When ‘Independent’ Medias become the vehicle of propaganda what can Ethiopians do?

If Ethiopians want freedom and democracy we ought to make Medias accountable for their action and inaction. Putting out Press Release from unidentified and unverifiable outfit is incompetence at best or cowardliness at worst. It not only provides aid and comfort for tyranny to strive but, confuse the public — in violation of the very essence of the free press.

by Teshome Debalke

A Press Release dated May 17 2014 from a strange outfit called the Gambella Nilotes United Movement Army (GNUM/A) titled ‘Gambella Nilotes Army Condemns Killing Oromos for Their Land’ was posted on EthioMedia and Zehabesha websites. What the Press Release’s content says is as strange as the reason the two Medias that posted it. In fact, the opportunistic Press Release has nothing to do with condemning the death of Ethiopians but to plug in its own agenda of division as a handful groups attempted and failed as the ring leader Tigray People Liberation Front.

The only information about the outfit found online is two Press Releases. According to Gambella Today, a peculiar Media with unidentified individual itself, GNUM/A is based in Gambella and aims ‘to liberate the people of Gambella, with no identifiable ‘Head, contact person or website.

The latest Press Release as the previous call for solidarity with half-a-dozen ethnic, religion and people by region against ‘Menelik’, ‘Abyssinia’ and ‘Northern People’. Accordingly, it accuses TPLF for “scratching the wounds inflected by Menielik in the past”. It enemies are identical to what OLF, EPLF, ONLF and TPLF have been preaching for four decades—Menielik, Abyssinia, Amhara, Northern people…just like Fascist Italy use to say it to weaken the unity Ethiopians.

Here are some of the content of the Press Release

“The Master plan will evict millions of Oromo farmers from their ancestral land and make them landless, an act which denies their traditional land ownership rights around Addis Ababa. It must be condemned at all might for it is undemocratic and barbaric. It follows the mode of Menelik who built the country on slave trade economy in raiding slaves and plundering resources of the subjects, in exchange for weapons from European colonisers to build his hegemony, of which the Oromos, Gambellans, Ogadenians, Beneshagul/Gumuz people, Afar, south western nations and nationalities, and others were the victims. The wounds inflicted by the Menelik in the past are still open and bleeding, and it is immoral for the TPLF- Led government to scratch the wounds inflicted by their ancestors against Oromos without remorse”.

It goes on…

“For this reason we call upon all the Oromos to unite. Whatever differences may exist, Oromos must unite as one body and seek solidarity from other oppressed people who are fighting for their freedom. The TPLF – Led Ethiopian government is racist beyond any doubt, and it is a failed state that believes in enforcing its racist policies at gun point. The unity and moral we have are more than the weapons they put their belief. We shall prevail. It must not be allowed to sell out Oromo land to foreign investors or to settle their own people in Oromos’ land while Oromos are evicted. Currently other Ethiopian are not entitled to own large land for their business unless those coming from northern part of the country. The land taken from all the oppressed people elsewhere in the country including the Oromos should be categorized as stolen property, in which day has come, actually it is very near to claim it back from all TPLF members and supporters”.

The same group in its first of the only two Press Releases it put out since its existence dated September 28th 2013 and posted on Zehabesha titled “THE TPLF/EPRDF GOVERNMENT MUST STOP, KILLING, DETENTION, AND INTIMIDATION OF MASS DEMONSTRATORS AND THE MUSLIM PROTESTORS IN ETHIOPIA” ,

It says

It is our core belief as GNUM/A that “where unity prevails there will be always success.” GNUM/A as a political party established through convergent of different Gambella political parties, maintains a symbol of unity for peoples of Gambella, and continue to extend this unity message to all Southwestern Nilotic Omotic peoples, and all the opposition parties inside and outside the country, to embrace the vision of unity for the emancipation of all the oppressed peoples of Ethiopia. We should know that the TPLF/EPRDF government plays divide and rule politics to maintain and prolong its power; and as unity will remain a core ingredient factor to prevail for all the opposition parties operating on different lines, it should be embraced by all the opposition parties to enhance solidarity and promote it.

