The Derg reincarnated in the form of the CUD

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The Derg reincarnated in the form of the CUD

By: A. Duale Sii'arag

November 12, 2006

 

 

Editor’s Note:

 

A. Duale Si’arag, a contributor at large to WardherNews, dissects in this poignant piece, with much condemnation and vitriolic verdict, the political irrelevancy of Ethiopia’s opposition party, who has proven to the ruling Ethiopia Tigrean dominated Wayane a tough lot to crack down. The writer argues that the opposition party, CUD, is a re-assembled Derg cadres and Amhara ethnic chauvinists, whose un-comporomising ethnic superiority to the rest of the country’s multiple nationalities could succumb this country of over 70 million people into a frightening ethnic conflict. WardheerNews welcomes an opposing viewpoint to this indicting piece.

 

 

The Derg reincarnated in the form of the CUD

 

What are the Coalition of Unity and Democracy (CUD) in essence? What does it stand for in reality? Is it a brand new entity or a regeneration of a ruthless old band that hadn’t vanished as expected but remained clandestinely operational in the course of the past 14 long years? Who are the core constituents of the resurrected CUD? To better understand the CUD phenomenon and get the comprehensive picture, let us take a quick look at the political background of the group.

 

Taking advantage of the new federal system in Ethiopia and EPRDF’s initial policy of magnanimity towards its former archenemies, the much-despised Ethiopia Workers Party (EWP), the notorious communist party of the Derg Regime that committed horrendous crimes against humanity, has been resurrected in the form of yet another sinister entity, the CUD. During the reign of the military dictatorship, members of the EWP inundated the entire edifice of the civil service. Recruitment of personnel for the civil service was then subjected to stern and rigorous vetting performed by the infamous Indoctrination Branch of the EWP and its loathsome affiliate, the Secret Service Department of the EWP, which were groomed both by KGB operatives and secret service agents of then East Germany. Employees of international aid agencies and foreign diplomatic missions based in Ethiopia were also subjected to similar process of vetting and background checks.

 

Consequently, the ever-suspicious and over-sensitive EWP had retained numerous undercover moles within these establishments. Regardless of their professional background or qualifications, no one was indeed allowed to join either the civil service or staff of foreign missions based in Ethiopia without obtaining prior clearance from the communist party apparatchiks. In the absence of equal employment opportunities, only loyalist and devoted party stalwarts gained access to the civil service, including line ministries and departments, financial institutions, national corporations, commissions and boards. From telecommunication to customs to electricity and Ethiopian Airlines, the entire system of government was hence crowded by loyalists and collaborators of the military dictatorship. The bulk of these loyalists who took firm control of the establishment, state machinery and the bureaucracy hailed from a single ethnic stock, the Amhara.

 

Subsequent to the downfall of the Derg regime in 1991, the EPRDF has inherited the entire workforce of the EWP excepting its commander-in-chief, Mengistu Haile Mariam and some senior officers who fled the country. Ironically, many of the hardhearted Marxist zealots and high-ranking officials of the Derg who played awful roles in the military dictatorship have sought sanctuary in the most unlikely of all places, the United States, and not the most-favored Soviet Union. Such apparent vault-face would have been far-fetched without the development of extraordinary historical events in far a field. Phenomenally, the Derg’s downfall coincided with the demise of the Soviet Union.

 

Apprehensive of being prosecuted for crimes committed against the peoples of Ethiopia, the bulk of the active members of the EWP assumed a low profile existence in the formative years of the EPRDF revolution. Spared from the anticipated retributions, many turncoats quickly infiltrated into the EPRDF party; with no intention to either embrace the ideals of the EPRDF or to assimilate. Having implanted themselves fully into the system, they started to clandestinely operate from within the EPRDF establishment, with the view of derailing the EPRDF machinery and undoing its functions. In the ensuing years, the charlatans of the EWP continued their quiet penetration into the system of government, flourishing under the shadows of the EPRDF. Hence, the remnants of the Derg have gained a new lease of life.

 

To vandalize the system, the members of the EWP communist party were painstakingly rebuilding a network of secret cells in the workplace to undermine the authority of key institutions and distort the real picture. Consequently, in the course of the past decade, using a vast network of disguised subversive cells, the EWP insiders were engaged in leaking and distorting vital government information, in sabotaging many of the progressive and innovative policies of the EPRDF and in plotting bloodless coup from within the EPRDF.

 

Through protracted subversion, the EWP has succeeded in resurrecting the dead. Resurrected, the EWP has finally transformed itself from a seemingly defunct entity to a fully revamped party. Regrouped and reoriented, the card-carrying members of the EWP have finally resurfaced with vengeance, in the shape of CUD. The born-again EWP has a new three-letter abbreviation, but its content, composition and substance remains unchanged. Its old-fashioned aims and objectives are unaltered.

 

CUD’s rage against the Federal System

 

In order to redress age-old injustices, exploitation and marginalization suffered by various communities in Ethiopia, the EPRDF has introduced a federal system of government that gave birth to several autonomous regional administrations, in early 1990s. The federal system was initiated to enable communities to govern their local affairs and put an end to single-ethnic domination of state. The federal order has since enjoyed wide-ranging popular support from most of the Ethiopian communities, particularly those that dwell in previously neglected peripheries or those fated in the past to bear the brunt of state-orchestrated inhuman atrocities, injustice, discrimination and widespread public humiliation and mistreatment.

 

In the past decade, communities have gained tremendously from the new order and are determined to defend it. The rule of law that protects the rights of the erstwhile-neglected or marginalized minorities is enshrined within the parameters of the federal order. Each and every ethnic group in the country is aptly trying to make the best use of its hard-won constitutional rights and enjoy all the trappings of the federal system. The federal system is thus sacred to the public. It is thus inviolable and irreversible.

