A BRIEF HISTORICAL FORAY INTO TIGREAN ETHNONATIONALIST

Ethnonationalists are very adept or expert at revising historical facts and spawning myths that fit in well with their political projects. In what follows, we try to present how the history of Ethiopia of the last 110 years (since the battle of Adwa in 1896) has been revised by the Tigrean ethnonationalists cabal known as the TPLF i.e the current incumbent in Ethiopia.

Historical revisionism has allowed TPLF to create a generation of Tigrean youth blinded by hate propaganda. This generation of Tigrean youth deeply imbued with 35 years of ethnonationalist hate propaganda by the TPLF and its forerunner the TNO (Tigrean National Organization) which was set up in the early 1970s in Addis Ababa. This generation of Tigrean ethnonationlists that grew up on the dire diet of hatred has proven its fascistic mettle of unleashing fascistic atrocities against innocent citizens of Ethiopia as we are witnessing today in all parts of Ethiopia south of Tigrai. The AGAZI army is mainly composed of Tigrean youth who are ready to kill any one who challenges the authority of the fascistic and undemocratic political outfit known by the name of TPLF. The quotations you read here after throw light on the political matrix within which a whole generation of Tigrean youth was incubated and drilled in hate propaganda. This generation of Tigrean youth has come to see itself and Tigreans as victim of historical conspiracy by successive Ethiopian rulers. The youth which has grown on such dire diet of hatred has come to view the democratic aspiration of the Ethiopian people that was duly expressed during the May 15, 2005 election as a yet another proof of the incessant conspiracy, albeit by undeserving people dubbed chauvinists/parasites, to steal the fruits of the heroic struggle waged by the Tigrean people at an allegedly high human cost i,e 50000 dead and 70000 wounded.

The following quotations from the writings of the Tigrean ethnonationalist Gurus eloquently encapsulates, albeit concisely,  the propaganda stuff that went into the creation of an insensitively fascist generation of Tigrean youth exemplified by the AGAZI army who are willing to disembowel even homeless pregnant women begging on the streets of Addis Ababa (see attached document sent to Nazareth.com from Addis Ababa entitled "A Very Sad Story") and the web of Tigrean informers dotted across all nooks and corners of Ethiopia). These pieces are just the harbingers of great mayhem and destruction yet to engulf Ethiopia. We have hereafter included quotations as are germane or pertinent to the propaganda stuff that went into the making of a whole generation of Tigrean ethnonationalists that have failed to grasp the reality of contemporary Ethiopia by succumbing to the fascistic agitation of TPLF. By so doing, Tigrean ethonationalists, like Hitler's followers of the Nazi movement before them, have sacrificed their faculty of rational thinking and critical judgment on the altars of Tigrean ethnonationalism thereby pushing Ethiopia to a danger hitherto unknown in the annals of her long history.   

Quotable Quotes from Tigrean Ethnonatioalist Pages

I - The Battle of Adwa and the alleged Effort of Menelik to Plunder Tigrai

1 - QUOTATION FROM THE POLITICAL PROGRAMME OF TPLF - 1983

"Menelik's army deliberately sent without food provisions plundered the villages of Tigray. Within a short period, the economic and social conditions of the Tigrayan people deteriorated sharply. Further deliberate measures were taken to suppress the language, culture and history of Tigrayans". Source - the Political Programme of TPLF adopted at the 2^nd Congress of TPLF in 1983.

2 - QUOTATION FROM AREGAWI BERHE's THESIS, 1993

"The defeat of the Italians at Adwa gave Menelik immense power over his potential rivals, particularly the Tigrian nobility under Mengesha Yohannes and Alula Aba Nega. Menelik had the opportunity to divide and weaken Tigrai. His army was let lose to devastate as much as the colonial army did. The people remember this period as Zebene Shoa"; which means the era under Shoa. Menelik's policy was based on his power mongering assumption that Tigrai is an enemy that should not be underestimated. Many Tigrean scholars agree that Menelik did not consider the people of Tigrai as part of his own people". "Menelik's idea to divide and weaken the north was accompanied by giving half of Tigrai proper to be colonized by Italy. Little did he know of the colonial desire of Italy at the era of the scramble of Africa. Once Tigrai was divided, it would be easy to govern it at will. To punish Tigrai, Menelik naively entered into the grip of the colonial powers of the time. Italy calculating the weakness of Menelik, continued to expand south of Ethiopia to acquire more territories.

Without indulging into the debate on the intention of Menelik's decision of letting the Italians remain holding Eritrea, the fact remains that the Tigrigna speaking people were parceled for two masters, Italy across Mereb and Menelik south of it. This was the beginning the fault line between the traditionally homogenous Tigreans, who otherwise if united would be stronger to claim power. Hence, the weakening and onslaught of Tigreans by the Showan Amhara ruling class began at this historical juncture.  Source - Origins and Development of the National Movement in Tigrai; a Socio-historical Analysis, by Aregawi Berhe (former chairman of the TPLF) , 1993. 

