The Deadly Dread

The dead, the thousands, the tens of thousands;

The one hundred thousand.

Eritreans Ethiopians all the same

They do not haunt me;

They are dead.

Killed in a war for what?

The tearless grief; the silent anger

A million spores and more,

Nurtured by the drip, drip, drip of repression:

-Nameless prisoners in hidden jails

Families split to ‘defend’ the nation-

Waiting -silently hidden- to erupt in mindless, vengeful war.

That fills me with dread.

The millions maimed in mind;

Sister killed, brother lost;

Silenced tongues;

And fear.

Fear to speak but not to think;

To think of revenge and bloody revolution.

But there is hope. 

Urgent action and reasoned challenge

Letters, emails, tweets, respect for all

And Peace

Will bring the sweetest harvest.

This year in Eritrea, the threat of war with neighbours has gone, but the danger of civil war has increased as the repression continues and expands.  But the dread and fear must not paralyse us. Take one small step and seek the end of repression and encourage peace to prevail. 

Go to https://www.amnesty.org/en/get-involved/take-action/eritrea-where-is-ciham-ali/ and sign the petition.

Alex Jackson December 2018