we taught the Eritrea and their foreign masters a=
=20
<BR>lesson not only they would wish not to forget but what Ethiopians are ma=
de up=20
<BR>of now, as they were in the past - the unwavering iron will not only to=20
<BR>win but also to die rather than live like dogs licking colonial masters'=
=20
<BR>boots.
<BR>
<BR>Like the in the past, this time round, in May 1998, Ethiopia was also=20
<BR>caught ill prepared for the task by surprise. Ethiopia is by nature less
<BR>suspecting; it harbours little or no negative psychology about others.=20
<BR>Sad to say, Ethiopia takes on board things as they unfold on ground to h=
er=20
<BR>cost for her seraphic innocence. Ethiopia is and has also been a peace-l=
oving
<BR>country. It has never gone to war against anyone unless provoked and in
<BR>self-defence. These two factors appear to be the Achilles heels of the=20
<BR>country.
<BR>
<BR>Following the debacle of the Eritrean forces in Badema, the Eritreasns
<BR>should have heeded to our pleas and retreated with their dromedaries=20
<BR>from Ethiopian territories. But they did not; they remained obdurate as=20=
the=20
<BR>rocks behind which they dug in for their trenches. It remained for the=20
<BR>Ethiopians to follow hot on the retreating heels of the disgraced Eritre=
an=20
<BR>army to
<BR>drive a long forgotten lesson home. Subject taught, chapter closed you w=
ould
<BR>have thought it was the end of the matter - but hold on, there is more=20
<BR>to come.
<BR>
<BR>It appears Eritrea and our classical enemies have prepared a trident att=
ack
<BR>on Ethiopia. If one fails, and it had, they have the other two to try=20
<BR>out their lucks and bring the country to its knees.
<BR>
<BR>Like the May 1998, these internal mayhems of April 2001 seem to have=20
<BR>been designed, by divine will or human, to take Ethiopia by surprise. Th=
e
<BR>internal conflict among the EPRDF/TPLF members is, without going in to
<BR>details, a case in point how our enemies work to see our demise from=20
<BR>within and without.
<BR>
<BR>One feels that Ethiopia has been, despite its backwardness, able to=20
<BR>ward off external aggressions and invasions and recovered from its ordea=
ls.=20
<BR>However, many people, including our leaders, feel this is an internal pr=
oblem=20
<BR>they can cope with - how wrong they can be? It is the internal conflict=20
<BR>that Ethiopia has been and will be unable to shrug off and still stand t=
all=20
<BR>on its feet. This one is an ankylosis that lies in wait to attack as an
<BR>opportunist, on top of the Achilles heels Ethiopia gravely suffers from.
<BR>
<BR>It is too early to pass judgement; there is still room to work out and=20
<BR>bring this internal conflict to a peaceful solution where no one should=20=
feel=20
<BR>that one is hard done by. This approach of mending fence should be done=20=
on=20
<BR>an organisational level and the sooner the better. In the end, however,
<BR>ultimate decision should be left to the people to find out as to who=20
<BR>was
<BR>right and who was at fault during the terms these group, now estranged,=20
<BR>as a whole collectively administrated the country.
<BR>
<BR>Talk of corruption at the higher level is one-thing rich people complain=
of
<BR>being robbed or embezzled of their resources. At lower level, the=20
<BR>political cadres of the day, who are now being, it seems, pampered to wi=
n=20
<BR>over=20
<BR>their much soughed after votes in favour of one as opposed to the other
<BR>conflicting ruling groups within the TPLF, are as bad corrupted and doin=
g
<BR>the damage to the economy and morale of the ordinary people. This=20
<BR>conflict and their role to decide who is to stay and who is to exit will=
give=20
<BR>them a much wider opportunity to continue their bad practices.
<BR>
<BR>The conflict among the groups of the ruling party surfaced shortly=20
<BR>after Eritrea was comprehensively defeated. Such a resounding victory of=
the
<BR>country against unprovoked enemy, ought to have given the members of=20
<BR>the ruling group the courage to recognise failures of each individual=20
<BR>leading and up to the Eritrean invasion and mend their differences, at l=
east=20
<BR>in
<BR>recognition of the efforts put and the resolute determination manifested=
by
<BR>the Ethiopians people at large who are not politically affiliated to=20
<BR>this group but gave their lives to reverse the aggression.
<BR>
<BR>Instead of accommodating their differences and strove for a workable
<BR>relations in the interest of the country and the people who shed their=20
<BR>blood to see a better system in operation, they blew their differences o=
ut of
<BR>proportion on procedural matters and with it brought the country close t=
o a
<BR>danger. And still we have not heard the real essences of their differenc=
e.
<BR>
<BR>We have seen in the past some of the veering and careening of the
<BR>TPLF/EPRDF, but now they say there is more to come. Recently, the EPRDF/=
TPLF
<BR>appears to have or is about to abandon all its ideological=20
<BR>manifestations it vowed it would put in to practice once it came to powe=
r.
<BR>
<BR>It wants to follow free market economy. There is no problem here, so be=20=
it.
