Mekuria bulcha biography for kids

Flight and Integration. The Tragedies of the Ethio-Eritrean War. Religion, the slave trade and the creation of the Ethiopian empire in the nineteenth century. Beyond the Oromo-Ethiopian Conflict. Mekuria Bulcha, Flight and Integration: causes of mass exodus from Ethiopia and problems of integration in the Sudan. Uppsala: Scandinavian Institute of African Studies,pp.

Chapter 19, the mekuria bulcha biography for kids chapter explicitly devoted to syntax, is wide-ranging in its coverage but lacks depth. It runs through sentence types, transitivity, co-ordination, subordination etc. Each syntactic topic is introduced in a sentence or two and several examples are produced to illustrate it. There is virtually no discussion of issues.

Given the centrality of syntax, this is disappointing. The pages of section 2, the dictionary, form the bulk of the book. The section starts with an introduction, the mekuria bulcha biography for kids of which is unclear: it repeats material from the introduction to the grammar section and repeats remarks on the pronunciation and orthography that appear in Chapter 1.

The dictionary itself is in two parts: it consists of an English-Lingala and a Lingala-English word list. The authors seem to have included useful, common words that learners of Lingala would need to know. As always in these matters, the selection of words to include in a short dictionary like this one is a matter of judgement. Their judgement seems sound to me.

For each entry one or more corresponding words in the other language are given, with tone markings included on all Lingala words. This is commendable. Equally regrettable is the fact that a minimal amount of grammatical information is offered in lexical entries: the part of speech of each word is shown and in the case of verbs a distinction is drawn between transitive and intransitive verbs.

It changed the attitude of the Oromo, including those who hitherto had been indifferent about the ongoing Oromo struggle for justice. It created a reaction which reflected not only the revulsion provoked by the atrocities committed against children, pregnant women and the elderly, but also a national solidarity among the Oromo at large. It stirred the Oromo diaspora across the globe to mobilize and protest in mass.

In a number of ways this reaction was significantly different from the mixed feeling which many Oromos had about Ethiopia in the past. We are not Ethiopians! To carry a flag in a public demonstration is like carrying a banner in a battle: it is to endorse or protect the objective or interest which the flag signifies. Be that as it may, in the diaspora, many Oromos carry the OLF flag at mass rallies, or decorate their homes with it, to express their support for what it represents: that is to say, the establishment of an independent Oromo state.

At home, the significance of flags in identity politics was clearly marked during the national parliamentary elections. Those of us who followed the Ethiopian elections were surprised the fact that, among the thousands of Oromos who had participated in rallies organized by the only Oromo opposition party at home, the Oromo Federalist Congress OFCnot a single person was seen carrying the Ethiopian flag.

In fact there were no banners of any kind at many of the videoed rallies. It is said that there was an attempt to distribute the Ethiopian flag to the participants during one of the OFC rallies, but that was unsuccessful. No one was willing to carry it. Given the level of the prevailing political consciousness among the Oromo, it is difficult to expect them to march with a flag which symbolizes the subjugation of their forefathers.

But, the intriguing question is that, when we talk about rejection of the flag that does not tell us whether it is the subjugation, which the flag symbolized, which was being rejected, or the Ethiopian identity which is also implied. My guess is both. The rejection of Ethiopian flag and identity is also reflected in the actions of the Oromo youth who have been raising the OLF flag in many places across Oromia.

As we have been witnessing during the last five months through social media, it is raised to honor those who were killed by the Ethiopian security. In general, it seems that as a symbol of resistance, the OLF flag is arousing positive emotions among the Oromo in tandem with the increased atrocity committed against them by the TPLF regime. The demonstrations ofand the last three four months have indicated clearly the significance the OLF flag in the Oromo struggle.

Juxtaposed with the evergreen odaa tree, the symbol of gadaa democracy, and rays of a rising morning sun, the red, green and yellow OLF banner has become a resonant symbol of the expected Oromo resurgence from the dark nights of a more than a century old subjugation, into the bright light of independence. That the image which the OLF flag is ingraining in the minds of the Oromo.

The indifference of the international community to the crime perpetrated by the Ethiopian regime was another issue that awakened the Oromo to reality. The Oromo who naively believed that the international system is humane and justice-based were suddenly confronted with the culpable silence of realpolitik. Although the atrocities the Ethiopian regime had committed in Oromia constituted a clear case of what the Statute of the International Court Article 7 defines a crime against humanity, the rest of the world continued doing business with the Ethiopian regime as usual.

