Page 81 - Fighting Against the Injustice of the State and Globalization

Fighting Against the Injustice of the State and Globalization
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government was restored under the auspices of the British government, Oromos con-
tinued their resistance struggle. In the 1940s and 1950s, a series of local resistance ac-
tions occurred in the effort to expel the colonialists. For instance, the Oromo in
Hararghe took up arms against the regime in 1947 and 1948.The Raya, Azabo, and
Wallo Oromos rebelled in 1947 but were crushed by the British Air Force. Further-
more, the Oromo of Dawe in Wallo rose up in arms and were brutally suppressed.
The Ethiopian colonial ruling class was initially successful in creating a collabora-
tive Oromo class and in Ethiopianizing this class through marriage, education, and
providing some privileges. A few elements of this class even gained higher status in
Ethiopian bureaucracy. At the same time the Ethiopian system also made sure that
these elements carried a badge of shame for being of “Galla” background. These
Ethiopianized elements were constantly reminded that Galla elements could not be
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totally civilized.
Even if those Ethiopianized Oromos acted as Ethiopians or Amha-
ras, the Ethiopian elites, by using racist discourse and some subtle discriminatory prac-
tices,made these kinds of Oromos humiliated and frustrated at the same time that they
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In addition to their cultural
kept them away from key decision-making positions.
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racism,
Ethiopians have feared and at the same time degraded Oromos as a people
and assimilated those whom they wanted to use against Oromo society through the
policy of divide, conquer, and dominate.The presence of Habasha fear can be demon-
strated by examining their actions against Oromo culture and identity.
In addition to destroying and repressing Oromo culture and cultural leaders, suc-
cessive Habasha governments have ensured that Oromos were denied educated cul-
tural leaders.The colonization of Oromos denied them the opportunity to develop
their language and literature; the Ethiopian government prevented Oromos from de-
veloping their language, Afaan Oromoo, as a literate language until the 1970s, when the
Oromo national movement challenged the Ethiopianization/Amharization policy by
adopting qubee (Latin alphabets). 141 Successive Ethiopian governments “have not only
neglected, but have also actively suppressed the development of Oromo literature.The
purpose of Amharization was to create a homogeneous Ethiopian society and identity
through the medium of Amharic, the language of a dominant minority.Amharic was
to be spread among the non-Amhara majority, through the school system, the
Church—including the foreign missionaries—administrative institutions and not the
least, settlement of Amharas in non-Amharic regions.” 142 Formal study of the Oromo
language had started in the first half of the nineteenth century in Europe, but the col-
onization of Oromia halted its progress.
Karl Tustschek, a German scholar, was hired by Prince Maximilian of Bavaria in
1938 to tutor former slaves (four Sudanese and one Oromo). He developed an inter-
est in Afaan Oromoo because of “the simplicity and euphony and grammatical forma-
tion of the Oromo language which became evident, but after a very short study.” 143
By studying Afaan Oromoo through communicating with more Oromo former slaves,
Tustschek learned this language and wrote the manuscript of the Oromo-English-
German dictionary in 1843. Since he died before publishing his manuscript, his
brother, Lawrence Tustschek, edited and published two books, The Dictionary of the
Galla Language and A Grammar of the Galla Language in 1944. Another German, J. L.
Krapf, went to Oromia and studied this language. In 1840 he published his work, An
Imperfect Outline of the Elements of the Galla Language; he also translated the Bible into
Afaan Oromoo. Mekuria Bulcha asserts that “during the second half of the 19th cen-
tury, Oromos in the diaspora (ex-slaves) continued to play an important role in the