The Opposition Dancing to the Tune of the Enemy against Moresh Wogene
By Getachew Reda (Editor Ethiopian Semay)Wednesday, April 25, 2014
Lately, an unfair and widespread vilification campaign has
been launched by certain "opposition" elements against Moresh
Wegene—an organization established by concerned Amhara individuals who
understandably want to resist and document the systematic extermination of
ethnic Amharas by various internal and external enemies. These emotional
opposition members, who label themselves as “Pan-Ethiopianists” or “Patriot
Ethiopianists,” are accusing Moresh Wegene (led by Ato Tekle Yeshaw) of being
“Amhara ethno-centric” or "anti-Ethiopian unity." They are true
hypocrites living in a fantasy world.
For Moresh to declare its commitment to stand up and defend
its people—at a time when the ethnic group is on the verge of a social crisis
and facing atrocities from enemies who unfairly and illegally target them as a
"common enemy"—is a natural and necessary concern for the Amhara
people, especially since others have failed to echo or defend their plight.
When, exactly, did the opposition media start to openly and
continuously speak up for the Amhara? Very late. In fact, Tamagn Beyene and I
were among the few who openly criticized and expressed furious dismay at the
opposition media (both inside the country and in the Diaspora) for remaining
silent on the plight of Amhara victims. That was just yesterday—only a few
months ago. Who is fooling whom?
Where were these vocal opposition elements when the Amhara
were being beaten, slaughtered, and evicted day in and day out from their own
country and farmlands? These hypocrites amaze me when they use fancy words to
lecture others on Ethiopiawinet (Ethiopianness), claiming to understand it
better than the actual victims or their advocates.
One Paltalk editor, calling himself “Debtera,” insisted and
vowed:
“(ስርዐቱን) በኢትዮጵያዊነችን እናሸንፈዋለን እንላለን፤ ኢትዮጵያዊነት ያሸንፋል ብለን እናምናለን፡ ከላሸነፍነው አማራው በጐሳ ተደራጅቶ ከሚገዛን ሥርዓቱ (ወያኔ) ለሚሊዮን ዘመን ለምን አይቀጥልም!”. አሁን ባለው ሁኔታ የሃይሉ ሻውልን እና ‘መ አ ድ’ ንም ልንጠረጥረው አድርጐናል። በእነዚህ ሰዎች ምክንያት ጥርጣሪያችን እየሰፋ እንዲመጣ አድርጎናል።”
Here we go again—the TPLF theory coming alive inside the
opposition: "no matter what, you cannot trust an Amhara." It is a
return to the vilification of Hailu Shaul and the Amhara people.
It is no secret that the Amhara ethnic group is in clear
danger. Now, certain elements within the opposition are playing games,
recycling TPLF propaganda in the name of Ethiopiawinet to air their baseless
allegations against Moresh Wegene and Ato Tekle Yeshaw.
Some are now accusing Tekle Yeshaw of being a murderous Derg
cadre simply to attack the Amhara cause. Even though he was a Derg official,
these opposition elements are labeling him a murderer. Even the TPLF never
accused him of such a heinous crime. The TPLF never found any evidence to
support the kind of allegations these pathetic opposition members are
hallucinating about regarding Ato Tekle Yeshaw.
Ato Tekle Yeshaw served as the Tigray region administrator
during the Derg era. Do you really think the TPLF would have let him walk free
if they had found any evidence that he abused Tigrayans? Do you not think the
TPLF would have known the ins and outs of every crime committed by Derg
officials against Tigrayans or anyone else in that region? This pathetic
opposition is indeed aimless and corrupt!
The TPLF, OLF, and all sorts of extremist groups were, and
still are, engaged in humiliating and exterminating the Amhara and targeting
Orthodox Christianity whenever they get the chance. Therefore, Moresh members
are entirely within their legal and moral rights to defend their people by any
means necessary—whether organized independently under their own name or in
cooperation with other Ethiopians.
