Vol 22. No. 22
Saturday, 16th of May, 2015
Pages 8, Price 2.00 NFA
Preparations underway to celebrate
24th Independence Anniversary
Eritrea participates in antisanctions conference
Eritrea participated in a conference held in Rome this week to assess the multi-layered consequences and ramifications of sanctions
imposed on individual countries.
The one-day conference, held
under the theme, “Italy and Sanctions, when geo-politics collide
with markets”, was sponsored by
Farefuturo Study and Research
Centre.
Besides Eritrea, four countries
currently under various sanctions,
namely the Republic of Sudan,
South Sudan, Russia and Iran,
as well as officials from the Italian Foreign Ministry, the National
Parliament, and representatives of
workers’ confederations, industry,
and, research centers, among oth-
ers, attended the conference.
Eritrea’s Ambassador to Italy, Mr.
Fisehatsion Petros, underlined that
the sanctions imposed against Eritrea did not occur from the latter’s
violation of international law or
the Charter of the United Nations. They were imposed purely for political motives and ends. Ambassador Fisehatsion emphasized that
the unwarranted sanctions against
Eritrea were principally conceived
to serve US geopolitical interests
and to provide diplomatic succor
to the Ethiopian regime by deflecting attention from its breach of
international law and continued occupation of sovereign Eritrean territories. The unfortunate decision
of European countries to kowtow
News Briefs
Sports activities in London
Football matches to mark the 24th Independence Anniversary were held
in London this week. Thirty two soccer teams took part in the tournament that attracted huge turnout from parents and the young in the Eritrean community in London.
Eritrea’s Ambassador to the UK, Mr. Estifanos Habtemariam, handed
trophy and medals to winning teams and individuals.
Eritreans in Melbourne City celebrate
Independence Anniversary
Eritrean citizens in Melbourne and its environs held celebration for the
24th Independence Day anniversary. Representatives of Australian government institutions took part in the event.
Addressing the participants, Mr. Yasin Omar, in charge of Consular
Affairs in Australia and New Zealand, stated that Eritrea continues to
achieve tangible progress in the tasks of nation-building thanks to the
unity and steadfastness of its people. Similar celebrations are scheduled
to take place in several cities in Australia.
Elections for Local Administrators
Elections for local administrators and managing directors were held in 17
administrative areas in Ghinda sub-zone. Similar elections also took placed in Gash Barka in the sub-zones of Haikota, Logo Anseba.
to US stance was not justified. Nor
does it serve the interests of regional peace and security, Ambassador
Fisehatsion elaborated.
In this perspective and as the hollowness of the original accusations
against Eritrea are becoming more
clear, the Ambassador urged for
remedial action through immediate and unconditional annulment of
the sanctions.
Other speakers highlighted the
deleterious consequences to global
trade and investment especially
when countries on which sanctions
are imposed are in a position to reciprocate with a host of punitive
measures.
Italy’s Vice Minister for Foreign
Affairs, Mr. Lapo Pistelli, also emphasized, in his closing remarks,
that sanctions entail economic
hardships on the population of the
sanctioned country while impacting negatively trade balances and
healthy economic interactions. The
Vice Minister asserted that the consequences to Italy cannot be positive when sanctions are imposed on
its trade and investment partners. Ambassador Zemede Tekle, Commissioner of Sports
and Culture and
Chairman of the
National Holidays
Coordinating Committee, stated that
extensive preparations are being
made on the part of
broad sections of
the citizenry inside
the country and
abroad to celebrate the 24th Independence Anniversary.
The underlying theme of the
various programmes is embodied
under the mantra of “development
through resilience”, Ambassador
Zemede pointed out.
As part of the festivities, a 35member Symphony troupe from
Germany, a cultural group from
South Africa, Malian Singer Habib
Coite and cultural performers
from the Republic of Sudan will
arrive here for the Independence
Day anniversary celebrations.
Meanwhile, Eritrean nationals
residing abroad have begun celebrations marking the 24th Independence Day anniversary.
Members of the PFDJ branch in
Germany said that strengthening
the Front is the timely mission of
its members.
