Short News : On a "spectacular" fund raising event organised for the Ethiopian Satellite Television (ESAT) in Johannesburg, South Africa, in the presence of Artists Tamagne Beyene, Shambel Belayneh and Gelila Mekonen, over 3000 Ethiopians living in South Africa participated. Good lot was raised. This was how the guest artists were recieved in Johannesburg,
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And a short piece here
I wouldn't go into much detail and discuss these terms by contextualising and decontextualizing them. This would rather be just a copy and paste of two definitions collated from various websites. Both terms suit present day Ethiopia if not less but perfectly.
The first term that showed Ethiopian Prime Minister's shock/phobia at the current meeting is Eleutherophobia (እሉትሮፎቢያ). Here is how http://common-phobias.com defines the word
Eleutherophobia is the fear of freedom. The origin of the word eleuthero is Greek (meaning free or freedom) and phobia is Greek (meaning fear). Eleutherophobia is considered to be a specific phobia, which is discussed on here.
Many were those that asked what did really get Meles to shiver, stammer and boil his blood while others sitting next to him did not even show any sign of reaction to the loud noise. Some said it was high insecurity while others said it was just because his name was called. I feel it is Eleutherophobia. The phobia of all the Revolutionary Democrats, freedom, has been publicly noticed when their Commander in Chief was panicking in public.
Eleutherophobic symptoms can be mental, emotional and physical. The anxiety and fear can go from mild feelings of apprehension to afull-blown panic attack. Meles can test the severity of his problem with this 2-minute online eleutherophobia test.
The second term that best describes the ruling party in Ethiopia mainly TPLF and its heavyweight leaders including Meles is collective narcissism. Narcissism is synonymous with egoism, vanity, conceit, or simple selfishness. In psychology, the term is used to describe both normal self-love and unhealthy self-absorption due to a disturbance in the sense of self. Wikipedia reads, "The word narcissism comes from the Greek myth of Narcissus. Narcissus was a handsome Greek youth who rejected the desperate advances of the nymph Echo. As punishment, he was doomed to fall in love with his own reflection in a pool of water. Unable to consummate his love, Narcissus "lay gazing enraptured into the pool, hour after hour", and finally changed into a flower that bears his name, the narcissus."
And collective narcissism, according to De Zavala AG et al is "an emotional investment in an unrealistic belief about the in group's greatness--aiming to explain how feelings about an ingroup shape a tendency to aggress against outgroups." While Wiki posits on the terms further aspects as,
Collective narcissism is related to ethnocentrism; however, ethnocentrism primarily focuses on self-centeredness at an ethnic or cultural level, while collective narcissism is extended to any type of ingroup beyond just cultures and ethnicities.
TPLF is the best Party that exhibits the "Charismatic Leader-Follower Relationship” concept of collective narcissism meaning when a "narcissistic charismatic" leader like Meles (of the Gold People) leads and bosses, the narcissistic “ideal-hungry” followers support him blindly. Surf the boundless World Wide Web to learn more about these two most pertinent terms of today's Ethiopia. And watch this catalysing video below too...
In this footage that would soon be a hit worldwide on YouTube and International media, accomplished Ethiopian journalist Abebe Gelaw's loud protest at the at G8 Symposium Advancing Food and Nutrition Security at Ronald Reagan Building, USAID, in Washington DC. today May 18, 2012, dishonored the Ethiopian dictatorial Prime Minster Meles Zenawi in front of leaders and international guests from around the globe. As soon as the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, labelled by some of his gullible co and opportunists , as one of Africa's "Wisest, intellectual and developmental leaders" due to mainly his silver tongue, can be watched in this video scared, ashamed and disillusioned in total humiliation. The protesting journalist, Abebe in an interview he gave for ESAT TV after he was made to leave the Auditorium said that one of the bodyguards of Meles had made a threatening statement on life.
Journalist Abebe is loudly heared as saying " Meles Zenawi is a Dictator! You are committing crimes against humanity. We need freedom! Free Eskinder Nega and all political Prisoners in Ethiopia" Meles Zenawi then bows down in shame and fear for a while before he continued his jib jabs. Ginbot (May) is a month of coups and revolutions in Ethiopia. This is tantamount to a coup. Kudos Abebe Gelaw again. Meles has been coup/mutinied both emotionally and verbally today.
Similarly, hundreds of Ethiopians had protested Meles' presence at the G8 meeting in mass.
You can watch and distrbute this unique footage worldwide.
Little kids playing outside the government built residential estates or condominiums stop when they see a coloured person, black i.e. me (Tekur Sew).
One of them whispers the other girl as I, the Tekur Sew (Black Person) approach them walking on the pavement peacfully partillay filling my ears with my earphones. The ear phones slowly pour Backstreet Boys' - I want it that way. As soon as Tekur Sew passes them, he hears loud name calling form the kids "Nig** go back" again and again. Totally bewildered, unable to act, Tekur Sew posits " what the heck is this?" Why the provocation? and from these little kids? Tekur Seew continues to wonder, passes his destination, misses his appointment and finally finds himself in a place where he did not set out to go to.
He starts to watch everyone and anyone with a harder Euroscepticic disillusionment and cynicism. Tekur Sew blames all: he blames the regime of his country of origin, then he blames himself, then he blames his identity, then he blames his hosts, he blames the parents of those little kids who "teach" them to hate and provoke peaceful pedestrians. And then he retreats from his grudges and says "well there are bad apples the world over", hence blames the few out of the generous Western nations that host and enliven non westerners with humanity.
