25/05/2020
Ethnic, regional-sentiment based political parties advance polarization
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(EPA)
Most major political parties organized along ethnic and regional lines arouse the danger of mutual mistrust and polarization. A proper resolution through dialogue and education is not only decisive for deepening and broadening the democratic unity of Ethiopia; but also an agenda long overdue, so said by scholar.
Former United Nations Policy advisor in New York, Dr. Costantinos Berhutesfa said that if the recent elections and the compartmentalization of reaction to them is any indication, one must question whether there is unity and solidarity of our communities, sufficiently strong to allow the free play of competitive interests. The political experiment so far tried may have been seen to reinforce the ethnic division in the society and aggravate group polarization. As a result of this, there is nowdeep division and heated debate about the wisdom of ethnic based politicization of the country.
He went to say that some groups in the political system advocate and press for the regional administrative division of the country along ethnic lines as a realistic and lasting solution for the country›s ethnic problems. While many others fear and worry that, this would jeopardize the country’ unity and ignite centrifugal implosion of the nation.
He indicated that it does not mean that Ethiopias ethnic heterogeneity will inevitably lead to the breakdown of the democratic process. Multi-party democracy is not incompatible with national unity and in fact if it is well adhered to, might be a lasting remedy to the problem of ethnicity. Moreover, there are too many instances in the history of the country, which prove the transcendence of ethno-centrism, and narrow linguistic and religious affiliations, which could be quoted as examples.
For a lot of intellectuals that have grown to idolize our blood-soaked nation, a much tortured earth that is proud of its tenacity and strength of struggle against both internal and external tyranny, we see it as probably the only fair stamp of the varied trajectories of our Ethiopianness. For those compatriots that have paid in blood, their country speaks in tongues with its varied peoples, but its language is universal. It speaks against the cruelty of privilege, of intolerance, and that nation-consuming power-lust that has equally corroded the essence of leadership, he added.
According to him, it has brought to light that power cannot be negotiated: that it must be tamed. It is an acquired instinct to recognize differences between the rulers and ruled, between dominance and free will and between coercion and collaboration. It is to identify the correlation of all such polarities with the rights and responsibilities of the individual within the community; of which every individual is not simply a part, but a fundamental unit.
For more https://www.press.et/english/?p=22847 #