They made the remarks at an annual meeting in Manheim city.
Speaking at the meeting, Mr. Yohannes Woldu, Charge d’Affaires
in the Eritrean
Embassy in
G e r m a n y,
elaborated on
the diplomatic campaigns
the GOE was
undertaking
to enhance
bilateral and
multilateral
ties as well as
to solicit the
annulment of the unfair sanctions
imposed on the country.
The participants of the meeting on
their part underlined the paramount
significance of reinforcing the PFDJ
to bolster the all-round nation-building process. PFDJ German Branch holds annual meeting
NUEW branch in South Sudan
holds founding Congress
The branch of the National Union
of Eritrean Women (NUEW) in
South Sudan held a founding Congress on May 10.
In an opening speech, the Eritrean Ambassador to South Sudan,
Mr. Yohanes Teklemichael, gave
briefings on the active role Eritrean
women played in the armed struggle for independence and in the
subsequent phase for safeguarding
national sovereignty and integrity.
He further stressed the role of
the congress in raising the organizational capacity of the NUEW
members.
The Congress participants elected
a 5-member Managing Committee.
2
Eritrea Profile, Saturday 16th of May, 2015
The Ministry of Justice recently
published new Penal and Civil
Codes as well as their associated
Procedures. These laws were
put into effect after a long and
arduous task of drafting and
documentation. The Commercial
Code is also in the process of
finalization. Following is a brief
summary of the interview the
Minister of Justice Ms. Fawzia
Hashim gave to local media:
Madam Minister, what is the
rationale for the publication of
these laws?
Before directly answering this
question, it’s important to consider
the fact that the Eritrean people have
always had civilized documented
and customary laws that were not
only equitable and comprehensive
but also incorporated the rights and
protection of animals, vegetations
as well as the environment.
However, successive colonial
regimes impeded these laws from
evolving and the people from using
them. Since one of the aspirations
of our liberation struggle is to live
abiding by the rule of law, these new
laws, which have been designed to
consonate with the people’s norms
and traditions, represent a tangible
achievement of that struggle.
These new laws will therefore
meet the people’s longstanding
eagerness to have new codes that
they can call their own, that they
can defend, that they can use and
modernize, and that they can freely
praise, amend or criticize.
How were the Eritrean norms
and values represented in these
new codes?
At first, it was important
to consider how the Eritrean
society views crime or its level
of seriousness. Similarly, the
Published Every
Saturday & Wednesday
Managing Director
Azzazi Zeremariam
Acting Editor
Amanuel Mesfun
[email protected]
P.O.Box: 247
Tel: 11-41-14
Fax: 12-77-49
E-mail:
profile@ zena.gov.er
Advertisement: 12-50-13
Layout
azieb habtemariam
“The Publication And Enforcement Of The
New Codes Is Both Timely And Indispensable,”
Minister Fawzia Hashim
punishment system within the
society was also studied and
incorporated in the new codes.
In the civilian matters, the
profound researches disclosed
that the Eritrean society was more
inclined towards family values and
the overall collective interests, but
that also viewed the individual
interests within that framework.
The civil code in general, and
particularly the codes pertaining
to family law and inheritance,
ensured the incorporation of the
aforementioned values.
Family
affairs,
property
settlement, compensation, etc.
were among the issues thoroughly
examined. To assess the people’s
understanding of these and other
issues, profound and extensive
researches that covered the social,
historical and economic aspects
and that included the documented
and undocumented customary laws
were carried out. Some of these
researches date as far as back to
the Italian colonization; others
include documents containing
80,000 pages which started during
the liberation struggle.
After all these were examined, the
common concepts found in these
customary laws were identified
and incorporated into the new civil
and penal codes. Furthermore,
the principles assumed during
the liberation struggle and that
were enacted in conjunction
with our basic transitional codes
after liberation have also been
represented in these new codes.
But why did the drafting and
documentation of the codes take a
long time?
The foreign professional legal
experts in charge of the first
draft of these codes were tasked
with ensuring that our codes also
integrated universally recognized
legal principles. This took five
years.
