Acts of Genocide[1] Against Innocent Eritrean Civilians.

Tesfay Aradom, PhD.

       “Dry up the sea to kill the fish”^[2]

Introduction

In this brief article, my goal is to recount an important aspect of our history and inspire potential readers, particularly Eritrean youth, to conduct a deeper investigation of the tragic events.   

Collective historical and political experiences mediated by social values, traditions, cultural institutions and beliefs (McAdams, 2018) are critical factors that contribute to the development of a cohesive national identity. Any intentional effort to advance distorted historical and legal narratives of our people or to dismiss its protracted and indomitable socio-political and military struggle will inevitably result in interminable regional conflict.    

Due to strategic geo-political and economic considerations, selective  human rights violations and war crimes have historically claimed a monopoly with regards to condemnation, international media coverage and exposure within academia.  Others deemed inconsequential have been relegated to virtual oblivion and still remain shrouded in the annals of human history. The extermination of six million Jews in World War II and the Rwanda Genocide of 1994 that resulted in the deaths of at least 900,000 civilians, mostly Tutsi, have justifiably garnered continual international attention. However, crimes committed against marginalized populations with insignificant political and economic clout such as the Arawak Indians (Zinn, 1995); the African Holocaust and the Slave Trade (Clarke, 1992); Aborigines of Tasmania; the Herrero and Nama of Namibia; the Gypsies in Europe; the Kurds in Iraq (Lemarchand, 2011); the people of the Congo (1998) to name a few did not until recently capture the long overdue attention of legal scholars and historians. Despite the fact that each of the above-mentioned cases was a product of a unique interaction among historical, economic, political conditions and the undeniable truth is that in every case unfettered economic exploitation and systematic extermination of innocent and defenseless civilians was an important motivating factor.  

Therefore, the gross human rights violations committed against innocent Eritrean civilians by successive colonial powers in Eritrea should remain indelible in our collective memory lest some segments of our people become victims of what of (Scobie, 1992) calls a sense of pastlessness. Cognizant of the dangers of historical amnesia, the Government of Eritrea (GOE) employed massive human and material resources to investigate and document, in a stunningly vivid detail, virtually every incident of atrocity committed by Ethiopia on defenseless Eritrean civilians. These invaluable historical materials have been accessible to a large segment of our people; however, for the benefit of our youth in the diaspora and the international community in general, the importance and urgency of translating them into English and Arabic must be underscored. An accurate reconstruction, meticulous documentation and effective generational transmission of this painful aspect of our history is, needless to say, highly critical to the endurance of our cohesive national identity.  

The GOE and the Eritrean people should not be deterred from fully exposing and disseminating the abhorrent acts committed against innocent Eritrean civilians. The danger of allowing our history to be told from the perspective of our former colonizers and present detractors is to relegate the atrocities and humiliation we endured to obscurity. We should also be constantly vigilant against persistent attempts to gradually bleach out our collective historical memories by those who advance a revisionist and disparaging narrative of our history and political experience. We should never forget that the crimes committed by successive Ethiopian governments and the subsequent horrible sacrifices endured by our defenseless and innocent civilians are an integral part of our history.

The wanton killings of civilians, the illegal expropriation of our arable and grazing lands and unfettered exploitation of our natural resources have historically been justified as actions necessary to ostensibly preserve international and regional stability.  and advance the national interests. On the contrary, our indomitable spirit and persistent resistance against these gross human rights violations have been denigrated to serve the geopolitical and economic interests of Western nations. As a people, we should be constantly cognizant of the fact that we owe our existence as a sovereign people in a sovereign state to the valiant struggle and enormous sacrifices of our heroes and heroines.

 Atrocities against Eritrean civilians did not start in the recent past. Referring to the harsh conditions during the Ottoman Empire’s rule in Eritrea from the 16^th to the 19^th centuries for example, our ancestors coined a phrase that captures the essence of their suffering and the brutality of the Turkish rule. The phrase is still used to this day in casual conversations among Eritreans.^[3]

Atrocities committed by Italian Colonial Authorities

In addition to seeking to secure geo-political interests, exploit economic resources and effect religious conversion (Almedom, 2006)^[4],  Italian colonialism in Eritrea was also perversely inspired by a racist ideology as manifested in the preposterous reason to “civilize” a barbarian population. General Antonio Baldissera, the first colonial commander, did not mince words when expressing his racist views nor did he hesitate to use the curbash, a whip made of hippopotamus hide that lashed backs raw. It became an institutionalized weapon frequently used to strike terror into the civilian population in order to obtain submission.

