Kinijit kaliti and Kinijit NA

When the spirit of Kinijit started to take the country by storm during the May elections, the party was only months old. I began having a good rapport with some of the leaders of the organization late march and was visiting the office quite often. It was shabbily equipped. The party itself was on the process of organization. Yet what it lacked in organization and money, it compensated with the incredible hard work of the people at the top and their inclusiveness. Professionals, young and old, joined the party as they felt they had a place in it. If you had visited the head quarter, you would surely have seen several young people working there for free; some went as far as risking their livelihoods. A lot others worked hard outside the apparatus.
I remember how Birhanu Nega was never tired to answer questions to every visitor. I used to see Shimeles T.tsadik, explaining things with patience and perseverance. When I visited Kinijit's office, I used to feel that there was something different from the politics we knew; something that made me feel for the first time that I wanted to support a political party.
After the November problems and the incarceration of Hailu Sawel et al, we missed that leadership. The alternative leadership which was appointed by the top leaders before they were arrested was dismantled by TPLF as their names were fed to the security by one Lidetu Ayalew. Asrat Tase and Abayneh were arrested. Daniel Assefa (who is now in the US) stayed outside the country after the EPRDF started hunting for him. A great leadership vacuum was thus created.
That was what led the leaders in prison to come up with a stop gap political leadership committee. According to my sources in prison and out, the need for this leadership and the names of the designated leaders were communicated in no uncertain terms to all chapters of Kinijit NA. The NA committee had publicly asked for a clarification on some issues. I found that quite absurd and dangerous to the safety of the prisoners. It amounts to tipping EPRDF to be watchful of them in prison all the time. It is also putting unnecessary burden on the prisoners.
What the NA support committee has to do now is to get back behind all the designated people, support and work with them... Revamp the media, engage with and support the people who are struggling every day against the TPLF, move the Diaspora's struggle from political commentary and fund-raising to being the back bone of the struggle at home. Time is of the essence here. The new leadership has to act before people here lose hope and patience. For that, the NA committee should be cooperative and supportive. Kinijit NA should emulate Kinijit kaliti!
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On Friday, the court saw video tapes of the protests of students from June 6-June 8. The prosecutor argued that these protests were organized by Kinijit. As usual there were some comedy stuff.
The prosecutor stated that one of the proofs for its allegation that the protests were organized by Kinijit was that the students at Addis Ababa University were flashing the V-sign when they were singing and shouting slogans. The fact that Hailu Araya, former professor at AAU, was present at the campus during the protests was, according to the prosecutor, another proof that Kinijit was involved in organizing and mobilizing the students.