Arguments

By HUMPHREY J. OJWANG,
Sunday Times of Kenya

The Luo people are scattered all over Eastern Africa including Sudan and Ethiopia and have been identifying themselves as a special entity who have preserved their cultural heritage wherever they reside. Our writer, HUMPHREY J. OJWANG takes us through the cultural and social diversity of this community during his numerous personal interactions with them in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia.  

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By Magn Nyang*

April 27, 2006 — There was no country called Ethiopia before Minelik’s rule. In fact, the word “Ethiopia” came from Greek, meaning “burned faces.” “Ethio” means burned and “pia” means faces.

Passing through the North, the Arab part of Africa, Europeans saw people with burned faces, meaning dark face people, living below Sahara desert. There fore, they referred to every one that was living below Sahara desert as “Ethiopian.” Today’s Ethiopia inhabitants were among the “burned face” people they referred to. In this land, so called Ethiopia today, there were ethnic groups who lived independently from each other. While the Oromo people lived in the East, the central, and the West, the Anuak and the Amahara people lived in the West and the North respectively. However, when Minelik came to power, he invaded Oromo’s, Anuak’s, Gurage’s and every other non-Amhara land. After the invasion, Minelik combined what was called Abyssinia with the new territories and named them “Ethiopia.” The irony part was that a man, who had claimed to have been a descendent of king Solomon of Israel, would take upon him a name that was meant for all” dark faced people” living below Sahara desert. Any how, Minelik consolidated his power over those territories and ruled for years before passing the throne to his cousin Haile Selessie. 

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By Apee Ojulu Mar 28, 2006 —
In “Mother Ethiopia is Crying for a Leader,” Sudantribune.com/March 26, 2006 Biadeglegne Tesfaye articulates the need for a leader to lead Ethiopia. Unfortunately, his hope for the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD) to produce that leader, replace the ruling Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) and deliver the country to a promised land is anything but a fanatic dream. The political parties and leaders that created CUD intended only to restore past Amhare Empire in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Democratic League (EDL); All Ethiopian Unity Party (AEUP); United Ethiopian Democratic Party-Medhin Party (UEDPMP) and Rainbow Ethiopia: Movement for Democracy and Social Justice (REMDSJ) all intend to restore Amharo Empire (See Reference 1). These four parties shared two common goals that were to take power and restore Amhare Empire. They anchored these ideas in the CUD to reconstitute an Amhara centralized Ethiopia through three specific political programs. 

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By James Ojoch*
Are the Nuer the pure champions of equality and fairness? Hell knows.

Dec 4, 2005 — The Nuer have voiced their dissatisfaction with the formation of GoSS (Government of Southern Sudan) and GoNU (Government of National Unity) that they were insignificantly represented. In other words, they were and are marginalized. This is evident in the Open Letter by the SPLA/M Caucus Nuer in the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly to Gen. Salva Kiir Mayardit on 10/26/2005. This letter is floating everywhere. All other Nuer platforms are in chorus with a very strong grudge against the Dinka Elite. In their eyes the Dinka tribe has cornered them as a revenge for the events of 1991 and also for the frequent changes of positions back and forth in between Bashir and the SPLA/M. The legacy of those changes is the SSDF which Bashir still uses as a sharp leverage needle pricking the SPLA/M to weaken it. Also the SSDF uses Bashir in the same way. The Nuer expect that the pressure by SSDF and Bashir will overcome the marginalization. But what the SSDF doesn’t want to tell is that Bashir is an enemy to both SSDF and SPLA/M. Bashir is interested in foiling the CPA. However the Nuer threat is that if the SSDF is not accepted by the SPLA/M as equal there will be chaos and CPA will crumble dead. Another threat is that if the Nuer aspirations are not met the Nuer will quit from SPLA/M to join other parties taking the minorities with them. That is the gamble to loosen the SPLA/M. 

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