Eritrean National team arrived in the city of BAHIR DAR city

Eritrean u-23 national soccer team(Red sea camels) arrives Addis Ababa on their way to Bahir Dar for the upcoming Cecafa u-23 tournaments today 14th of july 2021.

Upon their arrival at Bole international Airport H.E Amb. Semere Russom and members of the Eritrean Embassy in Ethiopia warmly welcomes the national u-23 team.

President Isaias Afwerki received at Denden Guest House this morning credentials of Resident Ambassadors of China, Italy, France & UN Resident Coordinator to Eritrea. Enhancement of Bilateral cooperation and other timely matters of mutual importance were discussed in the meetings

President Isaias Afwerki also received the credentials of seven Non-Resident Ambassadors to Eritrea from Japan, South Korea, Tanzania, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Zimbabwe, and Norway.

President Isaias Afwerki received at Denden Guest House this morning credentials of Resident Ambassadors of China, Italy, France & UN Resident Coordinator to Eritrea. Enhancement of Bilateral cooperation and other timely matters of mutual importance were discussed in the meetings pic.twitter.com/Yn3tcx2Pkf

— Yemane G. Meskel (@hawelti) July 15, 2021

President Isaias Afwerki also received the credentials of seven Non-Resident Ambassadors to Eritrea from Japan, South Korea, Tanzania, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Zimbabwe, and Norway. pic.twitter.com/IOglPUyStz

— Yemane G. Meskel (@hawelti) July 15, 2021

President Isaias Afwerki met this morning #Eritrea's 2020 Tokyo Olympics Team to convey his best wishes for success in the forthcoming competitions. Eritrea is fielding 13 athletes (five of them female) in athletics, swimming and cycling at the Tokyo Olympics. pic.twitter.com/RbdUPliFHp

— Yemane G. Meskel (@hawelti) July 12, 2021

In 2021, one year late, Tokyo will host the event and will feature new Olympic sports, including surfing, sport climbing, skateboarding, baseball and karate.

The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) emerged as an incongruous liberation in the mid-1970s. Theirs was a befuddled agenda that oscillated between demanding independence for Tigray Province to opposing ethnic discrimination and achieving equality for all Ethiopians.

By the late 1980s, TPLF had created alliances with other armed opposition movements like the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), and also enjoyed military support from the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front (EPLF). The resulting coalition, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) deposed Mengistu Hailemariam’s military government in 1991, which was then heavily defeated in Eritrea.

The TPLF went ahead to rule Ethiopia – using the EPRDF as a nominal umbrella – for 30 years, despite being an unpopular minority that made up just 6% of the country’s population. Their disastrous policies contributed to their lack of popularity with the rest of the country.

To cement their iron grip amid their resentment, the TPLF employed decadent tactics for their survival: they muzzled any critical voices and committed what Human Rights Watch termed “crimes against humanity on unimaginable scale.” Interestingly, during that time, the International Community continued to unconditionally bankroll the regime, which only served to embolden the TPLF’s heinous regime.

In early 2016, several ethnic groups, including the Amhara and Oromo, demonstrated against the TPLF-dominated government in open defiance of the regime. Top on the demonstrators’ agenda were claims that the other ethnic groups were being marginalized by the Tigray-controlled government. These demonstrations ultimately culminated in the departure of TPLF from power, despite numerous efforts to quickly change the situation, including six assassination attempts on Abiy Ahmed, the current prime minister.

In 2017, TPLF officials retreated to their backyard to re-strategize, having transferred enormous military hardware to their bases, according to government sources. They also looted state coffers en masse to the tune of $30 billion and taking hundreds of metric tons of gold from the country’s gold reserves with the help of a neighboring country.

The TPLF launched an offensive against the Ethiopian government in November 2020. Suffering heavy casualties after their miscalculated assault, the TPLF are reviving themselves. The TPLF recently claimed they had captured hundreds of Ethiopian military personnel, whom they paraded through their capital Mekelle as a show of force in a bid to demoralize the Ethiopian army and conceal significant loss on their parts.

Reports indicate that most of the alleged prisoners of war are Tigrayan members of the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) who joined the TPLF last year. A security expert this author spoke to wondered why TPLF failed to display the weapons and other military hardware they confiscated from the Ethiopian military personnel. Farah Maalim, a former deputy speaker in Kenya’s 9th Parliament who now closely follows regional geopolitics, observes that the TPLF has perfected the art of misinformation, aided by public relations firms masquerading as consultancy firms, funded by foreign interests.

A spent cartridge

The truth is that no amount of propaganda can bring the TPLF back to its former glory in Ethiopia – a senior political commentator refers to them as a spent cartridge. All of the other biggest federal member states, particularly Amhara, Oromo, and Somali, are determined to the TPLF’s political demise having suffered at their hands for three decades. On this count alone, the TPLF already lacks the numbers to become or be seen as a popular movement amongst the people.

The TPLF thrived on marginalizing other regions, including annexing part of Amhara. The TPLF also perpetrated crimes against humanity. Abdi Mohamoud Omar, former Somali state president is on record admitting that his government carried out murders on its own people at the behest of the TPLF. What’s more, the TPLF made so many enemies during its reign and is essentially isolated: it invaded Somalia, attempted to annex Eritrea, subjugated Djibouti at will, was responsible for insecurity in the upper eastern region of Kenya and setting up a militia in Moyale, which carried out extrajudicial killings in neighboring countries.

