ERI-NEWS
Bi-Weekly Newsletter
Prepared by the Press Section of thePermanent Mission of the State of Eritrea to AU
and UNECA‘Regional Cooperation not a Matter of Choice but
Necessity’: President Isaias Afwerki
President Isaias
Afwerki, on 7th
October 2017, gave aninterview to national
media outlets focusing on domestic andregional developments.

Vol 4. Issue 73
02 November 2017
Inside this issue:

President Isaias
Afwerki Sent
Message ofCondolence toSomali President

The following areexcerpts from the partof the interview onenhancing regional cooperation andthe reform of the African Union.
Question: Mr. President, the world
appears to be morphing from a unipolar to bi-polar international order.
What is your take on the role of Africa
in the unfolding international order?
President Isaias Afwerki: There isbroad consensus that in the 50 years
since its foundation, the African Union
has not lived up to the expectations ofthe African people. The founding principles have not been crystallized. In viewof these realities, the AU recently
established a task force, led by Rwandan
President Paul Kagame to revitalize theAfrican Union. The task force enumerated eight points that amplify the shortcomings of the Union.

We are not living in the middle ages orin the 19th century. We are living in the21st century. If we depend on our individual resources only instead of developing mutual cooperation with ourneighborhood, we will not be able toachieve the envisaged goals. The argument here is that regional cooperation is
not a matter of choice but necessity.
After 1991, IGAD, COMESA and theAfrican Union embarked on promisingtransformations. However, the ultimate
outcomes fell short of expectations.

The Politics ofReligion

34

In the 21st century, the only continentContact Addresses:
Tel: +251-116620052
that remains marginalized is Africa.
Fax:+251-116620011
European, North American, Latin Email:eritreanaumission@
American and Asian countries are
gmail.com
P.o.Box:5527
progressing while Africa remains in aAddis
Ababa,
Ethiopia
perplexing situation. Without focusing
at the continental level alone, if we
Eritrean Mission tocould enhance cooperation at theAU& ECA
regional level, we could have managed@EritreaAU
Before we talk about the impending many of our challenges. The assessment
restructuring of the AU, we need to ex- so far is that Africa is in a dire situation.
amine the overall international context.
Contd. on page 2

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A conducive environment should be created forconcerted action and for common benefits. We cannot forever live on managing crises and problems.
We cannot be spectators only and expect solutions
from others. We should do our homework.
When many African countries gained their independence in the 20th century, there was an African euphoria and profound aspirations. These were embodied in
the initiative of the Founding Fathers. As a result,
Pan Africanism was enunciated and later the Organization of African Unity established. But the OAU did
not live up to the expectations. Africa was in fact
sliding back to neo-colonialism.

Different studies indicate that Africa possesses 60% of
the world’s resources. And the question is why is itthat a continent that possesses so much resources
remains marginalized in the 21st century? Africa has
the potential to help others instead of depending on
external assistance. There is China-Africa Cooperation, Japan-Africa Cooperation, India- Africa Cooperation, etc. Various forums have also been convened
under different themes and labels; but they havegenerally failed to produce meaningful and tangibleresults. Maintenance of neo-colonial ties under different labels, such as Anglophone, Francophone andothers, is only meant to exploit the resources of thecontinent. The migration of African youth to Europe
and to other countries emanates from this state ofaffairs.

We were convinced from the outset that the OAU
should be reformed to be a better organization. Therestructuring initiative was led by the then Libyan
We cannot forever live on managing crises
President, Muammar Qaddafi. Unfortunately, theandproblems. We cannot be spectators only
approach taken to restructure the OAU was notand expect solutions from others. We shouldappropriate. Qaddafi had his own vested interest andambitions. The thinking was that if there is a Eurodo our homework.
pean Commission, why not an African Commission?
He wanted the AU to be a carbon copy of the EU. In
reality that was not viable. The comparison was not African Union Summits are convened regularly andthey adopt numerous resolutions. But who are therealistic or practical.
architects, masterminds of these resolutions? Security
What should be the role and place of Africa? We agencies from Europe and the US often meddle inshould first and foremost profoundly understand the these internal continental affairs. This cannot be
unfolding world order; the economic, social, cultural beneficial to Africa.
and infrastructural transformations. Then we canThe corruption that permeates the system is unimaginidentify the goals we want to achieve.
able. Instead of Africans exploiting their own
Africa should be transformed. We should develop our resources, others are taking advantage of it. Henceindustries and export processed items instead of raw Africa can only extricate itself from these trends thatmaterials. We should introduce technology; and are fraught with breeding neo-colonial realities if thedevelop our human resources, education, and health African Union and other regional institutions on thefacilities. These should be the main goals that we continent assume appropriate structures and mandates
need to achieve.
that promote the real aspirations of the African
There were counterarguments that focused on short population.
cuts as this process would take a long time. The We cannot, however, blame the external forces for thetransformation of the OAU to the African Union was malaise that is besetting the continent. The problems
indeed heavily influenced by these considerations. are solely ours and we are responsible for solving
This approach in turn entailed enormous problems in them. This will transpire when we conduct a thoroughterms of budget allocations, the charting out develop- assessment and map out tangible and viable programs.
ment programs, and financial management.
This is not emotional or floated for PR consumption.
Contd. on page 3
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The challenges are not, of course, easy. When IGAD
was reformed, these issues were raised andthoroughly discussed. We proposed developing
cooperation at the regional level. What happened toIGAD? IGAD which initially gave us a sense of hopefor robust regional cooperation became counterproductive; inciting conflict and misunderstanding
among Member States. It became an instrument foradvancing the sinister agenda of foreign forces.