But if such new codes are to
be accepted and adopted for
enactment by the society, then they
should not only have universality,
but also reflect the concepts, values
and norms of the society as well.
For this to happen, consultations
were made with all segments of the
Eritrean society, including elders
with deep knowledge of the culture
and traditional laws. This took up
most part of the preparation of the
second draft.
Following the finalization of
both drafts, deliberations were held
between representatives of all line
ministries and relevant government
bodies on how the codes should be
adjusted to accommodate generally
accepted concepts and principles.
Undoubtedly,
all
these
procedures took a long time. But
that was necessary because such
a long drafting process would
warrant that these new codes
further enhanced the supremacy of
law and guaranteed a stable justice
system.
Since the supremacy of law is
based not only on the contents of
the codes but their presentation as
well, the task of preparing them
in a way that ensured the people’s
awareness of their rights and duties
as well as the consequences of
these laws’ violations, also took
considerable time.
How are the new codes different
from the proclamations and legal
notices periodically promulgated
by the government?
Many of the proclamations or
legal notices are published by
the government or the different
ministries and government bodies
and their application is limited to
certain or a large segment of the
society. For instance, proclamations
on customs, business license,
taxation, insurance, banking, etc.
are applicable only to the respective
professionals or segments of the
society directly affected by these
sectors.
The new Civil and Penal Codes
are however applicable, without
discrimination, to all Eritreans,
people residing in Eritrea and
expatriates visiting Eritrea.
Madam Minister, what message,
if any, would you like to convey in
conclusion?
Noting that the Eritrean people
had to endure numerous hardships
to uphold the supremacy of law, the
publication and enforcement of the
new Codes that guarantee peace
and social harmony for generations
to come and that are predicated on
human dignity, development and
the rule of law is both timely and
indispensable.
It is the wish of the Eritrean
government that future generations
use these codes, periodically
enhancing the principles, towards
attaining a peaceful existence.
STATE OF ERITREA
NATIONAL AGRICULTURE PROGRAMME (NAP)
Invitation For Bids (Ifb)
2
3
4.
. 5.
6.
if
1. The Government of ERITREA has received a Grant from the International Fund for
Agricultural Development towards the cost OF National Agricultural Project(NAP)
and it is intended that part of the proceeds of this Grant will be applied to eligible payments
under the contract for the supply of:- Lot.1 Supply, Installation and Commissioning
Sprinkler Irrigation System.
The Eligible bidders should have a professional experience and renewed license for the
year of 2014 appropriate for the Sprinkler Irrigation System.
Bid shall be Valid for a Period of 120 days after Bid opening, and must be accompanied
by a bid Security of 2% at any Eritrean Bank and delivered to Procurement and Supplies
Management Unit office on or before June/16/2015 local hours 14:30 PM and will be
Opened On the same date at 15:00 PM Local hours in the presence of the Bidders or
Bidders’ Representatives who wish to attend.
Eligible bidders may bid for a complete lot. Bid for partial lot will be rejected as non
responsive
A complete set of bidding documents may be collected by any interested Eligible bidders
from the address below.
Ministry of Agriculture, Procurement and Supply management Unit, Sawa Street, Tel:
181077/76 Fax: 181415, P.O.Box:1048, Asmara, Eritrea.
Bids will be opened in the presence of Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at
3:00 Pm Local Time hrs on June 16, 2015.
The Ministry of Agriculture reserves the right to accept or reject this bid fully or in part
it finds any option better than this IFB without needing to justify the grounds for it doin
So and Compensation which the bidder may incurred in preparing its bid.
Ministry of Agriculture
3
Eritrea Profile, Saturday 16th of May, 2015
Values Of Freedom
Eritreans, as people of a nation, share a number of national values. On the spirit of the upcoming celebration of the Independence
Day, today’s ‘On the Table’ shall look into national values concerning independence and freedom.