As the opposition's fake fresh hero and new fighter from Tigray,
Mr. Abraha Desta, stated:
“በትግራይ ህዝብ ላይ የተቃጣ አደጋ ካለ ከትግራይ ህዝብ ጋር መቆሜ አይቀርም።”
If that is acceptable, then Moresh is equally justified in
standing by its people to save them from total extermination. So why is there
all this loud burping, uproar, and hoopla across Paltalk and various websites
against Moresh Wegene, accusing them of being anti-Ethiopia or narrow
nationalists?
Could some elements within the organization have voiced
misguided or emotional rhetoric? Perhaps, yes. But that should not be a reason
to vilify, humiliate, and mischaracterize the entire organization's intentions
as anti-Ethiopian unity. It amazes me to death.
Don't you guys think you played enough of a role in the
destruction of Kinijit when you vilified Hailu Shaul from both the left and the
right as an Amhara narrow nationalist? Even today, the so-called ARENA leader
Ato Berhane Hailu in Mekele, along with Abraham Asrat, still harbor hatred
toward Hailu Shaul. (Listen to Berhane Hailu’s ARENA interview on Tsena Radio,
prepared by Mekonnen Zelelew a few years back, where he refers to Hailu Shaul
as "Timkihit/Kinijit Hailu.") Or, for that matter, listen to former
ARENA member Mr. Abraham Asrat referring to Hailu Shaul and his party as a
“Menelik SerAt AkenKang party" or a "middle-age era/feudal
party," and so on.
It is clear now that subversive groups from both the left and
right sides of the opposition have played a deeply negative role.
What is your definition of Ethiopiawinet, anyway? You attack
those who stand up to defend themselves and their families from ongoing
atrocities, labeling them as anti-Ethiopia. Meanwhile, your fancy vocabulary
surrounding Ethiopiawinet does absolutely nothing practical to save the Amhara
people; it is nothing but empty emotion. How can it be considered “the politics
of secession” or “narrow nationalism” when someone organizes to save their own
people from crisis and extermination? None of your sophisticated rhetoric has
done anything to shield Amhara society from humiliation and misery.
What has your idealized, empty Ethiopiawinet rhetoric
achieved to protect the Amhara from destruction and degradation? Nothing. Let
alone saving them from atrocities or defending their society, you do not even
maintain a proper record of the crimes committed against them. You have
absolutely nothing in your hands—nada! No pasó nada, zip, nothing!
What is the crime of Moresh, or the crime of Ato Tekle Yeshaw
and his followers? The opposition’s new hero, Mr. Abraha Desta from Mekelle,
Tigray, openly claimed:
“በትግራይ ህዝብ ላይ የተቃጣ አደጋ ካለ ከትግራይ ህዝብ ጋር መቆሜ አይቀርም።”
If that is the case, why is there all this uproar, brouhaha,
and hoopla across Paltalk and various websites against Moresh Wegene? Why
accuse them of being anti-Ethiopian or narrow nationalists simply because they
organize themselves politically, civically, or in any form to defend their
families from ongoing atrocities?
The members of Moresh are no less Ethiopian than any of you.
You loud, big-mouthed critics are good for nothing. Stop this nonsense,
hair-splitting politics that accuses Moresh of working toward secession! Quit
that super-nonsense! You already know that I am not going to let you play games
here the way you did with Hailu Shaul. I successfully defended him during the
harsh storm brought on by subversive groups, and I will challenge anyone
targeting Moresh in the interest of fairness and justice. Why are you dragging
us back into this pointless infighting and conflict, distracting us from
focusing on our common enemy?
It shocks me over and over again that the opposition is still
dwelling on petty issues and hair-splitting definitions. The opposition is on
the verge of collapse because it would rather see the TPLF rule for a million
years than allow a patriotic Amhara to come to power. This is a bitter truth,
as you will see at the bottom of this article.
Not only are rivers of flooded articles continually posted on
opposition websites against Moresh Wegene—as if the opposition has adopted this
game as its latest battlefield fashion—but their complete divorce from reality
is also a wild topic of discussion in opposition Paltalk rooms as we speak.
Although I am not a regular audience member of these Paltalk chat rooms, I
recently started visiting a few of them and was deeply surprised.
