EMDHR Press Statement on the Shegerab Refugee Camp Crisis in Sudan
Written by EMDHR- South Africa
The Eritrean Movement for Democracy and Human Rights (EMDHR) expresses its deepest shock to yet another tragic loss of Eritrean refugees in the Atbara River and the harassment of the refugees in the Shegerab Refugee Camp by Sudanese security forces.
According to recent reports, early this week dozens of Eritrean refugees run away from the Shengerab refugee camp and attempted to cross the Atbara River to Khartoum on a wooden boat. Tragically, the unsafe boat capsized and as a result most of its passengers are believed to have died. With an intention to rescue the victims, another group of Eritrean refugees left the Shegerab camp which is extra ordinary and daring step given the spate of kidnappings over the years and the failure of Sudanese authorities in providing adequate protection. Yet, the Sudanese authorities chose to arrest the rescue team and burn the refugee shelters in the camp, instead of investigating the fatal incident and providing support to the traumatized refugees reeling from the dreadful incident and many more before that.
While we have always been grateful for the historical and continuing generosity of the Sudanese government and people in hosting Eritrean refugees, we condemn the unlawful arrest of vulnerable refugees and the use of paramilitary security forces in the refugee camp.
We urge:
- The Sudanese government to set up an independent inquiry commission to investigate the incidents surrounding the crisis involving Eritrean refugees in the Shegerab Refugee Camp;
- Sudanese authorities to immediately release all Eritrean refugees unlawfully arrested and held by Sudanese security forces; authorities must also immediately withdraw paramilitary security forces out of the Shegerab Refugee Camp;
- The Sudanese government to do all under its power to find and identify the bodies of the victims of the Atbara River and return them to their families in Eritrea for proper burial;
- The Sudanese Government to grant Eritrean refugees freedom of movement within Sudan which will no doubt stop the fatal practices of human smuggling and extortion by unscrupulous individuals;
- The Sudanese authorities have the obligation and responsibility to provide adequate protection to the Eritrean refugees under their jurisdiction;
- The UNHCR and the international community must seriously pay attention to the Eritrean refugee crisis and assist in finding durable solutions;
- The international community must reject and condemn the totalitarian regime ruling Eritrea which is the primary cause for the human rights and refugee crises. In the face of the continuous tragedies and precarious conditions in Eritrea, the world should join us in saying enough is enough and press for democratic change.
Refugee Protection Office
Eritrean Movement for Democracy and Human Rights (EMDHR)
27 December 2014
Pretoria, South Africa
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
TV Demtsi Hezbi with Mr. W. Ammar
كلمة حزب الشعب الديمقراطي الإرتري في تأبين الإستاذ عمر جابر
Written by EPDP Information Office
الإخوة والاخوات قيادة وأعضاء جبهة التحرير الارترية بكسلا المحترمين
أحييكم بتحية الوفاء العظيم والاخاء الصادق والمحبة الخالصة، متوجهاً إليكم بهذه الكلمة أصالةً عن نفسي ونيابة عن الاخ منقستأب أسمروم رئيس حزب الشعب الديمقراطي الإرتري الحاضرمعنا بكل مشاعره الصادقة واحزانه الوطنية الكبيرة ومن خلالكم الى كل ابناء شعبنا الإرتري الابي ونحن نقف وقفة الوفاء والاجلال للشهيد الاستاذ عمر جابرالذي سيبقى حياً في قلوبنا وفي عمق ذكرياتنا العظيمة وفي الوجدان الشعبي والضمير الوطني على الدوام لكل المواقف الوطنية المسئولة للشهيد ولكل ما تركه من اعمال جليلة واثار باقية وبصمات متميزة في مسيرة نضالنا من اجل تحريرالوطن من الاستعمار سابقا وإنقاذه من النظام الدكتاتوري الذي ابتلع الدولة والمجتمع..
لقد كان الفقيد الشهيد فارساً متقدماً في الصفوف الأولى من المسئولية الوطنية وفي مواجهة التحديات العظيمة والتصدي للمهام الكبيرة في ميادين تحريرالوطن وتحقيق الاهداف التي رسمتها جبهة التحرير الإرترية وقائد طلائعها الاولي الشهيد المقيم حامد إدريس عواتي، مجتهدامع بقية رفاقه للعمل من اجل ترجمتها عبر مختلف المراحل التاريخية، لقد كان الشهيد العظيم واحداً من الشخصيات الوطنية الفذة والمتميزة كما تشهد كتاباته وأعماله وكان رجل الواقعية في مواقفه السياسية من القضايا الساخنة المطروحة في ساحت المعارضة إضافة إلي تميزه بالوفاء والولاء لقضايا شعبه في كل الظروف والاحوال..
الاخوة والاخوات:
نحن نودِّع في كل يوم وشهر وسنة شهداء من رعيل نضال شعبنا الذين افنوا زهرة شبابهم من اجل الوطن والشعب ولم يجدو شبرا من أرض الوطن لتـُــوارا فيه جثامينهم الطاهرة ومن كتبت لهم الحياة لم يجد قطعة أرض يسكن فيها ما تبقى من عمره ليس هذا فحسب بل حتي جيل الإستقلال من الشباب حكم عليهم مثل الرعيل ليكون خارج أرض الوطن بفعل الطغمة الحاكمة التي جعلت الشباب ليكونو عرضة للبيع والشراء مثل السلعة، والموت عطشاً في الصحاري أو غرقاً في البحار.
الإخوة والاخوات
إن بلادنا تعيش ظروفاً بالغة الصعوبة تهددها المخاطر السياسية والأمنية والأمراض الاجتماعية وهي تحتاج من القوي السياسية والمدنية الى تحكيم العقل والمنطق والعودة الى جادة الصواب والادراك بأن ما يهدد الوطن سوف يعصف بالجميع وان الظروف التي نشهدها والصعوبات التي تتطلب إيقاف التداعيات والحذر الشديد من عدم القفز على الواقع الذي نعيشه بكل تناقضاته وتجلياته وإدراك الدروس التي يمليها علينا موروثنا الثقافي والإجتماعي لكي نستطيع أن نلتقي في القواسم المشتركة التي يؤمن بها الجميع وان نتنازل لبعضنا البعض من خلال الحواروحل خلافاتنا بالطرق السلمية والديمقراطية .