But insult and provocation are really disturbingly disillusioning. The often times Tekur Sew gets abused and insulted in the streets, he promises to teach his natives back home not to be bad to foreigners and at times says well let them insult me and be racist against me 'cause from problems come solutions therefore, I would get high selling and succulent stories after stories from my own experiences of disrespect, abuse, insult, dishonour, spitting, name calling and what have you. Tekur Sew recalls an Oriental saying that approximately says "bad mouthing is equal to a six month illness", then he misses gets immersed into homesickness, how wonderful was it, had Meles been couped over the night and Tekur Sew was able to go back home and revenge his disillusionment by loving, being loved and appreciated.
Living in the West for a few years now, Tekur Sew sees a fault line within the Welfare State System that may be ridiculed by some readers. It is the Housing Estate system. Public housing ,"council estates" or Social housing as used variably is a rental housing which may be owned and managed by the state, by non-profit organizations, or by a combination of the two, usually with the aim of providing affordable housing. This type of housing has been instrumental in alleviating homelessness, enabling ownership and creating communal life. The last few weeks, Tekur Sew was relocating thus was told by friends not to move into any apartment that is near a housing esate. He asked why? "because it is rough area." they said. Housing esates don't have a good fame. Not only to live in them but even around them. That was where I got my 'due' too today from the kids.
As the economic crisis and cuts shake the economies of European countries, the already existing anti immigrant sentiment has gotten firm hold. Immigrants are blamed as the causes by some nutter politicians and hater citizens. Mainly, people of the African origin are scapegoated.Many Terkur Sewoch who have run away from persecutors in their native land, have now again started to look for a farther land from their seemingly coming "tekat". Oh life of Tekur Sew.
As the incumbents in Ethiopia are engaged in an ambitious scheme of social housing- condominiums for city dwellers; the regime and all concerned should highly, not least, worry about the social crisis that would be born within the condominiums. The condos of Addis could verily be the "rough social/council housing estates of Europe" where haters, delinquents and anti socials would be bred. I don't want to see what happened to me repeated on others .
Hate, insult and such provocations disillusion the victim!!
Who didn't listen Backstreet boys in his college years?
“I hear many say we need to bring a
democratic government in Ethiopia, we may but we can’t realise it lest we also
change our bad socio-cultural underneath” anonymous in a social forum.
1.
Introduction
In a very literal sense, cooperation means
working together for a mutual benefit then are derived the adjective, adverb, noun
and so on forms of the word i.e. cooperative, cooperatively, cooperativeness and
cooperation. Some aspects of the Gada Syetem, Edir, Mehaber and Equib are
indigenous and typical examples of cooperation of societies in the Ethiopian
case. I would here now focus on cooperative, not on its linguistic meaning but
on its business/organisational model and idea. A
Cooperative/coop is a self help business owned and democratically controlled by the
people who use its services and share its benefits (Briscoe and Ward, 2005).
The International Cooperative Alliance defines coops as “A co-operative is an
autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common
economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned
and democratically-controlled enterprise.” Cooperatives in Ethiopia today are mainly agricultural and at times serve as "controlling local populace and teaching party policies". Elections are done unfairly and the most broad members and heads are stooges of the regime.
It is also an idea of any form of organisation formed under these concepts of
member controlled, owned and benefiting organisations. We can use the Amharic
equivalent of cooperatives- Ye Hebret Sera Mehaberat, hereafter. The
cooperative movement has been instrumental in fighting poverty, deprivation,
creating social cohesion and promulgating progress. Cooperatives had negative
fame too for they were used as political instruments by socialist and communist
regimes such as Mao Zedong of China, Mengistu Hailemariam of Ethiopia, Nicolae Ceaușescu of Romania and few
others. Thus, when one talks about cooperatives, what comes to the mind of many
first is communism. As every farm, business, land and wealth was coopertivised; entrepreneurship, capitalism, competition and “development” were prohibited in
many of these communist nations. Although, the idea of cooperatives is grand,
if they are fall in the hands dictators and ideological regimes and leaders
then become less rosy. In this short piece,
I hypothesise that “if people are free, then cooperatives can be used to build
and nurture democracy in poor/developing countries”.
Cooperatives
are best categorized according to four best main types based on their
user/member such as consumer-
retailing, financial services, utilities and housing; Producer–agriculture (processing), farmers markets and taxi; Workers- owned and run companies by
workers; Community- community radio,
heritage, community development and infrastructure, and Multistakeholder- cross-owned by the above coops such as producers
and consumers and so on, cooperatives. There are few more types of cooperatives
that have begun to develop recently. In
2005, the most recent year for which detailed data is available; there were
1,066 societies with approximately 270,000 members and sales/income of €3.8 billion. According to the International Cooperatives Union, currently,
over 800 million people are members of cooperatives worldwide and in the United
Stated 4 in 10 individuals are members of a cooperative (25%).
Before forming cooperatives the first step to be
taken is pointing the real problem or task which in our case could be
summarised as democratisation inclusive of justice, good governance and human
rights. The next step is making sure that a coop is the right organisation.
Followed by : calling a meeting, forming an investigation/steering committee of
5 to 7 people that help the maturity of the project with a chairperson,
secretary, and treasurer.
Democratisation
S.W.R.
de A. Samarasinghe on a paper titled “Democracy and Democratization in
Developing Countries” 1994 says
The concept
of democracy, in its simplest form, can be defined using the two Greek words
demos (people) and kratos (rule) that combine to make the word democracy,
meaning “rule bythe people”. Theories of
democracy attempt to make this basic concept operational by prescribing how
democracy might be realized, in what institutional form, and the content of
democracy.