Pillars Of Independence Emancipating The Mind
Daniel Semere
“The longest journey starts with a pace”
goes a proverb. This is an obvious logic but
with deep meaning. Indeed without starting
there could never be finishing. However, it
is not always easy to appreciate the message this proverb communicates when we
are dealing with a seemingly insurmountable challenges; where our step seems inconsequential to the work that lays ahead to
reach to where we want to be. But without
the audacity to overcome such disheartening
situation, victory will remain but a hollow
wish.
The independence of Eritrea is a tangible
result of the above assertion. It epitomizes
the will to take on an immense challenge
with one step at a time but with unwavering
belief on the inevitable victory. The beginning of our armed struggle would suffice
this claim. A handful of people with few
old guns taking on challenging a humongous army that enjoys the full support of
a superpower would have been considered
absurd. Indeed so many were discouraged
from the onset, when they considered how
far along the road the struggle was from independence; precisely due to this doubt and
the ultimate victory of the struggle, our independence has an enduring lesson to offer
to the world.
A big lesson from our independence is that
victory is made in the hearts and minds of
people first, and that without the emancipation of the mind, a meaningful action could
not spring out in which case there would be
no result. The biggest casualty of colonialism is perhaps the mentality of the people.
The will to do and the courage to embark on
challenges were paralyzed and this phenomenon continued even after political independence of the colonized.
The “it can be done” mentality that was
the hallmark of our struggle is the independence to think the unthinkable without
which it is impossible to succeed in any endeavor. This assertion is still so much relevant in the challenges we have now in the
post independence reconstruction task. It is
also what is needed in elsewhere and especially in our continent where the lack of it
is one of the major hindrances curbing any
initiative towards the enormous challenges
it faces.
However, when embarking on a huge task
the above mentality is not by itself enough.
There is also the need to be organized our
effort from the meager resources that we
are able to garner for maximum impact. In
this respect too, there is much to heed from
the Eritrean struggle for independence. The
way the people were organized inside and
outside the country for a common objective and how material resources were utilized was indeed an awesome accomplishments. Mottos like “fighting the enemy with
his own ammunition and guns”, “the mass
should be aware, organized, and arm”, “gender equality through equality through equal
participation” were not mere rhetoric. They
were accomplished as per their essence and
the result was the miracle of independence.
Independence is a broad term that can be
applied on many things. Whether it is from
colonialism or from poverty and underdevelopment, independence is something that
will always be sought after. Especially in
our continent this holds more truth. Hence,
however big our challenges might be, the
‘can be done’ mentality and organization
are the key factors that will determine the
course of outcomes. And in Eritrea the need
is to keep nurturing these pillars of independence, to unravel the solutions for our challenges for times to come.
Solomon Mengsteab
National values are one of the most crucial elements which have central role in
nation building. They provide citizens of a
nation, as a collective unit, a reference of
what’s desirable, good, beneficial, important, useful, beautiful, constructive, etc.
Thus, national values generate national behavior which helps citizens make the best
out of the opportunities they are presented
with and/or solve common national problems for survival and progress by comparative rankings of values.
Eritrea, as a nation has vast national
values, most of which were nurtured and
flourished during the armed struggle for
independence. However there are even
many other values that have become more
practically cherished after independence.
And one of the most significant is simply
the value of freedom. We, Eritreans, have
placed the greatest value for our freedom,
as it was never cheap to get it. We paid
dearly for it.
However, as soon as we cut one chain
of subordination, colonization, we directly
found ourselves in a new challenge for our
freedom, a new form of marginalization,
neo-colonization. By the time our country
won its independence form the Ethiopian
colonization, the west have already have
most of the African free states on the claws
of neo-colonialism. The most powerful tactic the western world has applied to keep
Africans subdued is making its people and
leaders believe that they don’t have any
choice but to depend on them; they enslaved
the mind. In this new form of colonization
there is therefore the need for a new form
of defense. There is a need to cultivate new
sets of national values concerning our freedom, emancipating the mind. For, freedom
is nothing but a “state of mind” and it is and
has always been ours, right on our palms,
not anyone else’s to be given to us.
