In a society like Ethiopia which is basically characterized by rooted patriarchy and socially approved female humiliation and degradation, the women’s efficacy and cautiousness is massively needed than anything.
Ethiopia is a country where the people are densely located in the rural areas. This did mean that there is an intensifying degree of women subversion when compared with urban areas. Here, the logic is the highest number did mean the highest number of women is collected there since women’s access to education and interaction is lower comparatively.
The other logic is in the urban areas the rationality of the people is better so that women’s treatment is healthier. A huge number of the society believes in the socio-cultural norms and principles which are away from logical and scientific justifications. On issues like gender, female marginalization has been reflected through cultural practices, proverbs, religious preaches, and certain customs.
Thus, overcoming such troubles and being able to compete with their male counterpart did cost a lot for females. With these pressing challenges, there have been prominent women who succeeded and outshined in various competitive spheres. These women made a remarkable effort by resisting harmful customs and enabling themselves or being agents to be effective in going through troubles and getting over to leadership. Here, I want to extend my salute to Empress Taytu Betul, Patriot Shewareged Gedele, and others who paved the way for the successive generation.
These days, in the political sphere, lots of women leaders are progressively joining the nominees to step up to the ladder of leadership. Luckily, since the past few years, relatively, a good number of women have been taking more positions in the political leadership than ever.
In this regard, the political journey of one of the effective women leaders who can put her blueprint into leadership is presented under. Her experiences are referred from various interviews she had made with different media outlets.
Birtukan Mideksa, I would like to call her ‘an iron woman’, was born in Addis Ababa and she was the first woman leader from a competing party.
When she was in grade 12, the EPRDF party, which promised to entertain a multi-party system for the first time in the history of the country, took political power. This promise was her hope to look forward to the party. She was a very active and well-informed girl who was hotly debating politics with her batches. As she was narrating her story, since the country was under the operation of the military regime that suppressed freedom, this new political party, she thought, could be much better. For this expectation, the initial philosophy of this party that underlined a multiparty system, diversity, freedom, and equality were among the attractive phenomena for Birtukan.
But things started changing following the international political shift. In the very beginning, publications were criticizing government policies. But after some time, the government started repressing the media, persecuting the journalists. Freedom and democracy did not prevail as expected. She consciously recognized such things. And such drastic changes let her start questioning.
This alerted woman had got her first degree in Law from Addis Ababa University and became an associate judge. While she was on this duty, in July 2002 she faced a critical court case. The top-ranking politician, who was the former minister of defense Siye Abrha, was accused of corruption and taken to court to be judged by Birtukan.
The skilled and self-esteemed Birtukan released this person with bail, which was not the intention and expectation of the ruling party. This was a great deed of the woman that showed her bravery. Hailu Araya, who was the Vice-President of Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ), shared this prudent decision as “that case showed her courage and her sense of justice.” But she never feels it is something special because she believes she was doing her job.
The government was disappointed by her decision. Thus, violating court’s decision, it rearrested Siye. At a moment Birtukan had received lots of threatening and harassing words from the ruling party. But she never being influenced and shrunk by the acts of the ruling party. She noticed the massive violations of the rule of law. Then she preferred to leave her job and started a new job at an independent law firm.
This remarkable court decision had gained her a greater respect and to have a special place in the minds of the people. She was called a heroine woman at that time. Then she decided to challenge the then ruling party. She joined an opposition party called the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD). She was among the leaders of this party. She exhibited a qualified leadership style as her colleagues said it in different ways.
When she was on this path, she received various stereotypes and warnings from the ruling party. But she kept on moving forward. That means she portrayed resistance to those challenges. Again she had a knowledge and logic that strengthened her to face things confidently. That is an agency of this woman.
She was at the front with her male colleagues. Alerting followers, explained their goals and missions. She was very strategic and effective in mobilizing the people. That party was very active in changing the political spirit of the country. Various reports and politicians argue that much of peoples’ passion and political pledge was not ever seen in the country before and even still, I believe. Her agency and commitment moved her forward over her patriarchal sourced humiliations.
In the 2005 election which is registered as the most controversial and highly competent election period that has ever again seen in the history of the country, CUD had won over a third of the seats of the parliament. The members were claiming even more seats if the voting was not abused deliberately by the government. Then the disappointed ruling party saw great shares in its power and started searching for those influential leaders of this opposition party. Birtukan was the one who was targeted by the government. The ruling party accused her as if she was in a way of overthrowing the constitutional order. Then she was sentenced to life in prison and thrown into jail.
While she was imprisoned in a prison center called ‘Kaliti’, she was not giving up. She was very resistant. To mount up her efficacy, she was working on her mind. The Guardian had written about her saying that ‘people in the prison did beg their relatives to bring them food, but Birtukan was asking her mother and daughter to bring books.’ This is a very practical instance for the mean of women agency and resistance in a given context. Shining woman will keep on shining for the coming women in various areas.
Birtukan was released from prison by pardon in 2007. However, the pardon was becoming very controversial among members of the opposition party. Then, she cooled down the issue of the pardon process when she was making a speech abroad. That was again the source of the government’s grievance. The former police officer Workneh Gebeyehu commanded her to ask for an apology for her say in the process of the pardon made for her. She was unwilling. This woman did not know what would happen if she refused, but she did it with confidence. Then, the ruling party sentenced her to life in prison again.
In October 2010, she signed another pardon document and was freed from prison. This time, she fled and started living in USA with her daughter. After the withdrawal of EPRDF, the country was facing a certain reform with the new ruling party called Prosperity Party. This party came up with the philosophy of togetherness and mercy for wrong deeds. The high-profiled Birtukan was recognized and considered by the Premier to return to her home country and to be a Chairperson of the National Electoral Board (NEBE).
She was excited since she was missing her homeland and was worrying about ways to serve the people. She had accepted the invitation and served dedicatedly. She had led the Board with passion and commitment and a visible positive image of the board or nomenclature was noticed in her leadership duration.
This woman has passed through certain challenges and reacted to these threats effectively. Ethiopian and African women should be active and strong in making themselves agents enough so as to be important in filling a given space. This is, I believe, the gun for the female till the eradication of patriarchy from the continent. Commitment and being goal-oriented, as it is seen in this woman, are particularly crucial to moving up the ladder to leadership.
Opinions, suggestions, and comments are highly welcomed via our address.
BY MEKDES TAYE (PhD)
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD THURSDAY 25 JULY 2024
