Ethiopia: heavy fighting in Oromia despite talks between government and rebels

Oromo resentment against the federal government is a constant, as the Addis Ababa government is accused of carrying out indiscriminate repression. Here, Oromo youths shout slogans against the federal government during the "Ireechaa" celebration in Bishoftu, October 3, 2021. AFP - EDUARDO SOTERAS

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3 min

In Ethiopia, fighting has resumed in Oromia, the country's largest region, for the past week. For the past three years, the region has been plagued by conflict between government forces and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) rebellion. A round of peace talks brought the two sides together in early May, with no significant progress. While discussions will continue in a second round, the fights continue. Many observers are calling on the international community to put pressure on the belligerents.

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Faced with scattered clashes reported in the region, OLA rebels on Wednesday (May 17th) accused the Ethiopian federal government of launching an offensive contrary to the "hoped-for de-escalation" after the first talks.

The Ethiopian government and OLA - classified as a terrorist organization by Addis Ababa since 2021 - had begun on April 25 in Zanzibar, a semi-autonomous island of Tanzania, discussions described by the rebellion as "preliminary to more in-depth negotiations".

After the end of this first round of talks, concluded on May 3 without progress, "we saw the regime launch an all-out offensive (...) which is contrary to the spirit of de-escalation that we hoped for. "said Odaa Tarbii, spokesman for the OLA. "Even though there was no formal ceasefire, it was widely believed that de-escalation would be preferred during the negotiation process," he said.

Active in the Oromia region, Ethiopia's largest and most populous region that encloses the capital Addis Ababa, the OLA has been fighting Ethiopian authorities since its split in 2018 with the historic Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). The latter had renounced that year the armed struggle, when the current Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed came to power.

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Without peace in the region, Ethiopia will never be at peace either.

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Faced with this renewed violence, Tsedale Lemma, journalist and founder of the media Addis Standard, believes that the international community must bring the belligerents to the negotiating table, as soon as possible:

The first talks were respectful and took place in a very constructive environment. This should not have led to a resumption of fighting. It is therefore crucial that a second round of talks follow as soon as possible, with a view to concluding a ceasefire, at least a preliminary one. The international community must exert pressure in this direction before the resumption of fighting spreads in the region, particularly to urban areas. It is likely to happen. In my opinion, this is the most intense fighting in recent months. This must stop: without peace in the region, Ethiopia will never be at peace either. Oromia is right in the center of the country. It is unbearable for her to suffer more fighting than she has already suffered.

Tsedale Lemma, journalist and founder of Addis Standard, calls on the international community to push Addis Ababa and the Oromo rebellion to the negotiating table

Pauline Le Troquier

Rebellion, political struggles, territorial disputes, animosities between communities, armed banditry

As a region of the Oromo people, Oromia is plagued by multifaceted violence, which makes the situation extremely confusing: internal political struggles, territorial disputes and animosities between communities, in addition to the recent development of armed banditry.

In recent years, it has been the scene of ethnic massacres, the perpetrators of which have not been clearly identified. This is particularly true in the Wollegas, a remote area in the far west of the region: the Amharas would have been targeted, the second most numerous people in Ethiopia but a very small minority in Oromia.

The OLA has repeatedly been accused by Abiy Ahmed's government of being responsible for these massacres, which it systematically denies. The government in Addis Ababa is accused of carrying out a blind crackdown that fuels Oromos' resentment against federal power.

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• Ethiopia
• Abiy Ahmed