It is an old expression meaning waiting for something bad to happen. We Ethiopians are familiar with that expression. Yes sir, nobody can take that away from us. We are unsurpassed in the art of moving ከድ ጡ ወደ ማጡ or from bad to ugly. No question we will walk away with the gold.
This past week our illustrious government dropped a few shoes. The teflon coated regime did not even flinch. We the recipients didn’t flinch either. The bully and the victim are in accord. That is what is beautiful about nature, balance reigns supreme. They kick and we absorb.
So what is all this rant about? Well I can say ‘go ask your tormentor’ , but I wouldn’t. You knew I wouldn’t say that. As a fellow victim I will recount our collective humiliation. አህያውን ፈርቶ ዳውላውንis a nice saying but I am just a recounter so let us leave me out of it. Ok?
Gilgel Gibe II was our first unbecoming. Our 420 megawatt was gone in a poff. Just like that! Ceased to exist! Believe me that is not good. It is only last month the symbolic button was pushed to usher the dream of selling power to Africa. That does sound good don’t it? Ethiopia exporing power to Kenya, Sudan, Djibouti etc. There is a little probllem with this senario. Just look at the following chart.
Country Ethiopia Kenya Sudan
Population 85 Million 39 Million 41 Million
Electricity production 3.46 Billion Kwh 5.23 Billion Kwh 4.34 Billion Kwh
See what I mean? Does the facts on the ground justify such a conclusion. When you divide production by poulation we are history. We will let this madness go. Fine anyway how does a brand new dam stop production? Even my toaster comes with a 30 days return policy. That noise you heard is the other shoe falling. You know what there is no return policy attached to this billion dollar elephant. The whole affair of Gilgel Gibe is Ethiopia in a nutshell. Don’t look no further. We don’t need no freaking enemies. We are the enemy!
The Gibe affair has preplexed both Ethiopinas, Europeans and Kenyans too. The Gibe Project is the face of Ethiopia emasculated.
In a report in 2008 a CEE Bankwatch report stated (www.bankwatch.org/newsroom/documents.shtml?x=2078791)
Overall, the study illustrates the dangers that accompany large energy infrastructure
projects whenever the interests of a major private company coincide not only with weak
governance in the host country but also very clear willingness from financial institutions
to provide funding, in spite of alarming project oversights and impacts. The study shows
how goals to eradicate poverty and support local communities can be easily compromised
when major corporations and/or political elites are intent on maximising profits.
We would like to warmly thank all the people who contributed to this study, often challenging
non-transparent and repressive institutions in Ethiopia, as well as in Italy. Without
them this work would not have been possible.
The report is full of horror stories. It is a finacial report. It is a sociological report. It is a report that should have been written by Ethiopians defending their soverignity. It is bold enough to talk about the element of fear permeating society. It is an ethipian euology. Regarding this report please notice the key words ‘a major private company’ and a ‘weak governace”. In this scenario Ethiopia does not exist. The italian super company Salini Costruttori S.p.A. is bigger than Ethiopia and TPLF is definitely smaller than Ethiopia. Unequal relationship if you ask me.
Are you sitting down? Good, Salini was awarded a ‘no bid contract’ back in 2004. It means it was a closed bid. The Italians and the Europeans called it a ‘public-private partnership’. Salini was the private and EEPC (Ethiopian Power and Electric Corporation) is the supposedly public entity. Please note the Ethiopian Government under TPLF owns EEPC. Even the Italian government started a criminal investigation regarding the Gibe II project. I guess they felt sorry for us.
Thus this wonder of the world dam collapsed ten days after the button pushing ceremony. According to Salini web site 15 meters of the tunnel collapsed. Bottom line is it collapsed. In a tunnel even a crack is not acceptable. A collapse is a disaster. Naturally EEPC is mum on the matter. Since Salini have already handed the keys why they tell us about the problem is not clear. Salini called it ‘an unforeseen geological event.’ Skeptics will point out the tunnel is in the Great Rift Valley that is the mother of all faults what exactly did you expect for a no bid contract with inadequate environmental and seismic studies. Duh.
Of course Salini is fixing the collapse and EEPC is footing the bill and the Ethiopian people and their children will be paying for the foreseeable future. Haile Sellasie got Koka our new leaders paid with Gibe II. Benito is smiling in his grave. Don’t forget Gibe III is coming.
Next was the proclamation on The Reporter regarding ‘code of conduct’ for election observers. We seem to have code of conduct for everything except the government. This one is a winner. Observers are not allowed tape recorders, video equipment, camera and phone cameras. Furthermore foreign observers cannot comment on election procedures and the maximum number allowed is four observers per site. Mute, deaf and blind is the qualification for this job. You know what? The ferenjis will go along with this cockamamie idea too. Did you hear another thump! That is the other shoe dropping.
