Dates in Eritrean History

-             The Eritrea’s Federation with Ethiopia was dissolved on 14 November 1962?

-             Waala Biet Giorghis was held during the month of November 58 years ago? Assab was sold in November 1869?

-             That the first leaders of Eritrean workers were elected in November 1952 and that 1^st of January 1952 was designated as Eritrean Workers’ Day for annual celebrations?

Nharnet.com is pleased to continue this monthly brief by month and date on Eritrean history, and would appreciate it much if readers would kindly send us important dates for each month of the year. The list below is for November.

·          6 November 1991: Declaration in Asmara of the infamous national service of Isayas Afeworki.

·          12 November 1947: The UN Four-Power Fact-Finding Commission entered Asmara and stayed in Eritrea till 3 January 1948.

·          12 November 1971: The First Congress of the ELF concluded its 29-day deliberations and came out with a national democratic programme. The former president of the Eritrean Assembly in the 1950s, Idris Mohammed Adem, was elected president of the ELF, and Herui Tedla Bairu was elected vice-president.

·          14 November 1962: The Eritrean-Ethiopian Federation was dissolved in violation of the UN General Assembly Resolution 390 A(V) of 2 December 1950.

·          14 November 1971: The First Congress of the ELF ended its 29-day deliberations at the historic Arr near the Eritrean-Sudanese border area.

·          15 November 1869: Giuseppe Sapeto bought the Bay of Assab on behalf the Rubattino company from two brothers Sultan Hassen and Sultan Ibrahim Shihem.

·          16 November 1952: General Union of Eritrean Workers in Asmara elects leaders: Woldeab Woldemariam as president; Siraj Abdu. vice president; Tewolde Tedla secretary general, and Cavaliere Abdella Gonafir treasurer. The 1^st of January 1953 was celebrated as Eritrean Workers’ Day at Cinema Impero. Up to 20,000 people reportedly attended the celebration. It is to be recalled agreement to form the union was reached on 28 November 1951 in a meeting held at the house of Cav. Abdalla Gonafir.

·          17 November 1875: The defeat of the Egyptians at Godagudi south of Asmara by the army of Emperor Yohannes IV.

·          24 November 1946: Waala Biet Giorghis in Asmara. (See story below.)

·          24 November 1887: Work started on the construction of the railway line between Massawa and Munkulu.

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‘Waala’ Biet Giorghis

Nharnet.com posted this article two years ago this month as it received it from a contributor. Nharnet is once more pleased to post again almost all sections of that historical reference at the occasion of the 58^th anniversary of Waala Biet Giorghis. The material can be considered ‘a must reading’ for young Eritreans and all those who knew little about the stiff political struggle of generations of Eritreans for self-determination and national independence. Good reading.

***

This week marks the [58^th]anniversary of an important conference that was convened in the outskirts of Asmara on Sunday 24 November 1946 on Eritrea’s emerging political trends of that period.

The conference, better known as Waala Biet Giorgis, was the brainchild of the independence-minded patriots like Woldeab Woldemariam who wanted to reconcile differences among the various trends by agreeing on middle ground. The elite of the time expected much from that early Eritrean political gathering. Unfortunately, Ethiopia, working through Eritrean collaborators, sabotaged it. In short, the Waala was made to forget its main agenda on the future of the country and, instead, was diverted to a none-issue when Tedla Bairu, totally a newcomer to the group, provoked discussion on the ‘origin’ of Woldeab Woldemariam and questioned Woldeab’s right to talk for Eritrea. Believe it or not, that was all what the Waala discussed before it was disrupted by unionist hooligans armed with knives and pistols.

Thanks to two valuable sources - Alemseged Tesfai’s Aynfelale and Jordan Ghebremdhin’s Peasants and Nationalism in Eritrea - we have some historical record on that sad, yet important, event in modern Eritrean history. Based on those sources, I will try to give readers a summary of Waala Biet Giorgis, which gives added significance today as we read about the recent meeting of the Alliance in Addis Ababa and also as we still think of the proposed National Conference of the Eritrean opposition.

