These incidents did not have to happen, but in each case, could have
been avoided or lessened in severity. Much of the pain, suffering, death
and loss of countless people and their loved ones could have been
avoided had those involved simply put these God-given principles into
practice.
Each incident has an overwhelming component of
tribalism gone wrong. How unjust is it to kill, rob and steal from
another collective group, dehumanizing them as the other simply because
of their ethnicity or the way they look? How wrong is it to commit
crimes without any compassion because the other(s) are not part of your
own group? How immoral is it to take revenge against some random person,
who has done nothing but be of the same ethnicity as the person
inflicting harm to some within your own collective group?
Recurring and avoidable tragedies result when the worst of tribalism is
carried out against the collective other; whether on a small-scale,
institutionalized into systems like Ethnic Federalism of the TPLF/EPRDF
or mixed together and exploited, usually for the benefit of the dominant
partner.
Unfortunately, the consequences of these tragedies are
now serious and far-reaching. To further complicate matters, they must
be dealt with in an environment entirely lacking the supports for
success. Collective punishment flourishes in environments where there is
a failure of justice.
It shows a weak rule of law that is
ineffective in ensuring protection for the innocent from collective
attacks and hindering those impacted from taking collective revenge. One
person can kill another without any consequences. Ethnic federalism of
the TPLF/EPRDF and its policies that capitalize on ethnic differences or
other distinctions actually promotes this.
When a ruling party
of the TPLF/EPRDF uses ethnicity, religion, political viewpoint,
activism, region or other factors to divide people, to protect
self-interest, to play favorites with opportunity, to repress legitimate
rights and to cover-up needs or complaints rather than dealing with the
real problems; the results are what we have recently seen in exploding
ethnic-based violence, hunger, and death encountered by the thousands
fleeing the country.
Gambella has become the site of increasing
ethnic-based violence and killing. On April 21, 2016, two Nuer girls,
refugees from South Sudan who were living in the Jewi refugee camp in
Gambella, Ethiopia, were hit and killed by a car driven by a highlander
associated with a humanitarian group, Action Against Hunger (ACF). The
term Highlander refers to a lighter-skinned person originally from the
highlands of Ethiopia, rather than indigenous to the region).
In
response, some Nuer refugees sought retaliation for their deaths by
killing ten or more highlanders, who lived or worked in Gambella. None
of those killed were driving the car involved in the accident. The only
thing they had in common was their skin-color. Now, highlanders have
organized and are retaliating against innocent Nuer, killing three
persons. Of the three already killed; none are refugees, but instead are
Ethiopian citizens who had nothing to do with the murder of the
highlanders.
The highlanders also carried out a protest
followed by the attempt by some of them to go to the refugee camp and
Nuer areas, but regional and federal security forces prevented them from
doing so. Some highlanders threw rocks at the vehicle of the governor
of the region, a Nuer, and broke the windshield.
Protestors
shouted that they did not want to be led by a refugee, claiming the
current governor was a refugee from South Sudan rather than a citizen of
Ethiopia. Protestors also attacked the vehicle belonging to Riek
Machar, the Vice President designate for South Sudan and leader of the
SPLA-In Opposition, himself a Nuer, who was preparing to return to Juba
to assume his new position there. He condemned the killings by all
groups, including the Nuer.
In another incident, occurring a week
ago, many were shocked to hear the heart-breaking news of the murder of
over 200 Nuer, local citizens of Gambella, who were attacked by
approximately 300 armed Murle tribesman who are said to have crossed the
Ethiopian border from South Sudan to carry out a simultaneous attack on
thirteen Nuer villages in the early morning hours of April 15, 2016.
During that attack, mostly unarmed Nuer desperately fought to protect
their families against the heavily armed Murle. In addition to the
killings, over a hundred children and some women were abducted and two
thousand head of livestock taken. It is said that the Murle then
returned to South Sudan. These Nuer were not involved in the later
attack on the highlanders this past week.
What happened to the
Nuer impacted other Ethiopians as can be seen from the many messages of
sympathy and support in the social media. Public sentiment was strong;
not only because of the great loss of life and the abduction of the
women and children, but also because these were foreign aggressors,
entering across Ethiopia’s porous borders to attack a vulnerable people
who were unable to defend themselves due to the lack of security forces
and their disarmament.