So you thought it is safe to go back into the water? Not so fast my friend Jaws II is coming? Remember that summer? Same with the TPLF regime. They are full of drama. I doubt they can top this story from London. It is unique. One of a kind. I don’t need to tell you to sit down do I? Any ways please do sit down. A while back the Ethiopian government was contemplating about selling the Embassy in London. It looks like due to our country being ancient and prominent a long time ago we have acquired a property in a very desirable neighborhood. US $38 million dollars worth. Our fearless government saw a profit to be made. As they say ‘birds of a feather’ the regime picked a ‘gangster’ policeman to facilitate the deal. The Daily Mail News revealed the scandal from a government-sanctioned wiretap on the Police gangster. All the Ethiopian Embassy can do was issue a ‘limp denial’ that the building was not for sale. The Ethiopian government sells maids to the Middle East. Sells children to the West. Leases virgin land to the highest bidder anywhere, why are we surprised it is in the market to sell sovereign property?
I am sure you heard another thump. Well it is the third shoe dropping. Wait a minute a third shoe? Hey we are talking of Ethiopians here, anything is possible.
It took an article on LA Times to help me gather my thoughts together. I knew there was some thing missing in the story unfolding in front of me. The article by Alexandra Sandels and Borzou Daragahi of Los Angles Times brought it all in focus.
ET409 is a tragic story. We all felt the pain. Although death is a natural occurrence, an accident like ET409 has unpleasant effect on all of us. It is death magnified. ET409 was death in the family. Sudden unexpected death.
Then the passenger manifest started to come out. There were eighty passengers and seven crewmembers. Twenty-two of the passengers were Ethiopians returning home from Lebanon. As far as the foreign press is concerned they were ordinary passengers. Business people or vacationers returning home. But we Ethiopians know better. It was no surprise to us that they were all women. No one has to tell us they will all be young. We have close relatives like that all over the Middle East. They are the surplus Ethiopians.
This group of Ethiopians returned home in a body bag. Some will stay in the Mediterranean. All will have a special place in our hearts. On the other hand talk to any Ethiopian Airlines employee and they will tell you the horror stories of the returnees from the Middle East. The trip back home should be renamed the ‘horror express’. Some return with deep psychological scars, some with visible body scars and some in a casket. Some sit there like zombies unable to talk, afraid to move unsure of themselves. Some come back home to die. They will never recover from the deep humiliation and abuse.
They all go there to better themselves and their family. There used to be a long line stretching all the way to the street and sidewalk in front of the old courthouse in Ledeta. It was a line of girls registering a name change to go to the Middle East. Having a Muslim name was a plus. Then came Woyane and institutionalized the process. They called it employment opportunity and started to charge for the service. Woyane makes a lot of money selling citizens. It is a very lucrative business. It is true they started selling maids to the Middle East before they graduated to selling children to the West in the so-called ‘adoption’ scam.
So our sisters flock to the Middle East to make something of their life. In Lebanon, Dubai, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia etc. they join others like them from the Far East in perpetual servitude. They enter a region with no laws, minimal view of human right and total absence of justice. The plight of our people in the Middle East is an open secret. The suffering and humiliation have been told and retold plenty of times. They jump from high-rise building and kill themselves. They kill their tormentors in self-defense. Unable to understand their agony their brain shuts off.
So the ones that died in the accident are the carriers of this horror. Despite all this happening to them our sisters are on of the highest contributors to Woyane’s 10% growth that is told and retold again and again. Let us take Lebanon by itself. They say there are over twenty five thousand Ethiopians working there. Let us assume each one sends US $100.00 per month. That is US$ 2.5 Million per month and US $30 Million a year. In Ethiopia that will be $390 Million Bir. A lot of money if you ask me. That is what you would call a cash cow.
How does the Ethiopian government appreciate the contribution of these citizens that cling to their motherland despite the threat to their well-being. Silence and indifference is their response. So it was a surprise to see the Woyane Foreign Minster in Beirut after the accident. There he was sitting with the Lebanese Prime Minister. Why did he go there is a good question? Did he go there to gather his people around him and console them in this time of grief? Did he go to meet with friend and family of the victims and tell them their government’s commitment to help in the search and rescue effort? Did he go there to give them moral strength? Did he go there to hold their hands and be with them? I am afraid the answer is none of the above. In Woyane’s Ethiopia those who rule don’t mingle with those ordinary Ethiopians. His Excellency does not have time for uneducated simple maids.
