The Truth About Ethiopia: Interview with Prof Tilahun Yilma

The Truth About Ethiopia: Interview with Prof Tilahun Yilma (University of 
California, Davis)

ETHIOPIAN REVIEW : NOVEMBER 1996 INTERVIEW:

In the long term, my strategy will not only regain Ethiopian unity and territorial
integrity, 

but it will also prevent Tigreans and Eritreans from destroying Ethiopia and themselves.

Prof. Tilahun Yilma:
By Elias Wondimu

Question: In the February 1996 issue of Ethiopian Review you suggested that

   Ethiopia should secede from the provinces of Tigray and Eritrea, to

   save the country from disintegration. When and how did you come up

   with this solution?

   Answer:  Before I answer your questions let me define some terms that I will  

   use in this interview. Mereb Melash is the historical name for the

   northern territory of Ethiopia, a colony of Italy from 1890-1941. The

   Italians renamed the region "Eritrea" on January 1, 1890, and called

   its inhabitants "Eritreans". "Ascaris" (Ashker), meaning servant or

   slave, is the Italian word for the Eritrean soldiers they used in

   their campaign to colonize Ethiopia. I have proposed that Ethiopians

   abandon use of this colonial (or slave) name and return to the

   historic name of Mereb Melash (ER, May 1996). I will define Eritreans

   as those Tigrigna-speaking peoples whose origins are from the

   highlands of Hamassen, Serae and Akele Guzai, comprising about one

   third of Mereb Melash. Ethiopians (non-Tigrigna speaking) who are

   natives of Mereb Melash include Afar, Saho, Beja, Bilen, Kunama, Nara,

   Tigre, etc. Similarly, when I refer to the province of Tigray, I am

   only referring to the region occupied by Tigrigna-speaking people. I

   am not including the non-Tigrigna speaking Ethiopians and their

   regions, which include members of the Raya, Azebo, Shire, Agame,

   Temben, and Endirta, etc. The Eritrean Peoples Liberation Front (EPLF)

   is an organization of Tigrigna-speaking people of Mereb Melash who

   fought for the independence of Eritrea from Ethiopia. The Tigre

   Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF) is an organization of

   Tigrigna-speaking people of the Province of Tigray, organized by the

   EPLF. EPLF/TPLF fought for the independence of both Tigray and Eritrea

   from Ethiopia. Their stated intent was to form a new country called

   "Greater Eritrea." They are now bent on destroying Ethiopia, their

   claimed arch enemy. Kilil, the Amharic word for a restricted zone, is

   the equivalent terminology used by the TPLF/EPLF for their apartheid

   concept of tribal homelands for their colony of Ethiopia.

   Interestingly, advocacy of kilil or ethnic policies in Eritrea is a

   capital offense.

   Now let me answer your question. About a year and half ago, after

   observing the actions of the TPLF/EPLF since taking power in Ethiopia

   in May 1991, I had occasions for extensive conversations with

   prominent TPLF/EPLF officials in Addis Abeba. These included former

   Prime Minister and current Defense Minister Tamrat Layne, the current

   Deputy Prime Minister Kassu Yilala, the personal physician of Prime

   Minister Meles, Dr. Muli Tekle, and other officials of TPLF/EPLF.

   During my numerous travels to Ethiopia over the past 8 years,

   undertaken on behalf of projects funded by the United Nations and the

   British Government, I was contacted and asked to official meetings

   with these people (with the exception of Dr. Muli, who sought me out

   at the Hilton Hotel where I was staying). These conversations as well

   as other personal observations have made it crystal clear to me that

   the TPLF/EPLF's immediate and overriding goal is the building of

   Tigray and Eritrea, without the least concern for the concomitant

   enslavement and impoverishment of 50 million non-Tigrigna speaking

   Ethiopians.

