Role Exchange: Amhara Elites for Independent Amharia, and Oromo Elites for Integrated Ethiopia?
By Fayyis Oromia*
I encouraged Oromo elites to struggle for the politics of majority rule—i.e., owning and transforming Ethiopia into “Oropia” (an Oromummaa-led country)—rather than fighting as a minority nationality solely for an independent Oromia. Now, it seems there is an emerging consensus among Oromo nationalists to democratize the existing federation. Oromos are seeking their legitimate share (approximately 60%) in all spheres of the federation’s life. However, this demand is interpreted by the historically dominant Amhara elites as Oromo domination in return—what they call teregninet(reciprocal domination).
In reality, the Oromo occupying up to 60% of all businesses and federal institutions would represent a legitimate share, not undue domination. Currently, however, the Oromo hold only about 16% of key positions, a figure that must be gradually adjusted toward proportional representation. Observing this trend, Amhara elites—who constitute around 10% of the population—are now contemplating an independent “Amharia” in response to a future Ethiopia based on genuinely shared governance. I had anticipated such a role exchange between Amhara and Oromo elites, and it’s interesting to see it materializing.
The OLF recently hinted that Oromia should exercise its right to self-determination from Ethiopia. Under current Amhara/Amharic domination, Ethiopia could be seen as “Amapia”—a country dominated by Amharanet. Under these conditions, the call for Oromia’s independence from this imperial system makes sense. But the status quo is changing. Ethiopia as Amapia is in decline, while Ethiopia as Oropia is slowly rising.
Dr. Abiy’s OPP is increasingly influenced by genuine Oromo nationalists who support bilisummaa (freedom). In the near future, we may witness Finfinne’s palace governed by such forces, and Afan Oromo promoted to the status of primary federal working language, replacing Amharic. In this context, the OLF should support this transformation from Amapia to Oropia. The call for Oromia’s independence will become obsolete, and instead, it may be Amhara elites seeking independence from a democratized Oropia-led Ethiopia.
Currently, many Amhara elites oppose ethnic federalism—as long as Amharic remains the dominant or sole federal language. This is because they still seek to preserve the process of Amharization, through which other nations—such as the Agaw and the Oromo of Wollo, Gojjam, Gondar, and Shoa—were converted into Amhara, often losing their native identities. If we revive these identities, the true Amhara population is no more than 10%, while the Agaw constitute around 20% and the Oromo at least 40%.
Once Afan Oromo becomes the primary federal language, the Amhara may need ethnic federalism more than anyone—to protect themselves from re-Oromization or re-Agawization. For the Oromo, Afan Oromo as a federal working language ensures no disadvantage under either ethnic or geographic federalism—i.e., de facto Oropia.
After the military defeat of the TPLF, Amhara elites and their allies (pro-Amharanet elites from other nations) viewed it as the defeat of the current constitution and federal system. They began to target the Oromo national movement as their next enemy, even claiming, “We removed Tigrayan elites, removing Oromo elites will be easier.” My suggestion: if we must dismantle the current constitution, let it happen after demoting Amharic to the status of a regional language and afterpromoting Afan Oromo to federal working language. Let the military, parliament, and federal institutions conduct their business in Afan Oromo. Would Amhara elites and their allies agree? Certainly not. They would cry foul—because their loyalty to the constitution and federalism is tied to Amharic’s dominance.
In a truly democratic Ethiopia, language status should reflect population size. Thus, Afan Oromo should be primary.
That said, promoting five major languages—Afan Oromo, Amharic, Somali, Tigrigna, and Afar (possibly adding more)—may offer a pragmatic solution to the language conflict. This inclusivity would strengthen Ethiopian unity and facilitate regional integration in the Horn. Amharic dominance must end. The freedom train has left the station—Ethiopia will either transform into de facto Oropia under Dr. Abiy or disintegrate into an independent Oromia under Obbo Galasa. The choice lies with all stakeholder nations and nationalities.
