Storms of change in the Horn of Africa

An Article from ALFAJAR

A HORN OF AFRICA WEEKLY NEWSPAPER PUBLISHED IN LONDON

By Yahia Al-Awad. Editor-in-Chief

Volume 2, Issue No. 95 March 7, 1999

EVEN THOUGH I belong to the generation of the liberation struggle, I was amazed during my recent two-day visit to Asmara to see before my eyes the past intertwined with the future. Eritrea today is the embodiment of a bridge linking two periods: the period of the three decades of the liberation struggle, with all its vigor, valor and immense sacrifices; and the period of the future which begins from today and radiates with the Eritreans’ absolute certainty and determination to be their own masters. Their elders are still at the forefront of the battle and their leaders keep their swords keen and ready to hand. Not only do the people of Eritrea live in their country, but also Eritrea lives inside them. They surmount one obstacle, only to face another, as if freedom-or life itself - is a journey between one problem and the next. This is their destiny: be it peacetime or war, they have become accustomed to sleeping with one eye open and are always ready to pay the price of their glory and dignity. They possess a clear vision which enables them to judge situations wisely. Their motto: "let your opponent say whatever he wants to say and do whatever he is capable of doing" testifies to their perspicacity.

The people of Eritrea show magnanimity towards their enemy- a noble approach which was much in evidence when the soldiers at Badme and Zalambesa addressed their enemy by saying:

"Hand over your weapons: the enemy is the one behind you."

A journalist friend of mine who had arrived recently from the front lines said, "Our first reaction when we saw the trenches at the Assab front was one of surprise and puzzlement; The walls had been built using granite rocks and stood as if they were miniature version of the Great Wall of China. We were curious to know how the soldiers had managed to transport these giant stones to this place and transform them into fortifications and tunnels within only eight months. During our first night we felt the veneration and awe of these walls; however it was not long before their protective function made us familiar with them."

"As the danger loomed," my friend continued, "we felt the companionship of the earth. We desperately clung to the ground when an Antonov aircraft raided the area. The bombs missed us but split open the head of a child in her first year. Look, this is her picture," he said. I closed my eyes. "We hurried to the debris of the house which had been blown up by the plane’s bombs," continued the journalist, while proffering more photographs "look, no one but the chicken survived the blast," he murmured, pointing to the total destruction of the house with its inhabitants. This time I peeped at the photograph. To my surprise, I saw a picture of a chicken standing in the middle of the recent bloodbath. "How on earth did this chicken survive the blast?" I inquired. "Probably it is a jinni chicken" he replied unsmilingly, and went on with history. "We were there when their leaders announced that they had bombed the water reservoir of Assab; the bombs missed their target and no harm was done to the runway. Have you ever before learnt of a military communiqué boasting at having targeted a civilian installation?! It is more usual when such an installation is hit for the perpetrators quickly to deny having done it or if there is no way out, to apologize for the incident," he remarked. There is something about this war which is eerie and yet it draws both one’s sadness and compassion at the same time.

"Can you believe that the Ethiopian prisoners-of -war were carrying them a street map of Asmara and clear instructions on how to deal with the inhabitants of the city after occupation?" he said in astonishment and continued, "they were also carrying strange warnings that we do not understand and which we do not inquire about, such as one forbidding them to use the city’s baths and another not to eat oranges because the Shabia had poisoned them." "What do you expect?" I replied.

I proceeded to relate to him some of my observation: "The whole of the Horn of Africa is in state of flux; black storms accompanied by the impotent rumbaing of thunder and disintegration are looming over the three largest countries of the Horn: Ethiopia, the Sudan, and Somalia. Djibouti is shaking from the aftermath of the Horn of Africa’s political earthquake. Eritrea alone is the odd one out: there is no seam in its national unity and as time passes its national unity is becoming more and more strong. However, is it going to be able to withstand these storms?

"What do you think?" I asked, expecting him to give me opinion," Forget my opinion," he replied. I have listened on Egyptian satellite television to the comments made by Dr. Hilmi Sharawi, the renowned expert on African affairs, when he was asked by the program’s presenter," What is your opinion on the role of Eritrea in stirring up trouble among its neighbors?"

Dr. Hilmi replied, "Do you mean its rational approach? This nation seized its independence by force and helped its allies to seize power in Addis Ababa; and yet it refused to declare it and withstood the criticism of it opponents. The new government honored the promises that it made in 1990 to conduct a referendum within two years and, as promised, it declared its independence officially after carrying out the referendum under the auspices of the United Nations. Despite the fact that it was its tanks that stormed into the palaces of Addis Ababa, the Eritrean government awarded the ripe fruit of power to its allies. Even then it did not boast about its actions, it did not condescend to its allies, and it avoided talking about their role. It also took the same rational stand in its dispute with Yemen over the Hanish Archipelago, declaring beforehand its acceptance of the verdict of the international Court of Arbitration. From day one of its dispute with Ethiopia, Eritrea has clearly stated that the border dispute cannot be solved by staging a war; it has presented different proposals for solving the dispute peacefully, and has cooperated with all who were trying to find a peaceful settlement." Is it out of order," exclaimed my friend," for a government, whose sole interest is to solve this conflict peacefully, to ask for some proposal presented to it by the OAU, bearing in mind it also played a pivotal role in formulating the main aspects to that proposal? What is wrong in saying ‘let both armies withdraw their forces from the disputed area?’

"Ethiopia says it accepts the Proposal and Eritrea says the proposal is predominantly her policy; therefore, one would have thought they have agreed to solve the dispute peacefully. Yet Ethiopia started the war, and this I do not understand. Did I not tell you there is something strange about this conflict?" My friend asked, with a sense of frustration. " We are going to see the end of this war sooner rather than later, but the storms of change still linger," I quietly remarked.