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Ururka ONLF ma ku saxan yahay inuu diido lakulanka Odoyada?

Maya, wuu ku qaldan yahay
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»FORMIDABLE ENEMIES OF PEACE IN SOMALI REGION
Peace has many enemies in Somali region. The list of losers in peace is exhaustive and starts with the ONLF who with misguided ambition decided to vacate governance in the region, and instead opted for uncalled armed resistance; and includes veterans in the current ruling party and regional government, as well as young and ambitious elements of the SPDP, who would literally prefer power to peace. Eritrea certainly will be a loser of any peace. So do other extremist national groups and regressive parties like CUD.

ONLF’s decision to opt to violence was not taken in consultation with the public at large and was undemocratic by its nature. The ensuing instability, ever then, is the result of such immature political gambling. If that was where things started to get wrong, what followed was even more agonizing. As a reaction to the blunder by ONLF, other Somali tribes were quick to come together in an apparent move to take over political power in the region and to settle old scores. The motivations for these various non-Ogaden tribes, who differ widely among themselves, were different and do not deserve to be discussed here. The federal government, wittingly or unwittingly, actively took part in the formation of ESDL, a.k.a-Leego by Somali’s. Under the guise of cleaning the system from remnants of anti-peace elements (ONLF), the league made sure that those Ogaden intellectuals who share nothing with ONLF but who are courageous enough to speak their minds are systematically wiped out of the system. Party cadres and Woreda officials, motivated by clan mentality, settled old feuds and personal vendettas through the administrative channels.

The ONLF, which was losing support for its undemocratic decision and earlier maladministration while in power, surprisingly found a sellable agenda. Grievances started among the members of these clan and soon some who lost hope started to join the armed groups. The then regional government, with the tacit support of the central government, responded by unleashing massive arbitrary arrests, and summary firing of Ogaden’s from government posts, and campaigns intended to put the age-old belief that Ogaden’s are the majority clan in the region into question. This has continued until such time came that the pressure was too much that the federal government initiated a power-sharing deal between ESDL and the pacifist wing of ONLF. That deal culminated in the formation of the Somali people’s Democratic Party (SPDP), the current ruling party.

With more or less fair distribution of power, perhaps the most accountable government in the entire history of the region was created. It lasted for slightly over three years with remarkable achievement. The culture of impunity by government officials was brought under control; tribal sentiments were discouraged; a quantum leap was taken towards ensuring meritocracy; the level and frequency of insecurity had dramatically reduced; and signs of transparency and discipline had started to crop up among public servants. Even better, major development projects were undertaken. Doubt and scepticism in the federal system quickly evaporated and tribal affiliations soon gave way to a spirit of unity. So much so, that the Somali people stood for the defence of the country against Eritrean aggression whole-heartedly to the surprise of many.

The name Ethiopia started to be acceptable to Somali’s, who until then, were apprehensive of the name itself. They found a reason to be proud about it; as they benefited from it.

Unfortunately, the federal government, for no apparent reason, seemed eager to make change of leadership. It must have been a surprise to most of the people in the region as changes are often required when things are not working properly or slowed down. New people were brought in on the insistence of the central government. The vary nature of such change in leadership was undemocratic and illegal as most of the then regional executive committee members would testify. It was an imposition by forces acting outside their mandates. Ironically, the intention of such imposition might have been to expedite the on-going socio-economic development in the region. I say this because I believe given the qualification and experience of the person brought in, the federal government, in particular the Prime Minster, hoped for better outcome. By so doing, two huge errors of judgement were committed. One, it was a mistake to assume that an imposition of a “good” person through undemocratic means was going to pay off in any way. Second, it was wrong not to assess whether people needed change and if they do, how?. It is not my intension to go into any depth on the fatal consequences of this move. However, it is perhaps appropriate to mention that the whole concept of governance collapsed in the region within a year and a system reminiscent of the distant “era of princes” ensued.

