“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 me as an Eritrean!?” But to the supporters of the Eritrean government and other self-described nationalists, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front is evil incarnate, whose crimes are unforgettable and unforgivable. And so those who want to move on or have more nuanced views are Weyane lackeys, Weyto and (this was totally new to me in the long list of adjectives I have gotten) “Ethiopia-haters.” Nowhere is The Unforgiven view of TPLF/Weyane (shared also by Ethiopians) made more explicit than in a powerful speech Eritrean General Sebhat Ephrem once gave, which I will reference below. I am hoping that the speech, and what I have to say about it (it is one-sided), will, maybe, sway one or two people from their absolute conviction that the war in Ethiopia and Eritrea’s support for it are necessary. They are not: it is only in Africa that civil wars are not a figure of speech but quite literal.
A little about Sebhat Ephrem, our only four-star general, and why his speeches are so powerful. (We killed the other four-star general, Ogbe Abraha.)
If Isaias Afwerki is a tortoise, Sebhat Ephrem is a gazelle: faster and more graceful. Whereas Isaias Afwerki’s speech is a concentric chain trapped in parenthesis and ellipses, that of Sebhat Ephrem is spoken word: emotive, full of imagery, geometric and rhythmic. The construction of the sentences is so captivating you may actually believe outlandish claims that float with an air of uber-confidence. If you live in this parallel universe, the speeches are intensely uplifting, if cartoonish: Eritrean good, everybody else bad. He is the only one from the PFDJ/Eritrean Government hierarchy who peppers his speeches with quotations from Jefferson, biographies of European Earls and Emperors; and he invents Tigrinya words that don’t sound like the PFDJ elite’s cringe-inducing word-for-word translation of English concepts, my favorite being his word for the element of surprise: Handebetnet. And whereas the PFDJ elite and the Diaspora Cadres actually think they are making arguments when they are mock-outraging, counter-attacking, Game Overing, cliche-reciting, name-calling and how-dare-you!ing (the Sophia Tesfamariam template), he can make beautifully-constructed arguments that give you pause. Yes, he believes the same batshit crazy conspiracies Isaias believes in (a world where G13, G15, CIA, Weyane, Sudan, Yemen were part of a giant conspiracy to subdue Eritrea.) But, he is the only one who can explain Isaiasism without sounding opportunistic or parrotic. Within the PFDJ, he is considered an Isaias-loyalist for many reasons, not the least of which being he can quote several philosophers and kings and historians who taught him coup d’etats are a bad idea. On the other hand, whenever a post-Isaias Eritrea is discussed, his name is floated as the likely chairman of the transitional government. Thus the assassination attempt on him, with two equally-motivated suspects (Cui bono.) The failed attempt, his hospitalization in UAE, his return back to Eritrea, and his total silence since his return are all taboo subjects: the official State Television, Eri-TV (slogan: Serving The Truth) did not tell its viewers of the assassination attempt, and thus neither his hospitalization, nor return thus no reason for him to be interviewed.
Back to How Much Do We Hate TPLF, a paralyzing serialized show that has been on the air since May 1998. Here’s how General Sebhat Ephrem explains, beginning at the 4:42 mark, why the crimes of TPLF are unforgettable and unforgivable: the way Jews think of Nazis (actual quote):
Hear that? There will be payback.
Why? For its soldiers raping Eritrean women in Senafe, Barentu and Teseney. For the destruction of cultural property by damaging the Stela of Matara and Tserona Patriots Cemetery. For mistreating Eritrean prisoners of war. For forcible expulsion of population of Awgaro. For depriving Eritrean-Ethiopians of their Ethiopian identity. For wrongful expulsion of Eritrea-Ethiopians. For failure to provide humane and safe treatment of those expelled, and virtually expropriating their property. For detaining Eritrean civilians on security charges and subjecting them to harsh treatment. For violating Eritrean diplomatic premises. For residential, business property losses in Serha, Senafe, Teseney, Alighidir, Guluj, Tabaldia, Gergef, Omhajer, Barentu, Tokombia and Molki.
All true. But only half the story. I will come back to that because you are saying, “wait, I thought this was about the Ethiopian War!” True, true. Let me deal with my people and I promise I will be back.