Then why did he go? Well he went as his capacity as Board Chairman of Ethiopian Airlines. Yes he is the Chairman of the Board. Don’t ask what his qualifications are for such a high post. Does his resume shows his talent in managing a little kiosk? Does it show his education and capacity for such a demanding job? Does he have a track record of growing a business? The answer is none of the above. His qualification is his membership in TPLF. Thus he went there because some Lebanese officials used to degrading our Ethiopian sisters upgraded their contempt and questioned the skill of the pilots and crew. The Foreign Minster went there to calm the nerves of the Lebanese officials. He went there to protect the integrity of his cash cow called Ethiopian Airlines. Why they don’t change the name to ‘Woyane Airlines’ is a mystery. The only thing Ethiopian is the name. In America they call it truth in advertising.
Thus it was no surprise to see my Diaspora friends decrying the racism of the Lebanese in the ill treatment of those in grief. Despite the fact that the horrible condition of the Ethiopian guest workers is known to all of us some of us choose to vent our rage on the people of Lebanon. I agree with Fekade, it is totally ‘a misplaced rage’. Our rage should be directed at those that allow such conditions to exist. Our indignations should be directed at the root of the problem. We should be careful in our wholesale condemnation of the Lebanese people. We should be aware that there still are over twenty five thousand of our people working there. We don’t want to contribute for their further ill treatment. Our quarrel is with the TPLF regime that considers the rest of us as trespassers in our own land. We fix our house first and the world will shower us with respect and love. As Henry Thoreau said ‘there are thousands hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the roots…’ don’t tell me you are still hacking at the branches! That is so yesterday my friend. Rage against Lebanon is hacking the branch.
To my dear friend Barack Obama. I hope this letter finds you well. We are doing fine here in this location that will stay nameless. Except for that little matter of famine, deflation and inflation most things are under control thanks to the Pentagon, IMF, World Bank and hodam Diaspora.
I am writing you this letter to console you on that little loss your party suffered in Massachusetts. I feel your pain. On the other hand I feel compelled to share with you the art of election, politics and staying in power.
My dear Barrack, I am really sorry for not contacting you earlier to share my misgivings regarding your sincere and shallow view of elections. Bereket and myself have long concluded that your candidate was going to lose. I tried to call and warn you plenty of times but as usual most circuits were busy. You have only been in office one year. Take it from a person who has been in charge for over eighteen years governing is not a simple matter. We in this nameless place know it is not for the faint-hearted.
I understand you have mid year elections coming. I hope the debacle in Mass. Has opened your eyes. I would like to share my experience and offer a few suggestions at this time. You might not be aware of it but I was put in the same predicament a while back. It was the first time I tasted the bitter medicine of defeat and humiliation. I was forced to kill a few and jail a lot. I don’t want you to go through the same nightmare. I don’t wish that on no one, not even my nemesis Isaias. Azeb tells me I was impossible to live with. I believe her. I vowed it would never happen again. It took four years of preparations to guarantee a sure victory. I have upgraded the art of dictatorship to a higher level.
Well, here you go buddy this is my blueprint for a successful election. I gave the same advice to your predecessor (remember the Supreme Court decision regarding vote counting in Florida, let us just say I played a little part…wink) but I charged him for it. For you my black friend it is free. Don’t tell Aiga I called you a friend.
I notice you have only two major parties. What kind of choice is that? Here in this nameless place I have organized over fifty. Of course all are subsidiary of TPLF but no one has to know. They are organized as ethnic group based on birth or language. My own cadres change their names and are put in charge until we produce local cadres schooled by TPLF to take over. We were lucky to recruit and train Amhara and Oromo cadres during the time in the field. They are serving with distinction. I am sure you will not have any problem forming one party per state and a few more based on gender and color. In America you got homosexual and trans gender people what ever that is, so go ahead create a party for them too. The more the better. It impresses the ferengis.
Your biggest challenge will be the media. Here (nameless place) I solved that problem in a creative manner. First I amended the definition and requirement of owning means of communication. I created a few of my own and last but not least I have the unruly editors eliminated or exiled. The Reporter is my flagship publication. This might not work for you so another solution is needed. Blackmail and extortion might be more appropriate in your case. I have what is called ‘Musina Commission’. Their office is next door to mine. Here is where I collect all information. Information is power. I am aware you can’t exile your opposition but you sure can blackmail them.
