The guardians of the old regime in Tigray (embodied in the ideas and practices of TPLF splinters) have long relied on fabricating external enemies and branding internal dissenters as traitors to deflect attention from domestic failures.
This tactic has historically fed off external forces of cruelty, plunging Tigray into centuries of suffering and bringing us to the crisis we now face.
But this method has become obsolete. Tigrayans are awakening to their true interests: peace, freedom, and development. The primary battleground for political change is now internal.
The very dynamics that obstruct the liberation movement also invite external threats. Our capacity to withstand such threats and seize emerging opportunities depends on our ability to dismantle the old, regressive order and raise our collective consciousness.
This internal struggle for freedom must be waged independently of foreign influence. Otherwise, it risks becoming yet another form of bondage. The authenticity of our liberation will be defined by our refusal to outsource it.
Hence, the critical question before us is: How do we break free from the distractions, outdated narratives, and unconscious allegiance to remnants of the old regime (both foreign and domestic) so we can fully commit ourselves to the pursuit of genuine freedom?
A misguided decision by a cabal of few army officers to take the law into their hands and dismantle state structures throughout Tigray the last few days has plunged the region into an uncharted territory, with civilians protesting these illegal moves being rounded up and shot at at random. Many casualties in Adigudom and parts of Mekelle. The rampage is part of a harebrained plan to install an illegal faction of TPLF into the position of power, a move that flies full in the face of the aspirations of the people of Tigray and if the Pretoria Agreement. Itโs incumbent upon all the stakeholders to the Pretoria agreement to face down such a brazen move before it escalates into another round of devastating war on and against the people of Tigray. There is every reason to believe external forces are trying to take advantage of this crisis to stock up more violence throughout the region and beyond. As if the suffering of hundreds of thousands of people in IDP camps is not worse enough, the very officers who only recently put themselves in harmโs way in their peopleโs cause. Much as it pains me to break ranks with my erstwhile comrades, itโs altogether fitting and appropriate that we condemn such reckless acts of unmitigated violence in the service of a faction hell bent on grabbing power at all costs.