“Ethiopia always has a special place in my imagination and the prospect of visiting Ethiopia attracted me more strongly than a trip to France, England, and America combined. I felt I would be visiting my own genesis, unearthing the roots of what made me an African.”
Open letter to members of the Security Council of the United Nations
In June 2018, the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) led ethno-centric repressive regime of Ethiopia came to an end after 27 years misrule, following a wave of popular protest for freedom, justice and democracy waged by Ethiopians across the country against gross violation of basic human rights and an underlying flawed system drowned to its neck by corrupt practices.
The new adminstration of Prime Minster Dr Abiy Ahmed ushered in several tangible political changes which gave hope to democratise Ethiopian and restore peace with its neighbours. While Ethiopia postponed its National parliamentary election due to Covid-19 Pandemic, the TPLF, in unprecedented act of defiance of the authority of the Federal Government, held its regional election in violation of the Constitution acting like a “de facto state”. We understand the Ethiopian Government ruled out the use force to resolve this political stand-off brought by the belligerent attitude of disgruntled leaders of Tigray region. All attempts by Ethiopian Civic Organisations to peacefully resolve the stand-off over two years fell on deaf ears.
On 4th November 2020, the TPLF has brazenly attacked the Northern Command of Ethiopia’s National Defence Forces (ENDF), in what they called a” pre-emptive lightning strike”. In the process of capturing heavy weaponry and strategic military resources to be used in further military confrontations the TPLF Special Forces killed hundreds of Ethiopian Defence soldiers in horrific circumstance.
The TPLF preceded its armed insurrection by destroying civilian infrastructure (roads, bridges, electricity and telephone transmission lines and mobile telephone and internet nodes), in what it called a “strategy of war”. TPLF Special Forces and Youth Militia have been engaged in ethnic targeted massacre in the city of Mai-Kadra, where over 600 mostly ethnic Amharas have been slaughtered in 2 days and some of the assailants have fled to join the refugee camps in Sudan.
In response, the Ethiopia Government has heeded calls from the public to bring those responsible to justice and to defend and uphold the constitutional order by launching a law enforcement operation in Tigray region which was largely completed within 17 days. We strongly believe, Ethiopian Government although unprepared for this conflict through its law and order enforcement operation in Tigray region has averted a massive humanitarian and security crisis which would have engulfed the whole of the Horn of Africa and likely spilled over to the shores of European countries. Ethiopians holds the fugitive TPLF leaders exclusively responsible for the avoidable humanitarian and political crisis in Tigray region.
While we share the concern of the UN, EU and other Partner Organisation on the humanitarian situation in Tigray, the Security Council must recognise Ethiopia sets its own security priorities as a sovereign state and it is the duty of the Government of Ethiopia to maintain law and order in its territory and protect the safety of its citizens. The Security Council must recognise the commitment of Ethiopia to provide humanitarian assistance to those affected by the conflict, provide unfettered access to international humanitarian agencies and investigate any human right abuses in Tigray region of Ethiopia.
We think the peace and stability of Ethiopian, a strategic nation in the horn of Africa with 110 million people, is paramount and the Security Council should not be duped by old repressive rulers and their lobbyists; and concerted misleading media reports bent to bring the Government of Ethiopia down and risk disintegration of the country if their minority agenda is not served.
We ask the Security Council to recognise the historical and current peace keeping commitments of Ethiopia in the region and work with the Government of Ethiopia rather than putting pressure and resorting to punitive measures which could back fire, as we all know too well the disastrous consequences such measures in the past. Ethiopians across the Globe resist any suggestions that put the unity and sovereign integrity of Ethiopia and its people in danger in the name of humanitarian assistance.
Ethiopian Communities in North America and Europe, 4 March 2021
The TPLF Junta: Grown Old or Grown UP?
by: Tibebu Wubetu (Dr)
Growing old is mandatory but growing up is optional. The Great evangelist, Billy Graham once said “when granted many years of life, growing old in age is natural but growing old with grace is a choice”.
At their young age most people tend to be full of emotions, energy, and vigour and have a great desire to go out and explore the world; see the good and the bad. Remember though, there are always eyes watching you- good and bad eyes.
The good eyes want to nurture you but the bad eyes want to devour you or destroy you. Both exploit the naivety of the youth. I am particularly addressing the youth of Tigray in these testing times.
