The Perils of Colonial and Marxist Narratives in an Unconquered Lands: Ethnic-Based Killings and Evictions of the Amhara in Ethiopia

Abstract

The present study explains the occurrence of violent killings and forced displacement of ethnically targeted groups, the Amhara in this case, through the direct influence of colonial narratives employed by fascist Italian colonizers and the indirect influence of radical Marxist political forces embracing Eurocentric education in their grasp of the Ethiopian local and indigenous situation. The study poses two major questions: What is the historical root behind the genesis of the hegemonic anti-Amhara discourse in Ethiopian politics? What are the consequences of this discourse? The study found out that Italy’s invented discourse of Amhara domination, unsubjected to critical mediation by Ethiopia’s political forces, has introduced a re-politicization of ethnicity to the politico-intellectual makeup of the country, which resulted, inter alia, in ongoing societal (in)securities of the Amhara population. In what seems to overcome these insecurity situations and fill the political representation void, the Amhara “defensive ethnonationalism” has emerged since 2015.

Keywords

Colonialism radical Marxism modernity ethnic killings Amhara

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Abbink

(1995) Breaking and making the state: the dynamics of ethnic democracy in Ethiopia. Journal of Contemporary African Studies 13(2): 149–163.

Abbink

(2006) Ethnicity and conflict generation in Ethiopia: some problems and prospects of ethno-regional federalism. Journal of Contemporary African Studies 24(3): 389–413.

Abbink

(2015) The Ethiopian revolution after 40 years (1974–2014): Plan B in progress? Journal of Developing Societies 31(3): 333–357.

Abera

Jelan

(2020) In-depth analysis: spate of targeted attacks, excessive use of force by security in Oromia leave death trails, destruction. Available at: https://addisstandard.com/in-depth-analysis-spate-of-targeted-attacks-excessive-use-of-force-by-security-in-oromia-leave-death-trails-destruction/ (accessed 19 November 2021).

Achcar

(2013) Marxism, Orientalism, Cosmopolitanism. London: Saqi Books.

Al Jazeera (2021) Worsening violence in Western Ethiopia. Available at: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/3/20/worsening-violence-western-ethiopia-forcing-civilians-to-flee (accessed 13 October 2020).

Amin

(2009) Eurocentrism: Modernity, Religion, and Democracy: A Critique of Eurocentrism and Culturalism. New York: Monthly Review Press.

Amnesty International (2020) Ethiopia: over 50 ethnic Amhara killed in attack on village by armed group. Available at: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/press-release/2020/11/ethiopia-over-50-ethnic-amhara-killed-in-attack-on-village-by-armed-group/ (accessed 12 July 2021).

Arendt

(1958) The Human Condition. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press.

10.

Ashine

(2018) Colonial developmentalism and politics: from occupation as rapture to colonial legacy. In: Mamdani M (ed.) The MISR Review. Kampala: Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR), issue no. 2, pp.40–83.

11.

Atnafu

(2018) Ethnic cleansing in Ethiopia. Peace Research 50(1): 77–104.

12.

Bennett

(2006) Modernity and its critics. In: Dryzek

Honig

Phillips

(eds) The Oxford Handbook of Political Theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp.211–224.

13.

Boca

(1965) The Ethiopian War 1935–1941. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

14.

Campbell

(2017) The Addis Ababa Massacre: Italy’s National Shame. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

15.

Chatterjee

(1997) Our Modernity. Rotterdam: South-South Exchange Programme for Research on the History of Development (SEPHIS); Dakar: Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA).

16.

Chernetsov

(1993) On the origins of the Amhara. St. Petersburg Journal of African Studies 1(1): 97–103.

17.

Clapham

(1988) The structure of regional conflict in northern Ethiopia. Cambridge Journal of Anthropology 13(2): 3–16.

18.

Clapham

(2004) Ethiopia and the challenge of diversity. Africa Insight 34(1): 50–55.

19.

