Eritrea's Veterans Day
December 23rd, 2012 TesfaNews
for Eritrea.]<
http://www.tesfanews.net/archives/10890/eritrean-soldier-at-the-front-lines>
Honoring our veterans is honoring the struggle and the sacrifice made for
Eritrea.
By Amanuel Biedemariam,
http://www.tesfanews.net/archives/10890
*One of the key* goals of the *anti-Eritrean* campaign is to divert
Eritreans from focusing on their nations affairs. It is to overwhelm
Eritrean news, stories, agendas, direction and replace it with their
narrative. It is to make Eritreans talk about what they want to talk about
at the expense of Eritrea. It is to say and do anything that establishes
Eritrea’s legacy in a bad light. *Lies, fabrications, distortions,
misleading information* and *defamation* are preferred methods of appeal in
an effort geared at nullifying Eritrea from existence as nation.
I have recently read articles by the anti-Eritrean camp that want to infuse
the idea that *Eritrea’s national struggle for independence was in vei*n.
The ideas behind the articles are at best, to minimize the patriotic pride
of Eritreans and in the least, to create doubt.
That being the case, whose responsibility is it to stand for the legacy
that established the foundation of a nation from certain death?
Of course, it is the responsibility of every Eritrean to highlight the true
picture of Eritrea’s Heroes and Sheroes by telling stories that accentuate
the unparalleled legacy of bravery and valor that Eritreans are known for
before, during and after the struggle for independence.
On the 11th of November, as I watched American Veterans honored in
Arlington National Cemetery, It dawned on me that Eritrea does not have a
dedicated day to honor and celebrate Eritrean Veterans. That triggered
thoughts to *why Eritrea has not dedicated a Veterans Day to honor
Eritrea’s veterans*. The question is not whether Eritrean veterans should
or, why they should be honored. It is more of whom, when, and how to honor
Eritrea’s veterans.
Eritrea honors Eritrean Martyrs with pride. However, there is a difference
between *Martyrs Day* and *Veterans Day*. Memorial Day honors those who
died in battle or, on duty to free and defend Eritrea. Veterans Day on the
other hand is a day dedicated to honor those that are actively serving and
those that have already served including those that gave their life in
theprocess.
Considering Eritrea’s long history of struggle for independence, and
considering the non conventional nature of the struggle, at least in the
beginning before the full-fledged armed struggle started, it is extremely
involved process to break down Eritrea’s Veterans and decipher who is
considered a veteran and why.
According to various dictionaries, a Veteran is, “*A person who is long
experienced or practiced in an activity or capacity; a person who has
served in the armed forces; or, an old soldier who has seen long service.”*
The people of Eritrea struggled at various levels and in many capacities
throughout the history of this young nation. There are living men and women
that struggled for the independence of Eritrea after WWII. These are
individuals that became catalyst to the armed struggle through campaigns
they conducted all over. These include high school and university students,
teachers that enlightened and lawyers that defended those that were
wrongfully detained for Eritrea.
But what makes the idea of honoring Eritrean veterans special and urgent,
by dedicating a day, a week, a month or, however Eritrea chooses to honor
them, is the fact that many of these veterans are alive and still
contributing to the well-being and future of Eritrea with unparalleled
dedication.
Dedicating a day for veterans is not limited to the honor of the current
generation of Eritreans; it is a legacy to be followed by future
generations. And establishing that legacy with some urgency prudence and
organization makes a great deal of sense because the current pool of
Eritrean veterans ranges from the ages of 20s to the 90s. Meaning, many of
those that have struggled for the independence of Eritrea since the Italian
occupation and are living, will have opportunity to be honored for their
commitment and service.
To underscore the urgency of honoring Eritrea’s veterans while living, it
is best to take example from the US.
On May 29th, 2004, The National World War II Memorial was dedicated in
Washington, D.C. The memorial honors over sixteen million service men and
women. And, it is dedicated to honor over 400,000 martyrs of the war. It
was a long process that required the dedication of many. But from the day
of the dedication and the proceeding years since, the memorial saw influx
of WWII veterans that flocked to visit the memorial dedicated to honor
them. Washington DC witnessed millions WWII veterans in their 60, 70s, 80s
and 90s visiting the memorial on a daily basis to date with their families
in unprecedented numbers. Some are disabled and sick.
