Of all the days that we observe and celebrate regularly in this country, I tend to believe one of the most significant is the Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Day. No wonder it is the most important one because it attributes us the constitutional right to exist and thrive as a multiethnic, multicultural and multi-faith society based on equality and respect of one another. It anoints as the right to live in equality and without any discrimination due to our diversity.
Societies that have been built on unshared values and a firm, unwavering commitment, a solemn pledge to cherish our traditions and values, albeit in a varying manner, would most probably lead us to endless conflicts and unfathomable violence that is caused by miscommunication, misunderstanding and misperception, real or presumed.
First we have to acknowledge and accept that we are different, one from the others. We have to accept that we are composed of a quantity of nations, nationalities and peoples sharing the same land and boundaries; and this makes our society quite special, unique in many ways. It becomes even more special and a source of strength and beauty if we capitalize on these shared but diverse values and experiences, shared psyche and forma mentis.
Have you ever imagined if everyone belonged to the same nationality and had the same culture, spoke the same language? How monotonous that would be? On the other hand, have you ever imagined how rich it is to have a multiplicity of all these different values, cultural and historical traits that we never observed closely and learnt to appreciate? We often observe that paradoxically, it is mostly foreigners who when they come here and see what sort variety of peoples we are, they get fascinated and express their appreciation. Some do not even hide their envy.
They practically go in search of variety in how people think, how they behave, and how they understand and conceive or perceive life. The background that each of our peoples has is one different from the others and the things we value could as well be all different one from the other. But on one thing we all agree, and we need to agree and that is we must believe in the existence of a country that gives equal opportunities to each nationality and each people, that each one of these nationalities has the fair share of the resources of the country irrespective of their diversity and without any discrimination or injustice; and that we pledge to build on firm principles of justice and equality that we have to build our nation.
The federal system as enshrined in the supreme law of the land is of course the guarantee to our existence. The more we respect it and abide by it, the better secure each and every nationality feels within the framework of the federation. There is enough space for each one of us and every one must respect the space of the others so that they in turn respect the space of the first ones. There is no healthy state that is built on discrimination, on the principle of one is better than the others. This is a sacred principle on which we must build all our convictions and if there is anyone who has a different idea, this would the time to clear it up, once and for all.
The illusions of the past, the myths of the past are all done away with these days. We all envisage a nation that needs to capitalize equally on all of its resources, not only in terms of the nations and nationalities equally, but also in terms of who has a fair share of the same.
The celebration of the ‘Nations and Nationalities and Peoples Day’ is no joke; and the principle of the equality of peoples is no joke because the very idea of existence of this Federal Democratic Republic is based on it. It is a clear departure from the old ways of thinking and perception. Any tentative to return to old days is unacceptable and untenable.
The ‘chauvinist’ spirit of once upon a time in any kind of beliefs and perceptions must be considered dead and buried and would never be back in modern day Ethiopia. That is what the equality of nations, nationalities and peoples is all about. That is what the observance of the Nations and Nationalities Day is all about.
Today’s generation may have little or blurred understanding of what the past means. It might be tempted to only look at it as something past and never to be admitted to resurrect today. Past theories of unitary and one state have been replaced by a system of federal government or state that is inspired by equality, justice and the rule of law and any departure from these principles is now bound to fail.
The days have changed totally and there is no space for old ideas. The Federal Constitution clearly sanctions all forms of chauvinism and ideas that do not champion the rights of all peoples irrespective of their size, irrespective of their current state of modernization or whatever standards we would like to attribute to them. But nothing should be taken for granted as the roads to the fulfillment of these ideals are rough, rugged and tortuous. We need to watch out.
Ethiopia has been ‘work in progress’ for the last several centuries and it has passed several epochs of history, ups and downs. Countries evolve because it is imperative in their very essence, in the nature of things. European countries have evolved along the years and they have undergone several epochs which could be positive or negative. They have undergone fierce wars and destruction and survived them. We need to learn from that. Along the years they have learnt and distinguished what was good for them from what was not. So have other parts of the world. African countries as well have gone through several chapters of history including the despicable chapters of slavery and colonialism.
We have yet to fully recover from the wrongs of history and there are still many wrongs to be rectified and properly addressed because the scars of history are still not and will not be completely done away with unless we honestly admit past wrongs and try to heal them.
While we are now celebrating our diversity and learning to love and appreciate it as our identity, we don’t however forget that there were times when our identity was used to divide us and to humiliate us or make us fall under the mercy of some autocrat or factional leader, inspired by chauvinistic thoughts. Those days are the ones we have placed to rest in history books and try to learn from them so that never will they be allowed to revive.
Respect of equality in every sense is the essence of our federal system; and only if that is inculcated in every one’s psyche can we heal ourselves from the injustices of the past, and champion the current state of affairs. In this context, the importance of the marking of the Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Day is an eloquent reminder of what we used to value and what principles used to govern us and what are instead our current ideals and the future that holds for us.
Trying to vilify one nationality against another, trying to push one nationality from a certain area to another is exactly what chauvinists sow; and sowing hatred and discrimination can only result in conflagration that could engulf us all.
Injustice can only generate violence and only a society based on equal rights and opportunities, a society that openly acknowledges it publicly so that everyone has the right perception, will guarantee us peace. Everyone must strive to contribute responsibly to the nation building process. The construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam could be one of the bonds that unites us as one strong nation capable of realizing whatever project we embark upon. Our society should dismiss the elements that try to prey on our diversity.
Those days of feuds have no place today. In the era of globalization and advanced technology, there is no space for narrow nationalism and chauvinism, no space for discrimination no place for corrupt practices that nurture on nepotism. Transparency and accountability is the rule.
We have been longing for such a day when everyone would be given the same chance as everyone else, without looking at his or her face, or origin. The day celebrates Ethiopia as a place where everyone will be given the same chance and opportunity to thrive in happiness and not be left behind due to historical wrongs. The federal system is relatively very new because it counts less than three decades but the beginnings must be valued and appreciated. Every year that passes we build up on it, just as the US federalism has been developed along the years incorporating new thoughts and new ideas. We continue to enrich it and the first thing we have to do is value it. We should never take it for granted and we should never forget that we are still far away from the level we want to be.
Our ideals must be placed very high up and we need to be guided by those ideals of justice, equality and eternal progress.