Eritrea Wire

As Ethiopians celebrated the new year on 11 September, the TPLF (Tigray People’s Liberation Front) issued a Stance on a Peaceful Resolution of the Current Conflict. Choking on hypocrisy it states that they were, are, will one day be, prepared to “participate in a robust peace process under the auspices of the African Union (AU)”. And agree to “abide by an immediate and mutually agreed cessation of hostilities in order to create a conducive atmosphere.” Utter lies; beyond the boundaries of such meaningless words TPLF violence continued unabated.

The AU organised peace talks (8/9 October) in South Africa; invitations were sent a hall booked, hotel rooms reserved and presumably dinner reservations made. But to the surprise of nobody, the TPLF refused to engage because of “logistical issues”. As a result the fighting, killing, and destruction goes on. Talks are now re-scheduled to take place in South Africa on 24 October.

The TPLF is in no position to set conditions for participation; they are a criminal organization, not a legitimate political group. They do not represent the people of Tigray, are despised throughout the country – including within Tigray; their army is in tatters, forced recruitment of children and other civilians is widespread. Far from making demands TPLF leaders should beg for forgiveness, before being hauled off to the International Criminal Court to stand trial for crimes committed during the last two years, as well as when they were in power.

Peace talks, anywhere, anytime?

In response to this latest TPLF initiated conflict, which started on 24 August, when they “broke the humanitarian truce declared by the Government in March 2022,” the Ethiopian Government issued (17 October) a Statement Concerning Defensive Measures in Northern Ethiopia. It makes clear that this is the third time in two years that the TPLF have “dragged the country into conflict” – something routinely overlooked by Western nations and media outlets; unprovoked attacks launched despite the government repeatedly proposing unconditional peace talks, “anywhere, anytime”. The official statement also relates that, astonishingly, “The PLF announced to the group of special envoys and Addis Ababa based diplomats its intentions to launch an offensive.”

Despite their complete lack of engagement in any reconciliation work, or adherence to government initiated ceasefires, the terror group claim (16 October) they “are ready to abide by an immediate cessation of hostilities [and], call on the international community to press the Ethiopian Government to come to the negotiating table.” More duplicity – the Ethiopian Government has been patiently waiting for the TPLF at said table for 18 months.

Such misleading carefully formulated statements are part of the TPLF’s Methodology of Deceit. Lies, manipulation, perversions of the truth, all are gobbled up by media and regurgitated by western governments and institutions, including some within the United Nations (UN): The head of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus specifically — a former TPLF minister (who should never have been appointed to the WHO job) he has shamelessly used his platform to spread false accusations against the Ethiopian government, and present the TPLF as victims.

The World Food Program (WFP) appears to have been compromised; hundreds of WFP trucks and thousands of litres of fuel, earmarked to distribute humanitarian aid into Tigray, were “stolen” by the TPLF, and aid sold to fund their terror campaign. The “disappearance” of the trucks, according to the UN, constitutes “the primary impediment” to the aid response. In an arrogant statement, the TPLF admit the theft of 570,000 litres of fuel in August, bizarrely stating that, “It was collecting on a debt owed to them by the WFP.”

War games not peace

Since they initiated the war in November 2020 the TPLF have done nothing to suggest they want to end the conflict, on the contrary. Their lack of participation in the AU convened negotiations (8/9 October) therefore, came as no surprise, because their actions make plain that it is not peace that they want, but power.

One of the TPLF’s reasons, petty and churlish, for not attending, was that they were not consulted by the AU before invitations were sent. The terrorist’s mouthpiece, Getachew Reda said, and in a text message no less; “You don’t just expect people to show up on a certain date as if this was some kind of get-together.” Why not? If a warring faction is serious about peace, surely they will do anything to bring it about. Something as trivial as not being included in organizing the guest list, would not deter them from participating, would it?

Another complaint, closely connected to the first one, was that it was unclear what role the “international community” would play. This is TPLF code for “where are our American supporters?” We, the TPLF – a bona fide terrorist organization that started the war when we attacked the Northern Command Base of the Ethiopian army, killing unsuspecting personnel and ransacking the site for weapons – we want “our” friends at the peace table in South Africa, our US minders and facilitators. Successive American administrations (plus the UK and EU), supported the TPLF throughout their brutal 27 year reign. And, since the conflict began in November 2020, the US and Co. have, to the astonishment of shocked Ethiopians and many naive observers — who, despite decades of evidence to the contrary, still believe America to be a force for good in the world — stood side by side with the terrorists.

