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Why Sovereignty? To Command Tigrai’s Skies Perpetually! By Aesop 03/13/2021 Tigrai is in international spotlight today. This is, above all the making of the Tigrean people, the suffering, and the sacrifices they have sustained ignited (in a sad way) the global outrage. Then, we have Tegaru diaspora that executed their responsibility of exposing the atrocities our people endured rather effectively. Finally, we have the conscientious people of the world, including multilateral agencies, human rights defenders, and the global press at large. This all reminds me of our greatest martyr, Abay Tsehaye, who said: ፀገም ከም ኣታኣላልያዩ ኢዩ！ወይ ናይ ውድቀት ምክንያት ይከውን፤ወይ ናብ ኣወት፣ ናብ ጥንካረ ተቀይሩ፡ናብ ሃዱሽ ኣወት የሰጋግረና፣ ናብ ሃዱሽ ምእራፍ የሰጋግር፥ከምዚ ተሞክሮ ቃልስና ዝነግረና ማለት እዩ! አባይ ፀሃየ (2018)
Abay’s saying quoted above nudges us all to look at the long-term interest of Tigrai beyond the immediate humanitarian crises we are facing today. Abay told us that Tigreans had the ability to extract a sustainable opportunity out of an immediate misfortune. His words really rested on facts. Tigreans have catapulted a polity anticipated to disintegrate like Yugoslavia into African powerhouse. Today, they are on the cusp of, once again, defeating their enemies in front of, and, in tandem with, the whole world in the battle, diplomatic, and moral fields respectively. Tigreans are prevailing against and shaming the military, bureaucracy, and popular bases of the genocidaires. The whole world has witnessed how EVIL these creatures really are. The blood, sweat, and tear that Tigreans shed over the last few months has forged a robust nation state worthy of nothing less than sovereignty. This war has proved the fact that Tigrai meets the four requirements enshrined in the 1933 Montevideo Convention, viz: 1) a defined territory, 2) a permanent population, 3) a government, and 4) a capacity to enter in relation with other states. Tigreans have suffered too much that no one in Ethiopia can deny them the right to exercise their Art 39 right to self-determination enshrined in the current Ethiopian constitution. We shall expect that Derg 2.0 will null and void this constitution ASAP (as soon as possible). Besides, there are a handful Tegaru retards who’d risk Tegaru to future bombing in return for citizenship in a county that enjoys bombing Tegaru women and children every few decades. It is due time for Tigreans to rid themselves of that stupid naivety and end this vicious cycle for good. Now, Abay Tsehaye said misfortune catapults people to a new chapter. So, What’s the new chapter for Tigrai in this day and age? Well, that new chapter, that bigger place, I think, is SOVEREINTY. We must become a country!! But, Why? Of course, there are several reasons as to why Tigrai should become a sovereign nation that many Tegaru raised before this war. I will not dwell on the cultural, historical, economic, and political rationales they raised to prevent redundancy. Instead, I will focus on the real and present dangers that Tegaru encountered since the modern era (since 1940s): · How did Haile Selassie quell the First Weyane Revolution? · What sustained Derg for 17 long years? · What tilted the balance to Derg 2.0 and PFDJ’s favor? Well, the answer to the above questions is 1: AIR POWER!!! These deplorables hurt our people because Tigrai never had its own air force. Otherwise, they would have thought twice before bombing our innocent civilians. The only reason why Tigrai was unable to defend itself against UAE’s drone strikes, PFDJ jets, and Derg 2.0 bombers was because it never had its own air force. Tigrai never had an air force because it was not a sovereign nation (at least in this modern era). Tigreans could defend their land, but not their sky. Why? Because they have never been a sovereign entity! Tigreans can no longer afford to be part of a polity that deploys its actual and borrowed airpower against them. Haile Selassie, Mengistu, and Abiy have one thing in common, i.e., using their air force against civilians in Tigrai. Haile Selassie used the Royal (British) Air Force (RAF) to Mekelle against the First Weyane in early 1940s. Mengistu employed Soviet jets (and advisors) to stave off the Second Weyane revolution for 17 years. Today, Abiy enlisted Emirate drones, including Eritrean and Ethiopian jets to bomb Tigrai for 4 months to date. This vicious cycle can end if and when Tigrai acquires its own air force. If sovereignty is what Tigrai needs to deter airstrike using its own air force, so be it! At least, Tigrai will have the ability to pay her enemies using their own coins. So, from a practical or survival standpoint, Tigrai should become a sovereign country in this godforsaken region. There are many reasons as to why Tigrai needs to become a sovereign country but acquiring its own air force to end future airstrikes ought to be the primary reason.
Tigrai should end the vicious cycle of airstrike. That requires a capacity to deter airstrike. Tigrai’s modern military history has taught us that air defense system does not sufficiently deter air strikes, but air force might. Anyone who dares bomb Tigrai in the future should be paid in kind. We all know only sovereign countries can own their air force. Once the humanitarian crises is taken care of, it is my strong conviction that Tigreans should ultimately strive to secure their status as a sovereign nation so they may command their skies using their own star air force. If, “ፀገም”, as Abay Tsehaye put it, catapults people “ናብ ሃዱሽ ምእራፍ”, Tigrai’s end game should be nothing less than SOVEREIGNTY! |