Eritrea: still engaged at destabilizing activities
Tesfaye Lemma
Recently, the United Nations has reported that Eritrea has continued support for some anti-peace elements and terrorists to exacerbate insecurity in the Horn of Africa particularily in Ethiopia. It emphasized that the major objective of that country in supporting peace poisoning groups is to hit its target of destabilizing Ethiopia and Djibouti.
The Report of the Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea presented to the U.N. Security Council emphasized that although the said groups do not pose a critical threat to the target nations, the state in Eritrea has persistently attempting to create havoc in the region.
The report emphasized, “Eritrea continued to provide support to armed groups intent on destabilizing Ethiopia and Djibouti, including the Benishangul People’s Liberation Movement, the Front for the Restoration of Unity and Democracy, Patriotic Ginbot Sebat and Al-Shabab”.
Howevr, none of these groups poses a critical threat to either Djibouti or Ethiopia, the support of Eritrea for them continues to generate insecurity in the region and undermines the normalization of relations between regional member states, the report added.
Regardless of its impacts to these countries the state in Eritrea has been financing these groups while its people have been crying for daily breads. It continues to generate insecurity in the region and undermines the normalization of relations between regional member States, the report said.
Despite all challenges, the Horn region is just coming to economic integration and infrastructure network connectivity. This is becoming a reality amidst a number of socioeconomic problems. The efforts exerted towards economic integration has got strengthened from time to time among member countries of the region. Ethiopia is at the pith of all these positive developments in the Horn of Africa. Basically through ensuring peace
In doing so it has been sacrificing a lot to realize an enduring peace at home and regional levels. It is evident that the past two decades witnessed the struggle against groups aimed to destabilize the instability of the country and jeopardize its development in collaboration with the Ethiopian people has managed to realize a double digit economic growth and a relatively peaceful situation.
Despite all the efforts to bring an enduring peace and stability in the Horn Region, the State in Asmara continued exerting its destabilizing efforts; ceaselessly carrying out its provocative actions in its boarder with all states in the region.
One of the worst activities of the State in Asmara is the fact that it alloted a lot of money to terrorist groups while the people are suffering of shortage of daily means of subisitance. It has been sponsoring terrorist and anti-peace groups who aimed to destabilize countries in the Horn of Africa.
While other countries in the Horn region have been working to for a peaceful coexistence ; rather it has persistently engaged in activities of poisoning peace and instability in contradictory to the interest of the Eritrean people. In fact, there is no question that the people in Eritrea need peaceful coexistence with their neighboring people. Whereas, the the fragile state in Eritrean has been investing on anti-peace activities.
Current situation in Eritrea indicated that the people have been protesting against the dictatorial regime. Parallel to the demand of the people for peace and cooperation with other people in the region, the Eritrean govenment has worsen the human rights violations. As a result, a great number of Eritrean youth, women, children and elders have been leaving their country.
Ethiopia is one of these countries affected by the proactive actions due to the continuous peace poisoning activities of the Eritrean Government. Eritrea’s effort to destabilize the Horn has never ended as the leaders are so desperated. They usually prioritize aggression, havoc and chaos to peace, stability and development. This is to ease the internal problem so as to elongate the stay in power.
They paid little attention for the interest of people. Its connection with terrorist groups and its huge military logistic support to them has been increasing from time to time leading it to be the major accomplices of terrorism in the region and even beyond.
It condcted a proxy war and terrorist actions almost in all countries in the Horn of Africa. Another destabilizing efforts of the Eritrean Government could be manifested through supporting opposition political parties and interfering in the internal affairs of other countries. It directly or indirectly participated in all the conflicts in different countries in the region including Somalia nad the South Sudan.
It is also known that the Sate in Asmara is well known for its ill activities in ploting terrorist actions. It provided terrorists with training and allocating all the necessary logistics needed by the anti-peace groups to poison the peace in the region.
It is known that the United Nations Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea previously reported that the sate in Asmara created a situation where Al-Shabab, ONLF and Ginbot 7 leaders cooperate on how to destabilize the region particularily Ethiopia.
In fact, all of its terrorist plots failed at different times. Tjose particularily aimed to destroy mega projects like the Tekeze Hydro-Power Dam failed due to the alert follow up of the Ethiopian security and people.
What the Eritrean regime has played in Somalia is also so distractive. It has been using Al-Shabab as an instrument to elongate the instability in that country. It is so annoying why the Eritrean government support terrorist groups targeting other countries instead of working towards poverty alleviation to feed its population.
Many political analysts said that Eritrea’s diplomatic relation with African countries and the rest of the world is disconnected. However, there are a few terrorist monger countries like Egypt that have been supporting Eritrea. Recently, other Arab countries have also making relations with that country.
Previously, The United Nations Security Council imposed an arms embargo, travel restrictions and an asset freezing on the Eritrean military leaders, politicians following its investigation and that the Eritrean finding the support the Eritrean government has been doing to al-Shabaab.
However, that doesn’t work. The state in Asmara has been violating it and that embargo though declared never brought any change. Despite its destabilizing activities, the situation in Eritrea is deteriorated.
The number of Eritreans who have been immigrating to other countries. including Ethiopia has been rising from time to time. Whereas, the state in Eritrea has sticked to terrorist actions having ignored the very need of the Eritrean people.
The aggressive actions it exerted has also aggravated from time to time. It is a sad story that the actions taken so far by the United Nations Security Council and other countries seems brought no fruits.
The State in Eritrea has never ceased from its continuous destabilizing activities, which has become parat and parcel of its national agenda. The ceaseless terrorist plots aimed to destabilize the region have highly harming the Eritrean people. That is why they are crying to the international community to lend hand to them.