1) To
raise various questions for all contending Ethiopian political groups,
intellectuals, and scholars to ponder and challenge them to take the concerns
of the Ethiopian people seriously in building institutions that outlive the
governing body; and
2) To
warn the same group that having an election process without a thoughtful,
forward-looking political infrastructure in place will result in an ideal
Ethiopia remaining simply a dream.
Since 1974, the Ethiopian people have experienced
drastic changes due to the nature of governance, which in general exposed them
to interethnic conflict, dictatorship, and the often life-threatening hazards
of forced immigrant labor.The
current government, opposition political groups, and even bystander individuals
often cite the past as a cause for their political headaches, but no measurable
solutions for building enduring institutions are clearly articulated.There are some who argue that
“market economy” is the answer.For instance, FekaduBekele asserts:
More or less the situation seems
like this, and the Ethiopian people are frustrated by the vulgar nature of the
system. They are longing for a system which transforms their lives and make
them self-reliant. It is our duty to show the road to true civilization. In
this case we have to challenge the neo-liberal economic paradigm which is
presented as the only panacea of solving economic and
social problems. Over the last 30 years many African countries have been
practicing the so-called structural adjustment program of the IMF and the World
Bank. None of them could build a dynamic and free economic structure. All
countries that have applied this program could not transform the lives of their
people. I think this must be a lesson to us. The history of nation building
proves that poverty, hunger and underdevelopment cannot be eradicated by market
economic instruments, but only through conscious state economic policy. We can
eradicate poverty and hunger if we accept this fact and open our mind to new
ideas. The experiences of Western Europe after the Second World War, the great
efforts of Japan and South Korea are good examples which help us to draw
lessons. All these countries could build strong economies not by applying a
pure market economic policy but through the combined activities of state
intervention and private initiative. (FekaduBekele, April 14, 2010, tecolahagos.com)
There
are others who do not dismiss the past as a factor for the objective political
conditions but assert that using history as a justification for bad behavior is
not correct.For example, SisayAsefa argues, “The
magnitude of the economic and political problems of post-1974 Ethiopia cannot
be equated with the pre-1974 period of Emperor HaileSelassie. Pre-1974 Ethiopia, in spite of a system of absolute monarchy and a lack
of democratic governance,scored
some major achievements both domestically and internationally that the current
and future generation of Ethiopians should be proud of and take appropriate
lessons”(SisayAsefa. “Developing Democratic
Institutions in Ethiopia: The Challenge of Building Enabling Institutions
for Economic Growth and Development, [p. 71-72] muse.jhu.edu/journals/northeast_african_studies/…/10.1.asefa01.html).
There are others who have a
similar outlook.“In order to build the Ethiopia of our future, we need
to be cognizant of our past and current history in order to learn to avoid
similar mistakes of our predecessors. We need to use history in a creative
manner to solve future problems. We should not be held hostages by our history
or put in a straitjacket of history. “Tecola Hagos –(repost, April 14, 2010), http://www.tecolahagos.com/
Before raising those challenging questions, defining
some terms is needed:
1. “A political system is one that
ensures the maintaining of order and sanity in the society and at the same time
makes it possible for some other institutions to also have their grievances and
complaints put across in the course of social existence.”
2. Institutions are structures and
mechanisms of social order and cooperation governing the behavior of a set of
individuals within a given human collectivity. Institutions are identified with
a social purpose and permanence, transcending individual human lives and
intentions, and with the making and enforcing of rules governing cooperative
human behavior. The term “institution” is commonly applied to customs
and behavior patterns important to a society, as well as to particular formal
organizations of government and public service. As structures and mechanisms of
social order among humans, institutions are one of the principal objects of
study in the social sciences, including sociology, political science, and
economics. Institutions are a central concern for law, the formal mechanism for
political rule-making
and enforcement” (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_system).
3. Democracy is a “government
by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the
people and exercised directly by them or by their elected.”(dictionary.reference.com/browse/democracy)
Given the above definitions as a contextual
framework, the following are challenging questions that require dialogue in
order to arrive at plausible answers beyond political reactions:
·Who ought to
define and articulate Ethiopian’s shared national vision?
·What do human
rights mean beyond ethnicity and economical status in the context of the
objective conditions in Ethiopia?
·Should
development and poverty “eradication” come at the expense of human
rights?
·How does
corruption violate individuals human rights, and is it possible to solve
corruption without an independent judiciary system?
·What does it
take to create democratic political institutions in Ethiopia given the current
regime that does not even uphold its own judicial decision (e.g. the case of
Birtukan Mideksa’s visitation rights).
Although
the above questions are admittedly loaded, they are crucial to the Ethiopian
people in order to resolve their crisis and determine their own destiny.It is understood among Ethiopians that,
since the 2005 election in Ethiopia, a lot of
articles and opinions by Ethiopians and friend of Ethiopians have flooded the
various media.However, all seem to
be reactions to the current undemocratic political system.In general, those reactions characterize
the current system as follows:
1. Prevalent of corruption and cronyism
2. Controlling the means and ways of production
3. Ethnic monopoly of public institutions and infrastructures,
including the media
4. Mistrust of the ruling party by the majority citizens, apparent
tension, and conflicts among various groups
5. Politically motivated court system
Thus, it
is critical that the Ethiopians at home and in the Diaspora must decide what
they want for a nation beyond tribalism or “ethnic
ghetto” (“Ethiopia’s Notorious Campus Wars: Causes, Goals, and
Impacts,” JawarSiraj
Mohammed, May 15, 2010).Furthermore,
political dialogue and creating a transparent and democratic political system
should not be left to men alone. The following are necessary to such ends:
1.A
court system that is independent – as a third branch of government must
be to avoid being instrumental for political harassment, intimidation, and
persecution.
2.A
free press with the highest professional standards, whose role is to inform
(e.g., the case of Awramba Times, Addis Neger, etc, – May 17, 2010, Ethiomedia.com),
educate the citizens, and challenge the governing body when it threatens the
human rights of its citizens.
3.Public
education must address the importance of telling the truth, self respect, the
rights and responsibilities of citizenship, and challenging each other with a
pen rather than with the barrel of the gun.
4.Dialogue
between all political groups to present alternative approaches to deal with
differences, either using the South African truth and reconciliation model or
other conflict resolution methods.
5.Women’s
issues must be addressed simultaneously and not postponed until a given
political group comes to power. Women also must take the initiative to articulate their issues and raise
their children to think differently in areas of anger management, conflict
resolution, self respect, treating women, and how to coexist with those whom
they dislike or disagree.
Those who want to take a leadership role in
Ethiopian politics must understand that they cannot govern a society without
providing emotional, financial and physical safety to all citizens.Furthermore, those who aspire to be
leaders must demonstrate by their deeds and words the democratic
principles.Additionally they must
be cognizant that people without enough food to eat do not have the energy to
dialogue or even dream about democracy.
To conclude, my wish for the Ethiopian citizen is
that, for them to have equal opportunity to be educated, be free from poverty,
governed by their elected representatives without duress, and be adjudicated by
independent and impartial court.