We in the Solidarity Movement for a New
Ethiopia (SMNE) express our deepest sympathy to those who lost their
loved ones and pray that the wounded will soon recover and that those
who have been abducted will quickly be returned to their homes and
families. These are egregious crimes, piercing the hearts of many caring
people; not only within the Nuer community, but far beyond.
Sadly, the numbers of tragic reports affecting the people of Ethiopia
and in the Horn of Africa have become almost a weekly occurrence. It
overwhelms our emotions. It is almost too much to emotionally deal with
when we think of these tragedies being followed by two separate
incidents where approximately 500 people from Ethiopia, Eritrea and
Somalia were drowned crossing the Mediterranean in overcrowded ships in
search of freedom and opportunity. This means 1,000 people— men, women
and children. The stories from survivors who watched their loved ones
drown, unable to save them, are appalling.
We also grieve for
these precious lives and extend our heartfelt condolences to the
families of those who so tragically drowned. According to reports, the
majority of people who lost their lives, in both incidents, were Oromo,
many of them young people escaping the recent violence and
government-sponsored killing in Ethiopia.
We have heard that
some of these victims were activists in the peaceful demonstrations
against the regime’s plan to take over indigenous Oromo land as part of
the Addis Ababa Master Plan. Fearing arrest, torture or deadly
repercussions, they fled Ethiopia, never expecting to lose their lives
on the way.
We deeply feel the pain of these lost lives. These
young people were committed to building a better future within the
country; but for some, it became too difficult, if not impossible, to do
so. Those lost in the sea were also victims of human traffickers who
exploited the desperation of those fleeing their countries; however,
most of these victims may never have left the country except for the
government-sponsored killing of peaceful protestors— over 600 since last
November.
Added to the tragedy of these events is the worsening
starvation among Ethiopians, especially impacting the people of the
Afar and Somali regions of the country. Unfortunately, the peace,
security and one-mindedness necessary to better deal with such a
deepening food crisis are missing.
Additionally, ESAT News
report sources have told them that the Ethiopian Special Envoy for the
Prime Minister, Ambassador Berhane Gebrekiristos, had asked the Addis
Ababa representative to the UN to stop fundraising efforts being carried
out by OCHA, USAID, Save the Children, UNICEF and others since it would
“tarnish the image of the country.”
Where is the concern for
the people who will starve as a result? That story would also “tarnish
the image of the country” if it were allowed to surface in the media.
Yet, new measures are further restricting the social media in Ethiopia;
which, is now the most expensive country in the world for Internet among
120 countries in the study, limiting the number of users in this poor
country. (See price rankings by country for the Internet.)
On the
other hand, the TPLF/EPRDF government appears to be more proactive in
their response to the case involving the Nuer killed by the Murle,
possibly because the aggressors came from outside the country. We hope a
strategy can be developed to bring the perpetrators to justice, to
return those abducted as well as the cattle; however, it is also
important to understand how it happened in the first place so it is not
repeated.
According to reports coming out of Gambella, the
deaths could have been avoided. The Murle alleged to have committed the
killings, came from another country. Had there been more security at the
borders to protect the citizens; they could have been stopped at the
border by Ethiopian security forces whose job it was to protect the
borders. However, they were not present to do their job, leaving the
border open without any supervision.
Up until recently, there
had been indigenous security forces at the border, consisting of members
of the local ethnic communities. However, in February, ethnic violence
had erupted between the Nuer and Anuak. These security forces, whose job
it was to protect the people of Gambella without bias; instead, turned
on each other.
We can blame the TPLF/EPRDF regime, known for
using ethnic apartheid divide and conquer politics to maintain tight
control over the region, as well as throughout the country. We can also
point to years of regional political decisions that were used as tools
to alienate one group from another; but yet, the bottom line is that
members of both the Nuer and Anuak communities fell into their trap and
became complicit in carrying out acts of violence against the other.
This is at a time when reconciliation among the people is of utmost
importance. Instead, the situation went out of control without anything
to stop it. Rather than dealing with the conflict and crimes committed
by various players; the indigenous security forces, as a whole, were
disarmed and moved from the border, leaving the country and people
vulnerable to attacks such as this one.
This provided an open
door to groups like the Murle who had committed nearly the same acts
against three Anuak villages several weeks ago. At that time, sixteen
people were killed, including children and women, and eight children
were abducted. Three Anuak villages were burned down. Following this
incident, the TPLF/EPRDF regime took no action, essentially giving the
opportunity for it to be repeated. This is now the second time. Had the
authorities responded as they should have done the first time; it is
unlikely that this most recent incident would have been repeated.
