Lies and Disinformation to Cover TPLF Crimes
By Bana Negusse
https://shabait.com/2021/05/01/lies-and ... lf-crimes/
GENERAL
May 1, 2021
Since the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) launched its massive military attack on Ethiopian federal forces in early November last year, leading to widespread violence, conflict, and the unfolding of significant humanitarian challenges, there has been a relentless barrage and spread of disinformation.
On an almost daily basis, we have been inundated with a seemingly endless stream of sordid reports and allegations of lurid crimes. The reports and allegations have been utterly false and baseless, in actuality having been concocted and disseminated for sinister purposes.
The latest preposterous claims in the long series of fabrications came several days ago from the AFP which, on the basis of anonymous and dubious sources, claimed that Eritrean soldiers were “blocking and looting food aid” in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia. Anyone with a minimal understanding or knowledge about Eritrea and the region’s general history, not to mention a basic grasp of logic, would know that these allegations are absolutely preposterous and devoid of truth.
For one, Eritrea has a long, proud, principled record on humanitarian assistance and toward civilians or prisoners in battle. For instance, from its outset and through the duration of the long independence struggle, the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front (EPLF) delineated battle lines in unequivocal political terms and went to extensive lengths to stress – in all its statements, publications, radio programmes, and seminars – that its fight was against occupation and not the Ethiopian people. Keen as it was to establish enduring ties of friendship and good neighborliness with Ethiopia in the post-independence period, the EPLF was also earnestly engaged in cultivating principled, forward-looking, ties of cooperation and solidarity with Ethiopian opposition movements.
What is more, when the EPLF captured tens of thousands of Ethiopian prisoners of war (POW) in the many massive battles that raged during the 30-year struggle for independence, it consistently treated all of them humanely, irrespective of their rank and other particular distinctions. Not only were the Ethiopian POWs, many of whom committed grave atrocities against Eritrean fighters and civilians, provided with access to education, healthcare, and sport, during the height of famines and droughts of biblical proportions that unfolded in the 1980s, the EPLF even provided them with greater rations of food – nearly double the calories – than its own fighters. In the words of one international journalist who visited the field, the EPLF’s treatment of POWs was “exemplary”. Although the EPLF was not a formal signatory of the Geneva Conventions on humanitarian rules of war, it adhered strictly – out of its own conviction and principle rather than due to contractual obligations – to all the provisions of the Convention.
This principled, proud record of engagement, humanitarian principles, and support was maintained in Eritrea’s post-independence period. During the height of the vicious border war with TPLF-led Ethiopia, in 1999, Eritrea gave its unconditional permission and consent for the delivery of emergency food aid to Ethiopia in order to help alleviate a severe humanitarian crisis. Several years later, in late 2002, with millions of Ethiopians suffering in famine or near-famine conditions and notwithstanding the lingering tense, hostile relations between the countries, Eritrea again offered the use of its Red Sea ports for delivery of international humanitarian relief to Ethiopia. As was explained at the time by government officials, Eritrea is
Quite tellingly, on both occasions the TPLF rejected the humanitarian initiatives and genuine gestures of good will outright, despite the fact that they would have supported millions of poor, hungry Ethiopians. (It is also worth noting that by rejecting the international-backed relief proposals, the TPLF was able to amass significant financial benefits from the increased THS payments associated with the considerably longer routes that were taken through Djibouti. All the while, millions of its people were forced to endure suffering and hunger.)conscious of its humanitarian obligations in the midst of a humanitarian crisis of huge proportions.
Although the recent allegations being peddled threaten to obscure the TPLF’s high culpability in instigating the conflict and scapegoat the Eritrean and Ethiopian governments, the undeniable facts and fundamental truths should be clear for all to see: the party responsible for the violence, humanitarian crisis, and looting and blocking of aid in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia is the TPLF.
Having spent several years rejecting the region’s moves toward peace, solidarity, and cooperation, the TPLF callously and recklessly launched its deadly attack in November – which is the peak harvest season in the Tigray Region and the Horn of Africa as a whole. Recall that prior to the recent events and for the last eleven years since the G-7 Summit in Georgia, approximately 1.6 million poor, impoverished farmers in rural Tigray remained beneficiaries of food assistance under the Global Safety Net.
Furthermore, as all of its war aims were rebuffed and utterly defeated, the TPLF’s remnants retreated, carrying out a scorched-earth policy as they fled. Subsequently, finding themselves in extremely harsh, challenging conditions, TPLF remnants have carrying out sporadic attacks and looting materials and resources in order to try to survive and somehow sustain their campaign of violence.
In the midst its defeat, the TPLF also released thousands of criminals – some estimates put the number at well over 10,000 – from prison, and carried out an array of destructive acts, such as destroying roads, airports, and telecommunications facilities. During the past several months, the group’s remnants have additionally remained busy through organizing terrorist cells and death squads to conduct sabotage and reprisals, block humanitarian assistance, and carry out assassinations. The goal, as explained by many of its officials, members, and affiliates, has been to sow chaos, insecurity, and instability in the region so as create overwhelming problems for Ethiopia’s federal and local authorities and prevent a return to anything resembling peace or normalcy.
