Rumors In The Village's Inns

Part one

As a journalist, I wanted to hear rumors about some opinions that night, and I went first to Obama’s Mead house. When I arrived and ordered a glass of mead, the people are there with their mood. Some are looking sozzled, and some are looking gentle while they are talking with their near friends. The glass in which the mead is poured in it is called “ Birele”. Birele is its Amharic language name for the glass shaped narrow around its neck and vast circle around its bowl. It is not carafe or hip flask but it is different in its shape which is used for drink of Ethiopian mead since long time.

 I found some free place and sat on it. Beside me, there were two men making conversation  each other. And I tried to check about mine arrival what the customers of the mead house may think about me by observing all side of the interior. The guy next to me was talking to a friend. After taking a breath for half the glass of the mead, I checked in my trousers’ pocket to see if some additional money would be or not in my pocket for the next one glass or “ Birele”. I had five birr; therefore I delighted for those five birrs because I can add one glass of mead.

 As I sat down, my ears have started to hear the stories of the people around me, however, mine heart was not with them and I couldn’t listen to them. I knew earlier the difference between listening and hearing therefore I started to listen the stories around me. The first pitch that caught my attention was the one that started to record with my intelligence.

The man talks: "On the issue of nationality, there is a situation in which the thinking of the people of Northern Ethiopia and the people of another region is never linked." The story goes on. "It is possible to prove with a great deal of evidence that the north and the south have different ideas, especially in the case of a conflict in the northern part of Ethiopia." I had a rumble and a smirk on my round, as my story got stuck; and as I sat on the bench continued to quietly listen to the man’s talk. "Okay please ... you lose track of what you're saying." A friend of the man says. “You’ll learn a lot from me ... Just listen ...,” while they did discus about Ethiopia and Eretria I continued to listen.

“The region of Tigray and Eretria was not in peace in the Military government era. In that era, the central and the Amhara people had struggled hardly for their neighborhood and this caused to emanate mutual love for their interest. Due to this, the south people are not wanted to inter in to their conflict siding one to other because they assume that their conflict as simple dispute rose among neighbors and would been settled with them. Not only the south peoples but also the western and the eastern peoples are not mostly voluntary to inter into conflict of these ethnic-based neighbors of the northern, the north eastern, the north western, and the central region of Ethiopian tribes. Because after the end of their dispute, they mostly agree again and live in harmony with collaboration after using the south peoples as solder on their war time. Then they don’t want to benefit the south but only to use their force. Due to this, most of the former government solders that were recruited from the south don’t believe the people of Ethiopian who are above the central region to the verge of the north. Including the Eretria peoples.” I started to admire his talk by interring in the middle with interference. “Okay, this is good. I agree with your idea.” I said. 

“It is not my business whether you agree or not with my idea! You may have on spying me! I am not comforted with you since you entered this mead house.” The man said to me with looking me by hesitation and playing.

“O! My friend! I am not spying to you. I always love useful conversational talk.” I said to him. He said that “let it be comfortable to you.” And continued his talk. “And, truly, those southern don’t want to scarify their life to their country if the issue is to northern part of Ethiopia. Their reason for this is that they believe that they don’t’ want to be crumbled by both parties. They don’t want to be in the middle of brothers’ conflict because firstly the fire wounds always them; and, to not be said that it was not your concern, their sense has informed to them. They don’t want to insert their hands in rivalry between the brothers of the hated country. This is the reason for the fact that the people of the South who voluntarily flee from the army are the ones described by me previously.

Those who participated in the military saw it for their reason. No other reason to go and to die, it might be their poverty which obliges to military employment and forced recruitment. If it is possible, they prefer to be peace-keeping soldiers in wars but they don’t want to be the one side fighter. The reason to escape from defense force membership to southern soldiers has been what I said before. They are saying now it is not our concern if anyone declares war on Tigrians unless otherwise they are paying to us highly. They are also saying that it will not be our concern if any war will be declared on Eritrean Citizens. We are concerned only if the war is considered to us as our business. Recruiting solder from us and from abroad is equally recognized by us. Think it as in the ring of kick boxing sport. They are announcers of the following: If two powerful parties have the abilities to pay for kick boxing, we will show our prowess and capabilities of making war and fighting in a war.

