FRED OLUOCH
Special Correspondent
July 8, 2007 (The East African) - ETHIOPIA, KNOWN FOR ITS ancient civilisation, has overcome innumerable challenges for thousands of years.
After the glorious years of the ancient emperors Ezana, Tewodros, Yohannes, Menelik and Haile Selassie, modern Ethiopia has yet to live up to its iconic status as the oldest independent country in Africa.
Despite reforms in the nation’s agriculture, especially coffee — the country’s leading export — Ethiopia continues to face problems of famine and widespread poverty.
After ousting former dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam in 1991, a combination of historical, internal and external conflicts have ensured that the People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), led by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, has had a rough ride.
For instance, the historical conflict between Ethiopia and Somalia resurfaced again last December, when Ethiopia intervened in Somalia to help oust the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC).
Though the Ethiopian government maintains that its intervention in Somalia was at the invitation of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG), observers believe that one of the main reasons was to prevent the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) from using Somalia as a base for its separatist war.
Due to its strategic location, Ethiopia has for years been seen by the West as a bulwark against the expansion of Islam from the Middle East.
Ethiopia has been forced to take more than a casual interest in what goes on with its neighbours, given that the country is now landlocked since the breakaway of Eritrea in 1993.
The port of Djibouti is becoming too expensive for Ethiopia, hence the need to get directly involved in Somalia to ensure that the country has access to Somali ports through a friendly government in Somalia. The official line, though, is that Ethiopia’s intervention was part of its continued war against terrorism.
The historical rivalry saw Somalia invade the disputed territory in the Ogaden Desert and Bale Province in 1977 and, simultaneously, Eritrea — which had been fighting for self-determination since 1961 — broke away.
But with huge military aid from the former Soviet Union and troops from Cuba, the government drove the Somalis out of the country in 1978 and also retook land in Eritrea.
Despite complaints of human-rights abuses and lack of political and media freedom, the EPRDF government has by and large done better than the former Derg government.
Since assuming power in 1991, there has been a notable upsurge in the construction sector with several new buildings coming up in the capital Addis Ababa, while the coffee and cut flower sectors are booming.
With a population of 76 million, making it the second most populous country in sub-Saharan Africa after Nigeria, Ethiopia is a potentially wealthy country, with fertile soil and good rainfall over large regions, besides deposits of several valuable minerals, including gold, platinum and iron ore.
Farm products account for over half of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and 90 per cent of its exports, with agriculture and allied activities comprising 42 per cent of GDP, services 46 per cent and industry 11 per cent.
The country is largely dependent on rainfall to raise its crops, and a drought in 2000–2001 affected some 10 million Ethiopians, with thousands dying from starvation.
The situation had improved slightly by 2004, but several million people were still dependent on food aid.
But the biggest challenge now for the EPRDF, is the aftermath of the disputed parliamentary elections in May 2005, which saw the opposition gain a substantial number of seats in the lower house and a runaway victory in Addis Ababa.
Consequent protests over irregularities in many constituencies saw the government come down hard on protesters and opposition leaders, the majority of whom are still in jail.
Western powers, especially the US, have preferred to look the other way despite allegations of widespread human-rights abuse, especially against the media.
The Amhara remain the politically and culturally dominant ethnic group of Ethiopia. They are located primarily in the central highland plateau of the country and comprise the major population element in the provinces of Begemder and Gojjam and in parts of Shoa and Wallo. Their population is placed at about 22 million.
Other major groups are the Oromo, Tigray, Yaus and Gurage.
Ethiopia prides itself on being the earliest civilisation in sub-Saharan Africa. Cushitic language speakers are believed to have been the original inhabitants of Ethiopia. The Cushites founded a new civilisation the traded with the Egyptians, according to ancient Egyptian texts.
The Egyptian name for Ethiopians was Habashat, which is the probable origin of the name Abyssinia.
According to legend, the Ethiopian kingdom was founded by Solomon’s first son, Menelik I (10th century BC), whom the Queen of Sheba is supposed to have borne.
However, the first kingdom for which there is documentary evidence is that of Aksum (Axum), which probably emerged in the second century AD, thus making Ethiopia the oldest independent country in Africa and one of the most ancient in the world.
Immigrants (mainly traders) from Saudi Arabia who had been settling in northern Ethiopia since about 500 BC influenced the economy and culture of Ethiopia. Aksum controlled much of the Red Sea coast and had links with the Mediterranean world.
UNDER KING EZANA, Aksum was converted to Christianity by Frumentius of Tyre (4th century AD). Closely tied to the Egyptian Coptic Church, the established Ethiopian church accepted Monophysitism following the Council of Chalcedon (451 AD).