The Political Shift: From Amapia to Oropia
Habesha elites understand that democratizing Ethiopia essentially means transforming it into de facto Oromia. Increasingly, Oromo elites are beginning to grasp this fact as well. This is precisely why Habesha elites only pay lip service to democracy—because they understand its real implications. Some Oromo elites, however, still oppose the democratization of the empire, fearing it will be a trap. But in truth, a democratic Ethiopia is a de facto Oromia—a bigger Oromia than even the one envisioned by the OLF.
When I once responded to an Abyssinianist Oromo who tried to persuade Oromo nationalists to embrace Ethiopiawinet (Ethiopian nationalism) at the cost of Oromia and Oromummaa (Oromo nationalism), I received both criticism and support from Oromo nationals via email. Opponents argued that the federalist vision of a “democratic, genuinely federal Ethiopia” is fundamentally different from the concept of Oropia. They feared that democratization would simply continue the legacy of the Abyssinian empire under a new name.
Personally, I believe that Oromia within the womb of Ethiopia, as proposed by federalists, can serve as a transitional solution. It may lead either to a fully transformed Ethiopia—de jure Oropia—or to the eventual birth of an independent Oromia. Even in its transitional phase, this new democratic Ethiopia can be considered a de facto Oropia—if Oromo society adopts the name and concept proactively and if Afan Oromo becomes the working language of the federal government.
This essay argues that adopting Afan Oromo as the primary federal language is one of the clearest paths to making a democratized Ethiopia a de facto Oromia.
Language and Identity: Tools of Power
Only Abyssinian elites and a few culturally Habeshanized elites from other nations resist the idea of an Oromo-led Ethiopia with genuine ethnic federalism and internal self-determination. But such a transformation—an Ethiopia that reflects Oromia—is actually the best compromise for all peoples of the region. It ensures both national autonomy and regional integration.
Historically, Abyssinian elites’ rejection of self-determination prevented effective alliances with other oppressed nationalities against the TPLF regime. Their unwavering support for a unitary Ethiopia came at the cost of autonomy for other nations. When Oromo nationalists suggested a compromise—accepting Ethiopian unity only if Afan Oromo becomes the sole working language of the federation—many Abyssinian elites balked. But this proposition is key to testing their commitment to true unity.
If Habesha elites are serious about unity, let them agree to demote Amharic to the regional language of Amhara and promote Afan Oromo as the only federal working language. If they accept, then we can finally evaluate whether their “Ethiopiawinet” is truly about unity or just a vehicle for continued cultural dominance through Amharic. If they refuse, then their calls for unity must be reinterpreted as demands for continued Amhara hegemony.
After over a century of Afan Oromo suppression, I cannot help but reflect on the missed opportunity of Oromo leaders like Obbo Qusee Dinagde and Obbo Gobana Daccee. These empire-builders made a historic mistake by accepting Amharic as the sole language of the empire, thus sacrificing Afan Oromo. Had they elevated Afan Oromo instead, the political and linguistic dynamics of the empire would be completely different today. The elite class in Finfinne and the Ethiopian diaspora would now speak Afan Oromo. “Being Ethiopian” would have come to mean “being Oromo” rather than “being Amhara.”
Language as a Mirror of Power Dynamics
Many Abyssinian elites today view themselves as defenders of Ethiopiawinet and opponents of “ethnic politics.” They present themselves as moral champions of national unity. But let’s test this moral posture. What happens when we reverse the linguistic hierarchy? Let’s demote Amharic to a regional language and promote Afan Oromo as the only federal working language. Under such conditions, Oromo nationals would likely begin to embrace Ethiopian identity and denounce ethnic politics—while Amhara elites, now feeling the pressure of “Oromonization,” would suddenly start defending ethnic identity and calling for self-determination.
