Eritrea: A Revolution in Process

On April 23-25 more than a million Eritreans in thirty-six countries joined together to exercise their long-denied right to self-determination. The U.N.-monitored referendum asked Eritreans whether they wished to form a sovereign state. To no one's surprise, they voted to separate from Ethiopia, formalizing the de facto independence they have enjoyed since defeating the Ethiopian Army in Eritrea two years ago. But the sheer size of the lopsided vote and the manner in which it was conducted underlined both the extraordinary popular unity achieved by the Eritreans in their long liberation struggle and the unbending determination that drove them to carry it through to the end. The plebiscite was also a strong signal of the movement's commitment to popular democracy on its own terms. This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website , where most recent articles are published in full. Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.