Committee on Foreign Affairs (1992) Looking Back and Reaching Forward: Prospects for Democracy in Ethiopia. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.

20.

Crummey

(2003) The horn of Africa: between history and politics. Northeast African Studies 10(3): 117–138.

21.

Doresse

(1959) Ethiopia: Ancient Cities and Temples. London: Elek Books Limited.

22.

Dussel

(1996) The Underside of Modernity: Apel, Ricoeur, Rorty, Taylor, and the Philosophy of Liberation (trans. Mendieta

). Atlantic Highlands, NJ: Humanities Press.

23.

Erlich

(1976) A contemporary biography of Ras Alula: a Ge’ez manuscript from Mänäwe, Tamben. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 39(1): 1–46.

24.

Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) (2020a) Benishangul-Gumuz region: protection of civilians is the primary duty of the government. Press statement, EHRC, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 24 November.

25.

Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) (2021) Violence and human rights violations following musician Hachalu Hundessa’s Assassination. Investigation report, EHRC, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 1 January.

26.

Ethiopian Human Rights Council (EHRCO) (2016) Compiled Report on Human Rights From 1992-2015. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: EHRCO.

27.

Fanon

(1982) The Wretched of the Earth. New York: Grove Press.

28.

Gedlu

(2013) A history of nationalism in Ethiopia: 1941-2012. PhD Dissertation, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

29.

Geremew

(2023) The tragedy of colonialism in a non-colonised society: Italy’s historical narratives and the Amhara genocide in Ethiopia. Journal of Asian and African Studies. Epub ahead of print 4 January. DOI: 10.1177/00219096221147002.

30.

Getachew

(1992) Ethiopia Zare. Available at: https://ethiopiazare.com/amharic/articles/opinion/3748-amhara-yemibal-zemed-by-prof-getachew-haile

31.

Gichamo

(2023) Traditional Ethics for Intercultural Dialogues in Ethiopia: Anecdotes from the Oromo, Amhara, and Gurage Peoples’ Moral Languages. Philosophia. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11406-023-00624-1

32.

Giorgis

(2010) Charting out Ethiopian modernity and modernism. Callaloo 33(1): 82–99.

33.

Girma

(2018) Religion, politics and the dilemma of modernising Ethiopia. HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies 74(1): 4878.

34.

Gnamo

(2014) Conquest and Resistance in the Ethiopian Empire, 1880–1974: The Case of the Arsi Oromo. Leiden: Brill.

35.

Gudina

(2006) Contradictory interpretations of Ethiopian history: the need for a new consensus. In: Turton

(ed.) Ethnic Federalism: The Ethiopian Experience in Comparative Perspective. Woodbridge: James Currey, pp.119–130.

36.

Haddis

(1985) Tezeta [Reminiscences]. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Mankusa Printing Press.

37.

Hailu

(2020) Did Ethiopia survive coloniality? Journal of Decolonising Disciplines 2(2): 1–25.

38.

Hall

(2003) Exploration of Africa: The Emerging Nations, Ethiopia in the Modern World. Philadelphia, PA: Chelsea House Publishers.

39.

Hassen

(1990) The Oromo of Ethiopia: A History 1570-1860. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

40.

Holcomb

Ibssa

(1990) Invention of Ethiopia: The Making of Dependent Colonial State in Northeast Africa. Lawrenceville, NJ: The Red Sea Press.

41.

Holder

Huq

Ryan

(2006) Early warning in Ethiopia: analysis. In: Rosenberg

Miller

(eds) Human Rights & Genocide. New York: Cardozo School of Law, 1–17.

42.

Human Rights Watch (1993) Ethiopia: Human Rights Developments. Available at: https://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/WR93/Afw-01.htm

43.

Human Rights Watch (2021) Ethiopia: events of 2020. A world report 2021. Available at: https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2021/country-chapters/ethiopia (accessed 20 June 2021).

44.

Isaac

(2013) The Ethiopian Orthodox Täwahïdo Church. Lawrenceville, NJ: The Red Sea Press.