In 1941, i.e. soon after the defeat of Italy and the establishment of the British in the territory, Eritrean elite of the day formed the [Eritrean] Patriotic Association (some writers prefer to call it ‘Party of Love of Country’). At the start, people were in genuine search for their destiny. The question: ‘what should the future of Eritrea be?’ was in the minds of all politically conscious Eritreans. A moderate intellectual called Gebre-Meskel Woldu chaired the [Eritrean] Patriotic Association. Abdulkadir Kebire was his deputy.

By 1946, the group consisted of two major contending political trends that needed reconciliation. One was a faction calling for Eritrea’s association with Ethiopia and another faction advocating a separate status. Those who wanted ‘association’ with Ethiopia were led by Gebre-Meskel Woldu and the ‘separatists’ by Abdulkadir Kebire.

The differences between the two factions were sharpened following a number of domestic and international incidents that can be summed as follows:

1. Ethiopian Liaison Office in Eritrea: In March 1946, Ethiopia appointed a Liaison Officer in Eritrea by the name of Col. Nega Haile Selassie. His duty was to instigate differences among Eritreans, mainly on religious lines, and create a unionist movement like the ‘Society for the Unification of Eritrea with Ethiopia’ that the Emperor’s government created in Addis Ababa a year earlier. During May-July 1946, anti-Arab, anti-Islam and anti-Italy demonstrations were staged in Eritrea. Lives of individuals became under serious threat by paid agents. The British tried to maintain public security in Eritrea through what was called Sudanese Defense Force (SDF). While doing its job, the force was dubbed by Col. Nega and his team as “enemy of Christian Eritreans”.

2. Tor’a-Tsenadegle Conflict: On 15 August 1946, the Tor’a and Tsenadegle conflict erupted in Akele-Guzai; 14 were killed and 40 wounded from both sides. It is said that dispute over ownership of land was the cause of the conflict although people did not stop associating it with religion and the potential of sectarian conflict in the territory.

3. The 28 August 1946 massacre in Asmara: It was Eid Day, and members of the SDF were playing cards near Aba Shaul. A simple scuffle with a young Eritrean “Christian” resulted in the death of one Sudanese soldier. The SDF interpreted it as an open attack on the SDF by “Christians”. A few hours later, 70-armed Sudanese soldiers went downtown Asmara and massacred people in “Christian” quarters of the city; 46 were killed and 70 wounded. Col. Nega capitalized on the incident. The Coptic Church found a rallying cry for immediate union with Ethiopia, then claiming to be “protector of Christian Eritreans”. Eritrean Moslems had nothing to do with the SDF or the that incident but the massacre was exploited as a “Moslem-Christian” conflict by interested quarters.

4. Paris Peace Treaty: On 25 September 1946, the Paris Peace Treaty of the major powers agreed to dispossess Italy of its former colonies. The peoples in the former Italian territories would be asked their future preferences. Soon after the Paris meeting, the British authorities allowed Eritreans to form political movements and parties.

5. Assassination Attempts: During September 1946, bombs were lobbed at leading ‘separatist’ figures in Asmara. Bombs missed Degiat Hassen Ali and Haj Imam Mussa.

Woldeab Woldemariam and his group saw the looming danger. Many members of the Patriotic Association (which was still Eritrean in aim) thought that there was still time for them to iron out differences within the group by adopting a common platform that they can be reached through political compromises. The factions accepted the slogan of ‘dialogue, unity and democracy’. Even Fit. Gebre-Meskel Woldu agreed with Woldeab and others on putting conditions on Ethiopia before any association was entered to. The first meeting for adopting an agenda was held on 16 November 1946. It is said that a 12-point item agenda was accepted suggesting the idea of an autonomous Eritrea, which would enjoy civil liberties like freedom of press, religion, association, formation of parties and settle the issue of languages on local preferences. The British authorities were advised on the matter, and granted permission for the main Waala to take place in Biet Giorgis as scheduled. Therefore, the proposed agenda at Waala Biet Giorgis was to discuss among Eritreans what form of self-determination they would accept.