Indeed, freedom is a state of mind no one
can give or take it, since when one truly believes that he was born free to live and die
free, who can enslave him? It only goes so
far as what we choose to accept. If we believe that our freedom is utilized by others
and we have no choice but to be subdued,
then we are slaves. On the contrary, if we
believe that all men are born equal and free
and we are willing to do whatever it takes
to up hold it, then we are as free as we were
born to be. And the true meaning of born
free ad die free is never alien to us, Eritreans; our history blatantly demonstrates
it. Our fathers and mothers said no for enslavement, the oppression of colonization,
demanded their freedom, spent their lives
in the wilderness fighting for it and in the
end sixty-five thousands of them gave their
lives, martyred for it. And even after independence we paid twenty thousand precious
lives of our dear brothers and sisters to protect our freedom from the aggression, which
was conspired by many and attempted by
a puppet regime. Throughout the years of
independence, we said no for any form of
dominance of any global and/or regional
forces. Our country remained politically
and economically self-reliant and independent shutting the door on the faces of all
who intended to steal our freedom away.
If freedom is a state of mind, believing
that one is born to live and die free then,
there is no one more familiar with that state
of mind. In the past our history, particularly
our long fight for independence demonstrated it. And now, it is in the spirit of the very
core concept of freedom, principle of independence and self-reliance that we ought to
live our lives and of course celebrate our independence day, May 24, every single year.
No matter how small we seem, we shall
always stand against any of the economic,
political and military giants if and when our
freedom is at stake. We shall never leave
a crack open that might sneak in any form
of dominance, oppression, marginalization
and/or exploitation from any one. We shall
up hold the wishes our martyrs, protect our
freedom and honor the legacy; the legacy of
readiness to perish fighting for our freedom
rather than live deprived of it.
Dear readers ‘On the Table’ always welcomes your outlooks on any of the issues raised on this column. Please mail us your comments opinions and
views; we will entertain them.
On the Table: http://www.profile.gov.er Daniel Semre - [email protected] Solomon Mengsteab [email protected]
Eritrea Profile, Saturday 16th of May, 2015
ADS
4
Eritrea Profile, Saturday 16th of May, 2015
5
development through resilience
Eritrea Profile, Saturday 16th of May, 2015
Youth
Independence And The
Youth Competence
Daniel Semere
When many African countries
were to celebrate their fifty years
of independence, their people were
asked questions to provoke ideas
about what half a century of independence meant for the people of
Africa. From the responses that
were forwarded one could see that
the word independence is often
used, and even misused, to explain
the various aspects of the people’s
life. Naturally not everyone can
have the same view about it. There
was difference of opinion whether
independence has really brought
the opportunity for much of the African people to change their life for
the better.
In the opinion of some respondents independence has been made
to mean ‘independence from European colonial powers,’ yet it
is something that should not just
be defined that way. It should go
down to examine how the people
are actually faring. It is true that
post independence life in many
African countries has been punctuated with upheavals, political
unrest, civil wars, and with
the dream of becoming economically independent after
attaining political independence
from an alien state remaining a
dream. Indeed mentioning the
civil war in Congo just after independence, the Rwanda genocide
that took the lives of hundreds of
thousands of innocent citizens, and
the abject poverty of most of the
rural Africa is enough. On the other hand however, there were opinions voicing that the achievement
Africa has accomplished in those
years of independence should not
be underestimated. These people
believe that since 1960, the situation on the continent has changed
profoundly, not only in the political but also in the economic, social
and cultural spheres. They seem
to hold the conviction that manifold concentration, differentiation
and transformation processes have
made African societies much better
and more complex today than they
were 50 years ago.
Whatever the difference might
be however, having been liberated
from the colonizers is an achievement in and of it. As most would
agree colonialism is to be despised,
the way it downgraded and humiliated us. Therefore the struggle for
independence was a worthy cause
as we became free and nations.
Certainly, Africa must pursue an
alternative path that will lead to
economic prosperity and peace.
Africa needs to escape the vicious
circle of poverty
The above seems to be a very fair
representation of what independence means to today’s African people.
One thing that was missing from
the above expressions or was not
posed as frequently as it should
is the sense of re-
sponsibility that is inherent in the
word “Independence”. Yes, Inde-
NUEYS page
pendence should bring about the
aspired
outcome everyone
eagerly expected.