This thought experiment demonstrates how language is a key driver of identity and power. Oromo demands for linguistic equity are not about hegemony; they are about parity. If Oromo elites request that Afan Oromo replace Amharic, it’s not a push for domination—it’s a mirror held up to Amhara elites, showing how linguistic privilege underpins their political power. If they feel uneasy about being “Oromonized,” then they must understand why Oromo and other nations reject being “Amharanized.”
Some Abyssinian elites claim they support a public referendum on the federal working language. But before we can ask the public to vote on language, we must first allow them to choose the type of sovereignty they want. Why should a democracy be incomplete, denying the people the right to determine their own destiny?
Critics often accuse Oromo elites of harboring resentment against historical figures like Menelik or Meles. But this is not about individual historical grievances—it’s about the continuity of a system. Modern-day Habesha elites continue to pursue the same cultural and linguistic domination their forebears practiced, even while they hide behind rhetoric about unity.
Five Language Policy Options for a Future Federal Union
Some Oromo elites argue that language is one of the most significant and unresolved factors of conflict in the Ethiopian state. If Abyssinian elites disagree with this premise, then let’s test it in practice: demote Amharic to a regional language used solely within Amhara, and promote Afan Oromo to the status of the only federal language. If that happens, Oromo elites will likely embrace unconditional Ethiopian unity, denounce ethnicity, and even reconsider the necessity of national self-determination. Will Abyssinian elites, in turn, fully embrace Afan Oromo as the working language of the state, and encourage their children and communities to learn it enthusiastically?
If so, this could form the basis for a lasting democratic union. If not, then we must understand the resistance for what it is: an unwillingness to give up long-standing linguistic privilege.
Looking to the future, and with a desire for compromise and coexistence, we must consider five potential language policy options for a future inclusive federation—what I refer to as Oropia:
- 1) A Union of Free Nations in Oropia with Self-Determination and English as a Common Federal Language
In this model, each nation uses its own language domestically, while English serves as the shared administrative and working language of the federation. This minimizes internal power struggles over local versus national languages, ensures neutrality, and aligns with international communication standards. It is the most equitable and least contentious option—especially for smaller nations.
- 2) A Federal Oropia with Afan Oromo as the Only Federal Language
This option gives due recognition to the largest linguistic group in the country. With around 40% of the population, the Oromo majority would see their language assume its rightful place in national life. If the federation is to represent the majority, this is a democratic and proportional solution. But it could trigger fear of “Oromonization” among smaller or historically dominant groups.
- 3) A Federal Union with Five Working Languages
In this inclusive approach, Afan Oromo, Amharic, Somali, Tigrigna, and Afar (or possibly English) are adopted as federal working languages. This would allow representation of Ethiopia’s major linguistic blocs and help avoid perceived favoritism. It would promote regional balance and better integration of all major nationalities.
- 4) A Dual-Language Federation: Afan Oromo and Amharic
This compromise allows both Oromo and Amhara populations to feel represented at the federal level. While less inclusive of smaller nations, it could serve as a transitional model until multilingual integration becomes practical. However, it may continue to place an unfair learning burden on other nations’ children.
- 5) A Federation with Amharic as the Sole Federal Language (Status Quo)
This model has proven unsustainable. It privileges a minority (Amhara) and burdens other nations with assimilation. Under this arrangement, Ethiopiawinet continues to function as a euphemism for Amharanet. The status quo has failed to create national unity, and persisting with it risks further alienation and disintegration.
Evaluating the Models
In practice, many pro-democracy Abyssinian elites seem to prefer Option 4—maintaining both Amharic and Afan Oromo as federal languages. They see Option 5 as a failed project but hesitate to go further toward Option 2 or 3, which would require deeper structural changes.
Several Oromo elites view Option 1—the union of free nations with English as a neutral working language—as the best solution. It allows each nation to retain autonomy while working together regionally.
