I will
Fight You for It!

          

                            By

               
Getachew Reda

            

               
San Jose, California 

             
(December 23, 2004)

 

        
This article is intend to find answer From Dr.Gelwadewos Araya’s debate
with an Eritrean      guest in VOA
Tigringa Program

On December 22-2004                              

     

 

          Dr Gelwadewos Araya, I listened to your
debate on VOA Tigringa “Kab  Hizbee Nab
Hizbee” (from people to people) program on the above mentioned date. I thank
you very much for all that you do on the Eritrean issue in the past. Eritrea is
an issue that is always deep in the mind of many of us. For all that we do many
Ethiopians and of course many Eritreans (not the Eritreans in the Diaspora) too
are in their terrified soul determined to see Eritrea reunited to the
motherland, Ethiopia, either in our life time or after we die. The case of
Eritrea is perhaps one of the most, if not the most insulting and degrading to
Africa, and above all to the so called “Eritrean” Ethiopians, the
most artificial imperialist creation of all times, first under British
imperialism using Italy as a watchdog, and since the second world war to this
day under American supervision. It was not only the work of imperialism, but as
almost always, the sell-out accomplished with the help of our own
“Banda.”

        Ethiopian historians and political scientists must research
and prepare to delver in depth on the history of the Ethiopian/Eritrean Banda
in the very near future to our people a subject by itself. The role of the
Banda (issub-the Tirgringa vocabulary) in the creation of Eritrea should be a
major chapter and mission of research to all scholars (Nothing is important
than this to the survival of Ethiopia than this issue).

.

       
Having said this, It will be crippling and betrayal to accept the
colonialist teaching and the endorsement of the two Bandas (Issayas &
Meles) regarding Eritrea as a country. Many Ethiopian scholars adequately argued
that there is no such Eritrea as a country with the name Eritrea which was
colonized by Ethiopia.  There was no
such thing as Eritrea in the history of humankind until January 1890 when
Italian colonialists coined the very name

 many have been said regarding how
Eritrea became colonized by foreign forces curved out of Ethiopia. I sent the
same article to the postmaster regarding this issue with a long historical
documentation ( Ethio/Eritrea issue) before I sent in this one. The psot master
advice me to shorten the documentation for due to concern of space. Here, I
agree with their decision and I will like to refer my readers to check for any
historical documentation regarding this issue and other important historical
documentations written by the well respected Ethiopian historian DR Aleme
Eshete on GOOGL,, AOL,YAHOO search box ( Aleme Eshete) which can guide readers
step by step to the past and current historical issues for further
references.  

 

      
However, my discussion in this article is to alert Dr.Gelawdewos Araya
into this discussion regarding his VOA discussion with an “Eritrean” DR Taddese
Aregaheng. Dr Gelawdewos. When the VOA host asked both guests to give their
view and recommendation to solve the current conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia,
DR Gelwadewos said “Ethiopia have to be able to rent the Assab port paying tax
to Eritrea, while Assab being administrated under the ownership of Eritrea”
Many Ethiopians were expecting Dr. Ghelawdewos to be “bold, firm, and
blow it in their face that the Red Sea is not an issue Ethiopia has to beg
Eritrea to cede. We are not begging Eritrea to rent us Assab. It is an insult
to ask someone if he can rent you or lease you something the law has recognized
as the land of ancestors. In this regard, Dr.Gelawdewos have a
responsibility to explain his audients if he can take back his word in the form
of apology if it perhaps was a slip of a mouth

 

        
       Many of us have read the
fabricated history of a “country” called 
“Eritrea”, and many of you also recall Dr. Bereket Habte Sellassie the
x-spokesman of the Eritrean Nationalist Movement with no shame reflected his
ignorance of analyzing the stage of “Eritrea” referring as civilized
bourgeois democratic government/ comparing with that of “feudal” Ethiopia-
before 1952, saying “the fear and uncertainty of feudal regime harnessed
to a modern bourgeois democratic government. The individual (Berket
Habte Selassie) who hardly had hardly any knowledge of the composition and
functioning of the Eritrean government, which came into the existence in 1952.
It is a fact that Eritrea was far from being modern, democratic or
bourgeoisie.”

 

 Such segments like the above individual Jordan Gebre-Medhin and
their likes with mythical writings of their own creation are the people who
drag the entire population of Eritrea into confusion, war, misery and hatred.
In addition, they should be hold accountable for facilitating conflicts and
crisis.

 

  

       

        

               As you well aware, many Eritreans didn’t fully
subscribe the intention of the war until the brutality of Ethiopian authority
became unbearable (the armed struggle became powerful only after Mengistu
Hailemariam’s Red Terror came to operate openly and notoriously)- all the
Eritrean middle class who are now writing myth fooling the Eritrean farmers and
the uninformed youth never had an intention to go to forest to liberate Eritrea
or immigrate to Europe leaving behind their warm and fat salary, wealth and
comfort in Ethiopia “until” their door was knocked!,
knocked! In the mid of the night 
By Mengistu cadres in the 70s. As you and I know,
the  “Middle Class” never has felt a
shame to lie saying “went to forest to fight for liberation they believe
“Eritrea” was a country “colonized” by Ethiopia as if they had a life of a
slave/colonized fate” under Ethiopia.

