Vol 21. No.

96

Saturday, 31st of january, 2015

Pages 8, Price 2.00 NFA

Ministry of Education conducts

assessment meeting regarding
last years accomplishments

NUEYS adopts Action

Program for 2015

The National Union of Eritrean

Youths and Students (NUEYS) has
adopted Action Program for 2015
following a review of last years
work accomplishments at a meeting conducted in the Eritrean Centre of Professional Excellence in

Embatkala. Reports indicated that

some 300 cadres and youth representatives took part in the meeting.
The participants adopted resolutions pertaining to the nurturing
of competent youths and reinforce
active participation of the youth in

Central region: Micro Credit

and Savings Program branch
striving to improve beneficiaries livelihood

The Micro Credit and Savings

Program branch in the Central
region indicated that over 48 million Nakfa has been distributed
in 2014 with a view to improving the beneficiaries livelihood
and that satisfactory outcome has
been registered thereof.
Mr. Tafla Asmerom, Acting
Manager of Micro Credit and
Savings Program Office, said that
the scheme was launched in 1996
under the umbrella of the Ministry of Local Government, and that
currently it has 604 Village Banks
benefiting 56 thousand individuals through distributing credit
amounting 332 million Nakfa.
Likewise, Mr. Barnabas Abraha,
head of the branch office, stated
that 16 sub-zones in the Central

region and Logo-Anseba sub-zone

witnessed effective work program
through the scheme.
Also in related news, the Micro
Credit and Savings Program in
the Southern region has extended
over 160 million Nakfa to over 21
thousand customers in 2014 reports indicate.
The head of the office, Mr. Gebrehiwet Woldai, pointed out that
the agency has opened 50 Village
Banks in all the regions subzones, thus rendering loan service
to members of the public.
The The Micro Credit and Savings Program in the Southern region was established in 1993 and
has a membership of more than 75
thousand clients, 60% of whom
are females.

the nation-building process, among

others.
At a seminar he conducted for
the participants of the meeting,
the Head of Political Affairs at the
PFDJ, Mr. Yemane Gebreab, underlined the need for the NUEYS
to enhance its endeavors towards
the strengthening of concerted action to realize the goal of building a
nation in which the citizenry enjoy
the benefits of progress and social
justice.
Also in remarks he made on the
occasion, the Chairman of the NUEYS, Mr. Saleh Ahmedin, called
on partners to collaborate with the
Union in the realization of its wideranging Action Programs.

The Ministry of Education has

conducted annual meeting of departments, regional branches and
offices on January 29 and 30 at Embasoira Hotel.
In opening remarks, Mr. Semere
Rusom, Minister of Education,
explained that the meeting aimed
at assessing accomplishments registered in the planning and management of education programs,
as well as the experience gained
thereof and called on participants to
make due contribution in mapping
out effective action plan. Moreover,
the Minister pointed out that the
Government is exerting persistent
efforts, coupled with the required
financial and skilled manpower

resources so as to upgrade human

resource capacity and educational
facilities.
In this respect, the nation stands
on promising ground at regional
and international level through ensuring educational opportunities to
citizens, Mr. Semere also indicated
that due attention is being given to
the task of promoting quality education.
Report was presented at the
meeting regarding accomplishments in 2014 in connection with
the Student Summer Work Program
(SWP), cultural affairs, Boarding
schools and activities undertaken in
collaboration with partners, besides
charting action plan for 2015.

Health Ministrys branch in Anseba region to

give priority attention to remote areas

Dr. Kesetebirhan Solomon, head

of the Health Ministrys branch in
Anseba region, said that the branch
office would be given priority attention to the task of expanding health
service in remote areas this year. He
made the disclosure at a meeting in
Keren in which Ms. Amina Nur-Husien, Minister of Health took part. He
further pointed out that as part of the
endeavors made towards expanding
health services, new health stations
were put in place in 2014 in the Administrative areas of Amalait and

Tahira. Dr. Kesetebirhan went on to

indicate that there are plans to open
health centers in Adi-Tekelezan Geleb and Halhal sub-zones.
The Ministrys regional head explained that studies and follow-up
were undertaken pertaining to blood
pressure and Diabetics, coupled with
VCT service on pregnant mothers.
In the course of the meeting, Minister Amina Nur-Husien pointed
out that the Ministry is working on
priority basis towards promoting
quality service on the basis of mak-

ing available the necessary facilities,

among other provisions.
She noted that that thanks to the
enhanced public awareness and active participation of partners, gratifying outcome was registered in
various domains, and that there exist
about 400 health institutions nationwide.
Speaking at the closing session,
Mr. Ali Mahmud, Administrator of
Anseba region, called on government institutions to exert more effort
so as to attain the set goals.

If Not Now Then When?

Eritrea Profile, Saturday 31st of january, 2015

Solomon Mengsteab

Overcoming Procrastination: Donts

The idea and practice of putting
off, re-planning and rescheduling
things designed to be done at some
point of time to some other time in
the future is an ordinary phenomenon in the human world. The reasons behind any kind of postponement are widely varied but, roughly, they all fall into two categories,
mainly; deliberate, made after
rational analysis and calculation,
and impulsive, made without any
significant forethought. In any case,
both Procrastination, postponement
mainly linked with impulsiveness,
and rational rescheduling are commonly observable facts in life. It
is scarcely possible to find anyone
who does not engage in procrastination whatsoever, someone who
never ever immersed oneself in the
extravagance of basic laziness in
ones entire life whatsoever. However, as common and widespread as
procrastination is, its aftermath of
is not so insignificant that it would
be overlooked and trivialized.
The degree of the intensity and
the severity of the aftermaths of
procrastination are subject to the
intensity and frequency of the act of
procrastination. Procrastination has
several consequences on peoples
lives that are manifested in psychological, social and economic aspects of life. And especially when
it becomes impulsively chronic and
impedes doing ones day to day job
and carrying out ones responsibility on regular bases, it would become a problem that would requires
therapy. Seeking professional help
however, is mainly for those with
uncontrollably impulsive chronic
procrastinators, even for them it
would be the last resort. For, procrastination could be conquered
thorough simple strategies of alter-