And this takes us to Ethiopia’s “Law Enforcement Operation”, which the dictionary insists on calling “civil war.” Unkind Webster. And more relevant to us Eritreans (I will come back to you Ethiopians after a couple of paragraphs), when the question of whether we are involved or not is raised, there are those who called it “a claim without evidence propagated by Weyane Weytos’ (Dr. Border Commissioner Andeberhan W/Giogis); as long as it is to restore its sovereignty and take back its lands, it is allowed by international law (Ambassador Dr. Andeberhan W/Giorgis, again); and finally, those who said–and let me refer to my notes here–yes, here it is: ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!
Wasn’t there a video of President Isaias Afwerki famously declaring that we just can’t wait for every adventurer in Ethiopia to victimize us? That we won’t be watching with our hands folded: we will be actively engaged. In case people could not understand his words because they don’t speak Tigrinya, he said the words “actively engaged” in English.
The worst-kept secret: Are #Eritrea tyrant Isaias Afwerki & his cabal helping out #Ethiopia|s Pastor @AbiyAhmedAli in the war he is waging in Tigray?
Here: the mob-boss and his consigliere Yemane Gebreab confessing that they have every intention to do so. #SayNoToWarEthiopia pic.twitter.com/mA8kH4NIhr
— SAAY (@saayEritrea) November 9, 2020
No? How about artillery shelling coming North of the Eritrea-Ethiopia border? Just Ethiopians who re-positioned to the North to encircle the Weyane. How about Eritrean prisoners of war displayed in Weyane TV? Fake! Do you know how easy it is to give Eritrean refugees in Ethiopia military uniforms? (Andeberhan strikes again.) Ok.
More compelling than any of the above, I think, is the Sebhat Ephrem speech because it distills the Eritrean grievance which happens to be (a) true but (b) incomplete.
Why? Because our soldiers raped women in Irob, Dalul and Elidar. Because we caused the death, physical injury, disappearance, forced labor and conscription of Ethiopian civilians. Because we looted, damaged and destroyed properties including religious institutions. Because we were responsible for wrongful detention and abusive treatment of Ethiopian civilians in Eritrean custody. Because we caused the death and injury of Ethiopian detainees at Wi’a Camp. We did not protect property of Ethiopian detainees expelled from Eritrea. We failed to ensure the sane and humane repatriation of departing Ethiopians. Oh, it is itemized:
1.For death, physical injury, disappearance, forced labor and conscription of Ethiopian civilians: US $11,000,000for
2.For failing to prevent rape of known and unknown victims in Irob, Dalul and Elidar Weredas: US$2,000,000
3.For looting, and destruction of and damage to houses: US $ 13,900,000
4.For damage, destruction and looting in Zalambessa: US $20,195,000
5.For death, injury and property damage in Mekele: US $2,500,000
6.For looting of and damage to government buildings and infrastructure: US $315,000
7.For looting, destruction and damage to religious institutions: US $4,500,000
8.For seizure and looting of the Saba Dimensional Stones Share Company: US $3,216,000
9.For mistreatment of Ethiopian prisoners of war: US $7,5000,000
10.For failure to protect Ethiopian civilians in Eritrea from threats and violence: US $2,000,000
11.For failure to ensure Ethiopian civilians in Eritrea access to employment: US $1,500,000
12.For failure to ensure that Ethiopian civilians in Eritrea were able to receive medical care to the same extent as Eritrean nationals: US $50,000
13.For wrongful detention and abusive treatment of Ethiopian civilians in Eritrean custody: US $2,000,000
It goes on and on like that.
All the litany of horrible things we did to each other was investigated, and argued for five years by 70 (!) lawyers in front of the Eritrea-Ethiopia Claims Commission (EECC) which issued its ruling on the claims filed by Eritrea and Ethiopia here, and here, which were shared via a press release on August 17,2009 Like the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) ruling, that of the Eritrea Ethiopia Claims Commission (EECC) is also unappealable, based on the Algiers Agreement both countries signed. Verdict was passed, penalties assessed.
The monetary value of the damages we inflicted on each other, said EECC, was $161,455,000 (owed to Eritrea by Ethiopia) and US $174,036,520 (owed to Ethiopia by Eritrea.) And this huge amount could have been even more massive if the judges had not considered “the difficult economic conditions” in Eritrea and Ethiopia which must be “taken into account in assessing compensation here.” And this does not include the bombing of Eritrea’s Hirgigo Power Plant or Ethiopia’s Mekele Ayder School, for which the arbitrators at EECC found without adequate merit. Even the puny compensation for the rapes that was committed is while acknowledging that the rape cases are probably more, but the “culture” prevents victims from speaking out.
