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Addis Ababa University School of Graduate Studies Department of History ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY A History of Wänbära Wäräda, 1941-1991 By Mengistu Geremew Advisor Professor Tesema Ta’a (PhD) November, 2016 Addis Ababa A History of Wänbära Wäräda, 1941-1991 By Mengistu Geremew A Thesis submmtted to Graduate Programmes of Addis AbabaUniversity in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for The Degree of Master of Arts in History ADDIS ABABA UNIVERISTY SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES COLLEGE OF SCIENCES DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY A History of Wänbära Wäräda, 1941-1991 By Mengistu Geremew APPROVED BY BOARD OF EXAMINERS Advisor Signature Date Examiner Signature Date Examiner Signature Date Key to the Transliteration System I. The seven sounds of the Ethiopian alphabets are represented as follows: 1st በ=Bä 2nd ቡ=Bu 3rd ቢ=Bi 4th ባ=Ba 5th ቤ=Bé 6th ብ=Be 7th ቦ=Bo II. Palatalized sounds are represented as follows: ሸ=Š ቸ=Ča ኘ=nä ጀ=J II Glottalized Sounds are represented as follows: ጠ=tä ቀ=q ጨ=Ĉä III. Germination sounds should always be indicated by doubling: በቀሇ=Bäqqälä ታደሠ=Tädässä ከበደ=Käbbäda i Table of Contents Contents Page Key to the Transliteration System................................................................................................ i Table of Contents ....................................................................................................................... ii Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................ iv Acknowledgment ........................................................................................................................v Abstract .................................................................................................................................... vi Preface ..................................................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER I ................................................................................................................................1 General Background of Wänbära Wäräda ...................................................................................1 Geographical Setting ...............................................................................................................1 Historical Background .............................................................................................................7 Peoples of the Wäräda .........................................................................................................7 The Foundation and Incorporation of Wänbära Wäräda into the Central State .................... 12 Trade and Trade Routes in Wänbära Wäräda ..................................................................... 17 Italian Period (1936-41) ..................................................................................................... 21 CHAPTER II ............................................................................................................................ 26 Wänbära Wäräda during the Imperial Period, (1941-1974) ....................................................... 26 Administration ....................................................................................................................... 26 Taxation in Wänbära Wäräda After 1941 .............................................................................. 32 Land Tenure System in Wänbära Wäräda .............................................................................. 36 Maladministration and Corruption ......................................................................................... 39 Problems of Security ............................................................................................................. 41 CHAPTER III ........................................................................................................................... 45 Wänbära Wäräda during the Därg Period, 1974-1991 ............................................................... 45 ii Reforms of Därg ................................................................................................................... 47 Land Reform ...................................................................................................................... 47 Peasant Associations .......................................................................................................... 49 Co-operatives in Wänbära Wäräda ........................................................................................ 52 Producers’ Co-operatives ................................................................................................... 52 Service Cooperatives .......................................................................................................... 55 Villagization in Wänbära Wäräda ...................................................................................... 56 Opposition and Collapse of the Därg ................................................................................. 59 CHAPTER IV ........................................................................................................................... 62 Socio-Economic Developments in Wänbära Wäräda................................................................. 62 Educational Service ............................................................................................................... 62 Health Services ...................................................................................................................... 65 Water Supply ......................................................................................................................... 67 Road Transportation .............................................................................................................. 68 Communication ..................................................................................................................... 69 Ethnic Relations and Interactions in Wänbära Wäräda ........................................................... 70 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 76 Glossary .................................................................................................................................... 78 Reference .................................................................................................................................. 80 Lists of Oral informants ............................................................................................................ 90 Appendix .............................................................................................................................. 96 Declaration.............................................................................................................................. 101 iii Abbreviations AMC Agricultural Market Cooperatives BA Bachelor of Arts CSA Central Statistical Agency DMUAC Däbrä Marqos University Archival Centre EC Ethiopian Calendar EPLF Eritrean People’s Liberation Front EPRDF Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Party EPRP Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Party MA Master of Arts PA Peasant Association PHD Doctor of Philosophy Degree SC Service cooperative SIDA Swedish International Development Agency TPLF Tigrian People’s Liberation Front WWARDO Wänbära Wäräda Agricultural and Rural Development Organization iv Acknowledgment First of all I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my advisor Professor Tesema Ta’a for his unreserved guidance, and persistent correction of the draft of my thesis. In spite his work load, he sacrificed much of his time in giving constructive ideas until the end of my work. I would also like to forward my heartfelt thanks to all my informants for their cooperation and willingness to provide me what they knew about the Wäräda during the time of my field work. I would also like to thank the library workers of Kennedy, Däbrä Markos University Archival centre and Institute of Ethiopian Studies for their support they gave me to get related sources that enabled me to reconstruct the history of Wänbära. v Abstract The main aim of this thesis is reconstruct the administrative and socio-economic history of Wänbära Wäräda from 1941-1991.The study covers the time from the liberation of Ethiopia and the restroation of Emperor Hailä Selasié I to power in 1941 until the removal of the Därg government in 1991, in which the inhabitants of the Wäräda like the other countryside peoples of Bénišangul Gumuz region observed important socio-economic and political developments. It begins with historical study of the district by revealing different developments in the Wäräda before the Italian occupation. The restoration of the Imperial administration and the reforms that took place by the Imperial government in various fields, in connection with the administration and land related issues and the response of the peoples of the Wäräda to these changes will be the main area of concern. Besides this, the study points out taxation issues and views on security problems in the district. Moreover, the study attempted to assess changes and developments that the Wäräda had gone through during the military government. The Därg was interested to consolidate its power by taking different measures which had their own merits and demerits on the political and socio-economic conditions for the inhabitants
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