And
states that there was no general agreement as to the issues bringing two main
questions such as “the debate whether democracy should be extended beyond the
political sphere to include the social and economic spheres and secondly is the
question of the adequacy of a theory of democracy that addresses only the
procedural or input side of the political process ignoring the output side.” Jennifer Franco in a 2008
paper entitled “Rural Democratisation: (Re) Framing rural poor political
action” states that democratisation could be either changing regimes or
political processes within the regime. Jennifer also says that in order to
consider regimes democratic it must provide: free
and fair electoral competition, civilian control over the military and
guaranteed respect for basicpolitical
rights and freedoms.
Democratizationcan generally be translated as the transition to a more
democraticpolitical regime. Democratisation can be affected due to different
reasons that may help propel or curtail its growth. Wealth is arguably one of
the major causes cited to affect democratisation. The argument is that it at
times has been found out to be irrelevant in democratisation processes.
Education or information is the second; better informed and knowledgeable
people make informed choices and act “morally”. Market economy, social and
economic equality- democracy is more stable in egalitarian and intermediate
societies. Civil societies and civic culture are also important in that when
civil societies that build social networks are existing and a certain common
civic culture exists, democracy improves. As contentious as the others though,
culture is considered as important, some argue Western culture as being
conducive although there are cases within non Western cultures. Free and fair election, political parties
(opposition), independent election board and vibrant media are the other
essentials.
From
there very democratic principles, cooperatives enshrine their
enlightening second principle: democratic member controls, Co-operatives are democratic organisations controlled by their members, who
actively participate in setting their policies and making decisions. Men and
women serving as elected representatives are accountable to the membership. Primarily, co-operative members have equal voting rights (one member, one vote)
and co-operatives are also organised in a democratic manner.
In
addition to this, the main cooperative values such as self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and
solidarity and belief in the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others make
cooperative peculiar forms of organization/enterprise. These main values and
beliefs are all pertinent to democratic behaviour. It is possible to assume that coops are then
by their very nature suitable for any democratisation activity, purpose or
role.
Conclusively,
it boils down to the point that democratisation is a process to be built from
the grassroots than top-down as is the case in Ethiopia and most authoritarian
countries. The process aspect of
democratisation, the building up, nurturing and maintaining of institutions,
culture and human development that instils democraticness within the society is
the prerequisite.
Human
Empowerment and Emancipative Values are
considered to be one of the important aspects in democratisation. Some theorists
assume democratization as the result of a broader process ofhuman
development. Briscoe et al say cooperatives take people as origins
meaning their philosophy is based on the assumption that creativity and the
ability to make meaningful decisions are widely distributed talents.
Here to solidify my premises I would offer two
empirical cases of CSOs that could be used by Ethiopians or all those that are
interested in establishing cooperatives for the sake of developing
democratisation. The types of coops that
I am going to explain may fall within the category of community cooperatives.
Local Economic Trading System (LETS), single cause advocacy coops, time banks,
Work Integrated Social Enterprises (WISE) and heritage business coops are good
examples in this case. They all in common are not for profit, are self help,
have reciprocity- every member gives and receives, offers payment,
service and solidarity based incentives.
Journalism
Cooperatives
Principle number six of the International Cooperative
Alliance (ICA) on Education, Training and Information stresses the need of
information (communication) within and outside cooperatives. The role of mass
media and cooperative journalism specifically, in achieving this principle is
of the essence. Veerakumaran (2007) says the journalist in the cooperative
sector should have faith in the philosophy and principles of cooperation and
skill in selecting the suitable media as well as skill in the treatment of the
message. According to a 2009 news report of SavetheNews.org, as applied to the
news, this alternative (cooperative journalism) ownership structure can
liberate news production from the predatory commercial pressures that have
contributed to journalism's current predicament. Verma, an Indian Researcher of
cooperatives says mainstream media containing the virtual components of print,
electronic and radio acts as a strong catalyst of enhancing the image of any
organisation as it portrays the popular mood of the masses. Conventionally, the
media that we know of today are either owned by corporations, governments or
PLCs. I am challenging this type of media ownership as a thing that is against
the basic ideals of journalism. When owned under the conventional form of
business, media becomes highly manipulated and serves the interests of few
owners than the public/ community interest. To amend this, cooperative media;
owned, controlled and benefiting the members should proliferate.
One good
example here is the New Internationalist magazine that has over 30 years of publishing history
under its belt, and more than 55,000subscribersworldwide, theNew Internationalistis renowned for its radical,
campaigning stance on a range of world issues, from the cynical marketing of
baby milk in the Majority World to human rights in Burma. Publications from theNew Internationalistare produced by an independent trust
working as a not-for-profit cooperative. Originally the group was sponsored by
Oxfam, Christian Aid and the Cadbury and Rowntree Trusts, but since the early
1980s sponsorship has no longer been needed. According to the official website
of the publication, Newint.org, because theNew
Internationalistoperates as a
not-for-profit, income fromsales
of publications and giftsgoes
into the production of its titles and to spread its aims and ideals, not “into
a rich media tycoon’s pocket!”
Structural
Details
TheNew Internationalistcommunicationsco-operative is based inOxfordwith
editorial and sales offices in Toronto, Canada;Adelaide, Australia;Christchurch, Aotearoa /New Zealand; and
Tokyo, Japan. NI adheres to the coreco-operative values of
self-help, responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity. NI states
that it exists to inform, educate and communicate its message and ideals in an
accessible style through theNew
Internationalistmagazine, books, internet and other media.
NI is a financially
independent company. Itdoesnot distribute profits to its members.If profits are earned they are
retained and used to further the aims as set out in its statement.NI maintains a democratic,co-operative and non-hierarchical structure and operates
an equal opportunity policy. Equality of worth, equality of opportunity and
equality of voice are central tenets ofco-operative membership
and aims to maintain a safe, healthy and non-discriminatory work environment.
