Author: Ustaz Mahmoud
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The Risks And Challenges Facing The Youth Movements
No doubt many of us are glad when the youth make fast strides towards establishing a united and independent movement that will enable them to fully utilise the great potential they possess and effectively channel it to accelerate the national struggle for democratic change. Naturally, relationships between the older and younger generations are not expected
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Eritrea: A Dissection Of The Opposition
The current Eritrean opposition organisations are offshoots of the mainstream politics of either the ELF or the EPLF; both organisations had a distinct political experience, stemming from different social and cultural background that contributed in creating separate trends that greatly impacted the course of the Eritrean history and general developments of the past and present
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Eritrean Youth And Their Political Positions
These are my reflections on why some of the Eritrean youth are either supporters of the regime or politically indifferent. Youth is a social sector defined by an age group normally ranging from 15-35 but the regime extends the upper limit to 40 or more to suite its manipulative purposes. In Eritrea, like in any
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National Unity Existing Only As Virtual Reality
The question of national unity is of a paramount importance and to a great extent, the way it is resolved would determine the preservation and continuation of Eritrea as an integral united nation. Eritrean history clearly demonstrates that we have thoroughly and fundamentally failed in resolving that and other important issues. This could mainly be
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A political Tsunami
A Tsunami of popular upheavals has hit the region and on its way it has swept two of the most brutal and deeply entrenched dictatorial regimes: Bin Ali of Tunisia and Mubarak of Egypt. Others will hopefully follow them soon, Inshaa Allah. The unabated waves are still spreading over, shaking the foundations of many regimes
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Eritrean Political Equation: Dynamics Of Constants And Variables
My awareness that I’m delving into a very difficult and complex subject does diminish my enthusiasm to share my modest opinion with the readers. The motive behind this endeavour is primarily a quest for a badly needed sense of order in the chaotic state of the Eritrean politics. It is no doubt a magnanimous task
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Calling A Spade A Spade
‘Say the truth and lie on a railway line.’ I pondered about the above quoted ancient Eritrean wisdom. The literal translation sounds a bit strange; it sounds as if it encourages committing a senseless suicidal act. But the real meaning is far from that; it stresses the value of saying the truth irrespective of the
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Opposition By Default
It is a matter of common sense that any two should not dispute, that the primary task of any opposition is to call and struggle to bring about the necessary democratic changes by all possible means to achieve what the ruling government has failed to a achieve for its people. In a case like ours,
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My Understanding Of A National Conference
A national conference that measures up to its name should reflect the compatibility of that with the composition of its participants, the goals and tasks set, the results achieved and the mechanism and means adopted. Reality is so complex to squeeze and fit into a rigid pattern or criteria set ahead. Thus allowance should be
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Addis 2010: NCDC Participation And Issues (II)
After one of the group sessions, a Tigre speaking colleague who attended the conference remarked, “I do not like the Tigrinya word ግና ‘gnna’ (but). Some Tigrinya speakers express excellent views and suddenly everything they had stated is spoiled after they utter the word ‘gnna.” We had an outspoken Tigrinya speaker in our group who
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Who Is To Blame?
Are some of the issues that are recently raised in a number of articles a tip of an iceberg, or they are tiny ripples in a cup that will ultimately vanish? Are they objective manifestations of a grim reality that some of us didn’t notice? Are they subjective issues which exist only in the minds
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What Type Of Unity?
Eritrea‘s current geographical borders, and the people within that Domain, had not emerged through a natural process of development to form a nation state. Like most African states, Eritrea is an outcome of a colonial scramble in search of raw materials and new markets which the then developing economies of the West required; the colonialists
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Realisation One’s Wrong Deed Is A Virtue
Really an astonishing and a historical revelation was made by the Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi in one of his last election campaigns. He definitely has a strong ethnic, cultural and (until recently) political ties with the kebesa community in Eritrea that no one can deny. Thus, no reasonable person can accuse him of trying to