BY STAFF REPORTER
Alebachew Desalegn is an Ethiopian who lives in London, UK. On the occasion of the New Year, he led a delegation from the Diaspora Action Council and returned home after 28 years. He is expected to meet with senior government officials to discuss the artifacts he has collected with his personal funds throughout the times he stayed in UK. Ethiopian Press Agency had a brief stay with Alebachew on his overall activities of supporting his country as a diaspora. Following is a summary of our discussions with Alebachew. Have a nice read!
During your stay outside of Ethiopia, you have been instrumental in coordinating the participation of the Diaspora in the affairs of the country and organizing demonstrations against the injustices of the current government. If you have a specific reason for doing so, tell us and we will start a conversation.
Surprisingly, I was not particularly opposed to the government because of what happened to me. Basically, I do not believe in revenge. But because I have a deep concern for Ethiopia. Both my grandmother and my great-grandmother were a patriot. My grandfather, in particular, died while fighting Italy at Maychew. My aunts were also very patriotic women. This patriotic story does not just happen; it stems from their deep love for their country! I grew up hearing that story and feel inspired when I hear the word Ethiopia.
When I was in the Eritrean deserts as a soldier, I have seen heroes paying the price for their country. I have seen them give their irreplaceable lives to their country. My heart still bursts with grief as I think of my comrades who have been feeding us without eating. Even though these heroes are no longer alive, the pain and suffering they endured can still be seen in my eyes. They demolished their own houses and built Ethiopian houses with their bones.
Seeing this, the past responsibilities and obligations that I left behind for my generation laid the foundation for who I am today. On the battlefield, human bodies were dismembered and buried, leaving no one to bury them. It was seeing all these things that made me have a special love for my country. By the way, just because you were born in Ethiopia, you can’t be or will not be Ethiopian. Family life is especially important. Now this entire massacre comes because we do not know our history well. We survived because we knew our history well. We also fought to save Ethiopia.
Every time I was abroad, I was at the forefront of every crisis in Ethiopia. By the way, I am not a member of any political party; I’m not a fan. In the case of Ethiopia, I am at the forefront. In addition to the UK, I have supported my country on every occasion by organizing and participating in rallies and meetings throughout Europe.
I also founded the Ethiopian Heritage Association, saying that the British community should know our history. For the past 24 years, I have been collecting Ethiopian artefacts around the world with my own money. That is why I am currently pushing for the opening of the Ethiopian Diaspora Museum. In addition to organizing and collecting these, I have contributed to the importation of everything from the Axum Monument to the Emperor’s hair lock. In particular, we worked with Richard Pankhurst on the Magdalen Heritages Restitution Committee. As I told you before, the feeling of being Ethiopian does not come from the ground up. If you love your country, you must prove it. In the case of Ethiopia, you have to pay a price. I do not own a house or a car. But at a cost of more than 180,000, I have put a lot of effort into preventing the valuable historical relics of our forefathers from staying in the hands of foreigners.
Have you been collecting those artefacts ever since, thinking about the museum that is now being built?
I believe that people without heritage do not have a cane to rely on. By the way, the Westerners are robbing you of your heritage and history because they want to embarrass and empty you. I don’t think they should tell us our story. When you respect yourself and your character, they will respect you too.
The British, in particular, are very smart and will respect you when you are strong. That’s why they gave me an award for my work in promoting Ethiopia in their millennium. I have a biography of my life in a museum in London today. I am still travelling around to register Ethiopian heritage. I will do my part to restore some of the artefacts that need to be returned. Even if you can’t return it, I will record the valuable artefacts with microchips. I will record the others whenever I can.Let me tell you about an experience I had. As I was exploring the archaeological site, I visited the Imperial War Museum, where I saw a chain of Africans being held captive. But at one point, I saw a white chain tied around my waist. I was amazed to see evidence that Ethiopia was a country that did not bow to whites while all these black people were being enslaved.
That situation has always made me proud of being Ethiopian. I am proud of being Ethiopian because it is the last time I see modesty. This situation still serves as additional fuel for me. I think if we had known what our fathers paid for this country, we would not be in such a mess today.
For the past 27 years, with the exception of you and a few diasporas, the outside community has been guarding the country in this way; He will not be disappointed when he supports it financially. What do you think this is?
During our exile, there was a significant political influence in the country. Of course, countries like India and China have grown strong with the support of their diasporas. Even now, they have been able to stand on their own two feet with the support of the Diaspora. Everywhere in the world, without the Diaspora, they run away with their money. Even in India, where I live, about half the population is Indian, and all Indians send their entire money home except for housing. But when you come to us, you do not see this. This is due to the political pressure of the government in Ethiopia.