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ing patterns in routines. However, if

one is to emerge victor in the battle
against procrastination one needs to
know these strategies, the dos and
donts in the battlefield.
When people realize that procrastination is interfering with the
in accomplishing the goals they set
in one and/or another aspect of their
lives they often respond to the situation with the intention of solving
the problem. The strategies people
assume in facing their demon of
procrastination is different. Basically some people attempt to deal with
their procrastinatory habit impulsively; with responses that are not
necessarily related to dealing with
the problem effectively. Others take
on their handicapping habit by assuming systematic problem-solving
methodologies. And others would
seek professional help by consulting medical practitioners specializing in the diagnosis and treatment
of mental illness. Seeking professional help, as I mentioned earlier,
is however, the last resort as one
ought to first, at least, try to solve
ones problem by oneself.
In the process of writing this,
rather, lengthy, article I have referred several sources dealing
with the topic. There, I have found
several strategies, dos and donts,
which are pertinent in tackling the
problem. I would like to share some
of these strategies and I shall begin with the donts, responses that
are not helpful in dealing with the
problem of procrastination.
Individual coping responses
to procrastination are often emotional or avoidant oriented rather
than task or problem-solving oriented. Emotion oriented coping is
designed to reduce stress (andcognitive dissonance) associated with
putting off intended and important personal goals, an option that
provides immediate pleasure and
is consequently very attractive to
impulsive procrastinators.There

are several identified emotion oriented strategies, similar to Freudiandefence mechanisms,coping

stylesandself-handicapping.
These coping responses that one
ought to avoid, if one seriously intends to get rid of procrastination
include following:

Avoidance: We avoid the
locale or situation where the task
takes place (e.g., a graduate student
avoiding going to university).
Avoiding doesnt solve anything,
therefore, if we tend to avoid the
work environment then that is the
first thing we need to avoid if we
are to conquer procrastination.

Distraction: We engage
or immerse ourselves in other behaviours or actions to prevent
awareness of the task (e.g.,intensive videogame playing or Internet surfing). These probably can
be solved by distancing ourselves

from the things that tantalize us

and distract us from doing what
we are supposed to do. If there
are too many videos and games
on your computer, delete them. If
your friends distract you by calling
you to chitchat, make a point of not
meeting them or communicating
with them during working hours.

Trivialization: We reframe the intended but procrastinated task as being not that important
(e.g., Im putting off going to the
dentist, but you know what? Teeth
arent that important.). This is a
tricky one. When we are feeling
particularly lazy our mind plays
tricks on us. We would find a way
to convince ourselves to trivialize
important tasks. To tackle this we
should make a to-do-list and stick
to it no matter what.

Downward counterfactuals: We compare our situation

Part VI

with those even worse (e.g., Yes,

I procrastinated and got a B- in
the course, but I didnt fail like
one other student did.). Upward
counterfactual is considering what
would have happened if we didnt
procrastinate. Downward counterfactuals, they say, is the indulgence
of failure. And here also when we
fail to complete our job on time,
instead of making serous inquiry,
we may tend to make ourselves feel
better by making downward counterfactuals. And so, in the fight to
overcome procrastination the motto
should always be upward counterfactual.

Humour: Making a joke
of ones procrastination, that the
slapstick or slipshod quality of ones
aspirational goal striving is funny.
The habit of procrastination is not
an amusing one as its consequences
would not probably be particularly
pleasant. And so be serious about
this problem, being amused is the
last thing you we should feel about
this habit.

External
attributions:
That the cause of procrastination is
due to external forces beyond our
control (e.g., Im procrastinating because the assignment isnt
fair). True, sometimes the cause
for postponement might be out of
our control and there could barely
be anything we could do about it.
However, on many other occasions
this is just excuse.

Reframing:
Pretending that getting an early start on a
project is harmful to ones performance and leaving the work to the
last moment will produce better
results (e.g., Im most creative at
continued on page 8

Eritrea Profile, Saturday 31st of january, 2015

Luck or Effort

Todays issue of on the table shall discuss about how much luck play a role in the success of a person; and how intentional effort always produce the best result.

Hoping to Be Lucky
Daniel Semere

People always say they got lucky when

something good happens to them. Some
even tend to totally correlate everything
with luck. But some people argue that to
the most part luck has nothing to do with
anything. They say that unlike animals that
are meant to live an ordained life and have
no say on what will happen to them, human
beings have been blessed with the power
of controlling their own destiny and decide
their fate. Whether we like it or not we are
what we make of and to ourselves. If there
is any message this conveys is that we cannot afford to base wholly the providence
of outcomes either on luck or the lack of
it and must take adequate steps to ensure
their attainment. Because if we leave it up
to luck; today might be fortune but tomorrow might be doon for both are equal in
the eyes of luck. Sure enough nothing is
for granted as far as luck is concerned and
hence if it is a giver, it is equally a taker.
Nonetheless, many times we see things
or phenomena that are totally out of our
control changing the outcome of things.
For instance many of the people who
were pioneers of software technology and
the likes are people of the same generation. And being born at a particular time
in point gave those people unprecedented

opportunity to do more in their field than

people from any other generations. Here
we see the effect of sheer luck of coincidence in influencing the fate of peoples
life. The simple reason is that no one can
have a control over when and where that
person should be born.
The structure of things can also be of
great reason for luck to play significant
role in some people. For instance if we
take certain sports like hockey, it has been
proved right that most of the games greatest players were born around a particular
month in a year. And since the academy
of the sport have a criteria of age in their
enrolment of people, certain people have
advantage of being readily enrolled. For
instance people born in the month January,
the beginning of the year, have an advantage over a person born around May, who
has to wait for another whole year to be
enrolled as the person cannot join in the
middle of the year. Hence the prior have a
whole year advantage by the time the latter
joined the academy.
A person can control its destiny to the
most part. However we cannot downplay
the effect luck or providence can have in
how the persons life will turn out to be.
So I say take control of your life and your
destiny, but you can hope to be lucky as
well. What do you say?

