*Independent Eritrean American: With the option Not to Vote.*
With only a few days left in the 2012 United States election many voters
are wondering in which directions they should go. For the first time in a
long time this year has shown the entire world that America is in desperate
need of change in many aspects of it’s leadership especially foreign
policy. As Eritrean-Americans we are no different than the millions of
other immigrants whose communities yearn for some recognition in our
battles for fairness towards our home of origin and respect for being good
American citizens. As Eritrean-Americans however we must face reality, be
smart and add up all the equations before we come to any conclusions. We
must be able to decide the reality based on research and analysis that are
out there for us to consume. It is with this in mind that I am writing this
article. To be able to help some understand the pros and cons of our
decisions for this year’s elections be it for President Obama, Governor
Romney, the Green Party or no body at all. I once was a strong advocate for
VOTING! in a fair & just world VOTING would make sense. I still stand by
my convictions that voting is a good way to exercise your rights and send a
message but this year NOT VOTING is becoming an option as I feel like I am
being forced to vote for something I don’t have much hope for.
Thank god we are not forced to vote for fake elections in Eritrea. Eritrea
our dear home is accused of many things and the fact that people don’t vote
for a President is one of them. When you compare it to voting for a choice
you don’t have may be we are so blessed to have one voice as a people and
work instead towards building a just and fair society in Eritrea. Any sane
person can take a look at the situation that this young nation has been
through and will understand why there is no elections in Eritrea until all
attacks against it has been cleared out of the way, including
implementation of the border demarcation that was voted for Eritrea, the
removal of the illegal sanctions by the UN which used a system that does
not allow small countries like Eritrea to be able to defend themselves from
unjust resolutions created by corrupt allies of those who create them at
the UN.
First and foremost we must always understand that all those who have an
Eritrean identity and believe in the Eritrean right to independently think
for it’s own well being should be proud of what the Eritrean Government and
people decide for Eritrea. We are a unique people and our Diaspora has
always been interconnected with what happens in our homeland. We are
fortunate enough that we have accepted our lives to be intertwined with
what takes place in our Eritrea. Because we have suffered a lot as a nation
and as a people. We are deeply tied to our roots because of the crimes
committed against our people; every fair human being should respect that.
All types of atrocities and crimes have been committed against our people
and we just want to defend our nation from being a playing ground for
non-Eritreans who want to see this strong and SELF RELIANT NATION fail. As
part of our growth process we have always envisioned the many problems that
would come our way but most importantly we knew all along the policies made
for our region until now were based on Ethiopia’s minority regime ‘s
survival, a group that has betrayed the trust of it’s people and the entire
horn of Africa. When it comes to foreign policy and especially to Africa
and in particular to the horn the policies will remain the same be it
Romney or Obama and we need to accept the fact and see if we can attempt to
work with whom ever wants to work with us based on mutual respect. Thank
god Eritrea is not dependent on the USA for its well being. Eritrea will
continue to prosper on it’s own and with it’s people’s hard work along with
it’s rich mineral resources changing the dynamics of it’s economy, there is
no doubt that it will receive attention in the next four years from the USA
be it a Romney or Obama administration as well as others for purely
economic reasons.
So now let’s put our cards on the table and what I will do is share my
small input in helping your decision making when voting on November 6th,
2012.
Barak Obama
When it comes to domestic issues, he is not up the par with what most
Americans expected of him when a majority elected him 4 years ago. He has
been good at some things but horrible in others. His foreign policy has
been a nightmare for many countries and good for some. His advisors have
been horrible on Africa and especially the horn of Africa region. He
propped up a genocidal regime that committed atrocities in some parts of
Ethiopia (Gambella/Ogaden) that could be distant relatives of his own
relatives in Kenya. He left the region’s devastating political problems in
the hands of people whose responsibility was dropped. They failed humanity
and as a result millions suffered in Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, Kenya and
other parts of Africa. He stood by when his UN Ambassador lied and used her
own personal vendetta against the people of Eritrea by imposing an illegal
sanction that many countries including in the very Security Council
membership have disapproved of since. Setting a precedent for future
corrupt activities at the United Nations, a place that is suppose to be a
governing body for the international community to cheat and lie in broad
day light is something that needs to be fixed immediately and Eritrea
should get an apology and a complete removal of the illegal sanctions. What
makes it even worse is that this is not the first time that Eritrea has
been betrayed by the world body. Should the Eritrean people knowing this
fact and after pleading directly and indirectly through demonstrations and
even diplomatically, have a consciousness to vote for this President? Ask
yourselves this question and other domestic issues before you come to any
type of conclusion. You should also consider if this President will give
any hope to Africa or will he attempt to do more harm than good? As a
second term President will he want his legacy to be one that destroyed
Africa or improved Africa? This President despite the many attacks some
fair and some ugly and racist towards him did have lots of challenges but
he must truly think for the future well being of this country and it’s
relations with the continent that has suffered for decades if he is to be
elected. If he wants his daughters to be proud of their ancestor he should
strive to work for Peace in the horn of Africa region and all doors towards
a peaceful solution would have to go through ERITREA. May be he should just
attempt to make a very important decision of building relations in a fair
and respectable manner with the very same nation he falsely accused of
human rights abuses based on information from his UN Ambassador. A person
that has created so many problems for him. Even in Libya, Susan Rice was
widely criticized for comments she made on a round of talk show appearances
Sept. 16, when she said the attacks of September 11th, 2012 appeared to
have stemmed from a protest over the infamous video that was produced to
defame a very peaceful religion, similar to the violent demonstrations in
other Arab countries. He is after all the Chief executive and if he acts
like one he may be able to make some decisions based on real facts. Rumors
from the Obama team are that John Kerry will be the next Secretary of State
so when it comes to foreign policy everything will remain the same and the
American people will continue to complain four years from now.
