Ethiopia’s Agenda to Destabilize
Eritrea<
http://africabusiness.com/2012/10/20/ethiopia-eritrea/>
Posted on 20 October 2012 by Africa Business
*By Sophia Tesfamariam*
*20 October 2012*
The Somalia Eritrea Monitoring Group (SEMG) kept expanding its allegations
against Eritrea, exposing its true motives and objectives-to first get
“stand alone sanctions” against the State of Eritrea and then use all kinds
of gimmicks and ploys to perpetuate the illegal sanctions against Eritrea,
presumably to weaken Eritrea, and to somehow (through the media and
propaganda), or legal attrition, give Ethiopia the moral and legal high
ground to pursue its agendas vis a vis Eritrea. Knowing full well the
extent of Ethiopia’s violations against the State of Eritrea and its
people, its 12-year long brazen destabilization efforts and Ethiopia’s
decade long occupation of sovereign Eritrean territories, the SEMG, in its
latest report had the audacity to accuse Eritrea of attempting to
destabilize Ethiopia.
The SEMG knows well that it is the minority regime in Ethiopia and its dead
leader Meles Zenawi, that have boisterously expressed dreams of changing
the government in Asmara and installing a puppet regime amenable to
Ethiopia’s whims. It is the regime in Ethiopia that has armed and harbored
groups and individuals that have committed terrorist acts against the State
of Eritrea. It is the minority regime that is taking refugees out of UNHCR
camps and forcing them to participate in its anti-Eritrea activities. On
several occasions, the regime, as the record will show, has also openly and
clearly spelled out its destabilization agendas against the State of
Eritrea to several US officials, including Donald Yamamoto, Deputy US
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Jendayi E. Frazer, former
US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs and Karl Wyckoff,
Bureau of African Affairs at the US State Department and with UN Ambassador
Susan E. Rice, Meles Zenawi’s friend and confidante.
These myopic and vindictive members of the incompetent Bureau of African
Affairs and the US Mission at the UN sought to punish Eritrea because
Eritrea did not support all of Washington’s policies in the region. Members
of the UN Mission sought to punish Eritrea for standing up to the Security
Council. For not remaining silent as the Security Council ignored
Ethiopia’s violations of international law and Eritrea’s sovereignty. For
some, like the junior diplomats who make up the Bureau of African Affairs,
Eritrea was to be punished for not going along with Ethiopia’s plans for
Somalia, for having the temerity to sponsor peace talks for Somalis in
Asmara, the Eritrean capital. That was a big no-no for myopic diplomats
like Jendayi E. Frazer, who wrongly believe that only US’ fingerprints and
“AU sponsored talks” bring legitimacy to a peace process. According to US
diplomats, Africans don’t have the capacity to think, cannot make sound
analysis of their own situations, and are too stupid to know what is good
or bad for their people and neighborhood.
Insulting the intelligence of the Ethiopian people and their just and
gallant struggles against the minority regime in Ethiopia, today, the SEMG
is accusing Eritrea of attempting to “destabilize” Ethiopia. It is accusing
Eritrea of supporting the various armed opposition groups that are
struggling to liberate the people of Ethiopia from the Ethiopian
dictatorship. This is not only a desperate and rather stupid accusation; it
is a deliberate and futile attempt to stifle the struggles of the Ethiopian
people and undermine the contribution of the vast Ethiopian Diaspora.
For example, the SEMG presents the Ogaden National Liberation Front as a
creation of Eritrea to be used against the minority regime in Ethiopia.
Today, in cities across Africa, Europe and the United States, supporters of
the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) are organizing events to
celebrate the founding of the ONLF on 15 August 1984. The ONLF has offices
around the world including the United States and its officials frequently
come to the US for fundraising activities and to meet with US lawmakers.
Despite what the minority regime in Ethiopia claims, its views are not
shared by all, not even its handlers.
According to a US Embassy cable authored by Donald Yamamoto:
*“…While the GoE [Government of Ethiopia] considers the ONLF a terrorist
group, the USG {US Government] views them as a nationalist movement that
has predominantly targeted GoE and Ethiopian military entities in response
to the marginalization of the Ogadeni people…”*
The US-backed Ethiopian invasion of Somalia was for the most part, a
pretext aimed at destroying Ethiopian opposition groups in neighboring
states. Meles Zenawi’s deceptive regime has perfected the propaganda tactic
known as “accusations in a mirror”. In order to hide its illegal activities
from the Ethiopian people, and to cover up its lawless behaviors, it
usually accuses others of doing what it itself. By now, Ethiopians must
know that anytime the regime accuses others of something, it is a signal
that, that is what the regime intends to do.
