"We already know that the situation in Eritrea is deteriorating from bad to worse. What we need to hear about is a game plan to get us out of the quicksand, and a credible leader with a clear plan of how to bring about democracy and justice in Eritrea. In short, what we need is an organization and a leader whom we can follow." - Awate reader

This is a sentiment expressed by many Eritreans in response to the daily chronicles of the abuses perpetrated by the PFDJ against the defenseless Eritrean citizen. It is a valid point. In this issue of the Pencil, we will provide our modest proposal on what the challenges are going forward. But before we talk about that, we think we should spend a little time talking about what has been achieved thus far. We believe this is an important exercise, which will help us strengthen our self-confidence and re-establish the desired momentum to move forward. Collectively, those who are opposed to the PFDJ have accomplished two major tasks: legitimizing opposition and claiming the moral high ground. What remains to be accomplished is, as our correspondent noted, to present a clear alternative. We have legitimized opposition; we need to legitimize the opposition groups.

Think back to 1997.

Political scientists tell us that the overwhelming majority of people are not "activists." Their time is consumed by three other priorities: (1) eking out a living to make ends meet so they can support their families; (2) fulfilling social obligations to friends and family members and (3) expressing worship to God. This leaves little if any time to engage in politics, much less politicians, who are universally viewed as dishonest and crudely ambitious, anyway. This indifference is even more pronounced in nations like Eritrea, which are based on subsistence level economies and a religious people who place a high premium on their spiritual lives, as well as social obligations.

In such countries and societies, the expectation on governments is minimal. A government that creates an environment for the people to make a modest living and one that will not trample on their values�their traditions and religions�and one that will be even-handed in its governance, will be left alone. People won�t be clamoring for change, for rights, and for elections. The few who will be agitating for change�the "political class"�are those in the intelligentsia, in business and the professions. But so long as the government is meeting its minimum obligations�providing for the safety of its citizens, creating an environment for peace and progress, adopting at least a neutral view to their traditions and religions�the "political class" will remain engaged in a lonely and esoteric debate, without having any impact on the population. Conversely, if the government fails to meets its minimum obligations, the people may not automatically embrace the existing opposition, but they will at least accept the need for having an opposition. This has been the one area where we all can claim a success. This is no small feat, albeit achieved with great help from the PFDJ.

Think back, if you will, to 1997. Isaias Afwerki, and his cloak-of-the-moment, PFDJ, had successfully hidden from the world the evil nature of the pervasive system. Dissidents�members of the opposition groups, members of the EPLF, religious conservatives, stand-up citizens�were still being abducted, thrown into dungeons (without a day in court) or even executed. But to the world at large, and certainly to most Eritreans, Isaias Afwerki had pulled off the fa�ade of being the incorrigible "Just Ruler," the "George Washington" of Eritrea, the "Lion of Nakfa", the "new breed" of African ruler. Now, thanks to the daily chronicles of increasingly emboldened Eritreans, and the proliferation of independent and resistance-oriented Eritrean media and civil organizations, the mask is being stripped. Everybody knows about arbitrary arrests, closure of the press, disappearances, WiA, Adi Abeito, Sembel, Helicopter, religious persecution, "ab QaH zbelena", "Guantanemo Bay," "menqesaqesi", "gffa", "mdskal", "ny hywet sgumti", "teAges", and the only nation whose 12^th grade is run by the Ministry of Defense. The spin is undone. Excepting for the willfully blind and those living in a self-induced trance, the whole world now knows Isaias Afwerki for what he truly is: another commonplace tyrant destroying another nation. The whole world knows the PFDJ for what it is: another morally bankrupt and hollow party. The whole world knows the character of the "senior advisors" of the PFDJ for what they are: another group of frightened, blackmailed and disposable toys with ranks.

