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Internal
News from Home: No. 003.
Source: ERKUKODISU (DMLEK).
It is known that the injustices, the Shabia regime and its faithful
supporters are committing upon the Kunama ethnic-group in its own
homeland, are increasing from time to time. Based on this, it has been
reported that around the middle of the past month of October, as some
Eri-Tigrian cow-herders had left their cattle graze upon the not yet
harvested crop-field of the Kunama Kirbit Dakor, this rushed there to
save his crop. Two Eri-Tigrian cow-herders and a Shabia soldier, after
using an axe to hit him on the head, they stoned him, smashed his
eye-brow and left him suffering body-pain and property damage.
Similarly, it was reported that on November 21, 2004, two natives of
the Kunama village of Karkasha, by the names of Ajibbo Mokonnen and Jula
Galla, went to their crop-fields where some Eri-Tigrian cow-herders had
left nine herds of cattle graze on their un-harvested crop-fields. Those
cow-herders accused the two Kunama of having provoked them and started a
fight, hitting and wounding Ajibbo Mokonnen on his thigh-bone. After
that the cow-herders went and reported to the Shabia soldiers who
detained Ajibbo Mokonnen.
On November 26, 2004, as Eri-Tigrian cow-herders left their cattle
trample on the harvest of a Kunama native of Tole, named Abbadi Ajjat,
this went and removed them. A cow-herder who was armed with a riffle
intimidated the Kunama and led him to the Shabia soldiers reporting that
the Kunama had stolen his animals. The soldiers detained the Kunama who
was said to have been left also without any compensation for his damaged
harvest.
In the middle of the past month of November 2004, some Eri-Tigrian
cow-herders, uncovered and left their cattle graze on the harvest, a
Kunama native of Taikanaba named Akawo Kalala, had deposited in his
crop-field. As the Kunama told the cow-herders to remove their cattle,
they retorted to mind his own business as they were not ready to do so.
Being a militia-man, the Kunama used his riffle to shoot in the air.
As the cow-herders headed for the station of the Shabia soldiers to
report, the Kunama too followed them. The soldiers immediately asked him
whether he was the one who had released a shot and stating that they did
not like people shooting, they fined him 100.00 Nacfa and left his
stranded without being compensated for his destroyed harvest.
In accordance with its known habit, the enemy of the people, the Shabia
regime, continuing with its detention policy of the Kunama leaders,
detained the village chiefs of Kolluku, Mammay Tesfay and of Dase,
Addalla Marko. Though the reasons for their detentions are not clear,
they are accused of mismanaging the public’s fund.
The Kunama people, in the entire Kunama land and around Barentu, are
suffering more than any other ethnic-group’s members, the reasons being
that as the Eri-Tigrian farmers and cow-herders keep using their cattle
to damage the harvest of the Kunama farmers in their crop-fields and as
the Kunama report to the regional authorities they are told their
reports have no value unless substantiated by catching the culprits and
bringing them to the authorities. If the Kunama try to catch those
offenders they are told, by the authorities, of having acted illegally.
The number of the natives, rejecting the unjust rule of the Shabia
regime and fleeing their homelands to the neighbouring countries, is
growing by the day. Due to this fact, on November 28, 2004, an
Eri-Tigrian native, by the name of Medhanie Andesillasie G/medhin,
hating the bad deeds of the Shabia regime, left Asmara on November 27,
2004, and through Shambakko, gave himself to the DMLEK’s
freedom-fighters. He is a 27-year-old young-man, who had completed the
12th grade in 1999.
This young-man, giving reasons for leaving his dear parents and his
native land, stated that, at the moment, as there is no possibility that
one completes one’s education, finds a job and earns one’s living and,
as the people are finding themselves in very bad living-conditions, he
managed to liberate himself and flee to Ethiopia. He further reported
that right now, in Eritrea the economy is at a very bad stage; the
prices being above the financial capabilities of the citizens and these
are finding themselves in a very bad situation. The young-man reported
that, being the prices of goods now in Eritrea, are as follows:
1.- One kilo coffee Nacfa: 80/100.00;
2.- A goat 600.00;
3.- A sheep 900/1000.00;
4.- Poultry 80.00;
the citizens have been rendered incapable of maintaining their own
household and finding themselves in bad living conditions.
Concerning the Ethio-Eritrean border dispute, the young-man added that,
though the majority of the Eritrean public has welcomed the peace
initiatives proposed by the Ethiopian government, the war-seeking Shabia
regime, has flatly rejected and getting ready for war.
According to other sources, on November 26, 2004, in the surroundings of
Bimbilna and Dekmhare, the soldiers had taken up a very thorough
round-up, gathered a lot of people and taken away. Similarly, the local
shepherds reaching their markets to do their shopping were collected and
taken away.
During the same month, there was a lot of rounding-up of the Kunama
people and on November 27, 2004, in the town of Shambakko, the military
taking advantage of the market day, rounded-up a lot of people and took
them away.
The report confirmed that in general and right now in Eritrea, the
Shabia regime is heavily preparing itself for war and that the citizens
are finding themselves in very bad living-conditions.
It is known that at present, the number of the Shabia regime’s soldiers
rejecting its bad policy and fleeing the country is ever more growing.
On December 1st , 2004, 7 Shabia soldiers were reported to have fled and
entered the neighbouring Sudan.
Their names: Siyum Mikiele, Hagos Abraham, Berhane O/michael, Arahim
Jimme, one called Fissaha as well as two women called Jimya Ibrahim and
Fatuma Noray.
It was reported that the public damaging system of the Shabia regime,
had killed seventy (70) of those individuals who had attended the
“Biet-Tmhrty Sawra Warsay-Ykealo” and that the Shabia itself had
admitted during the meeting in Barentu in October 2004. Related with
this news, at present, those individuals who had been brought to Sawa
with the promise to continue their education from the 11th grade on,
have been turned into soldiers, confirmed by the Shabia’s own sources.
It has been reported that all those students who have perceived such
tricks and hate reaching the 11th grade to end up in Sawa, when they
reach the 8th grade they break their education, hide themselves in the
houses of their own parents or in other places, thus heavily endangering
their own lives.
On the other hand, according to the Shabia regime’s system of consuming
human-lives, a lot of citizens are being jailed and tortured. The Shabia
military, with the pretence of having caught thirty (30) individuals,
trying to flee to The Sudan, detained and is said to be releasing a lot
of suffering on them, in a prison in Tesseney.
On November 28, 2004, the Shabia soldiers gathered a lot of local people
and told them that they were sending their children to The Sudan and
therefore they said that they only wanted to inform and warned them that
should those individuals be caught, heavy measure would be taken upon
them.
Source: ERKUKODISU (DMLEK).
The VKP team’s foot-notes:
The above are really heart-breaking news, about the on-going injustices
committed by the Shabia regime and by its soldiers, both upon the Kunama
and upon the Eritrean citizens in general.
Being the “ERKUKODISU (DMLEK)”, the source of these sad news, the VKP’s
team is very seriously asking the DMLEK’s top-leadership, particularly
its chairman, Mr. Kornelios Adolay Osman and his deputy, Mr. Twolde
Minase, whether they have ever undertaken or are undertaking concrete
measures to stop the Shabia soldiers from continuing to terrorise,
inflict unnecessary suffering and maltreat our rural Kunama population,
let alone the entire Eritrean people?
Is it not very shameful a fact, for the DMLEK’s leadership, to keep
claiming to be struggling for the rights, for the well-being and
well-fare of its Kunama people, but in reality it is instead reduced
only to living and sitting comfortably in the Ethiopian capital and
mourning about such Shabia injustices only through oral complaints and
writings in the Internet, which are, not only, inaccessible to many, in
that part of the world, but also faced with language barriers, as they
are being written mostly in the Kunama language? What effect do such
empty words have?
Is Mr. Kornelios Adolay Osman, as a known supporter and ID-card holder
of the Shabia’s regime, in the position to say, let alone do anything on
behalf of the Kunama people, after eight long years of total inactivity
at the DMLEK’s top-leadership post?
Though the connections of the DMLEK’s present chairman with the Shabia
regime are well-documented (ID) and are nowadays
being repeatedly mentioned to make Mr. Kornelios Adolay Osman himself,
his friends, supporters and others understand that he is not and has
never been genuinely motivated by the Kunama people’s just cause, he
still keeps writing and claiming to be condemning the Shabia regime’s
injustices upon the Eritrean citizens, but he himself is part of the
same system, otherwise he too would not have detained, jailed, tortured,
hanged and killed five of his own Kunama ethnic-group’s members.
A lot of other sources are reporting and asserting that Mr. Kornelios
Adolay Osman “understands and speaks only the language of TPLF”. What
all this is to mean, is a matter under observation. Our own question is:
how many languages does Mr. Kornelios Adolay Osman “understand and
speak?”
The VKP team’s appeal on behalf of our Eritrean people is made and goes
also to the leaders of the other Eritrean opposition organisations to
undertake immediate and concrete measures to break the Shabia regime’s
cycle of injustices upon our people, instead of wasting a very precious
time, in their politico-diplomatic wrangling. The procrastination of
their joint activities in bringing down the present dictatorial regime
in Eritrea, is also increasing the suffering of our people and therefore
the opposition forces too are gradually becoming parts of our national
problem.
The VKP: (January 01, 2005)
Source Meskerem.net 11-03-04
via Email 11-03-04
Internal Problems within the Eritrean Kunama organization:
Reports coming from within Ethiopia indicate that a number of fighters
"tegadelti" of the Eritrean Kunuma organization have abandoned the
organization, handed over their weapons to the Ethiopian authorities and
sought refuge at the refugee camp of Wa'ala Nihibi camp, near Sheraro in
West Tigray. They have allegedly complained to the Ethiopian authorities
that they can not continue their struggle under the leadership of the
present chairman, Mr. Kernelous. The report also added that the Eritrean
Afar organization is facing similar problems with some of its members
defecting to PFDJ.
Press Release No 060704
Wednesday, June 09, 2004
http://eritreancommunity.org/docu/press_release_libya.html
Human rights violations continue on a massive scale.
The ever-deteriorating political, economic and social crises in Eritrea,
is
causing the number of youth fleeing their country to rapidly increase.
Many
escape to neighboring countries of the Sudan and Ethiopia overcoming
arduous
and dangerous conditions. Many others continue their exodus to countries
such as Libya, Kenya, Uganda and South Africa. Some perish before they
even
cross the border, others die crossing deserts such as that of Libya, and
still the Mediterranean or the Red Seas overcomes others. Disease,
hunger
and lack of proper clothing and shelter are widespread among these
refugees
everywhere. Wherever they are, they are afraid of detention and
deportation.
They generally live in hiding for lack of proper documentation and
afraid
both of local authorities and Eritrean Embassy staff.
Recently, Eritrean Community – Human Rights and Refugee Protection
(EC-HRRP)
in the United States received news of detention of 430 Eritrean refugees
in
Libya and the death of Seven refugees. Thirty-one of the detainees are
women. Two hundred are held in Kufra, one hundred and eighty in
Misuratah
and fifty in Tripoli.