Let me start with a positive remark before addressing the
negative side of certain Paltalk rooms I visited, spending about half an hour
in each. My first visit was to the Qale chat room. Although rumor has it that
the senior editor of the room is a hardcore supporter of Ginbot 7, the
environment as a whole was mature. I was pleasantly surprised by the maturity
of the participants and the topics they chose to discuss. It felt like a
higher-education classroom—calm and friendly regardless of political differences.
In particular, a participant using the name “Habre” proved to be a brilliant
fellow when briefing his topics; he was calm and knew his subject matter inside
and out. I genuinely enjoyed it before quietly journeying to another room.
This time, I entered “Debtera Leaks Political Secrets of
Ethiopia – Voice Room,” which is administered by an individual named Biruk
Shiferaw Tufa. I previously wrote a commentary about him titled “ኋላ የመጣ ዓይን አወጣ!” which can
be found on the Zehabesha website and other platforms.
After I published that commentary, this fellow surprised me
last week by constantly calling my phone day and night at various hours,
leaving insulting messages and calling me a "Yeshermuta Lij." At
times, he even tried to imitate a Black American. I have saved all of his
abusive voice messages for the record. I cannot help but laugh at his insanity;
I think dogs can express themselves better than this guy. What made me laugh
the most was when he left messages faking a ghetto accent to hurl insults. It
is incredibly bizarre why an Ethiopian would imitate what the rapper Dr. Dre
calls a "ghetto boy." Unfortunately, this was the room where I
unpleasantly spent a few hours.
The abstract rhetoric of Ethiopiawinet becomes total nonsense
when observed in practice. The vilification of the Tigrayan people, the Amhara
people, and others was largely what filled the air during my few hours in those
Paltalk rooms. For instance, look at the screenshot below, which shows the kind
of toxicity that was widely tolerated in that space.
I intentionally kept an eye on a participant using the name
“mike_07,” who insulted Tigrayans by stating: “ke Agamewoch Yeterefen Aids
becha new” (Only AIDS is left from the Agame/Tigrayans). I wanted to see if the
administrator would kick him out. Unfortunately, he was not. He repeatedly
spewed the same hatred over and over again, while others who challenged the
views of the room administrators were immediately restrained, their mouths
sealed with a red dot.
The poor (meskin) Moresh Wegene was the constant punching bag
for the editor of this room and his friends. Next in line to be online-vilified
by these elements was the Amhara, supposedly in defense of Tigrayans. The
administrator accused the Amhara of being the only ethnic group that blames
Tigrayans by saying, "Tigrayans are supporters of the TPLF." Here is
what he said:
Quote:
"ይህንን ቲዮሪ የሚመጣው ደግሞ “አማራው ነው”። “አንድም” ጉራጌ ይህንን ቲዎሪ ሲያቀነቅነው አላየሁም፤ “አንድም” ኦሮሞ ትግራይ ሕዝብ ‘ቲ ፒ ኤል ኤፍ’ ነው ብሎ ሲያቀነቅን አላየሁም። ይህ ደግሞ ጠባብ
ብሔረተኞች ከሚያቀነቅኑ ሰዎች ይቀነቀናል።”
Therefore, according to Mr. Biruk, he has never heard
"even a single Oromo or Gurage" accuse Tigrayans of being TPLF
supporters—only the Amhara ethnic group. Is this real?
"አንዲህ ያለ ዘረኝነት ከጉራጌ ብቻ፤ ከኦሮሞ ብቻ ሲመጣ ብቻ አይደለም የምንዋጋው፤ ከአማራውም ጭምር ሲመጣ አንዋጋዋለን።" said Mr. Biruk.
By what criterion is such an argument labeled as "racism
against Tigrayans"? One could easily argue and dismiss the analysis as
incorrect, but it is obviously not "racism."
Then, he went on to present his supporting evidence to show
that Tigrayans oppose the TPLF, mentioning several individual Tigrayan names:
"Dr. Hailu Araya, Tekle Bekele of UDJ, Asgede, Abraha Desta..." These
few individuals are his evidence of massive opposition to the TPLF out of a
population of five million or so Tigrayans who—willy-nilly—have fought, died,
been wounded, and supported the TPLF since 1975, ultimately rendering Ethiopia
a landlocked nation just to reassert a "Tigrawaynet" identity.