There is also the problem of having your own security. I understand you can’t ask the FBI to do some of the dirty work required to safe guard the smooth operation of the constitutional order. I suggest creating your own force. Federal police and Agazi force has been a lifesaver for me. Your system has all this separation of power and accountability foolishness built into it. I say to you, go around it my dear Barrack. There is nothing empowering like having your own private militia. May I suggest importing some Kenyans from your father’s tribe? They will be loyal to you and most of all since they don’t speak the language there is less chance of contamination. Believe me you will have all these Senators and Representatives cowering in front of you. I know you will drool over a few of my pets here in Arat Kilo. My new addition to the manger has already shown promise of consideration for the presidency after the elections. I am satisfied with his performance both in Mekele and Bahr Dar.
Last but not least let us talk about elections. Remember they do have elections in China and Russia, you see my friend it is just a matter of definition. I suggest you use your new security to kidnap some of the opposition candidates, co-opt a few and jail others until the election is over. Needless to say you should have boxes and ballots processed and ready to be unveiled the evening of the election. I hate to say it but we were caught unprepared during our last election. It took us over six months to reprint and recount. Foreign observers are a curse. Avoid them at all cost. If at all possible demand observers from friendly regimes. I have already put my request for Zimbabwean, Nigerian, and Uzbek observers. Of course we have trained our own observers too. Most wouldn’t find the door in a studio apartment. Sweet.
I have noticed that you address your people with respect and heap all kinds of praise on your subjects. That is a definite no, no. There is nothing they love more than being degraded. It is always a good idea to humiliate them. The more you trample on them the bigger their respect for you. Fear is what humans understand. A leader should be feared. Love is for sissies. I suggest you manufacture a few incidents and use your security forces to show who the boss is. Inter ethnic, inter state or inter faith crisis is what is required to present yourself as a lifesaver. By all means encourage strife and show up to save the day. It is too bad you can’t invade Canada or Mexico. There is nothing like war to rally your subjects around you. Afghanistan is too far. What the heck go ahead and invade Mexico. Illegal alien threat is a good excuse to wave in front of your people.
There are a few kinks I have been tackling with Berket during our daily ‘bercha’. I could arrange a shipment of the best Harar or Yergachefe Kat if you are open to the idea. I find the experience enriching and Berket swears that I come up with the best ideas during our afternoon session. Anyway we still have not figured out what to do in case of a few misguided souls complaining after the election. I doubt I can get away with a little violence like the last time. Thanks to your liberal friends killing a few is not in fashion anymore. Despotism is not what it used to be.
I am a little worried about this renegade group called G7. Despite my request to have their leader deported back, your justice department has ignored me. May be you can intervene on behalf of your new friend. While you are at it could you talk to Gordon Brown and mention the other G7 terrorist in London. I will be indebted to you. Tell you what my friend I have a few well-respected torturers that I will be willing to lend you for your new security. They have impeccable credentials and have served in North Korea and Zimbabwe with distinction. Well Barrack I wish you good luck and please don’t hesitate to call me. I know the circuits are busy but you never know.
Meles Zenawi
TPLF chairman
EFFORT CEO
Prime Minster of name less place
Defense Minister
Finance Minster
NEPAD Chairman
P.S.- Please give my regards to Michelle and Azeb profoundly apologizes for that little incident in Pittsburgh. I promise not to bring her during the next G20 meeting. I know you will help me with the invite. I promise to behave and not follow you around for a Kodak moment. XoXo.
This new year fills us with hope that at longlast we are ready to take matters into our own hands. It is a new year, It is a new day. It is a new begining. It is the time to stand up. We remeber the thousands of our children drowing in the Red Sea, disappearing in the jungles of central Africa and made to wither and die in Ogaden. The days of lametation is over. The time has come to act.”
By Yilma Bekele
There are three things important in real estate: location, location, location. Agents never tire mentioning this important fact. What exactly does it mean? Simply put what matters most is not the structure of the house as much as its physical location. It is smart to buy the ugliest house in a good neighborhood than a beautiful palace in a rough area. It is much easier and cheaper to remodel a bad and decrepit structure rather than moving it to a new location.
The importance of location never played such a pivotal role as in the current situation regarding our country. Our location has become our Achilles heel. It is true there was a time when our location worked in our favor. Our mountainous terrain protected us from foreign invaders while the scorching lowlands surrounding us were our natural defense. Isolated from others we were able to enjoy undisturbed peace and our own way of life.
Those days are gone. Today our location is working against us. Our neighborhood has become the center of the so-called ‘terrorist’ incubating ground. There is Somalia the poster child of a ‘failed state’. There is Yemen competing with Somalia for this coveted prize. There is Sudan teetering into civil war and religious fanaticism all rolled into one. There is Eritrea still trying to define it self while standing on a shaky ground.
How is this madness all around us affecting our country is a good question to ponder. I am afraid the prognosis is not favorable. Well at least for the ‘law and order’ contingent amongst us while it is making the cadres deliriously happy. ግር ግር ለሌባ ይመቻል fits this situation.
