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Once a Bucknell Professor, Now the Commander of an Ethiopian Rebel Army

B

erhanu Nega was once one of Bucknell University’s most popular professors. An Ethiopian exile with a Ph.D. from the New School for Social Research in Manhattan, he taught one of the economics department’s most sought-after electives, African Economic Development. When he wasn’t leading seminars or puttering around his comfortable home in a wooded neighborhood five minutes from the Bucknell campus in rural Lewisburg, Pa., Nega traveled abroad for academic conferences and lectured on human rights at the European Parliament in Brussels. “He was very much concerned with the relationship between democracy and development,” says John Rickard, an English professor who became one of his close friends. “He argued that you cannot have viable economic development without democratization, and vice versa.” A gregarious and active figure on campus, he rooted for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Cleveland Cavaliers, campaigned door-to-door for Barack Obama in 2008 and was known as one of the best squash players on the Bucknell faculty. He and his wife, an Ethiopian-born optometrist, raised two sons and sent them to top-ranked colleges, the University of Pennsylvania and Carnegie Mellon. On weekends he sometimes hosted dinners for other Bucknell professors and their families, regaling them with stories about Abyssinian culture and history over Ethiopian food he would prepare himself; he imported the spices from Addis Ababa and made the injera, a spongy sourdough bread made of teff flour, by hand.

Nega remained vague about his past. But students curious enough to Google him would discover that the man who stood before them, outlining development policies in sub-Saharan Africa, was in fact intimately involved in the long-running hostility between Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea, a conflict that has dragged on for half a century. By the start of the millennium, its newest incarnation, a border war over a patch of seemingly worthless ground just 250 square miles in size, devolved into a tense standoff, with the two nations each massing along the border thousands of troops from both official and unofficial armies. One proxy army fighting on the Eritrean side, a group of disaffected Ethiopians called Ginbot 7, was a force that Nega helped create, founding the movement in 2008 with another Ethiopian exile, Andargachew Tsege, in Washington. The Ethiopian government, which had previously detained Nega as a political prisoner for two years in Addis Ababa, now sentenced him to death in absentia. Bucknell students who did learn about their teacher’s past were thrilled. “It made his classes exciting,” Rickard says.

In Ginbot 7, Tsege served as the political leader based in Eritrea; Nega was the group’s intellectual leader and principal fund-raiser, collecting money from members of the Ethiopian diaspora in Europe and the United States. That all changed one day in June 2014, when Tsege, known to everyone as Andy, made a brief stopover in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen, on his way to Asmara, the capital of Eritrea. As he sat in the airport transit lounge, waiting to board his flight, Yemeni security forces, apparently acting in collusion with Ethiopian intelligence, arrested him and put him on a plane to Addis Ababa, where he was paraded on state television and currently faces a death sentence.

Days after Tsege’s arrest and extradition, Nega volunteered to replace him in Eritrea. “Was I going to remain an academic, sitting in an ivory tower criticizing things?” he told me. “Or was I going to do something as an engaged citizen?” Nega put his house up for sale and took an indefinite leave of absence from the university. It was an extended sabbatical, he told his colleagues. Only a handful of close friends, his wife and his two sons knew the truth.

On a hot July afternoon in 2015, Nega packed a suitcase, bade his wife farewell and was driven by comrades to John F. Kennedy International Airport. He carried alaissez-passer from the Eritrean government, allowing him a one-time entry into the country. Nega was heading for a new life inside a destitute dictatorship sometimes referred to as the North Korea of Africa; the regime was notorious for having supported the Shabab, an Islamist terrorist group in Somalia, and for a military conscription program that condemns many citizens over age 18 to unlimited servitude. Nega also believes he has drawn the scrutiny of the Obama administration and was worried about being stopped and turned around by Homeland Security. It wasn’t until the wheels on the EgyptAir jet were up and he was settling into his seat over the Atlantic Ocean, bound for one of the most isolated and repressive nations on Earth, that he was able to relax.

The lights cut out above Nega one chilly night this July, and the rebel chief sat in darkness in a bungalow in Asmara, Eritrea’s 7,600-foot-high capital. Nega had spread a map on a coffee table, and he was showing me the route for a clandestine mission that he planned to undertake the following morning. At dawn, he and a comrade would drive 300 miles southwest to the mined, militarized border between Eritrea and Ethiopia to rendezvous with intelligence sources at a rebel base camp. His contacts were smuggling across the border “highly sensitive information” about Ethiopian troop positions and about the strength of resistance cells inside Ethiopia, whom Nega was hoping to link up with his own fighters on the Eritrean side of the border.

