By Teodros Kiros ( PH.D)
Abiy did not negotiate with the Government of Tigray but only with two negotiators of TPLF. This is by itself shouts hallow, a show for the International community and tragedy for the people of Tigray, all those mothers and fathers who sacrificed their children in the prime of their lives and fought and will continue for human dignity.
In my previous article, Perpetual Peace, I was hesitant to be joyous. I cautioned us to move slowly. I was right.
This agreement violates root and branch why the war began and what it cannot end this way.
Let me begin by looking at every item of the agreement and subject it to discursive analysis.
1. Reach an immediate and Permanent Cessation of Hostilities with a view to silencing the Guns and creating a conducive environment and laying the foundation for sustainable peace;
2. Restore the constitutional order disrupted due to the conflict in the Tigray Region;
3. Reject violence as a method of resolving political differences;
4. Guarantee security for all;
5. Ensure a lasting settlement of the conflict;
6. Provide a framework for addressing matters arising out of the conflict;
7. Provide a framework to ensure accountability for matters arising out of the conflict;
8. Foster reconciliation and the rehabilitation of social bonds;
9. Facilitate economic recovery and reconstruction;
10. Commit to addressing the underlying political differences;
11. Provide a framework for monitoring and verification of the implementation of the Agreement.
(1)Fine in paper and yet 24 hours later drones and planes showered on Tigrean lands. The world is closing its eyes and shutting its ears, again.
(2)The second point is disastrous. There is no constitutional order which obligates the Tigrean government which mandates Tigreans to obey. If any order is abiding, it is infact article 39 which allows the nationalities of Ethiopia to Self-Determination, which is what Tigreans demanded and which they were denied and subjected to genocide by Abiy’s government. The constitutional order which Tigreans respect is that part which allows them to choose their leaders, if the people vote to a state within Ethiopia, which can be determined only by a referendum.
(3)At this point, the violence which continues to be imposed on Tigreans can be countered only by purposeful counter violence. In so far as genocide and atrocities themselves are violent , counter violence is the only answer, which Tigrean youth are committed to carry to the bitter end, until the voice of Justice and Truth prevail in Ethiopia.
(4) A lasting settlement must remove Esaias from power, and other Ethiopians will determine the fate of the incompetent terrorist, Abiy Ahmed. That is the task of Ethiopians themselves.
(5) and (6) on Accountability and other outcomes of the conflict should be decided by the UN, the European Parliament, the African Union, if it acts judiciously and responsibly, which it has not done to date. The originators of Genocide must be tried by the International court of Justice, no matter how long it takes. This cannot be negotiated and be erased by defective settlement.
(7)to (12) are procedural matters when the guns are silenced unconditionally and Abiy and his master Esaias are asked to leave Tigray.
If Esaias and Abiy are willing to leave Tigray, I ask the Tigrean government to continue recruiting the heroic Tigrean youth to join the war and save Tigray from Annihilation. Anything short of protracting the resistance with a principled goal is unacceptable and must be resisted by any means necessary.
This is a war for human dignity and Abiy and Esaias are neither competent or visionary to be the champions of Ethiopian sovereignty. They are rather harbingers of doom and symbols of destruction, who must be stopped by the union of Tigreans and its friends.
Easy for you to say, what choice did they have? The army is at the get of Mekele knocking the door, this is the best they can negotiate under the circumstance. They fought to win but they lost badly. They should not have started this war, but with enormous pressure from diaspora and their own ego build by false narration of self aggrandizing tplf entered in to this war, big miss calculation. So leak your wound and move on and disarm and disband leave the rest to history.
Friendly advice.
Gojam: If the ENDF and the mercenary Eritrean Army, FANO and Amhara militia are at the get of Mekele knocking, there is no reason to negotiate as per the previous behaviours show. However, Abiey and his genocidal cohorts are dragged to the negotiation table by the brave TDF.
Tigray was the only obstacle in the way of creating a unitary imperial Ethiopia. Thus, the war was not against the TPLF but against civilian Tigray people. It seems you and people like you are living a fake world where true is false and false is true. How many times were Dr. Debretsion and some Tigray Generals killed by ENDF? It is clearly documented by Amhara and ENDF leadership that the war was started by the blood thirsty Ethiopia.
Are you, yourself personally going to go to Tigray and fight to your death for Tigray’s independence? Or are you just a paper tiger who wants to play “arm-chair-general” and use the youth of Tigray as cannon fodder, while your own children are safe and sound in some Western country? Writing to vent is one thing but encouraging the Tigrayan youth to lay down their lives while not allowing yourself or your own children to do the same is sinful.
To Tsegay,
I understand loosing a war is not easy for anyone, I could have felt the same way or worst. But at some point one need to wake up and come to he/she sense of reality. If tplf is fighting for the good of the people tigray and yet the people are suffering from a continuous full scale war, does that make sense to you still think tplf is fighting to liberate the people? my point is this, I am sure tplf in some capacity was trying to do something good for the people of tigray, but in that process they sacrificed enormous human lives and property damages and exhausted all means of achieving their goals. The rational thing is to find an alternative that never been tried which is a peaceful means. To do that they need to hand all their weapons and disband and let the younger generation the peaceful alternative.