Somalia was a Godsend to the minority regime. The Bush administration obsession of fighting terrorism found its bedfellow in Ethiopia. The Meles regime was able to play one clan against the other, Jihadist against warlord and enjoy the fireworks. Poor Ethiopia was a scarifical lamb. Nothing was gained for our nation but the TPLF regime was able to ward off any discussion of democratic reforms by appearing to be a pillar of stability in the midst of chaotic neighborhood. The close alliance with the US military paid two dividends. TPLF army was able to get training and surplus arms for low level warfare and the Pentagon replaced State Department in policy formulations.
Sudan was another trouble spot that brought about more misery for our people. The Sudanese tyrants abhorrent policy in Darfur was a good excuse for the West to fan the flames of inter-ethnic animosity. The discovery of oil was all that was need to for the Chinese to enter the fray. The Ethiopian regime saw an opportunity to cozy up with Sudan. The more rogue Sudan becomes the closer it stuck with the minority regime. The cost to our country was loss of territory. The gain for the TPLF regime was a friendly dictator that will deny base of operation for the opposition.
When we thought things were quieting down guess who shows up to increase the stress level. It is none other than Yemen, the new preferred destination of Osama and company. This new situation does not bode well for our country. Surely the West is going to worry more about friendly areas of operation more than the rule of law and human rights. The horn of Africa is the new home of the fight against ‘extremism’. That means our quest for establishing a democratic state is going to be put on the back burner.
It is clear that the minority regime has been able to anticipate the situation correctly and seized the opportunity to endear itself to both the Americans and the Europeans. The opposition on the other hand has abandoned the initiative to the dictatorial regime. The opposition reacts to the shifting agenda set by the TPLF regime. The regime has surpassed its own benchmark due to its ability to create dissent, animosity and lack of trust in the camp of the opposition. Of course one cannot blame the enemy for one’s lack of foresight and resolve. Vacillation is the calling card of the spineless. We are blessed with plenty of spineless wana be leaders.
In spite of the efforts of a few to create confusion a certain notion is entering our everyday discourse. Despite our optimistic outlook the reality on the ground is forcing us to revise our thinking. We are beginning to accept the inevitability of the impending turmoil. The possibility of a violent eruption has become as sure as the sun rising tomorrow. There is no other conclusion. We are watching two trains speeding towards each other traveling on the same track.
Is it due to the worsening economic situation or the elevated paranoia of the police state is a tricky question. It is like who came first the chicken or the egg. Productivity does not match population increase. Unemployment, deflation, famine, and scarcity of goods are making life intolerable. Hopelessness breeds alienation. The only response possible by the police state is more repression. More repression invites more resistance. And vice versa. It is a merry go round of misery.
We are surrounded by the League of Failed states of the Horn of Africa. We are on our way to join them. On one hand, due to our location the international situation is not favorable to the democratic forces. On the other hand, the internal situation in Ethiopia is more than favorable to challenge the police state. Without going into details suffice to point out the over fourteen million on the brink of famine and the tens of thousands abandoning their country at the risk of imminent death is a testimonial to the abhorrent condition in the country. To say the Ethiopian people have reached a breaking point is not an exaggeration.
The late Kinijit was a perfect example of identifying the problem and appealing to the public in popular terms. Kinijit succeed beyond the wildest dreams of its founders. Kinijit was able to show the Ethiopian people the true nature of the dictatorial regime. Kinijit was able to expose the fallacy of ‘peaceful transition’ in a heavily armed police state. Kinijit’s success in winning the election and failure in assuming power was a revelation for the opposition to re-think the nature of the coming struggle. A redefinition of the path to attain victory was called for. The failure of the 2005 general election is a perfect example to the impossibility of rational conversation or dialogue with an armed and belligerent opponent.
It was very refreshing to hear President Obama presenting the problem and a solution to such a conundrum as faced by the Ethiopian people. In his important speech during the Noble Peace prize ceremony following is the way President Obama put the issue:
I face the world as it is, and cannot stand idle in the face of threats to the American people. For make no mistake: Evil does exist in the world. A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler’s armies. Negotiations cannot convince al Qaeda’s leaders to lay down their arms. To say that force may sometimes be necessary is not a call to cynicism — it is a recognition of history; the imperfections of man and the limits of reason.
I am glad he said it. Some in Ethiopia have been saying that since 2005. The TPLF are the personification of evil. Their contempt for the Ethiopian people knows no bounds. Their cruelty is legendary. Though they try to mask their true nature by high-sounding sophistry they are nothing but ordinary thieves and street hustlers that have found themselves in a position of power. They will not abandon this gravy train without a fight. No amount of negotiation or dialogue will convince TPLF to ‘lay down their arms’. The last seventeen years is a testimonial to this irrefutable fact.
