For the last 20 years, Turkey has been investing heavily in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. This rapid expansion is following the grand ambition of Erdogan to make Turkey great again.
To make his dreams come to reality, Erdogan government is investing heavily in Somalia and other parts of Africa. Today, many centers are established by Turkish businessmen and institutions in Somalia.
Turkish expansion has also took footsteps in Ethiopia, especially in Tigray Region. Textile industries are expanding and other large industrial complex centers are under plan for construction.
With the curent pace, the Ottomanization of Tigray Region of Ethiopia is coming soon. Hundreds of hectares of land are now occupied by industrial complex and production is booming.
With the opening of Eritrea-Ethiopian relationship, Eritrea will be beneficiary of the merchadies trasportation through the Red Sea ports, especially Massawa. This new era is another chapter of the lost trade relationship controlled by Turkish deputies (Na’ibs) in Massawa which stayed for more than 300 years(1557 – 1869).
Although Eritrea remained a closed state for the last 27 years, Ethiopia became the center of attraction for investors. And this can expand to Eritrea of friendly economic policies are outlined.
It is hard to evaluate Turkish invesent impact in Eritrea at this moment. However, it is good to look historical contexts that need to be considered seriously for any future business activities.
Ottoman Empire and Slave Trade
Ottoman Empire is known for its vast Slave Trade aactivity in the Horn of Africa.
Massawa was its empire provice city center in the horn of Africa. Hundreds of thousands of slaves were taken through the Port of Massawa to serve in many sectors run by the Ottoman Sultanates.
These slaves were making them unable to reproduce and continue their generation. Because of these, East African Slave generations are extnicted with almost no trace.
This inhumane act of Ottoman Empire in the horn of Africa is not yet told. Therefore, any trade agreement with Turkish government should be thoroughly investigated with full transparency.
Doing business supported by heavy government funds can be a means to colonization.
The recent development in Zambia through Chinese expansion is an alarm for many Africans. And, Turkey has a grand ambition of re-inventing its past glory by creating strong economic ties with former Ottoman empire provinces.
For the last 27 years, Eritrean Orthodox Church has expanded rapidly in the world with the help of immigrants. However, the PFDJ controls most of the Church day-to-day activities through its agents.
These Agents are trained Political Cadres who work under the cover of priesthood, deacons and Sunday Bible Teachers and Activity organizers.
Although the Church followers are political refugees, in most cases they have no other alternative but attend church centers managed by these PFDJ sponsored agents. Bevause of this, there are occasional conflicts inside the churches.
The video below is a scenario happened in Milan, Italy. The people are chasing out the PFDJ Agent Priests from the church. It is sad to see the conflict between the people and the ruling regime members in the side the church.
This is the beginning of the greater to come civil unrest in Eritrea. I call all Eritreans and other concerned international bodies to do thorough studies in order to find reconciliatory solutions before it becomes too late. Otherwise, there will be another Babylon phenomenon in Church.
In this video below, the General Secretary of the Eritrean Orthodox Church Synods, Abune Lucas has accused Eritrean Patriarch Abune Antonios as one who did traison by following other dogmas which is not accepted by the Church.
Patriarch Antonios was elected as head of the Eritrean Orthodox Church and within a short time in service, he was forced to be removed from his post and put in prison since 2006. Today, he is under house arrest, making it almost 13 years.
Although the Orthodox Church has appointed other Partiarch and continued to do so until the death if the third Patriarch in 2014, the action of removing Patriarch Antonios from his position is unlawful. It has received strong condemnation by sister Oriental Orthodox churches.
The damage to the Orthodox Church is quite visible. Now, the Church has two different administration systems working inside and outside Eritrea.
The one which is working inside Eritrea is controlled by PFDJ. It has become an instrument in the sustainability of PFDJ dictatorial regime.
Outside Eritrea, the Church is further divided into those who oppose the regime but who believe in the oneness of the Church, and other USA based Eritrean Orthodox Church headed by Abune Merkorios which opposes any political meddling in Church affairs.
The combined effect of meddling Church and politics has produced a great damage to the once united and strong Eritrean Orthodox church.
Note: the cover photo shows the most notorious and main agent of PFDJ inside the Church. He is one of the architect of Banning Pentecost Church and persecution of its members by encouraging the government to take actions. His followers are now scattered throughout the world preaching radical teachings which has zero tolerance against other religions, especially Pentecost.
Sectarianism is not uncommon in Eritrean political history. After Italians lost their colony in Eritrea, Eritreans faced a serious challenge to secure a free and independent country simply because of their sectarian politics. The diehard Orthodox Christians and Muslims were unable to overcome their religious prejudice. Instead, each group worked for their interest.
