‘I Fought the Law and the Law Won’: Evidence on Policing Communities in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia

Abstract

This article examines the introduction of community policing in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia. It shows that the relationship between the security actors within the district is a complex one that neither represents a simple dichotomy between state and non-state, nor an emerging clear and hybrid system. Rather it is a negotiated arrangement between a top-down, statist ideology and local forms of justice process, a balance that has historically characterized Ethiopian internal security for decades. The community police initiative offers a positive way of reducing friction between the different policing providers through acting as interlocutors but also enforcing the state's legitimacy in others. Local providers can use local actors to enhance their reach and their effectiveness but also extend the reach of the state and the legitimacy of the law at the local level constructing a negotiated ambiguity between central control and local agency in policing. 'Police in previous times were brutal in their actions. We used to run when we saw them. Now the changes are dramatic and the reason for this comes from two sources: the policy directs all to behave similarly and hence developing a mentality of serving the. In general, the police are now the servants of the community, not superior to the community as in previous times.' 1