If they accuse someone of rejecting an agreement, it is because they intend
to reject that agreement. If they accuse the opposition of violence, it is
because they have planned genocide, violence and chaos. When they accused
the Ethiopian opposition of cheating in the 2005 elections, it is because
they had decided to rob the elections. When they accused Somalia of
declaring war, they did so because that is what they were planning to do.
When they accused Somalia and the Union of Islamic Courts of violating
Ethiopia’s sovereignty, they did so because they intended to violate
Somalia’s, and when they accuse Eritrea of destabilizing Ethiopia, it si
because they want to justify what they are doing themselves. In addition to
its chronic inferiority complex and mentality, Kenneth L. Marcus’s
explanation of “Accusation in a Mirror”, will provide us with a clear
definition for the propaganda tactic that the SEMG seems to have borrowed
from the regime in Ethiopia. Marcus wrote:
*“…The basic idea of AiM [Accusations in the Mirror] is deceptively simple:
propagandists must “impute to enemies exactly what they and their own party
are planning to do.” In other words, AiM is a rhetorical practice in which
one falsely accuses one’s enemies of conducting, plotting, or desiring to
commit precisely the same transgressions that one plans to commit against
them…It is similar to a false anticipatory to quoque: before one’s enemies
accuse one truthfully, one accuses them falsely of the same misdeed…A
typical tu quoque involves charging your accuser with whatever it is you’ve
just been accused of rather than refuting the truth of the accusation…”*
There are numerous other propaganda tactics that the regime in Ethiopia and
its handlers have employed in the past to advance the regime’s domestic and
foreign policy agendas. Today we will take a look at the latest accusation
by the SEMG and Ethiopia and allow the reader to judge for him/her self.
With the help of its western handlers, the minority regime in Ethiopia has
left no stone unturned to vilify Eritrea, to foment ethnic and religious
strife, to weaken Eritrea’s economy and isolate Eritrea diplomatically and
politically. While that is not new or surprising to the people of the
region in general and the people of Eritrea in particular, what is
surprising is the SEMG’s shameless regurgitation of the regime’s vile lies
and the SEMG’s attempt to mislead the Security Council and the Sanctions
Committee with its reports which can be easily refuted since the Ethiopian
regime’s destabilization agendas vis a vis Eritrea are well documented.
A 2007 US Embassy cable defines Ethiopia’s agendas clearly and succinctly.
The 30 October 2007 secret cable from the US Embassy in Ethiopia[1] details
a meeting held between the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea
(UNMEE) Head of Addis Ababa Office Joseph Stephanides and Yohannes
Gebremeskel, the Ethiopian regime’s military liaison officer. According to
cable, the Ethiopian cadre “outlined a potential scenario for an Ethiopian
overthrow of the Isaias government” [Eritrean Government]. It said:
*“…the Ethiopians would conduct a swift military action within a
five-phased plan. In phase 1, Ethiopia would promote instability inside
Eritrea leading to phase 2 where the Eritrean people would invite the
Ethiopians to help them, at which time the Ethiopian military would enter
Eritrea and depose Isaias. In phases 3 and 4 the Ethiopians would free the
political prisoners and bring in the Eritrean political opposition allowing
them to establish a transition government, and in phase 5 the Ethiopian
military would withdraw…”*
Promoting instability in Eritrea was listed as its primary objective and as
this paper will endeavor to show, the regime in Ethiopia and its handlers
have sought to implement its stated objectives and the illegal, unfair and
unjust US engineered sanctions can be seen within this context.
The Ethiopian Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn told Reuters in 2011 how
the Ethiopian regime intended to carry out its agenda vis a vis Eritrea.