The Orthodox Christians were in favor of the Ethiopian monarchy simply because they had a perception that their religious values and threats can be secured if they can join Ethiopia. This fear-based political perception was exploited by opportunists to solidify Ethiopian interference in Eritrean politics. This sectarianism soon developed to become an ideological background and mobilization strategy by then formed strong and Ethiopian backed Unionist Party which was working under the guidance of the head of the Eritrean Orthodox Church, Abune Markos.
On the other hand, Eritrean Muslims were against Ethiopian aggressive expansion agenda mainly in fear of their religious values and discrimination. Therefore, The Muslims came together to form a political organization that advocates Mulsim interest by rejecting any form of unity with Ethiopia. They organized all Muslim communities through an active participation of religious leaders to secure an independent Eritrea. To achieve their political agenda, they formed an exclusively Muslim dominated political party, the Eritrean Muslim League, presided by a religious leader Sayyid Muhammad Abu Bakr al_Murghani, from Al-Mirghani family.
These two sectarian political groups had dominated most of the Eritrean fate for almost two decades(1941 – 1961). Because of their extreme stands and values, they promote on, Eritrean case for independence was put in jeopardy. As a result, Eritrea was put in Federation with Ethiopia(UN Resolution Article 390(A)) which was later ended in 1961 through forced annexation by Ethiopia that led to 30 years bloody war.
This bitter sectarian politics of the 1940s and 1950s did not end there. During the early years of the armed struggle, Eritreans had no trustee among themselves. The Christian highlanders were treated as traitors. The leadership of the newly formed revolutionary front was dominated by Muslims. With the flux of many Christians to the armed struggle, a serious competition started to develop that ended into two opposing factional groups.
Although the armed struggle was inclusive to all Eritreans, mistrust among freedom fighters was prevalent. The Christian highlanders were felt excluded in decision making. This feeling was hijacked by young revolutionaries to form a separate front later called EPLF lead by Isaias Afewerqi. Isaias Afewerqi wrote a manifesto which specifically mentions the Christian Highlanders. This brought a new type of sectarian politics at a wider context hidden into nationalistic agenda.
Although EPLF became so large to include all Eritreans, its internal working guidelines had a strict code of conduct which maintained the original manifesto of “We and Our Objectives -Tigrigna Version” that discriminates Muslims who are a considered a threat to the mission. After independence, EPLF renamed itself “PFDJ”. Although it resembled more democratic, its internal working principle and excluding Muslims from day to day decision-making process over national issues became clear.
Although PFDJ is purely a totalitarian regime controlled by one-man, many Eritreans became resentful for its discriminatory approach. This gave a perception by some Eritreans the regime to be a Christian government. I do not agree with such labeling though I do acknowledge PFDJ favors Christians in most sensitive areas. But this is the nature of dictators. Anyone whom they feel confident with is not hesitant to work with.
Opposition Forces and Political Crisis
So far, the opposition has failed to build a strong resistance and united opposition group. The impact of sectarianism is prevalent everywhere. These sectarian feelings include religious, regional, ethnic and tribal sentiments. With the exception of some disgruntled and small political factions who promote radical agendas, these sentiments have not come to the surface as a well structured organizational working system.
Recently, regional-based civic associations are starting to take shape as a center of organization the wider population in the opposition camp. What is good about these civic associations is that they are trying to keep a distance from any agenda that is centered in power grabbing.
Social grievances towards PFDJ have led to perceive Muslims are excluded from power. To regain this, there are feelings which ought to proportionate power among Muslims and Christians fairly. This is a reasonable social grievance. However, power allocation based on religious affiliation can lead to unprecedented damage of sectarianism. Eritreans had experienced this in the 1950s. Most Eritreans rejected that tries to assume power based on religious affiliations. However, with growing political crisis and new political developments in Eritrea, some new initiatives are taking a momentum of a power-sharing mechanism based on an equal number of Christians and Muslims.
“50 – 50” Ideology
“50 – 50” Ideology stands for a power-sharing mechanism based on 50% Christians and 50% Muslims. Its basic hypothesis is, “to build trusteeship power should be shared equally”. One of the recent emerging pioneers in this ideology is coming from USA resident two Eritreans through their declared new manifesto called “Denver Manifesto”.
These two Eritreans who are in the forefront to promote the Denver Manifesto are Mr. Sengal Weldetnsae and Dr. Saleh Nur. Both are residents of USA and have extensive experience in Eritrean politics and profession.
Watching their interview with Tempo Afric TV, the content of the manifesto and its spirit seems great. So far, I have not found any issue which I disagree.
My concern is with the implementation strategy. On 21/10/2018, Mr. Sengal Weldetnsae had a seminar in London, UK. During the presentation, he said that in every committee equal number of Christians and Muslims. The reason was to allocating based on Christians and Muslims is to build trust among the divided Eritreans
This is the purest form of sectarian politics. If the actors behind the manifesto believe that their document is strong motion to solve most Eritrean political concerns, what is the need for injecting religion as a means to implement the manifesto?