الاخوة والاخوات:
لقد عانى وطننا الكثير من الطغمة الحاكمة مما جرى ويجري من مآسي وأحزان خلال العقدين والنصف وهو احوج ما يكون الى تخليصه من هذه المعاني، وسبيلنا الى ذلك هو التحصن بالحكمة وما يمليه علينا العقل والتفكيرالوطني السليم وتغليب المصلحة العليا للشعب والوطن.لبناء الدولة المدنية التي يتطلع إليها الجميع ويشعرون بانهم متساوون فيها في الحقوق والواجبات والمواطنة المتساوية في ظل إرتريا الديمقراطية الذي يشعركل مواطن فيها بالفخر والإعتزازبانه يساهم في بنائه ويحقق ذاته ووجوده الحر الكريم.
وفي الختام في مثل هذا المقام لابد ان نبتهل الى الله ان يتغمد فقيد الوطن الكبيرالشهيد الجليل الإستاذ عمر جابر عمربواسع رحمته وان يسكنه فسيح جناته وسائر شهداء الثورة والحرية والديمقراطية وشهداء العزة والكرامة.
حزب الشعب الديمقراطي الإرتري ..
25-12-2014
كلمة حزب الشعب الديمقراطي الإرتري في تأبين الإستاذ عمر جابر
Written by EPDP Information Office
الإخوة والاخوات قيادة وأعضاء جبهة التحرير الارترية بكسلا المحترمين
أحييكم بتحية الوفاء العظيم والاخاء الصادق والمحبة الخالصة، متوجهاً إليكم بهذه الكلمة أصالةً عن نفسي ونيابة عن الاخ منقستأب أسمروم رئيس حزب الشعب الديمقراطي الإرتري الحاضرمعنا بكل مشاعره الصادقة واحزانه الوطنية الكبيرة ومن خلالكم الى كل ابناء شعبنا الإرتري الابي ونحن نقف وقفة الوفاء والاجلال للشهيد الاستاذ عمر جابرالذي سيبقى حياً في قلوبنا وفي عمق ذكرياتنا العظيمة وفي الوجدان الشعبي والضمير الوطني على الدوام لكل المواقف الوطنية المسئولة للشهيد ولكل ما تركه من اعمال جليلة واثار باقية وبصمات متميزة في مسيرة نضالنا من اجل تحريرالوطن من الاستعمار سابقا وإنقاذه من النظام الدكتاتوري الذي ابتلع الدولة والمجتمع..
لقد كان الفقيد الشهيد فارساً متقدماً في الصفوف الأولى من المسئولية الوطنية وفي مواجهة التحديات العظيمة والتصدي للمهام الكبيرة في ميادين تحريرالوطن وتحقيق الاهداف التي رسمتها جبهة التحرير الإرترية وقائد طلائعها الاولي الشهيد المقيم حامد إدريس عواتي، مجتهدامع بقية رفاقه للعمل من اجل ترجمتها عبر مختلف المراحل التاريخية، لقد كان الشهيد العظيم واحداً من الشخصيات الوطنية الفذة والمتميزة كما تشهد كتاباته وأعماله وكان رجل الواقعية في مواقفه السياسية من القضايا الساخنة المطروحة في ساحت المعارضة إضافة إلي تميزه بالوفاء والولاء لقضايا شعبه في كل الظروف والاحوال..
الاخوة والاخوات:
نحن نودِّع في كل يوم وشهر وسنة شهداء من رعيل نضال شعبنا الذين افنوا زهرة شبابهم من اجل الوطن والشعب ولم يجدو شبرا من أرض الوطن لتـُــوارا فيه جثامينهم الطاهرة ومن كتبت لهم الحياة لم يجد قطعة أرض يسكن فيها ما تبقى من عمره ليس هذا فحسب بل حتي جيل الإستقلال من الشباب حكم عليهم مثل الرعيل ليكون خارج أرض الوطن بفعل الطغمة الحاكمة التي جعلت الشباب ليكونو عرضة للبيع والشراء مثل السلعة، والموت عطشاً في الصحاري أو غرقاً في البحار.
الإخوة والاخوات
إن بلادنا تعيش ظروفاً بالغة الصعوبة تهددها المخاطر السياسية والأمنية والأمراض الاجتماعية وهي تحتاج من القوي السياسية والمدنية الى تحكيم العقل والمنطق والعودة الى جادة الصواب والادراك بأن ما يهدد الوطن سوف يعصف بالجميع وان الظروف التي نشهدها والصعوبات التي تتطلب إيقاف التداعيات والحذر الشديد من عدم القفز على الواقع الذي نعيشه بكل تناقضاته وتجلياته وإدراك الدروس التي يمليها علينا موروثنا الثقافي والإجتماعي لكي نستطيع أن نلتقي في القواسم المشتركة التي يؤمن بها الجميع وان نتنازل لبعضنا البعض من خلال الحواروحل خلافاتنا بالطرق السلمية والديمقراطية .
الاخوة والاخوات:
لقد عانى وطننا الكثير من الطغمة الحاكمة مما جرى ويجري من مآسي وأحزان خلال العقدين والنصف وهو احوج ما يكون الى تخليصه من هذه المعاني، وسبيلنا الى ذلك هو التحصن بالحكمة وما يمليه علينا العقل والتفكيرالوطني السليم وتغليب المصلحة العليا للشعب والوطن.لبناء الدولة المدنية التي يتطلع إليها الجميع ويشعرون بانهم متساوون فيها في الحقوق والواجبات والمواطنة المتساوية في ظل إرتريا الديمقراطية الذي يشعركل مواطن فيها بالفخر والإعتزازبانه يساهم في بنائه ويحقق ذاته ووجوده الحر الكريم.
وفي الختام في مثل هذا المقام لابد ان نبتهل الى الله ان يتغمد فقيد الوطن الكبيرالشهيد الجليل الإستاذ عمر جابر عمربواسع رحمته وان يسكنه فسيح جناته وسائر شهداء الثورة والحرية والديمقراطية وشهداء العزة والكرامة.
حزب الشعب الديمقراطي الإرتري ..
25-12-2014
الإريتريون في بريطانيا يؤبنون المناضل الكبير عمر جابر
Written by Eritreans in Great Britain to Commemorate Omar Jaber
يقيم رفاق وأصدقاء الراحل الكبير الأستاذ عمر جابر عمر في بريطانيا حفلاً تأبينياً له يوم 3/1/2015 في قاعة أبرار بلندن. يبدأ الاحتفال في الساعة الرابعة مساءاً ويستمر حتى الثامنة.
الدعوة عامة.
عنوان قاعة التأبيين:
45 Crawford Place, W1H 4LP
Abrar House
Eritreans in Great Britain to Commemorate Omar Jaber
Comrades and friends of the late Eritrean writer and politician Mr. Omar Jaber will organise a memorial service on Saturday 3 January 2015 at:
Abrar House, 45 Crawford Place, London, W1H 4LP, from 4pm to 8pm.