Reuters reported:
*“….This regime change is not by invading Eritrea but by supporting the
Eritrean people and groups which want to dismantle the regime. We are fully
engaged in doing so,” Hailemariam said….Hailemariam did not disclose the
extent of Addis Ababa’s support, but a few Eritrean groups already operate
from northern Ethiopia and have staged sporadic hit-and-run attacks inside
Eritrea in the past…”*
Professor Gérard Prunier for the Center for International Peace Operations,
Berlin, Germany seems to have in depth knowledge of the minority regime’s
destabilization activities against the State of Eritrea. According to
Prunier:
*“…the Ethiopians have managed to create a kind of “federation” (National
Alliance of Eritrean Forces or NAEF) composed of about fourteen different
opposition movements which include the Eritrean Islamic Reform Movement
(EIRM) and the Eritrea Democratic Alliance (EDA). But this “federation” is
of extremely dubious efficiency which is why the Ethiopians have created on
the side another organization, the Eritrean Revolutionary Democratic Front
(ERDF) which is in fact a big sounding name for a kind of fighting
commando…”*
Prunier gives further detail about the two organizations and their
differences. He writes:
*“…NAEF can be considered as a political movement while ERDF is a military
one. NAEF is kind of “official” and its leaders are known. But they have no
fighting strength. The ERDF is the opposite: it as an almost secret
organization with no known leaders and it is more an Eritrean Foreign
Legion of the Ethiopian Army than a real political movement. It is just
supposed to give a kind of “political local cover” for the Ethiopians the
day they would have to fight Eritrea, more or less the way Kabila’s Allied
Democratic Forces for a Liberation of Kongo-Zaire (ADFL) gave a local
Congolese cover to the RwandeseArmy in 1996…”*
The Eritrea Ethiopia border conflict in 1998-2000 saw the emergence of the
Eritrean Quislings League (EQL), a dubious alliance of the jilted and
scorned and those who abandoned the people of Eritrea in pursuit of other
personal agendas. This assortment of like-minded defectors, disgruntled
runaway diplomats, pedophiles, rapists, self-professed “intellectuals and
professionals”, deceitful counterfeiters, information launderers and an
assortment of shameless scandalous opportunists have made it their forte to
slander and malign the Eritrean people, especially the Eritrean Diaspora,
by creating defunct cyber political parties with no constituents to speak
of (except family members). With fanciful names, various “human rights” and
“democracy” groups [over 47 at last count] have mushroomed in cyberspace to
regurgitate and disseminate rehearsed spills provided to them by their
sponsors.
The timing of the emergence of such groups in cyberspace suggests that it
was aimed at distracting attention from the minority regime in Ethiopia and
its incessant attempts to revisit revise and if possible, annul the final
and binding Eritrea Ethiopia Boundary Commission’s (EEBC) delimitation and
demarcation decisions. Judging from campaigns and the joint programs
conducted with the minority regime in Ethiopia, the Eritrean Quislings
League, have played a major role in Meles Zenawi’s 12-year long effort to
destabilize Eritrea. Contrary to the picture that the SEMG is trying
portray, the regime’s record and those of its surrogates are well
documented. They are not merely “accusations from Asmara”.
Ethiopia’s intentions have been spelled out clearly by David Shinn, former
US Ambassador to Ethiopia and an avid supporter and apologist for the
Ethiopian regime. David Shinn speaking to the Voice of America on 19 March
2012 said:
*“…On the other side of the fence, one should point out that Ethiopia also
has a record of being supportive of Eritreans who oppose the regime in
Asmara…Shinn notes that Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi stated in
parliament last April that his government would actively support groups
trying to overthrow Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki…David Shinn recalls a
similar cross-border incursion when he was U.S. envoy to Ethiopia in 1997.
He says that incident was among those cited by Eritrea the following year
when war broke out…”*
If David Shinn knows, the US State Department also knows, the US Mission
knows and so does the SEMG. Furthermore, judging from the Wikileak
documents, the regime in Ethiopia has coordinated all its activities with
the US Embassy in Addis and Washington, and they in turn have shared their
findings with the P-5 Ambassadors, who are notified of its intentions long
before the public announcement and propaganda begin.
