Ethiopia committed genocide in Tigray. Ethiopia invited Eritrean army to gang rape girls and women in Tigray, to kill young men and the elderly. They razed farmlands to the ground. They destroyed factories, health care institutions, schools, worship centers and many more. The children who are products of gang rape are unhealed wounds to their mothers for generations to come. Moreover, Tigray is under a total siege where starvation is used as a deadly weapon where toddlers and the un-able are dropping like flies.
Sadly, the world remained reluctant to act betraying its “no more” pledge where the color of Tigreans’ skin takes the backseat where Ethiopia the killer nation is taken for a too big to fail. And instead of holding Abiy Ahmed including the seven men—committee to account for the harrowing genocide in Tigray, they are sent to talk peace and the terms of peace.
Understandably, Tigrean leaders are being realistic where the moral equivalence they would have to forgo has not lost on them when they sit to discuss the terms of peace not only with killers and murderers but who also betrayed and backstabbed Tigray in her darkest moment when they [Redwan Hussain, Demeke Mekonen to mention but a few] jumped ship with her blood enemies.
In 1961, reporting for “The New Yorker” from Jerusalem on the trial of Adolph Eichmann, the social and political philosopher Hannah Arendt coined the phrase “Banality of Evil” when Eichmann appeared to be devoid of thoughts when he said, he was merely following orders. Regardless of the philosophical nuances with respect to the acts of evil, any person who is an instrument of evil is evil including those who committed atrocities and genocide in Tigray.
For Tegaru on the other hand, the question of Theodicy gets even deeper when the loving God has a purpose in the face of evil when Tigray is already on the road to greatness.
When the day of judgment comes, not of course in apocalyptic take but when all those who have committed genocide in Tigray including those who have been complicit to it stand for trial in a court of law, no amount of “washing hand like Pilate” can save their skin. The seven member-committee may feign peace but they can never escape justice.
I suspect, Tigrean leaders full well know that, the peace talks Abiy is “willing” to engage in is a ruse. In reality, that is the red-line he can not afford to cross with respect to his relationship with Isaias Afwerki. The latter’s manic animosity towards Tigray is irreconcilable, as such, Abiy can only pretend and push the peace initiative as much as it can not work lest he breaks his ties with the Eritrean regime.
The price of parting ways with Isaias Afwerki is much higher for Abiy than maintaining the status quo with TPLF for he can only lose Tigray. At loggerheads with Isaias on the other hand, Abiy can lose Ethiopia as a nation-state in its totality. Isaias including his security apparatus are deep in Abiy’s Ethiopia. Abiy would need, if not, it is almost impossible to find the antidote—the sting of a deadly scorpion. Isaias Afwerki has perfected the art of destabilizing a neighboring nation much less a country that is led by a delusional and neophyte leader. With all the indications, the prospect of peace seems fleeting if not slim where one can only hope that a sane leader would rise in Ethiopia that can give a genuine peace a chance.