Shabait.com (Asmara)
1 November 2008
editorial
Asmara — It is to be recalled that in November 2007, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) clearly delimited the boundary lines in the 1,000 Km long border between the two countries in 45 different maps based on its decision of April 2002 and presented copies of those maps to the UN Cartography Department. The EEBC then closed its offices after tidying up all the administrative and financial activities associated with its mission.
The Eritrean-Ethiopian border has thus now one of the most clearly outlined boundary lines in the world and has very detailed cartographic references and relevant legal documents. The EEBC made it officially clear to the UN Security Council and the international community as a whole in 2005 and emphasized it once again in its final statement that: "The decision given on 13 April 2002 and the boundary lines outlined through virtual demarcation in 2007 are legally binding to both sides. Any act that violates or opposes this border is illegal."
Having signed an agreement to accept the Boundary Commission's decision as final and binding, the Government of Eritrea had not only accepted the decision but has also been extending the necessary cooperation for its implementation, a fact attested to by the EEBC in its reports to the Security Council. The Commission had also stated in its final report that the Government of Eritrea had never engaged in any action that opposed or violated the principles of the Agreement despite the TPLF regime's continuous endeavors to hinder the implementation process and the Security Council's disregard of the responsibilities entrusted to it by the Algiers Agreement.
On the contrary, numerous attempts were made by the TPLF regime and its supporters to obstruct the Boundary Commission from carrying on with its tasks. But more unfortunate in this case is the negative role played by the Security Council, an organization mandated to protect and uphold international laws and agreements. The Council continuously sought to thwart the EEBC's legal process by commissioning a number of dubious so-called 'special envoys' and tried through various schemes to undermine the Commission's authority.
Regardless of the aforementioned obstacles thrown its way from various directions, the Boundary Commission held fast to the legal route and completed its mission with great integrity for which the people and Government of Eritrea will always be appreciative. Having gone through this long and difficult process, the Eritrean-Ethiopian border dispute has now reached a legal conclusion and no scheme can drag it backward.
Frustrated by the successive failures they faced in this case, the TPLF authorities and their masters in Washington have desperately turned to Djibouti and are trying to create problems where there were none. But these baseless accusations and devious schemes to create problems are merely frantic attempts to save face and cover up problems and will in the end amount to nothing.
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