By:Getahun Tsegaye
Staff Reporter
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – The administration of the Wolkait-Tegede-Setit Humera Zone, part of Amhara Regional State, has issued a strong response to an April 18 statement by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Tigray regional government, which accused the Amhara authorities of violating constitutional norms and the Pretoria Agreement by asserting control over the contested Wolkait area.
In its rebuttal, the zone’s administration reaffirmed its commitment to peace and development, while accusing the TPLF of misrepresenting the situation for political gain. “Yesterday, today, and tomorrow—our agenda is peace,” the statement began.
“The TPLF tries to act like a peace ambassador, but in reality, it criminalizes the peace and development activities happening in our zone,” it continued, framing the TPLF’s narrative as a “deep-rooted” habit of distorting facts to serve its interests.
The Wolkait administration emphasized that the region’s people have long suffered under TPLF rule and now value peace more than ever. “For the people who lived through 27 years of TPLF’s oppressive regime, peace has a unique meaning. That’s why we tirelessly work, struggle, and stand for it,” the statement read.
Officials further asserted that it was the local population that demanded the TPLF’s removal from the area. “It was the people of Wolkait-Tegede-Setit Humera who demanded the TPLF leave—not the other way around.”
The statement also accused the TPLF of undermining Ethiopia’s federal system and the Pretoria Agreement. “It is a group that has always disrespected the constitution and continues to violate the Pretoria peace deal—one it neither believes in nor upholds,” the zone declared.
Tensions between the Amhara and Tigray regional states are once again boiling over the highly contested Wolkait-Tsegede-Setit Humera administrative zone. On April 16, the Amhara Media Corporation reported a military-style graduation ceremony involving senior leaders from the disputed zone. Officials, including Zone Chief Administrator Ashete Demlew and Colonel Demeke Zewdu, completed a military training program allegedly aimed at enhancing leadership and peace enforcement capacities in the region.
The ceremony, rich in symbolism and political messaging, strongly portrayed Wolkait as inherently part of the Amhara region. Colonel Demeke, a key figure in the Wolkait movement, declared the importance of organizing and arming local leaders to “resist subjugation” and defend “our identity.”
From the perspective of the Tigray Regional Government, these declarations amount to a direct challenge to Ethiopia’s constitutional order and the Pretoria Agreement, which ended the two-year civil war between the federal government and the TPLF. Reacting swiftly, the Tigray Communication Bureau released a statement the same day, condemning what it called “an unconstitutional act” and “a direct breach of the Pretoria Agreement.”
The Tigrayan side warned that such moves risk destabilizing the already fragile peace and called on the federal government to intervene and take legal action against what it views as territorial encroachment.
Despite the heightened rhetoric, the Amhara administration insists it is not seeking confrontation. “We are peacekeepers, not aggressors,” the Wolkait statement declared, adding, “Our mission is to protect our people, not to provoke others.”
The administration concluded by reiterating its commitment to the Pretoria Peace Agreement. “We have consistently supported its full implementation from the beginning. Ensuring that agreement is honored is not just essential for our zone, but for sustainable peace across Ethiopia.”
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