   Let me quote some of the typical conversations with officials that led

   me to conclude that the TPLF/EPLF's agenda for Ethiopia is its

   destruction. As a first example I will remind readers of the selection

   of Alemaya University, because of its long and distinguished

   background in agricultural sciences as the site of a World Bank

   project on semi-arid agriculture in East Africa. That undertaking was

   cancelled by the Meles regime. When I asked Ato Kassu Yilala about its

   fate, his response was: "since we felt that the provinces of Gojam,

   Gonder, and Wello are also semi-arid, we chose Mekele in Tigray

   Province as the site for this $10 million project." Further, let me

   also quote from a lengthy conversation with Dr. Muli, who stated: "We

   will never allow Ethiopia to use the free port of Djibouti instead of

   the Assab port, since that would bankrupt Eritrea." There is no

   concern for bankrupting Ethiopia. In fact, they know a weakened

   Ethiopia is advantageous to their ambitions.

   My political solution as proposed in the article "Ethiopia Should

   Secede From the Provinces of Tigray & Eritrea" grew out of these

   observations and careful study of the following realities:

   1) The independence of Eritrea under the EPLF was finalized by a

   referendum reportedly supported by 99.9% of the people of Eritrea, but

   with no participation of the Ethiopian people.

   2) The people of Tigray allied with Eritrea via TPLF to assist in the

   secession of Eritrea from Ethiopia. Like the "independent" nation of

   Eritrea, Tigray Province today has its own independent foreign policy

   and foreign trade ministries; no other province in Ethiopia is

   entitled to the same privileges.

   3) Ethiopia has been colonized and occupied by EPLF/TPLF forces:

   a) to plunder Ethiopia's resources for the exclusive building of

   Tigray and Eritrea.

   b) to destroy Ethiopia by waging ethnic and religious politics

   restricting Ethiopians to their kilil, and requiring that children be

   taught in tribal languages (of which there are more than 80), thus

   destroying the educational programs of Ethiopia and a unifying

   national language.

   c) to inflict irreversible environmental damage in Ethiopia through

   indiscriminate deforestation by fire, as well as the massive harvest

   of timber for shipment to Tigray and Eritrea. At the same time, the

   TPLF/EPLF has undertaken an extensive forestation program in Tigray

   and Eritrea with funds borrowed from the World Bank in Ethiopia's

   name: Ethiopia pays the bill and Tigray/Eritrea receives the goodies.

   This scorch Ethiopia policy is reminiscent of the crime committed by

   Sadam Hussein when he torched the oil fields of Kuwait. In both cases,

   it is a crime against humanity.

   d) to ruin the business community of Ethiopia by promoting unequal

   competition: Tigreans/Eritreans are allowed to market goods without

   the taxation imposed on Ethiopians. When that did not yield results

   quickly enough, the regime raised rents on Ethiopian business more

   than several thousand percent, the intent being to drive Ethiopians

   out of their shops and replace them with Tigreans/Eritreans. This

   process is designed to promote Tigreans/Eritrean businesses and

   effectively neutralize the boycott response of Ethiopians.

   Let me further elaborate my political manifesto. First, I believe that

   peoples should have the right to choose their citizenship. Thus,

   Eritreans and Tigreans should have the right to be independent, if

   that is the decision of the majority, and they must also accept the

   rights of self-determination for the non-Tigrigna speaking peoples of

   Mereb Melash, Tigray, and the rest of Ethiopia. However, that is not

   the case, as we all know. The people of Afar are being annihilated by

   the EPLF/TPLF because they want to remain Ethiopians while the EPLF

   wants to control the ports of Massawa and Assab, located in Afar

   regions.

   Second, it is a general truth that Eritreans and Tigreans have never

   shown gratitude for the opportunities given to them by the rest of

   Ethiopians over the past years. Without giving undue significance to

   my ethnic origins, let me say I belong to four groups: Oromo, Gurage,

   Amhara, and Tigray. I am not aware of any of my Oromo, Gurage, or

   Amhara relatives that have ever lived in Tigray or Eritrea. However,

   my paternal grandfather, Wolde-Ab Felema, migrated south to Dukem in

   rags, hungry, and penniless--as did hundreds of thousands of Tigreans

   and Eritreans--and was given one gasha of prime land, probably

   confiscated from my Oromo relatives. Non-Tigrigna speaking Ethiopians

   have generally received Tigreans/Eritreans with open arms and

   generosity, providing land, homes, education, and work opportunities

   unavailable in their barren homelands. Eritreans/Tigreans have filled

   government and university positions; they have opened successful

   businesses, and then often excluded other Ethiopians in hiring and

   promotions. Meanwhile, Emperor Haile Selassie preferentially diverted

   money and other resources to Eritrea. Yet, their response has been to

   complain incessantly. They have defamed the name of Ethiopia globally.