Theyre Trying To Tell Me My Fate Is

Written; I Say, No! No! No!
Solomon Mengsteab
Craving success is probably one of the aspirations shared by all humans alike. The
things that people would desire to be successful at might be widely vary in size, degree or
nature, yet still, the existence of ambition of
success is a common denominator of the for
mankind. All the while, however, the path to
success is never definite and it is not always
found by everyone seeking it. And the million
gold coins question here is How do successful people find the secret path to success? Is it
just by sheer smile of fortune casted upon the
chosen ones without rhyme or reason? Or, is it
due to skill, hard work and persistence of the
ones who have become so? However, even the
most important question here is the definition
of success in the first place. For the very process of clearing the cloud in the quest to the
mysterious path of success begins with having
a vivid understanding of the core concept of
success.
Most people think that success is the ownership of the abundance of the glamorous flaunts
of the material world. As Tracey Chapman
satirically put it, although she might not necessarily meant to define success, in one of her
beautiful songs:
...To have a big expensive car
Drag my fur on the ground
Have a maid I can tell
To bring me anything
Everyone would look at me
With envy and with greed ...
But, is success really all about having money and fame? Is it not a common happenstance
to see the children personages of esteemed
successes, with all the money and fame they
happen to have by mere effect of inheritance,
the lowest of degenerates? Would such people
be called successful for the mare fact of being
rich and famous?
Success, by definition, is the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. And the concept of
accomplishment inheritably entails a desirable
end result of the combination of several inputs
into an endeavour. Indeed, accomplishment is
achievement, the triumph of bringing about
any given goal by effort, skill, determination
and/or courage, qualities that are all, for the

most part, acquired, not innate. Thus, even if

being rich and famous is considered as success, it would only be for those who yearned
for it and got it through their own merits not
for those who just happen to be ones by sheer
happenstance.
I have seen this film once, kind of documentary, made based on a book with the same title.
The film generally suggests that if one wishes
and truly believes to have, accomplish, and/
or become something or someone, one can
have his wishes realised by some sort of mysterious power of the universe. The argument
there seem to have some fundamental truth
as the most crucial factor in accomplishing
something is wishing and believing. However,
wishing and believing are only the beginning
in the journey to achieve something which
should be followed by hard work, determination and skilful planning and carrying out. For,
it is hardly possible to believe that wishing and
believing and then simply sitting around for
the wish to be materialised magically would
make the wishes come true.
The idea of fate and freewill is a classic
philosophical point of deliberation. Personally I dont believe in luck and coincidence
I believe there is a reason for everything that
happens and that there is; whether we are able
to perceive and comprehend it, is an entirely
different question. There is a reason why the
earth is round, there is a reason for the illumination of the stars, there is a reason why
we walk with two limbs but not four, there is
a reason for the colourlessness of water etc.
Some logics are clear to us some are not, some
were not clear for our ancestors, but are vivid
to us now and some others without a doubt
will be crystal for our children. I believe my
fate, my success, is on my hands, not fortune.
To borrow the expression of Amy Winehouse;
They are trying to tell me my fate is written,
and I say, No! No! No! What do you say?

Dear readers On the Table always welcomes your outlooks on any of the issues raised on this column. Please mail us your comments opinions and
views; we will entertain them.
On the Table: http://www.profile.gov.er Daniel Semre - danisemere@gmail.com Solomon Mengsteab sollion8555@gmail.com

ADS

Eritrea Profile, Saturday 31st of january, 2015

Vacancy Announcement

Bisha Mining Share Company PLC is inviting interested applicants for the positions of;
1. Bartender (03)
Major Duties and responsibilities:-

Become familiar and adhere to the project health, safety and environmental regulations/procedures
To attend safety meetings and other announced staff meetings.
To maintain full supply of dishes, glasses, mugs, etc.
To deliver friendly, efficient customer service and to create a warm and welcoming atmosphere to
all of our customer.
To serve and present beverages, quickly and efficiently, meeting hygiene standards
To assist in keeping the bar and toilets clean and tidy , at all times.
To keep up to date with current prices and happenings.
To make customers aware of snack and drink range
To ensure that customers are satisfied with their beverages.
To maintain knowledge about beverages and snacks on offer
To always adhere to all company polices and producers
To perform any other task when asked by supervisor and superior.

Profile: Qualifications and Experience

Formal Education, Certifications
or Equivalents

School leaving certificate and job specific training

Working Experience Nature &

Length

Minimum 01 03 years experience as a bartender

in a hotel/bar environment.
Demonstrate leadership ability to organize tasks.

Leadership Experience Nature &

length of time

Strong knowledge
beverages

of

hygiene

and

different

Teamworks is essential
Communication skills-English ability for daily
communication and reporting.
Able to work independently.

Other skills and abilities

2. Cook (02)
Major Duties and responsibilities: Become familiar and adhere to the project health, safety and environmental regulations/procedures.
To attend safety meetings and other announced staff meetings.
To be responsible for cooking a wide range dishes, both local and international.
To measure ingredients requires for specific food items being prepared
To be able to perform his work independently or as part of a close-knit team.
To verify that prepared food meets requirements for quality and quantity
Prepared in advance items that are needed for the following days consumption.
Keep working area in good sanitary order and rotate both stock and semi-finished goods to achieve
the highest quality products.
To assure and maintain proper and safe use of all kitchen equipment, materials and food products and
follow weekly and daily cleaning schedules.( includes cleaning and sanitizing of whole area so that
there will be no bacterial problems)
To assist in keeping all areas of kitchen and dining room clean, swept and washed.
TO perform any other task when asked by supervisor or superior.