Col. Nega, who knew what was going on in the [Eritrean] Patriotic Association, was angered. He was in Addis on reporting mission after the August massacre, and he hurriedly returned to Asmara together with a representative of the unionist society in Addis Ababa. It was claimed that they returned to Asmara carrying bags of “money and bombs”.

Unionists Meet, Tedla Bairu Emerges

Upon his return to Asmara in the eve of the Waala, Col. Nega held an emergency meeting with supporters in which Fit. Gebre-Meskel was harangued to humiliation and suspended from leadership of the unionist faction within the [Eritrean] Patriotic Association. He was asked to renounce his agreement with the ‘separatists’ and he did. The meeting of unionists with Col.Nega agreed to stop the Waala from taking place. But if it was somehow to be convened, then it was no more Gebre-Meskel Woldu but Tedla Bairu who was asked by the neighbouring country to lead the team. Many observers, including Kennedy Trevaskis, recorded that even the meeting of the two factions for formulating the agenda might not have taken place if Col. Nega were in Asmara on 16 November 1946, but now it was too late to stop the meeting of the Waala on 24 November 1946.

The Main Waala, 24 November

By 10 am of the fixed date, some 30 delegates from the faction of the supporters for independence arrived at the meeting place led by Degiat Hassen Ali of Meraguz. Other key figures included Woldeab Woldemariam, Ibrahim Sultan, Berhanu Ahmedin, Yohannes Teklai, Omar Sufaf and others. The huge number of delegates of the unionist faction in the Patriotic Association, which included many youth, arrived late. Beside the new star, Tedla Bairu, other key figures in the delegation included Degiat Beyene Beraki, Blatta Demsas W/Michael and the humiliated Fit. Gebre-Meskel Woldu

The atmosphere of the gathering was so tense that no one could take it for what it was originally planned – a meeting for peace, unity and reconciliation. It was far from that.

First to speak was Bl. Demsas W/Michael who said: “You callers for independence, you are mistaken. When one talks to parents, one does not make conditions. We Eritreans cannot make conditions to be united with Ethiopia. We just unite”. The subdued Fit. Gebre-Meskel also spoke against “conditional union” and against all what he previously agreed in the 12-point agenda for the Waala. The independentists knew that the whole thing has been reversed and that there was little do be done at this long-awaited Waala.

The other speaker was Tedla Bairu who presented the unionist version with threats of action against those who would dare to try to stop them. He immediately drew the attention of the meeting to the origin of Woldeab, and finger-pointing at Woldeab said: “You are from Tigrai; why do you meddle in Eritrean affairs by sometimes calling for trusteeship and at other times talking about conditional union with Ethiopia”. This talk diverted the attention of the meeting. Woldeab responded in the strongest terms possible expressing pride in being part of a solution for Eritrea to which he had come from nearby Tigrai and that he would have more claim to assist in Eritrean politics than others who may not have much closer geographical proximity as he as far as blood relationship and origin is concerned. Soon, the unionist hooligans started to harass Woldeab Woldemariam and his group. Woldeab was taken away in a car to Adi Nefas where he spent the whole day to avoid any head-on coalition with the thugs.

Moves for reconciliation and dialogue between the two factions was stopped. The time was ripe to form one’s own political party for the struggle that was opening.

The surprise at the Waala was the emergence of Tedla to a top postion. Tedla was a British civil servant until only a few weeks before the convening of the Waala. Woldeab himself wrote: “No one knew how and from where this Tedla came to the unionist side”. Tedla retorted defending his past service to Ethiopia: “May the Lord reward me and my children”. Jordan Geremendhin wrote in his 1989 book:” Tedla Bairu made his entry into unionist politics preceding Waala Biet Giorgis and acquired fame in his zealous sabotage of the Waala’s efforts at peace and reconciliation”. It has been asserted that Col. Nega thought Tedla was an easy-to-handle figure in Eritrea because of his lack of domestic support: “Not a full-blooded [habesha] neither a Copt nor a Moslem, Ato Tedla Bairu, according to Col. Nega, found himself in a weak and precarious position”.