   The international presses are full of their imagined grievances: they

   cry that Ethiopia colonized Eritrea and made it an educational desert,

   and that Ethiopians have discriminated against them (New York Times,

   April 27, 1993; Africa Watch, January 12, 1993). In fact, however,

   they have always received a greater share of the national resources

   than has any other group.

   So we must ask what benefit for Ethiopia exists in the uneasy

   association with Tigray/Eritrea. They have brought only poverty, war,

   misery, and the cultural poisoning of the Ethiopian people by waging

   ethnic conflict. They are like a malignant cancer that has been eating

   away at our vital parts. If we don't excise this cancer promptly,

   Ethiopia will cease to be a nation. Tigreans/Eritreans have drafted

   into the so-called New Ethiopian Constitution articles allowing

   secession and requiring restriction of ethnic groups to their tribal

   regions or kilils. We now should demand that they be the primary

   beneficiaries of their own laws: they should be deported to their own

   kilil, and Ethiopia as a nation should secede from the

   Tigrigna-speaking regions of the Provinces of Tigray and Mereb Melash.

   Q. Assuming that you stand for the unity and territorial integrity of

   Ethiopia, how do you reconcile your call for the separation of a part

   of Ethiopia with your stand on Ethiopian unity?

   A. The unity and territorial integrity of Ethiopia became a moot issue

   when the EPLF/TPLF "won" their war, and the Province of Tigray and

   Eritrea became independent. Tigreans and Eritreans are in Ethiopia not

   because they are proud Ethiopian citizens, but to rape the resources

   of Ethiopia in order to build their new country (Eritrea/Tigray) at

   our expense. Burying our head in the sand like an ostrich facing

   mortal danger is not going to make the TPLF/EPLF disappear. The sooner

   Ethiopians recognize reality, the better the chance to rescue a nation

   at risk. Under the present circumstances, my plan will eventually

   regain Ethiopian unity and territorial integrity when we accomplish

   the following objectives:

   First, we must remove Tigreans/Eritreans from Ethiopia and return them

   to their kilil, if the disintegration of the rest of Ethiopia is to be

   stopped.

   Second, our liberation fronts in the south should join hands with

   fellow citizens such as the Afar people in the province of Tigray and

   Mereb Melash. The Eritreans, who led a 30-year battle for their own

   self-determination, have shown absolutely no respect for the

   self-determination for the majority of non-Tigrigna speaking people of

   the region, including members of the Saho, Kunama, Hidarib, Rashaida

   Nara, and Afar. These people live in the region stretching from the

   ports of Assab and Djibouti in the south to Massawa in the north,

   including Danakil and Dahlak. The main purpose of EPLF's occupation of

   Afar Region is to generate income by taxing goods coming to and from

   Ethiopia; this policy also fulfills the colonial design to landlock

   Ethiopia and ensure its vulnerability and dependency on Eritrea. We

   should direct our full energy to helping our fellow citizens who are

   fighting to gain or retain their Ethiopian nationality and territorial

   integrity; then all Ethiopians would have a chance to become part of a

   political entity emphasizing democracy without tribalism, ensuring the

   rights of all by eliminating domination by any one ethnic group.

   Third, The Central Highlands should be designated a country for

   Tigreans and Eritreans exclusively. They have declined Ethiopian

   citizenship and have shown no gratitude for their opportunities in

   Ethiopia, instead choosing to regard Ethiopia as the arch enemy and

   bringing the devastation of a war for independence. Now let them enjoy

   their newly gained independence and the deprivations that will surely

   accompany it. All TPLF/EPLF members and their secessionist

   Tigrigna-speaking supporters should be deported from Ethiopia to the

   newly-formed country, which they may then call by the colonial or

   slave name of Eritrea if they wish. We can see now that Ethiopia's

   policy of appeasement towards Tigreans/Eritreans was a total failure,

   and it should never be tried again. We should learn from the Italian

   experience: they treated Eritreans as slaves for 60 years and never

   allowed them to be educated beyond the fourth grade. And yet Eritreans

   admire, glorify, and even revere their Italian masters, emulating the

   Italian way of life in mannerisms, food, and language while nursing

   hatred and disdain for Ethiopians.

