ONLF 101

[Jacaylbaro]

Abdishakur Garad confronted by reality

 

 

was browsing the web when I came across an article titled “ONLF and its supporters confronted by reality”. Mr. Garad, allow me to be the first person to congratulate you on your article; I was not only amazed but I was totally and completely awed by your work. I want to take this opportunity to thank you for taking the time to embarrass yourself on behalf of my amusement. I had a hectic day, and your article turned that around; I can’t remember the last time I laughed this hard. As a thank you, I decided to donate to the Meles-Zenawi-Dabagoodhi foundation as soon as I make my first million. Let’s face it; the world would be a boring and dull place without the little people’s contribution to our laughter and entertainment with their “facts” and outlandish claims.

 

You started with a quote “beauty is truth, truth is beauty-that all ye know on earth, and all ye need to know” and because of that quote, I’ve decided to respond to your article by enlightening you on the ONLF, the purpose of the ONLF, their objective and achievements. Also I am going to critique this article and point out numerous mistakes in the hopes of setting the record straight for the readers you’ve purposely misinformed. I hope you pay attention and take notes for the sole purpose of learning from your mistakes. The truth is the one thing you need to know that you unfortunately do not know.

 

The ONLF is a political group attempting to obtain sovereignty and self determination from a repressive government; they are fighting to make the ****** a separate and independent state free from Ethiopian colonialism. They often operate using strictly constitutional and justifiable methods to struggle against the oppression imposed on them by the regime responsible for the deaths of thousands of innocent people and the destruction of their property. The international community has an obligation to ensure that governments guarantee and protect human rights wherever they may be violated and their negligence to the people in the ****** region gave birth to the ONLF. The ONLF embarked on a mission the rest of the world overlooked. Their mission is to ultimately create a government consistent with the self evident truths the founding fathers had pronounced in the declaration of independence. It is to uphold rights that are not bestowed by government but are inherent within every man, woman, and child by virtue of the fact that he or she is a human being. By making human rights the philosophical basis of their objective, the ONLF departs significantly from past models and contemporary practice in Ethiopia and many parts of the world. The ONLF had come into existence to guarantee order, to punish impiety and to enforce obedience. Ethiopia has been successful in building its empire through a crusade of terror, coercion and transgression. Now for the first time in history, a political group dedicated itself unequivocally to the principle of securing popular rights, defending minority rights, and liberties, has emerged. In short, the ONLF are the guardians of the ****** region.

 

The Tyranny and blind domineering nature of the TPLFs’ authority has reached its final phase as of great consequence of the extensive and prevailing accomplishments of the ONLF. The world is starting to recognize our struggle and millions are speaking out against the repression our people endure in the ******. It was the ONLF that called on the United Nations to investigate war crimes in the region, it was the ONLF that forced the international community to recognize the violation of our human rights, and it was the ONLF that brought forth the positive changes we see happening in the region today.

 

The positive changes I’m referring to is the substantial increase in emergency food aid in the region which has been impoverished as an outcome of the government’s man-made famine. The independent investigation into the humanitarian issues in the region called attention to Ethiopia’s diversion of humanitarian assistance, the demolishing of villages and the endless terrorizing of civilians in war crimes that have reached alarming levels. The ****** National Liberation Front is also, to more than some extent, responsible for the creation of the Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act of 2007 (H.R. 2003). The bill was sponsored by U.S representative Donald Payne and it has forced many U.S representatives—both republicans and democrats—to advocate for and encourage the respect of human rights, democracy and economic freedom in Ethiopia. Do I need to mention Jeffery Gettleman and his article "In Ethiopian Desert, Fear and Cries of Army Brutality” or do you get the point? I think you got the point! I strongly advice you gather the necessary information required on the ONLF before you criticize a group you know nothing about, and before you challenge those of us who support this group to tell you “one single benefit other than misery the ONLF has so far produced for the region”. I’m proud to acknowledge telling you more than one benefit the ONLF contributed to our region. Now it is my turn to challenge you to tell me one misery the ONLF contributed to the ****** region, and to validate this with FACTS. When I say facts, I do not mean irrational and baseless opinion; I mean evidence that support your argument. Not that supporting your argument is something you’re good at.

