Writing towards the end of 1987, Edmond Keller states[1] that “Ethiopia today is characterized by dependent autonomy; the state’s ability for autonomous behavior is often circumscribed by its external dependence. Even if it was to solve the “national question,” it would still be extremely dependent on external assistance…” This was said of the Derge regime during the final days of the cold war. Presently, the EPRDF regime lacks even a semblance of dependent autonomy and is a willing ‘team player’ of the international drive to create a global Empire otherwise known as corporate globalization.

Perspective is important to those of us who seek to reconstruct a picture of major events from minor and fractured pieces of information. The following article is a measured reaction to the disgust most Ethiopians and this author feels to the economic and political predations throttling Ethiopia. I hope to guide the reader past the hazy slogans to find a kernel of truth enabling us to make sense of the contradictory policies that are causing havoc. 

The motto of revolutionary democracy espoused by the current rulers of Ethiopia parallels in its ambiguity the Derges’ amateur slogan Ethiopia First. According to Tiruneh Andargachew the Ethiopian leftist magazine, Democracia, described the Derges’ ideology as ‘an embodiment of ethical and propagandist pronouncements devoid of any class content.’ Essentially pointing out the self-serving manner in which the Derge was attempting to cling to power in the name of the masses while hoodwinking the landless and exploited workers and feudal Ethiopian serfs. In the years after the Yekatit 1974 revolution the Derge changed colors from a pro-status quo establishment regime to [after declaring Ethiopian Socialism] a self-declared socialist one. The years of the red terror, villigazation and red star campaign exemplified the blood and toil Ethiopians tasted under the fictitious name of socialism, for what had happened in Ethiopia was simply State Capitalism ala South Korea, Tanzania, Soviet Union, East Germany and any number of the so called socialist states. 

Yet, many then and more today believe that the Derge was socialist. Amongst the believers are the current rulers of Ethiopia and Eritrea. While the Derge dominated center stage for 17 years and personalized socialism by adding the hyphen Ethiopian, the TPLF & EPLF presented themselves as the true progressive-revolutionary and Marxist-Leninist fronts. As we all know the EPLF had transformed itself not only into a Marxist-Leninist front but also an anti-colonial liberation movement that made the fortunes and careers of such intellectual fakes as Dan Connell. Not to be outdone, the TPLF posed as the reincarnation of 19^th century Tigrian nationalism and called its drive to power the Second Woyane. The First Woyane [similar to uprisings in Bale and Gojjam] was mostly propelled by the Raya and Azbo peasants [1928-30] revolt of Haile Sellasies’ policies in Tigray, consequently squashed by the combined force of the monarch’s troops and the British Air Force’s bombings.[2] I see that the Third Woyane has just been declared in Deki-Alula, I’m not sure what to make of it but as they say, the show must continue.   

The central tenant of the self-proclaimed Marxist-Leninist organization [TPLF] was the prioritization of ethnicity or “the national question” over class conflict or “the class question.” Thus such groups as the EPRP [whose basic principles were premised on the priority of abolishing the domination and exploitation of Ethiopian peasants, merchants and workers by the few] were out gunned and marginalized as much by the sleight of hand of a competing ‘progressive liberation front’ as by their own tactical mistakes. Simply said: the discourse was set such that the ethnic domination of the Ethiopian political, economic, and social totality was ascribed as the main impediment to freedom, democracy, and economic prosperity and the dignity of all Ethiopian ‘nationalities’ or ethnic groups. There is no question in my mind that for this outrageous charge to actually set root there must have been some truth to it-even if it was superficial. As to the validity of the existence of ethnic conflict within multi-ethnic Ethiopia and the intensity and depth of the deleterious effects of this ethnic conflict I leave to the capable minds of you, the reader.   

It is because of the ethnicity first argument that the TPLF could claim to be the only true representative of the Tigrayan people. In order to legitimize it’s claim of representation the TPLF had to recreate Ethiopian history in a manner to what Haggia Erlich has correctly identified as one of oppressed uniqueness. Thus, in contrast to Shoa Amhara’s the people of Tigray were deprived because [says the logic of oppressed uniqueness] the power of the state rested in the hands of the Amhara ethnic group. Is that really true? Were the peasants of Menze or Wag economically and politically privileged at the expense of other Ethiopians or were they just as destitute if not more so?  In fact the most privileged ‘ethnic’ groups in terms of access to education, political representation and economic opportunity were some Tigrayan-Eritreans’ mostly concentrated around Asmera and some Shoan Amhara-Oromo/Gurages and others who were concentrated around Addis Ababa. Ethnicity was certainly secondary to the neo-colonial Ethiopian economy centered on the export cash crop producing southern regions and the industrial centers of Addis and Asmera. A question I’ll address in a later article is to how this perverted economy [interpreted by the TPLF as ethnically induced] changed during the present ‘ethnically equal’ era of the TPLF. 

The fires of modern Tigrayan nationalism were to be flamed by proposing that the material poverty, famines, lack of democracy, murderous killings of the Derge and the imposition of Amharic for Geez as the national language was due to the state being monopolized by…. you guessed it… the Amhara.[3] The TPLF thus created a picture of what was wrong and claimed to be the champion of the Tigrayan people so as to defend their interests. 

The EPLF also reached back in time and recreated a monster of a myth from the embryonic material of history. The ember of Eritrean nationalism was flamed by the EPLF in such a way that it has remained till today as a nationalism fueled by anti-Ethiopianism. The creation of an identity and history divorced from that of Ethiopia goes to such extent as changing the ethnic name of the highland Eritrean-Tigrayan’s from Tigrayan [as is the name of their brethren in Tigray] to Tigrinya, the name of the language. Now this is not to say that identities are not constructed for they are and they are always changing but it is rather my intentions to point out the deliberate ways that the EPLF and TPLF have manipulated and shaped ethnicity-nationalism to achieve their own very private agendas.   

To reiterate the crux of the matter, liberation fronts that had espoused Marxism-Leninism and fronted as progressives in actuality clung onto ethnicity and nationalism. According to the TPLF the war on the Derge was to dislodge a Shoan-Amhara regime hiding under the transparent cover of socialism. In contrast the EPLF sought to dislodge the Derge that it also portrayed as Shoan-Amhara so as to liberate Eritrea from its Ethiopian ‘colonial’ master. During the civil war of the 1980’s these rebel movements were presented in the West as progressive left movements. 

The view from my corner of the world and put to paper for all to witness has produced an image markedly different from that cultivated by the likes of Dan Connell and other Western ‘objective’ journalists. The TPLF and EPLF were never progressive left leaning movements but have always been establishment outfits. TPLF ascended to power on the ticket of ethnicity while EPLF rose to power on the bases of Eritrean nationalism and ethnicity [for the Tigrayan brethren vs. Amhara overlords was the scenario blasted to the poor peasants of Tigray to secure sympathy for secession].

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