 

That sacred cow, the federal system, is currently under intense attack. The assault emanates from the traditional enemies of decentralization, democracy and the federal order. Centralists and members of the old guard have joined forces to reverse the federal order. The Amhara chauvinists, who constitute the backbone of the Coalition of Unity and Democracy (CUD), would like to forcibly resurrect their ethnic hegemony on Ethiopian politics. The CUD has adopted the Machiavellian doctrine: The goals justify any means. So it is determined to seize power by fair means or foul. They have publicly announced that they will abolish the constitution and nullify the federal system, if they return to power. They are ferociously trying to reverse the gains of the EPRDF revolution that brought about real and positive changes in the lives of millions of Ethiopians. If the CUD has its way, it will stoke the flame of extremism and ruin the hope nurtured in the hearts of the people during the past decade. If it succeeds, all the progress of the past decade would be reversed, too.

 

The CUD’s narrow, single-ethnic-based agenda and the aristocratic mindset of its leadership is its major Achilles' heel. Fanatical and narrow-minded extremists of the CUD believe that they belong to a “Super ethnic” that is divinely mandated to rule the peoples of Ethiopia. Based on false presumptions, they regard themselves as hailing from a superior ethnic and look down on other ethnics as inferior and insignificant. They see themselves as the embodiment of the traditional rulers of Ethiopia. They believe that they have a right of tutelage over others. They are unable to appreciate that Ethiopia is a country of blissful diversity: multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-linguistic and multi-creed - an idyllic platform where a rainbow of miscellaneous customs and creeds converge to cultivate symbiotic co-existence. Detached from the ground reality, the CUD leadership has the tendency to view its immediate environment with tainted spectacles of self-righteousness and bigotry, shielding against fundamental values of democracy, liberalism, social equality, and human rights. They are preoccupied with unfounded and unrealistic myopic myths and are unable to grasp the objective political realities in the country.

 

In a culturally and ethnically heterogeneous country like Ethiopia, the CUD postulated concept of a “super ethnic” is simply anathema to most people. The “super ethnic” supposition is akin to that of the Master Race (Herrenrasse) concept in the Nazi ideology and the contemporary White Supremacy movement that upholds the notion of a superior “race” or “ethnic” with a birthright to rule. It is a dangerous, divisive and destructive credo that is likely to trigger bloody ethnic conflicts in Ethiopia. It also defies logic and commonsense.

 

The politics of Ethnocentrism

 

Another troubling aspect of CUD phenomenon, which is likely to determine the significance and longevity of its politics, is its entrenched ethnocentric policy credentials. Terms such as ethnocentrism, prejudice, stereotype, xenophobia, and racism stem from deep-seated believe in imaginative mythical sense of supremacy embedded in the mindset of certain groups afflicted with superiority-complex syndrome. Attitudes of superiority and ethnocentrism also stem from ignorance of other ethnic groups and assumed insecurity. Ignorance nurtures suspicion, ambiguity and stereotypical impressions of other ethnics which only increase feelings of superiority. Moreover, feelings of hostility and superiority towards others result from deep sense of insecurity. Ethnocentrism triggers insecurity as a defensive response to divergence or ethnic difference. In reality, ethnocentrism parallels racial chauvinism, and is indeed anathema to diversity. It elevates one ethnic above others as superior. Hence, the ethnocentric venture of the CUD is a major threat to the harmonious ethnic diversity of Ethiopia.

 

From Rwanda to Yugoslavia and Darfur, ethnic chauvinism is often the cause of ethnic conflicts. Ethnocentric political leaders prey upon the lurking fears and disgruntlement of their constituencies to galvanize support for their political aims. Ethnocentric and over-ambitious political leaders ruthlessly encourage ethnic discord for personal political and financial gains. Exploiting the latent ethnic passions of unsuspecting ordinary citizens, political opportunists have the tendency to portray themselves as the sole champions of public interest, whilst determined to further a narrow agenda of specific interest to certain privileged groups.

 

Propelling forward a purely ethnocentric agenda, the CUD leadership is currently pursuing a two track policy: 1) agitation and radicalization of youth in their constituencies, 2) dissemination of hostile, divisive hate messages intended to wage rift between communities, ethnic and tribal groups and undermine the prevailing peace and stability in the country. Borrowing a fateful leaf from their likeminded counterparts in Bosnia, Rwanda, Kosovo, Darfur and elsewhere, they are inculcating their members with false, misleading and provocative misinformation. Unsuspecting ordinary citizens are the potential easy preys for CUD’s glossed over statements, hollow rhetoric and unrelenting propaganda campaigns. The politics of hate has been given a free rein.

 

There is grassroots opposition to CUD’s policies. The unpredictable agenda of the CUD and its deceptive political manifesto is already unnerving ethnic minorities across Ethiopia. The people are too conscious to be fooled. They know that the CUD is a snake in the grass. The CUD should therefore understand that if it continues to disregard the sanctity of the constitution, the federal system and the rule of the law, it will have no place in Ethiopian politics. The CUD should uphold the supremacy of the rule of law by rejecting violence and subversion as a means of effecting change. The CUD should know that hysterical nostalgia for lost grandeur is not a substitute for a political program. And its day of reckoning is nearing.

 

By A. Du'ale Sii’arag,

E-Mail: baxaal@yahoo.com

WardheerNews Contributor at Large

 

Mr. A. Duale Sii'arag has also published the following articles @WardheerNews:

1 The Challenge to Social life in Hargeisa

2 A Reality Check on Ismail Omar Guelleh

3 The Birth and Rise of Al-Ittihad Al-Islami in the Somali Inhabited Regions in the Horn of Africa

 

 

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