THE JOURNAL OF OROMO STUDIES VOLUME 13, Numbers 1 & 2, July 2006 The Journal of Oromo Studies Department of Africana Studies The University of Michigan-Flint Flint, MI 48.502 The Journal of' Oromo Studies (JOS) is multi- disciplinary, international journal of the Oromo Studies Association JOS publishes original research papers and book reviews on the Oromo and northeast Africa The journal welcomes contributions in all areas of Oromo studies and related fields All manuscripts fbr publication are anonymously reviewed by peer referees in the appropriate field Decision for publication is based on positive comments and recommendations of peer reviewers Whether we publish or reject a manuscript, it is our commitment to respond to authors with appropriate comments and feedback, Articles published in this journal do not necessarily represent the views of the Oromo Studies Association or those of its officers Individual authors carry full responsibility for the accuracy of the facts and the opinions expressed in their respective articles O 2006 Oromo Studies Association All rights reserved ISSN 1070-2202 Subscription: One year individual, $3000; one year institutional, $50 00 Single copy: $20 00 for individuals, and $3000 for institutions Add $5 00 for mailing Send all subscription requests or payment to: Oromo Studies Association, P 0,Box 7508, Silvet Spring, MD 20907, USA The Journal of Oromo Studies Volume 13, Numbers 1 & 2, July 2006 Editor: Guluma Gemeda Contents Editorial Overview A Comparative Welfare Analysis of Ethiopian Regions: The Case of Oromia Abebe Adzgfia The Impact of Ethiopian State Terrorism and Globalization on the Oromo National Movement AraJa IaLata 19 Ikowledge, Identity and Power: The Case of Ethiopia and Ethiopianness Begna F Dugassa 57 Historical and Political Origins of C.onfict in the Gambella Region Az?wfieh Byze 82 The Human Rights Predicament: A Critical Gender-Based Analysis of the Somali Region (Ogaden), Ethiopia Fowrza Abdukadzr 117 Jalqabdoota Bifaa fi Sagalee Qubee Afaan Oromoo &&bee A+an Oromo for Beginners) Tiiahun Gamta Looga Oromoo Walloo (Wallo Otomo Dialect) Tamane Bztzma Review Essay: Irlamzrm and Itc Enemzer zn the Horn of Ajn~a,edited by Alex de Waal (Reviewed by Mohammed Hassen) Book Reviews Jzveetnerr zn the Beib, by Camilla Gibb (Rev~ewed Mohammed Hassen) 176 The Horn ojA,tn~aar Common I-Iomeiand The Jtate and Je@Detemmatzon zn the Era of Hezghtened Globalz?ahon, by Leenco Lata (Remewed by Ezelael Geb~ssa) 183 NOTE ON CONTRIBUTORS Fowsia Abdulkadir, MS W, is Program Evaluation & Performance Measurement Analyst at the Public Health Agency of C:anada She has a Master's Degree in Social Work and a Certificate of Teaching English as Second Language (C T E S L) from Carleton University in Canada, and an undergraduate degree in Economics from Aligarh University in India Ms Abdulkadir's research interests include the role of women in governance, democratization and conflict resolution She has conducted extensive research in ctoss- cultural parenting, human rights and settlement issues C:urrently, she is researching on the condition of immigrant and refugee women from the Horn of Africa Abebe Adugna holds a B A in Economics from Addis Ababa University, and a Masters and Ph D in Economics from Columbia University, New Yorli His areas of specialization are macroeconomics, international trade, and development While at Cdumbia, he served as a lecturer, and received the Roclrefelier Foundation Fellowship for Dissertation Research on Africa He is currently a senior economist at the World Bank Bizuneh Beyene is a layer He teaches and practices law in hddis Ababa (Finhne) Tamane Bitima, MA, is a political scientist and teaches Oromo language at Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany He is also a poet, short story writer, and compiler of dictionaries, He has published books and articles on Ajbaf~ Oromo His latest book is A Dz~tioizay Omno Te~hizz~a/ Ieimc Orom - Englih (2000) Begna F. Dugassa is completing his PhD at OISE/ University of Toronto, Clanada His research is focused on the consuuction of knowledge in public health, human rights and genocide studies Tilahun Gamta is Professor Emeritus at Addis Ababa University He has published several books and articles on A&n Oromo His latest books include: Cbzprehentzve Oromo- Englzrh Dzihona?y (2004) and leera Afhan Oromo (1995) Professor Gamta currently lives in New York Mohammed Hassen is Associate Professor of History at the Georgia State University He is the author of the The Oromo qfEthiopta (1990), and editor, with Seyoum Hameso, of Arrerted Development zn Ethiopta Errayr on Underdevelopment, Demoray and Se&detemznation (2006), He has also published numerous articles and book chapters Currently, Professor Hassen is in the process of completing