Vacancy Announcement

Bisha Mining Share Company is inviting applicantsforthefollowingpositions

forits Bisha Site Project.
1. Position:- Supply Training Officer Trainee
Major Duties and responsibilities:
Assist I the translation of trining materials in to Tigrigna language

Update direct supervision and guidance of the supply training officer will be actively involved in development and umplementation of a functional specific training program for the supply
department at Bisha Mining.

Assist in designing training materials that meets indiciduallearnings needs and company
requirements.

Assist the supply team in ensuring KPIs and other department and company targets are
met. Assist staff in achieving their full potential by gaining new skills through effective training and
mentoring.

Work in accordance with the Bisha core values at all times.

Promote a safety culture within the department and company encourageing the use of risk
mitigation methods and tools when developing operational and training plans.

Work in accordance with the Bisha core at all times.

Promote a safety culture with the department and company encouraging the use of risk mitigation methods and tools when developing operational and training plans.

Actively participate in and provide leadership i safety meetings and discussion.

Under the guidance of the supply training officer provide both theoretical training progams

Actively Participate in conducting high quality internal supply staff training covering all
areas of warehousing cataloguing, inventory control, procurement and general logistics.

Assist in development of training systems, conducting training needs analysis, research topics and develop training materials.

Assist in controlling the use of common standardized policies , processes and procedures to
ensure that all potential synergies are leveraged.

Assist designing supply procedures for the department including manuals, tutorials and both
written and practical assessments.

To work with colleagues in the training team to consistently internal practices, procedures
and procedures to provide an efficient and effectiveservice.

Asssist in audinting policies and procedures to ensure compliance with Bisharequiremetns
in all supply related areas.

Monitor compliance of supply policies, procedures and processes.

Maintain training records and prepare regular reports and assesments.

Daily and month end reporting to the supply superintendent and supply manager.

Take initiatives to develop him/her self to become a competent supply training officer.
Profile: Qualifications and Experience
Formal Education, Certifications or
Equivalents

Diploma in materials management,

Accounting , Management or related
qualifications.

Working Experience Nature & Length

Minimum 3 years in supply

chain roles. Experience in mining
environment is ans advantage.

Leadership Experience Nature &

length of time

High level of interpersonal skills.

Other skills and abilities

Presentation and communication

skills.
Demonstrated skills in planning,
analysis and problem solving.
Good interpersonal skills together
with effective communication skills.
Excellent skills in the use of
computing software and ERP
systems.

Profile: Qualifications and Experience

Formal
Certifications
Equivalents

Education,
or

Working Experience
Nature & Length

Leadership Experience
Nature & length of time

Other skills and abilities

BSc. Degree ( preferably in Engineering)

Minimum 02 years mine planning experience (preferred).

Demonstrated ability to organize staff and tasks.

Strong planning and time management skills

Teamwork is essential.

Required Valid Eritrean drivers License.

Communication skills- English ability for reporting
Proficiency in Microsoft office. Excel and graphing
skills are critical
Proficiency / experience in mining planning software,
surpac, and whittle would be preferred.

General Information and other requirements:

Place of Work:
Bisha.
Type of contract: Indefinite period
Salary:
As per Company salary scale.
Additional requirement for Nationals:
Having fulfilled his/her National Service obligation and provide evidence of release paper from the
Ministry of Defense.
Present clearance paper from current/last employer.
Testimonial documents to be attached (CV, work experience credentials, a copy of your National
Identity Card etc.).
Only shortlisted applicants would be considered as potential candidates for an interview.
Application documents will not be returned to sender.
All applications should be sent through the post office.
Deadline for application: 10 days from the day of publication in the Newspaper.
Address: Please mail your applications to;
Bisha Mining Share Company
P. O. Box 4276 Asmara, Eritrea
Note to Eritrean applicants:
Please send a copy of your application to
Aliens Employment Permit Affairs,
P. O. Box 7940 Asmara, Eritrea

General Information and other requirements:

Place of Work: Bisha.
Type of contract: Indefinite period
Salary: As per Company salary scale.
Additional requirement for Nationals:
Having fulfilled his/her National Service obligation and provide evidence of release paper from
the Ministry of Defense.
Present clearance paper from current/last employer.
Testimonial documents to be attached (CV, work experience credentials, a copy of your National
Identity Card etc.).
Only shortlisted applicants would be considered as potential candidates for an interview.
Application documents will not be returned to sender.
All applications should be sent through the post office.
Deadline for application: 10 days from the day of publication in the Newspaper.
Address: Please mail your applications to;
Bisha Mining Share Company,
P. O. Box 4276 Asmara, Eritrea
Note to Eritrean applicants:
Please send a copy of your application to
Aliens Employment Permit Affairs ,
P. O. Box 7940 Asmara, Eritrea

Eritrea Profile, Saturday 31st of january, 2015

Vacancy Announcement
Bisha Mining Share Company is inviting applicants for the following position for its Bisha
Site Project.
1. Position:Heavy Mobile Equipment Training Officer (01).
Major Duties and responsibilities:
Perform Training needs analysis

Develop and update training materials to suit the companys
approved training programs.

Train HME engineering artisans as outlined in the training
program

Perform competency assessments

Evaluate and communicate outcomes of training to line
management and trainees

Ensures that appropriate training records are maintained

Prepares suitable reports for management

Follow up on training provided to trainees
Profile: Qualifications and Experience

Formal Education,
Certifications or
Equivalents

High or Technical School

Certificate with a minimum
HME mechanical trade or
related qualification
Must be in possess of a
workplace assessors certificate

Working Experience
Nature & Length

At least 5 - 7 years experience as

a HME trainer

Leadership ExperienceNature & length of time

Ability to coordinate, supervise

and train a group of at least 8 or
more people.
Good presentation skills.