The visiting US Secretary of State was not the only diplomat who was silent about the student massacre. Although 70 peaceful students were massacred in a couple of days, no government raised its voice against the Ethiopian regime. This was also the case with the entire diplomatic corps who staff the embassies of nearly all the member states of the UN, who reside in the heart of the Oromo country.

In fact, the two Peace Corps volunteers mentioned above were advised to keep quiet when they started to inform others about what they saw in Ambo. This appalling indifference can be explained by a mixture of factors including the lack of interest in what was happening to the powerless, pursuit of selfish geopolitical and economic interest or selfish individual motives.

The Abyssinian ruling elites have a refined tradition of distorting reality. We also know that they are diplomats and foreign experts themselves who are reluctant to jeopardize their comfortable relationship with the TPLF regime and jobs in Finfinnne Addis Ababa today. Avoiding criticism of the Ethiopian government for undemocratic practices, they prefer to talk about a step forward on the right road towards democracy, and pledge assistance for further democratization irrespective of how grave the observed violations of human rights are.

Like other oppressed peoples who believed the promises of the UN Charter and that of the other international organizations which that pledge support the oppressed, humiliated and downtrodden peoples, it took the Oromo a long time to understand that their lofty promises are empty words. The Oromo interpretation of the silence over the massacre of Oromo youth in was that the death of the powerless is not more important than business with the Ethiopian regime.

We have only ourselves! This was on the lips of everyone for a while after the tragic massacre of Oromo students in Notwithstanding the tone, the statement did not reflect hopelessness or victimhood; it expressed the sober understanding that waiting for others to liberate them was an illusion. It underlined the necessity of internal solidarity and collective action to overcome their national predicament.

The overall reaction to the external silence was an internal unity and psychological bonding among the Oromo. It underlined the importance of self-reliance and aggressive engagement in diplomacy. The Oromo are not the first people to find themselves in that situation. We are oppressed because we are black. We must use that very concept [black] to unite ourselves and respond as a cohesive group.

We must cling to each other with a tenacity that will shock the perpetrators of evil. The silence of the international community over its massacre of Oromo students in emboldened the Ethiopian regime to continue its policy of evicting the Oromo from their land. In spite of the widespread Oromo opposition, both at home and in the diaspora, it did not drop the Master Plan.

However, it was not only the position of the Ethiopian regime that was unwavering on the question of Finfinnee. Notwithstanding the threats from the government, the Oromo youth at home were prepared to pay the sacrifice it may ask and continue their struggle and defend the sovereignty of their homeland and the rights of their people. In the diaspora, media outlets such as the OMN Oromia Media Network and others that connect the remotest parts of Oromia with Oromo communities across the globe were in place.

Informed by these sources and through other networks such as Facebook, Tweeter and Instagram, the Oromo in the diaspora were active in bringing the atrocities being committed by the Ethiopian regime in the name of development to the attention of the international community. T he Oromo appeal to the international community got attention after another round of TPLF massacre in late Following the strong resolution passed by the European Parliament in Januaryand mekuria bulcha biographies for kids made by the US Department of State on the situation in Ethiopia in general and Oromia in particular, the deafening silence that had prevailed on the ongoing violence against the Oromo was lifted.

The Oromo have also started to win some ground in the diplomatic front. However, that does not mean enough work has been done and effective pressure has been applied against the TPLF regime. In fact the violation of human rights in Oromia has kept on escalating since November An uprising which was ignited in Ginchi, a small town 80 km west of Finfinnee, involved an assortment of injustices: land grabbing, the plunder of Oromo resources, deforestation, destruction of the environment, the impunity of the security forcesin other words, the major causes of Oromo grievances because of which the Oromo students have been protesting for a long time across Oromia.

When the news of what happened in Ginchi was reported over social media, it became an epitome of both the crimes of the TPLF regime and the resistance in Oromia. The people could not tolerate the situation anymore. The news caused uprisings first in Ambo and then to Mendi, a town in western Oromia, and immediately all over Oromia. The situation is such that sometimes it seemed as if the Oromo are marching simultaneously in one and the same demonstration.

Such open national consciousness was hitherto unthinkable in Ethiopia, which remained a unitary state in large part by harshly suppressing Oromo self-expressions. Chanted in chorus by tens of thousands of schoolchildren, secondary school and university students, these and other slogans have been reverberating across Oromia during the last five months.