All Welcome
ህዝባዊ አኼባ ንዝኽሪ ገዲም ተጋዳላይ ዑመር ጃብር
ኤሪትራውያን ተቀማጦ ዓባይ ብሪጣንያ፣ብጾትን: የዕሩኽት ነፍስሄር ዑመር ጃብር ንተራ ሃገራዊ ቃልስታት ዑመር ጃብር ንምዝካርን ምፍላጥን ህዝባዊ አኼባ አዳልዮምልኩም አለው
ዕለት: ቀዳም 3 ጃንዋሪ 2015
ጊዜ: ካብ ሰዓት 4ድሕሪ ቀትሪ ክሳብ 8ናይ ምሸት
ቦታ: አብራር ሃውስ (ጥቃ ኤጅወር ሮድ)
አድራሻ:
Abrar House, 45 Crawford Place, London, W1H 4LP
ክፉት ዕድሜ ንኹሉ
ብድሓን ምጹ
Radio ERENA Interview with EPDP Chairman Part III
Written by Radio ERENA
Radio ERENA Interview with EPDP Chairman Part II
Written by Radio ERENA
EPDP Condemns Shagarab Mayhem by Sudanese Security; Regrets UNHCR Failure to Give Protection
Written by EPDP Information Office
EPDP Information Office
In an urgent Christmas-day message to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the Eritrean People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) regretted the continued failure of UNHCR to protect refugees and condemned the mayhem carried out by the Sudanese security forces at the Shagarab camp on 24 and 25 December 2014
The memorandum stated that following the drowning of about 28 out of 30 Eritrean refugees in the Setit-Atbara River on Christmas Eve of 2014, misunderstandings flared up between the locals and the refugees.
By taking this excuse to intervene, the Sudanese security forces have invaded the Shagarab camp and committed untold atrocities. They mindlessly beat camp residents, burned their improvised shacks, and looted property. The security forces also loaded to army vehicles nearly 1,000 young people under duress and reportedly took them to the Ghirba region. They are currently threatening to send them to Eritrea
UNHCR’s Antonio Guterres while on visit to Shagarab camp on 12 January 2012
The EPDP message also informed UN High Commissioner Antonio Guterres that well over 50 camp residents, many of them with seriously broken hands and legs, are reportedly in hospital. Many refugees who fled from the camp are also scattered around the region and are under the fear of being taken hostage by the Rashaida human traffickers in east Sudan.
The memo further expressed anger and frustration with Sudan’s and UNHCR’s continued failure to protect the residents of the reception camp at Shararab which has been under the constant threat of human traffickers and their accomplices in the Sudanese security forces.
The EPDP memo recalled the High Commissioner’s visit to the camp in January 2012 and his promise to boost protection to the residents from all abusers in the region. Unfortunately, what followed in January 2013 was the tragic incident of January 2013 in which 8 camp residents were taken hostage from inside the camp only a year after that visit, the memo added.
This memorandum underlined the inescapable responsibility of the Sudand and the UNHCR for what is going on at Shagarab now, and that they should have done all what it needed to protect the affected Eritrean refugees.
The EPDP memo, which was copied to the government of the Sudan, concerned EU offices, and the UN Permanent Missions to regional Europe office in Geneva, also called on the international community to make pressure bear on the Sudan not to forcibly hand over the Eritrean refugees to the criminal regime in Eritrea.
EPDP Condemns Shagarab Mayhem by Sudanese Security; Regrets UNHCR Failure to Give Protection
Written by EPDP Information Office
In an urgent Christmas-day message to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the Eritrean People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) regretted the continued failure of UNHCR to protect refugees and condemned the mayhem carried out by the Sudanese security forces at the Shagarab camp on 24 and 25 December 2014.
The memorandum stated that following the drowning of about 28 out of 30 Eritrean refugees in the Setit-Atbara River on Christmas Eve of 2014, misunderstandings flared up between the locals and the refugees.
By taking this excuse to intervene, the Sudanese security forces have invaded the Shagarab camp and committed untold atrocities. They mindlessly beat camp residents, burned their improvised shacks, and looted property. The security forces also loaded to army vehicles nearly 1,000 young people under duress and reportedly took them to the Ghirba region. They are currently threatening to send them to Eritrea
The EPDP message also informed UN High Commissioner Antonio Guterres that well over 50 camp residents, many of them with seriously broken hands and legs, are reportedly in hospital. Many refugees who fled from the camp are also scattered around the region and are under the fear of being taken hostage by the Rashaida human traffickers in east Sudan.
The memo further expressed anger and frustration with Sudan’s and UNHCR’s continued failure to protect the residents of the reception camp at Shararab which has been under the constant threat of human traffickers and their accomplices in the Sudanese security forces.
The EPDP memo recalled the High Commissioner’s visit to the camp in January 2012 and his promise to boost protection to the residents from all abusers in the region. Unfortunately, what followed in January 2013 was the tragic incident of January 2013 in which 8 camp residents were taken hostage from inside the camp only a year after that visit, the memo added.
This memorandum underlined the inescapable responsibility of the Sudand and the UNHCR for what is going on at Shagarab now, and that they should have done all what it needed to protect the affected Eritrean refugees.
The EPDP memo, which was copied to the government of the Sudan, concerned EU offices, and the UN Permanent Missions to regional Europe office in Geneva, also called on the international community to make pressure bear on the Sudan not to forcibly hand over the Eritrean refugees to the criminal regime in Eritrea.
