Eritrea and the Youth, The Way for Declaring Judicious Economic Emancipation

Eritrea and the Youth, The Way for Declaring Judicious Economic Emancipation

By: Yosief Abraham

Undoubtedly, scholars’ definitions, macro and microeconomic implementers’ theories and key policies of influential institutions in answering what are the judicious measurements of a truly emancipated national economy are much diversified.

Hence, even though there seemed to exist many asymmetric and logically contradictory understandings toward deciphering it, however, citing Lukas G.Tnsae’s articulation would be supportive in having a standing point: “Indisputably, be it acceptable or not, economical emancipation represents not only to the resurrection of the state from the ashes of failure and destructed economical status; assuredly, how much the developmental and economic endeavours have emboldening roles in shortening the gab which exists between the poor and the rich, is truly, the inviolable measurement for answering if the economy is levelling or regressing.” As aforementioned in the above, justifiably, it is not acceptable to relate economical emancipation only with the relentless efforts which need to be exerted in favour with shortening the gab which exists between those who suffer from the abhorrence of destitution and those who are ultra-prosperous. Over this, in fact, if we look meticulously, economical emancipation, I am saying it in its well thought-out definition, is therefore, an ongoing transformation of all individual, social and natural resources toward arising, and dynamically, into fully achieved emancipation of the nation.

Therefore, based upon this ground, to achieve economical emancipation in its prudent meaning, youths are mentionable in the forefront line. For true economic emancipation is therefore, related with ushering the provisions of pivotal social services to the far-flung areas, safeguarding the nation’s common wealth from being abused by few individuals, washing norms of kleptomaniacs and corruption are the least but vital pillars for having a solid, independent and judicious economical emancipation.

Hence, why youths need to be the forerunners to drive the swing of the development and emancipation campaigns currently and in the future in the case of Eritrea? And why confirming economical emancipation has been founded as challenge which is subsequently embedded with a lot of expressible windows of opportunities? For specifications and clarifications, here in this article, I included to refer our panoptic economical cases starting from the Italian colonial time. Meanwhile, after acquiring a foot hold at Assab through its missionaries, Massaia and Sapeto, Italy gradually occupied Eritrea between 1869 and 1889. Indisputably, the Italians built roads, rail and ropeways for their own use and to expedite the war they had planned against Ethiopia. In addition, the Italians built factories and developed services such as transportation and garages. They also introduced agricultural concessions and forestry works simultaneously with their inexorable mining activities and the exploration of fish, pearls, shells and corals.

Undeniably, for all these economic activities were aimed at how to create opportune atmosphere to have a Jam Diamond here in East Africa thereby to satiate their appetite of exploration, the Italians were not underpinning Eritreans to be well trained and educated rather than working as office messenger, porter, stevedore, house or outdoor servants, doing odd-jobs, and, of course enlisting as soldiers in the colonial forces.

As any thinker person can hold, having well qualified and educated human resources is the most vital prerequisite for confirming economical emancipation, willynilly. Hence, to incapacitate Eritreans from not surpassing them, and may be afraid of their great excellence in mastering whatsoever new phases of blue and white collar professions, the Italians were creating such impasses. Wages, for instance, were as low as Ethiopia’s $ 0.25 cents (U.S $ 0.12 cents) at legal rates per day paid to women cotton factory workers, while they made high profit for themselves Meanwhile, departing from Kassala in the Sudan, on 19 January 1941, the British fought their way to Asmara and arrived there on 1April 1941. Paid between 4,000 to 5,000 men, mainly from among their Indian troops, in the battle to take Keren, soon, the British embroiled in fervent movements to entice and market hearts of the tenacious Eritreans. In the field of economic-centred activities, they declared that Eritreans had irrefutable sovereign rights to do “every job for which they can be trained”. However, as gruesome act of any oppressor, after the superfluous measurements in minimizing segregators’ policies, levelling standard of education and expansion in the provision of medical facilities, heavy-heartedly, the hand of British founded much appreciative in catalyzing failure of the so far achieved remarkable economical and infrastructural improvements during the Italians.

In Mitsiwa they destroyed buildings built by the Italians to take out the Iron construction beams set in the concrete; over this, as rerun of their inexcusable and unjustifiable acts of extending the ploys of ‘Bad-Samaritans’ policies to catalyze the collapse of economic activities in Eritrea, the British also sold the railway engines with 300 wagons and the construction materials that the Italians had imported to connect Agurdet to Gonder. As Bocresion Haile, author of an eye-opening historical book titled “The Collusion on Eritrea” asserted, to evaporate the much widened opportunities and possibilities of emancipated economic in limited areas, they (the British), demolished considerable number of oil reservoir in Mitsiwa and 400 luxury houses built for Italian official in Zula. Powerful diesel motors were removed and sold to Israel.

