Author: saay
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Eritrea 2020: The Peace Dividend Is War
What follows is a synapsis of what transpired in, and to, Eritrea and Eritreans in 2020. Retrospectives are selective, reflecting the author’s bias so, forewarned, it will not include lines like “The Habela-Cheatat road construction has begun. When finished, it will reduce the Asmara-Akordet distance by 20 kilometers.” There are people who do a good…
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War Is Not The Answer, Ethiopia
“What do Eritreans think of TPLF?” Excepting for the areas of overlap, you will not get the same answer from Eritrea’s government-supporters and the opposition. The opposition will say “Whatever I think of them, can’t you, the so-called Eritrean government, see you are so much worse than them and an even more existential threat to…
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War: It’s In The Peace Agreement!
You can also refer to this article as “An Eritrea Without Wars” to follow up on “An Eritrea Without Prisons.” Only in Eritrea can the same person who has fought in its Liberation War (1961-1991), then its Senseless War I (1998-2000), will now fight in its So Very Necessary War, later to be named So…
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An Eritrea Without Prisons
When I say “An Eritrea Without Prisons”, I don’t mean it metaphorically. I mean it literally: what if we had an Eritrea without a single prison, jail or detention center? The focus is on the hypothetical, the “what if?” So, those of you who consider discussing the theoretical as a waste of time can leave…
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Dr. Newitol: The Search For Foolish Consistency
131. Gifti Abajobir from Beshaha, Jimma Ethiopia asks: Hi Dr. Newitol. I have a serious question and I hope you won’t give me a smart-alec answer: why is Eritrea president Isaias Afwerki in my city? Why does he keep traveling to Ethiopia: is it the only country that can give him an entry visa? Does…
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Dr Newitol: The Stoppage Time Edition
Dr. Newitol is a composite of three characters, one of whom is the editor. He takes questions from Horn Africans (yes, it is a thing now) and pretends to give answers. Dr. Newitol is now so popular, so big, he inexplicably disappears and reappears. 120: HamedAdem from Ambori, Gash Barka asks: Wo Dr. Newitol, welcome…
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ሕላገት ኤርትራ: በቲ ኤህ: በቲ ክላ
ኣብ ዘይወግዓዊ መራኸቢታት ከምዝተጠቐሰ፡ ሎምቅነ 100 ዝኾኑ ኤርትራውያን ካብ ማእሰርቲ ተፈቲሖም ኣለዉ። “ካብዚ ዝኸፍእ ‘ውን ኣሎ!” ዝብል ምኽኒት ከም ምኽንያት ቅቡል ስለ ዝኾነ፥ “ንምንታይ ተኣሲሮም? እቶም ዝተረፉ’ኸ ስልምንታይ ዘይወጽኡ? ንምዃኑኸ: እንታዩ ሃለዋቶም?” ምሕታት ነውሪ’ ዩ:: እዞም እሱራት ገበኖም፡ ሕሉፍ ሓሊፍዎም እቲ “ጉጅላዊ” (“ፈላለየ”: “ተኹታዂ:”ወዘተ”) ኣላሁ ኣክበር (God Is Great) “ላ ኢላህ ኢላ ኣላህ” (there is…
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02.02.02 Eritrea’s Day of Shame
It’s part of Eritrea’s folklore that the Eritrean Parliament of the 1950s committed a horrible mistake when some of its members voted for dissolution of the Federal Act with Ethiopia and opted for annexation. What is less commented on is that another Eritrean Parliament, the Eritrean National Assembly of 2002, committed an egregious mistake that…
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Eritrea-Ethiopia: Still A Peace Agreement Without Peace Dividend
It was a Monday in Asmara: July 9, 2018. Streets had been paraded, coffee mugs delicately held and an agreement signed. A “Joint Declaration of Peace and Friendship between Eritrea and Ethiopia“, no less. Not to be mistaken with the “Agreement On Peace, Friendship And Comprehensive Cooperation Between The Federal Democratic Republic Of Ethiopia And…
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Jirtu? Farewell, Hachalu Hundessa!
Of the many cultures the Trans-Mereb people of Eritrea and Ethiopia share is disdain for musicians: everybody wants his son to be a doctor, a lawyer or an engineer. And often, musicians live down to this expectation, focusing on being entertainers and flatterers-to-the-rich-and-powerful, and just helping to deaden the pain of the human condition. But…
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In Eritrea, The Leader Is Always Wrong
My people. Know yourself and know your enemy, and don’t be too squeamish to call your adversary an enemy. Eritrea, with its loyalty days. Independence Day is giving way to Martyr’s Day, the sequence appearing to foreshadow Eritrea’s fate: a country independent enough to sacrifice but not sufficiently sovereign to be free: i.e., popular sovereignty,…
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Why Architect Isaias Afwerki Fails At Everything
Sometime between his first interview focusing on international affairs and the second pinpointing on Eritrea, somebody slipped Eritrea’s President Isaias Afwerki some truth serum and he couldn’t stop telling us how spectacularly he had failed in the past 28+ years. It was like an opposition leader had body snatched him: he told us that every…