ኣብ ደንበ ተቓውሞና፡ እቲ ኣድማዕነቶም ደኣ ከምቲ ባህግና ኣይኮነን እምበር፡ በብግዜኡ ዝለዓሉ መዛረቢ ኣጀንዳታት ብዙሓት እዮም። ብውድባት ዝግበር ምንቅስቓሳት፡ ብማሕበራት ዝግበሩ ንጥፈታት፡ ካብ ሓደ ንላዕሊ ውድባት ብሓባር ዘንቅድዎ መድረኻት በብግዜኡ ኣጀንዳና ኮይኖም ይቐርቡ። እዞም ተበግሶታት ብቐንዶም ነናቶም ዘንቀልዎም ውድባት ወይ ማሕበራት ዝምልከቱ’ኳ እንተኾኑ፡ ኣብ ሕድሕዶም ምትእስስሳርን ምጽልላውን ስለ ዝህልዎም ኩሉ ኣካላት ደንበ ተቓውሞ ክግደሰሎምን ክዛረበሎም ውሁብ እዩ። ምናልባት ገለ ወገናት እቲ ካልእ ብዛዕባአቶም ክዛረብ እንከሎ “እዚ ናትና ጉዳይ እንድዩ፡ እገለ ውድብ ወይ ማሕበር እንታይ ገደሶ ዝትንክፈና” ዝብል ስምዒት ይሓድሮም ይኸውን። ግደ ሓቂ ንምዝራብ ግና ዘይሩ ዘይሩ ኣብቲ ንኹልና ማዕረ ዝብጸሓና ኤርትራዊ ፖለቲካዊ ሜዳ ዝግበር ጸወታ ስለ ዝኾነ ኩሉ ኤርትራዊ ናይ ተቓውሞ ሓይሊ ጥራይ ዘይኮነ፡ ኩሉ ኤርትራዊ ሚዛኑ ከንብረሉ ናይ ግድን እዩ። ወረ ብዓይኒ ቅንዕና ክረኣይ እንከሎስ ሓጋዚ እዩ። ነናትና ፖለቲካዊ ኣረኣእያ እምበር ነናትና ኤርትራ ከም ዘየብልና ኸዓ ክንዝንግዕ ኣይግበኣናን። እቲ ክዝውተር ዘይግበኦ፡ እንተ ተዘውቲሩ ከዓ ጸገም ዝፈጥር፡ ሓደ ውድብ ወይ ማሕበር ነቲ ካልእ ወገን ኢዱ ጠውዩ ኣብቲ ናቱ ክሊ ክኣስሮ ክፍትን እንከሎ ጥራይ እዩ። ምኽንያቱ ምግዳድ ብትሕዝቶኡ ዓመጻዊ እምበር ደሞክራሲያዊ ስለ ዘይኮነ።
ኣብ ዝተፈላለየ ከባቢ ዝነጥፉ ፖለቲካዊ ሓይልታት ከከም ናይቲ ዝዋስእሉ ፖለቲካዊ ንፋስን ዝርከብሉ መድረኽን ቀዳምነት ዝህብዎ ዛዕባታት ክፈላለ ናይ ግድን እዩ። ብመንጽር እዚ ኣብ ደንበ ተቓውሞ ኤርትራ ጉዳይ ፍልልያትካ ዓቂብካ ብሓባር ክትሰርሕ ምኽኣልን ዘይምኽኣልን ኣብ ቅድሚት ዝስራዕ ኣጀንዳ ካብ ዝኸውን ሓያሎ ዓመታት ኮይኑ ኣሎ። እዚ ኣጀንዳ’ዚ ዘይስገር ምዃኑ ዘመልክት ከዓ እቲ ንዝያዳ 16 ዓመታት ዝተገብረ ግና ኸዓ ክሳብ ሕጂ ዘይተዓወተ መስርሕ ምስክር እዩ። ንዘይምዕዋቱ ብዙሓት ምኽንያታት ክህልዎ ዝኽእል ኮይኑ፡ ብሓጺሩ ግና፡ ናይ ደንበ ተቓውሞና ደሞክራሲያዊነት፡ ግሉጽነት፡ ምጽውዋርን ተወፋይነትን ዓቕሚ ውሱንነት ሓደ ኮይኑ፡ ንዘፈላልዩን ዘሰማምዑን ብግቡእ ከተለልን ክትውግንን ዘይምኽኣል፡ ንናይ ምልዋጥ ዓቕምና ኣብ ምልክት ሕቶ ዘእትዎ ምዃኑ ክንእመነሉ ዝግበኣና ሕጽረት እዩ። ካብቶም ኣብዚ ብሓባር ክንሰርሕ ናይ ምፍታን ጉዕዞና ዝተራእዩ ተመኩሮታት እዚ ሕጂ ዘዛርብ ዘሎ ጉዳይ ሃገራዊ ባይቶ ንደሞክራሲያዊ ለውጢ ምዃኑ ንርእዮ ኣለና። እዚ ጌና ክሳብ ሕጂ ወይ ዘየድመዐ ወይ ድማ ብኻብኡ ዝሓሸን ዝሰፈሐን መድረኽ ዘይተተከአ ዘሎ ሃገራዊ ባይቶ፡ ክሳብ ክንደይ ግቡእ ምኽያቱ ኣብ ዘይተነጸረ ጐንጽታት፡ ምስሕሓባትን ምምንጫትን ከም ዝጸንሐ፡ ብዓብይኡ ነቶም ኣብኡ በብደረጃኡ ክዋስኡ ዝጸንሑ ኣካልት ንጹር እዩ። ነቶም ኣብ ከባቢኡ ኮይና ክንዕዘቦ ዝጸናሕና እውን ስዉር ኣይኮነን።
እቶም ቀንዲ ተዋሳእቲ ባይቶ፡ ናይዚ ኩሉ ሽንኮለል ጠንቂ እዩ ዝብልዎ ሚዛን ክህልዎም ናይ ግድነት እዩ። መፍትሒ ኢሎም ወሲደምዎ ዘለዉ ስጉምቲ ድማ ካብዚ ሚዛኖም’ዩ ዝነቅል። እቶም ነቲ ኩነታት ብቐረባ ግና ድማ ካብ ክሊ መድረኽ ሃገራዊ ባይቶ ወጻኢ ኮይና እንከታተል ኤርትራውያን “ናይ ሃገራዊ ባይቶ ጸግም እዩ” እንብሎ ሚዛን ክህልወና ናይ ግድን እዩ። ተቐራሪብካ ምዝታይ ካብ ዘድልየሉ ምኽንያታት ከዓ ነዚ ክልተ ሚዛናት ናብ ሓደ ንምምጻእን ዘየዳግም ናይ ሓባር መፍትሒ ከተቕርብ ንምኽኣልን እዩ። ባይቶ ጸገማቱ ኣወጊዱ እንብል ድማ ነዚ ናይ ሓባር ገምጋም ኣብ ግምት ዘእተወ ስጉምቲ ምስ ዝወስድ እዩ። ኣብዚ ቀረባ መዓልታት ሃገራዊ ባይቶ ህጹጽ ኣኼባ ኣካይዱ፡ ኣብ መሪሕነት