Other skills and abilities

Excellent computer skill (MS

word, excel & power point)
Proficient in English
Good practical demonstration
skills

General Information and other requirements:

Place of Work: Bisha.
Contract Type: Indefinite
Salary: As per Company salary scale.
Additional requirement for Nationals:
Having fulfilled his/her National Service obligation and provide evidence of release paper from the Ministry of Defense.
Present clearance paper from current/last employer.
Testimonial documents to be attached (CV, work experience credentials, a copy of your National Identity Card etc.).
Only shortlisted applicants would be considered as potential candidates for an interview.
Application documents will not be returned to sender.
All applications should be sent through the post office.
Deadline for application: 10 days from the day of publication in
the Newspaper.
Address: Please mail your applications to;
Bisha Mining Share Company
P. O. Box 4276 Asmara, Eritrea

Note to Eritrean applicants:

Please send a copy of your application to
Aliens Employment Permit Affairs,
P. O. Box 7940 Asmara, Eritrea

Rumors: Depreciative...
continued from page 7

their time taking care of the household, the major entertainment they
have is the usual coffee ceremony
in the company of neighbors and
relatives in a bright day, or when
they meet in a mahber (traditional
get together). There, they can have
the enjoyment of knowing what is
new. How refreshed do they look
when they will talk, laugh, argue
and gossip? They embrace that
moment most out of the whole
month. Coffee in this case is not a
luxury but rather a necessity.
I have heard short stories of people who attempted and committed
suicide. Gossip can kill and make
the person feel neglected and abandoned; after all, over 90% of suicide results from depression. The
terrible thing about gossip is that
the story can and cannot be true
and worse; there are always exaggerations to make the story interesting... Somehow, rumor is never
about good thing but rather about
the target person; they are commonly negative. I fear that deep
inside, human beings are sadists. It
is funny how mischievousness and
the misery of others can entertain
us. In my positive mind attitude, I
dont want to believe that human
beings have the potential of doing
both good and evil.
Once, my best friend told me
this witty line: to make a mistake
is nature but to forgive is culture. It
might be natural for us to backstab
and enjoy it every second. How-

ever, human beings are learning

beings; we can develop the culture
of openness to those who are close
to us and restrain from making
negative remarks about people.
We can develop the culture of ap-

preciating and taking perspective

while at the same time remaining
non-judgmental. After all, positive
mind means positive life.

continued from page 6

once you acclimatize self the chill

goes away. The brilliant orange
mass of the sun had just cleared
the horizon I prefer the warmth of
the bed until day break. But, looking at the beach of the Red Sea I
couldnt defy my innersole; had to
go for early morning swim. Cruising back to Asmara was spectacular the mountains were covered
with green forest trees. The twin
towns of Dongolos were showing
sign of the rainy season with their
vegetation starting to grow. Ginda
town covered with green grazing
fields and citrus trees all over
the town for one to admire. Further down few kilometers and you
meet the imposing Nefasit Mountains covered with fog showing
the beauty of two skies and making you fill as if you are flying
rather than driving. That is what
the Bahrie rainy season presented
us to enjoy. A gift from Mother
Nature for the Holidays and the
New Year.

Misgana D.

The Rain In Bahrie . .

the road one can see mountains

spotted with shrubbery and scattered vegetation, a sign of rain.
There are few farm areas and you
can see a large mass of maize and
different type of crops. Massawa
city the harbor of the future of
the 22nd century is a sea side city
that will soon be functioning as a
major international port. The old
Ottoman buildings being renovated has added to the beauty of the
city. The new skyline is covered
in soaring trees of metal and glass,
frames and twisted boughs bare
for all to see a towering creation
of human civilization. Pass Massawa airport headed to Emberemy
villages you see the Rashadia man
plowing his field and planting his
milt and watermelon.
As we reached the beach hotel Gergousome it was a clear
evening, the sky has no traces of
cloud and the moon is out in her
full beauty. It is a little chill than
the summer warm evening but

Sources: www.shabait.com

Newly constructed micro dam in

Shimanigus Tahtai inaugurated

A new micro dam in Shimanigus

Tahtai, Seregeqa sub-zone, constructed at 13 million Nakfa has
been inaugurated. Speaking at the
inauguration ceremony, Mr. Zerit
Tewoldeberhan, Managing head in

the Central region, said that the facility was put in place in line with
the Governments policy of making available social services in remote areas.
Mr. Tesfu Fisehatsion, Adminis-

trator of Seregeqa sub-zone, indicated on his part that there exist 12

micro dams, 5 water ponds and 54
wells in the sub-zone enabling 68%
of the local population to have access to potable water supply.

Eritrea Profile, Saturday 31st of january, 2015

Berhane Woldu
Eritrea has two rainy seasons
the one most visible and talked
about is the rainy seasons that
starts in late May and lasts until
mid September which covers the
Southern, Central, Gash Barka,
Anseba and some part of the Red
Sea region. The second one that is
not much talked about is the one
that is called the rain of Bahrie
which starts in mid October and
lasts until March. Bahrie rainy
season covers the geographical
area starting from the mountains
of Nefasit which is 18 Kilometers
out of Asmara through Dengolo
all the way to the Red Sea also
known as Semhar. The area has
vast amount of meadow land for
farming.
What one needs to understand
is that the Bahrie region is not just
for the rain it afforded but for the
long view to the north and west
fertile plains. People from different parts of Eritrea go to Bahrie to
prepare the land for farming. They
go early in October and return to
their respected villages to retrieve
their cattle for grazing starting in
November and wont return until
May when they finish gathering
their harvest. The mountains and
vales are wild life reserve. The
Semenawe Keyeh Bahrie area is
a reserved national park. It is a
place of many wonders and an exhilarating sight to drive through.
Semenawe Keyeh Bahrie National commons beholds stunning beauty with very bright sky
with lovely dark blue color. The
hill sloping down to the valley is
covered in rockers and remains
analogous to places like the great
canon. There is little vegetation
on one side of the valley, but in
a short distance one could see an