3 - QUOTATION FROM Dr. KINFE ABRAHAM's book, 1993

 "The Tigrayan resistance is naturally the outcome of the gradual decline of the region whose human and material potential was spent in the preservation of the integrity of Ethiopia. It was the case of a candle that consumed itself while giving light to its surroundings. In particular, the Tigreans resent the unfair historical process through which the Tigrean overlordship of emperor Yohannes IV was lost to Menelik II, leading to the gradual decline of the region from the citadel of the empire to a quasi-autonomous one". Ethiopia from Bullets to the Ballot Box, Kinfe Abraham, Red Sea Press 1993. 

4 - QUOTATION FRROM ARAYA BELAI, 2006  

"Tigrean opposition to the Ethiopian feudal & imperial rule started during Emperor Menelik's reign. After the defeat of the Italians aggression in 1896, Atse Menilik deployed an 80,000 man army into Tigray without adequate provisions, thereby forcing the soldiers to live off the Tigrean people, confiscating their cattle, sheep & crops. Tigreans who died protecting their home against Menelik's troops outnumbered, Tigreans who died to defeat Italians in the battle of Adwa. Again after forty years fascist Italy invaded Ethiopia and the main battlefield was again in Tigray and once again the inhabitant of Tigray suffered". Araya Belai in an article entitled "Ethiopia: The victory of Adwa & the Tigrean movement", 12 Februari 2006.

5 - QUOTATION FROM DESCENDANT OF SEHULMIKAEL

About the greatness of Tigrai and its people:

"Tigrai is the mother of all civilizations in the horn of Africa. It is the source of the Geez Fidel, Christianity and Islam. Tigrai is the land of Kidus Yared, Axum, Yeha and Wuqro Negash. Tigrai is the land of the dauntless emperors such as Ezana, Kaleb, Armaha, Abraha, Flamda, Zera Yakob, Yohannes, Ras Alula, General Hayelom and much more. Tigrai is the home of the Ark of the Covenant, the land of the just, the brave, free and fair. We have nothing to apologize for, be sorry or fear for in our history. But we have everything to be proud of""

VOICE OF A FIERY TIGREAN ETHNONATIONALIST

"Hello every one, my name is Suhulmikael Abai. I am named after my great great grand father, Ras Suhulmikael Isqias. I was born in Central Tigrai in the outskirts of the town of Adwa. I grew up in a small village; I finished my primary schooling in Adwa. I am former TPLF fighter. I finished my high school and college In Ontario Canada.

I decided to create this web site from the bottom less love for the people of Tigrai and as a continuation of my armed struggle to free our people from the dreaded jaws of chauvinist rule in Ethiopia. I believe there was very organized and coordinated campaign to destroy our culture, language, history, and identity by the cha uvinists. For the past 90 years they were in power they twisted the facts to give themselves legitimacy. They created false history about themselves and about us to make them look, they are the founders of Ethiopia. At the same time they ridiculed our culture and history to make us look we were no body.

When our people rose in 1935, 1941 and finally in 1970s they responded with the at most in human cruel way of punishment, they bombed our villages, towns, cities, and churches. They tried to starve us to death by burning our crops, preventing us from cultivating our land and driving us out of our country. They tried to brain wash our young by saying, being a Tigraiyan is inferior. The Tigraian language is a bird's language,Tigraians don't know how to love, Tigraians don't deserve to be in power and we don't know how to govern. That the only thing we are good at is shooting and being a solder. They worked hard to convince us that our land is barren and don't have any resources. They tried to paint us so many negative images of our land and our selves.

After all this years of relentless campaign to undermine us they have managed to convince a lot of other Ethiopians and some of us. They created some doubt and less self confidence in some parts of our society. Most of all they are absolutely convinced that, all the garbage they say about our people and our land is true. After so many years of indirect and direct struggle, Our people rose and wage seventeen years long and bitter struggle. We sacrificed 50 thousand dead and 70 thousand wounded. We endured the destructions of towns like Hawzien. We paid incalculable sacrifice in human and material cost. At last we defeated and humiliated them and we made them kneel down and kiss the ground in peace, how ever they are still trying to reverse the time to the old dreaded days and rob us the fruits of our struggle. That is why I created this web site to restore our history, to love ourselves, to appreciate our culture, our language, to work hard and smart to build our economy and to look for word for a better future.  I want to play my share and contribute in my own small way to a better future for our people. Our history is golden and our future is bright and we will make it so!!. Zelalemawi zikri niswatna!!! Long live the people of Tigrai"

Source - TIGRAIONLINE.COM - a website owned and run by Suhulmikael Abai.

