Ethiopia: Open Letter to Meles Zenawi on anti-Oromo AAU book

I am writing to you to express my concern about the disturbing news of the sale of anti-Oromo textbooks in Addis Ababa University (AAU). It is alarming to hear that AAU has recently allowed the distribution of books written by Professor Getachew Haile quoting the 16th century Abyssinian Monk Abba Bahrey who dehumanized Oromo people, our culture and history.

Oromo people worldwide are aware of this distorted and Abyssino-Centric account of Oromo history in which we were labelled as "barbarians" and "newcomers" who invaded Ethiopia. Professor Getachew's attempt to revise history to fit his politics and to justify Bahrey's accounts, including the use of "Galla," is an insult to the intelligence of Oromo scholars and Oromo people worldwide.

Bahrey is one of the most bias African "historians" who started writting his book about the so-called "History of the Galla," by shamelessly claiming he is writting about Oromo history to show Oromo people's "zeal to kill people, and the brutuality of their demeanor." The republication of such books and AAU distribution is an insult to Oromo Ethiopians in Addis Ababa Univesity (AAU) as well as to millions of other Oromos who make up the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia.

Oromos worldwide see Bahrey's dehumanizing account of Oromo people written for his Amhara and Tigray audience as similar to the typical dehumanizing portrayal of other historically oppressed people, including colonized Africans by Europeans, massacred Jewish people by the Nazis and the nearly exterminated Native Indians by the Euro-Americans. All these aggressors used such dehumanizing descriptions and illustrations of the indigenious people as "uncivilized" and "sub-humans" before they conquered, killed or colonized them. Such anti-people and anti-peace textbooks and documents should be immediately removed from all universities and libraries in Ethiopia! Especially in this time when Oromo people in every corner of Oromia are finally free to write and publish books about their own history using their own language and alphabets, we do not need the return of politically motivated, intolerent and Abyssino-centric Amhara/Tigre writers who write only for the purpose of inflaming Oromo people and causing hate and violence.

A country that desperately needs a healing from past mistakes and injustices brought upon Oromo people should not recklessly allow extremists to spread their venom. The new generation in Ethiopia should not inherit the anti-Oromo propaganda and stereotyping way of thinking that preceded the Amhara conquest of Oromo land in particular and that of the majority of other Ethiopians in general.

Once again, it is another shame that such anti-Oromo activities are occuring right under the eyes of the so-called Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO) "ruling party" in the capital city of Oromia. On Behalf of Oromo people worldwide and on behalf of Jimma University (JU) Oromo students, we demand a public apology from AAU and the Ethiopian government.

CC: Prof. Andreas Eshete
Office of the President
Addis Ababa University (AAU)
P.O.Box: 1176
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

CC: President of Region of Oromia
Mr. Abadula Gemeda,
P.O. Box 10176
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

CC: Ambassador Dr. Samuel Assefa
Embassy of Ethiopia
3506 International Drive N.W.
Washington D.C. 20008

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*The views expressed in this letter do not necessarily represent the views of Jimma Times. Dereje Ragassa is a Jimma University (JU) Alumnus living in the United States and he can be reached by Derejeragassa [@] yahoo.com

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Added: December 20, 2009. 05:00 PM GMT

True faces of futuristic Oromians

What does the OLF stands for?

With colonization of Oromiyaa, the Abyssinian rulers replaced the Oromo democracy with Abyssinian authoritarian rule.

It is for this, the struggle for self-determination of the Oromo is not only the struggle for independence but it is also the struggle for reclaiming of our democracy. But, democracy cannot be given to a society as manna from the sky by a heavenly or an earthly kingdom or by a benevolent self-appointed leader or dictator. The Colonizers often utilize the opportunists in the colonized people to sabotage, derail, and antagonize their own people's advances towards reclaiming their rightly deserving power.

Democratic principles, and self determinations of our destiny as a Nation, remains to be an internal process to any given society which our Nation Oromo is not exempt; it grows, develops, and flourishes through history within the culture of a society. On the contrary, a mimic of democratization based on foreign models to be enforced on a society amounts to failure; it does not work. Suffice to say, democracy cannot be imported or exported or it cannot be imposed by external force upon a society. If one seeks it from outside to be imposed on a society by the help of external powers that democracy will perish. History has proven, time and time again, this to be true both in Africa, Asia and Latin America. By and large, the struggle for democracy is within the existing sovereign nation-state, not empire. History teaches that Empires are born by wars, growth and rise by wars, and maintained by force, by terror and repression. As they born by wars, so they die by wars; That is, these are the laws, the rules, and fates that governed all empires so far known to man. Hence Empires have never known to stand tall for all times. "the failure of the empires to be democratized is because the system excludes the participation of the majority." On the contrary, empires failed to be democratized, because of their innate formation, their character and their nature.

