BY EAIM (Revised 12-8-07)
WAR AND ITS EFFECT
Some define war as “Contention by force”, others say “War is the
continuation of politics by other means “. War is wide spread conflict between
states, organizations which is characterized as the use of lethal force or
violence between combatants. War is contrasted with peace which is usually
known as the absence of peace.
War is wicked, more disastrous, more widely destructive, more
deeply tenacious, and loathsome. It is repugnant to nature. Some compare
soldiers who go to war to thousand animals rushing together to butcher house.
War is often used as an excuse to avoid government problems or to take
government measures that would otherwise meet too much resistance.
War almost invariably leads to, and often encourages, torture,
rape, and other extreme human rights abuse that go beyond its stated purpose.
War frequently robs people of what is rightfully theirs by taking
or maintaining control of land, resources, possessions, political systems.
War creates orphans. Those who play no part in waging a war
especially children, invariably suffer, directly or indirectly.
War and preparation of war are the largest source of pollution on
our planet. War has lasting ill effect on veterans.State warfare reinforces
divisions that help perpetuate gross inequalities. War diverts the energy of
many who might otherwise work constructively. War creates fear, suspicion,
intolerance and hate. War deprives us of resources that could and should be
used in constructive ways.
A reasonable person might ask that if war is wicked
destructive, how on earth we could say there is just war. It needs two opponents to wage war. Most of
the time both parties, cannot be proponents of war. To have a victim there
should be victimizer, the invaded has his invader, the defender has an
aggressor, and the killed has a killer.
Here is the list of the PRINCIPLES OF JUST WAR formulated by St.
AGUASTINE of HIPPO
·
A just war can only be
waged as a last resort. All non-violent options must be exhausted before the
use of force can be justified.
·
A war is just only if it
is waged by a legitimate authority. Even just causes cannot be served by
actions taken by individuals or groups who do not constitute an authority
sanctioned by whatever the society and outsiders to the society deem
legitimate.
·
A just war can only be
fought to redress a wrong suffered. Self-defense against armed attack is always
considered to be just war.
·
A war can only be just
if it is fought with reasonable chance of success. Deaths and injury incurred
in hopeless cause are not morally justifiable.
·
The ultimate goal of a
just war is to re-establish peace.
·
The violence used in the
war must be proportional to the injury suffered.
·
The weapons used in the
war must discriminate between combatants and non-combatants.
One
can easily deduce what is unjust war by looking at the list of just war theory.
War mongers believe that war is not just inevitable but desirable. It is
adventure and excitement for them. They say it brings out the best qualities in
men—courage, comradeship and sacrifice. It gives glory to a country. It is
effective instrument of national policy. War enables to enhance power grip over
their subjects.
Machiavelli never discusses if war is
right or wrong in his book THE WAR OF ART. He just wrote about the best way to
wage war so as to conquer the enemy.
The PFDJ dictatorial regime is not telling
the Eritrean people what we lost in the 1998-2000 year war with Ethiopia.
Instead they are trying to mobilize the public with what sacrifices have been
given in the just war of our armed struggle.
PFDJ IS BEATING WAR DRUMS AGAIN.
The regime PFDJ is reaching out some
light minded Eritrean through all means of communication, Phones, seminars,
flyers, radio, television---etc in the name of PROTECTION OF ERITREAN
SOVEREINTY AGAINST ETHIOPIAN INVASION (HEZBAWI MEKETEE).We see it going on all
over the USA.
What is surprising is the hotchpotch of
some intellectuals and educated Eritreans in the DIASPORA, with their
fictitious and self- proclaimed democratic –theories are trying to mobilize the
Eritrean public to join the war wagon of PFDJ unjust war.
The PFDJ key note speakers this season in
Washington DC were Dr. Asgede Hagos and Dr Ghidewon Asmerom. One member of EAIM
(Amare Gebremariam Gebre) knew Asgede from their high school days and at Addis
Abbeba as well (we are talking about Asgede Hagos who grew up in
Dekemhare-Passo piono de alla, the apologist on Spring Field Virginia). We have
been reading his articles on the web since 1998. We don’t agree with the
content of his articles, but we respect people’s views. We are shocked to see
how Asgede the revolutionary of the 70’s
who wrote “WHO GUARDS THE GUARD” in the Ethiopian Herald turned a
dictatorial PFDJ regime messenger of unjust war. Dr Asgede Hagos professor of
communications seem to believe in the question of nationalities and democratic
rights of the people of the Oromos and others. We do too, but we don’t deny
that when it comes to Eritreans like him. The president of the center for
conflict prevention and resolution in Africa Dr Asgede Hagos calls some member
organizations of the Eritrean Democratic Alliance EDA terrorists. By the way
Asgede, do you know that the leadership of these organizations were and are the
members of the Eritrean war of armed struggle or liberation since the 60’s.
When did they turn terrorists? We guess you got this garbage from the EPLF/PFDJ
regime. In our opinion Asgede failed to answer the call of Eritrea and
Eritreans during the era of armed struggle which is understandable and the call
for democracy against dictatorship. We hope he will adhere to the journalistic
principles he studied when it comes to the situation in Eritrea in future.
PFDJ is saying to the Eritrean
public, don’t question the ends of us just give us your best to do what we want
to do.
IS ERITREAN SOVEREIGNTY AT STAKE?
To those who say Eritrean
sovereignty is violated and is at stake, we say to them absolutely not. The
contemporary Eritrean problem is political crisis, economic crisis and
instability, but not sovereignty issue. Here are our assertions to the
objective reality of our sound sovereign state of Eritrea:
·
The TPLF now EPRDF
recognized Eritrean self determination since TPLF’s inception.
·
TPLF worked hand in hand
with the Eritrean armed struggle believing in our self determination.
·
In 1993 the EPRDF, the
Ethiopian government was the first country to recognize the verdict of the
Eritrean people over whelming yes for freedom.
·
Witnessed Eritrean freedom in the UN.
·
The EPRDF government of
Ethiopia withdrew from land it occupied in Eritrea during the miss-calculation
of PFDJ with no military pressure.
·
We also know that no
provocation is coming from the Ethiopian side and the Ethiopian leadership is
telling the world that they will not be the first to shoot the bullet under any
circumstances.
Instead hear are the activities of the
Eritrean dictatorial regime:
·
The PFDJ never cared
where Bademe is from 1991- 1998.
·
Bademe was part of
Ethiopia when this dictatorial regime conducted referendum in 1993 on
dictatorial system’s accord.
·
Bademe was under
Ethiopia when they drafted the so called constitution and never cared for those
peoples’ voice.
·
The whole world knows who started the war in
1998 on the excuse to regain the Bademe area and who called it meaningless or
senseless later. It is the Eritrean Dictatorial regime who said that “we don’t
rule out federation or co- federation in 1991-2”
·
Every reasonable
government and organization of the world is asking the Dictatorial regime to
enter into dialogue with Ethiopia and demarcate the boarder, but PFDJ is
refusing and giving the world community deaf ears.
·
At the moment it is the Eritrean dictatorial
regime that is provoking and making restrictions to the movements of the peace
keeping mission, but not the Ethiopians.
Fellow Eritreans this war drum of the
dictatorial regime is not intended to bring peace in the region, but to enhance
the power grip of the dictatorial regime on the Eritrean people. No Eritrean
will benefit out of this senseless war except the dictatorial regime. This war
is a hidden agenda for suppressing internal uprising.
We in the EAIM call upon all Eritreans
young or old, male or female, armed or civilian to reject the war drum call and
use all means to stop it before it started or avoid it once it began.
We struggle we succeed.
Comments at ama766@comcast.net
Glory to our martyrs