The Rain In Bahrie

Region Of Eritrea

end to the expanse of the valley

in the direction we were driving. The North side of the valley
is heavily wooded down to the
meadow edge and over the East
side the valley was also covered
in dense scattered forest. Along
the grazing land the earth starts
to fall down more steeply and the
road follows the higher ground
becoming a cliff of some 50 meters; goats and camels climbing
up to feed and the road follows
closely the edge of this precipice
looking down to the meadow one
could see that the valley is quite
deep littered with goats and cattle.
Lunch was at Sabur resort restaurant located 54 kilometer out of
Asmara. After lunch the sun has
dropped low now that only sporadic shift of light penetrate low
shading strange shadows which
appear to dart almost out of vision

melting into forest cover. The sun

reached its height, there was a fast
flowing river bound on the far side
forest covering two thirds of the
rising ground before us. Reaching the higher ground gasped as
the panorama before us spout into
view. The earth dropped steeply
down to a fast flowing river below. That is where one meets the
mammoth river with its majestic
easy flow the Felfl-Selemuna
River as you interlace the bridge
the earth starts to rise slowly it is
covered with citrus trees impossible to see what lay upfront. We
see the sun through the canopy
of papaya trees and judge that it
has passed its mid-day yet its hot
even on the bridge. As we passes over the large Fegret river
there is a village hidden deep in
the low lands on the bank of the

river; the view of the pass below

is spectacular; river zigzagging in
and out of sight like a brown-gray
snake vanishing and reappearing
among the heavily wooded slop
below. When we rounded a twist
in the path ahead we saw several
houses and timber built houses,
nesting among trees far from the
river. It is a beautiful and peaceful
looking place.
Dark clouds loomed to the
South West the rain began as a
thin, insistent drizzle then, as
is its habit the great South West
morphed into a relentless downpour and showered the parched
earth. It cleansed and removed the
dust from the trees lined by the
roads like the cleansing of mans
sin. It cooled the baked pavement
and produced a sultry fog. The
red parched ditches absorbed the
water carrying tiny streams down
wards. We arrived at Gahtelaye
semi-urban a frequented stop over
for traditional coffee on the way
to Massawa. The lady who served
us has an intelligent face, attractive as hell. When she spoke her
eyes fixed, unblinking it emits a
soft wrath. She has small pointed
nose, when she smiles, her lips
spread wonderfully and folds her
cheeks into neat, ephemeral, sunken dimples. The smiles are confident, exigent and secretive. We
asked her how she was copping
with the weather. She said happy
as one can be and looking for a rewarding farming seasons and especially for sweat watermelon at
the harvest season. As we drove
to Massawa the landscape takes a
different shape. Gone are the fertile plains and meadows far from
continued on page 5

Eritrea Profile, Saturday 31st of january, 2015

Rumors:

Depreciative Habits
Do you find it strange how everyone blames people gossiping
them? How ironic is that we actually enjoy talking about people on
a hot coffee and heated discussion,
but when the ball bounces back we
burn with anger and hatred. For
me if it comes to universal rule,
the first rule should be: dont do
to others what you dont want others to do to you.
There may be something enjoyable talking about someone you
know with people who also know
him or her. It is even more enjoyable when you all come up to a
common suggestion and everyone
adds up to your comment with additional information you didnt
know and nodding with agreement
to whatever you say. But lets face
it; when you are the one being
talked about, the stone hits hard;
you act like you are a guest to such
enterprise, as if you were not part
of this circle. Gossip causes much
disturbance to our inner peace
when it develops to rumors. Oxford Dictionary defines rumor as a
circulation of story or report of unverified or doubtful truth. As I see
it, rumor is when gossip spreads
like wild fire on a social circle.
The weird thing about a rumor
is that it never escapes the target
person. No matter how secretive the rumor can be, it reaches
the targets ears through different
ways. If you happen to be the target, people would murmur about
you, and they dont like it when
you happen to be around, because
you cut off their talk show with
your sudden presence; and there
is the fake smile and strange attitude they
demonstrate to
you afterwards. The
truth is
that at one

time or another, it happened to

all of us. You would walk into a
room where people are engaged in
a panel discussion laughing aloud;
upon your arrival, things fall to
an awkward silence and everyone
gets tongue-tied. It is worse when
this happens in ones own house.
It is really ghastly when you feel
homeless while you have a roof
over your head and a family on
your side.
At times, there are people who
were nice to you once upon a time,
and suddenly uttering the words:
you are not worth talking to.
This attitude is usually preceded
by obvious ignorance. What is
strange is that they are not willing to talk to you about the reason
for their voluntary withdrawal;
they are not ready to listen to your
defense either. However, most of
the time, words about your gossip
would come to you through another main derogatory ones. (Is an
individual who has a deep passion
talking about other peoples private life?) Who was in the circle
of the rumor, probably the beginner of such rumor? These are the
people whom I usually refer to as
voluntary informers!
When a person is the object of
gossip, it could probably be something ridiculous, unbelievable and
fictional or imaginary. I find it funny when once I somehow heard
something untrue about someone
I know and when I challenge the
gossip with evidence, there happens to be a sense of disappointment on the part of the people who
would like to see the reputation of
the person
doomed. I am
pretty sure
you might
have witnessed this

yourself. Lets not be scared to

admit the truth about our feelings.
When we find ourselves lagging
behind our counterparts or friends,
we would like to hear the failure
of others and would envy with a
feeling of hatred on hearing somebodys success. There is someone
in our life we somehow feel intimidated to be around with: probably
the sweetheart of the family, our
long rival in High School days,
and the school beauty. Sometimes, everything is right when
everyone is equal. By nature, we
would hate our neighbor dancing
to happy drums amid our grief and
melancholy. How about people
you havent witnessed your happy
days? They would visit you on
your sad times. How strange! We
dont feel small any more when
we find someone smaller.
Rumors can be more believable

