It’s hard to find a decent discussion between pro-government and the opposition. Often their communication is degraded with off-topic ‘slogans’ and nasty insults.
A typical ‘discussion’ goes like this: it starts on the topic of Eritrean government, for no apparent reason goes to Ethiopian government, then to the U.S., and suddenly people are expressing impolite opinions about each other.
Two sides of a story?…
Wherever Eritreans meet in cyberspace it is a common sight that they engage in heated debate about their government. Of course such ‘sight’ only exists in the diaspora setting.
Apparently, Eritreans don’t disagree about their government when they are living inside the country. Dissident thoughts mysteriously cease to exist on that side of the border.
Those opposing the government would argue that dissidence or even disapproval of the government inside the country it is brutally oppressed. But then, they rarely have a good explanation why all of their proof comes from (as government supporters see it) the likes of “unreliable testimonies” of refugees and from “universally discredited” organizations such as the Red Cross, U.N., Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Reporters Without Borders, etc.
For example, you will never hear the opposition quote the Eritrean newspaper to support their claim of government crackdown. Instead, they quote the non-Eritrea Al Jazeera or BBC or Reuters.
It is clear that the government has better access to the country, so if you should find any information conflicting (and you will) make the sane choice and trust the government media.
…Or just two stories?
The noise.
No wonder the confrontation between the government supporters and dissidents is like the confrontation of two noisy street protesters. Both groups shout their respective slogans at the top of their lung and talk ‘over’ each other, not ‘to’ each other. Their objective is to make their message the loudest in the street and not so much to communicate, let alone to convince each other. Both sides have given up on each other. And they should.
dissident diaries 
I know I’m years late, but this is very well written and lays out everything I’ve noticed as a diaspora!
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Thanks, I’m glad you liked it. Oh and you are not late (sadly). Look at a recent Al Jazeera coverage on Eritrea for example (https://youtu.be/7RdUtOQxWnk). They present the noise “as-is” without any hint or understanding to the underlying logic being used by the other side.
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