So now, the Amhara are accused by this so-called opposition
of being racist. "ይህንን ቲዮሪ የሚመጣው ደግሞ “አማራው ነው”። “አንድም” ጉራጌ ይህንን ቲዎሪ ሲያቀነቅነው አላየሁም፤ “አንድም” ኦሮሞ ትግራይ ሕዝብ ‘ቲ ፒ ኤል ኤፍ’ ነው ብሎ ሲያቀነቅን አላየሁም። ይህ ደግሞ ጠባብ
ብሔረተኞች ከሚያቀነቅኑ ሰዎች ይቀነቀናል።” This is beyond belief.
When is the Amhara ethnic group going to get relief and rest
from being vilified, accused, and used as a scapegoat for the opposition's own
weaknesses? This harshness against the Amhara has been ongoing since the
beginning of the Ethiopian Communist student movement, led by the likes of
Walelign Mekonnen—who happens to be the hero of both the TPLF and the OLF.
Mr. Biruk further asserted that we should not blame four
million Tigrayans for not serving as chairmen of the opposition, noting the
same applies to the Oromo. He claimed it is impossible for millions of
Tigrayans to be seen leading the opposition. Mr. Biruk defended Tigrayans as
opponents of Weyane, claiming they oppose the TPLF en masse just like the
Oromos do. He argued that out of an Amhara population of roughly 30 million,
only 200 or 300 Amhara opposition figures (his own arbitrary number) actually
emerge in Ethiopia or the Diaspora. "So why should only Tigrayans be the
central focus of criticism?" asked Mr. Biruk in defense of Tigrayans.
Has anyone ever seen Tigrayans coming out by the hundreds of
thousands—whether in Ethiopia or the Diaspora—to take their grievances to the
streets? Have they marched to show their opposition to the TPLF for landlocking
Ethiopia, or for dismissing over a quarter of a million members of the
Ethiopian army? After all, they were the driving force that brought this
lunatic, anti-Ethiopia group to central power. Tigrayans should have been at
the very frontlines of the battle or protest, resisting the TPLF conspiracy
before anyone else. Sadly, they did not protest as they should have. Not at
all.
It was only those of Amhara ethnicity who stood against such
conspiracies in front of the world. Figures like Professor Asrat, who
challenged Meles and Isayas, and Professor Mesfin Weldemariam, along with
similar human rights activists, worked day in and day out filing grievances and
appeals to the world. They exposed the atrocities and ethnic cleansing
committed against the Amhara society by the TPLF, OLF, and OILF, led by the
late "terrorist" General Jara. These Amhara activists were in the thick
of the battle against multiple adversaries, while the majority of Tigrayan
elites and ordinary Tigrayans kept their mouths silent. In the course of this
resistance, Professor Asrat, Assefa Maru, and many others lost their lives to
TPLF assassins. Some were butchered with knives or shot to death in broad
daylight like wild animals. They were not criminals; their only crime was being
born Amhara-speaking Ethiopians trying to defend their people from ethnic
cleansing.
You all recall what Dr. Taye Weldesemayat (chairman of the
Ethiopian Teachers Association) went through in the brutal TPLF prisons, do you
not? What was his crime? Nothing, except defending justice and being born
Amhara. It was not Tigrayans who cried out and protested for his release. It
was Ethiopians of all backgrounds—particularly Amhara elites, who wrote and
defended numerous articles in his support. The media also did a good job at the
time. Meanwhile, Tigrayans were busy dancing and touring with Eritreans all
over the world, singing praises for Eritrean mothers as heroes and tigresses:
"Eritrawit Ado Ezi Kulu Ay salKindo!"
All those Amhara elites lost their lives, their jobs, or
their country, and faced harsh accusations, often labeled as Neftenga or
"narrow Amhara nationalists." How fast our memories fade! Their
latest target is now Moresh, labeling it with the same derogatory terms that
the collaborators of this subversive agenda used against Professor Asrat,
Assefa Maru, and others.
Did I see any Tigrayan opposition figures—aside from myself,
Gebremedhin Araya, Abraham Yayeh, and a few others—oppose Meles Zenawi when he
openly insulted the national Ethiopian flag, calling it a piece of rag (cherq)?
