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Ever since Eritrea became independent, its citizens have been searching in vain for a national identity worthy of caring that term. Eritreans view their country from their point of origin and hope and anticipate that, at the end of the day, the final goal would match the expectations. Alas, that the language issue is becoming one of the stumbling blocks on the long and winding road towards forming a national identity, thus strangling the fermentation prosses. At the moment, I don‘t want and can’t delve into this topic. I would, however, like to take up the issue with this short essay, with the hope that it will merely be seen as a contrubuting factor in the ongoing discussions. It is indeed alarming to witness that the language issue is allowed to occupy such a momentous sphere in the Eritrean politics of today. It is sad to see that is becoming more and more a platform for some fancy speakers. Even at the risk of being depicted as naive, I must admit, that it was never my expectation that it would play such a key role in the Eritrean politics after independence. We all know and, by the way, most the zealots in the Eritrean government are also aware that the PFDJ‘s education policy is not going to bring a solution. Nevertheless, to date the Eritrean government has still not shown any signs of intruducing any key structural reforms whatsoever in heeling the ailing and limping system. The unabted adherence to this wrong track is causing irreparable damages to the Eritrean society, while the regime is, on every given occasion, persistently glorifying "the achievments" of the last decade. This selfdestructive policy is aggravating the latent mutual resentment and suspicion extant in some corners of Eritrea – to some extent resentments and suspicions absolutely valid and legitimate. Everything deemed as a targeted policy of this current regime is reconed as a threat to one‘s own identitiy. Unfortunately, on the other hand, the instinct of the PFDJ government is still to see the reality as a zero-sum game: anything that non-PFDJians want, or seem to want, must be bad for Eritrea. This approach is dashing hopes for a dialaoge between Eritreans from all walks of life and the government. The heavy-handed and stubborn attitude of the current government is still an enigma to most outside observers, and by now, even to some high-ranking PFDJ officials. However, the language issue is just one aspect of the inability and unwillingness of the Eritrean government to perform its basic functions adequately. However, it is under the given circumstances in our our country today, absolutely extravagant to most of the Eritreans living under the yoke of the PFDJ government to discuss about the language issue. Eritreans find themselves in a dungeon where they have to struggle for the mere survival day in day out. A myriad of our fellow country men and women are homeless, unpropertied, impoverished, maltreated and exhausted. The citizens of Eritrea are barred from some sort of genuine political participation and rudimentary civil rights like the freedom of expression, the right of forming opinions, freedom of the press and are deprived of the right to vote and to travel freely. It is an open secret that the overall situation in Eritrea is deteriorating daily. Eritrea does not have many friends left, thanks to the pugnacious attitude of the current regime. What we are witnessing today is the saddest chapter in the country's recent history. The PFDJ government is in dispute from within. Jailing and harrasing opponents as well as dergading a whole population to opinonless subordinates may silence disquite for a time. Life has become unbearable to a huge number of the Eritrean people today. Life full of uncertainty, fear, poverty, mutal suspision and sheer sarrow.The Eritrean people have suffered a lot in the past and, alas, are still suffering today. My intention is not to entirely throw aloof the language issue, then it is too delicate and of great importance to be overlooked. It is not either to belittle the ongoing discussions regarding the issue. However, at a time when our country is facing huge obstacles and is at a perilious crossroads, we should divert our entire energy on how to overcome these enormous problemes that are blocking a move forward. We need to seek a way to liberate our people from the current plight caused by an inept government. In comparison to the overall performance of Eritrean government, is the percieved sense of Tigrigna domination the lesser evil. Language can‘t be a pressing issue when people are perishing of hunger. The trouble with an emphasis on language to combat and jettison injustice and a dictatorship that does try to endure is that even well-intentioned proposals can do more harm than good by creating a deep rift among the Eritrean people. It is important to point out that the nervousness about Tigrigna domination in Eritrea is not directly related to the actual threat of being totally engulfed by this language. As more threatening is perceived the dominace of one ethink group using the language as an instrument in spreading its way of life. What Eritreans need is a common language to communicate and understand each other, regardless of its term, origin or where it is predominantly used. History tells us, that most of the monolingual countries of today went through turbulent, bloody and brutish centuries before a unifying language emerged and became established. In most parts of Eritrea today, Tigrigna is comprehended even if not necessarily spoken: see Amharic in Ethiopia, Arabic in Sudan and Chad, Swahili in Kenya, Tanzian and Uganda. It does not help the case to see this phenomenon of Tigrignasization, although a chimera, as the bogeyman spreading evil and mayhem accross our country. If Tigrigna is serving as common denominator in Eritrea today, where does the problem lie? Is it of great concern which areas from this language orginated? Is it extremely distrubing that this language, by chance, is predominantly spoken in the highlands of Eritrea? How does a particular language gain acceptance or catch-on in a multilingual state? One of the reasons could be found in its simplicity, flow or pleasant tunes (in the case of the coarse Tigrigna not applicable!). Another factor could be that a language or a dialect have a great vogue for some reasons at a particular stage of the fermentation process, or maybe simply, as it is the case with Tigrigna, just because it is predominatly used in the big towns or cities. Languages, including dialects are not what we choose, but on what we base choises. Please correct me if I am wrong: to my knowldge, no person is obliged by law to speak or use Tigrigna in Eritrea today. Chanelling or stirring up animosity among Eritreans as if Tigrigna domination were the biggest evil the country could ever face is malicious. It accomodates a covert message, as if Tigrigna speakers were privilaged in Eritrea. Some even assert at the top of their voices that the spread of Tirgrigna and most ridiculously the other phantom "Christian domination" as coherent! Friends, these kinds of kites have fluttered across Eritrea‘s political skies before. It is a huge threat and poisonenous to the already shaky formation to most of the opposition groups. Not surprisingly that these kinds of discussions are being watched with glee by the PFDJ. In most African countries, problems are better tackled without refrence to language or ethnic backgrounds. Efforts to linder the suffering of our people should, on the first place, focus on the urgent needs and existing flagrant shortcomings of the government at present. In the end, Eritrea will be able to shake off all the obstacles and problems only if enough individuals do their bit to foster good relations between the different peoples - irrespective which languange serves as a bridge of communication and mutual undrerstanding. In an era of globalisation, where many countries in the world are forming strategic and economic blocks that trancend national borders and where the English language is, for instance, gaining the upper hand, it is unwise and tactless to spend energy and time in arguing why a particular language is broadly represented in a praticular country. For all the pessimism, it is worth taking the long view.
By Aklilu Serekeberhan August 25, 2003 |
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