Following the latest incident where 200 Nuer were killed, Ethiopian
Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn made a public statement; but what
the country needs is more than a statement. It will require action. If
the regime really cares for the Ethiopian people, someone should be held
accountable for this.
One of those in such a position of
responsibility is the Defense Minister who should explain why there was
such a lack of security when the risk of guns, violence and further
killing was so strong. What is the purpose of defense forces and the
legal system when they are not put into action? Again, its a failure of
the rule of law.
People agree that a tragedy has happened to the
Nuer, but the response of the TPLF/EPRDF should be in a mature,
responsible way that will not lead to losing more lives. Reportedly,
Ethiopian troops have been given permission by President Salva Kiir to
enter South Sudan to find the perpetrators; but it is imperative that an
outcome would include a plan to address the security issues.
Simply pursuing the Murle as a whole, instead of the actual perpetrators
may be used as a shortcut, but it presents the risk of worsening the
outcome, especially if innocent Murle are targeted rather than bringing
the real criminals to justice.
A meaningful and sustainable
solution should be found where the responsibility of the government to
protect its own citizens is carried out in actuality, not just in a
superficial way in order to look good to outsiders.
Concern for
the safety of the borders should encompass all our borders since it is
not only a problem in Gambella, but also in other places, like the
border of Kenya. If the government is not willing to secure these
borders; they should arm the citizens so they can protect themselves
from exactly these kinds of attacks in the future.
These crises
in the country signal an opportunity for the TPLF/EPRDF to act for the
good of the people; changing their focus from self-preservation and
self-interest to acting as a government for the people. In doing so, it
may be the best opportunity to help avert a larger crisis that could
lead to greater instability.
This may be the right time for the
TPLF/EPRDF to come to their senses to change the course both they and
Ethiopians are on that could lead to an escalation of widespread ethnic
violence— a place none of us want to go.
Instead, it is a
chance to bring lasting change that could save everybody— including
them. An example of such change would be to open up political space
instead of repressing and cracking down on citizens, which includes
opening up the media and the exchange of information via technology.
Another example would be to release opposition leaders and political
prisoners from prisons and jails, and to start a genuine dialogue with
the opposition within the country. Still another example would be to
revoke the anti-terrorism law used to repress free speech and political
activism and also the Charities and Societies Proclamation that has
decimated civil society.
The TPLF/EPRDF should listen to the
demands of the people. At such a time as this, people are losing hope
and these crises that are rising up from every corner of the country
will only make it worse, as will the increasing starvation.
When
people warn about ethnic-based violence exploding, these reported
incidents are signs of what could happen on a larger scale without
change. Already many Ethiopians— as well as the ruling regime— see
themselves first as a collective group where their own survival is seen
as primary.
The result is the dangerous dehumanization of others
that could easily explode under existing conditions. This shows how
vitally important it is to embrace a worldview that puts humanity before
ethnicity or other differences and protects the rights and freedom of
others so that one’s own freedom and rights are upheld; both for
practical reasons as well as moral reasons.
The forces of change
are already crouching at our door. Those forces could push us towards
positive change or result in negative actions leading to an escalation
of the consequences we have been seeing.
Would it not be better
to realize change will come, one way or another, and to embrace the
opportunity to bring it in the right way? May God help Ethiopians come
to their senses so as to avoid the collision course we are on now.
In closing, we are heartbroken by what has been happening and believe
we can find a genuine solution if we are willing to embrace values that
support not only our own collective group, but all our people— putting
humanity before ethnicity, or any other difference.
Human life
is precious and as a society, when these lives are lost, we grieve
together regardless of ethnicity, religion, regional background,
political view or any other differences.
Until we are all free,
no one will be free and secure. These principles, upheld by individuals,
communities and the rule of law, could have stopped all of these
tragedies from occurring and could even minimize the effects of the
famine. With God’s help, they could equip Ethiopia for a future beyond
what we could ask or imagine.
May God strengthen the families of
those who have lost loved ones as they go through this difficult time
and may He lead us from the edge of danger to a more compassionate, just
and free Ethiopia for all.
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For more information, contact Mr. Obang Metho, Executive Director of the SMNE. Email: Obang@solidaritymovement.org