   Fourth, I assure you that Tigreans and Eritreans will not be able to

   survive in that arid land for long. They will soon return, begging to

   regain their Ethiopian nationality. Soon, after experiencing misery

   and hunger, they will be craving the gold (Ethiopia) that they have

   discarded as copper. That will be the time to define a relationship

   with them that will ensure they will never have another chance to

   threaten Ethiopia. In the long term, my strategy will not only regain

   Ethiopian unity and territorial integrity, but it will also prevent

   Tigreans and Eritreans from destroying Ethiopia and themselves.

   Q. Some Tigreans and Eritreans who read your articles have accused you

   of being extreme and a hate-monger. What is your response?

   A. What a coincidence--this problem must run in my family line! The

   Eritrean Ascaris and their Italian masters accused my great-uncle,

   Gebeyehu Gora, of being a terrorist and a hate-monger during the

   battle of Adwa, but to Ethiopians he was one of the most celebrated

   heroes of the war (Gebeyehu bimot teteka Balcha; Medf agelabach bcha

   lebcha). Similarly, they accused my father of terrorism during the

   Fascist occupation of Ethiopia. He bore service wounds from 13 machine

   gun bullets of Fascist Italy and the Eritrean Ascaris.

   A classic strategy of Tigreans/Eritreans, in addition to harassment

   and threats of physical violence, is to resort to character

   assassination and personal attack, hoping to divert attention from the

   real issues. They have used these techniques effectively to silence

   Ethiopians from speaking out. That reaction has now changed:

   Ethiopians are speaking out because they recognize now the TPLF/EPLF

   cancer (the enemy within) that is eating away at the vital parts of a

   3,000-year-old nation. They also know that "hatred" for an enemy is in

   fact a prerequisite if a nation is to rally its citizens in a battle

   for survival. But let us explore who the real hate-mongers truly are

   by providing a few examples of the many atrocities inflicted by

   Tigreans/Eritreans on Ethiopians:

   1) Who callously expelled 200,000 Ethiopians from Eritrea (mainly

   women and children, empty-handed after their homes and property were

   confiscated)?

   2) Was it not Netsannet Asfaw, Meles's spokeswoman, who demanded that

   these people be banished and removed from her sight when they arrived

   in Addis Abeba on foot? There was no sense of responsibility or

   compassion for these displaced persons, the "Unforgiven Ethiopians"

   (New York Times, November 3, 1993).

   3) Who advocated on the TPLF/EPLF media the ethnic cleansing of

   Amharas that led to the slaughter of innocent woman and children in

   the various provinces of Ethiopia such as Harer, Arsi, etc.?

   4) Who selectively instituted an apartheid policy of Bantustanization

   in Ethiopia, a first by Africans for other Africans? When the

   TPLF/EPLF marched in Addis Abeba in May 1991, Meles Zenawi discarded

   our national flag as a piece of meaningless rag and hoisted his

   TPLF/EPLF colors. Should we assume this was a gesture of love and

   goodwill towards the people of Ethiopia? This is the same flag that

   Fatuma Roba and many other proud Ethiopians waved in front of billions

   of people around the world during the Olympic games in Atlanta. This

   is also the same flag with which the great Emperor Menelik rallied his

   people to win the Battle of Adwa against the Italians and their

   Eritrean Ascaris. They struggled and sacrificed to keep Ethiopia

   intact as one of the oldest independent nations in the world, with its

   rich culture and literature and proud people. Yet, our Modern Eritrean

   Ascaris, Meles and Issayas, backed by their new masters, the US and

   Israel, will destroy Ethiopia if unchallenged.

   Eritreans have defined Ethiopians as the enemy in numerous press

   releases and publications, including the June 1996 issue of the

   National Geographic. In the same article, they state that they were

   able to beat Ethiopia only when they were able to overcome ethnic and

   religious conflicts in Eritrea. Now they are implementing policies of

   just such conflict in Ethiopia, fully realizing the consequences.