<BR>Come to think, for the last ten years the Government was in fact=20
<BR>following free market economy. No one seemed to have bellowed and jumped=
from=20
<BR>a
<BR>skyscraper in protest. It seems the Government will continue to
<BR>practice/implement its free market economy unabated and full blast- Amen=
.
<BR>However, there will not be a new miracle that will auspiciously surface=20
<BR>as a
<BR>result of the extension of the intended declaration. The practice of fre=
e
<BR>market economy outside the agrarian economy has been in Ethiopia before=20
<BR>the coming of the Derg to power. Emperor Haileselassie was a much safer=20
<BR>hand to foreign investors than the present government. But foreigners we=
re not
<BR>interest in him as they did elsewhere. What new developments/substantial=
ly
<BR>and miraculous discoveries of oil, gold and diamond, etc has happened fo=
r
<BR>foreign investors to coming rushing in their drove to our country to our
<BR>delight to see market economy flourished? Just because our leaders are=20
<BR>now educated and speak English better?
<BR>
<BR>Hitherto, the most significant production and construction developments=20
<BR>that have taken place are those carried out by the central and local=20
<BR>governments. The rest of the much-talked about investment manqu=E9 that=20=
took=20
<BR>place by=20
<BR>the private sector are in the peddling of the same old commodities of th=
e
<BR>production and provision of alcohol and hotel.
<BR>
<BR>It is noted that the government owned and run projects may have been pro=
ne
<BR>to corruption and inefficiencies. This may have triggered the central=20
<BR>and local governments to sell them off the projects, as they could not r=
an=20
<BR>the mat loses, at knock prices, to private (foreign or/and local, if the=
re=20
<BR>are any) investors who would ran them better for profits, and there is n=
o=20
<BR>doubt they may do just that. However, if the private sectors were to be=20=
asked=20
<BR>to invest and set up those projects at will in the first place, at the=20
<BR>FULLSTART UP COSTS, they would not have dreamt setting the projects at a=
ll.=20
<BR>Why come to Ethiopia and set business in the most inconvenient and land=20
<BR>locked places, for humanitarian sake? So there would not have been any c=
ement
<BR>factory or ring road in the country but probably more liquor houses with=
beds.
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>Likewise going private in the agrarian area of the economy may have its=20=
own
<BR>pitfalls. There may be though some problems in some places where land is
<BR>communal owned and tilled. If the land in such places were taken away fr=
om
<BR>rich/medium rich peasant in the past, and given to the others because th=
ey
<BR>did not have some or they had little of it, is it going to be given back=
to
<BR>the former land owner on the bases of the right of property ownership
<BR>retrospectively, or is it to be kept with the new owners, and they in tu=
rn
<BR>would make a meal out of it? If then what justices can there be for=20
<BR>land to be owned and sold by the current holders at the expense of the f=
ormer=20
<BR>owners who are still alive and struggle to make ends meet? Is there any=20=
logic=20
<BR>for making those who legitimately owned it for several generation poor a=
nd=20
<BR>the new ones rich? But a peasant is peasant you can manipulate your way=20=
out=20
<BR>and there may not be grave danger of losing control, unless one is not=20
<BR>troubled
<BR>by his/her conscientious.
<BR>
<BR>The other issue is subscribing to free market economy does not mean=20
<BR>bending over to imperialist exploitations and subjugation. You can be a=20=
free
<BR>marketer up to your neck and still object imperialistic aggression and
<BR>exploitations when and if it occurs. You can still say down with
<BR>imperialism, couldn't you? Any country in collaboration with the big
<BR>powers, like Eritrea did to undermine Ethiopia's sovereignty and=20
<BR>territorial integrity, should and indeed be vigorously opposed, even if=20=
it=20
<BR>means=20
<BR>that you have to lose benefits of their inward investments and internati=
onal=20
<BR>aid.
<BR>
<BR>We should not be frightened to say no to imperialistic moves when it=20
<BR>comes to violation of our long-term interests and survival as a nation.=20=
There=20
<BR>is no point of advocating a free market economy if you have not got a=20
<BR>sovereign country to stand on and make a deal. At this point, when this=20
<BR>happens=20
<BR>there is no any other word you can substitute in place of Imperialism, s=
o you=20
<BR>say" down with imperialism!" It is not scary word you do not want be=20
<BR>heard saying it in case Big Brother is around. Like some wanted us to be=
lieve=20
<BR>and run away from the person who uttered the slogan. India, Pakistan and=
=20
<BR>others are free market economies and yet you hear them accusing big powe=
rs
<BR>interfering in her region affairs and call them imperialists.
<BR>
<BR>It is not only for lack of resources that we may not survive as a nation
<BR>that we should always seek their co-operation, but we could also perish=20
<BR>as a result of direct and indirect imperialist interventions in=20
<BR>collaboration with local enemies of our nation. The Red Sea and Nile Bas=
in=20
<BR>waters are two strayed daughters of ours that still are the causes of ho=
odoos=20
<BR>to the
<BR>country.