But, it is the responsibility of
the citizen to
work
their
ways
toward these
outcome.
There is
no readymade solution to
the different
problem
Africa
is facing.
Overcoming
these problems requires that the
people be hardworking, vigilant,
critical of policies and resilient.
And the endurance of such com-
6
mitment has a better chance when
it is vested on the youth. The youth
should prove themselves that they
are up to the above challenges. Because what independence should
bring is the chance to bring about
what colonialism prevented.
The national charter of Eritrea,
clearly states that independence is
as much a means as it is an end.
Indeed as stipulated in our political programs during the struggle
or after independence, building a
peaceful and prosperous country
when the people live in peace, security and harmony is the final goal.
That is what the above opinions of
the African people teach us; that
even though generations before us
fought for it, independence is not
complete if it cannot be translated
to the betterment of people’s life.
It is true that much has been
done, but a lot more needs to be
done before we can claim we have
accomplished the goals we set
out to achieve in our struggle for
independence. The youth of this
country thus bear tremendous responsibility of acquiring a broad
vision. We may be fortunate to be
born and grow in an independent
country but it only means that our
goal now should lie in enhancing
our land’s richness and growth.
So, with time the importance of
the Independence Day should not
diminish. We should rather remember the responsibilities of building
our country and protecting the
privilege of freedom that was given to us by previous generations.
And that will be the greatest gifts
we can give to the generations to
come. Proving our competence to
accomplish this responsibility is up
to us, the youth. The Eritrea we envision cannot come otherwise.
7
Eritrea Profile, Saturday 16th of May, 2015
Reflection On Freedom
And Independence
Solomon Mengsteab
Throughout their lives people
make unending efforts to make the
future better for themselves, their
loved ones and fellow human beings. To make the chances of the
realization of better future therefore, they search the paths to the
desired ends, and sometimes attempt to pave the way themselves.
But, finding or laying the flagging
of the path towards to better tomorrow is easy said than done. Hence,
to have themselves fit and ready for
these required efforts in the pursuit
and for the challenges which should
pop up in the process people make
constant physical, mental, psychological, economic, etc. preparations
in their lives. Nevertheless, since it
is not only difficult, but also impossible to overcome all the challenges
of life all alone, people, every now
and then, look for the assistance of
others. It is therefore to grant such
assistance, which one may need
from others at any given time that
people create various forms of social groups and structures. Thus,
individuals, in a way another are
members of one or another groups.
The organization of the groups
could be ethnic, regional, religious,
class, profession, etc. Yet still, no
matter which corner of the world
they are, individuals are necessarily
the members of not only one but a
number of social groups. Which is
probably why, the well-known philosopher Aristotle described mankind as ‘social animal.’
Indeed, either by birth or choice
or at times both, everyone belongs
to a certain social group or another.
One is a farmer, a doctor, a teacher,
etc. and when one fails to have a
profession/job and is idle, one still
belongs to some group, the indolent
and/or unemployed. One is a Christian, Muslim, Jew etc. and when one
doesn’t belong to any of the worldly
known faiths ones is still a member
of a group, the atheist. One is an
Eritrean, Chinese, Liberian, Italian,
etc. or sometimes one may have the
citizenship of two or more countries.
One is black, white, brown, etc.
or when one is born from parents
of different races one is of mixed
race. Such and many other kinds of
groups are numerously found within the social structure of mankind.
Yet still, any of these groups are
hardly mutually exclusive to one
another. On the contrary, most of
them are intricately convoluted with
one another and thus influence each
other prominently. For example,
one could be a doctor. At the same
time this very individual could be a
Muslim and Eritrean. However, the
challenges and opportunities of life
for a doctor in Eritrean and a doctor
in Liberia, China, or Italy are completely different. Nationality, in its
fundamental sense, is nothing but
a social organization; and being a
doctor is not the same in every corner of the world, as it is influenced
by many other social organizations
such as nationality. And the realization of this fact is sufficient example
which would help one to perceive
the influence of one social group on
the others.