EC-HRRP has confirmed the news of the detention of the 430 refugees and
the
death of the Seven. These refugees reached Libya after enduring a
grueling
experience during the long march from Eritrea through the Sudan and
finally
to Libya. During this time, they were exposed to the elements, did not
have
enough food, shelter or medical service. As a result, they suffered from
trauma, psychological as well as physical problems. Refugees who are not
in
detention are harassed by Eritrean Embassy staff, and live in fear of
apprehension by immigrations officials as they lack legal status. Two
seriously sick Eritreans (refugee during the Dergue regime) has been
detained after they contacted the Eritrean Embassy in Libya for help.
Many
are forced into hiding and many more have problems of shelter food and
medical services.
Given the situation of Eritreans in their country and their condition in
many countries, the EC-HRRP urges Eritreans in the United States and
else
where to campaign for humane treatment of Eritrean refugees wherever
they
may be. We also call on all Eritreans to fund raise to help Eritreans
suffering and awaiting their fate.
Board of Directors, EC- HRRP
Wednesday, June 09, 2004
Arlington, VA
Part 09
NOVEMBER 2003:
THE NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES:
It has been reported that, according to its usual behaviour, the
deceatful Shabia regime has been using, to its own service, the grain
given, by the donor-countries, to the famine-stricken Eritrean people,
and trying to trade it with human lives.
At the beginning of the month of October, the regime’s local
authorities, announcing the distribution of grain, gathered, in Dase,
the Kunama residing in the areas of Afate-ila and from the villages of
Borkoka, Dede-bisha-ajja and Shakat but, instead of distributing the
grain, the regime asked the Kunama to give their children in exchange
the grain. The Kunama, retorting angrily that, they had not yet seen
their other children back, they were not to trade their children’s lives
with the grain. They then left, rejecting the offer, but the regime’s
authorities were said to have recalled those Kunama, cooled them down
and distributed the grain.
Similarly, the Shabia have been reported to have gone to the village of
Uganna and ordered a chief, by the name of Lali Marig, to hand over
young people. He explained he could not take such a decision on his own,
but he challenged them to use their authority to get what they wanted.
In the villages of Karina, Kona and Tuguliti too, the Shabia were said
to have ordered the young men to be handed over but the villages
refused.
In connection with the policy of rounding up young people, the Shabia
conscripted three persons from the village of Karkasha, three from
Tutakuri and three from the village of Taikanaba, but these were said to
have escaped and therefore the Shabia detained and took away their wives
and mothers.
It was reported that, on October 7, 2003, at 9 o’clock in the morning,
fire broke out, caused by a cigarette butt, in the houses of the Shabia
stationed in the village of Taikanaba and burnt down an R.PG., six
Kalashnikov rifles, cartridges and a lot of house furniture.
The Shabia though, is causing such accidents in order to harass the
local population, by spreading the news among them, that the ERKUKODISU
(DMLEK) forces were responsible for such incidents , thus trying to
create hatred between those forces and the villagers but its motives
have been found to be false.
It is proven that, the Shabia regime is training its soldiers and
sending them, all over the Kunama land and among the Kunama population,
to carry out evil activities, hiding themselves and secretly planting
mines along the roads frequented by the local clergy, blowing up the
tires of their vehicles, thus reducing their presence and preventing
their mobility around the territory. All this has been found to be
tactics used to accuse and blame the DMLEK and cheat the local
population.
It is known that, the devilish Shabia regime is continuing with no less
kinds of evil-deeds also among, the Afari populations, as it is doing
among the Kunama people.
In connection with such activities, it was reported by the Red-Sea Afar
Democratic Organisation that, on October 30, 2003, an Afari civilian, by
the name of Musa Ali Mohammed, from the northern territory, had been
accused, by the Shabia, of having connections with that organisation,
detained, gravely beaten up and taken away to an undisclosed place.
Similarly, on September 29, 2003, an Affari native, named Abdu Yasin
Nuri, from the same northern areas, was reported to have been detained
and taken away to a not known place, by the Shabia supporters, for no
known reasons.
Another Affari native, named Ali Mohammed, who used to be a Shabia
soldier, was said to have had enough of the Shabia regime’s evil-deeds
and gave himself up to the forces of the Red-Sea Affar Democratic
Organisation of the northern areas. Ali Mohammed was reported to have
stated that, as one cannot witness the evil-deeds committed by the
Shabia regime and resist, he had decided to defect and fight against the
Shabia forces.
These pieces of news were provided by the Red-Sea Affar Democratic
Organisation.
From the “Home Sources”, (November 4, 2003).
Part 08
OCTOBER 2003:
(NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES):
It has been reported that, the enemy of the people, the Shabia regime,
has taken the decision to conscript the Kunama people into the military
forcefully, from all over the Kunama land. Following such decision, on
October 11, 2003, the Shabia regime undertook a wide-ranging action,
rounding up young men, women; not sparing even under-aged young-people.
The Shabia regime, turned into the enemy of the people, adopting its
usual method of forcefully rounding-up young people and taking them to
the SAWA military training-camp, is experiencing a lot of defections and
therefore it is reported to be transporting the trainees to Assab.
On the other hand, in Barentu, the regime’s local authorities had
gathered all the educated Kunama and told them that, as the Weane is
preparing itself to declare war, there will be no schooling but that
they all will be ready to defend their country. It is therefore reported
that, every Barentu inhabitant, thought capable, is being issued a
conscription-paper and whenever the regime’s police are not able to find
those they had selected, they would intimidate them by detaining anyone
found in their homes.
On the bases of such evil method, it has been reported that, on October
10, 2003, as the regime’s soldiers had arrived in the village of Dase to
conscript, many fled and got away. The soldiers then raided 3 herds of
sheep and the personal belongings of the shepherds and took them to
Barentu.
On October 9, 2003, the Shabia police were reported to have gone to the
Kunama village of Kona and ordered the villagers to hand over those who
had been chosen for the military conscription. The villagers rejected
the order giving the following answer: “as we had already told you in
the past, we will not choose any one for the military conscription even
at the present.”
The police then left.
The NOTES of the VKP’s team.
It has been confirmed that, the order of the new round-ups for the
military conscription are been given and carried out only in the Kunama
land.
We are asking why? The only reasons can be the usual discriminatory and
very ill-intentioned methods of the present PFDJ regime to descend all
kinds of calamities upon the Kunama people in order to reduce or
eliminate them.
We are therefore warning our Kunama people, at home and abroad, that,
whatever undertaking and offer made to the Kunama people, by the present
Shabia regime, has a definitely sinister and malicious motive behind and
therefore our people should be careful and wise enough not to be
cheated.
The recently and widely reported scandal of the Australian regime to
ship to Eritrean “52,000” sick “sheep” as a “gift” to Eritrea and to the
Eritrean regime willingly and approvingly accepting that “poisoned
offer,” is very profoundly worrying us Kunama abroad as well as at home.
We are in fact terribly afraid that, the Eritrean regime will trade
either with the milk-products or with the meat of those “sick Australian
sheep,” thus spreading untold calamities among our Eritrean people in
general and among the Kunama people in particular.
We are warning every fellow-Eritrean at home to keep off from any “lamb
meat,” being sold or offered at the moment in Eritrea.
We are appealing to all Eritrean web-sites and their web-masters to put
out warnings to their readers immediately so that they contact their
relatives and people in Eritrea to refrain themselves from any meat and
milk-products.
The VKP’s team is speechless how, a so far generous Australian
government, would ever either ship or even allow to export poison to a
country and people not being able to cope even with its own diseases,
let alone being offered with foreign ones.
For those not acquainted with the German language “Gift” means “poison”
in English and that is exactly what the Australian government is
offering the Eritrean regime and the Eritrean people.
We are therefore condemning the giver, the offer and the receiver of
those “sick Australian sheep.”
We thank both governments for trying to poison and kill our people.
The VKP ( October 27, 2003 ).
Part 07
THE LATEST NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES (May 2003)
It is reported that, on May 19, 2003, a Kunama chief, by the name of
Abu-Aroda, had summoned the villagers of Kona and told them that, all
those 40 and below years-old men, who had never been involved in the
SAWA programs, should register, as they (the regime’s authorities)
needed 60 militiamen. The villagers got very angry at the announcement
and told the chief that, in these days, there is no one who has not been
to and served at SAWA and therefore there is no need for them to
register again. The chief then asked the villagers why those who had
fled from SAWA and given letters of order to return there had not done
so up to that time. The villagers retorted that they knew nothing of
those cases and that the regime’s soldiers should go ahead, as usual,
and forcefully re-round up the defectors and send them back to SAWA
again. The regime’s loyal servant Abu-Aroda, besides, is reported to
have announced that the ERKUKODISU’s forces were regularly visiting
their villagers and were being fed by those villagers. He however
suggested that, after they had done so and left, the villagers should
inform the regime’s authorities. The chief Abu-Aroda went on to add
that, every time their enemy forces had visited those villagers, the
regime loyalists keep being hit by R.P.G hand-grenade bombs and mines.
The chief further warned the villagers that, should such events keep
occurring, the villages of the vicinity would be held responsible. It is
also reported that, the regime’s faithful chief Abu-Aroda, still not
satisfied with the way he is mistreating the Kunama people in general,
he warned those villagers that, if they kept fleeing every time they saw
the regime’s soldiers coming to their villages, these would not be able
to differentiate their enemies from the ordinary villagers and therefore
they would not bother but attack everyone. As a matter of fact, the
regime’s soldiers are said to be increasing their persecutions of the
Kunama people. Three Kunama young-men who were going their way, were
recently detained and taken to an unknown place. One of them is a native
of the village of Fode and the other two of Aburna.
The Shabia regime, the enemy of peace and democracy, is continuing with
its indiscriminate detaining and jailing habits of the Kunama people.
Uddu Kerfe and Mahmud Ashkin from the village of Kona and, similarly
three other individuals from the village of Taikanaba, were detained and
taken away. One of them is known as Mali. Five women too, from the
village of Kolluku, were detained and taken away. Their names are:
1.- Shilala Alamin;
2.- Shikaba;
3.- Wodde Ali and two other women whose names have not been registered.
The soldiers of the Shabia, a regime based only on force, spying,
intimidation and harassment, would inform the various Kunama village
chiefs, every time a Kunama villager arrived, as a guest, in another
village. Similarly, a curfew, from 18:30 throughout the night, has been
imposed and therefore no villager is allowed to move about. This is a
clear and a deliberate break of the rural Kunama tradition where the
inhabitants of the neighbouring villagers gather together in the
evenings to discuss on their affairs, exchange their daily news or just
enjoy their jokes. The massive presence of the Shabia military in many
Kunama villages and its uninterrupted follow-ups, control and strict
security activities have reduced the Kunama rural population to a state
of complete slavery. The Kunama is used to leading a naturally formed
democratic life-style which is easily disrupted and destroyed if foreign
forces interfere. The Shabia soldiers are not only interfering but
systematically disrupting the harmonious life of the Kunama village
people. As customary, the Shabia regime is still and regularly removing
the Kunama rural population from certain areas of their territory. Due
to such, ethnically, politically and morally very controversial and
damaging policies, the local regime’s authorities recently demolished
the various Kunama hamlets lying along the fertile areas of the river
Sona (Gash). The regime’s local authorities are reported to have
demolished also the houses of some Kunama people in the following
villages:
1.- Anugulu;
2.- Doggabbay;
3.- Ludada;
4.- Asiti;
5.- Tuguliti;
6.- Asagurji;
7.- Dekkemmare;
8.- Tuta-kuri;
9.- Aleda-shila;
10.- Mariti and
11.- Ketumburu.
