Hamid Idris Awate (1910– 28 May, 1962) was an Eritrean independence leader and the creator of the Eritrean Liberation Army (the armed wing of the Eritrean Liberation Front).
Contents |
Awate was born in 1910 at Gerset, located between Tessenei and Omhajer in southwestern Eritrea. His father was a peasant and owned a rifle. Awate was trained by his father to use that gun.
In 1935, he was conscripted by the Italians to serve in the colonial army of the Eritrean Ascari. Beside his fluency in Arabic, Tigre, Tigrina, Nara, Hedareb, and Kunama, Awate learned the Italian language within a short period of time and was sent to Rome for a course in military intelligence.[1]
After returning from Italy, he was appointed as a security officer in western Eritrea. Shortly after, he served as deputy chief of the city of Kassala, Sudan and its surroundings during the brief Italian occupation of that city in 1940/1941.[2] He fought as an ascari in the Battle of Cheren and participated to the Italian guerilla in Eritrea against the British and Ethiopians in World War II with the cavalrymen of Ali Gabre.
In 1958 a group of Eritrean exiles in Cairo founded the Eritrean Liberation Movement under Awate's leadership[3].
In July 1960, in the city of Cairo, a group of young Eritrean students and intellectuals held a meeting and formed the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF). The group consisted of the following men:
Back home, the Ethiopian authorities were suspicious of Awate’s movements and activities, and were watching him closely. Ethiopian police forces planned to arrest Awate in his village in August 1961. Turkey explains that the Ethiopians deployed a large amount of police forces but their plans were foiled by an Eritrean nationalist within the Ethiopian police who informed Awate earlier of that plan. Awate then fled to Mount Adal located to the west of Agordat.
Awate’s decision to begin armed resistance was reached after a period of long deliberations with other nationalists. In an interview with Eritrea Al-haditha, issue #75, second year, pioneer Mohammed Al-Hassan Dohen, a long time friend of Awate and Awate's assistant when he was district chief, says: "In the year 1960, Idris Mohammed Adem sent a letter to Awate, the letter was written in Arabic. Hamid Awate told me that Idris Mohammed Adem was asking him to declare the armed struggle; but he was not ready for it at that time. After four months, Mohammed Al-Shiekh Daood came and asked Awate to declare the revolution. Awate agreed to lead the armed struggle and declare the revolution but asked for support. Mohammed Al-Shiekh Daood provided Awate with old arms, three five bullet rifles "abu khamsa" and gave him 300 Birr with sugar and tea. In addition, Ibrahim Mohammed Ali brought two rifles and myself owned a rifle. At the beginning we were only seven, then shortly our number had grown to be 13 fighters."
The Ethiopian authorities immediately responded to Awate's declaration. According to Awate’s contemporaries, a military unit in six trucks was sent to apprehend Awate but failed. The Ethiopians resorted to using different tactics to deal with Awate. Mohammed Al-Hassan Dohen indicates in his interview that Omer Hassano and Ejiel Abdulrahman did a last minute appeal to end Awate’s rebellion on August 1961. Awate responded saying: "If you want us to end our armed struggle, then you better lower the Ethiopian flag and raise up the Eritrean flag."
On September 1, 1961, eleven rebels led by Awate attacked police posts in the west of Eritrea include one on Mount Adal. A fierce battle ensued between Awate's and Ethiopian forces, lasting seven hours 7 hours ending in a stalemate.
The Kunama people have accused Awate of cattle raiding, razing of villages and murdering members of the local population. When Jebha-Al-Tahrir (ELF) started operating in the area after choosing Hamid Idris Awate as a military unit leader, the crimes against the Kunama people continued. The stories of his crimes are told and re-told by some Kunama people residing in the Tika and surrounding regions.[4]
On May 27, 1962, Awate drank milk for dinner, then soon told his unit that he was not feeling good. His condition began to deteriorate quickly. Awate died on May 28, 1962. Wounded in his last battle death may have been due to battle wounds, though some claim it was from natural causes. He was buried near Haykota, Gash Barka. A statue was erected by the Government of Eritrea on the 1st of September 1994 at his grave site.[5]