In order to preserve their membership of a certain social group
or another, and furthermore to uphold their status within the groups
people follow the rules, regulation,
customs, norms, laws etc. of the
groups they belong to. In fact, at
times, without any external strain
but with their own absolute will,
people sacrifice their personal freedom and advantages for the purpose
Part I
mentioned above. But, the million
Nakfa question here is ‘why?’ Why
do people give such significance for
the membership and status of such
groups and go so far as giving up
their own freedom and advantage
for its preservation? This question
may have several explanations from
different social workers, scientists,
researchers, and experts. However,
one concept ought to exist in most
of them if the explanations are to
make sense; securing freedom. For,
more alliance with others means
lesser restraints to one’s choices and
that means more freedom.
Let’s see the concept of giving
up freedom in smaller matters in
order to secure it in bigger cases,
in an example. When a man hires
a security guard to watch over his
house and property, for instance, he
loses a fraction of his total domestic
freedom that he used to have while
he lived alone. For, now there is another person in his house who can
notice his actions; and this possibility to some extent hinders the man
from doing whatever he wishes to
do as he used to when he were alone.
But then, the presence of the security guard minimizes the possibility
of any kind of unwanted interferences and aggressions from others.
Therefore, by sacrificing a fraction
of his freedom the man who hires
the security guard secures the more
significant aspects of his freedom
and peace.
When seen in the light of this example therefore, it becomes apparent that the freedom which people
give up in order to maintain their
presence and status in a given social
group is reimbursed to them multiplied many more times just by being
under the protection of the group.
If freedom as a concept stands for
the idea of having the right to have
thoughts and the choices and opportunities materialize these thoughts
without violating the rights of others to do the same, people attach
themselves with different groups
to secure this very right of theirs.
For, the chances of securing one’s
choices and interests are much superior when done in groups to individually. Without a doubt, teacher’s
union has more tangible chances of
securing the interests of teachers, as
groups and as individuals, than any
individual teacher could do on his
own.
In life, freedom is one of the most
sought after and treasured desires of
mankind. Most of the other wants
and choices of people are, for the
most part, secondary to freedom.
Food, for example is one of the
basic necessities of life. Nonetheless, when it is not eaten when it is
needed with the sufficient amount
it is looked-for, even food could
have its own hazards. If one were
forced to shove down food excessively when one is full, the food
could even be of the best kind in the
whole wide world, that shoved food
would, without a doubt, make one
uncomfortable, sick and in extreme
cases even dead. Thus, when even
this basic necessity of life, food, is
not eaten with choice and will when
it is needed it could be injurious.
Indeed, freedom is weighty. If one
observes the activities and endeavors of people and analyses their
purpose meticulously enough, one
would understand the real value and
preciousness of freedom. Regardless of the length of the chain of the
process, most of the endeavors and
practices of people have securing
and fostering the choices they could
have in life as their end result or ultimate goal.
If one toiles to get rich, it is because one knows that the chances of
having and doing what one wants
are much higher when one is rich. If
one dreams of being in a position of
power, it is because one knows that
the position could be one’s means to
materials his wishes and dreams. If
one wishes to be physically attractive, it is because one believes that
handsomeness plays a significant
role in securing one the sexual partner that one should choose and in
smoothing issues related to physical
attraction. And choice is freedom.
Seen from different angle therefore,
freedom makes everything better;
without it nothing is as good and
as desirable. Without freedom even
life itself gets bitter. Perhaps that is
why people give up their lives in
their struggle for freedom; saying,
‘freedom or death’.
8
Eritrea Profile, Saturday 16th of May, 2015
By: Anbe Berhane
ERITREA is about to celebrate
its 24th birthday. This is a country that has come about and is
protecting its being against all
odds. Prior to and after achieving
its independence, Eritrea has had
to face so many challenges, some
of which were directly related to
its very survival as a nation.
