January 28, 2015 | By Dorii Abbaa Fugug
Globalization is a phenomenon that has been metamorphosing from
negative imperialistic connotation background to more positive,
progressive and cherished representation. However, it is still suffering
from cynicism and prejudice as some group of nations continuously
prospering on the expense of others mortification. Long before the
existence of the term globalization and when the concept of
globalization is not as comprehensive as today people were fighting over
the dominance and some of them with the only rudimentary awareness of
the glob and aspired to dominate the world mainly to maximize their
sphere of influence or revenues. Others had mainly focused in strongly
defending their territory and live in peace and tranquility for many
centuries. The Oromo people were among those strong, democratic and
peaceful nations in the region.
However, their unshakeable power in the region for many centuries
prior to European conquest was deranged; and with help of colonizers’
superior armaments; the once dying Abyssinian enclave happened to
control the mighty Oromo nation. Thus with extraordinary weaponry
supplies and unrelenting advice of their masters, this “dependent
colony” strived and maintained its power over the Great Nation for over a
century.
During this time, the Abyssinians tried their best not only to
completely eradicate the Oromo identities (language, cultural, etc.),
but they had also committed ethnic cleansing in which the Oromo
population was reduced in half. They prohibited the Afaan Oromo from
spoken in public or in offices and further worked hard to make the Oromo
totally ignorant of the world around them. In other words they
destroyed all traditional relationships with their neighbors and
effectively blocked their interaction with them and the entire world at
large.
For instance, until the Italian period in 1935-41, the Oromo males were not allowed to go to market (magalaa/gaba’aa/ katama) as they were killed by Naftangas
as “cursed and unruly enemies”. On the other hand, the Oromo were also
neither surrendered their dignity easily or stopped fighting them during
this time. Patriotic Oromos like Muce Ahmed Muce was remembered by
countless banana trees he planted on the graves of Naftanyas he killed.
He is also remembered by eating Minelik’s commander, waldegebriel Aba
Seyxan’e ear. I am very sure many Oromos from different corners of the
Country have similar stories to tell.
During the emperor period and afterwards, the Oromo were discouraged
to have any access to outside world be it in terms of business,
education or any travels. They were geven, derogatory mistrusting
nomenclatures like Aligaza bay “galla” (unruly “gella”) during Menilek;
Banda(collaborators) during Hailesillasie; sargogab ( infiltrators)
during Mengistu and OLF during Melles Zenawi (wayyane) regime only for
the purpose of justifying the killing or robbing of the innocent Oromos.
Yet, the Oromo continued to abjure such Abyssinian aspersion and
illegally trekked to the neighbouring Somalia, Yemen, Sudan and other
Arab countries.
These assiduous and risky defiant encounters resulted in creating
Oromo heroes like Waqo Gutu, Jarra Abba Gada, Elemo Qilxu and many, many
others who were the key for the formation of Oromo Liberation Army.
History also witnesses thousands of Oromo who were captured and
massacred by Abyssinian militias while crossing the border. Some of them
were even followed and killed in neighboring countries. People like
Ayyub Abubake, Jahatani Gurmu, Mullis Ababa Gada, etc, are the case in
point. It was in this defiant and antipathy of Abyssinian anathema that
the most precious Oromo freedom fighters, the eleven members the top OLF
leaders, perished in the hands of hostile Ogadenian bandits, while
travelling to Somalia for diplomatic purposes.
However, with EPRDF policy of killing some Oromos and expelling other
from the country, thousands of Oromians took flight out of the country,
all for the purpose of defending the Oromo nation right for
self-determination and to become one of free world nation. In a nut
shell, the Oromo have paid ultimate sacrifice for their independence not
less than Algerians or Eritreans in any standards which most of us
should be proud of. As I tried to mention above I don’t mean in anyways
that globalization is a trend or a phenomenon that Africans have
benefited from and as a result we cherish it. No, not at all. My point
is that While becoming a victim of globalization, in general, is a bad
thing, yet being deprived of your national identity, as Oromo, in the
globalized world, is the worst thing ever and the opposite is true.
My other point here is that although the Oromo as a nation with its
own national boundary and sovereign rule is in waiting, our diaspora
efforts are already making Oromians a global citizen/nation in short
cut. Today the Oromo have very strong community organization, vibrant
civic and political organizations in Diaspora. Most importantly the
majority of the Oromo have long been mentally liberated and completely
forgotten Ethipiawinet.
Now that, we have seen how the Oromo were defiantly absconding the
country sadistically since the beginning of the Abyssinian
colonialization of Oromia and particularly during the 1950s and 1960s of
Jarra Abba Gada-Waqoo Guutuu generations, which brought about the Oromo
freedom fighting that continued to swelter like conflagration.
On the other hand, unprecedented new fashion of defiant flees or mass
exodus of Oromo happened after 1991-2 Revolution. While few OLF left
the country through Bole many thousands had flocked to the different
corners of the countries’ border. As it goes, if we cannot succeed
through Bole we will be making it through Bale became a motto. Anyway,
most of these people destined to refugee in neighboring countries only
to seek eventual resettlement to the third countries (to western world).
As a result most of these refugees succeeded in resettling in countries
like Australia, Germany, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, the
Netherland, the UK, The United States and Canada. Although the trauma of
refugee camps and establishing in new counties are not simple matter,
many of these refugees are quickly established themselves and involved
in the doing Oromummaa projects.
