What is required today, is a new movement where our rich cultures and collective wisdom can benefit each other. Our dominant Ethiopian ethnic groups have a beautiful cultural practice of how everyone joins together in support when someone dies. At such a time, a tent is set up and all are invited to come under the tent to mourn the passing of a human life, one which was very dear to the family, friends and
community of the deceased. Many people bring food and gifts to the tent as then settle down to support those who have lost their loved one. Even strangers and passersby are invited into this tent where everyone is welcome. No one is left out, segregated or marginalized because of their ethnicity. Everyone comes in as an equal.
This is a wonderful part of the culture of our dominant groups that can be an image of a new Ethiopia! It can be put into practice right now by erecting a tent for the Ogadeni in your present time of need. If our dominant groups join with our minorities in coming together to grieve together now, we may be able to have reason to hope for a new Ethiopia. It will start in such a tent.
As we seek these new beginnings, we find they are wonderful opportunities to meet each other! I have been privileged to meet the Ogadeni and now can see what great people you are—very caring, hardworking and generous. I have learned how you value giving help to those who are struggling or weak and how you don’t complain about those who are stronger or better at something; instead, you challenge yourself to do the same. You don’t believe in being held down by sitting by, wishing and complaining for change, but instead you try to overcome your obstacles. This is an admirable characteristic of nomadic people that helps you survive in a difficult environment. You have much to share, but instead of others benefiting from you and you benefiting from others, government policy has encouraged our separation and alienation from each other.
I am comparing these two regions with each other, but if you look closely at most any other region in the country, you will find the same thing has happened, frequently resulting in the formation of many liberation or “breakaway” fronts. People are often confused by the name “liberation front”, but we need to look deeply as to why these liberation fronts were created in the first place. Invariably, they arose out of the suppression of the people and their rights.
I believe that some of these liberation fronts do not really want to break away, but are doing it because their rights are being rampantly violated and because they have been denied countless opportunities that are reserved for those few in power. If we understand this, we should not be afraid of reaching out to these liberation fronts because they not only have legitimate complaints, but they are important segments of our population that cannot be ignored.
If we want to create a more stable Ethiopia, we must instead work together to correct and resolve the wrongs going on now and in the past so that we can live together in harmony in the future. This means justice, respect and equality for the Anuak, the Ogadeni, the Hamar, the Hawadle, the Welayta, the Guji, the Nure, the Shekicho and for all Ethiopians!
I believe if these groups who are fighting one another can come together in a genuine spirit of reconciliation—expecting to give and receive justice, we will succeed in finding a sustainable solution, even if it calls for some compromise on all of our parts. As these issues are adequately addressed, many, if not all of these liberation groups may no longer have any reason or desire to separate themselves from Ethiopia, especially as the trend in the world is increasingly one of coming together.
After all, consider who would be left in Ethiopia if every one of us who has been abused split off into our own groups, forming our own countries! What would Ethiopia look like then? Who would be left? Yes, the more dominant ethnic groups might be the only ones wanting to maintain Ethiopia as their own, but they have much to lose if we are not among them! We, and many other minorities who are still unknown to the mainstream of Ethiopians, have many things to share and to contribute to in a future Ethiopia. All of that would be lost without our presence and active participation.
However, if we are really talking about a new Ethiopia where everyone is included, there is a group of excluded people that need to join us on the frontlines. These marginalized people are actually the backbone of our Afar, Anuak, Ogadeni and Ethiopian society, yet their voices are often not heard. Their voices are those of our own mothers, our wives, our sisters and our daughters.
Now, I must first say how encouraged I was to see so many women here today, nearly half of those in attendance! I have not seen this at any other Ethiopian meetings. Instead in this case, it was young Ogadeni women who actually invited me today and were some of the chief organizers of the event. I applaud this achievement. We need to encourage more of this because if we do not include women in all aspects of this movement, we will lose a perspective that is critical to our survival as a people.