Solomon Abera was Director of Radio Zara, a government owned FM radio station targeting young Eritrean listeners. He was assigned to accompany an Eritrean sports delegation to France where he managed to escape and seek asylum in Germany.  Awate.com contacted him to provide our readership with more detailed information about the situation in Eritrea in general and the state of State media in particular.  Saleh Gadi conducted the interview.

Would you tell me briefly about yourself please?

I was born in Mendefera in 1968 and I finished my elementary and junior schooling there. Later, I went to the Tegbare Ed (Point-Four Polytechnic) School in Asmara where I learned general industrial mechanics and majored in machine shop. I graduated in 1986 at the age of eighteen and I was employed by the Ministry of Industry. I was assigned to the machine shop of the Asmara Textile factory (known as Baratollo) and then I was sent for Zemecha [Amharic for �campaign�: a compulsory �national service� mandated by Ethiopia�s Dergue regime] to the ministry of information.

For the benefit of our readers: you are a shop machinist, what took you to information?

The appointment was not systematic; it is �doing the time�, a service that you have to finish. The appointments were haphazard and a matter of chance. In my case, the ministry of information needed people so they appointed me there to assist the presenters.

What did you do there, specifically, and how long did you stay?

I worked in the sports and entertainment division for one year.

Were you earning a salary?

Not from the ministry. I worked for the Baratollo factory and my file was always there. Therefore, as per the system, I received my salary from the textile factory even though I stayed with the information ministry for one-year.

What then?

I was sent back to the machine shop at Baratollo.  In 1989, I left for Sudan and joined the EPLF and was appointed to the Revolutionary School with the mass organizations. Later on, I was sent to the field for military training. After training, I stayed in the field until 1991 when Eritrea was liberated.

And you were assigned to �?

On August 1991, I was assigned to the ministry of information and culture in the radio section; I prepared and presented sports programs. Sports was under the information and culture department and I continued there for a long time.

Did your job improve- did you get promoted?

Not officially, but I was delegated by my managers on short assignments to look after things- such delegations cannot be considered promotions- but I was formally promoted with an official letter in 2003 when I officially became the Director of Radio Zara.

Why was the radio station named �Zara�?  What is it named after? 

I know that Zara is Tigrgna word for a spring water source.  It could have been named after a river, I am not sure.

Why was Zara established, didn�t the ministry have another radio station, Dimtsi Hafash [Voice of the broad masses]?

Dimtsi Hafash�s programs are mainly of political and news nature, with little entertainment. Radio Zara was designed to appeal to the youth and its programs are mainly entertainment. It presents, for example, love stories, songs, comedies and the like. Light programming. 

Because neither is a commercial station but state-funded, many claim the purpose of the two stations is propaganda.  But from what you are telling me, one of them is not propaganda but� a distraction?  Entertainment?

Dimtsi Hafash is sort of the official mouthpiece of the party; Zara�s objective is to make the messages, what you mentioned as propaganda, subtle. In short, its programs are what we call Mkhulas [Tigrgna for hand-feeding], by providing a sweetener to coat the taste.  That is what Radio Zara does. That is why Radio Zara, an FM station, became so popular and it now covers vast areas with the help of relay stations placed all over the country.  It is also included in the satellite pack and can be picked in large areas. So what Radio Zara does is mainly Mkhulas of the messages that need to be passed to the youth.

Airing digestible programs, what you call Mkhulas, might be the cause for its success, but still, how does the government protect Radio Zara from dwarfing Dimtsi Hafash that, I presume, doesn�t practice Mkhulas but apparently shoves its messages down the throats of listeners with no drink to wash it down?

We were told to stop airing in specific times, that is, for example, when Dimtsi Hafash airs news programs so that all listeners would tune to it. On weekends, we stop at 12:30 to give way for Dimtsi Hafash and we go on the air again when the major programs of Dimtsi Hafash are finished. It was inconvenient for Radio Zara. And the demand was there by many people, more than those who would listen to Dimtsi Hafash. I struggled to extend the programming period and finally I managed to leave Zara�s programs open.

You mean they actually allowed you to do that?

