|
Rest In Peace – Your Sacrifice Has Not Been In Vain
By: Abeba Isahac The ultimate
victorious outcome of war emanating out of an illegal intrusion or attack on
a nation, no matter how long it might take, does not depend on the amount of
money, ammunition or size of army that the intruder might have at their
disposal, but rather more on the courage, determination, selflessness and
strong sense of duty and love for country, felt by those who fight back
merely to defend their rights and sovereignty, not only confident because truth is on their side, but also
because of their strong belief and faith in it, and so, no matter how long it
might take, with resilience to achieve justice and victory, would fight to
the end, until their last breath, even if they never had the slimmest
assurances or guarantee that they would live long enough to witness, enjoy
and share the glory of the results of their achievement with their fellow fighters, and with their
people. This is how the Eritrean struggle of 30 long years was won. As the good book, The Christian Bible, says: "There
is no greater love than, that a man lay down his life for another." And
so, this is the story about our martyred
Eritrean sisters and brothers; a story which has given us our freedom
and independence, which we Eritreans
are proudly enjoying today, always remembering how it was brought about, and
always making us, consciously, as well as conscientiously, forever thankful
and grateful for the great sacrifice that was made so that the Ertirean people
may at last be able to walk tall, remembering always that there was a time
when we had no home to go back to. The expulsion of Eritreans and Ethiopians
of Eritrean origin by the woyane in 1998 should be a reality which should
always be remembered and never be allowed to ever happen again. Although much has been achieved since independence, our
martyred brothers and sisters would not be pleased with the situation in our
region as regards to peace, in its current state, and the effects it is
having on Eritrea and her people, especially the situation with our southern
neighbour, how it had deceived and betrayed us, causing us unmentionable
damage, and how in collaboration with the western powers, who never had
raised a finger to help during our
struggle, but were rather the cause of it all, are now trying to interfere in our everyday lives, causing us
to be in the state of perpetual vigilance, thus slowing us down from
achieving our main goals for the successful future of our people and country. But, on the other hand, our martyred brothers and sisters
would certainly be proud of the way Eritrea is confronting the situation by
still fighting for the truth and for what is right, in order to maintain her
sovereignty and dignity; a
sovereignty and dignity which had
come at a very high price and a great deal of sacrifice, which is always
worth fighting for, even with our very own lives. To that end, our martyred
brothers and sisters would surely be proud.
In the same way that
we of a certain age never really understood, or could visualize or
empathize with our parents, or their peers, when they spoke of the atrocities
committed during the Italian occupation era, today's young people as well
might not understand the difference between now, and the period before
independence, except for the fact that, if they are smart enough, they might
want to know the reason behind why so many Eritrean immigrants were scattered
in different parts of the world, and why some of them were born in foreign
lands, if all had been well back home. It is encouraging to see that, since independence, many
Eritrean families are taking their summer holidays visiting their newly
liberated country where they can find a sense of belonging and assimilation,
feel identified and proud to be an Eritrean. I also commend the parents who
are making it a point to instill the pride of being an Eritrean in their
children, the next generation,
teaching them that, being an
Eritrean is a privilege since we are a very unique people, with an extraordinary psyche of high
morals, values and principles which,
inherited from our forefathers,
flows in our veins, and which has become the envy of some around the
world, while we are respected for it by others, to whom we can become role
models. Rest in peace our beloved brothers and sisters, and thank
you. |
|
The
content below this line is advertisement generated automatically and ertra.com
doesn't control or endorse the content in anyway.