Eritrea celebrates its 28^th independence day as calls for more freedom get louder

Tigrai Online, May 24, 2019

May 24th is Eritrean Independence Day the celebrations are underway inside Eritrea and the Diaspora are colorfully celebrating.

May 24^th is Eritrean Independence Day and as years before the celebrations are underway inside Eritrea and the Diaspora are colorfully celebrating their independent day wherever they are. Eritreans fought a bloody bitter 30 year war to gain their independence and establish their free country.

Independence for the Eritrean people is a bitter sweet because in one hand they are proud and glad their happy to be free from the most oppressing Ethiopian Amhara system, on the other hand their independence didn’t get them the freedom and democracy they were longing for years. Instead Eritrea and the Eritrean people have been under a brutal dictator since the day Eritrea gained its independence. Eritrea is the only African country with one-party state, without a constitution, without any civil society, and any form of election.

The one man regime in Asmara effectively cutoff any relationship with the outside world in order to isolate the Eritrean populating from the rest of the world. President Isaias Afwerki started with all Eritrea’s neighbors including Ethiopia devastating the country’s economy and social fabric. The PFDJ group leading Eritrea won a jackpot when a mercenary team lead by Abiy Ahmed took power in Ethiopia practically breathing life to the dying regime. Abiy Ahmed and President Isaias Afwerki supposedly signed a peace treaty in Saudi Arabia last year, although no one has seen the details of the peace accord.

Advertisement

This years’ Eritrean Independence Day celebration is a little bit different because Eritreans outside of the country are pushing for more freedom, for the release of prisoners, for the Eritrean constitution to be reinstituted, end to the unlimited national service, and for opposition groups to be allowed to enter to Eritrea. Recently Eritreans are organizing themselves under a slogan called “Yaakil” or enough. The enough movement is gaining momentum among Eritreans who live throughout the world.

The other thing different about Eritrean independence this year is, Eritreans who live in Ethiopia are prevented from celebrating their independence day in Ethiopia without permission from the Eritrean government. Most likely the Abiy regime is blocking Eritreans from celebrating their Independence Day to stop activists from spreading the message of “Yaakil” in the celebrations.

Advertisement