Egypt uprising is our model to bring down Ethiopia's Mubarak !!!!

Tedla Asfaw


This is another number 11 for most of the world but it is Feb. 11, 2011 that brought the Western financed 30 year dictatorship of Hoseni Mubarak to its knee. At this moment I am joining Egyptians in celebration and I tell them that I am proud of them. The mass uprising that started eighteen days ago and the determination of the youth of Egypt spending day and night at Tahrir Square not  giving  its number one demand the resignation of Hoseni  Mubarak is realized today after it was dashed last night by Hoseni Mubarak empty pride that drove many Egyptians angry to come back for another day of protest and defiance.

However, the 20 second statement more than one hour ago by the Vice President about the resignation of Hoseni Mubarak  and hand over power to  the army sent millions throughout Egypt in huge celebration. Not only Egyptians many Africans and Middle Eastern countries which are now suffering under Western financed tyranny celebrate with them. They are learning from Egypt youth experience  and will bring popular revolt to their own countries.

My country Ethiopia is a good candidate for that. We have twenty years of Western financed tyranny run by Meles Zenawi and Ethiopians who match in number with Egyptians but far behind in their developmental stage by any measurement can topple Ethiopia's Mubarak, Meles Zenawi  in short order. The time we spent  lobbying  on Western streets and embassies have brought us only contempt.

Egyptians did it by breaking their fear and fortunately they have an army that did not stand on their way. Ethiopians have no national army comparable to Egypt. The top army officers are standing for their tribal loyalty and they are not going to help us topple Meles Zenawi brutal regime the worst form of Mubarak.

My hope is we can get huge faction of the army which are more than ninety percent of the army  to stand with millions of our people when the uprising started any day and time. The poor soldiers have no interest defending this regime and we should work with them at all levels. These are poor young people who took the job for a living.

The armed nationalist groups like OLF and ONLF have responsibility not to exploit such uprising for their own narrow goals. The good thing is we are hearing from OLF high officials that what they want is to be part of a transition to prepare our people for free and fair election. Free United Ethiopia will not be anti nations and nationalities like TPLF is preaching.

As I write this piece Egyptians are celebrating for the first time without any fear and they know that there is a long way to go until they establish a government which is accountable to them not to foreign interests. One thing is true they will never be silenced again by brute force like they were for the last 30 years.

The next battle is the battle of ideas and I am sure that Egypt with seven thousand years civilization can overcome their recent fifty years or more dictatorship which retarded their growth and shine like their ancestors. Ethiopia which has more than three thousand years of civilization which failed to join the modern age under tyrannical regimes will learn from Egypt and get their freedom in the year of freedom, 2011. Ethiopia's Mubarak has to go by mass uprising !!!!

Ethiopian Asylum Seekers in Oslo, Norway !!!

Prime Minster of Norway,


Dear Prime Minster,

I grew up in Addis Ababa and had contact with the Norwegian missionary in my neighborhood. I still remember the service the Norwegian missionaries  gave to our neighborhood in the 1970s before the 1974 Ethiopian revolution.However, I had not a chance  to visit Norway when I was a student in Belgium, 1985-1987 to see how Norwegians live and what made them kind to fellow human beings.

I have been granted political asylum in United States since 1989 but never went back to Ethiopia after the fall of the military dictatorship of Mengistu Hailemariam. Ethiopia under Meles Zenawi in fact break a record for sending the young educated people out of Ethiopia for the lack of basic freedom, right to assemble, write and speak. We can say without any exaggeration that Ethiopia is a country not to return to but to run away from for  most of the young educated people.

The news of Ethiopian asylum seekers who fled the Meles Zenawi regime threatened by your government to be sent back to Ethiopia is incomprehensible to most of us who are following it closely. Ethiopians have staged a hunger strike on harsh weather condition in Oslo and I am afraid lives might be lost unless you intervene kindly. Norway is an old friend of Ethiopia and I want you to give the asylum seekers legal protection.

I want to assure you that the estimated one million refugees in the diaspora will go back to Ethiopia when our people get back their dignity after they remove Meles Zenawi 's led ethnofascist dictatorial regime that has been financed by the West including Norway for the last two decades.