“Yeah! I have no idea different than this. Whether you say to me about the issue of Assab Port or Ethiopia’s freedom, I believe that all are free in the perspective of water and land but there are many problems that are not emancipated till now at personal level. For instance, all places are evacuated for work but we are not evacuated from how we think about freedom.

They are also saying that the Amhara can pay to us and we can fight to him. What we fear may be the Amhara tribe may raise conflicts on us with others. There is a time in which the south soldiers who died for Ethiopia had not considered as Ethiopian. Due to this reason, everything is now with money. The fact is we don’t fight for irrelevant things.” While the man says this, “this is correct!” said his friend with supporting the actions and opinions of South solders, nodding his head twice. “It is surprising! I did study them well,” said the first man and continued his talk: “I sometimes get in confusion. Why we repeatedly involve us in war, why we are fighting?” … while he says this I thought that to ask from where he came and what his ethnicity is. But I scared because he might say me ‘racist! Why you need to know mine ethnicity?!!’ Then I chose to be silent. The man continued his talking to his friend. “Sillies with ideology differences fight, nibble, and kill each others. Then they try to change it to national dispute and catalyze it.” Said his friend. I needed to hear the saying of the man curiously at this point. I thought as he is a learned man; however, he is Mister Mead man.

Mostly I see him in the mead house of this village. He prolonged his discourse as the following “Country is created to persons not persons are created to country; therefore, for the necessity of living only on a country ideology shall not bring conflict on us. Someone thinks like this, the other thinks like that; that man is a socialist, this man is a capitalist, saying all these as their thinking is only enough with no more our comfortless. This time south peoples are peoples who say we don’t want to live through others' problems and war.” He still focused on south peoples. “Yeah! I have no idea different than this. Whether you say to me about the issue of Assab Port or Ethiopia’s freedom, I believe that all have gotten freedom in the perspective of water and land; but there are many problems that are not emancipated till now at personal level. For instance, all places are evacuated for work but we are not evacuated from how we think about freedom.

He continued, “There is a clue that western Ethiopia is thinking as South’s.” he said and continued again. “They don’t want to get in the middle of any conflict unless otherwise the conflict touches their place. They may concern about the central Ethiopia, which is called Addis Ababa for their common interest, and she is developed by their region contribution as South region contributed. Addis Ababa has nothing except her diversified people and old fashioned buildings. She has been lived with the help of regional Agriculture items for consumption contribution and with her trade activities. Therefore they want to be involve with any attacks on Addis Ababa city because every regional city and people are thinking like this, she is their own and developed and still developing with regional production, economically useful contributions for consumptions inputs.” He said particularly focusing on western Ethiopia and the southern peoples.

His friend is listening to him and he is talking. The peoples he focused as I assumed are called Gambella and Benishangul Peoples. They are real blacks and Africans. He sipped twice from the mead just by grasping the neck of the beautifully shaped mead glass. Then continued to talk as this፡ I allow Full ownership of Addis Ababa to all nation nationalities except Eritreans and other countries; no one is superior to other in ownership but the fear of Tigrians and the sabotage of Eritreans gave her to Oromo Tribes. The downfall of Amhara tribe has started since the fall of the Military Government and this tribe is living with boaster at the end and now most of them are changing their tribes to be Oromo in the central City of Ethiopia. The south people brevity has been stolen by them and now their sabotage is compared equally with Eritrean people on south’s, Western, and Eastern Ethiopian Peoples. Tigrians are struggling to sustain their culture and language to the next generation in this challenging era. According to mine projection, there will be no race to be called by Amhara tribe because most of them are becoming envy on Southern, Western, and Eastern Peoples. The level of their envying reached unto changing their tribe to be Oromo and to evade South, West, and East Ethiopia; and also to eradicate minorities who are living in their rest region.”

“How do you know this? How you prospected upcoming Ethiopia?” I asked him by interrupting his talk. He laughed “ ha ha ha ha … still you are listening me. You asked a good question. I saw all in mine phantasm …… I dreamed about her! It is simple to prospect about the future Ethiopia just by making analysis. You can compile by taking the data from the current trends and you can make analysis while you hold this test full Mead. No critical work to interpret your data, just simply talk while you drink it; the external knowledge which beyond your brain will come near to you and it tells to you. Then you speak what it is telling to you.” He said and took a sip from the mead. I needed to add additional mead then I called the waitress. “Do you need an addition?” She asked me.