   Recent coverage by Michael Scholar on Eritrea (July 18, 1996) in

   National Public Radio's Morning Edition program clearly shows who is

   the hate-monger. It was reported that the Eritrean Government has

   commissioned the writing of new songs and plays to teach their

   children, so that they will never forget the Eritrean "freedom

   fighters" who gained "independence" for Eritrea, and never lose their

   hatred for the Ethiopian enemy. Yet, Issayas and his Ambassador in

   Addis Abeba proclaim that Ethiopia and Eritrea are to be one country.

   They have legitimized hatred for the Amharas, and even made it a

   requirement for advancementjof course that is not considered

   hate-mongering.

   As I understand it, it appears more likely that Ethiopia is to be

   condemned to remain a colony of Tigray/Eritrea, which they will

   dismantle at will to ship the resources to Tigray and Eritrea. Even

   Fascist Italy, once considered the arch enemy of Ethiopia, did not

   inflict the same degree of damage on Ethiopia in such a short period.

   Graziani and Mussolini built an extensive infrastructure--roads,

   bridges, and buildings--in Ethiopia, instead of bundling up our assets

   for shipment to Tigray/Eritrea. What did they expect the Ethiopian

   people to do when their plans became obvious? Are they offended that

   we do not reward them with medals for a job well done? This reminds of

   an old Ethiopian story about a bully and his victim, whom he beat

   unmercifully. When the police arrived, the bully started screaming,

   charging his victim of assault and battery. In amazement, the victim

   looked into the eye of the policeman, and said, Sir, this bully just

   stole my complaint (chuheten kemang). Similarly, I feel that my

   complaint has been stolen by Tigreans/Eritreans, including Hailu

   Mengesha and Tecola Hagos of TPLF and Mesfin Araya. I am accused of

   being a hate-monger, but other Ethiopians or I have never advocated

   that we go to Tigray/Eritrea to destroy the people, wage ethnic

   politics, or rape their resources. How could two peoples,

   Tigreans/Eritreans, without a trace of scruples (yulugnta) and the

   other, Ethiopians, culturally burdened with excessive scruples and

   magnanimity, live in harmony together? Right now, Ethiopians in their

   own country are victimized and abused mercilessly by

   Tigreans/Eritreans. Let us not forget that, for the Ethiopian people,

   there is no obvious benefit and only economic suffering and pain in

   the current relationship between Ethiopia and the provinces of Tigray

   and Eritrea. There is no southward flow of resources and goods, except

   for thousands of poor, rapacious, and ungrateful immigrants. None of

   my Oromo, Gurage, and Amhara family members reside in or benefit from

   Tigray or Eritrea. If the people of Tigray/Eritrea truly want

   independence, they should at least obey their own kilil policy and

   move back to their own tribal regions.

   Q. Several Ethiopians have expressed support for your idea by writing

   letters to ER and contacting you directly. On the other hand, others

   including well known figures such as Drs. Mankelkelot HaileSelassie

   and Mesfin Araya came out against your suggestion. Tsegaye Gebremedhin

   Araya of TOBIA magazine said that Ethiopia without Tigray cannot be

   called Ethiopia and warned that your suggestion is dangerous.

   Ethiopian Register magazine, a self-proclaimed advocate of Ethiopian

   unity, said that it would not even print such an idea in its pages.

   What is your answer to the critics? And how do you evaluate the level

   of support you have gotten so far?

