In Memory of our fallen Heroes and Heroines

The dearly price paid, during the three decades of armed struggle , to unshackle from the yoke of colonialism embraces  a special place not only in the annals of the Eritrean History but it is respectfully  engraved in the heart of every living Eritrean. What reward did those heroes and heroines, who have paid their lives, expected in return? They never asked for anything. Instead their legacy is the “liberty” that every Eritrean would breathe after them. Wow what a wonderful gift one would exclaim in wonderment. It is such a pride and an honor to be from the flesh and blood of these great heroes and heroines.  “Freedom” is a lifetime gift, yet it is a huge debt for the sensible living person. If one would brood over the heroic martyr’s achievement one would feel the conscientious debt one has to pay back in reciprocation in absolute reverence. Martyrdom has continued to keep the freedom unscathed.

The martyrs are there forever lying gracefully draped by the rich seamless garment-earth of their mother land they loved so exceedingly. They did not ask for coffin or expensive shroud but simply the bare but rich soil they fought for. They seem to radiate a message which one would sense as if they are saying, “We here lie in the womb of our mother land having paid the priceless cost of our lives that was expected from us. The measures we have taken were not under any duress but out of an unconditional voluntarism that we have to respond in love for the call of the mother land”. We have bravely won our battles and claimed the inevitable victory. It was such a relief to have contributed our shares for this beloved country. We are sure you will agree with us, they seem to question to the living, that we have discharged our responsibility so superbly. 

Now the rest is yours, they seem to emit a burning message so loud from their resting place. We have given you the greatest gift-“Freedom”. We therefore have the inalienable rights to see a respected and prosperous Eritrea entrusted unto you to build it from the ashes of war and underdevelopment brutally unleashed upon this dear country by many colonialists in succession.  

It is with such heavy responsibility and humble reverence that every living Eritrean visits the martyr’s cemetery every where in the country. Every year, on June 20, the living vows to keep the promise of building a prosperous Eritrea that the heroic sons and daughters had in their vision for which they did not hesitate to invest with their lives. We have the highest say as shareholders appear the message to echo from the graves of our martyrs. We, our martyrs continue, therefore demand from every living, as a share holder, to keep on enriching our investment.

One should ask oneself whether one would let down the strong message from these precious fellow martyrs. The answer would definitely be No. There is no question that it is a life time debt and one is expected to toil tirelessly for the noble purpose of building a prosperous Eritrea much to the expectation of our heroes and heroines. These top shareholders of ours demand to continuously observe the tally of the growth chart.  But the question remains as to what would be the rate of growth to keep the country in the apex of economic prosperity. The answer would be the rate should to be great and to an unfathomable degree.  

The candle light vigil that would be griped in honor on the eve of the Martyrs day and the wreath that would be laid over the cemetery of our Heroes and Heroines on 20th June sends a powerful message to them. It is a solemn oath of feeling responsible, an oath of keeping the promise aflame, an oath of loyalty, and a pledge of commitment. After the promise, yes after the promise, the heroic martyrs would courteously ask to the living; what have you done? Do you feel contended whether you have contributed something praise worthy for the growth of the motherland? The humble response would be No. The living would say we are shouldering a life time debt, so heavy that a small part of our contribution would not even quench a modest part of your expectations. However what we believe is that the concerted efforts of every Eritrean, breathing the aromatic freedom would go to great lengths to at least pay a little extent of your debts to us. Then after the promise one would ask oneself every June 20 whether one is keeping the right path? Every martyr would relentlessly ask every soul breathing freedom whether one is honorably discharging one’s responsibility. One should therefore always keep on realizing what a heavy debt that one is carrying in one’s shoulders. Every time one should feel one’s spirits energized and one ought to keep on promising to oneself that one will continue to repay our martyrs tirelessly. Our hearts would endlessly cherish our dear heroes and heroines forever. That would be our note of thanks in deeds.