If the manifesto can stand by itself, Eritreans can adhere to the principles no matter what religion they follow. Not only this, power-sharing based on religion can be a source of discrimination.
I do believe that any politics that have a potential effect on the overall Eritrean social make-up should be kept neutral to religion. Otherwise, unexpected negative sentiments could develop that will us into the bitter experiences we had before.
Right to Belief is one of the basic and fundamental rights of human being. In any state where some religion has an official recognition lead an automatic discrimination of any other religion or religious denomination. Eritrea is a unique example.
PFDJ Regime Religious guidelines are strict and work through official recognition. Those religious practices or denominations which are not recognized are banned from practice.
From the Christian denomination, Orthodox Church, Catholic Church, and Protestant are the only officially recognized churches. Any other Christian denomination is not allowed to operate. As a result, many Christians who are found to practice differently are put in prison and tortured. JEHOVAH Witness Church and its members are the first victims(since 1993). Then Pentecost Church became another target since 2001.
Eritrean Muslims are not different from Christians. The only recognized sect is Sunni. Any other Islamic sect is systematically oppressed and members are exposed to extremist or radical accusation which usually ends in arrest and disappearance.PFDJ Regime in Eritrea has given a recognition to Sunni Islam. Other sects of Islam are condemned and have no freedom to practice their religious rituals freely.
Many believers are arrested under the cover of Jihadists. And, those who do not want persecution are not openly declaring their sect. Instead, they are continuing their rituals within the umbrella of the recognized Sunni practices.
Patriarch Abune Antonious
Freedom of religious practices is absent in Eritrea. Even those who got recognition are under strict control. Many religious leaders, including the Patriarch of Eritrean Orthodox Church, is under house arrest since 2006. And, contrary to the Church’s law, his position is replaced by other appointed Leader.
Other sects, like Sufism, are not officially recognized though there are many adherents since the birth of Eritrea as a colonized country. Sufi adherents are dominated by Sunnis. For a long time, they have no freedom of practicing their rituals.
As you can see in this youtube below, Sufi practitioners in Somali had similar challenges. But now, with the relative peace and freedom of religious practices, Sufi practices is reviving. I hope all religious institutions and beliefs to have full freedom very soon in a free and democratic Eritrea.
Eritreans deserve to exercise their belief systems freely without any fear of persecution, be it from the government or from any citizen.
Jelal Yassin Abera and the nature of his advocacy works
To be honest, I had no idea who Jelal Yassin Abera was until a friend of mine sent me a document composed of 174 paged compiled data (please click here to find the document). And during my five years in politics, I missed an opportunity to know about him. I think he is not an outspoken activist.
In his 174 pages, the detailed compilation is all about “who is who” in the current ruling regime of Eritrea. This huge data is no simple. It could only be collected by a better informed and well-educated person. It is divided into categories and analyzed. However, the technic used and observing the way the data was analyzed, it raises a critical question.
The nature of data compilation can be summarized as follows:
1. Dividing Geographical Location-based “dominant social groups”
The data was compiled by “dividing Eritreans” Eritreans into two groups: (1) “Tigrigna” and “& others. This kind of classification has never been used in Eritrea. Since 1970, Eritreans are divided into 9 ethnic groups and any document about Eritrean demography lists 9 of them. Jelal Yassin used his own grouping system. But, this is done to divide the people into religious groups to serve his purpose. Tigrigna represents Christians while Others is meant to represent majority Muslims. The Tigrigna speaking Muslim(Jeberti) are grouped into “Others”. In the figure below(taken from the dossier), the color is meant to represent geographical zones(Zoba) inhabited by majority Tigrigna (blue) and Others(Red).
Social Groupings used by Jelal Yassin Aberra: Tigrigna(blue) represents Christians, and “Others” represents Muslims
2. Adding Jeberti as a Separate Ethnic Group
Under the existing social groupings, Eritreans are divided into nine(9) ethnic groupings. This clustering was introduced during the struggle for independence by following the Communist model of Nation and Nationalities. The ethnic-based division was introduced to replace the previous tribal groupings. It was primarily implemented based on spoken language and shared cultures. With the exception of one ethnic group(Rashaida), eight of the ethnic groups have the same name as the language spoken.
Jeberti refused to be grouped with the newly created Tigrigna ethnic by claiming their unique identity. Although they did not deny their mother language to is Tigrigna(there is some argument with the spoken language too), they claimed that their family lineage, history, culture, tradition, mode of life and religion is different from the other Tigrigna ethnic group.