Staking A Moral High Ground

The very act of unmasking the tyrant created two groups in the Eritrean landscape: those who recoiled in horror and wanted change (now aligned with those who had always known about the mask) and those who continued to insist that what is behind the mask is even more beautiful than the mask (now aligned with those who coyly ask, "what mask? I still don�t see it?"). The proliferation of Eritrean organizations may confuse some. Bur leaving aside the argument of whether Eritreans really need these many organizations, the fact remains that, broadly speaking, there are only two political movements in Eritrea. These are the "Justice Now" and the "Justice Later/Never" camps. The Justice-Now movement commands the moral higher ground because its arguments are grounded on an Eritrean and a universal value, fairness: bring the prisoners to a court of law; government can only rule with the consent of the governed; government cannot intrude in the religious affairs of a citizen. It occupies the moral high ground because its loyalty is to the Eritrean people, and not to the self-declared president. Read any appeal, any petition that appears at Asmarino, Meskerem, Nharnet, Awate; read any communique that is issued by Eritrea's emerging and diverse civil organizations--from Canada to Sweden; from South Africa to Canada--and they all deal with justice and fairness.

In contrast, the arguments of the Justice-Later/Never are based on falsehoods, lies, omissions and distractions. The "Justice-Later/Never" advocates will never give you a straight answer why those who are arrested are not brought to a court of law; they will never answer the question of how long is long enough for people to be held in solitary detention. They may say Shire, Agame, Weyane, Traitor, Defeatist, Jihad a thousand times, they may avoid the subject completely and talk about Ethiopia, Sudan, the US, Yemen and Sudan, but they will never give you a straight answer if you ask them why those arrested don�t get their day in court. They occupy a lower moral plane because they are tolerating or advocating a form of justice they would never wish upon themselves. They live by a code contrary to the Golden Rule-- Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. They applaud the abduction and indefinite confinement of people; they support forceful military service for all children, except theirs. They have become experts at rationalizing bad behavior and have perfected the art of postponement. They live in a claustrophobic world of conspiracies: an imaginary world where every nation, every NGO, every media outlet in the world has only one agenda: destroying Eritrea. They can only live in a state of war because only in war is deception and lying considered a legitimate means to achieve an end.

By many standards, Eritrea�s diversity is not that vast. Ethnicity-wise, we speak only nine languages; in terms of religion, over 95% are adherents of only two religions and the geographic divide�highland/lowland�is only two. And, despite the PFDJ�s cynical and self-serving attempts to present itself as the only safeguard against ethnic strife and chaos, Eritrea�s history shows that the Eritrean people, despite their differences, can boast of an impressive record of maintaining a relatively harmonious relationship, even in the face of forces who had a vested interest in harvesting the fruits of discord.

It is one thing to say our differences are not many; it is quite another to pretend that we do not have any differences. The differences are based on many factors�ideology, values, history, age, gender, tradition and religious values�and they all influence the timing and magnitude of our politicization. Just by virtue of what "group" we belong in, we may not be aware of an injustice.

Examples: A Jehovah Witness and a traditional Muslim living in the lowlands were exposed to the PFDJ�s abuse long before others. A young Eritrean in the armed forces has first hand knowledge of abuse that an older person only hears about. A young Eritrean female is subjected to abuse that her male counterpart only hears about. An Eritrean who was born and raised in a refugee camp in the Sudan has seen no change in his status pre or post 1991. A veteran of the armed struggle who fought for Eritrean independence under the ELF banner but cannot return because he refuses to give up his beliefs does not want to be lectured about principles. A veteran of the armed struggle who fought for Eritrean independence under the EPLF banner but cannot return because he took a stand does not want to be burdened with guilt by association. In other words, "the people" are not a uniform lot whose political consciousness can be turned on or off at will; they are a diverse group who have different trigger points, which in turn dictates what kind of solutions they provide.

Those driven by issues have analyzed the PFDJ�s platform of unitary political system, guided democracy, guided-economy, mother-tongue education, land nationalization, and mandatory national service and prescribed federalism, political pluralism, free markets, official languages, localizing the land issue, and setting up a volunteer professional army.

Those driven by cultural issues have rejected PFDJ�s stealth hegemony in favor of, among other things, the traditional "Adi" system where decisions would be made at the local level. They argue that the PFDJ�s effort of creating a "New Eritrea" has been costly because it is destroying one of Eritrea�s main assets: its tradition. And without its traditions, Eritrea endangers its identity, and its formula for harmonious co-existence.

