WEYANE LIES AND MYTH

[reds...@my-dejanews.com]

It seems nothing changes in Ethiopia! A decade and half ago, Be’alu Girma, an
ardent apologist of the Dergue, wrote the book OROMAI, a novel that exposed
the failure of the Derg’s 6th offensive in Eritrea. He meant it to be a
praise for his comrade boss, Menghistu, but he got carried away and “ruffled
the feathers of many other Dergue bigwigs”, by unwittingly revealing the
truth and in the end it cost him his life. One could make a similar case
about “teraraw yanqeTeqeTe twld: qis 2” “ (The Generation that Shook a
Mountain, Vol. 2) another apologist propaganda book which talks about the
beginnings of several Woyane leaders. It was written as a praise to past and
current TPLF/EPRDF “heros”, but it also unwittingly reveals the truth and it
might cost its author his life. The generation in “teraraw yanQeTeQeTe twld”
is the generation of TPLF/EPRDF leaders, and the mountain, supossedly, is the
Amhara domination that had to be overcome. “teraraw yanqeTeqeTe twld” is
collection of short biographies of EPRDF, but mainly TPLF, “heroes”. Some of
these “heroes” were military commanders, some were rank and file fighters,
one was a spy in Addis, and yet another one was a university student. The
book is written in a typical propaganda style of writing. In some pages it
reads like a history book, in another it reads more like a fiction. When it
reads like a history book it is fascinating, but when it tries making a
mountain from a myth that doesn’t even qualify as a mole hill you can not
help it but be reminded of the many Ethiopian myths of “Saba”,
“dragon”,...that many innocent Ethiopians have taken to heart. In some
instances the book is so frank about the TPLF’s other agenda, that of
creating the Republic of Tigray. In fact it is baffling why a book that shows
the Woyanes nakedness and anti-Ethiopian stand was published to begin with.
No wonder the book is being pulled off the shelves of Addis’ book stores.
This was exactly what the Derg did with the B’alu’s book “Oromay” and Haile
Selassie with Abiye Gobegna’s “alweledm”. As mentioned above the book is a
compilation of short biographies. These are contributions of different
authors. The first biography has the title “yemusie gedl” (The Story of
Mussie). The second, “yeselaliew fano” (the hero of Selalie), the third
“knfro mahel yetegeNch Trie” (a grain that escaped cooking) , the fourth
“dagmawit marta” (Marta II), the fifth biography is titled “yenqnaqiew
serawit general” (The General of the Movement Army). “yenqnaqiew serawit
general” is on the story of the Amhara student Walelign Mekonnen. According
to the book he was one of the Haile Selassie I university students that can
be credited for introducing TPLF leaders to the ideology of
“self-determination of nationalities up to secession”. It was this ideology
that motivated the TPLF to strive for the creation of a Bantustand style of
“kilils” in Ethiopia. Walelign was killed by Ethiopian security forces as he
was tring to hijack an Ethiopian Air Lines jet together with Marta Mebrahtu
and other students. The biography that is worth reading first and foremost,
IMO, is that on the story of Mussie. The story is authored by Tesfaye
Ghebreab. The author claims that he got the material for his story by
interviewing top current and former TPLF leaders such as: the late Major
General Hayelom Araya, Sibhat Nega, Asefa Mamo, Awalom Weldu, Tsadqan
Ghebrekidan, Yemane Kidane etc. Mussie was the code name of Mehari Tecle, an
EPLF fighter who helped start the TPLF. According to one other source this
fighter is referred as Mussie Baraki and there are also sources that refer to
him by mistake as Mehari Haile. According to the book one can easily see that
Mussie was TPLF’s Hamid Idris Awate (the father of Eritrean armed struggle).
This story of Mussie is about 111 page of details how he helped recruit and
train the first TPLF fighters and how he taught them to wage an armed
struggle. Mehari, together with his EPLF comrade Yemane Kidane (aka Jamaica),
now a TPLF politburo member, led the first 19 armed fighters of the TPLF from
Eritrea all the way to Dedebit, the TPLF’s base area in the Shire district.