TPLF and western collusion

In an attempt to discredit and isolate Ethiopia, demonize the government and somehow create a confused space in which the TPLF could magically be reinstalled in Addis Ababa, a false narrative around the war, the actions of federal forces, and the distribution of humanitarian aid by UN agencies, has been constructed and propagated. A western coalition, led by the US has been employed to throw a canopy of mis/disinformation over the conflict and the actions of the TPLF, who, far from being presented as the terrorist force they are, and always have been, are somehow elevated to a position equivalent to the democratically elected government of Ethiopia.

This orchestrated propaganda campaign has been funded by the TPLF using some of the huge sums stolen during their time in office. Ann Fitz-Gerald (Director of the Balsillie School of International Affairs) states in The Frontline Voices that, “What sets this insurgency movement apart from many others is the extraordinarily large budget that the TPLF amassed during its 27 years in power, and just prior to its departure…in 2018, which left the Government of Ethiopia’s coffers empty.” In addition to funding their armed wing and its “digital insurgency of unprecedented proportions…these funds also pay for Washington-based lobby groups and law firms that have issued threatening letters to individuals – and their employers – who dare depart from the TPLF narrative.”

Given such widespread western collusion, it is plain why the TPLF want American voices at the table, and it is equally clear what role the “international community” should have in any peace talks – none whatsoever. African countries have been exploited and manipulated by such nations (US, UK, EU nations) for generations; they cannot be trusted any more than the TPLF can, i.e., not at all. The AU and fellow Africans, are very familiar with despots like the TPLF. They are more than capable of staging peace talks without interference or involvement from dried-up imperialist forces, who care not for the Ethiopian people, or indeed anyone in Sub-Sharan Africa, are driven solely by self-interest and are therefore corrupted totally.

Ethiopia under PM Abiy is seen as far too independent and democratic for American sensibilities. Subservient regimes (aka the TPLF) lording over fragmented fractious nations of mostly uneducated poor: This is the sour American Dream for so-called developing countries in Sub-Sharan Africa, not integrated societies cooperating with neighbors, building and strengthening relationships, as part of a Pan-African movement, diverse, independent but united. A movement that is gaining ground and all power to it.

Under the TPLF, division cruelty and animosity was the order of the day, inside Ethiopia and within the Horn region, and so (in line with US foreign policy) instability was maintained. It was the TPLF that initiated the war with Eritrea in 1998, and it was PM Abiy, together with President Isaias Afwerki of Eritrea, who ended the fighting – something it is hard to imagine being well received in Washington – and created peace. At the time of the accord, President Afwerki, pointedly referring to the TPLF, said, “Hate, discrimination and conspiracy are now over. Our focus from now on should be on developing and growing together.… Now is the time to make up for the lost times.”

The TPLF has constantly revealed that it knows only violence, suppression and lies. During their time in power acts of State Terrorism were commonplace, rape and sexual violence were employed (as they have been throughout this conflict) to induce fear and human rights were totally trampled on. All we might add with the support of the “international community”; that benign self righteous force, complicit in so much suffering, that, whilst proclaiming freedom, justice and democracy, moves within the shadows sewing seeds of chaos, death and destruction, seemingly wherever it goes.

For peace talks to be positive both parties must want the conflict to end. There is no doubt that the Ethiopian government is committed to peace, likewise it is plain that the TPLF is not; they cannot be trusted, not at all. The TPLF is a deadly poison that has caused immeasurable suffering to the people of Ethiopia and the wider region for decades; in order for peace to gently settle and for social harmony to once again be established, the poison must be cut out completely. This requires the TPLF be disbanded, never again to cast their vile shadow upon the country.

 

Source: Dehai Eritrea Online

Media portrayal and broad political discourse on the conflict in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia are replete, especially these days, with dooms-day warnings of unparalleled mayhem and “looming humanitarian catastrophe”.  Indeed, the constant refrain in major international media outlets (BBC, AFP, NYT, Foreign Policy etc.) and UNSG/UNSC pronouncements revolve on “a war that has spiraled into one of the world’s deadliest conflicts and worst humanitarian crises”. The interlocutors further insinuate perpetration of “unspeakable atrocities”, mostly by reference to dubious sources and entities.

War is intrinsically brutal; irrespective of its scale; and where and when it unfolds.   Elusive notions that smart weapons can diminish civilian causalities are more real in textbooks and academic realms rather than in cruel battlefields.

The conservative estimate of civilian casualties in NATO’s air raids (around 10,000 sorties) in the war that it unleashed in Libya in 2011 was over 500,000.  US Drone strikes on Taliban Al-Haq in Pakistan reportedly caused close to 15,000 civilian deaths over a couple of years in the process of killing not more than 300 of the intended terrorists.   These casualties are often downplayed in NATO and US wars through verbal gymnastics and the novel and impersonal term of “collateral damage” that first gained currency during the US invasion of Iraq.

