It is abundantly clear that Ethiopians residing left, right, and center of the country have been living under the umbrella of Ethiopia in peace, harmony, and other abundant asset that can easily win the hearts and minds of all and sundry at the earliest possible juncture.
The various Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ of Ethiopia strongly believe in living in harmony putting their differences aside, and turning the spotlight on unity, most nations have been following in Ethiopia’s footsteps and its example on numerous occasions.
It is no secret that as Ethiopians possess their own problem-solving techniques with flying colors, they have been giving prominence to potential differences that can come to pass among them and possible ways out. Despite the fact that playing a part in this kind of good deed is virtually the same as keeping the glory of the former grace of the country, some anti-peace elements have been moving heaven and earth to move the country into uncharted territory and back the county into a corner.
Even worse, some of them have been fully endeavoring to up the ante under the guise of a number of lame reasons that do not reflect the unvarnished truth unfolding in the length and breadth of the country. Likewise, instead of turning the tide on the situation surfacing in the northern part of the country, they have been adding fuel to the fire by opening the floodgates of disinformation that can mystify the international community at the drop of a hat.
In lieu of working around the clock to resolve predicaments happening in some parts of the country, the anti-peace elements are turning out to be a bystander pouring cold water on the positive development taking place across the country. As getting involved in a smear campaign against their motherland does not help them attain the desired goal, they should make an effort to distance themselves from such evil acts that can rub salt in the wound and make matter worse.
Notwithstanding the fact that some internal and external actors pull out all the stops to dismantle the country by bringing layers of conspiracies into play at all hours of the day and night, the indigenous conflict-resolving mechanisms kept on thwarting their nefarious deeds unfolding behind closed curtains. As a matter of fact, in light of the current situation, evildoers have been leaving no stone unturned to put lives at risk and playing the victim card many-a-time-and-oft.
No matter how hard they try, they cannot materialize their dream on the grounds that Ethiopians irrespective of religion, ethnicity, and gender have been working hand-in-glove to thwart their nefarious deeds more than ever before.
A lot has been said in the present climate about the ongoing conflict surfacing in some parts of the country and the potential solutions that can resolve the conundrum everlastingly from the face of the country.
As things stand at present, The Ethiopian Press Agency (EPA) has tossed around ideas on the subject of the ongoing reality on the ground in some parts of the country. In the last couple of weeks, a string of panel discussions has been conducted with different themes in Jijiga and Dire Dawa satisfactorily. Most of the participants were taken by surprise on the heels of the key takeaways from the conference and its successful completion.
In a similar vein, EPA organized yesterday a conference in Harar hugely revolving around Ethiopia’s common values. Quite a lot of scholars from various higher learning institutions in the country, public figures, the elderly, and other opinion leaders partook in the conference. Most of them tossed around valuable ideas, thoughts, and feelings in a way that can take the country on to the next stage of accomplishment and signal potential solutions to the existing daunting challenges.
By the same token, the Ethiopian breadbaskets which were colorfully decorated with EPA’s brand colors made the session livelier. While on the subject, it is one of the Ethiopian traditional crafts made up of palm straw decorated from head to toe in a vast number of colors. Messob holds a special place in Ethiopia as it tells more about the noble cultures and the longstanding harmony among the Ethiopian societies.
Messob is surely beyond the dining ceremony and explains the socioeconomic and cultural values of Ethiopians. That is why EPA which is deeply intertwined with Ethiopian history and values decorated the panel discussion with this peculiar traditional breadbasket that perfectly suits the forum and its theme.
Apart from showing the dining culture of Ethiopians, Messob serves as a roundtable among those who attend the common meal symbolizing the intimacy of the participants and allowing a face-to-face discussion even among foes. What is more, it serves many people at a time accompanied by Gursha, a sharing culture among Ethiopians in which the participants show their respect and love to one another by giving slices of the meal.
In the same way, it can also be said that Messob represents the greater Ethiopia and the participants can allude to the various Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples living in every nook and cranny of the country.
Above and beyond, Messob represents Ethiopia’s unique culture of togetherness, a culture of oneness in diversity, a culture of inclusiveness, and other significant assets of the various Nations, Nationalities, and peoples of Ethiopia that teach others important lessons and other valuable assets of the country beyond a shadow of a doubt.
In actual fact, Messob symbolizes unity in diversity. In other words, it brings families together not just for dining purposes but also for sharing real-time experiences numerous times. While dining together, the participants exchange views on their daily lives about the good and the bad ones. EPA’s stage in this regard gives ample opportunities for the participants to explore the common values of Ethiopians and the current opportunities and challenges of their country. In a show of the longstanding ritual of Ethiopians, the EPA stage was opened with the blessing of the elderly, a common asset that precedes dining.
Messob, the traditional Ethiopian breadbasket, has been used for several purposes in addition to playing a huge role in moving the country on to the next chapter of accomplishment by ensuring peace and tranquility among the various Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples of Ethiopia. Apart from portraying entrenched societal ties among family members, neighbors, community members, and others, it is a symbol of unity and prosperity.
EPA panel discussion which is organized by Ethiopians for Ethiopians also showcases the age-old traditional mechanisms in which Ethiopians practice to confer and resolve their socioeconomic and political disagreements.
Ethiopians from time to time have long used indigenous mechanisms to the settlement of disputes in accordance with their respective community traditions. It should be pointed out that in Ethiopia back in the day quite a lot of rural communities do not refer skirmishes to officers of the law except by making use of home-grown problems solving mechanisms. In consideration of the foregoing, they have been reaping the fruits of success.
As the various Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples of Ethiopia lived for centuries under Ethiopian skies in peace, harmony, and other important assets of the country, they pay no heed to disputes, differences, and other evil actions that can pose a threat to their unity no matter what the cost may be. When a difference arises, Ethiopians all of a sudden get to the bottom of their problem in an atmosphere of calm making the most of their respective problem-solving techniques in no time at all.
The deeply rooted indigenous conflict resolution mechanisms have been used by the various Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples of Ethiopia along with Messob.
Putting the indigenous conflict mechanism into effect plays a paramount in involving harmony building on the basis of informative discussion with the intention of delivering information and shedding light on matters about the difference of opinion. It is no exaggeration to say that the needed outcome of the homegrown conflict-solving technique is a sense of synchronization, harmony, and joint deliberations among parties involved in the conflict.
Homegrown problem-solving mechanisms possess great unexploited potential in preserving the coherence of society among culturally diverse societies despite the set of tactics to conflict resolution techniques to fluctuate considerably from community to community by means of a specific history, beliefs, and tradition.
BY ADDISALEM MULAT
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD WEDNESDAY 1 JUNE 2022