<BR>
<BR>Last but not least, if the TPLF/EPRDF has abandoned almost all its
<BR>ideological believes and now stands republished with capitalistic holy=20
<BR>water, how is that the believes of self-determination, Eritrean colonial=
=20
<BR>question, long held believes, remain unadulterated and intact? Shouldn't=
they=20
<BR>also be abandoned as outmoded and anachronistic communist views like the=
=20
<BR>rest?=20
<BR>Once this done, the TPLF/EPRDF sip from the stoup a transubstantiation t=
hat=20
<BR>would help wake it up to the call and work for Ethiopia on the bases of=20=
the
<BR>survival of the fittest, an ideology that congruently fits with doctrine=
of
<BR>capitalism? This brings me to the main point why I wanted to write this=20
<BR>article.=20
<BR>Scott Stearns of the VOA, 14/4/2001, see Ben's New Page for detailed aud=
io=20
<BR>record.
<BR>In this audio record the Eritrean Asseb port manger, Mengistab, tells=20
<BR>Scott that the existing number of port workers is more or less the same=20=
as it=20
<BR>was before the port was effectively closed. That is to say when Ethiopia
<BR>abandoned the use of the services of the port. There is no work but the
<BR>Eritrean government subsidy keeps them going. The machines and cranes,=20
<BR>them too, are also continuously greased and oiled to keep them in good n=
ick=20
<BR>and operational. "Because we believe," and this is reinforced by=20
<BR>Issayiase's views as expressed in the same audio interview, "the Ethiopi=
ans=20
<BR>will=20
<BR>sooner than later come and ask for the use of the port's services. It is=
only=20
<BR>a question of time, the Ethiopian have no choice they have to come to=20
<BR>Asseb," both Issayas Afewerki and Mengistab asserted. Alas, it is fait=20
<BR>accompli. The Eritreans know more about us than ourselves about us. But=20=
if=20
<BR>this is=20
<BR>true, how could it be, long before the blood of our brothers and sisters=
=20
<BR>split has dried on the grounds they lay fallen and those who are still a=
live=20
<BR>their wound healed that we are rushing to make a deal? Wouldn't any earn=
ing=20
<BR>made from such a deal on the graves of our dead brothers and sisters be=20=
a=20
<BR>frog in a throat? A huge bony frog indeed.
<BR>
<BR>Besides, the port of Asseb was abandoned long before the conflict=20
<BR>started on the bases of commercial viability. We were told that Ethiopia=
can=20
<BR>shop
<BR>around for ports and use the cheapest and there was no need for=20
<BR>Ethiopia touse the services of Asseb. Why then are we coming back now an=
d=20
<BR>argue a=20
<BR>causewe abandoned long before on commercial visibility bases unless we=20
<BR>wanted to help out Eritrea from its financial crisis it crassly created=20=
for=20
<BR>itself? Besides Djibouti and Asseb are geographically the same distances=
to=20
<BR>the=20
<BR>rest of Ethiopia. If we can use Djibouti will there be a need to look fo=
r=20
<BR>Asseb,after all the bloodshed added to it? It is not only the Eritreans=20=
who=20
<BR>Are arguing that we should come back to Asseb - it even sounds on the au=
dio
<BR>record like the Eritreans will declare war on us if we fail to toe the l=
ine
<BR>and use Asseb from the ways they talk both issyas and the port manager.=20
<BR>The UN Deputy Representative to Ethiopia and Eritrea, Ian Martin, is als=
o
<BR>arguing we should forget and forgive and use the port of Asseb, a port=20
<BR>no win the hands of the Eritrean, for the benefits of all. Yes all, smal=
l=20
<BR>power and big powers. We cannot tell them what we wanted, they know want=
is=20
<BR>good for us all the time and they have been providing us just that - pov=
erty=20
<BR>and war.
<BR>
<BR>One Ethiopian writer, Alemu Taye, in his article, " Seye or Melese,"
<BR>14/4/2001, posted in Ben's New Page, appears to sit on the fence and=20
<BR>try to hitch up the rope on fellow Tigrayans. He seems to gloat over wha=
t he=20
<BR>calls the downfall of rule of TPLF, and with it the Tigrayans domination=
. At=20
<BR>a time when the input of everyone is required to steer the country from
<BR>danger, unless every Tigrayan, as he put it, come to Washington DC=20
<BR>where helived for the last thirty years presumably in comfort, unless th=
ey=20
<BR>joinedhis party, this writer wont listen, wont have any thing do with
<BR>Ethiopians/Tigrayans whatsoever. Well Mr. Writer, I will tell you this=20
<BR>for I know for sure. Tigray gave the TPLF, EPRP; EDU and other would be
<BR>liberators, when liberation front was the right steps to walk about,=20
<BR>the same chances of material and human resources to be used against Derg=
.=20
<BR>Tiraygave all the liberation fronts without any exception safe sanctuari=
es=20
<BR>and shelters in its caves, mountains and human dwellings at enormous ris=
k=20
<BR>to itself to operate. What more could the pe
--part1_91.95baec1.280c1454_boundary--
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