Now, why would an intelligent man like Sebhat Ephrem, speaking in 2009, make it seem like the atrocities were one-sided, committed only by the Unforgotten and Unforgiven TPLF ? Why would the occasion not be a moment for self-reflection? Because PFDJ is just not wired that way: it has perfected victimology into an art form. Our war-story-telling matches all our novels: Eritreans good, everybody else bad. I think my nemesis (RIP) Paul Henze called it “groupie journalism.” It’s a cartoonish view of the world that has gotten our country stuck in quicksand for 29 years now. There are no institutions, so there is no institutional memory: by the time EECC issued its decision in 2009, we were already knee-deep in another war (Somalia’s Civil War) and months before a UN sanction that would be in effect for 9 years, until Abiy Ahmed had it lifted.
Now, Ethiopians. Meet me at Camera 2:
I was born after Ethiopia annexed Eritrea so I was born an Ethiopian and was, on paper, an Ethiopian until 1993. I know how you think. I love you but you don’t value the sanctity of life: every provocation, no matter how slight, is reason enough for you to go to war. And when your people die in wars, you don’t even do what we do: tell your people the names of those who died (say their name!) and how many of them there were. You didn’t do that in 1991. You didn’t do that in 2000. And you most certainly won’t do that after you conclude your Profoundly Wrong Civil War now. Arguably, we Eritreans are a little better than you on this: we list the names of all our martyrs. Yes, sure, we include in our martyrs list anybody who was not released from military service at time of death, regardless of how he or she died. People who die from snake bite, malaria, suicide, or from wounds inflicted at the torture cells of the PFDJ are all martyrs. I said we are arguably better, don’t argue with me.
Many of you have told me “but what then if not war? If war is not justified now, when renegade region is flouting the government’s authority, then when? What about the 27 years of tyranny the TPLF ran in Ethiopia? There has to be payback!”
Let’s begin with the last claim: it is a matter of record that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (who was a junior member of the TPLF Crime Syndicate, enforcing its Anti Terrorism Proclamation, ATP) claimed, on national television, that the EPRDF (TPLF Plus 3 Other Parties including his) apologized and the Ethiopian people have forgiven it (including him, including TPLF.) He argued that Ethiopia is tired of the cycle of revenge (Lij Iyasu, Haile Selasse, Mengistu…) where the new king punishes the overthrown king and the People have given EPRDF a second chance. I don’t know which survey he took that told him EPRDF was forgiven, but let’s say that’s the case. If so, it is illogical to say that the people have forgiven us (EPRDF), but not this subset, this driver of EPRDF called Weyane. Thats Telata Waraga 101, the Three Card Monte broadcast to the world:
What made Abiy Ahmed Ali a Prime Minister this website you are reading was fanboying all of 2018 is because he was different from all the previous Ethiopian rulers who, in search of TOTAL VICTORY, arrested, disappeared, and declared endless wars. In the process, arresting the development of their country.
All you Pan-Africanist Ethiopians: how does it make you feel to know that any advanced country, say Denmark, faced with the same dilemma, would not declare war on a rebellious region in the 21st century? Why is resort to war considered a logical extension of politics: because military theorist/strategist Clausewitz said war is “the continuation of policy by other means”? (Yep, again, quoted by Dr. Andeberhan:) But, fun fact, Clausewitz never said that. What he said is war is “the continuation of policy WITH other means.” Not “BY” but “WITH.” That is: there should always be negotiations. In fact, one of the few things the Eritrea-Ethiopia Claims Commission praised the two countries for was that during their two-year senseless war, they never broke diplomatic relations: they always had representation in each country. Meanwhile, Abiy and TPLF are not even talking to each other because, in Habeshese, that is a sign of weakness.
Can you pause for a second and consider that war is a very outdated mode of bringing about change, as Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said in the same address to the Ethiopian House of Representatives? How can it be outmoded in 2018 and in fashion in 2020? Would this war be waged if the sons and daughters of the TPLF elite, the Prosperity Party elite and the PFDJ elite were fighting it? What is the acceptable price to be paid to remove Weyane from power in Tigray? Ten thousand Ethiopians? A hundred thousand? A million, as some Dergista said on Twitter? Speaking of Derg, you are aware that in your attempt to separate the people of Tigray from TPLF, the absolute worst strategy is to employ Derg-era generals and slogans and symbols? It is not just TPLF which hates Derg; it is the people of Tigray. And, don’t let Isaias and his cult deceive you: the Derg remnants are also despised in Eritrea. The second worst strategy is to bring a Tigrayan Ahmed Chalabi and say, “Hello people of Tigray! Here’s your new Chief Executive.” This is what feeds insurgencies.