With the rise of Islam in the seventh century Aksum declined, mainly because its land contacts with the Byzantine Empire were severed and its control of the Red Sea trade routes ended.
Thereafter, the focus of Aksum was directed inward toward the centre of the Ethiopian Plateau (mainly the regions of Amhara and Shoa), and it was largely cut off from the outside world. Aksum soon lost its cohesion, and Ethiopia lapsed into a period of competition among small political units.
In 1530–31, Ahmad Gran, a Muslim Somali leader, conquered much of Ethiopia. The Ethiopian emperor Lebna Dengel (1508–40) appealed to Portugal for help against the Somalis (a Portuguese embassy had been set up in Ethiopia in 1520).
The Somali war exhausted Ethiopia, ending a period of cultural revival and exposing the empire to incursions by the Oromo.
For the next two centuries, the Ethiopian kingdom — at Gondar near Lake Tana — was beset by ruinous civil wars among princes, especially those of Tigray and Amhara. It was also being attacked by the Oromo, and was again isolated from the outside world.
The reunification of Ethiopia was initiated in the 19th century by Lij Kasa (Lij Kasa (1818–68), who conquered Amhara, Gojjam, Tigray and Shoa, and, in 1855 had himself crowned emperor as Tewodros II (Theodore II). He began to modernise and centralise the legal and administrative systems, despite opposition local governors.
Tensions developed between Ethiopia and Britain, and Tewodros in 1867 imprisoned several Britons, including the British consul.
A British military expedition under Robert (later Lord) Napier was sent to the country and the emperor’s forces were defeated near Magdala (now Amba Mariam) in 1868. To avoid capture, Tewodros committed suicide.
A brief civil war followed, and in 1872 a chieftain of Tigray became emperor as John (Yohannes) IV. John’s attempts to further centralise the government led to revolts by local leaders.
In addition, his regime was threatened by Egyptian incursions during 1875–76 and, after 1881, by raids staged by followers of the Mahdi in Sudan.
The opening of the Suez Canal in 1861 increased the strategic importance of Ethiopia, and several European powers, particularly Italy, France, and Great Britain, sought influence in the area.
In 1889, John was killed fighting the Mahdists, and, following a short succession crisis, the king of Shoa (who had Italian support) was crowned emperor as Menelik II.
Due to a dispute over the meaning of the treaty of friendship and co-operation signed at Wuchale in 1889, Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1895 claiming that it had been given a protectorate over Ethiopia at the Berlin Conference. But the Italians were decisively defeated by Menelik’s forces at Adowa on March 1, 1896.
The subsequent Treaty of Addis Ababa (October 1896), the Treaty of Wuchale was annulled, and Italy recognised the independence of Ethiopia while retaining its Eritrean colonial base.
During his reign, Menelik also greatly expanded the size of Ethiopia, adding the provinces of Harar (in the east), Sidamo in the south, and Kaffa in the southwest.
He further modernised the military and the government, made Addis Ababa the capital of the country in 1889, developed the economy, and promoted the building of the country’s first railroad (financed by French capital).
Menelik died in 1913 and was succeeded by his grandson Lij Iyasu, who alienated his fellow countrymen by favouring Muslims, and antagonised the British, French and Italians through his support of the Axis powers (which included the Muslim Ottoman Empire) in World War I.
Lij Iyasu was deposed in 1916 and Judith (Zawditu), a daughter of Menelik, was crowned empress, with Ras Tafari Makonnen as regent and heir apparent.
In the 1920s, there was tension with Italy and Britain, as each tried to extend its influence in Ethiopia. Ras Tafari was given additional powers by the empress in 1928, and upon her death in 1930, was crowned emperor as Haile Selassie I.
IN A GRADUAL COUP THAT BEGAN in February 1974, and culminated in September with the ouster of Haile Selassie, a group of military officers seized control of the government.
The constitution was suspended, parliament dissolved and Lt Gen Aman Michael Andom became head of a newly formed Provisional Military Administrative Council (PMAC).
In 1977 Lt Col Mengistu Haile Mariam became head of the PMAC, which soon diverted from its announced socialist course.
Under the Mengistu regime, thousands of political opponents were purged, property was confiscated, and defence spending was greatly increased.
In 1991, EPRDF, a coalition of rebel organisations (led by Tigrayans) under the leadership of Meles Zenawi, began to achieve real successes and ultimately routed the Ethiopian army, forcing Mengistu to flee the country.
A new constitution, drafted by an elected constituent assembly and approved in 1994, divided the country into ethnically based regions, each of which was given the right to secession. Eritrea established its own provisional government in 1991 and became an independent nation in 1993.
Additional information: The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia
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