It seems that Yemane Kidane who was once a trusted confidant of Melles has
now been “sidelined to become a non-entity” and who knows when the
deportations make their way to TPLF members who have Eritrean ancestry or
have drank Eritrean water Jamaica and Legesse (Melles) might be the ones to
be dumped at either the Bure or Rama front. It is often repeated that the
political wing of the current TPLF started with a clandestine organization by
the name “Mahber Gesgesti Biehere Tigray” (Tigray National Organization). For
the most part, this was an organization of university students that was
created in Addis Ababa. Among its founding members were Sium Mesfin (current
foreign minister of Ethiopia), Aregawi Berhe (former TPLF leader now in exile
leading an opposition against the TPLF), Legesse (Melles) Zienawi (Ethiopia’s
Prime Minister), Amha (Abay) Tsehaye (former TPLF chairman, now a
self-declared anti-Eritrean campaigner), and Siye Abraha (Defense minister of
Ethiopia 1991-1996??). Out of these, except for Melles, all the rest received
their military training inside EPLF camps in Eritrea. Some of the others who
were trained in Eritrea with the first group are: Awalom Weldu (the current
Ethiopian Ambassador to Eritrea), Yohannes Gheremedhin (walta), and Asbeha
Dagnew (Shewit) a TPLF veteran that was later murdered by TPLF leaders. It is
not at all clear what the intention of the author was when he goes out of his
way to conclude that the reason Mehari Tecle helped organize the TPLF was
because he was a Tigrean. The book more than once refers to Mussie as “an
Ethiopian hero”. If the story is true Mehari might have had Tigrean blood,
but his Tigrean roots was by way of his great grandfather that had come to
Eritrea more than a century ago, before the birth of modern Ethiopia and
Eritrea. If the TPLF is deporting Ethiopians that can trace their ancestry to
Eritrea from close to 100 years it is not surprising to claim Mussie as an
Ethiopian. I am not sure whether the author was claiming Mussie’s
Ethiopianity because he was convinced that the man is Ethiopian, or he was
doing that in order to deny the credit that is due to the EPLF for helping
create the TPLF. IMO, it is the latter. What matters however is not who the
TPLF say Mehari was or who others think he was, but what the man, Mehari,
thought he was. Mehari in his own words, as quoted in the book, didn’t
consider himself as a Tigrean. He was certain that he was as an Eritrean that
was with the Tigreans on a special mission. On page 108, Jamaica is quoted,
remembering Mehari telling him the following: “enie’na ante k’iertra
bemmTatachn yememrat guday wsT megbat yelebnm:: lmdachnn bemakafel bcha new
astewaS’o madreg yalebn:: wede amerar memTat yalebachew’na memratm
yemigebachew yetgray ljoch nachew::” “Since myself [Mehari] and you [Jamaica]
are from Eritrea, we shouldn’t take part in administrative issues. Our
contribution should be in sharing our experiences only. Those who should come
to the leadership position and who should lead are the Tigreans.” The book
also makes it clear that the military wing of the TPLF, from its very
beginning, was organized by this Eritrean, Mehari Tecle. It was also Mehari
that led the first daring raid of a bank and a police station in Axum, a
TPLF’s first major and bold operation. Talking about the beginning, the book
deservedly makes a superman out of Mehari. This EPLF fighter is portrayed as
generous, courageous, gorgeous, a selfless fighter and a great leader. What
is equally interesting is that the book paints a totally opposite pictures of
Sium Mesfin, Abay Tsehaye and Siye Abraha. They are presented as weak,
gutless, and lousy fighters. They are seen no where in planning and leading
an armed confrontation with the enemy. Could they have been busy drafting and
polishing their “Tigray Manifesto” and drawing the “Map of Tigray”? May be!
One who reads this book, as mentioned above, is bound to see a totally
different picture of the people who are now bragging to “teach Eritrea a
lesson”. Two TPLF’s icons: the big mouth Abay Tsehaye and his friend, Siye
Abraha, two of TPLF’s top guns are presented as wimps. Here were people who
came all the way from Addis to fight for the liberation of Tigray and yet
they didn’t have the ability to scale the heights of Risi Adi. Risi Adi can
be a challenge to town boys, but no one can claim that it is a mountain that
is that difficult to climb if a person is determined enough. IMO, if one
decides to be a freedom fighter he/she should have the psychological courage
to scale any mountain no matter how long it takes. But the book exposes that
the duo had no courage at all. They had no “Habo” either; nothing, zilch!
This is how the book puts it: “siye gn alchalem:: siye tebegere::” (Siye
couldn’t make it. Siye was defeated.) “abay alchalem:: abay Sehayem
tebegere::” (Abay was unable [to continue]. Abay Tsehaye too was defeated.)
In fact, after seeing their condition, Mehari had advised Siye that he will
be better off going back to Tigray and staying in the cities and working for
the movement from there. But Siye was not willing to go back and finally the
way Abay and Siye made it to the top of Risi Adi was carried on EPLF
fighters’ back (teHazilom). This same story is corroborated by an interview
one veteran EPLF fighter, Tsehaye Berhane, made with Setit (#29, August 7,
1998). Not only were Abay and Siye unable to climb the mountain, according to
“yemusie gedl”, they had problems negotiating the descent to Durfo from Adi
Nefas as well. It was as early as this stage of his struggle, after he walked
for only a dozen Km or so from the outskirts of Asmara, that Siye was quoted
lamenting: “wede tgl sanders ezihu meqretachn yhon? ahun yeNa meswa’tnet kemn
liqoTer new?” (Are we going to perish here before we made it to the struggle?