ባይቶ፡ ፈጻሚ ኣካልን ኣሰናዳኢት 2ይ ጉባአኡን ኮይኖም ዝሰርሑ ዝነበሩ ኣባላቱ ኣውሪዱ ብኻልኦት ኣባላት ተኪእዎም ኣሎ። እዚ ድማ ባይቶ እቲ ጸገም ኣብቲ ሜዳ ዘይኮነስ ኣብቶም ተጻወቲ እዩ ዝብል ገምጋም ከም ዝነበሮ ዘመላኽእት እዩ። ብናተይ ሚዛን ግና ኣብ ብቕዓት ናይቶም ዝጸንሑ ኣባላት መሪሕነት ብቕዓት ኣፈይ መሊአ ዝከራኸረሉ’ኳ እንተዘየብለይ እቲ ቀንዲ ሽግር ኣብቲ መጻወቲ ሜዳ እዩ ዝብል ግምት’ዩ ዘለኒ’ሞ ብምሉእ ልበይ እቲ ኩነታት በቲ ተወሲዱ ዘሎ ስጉምቲ ተፈዊሱ’ዩ ኣይብልን። “እቲ ኣወራርዳን ኣተኻኽኣን፡ ኣብ ሓደ ብርኪ ናይ መሪሕነት ብሓደ ይሰርሑ ንዝነበሩ ኣባላት ብሓደ ዓይኒ ዝፈረደን ዝርዝር ገምጋም ሂቡ ነናቶም ተሓታትነት ከነጽር ስለ ዘይከኣለ፡ ንጥዑይን ሕሙምን ብሓደ ዘንቢል ዝጐሓፈ ናይ ፈራሕ ኣተሓሕዛ’ዩ” ናይ ዝብሉ ወገናት ርኢቶ እንተሓወስካሉ ከዓ እቲ ዝተወስደ ስጉምቲ ዝያዳ ዘተሓሳስብን ንዓቕሚ ናይቲ ባይቶ መሊሱ ዘዳኽምን’ዩ ዝኸውን።
ሰልፊ ደሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ንሃገራዊ ባይቶ ኮነ ንኻልኦት ኣብቲ ባይቶ ዘየለዉ ናይ ለውጢ ሓይልታት ብዝምልከት ቅድሚ ሕጂ ዘንበሮ ሚዛናትን ከም መዋጸኦ ዝኣመቶ መፍትሕታትን ብዙሕ ዝርዝር ዘለዎ ኮይኑ ኣሕጺርካ ንምቕራቡ፡ “እቲ መድረኽ ጸቢብ እዩ። ካብዚ ዝሰፈሐን ብዙሓት እቲ ጉዳይ ዝምልከቶም ኣካላት ዘሳትፍን ከም ዝኸውን ንምግባሩ ጌና ጻዕሪ የድልዮ። ኣብዚ ዘለናዮ መድረኽ፡ ኣብ ክንዲ ውሑዳት ኮይንካ ብብዙሓት ጉዳያት እትሰማማዓሉ፡ ብዙሓት ኮይንካ ኣብ ውሑዳት ጉዳያት እትሰማማዓሉ መድረኽ ምኽፋት’ዩ ዝምረጽ” ብዝብል ምጥቕላሉ ዝከኣል እዩ። ካብቲ ካብ ነዊሕ ግዜ ጀሚሩ ካብዚ ኣብ ጸቢብ መድረኽ ምኹዳድ ኣውጺኡ ኣብ ሰፊሕ መድረኸ ከዋሰኣና ይኽእል እዩ ኢሉ ከቕርቦ ዝጸንሐ ርኢቶታት እቲ ኣብዚ ቀረባ ግዜ ኣብ 4ይ ስሩዕ ኣኼባ ባይቶኡ “ሃገራዊ ባይቶ ንዲሞክራስያዊ ለውጢ፡ መድረኽ ንሃገራዊ ዘተ፡ ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራን ካልኦት ኣብ ሃገራዊ ባይቶ ዘይተወከሉ ውድባትን ሲቪላውያን ማሕበራትን ዝርከብዎ ንህልዊ ኵነታትን ሃለዋት ደምበ ተቓውሞን ንምፍታሽን መፍትሒታት ምቕራብን ዝዓለመ ሰሚናር ኣብ ሓጺር ግዜ ክግበር ኣድላዪነቱ ዕዙዝ ምዃኑ ርእዩ።” ብዝብል ዘቕረቦ መጸዋዕታ ብኣውንታዊ ኣብነት ዝጥቀስ እዩ። እዚ መጸዋዕታዚ ብቐጥታ ካብ ዝቐረበሎም ኤርትራዊ ናይ ተቓውሞ ኣካላት ሓደ እዚ ኣብዚ ቀረባ መዓልታት ተኣኪቡ ዝቐነየ መሪሕነት ባይቶ እዩ። እዚ መሪሕነት ባይቶ ነዚ እዋናውን ርትዓውን መጸዋዕታ መልሲ ንክህብ ክንጽበዮ ባህርያዊ ነይሩ። እቲ ብደረጃ ብውልቀ ኣባላት ባይቶ ዝስማዕ ናይ ጽቡቕ ድሌት ዕላል ከም ዘለዎ ኮይኑ፡ ክሳብ ሕጂ ብዕሊ ዝወጹ ናይቲ ሓድሽ መሪሕነት መግለጽታት ብቐጥታ ናብዚ መጸዋዕታ ዘቕነዐ የለን። ምናልባት ኣማዕዲኻ ዝረአ ናብዚ መጸዋዕታ ዝጠመተ ዝመስል እቲ በታ ሓዳስ ፈጻሚት ሽማግለ ብ24 ታሕሳስ 2014 ኣብ ዝተዘርግሐ ጋዜጣዊ መግለጺ “ካብ ኤሃባደለ ወጻኢ ኮይኖም ንደሞክራስያዊ ለውጢ ዝቃለሱ ውድባት ይኹኑ ስቪክ ማሕበራትን ኣብ ክሊ እዚ ጽላል ዓቕምታቶም ጠሚሮም ብሓባር ንምቕላስ ተሳትፍኦም ከዕዝዙ፡ ክላዘቦም ቅሩብ ምዃኑ በዚ ኣጋጣሚ እዚ እውን ከረጋግጽ ይፈቱ።” ዝብል ንዕዘብ። ብናተይ እምነት እዚ ኣበሃህላ’ዚ ውጽኢቱ ኣብ መስርሕ ዝረአ ኮይኑ፡ ሓደ ዘተባብዕን ሓደ ዘሰክፍን ሓረጋት ዝሓዘ ኮይኑ ይረኣየኒ። እቲ ዝተባብዕ እቲ “ክላዘቦምቅሩብምዃኑ” ዝብል ኮይኑ እቲ ዘሰክፍ ከዓ እቲ “ኣብክሊእዚጽላል” ዝብል ቅድመ ኩነት እዩ። ኣብ ልዝብ ቅድመ ኩነት በቲ ሓደ ወገን ናይቲ ኣቕራቢ ቅድመ ኩነት ኣገዳድነት