By Desalegn Birara
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Introduction
The existential threat that the Amhara people faced gave rise to Fano movement & armed struggle. Historically, Fano are understood to be armed groups from the Amhara region which see themselves as defenders of the interests of their population. The origin of the term goes back centuries, and in Amharic refers to ‘someone who travels of their own volition’ or a ‘band of leaderless soldiers who were not accountable to anybody’ (Atrsaw & Yared, 2024:2).
Fano is a youth group that emerged, first within the Amhara ethnic group, for struggles against injustice and foreign invaders during the 1936 – 1941 Ethio-Italian war; and during the 1960s student movement against the monarchy. According to Girma Berhanu 2022, it has features of reminiscent of classical political, religious, or even social movements that drive youthful frustrations into acts of agitation until they achieve a measure of reform.
The contemporary Fano movement started with the 2016 demonstrations that condemned identity-based attacks against the Amhara. The peaceful demonstrations were shortly transformed into fierce protests across the region, with the intensified aggression of TPLF to silence them. The persisted Fano protest took the TPLF regime from federal government position down to its state, Tigray. When TPLF assaulted the northern command of the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF), intending to coup de tat the new government, an allot war broke out. Fano participated in the war for the reason that the battlefield was the very place that Fano gives protection. Fano sided with the federal government in the war against TPLF, because the latter was the aggressor. Nonetheless, the ethnic cleansing of Amharas in Welega – oromia and Addis Ababa areas was parallelly going on. Fano was informed that the federal government was complicit in the ethnic cleansing and even supported the perpetrators – Oromo Shené, with vehicles, arms and food. Hence, the cause of Fano protest had yet to be addressed.
The path of Fano
Whilst the federal government was in war with TPLF, Fano used the opportunity to build camps, recruit and train fighters, and utilize the logistics, security, and administrative networks of the government. This in turn enabled them to widen their societal networks, attract new members, and strengthen their military capacity. Atrsaw & Yard 2024 reported the growing stature of the Fano, and their defense of Amhara interests, has alarmed the federal and regional governments, which see their existence outside of the official security architecture as a threat. Consequently, the government attempted to demobilize, disband and reintegrate the groups into the community. This was strongly opposed by the Fano. Fano had profound evidences on federal government officials involvement in identity targeted attacks on Amharas, and could’t trust the government, before demobilizing itself. After the cessation of hostilities (COHA) agreement in Pretoria between TPLF and the federal government, the true intent of the government regarding Amhara people was explicitly stated. The ENDF chief of staff gave a press release to the national television about their plan to eradicate the Amhara groups within two weeks (borkena.com march 9, 2024). For this operation to succeed, a state of emergency was
proposed; and the federal parliament automatically approved it. Amhara peoples’ representatives in the federal parliament were already apprehended and there was no significant opposition from the parliamentarians regarding the proclamation.
‘The two weeks operation’ plan lasted at least until the compilation of this report, which is more than a year; and the then few hundreds Fano has become now few hundreds of thousands army, organized under 4 commands. The Gojjam command alone has 13 divisions and 54 brigades.
How Existential threats emanated
The historical narratives portraying the Amhara as oppressors have significantly contributed to the rise of ethnic politics in Ethiopia. Structural policy changes, including legal frameworks and administrative boundaries, were implemented based on ethnic definitions and principles. This ethnic consciousness, though rooted in fabricated narratives of historical suppression, grew influential enough to demand power sharing in the federal government and create regional states based on ethnic identity.
On the other hand, the Amhara people largely depended on the state rather than envisioning an ethnic Amhara-based sociopolitical arrangement. The Amhara elite lacked both the courage to maintain the federal government’s unifying power and the interest to establish their own ethnic-based organization. This disengagement from both political fronts left the Amhara people unrepresented in power dynamics, dispersed, and vulnerable to targeted attacks.
False narratives accusing the Amhara escalated to the extent that hate speech, categorical labeling, and derogatory terms became official discourse. Government officials used hate speech against the Amhara to mobilize community support and political participation. The language they employed translated into practice by extremist ethno-nationalist groups, leading to orchestrated attacks. In contrast, the Amhara and Ethiopianist elites were unresponsive to both the fabricated narratives and systemic identity-based attacks. There was no substantial effort from the Amhara elite to counterbalance the rhetoric or challenge the verbal genocide normalized by extremists through out the four decades of political interactions.
While the Amhara elites aimed to eliminate ethnic politics, they failed to devise a viable strategy. Even the Amhara Nationalism movement lacked structural awareness of the existing political landscape. It attempted to mobilize the Amhara people, using the ethnic cleansing of Amharas in Oromia as an immediate cause, to oppose ethnic federalism. Professor Asrat’s mobilization primarily targeted ethnic federalism but failed to address existential threats of Amhara people; fundamentally because the movement was not structurally Amhara nationalist. Achieving an independently aspired goal through the movement and establishing it as a sociopolitical organization would yield different results.