They discovered that weekends are not the best time for political and news programs.  People want to have light programs and they are not into heavy programs. Once they discovered that, they didn�t mind. However, they never liked the parallel programming- both stations competing against each other. But our listenership was very wide and after I insisted, they said I can extend the programs beyond 12-midnight -There are no listeners during that time of the night and I didn't accept it¹. 

How were you segmenting the audience of Radio Zara?

It is popular among the youth and especially among the agelglot [the so-called �national service� conscripts.] The youth in the frontlines love it even though they don�t use the call-in facilities that other have. Call-in has become very popular. In general, the radio�s programs are designed for the youth and it has succeeded in attracting them. There is no competition for the youth who are either confined to the front lines or are in hiding in their houses, what else can they do! That is our main segment though older people do listen to the radio as much as they listen to Dimtsi Hafash.

Did you have enough resources, manpower and equipment?

No. We depended on Dimtsi Hafash for resources. For example, we received interns for training and after they learn the skills, they are assigned to Dimtsi Hafash or other places. Dimtsi Hafash has a director, a sound engineer and a fully-equipped studio - basically everything needed for a radio station. Zara operates in a room at Dimtsi Hafash�s studios, one room that is allocated to it by Dimtsi Hafash. Radio Zara doesn�t have a sound engineer or a call screener. The staff is about six people, covering long hours.  At times, one person would handle library stuff, broadcast, and control the sound system� it�s hectic.

You seem to enjoy sports programming and you have been doing it for a long time. You have been around close to the sports administration for long and would know how it works. In our earlier conversation I noticed one thing:  why is it that the sports commission is heavily staffed by military personnel?

First, you have to know that Tegadelti [veterans of the Armed Struggle] run everything in Eritrea and their background is of military nature. Since veterans run the country, and most have senior military titles, you find them everywhere- they are the administrators, managers and decision makers. The sports commission is no different. Even though most positions are supposedly elected positions, what happens is that the positions are pre-assigned to specific persons and then a pre-designed mock election is held to satisfy some rules or regulations of the international sports federations or organizations of that nature. What happens is that people are called to an election process, a meeting, and they are presented with a list of names to choose from. Well before such meetings, instructions are passed to those attending on whom to elect from the list � the attendants then elect those already selected by the higher authorities. The mock election goes on and the pre-selected people are endorsed and presented as elected officers. That is why you get people in sports that do not have a clue about sports.  Sports is not even a hobby to them!  The only reason they are there is because they are veteran combatants and they are loyal to the system and not to the welfare of the youth and the development of sports.

What is the situation of sports facilities, the infrastructure apart from radio programming?

It is bad. The situation of the stadiums is extremely bad. There is aid and funds that are given to the government for the development of the infrastructure but you don�t see that spent wisely or spent at all. The stadiums are not repaired and are in a bad situation � and I am talking about the facilities in Asmara.  The regional infrastructure is just not there or in extremely bad situation. Even an old facility, the �Baccio-fila�, a basketball and volley-ball field left from the Italian era, still has the old dilapidated stools that were never changed or repaired. Now, in the call in program, if someone calls with a remark like that, stating the obvious and criticizing the neglect, then I am treated with suspicion and called to the ministry and held responsible for �exposing the system�! What can you expect from administrators of sports who know nothing or care nothing about sports?

Let�s go back to Radio Zara�s programs.  Were your programs mainly Mkhulas-- making them swallow anything?

That was the goal but those swallowing also benefited from the entertainment�and of course, the subtle messages are sent in between good programming � we had entertainment as well as educational programs and debates to the extent that the authorities would allow- we have to walk the line very carefully.

If you were presenting a sort of message pills in the form of entertainment or other programs, as you mentioned, along with something sweet to wash it down, what was the washer you used?  

Mainly we presented patriotic songs�

How are these patriotic songs serving as washers?