“They’ve got documents, and they insist on handing them over only to me,” Nega told me. “When there is sensitive material, they first want me to see it and then filter the information to the rest of the organization.” Nega, a burly, balding 58-year-old with a rumpled facade and an appealingly unassuming manner, rubbed his forehead as the lights flickered and then returned. In recent years, Ginbot 7 has grown, and it is now guided by an 80-member council of representatives spread around the world. As commander, Nega oversees several hundred rebel fighters in Eritrea as well as an unknown number of armed members inside Ethiopia who carry out occasional attacks in the movement’s name. During his frequent visits to the front lines, he spends his time meeting with fellow commanders, observing training and — ever the professor — leading history and democracy seminars using chalk and a blackboard in a “classroom” in the bush.

Nega turned back to the map and traced a straight line leading to the Tekeze River, the westernmost border between Ethiopia and Eritrea. The stream was a main crossing point for Ethiopian Army deserters fleeing to the rebels, and in recent weeks it had come under threat from advancing Ethiopian troops. “They are moving a sizable force into this area, because we are their main target now,” he said, referring to Ginbot 7, now known as Patriotic Ginbot 7. “And they are pushing a large part of their army, artillery and tanks into this zone. They haven’t started shelling us yet.”

The two nations, now ferocious enemies, were once joined. Eritrea, an Italian colony from 1890 until 1941, was annexed by Ethiopia after World War II; it took a three-decades-long war for the Eritreans to finally liberate themselves, in 1991. The neighbors remained at peace until 1998, when a simmering dispute over the Yirga triangle, a piece of rocky land along the border that had never been clearly demarcated in colonial maps, exploded into two years of tank and trench warfare in which 100,000 died. Today, despite a United Nations-supervised mediation that awarded the disputed territory to Eritrea, Ethiopia continues to occupy the border village Badame. Tens of thousands of troops face each other across a landscape of mines, bunkers, sniper posts and other fortifications.

Violence on the border, while infrequent, can be both sudden and brutal. In mid-June, according to the Eritrean government, Ethiopia launched a full-scale attack along the frontier at Tsorona, the first major incursion since 2012, possibly in retaliation for attacks on its forces by Ginbot 7. Eritrea claimed that it had killed 200 enemy soldiers and wounded 300, though Ethiopia downplayed its losses. “They almost always deny it,” Nega told me. “As far as the Ethiopian government is concerned, nobody ever dies.”

Ethiopia, while an American ally and an economic leader by African standards, is notoriously repressive. The minority Tigrayan regime has jailed hundreds of bloggers, journalists and opposition figures, keeping itself in power by intimidating political opponents, rigging elections and violently putting down protests. Since November of last year, according to Human Rights Watch, state security forces killed more than 400 protesters in the Oromia region, which surrounds Addis Ababa. Protests have recently spread to the Amhara region, as well; in August, security forces shot dead roughly 100 demonstrators and injured hundreds more. Thousands of Oromos, a minority group that makes up about a third of the population, have been jailed without trial on suspicion of supporting the Oromo Liberation Front, a secessionist group. The Ethiopian marathoner Feyisa Lilesa, who won the silver medal at the Olympics this year, drew global attention to the government’s abuses when he held his crossed arms over his head at the finish line in solidarity with his fellow Oromos; he says he fears returning home and is seeking political asylum.

Across the room in Nega’s bungalow, four fellow rebel commanders, all members of the Ethiopian diaspora, were finishing their supper. The men tore off pieces ofinjera and dipped the bread into a thick sauce called shiro, washing down the meal with bottles of the local Asmara beer. Esat, an Ethiopian opposition satellite channel broadcast from Europe and the United States, played softly on a television in the corner. The men were part of a revolving contingent of commanders who returned to Asmara from time to time to check their email and escape the primitive conditions in the bush. “We are five right now,” Nega said, introducing me to his comrades from Dallas; Arlington, Va.; Calgary, Canada; and Luxembourg. “Another, from the United Kingdom, is returning here tomorrow morning. We’ll be six when he comes. Last week we were eight — at one point we were 11.”

The house also serves as an infirmary for rebels who become ill or are wounded in combat, and it provides a temporary sanctuary for Ethiopian Army defectors who cross the front lines. One recent arrival was a former Ethiopian Air Force officer, an Oromo who had traveled north 42 hours by bus and on foot, then swum across the Tekeze River to Eritrea. He made the decision to defect while sitting in an Addis Ababa jail cell on “false charges,” he told me, of being a member of the Oromo secessionist movement.

Why Berhanu Nega traded a tenured position for the chance to lead a revolutionary force against an oppressive regime.By JOSHUA HAMMER  AUGUST 31, 2016

This Ethiopian runner just won silver in the marathon. And then he led a protest of his government that could land him in jail.

NAIROBI — When he crossed the Olympics marathon finish line, Feyisa Lilesa put his hands above his head in an "X." Most of those who watched Lilesa's spectacular silver medal performance didn't know what that meant — or just how dangerous a protest they were watching.