It is very sad the TPLF tugs are forcing the citizen to resort to violence. Force is not the preferred option. It contains its own shortcomings. It corrodes the soul and damages the human spirit. The brunt of the sacrifice falls on the young. Ultimately all of society pays the price. But there are some things that are not negotiable. Freedom is one such thing. A war that is waged to attain freedom is considered a just and necessary war. The war to remove TPLF and their associates from power will be judged to be a just and necessary action by any international standard. በቃ
It is not easy removing such an entrenched regime from power. It requires tested leadership. The enemy is lethal. They have no qualms about killing. They have showed their ugly side on numerous occassions. On the other hand their whole organization is like a house built on sand. They project an image of fierce warriors to hide their cowadly nature and fear that manifests itself by their empty rhetoric. Their lack of self esteem and doubt leads them to irratinality. It does not take much to un nerve them and make them react without thinking it over. The loyality of their members have no depth. They are prone to abandon them at the first sign of a percieved problem.
We are emolded with the appearance of Ginbot7, EPPF and other liberation fronts that have taken the nature of the facist regime toheart. Ginbot7 is the rightful heir of Kinijit. In a matter of one year it has shown a superior form of organization. Its utterings are well thought of and timely. Its no nonsense approach towards the minority regime have managed to fill us with hope. Ginbot7 cool demanour while surounded by hysterical nay sayers have won it plenty of quiet friends. The short wave radio broadcast is unprecedented success. It is not the result of some philatrophy by a rich uncle, or donation by ‘friendly’ government. It is the rsult of Ethiopians taking care of Ethiopia.
This new year fills us with hope that at longlast we are ready to take matters into our own hands. It is a new year, It is a new day. It is a new begining. It is the time to stand up. We remeber the thousands of our children drowing in the Red Sea, disappearing in the jungles of central Africa and made to wither and die in Ogaden. The days of lametation is over. The time has come to act.
We are emolded by the courageous act of Judge Bertukan Mideksa. We are greatful to her for showing us what it means to stand up for the truth. We honor her work by continuing her example of steadfatness in the face of overwhelming force. She did not buckle down. We will not back down. Here is the lyrics from Tom Pettys ‘I will not back down.’ Rock on my friends!
Well I won’t back down
No I won’t back down
You can stand me up at the gates of hell
But I won’t back down
No I’ll stand my ground, won’t be turned around
And I’ll keep this world from draggin me down
gonna stand my ground
… and I won’t back down
Well I know what’s right, I got just one life
in a world that keeps on pushin me around
but I’ll stand my ground
…and I won’t back down
I couldn’t sleep all night. I kept turning and tossing to no avail. What was bothering me was what I heard on VOA yesterday afternoon. VOA is Voice of America for those of you not in the know. I found out I can listen to VOA on my smart phone and things haven’t been the same. My phone has become my best friend. I can surf the web, send email, watch You Tube, shoot a video, listen to the radio and oh yes talk too. My phone has become indispensable. Back to my story.
Dispersed among the many important stories of the day I heard the announcer discussing food, rather the lack of food in East Africa. Looks like the FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization) was passing out the plate to collect donations to feed poor Africans and the pledge from the Europeans fell short and the director and African delegates were crying about the indifference of the rich countries. This is what you call aggressive begging. It takes balls to sit on such virgin land and blame others for your own stupidity so I didn’t pay that much attention to the story.
What came next was what piqued my interest. UNFPA (UN population fund) was discussing the state of human population growth. According to them there are eighty-two and half million Ethiopians. Plenty of us if you ask me. On the other hand the Ethiopian government count shows seventy-three point nine million Ethiopians. Quiet a discrepancy wouldn’t you say. We are talking about eight point six million Abeshas an accounted for. Now you know why I couldn’t sleep.
I don’t mind if we are missing a few thousand of us. You know how African borders are. It is possible the day or week of the count some have ventured far following rich grazing grounds or even gone to the market in a neighboring country. It is also possible so many are escaping and temporarily situated in Sudan, Kenya, Somalia, Eritrea or Djibouti. I doubt if they will stop for the census bureau to be counted. Believe me eight point six million is not a small number. For crying out loud it is larger than a whole bunch of countries entire population.
Staying up all night has its rewards. As the sun was rising over the rolling hills of East bay, the birds chirping signaling a new day the answer came to me, we Ethiopians have a problem with numbers! We just don’t know how to count. That is not idle talk my friend, I got proof.