Staff members earn their income through the various forms stated in the benefit
distribution ways of cooperatives. The Chicago, USA based Cooperative Mediais
another example of the few.
Cooperative media as in the above cases have
no financial dependence on shareholders as other big media, thus the neutrality
of the publications is not in question mark as they would be less partial from
the owners’ bias but would be biased to the interests of their diverse public
and community that are their members and audience. Ownership of a media is
important. Herman and Chomsky (1988) argue that the sheer size, concentrated ownership,
immense owner wealth, and profit seeking imperative of the dominant media corporations
could hardly yield any other result.
Currently, there are ongoing debates about the
future of the print media as online media is “replacing” it. Many argue that
most papers are closing as a result of this and that press may die out soon.
However, I very much disagree with them. The closure of most newspapers has not
come due to the emergence of online media but as a result of the economic rescission
that came due to the capitalist economic model's failure. Most papers in the
world are owned by few individuals who run a chain of newspapers as conglomerates
thus as they were hit by the recession they closed their papers. But those which
followed the cooperative model like the New Interenationalist survived and
continue to do so.
Additionally, if media organisations apply the cooperative
business model they would by default apply the main media ethics such as
fairness, objectivity, impartiality, balance, accountability, transparency,
public interest and the like.
CSO cooperatives
Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) play huge role in
the democratisation process. Especially, CSOs that work on human rights,
democracy and justice are necessary for any democracy. The usual model of such
CSOs is that they are formed as charities that derive their finance from
external funders putting their accountability soley on the interest of their
funders. There are almost none NGOs/CSOs that take the cooperative
organisational/business model. However, it is possible for CSOs modelled under the
cooperative models that are member owned, controlled and benefiting to be formed. Similar to
the cooperative media, the cooperative CSOs and NGOs would be voluntary, open
membership, and member benefiting.
For example let’s take an ideal coop X. Coop X is
located in southern part of Ethiopia, Shashemne city. The Coop was established
in 2011 with a single cause of teaching and helping its members and the community about
their legal and constitutional rights and entitlements. It has around 100
members who paid 5 Ethiopian birr each as an initial capital to establish the coop. The
background of the members ranges from carpenters, farmers, lawyers, students,
and business people to local government members. The services that the coop
offers are village level seminars, house to house teaching, outreach and drop
in service. As most members of the coop are not knowledgeable of the legal issues, they
are given aprior training that enables them to have the basic knowledge of the
issues that their coop would work on provided that they may represent the coop.
When a coop member is assisted or assists a community member legally, he will
be charge/d a minimum price of 5birr or he may pay/ed in goods or voluntary service
such as helping the housing construction or farming another member’s. In such a
manner, the coop consolidates the legal, justice, human rights and democratic
know how and culture of the local community.
At the end of the year, members will benefit from the cooperative in
proportion to their use and members’ capital could recive at most a strictly
limited rate of interest. In addition to these benefit, members will benefit
from the educations offered, openness, and participation in decision making
which would always be “one member one vote”, social capital and ownership.
Jennifer
Franco (2008) has also used some country cases of rural areas to
study democratisation in a rural context. For instance, one CSO project in the
Mexico focuses on rural people’s efforts to
promote greater state transparency through a ‘right to know’campaign in the state of Guerrero. It does this by
working with a local NGO in studying the campaign strategies and implementing
them.
Similarly, political parties are being established
under the principles of cooperatives. One of such oldest political parties is
the Cooperative Party in the United Kingdom. The
Co-operative Party is the fourth largest political party in Parliament, and the
political arm of the Co-operative Movement. The Party on its website says “We
believe that the only way to create a just and fair society is through power
being spread evenly throughout society, and not arbitrarily based on wealth,
class, gender or race.”
The purpose of the
Party is to promote co-operative and mutual forms of economic, social and voluntary
organisation, which are based on the principles of mutual ownership and
democratic control, and to support political action in pursuance of the Values
and Principles of the Cooperative Movement in the UK and internationally as defined
from time to time by the International Co-operative Alliance.
It works in partnership with the
Labour Party as its sister party to achieve these ends. There are currently 29
Labour Co-operative MPs and representation in the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh
Assembly and hundreds of councillors around the country.
Conclusion
As quoted at the start of this piece, dictatorships
cannot be fixed by simply removing dictatorial regimes and making them the
last. Dictatorialness lives within the society and community as a culture. Therefore, a
grassroots level culture building and nurturing of democracy is important in order to have a sustainable democracy. Long
used as party machines by communist regimes worldwide, cooperatives as I
analysed throughout, are the ultimate forms of organisation to bring about democraticness
in countries such as Ethiopia thus ensuring stability, development and peace. The
cooperative model importantly contributes to alleviating the problem and a
worker cooperative might be helpful in specificity. Taking various steps such
as increasing the solidarity among workers, ongoing process of education and training in many areas
could establish a greater cooperative pressure in the selected area.
Cooperatives are people centred than profit
orientated. They focus on collective growth than self interest and they make
regimes responsive to the needs of grassroots community. There are policy level
debates at the moment if cooperatives are the best alternatives in such a
time when capitalist economy has proved to be ''a failure''. In Ethiopia political power, decision-making
and planning are centralised in all forms. Participation and empowerment are
the crucial genres of democratisation and they are the building blocks of
cooperatives too giving evidence why they are suitable places of nurturing democraticness.
The above cases of free media, CSOs and political
parties as applied in the cooperative model and implemented at the grassroots
level do best describe that cooperatives can be used as ways/ organisations of
drying dictatorships and building democratisation from the bottom up.
