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Dr. McMullen, "Welcome to Eritrea"!

Written by Berhane Alazar

Wednesday, 03 October 2007

Dear Dr. Ronald K. McMullen,

Trusting that you would be duly confirmed to be the next Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the State of Eritrea and as an Eritrean American who wish nothing but better understanding between the governments of my adopted country as well as my country of origin, let me be one of the first to welcome you to Eritrea. Sir, you will undoubtedly find Eritrea a pleasant country with most hard working, honest and hospitable people and, significantly, very supportive government if it is not rubbed the wrong way.

Needless to say, lately, the working relationship between the US and Eritrea has been at best rocky. While there has been a two-way finger pointing at each other, I believe, it would be very prudent upon yourself to work vigorously for the improvement of the hitherto unproductive and acrimonious relationship that has lately being created, frankly, by the United States lopsided, unbelievably biased and unfair posture it has been manifesting vis-à-vis Eritrean and Ethiopian issues. While it is tempting to place the blame for the ensuing misunderstanding on a particular State Department official that should have known better, suffice is to state that the burden is on you, sir, to see to it that the true picture of Eritrea is carried over to your colleagues at the State Department. If an excellent cooperative and mutually beneficial relationship is to develop between the two countries, you must correct the existing erroneous and unsubstantiated allegations that have been unfairly labeled against Eritrea. While I do not and could not speak for the Eritrean government, I am convinced that the Government of Eritrea would be very receptive to any and every constrictive criticism the US might direct against it provided such criticisms are accurate, fair and seen in their proper context.

Your Excellency, ambassadors come and go like governments do. But, at the end of the day, people, including ambassadors, are judged positively if they went that extra mile to mend misunderstanding between nations to a fruitful end and thereby placing their professional credibility on the line. Otherwise to just be a messenger and carry on with those “Obligations” even when those messages may be against one’s consciousness and clearly wrong, it does not provide self-fulfillment and personal satisfaction of a job well done.

Finally, these days, where some real terrorists are in full gear to destabilize and do maximum damage around the world, it is imperative that the US work closely with like-minded states to staunchly fight against this evil doctrine for the benefit of all mankind. I am sure you are aware that Eritrea, as one of the victims of Bin Laden criminal activity, has been fighting tooth and nail to thwart the ugly face of terrorism coming across some of its neighbors since its inception as a sovereign country. It is about time that the US and Eritrea work hand and glove on all mutually beneficial issues. There is no evil, terrorism or any other misdeed, which could not be eradicated if countries join hands for some common causes. But those causes have to emanate from common understanding and value that can and must be done. You can help in that effort in no small way.

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