 

  Leaving those opportunists aside, the Ethiopian position from the
beginning of this confusion was (1) simple and clear Eritrea is
an historical, cultural and integral part of Ethiopia. The territory and the
population who live in the land name given by colonialists called “Eritrea” are
all Ethiopians. (2) In addition, there was a considerable
awareness of the strategic value of Eritrea as the gateway for the launching of
foreign aggression. Ethiopia fear of foreign aggression, using Eritrea as a
platform, ( remember! The Arabic Egypt and the Nile issue ..!)    Was coupled with the claim for an outlet
to the sea as a guaranteeing factor for the survival of the country. In 1948,
the Four Powers accepted Ethiopia claims for an outlet to the sea as legitimate
(Even though these so called Four Powers were part of the problem and
colonizers themselves!!).

 

       Not only they came convinced with the above concern but also
they believe that the historical and cultural and blood ties between the
Eritreans and Ethiopians is very a significant concern.

 

 

      Dear brother
Professor Gelawdewos Araya:  You are an
Ethiopian scholar; by standard, I may not be your equal.  You know the story of the  Ethio/Eritrean issue from the start to the
end more than many of us. Let me remind you what my favorite Eritrean  scholar Dr.Tekeste Negash has to say taking
you back further to the 1946-1948).  If
you go back in the end of the 1948 when the international climate had suddenly
changed considerably, in August 1948, on the basis of their (the four super
powers) fact finding, the Deputies of the Four Powers all agreed that some of
the Eritrean high lands (With the exception of Massawa and Asmara) and the
entire Danakil coastlands be incorporated into Ethiopia. The decision of the
Four Powers was undoubtedly encouraging news for Ethiopia whose claims on the
ethnic, historic and economic grounds were fully accepted. How did such
significant decision came from such imperialist missionaries, which favored
Ethiopia? In view of the fact that France, the United States and the Soviet
Union had earlier (1946) rejected Ethiopian claims, their change of policy
after their fact-finding mission was noteworthy. The credit for bringing about
such a substantial change go to the UP’s convincing political agitation.|”

(UP= Unionist Party).

 

    Dear Dr.Gelwadewos -Your self teaching and writing such
historical facts in the internet and in higher educational faculties, what made
you propose now in a strange way to say Ethiopia must have
sea outlet (Assab) renting Assab port from Eritrea paying Tax, Assab under the
administration of Eritrea? Why you want Ethiopia rent Assab to
pay millions of Dollars to the blood thirst Fascist who bombarded
children of Mekele? The bombarding airplane bought by our money obtained from
the Assab port money paid by Ethiopian farmers and workers should have been a
major concern to you as an Ethiopian. How can Ethiopians pay a tribute to the
FASCISTS to use for their own legitimate ports when the disintegration of
Eritrea or land lacking of Ethiopia without possession of ports is illegal to
begin with anyway?  I am disappointed
for not making your position clear.  I
have great respect for you so far, but I am expecting you to clear such
vacillating position of yours in such stand why you want to tell us we can use
Assab paying tax knowing it belongs to us? We the Ethiopians need to hear your
position immediately on this matter. There is no such position when one claim
the cessation is illegal. You only pay tax to use a port if the port does not
belong to you. Our claim is clear and simple as it was presented in 1946 which
the four power accepted Ethiopian claim (security, economic, and historical
concerns) as legitimate.

 

                    My hope is that out of all this confusion, more
humble educated fellows from both sides might come to the stage to tell us the
deception of Eritrea is void and illegal without consulting Ethiopia.   If Eritreans are focusing on revenge and
land locking Ethiopia, the illegal cessation of Eritrea by force will only
exacerbate the conflict.

  

          If as the Eritrean websites, educated and ordinary Eritrean sectors,
claimed their freedom came not through UNITED NATION, or THROUGH INTERNATIONAL
LEGAL PROCESS but that they got their freedom through a barrel of a gun to
land locking Ethiopia (GEZA_ETEENA– to use their favorite word-
“our colonizers”)

 

 

        If
force was what they used to legitimatize Eritrean independent. This
certainly reminds me my father’s tale during “fire side chat” in the cold
winter. Here is the story. Listen all of you very carefully! This might take us
to the right direction with the arrogant Eritreans in the end,

 

        There
was once a man in one of the villages some where in the village of Ethiopia
taking a stroll upon a Sunday morning when he encountered an Chika Adi- Chika
Shum ( local peasant authority-a rough translation) also taking a stroll. Said
the Chika Adi, “you are tracing, my man. This is my property!

“where did you get it?” asked the man

“from my father!” said the shum

“where did he get it?” asked the man

“from my grandfather!” said the shum

“where did he get it?” asked the man

“from my ancestors” said the shum

\’and where did they get it?” asked the man,
definitely

“they fought for it.” Said the shum

“I will fight you for
it!”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! said the man

 

 Indeed this
is what the Eritreans want us to say “I will fight you for it!”

We warned them Meles or any western baptism/modification
of peace is not going to hold a future peace without involving our legitimate
portion of claim. That is our reasonable offer for coexistence, if the
Eritreans still want to play the tone of arrogance to land locked us,
definitely they will be forced to listen our new anthem “I WILL FIGHT YOU
FOR IT” !!!