Anti-government groups have done nothing but make Ethiopians carry their slogans and escorts. They all had their own political agendas, not nationalism. Even after that, the Diaspora was divided into tribes; They have been divided by language. The Diaspora was exposed to such dangers because they did not know much about the problem and the country.
Most of the Diaspora would rather talk about the region and the nation than talk about the country. As a result, there was a deep division. This was basically the government’s foreign policy. The main objective of the foreign policy was to disperse Ethiopians living abroad, and the foreign workers were engaged in divisive activities. The staff of our embassies have not been able to mobilize the Diaspora for the benefit of the country. Associations were organized in their own way. Still, there are some attempts to divide the diaspora among ethnic lines like Amhara Diaspora, Oromo Diaspora.
It has become increasingly difficult to unite because of racial segregation. Of course; there is still a Diaspora who is at the forefront of Ethiopia’s problems and who, like me, is still standing guard for the people. Especially since the change, the Diaspora has been working with the idea of unity. He is working hard to support Dr Abiy.
In the past, however, we have been throwing rotten eggs and tomatoes at government officials. When Dr Abby arrived in Germany, he had a large number of expatriates who had bought tickets from the United Kingdom.
I spoke on behalf of the Diaspora. In general, the Diaspora still has high hopes for change. Especially after the junta hit the army, it moved from end to end. It is a time when almost everyone except Junta’s children and supporters is on guard for the country. The main reason why I brought the Diaspora delegation to Ethiopia is to ensure that it is different for the country and the people.
Tell us about the role and work of the Diaspora Action Council where you are now.
The Diaspora Action Council was established through a platform where I meet social activists around the world. In the last three years, in particular, we have done a great job in exposing the conspiracies of the Junta and its supporters to destroy Ethiopia and supporting the forces of change. We were very upset when the flags were being lowered at each embassy. We fought hard to the end, especially in England.
I was responsible for exposing the conspiracy, building on various media outlets close to me. Especially since most of the journalists knew me and we were working on a German radio program, we all worked for hand in hand to overthrow the TPLF regime.
As you know, a journalist is a professional soldier. It has a responsibility to bring every case to justice. As a result, we have the support of journalists around the world.
After that, we Ethiopians from all over the world came together to work for the establishment of a Diaspora Council. Surprisingly, we did not know each other in person, but we met for more than a year when we said that Ethiopia will not fall apart. By the way, the members of the council have been working hard in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to celebrate the 125th anniversary of Adwa.
We have done a great job in making the festival a global event. We have been working together to honour, praise and support our heroes on Thanksgiving Day. We are still working hard on the generational recording. We have been supporting the defense since the first strike in June. We have donated a lot of money through Gofundme.
The Renaissance Dam and the Digital Diplomacy Council have worked alone and in partnership with various partners. I have written as much as possible on the Renaissance Dam to make people aware of the Nile River. We are constantly involved in all that is supposed to benefit Ethiopia by donating our personal money and coming up with innovative ideas. Even now, we have come here from all over the world to show our solidarity with our country, despite the fact that countries have restricted their activities due to the COVID epidemic.
It is on the pretext that we need to be human beings when our country needs people. This money will be used primarily for the purpose of developing the Gorgora project.
Another is to build and lay the foundation of the Diaspora Museum in this country and to bring our heritage back to this country. Through this project, the Diaspora will be accommodated. This means expanding tourism and increasing our foreign exchange earnings. In the future, we will be working harder.
By the way, it’s been three years since we started this museum project. It was invented when Dr Hirut came to England and asked me what I wanted from the government after looking at the artefacts I had collected. Of course; in the process, the issue is still unresolved. It has made it difficult for us to achieve this in our time while obstructing the bureaucracy of government offices in our efforts to do so. So far no one was able to send in the perfect solution, which is not strange.
Some believe that the feeling of being Ethiopian is now disappearing; to that end, they criticize the constitution and the TPLF government. Do you agree with this idea?
As you said, this situation is difficult for me. As a patriotic Ethiopian, this TPLF’s divisive strategy hurts. In the last 27 years of darkness, these people have left Ethiopia alone. They are still killing Ethiopia wherever it happens. It is difficult for me to understand what satanic mission and worship they have to destroy Ethiopia at this stage.
Unfortunately, it is the Junta faction that is hiding in Tigray more than an external enemy that tries to weaken Ethiopia. This force has left indelible scars on Ethiopia. The conspiracy of the families of Seyoum Mesfin and Tedros Adhanom, who were not only dispersing Ethiopians abroad but also in the vicinity of the embassy, remains unclear.