It goes on…

The Northern (Ethiopians) settlers in the Gambella region enjoy the federal government all privileges including security, political, economic, social and military empowerments as they jointly conspire on possible ethnic cleansing conflicts together with the increasing number of armed refugees from South Sudan, waiting for due time to launch attacks against the Anyuaks and Majengers. The Anyuaks and Majengers villagers and farmers are left vulnerable to unknown armed groups’ robbery and killings, without government protection. Currently, cattle raids, recurring killings and armed robbery are rampant in the Gambella region. The current attack launched against the Arieth villagers by unknown armed groups within Gog district is one of our concerns and threats to the villagers. The community land is still being leased to commercial investors, while the villagers are facing evictions in districts of Gog, Gambella, Abobo, Itang, Meti, Dimma, and other areas in the region.

By and large, the atrocities and human rights violations committed by the TPLF/EPRDF government against the unprivileged majority citizens in Ethiopia are self-explanatory. Indeed, the TPLF government is fully engaged in assuring absolute economic prosperity, security, and freedom to the minority Northerners at expenses of majority Ethiopians at any cost. This tells the Northern rulers including the TPLF leaders have their mind-set in plunder as demonstrated by their ancestors and monarchies who engaged themselves in building the nation on the slave economy and entrepreneurship. This has been summed up by the scholars as Abyssinian colonization and domination in which the non-Abyssinian Ethiopians still suffer the legacy until today.

It should be known that Abyssinian colonization or domination is still being nurtured and maintained by the minority Northerners and their rulers in Ethiopia. Abyssinian colonization or domination is not just a history, but it is a torment too in the country to the subjects (non-Abyssinians). It should be known that it is still alive, active and persistence to any attempt to bring true freedom, security, prosperity, and equal opportunities to all citizens. It persist principles of liberal democracy for the citizens to enjoy equal opportunities, rule of law, and respect to bill of rights in the Ethiopia.

Abyssinian colonization and domination should not be complicated with the hatred against the Northern tribes but as an evil and torment demonic spirit which must be completely stripped off over all the oppressed-majority-non-Abyssinian citizens to bring true equality in Ethiopia. How?”

Strangely, the two supposedly ‘independent’ Medias didn’t bother to investigate the outfit and fact-check the content of the Press Releases the outfit put out. Nor they care to identify the people behind it to allow the public the opportunity to evaluate them appropriately.

Why would any self-respecting Media entertain anything sent to it without properly evaluating the respective organization and the responsible individuals behind it remain the million dollar question no one yet demands.
Such blunt violation of the basic journalism or Media standard not only taxiing the democratic movement more than anything but, in ultimately aid tyranny to extend its rule by confusing the people to figure out which free press is free to protect the public from the ruling tyranny and unidentified fringe elements populating the cyberspace with propaganda hiding behind slogans.

EthioMedia and Zhabisha owe the public to identify the people behind Gambella Nilotes United Movement Army (GNUM/A) to explain who they are and what exactly they want to do with the inhabitant of the Region they claim to liberate in hiding.

It is about time Medias masquerading as Free Press or outfits masquerading as liberation front stop hiding behind TPLF led regime, Abyssinia, Menelik, Northerners, Amhara… and come clean with the people of Ethiopia with democratic credentials.

After all, our people aren’t pawns for frustrated elites with all kinds of excuses masquerading as Media, ethnic liberation front… to deprive the people’s democratic rights to own their government. The old tyranny’s trickery of scare tactics of us-against-them is as good as dead; waiting to be buried.

The battle is between democracy and tyranny. If you don’t have the democratic credential there is no need to apply in the freedom movement. Hiding behind ethnicity, religion or us-against-them is a deliberate attempt to deprive our people’s democratic rights. When Medias that supposedly are the eyes-and-ears of the people’s rights sleep with tyranny or unidentified group it is double the crime.

There is no other debate among Ethiopians but sorting out those with or without democratic credential. The sooner the youth of Ethiopia demand it the sooner tyranny in every form run in hiding and freedom will rings in every hamlets of the nation.

No one will be free until we burn ethnic, religion, region… identity and carry democratic identity. It is proven to be the worst nightmare for any form of tyranny and the Ethiopian Satellite Television (ESAT) proved it without a doubt the weakness and wickedness of tyranny.

Ethiopians must ask the questions-of-all-questions; who are you and where is your democratic credential and see who will remain standing. The question is why are all the ‘Medias’ not asking the questions-of-all- questions; diverting us to non-issues?