After independence, the right to have a separate Jeberti Ethnic claim gained its momentum after EPLF rejected it without any hearings. The transitional government issues National ID cards that recognize only 9 ethnic groups and every official data released is prepared based on 9 ethnic groups. As a result, there is no official data, in whatever form published apart from the 9 groups.
What Jelal Yassin Aberra did is contrary to the classical statistical data representation system. He compiled the socio-demographic data by dividing Eritrean people into 10 ethnic groups. This is nothing but to serve the basic purpose he fights for. The figure he presented is a fabricated one. However, it says everything about his ambitions. In his table, he gave Jeberti 8% out of the total population size of Eritrea. This is something weird data. Although it is hard to figure why he put that number, it is not hard to reject his fabricated number.
10 Ethnic Group Classification and their Socio-demographic distribution, according to Jelal Yassin Aberra’s data
Compared to the already recognized ethnic groups, the Jeberti community in Eritrea is not significant. They live predominantly in Asmara and Mendefera. Jeberti Eritreans are known people in Eritrea for their unique way of life and activities. For the last 100 years, their number is growing through assimilation. These assimilation is creating confusion to differentiate who is Jeberti. Today, there are other Eritreans who are now called Jeberti simply because of their spoken language and religion(Muslims). For example, many Asawurta descendants who live in the highland of Eritrea are considered as Jeberti by mistake. But the people themselves never recognized themselves as Jeberti but by their own family. Jelal Yassin could have added these people, including their settlements, to magnify the Jeberti population in Eritrea.
For example, according to current groupings, I belong to Bilen. Bilen speaking people are distributed in almost an entire region. They have villages predominantly Bilen speaking people. Yet, according to the socio-demographic distribution, Bilen have never been more than 3% share. In contrast, Jelal Yassin assigned 8% for Jeberti(see the table below which extracted from the dossier). This type of presentation is misleading. If it is used for political purposes, it can be as dangerous as it is fabricated- fabrication of information.
For more details, please follow the link attached here below:
3. Using the Data as a Political Tool – the incidence of Forto 2013
It is a mistake to make conclusions about the possible purpose of this data compilation but there was some important hypothesis that can be developed from the nature of the data, failed military coup d’etat of January 2013 and the political actors who played as mobilizing agents outside Eritrea.
Commander of the Failed J2013 Coup D’Etat – Colonel Wedi Ali
on January 21, 2013, there was an incident in Eritrea which tried to remove PFDJ regime by force. This incident was a failed military coup in Eritrea after more than 100 soldiers led by a Military Colonel who to took his mechanized battalion all the way to Asmara and occupied temporarily the Ministry of Information building found in the heart of Asmara, Forto. Though dictator Isaias dismissed the incident by belittling the operation three weeks after, a serious hypothesis can be developed by correlating important events related to political movements outside Eritrea.
Many news outlets outside Eritrea reported about the event the time the operation happened. Eritreans came to learn about the incidence through news broadcasted from abroad followed by family telephone calls.
Of course, my objective is not to bring all the events related to the coup d’etat. Rather, I am trying to correlate the data compiled by Jelal Yassin Abera and its possible link with the operation.
Depending on the year of service and nature of data collected, it seems the information details about Eritrean institutions and personnel that were who were in power from 2001 to 2012, mainly after the crackdown of PFDJ Central Political Committee and arrest of G – 15. It has listed all the administrative constituents and structures of the regime including a detailed name list of six(6) administrative regions, 59 sub-zones, and 2606 villages or local administrations. A name list of almost every public, government, military, security, and the diplomatic officers is well presented.
Such detailed data might have been planned to be used as an instrument in outlining strategies to throw the regime and then replace officers of the ousted government with new officers. The document has compiled name list of more than 5000 government officers.
But there is one worrisome nature of the data. What Jelal Yassin Aberra did was, he divided the officers along religious affiliations. This is a serious political maneuvering. In many occasions, PFDJ regime is accused of as a “Christian regime”. And, if any coup d’etat is assumed within this premise, then the outcome can lead to another kind of oppression or civil arrest.
When it comes to sectarian politics, Eritreans have a bitter experience. Any attempt to that tries to look Eritrean politics along religious lines can trigger civil war as it was experienced between EPLF and ELF during the thirty (30) years struggle for independence.
It is hard to say Jelal Yassin Aberra was part of the Master-mind of the failed military Coup D’Etat. However, analyzing his family background, the case of Jeberti Rights advocacy works and the accusation of PFDJ as a Christian regime, it is time to re-think what type of political advocacy is carried by Eritreans. Any mistake made today cannot be easy to correct it. And, Eritrea can face another political crisis.