We all know that the current and yet unfortunate situation in Tigray was triggered by the fact that the TPLF junta attacked the Northern Command Force and virtually carried out mutiny in attempted treason. This is an undeniable fact. One of TPLF’s high officials publicly admitted this to be the case by calling it a “pre-emptive lightning attack” on the Northern Command, when they massacred hundreds of innocent and unsuspecting soldiers.
Soldiers who lived in dug-out trenches to keep the people of Tigray and the rest safe, and in their spare time helping the poor farmers with their harvest and the local community building infrastructures. If you ever have any compassion or love for others and believe in the sanctity of life, you just cannot have the heart to justify this barbaric act. Therefore attacking the Northern Command was truly crossing the red line by any standard. The federal government has the duty to put this right and is expected to do so. The junta eyeing the federal government with belligerence was beyond belief.
What about the Mai-kadra slaughter of the innocent civilians and the mass graves around Humera airport, just to mention a few. Would anyone in their right mind justify this? This is an appeal to your conscience. Remember injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere.
Let’s also look at what happened over the past two and a half years. Hasn’t the federal government of Ethiopia been begging the TPLF junta to come in and take part in every political decision the country was making? Do you not remember breastfeeding mothers with tears down their cheeks pleading with Debretsion to stop his warmongering? Do you also remember the elders of the land traveling to Tigray to mediate and yet they were told “You are a bit too late for that” by the junta? All those two and a half years when the Federal government was talking about peace, the TPLF junta was digging trenches, building bunkers, amassing arms instead of creating employment for the youth of Tigray. Hasn’t the TPLF junta been preparing for war? Nobody in their right mind would fail to see this.
The bare truth is, all this happened because the junta’s ego to stay in power was hurt. Ever since they moved to Makele, they kept on dreaming about taking back Arat Kilo and therefore their preparation for war never ceased. Once more, not surprisingly, the junta pulled its narrow nationalist card out of the bag. You just need to say it and yet don’t need to provide any proof. This is the beauty of narrow nationalism. Narrow because it narrows your mind’s visual dimensions. It makes you tunnel-visioned and you’ll be devoid of lateral thinking. Who does not like to be told that ”you are different, you’re better, you could even be better if it had not been due to…….”
If there are those who could see the truth and don’t agree with you, you just brand them “traitors of the national cause, etc, etc”. That should keep them quiet. If that doesn’t, then there’re prisons, torture chambers, and extrajudicial killings. The youth of Tigray is being fed this poison wrapped in honey. The water of baptism by the TPLF is a cobra spit that blinds your eyes.
Such are the lies the TPLF junta has been spreading. Propaganda smeared with lies, tricks, intrigues, and corruption.
We know the TPLF has grown old but the question is, has it ever learned anything from its past? Has it really grown up?
Let us, for example, take the recent events. When the TPLF junta and its allies wrote the so-called “constitution”, it was the TPLF that ran the show, and yet they don’t even seem to remember the very constitution they had “written”. I’m sure, somewhere in there, it’d state that the power of the regional state cannot exceed that of the federal government. Wouldn’t that imply Tigray or any other regional state cannot impose a law that is in violation of the federal law? But what did the TPLF do? It defied virtually every law and every decision by the federal government up to and including the postponement of the general election which again was agreed and passed by the national parliament- the highest law-making body of the country.
Whether you like it or not, when you become a signatory to the federal republic, you’ve got to obey the rules and abide by the law of the country. Big decisions such as the declaration of war, entering treaties, raising and maintaining the armed force, regulating commerce, just to mention a few, are the responsibilities of the federal government and not of the local/regional states. Let’s be honest about this. Which one of the above (never mind a whole lot of things) has TPLF ever complied with? Has it just not been pushing everyone and everything around like a village bully?
The junta has grown old but it certainly has not grown up. It is insane not to learn from one’s mistake, not to realise growing old should also embrace grow old with grace. With growing up comes wisdom to know and understand oneself and to appreciate the needs of others, adapting to changes, and winning the love and respect of the people you govern.
Let’s all just remember, many had risen to power, and most had suffered precipitous falls and TPLF would not be an exception to this. One thing is for sure, neither the people nor the history of Ethiopia will ever remember them kindly.
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