Oromo: Bulcha Demeksa - an Honorable Statesman's Graceful Exit

Created on Friday, 12 March 2010 17:37

The honorable Bulcha Demeksa, a founding Chairman of the Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement (OFDM) and a vocal member of the Ethiopian parliamentary, announced his retirement from politics when his term ends in June 2010.

On March 9, 2010, Mr. Bulcha told Namoo Daandii of the Voice of America that he tried his best to fight for the right of the Oromo people, equality of all people and establishment of a just and democratic system in Ethiopia.

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Ethiopia: Oppositions Falling into Trap: A call for Reversing the Strategy

Created on Tuesday, 12 January 2010 20:23

Part IV: Oppositions Falling into Trap: A call for Reversing the Strategy

This situation of permanent threat and insecurity faced by the Tigrean peasants and elite in all sectors has allowed Meles Zenawi to prevent the possibility of loyalty shift amongst his ethnic support base. Predictably, his opponents have been playing their part of the game by waging anti-Tigrean rhetoric. During the 2005 election, for instance, certain opposition figures and supporters made insensitive accusations and remarks against Tigreans, which helped Meles to declare the possibility of interhamwee - genocide like campaign against Tigreans.

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Ethiopia: Why do Tigreans Continue to Support the Oligarchy?

Created on Tuesday, 12 January 2010 20:21

Part III: Why do Tigreans Continue to Support the Oligarchy?

Why do most Tigreans remain loyal to a brutal dictator and a corrupt oligarchy?   To answer this question we need to investigate how their nationalism has been utilized by the oligarchy to secure political power.

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Ethiopia : Nationalism, Mixed Heritage and Its Consequences

Created on Tuesday, 12 January 2010 20:19

Part II: Nationalism, Mixed Heritage and Its Consequences

Individuals of mixed heritage – those born to parents of two different ethnic, racial or religious backgrounds – often face an identity crisis due to the difficulty of choosing between either side of their lineage, particularly if the two groups are in conflict. Let there be no confusion that it’s a blessing to be born from two different cultures for many different reasons. But in transitional societies, since such individuals are not the “full-blooded” members of any particular group, they are rarely accepted and trusted in either camp – particularly during conflicts and tensions. In an effort to win trust, they may attempt extreme identification with one side and express extreme distaste for the other. Unfortunately, even such efforts rarely help them gain long term acceptance. This seems to be the case with Meles Zenawi. He was born from a Tigrean father and an Eritrean mother. To some extent, these facts seem to have shaped his views, actions and roles within the TPLF movement and in Ethiopian politics.

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Ethiopia : Tigrean Nationalism from Revolutionary Force to Weapon of Repression

Created on Monday, 11 January 2010 19:26

By Jawar Siraj Mohammed*

Browse through any Ethiopian website, and you will discover that almost every article or commentary says something about the Tigrean domination of the country.  The cyber world is crammed with statistics, testimonies, conspiracy theories and condemnations. Some of the fervent cases brought forth include;

• How Tigray disproportionally benefits under this regime,
  
  
• How 95% of all important military and security posts have been occupied by ethnic Tigreans,
  
  
• Reports over the TPLF-owned giant conglomerate known by its acronym, EFFORT
  
  
• Accounts of how the Tigrean-only Agazi commando force has been used to commit heinous crimes,
  
  
• The meteoric rise of Tigrean elites into the club of world millionaires,
  
  
• And denunciations of the unacceptable monopolization of the church and mosque leadership by rebels-turned-men-of-God.

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