At the height of the 1998-2000 Eritrea Ethiopia border conflict, the regime
in Ethiopia rounded up individuals and groups that it believed could
support its anti-Eritrea propaganda campaign. Patrick Gilkes, UK Citizen
and Strategic Planning Advisor to the Foreign Ministry of Ethiopia reported
the following in a 1999 BBC report[2]:
*“…Ethiopia has hosted meetings of various factions of the Eritrean
Liberation Front, trying to bring the ELF-Revolutionary Council and the ELF
of Abdullah Idris together…It has offered support to three small Eritrean
Marxist opposition parties, and to an opposition Kunama party, and has
recently set up an Afar Red Sea Democratic Organisation to try and build up
Afar resistance to the Eritrean government…*
The Global Terrorism Database[3] has recorded the following terrorist acts
committed by the Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization (RSADO) and
Democratic Movement for the Liberation of the Eritrean Kunamas (DMLEK), the
two groups that were organized, financed, harbored and supported by the
minority regime in Ethiopia.
· 02/15/2010: On Monday, in Asmara, Maekel, Eritrea, rebels of the Red Sea
Afar Democratic Organization (RSADO) attacked the 28th Sub-division
military camp. It was unknown if the attack caused any damage. Seventeen
intelligence agents were killed and 20 others were injured in the attack.
The 28th sub-division military camp in Asmara, Eritrea was targeted in this
attack.
· 6/01/2008: On Sunday, a military vehicle ferrying food rations was blown
up after Red Sea AfarsDemocratic Organization members attacked soldiers in
Morad, Eritrea. No casualties were reported. A military truck carrying food
rations was targeted.
· 06/01/2008: On Sunday, four Eritrean soldiers, including a senior
commander, were killed and more than 10 others wounded when Red Sea Afars
Democratic Organization members attacked them in Morad, Eritrea. Eritrean
soldiers were targeted.
· 11/05/2007: The Democratic Movement for the Liberation of the Eritrean
Kunamas (DMLEK) destroyed the office of the Shembeko town administration
with an RPG in Western Eritrea. No casualties were reported.
· 11/05/2007: Militants using firearms from the Democratic Movement for the
Liberation of the EritreanKunamas (DMLEK) attacked government soldiers,
killing or wounding fifteen of them in Mlzay, Eritrea.
· 02/25/2009: On Wednesday, in Haykota, Gash-Barka, Eritrea, a bomb killed
two civilians and injured eight others at a restaurant in the semi-urban
centre. The restaurant was damaged in the attack. No group claimed
responsibility. A restaurant was targeted in Haykota, Gash-Barka, Eritrea.
· In 2003, British geologist Timothy Nutt was slain as he worked in
Eritrea, by the Eritrean Islamic Jihad, one of the groups financed,
harbored and supported by the regime in Ethiopia.
· Groups financed, harbored and supported by Ethiopia detonated a bomb in
Barentu, Eritrea during the 2004 Independence Day celebrations killing 5
people and wounding 88.
· A 30 July 2009 Press Release[4] entitled “Red Sea Afar Democratic
Organization (RSADO) and RSF (Eritrean Salvation Front) have joined forces
to strike At the Eritrean Regime in Asmara” said the following:
*“…In the past six months the afar rebel group have carried out more than
five attacks, causing significant blow to Afwerki’s regime, last November
it has destroyed a military radar system and attacked military camp killing
285 soldiers in a place called Sanafi at the heart of Akale Guzay, with
co-ordinated and simultaneous commando type operation which killed 13
Eritrean soldiers. They have also collected 9 Kalashnikov assault rifles, 1
RPG weapon, 1 Heavy Machine Gun and 3 mobile phones. The combined forces
have also captured five elite soldiers and brought them back in to
Ethiopia…”*
· Emboldened by the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution, the
minority regime in Ethiopia began its destabilization agenda against
Eritrea almost immediately. On 29 December 2009, just days after the
Security Council adopted the illegal, unjust and unfair Resolution 1907
(2009), a group financed, harbored and supported by the minority regime in
Ethiopia boasted of attacks against sovereign Eritrean territories. Sudan
Tribune reported[5]:
*“…An Eritrean opposition group said prepared to attack the government army
as the United Nations decided to impose sanction on Asmara last week. DMLEK
is a member of the Ethiopia based coalition Eritrean Democratic Alliance,
of which two other groups have also waged a nascent armed struggle often
staging hit-and-run attacks…The chairman of the Sena’a Cooperation Forum
and representative of the Ethiopian government, Mr. Hubur Gebrekidan, in
remarks delivered at the opening sitting of the meeting, praised the merger
of the three groups and pledged the support of the Ethiopian government and
the regional forum to the meeting…”*
· The Sudan Tribune reported the following in its 3 January 2010 report.