በቲ ካልእ ወገን ከዓ ናይቲ ቅድመ ኩነት ዝቐርቦ ኣካል ድሩትነት ዘንጸባርቕ ዘይደሞክራሲያዊ ኣቀራርባ ስለ ዝኾነ። እቲ ቅኑዕን ኣብ ውጽኢት ዝበጽሕን ዘተ ነናትካ ዓቕሚ ሒዝካ፡ ብናይ ኢንካን ሃባን መትከል ተገዚኣካ፡ ኣብ ማእከል ትራኽበሉ እምበር፡ እቲ ሓደ ወገን ኣብቲ በይኑ ዝመረጾ ቦታ ጠጠው ኢሉ፡ ነቲ ኣብ መንጐኦም ዘሎ ርሕቀት እቲ ሓደ በይኑ ክጐዓዞ ብዘገድድ ክኸውን ኣይግበኦን። በዚ ኣጋጣሚ መሪሕነት ባይቶ “ክዛተ” ካብ በለ ድኻሙ ከይጸብጸበ ንምሉእ መስርሕ ሓቀኛ ዘተ ክቕበል ምዝኽኻሩ ኣገዳሲ’ዩ።
ሰደህኤ ምስ ባይቶ ይኹን ምስ ዝኾነ ናይ ለውጢ ሓይሊ፡ ሓቢርካ ንምስራሕ ዘቕርቦ ምርጫ ሰፊሕ እዩ። ነቲ ኣቐዲመ ዝጠቐስኩዎ መጸዋዕታ ኣብ ዘቕረበሉ ኣጋጣሚ “ሰዲህኤ፡ ነቲ ኣብ ቀዳማይ ጕባኤኡ ዘጽደቖ ተመሳሳሊ ፖለቲካዊ መደብ ዕዮ ዘለዎም ውድባት ክሰምሩ፣ ናብ ፍጹም ምጽንባር ክበጽሑ ዘይክእሉ ውድባት ድማ ብዝተሓተ ነጥብታት ተሰማሚዖም ኣብ ትሕቲ ሓደ ጽላል ሓቢሮም ክሰርሑን ዘለዎ እምነት ደጊሙ ብምዝኽኻር፡ ኵሎም ተቓወምቲ ንተግባራውነቱ ብዕቱብ ክሰርሑ ጸዊዑ።” ዝበሎ ከዓ ናይዚ ኣብነት እዩ። እዚ ኣበሃህላ’ዚ ከም ዘመልክቶ፡ ሃገራዊ ባይቶ ነቲ ዝጻወተሉ ዘሎ ፖለቲካዊ ሜዳ ካብዚ ንላዕሊ ከስፈሖ ምርጫኡ ተዘይኮይኑ፡ ኣብታ ዘለዋ ሜዳኡ ኮይኑ፡ ንገዛእ ርእሱ ውድብ ድዩ ግንባር ሰይሙ፡ ምስ ሰደህኤን ካልኦት ኣብ ባይቶ ዘየለዉ ናይ ለውጢ ሓይልታትን ዘስርሕ ዝሰፈሐ ፖለቲካዊ ሜዳ ምምድማድ’ውን ከም ዝከኣል ኣመልኪቱ ኣሎ። እቲ ሓደ እዋን ኣብ መንጎ ባይቶን ካብ ባይቶ ወጻኢ ዘለዉ ኣካላትን ዝነበረ ናይ ምንጽጻግን መንፈስ ተዳኺሙ፡ ባይቶ’ውን ካብቲ “ኣነ እየ በይናዊ ወኪል ተቓውሞ ኤርትራ” ዝብሎ ዝነበረ ናብ ልቡ ተመሊሱ፡ እቲ ናይ ምድልላይን ምጽውዋዕን ስምዒት እንዳዓበየ ምኻዱ ተስፋ ዝህብ’ዩ። እንተኾነ ብሓቀኛን ምዕሩይን ዘተ ኣቢልካ መእሰሪ ክሳብ ዘይተገብረሉ ናይ ለውጢ መሳርሒ ክኸውን ከም ዘይክእል ክሰሓት ኣይግበኦን።
26 ታሕሳስ 2014
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في الرابع والعشرين من ديسمبر 2014م وبينما كان ثلاثون لاجئاً ارترياً في عرض نهر عطبرة علي مركب خشبي هاربين من معسكر اللاجئين بالشجراب بالسودان، غرق بهم المركب، وبعد البحث عثر علي ثمان جثث واثنين من الناجين ولم يعرف بعد مصير البقية. ولا يزال البحث جارياً.
وعندما أبلغ الناجون زملاءهم بالمعسكر بأنهم قد تعرضوا للضرب من قبل سكان المنطقة قام 8 من زملائهم الغاضبين بضرب كل من صادفهم من السكان واختطاف اثنين منهم. وقد تم تحرير أحد المختطفين بواسطة الشرطة، بينما لم يعثر للآخر علي أثر.
في صباح اليوم التالي حاصر الجيش السوداني المعسكر وجمعوا ساكنيه في صعيدٍ واحد وأحرقوا المساكن، وأخذ حوالي الألف من سكان المعسكر بواسطة السيارات الي مدينة خشم القربة، علماً أن من هؤلاء اللاجئين من يحمل بطاقة هوية اللجوء ومنهم من لا يحمل، وهناك مخاوف من أن لا يطرد هؤلاء جميعاً الي بلادهم ارتريا قسراً. أما المفوضية الأممية العليا للاجئين فلم تتخذ حتى الآن أي خطوة أو إجراء ملموس تجاه هذه الحادثة.