The Shabia regime, the known squander-maniac of the public wealth, has
stopped giving money to the wives of its soldiers. As it is reported,
the Eri-Tigrians residing in Barentu, were said to have got very angry,
got together and went to the local administrative office to enquire how
they were to survive without such support. The authorities replied that,
as they were about to compensate for the fallen soldiers, they were not
able to keep the practice any longer.
The notes by the RKPHA’s Team:
In a previous footnote, the team had already taken a clear stand that,
the policies the present Eritrean PFDJ regime and the regional
authorities in the Kunama land are practising as well as the
ethno-socially destructive activities of the regime’s soldiers,
stationed in most of the Kunama countryside, are aimed only at
“cleansing the Kunama land of its Kunama people”. This stand of ours is
firm, determined and irrevocable as the proofs of such evil activities
against our Kunama ethnic-group members mount day by day. Let Isayas
Afwerki and his PFDJ regime be warned of this. We abhor a Rwandan-like
scenario in Eritrea.
The team is not sure whether “Abu-Aroda” is really a Kunama chief.
Should also be one, then he too is and will be equally held responsible
for the present plights of those Kunama villagers he is now terrorising.
The corrupting system of the PFDJ regime are affecting many citizens
including some of the Kunama themselves. These are in fact, the worst
enemies of our people, as, for the sake of temporary gains, they have
lost their ethnic pride and hurting it.
Starting from the present regional governor of the Kunama land, Mr.
Mustafa Nurhussein, his administrative staff, the general in charge of
the military forces stationed in the Kunama land and the various
divisions officers ordering such strict control of and intervention in
the lives of the Kunama village people, there shall be no one exempted
from rendering an account of all the Kunama people detained, displaced,
jailed, disappeared, killed or somehow made suffer. Justice will be
rendered. It is to notice that, the Kunama, as an ethnic entity, have
never caused any harm to anyone. They have only been the objects of
injustices, discrimination and unjustifiable hatred throughout their
entire history and this has to stop. The reasons for such hatred are not
of primary concern as are the injustices being continuously committed
against them. The younger Kunama generation is no longer, either
prepared to tolerate nor to suffer such inhumane treatment. We are only
demanding equal human, ethnic and territorial rights.
No matter how often and how many removals and resettlements programs
have been and will be carried out, by the regime in the Kunama
territory, both of the native Kunama people as well as of the refugees
of other Eritrean ethnic-group members now being settled in many parts
of the Kunama land, the right owners of the entire Kunama land are and
will remain only the Kunama people. There should also be a consideration
that, those Kunama villagers who had their houses and hamlets being
repeatedly demolished by the present regime’s soldiers, be compensated
as part of rendering justice to those unjustly made suffer.
Those ordinary soldiers too, today freely and wildly behaving in the
Kunama villages, raping the Kunama women and committing all sorts of
crimes, should remember that, they and their activities are being
carefully registered and will be called to face justice in due time.
As a final touch to its footnote-comments on the above and on other sad
news, being regularly provided us by the “Home Sources”, the RKPHA Team,
feels very honoured and obliged to thank, very cordially, our sister in
God, Ms Adiam Semere for taking the laudable initiative and
responsibility of “submitting” our previous pieces of news in
“Awate.com”. We are also very grateful to the “Team of Awate.com” for
promptly posting those news on its noble web-site. We are also asking
whether the Awate-Team would also consider posting these ones too. We
thank it in advance and wish it all the success in its very valuable
work.
The RKPHA ( June 16, 2003 ).
Part 06
May 2003-06-07
NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES:
As usual the Shabia regime, is still continuing with its injustices
against the Kunama people. It is reported that on May 14, 2003, some
Shabia soldiers got to Dase from Dagilo and told the inhabitants there
that their children had taken refuge there and were kept hidden by them.
As those inhabitants said they knew nothing, eight (8) women were
detained and taken to an unknown place.
Similarly on the same month of May, the Shabia soldiers travelled to the
village of Shakat and told the villagers that some of their own soldiers
had fled there and that they had to be brought out of their hidings. As
those villagers too said they knew nothing of the deserters, the
soldiers detained many women and girls and kept them in prison till each
one of them paid 550 Nacfa to get freed.
A woman from the village of Anugulu was said to have lost some of her
livestock and was looking for them when a Shabia soldier raped her and
broke her the front-teeth. (a double criminal act).
On the other hand, it is known that, the Shabia regime is forcefully
removing the Kunama people from their hamlets and settling them in the
inner parts of their region. In the evacuated areas, the regime is
resettling the returning refugees of its own Eritrean-Tigrian
ethnic-group members.
The Kunama residing in the villages of Silkie and Dado too, were
forcibly removed from their hamlets and resettled in Dokinbia.
Similarly, the hamlets found in the surrounding areas of Aburna were
evacuated and their Kunama inhabitants forced to reside in Dase. Seven
(7) trucks loaded with the Eri-Tigrian refugees were brought to settle
and occupy the crop-fields in Dado and Sumbare, the areas emptied of the
Kunama people.
It is also reported that, following its constant pattern of unjust
behaviour, the Shabia regime keeps dispossessing the Kunama of their
inherited crop-fields. The regime’s soldiers were said to have
forcefully taken over the fertile crop-fields that the Kunama
inhabitants of Dino-kamba used to own and cultivate. The very fertile
areas, extending from Shini-koishe to Itiriti, are said to have been
forcefully occupied. Besides, the Shabia soldiers are said to be
automatically occupying any fertile crop-fields they find. Due to this
fact, a civilian Kunama by the name of Kalasa Shanuni, who had been
dispossessed of his crop-field, went to enquire about it. The Shabia
soldiers told him that they did not know who he was as the crop-field
had been given them by Mustafa Nurhussen and therefore that he was the
person to contact. The man then travelled to Dase to the local
administrator Abdalla Marko and told him that the Shabia soldiers had
taken his crop-field. Abdalla Marko gave him the following answer:
“there is nothing to be said to the Shabia and therefore if you wish, go
back and share your crop-field with them; if not, let them cultivate
it”.
The despising habit the Shabia have towards the Kunama people is on the
increase as it is known that the inhabitants of the village of Kolluku
have been ordered to provide the Shabia soldiers with water and firewood
everyday.
On May 18, 2003, a man called Asala who had travelled from Dagilo
to Fode was detained by the Shabia and nobody knows where he has been
taken to.
Similarly, a man by the name of Abo Abdalla of the village of Anugulu is
reported to have been detained by the Shabia and whose whereabouts are
unknown. The Shabia detained and took away to “incognito” also three
Kunama young herdsmen who were attending their animals. One of them is
called Ummadi but the names of the other two have not been registered
except that one is from the village of Fode and the other from Dagilo.
In order to prevent the Kunama people from conducting their own daily
activities, the Shabia are reported to have ordered no Kunama villager
to move about, starting at eighteen (18:00) hours. If the herdsmen
happen to have let their cattle to graze later than the curfew time
imposed, they are detained and kept in prison to be released the next
morning. Such plights are beyond reason.
The RKPHA’s notes:
The Shabia regime, its regional administrative personnel and its
soldiers are carrying out a systematic “ethnic cleansing” of the Kunama
people. The detentions and disappearances of the Kunama people are too
often and too many not to state that, the present PFDJ regime is either
directly or indirectly intentioned and ordering its forces to
materialise such plan. Any move taken by the regime’s soldiers,
stationed almost in every important Kunama village, the criminal acts
such as rape, violent behaviour and abuse of power indicate a constant
discriminative and socio-ethnically motivated measures taken to increase
the suffering, the death and the elimination of the Kunama race from its
own ancestral land. Let the PFDJ top-leadership, the regional
administrator, Mr. Mustafa Nurhussein, his civil servants and the Shabia
soldiers, perpetrating those injustices upon the Kunama people, be
remembered that there are already two many and more than enough proofs
of “ethnic cleansing” activities they are all involved in which can be
and are being recorded and will be legally advanced and processed in due
time. There are no other than the territorial aims.
The RKPHA ( June 8, 2003 ).
Part 05
Apirl 2003-04-28
NEWS FROM HOME SOURCES:
On March 28, 2003, the district officer of Shambakko, Sale Adum,
summoning the inhabitants of the villages of Karkasha, Taikanaba,
Tutakurina and Ugummu for a meeting in Karkasha gave them the following
warnings:
1.- “any youth found wandering about after 18:30, will be beaten up;
2.- the ID-cards you are now holding have no more validity and therefore
you are expected to get new ones.
From April 1 to 3, 2003, the villages of
Taikanaba are to go to Karkasha to get their ID-cards;
from April 3 to 6, 2003, the villagers of Tutakurina:
from April 6 to 9, 2003, those of Ugummu and
from April 9 to 12, 2003, the inhabitans of Karkasha”.
Added to these, the officer ordered a fee of Nacfa 10, which the
villagers had to pay in order to get their ID-cards. Those who argued
that they would be detained if they failed to comply with those orders,
decided to be on the run.
On April 8, 2003, the Shabia soldiers stationed in Taikanaba, accusing
of contacts with ERKUKODISU, (DMLEK, the Democratic Movement fot the
Liberation of the Eritrean Kunama), detained and taken to an unknown
place, the village-chief of Karkasha, by the name of Ammi Ambo, Orsoma
Buti, a native of Ugummu and an ex-Shabia soldier, called Mengstu
Seleman, working as a group-leader in Karkasha.
On April 8, 2003, Sale Adum again summoned the inhabitants of the four
villages; Karkasha, Taikanaba, Tutakurina and Ugummu and held a meeting
where he said that, „Badumma had been given to Eritrea, but nevertheless
Weane is trying to get also Shambakko. You should know that, from now
on, we will have to be ready to fight and defeat it. Apart from this,
you should also realise that you are feeding those evil people
(ERKUKODISU), coming to you hiding themselves in the bushes and
palm-trees. Those of you who had been living along the river-bank were
warned and therefore if anyone is found still in those areas will be
seen no different than the enemy itself. You should also come and get
your ID-cards. Whether you like it or not, you should move out of those
areas along the river bank.”
Sale Adum warned those villagers, threatening them that, they would be
made öf his threats aware through facts. The villagers answered by
arguing and inviting the authorities to “come and burn our hamlets as it
is your plan. The areas where we graze our live-stock and draw enough
water from are still parts of the Eritrean territory. As we do not
understand your plan to move us from one place to another, we refuse to
obey your orders.”