and look more rational than mere

speculation when they come from
someone who is close to you by
blood. Could there be a more hurtful situation than someone you
think of being great would lose the
decency to speak to you in person
of what he/she think about you,
but rather choose to ridicule you
along with others? Of course, this
is more than hard to handle. But it
is worse when you happen to share
a secret that aches your heart and
disturb your peace to someone
you consider closer to you; and
you hear your own secret on the
street from people that dont even
remotely concern them.
Once again, lets not forget our
first golden rule of ethics: dont
do others what you dont want
others to do to you. All of these
things being done by us are more
likely
to be done to us. If
life is a movie,
it is always
better to be
the audience rather than
the actor.
Have
y o u
ever
noticed
that
t h e
fi r s t

people who wouldnt care about

the feeling of others when backstabbing are the last ones who
would handle when they hear a
rumor about them. Once I had a
friend who was a voluntary informer on what is going on around
the campus. She would tell me
laughing about someone she thinks
has done a ridiculous thing; sometimes, she would whisper with a
serious frowned face about someones misfortune. It was funny
how she reacted when she heard
people talking about her. She even
wanted to kill herself.
The truth is that no matter how
much we try to act so strong about
it and come up with a song and a
quote that would imply to never
care about what people may say
about us, as part of the society
we are in we all have a reputation
to uphold. We want to be accepted
and appreciated; we want to be forgiven for our mistakes. As much
as we have the right to feel all of
these things, we have the duty to
accept and appreciate others, and
be ready to forgive and listen to
people as much as we want to be
heard.
Upon taking perspectives, gossip
cannot only be backstabbing but
also back patting. By back patting,
I mean appreciating someones
achievement and giving the morale
to go ahead. Gossip can be quite
a therapy at times when you hear
and learn how people get along
with the same problem that you
have. It can be therapeutic when
you hear and learn that others fail
too. If we give it close attention,
our traditional mothers who spend
continued on page 5

Eritrea Profile, Saturday 31st of january, 2015

Many a time important events in the global arena are not presented in their entirety in mainstream media as there is lack of context in most of the information
they cover. In response, this column sets out to question this trend by presenting diverse perspectives from as many sources as possible with the underlying aim of
bringing to fore context that is culturally, historically, politically and economically relevant to any given topic.

The Twilight of Saudi Power

Abdullah leaves his successor in charge of a diminished kingdom

Saudi Arabias King Abdullahdied last weekduring what

some saw as the height of his
kingdoms resurgence in a volatile
region. As turmoil has engulfed
governments across the Middle
East since the Arab uprisings, Saudi Arabia has seemed to remain
a potent pillar of stability. [F]
ar from undermining the Saudi
dynasty,wroteDavid Kirkpatrick ofThe New York Timeson
Sunday, chaos across the region
appears instead to have lifted the
monarchy to unrivaled power and
influence.
But as King Salmanassumes the
throne, is he really taking the reins
of an ascendant regional player?
Recent evidence, at least in the
realm of Saudi foreign policy, suggests the opposite. The final years
of Abdullahs reign were in many
ways also years in which the kingdom struggled to retain its historical levels of influence. And with
his death, the last of the regionally
dominant Saudi monarchs may
have passed from the scene. When
President Obamalandsin Saudi
Arabia on Tuesday, he will be visiting a declining power.
In its heyday in the 1980s and
early 1990s, Saudi Arabia, through
organizations like the Arab League
and the Gulf Cooperation Council,
was able to use its oil wealth and
diplomatic weight to get other
governments behind its priorities
on issues like opposing Iraqs 1990
invasion of Kuwait and containing Iran. Saudi-led negotiations
resulted in the Taif Agreement,
which ended nearly a decade and
a half of civil war in Lebanon. But
today, as Middle Eastern countries
have split up into smaller political
camps due to rising sectarianism
and the collapse of governments,
Saudi Arabia has scrambled to
maintain friendships and shape
events. As an anonymous Arab
diplomattoldtheTimes: If everybody around you is going wrong,
then your influence around your
borders is decreased.
The Dangers of Saudi Succession
The kingdom, of course,remains enormously wealthyand
influential in international energy
markets. Even the recent drop
in oil priceswhich have plum-

meted bymore than halfin the

last yearis in large part due to
Saudi Arabiasmovesto maintain
market share at a time when global
oil supplies have grown and demand has dropped. But this makes
it all the more conspicuous that
the country has been failing for
at least a decade, coinciding with
Abdullahs tenure on the throne, to
achieve its most important foreignpolicy goals.
Chief among these has been
limiting Irans regional influence.
Since the 1979 Iranian revolution
brought Shiite theocrats to power
in Tehran, the leaders of Sunni-led
Saudi Arabia have looked warily
across the Gulf and worried about
Irans role in the region. But it
was the U.S.one of Saudi Arabiastop partnersthat ended
upboosting Irans influencein the
Middle East by invading Iraq in
2003. In ousting Sunni strongman
Saddam Hussein, the war brought
to power Iraqi Shiite leaders who
were more favorable to Iran. This
has allowed Tehran to work with
actors inside Iraq to strengthen its
proxies, including Lebanons Hezbollah, and toextend supportto
Syrias Bashar al-Assad, which
has proven a major factor in his
ability to remain in power. More
recently, Saudi Arabiahas complainedaboutU.S. efforts to strike
a deal with Iran over its nuclear
program, which the Obama administration has made a top priority.
The Saudi royals have also
largely failed in their goal of stopping the spread of certain Islamist
organizations, ranging from the
most extreme terrorist groups like
ISIS to various Muslim Brotherhood affiliates now participating
in the politics of some countries
in the region. Saudi officials Ive
spoken with view Islamist groups
that support transnational ideas,
including ISISs vision of a caliphate, as anathema to Saudi interests, which primarily involve
preserving the monarchy itself
and maintaining regional stability.
The history of the kingdoms relationship with terrorism is sharply
mixedit was late to confronting
the terrorist threat generated in no
small part by some Saudi nationals. Some of the leading international terrorist networks, including
al-Qaeda, have roots in and draw

inspiration from Saudi Arabia;