In the same token, the raft of Humanitarian Laws of War and the Rules of Engagement that all National Defense Forces accordingly adhere to, may go a long way to reduce civilian casualties. But they cannot eliminate them altogether due to insurmountable factors and parameters cited above.  It must also be stressed that, above and beyond unacceptable civilian deaths and causalities, the loss of life of men and women in uniform; and/or the destruction of property themselves cannot be tolerable simply because the Humanitarian Laws of War mainly protect civilian life and infrastructure.

In the event, condescending tendencies of portraying African wars as exceptionally brutal do not stem from solid and incontrovertible evidence. They reflect an inherent bias and prejudice akin to a Borrellsque mind-set of the “rosy Western Garden juxtaposed to a chaotic Global-South jungle”.

Humanity’s primary focus and collective endeavor must therefore be geared towards averting war in the first place and seeking enduring solutions in accordance with legality and justice when and if conflicts erupt anywhere.  These approaches should not be subordinated to, and eclipsed by, narrow geopolitical interests and calculus if the overarching objective is indeed saving humanity from the horrors and destruction of war.

In regard to the situation in northern Ethiopia, the vicious conflict that has raged for almost two years now was triggered when the TPLF unleashed a War of Insurrection against the Federal Government.  Punctuated lulls in fighting and intermittent periods of relative peace were willfully broken by the TPLF when it subsequently unleashed two massive assaults – in June last year and August this year –  by violating the Unilateral and Permanent Humanitarian Ceasefires that the Federal Government had declared to give peace a chance.

Furthermore, other distressing dimensions of the war – TPLF’s massive conscription of Child soldiers; its human-wave war tactics; the callous timing of its three offensives during critical harvest times etc.- have rendered the scale of human causalities and civilian suffering much more excessive.

The TPLF’s massive disinformation campaign – duly enhanced and amplified by media outlets and official institutions in several western countries – was, and remains, another feature of its War of Insurrection with few precedents and parallels in other conflicts in terms of a wicked design, intensity and outreach.

A comprehensive study by a team of scientists and data analysts at GETFACTet (published on August 21, 2022) established that the “#TigrayGenocide hashtag was launched before and during the attack on thousands of Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) stationed in Tigray, many of whom were massacred by TPLF forces while they slept”.  The report further illustrates that from “November 5th – 30th of 2020, nearly 1633 cumulative new accounts were opened and reached 75,581 #TigrayGenocide tweets”.

TPLF’s principal leitmotif in invoking the specter of “genocide’’ was transparent: to package and legitimize its high crimes of unprovoked War of Insurrection as a “pre-emptive and defensive military response to thwart the threat of extinction and ethnic cleansing”.

But TPLF’s gambit and deception of the highest order could not have conceivably gained credibility and traction without the collusion of its Enablers who held high offices in western governments and UN Institutions; (EU former Special Envoy, Pekka Haavisto; OCHA former Chief, Mark Lowcock; TPLF mole who doubles as DG of WHO; AI and HRW etc.).

The network of its hired lobbyists further exaggerated and amplified the outrageous allegation through pliant main stream media outlets.

TPLF’s illicit war, which could have been terminated early on, if not averted from the outset, was thus given a long lease of life as the Villain became the Victim in a theatrical, though tragic, role reversal without historical precedence.  This anomalous reality occurred essentially because powerful western countries could not let go a surrogate entity that was at their beck and call for almost thirty years and who felt threatened by the new political dispensation in the Horn of Africa.

It is these misguided geopolitical interests – not the quest for genuine peace and/or humanitarian concerns – that seem to drive the growing chorus for “immediate and unconditional cessation of hostilities” and the resumption of peace talks.  The winks and nods that these same governments were offering the TPLF when it was purportedly ‘’marching towards Addis Abeba”; the long stints of Omerta, or utter and conspiratorial silence, that they collectively observed whenever it had, or was perceived to have, the “upper-hand”, belie their dishonest claims for innocent and benign concern for peace and stability in the Horn of Africa and the welfare of its inhabitants.

The misguided obsession of these powers to rehabilitate the TPLF at any cost – not out of fidelity to the organization but as a tool of their agenda of global and regional control and dominance; and, irrespective of its gross crimes and/or dwindling political capital in Ethiopia – has remained and continues to constitute a serious stumbling block for enduring peace and stability in the region.

 

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

When I first came to North America, I had a very friendly American neighbor. She would often chat with me if we ran into each other outside and she kept my deliveries in her home until I returned from work. One particularly sweltering day she waved at me as I finished yard work and asked if I had a chance to eat lunch.