No, not at all. The reverse was true. It was the Amhara elites who
overwhelmingly resisted such conspiracies. The historical record should be
clear. Of course, a few Oromo, Tigrayan, and other ethnic elements resisted the
TPLF conspiracy, but the Amhara were at the frontline, resisting this subversive
group more than anyone else because they were the primary target of various
enemies. If the Oromo were targeted by the TPLF, it was due to a competition
for "Oromo supremacy" or because they wanted power to fulfill a
secessionist agenda from Ethiopia.
There were not many Tigrayans or Oromos resisting like the
Amhara to save Ethiopia and defend themselves. What were Tigrayans doing when
Assefa Maru, Professor Asrat, or other Amhara individuals were jailed in Debre
Berhan? They were ululating in praise of Meles Zenawi. Remember, he was the
chief ideologue of the TPLF, responsible for the killing and humiliation of
Amhara peasants and intellectuals. He carried out his dirty work in
collaboration with splinter groups while they were in power, all while Tigrayans
embraced them as heroes.
The TPLF chief ideologue went to Mekele to celebrate the TPLF
anniversary after his actions in Addis Ababa against Amhara elites and
peasants. Surrounded by thousands of Tigrayans in public gatherings, he was
embraced and kissed on the cheek. In return, he called them the "Golden
race" (Worqi Hezbi) and expressed his pride in belonging to the
"Golden people" compared to the "bronze" and
"silver" statuses of other ethnic groups in Ethiopia. What was the
reaction of the Tigrayans? Millions of them ululated after hearing their leader
rank them as the "Golden people." Is that not the reality?
So, if there is a strong Tigrayan resistance against the
TPLF, as some opportunistic opposition groups argue, since when did thousands
of Tigrayans start protesting furiously against TPLF officials, like the recent
demonstrations by Amhara youth in Bahir Dar? We need to hear about that. What
did Tigrayans do when Sebhat Nega insulted the Enderta people, calling them
"professional beggars" who travel to Addis Ababa every year to beg,
even if they do not need the money, out of habit? He claimed that just as Christians
travel to Israel or Muslims travel to Mecca and Medina, the Enderta beggars
travel to Addis annually after collecting their harvest (1994, Radio Dimtsi
Weyane Tigray).
What did Tigrayans do when insulted by this crude old man?
Nothing. The TPLF is their church. They accept any degradation from the TPLF,
but from the so-called Neftenga, it is an absolute no.
Are there Tigrayan opposition members? Of course, there are
small pockets of opposition in Tigray here and there, which is inevitable after
so many years of support and silence. But is that enough from a territory that
showed unbelievable armed resistance against the Derg regime?
During the struggle, 22 years ago, thousands of TPLF fighters
resisted marching to the center of the country, refusing orders from TPLF
commanders to "liberate" the rest of the country from what Tigrayan
politicians called the "Amhara Derg government." This resistance
lasted a full year and was called DEWTA (resistance/pause). Some left their
bunkers, went home, and rejoined their families. Why not now? We have not seen
any significant resistance today compared to what other Ethiopians did during
the Kinijit uprising in Addis Ababa—led by Hailu Shawel and Lidetu Ayalew.
Although some claim Tigrayans voted for Kinijit, we have seen no electoral
evidence of it. The majority of Kinijit's core support came from the Amhara
constituency (later READP/MEIAD), which formed the strong movement that shook
the TPLF leadership.
Was it not ARENA Tigray, led by Gebru Asrat, that testified
on Radio Dimtsi Weyane Tigray that the election in Mekele was free of issues?
Did they not sign off on the election as peaceful after the TPLF claimed
victory—even though ARENA later spoke against it as fraudulent? This is what we
heard from Tsegay Berhe, the then-President of Tigray. We have not heard Gebru
or other ARENA officials contradict or protest what Tsegay said in his Geza
Tegaru PalTalk interview.
Was the election fraudulent? Of course, the TPLF is
dictatorial and deceptive. But what is the secret behind why a region armed
with millions of guns, full of battle-tested fighters living inside Tigray, who
are much better equipped than the Amhara society (the Amhara who are disarmed
and demoralized left and right by all anti-Amhara entities), failed to resist
or protest a fraudulent election, unless they favored the TPLF? Should not this
society, which supported and fed its guerrilla fighters, calling them Deqina
(our children), have been the first to lead a revolt against the TPLF if they
believed it was an Eritrean-led party rather than a Tigrayan organization?