Whether this or that, it is undeniable that the British acts of looting dragged the hope of economical emancipation into such painful quagmires which had exacerbated the livelihood of Eritreans, especially in Asmara and Mitsiwa. When we remembered that the value of what they had ransacked amounted to £ 86 million, which meant to be £ 860 million at 1999 price, inarguably, how much devastating roles the British had came clear. Over this, as they do not incapacitated Eritrea from not fastening its endeavours to make elusive whatsoever economical and livelihood abhorrence, the British had declared that Eritrea “never has been economically viable”. Even it was hallucinatory expectation sustainable developmental endeavours to be achieved during the almost one decade stay of the British, hopes for economic emancipation earthed completely after Ethiopia’s conspiratorial intervention over Eritrea’s internal affairs had got hortative stage. After his luring visit to Eritrea on 4 October 1952, almost after one decade, through the unreserved and hortative ideological understandings of some influential persons, Emperor Hailleselassie, who was a trusted minion of the West in East Africa, cancelled the federation officially on 14 November in 1962. As a reward of his so called ‘democratic’ but judiciously ‘servile’ diplomatic motions, the U.S paid 1,243.6 m (U.S Dollar).

From this reward, however, Eritrea hadn’t benefited by, and profited from, this monetary package to Ethiopia in exchange of Eritrea’s free bases and other privileges. For it is true that economically emancipated nation can’t be easily annexed, collapse or else carve up, the U.S synchronized this with, and underpinned it by, its hegemonic dreams to have access of Eritrea’s strategic position. Truly, oppressors had been benefiting from colonizing Eritrea; they amassed huge amount of monetary accounts in exchange of Eritrea; and, heavy-heartedly, to satiate their insatiable appetite of hegemony, material, natural and other raffish political dreams, they had been exerting all rounded means for dragging the economical activities Eritrea had into the morasses of failure. And truly, they did it superfluously.

May 24, 1991 has signalled a new era in Eritrea, till 1998, some eight years of pacific and opportune time for fastened progress in panoptic economical activities, Eritreans had enabled to enkindle the torch of judicious economical emancipation for the long march. Even after the heart-stabbing war of aggression by the TPLF from May 13, 1998 to 2000 which subsequently followed by the ‘no war- no-peace situation’, massive developmental endeavours are underway. Hence, in addition to the positive indications, undercurrent challenges have to be faced by empowering and enlightening the youth for it is irrefutable that well educated human resources are achievers, guarantors and defenders of economic emancipation of Eritrea. Therefore, indifferent to the appreciative exertions in the infrastructural developments, how youths have to be well educated, and possessors of creative mind, energetic and highly disciplined also demands superb glance as these are the vital pillars for resurrecting our economic status to the level we are zealous to achieve.

In case of educating the youth, the Government of the State of Eritrea has put forth commendable victories. The number of elementary, junior and secondary schools, for instance, increased from 292 in 1990/91 to 1, 100 in 2009; simultaneously, the limited windows of opportunities which were given to students of the major cities and towns also have been widening triumphantly. As a result of this, the number of students also enhanced from 168,000 to 730,000. However, here, even it is an irrefutable truth that authenticating sustainable opportunities of education is a vital prerequisite for achieving economic emancipation, assuring qualification of education is, and would be, a major tackle which need to cope through an integrated efforts of the Government and people of Eritrea.

Meanwhile, as youth teachers are overwhelming to the stage of teaching-learning process currently, underlining that they are forefront tools for individual emancipation which at whole sum expects to result into achievable roles of catalyzing the national progress is, therefore, for a profound reason. I, as judiciously believe heartedly, the profession of teaching is the topmost work approached to God; undoubtedly, teachers play the role of creating new imaginations in the old psyches, usher golden lights in the gloom seem tunnel of life, and at all, teachers are those who end the time of abyss by killing the old and give birth to the new. From 1940s to 1960s, teachers were the forerunners and drivers of the work for resurrecting individuals, and triumphantly, had been catalyzing these minds into beneficial stocks of the state.

Teacher Gebrat from Hibret; Teacher Gebre Lul (T.T.I), Teachers Mohammed Ahmed Idris and Nun Salih Karar from Keren; Suleiman Osman Bekit from Akria; and from females, Tsedal Beraki, Abeba Bocresion, Mieraf Zeweldi, Mihret Bairu; the twin-sisters-Martha Yacob and Miryam Yacob, Alganesh Afwerki, Teachcer Bahgu and Zafewerk and others are among those who remember well for their inexpressible exertions in shaping and re-shaping the 1960s youths as renowned historian Alemseghed Tesfay has cited in one conference. Except this, some of those teachers drove the swing of social emancipation in its full spirit of desire for positive transformations by serving as forefront runners in different fields.

Teachers Alemayo Kahsay, Asres Tesema, Al-amin Abdeletif, Solomon Gebre-gzabiher in the field of art; Teachers Musa Aron, Yizhak Yosief and Asres Tesema played vital roles in enhancing literature of Eritrea, especially of Tigrigna language; Teacher Abrha Girmatsion, Asefaw Berhe (Kuchi), Abrha Yigzaw and others in sport field wrote their name triumphantly. Therefore, for not incapacitating ourselves in confirming the judicious economic emancipation, in addition to the massive developmental programs, ways for individual resurrection need to be maintain well. Current youths’ challenge is, therefore, to be typical in facing the likely impasses.

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