Conflict In Ethiopia Research Articles

Center–periphery relations, local governance and conflicts in Ethiopia: the experience of Metekel province

ABSTRACTIn Ethiopia, the study and issue of center–periphery relations is not an easy task. It has remained complex and dynamics as it has been dictated and shaped by ever changing socio-economic relations, state ideology and structure. A case in point is Metekel region, which had been characterized by under development, lowland, hot climate and traditional way of life. Until post-1991developments, Metekel was peripheral in relation to the central state. It was an area of confrontation and conflict. Owing to the structural weakness of the centre, successive rulers of the area did not command effective control over it. Focusing on Gumuz, a Nilo-Saharan family, on one hand, and highlanders and new settlers, on the other, this essay examined the main features and dynamics of center–periphery relations, governance and conflicts in Metekel area. The sources, both primary and secondary, have been carefully examined based on the objectives of the study.

Ethnic Federalism and Conflict in Ethiopia: What Lessons Can Other Jurisdictions Draw?

Though there is no universally accepted definition to the notion of federalism, for the concept is dynamic and has changed its nature through time, it has become an important instrument to serve diverse and common interests in a given nation, establishing a union to discharge common functions and regional governments to accommodate diverse interests. Federal systems have taken deviating forms in different jurisdictions because they are meant to serve and reflect the prevailing social, political and economic contexts of the respective federations. Hence, there is no ideal or perfect federalism that is suitable for all essentially federal societies: this is why federations adopt different forms of federalism to manage their own unique internal problems. Despite such disparity and lack of consensus on the concept of federalism as a form of government, one still may describe it and make a distinction between federalism, on one hand, and other forms of government, on the other. Malcolm M. Feeley has explained this:

Human - Wildlife Interaction: Wildlife Crop Raiding Conflict in Ethiopia

Human - Wildlife Interaction: Wildlife Crop Raiding Conflict in Ethiopia

Ethnic Federalism: A Means for Managing or a Triggering Factor for Ethnic Conflicts in Ethiopia

Being one of the most diverse nations in the world, Ethiopia is not an exception to be free from ethnic conflicts due to its weak political structures and mal governance. The existing ethnic federal arrangement of EPRDF is devised with the aim to accommodate the interests of distinct ethnic groups in Ethiopia. Meanwhile, it is still subject to criticisms. Hence, this study questions whether the contemporary ethnic federalism in Ethiopia enables to manage ethnic conflicts or exacerbates them due to its theoretical and empirical applicability. The study is entirely based on secondary sources of data that were interpreted using a mix of interpretivism and constructivism to guide the qualitative method of research. The findings of the study revealed that ethnic federal model of Ethiopia, which solely or majorly formed on the basis of ethno-linguistic lines in most, but not all situations exacerbate and/or generate and transform ethnic conflicts from national into lower structural levels. Thus, a mixed federal system that guarantees ethnic groups self-governance with high inducements for integration and inter-ethnic collaboration is a suggestive solution to move federalism forward in Ethiopia.

Lahra Smith. Making Citizens in Africa: Ethnicity, Gender, and National Identity in Ethiopia.Cambridge, U.K: Cambridge University Press. 2013. xxi + 252 pp. Maps and Tables. Acknowledgments. Abbreviations. Glossary. Appendixes. Bibliography. Index. $29.99. Paper.