But if Abyssinian elites continue to reject the right of nations to self-determination while demanding unconditional unity, then they must also be willing to test Option 2. Only then can they experience what it means to be “an Ethiopian” under a new cultural and linguistic order—one where Ethiopiawinet = Oromummà, not Amaranet.
If they reject this, they should at least show empathy for Oromo elites who have long rejected Option 5. It is unfair to label these Oromo voices as “exclusionary,” when in fact they are demanding only what has been granted to others for generations: recognition, representation, and respect.
TPLF’s Language Manipulation and the Manufactured Divide
A key reason for the current political and linguistic crisis is the manipulative role played by the TPLF during its nearly three-decade rule. Contrary to its official federalist rhetoric, the TPLF effectively upheld Amharic as the primary working language of the federation—thereby maintaining continuity with the centralized empire it claimed to oppose.
Why did the TPLF—representing a numerically small nation—promote Amharic rather than its own Tigrigna or a more neutral option like English or Afan Oromo?
The answer is strategic: the TPLF sought to maintain the historical rivalry between Amhara and Oromo elites. By privileging Amharic and marginalizing Afan Oromo, they ensured that the two largest groups in the country would remain locked in cultural and political conflict—thus weakening both. This divide-and-rule approach allowed the TPLF to dominate federal institutions while avoiding a unified public uprising against their rule.
Although the Amhara people themselves were politically and economically marginalized under the TPLF, they continued to enjoy cultural and linguistic privilege through Amharic. This privilege was resented by other nations—including the Oromo—who rightly interpreted it as a subtle continuation of historical Amhara domination. In the eyes of many, Amhara elites were perceived as co-beneficiaries of an oppressive federal system, even if they were not its architects.
This perception, whether fully accurate or not, sustained ethnic tensions and delayed the emergence of a shared struggle for justice, democracy, and equality across all Ethiopian nationalities.
Language, Power, and the Burden of Assimilation
When it comes to language policy, we must be guided by one core principle: equity in opportunity, not uniformity in identity.
Today, children from non-Amhara nations are expected to learn three languages: their own mother tongue, Amharic, and English. Meanwhile, Amhara children typically learn only Amharic and English. This inequity puts additional burdens—academic, emotional, and psychological—on already marginalized communities.
If Ethiopia is to survive as a true federation, this structural injustice must be addressed. Ideally, all children across all nations should be required to learn only two languages: their own mother tongue and a neutral international language—such as English. This would free future generations from the burden of linguistic assimilation and help equalize opportunities across all nations.
Of course, multilingualism is not a bad thing in itself. But compulsory assimilation under the guise of national unity is neither democratic nor sustainable.
Amharic Nationalism Disguised as Ethiopian Unity
Let us return to the political psychology behind Amhara elites’ obsession with maintaining Amharic as the dominant federal language. Their insistence on unconditional unity is not about democratic inclusion; rather, it often masks a deeper desire to preserve Amharanet under the label of Ethiopiawinet.
This conflation of Ethiopia with Amhara identity has long been used to justify assimilationist policies. By promoting Amharic as the sole language of power and administration, the cultural elite sought to turn all other nations into mere “raw material”—to be processed into the finished product of a so-called “modern Ethiopian citizen,” who inevitably looked, spoke, and behaved like an Amhara.
This is how entire communities—such as the Agaw of Gojjam and Gondar, or the Oromo of Wollo, Gojjam, Shoa, and Gondar—gradually lost their original identities and adopted Amhara culture. These processes of Amharization were rarely questioned, much less challenged, until recently.
Today, with the rise of Oromummaa and the political awakening of other nations, these assimilated identities are being re-evaluated. As a result, the proportion of people identifying strictly as Amhara may now be as low as 10%, while re-Agawized and re-Oromized identities are beginning to reassert themselves.
Towards Oropia: A Transitional, Democratic, and Inclusive Federation
Recognizing the shifting political landscape, I see a genuine opportunity for transforming the current Ethiopian state from an empire of domination into a federation of dignity — one that I call Oropia.