Former prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn, now a prolific writer, once a TPLF supporter, notes in one of his op-eds that one of the TPLF’s tricks will be to “manipulate the international community.” Desalegn has also criticized the international community’s approach to the Ethiopian conflict, claiming that the IC’s support is premised on the concept of moral equivalency that causes foreign countries “to adopt a false balance and a mentality of both-sidesism” without question.

Prime Minister Abiy commands the respect and admiration of his regional peers. He stands heads and shoulders above the TPLF. It is time that effort and attention is dimmed on the TPLF and focused on the bigger picture – the Ethiopian nation.

The author is an analyst with Southlink Consultants

Our last week’s guest, Dwayne Darnell Martin, as we mentioned then, had a ten-day stay in Eritrea along with his crew for a documentary film. Here’s an interview with members of the crew — Rana Ghiassi, production designer, Elmelchizedec Andrews Bay, sound recorder and Gordon Chan, director of photography.

• Initially, you probably didn’t know about Eritrea. What did you expect to see after you saw the things on social media before you came here?

Rana Ghiassi — My first thought was, I don’t know this country or where Eritrea is. So I looked it up and, unfortunately, the stuff I saw online was really negative about how dangerous it’s. I was really curious and started wondering if it’s like that just for COVID-19. But I wasn’t getting a lot of good news and started getting nervous. But from the moment we landed, we were given so much love and we were very well received. A bunch of people greeted us with hugs and flowers and that just made me realize how amazing this country is. And, of course, this beautiful beginning was followed by a spectacular ten days.

Elmelchizedec Andrews Bay – Well, I did a little research and I just saw the negativity around the country. When I got here, I tried not to have any expectations so that I can fully enjoy everything the country has to offer. And when I got here, it was nothing but a great experience. The people are wonderful, the food is amazing, and I think I gained about five pounds since I’ve been here. Going to different areas and cities, the architecture, the buildings, the islands, the Red Sea and everything else has really been amazing.

Gordon Chan — I had some reservations about coming here as well just because of the negative media coverage. Once we got on that plane I just made sure to have an open mind. And being here, I saw that it’s just like going to any other country. If I go to China, Italy or the UK, it’s basically the same. What I have seen and what I saw on the news is completely different. But that’s not what I saw here. I saw a bustling city, a place where everyone is equal. It’s praiseworthy to see everyone working together and that no one is really under anybody else.

• Rana, in your opinion, what do you think is the problem that’s making people believe such kinds of negativity about this country before they even take a visit and see it for themselves?

I would say the first problem is not knowing much about the country. Now I want to go home and tell my friends and family about Eritrea and why they should come to visit and that we don’t even know about such a beautiful place filled with amazing people. The second problem is the false narratives. We have a plan to wipe it with the documentary and, hopefully, with more documentaries and more films about the country.

• As a female, you might have been eager to know about the gender equality that still seems to be an issue in many other countries of the world. Please tell me about your observations of this country regarding gender issues.

I’ve just been mind-blown the whole time. The first stop was a college that we went to and when I found out the education was free, I was really surprised and amazed. And then we asked questions about gender equalities in the schools, just about the males and females in the school. And the professor was questioning why we would even ask a question because in this country you are taught not to even compare the two. I felt honestly embarrassed to ask a question about gender and if there is equality because it’s taboo to not have equality and I really appreciated that.

The women here seem free and I feel like they have confidence. And I think the confidence is given because the country has given women security because I witnessed the security that the women have. There’s more confidence and energy of just existing and having their kids run around freely as Dwayne said. I would say I’m a little jealous of the women of Eritrea because they don’t have to be afraid to leave their house.

• What about the people’s response to your visit? How was it from the very moment you got here until this minute?

Gordon Chan– I found everything was just so modern. It never felt like it was out of date. Everyone cares about what they do and how you are. There isn’t any prejudice against you if you are from somewhere else. I feel like if I got hurt or sick, I can literally go to the hospital, pay the 5 Nakfa fee and get health care. It’s simply great.

Elmelchizedec Andrews Bay — The people were cool. You get a couple of looks; people can tell that you are a tourist, a little bit, but they just say ‘How is it going?’, ‘Selam!’ which really is exciting. I saw how they are, full of energy and full of life.

Rana Ghiassi — The moment I landed, I felt a little spiritual because I instantly felt a rush of calmness. And after ten days of interacting with the women and men, professionals and non-professionals of this country, I feel at home. I really do! They have over-surpassed my expectations, to be honest. I feel embarrassed that I would even form judgments. I get emotional thinking about it because now that I’ve met them and gotten close with so many of them, I think Eritrean people define community and love. They are so resilient. I just felt like I fit in, and I feel like everybody is in one line; nobody’s above or below. All that gives you a sense of community and oneness.

• Was Eritrea peaceful and calm enough for you to smoothly do your assignments and without any worries and pressure?

Gordon Chan — This country’s very peaceful and secure. I never felt, in any way, in danger. It is very peaceful and very open. There was no pressure at all. We toured different cities like Massawa as well. The most interesting thing about the city of Massawa was the Turkish architecture. The whole city is so beautiful with so much history and culture. I know the city has been through a lot and I really want to learn more about it. In addition to that, the food was so amazing. All the food was straight from the sea.

• We would really love to have you here again, hopefully, after the pandemic ends. Is there anything else you would like to say before we say our goodbyes?

Rana Ghiassi — I would definitely love to come back again. I would like us to come back and do a documentary on the fire fighters because I was really inspired and another one on the women.

Gordon Chan — There’s so much more I want to see and do in this country. I do want to come back, hopefully soon, because this is the country I want to come to with my friends and enjoy this lovely weather, lovely people and lovely food.

• Well, it was nice having you here, everyone. I’m so thankful for your time. Thank you so much!