“Yeah, pour to me. Please?” I said. And she poured to me from the Jar with its natural nectars of the honey flower. The man is with his friend, still talking. “Okay, so your spirits are telling to you.” I said.

“Yeah,” he said and continued his discourse. “Once up on a time I interviewed a person who was from South about this issue. What he did reply to me was ‘unless otherwise, I lose Chatt,…” He was addicted of taking chatt. Chatt has a biological name which is called Catha edulis, and it is an important perennial crop and its leaves are chewed for a stimulating effect. It is widely cultivated in the Ethiopian highlands region. And is figured as Ethiopia's second largest foreign exchange earner. Its cultivation accounts for about 70% of farmer's income in the study area.” The man describes statically. “ ….. May I need to fight to make free the lands of farmers for my chatt consumption if the place will have been occupied with any organs who can ban mine chatt passage road?” he asked him selves and continued to talk again. “…..The man from south, I interviewed, told to me like that.” he said and I laughed. He continued his talking: “ I personally don’t want to think about the land of Assab and Asmara by being on Arbaminch town if I originated from the south; but, the better is to think near about neighbors to live with them, like borders country Kenya is better to me instead of the northern part of Ethiopia. By making Arbaminch and Kenya to be united I prefer to live and called by Kenya because Kenya is near to Arbaminch City. What could he say to me if the previous Amhara king hears mine wish? He may order to hang up me but that isn’t his right now!” he said to his friends.

“Is it enough? Is it all about your opinion? ” I asked him.

“Yes… I have no opinion differently to this? Whether you say to me about the issue of Assab Port or the freedom of Ethiopia; all have gotten their freedom. But there are peoples who have not emancipated from their mindset territory. They have built their territories on their mind and they always think about it. But I think to work everywhere. We are not concerned about Assab and Ethiopia Border; however, we are concerned about how to work jobs everywhere. We don’t want National Citizenship but we need to own all the point of the world.” I laughed and surprised with his talk and I asked him that “who are you and you’ll?”

“I am the lover of mead and borderless citizen.” He replied to me.

“But you are not alone, you mitigate to your tribe also. You have a dream to be victorious on all nations for your tribe then to build one nation of the world with the name of your tribe.” I said.

“If it is possible, I wish to be!” he said. 

“So, can we say that one truth?”

“What is it?”

“You are racist.” I said.

“Yeah, in the perspective of Nationalism I am not racist, but in the perspective of globalism I am racist.” He said.

“Yeah, you need not border but you need one global nation.” I said.

“You are said it well.” he said and observed his mead. Almost his mead glass or locally known the Birelle is empty. He made a clap with his palms. The waitress came to him and poured one Birelle. He sipped once and put it on the solid wooden bench which was infront of him and other drinkers. Then he asked me that “are you satisfied with my response?”

“Yes.” I said.

“Is there anything to ask me?

“Yes, “I said and asked him,” What do you think about ethnic-based political parties in this country?”

He said that, “All are greedy! They don’t want to give their own but they want to accept from others. The Eritrean Party struggled and took everything from us, and finally while we asked him for us from him; he refused and started to fought. The Tigrian People Political party, which is called woyane still tries to take from us and not want to give to us; all Amhara tribe deligate parties are always striving to benefit for themselves but all others have been awaken about them not to give from themselves; so that most Amharas are changing their tribe name and fleeing  from their family houses. The other greediest party and members are the Oromo tribes delegate parties who are always striving to take for themselves and now they have become successful to snitch benefits from others. But their victory is only around central Ethiopia. Don’t expect good things from ethnic-based Political parties unless otherwise, the delegate of your tribe party wins to hold the power. If you won, you will robe, you will accuse innocents, you can kill, you can beg by name of other penurious tribes from abroad and take away for your selves if UN and other entities give to your begging. This is the worst country of all nations.” He said to me and I looked fixed with his ideas.

April 25, 2020

To be continued