By Fayyis Oromia
Few years ago, the well-known historian Prof. Laphiso Delebo disclosed the presence of 23 million Agaw in Oromia (Ethiopia). That means the Agaw are the second biggest nation, next to the Oromo (most of them nowadays being Amharinya-speakers and Tigrinya-speakers); if this figure is true, where are they living now? In Axum, Adwa, Tembien, Abergele, Welqayit, Tsegede, Enderta, Adigrat, Semien, Quara, Metema, Lasta, Wag, Awi, … etc? In general, are they not the owners of the most areas of Tigrai, north Gondar, part of Gojjam and the whole Lasta? NB: Oromia=formerly Ethiopia, as defined here:http://finfinnetribune.com/Gadaa/2014/12/fayyis-oromia-why-not-the-union-state-of-oromia-as-an-optimal-solution-for-the-majority-at-the-center/, is a union in which the following five points (FADOB-score) will be implemented: F=Freedom from the system of domination; A=Afan Oromo as a primary language of the union; D=Democracy as rule of game in the union; O=Oromia, instead of Ethiopia, as name of the union; and B=Black-Red-White as Cushitic flag of the union. To have an overview about whereabouts of the Agaw and the Oromo Cushitic peoples, look at the illustrative map below.
There is a very troubling question in minds of many people from Oromia, which didn’t get adequate answer till now: why was it easy for the TPLF to rule over the Oromians since 1991? Why even may it be easier for this group to dominate all nations in Oromia for further many decades? I think, it is mainly because of the misguided elites of the two big nations – the Oromo and the Agaw. For the last 24 years, the TPLF managed to corner both the Amharinya-speaking Agaw, who are the majority in the so-called multinational organizations, and the Oromo elites, most of whom are the proponents of nations’ right to self-determination, because of their struggle for the unconditional unitary country and the unconditional independence of the Oromo state, respectively. The TPLF could reserve the ideological middle ground, i.e. a union of free nations or ethnic federalism, as its own position, and accuse the Agaw elites as centralists and the Oromo nationalists asseparatists. I did appreciate the position of the visionary leaders from these two big nations – who have repeatedly tried to foster an alliance against the TPLF; especially, in 2006 they tried to take a necessary step to tackle the TPLF’s tactic of divide-and rule. The historical face-off between the Habeshanized and the non-Habeshanized Cushites was a unique historical advantage for the TPLF to perpetuate its rule limitlessly. That is why the hitherto dialogue between the Agaw forces and the Oromo fronts was a good start, even though it was described by the TPLF leaders as a marriage between fire and straw (isat ina ciid). Unfortunately, the forged alliances didn’t last long, and the elites of these two big nations are not yet in a position to cooperate. It is really pity that these elites still live in a conflict against each other. The effect of their inability to solve the conflict is, of course, the ongoing subjugation of all nations in Oromia by the TPLF.
Disregarding the past and present criminal ruling class in Oromia, actually both the Agaw and the Oromo peoples were victims of the European colonizers. The main conflict and imbalance of power between the Habeshanized Cushites and the non-Habeshanized ones started at the end of 19th century, at which time the Europeans had their program of the Scramble for Africa. It was said that the French colonizers used to move horizontal between Dakar and Djibouti whereas the British colonizers’ move was vertical between Cape Town and Cairo. The two forces were about to confront each other in the Horn of Africa. To avoid the confrontation, the colonizers had to do their usual manipulation in Africa: choose one ethnic group as “superior,” and use it to suppress the others which they consider as “inferior.” They told the Habeshanized Cushites that they were “culturally superiors and they must civilize the inferior animist” Oromo and other nations. They provided weapons and helped the Habeshanized Cushites by giving military advice; thus, they controlled indirectly the area without confronting each other. With such manipulation, both the Agaw and the Oromo nations became victims. Even though the rulers of the country were servants of the European colonizers, both the Agaw and the Oromo peoples always lacked freedom since then.
The name ‘Ethiopia’ is a word adopted after the First World War in the early 20th century to facilitate Habeshanization (i.e. de-Cushitization); today’s Ethiopia should either be named Agaw-Midir or Oromia, or OromAgawia, to designate its being the land of Cushites as the country is predominately of Cushitic origin.
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