ERITREA: The End Does Not Justify The Means
Opinion
By Berhane M Tekeste
23 May 2007
Dictators and tyrants leave no one minute pass by without reporting any and every little bit of civic accomplishments that would camouflage or at least divert attention away from their rule by the barrel of the gun. Eritrea ruler, Esayas Aferwerki, has long adopted and perfected this tyrannical modus operandi, par excellence. The international media is inundated with the daily reporting of even trivial accomplishments of Afewerki's totalitarian state authority in a perpetual attempt to shift focus away from the tyrannical terror that has befallen Eritrea and to create the impression of societal normalcy.
In an interview back in March with China Business Weekly Magazine, Afewerki braged "What have we done in the last 15 years?" It is not the size or the quality of the service we have done, but it should be measured in terms of time and I think we have done our best and we are not saying it is satisfactory or we have done everything, but we have done a good deal of infrastructural work for the last 15 years." Mr. President, firstly, that only indicates that you are at least in line with the requirements of the job description of the highest public position that you have voluntarily acquired by the barrel of the gun. Nothing more, nothing less, it is your job? And considering that you are ruling the country without restrains of constitution, rule of law, accountability, political opposition and more, your infrastructural success story is not surprising. If you are looking for extra credits for that, then you have a perverted understanding of doing your job, sir. Secondly, an apparently satisfactory or even sound infrastructural performance of your tyrannical state authority cannot and does not mean a justification for your tyrannical grip on Eritrea by any standard and regardless of how often it is reported or presented. Sir, the end (satisfactory/sound infrastructural progress) does not justify the means ('means' pertains to your one-man, one-party totalitarian rule by the barrel of the gun).
"Building a young, small, and economically devastated nation like Eritrea is not an easy task." Tells Afewerki the same magazine. That is a tall order indeed. But that is neither an excuse nor justification to subject the people of Eritrea to your one-man, one-party tyrannical rule by the barrel of the gun, by any standard, sir? "For the last 15 years, we were focused only on very realistic programs. In the first place to promote development and attract investment we had to put in place an infrastructure. Any country can't attract investment without infrastructure." Added Afewerki. That is worth the cause, Mr. President. But in the absence of the rule of law investing in Eritrea would mean a lifetime gamble and at one's own peril. If you believe the contrary, then you only prove your perverted understanding of democracy in particular and investment politics in general.
"when you have 80%, 90% of the population living below the poverty line, when a small minority is benefiting from the resources available to a country and the bigger majority is living in destitution, how can we talk about democracy? Told Afewerki China Business Weekly Magazine when asked about democracy. Democracy of destitution yes, but not democracy of equality, or democracy of sharing resources of a country." Well, Mr. President, how do you then govern a country without democracy? By the barrel of the gun? Mr. President, being poor is not an indictment to subjugation and tyrannical one-man, one-party rule by the barrel of gun or a justification for tyranny? It is not a choice between bread and democracy as you like us to believe, Mr. President. Poverty and democracy are not mutually exclusive; they go hand in hand. Equally, Food security and democracy are not mutually exclusive either? How does democratic governance hamper the task of feeding the people, sir? Poor people do have rights too? If not rich, poor people are at least human beings and are entitled to basic human rights like every other human being? Democracy is not an enemy of the poor, Mr. president? To the contrary, democracy is the friend of the poor and the enemy of the rich, sir. The poor have nothing to lose but every thing to gain from democracy, sir. So, if you want to prevent small minority from being the sole benefactors of the country's resources and desire the bigger majority to have its legitimate share of our common pie, then, not denial but realization of democracy is the only way to go.
Mr. President, with all due respect, you are hallucinating. Snap out of it! . There is no such thing as 'democracy of destitution', 'democracy of equality', or democracy of sharing resources'. Democracy is the most equitable, just and holistic form of governance and doesn't break up into the categories that you are fantasizing about, sir.
Mr. President, you can turn and roll it all you want 24x7 but you better believe that it is literally and figuratively insane to defend one-man, one-party tyrannical rule by the barrel of the gun for it is simply indefensible. Give it up, if not for our great cause we call Eritrea at least for the sake of your own sanity.
Mr. President, the people of Eritrea have seen more than enough of your tyrannical rule, give democracy a chance and let the people speak wherever the chips may fall? Who knows, you might even retain your spot? If not, what the hell?
What is utterly absurd in Eritrea is that tyranny is being perpetrated under the label "People's Front for Democracy and Justice [PFDJ]" that have long consigned the sole source of democracy and justice (the Eritrean National Constitution) to oblivion (10 years and counting)?
Constitutional governance (Democracy) is the only way forward for Eritrea. Every thing else is a futile exercise and a fossil excuse to perpetuate Afewerki's/PFDJ's one-man, one-party totalitarian rule by the barrel of the gun.
Ever since May of 1991, when Eritrea emerged as a politically independent and self-governing sovereign nation, May 24 is Independence Day in Eritrea. Congratulations and Happy 16th Independence Anniversary, ERITREA, REGARDLESS. For they can deny us of our National constitution but they cannot take away that from us whatsoever. Eritrea is here to stay.
See also: ERITREA: Reinventing Democracy to fit Dictatorship
Author can be reached at bmtekeste@yahoo.com
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