45.

Jalata

(2008) Being in and out of Africa: the impact of duality of Ethiopianism. Journal of Black Studies 40(2): 189–214.

46.

John

(2021) The potential of democratization in Ethiopia: the Welkait question as a litmus test. Journal of Asian and African Studies 56(5): 1007–1023.

47.

Kebede

(1999) Survival and Modernization—Ethiopia’s Enigmatic Present: A Philosophical Discourse. Lawrenceville, NJ: The Red Sea Press.

48.

Kebede

(2003a) Eurocentrism and Ethiopian historiography: deconstructing semitization. International Journal of Ethiopian Studies 1(1): 1–19.

49.

Kebede

(2003b) From Marxism-Leninism to ethnicity: the sideslips of Ethiopian elitism. Northeast African Studies 10(2): 165–188.

50.

Kebede

(2006) Gebrehiwot Baykedagn, Eurocentrism and the decentering of Ethiopia. Journal of Black Studies 36(6): 815–832.

51.

Kebede

(2008) Radicalism and Cultural Dislocation in Ethiopia, 1960–1974. Rochester: University of Rochester Press.

52.

Keller

(2014) Identity, Citizenship, and Political Conflict in Africa. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.

53.

Kendie

(2003) The causes of the failure of the present regime in Ethiopia. International Journal of Ethiopian Studies 1(1): 177–213.

54.

Lapiso

(1991) YaʼItyop̣yā yagabār śerʻeātenā ǧemer kāpitālizm, 1900-1966 [Ethiopia’s Gebbar System and the Beginning of Capitalism]. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: NeGD Printing Press.

55.

Larebo

(2006) The Building of an Empire: Italian Land Policy and Practice in Ethiopia. Asmara: The Red Sea Press.

56.

Lata

(1999) The Ethiopian State at the Crossroads: Decolonization and Democratization or Disintegration? Lawrenceville, NJ: The Red Sea Press.

57.

Lentakis

(2005) Ethiopia: A View from Within. London: Janus Publishing Company.

58.

Levine

(1965) Ethiopia: identity, authority, and realism. In: Pye

Verba

(eds) Political Culture and Political Development. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, pp.245–281.

59.

Levine

(1974) Greater Ethiopia: The Evolution of a Multiethnic Society. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press.

60.

Mahtemeselassie

(1942) Zikire Neger (Memorabilia). Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Berhanena Selam Printing Press.

61.

Mamdani

(2012) Define and Rule: Native as Political Identity. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

62.

Mamdani

(2020) Neither Settler nor Native: The Making and Unmaking of Permanent Boundaries. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

63.

Mamo

(2021) Shemakiw Commando [The Ambushing Commando]. Addis Ababa: Daniyal Books.

64.

Marzagora

(2016) Alterity, coloniality and modernity in Ethiopian political thought: the first three generations of 20th century Amharic-language intellectuals. PhD Thesis, SOAS University of London, London.

65.

Matebie

(2012) Telatun Yemiwod Asgerami Hizb [A people that loves its enemy]. Available at: https://ethioreference.com/archives/9356 (accessed 21 October 2021).

66.

Mekonnen

(2019) The politics of ethnic nationalism in the Ethiopian statehood: its challenges and prospects. Journal of Culture, Society and Development 54: 1–6.

67.

Mekonnen

(1969) On the question of nationalities in Ethiopia. Struggle 2: 4–7.

68.

Mennasemay

(2005) Ethiopian history and critical theory: the case of Adwa. In: Paulos

Getachew

(eds) The Battle of Adwa: Reflections on Ethiopia’s Historic Victory against European Colonialism. New York: Algora Publishing, pp.253–283.

69.

Mennasemay

(2018) Gada and democracy. International Journal of Ethiopian Studies 12(2): 1–42.

70.

Michael

(1954) Japan Endemin Seletenech [How Japan Modernizes]. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Birhanena Selam Printing Press.

71.