Neighboring Ethiopia’s acts of
aggression and illegal occupation of its sovereign territory, UN
sanctions imposed based on false
charges; Ethiopia’s refusal for the
past 13 years to fully implement
the final-and-binding verdict by
a panel of international jurists
relating to the Ethio-Eritrean
border; and, of course, the various measures of arms embargo
taken against Eritrea by certain
countries unilaterally and multilaterally are examples of some of
the major challenges that the relatively young African nation has
had to face and is still facing. Relentless efforts have been
made by the Government of Eritrea and Eritreans in the Diaspora
to meet these challenges head
on. On one hand, official proactive diplomatic measures have
been taken by the government,
and on the other hand, Eritrean
Diaspora communities have
been conducting nonstop public
awareness campaigns to counter
a well-coordinated campaign of
demonizing Eritrea by the minority regime in Ethiopia and its
Washington lobby.
What is noteworthy in all of
these is that Eritrea and its people
have developed a distinct ability
to turn challenges into opportunities. During the armed struggle
Eritrea: Turning Challenges
Into Opportunities
for Independence there was no
power to speak of that stood for
the Eritrean people’s right to selfdetermination. While Ethiopia
was being supported by 4 of the
5 veto-wielding powers of the
UN Security Council, we were
left to fight it alone. We faced the
largest and most powerful army
in Sub-Saharan Africa, led by
highly decorated Generals educated in the best war colleges in
the US, France, and UK, advised
by the best military strategists of
the Eastern Bloc countries, armed
with the latest fighter jets, rockets
and missiles the USSR could supply, and with thousands of napalm
and cluster bombs in store courtesy of the Americans and Israelis,
together with the fact Eritreans
were outnumbered 1:10. For sure
this was a huge challenge, but we
changed it into an opportunity
by capturing from and using the
Eritrea and its people have developed a distinct ability to turn challenges into opportunities. If it was not for this Eritrean ethos of
survival by turning challenges into opportunities, Eritrea by now would have been a failed states or potential failed states like its
neighbors to the south, west and east.
deadly enemy’s arsenal against
the enemy and thus managing to
single-handedly defeat Ethiopia
and achieve our independence on
24 May 1991.
After independence, the pow-
ers that had worked hard to frustrate the emergence of Eritrea as
an independent nation had known
fully-well they could not count
on the Eritrean Government to do
their dirty business in Africa. As a
result they propped up an unpopular minority regime in Ethiopia
and worked hard to isolate and
encircle Eritrea. They encouraged
the lawless regime in Addis not to
implement the final and binding
EEBC demarcation decision so as
to keep Eritrea on a war footing
and hold It hostage.
Furthermore, they imposed an
illegal arms embargo to tie Eritrea’s hands behind its back with
the intention of rendering it incapable of defending itself against
another Ethiopian aggression.
Their other sinister hope and plan
was to force the Eritrean economy into collapse. These too were
challenges, but they are being
turned into opportunities owing
to the efforts, resilience and longsuffering of the Eritrean populace
at large and its youth in particular. Eritrea today has comparably
better health and educational services, higher access to clean and
safe drinking water, better road
networks that cover the whole
country, and is in a much better
position to secure food for itself
than all of its neighbors.
The very same anti-Eritrea
powers are also hell-bent to drain
Eritrea of its youth. They are
committing naked aggression
against Eritrea by encouraging,
overtly and covertly, the youth to
leave their country by promising
asylum to everyone who claims
to be Eritrean. By working hand
and glove with human smugglers
and human traffickers, the Western enablers of Ethiopia are endangering not only Eritrean lives,
but also other Horn of Africa
citizens who want to pass as or
impersonate Eritreans in order to
get Asylum in Europe. This, too,
is the latest in a series of challenges and certainly the current
generation of Eritrean youth, like
the generations before it, would
change it into an opportunity.
If it was not for this Eritrean
ethos of survival by turning challenges into opportunities, and
where challenges are taken as
part of life that one should use as
a springboard for opportunities,
Eritrea would have been like its
neighbors to the south, west and
east — failed states or potential
failed states. Eritrea at 24, however, is independently and selfreliantly celebrating its being,
growing more robust and stronger each year.
Happy Birthday Eritrea!