POLITICS, INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, AND GLOBALIZATION Lahra Smith. Making Citizens in Africa: Ethnicity, Gender, and National Identity in Ethiopia. Cambridge, U.K: Cambridge University Press. 2013. xxi + 252 pp. Maps and Tables. Acknowledgments. Abbreviations. Glossary. Appendixes. Bibliography. Index. $29.99. Paper.Ethiopia's policies of ethnic federalism have generated a great deal of analysis and debate among scholars. Lahra Smith develops the concept of meaningful to make a valuable intervention in these debates. Smith argues that scholars must go beyond an analysis of formal citizenship and legal rights, and examine acts of citizenship and the exercise of rights. For Smith, citizenship is a practice, something that is done.Smith traces the roots of contemporary ethnic conflict in Ethiopia to the expansion of the Orthodox Christian Abyssinian empire in the late-nineteenth century and the modernizing and centralizing policies of Haile Selassie during the mid-twentieth century. Conquered ethnic groups were forced to acculturate in order to participate in civic life. Despite some reforms implemented under the Marxist military Derg regime, oppressed ethnic groups in southern and western Ethiopia still had very little sense of meaningful citizenship. Since the fall of the Derg in 1991, Ethiopia has been governed by a policy of ethnic federalism that is intended to provide rights to disenfranchised ethnic groups. The country is divided into regional states on the basis of ethnicity. States have a broad range of powers covering education, economic development, health, police forces, and legal courts. Regions may conduct government business and education in the language of their choice, and in theory they have the right to secede and form their own nation. Based on a thorough reading of the secondary sources, Smith offers a very clear and detailed account of the historical processes behind the development of ethnic federalism, and provides a useful rereading of Ethiopian history through the lens of citizenship.Individual chapters focus on the implications of ethnic federalism for language policy, ethnic sovereignty (the Silte and Oromo cases), and gender. In each of these chapters Smith demonstrates the complexities of implementing policies that respect ethnic identity and promote a sense of membership in the nation. In the case of language policy she demonstrates the difficulty of selecting languages for education that allow young people access to economic and political goods without compromising their sense of self and ethnic identity. The Oromo case for self-determination, discussed in chapter 5, is particularly complex, because, as Smith explains, the political oppression that Oromo people have experienced since the advent of ethnic federalism will likely prevent them from investing in any state policies aimed at citizenship expansion. …

The post 1991 ‘inter-ethnic’ conflicts in Ethiopia: An investigation

The purpose of this research was to investigate the main causes of the post 1991 ethnic conflicts in Ethiopia based on secondary data. The theoretical ground of the study was the instrumentalist paradigm which claims that ethnic conflict is a clash between rational agents over scarce resources. Accordingly, the research has established that the post 1991 ethnic conflicts in Ethiopia consisted of multifaceted variables which made the conflicts simply appear as a mere inter-ethnic differences. The real causes of the conflicts were inequitable distributions of economic and political power or the demand for access to political and economic benefits. Furthermore, almost all of the major conflicts were not based on ethnic antagonisms. Yet, they were labeled as ‘inter-ethnic conflicts’ simply due to the fact that they bear the names of the participant ethnic groups. Above all, the conflicts seemed to be inter-ethnic clashes resulting from sheer ethnic differences on account of the previously created inter-ethnic distances among the various ethnic groups of the country. Key words: Ethnicity, ethnic conflict, ethno history of Ethiopia, ethnic politics.

Grounds for Separation: Comparing Recruitment to Separatist Rebel Groups

Separatist movements typically share a basis of legitimacy rooted in nationalism and common ancestral roots. However, a considerable subset of separatists bases their claims on religious difference as well. For instance, separatist conflicts such as the conflict in Mindanao in the Philippines, the Ogaden conflict in Ethiopia, the Karen’s struggle in Myanmar, and the Chechen conflict, all represent groups in conflict with the state involving religious claims-making. In this paper, we explore the differences across religious vs. solely ethno-nationalist separatists, as well as between groups of varying degrees of extremist doctrine, focusing on the mobilization to such groups. Through a game-theoretic model and empirical analysis of recent separatist conflicts, we demonstrate systematic difference in the capacity of separatist rebel groups and trace this to their recruitment potential based on doctrinal space.

Federalism and conflicts in Ethiopia

Since 1991, Ethiopia has been implementing an ethno-linguistic federal system. This system established nine ethnically based regional states. In this article, I briefl y discuss the moral and legal justifi cation of group (collective) rights of ethnocultural communities and introduces the concept of ethnic federalism in general, and Ethiopian ethnic federalism in particular. I also discuss the literature on issues of group (collective) rights (of ethno-cultural communities) and their place in liberalism. While discussing the historical, moral and philosophical necessities for such federal arrangement, I also point out the most binding constraints Ethiopian federalism is facing.

Conflicts between Afar Pastoralists and their Neighbors: Triggers and Motivations

Particularly pervasive violent conflicts in the Horn of Africa have detrimental effects on people's livelihoods there. While the intensity, causes, and repercussions of violent conflicts vary spatially and temporally, pastoral areas are currently the hotspots. This paper examines the causes and consequences of violent conflicts in Ethiopia between Afar pastoralists and two of their neighbors, the Issa and the Karrayyu. The findings are based on primary data (individual interviews, group discussions, and field observations) and secondary data (documents and publications) collected in 2005 and 2006. The results indicate that contemporary challenges such as recurrent droughts, resource appropriation, livestock raiding, proliferation of small arms, and illicit trade contribute to the perpetuation of violent conflicts. While traditional institutions manage inter-clan conflicts, their effectiveness is quite limited with regard to inter-ethnic conflicts, where the contemporary challenges in pastoral areas are too diverse and complex to be managed solely by traditional institutions. The perpetuation of violent conflicts has affected the livelihoods of pastoralists, thereby causing humanitarian crisis and limiting access to resources and opportunities.