Let us just start with famine. According to the UN, US Aid, Oxfam and other professionals who do this sort of stuff for a living there are over ten million Ethiopians in need of food. According to the Meles regime the number is less than four million. It sort of bizarre to haggle over the number of your own people condemned to die of hunger but that is what has become of our country. Why this obsession with numbers you might ask. It is because the TPLF regime is always interested in the degrees of suffering of our people.
They start with the great famine of 1973 and compare that with the famine of 1983 and arrive at the startling conclusion that says less are dying thus we are doing better. With TPLF the question is not how to avoid famine but how to manage famine. Thus they spend time, energy and try our patience playing with numbers.
How about the much heralded 12% growth. Again it is a number TPLF throws with abandon gets quoted by Reuter or Bloomberg ergo it becomes a fact. The question is does reality on the ground jive with fantasy in the collective brain of TPLF cadres? I am afraid not. Putting up some concrete structures using Diaspora money, paving roads with IMF and Chinese loans is not an example of sustainable growth. It is just feel good economics or voodoo economics. The numbers are repeated again and again purposely to etch them in our mind.
Even the so-called Federal budget is not immune to this number challenge we face. After the 2005 elections the TPLF regime was printing money as if it was going out of style. The money was used to bribe the different EPDRF minions and buy their temporary loyalty. When the Federal Audit Report showed the truth about the minority regimes borrowing of billions of Bir the Prime Minster was not amused. Our fearless leader called the report a ‘junior accountants error’ and rejected the findings. His handpicked teams of investigators were able to shift a few zeros and bring the report in line with his wishes.
The mother of all ‘number challenged’ problems was the 2005 general elections. It was a situation where electorate and the ballot were in complete and total dis-harmony. It took more than six months of the best TPLF cadre’s brain to reconcile what really happened with what was supposed to happen. Even our favorite Woyane Bereket Semeon’s Wollo constituency was in disarray. The second balloting ordered by TPLF showed more people than what turned out to vote during the first free and euphoric election. Go figure that out!
Numbers and facts came to clash during the recent ‘Tekeze dam’ inaugaration. The prime Minster was proud and precise when he said Tekeze was built by “berasachin genzeb” Again does this jive with reality or does it leave many un answered questions. According to some knowledgeable sources ‘The Tekeze Dam Project financing is by China National Water Resources and Hydropower Engineering Company (CWHEC), 49pc, and China Gezhouba Water and Power (group) Ltd, 30pc, and Sur Construction, subsidiary company of EFFORT, 21pc. (TPLF) So what is it? Does it belong to us or the bond holders? Is this a new formula of financing? Questions, questions.
I will leave you with one number problem we encountered a while back as told by our own Tamagne Beyene. He tells it a whole lot better but I will do my best. The TPLF radio, yes they used to have a radio station during their armed struggle for the liberation of Tigrai, in its reports of their heroism was throwing increasable numbers regarding the number of Derg solders they have killed. Unfortunately when the numbers were added up at the end of the day they showed that they have killed more solders than all the Derg military combined.
The question for us is shall we get out of this numbers business? Shall we bring in outsiders to do any and all counting business in our country? Can Ethiopians be trusted with numbers or is it a localized TPLF problem? No matter it still leaves us with eight point six million Ethiopians out there with no one to claim them. Misplacing that many Abeshas is nothing to sniff at, I want my people accounted for.
November 9, 1989, is a special day for the German people, in particular, and for the rest of humanity, in general. It is a day that one more system designed to treat fellow humans as lesser beings is shattered and discarded. On November 9, 1989, the ‘wall’ that was built to keep people in fear and agony was finally breached and then there was light. It was celebrated with great fanfare. The enabler of this heroic act, former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and current German Chancellor Angela Merkel held hand and crossed the border to cheers and tears accompanied by thousands of fellow citizens. Angela Merkel said “This is not just a day of celebration for Germans. This is a day of celebration for the whole of Europe; this is a day of celebration for all those people who have more freedom.”
November 1, 2005, is a special day for the Ethiopian people. On that fateful day that will live in infamy in our ancient history, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia Meles Zenawi ordered his private Agazi force to open fire using live bullets on fellow Ethiopians that were peacefully protesting the rigged outcome of the May general election.
The independent report by Chairman Frehiwot Samuel and Judge Wolde-Michael Meshesha showed that government forces massacred 197 civilians. We are eternally grateful to the courageous act by Frehiwot Samuel and Judge Wolde Michael and other inquiry commission members for shining a bright light on the despicable act committed by the Meles regime. At this critical juncture in our history where principle and integrity are traded like commodity it is rare to find such patriotic Ethiopians who are willing to tell the truth and are ready to pay the price.