Empires are not meant to be democratized but to be dismantled and dissolved. Hence, Ethiopia is an empire and it cannot be democratized. To this effect, the Oromo's struggle should not nd will not be for the democratization of Ethiopia. In another word, the struggle for the right to self-determination is not conditional on the absence of democracy, or on the grievances of injustice as a result of national oppression, subjugation, and exploitation, though they contribute to the struggle, but it is a struggle of the people for polity, for politically independent separate sovereign state.

It is, therefore, neither a struggle for fair and free elections, nor a struggle for freedom of speech, nor a struggle for equality, nor for freedom of assembly, or association in an empire, as some elements in the struggle of Oromia want us to believe. Here we must be reminding ourselves, the struggle for self-determination is not the same as the struggle for a mere democracy alone. In the case of colonized people, the struggle for self-determination is part and parcel of the struggle for independence as well as for reclaiming their lost democracy- their system of government, the rule of people. However, the struggle for democracy does not by any means be translated to imply as a struggle to establish sovereign and independent Democratic state. As for the right images of the Oromo history, we will remind the nations of the world that we offered to the whole world: the true dynamics of Democracy through the Gadaa, as well as other foundation of this system of Government.

Oromia shall be free,
Yaadasaa

Anonymous

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Added: November 20, 2009. 11:39 AM GMT

You'll never owe what you've no

Unity really a beautiful state of nation from which we all benefit. Even though the educated illiterate Amhara can write whatever they thought right, I heartily advise the wise and real intellectuals of this ethnic group to think critically about the unity. They always use other people’s right to joke, and laugh. But it should not. Are there no any joke and amusing saying in Amhara ethnic group in Amharic unless you use Gurages’, Tigres’ or Oroms’ and other people you call Ethiopians? Check yourself inward, it is the 21st century. Pro.Getachew can write whatever he like, but it must be your concern to think what guilty he committed and outcaste him and his ideology other than the Oromos

Barabeeka

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Added: October 10, 2009. 08:17 AM GMT

Oromo was never been part of Ethiopia

Zegaw have you read also "Yegazetegnaw mastawesha" and and "Yeburkaw Zimita" I don't think so you the Amahra group you think you are cleaver but we know how cleaver you are we studied together. other thing do you think Your Govt. can alow as to write? let me ask you one omre quation why in the earth did the newsletter " Wenchif, and seyifenebelbal" was out of market? you don't want to know that because they were writing the facts about Oromo and we Oromo were reading it, so don't ask to write againest it.

Anonymous

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Added: October 10, 2009. 08:08 AM GMT

MEZ MEN let me tell you one truth there will never be on Ethiopia as it was not there before.

Oxxx

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Added: September 30, 2009. 10:10 PM GMT

about the letter

Really surprising! shame on AAU,Nominal professor Getachew and OPDO.In the world of reality,in the democratic country,and Largest nation, it is not time to trace back to false history.the time for Neftegna like nominal professor and associated poletical parties supporting backwardness like Coalition party has over century ago.I believe Prime minister can solve the problem soon.But i have one announcement to Oromo people,It is time to focus on development aspect along with fighting the ideology of Neftegnas.For the Neftegnas,Darkness shades on your hope.You no longer get soul particularly on Oromo people.Dead is dead.Seal of death on you.Truth is always there.For liars like you,the consequence is shame.

Anonymous

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Added: September 14, 2009. 03:03 PM GMT

WE ARE ONE ETHIOPIANS!!

Instead of opposing such 'bad'actions,why don't we open discussion forums to talk of the Oromo vs other ethnic group's relations.May be the media may play vital roles here.Why do university students fight?Ihy do we hate each other?we are one people.I am living with an oromo friend in a house.he respects my interests and vice versa.I am studying oromo language.I am an Amhara,but not a nafxanya.dereje!People like you should be involved in creating a peaceful ethiopia through discussion.

MEZ MENZ

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Added: August 26, 2009. 01:22 PM GMT

zagawe

i have read the book no thing was wrong.he has mentioned references, you can read reference book.
you have no right to stop selling books, if you are clevere you can write against that book with tangeable evidence. you have always inferiority complex.

Anonymous

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Added: June 27, 2009. 08:07 AM GMT

thanks for your stragle

Realy i would like to appriciate your stragle to keep our people history. i do not saying more things simplely, we oromo peoples have own good history ,culture and custum so,our history should written by us &source of history must be oromo. thank u again

once what i would like to say is we oromo will never sleep again!!

BRG

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Added: June 26, 2009. 07:21 AM GMT

LETTER WRITTEN TO PM

Whomever on this world act or say what is mind order him based on favour or opposition. Like this what ignorant Prof. and curse MONK said on Oromo history is not far from this.Saying Galla is nothing for us now a time and we are not nasty to it. But the truth is not this,since our people pschological affected by this word it must be stopped in cluding all materials which contain such stupid words found at different University and other institution in the country.

Naol

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