Local responses to marginalisation: human—wildlife conflict in Ethiopia's wetlands

ABSTRACTIn western Ethiopia, population pressure, upland land degradation and recurrent food shortages have forced many local communities to extend their agricultural activities into marginal areas such as wetlands. This move into wetland agriculture, however, has brought humans and wild animals into closer proximity and crop raiding has emerged as a serious threat to food security. Drawing upon qualitative field research undertaken with wetland farmers in the area, this article explores the nature of this conflict through the lens of the marginalisation of humans and wild animals in the contested space. The results suggest that the escalation of crop-raiding can be attributed to the interaction of various environmental, social and political factors including conservation legislation, land use change, and the erosion of local institutional arrangements governing wetland management. The development of local-level adaptation and mitigation strategies that build on local knowledge are offered as potentially sustainable solutions to current problems.

Pastoral conflicts and state-building in the Ethiopian lowlands

This article draws attention to the central role played by the Ethiopian state in reconfiguring contemporary (agro-)pastoral conflicts in Ethiopia’s semi- arid lowlands. Contrary to primordialist and environmental conflict theories of pastoralist violence, we shed light on the changing political rationality of inter-group conflicts by retracing the multiple impacts of state-building on pastoral land tenure and resource governance, peace-making and customary authorities, and competition over state resources. Based on an extensive comparative review of recent case studies, post-1991 administrative decen- tralisation is identified as a major driving force in struggles over resources between transhumant herders in Ethiopia’s peripheral regions. Our analysis emphasises the politicisation of kinship relations and group identities and the transformation of conflict motives under the influence of the gradual incorporation of (agro-)pastoral groups into the Ethiopian nation-state. Ethnic federalism incites pastoralists to engage in parochial types of claim-making, to occupy territory on a more permanent basis, and to become involved in ‘politics of difference’ (Schlee 2003) with neighbouring groups.

Voting for an ethnic identity: procedural and institutional responses to ethnic conflict in Ethiopia

ABSTRACTThe literature on democratisation in diverse and divided societies suggests that procedural and institutional innovations can help create the conditions for democracy by adjudicating among groups with competing claims for recognition and inclusion. Some of the most critical assumptions about the relationship between ethnic identity and formal political institutions have been tested in Ethiopia since the early 1990s. Ethnic federalism is a unique and controversial attempt to account for the contested nature of ethnic identities in contemporary Ethiopian politics through a variety of mechanisms, including the use of a referendum to determine ethnic identity. In 2001 the Siltie people voted to separate from the Gurage ethnic group. With this political manoeuvre, the Siltie accessed greater levels of political power and greater resources, but also recognition under the constitutional arrangement as a distinct ethnic group. The Siltie case suggests that formal political institutions have a limited, though important, role in resolving contested citizenship claims. At the same time, it raises vital questions about the challenges of procedural solutions in the context of contested citizenship and democratic transition in sub-Saharan Africa.

The origins of the Tigray People's Liberation Front

The Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), at its inception, was grounded in an ethno-nationalist consciousness generated by the cumulative grievances of Tigrayans against successive central governments of Ethiopia. An association of Tigrayan elites, the urban-based Tigrayan National Organization (TNO), prepared the groundwork for the formation of the TPLF. The TPLF, for its part, utilized class and ethnonationalist ideologies to mobilize Tigrayans until it ousted the Mengistu government in 1991. This article analyzes how this ethno-nationalist organization emerged, grew and finally came to dominate Ethiopia a state with an emerging multi-national character. LITTLE HAS BEEN WRITTEN ABOUT THE ORIGINS OF THE TIGRAY PEOPLE'S LIBERATION FRONT (TPLF). Even less has been written by any author with inside knowledge.1 As a founding member of the TPLF, who was part of its leadership for eleven years, I believe I have something relevant to share on this subject with anyone interested in contemporary political developments in Ethiopia. The TPLF started in February 1975 as a small guerrilla band in the northern region of Ethiopia and eventually grew to provide the core of the Ethiopian government. It was originally an ethno-nationalist movement that aimed to secure the self-determination of Tigray within the Ethiopian polity. It succeeded in mobilizing the people of Tigray to such extraordinary effect that, in 1991, it won state power in Ethiopia in the name of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). The latter the government of Ethiopia today is often accused by opponents of being 'simply a Tigrean front'.2 During an armed struggle that lasted for 16 years, the TPLF mobilized Tigrayans behind the front and created a Aregawi Berhe is a research associate at the Afrika Studiecentrum, Leiden, the Netherlands. He is grateful for the comments of Jon G. Abbink as well as those of an anonymous referee. 1. Former senior TPLF members Giday Zera-tsion, Kahsai Berhe and the present author have written critical articles on their differences with the TPLF leadership after they broke with the organization. Though valuable documents, they were not published and remain in private hands. 2. Solomon Gashaw, 'Nationalism and ethnic conflict in Ethiopia', in Crawford Young (ed.), The Rising Tide of Cultural Pluralism: The nation-state at bay (University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, WI, 1993), p. 156.