Regimes  come and go what will remain is the historical relationship between the good people of Norway and the Ethiopian people. Ethiopians love their country and have never stopped worrying about their people and try to help our people struggle by informing the people of the Western countries. The last week Munich Ethiopians protest  estimated to be more than one thousand is one of the recent effort by the Ethiopian diaspora

The sad reality is the Western leaders took our shyness as a sign of endorsement of their failed policy towards our country. If it takes our personal sacrifice to get your policy review we will be doing it and Ethiopians in Oslo are doing it right now, lives will be lost on the process. Liberty and freedom demand that unfortunately.


Sincerely,

Tedla Asfaw

 USA

Is Tahrir Square closer to Munich for German Amharic ?

Tedla Asfaw

I followed today's German and VOA Amharic both did not mention about the huge rally organized in Munich by Ethiopians more than one thousand of them to denounce Meles Zenawi. Was it not news worthy for the DW people ? Or is it censored by the German government.

Both German and VOA covered widely the huge rally in Cairo as it should be but ignored the rally especially  DW in its own backyard. VOA Amharic correspondent in Germany also failed to ignore one of the biggest demo in Europe on Saturday Feb. 5. Is it for lack of information about the rally ?

Can VOA do the same for the coming rally in D.C. this coming Monday  and just ignore it due to pressure from the State Department ?

German government if it is indeed in business of controlling the news it did not like then we should organize a rally to denounce its  undemocratic behavior with the tax payers money.

I hope VOA will cover the coming rally and give some explanation why it ignored the Munich huge rally. The good news is this news is covered by ESAT and now has become a motivation force for our young to repeat the Tahrir Square in Addis Ababa.

I congratulate all who came out as one waving different flags but united to remove Meles Zenawi to take back Ethiopia our common motherland. This rally has much in a common with a rally in New York City in September 2010. Joint rally by all is a way forward. The issue is one and the same get our country back to debate our future freely without anyone acting like a police. The days of Meles Zenawi is numbered we have to remain united in action.

Mubarak unleash his thugs and supporters to take over Tahrir Square !!!!

Tedla Asfaw


As I am writing this piece I am Watching Al Jazerra English on line and what I am witnessing right now is sadly will be remembered as a time and day Egyptians popular revolt was sabotaged by Mubarak's  thugs and supporters. The huge million people rally we witnessed yesterday that was peaceful Tsunami of People who said no to Mubarak's three decades of tyranny was not at all satisfied by his last night speech, not going for another election , set up in motion for "orderly transfer" and "free and fair " election in next fall in September.

Mubarak's "patriotic" words, "I am a soldier and I fought for this country and I will only die in Egypt "seems a line that mobilized his supporters. Some even say they are only just patriotic not even Mubarak supporters. I am not sure about that. The peaceful mass uprising participants were attacked by Mubarak's supporters, stone were flying even we saw people with camels charging and knocking down people children, women and the elderly.

Is this stability the West was calling for ? It is indeed a sad morning for all of us who were following the week long uprising throughout Egypt and especially the huge crowd of at Tahrir Square day and night, women, children, young and old. There was no single incident and those who happened to be out today to say that they are not at all going until Mubarak step down were  attacked.

As of now we have not heard from President Obama. One retired Egyptian General was begging Al Jazzera English to contact the Obama office and to let the president condemn this escalation and possible bloodbath. The army up to now is trying to separate the pro Mubarak from anti-Mubarak. It failed to defend the defenseless people like it did defend the Mubarak palace from angry crowd who were to march to his palace yesterday.

The Pro Mubarak groups are knocking everyone on the way to take over the Tahrir Square. Rocks are flying and I wonder how many people are going to be injured and even killed. The peaceful uprising is now turned into bloodshed by Mubarak thugs. If the West has any credibility left it is this time to call for Mubarak to step down because he has divided Egypt and responsible for the coming Instability in Egypt. Egypt is now under military rule who swear not to fire to people but witnessing innocent people knocked down close to their tanks by thugs.

The fact of the matter is among the pro Mubarak supporters there were polices joining the rally to punish the anti-Mubarak supporters. The battle to takeover the Tahrir Square is still underway as of this moment. One thing which will remain for all pro democracy supporters of the Egyptian uprising all over the world is Mubarak has survived this uprising because of the West standing with him.

America will go to war to topple a dictator like  Saddam Hussein but it also stands with their man like Mubarak who worked for their interest at the expense of their people. it is sad but a reality. I wonder how many people in Egypt for that matter in the Arab world turns into  anti-America by President Obama inaction. His flowery words about  freedom and democracy will be known for what it is but the spirit of Tahrir Square will energize all of us who are struggling to topple western supported tyranny in our own country.