Unfortunately instead of overhauling and cleansing the office at Foggy
Bottom the policies that have gotten the USA in the international
political, and national economic mess as well as the hatred America gets
from other countries will continue. May be one day the United States of
America will wake up. When? It is very tough to answer. Meanwhile this
President if re-elected must step up and have some gut to stand up on the
side of the oppressed people of the world. He must stop playing games with
lives instead making sure that when he leaves office he has done what the
world expected of him in 2008 after he got elected. Where is the change Mr.
Obama? Or are you just a pawn a symbol for others who are doing a horrible
job of leading this country. As a president Obama has done more to harm the
poor and minority and this must be reversed sooner than later.
Mitt Romney
In the mid 2000’s I had the honor of covering stories for Boston’s Channel
7 WBZ-TV and met the then Governor of Massachusetts on many occasions
sometimes closely following him and his delegation with special access. I
can say that he was a man of principal and works very hard. He is a good
executive that can make some changes to the devastated American economy in
my opinion despite his capitalist ideas. He was very moderate and in a very
democratic sate he was able to work as a Republican and that says a lot
about him as a person. However I have some concerns as well and the simple
fact that the very right tea party types have pushed his policies and have
influenced him is a huge concern. Who is to say that some of the Bush
administration’s advisors won’t be back as part of his team? As a matter of
fact what I have been able to unveil is something we should all look into
and use it towards our judgment when voting. I also will repeat and
emphasize once more Romney or Obama, Eritrea should always be able to work
independently and remain strong and vigilant. As Eritrean Americans our
expectations should not be high when it comes to foreign policy. The only
thing that will change the USA ‘s approach towards the horn of Africa
region is REALITY on the ground and as Eritreans we must always stay strong
and be steadfast.
So who are Mitt Romney’s advisors of concern that would have an impact on
Africa and especially the horn region? Well let us start of with his
current Africa Advisor Mr. Tibor Nagy a former ambassador to Ethiopia who
sympathized with the Meles Zenawi Genocidal regime. Mr. Nagy along with his
colleague Vicki Huddleston once stood up for the atrocities committed by
the Zenawi regime when congress was attempting to challenge the regime in
Addis about the fake elections that took place in 2005. In a letter written
for media display Mr. Nagy who is the current Africa advisor to Mitt Romney
writes, “Sadly, Congress is poised to fuel the march toward war by passing
a bill that threatens to cut off technical assistance to Ethiopia one of
our closest allies, if it does not, among other things, release political
prisoners, ensure that the judiciary operates independently and permit the
news media to operate freely. “ which it did not at the time and has not
today even though the political landscape in Ethiopia is changing slowly on
it’s own. Mr. Nagy went on to add and plead by trying so hard to protect
the Zenawi regime from the congress of the USA as he said, “By singling out
Ethiopia for public embarrassment, the bill puts Congress unwittingly on
the side of Islamic jihadists and insurgents” which was a pure fabrication
and a lie created to save Zenawi’s Ethiopia from embarrassment and in the
process the people of Ethiopia and the horn of Africa would continue to
suffer as we are seeing it today almost 7 years after this statement. So
who is ambassador Tibor Nagy? Well the answer is he is currently serving as
Vice Provost for International Affairs at Texas Tech University. During the
2002 academic year he was the Department of State’s “Diplomat in Residence”
at the University of Oklahoma. Previously he was the U.S. Ambassador to
Ethiopia from 1999-2002, and Ambassador to Guinea from 1996-99. So in
addition to him the Texas University has also embraced a former ambassador
to Eritrea under the leadership of Mr. Nagy. Ambassador Ronald K. McMullen,
Diplomat in Residence, The LBJ School, and University of Texas recently was
teaching young people about how to damage the US relations with other
countries. Titled “New Challenges for the Foreign Service” which I am sure
stemmed from his horrible experience in Eritrea. Mr. McMullen who has
attacked the very fabric of the Eritrean society including it’s youth
movement and other related issues worked for a university under the main
Africa advisor for the Mitt Romney Campaign. So for us Eritreans and horn
of Africa immigrants it is “DARN IF WE DO & DARN IF WE DON’T” when it comes
to these elections and it is very frustrating not to be able to have a
choice that is fair. May be the Green Party needs to be revived or else the
only other choice is not to VOTE.
It feels like as average citizens we have absolutely no role in these so
called free and democratic elections as citizens of this great country. If
we just reflect on the immense amount of money that’s being spent on the
campaigns, two billion dollars by each candidate, that in and of itself
indicates that as common people we have no place, no role in the electoral
process. It is clear that in key battleground states, most Americans place
foreign policy well down on the list of priorities but for us
Eritrean-Americans and the horn of Africa region Americans it is a
priority, like Irish, Italian, Japanese, Arab Americans before us to name a
few who had to deal with issues in their home countries like we are doing
today. So weather you vote for Obama, Romney, the Green Party candidate or
NOT VOTE at all, keep one thing in mind .The simple fact that as
Eritrean-Americans we must watch out for the interests of both our
Countries and when our American land becomes a bully we need to use our
rights as citizens of this great land to put a stop to it. We need to speak
with one voice and make a calculated choice. I recently had an Obama
campaign staffer come to my house and ask for a vote and I spoke to him
about issues domestic and foreign policy and of course the Eritrea issue
was raised. He promised that he would address the issue to the head of the
campaign. It will remain to be seen.
Meanwhile I ask GOD/Allah to give me the power to make a good decision for
the USA, Eritrea and the entire world.
Received on Thu Oct 25 2012 - 20:28:52 EDT
