 NEWS REPORT
Encouraging news! By Gelaye Tadesse Dec 1, 2003  On the 30th November 2003, Ethiomedia posted the news that 14 government soldiers joined the Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Front (ARDUF). I read the news with a great joy. The decision of these 14 soldiers to join ARDUF and the rest to return to their base in Maichew are encouraging developments. Their decision not to fight the Afar people is an Ethiopian decision. Well done!
I wrote a short article titled A critical juncture, which was posted on the Ethiomedia website on the 17th November 2003. In that brief article, some of the anti-Ethiopian actions taken by Meles’ regime during the last 12 years were highlighted. Meles Zenawi’s destructive detemnination to do anything in order to prolong the life of his repressive regime was pointed out. The recent actions taken by TPLF/EPRDF regime – preventing teachers from celebrating the International Teachers’ Day, the banning of the EFPJA and the closure of the Bahir-Dar University – were mentioned as indicators of desperate measures of Meles Zenawi. It was pointed out that if those repressive measures fail to deliver the regime with what it wants for its survival, Meles would not hesitate to trigger civil war/chaos. In that article, I proposed a number of actions to be taken to ensure the safe passage of the Ethiopian people through this critical moment. One of the points was a call upon the defence forces that: the Ethiopian Defence Forces (Army, Airforces and Police) must protect the Ethiopian people and sovereignty of Ethiopia, not Meles and his team. Two days after my article appeared in the Ethiomedia website, the news that ARDUF foiled TPLF/EPRDF offensive was posted. I had a mixed reaction. On the one hand it was a great news that ARDUF foiled the offensive and on the other hand, the attempted military incursion appeared to be the beginning of many desperate actions of the TPLF/EPRDF regime. The foiled offensive was another alarming development in addition to other desperate measures taken by TPLF/EPRDF regime in November. The news was alarming enough as the brutal TPLF/EPRDF regime could unleash destruction on the heroic people of Afar. The desperate attempt of this brutal regime resulted in the worst nightmare that Meles ever faced. For the first time in many years, the army refused to fight. I believe this is the beginning of many similar actions to come. It is the wish of the Ethiopian people that all the Defence Force members soon to follow the footsteps of their colleagues in Maichew and realize that their enemies are TPLF/EPRDF/EPLF, not the Ethiopian people. Finally, I congratulate those courageous Ethiopian Defence Force members who decided to align with the Ethiopian people. Having suffered a major blow, Meles’ next attempt may be suppressing the students’ movement by using a lethal force, as it was the case in the past. To prevent the bloodshed and loss of innocent lives:
The writer, Gelaye Tadesse, could be reached at [email protected].
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