Mirga keenya ni falmana! Biyyi keenya hingurguramu! Mirga keenya yoomiyyuu ni falmanna! Lafa hingurgurru Oromiyaa ni falamanna! Oromiyaan ni bilisoomti! Oromiyaa is our Homeland! Where shall we go leaving our Homeland!? Oromiyaa is our Motherland! Oromiyaa has nurtured us! Oromia has fostered us! We shall not be evicted from our land!

We shall defend our Homeland! Why were our students killed? Why were our teachers killed? Why were our farmers killed? Why were our workers killed? We shall die for Oromia! We shall fight for our rights! Our Motherland is not for sale! We shall never stop fighting for our rights! We will not sell our land We shall fight for Oromia! Oromia shall be free As reflected in these slogans, the Oromo youth want that their people should get rid of terror, eviction, and humiliation under the rule of the TPLF regime and be in charge of their own destiny.

They demand respect for their rights — their right to life, and the right to shape their individual and collective lives without external interference. This bravery is not an impulsive act. To the Oromo, the question of Finfinnee is seen as a matter of life and death for Oromo sovereignty and territorial integrity, in a federation or as an independent state.

The men, women and children killed so far are at least ; those who have been injured are counted in thousands. Nobody knows the number of those who have been kidnaped and disappeared. Those who are detained are counted in tens of thousands. It is interesting to note here that features of the revolution that had been ignited by the incident in Ginchi in November has similarities with the resistance of the South African and Palestinian peoples in the past.

Their bravery had cost them many lives, but, it was not pointless or in vain. It was contagious and took the Palestinians to the streets in their thousands. The burial of each and every Palestinian killed by Israeli bullets became a massive show of national solidarity in a resolute psychological defiance against the Israeli occupation.

The kids who lost their lives were not betrayed and forgotten. Thus, the daring youth also put the Palestinian question on the agenda of the powerful West and the Palestinian state on the map of the Middle East. It is even the struggle of the Oromo youth that has made the world to pay attention to the Oromo question for the first time.

Among others, the European Parliament passed resolution on the situation in Ethiopia condemning the use of violence against peaceful Oromo protesters. The US government expressed its concern publicly for the first time about the situation in Oromia. However, the statements are yet to be accompanied by tangible action. On its part, the Ethiopian regime has continued with its vicious actions against the Oromo people ignoring the concern of the international community.

Again, it is important to remember that the support of the international community, though needed, is not a panacea for a national predicament in the last analysist. Although, the assistance given to the ANC by external powers was very substantial, but we must remember that Apartheid was brought to its disgraceful demise by the monumental demonstrations and death-defying confrontations which were conducted in the racially segregated shanty towns in which the vast majority of the indigenous African population live.

Indeed, it was those actions which had gradually turned Apartheid South Africa into a hell for the white racist regime. The trend we see in Oromia is proceeding in the same direction. As we know, it took a decade and half to bring down the Apartheid regime after the Soweto uprising. While the popular base of the ongoing Oromo revolution seems to be at least as united and strong as the Anti-apartheid movement had been, one cannot say the same when it comes to the strength of its leadership.

However, I can say that what the OMS has already achieved has brought the Oromo people nearer to the goal they have been aspiring for a long time: a it has united the Oromo people from corner to corner to struggle for a common goal; b it has brought the Oromo question to the attention of the international community. However, the humanity shown to non-Oromos during the last five months must have, by and large, dispelled that fear.

In other words, it has indicated that non-Oromos can live in an mekuria bulcha biography for kids Oromia without fear for their lives and property. These and other victories scored by the Oromo people, particularly during the last five months, indicate that the day of their independence is not far. The current Oromo uprising is maelstrom that has refused to cease for the last five months and is involving scores of cities, all the universities in Oromia, nearly all the high schools and most of the elementary schools.

In addition, millions of farmers, businessmen and women, and civil servants have been participating in it. However, the Oromo youth remain in the forefront. The term youth includes university and high school students and primary school children. The ESM of late s and early s of which many of the TPLF leaders were members, was based on population of 6, university in88, secondary school and 1, grade school students in the country, including Eritrea, in If we estimate that between 35 percent of them are Oromo that means there are overOromo students in the colleges and universities.

According to the same source, the number of Oromo students who were attending secondary schools was more thanOver 6, Oromo children were attending grade schools. Given this gigantic number of current schoolchildren, it is plausible to assume that the number of Oromo students in secondary schools and universities will double and even triple soon.

Therefore, it is unlikely that the TPLF or any other regime that may take power in Finfinnee hereafter can destroy the Oromo youth movement physically or diminish its political importance unless it is prepared to commit a genocide. It is important to point in this connection that the majority of the Oromo youth with whom the TPLF regime is in conflict were born after it came to power.