There were views that said that an overdose even of patriotic songs could have a negative impact because the youth would get bored of it. But the authorities would always complain and tell us that we are neglecting patriotic songs- every time some senior person complains to the ministry, we would be summoned to the ministry to be reprimanded of neglecting patriotic songs: hagerawi derftat tgosywo �lekhum! [�You are shortchanging national songs.�] They consider heavy doses of such songs very important without considering the need of the audience and the result of overdoing the pills.   But our objection, on top of the quantity, was the quality of the songs that they wanted us to play--old songs, on old deteriorated tapes recorded in poor quality to begin with. They don�t care about the quality of the sound and we were always forced to play old songs with hissing and scratching sound simply because they were songs from the struggle days and the authorities like and believe that they carry their messages. We were just ordered to play such songs even if we thought the quality was unfit for broadcast. It was also difficult to match the choices of the authorities and the taste of our audience.

You are telling me the authorities interfered on the choice of songs you played, what if you didn�t comply?

Let alone not complying, if we innocently played a song that they didn�t like, or someone senior didn�t like and complained about the lyrics of a song, maybe it sounded unpatriotic or untimely, the ministry would set a committee that acts like a court and we are called to defend our position. They accused and interrogated us on why we played or didn�t play a specific song. They simply told you, �you are accused by someone and are wanted to answer some questions and provide clarification.� If one is called to such committees, there will be a lot of appointments: be at such an office at such and such time, present yourself tomorrow, or on this day or that day. You would practically go through a court process without a court and might be harshly sentenced, reprimanded, fired or something of that nature.

Did you personally face such questioning?

Of course I did. Many times I was called to the ministry for such questioning and reprimanded many times. It is depressing to be called for questioning for doing what you are supposed to do, to be true to your profession. It discourages you and you operate under fear. That is why the morale of many professionals is very low. Many people quit because they can�t stand that. I was specifically asked why I played songs titled 'Selam Ndeli' and 'Amlakh Selam Yhabena', songs with peace theme, which they considered songs of capitulation and surrender². 

The committee that acts like a court, who are its members?

It�s composed of delegated veteran combatants and employees of the ministries while military officers - usually from the sports federation - are the accusers. There is no formal court. They just call some people and form a committee to rule over a complaint and the accused is left alone with no protection or support³.

All right. Tell me about the programs, or guidelines, what you should present or what you shouldn�t, meaning what is allowed and what is not.  Is it written somewhere for reference or journalists are enforcing self-censorship?

There is nothing written and there are no specific, objective guidelines. There is a continuous culture that they brought along, a culture that the organization developed over the years. The veterans know the culture and adhere to it intuitively. So, journalists have to walk a fine-line and try hard to find out what would not be accepted by the authorities. You also get comments that scare you: �ezi yeht�t eyu�, [�this will make you liable�.] You always live in fear of what you might have said that you shouldn�t or what you didn�t say when you should. It is also strange to know that we are talking about minor programs only because major statements, comments and announcements came straight from higher authorities and we only have to read it as is. You can say that all is based on personal judgment and self-censorship, but self-censorship based on fear and psychological pressure. There is no atmosphere of operating freely. 

There are journalists jailed since 2001, at least, and little or nothing is known about their whereabouts. What do you know about their situation?

I know nothing apart from what is privately and secretly discussed among close friends. Like everybody else, I hear rumors that they are jailed in a certain prison and moved somewhere else- things of that nature. No one knows about them but the security authorities. If you ask about such serious issues, you will certainly end up in big trouble- why are you asking? Who told you to ask? Besides, whom do you ask when nobody knows! I don�t even think many senior officials of the system know.

Let�s go back to a different question. You worked for the youth and you are a relatively young professional� Tell me, from your experience, what do you think of the youth?

The youth are interrupted from their school and their future is bleak. I believe, like everybody else, they are concerned about their freedom and they also like to have an education. But the education system is so much destroyed that it is not promising. The youth are apprehensive of the system of education: they [the EPLF] came with the pre-formed views and convictions that the education system in Eritrea was sub-standard and it has to be replaced by curriculums designed in the field during the struggle years. That they did regardless. Now the system has produced a staggering mismatch of the teacher/student ratios in all schools. How can a teacher properly teach a class of seventy or so students? Imagine a teacher who teaches biology, for instance. He has to teach five or six classes of seventy or so students a day, and that runs into the hundreds.  How would he follow their progress? How would he have the time to correct their exercises, test and evaluate their performance? How would he be able to give them enough attention? Add to that the school system is in bad shape when it comes to educational equipments and teaching aids. Most teaching is limited to theoretical exercises, based on lectures only. Microscopes and other teaching aids, for example, are considered non-existent.

