Ethiopians who represent the ideologies of the ruling Tigray People’s Liberation Front and the year-old Arena Tigray for Sovereignty and Democracy parties clashed in a heated radio debate on the Tigrigna service’s Crossfire show on Monday.
Abraham Gebremedhin
of the ruling TPLF and Berhanu Berhe, a leader of Arena Tigray for Sovereignty
and Democracy, argued politics and purposes in a program moderated by Betre
Siltan. Abraham says Arena is an agent of Kinijit, the 2005 coalition of
political opposition to the EPRDF.
Berhanu says the TPLF tries to dominate Ethiopia’s political discussion.
“Arena Tigray is not an alternative party for the simple reason that all its
programs are included in the EPRDF's policies," said Abraham. He called Arena-Tigray the mouth piece
of Kinijit, the opposition coalition that was created during the 2005
Ethiopian election. Abraham believes that
Arena-Tigray's foreign policy, especially its appeal for access to the sea is
dangerous and will have a damaging effect to strained relation of the people of
Ethiopia and Eritrea.
Berhanu defended the position of the Ethiopia’s alternative party and its quest
for Ethiopian access to Asseb, a port with historical legal ties to the nation.
But he said, Ethiopia should pursue Asseb through diplomatic and international arenas.
He blamed Tigray’s poverty on the ruling
party’s economic policies. He also accused the TPLF of the intimidation and
violence against members of Arena-Tigray.