መንእሰይ በረኸት ይፍጠር፡ ከዳነ፡ ንነዊሕ እዋን ድሕሪ ምሕማሙ፡ ብ ታሕሳስ 23 2014 ኣብ ሳንታሮዛ፡ ካሊፎርንያ፡ ብምዕራፉ፡ ንስድራ ቤቱን ኩሎም ፈተውቱን ወርዲዎም ዘሎ መሪር ሓዘን፡ ንሕና ኣባላት ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ በይ ኤርያ ተኻፈልቲ ምዃና ንገልጽ።
መንእሰይ በረኸት፡ ኣሰር ስዉእ ኣቡኡ ኣባል ተሓኤ ሰውራዊ ባይቶ ነፍሰሄር ይፍጠር ኪዳነ ከይለቐቐ፡ ንኤርትራዊ ሰላም፡ ንፍትሒ፡ ንስርዓተ ሕጊ ዝተቓለሰ፡ መንእሰይ ምዃኑ ንቤተ ሰቡ ጥራይ ዘይኰነስ ንዓና ሰዲህኤን ንመላእ ኤርትራዊ ማሕበረሰብን ዓቢ ክሳራ እዩ።
ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቤ ኤርትራ፡ ንበረኸት፡ መንግስተሰማይ የዋርሶ እናበለ ንስዳቤቱን ንመላእ ኤርትራዊ ማሕበረ ሰብ ሳንታሮዛን ድማ ጽንዓት ይሃብኩም ይብል።
ሰልፊ ዲሞክራሲ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ
በይ ኤርያ፡ ካሊፎርንያ
ቀጺልና፡ ካብ ቤተ ሰብ ዝመንጨወ ናይ ፍትሓትን ስነ ስርዓት ቀብርን ነስዕብ፥
ካብ 30 ስደተኛታት 2 ድሒኖም፡ ናይ 8 ሪሳታት ተረኺቡ፡ ዝተረፉ ግን ሃለዋቶም ኣይተፈልጠን
Written by እሙናት ምንጪታት ካብ ሱዳንቅድሚ ክልተ መዓልታት 30 ዝዀኑ ኤትራውያን ስደተኛታት ካብ መደበር ሸገራብ ሃዲሞም ንሩባ ዓጥባራ (ተከዘ) ብዕንጨይቲ ዝተሰርሐ ጃልባ ገይሮም ክሰግሩ እንከለዉ እታ ጃልባ ጥሒ፡ 2 ክድሕኑ ከለዉ፣ 8 ሬሳታት ድማ ተአረኺቡ። ዝተረፉ ግን ሃለዋቶም ክሳብ ሕጂ ኣይተፍልጠን። ሬሳታት ናይ ምፍታሽ ስራሕ ግን ጌና ቀጻሊ ኣሎ።
እቶም ካብ'ቲ ሓደጋ ዝደሓኑ ናብ መደበር ሸገራብ ድሕሪ ምምላሶምን ብገለ ተቐማጦ ናይ'ቲ ከባቢ ከምዝተሃርሙ ድሕሪ ምሕባሮምን፡ 8 ዝተቘጥዑ መንእሰያት ካብ'ቲ መደበር ናብ'ታ ቍሸት ከይዶም ንዝረኸብዎም ነበርቲ ናይ'ታ ዓዲ ሃሪሞም፡ ን2 ድማ ጨውዮም ወሲዶም። ሓደ ካብ'ቶም ዝተጨውዩ ብፖሊስ ሓራ ክወጽእ እንከሎ፡ እቲ ካልእ ግን ኣበይ ከምዝኣተወ ኣይተፈልጠን።
ንጽባሒቱ፡ ሰራዊት ሱዳን መጺኡ ነቲ መደበር ስደተኛታት ብምኽባብ ነቶም ስደተኛታት ኣብ ሓደ ቦታ ብምእካብ ብርክት ዝበሉ ገዛውቲ ኣቃጺሎም። ከባቢ 1,000 ዝዀኑ ስደተኛታት ድማ ብመኻይን ጽዒኖም ናብ ግርባ ገጾም ወኢዶሞም። እዞም ስደተኛታት እዚኣቶም ገሊኦም ናይ ስደተኛ መንነት ወረቐት ዘለዎም ክዀኑ ከለዉ፡ ገሊኦም ግን የብሎምን። ኵሎም ድማ ናብ ኤርትራ ከይባረሩ ስግኣት ኣሎ። ብወገን ወክልቲ ላዕለዋይ ኮሚሽን ስደተኛታት ሕቡራት ዓለም ኣብ'ቲ መደበር ክሳብ ሕጂ ዝተወስደ ዝርአ ስጕምቲ የለን።
State Failure and Identity Politics in Eritrea: Is Regional Mobilization the Answer?
Written by EPDP Information Office
EPDP Editorial
Like any other country in Africa, Eritrea started to evolve as a modern nation state with the advent of European colonialism in Africa. The Italians ruled Eritrea as a unified political and economic entity for about 60 years. During this period, the growth of urban areas, trade, infrastructural development, and the recruitment of “Eritrean soldiers” in the Italian colonial wars in Somalia, Libya and Ethiopia had facilitated Eritrea’s inter-ethnic and inter-religious interactions and communications. In addition, as a result of the “apartheid laws” that Italy employed on all its colonial subjects, Eritreans were summarily subjected to Italian discrimination and segregation. This encouraged the formation and the development of Eritrean Identity, paving the way for revolting collectively against their common enemy (Italian colonial masters) in unison.
After Italian colony was defeated by the Allied forces in 1941, Eritrea was placed under the British Military Administration (BMA), which soon employed its imperial policy of divide and rule tactics to undermine the Eritrean nationality. But by that time, Eritrean national consciousness had already been well established and embedded in the psyche of the Eritrean people. And yet the British continued to employ its divide and rule policy along ethno-religious lines in the years to follow to the extent of partitioning Eritrea, but again that too failed mainly because of the national consciousness. As history shows, in the subsequent years, an organized Eritrean national resistance against colonial rules got momentum (during the 1940’s and the 1950’s), which overtime get transformed into an armed national liberation movement in the 1960’s. Thus, after struggling against successive colonial powers for almost 100 years, Eritrean people won their independence in 1991. Thus, the history of modern Eritrea is the history of this long and arduous struggle in search of statehood and national identity.
In a point, Eritrea (nism) is a shared identity that has been shaped by a common and long history of social, economic, and political struggle by the people who inhabited and constituted the present day Eritrea, a nation-state called Eritrea. This shared identity was further enhanced and solidified during the 30-year war of liberation for which Eritrean people from all walks of life: all ethnic and nationalities/social groups, young and old, men and women came together and died in search of their freedom, liberty, and national sovereignty. So, our national liberation movement was never about a small group or one region, but about all the people who collectively rebelled for 30 years to defend their common identity and shape their own destiny.
However, as we know, independence was not an aim in itself but a means to an end- to have a liberated Eritrean society. That is, independence was a necessary condition not a sufficient condition for liberated Eritrea, meaning establishing a political system that represents the will of the Eritrean people, which upholds justice and equal status of all Eritreans under the rule of law. Unfortunately, the process of liberating Eritrea was hijacked by a group of ruthless homegrown dictators. Because of this, almost 24 years after independence, Eritrea does not have a constitution, has had no elections and no contract between the ruled and the ruler. The regime has failed Eritrea in all its political, educational, cultural and socio-economic policies. Eritrea has become a kleptocratic state. There are no formal institutions that place restrictions on politicians’ actions that can make them accountable to citizens. Instead, the regime has pursued dictatorial policies that transfer resources from the population to the ruling groups. These policies are put in place to maximize the power of the dictatorial regime in which any person or group that opposes the regime is punished while those who remain loyal are rewarded.
Instead of establishing governance structures and resources allocation system that allows all population groups full participation, the regime from the outset adopted extractive and exclusionary laws that allow it to capture absolutely all the benefits of our independence. As a consequence, many population groups in our country were and are marginalized politically, socially and economically. Ever since its inception, the regime has centralized the production and distribution of resources, established patronage and privileges at the expense of all other elements of the nation’s economy. We know, using their political power, the few in PFDJ have accumulated enormous wealth and resources of the state for themselves.
