It was around 7 pm at night when we arrived in Debre Markos city, Amhara State. After 15 minute, my colleague and I were knocking someone’s door at Kebele Five. Recently, this family has returned a 700,000 Birr worth property to Eritreans who had left the city to Asmara due to the civil war that made various families to lead life apart two decades ago.
When the Eritreans has recently returned due to the rapprochement, an Eritrean family was among those who get back their properties in the same posture they had left it before twenty years. Tena Mekonnen is a Debre Markos resident who kept her promise and granted a house to her former neighbor Ekubay Gebreab. [Firstly, the promise had been made between the two householders Tewolde Amde and Hagos Tesfaye during the Ethio-Eritrean civil war.
] Tewolde immediately died when he arrived in Eritrea following the incumbent. His friend Hagos also passed away in 1990. The two families had been living in Debre Markos since the Dergue regime.
Tena’s husband Hagos had fought with residents who wanted to buy the ‘promised land’ illegally. She believed that nothing is better than keeping one’s word. Today she has provided the land based on the promise that her husband pledged to keep the area. The grant ceremony was held last November at the presence of the elders who had attended the promising event 20 years ago.
The two families have an intimate friendship since the Dergue regime. Tewolde was a driver and Tena’s husband Hagos was a house decorator (polisher). “My family has faced various challenges during the time of my husband and even after he passed away.
Even there were times when the neighboring land owners were also attracted by the land that’s why we have been fighting to protect the land so long,” Tena said. Her daughter Elsa Hagos remembers that many residents were disturbing her father to buy the land. However, he has stuck himself to his word. Even there were times these greedy people obliged him to sell the land, but in any case he kept the land.
Eleven years ago, he passed away surpassing the promise to his children to keep the land and return to the neighbors (Eritreans) whenever they come back. “We had a written document which described that we are the guardian of the property; we kept our father’s word even though we have the right to sell the land.”
She has felt proud when the old neighbors returned and received the land after a long period of time. She recalls that how much sadness she had felt the time when many Eritreans had left Debre Markos due to the war. Ekubay Gebreab with her husband Tewolde Amde had lived there for 15 years. She gave a birth of five children. It was a great mess to these neighbors when the separation became real two decades ago.
The war was a signal to the termination of their happy times where they enjoyed mutual coexistence. “When we arrived in Asmera after the civil war, life became challenging as we were strange to the surrounding. It took a long period to join the community. Thanks to God, she could teach her children and all of them have achieved higher education.” Following the rapprochement,the family has returned back to Markos. “I had no idea whether Iregain, the former residence as the previous or not. It is the permission of God for them to have the house again.
“It is so pleasures to see Markos again and it has been changed, developed.” The generation could learn a lot from this happening, she stated. It has to know keeping a word means blessing in front of God. It is also about refraining from giving hand to money than faith, she said. Similarly, many houses and other Ethiopians’properties in Eritrea are reserved yet and the owners can recapture them, she noted. Ekubay’s first son Musse Tewolde had gone to Eritrea when he was 14. Before the separation, he had many enjoying moments in Markos. He was best basketball player in the vicinity.
He remembers those days and his friends. Today most of them are running their businesses and employed under public institutions. “When the separation got real, our friends were accompanied us with tears. When I arrived in Asmara, the language and the culture were strange to me. When I joined grade eight, I joined the Eritrea’s Youth National Football team. Even there, it was hard to close to the team members. After some time, I took part in various tournaments and international competitions. In each event when I met Ethiopians, I used to ask them the wellbeing of Markos unfortunately none of them were hailed from there.”
When he returned, he could not believe that the heritage of his family has still been preserved by the former Ethiopian neighbors. The happening taught him to examine the statement that have been narrated across generations: the two peoples have the same blood. He thanked the Markos residents for keeping their word and the love they are cherishing yet. Currently, many Eritrean brothers are receiving their land and other property, said Nigusse Binalfew Head of Debre Merkos City Justice Office. He stated that it is an exemplary deed to the generation. “
The people have no idea when the separation got real. It was a political crisis that made apart two loving hearts,” adding that the current property receiving events are the symbol to this culture. Nigusse met the two families last November when they came to his bureau in the property transaction process.
As to him, today many Eritreans are getting their properties back. It is the culture of the society to keep its word in various life spectrums, he told. Lastly, when we back to our hotel, it was about 8 pm at night. We were exhausted but fateful to depict this remarkable history. Of course, heart has nothing to do with fatigue for a person who is committed to achieve a certain goal. The Hagos’s family did the same. There was lengthy time gap but that never challenge the dedication to have faith and loyalty.
Herald January 22/2019
BY YOHANES JEMANEH