Bibliography
Aldrich, Howard, and Robert Stern. "Resource
Mobilization and the Creation of US Producer Cooperatives, 1835-1935
Briscoe, R.
and Ward, M.(2005) 'Helping ourselves :Success stories in Cooperative Business
and Social Enterprise, Cork: OAK Tree Press
Following the protests and arrest of students of Debre Markos University, northern Ethiopia, in the past two days, the students of Bahir Dar University and Gonder University have began large scale protests today. It has been confirmed that both Poly and Peda Campuses of Bahir Dar University (BDU) and Tewodors and Maraki Campuses of Gonder University (GU) have spent the whole day today (09May 2012) protesting. "The student's protest is spreading like a wildfire" said a student from Maraki Campus, GU. Regional police force and Federal police are approaching the campuses.
Several students have been injured and arrested following "rights related" protests by Debre Markos University students in the past two days. "Food poison" is also said to be one of the causes.
There are over 40,000 students in both Bahir Dar and Gonder Universities enrolled in the regular program.
The fomer president of Ethiopia and Chairman ofthe opposition party, Unity for Democracy and Justice Party (UDJ) has "reportedly" resigned from his Chairmanship and is now in Germany, where he had spent most of his college years.
Amidst reports that the American non profit,, Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars and other organs ''reportedly'' are attempting to 'negotiate the ruling party and and some oppositions such as Medrek(Forum), a consortium of parties that UDJ is a member of, the news of the Chairman's resignation comes as a "bizarre".
According to sources, a local Newspaper reported that Dr. Negaso has left for Germany "to teach Ethiopian politics in (an undisclosed) university in Germany." He will be in Germany for the next two months. Girma Seyfu, the lone opposition member of the Ethiopian Parlimment representing UDJ/Medrek(Forum), is now the Acting Chairman of UDJ, according to sources.
Dr. Negasso Gidada Solan wasborn in 1943 in Dembidolo area, western Ethiopia. He was the President of Ethiopia from 1995 until 2001 before joining the parliamnt as an independnet candiadate and finally joining the opposition camp. He is married to Regina Abelt, a German nurse and midwife who works at a local hospital, Bete Zata as a midwife. He was elected as the Chairman of the Party, in December 2011.
Popular members and leaders of UDJ such as Judge Bertukan Miderka, Engineer Gizachew Shiferaw, and Dr. Yakob Hailemariam have all resigned previously from the Party. While the former Defense Minister under the incumbent and later Public Relations head of UDJ, Siye Abreha and the former Chairwoman of UDJ, Judge Bertukan Mideksa have both left to peruse their higher studies in America via "Scholarships offered to them", Negaso has now on his turn "left to teach for Germany". De Birhan was unable to get in touch with Dr. Negaso and UDJ leadership to verify the reports.
Let me
start today’s piece with this entendre poem by Betty Getahun, that is titled "silent pistol/machine" ድምፀአልባመሣሪያ!
ጥይትባይደቅን
ድጋንባይወጠር
ጦሩምባይቀሰር
ጎራዴቆንጨራ
ወገብባይታጠቅ
ተገኝቷልአሉድመፀአልባመሣሪያ
ጠላትንብቻሣይሆን
ወዳጅንምጭምርከምድረገፀማጥፊያ~
ባርኮሲረግምአፍቅሮሲናገርጥላቻን
ብለውይጠሩታልአንዳንዶችበግምት
የዘመኑግኝትምርጥየምርምርውጤት
ይህንንአንደበት!
This thesis may sound a bit weirdo yeah? I was
promoted to write it after watching a Youtube video by a man that I knew in one
of the Ethiopian political discussion forum started spreading accusatory
messages against his former friend, a famous young political leader, of
manipulating himself and his friends by using witchcraft. It made me look
into this understated but presumably present actuality within politics,
witchcraft, a little bit deeper. This is a taboo topic in the
Ethiopian political and academic discourse, I know how I toiled to find literature on the subject in the Ethiopian case. A short breakdown follows.
A
short anecdote
I had happened to love a very
beautiful girl. Her beauty just leaves you agape. Many of my buddies did know
that I was so much bogged down. Tried my
best to charm her but the stratagem of repellence danced to its intelligence.
It didn’t work out. One of the good pals that followed the situation closely
kiddingly suggested “using witchcraft”.
Though it was a suggestion just for the crack, I read deeply into my
friend’s advice. My response was “let me exhaust the truer source of love;
God”. Witchcraft is ingrained within our society but it is untold and unspoken
of for the most part. The issue is kept secret and a taboo topic as HIV/AIDS
was in the early 1990s. The best place to discern how embedded witchcraft is in
our society is, visiting some of the Ethiopian religious places, churches and
witch centres. I used to be a regular visitor of Entoto Mariam Church, in the
outskirts of Addis Abeba when I was in Ethiopia. I loved Entoto’s serenity, the
bush, the “island looking” baptism place and the “drama” there. Oh, it still
comes into my eyes. I wistfully always say “The only thing I miss in Ethiopia
is Entoto Mariam Church and our monasteries”.
Entoto Maryam Churchwas founded by my King, Emperor
Menelik II at the end of the 19th century and his wife Empress
Tayetu. The Church is of historical value because it is the oldest church in Addis Abeba and embraces Menelik II’s Museum. Beyond belief miracles also take
place there, and was reported by big international media such as Reuters, CNN
and Sky. There is, where you would witness the meanings, characters, exorcisms
and open/frank discussions of witchcraft. The majority of the victims I
observed were young girls. The rate and consequences are alarming.