President Isaias Afwerki: Without going far, had weestablished strong cooperation in our neighborhood with Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya,
Somalia, and Djibouti - the negative developmentsthat have transpired in these past years could havebeen avoided. We could have developed commonprograms in different sectors for the common benefit
to our peoples. Above all we could have secured peace
and tranquility in the entire region.

We are interested in policy harmonization with ourneighbors. If the policies of individual countries are
Africa has the potential to help others
instead of depending on external assistance. not in harmony with others in the neighborhood, we
will not realize the cooperation we aspire for. In thepast 25 years, the opportunity lost due to unnecessary
Still, we cannot live in isolation; we have to make conflicts is immeasurable.
our modest contribution for stability and peace in our In this 21st century, no one can claim to have a strong
neighborhood. We need to demonstrate active economy while living in isolation. This applies equallyengagement.
to developed nations too. We need to create a conduQuestion: How do you think Eritrea benefits from cive environment for mutual economic cooperation.
the AU restructuring?
And that is not an option but a necessity.

President Isaias Afwerki Sent Message of Condolence to Somali President
President Isaias Afwerki sent a message of condolence and solidarity to the President of Somalia, H.E.
Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, following the terrorist attack in Mogadishu on 14 October 2017 whichclaimed the lives of hundreds of people. The full textof the message is as follows:
Asmara, 17 October 2017

behalf of the Government and people of Eritrea andon my own behalf – our heartfelt condolences to theGovernment and people of Somalia.
In these trying times, we are confident that thepeople of Somalia will summon the necessary resolve
and strength to vanquish the cowardly forces ofdarkness and mayhem.

Dear Mr. President,

The Government and people of Eritrea stand firmly
on the side of the Somali Government as it strives torestore, under Your Excellency’s steadfast leadership, enduring peace and normalcy to the country by
defeating Al Shebaab and all forms and manifestations of terrorism.

In these harrowing days where the people of Somalia have yet again suffered a pernicious terrorist
attack of huge proportions, allow me to extend – on

Sincerely
Isaias Afwerki

H.E. Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed
President of the Federal Republic of Somalia
Mogadiscio

Vol 4. Issue 73, 02 November 2017

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The Politics of Religion
The scourge of terrorism perpetrated under themantle of religion; the upheavals, huge loss of lifeand destruction of property that it entails are not,indeed, new in the annals of the political history ofmankind. But it has assumed new dimensions in thiscentury. As such, it is breeding instability in various
parts of our world; posing as it does a serious threat
to international peace and security and causing
increasing consternation among powerful and weaknations alike. The phenomenon accordingly warrants
a profound appraisal and serious approach that iscommensurate to its gravity.

Christianity was introduced in Eritrea (the Land ofHabesha then), in 329 A.D. Islam also came to thisland while Prophet Mohammed was still alive(between 570-632 A.D); when his followers, the“Sahaba”, sought sanctuary in the Land of Habesha
from persecution in their homeland. The Bahre
Negestat at the time refused to repatriate the “Sahab”
to whom they had given refuge when they wereexpressly requested to do so. From that time
onwards, the Christian and Islamic faiths in thecounty have co-existed in harmony and unity. The
overarching lesson of the story is not the historicaldetails (indeed as this is “claimed” by those who
really own the history and others who pretend to); but
the value-system that it projects. This value-system
has ever since become woven into the socio-econom-

ic and cultural lifestyle of the society; and constitutes
the distinct heritage of the civilization of the subsequent generations. The people of Eritrea are fortunate
and proud to be the inheritors of this value-system.
Even during the second half of the 19th Century,
during the expansion of colonialism, the entrenchedfaiths and value-systems could not be indented in spiteof strenuous external efforts to introduce “new faiths”.
The “religious” ploy that was invoked to weaken andpolarize Eritrea’s national political movement was
likewise thwarted in the 1940s after the end of theSecond World War. The story was the same during thenational liberation struggle. Nothing
new can emerge now; in this postindependence phase of nation building. The unflinching resistance ofthe Eritrean people, before andshortly after independence, when
Bin Laden was frantically working
to wreck havoc in the region byusing the Sudan as a springboard andby recruiting, organizing and arming Jihadists in Afghanistan, isindeed well known to merit elaboration here.
The value-system of the Eritrean
people remains intact in these times
in which mercenaries hired by intelligence agencies ordeluded elements are resorting to similar ploys to foment chaos and advance their selfish interests. Theirvaried and deceitful approaches that include: “we havea new bible” … “We wish to preach to you the Wordsof God” , “We can purify you” , “We can give you aticket to Heaven”… “Mahdi will be coming soon; so
we have to prepare the ground etc” continue to be seen
and rejected, as ever, as alien and subversive agendas.
Indeed, any activity that aims to foment turmoil andterrorism, through overt or covert subversion in thename of religion – whether in its Christian or Islamicvariant; fundamentalist or “moderate” façade, is nottolerated by the Eritrean people as it constitutes aserious matter of national security.

Vol 4. Issue 73, 02 November 2017