This time it was reporting on another group, RSADO, a group financed,
harbored and supported by Meles Zenawi’s minority regime in Ethiopia:
*“…An Eritrean rebel group, Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization (RSADO),
has vowed to step up military attacks this year to overthrow the east
African nation’s government. RSADO Chairman IbrahimHaron said that the
military measures will undertaken jointly with other rebel forces” Some
eight political groups have built a joint military front to depose the
tyrannical Eritrean government” said Ethiopia-based Ibrahim. He said the
coalition “will collectively launch massive military attacks in 2011 and we
expect major victories along the year”…The group says it has killed and
wounded hundreds of government soldiers in attacks inside Eritrea since
early 2009…″*
· Tigray Online posted a Press Release about another attack on Eritrea, by
RSADO, a group harbored, financed and supported by Meles Zenawi’s minority
regime in Ethiopia. Here is what the 17 February 2010 Press Release said:
*“…On Feb 15, 2010, at 5:00 am (RSADO) Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization
carried out yet another successful operation on FURI military base, in
Central-Dankaliya, Inflicting heavy damage to the military as well as
personnel. RSADO’s insurgency group has killed 17 enemy soldiers, wounded
20 soldiers, seized caches of ammunitions and varieties of enemy guns just
this passed New Year’s Eve, RSADO, in collaboration with our partnering
pastoral societies from ENSF have carried out a massive of operations
outside Dankaliya including Sanafee, Akale Guzay, and Area”*
· On 23 April 2010 Reuters reported of another terrorist attack against
Eritrea by the Red Sea Afar DemocraticOrganisation (RSADO) and the Eritrean
National Salvation Front (ENSF) – groups financed, harbored and supported
by Meles Zenawi’s minority regime in Ethiopia. Here is an excerpt from that
report:
*“…Two Eritrean rebel groups said they killed 11 government soldiers and
wounded some 20 others in a coordinated attack on military camps in
southern Eritrea. Both of the rebel groups are members of the Eritrean
Democratic Alliance (EDA), a coalition of 11 Eritrean political
organisations, who say they are increasingly working together and
coordinating their attacks”*
· According to a document carrying a list of terrorist acts carried out by
the Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization (RSADO) compiled from RSADO
statements and news releases between 1999 and 2010, there have been about
27 attacks against Eritrea causing a total of 958 casualties-448 killed,
501 wounded and 9 captured.
· On 1 January 2010, there was another armed attack on Eritrea emanating
from Ethiopia. The regime denied any responsibility and made public
statements to that effect. Despite Ethiopia’s public denials, a 12 January
2010 cable, “Ethiopia Denies Involvement In Skirmish On Eritrea Border”[6]
reports on what the regime’s cadres were saying in private. According to
the cable:
*“…Privately, the GoE has been more candid about the likely source of the
attacks. On January 8, Tesfaye Yilma, Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(MFA) Director General for Europe and the Americas, suggested to A/DCM that
the two Eritrean opposition groups that claimed responsibility for
attacking Eritrean military installations and killing 25 Eritrean troops,
the Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization (RSADO) and the Eritrean National
Salvation Front (ENSF), had probably done so…”*
The Cable goes on to state the following:
*“…In a January 8 meeting with A/DCM, opposition Oromo People’s Congress
(OPC) and Forum leader Merera Gudina offered two possible explanations for
the incident: 1) The GoE ordered Ethiopian National Defense Forces to
attack Eritrea to test the international community’s reaction in light of
recent sanctions; or 2) Eritrean opposition groups operating out of
Ethiopia and funded by the GoE carried out the attacks with GoE approval…”*
· In addition, the Global Terrorism Database[7] recorded the following
terrorist acts committed by RSADO and DMLEK, groups financed, harbored and
supported by Meles Zenawi’s minority regime in Ethiopia.
o 02/15/2010: On Monday, in Asmara, Maekel, Eritrea, rebels of the Red Sea
Afar Democratic Organization (RSADO) attacked the 28th Sub-division
military camp. It was unknown if the attack caused any damage. Seventeen
intelligence agents were killed and 20 others were injured in the attack.
