Birtukan: What She Means to Me by Betemekeds Belachew

Why do we have to lose something first to appreciate it? The question seems quite rhetorical. A few months ago, my friends locked me in a very small room with no light. I experienced a loss of things I deeply appreciated and needed. I am a member of the Freebirtukan chapter (focused on human rights) in Atlanta, GA; The organization is often misunderstood by many as a political group but its main focus is on human rights of all prisoner—political prisoners as well as apolitical prisoners.

From my experience, most Ethiopians or the African Diaspora as a whole do not want to get involved with the political system back home for many different reasons . But I hope that my big life changing experience will empower more Ethiopians and Africans writ large to become more conscious about their homelands. Regardless of one thinks about Birtukan Mideksas’ political stances, I hope that everyone takes away from this article a vital appreciation for her as a human being.
On December 27thm the Atlanta chapter remembered the one year anniversary of Birtukan, a solumn occasion that marked her one year prison anniversary. The main purpose of that day was to give people an appreciation of the daily struggles that Birtukan faces in an isolated cell.  The chapter members made a small room resemble prison cell room and asked the guests to sit in that room for few minutes. At the end of the event, I got a chance to be locked in that small and dark room. I thought it was not going to be difficult; I went into the room heard the door lock. Although I knew I was in safe hands, the idea of losing control or being controlled made me uncomfortable beyond words.  A minute passed and I was already edgy and started thinking that I could not be locked in.
I kept thinking that I could not continue with this for another minute.  It dawned on me later that this is a small sample of what prison is like.  This voluntary entrapment gave me a small sample behind the callousness of Birtukan’s situation. My few minutes in isolation are what Birtunkan faces on a daily basis for the past year.  I gained a whole new appreciation and love for freedom and realized that there are things which I take for granted that others are denied on a daily basis throughout the world.  My realizations might seem exaggerated but they were not: in that short amount of time, I was given a window into the hardships of others—except my hardship was controlled and temporary.  In that small and dark room, my understanding of freedom came into a clearer perspective and I started to see how much one brave lady in Africa is paying for her freedom. After five minutes, I begged my friends to open the door for me, and they did.
Birtukan Mideksa was a successful judge who joined the main opposition party, Coalition for unity and Democracy (CUD), in Ethiopia. In a very short time period, Birtukan became the leading figure of that party. Around the same time, Ethiopia held an election which drew sharp rebuke from the international community in 2005 (1987 EC).  During and after the election, there were a lot of protests by the opposition parties for the way the elections were conducted. The subsequent violent repression by the government led to the death and imprisonment of countless Ethiopians; Birtukan—with the rest of Kinjit party member—were imprisoned. The government believed the party and the party leaders were the main reason for the protests. Birtukan was imprisoned for a year—an imprisonment that only drew more attention to her defiance

After gaining her freedom, she started to campaign around the world for equality and freedom from political repression.  What makes her story that much more remarkable is that Birtukan is a single mother of a six year old daughter named Hale.  It was during that time I met Birtukan and the other opposition leaders when they came to.  I remember watching her walk on the stage with her cohorts—the only woman in a midst of many men—which inspired me even more. She was sitting in the middle and when she was talked, her confidence and resolve was unshakeable. Where most people would break down from the emotional stresses of being confined for such a long time, unable to see their family and children, she was instead the personification of strength.
The first couple of minutes, I was too busy expecting her to act like she was hurt. I gave up, when she started a sentence by saying “this is just the beginning.” Maybe I was too used to hearing too many women complaining about men that I was so shocked to hear this woman standing stronger than the strongest man.  As she talked, she drew respect and the attention of the crowd—listening intently to every word she said.  She was equally humble as she was forceful in her conviction, a trait that is hard to combine and she was beautiful in ways that go beyond the superficial traits of beauty.  I was astounded that a woman of her age and beauty would be so tenacious in fighting for what she believed in instead of worrying about immaterial things that seem to consume most of us. At the end of the event—in a bit of a foreshadowing—she mentioned to the audience that there would be more obstacles to come in the future but that she, just like the rest of us, would have to be ready for it.  She somehow knew that her ordeals were far from completed; yet, instead of staying behind and preaching about political freedoms from the comforts of America, she went back to advocate for her beliefs in Ethiopia.
Ironically, not long after that, Birtukan was sentenced to life in prison upon her return to Ethiopia.  She gave a speech in Sweden about her circumstances with her arrest and release from prison. The Ethiopian government said she her speech was “false” and unacceptable. It is one thing to be locked up for killing someone or for some other crime that harms people for life, but to be imprisoned for life—to lose one’s freedom—for making a speech that some disagree with is reprehensible.  Birtukan has been imprisoned for almost two years and her only connection to the rest of the world is her seventy-four year old mother. Birtukan is allowed to see her daughter and her mother when they come to give her food.
Birtukan was in solitary consignment for the first 6 month.  Imagine that, 6 months of living in darkness, no one to talk to, and nobody to give comfort, no sound other than one’s thought while being confined to a cell no bigger than a small bathroom.  The toll that solitary confinement can take psychologically is well documented; now imagine the tolls when this is taking place in third world prisons where treatment of prisoners is rarely considered a moral obligation.  These prisons are rank, dark, very crowded, and hardly any doctor visits or medical supplies at all.
Unfortunately, there are some people who think that she deserves this. I have heard it all before.  Politics aside, when is the last time you heard about a woman in Ethiopia who fought for what she believes in, who stood up and gave up her life for the people? These people might exist in movies or books but not in real life. Well, that kind of person exists, her name is Birtukan.  If you let go of your biases and prejudice, and irrespective of your political beliefs, I think we can all agree that no one should be locked up for life for standing up and saying what they believe. No one should be put in solitary confinement for not kowtowing the political mantra of the powers that be.  For her conviction in standing up for what she believes in, Birtukan Mediksa represents hope for many people; hope for women, hope for Ethiopia and of course she is the hope for her only daughter Hale. We need people like her, people who are ready to make sacrifices, people who stand up for their beliefs while doing so peacefully.
At the end of the day, if you believed in something strongly, would you fight for it or do you expect others to fight for it?  Most of us are talkers, complainers, and it surprises us when we see someone who is actually taking actions instead of talking. We hold in high regard about those throughout our history who have made a difference yet when we find one amongst us who are taking heroic stances, we do not notice. Should we wait till she is dead, until she too is in our past to start doing something?
Today, Hale wants her mom, Birtukan’s mom want her daughter. Today the women in Ethiopia, who dream of becoming politicians, want to see her freed. Africa needs courageous women like her. Ethiopia wants citizens like her. Birtukan needs her freedom.  Despite what you believe in, I know that you know any human being should have the right to practice and stand up for whatever political view he/she has. Even if you disagree with her positions, I implore you to recognize that she is a symbol of our collective freedoms and rights. If she can be imprisoned for life for standing up to her beliefs peacefully, who will be the next target? I ask you to ask for her freedom by going to www.freebirtukan.org.