The able students can get resources to study better because they have relatives who help them; they can have private tutors, books, computers, etc. There is no institution of higher education apart from Mai Nefhi [a vocational institute] and a small fraction of the student population makes it to that - the only available choice for technical training and higher education, even if it is a vocational school. Therefore, after grade eleven, those who can�t make it to Mai Nefhi are pushed to Sawa for ageglot [service]. Their educational future is bleak and destroyed.

But why can�t the youth revolt if there is so much injustice befalling them?

How can they? The newspapers that are supposed to air their concerns and advocate for their rights, are all closed and reporters are jailed - for years now. The youth are being continually mobilized from one place to another. The whole population is made to behave like a soldier, a very oppressive military discipline is imposed.  Imagine: if the youngsters are in trouble, they will be treated and disciplined based on a military law because technically, every youth is a soldier. What can they do but pray for the best?

But in such cases, I thought to �pray for the best� is the domain of the helpless and the old.  Weren�t you telling me they listen to a lot of patriotic songs? Doesn�t that move them?

It is a figure of speech, when things are tough, we all say we have to pray for the best. But the situation is worse than that. There is lack of trust among the people. The spying network is so wide that you don�t know who is involved in it. The youth are governed in a tight military manner, set-lebet, a highly regimented rigid order. Then there is a strong confusing message of superimposing the image of the country and the government on each other and presenting them as one. Many are confused on the subject of which is the government and which is the country. But you have to remember, the Eritrean youth has been subjected to a great deal of injustice. Their years are wasted with no education, no stability and a bleak future. Imagine someone not having a normal life for years and no end in sight! Like you and me, they want to settle down and live a peaceful life. They love their country but the situation in their country has not been accommodating and very cruel to them. That is why many are dying a slow death or leaving the country when they get a chance.

We witness authoritative sounding statements from some people who claim to know what the youth are saying or what the people want. Statements like, �The people want�� �the youth say��, etc. I want to pose a question to you in that respect because you were close to the youth than many and you have been working with them. What do you think the youth want?

I am always surprised by what I follow from Eritreans who live aboard! I have already observed first-hand how some would pretend to know our situation more than us, those of us who lived through it day and night! Myself for example, I walked out when I couldn�t handle the situation anymore and luckily, I got the opportunity to escape.  What have those who try to present themselves as super-patriots done for the country, and not for the government mind you, apart from cheering anything and everything they were ordered to cheer? They should better understand that what they are doing is harming the Hafash [the masses] they claim to be helping. In my view, this is not only wrong, it is immoral.

The struggle started in 1961 and I don�t think there were refugees before that time. Now we are having refugees after independence. The question to those who cheer for everything: why did they leave the struggle and flee to Europe and America? Now to be on the side of an oppressor is an outright opportunism. They should ask themselves one question: �why are we having refugees when we have freed our country?�

Don�t the youth talk about the border, Solomon?

Of course, they do. They not only talk about it, they died for it and they are suffering because of it and if it flares up again, they will be the ones to die. Theirs is not only talk. They know the result of war first-hand. They know the direct and indirect destruction of war. They want peace. There is no one who doesn�t want this border issue to reach its end and be resolved legally. It should be resolved legally and peacefully. If we insist that legal and peaceful means are exhausted, then, that would mean getting prepared for war. And you can surmise what the people or the youth want according to your own judgment.

I want you to tell me exactly what the people want, how can�t you when others who are far away seem to know?

First, for a people to express their will so that we can know what the people collectively think, there should be a mechanism to bring forth the view of the people. Since in Eritrea there is no freedom of expression, there is no freedom of association and there is no platform for expressing the view of the people, no one can speak of the people�s views unless it is shefet [mendacity or slyness.]  If someone claims to know what the people think, we have to ask: who asked the people? When did the people state their views? What were the mechanisms and the process they followed in doing that?