Hungry and hot I was grateful for the impromptu invitation to sit in her backyard, under an umbrella and enjoy some lunch. She brought out a jug of lemonade, salad, sandwiches, and some cookies. She invited me to eat to which I said “oh you went out of your way to prepare this. You should not have gone through the trouble.”

She responded casually that it was not a big deal and the food had been prepared earlier. I watched as she poured herself a glass of lemonade, grabbed a couple of sandwiches and cookies. My stomach rumbled as I poured a half glass of lemonade and placed a half sandwich, a couple of forkfuls of salad, and no cookies on my plate. I hungrily ate. After eating she asked if I would like any more and I politely declined even going as far as gesturing to my stomach and telling her how full I felt. I complimented her food and she thanked me as she swiftly picked up the dishes and returned the uneaten food to the kitchen. I was still hungry, I wanted more, and I missed a great cookie!

“Qal Alem” – directly translated means “the word of the world.” There is no singular word in English that explains this Eritrean cultural norm. It is an act that is shown to express respect and hospitality amongst people and communities. You see, when my neighbor invited me to lunch I went willingly and very hungry, and out of respect for her kind gesture, I took a very small portion.

At that moment, I thought that she was serving me an abundance, even more than she had or could afford. I considered whether there were other people that had yet

to eat or if the portion she served today was also her food for tomorrow. In reciprocating her respect, I took a very modest portion knowing that she would insist that I eat more food, and looked forward to adding to my plate when the time came.

I expected a back and forth, like a fine-tuned and practiced dance that all Eritreans know. The host offers more; the guest declines; the host cajoles; the guest declines stating how delicious the food was; the host insists and asks if the guest didn’t find the food appealing; the guest vehemently denies that and insists that the food was delicious; the host asks “bezay Qal Alem” (you’re not saying this out of Qal Alem); to which the guest gives in and accepts more food and drink. In Eritrea and amongst Eritrean people and communities in the diaspora this exchange happens organically and in so many instances.

Commonly around meals and hospitality but also when someone may need help with a task. More subtly it happens when an individual does not share their knowledge, accolades, or successes because “Qal Alem” is the notion that being humble is more valued than selfpraise. Eritreans in the diaspora can share many stories, similar to mine and the American neighbor when “Qal Alem” did not serve them in a beneficial way. In many cultures where it is common and expected to self-promote, like in work or academic settings, “Qal Alem” weighs heavily and creates internal conflict because unlearning an insisting behavior of humbleness and hesitancy as a show of respect is challenging. I often found myself, out of “Qal Alem”, not sharing my accomplishments and in hindsight understand how this may have affected my career.

In social settings amongst non-Eritreans holding back and not expressing what I wanted or needed has had more severe consequences than just walking away being a little hungry. In a culture that promotes community cohesion over individuality, “Qal Alem” is an anchor and deeply rooted in our identity so while it is possible, it is incredibly challenging to shed the behavior. When practiced outside of the culture it can be confusing to an Eritrean because the expected response does not exist.

“Qal Alem” can be equally confusing to others and be perceived as indecisiveness, lacking in something (like knowledge or skill), indifference, shyness, or bashfulness. But even having said this I would not unlearn or do away with “Qal Alem.” It is an important part of my cultural identity and serves as a reminder that thinking of others, being considerate, serving community, and working for the sake of good rather than praise are qualities that I value, and will always serve me well as an Eritrean.

So until next time — insist, insist again, and insist some more!

 

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

NAIROBI — Peace talks on the war in Ethiopia will start on Monday in South Africa, the African Union said Friday, following earlier commitments by the government and Tigray forces to participate.

The Ethiopian government and its allies, which include Eritrea’s military, have been fighting Tigray forces in the north of the country on and off since late 2020. The conflict has killed thousands, displaced millions and left hundreds of thousands on the brink of famine. Both sides had committed to talks earlier this month, but they were delayed for logistical reasons.

The African Union’s Peace and Security Council said Friday it welcomed “mutual commitments to genuinely participate in the peace process.”

Redwan Hussein, national security adviser to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, has said the government will participate in the AU-led talks from October 24.

Kindeya Gebrehiwot, a spokesman for the Tigray forces, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The peace talks are set to start just days after the Ethiopian army and its allies seized three large towns in Tigray, one to the northwest and two to the south of the regional capital Mekelle.

Tigrai TV, a media outlet controlled by the Tigray authorities, said Friday the Tigray forces had released more than 9,000 Eritrean and Ethiopian prisoners of war, including 500 women.

The station reported that the prisoners of war were released because the enemy is the Ethiopian government, not the frontline soldiers who they said were forced to fight.

Reuters was not immediately able to confirm the details of the prisoner release.

Source: Voice of America