II - FASCISTIC RECORDS OF TIGREAN ETHNONATIONALIST: 

1  - VERY SAD STORY OF THE FASCIST REGIME's ACTIONS IN ETHIOPIA

Source - Nazareth.com  - Friday 4 November 2005

"You are not going to believe this. Only one in million may, in their entire life, witness a horrendous barbarism like this one. This happened at the corner of Ras Mekonnen Bridge in Addis Ababa on November 3 at 10 AM Ethiopian time.

A homeless pregnant woman was running for shelter from flying bullets; bullets literally dragging her, may be, three years old boy as the unfortunate, who have no where to hide in, so weak to keep up, fell behind and got hit by a machine gun fire from an armored vehicle so powerful that the next minute a hard to even describe scene of a butchered woman, a separated fetus and a crying boy in blood bath followed.

Non one else, except the killers, has seen the rest as they closed around her, cordoned off the area and swiped her body like a dead animal on to a truck and drove off. Who would remember a homeless woman? Who would ask for here whereabouts? How about the baby boy? She will probably be dumped on a ditch to cover up the barbarism. This is what the 14 years of democracy and economic development gave millions of Ethiopians like her. This is a government the three years old boy (if he is ever alive) and million other street kids hope will bring them a better day.

Foreign governments who pour billions to this dictatorship have to realize that they are paying for the bullets, not bread that slaughtered this family who has never seen a home or a hot meal. Do not be fooled that this happened to the weakest. There is no guarantee that this would not happen to any one of our children or us. It is just a matter of time. Join the movement in every way you can. Almighty God, help this country, its dying youth, its starving kids and its heart-broken elders".

III - PRISONERS HELD AT VARIOUS CONCENTRATION CAMPS RUN BY TPLF

Didessa concentration camp = 43000 Ethiopian youth (Observer, 4 December 2005)

Bir Shellequo concentration camp = 30000 Ethiopian youth

Zeway concentration camp = 5000 youth:  Belaten concentration camp = 10000 youth

Shewa Robit prison = 5000 Ethiopian youth; Denkoro Washa = 6000 Ethiopian youth Kershele = 5000 Ethiopian youth.

DO NOT APPEASE TIGREAN ETHNONATIONALISTS!! ASK THEM TO BE OPENLY COUNTED AMONG THE RAKS OF THE OPPOSITION. ASK THEM TO REFRAIN FROM BEING ACCOMPLICES OF THE FASCISTIC REGIME!! Do NOT TOLERATE THEIR LAME EXCUSES FOR NOT ACTING NOW WHEN IT MATTERS MOST!!

More info:

 The Sword of the Fascist TPLF & the Constant onslaught of the Amharic language in Tigray           

Birtukan Mideksa's clarification on "100 only" political prisoners

Atrocities in Ethiopia [Crime and Nourishment][Donkoro chaka][TPLF & Terror]

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Comments (2)

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written by Binyam Gebre, November 12, 2007

I read the article about the brutality of the army Agazi, even though it is pefectly described what happened or is happening there are also some basic and prominent factors which has to be underlined to bring human rights and democratic rule in Ethiopia.
The most and foremost iis that dictators always translate democracy either that favors the rulong party(EPRDF was mere communustuc until may19,1991) as thier communistic base or they think as far as the people put a ballot even at the point of a barrel it is excercising democracy. the other feature of dictatorship is that to misled national foreign government delegates or international organization through black mailing and feeding the wrong information or hidding thier deeds.
The EPRDF is from the inception is a fully fledge dictator who do not see the rule of law as a means of administering the people but to shoot at any place irespective of the deeds you do(one can remember thos who have been slain in the street of addis including two brothers atound Teklehaymanot area.
Are we expecting a nice thing from a snake who stings before thinking protecting itself? Aleopard never changes its spots and unless we strugle together we will always cry and toil for the future.

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written by aha!, November 12, 2007

There has been tens and hundreds of evidences that haveen brought to the surface against the current regime since after the may, 97 elections, including the pervasiveness and control of the population by security forces, the Agazi Army, and putting all forces under the control of the the current prime minister and denying the public fair trial, freedom of movement, freedom of assembly, freedom to protest, freedom to elect, freedom to speak, and to publis, economic freedom and a right to property ownership.

Inspite of these the the for freedom and democracy, specially by Kinijit to say the least by other democratic forces, has been hampered by un even handed mediators, settling differences with Ato Lidetu Ayalew, a detractor, now with with Dr. Berhanu Nega and /or the K-5, US delegation as another destraction taking away the focus from being on the current regime to being around Kinjit Party.

There is a need for a compondium of articlels reflecting on the current regime to be be edited & published including the one from the Department of State for posterity and Public awareness, including exerpts from the speeches, interviews made by the Officials of the current regime.

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