Who is talking and burking to Smear a good intention interview?

Bereket Kiros 05-13-21

“I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness. from the unkind, yet, strange, I am ungrateful to those teachers.” Kahlil Gibran I am extremely proud to witness this monumental task by TDF and Tegaru diaspora rising to the occasion, taking up this awesome responsibility to save Tigray from the gargantuan political beast unleashed by Abiy and Isias and his Amhara warlords. The attempt to impair me and Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia in the public image of me and Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia at Aiga forum might seem harmless as this may seem trivial to people who do not understand the intricacies behind it. Kalayu you should have wear brown paper bags over your head and stop making such garbage statement in cyberspace and stop pretending to be fighting for the freedom of our brothers and sisters back in Tigrai. I am ashamed of all of it that you don’t seem to learn from past experiences. This is a time of great pain and suffering for all Tegaru and in particular for the unnecessarily bickering and smear campaign against me and Ghelawdewos Araia in this difficult and trying time. But I felt that I have to respond to the highly polarized innuendo by Kalayu Abrha and his childish campaign and misrepresentation of facts of what has been said during the course of the interview in Mereja. But I stand firm by all of the views expressed in my interview. Intimidation, insult, misrepresentation are not the answers for the ongoing utmost issues in our current debacle. The part that irked some of my interview seems to me is his own misunderstanding of my statement about TPLF and TDF. My detractors wrongly surmised that I was humiliated by Zemede and fell prey to the likes of him. I would not blame some of my listeners for the confusion and for not understanding the meaning of my statements. Nevertheless, there are several points that need more clarifications and follow up restatements. I want it to be clearly understood that I was not selecting facts to fit my argument and the conclusion.  thereof. I did not undermine the suffering of my fellow Tegaru in the hands of a brutal and vicious government of Abiy Ahamed. It is a duty that every Tegaru should be bound by to protect the rights of those with whom we may disagree. If I do not speak out against all forms of censorship and allow to the likes of Kalayu Abrha, to be hijacked and infused to innocent individuals’ poisonous game to shut me express myself about the predicament of my brothers and sisters, in any social media who would speak out on behalf of them? The last six months have been a period of atrocities, ethnic cleansing and displacement, brutal oppression, and vicious fighting by forces of ENDF, Abiy army, EDF, Eritrean rogue army, Amhara vicious militia who have committed the most terrible crimes in our history against the people of Tigray. That should be the talk of the day but individuals like Kalayu they spend their time to undermine who said what to isolate Tegaru and barrage avalanche of insults that have no merit and should be tackled completely. When the likes of Kalayu accuse with emotion, we had a dilemma whether to defend ourselves or reject the stupidity of not spending countless of hours by trying to respond, if there is a need at all, which was in my case. I have to wrestle to answer his allegation of what I said during the course of the interview we had. I hesitated whether I would better answer to his  full of garbage and concentrate on my daily activities and work on our grand work to expose the crimes of Abiy and his allies. There are several examples in history where great men accused of crimes under unjust laws and often under illegal governments, have mounted great offensives against Gandhi, Mandela, King to name a few. Even though such great men suffered the ignominy and humiliation of being dragged in front of corrupt judges or a mob in frenzy they held their ground with dignity. I by no means exemplify myself to such great leaders. I am stating the facts that there are morbid dogs who can unleash their frustration to pick up unnecessary fight or create their own enemies everywhere to embellish their statue. I am fighting just like any Tigrawi because I have to do it and that has been my lifelong journey. If you are seeking attention, you got one for your satisfaction trying to pick up a fight, but I don’t at this hard time to have any division among the unified Tigreans. When an individual becomes a public figure, the personal life is held at bay. One must think of one’s actions in terms of the impact it may have on the public, and because of that, one may have to sacrifice the private life and all self-interests. It is easy to prescribe different course of actions than the one taken by an individual who is immersed, body and soul, in a struggle, for somebody from the comfort of one’s own. Kalayu in his article has made it abundantly clear to take us to division and disintegration by injecting TPLF and TDF argument. It is both an insult and a disservice to Tigray to have such individuals to entertain such an inspiring trap. Personally, I am adamant that no one should ever entertain such concepts under the present hard condition. I feel respect to all Tegaru who are sincerely struggling to bring about civilized discussions to the people of Tigray, even when some so-called Ethiopians are making strategic blunders associating themselves with Abiy, Isayas and Amhara chauvinism. In fact at this time, I consider myself to be standing by our people’s side who are in the trenches in the fight for the salvation of our much-abused and terrorized Tigray. The popular saying, “What does not kill you will make you strong,” is wrong for once because what does not kill you might cripple you rather than making you strong as claimed. What I see in most of us, especially Tegaru of my generation and the one before mine, is the fact that we have lived through great personal and communal suffering, and such suffering has crippled us in many ways. We are the most vicious and hateful and quick to throw poisonous darts. We have to stop such madness and concentrate on issues which our people are demanding. The genocide conducted against our people doesn’t need a theatrical clown to stage his publicity to create animosities among a unified populace. There is nothing to gain from arguing and anguishing where there is no enemy among us. Above all no one would benefit except the enemies from our internal struggle. By the way we live in countries where there are abundances of living standards and democracy and where we benefit nothing from our struggle back at home, but we should strive after that our people gets those parts of bright future. Our Tigray is more than any one even a simpleton coming with accusations to redirect the just cause for his own benefits.