And where are the dissidents? Where are the Tigrayans who will tell the TPLF: we are tired of war: you have had your turn, now please stop this war? Where are the Ethiopian people who will tell the Prime Minister: you told us “peace comes via peace”, you forgave all the Eritrea-based armed groups and welcomed them home: you convinced me Ethiopia has turned its back on war: why are you so eager to go to war? Where are the independent Ethiopian media? Where are your religious leaders: why do they always get co-opted by whoever is in charge of the armed forces? Where is the Peace Lobby? Where is your Civil Society? How do you expect to be Africa’s “New Horizon for Hope” when you can’t go more than 5 years without war? Do you actually think that if “Weyane is defeated” (whatever that means), you will not be in an endless cycle of violence?
From our 1998-2000 war, many of us Eritreans have learned bitter lessons, that you Ethiopians apparently have not. Please, please listen:
1. If you are expecting your government or revolutionary movement to be honest with you, it won’t. The Ethiopian State Media and the TPLF Media are not here to serve you the people, but those who sign their paychecks. This is why if you hear something that sounds remotely truthful, it was accidental;
2. You have no dissident voices because, in war time, using the logic of war, dissidents are traitors. You must avoid groupthink and seek out your dissidents.
3. You will do terrible things to each other, and then use these same terrible things that happened to you, to justify more terrible things.
4. You will be told that you have sustained no losses, no casualties: the battle is going amazingly well. Your side will tell you that the only challenge your soldiers have is sheer exhaustion from pulling triggers to mow down the enemy, who is always unmotivated, and hungry, and badly armed whereas your side has superior morale, and is well armed, well trained, fighting for a just cause, led by able leaders. ስንኖር ኢትዮጵያውያን ስንሞት ኢትዮጵያ! (Unless, of course, you are wearing the wrong uniform.)
5. You will learn new Latin phrases. “Jus Ad Bellum” describes when a war is just and righteous (yes, that’s a thing.) Observe the antagonists: Why, what could be more just than to defend your identity and self rule (Tigray) and what could be more just than imposing rule of law (Federal Government)? In Eritrea, we were told our jus ad bellum (our justification for going to war, which was imposed on us, honest to god we didn’t start it) was Weyane killing officers and soldiers on patrol and despite the fact that 22 years later we don’t even know for sure the names of the officers and soldiers (for all we know, the pictures circulating on social media maybe of another group of “martyrs”: people the PFDJ kills in its prisons and then buries at “martyr’s cemetery” as it did with General Oqbe Abraha.) And the EECC told us, even if what you are saying is true, that was no jus ad bellum and your act will cost you 73 million USD. But, eleven years later, we still persist in saying Ethiopia declared war! (EECC said no it didn’t) and waged 3 offensives (etched in our Eternal Calendar of Grudges.) You will also learn “jus in bello” (the laws of warfare, humanitarianism) and you will be told that your side is in perfect observance of jus in bello, while the the other side (savages! barbarians!) are violating it left and right. Why not: there is no independent media to witness it, just propagandists wearing a mic.
6. When all is said and done, there will be no accountability for the “winner”: you will move on to the next crisis. New Chapter!
War is not the answer. Start with that. So what is? It’s like you are telling someone who is about to commit suicide and you say that’s not the answer and he asks so what is the answer? Do you have to give him the answer right then or is the only thing you know for sure is that suicide is not the answer? Civil War, whether you call it Operation Rule Of Law or Defending Our Identity is national suicide. What to do? The answer is: pretend you are from Denmark before you answer that. Please shut off all the highly compromised foreign “experts” and “consultants” and tyranny-groupies: they would never tell Denmark to go to war, but they expect Africans to do so! There is nothing more degrading than quoting clueless foreigners to justify killing your own people.
In passing, I would like to mention that when I say “we”, of course I as an Eritrean have to inherit everything–good or bad–that happened in my name: the Algiers Agreement is not between Isaias Afwerki and Meles Zenawi but between the States of Eritrea and Ethiopia. I don’t forget, but I forgive. Speaking of good things that happened under my name, I am very proud of the Eritrean Catholic Church for being the only religious institution–Christian, Muslim, Agnostic; Eritrean, Ethiopian–to issue an extraordinarily well-reasoned and morally righteous statement condemning Ethiopia’s latest episode of “King of Kings demands total obedience from a king.” I wish the other institutions would find their voices.
Say No To War. Say Yes to Negotiations.
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