Please check the link for video message from Dr. Asefaw
ምስዳድ ደብዳቤ ናብ ማይክ ሃመርን ተወከልቲ ህዝቢ ኣብ መላእ ዓለምን| ዶ/ር ኣሰፋው ተኸስተ
SAMPLE
Ambassador Michael A. Hammer
2201 C Street NW
Washington DC 20520
RE: Urgent request for action to help me know what is being agreed in the name or on behalf of my people and my country – Eritrea
My name is [Insert Your Name] originally from Eritrea and I reside at [Insert Your Address] in [Insert Your City], [Insert Your State].
The Honorable (First name),
I am writing this letter because I am gravely concerned about the manner of the peace agreement signed between the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and Tigray Peoples Liberation Front, reached in Pretoria, South Africa this month.
As you might know, the conflict that has been characterized by war crimes, massacres of civilians, accusations of ‘genocide’, rape as a weapon of war, and a devastating humanitarian crisis was between three parties: The regime in Eritrea and the Government of Ethiopia on one side as a military alliance and the TPLF on the other side.
However, the aforementioned peace agreement was signed between two parties only and that makes it incomplete because it does not address the Eritrean role and its obligation to the cessation of hostilities.
Although I hail the diplomatic breakthrough that can alleviate the plight and suffering of the Ethiopian people, I am deeply disturbed by the omission of Eritrean people, that have been equally prime victims of the senseless war, from the details of the modalities of the implementation of the agreement.
In a normal situation, I would have raised these profoundly concerning issues with the government of my country or the diplomatic mission of Eritrea in the country I lived. But Eritrea is a one-party authoritarian state without constitution and parliament, hence I am not represented in the state. I do not have the right and the means to raise these issues with the regime.
I am kept in the dark by the Eritrean government and the secrecy of this agreement has buttressed the already existing mystery by withholding any information regarding the agreement for cessation of hostilities reached in Pretoria. This monumental agreement has direct impact on the future of my family members who are now compulsorily engaged in a war they don’t believe in.
So far, all indicators signal that the one-man regime in Eritrea would not agree to the ceasefire, withdraw its forces and allow the Ethiopian Defense Forces to depart from Eritrea.
In simple words, this means that my people will continue to be the sacrificial lamb of the dictator’s adventure. Consequently, I am personally worried because
…………….my younger sister and older brother are forcibly conscripted and shoved to the war front and my parents have no news about the whereabouts of their children.
……………my elderly father who is a member of the Eritrean militia is ordered to join the Eritrean army in the fight against the TPLF. I do not know whether he is alive or not.
…………my mother is confined to bed mourning her youngest son, age 16 yrs who was abducted by the army recruiters and taken to the war front and we have no idea where he is and whether he is alive or dead.
………..my entire family fled from the forced recruitment and left the country in search of safe haven in the refugee camps in Ethiopia.
………..my mother who was a liberation fighter is arrested by the Eritrean military because her son was captured by the TPLF and interviewed by journalists.
………..my older brother who was forcefully conscripted defected to the Tigrayans because he is a pacifist who does not believe in taking other people’s life.
…….two days ago government agents burst into our house during the night and snatched my pregnant sister and her husband. I don’t know where they are.
In the name of our shared humanity for the sake of the millions of innocents who have already suffered so much and for the millions more whose lives and futures hang in the balance; I call upon you for action now. Do not decide our fate without our knowledge because it is unjust and because we have the right to have a say in our fate.
Yours sincerely