An individual activist for the cause of Eritrean Afar people in particular and Eritreans in general, whose first name is Abdella and his facebook profile nickname Red Sea Afar(check the video below) is among those few who are repeatedly mentioning Tigrigna speaking people. Is originally from the Dankalia Region of Eritrea (lowland) and now living as a refugee in Finland(EU). He is among those who continuously advocate against the Tigrigna highlanders. In several of the live video he has openly advocated by saying, “Tigrigna speaking highlanders are not welcome to live in Dankalia region.”
Though he is an independent activist and his opinions reflect only his and none of whatever he is associated with, he discloses his association with a political organization called RSADO. Nevertheless, his activities might have a reputational damage to RSADO unless RSADO takes initiatives to correct his mistakes.
His main advocacy work focuses on the Afar rights and autonomy of Dankal region under the banner of “Dankalia for Afar people”. I do respect his plea for the Afar’s rights and I am an ardent supporter of Afar struggle for their human rights and rights to self-govern their own affairs within the sovereignty of the country. However, I do not support discrimination policies, in any form, to be applied in any region of Eritrea. Dankalia is an integral part of Eritrea’s sovereignty and every Eritrean should be treated equally everywhere.
In contrast to the above principles, I have followed some irresponsible and discriminatory campaigns by “Red Sea Afar” in several live presentations he had broadcasted through his private facebook channel. In several of his broadcasts, it is clear to observe his discrimination against the Tigrigna speaking communities of Eritrea. He expresses his favor of one social group of Eritreans(Example – Jeberti) over the other. This is a potential case for discrimination. And, if such campaign continues, it may nurture the sense of hate towards a certain group of people in the future.
Though he asked an apology publically, in one of his presentations, he openly sent a warning message to the Christians either to demolish or convert into other uses any church(es) that are found in Afar land simply because he was claiming Afar people do not need them. This is a serious clue how far this person can go against one group of people, especially the Tigrigna speaking highlanders. I am saying this because the political organization he is associated with[RSADO] has a good working relationship with Eritrean Lowland League.
B. Civic Associations
i. Members of Jeberti Civic Association
Though Jeberti Civic Association claims its primary objective is to fight for the rights of Jeberti Community in Eritrea to have a separate ethnic group by separating from the EPLF invented Social clustering system, in many of their works, it seems they have much more complex issues.
In a book published by one an individual person whose name is Dr. Mustafa Lysedie, it has a strong allegation against the Seraye inhabitants. The book was first published in 2014 under a title “መን እዮም ኤርታውያን ጀበርቲ” with about 350 page. And, there is a new version which is available now for sale at amazon.com under a new title “ኤርትራውያን ጀበርቲ – መበቆላዊ ድሕረ ባይታ”. A book review about the first version is given here in an audio form
I have not read the two books yet. But, what is presented by Jeberti According to the book titled, “መን እዮም ኤርትራውያን ጀበርቲ? (ሓድሽ ሕታም – ኤርታውያን ጀበርቲ – መበቆላዊ ድሕረ ባይታ መበቆል – Who are the Eritrean Jeberti? – Eritrean Jeberti – Background of the Origin – Genealogy”, the Jeberti people who happen to live in Awraja Seraye were driven out from their ancestral land simply because of their religion, which is Islam. According to Dr. Mustafa Lysedie, those who committed such actions(may be a crime) came from Agaw – Lasta in the 14thC and expanded their occupation by replacing the native people who were Muslims. Not only this but also Dr. Mustafa Lysedie has put a claimed Jeberti are majority Beja Descendants.
The book is endorsed by those who are currently active in the Jeberti Ethnic Rights Advocators group. In addition, Jeberti Ethnic advocators have tried to file an Ethnic cleansing claim against the current ruling regime of Eritrea to UNHCR (or Can be downloaded from here Refworld Eritrea Treatment of Jebert..) Such a claim has serious consequences as it could be a potential accusation against ethnic cleansing that is continuing against the Jeberti people since the 14thC. Being an Eritrean and advocator of Human Rights, I can not see such claims lightly.
PFDJ is a brutal regime. When it comes to its crimes, it has no preferential treatment. It has committed systematic and widespread crimes against humanity since 1991 as it is confirmed by a Special Rapporteur of Human Rights Commissioner of Inquiry – Eritrea(COI-E). The crimes committed by PFDJ is reported at the UN Human Rights Commission found in Geneva in 2015 and the report was approved in 2015. I think there is no special mention of ethnic cleansing that targets Jeberti community. And, I believe the Jeberti people have welcomed the COiE report of 2015.
What remains is the allegations against the historical crimes that is written in the book prepared by Dr. Mustafa. I hope the Seraye people will sit and discuss with the Jeberti Ethnic Rights Advocators and resolve such serious claims.