"If You Leave Your Country You Have No Life!" Rape, Suicide, and Violence: The Voices of Ethiopian, Somali, and Sudanese Female Refugees in Kenyan Refugee Camps

“If You Leave Your Country You Have No Life!” Rape, Suicide, and Violence:The Voices of Ethiopian, Somali, and Sudanese Female Refugees in Kenyan Refugee Camps Stephanie Beswick On the first day that I arrived in Kakuma Refugee Camp to conduct my field research, the camp authorities had a dilemma. A Dinka Sudanese woman had hung herself. But no one wanted to touch the dead body. The Kenyan personnel vehemently refused, particularly the women, claiming, "in our culture we cannot touch dead bodies!"1 In war zones, militarism intensifies women's subordination and violence against females escalates. It is often assumed that once women have fled the conflict zones of their homelands to "safe havens" in a neighboring country, security will prevail. Insecurity and violence, however, often intensify. In foreign refugee camps changes take place in the core relationships between women and men, and the legal and societal rules and laws that prevail in the home country break down.2 Thus, refugee women are often further victimized once they flee into foreign lands. Women's voices concerning the violent episodes in refugee camps are often muted and left unheard. Aid personnel and camp authorities are often overwhelmed with merely providing the basic necessities of life; they have little time to listen. Further, male refugees are often the representatives [End Page 69] and go-betweens for their own communities to the official authorities and United Nations personnel. Thus, many of the women in refugee camps in recent times have come to live in fear and isolation.3 This paper presents the voices of women from three conflict zones—Ethiopia, Somalia, and South Sudan—living in Kenyan refugee camps. The Most Troubled Part of Africa The Horn is perhaps Africa's most troubled region. Sudan, Ethiopia, and Somalia have been conflict zones for many years and the refugee situation in this part of Africa has developed into one of the world's largest, most intractable, and most complex human tragedies.4 Every woman who has escaped with her life from one of these warring countries has had a unique experience. Brief Overview of the Conflict in Ethiopia Historically, Ethiopia has only been a nation-state for a few years. In 1974 Mengistu Haile Mariam overthrew the world's last empire under Haile Selassie. A major factor triggering the coup was the government's inaction from 1972 to 1974 when famine swept across the northern provinces, claiming 200,000 lives. The overthrow of the old order was welcomed by most Ethiopians. Unfortunately, what began as a promising revolutionary transformation quickly degenerated into a repressive dictatorship that pushed the nation into chronic instability and distress. By the end of 1974, after the first in a series of bloody purges within its ranks, the Derg had embraced Marxism as its guiding philosophy. By 1977 the Derg itself had been transformed from a collective decision-making body to a small clique loyal to Colonel Mengistu Haile Mariam, who became a presidential dictator. From 1974 to 1991 Ethiopians suffered through civil war. In the face of oppressive central authority, ethnic-based resistance movements became increasingly effective in their struggles throughout much of the country. Having seized the lands of the old ruling classes, the Mengistu regime, in accordance with its Marxist-Leninist precepts, invested most of its agricultural inputs in large state farms, whose productivity was abysmal. In 1991, after years of struggle, [End Page 70] Meles Zenawi overthrew Mengistu Haile Mariam's Marxist-oriented military dictatorship. Ethiopians have paid a terrible price for their nation's conflicts, particularly the women. Flight out of Ethiopia Misrak, a Gurage, came from a small village, Yerer, north of Addis Ababa in Shewa province.5 She grew up with other Gurage, Oromo, and Amhara peoples. The few years before the 1974 revolution and the years following it were radically different, and Misrak's account lends a view of village life under the late Haile Selassie and early Mengistu regimes: We were seven in the family. My primary school was run by the government. It was a mixed school of Amharic speakers. There was no religious instruction. . . . I was born in 1969. . . . Before Mengistu everything was cheap: food, clothes, even people...

