THE TEARS OF A FALLEN GIANT
By Golto Aila  

It is not often that a proud man cries because of pain, much less so in public! It is indeed a very extraordinary experience to see such a man using his musical talent to convey his suffering because of the hard times that has befallen his country and his compatriots. No effort to hide his pain, no attempt to wipe his tears – he let them flow!

Tilahun Gessesse has been idolized by his fellow Ethiopians for his contribution to their musical culture – he was the King of Ethiopian music. He had never failed to stir strong emotions in his compatriots, whatever the theme of his songs! He cried for Ethiopia, in public with intense and painful display of emotions. May be it was the last ditch effort to tell his compatriots that something must be done by all of us. As for him, a mortal being, all he could hope for seemed to be the opportunity to, somehow, pay back for the love and affection his country had given him. I am sure there are many things he has done for his country –publicly and privately! But to Ethiopia he has left buckets of tears that streamed from eyes as he cried for his Motherland - the question is “what will she do with those tears now that he is gone?”

It is obvious, whether or not he had confided to anybody, that he left this world in defeat, still crying for his Motherland! But often, giants like him start a process that assumes its own life after the author has departed! “What will Ethiopia do with Tilahun Gessesse’s tears?” Here are my humble thoughts:

Tilahun’s death has already started a process – Ethiopians of all ethnic, religious, political and regional backgrounds have united in mourning for this Ethiopian son, who transcended all sorts of barriers and bonded with people through his music! But will this unity of emotion of bereavement last for one week, forty-days – how long? I have read expressions such as “Tilahun is dead but his memory will live for ever”! True, I expect a run on CDs! But what about the picture of tears, streaming down his face, as he cried for his country? Can Ethiopians return the favor for all he has done for them, or see themselves through his tears which were unleashed by intense pain caused by the suffering of Mother Ethiopia, and start a process that will bring justice, peace and dignity to all Ethiopians?

As usual, there is one entity in Ethiopia which will not hesitate to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity, and that is Meles and his TPLF bandits! A regime which has terrorized Ethiopia for nearly two decades, with genocides, mass arrests, torture, deprivation, and all sorts of oppression, has suddenly become so sympathetic with the passage of Tilahun Gessesse that it is joining the nation in mourning! The regime went even further and organized a state funeral! Tilahun Gessesse deserves the highest honor Ethiopia can accord him! But don’t be fooled by this gesture! This is just a ploy to lull Ethiopians into the false sense of shared loss! A regime that has wiped out young people of Oromo, Amara, Afar, Anuak, Ogadeni and many other backgrounds, as if they were some kind of vermin wouldn’t care for the death of the one person who embodied the qualities of what most of us consider a true Ethiopian. In fact I expect them to say “good riddance”! I hope I am wrong in this assessment, in fact I want to be wrong, because if the Meles regime is made of people with conscience, this an opportunity they can take to right the incalculable wrong they has done to Ethiopia and ALL OF HER CITIZENS!