Deconstructing UNSC Resolution 1907 - The Smart Sanction on the Eritrean Regime: Part two- Follow the Money and Stop the Flow of the Money

“A confidential ARS source, who claims to have himself received cash from the Eritrean Government on several occasions, told the Monitoring Group that Asmara contributes $200,000 to $500,000 per month to ARS military operations, depending on the situation on the ground (in one particular transaction in early 2007, during peak combat operations, Indha’adde reportedly received $1 million in a single transaction). This figure is broadly consistent with the estimate of a Nairobi-based intelligence source that claims that Asmara channeled an estimated $1.6 million to armed opposition groups between January and September 2008 via Kenya alone. Other main financial channels are via Dubai, Djibouti and possibly the Sudan. Occasionally the cash is carried by one or more couriers directly to Somalia.”  (Monitoring Group on Somalia- Report to the Chairman of the Security Council Committee Dated November 20, 2008-Pargraph 114)

The ploy being used in an effort to mobilize the Diaspora Eritrean to support the exposed and bankrupt PFDJ clique is the over deployment of the phrase “where is the evidence” in order to subvert serious introspective inquisition and demand for serious accountability. The world has to be so stupid to collectively impose smart sanction on the Eritrean regime. The evidence is plain for those who want to read it or can read.

Our responsibility is to present enough evidence and rational argument to persuade some of the souls stranded between the truth and fear. It is our duty to encourage them to slowly disassociate themselves from the ideology and politics of PFDJ.
Defending Eritrea starts with abandoning PFDJ and demanding justice for the people. It is that simple.

The stupidity of the rhetoric - “our difference with the regime is secondary”- is that it does not deal with the fact that source of our external and internal problem is the brutal PFDJ regime. We do not have the luxury of mechanically breaking down the regime’s brutality and destructiveness into two distinct separate agendas or assign them to parallel worlds. What the world is feeling now is what the Eritrean people have been enduring since independence. The world is getting closer to the truth while our oxygen deprived disposable intellectuals are wallowing in hallucination. The traitor and the enemy of the Eritrean people is the same: It is the clique run by Isaias Afewroki. It must be condemned for its internal brutality as well as for supporting terroristic elements throughout the Horn of Africa. Our overriding duty is to find ways to synchronize the external pressure with internal resistance and push for mass action to bring an end to the regime as early as possible. The rest is diversion.
 
Let us continue the deconstruction:

The focus of Deconstruction - part one was to underscore that Resolution 1907 cannot be interpreted in its narrowest sense. By linking it to resolution 571(1992) and resolution 1267(1999), the UNSC has laid the ground work for more punitive decisions should the Eritrean regime refuse to comply with Resolution 1907. Based on the immediate reaction of the rouge regime and its overseas cadres it is easy to surmise that the UN will have no choice but to push for a forceful implementation of its decision, broaden and strengthen its resolution when it comes for progress review.

There is not much the Eritrean opposition, civic societies and individuals can do to monitor the arms embargo. But on the other two critical points “Travel Restrictions” (paragraph 13) and “Asset Freezes” (paragraph 15) it can play a very meaningful and supportive role by directly interacting with the governments of the nations where Eritreans reside or by communicating with the designated monitoring entities in the UN. 

This can only happen if the alternative entities (opposition as well as civic) clearly grasp that the stage for them to confine their struggle to demonstration, resolution declaration,  eloquent  polemics  and pal talk conversation is now secondary to engaging with critical decision makers of  international and regional  institutions to vigorously push for the implementation of the smart sanction. Failure to utilize this opportunely to the maximum benefit of the people of Eritrea and the opposition will have profound consequence on the Eritrean national political process.  Time and energy must be invested to augment the international condemnation of the regime with a more forceful demand for changing the internal political environment in Eritrea. The stage is set for world to listen to a cohesive message from Eritrean political elites with better vision for Eritrea and the Horn region.

It is obvious that the irresponsible regime in Asmara is willing and ready to spend millions to support destructive political elements in Somalia while it is sanctioning Eritrean people to stand on line for single bread -- per day - per person.  The regimes expensive adventure in Somalia is being carried out at the cost of the Eritrean people. Financially incapacitating the PFDJ mafia and its adventurist leadership, to best of our ability, has to be the most critical role we can play to strengthen the impact of the sanction.  The Mafia style financial management of the clique in power has to be breached by a concerted effort. Its underground net work has to be exposed. It has to be challenged in court and in the public forum. 
Understanding the spirit and the letter of paragraph 13(resolution 1907) is very critical and more importantly recognizing that this resolution has to be implemented by all member states of the UN implies a clear task for us. It means we will have specific responsibilities in the countries where we have taken residency or citizenship in relation to this resolution.