What would one make of our martyrdom here?) Mind you what Siye is calling
martyrdom is negotiating a descent and scaling a mountain. These words were
not uttered because he was confronted with an enemy army, but on a challenge
of a downhill walk on a typical Eritrean landscape. Even after they had spent
days at Risi Adi, when Abay and Awalom were asked to fetch water they were
able to carry neither water nor their feet. The book tells that they couldn’t
even deliver a canteen of water, “brasho may”. For one reason or another the
book (p. 38-39) sees it fit to detail this kind of early performance of TPLF
leaders. Abay, the “TPLF bigwig”, who as recently as Sep. 10, 1998 , was
quoted by Ethiopian Herald [Vol. LIV No. 304] saying his army will “give
[Eritrea] an unforgettable lesson” must have forgotten Risi Adi. What is more
shameful is that this very same Abay, the one who was carried on an EPLF
fighter’s back to the top of Mt. Risi Adi was later caught hiding among
wounded TPLF tegadelti and running away from a battle near Sero in the
vicinity of Inticho, Tigray. There was a joint TPLF-EPLF operation against
the Derg in this area and Abay was scared to death and had to fake war injury
to escape the battle. In his way he was running for his life in case the Derg
made an advance. Veteran EPLF Tegadalay Gergish Ghirmay (Shiek Zaid) in an
interview with Setit [#30, August 14, 1998] tells the story on how he caught
Abay on top of a truck that was ferrying the wounded. We should give him
credit for this at least he knew very well that his legs would betray him
like they did at Risi Adi and would not make it on foot in case of a retreat
was ordered. Another letter written to Setit [#26] by a veteran TPLF fighter
exposes Abay’s inability to handle an AK-47. I wonder what he was dreaming
when the EPLF was training him? The same TPLF fighter wrote to Setit that
Abay was one of the TPLF fighter who had refused to proceed south after the
liberation of Tigray in 1989. His claim was that his struggle was to liberate
Tigray and as long as that is done the struggle was over for him. What a
conversion, now he is the one who is speaking on behalf of Ethiopia. The time
the first TPLF fighters arrived in Asmara, on their way for training, was
January 1975. Coincidentally Jan. 1975 was also the month when thousands of
Eritreans were killed in the streets of Asmara by the Derg’s notorious AfaN
gWad. It is also a known secret that most of those who were betraying
Eritreans were Tigreans. [The case of Abraham Woldu’s family in Gegeret Abi
is a case in point where the whole family was murdered by a group of soldiers
lead by a man who once was the family’s shepherd who later became an
Ethiopian soldier.] Yet the Eritrean movements and population were not
retaliating on Ethiopian civilians. Quite to the contrary they were welcoming
future TPLF fighters. These prospective TPLF fighters were trained by the
very same EPLF fighters who are now leading the defense of Eritrea. Thus when
the Abays, Siums and Legeses talk about “teaching a lesson” we have to ask:
“teaching your teachers a lesson?” According to the book the first fighters
received about three months of training in EPLF camps and returned to Tigray
by the first week of June 1975. It is often claimed that Feb. 18, 1975 was
when the armed struggle of the TPLF begun. This date refers to the assembling
of a dozen fighters led by Gesese Ayele, code name Sihul, at Dedebit. But
many sources admit that the majority of the Dedebit fighters were unarmed,
thus the true armed struggle only begun when Mussie arrived in Tigray with
his men. It has to be mentioned that Meles is never, except for two times,
mentioned in the book. There are no heroic deeds or military brilliance of
“Milosovich Meles” mentioned in the book. One will read of Hayelom and
Ahferom, but not of Meles. He was spotted in Asmara Jan 1975 with the rest of
the other fighters who came for training but he soon fled to Dedebit. May be
he had heard the legends of Durfo and Risi Adi and was smart enough not to
embarrass himself. Of course Meles as the political guru of the TPLF,
together with Sium, is the author of every lie, deceit and evil that is found
the Woyane bible. That might be why he was absent from the military training.