Although deserting the country especially by few top OLF leader
during the crisis was seen as an abhorrent historical disaster for the
Oromo struggle for independence, there are people who believe that
leaving the countries enabled the Oromo people to be free of oppressive
government and work for the Oromo struggle from outside of the country.
Leaving the former for history, we are witnessing the latter becoming
the reality.
That doesn’t mean however every Oromo in Diaspora is working for the
benefit of Oromians, there is a group of Diaspora Oromo that chose to
seek yet another Ethiopiawinet citizenship. How on earth someone can
seek a new citizenship in the country where he was born and where the
citizenship right in the county is already by birth.
On the contrary, however, those who left the country for the genuine pursuit of Bilisumaa continued working on a plethora of Oromummaa
projects here in Diaspora. For example, all the proliferated Oromo free
Medias, strong community organizations and other civic organization
like OSA, OSG, ORA, HRLHA, Mada Walabu, IOYA, Barnoota and many other
organizations are only the tip of the iceberg. These actives are
undoubtedly becoming the reliable means for the Oromo to being and
becoming the global nation. Furthermore, these are the outcomes of the
Oromo defiance against the Abyssinians policy of concealment,
camouflaging and containment. It is also a remarkable confirmation of
the total failure of Abyssinian century old struggle against the Oromo
or the demise of Ethipiawinet for good.
Thus, the assiduous process of reintroducing or reconnection of the
Oromo nation to the world community as independent entity, of course,
has reached the stage where no one can relapse it. We can see a
multifaceted movement in continuums. The diaspora Oromo Students
Organizations, Oromo community associations, the OLF and OSA and Oromo
Medias are the leading champions of these developments.
The OMN which is envisioned by young Oromo student Obbo Jawar
Mohammed and his friends started its role as a giant media outlet. They
mobilized the diaspora Oromo behind the mission and the OMN has
successfully been launched in March 2014. The OMN not only informs about
what is going on in the world concerning the Oromo and the Horn of
Africa’s natios but is also instilled the moral and spiritual connection
of the Oromians all over the world as well as demonstrated that the
Oromo can do so many great things when worked together. It also showed
the Oromo that for every problem they are suffering from now, the
solutions are always right in their hand.
The other promising Oromo project of our time in diaspora is Toltus
Tufa’s’ Education project(Afaan). Toltu Tufa is an outstanding
Australian born Oromo girl who envisions the greatness of educating her
people in diaspora. Started with small project in Melbourn, Adde Tultu
expanded the horizon of her vision to reach all the Oromo children in
every corner of the globe. Currently she is touring around the world to
distribute the children books she authored.
Totlu project is so crucial for the Oromo people in diaspora for
several reasons: First, Oromiffaa/Afaan Oromoo is one of the few
languages that survived the language genocide. Please refer to the UN
Genocide Convention definitions,( Art. 2b & 2e), which clearly
stipulates what the linguistic genocide means, and how it occures. So
Toltu’s project of teaching Afaan Oromoo is not only helps us to survive
our languages from the threatening foreign media and scholastic
language genocide in diaspora; but it makes our children be active
future leader and inheritors of our struggle for independence. Secondly,
it preserves Oromo identity as intact as it was. Toltu, herself, is a
role model and charismatic leading light for our young foreign born
Oromians.
There are many other emerging young talented Oromo leaders of Qube
Generation like Toltu and Jawar whose achievements in the field of
Oromumma are yet to be witnessed. As they are marching on natural course
of actions( for a just cause), these young leaders are always
successful to the detriment of those time-worn old gantuus Oromos who
are derailed from the right trajectory.
The other acclaimed successful diaspora Oromo achievements are the
naming of Minneapolis Oromo Street and the Melbourne Oromo community,
hosting Oromo flag (right beside the Australian National flag) on
Melbourne Street only to represent the Oromo nation as a distinct
entity. These are shining Oromo community achievements in diaspora which
shows the being and becoming of global nation. The OLF participation on
“world stateless nations” conference in last year was nothing more than
a confirmation for the world community that we are the nation without
the state. Indirectly that means we are a state in exile or Oromia is
the state in waiting.
Generally the Oromo in diaspora do actually know the fact that
strengthening their organizational capacities and becoming viable global
citizen enables them to revive and reconnect to their age older
brotherly relationship with East African nations to work hard for the
demise of the crumbling Ethiopian Empire. Many neighbouring nations have
already joined hand in hand against tyrannical Ethiopian regime. Thus
the disintegration of Ethiopia Empire will definitely paves the way for
the integration and re-alliance of eastern African loving nations.
Mind you, while the Abyssinian in Washington reaffirmed their
deep-rooted hatred to the Oromo her in the USA, the Somali and Oromo in
Minneapolis demonstrated their Cushitic ties by working to together to
make their dream of enshrining their names on the street of Minnesota.
This trend of working together with brotherly spirit for the
revitalization of old Cushitic bonds should continue with other East
African communities.
Finally, we must be well aware of the multiple opportunities ahead of
us to make difference in making the great Oromo Nation more known to
the world communities and for the ultimate of Bilisummaa Oromoo. Each
Oromo community association in diaspora has to bear the responsibility
of doing at least one thing in their cities that make Oromo lined up
among free nations. We become one of the independent World nations in
our own rights!!!!
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