The story of our November 1, 2005, does not end with the massacre. Prime Minster Meles and his cabinet of criminals detained more than 40,000 Ethiopians and transported them to all corners of the country. We became familiar with places such as Zewai, Dedessa, Bir Sheloko, Shoa Robit, Kolfe and Sendafa. People were indiscriminately picked up from their homes, work places and street corners and taken to be shaved, beaten, starved and humiliated their crime; being Ethiopian or young. How many were exposed to AIDS by the wholesale shaving using the same razor blade, how many were eaten by crocodiles trying to escape Dedessa hellhole and how many were scared for life for being treated like a herd of animals will never be known.
November 1, 2005, should be etched in the brain of every Ethiopian that values human life and hungers for freedom and equality. We commemorate Yekatit 12, 1937. We have built a monument in Arat Kilo to remind us of Yekatit 12. On Yekatit 12, 1837 the fascist forces that were occupying our motherland opened fire on the residents of Addis Abeba in retaliation to the attempted assassination of the Viceroy Graziani by Abrham Deboch and Moges Asgedom. On November 1, 2005 Agazi forces, the private army of Meles Zenawi and friends massacred our people for demanding freedom. Graziani and Meles will never be forgotten. When the time comes a monument will be erected for our heroes of November 1, 2005. No one can stop that.
The Germans celebrated their November victory. They remembered the nightmare years under Communism and rejoiced in their new found freedom. For over fifty years the East German people suffered untold hardship. Some collaborated with the regime for economic reasons, some collaborated because there was no place to go but no matter all suffered because tomorrow brought more misery and hopelessness. Today Germany is one and people are building a new free and independent society based on a strong foundation of the rule of law.
The Ethiopians still remember what November brought. November was a ‘eureka’ moment. It laid bare the character of the so-called EPDRF regime. The lies, falsehoods, empty bravado of the minority regime was exposed for all to see. We came to realize that there is no such thing as EPDRF but TPLF, that there is no such thing as the Ethiopian police but private Agazi Force, answerable to Meles Zenawi and a few of his inner circle and there is no such thing as a cabinet but a few dedicated hard core Woyanes.
No matter there are always dedicated people fighting slavery and injustice. It is no different in Ethiopia. There are those that choose immediate fame and glory and side with the enemies of the people. There are those willing to sell everything including their country because of cowardice or natural weakness. Then there are those who choose freedom and risk it all. We have encountered plenty of brave Ethiopians in this time of trial and tribulations in our history. We are emboldened by their selfless act and dedication. They make all of look good.
The heroes of the leadership of Kinijit hold a special place in our heart. Their smart organizational skills and simple message of hope galvanized the whole nation. Our country was filled with hope, possibility and unsurpassed joy. Over a million people showed up to that celebration of pre-victory and showed the whole world that we are not stupid that we can taste freedom and we are ready for the future. Dr. Berhanu and friends unlocked the doors of possibility and unleashed a powerful force that was brewing inside of us. No one can extinguish that fire. The more they try the more it glows.
Inquiry commission Chairman Frehiwot Samuel and Judge Wolde Michael Meshesha gave us the gift of standing up against dictators. The truth was told and there is no amount of revision that can change what really happened on that day. They were forced to flee their beloved homeland because they refused to be bought, intimidated or humiliated.
Judge Bertukan Mediksa is celebrating 317 days in Woyane jail. Judge Bertukan is the symbol of our suffering. She is also a bright light shining over all of humanity with a message of dedication to the truth and love for mother Ethiopia. She is a strong lady following the footsteps of Abuna Petros, Abrham Deboch and Moges Asgedom. Amnesty International has declared our dear sister, mother, and leader of Andenet Party a political prisoner. Please join the global write for Rights organized by AI. It is the duty of every Ethiopian to involve a minimum of ten people to this noble cause. You can use the following format to let your opinion be known:
http://www.amnestyusa.org/writeathon/pdf/WAT09sampleltrs_all.doc
http://www.amnestyusa.org/writeathon/pdf/WAT09sampleltrs_all.pdf
We commemorate November 1, 2005 to pay our respect for those who lost their lives when they were trying to speak for us. We can do our silent prayers or attend a service for our heroes. But that would not be enough. The real commemoration is working to stop another November 1, from happening. It is doing your share wherever you are in setting aside time or money to help those who are working to stop a repeat of Nobember1. To all my country people scattered all over the planet remember we are here in a foreign land among strangers because the ‘freedom deniers’ are over there wrecking our motherland and planning more November massacres. You can stop them or sit idle. It is your choice.