This Oropia would not be a unitary state disguised as a federation, as Ethiopia has long been. Nor would it necessarily be an independent Oromia severed from all others. Instead, it would be a transitional and integrative federation in which all nations enjoy internal self-determination and shared federal governance. It would serve as a bridge — a step either toward full independence or a truly voluntary and equal union of nations.
Oropia would differ from the Ethiopia of Menelik and Meles. It would no longer be a geopolitical entity built on the cultural domination of one group, nor a federation of paper rights with real-world apartheid. Instead, it would be a genuinely multi-national democracy, rooted in the principles of:
- National autonomy
- Equitable language representation
- Voluntary unity
- Democratic federalism
In such a reimagined state, Afan Oromo — as the language of the largest nation — must be elevated to the status of primary working language of the federation. Not to dominate others, but to restore the balance and neutralize the linguistic imperialism of the past century. In this scenario, being Ethiopian would no longer mean becoming Amhara. It could mean becoming a citizen of Oropia, whose identity reflects a blend of cultures with Oromummaa at its center, just as Habeshanet was once the unspoken standard.
From Empire to Federation, from Domination to Compromise
Some might resist this vision, calling it a hidden plan for “Oromo domination.” But such critiques ignore history. For over a century, Oromo identity, language, and culture were suppressed in the name of “national unity.” To reverse such systemic inequality is not “domination”; it is justice.
Still, I do not propose revenge or cultural hegemony. What I propose is a role exchange — a historical reset — that allows all nations to understand each other better. Just as Oromo elites were long expected to internalize and respect Amharic-led Ethiopiawinet, I ask Amhara elites and others to experience what it means to live under an Oromo-led federal order — not to erase their identity, but to equalize relationships among nations.
If Amhara elites are sincere about democracy and unity, then they must be equally willing to live in a system where Afan Oromo is the federal language and Oromummaa is a defining element of the national culture. If they reject this vision, they must understand why many Oromo elites reject an Ethiopian identity rooted in Amharanet.
It is this empathy — not uniformity — that forms the basis of a lasting, democratic future.
Oropia: A Pathway, Not a Final Destination
This democratized Ethiopia — this de facto Oropia — need not be the final destination. It can be a transitional arrangement:
- If all nations agree on a deeper transformation, we can move toward de jure Oropia — a renamed, restructured, multi-national republic.
- If others choose to leave the union, the Oromo will have earned the right to an independent Oromia, not by force or secession, but through patient democratic struggle.
Even symbols matter in this transformation. I envision a future federation where Odà, the emblem of Gadaa democracy, becomes central to the flag — signifying shared rule, not imposed order. This would be a federation where the rule of law, democratic values, and national dignity replace the old imperial legacies of assimilation and domination.
This vision aligns with the principles long held by Oromo nationalists — including those within the OLF, and even federalist reformers like Dr. Abiy Ahmed, if he truly follows through on his early promises. A democratized Ethiopia — one that centers justice, equality, and Afan Oromo — may be the only realistic compromise between empire and disintegration.
Conclusion: No Return to the Past, Only Forward to Oropia
In conclusion, there can be no return to the Derg’s assimilationist Ethiopia or the TPLF’s apartheid federation. What lies ahead is either:
- The birth of an independent Oromia, or
- The transformation of Ethiopia into Oropia — a democratic union of equal nations.
Let us not be distracted by fear, nostalgia, or rhetorical nationalism. Let us build a new political contract — one grounded in mutual respect, fair representation, and linguistic justice.
May Wàqàa grant us the wisdom and courage to accept a future of accommodative Ethiopia, which is in practice integrative Oropia. May this transitional arrangement pave the way either toward a just union or a peaceful separation.
Let there be no more imperial Ethiopia. Let us now shape an Oropia of hope and equality.
Galatoomaa.
Read more:https://orompia.wordpress.com/2018/11/1 ... y-dr-abiy/