By Staff Reporter
February 17, 2020 (Ezega.com) -- Senior members of the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) said Eritrean president Issaias Afeworki is meddling in the internal affairs of Ethiopia.
The former high-level Ethiopian government officials were speaking at a meeting on the 45th founding anniversary of the TPLF held in Axum city, an ancient city of Tigray in northern Ethiopia.
In a recent briefing with Eritrean state-run TV, President Isaias Afwerki said that he was “worried about ethnic conflict in Ethiopia and announced plans to support Addis Ababa to resolve the political crisis.”
President Isaias also said Eritrea will not be restricted to resolving just the border issues with Ethiopia and regain Badme town and other areas but will also support the ongoing reforms in his giant neighbor.
Former President of Tigray State Tsegaye Berhe said any interference in the internal affairs of Ethiopia will be met with harshly.
“The internal affairs of Ethiopians shall be left for them alone and called on Ethiopians to denounce any meddling from a third party," the former Tigray region president said
“President Isaias Afwerki must think at least twice before meddling in the internal affairs of Ethiopia he must be plotting to crumble Ethiopia," Tsegaye added.
Eritrean president said “the worst thing that happened in Ethiopia happened in the last 30 years” due to ethnic-based constitution crafted in 1992, by Weyane, otherwise called the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. Weyane's constitution on the ‘federal system’ was to divide the people of Ethiopia.
Former Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin said: “It is immoral for Isaias Afwerki to disparage the TPLF and the constitution it fought for.”
“Isaias, who drove away half of the Eritrean population, cannot bring peace to Ethiopia or horn of Africa," Seyoum questioned.
“The people of Eritrea should tell President Isaias Afwerki to focus on his internal affairs first. Then Ethiopia and Eritrea can work together without interfering in internal affairs of one against the other,” Seyoum added.
Isaias referred to the Weyane policy as a 'poison policy' and claimed that it has destroyed the relationship between Ethiopians in all regions.
President Isaias sees great economic potential in Ethiopia – which is also relevant to the region. “A peaceful situation in Ethiopia will boost development and trade in the region,” he said
President Isaias visited Ethiopia about four times since the two countries ended hostilities in July 2018 following TPLF’s loss of dominance over the Federal government.
Critics say it is unlikely that the government of Tigray would give away Badme town and other areas to Eritrea based on the decision of Ethio-Eritrean border commission if the verbal insults persist between the former allies.
The TPLF and the Isaias Afwerki's EPLF (Eritrean People's Liberation Front) were allies for over two decades while fighting the Ethiopian government for regional autonomy. They succeeded in toppling the Derg regime in Addis Ababa. Eritrea went on two secede from Ethiopia with strong support from the TPLF. The TPLF along with three other regional parties it founded ruled Ethiopia for nearly three decades.
Following the death of its long-time TPLF leader, Meles Zenawi, the TPLF was removed from federal power. Most of its current and former leaders are in Tigray, trying to administer a semi-autonomous region, which some observers think is unsustainable, given its uneasy relations with the rest of Ethiopia to the south and Eritrea to the north.
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