subject: War, political strife and poverty in the history of Ethiopia [print this page]
It is common knowledge that one of the earliest human bones (Hominid) is discovered in Ethiopia and it dates back 4.4 million years. Ethiopia is really a fascinating country that has rich historical and archaeological heritages. It is the earliest country to accept Christianity as a state religion in the fourth century and the religion of Islam in the seventh. The other outspoken significance of Ethiopia is its independence. Italy succeeded to invade in 1936, but the victory was short lived when British and Ethiopian forces defeated Italy five years later.
As the concept of socialism was spreading among the military and the elite it became evident that the monarchy rule was about to face a fierce challenge. In 1994 the Emperor Haile Selassie was deposed by a military socialist party. The military junta then executed many generals, ministers and royal family members including the Emperor. Many agree that the down fall of the country started by then. The socialist military regimen was in strife among itself and soon the power struggle among its leaders turned nasty. Political killings became so common. Ethiopia was known as one of the socialist countries of Africa with strong ties with the Soviet Union.
As the politics in Ethiopia got worse, politically motivated imprisonments and killings created a favourable condition for opposition armed struggle to rise. The Ethiopian peoples' revolutionary democratic front, (EPRDF) pushed its way through the gigantic military power of the socialist rule and controlled the capital Addis Ababa in 1991. In spite of all his war decrees and vows to fight to the last, the socialist ruler fled to Zimbabwe where he still lives.
In 1991 the Eritrean peoples' liberation front, which joined forces to fight the socialist regime, decided to take control of Eritrea and get its independence. Till then Eritrea was part of Ethiopia. The people of Eritrea overwhelmingly voted for independence and the country was declared independent in 1993. Ethiopia is landlocked country now.
In 1998, Ethiopia and Eritrea started a dispute over a territory at the border. This lead to a full scale war shortly, which claimed the life of thousands of young soldiers and civilians. It is so sad to see these two forces which effectively overthrew the socialist's giant military power fight each other. The history of Ethiopia has never been free of wars, civil unrest, political strife and the common denominator, poverty.
Ethiopia is a federal republic under the 1994 constitution, the prime minister having the executive power. There are many opposition political parties functioning but as it has been confirmed time and again the power struggle in between the ruling party and the others is leading the country to a political dilemma.
There are numerous books written by local and foreign authors that tells a detailed historical record for those who are interested to know more. As the country is well known for religious, historical and archaeological wealth one can get adequate information by reading books found in the market.
War, political strife and poverty in the history of Ethiopia
