Somalia
: Another War "Made In USA"
By Mohamed Hassan
12 January, 2007
Countercurrents.org
To understand what is happening
in the Horn of Africa, the nature of the TPLF-regime of Zenawi Meles
in Ethiopia that sent its troops into Somalia last month must first
be explained.
The Tigray People's Liberation
Front (TPLF) was created in 1975. In its first manifesto it said its
main objective was to create the Independent republic of Tigray. This
is a narrow nationalist and racist approach that makes language the
first factor to unite or divide people. There was opposition to this
narrow vision within the TPLF itself as well as within the other organisations
and fronts that fought against the Mengistu regime, the dictatorship
of that time.
The mainstream idea was that
Tigray was part of Ethiopia and there was no reason to claim independence
for Tigray. The main objective for the liberation struggle in Ethiopia
was to create a new Ethiopia based on equality of nationalities and
brotherly relations with all neighboring countries. After 50 years of
war this very rich region inhabited by poor people desired a new start
and the beginning of a developing economy.
Zenawi Meles is a great demagogue
and a liar. He uses Marxism-Leninism today and tomorrow he will use
Buddhism. The day after he will read a few books and be the champion
of Hinduism against Buddhism. He hid his narrow Tigray-nationalist agenda
of TPLF and created the Marxist Leninist League of Tigray to gain control
of the TPLF and eliminate all opposition against his narrow racist ideology
within it.
In the eighties when the
struggle against the Mengistu dictatorship became stronger he also created
the EPRDFF which was a larger front of different organisations representing
different nationalities living in Ethiopia, under the leadership of
the TPLF. Meles pretended to unite Ethiopian nationalities in the struggle
for the liberation of Ethiopia, but all the time its real objective
was the creation of a greater Tigray, that controls the other nationalities
and regions in Ethiopia.
Once the Mengistu-regime
fell, a transitional government was formed. The EPLF (Eritrean People
Liberation Front) from te neighboring country Eritrea that was occupied
by Ethiopia, convinced all the other organisations who were members
of this government that it was better to give military control of the
country to the army of TPLF. When Zenawi saw that in the regional elections
of 1992 the Omore liberation front won they began eliminating its members
from the government and the OLF left the government. Instead of following
a policy of integration of the different nationalities, Zenawi followed
a policy of "divide and rule" against all the other nationalities
in Ethiopia
Today Zenawi's unbelievably
narrow and reactionary dream of "a greater Tigray" has become
reality. The population of Tigray is only 6% of the Ethiopian population
(76 million) and Tigray is a poor region, situated at 800 km from the
capital Addis Ababa. But it is Tigray-people who control 99% of public
services and 98% of trade.
All opposition and protest
is brutally repressed and the rule of the TPLF/EPRDF is maintained by
narrow racist nationalist policies that divide the different Ethiopian
nationalities.
In reality this is a very
dangerous situation first of all for the Tigray people itself. I know
many people from Tigray who have lived their whole lives in Addis Ababa
and who flee the country, because they fell themselves more and more
hated each day by their neighbors of whom the overwhelming majority
are non Tigray.
At the same time the regime
is very weak and depends completely on the support of the USA.
The May 2005 elections were
a big defeat for the EPRDF. The official results published a month after
the elections put the EPRDF in a minority position of 45%. The EU observers
confirmed the defeat of the EPRDF. However the official election committee
did an "investigation" and finally gave 60% to the EPRDF.
The leaders of the main opposition parties were put in jail and many
people were killed.
In the past year, the opposition
inside Ethiopia has become more radical. In August 2006, a group of
high-ranking officers led by General Kamal Galchuu joined the Oromo
Liberation Front. In the Orome area a real intifadah started up and
a few months ago, the OLF launched an appeal to all opposition groups
to join the united front ADF (Alliance for Democracy and Freedom).
The USA is pleased with the
situation because this way it has a puppet that completely depends on
its financial, political and military support. The Ethiopian state is
becoming more and more a CIA-led state that is very isolated.