As you know, this is why Prime Minister Abiy is now calling for reform. Most embassy staff have a positive attitude towards their country, but the bad guys have not returned home. They have betrayed Ethiopia.
While they were there, they were entering the embassy, opening the door for the Ethiopian flag to be lowered and burning. There are still Ethiopians who are committing such heinous plots. And in general, the top diplomats in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are the cause of our failure. They deliberately divided the people.
By the way, this is the first time in 28 years that I have been able to tread on my land. I am one of the people accused in London of not entering my country.
Although I was not a member of any political party, I was one of those accused of being a political activist. Surprisingly, they stopped me from listening to the Voice of Germany and the Voice of America. I often participate in the running of our athletes. The Ethiopian flag will always be in my bag. As soon as the athletes run and win, I give them my country’s flag. I have formed a fan association, including Haile, and I have done a great job of filling the stadium with fans.
We rented buses and carried out various activities to promote Ethiopia’s glorious name. However, the government was not pleased with the situation. They became even more frustrated with the fact that I was giving the runners the old Ethiopian flag. When the athletes won and came home, they were faced with the challenge of why they had that flag. I was also charged in the London Marathon with misconduct.
They wrote me a letter to the embassy where I was working, saying that this was not a flag of Ethiopian dignity. But the people don’t care. Nothing happened to me. And it is not these people who are not influencing even the expatriate to do his job. Basically, fighting these extremists is in itself a manifestation of Ethiopianness. I am still happy to march for my country.
Many are committing human rights abuses during the war they have waged. In fact, do you believe that the international community has come to realize the true nature of the TPLF after you have been abroad for a long time?
The current war in the North has spread to all parts of the country and has already been looted to the tune of $ 26 billion. This meant money that can build another city which is the size of Addis Ababa. Or it will cover Ethiopia’s debt. Basically, the TPLF started this war not for the benefit of the people of Tigray, but for the benefit of those who want to reclaim their buildings. More than 400 buildings were found to be abandoned, but the people of Tigray did not have access to drinking water.
Therefore, little has been done to counter the war waged by these thugs, and the Ethiopian government has devised its own strategy to withstand international pressure. But now there are many improvements. The people of the world are now opening their eyes and trying to understand the truth, as the government has acted to some extent. For example, I believe that the recent Deputy Prime Minister’s visit to New York will make the West self-examine.
But the money they have looted for years is still being used by the kid gangs for their anti-Ethiopian struggle and conspiracy. As a result, the diplomatic war has never been more relaxed than the current war in Ethiopia. And the Diaspora is on the side of the forces of change, which is achieving relative diplomacy. By the way, the Westerners are now embarrassed to lift their pressure, not because they do not understand the truth. This is not the belief that Junta will return to power.
How should Ethiopia continue to engage with countries that openly support terrorism?
I don’t think this should be considered a government debt or responsibility. All the Diaspora who claims to be interested in Ethiopia should stand guard as the country’s ambassador and lawyer. The person is paying the price until he gives it back. It is the homework of all of us to wage a diplomatic war day and night to get the West to examine its own foreign policy.
That is one of the issues we face. When we came to the side of our government, we crossed the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, saying that if you don’t give us money, we will give blood to our army. The Diaspora has come together on the pretext that we must stand up for our country at a time when many threats and vicious rumors are being spread in our country.
But the government still needs to have a strong foreign policy and strategy. Diplomats should be trained by a qualified person, not by quota. He also needs to know the language and culture of the country you are going to. In a coordinated manner with the Diaspora, they should focus on shaping a generation that renounces racial and political differences that undermines Ethiopianness. You can change it at home with an education policy. Educated and Ethiopian sections of society should also play their part in shaping this generation.
Who do you think is expected to show that Ethiopia is a promising country despite many disappointing problems?
First of all, no one should be discouraged in the case of Ethiopia. Ethiopia is an age-old country. She went through many trials and even worse. It is not a country that came here in one day. When you fall, you rise; It is a country where our ancestors are built paying sacrifice in life.
These monuments you see standing in the public square are not city decorations; not our history notes! They are signs that remind us of the value our fathers paid for their country. Such things must abound. A monument should be erected in memory of those who have made history for their country. Only when we do so will the imprint of these people continue in Ethiopia.
In this case, there is nothing to be discouraged. Instead of saying, “What will my country give me?” We need to be aware of the debt we have to pay for the country. This is the case, for example, if each of us raises a child; I believe that if we partake, we can make a difference. Every Ethiopian must rise from the hands of the fallen and wipe the dust off Ethiopia.
Thank you very much!
You are welcome!
The Ethiopian Herald October 2/2021