During the same month, the Shabia regime started to detain every leader
and everyone able to read and write enough. Those detained from the
village of Bimbilna are:
1.- Kuri (Marcello) Galli; the district officer;
2.- Idris (Bura) the officer of the district of higher Bimbilna;
3.- Musa Adamati, the chief cleark of the district of Bimbilna.
Similarly, 4 persons were detained from the village of Shambakko. Those
known are:
1.- Tommaso;
2.- Laggi;
3.- Taranbo Sale.
Five people were detained in Boshoka. As the Shabia soldiers arrived at
Taikanaba to make more arrests, some villagers got away by fleeing. The
news coming from the village of Kolluku was that, 10 people, 6 women and
4 men had been detained and taken away.
On April 12, 2003, the Shabia soldiers patrolled the areas extending
from Ugummu through Tugulakula till the Dergu river, trying to detain as
many villagers but a lot of them managed to flee and get away.
On April 13, 2003, a native of the village of Taikanaba, by the name of
Asaffa Idris Kachchi, who owns a little plantation along the river-bank,
went to Dekamere to visit his mother. It is reported that, as the man
was having a meal, 6 Shabia soldiers entered the house, kicked over the
plate the man was having his meal from, fastened him tightly and took
him away.
On April 14, 2003, the Shabia regime sent its soldiers patrolling and
demolishing the Kunama hamlets lying along the river-bank from
Koreti-Fursha till Garmi and forcing the villagers to resettle together
in bigger villages.
At this very time, the Shabia regime is reported to have mobilised its
forces and movements and greatly intensified its strategies and
activities trying to detain as many Kunama suspected to be suporters of
ERKUKODISU. The local sources confirm that. through such movement, the
regime thinks of gaining a lot of advantages.
From the Home Sources.
Part 04
HOME NEWS (March/April 2003):
Combat units of DMLEK (the Democratic Movement for the Liberation of the
Eritrean Kunama) attacked a camp of intelligence squad of the 11th unit
led by a general nick-named Izni-Merak at Kolluku (Kunama Land), on
March 28, 2003, at 08:00 pm, leaving 12 killed and wounded enemy
soldiers.
As a retaliatory act, the Shabia regime seized, detained and jailed the
following six Eritrean-Kunama civilians:
1.- Tukku Alamin (female);
2.- Dahba Bate (female);
3.- Alamin Badumme (male);
4.- Andrea Galla (male), a representative of the PFDJ regime,
functioning as a village chief;
5.- Magi Ashku (male), local administrator of the regime;
6.- Abdu Sale (male), PFDJ surrogate who was accused of failing to
co-operate with them.
Very recent reports confirm that, other prominent Kunama of the same
village of Kolluku, particularly the clergy and many villagers, members
of the Christian Protestants community were summarily detained and taken
away by the regime’s soldiers.
The names of those Kunama will be published as soon as more detailed
news reach us.
Of the following three prominent Kunama:
1.- Francesco Amma Gadum, a civil servant;
2.- Dannik Ule, a civil servant and
3.- Gabriele Gashshai, a merchant, nothing has been heard up to now,
since they were detained by the regime’s soldiers immediately following
the third round of the last Ethio-Eritrean war. They are only believed
to be languishing in the “Biara prison”, in the outskirts of Barentu.
Following the latest events in the Kunama land, the PFDJ regime is said
to have declared the Kunama people to have become the enemies of the
“Eritrean government.” Such declaration is a clear message aimed at
fomenting and encouraging ethnic-conflicts in and around the Kunama
land.
The Kunama people at home and abroad, are reminding the PFDJ regime to
retract such an unwise statement and see that those innocent civilian
Kunama detained be immediately released or given a due process.
From the Home Sources (April 2003)
Part 03
News from the home sources (Febraury 2003)
Gallant fighters of the Eritrean Revolutionary Democratic Front (ERDF)
have launched a sudden attack upon the intelligent squad of shabiya and
brought a great causality. The incident that has left 10 dead, 13
wounded, and a captivity of several weapons of various size and quality
took place in minor administrative region of Maimine, at Daaro Hara
village. The fighting lasted over three hours commencing from 8:40 up to
11:30 at night on 17/02/2003. As the station was completely demolished,
another subordinate force of the enemy has tried to encircle and curb
the fighters but the attempt was futile. Such sporadic and intermittent
operations had been taken by sister organizations like Erkukodisu
(DMLEK) and the Red Sea Afar Democratic Organizations. The three
organizations are members of Eritrean National Alliance, (ENA) with a
formidable military wing, organized under the banner of the "Right of
Nationalities to self-determination up to secession" principle.
The RKPHA: News From The Home Sources (Febraury 2003)
Part 02
January 2003
NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES:
The Shabia regime is giving a military training to 50 Baria/Nara and
Kunama individuals in Tole Gamja, paying them 1600 Nakfa. They started
in December 2002.
The following are the names of some of those individuals taking the
training:
1.- Andu Hagos, a Kunama from the village of Shambakko;
2.- Babikir Jagi of ibidem;
3.- Abate Sale "
4.- Kankalo "
Initially, these individuals were students who broken their studies and
enrolled themselves in the military.
The Shabia regime is paying, the wives of his fleeing soldiers, 500
Nakfa. It pays 6000 Nakfa, to the wives of those soldiers on leave but
decide not to return to the military life.
This process began on December 27, 2002. Some of them went to collect
the money but some others did neither approach not collect it. They have
become very careful as they have realised that they were being cheated
and made slaves of money.
In the village of Aleda-Shila, the Shabia authorities and some arrogant
Tigrians are persecuting the Kunama people for no apparent reasons. A
police officer called Weddi Girmay, is warning the Kunama of Aleda-Shila
that he would exterminate them if a certain Mohammed Saleh Ali, from the
Tigre ethnic-group, who had disappeared from that village, is not found.
The Shabia authorities had ordered the graves of Agena Salama be dug out
and removed from Barentu Gimja-Biet. They warned those graves would
otherwise be excavated and houses built there. As there was some delay,
the authorities used graders to dig those remains out which were
subsequently collected and buried somewhere else.
It has been reported by eye-witnesses that, on December 29, 2002, the
ERKUKODISU fighters surprised the enemy soldiers stationed along the
river basin with violent attacks, putting the whole division into
disarray. They left behind three dead soldiers. Because of such step
taken, the Shabia soldiers are said to have become very disoriented.
They told the inhabitants of Dagabbay that they had mistakenly fought
against and hurt each other. On the other hand, on Friday, January 3,
2003, they summoned the villagers of Kolluku and told them that, they
had been attacked by their children and warned them that, should any
shoot out take place in the future in that surrounding, those villagers
would be removed and resettled either in the village of Delle or
Koitabia. They vowed not to let them live nearby the river. The Kunama
would describe such a behaviour with the saying: "though detecting the
elephant, they would still go looking for its traces", meaning, afraid
of confronting the powerful one, they would look for an excuse.
On January 1, 2003, the ERKUKODISU fighters put out of function a truck
carrying the rations of the enemy soldiers, from Dobaro to Sumbare.
On January 4, 2003, an "ISUSU" vehicle, loaded with bread for the enemy
soldiers, was demolished along the Dase-Barentu road.
Last month, the Shabia soldiers, accusing of feeding the ERKUKODISU
fighters, detained Bammad Shuli from the village of Dado and took him
away. He has not been seen again ever since. It has been reported that
an individual by the name of Siday Gaya had spied on Bammad Shuli and
informed the Shabia soldiers.
The Shabia regime is still committing a lot of injustices against the
Kunama people without proofs of culpability. Recently, it detained and
took away four persons from the village of Dobaro. Their names are:
1.- Aroda Jenka;
2.- Abdu Libab;
3.- Idris Longgi;
4.- Mahmud Shuli.
On December 20, 2002, some Shabia soldiers went to a locality between
Dase and Ugaro to detain three Kunama men who tried to escape but were
chased and one was wounded on the thigh. The other two were captured and
all three were taken to Barentu where the wounded person was left
stranded in the market place whereas the other two were taken and till
today nobody knows their whereabouts. Their names are:
1.- Shakku Tuta;
2.- Libishi Wana;
3.- Galli, the wounded person, was reported to have been abandoned and
suffering till a passer-by, Shawalli Gashay, had noticed and took him to
hospital.
NB. On the bases of the above sad news on the on-going injustices
against the Kunama people, the RKPHA has nothing more to add, apart from
stating that, whoever is involved, whether directly or indirectly, in
those evil-activities against our Kunama people, carries and shall carry
the full responsibility for their detentions, punishment, sufferings and
disappearances. On behalf of their suffering ethnic-group members, whose
names are either recorded or not, the Kunama people will be asking for
"justice to be rendered", one day, at the right time and place.
Injustice calls for justice and all those using unjust measures against
their own fellow-human beings shall be remunerated with the same
measures.
The RKPHA: News From The Home Sources ( January 2003 ).
Part 01
January 2003
NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES:
On November 3, 2002, a Kunama called Salanggo and a Tigrian settler in
the Kunama land, quarrelled over a crop-field and ended up physically
hurting each other very seriously. The Tigrian individual had attempted
to seize the crop-field which belonged to the Kunama man..
On November 11, 2002, in Balak, a locality in the vicinity of Barentu,
some Tigrians deliberately let their cattle trample over the Kunama
crop-fields. Following a row, the Tigrians reported to the Shabia
soldiers saying the Kunama had raided their cattle. The soldiers rushed
to the place and started to shoot indiscriminately killing a Kunama
called Dabi. Also in localities like Koitabia, the Kunama and the
Tigrians quarrelled over crop-fields beating each other up very
severely. The same happening in places like Dado, Dase, Dokinbia, Ugaro
and in many other localities. These days, many Tigrian settlers in the
Kunama land, are challenging the Kunama villagers on their crop-fields
everywhere. They are openly claiming that the Kunama people have no land
of their own anymore.
Based on these claims, a Kunama by the name of Nati Angkur was very
badly beaten up by some Tigrians.
On November 24, 2002, two young Kunama named Kalifa Biriti and Shandi,
natives of the village of Kona, travelled to the market in Barentu where
they were then detained and taken away by the Shabia soldiers. Their
whereabouts is not known up to this day. Their relatives went to Barentu
to enquire but they could neither find nor hear any news about them.
On November 25, 2002, the Kunama villages of Karina and the Tigrians
settlers in the Kunama village of Tuguliti, had quarrelled, fought and
seriously hurt each other. The reason for the scuffle was that, two
Tigrians who had been told to remove their cattle from trampling the
crop-field of a Kunama person, retaliated by beating up a Kunama young
man. The young man’s mother, who had been in the vicinity and followed
the scene, cried for help. Other Kunama rushed to their aid. A lot of
Tigrians too rushed to the place and the fight began. As the Tigrians
were numerically superior, they drove the Kunama as far as the river
Sona. The Kunama immediately blew their “horn” (a war sign for the
Kunama people) to which the Kunama from the villages of Kolluku, Kona,
Belabobina, Ludada, Taikanaba and from other parts, responded and rushed
to the area. The following three Kunama individuals, by the names of
Kalashin Buttu, Nase Adori and Kela Aroda, had been axed by the
Tigrians. The Shabia soldiers then intervened and detained all those
Kunama who had rushed to the help of that Kunama young man and his
mother, and took them to Shambakko where they were imprisoned for two
nights and then released. Because of such sad events and continuous
injustices, the Kunama are reported to be saying that if they had their
own government and soldiers like the Tigrians, they would not be
maltreated and subjected to so much calamity.
