Vicious circle of Ethiopian politics: Prospects and challenges of current political reform

Jima, Abdisa Olkeba

doi:10.1080/23311886.2021.1893908

Cited by 15 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…The region has also endured intimidation by security forces and violations of free speech, while political factionalism and inter-communal violence remain perennial problems in the country. Although citizens continue to agitate for liberal values and accountability, Prime Minister Abiy's government has failed to mitigate the political challenges that sabotaged the EPRDF and continued to exhibit authoritarian political tendencies in the absence of strong institutions of democratic governance and the presence of ethnically fragmented media landscape (Jima, 2021).…”

Section: The Political System In Ethiopiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Fragile Democracy: Media Freedom and Radical Polarisation in Ethiopia

Muyiwa

2024

Media Watch

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Fragile states are conditioned by the politics of interests, which oscillates between social, ethnic, factional, political and economic agitations. The politics of interest impairs shared identity and creates a tense coexistence between already fragmented communities. Ethiopia presents an example of the erosion of democratic norms despite the constitutionally imposed politics of ethnically and regionally based societies. Fragile states defy theoretical wisdom, as the media and elections might, in certain circumstances, produce negative results by creating a fractured society rather than resolving the legitimacy crisis. This article analysed academic literature and reflected on theories of the media in democracy to deconstruct the role of the legacy and new media in radical polarisation and nation-building in Ethiopia. Furthermore, illustrations were drawn from incidents and developments to clarify conditions that can help the mass media refrain from actions that deliberately or inadvertently impede socio-economic growth and worsen political conditions in fragile democracies. This article asserts that without context adaptation, the liberal norms of media autonomy and political inclusion might be incompatible with other forms of democracy beyond affluent democracies. It concludes by proposing theoretical visions of a ‘democratic mirror’, ‘vigilantism and fraternisation’ and the ‘therapeutic’ function of the media in fragile democracies.

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Section: The Political System In Ethiopiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Fragile Democracy: Media Freedom and Radical Polarisation in Ethiopia

Muyiwa

2024

Media Watch

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“…Whilst the capital city in theory serves both the citizens of Ethiopia and, regarding their regional affairs, the citizens in Oromia, Oromo movements have claimed that the Oromos have been excluded from accessing resources in the capital and have pointed at the displacements of Oromo caused by the expansion of Addis Ababa into Oromia regional state. Disagreements between the Oromia regional government and the Addis Ababa city administration about the legal grounds for the expansion of the capital and the administration of the growing city have also caused political tensions (Benti, 2002;Jima, 2021). The process of urbanisation in Addis Ababa has de facto led to the expansion of the capital into the Oromia regional state, provoking sometimes violent conflicts between the indigenous Oromo, the state and the Addis Ababa residents.…”

Section: The Right To the City: Addis Ababa And The Oromo Questionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, opponents of the plan held that it formalised the expansion of Addis Ababa into Oromia regional state, contesting the centralised planning process and top-down communication. The so-called Master Plan Protests staged by Oromo youth in 2014/15 eventually spread throughout Oromia region and later country-wide (Jima, 2021). The protests triggered the declaration of two subsequent states of emergency in 2016 and 2017 and eventually forced the ruling coalition to adopt reforms in 2018.…”

Section: The Right To the City: Addis Ababa And The Oromo Questionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to some qeerroo, the new Prime Minister has not sufficiently advanced an Oromo political agenda. They have contested Abiy's discourse of 'Ethiopia first', holding that it fails to account for the historical marginalisation of the Oromo and the fact that Amhara national language and traditions make up the core of the so-called national culture of Ethiopia (Jima, 2021).…”

Section: The Right To the City: Addis Ababa And The Oromo Questionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whilst public protests initially concerned the expansion of Addis Ababa into the surrounding Oromia regional state, they soon addressed larger political questions pertaining to the ruling coalition's undemocratic character and spread to other regions. Largely organised along ethnic lines, protests have been accompanied by rising ethnic tensions and conflicts countrywide (Ayalew, 2019;Jima, 2021). The most influential of these protest movements, the qeerroo movement, concerns the status of the Oromo, who constitute the biggest ethnic group in Ethiopia, making up around 35% of the population.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Unpacking the Addis Ababan Exceptionalism—Living and Making Sense of Violent Protests in Ethiopia’s Capital

Pellerin

Ashenafi²

2022

Urban Forum

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Violent protests and ethno-communal violence in Ethiopia have been on the rise since 2015. Whilst the country’s capital has mostly been spared, protests have occurred in areas surrounding the capital, its suburbs and, to a lesser extent, even in its city centre. This article aims to answer how Addis Ababa residents make sense of and (dis)engage from/in violent protests and ethno-communal violence where they occur. The article explores the perceptions and experiences of established middle-class residents in the capital, drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted between June 2020 and May 2021. The article finds that, due to the city’s multi-ethnic character and the residents’ strong metropolitan identity, ethnic identity has not constituted a powerful tool for political mobilisation of residents within the capital. Claims based on ethnicity made by non-residents towards the capital’s resources have largely been rejected by Addis Ababans. Instead, residents have collectively defended their right to the city. The federal state’s readiness to intervene in protests in the capital has further discouraged and countered public protests and communal conflicts. The article reveals that, whilst ‘exceptional’ at the first glance, the peaceful normality of Addis Ababa has relied on ignoring conflicts within Ethiopia’s ethnic-based political settlement and has hidden ordinary, everyday forms of structural violence and conflict.

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‘Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and unto God the things that are God’s’? Making sense of tax non-compliance among small business owners in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Pellerin

Söderström

2022

Journal of Eastern African Studies

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Vicious circle of Ethiopian politics: Prospects and challenges of current political reform

Cited by 15 publications

References 17 publications

Fragile Democracy: Media Freedom and Radical Polarisation in Ethiopia

Fragile Democracy: Media Freedom and Radical Polarisation in Ethiopia

Unpacking the Addis Ababan Exceptionalism—Living and Making Sense of Violent Protests in Ethiopia’s Capital

‘Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and unto God the things that are God’s’? Making sense of tax non-compliance among small business owners in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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