After a never-ending factional in-biting, the then president was finally unseated by the same mafia cliques he created to beat his political rivals. And then what followed was an even darker age of governance. If we had a bad government during this president’s term, we ended up without one with his successors; which doesn’t necessarily mean worse. However, in at least one aspect it got worse. The old tradition of clan cleansing re-appeared soon. All major portfolios were monopolised by non-Ogadens and the often very useful card of “anti-peace” was played intensively by the new comers. Our politicians were never bad at throwing labels and they used it to the best of their ability. Then a sense of déjà vu re-emerged. The wheels of history seemed to have gone back and repeat themselves. People got disillusioned and insecurity had reached unacceptable levels. The SPDP which has an uncomfortable similarity with the CUD (kinijit), in that both claim to represent a population they actually do not represent, has clearly failed to govern. Despite the inclusive name, the ogaden’s are not represented in this party at all and do not identify themselves with it. Much like the CUD which does represent die-hard Amhara’s but boasts of muti-national acceptance. I know many would disagree with me, but again I believe I am not wide off the mark from the truth.

It was at this juncture, that elders from the ogaden clan who felt it is their duty to lead their people into better days, decided to talk to the government. After protracted dealings, the elders have managed to bring the government and ONLF to the negotiating table. Or at least that is what people hope for. The elders represent the opinions of the majority of the clan they represent, and the writer is confident that if ONLF leadership does not accept the peace offer without their mumbo-jumbo type pre-conditions and petulant demands, they would be irrelevant. Opinions are united for peace and if the ONLF leadership take grass root support for granted, they are making a colossal error of judgement, as usual. The government has also to be careful, as the axis of extremist ONLF, current regional state rulers, who benefited immensely from instability, and upcoming ambitious wing of SPDP elements, who believe in the politics of “friendship”/ apparently with top federal government officials/, will spare no effort in foiling the peace deal. There are millions who benefit from peace, but sadly, there are losers as well. It is natural to expect the losers to mount the fight of their life to keep the status quo. The government has to be extra-vigilant not to undermine the process by the advice of the losers.

The players and beneficiaries in the current instability are much more than stated here. The state of Eritrea is bent on destroying the Ethiopian government and is a major sponsor and exporter of ONLF insurgents. Ogaden’s must not let their children to be used as cannon-fodder for the perverted political ambitions of an alien. The priority has to be the socio-economic development of the people in the region. Achieving your rightful place in regional power-sharing mustn’t also be viewed as an open ticket for authocracy and oppression of others. The dividing line between getting what you deserve and snatching the rights of others is often blurred by agitation and hatred. The elders and potential regional leaders should recognise this.
The current “old-guard” regional leaders must realize they are despised by the people and should leave the political scene immediately. Any attempt to blend them in any future government will be self-defeating and counter-productive. Let them sleep well with their “blood-money”, until such time that justice is served. The young and power-zealous wing of the SPDP should know better. Unless they wish for a short stunt, they know they do not possess mass support. It is one thing to be ambitious, it is quite another to be a leader. Getting the trust of the people is a necessary pre-condition for coming to power in democratic systems. If they think the precedence exists that they may have a chance to come to power with the shoulders of friends in high places, they should also know the end-product of such adventures. Without the acceptance and support of the people, their reign promises to be brief and painful.

The depth of clan mistrust and animosity in the region must not be overlooked. It is unfortunate, but a reality that with out addressing clan concerns fairly, any political settlement in the region is bound to end in a complete fiasco. There is no need to be dismissive about this. Or else one would be guilty of committing the mistake CUD is making at national level. Just as the nation and nationality issue is an inescapable fact of history in Ethiopia, so does is the clan issue in Somali region.

As set out in the opening paragraphs, the axes of mess in the region plus external forces may respond differently to the peace offer. However different their moves are, they all work towards the same end: destroying the peace offer.

Source:somaliobserver.com







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