Secondly, to understand how
witchcraft is prevalent or spreading within our society mainly in the capital
Addis Abeba, please watch a series of video clips by Priest/Exorcist Girma
Wondimu . Priest Girma offers various definitions for the varied types of witch
effected satanic problems and diseases. In one of his recent interviews on CNN
Ireport, he said “you can say almost half of the 80 million of
our population has been affected by demons. You can say after the revolution
(1974), Habessha has become devil.”
Witchcraft
According
to a study entitled African Studies of Witchcraft - Early Anthropological
Contributions, Politics Of Witchcraft: Local And Global, Philosophical
Approaches To The Study Of Witchcraft on
JRank , Witchcraft exists in almost
all societies, major Abrahamic and pagan religions and most traditions.
However, to most current Western scholarship, witchcraft and magic have been
positioned as “backward or erroneous systems of thought.” There are also
however scholars who want to solely align witchcraft and magic as an African
practice and religion. In Western society until
the 14th century, “witchcraft” had more in common with sorcery in other
cultures—such as those of India or Africa—than it did with the witchcraft of
the witch-hunts. This
writer opposes and wants certain Western media and intellectuals to discontinue
all forms of campaigns of “constructing Africa as the continent of witchcraft”. In fact, contemporary Africans espouse the
idea that witchcraft is more of an “ideal conception” that an objective reality
that exists in today’s world. Terms like witchcraft, sorcery, magic, Wicca and
traditional medicine share a good deal of synonym. They can all be
positive/good or negative/bad. They can be used as healing “medicines’’ or they
can be used as damaging tools. They usually have a pejorative meaning in most
contexts. Here after, I will be using Witchcraft/magic in their popular/negative
hurtful sense.
Encyclopaedia Britannica
defines witchcraft as “the exercise or
invocation of allegedsupernaturalpowers to
control people or events, practices typically involvingsorceryormagic.” While Helen (2005) says earlier anthropological texts distinguished between witchcraft and sorcery thus witchcraft was seen as a mystical and innate force in the world, whereas sorcery was evil magic practised against others by the use of medicine (muti) and, or objects.
This definition sounds to
be an overarching one and widely applied. There are various characterisations
and definitions of witchcraft. Some allege it to be coming from a
“supernatural” power while others say it is a scientific method. One of the
earliest writings on this same topic entitled a Treatise of Witchcraft by
Alexender Roberts B.D
1616 says “That whatsoeuer the Witch doth, it receiueth his force from that
society which she hath with the Diuell, who serueth her turne in effecting what
she purposeth, and so they worke together asassociates.” (Here “u” is used to mean “v”). Both the Old and New Testaments condemn
“sorcery”. Taking different types such as sorcery, shamanism, spell,
white/black witch and other forms, witchcraft/magic has been studied in four
corners of the world by anthropologists and other scholars. Mainly indigenous
societies, considered “backward” by popular culture and societies, still openly
apply it. Some of the major religious denominations mix traditional practices
with religion creating their own new practice like Voddo that mixes Catholicism
with traditional healings and customs. Some
atheists and agnostics are “said” be practisers of witchcraft/magic. Following Margaret Murray and Gerald Gardner's
thoughts and books on Wicca, the revival of witchcraft has been witnessed in
the Western world.Helen Seiketso on her 2005 thesis titled “Traditional Thought
and the Politics of Witchcraft” using
Botswana as a case study country says,
Witchcraft can be used by
the individual person as means of empowerment to gain access to economic and
social… it has the possibility of going from being a
revolutionary weapon on the side of the weak, to endorsing state power.
Helen
also explains that witchcraft is viewed as a “political weapon which can adapt itself to all times and places”. As
recently as 2010 “witchcraft” has been in the political discourse of U.S.
America. The Tea Party-backed Delaware's Republican Senate Candidate, Christine
O'Donnell was the centre of the witchcraft issue for what she said in
her 1990s interview, "I dabbled into witchcraft -- I never joined a coven.
But I did, I did. I dabbled into witchcraft. I hung around people who were
doing these things. I'm not making this stuff up. I know what they told me they
do," she said. Her statements had put the politics of witchcraft
into the U.S. limelight once again. Although taking
different names and forms such as hypnosis, shamanism, card reading, fortune
telling, witchcraft is practised legally and officially in many Western
countries as a business.
Let us relax with this short classical (Yanni "With an Orchid" ) and read into the Ethiopian case,
Africa, Ethiopia
Helen in her 2005 work citing the works of Evans-Pritchard’s book, “Witchcraft Oracles and Magic among the Azande” in the late 1930’s. states that witchcraft is a philosophical and logical thought and culture of African ethno-philosophy.
Evans-Pritchard saw witchcraft among the Azande as no less rational than Western thought. It was a coherent and logical system of meaning once one understood its basic premises. It was an African epistemology. According to Evans-Pritchard, the Azande believed in magic because it worked. It could explain misfortunes by addressing the “why” and not the “how” question of natural phenomena. Africans were very well aware of naturalistic causality, which answered the how questions.
In line with, Evans-Pritchard's thought, my (T,Staffer of De Birhan's) favourite African philosopher, Kewame Gyekye, analysing the Akan narrative says that witchcraft explains why events are harmful to man and not how they happen, meaning the solution/causation orientated take of the supernatural than the Onyame (God). Helen also states that in modernist world views, witchcraft is viewed differently, in contrast to the earlier views of witchcraft as primitive, prelogical and static tradition, the prevailing poststructuralist views now consider witchcraft as constitutive of modernity.The
African case of witchcrafts role in liberation movements and politics has got
an age old history. According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, witchcraft has
been used by African leaders before and after colonisation
Traditional and
modern African leaders sometimes surround themselves with protective “witch
doctors,” and are themselves thought to be endowed with supernatural power.