Instead, they accepted the TPLF flag as their own. It is clear that this jungle
party has no right to implement a party flag as if it were a legitimate
Tigrayan flag. Tigray has no historical flag of its own; it has one flag, and
that is the Ethiopian flag that came down from generation to generation. Yet,
we heard no resistance from the elites of Tigray, even against such a blatant
violation. It is foolish to accuse us of being anti-Tigray simply because we
believe all Tigrayans are TPLF supporters.
Leave the farmers alone. My older sister lives in the deep
lowlands of Tigray as a peasant. She knows nothing about politics. There are
millions of farmers like her who struggle daily just to make ends meet. My
criticism focuses on the majority of urban dwellers (students, teachers, civil
servants) and the educated elite. That is where the core problem lies.
Yet, figures like Mr. Beruk tell us on PalTalk that
"Tigrayan history does not accept or support dictators." If that is
true, why the silence and support for the TPLF, which perfectly fits the
definition of a dictatorship and fascist party? When Seye Abraha or Gebru Asrat
were among the 17 dismissed TPLF Central Committee members—whom some refer to
as "pure Tigrayans" compared to the "Eritrean factions"—why
did they fail to establish a guerrilla resistance force in Tigray immediately after
their dismissal or even as we speak, if these elements believe Tigray is ruled
by Eritreans?
Surprisingly, it is not the splinter groups themselves
pushing this ridiculous bloodline theory for their disagreement; this comes
from mediocre Tigrayan opposition individuals and opportunistic opponents
trying to cover up the weakness of these "splinters," whom the
Tigrayan elite call "heroes and diamonds."
(Read my book የወያኔ ገበና ማሕደር የትግራይ ምሁራን እና ወያነ ትግራይ “ገጽ 399-427፡ The letter was
addressed to Meles Zenawi under the tile “From Tigrayn professionals” ትንሺ ልጥቀስ፤)
“አቶ መለስ እርሰዎ እና ቡድንዎ ለምን ድነው አንዚህ በእሳት ተፈትነው የወጡትን የጀግኖቻቸንን መልካም ስም ለማጥፋት
የፈለጋችሁ? በጥሩ ስም እና ዓለማ የታነፁ አንዚህ ጀግኖች መሪዎቻችን፤ የወያኔ አለኝታዎች ናቸው።እነዚህ አርበኞቻችን የዓይናችን ብሌኖች ናቸው ፤ዕንቆቻችን ናቸው።የክብራችን፤ የማንነታችን መከታዎች በሆኑት አርበኞቻችን ላይ ለምንድ ነው አቶ መለስ መዝመት የፈለጉት? አቶ መለስ ያቁሙ! ለምንድ ነው ትግራይ የወለደቻቸው ብርቅዬ ሰዎቿን ማባረር የፈለጉት? አቶ መለስ መልስ ይስጡን አንጂ! ዝምታው ምንድ ነው? ህወሓት ማለት ለትግራይ ሕዝብ ህይወቱ (ማንኛውም ነገር) ማለት መሆኑን ልናስታውሰዎ ይፈልጋሉ እንዴ? ህወሓት ለህይወታችን ዋና ዋና የሆኑ ወሳኝ ነገሮችን ሰጥቶናል ብቻ ሳይሆን “ህይወት የምትባለው ወሳኝ የህልውና ትንፋሽ ሰጥቶናል” ብንል ማጋነን አይሆንም።
ድርጅታችን የሕግ ምሰሶ አቁሞልናል።ሕወሓት የሕግ እና የሕልውና ከለላችን ነው። በህወሓት ላይ በሚደረጉ ተፅዕኖዎች የትግራይ ሕዝብ ህልውና አደጋ ላይ እንደሚወድቅ ገልጸው፣ የተነሱት ውዝግቦች መሪዎቹ ተገንጣዮች ወይም ጠባቦች በመሆናቸው ሳይሆን የሕወሓትን መዋቅር በመጠበቃቸው እንደሆነ ተጠቅሷል።
(By
the way, my apologies to those who asked me to send a copy of this particular
book. It is out of market.)
