Ethiopian Government's Move to Consolidate Military Might Met With Outrage

Written By: Bartholomew Robbins

Photo by Tewodros Getnet on Unsplash

Boston-Earlier this month, the Ethiopian federal government declared its intention to dissolve the regional security forces and roll them into the federal military. In Ethiopia’s second-largest state, Amhara, the announcement was met with a torrent of rage and violent clashes.

The Amhara Defense Forces(ADF) had been a vital partner to the federal government in the Tigray War, a conflict that began in November 2020 and was brought to an end by a peace accord almost exactly two years later. The conflict claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of fighters and civilians, with estimates ranging between 400,000 and 850,000 lives lost. The conflict even saw violence spill over into neighboring countries.

The Amhara region is largely inhabited by the Amhara people, the second largest ethnic group in the nation, behind only the Oromo in numbers. 

A Consolidation of power

The move is an attempt by the federal government to “centralize” its fighting forces, both to increase its own capabilities and reduce the likelihood of rebellion or ethnic conflict. Ethiopia’s constitution gives states the right to establish their own security forces, though many resemble small armies. Abiy Ahmed, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, has criticized these forces, calling them a threat to national security and stability, and claims that the centralization seeks to remedy that.

Critics of the announcement, however, paint a different story. Many see the move by the government as a poorly-veiled attempt to reduce the autonomy of the states. Moreover, the proposed centralization has prompted concern that the removal of regional forces would result in more ethnic violence. The Tigray War saw no shortage of atrocities.

  The Mai-Kadra massacre is one such incident. In the early days of the war, members of the Tigray Defense Forces(TDF) reportedly cut down nearly 600 people-including many Amharas- with machetes and axes. There have been several reports of similar killings, executions, and rapes that were also allegedly carried out by the TDF.

  Amhara Defense Forces(ADF) were accused of similar actions in towns such as Humera, where dozens of civilians were allegedly killed with firearms, indiscriminate mortar shelling, as well as with knives and machetes. Refugees fleeing the towns reported seeing several instances of executions being carried out by ADF soldiers. (3)

Backlash

Despite the security risks posed by regional forces according to Prime Minister Ahmed, the announcement was deeply unpopular in Amhara. Reports of gunfire were rampant in Amhara immediately following the call for the dissolution of the ADF. Several people were reportedly shot in clashes between protesters and military forces. Two aid workers were killed during the demonstrations while they were en route to the country’s capital Addis Ababa, though it is unclear who exactly fired the shots which took their lives.

The federal government has been quick to attempt to quell the unrest. Seven journalists were arrested in recent days for “inciting violence”. Some of the journalists arrested in Addis Ababa are reportedly sympathetic to the Amhara protests. The federal government is also engaged in a virtual blockade, denying the use of some social media sites by its populace.

Even with the ongoing and increasing unrest, the government is continuing with its centralization efforts, claiming to have successfully dismantled several of the regional security forces.