There is also another similar allegations against individuals who were active in Eritrean politics in the 1940s. This is my main topic in this article.
ii. Eritrean Lowland League
The Eritrean lowlanders which are now in the course of organizing themselves under the banner of a civic association called, “Eritrean Lowland League”. The association is composed of activists and politicians who came together from Senhit, Sahel, Barka, Semhar and Gash-Barka regions of Eritrea to advocate for the rights of Eritrean lowlanders. They have a number of important objectives which raises long-standing grievances of the lowlanders, especially the forgotten refugees who are living in Sudanese refugee camps for the last 60 or more years. In addition, they are concerned with the highland expansion and land grabbing activities in the lowland area. In general, they are working for the respect of human rights of the lowlanders, like religious freedom, language, and administration systems.
In this line, they have serious issues on land grabbing and expansion activities which they believe it is in favor of the Tigrigna speaking highlanders. Not only this, based on the claims of 1952 Eritrean Federal Constitution, they are claiming the Arabic language was meant basically to the lowlanders. This is a misleading interpretation of the 1952 Constitution. Article 38(1) states, Tigrigna and Arabic shall be the official language of Eritrea. There is no mention of geographical location.
What the Lowlanders Association is accusing is that the Tigrigna elites are the only who are refusing other social groups to have Arabic as their official language. This is out of the context of the 1952 Constitution.
I think the interpretation of the official language use is in line to the association claim emphasizes their notion for “the Muslim Majority concept”. Not only this, the Tigrigna(Highland) elites is specifically mentioned as a target group for historical mistakes committed during the armed struggle(as shown in Figure below). Such statements need careful analysis and scrutiny otherwise it may have a unprecedented damage in the trust and unity of Eritreans as a whole.
For further references, the complete content of the English and Tigrigna version of the Social Contract prepared by Eritrean Lowland League is attached below.
You can also follow my opinion about Eritrean Lowland league provided in the youtube video(below). I pledged my support while pledging to improve those which I believe have a potential to violate human rights if their objective is fully implemented.
Conclusion
Though it is hard to differentiate religion from politics when politics is exploited systematically to advance a religious mission, it becomes more complicated. Often, it becomes the source of mistrust that can develop into a serious conflict. Eritreans are victims of this mix.
Jelal Yassin Aberra & Co. have gone further to mix religion, identity, history, and politics. This is the most complex political discourse. what makes unique is the claim of Jeberti ethnic rights is exploited to advance a greater mission through Jihad of the Pen. The strategy followed is unique in its approach.
Though there is nothing wrong with the style they follow, it needs careful analysis by stakeholders for a greater unity and trusteeship. Otherwise, this kind of sophisticated politics is common among the elites. But, when it goes down into the masses who are unconscious, its effect is usually negative which can be the source of religious conflict.
The case of Jeberti as a separate ethnic group can be better advanced by following universal approach for “The Rights of the People”. There is no need to mess people’s rights in politics.
For many, it could be strange to talk about the concept of Jihad of the Pen and its impact in Eritrean politics. I will not be surprised if I receive some condemnation too. But, this is my understanding and opinion which I came to grasp through my consistent and close engagement in the Eritrean politics since 2013.
In the beginning, all I had was resentment against the oppressor in Asmara. I started to fight the regime which is controlling Eritrea with a merciless dictatorship based on my life experience and with a damaged understanding I had about politics. I had no idea about the politics of the opposition camp and how they operate apart from being happy to have Eritreans who opposed the regime.
As an amateur to Eritrean politics, I started to write about PFDJ ideology and its institutions. At the same time, I started to engage in discussions which were going on at Awate Forum among well experienced political elites. It is on this website that I learned there is some power that can not be challenged easily. In 2017, I came to conclude that liberal democracy is the best ideology (according to my understanding) to my political thinking and possibly to solve Eritrean problems.
The time I declared my ideology, I distanced myself from Awate Forum. I started to campaign via my own facebook private profile and my personal blog(from which you are reading this material) what I believe in while reading and contemplating about world affairs in general and Eritrean politics in particular. It is at this time of contemplation that something revealed to me about “Fighters of Jihad of the Pen”
Jihad of the Pen is an acceptable form of jihad by all religious groups. If it is mishandled and went abnormally from what is it actually ought to promote for, it can be a cause for violence. Otherwise, all about for a greater cause. Jihad of the Pen is what any “able” religious person is called to do for his/her own religious beliefs.
The complexity of Jihad of the pen mainly arises when the practitioners interfere in political matters and compete with world politicians who are much interested in world affairs apart from the greater cause. Not only this, when the practitioners of jihad of the pen are not transparent and get rigged into political affairs without full consciousness of the people with whom they are dealing with, it can have unprecedented collateral damage to the society. It is with this premise that I wanted to share my opinion about Eritrean fighters of Jihad of the Pen whom I have sensed their presence during my active engagement.