These
are my principal focus group when I argue that the Tigrayan people are TPLF
supporters, unless one wants to play a "hair-splitting" game. The
claim made by opportunists that the splinter faction is genuinely against the
TPLF is simply not true. Consider the words of a Tigrayan, Abraha Desta, who
stated: "ገብሩ እና አረጋሽ ከሕወሓት የወጡት በግለሰባዊ ጥላቻ አይደለም። የትግራይ ሕዝብ ጠልተውም አይደለም። ተቃውሞ
ጠላትነት አይደለም። የአቋም ልዩነት መያዝ ነው። ስለዚህ አረጋሽ እና ገብሩ “የህወሓት ‘ተቃዋሚዎች’ አንጂ የህወሓት ‘ጠላቶች’
አይደሉም።”
So,
Abraha is telling us clearly that, in principle, both the splinter group and
the Meles faction are one and the same when it comes to the TPLF. They only
differ on the implementation of the already established policies of the TPLF.
Mr.
Biruk Shiferaw Tufa (an Oromo by ethnicity, based on his own assertion) is
dying defending the Tigrayans who support the TPLF, or those Tigrayans who are
beneficiaries of the TPLF. He does this by ridiculing anyone who argues that
"Tigrayans are beneficiaries of the TPLF" or "Tigrayans are
supporters/sympathizers of the TPLF." Here is what he said (this is a
direct quote from a recorded audio):
“ሁሉም
ትግሬ የወያኔ ደጋፊ ነው ብላችሁ የምታስቡ ካላችሁ ለአራት ሚሊዮን ሕዝብ ጥየት አዘጋጁ፤ ለአራት ሚሊዮን ሰዎች መቃብር አዘጋጁ….ምን
ዓይነት አይዲኦሎጂ፤ ምን ዓይነት አስተሳሰብ ነው?ቢሆኑ እንኳ፤በሙሉ ቢሆኑ እንኳን “አይደሉም!!!” ብላችሁ ነው መከራከር ያለባችሁ።“
Now,
let me briefly clarify this hypocritical argument: "ሁሉም ትግሬ የወያኔ ደጋፊ ነው ብላችሁ
የምታስቡ ካላችሁ." My friends and I have always been clear on this theory. We
have written, argued, and stated over and over that when discussing a
particular population, the entire population cannot flock like birds to a
single agenda. They cannot all be beneficiaries, criminals, fighters, born on
the same day, or die at a single stroke. For instance, when one states that
"the German people were pro-Nazi," that in itself does not mean every
single German citizen supported the Nazis. We know there were German citizens
who opposed the Nazi regime, such as the White Rose movement, which tried to
topple Hitler and resulted in the execution of its members, including Sophie Scholl.
But
generally speaking, a substantial portion of the German population sympathized
with Hitler. The same is true for the Tigrayans, who hold a soft heart for the
TPLF compared to the Derg or any present opposition.
To
argue, "ትግሬዎች የወያኔ ደጋፊዎች ቢሆኑ እንኳ፤ “አይደሉም!!!” ብላችሁ ነው መከራከር ያለባችሁ፣" is
not only a "hair-splitting" argument but an intentional waste of
time. It is used as a tactical tool to cover up the collaboration of Tigrayans
with the apartheid system of the TPLF. This tactical escape door was designed
by mediocre Tigrayan opposition figures and general opposition members who are
simply opportunists.
Why
should Ethiopians, Tigrayans, or anyone else cover up the reality or argue in
defense of Tigrayans by claiming they did not collaborate with the apartheid
TPLF? Why distort reality? Are we not contradicting history? What is the motive
behind this?