Lilesa was protesting the Ethiopian government's killing of hundreds of the country's Oromo people — an ethnic majority that has long complained about being marginalized by the country's government. The group has held protests this year over plans to reallocate Oromo land. Many of those protests ended in bloodshed. According to Human Rights Watch, more than 400 people have been killed since November.

For months, the Oromo have been using the same "X" gesture that Lilesa, 26, used at the finish line.

At a news conference following the race, he reiterated his defiant message.

"The Ethiopian government is killing my people, so I stand with all protests anywhere, as Oromo is my tribe," Lilesa said. "My relatives are in prison and if they talk about democratic rights they are killed."

It was a remarkable turn of events — within seconds, Lilesa had gone from a national hero to a man who might not be able to return to his home country. In addition to those killed, many Oromo protesters are currently languishing in prison.

In Ethiopia, the state broadcaster did not air a replay of the finish.

Lilesa was conscious of the danger. He immediately suggested that he might have to move somewhere else.

"If I go back to Ethiopia maybe they will kill me. If not kill me, they will put me in prison. I have not decided yet, but maybe I will move to another country," he said.

It wasn’t the first time an Ethiopian athlete had considered defecting after competition. In 2014, four of the country’s runners applied for asylum in the United States after disappearing from the international junior track championships in Eugene, Ore.

The plight of the Oromo and the Ethiopian government's use of force against civilians have received some attention recently, but nothing as prominent as Lilesa's defiance. Earlier this month, the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa saidthat it was “deeply concerned” about the most recent killing of protesters. But likely because Ethiopia remains a U.S. ally in the fight against Somali Islamist group Al-Shabab, American officials have been reluctant to offer any further condemnation.

Oromo dissidents, particularly those outside Ethiopia, have been active on social media about their cause. As soon as Lilesa crossed the finish line, tweets and Facebook posts went up with pictures of their new folk hero. Ethiopia is one of Africa's fastest growing nations, and it seen by many as a model of economic potential. The government has played down the protests, saying earlier this month that “the attempted demonstrations were orchestrated by foreign enemies from near and far in partnership with local forces.”

Lilesa has been racing internationally for Ethiopia for more than eight years, and holds one of the world's fastest ever marathon times: 2:04:52.

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ሳዲቅ አህመድ ከፕሮፌሰር ብርሃኑ ነጋ ጋር ባረገው አጭር ቆይታ ላይ የተለያዩ ጥያቄዎችን አንስቶ ነበር፣

1. ፕሮፌሰር ብርሃኑ ነጋ ለምን ከአሜሪካ ተነስተዉ በርሃ ገቡ?
2. የፕሮፌሰሩ ኤርትራ መግባት በአርበኞች ዘንድ ያመጣዉ ለዉጥ አለ?
3. በአርበኞች ግንቦት 7 አመራር ዉስጥም ይሁን አባልነት ለምን ብዙ ሙስሊሞች የሉም?
4. አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 የሙስሊሙን ሰላማዊ ትግል እንዴት ይመለከተዋል?
5. አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 በምን መልኩ የእምነት ነጻነቱን የተነጠቀዉን ሙስሊም መተባበር ይችላል?
6. አርበኞች ግንቦት 7 ሙስሊሞች በብዛት ባሉበት ክልሎችና ዞኖች መሬት ላይ ምን እያደረገ ነዉ?
7. ዜጎች በእኩልነት ታግለዉ ያላመጡት ዲሞክራሲ ለወደፊቱ አደጋ አይኖረዉምን?
8. ነጻነትን በሁለገብ ትግል ለማምጣት በሚደረገዉ ትግል ከሙስሊሙ ማህበረሰብ ምን ይጠበቃል?

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Ethnicity and Fascism in Ethiopia Part I

Welkait Tegede has always been indigenous Amara's Land not Tigray's.

ወልቃይት አምርሯል “ትግሬ አይደለንም፣ አማራ ነን” ብሏል

ህወሓት (ህዝባዊ ወያኔ ሓርነት ትግራይ) የአማራ ብሄረሰብ ተወላጆች የሚኖሩበትን የወልቃይት-ጠገዴን ለም መሬት ወደ ትግራይ ክልል በጉልበት ከጠቀለለ ጀምሮ የወልቃይት ነዋሪ የአማራ ብሄረሰብ አባላትን በግድ ትግሬ የማድረግ ዘመቻ ሲያከናውን ኖርዋል። በርካታ ከህወሓት ሰራዊት በጡረታ የተገለሉ የትግራይ ተወላጆች በወልቃይት ኑሮ እንዲመሰርቱ ተደርጓል። (ይህ የሚደረገው በወልቃይት የትግራይ ተወላጆችን ቁጥር ለማብዛት ነው)።

