Oromo conflict
The Oromo conflict is a protracted conflict between the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and the Ethiopian government.[13][14] The Oromo Liberation Front formed to fight the Ethiopian Empire to liberate the Oromo people and establish an independent state of Oromia. The conflict began in 1973, when Oromo nationalists established the OLF and its armed wing, the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA).[15] These groups formed in response to prejudice against the Oromo people during the Haile Selassie and Derg era, when their language was banned from public administration, courts, church and schools, and the stereotype of Oromo people as a hindrance to expanding Ethiopian national identity.[16][17][18][19][20][21][22]
This article is about the historical conflict between Oromo people and the Ethiopian government. For the insurgency of the Oromo Liberation Army, see OLA insurgency.Background[edit]
The Oromo people are an ethnic group who predominantly inhabit Oromia in Ethiopia, along with communities in neighboring Kenya and Somalia.[23][24] They are the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and the wider Horn of Africa; according to a 2007 census,[25] they make up about 34.5% of Ethiopia's population, and others estimate that they make up about 40% of the population.[24][26]
The Oromo remained independent until the last decade of the 19th century, when they were colonised by Abyssinia. Under the rule of Haile Selassie, the Oromo language was banned and speakers were privately and publicly mocked to help the Amhara culture and language dominate the Oromo people.[27][28][29]
In 1967, the imperial regime of Haile Selassie outlawed the Mecha and Tulama Self-Help Association (MTSHA), an Oromo social movement, and conducted mass arrests and executions of its members. The group's leader, Colonel General Tadesse Birru, a prominent military officer, was among those arrested.[30] These actions by the regime sparked outrage among the Oromo community, ultimately leading to the formation of the OLF in 1973.[31]
Timeline[edit]
1970–1980[edit]
In 1974, the Ethiopian military ousted the imperial regime and seized control of the country. The new Derg regime promptly arrested Oromo leaders; subsequently a secret conference attended by Oromo leaders, including Hussein Sora and Elemo Qiltu, formed the OLF.[32] A group of armed Oromo fighters in the Chercher Mountains were adopted as the OLF's armed wing, the OLA. The OLA increased its activities in the Chercher Mountains, prompting the Ethiopian regime to send its military to the region to quell the insurrection.[31]
In June 1974, General Tadesse Birru, an Oromo nationalist who had been arrested by the imperial regime in 1966 along with other high-ranking military officers, escaped from house arrest and joined Oromo rebels led by Hailu Regassa in Shewa. Birru and Regassa were later captured and executed by the Derg regime.[33]
In late August 1974, an OLA unit left their stronghold in the Chercher Mountains and advanced closer to Gelemso, hoping that nearby fully grown crops would hide them from Ethiopian soldiers as they made their way towards nearby towns. Three of the unit's new recruits were unaccustomed to climbing long distances, so they spent the night at the foot of the mountains, while the rest of the soldiers camped at the top.[34]
An OLA soldier sent to retrieve the three recruits discovered that they had been killed by Ethiopian militiamen who had followed the unit to Tiro. A large group of Ethiopian policemen and militiamen surrounded the OLA position in the mountains, and the two opposing groups exchanged gunfire. A group of Ethiopian soldiers led by General Getachew Shibeshi arrived and shelled the stronghold with mortars, killing most of the OLA's members, including Qiltu. The event became known as the Battle of Tiro.[34] Contingents of the OLA continued to fight the regime after the battle and gained a massive influx of recruits and volunteers after the Derg regime executed Birru and Regassa.[33]
In 1976, the OLF established a stronghold in the Chercher Mountains and reorganized itself.[32][31][35] A congress created by Oromo leaders revised the 1973 OLF Political Program and issued a new detailed program calling for the "total liberation of the Oromo nation from Ethiopian colonialism". The conference, now known as the Founding Congress, marked the beginning of modern Oromo nationalism.[32]
1980–1990[edit]
In the 1980s, the OLF estimated that they had over 10,000 soldiers. They were poorly equipped in comparison to other rebel groups in Ethiopia at the time, such as the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) and the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF).[35] The OLF also opened an office in Sudan in the 1980s, after its office in Somalia was closed down.[32]
During the 1980s, the government of Ethiopia was accused of using scorched earth tactics, such as burning down entire villages and massacring inhabitants. The OLF also lost several prominent members due to government ambushes and heavy fire; the secretary general of the OLF at the time, Galassa Dilbo, was nearly killed in one such ambush.[35]
1990–2000[edit]
In the early 1990s, the Derg began to lose its control over Ethiopia. The OLF failed to maintain strong alliances with the other two big rebel groups at the time; the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).[32][35] In 1990, the TPLF created an umbrella organization for several rebel groups in Ethiopia, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). The EPRDF's Oromo subordinate, the Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO) was seen as an attempt to replace the OLF.
In 1991, the EPRDF seized power and established a transitional government. The EPRDF and the OLF pledged to work together in the new government; however, they were largely unable to cooperate, as the OLF saw the OPDO as an EPRDF ploy to limit their influence.[32] In 1992, the OLF announced that it was withdrawing from the transitional government because of "harassment and [the] assassinations of its members". In response, the EPRDF sent soldiers to destroy OLA camps. Despite initial victories against the EPRDF, the OLF was eventually overwhelmed by the EPRDF's superior numbers and weaponry, forcing OLA soldiers to use guerrilla warfare instead of traditional tactics.[36] In the late 1990s, most of the OLF's leaders escaped Ethiopia, and the land originally administered by the OLF was seized by the Ethiopian government, led by the EPRDF.[37]