Let alone the people, even individuals who expressed their individual views were locked up and no one knows what they said and exactly what happened later on apart from their imprisonment and disappearance. There is no way of knowing the people�s view in Eritrea.

What do you know of the opposition?

The opposition should not have been confined to exile but unfortunately that is the case. But to my little understanding, the opposition has not managed to bring issues that concern the people to the fore.

But you said there is no way one can know what the people want?

Right. But we can safely assume that the human rights of everyone should be respected, people need safety and want to decide their fate and live in peace. These generally accepted values could be taken as what the people want without any doubt. But on political views, to claim to know the views of the people is not right. That is what I understand to be the views of the people--generally accepted values.

On the opposition, I think the principles are the same. To establish justice and positive change. If these were established as principles, then the culture of dialogue would take over. But if you insist on claiming your views, and only your views, are right, then there is a risk of repeating what is going on in Eritrea. I think that is why many are in the middle, neither with the government nor with the opposition. They should be approached for a debate on clear principles of mankind not on political issues. 

I want to know what is the common knowledge about the opposition in Eritrea, at least around the circles of youngsters and professionals?

We know that there are many groups and they splinter a lot and that there is misunderstanding among them. Many ask why this is happening and wonder. Our source, of course, is mainly the Internet and since the media outlets represent different groups, it becomes confusing. We try to find information from those that are not affiliated to organizations and we compare issues between close relatives or friends. But even that is limited; Internet access is not easy.

Now that you left your position of a radio station director and sports program presenter on TV, could you shed some light on the job of a journalist in that context?

A journalist should not be two things:  a reader who reads what others write for him and a broadcaster who repeats what has already been said. A journalist is also not someone who reflects negativity only, but someone who pursues and looks for truth everywhere to inform his audience. In my experience, chances of fulfilling those ideals are not there, in Eritrea.  In the situation we have, to become that kind of journalist is not possible. Therefore, I decided to abandon the system and become a refugee and an exilee of circumstances.

How were the delegation leaders treating you while you were in France, before you escaped?

It was funny. The first comment was made to me by one of the delegation leaders when they saw me talking with an Ethiopian journalist. We were together in the press-corps and reporters from all over the world talked to each other but me talking to the Ethiopian reporter raised the eyebrows of our delegation leaders. I was also threatened because of a question I asked the World Champion, Kenensa Bekele in the press coference room⁴.  I played it careful and didn�t show concern. To me, sports is all about peace and friendship and I didn�t have any qualms but for the authorities, it might mean something else. I thought of that for a moment, since I was also planning to leave anyway, because of the so many other hurdles that I had to go through- and it is good I didn�t go back because that might have been another problem I had to explain and defend. They might have whisked me as soon as I landed from the airplane.

Final question, Solomon.  When did you reach the breaking point, the point when you decided to get out and abandon the system?

I believe that my job was to inform the public. I have worked in youth related programs for too long; sport programming was my favorite. I believe the aim of sports is to produce a physically and mentally healthy youth. In our situation, the hope was that a mentally healthy person, reared with the care of sports, would be able to debate. If the youth are preoccupied with healthy hobbies and professional sport activities, they will be safe from destructive habits- drugs, drinking and other immoral activities and concentrate on their studies and be great achievers. And they will develop self-confidence. Towards that, my program encouraged people to call in and air their concerns; even people from outside Eritrea called with views and criticisms. The people were becoming involved in the process and the activities of sports. There were many who openly criticized the unnecessary involvement of the authorities in sports; that brought me to the spotlight and that I was encouraging the participation of the public to get to the authorities and I was being increasingly a suspect.

This was my aim in sports programming and that is why I was continually accused that I was involved in a campaign to discredit the Eritrean government by reflecting its negative image under the guise of sports. This is a very common accusation, it is almost a quote from the accusations of the authorities: bshm sport alutawi msli nay menggsti nmntsbbraq zgbber gosgwas e'yu� [�to blemish the image of the government under the guise of sports.�] That is how I would define the predicament.

[END]

 ^{1, 2, 3, 4: Post Publishing corrections by the interviewee 4/18/05}