Osama bin Laden, for one, was
Saudi, as were15 of the 19September 11 hijackers. The worldviews of al-Qaeda and ISIS are not
that far apart from each other, and
their principles are drawn from
the same ideological pool as the
ultra-conservative Saudi brand of
Salafist Islam, commonly referred
to as Wahhabism,which the kingdomhas enforcedat home and
promoted overseas.
But Saudi Arabiagot a wakeup
callwhen al-Qaeda attacked compounds housing Western workers
in Riyadh in 2003. The monarchy
has since worked closely with the
United States on counterterrorism in the region, includingparticipating in the U.S.-led bombing
campaign against ISIS in Iraq and
Syria. Yet the Saudis have undercut their own efforts bybacking
extremistsin Syria, which arguably facilitated the rise of ISIS in
the first place. For the most part,
Saudi Arabia has been able to prevent major terrorist attacks on its
territory over the past decade. But
in part due to itscontinuing legitimizationof Islamic fundamentalism, it has been unable to halt the
terrorist violence and instability
roiling the region.
If everybody around you is
going wrong, then your influence around your borders is decreased.
The kingdom has also tried, in
some cases successfully, to influence the internal affairs of other
Middle Eastern countries,sending
security forcesinto Bahrain to support the government crackdown
on protesters there in 2011, and
financiallyunderwritingEgyptian
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
But its clear Saudi muscle and
largesse can only go so far. The
monarchysstrategyto support a
peaceful political transition in Yemenseemsin tatters now, and despite the kingdoms strong opposition to Assad, the Syrian president
remains in power after nearly four
years of civil war. In 2013, Saudi
Arabia made a show of turning
down a seat on the UN Security
Councila gesture Saudi intelligence chief Bandar bin Sultan
reportedly calleda message for
the U.S., not the UN. The kingdom was motivated in part by the

Obama administrations decision

not to strike the Assad regime in
retaliation for its use of chemical
weapons in the Syrian civil war.
Saudi Arabia has come up empty
on Middle East peace as well. In
2002, the kingdom led an effort
in the Arab League to presentthe
Arab Peace Initiative, a proposal
to broker a comprehensive peace
between Israel and the Arab world.
Saudi Arabia had presumably
hoped to present itself as a regional
leader in achieving progress where
others had failed, but the plan never drew a responseneither Israel
nor various international mediators picked up on the offer.
Under Abdullah, in other words,
the kingdoms regional dominance
has receded. But the diminished
clout he leaves to his successors
is not entirely a consequence of
the late kings actions. The Middle East as a wholeis fragmentingas more countries and nonstate groups like ISIS compete for
power. In addition, technological
and demographic changes, such as
the rise of anew generationin the
Middle Easts current youth bulge
(15- to 29-year-oldsconstitutedabout one-third of the regions
population as of 2008), have lim-

ited the ability of traditional institutions to enforce conformity or

influence events. These dynamics
arenot unique to Saudi Arabia, but
they are perhaps nowhere more
clear than in the kingdom, which
has thehighest numberof active
Twitter users in the Arab world,
and where a liberal bloggerwas
recently sentencedto a prison term
and 1,000 lashes for criticizing the
authorities.
It speaks to Saudi Arabias
unique assets and continuing prestige as the birthplace of Islam that
a diverse group of top Arab and
Muslim leaders, many of whom are
at odds with one another, dropped
what they were doing andarrived
in Riyadh on Friday, hours after
Abdullahs death, to take part in
funeral prayers at the Imam Turki
Bin Abdullah mosque. Obama, for
his part, is making his second trip
to the kingdom in less than a year.
But in paying their respects to Abdullah, world leaders are perhaps
marking not just the passing of one
of their own, but also the end of an
era in the Middle East.

continued from page 2

ysis of ones own effectiveness.

Laziness: Procrastinating simply because one is too lazy
to do their desired task.

Valorisation: Pointing out
in satisfaction what we achieved in
the meantime while we should have
been doing something else.
Task or problem-solving oriented coping is rarer for the procrastinator because it is more effective
in reducing procrastination. If pursued, it is less likely the procrastinator would remain a procrastinator.
It requires actively changing ones
behaviour or situation to prevent a
reoccurrence of procrastination.
Therefore, if one is seriously considering making changes in ones
life by taking all the necessary
steps to overcome this handicapping habit it is problem solving oriented strategy one should assume
in dealing with it.

BRIAN KATULIS
JAN 27 2015
theatlantic.com

If Not Now Then...

4:00 AM in the morning without

sleep.). They say, Well began is
half done. One of the things that
could characterize a beginning as a
good beginning is the fact that it has
began at the time it is supposed to.
So make plans and stick to them.

Denial: Pretending that
procrastinatory behaviour is not
actually procrastinating, but a task
which is more important than the
avoided one. Denial basically is
the root cause and/or by-product
of many behavioural and psychological problems. It is a very common response manifested as coping
mechanism with several problems
of the mind and psyche. Here also,
therefore, as procrastination is
mainly a psychological problem,
denial is manifested among many
procrastinators. Denial could be
avoided by making systematic anal-

Dear readers, should you have any opinion on the column Context and suggestions of articles you think should be printed here please
do not hesitate to contact us. We shall welcome, value and entertain them.
Context: http://www.profile.gov.er Daniel Semre - danisemere@gmail.com Solomon Mengsteab sollion8555@gmail.com