 

You did a marvelous job quoting John Keats; however what you did not do is abide by the truth. You mentioned a dialogue between yourself and a senior ONLF official regarding the issue of the ethnic population in the ****** region. To my amusement and delight you quote the ONLF official as saying “Somaligalbeed goes as ****** clan goes. The ******is are the engine of the region that drives the region”. First and foremost, no ONLF official---senior or subordinate---would ever use “Somaligalbeed” as a reference to the ****** region. Both ONLF members and supporters have and will always recognize the region as ******IA. I’m going to let you in on a little secret, I suggest you write this down for future reference; the ‘O’ in ONLF stands for ******ia! Somaligalbeed is a term that exists only in the imagination of individuals who object to the legitimate name of the region for reasons I will not get into. Secondly, the ONLF is an organization created for the sole purpose of advancing and furthering the well-being of the SOMALI population in the ****** region, despite their tribe, gender, age or socio-economic status. ONLF members, like the region, is made up of different ethnic groups from all walks of life. There is a unity that exists in the region and the social disease popularly known as qabilism is absent in our region. Mr. Garad I advise against spreading your disease and projecting your illness on to others; doing so only harms your reputation.

 

You have done a fabulous job dismissing the acts of genocide in our region as mere propaganda “woyane propaganda are organized and sanctioned by the top ONLF leaders” and holding the ONLF responsible for acts committed by the government. You are enabling the government’s behavior against our people, and providing excuses for their actions. Holding the ONLF accountable for the violent acts committed by the government is another way to distract us from the government’s brutality. Holding the ONLF accountable is as preposterous as holding the police accountable for every murder and rape that takes place in the United States. It seems as if though you are itching to hold someone other than the government responsible for these atrocious acts, and if this is the case, I suggest you place the blame squarely on your shoulders. You have done nothing to prevent these heinous crimes against your people; thousands have died and millions have suffered as a consequence to your inaction. Instead of writing to your congressmen and congresswoman about our plight, you chose to compose an article dissolving the government of their crimes, holding the ONLF accountable for crimes committed by the government, and accentuating an unhealthy fascination with the name of the region and the tribe it was named after. Also you’ve managed to perfectly execute my task; embarrassing and making a fool of you is my job, not yours.

 

To be perfectly honest with you, the issue with the ONLF extends beyond the devastating circumstances that surround our country. The rape of our women and children, the cruel and unusual treatment of our people and the attempted systematic elimination of our population all take a backseat to the name ******ia. You abhor the name of the region more than the government responsible for perpetrating the worse kind of human rights abuse since Rwanda. Those of us who have not been infected with qabillness (qabilism) realize the name of the region is nothing more than the name of the region. There is nothing discriminatory or unjust about it. The Somali population living in the region has more pressing issues to worry about; making the name inconsequential. You are obviously intimidated by the ****** tribe, many are, and putting your self respect on the line is not going to change the name of the region. How can we dispute the name of a country we do not own yet? The name will come under deliberation once we become a sovereign and independent nation. When the United Nations was founded in 1945, most of Africa fell under the category of non self governing territories; by 2005, over eighty of these territories had become self governing. In 1945 750 million people—almost the third of the world’s population—lived in territories that were dependent on colonial powers. Today fewer than 2 million people live in such territories. We are under the rule of another country, and until we stop giving emphasis to the name of the region, we will remain under the rule of Ethiopia. Do you want to be beneficial to your people? I recommend you stop obsessing over the name of their country and start obsessing over the deprivation of their human rights and civil liberties.

 

I find it objectionable when the intellectually challenged assert that the deaths of thousands of people are not only taken into account but exaggerated “while the massacres of the Somalis at the hands of Ethiopian security forces are remembered and even exaggerated”. Anyone who believes as you do should not be seen as anything more than a joke. This entire article is based on the bias opinion of a fool who lacks both the intelligence and the competence to grasp the foundation of the ONLF platform and the authority of liberation. Questioning the legitimacy of the ONLF and attempting to damage their reputation is unacceptable. I will not allow your insecurities and weakness to dictate the impression the public forms of the ONLF. The ONLF is composed of intelligent and compassionate individuals who fight to bestow the universally recognized human and political rights to their people. Liberation does not come cheap, and it requires sacrifice. You will not attack the honor of men and women who made this sacrifice for the greater good of ******ia. When you’re man enough to make this sacrifice, and come to the realization that what our people are going through is not an exaggeration, then and only then will your opinion mean more than the piece of garbage that sticks to the back of our shoes.

 

Quoting dead people will not, in any shape or form, add substance to your article. I responded to your article, not because the ONLF or their supporters fear your opinion, but because I wanted to truly educate a mislead, misinformed and misguided Somali brother who is unacquainted with the facts and the essentials of the ONLF. Disliking a group or an organization is not a good enough reason to assert false and malicious statements that damage their reputation. Next time remain silent, because it is better to be silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.

 

By Hibaq D.

[Abtigiis]

Whatever mistakes the ONLF might have made in sticking to its name, won't belittle the nobility of its struggle against a tranny of one of the most barbaric and primitive regimes. Ultimately, a free ****** will be an added advantage to the rebulding of a great Somali nation.