The wind of change that is sweeping the Middle East and North Africa has reached at the doorsteps of Ethiopia. Ethiopians through out the country and in the diaspora have resolved to embrace the change, and through a sustained and determined peaceful struggle, will remove Meles Zenawi’s dictatorship that has been misruling Ethiopia for the past 20 years. Hence, the moment of truth has come to every Ethiopian.
The Meles regime is once again preparing to escape change by further dividing the Tigregna speaking community from the rest of Ethiopians. It is clear to all Ethiopians that Meles Zenawi’s Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) has escalated ethnic tensions during the last 20 years. The purpose of this statement therefore is to alert all Ethiopians to be extra vigilant in separating agents of the Meles regime from the people of Tigray who are part and parcel of the Ethiopian pro-democracy movement.
Since Meles Zenawi assumed power in 1991, lacking any semblance of legitimacy, he has ruled Ethiopia with an iron fist. Without the consent of the people, it has divided the country along ethnic lines, and encouraged ethnic based politics in order to fragment and weaken Ethiopia.
Life is becoming unbearable for millions of Ethiopians who are being deprived of their lands, of their resources and of their rights. Small businesses that are not affiliated with TPLF-linked businesses are closing down in large number. While the few privileged ruling party members wallows in luxury, millions of Ethiopians live in abject poverty. To add insult to injury, the Meles regime is issuing thousands of commercial farm licenses to foreign investors from India, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and China. Today, hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians are either being evicted from their ancestral lands or turned into day laborers to foreign government-backed mega investors. Meles promotes neo-colonialism in a country that successfully defeated colonial invaders.
Since the Meles regime is looting and plundering Ethiopia in the name of Tigray, it is incumbent upon our Tigrean brothers and sisters to tell the regime: “Not in Our Name.” Ethiopians are longing for their Tigrean sisters and brothers to stand shoulder-to-shoulder in the fight against the Meles regime. Actions are needed now before it is too late.
The choice is clear. It is either to stand on the side of the Meles regime that traces its orgin to Tigray, or to be part of the popular pro-democracy movement
BEKA! Yaekelena!
(The above statement is released by Worldwide Ethiopian Civic Action Group, a gathering of activists who are working to bring about the end of dictatorship in Ethiopia. For more information: [email protected])
Feb. 28, 2011
17 thoughts on “Tigray is part of the Ethiopian pro-democracy movement!”
It is not important to make Tigray a topic and to talk of them in a special way. The train of change have come and anyone interested can embark on it. The issue concerns everyone originated in that country and it is up to any individual to be or not to be part of it.
Great news indeed. Unless the Ethiopian people are united, it is easy for the Meles clique to remain in control by employing the divide and conquer strategy!
Attention Ethiopians;
What is good for Ethiopia is better for Tigraye.We are deprived of our bsic rights to speak and think freely;we are deprived of our basic rights to justice and civility;we are deprived of our basic rights to be Ethiopians.We are second citizens,they are not;we are poor,they are not;they are the very few,we are the overwhelming majority.
Meles Zinawi and the system that he built has crippled our life for the last twenty years.Farmlands are sold to foreigners and everything else is up for sale.What next?
The kind of life we will have a day from now entirely depends on what we choose and we have a choice to remain crippled under Meles Zinawi regime or we have a choice to have a meaningful life for ourselves and for our children.
Congo,
This is not the time to sweep the dirt under the rug. Please face the reality and stand against the few tyrants and professional criminals who have been committing horrendous crimes against humanity and looting and killing in our name as Tigray People Liberation Front for the last 30 years.
“The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but by the silence over that by the good people.” –Martin Luther King, Jr.
@Bayissa;your funny sentence says as follows;
“I understand that the Tigrayans are in fear and may leave for their region in the event of such uprisings.”
This is shameful because even you do not know that there is no fear in the people of Tigray, thanks to God they are what they are naturally. They do not talk too much, cheap talk, but act to what they want. Do you accept this? History and what is going on will tell you.
TPLF doesn’t represent Tigry and its people. TPLF is a mafia entity that is plundering the nation in all directions. TPLF right now as it stands is a gathering of very dangerous men mainly from Adwa-axum and Agame. The likes of Meles, sibhat, Abay weldu, Abay tsehaye, and Seyoum, Azeb and Samora (the beast). Thus TPLF doesn’t extend byound that. The people of Tigray are still poor, they still don’t own the land that they till, they are forced to take out loans from TPLF banks that are known as “fitahwi liqah” for fertilizers and developing soil. The land once very feritile now can’t be tilled with out fertilizer and this has put the tigrian farmers in a very precarious situation, since the land is becoming unproductive with out the artificial fertilizers and this has over time resulted in making the soil highly dependent on fertilizers and in some cases rendered it un arable. In most cases farmers are highly indebted and when they find themselves unable to re-pay back the loans furnished to them by officers from fitahawi liqah program, they flee their village to the cities such as Mekelle-Enderta, maichew-Raya, Abi Adi-Tembien, Desse-Wello and even as we have come to learn to Addis; they flee to cities to work in minial jobs. This is the case of most of the farmers in Tigray now especially in places such as Raya, Enderta and Tembien once the bread basket of Tigray and some of the most fertile lands in high land Ethiopia. There is no freedom of press in Tigray and people are highly discouraged from voicing their opinion, they can’t own fire-arms and if they do, the punishment in most cases is 10 fold the price of the fire-arm itslef. Most of the house holds in Tigray are yearning for some sort of fair leadership, free from government harasment and the barbarian cadre intimidation. Last year forexample the people of Mekelle-Enderta, Tigray for example openly called for the return of Ras Mengesha Seyoum, that’s b/c during the time of Ras Mengesha, there was rule of law, and justice and absolutly no government harasment. Tigrians just like other Ethiopians are not asking much but justice, freedom, the rule of law and the right to own their ancestorial land and the right to own fire-arms. Now diaspora Tigrians need to stand with fellow Ethiopians in ousting the barbarian meles from Ethiopia. Our motto should be Meles and the anti-Ethiopia TPLF need to immediately relinquish power and prepare themselves for justice. Tigray will allways be Ethiopia and Tigrians as allways are Ethiopians but TPLF brutal bosses are not Tigrians and therefore can’t be Ethiopians.
