BY MULUGETA GUDETA
Recent elections in Ethiopia have now led to the formation of a new government that will be radically different from the transitional government that was in power in the last three years. One difference is that the transitional government lacked electoral legitimacy while the new administration is an elected one, whatever people may think about the nature of the elections. Prime Minister Abiy was bold enough on this score when he said that although the elections were not one hundred per cent perfect, a democratically elected government has now been established in Ethiopia for the first time in history.
This time around, electors may not be fooled by sweet sounding words about democracy, elections or transfer of power. Under the now defunct EPRDF regime, the ruling party was fooling the people by claiming that a “peaceful transfer” of power was achieved every time the party won the elections and placed its leaders on top of the government machinery. This was of course a mockery of democracy that cost the system dearly and led to its final downfall.
When one president or prime minster succeeded another one, the process was also described as “a peaceful transfer of power” knowing full well that the presidency has no real power according to the Ethiopian constitution and the transfer of office was mere formality and not a transfer of power. It seems now that Ethiopia has barely left behind the dictatorial regimes that shamelessly portrayed themselves as democratic without winning a popular mandate.
This is not however to say that things will improve or change automatically simply because the new administration is an elected one. It is rather facing new and old challenges in all areas of national life. The economy is number one priority for improvement. So is politics, as well as education, arts and culture. Speaking of arts and culture, the new administration is expected to implement reform measures that would overcome the challenges of the past and open up new perspectives.
Arts and culture have never enjoyed the attention they should deserve from any administration. Arts and culture figured almost always on the lowest rung of national policy priorities. The old perception that the arts and culture do not serve purposes other than fulfilling the entertainment needs of the public. They were ranked on the scale of priorities even lower than sports. This was of course a mistaken attitude.
The old perception was that arts and culture are for entertainment as they were confined to the narrow confines of promoting the national songs and dances of the various nationalities Ethiopia and nothing else. The official perception as well as policy hardly went beyond this narrow confine. It was not a bad idea to promote the national cultures, music, dances of the nationalities of Ethiopia. Yet arts and culture have broader perspectives as means of educating, creating awareness and building a democratic culture in the country.
What has so far been achieved in the fields of arts and culture in the broadest sense of the term was largely the result of efforts by private citizens rather than by public institutions. True there is a government institution with the mandate to promote culture and the arts in the country although its achievements fall short of the expectations so far. The institution may have its own organizational, budgetary or policy constraints. It might have been impossible to challenge these things in the past. Yet the new administration is now expected to make a review of the cultural institutions under its jurisdiction and implement the much-delayed reforms in all walks of artistic and cultural life of the country.
First of all arts and culture needs to enjoy the respect they deserve be freed from old stereotypes. Culture is not only a means of public enjoyment but that of changing society’s attitudes and perceptions in a positive direction. It is a means of promoting peace, and achieving deeper understanding national objectives. Most of all it should not be used as means of promoting ideological illusions or serving politics.
Arts and culture should rather serve to promote a critical spirit and a progressive attitude in national political life. It is often said that education should promote the objective of creating a generation that challenges stereotypes and finds solutions to the most burning problem the country is facing. There will be no such change without a vibrant and progressive culture that does not destroy tradition but builds the new on the basis of the positive elements of our cultural and artistic legacies.
One can take a look at the state of our music, theatre, literature and dances and realize how much we have fallen victims to foreign and mostly Western culture while undermining or neglecting our own heritages. Our music is increasing falling under the influence of Western musical fads and styles under the pretext of modernization. Young musicians become easy preys because of the illusion of financial success, fame and fortune Western music industry is constantly promoting through its media.
Technology is another subversive element that weakens our national musical brands and instruments that need deep knowledge, discipline and commitment to play by exchanging them to the easier and flashier Western styles whereby most of the work is done by technology and done by musicians. This has in turn increased the appetite for money and fame to the neglect of substance, heritage and the genuinely Ethiopian brand of music. No doubt that there are some islands of successes here and there in blending modernity with tradition and producing something beautiful. The majority of music that is composed in a rush and thrown to the public is simply trash intended to make money at the cost of public enjoyment.
The history of theatre in Ethiopia dates back to one hundred years. We are the first people in Africa to build the first authentically national theatre group and produce the first national drama written and produced by Ethiopians. Yet, where is our theatre after one hundred years? Has it gone forwards or backwards? Where is the level of poetry and drama that had created the likes of Tsegaye G/Medhin. Gebre Kiristos Desta?
Where are the classics of Ethiopian literature that could achieve international fame and were the prides of the nation? Where are the great theatre houses that were built way back in the 1930 and 1950s and were unparalleled by anything like that in Africa? Where is Ethiopian literature now after the booms of the 1970s that produced the great pioneers? Where is the creative and publishing boom of the 1960s that made the Revolution possible before it sank into irremediable crisis from which it has not recovered to this day?
It is better to leave the answers to these questions to the connoisseurs of Ethiopian music, drama and literature.
When we often talk about Renaissance, we forget that it also includes arts and culture. In Europe and in many other countries, the political and economic renaissances came on the heels of the artistic and cultural renaissance that gave inspiration, direction and imagination to politics, economics and things like that. There is no true renaissance without genuine artistic and cultural renewal and that is why we have been talking about renewal of the last couple of decades without producing anything that would remotely resemble a renewal. Rather, we have been repeating the past in different disguise.
The new administration is therefore expected to have clear policy objectives, institutional support and budgetary strength in order to set of Ethiopia’s artistic and cultural greatness now rather than tomorrow. Musicians, writers, poets and writers deserve respect and appreciation and support from public institutions to help them come out of their current doldrums. Ethiopian cinema could not grow because it is not enjoying any kind of government support and a policy that would encourage professionals to produce masterpieces instead of languishing in mediocrity.
It is now time to try to catch up with the rest of Africa whose literatures are producing Noble Prize winning authors. The process may take a long time but it is now time to lay the foundations for future achievements. The coming generations would attain the seemingly unattainable heights of literary and artistic perfection and allow our country its respected place along the greats of African literature. Ethiopia deserves greatness in arts and culture in general because it had already achieved artistic and cultural greatness in the past when the rest of the world was living in caves.
The Ethiopian Herald November 4/2021
