Questions for Troubling Rhetoric Where does freedom of speech end, and the incitement of dangerous, ethnically charged propaganda begin? At what point does public discourse shift from a right to speak one’s mind into a reckless abuse of influence—especially when the speaker holds public office in a fragile, multi-ethnic society? These are not abstract questions….
Introduction Emperor Haile Selassie ascended to the throne on April 2, 1930. Just over a year later, on July 16, 1931, he promulgated the country’s first modern Constitution. In that founding document, the name “Ethiopia” was formally constitutionalized for the first time—replacing the historical name “Abyssinia.” This name change, however, did not gain international recognition…
Synopsis The crisis of Oromia can be summed up in a single, stark sentence: Oromia’s greatest hazard is its own wealth. The sheer abundance of its resources has drawn in competing forces, each vying for control. This relentless scramble has made the realization of Oromia’s self-determination—a cause championed for decades—an even more daunting challenge. Today,…
Synopsis The name Ethiopia is often presented as an unbroken historical identity, tracing back to ancient times. However, a closer examination of historical records, international registrations, and linguistic origins reveals that the name Ethiopia, as applied to a modern empire-state, lacks continuity before the 20th century. Instead, it was a political rebranding strategy, gaining official…
There exists, in the crumbling, treacherous landscape of modern politics, a rare and nearly mythical figure—the Politician of Unyielding Principle. Unlike the fair-weather careerists who slither from one political feast to another, sniffing for power like a desperate hound at a butcher’s door, this individual is cut from stone, his convictions carved deep, immovable, impervious…
by Olii Boran, PhD (an article by invitation) Leadership, often idealized as a mechanism for fostering stability, driving progress, and leaving behind a positive legacy, can also be manipulated as a tool for perpetuating dysfunction. “Leading by chaos, not competence” encapsulates a leadership strategy where chaos is not an accident, but a deliberate tool used…
I am staring at a photograph of a woman from northern Oromia, likely in her fifties. Her face, gaunt and weathered, seems sculpted by anguish. Her hollowed cheeks give prominence to her cheekbones, and tears streak across her broad but emaciated face. It is a face that embodies sorrow so intensely that I find it…
Psychology offers a lens through which we can understand human behavior, particularly what individuals or institutions focus on and fear the most. This is often encapsulated in phenomena such as the Freudian slip, where underlying anxieties surface unintentionally. In the case of Oromia’s administration, their almost reflexive fixation on blaming the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA)—…
