Save the Tuulamaas and Their Ancestral Lands

by

The Global Oda Nabe Association (GLONA)

Tuulamaa on the Brink: A Century and a Half of Systematic Erasure

For more than a century and a half, the Tuulamaa of central Oromia have faced a relentless pattern of dispossession carried out in the name of “development.” What emerges from the latest research and advocacy materials is not a series of isolated incidents, but a continuous historical process that now amounts to an existential threat.

Beginning with the founding of Finfinnee in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Abichu, Eekkaa, Galaan, and Gullallee Tuulamaas were forcibly evicted and killed under Menelik’s expansion.

This pattern repeated itself across generations:

• Jiillee & Oboo Tuulamaas erased by the Wonji Sugar Project (1951);
• Jiillee (mainly Siiba) Tuulamaa decimated by the Qooqaa Hydro Dam (1960);
• Eekkaa (Boolee) Tuulamaa disappearing as a community following the construction of Bole Airport (1962); and
• Karrayyuu pastoralists pushed toward extinction by the Matahara Sugar plantation (1965).
• More recently, the Finfinnee Master Plan (2014) triggered mass urban dispossession on an unprecedented scale.

The current Mega Airport project on the Aabbuu Seeraa ancestral land represents the latest chapter in this long trajectory. This is not “development gone wrong,” but a structural trend spanning 15 decades—one that has brought the Tuulamaa people to the brink of extinction unless urgently challenged and reversed.

Reading, Sharing, and Organizing to Halt an Irreversible Loss

To avert yet another irreversible loss, readers are urged not only to read the attached research, but to share it widely, discuss it openly, and prepare themselves for a concerted, peaceful civic campaign. Silence and fragmentation have been the allies of erasure. In contrast, informed public engagement—rooted in evidence, history, and moral clarity—is the only path capable of halting the final disappearance of the Aabbuu clan of the Galaan Tuulamaa. Their voice must be heard now, while there is still a people left to speak.

Readers should also pause and ask a difficult but necessary question: where are the Eekkaa Tuulamaa today, whose ancestral lands have been transformed into the concrete expanse of Bole Airport runways and office complexes? Why did “development” not allow communities and infrastructure to coexist side by side, preserving people, heritage, and ecosystem together? The answer is uncomfortable but consistent across generations: the Ethiopian state did not care for the native communities yesterday—and it shows no care today for the Aabbuu Seeraa communities facing imminent erasure. Recognizing this continuity is the first step toward breaking it.

Make No Mistake: We Are Not Against Development

Let there be no misunderstanding: we are not opposed to development. On the contrary, we affirm development that is ethical, inclusive, and sustainable—development that respects indigenous heritage, safeguards ecosystems, and treats displaced communities with dignity through just, transparent, and commensurate compensation. This position aligns with internationally recognized development norms that emphasize human-centered growth, environmental stewardship, and social equity, as articulated in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

What we reject is a distorted model of development that advances infrastructure and urban expansion through systematic dispossession, cultural erasure, and environmental degradation. In the Oromo case, “development” has too often functioned as a euphemism for the removal of indigenous people from their ancestral lands—an approach that has persisted since the founding of Finfinnee and intensified through successive state-led projects. Under this paradigm, progress has been measured not by shared prosperity or human well-being, but by the extent to which indigenous presence is erased from the landscape, the economy, and historical memory—an outcome explicitly warned against in international indigenous rights instruments such as the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

This is not development; it is extraction without consent, modernization without humanity, and growth without justice.

Globally, there exist well-established best practices demonstrating that modern development can—and must—coexist with indigenous rights and ecological integrity. Central among these is the principle of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC), which affirms the right of indigenous peoples to meaningfully participate in decisions affecting their lands, resources, and ways of life. FPIC is not an obstacle to development; it is a safeguard against conflict, social harm, and long-term instability, and has been widely adopted across international development finance, environmental governance, and indigenous protection frameworks, as outlined by the United Nations and FAO.

Likewise, contemporary sustainability models recognize that indigenous knowledge systems are not relics of the past but essential assets for resilient development. Land-use planning that integrates indigenous stewardship practices, ecosystem-based development approaches, and culturally grounded livelihoods has repeatedly proven more durable and socially beneficial than top-down, extractive models, a principle reflected across UN environmental and governance standards. Heritage conservation, environmental protection, and urban growth are not mutually exclusive; they are mutually reinforcing when guided by principled governance and genuine participation.

In Oromia, the same standard must apply. Development must no longer be imposed on indigenous Oromos, but undertaken with them—recognizing land not merely as a transferable asset, but as a living foundation of identity, livelihood, and continuity. Compensation must extend beyond symbolic payments or forced relocation schemes and instead reflect the full social, economic, cultural, and intergenerational cost of displacement, as articulated in international norms on indigenous rights and responsible development (UNDRIP; FPIC).

To redefine development in Oromia is not to resist the future—it is to reclaim it. A future where progress does not demand erasure, where cities rise without burying indigenous histories, and where modernization strengthens rather than destroys the social and ecological fabric of the land.

This is the development we stand for. Anything else—no matter how grandly labeled—fails both the people and the principles it claims to serve.

Thank you GLONA!

Finally, OROMIA TODAY commends GLONA for their remarkable contribution—both for documenting this historic pattern with clarity and for standing up, with courage and discipline, to defend communities whose rights are too often ignored. Their advocacy is a vital public service, and it deserves wide support. You will find their 17-page research document in PDF format titled: "The New Mega Airport Project in Aabbuu, Oromia, Ethiopia: The Project Implications on Aabbuu Communities" as reference [1] below.

References

1. The New Mega Airport Project in Aabbuu, Oromia, Ethiopia: The Project Implications on Aabbuu Communities (a 17-page PDF document), November 2025, GLONA.
2. Kumaa Daadhii, How Will Medemer Be Remembered?, 7 January 2026, OROMIA TODAY.
3. OT Editorial, Development Draped in Dispossession: The Tragedy Behind the Abuu Seeraa Airport Deal, 23 April 2025, OROMIA TODAY.
4. OT Editorial, The Oromo People Demand a Prerequisite for the Aabbuu Seeraa Airport Project, 27 April 2025, OROMIA TODAY.
5. Shaggar, Bishooftuu, Gadaafi Adaamaa — Pilaanii Mummee Haaraan, 5 January 2026, President Shimelis Abdissa's Facebook Page.