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Why I’m unreasonably optimistic about my #Ethiopia is b/c of HUMAN CAPACITY!
1/ Having worked on conflict affected counties, I came to learn the fact that human beings have special capacity and capability to cause unimaginable pain and suffering onto others. Imagine cannibalism!
1/ Having worked on conflict affected counties, I came to learn the fact that human beings have special capacity and capability to cause unimaginable pain and suffering onto others. Imagine cannibalism!
2/Despite misery caused by humans people are also capable of being compassionate and often kind-hearted. Remeber how many were saved by their neighbors or friends during the Rwandan genocide?Think of the different stories of such kind.
3/In #SouthSudan credible inquiry reports revealed how women are not only raped but sterilized; men, women, children and the elderly were massacred, dehumanized because of their ethnicity or identity.The human capacity forgets humanness if they’re “other-ed”.
4/I had the privilege of hearing the stories of IDPS from Malakal and Bentu. One of the woman was 60yrs old. She was gang raped by youth and while she talked, I tried to control my emotions. When I asked her what she wished to happen on the perpetrators, she surprisingly said..
5/“It’s not their fault the youth were brainwashed to target people like me. As much as Im in pain they must be in pain too.”All she wished was for her country to stop the scourge of conflict so the bleeding stops for the next generation Forgiving/forgetting is a HUMAN CAPACITY
6/Though Ethiopia had a violent past (esp. in the struggle for state formation), we seldom witnessed “horizontal violence” of such scale in recent history. Remeber the first shashemene violent incident? Why were those youth had an overpowering reason to kill?
7/ I imagined Ethiopians are somehow immune to devilish human nature, at least in this day and age. To my horror, the ugly in us stood in its naked form from shashemene, to Burayu and many more. It’s a HUMAN CAPABILITY
8/ Yet the complexity of human nature has redeeming aspects too. We have seen the humility of Gamo elders or the profound deeds of Haile Gebresilassie and many others whose stories didn’t make it to the internet but safeguarded their neighbors in this turbulent times.
9/ Ethiopia needs a healing, a dialogue and genuine reconciliation. We must say #ImEveryEthnicity as a way to fight injustices and ethnically targeted killings. https://mobile.twitter.com/EmebetGAbate/status/1099402184322625536
10/
እያደባበስነው
ሌላ ስም ሰጥተነው
እነሱ ናቸው እያልን
ያንዱ መከራ ስቃይ ለሌላው ምንም ሆኖ
የኔ በሚለው ሲመጣ ብቻ ህመሙ በረታ
ኧረ በቀረብኝ የዚህ ዘመን ሰው መሆኔ
እያደባበስነው
ሌላ ስም ሰጥተነው
እነሱ ናቸው እያልን
ያንዱ መከራ ስቃይ ለሌላው ምንም ሆኖ
የኔ በሚለው ሲመጣ ብቻ ህመሙ በረታ
ኧረ በቀረብኝ የዚህ ዘመን ሰው መሆኔ
11/ Through dialogue we often get the chance to place ourselves in other peoples’ pain. We learn to “re-humanize” the “other” and unlearn our biases. Dialogue is not reserved for the elite and politicians but people-to-people. This way we deal with generational grievances!
12/ And before dialogue politicians, activists, media and all influential people need to engage in CESSATION OF HOSTILITIES and “othering”!
Yes I’m unreasonably optimistic!
#Ethiopia
Yes I’m unreasonably optimistic!
#Ethiopia