Though a lot of such problems are being daily caused; quarrels and
conflicts provoked by the Tigrian settlers in the Kunama Land, the
government authorities are not undertaking any measures to contain the
arrogance of those Tigrians who, encouraged by the examples of the
Shabia soldiers and other government officials, have developed the
conviction that the Kunama are no more the owners of their own ancestral
land but the Tigrian regime, the Tigrian settlers and the Tigrian
ethnic-group.
The Kunama people are therefore being systematically provoked,
maltreated, insulted, humiliated, detained, jailed, charged and made
disappear for simply claiming and trying to defend their own territorial
rights. The Kunama people are being invaded by the Tigrians, in their
own villages and crop-fields which have become the daily battle-fields
between the two communities.
Let the government authorities, the officials at the regional and local
levels be reminded that, if the Kunama people, according to their
tradition, have reached the point of blowing their “horns”, for the
provocations they are getting and injustices they are being subjected
to, it is a clear “declaration of war”, the responsible people have to
take very seriously. Now it is not the question of containing the wrath
and the reactions of the Kunama people against any Eri-Tigrian
aggression against them, their crop-fields and their land, but the
question of refraining the Tigrians from worsening the already volatile
situation by provoking the Kunama any further. This is a real
“time-bomb” situation.
From its part, the RKPHA is informing and warning every concerned
Eritrean that, the Tigrian component is practically declaring a
civil-war in the Kunama land. This has always been a very serious
warning the RKPHA has been sending for quite sometime, both to the
government authorities like Mr. Mustafa Nur-Hussein and to all others
who kept hammering on the very damaging principle of the “Eritrean land
(the Kunama land) belonging to the government”. This is a principle the
Kunama people will never entertain, accept, or even compromise if
aggression is involved. For the Kunama people, their land is the
identification of their own ethnicity.
The RKPH ( from the Home Sources: January 2003 ).
Part 4
NOVEMBER 2002:
NEWS FROM HOME SOURCES.
On November 4, 2002, a guard-group which was patrolling deep inside the
country, planted a land-mine in the road between Ambori and
Addi-Teklehaimanot. A truck loaded with grain (dura) was blown up on
November 8, 2002.
The same patrolling group, opened a fierce fire, for five minutes, on
the enemy depot at Tole Gamuja, on November 14, 2002, at 8 o’clock in
the evening. After the group had stopped and left, the enemy soldiers
carried on firing against each other for 30 minutes.
Because of a land-mine, planted against a water-truck, in the
water-wells in Sosona Etakuri in the past, some Baria and Kunama from
the village of Gullu were detained and later released.
In the Barentu area, some Tigrians had let their cattle trample on the
crop-field of a Kunama man. After the owner had driven the cattle out of
his crop-field, the Tigrians owners of the cattle reported to the Shabia
stationed nearby that, cattle-raiders had raided their cattle. As the
soldiers got to the place, they immediately opened fire on the man and
broke his both legs. Other Kunama rushed to help him and so did also
some members of the UN’s peace-keepers who detained those soldiers and
led them to the camp where they were stationed, but their comrades had
deserted the camp and went into hiding.
From the Home Sources ( November 2002 ).
Part 3
NEWS FROM HOME SOURCES: (November 2002)
Reports by the home sources confirm that, on November 10, 2002, the
Shabia soldiers which, led by someone called Weddi Fitwi and stationed
at Taikanaba (Kunama land), had been engaging themselves in acts of
robberies of the Kunama livestock and property, were confronted by the
ENA forces (ERKUKODISU/DMLEK division) with which they had to sustain a
heavy battle where 30 of their members were said to have been killed and
their station completely destroyed.
On the same day, another unit of the ENA (Afar division) attacked a
group of Shabia soldiers stationed in their region who were similarly
carrying out evil activities against the local Afari populations. Ten of
those Shabia soldiers were said to have been killed and four of their
rifles retrieved.
On November 14, 2002, a Shabia army-depot at Tole-Gamuja (Kunama land)
was attacked and destroyed by the ERKUKODISU division of ENA military.
That Shabia unit too had been engaging itself in the harassment of the
local Kunama populations.
As it appears, the new leadership of the ENA has taken up its duties
very seriously. It has begun to engage itself very actively in the
diplomatic quarters (the recent visit of the top-leadership of the ENA
to The Sudan and their official reception by the Sudanese authorities)
and on the military fields, trying to target only those Shabia military
units and stations where the Shabia soldiers, failing in their main
duties, are instead causing a lot of suffering to the Eritrean rural
populations.
Part 2
NEWS FROM HOME SOURCES ( April 2002 )
1.- On April 7, 2002, a Kunama by the name of Tifar Sale had been
arrested at the village of Itasha and taken to Bimbilna where his
personal documents were sequestrated by the Shabia soldiers stationed
there who told him to get to the village of Taikanaba the next day to
collect his documents. As he reached Taikanaba on April 8, 2002, the
soldiers stationed there told him they were not the ones who had
arrested him and therefore that he had to look for his documents
somewhere else. The poor man returned to Bimbilna where he met those who
had detained him. These handed him his documents back and released him
giving him a stern warning that he would be paying dearly should he tell
he had been detained and had his documents sequestrated by those
soldiers. Two days later, he was recalled by those soldiers at Taikanaba
who, accusing him of having failed to report his missing documents,
detained him again and led him to Barentu where, up to this day, nobody
knows whether he is alive or not.
2.- Similarly, a Kunama called Abo Karafo who had travelled from the
village of Ketumbru to the village of Kotori was detained, had his hands
tied up at his backside by the Shabia soldiers, led to the village of
Itasha where he was abandoned with his hands still tied up. To his luck,
he was found by another fellow-Kunama person who used his knife to cut
off the robe and fled.
3.- Another Kunama by the name of Gaia Tesemma who had been herding his
cattle in the Shiata area, had his personal bag and ID-card sequestrated
by the soldiers who told him to get to the village of Dakkamare to
collect them. As he got there, the soldiers detained him for two days
and ordered his parents to go there to pick him up. Until today, it is
not known whether he was released or not. He had been detained on April
14, 2002.
4.- In order to use as an excuse to arrest the Kunama people, the
Shabia, have issued them, besides the ID-cards, another paper without
which no one is allowed to move about.
Whoever not carrying such paper is known to be incurring great risks.
5.- On March 29, 2002, Franko Kobaba, Mustafa Nurhussein, Aurelio
Jakomino and a new recruit by the name of Terenzio Kina, held a meeting
with the people in Shambakko where, as usual, they started to hit the
war drums again irritating their audience. These same persons, summoned,
at Karkasha, the Kunama villagers from seven villages and told them they
were not to be trusted as they are known to be cattle raiders
compensating their debts communally. With this accusation, we Kunama are
being labelled as thieves.
Besides, those villagers were rebuked, insulted and told that they would
feed certain strangers and, after these had left, they would make false
reports. The villagers were warned that they would be severely punished
whenever their neighbours or others would report on their hidden
activities. In conclusion, Mustafa Nurhussein and Franko Kobaba
separated the elderly and the village-chiefs from the other villagers
and took them to a private meeting where they asked them what they would
think if those people refused to reconcile and, as the elders answered
that, apart from whatever the government had brought, they did not know
anything, the two, rejecting the answer they had been given, appointed
new chief-judges. Mustafa Nurhussein and Franko Kobaba claimed that
certain organisations were either useless or had been eliminated and
that the only existing ones were the Jihad and the Kunama (ERKUKODISU).
Enquiring how these two also could be eliminated soon, they are choosing
people from various villages forcing them to use their talismanic powers
to this purpose. Added to this, Franko is trying hard to turn the Kunama
into informants, spies and lying people. He has promised to reward with
2500 Nacfa, anyone providing him with a piece of information. He is
carrying out his activities by putting up this notice in his office as
if it were a lotto-like prize.
The RKPHA, “From Home Sources” ( April 2002 )
Part1
MARCH 2002: NEWS FROM HOME SOURCES
Very shocking news are reaching us, from home, these days, which are,
once more proving, what a degrading level of morality, have the Shabia
military, civil servants and its sympathisers reached with their inhuman
and immoral activities against the Kunama people in their own land. It
is in fact reported that, in the village of Anugulu, there resides a
team of Shabia soldiers called,
“NNDA SILLEIA “ This team would, during the day, patrol the Kunama
villages, entering houses and checking everyone. Their main reason is
said to be not “ security “ but to look at Kunama women, identify the
ones they liked and, at dusk, with the excuse of patrolling the area,
they would break into the houses of those particular women, ask their
husbands who they are, where they are from and where they were at day
time and whether they are from that particular village. In order to
examine them more and complete their research, some of the soldiers
would take those men to their stations whereas others would remain
behind and rape those Kunama men’s wives. The next day, the local
community (Kebele) leaders would be called in to prove the identities of
those men who would then be released. Those Shabia soldiers would warn
the women, threatening to kill them if they revealed their immoral
activities.
The stories of these very sad events have been confirmed also by
independent home sources. Incredibly shocking and embarrassing stories
not at all worthy of the behaviour of a national military.
The inhabitants of the village of Fode were said to have been enlisted
according to their kinship and family ties; whether they were from:
Gurma, Karaua, Serma or Shua kinship. Besides, the Shabia authorities
have introduced a practice never heard of in the Kunama society. They
have established that, if a man, native of the village of Fode, for
instance, married a woman from the village of Kona and resided there, he
would have to return to his native village should his marriage end up in
divorce. Similarly the woman too is expected to leave her ex-husband’s
village and immediately return to her own village.
This is an outrageously inhuman order and practice never heard of but
only in the world of the Shabia regime. The people applying this order,
seeing to its observance and keeping records of are Ambrojjo Baio and
Ambo Ambushi.
The decree however was said to have been issued by the regional chief
Aurelio Tungga and entered into effect as from March 1, 2002.
The Shabia soldiers, accusing Sadi Afringgi of having previously met,
fed, entertained and informed his brother, Sale Afringgi who allegedly
planted a land-mine to kill them, detained him together with another
Kunama by the name of Jafar Galla in Dase, took them to Fode, from there
to Barentu and finally to Bimbilna. The soldiers had beaten up the two
men very seriously and examined them but they could not prove their
wrong-doing. In order to justify their action, the soldiers reported
that they had detained the two men as these were trying to flee the
country. The two were then forced to make a detour through Fode,
Garmille, Gage’s village Noro, through Yohannis’ garden, down to Asageri
and from there back to their village.