another hook on "Oromo History and the Medieval Christian Kingdom, 1300- 1700 " He has served as the president of the Oromo Studies Association and regularly contributes to the Journal qf Oromo Studzec Asafa Jalata is Professor of Sociology, Global Studies and Africana Studies at the University of Tennessee, I(noxville, He is the author and editor of several books, including Oromia & Ethiopia State Formation and Ethnonational Conflict, 1868-2004 (1993, 2005); State Crises, Globalisation, and National Movements in the Northeast Africa (2004); Fighting Against the Injustice of the State and Globalization Comparing the African American and Oromo Movements (2001); and Oromo Nationalism and the Ethiopian Discourse The Search for Freedom and Democracy (1998) Professor Jalata has also published numerous a~ticlesand book chapters in scholarly journal and magazines He was the president of the Oromo Studies Association and the editor of The Toma/ of Oromo Studzer Editorial Overview Despite regime changes, constitutional reforms and huge multilateral development aid it receives, Ethiopia is still bedeviled by political and economic crises The livelihood of millions of people in the region is threatened by political repression, poor governance, corruption, famine and abject poverty The Oromo, as a major population group in Ethiopia, continue face the blaze of these problems This volume of the Journal of Oromo Studies brings together a collection of articles that analyze the various aspects of the economic and political quandary in the Oromia and the Horn of Africa The volume also includes articles on the Oromo language, in Afaan Oromo, and a review article on Islam and Islamic fundamentalism in northeast Africa The fust article by Abebe Adugna, an economist, compares and contrasts the welfare of Oromia with three major regions in Ethiopia-Amhara, Tigray, and the Southern Nationalities, Nations and Peoples (SNNP) In his analysis Adugna seeks to determine whether there are systematic welfare disparities among the regions in Ethiopia and to what extent the governance and budgetary policies of the government directly or indirectly contribute to such disparities across the regions Although the data that Adugna uses are generated by the government and may not be as reliable as scholars may want them to be, they do reveal interesting contrasts between the four selected regional states The second piece by Asafa Jalata, Professor of Sociology and Global Studies specialist, explores the relationship between the Ethiopia regime of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and the Western governments, and the impact of their relations on the struggle for self-determination and democracy by larger population groups such as the Oromo Jalata argues that, contrary to their official policy of promoting democracy, Western governments continue to support the undemocratic practices of the Meles regime He . 11 Editorial Overview also points out how successive Ethiopian regimes have used different ideologies-Christianity, socialism and democracy- to receive financial, military and diplomatic assistance from the Western nations rhird, Begna Dugassa examines the discourse of Ethiopianness as an identity and its production and validation from a historical perspective He argues that Ethiopia, originally a Greek term referring to black people of' Africa, was appropriated by the Abyssinians and came to represent a specific culture Although beneficial for Abyssinians to gain recognition and establish diplomatic ties with the western powers, the Ethiopian historical narrative and identity have attempted to obscure the cultures and heritages of the subjugated peoples in the region In this case Dugassa compares the ideology of' 'Ethiopianness' to the Eurocentric discourses that projected the cultural superiority of' Europeans over other nations The first three articles document the economic, political and ideological underpinnings that contribute to the continued crises in Ethiopia The fburth and fifth contributions to this volume focus on the situation outside Oromia In his paper, Bizuneh Beyene, a lawyer, examines the causes of conflict in the Gambella regional state Focusing on structural and political factors, he argues that the incessant tiolence in Gambclla is rooted in the region's history of' conquest and contemporary political manipulations of the Ethiopian government Beyene argues that the modern multi-cultural Ethiopia was created by wars of expansion and conquest that suppressed and marginalized the political, economic and social traditions of' the subject groups These conquests have created a fertile ground for ethnic contradictions, national liberation movements, and deep-rooted intta-state conflicts Thc Gambella region is still witnessing violent clashes