The 28th sub-division military camp in Asmara, Eritrea was targeted in this
attack.
o 6/01/2008: On Sunday, a military vehicle ferrying food rations was blown
up after Red Sea AfarsDemocratic Organization members attacked soldiers in
Morad, Eritrea. No casualties were reported. A military truck carrying food
rations was targeted.
o 06/01/2008: On Sunday, four Eritrean soldiers, including a senior
commander, were killed and more than 10 others wounded when Red Sea Afars
Democratic Organization members attacked them in Morad, Eritrea. Eritrean
soldiers were targeted.
o 11/05/2007: The Democratic Movement for the Liberation of the Eritrean
Kunamas (DMLEK) destroyed the office of the Shembeko town administration
with an RPG in Western Eritrea. No casualties were reported.
o 11/05/2007: Militants using firearms from the Democratic Movement for the
Liberation of the EritreanKunamas (DMLEK) attacked government soldiers,
killing or wounding fifteen of them in Mlzay, Eritrea.
o 02/25/2009: On Wednesday, in Haykota, Gash-Barka, Eritrea, a bomb killed
two civilians and injured eight others at a restaurant in the semi-urban
centre. The restaurant was damaged in the attack. No group claimed
responsibility. A restaurant was targeted in Haykota, Gash-Barka, Eritrea.
Ethiopia’s efforts to destabilize Eritrea have also been recorded by
various media outlets.
· In its 19 May 1999 article, “Ethiopia’s war strategy”[8], the BBC
reported the following:
*“…It certainly hopes that it can break the strength of the Eritrean army,
and an admission, once the war ends, of the serious Eritrean casualty
figures, will put pressure on the Eritrean regime…Ethiopia has given
support to the opposition Alliance of Eritrean National Forces (AENF), now
based in Ethiopia. It anticipates that this will be able to mobilise former
Eritrean Liberation Front supporters, and Muslim critics of the present
government…It is, however, under no illusions about the AENF’s strength,
nor its effectiveness…It knows any change of government in Eritrea will
have to come from within the ruling and single party, the People’s Front
for Democracy and Justice…”*
· In a May 2000 Patrick Gilkes, UK Citizen and Strategic Planning Advisor
to the Foreign Ministry of Ethiopia wrote the following in a 23 May 2000
BBC article[9], “Free rein for Eritrean opposition”:
*“…Ethiopia appears to be leaving, deliberately, the western provinces to
the opposition Alliance of Eritrean National Forces (AENF)…. Ethiopia
appreciates the possibilities of the Alliance for weakening the government
in Asmara, but is taking considerable care not to provide any overt sign of
support which would be widely resented. Instead, Ethiopia and Sudan are
leaving the Alliance to respond in its own way to the opportunity created
by Ethiopian military successes…Alliance leaders are now trying to mobilise
their support in areas once controlled by the Eritrean Liberation Front
(ELF) factions which make up most of the Alliance…The Alliance already
claims it is widely operating in rural areas…working to organise and build
up its support as fast as possible to take advantage of the vacuum…”*
· In another BBC report, “New rebel force in Eritrea”[10], the BBC reported
on a meeting sponsored by the Ethiopian government for Eritrean groups and
individuals held in the Ethiopian capital. The report also said:
*“…An alliance of 13 Eritrean opposition groups says it is setting up a
military wing to topple President Isaias Afewerki…The Eritrean National
Alliance’s general secretary, Hiruy Tedla Bairu, told the BBC that the
military wing would attack strategic targets such as television and radio
centres…Mr Hiruy said the military wing would not attack the Eritrean army,
which he hoped could be won over by the opposition… Mr Hiruy also said that
the alliance would not seek to target President Isaias because “the
problems [assassinations] produce later are too big to handle”… He was
speaking in neighbouring Ethiopia, which he said was one of three countries
that had offered his alliance “material support”… He said the others were
Sudan and Yemen but denied that the ENA were Ethiopian stooges…”*
· In 2001, the ELF-RC, another group financed, harbored and supported by
the Ethiopian government held its 5th congress in Gondar, Ethiopia
· The Ethiopian Government also supported the establishment of an
“opposition” radio that broadcast from Ethiopia and according to news
reports[11]:
*“…The Broad cast which has been on trial since January is based in
northern Ethiopia Tigray region’s Mekelle city… Currently the radio station
airs programs to Ethiopia , Eritrea and partly to Arab nations…”*
It is preposterous for the SEMG to point its fingers at Eritrea and it is
an insult to the people of Eritrea, Ethiopia and the entire region to
present the lawless reckless and belligerent entrenched regime in Ethiopia
as a victim and Eritrea as the villain. The record speaks for itself. But
let’s go on , there is more.