Those driven by faith reject PFDJ�s guided dilution in favor of a more assertive and independent role for religion in the lives of Eritreans. They argue that the nation�s moral compass is provided by its religious leaders and institutions and once that is compromised or destroyed, Eritrea loses everything we love about it.

The above examples clearly demonstrate that the opposition is not driven by "personal grudges" but that it has clear disagreements with the PFDJ on substantial matters regarding the nation�s future. What the resistance movement has not done successfully thus far is to lay out its agenda in a concise and memorable way and to draw a credible plan on how to get the people from here to there. We believe that this is not just the responsibility of the "opposition groups"; it is the responsibility of everyone who believes that Eritrea has a better future without the PFDJ at the helm of power. In presenting a credible alternative, we believe all of us have a role to play:

1- The independent Eritrean media (websites) must continue to provide a platform to resistance figures, by way of interviews, articles, and announcements and they must also provide a platform to the prospective members so they can challenge and seek assurances from the political parties. We have the responsibility of providing perspective and context so that the people are made aware of how other people facing similar challenges overcame them. We must be educational and give hope to the people while remaining defiant to the oppressor. We must provide information on Eritrea�s history�good and bad�so the people can make informed decisions and are not condemned to making the same mistakes. We must take our responsibility as ombudsman and watchdog groups seriously.

2- The people also have responsibilities. They must make some effort to learn Eritrea�s history and seek out the resistance organizations, attend their meetings and read their publications. They must adopt an optimistic and can-do attitude because, without the right attitude, no struggle can succeed. They must maintain their spirit of resistance and refuse to calculate odds in the face of injustice. They must be involved actively and help improve the financing, the organizational and manpower resource of the organized resistance. Above all, they must get out of their comfort zones and make an effort to meet Eritreans from different backgrounds. They must make an effort to show unity and commitment to freedom and liberty.

3- But the largest challenge falls on the political parties and organizations, who must focus their attention not only on retaining their membership but recruiting new ones; they must measure their success not just by the level of commitment of their membership but also on the size of membership; they must find ways to disagree with one another without destroying each other and themselves. More than that, they must show that they can govern their relationship with one another if they hope to convince us that they can govern Eritrea�s relationship with foreign nations or even Eritreans� differences with one another. They must find a way to open a channel of sustainable communication with Eritreans in Eritrea�particularly those in the armed forces and the young.

4- Finally, the friends of Eritrea and the Eritrean people, the advocates of human rights and democracy, the NGOs and GO and the international media, and the neighboring nations have a constructive role to play as well. We ask them to assess their long relationship with the PFDJ and their "sudden" realization that the PFDJ is not the organization they hoped it was. We ask them to forge future relationships not on the basis of their personal friendship with this charismatic figure or the other but on the basis of whether the "friend" who is approaching them truly represents a constituency or whether they are just a broker. We ask them to get their information not just from the usual individual information brokers but from a wider source. We ask them to have faith in the Eritrean womb: that it has produced far too many leaders than the few they know or will know.

All of us in the resistance have come a long way. So far, we have convinced the Eritrean people that they deserve a better government than the one they have. We have done this by exposing the starkly ugly nature of the PFDJ. Instead of reforming itself, the PFDJ has chosen to silence those who exposed it and, in the process, revealed itself to be even uglier than we said it was. The people are ready for change. What we haven�t done so far is to convince them that there is a credible, unified alternative that will improve their lot. That is the next phase�a phase that requires of the Eritrean media, the Eritrean political organizations, the Eritrean people and their friends to play their roles as outlined above.

All of this will require only two things: inspired leadership and a can-do spirit. We are legitimate and we have the moral high ground. We have come a long way; and we have ways to go. We can do it; so let's do it.

PS: On this ocassion, we would like to express our best wishes to one of the resistance movements, the EPLF-DP, on the ocassion of conducting its founding congress.