The conflict with
Eritrea
In fact the military capacity
of the EPRDF in the eighties was relatively weak. It was its close relationship
with the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) that was militarily
strong that made victory over the dictator Mengisthu in 1991 possible.
It was the troops of the EPLF that liberated the Ethiopian capital Addis
Ababa. But the EPLF was a liberation movement of a neighboring country,
Eritrea, that had been occupied by Ethiopia since 1952 and was annexed
in 1962. And the objective of the EPRF was to liberate Eritrea from
the Ethiopian occupation. So it formed a close alliance with the EPRDF/TPLF
to topple the Ethiopian government. Once this was done, the EPLF took
over the administration of Eritrea and organized in Eritrea a referendum
in 1993 where more then 98% of Eritreans voted for independence. While
in Ethiopia a transitional government was formed led by EPRDF/TPLF.
The EPLF held on to its ideals
of a liberation movement that wanted to develop its country for the
interest of its people. So it followed a policy based upon self-reliance,
mobilising the population, installing national structures, refusing
outside interference via Western NGOs and controlling foreign trade.
The EPLF also followed a policy based on national integration and cohabitation
of the 9 Eritrean nationalities and the two religions (Christian and
Muslim).
This was just the opposite
of the policy Zenawi followed in Ethiopia that was based on privatisation,
foreign donors and the policy of International institutions such as
the IMF and the WB.
Confronted with this difference,
Eritrea decided in 1997 to stop using the Ethiopian pound and chose
to have its own currency, the Nakfa.
From then on, there were
many provocative acts and killings of Eritrean officers and soldiers
at the border that triggered off a war, which lasted from 1998 to 2000.
It was a catastrophic war;
on the Ethiopian side 135.000 soldiers died. In fact the Ethiopians
lost the war and were forced to accept the Algiers agreement in 2000.
The agreement included three
phases:
1. A commission of the International
Court in The Hague would decide on the territorial dispute and the exact
location of the border.
2. Another commission of
the International Court would decide on the claims of the two parties
for confiscation or damage to property of citizens thate were confiscated
by the other side.
3. Finally a commission of
the African Union would decide on the question which country started
the war and should have the responsibility to compensate for the immense
damage that was caused by the war.
The two first commissions
have already concluded in favor of the Eritrean position and claims.
It is almost certain that the third commission will condemn Ethiopia,
because the Ethiopian government accused Eritrea of starting the war
by an air-attack against the city of Adi-Grat and occupying the village
Badima. This story of Eritrean jets bombing this city was a lie; once
the commission examines this story, the truth will be crystal clear.
What is more: the first commission already decided that Badima was Eritrean
territory.
So there is a sword of Damocles
hanging above the government of Zenawi Meles. Until now the African
Union, under pressure from the USA, postponed the foundation of the
third commission. But sooner or later, this third commission will be
formed.
The very risky war
against Somalia
The extremely fragile position
of the Meles-regime can explain its offensive to attack Somalia last
December. Indeed, by attacking Somalia under pretext of attacking "the
allies and even members of Al Qaeda" Zenawi wants to position himself
as a friend of the U.S. and Bush's strong man in the Horn of Africa
in the US global war against Islamic terror. But this is a very risky
operation.
First of all, Ethiopia and
Somalia have had a long history of animosity and wars. For the Somalis
the Ethiopian invasion is an aggression of an archenemy. It could be
compared to a military intervention by Germany in Belgium or France.
Somalis are one people, have one language and one religion. The only
factor that is dividing them is the clans. Confronted with a foreign
occupation force, however, they can unite and deal heavy blows. It was
the Americans themselves who experienced this in 1993. At that moment
they had sent 30.000 marines to the country in a military operation
called "Restore Hope". But soon they had to withdraw because
of their losses and the fact that the dead corpses of American soldiers
were dragged through the streets in front of the cameras.
Second, the Somali people
are tired of the chaos and destruction of 16 years of a warlord regime.