   A. I would say that a majority of Ethiopians have been grateful for my

   words, since many have been intimidated by these bullies. Many have

   told me that I have spoken in public what Ethiopians routinely discuss

   in private. Printing of these articles has given many the courage to

   express similar views publicly. And yet many Eritreans and Tigreans

   who have been friends of mine for decades now consider me as the

   enemy. Some, including a member of TAND whom Hailu Mengesha uses as an

   envoy to send messages to me, have actually expressed death threats on

   the phone. It is interesting to note that not a single

   Tigrean/Eritrean has come to my support, although you find

   non-Tigreans on both sides of the issue. This is no different from

   previous observations that there has not been a single demonstration

   by any Eritrean/ Tigrean group protesting the activities of the

   TPLF/EPLF at home or abroad. If anything, they have wholeheartedly

   rallied in support of the TPLF/EPLF, with the lame excuse that

   anything is better than the Derg regime. During Meles Zenawi's recent

   visit, Tigreans and Eritreans residing in Washington, D.C., received

   him with flowers and cheers while Ethiopians of all other ethnic

   background held protest marches. At a reception for Meles in the

   Ethiopian Embassy in Washington, only Tigrean embassy staff members

   were allowed to be present. Other embassy staff members were given a

   day off because they are not to be trusted. Last January, four

   non-Tigrigna speaking embassy staff members finally resigned in

   disgust.

   Dr. Mankelkelot HaileSelassie and the others have their right to

   oppose my ideas. However, you should note that our disunity has become

   the greatest strength of the TPLF/EPLF, and accounts for the failure

   of Ethiopia to dislodge the enemy. You must also remember that many of

   these Ethiopian organizations were organized indirectly by EPLF's

   Issayas, and played a key role in the independence of Eritrea in the

   name of "the right of nationalities for self-determination." I do feel

   sorry for Ethiopia though when it has citizens more occupied with the

   rights of their enemies to destroy Ethiopia than of Ethiopia's right

   to exist; they need to rally behind their country at this time to

   prevent disintegration.

   Dr. Mesfin Araya is also entitled to his opinion. I suggest that he,

   as well as Hailu Mengesha and Tecola Hagos, should get the courage, as

   Meles and Issayas did, to go to Tigray and Eritrea and convince the

   people there to organize an army of even 1,000 persons that stands for

   the unity of Ethiopia. When and if they decide to take that course, I

   am sure all Ethiopians will stand with them. After all, the people of

   Eritrea have raised an army of 100,000 for Issayas and the people of

   Tigre have raised an army of 90,000 for Meles.

   Some say that I should not condemn all Tigreans and Eritreans as

   enemies, since many of them are for Ethiopian unity. Yet, I have not

   seen a single organization in Eritrea or Tigray fighting the TPLF/EPLF

   except for our fellow Afar citizens. However, I would no longer trust

   the direct participation of any ethnic Eritrean or Tigrean to fight

   alongside me; I would not risk the security and survival of Ethiopia.

   Let us remember that Haile Selassie and Mengistu trusted many high

   level Tigreans and Eritreans in their cabinets who turned out to be

   working with the EPLF/TPLF against Ethiopia. A classic example, among

   many, is the former high official in both the Haile Selassie and the

   Derg regimes, Dr. Berket-Ab Habte Selassie, who served as Justice

   Minister of Ethiopia, now an avowed Eritrean nationalist and Ethiopia

   hater. The TPLF/EPLF Ambassador in Washington dismissed non-Tigrigna

   speaking staff during the visit by Meles Zenawi because they were not

   to be trusted. I think Ethiopians should follow his example and be

   wary of including any Tigreans/Eritreans in their struggle against

   this regime.

   Some say it is unfair to treat Tigreans and Eritreans as a single

   package. Historically, they are one people; the division is a product

   of the Italian colonization of Mereb Melash. They share the same

   language and culture. Most Ethiopians cannot tell a Tigrean from an

   Eritrean, and they clearly and unequivocally demonstrated their

   homogeneity when the EPLF/TPLF joined in their struggle for

   independence of Eritrea and Tigray provinces. Last but not least, this

   alliance has announced publicly that Ethiopia is their arch enemy, and

   Issayas has boasted he will cause turmoil in Ethiopia that will last

   for the next 100 years. So we must deal with both Tigreans and

   Eritreans as one, not only because they have shown us it is a fair

   assessment, but also as a matter of security. How will Ethiopia

   protect itself from Eritrean enemies if they enter Ethiopia as

   Tigreans? Are we going to ask "loyal" Ethiopians such as Hailu

   Mengesha and Tecola Hagos of TPLF/EPLF and Mesfin Araya to guard our

   borders from infiltrating Eritreans? Is this not just the strategy of

   the hyenas guarding the donkey (adgi) farm?