Long live Ethiopia and the just people of Ethiopia !!
Mr. Elias,
This is very wonderful remark.I wish it would be more important reminder, if it would have been posted on all Ethiopians Web Sites. Thank for this timely posted good advice. Please try to pass it to every sites.
Davinchi
There is no question that many Tigrayns have benefited from TPLF rule and have allowed them to use Tigray as their base. Meles and his cohorts are in charge because of the support from the group. It is time for them to openly fight TPLF on behalf of the rest of Ethiopians who are being brutalized by TPLF.
Thank you all. Let’s do it.
Elias I am from Tigray and used to think w/out Meles in power,Tigray will be decimated.But now i know that we were a hostage of meles.We don’t need protection from our Ethiopian brothers and sisters.Meles can’t use Tigray as an excuse to manipulate our country wealth by conspiring with colonizers.You are right enough is enough.
Enough !
forgive me for sounding silly & slut like MLLT, but the geopoletical actors of our region should be convinced that thier national interest is better kept by the peaceloving majority people of the horn for mutual development other than partnering w/the hunger, hatred, division and endless conflicts perpetrator; the aparthied minority dictator of meles- unless of course, this is part of the strategy. it’s quite clear that woyane thinks thru america and breathes thru erope. the meeting w/the alleged oppositions probably about the sweet reward of carrots if they refrained challenging the favorite servant at the american embassy in adis is the latest prove. under the new emperors of the elite tgreans the pround ethiopia/menelik palace (or as tgreans call it BETESLTAN-ALUL/BETREMENGSTNA when chatting each other privately while some of them are more brutaly honest just to call it by its real nane: KIFO PALACE)is only being used as sucking and shittng place. it’s sad but true.
unity & peace everywhere1
Frankly the silence of Tigrans against TPLF has been deafening. We can’t deny the fact that they are the privileged minority, and are benefiting exclusively from the regime in power, and that must be changed.
Eventually a reality will sink to every tigrians yes we know woyane was struggling against Mengistu in the name of tigray
people but mengisu did not kill or mistreat them just because they are tigrians as the same time there was EPRP struggle
witch lots of young and old people paid hugh sacrifices more than the tigrians did and the only difference is the tplf agenda was not for the whole ethiopia and based on this the rest of ethiopia hate this agenda and go against it . Even after TPLF hold power the agenda is still remain the same to this day above all most of tigrians went along with it based
on many scenarios that may be they sided with TPLF or some benefit etc and the Idea not being an ethiopian did not
come from other ethiopians it actually come from their point of view and every ethiopians know either Tigraians or Tigray
is part and part of ethiopia past and feature .. forget tigray ethiopians still think eritreans are still there brotherly and sisterly ethiopians too .
Negus Haileslassie said it ; TEFETRO ANDE YAREGEWEN YEMILEYEW YELEM
all eyes on Meles Zinawi and the group around him that used Tigrians, then abused them then, used them to loot Ethiopia and murder Ethiopians.
Message of Ethiopians have been reached all Tigrians delayed,but now,we believe and they believe too that the same message has reached them again and again in timely manner because the reality in North Africa and the Middle East speaks,in fact has spoken for all oppressed people on this Earth.Well,there are options,but there are important choices to make,to make a choice,Tigrians, first have to ask themseves this:Why are we with Meles Zinawi and the groups around him? or what have we really,really gained by being a part of Meles’s and his gorups’ system that the rest of Ethiopians did get by not being a part of Meles’ and his gorups’? Are we right,or/and are we doing the right thing?
Ethiopians have already started planting the seed of mass uprising;the seed,will of course blossom and ripe;however,only those who labor to plaugh the land of the uprising will benefit Ethiopia and the future generation;those who don’t plant the seed of the uprising will not nourish Ethiopia,that is for all of us.
Then only Tigrians can make a choice by making important enquiries that will lead them to read,recognise,and responding to the reality that Ethiopians are now.Why not all of us start doing the right thing the right way rip the fruit of planting the uprising today and make the future much better for the coming generation which ours?
For sure,Meles Zinawi’s his groups will be removing from the surface of Ethiopia for once and for all,then only we all can say THANKS FOR THE COLLABORATION.
Don’t we think that Gadaffi will crumble before the eyes of Meles Zinawi and the group around him?
I am Ethiopian From Tigray Adwa, the same home town of Meles. I am living in Italy, since 2003. I left my country for better life, a lot of Tigrayans are leaving their country, because it is not like the people think we are benefiting from Meles in power, may be his friends, they made a lot of corrupted money, but not a single regular people. I definetly want a change of Meles, and all live with peace and without tension with all from north to south east to west.
Enough is Enough
Ghidey, how come we don’t see more than three Tigryans at anytime given time during demonstrations called by the opposition? I have been an activist for many years now, and I only see three Tigrayans openly supporting the opposition out of thousands in the East Coast. It is one thing that those in Adwa are afraid of political retaltion, but there no good explanation for those Tigryans who reside abroad.
በትግራይ ህዝብ ስም ይሚካሄዱትን ጭቆናና ምዝበራ እንዲያቆሙ መደረግ አለበት ::