Paragraph 13 of the sanction 1907 clearly states:

“  Decides that all Member States shall freeze without delay the funds, other financial assets and economic resources which are on their territories on the date of adoption of this resolution or at any time thereafter, that are owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by the entities and individuals designated by the Committee pursuant to paragraph 15 below, or by individuals or entities acting on their behalf or their direction, and decides further that all Member States shall ensure that no funds, financial assets or economic resources are made available by their nationals or by any individuals or entities within their territories to or for the benefit of such individuals or entities;”

This decision is comprehensive enough that if we can convince Eritreans who have worked closely with this regime previously to “open” their data base and start divulging more information as to the vast underground financial dealings of the PFDJ and its mules (money carriers) we can start helping the people of Eritrea and the UN Sanction Committee. 

The November 20, 2008 Monitoring Group on Somalia report to the Security Council Committee lists the various ways the Eritrean “government” is transferring money to the enemies of the Transitional Federal Government. Paragraph 115 of the report states:

“According to multiple sources, some with first-hand knowledge of the procedure, cash is either made available from an Eritrean embassy bank account in one of these locations or hand-carried by courier from Asmara to the destination. The cash may then be sent in small amounts via Western Union or Somali hawala agencies to Somalia. Increasingly, cash is handed over to sympathetic businessmen, who use it to procure foodstuffs, second-hand clothing or electronic goods for export to Somalia. Once in Somalia, the goods are then resold to finance the armed struggle.”

The regime’s tendency to overestimate its skill and underestimate the intelligence of its Eritrean people and other more sophisticated governments is legendary enough that we are starting to see the consequences of this kind of idiotic thinking. The top actors of the regime keep demanding evidence in the face of overwhelming report by the Monitor Group. What they actually mean is “show us your sources so that we can hide our mischief in a better way”. The world is not that naïve and sophomoric like the PFDJ gangsters. The world is not as blind and as the anti- democracy PFDJ armchair cadres who live comfortably in the Western World. Denial (across the board) as a fully developed political strategy is the essence of PFDJ’s stonewalling and obstructionist approach. The culprits are the focus of the sanction. 

The Monitoring Group in report states (paragraph 116)

“The Monitoring Group believes that Eritrean arms embargo violations take place with the knowledge and authorization of senior officials within the Eritrean Government and the ruling People’s Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ). Operational responsibility, however, lies with the Eritrean intelligence services. According to multiple opposition and Government sources, the senior figure is Colonel Te’ame Goitom. The Monitoring Group is continuing to investigate the alleged involvement of at least five other Eritrean Government officials.”

The fact that TV ERI invests thousand s of hours of air time trying to keep the Eritrean mind filled with hatred and fear does not mean the rest of the world is new to this kind of tyrannical behavior. The financial trail is out there and modern banks and money transferring entities have to keep detailed records. The post September 11, 2009 world is full of many laws, regulations and strict guild lines. It applies to drug cartels and tyrants who want to be in bed with Al-Qaida, Taliban or Al- Shabaab. The world holds “senior officials and Eritrean government and the ruling People’s Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ)” responsible. Where is the confusion here? There is no mention of Eritrea or the Eritrean people..
When you leave the fate of a nation in the hand of depraved megalomania the result is this. No demonstration, no amount of rehashing old glory, concocting or paraphrasing slogans and Areki induced discombobulated diatribe can bring salvation.  The evidence is strong and vivid. There is no way around it.  The struggle on this new front is going to be protracted and complicated. It will demand the best from us but more importantly it will demand a strong will power and determination to get rid of the Mafia like grip of PFDJ from our Diaspora life through the legal process.

What concrete things can we do to utilize this opportunity to expose and challenge all illegal activities the regime “imposes” on the Eritrean Diaspora through the use of its Embassy, PFDJ overseas cadres, those few who have asked asylum to “advance” the regimes agenda and more importantly the “entities” that raise funds to assist the condemned regime without being a “legally registered agents” of the regime in the countries they reside. We have systemically and legally to confront the elements that facilitate (through relay accounts) the transference of money to the leadership of PFDJ, the colonels, businesses owned by the ruling party’s cartel etc. The legal struggle is one of the most powerful “weapon”  democratic activists have to utilize in the process of confronting the tyrannical regime’s hold on our communities in Diaspora.  Can we do it?  Yes we can. How – we will continue the deconstruction.  

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