He knows nothing about armed struggle. That is why TPLF fighters mock at
Meles saying “bSay meles liq neyrom knageru:: entay ema kKon : nefarit enti
r’yu endomo nab wKarya enateQeyeru” (comrade meles is quite good when it
comes to talking; unfortunately, he turns into a chicken whenever he sees a
fighter plane.) [setit # 26, July 15, 1998]. The EPLF, in addition to
teaching them combat, was also trying to teach them on how to broaden their
horizon and to think beyond Tigray and to work for a united Ethiopia. It had
asked them time and again to abandon their “Republic of Tigray” dream. Thus,
unlike the TPLF people, the EPLF was advising Ethiopian opposition forces
like the EPRP and the TPLF to fight for a united Ethiopia instead of a
Bantustand style governments. Unfortunately the evil and narrow minds of the
Sium and his gang couldn’t see beyond their noses and to this very day they
are obsessed with the Republic of Tigray and that is why they are now
mobilizing poor Ethiopian population to war. Meles might be telling that they
had abandoned their Republic of Tigray dream in 1990 but the truth is that
Ethiopia is still being sacrificed for the sake of Greater Tigray. The book
mentions that Mehari Tecle was assassinated by a TPLF member of the
“Hinfishfish movement” (the movement of confusion) at the battle of
Chiameskebet ( an area not far from the southern tip of the Setit-Mareb line)
when he was fighting against Menghesha Sium’s Ethiopian Democratic Union
(EDU). This alleged assassin was a member of company (Hayli) 41; the leader
of that Hayli was the Tembienian and well known anti Eritrean Siye Abraha.
The book makes it clear that the shooting of Mehari by a friendly fire is no
accident. But how much a hand could Siye and his friends have? I don’t know.
The book also alleges that the person that fired the shot is now living in
the US. It appears that the main target of the Hinfishfish movement were the
deputy commander of the TPLF army, Mussie (Mehari Tekle); Hadish (Hayelom)
Araya, and Mohammed (Samora) Yunis. Mussie was so disappointed by the deep
rooted, clanish division within the TPLF to a point of suffering from
depression. Traditionally Tigray is divided into two areas by the Weri river.
The land of the three districts of Axum, Shire and Adwa, west of this river,
is what is usually referred as Tigray. These days members of the TPLF from
these three districts are referred as “a.sh.A” after the Tigrigna acronym for
the first letters of the three places. On the other hand, regions east of
this river never call themselves as Tigrean. The first Woyane (1943-46) was
waged by the inhabitants of the districts of Indirta, Kilte awlaElo, Raya,
parts of Agame and Tembien, (places east of Weri) and thus “woyane” refers to
those who hail from these areas. There are some sources that claim that the
first Weyane failed not only because of the combined Haile Selassie and
British Royal Air Force might, but because the “Tigreans” (those west of the
Weri) conspired against the “Woyanes”. The TPLF to this very day is suffering
from this deeply rooted regional division. The reason the TPLF changed its
Tigrigna name to “hzbawi weyane Harnet tgray” from its earlier name “tegadlo
Harnet hzbi tigray”, a name that gave the English TPLF, was in order to
accommodate both the “Weyanes” and the “Tigreans”. But to this very day the
dominant members of the TPLF are the “a.sh.AÕs. There are also those who say
the reason the TPLF conspired to assassinate the leaders of the TLF (Tigray
Liberation Front) at the Eritrean village of Zigbela (among them Yemane
Ghebremeskel, Yohannes Teclehaimanot, Tadesse Tilahun ), when they met for a
unity congress was because most of its members were from the district of
Agame. According to Setit #26, July 15, 1998, it was Sium Mesfin, together
with Yohannes Gheremedhin (walta) that killed the TLF leadership. Kahsay
Berhe in his article “The National Movement in Tigray Myths and Realities” of
Feb. 1991, Meles was the one who waged “a systematic campaign against the TLF
and unity.” “Through demagogy and disinformation he [Meles] was able to
mobilize the then three platoons of the TPLF”. The TPLF leaders, to win the
support of the Amharas, are now being heard saying they got no help from
Eritreans, instead they were the ones that helped Eritrea win its war of
independence. This might be after tasting the waters of Geferssa, the water
that is well known to change any person who drinks it into a liar, a cheat
and a distortor of facts, the truth is that the EPLF liberated area was their
school and Eritrean tegadelti were their teachers and every thing they owned
at the beginning of their struggle was given courtesy of the EPLF.In fact the
EPLF was arming them with AK-47 at the time when the EPLF fighters were
paying sacrifices to capture AK-47s. It is also true that most of the TPLF
top leaders are graduates of the Eritrean schools in Sahel and Bahri Bara. In
fact, all of them were students as late as May 27, 1991. After all it was the
EPLF’s mechanized units that destroyed the last resistance of the Derg at the
Arat Kilo sector of Finfinie and handed the them the reign of power in
Ethiopia. For all these let alone to say “thank you”, they are even unwilling
to admit it. Finally I have to mention that the book is a good source of
evidence that the TPLF leaders are a bunch of “ungrateful students”. Now,
through their act of aggression, are trying to do what ungrateful students do
to their teachers. What is worse they are also attempting to destroy the
school where they went for their first ever out-of- the country military
scholarship. The ungrateful students had tried biting the hand that fed them,
but in the process it will not be the ever generous iron hand that will be
hurt, but the teeth of the TPLF.

Last changed: December 02, 1998

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