This is the positive charisma of which witchcraft is the negative counterpart.
In the colonial period these ideas were extended to Europeans, who, in theBelgian Congoand British Central Africa at the time of
independence, were feared as cannibalistic witches. This was somewhat ironic
since colonial regimes, unlike their missionary predecessors, did not believe
in witchcraft and made accusations of witchcraft illegal in most of sub-Saharan
Africa—which has been largely reversed by their successor regimes.
Al Jazeera aired an investigative report last year that revealed a prostitution
and trafficking ring that extended from Nigeria to Europe mainly Italy all conducted under witchcraft.
For
instance, in Tanzania, the Maji Maji rebellion that were told by a witchcraft practitioner
that the witch would turn the bullets of the colonising German forces into
water/maji by wearingmilletstalks around their foreheads but
many Africans were dead. The Maji Maji Rebellion is a good case in point when
witchcraft was used in politics/liberation movements. There are many however,
who still believe and use witchcraft saying
bullets cannot penetrate the bodies of some members of armed forces in Africa
as they have been protected by witchdoctors. TheMaji Maji Rebellion, sometimes called
theMaji Maji War, was a violent African resistance to colonial
rule in the German colony ofEast Africa, an uprising by severalAfricanindigenous communities against the German
rule in response to a German policy designed to force African peoples to growcottonfor export, lasting from 1905 to 1907.
In
2007 news came out from the Western African country of Gambia. Gambian President Yahya Jammeh, claimed
that he can cure HIV/AIDS through African traditional cure. His claim was even
approved by the country’s health Minister. A university lecturer who undertook
the “healing” process said he witnessed that he had gained weight 10 days after
taking the medicine.
In Ethiopia, according to oral tradition when a large
group of Levites came to Ethiopia carrying the Ark of the Covenant,
or the Tslate Musi as it was known, during the time of Emperor Manasseh of Israel, who
was the King of Judah (697-642BC), the King made his mission to desecrate the
Temple and to attempt to convert the children of Israel into pagans. During his
reign, Manasseh instituted the blatant worship of idols and pagan rituals. So
the Ark of the Covenant was spirited away from the evil King. The Tslate
Musi was kept on the island of Tana Kirqos in Lake Tana, near Gonder, for
more than 900 years, this one version of legend on how the Ark came to Ethiopia
but also the role of witchcraft in the interstate politics of Ethiopia with
other countries.
This writer had recently phoned the Ministry of Health in
Ethiopia and sought for contact addresses of traditional healers, herbalists
and with doctors. The expert at the Board in the Ministry aware of them and
coordinator of research studies with them said “We have a list but cannot give
you because none of them are recognised and authenticated by us.”
I have been able to get in touch with one traditional
healer and a witch doctor through friends. This "doctor" advertises
himself as a herbalist who can heal many ailments on different local magazine but
can act as a witch doctor calling “spirits” when/if asked by customers. This man
who hails from the Northern town of Ethiopia, Gonder used to be a high priest
at the local churches. Leaving and denying the priesthood, he came to Addis
Abeba to start this venture that he formerly offered covert for free. Some call
such people Debtera, a highly educated priest, who are reputed for “sorcery,
and invoking Satan to do well or evil by reciting some mysterious texts.” According to this healer/doctor,
who spent half a century in this service most of the clients are young city
dwellers that either come in search of healing or for “other untold services”. The unnamed
healer/doctor however, could not say a word on how and what witches, shamanists and herbalists
could do to bring about political change.
Although King Tewodros II who ruled from 1855-68 was highly reformist and
anti-clergymen, he was reportedly assisted and chronicled by Debteras
such as Debtera Zenebe, who wrote his biography. Upon the death of Tewordos,
King Yohannes IV, who took over the emperorship of the ‘united Ethiopia’,
became one of the first kings to illegalise witchcraft. J. F. Ade Ajayi in his book “Africa in the Nineteenth Century until the 1880s” says
“anxious to purify religious practices, he (Yohannes) forbade the practice of
witchcraft,”.
Patriot Belay Zeleke who ambushed and heroically
fought the occupying Fascist Italian forces of Mussolini in the five years invasion was alleged to
have used the bones of holy ancestors that helped him shelled his body from being shot. HIM Hailessellasie, who is traditionally and
publicly known as a devout Orthodox Christian has not been spared from the
rumours and writings that non-evidently allege he had “secretly practised witchcraft in Debrezeit”.
The military junta Derg regime of Mengistu
Hailemariam has been fully socialist and secular. Little has it been attached
with witchcraft. The Dergs witchcraft was its barrel of guns that did miraculous
massacres and outright genocide against anyone that opposed or dissented their Communist ideology. In
the Derg era, witchcraft was much more prevalent within the intelligentsia and population
than the regime. There were many anecdotes when clever students who made it to the university or scored the best grades were poisoned or affected by their own jealous
peers. It was rampant then to see crazy dudes in every village doing crazy things and their stories told by everyone that looks at them with pity. This has changed a lot now,
although, Church records and experiences show that witchcraft on “love, lust, wealth
and healing” are on the steep rise.
The incumbent regime of Meles Zenawi is also widely accused
of being part of the witch business and practice. When they came in 1991 they were
said to have come with a donkey imported from Sudan (popular destination of
witchcraft in the Horn of Africa) that allegedly was a magic to hold their grip
forever. In the recent raid of witch scam artist, Tameart Geleta, it was
reported by the Ethiopian Federal police that the so called “witch” used to be
visited by high ranking government officials and even derived his authority and
“protection” from the regime’s heavyweights. This writer knows that PM Meles
Zenawi has a person named Ayele who serves as a food taster. The Prime Minister
wouldn’t eat anything that has not been taste by Ayele when he is abroad or
away. The prominent Ethiopian website Ethiopian Review often refers to the wife
of Prime Minster Meles as the Witch Lady Azeb Mesfin (instead of First Lady Azeb
Mesfin). Recently, ESAT Television had reported that the President of
Oromia Regional State, Alemayehu Atomesa, has been poisoned.
