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Toronto – In an interview with Mengizem Media, Professor Messay Kebede and Lidetu Ayalew reflected on Amhara nationalism.
Professor Messay remarked on Meskerem Abera’s writing on Amhara nationalism (available here ). He sees two variants of the Amhara nationalism “the old” and “the new.” For him, one which he think was started by the late professor Asrat Woldeyes about thirty or so years ago constitutes an “old Amhara Nationalism,” according to Professor Messay. And the kind of Amhara nationalism that Fano is espousing is the “new Amhara nationalism.” It is armed and challenging the central government.
Professor Messay also seems to think that the “new Amhara nationalism” has to enter political negotiation by accepting the existing political structure – he is implying that it is ethnic based one.
Lidetu Ayalew does not accept that there is such a thing as “Old Amhara nationalism.” He asserted that he knew Professor Asrat Woldeyes closely and was a member of the organization the latter founded in response to pressure from the then Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). He argues that Professor Asrat has a very strong distaste to ethnic politics.
For Lidetu, Amhara nationalism is about ten or so years old , and is the outcome of systemic attack on ethnic Amhara (Professor Messay also accepts that there was an orchestrated systemic attack on Amhara for just having a strong attachment to Ethiopia and Ethiopian identity).
Another key point Lidetu made is that the tendency to frame discourse of negotiation between Amhara as an Ethiopian identity and the rest of the rest of Ethiopians as something else is incorrect. Ethiopian identity is shared by all Ethiopians and should not be linked only to Amhara.
Take a listen to the interview and share your views in the comment section of this post.
Video : embedded from Mengizem Media YouTube channel
Cover photo : screenshot from the video
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