Contextualizing The notion of Jihad According to Eritrean Politics
The notion “Jihad” is the most sensitive subject in Eritrean politics. This is not without a reason. First, right after independence(1991), the ruling regime of Asmara (PFDJ) campaigned jihad to be perceived as killing innocent people By doing so an Eritreans jihad is associated with terrorism.
This kind of misconception is hindering meaningful and trustworthy discussions and cooperation among Eritreans. In fact, it has been a dividing wall among different social groups by putting the true meaning of Jihad at jeopardy among Eritreans. This has created a passive state of mistrust which is quite observable in every political debate and social gatherings.
It is true that Eritreans are predominantly Christians, Muslims with few Traditionalists or Animists. Their religious affiliations are expected to have a negative impact on the way they live and think politically. However, their common ancestral background and history for thousands of years have a positive contribution for being together. The major changes within the religious demography and political thinking came after the 19thC when Eritrea became the victim of geopolitics.
The rise of the new Ethiopian empire and arrival of western colonizers created a political schism by expanding their own interest. To accomplish their mission, religion was used as a playing card. Nevertheless, the strategy followed had a nonsignificant contribution on the way Eritreans think politically. This is because the outsiders were an equal threat for their existence. This led them to unity by keeping their religious difference aside.
It is true that every religion has its own system of beliefs and practices. This affects the way people lead their private and social life. When there are challenges, what they believe can contribute the way they overcome these challenges. This basic means to survive leads them to jihad.
Every religious person or community performs jihad (struggle) in different forms. By performing jihad, one fulfills the missing elements of a spiritual journey or safeguarding security of the religious community.
For centuries, both Christians and Muslims applied jihad for their spiritual growth and protection. Although jihad is now becoming anything about Islam and terrorism, n its original form, Jihad is the basic theological concept and practice among these two Abrahamic religions(also called People of the Book), the notion of Jihad has evolved to as a connotation which is only related to Islam practiced by Muslims only. This is not true. In fact, medieval period Christians have applied the concept of Jihad in its extreme form but with a different terminology, “Crusade”.
In the mindset of Eritrean political context, any person who utters Jihad in any form is considered either as a terrorist, or a religious fanatic. This is not without a reason. The PFDJ regime brainwashed Eritreans since its birth (1994) to control the mind of Eritreans and crush any opposition that may challenge its power.
The truth is, Jihad, جهاد jihādis an Arabic word which means striving or struggling, especially with a praiseworthy aim. Broadly speaking, Jihad is classified into two: (i) Inner (“greater”) jihad and (ii) external (“lesser”) jihad. External Jihad is subdivided into jihad of the pen/tongue (debate or persuasion) and jihad of the sword. From this classification, what we can understand is Jihad is part of the belief system. Accordingly, any believer performers Jihad in different forms.
Not forgetting the existence of all kinds of Jihad around the world in general and in Eritrea in particular and the disinformation campaign about Jihad coming from the ruling regime and some movement within the opposition camp, my focus for this article will be one of the acceptable forms of JIhad – “Jihad of the Pen” and its application in Eritrean politics.
Eritreans for Fighters of Jihad of the Pen
Eritrean fighters of Jihad of the Pen use friendly, non-violent and apply a sophisticated approach to accomplish their pre-defined mission. They work in parallel with those who are fighting against the oppressive regime in Asmara. However, their mission is quite clear to differentiate by observing critically what they actually glorify while demonizing the other. The demonization campaign is mainly targeting the Tigrigna speaking social groups of Eritrea under the cover of historical incidences.
To accomplish their mission, they are exploiting Eritrean politics of the 1940s by focusing on the Unionist Party. Although the Unionist Party were against Eritrean full independence. Although the Unionist Party were predominantly Christians, there were also Muslims who stood firm in favor of the Union with Ethiopia. Not only this, the Unionist camp had members from all social groups. Therefore, it is misleading and wrong to conclude the Unionist Party were Tigrigna speaking Christians. However, revisionists are using selective approach to attack a certain group of people and individuals coming from certain geographical location to attain their mission.
Campaign Against Tigrigna, aka Christians
Since 2008, the smear campaign has become intense. At first, it was started at an elite level. These elites started writing which targets core Eritrean values. They introduced revisionism approach to re-define Eritrean history through reflective interpretations to fit into an ideological tool to serve a specific agenda. These sophisticated articles generated debates that later expanded into bitter arguments. As a result, Eritrean elites were mainly divided into different camps.
These days Eritrean political atmosphere is full of chaotic smear campaigns and labeling is in the course of intensification which specifically targets the so-called Tigrigna speaking communities of Eritrea(the Highlanders) on one side, and the Muslim Eritreans on the other side. The use of “Tigrigna” is a carefully chosen metaphor which targets a specific group of people who are accused of being the rulers of today’s Eritrea since the independence(1991).