The Dialectic View on Amhara Nationalism
The dialectic view on Amhara nationalism—using it as a means of organizing support until seizing power and as a strategic sociopolitical organization—is likely a lasting impact on the current existential struggle. Since 2022, the Fano struggle has made meticulous efforts to form a unified army structure. However, diverging opinions between those who view Amhara nationalism as a “means” and those who see it as a “strategic objective” have led to internal threats. Both groups rushed to elect a leader, resulting in Eskinder Nega’s victory over Zemene Kassie on July 17, 2024. Following the election, Zemene Kassie publicly disagreed with Eskinder Nega, highlighting their inability to work together.
The Role and Preservation of Fano virtues
Amidst this contradiction, Fano is vulnerable to subterfuge. As a cultural heritage symbolizing the Amhara people’s struggle for freedom and justice, Fano is not owned by any single political party. It facilitates political exercises but is not a political party per se. Currently, political leaders claim to be Fano, and Fano leaders claim to be politicians, confusing their roles and leveraging Fano for influence. Historically, Fano is a shared heritage of all Amhara people, irrespective of political or religious affiliations. Social media reactions and commentators emphasize maintaining Fano’s virtues as a common pride and heritage for all Amhara people.
Preventing Potential Authoritarianism
The current Fano structure lacks a clear distinction between its political wing and military wing. This situation has resulted in individuals with limited military leadership experience, and soldiers competing for leadership roles in the struggle. Neither group is ideal & suitable or fit to lead Fano; given the existing structural issues. First, the military wing should be organized and led by professional military staff, adhering to a strict chain of command based solely on military rank rather than elections. Second, the political wing should form a council, perhaps an executive committee, comprising representatives from all Fano commands, relevant political parties and concerned organizations. This council would provide a platform for debates and discussions, from which effective policies can emerge. While the military and political wings can engage in mutual discussions and evaluations at the policy level, they must remain independent entities. Military leaders should be appointed based on their rank and experience, while political leaders should be elected. Disregarding this implicit dual structure, and allowing any individual to seize power over both the military and political spheres could lead to disastrous consequences, as it would grant them absolute authority. Such a fused structure paves the way for dictatorship and authoritarianism. The Amhara people, who have already endured significant suffering and are now engaged in an existential struggle, deserve a leadership structure that prevents the concentration of power (potential authoritarianism), and promotes democratic governance.
Determining Factors for the Current Struggle
There are fundamental issues that need to be immediately addressed in the current existential struggle of the Amhara people. The primary issues is preservation of Fano’s virtues as a public identity, and protecting it from parties that seek to own it as their exclusive property. Second is the strategic decision regarding the utilization of Amhara nationalism. Whether it should be a tactical tool or strategic direction requires mutual understanding and agreement. Further divisions can be prevented through meticulous debates and discussions. Given the heightened ethnic consciousness and identity solidification of the Amhara people, especially after witnessing brutal massacres of innocent citizens due to their Amhara identity, Amhara nationalism can serve as a strategic guideline. The para-Ethiopianist wing’s elements can be incorporated into Amhara nationalism. For example, inclusiveness is a debated issue between the two blocs. However, Amhara nationalism can be defined to embrace all positive aspects of the “Ethiopia-destination” approach, including redefining who is Amhara.
Amhara is an ethnic identity anyone can naturally claim, based on association and a sense of membership. It can be as inclusive as Ethiopianism. In the current reality, other ethno-
nationalists view Ethiopianists as obsolete, and individuals born to parents from two different ethnic groups are unwelcome on both sides. Culturally, these individuals often practice and psychologically feel close to Amhara. Amhara nationalism should be open to embracing them. Regardless of blood purity, anyone who speaks Amharic as their first language or identifies as Amhara should be considered Amhara. Thus, Amhara nationalism is not that much narrower than Ethiopianism.
Conclusion
In spite of its success to build the military strength, lack of a clear political program posited Fano at a cross road. Diverging opinions between those who view Amhara nationalism as a “means” and those who see it as a “strategic objective” have led to internal threats. This dichotomous view on Amhara nationalism might divide Fano accordingly, regardless of its historical genesis and its virtues as a common heritage of all Amhara people. Hence, preservation of Fano’s unity and strategic agreement on the dialectic view of Amhara nationalism will have determining roles in the existential struggle.
The success of the current existential struggle depends on three factors: –
1. First is the preservation of Fano’s virtues as a public identity, protecting it from parties that seek to own it as their exclusive property.
2. Second is the strategic decision regarding the utilization of Amhara nationalism. Whether it should be a tactical tool or strategic direction requires mutual understanding and agreement. Further divisions can be prevented through meticulous debates and discussions. The dialectic view on Amhara nationalism— 1) using it as a means of organizing support until seizing power; and 2) as a strategic sociopolitical organization—is likely to make a lasting impact on the current existential struggle.
3. Third is the structural distinction of the military and political wing of Fano. This prevents potential authoritarianism. Unless the political wing is led by a politician and the Fano is led by a military staff; the compressed power of both falls in the hands of one person. Competitions to take that centralized power has been observed. Regardless of who will be elected to be a Fano leader, in its present structure, any one of the candidates will end up an elected dictator. This potential authoritarianism is preventable!
Editor’s note : Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com
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