However it is just the same warlords who have been protected and brought
to power again in Mogadishu by the Ethiopian army. The warlords were
hated before by all Somalis for their corruption. Now they will be despised
as traitors and stooges for the number one enemy of the Somali people,
Ethiopia.
Third, The overwhelming majority
of Somalis saw the Islamic Courts as a stabilizing factor. This support
of the Islamic Courts was not a support for international terrorists.
Most jihadists do not speak Somali and few speak Arabic. They stand
out too much with their different eating habits and clothing. When the
population helped the Islamic Courts to defeat the warlords in a few
weeks time and then to liberate practically the whole country in six
months, it was because they were tired of the anarchy, the pillage of
the warlords. You must know that since 1991, 3 million Somalis have
left the country and the Somali diaspora are often modern secular people
who try to help their country in spite of the warlords' corruption.
And they are very ingenious at doing that. For example, in spite of
all the chaos, Somalia is one of the only African countries where every
village has good telephone communication facilities. There is an informal
banking system (1 billion $ a year). There are five private airways
and so on. A large number of Diaspora Somalis were willing to return
to Somalia, and rebuild the country, once peace and security were ensured.
When Somali businessmen went to the American embassy in Nairobi to invite
them to come to Somalia and see for themselves that there were no Al
Qaeda members in the Islamic Courts, the Americans refused. They will
never forget nor forgive the USA and their puppet Ethiopia for bringing
Somalia back to the reign of terror and chaos of the warlords. And in
their eyes it is crystal clear that the talk about Al Qaeda's presence
in Somalia is nothing else then the excuse, the lie that must justify
the war. Just like the lies about the weapons of mass destruction of
Saddam used to justify the aggression against Iraq.
Fourth, all Somalis are aware
of the fact that in the sixteen years of anarchic rule by the warlords,
there was never any initiative of the "International Community"
to intervene in Somalia. However, just when the Islamic courts brought
order and stability, they saw in November last year the UN Security
council under the instigation of the USA vote the resolution 1752 that
opened the door for the Ethiopian intervention that brought back the
terror and anarchy they had just chased away. So the only way the common
Somali can see this invasion is that of an aggression against the Somali
people and nation.
Fifth, The invading soldiers
of Zenawi in Somalia are largely from his Tigray Christian tribe. These
soldiers do not speak the Somali language; once deep inside Somalia,
they will be exposed to attacks by the locals. But also in Ethiopia
itself, Zenawi needs these men back as soon as possible because he needs
them to confront the growing revolt in his own country. It is true;
the Americans are negotiating with Uganda and Nigeria to deliver 8000
troops to replace the Ethiopian army. But who will pay for this operation
and will these poor governments take the risk of being sucked into the
swamp of a guerilla war? Certainly the different neighboring countries
such as Kenya and Uganda take high risks because there are many Somali
refugees living in Kenya who will not forget nor forgive a Kenyan engagement
on the side of Ethiopia.. The Ugandan economy largely depends on the
Kenyan harbor of Mombassa, but 30 km of this harbor there is a city
Lamui where Somalis are in the majority... So it may well be that Zenawi's
troops will be forced to stay too long in Somalia and that they will
be sucked into a swamp that will be fatal for the TPLF/regime.
What is the role
of the Americans in this war?
The Zenawi regime is a rogue
force used in the hands of American imperialism in the region. Since
Antony Lake, Clinton's national security advisor, indicated Ethiopia
as one of the four countries (the others were Nigeria, South Africa
and Egypt) that are decisive for the defense of American interests in
Africa, the government of Zenawi has had all the support it needed.
The Ethiopian army is at
present being reformed as a local mercenary force in the service of
the Americans that can be used against any country in the region. On
one of the American army's websites, Stars and Stripes (http://www.estripes.com/),
one could read on 30 December the testimony of one of the sixty American
instructors who are training Ethiopian soldiers. Sgt. 1st Class Bill
Flippo is an instructor based at Camp Hurso near in the city of Dire
Dawa, Ethiopia. He says; "I feel that what I'm doing now is really
helping to fight the war on terror," Flippo said. "The knowledge
we are giving to these soldiers is what they will use if they go and
fight in Somalia, Eritrea or wherever."