Though my understanding of Eritrean politics is progressing, depending on the nature of the these debates and arguments, generally I categorize them into five camps: (1) Pro – Eritrean Struggle for Independence, (2) Bashers of the Armed Struggle(Revolution) and (3) Guardians of Revolutionary legacies and defenders of Eritrean core values (4) Pro – Unionism with Ethiopia (5) Opportunists. Among these leading thinkers and writers, we have Saleh Younis (Camp 1) and Yosief Ghebrehiwet from Asmarino website (camp 3). These two great writers were the leading figures in these early debates. In between, there were opportunists who exploited the ideas generated to suit their crooked agenda. As a result relational transgression started to develop among Eritrean communities.
These relational transgressions developed when the Ghedli bashers started to undermine the history of Eritrean struggle for independence and demonize prominent Eritreans who played leading role during the early days of Eritrean struggle. The writers went far to attack individuals which are highly regarded by Eritreans. This race of demonization led to exposing the history of the 1940s, 1950s and revolution era to scholarly critics. This led political schism among the elites. It is during these chaotic debates that some opportunists tried to exploit it for their cause.
these opportunities camouflaged their true motive as it was a counter-reaction. However, after careful analysis, their objective is much deeper. It is combined with revenge and hatred towards a specific group of communities.
Jelal Yassin Abera: The Opportunist
Opportunists are politicians who exploit an existing situation for their own advantage by camouflaging themselves within the existing political environment. Since my presence in the political atmosphere of Eritrea, I have observed many opportunities. They have played the card of the victims but works on their own greater agenda. Some of the typical opportunists I encountered during my five years stay include Unionists, Religious terrorists, sectarian, regionalists, ethnic nationalists, religious nationalists, etc.
Jelal Yassin Aberra an ardent ethnic nationalist for the cause of Jeberti Ethnic Rights movement comes in the forefront. Jelal Yassin Abera, born in 1957, educated in Information Technology (BSc) and Social Anthropology, is living in Norway as a refugee since 1984. He was a former EPLF member(1975 – 1983), trained to be a Political Cadre, is one of the leading Jeberti Ethnic Rights advocators.
His advocacy work is deeply rooted in his family. His late father, Dr. Abera Yassin, who was Professor of Economic at the Asmara University (Eritrea) was killed by EPLF in January 1991 for his activities for the cause of Jeberti ethnic rights during Ethiopian annexation(1961 – 1991).
Dr. Yassin Abera was one of the leading delegates in the struggle for the recognition of Jeberti Ethnic Group by the Ethiopian ruling regime before Eritrean independence. He was calling all the Jeberti to be united and call for their rights as a separate ethnic group. A Committee of delegates from the Derg ruling regime came to Asmara to discuss with Jeberti representatives. Unfortunately, the Committee rejected their demand by passing several recommendations that need to be considered at great care.
I think EPLF was not happy with Dr. Yassin Abera’s activities. Before his assassination, he was receiving warning messages to stop his activities. Dr. Yassin Abera was fully aware that EPLF will not respect the rights of Jeberti to be recognized as a separate ethnic group. Derg started to fail as a ruling regime in Ethiopia and just four months before independence, Dr. Yassin Abera was killed by EPLF in front of his house. This is a painful experience that will definitely have a never lasting impact on Jelal Yassin Abera.
Derg rejected Jeberti People to be recognized as a separate ethnic group. The reason given was the ethnic classification system introduced in Ethiopia(including Eritrea) was not based on religion but on common language and cultures. The special delegation Committee wrote a serious recommendation not to fully ignore the case(see the link provided below).
Some of the arguments presented and the response given Committee for the case of Jeberti Ethnic Rights during Ethiopian occupation in Eritrea include:
After independence, the case of Jeberti Ethnic Rights was brought to the then transitional government of Eritrea, EPLF. Unlike the Derg regime, EPLF categorically rejected without any hearing. This led to a new era to the Jeberti Ethnic Rights movement.
As a grown up and well-educated person, after the killing of his father, there is no doubt for Jelal Yassin Abera to take two responsibilities. First, as a Jeberti, a son of Jeberti he is supposed to fight for his right. Second, to continue the struggle his father started by representing the Jeberti Ethnic Rights.
This dual responsibility can have a contribution to his thinking and determination for the struggle that could lead him to be a radical ethnic-nationalists. This radical sentiment can be observed in many of his works.
Although the armed struggle was inclusive to all Eritreans, mistrust among freedom fighters was prevalent. The Christian highlanders were felt excluded in decision making. This feeling was hijacked by young revolutionaries to form a separate front later called EPLF lead by Isaias Afewerqi. Isaias Afewerqi wrote a manifesto which specifically mentions the Christian Highlanders. This brought a new type of sectarian politics at a wider context hidden into nationalistic agenda.
