BY TEWODROS KASSA
Being home to more than 80 Nations, Nationalities and people, Ethiopia embraces diversified and well cultivated traditional means of arbitration and conflict resolution mechanisms. The country has now come up with a new idea of maintaining sustainable peace and stability through maintaining a genuine dialogue among pertinent stakeholders. In doing so, the country has announced the establishment of a new commission that sought to facilitate this dialogue and help the country to resolve the current problems observed in different parts of the country.
During a stay with local media, the National Dialogue Commission (NDC) Chairperson Prof. Mesfin Araya said that the commission relies on homegrown ideas and grass root conflict resolution mechanisms as a route to reach its destination of addressing contentious issues peacefully.
Thus, efforts are underway to gather all relevant actors to accomplish the commission’s objectives successfully. The selection of participants is also being done in every district in the states and the city administration. Prime attention has been given to ensure the inclusivity of the dialogue in which all sectors of the society will be represented in the process.
According to him, extensive studies would be carried out to utilize the indigenous knowledge as an input of facilitating the national dialogue. The eleven commissioners who were appointed by the House of Peoples’ Representatives (HoPR) are delighted to take part in knowledge and experience sharing to this end. The Commission is designed to embrace the participation of the public from all walks of lives including women, youth, activists, political parties, prominent personalities, among many others. To realize the Commission’s goals, the public, particularly the youth, have to make an active participation owing to the fact that they are the future leaders of the nation.
Recently, the National Dialogue Commission (NDC) announced that elders are expected to play three roles in the upcoming national dialogue and they will be participants of the deliberation, take the chairmanship role in the process and provide information to the public.
Thus, the commission is prioritizing the involvement and active participation of the country’s elders since their lifetime experience paves way for national dialogue and public ownership.
Approached by the Ethiopian Press Agency (EPA) Commissioner Bilen Geberemedhin stated that the elders will inform the commission about the traditional conflict resolution system of the society and other issues. “This will contribute to making the consultation process peaceful by creating agendas.”
The society will have different roles. In fact, the owner of the national dialogue is the society. Therefore, as an owner, they should participate in the process. They should also send issues that will be on the agenda of the national dialogue through the options set. As owners, the public should expect the consultation process to be peaceful and fair, the commissioner emphasized.
On his part, Garedew Asefa, a reconciliation and peace expert and consultant, highlighted that the public’s avid participation is needed to bring and sustain peace. “Peace is made, protected and grown. Therefore peace will be made among the people. The peace that has come is expected. The peace that is being maintained is wants to grow.”
Garedew further highlighted that public’s overwhelming involvement is essential to strengthen peace and the role of elders is high in order to strengthen, maintain and instill peace in the society. The elders of the country work to convey the history of the past and the history that is being made to the next generation. Therefore, it can be said that the elders of the country are the guardians of peace.
What did the previous generation realize and do about peace, what should the current generation do about peace? They are useful to show the future generation the kind of understanding they should grow up with in terms of peace. Therefore, he said the elders of the country should hold firm so that peace prevails in Ethiopia.
On his part, Daniel Bereded, a senior expert in peace building at the Ministry of Peace, said that the role of the community in building peace in Ethiopia is immense. Developing a civilized culture of consultation and problem solving through dialogue, having a sense of ownership for peace in the area and participating in any peace building activities are expected from a civilized society.
“There should be active public participation in the works that ensure the peace and tranquility of the country.” The public should play its part to maintain the ongoing peace building and people-to-people activities. If the public sustains its meaningful involvement in social activities, social relations will be strengthened and conflicts between each other can be avoided.
The expert further highlighted that leaders and members of political parties should strengthen their involvement in peace building that has been carried out by the government. “A lot is expected from the government to ensure that the constitutional rights of citizens are respected.”
There is conflict in every society. All human cultures will experience it because people have different interests, aspirations, values, and ambitions. To prevent needless killing and potential future hostilities, conflict management techniques, whether old or modern, must be used whenever there is conflict. By serving as a mediator between the two disputing parties, elders play a crucial role in this regard in averting conflicts in their early phases. According to the proverb, “Old is gold,” and senior folks play a crucial part in conflict resolution processes, whether they take the form of arbitration or mediation. Ethiopia will be crucial in providing answers to the desired outcome because it is a country where many elders with local wisdom can be obtained.
The Ethiopian Herald 22 June 2023
