It is the most heartening decision for Ethiopia to come back to its political history and design its way forward for reconciliation, stability, and affluence as per the fact that the socio-economic context and the unsettled political backgrounds.
Likewise, it is important to note that in the aftermath of backlogs of predicaments surfacing in some parts of the country, Ethiopia has been passing through many twists and turns. However, to get to the bottom of the problem the incumbent has been at the ready to undertake all possible efforts from widening democratic and political space to staging national dialogue.
In light of the current situation, the incumbent has been getting itself involved in a diverse range of fruitful undertakings that can wind down piled up conflicts. As a matter fact, most of the conflicts that spark in various parts of the country have been chalked up to socio-economic problems and other related aspects.
It is common knowledge that the Ethiopian government has lately established National Dialogue Commission to build a ‘common view among different groups and citizens for exchange of ideas in the context of its nation-building process.
Needless to say, the establishment of national dialogue plays a valuable role in forestalling potential skirmishes, and repair aggressions of plurality of types through dialogue with the public.
Regarding the significance and the challenges of the national dialogue a number of experts, scholars and other influential people have been tossing around ideas.
Ethiopia had encountered several golden opportunities over the past centuries that could have changed history, said Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
The inclusiveness of upcoming national dialogue will only be achieved if all Ethiopians are able to support the process with enthusiasm and ownership, according to information obtained from ENA.
The upcoming national dialogue should be taken as a golden opportunity to curb the political challenges of the nation that have been rolling for centuries and lay the foundations for our future, the premier stated.
“If we just forget and undermine the fact that this opportunity is being secured as a result of an immense hard work and long history, we can easily lose it,” he warned.
However, Abiy added that if the nation tries to exploit the opportunity by considering it as a pearl, it could be a game changer.
For the inclusive national dialogue to be successful, the process must be credible and inclusive, Abiy said, adding this will happen “when we are all able to support and strengthen the National Dialogue Commission, which oversees the process.”
The Premier further urged all parties to contribute their part to the dialogue process with a sense of ownership and ensure their participation.
The government at all levels will continue to provide the necessary support to ensure the efficiency of the established National Dialogue Commission, he reaffirmed.
Abiy also called on regional state administrators to provide the necessary inputs for the work of the Commission and create conducive environment for its activities with sincerity, ownership and historical responsibility.
By the same token, a Political Scientist and Senior Researcher at the Institute of Security Studies, Semir Yusuf (Ph.D.) told The Ethiopian Press Agency (EPA) that the commitment of the government and other political forces involved in the National Dialogue including armed insurgents is the precondition of peace.
Accordingly, the National Dialogue commission should make a critical consideration of conditions and factors that have caused the growing political unrest.
“The current political complexes exhibited in Ethiopia have not been created overnight and the problem has been growing from time to time. Hence, as the optimal mechanism of resolving political antagonism, the commission has to give utmost priority to making the process all-inclusive.”
“I think the commission needs to set a minimum goal to achieve from the National Dialogue. Certainly, the commission could bring some positive changes if the deliberation goes as per plan. Though the National Dialogue might not resolve all differences, it could help to set further mechanisms to address the contentious issues, the academician remarked.
Dialogue is the best mechanism to address political differences in a peaceful and enduring manner and it would also halt human rights violations. “Most human rights abuses and ethnically targeted killings would cease if the political rivalry was settled by a civilized and inclusive dialogue, indicated National Dialogue Commission Chief Commissioner in his recent interview with EPA.
Atrocities and human rights violations have been committed due to the political instability and the mass killings and ethnic-based attacks are directly or indirectly attributed to political interest groups. So, the National Dialogue has the potential to resolve all these challenges.”
Daniel further noted that the EHRC, with the support of the government, has been working in partnership with international organizations for the successful conduct of the National Dialogue. “The growing human rights violations have to be ended for once and for all.”
He urged the National Dialogue commission to facilitate an inclusive and democratic deliberation so as to address the contentious issues among conflicting parties. “In fact, Ethiopia deserves complete transformation in political and human rights domains. In my view, the commission is being organized with the support of the government.”
Noting the EHRC is monitoring the establishment of the National Dialogue Commission, the chief commissioner highlighted that as human rights advocates, they would push to make the human rights issue the centerpiece of the deliberation.
In a previous interview with The Ethiopian Herald, Anteneh Tsegaye (Ph.D.), Assistant Professor of Intercultural Communication at Addis Ababa University said, “In principle, national dialogue involves the public at all structural levels, formal or informal, and brings significant actors to the table, going beyond the elites, to deal with issues of discontents and misunderstanding in the course of the nation-building process. In its real sense, for example, civil society leaders, and even external actors, can initiate informal dialogues between key actors, even if they have lesser mandates than one initiated by the state. These informal dialogues can entail trust-building meetings, negotiations, and consultations that lay the groundwork for formal national dialogue.
“In practice, however, it is often attempted after exclusive elite-based negotiation formats which have failed or are considered inadequate to prevent further instability as lessons learned from the failure of countries in the current conflict zones. Ethiopia needs a highly inclusive and bottom-up approach to a national dialogue.
Engaging the public and civil society should enforce the Ethiopian national dialogue as the country owns indigenous approaches to dealing with conflicts and reconciliation processes.
As history informs, the elites of Ethiopia have been at the center of political fragmentation and agenda-setting for more than a century,” he added.
There are a few questions to reflect on to avoid noises around the concept of national dialogue and success stories and challenges associated with the experiences of countries across the globe could better inform Ethiopia.
“To begin with, it is vital to ask about the concept of national dialogue and its intentions in the process of building a common ground among groups for political dialogue and reconciliation process.
Conceptually, national dialogue is a nationally owned political process aimed at generating consensus among a broad range of national stakeholders in times of deep political crisis, in post-war situations or during far-reaching political transitions.
It is believed that the process is typically accompanied by broader and inclusive societal consultations, involving all sectors,”
“A national dialogue is a process and its success depends on the same. Obviously, it passes through three successive phases: preparation, process, and implementation.
The preparation phase can be as long, or longer, than the official process, as it often entails mini-negotiation processes in itself to establish key parameters and the institutional framework (i.e. mandate, agenda, participant selection, decision-making procedures, etc.).” he wrapped up.
BY ADDISALEM MULAT
The Ethiopian Herald 6 April 2022
