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Having the last laugh…

By Tesfu Telahun

The nation is horrified by the massacre of 74 innocent civilians and their security guards by a group calling itself the Ogaden National Liberation Front, ONLF. The cowardly act of mass murder, shocking as it was, is in the character of a group which expouses and is supported by international terrorist networks.
The ONLF is not a new organization and its tactics are certainly not unfamiliar. It was a ragtag band of wandering outcasts from the Ogaden tribe which was formed into a military outfit in the mid 70s by Siad Barre – former and last dictator of Somalia. The inhabitants of Werder, Kelafo, Jijiga and many other towns and settlements still vividly remember the atrocities the ONLF perpetrated on innocent civilians as it led the way for Barre’s invasion force in 1978. The ONLF is a front but not in the political sense of the word. It has always been a cloak worn by some anti-Ethiopia force or another. The group rears its ugly head only when it is sponsored by its puppet masters. Routinely defeated in frontal battle, the ONLF resorts to its more cowardly, un-soldierly true colors and plants bombs in café’s, taxis and public areas in Addis, Dire Dawa, Jijiga and other towns. It ambushes the odd bus, extorts from tourists and hides in the sand dunes until it senses it can strike and escape. This is anytime Ethiopia is embroiled in multi-faceted problems and beset on all sides. This is the environment of its very existence. Having no political manifesto to speak of, it has made terror its doctrine.
This will do perfectly well with its sponsors, who believe that if its bad for Ethiopia then it must be good for them. But not for long. The Ethiopian people and government do not take lightly this inhuman act on innocent Ethiopian and Chinese guest workers. We may be a politically divided people but let not the current domestic situation give our enemies the illusion that we will stand by when our very dignity is being challenged. Any action undertaken by Ethiopia to redress this gross injustice will be done in broad daylight and in full view of the international public. It will be valiant and honorable …..unlike the ONLF massacre which slayed sleeping innocents.
Belatedly, the ONLF is bandying about on, especially Al-Jazeera – which by the way, relishes negative coverage on Ethiopia – a vain attempt to justify its crimes. It has now assumed the role of a pressured indigenous community taking up arms to prevent the exploitation of as yet non existent oil by an unscrupulous Ethiopia and its authorized agents. This is an after thought attached to a brazen act which may yet spell the final demise of this band of murderers.
The Ogaden it is true, has long been a neglected area and one that is beset by security problems. The inhabitants are for the most part worse off than most Ethiopians. This historical fact is at present being addressed by way of wide scale development projects that have been formulated by the area’s own administration. This autonomy is sure to bring the socio-economic changes needed to nullify the reasons behind the conditions that led to the existence of groups such as the ONLF.
The destitute of the area would like nothing better than an oil strike. The poor have no qualms if mineral resources mean roads, schools, hospitals and of course, jobs. As part of the national development process, the Ogaden will prosper along with the rest of the country. No longer will they have to die avoidable deaths – of hunger, water borne disease and banditry if the black gold were to be found in exploitable quantities.
The Ogaden has been portrayed by the ONLF and others as disputed territory. Disputed by whom, please? A territory can be in dispute only if according to international law, one sovereign state decides not to accept the demarcation lines of the status –quo. As far as the world is concerned there is no territorial dispute between Ethiopia and Somalia.
The Transitional Federal Government of Somalia has in its founding charter clearly outlined its position on irredentism – the so called five points of the Somali star.
The star had symbolized Northern Somalia (Somaliland) Southern Somalia (Mogadishu region), the whole of Djibouti, the Ogaden and NFP of Kenya. This automatic declaration of war was abandoned in a historic act of peace and good will by the TFG. Somalia no longer claims any land from Ethiopia, Kenya or Djibouti.
This stance is an intelligent decision and one that eliminates the source of Ethio-Somali tension which had lasted ever since Somalia’s independence. It has bred distrust, hostility and an intense mutual dislike that has hurt not only the two people’s but even the greater horn. The TFG has pre-empted this legacy of war once and for all.
There is no longer a role for the ONLF left to play. In fact, the latest atrocity by this group is simply a desperate act propelled by the growing realization that after all, the TFG is succeeding in establishing itself in Somalia. There is a bright future ahead for Ethiopia and Somalia. We are not unhappy that future excludes so called separatist movements.
As for the ONLF massacre scaring off foreign investors from the area, it is enough to consider the position of the Chinese firm, which tragically lost nine of its staff. A statement from the company re-affirmed its commitment to its development contract and stressed that banditry will not deter it from continuing with exploration.
Admittedly, vigilance is now mandatory by all concerned. This millennium year has obviously been targeted by nefarious forces. It is hoped that the government will make sure that Ethiopia will have the last laugh.