Milkias

Metaferiya

(eds) (2005) The Battle of Adwa: Reflections on Ethiopia’s Historic Victory against European Colonialism. New York: Algora Publishing.

72.

Mockler

(2003) Haile Selassie’s War. Oxford: Signal Books.

73.

Moresh Wegenie Amara Organization (2016) The Amhara Genocide Ignored by the World: A Study of the Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing of the Amhara Ethnic Group from 1991–2015. Silver Spring, MD: Moresh Wegenie Amara Organization.

74.

Muluken

(2017) Time of Destruction: Ethnic Cleansing Executed on Amhara People from 1991-2015. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Addis Ababa University Press.

75.

Ndlovu-Gatsheni

(2013) Coloniality of Power in Postcolonial Africa: Myths of Decolonization. Dakar: Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA).

76.

Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) (1973) Political program of the OLF, unpublished.

77.

Pankhurst

(2010) Who were the young Ethiopians (or Young Abyssinians)? An historical inquiry. Education Issue 2(2): 121–138.

78.

Parlesak

(2002) Yehabesha Jebidu [Abyssinian Odyssey] (trans. Mekonnen

). Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Addis Ababa University Press.

79.

Pausewang

(2005) The two-faced Amhara identity. Scrinium 1(1): 273–286.

80.

Prochazka

(1935) Abyssinia: The Powder Barrel. London: British International News Agency.

81.

Rubenson

(1976) The Survival of Ethiopian Independence. London: Heinemann.

82.

Sbacchi

(1985) Ethiopia Under Mussolini: Fascism and the Colonial Experience. London: Zed Books.

83.

Shaw

(2015) What is Genocide. Cambridge: Polity Press.

84.

Shiferaw Chanie

Ishiyama

(2021) Political transition and the rise of Amhara nationalism in Ethiopia. Journal of Asian and African Studies 56(5): 1036–1050.

85.

Tadesse

(2012) Tikur anbessa bemerab Ethiopia [Black Lion in Western Ethiopia]. Asmara: Yekuriyore Eritreo Publishing Press.

86.

Tareke

(2009) The Ethiopian Revolution: War in the Horn of Africa. London: Yale University Press.

87.

Tedla

(1992) Indigenous African education as a means for understanding the fullness of life: Amara Traditional Education. Journal of Black Studies 23: 7–26.

88.

Tibebu

(2008) Modernity, Eurocentrism, and radical politics in Ethiopia, 1961–1991. African Identities 6(4): 345–371.

89.

Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) (1976) Manifesto of the Tigray Peoples’ Liberation Front. Mekelle, Ethiopia: TPLF.

90.

Waugh

(1984) Waugh in Ethiopia. London: Methuen.

91.

Woldeyes

(2017) Native Colonialism: Education and the Economy of Violence Against Tradition in Ethiopia. Trenton, NJ: The Red Sea Press.

92.

Wood

(1983) Rural development and national integration in Ethiopia. African Affairs 82(329): 623–628.

93.

Woolbert

(1936) The peoples of Ethiopia. Foreign Affairs 14(2): 340–344.

94.

Yates

(2019) Does Adwa have a colonial legacy? Assessing the viability of the colonial thesis for understanding late nineteenth and early twentieth century Ethiopia. Ethiopian Journal of the Social Sciences and Humanities 17(1): 51–69.

95.

Yates

(2020) The Other Abyssinians: The Northern Oromo and the Creation of Modern Ethiopia, 1855–1913. Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press.

96.

Yetena

(2022) Discursive trajectories in the making of Amhara identity in Ethiopia. Nations and Nationalism 28(4): 1267–1281.

97.

Young

(1999) Along Ethiopia’s western frontier: Gambella and Benishangul in transition. The Journal of Modern African Studies 37(2): 321–346.

98.

Zewde

(2002) Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Addis Ababa University Press.

99.

Zewde

(2021) The Age of Disinformation: What Exactly is Happening in Ethiopia? Johannesburg, South Africa: City Press.