 It is also worth noting that the perception of “ literate “ Italians about the colonized population was not at variance with that of the racist colonial functionaries. For the most part Italians viewed the indigenous population,

The imprisonment, torture and murder of the civilian population based  on trumped up accusations of treason and espionage were not only rampant but also executed with impunity.  According to (Bruner, 2017), a prominent Italian journalist, Napoleone Corrazini, seemed to be on a mission to expose the corruption and unruly savagery that possessed the colonial police in the city of  Massawa in 1891. The following paragraphs quoted in (Bruner, 2017 ) clearly illustrate the unhinged character of the Italian colonial police force and its callous disregard for Eritrean life and dignity. The first appalling incident in Massawa in 1891, is about Getheon, 

 “ a wealthy Eritrean merchant had been arrested at Massawa, Italy’s colonial port on the Red Sea and imprisoned on espionage and treason charges pursuant to Livraghi’s orders. A search of Getheon’s house discovered a large sum of cash which Livraghi claimed as prize money, contending that the sum represented funds meant for obtaining arms and ammunition for use by rebel tribes. Awaiting trial in December 1889, Ghetheon disappeared from colonial prison. According to Corazzini, Livraghi recognized that the proof of Getheon’s crimes was flimsy and therefore decided to have him killed. Indigenous police dragged Getheon out of prison in the middle of the night, took him some distance away from Massawa, and then shot him twice. Not dead after two shots, the merchant was finished off with stones and clubs. Livraghi witnessed the killing from horseback and then dismounted to verify that Getheon was in fact dead. The body was thrown into a grave, and Livraghi helped conceal the grave by smoothing out the earth” (Bruner, 2017, p. 6).

He cites another brutal killing that illustrates Livraghi’s depravity,  

Subsequent to the defeat of Italy by the Allied Forces in April 1941, the British Military Administration (1941-1952) in Eritrea allowed Italian bureaucrats to continue to serve in powerful civilian and military positions. As a result, the Italians continued to abuse their power and commit atrocities against innocent civilians with impunity. For example ( Almedom, 2006) gives a chilling description of an event that occurred on August 7, 1941. The account clearly illustrates the depravity of the Italian officers, their total disregard for Eritrean lives as well as the complicity of the British: 

War Crimes committed by Ethiopia

According to (Erlich, 1996,) the Tigrean Ras Alula, King John the IV ‘s military strategist and ruthless administrator in Eritrea, frustrated with his repeated failed attempts to take Kassala from the Sudanese Mahdists, decided to cover up his military debacle and appease his King by exterminating the Kunama and Nara nationalities and pillaging their villages. The following excerpt from his book clearly illustrates the above stated point

The armed struggle for independence in Eritrea started in 1961 after all peaceful protests were exhausted. Gradually, as it gained both military and political momentum it wreaked havoc within successive Ethiopian regimes. As the result, as the collapse of Haile Sellassie’s feudal regime seemed imminent, Ethiopia’s brutal war against innocent Eritrean civilians intensified. The result was an unprecedented loss of innocent civilian lives, razing of entire villages and immense scale of looting with the sinister intent of eradicating the basic foundations of their lives.  During the struggle for independence and post-independence era, the PFDJ People’s Front for Democracy and Justice), formerly the EPLF (Eritrean People’s Liberation Front), embarked on a concerted effort to carefully and exhaustively document the atrocities committed by successive Ethiopian regimes. The massive unedited document painstakingly prepared by Tesfalidet^[5]  provides a disturbingly graphic account of Ethiopia’s crimes against humanity. Furthermore, the important task of shedding more light on Ethiopia’s sordid history has continued through rigorous academic work. Subsequently, important books and articles have been published. For example, the voluminous and invaluable piece of work by (Berhe et al, 2017) is replete with visual images, incriminating evidence from Ethiopia’s military and security sectors and most importantly testimonials from victims who miraculously escaped Ethiopia’s uncontainable wrath. In the introduction, the book provides a succinct historical context to help the reader gain a profound insight into the malicious thought process and intentions of Ethiopian rulers. The book also includes hitherto secretive Ethiopian documents, such as classified correspondence between high level civilian and military officials regarding its policy of extermination and copious reports on casualties for each incident of atrocity it committed. 

The book consists of forty-three cases narrated by twenty nine authors. Each story begins with a demographic and brief socio-economic description of the village, town or city that was targeted for annihilation and destruction. As the editors admit this is not, by far, an exhaustive document but the accurate and graphic narration of each incident indisputably proves the brutality of the Ethiopian regimes and the extent to which they were determined to go to annihilate the civilian population. The book also demonstrates that this was not a case of whimsical acts of cruelty by deranged individuals but premeditated and carefully planned state-sponsored crimes against humanity. 

It is noteworthy that each incident narrated in the book was thoroughly investigated and carefully analyzed. The following is a list of the Eritrean villages, towns and cities targeted by the Ethiopian regimes with the year in which the incident took place in parentheses: 

Atrocities committed under Haile Sellassie’s reign:

Atrocities committed by the Ethiopian Military Junta the Derg:

Under the guidance of PFDJ, formerly EPLF, the Eritrean people never contemplated to exact revenge on the military that dehumanized them for decades. On the contrary, according to (Ogbamichael, 2016), following the total military defeat and eventual collapse of the Ethiopian Military Junta in May 1991, the Eritrean civilian population, still reeling from the long and brutal Ethiopian rule, was able to forgive and summon the emotional strength to offer food and water from its depleted resources to the well-armed occupation army as it chaotically trekked, in droves, towards the Sudan in the west and Ethiopia in the south. 