Another very shocking news is that, the Eritrean Alliance
member-organisation
“ SAWRAWI BAITO “ is said to have developed strategies and carrying our
activities intended to destroy ERKUKODISU (the Democratic Movement for
the Liberation of the Eritrean Kunama – DMLEK ).
Amat Shinggrai, was reported to have stated “ ERKUKODISU to be an
organisation without any principles and programs “ and told people
neither to believe nor follow it. He himself is a sold out person.
Adam Bakit, a native of Aimasa, resident of Mastura, a full-member of
SAWRAWI BAITO and the chief of that locality, had gone to Tessenei, met
the Shabia leaders and told them that he and his comrades had a total of
three-hundred (300) followers ready to attack them. He therefore asked
those leaders whether they could go and fetch them. His mission however
was said to have failed as his encounter and plan with the Shabia had
been uncovered and revealed to the Sudanese government.
Mohammed Asallo, resident and working in Gadaref’s ( The Sudan ) office,
has been spreading the news and boasting that, 25 ex-ERKUKODISU’s
soldiers had defected and joined Sawrawi Baito.
The RKPHA: from Home Sources ( March 2002 ).
TO THE LEADERSHIP OF SAWRAWI BAITO:
From: the Representatives of the Kunama People at Home and Abroad (
RKPHA ):
As the above recent news on the activities of your members against the
Kunama people, have been fully confirmed also by independent sources, we
Kunama are very deeply saddened, disappointed and angered by your
underground work to destroy ERKUKODISU, an organisation many Kunama
people see as theirs as it keeps struggling for their social, political
and territorial rights. We are extremely touched by the covert
activities of Sawrawi Baito and of its agents; a member-organisation of
the Alliance of the Eritrean National Forces which has unexpectedly
changed its face and activities to try to destroy another
member-organisation fully accepted and respected within the Alliance. Up
to these days, we were led to believing Sawrawi Baito to be actively
involved in building up a strong Alliance, but the latest news on its
sinister activities have undoubtedly destroyed all our trust and
readiness to join our forces with such an organisation which we, from
now on, see not different from the EPLF/PFDJ regime. A new enemy of the
Kunama people?
We are therefore appealing to the Sawrawi Baito leadership, both at home
and in the Diaspora, to immediately clarify its political stand as
regard to ERKUKODISU, to the Kunama people and their cause. We expect
the top leadership of this organisation to issue a formal declaration
either to confirm or deny and condemn such works of its members and
activists.
We understand that, those activities are being carried our in the name
and knowledge of the Sawrawi Baito leadership.
We Kunama do not and cannot tolerate any more repetitions of the “
hate-driven “ activities of the old “ JEBHA “ against our Kunama people.
Prior to the latest events by the Sawrawi Baito’s officials in Eritrea
and in the neighbouring Sudan, we Kunama thought we Eritreans opposing
the present PFDJ regime, had only one common enemy to fight and defeat,
but we are now discovering that, even within those organisations
declaring their alliance with the others struggling for the just causes
of the excluded Eritrean people and ethnic groups, there is one Sawrawi
Baito planting land-mines-like devices to destroy all hopes of the
Kunama people. It is a clear message we take very seriously as we expect
a reasonable explanation from the Sawrawi Baito leadership. We do hope
Sawrawi Baito not to have similar sinister plans also against the other
member-organisations of the Alliance. Let they too be alert.
We very much regret to have to come out with such a disheartening
declaration but confronted with such shocking and outrageously betraying
activities of a member-organisation, we had no other choice but expose
and express our bitter disappointment and anger.
Let our message be therefore very clear, to both Sawrawi Baito and
others, that, all those elements seeking the destruction and the
elimination of our organisation will be equally eliminated.
The RKPHA ( March 2002 ).
KUNAMA NEWS PAGE
NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES (December 2001)
1.- It was reported that, at the beginning of October 2001, a mine went
off in the area between Boshoka and Shambakko killing the driver and
putting out of function a water-truck.
The Shabia soldiers, accusing the ERKUKODISU agents of planting the
mine, were said to have been harassing the innocent Kunama people.
2.- During their meeting held on September 27, 2001, Franko & co.
ordered the village chiefs and elders to take up firearms. Following
that order, Efrim Afarey was given a firearm. Besides, it was reported
that, a decision has been taken to form a militia force.
3.- According to witnesses’ report, the Shabia soldiers had been engaged
in an internal fight.
An anonymous militiaman who had been wounded during the third round of
the Ethio-Eritrean war, cured in Asmara and returned back to his native
village of Tekle-Haimanot was sent to Sheshibi. His commanders later
gave, from his salary of 400 Nakfa, 200 to a certain local leader by the
name of Bereket Gerzgi telling him they had given the other 200 Nakfa to
that militiaman’s wife. They however went to her and telling her that
her husband had defected to the Weane, they withheld the money. The
woman informed her husband who, though answered them per letter, they
refused to give the money to the woman. He then went back home and,
together with his wife, travelled to Shambakko where he shot a local
leader three times who later died as he was being taken to hospital.
4.- The University students who had been assigned to the summer-time
service or “maatot” but refused to, have been charged to pay 1000
(one-thousand) Nakfa and jailed for one year.
Following this, young people from the Baria/Nara and Tigre/Beni-Amer
ethnic groups were reported to have fled to The Sudan. Many University
students who had been engaged in the summer activities were reported to
have died because of tiredness and sickness.
5.- The Shabia soldiers are reported to be stealing villagers’ sheep and
whenever they are caught they are said to make recourse to beatings and
jailing of their owners.
On October 19, 2001, in Dekamere, (the Shabia soldiers) had slaughtered
the sheep of a man called Ishe Udda who, though was shown his sheep’s
skin, he was so afraid that he could only make few remarks. Those
soldiers were said to have killed that man’s second sheep and left its
skin by their guard. As the owner saw it he was said to have informed
the soldiers that he had lost two sheep and asked the guard whether they
had seen them. The soldiers, retorting to the man why he had asked them,
tied him with a rope, beat and left him under the sun from morning to
the evening hours and released him on bail.
6.- The soldiers stealing and slaughtering the villagers’ livestock are
those from the 42nd Division who are using two ID-cards to operate. When
they are faced by their comrades they are said to show them their
soldiers’ identification-cards, and whenever confronted by the (UN)
peace-keepers these are reported to be cheated by being shown the
militia ID-cards.
7.- In October, Franko, together with some policemen, had decided to
move the inhabitants of Shambakko to Boshoka. It has been however
reported that those inhabitants, both Kunama Tigrians, agreed to refuse
arguing that, in the past, they had been told that it was safe enough
for them to return to their own villages and therefore they would not
move back to Boshoka again. They also added and warned that, should they
be forced to move they would be instead going back to their own villages
and that they should not be therefore accused of being sympathetic to
Weane. For the time being , those inhabitants are reported to have been
left there without any Welfare Aid.
The RKPHA (From the home sources) December 2001
NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES December 2001
THE ORDEAL OF THE KUNAMA PRISONERS
Very sad news keep reaching us from the Kunama Land on the worrying
conditions and treatments of the Kunama prisoners still languishing in
the present Eritrean regime’s jails.
Recently, the prison authorities notified the relatives of a Kunama by
the name of Mesak Talla to go and collect his body as he had been,
alegedly, found dead in a prison cell.
The late 75-80 years-old Mr. Meask Talla, had been in jail for about two
years for no clear and proven reasons and without having once been
visited by his relatives.
According to the present Eritrean regime, the international legal
approach, “you are innocent until proven guilty” is considered as an
“illegal procedure” as people are detained without enough proofs and
jailed without any trial. The prisoners are not to be visited even by
their own relatives which, in itself, is a peculiar practice unheard of
on the international level.
It is reported that, when the relatives of the late Mr. M. Talla reached
the prisons, they saw the dead body of their family member not lying, as
it would a normal case be, but contorted as if he were still alive and
sitting. His body has dried up in the same position as in the cell.
As questions and enquiries are not tolerated by the prison authorities,
the relatives of the deceased person silently collected his body and
proceeded with their funeral practices.
It is said that, it was not the first time that the dead body of a
prisoner is delivered in that position but that it has become a regular
occurrence. Even the prisoners who have been and are being released
alive are said to be still suffering from stiffness of and pains in
their joints which they say is due to the position they are forced to
take in the prison cells.
Because of the excessive number of prisoners and therefore obvious lack
of enough space, the prisoners are said to being forced only to sit down
closely and with no possibilities of stretching their legs. In the long
run, those human beings are rendered unable to stand up and walk
properly or even maimed for life.
It is a very inhuman and cruel treatment those prisoners are being
subjected to.
Knowing the causes and the very weak reasons for the imprisonment of the
late Mr. M. Talla, who was said to have been a man of high morals and
very outspoken in matters of injustices, one could imagine the fate and
the kinds of ordeals other prisoners accused of much serious offences
are being forced to endure.
The treatments the EPLF/PFDJ regime is allowing its prison authorities
to exercise on their own fellow-citizens are clear violations of the
human rights. The very fact of indiscriminately detaining people and
jailing them, even for sheer suspicion based on the usual excuse of
being threats to the national security, is an illegal practice the
Eritrean government is to be totally condemned for. Intimidation,
harassment, detentions, jailing and disappearances of many Eritrean
citizens are at the order of the day and the main activity of the
government’s security agents. Eritrea has become a land ruled with state
terror. It is also said that, in Eritrea in the last ten years, there
have been more prisons built than any other premises for social
purposes.
As a matter of fact, when one thinks that, there are still Eritreans,
among whom many Kunama, who used to be at the service of the Dergue
regime who are yet languishing in the Eritrean prisons, the number of
the prisoners around the country must have reached astronomical figures.
It does not therefore seem to be an exaggeration to sustain that “more
prisons have been built than other public places”.
We are urging the EPLD/PFDJ government to consider that only by
imprisoning people simply for expressing their opinions is not going to
solve the political problems in Eritrea but only by removing its own
oppressive political system which is creating still more oppositions.
We are also reminding the president Isayas Afwerki and his security
apparatus that they should and are not to think of imprisoning every
conscientious and concerned Eritrean citizen in order to secure their
stay in power but that, precisely such use of extreme and unnecessary
methods to sedate the public’s outcry are likely to lead them to their
fall.
The RKPHA (From the home sources December 2001)
-1-
NEWS FROM THE HOME SOURCES (OCTOBER 2001)
On September 5, 2001, Franko Kobaba and Sila, the district-chief of
Shambakko, held a meeting together with the inhabitants of Shambakko and
its surroundings.
At that meeting Franko was reported to have said that, due to the war
launched by the Weane we had to suffer a lot of damage and mobilise our
forces.
He went on to add that, as the peace-keeping forces have now intervened,
and though peace seems to be holding, there are some peace-treaties the
Weane have refused to accept and therefore they are preparing themselves
for war. Besides, they have not retreated from our country. They are
still occupying Gosonga, Safala and Dembehimbirti.
