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Eritrea, Ethiopia: Fear lingers
15/03/2006 14:59 - (SA)
Eritrea - Ethiopian militiamen rarely emerge from their bunkers, just visible as slits in the hills from Eritrean positions in this rocky, cactus-littered borderland.
When Eritreans like Father Gebreamlak Berhe do glimpse the enemy, they seethe. The Eritrea/Ethiopia war has been over for six years, but suspicion and fear still linger, in a dispute driven by pride and national identity.
Gebreamlak, an Eritrean orthodox priest, fled his home and farm close to the border. Though clashes have been rare, he felt it was exposed to possible raids and too far from any help Eritrean militiamen could provide if trouble came.
"It is painful. We are unable to go back and cultivate our fields," Gebreamlak, 60, said, outside a small church overlooking dozens of fields and stone houses abandoned after Ethiopians seized strategic positions during the 1998-2000 conflict.
The disputed border region is largely semi-arid and rocky, with no known mineral or other natural riches. Only parts of it are fertile. Farmers grow sorghum and wheat in the valleys, and transport goods over the hills on donkey back.
Border never demarcated
Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, after a 30-year guerrilla war, but their 1 000km border was never officially demarcated. The border war erupted five years after independence.
For Eritrea, the land dispute is a matter of national pride and the ultimate assertion of independence. Many Ethiopians still do not accept Eritrea's independence, and pride also plays a part in Ethiopia's refusal to settle the dispute.
An international border commission was set up under a 2000 peace deal, and both countries agreed in advance to accept the commission's ruling. But when the ruling came in 2002, Ethiopia rejected it because the key town of Badme and other territories were awarded to Eritrea.
Gained more than it lost
Ethiopia had gained territory in the ruling, and an official previously said the country had won more land than it had lost.
"I think the Ethiopian objection does not have any legal ground, no political ground, no justifiable grounds," said Yemani Ghebremeskel, the Eritrean president's chief of staff.
Donors and international institutions which give Ethiopia US$1.9bn in annual humanitarian and development aid should use their influence, he added.
Late last year, Eritrea, intent on getting the international community to press Ethiopia to accept the border ruling, banned helicopter flights by UN peacekeepers in its airspace, restricted UN ground patrols and expelled some workers.
At around the same time, the UN reported Eritrean and Ethiopian troop build-ups, primarily by Ethiopia, along the border.
The UN has since reported that troops had been pulled back. Eritrea and Ethiopia attended a weekend mediation meeting in London.
- AP
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