Awate.com apologizes for a previous error but falls to more serious  misrepresentations of ELF-RC position

On December 14, 2002, Awate.com posted a news report titled " ELF-RC Leadership Still in Ethiopia".  In that report, they apologize for the December 4th erroneous news but blame it on our senior cadre stating " a senior member of ELF-RC leadership, gave us misleading information and the aforementioned delegates did not go to Sudan."  We want our readers to know that the senior cadre confirmed to Awate.com that our leadership had plans to leave for Khartoum - never confirmed dates or arrivals

It was not the first erroneous report either.  They had two previous erroneous reports that prompted response from Nharnet.com:

a.       Date:  Nov. 19, 2002:  "Ahmed Mohammed Nasser, the head of the unity affairs office of the ELF-RC, is also traveling to Khartoum. The leaders of the two organizations will meet with Sudanese officials separately. Observers say that it is likely that the two leaders will also have a bilateral meeting."  

b.      Date: Nov. 21, 2002: " Meanwhile, Mr. Ahmed Mohammed Nasser, the chair of ELF-RC’s Unity Affairs Desk who had been visiting the Sudan, has traveled to Ethiopia leaving a colleague, Mr. Ibrahim Mohammed Ali, in Khartoum."

while Ahmed Nasser never left to Khartoum and apparently could not have come back. This concerns us as it appears to be a pattern rather than an isolated incident.

As to the rest of the report,  Awate.com shall have to apologise for still more erroneous reporting with perceptible unhealthy propensity:

Once again, the following reports on Awate.com are completely false and willy-nilly part of the smear campaign unleashed by the enemies of the ELF-RC who are feverishly on the lookout for a cover up to the conspiracies hatched at the last Alliance Session.

1. Mr. Seyoum O.Michael, chairman of the ELF-RC, never, ever implicitly or explicitly rejected any invitation extended by the Government of the Sudan. The visit was delayed by the long wait for exit visas and then postponed for other reasons, but definitely not by Sudanese undercover rejection excuses related to Eid Al Fetr or other, as reported by the awate website. The ELF-RC delegation shall go ahead with the planned visit to the Sudan Alsheqiq at some later time; contrary to the report at awate.com, the visit shall in fact be made a high profile and official one.

2.  Indeed, it remains a fact, four ELF-RC leaders had to wait for exit visas for more than a month before they were accorded at the end of November. What normally used to take 48 hours had taken more than 48 days. Nonetheless, this did not and would not in any way affect ELF-RC relations with Ethiopia. In addition, no exit visa was exclusively acquired by any member of the leadership, contrary to what was pointedly reported at awate.com.  Other insinuations made in the report are indications of biases in the making, and no more.

3. Far from disrupting them in any manner, The ELF-RC, has been doing its best to maintain relations with Ethiopia and resume operating there. It doesn't lack the moral, political and national credentials to the extent of going to the unthinkable theatricalities of orchestrating its own rejection by what awate.com referred to as "Weyane". Those sources must be out of touch with reality or of minds too small to even speculate with the minimum of logics.

To be independent one does not necessarily have to go out of Ethiopia. Only the selfish and cowards need to do that. You need to genuinely espouse principled position, commitment to one's people's aspirations and interests and the morale and courage to stand, express and reflect this. In addition, Ethiopia is not that intolerant as to deny one the space of independent existence and expression.

The ELF-RC re-declared its claim to the contested territories in the midst of Addis Ahaba. It was from Addis Ababa as well that the organisation strongly condemned deportation of Eritrean residents as an abuse to their human and legal rights. The ELF-RC strongly and officially demanded the withdrawal of Ethiopian forces from Eritrea proper in 1999 and later in 2000, also while still in Addis Ababa. Again from Addis Ababa, the leadership has taken a strong unequivocal principled position against the succumbing of the rest of the allied groups to what they claimed as pressures and temptationas by neighbouring countries. The Ethiopians have respected our right to do so, and there we are.  The ELF-RC was the only voice on all those and more.

The ELF-RC is not against mutual influence among neighbours, or among all, for that matter; We do indeed encourage Ethio-Eritrean, Eritro-Sudanese, etc. mutual influence and interaction; that is natural, healthy and  unstoppable as long as we are all living on the same planet and closely so in the same neighbourhood. What we are against is interference in one another's exclusively internal matters, such as was claimed by the succumbing allied groups. We believe our neighbours as well woudn't tolerate a similar thing on their exclusive realm. Only small minds and discredited circles can go as low as trying to acquire artificial and laughable credentials through intentionally bringing upon themselves bans and bars of rejection by this or that country as the source of awate.com chose to sinisterly fantisise. We should wake up; we are not supposed to play futile games on the country of many.

4. No high-level ELF-RC cadres have signed any petition, as awate.com reported, to compel holding of meetings by the leadership. Holding of meetings in the organisation is normal and doesn't necessitate petitions and signatures.

No doubt, repeated reports of this kind could only be seen falling in line with what has already been embarked on by irresponsible quarters within the Alliance leadership: defamation of ELF-RC leadership, demonisation of its chairman, misrepresention of the organisation's position, and making inputs into the business of damaging ELF-RC relations with the neighbouring governments in the way of dislodging its presence in the region. Unfortunately for the dreams of the sources of the "report" and their insinuations, this won't materialise anytime soon. 

Nharnet.com wants to work hand and hand with Awate and all other Eritrean Websites that are geared towards a democratic change in our country and that stand for the salvation of our nation.  We are appreciative to the services they provide.  We however are obliged to set the record straight and respond when false news about our leadership, position, and organization are reported.  We also believe that it the right of any Eritrean to have position and take sides on certain timely issues and that is the whole essence of democracy.  However, it is better if it is done openly and should not be disguised under independent journalism.  The Nharnet team will work with Awate.com or any other News media to provide accurate information about the activities or our leadership, organizational position and other items of interest so that their readers can be served better.  We do not believe awate.com is referencing a credible source on these matters and they would be better off if they double check the information and consult with us.  They can also serve the reader better if they ask our position on certain issues and include our response in their report.