Franko enquired about what it should be done if the Weane again waged a
war adding that our men and women would have to be mobilised .
A Tigrian person stood up and argued that, even assuming that what
Franko had said were correct, there were other events to be taken into
account. He reported that, there were people who used to be in the
government but that they are now said to be detained and he said he
would be interested to know their names and the reasons for their
arrest.
Franko revealed the names and replied that, those people had risen
against the Eritrean government and, together with the opposition
forces, they had planned to overthrow the present government.
The villagers finally told Franko that, they had not yet even been
informed about their children fallen during the last war. That he was
again preaching about war intending to recruit their remaining youth and
that they were therefore prepared to refuse his message.
A Kunama person, by the name of Kanini Abdu, stood up and said that,
before the last war, the Kunma residents of Shambakko used to get help
but that they have been totally ignored since the war had dispersed
them. He added that, even after they had returned to Shambakko they have
been abandoned and that only the Tigrians were being aided. Kanini Abdu
went on to argue that, as they had been promised in previous meetings,
they would have been provided with tractors to plough their crop-fields,
but that only the Tigrians had received such kinds of machinery. He
concluded by saying that their people had not even solved their local
and immediate problems and therefore could not think of the distant
Weane’s war.
Franko told that Kunama person to report to him the names of those
people who had carried out such discriminatory activities but, later, as
Kanini Abdu and others went to see Franko with their reports on the
appointment day, he was said to have repeatedly postponed the meeting
intimidating the villagers thus trying to cover-up his failures and
evil-deeds.
At that same meeting, as Franko stated that they were to go to collect
the remaining of those fallen at Gamhalo, some villagers retorted that
he had previously admitted that the Weane were still occupying Gosonga
and Safala and therefore how could they go there to collect those
remainings. Franko realised his blunder and kept qiet.
It is reported that, meetings like that at Shambakko will be held also
in other parts of the region. It is also reported that, at the beginning
of the plough season, Franko Kobaba, accusing the inhabitants of
Aledi-Shila of feeding those coming from across the Sona river, ordered
them to evacuate from their village and disperse in the villages of
Aimaba, Shambakko and Karkasha.
The inhabitants of the surroundings of the village of Karkasha were
detained at various times accused of feeding the ERKUKODISU’s soldiers.
On August 8, 2001, Dagu Bidda (Mahmud) was secretly detained in
Shambakko and his whereabouts are not yet known.
On september 14, 2001, Kullu Boshsho had left home to visit his
crop-fields and on the way to Elatakitta, he was asked by a group of
Tigre (Beni-Amer) cow-herds to help them lift a lying ox to stand on its
feet which he did. As that ox had been wounded with an axe, those
cow-herds, accusing Kullu Boshsho of being the culprit, sent some of
their colleagues to Tole
-2-
Gamuja to report to their own Tigre Shabia soldiers who then went to the
place, detained Kullu Boshsho, fastened him with a rope, beat him up and
kept him the whole day.
Though innocent he was charged 7000 Nacfa.
On September 5/6, 2001, ten Kunama were detained accused of feeding the
ERKUKODISU soldiers. Some of them are still in jail.
Amma Gadum Sale was accused, by the Shabia soldiers, that, as the two
ERKUKODISU agents,Ali Amma and Mebratu Ambo Faki had arrived his
daughter Jamila cooked for them and he served them. He was detained in
Aimaba and taken to Shambakko where he was severely beaten up and,
though his health had consequently deteriorated, he is still languishing
in jail.
As a punishment for the action her father had been accused of, Jamila
Sale Amma too was detained, beaten up and taken from Aimaba to Shambakko
where she was released after ten days.
Ambo Fakki was accused of having hidden his son, ERKUKODISU’s soldier,
Mebratu.
He was detained, beaten up and taken from Karkasha to Shambakko where he
was released after 15 days.
Mohammed Musa Tajir was accused of having defected from the Shabia
military service and given his rifle to his uncle Otan Tungga who, in
turn, handed it over to the ERKUKODISU’s soldier/agent Yakob Shinggrai.
Mohammed Musa Tajir was detained and taken from Karkasha to Shambakko
where he was released after 15 days.
Tolli Annebi was accused of handing his rifle over to the ERKUKODISU’s
soldiers/agents.
He was detained and taken to Shambakko where he was beaten up and
released after 15 days.
Shumu Magula and Abbo Ashudakura were accused of having first fled and
crossed the Sona river over to the ERKUKODISU and then got to Melezane
(Garmi).
They were detained, beaten up and released. The two were reported to
have been detained again for that same reason.
Dabba Boshsho Aggar was accused of having fed the ERKUKODISU’s agents.
He was detained and taken from Aimaba to Shambakko where he was released
after 15 days.
In Shambakko, he was kept hidden for 5 days and subjected to a lot of
suffering.
Dabba Boshsho’s 5-month pregnant wife, unable to look for her husband,
fell very sick and is being treated up to this day. She is emotionally
very disturbed.
On September 15/17, 2001, Mahmud Longgi (Adabuta) was detained at his
house in Ketumbru and taken away. To this day, his whereabouts are
unknown.
Otan Tungga was detained at his house in Karkasha, beaten up and taken
to Shambakko.
He is still in jail. Some spies claimed to have seen ERKUKODISU’s
soldiers enter his house and were entertained by him.
All the detentions are being carried out at dusk and in the middle of
the nights at the accused homes who are then beaten up, weakened and
taken away on foot.
From those detained on September 5/6, 2001, some were released together
after 15 days and sent home on the same day. As those detained claimed
they had nothing to do with the Shabia’s accusations, they were set
free.
After they had been released they were led, through a hidden route to
Aiakoibida, by two Shabia soldiers who warned them that if they went
back to Shambakko they would be treated very harshly so they had to make
a detour and return to their villages by way of Aredaba.
They were also told to avoid meeting the peace-keeping forces.
The remaining detainees were kept in one prison-cell.
On September 19, 2001, the Shabia soldiers went to the house of Kima
Abkir’s wife Tsega Adem in Tutakuri. They detained , beaten her up and
broke her an arm and confiscated her some oxen. They told the woman to
travel with them to Barentu where she would be witnessing them sell
those oxen.
-3-
In order to cover-up the motive of her broken arm, she was transported
in ambulance to Barentu where she witnessed the sale of her oxen, but
unable to defend herself legally, she went back to her village
empty-handed and she is still having her arm treated.
The justification those Shabia soldiers gave was that those oxen had
come back from the other side of the Sona river.
On September 24, 2001, the Shabia soldiers went to the house of the son
of Machu Abakir’s wife and, as they saw two bulls there, they claimed
they belonged to Kima Abakir.
As he told them they belonged to somebody else, they detained the young
man, beat him up and made him walk all the way to Bimbilna where he was
kept for two days and then transferred to Shambakko where he was
released after one day.
The soldiers went back to get those two bulls and detained and severely
beat up the young-man’s older brother who had gone there to enquire
about him.
In Barentu, the peace-keeping forces gave some milk to three
8-to-10-year old Kunama children. As the children were accustomed to
receiving milk from them, last September, milk contaminated with DDT
(Dichloro-Difenyl-Trichloroethane insecticide) was given to those
children who collapsed on the way. They were taken to hospital and as
they were examined, traces of DDT were found. The children were cured.
As the Shabia had warned from approaching the peace-keeping forces, the
parents of those children kept quiet. This fact is being closely
followed.
OTHER NEWS FROM THE RADIO KUNAMA PROGRAMME
The crop-fields extending from Fode through Anugulu to Emelangangalina
were ploughed with 6 tractors. In order to carry out this project,
Aurelio himself conducted the operations driving around on a car. Those
crop-fields, which had been sequestrated from the local villagers,
withered because of drought.
Local chiefs were summoned to Dase to be told to collect money for the
posthumous memorial services of those fallen during the war.
Going from door to door, even the single mothers are being forced to
contribute 50 Nacfa starting September 12, 2001.
In the surroundings of the village of Dase, the inhabitants have been
issued with the PFDJ ID-cards and told to hide them as the Weane are
about to wage a war.
The inhabitants of Dokinbia, Ugaro, Dabaro, Dado, Sumbare and all those
residing on the southern side of the Sona river were told to speed up
the harvesting activities of their crops as they were to be resettled.
The inhabitants however refused saying they would not move out of their
villages whatever might happen. A meeting was held in Dokinbia by
Mustafa Nur-Hussein and Aurelio Giacomino who angrily retorted to those
villagers’ reactions that the orders they had given were to be obeyed
and that those villagers were to hurry up with the work at their
crop-fields.
On October 3, 2001, the inhabitants of the surroundings of Dase were
each given about kg. 1,5 of “dura” and told that to be their last
aid-ration. Such rations were however given only to those villagers who
had contributed money for those fallen in the war and those who had not
done so were refused.
On May 5, 2001, a certain Udda Tuba of the village of Anugulu, who,
after arriving at Delle, had been out for a drink together with some
officials, claimed to have lost 400 Nacfa.
Those he had spent the night with , telling him how he could remember
and dare ask such a question, detained him and he is being kept in
prison ever since.
In the village of Dado, a young man went to Dangga Afringi’s house at
dawn and told him to be a veteran ERKUKODISU’s soldier who had just fled
the organisation and wanted to be handed over to the Sahbia.
-4-
The young-man possessed a radio-set in which he had hidden 1200 Nacfa
and asked Dangga to keep it with him. The young-man had also secretly
dug a whole at the back of Dangga’s house where he buried 8 grams of
gold.
Dangga accompanied the young-man to the Shabia who kept him and let
Dangga go home.
The young-man finally told the Shabia that he had given Dangga 1200
Nakfa and 8 grams of gold. The Shabia immediately went to see Dangga,
rebuked him for not informing them, detained, took him to Barentu and
charged him 3000 Nacfa.
The following are the present prices of some goods at the local markets:
1.- a bull
10,000 Nacfa
2.- a goat
700-1000 Nacfa
3.- a donkey
800 Nacfa
4.- chicken
50 Nacfa
5.- dura kg. 1,5
13 Nacfa
6.- Sugar kg. 1
7 Nacfa
7.- coffee kg.1
50 Nacfa
8.- a pair of shoes
30 Nacfa
9.- a packet of cigarettes
10 Nacfa
10.- meat kg. 1
40 Nacfa
11.- a packet of match
0,50 Nacfa
The RKPHA (October 2001).
THE LATEST NEWS FROM THE ERITREAN KUNAMA-LAND
SEPTEMBER 2001
The Shabia regime is reported to have harased and be harasing also some
members of the Tigrigna speaking ethnic group, forcing them to go into
hidings.
After the third round of the Ethio-Eritrean war, the government’s
soldiers were said to have arrested four men from the surroundings of
KOHAIN; in the SERAE region. They were later said to have been jailded
and being subjected to atrocities.
Their names are:
1. Keshshi Drar G/Kristos;
2. Ato Beyen G/Mariam;
3. Ato Mengsteab Teklay;
4. Ato Mehari Woldegiorgis
It is known that, enven during the Derg regime, the Shabia used to
accused the inhabitants of KOHAIN as that government’s supporters and
betrayers of their country and constantly persecuted them.