   Ato Tsegaye Gebremedhin Araya of TOBIA magazine is entitled to his

   opinion as well. However, you should realize he has reconsidered and

   retracted what he wrote in his latest issue of Tobia. After receiving

   an avalanche of criticism by fax and phone from all over the world,

   including Ethiopia, in protest against his article, he is now bending

   over backwards to mend fences. I would like to encourage everyone to

   read an eloquent response to Tobia by Girma Bekele in the October

   issue of Ethiopian Register. There is also a response to Tobia by

   Professor Habte Giorgis Churnet in the same issue.

   Ato Tsegaye's original thesis is seriously flawed: 1) The idea that

   Tigreans and Eritreans as people are not responsible for the mess in

   Ethiopia is ludicrous. If Meles and Issayas have accomplished this

   single-handedly, it makes a better story than that of Jesus feeding

   5,000 people with only 5 loaves and 2 fishes. Perhaps we should

   canonize both Meles and Issayas for these miracles, or at least

   nominate them for a Nobel prize in science: Meles has converted into

   90,000 Tigre soldiers and Issayas into 100,000 Eritrean soldiers. Is

   it not amazing that both have been able to shatter the laws of physics

   that declare matter or energy cannot be created or destroyed?

   Tsegay's second point is that all Ethiopians originate from the

   Aksumite Empire (Tigray). I know many Ethiopians whose origins (more

   than 80 tribes) include other provinces of Ethiopia. His other

   argument, that Ethiopia in not Ethiopia without Tigray, is wrong,

   since the Aksumite Empire also comprised most of Mereb Melash

   including Hamassen, Akele Guzai, Serae and the Red Sea port of Adulis,

   not far from Massawa. And I believe we still have a country called

   Ethiopia without Eritrea.

   In regard to Ethiopian Register's unwillingness to print my article on

   secession, let me point out that they have printed articles by Prof.

   Habte Georgis Churnet articulating his views of Eritrean nationals as

   enemies of Ethiopia (I wholeheartedly support his views, and

   congratulate him for his courage), and recently they asked me to

   submit future articles on other topics to them. More importantly,

   Ethiopian Register has not served as a forum for the propaganda

   machinery of the TPLF/EPLF, unlike Ethiopian Review which has

   published articles undermining the Ethiopian movement toward justice,

   including the one suggesting Ethiopia should mourn the passing of its

   hero Hyelom, a TPLF/EPLF military general, written by Tecola Hagos

   (ER, April 1996). It should not be assumed that I will write only for

   the Ethiopian Review. At the end of the day, I am more concerned with

   how the people of Ethiopia, currently under the yoke of the TPLF/EPLF,

   respond to my articles than I am with the reactions of

   Tigrean/Eritreans in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. And so far the

   response from Ethiopians in Ethiopia has been wildly positive, more

   than I could ever have imagined. The view of Hailu Mengesha, Tecola

   Hagos, and Mesfin Araya that this movement will blow over is clearly

   just a lot of wishful thinking.

   I can evaluate my level of support by the appreciative letters, phone

   calls, and speaking invitations that I have received. I have been

   overwhelmed by the enthusiasm for my ideas from Ethiopians all over

   the world. At Alemaya College, over a thousand students responded with

   astanding ovation at the end of my seminar, especially when I told

   them to discard the ethnic policy of our enemy, the TPLF/EPLF. They

   stood in line for hours to ask me to autograph their ID cards before I

   could leave the campus, even though we were completely surrounded by

   TPLF/EPLF soldiers brandishing machine guns.

   Q. How do you view the fact that members of other ethnic groups are

   collaborating with the current regime?

   A. This is not surprising; there are traitors (banda) in every nation.

   We had them during the occupation by fascist Italy, and during the

   Battle of Adwa. I assure you that there will always be traitors

   around.

   Q. Do you put forward this idea of secession as an immediate solution,

   or long-term solution?

   A. This is an immediate solution, to be in force until Tigreans and

   Eritreans discover that without Ethiopia they will have very little

   food for their population. When they return begging for their

   Ethiopian citizenship, we will need a referendum on the conditions

   under which the Ethiopian people are willing to take them back.

