BY Dr. TESFAYE DESALEGN
U.S. based Independent Researcher
Young elite Ethiopians in the 60s and 70s argued, claimed and bickered over ethnicity as a decisive political agenda for the nation. Those who read this mantra wrangled that Ethiopia’s existential problems would dissipate with the triumph of ethnic liberation movements.
Accordingly, the Oromo Liberation Front, Tigray Peoples Liberation Front, etc. were hatched, giving birth to many die-hard ideologues. They preached and misdiagnosed that Ethiopia’s fundamental quandary was emanating from a political economy that was manifest from the ‘hierarchical’ relations between ethnic groups. Jargons like exploitation, subjugation, were overused, fueling hate and suspicion within various segments of society.
However, that was a half-baked truth. Ethiopia, like many nations, was a place for over 80 ethnic groups and due to some historical errors, the relations between ethnic groups looked hierarchical. Again, this was a reality in any society. After all, dominance and power control are the basic nature of humans. But to say that the defining gridlock for Ethiopia’s future lied in questions of ethnicity was a misleading analysis.
The Ethiopian problem was contended as questions of nations and nationalities, as if ethnic diversity was Ethiopia’s only reality. There were and are hundreds of nations with large number of ethnic groups, tribes, or clans. These nations haven’t made ethnicity their organizing principle, nor the magnus opus of their politics.
What was worse, was these groups of ideologues advanced their arguments that the rest of Ethiopians should actually be organized in accordance to their ethnicity, crafting ethnicity as the organizing principle of society.
Not only was that farce, but it was imported from certain quarters of the world, where questions of nations and nationalities were policy prescriptions of the communist USSR. Ethiopians existed for generations without having to eliminate each other. If only, there were some conflicts that would not question their being part of the greater domain. Clashes over territory or resources are natures of any society.
Although the ethnic political discourse seemed buried during the Dergue period, its eggs were hatched in Dedebit, where the now TPLF was born. While Ethiopia’s problems during the 17 years were developmental, governance, human rights, and internal and external conflicts, the TPLF and few others remained with their old narrative. Their resolve towards ethnic narrative was unflinching.
Although 1991 has a landmark significance, the year has never brought an end of Ethiopia’s turbulent political life despite the change of government. In fact, many argue that it heralded a new, even more dangerous, set of challenges that would change the ethnic consciousness of its people forever. In many ways, the year 1991 is significant in that it resulted in the defeat of the 17-year-old military regime that almost left the country dismembered from the world community.
The incoming TPLF and EPRDF mantra was ethnic federalism, resulting the redrawing of the old political map to highly rigid ethnic based one. With the Constitution that has flawed and twisted articles, it scrapped individual rights with intent and purpose of abolishing the Ethiopian nation. Regions became the ownership of their majority “indigenous” people, leaving out the Ethiopian demographic reality.
The political discourse altered from the Ethiopian nation to a narrow, localized and exclusive narrative. Sadly, this would create a society of divided nation, disavowing the concept of greater state. The ruling party’s routine became rewriting history with the intent of crafting the divide and rule. Ethiopians began seeing an ethnic hegemony like no other, with the minority rule in place.
Ethiopia created not the democratic republic as its official name stands, but a Republic of fear.
Ethiopians have grappled with the issue of ethic politics in the last 30 years, more than what they can digest. With TPLF’s experimental ethnic democracy, concepts that were bizarre were getting currency, like revolutionary democracy.
The political landscape has changed for good. The narrative changed to regrouping the people, in a very rigid, narrow, and segregated manner. People were intentionally sensitized about their identity only coming from their ethnicity.
Those groups of people who didn’t want to be identified with any ethnicity, were ridiculed, booting their individual rights. More so, urbanites were harassed and forced to put on the dress that was made by the TPLF regime. A large number of intellectuals loathed the idea of ethnic politics, as a dangerous trajectory, but they were labelled as hegemonic Amharas.
Even if the ethnic federalism had good intent, the way it was imposed on Ethiopians was in an unfair and unjustified manner, allowing the minority rule for the rest of the TPLF’s life.The divide and rule was employed with massive brutal consequences.
Although this dangerous social engineering project imposed on the nation had some positive outcomes, the rift it created between various segments of society is beyond compare. It effectively replaced the nation-state with tribalized psyche.
Ethiopia was dissipating from the hearts of the new generation.While this sinister political discourse was introduced, the TPLF regime was enjoying the throne, as most ethnic groups were bickering for recognition and power within their territories.
The twenty-seven years of silence was built on creating suspicion, hate, marginalization and uncertainty. No dissent was entertained, nor any alternative narrative. Reform was taken as cowardly move, although the party’s periodic “evaluation” would talk about them.
As those vehement skeptics of ethnic politics predicted, the regime would end up dividing the nation. During the 27 years of its life, the TPLF regime was only successful in manufacturing the secessionist mentality and disintegrating the nation which so proudly lived for ad infinitum.
In its attempt to stay on power, the regime’s human rights violation was on world record. The nation was under the worst authoritarian administration, worst governance, that has effectively cracked down any opposition, eliminated free media, jailed the largest number of journalists.
With the coming to power of PM Abiy, the titanic challenges were out on the street; the biggest problem being TPLF itself. On the one hand, the Ethiopian nation-state was on the verge of collapse, with the youth at the center of the tribalist view. On the other hand, the once-claiming-liberator became the biggest problem child of the new day.
No reform would be possible with the TPLF, which in the first place never wanted to see a power transition. Thousands of innocent lives were lost, and millions displaced from their villages as a result of conflicts masterminded and financed by the run-away TPLF leaders hiding in Tigray.
What is worrying is not the challenge originating from the deathbed of the TPLF but the seeds of tribalism that have been harvested over the 27 years. The youth of Ethiopia have deliberately been brainwashed with the mind set of exclusion and intolerance. Prime Minister Abiy’s national project has been fiercely challenged from the radical ethno-centric quarters who have called him unitarist.
The success of PM Abiy’s nation-state will face tremendous challenges from these tribalists who still believe that Ethiopia’s problem is questions of ethnicity. Thanks to the 27 years of TPLF’s divide and rule, this has become part of the reality in Ethiopia and a fundamental shift need to be in place to see Ethiopians live harmoniously.
Ethiopia’s dangerous primordial trajectory needs to be checked with dialogue and inclusive discussion. TPLF’s narrative of the 27 years has brought the nation to the brink of collapse, virtually creating rift and suspicion between groups. The nomenclature they created like “Neftegna” -bearer of arm, or narrow ethno-centrists still linger in the minds of the youth.
Ethiopia’s crossroad requires an all-inclusive national dialogue between generations and segments of society. Clearly, respect for nations and nationalities can not be compromised. It is true that Ethiopians are in a new reality, that one language or monoculture has taken the nation to a dead end.
The success of the future Ethiopia is greatly at stake and depends on how much we deal with the tribalism. Ethiopia’s glory depends on how much we decolonize the tribalized mentality.
The Ethiopian herald December 4/2020