Gorbachev's New Thinking and Third World Conflicts

Some of the most crucial changes inspired by Gorbachev and perestroika concern Soviet and East European policies toward Third World countries. Despite countless studies of Soviet-U.S. relations and U.S. relations with the Third World, the area of Soviet relations with the Third World has been left relatively undeveloped. This is the first of several volumes intended to add to our knowledge of what the series editor Jiri Valenta characterizes as East/South relations. In this new era of cooperation and diplomacy, the superpowers are working to resolve regional conflicts in and around Afghanistan, Nicaragua, Angola, and Cambodia. Such efforts are exceedingly complex, since they necessarily involve not only the Soviet Union, but Third World nations that may operate independently, such as Cuba and Vietnam. This volume addresses a number of such conflicts. In addition to those already mentioned, conflicts in Ethiopia, Namibia, and the Philippines are discussed, and their implications for Western policy makers are reviewed. As the contributors emphasize, despite current Soviet emphasis on peaceful solutions to regional conflicts, Gorbachev's New Thinking in foreign affairs is still decidedly selective. In some cases, the Soviet Union will actually encourage close ties with regional Third World powers, as it has with India. It is also too much to expect that the Soviet Union, much less Cuba and Vietnam, will completely cut ties to revolutionary allies worldwide. That said, the 1990s will undoubtedly be characterized by new Soviet foreign policy styles. Their shape and form is the subject of this book. It will be of immense interest to policymakers and researchers concerned about current developments in relations between the superpowers and with the Third World. Contributors include: Vernon Aspaturian, Bhabani Sen Gupta, William E. Griffith, Jerry F. Hough, Douglas Pike, Howard Wiarda, AH T, Sheikh, Sabahuddin Kushkaki, Colin Legum, H. de V. du Toil, Khien Theeravit, Frank Cibulka, Alvaro Taboada, Charles William Maynes, W. Bruce Weinrod, Jiri Valenta.

The Structure of Regional Conflict in Northern Ethiopia

A conventional view of regional conflict in Ethiopia is that it is the result of the domination and exploitation of conquered peoples by the central Ethiopian state. The pattern of regional conflict does not, however, fit this explanation. The most important threat to the central government today comes not from the recently conquered pastoral and sedentary peoples of southern Ethiopia but from the northern highlands (Eritrea, Tigray, northern Wollo and Gonder) which have been associated with the Ethiopian state for many centuries. A more satisfactory explanation needs to take into account both the political and economic bases of revolt in northern Ethiopia following the 1974 revolution. Politically, the people were alienated from a national government of which they had previously often been a dominant part. Economically, the progressive marginalisation and agricultural degradation of the northern highlands was accelerated by the policies of the post-1974 government, policies which brought immediate and important benefits to the southern regions.

The agonies of displacement: Ethiopian women refugees in Khartoum, Sudan

For the overwhelming majority of the Ethiopian refugees in urban Sudan, there seems to be no end to their plight. Their lives are in limbo. When they left their homeland most thought thei exile would be temporary. They sought temporary refuge only until the conditions at home improved and they might return in safety. Unfortunately, the conditions for their repatriation have never developed. Armed conflicts in Ethiopia still continue to rage unabated. the regime in power also continues to abuse fundamental human rights.

The Process of Class Conflict in Ethiopia

The Process of Class Conflict in Ethiopia

Does Federalism Reduce Ethnic Conflict? Evidence From the Ethiopian Experience

This paper discusses the issue of federalism and conflicts in Ethiopia by posing the question: to what extent does the current system of ethnic Federalism help to reduce ethnic tensions and conflicts? Although federalism is taken by many as a typical strategy for avoiding ethnic conflict and promoting democracy in multi-ethnic societies, the Ethiopian experience largely suggest that the system is not reducing ethnic tensions and conflicts. Ethnicity being the major organizing principle of the federal system in the country, promotes conflicts stressing the primordial notions of ethnicity and mobilization. It has encouraged differences and competition over the control of power and resources at a local level. Thus, conflicts are increasing, becoming more decentralized and protracted. These suggest that in the Ethiopian context, there is a need to move away from using ethnicity as a sole criterion and to organize the federation using geographical and economic considerations. This would further help to reduce the current ethnic strife by encouraging civic nationality and trust among people.Keywords: Conflict, Ethnicity, Federalism, Ethiopia