   Frankly, I don't know that Ethiopians will be interested in inviting

   back such a source of misery. They may resort to the old Gurage

   philosophy, deciding that just like socialism, there is no profit in

   dealing with thieves. I believe Ethiopia should not give them

   citizenship status. They could, however, consider giving the territory

   a protectorate status under Ethiopia.

   Q. Are you planning to actively campaign for the secession of Ethiopia

   from the two provinces? How are you going to conduct the campaign?

   A. Our campaign has two fronts: 1) to educate the people of Ethiopia

   to recognize their enemy, and to assist in every way possible to

   deport Tigreans and Eritreans back to their kilil. 2) to coordinate a

   united front between Ethiopian freedom fighters such as the Afars in

   Tigray and Mereb Melash with other freedom fighters in the rest of

   Ethiopia. As you are aware, the Afar people live in the region

   stretching from the ports of Assab and Djibouti in the south to

   Massawa in the north, including Danakil and Dahlak. How this might be

   implemented will not be discussed in a public forum, but we are now

   organizing a major fund-raising campaign for our fellow citizens, the

   freedom fighters of Afar.

   Q. Do you have any message to ER readers?

   A. Yes I do. But let me first say that the questions and issues raised

   in this interview are thoroughly discussed in my articles that have

   been published in Ethiopian Review, including "Ethiopia Should Secede

   from the Provinces of Tigray & Eritrea" (February 1996);"The

   Bantustanization of Ethiopia" (April 1996); and "A Strategy for the

   Reunification of Mereb Melash (Eritrea) with Ethiopia" (May 1996). In

   addition, I strongly recommend that Ethiopians and friends of Ethiopia

   interested in an in-depth exploration of the current Ethiopian

   national crisis read "The pillage of Ethiopia by Eritreans & Their

   Tigrean Surrogates" by Dr. Assefa Negash (Adey Publishing). My short

   letter published in the editorial section of The New York Times on

   April 24, 1996 sheds further light on the deliberate destruction of

   the Ethiopian educational system by Meles and Issayas.

   I offer the following advice to your readers, in particular to those

   who believe in Ethiopian unity: First, get involved. Every citizen has

   an obligation to defend the nation, and it is a great privilege for

   those of us who can help our people in their time of desperate need.

   You may never have another opportunity to make a difference, to help

   save your country from disintegration. If Ethiopia is destroyed, that

   chance is gone forever. Second, stop apologizing for Tigreans and

   Eritreans; they are doing a fine job of destroying our country without

   this aid and comfort. If you are unable to help, or are too selfish to

   care about your fellow Ethiopians, don't take the role of the banda

   (traitor) - at least have the decency to remain neutral. Finally, all

   the opposition groups must join forces. As you are aware, I have

   published a number of articles in Ethiopian Review challenging the

   opposition forces to unify. Please allow me to repeat: There will be

   plenty of time for learned discourse or expression of diverse views

   and political beliefs once we have rescued our motherland. It does not

   matter who has the right to sleep in the master bedroom of a house

   that is on fire. If we cannot come together and meet our obligations

   to solve a major national crisis, then we will have truly earned the

   scorn of our enemies and the destruction facing us, as well as the

   bitter legacy bequeathed to our posterity.

   Let me close my interview by relating a true story of an Ethiapian

   mother who was diagnosed with a malignant cancer in one breast. She

   refused to have her breast removed, unable to envision living with a

   single breast and never believing that the cancer would metastasize

   and kill her. Many Ethiopians attended her funeral on September 21,

   1996 in San Jose, California. She lost not only a breast but also her

   life. In the process, she orphaned four children and widowed a

   husband. I pray we do not allow this fate for Mother Ethiopia!

   Note by Aberra Molla

   The above English HTML document is not an exact copy of the original

   interview as published in the November 1996 issue of Ethiopian Review

   magazine. Some of the Amharic words in brackets were replaced by

   Amharic-English (Amharic in English alphabet) words and these may not

   make sense to those who do not know Amharic. These words will be typed

   in Ethiopic or non-Ethiopic Amharic characters at a later time.

   Copyright (c) 1966 Ethiopian Review Magazine

   Comments to: Ethiopian Review or aberra@ethiopic.com