Ethiopia got help from its handlers and according to the Embassy cable, on
3 October 2007, US officials in Ethiopia met and held talks with the
Eritrean National Salvation Front (ENSF) Chairman Abdella Adem and ENSF
Foreign Relations Director Beyene Kidane. This is not the first meeting
between US officials and runaway Eritrean defectors and draft dodgers and
they were very cler as to who was sponsoring and directing their
anti-Eritrea activities. The Wikileak cable[12] ERITREAN OPPOSITION GROUP
SEEKING NEW OPPOSITION ALLIANCE, states:
*“…When queried about military training camps, Abdella replied that the EDA
had closed their training camps in Sudan at the request of the Sudanese
Government and moved them into Ethiopia… Abdella said the EDA groups now
received instruction from Ethiopian military personnel in two military
training camps in Tigray located in close proximity to Ethiopian military
camps. The ENSF, Eritrean Revolutionary Democratic Front, and an Afar group
trained at a camp in eastern Tigray near Adigrat, while a number of other
groups trained at a camp in western Tigray near Adi Hageray…”*
According to the US Embassy cable, Abdela Adem also told the American
officials that:
*“ … on the political front the government of Ethiopia served as an advisor
to the Eritrean opposition…Abdella commented that Meles had given the EDA
access to one radio station in Ethiopia that broadcast into Eritrea and
divided the airtime between opposition groups… Abdella stated he had met
with Meles for more than two hours on October 2…”*
Another US Embassy cable[13] details a meeting held by US officials with
Eritrean groups financed, harbored and supported by Ethiopia. The cable
said:
*“…The May 5-11, 2008 Eritrean political opposition congress in Addis Ababa
reformed and expanded the Eritrean Democratic Alliance (EDA) to serve as
the umbrella organization for all Eritrean opposition groups. Embassy
officers spoke with more than a dozen opposition leaders and civil society
representatives before, during, and after the conference… The conference
was attended by 43 representatives from 13 different Eritrean opposition
groups and 33 observers…EDA leaders were sensitive to criticism that they
were a puppet of Ethiopia and would prefer to hold future conferences
elsewhere if given sufficient funding. Lastly, three of the EDA
organizations are descendants of the Eritrean Islamic Jihad, and Post would
appreciate guidance from Washington, in consultation with Embassy Asmara,
on how to deal with this sensitive issue…”*
A US Embassy cable[14] reports on a 26 February 2008 meeting between Joseph
Stephanides, the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE)
Head of Addis Ababa Office and visiting members of the Combined Joint Task
Force-Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA). It said:
*“…Stephanides disclosed that the Russian DCM to Ethiopia, who he said
often exceeded Moscow’s instructions, told Stephanides that the Ethiopian
government was attempting to set up an Eritrean government in exile with
the Eritrean opposition. The Russian told Stephanides that once
established, the government in exile could openly call for Ethiopian
assistance and give Ethiopia international justification for removing
Eritrean President Isaias. (Note: A counselor at the Russian Embassy here
separately told Embassy officers the same thing.)…”*
Meles Zenawi openly talked about his destabilization project with several
US officials on various occasions and on one such occasion he shared his
ideas with Deputy Assistant Secretary Karl Wycoff[15]. This is also the
meeting during which he assured the reckless Prime Minister of Susan Rice’s
support in getting the “stand alone sanctions” against Eritrea. The Embassy
cable said:
*“…Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles told visiting AF/DAS Wycoff and CDA on
November 19 that he wanted to give the USG a “heads up” that Ethiopia was
considering actively supporting armed Eritrean opposition groups if the
international community fails to take action to isolate Asmara… Pressed by
Wycoff to describe the “pro-active” measures being considered, Meles said
one option would be to directly support opposition groups that are capable