They are between the ages of 17 and A regime which treats a young generation of such an immense size with unbridled atrocity as the TPLF has been doing for the last fifteen years cannot have a future. The TPLF regime is seating in an irreparably damaged boat that is sinking in a stormy sea. The only means it depends on now to stay in power are the instruments of coercion.

But those are not functional any more in Oromia. Its vision was building an Ethiopian state dominated by a working class. However, a working class that can conduct a revolution and run a state did not exist in Ethiopia. Therefore, the revolution for which it became a catalyst paved the way for a military dictatorship. After the Dergue destroyed ESM in the mids, it has not been possible to unite Ethiopian youth under a similar organization.

The case of the Oromo youth movement is different. It is not only larger in size, but is also free from the ethnic division which denied members of the ESM unity. It is based on Oromummaa Oromo nationalism the essence of which is psychological bonding and the conviction to defend Oromo rights. The events of the last five months indicate a rapid progress in that direction.

Another factor that makes the Oromo youth movement different from that of the ESM is its embeddedness in the society. The signs are that it has greater support from the people than the ESM ever had. In fact few had heard about the ESM outside the major urban centers. John Markakis has the following to say about them. They were the offspring of the ruling elite, the makuanent, gultegna, neftegna and balabbat ; the overwhelming majority were of Abyssinian origin, and lived in towns.

Since the class perspective defined the sociology of Imperial Ethiopia in their view, its main problem was distributive justice. One was rich or poor, landless or landlord. Therefore, they emphasized distributive justice as a solution for conflict in Ethiopia. The case of the present Oromo youth movement is different. Conceived in the wombs of an ongoing struggle for national liberation, the overriding concern of the majority of its members is the achievement of national sovereignty.

In their view, distributive justice and the national question cannot be seen separately — for a conquered, and politically and culturally dominated people like the Oromo, economic liberation in the absence national freedom is barely achievable. More significantly, the overwhelming majority are from the rural areas and the sons and daughters of farming households.

What they want is what their people are aspiring for. The subordination of the Oromo as a nation and the economic disadvantages they experience as individuals are often interrelated. They express the grievances of their people.

Mekuria bulcha biography for kids

Almost every Oromo household seems to have at least one young member who entertains these feelings and convictions of the OSM. The pre-emptying efforts to silence the Oromo youth through the practice of arbitrary imprisonment, beating, torture, murder, rape, and disappearing may continue, but there will be no room for the reproduction of the Abyssinian system of domination in Oromia anymore.

The TPLF atrocities have not only intensified youth resistance, but also awakened the Oromo people at large to the reality that fighting injustice with every means necessary is a must. The events ofand now made the Oromo to come to the conclusion that they cannot allow anyone to hunt and kill their sons and daughters, brothers and sisters or their neighbors as if they are unprotected wild game.

The Oromo people have learnt to withstand increasing repression with determination under the present regime. Many of us have been often stunned with awe during the last five months to see the failure of atrocious violence including live ammunition to force the Oromo youth into flight or silence their protest. They buried their dead and went back to the place where their brothers, sisters or compatriots were killed to continue with the protest.

However, their method of resistance may not remain as peaceful as it had been hitherto. So far the Oromo have conducted peaceful protests facing live bullets from the police, the notorious Agazi squads and military forces of the Ethiopian state. But, they are determined to defeat the Ethiopian regime by making themselves uncontrollable and Oromia ungovernable.

In an effort to crash the Oromo uprising, the TPLF regime has made recourse to the indiscriminate use of violence against the Oromo people as a whole. This violence may increase in its atrocity. However, like all oppressors the TPLF-regime tends to forget that it does not have a monopoly over violence. It ignores the Oromo also have the right to use violence in self-defense and pursuit of justice.

Peace and justice go together. Wherever it fails to restore justice, peaceful resistance cannot remain peaceful indefinitely. As reflected in the events described above, the peaceful protests of the Oromo students during the last fifteen years have been extremely costly to themselves, their families and the Oromo nation as a whole. The regime has made it known repeatedly that it will never tolerate, any opposition to its power whether it is peaceful or not.

The option which its leaders have been offering the Oromo and other peoples in Ethiopia is not democracy but submission to their rule. Search icon An illustration of a magnifying glass. Metropolitan Museum Cleveland Museum of Art. Internet Arcade Console Living Room. Open Library American Libraries. Search the Wayback Machine Search icon An illustration of a magnifying glass.

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