National Dialogue Working Group Frames Past State Atrocities as Institutional Failures

By Staff Writer

(Nairobi, Kenya) — The 500-member Nation-Building working group under the Ethiopian National Dialogue Conference has reached consensus on key foundational issues, adopting multi-option recommendations on state symbols, language policy, calendar reform, and historical narratives.

The consensus follows extensive discussions on long-standing topics regarding national identity, governance history, and national reconciliation.

In a major conceptual agreement forged alongside the Peacebuilding working group, delegates formally signed off on a unified approach to historical atrocities and state abuses.

Under the agreed framework, human rights violations and governance atrocities committed by previous Ethiopian regimes will be framed as institutional and systemic failures of state authority, rather than attributed to specific ethnic groups or communities. The principle establishes that political systems and governing regimes hold sole responsibility, relieving individual ethnic groups from collective blame for actions carried out by former rulers or monarchs.

Working group representative Genenew Gebedo confirmed that delegates resolved several delayed sub-agendas by advancing structured recommendations for final synthesis:

• Federal Flag Emblem: Delegates passed two primary options regarding the national flag—either retaining the current central star emblem or removing it entirely. Previous proposals suggesting symbols such as a traditional shield and spear or the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) were set aside. Consensus was confirmed to retain the traditional green, yellow, and red color scheme.
• National Anthem: The working group submitted two formal options: maintaining the existing national anthem in its current form or introducing specific textual and musical amendments.
• National Calendar Framework: Three distinct proposals advanced to the final stage:
  • Renaming the current “Amate Mehret” (Year of Mercy) to “Amate Lidet” (Year of Birth).
  • Adopting the official designation simply as the “Ethiopian Calendar.”
  • Formally incorporating the “Hijra Calendar” within the national calendar framework.

While broad discussions on a single primary national language remain under review, the Nation-Building group approved a technical recommendation to conduct detailed feasibility studies for expanding federal working languages to 13 regional languages.

The proposed expansion includes Amharic, Afan Oromo, Tigrigna, Somali, Afar, Wolaytigna, and Sidamigna, among others, aiming to broaden linguistic representation across federal administrative institutions.

To finalize the multi-option recommendations, each thematic working group elected a 15-member harmonizing committee. These delegates will synthesize all submitted proposals into a consolidated framework before presenting them back to the full 500-member assembly for final review.

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