Many observers note that
the invasion of Somalia by Ethiopia was not only encouraged, and protected
by the USA, but even paid by USA-money. And after the first successes,
American military participated directly with the Ethiopian army in the
hunt for leaders of the Islamic courts.
What are the American
interests in the region?
There is the presence of
oil and gas reserves. Since 1986, four big oil transnational corporations
received permission for the first time from the Somalian president Siad
Barre to search for oil. And they found important reserves.
But most of all : Somalia
has a very strategic location. It has a coast of 3300km. This is the
largest coastline in Africa. One part of this coastline is just in front
of the most important region in the world for the moment, the Middle
East.
Another part of the coastline
faces the Indian Ocean. You must know that before the arrival of the
Portuguese in the 16th century, there was considerable traffic between
India and Africa that passed by harbors on this coast. 10% of the words
of the Somali language are words of Indian origin.
The Emir of the Indian State
of Kudjrad had bodyguards that came from the Horn of Africa. In the
Somali harbors there were also Somali who spoke Chinese. They were called
"Abanas". They were translators between the Chinese and businessmen
from the African hinterland.
This century the historical
wheel is turning again towards the emerging countries of China and India.
Chalmers Johnson, author and president of the Japan Policy Research
Institute, cites Javed Burki, a former vice-president of the World Bank's
China Department who predicts that by 2025 China will probably have
a GDP of $25 trillion in terms of purchasing power parity and will have
become the world's largest economy followed by the US at $ 20 trillion.
(http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?pid=2259)
This year we also saw important
efforts from China to increase its trade with Africa. China urgently
needs oil and other minerals for its rapidly developing economy. And
Africa can respond to that need. So the Horn of Africa has become a
very strategic place for the next twenty years.
Since the Bush-government
cannot control the whole world, they prefer a policy of deliberately
destabilizing the whole region for many years, rather than letting it
become a wealthy region that can play a key-role in the increasing trade
relations between Africa and the new emerging economies of Asia.
There are Somalis living
in different neighboring countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti.
Somali nationalism has ignited and this war will extend into places
like Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya, known until now mostly as a safari
destination for Western tourists.
The peoples of the region
are becoming mature. They see what is happening and their first reaction
is that of horror. If the Bush agenda of destabilizing and genocide
continues, anti-imperialist feelings will increase and people will unite
to defend their homes and countries.
Mohamed Hassan is
the son of a member of the resistance against the regime of emperor
Haile Selasie. He was born in Addis Ababa in 1958.
1972-1974 : active in the
student movement against the emperor Haile Selassie.
1974-76: after the revolution in 1974 he was elected to the local council
in Addis Ababa.
1976: spent a year in Somalia.
1977: spent seven months in South-Yemen en traveled in 1978 -
1980 to Egypt, Sudan, Syria, Irak, Saudi-Arabia and Lebanon. In 1981
he arrived
in Belgium where he studied languages and public administration sciences.
1982: cofounder of an NGO "Somali Ogaden Comitee", which helped
Somalian
Ethiopians in the diaspora.
1991: studies and doctorate in pedagogy at the VUB-university of Brussels.
1992-1994: after the revolution he returned to Ethiopia and became a
diplomat in the embassies of Brussels, Beijing and Washington. In 1994
he left the diplomatic service because he disagreed with government
policy. In 1995 he returned to Brussels and worked as a pedagogue in
the Regionaal Integratie Centrum. Since 2000 he has collaborated with
the bilingual publication Etudes Marxistes / Marxistische studies, where
he has published articles such as Nation and nationalism (in nr 49),
Saudi Arabia and Wahabism and The Muslim Brothers in Egypt (in nr 61).
In 2003 he wrote a book with David Pestieau on the war in Iraq that
has been published in French, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, German and Turkish.
L'Irak face à l'Occupation (Iraq eye to eye with the occupation).
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