The memorial delivered tremendous boost to the pride of these worthy
veterans by glorifying their life and sacrifices. It is gratifying to see
these veterans tell stories of the war to their children and grandchildren
leaving legacies of bravery, valor and honor in defense of a nation. In
short, it is the best way to honor and thank these heroes while living.
Eritrea is destined for greatness because of the brave souls that dedicated
their lives to her. It is only when Eritreans recognize, understand and
appreciate that Eritrean veterans having served, and are serving Eritreans
everywhere and at many levels, that Eritrea could achieve higher levels of
national victory. Since, dedication to each other through service is what
keeps propelling Eritrea to the unprecedented level of victories Eritrea is
achieving to date.
In Eritrea, veterans are not limited to the armed forces; they are farmers,
doctors, educators, in maintenance, infrastructure development in
businessand every field imaginable. That means, in some capacity,
every Eritrean is
a veteran. And it is only when we recognize the services already rendered
and appreciate one another for the sacrifices that we can lift the level
and quality of the life of our nation.
A veteran is a servant of the people. But what separates Eritrean veteran
from the rest is the fact that their contribution to the history of Eritrea
was strictly voluntary at least until independence. These contributions are
what ensured the independence of Eritrea and helped establish a new nation
based on the principles that ensured freedom.
Whilst it is difficult to impose principles and values on publics, the
people of Eritrea, having been a part of the fight for independence,
embraced these legacies and made it integral part of the life of the nation
and, nation-building. This selfless acts where reaffirmed by the gallantry
during the war in 1998-2000 against Ethiopian aggression.
*MOVING FORWARD: *
As Eritrea transitions in phases, it becomes critical to recognize,
understand the changes and translate to action the meaning of serving a
nation, and in turn each other. Eritrea by default is a nation made up of
veterans and it will remain so by necessity.
The initial stages represented the fights for the freedom of and defense of
the nation. Currently Eritreans are engaged in nation building and all that
entails. That means building roads, schools, hospitals and the building of
necessary social and physical infrastructures and in the process, develop
human resource capacities. These programs developed on a national level,
are carried out accordingly.
The challenge that remains to be seen therefore is the rendering of service
to one another willingly for the betterment and future success of Eritrea
in all areas that are not mandated because absent of that commitment there
is no nation. Only a nation that is willing to serve each other can thrive
as a nation. To start, we have to recognize the service already rendered by
Eritreans for Eritreans, appreciate and allow it to manifest through the
service that we provide each other.
Eritrea is at a new stage positioned to shift to a “new gear” and, the
recent investment conference is an indication of the transitional point
Eritrea finds herself.
In the US, the government has set up a veteran’s administration represented
by a cabinet level position to tend to Veteran Affairs (VA). This
administration tends to nearly all the needs of veterans. But more than
what the government could mandate, it is the participation of all
businesses and individuals that makes serving rewarding and as such, makes
veterans special. It is breathtaking to see veterans honored in all major
sports activities. There is no major organization that fails to recognize
veterans. Nearly every organization makes considerations to provide
advantages for veterans. Whether it is restaurants, hotels or insurers,
they all provide special rates and packages to accommodate veterans.
Eritrea must do the same by embracing the values of the veterans that got
us here.
*CONCLUSION:*
Eritreans are naturally well-meaning, dedicated and humble servants of each
other. However, over time and when faced with persistent personal and
national challenges, glorious national values could be glossed over or
undermined. To remedy, we need to always be wrapped by Eritrean flag.
Since, that is the reason Eritrea sacrificed thousands and spent countless
years in agonizing hardships. Since, it is the purpose, the mission and a
way of life for every Eritrean that loves his or her country. For, it is
incumbent upon every Eritrean to honor those that served and died for her.
We can achieve success is by nurturing a nation worthy of their sacrifices,
by providing veterans and each other service at the highest level, with
love, and by respecting each other and the flag. For, that is the only way
that we can nurture a successful and prosperous Eritrea. Therefore, we need
to honor veterans nationally, in a process, with an organization and
dignity worthy of their sacrifices.
Received on Mon Dec 24 2012 - 00:03:00 EST