The state power arrangement does not constrain the powers of the government: it does not guarantee economic freedom; it does not provide mechanisms for peaceful resolution of conflicting interests of various groups within Eritrea; it does not advocate for peaceful coexistence in Eritrea. What we have in Eritrea is a “failed state phenomenon” where the regime neither cares for the majority of the people or public good, nor for the people’s right. Again, there are no institutions to fulfill the people’s basic needs in Eritrea–what we have in Eritrea is a bone-deep deficiency of the statehood and representative political system. It is against this background that certain groups, notably regional entrepreneurs are reveling into anarchy and retreating into sectarian enclaves in order to consolidate their political power and enhance their ability to monopolize political space in the Eritrean political spectrum. The relevant question should be this: Is regional mobilization the answer to the quest for peace, justice, democracy, societal stability and national unity in Eritrea?
Critics say we fear talking about regionalism and tribalism because we feel it is sensitive; we rather brush it off as if it is not happening. Even though we know regionalism represents an existential threat to the unity, territorial integrity of our country, and to the diversity of our cultural and political identities as a nation, we tend to believe it will go away at some point. It may not.
We know we have an-all entrenched tyranny that we know cut across all regions, religions, nationalities, and social groups of our country, meaning that we have an equal opportunity dictatorship in our country. And one must ask then why the regional politics is trying to make its presence in the Eritrean political landscape. Is it because the tyrannical regime of PFDJ targets certain regions or nationalities in Eritrea? Or is it because there is a regional ideal that no matter what wants to go against the political reality of Eritrea and aspires to assert some sort of separatism or domination in the future of Eritrean political system? Or are the regionalists simply addicted to embracing destructive hyper regionalism politics? Although there may be many reasons for the recent flurry of regional politics in the opposition, there are few key factors that may help explain why:
One is an erroneous interpretation and misunderstanding of the PFDJ regime in our country. The regionalists believe or would like their supporters to believe that the PFDJ is instituted or constituted to serve one region. Not only that but also the region that they claim PFDJ belongs benefits more than any other regions. Politically, if the regionalists believe that the PFDJ hails from one region, which they do, that region must benefit from the existence of PFDJ, meaning economically, socially, and politically. In a point, that region must cooperate with the PFDJ regime in suppressing and marginalizing other regions. As such, there is no evidence of this sort. Hence, the regionalists are simply grounded on regional politics for their own benefit. But the danger that the regionalists do not seem to capture is that by painting accusatory politics against other regions/nationalities as being collaborators of the Issais regime, they are digging a hole that they cannot dig out of easily. In a point, they are creating a dividing line between the victims of the regime, meaning that they are becoming a major obstacle in the fight against the regime; they are poisoning the true relationship and reconciliation that should exist among Eritrean people in their fight against tyranny in their country.
Two, the regionalists tend to blame the victim (the region that they claim has an upper hand in the current system) for their own political weaknesses. In fact, they go to the extent of associating their claim of regional marginalization and victimization back to the history of our liberation movement. As such they claim that the suppression of their region is not limited to the current regime, but something that dates back to the liberation era, and hence they argue that they have been marginalized and segregated by one region or another for a long time.
Three, the regionalists claim that they were far too many killed and martyred during the liberation era in proportion to their numbers vs. to the rest of other regions in Eritrea. The implication is that they deserve more power in Eritrea. This is quite striking; but leaving aside the martyrdom statistics to history, no doubt Eritrean people, unlike the regionalists, take great pride to the contributions and sacrifices made by every region/nationality to the national independence struggle. Yet, this is one card among many others that they think they can play even though the argument does not hold water. But they know they can easily deceive the few naïve and gullible ones from their own region. The question we have to the supporters of these nefarious and malevolent regionalists/personalities who are trying to destroy the unity, tradition, and patriotic values of Eritrea is this: why are you being bought into this false narrative of the regionalists? Ask yourself this question: are your beliefs and values grounded on your country or on the few who are deceiving you for their own benefit? Why are you allowing the regionalists to control you; influence you; or otherwise affect you to think freely for your country?
Four, the regionalists are taking advantage of the free political field in the Eritrean opposition. By all measures, the opposition has so far failed in creating a functional and organized body that can influence and impact the political field of Eritrea. Simply stated, the regionalists are using the failure and weakness of the opposition as a free ground to promote their regionalist aspiration.
Fifth, the regionalists contend that the zonal divisions (six zones) constituted by the dictatorial regime creates territorial and/or economic imbalance, meaning the new zonal division favors one region over another. Hence, this has been another cause for their advocacy for regionalism. But there is no evidence that the new zonal divisions create unbalanced services and resources to the regions. The dictatorial regime might have come up with these new six-zonal divisions, perhaps to centralize the nation within the framework of its dictatorial ambitions. However, it is also public that the new zonal divisions instituted by the PFDJ may require revision once we get rid of Issais regime. We know there are political differences on this issue. But it is up to the Eritrean people to decide whether to revive the colonial era administrative units or to constitute new administrative units. While this should be the way to go, the disillusioned regionalists are trying to revive such an issue as a strategy to justify their political regionalism. Wittingly or not, the regionalists cannot grasp that to a greater degree Eritrean zones have been extremely diversified over the last century where the zones reflect a mixed multitude of languages and ethnic groups to the extent of becoming transregional and cohesive in terms of culture, boundary, and geography.
In all, we have seen what regionalism does to countries. We have seen it recently in Ukraine; we have seen it in Lebanon, and we have seen it many African countries such as Mali and others. Regionalism is against national integration and territorial integrity. It is against every effort to bridge the gaps between communities that lived and coexisted side by side for centuries like ours. It is obstructive to the creation of a representative political system in Eritrea. The regionalists are exploiting the practices of the dictatorial regime to their own benefit, including accusing other regions of being PFDJ’s collective supporters and shields. In doing so, they are undermining the nationalist ideals and the Eritrean nationalism, and provoking and opening a conflict on a regional level. While these few regionalist elites are espousing regionalism politics and sentiment in Eritrea, we know there is no mass support that would give their struggle a regional dimension. This is good and positive. In short, since Eritrea’s independence, the specter of regionalism has been floating, particularly by PFDJ and the regionalists. We must confront this. We must struggle to defeat the throne of PFDJ regime and address every grievances and political issues/controversies relating to regions/nationalities through legal and constitutional instruments under a representative political system in post PFDJ Eritrea. The bells and whistles of regionalism must stop.
