In the late 1970s, the late playwright and former President of Czech Republic, Vaclav Havel, penned series of essays titled “The Power of the Powerless” and “Living in Truth” which took the center stage in his philosophy and they were later translated into the “Velvet Revolution” which ultimately brought down the totalitarian and communist regime. In the “Living in Truth” essay, he tells the story of a small grocery store owner who puts up a sign on the door that says, “workers of the world unite” and as Havel put it, failure to put up the sign could be taken by the totalitarian regime as disloyalty. He goes on to say that, the grocery store owner displays the sign not because he is enthusiastic about it but because it is “a symbol of both submission and humiliation.” The grocery store owner lived in a lie.
Vaclav Havel asserts a contrast where the citizen under the communist regime ought to live in truth by alienating himself or herself and “…by refusing to allow the lie to oppress oneself and to refuse to be part of the lie that oppresses others as well…” And that is precisely what the brave editors of Ethio-Forum stood for—-“Living in Truth” before they were snatched by Abiy Ahmed’s security men. The entire edifice of Abiy’s regime is built on heap of lies with no match whatsoever where the compulsion to lie titters on pathology. Among the professional daily reporting where the rest of us have been graced with, Ethio-Forum debunked the regime’s lies where Abiy is caught with his pants on fire as he contradicted himself on many occasions when his motto is either convince them with lies or confuse them.
As much as public intellectuals [reporters, journalists and freelancers alike] are the fourth branch of a constitutional government [executive, legislative and judiciary], they are mandated to hold the state accountable particularly with a fact based reporting and ethical journalism. And Ethio-Forum has been a paragon to that effect. Moreover, the editors of EF have always stood on the right side of history when the rest of the country [save some bona fide individuals] raved with abject hate when Abiy Ahmed in tandem with the Eritrean regime invaded Tigray to commit atrocities including genocide. As such, not only the editors punctured the lies about the economy, military including diplomacy but brought into a sharp focus the treasonous act of Abiy Ahmed when he acquiesced a chunk of land to Sudan in a bid to block TDF a leeway to the West and invited the Eritrean regime to invade Tigray as well.
The regime, of late is in a crackdown spree particularly on media activities and reporters. It is a sign of desperation where the much pitched and hyped up “reform” is lost into oblivion where the country is turning into Eritrea slowly but surely when misery loves company. The regime can only muffle so much where if history is any indication, those who resist if not deny the truth end up being victims of their own lies they spew day in and day out. Perhaps, Abiy Ahmed is banking on what he condescendingly judged the people of “short memory” but little does he know that, he has been wrong practically on everything including about judgment of character as well. Lastly, the international community including CPJ have the moral and legal obligation to pressure the regime not only to release the detained journalists but to inform their loved ones their whereabouts including to safeguard their well-being as well.