What Eritreans need to know about
Dr. Amare Tekle and Ato Andebrhan Weldegiorgis

Andehariat Araya.

Few days ago, I read an article posted by Gedab News at www.awate.com. This article talks about Dr. Amare Tekle and Andebrhan Weldegiorgis (please visit http://www.awate.com/artman/publish/article_4562.shtml).

Before I write my comments about these two opportunists and cowards of the worst type, I would like to stand and remember some of the intellectual and selfless Eritrean heroes of the Eritrean Revolution: Dr. Yahiya Jabir, Dr. Aregay Habtu, Dr. Fitsum Ghebresellasie, Dr. Iyob and  ______________________. These martyrs as well as those Eritreans who never had the chance to go to school of any kind will always be remembered by poor Eritrea and it’s children.

Now, I ask any responsible Eritrean or friend of Eritrea reading this note to excuse my ignorance and fill the blank above and if possible produce a better article on this issue than this short note.

Coming back to the title of this note, I am wondering to know if you are aware that:

  1. After Amare Tekle graduated from the University of Denver, he worked for the Haile Sellasie and Dergue governments in Ethiopia until he had a personal conflict with Goshu Wolde, Mengustus foreign Minister.  While he was at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he usually advised young Tigrinya speakers from Asmara University applying for their passports to study abroad not to be involved in politics when they go abroad. He says that his wife is an Eritrean and that he has a first hand knowledge of the wonbedie’s. He said that they are all Muslims with their faces cut signaling with his hand to his face.  He had benefited form the Janhoy and Dirge years. After being released by the Derge because of his ethnicity he went to the Ministry of foreign affairs to get his job back. He was told ishi nege, ishi nege for months. Finally, Goshu said yihen Sewiye abarurulign, and a security guard only pushed him out. If not for that degrading treatment, Amare could have been at the ministry of foreign affairs until now like some of the bureaucrat of Eritrean origin such as Ethiopia Haregot,  Heruy Amanuel etc. 

  2. Dr. Amare Tekle was looking for a job few months before he was elected by Isaias to lead the EPLF referendum on Eritrean Independence at the University of Denver (DU) where he got his PhD. During his interview for a position, he refused to answer questions on the relevance of Eritrean Independence. The are many Jewish faculty members at DU. Dr. Amare thought they were opposed to Eritrean Independence from Ethiopia. He tried to change the question to the Palestine Israel Problem. How damn

  3. Several Eritreans and Ethiopians graduated from DU with PhD, M.S. and BS. Professor Shepard later commented that he wished he were to talk about the Eritrean case. Many of the professors did not appreciate his own self-censorship about the issues of Eritrea. People literally could not understand why. When later asked by the Ethiopians and Eritrean why he did not talk about the Eritrean struggle for independence, he said that the professors are biased in favor of Ethiopia and deliberately avoided to talk about it. That cost him the job that went to the current Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Dr. Jendayi Frazor.  (Dr. Amare, please try to remember what you said at the Queen of Sheba Ethiopian Restaurant in Denver).

  4. I met Dr. Shepherd, Amare Tekle’s Advisor at DU sometime in 1993 and asked him if he agreed with Amare’s ideas and conclusions when he was finishing his studies. He told me (in the presence of my friends) that he had disagreements.  After the interview many Ethiopians and Eritreans asked him about his dissertation and he said that many people ask him about that and that every one has the right to change his mind based on circumstances.

  5. Dr. Shepherd was one of the people who were observers in the EPLF referendum.

  6. I wonder if you knew that Andebrhan Weldegiorgis was looking for a job with International organizations long time ago. For example, when he came to the USA in the summer of 1991(2?) as the president of University of Asmara, he applied for a job with the United Nations.

  7. More will come on Andebrhan soon, stay tuned.

One might be tempted to ask if Eritrea had ever produced a selfless intellectual fighter?  The answer is YES. I am a living witness that knows that many outstanding Eritrean students left their high school and university studies or comfortable life and joined the Eritrean Struggle for Independence from Ethiopia. I am also aware that most of those who did not have the gut to fight and hence decided to serve the Haile Sellasie and/or Mengstu’s regime of Ethiopian in the past are now in Asmara. We will have more about them in the future.