There are always different sides of interpretation when it comes to history. Take Thomas Jefferson for instance…the author of the declaration of independence who was mainly known for his struggle for the rights of black people had at the same time owned 200 slaves who were under the ages of 16 that he severely abused. He had a slave mistress who ended up running away because she could not take his cruelty no more. People’s perception of Emperor Menelik is more like that of Thomas Jefferson…its a bit conflicting. Some portray him as a hero who unified Ethiopia while others depict him as an oppressor who consolidated power at the expense of the lives, culture and identity of certain Ethnic groups. Both stories hold true. Yes the Emperor was the one who gave us this Ethiopia, Yes he was a hero…and Yes maybe that was the way emperors use to solidify their empires..But the question still remains…does that make it right? Does it justify the fact that certain Ethnicities were oppressed and alienated in a country they called their own? And Even after centuries do the scars heal that easy? Aren’t we still seeing the consequence of what happened centuries ago? I have tried to study as many books I can find on this issue. A convincing and realistic option that I can see as a legitimate solution is Article 39. It gives nationalities the power and option to decide on their fate…and on the other hand it gives the government and the remaining nationalities the obligation to make the notion of unity and Ethiopia appealing and acceptable through fulfilling the interests and needs of the nationality in question. Unlike what most people believe to be true, article 39 is not the reason for the question of self determination of ethnic groups. Rather it’s the past oppressions and injustices that gave people this state of mind. I think the South Sudan scenario has thought us that legislation or the lack of it in this particular setting doesn’t keep people from doing what they feel is right. BUT, and I can’t stress this enough we should not be subjected to the interests of those who want to poison us against each other. We should be aware that It’s a system at a certain period of time that caused all this heartache and not the people that are currently residing in that place or those who belong to the same ethnic group as the oppressors. We are being made to lose trust on each other and to rely only on the government in order to be free from chaos. Why should we allow that? Why should we allow fear and distrust to be the driving force in our decisions? Why not work for creating a tolerant and respectful society together? Fear…hatred..Distrust can not be the way forward..Especially for Ethiopia.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 20:40:36 +0000
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