Our guest today is Miss Lwam Fistumbrhan, chairperson of the YPFDJ (Young People’s Front for Democracy and Justice) chapter of the USA and Canada.
Let’s start with your background.
I was born and raised in America, and I have two brothers and three sisters. I am the oldest. My parents raised us properly and were telling us about our history — how Eritrea was colonized and got its independence. And this made us love our history and our nation, to have a sense of belonging. So knowing about my people and history has made me a proud citizen. Being Eritrean makes me proud. It boosts my self-esteem in my educational and work life. The support of our parents and community has helped me to be a good and responsible citizen.
Tell me about your field of study.
I got my first degree in Psychology and Medical Anthropology from the University of North Carolina. The study focuses on the general understanding and thinking of people. It studies how your culture and life style affect your health. It was a very interesting field. And I am doing my master’s while I’m working on my major profession.
Why did you choose this field of study?
My dream was always to work on something that has direct relation with people and society, and as a young girl I was simply able to imagine and know what people think, their understanding and their behavior. Many People face challenges when they arrive in a foreign country. They find it hard to cope with the new lifestyle and culture. I was able to solve such problems with the help of my profession.
Can you elaborate on what you are studying for your master’s degree?
As I have said, I always wanted to get involved in people’s life, especially their health issues. The status of health of a society can be improved with the proper administration of health institutions and systems.
That’s why I wanted to do my master’s in business and health administration. I believe that every person should get fair and quality health service, and proper administration and supervision can help in improving the quality of health services. This field has connection with my work, and, at the moment, there are 40 projects that I lead and administer in the hospitals. My mission is to bring about fair, quality and equally accessible health services in all the five hospitals of our province. In the future I plan to open my own hospital and serve people from all walks of life.
How would you describe the role of your parents in your success?
You know it is very hard to raise kids in diaspora, and my parents made a lot of sacrifice in raising us. They worked day and night and spent the little free time they got with us. They played significant roles towards our success, and especially in building love for our nation.
How much do you know about your country?
As I said I’ve known a lot about Eritrea since my childhood. The history of Eritrea is the history of revolution and self-determination. Our forefathers fought almost the whole world to get their self-determination and liberation. And I am always proud of that. After independence, Eritrea faced many sanctions and aggression from Ethiopia, and this has also been defeated because of the government’s and the people’s resilience and self-reliance. So knowing all that has pushed me to work hard and to do more for my country, and as an Eritrean it pushes me to contribute something on the path of the nation’s development.
How involved are you in the affairs of your country?
There is Eritrean community association in diaspora, and we gather to celebrate and commemorate Independence Day, Martyrs’ Day, the starting of the armed struggle and other annual festivities. We organize activities and seminars and gather to discuss our issues about our country. I was once nominated as the chairperson of Hidri Youth Association and worked for five years. In this association we organize seminars, education and other activities, and we also managed to create ‘’Hidri Academy,’’ which we use to teach through zoom. We have made good progress. There have so far been 100 members and we have taught many children about Eritrea. In festivals and the YPFDJ seminars I worked as project manager and organized activities with other Eritrean youth from all over USA and Canada. In July 2023 I was nominated as the chairperson of the YPFDJ in the USA and Canada. There are almost 250 youth in the association, and we are working through social media to reflect the exact image of Eritrea to the world. We have been able to minimize the negative way the world perceives Eritrea and its people, which is considered a positive achievement towards our mission. We are planning to install electric generating solar panels in Shieb, Northern Red Sea region, and we have many plans to work with the NUEW (National Union of Eritrean Women).
As a member of the NUEW, what would you like to say about women?
Women make up half of the society, and if we disregard women and deprive them of their rights we are alienating almost half of the society. This way no nation can achieve sustainable development. Women should instead be empowered and supported. There are many factors, such as negative stereotypes, that deprive women of their rights, and it’s our responsibility to fight inequality and negative stereotypes. In the armed struggle for Eritrea’s liberation, women fighters fought against not only the enemy but also nature and the negative stereotypes the society put on them. They brought us to this stage through their equal participation and sacrifice, and we know it’s our duty to pay them back and shoulder our responsibility to build and develop our nation. I really appreciate the role of NUEW inside Eritrea and in diaspora in safeguarding the nation’s sovereignty and what they have accomplished so far in the development of the nation and in empowering women inside Eritrea.
Any last remarks?
I want to express my appreciation for our young brothers and sisters inside Eritrea who are doing their duty in safeguarding the nation’s sovereignty and its national development. I want to assure them that those who are living in diaspora will do our best in keeping our identity and nationalism. Let’s work together to develop our nation.