Later,
we will see the real motive behind why this fellow wants us to shut up. He does
not want us to talk about Tigrayans supporting the TPLF, nor does he want us to
mention the reality that Tigrayans benefited under the TPLF far more than the
Amhara. He wants to silence the fact that the Amhara lost their fertile
agricultural territories to Tigrayans at gunpoint by the TPLF, to the extent of
exterminating the Amharic-speaking residents of those annexed territories. If
you listen to the audio-video "interview of two natives of Wolqait Tegede
about the atrocities of TPLF" at youtu.be, you will hear the truth. Is it
not in this annexed, fertile Amhara/Gondar territory that millions of Tigrayans
and fighters were settled to live? Of course, they are the beneficiaries of the
fruits of the TPLF.
Why
do this fellow and the mediocre Tigrayan opposition elites argue that the
Tigrayan people or the Tigray province never benefited from the TPLF? One of
their arguments is that the TPLF dismissed about 35,000 fighters under the
pretext of poor performance (claiming they were drunkards, etc.). Their
argument is that "this proves the TPLF is anti-Tigray." They even
push their argument further by saying TPLF elites are all Eritreans, or
half-Tigrayan and half-Eritrean. This same fellow repeats on PalTalk that the
17 TPLF splinter CC members were purged from the organization because they were
"pure" full-blooded Tigrayans, pushed out by the power of
"Eritrean conspirators" inside the TPLF.
This
is a joke. Who is Tiku Weldu (the brother of Abay Weldu)? Who is Teweldemariam
Abera (the second-in-command inside the TPLF next to Meles Zenawi), whose
mother is Eritrean? (I know this because his beautiful sister was my very first
girlfriend, and I was her first boyfriend). And so on and so forth.
Therefore,
to argue that the 17 members of the TPLF CC splinter group were purged due to
their "pure Tigrayan blood" is simply a cover-up to absolve the
Tigrayan elites of the crimes they committed together, throwing all the blame
onto the so-called "half-caste Tigrayan-Eritreans." This argument is
completely inaccurate, if not an outright conspiracy.
Whether
they have a half, a quarter, or any other portion of Eritrean or Tigrayan blood
in their family, they are Tigrayans by blood and bone, regardless of how
Italian colonial politics tried to separate them as different people. No one
has the right to deny them if they call themselves Tigrayans. It is their
actions we must examine. Their actions are anti-Ethiopian, and they committed
these crimes together in unison.
This
is exactly what happens when ethnocentric puppets and sub-feudal organizations
fight one another for personal reasons or power. The same story occurred in
Tigray during the 19th century in the era of Emperor Yohannes, both during his
reign and after his death, among the noble elites and feudal members of Tigray.
Debtera,
being misguided by the mediocre Tigrayan opposition, has been taught to repeat
whatever they want him to broadcast. Using his PalTalk rooms to spread their
nonsense arguments and distort reality only adds more blur to the confusion.
Furthermore,
they argue that the thousands of fighters dismissed by the TPLF were let go not
because of poor performance, but because they were Tigrayan. This is not
entirely true. Members of my own close family refused to continue serving in
the army under the new TPLF government after many years of fighting in Tigray.
They were arrested for about three months for refusing to be recruited into the
new army before they were finally released and their resignations accepted.
Therefore, the argument that the TPLF/Tigrayan people are ruled by Eritreans
who are firing Tigrayan fighters left and right is naive and idiotic; it is
just a clever argument to cover up the crimes of the Tigrayan elites. Where did
the TPLF send the thousands upon thousands of its peasant fighters with their
weapons under the guise of Gimgema (performance evaluations)? They sent them to
the Humera, Welkait, and Tegede fertile farming areas annexed from the Agaw and
Amhara societies of Gondar and Wollo.
How
foolish can someone be to argue that 35,000 Tigrayan fighters were dismissed
simply because they were Tigrayan? Eritreans are Tigrayans, and Tigrayans are
Eritreans by blood and bone. Whether they are Tigrayan or Eritrean elites, both
are anti-Ethiopian. You got it?
What
this group does not want to tell you is this: the very first act of the TPLF
after assuming power was the complete dismissal of the Ethiopian army, which is
believed to have numbered between 300,000 and 500,000 soldiers. When you take
into account their families, millions were thrown onto the streets to starve to
death. At the height of this dismissal in the summer of 1991, seven people were
dying daily from malnutrition, lack of shelter, and disease in a camp at Jan
Meda, where 38,000 people (who had been expelled from Eritrea) were forced to
suffer.