It is also reported that, in the village of Addi-Kuguahla, in
Akele-Guzai region, the wife of a certain Ato Kidane G/Sillasie, is
being subjected to a lot of sufferring as her husband had taken refuge
in Ethiopia after the third phase of the war between the two countries.
The wife is being told to pay back all the money she had been getting
and this is said to be making her lead an unbearable life.
Similarly, in the Kunama land, the wife of Ato Yobbe Dawit, who fled to
The Sudan, was told to pay back the whole of the salary she used to get.
The Shabia soldiers, under the continuous instructions of their
government, are said to be bringing up all sorts of accusations to
intimidate, harass and subdue the Eritrean population in the
countryside.
The RKPHA
From the Home Sources (September 2001)
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2001
On August 26/27, 2001, the Shabia sodiers stationed in KONA accused the
villagers of DAGILO of assaulting some TIGRIANS and sequestrating 5000
NACFA. They summoned four villages from DAGILO for questioning but, to
this day, those have neither made back yet nor been heard of ever since.
Their names are:
1.- Luigi Yakob Akok and
2.- Agaba Addi, both of them civilians;
3.- Nati Kalifa Andu
4.- Gurisho Jelan Gorado.
At the end of August 2001, FRANCO and AURELIO had gathered the villagers
and ordered to collect money but they refused. As AURELIO had summoned
the villagers of KONA and KOLLUKU and told them that each village were
to collect 3000 NACFA to carry out the posthumous services and vindicate
the blood of the Kunama from BADUMMA and GAMALO who had fallen during
the last war, those villagers categorically rejected requesting to be
informed first on the fate of their already fallen children. FRANCO too
got an identical answer when he asked the inhabitants of SHAMBAKKO and
surrounding , for the same amount of money. This clearly proves that the
PFDJ regime is preparing itself for another war.
The Shabia government has brought back the Ertirean refugees from The
Sudan and resettled in and made them occupy the crop-fields and the
habitats of the Kunama people who had fled their land following it
harassment and persecution.
The PFDJ regime has lately engaged an entire brigade in the cleaning up
the crop-fields it has previously cultivated after depriving the Kunama
villagers of their most fertile areas in the vicinity of the villages of
ANUGULU, FODE, ITIRITA and DOKINBIA.
Similarly, the Shabia has rejected the Kunama from their homes in
ANGGOITINA (near Tutakuri), NEGEB (in the vicinity of Shambakko) and
from SHAMBAKKO itself and resettled the refugees from The Sudan. During
the month of August and September 2001, a great number of the refugees
has been resettled in DOKINBIA forcing the Kunama to give up their
native local rights. The regime is also creating a bitter life to the
rural Kunama. Those villagers refusing to abandon their habitats are
being heavily fined punished. The government, on its part, is following
the villagisation programme of the Eritrean refugees from The Sudan.
On September 1, 2001, the inhabitants of a village called ”MENGGELU”,
near KARINA, were forced to evacuate at night and brought to KOLLUKU.
Those asking for explanation of such decision were charged two camels.
The Shabia soldiers kept vigil on those villagers brought to KOLLUKU
thus causing them more worries and suffering.
On Septermber 3 / 4, 2001, the Shabia soldiers ordered the villagers of
FODE to gather stating they were to check the villagers’ ID-cards. The
villagers refused claiming they had their own leaders and the soldiers
were not to intrude in their affairs. That gathering did not take place,
but at the moment, the Kunama land is said to be under the SHABIA’S
military rule.
On September 8, 2001, a certain TARU TAGGU of KONA was told that his
younger brother had deserted from the Shabia military and was hiding
somewhere.
TARU TAGGU was therefore ordered to look for hid brother but as he had
reported he could not find him, he was detained, brought to KOLLUKU and
forced to cutting the firewood for the soldiers. The Shabia soldiers are
said to be raping the Kunama girls claiming they are their girl-friends.
The Kunama people are facing the most difficult times of their history
and undergoing untold sufferings. A lot of restrictions have been
brought to their communities.
1. No Kunama is allowed to travel from one village to another without
the Shabia soldiers’ permission.
2. From dusk to dawn, it is forbidden to have lights on in the houses.
The get together of two or three people is risking one’s own life.
The whole of the Kunama people’s social life in being disrupted on daily
bases by the Shabia.
From the Home Sources (September 2001)
July 2001
In this part of our Kunma web-site, we shall be providing, our visitors,
with news as they reach us from home.
Our main co-operation consists only in translating into English, the
pieces of news written in the Kunama language and post them in our home
page.
Besides, as those pieces of news take sometime to reach us, we shall do
our best to post them as quickly as we can.
We hope our customers would understand our difficulties.
The pieces of news we are posting this first time, unfortunately, date
back to the beginning of the year 2001, but we hope to be more updated
in the future.
THE KUNAMA NEWS DURING THE MONTHS OF
JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH AND APRIL 2001.
At the present, the "Shaebia " (EPLF/PFDJ) government is sending its
secret agents, dressed up as civilians, to the Sona (Gash river) area to
control and forcefully prevent the Kunama herders from watering their
livestock in the Gash river.
When we, the Kunama opposing the EPLF/PFDJ government, heard of such
news we began to follow (the activities of those agents) in order to get
a first-hand knowledge of the situation and we found the news to be very
true.
1. On February 20, 2001, a certain Kunama cow-herder, by the name of
Nasir
Shukkur, a native of the village of Fode, was killed by an EPLF death
squad as he
was only attending his cattle.
What does a Kunama cow-herder know about or have to do with politics?
He was killed simply because he was a Kunama and there is no more
discriminatory act than this.
2. Still in February 2001, Aroda Kontalle, a native of Ludada and an
EPLF soldier
who was on leave and had a permission to visit his relative in his
native village, was approached by the EPLF agents who, though were shown
the leave permit, beat him to death.
The discriminatory and despising attitudes and activities the EPLF
government and its agents are having to and exercising on the Kunama
people is being witnessed not only by God but by human beings too.
In a situation like the present one, there will never be either any
forgiveness by or reconciliation with the Kunama people.
The Kunama and the EPLF cadre Franco Luigi Kobaba, whose mother is a
native of Fode and the father of Boshoka held meetings with the Kunama
villagers on the following days and villages:
a) March 2, 2001 in Kona;
b) March 3, 2001 in Dekamere;
c) March 5, 2001 in Karkasha and ordered many Kunama villages to be
brought
together. During those meetings, Franco informed the Kunama villagers on
the impending removal from their villages to be resettled in
pre-established localities.
He also defined as liars all those Kunama, opposing the present Eritrean
government, living in the Ethiopian state of Tigray and operating in the
southern parts of the river Gash, for the liberation of the Kunama
people.
-2-
He frightened those Kunama by telling them that, their removal was
justified because of the threat posed by the others.
Some Kunama who knew the reasons behind those plans bravely confronted
Franco.
They in fact told him that, the injustices they were experiencing from
the government's side were too obvious to deny and therefore they said
they were ready to tell the whole truth.
Those Kunama individuals pointed out that, all the Kunama people had
been removed from the other side of Sona, (Gash area), from Asaba,
Melezaney, Tika and Tugukiti, but that the Tigrians were allowed to
settle in those same areas. Trusting his government's power, Franco
forced the Kunama to abandon their not yet completely harvested
crop-fields and the Tigrians took advantage of the situation to reap the
crops for themselves or allow their livestock to graze on those
crop-fields.
The villages removed from the basins of the river Gash and gathered in
Taikanaba were: Audaba, Dekamere, Ludada, Mariti, Sisima and Tutakuri.
Three people from those gathered there, Tuka Gana, Kailakko Adodi and
Abba Enrico (a Capuchin friar) stood up and asked for the reasons the
Kunama people had to face and endure so much trouble.
To show his power, Franco imprisoned those three people and took them to
Barentu and from there they were transferred to Agordat where they had
spent sometime before they were released on March 27, 2001.
After the inhabitants of Karkasha had been removed from their village,
the EPLF soldiers plundered Ali Amma's house and got away with 38 oxen,
6 camels and 10 quintals of grain.
These are the kind of plights the EPLF government and its supporters are
subjecting the Kunama people to.
Again on March 3, 2001, as the inhabitants of Karkasha were holding a
memorial service of a dead person and had slaughtered 12 oxen for the
occasion, the EPLF soldiers (all Tigrians) irrupted there and checking
the skins of those oxen claimed to be those of their oxen supposedly
stolen by the Kunama.
They therefore imprisoned 9 Kunama individuals.
Is there any other humiliating act than this? If this were not enough
good reason for the Kunama to fight back what else could it be?
Could there be any other worse treatment than this?
On April 2-3, 2001, the EPLF government summoned to Barentu many elderly
and experienced Kunama and gave them a very strong speech.
In order to punish the Kunama people with their own children, as if it
had done a favour, the government opened two many centres in Dase and
Boshoka?
But what for?
On April 4, 2001, some EPLF agents opened fire on Kunama cow-herders.
The names of those herders are: Amat Haile and Shandi, natives of the
village of Taikanaba who, togethers with their colleagues, were grazing
their cattle in Shiata
(river Gash area) when those government agents shot at them and
dispersed their cattle.
All those acts of intimidation and harassment were intended to prevent
the Kunama from grazing in Sona and approaching and sharing the waters
of the river Gash.
-3-
The cattle of the Tigrians have a white card allowing them to go and
graze anywhere.
What the EPLF government is doing is nothing different than the plights
the British authorities had brought on the Kunama people during the
Salabiai (Selbiat) times.
The UNMEE peace-Keeping forces, operating in the Temporary Security
Zones
(TSZ), instead of revealing and condemning the evil activities of the
EPLF government, they are rather helping it eradicate the Kunama people
from their home-land.
The Shaebia (EPLF) government is also said to be planning to resettle
the Eritrean refugees returning from The Sudan, in those areas from
which it has dislocated the Kunama people.
The tactics the EPLF government is using to eliminate the Kunama are
varied.
It has been in fact reported that, during the latest Ethio-Eritrean war,
the Kunama soldiers and combatants were ordered to occupy the front
lines with an obvious risk of being the first victims.
Many young Kunama soldiers were said to have been eliminated by their
own leaders operating from behind.
The following list is the result of a recent research done on the Kunama
people so far known to have been either killed, languishing in EPLF many
jails, disappeared or secretly eliminated. Their number is said to be
much greater than the list we have managed to compile.
We have proposed to ourselves to carry out more and detailed
investigation and provide accurate numbers even of those Kunama
individuals whose whereabouts are not yet known.
The EPLF government has recently revealed only an approximate number of
the Eritrean soldiers fallen during the last Ethio-Eritrean war, but it
has not yet informed the Eritrean public of the civilian citizens
perished in that senseless war.
Will it ever do?
The Eritrean fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, relatives and
fellow-ethnic group members are all still waiting to hear the last words
on their dear ones.
THE RKPHA (July 2001)
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