The Nameless Torture Victims of Ethiopian Rulers

July 16, 2013

by Zelalem Abate

E-mail: zelalem.abate1@gmail.com

The Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) victims such as Eskinder Nega and Andulem Argae are not forgotten, although they are not remembered to a desired level. Since these TPLF’s victims are among the few Ethiopians who are scarifying themselves and their families for the sake of freedom and justice they should be remembered forever.

Unfortunately, however, majority of the nameless- torture victims of TPLF are forgotten.  It appears Tesfaye Tekalign was one of these nameless torture victims. Tesfaye Tekalign is an indicator for numerous innocent citizens suffering from torture after being hijacked from streets, work places, homes and other places. 

As Tesfaye described it in broken heart, the TPLF victims are taken away by spy agents without any court orders. Then, these victims are subjected to physical, mental and psychological torture. The TPLF cadres and spies put citizens whom they do not like in isolated dark rooms for months and years. They burn these victims with electric current; immerse them in to very hot and cold water alternatively. Furthermore, they fiercely beat them until they end up with urinary incontinence, sexual dysfunction, mental incapacity, psychological disturbance and so on.

The TPLF Agents and loyalists deny the victims’ families privileges to know the whereabouts of their loved ones. The unfortunate Tesfaye’s mother did not know whether her son was alive or dead while he was experiencing earthly hell in TPLF prison for almost two years. Such is the case in the barbaric rule of TPLF. TPLF tortures not only its prime victims but also anyone related to its victims. The family frame work of Ethiopians is so tight that the suffering of one family member is the aguish of the rest. As a result, many say lots of torture victims’ parents have died from psychological and mental trauma.

Every reader please put yourself in Tesfaye’s place for a moment. What would you do when paid spies come to your home and take you away to unidentified place in your own country? As a citizen, what would you do when merciless cadres punch you until your bones broke apart or your eyes fell off? What would you do when a TPLF cadre immerse you in barrel of boiled water and then in to ice water? What would you do when insane spy agents connect you with electricity and shock you until your body shrinks like roast beef?  What would you do when a barbaric cadre severely beat you and you end up with no bladder/bowel control, blindness, deafness, mental incapacity and so on? What would you if you were Tesfaye’s father, mother; brother or sister when he tells you that he cannot control his urine because government agents who luxuriously live robbing citizens’ taxes tortured him?

Mind you! It is not a Fairy Tale, but a realty- scary underground TPLF show which has been running for more than two decades. Under these kinds of wicked crimes many have died, too many are unaccounted for and enormous have been suffering. Well, it is fair and just to cry for the release of known figures such as Eskinder Nega. However, forgetting the nameless victims of torture is not human.  In fact, the known figures could be kept in a relatively better condition, not because the TPLF members have human traits or respect for their own citizens but in fear of the westerners who throw baloney to TPLF bosses during their relentless begging. As we speak, the naked bodies of the nameless- TPLF victims are being thrown in to boiled water and shocked with electricity in scary- dark rooms just like that of Tesfaye’s naked body.

It is big time to search for these nameless victims. It is important we name them!  It is imperative that we and the world know them. It is human to help them.  Torture is color blind. It affects any ethnicity, gender, religion, and so on. Any language speaker’s flesh could shrink and give “chess” sound when shocked with electricity. Any religion follower’s skin sloughs off when immerses in barrel of boiled water. Any gender’s bladder could bust out when merciless-well fed spy agent steps up on it. It is past due to raise voices in Unison. It is overdue to say injustice enough in Ethiopia.