Such admirable acts on the part of Eritrean civilians, which are consistent with EPLF’s history of magnanimity, demonstrate their characteristic benevolence. Furthermore, the decision by the Eritrean National Assembly on June 26th, 1998 to protect the rights of Ethiopian civilians in the midst of the unprovoked invasion of Eritrean territory by Ethiopia, demonstrates the government’s principled stand on the issue of human rights. This should be juxtaposed with the Ethiopian government’s decision to expel and expropriate the property of over 76,000 Eritreans and Ethiopians of Eritrean descent. In fact, anecdotal and circumstantial evidence suggests that the government was bent on exterminating the Eritrean civilian population and even commit instant shooting of Eritrean POWs (Gebreyesus, 2018) during the “border war”. Thus, to watch innocent Eritrean civilians see off the brutal colonial troops with a tremendous outpouring of forgiveness must have been surreal just as it was a clear testament to their nobility.

Lastly, one can justifiably argue that the United Nations (UN); the African Union (AU), formerly the (Organization of African Unity) (OAU and the Western Nations were complicit in the commitment of these heinous crimes. They chose to turn a blind eye and remain silent despite the fact that they had the regional and international legal instruments^[6] to invoke in order to bring pressure to bear on successive Ethiopian Governments. But their appalling inaction emboldened the Ethiopian regimes to carry on with their reprehensible practices with impunity. 

What makes this matter utterly ludicrous is the audacious duplicity of these regional and international organizations to level politically motivated accusations of “human rights violations “ against the GOE in order to advance the geopolitical and economic interests of Western nations and their puppet regimes. Needless to say, the GOE, as the current diplomatic and political developments illustrate, continues to be the bastion of a fiercely independent foreign policy and a staunch promoter of genuine social and economic progress in the region. 

Conclusion

The main objective of this brief article is not, to borrow a phrase from (Zinn, 1995), to grieve for the victims. Rather, for Eritreans in particular and the international community in general to come to grips with the fact that the Eritrean victims did not suffer and perish in vain. Their sacrifices were made for a noble cause, the outcome of which all Eritreans will relish for generations to come. As survivors of this painful aspect of our history, we shoulder the responsibility of taking stock of their horrible experiences and integrate the new historical awareness into our individual and collective national identity. Just as important is also the task of educating our youth about this important facet of our history. 

• [1] Raphael Lemkin (1944) – Genocide is the intentional destruction of a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, in whole or in part. Adopted as the United Nations Genocide Convention in 1948.
• [2] This infamous statement was found in a confidential Ethiopian government document and exposes the military strategy of the Ethiopian Government to exterminate the civilian population in Eritrea.  The sea, in this case, is a metaphor for the civilian population and the fish represent the National Liberation Forces.
• [3] Gizat Turki: it literally means “Turkish Rule” but, more importantly, it also implies a proclivity toward ruthlessness. 
• [4] Almedom  posits that an important motivation for Italian interest in Eritrea was to strengthen its political stronghold  by subjugating the Orthodox Christian Church of the Eritrean highland. Of course history has proven that this effort was a by and large a failed mission. 
• [5] Personal communication with Tekie Tesfalidet from the Research and Documentation Centre in Eritrea in August  of  2015 and 2016.
• [6] The African Charter on Human and People’s Rights, adopted in June, 1981. The United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in December, 1948.

References

• Almedom, M. A.: Re-reading the Short and Long-Rigged History of Eritrea 1941-1952: Back to the Future? Nordic Journal of African Studies 15 (2): 103-142 ( 2006).
• Berhe, S.; Tesfaburuk, H; Yemane, T. (Eds)(2017): Gfi Gezati Ethiopia ab Ertra. HDRI Publishers.
• Bruner, C.S. (2017). Late Nineteenth- Century Italy in Africa: The Livraghi Affair and the Waning of Civilizing Aspiration. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
• Gebreyesus, Z. ( 2018). Meghuar Igri MeKel. HDRI Publishers.
• Clarke, J. H. (1992). Christopher Columbus and the African Holocaust: Slavery and the rise of European capitalism. A and B Distributors and Publishers Group.
• Erlich, H. (2006). Ras Alula and the Scramble for Africa. A Political History: Ethiopia and Eritrea 1875-1897. The Red Sea Press, Inc. 
• Hochschild, A. (1998). King Leopold’s Ghost
• McAdams, D. P. (2015). The Art and Science of Personality Development. The Guilford Press Ogbamichael, S. (2016). Siret: Sgdan tzelatn Eritrawi Chwanetn, Nalet Publishers.
• Rene Lemarchand, Editor (2011). Forgotten Genocides: Oblivion, Denial and Memory. University of Pennsylvania Press.
• Scobie, E. (1992) African Global Presence. A & B Books.
• Zinn. H. (1995). A People’s History of the United States 1492-Present. Harper Collins Publishers, Inc.