Politicians do care so much about what, where, with whom
they wine and dine for fear of being victims of witchcraft. They don’t leave
the glass that they held when they entered the cocktail party until they leave.
In July 2005 BBC held a discussion with its audience on
witchcraft asking “Is Witchcraft Alive in Africa?”, one of the opinion givers, Berhane,
London, UK put the following in Beebs Website,
If there is a power
of witchcraft for real, Africa would have been the first country to develop and
come out from poverty. I remember when Eritrea liberated from Ethiopia in 1993;
the Eritrea government widely made an open debate regarding witchcrafts and
invited the so-called experts of witchcraft, but none of them able to prove
what they claimed to have. For most of them it is business and for some a false
hope. For me, it is very sad, irrational and sham still some Africans to see
believing on the existence of witchcraft.
In
Ethiopian journalistic and literary discourses too, witches have been mostly
used as literary characters. At times, they foretold the downfall, coming and
even conspired in the toppling of regimes. Among the famous characters in
Ethiopian novels is Merigeta/Reverend Debtera Melaku. Biresaw, a simple servant
and farmer in Gojjam by seeking help from the witchdoctor Melaku had been able
to reach a top level of leadership and amass wealth under King Adal, according to the novel, Fitawrari Belay, by Ras Emeru Hailesellasie.
Conclusion
These practices have ruined the lives of many, promising youth were killed or damaged and a state of fear, distrust, suspicion had reigned over us for centuries demolishing our social capital and collective growth and development. Undoubtedly, these people might take the immense role in the backwardness and stagnation of our country. These people who "sell us love of a girl" who doesn't even dream of us, who help in poisoning and casting spell on innocent souls of Ethiopia, who tie and untie the love, respect, growth, enlightenment, development and success of our citizens and nation should take the blame for our poverty and negative energies abound in the Ethiopian air. There is this most unstudied role of witchcraft too. These people had also played immense role (positive and negative) in the kingdoms and palaces
of former Ethiopian kings and were also the back-door architects and designers
of the then polices and war. They have been sources of scholarly works, literary and medicinal discoveries, diplomacy and military analysis and tactics. They did in fact have some legacies to be wooed. What role can then witches, sorceress and traditional
healers play in modern day politics? Can they help the yearning of the youth for freedom, liberty, equality and justice and compensate us for all the dreadful works that they have been doing in that nation?
Members
and clergy of the main Abrahamic religions have been active participants in the
political state and liberation movements and theologies. Currently, the heaviest
threat to the rule of the Meles Zenawi regime is coming from the Muslim
clergies and mass of Anwar Mosque and Ortodox Christian monks of Waldeba
Monastery and their mass base.
The martyrAbune
Petros is a worthy icon. It has been a practice of the
Christian Church in most parts of the world to
refuse oppression, stand with the oppressed, challenge the depressor and assist in liberation movements. Please read the liberation theologies of Latin America. Ethiopian Emperor Tewodros II (1818 -1868) was one of the
most reformative and revolutionary kings that had introduced many changes
within the Orthodox Church, which some of them were reportedly “brutal”. He had "tortured and imprisoned clergymen" who opposed his reforms and himself. But still, in that day and age, there were priests
and clergymen who opposed him in public and
called the society to rise up against his “dictatorship”. The
online resource,angelfire.com has it,
Abune Sellama however continued to angrily denounce the
Emperor to all who would listen, even to the Emperors face. Foreign observers
have even left accounts of the two men hurling insults at each other in public.
The Archbishop calling Tewodros a mad man and an apostate, while the Emperor
called the Archbishop an Arab and a Moslem. Finally, both men had enough and
Tewodros ordered the Archbishop imprissoned on Magdalla, and the Archbishop in
turn called on the people of the land to refuse to be ruled by Tewodros and
resist his authority anathemizing those who didn't.
Today also there are priests and
clergymen who oppose the inhumanity and suffering of Ethiopians at home.
Especially, the Orthodox synod based in the Diaspora is known for publically
calling Ethiopians at home and abroad to stand up against injustice in
Ethiopia. Where are the witchdoctors, herbalists and magicians as negligible
parts of the society? Can they come up with their own association and call for
same? Would they come together, contemplate and devise a “medicine’’ that
removes the Meles Zenawi regime? If killing with guns for freedom and justice is justified why not hypnosis for same? Or as my friends and we the “modernists” would say
“these things are totally untruthful and irrelevant in today’s politics of
Ethiopia?” The arguments here are still taking the beliefs and views of both
sides of the continuum that say witchcraft/magic doesn’t exist or it exists,
into consideration. And seriously, how long will we continue keeping this topic as a taboo/no touch and play a hide and seek in of witchcraft in our politics. Which politician or public intellectual will come forward and debate this narrative in public? Helen (2005) says “It (witchcraft) can speak a modern
language in a modern context, and achieve the desired results. This is only
possible because people believe in its existence and efficacy, irrespective of
their social status.
” Helen also says "the newer theories of witchcraft are relevant in that they point to the ambiguity and ambivalence of witchcraft. This ambivalence rests on the observation that witchcraft can be used as resistance towards unjust power structures, but it can also just as well serve the interests of those in power." How about us?