በወልቃይት ህፃናት በግድ ትግርኛ ቋንቋን ብቻ እንዲናገሩ ይገደዳሉ፣ የወልቃይት ሴቶች በግድ የትግራይ ተወላጆችን እንዲያገቡ ይገደዳሉ፣ የወልቃይት ሴቶች ከሀገራቸው የወልቃይት ወንድ ጋር ጋብቻ እንዳይፈጽሙ ይደረጋል (ጋብቻ የፈጸሙትም ትዳራቸውን እንዲያፈርሱ ይደረጋል)፣ የወልቃይት ሴቶች ከሀገራቸው ወንዶች ጋር የፈጸሙትን ትዳር አናፈርስም ካሉ ለህክምና ወደ ጤና ጣብያዎች በሚሄዱበት ወቅት ልጅ እንዳይወልዱ (መሀን) የሚያደርግ መድሃኒት እንዲወጉ ይደረጋል። እነዚህን ኢሰብአዊ ድርጊቶች የተቃወሙና ህወሓቶች ያልወደዷቸው በርካታ የወልቃይት-ጠገዴ አማሮች በግፍ ተገድለዋል፣ አንዳንዶችም ጠመንጃ አንስተው ህወሓትን ሲፋለሙ ኖረዋል አሁንም ብዛት ያላቸው የወልቃይት አማሮች በአርበኝነት ተግባር ላይ ተሰማርተው ይገኛሉ።

የወልቃይት ነዋሪዎች ይህንን ሁሉ ኢሰብአዊ ድርጊት ተቋቁመው ኖረው ነው አሁን በቃ እያሉ ያሉት።

የወልቃይት ነዋሪዎች በተቀናጀ መልኩ ወደ አማራ ክልል ተወካዮቻቸውን በመላክ ህዝብ በተሰበሰበበት “እኛ ወልቃይቶች አማሮች ነን፣ ወልቃይትም በአማራ ክልል ስር መሆን አለበት፣ ወልቃይት-ጠገዴ በትግራይ ክልል ስር እንዲሆን የተደረገው አላግባብ ነው፣ ስለዚህም የአማራ ክልል ባለስልጣኖች እና የአማራ ህዝብ ችግራችንን ተረድተው ወልቃይት በአማራ ክልል ስር እንዲሆን እርዳታችሁን እንፈልጋለን” ሲሉ ደጋግመው ተናገሩ።

በህወሓት ተላላኪነት የሚታወቁት የብአዴን ባለስልጣናት እና ካድሬዎች ሰሞኑን ከህወሓት የተሰጣቸውን ቀጭን ትዕዛዝ ይዘው ወደ ወልቃይት አምርተዋል፣ ባለስልጣናቱ ዋነኛ አላማቸው አድርገው የያዙት የወልቃይት ነዋሪዎችን በማግባባትና ይህም አልሰራ ሲላቸው በማስፈራራት በግድ ትግሬዎች ናችሁ አምናችሁ ተቀበሉ የሚል መልእክት አዘል ህወሓታዊ ትእዛዝን ማስፈጸም ነው።

አቶ ግደይ የሚባለው የዳንሻ ወረዳ አስተዳዳሪ የወልቃይት አማሮችን አንገት ለማስደፋት ይመስላል በመሀይም አንደበቱ እንዲህ ሲል ተደምጧል፣

“የወልቃይት-ጠገዴ ወጣቶች አማርኛ ቋንቋን የተማራችሁት ከአዝማሪ ነዉ፣ እናንተ ትግሬዎች ናችሁ…”

የወልቃይት-ጠገዴ ነዋሪዎች በተለይም ወጣቶቹ ግን ካነሷቸው ጥያቄዎች የማፈግፈግ ስሜት አልታየባቸውም። ይልቁንም ዛሬ ጥር 4 ቀን 2008 በይደር ተይዞ ቆይቶ በዳንሻ የተደረገው ስብሰባ ወጣቶቹ “የወረዳውም ሆነ የከተማው አስተዳዳሪና ባለስልጣኖች በተደጋጋሚ ማንነታችንን የሚያንቋሽሹ፣ ወጣቶችን የሚደበድቡ እና የሚያስደበድቡ በመሆናቸው፣ አንዳንዶቹም በግድ ትግሬዎች ናችሁ በማለት ማንነታችን ለመፋቅ ሲሞክሩ የነበሩ በመሆናቸው፣ አልማዝ ገብሬ የተባለች አድርባይ ቤት ለቤት እየዞረች ሴቶችን ‘ትግሬ ነን በሉ’ በማለት ስትቀሰቅስ የነበረች በመሆኗ… በአጠቃላይ አመራሩ እኛን የመምራት ብቃት ስለሌለው የበላይ አለቆቻችሁ መጥተው ያነጋግሩን”። በማለት ስብሰባው እንዲበተን ሆኗል