Following the decision of the Ethiopian Prime Minister Dr. Abiy to end hostilities between Ethiopia and Eritrea and pave the way for peace, the two nations closed all chapters of the war and border conflict. Dr. Abiy and President IsaiasAfewerki of Eritrea signed agreements to restore full diplomatic relations, and agree to open their borders to each other.
And this peace deal has brought significant progress in socio-economic opportunities for people in both countries as well as the region. The Ethiopian Herald interviewed Prof. AsmeromLegesse of Eritrea on the effect of the peace deal between the two nations. Asmerom is Harvard, Emeritus Professorand distinguished scholar of social sciences. Excerpts: Herald: Prime Minister Dr. Abiy invited your country for the peace deal as soon as he came to power. What was your feeling in response? How do you see that decision?
Prof. Asmerom: That was good news! As long as there would be a good will and trustworthiness, the Eritrean government was ready for any peaceful dialogue. What the Ethiopian Prime Minister did was what courageous and authentic leaders can do. I believe justice has been served due to his coming to office. He corrected what went wrong.
His approach was very remarkable; he came to power with fundamental solutions for his nation and the Horn, declaringthat his office would be dedicated to the idea of accepting Ethio-Eritria Border Commission Agreement. The Ethio-Eritrea Border Commission Agreement was supposed to be accepted by both parts. But the leaders from Ethiopia refused to do that. Rejecting the agreement which clearly defines the border between the two nations prolonged the conflicts.
The rejection was equivalent to the violation of the international law. Herald: Would you guess any reason why Abiy’s predecessors suspend the implementation of Algiers Agreement? Prof. Asmerom: They did not have any convincing reason to reject the EEBC agreements on which the Alger’s Agreement was based. There had been a border line in 1903, the Badime and the entire Kunama territory was granted to Eritrea. By any historic account, Badime cannot be for Tigrai.
The rejection was totally unacceptable. As long as the previous leaders of Ethiopia held that position peace could not be established between the two nations. The rejection of the agreement left permanent hostile relations. On top of that they ended up expelling massive Eritreans from Ethiopia; more than 75,000 people were expelled.
Through that period I was in Eritrea defending their rights because they were forced to leave breaking up their families and expropriating their properties. They were citizens of Ethiopia; they never lost their citizenship. When Ethiopia and Eritrea had become one country, these people had become automatically Ethiopians. The Ethiopian government did not take any legal procedures to deprive of their citizenship. Even that was also the violation of the Ethiopian constitution.
That was really entirely illegitimate. Herald: What would be the benefits of the peace deal for the both nations? Prof. Asmerom: The benefits are far reaching; not only for Ethiopia and Eritrea but for the neighboring nations. The tension that existed for decades was damaging to both nations. Mobilizing huge army is a drain on national budget. Now, the peace deal has brought a turning point: the efforts, budgets of both nations will go to national development. Eritrea, regardless of the threat, was able to pursue development.
All efforts went to the defense along with the development activities. As a result, Eritrea has achieved most of the Millennium Development Goals, while many African countries have not done that. All these happened despite the fact that we were in the state of no war and no peace with Ethiopia. Next, there is huge economic potential for both nations.
For instance, the Port of Asseb is the best access for most of central Ethiopia. The Port of Messawa is very essential for the northern Gonder and Tigrai. Ethiopia continues benefiting from these ports. Herald: How do you see the reform Ethiopia government is undertaking?
Prof. Asmerom: The reform has brought tremendous improvement across the nation. It unquestionably benefits all Ethiopians and beyond. It is the outcome of the authentic, courageous and determined leadership of the Prime Minister.
To my view, it is a new day for Ethiopians. Ethiopia is becoming exemplary for its neighboring countries where recurrent conflicts occur. It is heralding enduring peace that would positively influence Djibout, Somalia, South Sudan and the like. Herald: Would you mention some roles Eritrea would play in ensuring the sustainable peace in the Horn?
Prof. Asmerom: Unlike several discourses that were fabricated for more than a decade, Eritrea has been contributing a great deal to ensure sustainable peace with the neighboring countries. For instance, President Isaiashad been a mediator in the Sudanese conflicts for long time. The two opposition groups used to come to Asmera very frequently for peaceful dialogue.
Eriterea was facilitating that process. The peace accord of north-east Sudan was made in Asmera. This was not covered in the international media since Americans did not like to hear that Eritrea as peace maker.
They wanted to develop a notion that Eritrea is a trouble maker. They used to create a false notion that Eritrea was a supporter of terrorists; which was totally non-sense. Both America and Ethiopia used to develop this notion; they want to marginalize and punish Eritrea.
They really succeeded in hurting Eritrea by creating an illusion in the international arena stating that Eritrea was a hostile country that was at war with all its neighbors. Herald: What should both nations do in order to sustain their current relations?
Prof. Asmerom: They should develop well detailed agreements on which they can pursue socio-economic and related cooperation. And they should work on how to use the ports, currencies and the like. Next, there are peoples on the sides of the border who were identified as Eritreans when they are Tigrians and vice versa. The leaders from both countries should solve these problems very soon by settling them permanently.
The Ethiopian Herald January 8/2019
BY WAKUMA KUDAMA