However, what is particularly unfortunate and extremely disappointing – although hardly surprising based upon the long historical record – is that large international media outlets, such as the AFP, continue to recycle baseless, specious allegations without minimal scrutiny, confirmation, or validation. Interestingly, after spurious allegations are raised, they are never subjected to follow-up or retraction, clarification, or correction, which in itself is newsworthy and merits serious investigation.
Regrettably, it seems that statements and claims from some in the region, no matter their alignment with reality, are not merely assumed false but are totally dismissed, rejected, and ignored. By stark contrast, only the assertions from remnants of TPLF are to be considered as objective truth and disseminated uncritically.
_______________
National Unity: Eritrea’s core value for peace and stability
By Simon Weldemichael
https://shabait.com/2021/05/01/national ... stability/
HISTORY & CULTURE
May 1, 2021
As countries around the world confront the seemingly intractable problems of social disintegration, institutional breakdown, mass alienation and religious and political conflicts, national integration and unity have assumed increasing importance in public debate. Uniting people from diverse cultures, is one of the major challenges confronting both developing and developed countries. Throughout history, leaders have adopted policies to foster a national identity that would sustain an “imagined political community” in which citizens remain connected by shared history and values.
Eritrea is a nation of nine ethnic groups, speaking nine different languages. They believe in and practice different religions and have a great variety of life styles. But the nine ethnic groups co-exist peacefully together and respect the culture and religion of one another. With all their diversities, they all identify themselves simply as Eritreans. The Eritrean national identity is supreme, way above ethnic and religious identities.
Eritrea’s national unity, which constitutes the main source of its strength, is necessary for the security and development of the nation. The national charter of Eritrea presents national unity, as the chief means of nation building. In the sphere of administration, the Government of Eritrea dismantled the old colonial provinces and districts that were designed to serve colonial interests. In place of the provinces the country was divided into six administrative regions, each incorporating many ethnic groups. The secular and nationalist government of Eritrea adopted a policy of nationhood that turns the diverse cultures of Eritrea into a source of beauty, strength and unity.
Eritrea is a great example of unity in diversity, and it is a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and multi-lingual country. The diverse cultures of Eritrea were channeled to be a source of power and unity. The national system was made secular, separate from religion, yet respectful of the equality of religions. It gives its citizens the freedom to practice any religion of their choice. People that belong to different cultures and religions share a common platform to understand each other’s cultural and religious beliefs, which in turn fosters the feeling of mutual trust and harmony.
For most of its history, Eritrea was ruled by invaders and colonizers that pursued a divide-and-rule strategy to pit one ethnic group against another. History tells us that ethnic and religious conflicts, which were alien to the Eritrean society, were introduced and nurtured by colonizers for their own strategic purposes. In the long course of resistance against invaders, especially during the armed struggle for independence, a common Eritrean national identity was crafted. After independence in 1991, the national unity was supported institutionally to embrace all nationals living inside and outside of the country. Solidarity in Eritrea has become an authentic moral virtue. It is a firm determination to commit oneself to the common good. The renowned Eritrean author and historian, Alemseged Tesfai, has once remarked,
A nation is commonly defined, as a country with a unified socio-economic and political structure. According to Benedict Anderson a Nation,Eritrea is one of very few countries in the world today, where the question of national identity was fought out in a bitter war and conclusively settled in favor of the underdog.
It denotes a body of people who have a feeling of oneness, built on the basis of common history, culture and values. This feeling of oneness binds the people together in a nation. The national integration and unity of Eritrea has been attained by the awareness of a common identity amongst the citizens of a country. It means that though Eritreans may belong to different ethnic groups and religions and speak different languages, all of them recognize the fact that they are one people. This kind of integration is very important in the building of a strong and prosperous nation. In the thirty-year long armed struggle for independence and the latter two decades of resistance to preserve independence, Eritreans were able to develop a mental outlook that promotes and inspires every person to place loyalty to the country above group loyalties and the welfare of the country above narrow interests.is an imagined political community – and imagined as both inherently limited and sovereign.
Solidarity is a unity of feeling or sentiment among a group of people, who share a common objective or interest. Building solidarity implies, the harmonization of shared interests. The solidarity between women and men, Muslims and Christians, highlanders and lowlanders, Eritreans who live at home and abroad worked miracles during the struggle for independence and its preservation following Eritrea’s independence. The government succeeded in making Eritrea a country of all where Eritreans live in and struggle in equality. The EPLF, the revolutionary movement turned government, has successfully imparted brotherhood and togetherness in the diverse Eritrean society. Eritreans have a very proud legacy of tolerance, respect and helping one another.
The People’s Front has enhanced Eritrean nationalism and prepared the ground for national unity by overriding all divisive and narrow-minded attitudes. It practices what it preaches, ensuring the equality of all citizens. It liberated the Eritrean nationalism from divisive forces and factors that had been dragging it back to sub-national factionalism. Right from its inception, it taught and convinced its people that ethnic diversity was not an antithesis to national integration, unity and nationalism. As far as the People’s Front is concerned, the strength of Eritrean nationalism lay in its diversity.
Eritrea, the youngest among African nations, has developed a national culture that rejects all forms of divisiveness and narrow sentiments and is conducive to unity and solidarity. Its unity is rooted in a long tradition of peaceful and harmonious coexistence and was reinforced by the long armed struggle and resistance to preserve independence, making it one of the most unified countries among the community of nations. The unique peace and stability that prevails in Eritrea is the outcome of its unity and solidarity.
Words & 
Himachali: @