Mature and wise people sit together and talk to each other as brothers and sisters and not call names against each other. Harsh rhetoric, vicious and audacious attacks against each other is not and cannot be the answer for any differences or misunderstandings that may happen or that may arise between and /or amongst us.
Politics as usual is not going to cut it. We all have to just dig down and talk about the issues that concern us in order to reach a common station. We have to reach to each other and find a common position.
Political parties, religious and cultural leaders must teach and direct their followers to learn conducting peaceful dialogue whenever different opinion that may lead to clashes or conflicts happen.
Generation passes and generation follows and that is the way of life; however, the good work, the best practices of any generation remains and becomes a living example that is cherished not only by the current generation but also by the next generation as well. It is time therefore that we all think positive and constructive and treat each other as brothers and sisters because we all belong to this beautiful nation we proudly call Ethiopia.
Ethiopian people have lived with each other as brothers and sisters in peace and harmony for generations. The same happened with their social interaction including intermarriage between and amongst them. They have known each other and considered each other as brothers and sisters and helped each other in good and in bad times since time immemorial.
The Ethiopian people have protected and preserved Ethiopia’s freedom, safety, security and territorial integrity fighting internal and external enemies of our nation since time immemorial. They also fought aristocratic and dictatorial regimes side by side as brothers and sisters.
Ethiopian people by and large shared the same culture, tradition, and way of living as well as physical and psychological makeup. They live and study in different parts of the nation and at times, the local people give more respect and hospitality to them than their own residents. This kind of relationship is what should be strengthened. But few negative people want to deny them of these precious values and norms they shared together for centuries.
The relationship between and among our people is what we inherited from our ancestors and that noble relationship is what we must pass to the next generation. Conflicts and war, illegal and violent activities as ways and means of achieving individual, group or institutional goals and objectives will always have detrimental consequences on peace and development of any nation.
Peace as precious as it is can easily be disturbed by peace-hating people. It is important therefore, that people give their utmost value and significance for peace by directly challenging those anti-peace individuals and groups and by enhancing their people to people communication.
Further, whatever time it might take, this fundamental phenomenon of a civilized society will help narrow differences, strengthen healthy relationships and cooperation amongst the public at large and most importantly help reduce and avoid damage and distraction and enhance mutual respect and unity amongst our people.
Open, honest and productive discussion that leads to cooperation and agreement is the answer and at times, the concept of agree to disagree can enhance the tendency of cooperation and can lead us ahead avoiding animosity and hatred.
It’s a sad fact that while most of us spend a sizeable part of our lives communicating with others in face-to-face conversations, over the phone, in committee meetings, via e-mail and social networks we seem more separate and disconnected than ever.
The trouble with much of what passes for communication today is that it’s all crosstalk. It’s a din, not a dialogue. We fire salvos of information across the Internet, or shoot each other text messages, or blog or Twitter about ourselves. But is anyone paying attention? And if they are, do they catch our drift? Genuine understanding seems to be the exception rather than the norm in everyday communication. Much of the time, we’re not even listening to each other at all. The dialogue is a monologue.
The noisy chatter reflects the fact that we don’t really know how to engage one another in authentic conversations. We simply haven’t learned the skills of listening closely to each other, of engaging in meaningful exchanges, and of finding shared sources of meaning. As we move into times of accelerating change and deepening uncertainty, we need to get smart about how to talk to one another.
We need to be able to overcome differences, find common ground, build meaning and purpose, and set directions together. We need to be able to think together as groups, as teams, as committees, as communities, and as citizens. The way to do that is through dialogue.
The word dialogue is often contrasted with monologue, as if it was a two-way, rather than a one-way, process. But that’s misleading. Dialogue is a contraction from the Greek words for through and words. It suggests an activity aimed at eliciting meaning.
Greeks may not have invented dialogue, but they introduced the idea that individuals are not intelligent on their own, that it’s only by reasoning together that they are able to uncover the truth for themselves. The Greeks understood that if two or more people are unsure about a question, they can accomplish something together they can’t do on their own.
By questioning and probing each other, carefully dissecting and analyzing ideas, finding the inconsistencies, never attacking or insulting but always searching for what they can accept between them, they can gradually attain deeper understanding and insight.
That’s what dialogue is: a form of discussion aimed at fostering mutual insight and common purpose. The process involves listening with empathy, searching for common ground, exploring new ideas and perspectives, and bringing unexamined assumptions into the open. When done well, the benefits can be extraordinary.
Long-standing stereotypes can be dissolved, mistrust over come, and visions shaped and grounded in a shared sense of purpose. People previously at odds with one another can come into alignment on objectives and strategies. New perspectives and insights can be gained, new levels of creativity stimulated, and bonds of community strengthened.
The process of dialogue is more important than ever today for a number of reasons. For one thing, the confrontation between different cultural traditions and worldviews requires some process by which people can communicate across differences. For another, the fragmentation of society into a myriad of subcultures based on profession, status, race, ethnicity, political loyalty, etc., make it necessary that people find a pathway to common ground. A third reason is that traditional authority structures are falling away.
Dialogue is the most effective response to these developments because, on the one hand, it allows people to span their differences and forge shared frames of reference and, on the other, it gives those formerly excluded from decision-making an opportunity to participate in the process of finding common ground and establishing priorities for action.
Effective dialogue requires that all the participants have equal standing, that they listen with respect and empathy, and that ideas and assumptions explored openly and without judgment.
Difference in opinion is a natural thing and a healthy phenomenon, which enriches the nation with mature ideas. If such difference of opinion is utilized correctly, it becomes a remarkable tool for evaluating things from different points of view and dimensions.
The Ethiopian Herald August 28, 2019
BY YOHANNES GEBRESELLASIE (Ph.D)
