Who is Ethiopian?
By
Melaku Hailu
People who have traveled from
Nairobi to Johannesburg will tell you something about Addis Ababa: for
it all its disparities in wealth and the legions of poor people thronging
its streets, it's one of the safest cities in Africa. This has to do with
the country's history and its people, a deeply religious sort who have
always depended on God to deliver them from problems of Biblical proportions.
Ethiopia is a rich mosaic of different
ethnic and religious groups. With very few exceptions, these groups have
managed to live with each other as neighbors, not letting their differences
overwhelm their similarities.
But the war with Eritrea has unleashed something frightening.
Ethnic identification, which has been encouraged by the current government,
is now being used to ferret out people of certain backgrounds and then
strip them of their Ethiopian heritage.
The issue is not simple. Some of the people being sought
have given up their Ethiopian identity and identified themselves as Eritreans.
Those people should be treated as citizens of any other foreign country.
Anyone familiar with the situation in Ethiopia knows the peculiar status
of many people whose loyalties seemed to straddle two countries.
But under what basis are Ethiopians of Eritrean background
being stripped of their Ethiopian identity? The current Ethiopian government
has given confusing and contradictory statements. Is an Ethiopian of Eritrean
background who voted in the Eritrean referendum subject to deportation?
Why is that a reason for deportation? Many other Ethiopians, if they were
given the opportunity to vote, would have voted to let Eritrea go. Many
thoughtful people had come to the conclusion that too much blood had been
spilled and it must stop. Many felt like the children of parents who were
beating up on each other constantly. The children wanted the parents to
divorce so everyone could live peacefully.
If supporting Eritrean independence was grounds for deportation,
virtually the entire membership of the ruling TPLF would be subject to
ejection. If ethnic background was the litmus, the same thing would happen
to most of the current leadership, including Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.
Some Ethiopians opposed to the current government's policy
of dividing the country into ethnic enclaves are now applauding the government's
attitude toward Ethiopians of Eritrean background. But are these people
comfortable giving the power of who is Ethiopian to this government, or
for that matter, any government? What happens if another group becomes
the outcast, this time yours?
Ethiopia is at war now and during war Ethiopians have
always rallied to defend the motherland. That should continue. But all
Ethiopians of good will should think twice about a systematic ethnic cleansing
whose ultimate end will be to turn neighbor against neighbor.