*Eritrea’s path is clear *
*Amanuel Biedemariam*
That is only possible through dogged struggle by squashing-clearing every
little pesky, stony and thorny scrab along the way. Yesterday 12/13/2015,
Ambassador Girma Asmerom and Embassy of Eritrea’s public seminar in
Washington DC. The meeting was very informative and I shared my views on
line. This was a significant and important meeting. We have not had such a
meeting in a long time so it was a timely-desperately needed meeting. Above
all it addressed some important issues that have to do with our
communities. And it was important because it addressed our specific
responsibilities and how we can participate in order to make our lives and
most importantly the lives of the people in Eritrea successful.
To sum it up:
Eritrea is fighting an existential fight. The enemies do not want to see us
succeed as a country. These efforts are led by the US. Weyane is an eager
servant that jumps super-actively at every assignment. Djibouti is using
these as an opportunity to pocket money therefore the dispute between
Eritrea and Ethiopia serves them well.
They have tried all that they can to undermine our independence. After the
war ended and failed to accomplish its goal it was natural for them to move
to the next step. That is why they pursued the sanction and Somalia had
nothing to do with it. The Arms embargo therefore was designed to tie our
hands while our land is occupied.
Our diplomatic efforts are therefore designed to expose the lies and
challenge them pragmatically. Legalities and justice are none existent.
Everything they do is predicated upon their interest.
Eritrea is lucky in that we sit A) in one of the most important strategic
waterways B) Eritrea is rich we can sell fish and live on it not to mention
other resources that are abundant C) Eritrea is Endowed with the most
dedicated brilliant people. That also is what makes us a target hence, we
are careful on how we move forward.
We are the masters of our destiny. How they try to define us is not what we
are. We have our history, legacy and own stories to tell. No one can defend
for our rights it is only us and by us. These people that claim to be
concerned about Human Rights in Eritrea are part of the strategy designed
to undermine our very existence. Human Rights are tool they want to use to
deter others from doing business with Eritrea in order to make our economy
irrelevant and ensure that Eritrea does not become viable as a nation. To
that end they want to vacate Eritrean youth and stop them from building and
defending Eritrea.
Their campaigns are multipronged and consistent. It targets the president
because they feel if you get rid of the head the body falls apart.
President Isaias Afewerki has been and remains a target. By attacking the
president they are attacking the values and history associated with it.
They attack our history, our ways, culture, customs and values. They have
manufactured a fictitious culture and picture of Eritrea that does not look
anything like Eritrea. They are trying to define Eritrea as a country that
accepts women being raped everywhere. They are lying that anyone who uses
internet or watch TV goes to jail. There are lying aimlessly and endlessly.
They are also trying to make the global migration issue Eritrea specific.
Our diplomatic goals therefore are aiming to counter their lies and we
pursue matters our own way. Firstly, everywhere we go we talk about
Ethiopia’s occupation of Eritrean territories. Everything else is (“Chew
Berbere” Amabassador Girma) neither here nor there. Secondly, we talk about
the illegal immoral sanction.
The Role of the Diaspora is well defined and must be played effectively.
This requires us to understand our responsibilities and roles. Their aim is
to kill our economy. Our roles must be to support Eritrea’s economy however
we can. We have to promote, sell and buy Eritrean products. They have
targeted our music, cultural riches and arts. When a new song comes up they
copy it and sell it. Piracy of Eritrean Music and videos is prevalent on
YouTube. This is done deliberately to A) frustrate the artist and render
his/her work worthless. This has economic implications as well because
these artists are being denied the fruits of their work. This is done to
frustrate the artists and push them to quit. Music is tool of our struggle.
During our struggle music was one way that we communicated. By killing
Eritrean music they aim to kill our message. Hence, fighting this is our
responsibility.
We have to protect and defend Eritrean products. We also have to play
active role on developing and marketing our products with pride. For
example the coming New Year Eritrean women are urged to buy Eritrean Zuria
to help Eritrean economy.
All Eritreans are urged to play it smart and know how to challenge these
hostilities while building their nation and developing the economy. Stop
Hawalla practices. It is not smart. To trade dollar for Nakfa from a
country of dollars is not good for our economy. We have to be smart on how
we send money. Also, we need to ensure that we open accounts in Eritrea
with dollars. It could be a thousand or $500 and that will go a long way to
fight their attempts and help ensure our economic viability.
We have to send the messages however we can that no matter what they do
that their challenges will be met with stronger united challenge. We have
to write the Commission of Inquiry on Eritrea (COI) and tell them our
stories. Let them know that the 500 people they interviewed to craft the
history and life in Eritrea is not representative of our life. It does not
reflect the realities in Eritrea. We have to write to reach not only the
COI but all involved. That is our responsibility what we owe to our
martyrs.
Summary
We are in a good place as we have laid the foundation to a great economic
future that sees past the MDG’s of the world. As we usher this new era we
must understand that our challenges are going to mount. But we need to
understand that only Eritreans can solve Eritrean problems. One of the most
important points is that Eritrea owns her issues and that must never
change!
Action day at ECCC DC 600 L St. NW to write letters this Saturday December
19, 2015 all day. Sunday if Necessary
Awetnayu_at_hotmail.com
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Received on Mon Dec 14 2015 - 12:58:22 EST