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I was surprised by the number of replies I received over a critical article I wrote regarding the moral and intellectual stand of two Eritrean citizens -- Dr. Seyoum Haregot and Dr Amare Tekle, who continue to withhold their personal views on the current state of affairs on one side and on the other side, interestingly enough, dare to impugn Prof. Bereket Habtesellasie, a vocal government critic who has already shared with us his views exuberantly. My argument was (quoting myself from my previous essay):

What I fail to understand is why Dr. Amare Tekle, a former student of Prof. Bereket and whose Ph.D. thesis is on the ethiopianness of Eritrea, and Dr. Seyoum Haregot whose world had been turned upside down by the Dergue, would go out of their ways and make such a subjective and condemnatory statement against a former colleague. Considering their education and credentials, they have clearly disgraced themselves and the intellectual community in general. These individuals are supposed to set an example by exercising their intellectual leadership which the country desperately requires, and take on discrepant issues of national importance. They failed to present an objective and educated stand on issues that are brutally ruling and destroying our lives.

In order to support my argument, i.e. for the need to understand their views in light of the realities on the ground, I presented hard facts that are known to all of us. They are:

Eritrea is in trouble in all aspects of its livelihood;
PIA has gone out of control;
Our heroes are in prison;
Our Chief Justice Teame has been dismissed;
Our University Students have been dealt with heavy-handedly;
Our independent newspapers are shut down by the government;
Our citizens are being harassed by government security forces;
EU representatives have been pulled out of Eritrea;
Our elders who tried to mediate the crisis are being rounded up.
Veteran fighters are being jerked around.
Our defense forces are still lingering in their trenches for the third consecutive year.
Our youth are fleeing the country in droves and are asking for political asylum abroad.

… and more.

Again, since I understand Prof. Bereket's stand on the above facts, I argued, it is imperative to understand Dr Seyoum's and Dr Amare's views as well because both of them have dared to come out and condemn Prof. Bereket publicly. I believe they have an obligation to prove to us that they are not being handled by either the president or the president's men (Mr Zemihret Yohannes and Co.). Their views have monumental importance to us because we need to clearly understand that they, by being very close the president, are not compromising the uncompromisable -- issues pertaining to justice, fairness and democracy. To that effect I argued:

… Dr Amare and Dr Seyoum are very much aware of the fact that our people are suffering at the hands of the president +PFDJ leadership. If they are brave enough to condemn Prof. Bereket, who had the audacity to fulfill his intellectual duties by critically assessing the current situation in Eritrea, then, by the same token, those two should prove to us they can be of much use to Eritrea by assessing and publicly stating the true nature of our political, social and economic landscapes. If they can't exercise their intellectual responsibilities and show us their integrity then they will only be proving to us their own perilous hypocrisies.

A vocal PFDJ supporter by the name of Ms. Sophie Tesfamariam, argued, rather weakly, on the basis of the FUD effect -- the orchestrated diffusion of Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt. I am not going to address that skewed thought because the writer has clearly demonstrated to me through her dishonest use of the FUD effect that she seriously lacks basic integrity and crucial analytical skills. How is it possible for the Eritrean public not to see what is taking place around them? How is it possible for the government and its spokespeople to blame their obvious shortcomings on others, and then accuse them of spreading fear, uncertainty and doubt? If she is sincerely of the opinion that the facts that are being presented are simple and self-serving lies, then I would like to suggest to her to get rid of her emotional attachment first and then apply the concept of FUD to the issues at hand. If she has other personal gains and interests that are interfering with her feelings in presenting objective arguments, then I suggest that she weigh the whole matter on the basis of the realities on the ground. I would also like to suggest to the writer to look into the following issues before she, and many like her, attempts to spread Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt to the general public through her arguments I find rather incoherent.

These are the facts in the Eritrean social, economic and political landscape:

Eritrea has lost 19,000 lives (government figure) in a war that could have been avoided.
The war produced approximately over 40,000 war injured (non-government figure based on common sense).
Tens of thousands of immediate families of the 19,000 dead and 40,000 injured members of the defense forces are severely affected.
Eritrea has over 150,000 internally displaced citizens (according to estimation given by aid agencies).
Eritrea has over 100,000 deportees whose world turned upside down (according to figures given by the government sources).
Eritrea has over 150,000 refugees in the Sudan.
Eritrea has lost 150,000Sq Km (most of which is arable land).
Many critical citizens, journalists and ex-government officials are in jail.
The students of the University of Asmara do not get university education.
Human rights issues are not observed in Eritrea.
Thousands of refugees are arriving at European and American airports.
Eritrea is an isolated country.
Loss of material resources: the list will be too long (loss of revenues, money spent on arms, the effects of war on families …etc.)
Most of all there is no democracy and no constitutional government in Eritrea.

... and many more.

If Ms Sophie Tesfamarian cannot understand the above listed basic facts about Eritrea then there is little use in explaining to her the need for Dr Seyoum Haregot and Dr Amare Tekle to clearly state their views on the current state of affairs in Eritrea. She may need to develop a new theme that is constructive (not intimidating) and one that compliments not the president but the poor people of Eritrea.

As far as Prof. Bereket is concerned, I have a clear understanding what he stands for because I, like thousands of Eritreans, read views in black and white. What I need to understand is, I hope there are many others like me out there, the views and positions of these two gentlemen. They are close to the president and they see him in action everyday. At the same time, they are close to our people and they see the suffering from close proximity. Do they have any moral obligation to activate their intellectual prowess and put it at the service of the suffering? Yes they do. History will definitely judge them for what they are and they are not during these trying times.