of sending “armed propaganda units” into Eritrea Meles said that the groups
with the most capability to operate inside Eritrea are those “that you
don’t like from the lowlands, like the Keru” who he said would be “much
better able to survive in Eritrea.” (NOTE. The Keru are a primarily Muslim
ethnic group most of whose members live in Eritrea, although a minority
live in Ethiopia. END NOTE.)…”*
3 March 2012, Meles Zenawi openly threatened Eritrea when he invited
members of the Eritrean Quislings League. He said:
*“…We will work towards changing Eritrea’s policies or its government. This
could be done diplomatically, politically or through other means…” *
Today, in violation of UN rules and regulations and the principles
enshrined in the UN Charter the SEMG is serving anti-Eritrea agendas using
the UN as a cover, but there are also others. One such individual is Haile
Menkerios, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s special envoy, who
participated in a meeting organized by the Ethiopian regime in Awassa,
Ethiopia. It took place around the time of Meles Zenawi’s death. For those
who do not know this person, he is the former Eritrean Ambassador to the
United Nations, one of the architects of the anti-Eritrea vilification and
defamation campaigns that began in 2000. He abandoned the Eritrean people
and was given a UN post by Kofi Annan, the then UN Secretary General at the
behest of the US. Today, he is working with the Ethiopian regime to
undermine Eritrea’s sovereignty and weaken Eritrea diplomatically,
politically and economically.
The lawless leader of the frightened minority regime in Ethiopia has
spelled it out in black and white. Considering these and other evil and
bloody activities of the regime in Ethiopia against the people and
government of Eritrea, it is a shame and intellectually deceptive and
dishonest for the SEMG to try to portray Eritrea in such as negative light.
The UN Security Council must shoulder its moral and legal obligations and
call for the unconditional removal of Ethiopia’s forces from sovereign
Eritrean territories. The Security Council should also annul and repeal the
ill-advised, ill-gotten, illegal, unfair and unjust sanctions against the
State of Eritrea and its people.
[1]
http://wikileaks.org/cable/2007/10/07ADDISABABA3198.html accessed 30
July 2012
[2]2 March 1999, BBC Report, “Africa Analysis: The war’s bitter legacy”, by
Patrick Gilkes
[3]
http://www.start.umd.edu/gtd/ accessed 6 August 2012
[4]
http://www.arhotabba.com/rsado.html accessed 6 August 2012
[5]
http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?iframe&page=imprimable&id_article=33621accessed
6 August 2012
[6]
http://wikileaks.org/cable/2010/01/10ADDISABABA50.html#
[7]
http://www.start.umd.edu/gtd/ accessed 6 August 2012
[8] BBC Report Ethiopia’s war strategy, 19 May 1999 accessed 30 July 2012
[9]
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/760503.stm accessed 30 July 2012
[10] BBC Report New rebel force in Eritrea, 2 May 2003, BBC accessed 30
July 2012
[11]
http://blogs.rnw.nl/medianetwork/eritrean-opposition-radio-starts-broadcasting-from-ethiopia-sudan-tribuneaccessed
31` July 2012
[12]
http://wikileaks.org/cable/2007/10/07ADDISABABA3016.html
[13] According to the Wikileak cable, “three of the EDA member groups are
factions from Eritrean Islamic Jihad, according to EDA leaders and Post’s
research. EIJ is believed to be responsible for the murder of a British
national in Eritrea in 2003 and other terrorist acts in Eritrea. The three
groups are: the Eritrean Islamic Party for Justice and Development, also
known as Alkhalas, led by Sheikh Mohammed Khalil Amir; the Eritrean
People’s Congress, also known as the Eritrean Popular Congress, led by
Mohammed Tahir Shengeb; and the Eritrean Islamic Congress led by Hassan
Salman. The Eritrean People’s Congress is associated with another EIJ
descendant, the Eritrean Islamic Reform (Islah) Movement.”
[14]
http://wikileaks.org/cable/2008/02/08ADDISABABA506.html accessed 30
July 2012
[15]
http://wikileaks.org/cable/2009/11/09ADDISABABA2817.html accessed 30
July 2012
*(Editorial opinion may not coincide with the opinion of the authors.) *
Received on Wed Oct 24 2012 - 19:49:40 EDT
